Our Newest Blessing!!!

The Happy Day Project

Through out the world of Blogging
Some wonderful Ladies (Julie and Jeanette)
Have come together with a great idea to do something Good...
Not for themselves,
Or their homes....
But for others.

It is so easy to get wrapped up in yourself and your world...
ESPECIALLY as a stay at home momma...
It is the JOB...
But I have always said,
you have to get outside your head often,
cus if you stay in there too long you might get lost :)

The Happy Day Project does just that,
by focusing on others.
In a short and simple way.
and in unison...
Acts of service are blessed, no doubts in this...
God smiles down on his servants when they help his children...
How much more will his heart smile when so much good takes place,
In a 'community' effort.


Oh I'm in.....

What better way could help prepare us for the days ahead...
Not just thinking about others first, which is an amazing lesson in its self,
but putting priorities in order...
What truly is important?
Oh that lesson often hurts...

So if you feel so lead, please follow in along with this small gesture to do GREAT THINGS.

God Bless You all, and get ready for another amazing journey

Getting Back On Our Feet

It has been a long couple of Months.
And Honestly I could not even begin to say where they have gone.
With the news of our latest expectant delivery...

EVERYTHING has been put on the back burner.

My Girls, getting them back and forth to school, (and all that is involved with that), and sometimes feeding them more than cereal, has been my only allowable focus.

I haven't had the brain power to much past that.

Wow, babies really do zap your brain cells...No way around it.
Although, I have to say, it can... at times be a blessing...

Im in ADD remission...I say that with only humor...but there is probably a lot of truth in that as well.
The wheels just aren't turning like they normally do.
But...every once in a while, I get a glimpse of what it is like to think clearly and actually get something done... It comes in spurts.

I am doing much better as far as Morning sickness and that exhaustion...
That is a huge blessing.

If there has been a 'downside'... it is the lack of energy,

and the loss of time I have missed with my girls... 

My sweet, drive me crazy, girls.
They have been great through this all...
I cant wait to 'get back on my feet', and create with them again.

My Oldest has always loved to bake and such, now my second child has taken up the desire to cook as well... And there have been many times when they have had to make dinner start to finish.

We are all working on our 'desire' to clean and straighten up... Always a work in progress.
Another one of those times when not being able to think past go, has worked in my favor. I just cant sweat it :).

In the mean time we are all preparing for the Holiday's and I am so excited. I hope my creative energy will burst forth... through all the messes... because there is so much we would like to do over the next many months...

and that is not including having a baby :)

That is pretty big, but we will get there when we get there...

Oh my new biggest obsession, especially with having no oomph to do much,

is... 

              Pinterest

Oh Im sure that it has zap a lot of those thoughts out of me too.
But it is so inspiring to see all the wonderful things people are doing out there... And frankly Im tired of just pinning... I want to play...
So with the Holidays and Many Birthdays coming up and teacher's gifts and more...
We have got to get cracking...

Take care all.
Thank you for
Your support,
Prayers,
and Humor... It is what has kept us all going.

We are BACK!!!!

Explanations are in order....
I must start with a sorry...
Sorry for bringing you all here and then... nothing...
Sorry for promising to give you something to come back for, and then... nothing...

Well.... The Reasons are plenty, but the gist of it is...

WE ARE HAVING ANOTHER BABY...

For those of you that are keeping track,

Cus Lord knows it is hard enough for me to... :)

THAT WILL MAKE 5...

SO, with this wonderful blessings comes much sickness...

I really do not do well in that department.

It has been enough for me to get through the day.

With myself and my 4...

That unfortunately Oh The Fun We Have, has had to take a back burner...

My steam is just not at full speed right now.

BUT,

I am starting to feel better,

And my girls have been a terrific help.

As well as wonderful friends.

We will continue to post,
And continue to explore,
Just not at the pace I would have hoped for...

We already have so much to catch up on...from our summer explorations...
And our current and future things, like our Victory Garden...
Stick around cus this momma aint done yet :)

Thank You all who have decided to take this journey with us,

cus we just got a curve ball and this is how we roll.

Just Praying

Just Waiting out the storm...
Praying for all those in the path of Irene and her winds.

It is blurred a bit, but it reads...
"Don't Wait For The Storm To Pass
Learn to Dance In The Rain..."
This sign was a gift from a dear friend, whose family does not like storms...
So all Our Dear Friends Up and Down the Coast...
Be Brave... and take comfort in his care.

Sonny's Waterfront Restaurant, Hatteras Island

You Gotta Eat,
Where Ever you may be,
What Ever it is that you are doing...
You Have to stop and EAT...
If you are visiting Hatteras Island all the locals will point you in the same direction.

Heading to SONNY'S WATERFRONT RESTURANT...

Family owned and opperated for over 35yrs.

We had the wonderful opportunity to sit and chat with one of its Co-Owners,

Lee Ann Quidley-Cannin


But only briefly, because life in the resturant business is
NON-STOP.

Lee Ann took time out of her already very short lunch break to talk with Us.

It was very inspiring to hear of her commitment to

God, Family and her work.

Being a Mother of 3,
And running a business with such a name to carry is no small feat in its self,
But staying grounded in her Faith has allowed her to maintain a good balance.

Please, take a look at our video interview.

You can also find Sonny's Waterfront Restaurant on Facebook


We have more pictures to share with you courtesy of the wonderful and talented Resident Photographer, Jenn Johnson. However she like many residents in the OBX, heading off the island.

Please Continue your prayers for all those who

 will be affected by Irene.

From Sonny's latest Facebook Post:


Matthew 8:27~Who is this that even the wind and

 the waves obey HIM~




Sonny's Waterfront Restaurant, Hatteras Island


57947 hwy 12, po box 447, Hatteras, NC 2794 


2529862922

Mission to Organize

It seems that we are on a MISSION to get ready for school this year. More so than normal.

our attempt to organize bulk snacks

Grab-and-Go Snack Stashes

from http://www.realsimple.com 

  Maybe, it is due to the fact that we have 3 and 1/2 little ones marching out each morning and it is our best defense to keep the small bit of sanity we have.

   It could also be that we are getting a little more "seasoned" as the years go by and realize how much more smoothly life can be when things are organized.


   Or the fact that the girls are able to do more things on their own, so having things "prepped" gives them that much more of an advantage.

    With out a doubt my mind, as a momma, is freed up tremendously because we have such a great year ahead of us. We could not be more happy about our girls teachers.
So since I am not burdened with worry, I am more relaxed.

Lunch Box Chaos,
not a big a fan of all the plastic.
We are gradually going more toward stainless steel 

   BUT... It probably has more to do with the fact that we can't control anything else.

God has given us domain over this house, for now... And truth be told that is big enough. :)

I had a great friend who shared a similar life,

enlighten me of this a couple years back.

Our oldest closets are actually 3 smaller ones

We have made a good system out of it

This is our 8 yr old's,
Give her a reason to organize and she is all over it

What ever the rhyme or reason,
it is off to a good start....

If you have any great and easy/commonsense ideas...

Please share them with the class...

I.E.-us.

It will not be perfect, but we are gonna try to keep at least one step ahead....OK status quo is good enough.

Kinnakeet Clay Works With Antoinette Gaskins Mattingly

Our Day, Our Chat, and Our Great Pleasure, To Feature Our Friend Antoinette Gaskins Mattingly

WHO SHE IS....

Antoinette is a life long family friend, one of those you were never introduced to, but always knew. With a larger than life smile, to greet all those she sees, it is easy to fall into the category of life long friend. She brings that kinda flare into her artwork as well as her studio.

WHERE SHE IS...

On the historical fishing village of Kinnakeet (Avon), N.C., Kinnakeet Clay Studio and Showroom is nestled in an adorable shopping center right off the main road into Hatteras Island. “Right beside the Dairy Queen”, she said, in giving directions.

Beside her studio is a coffee shop, that opens up “later than the one down the street”. Antoinette tells frequent seekers of early morning coffee, as their eyes wonder around at all the dancing clay figures on their crisp white surroundings.

WHAT SHE DOES...

“Antoinette creates two distinctly different lines of work in clay, hand pressed relief tiles (wall hangings) and functional stoneware.” 

In her studio, a mix of several artisans work shows her diverse sense of style and appreciation of others in the world of art.

OUR DAY WITH ANTOINETTE...

Our day started several weeks earlier with Facebook messages and phone calls in preparation of our visit. Excitedly, Antoinette took on the opportunity to host our family for a day in her studio.

WHAT WE SAW...

Nothing but pristine color everywhere. Absolutely stunning. Antoinette choose a  white pilate to showcase the art around her studio. We continually oohed and aahed at all the treasures we passed by. 

From beautiful drawer pulls to amazing press reliefs, all featured dutiful crawling crabs, dazzling seahorses, and dancing sunflowers, were just a few of the amazing creations that held us captive. 

As mentioned before, Antoinette also features other artisans’ beautiful works of art. While proudly sashaying around her studio in one of her favorite skirts, Antoinette explained how she has come across so many of the pretties she displays and are currently sold in her showroom. “I just fill my space with things I love. Special soaps, are a luxury for me - it is the one thing I will spoil myself with. So it is something I enjoy bringing to my customers” She said with a sheepish grin.

With drastic shifts in the economy, it is places like this that are effected greatly. Being a small business owner is not an easy feat, but as spoken in her interview portion, “Anything that is enjoyable, even if it is hard... It’s well worth it.”

“I am meeting my goals, I made goal in the beginning and they are happening” This expression of meeting goals was evident in many things Antoinette spoke of through our time with her. It was refreshing and encouraging to hear.

WHAT WE DID...

Antoinette prepared the most incredible morning for our girls in the midst of her working day.

Knowing of our plans to create a victory garden for the fall, she set up a small table with slabs of clay and all sorts of tools. With absolute patience and an unwavering smile, she walked the girls through the process of making “garden tags.” How amazing is she.

They each made several different tags. It was very important to Antoinette that each of the girls initials belonged to their work, labeling them all as they hurried along.

Her plans with us were not yet over. To our absolute surprise, Antoinette had the girls all take turns in creating a perfect and, of course, original bowl for them to keep. At each step, she gave great details about the process of her clay works.

From start to finish, a bowl, she explained, could take from a week in a perfect world to more like two weeks in a normal world. From throwing, to molding, to glazing and then firing, this is not a process for the faint of heart, but rather someone with a passion for their work.

Her attention to detail was evident in every possible aspect, from the placement and thought of her showroom to her diligence in all that she did for us. It is impossible for us to share how much her time and compassion meant to us as a family.

Her words will resonate within the hearts and minds of our girls for years to come. For this, I am so ever thankful.

To further our time and our experience with Antoinette, she has offered to create and make available to you our readers the same garden tags she help us make.

Take a visit on her webpage to see what she has available now.

Everything in her studio would proudly be displayed in our home.

http://www.kinnakeetclay.com

Goals

Goals are tricky little things, but mean a lot to people.
They give security to some and focus to others.
I respect that, just never been very good at it.

 But to be successful at something worthwhile,

There needs to be a destination,

Especially, when you have others along for the ride.

So for those of you, who have stopped by,
I pray you decide to 'come along', for the continued ride...

Please, Brace Yourself...

There maybe sudden stops,

Fast turns...

And maybe even a few U-turns,

OK... probably a lot of U-turns.

I do always have a goal in mind...
often in my mind..
That tends to be the biggest problem...
And I pray over it daily....
Asking for guidance, and wisdom,
And umpf, to carry it through.


SO.....

My goal is to give, you the reader, a reason to stay.

Not by entertainment, or silly stories alone.

No, more importantly by Encouragement. 

It is my Goal that You are lifted by what is spoken, and shown here.

That you too, may find your UMPH...

Whether it be, tackling your bathroom tiles....which can be super pretty when they sparkle...but really hard to make happen.

Or walking away from an establishment that does not treat you well, which is very difficult and embarrassing...especially with kids in tow.

   (I know, I was that kid many a time, when my folks would pick us up and walk out.)

OR, BETTER YET,

Following your dreams....

I love Passion, 

Oh it looks so good on people, 

When guided in truth.

See, it looks like I am off path again...
The thing is...
Life is the path...
And, It is my goal to embrace it,
To embrace those who are in it.
The doers, The shakers... and the folks behind them, giving them their encouragement.

Please,

I employ of you all,

and ask for your prayer,

As a reader,

And as my friends,

To hold me accountable...
To encourage me to stretch further than possible...
To reach more and more hearts and minds.
To follow the inspiration and passion of those around me.

These are the goals I have been given.

School is on the BRAIN!!!

This is always a very challenging time for me.
Good and Bad!
I love having my kids around,
But.... case and point,

     I took my two oldest to the doctor,

And then finishing school shopping,

And our 8 yr old was on

For the 8 hours we were out and about...

with out pause... 

Is that possible?

"The apple does not fall far..."

Many of you who know us well,

Are probably whispering this under your breath...

shhh!

These guys are energetic and so ready to take on life, and I love it...

LOVE IT! LOVE IT! LOVE IT!

Which is why it is so hard for me to send them on to somewhere else, someone else.

It has been such a blessing for me to be able to stay home with our girls.

I was able to see every first giggle, every first step....

and all the silly antics our girls could come up with.

I do not take that lightly at all.

I am very thankful.

AND....

I appreciate all the momma's that pine for that time...

Although,

They probably have their 'act' together way better than I do :)

Over the years, sending them off to school, has always been horribly difficult.
It has driven me to tears at many points.
But most importantly, it has brought me to my knees.
And, year after year the LOUDEST words I receive are...
"IF YOU TAKE OUT THE LIGHT, WHAT THEN IS LEFT?"
These are the words God has given me,
They are not one size fits all,
And dare I try to put them in a box to say they will never change.

In fact in one school, we did decide to pull out our girls to homeschool briefly. I can not say that it was the school, it was a good school. It was just not a good fit for us at the time.

So for a brief minute, I had my lovely girls back

Wow... What a WONDERFULLY HARD MINUTE!!!

But, well worth it.

We have since moved two more times, each time moving schools.
I am so pleased with our current school, it is not perfect...
The staff and the parents, that can, really try to make it GREAT....
And this... I can truly appreciate.
Do I have concerns?
Sure...but, God has always worked them out.
And, as I said before, I am constantly on my knees,
Asking for guidance,
And boldly walking in the confidence I find in his words.

SO BRING ON THE GLUE,

BRING ON THE HOMEWORK,

AND BRING ON THE CRAZY.....

Cus we are ready....

Oh, God, Please Make Me Ready.

Petting Zoo at Public Library

Traveling can be a challenge for us. Especially, for long extended periods of time.
So this trip, we split the gang. With 6 of us and 2 dogs, it can get a bit 'crowded'.
We have such a WONDERFUL extended family, and they willfully accepted the 'opportunity' to watch over our 'pups'....
Thank you Again,  SOOOOO much!

I drove up to leave our dogs, and only had our youngest 2.

In our travels, we were encouraged by Grandma to go to an event at the Larchmont, Norfolk Public Library.

The public Library has a very impressive range of activities to choose from, these days. It has come along way from  the traditional 'story-time'...
Which of course, as a child, is ALWAYS MAGICAL.
But in our pursuit to find cheap/free fun...
THE PUBLIC LIBRARY, fits the bill to a T.

For adults as well. 

Check into your local Library. Their websites are usaully very detailed.

Mr Fuzzy Feet...

This Event was brought to the Library Grounds by

Beach Party Ponies  http://beachpartyponies.com 

If you are in the Tidewater Area...

From Hampton down to Moyock...

You could take advantage of this service.

They are a 'mobile petting zoo', amongst other things.

So if you are in need of some very friendly barn animals at your next soiree, consider giving them a call.

They are not over the top, just good 'clean' fun.

They all took turns brushing

Many, Many, Many Brushes on hand

Hearts were popping up everywhere, during our trip.
Can you guess what this is?

See the display eggs?

See the Child's hand inspecting display eggs

Poor guy, he wasn't expecting that.
Pardon the Blur, I wasn't expecting it either.

All the Animals were very calm,
Hands were everywhere,
and they did not seem to mind at all.

Now, that is a real live 'My Little Pony'

Thought he was mad at first,
But then I noticed a little boy scrubbing his back side,
And then I realized,
He was not mad at all...
He was in Heaven!

This guy was pretty happy too!

In all, it was an unexpected, fun event. And, because it was hosted by The Public Library, it was FREE!

declaimer :)... for the sweet boy I do not think that egg was knowingly placed in the basket, all the others were cracked and cleaned...BUT kudos to his momma, she handled it very well, better then I think I would have :)

There is nothing more endearing then little ones, holding hands

Sneak Peek

Oh My....

Friends,

It has been a long...

fun packed couple of weeks...

We are finally home.

AND...

Once we have our feet planted back on the ground,

And not dreaming of our toes in the sand,

We will begin to share our adventures with you all.

For now here is a Sneak Peek,

Of our week...

In the Outer Banks,

of

North Carolina

 First Day at the Beach 

Wonder if this is what life will be like, for our girls. 
Together! And at the beach!

Kitty Hawk Kites

Right across from
Jockey's Ridge...

Oh Yes,

We did the sunset

Way up on the dunes.

This

was

just

the

beginning

Poetry in Motion!

Can only imagine the storms
 this sign has weathered

Too Much FUN!!!

COLOR!   COLOR!   COLOR!

Normal Beauty...

These are just a few of the pictures from our visits...
In the days ahead, we will show you the wonderful people that made many of these activities, so amazing and unforgettable.

Best Day EVER!!!!

We are on vacation with family so it has been extremely challenging to blog.
We will have soooo Much to share at the end of our visiting.

BUT..... We had such an amazing day Yesterday.
That we could not wait to give our Thanks,
To the wonderful folks that opened their lives to us.
We had such an over the top incrediable day,
Thanks to their willingness and generosity.

Please stay tuned for the bigger picture on our day soon,
When we can sit and put it all together.
In the mean time please check out these sites.


http://www.kinnakeetclay.com 
Antoinette Gaskins Mattingly

http://www.bluepelicangallery.com
Jennifer Johnson

Sonny's Waterfront Restaurant

Around And About

We headed for the beach on a SATURDAY.  Wow if traffic has not gotten crazy coming in to OBX, these days. I cant say that it was ever that bad growing up, but times have changed.
SO to come in to the beach we decided to go ''old school way in, not bypass, but it has been awhile.

AND... we ended up going a little out of our way, oh about an hour.
WELL.. Seems it was a blessing, because traffic was horrible coming in the main bridge.
The babes slept the WHOLE way.
So even though it was out of the way, our route was perfect, smooth sailing, no traffic,
And Oh My Goodness..was it EVER BEAUTIFUL...
It took me everything not to stop and take pictures, but that would have awoken the little ones.

 By the time we made it into Nags Head, it was dinner, and we were starving.

We met up with the rest of our family, At Pete's Pour House for Dinner.

Half of our crew had been there already, so by the time we got there, they were already done.

So our poor waitress essentially, started a whole new meal for us. Those of you that have waited on tables, know exactly what that means. She did not skip a beat, She was full of energy, and was above and beyond great with the kids...She was fun, and it made our meal fun.

The atmosphere was energetic, but not overwhelming, so the kids, could be kids, and it was not out of place.

Oh and by the time, we finished, more family made their way in...because of the traffic.

So our poor poor waitress, had to start all over again. But as before, she just kept on rolling.

We asked to take a pic with her, She really made the night for our family.

SO WE WOULD ABSOLUTELY RECOMMEND PETE'S POUR HOUSE, for your family.

AND DON"T FORGET TO ASK FOR CLAIRE. tell her the crazy family sent you.

OH SO HOT...

Visiting with family, and We haven't had a lot of time to stop and blog... 

We will be a bit random for the next couple weeks, but are excited to share all the fun places we explore.

Today we stopped in at a Norfolk, Va, Library. For a 'Petting Zoo'.

Remember to look for moments of Free Fun, even when you are vacationing, you maybe surprised what you happen upon.

 REMEMBER AS YOU PLAY, TO DRINK LOTS OF WATER...

Think FISH...and for ever breath you take...take a glup of water.

Have a Great weekend, and remember to be deliberate in you actions and words with your loved ones...

(Oh, I have a great story about trying to get out of Point A.. Nothing like kids to help keep a person grounded)

Military Discounts

This is mostly for Military Families.
Many of know there are several activities available for discounted or waved fees.

By now we all know that Bush Gardens  and its sister parks are free to Military
but there are many more discounts that many of us have not tapped into.

Last summer our family went to the frontier Museum in Staunton VA.
Now it was near the end of summer, kinda like now, and the budget by this point was kinda low.
When we went to pay they said, it was "free".... "FREE??!!"...We had such a great time. What a blessing it was... Again a family of Six, nothing is cheap. It was a wonderful Museum and we all had a great great time.

like this commercial
0:31The Perfect Beach Vacation  (:30) - Beach Angel ...by TRAVELOCITY

0:16NEW! Biddly Boop Price Guarantee- Commercial by...

Our favorite commercials

A link to find what Museums are in you area go to
http://www.arts.gov/national/bluestarmuseums/index2011.php
You may be surprised at what you might find. Especially if you have a trip planned and want to find something to do in that area.... FOR FREE!!!