SOLD!!!

We got news today that our house in NC is officially off the market! The guy who has been rented it got his loan approval today which is GREAT news for us. We will close very soon and have the burden of two payments each month gone!! We put our house on the market in July of 2008 and just now will we not have the burden of 2 payments. God is good!! We didn't make much off the house but to have the worry gone is priceless.



Although it is no longer our home, it will always hold a special place to us. It was our first home purchase as a couple. I admit when it came time to sign the first time I couldn't do it...we pulled into the parking lot and anxiety hit in and I had to reschedule. But once we did and the home was OURS it was a very great feeling. It was more than a house to us it was a HOME for us. Our precious first born was taken home there. It was there that we rocked our baby to sleep, where he began crawling and just had that feeling of home. His first bedroom was done by us in Winnie the Pooh and was a little labor of love. When we decided to paint the entire house neutral, that was the only room that kinda saddened me to see done. It is in that house that I learned so much about myself while Shawn was deployed. I learned that I could do so much more than I gave myself credit. It was there that I learned the joys and pains of motherhood. It is that house that after 15 LONG months in Afghanistan that Shawn returned safely to his family.


Now we hope that "our" house will hold memories for the new person living in it. I am so thankful for the answered prayers...even though it wasn't on our time and much of our savings was depleted....we know God does things in his own time for a reason.

Take Me Out To The Ball Game

Tonight we had James first official T-ball game due to rainout on Saturday. All day I will ashamely admit I was hoping for rain so I could go to the gym and not go to the "boring" ball field....although T-ball was my idea :). Shawn feels like he is too young to understand but my thinking is "so what." It will be fun and a good learning experience for him plus who knows if Shawn will be here next year when tball season rolls around so lets just do it :). But the rain stayed away, so game on! It was unseasonably chilly this day so we all put long sleeve t's under our DODGERS tshirts. James was so excited. We loaded up the minivan and made our way to the ballpark. Aunt Andrea was there waiting on us to arrive. She wouldn't dare miss James first tball game. Once we arrived the sportsplex was so big I had to call Coach to see where we were playing. We finally arrived in the dugout and the tball mom in me came out!! I loved it...I would yell for him to pay attention or run the base or good job!! It was so great to see how these little guys played. Sadly only 4 of our team member showed up which I was a bit disappointed about but it was still fun. The other team had a massive number of players :(

James was first put on 3rd base which for some reason the ball NEVER goes that direction. He had is typical meltdown of crying and whining as he is known to do lately. I send Shawn out there to give him encouragement but it isn't working. Then it's time for his team to bat and another meltdown because he isn't batting first!! By this point I was so upset at his behavior and lack of teamwork I told him if he couldn't dry it up that we would be done with tball for the year. Finally it was his time to bat and he hit it so well!! He was confused at where to run and when but he'll get the hang of it. Luckily this year it is all about fun and not keeping score.

After their turn to bat James got to play 2nd base and he got to catch several balls and throw them to the umpire. His team did very well about not all running towards the ball and going only if it came towards them as taught in practice. I enjoyed myself so much more than I thought I would be. Lesson learned:stay open minded about new experiences!!

Shawn filled me in that leagues like these are all pretty much political gains. Coaches "preselect" their teams so to say. However, our team might be considered the leftovers but I think we are a good tball team and it is a great learning experience for us all. Our coach is very patient and positive which is awesome. It makes me not want to play in the future because it seems so unfair...I guess mainly because we will never know anyone to get onto the "good" teams due our moving around so often. But I guess at the end of the day it doesn't matter, what matters is that our team plays fair, enjoys themselves, plays using teamwork and gives it all they got!! What more can you ask for?! Yup I see a future in the ball fields for sure!

After his first game we went to Logans and ate way too much food. James was so stinking cute in his tball jersey!!

30 is the new 20...right?!

I celebrated my 30th birthday on the 19th of this month. Shawn surprised me by invited some of my friends to celebrate with us at Casa Mexicana. I was so thrilled that my friends were there because this will probably be the last time we are in Alabama for a birthday celebration!! Shawn chose a yellow rose cake that was so yummy. I love yellow roses so he did great! I loved not only having my friends with me but their kids, it just shows how much we have changed over the years we still remain close.

A lot of my friends were so anxious about turning 30....me not so much. I think that I am very content with where I am at this age. I am doing exactly what I wanted to be doing at this age...being a mommy to my 2 children. I married a wonderful man so that checked that one off my list :). I never thought I'd marry a military man because I am not one who deals with change very well. Hey no wise cracks from those who know the background :) I feel that by marrying Shawn that I have met and seen places of the world I wouldn't normally see thanks to the Army. The deployments and long work hours are very difficult at times but I know that God will take care of our family. I always said I wanted to have my kids by age 30 and God blessed me with two beautiful boys. Yes I would love a baby girl but obviously that's not in our plans Shawn and I discussed and agreed that once I had kids that I would stay home until they were school age or old enough to tell me what was happening at daycare....make sure they weren't being mistreated. We have been very blessed to have the means to do that and not worry so much about financial stresses...especially in today's economy.

My next 30 years I hope to raise my boys in a Godly manner and for them to know and love God. If I can achieve this then I feel there is nothing else that I can't do. I would love to start running some races,starting with 5k and going from there maybe. I would love to pursue a Master's in Social Work so that I can work on post and help soldiers and eventually open a house for pregnant teens in foster care to help them be able to raise their own children successfully. Big plans yes but that is my dream....you never know. In 2 more years I'll celebrate 10 years with Shawn and I hope he is not deployed so we can go on a tropical vacation without kiddos and just enjoy being a couple!!

I am so blessed to be given the family that I have. I feel like the luckiest girl alive and know that I have so much more than I deserve.