Ch-ch-ch-changes

Happy Labor Day, y'all!! What are your plans for the day? Do you save your barbecuing for the holiday, or just over the holiday weekend?

Today is my youngest daughter's birthday - the BIG 4!! I can't believe that 4 years ago was our first day with this little piece of magical babyness:

GinaGina!

This sweet little bean, when asked what she wanted for her birthday, simply requested "a crabby patty and fries" (code for McDonald's, thank you Spongebob) and "a cake with candles to blow like this {insert candle-blowy face here}". We don't have the extra funds for a trip for the whole fam to Mickey D's, so we're making our own "crabby patties" here at home, and a strawberry birthday cake, complete with candles (cooling on the counter now!).

I can't begin to describe how much joy this little one has brought into our home. Even on her crabby days, she's such a little spark plug!

She woke up this morning to birthday balloons, which she hasn't stopped playing with yet!

Happy birthday, GinaGina! I thank God every day for allowing me the privilege of being your mama.

In other news, today marks the beginning of some changes. I will be "playing" with the layout of the blog, so if you come here and things are a bit, uhhhh, messy, please forgive me (and don't let it keep you from coming back in a little while!). And aside from having a 4 year old in da house, there are some changes taking place at home as well, which I will blog about in the future. I am also, for the first time ever, participating in a link-up with The Better Mom!

Sacred Sunday

The LORD is my fortress,

protecting me from danger,

so why should I tremble?

Psalm 27:1

Happy Sunday, y'all!

Guess Who's Here??

Yes, it's ME!! (I bet I had you goin' huh?)

Life is just way too busy to blog, isn't it? Which makes me sad, because I'd sort of hoped this would turn into a sort of journal for the kids (and maybe us!) to look back on and relive memories. Alas, sometimes it's all I can do to work, keep the house somewhat presentable (and I've been failing at that portion lately too), and keep the husband and kids fed and happy. Are ya pickin' up what I'm puttin' down??

Tonight, however, I've got kids scattered all over the neighborhood with friends, the husband is fishing; so it's just me and the Bean at home. So instead of cleaning up the dinner dishes like a good little Sally Homemaker, I decided to try out a recipe I found on Pinterest recently.

Source: lacreativitedelafille.blogspot.com via Kelly on Pinterest

Sadly, they didn't turn out near as pretty as they look in the picture, and they're sort of...dry...I guess. Granted, I used coffee mugs, not ramekins, but I can't imagine that making a ginormous difference. Okay in a pinch, but I think I'd rather just make regular cookies. Plus, it's rarely just me and one other person in this house, so single serving anything just doesn't make sense.

So how's the weather in your neck of the woods? We are in a bee-you-tee-full weather pattern here - highs in the 80's and lows in the 60's (58 degrees tonight!). This sort of weather always comes just in time, right after a week-long heatwave (or, uhm, a month or so)...letting us know that it will not stay a sweltering fry-an-egg-on-the-sidewalk *hot* forever, no matter how long it's been like that. Our windows have been opened, and baby we're blowin' the stink off! Sadly, we're also letting the flies in too. Much as I love the slammin' of a screen door, the in-and-outs of the kids must send a signal out to flies everywhere. And I must get a little over-anxious in my fly swatting efforts, as I thought I broke my finger on the windowsill earlier while smacking one of 'em. But all bodily injury aside, I think we are fly-free for now!

Lastly, school starts next week. Yes, next week!! The kids are all registered and everything, and actually excited to go back. Since my dreams of homeschooling have yet to be realized, they'll start back in a week and two days. This summer has gone by so fast! Our vacation was a trip to West Virginia, then to Georgia, but it's a very...uhm, interesting story that I'll leave for another day.

For now, I have a Bean to get to bed, some shorts to replace buttons on, dishes to wash up, and a crumby floor to vacuum. My plate is full, but my cup runneth over - I hope yours does too!!