Some Vacation pics! At last!

The end of a long and fun day at Hollywood Studios. The fireworks were so incredible! As you can see, everyone loved them!


We waited in line a LOOOONNNNNG time to see these mice and it was TOTALLY worth it! When you go, wait in line, no matter how long it takes.

This was the one purchase I insisted on. The kids each picked out their hats and we had their names stitched on them.

This was such a cool parade. The kids were able to dance in the street along with the characters! It was quite long and the best parade of all the parks.

A pic of me and (the second) cutest boy in the world. I love me some Ikey! Doesn't he look like little Michael here?

One of the first rides of our trip. This was "Toy Story" and this game was in 3-D. Very Cool! We even got wet at one point in the ride!

Here are a few pics from our first two days at Disney World vacation over spring break. I have lots more pictures and I am slowly looking through them and finding my favorites. More later!

The Puppy

Well, the puppy is really 6 months old and is officially named "Trixie". The reason this dog ended up on MY porch is completely and totally my momma's fault. I absolutely blame her 100%. As a child growing up, we were always finding/nursing/placing in a new "forever" home, some kind of cat, dog, squirrel, bunny (those never fared well), hummingbird, litter of kittens. We (my sister and I ) served as her assistant- we ran to get the old washcloth or baby blanket, Epsom salts, tweezers, syringe, cotton balls, peroxide, newborn nurser or anything else Momma needed to fix our latest patient. We didn't really keep many of these animals. They just passed through on their way to their "forever" home. The little dog that arrived on our porch was finally classified as a French bulldog/Boston mix. She is soooo ugly she is cute! After three hours at the vet today, her new "Mommy" (not me, my friend, Christy) had quite a few medications to administer to her canine child. Trixie seemed to take it all stride. I think she knew that it was all for the greater good- all the poking and prodding and examination. She is great with children and very loyal. If we were in the market for a dog, she would still be at our house. I know she will be happy with Christy and her family. Trixie's new children are so in love with her. You may think you can avoid turning into your mother. Try anything you like, be anyone you want. Sooner or later you will do what I have done- give up. Go over to the "Momma Side" and embrace it. Really, it's not so bad.... Good night.

Finally!

Well, I am finally posting something new! (I will look for your comment, Miss Stephanie) As many of you know, our sweet friends Mark and Renee` have recently adopted two beautiful children from Ethiopia! Hello Jordan Berket and Kloe Bertu! I love you! While they were off running around in Africa, we got to hang out/take care of/feed/laugh/snuggle with the two VanDruff girls, Katie and Nikki (NikNak, Nick-o-lea-lee, Birdie Girl). Katie is 16 and Nik is 2. We had a ball! We even got to play dress up with Katie and get her ready for the prom! She is already a lovely young woman but,let me tell you, mascara and a good hairpiece can do Amazing things! Also, if you ever become bored with your children, if you ever feel like your life lacks a certain spark- do this- rent a two year old child. I FORGOT!!! My own children are six and eight and are pretty self sufficient. Two year old kids are high maintainance! And Nik is really pretty easy! She is fully potty trained and a generally happy and cheerful child. Bedtime and naps are not a problem for this kid but, gosh! Renee`, you are quite a woman! BaileyRose saved my life- Nikki loves her and will do anything for BaileyRose. BaileyRose is a born momma and filled the role quite easily. One more quick side note- Today I came home after picking the kids up from school and went to raise the miniblinds in the living room window and as I looked out I stared back into the eyes of a little puppy! There she set on our rocking chair on our front porch. We haven't figured out just what she is (breed that is- she is a girl dog) and we have a possible home lined up. Between the dog, contacting "dog rescue people", taking a custom bow order (poor lady, probably thought I was crazy!),several extra children and Girl Scouts meeting at our house, it was a very busy evening. Did I mention that we are on our 11th day of rain? I truly expected to see TWO dogs- a male and female- on our porch! (Get it, the animals came two by two...) More on the puppy later. God bless you all! Goodnight!
PS: I hope you feel better Stephanie! I love you girl!

Our Last Day

Can you tell we have had a great time on our trip!? I haven't had a spare minute to post! Tonight was our last night for the parks. We saved Epcot for last and it was WONDERFUL!!! We had such a good time and the kids were completely exhausted. So were we! As we were leaving the park tonight after the MOST amazing fireworks display/ light show I have ever seen, Bailey Rose said, "Dad, I just don't want to leave." Mission accomplished! We went to all the countries and ate a bite of something at almost every country. The kids got their portraits done in France just like my sister and I did when we visited Epcot a very llloooonnnggg time ago. The price hadn't changed that much and the quality was still very good. The artist said that he had attended art school and had worked at Epcot for ten years. Wow! The kids also had a great time trading pins with "cast members" at the parks. Uncle Matt bought them each a starter set and they traded and traded at each different park. So cool! They got lots of neat pins at every park and after a tip from a cast member, we discovered that there were extra special pins to look for. The workers at the parks get "special" pins that have a hidden Mickey on the pin. Only the workers get these and they have to trade if they are asked. Bailey Rose was immediately hooked and eveyone of her pins now has a hidden Mickey! Ha! After we get home I will update more and post pics. Needless to say, we had a super time and are already looking forward to the next trip- whenever that may be! Tomorrow we will travel back half-way. We will stay the night in Mobil, AL and dip our toes in the ocean. Saturday morning, we will head back to Arkansas and sleep in our own little bed. God bless and Good night~

MICKEY MOUSE!!!!! We're Here!

After two days of travel, we have arrived! Thank you Lord! Really, it wasn't too bad of a trip. With the miracle of portable DVD and Grandma's bag of tricks, we are finally here in Orlando! Saturday morning we all loaded up in the rental van and headed for Georgia. We got a bit of a late start because of a mix-up with the rental car people. Michael and Matt cleared that up and we were off! We arrived at "Anut Sherry's" and Uncle Don's house to a delicious meal of Famous Corn Chowder, sandwiches and amazing Pineapple Cobbler! YUM! We crashed all over that warm and cozy house and we were back out on the road a little before 7am. This day of travel seemed to go much faster and we rolled into Orlando at 4 pm. Thank you Jesus for safe travel! We saw several wrecks along the way and are so thankful to have had a safe journey. Our condo is beautiful! Michael found a real deal with this company. Everyone settled in and after some grocery shopping, Michael and I went for our 12th anniversary dinner. Twelve years and I must say that I still like that boy very, very much! Tomorrow is Magic Kingdom. The kids are so excited and don't really know what to expect. The surprise of it all will be the best part! More tomorrow! I might even try pictures!

A Blessed Woman....

I was going to call this post, "A Sad Story" but then I got a little Divine perspective.
Let me give you some history concerning this latest adventure. My sweet, dear friend, Renee` and her equally sweet husband Mark, are in the final stages of adopting two siblings from Ethiopia. Their adoption journey has been such a beautiful witness and I am so excited about meeting these precious kiddos! Our women's group at church is hosting a shower for them this Sunday (tomorrow) and of course, I volunteered to make the cake. Now, many of you know that cooking is not really my strength but with baking, I'm not so bad. I pulled out my 11X13 in cake pan, 3 cake mixes and got started. I had never used this cake pan before and if you have a ruler handy, you will see that 11X13 is a good sized cake. I popped the cake in the oven and sat down to watch "Beverly Hills Chihuahua" with the kids. (Good movie BTW) The movie was over, the timer dinged and I went in to trim the cake and let it cool on the cardboard base. You already see where this is going, doncha? I really don't even remember the cake slipping or falling. I just remember staring down at the tile in complete and utter disbelief. The cake was in something of a tri-fold pattern. You know how you fold a piece of paper up to be a brochure? Just like that. Steaming and golden (and delicious, Mike had the kids taste it before he got rid of it) and all of it on the floor. I think I said something like, "Oh Gosh!" and Michael and both babies came running. "Are you burned? Are you burned?" was all Michael could say. He just kept checking me over to make sure I wasn't hurt. "You're okay, then?" They all hugged me and told me everything was fine and another cake could be made- no problem. I held my head in my hands and nodded. Off to Kroger..... Michael cleaned up the kitchen while I was gone so well that you couldn't even tell I had baked Cake Number One. Everything was washed and waiting for me to start again when I came home.

As I was making the Second Cake, I started listening. Listening to thoughts like, "What an honor you have to make this cake", "Wonder what all those kids in that transition home in Ethiopia would have done with that broken cake?", "Wonder if Renee`and Mark's kids in Africa have ever even Had cake?", "How lucky you are that you have a husband like Michael and children like Bailey and Ike", "Isn't great that you had the money to go out and purchase more supplies for this New cake?" Michael came in to check on me. He said, "Think about this, tomorrow you will have a great story to tell!" Typical Michael. By the time I put the Second Cake in the oven, I was smiling. Broken cake- what a great problem to have.........

Some of my New favorite things...

I was waiting until I had pics of each of these things to post this but at the rate I am going the words will just have to do. I have collected these things in my mind here and there and now I want to share them with you. Here goes-

"Chiken Patties" by Morning Star: these are breaded faux "chiken" patties that taste so good! Defrost in the microwave and then cook in a skillet with a little Pam until the breading is crunchy. They are 2 WW points and (I think) they taste like the real deal!

PB2 by Bell Plantation: Dehydrated Peanut Butter! 57cal for 2 tbsps! You can order it from www.bellplantation.com or you can get some at your local Hyvee store (If you have one, you lucky duck). I eat some every morning on a Thomas Light English Muffin (another BIG favorite) and have even mixed it in my balsamic vinegar/olive oil dressing for a peanut version to pour over shredded cabbage salad.

Quinoa: My mom turned me on to this one. It's not rice and it's not a grain. I am not sure WHAT it is actually but it is super good AND good for you. I have eaten it as a side dish and as an ingredient in my egg white omelet.

Cedar brand Micro Fiber yarn push broom: We have laminate and tile through most of our home and this broom is a Lifesaver! It picks up everything! Even cat/dog/hamster/people hair. I sweep at least twice a day and it only takes 2 or 3 minutes. Then, when you are finished you can pull the broom head off and throw it in the washer/dryer. 10$ at (you guessed it...) WalMart. But I bet Target has 'em too....

Neutrogena Deep Wrinkle cream with SPF 30: I have started wearing this everyday under my make-up and I reallllllyyyyy like it. It is not greasy at all and has the sunscreen built right in. Yea! And Deep wrinkle, well, I have heard that such a thing happens to some women on occasion so it couldn't hurt.

Yada-Yada Prayer Group Book series: These are so cute and "real". I guess that makes them "real cute". Ha! If you have ever been a part of a women's prayer group then you "know" the characters of this series already! It has great scripture reference too so you get in a little bible study while being entertained.

OPI Nail Polish: Now, this stuff has been around forever but it is great stuff. It stays on fingernails over a week (even with tough housework). It costs a little more (around $7-8 at Target and salons) but they have great seasonal lines so treat yourself to a little spring.

That is all I can remember right now. What are some of your favorite things?