Life with my sister

Julie took this with her phone and sent it to me. I laughed so hard and still smile when I look at it. Anna Kathryn in riding the bull at the Mexican restaurant in Twinkle Town. Her arm being up and that tilted head make me go crazy! What a poser. I would think she was my child, except she looks just like her mother. She is such a cute, funny little mess. I love being an aunt to this silly girlie girl and her 3 crazy brothers. Abby

Since I failed to include the little foodie on the Food Friday post, I thought this would be fun! Abby

Last week I headed to the d irty delta with the hubs. He is gearing up for planting season and needed to get some contracts signed and look at his plots. He asked me if I wanted to go, and since I am a lady of leisure at the moment I said, "Why not!". So, I shipped my croupy baby off to Juju's and hopped in the truck and headed to the dirty with my man. Why am I posing with Kermit? Because Jim Henson was from the d irty , baby! I had Randall stop at the visitors museum in Greenville. It was a joke of a museum but I got to touch Kermie and that made me feel all green and happy! When we travel, we eat! We favor local fare. We live in a town that has very little good local places to eat, but we are drowning in chains. It is one of the things we do not like about living here, but it is something we can live with. Luckily Memphis and Little Rock are not to far of a drive. Going to new places is fun because we can try new places to eat. Randall has traveled the roads of the d...

I have so many things rambling around in my head. I'll give you just a few. **Daniel lost his tooth Friday. The Tooth Fairy still has not visited our home. This morning David woke up and his tooth fell out right into his hand. Now what is the Tooth Fairy to do?? Come tonight? Won't that make Daniel feel bad? Won't that make him feel like the Tooth Fairy likes David more than him? Should the Tooth Fairy come to Daniel tonight and wait 5 days to pay David for his tooth? Oh, I just don't know! I'm thinking that the Tooth Fairy may need to come clean. But, they're just nine years old. It seems a bit early. I don't like the Tooth Fairy! **Yesterday I started thinking about believing God. Sure, I believe God. I have faith. But do I REALLY believe God is going to provide for my needs? Do I REALLY believe God is going to take care of me no matter what HE sends my way? Do I REALLY believe God? My head says yes! My heart says maybe. Am I the only one? I have so many f...

January 2010 - at Marmie's with his cousins We love a Boppy Pillow at our house. It is where Henry laid for the first few months of his life. It helped a lot with his reflux and RSV. I am also guilty of lying my head in it a few times over the past year. It is most comfy! There were a few months we did not use it because he wanted nothing to do with it, but he has just recently rediscovered it because his little mama got smart and put it in his reading corner. He leans against it to turn the pages of his books. It is really too cute for words. January 2011- in the floor of our den He has also rediscovered napping in it some, thanks to his daddy. It makes me laugh to see how big he looks lying in it compared to the picture above. He also loves this blanket the most. Of all the blankets we have, he attached himself to this one. It makes me smile. What a difference a year can make! Is this baby boy of mine really this big?! Wow. Abby

A few months after Stephen and I got married I started working and we found some great friends. Most of my days went like this: Wake up at 7:30, go to work at 8, stay until 5, go out with friends at 6, stay out till 9, go home & sleep. Then we started having kids and by the time they went to bed at night I was too tired to do anything. I say all that to confess that I do not clean my house. It is just a mess! I sweep, mop and dust. I make my bed, but there is clutter EVERYWHERE!!! Yesterday I cleaned. I scrubbed the kitchen floor on my hands and knees, not really my knees more like my bottom. I moved the refrigerator and the stove and cleaned underneath them. It was at that moment that I was so thankful that I do not feel the need to document my life in pictures. If I felt that need you would have been so grossed out this morning! You're welcome. Today, I'm cleaning carpets with a carpet cleaning machine that I inherited from my in-laws. This could be a really gross day als...

Henry's Juju had been begging for him. Relentless begging. So, we let her have him. We even let her have him with Croup. She is a jewel of an aunt for that, and I am one naughty mama. We took him to her house and then meet her 2 days later to pick him up in Little Rock. This is Henry seeing me for the first time in 48 hours. We had not been away from one another that long since June, the last time he stayed with his Juju. He was emotionally conflicted, as you can tell. Juju and Anna did not want to hand him over. She had just changed his diaper in the bathroom, that is why the reunion took place here...in case you were wondering. I got to see 3 of my fab 4. I love seeing there little faces in person. Their little smiles and hugs make my heart happy. Aren't they the cutest things?! I missed you, Samuel! Henry headed home with his daddy and me admiring the new lovie we bought him while we were away. Henry would have been happy to stay with his Juju longer, I am sure. She took ...

We branched out this week a bit and tried this. It was pretty good and healthy. Even Henry liked it. I served roasted potatoes, salad and yeast rolls with it. It was yummy. We had it two nights in a row. I love leftovers! I love lemon icebox cake. I make it lowfat. This week we needed something sweet that was not chocolate or heavy. Randall always likes this and even Henry was a fan! Lemon Icebox Cake Lemon cake mix - make according to directions, but use applesause instead of oil. Bake in 13x9 pan 1 can fat free Eagle Brand 1 container fat free Cool Whip 1 packet lemon Kool-Aid Bake cake. While baking, heat Eagle Brand with Kool-Aid packet sprinkled into it. Poke holes in baked cake and pour Eagle Brand mixture on top. Cool and top with Cool Whip. Chill overnight and serve. It is better the longer it sits. Ugh, the pantry/food cabinet! I organize it and it goes back to being a mess in just a few days. I would love to know how you organize yours and keep it tidy. PLEASE comment a...

The Pioneer Woman has a post the other day about Sonic. I was so excited to read it when I saw the title. I love Sonic. I've always loved Sonic. I remember goin to Sonic with my Mamaw when I was a little girl. It was spring and I thought the napkins said Happy Easter. I remember thinking how nice it was of Sonic to have Easter napkins. Mamaw told me to read more carefully. Indeed, the napkins said Happy Eating. Well, Happy Eating or Happy Easter, I like Sonic. Here is my Top 10 list 1. Rt. 44 Coke. Oh my! I love Sonic Coke and Sonic ice 2. The fact that in some towns (not mine) Sonic is a drive thru and a drive-in. You get a choice of how you want to receive your food. Their is a Sonic in central Arkansas that has indoor seating too! Oh, the choices! 3. The Chili-Cheese Coney. There really isn't anything else to say about the wonderful goodness of the Triple C. 4. Tator Tots. The french fries at Sonic aren't consistent in their tastiness but the tots. Well, they nev...

This is my Croupy Cutie. Bless his little congested heart! I took him to the doctor yesterday morning after he barked like a seal all in the night. This is our third time to have it since early fall. I really hate to hear the barking cough because I know steroids are required. Our sweet Henry gets the roid rage and becomes a little bear. I took this of him running around the dining room like a wild man. He took a great nap soon after. There is an upside, I reckon! It is nothing Mama can't fix though. I love holding him, kissing him, and singing to him when he feels yucky. He is pretty fond of his Mama too! It makes him more clingy and there is nothing wrong with that...unless you are his Daddy and he is clinging to Mama! So, we are making our Henry Patton comfy and nursing him back to health. He is watching lots of his Baby Einstein and Praise Baby DVDs in front of the fire and taking long naps. I do hope the Croup moves out for the winter, I am so tired of seeing it rear its u...

I got the opportunity to spend Friday and Saturday with some pretty great preacher's wives. You know how I love being a preacher's wife and how I love other women that are. Getting to spend some time with some I had had only emailed back and forth was a joy. On my way home I had some prayer time for my children. Don't you just love being alone in your car, playing Klove, or other Christian music and praying? It doesn't happen very often for me, but I am so glad when it does. Anyway, I was praying for my kids. I prayed specifically that God would prick their spirits when sin entered their lives. I had spoken to someone a bit older than me about being around people that didn't have the same values as she did and how she felt a prick in her spirit that reminded her that the situation was one that God was not in. I told her I thought it was cool that God would still prick the hearts of those of us that are older. You would think that by now, at our ages, mine being 40 (...

I am so over the cold weather. I am ready for Spring. In honor of the cold, I made pot pie this week. We also had deer chili and chicken stir fry, with a plethora of other things that really don't deserve any mention. The cold makes me lazy. This is the recipe I decided to highlight since the deer chili was out of the freezer from last year and the stir fry was made up as I went about it and not anything stellar. So, here you have it... Crescent Pot Pie I used my new black baking dish I got for Christmas from my cousin Hollye for this dish. She gave me a black one to match my kitchen and she gave Julie a red one to match her kitchen. We both squealed when we opened them! I also used turkey I had left over in the freezer, instead of chicken. This is a pretty basic and popular recipe, but I thought I would share it anyway. It is always a hit at my house. 2 cans crescent rolls 2 cups chicken or turkey 1 can cream of chicken soup 1 can mixed vegetables (drained) 1/4 cup chopped onion 1...

The day after Thanksgiving Anna smashed her finger in a door at church. Smashed it flat. It was ugly. It bruised her nail really bad. It was her middle finger and if you asked to see her hurt finger she would show you. Just like you think she would show you her middle finger! Poor naive girl, still doesn't know why people were laughing. Well, the nail has been coming off slowly. Very slowly. But the last couple of days it has started to come off of one side, and has been bothering her. And me. And now, maybe you. Today, D&D, Anna & I were headed to Little Rock for an check-up appointment on Daniel's arm. Anna yells from the back of the van, "my finger is bleeding!!!" I had had enough. I called the doctors office, told them the problem and get this. They said to come on in. Can you believe it?? So, we stopped by the doctor's office for what I thought would be a 5-10 minute visit. It was a 50 minute visit. But the nail is off now. Thank heavens! It looks ba...

I sometimes laugh at the things that take my time these days. I always knew being a mama would take on new meaning and create new interests, but I never thought I would get excited about dressing my child for a bargain and end up stessing over it a wee bit! Like today, I am debating what trunk show to have this spring, Rags Land or Kellys Kids . Dilemma, I tell ya. I am leaning toward Rags Land because I like the Spring line a bit better. Decisions, decisions... I am also getting really excited about Valentine's Day and ironing out all the details for Henry. I have a shirt being made for him that is super cute, and decorated sugar cookies that compliment his shirt are going to be his Valentine to take to his friends and teachers. I have to laugh at my sister's response about my excitement of having a matching Valentine/cookie to match his shirt, "Really, no one will notice but you". She may be right, but I will know and that is what matters, right?! Another thing I a...

In the last couple of days we've had friends of Anna's running in and out of the house because of the snowdays. I noticed something. The girls want to talk to Samuel and play with David and Daniel. Not because the girls are tomboys but because they are girls and my boys are boys. Oh my word! This is a new world. And I think its going to be this way for a while. I remember when I was pregnant with Anna. One of the girls in my senior high Sunday School class mentioned that Anna was going to have a great life! She was going to get to be around all of her brothers friends. I thought it was funny then. Now, not so much. This could really happen! She could flirt with the boys friends, and her friends could flirt with my boys. I know she is 6. But Samuel is 13 and cute. It's going to happen. Oh my! I'm not ready!!! Anyone have any advice??

Something about snow makes me want to belt out the song from White Christmas,"Snow, Snow, Snow..." in my best opera voice. Good thing there is no voice record option on here, huh?! Henry finally got to play in the snow for the first time. Last year he saw snow from the window, but he was too little to go out and play. We were so excited to show Henry what the white stuff was all about! He was slow to take off but when he did he was gone! He loved it. Randall and I loved watching his face and listening to him squeal. I took the cutest video but it was set on the wrong settings and is now too large to load on the computer. Go figure. I don't want him to grow up too fast, yet I look forward to being able to ride 4 wheelers and do a little sledding with him in the snow. He is so much fun and the cutest snow baby ever! Abby

It snowed today in South Arkansas!!! It began snowing right as Stephen was finishing his sermon. Well, I should probably rephrase that. Stephen finished preaching as soon as his snow signal man signaled him that it was snowing! We headed home and into warm clothes grabbed a bite to eat and headed to the country. I know some of you think I live in the country because I live in a small town, but I don't. Our friends do. We braved the snowy roads and headed the 10 miles out of town to go jeep riding, and being pulled on a sled by a 4 wheeler. We ate, threw snowballs, and had a great time! The kids had to change clothes 3 times. They would get so wet from the sledding and playing. I would put a change of clothes on them (well, they did it themselves) and put their wet clothes in the dryer and repeated that for each kid. I think we will remember this snowday for a long time. It was so much fun!!! Did it snow where you live? Julie

I made butterscotch fudge this week for my man, and it was mighty fine. I used the fantasy fudge recipe and just substituted butterscotch chips in place of chocolate chips. I have not eaten much of it, but Randall seems to really like it. Our neighbor had given us some wonderful fudge that I thought was butterscotch, so I wanted to try to make more. It was not butterscotch that she made, now that we tasted mine. So, I am going to have to ask her what it is was. It was fantastic fudge. She is a really good cook. Do you have these in your freezer? We do now. Randall and I discovered these while buying frozen rolls a few weeks ago at Kroger. We felt like we had hit the biscuit jackpot. For someone like my sister, this is not a good deal, but for someone like me, this is the better deal. We always threw away leftover biscuits because even a mini can of 5 would be too many for us. Score for us! I also think they taste much, much better. Hello, bagel friend! I love an everything bagel...lo...

Aren't we just the cutest things?!! I took this with MY camera. And posted it here on the blog. Truly 2011 is going to be a banner year! I was trying to decide what to write about today and remembered this cute picture and decided to blog about sisters. While I was preparing part of supper I was thinking of Abby. We don't get to talk ear to ear much. For reasons that are out of our control we only get to text each other most of the time. Sadly, I can go a week without hearing her cute voice on the other end of my phone. Its a good thing we get each other's text humor!! While I was thinking of all of this, she was calling me. But since I wasn't at my desk I didn't notice that my phone was vibrating. When I saw that she called, it just made me sick that I had missed the opportunity to get to talk to her. She called to tell me she had heard a song that I love. One Touch by Nicole C. Mullen . Have you heard it? Its on her Sharecroppers Seed cd and it is an awesome song...

We finished the Christmas season on New Years Day at our Daddy's house in North Mississippi. The only good thing about divorced parents is that Christmas is never ending. It lasts all month at my house and it is actually a lot of fun. I think about my childhood Christmases and my adult Christmases and how incredibly different they are. It makes me laugh, an yawn a bit. I am so blessed to be born into a loving family and to have some sweet in laws to add to the mix. God is good! Daddy and his wife hosted "S" Family Christmas again, and it was a lot of fun. Connie always makes their home so festive for our gathering. We pile in and tear it apart, and thankfully, she invites us all back! Our kiddos have no idea how fortunate they are to have 3 sets of loving, adoring grandparents. With Christmas comes Daddy's birthday. We let him lead his birthday song and blow out his sparkler candles. Due to a little Fixodent issue, we all had to help blow out the candles in order ...

We are getting back to normal here in south Arkansas. We are doing school, keeping up with laundry, cooking, eating at home, and playing games. It is life as we know it. The best part is that there is nothing left on the calendar for this week. Well, I say that now but we know how that goes. When I got home from Daddy's Saturday night I turned the calendar to January and looked at the first week and it was blank. BLANK! I had nothing to do the whole week. It was bliss for just a moment. Then I remembered I had scheduled a quick meeting on Monday night. So, there was something on the calendar. And then Samuel has a hurting tooth and he has an appointment today. So, there was something else on the calendar. And one of our church members died Sunday so there will be a funeral this week. My calendar got written on, but not much. I will have time to dust, vacuum, sweep and mop, clean bathrooms, and bedrooms. Oh, I wish my calendar was full!! Housekeeping really isn't my thing. Julie

Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes. Five hundred twenty-five thousand moments so dear. Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes. How do you measure, measure a year? In daylights, in sunsets. In midnights, in cups of coffee. In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife. In five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes. How do you measure, a year in the life? Five hundred twenty-five thousand Six hundred minutes. Five hundred twenty-five thousand Journeys to plan. You know that love is a gift from up above. Share love, give love spread love measure your life in love. Abby (lyrics from RENT, Seasons of Love)