The fruits of my life

Yes, I am a terrible blogger... I have good intentions of getting things posted in a timely manner but...well, life is busy! Just a quick re-cap, today is the first official day of summer break for my girls, so that makes me a momma of a freshman and a senior in high school. Super freaky! Summer is not as laid back as I would like, my sweet pumpkin has a job working at the local lazer tag place and noodle is busy with friends, summer gymnastics practice for high school, and looking for babysitting jobs. The month of May went by in a complete blur. I need to get pumpkin's senior pictures scheduled but her work is creating an issue. I can't  believe I have a senior in high school. I remember doing my senior pictures...wasn't it just a couple of years ago? WOW. So, the kitchen. The room has actually been done for a while, I'm am just slow in sharing. One of the things we did hire out ,is the granite. Here are some pictures: After removing the old counter top, we ...

So I really did have better intentions of blogging more this year, and well as you can see I have it's been a while... I have been abundantly blessed in my job this year. The real estate market is gradually picking up and interest rates are still so incredibly low. It has been a blast helping people sell a current home and buy a new home. I wish I could put into words how excited I am when I see "that look" on my clients face when they walk into "their" house. It's like the desire to do cartwheels tempered with the prospect of making a offer that crosses their faces at the same time. It can almost make me giggle. Then comes my favorite part...the negotiation. I LOVE IT! So, if you or someone you know is looking to buy or sell please pass my name along. I wanted to share a bit today about another question I get quite often... What should I upgrade in my house? How much should I do? I am always happy to come have a look to determine what needs done an...

Have you ever asked yourself this question? "Who am I?" or said "I need to find myself?" This isn't just a question we ask ourselves when we are teenagers or young adults. I find myself asking this question a lot lately. I have been struggling to keep my quiet time with God everyday. I was once so faithful with this and lately I have let other things and business get in the way. I started with a new firm this year and have found it more demanding than my last. While, I have been continually blessed in my busyness I have found difficulty in finding balance. The further I came from spending time daily in God's word and simple talking with Him the more I found myself asking, who am I? This is the week we celebrate Easter. I felt a deep desire to be in the word this week and to renew my commitment to God to spend time with Him daily. To worship Him, to learn more about Him, and live as He asks me to. John 13:3 says; Jesus knew that the Father had put all t...

What happens when 16 women from different states, backgrounds, and generations come together in an amazing house for one long weekend? One Wild Weekend! I think any woman would be excited to have a weekend away. From schedules, requirements, stress, and laundry:) I look forward to this week almost as much as I look forward to date night with my Superman. This annual trip for me came about when my friend Cindy told me I was going with her. This is Cindy and her loving husband Tim: Isn't she just beautiful? Since, this is my blog, and Cindy isn't here to dispute it, here is how I remember the story's beginning. Cindy is my friend and was my girl scout co-leader. We met at an info meeting for scouts and I asked her to help me out with the troop. Because I am a bit of a control freak, I wanted a co-leader to be a fun lady who would have a blast with the girls, and do what I needed done. Which was basically show up and go on fun trips with us. Cindy is...

Am I a tree hugger? Sometimes, I mean I like trees and all, I am thankful for the beautifully breathtaking world we were given to live in, I even recycle most of the time. But as I found myself making household cleaning supplies recently I wondered if I was going granola? As it turns out, I'm just cheap thrifty! My friend Anna told me she had found a recipe to make liquid laundry soap and that it would cost only one cent a load of laundry!!! Holy cow, Tide (my preferred brand) costs me about 50 cents a load. We we decided to do it. It took us about 20-30 minutes to make it and then it needed to sit overnight before we could combine it with more water and put it in our re-usable tree hugging containers (SEE I RECYCLE). We used this recipe: Homemade Liquid Laundry Soap- Front or top load machine- best value 4 Cups - hot tap water 1 Fels-Naptha soap bar 1 Cup - Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda * ½ Cup Borax - Grate bar of soap and add to saucepan with water. Stir ...

Wednesday nights right now are the only night that we have with nothing going on. No kids to drive around and no commitments! Check out our calendar... I have had to color code every person in our family. For example, I am pink (of course), Superman is blue, My pumpkin is green, and Noodle is purple. Then family/church stuff is in orange, Birthdays are in aqua, and immediate things to do is red. Seriously? It's super chaotic! Some weeks I don't know how we will accomplish everything and others run smoothly. The usual hiccups come when something extra enters the scene. For example, a meeting at school for one of the girls, or kids that want to decorate a couch (more on that Sunday), or, well, anything that isn't a already known about! Wednesday's are 2-3 cups of coffee days. (Mostly because I LOVE coffee an unhealthy amount.) While say, our busiest day, Thursday, is more like 5 or so cups of coffee. I am doing my best to balance my coffee with water but Thursda...

I find it hard to believe that My Superman and I have two teenage daughters; let alone one who is old enough to drive. This is the first year she can drive to school. It's freaky;I remember when I was old enough to drive to school. I felt totally independent and FREE. As a parent, knowing that she probably feels the same way, is frightening. Waiting up until one the other night (morning) for her to come home was a bit nerve wrecking. She was at a band competition in Masslion, Ohio; just so you didn't think we were really crazy and that 1am is her curfew. I laid in bed feeling tired and a bit irritated that the contest ran so late, and happy I didn't need to go out and get her. As the minutes ticked on and my eye lids got heavy I began to imagine all the awful things that could happen, then finally at 1:01 AM she walked in. Yea!!! And then this morning, I was on my way home from teaching my 6am Spinning class and noticed that traffic was seriously backed up. Ick, must be...