Make A Difference Monday

Click HERE for Make A Difference Monday

What a fantastic inspiration to make a difference today and everyday! We can call a friend, send a card or just smile at a stranger! Let me know what you do today to Make A Difference!

Signs

* On a New York loft building:
"Wanted: Woman to sew buttons on the fourth floor."

* In a New Hampshire medical building:
"Martin Diabetes Professional Ass."

* In the office of a loan company:
"Ask about our plans for owning your home."

* In a New York medical building:
"Mental health prevention center."

* In a toy department:
"Five Santa Clauses -- no waiting."

* On a New York convalescent home:
"For the sick and tired of the Episcopal Church."

* On a Maine shop:
"Our motto is to give our customers the lowest possible prices and
workmanship.

* At a number of military bases:
"Restraicted to unauthorized personnel."

* In a number of parking areas:
"Violators will be enforced and Trespassers will be violated."

* On a display of "I Love You Only" Valentine cards:
"Now available in multi-packs."

* In the window of a Kentucky appliance store:
"Don't kill your wife. Let our washing machines do the dirty work."

* In a funeral parlor:
"Ask about our layaway plan.

* On a window of a New Hampshire hamburger restaurant:
"Yes, we are open. Sorry for the inconvenience."

* In a clothing store:
"Wonderful bargains for men with 16 and 17 necks."

* In a Tacoma, Washington men's clothing store:
"15 men's wool suits - $10.00 - They won't last an hour!"

* On an Indiana shopping mall marquee:
"Archery tournament. Ears pierced."

* In the bathroom of a large apartment building:
"When taking showers, please leave the bathroom door a jar.
This will prevent the plaster from peeling."

* Outside a country shop:
"We buy junk and sell antiques."

How I'm Feeling

Ok, so maybe I'm not THAT desperate- yet. But it feels that way when you have finally decided you are ready to get back in the workforce. I want the RIGHT job not just A job. At first it seemed they only companies interested in me where insurance agencies so I expanded a bit and sent resume's to particular companies and have had a few interviews. But nothing that just made me giddy. After much prayer I can happily say I have received and accepted a quite unusual job offer. I am going to be working at Gavin's school teaching the 2 1/2 year olds from 8-1. Gavin will get to go to school for free, I get to work with kids, and I can get ready to go back to school in January for my teaching certificate. I am so thankful for this. I have wanted to go back to school for so long but just never have followed through. But after substituting this past month at the HS I have never been more certain. What blessings God has given me!
A big "thank you" goes to my husband who says "I want you to do what makes you happy". WOW! I am so incredibly lucky.

Oh Happy Day!!

Love it when the FedEx man comes to my house!! Look what he brought me today:

So finally I can make calls, recieve calls, text, etc... all the wonderful things that my last phone just stopped doing.
And thank you to my hubby for all he went through to get it. Let's just say I can be a bit difficult! ;-)

Sunday Comics

Rememberence

Look Ladies, it CAN be done!

I went to Gavin's bathroom last week and noticed a torn empty toilet paper roll in the floor and a new roll of toilet paper on the roll. After my initial shock, and the realization that Kris had NOT done this, I went to the other suspect- Gavin. "Gavin, did you change the toilet paper roll?" "Yes momma" was his reply. Well, having realized this was a phenomenon not unlike the Lochness Monster or Big Foot, I readied my camera for the next occurrence. Here is what I captured.


YES! YES! YES!! I have managed (without knowing it) to train the only known and documented man to change the toilet paper roll!!


Of course like all men caught doing something good he is so proud of himself!!
**Now, if I can just get him to get the paper to roll from the top and not the bottom**

Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

September is National Cancer Awareness Month. Ovarian cancer is the 9th leading cause of cancer in women and the 5th leading cause of cancer deaths. The American Cancer Society's most recent estimates for ovarian cancer in the United States are for 2009:

21,550 new cases of ovarian cancer
14,600 deaths from ovarian cancer

Click American Cancer Societieslink and read to find out more information such as risk factors, sypmtoms, and preventative measures. I use theACS website frequently for great information that doesn't come across as too scary, Just the facts. Feel free to share this website with others.

The Boy with the Green Umbrella

No, we don't have an indoor leak, and at the time this picture was taken we had no rain nor none in the forecast. But when we went to the new Lifeway Store (or the library as Gavin so sweetly put it) he found this green umbrella and HAD to have it. Actually he wanted 2 but I had to draw the line somewhere!
Not only did he have to have this green umbrella but he also had to open it and pretend it was raining inside and jump puddles. My poor friend Alisa was such a sport and just got her own umbrella and played right along. I don't know what the other patrons thought but G and Alisa had a fantastic time.
So now here were are a couple of weeks in to the new umbrella phase and I can report it is still going strong!

I've Been Educated by VS

I try to stay up to date on the latest fashion trends- I may not actually follow them, but I try to stay up to date. Imagine my surprise when I saw this headline on a section of my MSN homepage:

Fall Lingerie & Loungewear

Really? Now I am no lingerie expert but in my experience but is there really fall lingerie? I mean ok, fall colors to get away from the usual red, white, or black, but I have never actually seen fall lingerie. So upon some research (and very little mind you before depression set in) I did manage to come up with the ONLY thing fall lingerie could be-

Yes, the ever popular Camo Set!

Just a thought.....

As I was finishing up some last minute gifting for my husband I had to make a run to Wal-mart. My niece was with me and we were really trying to hurry but still not feel rushed-been there? As we are standing in line to pay I realize the woman in front of me is just talking away to the cashier. Now, by the look on the cashier's face the advice she was recieving was unsolicited and she was trying so hard to be polite. She had lost her voice (which always sounds funny to say) so she didn't have the luxury of saying anything that might end the conversation. Now don't get me wrong- I am a talker and I do my fair share. But I also try to listen too. So the perdicament of the checker really got me thinking. Here she is FORCED to listen. She is a captive audience and she has no choice but to listen to whatever pearl of wisdom each customer has to offer. Now I wonder how often I actively listen instead of just talking to fill space- being that overly talkative "customer" instead of really listening to what is going on. In all this the cashier still managed to keep a smile on her face and as we checked out and turned to leave she handed us a note that said "Thank you.. Have a great day!".
I now plan on working harder at listening in my life and at not only what others are saying but what the aren't saying as well. Silece can be golden after all. Just don't expect at 3 1/2 year old to understand!

Fellow Blogger Giveaway

Southern Fried Dreams


For the 12 or so people out there who AREN"T followers of Southern Fried Dreams, today is the day to become one. Go over and check out her Blogiversy giveaway HERE She is a fantasic wife, mother, and blogger. Check out all her posts for some fantastic eye candy!!
My Southern Fried Friend is also a Southern Living at Home consultant and got me so excited about the product and the opportunity I became a consultant myself. If your interested in becoming a part of our "family" leave me a comment and I would LOVE to talk.

I'm A Winner! (again)

Anyone who reads this or knows me knows how much I love books!! I have gotten better at not buying and just using the good 'ol library system -for the most part. I am also a fan of Goodreads for the fact that I can keep up with what I have read, want to read, what my friends are reading, or reviews.
They also have fantastic giveways of several books that are about to come out and (of course) I entered most of them. I was so excited when I recieved an email saying I had won this:

And here is the book description:

Joyce Meyer is not satisfied with the status quo. She believes that we each need to become a revolutionary and practice love every day. And if Joyce has her way, the revolution will spread - person by person, house by house, town by town, until the old culture of selfishness and greed gives way to a new culture of concern for others.

The book is a revolutionaries' manual, a hands-on primer for bringing the Golden Rule to life in the twenty-first century. Meyer starts out by giving some stunning statistics. Right now...210,000 children will die this week because of poverty; 640 million children do not have adequate shelter; every day, 3,000 children are abducted into the sex-trafficking industry; every day, 16,000 children die from hunger-related causes. She goes on to say that although crisis is global, the solution is local. We can't solve the world's problems, but that isn't a reason to remain idle.

LOVE REVOLUTION focuses on personal behavior on the local scale. It's not just a call to action; it is a call to being: being the person who goes out of your way to encourage someone who's out of hope; being the one who smiles at a stranger; being the one who is willing to do something for nothing. The paradox: when we do something for nothing, what we often get is something far greater.

So, you can see why I am so excited. I'll give you my own review after I get it and read it.

Another Giveaway Reminder

There is a fantastic giveaway at Dollar Store Crafts that I wanted to share with everyone. I have been following her blog for awhile and she has some FANASTIC and FRUGAL ideas. Gavin and I have even got the supplies for one such craft:A Microfiber Hedgehog. How cute is THAT!! There are SO many great ideas on this site and I cannot wait to see what comes next for fall and the holidays!

Cousins

Last Sunday while Kris was on duty Gavin and I went to my mom and dads "cabin" to get out of the house and to visit. Cousin Dani was there too and these are some of the great pics I got of the 2 of them. She is such a great helper and loves to mother Gavin. I am so happy they are close and love each other so much. (even though they DO argue like broher and sister sometimes!)

Sunday Comics

Click Here for this weeks edition of "Sunday Comics".

I've Been Chosen!!

Wow! I have just been chosen as Friday's Featured Folllower (aka stalker- FFF) by a blogger I LOVE to read Chalk It Up! She is a fantastic artist as well as creator of some of the cutest chalk boards you will ever see. I feel honored to be today's feature (almost sounds like a plate lunch special when I put it like that!. Take time to visit Chalk It Up as well as her Esty store. Christmas will be here before you know it!!

It's Cancer

Those were the words I heard last Monday from the dermatologists office regarding the biopsies I had mentioned in a few posts back. (Important Information Of the four biopsies 2 were normal moles, one was a dysplastic abnormal mole and the fourth- the one I was concerned about to begin with-cancerous. If there is a skin cancer to have luckily I had the best form.
After I recovered from my initial shock and gathered all the information I could I emailed some close friends for prayer and left the rest up to God.
Today was the day of my outpatient surgery and all in all I think things went well. The cancerous area was scraped and then burned (very technical terms I know!!) and the area where the abnormal mole was located was cut out and will be biopsied again. Right now my arm is really hurting from where they took the LARGE circular area. I will have to go back in 2 weeks to have the stitches removed and then again in 3 months for another full body exam. Unless the second biopsy comes back abnormal hopefully this is it for a while!!
I will say that even though this cancer has not been life threatening per se it has been hard to go through and scary. I just am overly aware of every little blemish, every little twinge of pain in my body now. I think we are our own best advocate for our health care and I am so thankful that I followed my instint and had the biopsies done instead of just removal!

I'm A Winner!!

As I was getting ready this morning I got a phone call from a number I didn't recognize. Usually I would just let them leave a message, especially since I was running a little behind. But imagine my surprise when I answered and heard this:

"This is Channel 5 and you have just won tickets to Elmo's Green Thumb!"


I think I said "You're kidding" in a very excited voice. I had been wanting to take Gavin when the show comes to town next week but the cost coupled with not knowing if he would even sit still long enough for it had deterred me. But FREE!?!? Can't say no to that!

A Good Day

It's been kind of a crappy week to put it mildly! I won't go into all the details but let's just say it had lots of excitement, a little smoke, and a whole lotta of what the @#%$^$% going on!!
So imagine my surprise when I went to Chik-Fil-A (shocking I KNOW) and this is what I get home with:


No, I can't say I was the 100th customer but something told me I should just go inside to order my large tea with lemon. So as I am waiting on my tea the nice little dude next to me was the 100th customer (I can hear the cowbell ringing even as I type!) He was quite pleased with himself to say the least. So we chatted while we waited and then (tear) he handed me the rose and said "Have a great day"! Now as cheesy as it sounds it really did make a difference in my day! It felt good for someone to do something nice for me who had no reason to and wouldn't expect something in return later. So Chik-Fil-A guy wherever you are....Thanks So Much!!

Lisa Bevere

For anyone out there who is not familiar with Lisa Bevere your time has come. This past spring I had the priviledge of attending a bible study at Heritage United Methodist entitled "Fight Like A Girl" and cannot tell you what a blessing it was. Lisa has a fantastic way of just slapping you around a bit. Here is her latest Facebook status:
Lisa Beverethe spirits says...when God looks at you he sees something more...He sees promise. A generation of daughters so terrifying to the enemy that he will do whatever he can to distort your image, pervert your beauty & rob your strength. The father of lies speaks thru a glass darkly, but the Father of Light longs to speak with you face-to-face. The king is enthralled by your beauty;honor Him (psalm45) & excerpt Fight...
Powerful stuff, no?
If you are on Facebook (and who isn't these days) I strongly encourage you to becocmea fan, and get access to some of her books. You will be blessed for it!

Oh the Questions

All I can say is "What did people do before the internet"? Gavin just came and asked "Mom, what's a tuxedo"? HUH? I explained it, he said "like halloween" which a lot of men would agree with. So I did a search and found this picture for him.


Another mystery solved! Now if I can just get him to stop singing "tuxedo, tuxedo" to his own little tune....

Picnic and Swimming

Two of the best parts of summer: picnics and swimming! We hadn't done either this summer I am sad to report unless you count that 3 footer we had in our backyard. (empty at current post time- with tadpoles!) So this past Sunday after church we got home, packed a quick and easy lunch and headed to Lake Fort Smith. We really weren't sure if we would go swimming but Gavin and I dressed for it just in case. First we ate our "swamwiches" as Gavin calls them.

We made a mistake of parking too close to the playground area so he didn't eat much but he did take a few trips down the slide and climb around on anything he could.


Here is where he is telling me "momma the slide is hot I just KNOW it". It didn't keep him from going down it about a dozen times!

Finally we made it to the swimming area. Here a a couple of pics. I would post more but Kris took too many of me in them and I don't have the time to crop them today.

Airplane Pilot

Gavin seems to have a fascination with anything related to the sky: the moon, stars, rockets, and airplanes. I am beginning to think he may have a future as a airplane pilot (or possibly flight attendant). At any rate, here are a few pics of him in all his flying glory!

He is very serious as you can tell by the position of his tongue!


He kept telling everyone "watch up" instead of look up.

Masterpeice in flight- right for the face!

One of the first attempts at getting the rocket in the air!

Getting a little height on this try.

Photo Giveaway

The Meanest Mom is hosting a giveaway this week for a $260 Sears Studio Portrait set. Please see her blog HERE,leave a comment and you are entered. You will love her blog and if you aren't already a follower you will be after reading a few of her posts.

Important Information

I have been actively involved with Relay for Life since 2003 and try to constantly be up on latest research and findings on all cancers. Recently however I had 4 skin biopsies (still waiting on the results) and it just served as a reminder that we can all do more. There are so many young girls out there that are already starting to go to tanning beds and spending more and more time in the sun even in light of all the research. Please take time to read the following link and pass it on to all you know. Tanning Beds and Cancer
People have laughed at me because Gavin always looks so pale since I always put "Skunk Screen" on him but I would rather he look pale than to be at higher risk for skin and other cancers. We should be doing all we CAN do because until there is a cure...

Southern Living At Home

**Editor's note: Is it just me or are those FedEx workers getting younger and younger?**
Finally-- I got my SLAH kit last weekend and I cannot tell you how excited I am to get started with this wonderful business opportunity. On top of that the product is amazing, the people are inspiring, and it just plain ROCKS!!
Here is a view of what I got:


My pictures do not do justice to how awesome these products are! And with the starter kit I was fortunate enough to get the Mega Kit for free! Those 3 peices alone are worth over $250! What a lucky girl I am.
My hope is to post a new item every couple of days so you can really see the detail- and fall in love with it as much as I have!
I cannot wait to get started. I already have my first party scheduled and look forward to a full calendar soon!

Giveaway All Nighter

I am a follower of the Making Memories Blog and LOVE when they go to CHA! That means even MORE giveaways and this week is no exception! Hop on over to Making Memories, enter the giveaways, read about the fantastic stuff that is rolling out this fall (Pink Slice!!)


and become a follower yourself!

American Idol Here We Come!

Well, the American Idol Concert that is. A few weeks ago I was fortunate enough to win 2 tickets from our local radio station to go see the American Idol Concert in Tulsa. Super Excited! Tulsa is not that far so we can drive back and still sleep in our own bed but still have a date! WhoHoo!!

I will say I am already dreading leaving G man behind. Not because he won't be in good hands with mamaw and papaw but he hasn't been away from me overnight in over 2 years!! Not sure who will take it harder! I can take a guess though!!

The Circus Is In Town *Apparently*

After a really bad migraine day and what seemed like no relief in site, Gavin and I had to make a trip to the grocery store one day last week. As I was dragging myself through the kitchen to the garage door I got quite a surprise. Seems that someone had left a box of (not so)Lucky Charms cereal within reach on the counter. I guess a second someone decided they needed a mid afternoon snack. Here was my reward:
Trying to find a quick cover he said "Look Mamma- the circus is here". Where DO they come up with this junk??
Knowing it was probably a bad thing and also knowing how terrible I had felt Gavin just looked up at me like "go ahead, let me have it" and I just cracked up!!

Mamma Got A Brand New Bag!

On my last trip to Michaels, Gavin, my sister Julie, and neice Dani went with me. I had a couple of returns and no intentions of making any purchases. UNTIL>>> I saw this on clearance!


$25 (regularly $100) for this Cricut carrier and the only flaw was the rolling handle was not working. Something that is not imperative AND that Kris may be able to fix anyway. Now THAT is my kind of bag!

Worm Digging

Apparently they can industrialize just about anything. Atleast that is what Gavin thinks. A couple of weeks ago he and I went to Tulsa with my dad and this is the view he saw from our hotel window:

Look Mamma- they are digging for worms!!
Upon closer inspection:

The Hair Cut

Ok- this happened weeks ago but for the 2 of you that are following along you know I am SOOOO behind on my blogging!
I have learned that when things get too quiet around here I had better start looking for the boy. Unfortunately I didn't have that kind of warning on this day. I just happened to be walking by Gavin's bedroom door and caught him with a handful of hair about to make either a second or third cut. The sad part is that they were suppose to be safety scissors and NOT cut hair!!


As you can see by the look on his face this incident devastated him and I am not sure if he will ever recover!

So I cried a bit, picked up the strands I could locate and took pictures to blackmail him with later.

Just Call it A Teachable Moment...

Yesterday evening, Gavin and I went to Sears to purchase a carpet cleaner. He was in his stroller being his normal fiesty self while I looked at the different models before finally choosing one. (In)Conveniently the cleaners were located directly across from the tv's and other media including the movies- the ridiculously priced movies. After begging for several minutes for a movie that was "his favorite" he finally resumed his place in the stroller. I could not believe how sweet he was being. You know the drill: puppy dog eyes looking up at you with those sweet long eye lashes and that toothy grin?
We headed to the car to load up and drive around to pick up our purchase at the loading dock. When we got to the car he is still being almost disgustingly sweet- handing me my purse, smiling and nodding. Then, I learned WHY! He leaned up from his stroller seat to climb out and low and behold there lies a Space Buddies DVD. My child the Klepto!! I was physically ill! I looked at him and told him we had to go back inside and he smile and said "so I can have it?". NO!! No you cannot have it!! I told him how we don't steal things and how it not only breaks momma's heart but Jesus' heart too and then I made him go back inside and take the movie to the nice gentleman who had waited on us and apologize. I know I did the right thing but part of me wonders if I could have done better before hand to have prevented it in the first place. Thus, our teachable moment...
On a side note, Kris says maybe we should frisk him from now on! Oye!

Who Doesn't Want to Win a Giveaway??`

And on top of that, read about a fellow blogger and join in the fun? All that being said, click on the link Simply and see what all the fuss is about.

Now as for the Round Robin, still following through on that but....
Have a great week and good luck to all!!

Giveaway!

Ok- you MUST go to "Chalk It Up" and look at her fantastic Blog!! I am so excited to have been introduced to it by my sister Julie through her blog at Simply Sanborn. "Chalk It Up" is hosting a giveway with several ways to enter. Cute stuff and great idea starter for me!

Ride 'em Dogboy?

I hope PETA doesn't get wind of this or we may be in trouble! I know I have said before how much Gavin and Jack love each other and how well the get along but this is ridiculous! Gavin thinks he can ride Jack and Jack just sits there and let's him. Thank goodness for man's best friend!

Giveaway Notice

You MUST go to Creative Party Themes for this awesome giveway! Click HERE for all the details. Be ready for some CUTE stuff people!

Goodbye to a Legend

I remember being on the playground with our little boom boxes and dancing to "Thriller" and how we couldn't wait until then next recess to do it all over again. Oh what our parents spent in batteries!
Love him or loathe him, no one can disagree with the immense affect that Michael Jackson had on the world. He lived his life in the spotlight with fans around the world and I continue to be amazed at the fans he has been able to amass- young and old. "Thriller" is an iconic classic and is downloaded everyday by a new fan.

This day will be for us what Elvis' death was to our parents. We will always remember where we were when we heard the news and how we felt.

Big Day Tomorrow!!

Tomorrow is going to be a long full day but I am so exited! First, I will be on our local Channel 5 to talk about this Friday's Relay For Life Crawford County. I love to talk about Relay and it's role in someday finding a cure for cancer! Click here for more information and ways you can help in your area.

Second- I am having my first Southern Living at Home Party tomorrow night at 6:30. I have never been able to attend any that I have been invited too because of Kris some how ALWAYS managing to be on duty those weeks. So I am excited to see all that they have to offer but most of all having a little girls time! Click here to look at a catalog or palce an order.

I'll be sure to blog some more later this week about both these events!

Skunk Screen?

That is what I said- Skunk Screen! That is what Gavin called the sunscreen I needed to put on him! "But I don't want skunk screen". After some correction and explanation as to what sunscreen was for and that it would enable him to spend much more time outdoors he was all for it.

My mistake? Never leave a boy alone with a bottle of sunscreen and the promise of more time outside. I guess he thought the time he got outside would be proportionate to the amount of sunscreen he put on because here is what I caught:


I am sure I don't have to tell you that his feet were not burned that day!