10 Years Ago

10 years ago, tomorrow, my life changed forever. It was then that I became a mom to my beautiful baby girl. Only now, she's not a baby. She prefers to be called a 'tween'. She's not 10 years old, she's a decade. (At least she wants me to say that.) Time really does fly. For some reason this birthday is hitting me hard. I am more than halfway through the time when Abby will be at home.

I remember the fresh, and in some ways, completely unanticipated feelings that accompanied my entry into motherhood. I never knew I could love someone so completely. I had a new understanding of how my mom stepped up, when my birth mother did not. That was bittersweet. And last, but certainly not least, I felt a different kind of relationship with God brewing. I didn't know at the time, but he would use motherhood as a way to draw me back to him and allow him to love me in a way I had stopped him from doing before.

Abby has grown into a girl that loves Jesus. Her favorite Bible story is Esther. We are enjoying the fact that tomorrow at sundown the Jewish people will begin their celebration of Purim. The entire narrative of Esther will be read and she will be remembered as a girl used of God "for such a time as this". My prayer for Abby is that she will be an Esther in her generation.

Happy Birthday Abby! Your momma loves you very much!

A Momma on a Mission and Other Stories

Hey Company Girls! I love spending time reading your blogs. It's been a busy couple of weeks around our house. This post may ramble a little bit, but stick with me, pretty please. I became a momma on a mission after my son saved his commissions for 5 months to purchase a certain LEGO set. Matt finally reached his saving goal on Sunday evening only to learn that the set he had been working so hard to get was discontinued. The very set that his parents had seen several times in stores over the holidays and could have purchased. We didn't though, because we wanted Matt to keep up with his goal and learn some patience along the way. After some frantic Internet searching and a lot of phone calls, I found the set. Thank you, Jesus! Matt had that set built in no time; and said he was really glad that he saved his money for it. I used to be bothered by how quickly he could build a set. I worried that he really wasn't enjoying it. Then I thought about how when I get a new book and I can hardly put it down. LEGO sets for him are like books for me.

Camera class was absolutely fabulous! I learned so much. First, I have to get all the pictures off my computer and put them on a flash drive. I would be so upset if something happened to our computer and I lost all those photos. Second, and I loved this thought, the instructor said that when you have a digital camera it doesn't cost anything to actually take a picture, so just take a bunch. I took comfort in knowing I wasn't the only one who goes a little crazy with picture-taking at a sporting event, and then ends up deleting. The perfect shot is rarely planned so just keep trying. There will a class offered soon on sports photography which I definitely plan on attending. This soccer mom needs some tips. There was so much in the class that I could probably fill an entire blog post on that alone, but maybe another time.

Matt's room is finally painted. After going back and forth on the color, we agreed on Desert Fortress by Valspar. It's a light tan color. His room has white trim and navy blue curtains are on the way.

Company Girl Coffee 1/22

This post is gonna be a short one. My camera class is tomorrow, which means that I really do hope to figure out how to place photos in my blog posts. I'm looking forward to learning something new. Last weekend's reunion was sweet. My brother was unable to attend due to last minute glitch, but other than that it was good. I got some super cute pictures of my nieces and daughter playing together. The boys were too busy playing with their brand new Nerf guns to bother posing for a picture.

This week will bring organizing/de-cluttering, parent-teacher conferences, and the return of lake effect snow. Oh, and the Indianapolis Colts game. I love watching Peyton Manning play football! Have a fabulous week!

A Family Reunion

I'm so excited because tonight begins a long awaited family reunion/delayed Christmas celebration. My siblings are all coming home and we will be hanging out at my parents house. Of these things I am sure, at some point at least one of us sisters will get the giggles. And it is contagious! We will consume entirely too much food. Tonight will probably be appetizers and desserts. Tomorrow morning will be Christmas breakfast and tomorrow evening will be Christmas dinner.

All that, and Rick should be home for all of the festivities, too. All the snow that we have gotten over the past couple of weeks is beginning to melt. I'm thankful to have this time together. I will try to post some pictures next week.

He's Home!

After 10 days in a row of the night shift of overtime, Rick was home yesterday. He took a vacation day so he could catch up on sleep and spend some time with me and the kids. It was nice to have him around. Overtime came up again today, but Rick got called out early this morning so he will be home around noon. What a crazy schedule; there is no rhyme or reason to it. The way Rick put it, getting put on the shift that stays after the regular work day is good from a financial standpoint. Getting called out early in the morning is a lot easier when it comes to family life. Please pray that our family would have a peace that passes all understanding as we learn to balance the two different shifts.

8 Days and Counting

Yesterday marked the 8th day in a row of overtime for Rick. This schedule is starting to put on a strain on our family. The way the days have gone lately, Rick works his regular shift and then stays until around midnight. He comes home to go to sleep, and then gets up to do it all over again. We are are all trying to keep our eye on the prize which is an emergency/moving fund. That being said, one night at home without interruption would be wonderful. We are still planning on a family overnight at a hotel when winter comes to an end. Anybody have suggestions for ways to deal with a very unpredictable, but mandatory, schedule?

Abby and I were watching the news last night. A reporter said he wanted to tip his hat to those who plow in Chardon (which is where Rick works), all the roads looked great despite an unbelievable amount of snow. Abby excitedly looked at the television, and said "That's my dad!" Pretty cute.

Happy New Year Company Girls

UPDATE: The photo is the view from my front door, taken with the new camera. I love the look of fresh fallen snow. My husband teases me by saying, "Look at all the snowy trees!" (faking excitement)


Y'all, I am so excited! I could just about burst. My man completely surprised me on Christmas morning with the camera I have had my eye on for quite some time. The camera that I knew was beyond our Christmas budget. As much I am loving the camera, the thing that excites me the most is that he went above and beyond and gave up some things to give it to me. I was floored! Abby said, "I think Mom is going to cry." I found out that he sold some of his things and didn't tell me. Then, in true Dave Ramsey fashion, looked high and low to get the best deal. In the end, he made the purchase from a camera store, and we will be attending a camera class sometime this month. Once I figure out how to post pictures on this blog, I will show you some of the pictures I have already taken.

On to today, Rick is on a call out. The kids spent the night at my sister's house for a cousins New Year's Eve party. I wonder if they stayed up until midnight or not. Rick and I were able to go out on a date. (Sweet!) Today, I'm cleaning and getting organized. Let the decluttering begin. I'm off to tackle another pile...