bsmiles and sunny days

It's the waiting that drives me crazy. Maybe you've heard that we applied for Leavenworth last month. I feel like I've lived a lot of my life waiting for my real life to start. Here I am a third of the way through and I'm still waiting for the next chapter so my real life can start. It's not that I don't take this part seriously, because I do. It's just that I have this idea of what it should look like, and it doesn't. Some things do, like the dreamy husband and houseful of kids, but this little bitty borrowed place that we call home doesn't fit the model of my real life. And neither does California. When I was fourteen, my aunt Kim brought me out here for the first time. I gotta tell ya, I was pretty darn dazzled by the culture out here. I had only one connection to California, and she fit the mold of Californians to a tee and I adored her. The ocean, the mohawks, the mountains, the Birkenstock, all of it; I was in love. But then I grew up

I used to write in the evenings after the kids went to bed. Eventually I started writing in progression to make books, but before that, I just sat down and started writing. Today I was cleaning out some files in our computer and opened a file that said "writing". When I started reading it blasted me back to my life in Missouri when Dale was going to school and I was working. It was a seriously loco life, but we were truly happy. Here's a glimpse. There were days when nothing else mattered. That tiny twinkle of laughter became a clanging cymbal ringing through the house everyday, all day long. It evoked such unspeakable joy in my soul that I can't even begin to describe it. I would be in the next room giggling to myself; heaven forbid my little ones see me laughing about them saying "fart head" or "butt crack"... anything on the naughty list was funny. Then they would scream with laughter. That usually snapped me out of Lala Land nostalgia and b

Oh what a beautiful MOOOORRR-NINNNNGGGG, Oh what a beautiful day... I heart all holidays. I mean, Thanksgiving? Come on. A day to be--- that's right, thankful! Say thank you. Feel gratitude. Celebrate everything you have ever appreciated. Reflect on the goodness of the Giver of every good gift. And eat. Eat as if it's the physical manifestation of your gratuity. Seriously, how can you not love that? We had a really great day. I didn't spoil the oven with burnt pie filling, the turkey cooked all the way through, had plenty of time to rest, and really wowed Dale. I can't lie, the green rice was a total loss, and the stuffing wasn't my fave. And the rolls were not the tender delicious goodness I would have preferred, but over all I think the food was spot on, which means two days of labor for the grand finale was not in vain. There were a few times that I let myself ponder the feasting in Emporia and Richmond, but not for long. We have a ready-made party full of since

I am already starting to feel the end of the holiday season...BOOOOOoooohooohoohoo!!! I know, it's crazy. Once again, I am so thankful to have the inauguration of this wonderful season early. I just can't believe Thanksgiving is here!!! Today I have planned for myself a long list of things to do, but I keep dragging my feet hoping to slow the clock. I want to bake pies and rolls and make stock for the dumplins and put together the stuffing and green rice. And then there are my projects. I can't remember if I've mentioned that we are making all our gifts this year... I finished this fantastic number for Tre last night. I found it on etsy.com in HiDeebug's Shop and fell in love with it. I am hesitant to show it off because no one seems to be as excited about it as I am, but whatevs. I think it screams TREBO!! And then there is the playhouse I'm working on for the little girls. Mine doesn't look like this, I took the idea and tweaked it to: a. fit my dining roo

This morning when I dropped the kids off at school, I perused the Thanksgiving potluck table only to discover that my kids were going to be feasting on cookies, fruit, and cinnamon rolls. I hurried home to make them some pigs in a blanket and start Dale's lunch. When I dropped them off at the school, second trip, I had plenty of time to put Dale's lunch and dinner together before he left for work, and Deisha was sleeping at home. Everything was going smoothly until Leila paused by the back tire of our truck and said, "Hey, what's that sound?" I don't notice things like that. I was focussed on getting home to get Dale out the door. I never would have paid attention to the hissing coming from the tire if she hadn't said something about it. When I looked closer, I saw a broken screw sticking out of the tread. boo.... Being just under a mile from Wal-Mart and about six from home, I went to Wal-Mart. They rushed us in, knowing the circumstances could be dire, a

... is to watch a Christmas movie everyday until Christmas comes!!!~ We watched the last movie, and the best movie, in this collection last night and I just had to share it with you. I loved it. I was swept with romance watching a The Shop Around the Corner . If Dale hadn't been there I would've have been with me I would've giggled and sighed through the whole movie. I mean, I would've giggled and sighed with less restraint through the whole movie. It was fantastic... witty and charming and Jimmy Stewart, and oooohhh..... I love, love, LOVED IT!!! On a side note, I'm desperate to redesign my website, but I have no idea when it comes to that kind of thing. In rememberance of snow, I've painted the whole canvas white, but it's not exactly where I want to stop. Can anyone help me? I have some ideas for what I want but don't know how to bring them to life. Just email me if you can help me out. Happy Tuesday, all!!!~

I started this quilt a while back... like maybe two years ago. I got inspired when I found a brand new, chocolate brown, king size, 400 count flat sheet for $5 at Goodwill. Not long afterwards Dale and I were in a consignment shop and I rounded up a bunch of different fabrics from shirts and dresses and sheets and took them home where they stayed in a bag for about six months. One day I pulled them out, cut them up, pieced them together, stacked up the layers, and safety pinned them in place only to stuff the little darling back into a dark place for another six months or so. I don't know what inspired me to start quilting, but once I started I was very diligent about getting that part done. I did chalk sketches on the brown side and went to town. This is the side I really love. I wished I would've done a flat sheet on both sides and spent all my time on the handiwork, but it was my first go at it. If we don't transfer I'll paint the room and hang things on the

This week I hastened to finish my quilt so that I could get on to some more exciting projects. This is actually Kennedy's. She's so creative; she whipped this out in about 15 minutes and ditched me for the neighborhood kids. This is my owl. My mom made felt ornaments when we were kids that I adore and still hang every year. This one was embroidered; but the back was felt. And it has my name on it. That was really big deal to me. This one doesn't have my name on it, but I'm pretty sure it's me because I was the only girl with red hair so... yep. And those were my hearts. After some serious perusing of the handmade holiday flare online, I decided to take the plunge into my felt surplus and voila! Now you know what I was doing, Alexa. xoxoxo! Auntb

I love this gal. When she is on my calendar, it's like there's a sparkle that lights up every time I remember that she's coming. On this trip- now I can't remember what I've already posted about... Boo to lost brain cells and scatterbraination. It's a chronic sickness that I've suffered from my whole life. At any rate, we had fun, fun, fun. Here she is making Halloween cookies with Leila. I have never been successful at making cookie cutouts and decided to give it another go. I guess I've gained some ground working with dough and all because they came off without a hitch this time. Hip hip HOORAY!!! And they were a big hit for everyone that rang our doorbell before the Trick-or-Treating hour. They were also a nice addition to our Halloween party Friday night where we had a decoration station. Oh the joy of a party at our house with just us. I'm forever grateful that we are a ready-party at any moment. There are so many of us that someone is

One night while Sarah was at my house I made cinnamon rolls- just a little pan for the three of us. Before they came out of the oven she asked me to make some for the dressing rooms the day of her wedding. When they came out, they were impossible to get out of the pan without reheating the carmel in the bottom. I was literally chiseling them out of the pan and smearing them with cream cheese frosting so that they would have some redeeming factor. Then I asked her if she wanted to rethink her request... So after she left, I tried again. And guess what... they came out beautifully! I'm posting these photos here to solidify my credentials in honor of my sweet, sweet Sista, who ate the crunchy ones and said they were still good anyway. xoxox yyyyyyyYYYYUUUUUUMMMMMMYYYYY!!!!

We love Halloween for a lot of reasons. For one thing, it's the first holiday of a long string of holidays that we love to celebrate. Frankly, we love all of them. Any reason to bust out of the norm we will relish. You can't see our costumes but we did dress up for Trick-or-Treating. Dale wrote "This Space for SALE" on his forehead, and I wore a Superman cape. I adore him. Deisha was a lion. Dana and I chased her around the yard trying to get a good picture of her in her costume but she wouldn't have it. She's really naughty. Believe it. Scooder was a skunk. See the little flower just off to the side of his white stripe? Yep. That's our dog... THERE SHE IS! She was so mad at me for putting whiskers on her cheeks that she tried to rub them off as soon as she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror. At each house she walked up to the door and said, "roarrr," and then proceeded to push past the resident into their home. She didn't want candy o

Some people are born into a family as an only-child. Other people have siblings, but they are the only one of their gender. Not me, I got it all. God blessed me, long before I realized or appreciated it, with the gift of brothers, AND a sister. Having the relationship that we have makes me want to have more children in hopes of creating this connection between them. But in all actuality, I really might just have a one-of-a-kind. I have had Sista's undivided attention for a very, very, very long time. If I needed her, she was there. If I was in another state, she would be there before nightfall. When I told her I was pregnant for the fifth time while I was working to put Dale through school, she packed her bags, quit a job that she loved, and moved into my living room with a couch as her only personal space, which she shared willingly when someone needed a place to sit down. When she is with my children, she takes them to the park, pushes them on the swings, chases them through the