Life with my sister

Melissa, What a blessing to receive a sweet note and gift from you. I do not know who you are, but God does. I wanted to send you a formal thank you note but by the time Abby got the envelope to me it has ripped in the corner right where you address was. Shoot! I blame it on Henry :) This public "thank you" will have to do. Your kindness was so uplifting and appreciated more than you will ever know. You have a super sweet heart. God bless you, Melissa! Julie

Today we are eating it up and giving thanks for the blessings we so often take for granted . It makes me think of this sweet song that my girl Paige sang at our wedding in 2003. What a wonderful memory and beautiful lyrics. I hope your day is full of gratitude and blessings. There's nothing like the warmth of a summer afternoon Waking to the sunlight, and being cradled by the moon Catching fireflies at night Building castles in the sand Kissing Mama's face goodnight Holding Daddy's hand Thank you Lord, how could I ask for more Running barefoot through the grass A little hide and go seek Being so in love, that you can hardly eat Dancing in the dark, when there's no one else around Being bundled 'neath the covers, watching snow Fall to the ground Thank you Lord, how could I ask for more So many things I thought would bring me happiness Some dreams that are realities today Such an irony the things that mean the most to me Are the memories that I've made along the ...

My little turkey can say "gobble gobble" and "give thanks". It makes my Mama heart so proud. He is a sponge and I love it! This week I am making a thankful tree for us to have on the table at dinner time. It has made me think of all the little bitty things we have to be thankful for. Henry absorbing things and learning so much is something I am most thankful for this year. He has been saying his ABC's for about 2 months now and it is clear as a bell. You can even start at any given letter and he will pick it up and finish it. So smart! He is counting to 14. I have the cutest video of he and his daddy counting but downloading videos is my downfall. I don't take time to do it. Maybe I will this week if time allows. His little voice melts my insides. He also knows all his shapes. You can even throw out a diamond or an octagon and he will tell you exactly what it is. You should hear him say "octagon". Preciousness! It makes me laugh because it is sur...

"How does my turkey look?" We had a wonderful Thanksgiving at my Aunt Babs house in Memphis. It was Henry's first Thanksgiving. Last year I sat in my chair in my den, wearing pajamas, and Randall brought me food on a TV tray that my dear mother-in-law had brought to us. I was on bed rest, days away from meeting my baby boy for the first time. So crazy to think that sweet baby is already a big ole turkey boy on our hip! Spending the holiday with my fraternal side of the family was so much fun. Our cousin Hollye is more like a sister to us than a cousin. We are a tight little group. She and I carved the fried turkey and insisted that a photo be taken with the best cut of meat being placed on the platter. I love being with people wired like me. It is so nice to not have to explain yourself, excuse yourself or hide yourself with the ole kin folk...I love that! I am so thankful for a healthy, happy, active and handsome little boy who lets me dress him up in crazy outfits fo...

I Love 80's music. I can't tell you the name of any songs, or who sings any songs. But I love 80's music! It doesn't make sense, but when do I ever make sense?!HA! The other night I was reading my Kindle (surprised?) and Stephen was flipping through the channels (surprised?). He stopped on the Sirrius station that plays 80's music. Ther were playing the top 40 countdown from that week in 1986. Oh, the memories. I listened and read, read and listened. And then I got to thinking about 1986. That week 24 years ago was not a happy one for me. I had been dating a boy that had made some wrong choices and I was so terribly sad and heartbroken that I couldn't imagine being happy again. CAN YOU IMAGINE?? I was 16, and thought that I wouldn't be happy again! I'm so glad I got over my melodramatic phase of life. HA! So, as I'm laying in bed thinking that this week in the year 2010 is SO much better than 1986 Stephen mentioned that we spent everyday together th...

34 years ago a cute little boy was born in a small Mississippi town in the Dirty Delta, and for that I am most thankful. He grew up to be such an upstanding, fine young man and for that I am even more thankful. I am so thankful he chose me to be his bride. We have had a fun almost 8 years of marriage. This was taken at Alcatraz. I am so blessed to have a husband who will go do crazy things with me....like watch me run 26.2 miles in San Francisco, and in return make me go to Alcatraz with him. (That is where this photo was taken...we were there at dark... eck !) I am also thankful that he was not too proud to wear that pullover because he looks at this picture and almost dies each time. He was cold and had to buy something to keep himself warm before we got on the boat, and this is all he could find. Nothing screams "tourist" louder than that pullover! He is also the sweet, giving husband who took me to see the Rockettes on his 28 th birthday, which was also the opening d...

This week I had the privilege to help with the annual food drive for our local food bank. I am a thankful supporter of the area food bank. I serve on the development committee, I delivered senior packs until it got too emotional for me, and I give of our family treasure when possible. I can honestly say that is a cause in which I give my time, talent and treasure! I love the idea of helping meet the most basic need. What a blessing to help feed the hungry. Can you imagine being hungry, not having food in your cabinets and having no money to buy any? I can't imagine and I hope to never experience it firsthand. My Meemaw always gave to the Union Rescue Mission at the holidays. I remember the joy it gave her and how she would talk about it with passion. The year she died I gave a donation to the Union Rescue Mission in memory of her and I gave every year after that until we moved out of the area. Now I give to our local food bank. I love how she taught me the joy of giving....and s...

I love this girl. This is Julie's youngest, Anna. She makes me smile. Today I was reminded what a blessing she is to our crew. Julie told her to tell me what she wanted for Christmas and she got out the toy catalog and went to town! That made me laugh because her brothers just spouted off a few things and went on their way. I love that she took her time and went to the wishing well, so to speak. Nothing like a toy catalog when you are a little girl! So, she picked out an expensive toy and showed it to Julie. Julie told her it was too expensive. She then responded, "It is ONLY $59.98!" Oh, to be wide-eyed, innocent and have no concept of money. I am thankful for this encounter today. What a wonderful reminder of how sweet innocence is! I am thankful for this mess upstairs in our craft room/office. It means we are 2 weeks away from having a 1st birthday celebration for our sweet Henry Patton. It means we survived a year of late night, early mornings and learning how to pa...

I feel so blessed to have such great friends who love Jesus. Here I will highlight a few of them. I could never highlight them all though...not enough room! God gave me this ole girl when I was 4 years old. I can't imagine one single day on this earth without her. We have literally been through it all. No exceptions, really. We are as close as we were growing up, even with all the miles between us. She gets me like no one else does, and for that I am supremely blessed....because frankly, I am one odd duck! She was my first friend in Jonesboro. We had an instant bond because she and I have several personality similarities. She is that friend I cannot talk to for three weeks, but the one I can drop in on with wet hair and pajama pants on late at night without a second thought. She is also the only one outside of family to ever keep Henry. She was also the only non-relative at the hospital when he was born. I love having a friend like that. This is my newest dear friend, and one...

Schools all across our state are out of school today. And since the kids found out about it they decided we shouldn't be in school either. And since I want to give them a semblance of the public school feeling (crazy hair day, spirit day, and pj day) I went with it. So, no school at Beavers Academy today! Since there is no school, some high school football games are being played tonight and the others are being played tomorrow night. Our beloved Bulldogs play tonight. In the cold, wet, wintry weather! I can hardly wait!!! Some years ago our church began hosting the Bulldog Breakfast the morning of every football game. The players, coaches, and cheerleaders come to the church for breakfast, a devotional by a guest speaker and pep talk from the coach and awards from the previous week. It is a fun time, and a highlight for many of the players and cheerleaders. Stephen and the boys get up and leave the house at 4:30 every Friday morning to cook, and help set-up for the breakfast. Anna ...

This little guy turned 11 months yesterday. Can you believe it?! I am so thankful for his smile, his laugh, his energy and his love for his Mama! I am thankful for his good health and development. We are blessed to have this baby boy and I treasure each new day we have with him. Abby

awkward time funny time proud time We are thankful for sisterhood. We are thankful for the memories of good times, awkward times, funny times, sad times, bad times, scary times, the "I think I will pull your hair out if you don't leave me alone" times, and the "I am so proud of you, sister!" times. God was so good to give us each other. What a blessing to know you have a friend who has lived the same life and understands you better than you want her to! Abby always says Julie was her first friend. What a blessing! This is the first day of the Gratitude Challenge we will do for the month of November. We will try to post something each day. It may be a post by itself, or at the end of a post about our other topics. We will mix it up, so look for it! We want to focus on having a heart of gratitude this month as we prepare for the holiday season. Be sure to comment off and on and tell us what you are thankful for. We all have so many things in which we can show g...

Today we were showered again. Two weekends in a row. I feel so blessed that I may pop with joy and excitement. Henry is loved already, I know that is for sure! It was so great to see family and friends this morning for a yummy brunch. My Shower Hostesses Aunt Babs Cousin Hollye My Dad's wife, Connie Henry's Mama in front of the beautiful floral arrangement Hollye made Gifts galore My Peepaw's sterling spoon and knife from when he was a baby. Babs willed them to Henry since Peepaw's middle name was Henry. Notice Peep's teeth marks in the spoon. Melt my heart. I get my sappiness from the S side of the family, as you will soon find out with the sterling set in the pic above and then this. My Meemaw died in 2002. There was a gift from her at my shower and it was this little outfit. It was just like something she would buy. There was a card from her also. I cried. Swing happiness. I love the idea of Henry in his swing. I am excited to now be a diaper Bag diva. Cl...