For he is a jolly good fellow, for he is a jolly good fellow, for he is a jolly good fellowwwwwwww!
It is birthday season in our house and this little entry goes out to my fellas.......YEP - both of them! For shortly after my husbands birthday I went in to labor with our first born son. If that ain't the hum-dinger of all birthday presents....I don't know what is!
Fella #1, my sweet husband of nearly 21 years. WOH, did I just say that? Twenty-one years....really? You know I always have to ask you for the dates and time frame, but I am still surprised! I have known you more than half my life and we have grown up together.
I have seen the finger prints of God all over your life. I have seen how he has taken you one step at a time in to a life of victory. You've done hard things. I've done hard things. We've done hard things. God has been so very good to us and I am so thankful that He made you and saved you! And I am so thankful He didn't leave us as we were to be saved and that's it! I much like the fella staring back at me each day. The guy who peers through eyes of love and freedom. The fellow I see these days is much more attractive than the young fellow with wavy hair and six pack (to all those like me out there....a six pack is not beer! I know.....I know.....this had to be explained to me too).
You are the love of my life! We grew up together and I pray that if the Lord tarries we will have the joy to continue to grow old together. You are so special to me Gary! You are the laughter of this home and the lover of life around here and I sorta enjoy the fact that we're often the only ones that truly see your comedic side. This morning I woke up thinking about the horn on your car and your reenactment from yesterday. How you can make something SO FUNNY!
And to our Bub! Fellow #2 - All I can say is that I thank God for you! And I thank the Lord for what he has done in your life. You're not the average-run-of-the-mill teenager! Our journey in raising you has had a few little bumps, but no pot holes! And I cannot think of how I deserve being your mother! God is sooooo good and merciful!
This morning I have been thinking of this past year. The lessons we have learned this year, your 18th, I will forever cherish and thank God for! Because of you and what the Lord has taught us through you, we are determined to keep these precious lessons we have learned for the others! I am so thankful for your honesty and transparency. I know it is not easy for you, but like your father...... you do hard things! When I think of what a man is suppose to be, I am greatly encouraged by you and your dad. I have seen hard men, religious men, foolish men, and men beaten up by life. Your dad and you are soft men. True men. Wise men. And determined men.
May God bless you in the coming years Bub! I will continue to pray for your life AND your wife, lol! You know how serious I take that one! God's gonna bless you in all areas Bub. Continue to follow HIM!
HAPPY 19th!
And this vid is for both of you. It's what came to my mind for today and I dedicate this to both of you. hugs ((((()))))))) and kisses *********, love Me :O)
Jamice recently had the privilege of getting to know some great people on the set of a new film. They have just released the trailer and you can find it at the webpage here:
I've been waiting to post Bub's latest short on the blog as well. He's been very busy the past few months and he's looking forward to a productive year with many exciting opportunities. The song that comes to mind when I think of what he's doing is GOD WILL MAKE A WAY. 'He works in ways we cannot see....He will make a way for me. He will be my guide, hold me closely to his side.....' Love that song!
At this moment the younger children are QUIETLY playing with toys in the room next to me. The two eldest are working together in the kitchen and dining room while I type - trying to think of what to write this Christmas. Christmas music is playing in the background, old time Christmas music......Sleigh Ride.....bringing back childhood moods.
I never posted many Thanksgiving photos....so I am doing that now while it is fresh in my brain space. Jo and I are getting ready for a special someones birthday. She/We will work on an airplane cake for the birthday child and he will feel SOOOOO special. That's the plan anyways......
We've got an idea for the birthday boys cake, as well as a fabulous idea for a Christmas cake. I'm especially excited about that one.........
Jo put this cake together for her Grandfather for Thanksgiving. Grandpa LOVES carrot cake, so she created the little ditty above as a special treat for him because he's SO SWEET!
Here's today's shopping results. I only had about an hour or so to prepare (a few days ago) and could only visit my local grocery store. The results were excellent though and here they are:
The children were overjoyed seeing 8 boxes of cereal arrive and I was quite chipper with the price.....$1 per box!
I prayed before I left that the Lord would bless me with deals on meat. He did just that! Included in the savings were 2 large packages of drumsticks, 2 large packages of thin cut steak and 4 packages of smoked sausage! The meats totaled about $15 of the total bill.
Yogurt is always a necessity! I love making homemade yogurt and usually do that by the gallon, but I have not found the time to do this for quite a while now. We have been buying the yogurt (large size) and today were blessed with $1.00 off on each. True savings!
The total bill for everything on the table was $51.09. The total savings was $62.89. Tonight I am planning on making homemade soup using the carrots, cabbage, sausage, and some barley and spinach we have leftover. I think I'll make some homemade biscuits as well. The temperature is falling once again and soup is PERFECT in chilly weather!
Jo wants to bless us w/some sugar cookies for desert and I'm not sure if we'll have cocoa with that as well. I think we'll enjoy some warm food and cuddle up with a good book tonight!
The savings was recently depleted a bit and I'm focused on doing all I can do to help replenish those reserves! God is good and has once again provided opportunities for savings!
School has went well for our first week back and before we know it we'll be facing another short holiday. LOVE Christmas! LOVE the reason and meaning! LOVE family! LOVE all the good eats!
It's that time of year again..... The weather gets cool, or downright c~o~l~d, everyone is in the mood for cocoa and cookies and holiday music is playing everywhere!
One of our Christmas traditions is making Christmas cookies and I thought I'd share a few photos on the blog.
We had fun surprising the children with the tree and all the fixins for the cookies and cocoa. As usual, Jo headed up the cookie decorating and everyone had more than their fair share of yummies.
Gary and I made our homemade potato soup (which is a family favorite) and it was exceedingly memorable finding the handmade ornaments from years gone by.
It's impossible, in my opinion, to build a family of love and unity without time together.
*Dad & his helper making homemade fajitas for family night......YUM.
It's so very easy to get caught up in the day-to-day, everyday, and lose track of what's most important.
One of our favorite things to do is to find a good book and spend our evenings and nights reading together. Several times a year we put almost everything aside to do this. There have been good books we have read and then there have been GREAT books. The great books are the ones where we can think of doing nothing but read the book! We stay up until 1:oo in the morning reading and think about the book the entire day after wards. The great books are the ones that you find hard to pull away from, but at the same time add to your character and draw you closer to the Lord.
*All the fixins......
Some of these great books are on sale TODAY ONLY! Up to 70% off! Two of our favorites are on this list!!! PLEASE go check it out. It may be one of the neatest things you have ever done as a family. Especially if you have ages 11 and above. These have been some of the most precious and memory making times we have had with our eldest children!
I recently had a conversation in regards to how we live, survive, and do extra activities on one income. I pondered that conversation as I scrolled through the years photo book. We really have done a lot this year, but at every turn the activities were VERY inexpensive.
There was the boating trip, our journey to the Aquarium, cavern explorations, and today's trip to downtown Disney, among other things. And thinking back I am a little amazed at how little we spent, but how much fun we had!
Today's festivities began with dining at a fantastic restaurant! The Rainforest Cafe. We literally walked in to the restaurant and our children's mouths fell open as they stood in awe and silence. You seriously walk in to another world! Very much worth a visit.....
Now for the savings part of the post.....
*Before leaving the house we printed out a $10 coupon. Money saved is money earned.....right? Cha-ching! *The next savings came by way of FREE parking. That is always a perk (and something to check for as well). *Once arriving we realized we could save $20 just by ordering water! Cha-ching - $30 savings! The next savings came in the way of ordering and splitting appetizers. Gary and I do this all the time! Our last three dates have been to chilis where we get mighty full off of a specific appetizer and waters. Our bill, before tip, is around $10. That's how we can afford these often dates I suppose but I digress.....
Once we finished our meal we headed out in to the center. We walked in and out of shops and stayed at Lego land for a while. The children played with legos and played on the playground for quite some time. VERY FUN! And VERY FREE!
Lego dogs *above*
Then we meandered through the various shops and restaurants and before leaving the park were blessed with free chocolates at the chocolate shop. That could have been our desert for the evening and one of the children actually did think that was our other yummy surprise we had planned! Imagine her surprise when we stopped at McDonalds for hot fudge sundaes on our way out
Which, by the way, is less than $10.00 for 8 people! Not toooooooo shabby!
When I first stayed home......many, many ages ago....... money was much tighter than it is now. We could never go and do something like we did today. It just was not a possibility. We did things like go to the airport and ride the tram and watch the planes take off (No kidding!). I baked a cake on Sundays and all sorts of things that made each day a little special. We had fun then......we have fun now!
The most important thing I have ever done (outside of realizing my need for Jesus and marrying Gary) was to stay home. We have never missed out. There has never been a time, that I can recall, when we muttered.....'Oh bling....wish I was working so that I could buy that whizamadoottle!' But I can only fathom what we would be missing if I had not come home. Now that's a very sad thought.......
I have not had time to prepare a Thanksgiving entry. It was beyond enjoyable getting together with our family. It's a little sad, there being so many miles between us, and so these holidays - that we get to see each other become extra special.
My cousin and his wife have recently had their second child and this was the first time we have seen their new baby.
Isn't she adorable?!
I watched as our children played together and remembered when I use to harrass play with my cousins Life sure seemed simpler then.....
Anywho.....Thanksgiving is over and Christmas is on it's way! We shall soon be celebrating the birth of a very special baby. The baby who came in to this world to give us hope and new life! Now that's something to get excited about!!!
Meanwhile.....in the life of this Momma......lots and lots happen in the in between..... Like photos! Speaking of photos - here are a few from a shoot we did yesterday. We've got too many to show, but they will soon be on our Facebook page under IVL Media if you'd like to see some more.
God's gonna bless you in all areas Bub. Continue to follow HIM!
Life sure seemed simpler then.....
