River Rats

We spent a week at Yeager's River Bend campground. It was a week of swimming, floating, swinging, and hanging.... perfect summer getaway.

Michael was the rope swing champ of the family.

Michael and dad....

Sister's rope swinging expertise...obviously.

Posing for mom. No one else was at the river. It was delightful!

We went into town twice and did laundry. (And came home with only one load of dirty clothes! My husband is a genius!)

Do you remember that scene from Friends when Rachel learns to stand up for herself at the laundry mat? Michael DID NOT appreciate my delight in his decision to sit in the little rolly thing!

It's not vacation without a little golf. This was at Garner State Park. We spent the whole day swimming and rope swinging. At the end of the day, on the way back to the camp ground we played a round of putt putt.

I have no words... At least he was smiling.

And posing...

Look at this handsome man!

Katelynn was DONE... and having the sign right in her face for THE photo opportunity of the day was NOT helping.

So we tried a different pose. And then walked to the gift shop and snack bar for some ice cream.

Me and Mike

There is dancing every night at the Garner State Park building. Mike remembers going when he was a kid and was at the river with his family. He told Michael he would have to ask a girl to dance if we went. (We did not go. Whew, avoided that for another year).

There was a family with teenagers that was hanging out on the dance floor. The parents would break into a two-step when they liked the song. We just looked on and ate our ice cream.

There are a series of about 20 pictures I took of this singing and dancing queen.

Here's our shelter where we stayed. By the middle of the night, it was cool enough that all of us had to cover with something. Who would have guessed that the last week of July would greet us with cool weather on the Frio? 

My SIL. She joined us for the week.

Look how beautiful. Makes me think of my sister and her boys.

Lunch in Leakey, TX

It was just wonderful. You must take a trip to the Frio river with the family. We have decided that we will be going back every year. This will be our family's "Trip" each year.

I was hesitant when Mike started talking about camping...in a shelter....in July. But since we have never camped before, I really didn't have any expectations. Even if I did... this would have surpassed what I could have imagined. (and next time we are bringing a fridge).

Joyfully full and blessed!

Tiff

Admitting Defeat

I started the summer just like I did last summer...with high and mighty plans of education and structure.

Does that make you laugh? Well, it should.

And now that we are in August and the home stretch toward forced structure and education, I've letting go and admitting defeat.

There will be no more rules of the road that include reading or workbook pages.

No, we won't sit and read a book instead of watching TV.

No, we won't play outside until lunch.

No, we won't gain any ground in our reading, writing, or arithmatic skills. (I'm leaving the misspelling of arithmatic to prove my point, and because I have no idea how to spell that fancy math word).

We will embrace the genetic tendencies to sit and watch TV all day. (Like thigh biscuits, the Ellis side of the family is notorious for TV watching expertise).

We will spend our time in the car playing our DS's. (Instead of fighting...please dear Lord).

She has a new game that is taking care of a puppy. Never mind that our kittens were out of food and water this morning..... Her virtual dog is well fed and walked.

He is playing another Lego game. It's the same one we have on the wii but I get to watch TV while he plays this one. My parenting excellence know no bounds.

And we will spend afternoons at the mall. (Do you hear the "How I met your mother" song "Let's go to the mall, today?" Because the Tyler mall has the best invention ever...the bouncy things. And my children love them.

The athletic ability of my family should impress you. Look how high she is...almost 9 feet.

He is just a little higher. And he wasn't giggling as much as her, which may account for his height.

Actually, we won't be going back to the mall unless it is to jump. Because let's be honest, I'm not 16 and my friends don't hang out there. (But if you are heading that way, call me and Let's go to the mall, Today...")

Also, I got a new watch and I am in love with it. Thank you Accessory Dash!

Embrace the laziness before the school storm.
Joyfully full of it,

Tiff

Out to pasture

Hello Beautiful,

This summer has been challenging for me. Please don't read that the summer has not be most excellent, oh my, it has....but challenging. I have felt beat down and have been struggling with, well, I really can't put my finger on what had me down. Please note the past tense HAD.

I told y'all that Melanie Shankle from the Big Mama blog was coming to Tyler. I could barely contain my excitement before and after the event. She spoke and I swear her words were directed to me! I had been praying for God to give me something...like a Psalm 257....dear Tiffany... To help me out of the ridiculous funk I was stuck in.

Well, he gave me Big Mama's words. They were so sweet and wonderful. I "know" this beautiful lady from her blog and the book I just finished.






It's a wonderful book about being a mom and loving even the hard times. She's funny and frank. My two favorite adjectives!

So, here's what she said. (Shared with permission...yes, I actually talked to her!!! I'll tell you about that below.)

From the Pasture to the Throne

1 Samuel 16. This is the story of when King David was called by God to be the next king of Isreal.

The Lord said to Samuel, r“How long will you grieve over Saul, since sI have rejected him from being king over Israel? tFill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, ufor I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” 2 And Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.” And the Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, v‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’ 3 And invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do. wAnd you shall anoint for me him whom I declare to you.” 4 Samuel did what the Lord commanded and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city xcame to meet him trembling and said, y“Do you come peaceably?” 5 And he said, “Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. zConsecrate yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice.” And he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.
6 When they came, he looked on aEliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed is before him.” 7 But the Lord said to Samuel, b“Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, cbut the Lord looks on the heart.” 8 Then Jesse called dAbinadab and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.” 9 Then Jesse made dShammah pass by. And he said, “Neither has the Lord chosen this one.” 10 And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, “The Lord has not chosen these.” 11 Then Samuel said to Jesse, “Are all your sons here?” And he said, e“There remains yet the youngest,1 but behold, he is keeping the sheep.” And Samuel said to Jesse, f“Send and get him, for we will not sit down till he comes here.” 12 And he sent and brought him in.

I tried to paste it in and it looks funny, but the point is that Samuel went to Jesse to find the next king. He went through all of Jesse's sons except David...the one he left in the pasture with the sheep... Left out in the pasture. If God can find David in the pasture and use him, he can surely find you amongst the dirty clothes and floors.... Right??

Stay the course when the crap piles up around you.... Remain in Him... Let (Melanie) tell you why...

1. He is absolutely calling you to something. (Jeremiah 29:11)

2. Everything in your life has been preparing you for what God wants you to do. (Your history is a part of your story....it makes you the perfect you)

3. There will always be obstacles in your way. (Your whole life is more than you can handle so that the only way you can make it is with Him)

4. The path won't always be clear. (Our hero, David, asked God if he was sure about choosing him in 2 Samuel)

5. We are called to leave the comfortable and familiar behind.

6. You will make mistakes. (God's grace is bigger than your mistakes)

7. Others won't understand. (2 Samuel 6:21 David danced in the streets.... Like a crazy man.)

8. You will be blessed beyond measure when you walk out what God has for you. There will be peace and contentment, you will not find it.....IT'S HIM!

Ephesians 3:20 He has more than you can imagine for you.

Take a deep breath and let it soak in. You are beautiful and amazing and a masterpiece.





See, she knows my name....





And my face.

When I walked up to her for her autograph, my heart was pounding. I was blessed by her words and had defaced her book with my notes.... And she was funny and gracious. I told her that I was thankful for her and that I wanted to seem classy, so I took out my toilet paper book mark before I walked in the building. (She agreed that was classy!)

Please be encouraged. If you are struggling, pray for Psalm 258: "dear you
" or writing on the wall for direction or the hug that you need today.

Be loved beautiful.
Joyfully full of it...whatever it is!

Tiff

Summer Slump

There are only something like 5 weeks left. Not enough time for things like this....

 Or this.....

 Or this....(no matching during the school year...it's not possible to coordinate something like that when we are rushing to school in the morning.)

 But summer is good for SLOWING down! I think I forgot that that's my favorite part about summer. The Glorious "Summer Bubble". I've not been able to enjoy my summer bubble which means that I haven't been able to enjoy my family as much as I would like. This statement by no means eludes to any kind of SEPARATION from my beautiful offspring...no no no...we are always together....

I actually stopped this morning. And paused. Not long enough to rest my soul...but long enough to notice this.

 Do you see that little smudgy hand print on my windshield? (I was stopped at a stop sign.)

Those fingerprints are of my first born. My sweet little man that is just not so little anymore. He was saving me from an ant. He stepped up and attacked it for me so I could get out of my car. ;)

 My sweet growing man. (Stopped in the driveway for this pic). I had a rough Monday and cried like a big dummy and he held my hand. And patted my back. And told me it was going to be okay.

And he likes to sit on the "hump" when sister isn't in the car. 

On a different note:

Below is Sister's office this summer. Please note her office ours are "10:00 am Ends at E:00 pm". I'm a slave driver. 

I hope you are taking in every bit of summer happiness (and vitamin D).
Joyfully,

Tiff

Birthdays and Pinatas

Happy Wednesday!

My children are a year older. It just happened last week. It snuck up on me and was here before I was ready. Luckily we have ingrained low standards and my people aren't expecting elaborate parties and shin-digs. However, we do like our birthdays around here. It is a blessing and a curse that their birthdays are 4 days apart. I only have to get in birthday mode once a year and if falls right in the middle of summer...far away from Christmas.

June 28th we celebrated my beautiful son's 9th birthday. NINE! That's only 7 years from driving and he is half way to 18. And graduating. And no longer needing me. (Don't worry, he's practicing not needing me this summer...i'm not letting it stick!) So that morning, as I was yoga-ing in the shop at 5:45AM, my sweet man woke up the earliest ever for him.

                                            He was super duper pumped that it was his birthday!

                                                  And obviously it was not Sister's birthday.

               One of his "gifts" was a letter I wrote to him about how proud I am of the man he is becoming.

This is not his reacting from the letter. 

                         It was THE gift. The one he has been asking for for years....a DSI.

 After his birthday presents were open and our teeth were brushed, we headed to mom's for a combined birthday morning with Grana, my brother and his beautiful wife. Michael got to go first since it was his actual birthday.

                                      (She's so fast, I almost didn't catch her on film....like a ninja!)

                                                             My brother and Katelynn

                                                 Then, sister's turn for birthday surprises.

                                                            AMERICAN GIRL DOLL!!!

                                                               MY American Girl Doll...

                                                               Michael and Aunt Katie

                                                                     Corey and Katie

 Then we shipped Katelynn off to a slumber party and had a night for the boys. They swam, ate pizza, then we went to the movies to see Man of Steel. Three hyper 9 year old boys are not quiet during the movies. This picture was taken AFTER the movie at 10:30 or so. LATE. TIRED. and they were so hyper.

                                                  Happy Birthday to you my beautiful boy.

 Then 4 days later....it was finally her day!

                                                          And it was obviously not HIS. ;)

                       Sister also got her very own DS. (not the i...they know the difference, I don't)

 We made a cake for her but it appears that we didn't wait long enough for it to cool so the next day when we went to light it and sing, the letters had all slid down the side. Still tasted good...and we still celebrated.

                                                   Happy 7th Birthday beautiful baby girl.

And now to the pinata!
We have a friend named Claire that has been coming with us to mom's house this summer so that I can work and the kids can play and not watch TV all day. Also, my mom has a pool and I'm just that over protective... Claire has been fabulous! The kids are a little confused with how a babysitter nanny works. (Sounds cooler). M and K have been a little smothered by her constant presence. She is always playing with them. (Yep, they come to my desk to hide under it because Claire keeps wanting to play.... ROTTEN). The first week of summer, Claire and the kids made a pinata. From scratch! And we finally took it outside and smashed it. And we have been eating so much candy for the last two days...

                                                                  Look at that FORM!

                                                                       Yum. Sugar!

So birthdays are over and that means that Summer is half way over too. I can't believe how fast June came and went. I'm just not ready for them to get any bigger. (K was supposed to stop sucking her thumb at 7...hasn't happened yet...maybe she mean't 7 1/2.)



Dear God,
Thank you for giving me these beautiful children. Thank you for their smiles and attitudes. Show me how to be the mom that they need and how to make sure that they are blossoming into the people you created them to be. Help me to be patient and loving during these long hot summer days. I know that they will be gone from me before I am ready for it. Fill our home with overwhelming joy as we spend so much time together. I pray for peace between the kids and patience for each other. Please help us to be kind and think of others before ourselves. And flood our home with love for you and each other.
Amen.


Joyful and completely blessed by my people,
Tiff

Dear God, please let us win the lottery...

Oh yes I certainly did to... Here's that prayer:

Dear God, please let us win the lottery so that we can travel and stop stressing about money. If we don't win the lottery, please shower me with contentment.

I firmly believe there are times when Jesus sits down to listen to me and he just shakes his head. Either because I've just proven to Him that i need Him or because he is tired of hearing me go on and on... I know that isn't true. Jesus is infinitely patient and full of grace (the opposite of me). But still, what is my problem? Where does this "stuff-ness" desire come from?Oh I know the answer. The root of all that is evil and eating away at my contentment and peace.

FACEBOOK!

(Do you find it ironic that I would bad mouth my blog posting notification medium?)

I have a beautiful non-Facebook friend that solidified my opinion when she texted me a couple of weeks ago....

Beautiful Non-Facebook Friend: Facebook is evil.
Me: I KNOW! My life is incomplete and empty and I am the only person I know that doesn't have a new house....

Well, it went something like that. You get the shallow gist of it. So I've decided (begrudgingly) that i need to figure out a way GET OVER IT! When i was facebook-fasting for Jesus (a.k.a. during Lent) i had an incredible peace and found myself without headaches, with more energy, and content for like the first time ever. What happened? Could it be that my time spent not reading the bible and Facebook stalking friends has dropped me into this spiral on discontent. (No? Well, maybe).

So I found that the bible actually addresses this issue. (I'm not at all surprised that my Heavenly Father has it covered.)

Ecclesiastes 6:9 NLT (I added a little to this)
Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don't have. Just dreaming about nice things (or pinning them) is meaningless-like chasing the wind.

1 Timothy 6:6
Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth.

"Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, most people still believe that money brings happiness. Rich people craving greater riches can be caught in an endless cycle that only ends in ruin and destruction. Paul gives us some guidelines:
1) Realize that one day riches will be gone;
2) be content with what you have;
3) monitor what you are willing to do to get more money;
4) love people more that money;
5) love God's work more than money;
6) freely share what you have with others."

Turns out I have already won the lottery (Not just marrying the handsomest man ever), I just need to access the vault.





I'm committing more time to Jesus. I'm gonna sit down with my used eBay bible and read this summer. (Yes, bought my "new" bible on eBay....those highlights in the picture were done by the previous owner. It's a long story.)

By the way, I promised to tithe my lottery winnings at one point during my prayer....don't judge!!

Joyfully full of it,
Tiff

**the notes are from my used eBay bible... NLT Parallel Study Bible.

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