Vacation stop

One of the places that we stopped while on vacation was a chocolate candy store. Our kids had never been to anything like this. They had free candy everywhere and my kids ate their share.
My favorite picture is of C's face after several pieces of candy.

The pictures in the trees were taken while we waited for the store to open. David, papa, and the kids played ball too.

On our way to the Grand Canon

We have been planning this trip to the Grand Canon for over a year. David and his dad have been wanting to hike it together for sometime. With Paul's age this would be the last year it could happen. We have never taken a vacation without the whole family. This would be different but we could not wait.
We left Sunday after church and the adventure began.

Summer Bowling

This year we got passes that let us get 2 free bowling games a day for free. It was really a great things for families. We did not get to go as much as we would have liked but we did have fun when we went. The girls even went and took their brother a couple of times too. I went with a group of friends but failed to take many pictures.

The Mom Song!

I totally loved this video.  I have seen Anita live and she is super funny.  Hope you enjoy a good laugh.

31 Days to Clean-Day 3

10 Ways to Give Life to Your Home: By Renee Behringer

1.  Retain our tongues to give words that encourage, comfort and edify others.

2.  Offer life-giving and grace-filled word to husband and children.

3.  Make our home a place of grace where mistakes and sins  are not met with anger but with love and hope.  

4.  Decorate our homes to make home a place of beauty.  Beauty raises life above mere existence.

5.  Develop necessary cleaning skills and habits; clutter causes stress.

6.  Face our anger, anxiety, fear and depression.  Our homes reflect our mental/ spiritual/ emotional health.  Ask the Lord to replace these emotions with faith and hope.

7.  Plan regular times away from home to rejuvenate and gain perspective.

8.  Persevere in planning fun activities for family on weekends or ordinary weekdays.

9.  Play praise or worship music to lift everyone's spirits.

10.  Ask the Lord: What areas of my home are causing stress or bringing spiritual/ emotional/-mental 'deadness'?  What can I do to bring life to those places instead to make them a place of refuge?  

There is nothing more important to me then giving life to my home.  They say if momma ain't happy no one is happy and this is very true.  I want to be happy, I want to give life to my home.  

My Challenge today was to have conversation with David about what make him feel the most loved when it comes to caring for our home.  We had a very good conversation of the things he likes that I do, most of the time.  It opened my eyes to what my husband sees as important and it is not necessary what I would have thought he would have said.  

I had to dust the tops of refrigerator, cabinets, and shelves.  I also cleaned and shined the outside of drawers and cabinets.  The kitchen is starting to look really good :)

Air Force Graduation

So I'm trying to catch up on all my pictures and all that we did and long and behold I did not post our air force graduation pictures....or at least I could not find them.  Since I was to make a book each year of my blog I need to make sure everything makes it in there :))

Anyway, I love taking the kids to see the planes we do it every year.  We go close to David's job and he comes out and has lunch with us.  Fun Fun Fun

Oh and if I did post this already sorry :(

31 Days to Clean Challenge-Day 2

Day 2

Today is day 2 of the 31 days to clean challenge.  Not my favorite day since today's challenge had me cleaning my refrigerator, and freezer.  Yes it needed to be clean but with 5 kids running around I did not want to do it today.  That's what accountability will do for you.  I told my husband about this challenge so there was no turning back.  In the end I have very clean refrigerator and freezer.  It all worked out :)

Day 2-Check

Church Camp Trip

MPC did a family camping trip this summer.  Last year only the men and boys went.  So we decided to give a try.  We have gone camping with other people before and it really never works out.  We like to do what we want to do when we go camping.  I like to relax and not go from one activity to another.

This camping trip was mostly the kind I like.  There were no planned activities except the guys all planned to shoot guns every waking minute.  There is nothing wrong with this unless you're the mother of a 4 year old boy whose only desire was to be with the big boys shooting.  This meant for his momma that she could not let him out of her sight the entire time.  This was not relaxing.  On one side of me I had the big boys shooting HUGE guns and on the other side of me I had the teens playing arrow-soft shooting.  My son was like a kid in a candy store except he was unable to get anywhere close to the candy....no touching, no looking close.

He was a sad little boy.

other than that it was perfect, oh wait the rain :((

We could hardly believe that we were up in the mountains in the middle of no where are up comes a school bus.  Needless to say he was lost.

This came to be known as the William's Estate.

We went for a walk that took us on a trail that had a bridge the kids could look over.  It was really nice, except that due to the rain the bugs were terrible.

There were so many guns it was a little weird.

No my son did not get to fire a real gun but he wanted  to so bad.  

Homemakers Day 1 Challenge

    

It seems like this is the month for challenges for me.  There are several  things going on in my life right now and God is working in my life in several areas that I will blog about soon. 

However for now let me tell you about a challenge that I am  doing.   This is a 31 days to clean challenge.  I found any book that helps me be better organized intriguing and if it is going to help me keep my house clean, I'm game.

Chapter one said that "The heart of out homes is not the ability to keep it perfect at all costs; the heart of a home is love.  we live in a thing, a non eternal structure that needs to be maintained.  the thing is worthless with the life we bring to it and through it."  My goal has always been to have a home where people feel relaxed and loved on.  I want my home to be a place where my husband can come home from work and just be. I want my home to be a safe place for my family.  A place where my family can come and just be.  

House work is that one thing that can make me feel good when its done and yucky when it's not.  Its hard to feel good about doing something that you know will be dirty a few hours later.  Why do I want a clean house??  How do I keep motivated to do the mundane when it never seems to stay done.  

That is day the challenge for day 1.  To know why?  In order to keep going I must be able to remind myself why to give doing dishes for the 4th time in the day purpose.  

So why do I want a clean house??

*  Because organization makes me happy

*  Because it helps my husband feel like our home is his castle

*  Because it allows my kids to be able to bring their friends home knowing things will be in order

* Because Proverbs 31 in Gods word tells me that a noble women takes care of her family & her house