Much needed words

I found this poem on another blog that I read occasionally and it was what I needed to hear this morning.I hope she doesn't mind if I re post it here.
http://gracioussouthernliving.blogspot.com/



IT'S IN THE VALLEYS I GROW~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~




Sometimes life seems hard to bear, full of sorrow, trouble and woe, it's then I have to remember, that it's in the valleys I grow.


If I always stayed on the mountain top, and never experienced pain, I would never appreciate God's love, and would be living in vain.


I have so much to learn, and my growth is very slow, sometimes I need the mountain tops, but it's in the valleys I grow.


I do not always understand why things happen as they do, but I am very sure of one thing, My Lord will see me through.


My little valleys are nothing, when I picture Christ on the cross, He went through the valley of death, His victory was Satan's loss!


Forgive me Lord for complaining when I'm feeling so very low, just give me a gentle reminder, that it's in the valleys I grow.


Continue to strengthen me, Lord, and use my life each day, to share your love with others, and help them find their way.


Thank you for the valleys, Lord, for this one thing I know, the mountain tops are glorious, but it's in the valleys I grow!




(Poem by Jane Eggleston)

A little break

I've never spoke of this here on my blog but I've been dealing with panic attacks and depression for about 7 years now. I feel that I have it under control at times,but then other times it gets the best of me.I'm having alot of scary episodes lately and will be getting back on medication.It seems at this point I have no choice.If you've never been through this I can tell you that it is a very terrifying place to be and I wouldn't wish it on anyone.
I hate it,and I hate feeling out of control.
I'm going to be gone for a bit,hoping and praying to get myself back where I need to be.
Bye for now~

Happy Spring!

Well today is the official first day of Spring and it is sunny but it sure isn't all that warm.
Tomorrow is my youngest daughters birthday so I'm trying to get ready for that and also trying to figure out what we're going to do for Easter.
I know the kids want to do the egg and basket thing and I might make dinner yet I just don't know. I haven't been feeling too energized lately.
In fact I'm feeling pretty run down,maybe I'm coming down with something.I sure hope not.

I'm not wearing green

I know I'm supposed to be wearing it today but I have very little clothing (if any)that is green so go ahead and pinch me.lol

My oldest daughter must think she's Irish because she was wearing head to toe green with hat,necklace,buttons,and everything but the green kitchen sink to school today.She definitely gets into the spirit.

I found this on a site earlier today and it really touched me so that's what I wanted to write about today.I think about my kids and my husband,my family and friends all the time and I hope they all know how much I treasure them all.Since the car accident last summer(among other events) this is something that I think about ALOT.
You truly never know when you walk out the door if you'll be coming back.
Did I tell them I loved them? Did I wave good-bye or did I just scoot them out of the way and run out? Did I yell at my teen-ager this morning not to be late when I should've hugged him?
I don't mean to be all gloom and doom but I want to know in my heart that I make them feel loved and appreciated.I want to ignore the dishes in the sink so my 7 year old son can show me his new library book he got at school or stop doing laundry to look at the drawing my 3 year old did. This is something that I struggle with but I'd like to think I'm getting better.
I guess maybe it takes a little more life experience or just the near miss of a tragedy to put things in focus.
Anyway,just some things to keep in mind as we go through our hectic lives.


IF I KNEW~

If I knew it would be the last time

That I'd see you fall asleep,

I would tuck you in more tightly

and pray the Lord, your soul to keep



If I knew it would be the last time

that I see you walk out the door,

I would give you a hug and kiss

and call you back for one more



If I knew it would be the last time

I'd hear your voice lifted up in praise,

I would video tape each action and word,

so I could play them back day after day.



If I knew it would be the last time,

I could spare an extra minute

to stop and say "I love you

"instead of assuming you would KNOW I do.



If I knew it would be the last time

I would be there to share your day,

Well I'm sure you'll have so many more,

so I can let just this one slip away.



For surely there's always tomorrow

to make up for an oversight,

and we always get a second chance

to make everything just right.



There will always be another day

to say "I love you,"

And certainly there's another chance

to say"Anything I can do?"



But just in case I might be wrong,

and today is all I get,

I'd like to say how much I love you

and I hope we never forget.



Tomorrow is not promised to anyone,

young or old alike,

And today may be the last chance

you get to hold your loved one tight



So if you're waiting for tomorrow,

why not do it today?

For if tomorrow never comes,

you'll surely regret the day,



That you didn't take that extra time

for a smile, a hug, or a kiss

and you were too busy to grant someone,

what turned out to be their one last wish.



So hold your loved ones close today,

and whisper in their ear,

Tell them how much you love them

and that you'll always hold them dear



Take time to say "I'm sorry,"

"Please forgive me," "Thank you," or "It's okay."

And if tomorrow never comes,

you'll have no regrets about today.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now on a much lighter note....the new season of "Dancing with the stars" starts tonight!

Wooo-hoooo! I love that show ;o)

Also,does anyone watch the new show on Sunday nights with all the newlywed couples that are competing for a big cash prize?? Oh my gosh that show is a riot! Some of the couples have only been together a short time and others longer,one couple has been together for like 14 years and they so remind me of hubby and I but that's a whole post in itself.lol

Miss Inventor

My middle daughter has been working on a project for school the last several days and this morning they had to do a presentation with all the parents attending. The kids had to come up with an invention that they think would be useful in their household then actually make it. I had to giggle when I read what her invention was.....a DISH cart/holder!
I admit that I have a serious problem with dishes and china,I love collecting it and I have tons and tons.Well,she apparently felt that this would help me to carry my collections from one room to another (for holidays,dinners,etc)so I wouldn't have to keep going back and forth.
Pretty clever little girlie I have!
It turned out very nice and she did a great job with her presentation!I was worried due to the fact that she is so shy and gets all flustered when having to speak in front of people.( an unfortunate trait she inherited from her momma)I have overcame it pretty well but I knew this would be a real challenge and I was nervous for her!
It was so interesting to see what a group of 3rd graders came up with to help around the house.....
one boy made an automatic ball-thrower for his dog(brilliant but it only shoots it out about 5 inches so I'm thinking it would have to be a pretty tiny(or lazy)dog
another girl made an instant beauty mask,a mask with make-up already applied to the inside so you just had to sit it on your face and all your make-up is done at once.Wow!
another boy had a big kitchen counter organizer and I asked him why he chose that and he says"my mom has way too much junk!" lol!!!
Oh boy,it was pretty funny and they were all really creative.
Here is my girlie with her amazing dish cart/holder for her mom with way too many dishes!





On the way home from the school it was raining,not alot but enough to need your wipers going.Well,mine decided to STOP working! Yep,talk about scary.
So,there I was hopping out of the car every couple minutes to swish my wipers back and forth till I could make it home.Thank goodness we don't live far from the school!

In your Easter bonnet

These are tooo sweet!!! They look fairly easy too! I'm so going to make these next weekend.





Easter Bonnets

1 (16.5-ounce) roll refrigerated sugar cookies
16 lemon or orange mini muffins (from bakery)
2 cups vanilla creamy ready-to-spread frosting (from two 1-pound containers)
Green and red food color

Heat oven to 350°F. Cut cookie dough into 1/2-inch slices. On ungreased cookie sheet, place slices 2 inches apart. Bake 12 to 14 minutes or until edges are light golden brown. Cool 2 minutes; remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack.
If necessary, remove papers from muffins. Cut 3/4-inch slice from bottom of each muffin to use for bonnet. Reserve muffin tops for snacking. Spread cut side of each muffin bottom with frosting; attach to cookie, frosting side down. Place bonnets on rack over 15x10x1-inch pan.
Place 1/2 cup frosting in resealable food storage plastic bag. Add green food color; squeeze bag until well mixed and desired color.
Place remaining frosting in microwavable measuring cup. Microwave on High 30 to 40 seconds or until pourable. DO NOT BOIL. Stir in enough red food color for desired pink color. Pour pink frosting over bonnets in circular motion to cover completely. Reheat frosting as necessary to keep it pourable. Let stand 10 minutes or until set.
With small spatula, remove bonnets from rack, smoothing edges of frosting. Cut tiny hole in corner of bag with green frosting. Pipe ribbon of frosting for hatband; add bow design. Make dots and flower designs on each hat as desired.

Makes 16 bonnets.

Woo-Hooooooooooooooo!

We survived

Well we have made it through the blizzard of 2008! I'm not sure if I would really call it that but it was pretty bad.We were basically stuck in the house from Friday to yesterday.We tried to get out on Sat afternoon but there was another car stuck smack dab in front of our driveway and there was no getting around it and through the 3 foot snowdrift beside it.
It's hard to believe that Easter is in 2 weeks and it's supposed to be almost Spring here people!!!
What did I do stuck in the house for 2 days with 7 kids you might ask?? Well,we played alot with play-do,watched many movies,colored,ate,argued,fought and then argued and fought some more.It was rough going by yesterday so I made my escape and went to the grocery store and Target.I felt like a new woman by the time I came home!
While I was out I picked up one of my very fave magazines

I grew up with Victoria and when they stopped publishing it awhile back I really missed it.I was so glad when it came back last winter.
My mom and my aunt used to sit on the phone when the new issue came out and discuss every article and photo in it.I think it was an escape for them.My mom actually has the very 1st issue ever!I'm hoping she might pass it on to me someday.
I must say this new issue is just beautiful.I don't get much time to look at magazines but I actually sat down with this one and was so glad I did.


I made meatloaf and after dinner we watched "The Goonies" ,I love that movie. The kids don't seem to enjoy it as much as I do but I guess you have to be an 80s kid to really appreciate it.It's funny though because my 2 oldest love other movies from that time like "Brekfast Club" and "Sixteen Candles".It's quite surreal watching them again with your children.

Once again we "Sprung" forward an hour and we'll be disoriented for days.It's dark outside still and 2 of the kids have already left for school.


So anyway,this is a rambling post so I'll just share a few pics of the snow till tomorrow.

Come on Spring,I know you're out there!!!

Looky what I can do!

MyHeritage: Celebrity Morph - Vintage pics - Family name origins

My Friday feel good~

Well with the foot of snow that we're expecting here by tomorrow and being snowed in the house with 7 kids and a cranky hubby for a couple of days I thought this seemed like a good day to start this weekly post.
It will be images of my fave things~places,people,music,books all the things that lift my spirit,sooth my soul,take me to another place and make me smile.
My kids are watching a movie,the fire in the fireplace is going, the chicken is roasting in the oven,and the 9,000 other things I need to do today can wait~ off we go!

The 1st is one of my very fave places in the world to be...the mountains in Tennessee.I love to go all times of the year but the spring and fall are absolutey the most beautiful.

view of the city in Autumn

my fave restaraunt"Park Grill"

more of fall

Spring

gorgeous

A lovely old church in Cades Cove

these are redbud trees and bloom every spring,they're all over the place


the skylift~you will NEVER see me on this


The old Mill~another great place to eat

a magnificent cabin in the mountains


seriously now,you can't go there without eating here

one of my fave spots to visit~The Christmas Place.It's christmas all year long!



Well now that we've done a bit of sight-seeing let's grab a towel and a glass of wine and head out here...........

and while you're out there watch out for THESE!!


Yep,I feel better

I still have it!

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2008-03-03-momnesia_N.htm

Well,they've finally figured out that this exists.I'm sure we moms have been clued in for some time now but at least we can assure ourselves that all of our absent-mindedness and general kookiness after having a baby is validated in some way.
I just wonder....what if it never goes away?It's been 2 yrs since my youngest was born and I know for a fact it's just as bad if not worse than it was right after he was born.
My wonderul hubby says it's just me getting older and my mind slipping but I'm sticking with the "MOMNESIA"!!Yep,I'm blamin it on the babies.lol

It was then that I carried you

Christian Glitter by

My faith in god has always been with me but the last few years especially it has become my saving grace.
Sometimes it's truly all we have to go on.
I have questioned it,wondered what my faith was,and at times I might have even rebelled against it but now................I see that it has always carried me through the storm.

My pity party is over~

I've been so bad about blogging this last week or so but it's been difficult for me to collect my thoughts and feelings into anything even sensible or read-worthy.
There are many things going on in my life that have sent me plummeting into that loathsome world of self-pity that I've been wallowing in for months now.
I won't go into all the details here but suffice it to say our lives have been turned upside down and twisted almost beyond recognition.
I always fancied myself to be a pretty strong and resilient woman but I had let myself turn into a crying desperate shell of myself,someone I really did not like at all.So very, very sad.
I feel like I'm coming out of that.Thank you god!
I have many wonderful family members and friends,(their prayers and words have seen me though more than you can imagine)and of course my own husband and children that keep me going even when I feel like crawling in a hole and never coming out.your kids have a way of not tolerating their mom giving up!
We've been through many changes and challenges and I have no idea what tomorrow,next week,or next year will hold for us but today we're ok.My family is here and healthy and we are blessed in so many ways.
I know that whatever lies in store that I'll survive it one way or another.
It's funny that no matter how dismal a situation seems there is always a lesson to be learned and a light at the end of the tunnel.At times that light seems dim but I think in my case anyway, it's getting a bit easier to see.