Mad Sewing Skills, Strep, and BUNCO {InstaFriday}

Bath and Body Works has THE best candles ever.
All other candles just have a waxy smell.
Or they have this weird strong vanilla smell, that makes me feel like I'm choking in the back of my throat, no matter what the fragrance is.
Starts with "yank"...
End with"ee"...
Not that I'm naming names or anything.



Lately, I have just needed to be here.
Yeah.



Something about a Merry Go Round just screams, "Take a picture of me!"
I don't know what it is about them but I oblige.
Every time.



This boy made his acting debut this past week.
He takes 5th grade Drama at our homeschool tutorial.
Who waited till the last minute to make his Indian costume?
::raises hand::
This momma.
Was up till 1am making this.
Who can't sew to save her life?
::raises both hands::
Moi.



Watching him come alive on the stage made all the glue gun burns I got worth it.



He seriously has the bug.
Complained the whole way home that it was over and that he has to wait till Spring to act again.
Did I mention his older sister was the Stage Director for his play?
Or that I have two kiddos with the acting bug?
Or that I'm looking to hire a seamstress?



This past week my husband and I were part of the BEST surprise birthday party.
My friend/mentor/past tutor of my kiddo/homeschool mom with kids in college turned 50.
Man, I hope I look this good when I get there.
She's gorgeous!



The night was filled with soups galore, laughter, cake, and BUNCO!!!
Can you believe it was my first time playing?
Ever?
Where the heck have I been??
This game is so fun.
Plus it lends itself to the ADD within.
Non-stop action.
With a little cardio thrown in from time to time.
Yes, I lost a lot.
That's ok...I needed to burn off that cake.



Adam was the Bunco Queen...errr, King.



I am such a blessed gal to have people like this in my life.
They make me look good.



Monday nights usually mean Bible Study for Adam and SSMASH (Secondary Students Meeting at Someone's House) for Maggie and Tyler.
That means I usually get this boy right here all to myself.
He makes the best coffee date.



Thanks to Kroger fuel points I filled my husband's truck up this week for $1.60 off per gallon.
Usually takes $70ish dollars to fill.
Mommy like.



Speaking of Kroger....
Check your prices people.
Organic does not always cost more.



My boy wanted to learn to sew.
"Sew" we did.

Little did I know he would break out into 101.4 fever within 20 minutes of taking this picture.
Strep.
Nothing more humbling than your child with fever.
Nothing reminds me quicker that He is God...and I am not.
Many prayers and antibiotics later, he's back to building Legos and racing hot wheels.
Makes my heart smile.






"My every mortal breath, is Grace and nothing less"

Camping, My Garden, and a Toilet Shaped Cake {InstaFriday}

Aidan was recently honored for the badges he earned through the Royal Ranger program at church.
Thanks to this program he has read multiple books of the Bible and knows how to tie a bajillion different knots.
Boy is set.



He also had his first encounter with a batting cage.
Loved it.



I am such a sucker for freshly rolled hay bales.
And ginormous skies filled with big puffy clouds.



I planted this garden on May 6th.
It is now a BEAST!
In fact this isn't the most up to date picture.
That watermelon up there in the top right?
It is the size of a softball now.
Fresh cucumbers in my pasta salad last night.
I am loving this gardening thing.



Holiday World was on our 2011 Summer List.
We did not get there last year.
However, we did this year.
It was amazing.
I highly recommend this park.
Anything located in a town called Santa Claus has to be fun right?

That's the beauty of Summer Lists.
Putting a goal on the radar and finding a way to make it happen.
You can find our 2012 Summer List here.



Last week we headed to a friend's 50th surprise birthday dinner.
For the life of me I could not get this picture to focus.



This was the cake.
Yes, for real.
I did not eat it.
Guess what?
I have found the secret to weight loss ya'll.
Make food look like crap.
Literally.
Can't you just see the infomercials for this?
Watch out P90X...the crap diet is moving in.



This is the real reason I go to dinner with friends.
They have babies that I get to hold.
This is Miss Micah.
Yes, her head smelled amazing.



The past 4 days of my life have been spent sitting right here...with this view.
Kayaking.
Reading.
Smores.
No make-up.
It is glorious.



Friends of ours happened to be there at the same time.
The kids had a blast in the lake.



My favorite part of camping?
Sunset.
No filter on this photo.

"The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands." Psalm 19:1








"My every mortal breath, is Grace and nothing less"

Dixie Chicks, Corn Shuckin', and a Creamy Grape Dessert {InstaFriday}

Last weekend my boys came home from their Mission trip in Bolivia.
I was tempted to run onto the plane and kiss the pilot, but it was late and I wasn't up for dealing with the Feds and all.



As a mom you know there will be times that life pulls the people you love most in different directions.
There will be times you are not under the same roof, in the same car, or heck...on the same continent even.
By the grace of God you make it through those times.
The minute you are within the same four walls again...you realize you've been holding your breath the whole time.
Exhale.



Having my peeps back called for a celebration of some sort.
This is pretty much how we do it.
Fried dough.
Would you think less of me if I told you that I fantasize about laying on that conveyor belt, on my back, taking a ride through that waterfall of confectionery euphoria?
Or that I'd open my mouth and stick out my tongue?



Speaking of celebrating...my man turned 37 this week.
He's not into surprise parties and such.
In fact he requested I not.
So I decided I'd let the calm, introverted folks down at the local Mexican restaurant make a "quiet" fuss over him.
There may or may not have been an accordion involved.



I was afraid he would never speak to me again.
So I had my mom bake him his favorite strawberry cake.
It's all good now.
He loves me.
Phew.



This is so completely random but sometimes when I'm alone in my car I can't help but crank up some Dixie Chicks.
I'm sorry...I love them.
Heck, I'm not even a Country Music fan.
I really don't care what they think about our Presidents or whether or not they are "Ready to Make Nice".
Musically they are ridiculously talented.
Write.Play.Sing.
At the end of the day, I can respect that.
Especially when the poor folks that do like Country music are stuck with songs like "Honky Tonk Badonky Donk".
What tha??
Anyhoo, I had completely forgotten about this song.
I used to sing it to my boys while rocking them to sleep for naps.
I pretty much snotted up right there in the car while driving down the road.
Not a good plan.



Ever had one of these?
I had three.
In one day hour.



Yeah that's me in my Yoga pants again.
No, I don't do Yoga.
Never have.
Never plan to.
As long as the next President doesn't make it illegal to misrepresent what a Yoga body should look like, I'm good to go.
I love pedicures but lets talk about those massage chairs shall we?
Am I the only one that finds these to be awkward?
Oh they feel great and all but have you watched someone sitting in one of those chairs lately?
Too much jiggle.
Too many really awkard convulsive body movements.
I keep mine off.
I know I know...I'm missing out.
It's ok.
I've made peace with it.



I heart summer...and corn shuckin'.



You're probably wondering what the heck this is.
It is a fabulous Creamy Grape Dessert from Gina over at Skinny Taste.
I made it last night for the family.
If you haven't visited her site before go.
Run even.
She's fabulous and her recipes taste divine.
Plus, her picture of this dessert does it justice.
Only problem is that this recipe is so good that it can no longer be labeled "skinny" in my house.
I've eaten half the pan already.






"My every mortal breath, is Grace and nothing less"

InstaFriday {That Time I Cut Five Inches Off My Hair}

Spent last weekend celebrating my 13th wedding anniversary.

You can read more about our adventures in annivertiquing here.

We ran across this and I just loved it.

It reminded me of my Maggie and all of the creative women I meet here through the wonderful world of blogging.



On Monday my mom and I went thrifting and I snagged this precious pillow made with the yummiest vintage fabric.



The rest of my plunder.

I figure if Nester can hang horns on her wall and make them look cool, surely I can rock some George and Martha silhouettes.

That family portrait was my fabulous find of the day.

It had me at round wooden frame and convex glass.

I'm just gonna pretend we are related somehow.



This will be my new dining room table.

By the way, this is not my house in the picture...didn't want you to send the crew from Hoarders my way.

It's in my garage for now...just need to find 5 chairs that speak to me and I will move it inside.

Considering leaving it the natural color that it is and just adding color to my chairs.



If you homeschool and have an iPad, you need MathBoard.

You're welcome.



Had a really refreshing time out with a few ladies from church.

Thank goodness they make me laugh cause I inhaled way too many appetizers in one sitting.

Laughter does burn calories right?

Right???

And yes that is a ginormous piece of chocolate cake, sitting under mounds of chocolate drizzled ice cream, sitting in front of me.

How the heck did that get there?!



I saw this piece last weekend at an antique store and fell in love with it.

But it was the first store we had gone into and I didn't want to spend most of my budget right away.

I thought I would come back at the end of the day if was still speaking to me.

It was....but they were closed.

I nearly cried.

Fast forward to Monday evening...

My husband brought it home to me.

This time I did cry.

My man gets me.

Just look at it....made by a sweet little 8 year old girl in 1837.

Ok, so I have no idea if she was sweet or not but it's what I choose to believe.

It was that backwards "S" that stole my heart.

When I look at it I can't help but think of how her mother must have been so proud of it...or the fact that she and her family are gone now...but I have their sweet Emma's embroidery work hanging in my house.

::sigh::



Remember last week when I said I needed a haircut?

Well, I pulled the trigger.

I took the 3 pictures with me and told her the things I liked and hated about each and she gave me the Renee version of the 3.

I actually wanted to go a little shorter but she's smart and all and told me to let it grow two more months so that my layers would be perfect.

I love it.

Amazing how sassy good a new "do" can make you feel isn't it?







"My every mortal breath, is Grace and nothing less"

Under the Influence {of Nyquil}

There is no telling where this post may go.

Please do not hold me responsible.

Blame my husband for allowing me to operate heavy machinery {laptop}.

I wouldn't count on cleverness.

Or proper grammar.

Or even coherent thoughts for that matter.

You see, I'm way sick.

Way doped up on Nyquil.

And way bored.

So I'm blogging.

If that's what you want to call it.

I also reek of Vick's Vaporub.

So be glad you are my friend from a distance.



Let me back up a bit.

It all started 7 days ago when I began trying to convince myself that "it's just allergies Talysa..you can't possibly be getting sick with your husband being in Haiti all week and you here alone holding down the fort and all!"... I soon found out that I am nothing but a big fat liar...to be trusted by no one.

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We went on about our week trying to stay busy.

The kids had the best time with this cash register.





They even set up a grocery store...



complete with price checks...



clean ups on aisle 7...



and a little elderly man that robbed unsuspecting patrons in the parking lot. {I have no idea}

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Meanwhile I walked around in a decongestant induced daze. I did manage to smile and nod occasionally so they didn't panic and feel the need to call in Emergency personnel.

Eventually {thursday} the gig was up...and I was left with nothing but the hard cold facts...I was sick. And alone.

So I rallied the troops and called in the calvary.

Translation: I told my children that I was near death and that they had no choice to put their big boy/girl pants on and take care of the house, each other, and their bedridden feeble mother.

They made me proud.

Cleaning house.

Washing dishes.

Taking out garbage.

Feeding dogs.

Folding laundry.

Even praying over me.

They did a fabulous job and we somehow muddled our way to Saturday.

Translation: They had Oreos for breakfast and cereal for dinner for the next two days till my best friend of 11 years walked off a plane and back into my arms bringing balance to my world...and their food pyramid.

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The kids were so proud of their dad and the work he was doing in Haiti all week..but could not wait to have him back...they even made posters the night before.







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Finally Saturday arrived and determined to give my husband a grand welcome at the airport I managed to get to the shower. I did not however get any further with my hair than the drying process...and even that took about an hour because I had to keep sitting down on the bathtub every minute or so to keep from vomiting. This left me feeling irritated that there were electrical codes regarding outlets being allowed within so many feet of a bathtub.

We waited...



And waited...



And waited till we could wait no more...



Till finally...



He came!









So much for the romantic homecoming I had planned.

That will have to wait.

It's now Sunday and he is downstairs doing what he does best...playing with and loving on our kiddos.

While I am here.

Upstairs.

In bed.

Sick.

But so grateful that I am not alone.

I'm linking up here today:

Darcy's


Emily's






"My every mortal breath, is Grace and nothing less"