The area in red is a “blizzard warning”. I’ve lived in Arkansas since 1977 (33+ years) and I have never seen a “blizzard warning” in our viewing area. I am hoping that the meteorologists are wrong about this weather system.
I love when Daisy sends me a morning snap shot of Mads… here she is modeling the “Tangled” shirt I bought her.
Can you believe we have already gone through our first month of the new year???
Tomorrow is Daisy’s birthday… Happy Birthday, Daisy!!
After starting their puzzle last night… this is what I woke up to this morning.
Tyler finished it this afternoon while Daisy and I were out and about.
I thought puzzles were meant to be relaxing? They don’t last long around here. Looks like he needs to move up to 5000 piece puzzles.
Maddie came back from her grandma’s this afternoon. Daisy got her a new “cellphone” and Mads spent most of the evening calling Tyler (she kept saying, “Oh, Ty!!” Haha!). She called Kayla and Kale a few times, too. She is one funny girl.
Maddie is spending the night with one of her grandmas. So, while we are missing her in all this quiet, Tyler and Daisy are breaking out a new 1000 piece puzzle.
Those wild and crazy kids!
I think it’s pretty cute that these two, almost 22 year old “kids” (at least to me), are spending their Saturday night enjoying each other’s company with a puzzle.
Fun day today! My sister (#3) had an appointment and asked me to meet up with her and go to Branson. We had a nice lunch, spent a little time shopping, and got caught up on the things going on in our lives. (Have I mentioned having sisters is pretty swell??)
(If you are thinking you’d like to take the sweet little blonde girl home with you… you’ll have to get in line. Love her!)
Tyler and Daisy made the dinner plans for us tonight. We met up with a couple of young families to eat at the rib place. When we got there they were out of EVERYTHING but chicken and burgers. Haha! So we went to the next place in town… pizza. When we got there, they were out of all the hand-tossed and small crusts. Say what? We made do and had such a fun time. There’s a game room in the pizza place so the kids stayed pretty excited. With six kids under the age of 8, the chaos in the place wasn’t a whole lot different than having a holiday meal with all the Goulets.
Just before I left work this evening, I texted Tyler to see if he wanted to go to the gym with me. After a little coaxing, he went and afterward we went on a little date to Walmart to get groceries.
While were were looking for soap, he saw these and thought we needed to get them for Maddie:
I thought it was funny because just yesterday Tyler warned me about spoiling Maddie. When I reminded him of that he just said, “they’re only $2”.
On another note… I am LOVING the new season of American Idol. I usually don’t like the auditions and really just can’t wait til they pick the Top 24, but the new judges and the new format are making it so much more enjoyable for me!! So far, there’s a LOT of talent. It should be a really good season.
This drawing made me smile tonight at Cubbies. Little Adrianne told me she could draw a bunny, so I told her to show me. This is her bunny before she finished coloring it.
I told the story of the 10 lepers tonight and, like always, I ask questions in review. They usually listen pretty well, so I love that they often know the answers. Somehow tonight (I guess because we were talking about the men being sick) during question time, they started talking about being sick and puking here and there and everywhere. Ya gotta love ‘em!
I had a dental appointment today for a cleaning. The hygienist generously offered me a full set of x-rays (not just the puny bitewings) and I jumped at the chance. Eighteen pictures and about four gags later, she moved on to the actual cleaning. Which was quite pleasant since I fully believe in the miracle of Colgate Total…that pesky scraping is almost non-existent.
I have been dreading this appointment for a while since the tooth that had the root canal and crown last Spring has the ability to trap the equivalent of a four course meal and I am a walking commercial for Glide flossers. I hate to tell them there’s even a hint of a problem because that pretty much means before I know what hit me I’ll be feet up in the air with a drill in my mouth… and paying for it with our precious retirement funds. But, the dentist assured me there’s an easy fix and I should be as good as new after my appointment in March.
In the end… I’m happy to report I had no cavities!!
Now, to get David’s two or three crowns taken care of.
I didn’t take a picture today… I have done nothing but work, some laundry, cooked supper, did dishes and worked on getting tax stuff ready. (Did y’all want me to show you any of that??)
So, my photo today is one I received tonight from Daisy …
She texted me this afternoon to say the doctor said Maddie has a sinus infection. (It helps that Daisy works at her doctor’s office.) Poor little Maddie. Sinus infections are no fun… and she was such a trooper. We could tell she didn’t feel well, but she didn’t complain much at all. I don’t think I’ve seen anyone sneeze as much as she has for the last several days. Oh my.
It looks like she’s starting to feel better already!!
We’ve had a great day. Church services were awesome! Our song service was better than ever and, once again, Steve’s message was directed right at me and my heart. Three elementary-age children were baptized this morning and another gave his heart to the Lord tonight. Today was also the Preacher and Judy’s 40th wedding anniversary.
I am just so thankful for my church family and how much they mean to me.
After lunch today, we put Maddie down for a nap. (Bless her heart, she’s come down with a virus or something and she’s been sick today.) While she napped, Daisy and Tyler put together the rest of the puzzle they started on Saturday… they got a 1000 piece puzzle done in less than two days. (Tyler is a puzzle master. Really.)
(Daisy is cold-natured like me. We laughed at her in the house with her coat on.)
Daisy finally got tired of doing the puzzle and we decided to break out a VCR and watch some home videos. The first one I got out was from Kale’s 4th birthday, which also happened to be Easter Sunday. We had such a good time reminiscing. Lots of laughs watching old videos.
I sent Kale and Kayla this picture of the TV. I can’t tell you how badly I’d love to go back and have a do-over on the years we were raising our kids. I know that I know that I know that I did the best I could, but now that I realize how fast that time goes and how little time you really have with them at home, I would savor the moments more… even the tough ones. I would worry less and laugh much more.
(Is that why everyone says grandchildren are SO much better??? You get “it” by the time they come along?)
This video is from Kale’s 4th birthday in 1991. It was also Easter Sunday… and Steve let Kale “preach” that Sunday at church.
(From the sound of his prayer, I must’ve really been harping about talking nice and not lying to that poor little 4 year old boy.)
I’ve said it before… and I’ll say it again… some of the best preaching in the world comes from our church! (That goes for you, too, Preacher.)
If you want to be reminded of how blessed you are… go back and watch your home videos sometime. I am overwhelmed with how much I love being Kale and Tyler’s mother. They have filled me with more joy than I ever dreamed possible. Kale said about God, “He has a great big heart, like the trees.” We used to say to each other that we loved each other “taller than the tallest tree” and we’d talk about how God loved us “bigger than the sky is blue”.
I am so thankful to the God who knows our every need and meets us where we are.
I have done 265 “Project 365” posts. That’s hard to believe. Only 100 more and I will have posted every day for a year. Riveting reading, I know!!
* * * * *
Today was a quiet day at home. I spent most of the late morning paying bills and catching up my checkbook. Daisy and Miss Moo came by after Maddie’s nap and while Daisy and Tyler worked a puzzle, Maddie worked her puzzles. She got a new one last night.
Tonight was “date night”. Which means Tyler and Daisy get to go out for an evening and we have a date with Maddie. She seems to like “date night”.
Tonight, we went to Chili’s.
I was kind of on the hunt for a little pair of snow boots for her so after supper we headed to the shoe store. I had my eye on a pair of snow boots, but she only had eyes for these:
They are kinda gaudy, and kinda wild, and they light up, but they’re hers! Haha!
Then we headed to Walmart for a few things and ran into Daisy and Tyler and their double dates. After a short visit, we went back to the house for a little more puzzle time.
We read our favorite butterfly bedtime book, made a little “night night” video for Momma and “Ty Ty” and then she was off to slumber land.
Come to think of it, I kind of like date night, too.
There’s still lots of snow on the ground here… and they’re talking about more coming on Sunday.
Tonight we (Dave, Tyler, Daisy, Mads and I) met up with Gary and JoJo for supper at “Razorback Ribs”. (Really hard to count calories at restaurants like that… you have to guesstimate.)
It was really good, though (and might I add that Gary ordered fried pickles and insisted I try them. I don’t like pickles in any form, so I was really anti-fried pickle, but they weren’t too bad!). Afterwards, we went to their house to play cards, but the men couldn’t break away from the TV (the Barrett Jackson auction was on), so we hung out while Maddie entertained us.
As soon as we got there, Maddie found all Jodi’s dog outfits and toys and spent the first little while folding dog clothes. (She’ll get tired of folding clothes soon enough.)
I just loved the little pile she made.
We woke up to a good snow this morning. The roads didn’t look too bad at first, but then it just kept snowing and snowing. We got about 4” here at the house.
Tyler went in to work and came home about noon. Bless his heart, as soon as he got home he took me to work and while I worked… he shoveled all the sidewalks around the church. When he got done he was soaked in sweat.
I was just so proud that he volunteered to take care of it. He told me he figured he got in about 45 minutes of cardio. Haha!
Tonight after church, Tyler and Daisy went to the gym and I kept Maddie for them. I needed to get a couple things for Ms. Charlsie, so Mads and I made a quick trip to Walmart. When we first got to church, Tyler asked me if I had a small rubber band somewhere because they wanted to get Maddie’s hair out of her face. They found a yellow one in a drawer in my office. On our way to Walmart, Maddie asked if her rubber band was yellow. I told her I couldn’t see from where I was (driving). She kept telling me it was yellow and she needed pink. When we were pulling into the Walmart parking lot she said, “Miss Jacquie, you buy me some pink rubber bands?”
Well, of course.
Mads with her pink rubber bands (and a little booklet she got at Subway tonight. Ha!)
Before leaving she also got some cute little pony tail holders (?) and this…
She’s ready for that snow that’s coming tomorrow!!
We said “goodbye” to our treadmill tonight. We decided to get rid of it since we haven’t had it plugged in for a couple years. Ha! I don’t know what it is, but I’ll get in my car and drive to the gym to get on the treadmill, but I won’t get on it at home. What is that??
I hope I don’t end up missing it.
It’s been a busy Monday. I got my workout in at lunch and after work this evening, Tyler and I went up to the church. Randy was having practice with the worship team and we went to see if we could help with the audio/video stuff.
When we got home, David said that Tyler’s dog (Daisy) got after something in the yard (probably an armadillo – she likes to hassle them) and he thinks she ran through or under the fence. Needless to say, she scraped her forehead up. Bless her heart.
My snack for tonight is an old favorite… yogurt and granola. I usually use Kashi Go Lean Crunch, but tonight I had Bare Naked Vanilla Almond Crunch. Most people think it looks disgusting, but it sure does taste good!
I’m updating my fitness blog tonight - today was weigh-in day. I didn’t gain or lose this week. I’m okay with that because 1) I know I ate spot on and got all my workouts in for the week; and 2) it’s high hormone week. So, it’ll all be okay.
I ended up not getting in to bed until 11:50 last night after making a good effort. Seriously, gonna try to get my posts up and get to bed. Night all!
Maddie is the sweetest thing ever in the mornings (and so are those pajamas that Kayla and Kale gave her for Christmas or was it Santa??). She was showing me her Minnie Mouse “blanket” that I got for her to take the place of her regular blanket when Daisy forgets hers… which just so happened to be the case last night. Minnie came through like a champ!
We had a typical Sunday here. We had a great day of worship, our favorite Mexican food for lunch, and a quiet afternoon at home. We did watch most of the original “True Grit” that I had recorded one night when the kids were seeing the new one in the theater. (There are some hilarious lines in that movie.)
The weekend has quickly come to an end and I’m off to bed. STILL trying to get to bed earlier. I can’t seem to get that down.
I hope y’all have a great work week.
It is SO hard to eat out when you are trying to make healthy food choices. And THIS is my weakness…
But, I’m happy to report that I ate just one!
I allow myself that “one” so I don’t feel totally deprived. Another thing I try to do is have a glass of water gone before they bring my meal. That helps to fill you up so you don’t over-eat.
Tomorrow is Free Day!!
Look who we babysat tonight!!
Shortly after Tyler and Daisy left David came home and asked, “Where’s Tyler?” and Maddie answers for me, “They’re on a date!” Haha!
We just stayed in the for the evening instead of going out. I fixed Maddie some supper and she didn’t eat much. After a while she hit Dave up for a piece of candy and he told her he didn’t think she ate much of her supper. She ran back in to the kitchen and finished it right up!
We spent the rest of the evening drawing, doing puzzles, watching a little Nick Jr., and lots of pretend. She’s a hoot! And now, I’m worn out and going to bed!!
I sent this to Kale this morning. That is just cold! I’m SO ready for Spring already!
Have you ever had one of those mornings when you wake up at the sound of your alarm and for a moment you can’t, for the life of you, remember what day it is and you have a quick conversation with yourself about how it’s Friday… and then reality sets in and you realize it’s just Wednesday?? Haha! That was how my day started.
It was in the single digits here this morning and it was frigid all day … there’s not much melting going on.
I never had stuff like this lying around when the boys were young.
I got this text tonight and it was the highlight of my day…
It looks like the K’s may be coming in March!!! They are still trying to make plans, but it looks good. We’ll be going to Texas in February, then they will be here in March. I could get used to this!!
There was snow on the ground this morning. Only an inch or two, and it wasn’t very pretty, but it still meant that I couldn’t drive my car to work. Tyler ended up not having to go in, so I took his vehicle instead.
Right now at work I’m doing all my end of month and end of year reports. I get in a serious “zone” and I’m sure I’m not much fun to be around, but I’m almost done and then life will be back to normal. Whatever normal is these days. Ha!
After work, since I didn’t get to the gym at lunch, Tyler and I headed there and I got my cardio in.
As for my health/fitness goals - I weighed in this morning… typically, in the past, I weighed in on Sundays BEFORE Free Day eating, but I am weighing in on Mondays for now so that affects how much Free Day eating I do. Anyway, I weighed in this morning and I was down 2.5 pounds for the week. It would have been more, but that’s the Free Day effect. (I was down 3.5 on Sunday morning). I’m going to try to update weekly on my fitness blog. (I did a horrible job last year!!)
I’m not following any eating plan. I’m simply choosing healthy foods and trying to make sure I eat plenty of good, lean proteins, whole grains, fruits, veggies, and healthy, essential fats. It’s hard to eat enough when you don’t add junk or empty calories. You really can eat a LOT of food and stay within a healthy calorie range. That’s the bonus.
I enjoy mornings when Maddie’s in the house. This morning, I fixed her a couple of pancakes with syrup. (She has really been a big eater lately.) Then she was ready for her bath. She LOVES baths! She takes all the little plastic bottles she’s collected in the tub with her. I think she’d play for hours in there if we let her.
Daisy went home this evening before the roads got bad. The forecast is calling for snow for us tonight and for the next day or two. When we got out of church the ground was already white. Looks like Dave may be driving me to work in the morning…
I am still trying to get rid of this virus or whatever it is. So I stayed in all day today and even took a little nap (with a little help from some sinus medicine).
Someone else was sleepy tonight when we took her on our Saturday night date. This is how Dave was at Chili’s for the first 15 minutes or so.
She’s in bed now and not happy because her Momma forgot her blanket. I brought one of my slips in to her and told her it was my blanket, but so far that hasn’t helped. Bless her heart.
We decided to stay in tonight and take it easy. We made homemade pizza for dinner. I let Maddie help make hers and her mom’s. That was fun. Daisy got pictures…while I kept Maddie from eating all the toppings. Ha!
After dinner, our neighbors came over and we played “Apples to Apples” and a few games of “Pitch”. I love weekends!!
These had Maddie’s name all over them!!
Adorable!!
I had my menu written out for today and my plan was to have leftover taco salad (like I showed you in my last post) for supper tonight. But after I cut up my pita and put it in the toaster oven, I looked in the fridge for the leftover meat… GONE! I guess Dave had the same idea - he ate it for lunch. So, I went ahead and mixed up my salsa/light sour cream/guacamole concoction (about 2 tablespoons of each) and used it as dip for my “chips and salsa”. I was in heaven! It seriously satisfied that craving I seem to have EVERY day for chips and salsa or guacamole. I told Kayla that I may have found a way to cut back on my Chili’s bill. AND it’s only about 190 calories!!! That’s what I’m talking about.
One of my new year’s “intentions” was to try to get to bed earlier… so far that hasn’t happened. Getting my start tonight!
Have a great Friday, y’all!
Tonight we had tacos for supper. While everyone else ate traditional tacos, I modify mine to make them healthier.
Instead of taco shells, I cut up a whole wheat pita and toast it in my toaster oven. I use the leanest ground beef (I’d prefer ground turkey, but Dave won’t hear of it). I mix up a little salsa, fat free or light sour cream, and guacamole and put it on top of the meat and veggies. I also skip the cheese. Seriously, I could eat it every day. (Approx. 330 calories)
Have I mentioned how much I enjoy having Tyler help me in Awana? He’s so good with the kids.
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