The "S" in Cookies

I am having lots of fun making cookies and learning the art of decorating them well. They're still not without flaws, but I believe I improve with each new batch.

My brother and sister-in-law gave me the coolest gifts for my birthday this year. (Ok, I'm pretty sure it was all my SIL's idea, but she did sign his name on the card.) They gave me this cookie press and a very cute apron.

Look closely at what it says.

Isn't that great? She is so creative and thoughtful. Her gifts (and cards) always speak straight to my heart.

Several years ago she bought me a gluten-free cookbook when we put our youngest son on that diet. (Which we're about to go back to.) She bought me a beautiful robe when we moved into our new house and some classic books when I was on my all-I-want-to-do-is-read kick a few years ago.

I appreciate her so much.


Though I did use my apron today to make cookies today, I am still trying to figure out the cookie press. There seems to be a trick to it that I'm just not getting.

So instead of being little spritz cookies, I rolled out the dough and used a cookie cutter. They were great with a big cup of coffee. Or that's what my family told me.

I make 'em, but I don't eat 'em.

We'll be getting back into the swing of things this week. I believe my youngest son and I will be making a Whole Foods/Costco trip tomorrow, and I have lots of cleaning to do before my mom and aunt get in Friday night. We will head to Trade Days on Saturday morning and eat at my favorite restaurant Saturday night. Fun, fun!

Have a wonderful week!

We survived the first day

When my son, A, was in 1st grade, his teacher pulled me aside one day to show me a picture he drew. I held my breath before I looked at it because with him, you never really knew what he would come up with.

She had asked her students to draw a picture of how they saw themselves. He drew Superman.

Today, on his first day as a sophomore in high school, knowing no-one in any of his classes, his health teacher asked the students to write their name on a piece of paper and on the back write one word that they thought described them.

He wrote "talented".

I'm thinking he's going to do all right.

To say that my heart is overjoyed this afternoon that he had a great day back at school would be an understatement. It still shocked me a little that he left the house with his sister this morning, but I truly had a peace about his decision all day.

(Of course I stayed reeeeeally busy, too, but that's beside the point.)

I know that his day was great because of all of the prayers, so to those of you who have prayed for us these past few days thank you very, very much.

Yesterday we (all of us + my daughter's boyfriend) went school shopping. For a child who has never really cared about what his clothes looked like, he thoroughly enjoyed the new wardrobe we bought him. Clothes, shoes, backpack, belt, etc. He is looking sharp!

Tonight is Spirit Night at the stadium, and he asked if we could go. In previous years, we've had to make him attend this event.

This boy is blossoming before my eyes, and I am just in awe.

Coming soon.... Pictures of a very special birthday present from my very creative SIL and a new sweet recipe.

I guess it's really happening

My 15 year-old that I have home schooled the past four years just enrolled in public school.

I honestly can't believe I just typed that. I think I'm still in shock.

I pulled him out of public school after fifth grade because he kept asking me to. He wasn't a very good student and he had some issues staying focused.

(There are still focusing issues, but his schooling has improved.)

We tried school at home for a year and both loved it, and we decided to keep going. Every year I would ask him if he was ready to go back to public school and he always said "no". Even in May of this year he said "no".

But Wednesday, FIVE DAYS before the new school year started, he decided to tell us that he really wanted to go back to school.

(I really think God did this to me on purpose so I wouldn't have a long time to worry about him. In case you've ever wondered about God's sense of humor, I'm here to tell you that He does, in fact, have one.)

My husband and I talked to A for a long time. We prayed, we asked him lots of questions, and I honestly couldn't argue with his responses. He sat up very straight while he talked to us and seemed very confident about his decision.

Anyone who knows my son knows that he is a researcher. When there is a subject that interests him, he learns everything there is to learn about it. And I mean everything.

So after talking to him the past couple of days, I realized that he has been thinking about this decision for a while. He just decided to keep it to himself for some reason.

So now, he's enrolled. He will ride to school with his sister on Monday morning. And I will be praying all. day. loooooooong.

Snapshots of my 35th Birthday

This past Thursday I turned 35. My daughter says I'm old now. Some days I agree with her and some days I feel like my life is just beginning.


Every day I know I am blessed.

I woke up Thursday morning to an array of small gifts and coupons for bigger gifts. My kids and husband gave me birthday cards that made me cry, but the Dove dark chocolate made it all better.

I received tons of birthday texts, e-mails, phone calls, and messages on Facebook. I felt very loved this year. (Not that I don't ever feel loved, but I must admit that I enjoy a little extra attention on my birthday. I mean, who doesn't?)

My daughter bought me this gift, and I have to tell you the story behind it. Because she is a few inches taller than me, when she hugs me she pats my head and says, "I love you little mommy." She thinks it's funny.


So she gave me this Willow Tree Figurine. I should obviously be the taller one and she the shorter one, but she quickly pointed out when I opened it that she was the taller one. She said, "See, I'm patting you on the head and saying 'I love you little mommy'".


The caption that goes with this one says, "Close to me: Apart or together, always close to me." Have I mentioned that I'm gonna miss that girl when she's gone to college?

I also received these gorgeous flowers from my friend Amanda who is performing right now in Singing in the Rain. Talk about a very nice surprise!

I know you've been wondering about those earrings, so here ya go. I had so much fun at the show that I totally forgot that I even had them on! My brother was amazing (as was the rest of the band), and it was an honor to get to see him perform live. I wish I could do so more often.



It was a wonderful birthday, and I am so thankful for my family and friends. I can't imagine my life without any of them!

Really good book

If you like to read at all, you need to read Joyce Meyer's new novel Any Minute. I read two to three books a month, usually, because I love to read and because I am in charge of a book club at our church.

I usually read the book we will all discuss before I tell everyone else the title of it, because I want to make sure there's nothing in it that will cause any issues with anyone. (You'd think with Christian fiction that wouldn't be an issue, but you would be wrong.) This time I didn't,though, because it was Joyce Meyer's book and I totally trusted her.

Maybe it's where I am in life, maybe it's because I'm turning 35, maybe it's because my daughter will only be in my home for one more year, or maybe it's because of my recent prayer that the Lord would show me the areas where I'm not showing excellence and need to improve. I don't know, but this book really opened my eyes.

I won't tell you all about it ('cause I want you to go get it and read it!), but I will tell you that it will make you think and it will probably make you cry. Or maybe that's just me.

Just go get the book! I saw some in stock at our local Wal-Mart, and if they have it then I'm sure everyone has it.

After you read it, e-mail me and tell me what it did for you.

I'm going to try it

Look at this cute dress! Isn't it adorable? My MIL and SIL gave me my birthday presents early this year and this was one of my gifts. I'm always up for cute new clothes.

Here are the earrings that go with it. They are just as cute and match the dress perfectly. And though they may not look that big to any normal earring-wearer, when I put them on, I feel like they are as big as my head.

That's because the ones I wear every day are tiny silver balls. Every time I put on big earrings, I take them off within minutes because I feel like I look goofy.

I feel safe with tiny earrings.

(My daughter saw my gifts before I did, and she told them that I was going to freak when I saw how big those earrings were. She was right.)

But this weekend I will be celebrating my birthday with some friends while I listen to my brother's band for the first time live. (I have the cd, I've met the band, but I've never heard them live.) I am very excited about it!

So I have to wear my new dress, and I promised everybody I would wear the earrings.

And if all goes well, I will even wear the other pair they bought me that goes with another fancy shirt, when my mom and aunt come to visit in a few weeks and we have a girls night out.

Is it wrong?

Do you have it all together?

Some people look at me and think that I do, but I so don't. Not even close.

I have a great marriage, three amazing kids, and I like being organized and on time.

But what gets me through each day is the grace of God. Seriously, folks!

Do I want to look like I have it all together? Well, yeah. Who doesn't?

Is that wrong?

I don't pretend to be something I'm not, and if you're around me long enough you will hear about my mistakes and flaws. But I don't want to be known as a complainer. Therefore, I refuse to talk all about the bad and none about the good in my life.

I had a discussion with my husband last night about the difference between confidence and pride. I have believed some lies of the enemy concerning that fine line, and I'm asking the Lord to clarify it for me.

I look at people around me who take great care of themselves, who seem to be confident, though not arrogant in any way. But when I think of treating myself that way or portraying myself that way to others, I fear that people will think I am prideful.

I am believing God to give me a spirit of excellence and to make me aware of the areas that I am not glorifying Him in my actions and my physical appearance.

(Scary thing to pray, I know. This could take a while.)

What have you asked the Lord to show you lately?

Dancing

Last night my family and I watched the So You Think You Can Dance finale. This is one of our favorite shows every year, and I am amazed by the talent that is showcased there. The dancer I picked to win from the beginning of the season was Brandon. We'll see tonight who actually wins, though.

There is a choreographer on the show who is very.... interesting, and I googled her to find out more about her. In the process, I found more out about Adam Shankman. I thought he was just a dancer; I had no idea he had directed so many amazing movies! The Wedding Planner, Hairspray, Bedtime Stories, and The Pacifier, among many others.

I took dancing when I was a child for about nine years. I have many memories of that time of my life: The girls that I met there that didn't go to my school. The different songs we danced do. The costumes we wore.

A few years ago I found a receipt from a payment my parents made for my classes at the time. It was $35, which was a lot of money per month back then. Thank you, mom, for that, because I know that was probably not easy to justify that expense. I am very thankful for those many special years!

Though the dancing on this show is not glorifying God, nor does the singing on American Idol do that either, it is awesome to see people using their gifts. I love it!

Now this IS exciting

This is my best batch yet! They aren't as good as these, but I'm learning.

Just haven't been in the mood

I'm not sure what is up with my blogging these past few months, but I have not really had anything exciting to talk about. I haven't even been reading my regulars much lately-- today I had a slew of them waiting on me in Google Reader.

Lately I have been spending my days organizing and decluttering my house, which takes up plenty of time. Eventually we'll have a garage sale and hopefully get rid of all this extra stuff.

I am in the middle of filling out college apps with my girl, but with her schedule being so crazy, it's hard to sit down and complete anything. Hopefully soon we'll have them all done.

I started working for a company re-writing articles, and I'm getting quicker the more I do. The only thing I don't like about it is that they pay peanuts, but I figure it's good practice (and a little bit of money) until I can find something I really do like.

I have been reading a whole lot, and a friend of mine sucked me into the O'Malley Series by Dee Henderson. They are really good! I have some other books I want to read, but I want to get through these first.

I helped watch little ones for VBS at church, I've been swimming, and I've been doing all my normal stuff around here.

See, nothing exciting.

Tonight I will be making sugar cookies and hopefully (this being my 3rd attempt) I will have some pretty enough to take pictures of and post here. We shall see.

Have a great Wednesday!