The Swan Princess

Okay, so does a costume still count for all the hard work you put into it if your child won't wear it for more than 10 minutes? Probably not! LOL Oh well, Sarah was a beautiful Swan for about 9 minutes this morning and I made the excutive decision that we will be a princess bride tonight instead of a swan! Those wings are a pain.....and she's not crazy about the mask any longer, either! haha Oh well, can't blame me for trying! haha She does look like an angel, though! I love this costume anyway!

Happy Halloween!

This morning, I surprised the kids with a Halloween Breakfast Party when they woke up! I'm truly surprised that they were surprised because I do it every year! LOL However, when they woke up, they were happy to see the table decorated for Halloween and a special breakfast! I made cinnamon rolls & homemade hot cocoa that they got to drink from REAL coffee cups! I got them a few little treats and a tiny bit of candy and a card and you would have thought I put $100 at each place setting! LOL They were so funny! After breakfast, they danced around in the living room to fun Halloween music on the satellite kids station! Then, we took Jason to school. It was a fun morning.

Some of my friends choose not to celebrate Halloween and I respect that. I realize that for some, Halloween means something other than acting silly and eating candy but in our familly, that is ALL it means. We have so much fun as a family every year on Halloween. We always dress up as a family and do fun stuff. It's one of the highlights of our year. Todd and I have always told our children that there are some people who celebrate halloween as their "religious" holiday and how that is not what we believe and that doing so is against God. Then we stress to them that we choose Halloween as a "silly family day" and that is how we celebrate.

This morning, I looked up some information about Halloween on the net. I completely agree with this excerpt from an article that I read...

"Should Christians and their children participate in Halloween activities if they are unsure whether it is the right thing to do or are convinced it is wrong? The Bible teaches us that we should be fully persuaded in our own minds about these things—either pro or con. But we should not judge or condemn others who are of a different persuasion. The apostle Paul’s advice in Romans 14 can be applied to the question of Halloween activities.
If some people feel uncomfortable participating in Halloween activities, perhaps due to problems in their region, then they should not do so. The day has religious significance only to those who give it religious significance. It is the responsibility of each Christian to decide, based on biblical and Christian principles, whether to participate in Halloween activities, and to avoid judging other Christians who have different circumstances and make different decisions."

I felt like this was a very good way of looking at Halloween for all of us. I feel the same way about Christmas & Santa Claus.....but that's another blog! :)

At any rate, I hope each of you has a wonderful day today whether you are celebrating Halloween with fun and candy and silliness or your not. Either way....I respect your decisions.

Have a wonderful & blessed day!

New Portraits of Jason & Sarah!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Benini Bug!

Well, Sarah is in Cookie Magazine this month! Benini Bug Boutique is using Sarah in their ad!!!(that I also got the privelage of designing)

If you get your hands on a copy of the magazine (sold in most larger book-stores), she is on the next to the last page! She looks so sweet! I love it! Benini Bug Boutique has also been entered in a contest to win "Best Baby Boutique" at www.thecradle.com/bbb . If you go there and then scroll down the page and enter for Benini Bug to win the best baby boutique and then "Dimples & Dandelions" for the best online only boutique....you will be entered to win $1000 to use at any of the listed boutiques!!!

PLEASE go vote for Benini Bug EVERY DAY! You can vote more than once and they are a great family owned and operated boutique! Lorena, the owner, works all day and then her husband comes to relieve her! They have 3 boys and she JUST had one of them! She is an amazing woman and TRULY deserves to win this contest. Please, please, please vote! :)

While your at it, you can go to her website and shop! Sarah is on the front page! :) http://www.beninibug.com/ .

This is the photo ad that is in Cookie Magazine!

GO COWBOYS!!!!!

Last night, our friends called us to see if Jason & Todd wanted to go to the Dallas Cowboys game today! Of course, they had to say YES! :) They were very excited. It was kind of late when we found out so we got up early this morning and Jason & I ran to WalMart to get him a Cowboys jersey! He had to have Romo! He looked so cute and was so excited! Neither he or Todd have ever been to a Cowboys game. I hope they have a great time today! Jody had the truck loaded down with stuff for a tailgate party so they will be getting the full experience!

A Smilebox of all the costumes I've made!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Angie's Cakes...

My friend, Angie Modisette makes the most beautiful cakes! :)

35 Wishes...........A Plan is Born!

Well, yesterday was one of the most amazing days I've had in a long time! This is going to be a long blog...get some coffee!

Okay, when Sarah was born, as most of you already know, she had heart problems. Over the period of her first year of life, she had four heart surgeries. After her recovery and getting better, we got home and I stayed with her and did not return to work for quite some time. During that time, I felt the overwhelming burden to do something for others in the same situation that our family had been in. Armed with my camera and some friends, I decided to go to the Ronald McDonald House and host a family portrait day in which I took portraits of all of the families and their children, both well & sick. I met some of the most amazing people through this mission and felt like God truly opened my eyes to a love of helping others through my experiences.

Before Sarah, anything I did for others was out of a feeling of just "doing my part". I didn't have a sense of urgency like I did after Sarah came along. My entire life, I've had that gut feeling that there is something out there that I am SUPPOSED to be doing but I've thought many times that the feeling just hasn't hit me just right. I've done lots of things with the talents I've been blessed with to try to bless others but STILL, I feel like I'm missing the boat somewhere.

So many times, I've been told..."You are so talented". It's sometimes a burden to me because I don't feel like I am always using my talent to absolutely be a blessing to someone else and even if I am ............I know there is some huge thing I've not seen yet! Something BIG that God has for me to do. I have always had the gut feeling that I am supposed to change lives in a BIG way. A bunch of lives. I have felt called to children with heart problems since Sarah's birth and our journey with her.

It is allllllll coming together now! My "Big Thing" happened yesterday!

In September, I bought an outfit for Sarah that was handmade by a woman named "Keri" on http://www.etsy.com/. Her storefront is called chasingbirdies . She makes amazing clothing! Absolutely adorable things! After receiving the outfit, I decided it would be what Sarah wore to her cardiologist appointment in October. I always let her wear a special outfit that day and she always looks extra cute for those appointments. It's like her big day in the city! :) She loves it!

Well, AT her appointment, I'm sure most of you read the blog about her not wanting to wear her hospital gown. So, I contacted Keri to see if she could get a pattern for hospital gowns and she said yes! I was so excited about that! Then, Keri emailed me and asked me if other children may be interested in one, too and how this may be a good ministry for us. I immediately had that WOW feeling!

I thought..........well, I can't sew, but I can find a way to help make this happen!

35 Wishes .....a plan is born....

So, I talked to Keri yesterday afternoon and we have a plan of action! She and some of her friends are going to make 35 hospital gowns for the children who will be in the hospital at TCH on the heart recovery floor on Christmas Day! AND, we are gathering other items to include in gifts for 35 children in the 35 rooms of that floor! Hence, the name....35 Wishes. Everyone who has heard of this since yesterday is 'on board' with helping! Even Jason can't wait to help! He's going to design the cards for us to put with each gift!

This is such a God thing! When we got on the phone, we had never spoken before. I had only bought a few things from her on etsy and we had chatted back and forth via email through their site. When I asked for her phone number....I called and she answered the phone with excitement in her voice! We could not talk fast enough! It was like we had both been waiting SO long for something big and we had found each other and we knew we were going to be unstoppable together! During our hour long conversation, we laughed, CRIED, everything! We are going to meet sometime in the next week or so and sit down and REALLY brainstorm about what we can do further....past Christmas....how we can grow and REALLY change lives! She and I talked about our husbands, too! Turns out....she tells me her husband works in the construction industry....I said...."Really?......mine too! What does your husband do?" She replies...."He's a branch manager for a rental company." ............so I ask..."WHAT rental company?" She says............"United Rentals,......have you heard of it?"! Well, yes.....my HUSBAND is a sales rep for united rentals!!!!!!!!!!! We both start screaming and laughing! It's hilarious!~ So funny!

A few "funny" coincidences we discovered that will make us a great team!....

*We are both Christians!

*She's only been sewing for a little less than 2 months.

*I was her first customer!

*Our husbands work for the same company!

*She lives an hour away from me! (and etsy is a worldwide website and I didn't even realize she was in the Dallas area until AFTER I ordered!)

*She does not like the marketing aspect of anything and I live for it!

*We are both stay at home/work at home moms!

*She & I have both been looking for something bigger!

I know this is a loooooong blog...but I did warn you at the beginning! :)

I am so excited about this and if this story pulls at your heart-strings..........you can help, too! Email me if you would be interested in helping in any way. We need support from everyone who can help! If anyone would like to make a donation to our cause, we are using the money to purchase the hatboxes to put the items in and for fabric to help make more hospital gowns, goodies for the boxes, etc.! We are thankful for any help we get

Sarah has come SUCH a long way and we are so blessed by her life....I want her life to continue causing blessings for others! These photos are so hard to look back at and see where she started, but when you look at where she is now....it just truly shows how wonderful God is and how important it is to me to make a difference in others' lives!

Right after her most recent heart surgery...in recovery...

This is a photo from a time BEFORE they made her wear a hospital gown! See how happy she is! LOL They used a photo of her in this tiara for their brochure for the anesthesiology department! She is a true success story of Texas Children's Hospital!

The last one is one of my new favorite pictures of her! It looks like she's praising the Lord! She just looks SO happy! (Probably because she is!)

Have a Blessed Day...

Make a Smilebox photobook

Fun at the Park...

Sunday afternoon, we took the kids to the park for a little while. They were so cute and had fun as always! Enjoy the pics! I love seeing their smiling faces while they swing, hang from the monkey bars and slide. It always reminds me of the simplicity of childhood and how we used to all be happy with the simplest of things!

Sarah's First Sleepover!

Sarah had her first real sleepover last night! We kept our friends' little girl, Kerstyn in exchange for them keeping Sarah for us a few months ago. Sarah had a BLAST with Kerstyn last night. We made easy bake cake and decorated it! I thought it turned out pretty cute. They wanted green icing with pink flower dots. They LOVED making it and I had a good time, too. They were so cute playing "ring around the rosey" while we waited for the cake and they kept hugging and laughing saying "We're best friends forever". It was adorable, really. Then, it was bathtime after they had their cake and some water in Sarah's tea-set dishes. During bathtime, I turned on the bubble blowing machine in the bathroom and the room was filled with bubbles! I couldn't even get them to get out of the tub. They had so much fun splashing and hitting the bubbles in the air. Sure, the floor got SOAKING wet, but I cleaned it up and they had so much fun, I didn't care about the mess. Then they brushed their teeth and Sarah "read" them one story in the bed and then I read them one, too. Sarah slept in our bedroom last night and Kerstyn got to sleep in Sarah's bed. However, at 5:30 a.m., Sarah ran in there and tried to wake Kerstyn up! She was ready to play. She got in throuble!!! Kerstyn went back to sleep and Sarah didn't. At 6:30 I went to get donuts for them and when I got back, Todd left for work. (He had to work the store today which he has to do once a month.) They ate donuts, watched cartoons and laid around and then played outside and then some playdough. Then, Kerstyn's mommy came to get her and they went home. Sarah in napping now! Yea!

Fashion, Please!!!

OMG! Tonight, I got to have probably the best night ever! I had more fun on my girls' night out than I've ever had at any event in my life!!!!!!!!!!!!

Okay....................I got to go to the Fashion in the Park Oscar de la Renta show in Dallas at Northpark. Unbelievable! That is the only word I can think of.

As I sat among the highest of class...surrounded by fashionistas of both the female & male variety, I found myself thinking....if I could be part of this in some way besides a spectator, where would it be? I would have chosen to be "in charge" of the planning of the event. The decor was breathtaking and creative and hip and funky....but still OVER the top classy! The champagne was free-flowing as we stood shoulder to shoulder with some of the most elite people in the fashion world. The Vogue VIP seats were right in front of us. I caught myself daydreaming of working for Vogue and sitting right in the middle of them all! But as I sat in my seat 2 chairs behind them, I thought............I can settle for this, too! This is awesome!

Me, Tosha & Jennifer had the time of our life tonight! Just 3 girls out on the town at a real runway show! No biggie! It's just a typical day in the life of..............someone other than us! LOL But for tonight, as I managed to walk around through the crowd in my killer designer shoes, I was part of something big! Something I love. Something most people have never even thought of going to. (And so we can be clear, when I say "killer designer shoes" I mean killer...and not in the ...OMG those are KILLER shoes....but in the OMG....these are KILLING me way! LOL)

Now, we're ready to go to fashion week in New York! What fun!