A Life of Gratitude

This afternoon we took an impromptu family trip to wal-mart and then went to a local pizza place for dinner. I had planned to go to wal-mart by myself but at the last minute, Bryan decided to go with me. After being in wal-mart for about 30 minutes, we walked out into a terrible storm. We got absolutely drenched as we made our way to the van. We didn't think much of it, just got in the van, dried our arms and legs with burps cloths from Tyson's diaper bag, and headed to dinner. After we ate our pizza, we came out into beautiful sunny weather. I never, ever expected to hear on our way home that a tornado had gone through our neighborhood while we were at dinner. As we slowly approached our house, we feared the worst. I have to admit, I expected to see half of our house blown away.  First we noticed a big mess in our front yard. The trash cans had been picked up and thrown across the yard and trash was everywhere. We also noticed that the basketball goal was laying over on

 On this day in 1996 I met Bryan Shaw for the very first time. We had grown up in the same neighborhood our entire lives but had never met each other. On June 28th, my friends took me to Bryan's house to introduce me to him. I have no idea why...honestly when I look back on that, I'm not sure what the purpose was or why we were even walking around the neighborhood. Anyway, Bryan was standing outside and I immediately wanted to know him better. I think we spent the rest of the day playing duck, duck, goose! (Don't judge, we were young! haha) We've been together (with a few ups and downs and breakups and reunions) ever since then. Gosh, how long ago WAS that? 1996 1998 1999 2000 College years Our Wedding- 2004 2007  2010 2012 2013 2015 Who would have guessed on that hot day in 1996 that I was meeting the man that I would spend the rest of my life with? We guessed, actually! Haha. We used to sit in our neighborhood ta

Earlier tonight I went to Ham's Restaurant to pick up some take out for Bryan and I. When you order take out at Ham's, you have to go to the bar to pick it up. So when I went in to get our food, I had to sit at the bar for about 10 minutes.  It has been a long, long time since I have been out to restaurant late on a Saturday night and it's been even longer since I've been to a bar.  For those of you who don't know my story, I used to be WILD. Friday and Saturday nights (and sometimes Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Mondays) were full of activities that I can't even imagine doing now. The bar was one of my favorite places and I honestly thought that I couldn't have fun without having a few drinks or something else to make me feel "good." I thought it was fun to do whatever we wanted because hey, we were young and living life to the fullest, right? NO. I was so wrong. I thought I was wallowing in my freedom when really I was chained to bott

Earlier today I was talking with  a friend that I used to teach with. I was explaining that I am now a homeschooling Mommy. I said, "I never, ever thought I would homeschool my kids but its perfect! I love it!" Her response was nothing extravagant or flashy. She just said, "I'm not surprised.  You're a Natural Born Momma!" That compliment just made my heart smile! She's right. God made me to be the Mommy to these little boys. He made me to be their teacher too! Sometimes its hard for me to remember that He has equipped me to do exactly what He has called me to do! A sweet compliment like that helps me to refocus and remember how grateful I am for the opportunity to raise these adorable little ones.  Today I am thankful for the "job" God has given me. When He created me, He knew that I would be Dylan, Evan, and Tyson's Mommy. He has called me and equipped me and this is the purpose for this season of my life. I am so grateful that He ha

Recently I realized that my boys have had little too much "screen time" this summer.  If you don't know what that is, let me share. Anything that has a screen is covered in "screen time" such as television, computer, tablet, phone, and video games. Since we haven't been doing school work and it has been SUPER HOT, the kids have wanted t stay inside and watch TV. A little bit is fine, but too much screen time isn't good for anyone.  A few months ago I saw a sign to post on the refrigerator that gave kids several things to do before they could enjoy their screen time. I changed a few things and made it more appropriate for our family and I started this new Summer Time Rule a few days ago. The list isn't anything crazy....it's just make your bed and put your clothes in the hamper, have your quiet time with God, complete a math problem of the day, read a book for 20 minutes, do something creative for 30 minutes and complete 1 chore. I totall

Bryan and I often watch Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. We don't care much for the interviews or talent acts but we love all of the funny things he does on his show. Last night, in honor of Father's Day, he interviewed several kids about their Dads. He asked several questions and the kids answered candidly. It was so funny to hear what the kids had to say about their fathers!  So, in honor of Father's Day, I thought I would ask our kids those same questions about their Daddy! Dylan and Evan answered the questions individually but they both helped me come up with answers for Tyson too! What is the weirdest thing about Daddy? Dylan-  He likes to eat steak but steak is disgusting. Evan- Daddy isn't weird! Tyson- He has a lot of hair on his face. What superhero would Daddy be if he were a superhero? Dylan- Mr. Incredible because they are both big and strong. Evan - Super Man because he is my daddy and he's super, Tyson- Super Daddy because

When I started selling KEEP collective at the end of February, I noticed that there was a lot of talk about designers striving to become "Founding Stars." These are the first 100 ladies to promote to Star Designer two months in a row. No matter what, these designers will always be considered co-creators for this new, amazing company! I remember thinking in February, "Wow, that would be neat but its never going to happen! I mean, I did just start and who promotes to that level that quickly?" Well....I guess KEEP Designers do! I would have never, ever imagined when I started on this journey that I would be able earn the title of "Founding Star." It seemed pointless to even think about it. As I started to promote quickly, I realized that there was a slight possibility that it might happen and I started to want it, but still, I didn't think I could actually do it.  It's funny how when I start to dream and hope for things, and I pray about those

I am telling you, I absolutely cannot believe that it has been 9 months since I first laid eyes on this little guy. I'll admit, I barely remember that day because I was in complete shock. Tyson totally surprised us all when he came out! He wasn't the little girl we expected but, like my friend Valerie says, "I wouldn't trade him for all the little girls in the world!" (she also has 3 boys!) I have now held this adorable baby boy in my arms as long as I held him in my womb. And, I have now known that he is a boy longer than I believed he was a girl. I honestly can't imagine life with pink in it. Having three sons is perfect for us, at this season in our lives. When I look back, I know God placed this little fella right here, in our family, because its exactly where Tyson belonged!  I know that many of you are wondering (and probably have been for the last nine months) but we just aren't sure yet if we'll try again. We're enjoying th

We moved into our home (also known as "Our Promised Land") a little over a  year. I call it our promised land because getting this home took forever...or at least it seemed like it! Serioulsy,  2 and 1/2 years for our old house to sell and then 7 months of waiting to close on this house. We truly believed all along that God had a plan and that we'd would see the "promised land" and in His time, we did!!! And it couldn't have been sweeter! I've  probably told you guys three million times how much I love our home and how grateful I am for this sweet gift from our God. One thing that always bugged me a little was this big tree right-smack-dab in front of our house. I have always felt like it was hiding our house. Don't get me wrong, I love trees as much as the next guy but this one was hiding what I consider to be one of God's greatest gifts to me and family.  So, Bryan and I decided to have it taken down! Before After!!! It&#

Since we're back from our Disney vacation, we're slowly settling into the lazy days of Summer. I love teaching my boys throughout the year but I have to admit, these summer days are really nice. I thought it would be fun to do some different art projects this summer. We started today!  First, we made homemade liquid water colors and the boys used stickers to make their names on their papers. Secondly, we filled several water guns up with the liquid watercolors. The boys had no idea what we were doing until now. They were so excited when the y saw the water guns! They loved spraying their papers! They also liked being able to help their baby brother shoot his paper with liquid water colors! For three little boys, this might be the best arts and crafts project I could ever come up with! They definitely enjoyed it. Of course the finished products ended up on the fridge!!! That's where all the best art work lands!! Today I am thankful for

A dear lady once told me about "God Winks." This obviously isn't a Biblical term but instead, its a little phrase that she has coined. "God Winks" are those moments when she feels as if God has winked at her, reminding her how much He loves her. Our week in Disney world was full of "God Winks" for me! I wish I had taken the time to write them all down because God was winking like crazy last week! I'll share a few of those special moments with you... It just "so happened" that we were given a free week in Disney World during Star Wars Weekend at Hollywood Studios. Dylan has recently become a huge star wars fan so this made the trip extra special for him! We signed the older boys up for "Jedi Training" bright and early on Sunday morning and they were sooooo excited about it! While I watched Dylan fight Darth Vadar with his light saber, I could feel God winking. This isn't something we needed or even knew we wanted bu