A Day With Ashley

busy

2010-11-18T07:32:00.000-08:00

Life has seemed to fly by the past almost year. Whew. Where did the time go? I was reading over my last post about taking Christmas decorations down, and we actually just put our Christmas tree up this past weekend for the 2010 holidays. I guess it's safe to say I haven't blogged in a while.

We've been busy.

Busy with a new kindergartener. Well, he's not new, but the whole homework, tests, and project thing certainly is. And slightly overwhelming for mom. Ever wish you could just meet up with them at recess to quickly review their spelling words? Refresh their memory on that poem they need to have memorized and present in front of their class? I guess that's part of growing up, er, letting them grow up... sigh.

I'm about to head to urgent care, I have a sinus infection (and I think ear infection too), then I have to hop in the shower to go teach an Art Masterpiece lesson to my son's class today.

Busy.

But I promise it won't be another year until I blog. Hopefully.

Today

2009-12-30T18:20:00.000-08:00

Today was a very productive day. I was able to check five out of eight things off my to-do list I needed to get done within the next few days.

Today I saw a lady in Target put hair product in her hair, then set it back on the shelf.

Today I realized how crazy Toys'R'Us return policy is (no receipt, no returning/exchanging of any kind).

Today I got to spend time with two of my favorite people, Carson and Conner. I have really enjoyed them being out of school the past week and the time I have been able to spend with them. I will truly be sad Monday when Conner goes back to school.

Today Conner made me laugh several times. He says the funniest things. I just love him so much.

Today was my aunt Becky's birthday and I made her a cheesecake (this is the only thing I know tastes good enough to make for other people)!

Today Conner asked me to babysit his transformers! He came over from watching his show a few times to tell me I wasn't holding it right.

Today I was sad we would have to take Christmas decorations soon. Partly because I love looking at it, mainly because of the work it will take to get it down!

Today I heard Conner repeat two words I say often that made me realize I have to choose my words more carefully. They listen to everything we say and watch what we do.

Today I am really happy (except for this darn headache).

Hopefully, today was a good day for you too. I guess it's time to start planning for tomorrow.

my view

2009-12-29T18:44:00.000-08:00

This is what I am blessed to see each night after Conner has fallen asleep. I just love him so, so much.

I am so thankful for my view!

Checkers

2009-12-29T09:22:00.000-08:00

Conner is at the age where he is easily bored with toys, yet not quite ready to sit and play video games for hours so we have been playing simple card and board games lately.

Last night he asked to play Checkers. Scooby Doo Checkers he got from Nana for Christmas to be exact. I knew it would be interesting to say the least, but how could I say no?!

After setting up the board and pieces, and giving a general explanation, this is what could be heard...

"No, Conner, you can't just take my piece off the board every time it's your turn."

"Conner the pieces don't go in that color square. Ever. No, not this turn either."

"Babe, you can't jump my piece from all the way across the board."

"I understand you want your piece to go in that spot, but you'll have to wait until I move my piece that is already there. You can't just scoot mine off to the side."

And this went on and on and on.

Until finally, I realized if I ever wanted the game to be over, I would have to surrender. And by surrender, I mean line my pieces up right next to his and then encourage him to jump mine.

Once this was over, I praised him for winning and had the game packed up in about 2.5 seconds.

Next time we're sticking to Go Fish. Or Legos.

December 2009

2009-12-27T14:08:00.000-08:00

Tuesday night we headed to the airport in order to redeem the second part of the boys' Christmas present, a trip to Disneyland!!

We had so much fun! We went to Disney and California Adventure three days...

Here is Conner on Small World, oh my Lord, he loved this ride. I took him on this simply because it had no line and Carson was on Indiana Jones (this was one ride I wouldn't let him ride). Have you ever been on Small World? It is so boring! I was so relieved when he asked if we could ride again and the line was too long. Darn, but I was happy he was able to ride it once this trip (he has been on a few times before this trip too) since he enjoyed it so much!

Rode rides,

Traveled without strollers, but ended up renting one each day after my Dad and I alternated carrying Conner because he "couldn't walk one more step or his leg would fall off",

Spent time together,

Ate lots of food (some good, some well, not so good).

Walked alot,

(Carson ran most of the time in an attempt to keep up with us...this child walks sooo sllloooowwww!)

Waited in lines,

Watched Playhouse Disney Live,

Played in the play areas,

Saw celebrities,

(See the back of Marc Anthony? I'm sure you're wondering why I didn't get the back of J.Lo!! ;) I'm assuming the other lady was the nanny, she helped with the twins.)

(Sorry this was the best I could do...my Dad was embarresed that I was taking pictures, Carson thought the bodyguard could arrest me, and people were starting to run up).

Fell asleep on shuttles,

and even visited the beach!

It was such a fun week! Although Conner was tall enough for all the rides and did ride most of them, there were some that I didn't let him ride because they were either too rough or too scary. We rode just about every ride at Disneyland and did ride every ride at California Adventure. Surprisingly, we all seemed to enjoy California Adventure better than Disney, the lines were shorter and the rides were more geared for the boys ages (4-9), so we spent alot of time here, riding lots and having a BLAST!

My Mom had been feeling sick so she wasn't feeling up to going and Nan ended up not being able to go, my Dad stepped in and us and the boys enjoyed spending time together! We all chose rides we were really excited about and made sure to hit those the first day and we were able to ride some two and three times, which was even more special to ride our favorites!

This was our third year to go to Disneyland at Christmas, I hope it becomes a tradition! What Christmas traditions do you and your family enjoy?

Church Christmas Program

2009-12-20T18:27:00.001-08:00

Here is the link for Conner's class program at church today...aren't they adorable?!?

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!!!

Enjoy!

http://sharing.theflip.com/session/04c35cf5c743a70320c09708af2840ff/video/8180429

an early surprise

2009-12-19T12:16:00.000-08:00

Yesterday my Mom and I took the boys to visit Santa and they were able to ask him for the things they wanted. Conner asked for a real life Zebra, Zhu Zhu Pets (if you are my friend on FB, you saw that mid-week he changed his mind completely about what he wanted...after I already had everything!!), so I was thankful he did want Zhu Zhu Pets after all, but after the zebra request, Santa looked over at Carson and said, this kid's a piece of work, isn't he?! Santa is one smart guy. I'm joking. Kinda.

After visiting Santa, we finished up some last minute (for our situation) shopping and we all headed to my house where we all spent the night together! Just hanging out and taking care of a sick boy (poor Carson had a fever all night).

When the boys woke up we told them that someone had been to the house and the living room had stuff in there that looked like what they asked for.

They came into the room where Santa had left all their stuff and were just so surprised that Christmas had come early this year!!! They spent the next hour or so just looking at the stuff and playing for a few minutes with each thing...

Conner has been dying to play with these drums we got Carson for weeks now.

Conner trying out his Smart Cycle Extreme from Nana and Papa and since this picture he has hardly been off of it! Great toy!

Papa sitting the boys down to explain why Christmas came early...

Because Wednesday morning, we are leaving for DISNEYLAND!!!!!!!!!!!

Conner's reaction was so precious! Carson stated that this was "the best Christmas EVER", but for some reason he wasn't on the couch by the time I took the picture.

And Conner sang "Go Tell It On the Mountain" for us!

A great time was had by all!! I will post when we get back~

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!!

Cabin

2009-12-09T09:22:00.000-08:00

Monday morning I heard it was going to snow where our cabin is located in Pine, AZ. That morning while at my grandparents house we talked about the weather and decided to go enjoy snow! I rushed home, threw some clothes in a bag, checked Conner out of school and off we went...

Two hours later, this is what we saw when arriving into the town...

It was snowing!!!

And by the time we got the truck unloaded, Conner was ready to head outside to play.

And make snow angels...of course.

And build a snowman with his great-grandpa too..

Isn't it so pretty up there? Even though after these pictures were taken, the electricity went out (no heat, no cooking, no charging phones, no tv) we still had a good time and Conner has alot of fun memories!!!

Let It Snow

2009-12-08T17:18:00.001-08:00

Let it snow,

Let it snow,

Let it snow.

Unbelievable

2009-12-04T06:27:00.000-08:00

Last weekend we went shopping, along with every other person in the world and after waiting in line at Wal-Mart for over an hour, we decided we were brave enough to make a "quick" stop at Target. Everything was great, we got what we wanted and even decided we weren't done yet and that we would go to Marshall's (they never have sales anyways, so as I expected, there were no lines on Black Friday, which was a nice change)!

I had just finished checking out, had Conner and the items I had purchased in my cart and headed toward the door but waited because Nan was checking out behind me and was almost done so I was waiting for her to finish and we would walk to the car together before going to another store.

As I am standing (explaining to Conner why he cannot play with the Snow Globe I just bought him because it could fall and bust everywhere) I look up and see a seemingly cute blond lady, about 35, walking out of the bathroom (for some reason this Marshall's has a bathroom RIGHT by the door) with a purse and a bright green bag that is stuffed with items she has stolen. As she approaches the metal detectors and I have fully realized what she has done I turn to look at the cashier to let her know what was happening but the lady had already beeped through the detectors and is on her merry way. She didn't pause for one second when she beeped. She didn't flinch. She didn't run. She just kept on going as if it was the most normal thing that had happened. The employee called for security but the thief was gone. She had gotten away with it. I asked the security guard if he was going to call the police and he stated that once the shoplifter leaves the building they can't chase after them and she would be gone by the time they got there.

I was mad. Mad that this lady had walked in, snuck a bunch of items in her bag, and walked out, without paying and was getting away with it.

Nan and I talked about how crazy the whole situation was on the way to the car and I told her how I had seen the exact same thing happen at Kohl's a month prior. Same thing, a female, by herself, bag stuffed with items, she walked right out the door. She beeped, kept going, I watched her get in her car (from inside the store) and she was out of the parking lot before security got outside. Crazy.

So we loaded up our Marshall's bags in the car and headed into Last Chance. For those of you who have never been to Last Chance (the smart people who wouldn't dare get trampled for half price designer shoes), let me explain a little bit about it. Last Chance is located downstairs in a building. The building use to have several stores on the upper level, but because of the economy (I'm assuming), most of the stores are now vacant. Except for Last Chance. The downstairs area where the entrance of Last Chance is located has a "gate" that comes down preventing the crazy (myself included) shoppers from entering the store before they open, but they have racks with clothes and ties and jackets and tables with socks and shoes that you can browse and hold for when you go in the store and checkout.

So before we head down the stairs to wait in line with every other woman dying to get their hands on the jewelry that is now $5, I look straight down and there she is. Her. The one. The one who right before my eyes had walked out the door without paying. That one. And the bag. The bright green bag. So I grabbed Nan's arm and told her to look at who it was. She and I could not believe that she walked to the store next door immediately after stealing from another. Unbelievable. I told Nan we HAD to watch her. So we stayed on the top level and just watched her. I saw her talk to her Mom but I assumed she had no idea at what her daughter had just done. I assumed she told her mom she would be back and while her mom waited in line she ran next door to Marshall's to "get" a few things. But after about thirty seconds of watching her, I quickly realized I had it all wrong.

Her Mom was in on the whole thing too.

Nan and I could not believe what we were witnessing. Her kids were there too. The mom and grandma would grab items, hold them for a minute, then the arm of the mom's bright green bag would slip of her shoulders, letting them drop the items inside...all while the young kids innocently watched. No one around seemed to have any idea as to what was going on right around them. They were so focused on what they were going to buy first and what area of the store they wanted to get to before anyone else, that this lady, her mom and her FOUR kids were stealing right in the midst of the craziness.

Before long, the lady had her bag STUFFED. I mean not one more thing would fit...I thought. Then I got a glimpse of the stroller that held one of her youngest children and saw bags underneath that without a doubt held other items she had stolen earlier in the day. Disgusting.

I explained to Conner what was happening since he was standing with us and hearing us discuss how we wanted her to get caught, and I told him that when bad people take what is not theirs without paying for it, they will get caught. I don't know if it was the mom in me who wanted to show my son that we don't do that without consequences or if it was the little bit of me that wanted to be a detective (of some sort, ever since The First 48 aired, I have always thought being a detective would be an interesting job, except for all the dead bodies and long hours, and every other negative thing that comes with being a detective) but I told Nan that I needed her phone. A few days before, the camera on my phone had stopped working and I needed to take a picture. NOW!

And off I headed to the car to call the police! I called gave a detailed description of the lady (because I had stared at her for at least ten minutes), black sweat suit, black head band, blonde hair, about thirty five years old, and a darn bright green bag that is OVERFLOWING with stolen items.

Two police cars showed up a few minutes later and they went to the door of the store and came back within five minutes, withOUT the lady (I knew she was still in the store because Nan was in there and saw her, while the cops came to the door). I will never know if that lady was caught or if she got away with it, but like I told Conner, if she didn't get caught this time, she will eventually. I hope and pray, if only so her children see that this is not okay.

Unbelievable.

Free Christmas Designs for YOUR blog!!

2009-12-03T13:21:00.001-08:00

Click here to get a free Christmas design for YOUR blog!!!

MIA

2009-11-13T15:10:00.000-08:00

So...I haven't blogged in a while, it has been a crazy past few weeks...

I was sick (would have sworn I had the flu, I felt like I was dying)...felt better...Conner got sick...I got sick again with the same symptoms as two weeks prior...I go to the doctor and find out I have strep (along with something else, my cough is awful) and Conner wakes up crying hysterrically that his ear is hurting (keep in mind this child has had over 30 ear infections, had tubes put in and never cried of ear pain) so we load up and head to Urgent Care to find out he has...wait for it... an ear infection! AGH!!!

I swear he has watched a hundred movies this week with him being sick then me, then him again, it has been crazy, and to think it's not even "winter" here yet...I hope this is the end of our sickness for a looong time..I have our vitamins ready to go...

Next week will be crazy also, but hopefully not because we are sick..Honestly, I CAN'T be sick next week, I just don't have time to fit it in my schedule :-) Tomorrow Carson has another Playoff game, then we have a funeral to attend, Sunday is church, Monday Conner has a field trip and I have to study for finals, Tuesday I have to take Finals, Wednesday I have to clean and do laundry and Thursday my great-grandparents get here! Isn't Conner so lucky that he has gotten/gets to spend time with his GREAT-GREAT grandparents! I love the memories they're getting to share, not many get that!

I will be MIA for a while more, unless I think of some fabulous thing to write about (not likely) or I find some amazing deal (since I am broke, this is not likely either) or in the chance that instead of 24 hours in a day it increases to 35 (again, not likely) but..when I am back I will have lots of pictures (and probably stories) to share!

Love you all!

(I miss you Ashley! I miss your single days when we stayed on the phone until 3!)

A White Shirt

2009-10-21T19:52:00.001-07:00

Who doesn't love a clean white shirt? No stains. No wrinkles. Just a crisp, clean, bright, white shirt.

It seems as though I dress Conner in white shirts often. I know this because it seems as though daily he has another white shirt that is no longer white.

As we walk out the door everysinglestinkingtime I put a clean, crisp white shirt on him, I remind him as we walk to the car to stay away from the tires (I know this from experience) because although I know the marks from the tires will come out, I am also aware that I do not want every person we come in contact with that day to see that my son's white shirt looks as though he's had it on for thirteen days in a row. Yet every time, without fail, he somehow, someway, bumps against the tire. In fact, I can almost guarantee that the next time he has a white shirt on (probably tomorrow) he will have bumped against the darn tire.

The other day as we were driving, you guessed it, after he had just bumped the tire and I had chosen to just take a deep breath and let it go, I thought about how this must be how Jesus feels toward us. We start out clean and perfect and without sin. We know what we should or should not do, yet we all still sin.

You know one of the great things about Jesus though? Once we ask for forgiveness, the shirt is clean again, no stains. Sure, we won't be a brandspankingnew shirt but we will be forgiven nonetheless.

Another great thing about Jesus is that he doesn't judge us. He doesn't want us to feel bad. He doesn't want us to carry the burden the remainder of our lives. As humans though, for whatever reason, we feel as though it's our place to judge.

We say things like:

Did you hear about them?

Do you know what they did before they were married?

Did you know they got a DUI?

Did you hear what they said?

Do you know what they wore?

Do you know who they married?

Do you know what they're doing these days?

We're all guilty of asking, thinking, talking or assuming these things about people.

The bible says a sin is a sin, just as a stain is a stain. It doesn't matter how the stain got there, what matters is whether or not the stain can come out and thankfully, with Jesus, it always will, as long as we repent and ask for forgiveness. No sin to big. No sin to great. It will be wiped away. Gone.

One of my favorite songs says "Grace, Grace, God's Grace, Grace that will pardon and cleanse within, Grace, Grace, God's Grace, GRACE THAT IS GREATER THAN ALL MY SIN". Isn't that so true? How amazing that we have a God who loves so much, and who cares for us so much, that when we ask, he forgives and still loves us just as much as before!?!

In our lives, let's stop focusing on other people and what we think they have done that is "wrong" or "something we would never do" and start praying for those who we may be concerned about. After all, it isn't about who has sinned, we are ALL sinners, we should stay focused on getting that shirt white again.

2009-10-18T19:26:00.001-07:00

Did you know...

2009-09-29T15:24:00.000-07:00

That Conner's best friend is God?!

That Conner's best friend (God) said to tell me that I am an idiot (yes, he did get in trouble for this :-)

That Jon and Kate + 8 is now Kate + 8? Jon is f-i-r-e-d!!

That the alphabet has the words mint, toe, or minto or min (men) in it, well according to Conner it does at least! (L, MiNtOP)

That Conner just told me he's a "so much lover" so he gets the pack of cheeze its, instead of sharing with me.

That I am writing this blog as a way to delay studying for my Midterm I have to take tomorrow morning?

That as of yesterday Conner hasn't watched one minute of television because I am tired of hearing "I'm bored" everytime the tv goes off...and it's working great so far!! He has been playing lots, doing kindergarten workbooks and having us read lots of books!

That as I was typing the above statement he called me a "feif", sometimes known as a THief, because I stole some of the cheeze its he began mocking me with.

And that I have been pretending to take more just to hear the word feif over and over because it's just too cute and it cracks me up!

Hope you are all having a fabulous day, I guess I better get to studying!!

Not Crazy

2009-09-22T21:40:00.000-07:00

No, you are not losing your mind.

No, you are not going crazy.

Yes, you are at the right blog.

Yes, this is my third blog today.

This is more light-hearted than the previous blog, which is why I want to stay up past my normal bedtime of 7:45 to write this.

Let's discuss important things that are happening in the world, shall we? Well, since this is my blog, I say we shall!

(And by discuss, I mean maybe, just maybe, my readers- this includes closet readers, Becky and Dad, ha!) can actually leave comments on this post unlike the post earlier in the month that was supposed to include our favorite things. I already knew my favorite things, so I guess I now have them posted so in the event I forget my favorite restaurant, I can pull up my blog and remind myself.)

Okay, first lets discuss Khloe Kardashian. Getting married after only a month of knowing the guy, really? And so soon because of basketball season? What about after? Well, I guess whatever floats their boat works for me, I just hope they have a nice pre-nup and good lawyers so in about 3 weeks when they can't even remember why they got married, they are able to break up as easily as possible!

And lastly for tonight because I am really getting tired now (it is two hours past my bedtime, remember), our topic will be in regards to Elisabeth Hasselbeck. Did she fall off the face of the earth? I think her baby has to be starting preschool next week and she is still on maternity leave. I hope she will be returning soon not when Barbara retires, which will probably be in two years, which is definitely two years too long. I miss seeing EH on The View...hurry back girl (you know, in the event she reads my blog)!

Real quick, in the comments for this post, will you give me reccomendations for the blog? I want to have daily things I start doing, for example, one day may be a favorite day, one may be pictures only, one may be recipes (which should be interesting since I only cook mac'n'cheese),stuff like that, etc...any ideas? I'd love to hear!!
I hope you all have a fabulous night!!!

Life is Short

2009-09-22T21:21:00.000-07:00

Today I read (via Twitter) about a family who had just welcomed a baby girl, Chloe into the world just days ago. The mom has cancer and today she died. As I look through their pictures, I am forced to realize how short life is, they are just a young couple starting their life together. I realized how each moment we get to spend with people we love, is truly a gift and could be gone tomorrow. I realize that not only should we pray for this sweet family but also appreciate our own.

I know that in our busy lives we take for granted the time we get to spend with loved ones yet I also know that I will change that tonight for myself. I will try to not get annoyed with little things that can go wrong, I will try not to get stressed over things that do not matter in the big picture of life. I will kiss my baby a few extra times before I go to sleep tonight and I will tell him and my brother just how much I love them over the next few days, after all, life is short.

To everyone who is reading this right now, please know how much you mean to me. I do not forget the little things you have done for me, I do not take for granted the help you give, I love you all so very much, thank you for being such an important part of my life.

Please join me in praying for this family, I cannot imagine all the emotions they are feeling right now. Their blog is http://www.bandssullivan.blogspot.com/, read their story, pray for them, or even leave a comment, but be sure to bring your kleenex.

I love this song...

2009-09-22T14:54:00.001-07:00

REMINDER

2009-09-12T13:31:00.000-07:00

Hey Ladies! I just wanted to remind you all that the book club starts tomorrow...if you haven't already, go get Crazy Love, read the first chapter and join the Bloom blog book club, ahem, I mean please and only if you're interested!

I will be doing an actual post tonight, after the little man is snug as a bug in a rug.

Hope you all have a fabulous Saturday afternoon!!

Here are mine, and what are yours?

2009-09-03T16:14:00.001-07:00

Last week I mentioned something new I would be starting. I said I would take pictures of my favorite things and post them here, allowing everyone to comment or agree or agree to disagree! Well, my camera is not letting me upload photos (and let's be honest, I haven't exactly taken pictures of my fav things, but in the event that I had, I know it would not work), so for now lets just begin without pictures.

Let's begin with this list:

1. Your fav restaurant.
2. Your fav recipe.
3. Your fav picture (for those of you who have cameras that work properly, that excludes Ash and I).
4. Your fav place to vacation (also include the hotel, places you visited/saw while there).
If you want a challenge, you can also list your top 5 trips, top 10, etc...

1. Ruth's Chris or Durant's--I love the filet from either place but the sides at RC can't be beat.
2.Mom- Can you post the glazed green bean recipe? And sour cream cheese potatoes? TIA! (I don't cook and everyone knows how to make Kraft Mac'n'Cheese so no need to post that).
3.Check back next week or next year.
4.Favorite places to visit--ADULT PLACES: New York, Palm Beach (really anywhere in FL). WITH KIDS: California (beach/theme parks), Indianapolis (Children's Museum/Zoo).

That should be a fun start! Can you tell I am hungry and really wanting to take a trip?!?

Hope you all have a great weekend!!

Crazy Love

2009-08-27T20:06:00.000-07:00

UPDATE: The book club website is now up and running...http://http://www.thebloombookclub.blogspot.com/! Be sure and watch the video...don't you just love Angie and Jessica?!?

Okay, as you can tell from the blogs I follow, I love the blog Bring the Rain by Angie Smith... beginning September 13th she is starting a book called Crazy Love and all her blog readers (who want to, of course) are going to be reading also.. each Sunday night she will be blogging about/chatting with readers regarding the chapter they have just finished!! Sound fun?! I am excited too! I was thinking that on my blog, if my followers want to buy and read the book together also, we can do our own mini-chat here as well. Might be kinda fun...anyways, if you choose to buy the book here is a link where it is available to purchase for only $6.99 http://http//www.mardel.com/store/item.aspx?ItemId=359613 , let me know if you are interested in doing this and if there is more than one (can you tell how popular this blog is, ha) we will move forward with it!! Hope everyone has a great Friday!

Ashley

Ideas?!?

2009-08-26T18:15:00.000-07:00

I've been thinking about upcoming posts, but geez its hard to find things to write about each day!! This weekend I am going to do a post called My Favorite Things..I will take pictures and post a little something about each item/place/thing... I have some ideas of things I'm going to post, but are there any things I could include that would be interesting?!?! I'd love to hear from you all...like I said, I am here to please...lol!

Also, in the comments, you guys will be encouraged to leave your own favorite things and agree/disagree with my favs!!

Do you know how to...

2009-08-25T14:26:00.000-07:00

UPDATE:If I may, I do have one request for one of my followers, Ashley...would you mind cropping/editing your picture please? I would love to see your pretty face instead of a square of color from the dress you are wearing...thanks in advance, remember, I am here to please not complain, ha!!

Okay, I am obviously new to the blogging world! Do any of you know how to post your twitter information (link/most current updates) on the blog's homepage? I think this would be really helpful and interesting information for all of my followers...ha! And due to the high volume of requests, my email address is ashleyp2181@yahoo.com! Thanks for all the help fellow bloggers or blog followers or whoever you are out there in blog world....

Sweet little Kate

2009-08-25T11:40:00.000-07:00

For those of you who know me (ha, who am I kidding...Ashley and my mom know me very well), know how much Kate McRae has been on my mind the past month or so since her family found out she has brain cancer. Such a sweet, precious five year old girl whose life will forever be changed...if you do not know who Kate is, I encourage you to read about her and PRAY for her as she walks this journey. I subscribed to her blog (http://caringbridge.org/visit/mcraekate) and recently haven't been receiving updates (this must be a problem within the caringbridge site) and honestly haven't had her on the forefront of my mind lately. Today I read via Twitter, that some results had come back regarding her kidney function and it reminded me to check her site and continue praying for this sweet girl and her family. It is a reminder that life can change in an instant and although doctors assume she has had this tumor her entire life it has just gotten progressively worse, life as the McRae family knew it will never quite be the same. Hug your family tight, thank God for your health, and pray for others' in need of a miracle.

Back to reality...

2009-08-24T18:41:00.000-07:00

Today was our first day back to our routine...since the surgery 1 week ago today, I have been resting and have had lots of help (thanks mom/dad,nan,mammy/pop) and to everyone else who checked in to see how I was doing and how they could help! I knew I was feeling better when today at lunch I ran through Burger King to order an Icee and ended up getting a whopper which I later INHALED...so much for the few pounds I lost post surgery!

It felt so good to be able to do things I love with the boy I love most (well, one of my fav boys--Carson, I love you the same, so much, and unconditionally)!

It felt so good to give him his bath.

It felt so good to take him and pick him up from school.

It felt so good to pack his lunch.

It felt so good to play with him.

It felt so good to read him his bedtime story.

It felt so good to laugh with him.

It felt so good to be with him!

There were two times I broke down this week because of how much I missed wrapping my arms around him and listening to the adorable and hilarious things a four year old boy has to say! He is the love of my life and I am so glad its back to reality around here...

It felt so good.