A Thousand Reasons to Smile...

"When life gives you a hundred reasons to cry, show life that you have a thousand reasons to smile". ~unknown

I always choose the 🌞 yellow 🌞 balls or game pieces. I turned mine over after I picked it up the other day and was delighted to find it smiling at me!!!! Just look at how beautiful it is!!! Beat up by life and far from perfect, with a smile that's reflected on my face every time I look at it. 😉 We drove "home" (back to our little house here at Give Kids The World) last night after theme parking all day, and the neighborhood was full of other families fulfilling their dream trips....families who are here because one of their most precious treasures has fought or is fighting a life threatening illness. A whole village full of smiles that have been hard fought for. It makes me tear up to think about it...and smile all the way down to the deepest part of me....and then tear up again, thinking of & hoping for happier & healthier days ahead for those sweet faces. And hoping for the same for my own most precious treasures. Life is hard. It can beat you up like you never imagined. Everything in it, and every day is uncertain, whether you realize it or not. Always choose to smile & make the most of every little moment, every chance you get. It will make you beautiful in the ways that won't fade if you let it. ❤

Mild Mannered Reporter By Day..... ;)

Can you EVEN believe Ashlyn wouldn't wear her special glasses at her Dreams Come True party?!?! She almost left them sitting on the table when we left, but....WELL. You know how I do.....😎 And, we're sooo excited, and thankful, for Dreams Come True making a dream of hers come true. <3 a="" href="http://www.mylivesignature.com/" target="_blank">

Choose Happy....It's a Choice!!

....because I'm a quiz addict....Interesting that over half of these photos are from the most difficult and painful parts of my life thus far....my divorce and losing the dream home I had waited so long for, my baby's cancer battle....starting over in the kind of life I never wanted to have to embrace, all happening at the same time. Finding the happy moments in everything is a choice, and one that's worth making!!

My biggest happy has been my kids since the day I found out I was going to be a mom. ❤ I recently had someone tell me I was too good of a mom, meant as a criticism. That my kids were too much of a priority in my life, etc, etc, etc. Someone criticizes that part of me, and I instantly don't like them and they quickly find that there's no place for them in all of my happy moments to come...

Mama Bear. That's one of the very BEST parts of me.

Bunny Walkin'....

Just because.  Our bunny is super cute.  Our bunny on a leash is super cuter.  ;)

.......and THIS is how you take a bunny for a walk!!!! Pausing once in a while for snack breaks...

Just in case you wondered.  Haha.

.....and my girl with her bunny.  Ahhhh.....makes a mama's heart melt.  <3
These are the kind of days for which I've prayed.
Bunny walking is so much better than chemo, radiation, &
all that goes with it!!!!

When It Rains, The Party Goes On..

‪#‎tbt‬, because Ashlyn Pennington was just laughing over these pics & the memories yesterday....

Who says when it POURS the entire time during her brother's bday park party, that the party has to stop??

I'm a BAD mom. I let my kids play for hours in the rain (don't call DCF....there was no lightening ). AND I let them make forts in the woods. AND they carried big sticks. AND had boys vs girls planning/strategy meetings under the bridge.....And it remains in their memories as one of their most favorite parties ever.

Love my Sassafras girl!!! And a friendship that began just after birth & is still going strong!!

Heart Rate Slowly Returning To Normal....

A 14.75 yr old boy, who sounds like and is as big as a man, and who thinks it's funny to sneak up on his unsuspecting mom while she's drying her hair & scare the living daylights out of her, needs to relearn what funny is. I think I may need a paramedic....or a firefighter might do. Isn't that who usually comes if you have to dial 911?? I like big trucks & I cannot lie.... wink emoticon

‪#‎ThatBoyAintRight‬. ‪#‎HeartRateSlowlyReturningToNormal‬

Mama Love

My boys' hugs are awesome. And their smiles when they walk through the door and see me = Mama LOVE. heart emoticon heart emoticon

Hit The Road, Jack....

But, we'll get ya back.

 

Getting some bunny snuggles from Jack before saying goodbye....for now...THANKFUL for sweet friends, for giving him a home for us until we are in a position to give him a home with us again!! Softens the blows a bit. ;) ♥

 

 

THIS DOG!!!!

 ....that I have a like/dislike relationship with, has been pulling on my heart strings for the past 3 crazy days! He has been confused at the rush of activity, excited at a the packing & loading, then nervous & sulky...& cld often be found inside the Pods as we loaded them, looking at me with sometimes happy, sometimes sad eyes....like, "I get to go, too, right?? Don't leave me behind"!!

THIS DOG. That I rescued from a shelter as a puppy for my kids, who bounded out of the car, running full speed, bouncing, jumping like a pogo stick (thus his name, Pogo) right towards my kids, knocking one of them down & trying to lick him to death, who drove me crazy & cured my little girl of her fear of dogs, has brought many smiles and a lot of laughter in addition to the aggravation.

THIS DOG. I think I might miss the way he acted like his day was made every time I came home, even if I was only gone for 10 minutes. And his cold wet nose as he nudged me on the backs of my legs every time he walked by. And the way he thought we were going running anytime I had "running clothes" on & he saw running shoes on my feet....how he wld immediately come to life, bouncing & running around in circles, looking at me expectantly & running ahead, then stop & look behind himself like, "you're coming, aren't you??? Let's go!!!!!"

THIS DOG. I'll get over it quickly cuz he drove me NUTS with his often disobedient & unruly behavior....but still. Why's he gotta be so cute?? He wanted so badly to come along for the ride...

I'm such a sentimental softie....toughen up, buttercup.

The Island Life, Mon....

Sweet relatives invited my boys and I to intrude for few days on their Sanibel vacay.....I could get used to the island life, mon.....

 

My girl was out of town on a choir tour/missions trip or she wld have gone with us!!  I stole a picture from her friend.....while we were beachin' it, she was.....

:)

Was SUPER hard to point my car north and head back to reality.  But a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do....

Never Quit Never

Repeatedly heard this weekend by a certain Never Quit child o' mine, "this is awesome!!! Jacksonville is such an awesome place to live!! This is awesome"!!!

And from the youngest child: "this is actually a lot of fun. I think I might do this with you next year. I'm going to try running more".

And the oldest child had a good time, too. ;)

This mama loves that. ❤

 

 

Jacob and I ran the 5K with a group of friends, dressed as our favorite Super Heroes in support of a sweet boy just diagnosed with cancer.   I was Wonder Woman {a lifelong dream fulfilled ;) } and Jacob was Captain America.

 

Please pray for little Keegan.... :(

 

A quick pic before the race of me and my boy:

 

 

 

 

The Ways He Makes Me Laugh

This convo, after listening to Jacob complain for the 10,437 time abt the sun being in his eyes....

Me: "well, ya see....you shoulda worn a BALL cap to the BALL field like me & you wouldn't be havin' that problem. I'm smart like that..."

Jacob: "nah, I cldn't. I was having a good hair day & didn't want to mess it up!!"

I guess I was looking for a reason to laugh cuz his response tickled my funny bone.....I gotta keep him around for a while if, for nothing else, the amusement factor... ;)

 

Love him.

 

 

The Boy Who Will Become a Man...

I just watched the sunlight fade & finally disappear while snuggled up with my "baby" boy, talking about cats & dogs & rabbits....& hard stuff.  Sigh.  We've been through SO MUCH hard stuff for a while now.  And then, as he continued to chatter nonstop about the way the trees looked against the sky & birds & baseball & the beach & something about his favorite app, I prayed that this boy would grow up to be the kind of man that my heart isn't even sure exists in this world today.

 

I wanted to squeeze those prayers right into him, listing all the traits & character & desire for God that I want him to have, to make them take root so deeply that they would become his. I was glad it was dark and he was preoccupied with his own chatter & that my tears that escaped were absorbed by his thick hair & he didn't notice. 

 

I wish there was a guaranteed method to this madness called Motherhood. I wish that even if the kind of man I'm not sure exists DOESN'T exist, that I knew how to make both of my boys become that kind of man anyway.

I wish, I wish, I wish....and more than that, I pray....

 

 

 

Happy Mama's Day....

I think I have writers' block.  Or maybe, I'm just in a season of life being so overwhelming that all the words are just stuck underneath all the other...stuff.  All the stuff that I can't write about due to circumstances, and all the stuff I can't write about because it just all hurts too much right now....and there's just a numbness that comes when I try to express it.  Maybe that's part of what writer's block is. ;)

But I know they will come again, and hope that if I keep posting just little snippets of this & that, that the words will eventually come.

So, today was Mother's Day.  I took my mama (and myself) out to lunch. Cheddar Bay biscuits and Lobster Pizza.

Yeah, baby.... :)


We had to entertain ourselves while waiting for a table.  This.  This is how we roll.  Most of the time, anyway.  Me and my 3.  <3

I was having a bad hair day.  Florida.  Humidity.  You get the point....

Flashback Friday.....

I drove 30 min to baseball practice this evening, listening to what was apparently remix night on the radio station with a definite 80s &, at times, techno, feel to it. Got to the ball field & wouldn't ya know.....practice was cancelled.

 

Drove 30 minutes back, groovin' & movin' to the ongoing remix in an effort to get Robert from slipping all the way into his I-Can't-Play-Baseball-Grumpy-Frumpy Mood. Not sure my efforts worked completely, but they got me a "you are made out of 100% Awesome" from him.....& I now have the strongest desire to go roller skating.....

 

Are you feeling it, too????  ;)

 

Dear Santa....

I have a confession that often surprises people.....I have a thing for Harleys.   ;)

I took one of my kids to see his PopPop this weekend for his birthday, and it just so happened to be BikeFest weekend.  We stopped first at the Harley dealership where I added to my Christmas wish list ;)

Later, while Jacob and his PopPop went out for dinner and a movie, the girls and I headed out to see the sights....oh my.  Talk about being a fish out of water!!  But the Harleys were super cool ;)

 

One day.....I'm gonna be a real Harley chick.  Sort of.  But not the hard core, wild & crazy kind.  More like a girl who craves wide, open spaces, who's country at heart....and has a kickin' Harley in the barn or shed out back.  ;)

Best Birthday Ever....Part 3 : Dinner

This was the first birthday I've had with my daddy since I was 8 yrs old!! 

 

We had a small family birthday dinner at a Japanese steakhouse....my kids have never been to one!!  Seeing their reactions and how much fun they had made it so much fun for me!! :)

 

 

My new favorite picture of me & my favorite girl  :)

Best Birthday Ever.... Part 2: The Car

Circumstances being rather....difficult....and many things being beyond my control, I was in a bind.  A vehicular bind.  My daddy came to my (and my kids') rescue.....

 

After getting tags & title transferred, we headed to Car Spa.  And, cuz we know how to party on my birthday, my daughter and I killed some time while we were there....

 

 

 

Cuz we know how to party on my birthday ;)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Best Birthday Ever....Part 1: The Cards....

I just had a birthday, but I'm not telling you the number!! ;)

Best.  Birthday.  Ever. 

Or, since I can remember.  Having my daddy here made it that way.  Esp, considering.....life had been harder than hard.  (Strength For The Journey)

This girl needed her daddy.  So much.  <3

I got birthday cards!!!!  I think this is the first time my kids have ever been taken to choose their own store-bought cards for me!!

 

They did better than good....such sweetness!! (❤thank you, Daddy ❤)

Phone Spammers....

I've been making Easter preparations & finally sit down for a few minutes after spending hours slaving away in the kitchen ;), pick up my phone & make another photo spam discovery.....not to mention 47 separate texts from Robert....

If they didn't love me, they wouldn't bother, right?!?! ;)