Thursday, June 30, 2011

A Great Video to watch (while on summer break :)

Oh, how i LOVED this Gotcha Day video that just came out!! Precious and worth the "sit" on my blog while I'm on Summer Vacation!! :) And, Karen....are we gonna get one of these suckers out for my Wes?? Just wondering.....ha ha (no pressure or anything LOL)

Enjoy...i promise you will!! Made me cry....(and some great Ordinary Hero shirts are being sported too...just an added bonus :) Pause my music at the bottom of my page first..fyi
happy thursday to you all, kj

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner!!! And, some other Bloggy Announcements..

Yes, we have a couple of WINNERS...thanks to ALL OF YOU for playing!! That was fun!! This blog thing totally cracks me up...just sitting at home watching the madness of the clicking and refreshing going on made me laugh!! Hundreds of hits were happening every minute!! Funny!!! I'll announce the winners at the end...so take a peak....but first...some bloggy catch up and announcements:

***First, my hubby deserves a HAPPY FATHER'S DAY shout out!! He's the best daddy I know, and i couldn't go on with out at least saying I THINK MY HUBBY ROCKS..and our kids think so to....So...here was his OFFICIAL Father's Day pic I made him take....and of course...can you figure out the "ham" in our family...LOL:
Yes, half of the kids were in their bathing suits cause we were heading to Kentucky to see the older generation of DADS....
So, with that said (since my camera died while there)..Happy late Father's Day to Poppy, PawPaw, and Great Grandpa Wes!! And, here is a pic of my LuLu riding her bike at Poppy and Jule's house on Father's Day...She's so cute I couldn't resist the pics of her on this old bike:


AND...another announcement is: My sweet boy is fully walking now!! He rarely crawls now at all!! He still falls a lot..but he just gets back up and keeps going....such a sweetheart...
And, yes, his outfit is too big....He's really moved into 6-9 month clothes..but I bought this at Cracker Barrel in 12 month hoping to get a longer wear out of it..and well...it swallowed him...but he's a cutie either way....



The kids LOVE visiting Jules and Poppy...such a fun place!!
And, Jules pulled out the water sprinkler for the kids...i forgot to bring Wes a bathing suit..so he helped himself to some fun with his clothes on :)......
AND...another announcement is: The surgeons had to reschedule Wes's surgery...I added it to my side bar....The surgeons planned some end of summer family vacations during out first date...so we got bumped to August...which is fine!! It's about 3 weeks later than our first date...and my kids will be back in school by then..or heading back...so they'll be busy while I'm stuck in the hospital for a week!!! So...the NEW DATE IS AUGUST 16th!!! We SOOOOO appreciate your prayers and support during his surgery!!!

**And, the WINNERS for my 1 Millionth hit are:

1. Christie at www.knowingnobounds.blogspot.com . She was HIT # 1,000,001!!!!
And:
2. Kim at www.thechangemecrew.blogspot.com. She was HIT # 1,000,002!!!
And:
3. ???????? No one has come forward for the BIG HIT!! I'm waiting to see IF someone comes forward so I can send them a tshirt too!!! We'll see!! IF YOU HIT IT..email me..or leave me a message so we can congratulate you too!!!!!! :)

****And, my last announcement is that I'M PUTTING THIS BLOG ON SUMMER VACATION!!! :) Yes, I'm taking the rest of the summer OFF except for reasons of some SERIOUS cuteness!!! :) I'm going to focus on my FAM..and giving them my FULL attention..and I'll be back blogging sometime around when Wes has his surgery!! Yesterday was the first day of summer...I hit my 1 millionth hit..and I thought...WHAT A PERFECT TIME FOR A SUMMER BREAK!!! So...for the rest of June and July..I'll be blogging as little as possible!!! Then I should be back to regular business in August as the kiddos go back to school...Fall falls upon us...and Wes heads into surgery!!!

That's my plan stan!! So, I'm going to TRY and resist blogging...BUT..if I catch a REALLY cute pic...I might be forced to post it!! I mean...we do have family pics coming up!! :) So....UNTIL THEN....Happy Summer to you all....Happy Wednesday to you all....and think of me...cause I'm sure I'll be having BLOGGER WITHDRAWS!! LOL kj

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Oh..My..Almost 1,000,000.....

LET ME KNOW IF YOU ARE the 1,000,000 .......or..... 1,000,001 .....or 1,000, 002 HIT!!! YOU will all win an Ordinary Hero shirt of your choice!!! Try to leave message, take pic of your number...something to show me that YOU HIT IT!! Or email me at Kristi@ordinaryhero.org Good LUCK!!! :) kj

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Did We Really Just Go Camping With 6 Young Children?

Yes, we DID!!!!! And, YES, we're NUTS!! My sister Kelly's text said it all, " Did you really take all those babies camping? You guys are insane!!" LOL

*WE ARE BACK!!! The smell coming from the camping laundry pile is about to make me gag, and the exhaustion I feel right now (the Venti Starbucks I just had didn't help a bit) is kicking my tail....So...more on our camping adventures next....BUT...we're HOME..and we SURVIVED....and the hubby and I decided we might NOT be the "camping" type, after all!! LOL

BUT....OH....the KIDS LOVED IT:
And, yes, we cheated and rented a VERY TINY log cabin at the camp grounds INSTEAD of opting for the actual TENT...Does that still count as camping???
We made SMORES and all that good stuff....so that still counts as camping, right??? It's the best compromise the hubby and I could come up with...and the kids loved it..and the babes and I weren't sleeping in a tent for two nights...
And, another one of my sisters asked if we COOKED our own food over the camp fire?? Ummmmm...no we cheated there too....we drove down the road to the local Cracker Barrel and ate there!! Does that still count?? Ok, so we ate there TWICE!! We just weren't prepared and didn't take ENOUGH stuff to survive off of for two days and two nights.....
We'll do better next time....IF there is EVER a next time!! :) I took about 100 pics of our adventures....More soon when I get my head above water (and this awful smoke smell gone) !!! :) Happy Saturday to you all, kj

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Happy 2 Year GOTCHA DAY Lucy Lane!!!

I just can't believe i've had my BABY GIRL in my arms now for 2 years!!! It has truly been an amazingly, wonderful 2 years!! Lucy lane is truly a gift!! I'm blessed and the lucky one to be her momma!! I remember the day she was placed in my arms like it was yesterday:The moment she was placed in my arms was one of the most spiritual moments of my life....You could truly feel God's presence!!!


I'll forever be grateful for my beautiful daughter!! She was perfectly made for our family!! Her personality could not be a BETTER ONE.......
My Lucy Lane introduced me to a country that I instantly fell in love with....Her healthy, spunky, lovable self opened the doors to many more God ordained miracles....
Bringing Lucy Lane home was just the beginning....the kids welcomed her with open arms and we were instantly in love!! And, my heart was instantly OPEN to what God had in store next......
And, Lucy lane has been able to keep up with her travel buddies too....We've had several play dates and reunions with friends since she's been home....Below..she carries a special bond with her Best Buddy Silas....They came home on the same day on the same plane to the same city....
And, TODAY they are still buddies....
We even got together this week for them to see each other and play......I pray their friendship lasts a life time....

And, here are some of my favorite pics of my sweet Lucy lane lately:


She is beautiful on the inside and out!! She is spunky, fun, hilarious, sassy, sweet, huggable and perfectly made....


And, one of my sweet travel buddies sent me this....love it:


Because of YOU Lucy lane.....so many children are NOW home with their forever families....Your life has inspired more people and changed more lives than you'll ever know!! Glory be to God!! Lucy lane, you opened my heart to those in need in this world....You inspired the most amazing trip in December.....You took me to a part of the world...to a village I never dreamed I'd go....I met a woman...a young woman I'll forever be grateful to... a young woman that gave birth to you on the side of the road...a young woman that LOVED you enough to walk and walk until she found a safe place for you...an orphanage...where you'd have the life she always dreamed of....You'd have the life she prayed for you to have...SHE GAVE YOU LIFE BECAUSE SHE LOVED YOU....And, because of that....OUR LIVES ARE BLESSED:
And, because of YOU Lucy Lane....and that precious meeting....YOU NOW HAVE A BABY BROTHER!! You opened our hearts to things that we never dreamed possible!! You may have inspired a lot of families to adopt...you may have changed a lot of families for the better....BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY...YOU CHANGED US!! You inspired us to adopt again....YOU have forever changed the life of your precious little brother....If it weren't for YOUR adoption Lucy lane...I never would have been in that remote village...in that remote orphanage in December....God has certainly been in every detail since the VERY beginning....
So, TODAY we celebrate Lucy Lane Martha being in our arms for 2 years!!! You are one of the most amazing people I've ever met. We love you beyond words!! And, we certainly can't imagine our lives without you!! And, here is the ORIGINAL Gotcha Day video for our Lucy lane.... the video that has touched many.... Enjoy it again if you haven't seen it lately!!

Happy 2 years home Lucy Lane...We are forever blessed to have you in our arms.....and Happy Wednesday to you all, kj




Monday, June 13, 2011

Yes, We're a Little Red Neck... :)

So, we are THAT family...THAT family that enjoys visiting "those" places that seem a little RED NECK to the rest of the world. Those "touristy" places that you NORMALLY pass on the highway and WONDER who actually KEEPS them in business...Well....WE DO!!! :) Remember, last summer we went to Dinosaur World....This summer....we spent this past weekend touring "Rock City":
And, "Ruby Falls": What ARE these places...you might ask?? Well....these are places that MOST of you will NEVER go and visit EVER....but we seriously had fun!! And, the kids LOVED it!! Yes, we are BOTH originally from Kentucky..and now we reside in TN....so that's where our slight RED NECKS come from!! :) And, yes, in the above pic we are actually ALL under ground in a cave!!! :)

The babes and I didn't actually make it the entire 2 miles underground...George was freaked out by the entire thing and Baby Wes just wanted down to crawl and walk..and well..I couldn't let him inside a cave...so OUT WE WENT!!! LL actually loved it and wanted to stay with Daddy....so she made it the entire way through.....
Rock City is a "city" on top of a mountain......It had cool walking paths and great scenic paths...but they made me a nervous wreck with HOW high they were and NOT MUCH to keep kids on the path!!
And, wouldn't you know that ON TOP of that mountain...there was a Starbucks.....cracked me up...but i enjoyed it none the less!!! :)

And, just so ya know....my hubby is the adventurous one...he comes up with these ideas...He's NOT a "sitter" and can't stand staying home all weekend IF we have nothing planned!! So...he plans these types of things!! :) This was his SECOND idea...I VETOED his first idea...it was taking ALL 6 kids CANOE'ING!! Yes, he's nuts!!!

Baby Wes was happy as we reached the top of the mountain and he could get down and crawl around some....He's an active toddler boy:

My 4 year old George is WhO gave me the heart attack the entire time...He just kept running down the paths from us RACING everyone...He's in this stage that he feels he MUST WIN everything!!! So, he MUST keep a step ahead of everyone....I'll just say there were WAY too many HIGH ledges around for this Momma's liking with THIS many young children!!!
this was part of the path....Yes, we had to SQUEEZE through:
Beautiful...but I couldn't watch them go out for this pic...the hubby had to take the pic!! See what I mean when I say "HIGH PLACES" children could fall.....
Ok, dinner was much calmer...I caught a pic of Wes eating his FIRST corn on the cob:
Then a trip to the Children's museum the next morning:
My LL had SO MUCH FUN....She ran this entire place...I just chased her with the baby on my hip:

Then we ended our trip with a walk across a very long Pedestrian bridge.....Daddy put the triple stroller to good use:


So, that was OUR weekend....Yes, all the kids were EXHAUSTED when we got home last night (Sunday)!! And, so were Mommy and Daddy....But, oh such a fun, family weekend!! And, NEXT time YALL pass one of those signs in TN that say "SEE ROCK CITY" !! Stop and check it out....it was actually FUN!!! :) Happy Monday to you all, kj