Crazy New England Weather

 I've lived in New England all my life.  I know all the jokes about 'crazy' New England weather.  I remember wearing t-shirts one day and then snow boots the next.  But today, Little Miss Sugar got to experience the 'crazy' weather herself.  Welcome to New England, Baby Girl.  *wink*

From tropical appeal in the morning...

...to her first snowfall by night.

Welcome Home, Sugar!

We Were Missing the Sunshine Family

It's been way too long. Way too long, I say. It's been weeks since we've hung out with the Sunshine Family and tonight put an end to it. (Although, they were missing one important part of their Sunshine Family...Papa Sunshine!)

The Sunshine Girls make me HAPPY!

PQ was psyched to have a few of his friends relax with him.

What's the opposite of a HAND-ME-DOWN?

A HAND-ME-UP, of course!



There was PLENTY of love to go around.

(Little Sunshine LOVES Sugar!!!)



Seriously, can they get ANY cuter??!!??



I needed a little Sunshine today. I'm thrilled that our dear Sunshine friends were able to come over and have dinner with us. Thanks again to the Sunshine Family...please tell Papa Sunshine that we need to do this again soon...but next time, it has to be when he's not working. We certainly missed him tonight.

Snow in October??!!!??

Snow? 

Did someone really say SNOW in the forecast? 

Really??!!??

It's late October...and Thursday's forecast is this:

Thursday: Mainly cloudy with light rain developing changing to snow late. Morning high temps in the 40s falling into the 30s late. 

I guess it's officially time to dig out the mittens, boots, and winter hats.  I wonder if Grammy Jo Jo has been busy making more winter hats for her other grandchildren??!!??  One things for sure, she took care of Sugar before the winter weather gets here.  Thanks again, Grammy Jo Jo...we love her new winter hat!  And apparently this Thursday will be her first snowfall...stay tuned!

PS~ Does this mean we can start decorating for Christmas???!!!???  Y'all know how much I love to get ready for the Christmas season. *wink*



2 Years Old & 8 Weeks Old

Celebrating our two little ladies today...

STAY AWAY!

Within the past 24 hours, we all seem to have gotten whatever it was that PQ had last weekend.  Papa H just became the newest victim.  And just for the record, I'm so glad we have two bathrooms.  Otherwise this could get interesting...

Pears, Pears, And More Pears!

For the past 30+ years, my Aunt and Uncle have been throwing away pears.  I know it sounds silly...but for 30+ years, they have continued to have pears grow on their pear trees right in their yard and each year, they never seem to ripen to their liking.  So each year, they let the pears go to waste.  This year, I opted to get involved because y'all know how much I love a little project.  (Plus, I love food...and throwing away food that could potentially feed our family was more than my heart could handle.)

On Friday afternoon, my Uncle loaded up my car with 3 five-gallon buckets full of pears from their pear trees.  At first, I was a little intimidated because I honestly had no idea what I was going to make with that many pears.  But after getting them home and looking up recipe ideas online, I began feeling at ease about the pear epidemic that had taken over our home.

 Two of the buckets full of pears...

When you have this many pears that need to be peeled and prepared, you have to call in the 'big guns'.  My friend, Glory, loaned me her amazingly-good-make-me-wanna-buy-one-apple-peeler-and-corer.  Tuesday was my day off from work so I spent the day in the kitchen falling in love.  WOW!  I had no idea that such a great tool was available.  Apparently this handy-dandy kitchen tool will be going on my Christmas Wish List this year.

Introducing my new Kitchen BFF...

Apparently it doesn't take much to please me!

(This thing was AMAZING!)

Within 2 hours, I had every single pear peeled, cored, and sliced!

And so the pear sauce began!

(like apple sauce...only made with pears)

Pears + Cinnamon & Sugar = YUMMY GOODNESS!

And what was Sugar doing, you ask?

Sleeping, of course!

Once the pear sauce was ready, I bagged it up and placed them in the freezer.  I made 6 quarts of pear sauce for our family.  I made 3 quarts of pear sauce (made with Splenda) for Auntie & Uncle.  And of course, I ate a little bit of the sauce that couldn't quite 'fit' in the freezer bags. 

YUM!

After making the 9+ quarts of sauce, I made 2 loaves of pear bread and I made several containers of pear crisp to eat and/or freeze.  I think I made over 15 quarts of crisp in all.   (Sorry that I didn't take any pictures!)  Auntie and Uncle were more than impressed when I showed up at their house with all of the 'pear prizes'.  Their freezer is officially stocked up for the winter...and so is ours.  And I did tell my Uncle that Pear Crisp could be eaten for breakfast (afterall, it is made with pears, oats, and cinnamon).  I think he liked that part the best.  Sometimes eating dessert for breakfast is exactly what we all need!  It makes our souls smile.  *wink*

Milestone!

GUESS WHO ROLLED OVER???

According to PQ, Sugar must have known about her 'Big Girl Church Outfit' yesterday...because as soon as we got home from church, she rolled over!  Way to go, Little Miss!

Matthew West & Johnny Diaz

On Friday night, we took Beaner out for her birthday.  She turned 10 a few weeks ago and her present was to head out to a concert with the H family.  It's our 'thing'.  We love going to concerts and Beaner has always enjoyed going with us.  For her 10th birthday, we opted to take the Bean Machine to see Matthew West and Johnny Diaz.  It was a much anticipated evening out for everyone!

For Sugar, it meant spending an evening with Titi, Uncle L, and D-Dawg!

For us, it meant a night full of sillyness!

Johnny Diaz was amazing...I'm now a big fan!

And Matthew West was, well, the highlight of the night!

The kids were THRILLED to be there!

My favorite part of the night was being so close~there's not a bad seat in the house.

About half way through the show, PQ started to feel sick.  He kept asking me why God wasn't answering his prayers.  Apparently PQ had been praying that his stomach pains would go away.  Much to his distress, the pains continued so he asked me if I would take him outside.  PQ and I ventured outside for some fresh air...and within seconds, he was getting sick on the side of the building.  Without hesitating, PQ threw up his hands and said "Praise The Lord" as more 'sickness' came out of him.  As I questioned him about his praises at that moment, he said "God is answering my prayers, Mama".  As soon as he released the sickness from his body, he began to feel better.  He immediately wanted to go back inside because he felt much better. 

Of course with any 'sickness', honorary vomit breath is sure to follow.  When we got back into the lobby of the venue, we asked a group of people if they had any gum or mints.  Matthew West's manager immediately went and got PQ a piece of gum and for the moment, his honorary vomit breath was gone. 

But it soon returned on our way home...

After making 4 stops on the side of the road so PQ could get sick, we finally made it back to Titi and Uncle L's house.  Regardless of the sickies, we all had a great time.  I'm sure this concert will be one that we will never forget.  Happy 10th Birthday, Beaner!

A Friendship Legacy

We've all heard the verse "a faithful friend is the medicine of life" from Ecclesiasties 6:16.  As I prepared my heart for this evenings blog post, I hadn't realized what types of thoughts would begin stirring.  After looking at the pictures that I've taken over the past two days, I am overjoyed by the chain of friendships that continue to evolve.  I am grateful for my own friendships which in turn have created friendships for my own children...and so the cycle continues for many of us.  It's pretty amazing to reflect on the goodness and glee that comes from a solid friendship. 

When I'm around my own friends, I smile more.  I laugh more.  I find more joy in the little things in life and I feel safe with them.  What's even better, is knowing that my own children are developing the same type of relationships with other children who are being raised with the same morals and ideals as mine.  It's a legacy, I suppose...

I'm reminded yet again that our own tesimony of faith will be observed by many people (both young and old) in our life.  If we train up our children in the way they should go, they will naturally cling to what has been passed down from generation to generation.  For me, these pictures serve as a gentle reminder that friends are important.  For this generation and many generations to come. 

2 Timothy 1:5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, dwells in you as well.

The Best Hand-Me-Down Ever Received!

I love getting hand-me-downs but I hardly ever get them.  On Sunday morning, I received one of the best hand-me-downs that I've ever received in my life.  It wasn't a sweater.  It wasn't a pair of pants.  It wasn't a skirt.  Nope...it was a mug! 

A very sweet friend of mine, Little Lou, felt led to pass her mug onto me.  The mug had been given to her a while back and she felt like it was time to hand-it-down to someone else (AKA: Me)!  After reading one of my recent blog posts about feeling overextended, she thought it was only fitting to pass it along to me.  Her own season of feeling overextended has been replaced by a sense of freedom.  And I'm hoping to learn a thing or two from her!  I was more than thrilled that she was willing to share the mug with me, because after all, it completely hit the nail on the head.  It was exactly what I've been needing.

Perhaps it will serve as validation to me that it's okay to say 'no'.  Perhaps it will empower me to sit back and relish in whatever moment God sends my way.  I've already used the mug a handful of times while sipping on hot apple cider...and so far, I've practiced saying NO outloud about a dozen times.  *wink*  Regardless of whether the mug serves as a validation tool to me or not, it's certainly a reminder that Little Lou was thinking of me.  How sweet it is to know that I've crossed the mind of such a beautiful woman.  I love ya, Little Lou.  Thanks again for thinking of me! 



You Just Never Know With PQ!

I love taking the time to really appreciate the unique personalities that we all seem to have.  As a family, we each have our own quirks.  I am the zippy over-analyzer.  Papa H is the gentle giant.  PQ is the creative-you-never-know-what-might-come-next kid.  And Sugar is still trying to figure out what life is really all about.

Over the past week, I have had several opportunities to SMILE at all of the humorous happenings in the H family.  PQ is funny.  There's no other way to put it.  He's a funny little boy.  He cracks me up.  We always have to keep a close eye on him because you never know what he might think of next.  Whether it's a funny saying or a funny way of expressing himself, he's a funny kid.  End of story.  (Well, not really the end of the story but y'all know what I mean...*wink*)

If you haven't had the opportunity to see PQ with his new baby sister, I assure you that you're missing out.  He LOVES everything about Sugar.  He wants to spend his extra time with her.  He wants to make her smile.  He wants to snuggle with her.  He wants to feed her.  And recently, PQ found a small baby carrier that was given to us and that was going unused.  What did he decide to do?  To call it his own, of course...

I love you, PQ!

We recently went to a Harvest Day celebration with some friends of ours from another local church.  (A big shout out to the Fenway Crew- *wink) As a family, we only knew about a handful of people at the celebration but that didn't stop PQ.  He jumped right in on the action.  Before we knew it, he was participating in a donut eating event.  (Seriously, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.  My boys love donuts!)

PQ is a donut eating machine!

It's October in New England.  Let's face it...It's getting colder.  The mornings are chilly and sometimes it's hard to get out of our nice, warm beds.  When asked to let the dogs outside before school, PQ quickly jumped into action.  Without a moments notice, he was 'layered' and prepared for the brisk autumn air that would be awaiting him.  Did I mention that PQ stacked on 3 pairs of pants, winter boots, a jacket, a scarf, mismatched mittens, and ski goggles? 

Apparently letting the dogs out is serious business!

And while some children have stories of cutting their own hair, I doubt that many children have ever set up their own stuffed animal cutting salon.  Oh yes...that's exactly what PQ did last night.  While cooking dinner for our family, PQ decided to entertain himself by getting scissors and snipping his animal-friends fur.  (Thank God he didn't try and cut the real dogs fur....can you imagine??!!!  OH BOY!)  Like I said, there is NEVER a dull moment.  I love this boy with all my heart!

You just never know with PQ!

Early in the morning, PQ likes to be awaken by his little sister.  Sugar is usually awake and dressed for the day before PQ wakes up in the morning so she typically does the honors of waking him up.  For whatever reason, her morning wake up calls don't cause any grumbling from PQ.  Instead, we are all met with smiles and kisses when Sugar wakes him up.  So we tend to monopolize on these warm fuzzies whenever we get the chance.  *wink*

It's pretty obvious...she loves him too!

PQ~ I love who you are.  I love your little quirks and I love your sweet attitude.  I love how thoughtful you can be and I love being your mother.  I love being on my toes with anticipation of what might come next.  I love your courage.  I love your determination.  I love you more than you could ever imagine!  Thanks for being Mama's sweet little boy!  XOXOXOXO

I have the cutest kids ever!

I'm a 'Yes' girl...

Are you a 'doer'?  Are you someone that says 'yes' more than you say 'no'?  Are you someone that struggles with the idea that you might seem unfriendly if you don't go somewhere that you've been invited to go?  Over the past few days and weeks, I have been learning more and more about myself.  Sometimes falling on my face is the quickest way for me to learn something.  I'm not the most graceful person either so falling on my face is not a pretty site, that's for sure.

I am a 'doer'.  I am a 'yes' girl.  I want everyone to like me.  I feel like I need to be involved in everything that I'm invited to be involved in.  I fear rejection.  And right now, I feel like I'm on the brink of failing life in this moment.  I've been a 'yes' girl all my life.  I've always been the person who wants to help everyone.  But right now, I feel like the only person I'm not helping is me.

As a family, we stay busy.  Both Papa H and I work outside of the home.  Papa H works full time and I work part time.  PQ attends school and when he gets home from school, he has homework to do.  We're involved in sports.  We're involved in ministry projects.  We are involved in small group activities throughout the week.  We're busy but we hadn't realized how busy we really are until yesterday.  During breakfast, we made a family list of how many work and volunteer programs we are involved in.  As a family, we listed 18 different activities and programs that we are a part of.    Not all of these activities and programs are daily or weekly for that matter, but we're still involved in them.

While we are busy with the activities, I really enjoy myself.  I like the fellowship that comes along with most of these activities and volunteer opportunities.  But I have to be honest, I keep finding myself feeling overwhelmed and anxious at the end of the days.  I miss just 'being' at home together as a family.  I long for quiet time with my family.  And for once in my life, I'm ready to practice saying 'no'.

I need to be more intentional with the things that I'm involved in.  I feel like I'm in survival mode.  Just going through the motions to make it through another day.  Am I the only one that feels this way?  I highly doubt that I am.  I know that as women we place a huge burden on ourselves to be 'the perfect person'...the 'one that has it all together'.  Well, I can't keep lying to myself...I'm broken and I'm ready to be 'fixed'. 

Ready, Set, Go....Please join me as I retrain my brain to say 'NO'!

Blessed Beyond Measure

I can't stand it.  I'm sick about it.  I'm overwhelmed with joy.  I'm oozing with love.  I have a little boy who has the greatest sense of humor.  I have a little girl who has yet to learn how special her big brother really is.  I have a little boy who is strong and courageous.  I have a little girl who has no idea how safe she really is.  I have a little boy who's has handsome as his father.  I have a little girl who will eventually learn how much love a father can have for his child. 

I have the most beautiful children to call my own.  How did we ever get to be so blessed?