Ten on Tuesday

Feeling a bit random today so I thought I would do a ten on Tuesday post. Hope ya'll had a wonderful Memorial Day!

1. Rachel did so well giving her welcome speech at Friday's graduation. Thank you for praying for her. I have lots of pictures to post soon.

2. Four very special friends surprised us by attending graduation....what a blessing!

3. Did I tell you that Rachel got a haircut and highlight 3 days before graduation? She went to the same girl that she always does but this time Rachel came home with gray and purple streaks. Yes, I could have died when I saw them! It was a light purple and gray but still. Rachel hadn't noticed. I called my dear friend Vonna, she does my hair, for HELP. With her guidance we were able to get rid of the gray and purple. Rachel is far too young to have gray and purple hair. Oiy!

4. True to their history, Mr incredible and Rachel always do things unintentionally at the same time. For example: in 6th grade Rachel broke her foot the day before Mr Incredible had his torn ACL surgery. And one month before Rachel's brain surgery, Mr. incredible had an emergency appendectomy. Last week Rachel had purple/gray streaks in her hair for a few hours and my man got the worst sunburn on his face that I have ever seen. Oiy

5. With his red sunburned face, I started calling him my Red bull and saying, "how" (Indian for hi) whenever I saw him. He wasn't nearly as amused as I was.

6. I learned this weekend that I am not as young as I used to be. We helped host the all night after graduation party. I sat down for all of 30 minutes that night. And it took me all of Saturday to recover.

7. My daughter, on the other hand,crawled into bed at 5:45 Saturday morning, slept until two, and then had the energy to go on a date. Her daddy and I waved to her from the coach as she skipped to the door. To be young again.

8. We had enough energy to make it to church Sunday morning, lunch with friends and family, and then a major nap.

9. We drowned our sorrows about being old and feeling the aches and pains of being on our feet all night by treating ourselves to a Magnum bar. Have you tried them? We had our first one Israel but they are now in the states. They are amazing! We found ours at Walgreens.

10. It is just beginning to sink in that we are on summer break. Delight!!!

Ya'll have a blessed Tuesday.  It looks like we might just be blessed with some much needed rain today.

I've Been Tagged...Now You've Been Tagged!

So, I'm having another one of those feeling helpless to help my daughter kind of days. We were praying that Rachel's half days of school would be an easy transition back to school with minimal headache pain. After our wonderful experience with President Bush (yesterday's post) the headache pain intensified. By the time I got home from class last night, she was pretty miserable. Needless to say we are calling the Pediatric Neurosurgeon this morning.

I am doing all that I know to do to care for my precious daughter but it doesn't feel like it's enough. Do you ever feel that way? I know God is all sufficient and that He is sovereign and that He is very aware of Rachel's continual headache that has now lasted almost an entire month but my flesh is growing weary and I fear Rachel's is too. {sob!}

A dear friend of ours named Mrs. Jackie is celebrating her birthday in the hospital today. Her family is praying for a miracle that God would heal her and allow all of them more time together. I spoke with her husband yesterday and we cried together. They are such amazing people. Even in her courageous battle with cancer she and her husband are fervently praying for Rachel. For my Rachel! Isn't that humbling? When Jackie could be so understandably focused on herself, she and her husband are praying for us. And we are praying for them too!

I got to see them both yesterday at the hospital where Mr. Phil and I cried and prayed together. My heart is so burdened for them today. I left there and headed to class. With all of the things going on with Rachel, my body has kind of developed the shakes. I get cold so easily and then my body just starts shaking. It's the strangest thing and such a sight to behold, I'm sure.

Well, yesterday after visiting the hospital, my left eye started twitching. I went to class with my left eye twitching! It must have looked like I was winking at everyone. The more I tried to get it to stop, the more it twitched. Great! I had to explain that I wasn't winking to everyone around me and that I'm normally a pretty put together kind of girl, even though they wouldn't know it from looking at my shaking, winking appearance, and they just laughed. I'm just a mess, aren't I? I'm so thankful that God loves messes like me!

So, in order to divert my attention to happier things today I'm sharing a few of the awards that I have been blessed by this week and a fun meme from Debra. Wanna play too?

Debra at Clothed with Scarlet invited me to play the 10 things I love game. She gave me the letter "B" to work with. How fun! Here goes...10 things I love that start with the letter "B":

1. Bible

2. Barbia (my mom)

3. Beaches, especially Francis Bay and Cinnamon Bay in St. John, USVI

4. Books, yep I'm a nerd to the core....I hope to write a few some day

5. Blogging! It is so cathartic.

6. Blogging Buddies-ya'll are the best!

7. Brighton shoes and jewelry

8. Bargains-Free cereal tastes better than cereal I paid full price for, doesn't it?

9. Basketball games-watching my girls on the court

10. Blessings from the Lord-the ones we pray for and the ones He surprises us with. He is awesome.

So, do you wanna play along too? Let me know and I'll give you a letter. Just leave me a comment, please!

Karla at Ramblin Roads tagged me for the "5th photo in my 5th folder" game. Here it is:

This is a photo from our cruise in 2006. Fun memories to remember. My, the girls look so young in this photo!

And then I have been blessed with some awards from some wonderful friends:

BP at Raindrops and Rainbows is such an encourager and prayer warrior. I look forward to reading her blog each day as she shares what God places on her heart. She blessed me with this award. I love her blog too!

Deanna at Deanna's Diary blessed me with this award: (Deanna is a new friend. She is a wonderful encourager and her blog is delightful!)

This award is for ....."This blog invests and believes the PROXIMITY - nearness in space, time and relationships. These blogs are extremely charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in prizes or self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbons of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give attention to these writers! Deliver this award to eight bloggers who must choose eight more and include this cleverly written text into the body of their award.

And Michele from Michele's Morsals BEElieve blessed me with this (Go check out her blog. She handles every day with grace! God uses her to bless so many!)

And Brenda at Queen of Good Intentions blessed me with this "Blog Crush" award. I have a crush on her wonderful blog too! She can spend next to nothing and come home from any store with a bundle. I am in awe of her thriftiness!


Whew! I'm sorry if I overlooked any one. I am overwhelmed by all of your love and encouragement. It is my joy to get to share life with all of you. You bless me more than I'll ever be able to express!!!!!!

I may be breaking the rules, but I simply can't pick only 8 so, I'm picking all of you! Yep, I choose YOU to receive these awards. Please, take them and pass them on. You will never know the encouragement they offer. Thanks for being such a blessing to me!

Joyfully,

Kristi

Blog Award Blessings!

Imagine my surprise when I received these awards this week! Ya'll just blessed my socks off! You know from my posts lately, that life is full and very busy but thanks to the Great Provider, life is still very much full of joy and peace.

I've said it before, but to think that anyone bothers to stop by my blog and read about our life adventures just blows my mind. I didn't think this blogging thing would last a week and yet today is my 76th post. God is awesome!

My sweet friend Brenda blessed me with these two awards! Incidentally, I just love her blog too. She deeply loves her family, she keeps it real, loves to plan parties, she has fun finding good deals, and she loves to decorate. She is a girl after my own heart!

My new sweet friend Michele blessed me with these 3 awards! Wow! Her blog is full of inspiration and I just love her profile where it says, "The Lord has been teaching me to Live Simply, Laugh Often, and to Love Deeply." Thanks Michelle, for these awards and for your beautiful life of encouragement to others!

I wold like to pass all of these awards to:

Lea

Kim

Erica

Heather

Have fun sharing the blessings!

Joyfully,

Kristi

Sharing the Love & Gratitude Awards!

An award for me? Wow! Thank you Kim!!!!

The rules of this award are: SHARE THE LOVE!!!

Share this award with all those blogs out there that you love.

All the people who make you smile. All those that make you laugh.

All those that make your day. All those that leave uplifting comments on your blog.

**All I ask, is that you include a link to this post with the award and ask your recipient to do the same**

Thank you Kim for this award! If I could give it back to you, I would. I don't know how you do it! You are almost always the first to leave a comment on my blog. I look forward to your posts everyday. Thanks for letting me help with your new blog look. It was a blast!

So many of you bless me by visiting my blog. That's why I wrote about you on my Thankful Thursday Post. So, I want to pass this award to all of you. Please, help yourself to this award and pass on the joy. It really is for a good cause.

Since I am a rule follower, I want to pass this award to:

Nikki is a very talented artist! I won her giveaway last week and I can hardly wait to receive these goodies. I'll post pictures whenever they come in the mail. She sells her items on Etsy. Warning! If you go to her Etsy site, you will have a hard time picking just one thing. I always enjoy seeing what she is creating and reading about what God is doing in her life.

Erica has become such a sweet blessing! She has two daughters, just like me, except they are much younger. She dresses them in matching outfits...I miss that sweet stage. She is a wonderful wife and mommy and I always look forward to reading her blog, seeing those precious girls, and reading about what God is doing in their lives.

Elizabeth! Oh, I'm so thankful for you. She is a talented and accomplished chef, and she is so creative. She was the sweet friend that generously explained how to make a diaper cake. (See yesterdays posts). She has a heart for the Lord and for her family.

Denise gave me my first award. I want to "Share the Love" back to her. Her blog is so much fun! This last week she invited all of us on a Tour of Homes. I would have missed out on the fun without her. She always leaves the sweetest comments and I so enjoy reading about her joy-filled life.

_________________________________________________________________

And...another award? OH, my gracious!

After a hard day (a day where I had to fight to keep my joy)

this was quite a surprise:

Melanie blessed me with Gratitude with Attitude Award. Thank you, Melanie! You are absolute joy and I am always blessed when I visit your blog!

I would like to pass this award to:

Denise at Shortybears Place. She has the most beautiful attitude of gratitude to our Heavenly Father. You are a true inspiration!

Cheryl at Hope for Each Day. No matter what is going on in her life or the life of her loved ones, she has a thankful heart. You too are an inspiration!

Angie at The Knightly News. Besides the song on her blog, which is one of my favorites, her heart plays a beautiful melody of gratitude to God in every post that she writes. Yes, another inspiration.

Please, visit these special blogging buddies when you can. You will be blessed!

An Award for Me???

I have to say that I was so surprised to receive this blessing! Thank you Brenda for this award! I have to admit, I often feel like I am just blogging just for myself. So, to find out that a few others stop by to see what God is doing in my life just amazes and thrills me! I'm so honored that you join me in this journey of faith. If anything is brilliant in me, I hope you see that it is the Lord. It is a humbling thought that somehow He chooses to shine His light through me. He is just amazing!

I'm just flabbergasted by this award, so I'm so glad you passed on the rules to me. Here they are:

Once an award is received, the rules are as follows:

1. Put the logo on your blog.

2. Add a link to the person who awarded you.

3. Nominate at least seven other blogs.

4. Add links to those blogs on your blog.

5. Leave a message for your nominee on their blog

I'm touched by so many of you brilliant bloggers, I just don't know where to begin. After all, you are the ones that inspired me to blog. So, with much thought, I am passing this award to:

1. Sunni at The Flying Mum . She is a fellow Baylor Bear and precious to the core! I look forward to reading her blogs on a daily basis. She is a fellow mom after my own heart with a fierce love for her dear husband, adorable daughter Ava, and the Lord.

2. Melodye at Morningsong. She took the time to help me with learning couponing and how to blog safely. I always enjoy reading about her joys in motherhood and the Godly wisdom she so beautifully shares with all of us.

3. Kim at Homesteaders Heart (aka Goofy Mama). She just cracks me up. I always look forward to reading her blog and seeing what is on her mind. She is a great encourager and a bright spot in my day. She was the first one to add me to her blog roll. Thanks for your fun friendship!

4. Laura at Organizing Junkie. She is the most organized person I know. I think the world of her encouragement to help others organize and stay organized. My family is so grateful for Menu Plan Mondays. We are eating better then ever and saving money too! Wow!

5. Kim and Patty at Siesta Fiesta . They have taken on quite a challenge getting all of us Siestas ready for the Living Proof Live Event next month! I enjoy their delight in sharing what God is doing through them for this event. They are incredible and I can hardly wait to meet them in person.

6. Melanie at The Fruits of the Spirit. She is a new blogging friend and a dear one at that. Not surprisingly, her blog is filled with awards. I always enjoy reading about what God is doing in her life and through her. She is beautiful inside and out!

7. Lori at I will take it Lord, all you have to give. She is a fantastic artist. God has blessed her with an incredible gift. Her Word Filled Wednesdays are always an inspiration. I'm so glad that she shares her gift with all of us!

8. AmyDeanne at the 160 acre woods. I so look forward to Word Filled Wednesdays. She is the gracious hostess. I am having so much fun looking through my camera lens and hearing God whisper a verse in my ear to go with the picture. I can't imagine my week without her insightful posts and Word Filled Wednesdays. It is a blast to be a part of this group.