Weekend Wedding

We are getting ready to spend our weekend at a wedding. One of our friends is finally getting married! His bride-to-be is from a place 3 hours from where we live. So, they compromised and are getting married at a half way point. Tonight we will be driving to the rehearsal and coming back home. Tomorrow, it's back to the wedding location by 11:00 a.m. We are going to stay Saturday night, which will be nice! The kids are staying with my in-laws. They also have some cousins staying there which they will really enjoy. I'm looking forward to spending time with all our friends and celebrating. It's actually nice sometimes to go to a wedding without the kids. It's kind of a mini-vacation! The weather is supposed to be really nice 76 degrees and sunny.

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I hope you all enjoy your weekend as well!

The Smell of Avon

I like to buy my kids Avon bubble bath. I think it bubbles up so much more than the kind you buy at the store. Anyway, a couple of months ago when I decided to buy it for them I bought the kid scented one. When it was time to replenish our bubble bath supply I noticed that Avon was having buy one get one free so I bought the kid scent and one of the Pink Rose. My mom always bought me the pink rose when I was a kid because at the time there wasn't a "kid" scent. So, when I first used the pink rose for the kids the wonderful smell filled the air and took me back in time! It smells like my childhood bath time and that is so relaxing. It's amazing how certain smells will trigger memories, and for me it's the smell of Avon that takes me back in time. :)

Tragedy Update

After almost a week there are finally some answers in the tragic house fire that took the lives of 4 kids and one adult. The fire was intentionally set by a 10 year old boy. It is believed that he also lived in the house, but of course that information is not being released to the public. The police say that although the fire was intentional the outcome was not. I can't even imagine being a 10 year old and realizing that I've killed 5 people. He's been charged with Arson and 5 counts of murder. They are holding him at a juvenile detention center for his own protection. In all honesty this only makes the tragedy more tragic. The memorial service for 3 of the children is being held today. The fire was directly across from an elementary school and the playground fence was tarped so the children couldn't see it. The tree in front of the house and school is surrounded by candles, stuffed animals and notes of sympathy. It's been a sad week in our small town.

Pink!! Dyson!! Yeah!!

http://www.5minutesformom.com/2334/dyson-pink

Those wonderful ladies at 5 Minutes for Mom are giving away a pink Dyson vacuum cleaner! I want it!! I love pink! Dyson and Target are working together to raise money for Breast Cancer and this is why they have made a pink Dyson sweeper. How cool!

Friday Favorite

I decided to start something here on my blog. I know a lot people do things like Wordless Wednesday and Thursday Thirteen. I want to do a Friday Favorite. On Friday I will share something I consider one of my favorites!
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My first Friday Favorite will be fleece blankets. There is nothing like curling up under a fleece blanket on a cool fall evening. Fleece is super soft and fuzzy, and keeps you extra warm. I even make fleece blankets for my kids. My son has always loved them and insists on having one even in the summer!

The Lesson I Teach

One of the most important lessons that I try to teach my children is accepting others for who they are. I try hard as an adult to be open to what other people choose without making any judgements on them. I don't think we always have to agree with people to be able to get along with them. This is why I say that I want my kids to accept people as they are. I'm not saying be friends with everybody no matter what. I just want them to accept and not judge people who believe or live differently than they do.

Small Town Tragedy

The small town I live in has suffered a major tragedy this week. On Sunday morning I was coming home from my mother-in-law's house when I saw a huge amount of black smoke filling the horizon. As I got closer to town I could see that the smoke was coming from the area of downtown where both of my parents have businesses. So, I drove that way to make sure it wasn't there buildings on fire. There were many fire trucks, ambulances and police cars in the area. I could see that it was duplex on fire and I went on home. I really just figured that it was a big fire and they were taking extra effort to keep it from spreading to the local business area, but I was very wrong.
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Everyone in our small town found out on Monday morning that the fire had taken five lives. Four of those lives were that of young children. The names of the victims have not been officially released, but many people already know who it was that passed away. I heard that three of the children were 6, 5 & 4. We know for sure that two people had to jump out of a 2nd story window to survive. I also heard that the 9-1-1 call was released on the radio yesterday. My husband heard it and he told me that if it came on and I was listening to turn it off. He knows I'm soft-hearted and a mother and he knew it would be too much for me. It was truly too much for him.

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No one knows yet what started the fire or why all these people were unable to escape. They have called in state investigators to try and figure out the cause.

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Of course we don't know the family's name yet, but please say a prayer for them. God knows who they are.

A Treasured Find

My husband and I cleaned out our garage yesterday. It definitely wasn't my idea of fun! However, I did find a treasure in there!
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As some of my regular readers already know, my Grandma has Alzheimer's disease. She is no longer able to share cherished memories or most times have a normal conversation of any kind. It's sad to think that along with her memory failing, her unique memories of family history are going with her. A few months ago when cleaning out some boxes of mine I found a story I had written about her in school. It was all about her childhood and I was thrilled! We still wondered where I had gotten the information though. So, yesterday in the garage I found two pages in my Grandma's handwriting, that contained her childhood memories. I was so happy. My Grandma isn't capable of writing anymore and to see those words, in her own writing was a beautiful thing! I now have something that I will always treasure.

It's Cold!

Wow! I woke up this morning to 40/50 degree weather. Just yesterday it was in the high 70's, so it was quite a change. I left my window cracked last night and that let in a fall breeze for sure. I made my kids put on long pants and jackets when we left the house. I can't believe that winter is just around the corner. I love the holidays, but I am definitely a fair weather gal. I don't mind fall, wearing sweatshirts and jeans, but I don't like the blustery cold that we get here in the Midwest. The last few years we've had lots of snow and cold. Enough to last me for a few years! Can you believe that summer is basically over?

Forgiveness

Someone in my life has recently hurt me very deeply. This person said some things about me that were cruel. There is no other word that describes the things that were said. I asked a good Christian friend of mine whether or not you always have to "forgive and forget." Of course I know in my heart that the answer to that question is yes. It was really weighing on me though and interestingly as I read a Christian site online I found a good answer that made sense.

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The article was about how forgiving someone doesn't mean that the person doesn't have to face any consequences. If a person has broken your trust and hurt you, you can forgive them, but you can also guard yourself more around them. You must forgive, but you don't have to give them back the trust they had before. It made sense to me that I should forgive, but yet I don't have to open the door to being hurt again. It doesn't make me a bad person to protect myself in the future.

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This whole situation is what has kept me from blogging lately. It's hard to focus on anything else when things like this happen.

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I have also struggled in the past with contributing to conversations that are of the gossip nature. I have come to realize how much these conversations can cause problems and hurt people. I'm focusing and working hard on not talking about other people or their situations.

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For those who read and responded to my daughter's Kindergarten post, thank you. She is still bored with school, but I'm trying to wait and see what the next few weeks bring. We have parent-teacher conferences next month and hopefully by that time we will have a better idea of where everything stands. Thank you so much!

One thing we learn

One thing we learn as parents is that there are always tough decisions to be made! My little girl started Kindergarten last week. She has a December birthday and that kept her from being able to start school last year. Over the summer my daughter taught herself how to read and is already reading at I would say at least a 1st or 2nd grade level. I have had many people, not just family, approach me before school started with concern that she would be bored and thus discouraged at school because she seems so ahead of the other kids her age. For example, next week at school they are doing, colors, shapes, sorting and the five senses. My daughter has know her shapes and colors since she was 3. The sorting and senses are something she also mastered quite a while ago. This week they were starting them on knowing words by site. She came home irritated that they wanted them to read single words rather than stories or books. I don't know what to do! A retired teacher suggested that we have her tested to see if she's in the right grade. She told us that if kids are bored they often don't end up working to their potential later. Then again, doesn't every parent think that their child is gifted? What to do?! If any of you are teachers or parents with more experience than I have, leave me a comment with your suggestions! I would greatly appreciate it!

Kindergarten

My little girl started Kindergarten today! The bus was forty-four minutes late picking her up. While we were waiting she said "It's my first day of Kindergarten and the bus is going to make me late!" She was so excited and woke up on her own this morning. Everybody keeps asking me if I cried. In all honesty, I didn't. She was so happy and excited that I was happy for her. I talked to her on the phone at the babysitters house and she reported to me that the first day was a little boring. If you knew my daughter that would be a completely expected comment. She also told me that she made two new friends today! I'm happy that it seems like it will be a good school year for her!