The Bridge

Take a few minutes to watch this video. You will be glad you did.

http://cloudvideos.tangle.com/e219bdae7cd1acac17f89a4b522c7a6d.flv

From the mouths of babes

The other day I was driving home and was crying about an issue that was frustrating me. I thought I was crying quietly, but a small voice from the back said, "Mommy, are you crying? God loves you, no matter what!"

Learning to write

#1 and #2 have recently discovered the art of making words out of letters. Let me tell you, they have been writing up a storm lately! They have filled several notebooks already with their stories while sitting in the stands at football games. It is so cute to see their exitement over their newfound abilities!

I love to use the scanner to put all of these memories into digital format so that I don't have to keep up with a million pieces of paper and hopefully will be able to print this blog and have the memories on hand in a bound format.

Without further ado, my little writers make their debut below...

Translation: Dooby went to work
(i.e. Uncle Corby whom they call "Uncle Dooby")


Translation: Cole went to school

Translation: Cade went to school

Translation: Cade loves to play some games

Happy Birthday Tamara!

A sister is a gift to the heart, a friend to the spirit, a golden thread to the meaning of life. ~Isadora James

Today is my sister's birthday. Being 13 months apart, we have always been close friends, and I am thankful that we still are. She is one that with a glance we can tell each other's moods or unspoken feelings, and spent hours on end playing together as kids, doing 'facials' with cucumbers over our eyes, and talking for hours on end.

Times have changed and our busy schedules mean we don't get to talk or see each other as often or for as long as we used to, but the connection is still there. I am proud of my big sis and the wonderful example she is to me and all who know her.

Happy Birthday!!!

P.S. For the record, I'd like to officially apologize for overwhelming you at our wedding. You were the maid of honor, David was a groomsman, H was a flower girl, S was 2 yrs old, E was 3 months old, you had to prepare a toast for the reception, and you and Tabitha sang a song during the ceremony. Now that I have kids of my own, I have a BIG understanding of how MUCH pressure and stress that put on you. I would have gone crazy! Thanks for doing it with poise and grace (even if your dress did tear during the reception while trying to feed E and you had to wear David's jacket to do the toast). You made it look easy! :)

Happy 40th Anniversary!

On September 5th, my parents celebrated 40 years of marriage. What an accomplishment and tribute to selfless dedication and love.

This is one of my favorite pictures of them. It was taken shortly after they started dating (they met on a blind date). I love how they are looking at one another with such trust and love.
Since my parents were going to be spending the night with me after the football games, I wanted to surprise them with a little get-together breakfast to celebrate with them. Boy were they surprised!
The kids had a ball jumping on the trampoline.
We were able to visit with some old friends whom we had not seen in years, and the weather was cool and beautiful! Thanks for coming Bassham family!
The boys made cards for Gram and Grandpa

Sticker face

When I went to bed the other night, I noticed that the light was on in #1's room. Lately, the boys have wanted to sleep together and like to play and talk until they fall asleep. When I opened the door, I laughed at what #1 (now sleeping peacefully) had done to #2 (who was also sleeping peacefully, but decorated with stickers). What's next...toothpaste on the hand and a feather to tickle his nose?

Tears

Sometimes when life gets overwhelming, I get on emotional overload and cry at the drop of a hat. I simply cry in frustration. At times, I don't even know why I am crying, but God does. He records every tear and the Holy Spirit groans on my behalf when there are no words I can say.

Romans 8:26
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.

Psalm 56:8
Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll — are they not in your record?

Labor Day fun

On Labor Day, I took the boys to the Woodlands Childrens Museum. They had a ball playing with the trucks, creating things with playdough, shopping in the grocery area, and we got to watch a magic show too!

Afterwards, we stopped by TCBY for an ice cream treat. Since everyone seemed to be in good spirits and were behaving well, I thought I'd stop by to get their hair cut.

Haircuts have not historically been pleasant experiences for #1 (he has screamed and pitched a huge fit every time). I have had to physically restrain his hands and arms while the poor stylist attempted to do her job with him flailing about. He would not sit still for a scissor cut, and hated the clippers as well, so we had to do a quick clipper cut.

However, I am THRILLED to report that the haircuts went smoothly for all three boys. Not one whimper or cry! Yeah!!! Now THAT is something to celebrate!

Just in Case

I am a 'just in case' shopper. When I am at the store and I can't remember whether we need something or not, I usually buy it 'just in case.' In many cases, this leads to having more than what I need and wasted items. I am trying to get a handle on my overflowing pantry, so I thought I'd share something that worked for me.

By having things in clear containers, I can see at a glance how much cereal is left in the container.

Worn out

Last week we came home from school. I asked the boys to take off thier shoes and put them on the stairs while I started cooking dinner. After a few minutes, I noticed that I hadn't seen #1 return.

I guess he was worn out!

Cooking class at school

Customize your own collage

Thanks Mrs. Toldan for sharing these great photos of the cooking crew at Northland! I love to see how my kids are learning and growing each day.

Passing it down

My boys received this for Christmas a few years ago. They have jumped and jumped on this thing, and the little bar kept them from falling off. They have not used it in several months, and it has been simply taking up space in their playroom. We have since passed it down to my nephews. However, we had to sneak it out of our house to put it into my sister's car without them seeing us because they would suddenly have a renewed interest in it and not want it to go.

The other day I saw a shirt hanging in my closet that I haven't worn in over a year. I started to pull it off the hanger to put into the "donate" pile, but hesitated and thought I might just wear it again soon so I'd better hang onto it.

I wonder where those boys get that 'hoarding' quality? Hmmm...

Pepe La-Pew!!!!

In reference to my last post about the eggs, I am now desperately seeking cleaning advice. I have a steam cleaner and have steam cleaned the dining room three times, done spot cleaning with a carpet cleaner, and set out a bowl of vinegar to absorb them smell.

However...

IT STILL STINKS LIKE ROTTEN EGGS!!!

If you have any advice, HELP!!!

Eggs anyone?

When I was small our refrigerator quit working. Mom tried to fix it, and later Dad tried to fix it. They finally had to call a repairman out to fix it. When I was growing up, I can only think of one or two times where we had a repairman come out, because Dad was our "Mr. Fix-It."

Do you know what the repairmain discovered? There was a dial inside the referigerator to control the temperature, and the dial had been turned to the "Off" position.

When they asked us girls who had turned the refrigerator off, I admitted to doing it. I can still remember this conversation:

Mom: "Why did you turn the dial on the refrigerator?"

Me: "Um, it looked like it needed turning."

At the time, that seemed like a logical answer to me. Until yesterday, I could only imagine how frustrating that must have been for my parents.

And now, I am getting a BIG dose of my own medicine...

I have been working extra hard all week at night to get my house clean and ready for a surprise 40th anniversary party I am throwing for my parents tomorrow morning. BTW - they are currently on the road here so I know they will not read this post until after the party.

Last night we arrived home from school and I put on a movie for the boys so that they would not make a mess of the playroom. It was my last night to get ready for the party since we will not be home from the football game until late tonight. I was busy in the kitchen making dinner and lunches for the next day when #2 came in and reported that #3 had eggs in the dining room (which is carpeted).

I ran in there and was horrified to discover that #3 had cracked ALL 12 EGGS and rubbed them into the carpet!!! I was so tired and frustrated from the long week and preparations for the party that I just sat down and cried (after yelling and a big spanking).

Once I calmed down, I apologized for yelling at him and we hugged. I asked him through my tears, "WHY did you crack all of those eggs on the carpet???"

His answer? "I like eggies."

I guess they just 'looked like they needed cracking'...

The Good Old Days

My friend Beth posted a GREAT post about the Good Old Days. It's a must read:

http://notabowinsight.blogspot.com/2010/09/these-are-good-old-days.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+RaisingThreeSons-NotABowInSight+%28Raising+Three+Sons-+Not+a+Bow+in+Sight%21%29


My sentiments exactly!!!