A Nice Refreshing Glass of.....Pool Water.

"Mommy! This tastes like swimming pool water!", gleefully shouts my 5 year old son. Why is this odd? Because it is the dead of winter and we are in my kitchen. I have my back turned fixing the baby's lunch (child #3). We don't even own a pool nor have I recently poured him a nice tall glass of....swimming pool water. I turn to see just what this wonderful liquid is.

Nothing to fear, it is only a glass of water I had served him this morning that was left sitting out all day and he had decided to finally drink it. I don't know about you, but water that has set out for hours isn't too tasty to me.

"That's been sitting out all day", I say to him as he gulps down the last drop as though we live in a desert and that is the last bit of water he'll have for days. "MMMM.....can I have some more of that yummy swimming pool water Mommy?"

At least he isn't sticking beans up his nose during nap time at school.

But that's another story for another day. :)

Here's my little Dennis the Menace

Thoughts for Thursday - Be Kind to Someone Today

When was the last time you told your child what you liked best about them? Sometimes if we're having a really bad day it definitely lightens the mood if I look my sweet child straight in the eye, and tell him/her specific things I like about them. You should see the smiles that ensue. Their faces literally light up. It's priceless! For example...You are very creative, I like the way you draw, I like the way you try really hard at soccer, I am proud of you for being so sweet to your friends...and the list could go on & on.

For Valentine's Day I gave my hubby a deck of cards that said, "52 Things I like About You". We got it from our MOPS group. You might think it would be hard to come up w/ 52 things you like about someone, but it was actually kind of easy! Who doesn't like to be given a compliment? We all need one sometimes, don't we? It's like the quote I put on my Facebook page the other day.

Be kinder than necessary because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.

I find that if we have been jaded by others, or gotten your feelings hurt one time too many, it's easy to become hard-hearted. It's easy to be grouchy toward others and guarded. If you go through the day and instead of thinking, "Look at that person who took up 2 parking spots, how selfish!"...you might think, "Maybe they were in a hurry due to an emergency and that was the last thing they were thinking about". Or..."I need to get in line first because I am in a hurry"....let someone else go first. Cuz what you are actually saying is, "I am more important than anyone else". What a better world we would all live in if we really treated others how we want to be treated.

Just wanted to share this cuz it was on my heart and I am guilty of these things myself. I hope you have a great day. Now get out there and share some love. Not only will you brighten someone else's day, but I promise....you can't help but feel better when you are blessing someone else!

For The Love of Green

No, not the love of money.

Not the love of collard greens (eewwww).

But for the love of the color Green!

I am in the process of re-decorating my Dining Room. And I am in love right now w/ the color Green! My hubby & a friend of mine painted it green and below the chair rail is a cream color. I'll post pics when it's done, but I'm loving it so far. I went w/ a green & white centerpiece of gorgeous flowers & pitchers. ~Giddy~

Now this is 1 Green kitchen! I LOVE the ceiling on this one from Slumber Designs.
One of my fave catalogs that I am wearing out right now is the current Willow House catalog. LOVE it! I love the look of these plates against the Green napkins. These napkins are about the color of my new dining room. :)
A few Pottery Barn finds....



And I just had to throw this one in. Yeah, the green pillows are so pretty. But the view? Um, yeah. I could live here.
What are you in love with right now?

Thoughts for Thursday

I didn't have any deep thoughts for ya this week, and this made me laugh, so I thought I'd share this cute little quip!
Come back tomorrow to check out my Friday's Feature. Every Friday I feature a Mom-prenuer or female entrepreneur. Would you like to be featured for free on Friday? Email me! :) heatherldt@bellsouth dot net

Thoughts for Thursday - The Only Thing Constant is Change

I usually handle change pretty well. In fact, I welcome it.

I get bored easily. Bored with my hair style. Bored with my hair color. Bored with life. Ready for a change.

At the beginning of 2009 I was ready for big changes. Told God I was ready for change in my life, just didn't know what. Little did I know what I was asking for because that year brought huge life changes for us. An unexpected miscarriage, followed by an unplanned pregnancy, and later in the year the birth of our precious 3rd child. We left the church my hubby had attended for over 20 years. My daughter was re-districted to a new school and my middle child started preschool that year. Whew. What. A. Year. 2010 was a year of adjusting to all our new additions and changes. I don't regret any of them and believe God has a plan and had His hand in each and every one of those changes.

And so we see Him working again. This time God has orchestrated a big change for a family that we have become very close to. My sweet friend and I have "done life" together for the past 7 years. Doesn't sound like a long time, but we have been through a lot together during that time. We have went through 3 pregnancies at the same time & a miscarriage at the same time. 3 kids all roughly the same age.

We laugh about the day I went to the Emergency Room for what we thought to be a kidney stone & turned out to be a ovarian cyst rupturing. Later that same day, she was in the ER with a kidney stone herself!

And then there was the time I was trying to purchase a pregnancy test incognito, not wanting to see anyone I knew, trying to get in & out of there as quickly as possible. And who do I run into that was also discreetly trying to purchase a pregnancy test at the same time? My sweet friend!

The long, hot, summers we have spent trying to entertain all 6 kids at the pool....at the movies....out to lunch...playdates, etc.

What wonderful memories we have made!

But this week I am sad. I know God has a plan. His ways are higher than ours. He knows what is best for us. He knows what we need before we even know it. Those truths bring me comfort. But I, and my family, are sad because these dear friends of ours are moving 2,200 miles away to California this week.

2,200 miles away.

Why couldn't it be 20, or 200 miles away? 2200 miles? Seriously??

~Sigh~

One thing I have learned is that the only constant in life....is change.

If you don't like something, hang on.... cuz it will change. 100% guaranteed.

Even though we are sad, I am praying God will bring them a smooth transition. I know they are excited for this new adventure and I would be too. I know we will still see them. Thank God for things like Skype, right? So, when I think about how sad we are to see them go, I need to remind myself of what I have learned.

Just hang on tight....cuz change is a'comin! :)

Thoughts for Thursday - Saying Good Bye

Saying Good Bye

by guest blogger Emily Farmer

I can’t believe I have been writing for The Gift Closet for a little over a year now. God has used many life experiences along the way to show me many things. Some good and some not so good. I am truly thankful for them all. At this present time I feel I have been led to take a break from writing devotions. As a stay at home mom of 3 active boys ,school volunteer and church volunteer you can only imagine how full my plate is. I am feeling a little stressed right now. I have been reevaluating all the things I’m involved in for the past few months. And slowly I am stepping back from a few things. I will say I am only stepping back if I feel its what God wants me to do. You might ask well how do you know that's what you are suppose to do. I’m glad you ask. This is strictly me but, the way I know when it’s something that God wants me to do I have a peace about that decision. There is a verse that I stand on in times like these. That verse is
Ps. 128:1 “Blessed are all who fear the Lord,who walk in his ways.” This verse tells us a few things. One to respect/revere the Lord which means to fear and two,walk in his ways. When facing a difficult decision ask yourself these questions: What respects God the most? What reflects his ways? And there your answer will be. I have used this verse time and time again to make difficult decisions. I hope you can take this verse and use it as I have.

I will miss spending time with you each week and sharing my life experiences. I hope that through one of my devotions you have read God has showed you something you did not know before. May God bless each and every one of you who are faithful to The Gift Closet.

Grace and Peace,
Emily Farmer

We will miss your writings Emily & I appreciate all you have done for The Gift Closet. You truly have been a blessing!! {{Hugs}}

Thoughts for Thursday -A Year of Change

A quick note to say thanks to Traci from Sweet Cheeky Designs for adding my new Navigation Bar at the top of the page!! Doesn't it look great? I'm running out the door to Bible Study this morning, but am looking forward to "de-cluttering" my side bars this afternoon! Hope you like the new look! And look for lots more companies coming to my new "Shop" page...can't wait!

Congrats to #79-Melissa, the winner of the Mini-Daily from Mom Agenda! And thanks to all 86 who entered! ;)

A Year of Change

A few weeks ago we returned from our Christmas trip to visit family in Texas. We had a wonderful time & always seem to come home praying God will open a door for us to move back.

I was driving down the road one day after returning home, and thought to myself, "I am ready for a change." Do you ever get in the mood for a change? I don't do that very often, but for whatever reason, I decided that day I was ready for change. Not that anything was bad in my life, just ready for something different I guess.

Well it seems as though God was preparing my heart, cuz we've had some minor changes around here lately, and some big life changes are on the horizon. Course, as a Mom, you know, kids are always bringing about change in our lives. They are ever-changing. Just about the time you get used to one phase...it's time for a new one!

Just this week my 3 year old had his 1st dentist appointment, my 6 year old lost her 1st tooth last night, and we found out last night we are definitely being re-districted into a new school next year. Other changes are on the horizon, but I am sure thankful God prepared my heart for change, since it seems as though this will be a year of change.

Psst...coming soon...Mamalicious Mondays...you won't want to miss it!