Birthday Blessings/menu

Wow! I have to say that this was one of the best birthdays I have ever had. On my birthday eve (Monday) the kids gave me Wheel of Fortune for the Wii (I love wheel and the kids always tell me I should go on the show:) ). My brother also sent me a card and a yummy gift certificate to be enjoyed later;). Tuesday morning I woke up to see cards and things my kids made me. I also found a Kindle Fire that my wonderful husband surprised me with!! I went to the gym and got a compliment from the instructor that gave me the boost I needed and then ate brunch with another friend and her kids. I played on the kindle and got so overwhelmed by all the birthday greetings on face book. Another friend came over and surprised me with a gift. Then to top if off I had dinner with my family at the Outback and came home to some wonderful cheesecake!! (yes, I need to head back to the gym now.....especially since there are leftovers)! Thanks everyone for making it such a wonderful b-day for me!!

cool decorating

sconces with moss balls
bowls over the headboard

Lilly pad plates (I might have to get a couple of these)

chandelier made of spoons

one made of spoons and forks

several candle sconces put together

I haven't been out with friends in a LONG time, so I was long over due. I went out this week with my friend, Heather. Heather and I used to go to church together and we were pregnant at the same time. Her oldest daughter is two weeks behind Joshua. We went to this restaurant called Relish, and it was soooooo good! I look forward to going back. After we were done we went to Crabtree mall and went to a few stores. We went into a new store called Arhause (our house). I absolutely fell in love with the furniture and decorations, however, I would never be able to afford any of this. I would love to make my own combinations with cheaper things.

news

I got a little slack last week in posting. I didn't even get my menu posted......I'll get that posted again on Wednesday. I'm so excited to report that I am down 14 pounds:) It is such a long process. I wish my lower body would start losing instead of just my top portion. I'm still continuing the couch to 5k routine too.....I actually switched to a phone app so that I don't have to watch the time, the guy just tells me to start running or walking (thanks Sara). It's called "ease into 5k" but it is so close to the other. Yesterday afternoon in between church services Jack and I went out. He easily ran his 5 miles (not 5k, but 5 miles!!!).....I struggled, but I stayed with my routine for the day. I kept walking after my routine was finished and then Jack came around for the last lap (we were at Clayton Park) and I went around with him. I was so excited to actually jog with my husband. Haven't done that ever in our relationship! Of course, he had to slow down drastically for me, but I did it. I'm not sure if I will ever get to the 5k, but I'm trying. Slow steps I guess. I hope this 5k dream is not just a big joke for me.

Beach!

My roomie on the right and next door neighbor:)

Anne trying to play a trick on Alice using real dog poop (long story)

just chillin"

me and Melinda

that must be good!

I was very blessed to get away over the weekend. We had our church ladies retreat at Emerald Isle. I loved every minute of it. I never laughed so hard. It was so good to get away from the stresses and relax and get to know other ladies. I loved waking up to the sound of the ocean and feeling the sand between my toes!!

Casting Crowns

I bought tickets back in November for this concert, and finally Friday we got to go. I love this group. I love how every song is a sermon. I love how they are all youth workers/leaders in their churches, I love how the walk the talk. I love how he stops and tells about why he wrote the song and then the song becomes more precious. I loved how he told how God sees our beginning and our end and everything in between, even though we can't seem to fit the puzzle pieces together. I love how he wrote The Voice of Truth even though he had dyslexia and ADD and listened to the Voice of Truth instead of all the other voices. I just loved this concert. I loved the girl that opened....such a sweet, soft, gentle voice. I loved Matthew West. I knew a lot of his songs (even though I didn't realize it was him singing it). I might buy a CD of him. I loved to watch Jenna singing:) It was just a great night.

Prices

Am I the only one who is getting discouraged at prices? Everything is going up. Every time I pass the gas station the price has gone back up!! I can't even imagine how much it would cost to fill my van all the way up. It's bad when your little Toyota Corolla costs over $45 to fill up!! Another thing that has gotten me is the price of food. I know partly that is because gas prices have gone up....but seriously? I usually could get out of the store for $80-85 a week......not any more! Last week I spent $101 at HT and I even had some coupons. Today I went to Walmart to get groceries and still spent $69 and still have to go to get my meat. It's discouraging because Jack has this house on a TIGHT budget and I try to be very very wise when it comes to buying food and necessities for our family, so it's killing me to see that I'm not in budget anymore. Thankfully I have a wonderful husband who recognizes that I'm trying to stick to budget and realizes that the grocery budget will have to be revamped. So now I guess I will be excited if stay at $100 and I'll jump for joy if I can come below the $100 mark. I'm curious though......how much do you spend on groceries? Are we spending too much??

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

I try to do one craft a week with Hannah. I found out today was Dr. Suess day (I knew it was coming but forgot when it actually was). I was going to paint her hands and make thing 1 and thing 2, but I didn't have any blue paint, so I traced her hands and did one fish two fish. I still need to take a white crayon and make some bubbles, but otherwise it is done.