Snapshot Days

The last weekend of summer. Where has the time gone by? This summer has been the quickest and it has been the best. Everett now in our little family, created a constant laughter, a home full of hugs, kisses, wrestling matches, and toys. It's been the hardest year but I wouldn't trade it for anything else. Being a mom has been the biggest blessing that I've ever received. The Lord truly knows what our hearts desire and he gave me the gift of being a mom.

As school is right around the corner, Everett knows that soon I won't be home with him as much. Every day this past week, I've tried to just take a deep look at him and create a mental picture in my mind. He won't be like this anymore. He will grow overnight and if I don't stop to smell the roses to glance, take-in, breathe the moment, it will be gone.

He's been a "Mama's Boy" the past couple of weeks and secretly, I LOVE IT! It's a comforting feeling to know that he needs me and he wants me near him. I know that this won't last. He is a boy who is busy and will want me to play superheroes as well as cowboys and robbers; let's not forget telling him all of the reasons I love him. I pray that he will grow into a young boy and later on a man who is clothed in the armor of our Lord. Alex and I know that our little man will be full of joy and will be a blessing to those who he meets along his path.

This post is called Snapshot Days because I've been trying to take pictures of Everett almost everyday this summer. He's changed more in the past couple of months and before we know it, his second birthday will be here in 2014. A precious soul and a precious heart he has. We love him more than he will ever know. I suppose that is a parent's job.

July 30th- Work Day

Tuesday is the first day in my classroom that I'm officially working HARD! I got plenty done BUT I also had E with me so I have to admit, I didn't get as much completed as I wanted to. He's to the point that he wants to be down and running around. Alex brought us lunch and Maggie stopped by in the afternoon to help with E as well.

Tuesday evening, my friend Cindy came over and her daughter Myra watched Everett while we could go out for dinner together. It was so nice! I haven't been out for dinner with a friend in awhile so I didn't stress at all. We went to Outback Steakhouse. Yummy. It was delicious. I had 2 Sangrias along with steak and mashed potatoes with a ceasar salad.

Monday - July something

Monday I could NOT keep track of my days and what specific day it was. Monday was my last unofficial day of summer. It was also considered the last day before we were allowed into our classrooms after a week of waxing. YAY!
With that being said, I tried to spend the day relaxing and taking care of business at home. I ended up just relaxing....

I have to admit, I'm very excited for this school year. There's a new classroom to be created, new students, a new pod that I'm joining, even many new teachers and a new assistant principal! Lots of changes going on at West Lane Elementary, but for the better! We are all getting hyped up for the new year and looking forward to the year.

Sunday - July 28th There's No Place Like Home

Today was wonderful, Alex and I woke up and got all three of us ready to head to church. We visited St. Paul today to listen to the new pastor, Pastor Shaw. He preached beautifully on prayer and how intimate it is.
After, we took Susan, Steve, and Nana Betty over to China Palace in Cape. They had never been before and they enjoyed themselves. Of course Everett enjoyed eating the broccoli. :) Heading home, I laid out on the back porch for a bit to get some sun. I was out there for about an hour and it was so relaxing. I am trying to get as much FREE sun as I can before Maggie's wedding. I have a tan line from the beginning of the summer on my back. Her bridesmaid dresses are strapless.

This afternoon, I have one more question to finish up on my final and then I will be tidying up around the house. Everett and I may take a walk this evening. We've been enjoying the gorgeous weather we've been having. It's been perfect to be outside during July in Missouri.

Saturday- July 27th Errands

Running errands seem to be the way to spend the end of my summer. I'm also finishing my final for my supervision class. Alex and I spent most of the morning working on Genesis Pure appointments. Other than that, we tried to relax before he went to work.

In the afternoon, Everett and I set off to a wedding shower for Amanda Dewrock whom I grew up with and have known since I was very young. It was great to see her and a few others that I don't normally get to catch up with.

After, Everett and I stopped by Target and then we met Gran and Pop (Susan and Steve) at Beef O Brady's to visit with Alex and to have supper. E was getting so tired and grouchy. He actually slept in this morning until 8:30! It was fantastic!

I just finished the Downton Abbey Season 3 last night and am so looking forward to Season 4 next month!

July 26th - Procrastination at its Best

Today was my goal to work on my final for my supervision class that I was enrolled in this summer. Still hasn't happened. Hah! Instead I've been working around the house as well as helping Alex make appointments for Genesis Pure. I was even planning on running errands until it began to show nasty weather outside. I will just go in the morning while Alex is home. I need to start going to bed earlier anyways with school being just around the corner.

This morning I walked into Everett's room and it was so adorable. I'll let the pictures tell all.

July 25th - Homecomers

Everett and I hung around the house in the morning yesterday and in the afternoon we made a trip over to our neighbor's pool for a swim with Karen Lee and Gran-mama. Miss Emma and Miss Christine was there as well! We had a good time and the shallow end of the pool is a short ledge. Everett was able to touch and walk around in his floaty. It was perfect.

When we got home, we got ready to head out to the Skelton farm. Everett stayed at Grand-mama Susan's house while I ran a few errands and went up to Homecomers to eat a corndog! Yummy!
Before I headed up to Homecomers, I stopped by Maggie's house and checked out her jewelry party. After all of the fun, we went up to Homecomers for some fair food. Needless to say, I didn't have the best experience, BUT! I got a FREE corn dog out of it! Haha.

After Homecomers, we stopped by Walmart and then checked out Maggie and Geoff's new place off Hwy 61. What a perfect place to start a marriage!

July 24th - College and Apple Care

Today was a day....
To start off, I went to my last class of this summer semester. Starting my grad courses was not as hard as I expected. It flew by! After class, a few of us decided to celebrate with lunch today. After, we went to have a detox done of our feet. Uhhhhhh........yea.
That went well. My phone fell into the water. It was sick/nasty/disgusting/revolting/etc. I was mortified!!!
I immediately called Apple Care and thank goodness I signed up for Apply Care Plus when I bought my phone. I only have to spend $49 to have my phone replaced. Whoohoo!
It's coming within the next couple of days so I will be without a phone BUT! I'm going to enjoy the quiet moments. I may actually get something done around the house that I've been waiting to do!

Tonight my mom came over for dinner. I tried a new recipe. Baked Spaghetti. It's not a brand new recipe but I mixed things up a bit. I added cream cheese and green peppers as well as red onions. It was delicious! Everett even ate the green peppers in it. He's been spitting them out when prepared fresh. These were baked.

As I'm sitting here in a quiet house tonight, Alex will be home soon from his experience at the Beirgarten. Our friend just opened up a new bar downtown Cape and he's going to check it out.

June 23 - Stuck in a Monsoon With the Mister

A friend of mine asked me to walk with her in the Homecomers 5K this evening about a week ago. Not until this afternoon did I realize that weather may interfere. Everett and I showed up at the park around 6:00 and we registered for the race and were ready to go! The kid's one mile race began at 6:30 and our race was to begin around 7:00. We started to walk and then about 10 minutes into it, we had completed one mile and the skies opened up and the rain was pouring down on us. Everett was such a trooper! So many people were impressed with the way he was acting. He didn't cry or whine at all! He just kept looking around and what was happening.
The moment that I saw the lightning getting bad, I decided to pull aside under a few ladies with large umbrellas. The moment I did, the MONSOON came!!!! It was raining so hard!





 Here we are under an umbrella. You can see just how hard it was raining by the raindrops in the background! Crazy monsoon!







 Everett was much more fascinated with the lady holding the umbrella.

 

 Here we are SOAKING WET!!!!!!! Everett is the best kid to be with in a rainstorm. He's so brave and strong! I told him how proud I was of him. We didn't get to eat dinner until 8:00 (usually his bedtime). He was so tired and ready for bed after we ate supper at home and he laid down smiling.
:) Love him so much. He's growing so fast and I'm taking in every moment.

July 22 - Mom & Me Date

 Today Everett and I had a date day/evening. We decided that it was just too hot to be outside without swimming so we filled up the pool and took a dip. Yes, it was coooold! Everett loves playing with the garden hose and he also enjoys splashing in the water.

After that, we got dressed and went out to eat at our favorite place to see Daddy, Beef's! Everett had his first big kid meal there. He loves their cheeseburgers. I always laugh that he loves them because I always craved them when I was pregnant. I'm so very blessed that our big guy eats well. This picture makes me laugh. Here I am with Summer Shandy and a sippy cup.

After eating supper, we decided that it was a perfect night for Andy's custard! We've been wanting to go but just have never had a perfect time other than this. We had a coupon for a FREE TREAT!
Mom decided that a Peach Concrete would make everyone happy. Yummy!!!! It was so delicious and Everett enjoyed it too. That little booger loved the custard sign that kept going around.

YUMMY

 What a perfect evening. We got home and Everett had of course fallen asleep in the car. He was so tired out from all of the fun he was having with his Mama.

June 21st - Wedding Showers

Yesterday I was honored to be able to help put on my best friend's wedding shower. Maggie and I have been friends for 8 years and we always have a blast when we are together. Maggie is getting married in October and she was also in my wedding as well.

Yesterday we had so much fun/stress picking wild flowers for her tables all the way to getting our hair curled in the church basement before the fun began. I was so happy for her that she received gifts of love and gifts of Fiesta Ware!!!!

All in all, I'm so blessed beyond compare to have a friend like Maggie in my life. Thank you so much friend.








From Maggie's brother's wedding last year.



Maggie was a bridesmaid in my wedding in 2010.

College days. New Year's Eve of 2011.



This is just how we hug.

July 20th-Fall ideas

So Saturday I spent the afternoon/evening preparing for my best friend's wedding shower. I made a trip to Hobby Lobby and while I was there, OH MY! Not only were there Fall decorations out but even Christmas. With that being said, I'm starting to get some ideas that I'm going to work on for our home this fall. Last fall, I was pregnant and not in any mood for projects. I was more worried about motivated my husband to put the crib together.
Here is a wreath that would look fantastic on our front door! 

This set up would be adorable on our back porch with the crates.

SO FUNNY! The kids would laugh about this!
 

Last Month of Summer Challenge

Today marks exactly one month until the first day of school. Yes, it's hard to believe that in just one month, I'll be a school mother to twenty-somthing 9 year olds along with grading daily papers, etc. Not only that, I'll have to leave my little mister every morning to go to work. BOOHOO! I don't want to talk about it.

Today I decided that I want to LIVE my last month of summer. For this month (4 weeks), I will post everyday. These posts may be simple, they may be full of fun. Regardless, I will be posting.

Yesterday, I had dinner with my friend, Lauren, who teaches special education at my school. We laughed when afterwards, we came to my house to work on my paper for one of my grad classes this summer. I'm very proud to say that I have As so far in grad school. Whoohoo!
I'm also very excited and looking forward to GRADUATING at the end of next summer! I will be in and out of grad school within one year's time! That to me is incredible!

A few weeks ago, we went up to St. Charles for my friend, Ali's wedding. We loved it! Here below is a picture of some of the teachers that went. We had such a great time together.




Pictured below is a lovely picture of my husband after a few drinks. He was a dancin machine!



We love weddings and look forward to many more with all of our friends getting married! Watch out! October is wedding month!

SFR2013

Oh me oh my! Scentsy will change your life!!!!
As I sit and look at all of the Instagram pictures from the Scentsy Family Reunion in Indianapolis, IN right now I cannot wait until I get the chance to attend next year. The Scentsy products are so amazing and have a big effect on our lives here in SEMO.

Check it out and follow #sfr2013 on Instagram and you'll be impressed with what's to come! August is transition month so I'm motivating my team members to get the word out that Scentsy is a family business!

Perseverance

Since the beginning of summer, things have been a whirlwind. In the past two months, I've taken a journey of faith. This journey began with the decision to begin grad school this summer. I've decided to attain my masters degree in Teacher Leadership. With two 6 week courses on top of teaching summer school, taking care of my lil guy, cleaning house, getting a tan, and oh; don't let me forget that I'm also loving my Scentsy business!

Needless to say, being a mom is hard work. Being a wife is hard work. Being a student is hard work. There are days when I want to cry, laugh, sleep, run, and just be quiet. In my heart, I know that God has a bigger plan for me and my family.

Alex has been at Beef O Brady's for a year now and it's marked the one year anniversary that he was laid off from DeVry University. This was a blessing and also a turn of events. We were blessed with the opportunity for Alex to be able to stay at home with Everett for the first year of life. We have also been blessed with Nana Betty who has been able to help watch Everett in the afternoon when Alex goes to work and I'm finished my day at school.

God is bigger than all of this that we've been through and are still going through. I know in my heart that he is good all of the time. I know in my head that this will not last forever. And I know in my feet, our journey is not at a stand still.

Just recently, we've embarked on a new journey called Genesis Pure. It sounds insane that we've up and started something else new BUT! We want more. We want more time together, more time for our home, and more time for relaxation and mental health. This is not just another direct sales company. This is a company that is growing rapidly and also serves so many health benefits along with getting a paycheck every week. We've only been with Genesis Pure for almost two weeks and we're excited to see the growth of the company as well as our business.

Mad Men

----------MAD MEN---------

Don Draper

I've begun to watch the show "Mad Men" from Netflix. I have to laugh because I'm becoming very partial to the styles of the 60s. The straight leg pants, the hair styles. They will all be back sooner or later.

The mannerisms of the women of the 60s is incredible. The way they made sure their husband had dinner on the table as they walked into the door is a thing of the past these days. Also, the drinking of liquor and booze at the workplace! I keep laughing at the way they just sit and drink during their break as well as the women smoking and typing at the same time.                          
Betty Draper

Another social aspect of this time was the smoking. Smoking EVERYWHERE! In the car, restaraunts, workplace, home, in bed, etc. I keep laughing joking around how I feel pressured to smoke when I'm watching the show. Hehe.

A few situations that I do NOT like about this show is how often the husband and wives are cheating on eachother. It's insane how this was accepted during this time. It happened and nothing was said about it. Many women knew and they didn't say a word because they didn't want to be divorced or alone with their children. It must have been very hard to play "pretend" and to move on with daily life.

I'm on Season 2 right now and I can tell times are changing. JFK is the President right now and the hairstyles are beginning to change.



 

Good friends=good times

Last night, Alex and I were able to spend time with our good friends, Maggie Baugh and Geoff Enders. After Alex getting off work at 9:00, we all got together at our house for a fire pit. 

Maggie and Geoff are getting married in October of this year. I'm a Matron of Honor and I'm so blessed to have a girlfriend like Maggie. She and I will be friends for life.

Rain rain go away....

This weekend has been nothing but stormy weather and rain. Yes, I'm grateful for it but at the same time, I'm drowning in it! My plants are anyways. Poor e! He wants to be outside sooo bad!

Here is E this morning watching Barney. Crack me up! He loves the kids singing on the show.

Last night we went to Cape to listen to Tunes at Twilight. E was loving the music and the people watching. Hehe.

Before Tunes, we had supper at El Tapatio. Everett is famous there and they've already hired him when he's 16.

These guys.....❤

Shutter Makeover

I've been wanting to repaint the shutters on our home since we moved in. They have been this maroon/red color that has been chipping and makes our home look a blueish tint. Instead of waiting until it gets too hot, I decided yesterday to try out the color that I bought. I literally spray painted them because they are plastic. I never knew that shutters could be plastic until I pulled two off the of siding. Hah! Pictured here is the first window done with the black/bronzed paint. It makes things look totally different compared to the red. I knew I would have to sweet talk Alex into helping me pull down the other shutters the next day.

 Along with the shutters, I also wanted to paint the house numbers. The numbers were gold before and were not visible from the street. Now, the numbers are bold and really make a statement. The black against the gray siding doesn't make our house look blue anymore either.

 Here is the finished product. I'm so happy with it. For a small amount of money, it makes the house look completely different. As you can see from the picture, I also bought a few shrubs that we will be adding to the landscaping as soon as we are ready to.

Don't worry, more projects to come soon!

Leaving a Legacy

Leaving a legacy. At times, it seems silly to think that I need to start planning for this, but at the same time it's so important to. I just finished (finally) the book "The Resolution for Women". This book has given me a great deal of understanding what I can do as a woman, wife, mother, daughter, and teacher to give HIM the glory. The last chapters discuss leaving a legacy. The author throws in how in the Bible, Jesus was leaving his legacy with this disciples all along. Our communion is how we remember him and glorify him. In our lives, death will come. We don't know when and we may not know how, but it will come. Our blood-line families as well as our spiritual families need to be creating these memories and keeping them somehow. 

I know of a few women who scrapbook, keep a journal, take photos, etc. The author advises that it doesn't matter HOW you create your legacy, but it's important that you do. Keeping tabs on priorities, family values, and slowing down the pace of life are the things that matter most. 

Here are a few ways that I'm creating a legacy by:

*Photographs: Shutterfly books/Dropbox/blog/phone pics

*Blogging of course

*Journal of Everett's milestones and moments

*Scrapbook of Alex and I while we were dating (includes cards we gave eachother)

*Family Bible (we highlight verses that we constantly pray on, we also keep sermons that helped us move through seasons of life)

*Furniture that has been kept in the family. This also includes Everett's toy box that Papa Charlie handmade for his first birthday.

Here below is Nana Betty. This is Alex's maternal grandmother. She is heaven sent. Talk about a women leaving a legacy! She has done JUST THAT. With 4 children, 11 grandchildren, and 1 great-grandchild, she has many ways (simply and complex) that she's leaving a legacy. Just to name a few: Her basement still has paintings of hand prints from every grandchild when she babysat them growing up; their measurements of growth are still marked on the walls as well. Every Christmas, the family sits together and sings Christmas hymns before opening gifts together. She is living in the home that her parents had and the same home that she grew up in. What a blessed woman. She is truly a woman of legacy.

 

 Next is Nana Carrie. This is Alex's paternal grandmother. She is originally from Peurto Rico. She also has 4 children, 7 grandchildren, and 5 great-grandchildren. This woman is a woman of legacy. She's always speaking Spanish (which is a wonderful way to keep legacy); cooking rice and beans (family favorite) at Thanksgiving and Christmas; and sharing stories about her childhood. We love it when she sings to Everett in Spanish too. :)

Nana Carrie is truly a woman of legacy.

 This is my paternal grandmother, Delma J Loftis. She is also a woman of legacy. Being originally from Oklahoma, she and my grandfather brought their family here for teaching jobs. She loves trying new things and sharing stories about growing up. I'm so thankful that she's spent so many years working on the Loftis family tree. It dates back to the 1400s I believe. With 3 children, 6 grandchildren, and 3 great-grandchildren; this is a woman of legacy. A wonderful way that she's created a legacy is through quilting. Every grandchild has received a quilt made by Grandma Delma. I am blessed to have two. She made one out of many of my childhood clothes and a quilt as a wedding gift to Alex and I. This legacy has carried on to my step-mom, Robin. She has made two quilts for me. This is a skill that I would someday like to learn. Another legacy that my grandmother has left for me are many recipes from family members.

 This is my Great Aunt Joann. She is my maternal Grandmother's sister. She's been like a grandmother to me since Mi-mi passed in 1993. The Colyer legacy is being left through her. With her love and passion of singing and telling stories of growing up, we've always laughed together and joked around. A legacy that she has is not only through her singing but through her prized jewelry. I've always known her to wear huge rings and bold necklaces. Growing up, she would have tea parties with me and made my childhood memorable. She's also not afraid to say anything. She believes in standing up for what's right.

 The picture below is the last picture of the Loftis grandchildren and great-grandchildren with Grandpa Gene Loftis. Ryan Zimmerman is not pictured. He was so happy that day and it was a day to remember that family is everything. :)

 As for our family legacy, I just had to add a few pictures of how Alex and I are creating a legacy for our family. Everett's first Cardinal game is pictured below. Alex and I each have pictures of our first Cardinal game as well.

 Here is Nana Betty and Everett. Everett is sitting on a wooden car that Papa Dennis handmade. This was the first car that Papa Dennis made as a model for the other cars that he made for all of his grandsons.

This is where our legacy begins. Everett Dale Skelton will have many memories in this family and many stories to tell. His duckie is his favorite animal to sleep with given by Aunt Allison. You can see his binky is also a prized possession. :) His teddy bear was given to him for his first birthday by the Waltons (neighbor); and his lamb was given to him before he was born by Great Aunt Bep. Finally his yellow blanket was the first thing we bought Everett before he was born. Blessings upon blessings pour out in our family having him around.