Be Inspired!

Please do yourself a favor by clicking on the link below. The video will only take 7 minutes of your time, and you will not regret watching it ~ in fact, you will not want it to end. There are so many little gems here for us to hold onto ~ never judge a book by it's cover, be patient as God may take time to reveal the gifts He has given you, be courageous in the face of adversity, never let go of your dreams, be patient as you wait to be appreciated by others....

Be inspired by Susan Boyle:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lp0IWv8QZY&feature=related

True Mommy Confessions

So, did any of you see the Oprah episode from this past Monday?
I didn't see it, but a lot of my friends did, and they have highly recommended that any mommies out there watch it online. There was a panel of moms who made some "confessions" ~ very true, very honest, very real-life.

Apparently, one of those moms confessed to traveling alone with her children, and when she needed to use the restroom, they were sleeping. We all know that if your child is sleeping in the car, you do not under any circumstances wake up him/her! This mom whipped out a diaper and tee-teed in the diaper while she continued to drive. Although I have never done anything quite like that (ah-hem, Elizabeth G.!), I thought it was brilliant and creative. :) However, I do have a few confessions of my own.

I have gone up to 3 days without bathing my children. Three days. (This does not compare to the woman who was overwhelmed with her twins and went three weeks, but still....) Part of this is the fact that it is hard for me to bathe them, depending on how my wrist is feeling that day. Part of it is pure exhaustion. I do bathe myself :) but I do not wash my hair as often as I should. Therefore, I have resorted to wearing baseball caps ~ something that, as most of you know, I have never been known to do.

A lot of times, friends walk into my house and comment on how neat and clean it looks. HA! What they do not realize is that if they were to open a closet (or the laundry room, or the study/guest room), they would get crushed by the junk that would fall out on top of them. Yes, I confess to stashing things places where they will not be seen.

I love to cook! Love it! I love to have "quiet time" with jazz or blues or Buffett playing in the kitchen while I cook. But now with 2 children, that does not happen nearly as often. When it does, it isn't "real" cooking ~ it is a pre-boxed meal, or food heated up from a can. Awful, right? And although I was never one to serve a sandwich as a meal other than lunch, they have been appearing on the supper table more and more often since Boots was born.

I could go on and on with my mommy confessions. I will wear the same jeans for days in a row, and sometimes I will wear the same outfit 2 days in a row, because it was laying out from the previous day, not dirty, and so why not wear it again? (Today is a great example of that!) I used to shave my legs every day and at the most, every other day. I will go a week or more now! Gross, right? I let so many things go that I never thought I would....

I would love to hear from all of you. What are your true mommy confessions?? And please comment! I have been tracking readers on my stat counter, so I know you are out there! I have been surprised to find that this blog is getting anywhere from 15-50 hits a day, from all over the country! I know some of you, and I don't know some of you, but either way, I would love to hear from you!

I will leave you with this, a little poem written by my Mom after keeping the girls for a few days when Brad and I went to New Orleans. :) I think most of you will relate to it:

My hair is straight -
My legs need a shave!
I've had Desitin under
My nails for 3 days!

My coffee gets cold
In the coffee cup -
When one goes "down,"
The other gets "up!"

Three dogs and me
In the bed at night!
But I can't say "no!"
So we all sleep tight.

But when Alli laughs,
And when Boots smiles,
I'm happier than
I've been for a while!

I love my girls!
And I wouldn't miss
A squeal or a giggle,
A hug or a kiss!

Just know, mom and dad,
Though we are apart...
Your two little girls
Own Dede's heart!

Keep on doing the best you can, mommies!!
It's all worth every second of it, isn't it?!
I know that I wouldn't have it any other way! :)

Thankful Thirds for April

I feel so blessed and thankful for so many things!

I am thankful for what I have ~ what our family has ~ especially compared to what I hear from Kennedy, my cousin, who is in Brazil this month and is seeing such extreme poverty.

I am thankful for our choices ~ any and all of them. Currently, Brad and I have several choices for where we will "land" after he finishes his fellowship. We wish we had a crystal ball right now: will we be in Augusta, Savannah, Greenville, or Macon??? As stressful as this time can be, when we stop and think about it, it is such a blessing that we have choices. All of them are good ones and nice places to live, and all of them are relatively close to our parents in Atlanta. Our prayer right now is that we follow God's plan for us, and that it is clear to us where He wants us to be.

I am thankful for the stressors of life. Well, some of them. :) Sound odd? When I can step back and really look at the things that I find so "stressful," I realize that I only have some of these stressors because I already have so much that is wonderful. Does that make sense?

I am thankful that I can get to a lot of the places I want to go in Augusta without getting on Washington Road during the Masters!! But I am also thankful to live in such a city as Augusta, which hosts such an event as the Masters. What an experience!

I am thankful for SPRING! And the beautiful flowers that come along with it! I love that Augusta is in full bloom right now.
These are the tulips ~ my favorite!! ~ that Mom sent on my birthday!

Mostly, I am thankful for my family ~ especially my 2 sweet, precious little girls. And I am thankful for the time I am able to spend with them by staying at home.
These are pictures from a rainy day at home, spending time playing in Mommy's room.

Boots is playing with the "doctor box" on the floor...

...and Alli Lane is playing with her princesses in my bed, so that Boots can't get to them, of course. :)

Thank you, God, for all of our many blessings!

A "Coloriscious" Birthday Party!!

Alli Lane and Peyton Lewis at their "Coloriscious" Birthday Party!

If ever a little girl felt special on her birthday...!
Alli Lane's birthday celebration began when she woke up the morning of her birthday on Monday, March 16, and didn't end until the weekend.

What birthday is complete without a birthday cupcake for breakfast?
And of course, a candle and wish to go along with it!
(She wished that she could live with her Dede. Hmmm.... :) )

Mid-morning, Mommy & Daddy showed up at school with special treats for her school birthday party. We thought the kids would eat the treats, sing "Happy Birthday," and that would be it. How silly of us!! The school party went on and on. Alli Lane's teachers, Mrs. Scroggs (below, giving Alli birthday wishes and "4 Tickles") and Mrs. Arthur know how to do a birthday right! Mrs. Scroggs told the story of McAllister Lane Buckler, beginning with her having parents named Brad and Britt who prayed for a baby.... It was very sweet, super special, and even a learning experience for the children!

Alli Lane got to make and wear a birthday crown all day! She wanted me to bring Double Doozie cookies, so that is what I did!

All of the children get to dance with the birthday girl on the carpet, then everyone gets to dance and celebrate!

After school and lunch at Teresa's (her pick ~ Mexican, for those of you who don't know), nap time was a must! Then, we had a birthday supper at Chuck E. Cheese!

After somehow getting the girls to leave CEC, we went home for more birthday celebrating. We had cupcakes and opened presents.

On Friday of that week, March 20, we had Alli Lane's birthday party with one of her best friends, Peyton Lewis, who had turned 4 just two days before Alli on March 14. For their birthday, the girls had a "Coloriscious" theme (think Pinkalicious and Purpliscious), asking all of their friends to wear their favorite color. Tara Scheyer was the entertainment, and the kids had a BLAST! We had nearly 60 children at the party, so you can imagine the fun and chaos that ensued! They danced, sang, and played....

Here are the guests of honor at the front with Mrs. Tara, singing, shaking, and dancing!

Notice that Alli Lane is in the front and center, dancing and shaking away! There was no doubt that she could tell she was the center of attention that day!

Dede, Gigi, Aunt Stephanie, and Baby Philip (the girls' only first cousin) all came from Atlanta for the special day! Thanks to all of you for making the trip!!

The birthday girls, turning FOUR!!!
And of course, wearing their favorite colors, in dresses specially made by Brinkley's Berries. Alli Lane, of course, wore red!! Was there ever any doubt about that?!

Mrs. Judy did a fabulous job making the cupcake-cakes look exactly like the balloons on the girls' invitations!

Getting ready to make their wishes....

Yummy cupcakes!

One very happy little girl

Posing for pictures
(Peyton has this down, doesn't she?!)

Boots was present for all of the fun, as well. She danced and loved the shakers in Mrs. Tara's basket! Towards the end, however, she swiped a crayon from the favor basket and was ready for some quiet coloring time. :) Of course, she wore pink as her favorite color!

The baby sisters:
Lauren Lewis and Boots Buckler

The birthday girl spent a lot of time that weekend riding her big wheel from Dede!

What can I say, except that it was a FUN week!!
Chaotic, exhausting... but such fun!
Happy birthday, my sweet little girl!

Boots' First Hospitalization

Pitiful, right?

Brad and I returned from New Orleans the night of Sunday, February 16. On Monday, Boots began vomiting...badly. We ended up in the emergency room when it turned bilious, of course expecting some sort of intestinal blockage. After bloodwork, x-rays, and ultimately an Upper GI, a blockage was ruled out and our surgery consult canceled. However, she didn't stop vomiting, so she was admitted to the hospital. After a long day, we had an even longer night. She was miserable and inconsolable. I basically sat and held her while she fought the IV lines. She was still sick when we were discharged home, but she got better within a few days. Since then, we have been through allergy testing, but thank goodness nothing was found to be positive. She is doing much better these days. These pictures were taken the morning of the day we got discharged, and her lines had been disconnected. She was so happy to be free!

Brad feeding Boots breakfast ~ doesn't she look tiny?!

Alli Lane visited her baby sister, which seemed to ease her mind. Daddy took her downstairs to McDonald's for a special treat, too!

All of the girls in bed

This was our first experience having a child hospitalized. Of course, Brad and I together have 2 decades of experience working in hospitals.... but even that cannot prepare you for the helplessness you feel when it is your baby, or the loneliness of the night while you try to console a miserable child, both of you exhausted. And when compared to so many children, Boots wasn't even sick. My heart immediately went out to those parents who have chronically ill children....

Thank you, God, for our health and our many, many blessings!

Winter in Rewind

What is a more fitting way to start a "winter" blog post than with pictures from one of Augusta's rare "snow days?"
The girls had a blast catching snowflakes on their tongues and running through the icy haze, even though it didn't stick. This time, it happened to be a Tuesday in January, and Alli Lane was on her way to ballet.

I suppose I need to stop for just a moment and explain about Alli Lane's name. About a month or so ago, she told me that "Alli Lane" (of course, "Lane" is her actual middle name) is "much more beautiful and much fancier than just Alli." And ever since, she has insisted on being called Alli Lane. Sometimes she won't answer us if we forget and call her "Alli," although sometimes, I think she forgets, too, and it is okay. She has told her teachers and has begun to come home with art work that says her "new" name on it. She says she wants to be Alli Lane "forever," so I guess we'll see if it sticks. We think it is cute, but making the change is tough ~ sort of like calling Elizabeth "Elizabeth" instead of calling her "Boots" ~ most of you know, that never happens!


Alli Lane "cooked" breakfast for me one morning while I was changing Boots. She made me an egg and served it in a plastic cup. (I found the shell in the trash can in the bathroom.)

Happy Valentine's Day!
Alli Lane's first real Valentine's Day party was the day we left for New Orleans, and this was her box for her valentines. She came home with lots of cards and candy!

Boots loves her "Baby Signing Time" videos!! She can sign milk, more, dog, cat, baby, cracker, hat, eat, and a few others. She uses some words, too, baby-fied though they may be. :)

Alli's "People I Love" picture. Brad and I are on there, along with Alli Lane, Boots, and her two teachers. Click on the picture to enlarge it, and notice that Boots is frowning. I think it is hysterical! Alli Lane says she is crying because she is tired. :)

Elizabeth patting Stanley.

Alli Lane and Daddy reading together.

PRECIOUSNESS!

Boots still sits on the doll sofa from Nana & Papa. She thinks it is for her, and it does fit her perfectly!

Playing outside on the deck and in the yard....

Stanley

Doc ~ with his red ball, of course!

"Where's Boots?..... There she is!"

For a baby who would not take a bottle or a cup consistently until she was 14 months old, Elizabeth certainly insists on her milk these days!

Making a mess for Mommy to clean up

Alli Lane had another Parent Visitation Day for ballet. Gigi drove down to watch.

"Jumping over a pond"

Passing balls with their feet and their hands.

Alli Lane and Peyton Lewis

Whew!
I think I am just about caught-up! :)