Fun OUT of the Sun!!!

The heat of summer is upon us here in the Deep South! Thank goodness for A/C and the JumpZone!!! We have a gym here in Madison that has a room full of inflatables for the kids to jump on and slide down to their hearts content! It is a great way to spend a hot afternoon!
In the last two days, we have had two birthday parties to attend there! My friend Shea captured some wonderful pictures of the kids and I thought I would share them! I have NO Short Term Memory and Can't remember which ones I uploaded here! So I am not even going to try and write captions! Just have fun looking at the kids having fun! (The sweat is from playing so hard, not because it is hot! Believe me they keep it like a freezer in there!)

Southern Belle All Around

I just had to share, because:
1. I am SOOO excited!
2. It really is pretty dead on.
3. And this is one of my favorite movies of all time!!!

I took the Which Steel Magnolia Are You Quiz on Facebook and here are my results:

Shelby Eatenton Latcherie (Julia Roberts' character)

You are Shelby. You are a breath of fresh air! You are the girl next door, America's sweetheart, and you love to laugh! You may make impulsive decisions because you would "rather have thirty minutes of wonderful than a lifetime of nothing special." Although you're a southern belle at heart (and your signature color may even be "blush" or "bashful"), you still get caught doing things from time to time that might even "frighten the fish"! You're a risk taker, sometimes at a cost to yourself, so slow down. You may make a decision in haste that you'll someday regret!

Back to childhood and into menopause...all in 24 hours!!!

Last night I went with friends to go see Star Trek! It was the BEST movie I have seen in a while! I loved it!!! The only thing missing was my brothers! I was in NO way a tomboy growing up, but I was raised with two brothers! This meant that when it was time to go to the movies as a family, my choice rarely won! So over and over I was forced to watch Star Wars, Star Trek, Indiana Jones, and any other "boy" movie you can imagine!Now though...I am eternally grateful! My boys think I am so cool because I know that Hans Solo and Indy are the same man!!!! So, when the opportunity came to go see the new Star Trek, I couldn't pass it up! I wanted to screen it before allowing my kids to watch it (which I will definitely be doing) but I also just really wanted to watch it! If you get the chance to watch this movie...DO IT!!! You will not regret spending 2 hours in the cool air conditioning of the movie theatre and watching a movie that is non-stop action from beginning to end! And to both my brothers...I wish you were here to go see it with me! It's just not the same without the two of you!!

Ok, now for the second part of this post! I have made no secret of the fact that I have not felt well for a while, but it looks like an end is in sight! I had a phone appointment today with a doctor in Arizona! I recently sent in some saliva samples to have all my hormone levels tested and it looks like that is the problem! Without going into details I just want to share that there is a plan in place to get me back to me!!! I can't wait!!! So, once my prescriptions get here, I will keep you all posted on my progress! If nothing else comes from this, I have learned to listen to my body! Thank you to all my wonderful friends and family who have helped, prayed, and listened over the last few months!!! I hope one day I can do the same for all of you!

One last thing before I close this one out! Today is my baby brother's 28th birthday! I hope it's a good one Josh! We Miss You!! Happy Birthday!

What A Mighty God We Serve!!!!

Some days I think God looks right into my heart, my head,and my life and knows EXACTLY what I need to hear! This morning when I got up to do my devotion I was awestruck at his pinpoint accuracy! One of the things I do every morning is read my daily couples devotion from Crosswalk.com. This is what I read this morning:

A Mother's Influence by Barbara Rainey
Proverbs 1:8
And do not forsake your mother's teaching.


As a mother, I have my days when everything is relatively easy and I wonder why I ever struggle. The children are loving to one another and circumstances seem to flow smoothly.
But there are other days when I wonder if it will ever be fun again. I struggle with guilt and discouragement. Will these children ever grow up to walk with the Lord? Am I ruining my kids for life!?

Because of my humanity, my identity is subject to attack by my emotions, by other people's perceptions and expectations, and by my abilities and failures. Learning the truth about myself and standing on that truth is a lifelong process.

I believe that if I persevere, God will give me a ministry of influence to the next generation. Most ministry activity is by adults to their own generation, but mothers can literally shape the future. President Teddy Roosevelt once said:

When all is said, it is the mother, and the mother only, who is a better citizen than the soldier who fights for his country. The successful mother, the mother who does her part in rearing and training aright the boys and girls, who are to be the men and women of the next generation, is of greater use to the community, and occupies, if she only would realize it, a more honorable as well as more important position than any man in it. The mother is the one supreme asset of the national life. She is more important, by far, than the successful statesman, or businessman, or artist, or scientist.

To have that influence on the future through my children demands that I objectively evaluate my life as a mother in light of that goal.


Isn't God good!!! I'm not real sure why this was in the "couples devotions" But Whatever Works!!!! God got it to me! It is nice to be reminded that I am doing the right thing! That even when I feel like I get nothing accomplished in a day, I am doing the most important job! I am raising my kids to love the Lord and love others! I am encouraged to keep pressing on! To stay on the path he has laid for me! I hope it brings some of you the same encouragement!

Just in Case You Didn't Hear...I am Mom of the Year!!!

I need to give a huge thanks to my friend Shay for sending this to me!!! You made my day girl! Thanks for all you do to encourage me!!!!


http://news.cnnbcvideo.com/?nid=Vp5wLstp3yPdyK.ZWaNNbjExMjM4Mjc3&referred_by=15565570-n3rtutx&p=moveon

I am working on posting the video on the blog, until I figure it out, you are going to have to copy and pasted the link into the address bar!!! You aren't going to want miss this!!! Check it out!!!

A balanced life?!?!?

I can't figure out how much activity vs down time is normal! My life is constantly 90mph! And no matter what, I am left feeling a little guilty! If I focus my day on Jewelry, I feel like I have let my kids down and that they are not going to "learn" anything that day. And if I spend the WHOLE day actively involved with my kids, I feel like business is going to suffer. Who knows where to draw the line?
I know that there is a way to balance it all, but I think I am having a hard time executing the balancing act! I am open to suggestions here. Somebody tell me how to do it ALL!
I know part of the problem is that at my core I am a perfectionist! I want to do everything and do everything Well! I know some of you are thinking if I would just choose one thing to focus on at a time, there wouldn't be a problem. BUT the problem is that's NOT going to happen!
I love Premier! And I know that it is where God wants me right now. I also Love homeschooling. It's not easy. And there are days when I think about sending them all to school, but again it's where God wants me! Any time I think about quitting, this wave of encouragement comes over me and I know it is the Lord! So, for the time being, I am going to do it all. I will be wife, mama, teacher, jewelry lady, daughter, sister, and friend! I may not be on my "A" game every minute of the day, but I am constantly strviing to do my best!
So if anybody has any practical advice on how to make my daily life function a little more smoothly, please let me know. If y'all struggle with this too, tell me! I want to know that I am not crazy, or maybe I am. Maybe you all really do have it figured out! For now, I am just going to keep on keeping on! God loves me! I am walking where He wants me! I have peace about what I am doing, I just need figure out more organized way of doing it! Thanks for listening to me ramble! I feel better just getting it out!

Have Jewelry, Will Travel!

I am so excited! I just got home from training, and like usual, it was Wonderful! I am always so uplifted and inspired from spending time with my fellow jewelry ladies! To have so many godly women on a mission in the same room is awesome! And the best part is, they all want me to do my best, and that's what this post is about!

I have been given a contest. I need to hold 12 shows in the month of May. So I need 12 friends who are willing to open up their homes (or my home, if necessary), invite their friends over, and earn FREE jewelry! I love my job! I love giving away jewelry and serving other women, but I can't do my job without you!

If anyone is interested in FREE jewelry and in helping me win my contest, please let me know as soon as possible! Please let me know how I may serve you!