Legacy

I hope that one day, these words that I write down tell a little of the legacy I am leaving behind. In our small town, we lost a young man this week, to a great family, that deserves only happiness and is filled with sorrow right now. My heart aches for them. To lose a child, is something unimaginable. This tragic event makes me stop and reflect upon what I have and am blessed with. I truly view each birthday that my kids celebrate as a gift. I got to spend that many years knowing and raising them. I have been given so many precious moments that I cherish. Each day that passes is crazy busy, yet it is a day that I am given with these precious miracles and I should be so thankful. Live in today.... I think that says volumes. I don't need to be waiting for tomorrow and what is to come. I need to live in today. I need to cherish today, no matter what it has brought me. I had one of those days at work, where I wish I could just be a stay at home mom and not be so stressed and then I came home to a bustling house of kids and dinners and homework and I realized through a very wise friend that we need to leave work at work. I need to live in the part of the day that matters most. I am so blessed to be a teacher and help mold lives. That is what is important there. And when I walk through these doors, the precious family I have been given is my focus. Who knows when life will change? In an instant our world could be broken. I choose today. I choose to be thankful for this day. It will never come again and I will never know what day is my last. So little ones in this house, know that each and everyday I choose to thank God for you. I thank Him for giving us this day together. Your daddy and I love and cherish each moment of your childhoods and I hope and pray to watch you grow into amazing adults as well. You make me better and this day, this amazing day (the ordinary really long one where I am tired) and I am so grateful to have shared it with you. 

Memories

I am glad you get to take memories with you. This little piece of heaven was placed in our lives 11 years ago and I am forever thankful for every single memory within these walls. How do you say goodbye to so many memories? How in the world will I be able to close the door one last time? Kennedy had an emotional moment yesterday crying and crying about leaving here. I tried to console her, but most of me just understood that she needed to cry. She hasn't known anything else other than this house. Goodness we have grown up since that Christmas of 2004. 2 young kids, moving in and starting a family. We have walked through so much. A lot of prayer went through this precious house, a lot of tears, so many laughs, new babies, a new puppy, and more friends and family than we can count. We are blessed. 1650 square feet felt like a mansion and now I don't think we can put one more thing in here! Yet, as we walk through the next phase, I am incredibly thankful we are blessed enough to be able to provide a larger home for our kids to grow up in, and I don't take that lightly. It is my hope that our new home will be a new place of joy and laughter. I know hard times will fall upon us, but I am so thankful that no matter what the roof over our head looks like, that we are together. I have these people. These tiny humans that became people, that became my support, are my reason for living each day. This little family I get to call mine blesses me beyond words. I am looking forward to our new memories, yet so thankful for all the ones we get to carry with us. In a few short days our Middleground house will be someone else's, and I hope it means as much to them as it has to us. 

Whit

Whit: age 6, "mommy, I think I love you even more than you love me." 

Be still my heart. This little boy had it at day one and I love him more and more each day. 

Moving forward in faith..

Happy news to report! We have a contact on the house! I got really worried about finding somewhere to move, but by the grace of God we have found that too! It is my prayer as we walk through this transition and I seek out what God wants for my family. He has provided us a perfect rental home in our neighborhood and that was such a blessing!  We want a bigger house. That I a a big want and not a need I am aware. It is my hope and prayer that being able to build a larger home, that I can open it up to so many people. I want my house to be a place where anyone and very one is welcome. I want messy kids throwing themselves on my furniture and eating all my food. I want to host church gatherings and meetings. I want it to be a place where my kids enjoy growing up and anyone and everyone feels welcome. I am praying us through every step of the way. Greg is really worried about the  build sing a house journey, but it is my hope and prayer that we really pray about each and everything and it will all turn out just as it should. So here beings a new journey for my sweet little family, as we step out from our little world here in middleground and step out into a whole new experience! I can't wait to see what the future holds!! 

Sweet summertime

Well summer is here and maybe, just maybe I will pick back up on this blogging. I am hoping someday my kids will care enough to read about their childhoods. We shall see about that one! My hope for this summer is that it is full of laughter, lots of downtime, tons of books, conversations, games, and just plain old school fun! I spent some time playing with the card shark of the family tonight. This boy is way too competive. He started it off with a stacked deck on his part full of all draw 4 cards. I love old school summer time fun. Tonight was no and chalk tic tac toe in the driveway. Tomorrow afternoon officially begins my summer! I am so thankful to have endless days aged of me to enjoy these miracles. Here's to summer 2015! May it be the best one yet!! 

Moments that last forever

Sometimes motherhood is filled with dirty dishes, ending fights, washing clothes, endless worry... But then we are given precious moments that we want to remember. Tonight is one of those. I have my boy all to myself and he is snuggled up with me. I will never in my life forget the way he looks at me and tells me he loves me. He gently takes my face in his hands  and kisses me oh so sweetly. I ask if he will ever love another girl like he loves me. His reply "maybe." I know all too soon that sweet heart of his will be all grown and he will fall in love. She is one lucky girl I know that for sure. All I could think of tonight is that I will forever cherish that look in his eyes and when he is all grown I will always remember the moments of how he loved me the most.. I love you so much Whitfield Daniel. You've had my heart since the day I found out you existed. My life is so much better because of you. What a lucky girl she is out there growing up somewhere, to someday meet you and fall in love.i sure hope she knows what an amazing person you are. 

Moments that last forever

Sometimes motherhood is filled with dirty dishes, ending fights, washing clothes, endless worry... But then we are given precious moments that we want to remember. Tonight is one of those. I have my boy all to myself and he is snuggled up with me. I will never in my life forget the way he looks at me and tells me he loves me. He gently takes my face in his hands  and kisses me oh so sweetly. I ask if he will ever love another girl like he loves me. His reply "maybe." I know all too soon that sweet heart of his will be all grown and he will fall in love. She is one lucky girl I know that for sure. All I could think of tonight is that I will forever cherish that look in his eyes and when he is all grown I will always remember the moments of how he loved me the most.. I love you so much Whitfield Daniel. You've had my heart since the day I found out you existed. My life is so much better because of you. What a lucky girl she is out there growing up somewhere, to someday meet you and fall in love.i sure hope she knows what an amazing person you are. 

People

I love how life brings people into our lives and we are never the same. Kennedy cried and cried tonight because she missed Grandma. She did this as she snuggled the baby blanket my grandmother made for a baby crib of mine when I was little. These women who came before us are so important. These great people, that started families and worked so hard are still such an important part of our lives. My Mama would have loved Kennedy. Grandma loved Kennedy. I am so blessed to come from such wonderful people. So all those tears tonight were hard. It is hard to watch an 8 year old grieve. Yet, it is somehow so precious to know how important Grandma was to her. She is loved beyond measure with all those great women in heaven. I hope when you are all grown up, Kennedy, you realize what strong women you come from.the list is too long to make, but I feel confident in the fact that you too will become a strong woman and I am so proud of you. 

Reminiscing....

We are embarking on the scary journey of selling our house.  I am ready. My little, precious family, needs something bigger.  But nobody prepares you for the roller coaster of emotions that go into selling and buying a new home.  2 kids bought this house.  KIDS.  Seriously I don't know why we got approved for a loan we were so young and immature. ;)  I can't stop looking around and praying that this home means something to the new owners, whoever they end up to be.  It is hard having people trek through your home and decide it is just not for them.  Maybe they hated my white appliances, or my too stained carpet....over and over they don't put an offer in an it starts to hurt your feelings!  Yet, tonight, after two showings this weekend, and I don't think I sat down the whole weekend, I am so filled with prayer about our next "owners" of this precious house.  I knew it was ours immediately.  It was just the two of us and Riley.  It was PERFECT.  We moved in, set up a guest room, and office, and settled in.  Our long journey for Kennedy involved many hours of me sitting in her future nursery crying and praying I would get to meet her someday.  I just wanted her to exist, and make it into my arms.  I sat with my sweet friends for ours in the rocking chairs on the front porch of this house.  HOURS and hours where we solved life's problems.  The conversations during those times were ones I cherish, those moments were actually priceless but I didn't know that at the time.  We didn't have kids, we all wanted them and each journey was different, but somehow out there on that little front porch, it just made you feel better to rock and talk about it.  Years passed and babies came....then they grew into little toddlers around this yard.  A swing set erected in that backyard, laughter began, and my little family grew.  There have been so many times of great joy here.  We welcomed two babies into this home.  We welcomed a crazy new puppy.  We celebrated birthdays here, celebrated anniversaries and milestones.   Christmas morning after Christmas morning was celebrated in this little white house that we call ours.  Living next door to your best friends in the world is quite as you would imagine it, absolutely perfect.  We are never out of ketchup, but most of all we are never all alone in the world.  There is always a shoulder to cry on, a shirt to borrow, a friend to help diagnose some weird thing going on with your kid, a lawnmower to share, dinners to grill....the list is endless. Yet somehow we have the courage and faith to step out of this comfort zone we are in.  We are stepping out with faith that God has a plan for us.  I love this house.  I love every single memory in it.  We have had our share of sorrows here, but the joys outweigh those by far.  So it is my prayer tonight, not that I sell it, but that the new owners (wherever you are) are as blessed with this home as we have been.  I pray happiness over this place in the world. I pray for the little family or beginning of a family that someday moves in here. I pray that it brings them even more joy than it has brought us. This stepping out is scary, and I am super attached to memories in life, but I do know that God has great things in store for all of us, we just have to have the courage to move forward and follow Him.  It isn't time to say goodbye to you, sweet little white house, but i know someday soon it might be. My heart is ready, but know I will carry your memories and joy with me always.

Mommy!

"Mommy! I need you!" Words that sometimes I just want to ignore and sit. All I want to do is sit. I never get to sit down.... Then there are the days of clarity where I hear that sweet voice say "mommy! I need you!" And I realize that this moment is fleeting and some day I will long for those words. So today, I have clarity for the next 60 seconds or so and I  am happy I am needed. I am happy I am still called mommy. I am happy to have two sweet blessings in my life to watch grow. 

Summer 2014

It was one of the best yet! Here are some of my favorite moments of the summer!! So thankful to have made great memories this year!!

The Magic of Disney

It is a moment that you don't ever forget. That first glimpse of cinderlla's castle, the first sighting of your favorite Disney character, your first ride on space mountain, the shows, the fireworks, the music.... It is all so full of magic. This week we got to watch our kids have those special moments and got to relive our own with them. It is just something about Disney world that brings back such good memories! My top moments of the week...

Princess lunch: I totally cried when she met belle in the castle. All I saw was her joy, and realizing that she won't always love princesses like this, and soaking in the moment, I totally cried. Then I cried when she met all of her favorite princesses! She was so shy with them which is not like her at all! I cried the whole meal...;) 

Space mountain with Whit: he is a roller coaster junkie! He loved every minute and yelled at the end to go again!!!

My whitty and the things he says...I tucked him in one night and I said "do you love Disney world?" His reply. " I do love it so much, but I love you more than Disney world." Tear....

Midnight at Disney: Kennedy helped us shut down the park one night at it was so fun!! She looked at me at one point and said, " let's skip!" I totally skipped through fantasy land, hand in hand with my baby girl and I will never forget that moment...

Parades: oh the joy and excitement on their faces!! Priceless!!!

Meeting mickey: whit didn't want to at all. He fell right before we went in the room. He was clinging to me like crazy. Kennedy walks right up to him and hugs him. Whit takes a minute and then mickey gets him to see how high he can jump. So there they are, jumping with mickey, kids giggling... Moment filed away forever in my heart.

The bibbodi bobbidi boo, may all your dreams come true, has new meaning to me now. Childhood should be celebrated. Disney is a place to spend lots of time together, even though you are worn out, and put all your hours and Moments into making memories. What a magical place, and what wonderful memories we made with our family. Loved every moment!! May all your dreams come true!! 

Twas the night before kindergarten

In the blink of an eye he is going to be off to college. It seems like yesterday I was meeting him for the first time and here we are! Whit is my worrier. He is the clingy one who hates new situations. But he proudly walked in the Mrs Renfroe's class at open house and loved it!! He is beyond excited tonight and I am so thankful for that! I love this little boy so much! He loves everything about school and learning new things. I can't wait to watch him soak it all up! Here's to a great year of kindergarten! Maybe time will slow down a little! And maybe by college they will have a children's book I can read you about the night before college.... ;) I love you!!