Tamara Lowe at Christ Fellowship

I thought this was pretty cool how she just laid it all down.

Shelley :)

Nice Day

Since it was so nice out (a little chilly) and the husband was home, me and 3 of the kids ventured out to the park. The park is within walking distance. Abbi rode her scooter and Shane rode his bike. Me and Brady followed behind. Here are a few of the pics of the day (sorry there is alot).

Brady at the beach.

Shane finding rocks at the beach.

My beautiful girl, Abbi.

Shane trying the monkey bars.

I had to document that I was indeed there.

Shane on the slide.

Brady swinging.

Shane meeting us at the swings.

My Brady Boo.

Abbi on the swings. See the Lake in the background??

Brady and Momma holding hands on the way.

Shane on his bike getting ready to go to the park.

Abbi is ready to get going on her scooter.

The peace and tranquility of the water. Thank you God for this awesome scenery.

Brady discovering something.

Blooming trees along the way.

Brady is ready to walk to the park.

Thank you all for taking a journey with me. I hope you all enjoyed the weather. God Bless.

Shelley :)

Dealing With Mommy Guilt

"I do not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth. This then is how I know that I belong to the truth, and how I set my heart at rest in his presence whenever my heart condemns me. For God is greater than my heart, and he knows everything." 1 John 3:18-20 (NIV)

I am trying so hard to meditate on this verse right now. To make it mine and take it in and believe its truth.

Being a mother is very hard sometimes. Today just kind of seemed like a wave of emotions of guilt were hitting me all at once.

Questions ramble through my head:

Am I good enough?
Did I go to far?
Am I not doing enough?
Am I messing up my child?
Am I giving her enough time to be a kid?
Why can't I just stay calm?
Why did I yell?
Do they love me?
Am I too strict?
Am I too lenient?
Am I as good as that mom?


Uggghhhh! Why do I let this sneak into my day and ruin what time I have left with my kids before its bedtime??

I stumble upon another verse that I need to ingest and make it mine.

"I am overcome with joy because of God's unfailing love, for He has seen my troubles, and He cares about the anguish of my soul." Psalm 31:7 (NLT)

Feeling this way is all too caustic and toxic to my life. My stomach is upset and I feel horrible, but I know tomorrow is another day. As I start to thumb through my book, this page opens up to this verse without any intention.

"I will listen closely to God's words. I will not let them out of my sight-I will keep them within my heart; for they are life to all who find them and health for the whole body." Proverbs 4:20-22 (NIV)

We stumble in life. Sometimes we feel like we stumble alot! But times like this, I know God's love is the hand helping me up when I stumble.

I love you, Abbi, Shane, Brady and Cullen and tomorrow will be a better day.

Meal Plan Monday 04.26.2010

Meal Plan Monday

Monday: Chicken Pot Pie

Tuesday: Pizza and salad

Wednesday: Breakfast for Dinner~ Eggs, Hashbrowns and toast

Thursday: Soup and sandwich nite

Friday: Whole Wheat Calzones

Saturday: Turkey Nachos

Sunday: Quiche and salad

U'neaks Giveaway :)

My friend Danielle at Finally Finding Me...I Think is having another great giveaway. She is giving away a pair of these really cute shoes for kids!! They have cut-outs in them so you can see the socks through the shoes, so your shoe can change everytime you change your socks. Head on over to her blog and get signed up for this awesome giveaway. Happy blogging.

Have a great week.

:)

Ice Cream Maker Giveaway

This sounds like a cool giveaway (ha ha, get it??)!! Finding Joy in My Kitchen is giving away not one but two ice cream makers. So, you need to head on over there and put in your chances to win, there is 3 ways. You could win just in time for summer, yummy!! Don't miss out, the deadline is ending on the 27 th of April.

An Award

I recently received this awesome award from Dona over at Allergy Kid Mom. Thank you so much for this award. Dona has a blog dedicated to the education of food allergies. She also reviews some cool products, so head over their and check out her blog. Thanks again Dona and have a great day. God Bless.


Here are the rules:


1. Copy and paste the award on your blog.
2. List who gave the award to you and use a link to her blog (or hyperlink).
3. List 10 things that make you happy.
4. Pass the award on to other bloggers and visit their blog to let them know about the award.


10 Things that Make Me Happy


1. God
2. My Husband, John
3. My beautiful children: Abbi, Shane, Brady, and Cullen
4. Mom to Mom Sales
5. Really good friends
6. Being outdoors hiking, biking, rollerblading or just enjoying nature
7. New recipes
8. Large Diet Coke from McDonald's
9. Comments from followers on my blog
10. Days off of work or leaving work early


Here are some deserving blogs I am passing this award to:

1. Finding Joy in My Kitchen
2. Life As Mom
3. Heavenly Homemakers
4. Recipe Shoebox
5. Olive Tree

My Beautiful Day!

On thursday John and I went out for our anniversary date of when we first met. He started my day off with a little surprise. Homemade heart-shaped blueberry muffins and coffee were waiting for me before I headed to work. He placed notes in the bathroom and kitchen with I love you and a special note. He packed my lunch for me and put a little note in there too. It was an awesome surprise to open my lunch and see a sweet note from my honey. When I got in my car to drive to work, he put a note on my speedometer.


















He came up to my work and brought me a large McDonald's Diet Coke and a beautiful boquet of sunflowers. He included a beautiful note with my flowers, it made my heart melt.
















Then John arrived home from work and brought the babysitter. We were off to Olive Garden (man we are simple) and to Dairy Queen for dessert (ya know blizzards were on sale!!). Then we took our blizzards and sat by the water and talked. He originally wanted to take me to a little ice cream shop we went to when we were dating and then take a walk on the boardwalk, but it was about 41 degrees. So we opted for sitting in the car by the water and eating ice cream.





It was an awesome day to say the least. My husband is wonderful and I fall in love with him everyday! I loved all the little things he did for me!! Thanks for walking through my awesome day.

:) Shelley

15 years

15 Years...

Well, tomorrow, April 22, 2010, Earth Day will be the fifteenth anniversary of when John and I first met!! I noticed a little something on the calendar when I flipped it over to April. He penned in the anniversary, how sweet and thoughtful of him!!

This man that I have called my husband for almost 14 years is my best friend, love of my life and biggest supporter. He has my heart and always will.

He is the best father to our children!! He is always there to listen and think rationally when I am no longer!!

He has forever preserved our love on the tree by where we were married. We were married on July 26, 1996 on his parents property under a gazebo overlooking the pond. It was beautiful.

You can barely see the John - n - Shelley on the bark.

We have begun our life in Christ together about 3 years ago and John has become such an amazing man in Christ. He mentors young men every Monday at our church. These young men come from some really difficult backgrounds and circumstances, and John is always there to lend a hand or just listen.

I love him more and more every day. Life isn't always peachy, but I know with John by my side, I know we can get through anything.

I am so glad I can call John my husband and I am so excited to see what God has in store for us.

Tomorrow John is taking me out for a trip through time and dinner. I will let you know all about it.

I love you, John and I always will!

Meal Plan Monday 04.19.2010

Meal Plan Monday 04.19.2010

Sunday: Chicken Corn Chowder, Homemade French Peasant Bread and Mini Apple Pies
Monday: Chowder and Sandwich
Tuesday: Frozen Pizza
Wednesday: Spaghetti Bake and Homemade Bread
Thursday: Chicken Pot Pie
Friday: Hotdog Corn Muffins and french fries
Saturday: Quiche and salad

Hope everyone has a great week of cooking :) Shelley

Homemade Bread

Ok, this is my first try at homemade bread. I eyed a certain recipe from Recipe Shoebox called French Peasant Bread. It looked pretty easy with only 5 ingredients, so I thought I would try it. We are also making homemade Chicken Corn Chowder and Mini Apple Pies (Heavenly Homemakers for dessert. They are all still in the cooking stages so I will have to let you know how it went later, but for now here are pics of what they should look like. STay tuned for my "after" pics to see if they match. Hope everyone had a blessed weekend and have a great week ahead :) Shelley



This is my bread.









































Heavenly Homemakers apple pies.




























My mini apple pies.














Recipe Shoebox French Peasant Bread.


All in all, I think I did pretty well. Whoo Hoo!! I can make delicious food. I am such a goof!! Oh well, have a great week. :) Shelley

Attention All Scrapbooking Peeps!

My friend Danielle at Finally Finding Me...I Think is doing it again!! She is having an awesome giveaway. For all you scrapbookers, this one is for you! I never have been a scrapbooking sort of gal, but this seems right up my alley. I am too ADD to sit and scrapbook so I thought this is the perfect solution to still have awesome pages in your scrapbook or photo album. Check this out and you can win this Scrapbook Artist! Whhoo Hoo.

Another Great Giveaway!!

My friend Danielle at Finally Finding Me...I Think is having another great Giveaway!! She is having a DVD or CD giveaway from Rock N' Learn . These are great educational DVD's. I know, I won the Multiplication DVD from Danielle at her last Rock N' Learn Giveaway. My kids love the Multiplication DVD and has helped their learning. So, check it out and possibly win and check out her other giveaways!!

Daybook Entry 04.15.2010

My Daybook for April 15, 2010
Outside my window...warm and sunny about 81 degrees
I am thinking...about Abbi's Honors Assembly tonite
I am thankful for...friends who uplift you, you know who you are!!
From the kitchen...hearing the coffee pot
I am wearing...gray zip up hoodie, gray jeans and gray t-shirt(I sure wear alot of gray)
I am creating...time with my two littles
I am going...to an Honor's Assembly tonite
I am reading...about my friend Danielle's giveaway for phonics DVD
I am hoping...to get some sleep (It has been a rough week)
I am hearing...bird chirping and the wind blowing outside
Around the house...clothes that need to be put away
One of my favorite things... a large McDonald's Diet Coke for a $1.06!!
A few plans for the rest of the week: work, mom to mom sale, church and ACLS class (ughhh)
Here is picture for thought I am sharing...I love being outside. I love to hike and I love taking picture of being outside. I just love how God created so many beautiful things to see when you are on a hike. So here a few pics of nature I took. :) Shelley

Wordless Wednesday 04.14.2010

Meal Plan Monday 04.12.2010 (Oopps, a day late)

Meal Plan Monday 04.12.2010 ( I am a day late, but refer to my post from yesterday and you will know why).

We tried a new recipe on Sunday and it was delicious. They were chicken, spinach and parmesan hot pockets. I found this awesome recipe from SnoWhite at Finding Joy in My Kitchen.

Monday: Macaroni and cheese with veggies. (Homemade mac and cheese from freezer)
Tuesday: Frozen pizza and small green salad
Wednesday: Enchilada Casserole and rice (freezer)
Thursday: Taco Pasta Toss from my friend Jeni at Lovin My Home
Friday: Chicken Pot Pie with salad
Saturday: Brocoli and cheese quiche and salad

Sounds like a good week, so we will see how it goes. Anybody else planning any tastey dishes??
God Bless, :) Shelley

Storytime Bear Giveaway!!

My friend, Danielle at Finally Finding Me...I Think is having another awesome giveaway. She is giving away a cute bear set with a book and a cute outfit. You have to totally check this out to win something cute!!

Not Having A Good Day!!

Ok, you are going to listen to me rant for a minute. I just need to and then it will be over. The day started off fine, saw a beautiful sunrise this morning on the way to work and thanked God for his beauty. Work was work and I survived!! Then I had a doctor appt after work for my ever aching feet. The news was not what I wanted to hear!! They took some x-rays of my feet and confirmed I have plantar fasciitis and heel spurs on both feet. Ok, I knew I had plantar fasciitis for awhile but it would usually subside after a week or so. Not now, it has been here for over a month and I hurt and I hobble, it isn't fun. Then I am given a referral to the podiatrist, where he will probably fit me for orthotics. These could run me anywhere from $250 to $400, oh and the insurance doesn't cover that!! (Great, why do I pay insurance premiums if they don't cover anything, just a question??) So, I leave a little miffed and deflated. I get home to my four kids and the babysitter. But, before I enter the home the neighbor across the street tells me that a boy down the street was shooting bebe's at my cat and he called the police. Oh, great. Where is my cat? Is it dead? One more thing to deal with. Hmmmp! Get in the house to my son sitting on the couch with a face that you know something is wrong. The babysitter told him not to be in the street and he did anyway!! Moving on, I start dinner. All the while, 2 of the 4 kids are crying, one is hungry and the other is teething. I am starting to lose it at this point and my head is throbbing. I call my husband to tell him about the cat, while he is tutoring high schoolers and I begin to cry!! I am sick of finances, neighbors, ailments, LIFE!! Then I see the neighbor girls leaving Abbi (my 9 yr old daughter) to go play somewhere else that I don't allow her to play, so now she is upset. There is one girl down the street that knows Abbi can not play at her house because I can not see her from our house. This little girl will come and play and then take all the kids to her house to play leaving Abbi behind, this upsets my daughter and me!!

Whew! That was long, sorry about that!! Anyway, my husband comes home to comfort me and help for a few. He has a young men's ministry on Monday nights, so he leaves tutoring, comes home and is back at church. His hug and kisses really helped. All the while, he is hugging me and I began to cry, my daughter Abbi sums it all up! She says, " God will provide, you must trust in him!!". Then my hubbs reminds me of the saying I put on the dry erase board that I need to put back up, "Worry Ends, Where Faith Begins!!". Enough said. My daughter is making chocolate chip cookies, and I am drinking my Diet Coke and two Excedrin Migraine have been ingested. Thanks for listening. Have a great day :)

Abbi my voice of reason. Love you Abbs!