The info in my brain is about to BUST OUT!

My undiagnosed ADD is in HIGH GEAR right now and has been when it comes to this blog so let me spit out some interesting, disturbing, happy info that continues to spin around in my head.

** I had to strategically place myself in front of some magazines at Target the other day. WHY? Because that nutty plastic surgery junkie from Hollywood/LA and I totally can't think of her name right now.....was plastered on the front of this magazine talking about her boob jobs. WHAT IN THE WORLD PEOPLE???? Shoot me now. Poor nearly 14 year old boy. I'm sure he was wondering why mom was standing like a fool and not moving until we absolutely had to.

** To date I have not watched one solid episode of the Bachelorette. This is huge. Could care less about these guys. They seemed so weird from the get go and I think I had some insight into this summer season and said...."no thanks...can't handle the stupidity." But, really...this is not new to this show and I know that.

** I miss serving in a church. Really really really happy with where we have been going, but I'm ready to jump in and serve again.

** I obsessively check my kids facebook pages 627 times a day and am amazed and what is going on out there and there is not one thing I can realistically do about some pictures and words and junk that is happening on THE MIDDLE SCHOOL LEVEL. Step up to the plate parents and stop some of this mess.

** It's too hot to eat.

** Call me crazy, but Spongebob really does make me laugh.

** I'm jealous of the iphone people out there. No denial.

** I get to go to Orange Beach/Gulf Shores/Black Beach in a few weeks. Lots of documenting to come. And, I'll be ticked about it too. ;) Watch out BP.

** I want to put my kids in a bubble. Oldest will be 14 next month and life is about to drastically change. I'm not sure if I can handle it.


Whew....I feel so much better. Thanks for playing along.
Happy Summer!!! Don't burn up and melt.

Love ya!
Fran

It's all I know thus far!

This is what I'm doing this summer. It might seem a bit monotonous, but I'm totally loving it. It's my favorite people and I'm good with that.

The only thing I'M DONE WITH.....is this crazy, out of control heat!!! I mean we are melting down in the south people. What is up with the heat and humidity in mid June? I'm trying to stay grateful, but it's a huge challenge.

Ok, if you do not know what "Skinny Cow" ice cream is. PLEASE GO FIND SOME NOW!!! I bought these ice cream sandwiches at Target a few weeks ago and I'm in love. They are low fat and absolutely a gift from heaven. You'll be blessed. And, no....this isn't my picture. No way would I lay (lie) these sandwiches on their side and take a picture! ;)


Water of some kind is in order these days. Isn't he cute?

Little guy getting a baseball trophy last weekend. He is so precious. Love him!!!

Dude is saying..."please stop mom. You are so embarrassing."


Bwahahahahaha.....he has no idea I've taken 726 pix of this game!


Love these guys! Hope you are off to a fabulous summer. Please tell me what's your favorite part so far.

Or, feel free to share a favorite ice cream find that I might be missing too! :)

And, one more thing....still ticked at BP and the oil spill. I will be reporting live from Black Beach/Orange Beach in July.

Hugs and blessings~
Fran

We went from mad to glad and fun was eventually had by all

Happy Summer y'all!!! Here is a series of pictures from Memorial Day that make me happy. The boys were playing "throw the ball as you jump off the diving board and try to catch it" game and they could do this for days I tell ya.

Also, notice that one cute little 9 year old is highly ticked off/crying and trying to hide as soon as we were ready to start the fun! He was quite confident that we didn't know he was there. He changed his tune and finally got in.








So, besides swimming, we ate a lot, got ice cream and milkshakes and other fun stuff, and just enjoyed being together.

On another note, I'm irritated with BP and not being able to deal with this horrible oil situation. We have our family beach trip/baseball world series in July down in Orange Beach. I'm thinking it's going to be black beach and no swimming in the ocean. There isn't a whole lot we can do about it because we have to go because of the world series. BOOOOOO BP BOOOOOOO!!!

Ok, happy summer. Have a wonderful day. Do something fun today!

Hugs and blessings,
Fran

I think it was July this weekend.

We celebrated the end of school by heading to Alabama for a baseball tourney. Let me say that we went straight from spring to Hades in less than 24 hrs. Holy cow it was HOT y'all. The humidity caused me to not be able to breathe. I mean really. I swear.

I didn't bring my camera with me because it was clearly too hot to lug that thing around so here are a some pix of complete randomness.

Here we are back home. We have showered for an hour to get rid of the layers of dirt, sweat, and grime and headed straight to momma's bed.

The dogs are back from the kennel and apparently it wore them out too. Bless 'em.

Everyone likes my bed. EVERYONE!

"You are NOT taking this picture for real are you?" (of course not son)

This might be the best piece of randomness you receive all summer....if you followed my pillow situation while in Pigeon Forge a couple of weeks ago, you know this precious pillow case is sure to cure all hotel issues. Feel free to check out their site and create one for yourself or anyone else you might care about. :) Their website is here!

Have a wonderful day! And I hope you are in summer mode now. Or really really close!

Hugs and blessings~

Puh-leeeez!

Ok, I am more than ready for summer. I'm ready for the no schedules, no early morning mad dashes to school, lots of late nights, friends, tons of laughter, playing outside until whenever we can't take it any more, and our annual summer beach trip, and on and on and on.....

Don't we all agree??

However, if you are like my friend Susan who lives in Virginia.....get this....they don't get out of school UNTIL JUNE 24th PEOPLE!!!!!

How is that for insane??

Bless 'em all in Virginia.

Ok, but here is a SUPER CRAZY THING I SAW TODAY....

Are you ready for these???



Do you realize what these things are???

They are insane if you ask me and I won't be buying any. And, really, I'm sorry if you have some. They are technically called the strapless sandal. These are sandals that literally just stick to the bottom of your feet. There is no strap thing across the top of your foot or in your toes. There is NOTHING on the top of your foot.

I just can't take them. Personally, and no offense, they are weird.

Puh-leeeeze just get you some darling Yellow Box flip flops and move on in cute style.

I do love y'all. Happy Summer!

And, here's to super cute flip flops with a strap across the top.

Full circle....and it's goooooood!!!

Hi friends!!! Well, I know you are anxious to hear of the new gig I have going on since I left the Doc's office. And, boy am I sooooo very excited. It really is a full circle experience for me.

I am working for the coalition in my town that brings education and awareness to underage drinking and drug use. It is a phenomenal opportunity to give back to a cause that means so very much to me. Fortunately, but unfortunately, I know a little something about this area of a teens life.

Last week I had the opportunity to bring a guy into my kids school. His name is Blake McMeans.
Blake was the NUMBER FOUR tennis player IN THE NATION back in the early 90's. He began drinking when he was 12 and found himself involved in a drunk driving accident right before he was going to the University of Tennessee. He was in a coma for nearly 4 months and spent years in recovery. He is partially paralyzed and confined to a wheelchair today. Now he goes out to teens telling his story and pleading for them to not get behind the wheel of a car drunk. Please visit Blake's website and watch the short video that is just a glimpse into what he shows at his talks.

I had the honor of bringing him to our school, spending some wonderful quality time with him, his buddy James, who travels with him, and realizing just how passionate I am about this cause and this new "job."

Here is a picture of Blake coming to the podium out of his wheelchair to speak to the kids. You could hear a pin drop it was so quiet. The kids have just watched the PBS video that tells Blake's story. This guy is amazing. I know he made a difference in the life of at least one child.

Here is Blake talking to one of the High School teachers.

The line of students to come talk to Blake was beautiful to see. Some kids shared a lot, some kids simply said thank you. Some kids were emotionally moved and fighting back the tears.

This week I'm at a conference for this new gig of mine and feel strange being away from my family, but I'm thankful for this opportunity to learn how we can do the absolute best for our community in educating others about underage drinking.

Ok, on a totally different note, my precious neighbor made these for my front door! Behold the beauty! I'm thrilled!!! Thank you Beth for your service. You are gifted girlfriend!!

And, here are my guys that I miss. You know I miss hubs, but I didn't take his picture before I left. ;)




And, looky here....did you know that you can mail someone a ball of encouragement??? Oh yes you can!!!! How cool is this?? Found this at my backdoor one day with all my other mail. It is written on, stickers put on, stamped, and delivered!!! I love you Abby. You are so dear to this heart of mine.



Have a beautiful week! So thankful for each of you.
Be blessed and be a blessing to someone today!

Hugs~

Some questions

Do you ever feel like the weight of the world is crashing in around you??

Do you feel overwhelmed and simply can't understand why certain things happen?

Do you feel so scared of missing God's plan and purpose for your life?

Do you get so mad at "the world" around you that you wish you could go back in time and raise your kids in the '70's??

Do you wonder how life got so complicated and hard?

Do you wish you could do so much more than you are??

Do you ever just sit and wonder about it all???