Say a little prayer

So, not an awful lot has been going on here at the Walls house. It sounds funny to me to actually say that because people think that with four kids our life would be constant chaos. But, I guess it is possible that my "normal" days would be considered crazy in other households. Matt has even been out of town for a couple days...but I got to tag along for the first part of the trip, so maybe that day away kinda refreshed me and so things did not seem as hectic to me when I got back.

Anyways, even though things seem pretty smooth here at our house, I feel like I am surrounded by people who are really having a rough time right now. Weighing epecially heavy on my heart this week is a friend of ours that used to be in our small group. She has a child that was born with quite a few problems and he has been doing great but he had to have a pretty invasive surgery on his neck and he has really been struggling in the hospital trying to recover. They had to fly to Maryland for the surgery - away from their older children and all their family & friends. It is hard to even imagine what they are going through and how their hearts must be so heavy for their baby boy - all I can say is that I have been praying and thinking of them each and every day. I am going to post the link to their website because I know that some of you know Tom & Brandie and you may want to read about their journey and maybe even post some words of encouragement for them - http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/jamesmcneal

Just remember - be thankful for all that God has blessed you with and always lift those up who may be struggling....sometimes prayer and words of encouragement are the most precious thing you can offer a friend.

Brody the Great

My 3 year old son Brody is one crazy dude. He can say the funniest things (usually at the worst times). For example, the other day, we were at Chick-fil-A (shocking, right?) and a cute little girl was sitting right across from us. She had the most beautiful brown skin and long black hair. Well, all of a sudden, Brody shouts out, "Look mom, its Mulan!!" And he said it very loudly - so, of course, I start the whole "Be quiet Brody - that is not Mulan...." Meanwhile, Matt is laughing so hard he is crying.

Later that day, I took Brody to Publix with me and he saw an older man walking toward us and he shouts out, "Look mom, its Dr. Phil." I had to laugh at that one. He has always had a slight obsession with Dr. Phil. Everytime I would watch it when he was little, he would point to the television and say, "PaPa!!" Is is just funny to me that he always has to associate the way someone looks or acts with a person that he knows.

Not only is he obsessed with the way a person looks, but with the way they are dressed. We came home yesterday and our neighbor was working in her yard in her bikini top and shorts - he yelled out that she was naked - so, of course, I had to lecture him and tell him not to yell that out loud when we get out of the car. He just started laughing and said, "She is naked, mom."

So, I often wonder what this obsession with people and their traits/characteristics is predicting about Brody's future?? Who knows - but for know it definitely keeps us alert, aware, & sometimes concerned about what he will say about the next person that walks by.....Gotta love little kids and their tendency to "blurt out" the obvious!!

Ebay Loser

My CHI flatening iron broke the other day so I needed to buy a new one. I called my hairstylist and she said they run about $100....I was going to go ahead and order it, but I remembered that a friend of mine had found one on Ebay for around $70 - so, I decided to try and bid on one and get it for a little bit cheaper than $100. Well, I bid on a couple but I would always lose out in the last minute. I just was not fast enough with my mouse....I need to work out my "clicking" finger and get it in better shape if I am going to keep playing on Ebay.

Anyway, it looked like they always ended up going for between $60 & $70, so I just went to the "Buy it Now" store and found one for $60. I figured I might as well just buy it and quit messing with all the bidding nonsense. So, I was happy and I got my CHI for a great price. Well, I get on the computer today to check and make sure everything went through with the purchase and I see that I "won" another flat iron...What?? I guess we had bid on one and just assumed we would not win, but, of course, we did. And I won it for $59!! So, my goal of saving money was really shot because in the end I spent $140 (with shipping and all) - granted, I did get two CHI irons for that price but I did not really need two....

Oh, and by the way, does anyone know someone that needs a new flat iron :) :) :)

YUMMY!!!!!!!!!

Well, since I am trying to avoid sugars and basically all food that tastes great, I thought I could at least write about my favorite "bad" treats. What inspired me to blog about tasty treats, was an awesome cake I had the other night. I mean this cake was rockin'!! I seriously could have eaten like 4 pieces....It was a key lime cake made by my friend Jennifer. I am hoping that she will be nice enough to leave me a comment which will include the recipe to this delicious cake. I doubt that I will ever seriously venture out and try to make it, but maybe one of you crafty mamas can make it as a treat for your family.

The key lime cake recently took over my number one spot in my favorite desserts, but another treat that comes in a close second is Ghirardelli brownies - really anything Ghirardelli is soooo yummy, but these brownies are the best. They are called double chocolate brownies and you can get them at pretty much any supermarket. I became such a big fan of Ghirardelli chocolate because they have a store in Downtown Disney and they serve a chocolate brownie sundae that is out of this world. I make sure to get one (or two) each time we go to Disney. So, instead of actually eating all this stuff, I just wrote about them, posted pictures of them, thought about how awesome they taste....man, I am really hungry right now :) :) :)

Gag me with a spoon

Ok, so I decided that I wanted to try to lose a few more pounds before we head to the beach next month - probably because I went swimsuit shopping and I left the store totally depressed. Especially when I tried on one tankini top and I could not for the life of me get it back over my head. Then I looked at the tag and it was two sizes smaller than what I thought - talk about a total freak out moment. I just knew I would have to call Matt and tell him I was stuck in a really small swimsuit and I could not get out of it. I actually left Kohl's and headed straight to Kroger to get "healthy" food. Well, I decided to try Slimfast for the first week....and it was totally disgusting. I got the cappucino kind and I seriously thought I would hurl if I took another drink. I mean I want to look good and all but I am not willing to drink that nasty stuff in order to do it. Just thinking of the taste makes me shudder.

So, since I don't really do diets, I am just eating more fruits and healthy snacks. Trying my best to avoid all the sugars (that should last like 2 days). But, I did get some Fiber One bars and let me recommend those to you guys. They were so good - just like a candy bar to me. I am always searching for healthy snacks that actually taste good. I am thinking of trying some smoothies made with low fat yogurt & fruit. That sounds yummy to my somewhat hungry tummy. Any healthy (but yummy) snack recommendations would be great....and I will share if I come across any other good finds.

I got to have dinner with one of my best friends the other night in Atlanta. We have been friends since college and have somehow managed to stay in touch and see each other a few times a year. We have so many great memories from college including fun times with karaoke, making fun of all of our roommates, dyeing each other's hair one too many times, and meeting our husbands to be around the same time (which meant a lot of double dates). I doubt many people would really get our humor (including our husbands), but we always have a great time when we get together.

We ate at Carrabas and I doubt it will ever be the same again - with all 6 of our crazy kids. We were also eating with my husband's best friend from college (who is still single) and we were joking about how he would probably never want kids after having dinner with all of us. Oh well, we had fun and I am thankful for our old friends (although they probably know way too much about us) because there are so many fun memories to talk about and hopefully lots of new fun times ahead of us.

Be thankful

I talked to one of my friends tonight who is going through a really tough time in her life right now. I won't really go into specific details but my heart is really broken for her right now. I aked her is there was anything I could do for her and she said, "Yeah, you could switch lives with me..." After talking with her, I had to stop and take an inventory on my own life and realize how blessed Matt and I really are in our lives right now. It seems like sometimes I let the little things get me down and it really takes a phone call like the one I had tonight to really make me put things in perspective. I just wished I could remember this great life lesson when it is 2am and Kassidy won't stop crying (at least she is a healthy, happy baby).....or when I am running back & forth to the doctor for ear infections or asthma problems (my kids could be seriously ill)....or even when Matt is getting on my last nerve (we could have a struggling marriage that lacks love & real commitment). I am sure you get the point....so, I encourage you to stop and think about how blessed you really are and then say a prayer of thanks for all that God has blessed you with (and take a minute to say a prayer for my friend - she could really use it tonight!!)

"Dear Tooth Fairy" - take two

Well, for the faithful few of you that keep up with my blog, you might remember that Kenzie accidentally swallowed her first tooth - so, we had to write a note to let the tooth fairy know what was up. Well, I am writing another note to the tooth fairy tonight. Why, you ask?? Well, my poor little girl fell from the top of our swingset/treehouse and majorly busted her face up. She was screaming and I ran outside to find her face covered in blood. It was coming out of both her nose and her mouth. Very scary moment. It turns out all is well - except for a busted-up lip & nose and a tooth that was unfortunately knocked out. It is still MIA. Who knows if she swallowed it or if it somewhere in our backyard. Her papa, daddy, and brothers were outside searching for the tooth, but - no luck!! The good news is that she fell so hard that she knocked another tooth loose (is that really "good news?") and we are just hoping and praying that this time she will lose the tooth in a somewhat "normal" manner and she will finally get to experience placing an actual tooth under her pillow....this tooth fairy is tired of all these "excuse" notes :) :) :) :)

American Idol Fever

How many of you remember this crying machine from last season's American Idol?? I read somewhere that she is back - but this year she is turning on the waterworks for Jason Castro (the dreadlocks dude). This little girl absolutely drove me insane last season....literally, I had to change the channel or get up and leave whenever they would keep putting up shots of her in the audience just a boohooing. Still don't know why she bugged me so much but when I read that she was back I was not excited....

Anyway, as most of you know, my husband is an American Idol freak - it is so funny to me how he really gets so into each performance and now he even critiques each person right when they finish. He usually gives a "too self-indulgent" (Simon favorite) or "little bit pitchy" (Randy's catch phrase) or now if someone is really bad, we know to say "you look really nice tonight" (Paula's compliment when no other can be found). His favorite for this season is David Archuleta- the kid who looks like he is 12 and always about to cry. I like Brooke White - she has such a unique voice and she is just so geniune. I never have really cared for Kristy Lee Cook or even Carly Smithson ( I know she is a great singer but for some reason she just annoys me.)

Oh well, I guess I have just given into the fact that American Idol fever is now a part of the Walls household...I used to tease Matt about it but then I realized that he seriously loves this show. In fact, he might give the "crying girl" a run for her money after some of David Archuleta's performances. Ok, I'm in trouble now..........