I can't believe it's been 7 years since I held you in my arms. Sometimes it feels like yesterday and other times it feels like it's been an eternity. Oh how I miss you so. I know you love it in Heaven. Are you having a blast with your baby brother? I know you would never want to be here with us on earth, but selfishly I wish I had just one more day to spend with you.
One more day for you to play with your sisters.
One more day to rock you and sing to you.
One more day for your daddy to read you a story.
One more day to just look into your eyes and let you know how much I love you. I hope you do know just how much I love you my sweet girl. Do you know? Does Jesus tell you? I can't wait for the day that I get to see you again. Oh what a wonderful reunion that will be. When we are all together again.
Until that day my baby girl, just know there is not a day that goes by that I don't think of you and miss you so so much. You will always be my firstborn Zoe.
I love you to the moon and back,
Mommy
P.S. Happy Birthday Zoe! We hope you see the balloons we sent to you in Heaven. We love you and miss you very much. Love, Brooklyn and Sydney.
I'm so glad I told y'all I would reveal my laundry room makeover this week because it forced me to get it done. I love how it turned out. Ok, so you are probably thinking, "Why would she spend money fixing up her laundry room?" That is a great question. We were kind of forced into it really. We had a leak upstairs in the girls bathroom and it caused water damage into the laundry room right below it. These are the only before pictures I have. Sorry.
I should back up a bit. 4 years ago when we moved into our house we painted it a teal color. I was going to add a cute border, if there is such a thing, after we painted, thus the reason why I didn't do cut in work at the top. Well, 4 years later, the border was never added to the walls and I hated the color. When we had to have the drywall replaced, I decided it was a great time to change the color.
I started off by painting the walls Cumulus Cloud by Martha Stewart. I love it. It's the perfect shade of grey.
Then I replaced the unattractive light fixture to the one you see above from Ikea.
It was a steal at only $29.99. I love the feel it lends to the room. Thank you dad for hanging it.
The safety pins I purchased from Ballard Design. They were 3 for $35 and I just think they are so cute. The accordion drying rack I already had. I bought it from The Container Store years ago. The wall hook I also had. It's from Ikea.
I had to find a way of hiding the ugly hose box you see in the first picture above. I got lucky that the towel I had, which I bought on sale, online, at Pottery Barn last Christmas for $5, was wide enough to cover it. The towel bar is from Target and was $12.99.
The wooden stool was $14.99 Ikea. I will probably end up painting someday. I'm dying to try out the Annie Sloan Chalk Paint I picked up a month or so ago. The runner is from Costcoand was $9.99. It's hard to tell in the picture, but it's grey with creme pinstripes. The basket in the corner was my huge score from Christmas last year. It came in a set of 3 from Wisteria for $12.99. Unfortunately, they no longer carry them.
The ironing board cover I got from Home Goods for $9.99. The iron board rack I bought a long time ago from Bed Bath and Beyond. Unfortunately, I got a new iron and the iron is too big to fit into the holder. Not sure what I'm gonna do about that yet. I hated the look of the utility sink so I bought a table cloth from Target for $16.99 and turned it into a skirt for the sink. I simply sewed (who am I kidding, I had my dry cleaner do it for $10)Velcro on to the fabric and stuck it on. Easy peasy. It also gives me another place to hide extra detergent and other supplies.
I wanted to keep an open feel and not hang any cabinets on the wall, but need a little bit of storage to keep all of my supplies. I found this laundry cart at Bed Bath and Beyond. With a coupon I think it was under $35. It fits perfectly between my washer and dryer. I've talked about this on my blog before, but I love glass containers. I'm a little obsessed with them actually. You should see my pantry. They are not only beautiful, but practical as well. I know exactly how much I have in each jar so I never run out.
Well, there you have it. I hope you enjoyed the tour of my laundry room. I can tell you that I no longer dread doing the laundry. In case you were wondering about the price tag for this makeover, I did the whole project for around $250 including all the accessories.
Not everyone is going to have an extra $250 laying around to spend in their laundry room. I have some easy and inexpensive ways you can add some beauty to your room.
1. Add some photos. It's much harder to complain about doing laundry when you're staring at the people that mean the most to you.
2. Add a little color. A gallon of paint is cheap and it's the easiest way to transform a room. I couldn't believe how much bigger the laundry room felt once I lightened it up.
3. Add some pretty baskets and glass containers to keep your supplies in. Ball jars are inexpensive and you can find them anywhere. You may even have some lying around your house.
I'd love to hear what ya think. Drop me a comment and you could win a burlap bag like the one hanging on the hook above. I'll be picking a winner on Monday. Good Luck!
Do you ever have those days when your mind goes a million miles an hour and it just won't stop? Well I've been having a whole month of it. I guess that's why I haven't been posting as much as I used to. Forgive me, but this post will probably be a little ADD.
I am so thankful fall is here. Can I get an amen? Seriously, it's my fav time of the year. I love everything about it. What I don't like is how busy our lives seem to get. The girls are both in school and loving their teachers and doing really well. I am one of the room moms in Brooklyn's class and I'm busy, with the other moms, planning the fall party and teacher appreciation.
Brooklyn started up soccer again and Sydney's new ballet class began again as well. As luck would have it, both events are on Sat morning, which means, conflicting schedules. Then there is choir at church on Sunday nights. I love that the girls have fun activities to do and they love doing them, but sometimes I miss just having down time. Anyone else with me on this?
I guess what I am saying is that I never want to get too busy that we stop having family meals together. Did you know that children who eat meals together at least 5 times a week are more likely to have higher grades in school? Here's another important statistic. This one is especially important to me because I am a mom of 2 girls. Studies show that teenage girls who ate five or more meals per week, with their families, were less likely to resort to extreme dieting measures such as self-induced vomiting, diet pills or laxatives. This was true regardless of socioeconomic status, body mass index or family connectedness. Wow. Not something I want my girls to deal with.
Speaking of mealtime, my girls surprised me with breakfast in bed yesterday. Brian said it was all their idea. It made my morning. Brian captured a quick video of the girls explaining the meal. Syd always seems to make an infomercial out of it. She is such a ham in front of the camera. Brooklyn was too busy eating. My kind of girl. :)
In health news, I found out my thyroid is not functioning and I'm anemic. What a wonderful combination. No wonder I was so dog tired all the time. I have no idea how I ran during the summer. So, I'm on iron as well as Thyroid Armour (wanted to go the non synthetic route and not take Synthroid) to help boost my thyroid. I go back next week for bloodwork to see if all the supplements I am taking are working. I have alot more energy, but I'm still incredibly dizzy.
I ran across a print out in my room of a Jesus Calling Devo from January 8th. I felt like someone needed to hear this tonight.
"HOPE in Me, and you will be protected from depression and self-pity. HOPE is like a golden cord connecting you to heaven. The more you cling to this cord, the more I bear the weight of your burdens; thus, you are lightened. Heaviness is not of My kingdom. Cling to HOPE, and My rays of Light will reach you through the darkness."
Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble."
Romans 12:12 "Be joyful in HOPE, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer".
Romans 15:13 " May the God of HOPE fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with HOPE by the power of the Holy Spirit."
I decided to take Sydney to a new doctor to see if we can pin point what is causing her tummy aches. This doctor is an MD, but practices alternative medicine. Basically, instead of treating the symptoms with medicine, he tries to get to the route of the problem. Most of the time with diet change, you can cure alot of ailments.
Today they had to do a blood draw. I have been dreading this for over a week since I made the appointment. At the last appointment they had to prick her finger to check her iron and she went crazy. She cried and cried. I had visions of this being much worse, flailing on the table and blood going everywhere. Ok, maybe I've watched to many episodes of ER, but none the less, I was not too excited about today.
I made Brian go with me. I was not going to try to hold her down by myself. Don't let that sweet smile fool you, Sydney is one tough cookie. Well, it turns out I didn't need Brian after all. Syd did awesome. She started to cry as they put the band on her arm and then when the nurse stuck the needle in, she cried a little harder, but she held still so they could get 2 vials of blood.
She was so proud of her sparkly bandaids. I promised her a special treat if she did a great job at the doctor. I kept my promise. She picked out some rainbow popcorn and boy did she love it.
We should have the results in 4 weeks. The bloodwork will tell us what foods she is sensitive to and we will cut those out of her diet to see if that makes a difference. Please be in prayer that we can find the culprit. I am so tired of seeing my baby in pain.
I hope you all are enjoying a relaxing Sunday with your families. This devotional smacked me upside the head yesterday and I thought I'd share it with you. Praying y'all have a blessed week.
10 years ago today, I was on the way to the Nashville Airport to drop off my parents and my sisters for their flight to Southern California. We had a concert there the following weekend and I was going to be flying out a few days later. I was a newlywed of 5 months and I wanted more time at home with my new husband. We were on the interstate when we heard a plane had flown into the World Trade Center. We were horrified and wondered what could have caused a pilot to crash into the building. I don't think terrorist attack even crossed our minds.
Then the second plane hit the other tower, and that's when we knew that it was no accident. I nervously dropped my family off at the airport and proceeded to go back home. I gave Brian a call at work and he said that his boss was closing the office and wanted all of his employees to head to his house. I drove to his bosses house and that's where I watched the towers fall.
About an hour later, I got a call from my mom that they had boarded the plane, but then they were told that their flight was cancelled. All flights had been grounded. I got back in my car and went to the airport to pick them up. The rest of the day, I was glued to the TV, like most Americans.
I got a chance to go to New York in June for the first time ever. I told my friend Micah that I wanted to see ground zero. As I walked by I couldn't help but get teary eyed. It was an incredible sight to see. I can't imagine what it was like that day to be so close to the buildings as they were burning. I can't imagine what it was like to see people jumping to their deaths. What must it have been like to run for your life as the towers came crashing down?
They have a memorial site set up just down the street from Ground Zero. They have a model of what the memorial site will look like when it's completed. It was overwhelming to see all of the signs people had made looking for their lost loved ones. I personally didn't know anyone who lost their lives on that horrible day, but today as I watched the videos all over again, I was brought to tears. Tears for those innocent lives that were lost. Tears for the young fathers and mothers who never got the chance to see their children grow up. Tears for the brave fire fighters and police officers who risked their lives to save just one. Tears for the brave women and men aboard Flight 93 who saved countless lives by crashing into a field in Shanksville, PA.
We Will Never Forget. I Will Never Forget. God Bless America!
Sydney had her first day of preschool today and it went fabulous. She woke up this morning and the first thing she said was, "Mommy, is it time to go to school now?" I think the fact that Brooklyn has been going to school for the last few weeks has helped get Sydney excited.
She loves her teacher, Ms. G. She's awesome. She is spunky and fun. Today she wore rain boots and braids in her hair. She's adorable and yes, she's a mom as well. Love it. Syd ran up and gave her a hug right away. Ms. G had to tell Syd to say goodbye and give me a kiss. She was ready to go. I was actually fine with that because it was better than the alternative of kicking and screaming.
It's been raining almost non stop for 2 days so taking some pictures outside was not an option. I snapped this picture with my iPhone just right out of class. Here are some of Sydney's favorites.
I wish she had her jacket off in the picture because you can't see her pretty dress. Oh well, there's always next year. After I asked Sydney some of the favorites listed above, she continued to tell me some of her other favorite things. Sydo, when you are reading this in 10 years, here's what else you liked back in 2011 when you were 4.
Favorite Place: Chuck E Cheese (Of course, this one makes mommy gag. Sorry baby).
Favorite Restaurant: Cracker Barrel
Favorite Animal: Pigs (Because you saw a momma pig with her 18 piglets at the fair this summer)
Favorite Color: Purple, Pink and Red
I'm a native Southern California girl now living in the South. I'm a wife and mom of 4 kids, 2 in Heaven. I traveled the country with my sisters as Christian Recording artists but gave it all up to be a mom. I love jazz music, interior design and movie nights with my family. I'm passionate about homeschooling and nutrition. I make a mean green smoothie. Most importantly, I'm a daughter of the King.
