Thankful Thursday -- one day late

So, I've had an awful week this week. There was an awful, awful tragedy that happened at my workplace. Having to deal with things is a not-so-great part of my job. And it's not over.

In spite of this, or maybe even more so BECAUSE of this, I want to focus on things I'm thankful for.

1. I am thankful for both of these Bible verses. They have both been in my head and heart this week when I didn't know what to do, what to say, how to feel...

The LORD himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave
you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged." Deuteronomy
31:8

But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made
perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my
weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9

2. I am thankful for those that love me... friends, family, and "work family" have all pulled together this week for me and for whomever else needed it.

3. I am thankful that I have something fun to look forward to tomorrow... A Fancy Nancy birthday party, no less. I'm going to Fancy the rest of those Nancies right out of there!!!

What are you thankful for???

Living in a Small Town has its advantages!

I got to my polling place at 8:20 a.m.

The cute little ladies at my polling place talked about how busy it has been today.

I waited for literally 2 minutes for one of the 4 booths to open up so I could vote.

As I put my ballot in the machine, it logged me in as voter #116 today.

Do your duty... GO VOTE!

A gypsy, a boxer, and a frazzled suburban mom

I came down off my sugar high long enough to sit still and post these...

Here are my gypsy and boxer on Halloween night...

Gypsy Rose


Showing off all her jewelry and makeup...

Boxer Joe showing off his moves...

And looking mean and tough...

And their frazzled mom... (with no makeup on)

Walking down the dark street to beg for candy!

Mixed emotions about Halloween

Theoretically, I want to LOVE Halloween with my kids... the trick-or-treating, the coming up with cute costumes, the excitement of seeing other friends dressed up.

The REALITY, however, is that I really do NOT have fun! The whining because they're cold/tired/hungry (hello??? see all the candy?)/etc. is no fun. Neither is the whining by their dad (or any other dad that may happen to be around!).

The other downside for me is that we live WAY out in the country, so we have to drive to wherever we're going to trick-or-treat. Which means that at least PART of the costume comes off, never to be put back on again the rest of the night.

And... I believe I've mentioned REPEATEDLY how I am a lazy mom (remember my dead tomato plant I used as decorations at Sis's birthday party?), and I like it that way. Halloween goes against every "lazy mom" intentions that I have! There is NOTHING lazy about Halloween!

But guess what? I do it all anyway.

Why?

Because, even though one might think that my kids are MISERABLE, the fact is that they really enjoy it. All of it. The dressing up. The trick-or-treating. The candy. The seeing other friends dressed up.

And there is ONE bonus for me... Bub doesn't like chocolate and is allergic to nuts... that means I get all the Reese's Peanut Butter cups I want. Mmmmmm.....

Happy Halloween!

**these are pictures from other years (some not even Halloween!). Tonight's "looks" will be posted later.

New Blog

For those of you who attend my church (or are interested in what's going on), we have started a new blog for the Young Families group. It's a place for us to connect, post pictures from our activities, post upcoming activities, and post prayer requests/praise reports.

The web site is: www.cstoneyoungfamilies.blogspot.com.

Thankful Thursday - Introduction

Today I am starting my Thankful Thursday post... I will (hopefully, if I remember) post three things each Thursday that I am thankful for (did you catch all that alliteration?).

In your comments, you can put YOUR three things that you are thankful for.

1. I'm thankful my dad is home from his month-long trip.
2. I'm thankful for my church family.
3. I'm thankful for my children's teachers. They are shaping my children's behavior/learning in ways that I agree with!

Now it's YOUR turn!

You Might Be a Redneck - Part 2

So, as I mentioned earlier, while not EVERYONE dressed up for the Redneck bonfire, there were some who represented the rednecks well (or not!). What came up frequently as we were discussing our outfits was how MOST of the stuff in our "costume" was our real clothes. It's all in how you put it together, I guess.

I thought I'd start you off with the prettiest picture of the night... the fall decorations on our front porch.
Sis looked more Western and cute than redneck, so I encouraged her to put on makeup... and as much as she wanted. You can't see from this picture, but the look we were going for was achieved!

Here's Bub and his friend, A, by the basketball court.

OK. Take a deep breath.

You're about to experience the first view of my "look."

Ready?

Here we go!!!

So, what exactly goes into a look like this, you might ask? Let's start with the hair... I dried it parted in the middle, then put a few braids in it here and there to take out later for the "frizzy" look. I curled my "bangs" under, then put mascara in all my roots showing to make my roots black.

Makeup, you ask? The eye makeup is all Sis's... from Disney. And boy, does it stay on for a LONG time! Then some bright blush, and no other makeup at all completes the look.

The dragon tattoo on my neck and the skull/crossbones on my chest (not pictured above) are courtesy of Spencer's.

My shirts were already in my closet. The too-tight leggings? Goodwill. But they just weren't obnoxious enough! So what to add to the look????

The eggshell stuff that you put on mattresses, THAT'S what!!!

Here's a closeup of the classy tattoo on my neck... yup, that's the lens cap of the camera in my mouth! Didn't think THAT was gonna show up!

Here I am with a redneck I found... just kidding... it's just Don!

So, when the party started, the first few people who showed up did NOT dress up... or they just dressed Western... which was also cute. Then my friend, Cathy, showed up and took over the redneck award. What do you think???

There were so many hilarious details to her outfit... her "tattoo" on her leg said I "heart" Bob (crossed out), Billy (crossed out), This Guy. I think the picture says more than I ever could!!!

Here we are together!!!

Here's Gillian. She looked like the rednecks that live around us... her shirt said, "You Mess with Me, You Mess with the WHOLE Trailerpark!"

The came Kevin and Kristin. They could possibly be my preppiest friends. They came as Dog the Bounty Hunter and Beth!

Here's my lovely sister. Her "Flo" wig, the lipstick on the teeth, and the black bobby socks with "thong" sandals on were key to her redneck look!

Not pictured was the shotgun wedding family, and lots of other John Deere/plaid shirts/bandanna/camouflage looks.... which are all looks that my immediate family wears/embraces. I think that's the bottom line... although we went EXTREME for this party, I think I just MIGHT be a redneck!!!