going home

I've been wanting to post everyday this week but my mind has been so preoccupied with getting ready to travel back to our home that it just hasn't happened. We thought we would be leaving on Thursday but that flight was totally booked and the next flight is tomorrow (Sunday). It ended up being a good thing cause it gave us a few extra days to get our act together as far as packing. We were also able to do a little more shopping so now we are not only stocked up on flavored coffee creamer (a real treat for us coffee lovers) and ingredients for baking (regular and mini chocolate chips, dried cranberries and dried blueberries), we also have a few Christmas presents purchased for the boys. And a couple early ones for us (a new coffee maker and a waffle iron--it's the little things that make us happy). Anyway, before you go to bed tonight please say a little prayer for us. Our flight leaves at 10:50 am (10:50 Saturday night on the East coast) and will be staying in the capital city until Tuesday morning and then riding the bus--5 hours--back to our city. We will need lots of patience and travel mercy. Hopefully I'll have some funny stories to share and not one of H1N1 quarantine again.

fashion friday

I don't normally do Fashion Friday but I thought I would share what I ended up with from my shopping. To be honest I have very little clue of what is 'IN' for the Fall--seriously I have no clue...by the way, are vests back in? They are all over the place here and if they are I have one that I made in 10th grade clothing design that could totally make a statement! The statement might be 'I'm dressed like a third grader' but oh well. Anyway, I just know what I like and go with it. I wear mostly basics and throw in one or two pieces to accent. Of course I already showed you my new Crocs. Yes, I may be a little bit addicted to buying/wearing Crocs. Not hardcore fashion by any means but they are comfy and I do what I can to make them work. I have a few basic rules when it comes to fashion. They have definitely changed over the years but this is a list of my current thoughts when shopping and dressing.

1. Most important...dress for your body type. Don't dress for the body that you wish you had, or used to have. I may want to be the size I was five and a half years ago when I got married but I'm under no illusions of what three pregnancies and three c-sections has left me with. If I get there again, great! If not, then I should do my best to look good like I am.

2. Dress for your appropriate age and life stage. I should not show up somewhere wearing the same outfit as a sixteen year old, unless she's dressed like a twenty-nine year old mother of three. I am not in high school and my outer appearance should reflect that. Now a sixteen year old and a twenty-nine year old can wear similar looks but there are definite changes to be made.

3. Be comfortable. This was not always my philosophy. I used to wear some things that were not comfortable (ie: too tight, revealing, etc.) in order to look good but age and a few extra pounds have me singing a different tune. I will be quite honest, I do not own a pair of heels. I have some shoes with some height to them such as these and these, but that's about it. Comfort is the name of this game. And if I'm up all night with a sick kid and feel like going out in sweats, you better believe I will and I will feel good doing it.

4. I think the last of my rules is dress to make yourself happy. Even if that means wearing a hot pink Ben & Jerry's t-shirt that used to be your moms, has holes in it and is easily 20 years old (me! me! me!). Let me tell you, those people on What Not to Wear would have a field day with some of the things I own. Yes they usually know what they are talking about but I think it's just mean to make someone throw away their favorite t-shirt just because it's not in fashion. Of course they aren't dressing stay at home moms that trek around third world countries and occasionally are in and out of villages that don't have power or running water.

So, all of that just to show you my new finds.

My new bag. The brown is much more obvious and the green a little more subtle in person. I just loved the not quite matching flowers and texture of the fabric.

Some necklaces. Yes two red, I couldn't decide and red is my favorite AND everyone needs a little flower power (the other red is one long one that can be a single strand or looped). The turquoise will also go with so much that I have.

Scarves are new for me but I like wearing the few that I have so I thought I would try a couple new. The camel is pashmina and is wide enough to be worn like a shawl and I loved the color combination on the purple. And they say that purple is good for brown eyes...we'll see how I do with those.

I would love to hear what everyone elses fashion rules are and see some looks you like for fall. Post away, I'm interested in what's new that I'm totally unaware of.

swimming with the sharks

So here we are, day three into being a family of 5 on our own. Stan's parents left early on Sunday morning. My picture and title may need a little explanation. I am in no way calling my three adorable (and highly rambunctious...well the older two at least) boys sharks. I'm just comparing this new experience to swimming with sharks. In my mind I've picture the opportunity to swim with sharks as highly exciting with a little bit of fear thrown in. This may all stem from the overload of Discovery Channel viewing over the past 6 weeks or from the fact that Larry took that cool shark picture at the aquarium a few weeks ago, but where ever the inspiration came from I'm thinking it's a pretty close description.

Our first few days have gone well. The boys have had a trip to the pool and probably another to come this afternoon, Stan and I have both managed dentist appointments--almost 30 years cavity free for me...Stan has to go back on Thursday for more work, a lesson for all little girls and boys to brush and floss every day--and Judah has stayed on his schedule through it all. The boys will have dentist appointments on Friday, their first ever. Not sure if I should try to prepare them or just show up. Bennett won't really get it if we talk about it ahead of time but Kirby sure will. Of course cautious Kirby will be the one to worry about anyway.

We may venture out tomorrow. I'm on a mission to buy some new accessories. I figure that while I'm not feeling so hot about my body and having to wear some slightly ill fitting clothes I can spice up my life with a few new accessory additions. So far I have bought a new pair of shoes (don't get too excited, it's just some Crocs (in red, of course), but I think they are cute and I have to remember where I live and what will be most useful/appropriate) and a couple of necklaces. I am still going to look for a couple new scarfs and maybe a couple of purses, one I already have my eye on. It's not life changing but with some mixing and matching I may get to leave my home feeling somewhat put together. I'm also hoping to find a few little decorative things to add in at home. Especially in the living room. I'm a total bare bones decorator and I REALLY dislike nick knacks, but a cool bowl, vase or print could pull things together a bit so I'm on the look out. A fun outing for lunch and some shopping may be good for us all. Now shopping is not really a favorite of Stan, Kirby and Bennett so it may turn into a family lunch and a mommy and Judah shopping trip. We'll see. I've been having some lingering healing issues (nothing serious at all, I'm just making sure I don't over do it) so it will depend on how I feel.

On a much different note I would like to ask you all to pray for my family, especially the Moores. Larry's mother passed away on Friday night (I hope that's right, with the time difference I may have it wrong). She was in declining health for a while and she finally went home to be with her husband and Jesus. We love you Grandma and Grandaddy Moore and we celebrate your reunion in heaven!