What do you think????

I love tulips and I had been wanting to change it to a different color and make it more spring-like, I guess. I love this new one so I'm hoping you all do too.

I guess this post is going to be a hodge podge of different things. First I have to tell you that I'm just not feeling too great today. I had some chocolate cake last night and for some reason it just didn't go down too well.
You know the only thing I like about being sick is that I know I won't be constantly eating the rest of the day. LOL

Every saturday night, I curl up in bed with a good book or a good show on tv. There's one I watch religiously just because it's fascinating to me.
It's called "Little People Big World". I have to say that until I started watching the show, I really did not quite get the struggles that Little People go through, I think that not knowing what they face each day makes me feel totally ignorant, and being that I am trying to teach my kids to grow up as loving and understanding human beings, it's only fair that I myself try to understand people who are "different".
Yes because "different" doesn't mean bad or unacceptable, which unfortunately seems to be the belief of some.
I'm in awe of the things Amy and Matt go through, as parents of 4 kids, 3 of normal height and only one who is a little person, they deal with the normal parent struggles BUT with the added problem of being too short to reach things which we usually take for granted.
I had my kids watching the show with me and Jasmine was fascinated, she asked a lot of questions but in the end she said "mommy I like everybody, I don't care if they are shorter than me or look different, I will always be nice to everyone". THAT makes me feel wonderful, if anything, I know I'm teaching her something good :)

As we head towards the end of another school year, we start being faced with the fact that a lot of Jasmine's friends are not going to be here when school restarts. This is one of the worst parts of being a military family, it's fun in a way to move around and get to know different parts of the country and world, but it's extremely hard on the little ones.
Just this year she will be loosing at least 9 of her friends due to PCSing (permanent change of station). So now I have to encourage her not to get depressed about it, and tell her that she'll make a whole bunch of new friends in second grade.
Who knows, we might be getting orders this summer too. With the whole BRAC thing going on, it wouldn't surprise me at all.

There's nothing I love more, than reading other blogs, surfing the internet and coming across wonderful sites.
It's hard at times because there's so many blogs that I want to read and comment on, but not enough hours in the day. There's those that are funny, there's those that are uplifting and there's even those that make me shake my head and wonder WHY?!?!?
I think one of the thing that turns me off most is the cussing, nothing wrong with a little venting now and then, but it's so unappealing to find a mommy blogger that cusses left right and center, it's just not my cup of tea.
But there's a quick remedy for that, I just close the tab on my browser and move on.

One blog I would encourage you all to stop by is, Special Needs Mom. Here is a mother of two beautiful girls who have both been diagnosed with complex 1 mitochondrial disease. Her post entitled "Dear Little One" brought tears to my eyes. What a beautiful post :)

Today I'm planning on watching "Flightplan", I've missed watching movies on the weekends, but with the weather getting so nice lately, we've been outside the house and enjoying it as much as we can.

So before I end today, I would like you to go on over to In Remembrance. It is a site to remember and honor American service members lost in Afghanistan and Iraq.
They also have tributes to the troops, made my family members. Here is one that really touched my heart. A tribute to Kevin P. Jessen.
As always my thoughts and prayers are with all the troops currently deployed all over the world, especially the ones in combat zones. May God watch over them and keep them safe and may he give their families the strength and courage they need to get through this time.

Ps 27:5 For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock.

Happy Birthday Nela!!!

We hope you have a wonderful day full of fun and love and that you may get everything you've ever wished for. May God continue to Bless you!!!

Thank you for always being there, through the good and the bad times, and for always making us feel loved and like we were your own children. It means the world to us.

We love you!!!

Went to pick up Jasmine this morning, of course she was not ready to come home. She was having such a wonderful time at Jamie's house.
I don't know why I was so worried, well maybe because it was her first sleepover, but I was thinking I would probably get a phone call to come and pick her up. I'm so proud of her and so glad that she had a good time. I guess now we can count on more sleepovers without any problems.

Spent the day planting tulips, mowing and cleaning out the front yard. It truly feels like I got a lot accomplished and as I stood fixing dinner, I felt this true sense of happiness.

This feeling of being happy and exactly where I want to be, knowing that I'm ok with who I am and what I'm doing in life.

You see I have spent so much time in my life trying to be something I'm not, hiding behind this mask. Trying to be the people pleaser and putting myself last. It's easier to just say yes then to face the idea of someone being upset with you or judging you for what you are doing.
But all it does is make you withdraw deeper into yourself, until you feel that there is nothing left.

A week or so ago, Julie from Everyday Mommy reminded me to reread the book of Joshua and pointed out that if I hadn't noticed before, there are numerous times in which the words BE STRONG AND OF GOOD COURAGE are repeated. What a wonderful reminder to remain strong in the face of adversity, in the face of grief or loss. I know how hard it is to take that step, it's as if we become so comfortable in our own little bubble that any effort to change is just too much to bare.
BUT the minute you actually step outside that comfort zone and go through all the hardships just to be left basking in the glow of the love of the Lord, it's all worth it.

So yes, today I smile, I've been through the ups and the downs, I've been through the feeling of wanting to just give up, it's much easier to isn't it?
I've been through it and I fought through it, I fought through everything that was thrown my way, for with the Lord at my side, ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING is possible.
I can say that I've come through on the other side, I started out as a wobbly toddler, stumbling about and trying to find that firm place to step, and came out this beautiful courageous and thankful woman. What a feeling!!!!!!

Time for a meme!!!!

I usually don't do these, but I found this one while surfing the net and thought it was a really good one. So here goes:

I AM: on a constant journey to a closer relationship with God.

I WANT: to be at peace in all areas of my life.

I WISH: I could chat with my greatgrandmother.

I HATE: Two faced people and back stabbing.

I MISS: Big family get togethers.

I HEAR: Life is much easier when you hand it to God.

I WONDER: What my kids will grow up to be.

I REGRET: Nothing, everything I've gone through has made me who I am today.

I AM NOT: as together as some people think I am.

I DANCE: whenever I get a chance to.

I SING: all the time and whatever I'm in the mood for at the moment.

I CRY: for the troops, for their families, for the poor and the sick, for everyone that is going through a hard time.

I AM NOT ALWAYS: able to just put it in God's hands and forget about it.

I MAKE WITH MY HANDS: the yummiest portuguese food you've ever tasted.

I WRITE: constantly, nothing like jotting down your thoughts in a blog or journal.

I CONFUSE: trying to act like a good christian with BEING a good christian.

I NEED: Time and Rest.

I SHOULD: never say “should,” and instead always say “will.”

I START: to doubt every decision I make.

I FINISH: every task I start.

I TAG: Emily, Mel, Julie, Gibee, morning glory, toni and rabbit.

This morning I'm up and waiting for a phone call from Jamie who is Elizabeth's mom, Jasmine's friend. LOL
Jasmine had her first sleepover yesterday so I'm dying to find out how it went, when she calls me then I can go pick her up :)

I'm making this one short, have tons to do today, specifically working on the yards. It's amazing how much stuff you accumulate during the winter, so we're cleaning and planting etc. Supposed to be up in the 80's today so it will make for perfect weather to be outdoors. Going to make a HUGE pitcher of Iced Tea and just enjoy the day :)

I'll be back tomorrow. Have a great saturday everyone!!!

Remember When???

I'm starting today with my "Remember When???". Like I said in my previous post, this is a story about one of the times we went to the Kruger National Park.

Above you will see Malelane Gate, which is the one we usually go in through coming from Johannesburg. I could just picture myself there right now......boy is it making me homesick :)

It was early in the morning and we piled into the car and set off to see the wildlife. Now remember the gates open everyday at around 6am, and you just drive out of the camp. In between the camps it's just wildlife so you are NOT to stop your car and get out for any reason. If you come into contact with monkeys, you need to make sure the windows are up etc. Just certain precautions you need to take.

So we are driving around and we see an elephant up ahead and really close to the side of the road. We figured this was the perfect chance to get a good picture.
Dad pulls up right next to the elephant. The elephant is just standing there eating off the tree. Let me tell you, he was HUGE, but it was so amazing to be able to be within arms reach of such a powerful animal.
So we are sitting there, the car is still running, and my stepmom is trying to get a photo taken. For some reason she can't get it to work, so she's messing with the camera and we hear the elephant make some weird noise and see his ears flap. NOW we're thinking "ok this is not good, he's getting annoyed, just take the darn photo already". LOL
She is still messing with the camera when the elephant suddenly lets out this loud shriek, starts waving the ears and turns towards the car............OMG, I quickly put my head down between my legs, my oldest brother is yelling in the back of the car "GO GO GO GO GO GO GO", and I just see the camera go flying, my dad slams the car into gear and we take off flying down the road. LOL

I've never been so scared in my life, I honestly thought we were going to get squished by a huge elephant.
So anyway, we keep driving and after a while we just start laughing at how funny everyone's reaction was.

We go a few miles down the road and we see a whole herd of elephants crossing the road. The cars are stopped RIGHT there by them. IT's common to stop your car and have the whole herd pass right in front of you. I guess my dad wasn't quite over the shock of what had happened because we ended up watching the elephants crossing from about a mile away LOL
All the other cars are right there by them and we are the only vehicle stopped far behind LOL

That whole day, everytime we saw elephants it was WAY from a distance and never up close and personal like the first one :)

If you want to see some more Kruger Park elephants, be sure to go HERE. These photos were posted by a visitor to the park :)

I'm so excited!!!!

Ok as I'm sure you all know I'm from South Africa. Well, maybe you didn't know that fact, but consider yourself informed :)

So, one of the most amazing places that we would go every year for vacation, was the Kruger National Park. It was my absolute FAVORITE place to go, nothing like being up close and personal with the wildlife.
After moving to the states, it's one of the things I most miss doing.

Well my family was just at the Kruger National Park last week and I asked them to PLEASE send me the photos they took. So within the next few days I'll be posting them as I get them. I just have to share them with all of you.
I got the first one today, and it's of some lions. Now remember, this is a wildlife reserve, so you drive in through the main gates, and then head to one of 12 camps. I think we pretty much covered them all LOL
If you want to see a map of the Park, click HERE.
The fun part is that you can either stay at fully furnished bungalows, or you can camp. We've done both and they are truly amazing. Each camp has it's own gate which opens at 6am and then closes again at 6pm. ANYTHING beyond those gates is pure wildlife.....you just drive around and see all the animals. Nothing like sitting in your car and having lions, cheetahs, elephants, giraffes....you name it.....right outside the window. By the way, be sure to check my "Remember When???" tomorrow, our story is about one of our trips to the Kruger Park and you DON'T want to miss it.

So here are some lions, I'm just loving this photo, where else can you get this close to these powerful animals?

Wonderful memories I have from going there with my family, and I can't wait to share more photos with you guys :)

Moving on. Yesterday I had a call from the school, telling me that Jasmine had lost her tooth on the playground, and they wanted to know if I wanted them to send the tooth home in a baggie.
I knew it was time to face the whole tooth fairy issue again. Now I'm all for it, but am I the only parent that feels this is getting out of hand???
I'm not just hearing "HEY I GOT A QUARTER!!!", shouts of excitement. Now I'm being faced with "I wonder what she'll leave me, you know SO AND SO got $5 for his/her tooth".

5 DOLLARS?!?!?!?!?! Where was this tooth fairy when I was growing up? I would love to hear what other parents out there think. I feel so cheap when I think about just a quarter, it's like this tooth fairy better measure up to the other modern ones.

Tomorrow Jasmine has her first sleep over. She's all excited about it. Now I'm the one freaking out. How do kids grow up so fast? I know this is the beginning of seeing my little girl grow up and move on, but am I really ready for it?
I have a feeling I'll be the one not getting much sleep tomorrow night. LOL

Want to know what I'm doing today? SPRING CLEANING!!!

Yes yes I know, some of you are cringing at the thought, but I actually really enjoy it. Nothing like smelling a nice freshly cleaned house :)
Besides, I like getting rid of old used stuff so that I can replace it with new ones, or slightly used, whatever, as long as it's new to me that is what counts right?

I better get started, going to do the living room today and it's a big room, gotta wash the drapes, clean the blinds, get rid of pesky spider webs on the ceiling........what's up with those anyway, how many times do I have to get rid of them before they're gone for good?
Wish me luck....hope you all have a beautiful spring day wherever you are.

Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me."
Psalm 51:10

Works for Me Wednesday!!!

So it's wednesday and time for another "Works for Me Wednesday". If you want to visit the rest of the participants, just go on over to Shannon's Blog.

We all know how it is when driving anywhere with kids in the car. You constantly have to deal with the boredom which turns into fighting over any poor toy that happens to have found it's way into the backseat.

After dealing with this for a couple of months, I decided that enough was enough. So I went out and found these cheap $2 see through containers, each with a different colored lid.

Each of the kids got to pick the one they wanted, they then filled it with THEIR own choice of toys and snacks. I stick the boxes in between their car seats, and they each have access to it.

Problem solved, I don't have to deal with crying and fighting over toys, they keep themselves entertained and I can drive without having to feel like I'm about to have a heart attack or a car accident from reaching back there to yank toys out of stubborn little hands.
Hope this tip helps someone else :)

Now moving on to something else. The weather here has just been gorgeous....we're actually supposed to get up to the 80's this weekend. How great is that??? I can work on my garden without having to wear a sweater.

Yesterday after Jasmine got home from school, we had a blast. Curt had the day off for her birthday so that just made her day. We went out and jumped on the trampoline, something which the kids....well and us too.....love doing. Even took the dog out there, and it was hilarious watching her trying to hold on LOL

After an hour we came back inside and played a game of Junior Monopoly. What a blast that was, guess who won? Nicholas LOL How embarassing for the rest of us, especially mommy and daddy, we got our behinds handed to us by a 3 year old.

I have to say that it was a lot of fun, just hanging out with the kids and hubby. We love being together, and even dinner time was filled with laughs and jokes instead of the usual "EAT YOUR DINNER NOW" and "would you PLEASE get your head out from under the table and stop feeding the dog". Yeah usually mealtimes are not that pleasurable so I was happy to have a good day yesterday :)

Don't have much planned for today. I have been good about keeping my house clean so that I don't get stuck with a "tornado area" on the weekend. You know what I'm talking about right? You start wondering if you were even home when the kids decided to empty their toy boxes onto the floor of every room in the house.

There's always that ONE toy that cleverly hides on the stairs, and you don't see it walking up, but when you come down you ALWAYS step on it and then do that dance, the one were you lift the injured foot while bouncing on the other one and constantly repeating "Ow ow ow ow ow, who the HECK left that toy there?". LOL

Alright, it's 10:15am and I just realized I haven't had breakfast yet, so I'm going to have a sandwich and some coffee, then I can settle down and go read all the other blogs and the "Works for Me Wednesday" ideas. Really, be sure to check them out, these ladies have the BEST ideas around :)

Finally able to get online!!!!!!

I'm sure you all are wondering why my post is late today. Usually I get it done first thing in the morning, BUT our DSL decided to take a break today, so we've had no internet until now.
It's funny how attached you become to it without even realizing, I use it for blogging, for emails, for banking, for recipes, for school, you name it........

So this morning while driving Jasmine to school, I was listening to a local station and the topic was "Internet Marriages". The host was asking people to call in if they met their spouse or loved one online.
I should have called, really.......a lot of you may not know, but Curt and I met on the internet 9 years ago. Many people have asked me how we met and I guess it's time I share our story. Brace yourself, you will be ooohhhhing and aaahhhhing by the end. LOL

So 9 years ago, I had just started using the internet and becoming familiar with chat rooms. After lurking around for a few months, I decided to join MIRC Webchat. It was August 12, 1997.
After chatting for a few minutes with some people, I get a private message. It was Curt.
My chat handle was Koala, so his first question was "are you from australia?". LOL
I told him that I was not, that I was in South Africa, and we started chatting, we hit it off and during the next year we talked on the phone, wrote letters, emails, sent packages and photographs.
Now that may sound like your usual internet love match, BUT there was an obstacle. I was christian and Curt was a Pagan third degree priest. I told him that I was not comfortable with that and that nothing could ever happen between us while he was involved in the Wiccan/Paganism Religion.
I didn't give him an ultimatum, that wouldn't be my place to do so, but I was also not about to immerse myself into that belief.

And so it started. A whole year of questions, endless questions about the bible and why MY way was the best? Why MY God was the right one?
I felt overwhelmed, I loved him but I honestly did not know how to answer some of the questions, so before we talked everyday, I prayed to God to give me the right words to reach Curt. He obliged!!!!
I knew the right scriptures to quote, I knew the right things to say and I didn't give up. It took time and patience, but he is now a devoted Christian like I am.
One of the best examples of the power of God working in our relationship, was when Curt was deployed to Bahrain. He called me in the afternoon, and I was talking to him on the fax machine phone, which was plugged in to the power outlet.
We talked for about an hour, and when I got off the phone, my grandmother walked up to me.

Grandma: "What were you doing on the phone?"
Me: "Talking to Curt"
Grandma: "Really? Are you sure? How long have you been talking to him?"
Me: "Oh I don't know, maybe an hour? Why?"
Grandma: "Well I don't know how to tell you this but we have had a power outtage for the past hour, there's no way you could have talked to him on that phone"

I was stunned, I picked up the receiver and brought it to my ear, SILENCE!!!! The phone/fax machine was indeed dead.
Wow, to this day it gives me goosebumps to remember that. How amazing?
So exactly one year to the day we met, on August 12, 1998, Curt flew to South Africa and we got married.

One month later, I packed my bags, already pregnant with Jasmine, and moved to the States. I left my family, my house, my friends, everything behind. It was the scariest thing on earth for me, I was and still am, extremely close to my family, and leaving everything I knew behind was terrifying. BUT I did it, I held my head up high, I moved to where my husband was stationed and 2 kids and 3 dogs down the road, we are still happily married :)
I thank God everyday, for my life and my family!!!

So there you have it, the story of how we met and how we came to this point :)

And with that I have to say Happy Birthday to someone.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JASMINE!!!

Exactly 7 years ago this beautiful person was born. She was our first and we were excited and scared at the same time. Here was this tiny little person, and we were solely responsible for her well being.
She's always been strong willed, stubborn and feisty, guess it goes with the fiery red hair :)
She makes us laugh, she makes us cry, and we are so proud of her, what a beautiful and intelligent girl we have. We wish so much for her future and we are sure that whatever she sets her mind to, she will easily accomplish.

If you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up, she will quickly tell you.....a Paleontologist. She's had her mind made up on that one since she was 2 years old. :)

So Jasmine, Happy Birthday baby girl, Mommy and Daddy and Nicholas love you MORE than you will ever know.

This morning while without internet, I actually sat down and read a bit. It felt good and I couldn't have asked for a better choice of reading than Phil Calloway's "I used to have answers, now I have kids". How funny the book is, it's filled with funny stories about life after kids.
Here's my favorite part:

I soon discovered that parenting is the biggest investment we will ever make, yet children come with no instruction manuals, no "mute" buttons, and no guarantees. And if we happen to have all the answers with our first few kids, chances are that God will send along a little surprise package who will change everything.

How true is that? LOL

Well my friends, it's time for me to get ready to pick up Jasmine. I really hope you all have a wonderful tuesday afternoon. Enjoy the sunshine, the smell of freshly blossoming flowers and thank God every minute for those small things, they are one of life's greatest treasures.

If only I would have known............

Last night after the kids were asleep, I was flipping through the tv channels as I usually do. Trying to find something to watch became frustrating, there was just nothing that appealed to me.
While doing that, I stopped on the INSP channel (Inspiration Network) and caught a program by Pastor Courtney McBath. WHAT a find!!!!

His message really spoke to me, and I have to tell you that usually I'm not too drawn to the tv ministries, I guess because I can't find one that doesn't become boring after a while.
Pastor McBath is wonderful though and I loved every minute.

So the topic was about "Removing the Limitations" and a couple of things he said really stuck with me,

"The devil doesn't own anything, he's always a freeloader, a squatter. He's never going to be king because there's already been one appointed and he does NOT own your prison, he does NOT have ultimate control over you, God is the one in control and when he wants to bring you out, it does NOT matter how many guards they may bring out to keep you in that prison, it won't matter."

" Stuff doesn't confirm what he says, HIS spirit confirms what he says"

"When God brings limitations on our lives, he does it for our good and for his glory, the bottom line is not me being blessed, it's what will bring God his glory. Why is it that you pray so long and it doesn't happen? Because God wasn't ready for it yet, he was still working on that situation."

"The chains are not going to fall off until YOU decide to do what God tells you to do, and go where God tells you to go. You can be anywhere as long as God is with you.

"The miracle of God does NOT negate the responsibility on us. When he says enough is enough, you have to do your part. He won't work a miracle for me until I say yes to what he told me to do"

Bottom line, everything you go through and everyone you meet, the relationships you've had, the heartaches, the tears, the rough patches in your life, ALL of that is there for a reason, it's there to help you on your journey. When you finally realize that it makes perfect sense!!! When you finally accept God into your life and decide to live by his rules, everything becomes clearer.
Boy am I happy I found Pastor McBath on INSP, I'm definitely going to look more into his books and sermons.

On to other things, I'm still not feeling that great, it's weird because I wake up with a really sore throat and this dry cough, and then it goes away, but returns again by nighttime. Just wish I would either get the cold or get better, this middle ground thing is annoying.

Curt is finally back to the normal hours, I only wish they would give the guys some time off, they worked 12 hour shifts through the weekend and are just exhausted. Swing shifts is not too bad for me and Nicholas because we get to see Curt before he goes to work, but for Jasmine it's horrible.
She gets up in the morning and daddy is still asleep, so she leaves for school and then when she gets home in the afternoon, he's already gone to work and by the time he gets home at 12am, she's been asleep for hours. Only time they see each other is on the weekends. It's rough on her but what can we do???

This morning I'm calling up the housing office. Remember I said that they are doing major rebuilding on base. Tearing down all the current housing areas and rebuilding new ones. Well a lot of the houses in the old neighborhoods are empty and just awaiting the demolition. BUT a lot of them have these gorgeous tulips and daffodils planted outside. I'm a sucker for tulips, by far one of my favorite flowers ( I'm sure you can tell by my template).
So anyway, the reason I'm calling the housing office is to find out if it would be ok for me to go get these flowers from the empty houses, and transplant them into my own yard. They're only going to be torn down and killed, so I'm sure it won't be a problem. Last thing I want thought is to go pick up flowers and have the cops arrest me for stealing or vandalism of property LOL

Well I have laundry to do, and a 3 year old to potty train. Hope you all have a great monday :)
Stay safe and God Bless!!!

EDIT: I got the flowers and already planted some, aren't they beautiful? Nothing like tulips in bloom :)

TO SCHEDULE OR NOT TO SCHEDULE!!!

I've been tagged by Julie from Everyday Mommy.
She decided to re-open the old debate about "Putting baby on a schedule".

Now when I was pregnant with my daughter, being that she was our first, everything was scary and unknown. I didn't know just how important it would be to stick to a routine once the baby was born.
Sure I heard from other moms and family members about "babies usually have their nights and days switched", but I always figured, you know, it can't be that bad, can it???
Well, when you have a baby that sleeps all day long and stays awake all night, you quickly realize that either you put them on a schedule or you will be a walking zombie.

After she was born I devoured parenting books and being that I myself am a creature of routine, I jumped right in. I made lists, I drew up schedules, I wrote everything down and no one was going to deviate from it.
Of course babies don't come with a manual and I soon learnt that if you suddenly go off the usual flow of things, you end up with an extremely cranky child. Now I don't know if that was just MY child, but friends told me they had the same problem. Of course that doesn't mean the world will come to an end, the kids will be cranky or complain but within a day things are back to normal. So please, don't ever feel scared that if you get off the schedule, everything's messed up, it's not.

There's things you can get away with and if you don't do it exactly at the same time, it doesn't make a difference, but for the most part, we stick with the same one everyday.
As kids grow older things change, you no longer need the naps, or the snack time changes or whatever, I've learnt to just play it by ear and readjust as we go.

Mealtimes are at a certain time, bath time and bedtime too. I don't and won't let those slip. Yes there's those few times that something comes up and instead of bedtime being at 7:30pm it ends up being at 8:30 pm, but as a general rule, I try to make sure that they don't stay up past then.

Scheduling may not be for everyone, I had lots of friends who didn't believe in them. Their kids ate and took naps and went to bed whenever it happened, if by 10pm they were still awake, oh well, that's the way it was.
I believe in giving kids structure and to me it seems that they know what to expect at that certain time of the day and they seem to like having their day mapped out. Makes things go a lot smoother for the whole family.

So on which side of the spectrum do I fall? Definitely on the "Putting baby on a schedule"side, works for us so why change?

Again I say, that's just my opinion and I would never presume to say that I'm right or someone who doesn't believe in scheduling is wrong. Lord knows I have enough problems controlling my own life I don't need to be controlling others too.
I don't think there is such a thing as a perfect mom, with the perfect schedule, we all do what we can, and what works for one kid may not necessarily work for another.
Some kids do great with routines and others just don't adapt to them.

So thank you Julie for tagging me, I can't wait to read what some of the other moms had to say.

What a day!!!!!!!!

Good morning everyone, come on in and sit down, I've got hot coffee and donuts. Just want to make sure you're all comfortable before I begin. I feel a long post coming on LOL

The party was a success, I don't think I've seen 15 kids have so much fun, in a LONG time.
As usual we had some that said were going and didn't show up, and some that didn't say anything at all come to the party. What's the best thing is that, remember yesterday I was freaking out over the party favors and not having enough, and then I just put it in God's hands and moved on. Didn't think about it until the end of the party, when I went to hand out the bags, I ended up with a bunch left over that I was able to send home to the little brothers and sisters of some of the kids. How about that?
Guess I had my own multiplication of fish going on, well, in this case goodie bags, but still LOL

If you want to see more pics of the party go HERE.

For now I'm sharing 2 of my favorites, one of the whole bunch together, and then the second is of my Nicholas and Sydney, they are HILARIOUS together!!!!

We had the little ones bowling in their own lane so they wouldn't interfere with the older kids. Boy did they give us a show, I was so disappointed that I had left the camcorder at home. Everytime one of them bowled, the other went up and gave moral support LOL
And my Nicholas gave us all a show by dancing constantly while bowling. If you could only see him move those hips, we were all very entertained and amused by him LOL
How sad that he can dance better than mommy and daddy, he definitely puts us to shame.

But moving on, for the past week I've been waking up in the middle of the night with a REALLY sore throat, and I have this dry cough that is very annoying.
When I got up yesterday I was NOT feeling great, I had a little bit of a temperature and just wanted to crawl into bed.
But I got up, cleaned my house, made sure everything was ready for the party, and even managed to make dinner and stick in the refrigerator, that way when we got home I would just have to put it in the oven and that's it. By the way, for those who read my food blog too, I have the recipe posted on there, I made Cheesy Kielbasa Bake.

I have to say that by 6pm last night I was sooooo ready for bed, not only was I exhausted from the party, but my throat was killing me. Nicholas went straight to sleep, I knew he would because he had a big day. Jasmine however was tired but not ready for bed, and she wanted me to play with her. Now you moms know that there are times you REALLY don't want to do anything, and last night was one of those. BUT I decided to just do it anyway to make her happy. So we played with Bratz Dolls, she got 4 for her birthday and is just in heaven. If only you could hear her talking while she plays LOL
She was pleased that some of the dolls were named Yasmin too.
I heard her on my bed playing with the dolls.

Jasmine - Want to go ride horses? (says the cowgirl bratz)
Jasmine - I'm scared of horses can't we just go to the mall? (says hollywood bratz) LOL

Jasmine - This one is from hawaii.
Me - Oh really, why do you say that?
Jasmine - She has this big ugly flower on her shirt mommy, that's why.
Me - Oh, so that's how you tell huh? (you're always learning with these kids lol )

Jasmine - Why is this girl only wearing a shirt?
Me - That's not a shirt, that's a dress.
Jasmine - Nuh Uh, look it only goes right under her butt, that's not a dress.
Me - I'm sorry to say honey, but it is...it's just a really short one.
Jasmine - That's disguuuuuuuuuuusting, I would never wear one like that. (YAY so happy to hear that)

Then she wanted to play CandyLand. I was sooooooooooooooo tired but said I would play one game. So we did, and then of course when that one was done, she asked for JUST ONE MORE, so we did. By the time we were done and I told her that mommy really needed to lay down, she was the happiest kid I've ever seen, calling me "honey bunny" and telling me that mommy and daddy deserve something really nice for throwing her such an "awesome" party.
Ahhhhh these are the moments we live for.

What a weekend this is going to be. In about an hour I have to run out and buy a present for Cody, one of the kids that came to Jasmine's party. She is going to his birthday party at 2:00pm today. I think I'm sick of birthday's LOL
By the time you're done with it all, you've spent a ridiculous amount of money.

Yesterday I had a small package waiting for me when I got home. I opened it up and found the next 2 Nooma DVD's in the series. My mother in law had sent them to us and I'm sooooo excited, I can't wait to watch them. For those who are not familiar with them, they are by Rob Bell who is a pastor.
Wonderful Wonderful short movies, just amazing. He gets you hooked from the first minute and he teaches us such amazing lessons about God and the bible. If you want to know more, go to the Nooma site.
I just got Trees and Sunday so hopefully I can watch them today and let you all know what I thought.

And that's it, I've got to get dressed and go get the present, then come home and get more laundry done. Hope you're all having a great sunday, and I'll be here tomorrow, bright and early :)
Before I leave though, I want to ask you to pray with me for the troops and their families, may God keep them safe and reunite them soon!!!

Bowling Anyone?!?!?!?

Ok I only have a few minutes to post, then I have to finish cleaning my house. Just in a few hours it will be Jasmine's birthday party, but I still need to pick up some ice cream and a few other things.

Here is what gets me about birthday parties. You put in the RSVP for a reason, or at least I thought so. A lot of the kids who are going, called ahead of time, and didn't hear from anyone else, the others kept saying they weren't going, soooooo when I made the party favors, I got just enough for the DEFINITES and 5 extra. Now all of a sudden 3 more kids say they're going, one says he's not sure yet, the other says the mother is still thinking about it, and so forth.
I don't know what the whole etiquette is for rsvp'ing, but COME ON.....work with me here!!!!
Now my worry is that more kids will show up and I won't have enough party favors. So I've decided, it's in God's hands, whatever happens happens and it will be ok.
*Wash my hands off of it and move on*

So as I was saying, I want to leave my house clean before I go to the party because I know that when I get back, I will be in NO mood to clean. Curt just got home at 6am this morning, and goes back in tonight at 6pm, so he won't be going to help set up and decorate, he will just show up right before it starts.
Thank God for friends like Veronica, who said she'll go over at noon with me to help get things done.

Well I better go, wish me luck. Tons of kids, cake and bowling, I'm sure it will be a CRAZY day.
I'll be back later with tons of pics I'm sure. :)

If you want a good laugh, go on over to Toni's blog, her entry this morning was too funny :)

The Joys of Motherhood!!!

This post is bitter sweet for me. Yesterday after picking up Jasmine from school we had a rough time.

If there is one thing that I can't stand is disrespect and deliberatly ignoring me. I'm sure at this point a lot of moms are nodding their heads in approval because they know exactly what it's like. Jasmine is about to turn 7 and let's just say that ever since she started school at 5 years old, things have been.....INTERESTING!!!!
I love that little girl with all my heart and soul but there are days that I just want to strangle the living daylights out of her, not that I would EVER do it......but you know that feeling of "Dear God, help me calm down and relax or I will loose it for good".

I won't go into details but Jasmine pushed me to the breaking point yesterday. I swear it's like having a teenager in the house. I've never come across a child that is more opinionated or strong willed, than her.
So after fighting for an hour it all culminated in her turning to me and saying "I DON'T WANT YOU, YOU'RE MEAN, YOU DON'T LOVE ME".
All this because she couldn't ride her scooter WHEN she wanted to.

Had this happened a couple of months ago, I would have spanked her and yelled and screamed and pulled my hair out and just not understood what I was doing wrong.
BUT if you're familiar with my blog, you know the journey I've been on and you know the lessons God has been teaching me. WOW what better way than to throw me to the wolves (not literally but you know).
Here I was faced with EVERYTHING that I had been learning. My wanting something to be done right here and now.

It's pathetic that at times I would find myself negotiating with God. I would pray for something that I wanted to happen and then I would get sooooooo mad that it wasn't happening when I wanted it to, sound familiar???? Jasmine wanting to ride the scooter RIGHT NOW or never.
And what happens when it doesn't happen according to her liking? She feels that I'm mean, that I just don't love her, after all how could I, if I won't do what she wants WHEN she wants it.
It's like I could hear God in my ear going "See, I told you so, how does that make you feel?".

Ok Lord, I GET the message.

So moving on, I hope you have some hot coffee or tea nearby, this is going to be a long post LOL

This morning we decided to walk to school, the weather has been really nice lately, not as much rain and temperatures in the 70's. It wasn't warm or cold, it was just comfortable. A bit crisp, but it felt wonderful to get out and enjoy the morning sun.
Had it been any other time, I would have just dropped her off and then rushed to get home, so preocupied with everything else going on. BUT this morning, Jasmine rode the infamous scooter to school and on the way back, Nicholas asked me to push him on it.
Well it was more of a get on and I'll pull thing.
But it caused me to slow down and take longer getting back to the house. I have to say that I REALLY enjoyed it. What a beautiful day it is, there are tons of whistle pigs running around, beautiful flowers blossoming everywhere and the sun shining so bright. Definitely put me in a good mood for the rest of the day. Come rain or shine, I'm going to just smile and not let anything get me down!!!!

I have to get Jasmine's birthday cake ordered today and then I need to go get the decorations and the party favors etc. Going to be busy busy busy.
I'm so glad that my friend Veronica will be able to help me tomorrow, Curt won't be up early because he's working from 10pm to 7am tomorrow morning.

You know what I just remembered? It's friday, so that means another "Remember When???".
For today I have a funny story about my dad, so dad, I'm sorry to tell it on here, but I know you'll get a good laugh out of it :)

I can't remember exactly how old I was, but I know it was either 11 or 12, somewhere around there.
We lived in South Africa but being that we are portuguese, we always tried to go to the portuguese social gatherings that were taking place around Johannesburg.

One day we decided to go to one. We got there, they were serving lunch and they had dancing and a band playing etc.
The day progressed really well, we had a lot of fun. Somewhere around 5pm my two older brothers and my dad decided that they wanted to go watch the soccer game that was about to start.
So my stepmom and my youngest brother and I stayed behind and just hung out and ate and talked etc.

The sun started to go down just before the game was finished. On the way to the game, my brothers and dad noticed that the field and surrounding area were still under construction, there were huge holes everywhere, where they had dug up the dirt and created a little hill besides each one. It wasn't like one or two holes, the area was covered in holes so you had to be careful where you walked.

I'm sure by now you can tell where there is going LOL
So on the way back from the game, they are walking, and it's dark and there's all these holes. So they see my dad start walking up one of these hills, my brothers both start saying "Hey dad, don't go that way, there's a hole on the other side", but he decides not to listen and keeps going. He comes down the other side, realizes there's a hole and tries to jump, but only ends up falling inside LOL
Apparently it had been raining the day before because the holes were filled with mud LOL

He was SOOOOOOOO mad. He gets out of the hole and from his chest down he is covered in mud. Needless to say, he comes running in the building all mad, and says "we're leaving NOW". We just look at him wondering where the heck he came from and why he had mud all over him. LOL

We pile in the car and he starts driving. He is fuming so he's driving really fast, and my stepmom keeps asking "are you ok?" and he just yells he's fine.
She asks again "are you sure? did you hurt anything when you fell?". Finally he snaps and yells at her "how would you like it if you had fallen in a hole and broken your glasses?". WOW that shut her up fast LOL

So there you have it, that's another memory that we always think back on and just laugh and laugh. The expression on dad's face when he was covered in mud, was priceless.

And that's it, I'm outta here, my coffee is cold and my toast is soggy and besides I have tons of stuff to do today and want to get started. Have a wonderful friday everyone and remember to keep smiling, no matter how things may seem :)

OH GREAT!!!!!!!!

I think I've created monsters.
This morning while running around fixing breakfast and getting the kids ready, I hear from the living room:

Jasmine - I'm warning you Nicholas Wayne, keep it up and you will be going to the thinking spot.
Nicholas - Knock it off Jasmine, leave me alone!
Jasmine - I said STOP IT!
Nicholas - Zip it, I'm DONE, I can't take it anymore!

GASP!!!! That is scary, they sounded just like me?!?!?!?!!?
I listened for anything else, but there was silence.......a few minutes later I hear Jasmine "Nicholas, what did you do to get here? How did that make you feel? What are you going to do next time?"
I walk into the living room and find Nicholas on a corner in the living room and Jasmine standing over him asking him these questions....when I ask her what is going on, she simply says "I put him in the thinking spot, just like we do at school". LOL
Then they hugged and went on their merry way. How about that huh? Maybe I should have her doing the disciplining in the house, Lord knows I need the help.

Curt is going to be working weird hours. Tomorrow he goes in at 10pm and then he works saturday and sunday too. From 6pm to 6am. At least he'll be able to make it to Jasmine's party.
This is another one of those things that is stressful when being in the military.

You can never really count on your plans being a certainty. There have been many vacations cancelled and appointments rebooked, it all goes with the territory. When we first got married, I felt like I had been thrown into this surreal world. I had married my hubby and the whole air force with him.
It wasn't just about US anymore, it was US and whatever was going on. I have to say that I was resentful in the beginning, it's not easy feeling like you're being put last and his F-16's come first.
I always joked that his jet is the wife and I'm the mistress, lurking in the background. LOL

But as time went by I learnt that, this was a choice I made. No one forced me to be a military wife and I knew full well what to expect when I came in. So instead of fighting it, I just started accepting it and dealing with it.
Is it easy? NO!!!
Do I feel that military wives get enough credit and recognition? NO!!!
Is it one of the most difficult jobs on earth? YES!!!
But the rewards are so huge and far outweigh the negative. Let's face it, there's negative in everything we do right???

I always say, it's how you you choose to react to things, that determine if it's a good or bad experience. I choose to make it good, I don't think I have the energy to expend on worrying too much or being too negative, there's no FUN in that either. hehehe

So yesterday as I was sitting in the car waiting to drop off the kids, I had this conversation with God. The catapult for it was something I had heard Jasmine say the day before.
She was throwing this HUGE tantrum and Curt was trying to get her to calm down, and when he said "I love you", she snapped back with "no you don't".
I was talking to God about how difficult things get at times and how upsetting it was for Jasmine to say that to her dad, especially since it wasn't the truth.

God - Well now you know how I feel!
Me - What?!?! What do you mean?!?!?
God - How many times have I said that I love you and that I'm there for you, and yet you choose to ignore it and choose to go about your day thinking that I've deserted you or that I just don't love you enough?
Me - Oh but that's different, Jasmine KNOWS we love her, even if she thinks we're not showing it enough.
God - Exactly!!!
Me - Ummm.......(LIGHT BULB moment) you're right, how could I have been so blind?
God - It happens, just remember that when you're so caught up in chaos and all you see is the bad, I'm right there holding you and whispering in your ear that I love you.

I have to tell you guys, what an eye opener that was for me. Here I was upset that our daughter could even THINK that we didn't love her, I mean we were telling her that we did at the time, but she was SO consumed in the tantrum and the frustration around her that she didn't see it.
I've always said that kids teach us our most valuable lessons, and I'm so glad that mine have constantly kept me on my toes, I've learnt SO much from them and I can't wait to keep learning.

WORKS FOR ME WEDNESDAY!!!

Shannon over at Rocks in my Dryer, had a great idea. She came up with this new feature where every wednesday we post what works for us. This is what she said:

You know how it is--we all have come up with dozens of little shortcuts or ideas around our homes to make managing our lives easier. Maybe you came up with such an idea yourself in a moment of desperation, or you learned it from your mom or another friend...it doesn't matter how it came about. What matters it that your life runs the tiniest bit more smoothly because of your clever idea.

So I thought I would chime in with my own tips or trick or whatever you want to call it. LOL

I learnt this one a while ago and I have to admit that I still use it to this day, not just for myself but especially when you have friends or family over.
It's a shortcut to a dish that we always like making but takes too much time to prepare, and let me tell you it's a real life saver when you need to make a few at time.

So here goes:

OMELETS IN THE BAG

Have everyone write their name on a quart-size, zip-lock freezer bag with permanent marker.

Crack 2 eggs (large or extra-large) into each bag (not more than 2 eggs) and shake to combine them.

Put out a variety of ingredients such as: cheeses, ham, onion, green pepper, tomato, hash browns, salsa, etc.

Each member adds prepared ingredients of choice to their bag and shakes; make sure the air is out of the bag and the bag is well-zipped.

Place the bags into rolling, boiling water for exactly 13 minutes.
You can usually cook 6-8 omelets in a large pot. For more, make another pot of boiling water.

Open the bags and the omelet will roll out easily. Be prepared for everyone to be amazed.

It's really been a huge help on those crazy busy mornings, and just wonderful when you have a lot of family over for holidays or special occasions.
I sometimes make myself an omelet for lunch and this is a quick and easy way too.
Go ahead, give it a try and let me know what you think. :)

What a Beautiful Day!!!

I decided to go back to this template just because I wanted some flowers for the spring , and until I find a template I really like, I'm sticking with this one :)

Yesterday was cold and started out at about 27 degrees, it pretty much stayed that way until much later in the afternoon.

BUT we decided to walk to Jasmine's school to pick her up. On the way back Jasmine and Scottie (her friend) were running through the grass when we started hearing this squish squish sound, and realized that the whole school field was soaking wet. I guess they had been watering it LOL
So Veronica and I start calling to them to get out of there, and we turn around and see Nicholas and Sydney who are both 3 years old, walking through the grass too and complaining that their feet are wet LOL
I was wearing sandals but thought I could just go grab them real quick. I step onto the grass and my feet just sink about 6 inches in......I lift my right foot to walk and my sandal stays behind LOL
We just had to laugh, it was so funny at the time.

So I spent yesterday just lazing around and trying to get over this cold I have.
Then last night at bathtime, the kids asked me to get in there with them and I thought "ok what the heck".

Now you have to realize I'm usually the mom going "stop that, don't splash"....."oh look now you got the whole bathroom wet"......"cut it out guys, I'm trying to wash you and you're getting my clothes all wet".
BUT last night I decided to just relax and let loose so to speak LOL

I climbed in there and then grabbed an empty shampoo bottle, filled it with water and sprayed it on the ceiling, which in turn made the water come splashing down on them like rain. THEY thought that was the funniest thing on earth and I have to say that we had a blast doing it.
It feels good to sometimes just stop being the disciplinarian and the strict one, and just get in there and have fun.

This morning while doing my daily blog reading, I was amazed at how much Chaotic Mom sounded like me. Go on over and read her entry from yesterday about Stressed out Mommy. I'm sure a lot of us can relate to that feeling :)

I'm going to make this one short, I have to head out to buy Jasmine's birthday presents, she's so excited that a lot of her classmates are going to attend her birthday party on Saturday.

Will definitely be back later with more updates on what is going on in tater land.

Court Order!!!

I was checking my emails this morning and got this from my sister in law. Just love it and thought I would share it here, will be a good way to start the day :)

COURT ORDER!

You have been accused of bombarding God with prayers!
You are hereby sentenced to long life & prosperity, No
bail, No appeal. You have been classified blessed and
hereby detained in God's custody forever. Amen . You
have been destined to make it and you shall surely
achieve all your goals this year.

Father bless all my friends in whatever it is that You
know they may be needing this day! And may their life
be full of your peace, prosperity and power as they
seek to have a closer relationship with you. As u
wake up to a bright new day so shall u also wake up to
meet your blessing at your door step. AMEN

So today has been absolutely nuts......man what a morning I had.
I dropped off the kids at school and headed home, walked in the door and sat at the computer and then realized that I was making chicken in my slow cooker today, so went ahead and got all that started. By the time I looked at the clock it was 9am.
I didn't think anything of it, and went about doing dishes, cleaning the kitchen etc, but something kept nagging me, I didn't know what. I try to ignore but it was like one of those leeches that just keeps sucking away at you...........I look up at the clock again and it's 9:15am and then it hits me "OMG I have a WIC appointment today", I run and get my folder and it says the appt. is at 9:40am and it's a recertification one so it means I have to take Nicholas, and all this other paperwork, including my hubby's LES (proof of income).

I run to the computer and go to the pay site and now I'm trying to print it out, it's already 9:20am and I'm panicking. Two pages come out completely blank!!!
My ink cartridges are empty. OH NOOOOOOOOO!!!!
I can't just go without the LES. I sit down for about a minute and say "Ok Lord, I'm going to need your help here, I'm freaking out!".
I know that I have to run and get a new one and then still come home and print it out and STILL drive to the appt.
I just decide to go anyway........so I grab Nicholas, drive to the BX and it's usually a while to get out of there cause for some annoying reason, they have 6 check out points but only one open. TYPICAL!!!!
I find the ink which in itself is a big deal seeing that I can never get the right one. Then I calmy walk to the check out and there's no one there. Hmmmmm, weird!!!
I pay for it and look behind me and there's like 5 or 6 people waiting LOL
WOW, thank you Lord!!!

I quickly drive back home, throw the cartridge in the printer and print out the LES. Then grab Nic and out the door we go again, I didn't even bother looking at the clock.
When I got to the WIC office I look up at the clock and it's exactly 9:41am LOL
I would NEVER have made it, so I thank God for the help this morning. :)

I have to tell you, I feel so much better this morning. The whole stomach thing is gone, I do have a cold, but that is perfectly fine by me.

As I was driving down the road this morning, I started noticing that you can tell exactly which woman has a baby or kid in the car with her.
We're all doing that driving, with the right arm stretched as far as it will go, trying to pass the toy or the snack to the screaming kid in the back. LOL
You know when the kids want something, they want it like yesterday, which is frustrating. Try driving while trying to open up a bag of chips or cookies. Better yet, when you're driving and all of a sudden out of the corner of your eye you see a hand with an apple.........it just seems to levitate there and then you hear "mommy can you wash this for me?"
UMMMM, sure let me just turn on the water right here under the steering wheel. Are you kidding me?!?!?!?
The wonderful joys of motherhood. I tell you, some days I want to just run for it. When there's loads of laundry that just seem to multiply. It's like it triples in the basket while waiting to join the others in the washer.
Or the neverending dishes......how many different cups or glasses do you need to drink something? If they drink juice it's one, and then they decide they want a different drink so why not get a different cup to match? Boggles me!!!!
Or when you feel absolutely horrible and drag yourself through the preparation of dinner, when all you really want to do is throw them some lettuce and say "HAVE AT IT".

See life is full of joy it's just how we choose to see it. Yes there's times that even the happiness and rewards of being a mom just seem to get squished with every yell, and whine and complaint....but it's how we react to that which makes it all worth it.
Well I have dishes calling my name, and more laundry to get out of the dryer, so I hope you all have a calming and relaxing day, full of love and kisses from yucky sticky hands. You know you love it :)

It Feels Like..................

someone standing over me with a knife inserted into my stomach, and slowly twisting, one way and then the other. There, does that give you a little insight as to what I'm feeling like this morning?

I was sooooooo hoping that I would skip the bug that's going around and even though I was feeling sick the past two days, I guess I was in denial. "oh it's just something I ate" I told myself over and over.
If there is one thing I can't stand, is the feeling of nausea. Don't get me wrong, I hate actually throwing up but at least you get an instant relief.......something that is NOT happening with me. Boy I just hope this goes away and fast, I had the hardest time getting out of bed this morning. I finally forced myself at 6:45am which to me is already too late, but at least I'm up right???

So how was everyone's Easter? We started off a bit rocky, hubby was cranky for some reason and I have learnt to just ignore him rather than try to talk, for fear of getting my head chewed off LOL
Guess he woke up on the wrong side of the bed?
The kids wanted to decorate the eggs yesterday while we watched "Jesus of Nazareth". Since I have a small TV in the kitchen which I use when I'm cooking or whatever, the plan was to decorate the eggs on the kitchen table so that the kids could make all the mess they wanted, but I would still be able to watch my movie,but seeing that yesterday was Easter and full of God's presence and love etc.......Satan decided to try and sneak up on me and ruin the day.

Well what do you know? I had everything set up and ready to go, the movie was about to start and BAM the TV turned itself off and I have NOT been able to get it to work again.

So now the question became, what do I do? I don't want to miss "Jesus of Nazareth", but I also can't tell the kids that there will be no egg decorating and since the movie lasted 8 hours (yeah, I sat and watched tv straight for 8 hours), no matter what time we decided to do them, it's a given that I would miss the movie.

What did I do then? I dragged one of the table benches to the living room, set out newspaper on the carpet, put the bench on them, and then used more paper to cover the bench, and THAT is where we did our eggs, while mommy and daddy were able to join in AND continue to watch our movie. So THERE Satan, how about THAT?!?!?!!? LOL

The worst thing that can happen to me is when things get in the way of something I want, and more specifically, reading the bible or devoting time to GOD. The claws really do come out!!! LOL

I have this book called "Look Who's Laughing" and it's by Ann Spangler & Shari MacDonald, but it also has the collaboration of a number of others.
The book has a compilation of stories about fun, faith, family and friendship and it's such a good read. I bought it in a Christian store a couple of years ago and then brought it home and read probably the first few pages before getting sidetracked with something else and totally forgot about it. While doing some spring cleaning last week I found it again and I'm so thrilled, I just can't wait to dig into it.

I think one of my favorite stories is called

"The Offering"

One Sunday a pastor told his congregation that the church needed some extra money and asked the people to prayerfully consider putting a little extra in the offering plate. He said that whoever gave the most would be able to pick out three hymns.
After the offering plates were passed, the pastor glanced down and noticed that someone had placed a $1,000 bill in the offering. He was so excited that he immediately shared his joy with his congregation and said he'd like to personally thank the person who placed the money in the plate.
Rosie, from all the way in the back, shyly raised her hand. The pastor asked her to come to the front. Slowly she made her way to the pastor. He told her how wonderful it was that she gave so much, and in thanksgiving he asked her to pick out three hymns.
Her eyes brightened as she looked over the congregation, pointed to the three most handsome men in the building, and said "I'll take him and him and him."

How funny is that???? LOL

But moving on, this week I have to get all of Jasmine's presents bought. Her birthday is on the 25th, but since it's a school day, we are having her birthday party on saturday the 22nd. She's SO excited about it, and a lot of her classmates will be there, which is even more thrilling for her. Instead of doing it at home, we decided to do it at the Bowling Alley on Base. It will cost about $4 per kid, but that includes a meal and a game of bowling, so that's not bad at all.

Here's what's frustrating. I'm sure you've all seen those new Yummy-Land Soda Pop Girls.....well Jasmine desperately wants the green one that comes with a PUG. But of course, I can find all of the other colors except for that one, which seems to be sold out EVERYWHERE. Even online.
I'm going to have to do some major investigating and hunting for this item, why can't kids be easy? If only they would be happy with a pair of socks or some new underwear!!! LOL

I'm again doing the potty training with Nicholas, he just turned 3 and now I think it's time to get rid of the diapers. Jasmine was so much easier to train, he is just stubborn and determined to do things his own way.
We've already had one accident this morning, but I'm persevering. Not that I have the patience for it because feeling the way I do, the last thing I want to deal with is the potty, BUT my kids come first and so as the mommy I have to oblige.

As if on cue, he's running to the bathroom.....at least he knows where to go right?
I better go after him, so I'm signing off here, hope to see you all tomorrow :)

HAPPY EASTER!!!

Happy Easter Everyone!!!

I want to start my post this morning by wishing everyone, family, friends and anyone who many come upon my blog this morning, a wonderful Easter.

I truly hope that this time of year will help you rekindle your spirit and renew your faith.

I know a lot of us get caught up in the Easter celebrations, the family meals, the chocolate eggs etc.....but I started this morning by reading the Story of Easter to my kids. I think it's important before they get carried away by the sugar rush.

So what do we have planned for today, you may ask? I'll be making the usual Easter Meal, the Ham and all that good stuff, and for dessert I try to make a different one every year. So this time I'm making a really yummy pie, called a Banoffee Pie. Will let you know how that turned out.

If you wish to find me today, well, just mosy on over to the kitchen, that's where I'll be most of the time. I want to get all my work out of the way so that I can then sit down with Curt and the kids and enjoy "Jesus of Nazareth".
I'm so excited to watch it again, like I've said before, I've been watching since I was little. Nothing better than laying on the carpet in front of the tv, surrounded by my chocolate eggs while the movie played on TV. I would do the same now, but one, I don't have any chocolate eggs, they go right to my thighs, and second, if I get down on the carpet and lay down it will take me a while to get back up.....my how things have changed!!! LOL

Well I better get started, want to finish off my coffee while it's hot and besides I'm sure you would all rather be doing something else on Easter, than sitting here reading my blog. :)
Again, have a wonderful and blessed day, wherever you may be. A special Easter Wish for my family in South Africa, I miss you guys terribly and love you more than you could ever know.
Will be with you in thought and spirit. :)

Can you Hear me NOW?!?!?!

Yep, I woke up this morning with almost no voice at all. Know who's happy about it? THE KIDS!!! Nothing like trying to yell at them for something and no voice coming out, which sends them into fits of laughter.
I could get mad for them making fun of me, BUT hey, it won't last forever and when I do get my voice back, there will be payback LOL
Just kidding!!!

Boy yesterday was hectic around here. It's usually like that on payday, there's errands to run, bills to pay, groceries etc etc. I was already not feeling too great and I guess all the running around just finally did it for me.
Know what I miss??? I miss sleep!!!! I miss being able to get into bed and sleeping like there's no tomorrow. Know that feeling???? No worries, no noise, no kids keeping you awake.
I used to be able to do it before the kids came along, but the minute I had them I think I developed this WHOLE other sense. They just move in bed and up and I'm wide awake from a deep sleep. Hubby thinks I must have some supernatural power to do this since there's times the kids will be standing right next to him yelling and he sleeps through it. HOW is all I ask????
Teach me these tricks, I know I'm becoming an old dog, but I'm sure I can still learn. LOL

I managed to do groceries for 2 weeks for $197. Now that includes everything, the food, the pullups, the extras, the snacks etc. So I'm proud of myself. It took me a while after we got married, to come up with the right plan for us. I would just go into the store and buy stuff and then try to figure out what to make with it, but then I remembered growing up, my stepmom would make menus and the grocery list accordingly, and I thought, I have to do this. She was raising 4 kids and things weren't easy at times, but she managed.
WHAT A LIFE SAVER!!!
For any newlyweds out there who are still struggling with the whole budget and food issue, try it, believe me, it's a huge help.

But moving on, not much planned for today. I can't really do much seeing that I'm not feeling well, was supposed to work on the yard but that has to wait until the rain lets up a bit. We've had wonderful temperatures, yesterday it was 70 degrees, it was sunny for about 30 minutes and warm and felt like a summer afternoon.
Just one of the annoying things about living on base. We get a knock on the door on thursday afternoon and it's one of the guys from Housing!!!
We have 48 hours to mow the front yard, don't know why because the grass is not long at all, believe me, I will even post a picture later just to show you........and also behind our backyard fence. According to him, it states in the housing manual that you have to mow 6 feet behind your fence. I haven't been able to find that in the manual but what do I know??? I've just lived her for 8 years right???
The bad thing is that if you don't get this stuff done, when they want it, they will write you a ticket and then contact the commander BLAH BLAH BLAH.
So we haven't done it......why you may ask? Because it's been constantly raining for weeks, day and night and I'm NOT mowing in the rain, that's ridiculous. So stay tuned, for I'm sure our run in with the housing office is not over LOL

I gotta get the Easter baskets done today and I need to send hubby to the store for chicken.....yes, the commissary here had NONE yesterday. How do you run out of chicken?
It's not the first time either, it's becoming a habit for them. HEY IT'S PAYDAY, EVERYONE COMES TO GET GROCERIES, LET'S MESS WITH THEIR HEADS AND HIDE ALL THE CHICKEN!!! LOL

I've had quite a few people ask me about the places I've lived. I never really thought about it until I started mentioning them on the blog. As most of you know I was born in Mozambique.

After the whole independence war thing happened, my family packed up and first moved to Zimbabwe, formerly Rhodesia. Another beautiful country.

We didn't live there for too long before moving to Portugal. My grandparents stayed behind though and lived there for a few years. Portugal is where I grew up and started school at.
Want to see my school?
I have a LOT of wonderful memories from my early childhood there, as I'm sure you've noticed from my "Remember When???".

Then in 1984 we moved to South Africa. That is where we stayed and lived until I got married and moved to the states. So in all effects, to me, I'm South African. That is where I have some of the best memories of my life. I grew up there, that's where I had my first boyfriend, my best friends, my first job, where I graduated and where I really consider my home.
When I think of going home, I think of returning to Johannesburg, where my family still lives.

So there you have it, just a little insight into where I've lived and what I've seen. If you ever have any questions or want to know more, feel free to ask, I don't mind sharing :)

And that's it guys, I'm outta here, I need to get some medicine and still have some chores to do today. Hope you all have a wonderful saturday, and don't worry, I'll be back tomorrow with some Easter wishes for you all :)

Hold on tight, here it comes........

I woke up this morning with a sore throat and now I have the worst headache ever. Guess all my dodging and running from this bug didn't work. Oh well, just deal with it, I tell myself. Nothing some cold medicine and some rest won't cure right?
Thank God it's friday though which means hubby will be home for the next 2 days and I can actually get some much needed sleep.
At times like these though, my heart just goes out to the wives whose hubbies are gone right now, because they have to do it all without him there to help. You ladies know who you are, and you know I have much love for you :)

I would invite you to come on in and have some hot coffee and donuts but I really don't want to be the cause of anyone getting sick. Guess we'll save the shared breakfast for another day.

First I want to point you in the direction of Freedom Isn't Free. Her post this morning brought tears to my eyes, and being that I have to deal with the issue directly, this was just perfect. So especially for military wives, I hope you get a chance to read it. It definitely gave me an idea of how to explain to my kids about the war and daddy being a soldier.
Way too often I'm met with those questions that blow me away because, seriously, I don't even know how to answer them. Being that Jasmine is going to turn 7 years old, she understands alot of things that somehow I wish I could shelter her from. So when she turns to me and asks "why do we have to have war?" or "but why does daddy have to go fight bad guys, why can't he stay with me?". Imagine the heartbreak, when you see the tears in their eyes and you know that nothing you say will make it better!!!
Go on over and read the post, it's really well written and it's one of those WOW ones!!!

So what's going on in my life you may ask? Well I could be negative and say "my legal stuff isn't done yet, Nicholas has a bad cold, I'm feeling horrible, Curt is working crazy hours, Jasmine is outspoken and testing my patience, Lola is determined not to be house trained and so on and so on".
But let's face it, all that's going to do is make ME miserable and make YOU want to run in the opposite direction.
So I'm going to say that things are GOOD!!!
All those things are just small bumps in the road and easy to fix. I'm just going to embrace them and roll with the punches. LOL

Kids always remind us of how simple and beautiful things can be.
Last night I was complaining, yes ME, complaining. What a thought huh? I would like to say that I don't do it often, but who am I kidding right?
Going back to the story, I was complaining about the rain, about it constantly raining and how annoying it's becoming because it messes with MY plans. Like I'm THAT important that the whole world has to change for me. LOL
Jasmine turned to me after a while and said "You know mommy, just remember that Spring Showers will bring us May Flowers".
BAM BAM (I'm sure Emeril is thrilled). Boy did that hit me and I thought to myself.....look at you, sitting here whining about the rain, how pathetic can you get?
So I stopped and smiled and hugged her, because she reminded me to always look on the bright side.

And just to KEEP reminding me, guess what? It's raining again today LOL
Ok now, I get the message!!!! Let's not RUB it in anymore!!! LOL

It's friday which means another "Remember When???". I was trying to think of a story this morning and for some reason I was drawing a blank, which is not normal because I tell you, my family has had it's shares of funny things happening, I think we're a HUGE magnet for the funny and weird!!!!

When I was growing up, we always had our yearly trips to Algarve. We loved it because it meant getting away from the city and all the commotion and actually going to relax at the beach, and just have fun.
So we set out on a trip to Odeceixe, which is a beautiful town with gorgeous beaches.

Now imagine this....a small little car, my dad and stepmom sitting up front, and in the backseat we had, my greatgrandmother, my mother, and me and my 3 brothers LOL
Don't ask how the heck we fit in that car, but we did, I think my youngest brother was sitting up front with my stepmom. If it was nowadays we would have been sitting in jail for that LOL I guess in those days you got away with everything and anything.

Let's not forget the dog in the trunk, yes it was an open trunk not like he was closed in there LOL
We drive to Odeceixe which is quite a way away. The whole time we have my greatgrandmother complaining because she has one of the luggage bags hitting her on the head LOL
We stayed in this beautiful house, rented of course. The first day we went to the beach, we opened the trunk for the dog to come out and he took off. Yeah, he was OUTTA there. We literally ran after him for what must have been miles. He's running down the beach, throwing sand on everyone and we're chasing behind him yelling, what a SIGHT!!!

But the one moment we will always remember from that trip was the day we left. We had the car packed, everyone sitting down and we waited for about 30 minutes for my greatgrandmother. Thinking she was either in the bathroom or trying to get ready, we go back in to investigate, only to find her cleaning the house LOL
She was making sure the chairs were all neatly pushed in at the dining table, and doing all sorts of housework which we didn't have to do, cause the cleaning lady was coming in LOL

Boy what a trip that was. It was fun, but full of crazy moments. Oh and let's not forget my mom who go sunburnt so bad that she pretty much cried all the way back home, no one could touch her and even her clothes were bothering her. LOL

So that's it for today's "Remember When???". Now I really need to get off here, not only is this post reallllllllllyyyyyy long, but I'm not feeling that great, think I might go lay down on the couch a bit, don't know how long that will last with a sick 3 year old around.

Hope you all have a fantastic friday!!!!