Canvas printing!

**UPDATE** I just realized that the coupon codes below are NOT for a stretched canvas like the ones I show below. They are just printed on a canvas but would have to be framed!


Last Christmas, I used this picture from our Christmas card and had it printed as an 18"x24" canvas when I got a 40% off coupon from Winflash.

And I fell in love. I LOVE the idea of printing a favorite photo on a large canvas, and making it a piece of art. So when Aunt Amy took this amazing picture at the beach last September, I wanted to do something with it.

I wanted to do something with scripture about walking, so I found this one below and loved it. I used my digital scrapbooking software, and made this.



It now hangs in my living room. Actually, it's just resting on a shelf temporarily while our house in the market. One day, it will be properly hung. But I love to walk in everyday and read this scripture as a daily reminder for our family.


So I was very excited when I got some emails this week from one of my favorite online photo printing sites, Artscow. I thought I'd pass on these coupon codes in case you'd like to have some canvases printed yourself!

• $16.99 for TWO 16"x20" printed canvases, plus FREE SHIPPING!! I paid $50 for the ones above, so this is a HUGE deal! Coupon code: 1699CANVASB1F1


• $7.99 for TWO 8"x10" printed canvases, plus FREE SHIPPING!! Coupon code: 8X10CANVAS799

These both expire on July 31st. I'm thinking about getting these 2 photos (thanks again Aunt Amy!) done.

Do you have some favorite photos you'd like to have made in to works of art?

Please pray for Ian

If you have a chance in the next couple of days, please say a prayer of healing for Ian, a 17-month-old little boy at our church whose parents found out a month ago that he had a brain tumor. It was removed about 4 weeks ago, but has since grown back and was found to be a rare and and agressive form of cancer. He and his parents Jason and Anna are at St. Jude now for treatment, and Ian is scheduled to have a second surgery tomorrow to have the tumor removed again, and then will begin chemo treatments. Here is what his parents have asked specifically for prayer:

"Continued peace as we all face another dangerous brain surgery; that Ian will remain stable until his surgery on Wednesday so Dr. Boop can do the surgery; a miracle that will take away this tumor and cancer cells once and for all; a strong, healthy body for Ian that will be able to handle the surgery, recovery, and chemo."

We had a special time of prayer for Ian a couple of weeks ago at churhc, and he was running around playing and blowing kisses at everyone in the room. He is an angel, and it breaks my heart to think of him going through this. Sadly reminds me of a year ago when I was praying for little Joseph, who has since gone to be with Jesus. If you would like to read more about him and follow his progress, here is a link to his Caring Bridge page.

Stephen's best day ever

We've had such a fantastic June, just enjoying the lazy days of summer. Lots of swimming and playing outside (when the humidity isn't 99%). Unfortuntately, it's made me, well, lazy. So here's to catching up on blogging.

The title of this post may be a little misleading, as I'm sure our wedding day and the births of our children really rank up there as Stephen's best days. But, this day in particular came pretty darn close. In April, we headed back to our alma mater for the spring football "Orange and White" game. We paid a little extra to participate in a "Young Alumni" function (I think the "young" part was a stretch for us). Anyway, it was Stephen's dream come true: a tour of all the athletic facilities, including the football locker rooms and behind the scenes press rooms, etc. For Tennessee football fans of the caliber as Stephen, who get teary-eyed come every August when the phrase "It's football time in Tennessee" is muttered, this is a BIG deal. I think he actually got teary-eyed during the tour (sorry, babe). Then we got to watch the game from one of the luxury suites, and pig out on catered food. Much different from the tiny bleacher seat and hot dogs we usually experience on game day. But we had a fantastic time. It was the perfect spring day, and one I'm sure Stephen will be re-living for a while :)

Here are some pics:

Whew!

That title pretty much summarizes how I'm feeling right now. After an incredibly busy May, celebrating Davis's birthday, end-of-the-year preschool activities, new carpet, a trip to the beach, a trip to New Mexico, a bazillion showings on our house, I'm glad to settle in to June and a lazy summer. Here are some pics of our crazy May.

End of the year program at preschool--Eliza's class were crabs. Here she is with her buddies Hannah and Eden. Do little girls just instinctly know how to pose like that?

Our little Pre-K grad. It was so sweet---they called out each child's full name one at a time and said what he or she wanted to be when they grew up (a gymnast for Eliza). They walked across the stage and got a diploma. Precious!

Birthday boy!

Mr. Fireman. Big D LOVES firetrucks and firefighters.

We had a small, family party for Davis's birthday, with Mimi, Grandaddy, Aunt KK, Chris, Ann, and D's big buddy Cooper.

Cruisin' with his new scooter and helmet. Now he doesn't have to ride Eliza's princess scooter anymore or wear her pink helmet :)

A trip to the local fire station. The firefighters were so nice and gave us a tour of the station and let the kids climb in the big trucks.

Here's a little slideshow from our recent trip to Santa Fe. New Mexico's motto is "The Land of Enchantment", and I will say we were truly enchanted. The landscapes are amazing, and being able to watch a rainstorm happening 50 miles away is not something we get to see around here! We were truly blessed to be able to see this wonderful part of the country!

Eliza's Best Day Ever

Eliza declared yesterday her "best day ever." Here are the reasons she gave for her day being so great:

• Cinnamon rolls for breakfast (from a can)
• Getting to go to church
• Getting slushies with Daddy from Sonic while Davis napped
• Playing outside on the swingset
• Painting these pictures below for mommy

This is "lips for a kiss and footprints"

This is her caterpillar "Frances". She has starting collecting all the caterpillars she can find in the yard and is keeping them in a container. They are named Frances, Kate, Claire, and Clarice.

Sounds like a pretty good day to me!

The Bye-Bye Buggy

Just had to share these adorable pictures another mom of a child in Davis's MDO class took as the kids were on their way to their school Easter egg hunt. I think a bye-bye buggy full of precious children is about the cutest thing there is. You can tell Davis was excited by the looks on his face!

Happy Easter!

One of my favorite praise songs, especially on Easter!

I'm diggin' the Duggars

Whew, it's been quite a while since I've had a chance to blog; with a new puppy (argh, I forgot how hard puppies are), our house on the market, and just everyday life, I just haven't had the time to sit down and write a post. Or read blogs, which I dearly miss. I'm so amazed by those moms that just have it all together and blog regularly. What it your secret???



But I've been inspired. I've been reading the Duggar family's book "The Duggars: 20 and Counting", and I've enjoyed it so much that I thought I'd share a few things they have to say about their life with 18 (and counting!!) kids.

Ok, I'll admit. When I first heard of their show on TLC "17 kids and counting", I thought they must be crazy. I mean really, who in their right mind has that many kids??? And Michelle (the mom) has weird hair, and the girls all wear long skirts, so they must be religious fanatics, and various other really judgmental things that I'm very ashamed ever went through my mind. Because now I want to be Michelle's best friend. And learn everything she has to teach me.

I'm only about halfway through the book, but I could not be more impressed this family. First and foremost, they are not religious fanatics. They are Christians with very sound beliefs and strong convictions. Their girls wear skirts simply because they believe in modesty. They have 18 kids because after suffering a miscarriage, Michelle and Jim Bob decided to leave it up to God to determine how many children He would bless them with. And boy, has He blessed them.

Last night I started reading their chapter on parenting tips. I've read a few books on Christian parenting, and I've gleaned knowledge and wisdom from all of them. However, sometimes I felt overwhelmed by all the "stuff" I needed to be teaching my children and doing with them every day in order to be a successful parent--like reading them stories directly from the Bible for 30 minutes every day---and Bible storybooks won't do. It has to be original text. I'm not saying that's not a good idea, but some parenting plans I've read were really complicated.

But the Duggars keep it simple. I really like this quote from Michelle:

"I tell our children over and over again, 'You can gain all kinds of training, but no matter what skills and talents you possess, if you do these two things, you'll be successful: first, love God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and strength, and second, love your neighbor as yourself.' If our children learn those two things while they're under my tutelage, then I've been successful. And they will be too."

Here's another one I love:

"We dont just lay down a stern do-what-I-say-or-else rule. We teach them why obedience is so crucial. I tell them 'As I teach you to obey my voice, I'm also teaching you to learn to obey God's voice. Someday, you will learn to hear His still, small voice in your heart, and you will know to obey Him. You'll know what's the right thing to do.' "

I love how these statements are so simple, but can be interpreted and applied in a million different scenarios in my everyday life as a mom. I don't have to have 50 different behavior models or discipline plans depending on situations that arise.

Without quoting the entire chapter, I will just say that their tips on getting children to obey "instantly" (an issue in our house with a certain, un-named, strong-willed little girl :)) worked wonders today. Whenever I asked her to do something today, I heard "Yes, ma'am" and the task was done. As opposed to the repertoire of whining, arguing, and throwing oneself on the floor that would occasionally occur around here. Yes, it's only been one day, but it was a great day. A really great day. And for that, I am grateful to the Duggars. No, I am NOT planning on having 18 children (and counting!), but I do believe God is using this family to spread his Word through their TV show and books. So check them out sometime if you have a chance!

My new love---E-mealz!

Thank you to my friend Susan for introducing me to E-mealz.com! One household task I dread every week is planning meals. As I've said before, I'm not much of a chef, but I do enjoy sitting down to a good meal every night with my family. I just hate taking the time to search through recipe books or websites trying to find something that looks good, healthy, and easy. So I end up in the rut of making the same meals over and over again.

Then, E-mealz came into my life. And I'll never be the same.

For $5 a month, you get a weekly meal plan, complete with 7 meals, recipes, a shopping list, and the prices for everything so you can budget. You can even tailor the meal plan to your grocery store of choice (they have plans for Wal-Mart, Aldi, Publix, or Kroger); or for a low-fat, Weight-Watchers, vegetarian, or couples instead of families. Here is a sample of what you get every week:

I've been doing this for about 4 weeks now, and everything I've made has been delicious. I just put each week's plan in a plastic page protector and stick it to my fridge. That way I can see what we are having for dinner each night and the recipes are right there so I don['t have to go digging for them. At the end of each week, I put that week's sheets into a binder to keep for later use. I LOVE IT.

If you LOVE to cook and plan meals and it's the greatest joy of your life, then this is probably not for you. But if cooking is a just a means to a meal and time with your family, then you might just want to check it out. Click on this link below, and if you sign up, I'll get referral credit. THANKS!

E-MEALZ Easy Meals for Busy and Frugal Families

Mud cake, anyone?

Well, we had a beautiful day here on Monday, so we headed out to the backyard that morning to enjoy it. Before I knew what was happening, Eliza and Davis were both digging in the dirt, and Eliza asked for a cup of water. Here is the result: "Mud Cake"

They had a ball, and I was able to keep my mess-induced anxiety to a minimum and just let them go at it.

But then Davis put that mud-encrusted finger IN HIS MOUTH, yall. And licked it. I could hurl right now just thinking about it. I never thought I would be scraping mud off of my son's tongue with a towel. But I guess that's what little boys are made of, right? He didn't seem too bothered by it.

When they'd had their fun, I literally hosed them down with their clothes on before I would let them inside. They thought that was fun, too.

But now that we are back to winter weather and sleet today, we'll have a to wait a few more weeks before making any more mud cakes. Thank goodness :)