Is There Anything Worse....

.....than a summer cold?

I don't think so. And I have one. A yucky, ears hurting, throat hurting, head feels like it might explode, summer cold.

Boo. Hiss.

So, because of this, today's agenda is pretty boring. I'm working a bit this morning (because my docs don't care if I'm sick), then I'm gonna curl up in my bed, take some medicine, and get better now. Darnit. Here's to hoping that A will be down with this. I'd let her have a friend over, but I don't think that other mothers want me exposing their children to whatever yuckiness it is that has invaded my body. So, I hope she's down with a day on the couch and some movies.

I seriously DO NOT have time to be sick. Do you hear me body? I don't have time for this. I've got fun things to do. An 8-year-old daughter to hang out with. Pools to swim in. It is summer for goodness sakes. I am NOT supposed to be sick. Not. Not. Not. Maybe if I keep repeating it, my body will actually LISTEN to me. No time body. No time. No time to be sick.

But yet, here I am. Sick. My ears hurt. My throat hurts. And my head is KILLING me. Seriously. I feel like it might explode into a million pieces at any moment. And part of me wishes that would happen. Why? Well because then it wouldn't hurt like the devil anymore. Not sure where I picked up this particular ray of sunshine that has invaded my body, but I sure as heck wish I'd missed it, that is for sure.

Being sick sucks. Being sick in the summer sucks worse. Here's to hoping that this yuckiness is VERY short lived. VERY.

I'm Here to "Pump You Up"

source

Remember these guys? Hans and Franz? From Saturday Night Live? For some reason, I have them stuck in my head. Well, the reason is because I've started a new workout called Body Pump, and now all I can hear is Hans and Franz telling me they want to "pump me up". Not that I'm doing much "pumping up" right now. Right now? I'm just managing to not d-i-e while doing it. I'm managing to not fall out while doing one million squats.

Exercise? Yeah. It ain't fun. And it ain't pretty. Or it least it isn't when I do it. Which is why I prefer the comfort of my own home as opposed to embarrasing the mess out of myself at a gym. Maybe one day I'll work out in a gym. You know, one day when I'm not 30 pounds overweight.

So, here I go. Ready to get "pumped up". Which now brings up a stupid high-school football cheer in my head. Well, maybe between Hans and Franz and my inner cheerleader, I'll actually be able to do this.

Time to tell those 30 extra pounds where to go. And it ain't my hips.

Family Time

This weekend, my little family and I had some much needed family time. Much needed. It was nice to get away from it all and just be us.

It was so nice to not have a schedule. To not have to be anywhere at anytime. We did whatever we wanted, whenever we wanted. We had pizza for breakfast. We had steaks for lunch. We just were. Together.

I saw my husband relax. I saw my daughter smile. I heard all of us laugh hysterically.

I can't even begin to tell you how happy it made me for us to just be together. We left everything behind and just hung out. Just us. We thought about letting A take a friend, but in the end decided that this time it would just be us. We're going back to the lake this weekend and she can take a friend, but this time, this time? It was just us. And it was just perfect.

What about ya'll? How do you unplug and reconnect?

I'm Better Now

So, yesterday I ranted a little (ok a lot) about things around here. I was hormonal and needed a pat on the back. Two certain someones (finally) got the message. Sometimes huffing and puffing and being a pain in the butt will get you what you want. Sometimes. I don' recommend it often, and I don't usually do it, I'm usually much more straightforward, but yesterday? Yesterday I wanted (ok, needed) them to acknowledge it ON.THEIR.OWN. So I was quiet. Well, kinda. And guess what? The dish? It got washed, and not by me. The clothes? They got put in the hamper, and not by me. The toys? They got picked up, and not by me. The breathing? Well, they are both still breathing the morning. I went to bed. I NEEDED a good night's rest. And this morning? I feel MUCH MUCH better.

So ya'll got to see me at my worst. Or me being honest. Either one. Sometimes (and just sometimes) being a stay-at-home/work-at-home mom SUCKS. Plain and simple. And sometimes, I just need a pat on the back. Ok, maybe all the time would be nice, but I'm not expecting miracles here people.

But today is a new day. And so far, no ones breathing is annoying me. No dishes are unwashed and no toys are on the floor. Of course, W is at work and A is asleep, so there is still plenty of room for this day to go downhill, but I'm better today. Sometimes, a little sleep is a good thing. Most days I can go, go, go. But after taking the kids to Alabama Advenenture with my sis on Monday, I was worn out yesterday. And I had to work. And the house was a disaster. And I felt like I had NO help at all. None. Zero. Nada. So, I had to rant. I had to pitch a hissy fit. Because sometimes Momma needs a break!

Thanks for listening. And not judging.

Is It So Hard?

-to wash the dish you just put in the sink?
-to pick your toys up off the floor?
-to actually put your dirty clothes IN the hamper, as opposed to on the floor?
-to acknowledge that I spent ALL.FREAKING.DAY. cleaning the house and that it looks good?
-to understand that the sound of you breathing right now annoys the crap out of me?

Sorry. I must be hormonal or something today. Just need a little pat on the back every once in a while. Capice?

Father's Day

This man is an amazing father. He is an amazing friend. He is an amazing husband. I am so blessed to have him to share my life with. I am a lucky girl. Scratch that. I am a BLESSED girl.

Happy Father's Day W. I love you to the moon and back.

VBS!

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; You're works are wonderful, I know that full well. Psalms 139:14

This week is Pandamania VBS at my church. Pandamania. Where God is wild about YOU. We are learning about how God made each of us unique. How he knows everything about us, down to the number of hairs on our heads. Even the little boy in my group who said "what about me? I don't have much hair!". See, he's got an adorable little crew cut going on. But yes, even you L, God knows exactly how many hairs you have on your head. And he knows everything about you! Isn't that great? Isn't that AWESOME? The premise behind Pandamania is Psalms 139.

I have an amazing group of soon-to-be first graders and an even more amazing youth helper. Thank God for her. I'm not sure I could wrangle all those kiddies without her! It is amazing to see God work through us (the crew leaders, drama teachers, craft workers, and snack leaders) to be a shining light to so many amazing children. I preay that they are learning something new about God, something that they can take with them.

I love Vacation Bible School. LOVE IT. Loved it when I was a child, love it as an adult. It has been (and still is) one fo the highlights of summer for me. And I love hearing all about A's day on the drive home. We do the same things, just not together, so I can ask her all the right "open-ended" questions. It is amazing though to see what she takes away from it. I love a child's perspective. I also love hearing the perspectives of my group. They are some precious babies!

So, tomorrow is another day at VBS with Pandamania! Another day of hearing how God knows each of us. Another AWESOME day of praise with some of the greatest kids on the planet!

You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; your perceive my thoughts from afar. Psalms 139:1-2

**photo courtesy of Group.

It's Treat Time!

And this one is oh, so easy! I don't bake. I don't even really like to cook that much. So usually, when a well-meaning friend passes along a recipe, I just ignore them. I'm not one to try something new, plus there's that whole "not liking to bake" thing. But this one? So easy even I can do it. And yummy too!

You know something is going to be easy when it involves 3 (yes THREE) simple ingredients:

And when the directions start off with "pour peaches in pyrex dish":

(I did cut them up into bite-sized pieces though)

And the next step is "top with cake mix and melted butter". Yep. Easy.

And viola! This comes out of your oven! And your house? It smells yummy!

So here's the full recipe:

Peach Cobbler:
2 cans of canned peaches in heavy syrup
1 yellow cake mix
1 1/2 sticks melted butter (butter, not margarine)
Pour peaches in pyrex dish. Top with cake mix and melted butter. Bake at 350 for about 30 minutes until gold and bubble.

Easy peasy Japaneasy!

So, since I now bake (ha ha ha), share your EASY recipes with me!

The Bucket List

A few days ago, the hubs and I watched the movie The Bucket List for like the 1000th time. We love that movie. It was on cable and, since nothing else was on, we watched it. Again. And it got me to thinking, what about my "bucket list". What are the things that I'd like to do before I go to heaven?

1. Learn to fly an airplane.
2. Travel. And I mean REALLY travel. Greece, Rome, Paris, Jerusalem, Hawaii, Grand Cayman, Canada, New York City, etc, etc, etc.
3. Watch my child graduate from college, get married, become a parent.
4. Build my dream house.
5. Skydive.
6. Learn another language. (And I took Spanish in high school, I just don't rememeber
any of it.)
7. Swim with dolphins. (and yes, my daughter has already done this one, but without
her momma!)
8. Finish all of the Disciple Bible Studies at my church.

It isn't a very long list, because I'm not one to try to make things happen. I like to live in the here and now. Enjoying my simple, little life one sweet day at a time. A pastor at our church once said in a sermon that the important thing on a headstone is the dash between the birth date and the date of death. He challenged us to "live the dash" so to speak. To live each day to the fullest. To make the most of your "dash".

So while I've compiled a bucket list, all be it a short one, I'm more focused on the here and now. Not the things I WANT to do, but the things I SHOULD do. Living each day on earth like it was my last. Being a better mother, wife, sister, daughter, friend. Enjoying the little things that make life so sweet. Not focusing on the shoulda, coulda, woulda's of life. Sure it would be great to travel all over the world, but not if I have to go at it alone. I'd want my daughter and my husband there with me. And who knows? Maybe one day the things on my bucket list will get checked off, one wish at a time. Some of them will I am sure. Some of them are just fleeting fantasies that might or might not happen.

But I can assure you of one thing, I will have "lived the dash"!

What about you? Do you have a bucket list? Are you "living the dash"?

What A Girl Wants

Let me preface this post by saying that I truly LOVE my husband. I love that he gets up every morning to go to work to provide for our family, that he supported me 100% when I lost my job and that he was 100% behind me when I decided to make things work to work from home, that he is an amazing father, that he is a man of God and a man of his word, and that he loves me to the moon and back.....

That being said.....sometimes he drives me UP.THE.WALL. Ya feel me? UP.THE.WALL. And for all of those wonderful qualities I listed about him, he is still the man whose underwear I have to wash on a daily basis. I guess that is the reason some of his "shine" has worn off, at least on me.

So, there are few things, that in a perfect world, I WANT. I want:

-A husband that knows that underwear (and all his other clothes) belong in the dirty clothes hamper, strategically placed right beside his dresser, not right beside said hamper. Really? Is that a hard concept to understand? Doesn't dropping them IN the hamper require just as much effort as dropping them ON the floor?

-A husband who realizes that I do not go to Walmart for fun. I go there to shop for the things we NEED. (And maybe, occasionally, a pair of flip flops that I "need.") For some reason (and he's the numbers guy around these parts, I just spend the money..), he thinks that I'm splurging on "big ticket" items at Walmart. Um, no. Have you not seen the increase in the price of groceries? Clearly, he needs to make at least one of these trips sometime soon. With kid in tow. Hello Honey, welcome to my world.

-A husband who realizes that just because I work at home, does not mean that I don't work. And please don't get me wrong here, I know he knows I work, but I also think he thinks I have all the free time in the world. To do things for him. Or to apparently, clean house all day, every day. Not gonna happen.

-A kid who realizes the same thing. Except she just wants me to play with her all the time. This is the first summer I've done this (I just started my job in February), so this summer is a whole new world for us. We're learning by error. Somethings work, somethings don't. I like to call it "flying by the seat of my pants". Yeah. Welcome to my world.

-And finally, while one of the qualities I adore about my husband is his devotion to our daughter's school (he's President of the Board of Directors), it is also one of the things that annoys me the most. Why? Because we have precious free time as it is, and sometimes I don't wanna share. It's that simple. I don't play well with others.

A Lost Art

*photo courtesy of http://www.littlekanawha.com/.

To me, quilting is a lost art. I have 3 beautiful quilts in my home. One was handmade by my granmother as a wedding present to my husband and I. One belonged to my great grandmother and is in need of some TLC and repair. The third I'm not even sure counts as a true "quilt" in that I bought it from a store. Sure it has a "quilted" pattern, but unlike the other two, which were made by the hands of two of the women I admire most, I'm certain it was made by a machine. So for that fact alone, it doesn't have the love behind it that the other two have.

The very old one, made by my great grandmother, I'm sure was made out of necessity. Necessity to keep warm many moons ago, before the invention of central heat. It is worn and tattered, has a few holes in it, but is filled with love. She gave it to me shortly before she passed, wanting me to have a piece of her in my home.

Then there is the one made by my grandmother for my wedding present. I watched her as she made it. Watched as her hands sewed each piece together. She hand-stithced every thread. It is a "wedding ring" quilt, and it comes out of the cedar chest each fall to become the centerpiece of my bedroom throughout the winter. It is beautiful and colorful and most definately made with love. I loved watching her make it. I would stop by to visit her and she would work, telling me stories of her deep love for my grandfather. She made a quilt for each of her grandchildren prior to their weddings. Since she too has also passed, I cherish it.

I've got quilts on the brain because the other day I was going through some of A's old clothes and wishing that I had made my grandmother teach me how to quilt. Oh how I wish I could take pieces of fabric from those clothes she wore at different points in her life and create a masterpiece for her to have. What a lovely way to display all of the "special" outfits from her life. The gown she came home from the hospital in, the t-shirt she wore everyday one summer because she loved it so much, maybe a patch from her graduation gown, a patch from her first prom dress, patches of cloth made from memories.

Isn't that what quilting was about? Other than the necessity to stay warm? Isnt' that how stories were passed from generation to generation? How mother's and daughters communicated? But it is a lost art. We don't quilt anymore. That's not how we share stories, in this generation of email and Facebook and blogging. It isn't how we spend time together, us mothers and daughters.

So, A's clothes continue to sit in a box, each of these emories cherished by me, but not shared with anyone. Which has me thinking. Maybe I should learn. In this day of the internet, surely I could teach myself to quilt online. Or at least to weave together a tapestry of all those things that have so many memories behind them, yet are left in a box on a shelf in my office. Hidden behind the cardboard walls, not shared with anyone. Hidden in my mind, not shared with my daughter. So maybe I should learn to quilt. And teach my daughter to do the same. Then we can share a moment weaving all those memories into a patchwork quilt for her to have for her home one day. And we can create a new memory. Of how we sat, TV and computer off, talking and sharing, loving and caring, creating a memory.

Tickle Me Tuesday

So I'm linking up to Tickle Me Tuesday with what is tickling my fancy this week.

So what is tickling my fancy?

This week it is vintage aprons. I want to find a place and a way to display them in my kitchen, maybe something like this?

Except my kitchen is not all white, nor is it this vintage. But somehow, someway, I'm going to display some. Right after I find some that I like.

It is also my new Avon Cape Code glassware, which I inherited from my sweet, sweet Mema.

Isn't this stuff just beautiful? I have the whole set. Now, to find a place where it will be safe in my home. Older homes seem to not have even floors, if you know what I mean, so I need to make sure that the glassware, and the beautiful curio cabinet that it goes in, are on safe ground. Trust me, this is an "easier said than done" task in this old house. Where is Bob Villa when you need him?

What about ya'll? What is Tickling Your Fancy this week?

The Best Part of Waking Up.....

.....is not Folgers in your cup (or in my case 8 O'clock Coffee, as it was what was on sale).

It is that last 10 minutes after I hit snooze on the alarm clock. Before the husband gets up to go to work. Before I get up to start my day. It is that last 10 minutes when he rolls over, wraps one arm around me, and all is right with the world. I feel safe, secure, loved. I'm ready to tackle the real world after those 10 minutes.

And then the snooze starts its annoying sound again, and the real world slaps me in the face. There is laundry to be done, dishes that must be washed (and not because I didn't wash them last night...no...), doctor's reports to transcribe, or a dog and fish that must be fed. The real world wakes you up fast.

But, if at any time during my crazy day, the real world gets to be too much, I simply remember those last 10 minutes this morning. Then I can go back to the happy place where life is simple. I am loved, I am secure, and I am safe.

Don't you wish.....

That you got to do this?



This is A on her big adventure with her Aunt Peggy last week at Discovery Cove in Orlando. Kissing a dolphin. She also got to ride it.

This momma is green with envy.

My Little Life....

is full of love and laughter and happy times and everything a girl could ask for. This blog is about that little life. Our happy times, our sad times, and our in-between times. You'll hear about my husband (W), my daughter (A), my sweet (but very old) dachsund (Mollie), and all about our wonderful, all be it, simple life.

We live in the country, in a little, simple farmhouse. I've learned that I like to fill it with old things, flea market finds, and repurposed items. It took me a while to realized that an old house should, in fact, be filled with old things. I like to rummage at flea markets, yard sales, and estate sales. I like to see what I can find. You'll probably hear about my house adventures here as well.

I like things simple. And easy. With no drama.

So, welcome to My Little Life. It's small and simple and just like I like it.