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

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!

Simple Things Sunday-Birthday edition

I am having a special edition to the Simple Things Sunday.  My son turns 14 Monday and I want to celebrate the simple things about him.  

(If you want to find out about Simple Things Sunday-click here thanks to Rebecca at Simple As That)

My son was born 14 years ago and has been a blessing to our lives.  He is our second born and baby of the family.  I had the fortunate opportunity to stay home with him when he was born.  I enjoyed every minute of it and feel that was the best thing I could have ever done for him.  I loved being a mom and never minded having to wake up in the middle of the night to get his bottle or comfort him.  Until the age of 5, he only was allowed to watch PBS/PBS kids on TV.  That turned to be a great thing because he ended up acquiring so much from the learning channel.  Five wasn't a magical age, however it was the age where he started to discover other cartoon related channels and wanted to watch those too.  I just made those not as accessible.  He has grown to be one that is very fond of fortune and knows what he wants as well as what he doesn't want.  He is a private person for the most part and will let you in when he wants you to let you in.  He is a whiz with the computer and all things technical.  He was a huge video game player, but lately its seems to be taking less and less of his time.  

When he began middle school I was so afraid of how he would fit in or get along in school.  Amazingly, he handled middle school quite fine.  He tried everything! From Odyssey of the Mind, choir, band, football, soccer, Honor Society, you name it...he tried it and did quite well.  Now he is about to enter high school and has selected to be a part of the band on the Drumline and continue with choir.  I know he will do wonders in high school.  

So, here's to my son, the birthday boy!  May he continue to have the courage to try and never give up on all that he wants.  May he have a wonderful 14th birthday! 

Baseball player

 With his big sister....Snowing in Texas! 

Soccer player

  

Dr. Seuss day at school

His surprise look when he got his first cell phone for his 11th birthday-the summer before entering middle school

Friends and cousins around the fire.  The kids were about 10 years old here. 

Drummer Boy-here he and his cousin are demonstrating their music skills they have just acquired in school

At the local baseball game where he sang the National Anthem with his school choir 

Football player-he never likes taking pictures 

14th birthday celebration-Cake time!

Childhood friends-turn teenagers

Wishing you a wonderful simple Sunday!