I have been busy lately and putting my quiet time on the back burner. I don't know why I always end up doing this cause it gets me in a pickle every time. Do I really want to choose to have my day go off kilter? If I don't spend time with God and in his word it always happens.
When I say I have been busy lately, I mean REALLY busy. So much so that I stressed myself out and ended up in the emergency clinic with a pulled muscle in my neck that forced me to slow down. Ya know, God always has a way of sitting me down when I try to do things without him. Sometimes it doesn't have to be so drastic as a trip to the ER, it could just be a song on the radio or a conversation with my dear husband. I often find myself saying things to my children and then wondering if God feels that way about me. "I am tired of telling you the same things over and over and you still won't listen". "Be nice to your sister". "Use only sweet and kind words". "Let's try to look for the good in this situation".
I take to much on cause I want to do everything and then everything ends up going to hell in a handbasket, literally. The devil can get a hold on any situation that once brought you joy and totally mess it all up for you. Such was the situation for me this past Sunday.
One night a few months ago, I prayed that God would help me find a way to use my talents to glorify him. Just so happens there was a lady there that night looking for help with food for a class that was coming up in the fall. WOOHOO, I was so excited and planning and just couldn't wait. I was going to get to cook and give God the glory!!!
School started for the girls and then for me, and then the new midweek program started at church and life in general just started happening. College, third & first grade homework consumes much of our nights. Then there is cooking, laundry, house cleaning and the physical care for three little girls who in themselves can be a handful. But I was still excited about being able to do something I liked to do to help others. The first few weeks were a little stressful trying to figure out to best use of my time and how to make sure everything got done. We were chugging right along and then I started to get tired. Just physically tired. And that is when the devil started to see a crack to work his way into the situation.
Cooking for 35-45 people can be quite a venture for one person who has never done anything to this magnitude. Throw the fact that 10-15 of them are children and sheds a whole new light on things. Some kids don't eat jelly, some kids don't eat peanut butter, some kids don't eat mayo, you get the picture. I tried to keep the right attitude and do what I can to ensure everyone is happy when all the while I am thinking..."I am giving up time with my husband and children to do this. I could be at home on the couch in my pj's smelling my freshly bathed three year old's deliciously clean hair. This kinda sucks." And then God put this verse in my mind "Do all things in love". Which means washing dishes, putting up with differing opinions and saying the right things when being ridiculed. Wow, don't you hate it when He is so right and it makes you feel so small?
I decided I am gonna try to remember what Jesus would do. It sounds kind of trite and sometimes I think that phrase gets used to death for the wrong reasons. My favorite use of this ever is in the most recent Madea movie. Someone wrongs her daughter and Madea is hounding her to try to get revenge. When the daughter tries to confront the man in the right way, he is ugly to her and drives off. She is HOT! Madea then asks her, "Did you show him your bracelet?" It was too funny but also very true. You can't help what others do or what they say when you try to do the right thing, you can just SHOW what He would do. And you don't need a bracelet to show them who's you are!
(I know this post is dragging on FOREVAH, but there is a reason for it all, so bear with me and my, continuous, use, of, commas, !)
So, then a few days later I am confronted in a room full of people and asked if I was tired of hearing about what a bad job I am doing. I was embarrassed and ashamed thinking maybe they were right. But I know better. I am doing the best I can. And then in that split second, I WAS FURIOUS! How dare someone say that and embarrass me and who said that in the first place for her to repeat that to me? I said a couple of ugly things and then immediately tried to apologize for what I said. BUT, I was mad. Beyond mad. So mad that I gave my self the first migraine that I had in weeks. And I almost let it ruin my whole day. Then I tried to remember what Jesus would do. He would use the situation for good and God's glory.
The worldly Shelley wanted retaliation. The godly Shelley knew there was a lesson in all of this.
I decided this morning I was going to have to sit down and spend some time with the Lord to prepare myself for the next few days. I use the Journey devotional book for women that our church distributes to guide my studies on days when I am feeling less than inspired. Guess what I came across? A lesson on having a humble servant's heart. WOAH. God just slaps me in the face with his word ALL THE TIME! (Hence the name of this blog.)
I read Mark 10:44-45..."For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give His life-a ransom for many". True servanthood requires humility. Humility is something I need to work on. Being taken down a notch or two never hurt anyone. I went on to read Colossians 3:23-24 "And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, AS TO THE LORD and not unto men. Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ".
Jesus had a servant's heart. He was ridiculed, mocked, beaten and then killed so that I could go to heaven one day. He did not complain about the job he was here to do, he just did it. No questions. Amazing.
So today I am praying for humility. To be willing to do what God and others ask of me with the right attitude. If Jesus can die for a low down dirty sinner like me, I can make someone a different sandwich with a smile. Thank you God for teaching me this lesson today and hopefully helping me to use this situation to help others who might me facing trials.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
Friday, July 10, 2009
Honor & Joy
The sound of the water streaming from the shower is the music of the morning in our humble home. The smell of his soap, shampoo and shaving products waft through the air and bring a smile to my face. He is preparing himself to leave the shelter of our family to deal with the world for a few hours.
He didn't ask me to iron his shirt, I volunteered. The steam from the iron jumps up to touch my face, not too hot but a soothing warmth. Pride moves over me as I move the hot iron across fabric of the shirt. He works hard to provide for our family. God has given him a servant's heart for helping others. He is kind, generous with his love and loyal to a fault.
I hang the shirt on a hanger, button the top few buttons and smooth out the fabric. Thank you God for giving me this man to love. He is my best friend, my love, my partner and my comfort. Ironing his shirt is my honor. To help a man as good as this, my joy.
He didn't ask me to iron his shirt, I volunteered. The steam from the iron jumps up to touch my face, not too hot but a soothing warmth. Pride moves over me as I move the hot iron across fabric of the shirt. He works hard to provide for our family. God has given him a servant's heart for helping others. He is kind, generous with his love and loyal to a fault.
I hang the shirt on a hanger, button the top few buttons and smooth out the fabric. Thank you God for giving me this man to love. He is my best friend, my love, my partner and my comfort. Ironing his shirt is my honor. To help a man as good as this, my joy.
Tuesday, July 7, 2009
Blog Design Help
So, after 6 months of not posting on my blog, I suddenly have the urge to get "bloggy" with it. I would like to re-do my design a little and need some help. Where do those of you with super cool loking blogs, like Tara, get the cool page designs? If you don't care to email or FB me, that would be great!
I have a confession...I have become quite addicted to Facebook. I love the quickness of it and being able to "keep up" with old friends. I can see how it can be a good or a bad thing. My original intention was to use my FB page as a tool to witness, but I feel that I have failed at that. It ends up being a "what I did today" kind of thing, instead of a "what he did" kind of thing. ya know?
Any-hoo, hopefully I will get back on a roll here and have some really profound stuff to post before too long. Oh, and a little crafty stuff too. I am hoping to embark into the world of sewing before the girls head back to school. There may be only a few months left before SG boycotts anything that I might possibly make. You know what I mean.
Must go for now, there is a school assignment that is due tonight that I have not even started. That seems to be my M.O. One of these days, that is gonna catch up with me.
Hoping to have something good for you in the next couple of days...ttfn.
I have a confession...I have become quite addicted to Facebook. I love the quickness of it and being able to "keep up" with old friends. I can see how it can be a good or a bad thing. My original intention was to use my FB page as a tool to witness, but I feel that I have failed at that. It ends up being a "what I did today" kind of thing, instead of a "what he did" kind of thing. ya know?
Any-hoo, hopefully I will get back on a roll here and have some really profound stuff to post before too long. Oh, and a little crafty stuff too. I am hoping to embark into the world of sewing before the girls head back to school. There may be only a few months left before SG boycotts anything that I might possibly make. You know what I mean.
Must go for now, there is a school assignment that is due tonight that I have not even started. That seems to be my M.O. One of these days, that is gonna catch up with me.
Hoping to have something good for you in the next couple of days...ttfn.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Thankful Thursday = Suprise lunch with Janice!!!
Today Becca Boo went to MawMaw's for the day so I could work on my kids consignment sale stuff. I got a few things done and piddled on the computer for a while when Sarah Grace called and said that she forgot her glasses this am. I ran to school and took her the glasses and thought I would run in Walmart to look for stuff to make some homemade laundry detergent. (I know, another off the wall project! But I added up the $ that we are spending a year on detergent and it would be enough to buy the kids a NICE swingset. I will let you know how it works out!)
Wondering through the health and beauty aides, I decided I needed a buggy for all my junk. Guess who I ran into when I got my third attempt to find a buggy that did not sound like it had a flat tire? Janice Hardiman and her sweet mother all the way from Leoma, TN! It was totally a God thing because I had already thought about making the yummy chicken salad that we use to eat at Claunch's together all the time. It made me think of her and really miss all our talks together.
We ended up getting to go to our favorite lunching place and it was so nice, we got to sit outside and see and listen to the geese at Spring Park http://www.tuscumbiarailway.com/ while we were eating. It was so much fun! A true blessing thank I am so thankful for!
Wondering through the health and beauty aides, I decided I needed a buggy for all my junk. Guess who I ran into when I got my third attempt to find a buggy that did not sound like it had a flat tire? Janice Hardiman and her sweet mother all the way from Leoma, TN! It was totally a God thing because I had already thought about making the yummy chicken salad that we use to eat at Claunch's together all the time. It made me think of her and really miss all our talks together.
We ended up getting to go to our favorite lunching place and it was so nice, we got to sit outside and see and listen to the geese at Spring Park http://www.tuscumbiarailway.com/ while we were eating. It was so much fun! A true blessing thank I am so thankful for!
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Pointers and prayers requested!
With all the exciting changes going on in our lives as a family, I really feel that God is leading me to share my testimony with our church. He seems to keep pointing this out to me in various ways but I am VERY nervous! We attend a large church in Muscle Shoals that has three morning services. It is quite large but we have gotten involved with teaching in the preschool department and have met several people.
The very idea of getting up in front of such a large group three different times in one day is enough to make me toss my cookies! Now don't get me wrong, anyone that knows me knows that I love to talk but WOAH, that's a lot of people at one time!
This morning I called and talked to our sweet pastor, Bro. Ted and shared with him that God has really laid this on my heart. He offered a new and exciting way to share my testimony. He asked if I would be interested in video taping it. This would majorly cut down on the upchuck factor! The only thing is that I would have to agree to sharing it with the local Baptist association. If approved, it could be used at other area churches and events. This is very thrilling and nerve-racking at the same time!
I would like to use the approach of the Proverbs 31 woman to witness to other women and mothers. While studying for the small devotional I led back in September at the scrapping booking retreat, I read on from Proverbs into Ecclesiastes. I was able to read God's word and see that when we try to do things without God our attempts are futile and we will end up "hating life".
Three years ago, I tried to make a way to be at home with my children that made me have to change my beliefs and I made the change without God. It was really awful and led to alot of broken relationships, pain and awkwardness. I was MISERABLE! I ended up putting my family in a financial bind and having to go back to my old job.
In the last year and a half since being saved, I have tried to become closer to God and let him lead my steps. I feel his presence in my life on a daily basis. He has given me such joy and now, the desire of my heart...to be home with my girls. I really feel the need to share this with others. God is in control. He may not answer prayers how you want and when you want, but he hears them. You have to be patient and faithful to him.
So, getting back to the video, I need some pointers from others that may have done something like this before. I want to be honest and sincere but express the passion that I feel inside. All in 5-8 minutes! Please email me srjpepper@yahoo.com with any advice you can offer. Also, any prayers that you could send up on my behalf would be greatly appreciated!
Now, I gotta go! Must run to the post office and take Derek's work shirts to the cleaners before I go get Becca-Boo! (...she does him good, all the days of her life!!!)
The very idea of getting up in front of such a large group three different times in one day is enough to make me toss my cookies! Now don't get me wrong, anyone that knows me knows that I love to talk but WOAH, that's a lot of people at one time!
This morning I called and talked to our sweet pastor, Bro. Ted and shared with him that God has really laid this on my heart. He offered a new and exciting way to share my testimony. He asked if I would be interested in video taping it. This would majorly cut down on the upchuck factor! The only thing is that I would have to agree to sharing it with the local Baptist association. If approved, it could be used at other area churches and events. This is very thrilling and nerve-racking at the same time!
I would like to use the approach of the Proverbs 31 woman to witness to other women and mothers. While studying for the small devotional I led back in September at the scrapping booking retreat, I read on from Proverbs into Ecclesiastes. I was able to read God's word and see that when we try to do things without God our attempts are futile and we will end up "hating life".
Three years ago, I tried to make a way to be at home with my children that made me have to change my beliefs and I made the change without God. It was really awful and led to alot of broken relationships, pain and awkwardness. I was MISERABLE! I ended up putting my family in a financial bind and having to go back to my old job.
In the last year and a half since being saved, I have tried to become closer to God and let him lead my steps. I feel his presence in my life on a daily basis. He has given me such joy and now, the desire of my heart...to be home with my girls. I really feel the need to share this with others. God is in control. He may not answer prayers how you want and when you want, but he hears them. You have to be patient and faithful to him.
So, getting back to the video, I need some pointers from others that may have done something like this before. I want to be honest and sincere but express the passion that I feel inside. All in 5-8 minutes! Please email me srjpepper@yahoo.com with any advice you can offer. Also, any prayers that you could send up on my behalf would be greatly appreciated!
Now, I gotta go! Must run to the post office and take Derek's work shirts to the cleaners before I go get Becca-Boo! (...she does him good, all the days of her life!!!)
Monday, January 19, 2009
Lots of stuff going on...
Hello out there to anyone that hasn't totally given up on me and this blog thing!
Hope you all had a fun and peaceful Christmas and New Year. We had lots of down time due to my Mom's emergency gall bladder surgery. Praise God it wasn't the heart attack that they originally thought she was having. Just a little too many Krispy Kreme's and a gallstone stuck in her bile duct! OUCH!
We have had quite an eventful first few weeks of the year. Becca and Darby both had birthdays, three and six respectively...
Everyone is back in school now, including me! Becca is now enrolled in a small 1/2 day program two days a week and loving it! One day when Derek dropped her off the teacher asked if she was ready to do karate! As you can see from the picture, she needs no help with the sassiness and I am not sure karate it going to make that situation any better for us in the discipline department! HAHA
On the days that Becca is in school, so am I. God has really shown his power to us in the last few months. He has made it possible for me to return to school at no cost and worked everything out schedule-wise too!
Monday and Wednesdays I have morning and night classes. I get out 2 1/2 hours before Becca does and can run errands, do homework or goof off sweetie-free during that time. (Call me if you want to do lunch!) Derek is coming home 30 minutes earlier on these days also so we do not incur any additional childcare costs. I try to have baths and dinner done before he gets in so we can eat a quick bite all together and then I can jet!
All of my classes are early childhood education based this semester and very interesting. Class time seems to go by too fast because of all the neat stuff I am learning. It is tons of fun and beneficial in to my mothering also. In my creative arts for children class we made colored rice. I brought it home thinking that the girls would not be interested and it would end up in the trash. Boy was I wrong! There is now multi-colored rice all over my kitchen floor but it can be easily swept up. The peace and quiet that small bag of rice has provided for me is worth WAY more than the $1 that it cost! All three play for hours scooping it up with spoons, squishing it in their hands and pouring it from one cup to another. It is really a great rainy or too cold day project!
Here is the "recipe" for those of you that are interested:
Colored Rice
1 bag white or brown rice (Colors will be more bold with white rice)
Food coloring (a few drops will do)
1 cap rubbing alcohol
Place rice and alcohol in bag and add food coloring sparingly. Squish around to ensure that color is evenly distributed on all grains of rice.
Be prepared to get the food coloring on your hands. No matter how careful I am, I always end up with multi-colored fingers too! It will wear off over time, doing dishes seems to help!
Gotta run for now. The sweeties are at MawGrand's house spending the night and Derek and I both have homework to do. Tax stuff for him and summarizing an article on infant brain development for me! The sad part about it is, we both really enjoy these things! We are such geeks!
Friday, December 12, 2008
Christmas in Dixie
My dad loves that song. As a matter of fact, he loves just about anything from the group Alabama. The verses of this song came to mind with the events of the last 24 hours. We have snow in Alabama on the 11th of December. Can you believe it? I have a feeling it is going to be a very cold winter.
Lots of inspiration for some frosty photography......
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Update
Sorry I have been MIA a lot lately on the whole blog thing. The amount of time I have in a day to sit down for even ten minutes in now severly limited by my motherly schedule and the other 4 people that live in my house.
We have been trucking right along. I am still getting used to this whole "stay-at-home mom" thing. The funny thing is that I very rarely seem to stay at home. There are trips to take every one to school, get groceries, run errands, pick up the few remaining Christmas gifts, lunch with friends (Happy Birthday Becki, BTW!), and then pick everyone up from school. All while dragging along my two year old potty training sweetie. All I have to say is how in the world did I ever work like I did? I am more exhausted these days than I have been since I had newborns in
the house. YIKES!
Becca is adjusting quite well to not being in daycare. She still asks to see her friends and her favorite teacher, Mrs. Christina. She is enjoying the amount of free play and the never ending barage of kisses and hugs that she gets from me everyday. We have cooked, played "tay-doe", shopped, lunched and napped (love it!) together. But we are having a little trouble with misbehaving. Can you say R-O-T-T-E-N? HAHA....Ain't it great!
Sarah Grace & Darby love getting picked up everyday and being home by 3:00. We have a snack, a cold juice and a little down time before bath and homework. It is so cool to see them so happy to see me and still in a good mood when I pick them up. Before, they were so tired by the time I got to pick them up after work, everybody was cranky. Now we are all in a better mood and love to talk about the happenings of their day and sing with the radio. God has blessed me with three silly, giggly, talkative, beautiful little girls!
Derek is also reaping the benefits of me being home now. My love of cooking and his love of eating compliment each other well. I told him last night as we were finishing up the leftovers of crockpot dressing, corn casserole, mashed potatoes, broccoli & cheese, mac & cheese, stuffed eggs and rolls that if I didn't start to school soon we were both going to weigh 500 lbs!
One thing I have been trying to make an effort to do is to "do him good all the days of my life" from Proverbs 31. Just trying to have the girls bathed, the house somewhat straight and dinner ready when he gets home from work. That way he can read, watch TV or just enough playing with the girls when he gets home from a long day of working with the public. His hard word is a huge part of me being able to stay home and I appreciate and love him for it!
Hope you are all doing well. I have lots of projects to post pics of to keep you up to date on all my crafting craziness. One of my blog followers is Deanna, check out her profile and blog link under "followers". She has all kinds of neat ideas for kids crafts, cooking projects and gifts. I used her magnet idea to make gifts for my Sunday school class party. It was neat to be able to share my "joy" with others...more to come!
We have been trucking right along. I am still getting used to this whole "stay-at-home mom" thing. The funny thing is that I very rarely seem to stay at home. There are trips to take every one to school, get groceries, run errands, pick up the few remaining Christmas gifts, lunch with friends (Happy Birthday Becki, BTW!), and then pick everyone up from school. All while dragging along my two year old potty training sweetie. All I have to say is how in the world did I ever work like I did? I am more exhausted these days than I have been since I had newborns in
the house. YIKES!
Becca is adjusting quite well to not being in daycare. She still asks to see her friends and her favorite teacher, Mrs. Christina. She is enjoying the amount of free play and the never ending barage of kisses and hugs that she gets from me everyday. We have cooked, played "tay-doe", shopped, lunched and napped (love it!) together. But we are having a little trouble with misbehaving. Can you say R-O-T-T-E-N? HAHA....Ain't it great!
Sarah Grace & Darby love getting picked up everyday and being home by 3:00. We have a snack, a cold juice and a little down time before bath and homework. It is so cool to see them so happy to see me and still in a good mood when I pick them up. Before, they were so tired by the time I got to pick them up after work, everybody was cranky. Now we are all in a better mood and love to talk about the happenings of their day and sing with the radio. God has blessed me with three silly, giggly, talkative, beautiful little girls!
Derek is also reaping the benefits of me being home now. My love of cooking and his love of eating compliment each other well. I told him last night as we were finishing up the leftovers of crockpot dressing, corn casserole, mashed potatoes, broccoli & cheese, mac & cheese, stuffed eggs and rolls that if I didn't start to school soon we were both going to weigh 500 lbs!
One thing I have been trying to make an effort to do is to "do him good all the days of my life" from Proverbs 31. Just trying to have the girls bathed, the house somewhat straight and dinner ready when he gets home from work. That way he can read, watch TV or just enough playing with the girls when he gets home from a long day of working with the public. His hard word is a huge part of me being able to stay home and I appreciate and love him for it!
Hope you are all doing well. I have lots of projects to post pics of to keep you up to date on all my crafting craziness. One of my blog followers is Deanna, check out her profile and blog link under "followers". She has all kinds of neat ideas for kids crafts, cooking projects and gifts. I used her magnet idea to make gifts for my Sunday school class party. It was neat to be able to share my "joy" with others...more to come!
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Saturday, November 8, 2008
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Thankful Thursday = Open Windows
When God closes a door, he opens a window...
Tuesday, November 4th was more than just a historic election day, it was my final day of employment with a company that I had worked for almost 12 years.
We had all expected it for months now, work was slow. The decline of our countries economic situation has affected us all no matter where we are employed. We had exchanged home addresses and phone numbers with our dear friends because we knew the end was inevitable.
And then it happened, one by one they came around to our desks and called us to the conference room that we had sat in months earlier when the first round of layoffs came. Our supervisor was so broken she could not look up from her piece of paper that so eloquently and ceremoniously advised us that this was now indeed, our last hour at our home away from home.
We would be given a two week severance pay. (Funny, you know as I typed that just now I questioned my spelling of this word. The root of this adjective is sever.) We will be able to draw unemployment and have some decisions to make about insurances and 401k investments.
The most exciting aspect of all this that is as part of the Alabama Employment Services training program, we are eligible for up to two years of paid training. Colleges are included in this! I am currently the only member of my immediate family that does not have some type of degree. The opportunity to return to school, have it paid for and then pursue a carreer I have wanted for a long time is totally God's work!
The whole situation is all still very fresh and even with all the exciting prospects for change, my heart is aching and lots of tears have been shed this week. My dear sweet coworkers are also facing new opportunities and challenges as a result of the layoff. Please pray for them and for the ones that do not have the peace of our Savior in their heart.
Later, when I can, I would like to share a little more with you about the people that have shared my days with over the last 12 years. They have all impacted my life in some way. Work is stressful, tedious and often can be unenjoyable in the wrong situation. But we spent the majority of our waking hours with some of the finest people anyone could ever be blessed to be apart of the same team.
In case you are wondering how I am spending my days now, see my next post.
Tuesday, November 4th was more than just a historic election day, it was my final day of employment with a company that I had worked for almost 12 years.We had all expected it for months now, work was slow. The decline of our countries economic situation has affected us all no matter where we are employed. We had exchanged home addresses and phone numbers with our dear friends because we knew the end was inevitable.
And then it happened, one by one they came around to our desks and called us to the conference room that we had sat in months earlier when the first round of layoffs came. Our supervisor was so broken she could not look up from her piece of paper that so eloquently and ceremoniously advised us that this was now indeed, our last hour at our home away from home.
We would be given a two week severance pay. (Funny, you know as I typed that just now I questioned my spelling of this word. The root of this adjective is sever.) We will be able to draw unemployment and have some decisions to make about insurances and 401k investments.
The most exciting aspect of all this that is as part of the Alabama Employment Services training program, we are eligible for up to two years of paid training. Colleges are included in this! I am currently the only member of my immediate family that does not have some type of degree. The opportunity to return to school, have it paid for and then pursue a carreer I have wanted for a long time is totally God's work!
The whole situation is all still very fresh and even with all the exciting prospects for change, my heart is aching and lots of tears have been shed this week. My dear sweet coworkers are also facing new opportunities and challenges as a result of the layoff. Please pray for them and for the ones that do not have the peace of our Savior in their heart.
Later, when I can, I would like to share a little more with you about the people that have shared my days with over the last 12 years. They have all impacted my life in some way. Work is stressful, tedious and often can be unenjoyable in the wrong situation. But we spent the majority of our waking hours with some of the finest people anyone could ever be blessed to be apart of the same team.
In case you are wondering how I am spending my days now, see my next post.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Love Thursday
Some of the bloggers I read faithfully have a theme that they do on Thursday each week called "Love Thursday". Today I wanted to share a little "Love Thursday" with you all.
1. I absolutely LOVE anything from the '50's. Or maybe just the way that it is portrayed in the movies. The fab clothes, the simpler life styles, and the whole "June Cleaver"-ness of it all. Some of the things that I am striving for in my life, contentment (more on that to come soon), simpleness and happiness seem to be so abundant in that time period. If I had a time machine it would definitely be in my top five "place" to visit.
2. I love my children with all their own unique ways.
I love that Sarah Grace is just like her Daddy. Even down to the things that drive me crazy about him: asking me a million questions, writing everything down, making sure I am doing the right thing!
I love that Darby is always up for anything and has a zest for life like no other I have ever seen or met. She is a real spark plug kinda girl!
I love that Becca still has her "baby" smell. Kissing the "sweet" spot on the curve of her neck and smelling her hair makes my heart swell like nothing else in this world.
3. I love my Mom (Mawgrand) and the example for motherhood that she set for me. When I was a little kid, all I ever wanted to be when I grew up my a mom...like my mom. She can cook, sew, paint, draw, pull-out of her hat just about anything and everything you could imagine. We always had fabulous made to order homemade birthday cakes, Halloween costumes, the coolest birthday parties, the coolest MOM ever! One of my most prized possessions in the world is a birthday card she gave me last year. She wrote in the card that I was good mommy. It is so dear to me and I often think of it when I am having one of those "what was I thinking having three kids in less than five years" kind of days!
4. I love that my Mom is now working her coolness on my kids. Check out the FAB costumes she made for our sweet ones for Halloween! She is so awesome!
Thank you MawGrand! We love you and our costumes too!
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Friday, October 24, 2008
Fun, Irrelevent Facts about Me
In an effort for some of you to get to know me a little better, I thought I would post 25 random facts about my crazy life. Here ya go.........
1. My uncle once: called Sarah Grace to wish her a Happy Birthday. She was born on his 50th birthday and now he calls her every year to tell her Happy Birthday. Thanks Uncle Bob.
2. Never in my life have I: seen the Space Shuttle lift off at night. It is on my Bucket List.
3. When I was five my parents took me: to kindergarten with my hair in a ‘fro from sleeping in sponge rollers too long.
4. High school was: ok, but I wouldn’t go back.
5. I will never forget to: the first time Derek told me he loved me. He wrote it on a piece of paper and handed it to me. I still have it.
6. Once I met: Chad Brock the country singer on the flight from Nashville to Orlando on our honeymoon.
7. There’s this boy I know: who is the spitting image of my brother and he likes to shoot me with imaginary Spiderman webs! (Hey Joshy! Becca will be so excited to see you tomorrow!)
8. Once, at a bar, I: danced all night while my sweetie watched me from our table. He is such a good sport but the dancer, not so much. HAHA
9. By noon, I’m: ready to go outside and see the sunlight.
10. Last night I: took SG to the Dr., went pre-Christmas shopping at Toys R Us to get ideas with SG, ate at Wendy’s, went to the Fall Festival, worked at the Fall festival, went to Walmart and FINALLY went to bed. I am pooped today.
11. If only I had: enough $ to be a stay at home mom.
12. Next time I go to church: I'll be teaching Wee Worship with Derek. This week we are teaching about Abraham, Sarah & Issac. We are going to talk about how God blesses us with our families.
13. What worries me most is that I: won’t be a good wife and mom.
14. When I turn my head left I see: the sign that says, T-E-A-M, Together Everyone Achieves More.
15. When I turn my head right I see: a picture of SG & Darby holding Becca the day she was born. Big Daddy’s hand is in the picture too, holding Becca’s head. My FAVORITE. PICTURE. EVAH!
16. You know I’m nervous when I: fiddle with my earrings or bite my bottom lip.
17. What I miss most about the Eighties is: being young and carefree.
18. If I were a character in Shakespeare I’d be: the dramatic lead.
19. By this time next year I will: being closer to God than I am today.
20. A better name for me would be: Robin. Don’t know why, I never thought of myself as a “Shelley”. Meh.
21. I have a hard time understanding: how some things never seem to change.
22. If I ever go back to school, I’ll: get my teaching degree.
23. You know I: talk, laugh, giggle too much.
24. If I ever won an award, the first person I would thank would be: God. Phillipians 4:13
I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
25. Take my advice, never: put flowers that have been outside for a very long time in a van with three little girls.
1. My uncle once: called Sarah Grace to wish her a Happy Birthday. She was born on his 50th birthday and now he calls her every year to tell her Happy Birthday. Thanks Uncle Bob.
2. Never in my life have I: seen the Space Shuttle lift off at night. It is on my Bucket List.
3. When I was five my parents took me: to kindergarten with my hair in a ‘fro from sleeping in sponge rollers too long.
4. High school was: ok, but I wouldn’t go back.
5. I will never forget to: the first time Derek told me he loved me. He wrote it on a piece of paper and handed it to me. I still have it.
6. Once I met: Chad Brock the country singer on the flight from Nashville to Orlando on our honeymoon.
7. There’s this boy I know: who is the spitting image of my brother and he likes to shoot me with imaginary Spiderman webs! (Hey Joshy! Becca will be so excited to see you tomorrow!)
8. Once, at a bar, I: danced all night while my sweetie watched me from our table. He is such a good sport but the dancer, not so much. HAHA
9. By noon, I’m: ready to go outside and see the sunlight.
10. Last night I: took SG to the Dr., went pre-Christmas shopping at Toys R Us to get ideas with SG, ate at Wendy’s, went to the Fall Festival, worked at the Fall festival, went to Walmart and FINALLY went to bed. I am pooped today.
11. If only I had: enough $ to be a stay at home mom.
12. Next time I go to church: I'll be teaching Wee Worship with Derek. This week we are teaching about Abraham, Sarah & Issac. We are going to talk about how God blesses us with our families.
13. What worries me most is that I: won’t be a good wife and mom.
14. When I turn my head left I see: the sign that says, T-E-A-M, Together Everyone Achieves More.
15. When I turn my head right I see: a picture of SG & Darby holding Becca the day she was born. Big Daddy’s hand is in the picture too, holding Becca’s head. My FAVORITE. PICTURE. EVAH!
16. You know I’m nervous when I: fiddle with my earrings or bite my bottom lip.
17. What I miss most about the Eighties is: being young and carefree.
18. If I were a character in Shakespeare I’d be: the dramatic lead.
19. By this time next year I will: being closer to God than I am today.
20. A better name for me would be: Robin. Don’t know why, I never thought of myself as a “Shelley”. Meh.
21. I have a hard time understanding: how some things never seem to change.
22. If I ever go back to school, I’ll: get my teaching degree.
23. You know I: talk, laugh, giggle too much.
24. If I ever won an award, the first person I would thank would be: God. Phillipians 4:13
I can do everything through him who gives me strength.
25. Take my advice, never: put flowers that have been outside for a very long time in a van with three little girls.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Thankful Thursday
Big Daddy does not like attention. He is not one to be the center of attention, doesn't like for a big deal to be made about his birthday and will probably not be crazy about this post at first.
But, let me tell you, I am so very blessed to share my life with this man. I truly believe that God made us for each other.
'Nuff said.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Monday, October 20, 2008
Spiders!!!!!!!
Have you ever seen the movie with Chris Farley and David Spade called Tommy Boy? There is a seen in the movie where they get pulled over by the police and they jump out of the car yelling "BEES!". The police decide to let them go because they don't want to take a chance at getting stung. We had our own crazy version of this Sunday after church!
With no Saturday afternoon naps and being on the road most of the day, we were wiped out when we got home Saturday night. We got just what we had to out of the car, the children, the cooler of drinks we had taken and the groceries we had pick up when we stopped to see Sharon at Piggly Wiggly. It was so late and we still had baths and hair to do so we figured we will deal with everything else Sunday after nap.
Well, that was a bad idea! We left the old flowers that we had replaced at the cemetery in the back of the van. BIG MISTAKE!
I don't know if you are having this problem at your house but the spiders are terrible at our house this year. We have new webs on the front step every morning. Apparently they are bad in Athens this year too.
After early service on Sunday morning we decided to make a trip to Walmart to pick up a few things for the girls snacks this week. We came back to put our groceries in the car and there were spiders every where! No kidding, we killed like ten before we even moved the car out of the parking spot we were in. I figured out that they were coming from the old flowers, so I threw them away in the trash can by the buggy-holder-thingy. We jumped in the car to hurry home for lunch and didn't even get on the road before the next spider invasion took place.
Has you ever seen a little girl all dressed up from church with church hair lose her mind screaming and crying? Well, multiply that times three! There was lots of screaming and tears and "I hate this car" and "I hate flowers". We had to stop again in the parking lot to rescue our poor defenseless children from their eight-legged attackers. It was quite a scene.
We jumped back in the car to hurry home as fast as we could to get the girls out of the car and spray bug spray to kill the spiders that were left. I took off like a bat from the parking lot and high tailed it home. We were about two miles from the house when I flew around the curve and saw a policemen waiting with his radar gun in a clump of trees. OH MAN! He immediately turned his lights on and pulled out after us.
I was looking for a place to pull over when the next batch of screaming and crying commenced. the spiders were coming out in droves again and everybody was freaking out. Derek was furious cause he would never have been driving that fast and wouldn't have gotten us pulled over. (He drives like a Mam-Maw!)
We had just come to a complete stop in a parking lot, we the girls jumped out of the back of the van and I jumped out after them. Becca was losing it because she couldn't get out of her seat belt and Derek was pilfering thru the glove box trying to find the proof of insurance. I am sure we were quite the spectacle by the time the policeman made it to the side of the van.
He asked for my license and proof of insurance and I was blubbering trying to explain what had happened. He walked back to his car, snickering the whole time. It was a hot mess of crazy Pepper women in that car! He came back quickly and was nice as he could be. He asked if there was anything he could do and told me to slow down and be careful. YEAH! No ticket!
Moral of the story is, if you every get pulled over, a car full of screaming children will get you out of one everytime!
With no Saturday afternoon naps and being on the road most of the day, we were wiped out when we got home Saturday night. We got just what we had to out of the car, the children, the cooler of drinks we had taken and the groceries we had pick up when we stopped to see Sharon at Piggly Wiggly. It was so late and we still had baths and hair to do so we figured we will deal with everything else Sunday after nap.
Well, that was a bad idea! We left the old flowers that we had replaced at the cemetery in the back of the van. BIG MISTAKE!
I don't know if you are having this problem at your house but the spiders are terrible at our house this year. We have new webs on the front step every morning. Apparently they are bad in Athens this year too.
After early service on Sunday morning we decided to make a trip to Walmart to pick up a few things for the girls snacks this week. We came back to put our groceries in the car and there were spiders every where! No kidding, we killed like ten before we even moved the car out of the parking spot we were in. I figured out that they were coming from the old flowers, so I threw them away in the trash can by the buggy-holder-thingy. We jumped in the car to hurry home for lunch and didn't even get on the road before the next spider invasion took place.
Has you ever seen a little girl all dressed up from church with church hair lose her mind screaming and crying? Well, multiply that times three! There was lots of screaming and tears and "I hate this car" and "I hate flowers". We had to stop again in the parking lot to rescue our poor defenseless children from their eight-legged attackers. It was quite a scene.
We jumped back in the car to hurry home as fast as we could to get the girls out of the car and spray bug spray to kill the spiders that were left. I took off like a bat from the parking lot and high tailed it home. We were about two miles from the house when I flew around the curve and saw a policemen waiting with his radar gun in a clump of trees. OH MAN! He immediately turned his lights on and pulled out after us.
I was looking for a place to pull over when the next batch of screaming and crying commenced. the spiders were coming out in droves again and everybody was freaking out. Derek was furious cause he would never have been driving that fast and wouldn't have gotten us pulled over. (He drives like a Mam-Maw!)
We had just come to a complete stop in a parking lot, we the girls jumped out of the back of the van and I jumped out after them. Becca was losing it because she couldn't get out of her seat belt and Derek was pilfering thru the glove box trying to find the proof of insurance. I am sure we were quite the spectacle by the time the policeman made it to the side of the van.
He asked for my license and proof of insurance and I was blubbering trying to explain what had happened. He walked back to his car, snickering the whole time. It was a hot mess of crazy Pepper women in that car! He came back quickly and was nice as he could be. He asked if there was anything he could do and told me to slow down and be careful. YEAH! No ticket!
Moral of the story is, if you every get pulled over, a car full of screaming children will get you out of one everytime!
Sunday, October 19, 2008
Visit with the Peppers!
Hope you all had a great weekend! We made a road trip to Decatur to see Granny!
We visited for a while at her house and then went to "Big Daddy's McDonald's". (For those of you that might not know, Derek worked at the '50's style McDonald's in Decatur thru high school and then several years into college.) The girls all had a ball looking at all the memorabilia and sitting in the red bumper cars.
After lunch, we went to the Adventure playground at Wilson-Morgan Park. Sarah Grace played in the sand and on the monkey bars until she almost had blisters on her hands! She is a real monkey!
Darby and Becca climbed and hid all in the cool playground area while we got to visit with Granny. It was really cool to visit and get to check out such a neat place.
The church across the road from the park had a make shift "pumpkin patch" set up in it's parking lot and even though we had bought pumpkins earlier in the week, we had to buy three more! They had the coolest kinds of pumpkins. Some were all knotty on the outside and looked like they were covered in warts. The girls loved feeling how rough they were!
By then, it was late in the afternoon and we took Granny back to her house and headed out to Athens. We put new flowers on John and Grace's grave (more to come about that later) and cleaned the headstone. Darby & Becca were asleep but it was very special for Derek to show Sarah Grace. She asked lots of questions and we tried to explain the best we could.
She is such a sweet child. She came up and hugged me and said, "Poor Daddy". She gave him a big hug and then ran off to read the other headstones.
We drove onto to Piggly Wiggly and visited with Sharon for a minute while she was at work. I think she was really surprised to see us. We all need to get together more often but life is so busy. Hopefully we will get to visit more soon with the holidays coming up.
Next it was on to Teresa & Ronnie's. The girls loved looking at the cows and Becca was mooing at them as we were coming up the drive. Derek, Teresa and Ronnie all got to watch the last few minutes of the Alabama game. Poor Derek was so glad to have somebody to talk "football" with finally. Bless his heart, living with all these girls he doesn't get much sports talk. But he can paint some mean-looking fingernails! haha
They went with us to the "cheese dip" place in Rogersville. They got to see our girls in action with the cheese dip and salsa. Talk about some serious eating! If you ever want to bribe them, mexican is the way to go. It is like the truth serum for these little girls!
We did get home that night until almost eight o'clock after leaving that morning at 9:30! We were all worn out but still had to unload the car and do baths for church the next morning. Becca went missing and I just knew we had a potty accident on our hands. But do you know what.........our big girl went to potty #2 on the big potty all by herself! We were so proud that we had to do the potty dance which consisted of much laughter and celebration by all five on us in a very small space! If you have ever been to our tiny little bathroom, you know what I mean!
It was a great day of visiting and spending time together as a family!
We visited for a while at her house and then went to "Big Daddy's McDonald's". (For those of you that might not know, Derek worked at the '50's style McDonald's in Decatur thru high school and then several years into college.) The girls all had a ball looking at all the memorabilia and sitting in the red bumper cars.
After lunch, we went to the Adventure playground at Wilson-Morgan Park. Sarah Grace played in the sand and on the monkey bars until she almost had blisters on her hands! She is a real monkey!
Darby and Becca climbed and hid all in the cool playground area while we got to visit with Granny. It was really cool to visit and get to check out such a neat place.
The church across the road from the park had a make shift "pumpkin patch" set up in it's parking lot and even though we had bought pumpkins earlier in the week, we had to buy three more! They had the coolest kinds of pumpkins. Some were all knotty on the outside and looked like they were covered in warts. The girls loved feeling how rough they were!
By then, it was late in the afternoon and we took Granny back to her house and headed out to Athens. We put new flowers on John and Grace's grave (more to come about that later) and cleaned the headstone. Darby & Becca were asleep but it was very special for Derek to show Sarah Grace. She asked lots of questions and we tried to explain the best we could.
She is such a sweet child. She came up and hugged me and said, "Poor Daddy". She gave him a big hug and then ran off to read the other headstones.
We drove onto to Piggly Wiggly and visited with Sharon for a minute while she was at work. I think she was really surprised to see us. We all need to get together more often but life is so busy. Hopefully we will get to visit more soon with the holidays coming up.
Next it was on to Teresa & Ronnie's. The girls loved looking at the cows and Becca was mooing at them as we were coming up the drive. Derek, Teresa and Ronnie all got to watch the last few minutes of the Alabama game. Poor Derek was so glad to have somebody to talk "football" with finally. Bless his heart, living with all these girls he doesn't get much sports talk. But he can paint some mean-looking fingernails! haha
They went with us to the "cheese dip" place in Rogersville. They got to see our girls in action with the cheese dip and salsa. Talk about some serious eating! If you ever want to bribe them, mexican is the way to go. It is like the truth serum for these little girls!
We did get home that night until almost eight o'clock after leaving that morning at 9:30! We were all worn out but still had to unload the car and do baths for church the next morning. Becca went missing and I just knew we had a potty accident on our hands. But do you know what.........our big girl went to potty #2 on the big potty all by herself! We were so proud that we had to do the potty dance which consisted of much laughter and celebration by all five on us in a very small space! If you have ever been to our tiny little bathroom, you know what I mean!
It was a great day of visiting and spending time together as a family!
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
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