Rhinestone Cowgirl

Most of the time I can put up a pretty good front when I'm at a rodeo with my girls. Just because my girls are exceptional riders, I wear cowboy boots and can pull a horse trailer to these dusty events does not mean that I know a thing about horses! Although, I am learning a little more every year. For instance, when Mana was 5 she really wanted to ride her horse but Mark was not home. I always wanted their dad to be around when they rode. Well, she kept after me so I said, "Alright, go find that horse book you got for your birthday. I think it has instructions on how to saddle a horse." At the time, I told her not to tell anyone that I had to read a book to learn how to saddle a horse! Well, we got Baby saddled and the rest is history... Now, all 4 of us go to rodeos together, even when Mark has to work. O.k., o.k., I can't take too much credit. My girls round-up their horses, catch them, put them in the trailer, saddle them, and take good care of them at the rodeo. My job is to iron their clothes, do the little one's hair, and drive them to the rodeo (again, just if Mark's working).

I've learned that it's not a good idea to wear boots to a rodeo. When I wear boots people assume that I know a thing or to about horses. I don't go all out and wear shirts that say, "My True Love Is A Horse," or anything like that. I may wear boots and the occasional cowgirl bling but that doesn't mean I know how to ride that thing (a horse)! Now, that needs to be on a t-shirt: BOOTS AND BLING DON'T MEAN I KNOW HOW TO RIDE THAT THING! Anybody that really knows me knows that I'm a little skittish around horses. Well, the other night when we were at a rodeo a lady comes up to me and asks me if I could hold her daughter's horse because she's at the concession stand. I was thinking, "You've got to be kidding me, can you not see the look of terror in my eyes!" Before I could say, "I'm sorry I can't," the people pleaser inside of me took over and I smiled and said, "Sure." Then it was just me and this 900 pound beast. I was praying that he'd act right and just stay put. Because believe me, if he would have started acting up I would have let go of the reins and ran for cover! He tried to move around on me a little bit, but I tried my own version of being a horse whisperer. It was nothing like you see in the movies, it was more like, "In the name of Jesus, please act right and be still." After about 10 minutes I was getting a little irritated. I knew they weren't making steaks made-to-order in the concession stand, but that chic just kept standing there at the concession stand and there was no line! Finally, my dad walked up to me and said, "Who's horse is that?" I pointed over to the girl in front of the concession stand. I asked dad if he'd hold it and he said he would. Aaahhh! Dad to the rescue. At that moment, my blood pressure went down and my hands quit shaking. After 10 more minutes the girl walked from the concession stand with her goodies in hand. I grabbed the horse from dad, and walked her horse to her. She said, "Oh thanks!" She was probably wondering what a complete stranger was doing holding her horse. I was wondering the same thing! I guess it's back to flip-flops at the rodeos! :)

Counting My Blessings

The Deaf & Blind Triplets

Little Haley

It's 12:30 a.m. and I can't sleep, so instead of tossing and turning, I thought I'd write a blog instead. At this moment, as I'm typing these words, I'm overcome with thankfulness. I just checked on my girls, who are sleeping soundly in their beds, and I thanked Jesus for blessing me with three beautiful, loving, healthy girls. Many parents are not as fortunate to have healthy children and my heart goes out to them. I pray right now God will give them strength to endure!

What brought on this kind of thinking so late at night? I spoke with a grandmother, today, whose grandson was born with several complications. Her strength and her daughter's attitude is amazing. Also, the girls and I watched 2 shows on the Discovery Channel this evening that made all of us count our blessings. The first one was about a little girl named Haley who lives in England. She has a disease known as Progeria. It's when your body ages 8 times faster than it should. She is only 8 years old but her body is like a 70 year old woman. This little girl was amazing. She had such a bubbly personality and had remarkable strength. I loved watching her talk and laugh. Although she didn't look like your average 8 year old, I couldn't help but think that she was adorable. My heart broke for her parents because, of course, they know all the facts about the disease and that the average life-span for a person with Progeria is 13 years old. Doctors are working around the clock to find a cure for this disease, and I pray they will find one soon. Knowing that your child would more than likely not live past 13 would be heart wrenching. I pray that God will give them the grace to endure.

The second show was about triplets who are blind and deaf! I remember watching the Helen Keller movie, last summer, and thinking how lonely and lost she must have felt and how helpless her parents probably felt. But how in the world could one person deal with 3 Helen Keller's! The thought of it boggles my mind. When I watched their mom being interviewed my only thought was, "Wow! What problems do I have?!" This lady is truly remarkable! (You can watch her on YouTube. I just typed in deaf and blind triplets).

It's amazing to me how all of these parents are pushed to the limit each day, (physically and emotionally), yet they continue to laugh and try to endure - no matter the obstacles. God's grace is astounding! It makes me wonder what's so tough about my life?! My day-to-day family foibles pale in comparison. Thank you Lord!

Muddy footprints on a freshly mopped floor, the occasional argument between siblings, spilt milk, misplaced hair brushes, and messy rooms... these are things that are normally thought of as glitches in our day to day lives, but I bet the parents of the triplets would welcome all of these things into their homes with open arms. Muddy footprints mean that my kids get to enjoy dancing in the rain. Arguing shows they can speak and hear! :) Spilt milk means they are trying to be self-sufficient (every one's clumsy now and then)! Misplaced brushes mean they have the capability to find the brush with their own 2 eyes, and messy rooms means they are able to play in their rooms and have fun together!

While watching the show about Haley, Libby looked at me and said, "I bet it's hard for her mom to get mad at her, since she knows she's going to die." As soon as those words left her lips, I thought, "Shouldn't we all think like that?" None of us knows the day or hour our loved ones are going to perish from this earth. We should always keep that in the forefront of our minds. I'm not saying we should let our kids rule the roost, but I know we could probably all show a little more compassion and understanding when our kids do mess up. I know I could! And, we should always try to send our kids out into the world and to bed on a positive note. I know, sometimes it's easier said than done! But, we never know what the day or night may hold...

"Sometimes we are so busy adding up our troubles that we forget to count our blessings."

"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus!" 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

Happy Father's Day, Dad!!

I was cleaning house today and thoughts of my dad drifted in and out of my mind. Some of them made me laugh and some made me tear up (I'm glad I was home alone). My dad, what can I say? He's a man filled with goodness, honesty, humor, and faith. He always provided a great living for my mom, brother, sister, and I. Although he may regret the long hours he had to put in at work, I always knew he was doing it for us. He worked hard so my mom could stay home and take care of us, and I appreciate him so much for that.

My mind was filled with mini-movies today about my dad, and the following are just a few that stand out in my mind:

Action: When I was young my dad would take me to his favorite fishing holes in Quemado. His days off were Mondays, so that's when we would go. I would always wear my orange cap with a little orange puff ball on top. He always had to bait my hook because I didn't like worms back then either.

Action: He would take me to Mary's Cafe with him while he would chat with the locals. I didn't care if I wasn't involved in the conversation, I just liked being with him. I would stick my nose in the tall glass and try to breathe in cool fresh air because the cafe was always filled with smoke!

Action: When I would hear his truck pull up, I'd run out and greet him with a hug. Sometimes I would sit on the orange couch next to him while he watched M*A*S*H or TIC-TAC-DOUGH.

Action: When I was little I invented a little dessert for my dad. I would take a vanilla waifer, spread peanut butter on it, and then sprinkle cinnamon on top. I don't know how he did it, but he'd always eat all of them, and would tell me how great they were.

Action: I liked playing sports as a kid, so he put a basketball goal up and would shoot hoops with me when he could. He always wanted to talk with me after my games, and was always very encouraging.

Action: I remember my dad doing the "Pee Wee Herman" dance in a restaurant and me be utterly mortified! I also remember going bowling and the guy behind the counter said, "How many games would y'all like to play?" and dad said, "We don't want to play, we just came to rent the shoes!" Needless to say, my face turned red several times throughout my teenage years!

Action: My dad taught me how to dance. The picture above was taken at a restaurant in Mexico. He was probably talking me through the dance steps. I was a slow learner when it came to dancing. I can probably count the number of people I've danced with on one hand, including my dad and Mark! That's o.k., that's the way I like it.

Action: My dad was always faithful in going to church. He would always slide in the pew about 5 minutes before the service would begin. Sitting next to him was usually out of the question... that seat was reserved for my mom.

Action: I knew something was wrong when Joaquin, Amber, and I came home for lunch and no one was home. After 10 minutes, we got a call from my mom and she said that dad had just had a heart attack. Thankfully, my brother had his driver's license, so he drove us to the hospital. When we got there they had just revived him because his heart had completely stopped. We're still so thankful to God for saving him and for the nurse who wouldn't give up when everybody else did!

Action: Me, dad, and Amber going to the Ft. Worth Stock Show having to sing along to 50's and 60's music! Good times!

Action: I'm thankful for my dad's wisdom when I was a teenager. He was loving yet firm. He saw things that I couldn't. Having my car taken away for 2 weeks and having to walk to and from school seemed barbaric, but he knew what he was doing. After the 2 weeks were over, I realized I liked my wheels more than I liked the guy!

Action: I was inwardly doing a"happy dance" when he approved of me dating a guy 8 years older than me during my senior year in high school. Thanks to my dad's wisdom, he saw past Mark's age and saw what I could see: an awesome guy!

Action: I was so thankful my dad was alive to walk me down the aisle. He looked handsome in his tuxedo. I remember thinking that was the longest and slowest walk of my life. He really did walk slow, I have the video to prove it.

Action: I remember him praying for me before they prepped me for surgery when I was going to have Libby. He also cracked a few jokes which made me less nervous.

Action: My dad accompanied the girls and I to a rodeo in Uvalde a few years ago, and when we got to the Border Patrol check point, he rolled the window down and the agent said, "Go ahead." He didn't even asked any questions. After we drove off, my dad looked back at my girls and said, "Some people you just don't want to mess with!" We all started laughing. They still use that phrase after we pass a checkpoint.

Action: Another Border Patrol story wasn't quite as funny. It made me a little nervous. We crossed the Mexico bridge and were headed back to the U.S., and the Customs Agent asked dad if he was bringing back anything from Mexico. For some reason, he got a little tongue tied and said, "Yes, shampool (shampoo), and drugs and stuff!" I was thinking, "What the heck did he just say?" The agent looked at him kind of funny and said, "Excuse me, what did you say?" My dad quickly admitted that we had gone to the pharmacy and gotten some Retin-A. Thankfully, he believed him and didn't pull us over. After he took off, we all started laughing!

Action: Several years ago, my girls were watching t.v., with my dad, and he started jokingly aggravating them, so they started tickling him. Well, they wouldn't let up. He started laughing and couldn't quit and it made the rest of us laugh until our stomachs hurrt. In between breaths he'd say, "Get them off of me!" I finally had to put an end to the madness, fearing he might have another heart attack!!

Action: Friday night Mark had to go to work, so dad called and offered to help us at the rodeo. We had a great time with him. He had encouraging words and of course, we listened to 60's music going home!

I could go on and on, but I better stop. My clock is reading 12:45 p.m., although the time posted won't say that! (I don't know why).

Dad, thanks for being so great and for being such a terrific dad! I love you!

Tackling The To-Do List

Have you ever had so many things to get done that you just don't know where to begin? Have you ever been overwhelmed by the things you need to get done that you end up doing something that's not even on your to-do list? For instance, I need to finish cleaning out the attic and cleaning out Mana's room to get ready for the room re-do and I go and clean out my closet and out from under my bed! Or, have you ever saved up some money for something you really wanted and then spent half of it on something that you never thought about buying? I don't know about you but I've been guilty of doing all of these things from time to time.

This summer is the summer of change! I want to put an end to my old habits and start fresh! I've been trying to self-diagnose myself concerning these quirky issues, and I believe the one thing that will help me stay on track is an action plan written on paper! There's something amazing that happens when you get your thoughts and ideas down on paper. It's like they come to life and you can tackle them head on. I love taking a pen and marking through things on a to-do list. It's very gratifying to me! So, today I'm going to make a list of all the things that I want to do and need to do, and I'm going to prioritize them from most important to least important. I'm a very visual learner, so I've got to see things written down.

When you get down to it, putting things off just makes the situation worse because "it" still needs to get done, and you are still thinking about doing "it" (too much mind clutter)! So, I'm going to divide my projects into baby steps that seem doable! Sometimes we just have to stop thinking about what needs to get done, and how huge the project is, or how anxious we feel when we think about getting started, and JUST DO IT! The satisfaction we'd feel after accomplishing the task is way better than feeling guilty for putting it off.

The following list I found online, and I think it will help me stay on track!


____________________________________
Today’s Date

A Items: Something I must do today or face serious consequences.
______________________________________
______________________________________
______________________________________
B Items: Something I should do today or face mild consequences.
______________________________________
______________________________________
______________________________________
C Items: This would be great, but there are no consequence if done today or not.
______________________________________
______________________________________
______________________________________
D Items: I could delegate this to someone else.
______________________________________
______________________________________
______________________________________
E Items: I could eliminate this altogether without making a huge difference.
______________________________________
______________________________________
______________________________________
F Items: I need to keep this in mind for the future.
______________________________________
______________________________________
______________________________________

So, if you're like me and have too many "irons in the fire" and don't know where to begin, start with a list! Another very important factor in this equation is for me to make wise use of my time. I read something the other day that really stood out in my mind. It was referring to the 100 most influential people in history. These men and women who changed the world did not have any more hours in a day than you and I. I'm convinced that these people had an action plan, probably wrote it down, and used their time very wisely!

"IF A TASK IS ONCE BEGUN, NEVER LEAVE IT TILL IT'S DONE. BE THE LABOR GREAT OR SMALL, DO IT WELL OR NOT AT ALL."

"Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might...!" Ecclesiastes 9:10

A Little Bit About Me

Favorite t.v. show? According To Jim...Mark and I watch it every night at 10:00. Who wants to watch the dreary news!

Do you like cheese? Yes!

Do you own a gun? Yes, so don’t come around at night trying to scare me!

Do you like listening to Christmas music? I’ve been known to start listening to Christmas music in early October. It’s a weakness of mine. I’m working on it. I’ve been trying to hold off until the 1st of November, but, oh, it’s hard!

Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? Yes...I usually sweat bullets, especially at the gyno! I’m getting clammy and withdrawn just thinking about it!

What do you think of hot dogs? Great, cooked over a grill!

Favorite Christmas song? Oh man, this is a hard one...Joy To The World, The Christmas Song by Nat King Cole (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire), Walkin’ In a Winter Wonderland.

What do you prefer to drink in the morning? I would love to drink coffee, but I don’t know how to make it very well. So, I just drink it when I go to my mom’s.

Can you do push ups? Yes, but only a couple.

What's your favorite piece of jewelry? My wedding ring and a big turquoise cross pendant

Favorite hobby? Reading, decorating, painting furniture, and blogging

Do you have A.D.D.? No

Middle Name? Lee

Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment. It’s hot in here...I need to start making supper...I have a great life!

Name 3 things you bought yesterday? Nothing...I actually stayed home all day!

Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? Water, milk, coffee

Current worry right now? I’d rather not say.

Current hate? When GPS systems don’t work right!

Favorite place to be? On vacation with my family!

How did you bring in the New Year? It’s been too long, I’m not sure!

Where would you like to go? Where wouldn't I like to go? My middle name is actually Go not Lee! New York City, Europe, and Hawaii are top on my list!

Do you own flip flops? Who doesn’t?

What shirt are you wearing? A Yellow T-Shirt

Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? No, but I would like some with a higher thread count.

Can you whistle? Yes... I always love whistling along to the Andy Griffith Show.

Favorite color? TURQUOISE...I’m going to write a blog about turquoise one day. I think my family will probably kick me out of the house if I paint anything else turquoise in our house!

Would you be a pirate? Of course not

Favorite girl's name? Olivia

Favorite boy's name? Jake

What's in your pocket right now? Change from the dryer

Last thing that made you laugh? I was acting like a dork a few hours ago, trying to get my family to laugh, and then it made me laugh. I love to laugh and I also like being around funny people!

Best bed sheets as a child? The sheets that had pink and yellow flowers on them.

Worst injury you've ever had? I usually try to make it a goal in life to stay away from danger, but when I was 8 years old I got the bright idea that I wanted to drive my brother’s little motorcycle. Long story short...I confused the gas with the brakes...popped a wheelie...landed in a pile of rusty tin...cuts all down my leg...lots of crying and blood...huge scar still on my knee!

Do you love where you live? Absolutely!

How many TVs do you have in your house? 3

Who is your loudest friend? Michelle Johnson, she is so funny! I wish she still lived here!

How many dogs do you have? I don’t own any but my girls and Mark do. One died a few weeks ago and Mark gave one away last week, so they are down to 5! Thank goodness we live on the ranch.

Does someone have a crush on you? I hope Mark still does!

What is your favorite book? Too many to name! I’ll stick with the good book, The Bible!

What is your favorite candy? Anything chocolate!

Do you know all the words to the Fresh Prince theme song? I could sing along if I heard it.

What song do you want played at your funeral? I’ll Fly Away :)

What were you doing 12 AM last night? I was sleeping, thank goodness. No night terrors last night! Night terrors are just minor hitches in my giddy-up!

What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up? Oh no, it’s already 7:00!

The Riverwalk

After a few days of being away, I'm back to the real world. One of the perks of Mark being on the school board, is the school board convention every summer. I probably get the better end of the deal because I get to do whatever I want and he has to go to class. The past 6 years we've stayed at the Marriott on the Riverwalk, but this year we stayed at the Hyatt, right across the street. Poor baby, I had to walk across the street every time I wanted to go to the mall. I had so gotten use to the mall being connected to our hotel! See what a little urban living does to a country gal, it makes her a little spoiled!

My itinerary is usually something like this:
Wake-up whenever I want (usually 7:00), walk down to Starbuck's in the lobby and grab a bran muffin, a banana, & small coffee, read by the pool, in the room, or by the river, get dressed and go shopping at the River Center Mall, have lunch, go back to the room and read or watch t.v. Then, Mark arrives and we usually find something to do, have supper on the Riverwalk, & go back to the room and watch a movie. Aaahhh...life is good on the Riverwalk!

Although, I added something new to my itinerary this year. I took advantage of the "oh so cool" gym every morning, and I didn't eat every meal like it was my last. I tried to incorporate these two new habits into my little vacation. You know how it is, when you're on vacation, it's like calories don't really count. Well, I'm here to attest that they do! Unfortunately my stomach is the by-product of this myth!

Last year Mark couldn't make the convention in San Antonio, so he went to the Dallas TASB Convention in the fall. Of course, I tagged along. Dallas was great, but I'm a San Antonio-kinda-girl. I like familiarity, and I don't like having to drive to get to the place you want to go. That's why the Riverwalk is ideal for a person like me. That being said, now I'm going to contradict myself. With the help of a new gadget in our lives, I ventured out of my little world to find the nearest Target. Come on, I like deals and I just wasn't finding any at the mall! So, with my keys in hand I made my way to the parking garage. I HATE those kind of places. I always feel like some body's going to jump out at me. That's why I hold my keys like a weapon. I would actually kind of feel sorry for anyone that tried to "jump" me. I would probably embrace my inner "psycho" and open a can of crazy on him. Needless to say, he would probably run like mad, holding an eyeball in one hand and holding his crotch with the other!

Well, anyway, I made it safely to my car. I jumped in it and locked it right away. Then I pulled a dear little friend out of my purse. Her name is Meg. No, she's not an imaginary friend. I was never into pretend people. She's our GPS! We are finally moving up in the world. I typed in Target and pressed go! I was secretly wishing she'd drive for me, but, hey, I can't have it all! As I made my way out of the parking garage, I wondered which way I should go because Meg wasn't talking to me. Then I realized, it was a one way street, so I could only turn right. I was off! I'm like, "O.k. Meg start talking to me girl. I'm not sure where I should go now! (insert crickets chirping) I almost called her something that a nice girl like me should never utter! Then the unimaginable happened! Meg said she needed to be turned off and then restarted! So, I drove a little further and found a place to park. After saying a quick prayer, I restarted it and prayed that it'd work this time. It wouldn't stick to my windshield, so I held it on the dash with one hand and drove with the other!

I've got to admit my relationship with Meg is a love-hate kind of thing! One minute I hate her and the next minute she pulls through and is the greatest invention for a directionally challenged girl like me! Although, I questioned her several times. I came to the conclusion that she probably grew up in the hood and wanted to revisit her old stomping grounds because the back roads she was taking me on would make Jackie Chan a little nervous! I love the way she "dings" when you do what she says. After several minutes, which seemed like a lifetime, I finally arrived at my destination...TARGET! I was still a little concerned about the hood I was in, so I found a parking place right up front! I stayed in Target for over 2 hours! It was nice. I had no time limit. I love to window shop. My life will never be the same after buying the things I purchased: a t-shirt, 5 marshmallow skewers, a band-aid kit for my purse, a cute little journal and a sticky pad to put on my dash for Meg to sit on.

Meg worked perfectly on the way back and I did a pretty good job at maneuvering my SUV through S.A. traffic. We finally started to "jell" and made a pretty good team (with the help of a few savvy angels).

This is the part that's pretty amazing. I was indecisive about telling Mark about my little rendezvous to Target. Well, when I pulled into the huge parking garage downtown, my exact same parking place was available! I know this was God. He knows my sense of direction gets a little off at times and if I had to park somewhere else we'd probably still be looking for our car! Of course, I ended up telling Mark about my expedition into the urban jungle. Amazingly, he didn't ask any questions, but I told him all about it anyway.

When I got to my room, I pulled out my new little journal and entitled it, "My Dream Journal." I answered a few questions from the YOU CAN DO IT book to get my "juices" flowing. Yeah, I know it's a little corny, but it has got me dreaming and planning new things for my life! It's exciting to think that we can all do anything we set our minds to do, with the help of Christ! The first step is getting it down on paper. I'll talk more about this later.

Although we'd like to have stayed one more night, we had to cut our stay a day short to get back home. The girls had a rodeo on Friday night. Oh well, we'll always have the Riverwalk...

Turning Over a New Leaf

O.k., after mulling over different things I'd like to "tackle" this summer, one of the first things on my to-do list is xeriscaping! I'm sick and tired of looking at an ugly yard! Our yard is quite embarrassing!

I'm going to start slow. Watering the weeds is first on my list. Hey, at least weeds are green when they're watered! I am not a self-proclaimed earth mother or tree hugger, so a lush Mediterranean garden is probably not going to happen (although I'd love one). I was the little girl in the 1st grade whose little bean sprout (in a milk carton) never sprouted! The reason being, it was probably never watered! As a young homemaker, my mom would give me houseplants. Unfortunately, their life-span was always cut short. The cause of their short life-span? The only time they got watered was about 10 minutes before my mom came by for a visit. What was I thinking - that the wilted plant would come back to life in a matter of minutes? It was worth a shot! My mom tried to give me helpful hints about keeping plants alive. Her most used comment was: "You need to water them!" I don't know why I have a mental block when it comes to watering plants and my yard! Well, not any more! I'm turning over a "new leaf" this summer! Instead of a lush Mediterranean yard, I'm aiming for a xeriscaped yard. Not zero-scaped, I want more than rocks in my yard!

I'm a use-whatcha-got-kind-of-girl. So, today, I dug up some spiky cacti that were growing on the ranch and planted them in big pots. I even watered my yard! I'm making progress, baby! Tomorrow, my mom and I are going to go to a dry creek bed and load up on some rocks. But first, I've got to google it to see if that's legal!

My mom came over yesterday to help me clean out our attic! Thanks mom! She no longer has to remind me to water the houseplants anymore. Whys that? I don't own any houseplants! She stopped buying them for me years ago. I made a few lame excuses why my yard looked the way it did. But I could tell she was thinking, "If she'd only water the yard, it wouldn't look so bad!"

Later on that evening, before I turned out the light by my bed, I noticed a book that I'd checked out from the church library, a week prior. It's called ONLY NUNS CHANGE HABITS OVERNIGHT (52 Amazing Ways to Master the Art of Personal Change). It's a funny book with a lot of good advice about making changes in your life and pursuing your dreams! I've found that it's a great companion to the YOU CAN DO IT book that I wrote about in another blog.

As I was reading the book last night, I had an "aaahhhh-haaaaa" moment. I thought, "What's stopping me from having a nice yard?" Well, after I thought about it for a second, I answered myself with, "Me!" The good news is all I have to do is change my thinking and eventually, with a little hard work, I can have a decent looking yard. I'm looking forward to the challenge, and I'll get to mark it off as one more thing I've always wanted to do! By the way, if any of you have tips on xeriscaping, I'd love to hear about them!

Happy 13th Birthday!

Thirteen years ago, today, I was lying in a hopsital bed in Eagle Pass, Tx. (Yes, I'm still here to tell about it)! I was lying there, admiring my one day old baby. Mana's birthday was yesterday! My life forever changed on June 3, 1996. Being a mom to her has been one of the greatest blessings in my life. From day one, Mana has been an exceptional child.

A few months after finding out I was pregnant with Mana, I had read that I should "talk to her", so she'd recognize my voice and yada, yada, yada... Well, I tried it a couple of times, but talking to my growing belly seemed a little odd. Early on, my main goal for my child was to raise her to love the Lord our God with all her heart, spirit, soul, and mind. I wanted to tell her about God before she was even born. One day, an idea popped into my mind, so I ran with it. I grabbed my tape recorder, pressed record and told her how much I loved her. I also recorded myself reading the bible to her. The tape was several hours long. As I would go about my day, cooking, cleaning, doing college homework, etc... I would fastened the little walk-man to my pants and press the earphones to my stomach. I just wanted her to be brought into this world knowing, in her spirit, how much she was already loved by me and by God.

Thirteen years later...Maddie is a happy, healthy, truly remarkable child who loves God with all her heart. There are so many wonderful words to describe her, but there's one that really sticks out in my mind, "Leader." She realizes her witness is her life, and tries to be a good example for others. I've learned so many things from her. She has way more common sense than I've ever thought about having! She is easy-going and an absolute delight to be around. She loves animals (a trait that was not passed down from her mom) with a passion. She's an excellent horse rider and even trained her horse all by herself! She loves the outdoors and is a hard-worker and a great athlete. When she sets her mind to do something, she doesn't give up! I love the fact that she will try anything, at least once. She's also a peacemaker. There have been so many times when she's given up what she wants, so somebody else in her family could benefit.

I love the way she tells me what's going on in her life without me having to ask. I pray this will continue throughout her teenage years. I also pray that God will continue to bless her life and give her favor with Him and others.

Yes, I am her mom, and I'm a little biased, but it's my job to brag. Although, I've noticed that lots of other people feel the same way about her, as well. She was awarded "Scholar of the Month," at her school, in October. Here's what her 6th grade teachers had to say about her (quote from newspaper): "She is always attentive in her work and has above a 95 average in all her classes,"they said when nominating her. In addition, the teachers can depend on her to be responsible, attentive, and cooperative. We also love the fact that she has a pleasant personality and is very helpful." They also said, "She is truly a joy to have as a student and will continue to be a remarkable asset to our school."

I will be writing blogs about people in my family when they celebrate a birthday, so they'll know how much they mean to me.

Yesterday, my mom, the girls, and I went to Mana's favorite place. We went to the best swimming hole in Texas, which is the Frio River in ConCan. We had so much fun. It was a perfect day. Later, we had a late supper at my mom and dad's. We ate her favorite meal, enchiladas! This was part one of her 13th birthday. Today, she is celebrating with her other grandmother, Gigi. They went shopping. In a week, we'll be taking Mana, her sisters, and four of her friends to Schlitterbauhn (the biggest waterpark in Texas) to continue her celebration. She deserves it for being such a good kid! I love you, Mana...

**Pic on the left: Mana's 1st trip to Concan. (1 year old)

**Pic on the right: Mana, her sisters, and I celebrating her 13th. (12 years later)

**As most of you know, Mana is her nickname, given to her by her dad. She has such a long, beautiful name, but some people have freaked me out about posting my kids' names on the web (so I'll stick with their nicknames).