Birthdays are a blessing!

"Birthdays are meant to feel blessed!"

My daughter turns 21 years old!  She is one of our greatest blessings and we have been blessed to have such a wonderful girl in our lives.  She is independent, kind, creative, and will give you her last penny if she knew it would help you.  


She has grown to be such a loving and caring individual.  She has a lot of heart.  She has the world in her hands and I know is going to continue to do great things in life.  She has so much ambition and I can't wait to see all that she becomes.

So, here's to her on this special 21st birthday!  Our daughter, our first born....

As a baby and then at her 5th beach birthday party! 

Drill team dancer!  She loves dance! 

Picking out the RIGHT prom dress was a big challenge!  It took lots of trying on to do! 

Until the final one we found!  Oddly, it was the most expensive too! What do ya know?  She looked gorgeous in it though!  This is her with her two dearest high school friends. 

 The coolest big cousin

Senior year Easter basket

The Dance Instructor

The most awesome big sister

Such a daddy's girl to heart! But she also loves her momma!

Hard working employee!  She is very creative!  She made this costume herself.

Beautiful girl! She is just the most fun to be around. 

With the boyfriend

Loyal friend! 

Inseparable friends :)

So, there you have it!  The little miracle who turned into one of our biggest blessings!  Cheers to her 21st birthday!  May she continue to have the world in her hands!  

Lots of love!  

Love, 

Mom

A Clean Room-finally!

My son decides to FINALLY clean his room. Now you have to know that my son just turned 14 and I've come to a point where I don't clean my kids' rooms. They are old enough to get it to the impeccable messy space that it is, then they can get it back to its origin too.

He decides to clean and he spends an entire day til 1 am late that evening to clean. He even got rid of some of his "childhood" items and replaced them with an NFL cheerleader calendar and pictures. SON?! I say, however my husband says, well he IS growing up-not the little boy anymore. Yikes!

The next morning I find two LARGE bags of clothes he is parting with and 5 smaller bags of things he called "trash." Now it took everything inside of me to actually go against my first gut feeling of just throw it out, just give it away. But there was a small part of me that thought...hmmm...I may want to go through everything. Luckily I did! I come to find several clothing items that I could give to my nephew as well as a work shirt I've been looking everywhere for-along with several brand new shirts he never wore and still had tags! I also found his baby clothes I was saving! So, I began to sort all the clothes and actually give some to my nephew and a friend of mine.

Now, I had to sort through the "trash." I end up coming across my kids' old Sesame Street videos they watched as babies, a couple of old home videos of them when they were little, several good belts, some of his baby toys I was saving, good books that could be passed on, a homemade book he made when he was in first grade (and I was his teacher!) and his musical drum pad set we gave him one year for Christmas when he was just getting into playing the drums. Son-this is not trash! We can give these things to other people! There I go sorting again.

He has a sparkling clean room now which I am ever so grateful! I am also grateful to have things to give to others. I wonder how long his room will stay this immaculate? Only time will tell.

If you really knew me...

I have seen this blog topic going around and thought it to be a fun one to do.  I did get this from Brandy @ A Little Bit of Brandy who also followed suit from a fellow blogger, who in turned followed another blogger....etc... I'm sure you get it by now.  You could probably find the trail if you dug deep enough.  :)

*On a side note...I'd like to give special thanks to Britt @ Designed to Inspire who gave me a blog makeover that I just love!  Thanks for your time and patience Britt!

Here we go...

If you really knew ME....

You'd know that I talk a lot with my hands.  I never noticed how much until I was interviewing someone and they couldn't help, but watch my hands more than my eyes!  It was driving me crazy!  I need to work on that.

You'd know I was a teen mom.

You'd know that my family means the world to me.  I am very protective when it comes to them.

You'd know that I love being an aunt and I have 5 nieces that I just adore!!  Each one of them has something about them that reminds me of my daughter when she was their age.  I can just hug on them forever.  My nephews are my boys...I love those crazy kids too!

You'd know that I have a very supportive and loving husband who isn't afraid of anything.  I admire this about him.  Our life is so adventurous and fun because of him.  I probably would be living a boring life if it wasn't for him always making me try new things.  I love this about him.

You'd know that I get emotional when it comes to my kids growing up.

You'd know that I fear flying, but I still do it.

You'd know that I love books and own enough books to open up a bookstore.  I wonder if actual books will ever become an 'antique' item one day?  If so, I'd become a wealthy person!

You'd know that I love learning about history and how things used to be. I love all things classic-anything from the 1950's and earlier I find is quite interesting. Things seemed to be so simple. 


You'd know that I have a great love for children.  I love teaching them new things.  I love their perspective on things.  If you want to know the absolute truth about anything, ask a child.

You'd know that my dream trip would be to spend a week or two in New York.  Second would be an extended stay on any of the islands in the Caribbean-Curacao, St. Lucia, Virgin Islands, St. Croix etc... heck...why not all?

You'd know that I never liked being tall, even though everyone always tells me it is such a blessing to have the height.

You'd know that my car radio is usually set to country music stations.

You'd know that I love being home or on a beach.  I think I will buy a beach house.  That will knock these two out in a heartbeat.

You'd know that nothing stops me from doing what I want to do.  I set my goals and somehow make them work.  Barriers do not exist in my world.

You'd know that I treasure my friendships with my girlfriends.  Each one has their own unique characteristics that I admire about them.  

You'd know that I can't watch violent movies.  I will literally cover my eyes during the parts.

You'd know that I love anything with chocolate, yet it makes me sleepy.  I have to eat it in small pieces and even then I will begin to nod off.  Please don't give me a brownie!  I'll be gone for the night!

You'd know that I get terribly nervous speaking in front of adults, even though I do this daily as part of my job.  Who would have "thunk" it?


You'd know that one of my weaknesses is butter popcorn at the movies.  I can eat almost a whole bucket so I avoid going to the movies just so I don't do this.  


You'd know that I have a LOVE for purses and bags.  I have more purses and bags than I do shoes and maybe even clothes.


You'd know that my idea of a good night would include my husband and I hanging out outside with a fire going, cold drinks, country music playing and good conversation that lasts all night.


You'd know that I am a bargain shopper, but I will spend top dollar on bags, purses, hair products, and books. 


There I go......out in the open.........


Have a great weekend! 











   



  

On my mind

It's been raining all week and I have not one complaint. This time last year we were praying for rain. It was so dry that there was a water conservation put out. We could only water the grass, wash cars, etc... On certain days. Then the foundations to people's homes were beginning to crack. That was amounting to lots of money and insurances of course go up during crisis such as these. Trees were dying and had to be cut down. Almost no one had grass, just dirt. My front lawn sure did disappear! It was pretty bad. So, let it rain, let it pour!

These pictures below were from my drive to my son's school this morning. It was a bit scary! I don't like driving in the rain one bit. I'd much rather be home. Days like these are days I wish I had an SUV.

Can you imagine being in a small size car and driving between these two towers?

So, I have a few things on my mind. Work is one, since I will be going back in a few weeks and getting into the regular routine again. But first let me talk about my 30 day challenge. You know I love a challenge! I'm not as active as I want to be...so I challenged myself to do 30 miles in 30 days. I wonder if I can do this? I'm on day 4 now which makes me feel safe to talk about it. What is the rule about how many times you have to do something to make it a habit? Well, not only do I want to be more active, but I also want to be more healthy. So, I'm even doing my best to stay on a 1200 calorie a day plan, not a diet...but a plan. I don't like to say diets because I don't like them. They are too restrictive. As soon as you go one one you want everything you can't have. With this, I can have what I want, but I just have to keep it under 1200. If my plan works, I won't just be more active, but the bonus is I will be more fit. Hope I can pull this off!

This thing is not always my friend...but I'm going to try and at least play nice.

Lots of walking can go a long way!

And last, but certainly not least I have my new adventure or shall I say my new hobby on my mind. I use to watch and hear about my little sister sell her Mary Kay and how creative she was at doing it. I loved her style and decided I want something like that. I came across Thirty-One and I love bags and purses so what better than selling what I love! So, this is what I want my display to look like.

But this is what it looks right now-only different style.

The one on the right is the hot skirt purse I want to get! I love how you buy the purse then you just change out the "skirts" to change up the look. Gives you a whole new look without having to buy a whole new purse!

I found this to be so cute with my name on it. This is one of those picnic blankets. Cute don't ya think?! Yes, even the bags can be personalized!

If you see something you like, click on my Thirty-one button on the left. :)

I really need to get to this store to get some crafty things to make for my business.

Hope you all are enjoying your summer! And while you are at it....tell me what's on your mind?

911

This is a picture of a good friend of my husband's. He was there when all the events of 911 happened. He was a paramedic. The stories he has to tell of this grim day are amazing-amazing in the detail and all that he recalled about the events that took place that day. He is visiting the Memorial today-what I believe is the first time. His girlfriend takes a step back to snap this picture. I think the picture speaks a thousand words.

July...how do I love thee...

July has arrived!  I love the month of July (especially this year) for several reasons...

Pool parties.
4th of July.
Picnics and BBQ.
The beach.
Fireworks!
My daughter's birthday.
My birthday.
It is the middle of the year and we are half way til Christmas.
Our Vegas Vacation is near!
I will become a 31 Consultant.

There are also reasons I am not fond of July...

School supplies start appearing on the Walmart and Target shelves.
It is extremely HOT!
Christmas will be here soon and I need to start saving!
Mosquitos in Texas get really bad!
The month goes by too fast.

July is the month to recheck those lists of resolutions to see if you stayed on track.  The typical answer is no...but if you did at least one thing you said you would do, then that is a good thing.

So, the summer is really flying and I am really excited about starting a new venture.  I am not one to sit still during any phase in my life.  I'm always juggling several things at a time, which makes summer very rewarding and yet makes me very fidgety.  A few summers back(-quite a few), We contemplated having another baby.  My husband and I would go back and forth with the idea.   Then we tried and were not successful.  Then I was back at work and was a bit okay with the idea that it didn't happen because I didn't know how we would have managed a tot in our lives again.  Although I know we would have been fine.  It would have just been an adjustment-a huge one at that.  We were so use to getting up and going at the drop of a hat to do and go wherever we wanted.  Nonetheless, it would have been a very nice and warm feeling to have a little one running around in this home again.  I envy (in a good way) those families with more children than I have-like my sisters.  I know it must be tough raising them when they are young, but it is so worth it.

Needless to say we put that desire of adding on to our family behind us and moved on.  Now that our oldest is about to hit 21 and our youngest is now 14 we love it.  But don't get me wrong, if I am blessed with another child even during this time in my life, it would be just that.. a blessing and I would love it.  In the meantime, my husband and I will just wait til the time comes that our children bring us grandchildren.  I hear those are the best! :)  So, we secretly can't wait for the time to come, but we can wait patiently.  

So, getting back to my "venture,"  I've decided to sign up to be a consultant for the company Thirty-One.  If you are not familiar with Thirty-One, it is a company that sells all kinds of bags and organizational items.  I love the product!  I know I am quite the busy bee, but like I said- I was getting quite fidgety and wanted to do more.  I am going to at least try it out to see how it works.  I am not in it to get rich, but what girl doesn't like a few extra nickels and dimes in her account?  I am really excited about this and hope that it is successful!

I hope you all have a fun week!