Monday, November 21, 2016

Day Twenty- One

Day Twenty-one What song are you grateful for? So many songs. I love all kinds of music so this is hard. I love the Gaither Vocal Band, especially when they sing with Mark Lowry. I love Reba McIntire (I know all my friends are thinking that is bad). Honestly, when I am in a dark place I can sing a long with Reba and it all looks better. My favorite current song is Breath. Listen to the words of that song on you tube. It describes my life perfectly. Sometimes in the middle of the craziness I forgot that I can set at his feet and just breath. This summer I went away with other moms and this was our song. Oh, how I needed that time. So now I can listen to this song and remember that time. Something happened during that get away. I realized that I can still breath. I can still laugh and I am still a person. Not just a mom and wife.

Sunday, November 20, 2016

Day Twenty

Day Twenty Who are you grateful for? I want to say that I am grateful for our civic workers, our police, fireman and military. I am grateful for the men who work in our church. I am grateful for my husband who has worked so hard to give us everything we have. It does not matter if he is tired or sore he just keeps working. He gives the same dedication as a soldier and I am so grateful for that. I look up to him regularly. I am grateful for the Sunday school teachers we had when we lived in Kentucky. There marriage gave us something to look at. They were honest about how life is. I could still call them today for advice.

Saturday, November 19, 2016

Day Nineteen

Day Nineteen: What touch are you grateful for? I am grateful for our dogs and the way they reach out and touch you. We have two rescue dogs that came from a amazing rescues. We do not know what happened to them before they came to the rescue. So when they connect with us I feel honored. I feel safe when my dogs are around. If I go upstairs they follow me. They only go into the basement unless I am in the basement. I love how they have touched us not only physically but they have touched our hearts.

Friday, November 18, 2016

Day Eighteen

Day Eighteen: What piece of art are you grateful for? I am grateful for so much art. For the art my children give me. A downside to homeschooling is that we do not have all those cute little craft projects coming home. No cute little mothers day poems. So anytime I get something my kids make, I am thrilled. I also am grateful for art work from friends. I have a milk can that a friend painted and it is precious to me. I have a friendship picture that a friend made. Anything homemade is special to me.

Thursday, November 17, 2016

Day Seventeen

Day seventeen: What knowledge are you grateful for? I know weird things. Things like chickens and ducks are not normally together because ducks have a penis and chickens do not. Until this post I thought bubble wrap was used for wallpaper. I do not even know where I learned this but when I looked it up to write this post I realized that is not true. I am sad that I have told people this and it is not true. Hmm, what other knowledge do I have? I know how to make goats milk soap and how to bake. For that I am grateful. I love to bake for others and for my family. I am glad that my daughter is allowing me to teach her to bake.

Wednesday, November 16, 2016

Day Sixteen

Day Sixteen What about your body are you grateful for? I am grateful for my hair. You see my husband loves my hair. I use the same hairspray I used in high school because he loves the smell. I struggle with self image and have my entire life. I thought loosing weight would help but it did not. I thought coloring my hair would help but it did not. So for today I choose to be grateful for my hair and the joy that it brings my husband.

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Day Fifteen

Day Fifteen What season are you grateful for? This is a hard one. I love spring because it means new beginnings. I love summer because it means no more snow and we are able to be outside and the garden is growing and the animals enjoy the sun. I love fall because everything turns a pretty color, it is not too hot or too cold. I love winter because everything slows down. It is too cold to be outside so we are all in the house together. It is time to have friends over for dinner. We can bake and not worry about heating up the kitchen. So I cannot choose one season.

Monday, November 14, 2016

Day Fourteen of Gratefullness

Day Fourteen: What sight are you grateful for? I am grateful for my sight, for everything that I see. I only have one eye that works correctly and it is not something I take for granted. I love the sight of a sleeping child. When Jacob is tired he becomes wired and acts like someone has given him ten mountain dews. Then he drops and is asleep. I love seeing his little eyes calm and his breathing slow as he rest. He falls asleep in my arms. He needs my arm to fall asleep. I am his pillow. I am grateful for the sight of my sixteen year old daughter when she comes downstairs and is wearing make up that only a clown would wear. I am grateful because she does not care what others think. She is confident and happy.

Sunday, November 13, 2016

Day Thirteen

Day Thirteen: What abilities are you grateful for? I could tell you that I am grateful that I can bake or that I can make soap and bath products to sell and use. But honestly the ability I am grateful for is the ability to comfort my kids. When they fall down or bump there knee and nothing will help but momma. When they spill milk and just need a hug from mom. I am so grateful for the ability to love show. To feel love and give love.

Saturday, November 12, 2016

Day Twelve

Day twelve What texture are you grateful for? Soft cotton. I love the feel of a soft t-shirt fresh out of the dryer. Or even better I love the feel of a sweatshirt when you first put it on. You feel safe and warm in a big over sized sweat shirt. I do not know what kind of sheets we have but I am so grateful for the feel of clean sheets when I climb into bed. I am also grateful for the feel of my husbands uniform. It is rough and strong just like him.

Friday, November 11, 2016

Day Eleven

Day Eleven What holiday are you grateful for? I love Easter. Christmas is pretty and it tells about our Savior being born but I love Easter. It is a fresh start. He gave everything for me. I love when you go to church and all the kids look so fresh and clean on Easter in new clothes. Flowers start blooming and the grass turns green again. Everything is fresh and new and I feel like a new person. I am always humbled when I think about how he died.

Thursday, November 10, 2016

Day Ten

Day Ten: What taste are you grateful for? I love the taste of a really cold can of mountain dew with a bite of a plain Hershey bar and then a side of a kosher dill pickle. I know it sounds crazy but I love it. I have since I was a little girl. I am grateful for the taste of KFC chicken with my homemade mash potatoes and mac-n-cheese. I am grateful for the turkey and ham and everything that makes a holiday meal because it means that we have friends and family over.

Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Day Nine

Day Nine What place are you most grateful for? I am grateful for my house. When it is clean and half organized it feels like home. When I see all my kids hanging out together in our home I feel content. I am grateful for hospitals who have kept my children alive and helped when we needed them. I am grateful for military bases. One because they have given me places to live but more importantly they are training the worlds best military. I am grateful for my friends homes. The ones who welcome my family in and make us feel welcome. For the homes that have a pile of laundry sitting in a chair and they don't care if I see it.

Tuesday, November 8, 2016

Day Eight

Day Eight: What book are you grateful for? First, I am always grateful for the Bible because it is my guide book. It is the book that keeps me calm and gives me ideas when I feel hopeless or lost. It is my go to when I have questions about this world. I also grateful the book called Love you Forever. I love the meaning behind it, I love the ending. I can feel the love coming from this book. I love a book that I can sing to my children. I love you forever, I like you for always, as long as I am living my baby you will be. I am also grateful for the many Bible studies I have done. My favorite one is called "So Long Insecurities" by Beth Moore. It really helped me to stop focusing on what others think of me and more about what God knows that I am.

Sunday, November 6, 2016

Day Six

Day Six: what in nature are you grateful for? This is another hard one because it is November and while I am grateful for the warm air I am so over the flies. I am grateful for fresh cut grass, for wild flowers. I love the way they smell. I love the colors in wild flowers. I love how they grow on the side of the road. I am grateful for the way trees all look different. We have a tree in our yard that for some reason has the middle cut out. I have no idea why but when you are driving to our property and look at it just right the tree looks like a heart. While we do not hike very often I am grateful for hiking trials. The way they wind around creeks and between trees that you know are a hundred years old and have seen more people than you will ever see.

Saturday, November 5, 2016

hello

hkb

Day Five

Day five: What sounds are you grateful for? I love to hear my children laugh and play with one another. I love when babies laugh. When they laugh out loud and can't stop. I love the sound of a cat purring because it means they are content. This week I was grateful for my children fighting. Sounds crazy and normally drives me in sane. Only this time a friend was standing next to my vehicle. It was nice to hear her say that her vehicle sounds like this too. I think maybe I will buy us both a car with one of those windows that go up so you do not hear what is going on in the back seat. Who am I kidding, that would drive me crazy because I am a control freak and I need to know what is going on. Finally, I love the sound of cans popping when you are canning things. We did not can very much this year. I do not mind because it is only November and I am not craving home grown green beans yet. But I do miss how my husband and I can together.

Friday, November 4, 2016

Day Four

Day four: What food are you most grateful four? I am grateful for foods that have memories. I love homemade chicken tenders because I remember my mom making it in high school after she got married. I am grateful for biscuits and gravy. Because a friend taught me to make them when I was having a hard time. So while the biscuits and gravy happened when I was at one of my lowest points it reminds me how loved I am by friends.

Thursday, November 3, 2016

Petrie Soaps and Stuff

I do not talk as often as I would like about our small family business. Okay, business is probably too strong of a word at this point. It is our family hobby. It is how my husband and I date. We have been making soap for over a year now and are still enjoying it. We sold our soaps all summer at the farmers market. We have tried several recipes and found the one that works for us. Our goats our not only our pets but they provide milk for our soaps and our family. We use our soap for personal use. We have a constant battle between who gets to pick the next one to be used. If you walk into one of our bathrooms you will find several partially used bars of soap. I love that our soaps do not become soft and squishy because that means they last longer. Then again I need to find a way to not have 20 partially used bars lying around. This fall we have been at several craft shows. I love doing craft shows because I get to meet lots of new customers. I love walking around and buying from other small businesses. Because I have neglected my wonderful blog readers I am going to offer you free shipping on any order over $20. Check my facebook page often. We will be offering several specials between now and Christmas so check back often.

Day Seven

Day Seven: What memory are you grateful for? I am grateful for memories of the crazy things my husband does. Like when he told a friend her babies ears looked funny in the hospital. How he told the nurse giving us he don't shake your baby class that he does not like things shaken but stirred. Or when he threw himself up against a wall in the NICU when he got his new BDU's. To show the nurses that they could no longer see him. I love these memories because while they leave my head shaking when they happen they make me laugh later. So when he is away and I miss him terribly I remind myself of these times. I remember on our wedding day he made sure to have someone come and tell me that he was wearing black socks because he knew I would be worried about the little things like what color socks he was wearing.

Why I am Grateful Day One

I love being on facebook in November. I love seeing all the grateful post. I always say I am going to join in and write gratitude post every day. By about day ten I am skipping days and by day 20 I am done. Then around day 28 I catch up and no one reads it because it is so long. So this year I am going to try here. I found a fun list on pinterest of things to be grateful for. So let's get started. I know I am three days behind. okay, day one: I am grateful for smells. This is hard because I am still knee deep in dirty diapers and little boys urinating on the toilet seat. So I guess I am grateful for the smell of my diffuser that takes away these smells and also helps my house smell more like a clean house. My current favorite combo is on guard with orange essential oils. And we all know that I love my Doterra oils. Day two: What technology are you grateful for? I love my phone. WOW, that is kind of weird. Why do I love my phone so much? Because it allows me to facetime my husband when he is away, and to talk to my son who is in college. I love hearing his voice, I swear sometimes I can hear his smile on the good days. Day three: What colors are you grateful for? I would not say I love any particular colors. I love fall colors, they are relaxing. I love blues that are relaxing. Recently, we painted my craft room a silver color and I love it. I do not like bold colors, you know like crayon box colors on walls and in bedding. Okay, so as of today I am caught up. Let's see if I can keep it up. I would love to hear your replies.

Wednesday, November 2, 2016

Toilet Paper or Wasted Money

Toilet paper, yes I am going there. Let’s talk about toilet paper. Do you use it? Of course you use it but do you make it or buy it? We buy it. I also buy baby wipes. I just cannot bring myself to wash them out. This sounds totally silly but I can pretty much tell you which public restrooms have the best toilet paper. Wal-Mart has great toilet paper but Cracker Barrel has rolled up paper that you can practically see through. Most hospitals have crappy TP too. That I will never understand. I personally think that the better or thicker the TP the better. The other day I saw lavender scented toilet paper. I did not buy it because it seems wonky to buy scented toilet paper. The other thing I saw recently was decorative toilet paper. It had the names of sports teams on it. Can I just ask WHY? Why would you want toilet paper with your favorite sports team on it? Did they forget what we use toilet paper for? Are you a toilet paper junky? I am a total toilet paper junky or at least I use to be. With 7 kids in the house I have given up on spending money on things that no one appreciates.

Monday, October 31, 2016

Time to Relax

Some days are busy and long. Some days I go to bed and wonder if I even took a moment to tell each child that I love them. 
Then some days I remember to stop and take time to just have fun and be a mom. Not worry about chores or what ever else needs done just relax and enjoy the moment. Because I know that we are not guaranteed another day. 

So tonight we took time to make a purse out of a t-shirt and a bear out of a towel. The girls loved it and honestly it is the most relaxing thing I have done all week. 

I don't know what crafty thing we will do next but I am sure it will be something totally silly and something we will laugh about. 
Pamela

Sunday, October 30, 2016

Daily Dress Up

These two crack me up. They both love to get dressed up. 
I cannot believe how tall my baby girl has gotten. 
Pamela

Friday, October 28, 2016

The End Piece

Summer is fading fast. I am so grateful for the moments we have to just set and read or watch a movie together. 
They are both laying on the same end of our new couch. This is the spot I am setting in right now. The spot that we all love. 

I am looking forward to school starting and claiming this spot as the teachers desk. 
Pamela

Happy Birthday!

This week my baby girl turns 14. I cannot believe it. So I thought I would take time to tell you about her. Hope loves everything. She loves everyone. If you have ever met Hope then you are her friend. This year she wanted two things. She wanted to go to the movies so I gave her a trip to the movies with a friend. She also wanted a sleepover with a couple of friends and that is helping. 
   Hope is on the volley ball team this year and will probably be the best supporter of the team. 
   Of all of my children she is the one who enjoys the snow. She enjoys being outside with the animals in the cold. 

Thursday, October 27, 2016

Colored Pencil Tattoos

Did you know that if you put colored pencils in really warm water that you can use them to draw on yourself. 
My girls decided to spend the day drawing all over themselves and each other. 
Pamela

Wednesday, October 26, 2016

Cinnamon Rolls

Do you have a favorite recipe? My current favorite recipe is a yummy warm Pioneer Women cinnamon roll. 
I love how soft and airy they are. I love making them for other people. 

They are great at the farmers market. 
How do you find new recipes? 
Pamela

Wordless Wednesday

This is my future in 15 years. I will show this picture at there baby shower.
     These girls are so cute together. They laugh and laugh and then they go off and play and come back and laugh some more. 
    Pamela

Tuesday, October 25, 2016

What Annoys Me

What annoys you or causes you stress? Driving is probably my number one. I do not enjoy it very often. It stresses me out. This morning my daughter and I drove an hour away for a doctor’s appointment. On the way there I saw the signs that tell you how many people have died on that road this year. That number was 304. Seriously, that did not help me drive more careful. It just stressed me out. Maybe it will encourage others but for me it just scares me. Then I start thinking about all the things I have not done. All the things I need to take care. I am not worried about my eternity. I know I will be in heaven. I do worry about my husband and children. Who will cook for them or take them to the doctor? I know I am making a big deal out of nothing. So when I let worry consume me I take a moment to think about what brings me joy. Not many things annoy me but several things bring me joy. Cracker barrel with my daughter, my son’s sneaky face when he knows he is being naughty and how my husband can fix anything. Friends bring me joy. Spending time with friends at church or talking to a friend on the phone that I have not seen in years. Helping someone brings me joy. As winter comes I will struggle to keep a happy attitude. It will get to cold to be outside or even let the kids outside to run off some energy. I am determined this year to not be discouraged this year but to allow myself to use this time to work on some fun projects. I will make a meal for a friend or try a new dessert. How do you handle stress or things that just annoy you?

A Old Train Station

Since Grace still is not herself we took her with us when we took Michael to Pensacola. 
We stayed at a hotel that had been a old railroad station. The lobby and down stairs were just amazing. So we took a few moments to take a few pictures of our baby girl. 


Please continue to pray for our baby girl. Her appointment is a week from today to find some answers to her dizziness. 
Pamela

Monday, October 24, 2016

A Fall Update

Every day I think I will start really blogging again. I miss it, I miss sharing with friends and writing reviews. Sadly, I let pride get in my way. I let fear of rejection get in the way. Fear of bad reviews, of comments about how bad my grammar is. I honestly will probably still not take the time to review every sentence. But my goal is to come back. Life has been busy. But then again when isn’t life busy. Things are slowly slowing down. Farmer’s market season is over. I honestly miss it during the off season. You see, I enjoy my customers and getting to know them. I enjoy the baking that happens before farmers market. On the other hand I enjoy getting things done around the house. Part of our summer was spent getting my son ready for college. He has now been there seven weeks. He is doing more than I thought he would, he is more social than I thought possible. He seems happy and content. He still calls his momma every couple of days so I am happy. And finally, as of today we have a plan for Grace. We saw the pediatric endocrinologist this morning. The plan is do up her sodium intake and start her on thyroid meds. I know it does not sound like much but after three months it is a start. I am excited to find answers with her. Now that I have given you the update of what is going on, I think I can start fresh. So first on my list is to get my house under control. During the summer we live in survival mode and things just stack up. It drives me in sane. I worked on my craft room last weekend. Now I just need to find the time to actually work in my craft room. I have a ton of mending that needs done. I also have quilts that need made. Okay, they do not need made but I would love to make them. So now that you know my plans I would love to know your plans? IU

Happy Birthday Jacob

Three years, I can't believe it has been three years. I have always said I love the newborn stage. I don't even mind the mid night wake up calls because it means more snuggle time. 
But I am learning I actually love the toddler stage. He can talk to me and ask questions and tell me what he thinks. 

It took seven years for my womb to be open to another baby. It was a crazy pregnancy but so worth it. 

Jacob is strong, smart, hilarious, not just funny he is hilarious. He is into everything. He does not realized he is three. He loves anything to do with trains and tractors. He loves going to church and his favorite person in the whole world is probably Sasha who just moved away. 

He is the most stubborn, spoiled child you have ever met. And you know what?? Most days I wouldn't change it for anything. 


Happy Birthday baby Jacob 

Tuesday, October 11, 2016

Ordering Room Service

This weekend we dropped Michael off at college.  The drive was long and boring but so worth it. 
We stopped and visited friends on the way down. We let Grace order room service in the hotel. She thought it was a special treat but honestly we were just too tired to leave the hotel to eat dinner. 

I love this picture of the two of them in the back seat. It was one of the few minutes they were calm and not wrestling in the back seat.


I am so grateful this morning as we drive home. Grateful for a Christian college and for friends who welcome us into there house. Grateful for the smiles of this little girl who makes this time fun.
Pamela
 
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