I must be doing something right

Often times as parents, we feel like failures

Well, guess what!

I finally had a moment that I can be proud of

Tonight I worked until 7:00PM

Picked up the boys from my parents house

Sped home

Picked out pajamas as Parker took a bath

When it was Spencer's turn, he said he needed me to come in

(I REALLY hope this boy gets some modesty some time soon,

I can't believe he's still okay with me being in the bathroom with him)

 but ANYWAY. . . . .

I was running around trying to get agendas signed, AR sheets filled out and on and on

Spencer said Mom, it's important!

Boy am I glad I sat and listened

BULLYING

Why are some kids so mean?

There were 3 boys hitting, throwing trapper keepers and tripping a boy at school

It's tearing at Spencer

I'm so glad he told me

Spencer is still laying in bed, wide awake
He's worried about this boy
and
worried he will lose friends if they find out he told on them

Are these REALLY friends?

I told Spencer that I was SO PROUD of him
He did the right thing

Bless his heart!

Every where I look

I can see his hands at work

God is Good

He's good in so many ways

Here are just a few things that have happened this week

Sunday at church

A baby was dedicated

Angela's water broke at 17 weeks

Baby Sophia weighed 3 lbs when she was born

She's a miracle and she's so beautiful

Kendra is pregnant!

This Mama will give anything to be a Mama again

http://kendraandryanwebster.blogspot.com/p/us.html

A friend of mine and her husband

have opened their hearts and home to foster some children

Their family of 4 will be growing by 2 this afternoon

They had 2 days to prepare for an 11 month old and a 3 year old

Their friends and family have shown them such great LOVE and SUPPORT

AND

A friend of mine had been struggling with work

She searched and applied for jobs but became discouraged

This gal is an AMAZING woman

She has lost a huge amount of weight on Weight Watchers

Recently she just quit her job to work at something she is so passionate about

She is now directing Weight Watcher meetings and loving it

A couple of weeks ago

I heard a sermon that really touched me

"How do you celebrate?"

Do you give God the glory for all the things he has done in your life?

Do you give God the glory when your spouse makes it home from work safe?

Do you give God the glory because you have a job to provide for your family?

Do you give God the glory because you have a warm home?

Do you give God the glory because your children are healthy?

God is Good

Give him the Glory

Top 10 (Jan.16 - Jan. 22)

Another week of memories being made at the Calcott house

#1- This happened last week but I wanted to tell you about it

Let me just say that I am SUPER proud of Spencer

Last Sunday we visited a new church

and I was nervous about how the boys would do

They knew NO ONE

Spencer decided to go down stairs (by himself) to children's church and had a blast

(Hopefully we can talk Parker into going sometime)

As a child, I would have been scared to death to go by myself

#2- Tuesday was twin day at school

Spencer and Caleb=Twins
Parker and Jack=Twins

#3- We got more snow
The boys are LOVING it

#4- Parker has been pretty lovey lately

I'm not sure what's going on

but

I'm okay with extra XOXO and I love yous

#4- Grandma will be in St. Louis for 10 days

I'm not sure how the boys are going to survive

#5- Amelia (yep, she's considered one of the kiddos)
has decided that she likes the dryer
I take the warm clothes out and she jumps right in
Note to self- Always check the dryer before I shut the door

#6-  Spencer was excited that his girl-friend came back to school
She had pneumonia and missed a week of school
The class made Get Well cards for her
Spencer's card had a picture of 2 kids making a snowman
HOW SWEET!

#7- Parker survived a NASTY nose bleed while at a birthday party
The gal next to us freaked- I guess she hasn't seen blood before
Poor Parker got embarrassed and we left early

#8- Chip helped the boys make their pinewood derby cars
Spencer will be racing his for Cub Scouts next weekend

#9- Spencer. . . . Oh I LOVE that boy
I gave Spencer a haircut on Sat. night
He sat in the chair and said, lets talk
So we talked
Some how we got on the subject of girls
Girls are just different
They are emotional and they get their feelings hurt easy
I told him that I better NEVER get a call from G (his girl friend)
telling me that he hurt her feelings
His response was- I never have, I never will (I'm sure he will at some point)
He told me that he's going to make G a millionaire by playing professional ball
I said- What if G just wants to get married and have babies
He said- I guess we'll have a girl sitting in the dugout

Oh Spencer, you have A LOT to learn but I like your style

These are the fun things I can't wait to show them when they are older


And I leave you with some pictures from this week

Amelia, GET OUT OF THE DRYER!

Hug those babies tight

Hug them tight

Smother them in kisses

Tell them they are loved

Spoil them rotten

I cried today when I came across this blog

Go get your box of Kleenex, I guarantee you will need them

http://randycourtneytripproth.blogspot.com/

It's heart breaking!

Here are some other blogs I follow,

http://kendraandryanwebster.blogspot.com/

http://patrickandashley.blogspot.com/

Is I weird that I follow such sad blogs?

I pray for these families daily

I can't imagine anything happening to my children

I remember being a first time mom and having Spencer being admitted to the hospital at 5 weeks old

I remember sitting on the floor in the ER as they poked and prodded trying to get blood

I remember his scream as they did the spinal tap

I remember telling my mom- but he's mine and I'm so attached

I remember the words - possible bacterial meningitis

I remember sitting in the hospital for days praying he would be fine

3 days later we were released

Some times I wonder how we got so lucky

We thank God that he only had a viral infection

It could have been so much worse

I question God quite often

WHY TAKE THESE PRECIOUS INNOCENT CHILDREN?

WHY?

This week one of my classmates will bury his son

Little Cole spent a huge portion of his short 5 years being too sick to be a little boy

I want to stomp my feet and scream

LIFE ISN'T FAIR!

All I can do is pray for these families

Give your children hugs

Tell them they are loved

and

Pray for their health and safety

PU for stinky days

Yesterday was one of those days that just STUNK

It didn't start off so bad

but by mid afternoon, my day had done a 180

It wasn't one thing that made it bad

It was just several little things

The infection in my nose is back - BUMMER

I had been using medicine that I had from the last time but it just wasn't cutting it

I called to see if I could get in the doctor and she's on vacation
I felt horrible which made for a crabby Mama

THANKFULLY, my doc called in some more antibiotics

and I'll be able to talk and chew pain free soon

I can't believe how much my nose must move when I chew - CRAZY

I emailed Parker's teacher about some concerns I had

Some times I just feel like a failure as a mother : (

He's doing great don't get me wrong

He's just a different kid than Spencer

and

I tend to compare the two

I know- SHAME ON ME!

This week I am working 5 days and 4 nights - Boooo

Why can't I just put my foot down and say - NO!
My house and chilren need me!

Miss Amelia has decided to bolt every time the front door is opened

So yesterday as I was letting a client in, she bolted

As my client stands in the kitchen, I'm outside chasing the cat

We were both a slushy muddy mess by the time I caught her

so the hubby gave her a bath

Then while I'm cutting hair, the hubby brings the cat to me
and asks is I can help trim a ball of poo and hair off her bum

Just what my client wants to hear

We attempted but after much howling like she was being beat

We decided she would get another bath
And what a NASTY job that was
This was when the day turned REALLY STINKY - Literally : )

Oh and why can't my children eat a meal without complaining
They may have to start making their own meals


I guess we have to have those stinky days to appreciate the good ones

Church and friendships

I hope those that read this post,

read it with an open heart

I have been attending the same church for the last 27 years

The church has hit some bumps along the way (What church hasn't?)

One of those pot holes was app. 6 weeks before the hubby and I were married

We could have walked away from the church

but it was the church I was raised in; I wanted to be married there
and we have continued to go

For the last couple of years we have wondered if Mulford is still where we belong

To be honest, I think we have stayed for the wrong reasons

I think we have stayed for the friendships and our comfort level

We decided it was time to step out of the box

We visited a new church yesterday

For the first time in a LONG time,

I left wondering what the next sermon would bring
I felt excitment and passion

Will we attend this new church?

I'm not sure

Maybe Mulford IS our church

We need to do some soul searching and find out

I want to thank you for your friendships

I have seen so many friendships broken when families leave a church

I hope this doesn't happen with us

We need more

 I hope that you pray for our family

as we seek to find a church that gives us what we need

Top 10 (Jan. 9 - Jan. 15)

I've decided that I am going to TRY to have a Top 10 post every week

My kids seem to be growing up before my eyes

and I want to make sure I document exciting things they/we are doing

and the fun things that are being said

I may not be able to come up with 10 every week

but I'll try my best

#1- Spencer got his new glasses this week

Within an hour they were scratched

(There will be NO MORE tackle football with the new glasses on)

#2- Gymnastics has started back up

Spencer is getting really good at his back tuck

#3- Parker has fallen in LOVE with jell-o

He told me I make the best : )

#4-  Parker told me he knows how it feels to wear high heels

It's hurtful!
He had been sitting on the potty too long and his feet fell asleep

#5- Parker had 3 tests this week

and got perfect scores on all 3

I'm SO glad he's FINALLY interested in learning

#6- We got snow this week

This was definitely a high light for the boys

They LOVE snow

and

I LOVE watching them play in it

#7- As a new years resolution

one of our goals is to give back and help others

Spencer asked if he could shovel the neighbors sidewalk

He did the sidewalk, while I did her driveway

#8-Spencer will be 10 next month

(Sniff Sniff)

#9- Spencer was upset he didn't have a 2 hour delay on Friday

He said he prayed the night before for a late start

My response was - Prayers aren't always answered the way we want

He has decided to move to Wilton so he can have a 2 hour late start

#10- Last night Parker and I were watching Say Yes To The Dress

A girl was trying on a dress that was quite low cut

Parker turned around, rubbed circles on his chest

and said

She needs a  little more dress right here!

I'm so happy he likes his girls that cover up

Tomorrow starts a new week

A new week with new memories

Here is a picture of my cutie playing in the snow

Look at those eyelashes!

Hopefully next week will bring some more snow

Happy 1/2 Birthday Pretty Girl

 

It seems like she has been ours forever

but it's only been 6 short months since we took this cutie home

My, how she has grown

and

What a beauty she has become

We adore this little girl !

Happy 1/2 Birthday Amelia Pearl!

We can't imagine life without you !

Celebrating good grades

I don't believe in paying my children for good grades

but

I do believe in celebrating their accomplishments

My boys are expected to do well in school

I don't expect all A's

 but A's sure do make this Mama proud

At our house we go by the saying

ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST !

Report cards came home this week

Spencer had all A's

and

Parker is doing great (He doesn't get letter grades yet)

Last night we celebrated

Homemade pizza (Daddy style)

Blueberry flavored popcorn (Parker's request)

and

CARS 2

Mom and Dad are proud of you boys !

Keep up the good work

and

ALWAYS DO YOUR BEST

Missing something

I'm definitely missing something

THE HOLIDAYS

Seriously, what happened to them?

I thought I was happy they were over

but I still find myself wanting more

I have been wandering the stores

looking at Christmas decor that has been marked down

I bought some Christmas cards for next year ($2.10 a box - SCORE)

The problem is - there are only 24

Will you be one of the lucky twenty four?

I still find myself wanting to play Christmas music

96.1 has gone pop again

DARN IT !

I have spent WAY to many hours on Pinterest

finding Christmas ideas for next year

Here's a sneak peek

The pins go on and on

I  can get these done if I start now

I'm trying to figure out if all of my issues are due to -
The lack of snow
My children growing up before my eyes
No plans for Christmas Eve day
No Christmas Eve service

Who knows!

I guess I'll just keep truckin along
because Christmas is over whether I like it or not

Are you feeling like Christmas left us in the dust this year?

Crafting again

I have been doing a little crafting again thanks to Pinterest

I had a birthday coming up and knew I wanted to make something special

It's simple and I LOVE simple

Thanks for the idea Amy

http://thenshemade.blogspot.com/2010/09/tiskit-tasket-little-green-paper-basket.html

I decided to fill my basket with different flavors of popcorn

Cinnabun

Honey Pumpkin Spice Caramel Corn

Moose Munch

and

Fruity (Strawberry and Peach)

 I put my basket with a liter of pop, a Family Video gift card and some fuzzy socks

I don't know about you, but I would LOVE a movie night for my birthday

2012 Resolutions

Every year I vow to forgo the resolutions,

they don't stick any way

but this year I am going to try VERY HARD

I bought a note book last week and wrote my resolutions on the first page

My goal is to look at the page EVERY DAY

I think the only resolution that stuck last year was ~ recycling

This year my list goes on and on

Here are just a few

#1 - I will step out of my comfort zone

#2 - I will become a more patient wife and mother


#3 - I will get my house organized


#4 -  I will save money


#5 - I will give back


#6 - I will exercise more


#7 - I will try at least 1 new recipe a week

I just started yesterday because we spent the first 2 days this year in Wisconsin

So far I'm not doing to shabby

What are your New Years resolutions?

       

New Years in Wisconsin

Last week we decided that we would travel to Wisconsin for New Years

to meet the newest addition to our family ~ my niece

My brother and sister in-law got back from Africa the night before

When we saw her; She was as beautiful as every picture I had seen of her

She was a little shy at first or maybe just totally exhausted

but it didn't take her long to warm up to us

We decided to take the kids swimming

I was a little nervous about Metadel

but

SHE LOVED IT

On Sunday we went to church

We have a bunch of happy kiddos

And on Sunday afternoon we celebrated Christmas

with some yummy food and gifts

On Monday morning we had breakfast at the hotel restaurant on Lake Michigan

Look at this view

And then it was time to head home

Our trip was short but we enjoyed meeting Metadel and spending time with family

Hopefully we will get to see them again soon