Tonight, he will be closing the door on one chapter of his life and starting a new adventure. Time has flown by way too fast. We don't know a ship out date yet for military but it will come way too soon for me. I'm a little emotional. I will never be ready for my kids to untie the apron strings. They will always be our babies.
And I have the best photographer ever. More pics to come.
I did not have my little buddies today so I just had some me time. I had been wanting and needing to do a project for Caroline for a long time.
Well, when you lose one, you just have to make another. Yes, that is a back pack made from Pioneer Woman placemats. Cause I'm a cool Gmaw like that. 👍😎
I made two of these last year for the girls and one got lost so I finally got them back ad said they are going to stay at my house now. We are not loosing another one.
Road trip/Traveling activity back pack. Cause I can, and I did and "Don't you wish your Gmaw was hot like theirs!"
I should stay off of Pinterest and YouTube....😁😁😁😁❤😉
I have small activities and toys to keep them busy for road trips.
You can go to Pinterest and YouTube an type into the search bar: travel hacks for toddlers or road trip hacks for toddlers and oh my goodness, the possibilities are endless. I am going to watch some videos on activity binders, busy bags and sensory bins for the girls.
I found a cute little ways to fix up little activity boxes. Here is one with Legos. You take your base and you can either glue it or just lay it in the lid and use the lid as a work space and then the pieces in the other side. And it can sit on a travel tray in their lap, which I have, and they can play.
Taking smaller little toys is better than traveling with large toys that takes up too much room in a vehicle.
This will go right in between their carseats. I had this bag when Dakota was little. Used it for going across country with two kids.
This is basically all I did today. I straightened and organized our Preschool stuff and now I feel accomplished.
We got to take the girls to the fair last night. I was so glad to get to hang out with my boys and girls plus one.
The girls were so tired and was upset because they wanted to go home with Gmaw. Bless them. I promised them I'd be there first thing in the morning to pick them up for church. Daddy likes to go to church with a nice little Christian couple friends of his and that's fine. The girls just love going with me.
So that's exactly what I did this morning.
And this is how our morning at church went:
So the moment finally happens when you are I'm a public restroom, namely at church, and you take your littlest granddaughter(you know, the mischievous one) in the bathroom to change her and then decide you might as well go while you're in there. Then all the sudden you are seated and defenseless, it happens. She looks at you with that little mischievous smile and has her hand on the door lock at the same time. Yep, you know what happens next. 😳🙄🤦♀️😱
Then after an hour of training and teaching her to not talk during church, as soon as the deacon says, "Amen" at the closing prayer and then she shouts, "Can I talk now!!!" Yes, by all means you can talk now.
And then there's the time that you work so hard to get her hair fixed for church and you threaten.....I mean, encourage, her to leave her hairband in her hair, then she finally jerks it out proudly because she just wants wild and free hair. 😜
I swear I need a shirt that says, YOU'RE KILLING ME SMALLS, And she needs one that says, HI, IM SMALLS. 🤦♀️🤦♀️
And then there's little Atleigh who is just content to color, draw, try to read and just snuggle with me and eat her snacks 😋. Two different personalities, but life is still good.
After church their mommy came to pick them up. Atleigh takes one look at her mom and says, " Don't ever come pick me up at Gmaws. I'm staying here!" Oh my. Mommy had to bribe her to leave. 😳
Just goes to show we have an awesome relationship with our grandchildren.
The Gmaw Mobile got a good washing today and is ready for road trips. This has been a life saver. That fair was too crowded for my liking last night and there is no way I can carry two toddlers myself. ❤😁
When I say we have been busy, that is an understatement. We celebrated Mothers Day with our dear Mothers. We always try to have a cool out with my parents the day before. So that morning I got up and cooked all of my mommas favorites.
Earlier in the week I had the girls make all the Mothers some cards.
They made it back home safely.
The next day, we all went to church together. Our church presented all the Mothers with a special gift too.
My sweetheart bought me this dress. I love it. Sorry about the lighting, it was just fixing to rain.
We had lunch with Grandmother after church. The boys had also surprised me with some goodies.
We got home and I took a much needed nap because I was exhausted from the past two days. You are going to hear that word alot in this post because it's pretty much how I have been most of the past few weeks.
This Mothers Day however was different for sweet hubby. He missed his mother and so did everyone. It really was not the same. As most of you know, my sweethearts mother passed back in the winter. He was a mommas boy needless to say. She was a beloved mother and an upstanding woman in the community and a faithful servant in her church.
We have been rocking on with school and some days you just let them pick what they want to do. And add in lots of snuggles and play time.
Dallas and Brylee wrapped up their lessons and are done. Phew! We got to go see her perform in their Spring Concert for school.
They got to pick up their caps and gowns. It is getting so real.
One $10 toy is all it takes sometimes to keep some kids happy.
We have been maintaining yards around here and I have had to do my carpets this season.
We were outside working one day and it was all sunshine and we were cutting us some fresh flowers. Then all the sudden it turned blue and I knew it was going to rain any minute. We were finishing up and it started sprinkling. I told the girls to go ahead and go get on the porch. They were headed that way and all of the sudden out of nowhere, a gush of 50 mph wind came through and started blowing debris everywhere. I got hit in the head with a stick and I was afraid the girls were going to get hit and I screamed for them to get in the house. Atleigh started screaming and crying and was trying to get the door open and the wind caught it and jerked it out of her had and hit Caroline which sent her flying into the picnic table. Then she was screaming and crying. I reached the back porch and got the door off of Caroline and grabbed them and shoved them inside. We had to calm everyone down. Atleigh does not like storms and she thought her Gmaw was going to get "blewed" away. Brylee and Dallas came running into the utility room to see what all the commotion was about. We got everyone calm and listened for it to blow over. It all happened in a matter of about 15 minutes. Then all the sudden quietness. And sunshine. What in the world just happened? Dakota had just gotten off of work and was headed to pick up girls when he called and said he just got called back in. What ever it was knocked 100s of people out of power. It was around 8pm when I finally checked on him and he said he was only a mile from us working but it was bad and didn't know when he would be done. So I just told him to be safe and the girls would stay here. They were out all night. One of his coworkers snapped this pic as he was climbing a pole at sunrise that next morning.
I told y'all he was our pole dancer. 😁😁 I d0 worry about him every time he has to go out into a storm. All I can tell the girls is, "Daddy has to go turn someone's lights back on!" People were reporting damage all around the next day. He worked all that next day and then was able to get Ag to her game that evening. Poor thing had gone 32 hrs straight with no sleep.
We have watched all of Ags games. Except one so far. Dallas was not feeling good one day.
All I know is I am ready to see my son happy and alive again. 💙 I sat down one night and wrote him a 6 page letter. Things I just couldn't say in person because I didn't want the children to hear. He is trying so hard to heal the hurt and move on. I don't know exactly what God has planned. I don't know if this is a bump in their journey or if God has his soul mate out there. I really thought they were sole mates. I don't know anymore. I have prayed and worried and prayed more. I'm having to tell myself the same advice that I told him and that is to wait on the Lord. That's all we can do. I have my family who is prayer warriors on it too. 🙏
The time is drawing closer for Dallas to ship out and we don't have much time left to spend with him. Unless he gets delayed on his ship date we only have a couple of weeks. 😳🥺 . He is looking forward to it but a little anxious.
I just need to come up for air a bit.
We have a fair in town this week and tonight is the last night. I thought their mom was going to take them, but she never did, so we are all fixing to get ready and meet for supper and take these girls to the fair. I hope everyone stays safe and happy.
I cannot tell you how much these two ladies mean to me. They have always been my inspiration and mentors all my life. I have gleaned, watched and practiced (still trying) how they live and lived. My beautiful Mother, who unselfishly sacrificed her life raising three girls and hit her knees more on my behalf than I can count through my stupid, know it all, rebellious teen age years. Lord, forgive me. No matter the time or day, I can call her and vent, rant, rave, scream, yell, cry and then ask her to hit her knees again on our behalf. All of us. And she just lovingly obliges. She helps me keep my sanity when I'm on the verge of loosing it . Bless her. ❤
My beautiful Grandmother. 😍
She was my inspiration too to being who I am today. I wanted a marriage and family just like her and my PaPa. I watched her love her husband and children and grandchildren so unselfishly and sacrificed her needs and comfort to make sure every one else was taken care of first. She is the picture perfect Proverbs 31 woman. She hit her knees on my behalf as well. I'm pretty sure Momma called her too and had "conversations " about me. 😆
I wish I could still talk to her today.
I learned alot from this lady as well. Sacrifice, dedication to family, gentleness with a dash of hard core, unconditional love, and forgiveness. She raised one "special boy 👦" to whom I am very proud to call my husband. I will finish taking care of him for you Nanny. I promise.
I am proud to be the Mother of these two rowdy, rough, stubborn, strong willed, rebellious, aggravating hard heads 😆but most of all loyal, dedicated, loving, sensitive, strong, determined, full of grit, passionate cowboys 🤠. They are the exact ones I want having my back anyway. You boys will never know or understand the depth of my love for you. Love Mom. 💘
As long as there is one breath left in my body, my husband, boys, and my little buddies will be loved and taken care of and covered in prayer ❤.
