So, what do you think?

Mondays are a tad busy around here. We don't have school on Mondays. (I just love 3 day weekends WAY too much!) But we do work. The plan on Mondays is to recover the house and our lives from the weekend. So we do our major housecleaning on Mondays. I also kinda-sorta have a job but not really, and it usually has to be done on Monday mornings. Then I have a standing accountability meeting on Mondays. The girl has 3 dance classes on Mondays (although she has classes every day that the studio is open, so I can't really blame that on Mondays). And I have my amazing knitting group, the Needlers, on Monday nights--which I absolutely, positively DON'T like to miss. So...I probably don't have time to sit here and write a post, but.....

I did play around with a new blog name and design. I also purged some stuff. And I added some stuff. I'm not sure I'm completely satisfied with it all. And I'm pretty sure I'm not finished changing and tweaking. But I just thought I'd get a little input from ya'll.

What do you think? Do you like the new title? Is it lame? How about the new look?

Go ahead and weigh in, and I'll keep messing around with it...in-between all the cleaning, and working, and being accountable, and dancing, and knitting, and stuff.

Apparently, it's a new trend...

Okay, so in addition to NOT writing on the blog for half a year, I also haven't been reading blogs all that much. As most of you probably know, Facebook has kind of taken over as the way we all stay in touch with each other. It's so much easier to post a quick status than to, you know, compose an ENTIRE post that will hold the interest of whomever might stop by to read it.

So, with my new commitment to actually show up here and try to produce some sort of post every now and then, I decided to go ahead and check in with some of my old favorite blogs and just see what everyone else has been up to. Here's what I found...

1) at least 1/3 of the blogs I used to read daily haven't posted in at least 6 months either and some have been silent for more than a year!

2) another 1/3 of my former favorites, have abandoned their previous blogs, and started new ones under a new name.

3) the final 1/3 are still posting regularly and are as amusing and delightful as ever to read! It's good to visit with old friends again, I might add. :)

So, while I actually thought of some things to post about this morning...as I was NOT sleeping, but should have been (which could mean that I may not have had any good ideas at all...and could really just use some sleep), I began to think about the fact that this blog-o-mine really needs a good old fashioned overhaul. I need to clean up the sidebar and get rid of somethings that are no longer priorities for me, and add some new things that currently delight me. I need a new background and header. And I'm perhaps in need of a whole new blog name. I'm just not sure that the title still reflects life around here as accurately as it did when I began this blogging adventure. Of course, the kids still come first--mostly, but I'm backing off from the cakes and cookies, and let's be honest, the dishes and the laundry are merely pipe dreams that will perhaps be all caught up in the year 2025 when the last kid finally flies the coop...or Jesus comes back, whichever.

So, what do the two of you who might be reading this think? Should I archive this blog and begin again? Should I just overhaul this one, name and all and move forward? Or should I just leave it alone and get to posting something interesting for a change???

Comments will remain open until someone posts an answer I like. :)

It's Wedding Week Ya'll!!!

And that means....

I won't be here much if at all. I have some things in the works that I think you'll enjoy when I get back, but I'm afraid that I won't have time to stop in and chat with you all because I am time-management challenged, and everything takes longer than I think it will take.

However, I don't decorate cakes well when I'm twitching, so I will continue to Twitter through Wedding Week, and I'll be visiting all of you through Google Reader during my breaks throughout the day. Whether I have time to leave a comment or not, just know that I was there!

If you don't already visit Especially Heather yourself, you should go and read her latest post. It'll make your whole day!

Okay, I'm off to start my day. If you miss me, just follow me on Twitter!. And if you decide to Twitter yourself, let me know so I can follow you too!

I've been tagged...

Linda tagged me for this one-word-answer meme, and I know if I don't do it now, I'll completely forget....mommy-brain and all. So here it goes...apparently, I must answer each of the questions with only one word...yikes!

1. Where is your cell phone? lap
2. Your significant other? Husband
3. Your hair? Brown
4. Your mother? Fabulous!
5. Your father? Supportive.
6. Your favorite thing? Kids
7. Your dream last night? Disturbing
8. Your favorite drink? Dr. Pepper
9. Your dream/goal? Rest
10. The room you’re in? Kitchen
11. Your church? Welcoming
12. Your fear? Loss
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Content
14. Where were you last night? Sister's
15. What you’re not? Hyper :)
16. Muffins? Blueberry
17. One of your wish list items? House
18. Where you grew up? Austin
19. The last thing you did? email
20. What are you wearing? Shorts
21. Your TV? Friend (lol)
22. Your pets? dog
23. Your computer? Lifeline
24. Your life? Crazed
25. Your mood? Calm
26. Missing someone? friends
27. Your car? Minivan
28. Something you’re not wearing? Shoes
29. Favorite store? Super-Target
30. Your summer? HOT!
31. Like(love) someone? BEN!
32. Your favorite color? Purple
33. Last time you laughed? today
34. Last time you cried? Unsure
35. Who will repost this? Lisa?!

Okay...sometimes one word is really tough!! I kept wanting to qualify or explain my answers!!! So, I'm going to tag...everyone who reads this today! I've been so lax in reading other blogs lately, that I'm not sure who has already done this, so if you are here and reading this today...do it! If you've already done it and I didn't see it, leave me a comment so I can go check it out.

Just a Quick Explanation

Today is jam-packed with homeschooling, house cleaning, and cakes and cookies...I know you're excited about that one! Therefore, I don't have time for a long post this morning, but I wanted to explain a couple of the new things here on the blog...

First, is the music player above my posts. I'll be uploading from time to time some of my favorite songs that are currently on my MP3 player. While you are here, hanging out, you can push play on the player and listen to my list, or I think you can click on one particular song and listen to that if you like. I did not set it to play automatically, because I know some people don't like that, and I am here to make you all happy! :) (And just for the record, I am also currently infatuated with the Skinny Songs cd, but it wasn't available to load on the player!)

Second, is the photo montage in my sidebar. I've put 37 of my favoritest cakes in a flickr file and those pictures will rotate on my sidebar, so that you all can enjoy the cakes even when I'm not currently posting cake pictures.

Which leads me to the fact that I have a ton to do today if I'm going to get those cakes and cookies done, so I'd better scoot! As soon as they are all finished, and I've cleaned up a spot to take pictures in, I'll post the new photos for your enjoyment as well!

See you soon....I hope!

Long Time....No Blog.....

Well hello everyone!

I know it's been forever since I've found some time to write a post. And no, I don't have the time right now either, but I'm doing it anyway because I'm rebellious and stuff.

So, let's do a quick update shall we?

1) February 2nd was my one year blogoversary! Yep, I completely missed it...'cause I was busy. So, happy late blogoversary to me I guess! I know you're supposed to do some sort of special post on your first blogoversary, and tell all kinds of stuff about yourself, but seriously, I can't think of anything that I haven't already told you all...so, I'm going to join the masses who have been participating in the "Ask me anything" extravaganza. So, you all can ask me anything you like, and I'll answer...I promise...unless you ask me something I don't want you to know, LOL!

2) You may recall that last year for Valentine's Day, I got a dishwasher. This year, you'll never guess what I got...

That's right, David finally pooped in the potty! (Yes, it was actually a picture of him with his poopies, but I "PhotoShopped" it to make it bloggable) The last frontier of potty training has been conquered, and we are now officially a BIG BOY!!! We even go out of the house in our big boy pants! Yippee!! Yahoo!! And Hallelujah!!!

3) I had my 6 month checkup with my kidney specialist last month, and I finally got a decent report back. For those of you who are new, I have this kidney disease which requires that I take medication 5 times a day, and get regular kidney function and bone density tests done. I have the Type I--Distal RTA version. Anyway, I've been having to go up to Dallas every 6 months for testing and adjusting of my medication. We have been working for over a year, trying to get the levels just right. While they are not yet quite what we were at first shooting for, my doctor has decided that we're good enough, and we're going to stick with 5 pills a day, and I can wait a whole year before I have to go back and be re-tested! Here's what I didn't know...the medicine can cause me to get a different kind of kidney stone than I normally get because of the disease, so they don't want to give me too much of it. And that leads me to...

4) I currently have a kidney stone...sigh. I've been having pain off and on for about a month, but in the past two weeks, it's pretty consistent which just leads me to conclude that I do have another stone...ugh! If you wouldn't mind praying that it would pass on it's own, I'd appreciate it. I'm not in the mood for another surgery right now, and besides, I'm too busy, and I can't afford it. Which leads me to....

5) My husband is wearing a specialized brace on his left hand because he apparently had an old injury to that hand that had built up calcium deposits, and then he somehow knocked said deposits off leaving the area inflamed and causing him so much pain that he couldn't even turn a doorknob. I took him to the Urgent Care Center over the weekend, and they thought it might be broken, but referred him to an Orthopedic Specialist. The Specialist is the one who came up with the above diagnosis and gave him the special brace and prescribed a week of steroid treatments. If the steroids work and the pain goes away, he doesn't have to go back, but if it doesn't, he goes back to the orthopedist next week to try something else. So, while you're praying, if you could just pray that the steroids work, that would be just great! You see, I'm normally the one who racks up the medical bills around here, and he's using up all my medical fund money for himself!

6) Let's move on to happier things shall we? Let's update on the kids! The oldest three are all taking gymnastics, which by the way is my favorite of all their activities. At gymnastics, there are no parents allowed. So, I sit in my van, put a movie on for the little boy, and I READ A BOOK for 45 uninterrupted minutes! It's heaven I tell you, heaven.

And baseball season officially starts this weekend. We've been having practice all month, but the first tournament in this weekend. I only have Benji playing this year, so I'll get to attend every game and not have to feel bad about missing someone else's!

7) Finally, the annual cake show was this weekend, and I know I told you all that I was going to enter the diaper bag cake this year, but I didn't enter anything because it's just been so busy around here trying to keep up with school, and me being in pain and all with this kidney stone. However, I did get to meet Tracye in real life! She and I met here on the blog, and since she lives only a couple of hours from here, I invited her to the cake show, and not only did she come, she entered the competition! She entered this cake...(and yes, she checked first to make sure I wasn't entering mine)

Isn't that amazing? Can you believe she didn't win anything with that cake? I'm telling you, the competition is fierce at those shows! In the next few days, I'll post some pictures of some of my favorites and what prizes, if any, they won.

8) Finally, I've been reading some really good books lately that I thought I'd recommend to you all. I absolutely LOVED "The Christmas Blessing" by Donna VanLiere. It is the sequel to "The Christmas Shoes" and it's filled with the miracles of God, and running...two of my favorite things! I've also just finished another Angela Hunt book titled "The Note". It was very different from "Doesn't She Look Natural", but it was really, really, good. I've been told it's a movie too, so I'll have to check that out. Next on my list is "The Friday Night Knitting Club" by Kate Jacobs. It comes recommended by Barb so I'm really looking forward to reading it. I've also been invited to join in a blog book tour, so I'm going to jump at the chance, and I'm sure I'll have lots of book reviews and giveaways to go along with that coming soon!

So, that's it for now. I've been sitting here on my behind for way too long. I have not yet mastered the 10 minute post a'la Barb. I really need to learn how to write one of those, LOL!

How Do They Do That???

I saw this at Barb's and was so intrigued by how they totally nailed her, that I had to try it. Check it out...

What Melody Means

You are confident, self assured, and capable. You are not easily intimidated. You master any and all skills easily. You don't have to work hard for what you want. You make your life out to be exactly how you want it. And you'll knock down anyone who gets in your way! You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone. You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together. At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together. You are relaxed, chill, and very likely to go with the flow. You are light hearted and accepting. You don't get worked up easily. Well adjusted and incredibly happy, many people wonder what your secret to life is. You are well rounded, with a complete perspective on life. You are solid and dependable. You are loyal, and people can count on you. At times, you can be a bit too serious. You tend to put too much pressure on yourself. You are balanced, orderly, and organized. You like your ducks in a row. You are powerful and competent, especially in the workplace. People can see you as stubborn and headstrong. You definitely have a dominant personality. You are a free spirit, and you resent anyone who tries to fence you in. You are unpredictable, adventurous, and always a little surprising. You may miss out by not settling down, but you're too busy having fun to care.

What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

Now seriously, aside from the "unpredictable, not settling down, and too busy having fun" parts, this is pretty much me. How in the world could they figure out that I have sometimes been labeled "scatterbrained" or "flaky", but also responsible and dependable...often by the very same people???

So, I'm a little freaked out now...I'm going to go make some of these amazing cinnamon rolls, go run 15 miles to work them off, and catch up on all my favorite blogs that I have been neglecting lately! And if you try that name thing, leave me a comment so I can go and check it out!

Vicki said to....

Okay, so I was catching up with Vicki Courtney's blog this morning, and she did this quiz and told all of us to go and do it too, so I did, and here you go!

Your Christmas is Most Like: A Very Brady Christmas

For you, it's all about sharing times with family. Even if you all get a bit cheesy at times.

What Movie Is Your Christmas Most Like?

Now it's your turn! Go do the quiz and then leave me a comment with your results!

Bloggity Book Club -- Part 2!

For those of you who don't check BooMama three times a day...if there are any of you out there...I'm here to pass along the announcement that the Bloggity Book Club is happening again on November 7th. The details will be coming soon, but basically everyone reads the same book and then writes a post about it on the same day! Then we all go around and read everyone else's posts! The last one we did was on Beth Moore's "Get Out of That Pit" and it was oh so much fun! This time the book is a work of fiction titled "Peace Like a River" by Leif Enger.

I just finished the book myself and I was captured from the very first chapter. I'm sure the book will get a bunch of different reactions from different people because it is such a unique piece of work. I do highly recommend it and am anxious to get everybody else's impressions of it! So, go to your bookstore or your library and get reading! And be sure and stop by BooMama's for all the bloggity details of how the club will work!

Happy Reading!

First Things First

I have been terribly negligent in a bit of bloggy business, and since I am finally back, I feel that I must take care of it right away...

Several months ago I was contacted by someone from Zondervan Publishing and asked to review a book on this blog. Being the book lover that I am, I jumped at the chance to receive a FREE ONE! What I received in the mail was this book:

Author: Ravi Zacharias

Synopsis: With inspiring stories and thought-provoking questions, Ravi Zacharias traces the multiple threads of our lives, describing how the unseen hand of God guides our joys, our tragedies, our daily humdrum to weave a pattern of divine providence and meaning.

When the book arrived in the mail, I was quite excited. Who wouldn't be, after all, to be presented with a book that will explain how God uses the events in our lives to weave His tapestry? The minute I started reading, I thought to myself, "Hmm. They probably should have sent this book to Lisa at "The Preacher's Wife" instead of me! The man is highly intelligent, people, and writes to intelligent people. It reminded me of some of my textbooks in college, and though it has been a long time since I've read anything more challenging than, "Is Your Mama a Llama?", I thoroughly enjoyed the book!

The stories he used as examples were so engaging and thought provoking, that I was immediately drawn in. Through his commentary and story-telling, Ravi Zacharias makes you want to live your life with purpose. He makes you anxious to see the final tapestry that God is weaving in your life, and yet he also teaches you how to patiently live each day of your life allowing God to weave each thread in His own time.

It was a fabulous book, and I do highly recommend it! I'll be passing my copy along to some lucky reader in the near future. So, if you are interested in reading this book, just leave me a note in the comments and I'll pass it along to one of you! If, however, you just can't wait...you can find this book at most book stores or you can order it straight from Zondervan.

Now I must go get breakfast for the kiddos, but I'll be back later with a BRAND NEW BLOG AWARD! Oh yes, I thought this one up all by myself...and yes, there is a story behind it. Stay tuned, folks. Stay tuned.

I'm Back....well, tomorrow anyway!

I know, you didn't know it, but my computer crashed....again....on my birthday....sigh. Anyway, I am now the proud owner of a brand spanking new hard drive and (cross your fingers) we shouldn't have any more trouble! If we do...well, let's just say the word Macintosh is sounding very, very, good to me!

Anyway, I'll be back officially tomorrow with an actual post! I need to catch you up on my birthday...and the very famous person that I share it with, David's latest exploits, and perhaps even a little football!

So, sleep well internet friends, I am alive and well, and will be back to posting sometime tomorrow. I know both of you are thrilled to hear it!

I Am Asking for Your Help

UPDATED: Wow, we've already made our original goal of $100!! Now the goal has been raised to $200...and we're only $75 short of that goal! Let's see how many times we can adjust that goal, shall we? Thanks everyone!

We all know people who are battling cancer, leukemia, or any number of other serious diseases. I don't know about you, but I feel so helpless sometimes in the face of such huge giants. Currently, two of my friends are battling breast cancer, and apparently losing the battle. While I know that God is bigger than this disease, and that He certainly can heal them, I also feel the need to do something proactive. So, I have entered myself in this year's Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. I have a personal web page set up here where people can go to make an online donation to help find a cure for this terrible disease.

So, if there are any of you out there who would like to make a donation, you can go to my personal page and make a donation. I would also appreciate it if anyone is willing to post the link on their own blogs to help raise money as well. The default goal for each runner to raise is $100. $100 would be amazing, but I'd love it if we could blow that goal right out of the water! So if you can help by making a donation, or passing on the link, THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

This and That, and a Little Bit of The Other...

I know there is someone out there who noticed I was gone...and missed me. I don't know who you are, because I was not only missing from the blogosphere, I was also cut off from my email. So all those emails I know you sent asking if I was okay, and when oh when would I be back to blogging about well, nothing....are still floating out there in cyberspace somewhere. Yes, you guessed it, Mr. Computer crashed again...sigh. I lost everything. All the pictures I had taken since the last crash are gone. I knew I should have backed them all up on flashdrives, but I wanted to organize them first...stupid, stupid, me.

Anyway, I'm back up and running...for now...but I'm totally okay with some computer company sending me their latest and greatest laptop for review on this here blog! If any of you major computer companies are reading this, feel free to compete for my affections. Cause they are for sale, my friends. Oh yes they are.

Now, back to business. I do have a little bloggy business to take care of. Wendy Darling bestowed the "Nice Matters" award to me some time ago and I have been way too slow in not only thanking her, but in passing said award along!

"This award is for those bloggers who are nice people; good blog friends and those who inspire good feelings and inspiration. Also for those who are a positive influence on our blogging world. Once you've been awarded please pass it on to 7 others who you feel are deserving of this award."

So, now I must pass this award along to 7 of my fellow bloggers...this is always the hard part. I have about 30 feeds in my bloglines right now and quite frankly, I don't read anyone who isn't nice. I mean really, why waste my day with angry people? And I know that many of those I read have probably already received this award, although I couldn't tell you who for sure. So, I'm just going to name those 7 bloggers that I read that I know actually work at never saying anything mean or nasty, and who truly believe that being nice matters...'cause it does. It sooo does!

So, this award goes to Barb, Kelli, Real Estate Girl, Cheri, Dee Dee, Shalee, and of course, The Preacher's Wife, my first-ever bloggy friend and one of the nicest people on the planet! So, there you have it. If you don't regularly read these blogs, you should. And if you do...well, you already know! Thanks again to Wendy Darling for giving this award to me and thanks to all of you who are out there writing nice things for nice people to read!

Now, our second order of business is a little bloggy giveaway! I will be hosting a giveaway here for a really neat book of family devotions titled "Catching Fireflies" by my friend, Marcy Lytle. I am going to put all the details in a separate post for you to link back to if you choose to enter the giveaway. I'll put the post up this afternoon with all the details and I'll make it a sticky post and keep it at the top of the blog until the contest is over. Make sure and check it out because it looks like a really neat book!

And now, because I promised you more news from the Homeschool Convention, and because I just listened to Big Mama and BooMama discuss the latest fashions on their podcast...which you really must listen to, I thought I'd share with you both my expectations and the reality of the current fashion trends among the homeschooling crowd. You're on the edge of your seats, aren't you? Well, you should be because following the current homeschool fashion trends could be the difference between someone letting their homeschooled child play with your homeschooled child, or having them shun your children completely! I'm kidding of course...well, mostly.

ANYWAY, when I last attended a Homeschool Convention, the wardrobe of choice was the denim jumper and the very comfortable, if not so much attractive Birkenstock sandals. (I was wearing jeans, boots, and either a sweater twinset or a top and blazer.) I wasn't really sure what to expect since it has been 3 years or more since my last convention. I noticed immediately that denim jumpers were scarce this year. In fact I believe I counted only 12 jumpers the entire 3 days of the convention...and only 5 of those were denim! Amazing! So what was the choice in homeschooled fashion this year? The Ankle Length Denim Skirt with...FLIP FLOPS! I couldn't even count them, there were so many. And even those who dared to wear something other than an Ankle Length Denim Skirt were wearing the FLIP FLOPS! (I was wearing jeans, boots, and a top and jacket. My fashion loyalties are not easily swayed, oh no they are not.)

Okay, now to make the whole fashion story a bit more interesting for those of you who couldn't care less what homeschoolers are wearing these days...let me paint a little picture for you. Homeschoolers, as a general rule, have 3 or more kids per family....mostly more. And a majority of those have still nursing babies that obviously need to be fed. So, picture if you will, a hotel lobby filled with women in skirts that concealed every inch of their calves and ankles, but who had their, um, *parts* exposed for all hotel guests and convention attendees to see as they brought nourishment to the little darlings!

Now, I was a nursing mama myself, 4 times over, and there were times that I was forced to feed the little guys in public places. I did, however, have a nifty little cover up thingy that kept all my *parts* well covered should anyone pass by. And whenever possible I would go to the restroom to feed my babies. I have stood leaning up against many a public restroom wall and nursed a baby while making awkward conversation with total strangers. I totally understand the need to occasionally feed the offspring in public...I really do.

Oh, but did I mention that there was a designated nursing room set up for the convention attendees? 'Cause there was. There was even one speaker who hinted, to no avail, that if people needed to nurse their babies, it was only polite to go to the nursing room as there were many dad's as well as highschool boys attending the convention, and I'm afraid they all had whiplash from trying to turn their heads away!

So, the trend for this year's fashionable homeschooler is apparently, Ankle Length Denim Skirts and blouses that are pulled up to one shoulder or the other at any given time. I sooooo wish I could have heard the conversation that Big Mama and BooMama would have had if they had been there...oh yes I do!

Inquiring Minds Want to Know

• How did you start blogging?

I was on Lisa Whelchel's site, and she sent us all to Sarah's Blog and I read a really, really great post there. I bookmarked the site, and came back a few times and read about Sarah's family and her kids and realized that this was such a great way to chronicle my children's lives and fulfill my desire to write at the same time. I have started books for my children, but never seemed to keep up with them for long. With the blog, it was so easy to type in the memories and things I wanted to say at the end of the day, that I decided to go ahead and start one of my own.

• Did you intend to be a blog w/a following? If so, how did you go about it?

I had really started writing just to keep a chronicle of the kids, but I did kind of hope that maybe some people would come by and want to read what I had to say. I've always wanted to be a published writer of one kind or another, and you know every writer likes to have an audience! But all I really did, was visit other blogs and leave occasional comments. Some of those people came by my place to check out who was leaving the comment, and slowly but surely, I started to get a couple of people that checked in on me regularly, and I checked in on them as well. The Preacher's Wife was the first one to add my link to her site, and I added hers to mine. From her site I found Real Estate Girl and we linked each other as well. As far as I know those are the only two who link to me on their sites, but the site meter shows that about 20-30 people check in here every day, so I guess the word got out somehow!

• What do you hope to achieve or accomplish with your blog? Have you been successful? If not, do you have a plan to achieve those goals?

I'm pretty happy with the way the blog is going. I have been able to record memories of and for my kids and share them with friends and family all over the world (literally). The only thing I wish is that people would leave more comments....ahem! I have found out that several family members, and friends read here, but I never knew it because they never left a comment...ahem, ahem!! Seriously, any blogger knows that they live for the comments, but just knowing they are out there reading, makes me happy, and thanks to SiteMeter, I am aware of just how many are out there reading every day. :)

• Has the focus of your blog changed since you started blogging? How?

My focus has changed just a bit. One comment asked for pictures of the cakes and cookies, so I decided to post some. Once I did, it became part of the daily postings to include chronicles of my cake and cookie life as well as life with the kids.

• What do you know now that you wish you'd known when you started?

HTML codes!!! Learning how to link within text, and make pictures into buttons, has been a blast! I still don't know much, but I'm trying to learn as fast as I can!

• Do you make money with your blog?

Nope. But I'm not opposed to it! :)

• Does your immediate or extended family know about your blog? If so, do they read it? If not, why?

As stated above, there are members of my family who read but don't tell me that they read. Then there are some that I sent the link to who may or may not read. And then there is my husband who thinks the whole thing is silly and has never even wanted to know the site address! He keeps asking me, "Who are you even writing to anyway?" Trying to explain why I was taking pictures of my purse and its contents for the purse meme was a real challenge! LOL!!

• What two pieces of advice would you give to a new blogger?

First of all, just start writing. After a few weeks, you'll kind of find your little niche that is different from other bloggers and you'll find that your blog will take on its own personality and will draw its own type of reader. I learned this from Barb's blog where I go to learn how to be a better homemaker and wife to my man. She comes by here to learn how to paint cookies! Which leads me to my second piece of advice...if you want to draw readers to your blog, host a bloggy event! I got the idea from BooMama and I hosted "A Bloggy Cookie Exchange" back in March. We all baked cookies and posted pictures and recipes on our blogs. I made painted cookies and posted video how-to's on how to make them...that's how Barb found me and started painting cookies herself!

So that's it. That's my bloggy story! So head on over to Chilihead's place and read everyone else's story! And if you haven't done it yet, post your own bloggy story at your place and sign the Mr. Linky at Chilihead's so we can all come and check it out!

Doing The Happy Dance....although slowly and with no sudden movements!

The Doctor Man gave me permission to remove my stent today...YEE-HAW!!! SOOOOO glad to have that thing out! However, it will take a little while for the feeling of it to go away. It still feels like it's in there, but I know that will go away soon. Until then, I'm going to stay here in my spot on the couch where I have lived for the past week and do things I can do while sitting! But just knowing that by the time I wake up tomorrow, I should feel a LOT better, has me doing the happy dance....from a sitting position of course!

Now, for a little bit of Bloggy Business...Chilihead has started a little Bloggy Carnival of sorts and we are all invited to participate! She has posted on her blog some questions regarding our blogging histories and such, and the plan is for everyone to answer those questions in a post on Monday, June 11th. After you've published your post, go to Chilihead's site and sign the Mr. Linky linking back to your post. Then run around and read everyone else's answers! Doesn't that sound like fun? Okay, so get out of here and go get started! You can go here for all the details as well as the questions you need to answer. I have been on this couch for quite some time, so I am looking forward to getting out to the Carnival, and it will be soooo much more fun if we all go together!

Well, I have some laundry to fold (unfortunately I can fold laundry from my spot here on the couch...sigh.) I'll post on our weekend at the Dude Ranch soon, I promise!

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggity Jig...

Well, we made it home while it was still technically yesterday. :) We were just having so much fun that it was hard to leave!

On the kidney surgery front, you may be interested to know that once I got home, I tried to call the various employees of the various hospitals/doctor's offices, etc. that called ME a bazillion times at least 3 times a day while I was gone, to try to get me to pay my bill, because, you know, they need to make sure they get their money before I go under...just in case. Anyway, I called twice to pay those bills, since I don't want anyone who might be holding a knife to be angry with me, :) but all I got was put on hold and then hung up on...I guess they don't need that money so much after all... AND I still haven't heard the radiologist's report on the whole matter. I think tomorrow I'll call and make sure we're actually going through with the surgery, and then I'll try to pay for it.

Now, I have a little personal business to take care of if you don't mind...I have been checking my sitemeter, mapstats, etc. over the past few days to see who is visiting me here in bloggy land, 'cause the site meter says that I get about 20-30 people a day, and yet I have only 1 or 2 comments......ahem! So, I was just checking on all you lurkers out there, and I discovered that someone from East Grand Forks, Minn. has been here recently....now honestly, that has to be a relative of mine. Who else in East Grand Forks would read this thing? SOOOOO, someone needs to own up and leave a comment to let me know you're here, because seriously, the curiosity is getting the best of me...and you KNOW what happened to that cat!!!

Now, sadly, that's about all I have to say...how sad is that? I didn't make any cakes today. I didn't take any pictures of the kids being cute today. And nothing remotely amusing happened around here today. Sigh. I think I'm going to give it up for tonight and go to bed. I am finally getting my hair cut and highlighted tomorrow... *doing the happy dance*... and I fully intend to update my profile picture with my newly highlighted do as soon as possible. Maybe I'll even put on my chef's coat for the picture and be all professional about it...LOL!

So, tomorrow promises to be a little better, blog-fodder-wise...and who knows, I might just get ahold of someone from the surgery center who wants to take my money! I'll be sure and let you know about that when it happens!

In the meantime, keep praying for Kelli, and Heather, and Baby Ethan. They are all still in the middle of their battles. And as always, thanks for stopping by...

A Big Shocker...

Well, I had planned to stop in here for just a minute to give you the weekend wind-up and let you know that I may be MIA for a day or two while I try to get way too much stuff done in a very small amount of time...but then, I signed on only to discover that this is my 100th post! Wow, that's a whole lot of writing for someone with nothing to say except that the house is a mess, and the kids are driving my crazy, but, hey, I baked a cake, look!

So, I thought I would commemorate this occasion by FINALLY posting those 7 random things about me that you are just dying to find out....oh, you are going to be sooo disappointed....

1. My first record purchase ever was "Billy Don't be a Hero" by Bo Donaldson on a, um, 45. And in the interest of full disclosure, I also bought David Soul's "Don't Give Up on Us Baby", also a 45.

2. I have a BA degree in Bible Theology.

3. I actually LOVE to clean...really, I'd be steam cleaning carpets and scrubbing floors on my hands and knees in a heartbeat...if I didn't have to pick up all the STUFF first! I love to clean stuff, I HATE to pick up stuff. I go from one activity or project to another, and tend to leave out the stuff from the first project to be dealt with later...eventually, the stuff takes control and I must stop all other activities to regain control. Once things are in control however, I tend to vacuum the living room at least once a day, and mop the kitchen EVERY time something gets on it, even if it is 3 times in one day! I know, I'm a total paradox, but I like cleaning things that aren't dirty. Once it gets dirty, it's so much more unpleasant, I tend to put it off until I'm in danger of losing the kids to Child Protective Services!

4. I own a DVD copy of Lisa Whelchel's first movie, "The Double McGuffin" AND a copy of her record album (this one is a 33 LP by the way).

5. I used to want to write and publish my own curriculum for Kindergarten thru Third Grade...now, I look for the curriculum with the least amount of teacher prep! Our current curriculum is on the computer, so it even grades it for me, and produces a report card all by itself!

6. I paid for my last 3 years of college tuition and room/board with a singing scholarship, and got to travel around the southeastern United States singing with the "Trinity Singers". We even got to sing on a 5 day cruise through the Caribbean the summer after my senior year.

7. You know how some people are starters, but not finishers, and some people are slow getting started, but finish well? I'm a middler. I hate to start anything. The thought of getting up and cutting out 3 dozen cookies later today is putting me in a funk...however, once I start something, I really enjoy doing it. Even dishes, and laundry. I'll be washing dishes, or folding laundry and think to myself, why did I put this off for so long? Or I'll be decorating a cake or cookies and wish I had nothing else to do all day. But then comes the finishing, doing the dishes AFTER baking the cookies, putting away the dishes after getting them washed, putting away all that clean and folded laundry...I HATE all of it. So, if I could find someone who would start my projects for me, and then come in and finish them up...well THAT would be a match made in heaven!

So there you have it, and if you haven't done this particular meme yet, consider yourself tagged, and be sure and leave me a comment, so I can come and check out your list!

And now, because I think some of you may revolt and not visit me again if I don't post the pictures of this weekend's cakes, I'll go ahead and do that now.

Here is little D with his birthday cake. I know, I know, it's way too plain. But really, we were in the middle of a baseball tournament, I had four other cakes to do, and this was just for his actual birthday with just his brothers and sisters. I make Thomas Cookies for his little party at the park on Saturday. Besides, he didn't give a flip about the cake. He just LOVED that little Thomas that actually rode around on that track on top of the cake. Believe me, it was the perfect cake for the little man!



And here are the roller skate with the rainbow wheels for a little girl's skating party, the diaper for a diapers only shower, and the cowboy hat for the little boy's western party (complete with horses in their backyard I might add). I forgot to take a picture of the back of the hat which had that twisted rope thing tied in a knot and hanging off the brim.





And now, if there are any men reading this...you will probably want to run, run from the computer, NOW! I will not be posting this cake on my regular website where people go to order my cakes, however, I knew you ladies would want to see it. This cake was made for a friend who was giving a "Coming Out Party" to another lady who was having a hysterectomy after years and years of problems. They wanted to lighten up the experience for her and give her some good memories of the whole thing to counter the pain and sorrow that will inevitably rear their ugly heads. So, I agreed to make the cake...and this is a first for me, but honestly, I had fun with this one! And the next time someone wants to know 7 random things about me, I can say, "Well, I once made a uterus cake, complete with ovaries!!!



And now, I really must be going. I have a very full week with a To Do List a mile long, and in exactly 2 hours, I'll be in a CT machine having my insides scanned to check my kidneys for blockages. If one is found, I will have surgery in a little less than two weeks to remove said blockage and have a stint put it for who knows how long...ugh. However, a blockage is really the best case scenario. If there is no blockage, then we must look elsewhere for the cause of this pain, swelling, numbness etc. Really, as much as I hate them, kidney stones would be the best thing.

Anyway, I'll be a bit scarce at least for today and tomorrow. (I'll do a quick post later when I know the results of the scan, just so you're not all wondering....I hate not knowing stuff, so I figure you do too!) But I'll be back on Wednesday or Thursday for sure with a list of all I'm sure I will have accomplished by then and pictures to prove it!

Thanks for stopping by, and yes, I'll take any prayers you choose to send up on my behalf. :)

Today is the Day to Pray for Heather and Her Family

Today is Heather's surgery for a brain tumor. Kelli has set up a continuous prayer chain for Heather. I, myself, did not sign up for a specific time because with my crazy schedule, I was afraid I'd miss it and then feel bad. However, I have committed to pray for Heather whenever I'm sitting down painting cookies or decorating a cake. I started yesterday, and will continue throughout the weekend. If anyone would like to join in and pray, PLEASE do. And if you want to add the button to your blog you can go here to get the code. I believe Heather's husband will be posting updates on Heather's blog throughout this process until Heather can start posting herself again. Also, Kelli and Boomama have been keeping us updated on their sites as well.

And because Heather is big into music, and has been posting different songs throughout this ordeal, and Kelli has posted a song as well for this prayer chain, I'm posting one as well. This one was written for little Ethan, but I believe it is appropriate for Heather as well.




***Also, I will be keeping this as a sticky post so it will be the first thing everyone sees when they visit me until Heather is better. For new posts you will need to scroll down.***

Totally Random Bloggy Thoughts

Okay, first things first. I! WANT! TO! WIN! SOMETHING! at the 5 Minutes for Mom Mother's Day Give Away, so I'm adding the button and posting this post to fulfill my linky requirement to receive said prizes. Just click on the button above if you want to win too! (But that IPod Nano is MINE!!! Just so you know...)

And I MUST tell you, just in case you haven't heard...Heather got a rather sobering report from her neuro-surgeon regarding the tumor they removed from her brain (man is that a freaky sentence to type!), BUT her neuro-oncologist gave her a MUCH BETTER REPORT that you can read here and HEATHER! IS! GOING! HOME! Did you get that? Five days after BRAIN SURGERY she is going home! Praise God from whom all blessings flow!!!!

****WARNING!!! This is an extremely L-O-N-G post full of mostly nothing. If you choose to continue, you may want to pace yourself and read just a little at a time. Otherwise, your brain may just explode from all the random nothingness entering it! Also, I have proofread this thing over and over, but I am not operating at full brain power, so please ignore typos and grammatical errors...I know they are there, but I just can't bring myself to see them!

And now, for the completely random thoughts...

I am sick. Really, and truly sick. Not just "sick-and-tired" as usual. I have a cold. And it is beating up on me pretty badly. Yesterday, I thought I was feeling much better, but then I took a shower, and the effort to hold my arms up while washing my hair was so great, that I got out of my shower and was sweating from the exertion. I rested a bit and then attempted to put on my face and dry my hair because I was going to take the girl to ballet, and I'm too vain to go with no face and no hair. I went with a face, and wet hair...the face did me in. Today, the coughing started...sigh. I had to take M and J to the dentist for their cleanings, then I HAD to go pick up "Marley and Me" from the library because the hold I had on it was set to expire tomorrow, and I have been waiting over a month for that book to come in! Then I HAD to go to Sam's because I was all out of water, juice, milk, etc. and people with bad kidneys MUST HAVE THEIR WATER! I know, I know, it runs out of the tap...but here in lovely Williamson County, Texas, the water that runs out of my tap contains enough calcium to destroy what is left of my sad little kidneys...so it's the bottle for me!

And now, I can barely move and all I want to do is sit and stare. However, I can not, for some reason, sit and do nothing. I never could. Even watching tv I have to be doing something. So, I decided to enter the blogosphere for awhile which has the added benefit of placing my face in front of the computer screen so that I can't see the mess that has accumulated in my house since I got sick! It makes me feel worse to look at it, but just the thought of cleaning it up would put me in a coma for sure!

So, while I've been sick and unable to be even remotely productive with my life, all these strange and random thoughts have been going through my head...I thought I'd share them with you because seriously, they must be removed from my head or it might just explode.

1. I noticed while at Sam's that I prefer to get my cart in the parking lot rather than in the store. Usually, this is because I like to put the giant boy, that I call a baby, in it so I can wheel him rather than lug him through the parking lot and into the store. I also realized today, however, that I also prefer the parking lot carts because somewhere in my subconscious mind I think that the hot Texas sun beating down on the cart will kill any and all germs left on the cart by the previous user. And if you are thinking that I have some serious psychotic issues, then you haven't read this, because if you had, you would already know how demented I really am!

2. I REALLY need a haircut and highlight. And after last week's cake extravaganza, I can actually spare the money to get it done. However, as is usually the case, there are problems: a)My dear friend Candy, who usually does my hair at a price I can afford, (and does it beautifully I might add) has developed Rheumatoid Arthritis and can no longer cut hair. b)The new place I have found and can afford is only open until 7:30pm, and since the earliest I can get there without 4 kids in tow is 6:00, and I have A! LOT! OF! HAIR! they can't get it done...they need more time. c)All of the other places I called that were open late enough to be able to finish the job before closing, charge so much I'd have to take out a second mortgage on the house to pay for it!

I am working on a new plan, because seriously, I haven't had my hair cut or highlighted since the baby was 4 months old...he'll be 2 next week. (I have so many grays at this point, I am almost achieving the "frosted look" that I like...but I like my frosting to be champagne colored, not white! I am fully prepared for the tongue-lashing I will receive for the hacking job I've been doing on my own bangs for the past 20 months. But honestly, the prices they charge would use almost my entire grocery budget for the week! (My man gets after me about not charging enough for my cakes and cookies, but honestly, I try to charge what I could afford for a cake, because I don't want people to not be able to afford my cakes, the way I can't afford a haircut!) So, once I figure it all out, and get it done, I'll have to update my profile picture because, who knows how long it will be before I save up enough to get it done again!

3. Red Vines beat Twizzlers...hands down.

4. Caramel Cream Diet Pepsi runs a very close second to Diet Black Cherry Vanilla Coke (aka-Heaven in a Can)

5. I still have my "To Do List" from last week's cake and cookie marathon up on the wall, because I like seeing all those pretty green highlighter lines where I have marked out EVERY SINGLE THING ON THAT LIST. If I were to put this week's list up, I would be looking at a white piece of paper with lots and lots of black typing on it and NOT ONE SINGLE GREEN LINE...sigh.

6. Bloglines totally ROCKS! I just got all signed up and got all my blogs loaded and I just LOVE it! I can see as soon as I get online who has a new post for me to read. And I also found out that something like 485 other people subscribe to "Rocks in My Dryer", 259 some odd people subscribe to "Boomama" (seriously, I thought there would be more, didn't you?) and exactly 1 person subscribes here!

7. I kept seeing "Blog Top Sites" buttons on other blogs I read with a little number beside it, so I clicked the button to register my blog, to see what number it would give me. ("Rocks in My Dryer" was #4..."Boomama" was #3 but they update that every hour or so, so it changes from time to time.) It turns out that Blog Top Sites is merging into Blog Flux, so all my registering had to be done there...sigh. Blog Top Sites sounds much more impressive, yes? Anyway, they say they have 34,365 approved blogs registered, so I was thinking I'd get a whopping #34,366 on my button. What I didn't know was that they take 7 days to review your blog to make sure they really want to include it in their directory. So, I got a nice round "0" on my button. I like to tell myself that 0 comes before 1, so I am up there baby! Anyway, that's what that new little button is on my sidebar...just in case you were wondering.

I also added a little thing on the sidebar that is supposed to let me know who is reading right! this! minute! I thought it would be fun to see who is here and when...so far it has told me that "No one is reading this thing at this time" Not as much fun as I thought it would be...sigh.

8. My buddy Lisa, aka The Preacher's Wife, gets visitors to her site by some odd google searches like "Are Preacher's Wives Insane" and "Submissive" and other such craziness. So far, the strangest one I got was someone searching for "sons doing laundry". I'm afraid he/she didn't find what they were looking for here...my sons don't do laundry...ever. However, this past week, someone came to visit by way of a google search for "doctor gowns"...which took them to this post chronicling my latest annual exam at the, um...g.y.n.'s office... I sincerely hope he/she did not find what they were looking for in that post, 'cause if they did...there is something terribly, terribly, wrong.


If you have actually made it through this entire post...give yourself a round of applause! You deserve it! It was actually a bit longer to begin with, but #9 on my list turned into a post all of its own, so I am saving it to post later. It's not that easy to come up with posts, so I must conserve my thoughts where I can!

Now I am going to go find something to eat that doesn't take too much effort to fix, or to shovel into my mouth...the thought of eating makes me tired, but my belly is speaking rather loudly to the fact that it is 6:18pm and all I have eaten today is one cookie left over from last week's marathon...but it was a really good cookie!

I'll see you all very soon...even as I write this more random thoughts are finding their way into my brain and will need to be released!

Thanks for stopping by!

Handbag Tag

Well, I have been busy today cutting out, baking, and icing about 200 cookies....I would post a picture, but they all just have the first color on them. Details will be added tomorrow, and I'll post pictures then for you to see.

In the meantime...

My buddy Lisa over at The Preacher's Wife tagged me for this handbag reveal. You really want to get to know someone? Go through their purse! So, since I really needed to clean out my purse, I'm playing along!

Here is my purse!



I told you I was a baseball fan! Now I had one picked out last fall for football season, but money was tight, and I just couldn't justify it. Maybe this year...

(And yes, I use this purse ALL THE TIME. Even to church! I did switch it out for a wedding once, but otherwise, this is my purse for better or worse. It's actually broken and the strap comes unbuckled all the time, but I love it too much to let it go!!!)

And here is what actually belongs in my purse!



top row: my Bare Escentuals Mineral Veil travel compact, my list of what I am and am not allowed to eat -- it's two pages people, and I can't always remember when I'm out! A package of batteries, because we always seem to need them when we are in the car for game-boys, or two-way radios, or the remote control for the VCR (boy do we sound spoiled!), the two rolls of dimes I keep for unexpected rewards for the kids when they do good stuff. The idea is that they get dimes when they obey without questioning, or help someone without being asked, or other such things, and then they put them in a bank to save up for a new Playstation 3...they have a LONG way to go to get that new Playstation! My PDA, which happens to be a Dell Axim, because my computer runs Windows XP Media Edition and Palm is not compatible, so I have to have a PDA that runs Windows Mobile. (I'm saving up for a Smart Phone -- then I can blog from ANYWHERE!)

second row: My meds -- the smaller bottle is the Vicodin which I take for pain and must ALWAYS have with me. (I had an attack once while driving, and it is impossible to drive in that kind of pain.) The bigger bottle is my regular stuff I have to take 4 times a day to keep my kidneys functioning at some semblance of normal. My checkbook is next and the embossing that you can't see is the MLB logo. If I had opened it up for the picture, you would have found Houston Astros checks inside! (BIG fan, I'm telling you!) My purple ballpoint pen, 'cause it's my signature color. Next is my wallet, which matches the purse...I may not match my purse to my outfit or to the occasion, but my wallet and my purse DO match, oh yes ma'am they do! My Sally Hansen Hand Therapy for extremely dry skin. I wash my hands A LOT, and I need intense moisture!

bottom row: And finally, my little purple sewing kit -- just in case!

After I snapped the picture, I remembered the outside pocket of my purse. I took another picture that included my "plumping" lip gloss in a lovely rosy/mauve shade and my silver business card case which happens to be empty because I gave them all out when I delivered a cake to a Rehab Clinic with a full waiting room of people who apparently LOVE cake! I did snap another picture, but apparently I turned off the camera before it processed the picture and committed it to memory, because it just isn't there!

And now, for all the things that were in the purse that didn't belong there!



Okay, that pile on the left is a bunch of receipts. There always seems to be someone behind me in the line who is in a HUGE hurry and starts moving up in the line before I can put the receipt in my wallet, so I just shove them in my purse. And just FYI I found only one in the pile that I actually needed to keep! The pile at the top is made up of coupons which I never use for the most part. I just forget I have them! There was one bubble gum wrapper, and one flyer from M's ballet class there on the right. There was also a toy car, and Sponge Bob playing cards that I took away from one of the kids at one time. The broken ear piece to my glasses that Lenscrafters couldn't fix. One old battery that I replaced with one from that package you saw earlier! The tea-light candle was part of a visual aid for one of the lessons in the Bible Study I told you about here And an empty bottle of my all-time favorite lotion "Palmer's Cocoa Butter". It smells like chocolate, and although I can't eat any these days, I can still smell it!

Now here's an interesting little twist for you...I found a hole in the inside pocket of my purse, and these items had found their way through that hole and into the lining of my purse!



That is my old cell-phone that the speaker went out on, so I let D play with it until he started chewing the buttons right off the thing. My pedometer which needs a new battery, but it is not readily available at the Wal-Marts or the H.E.B. (THE grocery store of Central Texas ya'll), so I carry it in my purse just in case I happen to be over by the battery store...yes, there is a store up the road that sells nothing but batteries of all shapes, sizes, and voltage. A penny, a cough drop, and my extra tube of mascara just in case I need a touch up.

So, there you have it. Thanks Lisa for the tag...this was fun, and now I have a nice CLEAN purse!

If anyone else wants to play, consider yourself tagged!