A Pajama Mama

I've decided to go back to school. Because I obviously don't have enough going on right now. I found this link for Blogger Friend School through my bloggy friend Jessie's site . And I decided to give it a whirl. We'll be given weekly assignments to blog on and it sounds like homeschool mommy encouragement and new friends are the end results. Although enrollment is all year long, the official school bell rings this week! So I'm joining just in time! Oh, and there's an enrollment giveaway!! If you're a homeschool mom, care to join me??

Enjoy a few pics from our first two homeschool weeks.

I just realized something!!! This week is my blog's first birthday! I thought you might enjoy reading my very first post with me to celebrate A Pajama Mama's blog's first birthday. The title of my first blog post? Rain, Rain, Go Away. Kinda funny...considering the foot of rain Fay dumped on us this week, a year later. And I still don't have a new Vera Bradley umbrella. But we did buy two new Dollar General umbrellas last week. And it's ok if the Hero gives them away. And why did we need two new umbrellas, you ask? Because Fay was coming and we DON'T HAVE A GARAGE ANYMORE! Hope you enjoy the walk down memory lane! (And for the record, FeO is the Hero is the dh is the darling husband. FeO....think periodic table of the elements.)

UPDATE: Dr. said he'll see me in three months for a follow-up. Surgery can wait for now. Yea!!! I have to go see the dr tomorrow about The Cantaloupe . I dread it. I don't want to go. I don't like doctors. Unless they are taking care of my children or delivering my babies. I don't like the ones who think they need to remove cantaloupe-sized melons while the Melon Mama is symptom free, sorta. So, I have determined that I will not lose heart because these light and momentary troubles are achieving for me an eternal glory that far outweighs all melons. I am determined to fix my eyes NOT on what is seen on the ultrasound screen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen on that screen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2Cor 4:16-18

Oh Fay, Fay, Fay With skies of black, gray, gray Your floods can't stay, stay, stay The limbs just break, sway, sway Please go away, way, way No one wants to play, play, play It's not okay, kay, kay You've ruined our day, day, day Just go away, way, way.

Apparently, there wasn't an able-bodied man within a 20 mile radius of our house yesterday morning. Do you see the window behind My Hero? It had to come out so the 49 pieces of sheetrock could fit in it. And who helped haul, push, shove and stack the sheetrock? Yep, you guessed it. I am not a manual labor kind of girl. I am a girly girl who wears pearls (that Beachmama brought me from China!) and I don't enjoy sweating. The kids were great! They loved helping. Even Appledoodle got in on the action. Did I mention there were FORTY-NINE slabs of sheetrock? 49. It obviously couldn't stay outside because Fay is coming. Fay's been coming for days now. Fay is currently not budging. But just in case Fay decides to slowly lumber towards the west, we can all breath a sigh of relief because the FORTY-NINE pieces of sheetrock are safe.

There's a gas station/convenience store in our neighborhood that's been here since the 70s. It's the only gas station on this side of town. It's right around the corner from the school I attended for 12 years. When I was in school, it was called Stop N Shop. It was THE place to gather for after school snacks. And they had those little chocolate footballs wrapped in orange foil...which just so happened to be a school color! When we moved back here in 1997, Stop N Shop was still there but the name had changed. I think it was Sunrise Pantry. Later, it changed to Flash Foods. The Hero, not knowing the original name, would refer to its current name and I'd never know what he was talking about. I finally convinced him to just call it by it's original name, Stop N Shop, like everyone else does and will do until eternity. Ok. Follow me here bc I'm switching gears but it does tie together. We've got the garage closed in and are working feverishly on finishing......

The Butter was lamenting the fact that his older sister has "more money" than he does bc of her babysitting jobs. Out of curiosity, I asked him just what he would buy with his own money. I thought he'd say something about some new Star Wars toy or game or a case of root beer... But instead he promptly responded with: "I want my own tool box with tools. And a bank account ." Where does he get this stuff?

Here are a few shots of the "raw" bedroom. One shows where the garage door was....now replaced with a wall and windows. The Butter made the large cross in that pic out of wood scraps with his friend. I'm not quite sure how that'll fit into the decor. Maybe in the front yard with lights at Christmas? In the other pic, you can see the framed walls. The dh's office will be on the left side and our bathroom will be on the right side. Beyond the office is where the laundry room will stay. Beyond the bathroom is one ginormous walk in closet! WOOHOO!! Here we have the lovely Rayray modeling my deep soaking tub. Buhbye Walk-in Shower! I shall not miss you one iota. And here is the chunky Chunji, modeling a plank from our wood flooring. He is screaming from the rooftops with excitement! Ok. He's yawning. Today we had a plumber, an a/c guy, and an electrician guy here. And somehow we got in a full homeschool day. Stay tuned for more updates......

What they thought would take two days....took a mere 8 hours of hard labor by 6 men. Here they are placing the last window...

The crew started at 7:30 this morn. At 7:40, they were pounding loud enough to wake the dead, removing brick steps. Here's what they had accomplished by lunch. A well oiled machine. That's what these guys are like bc they've worked together for so long. Add My Hero and the Butter to the mix... And they sailed through the morning. Here's the Butter and Jose' trying out the window spaces. In this pic is My Hero and another hero to us today. Mr. Big Creek Construction. The man with the plan. He's volunteering his time and expertise today bc he loves Jesus and he loves our family. Who gave the Butter a hammer, anyway?

Even before I had my morning coffee, the Home Depot truck with Expert Forklift Driver Dude was parked in front of our humble abode with all of the necessary materials it takes to enclose a garage and magically transform it into a new master bedroom and bath. Forklift Driver Dude was treated like a superhero by the Butter. Boys and machines. Our neighbor, whom we adore, stepped over to take a look. He said, " You know, this is a MAMMOTH project you have here." I wasn't sure exactly what he meant...like enormous ? Or extinct ? Or woolly ? Or prehistoric? I think I'll go with woolly . It sounds soft and fuzzy and comfy. Just what a PajamaMama wants in a new bedroom! Of course, I also thought of our little woolly mammoth skeleton kit Butter put together for a school project. He followed the steps in the correct order and everything went together perfectly. So, yes. We can call it a woolly mammoth project. I'm ok with that. Say goodbye to the garage you see above. Afte...

They're bringing her home!

Why is this cake ridiculous you ask? Bc it's so ridiculously easy and yummy! You start with these ingredients and a 13x9..... After spraying your pan, spread the cherry pie filling evenly on the bottom, followed by the crushed pineapple with juice. Sprinkle the yellow cake mix evenly over the fruit. Cut up the entire stick of butter and add it. Lastly, sprinkle with coconut. Bake at 350 for an hour. It's that easy. Serve with ice cream...or not. (I only put coconut on half of ours bc of picky eaters.) And this is what it looked like after 10 people had their fair share... And I hear my Hero in the kitchen now having a little bedtime snack! (And don't even get me started about the price of cherry pie filling! $4.00 a can! Now that's ridiculous!)

Totally loving my awesome new French doors!!!! Papa, Hero and JellyB work hard on Monday to get them installed. The Hero is still finishing up the trim, etc. Aren't they lovely! If you were privileged enough to see what was there BEFORE the new French doors, you are rejoicing evermore joyfully with me! The best part is that this is the first step in our remodeling adventure! Bring on my new bedroom!

We have made a happy discovery! About a month or so ago, I received a random email about this new website launched by one of our fave's, Derek Webb, called NoiseTrade . I was sure there was a catch when I read that we could download full albums for free if we tell three friends or pay what we want. But, to our utter delight, there's no catch. The dh and I both have found some awesome new favorite groups...most are Indie folks. I even emailed one that I liked so much named Katie (see below). And she was so sweet when she emailed me back. It helps to know these are real people with real lives making real music and loving it enough to offer it to us free. Anyway, go check it out. I'm sure you can use some NoiseTrade as much as me!

I have been married to the most amazing man for 17 full and happy years. Has it always been blissful? No, of course not. I have been privileged to see Father transform his heart and life into a man of God like I've never met before. I tease him often that he drips of grace and mercy. I learn from him daily and he is a perfect balance for me...since I love a good set of rules to follow. He's the most patient man I've ever met. I guess that's why God sent him to me. I needed someone very patient to put up with me. He is the love of my life, my soul mate, my partner in life, my husband. He parents our children with love, mercy, an even temper . Our home is a joyful, peaceful place of respite because the head of this home loves Jesus and abides in Him. The dh's joined us at the beach for the weekend. He and I were able to slip away for a few hours to eat some seafood at FuddPuckers in Destin. When I arrived home on Friday, a beautiful anniversary card from his mom and ...

We're home from the beach. To the left is a shot of all 7 kids plus our amazing helper, Rayray. I know it's fuzzy...the weather was very fuzzy that day. But I think there was sunscreen on the lens, too. Do you see the black clouds in the background? That was the beginning of TS Edouard. He was not our friend last week, that's for sure. Check BeachMama's blog for more on their amazing journey to bring home their beautiful China Doll.