Josh' 11th Birthday!

Josh turned 11 on May 7th. So, we celebrated with a pool party at the house. He had such a great time with his friends. I even made his cake this year! It was a basketball jersey with Josh favorite number "12".

I love you Josh!

Mother's Day

I'm very behind in posting pictures. This picture was taken Mother's Day morning. My husband and kids showered me with gifts. But, most of all, I love reading the cards and the wonderful sentiments.

Master Bath Remodel

Well, our masterbath had a complete remodel. The only thing left is to install the baseboard. Now on to the kids bathroom. We are slowly getting things done!

Josh' Basketball Season

Josh just recently finished his 5th year of playing basketball. Tim was able to coach again this for the team. The boys are growing leaps and bounds and look forward to another good season next year. Josh is now 5 ft tall. He will surpase Erika and I pretty soon!

A Little Update

Just a quick update on what we've been up to.

Erika is finishing up her sophmore year of high school. I can't believe she is 16. I now listen to those folks who say, "time sure does fly by and before you know it, your kids will be grown up." This is so true!

It looks like Erika's summer will be very busy. She may have a part time job and plans to go back to Bolivia on a mission trip.

I love hanging out with Erika as a mom and as a friend. We stay up and talk and love to laugh!

Josh will turn 11 in 4 weeks. My little buddy is growing up too. I imagine he will surpass his sister and mom in height by next year! Josh is completing 4th grade this year. He still makes the family laugh though I don't have any funny stories to tell you at the moment. But, I'm sure I will soon.

We have a couple trips planned over the summer. My parents 50th wedding anniversary is in June, so we will head to NY to celebrate NY style with a huge party for them. A week later, we will head to the NC mountains with two other families for a much needed rest and relaxation time. Then, Tim and Erika will be off to Bolivia while Josh and I hold down the fort here.

And there you have it, a little update. Will post pictures soon!

Save Your Change!

I'm on a kick to save money these days. Tim is too. He has been saving his change for the past 2 years. Basically, at the end of the day, he empties his pockets and puts all the coins in a bin. So, how much money do you think he saved in 2 years? Take a guess.

Saving Big Bucks

I'm in need of saving some big bucks these days. Here is what I will be purchasing soon.

1. 4 airline tickets

2. 8-10 disposable cameras

3. renting a car

4. paper place mats


If you have any websites, places to purchase the above, and any other information that will help me save that would be great!

More Money Saving Tips

Check out this website for money saving tips. I already checked it out! I've never bought energy saving light bulbs so I think it is time. In the long run, I will have saved some money! It is time to be more thrifty and look for ways to save. I want to be a steward of the money God has given to us. So, I'm off to check out some more ways to save!

money

Smart Money Savings

Check out some of their money saving tips. I'm going to check now and see if I can save a few dollars. It's worth checking.

http://www.smartmoney.com/spending/deals/top-5ive-items-to-always-buy-generic-0/

Look Who Turned 16!

Just a little late posting, but look who turned 16 a couple weeks ago? It's hard to believe that Erika is 16 now! Boy, how time flies by. I'm amazed at how much Erika has changed over the course of a couple years. She is such a delight. Her desire to change and be more like Christ is evident.

Anyhow, I had so much fun planning this birthday for her! Her friends arrived all dressed up and ready to go to Cranes Roost for a little photo shoot. Little did they know but shortly after they arrived at the house, a limo pulls up ready to take them to Cranes Roost! I think they were all shocked especially Erika. This huge 14 passenger Escalade limo pulls up and we all pile in for a little ride. Do you know there were 6 flat screen tv monitors in that limo? Amazing...

After the photo shoot everyone heading back to the house for "A Wicked Party" featuring Erika Griffih. She sang a song from Wicked to start the evening off and next was a gourmet dinner compliments of the chef. Well, I'm not a gourmet chef but it sounded good.
Then, after dinner the girls played American Idol on the Wii. Cake and ice cream next and then a little dancing ended our evening.

A Totally Wicked Party!

More pictures to come! Check back soon.

Matt & Jess' Wedding

We had the privilege of being involved in Matt & Jess' wedding several days ago. Tim, Erika, and Josh were all in the wedding. Matt's twin brother was in the wedding. Can you tell who he is? They not only look alike but they sure do act alike! It was so much fun and just loved seeing two wonderful people unite as husband and wife.

Posting? What is That?

I nearly forgot I have a blog! Well, it has been crazy around here and not sure when it is going to calm down! It is all good stuff though. Homeschooling takes up a good portion of the day. Then you have kids extra activities, homegroup, spending family time, hospitality and fellowship. At some point pictures will be added but really don't know when. Perhaps I will post some pictures after Matt & Jess' wedding as Tim, Erika and Josh will be in it.

Here is how everyone is doing.

Erika sprained her ankle a couple weeks ago and has been unable to play basketball. I didn't realize that sprains can take a long time to heal. She is back working hard in her schooling and will go on a mission trip this summer.

Josh just started his basketball season. He only plays 7 games which is manageable. He continues to be the comical one in the family and keeps us on our toes. No recent injuries or unusual things he has done recently. I do feel something will transpire soon! It has been way too long.

Tim will begin playing basketball in a couple week with Metro's church league. He shaved his 80's mustache off. He has only done that twice since we've been married. And, we've been married 21 years! Everyone is telling him he looks 10 years younger and man is he loving that! I'm now use to him without a mustache and really like it.

I am trying to stay fit by keeping busy. No basketball season for me with a dislocated shoulder. Oh, that is much better and physical therapy has helped a lot. I won't be having surgery after all!

Well, that is just a quick update. Hope to post more soon!

Erika's Girls

As you may know, we love children around here, especially Erika! Lauren is just as cute as she can be and Erika loves her. I think Lauren likes her too!
We had Norah over one day and she was so funny. She hopped up in one of ours beds with her blanket and started to snore. We got the biggest kick out of that!

Homegroup Christmas Party!

We had our homegroup Christmas party last week at the Black's house. They excel in servicing and love to show hospitality. Anyhow, when everyone arrived, we gave them an assignment by giving each group a $5.00 bill to spend at the mall. The object was to spend $5.00 and not anymore and to get the best deal! After that, we ate yummy food, did a white elephant gift exchange and spent some time reflecting on some evidences of God's grace in each person. We always enjoy that part the most! We missed Caleb this year as he was working in North Carolina!

HG Kids Christmas Party

A couples weeks ago we had a homegroup kids Christmas party. We all met at Walk Through Bethlehem in Longwood where we toured the town of Bethlehem. This is something that Tim and I have done since Erika was 3 years old. We can now recite everything! Then we went back to our house where we had the garage set up for 17 children (including teens) for a pizza party, crafts, and decorating cookies. We decided awhile back that the teens would help Tim and I so that the parents could spend some time in the house eating and in fellowship without their kiddos. I didn't get any picture of the kids in the garage! It was a lot of fun to do and hope the parents enjoyed their time!

Home Decorations

This year, I got a real tree to put in the family room! Tim and I have been married 21 years and never had a real tree. I've been so excited about it! I also have my fake tree in the living room but oh, how I love the real tree that the kids decorated with all their handmade ornaments! Also, every year, I try to add to my Christmas in the City collection. However, instead of adding to it, I had to subtract a little. Yes, I broke a small figurine of a police officer and two kids! Well, maybe next year I will add to my collection!

Kid's Christmas Production

Metro did a kids Christmas production for children Kindergarten through 5th grade this year. Stephanie J did a wonderful job heading this up! Josh sang in the choir and got to be Joseph. He was very excited and took his part very seriously. He couldn't stop talking about it!

Take Your Time Checking Out!

I've always tried really hard to look at the cash register when checking out of a store. There have been so many times items ring up incorrect. Now that I've been doing the grocery game for several months, I'm even more interested to see if items are ringing up correct. Today, I went to CVS to get a few things and sure enough something did not ring up the sale price.

I can't imagine how many times people just walk out of the store unaware that they just overspent because the price didn't ring up correctly. I know I've done it plenty of times only to get home and a few days later to notice the mistake. Then, I have to make a special trip back to the store.

Standing in front of the cash register monitoring every items being scanned can at times be challenging especially when you have kids in the cart, a cell phone going off, and an impatient customer behind you. However, the benefit in the long run is worth the extra effort.

So, if you can avoid bringing the kids, not answering your cell phone, and smiling at the customer behind you, I say take your time checking out! It will save you money!

Thankgiving with Family