Please Don't Let This Pass!

I was preparing our Thanksgiving dinner and left a large pot of stock on the stove to simmer down, while I went to get dressed for the festivities!
Everything was going PERFECT!!!  (First alarm)
Turkey was yummy, mashed potatoes and green bean casserole were getting warm!  I re-seasoned the stuffing so it would be to our standards and I put the Sweet Potato casserole in the microwave, ready to heat!
As I was getting ready, specifically, showering and just putting on my make-up (uh-hum still in my undergarments)
I heard the smoke alarms sounding and not just the battery operated ones, the hard-wired smoke detectors (I promise I have 10 smoke detectors in my house, 3 hard-wired and the rest added by the previous owners), I began to run down the stairs, hubby handed me a robe from the bathroom (my daughter's pink robe, that I wrapped around myself) and I ran down the stairs to find my kitchen glowing ORANGE!!
My stock had overflowed and  caught my kitchen on fire!
I sent the kiddos outside to dial 9-1-1 (important to say exactly that and not the fire department or emergency)!
I ran upstairs to get some clothes on
and then met my kiddos outside to wait for the fire department!
Hubby put the fire out and the fire department showed up, just after!
As we greeted them, because we know most of them, they continued to take over our house!
I consoled each one of our kiddos as they "freaked out" individually, in their own time!
and We all realized what blessings we have in front of us!
We celebrated Thanksgiving, at my in-laws home and thanked God for all his blessings!
We returned home to house full of soot and smoke and stink and a kitchen demolished!  All we could do was thank God for our blessings and that
As a family.........
Sunday night.............
we came HOME.....from celebrating Thanksgiving with a loving family.........
and laid our heads on pillows,
that wreaked of smoke.................
and all I could do was...................
Thank God for family and the love we share..........
and Secondly, I thanked Him we were home!!!!!!
smoke filled, soot dirty, stinky, no kitchen, tear filled........HOME!!!
Third, my mind turned toward the fire fighters that arrived and saved my home, made us safe, consoled myself and my family and even made us laugh in the midst of my anguish!
I have so much to be thankful for and I'm lucky enough to be thankful in my home at the address He has given me, with the same phone number He has blessed me with!
Yes, this mess will soon pass.......but I pray, our thankfulness that has come upon us, this day, will NOT PASS!  This kind of thankfulness should be there daily!
I think it is, I think it just takes a fire......to polish it off and bring it to the for-front and lose the junk that bogs it down!
I pray this kind of thankfulness stays around!!!  PLEASE DON'T LET THIS PASS!

Celebrating Us

We and I mean Hubby and I, headed off to vacation, sans les enfants!!  It was beautiful and exciting.  I (we) looked forward to vacationing together, just the two of us.
We set out for our cruise!!
We did enjoy ourselves!
And it was fun!
I loved having the time alone with my hubby!
BUT.....
 I missed the kiddos!  I thought it would be easier to leave them as they got older.  We have always made it a point to take a vacation, just the two of us, every few years!  I always say, it's important for us to go on our own because I have to like hubby when the kiddos are gone and if everything is always about raising them and taking care of them, where is the time invested in us!  It was difficult to leave them this time!  The most difficult ever!
I think it has to do with knowing they are closer to the age of leaving home, then they are the age of living at home!
              I missed them terribly
(bad attitudes and all)!
Now that's pretty bad!
We did celebrate us and we did enjoy one another, but I don't think a week long vacation alone, is in our near future!  I want to soak up every minute I can with my kiddos!
Of course, after a few eye rolls and a few heavy sighs, I'll be changing my tune!!
  Funny how that works!!

One Truck + Two Girls =

A good moving company??? 
Truck, keys, cell phone, money and COFFEE!!
And off to Heather's!!  We had to get her moved this weekend! 
We started moving her the day before with HELP, alot of HELP!  But there was only a lil more to get by the next morning, so we made a plan and ATTACKED!
~sorta~ (more like we got attacked)
Our mouths stopped moving, ONLY, long enough to pick something up and get it to the truck!  At some point (we were carrying something down the stairs) Heather said to me: "two girls and a moving truck"!  hmmmm keeps me thinking (good business move or bad idea) either way "it's cute and could be a busy business" I replied!!
We move stuff out to the truck and we load it in!  Best way we know how to make it fit!  It all had to fit, we're short time and gotta get it done!
Truck's loaded!
Doors closed and we take off to our destination!
Yep you guessed it, mouths moving!
We turned the corner and drove off down the road
"HEY.............HEY" we heard from down the road!
Check the rear view mirror and there's a mattress on the ground!  Sucker flipped right out of the side of the truck!  Nope, we didn't tie it down! (That would take precious time)
Nice Guy and I might add, good lookin',  helps us get it back into the truck and says "you need to tie it down" (I think he repeated himself 43 times).  OK, I got rope!  Rope that's tangled and I mean TANGLED!  I untangle the rope (which took 10 minutes) it must have been 100 feet long!  While I continue to untangle....Heather and Nice Guy start rearranging the truck to make sure that it all STAYS inside the truck!  Mattress on the ground AGAIN!!  Mattress back in the truck!!   Mattress on the ground!!  Mattress back in the truck!!  NOW STOP REARRANGING!!  I'm untangling!  Heather's rearranging and Nice Guy is directing! (laughing out loud the whole time, oh ya, me TOO!!)
BTW, we are in the middle of the road and the truck is still running! (Shut the truck down Chrissy-truck is shut down now)
Anywhoo,  ropes finally untangled (with a few jokes) after a few more "almost there's" and a few comments taken the wrong way (still funny nonetheless)! 
During all this; neighbor lady brings out cookies to Nice Guy!  Hmmm, I wanted some cookies!!  (I still can't believe neighbor lady brought out cookies for him during our chaos)
There is far too much laughter going on, considering the chaos and we are short time and we need to get this done!!
Nice Guy is back in truck (it's my evil plan)
OK NICE GUY says wrap the rope around the furniture..........Nice Guy is right in the middle of the furniture!  So, he get's wrapped up tooo, right?  Hmmmm, this is where he tells us he has a "fiancee"! 
After all that work and all the laughter.............Now he tells us!
Nice neighbor lady, with cookies, NOT the fiancee!!
I would've planned a better place for the mattress to fall off the truck.......had I known he was "unavailable"!!
2 Girls + 1 Truck would be an ok moving business, but I thought it was going to be a "dating service"!

One Line and The Life it Took On!

 My FB Post:

Dude! Next time, you want to tell me what's good for my health, take the cigarette out of your mouth first! I'm just sayin'!

A friend posted: Lmao.....you know that's not good for you.....*coughing*
Another friend posted: LOL!!
Another friend posted: LOL they were speaking from experience obviously!
Another friend posted: OM GOSH, that is too funny!!!
Another friend posted: SO TRUE SO TRUE!
Another friend posted: what's better then a doctor that smokes? Or a fat doctor? answer:....nothing.... we're all human... so let it be... let it be... whispering words of wisdom let it be...
That friend posted: that was deep... didn't think i had something like that in me did ya Chrissy?
I replied:  Wow Crazy deep!
Another friend posted: u should write that down Ben that could be a hit u never know
a friend posted again:  sorry but I can't "Let It Be"......if you want to smoke, stay out of my air space please....thank you!
Another friend posted: lol
Another friend posted: I used to smoke and I don't think that it is Anyone elses  business to tell me what to do so for all you smokers PUFF PUFF to ya'll
Another friend posted:  LMAO...love it too...seriously.....
Another friend posted: I must agree with another friend  :)
Another friend posted: Thanks
Another friend posted: wow... love the love... a hit from me to all you... let it be...
Another friend posted:  Wow, this post went places I didn't even think about! I was posting on the irony! Isn't that the way it goes, we can tell everyone else what is wrong with their health and how to do it right and at the same time, be damaging our own health! If you wanna smoke, fine, just find a corner to puff in, cause I HATE the smell of smoke and when it gets in my hair, UGH!
I posted: I have another foreman at work that smokes and when we are doing the turnover it takes 3 minutes longer, all because of his "smokers cough" and everyday, without fail, I tell him "you want me to light you another cigarette?"
I posted to some friends: Y'all were with me!
To a couple of other friends:  I totally agree, don't smoke in my space, smoke in the corner that has been offered to you!
I posted to another Friend:  . I get the whole "choice thing" I get that we live to make our own choices, but really don't smoke next to those that don't, it's a respect issue! Puff away in your designated area! You say you used to smoke, why did you stop? I have a hubby that smokes and is ashamed of the fact that he smokes! He doesn't smoke in front of people, especially people that don't smoke, because he knows it is, not only damaging to his health, it damaging to other peoples health!
I posted to  another Friend:   I know your heart! I get where you are coming from and continue digging deep into your soul, I love you and your big'ol heart! ...
Another friend posted: Wow! My sis smokes but she's always respectful of me as I am of her with it too. We get along and I don't say much and neither does she. Just respect for others is all. Each to his own until it's killing mine....then, well.

Isnt' it crazy how you say one thing and it takes on a life of it's own!!!

Windy

I am in awe over the entire name-sake thing! I knew what I was doing when I named my daughter after my sister!
I knew I was asking for her to be like Windy! I knew it and I love it!
I didn't take EVERYTHING into consideration! I took her personality, her heart, her love, her passion, her friendship, her sense of family, perseverance, her willingness to speak the truth and nothing less! I took so many things into consideration! I wanted my daughter to be named after her Aunt! It made sense and it blessed myself and my husband. We asked for her to be Windy! God blessed us with a baby girl and I don't think she was even a minute old and we said her name was Windy. There wasn't a dry eye in the room, nurses included. Larry waited on me to say it, but he knew.
Truth be known, Larry really named all of our kids. I just ok'd the names he came up with.
My daughter is named after two very special people in mine and my husbands lives! She is named after my sister and we gave her Larry's mom's middle name.
Her name just flows!
In the days and months, leading up to her birth, we really knew what we were asking for! We knew, if this one was a girl, what her name would be.
Windy has all those characteristics that we love about her Aunt and we are blessed every day by it. I love saying Windy's name and spelling it for someone, it's a unique spelling, just like both of the girls! I love the pride my sister had when she said/spelled her name. Ya's is working on all that part! She has pride in her name, but she doesn't carry the frustration over people spelling it wrong or saying it wrong, she really just let's it be. I think she is confident that she knows her name and so it doesn't bother her that others don't get it!
What I didn't stop to think about, is how fast my sister grew up! How she understood people and their hearts at such a young age!
I'm so thankful I didn't stop to question and think into the future. I'm so thankful that she has a fun nickname, she gave to herself as a baby! 
She's growing up so fast....she's maturing at what seems to be a fast rate!  I still feel like I should be cuddling  her and holding her in one arm.  But she quickly reminds me that she's growing up.  She gets things and people so quickly, I didn't take that into consideration when we named her.  By getting people and having a heart for them, she also gets hurt, but it doesn't seem to stop her. 
She's a giver alright! 
Her appearance...................I really didn't take that into consideration when we named her!  I can't get over her appearance and her mannerisms!  They are my Sister's!  She didn't meet her, she only knows the stories she's been told.........so where did she get them?  Yep,  Windy is very much like her Aunt!
I'll take it!!

Halloween 2010

I absolutely love love love Halloween!
I'm not so much into the scary and the gory!  But I love the make believe!  I love the "idea" that kids can dream and be whatever they want and I think, if promoted properly, kiddos can believe that they can dream big, for life!  I'm just sayin' that's my hope!
I love the community that Halloween promotes!  It has the community out together on one night, just before we all get shut-in for the winter!
OK, so the "big one" was too cool to join in on the festivities with a costume, he did head out into the community and enjoyed his time saying hello to friends!!  He didn't t/t either :( When did he get too old to trick-or-treat?!  
It's a time of year where it's OK to have a fire pit in the front yard and it's ok to chat with kiddos and give them compliments and they can accept the compliment!  It's a day/night where the parents are out with their kiddos or the neighbors kiddos and it's ok to say hello to the neighbors!

I walked with my kiddos and my nephew and his friends and I met a few new people along the way!  It was ok to chat with neighbors that were strangers, until this night!  It's a night where the grandmas and grandpas of the neighborhood got to see all the kiddos and for those that didn't want too, it's ok just to turn out their lights and ignore all the "goings on"!

For me, Halloween promotes the "idea" of real community!  Coming together as one, even if just to celebrate.  It's a time where all the "stuff" that isn't supposed to matter, really doesn't matter!
This year I got to go back and celebrate in the neighborhood where my kiddos, until the past two years, have grown up "trick-or-treating"!  It was fun!  Even more fun was running into past neighbors and their kiddos and having the kiddos come by, just to say "hi"!  My heart melted, like chocolate!  The neighborhood kiddos, took time out from their candy-chase just to say hello!
I believe that their coming by was a direct product from the years of celebrating Halloween as a community!
Big time, thanks to my cousins for opening up their home, so we could enjoy Halloween festivities the way we always have and enjoy our neighborhood!  I'm so thankful!

These kids grow up sooo fast, it's nice to slow down and just enjoy an evening, where we let all the 'stuff that's gotta be done' go and we just enjoy our neighbors and our family!