House Hunting

Hubby and I have been looking at buying a house by next spring. We will have all of our debt paid off with our income tax return and plan on using his bonus check as a down payment. I'm very much excited about this! I hate putting money towards rent. It doesn't go to anything, but the fact that we have a roof over our head for the next month. And we can't even do anything to the house, except keep it clean. Not fun!

Anyways, we have looked about everything we can find that is online, and even went to look at 4 or 5 houses in person. Only one to which we even kinda liked, but there is still some stuff that we would have to do to it. We don't want to buy a house that we have to do anything to to be able to move in. We don't have the time to do anything to it. We are willing to pay for it move in ready!

I am planning on going to look at another house tomorrow that was just put on the market today! I drove by it this evening, and am excited about going to look inside of it. Hubby has to work, so it's just going to be me, the kids, and our realtor lady. I hope that it is better than the others.

Thankful Thanksgiving

I have so much to be thankful for this year, and every year. I thought that with it being the day before Thanksgiving, that I would do a post on what all I thank God for on a(n almost) daily basis.

I am thankful for:

1. God sending His son to die for me.
2. God thinking that I deserved to have His son die for me.
3. My parents. They made me who I am today....good and bad! :-)
4. My husband. He is my rock.
5. My kids. They are the reason it's easy to wake up in the mornings....some mornings.
6. My family. We are all different, yet the same. My dad's family has stood strong this past year and though it's been hard with my grandmother's death, we are all strong Christian people that know she's in a much better place.
7. My church family. I can't express my love for them. They have made this past year memorable and helped me realize how much I am thankful for.
8. My friends. Though there are very few of them, I am thankful for each and every one of them.
9. American Soldiers. They have/are fighting for me, my freedom, my country.
10. Wal-Mart. Yes an odd one I know, but it's the one place that I can buy almost anything I need or want.
11. Nickelodeon and Disney Channels. They are what keep my children out of my hair when I am cleaning and cooking. Yes, I'm "that" mom.
12. Blogger. It has been not only my outlet for thoughts and fears, but it's has helped me realize that there are other mother/women out there like me. The kind with thoughts and fears. It has also given me the opportunity to become friends with women that live right here in my own hometown.

So what are you thankful for this year??

I am alive...

Yes, I am alive, if you happened to be wondering.

I have been out of sorts for almost 2 weeks. I've had quite a bit going on, for once, and have just now been able to sit down on my usual blog reads. Boy, did I have a lot to catch up on!

A couple of Fridays ago, a close friend invited me to a Beauticontrol Spa Party she was having at her house. I had never been to one, but had heard they were lots of fun. So I left the kids with Hubby, and off I went for an hour and a half of relaxation and girl time. Something I haven't had in over 3 years! It was so much fun, that I decided to have one of my own. So this Friday night, I am hosting my own spa party...I'm so excited...and I just can't hide it....I'm about to lose control and I think I like it. Okay, I'm done now.

Hubby got off work at 5pm Sunday, and we loaded up, and took the kids out to his family's deer camp for a few days. Of course, with it being the first of the week, anybody that would have sat at camp with the kids and I were working. So while Hubby, Papaw (Hubby's dad), Aunt J (Hubby's sister), and the other couple out there, went hunting, the kids and I sat in the camper and watched movies. I would have loved to take them outside and let them play, but it poured Sunday night, and then didn't get any warmer than 45 degrees, so we decided it be best to keep them inside.

We got back yesterday evening, and thankfully I had cleaned my house up a little bit before leaving out. We were so tired that we just came in and threw everything in the floor. Of course, today, I am having to clean everything up again!

We have also had some unexpected, uninvited, unwanted house guests....since after Sissy's birthday. They tend to come and go at there leisure. Whenever they get hungry, the show up. ANTS!!!

I hate them, it doesn't matter how much I clean my house, they still appear trying to find something to eat. I normally clean the kitchen every night to prevent them from taking over during the night. Last night, though, I was so tired, and ready for bed...we went to bed at about 930pm...that I just left it. Bad idea!!! I got up this morning to a sea of black...literally! They were everywhere!!!

Yesterday, was my dad's 53rd birthday. At about 625pm yesterday evening, my sister calls me.

Sis- "Hey, we are going to eat at PP's for Dad's birthday."

Me-"Okay....when?"

Sis-"Ummm...in like 5 or 10 minutes. Can you make it"

Are you kidding? LOL She said she thought we were still out at deer camp. Dad had to tell her that we were indeed home. So Sissy and I rushed around, got ready, and headed to PP's. Thankfully, we both took showers before that, so we didn't have to worry there. Bubba was asleep, and Hubby opted to stay home with him.

I may be MIA for the next week or so, as I am going to be pretty busy. If I don't post again beforehand....I hope you all have a wonderful and thankful Thanksgiving!!

What if....

Do you ever wonder what could have been? I mean, have you ever had a life changing experience, and look back and wonder what could have been? I have, and I wonder "what if" quite a bit.

I played basketball for as long as I can remember. It was my life, and I planned on playing until the good Lord wouldn't let me anymore. I just didn't realize it would be sooner than I had thought.

When I was 14, in the 9th grade, I was already receiving college recruit letters! I was very excited about going to play college ball at one particular college, 6 hours away from home! I got a letter in the mail saying that since it was a "certain time of the year" they had to quit contact with me, but would pick up when I was older. That day never came.

When I was 16, I had a bad car accident. I was late for curfew and it was pouring down rain. I was on the dirt road to my house, hit red clay, fishtailed, and as any inexperienced driver would do, I hit the brakes. I learned the hard way, that's not what you do. I hit a tree head on, which threw me on my side, and had me skidding back the way I came. My hand skidded along with the van, the glass, and the gravel. To this day, I thank God that not only am I alive, but that I still have my left hand, and all 5 digits. I almost lost 3 of them!

After that, my basketball skills went down the drain. Even though I am right handed, I could no longer use my left hand the way I used to. I also had to miss pre-season practice seeing as my accident was during the summer.

I never heard from another college wanting me to come play ball for them, and I sometimes wonder, what if.

What if: I had been driving slower.

What if: I had left for home earlier.

What if: I had I had never left home that evening.

What if, what if, what if...

When all those "what ifs" start running through my head, I take a break and realize where I am today. I am married to the man that I met when I was 16 and working at the local retail chain. We have two beautiful kids, and I love my life! I couldn't be happier! If all those "what ifs" had happened...I wouldn't have all of this wonderful life. Plus, I can't really think of where I would be now...after college had ended!

So the moral of this story: Don't focus on all the "what ifs" in life, focus on the "what are's", they are what matters!