wondermommy giveaway

Wondermommy is having a fabric giveaway! There is nothing I like more than fabric, and Anna Maria Horner is one of my favorites! Check it out. You can still enter through the beginning of April! (I tried to post a picture with this one, but alas, I am so tech challenged! You will have to go to her website to check it out for yourself!)

missing you...

Abigail Opal Rush Porten
June 5, 1994 - February 27, 2009 It was 2 weeks ago today that we had to say goodbye to our little Abby. She had been having reoccurring breathing issues for over a year, and on Thursday Feb 26, she appeared to have suffered a stroke. She began falling and not able to stand or walk very well. She was walking into corners and just standing there. It was pitiful to watch. Harder to watch than to say goodbye.... at least that's what I thought until we actually had to say goodbye....

She started out as my dog, August 4, 1994. She was my first purchase after I graduated from college and was officially 100% on my own. We lived in my little apartment together in Louisville and had a lot of good times. When Josh and I got married, she became 'his' dog and I was just chopped liver to her! We loved her so much over the almost 15 years that she was with us, so although I am still very sad and daily shedding tears over her still, I wanted to leave this little tribute...

Abby, we will always remember:

-your siren bark
-how you hogged the bed
-how you did your 3 tricks you knew all in a row
-teaching you how to swim in our pool in TX after you fell in and almost drowned
-how you were such a great squirrel chaser
-your interest in groundhogs
-how you loved popcorn
-how I had you wear newborn infant socks outside in the snow when you were little
-your great escape when we lived in Lexington, KY
-how you used to steal our socks
-playing with your baby and green frog
-how you always sat on the back of the couch to look out the window
-how much we loved you, and
-how much love you gave us. We miss you old girl.

This picture and the picture above were taken on the day she died. You can see in this picture how she was struggling to stand. The picture of her with Nora Kate was taken in January. You can definitely see a difference.

I forgot this...

You can buy that book here. It's so worth the 10 bucks.

I am reading this:

If you have a boy, I strongly recommend that you read it too! It is fantastic and I am learning so much about how to relate to my 'wild one' and also what is going on in that head of his! Get it and read it! Also great for teachers. I am thinking of buying a copy as an end of the year couldn't you have taken it a little easier on my sweet boy gift for my son's second grade teacher.

a LOVEly weekend

Expressions of love. A joyful, love-filled, easy-going weekend. Cookies, cards, flowers, cheesecake, a nap on Saturday, and I could go on. Josh and I enjoyed a nice quiet dinner Friday night without the kids, and complete with live piano music. I loved when they played the St. Elmo's Fire theme song, and 'Don't Go Changin'... or is it called 'I Love You Just the Way You Are'? It was all I could do not to go throw myself across the top of the piano and start singing into my spoon. Well, not really, but it was very enjoyable never-the-less and I think it gave you a good visual! Josh got the kids a couple of activity books. Princess for the princess and spy training activities for our mysterious detective. It was a great weekend. Spread some love.

heartfelt story

This is a story I have been following for a few months. I came across it somewhere in blog world, but the story has been on national news programs as well. This beautiful woman, Stephanie, and her husband were in a horrific plane crash back in August. Stephanie, aka Nie Nie, had apparently become somewhat of a celebrity in blog world for her positive attitude and creative spin on parenting, and many other things. She was badly burned from the crash and was in a coma for months. I am not sure of all the specifics, but she is apparently home now and has started blogging again. In just the most recent posts she is telling a little of what she is going through now on a daily basis with her recovery and rehab. I don't know if it's because of my background in rehab or just that it's truly of human interest, but I find it heartbreaking but at the same time uplifting to actually hear her display her heart on this matter. I have prayed for her and her family many times over the last few months, and I truly wish her the best. It is a miracle she is alive. Here is her blog: http://www.nieniedialogues.blogspot.com/ (I have to learn how to do that thing where you replace the web address with a word that you can click on..... I still have so much to learn with computers.....)

SNOW!!

So I guess it took a snow storm in NC for me to finally post on my blog again! I think I had a breakdown after Christmas and all the stress that came with it and I have completely neglected my blogging. So here you see a real rarity.... a snowstorm in Raleigh, NC!!! It's hard to say how many inches we got as it was different everywhere but I would say we had anywhere from 2 inches in some places to 4 or 5 in a lot of other places. It was snowing when we got up and continued until about 1 or 1:30pm. The weatherman said it began around 3am. Very exciting! They say it only happens every few years so who knows when or if we will see it again. With the rate at which we move, we won't be here for the next one! They were out of school yesterday and today, and karate and ballet were cancelled for Samuel and Nora Kate. Anyway, the kids had a ton of fun and I mean ALL the kids in the neighborhood. Everyone was out playing. We made snow angels, had snowball fights, tried to sled, tried to build a snowman (wrong kind of snow), and played with our beach toys in the snow. Josh even had to shovel the driveway. It was great!