Oh how quickly time flies

Twelve years ago this weekend Doug and I went out on our first date. I love taking a moment  to look back. (Yeah for scrapbooks!!)

We went to the big city (Fort Worth) and went to Home Depot, Half Price Books, ate at One the Border and finished off with a Texas Rangers game.  We had a great time.. good thing since that’s a really long first date!      The next morning, I went over to my parent’s house and told them that I had met the man I was going to marry!

And so we began our whirlwind courtship and our life together!

I don’t think we’ve slowed down any, but I wouldn’t change a thing!

Still Dreaming

I have lots of plans for my life.

Lots of dreams.

I've always wanted to try lots of different jobs.
(I guess teaching 13 different subjects counts)

I've always wanted to live, or at least visit lots of different countries.

(Maybe when the kids are grown..)

But one thing I know,

God is revealing to me His incredible plan for my life.

And it's one that I enjoy living out everyday!

My journey may not be interesting to others

It's surely not book or movie worthy.

But at worst, it's a great life,

And at best I am learning that even a small light makes a difference.

So what does Crazy Love Ministries have to do with that?

Well, I'm working on figuring it all out.

But it means that I want my everyday decisions and actions to mean more.

I want to be able to help others in tangible ways.

I want to show that serving others means more than just going to church.

I want to look for ways to help others.

I want to be an active participant in things that matter. 

I have lots of dreams for my life.

I have lots of plans to help others.

It's all depends on my perspective. 

Another Thank Your Card and a Fun and Easy Technique

Don't you just love this fun card?!!?!

It was so easy too.. even better!

Close To My Heart is showcasing the flower petal technique on page 13 of the  new catalog,
so I thought I'd give it a whirl.  I have to say, it was sooo easy and looks soooo good!!

Have a great day!

A Thank You Gift: Handmade Recipe Book

I don’t know about you, but it seems like I am always needing a thank you gift!  This time I needed something special for someone who went the extra mile for me.. and she happens to love to cook, so I decided to make a little recipe book that she can place her favorite recipe’s in for her teenage daughter.

I hope she likes it.  I had fun making it.
To make the cover, I took 2 pieces of chipboard and cut them a little larger than my 8x8 page protectors.  (Well, to be honest, the first piece of chipboard I only cut a little larger than my 8x8 pages.. then I remembered that the page protectors were larger..eek.  Thankfully I had an extra piece of chipboard!)

The first page:

Appetizers:

Soups and Salads:

Main Course:

All of the pages that have only one card are Flip Flap pockets that stick to the outside of the page protector.. isn’t that so cool :)

The Dessert Page:

Side Dishes: 

The End:

I hope she likes it…

I'm Working On It!!

http://www.crazyloveministries.com/

I'm working on it.

Nope the site isn't up yet.

It's in progress.

Just lettin' you know.

Something new mulling around in my brain

So, I've got something interesting mulling around in my brain. I'll give you a hint...

• It's not about buying a house. (I've decided I'm gonna have to leave that one for God to work out.)
• It's not about children.
• It's not a craft.
• It's not about my job or Doug's job.

Are you intrigued yet???

I'll let you know when I get it all worked out.  'Cause I'm thinking it's going to be a little crazy :)

When Did I Get Like This?

 Written by Amy Wilson

I just read the story of my life.  Written by another mom.  Really.  It was amazing, hilarious and I have to admit rather scary!

If you are a mom or thinking about being a mom, you should read this book.  In fact, I told Doug that he needed to read it as it’s a great glimpse into my head and the feelings that I never express.

My friend Rachel got this book and loaned it to me.  She was right, I loved it!

If you need a fun read I highly suggest this book.

A Paper Project: Splendor Flower Vase

A fun flower project!

I created this fun paper flower project
out of CTMH's new Splendor papers!

I love the colors and the whimsy print.

 

I bought the tin can at Target for $1 and just new I had to do something with it.  Then Monday a friend of mine watched my last class of the day so that I could go pick up Maddie from school early.  Instead of creating a thank you card, I made this little flower arrangement instead!

I am hoping to make a few more projects with the new papers soon!

A Magical Ten Years: Happy Birthday Maddie

I can’t believe Maddie is 10 today! Oh how fast these years have flown!!

Happy Birthday Mad :)

Maddie has changed our lives in such a wonderful way; I can’t begin to describe how special she is. But today, on her birthday, I’ll tell you our story.

It was the summer of 1999 and Doug and I had moved from Texas to North Carolina to serve a church. As a teacher, I was off and we got settled into our new home. Of course, what follows next, the desire to have a baby. I had been on medicine for ovarian cysts for years and wasn’t sure how long it would take me to get pregnant, so we decided to go for it!!

Amazingly, I got pregnant the first month! Wow!! I even knew before the test came back positive. I was sick from implantation! As soon as I got the confirmed test, I called the doctor and scheduled my first visit. With a confirmed pregnancy test the doctor’s office didn’t do the first visit until 8 weeks. Eagerly we waited for the first visit and welcomed every morning with vomiting!

When I scheduled my first visit, the receptionist said that they would do blood work and basics, but nothing fun (like an ultrasound) or anything so I didn’t need to bring Doug. So on the day of the appointment off I went, so excited. I got checked in, did my insurance paperwork and low and behold I was taken down the hall for a sonogram. Poor Doug had to miss being a part of this precious experience.

So the technician doing the sonogram was telling me all about what she was doing and labeling all the parts of my body for me all was great until she got quiet and then said that she would be right back. A few minutes later she comes back in with the doctor. They take a look and the doctor tells me that one of my twins is not going to make it. WHAT??!?!!?! First, what twins? And second.. you just point blank told me that one was not going to make it and my husband isn’t even here!!

The doctor explained that one of the yolk sacs was closing in on itself and was not going to be “viable”. The other sac looked good and thankfully they were not identical so they had their own sacs. The “good” one would absorb the “bad” one and all would be okay. They gave me pictures and gently told me to come back in two weeks and they would see if I was carrying one or two.

As I left the office to go get blood work, I didn’t know what to think. The excitement of seeing my tiny baby growing tinged with the heartbreak of also seeing a tiny one “not thriving.” Tears of joy and sorrow.

Two weeks later we returned to the doctor. Doug obviously would miss no more appointments. The two sacs were now just one. A strong heartbeat could be seen and heard and the doctor gave us all assurance that the surviving twin would be fine.

The rest of my pregnancy was fun filled with lots of throwing up and planning for baby. My body tried repeatedly to kick Maddie out starting at about 32 weeks, but finally the day before she was due my water broke and we got to welcome our sweet baby girl, Madalyn Grace McLemore, into the world at 5:48am on May 4, 2000.

How blessed we are. Life has continued to be an adventure with Maddie. Nothing has been easy, but given that she was our first, we didn’t know any differently  From a rare reaction to penicillin at 6 months, to four sinus surgeries, to chronic pain, everyday Maddie teaches us about true strength, determination and joy. Maddie is the light of our life and I am so thankful that God brought her into our lives.

Memorial Box Monday: The Misfit

Life is about interpretation and our interpretation of life depends on personality and experience. Real or not, my interpretation of life has led me to feel like the misfit of my family. It’s hard to express in words, but for whatever reason, God has placed it on my heart to share my story.

To begin, I have a wonderful family. I thank God that I don’t have horror stories of childhood and that I have not experienced the ugly side of humanity. Nonetheless, years ago, Satan found a stronghold in my life. That was the feeling that I didn’t fit in. And to be honest, it was easy to allow those negative thoughts to continue and fester.

Simple differences compounded make me feel out of place. Not unwanted, but not included. For example:

• My beautiful and talented three sisters are model thin. If you add up all of their clothing sizes together you MIGHT get mine.. maybe.

• Everyone in my family attends the same kind of church... but me. My husband and children attend a totally different style of church. I love both, but feel more at home where Doug and I attend.

• Politically I am at the other end of the spectrum from all of my family. My life experiences have led me to different conclusions and a different place politically than my parents and sisters.

As you can imagine, I feel different and out of place. A misfit.

So how is this a Memorial Box Monday? How is this an example of God’s divine goodness? Well, last week was hard. For no other reason being that I’m tired, it’s the end of the school year and I have three kids. In the midst of the craziness, I have missed out on a couple of things the rest of my family has been able to do. So once again, I’ve felt left out.

But guess what. A couple of days ago my sister wrote a story about me. Not about how different I am, but how I work with differently-abled students. How fun is that!

Then this morning, while reading the Bible I was reminded that God didn’t make me out of leftovers. I am the person that God created me to be.

Yes, I maybe the misfit in the family. But that’s okay. Everyone of us has been called to serve God with our whole beings, our whole selves. My story is not the story of my sisters. And their stories are not mine. Because of our differences, our collective voice is much stronger. Because of our differences, we able to show the grace of God to more people.

And the Anniversary Gift goes to….

Lavonne said... Hoping so much to get back into scrapbooking this spring...I'm getting too far behind!

April 27, 2010 9:55 PM

Lavonne, I’m putting your goodies together today, so email me and I’ll get your prize to you asap!

Thanks everyone for playing, tune in again soon.  I’m in a giving mood :)