Maddie/Mommy date

So...last Thursday Dustin took Ty to the Dayton Dragons baseball game for a little father/son fun time. Maddie and I decided that we needed to have a mommy/daughter date night. I told her we could do whatever she wanted...and after thinking for a little while...she decided that she wanted to go and get her nails and toenails painted, "like a big girl"!! So...off we went to the nail salon.

She sat very still and enjoyed every minute of it. She was super excited when the lady asked her if she wanted sparkles on top of her pink nail polish!!

She even got sparkles on her toes!! (Sorry for the fuzzy pics...I took them with my ancient cell phone!)

Once her nails were dry we were off to dinner. Subway was her choice (well...actually McDonald's was her first choice...but I easily talked her out of that because the Subway kids meal came in a pink "purse") We ate inside Subway and talked about school...her friends...her favorite colors...her favorite people...jewelry...making headbands...and SO much more!! After dinner I told her for dessert she could have Ritas Italian ice or Starbucks. Without hesitation she said, "definitely Starbucks". So off to Starbucks we went. Maddie actually loves the flavor of coffee...even if it doesn't have a lot of sugar and cream in it. My dear friend Kate was working that night (which made Maddie even more excited because she LOVES Kate!!) and she made Maddie's "special" coffee. (Kate made it up for Maddie...it is an iced DECAF latte with 2 shots of caramel and 1 shot of vanilla. Then it is topped off with whipped cream...it is super yummy!!)

She likes to eat all of the whipped cream first (a girl after my own heart!!)

She finished every last drop. Then we headed home to pack for our fun-filled weekend (we were able to tag along with Dustin to a Jr High retreat that he was leading worship at. They put us in a wonderful log cabin and we had a weekend full of nature hikes...laughing...arts and crafts...and fun. I will post about that soon!!) After we packed we went out to the front porch swing for some cuddle time before she went to bed. She brought out her blanket and she sat on my lap as we talked about the fun "girls only" night we had. After a few minutes...her eyes were getting sleepy and I just held her...in the silence. It was a perfect end to a perfect night.

I got a feeling...that tonight's gonna be a good night...

So...Dustin left for MO early this morning and he will be gone for the rest of the week (We are going to miss him!!) I got the kiddos ready for school and loaded into the car. It was a rushed morning because I was trying to get the babes and myself ready for a long day...full of field trips and errands. As we got into the car I heard Maddie say that her tummy hurt. I figured she was saying that because I had put blueberry jelly on her waffle because we were out of strawberry. I told her she was fine and she needed to eat her breakfast. Off we went..until I heard the sound that NO mother wants to hear while driving in the car...the sound of projectile vomit hitting the back of my head rest!! I looked in the rear view mirror to see my sweet babe (and her side of the car) covered in gross-ness! I quickly pulled the car over and called my friend Ginger to let her know that I would not be there to pick up her boys for school (we car-pool). She was wonderful and totally understanding! Then...I told Ty to get into the front seat of the car. I took off Maddie's shoes, coat and jumper...then I put her in the back of the SUV (her booster seat was covered and disgusting). I opened all of the windows and headed home to clean up the car and the sweet babe. After the car had been disinfected, cleaned, and re-cleaned...I put Maddie in the shower and threw her clothes into the washing machine. I then remembered that I had to call the school to tell them that Ty would be late and that I would not be able to drive for Maddie's field trip. After Maddie was clean and changed...we all got back into the car to bring Ty to school (along with some plastic grocery bags in case we needed them for any future puking moments!!) As I was driving to school...I was thinking about all of the plans I needed to change for the day and I was trying to figure out how to make everything work. Then I realized that my babes were singing to a song on the radio..."I got a feeling that tonight's gonna be a good night. That tonight's gonna be a good, good night..." I just started to smile. The morning had not been the greatest...so the night would have to be better...RIGHT?!? I dropped Ty off at school and headed back home with Maddie.

She has been feeling great ever since the "incident" this morning...and I came home to this...

Isn't she just a thing of beauty?!?! I have wanted one for these for SOOO long!! My husband found it...in the aquamarine blue color that I have always wanted (even though it is discontinued)...and he got it for over half off!!! (it was a refurbished by KitchenAid on eBay)

So...tonight will be a good night...full of some baked good that I will make in my beautiful mixer. Now here's to hoping that the rest of my day is puke-free!!

The glass IS half full

The last week and a half have been very difficult. I love being a very positive and upbeat person...but sometimes life can still be difficult...and I am learning that is ok. For those of you who don't know...my dad has had some health issues this year. He had 2 strokes prior to this year...and before Christmas he had 2 more. That is the main reason that I went to NY after Christmas with the babes. He seemed stable when I left NY...but I just found out last week that he had to be taken back to the hospital. Since Christmas 2009...he has had 6 more strokes. They are considered to be minor strokes...but because he has had so many of them in such a short amount of time...they are having some huge side affects. His speech is slurred and it is hard for him to use a lot of the left side of his body. Right now...we are trying to figure out what care we can get for him and what we need to do to help and try to fix what is happening in his body. It has been really hard for my brother and I to try to talk through decisions that we thought we would not have to be talking about for a long time (my dad is only 59!!!) So...as I am trying to deal with the emotional and mental stress of that...I have definitely been under the weather this last week. I had a really yucky sinus infection and the antibiotic has made me VERY sick to my stomach. I am not quite sure why...but being sick made everything seem even worse! So...I sat down last night after everyone was in bed and just took a few minutes to reflect on the week. I cried for a little bit (which seemed almost therapeutic in itself) and then I tried to find a positive for every "negative" that had happened. Here is what I came up with...

- I felt nauseous all week....what a great weight loss jump-start (6 pounds and counting :)!!!)

- My babes were on spring break and I didn't get to take them out every day because I wasn't feeling well...I got some great cuddle time with them and we had a couple of amazing pajama days

- My brother and I had some really difficult phone conversations about questions for my dad's health that we didn't really have answers to...we also had some great conversations about our lives, about how much we meant to each other, and about how much we would always be there for one another


- I got very sick of being cooped up in the house...the weather was BEAUTIFUL this week and I sat on the front porch swing while the babes got to ride bikes and blow bubbles


- I was not a very patient momma because I wasn't feeling the best...my kids totally understood and they taught me even more about grace. I am blessed!


- I didn't get to spring clean the basement...my upstairs stayed pretty "spring cleaned" and I am pretty sure the basement will still be ready for a cleaning this week :)


- My husband was SUPER busy this week at church planning and preparing for all of the Easter services and I missed him...I am so proud to have a husband that is the most creative man I know...the services he planned were AMAZING! And...in just the first 2 services on Easter...there were over 40 people saved!!!! (and we are still waiting for the final count of all 4 Easter services).





Had it been a rough week? O MY...yes. But even in the midst of some hard situations and some questions without answers...I realized that my glass IS half full and I am very blessed. Just look at some of my biggest blessings...


I just love them!!