Mother's Day 2012

Entertaining is something that I really love. Its hard living in a different town than the rest of my family b/c I would love to host Christmas or Thanksgiving or one of the major holidays at my home. This year, I decided that I was going to take Mother's Day. I love having my family over and knew that it would be a good time for everyone. We may not have the biggest house, but we have plenty of land for everyone to be outside.

My parents actually came to town early and had lunch with us. My mom and I prepped a few things and then my brother's family arrived. Once we were all here and settled, the girls jumped in the car and headed out to shop. :) The boys started a football game. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of the "field", but Ken let the boys get some orange spray paint and mark off a football field. I was able to see that "Cowboys" was written across the end of field, which pleased me! :)

Not only did we enjoy shopping and football, but there's always food! :) We had hotdogs, hamburgers, brats, potato salad, coleslaw, chips, queso, salsa, strawberry shortcake and cheesecake cookies. We loved being able to sit on the deck and just enjoy the weather and peaceful country living. My family kept saying how quiet it was. I think Ken and I forget how peaceful it is sometime in the busy-ness of life. I was thankful to enjoy it with my family.


After dinner, there was more football

A family walk to the creek

A visit with the cows...

And the donkey

Flowers were picked


And, a bonfire was built

And, we definitely enjoyed each other!

We really had a fun day! I'm thankful that we could celebrate my mom together.

"We thank you God for our mothers.

I thank you that she gave me life 
and nurtured me all of those years.

She gave me my faith; 
Helped me to know You and to Jesus and His ways. 

She taught me to love and how to sacrifice for others. 

She taught me it was 'okay' to cry 
and to always tell the truth. 

Bless her with all the grace that she needs 
and what you want to give her today.

Help her to feel precious in Your eyes today 
and to know that I love her. 

Give her strength and courage, 
compassion and peace. 

Bless us this day with your love. Amen."

~The Reagan's Mother's Day Prayer (Blue Bloods)

First Meet

Easter was the first time Rossi got to meet Frasier. She fit right in. I was worried that she would cause problems with my parents' dog. Not that she is aggressive, but Ruger already loved her so much and I was afraid he wouldn't let Frasier and her be buddies. I was wrong. These three were best friends immediately. The three of them, with Rossi in the middle, ran figure-8's around the entire back yard. It was hysterical!

It was also the day Rossi got to meet Grammie and PaPa. :)

We had a really nice Easter. We were able to go to church on Saturday night so that we could spend the day with my parents on Easter Sunday.

We got there mid-morning and had brunch. Then spent the day at their house visiting and letting the dogs run around. It was enjoyable holiday celebrating the freedom we have in our Savior.

And, who can resist this face???

How My Dogs Gave Me New Perspective

My dogs taught me something this morning.

Ken usually has the job of taking care of them in the morning b/c he gets up as I'm leaving for work. I realized this morning that its a HUGE blessing b/c I am able to sleepily walk through the house, get some coffee and sit down with my Bible in the dimly lit, QUIET, coziness of our home. There's just something beautiful about being up in a house as people are still sleeping.

This morning, my hubs had to be out the door at 6am for work, so I was left with the munchkins. Now, I usually do take care of them on Fridays which is my day off. I learned today that taking care of them when I don't have anywhere to be, at a certain time, is MUCH easier!!!!

Ruger is pretty good about going outside and taking care of business. Rossi...not so much. She is a wanderer. AND, she has a serious case of A.D.D. She can be sniffing out something and see a leaf which takes her of the scent-trail, but then completely forget the leaf b/c a butterfly flew by. Wears me out when I just need her to go to the bathroom. When she was new to our house, she was really tempted to run to our neighbors b/c they are so much more interesting than us. We have a horticulturalist on one side and across the street are cattle and a donkey. Thankfully, the temptation to RUN has passed, but now she just stands there and stares FOREVER!!! Most of you might be asking why I stay outside with them. We don't have a fenced yard. Which I have never minded, but this pup needs some stinkin' boundaries!!! Okay...its just me that needs her to have a giant pack-n-play!

After my 3rd trip outside with the dogs, I had finally secured Rossi in her crate, Ruger was ready for his all-day-nap and I was thankful to be getting out the door. As I sat in the truck, I just sighed out of huge relief that my morning at home was over! I haven't fully appreciated my husband and what he does every morning.

I have always wanted to be a stay-at-home-mom (God willing!), but today I had a few doubts. I realized that I now understand a woman's desire to work and get out of the house to be around adults! I completely agree! However, I also realized that the mornings that I don't have anywhere to be are not this chaotic. So, I decided that I would be "okay" staying at home if we are blessed with kids.

I text my husband a quick note to tell him how much I appreciate what he does every morning...his response? "Some days are better than others". Spoken like a true parent. :)

On the drive to work, I found myself appreciating both "moms": the stay-at-home moms and the working moms. Both of their jobs are hard. This post really isn't about moms and which one is better than the other (Its sad to me that women even debate this between themselves. God gives all of us a calling. No one should make anyone else feel bad or guilty about where God has called them). What I did learn is that the reason this morning was so chaotic to me is b/c I was trying to get my dogs to function and act like I do when I get ready for work. I wanted them to do exactly what I wanted them to do and to be selfless. I wanted them to have me in mind and what I needed to do today. I expected them to change their normal, everyday behavior to accommodate me.

While I know I'm talking about dogs and they don't even understand what I'm saying to them (they do understand my husband who we refer to as the "dog-whisperer"...seriously, they understand every single word he says!!! He has conversations with them...and they listen! Its weird!) and, of course, they are on their own time and terms. It did start me thinking. Why would I expect them to hurry through their normal, daily routine when they don't have to any other day?

Then I thought, "Why do I expect other people to change who they are to make me more comfortable?"

Its not fair for me to want anyone to function the way that I do. No one likes to be told how to act or do life. This goes for all the people we encounter. The people we work with. The people we are behind in line at Walmart. The car in front of us that is going 10 miles UNDER the speed limit.

Putting expectations on other people so that I can function the way that I like to isn't how I should be presenting Christ. I'm basically saying that I'm entitled to get my way. I want people to do ______ so that my life is easier. What I should be is others-focused. My life should be lived out as, "What can I be doing to make Christ more apparent?". Serving.

Thankfully, I did allot time for my dogs this morning. Last night before heading to bed, I knew that their routine was going to take time away from my regular routine. Its important to factor other people and circumstances into our day so that we aren't angry and frustrated. When emotions take over, people don't see God's love in us.

I'm challenging myself to be patient with others. Love them regardless of their actions. If I need to take a moment or get up and walk away, that's okay, but I do want them to see me as different from others. I want them to see that the difference is Christ in my life.

So, just like the mornings that I don't have any place to be and there are no expectations on my dogs' behavior: Life can be a lot smoother when we don't put our expectations on people and expect them to perform in a way that is normal "me".

Weekend Recap

We were on the go all weekend! Mine starts on Thursdays after work b/c I don't work on Fridays. LOVE! Our evening usually consists of me making dinner and us just watching some TV. This was a good plan b/c I lost a night of sleep this week. My best friend having her baby allowed me three hours of sleep on Monday night, so we took it easy. I got some rest b/c my mom and I were having a girls' day on Friday!!! :)

Friday morning, I woke up, had my quiet time/bible study, picked up the house and got ready. My parents got here around 11:30am. My dad was supposed to have some appointments in OKC, but they fell through. So, he actually went to lunch with my mom and me! Then us girls hit the shops! After some shopping, we relaxed at the wine bar and then got pedicures. :) For dinner, I made a fantastic pasta and the four of us had dinner on our deck. It was a beautiful night! After my parents left, Ken and I stayed on the deck until 9:30pm. It was just gorgeous!!!

Friday night I didn't sleep very well. What is it about getting older that really breaks up your sleep? I remember in college, I could sleep until noon. I would give anything to have uninterrupted sleep AND to sleep until noon!!! :) I really thought broken sleep only happened after you had kids! Ugh!

So, Saturday morning, I was so exhausted that it took me awhile to get going. I made homemade biscuits and gravy and we enjoyed breakfast on the deck. We have been looking at getting me a new vehicle and decided that we would go get it! YAY! After breakfast and getting ready, we were off. We stopped for lunch at one of our favorite joints: Roosters! Its a bar, but they serve the BEST fried chicken!!! We stuffed ourselves with chicken, corn nuggets, fried pickles, and french fries. Healthy, right???

The car search went really well and we drove away in a new-to-us Ford Edge. Its a 2011, used...but only 6500 miles!!! Its completely decked out with panoramic sun/moon roof, touch screen, navigation, tv/movie screens for the back seat, and digital everything! The only thing that it didn't have that we were really wanting was memory seating. Oh, well...we already fell SO spoiled!!! Its fantastic!!!

 

On our way home, we stopped at Sam's to do some grocery shopping and then to see Miss Evi! She was 4 days old and just gorgeous!!!! She was so cute! TINY and completely alert. So sweet! I wanted to show of my new car, BUT I really just wanted to see Sweet Evi! :) So excited to be an aunt again!!!

 

Saturday night, we spent the evening at home with left-overs and wine! It was so nice!!! 

Sunday, we were so tired of "going" that we just wanted to stay at home. We both wanted to go to church b/c we have been going somewhere new and really love it. However, we both weren't excited about getting showers and going through the motions of the day. So, we watched the service online and then worked around the house. Well, after I went to Walmart. :) We got quite a bit done and the house is in pretty good shape for the coming week.

Now, we just finished dinner and we are relaxing. The kids (our pups) are FINALLY sleeping on the couch next to me, my husband is studying for a test he's taking on Wednesday (please PRAY!!!) and I'm watching some TV and blogging.

Its been eventful and I'm thankful for the down-time tonight. We missed some exciting things this weekend b/c we had quite a few friends graduating from college and other friends in town from Texas, but we just couldn't fit everything in our weekend.

Hope you all had a fabulous weekend!!!! Praising the Lord for blessings that we haven't expected and good quality time with my parents and Michelle...it was a great weekend!!!

Our Little Rascal

Little Rossi has settled right in. :) She and Ruger love each other so much! Its as if she's always been a part of our family!!! We've had her for one month today. And, seriously, it seems like we've had her forever!!!!

We really decided to get her within 24 hours. We found her in the classifieds of the Tulsa World. We called the breeder. We discussed. We got pictures from the breeder. We discussed. Ken says I suckered him and that he couldn't say no. I told him that I would have accepted a "no", but I don't think Ruger would. haha! Ruger had the best guilt-trip faces!!! He made sure his daddy knew that he was lonely.

So after work 24-hours later, we were on our way to the breeders....with Ruger in tow. :) At first he was very excited.

I'm sure he thought we were going to see PaPa and Grammie, but after awhile he gave up on thinking we would ever get to a destination.

The time at the breeder's was so fun! There were about 10 frenchies, Ruger included, running around and having a great time! Ruger and Rossi hit it off immediately! However, the 4 month old frenchie was the one giving Ruger all the grief. It was hysterical!!!! That little puppy was right on his heels and wouldn't leave his side!

We stayed for about an hour and then were on the road again!

Once home, we dug out crates in the dark while the little ones played. Thankfully, they played hard enough to knock them out for the night.

Rossi has been an incredible sleeper and seems to "like" her crate. She only uses it when we aren't home and overnight.

She definitley took to her daddy! They bonded pretty quickly and she won his heart.

 

She's such a lover. If you aren't paying enough attention to her or she just hasn't "bugged" you in a while, she will be in your lap and crawling up your chest to get some love

The hardest thing has been the potty-training. It was hard with Ruger too, so it wasn't surprising. We have a big yard and its not fenced, so the first part was to train her to stay in the yard. She got that down faster than we expected, which was a huge blessing! At first, we tried using a harness and a leash, but for some reason she wouldn't potty while wearing it. Thankfully, we figured that out pretty quickly. Now she's a champ!!!

She has a sever case of A.D.D. It cracks us up! She will zone in on something and we can't get her mind off it. Its funny, but not so great sometimes. If she is chasing a leaf or a bug (which is most of the time), she starts running after it and we can barely get her to stop until she catches it.

She chews on anything and everything!!! Toys, my shoes (grrr!!!), bags, books, electrical cords, and Ruger's face. Poor Ruger! We're nursing a facial wound right now. She's getting better though!

Ruger has been such a gentleman! He is very watchful of her. He gets so excited in the morning for her to get out of her crate so he can play with her. He's very willing to give up toys. He also bites very gently! Its pretty cute!!!

Rossi is quite the pleaser. Its been very beneficial with discipline b/c she doesn't like getting in trouble. If she knows she's done something wrong, usually a change in the tone of our voices works. If we walk over to her, she immediately rolls on her back and submits.

She also LOVES being praised! Its fun to get excited and praise her b/c she is so expressive in her reactions. :)

She's 9 months old and I can't wait to see how she looks the older she gets. She has so much extra skin, so I know she's going to grow into it. She's so tall already, I have a feeling she might get a little stockier.

Just like any new addition to a family, her Aunt Michelle brought gifts! A super cute new collar with BLING, a new toy and treats for her and Ruger. :)

Well, if you're still reading, that's the detailed intro to our new kid. :) She's brought a lot of activity to our home and joy back to Ruger.

Introducing!

Welcome to the world, Evelyn Reece!!! Sweet Evi made her debut early this morning! Making my best friend's family a little bigger. Life is a beautiful thing! And, it never gets old! Evi's Birth Day was just as awesome as Finley's and Jude's. Such a blessing to be a part of her first seconds of life! She's gorgeous and I can't wait to get to know her...every day of her life! Plus, I got to see these two fabulous people! They were so excited to meet their new baby sister! They were just precious!!!! It was a beautiful day experiencing God's incredible power and new creation!!!