Tea Dah-ling?

Every so often the kiddies and I enjoy a tea party, and yesterday was the perfect day for one! It was cool and rainy and a tea party was just the thing we needed to spice up the afternoon. We always dress in hats (they don't have to be fancy, just any hat) and usually we wear fancy shoes too. Little man decided that PJ's, a tie, and a newsboy cap were the perfect attire! Eva stuck with the ever popular green St. Patrick's Day hat and Easter shoes! On top of dressing up we also talk with English accents when we have tea parties - which is a riot to hear the little ones do!! We dress fancy, use fancy words, and talk with fancy accents!! Let me tell you...It's just a smaaashing gooood time dah-ling!

Simple Joy #17

The joy of just being silly! Is there anything better? As adults we can be silly, but I truly believe children bring out the best silliness in all of us!! Our family was recently eating a pasta meal and the kiddies were getting a kick out of sliding the pasta on their fingers like rings. We were all laughing and being silly together - one of my favorite things to do! I snapped this picture of Eva and I think it sums up the meal perfectly - pure silliness!!

Jon and Kate...do they even care about their 8?

Let's chat for a minute about the TLC show Jon and Kate Plus Eight. As long as you haven't been stuck in a hole the last year or so I'm sure you know which show I am talking about. I began watching this show occasionally when it first came out and promptly stopped because the way Kate would treat Jon would drive me UP a wall.

Many friends would bring up the show and I could not join in the conversation except to point out that I couldn't stand Kate's attitude towards her husband. Although I would always laugh and add that if I was raising 8 children under the age of 8 WHO KNOWS what my attitude would be like! Ha!

Well, last night was the season premiere and I can assure you my attitude would NOT be what I witnessed last night. Let me start off by saying I watched this premiere against my better judgement. Jon and Kate have been in the news a lot lately because they are having some problems "in paradise" so to speak. Jon and Kate's faces have been splashed on the cover of every magazine I pass in the supermarket. Soooooo....last night after the kiddies had gone to sleep my curiosity got the best of me and I turned on the season premiere.

I can NOT tell you how SAD it made me. Not for Jon. Not for Kate.

My heart was literally breaking for those poor children. They have never been asked for their lives to be broadcast to the world. They are so, so young. Yes, I'm sure they've had a lot of experiences they would have otherwise never had....but now their family is breaking up and it is happening on NATIONAL TELEVISION. I felt like I was watching a train wreck - but the passengers were helpless children - and I couldn't stop it.

I was FLOORED by the way Jon and Kate could not even sit on the same couch together. Helllooooo???!!! Your children will see this. Who knows...THEIR children could see this. I am just absolutely appalled that they would let this all play out for the world without thinking for a MOMENT about the impact this will have on their children.

Not only was I deeply disappointed in the decisions made by the Gosslin family, but I was also disappointed in TLC network for broadcasting this. Yes, I know...there is probably big money in it...but when did it become alright to exploit the feelings of children like that?

It bothered me....a lot. I actually woke up in the middle of the night and was thinking about it (yes, I can be crazy like that sometimes)!

So, I am curious about your thoughts on this. How do you feel about the show in general and the recent turns in it?

Memorial Day Weekend...in pictures.

Afternoon naps on the back porch

Fun with neighbors!

Fishing at the pond

Watergun fights!

More neighborhood fun

And a LOT of grilling out!

We were fortunate to have an absolutely beautiful weekend filled with quality time together, as well as with family and friends!

Getting down to the heart of the matter...

As many of you know, I recently spent 2 days wearing a heart monitor due to the fact that I passed out. The doctor wanted to see if there were any irregularities in the rhythm of my heart. I am happy to report that the results of my heart monitor, as well as 2 other tests, have come back completely normal. The doctor seems to think that my passing out was simply a result of standing up way too fast.

I want to thank all of you for the kind words, as well as the many prayers sent my way! Even though my heart told me all was fine...it was comforting to know I had family, friends, and even some of you that I don't know adding me to your prayer list. God is good my friends...all the time.

Hugs,
Jamie

"A true friend is someone who reaches for your hand and touches your heart"

--Anonymous

Protecting my babies...garden update #1

In the last week or so we've received numerous frosts in our neck of the woods. I covered my plants and the first frost we made it through with no problem.

But the second frost was much harder.

Even with covering my plants I lost nearly everything. Eva and I were sad about it, but not discouraged. We ARE learning after all!!

We lost all of our tomato plants, one of our basil plants, nearly all of our green pepper plants, and all of the flowers we planted. Still surviving were any seeds we planted, as well as 2 basil, and cilantro.

The kiddies and I made a trip back to our favorite nursery. We were told by the owner that they lost quite a bit too...which honestly made a rookie like me feel a little better. We bought a few more plants and another flat of flowers. We will be planting them today.

For those of you that are hoping to learn from my mistakes...this was one of them. I feel that I planted everything (except the seeds) too early. Everyone seems to tell you to plant around Mother's Day but next year I will wait until closer to Memorial Day.

Breathe.

I've mentioned previously how much I love driving on a sunny day...sunroof open, windows down, and a great tune on the radio. I truly believe it's therapeutic for me. It relaxes me and makes me smile. Today I saw my love of this transpired in my little ones...

We were driving home this afternoon on some back country roads. After spending quite awhile talking together Eva and Jaden asked for the IPod to be turned on (I still laugh when I hear Jaden say in his little voice, "IPod ON!!!" from the backseat). I turned on a great summer song, rolled down all the windows, and opened the sunroof. Eva and Jaden's faces immediately lit up...they know their mama loves to do this. I let the sun beat down on my head and the wind whip my hair all over. I took a deep breath in and exhaled deeply. I love this feeling. I was seriously soaking in every single minute of it.

And then I turned around to look at my little ones.

After some time giggling and singing along to the music they both got kind of quiet. When I turned around Jaden had his eyes closed, his arms straight out to his sides (as if he was flying), and the biggest smile on his face. The air from the windows blew right in on his face and my little guy was soaking in the feeling of the sun and the wind just like his mama.

His sister was just as quiet with her head tilted up and as close to the window as her booster seat would allow - letting the wind whip her hair around.

I smiled. So simple...but so important to me. I hope my children always find joy and peace in the simple things and I hope they always remember that in life the little things (like the sun on your face and the wind in your hair) are really the big things.