Forever Family Fotos

Some of the photo art that I have done.

My first Miche bag

I went today and picked out my very first Miche bag. I won it online at Woman to Woman magazine. It was donated by my local Miche bag representative Sherry Hammond. I was very excited to win because I have known about the Miche bag for several years. The concept is so simple yet so ingenious. You have a basic "shell" of a bag, and the outside design is interchangeable so you don't have to remove all your stuff from the bag each time you want to use a different color or design to accentuate your mood or wardrobe. You just remove the outer design (it is magnetic) and attach another...and presto--new bag! (minus the hassle of moving everything from one bag to another).
I have to say that Sherry Hammond was a pleasure to meet and deal with. She was very informative and just as patient as she could be seeing as I couldn't make up my mind to choose just one LOL.
I have a party in the works, so if you want to get your own Miche bag just let me know if you can attend or if not, just get with me and I will hook you up with Sherry!

Kasey catches her second fish

I fondly remember my outings with my dad to the river to fish. Myself and my husband try to pass on all that was instilled in us as kids by our parents. Bonding with our kids is very important. It is great when you discover that many of the things that you did as a kid and still love as an adult, are also loved by your children. We took the girls on another outing to the lake to let them cast out their poles...Dora and Barbie respectively, LOL. Well, believe it or not, our oldest Kasey managed to catch her second bass with her Barbie pole. It was great to see the surprise on her face and to hear her laughter. The youngest, Kori, looked on and she was just as excited as Kasey...loving making these memories!

Backyard fun

We recently came across a great deal for a playground for our backyard. It originally was from a city park. It is 33' by 33'. I helped my hubby to put alot of it together, but towards the end we really needed more man power to complete the assembly. We had a pizza day and some family came over to help us out. It is all pretty much done except for some braces under the slides, and the smallest slide needs new bolts since we broke them off in the threads when we took it apart when we bought it. The girls have definitely been enjoying their new play area, especially the shade underneath it. My husband plans to square out an area underneath as a sandbox and also a small deck for their two little chairs. I can't wait to plan a playdate to get all the girls' little friends over to have some fun!
Thanks to uncle Kenny, Shawn, and Perry for helping us out!

My 6th Wedding Anniversary

This Mother's day marks two special events in my life...the holiday of Mother's Day and my 6th wedding anniversary. I was also born on Mother's day (May 12th, it falls back on the holiday every four years).
The last six years have marked some major changes in our lives...losing a child, having two daughters, gaining a mortgage, going back to work, and all the little things in between.
Our daughters are Kasey, she just turned five and Kori, she will be three in August. They are our number one priority in life. Jason and I are blessed to have them. We are also lucky to have the family and friends that we do.
We met on the job and started out as friends, who would of thought that we would marry each other LOL. Jason is a very devoted husband and father. I am grateful to have him in my life...happy anniversary baby, I love you.

And baby makes three...

Jennifer

Today I attended a baby shower. My nephew and his wife Jennifer are expecting their first child in July-a son! This event was a very nostalgic time for me...I got to see lots of friends from years gone by and my neice. I always love seeing her for several reasons. When she was first born, I laid claim to her LOL. I was just a teenager but I had that mothering instinct kick in and always wanted to care for her. Another reason is...she reminds me of good times, and the brief moment in my life when my son was alive. I lost my first born in 1992 from SIDS, this was during my first marriage. I must say when he passed I was very, very angry with God-so I was unable to find solace in him. My saving grace was my neice Melissa and my nephew James. I felt that I needed to be strong for them...it was hard to explain to them why D.J. had to go to heaven. They both helped me through a very difficult time in my life, and they were just little kids. I am sorry to say that I let our connection fade away after their parents divorced and I divorced their uncle. I have alway thought of them both and kept them in my heart.
So, in knowing all this, it is so hard to look at "baby James" and know that, wow, he is going to be a daddy. And Melissa (who I have always called Sissy), is in college and in a relationship with someone she really cares about.
I just want them both to know that even though they don't see or hear from me every day, I do love them just as much as I did when they were little.

D.J.

Me and Melissa in 1992 (I'm pregnant with D.J.)

Me and Melissa today

James and Jennifer

Me the clown with Melissa, James and uncle Larry on Melissa's birthday

Our Valentine's gift to us

This year, my hubby and I decided to set aside some money for new living room furniture. We knew essentially what we wanted...something brown, leather or "leather-like", somewhat kid proof. He and I are not what you would call shoppers. I do not go out very often to just "shop". My favorite time of year to shop is Christmas, and then it's for other people.
We visited alot of furniture stores. Some places we found something we liked but it was out of our price range...other places, we couldn't find one piece that either of us remotely liked. Believe it or not, shopping is very time consuming and tiresome. But, we did not give up the fight. We continued looking.
My biggest surprise was that the furniture we found that we liked and was in our price range--was at Badcock Home Furniture! It is called the Golden Hops Collection. We bought the three piece set: couch, loveseat, and chair. One other great thing was that we purchased during a great promotion, spend $1,000 and get $200 worth of free accessories...my favorite piece is the hugging couple. My husband's favorit piece is the cross.


Needless to say, we felt like we got a good deal and we both are enjoying our new living room.