Fill in the Blank Friday

 Head over to Lauren's to join us for Fill in the Blank Friday!!  
(better late than never....)

1.   I feel happy when       I'm watching my daughters play softball....I realize that Charles will finish high school in just a few months....when I think about how blessed I am to have a wonderful family....   .

2.  I get silly when    I am around my children's friends.....they bring out the kid in me sometimes!

3.  Something that makes me sad is       when I think about how much I miss my mama and how I never had the opportunity to get to know my daddy before he died.....I follow the sadness up with joy because I know I will see them again one day though.... .

4.  Something that makes me annoyed is   the sound of people who chewing ice cubes!  GRRRR....I also get annoyed when my husband "flips" channels during commercials too...    .

5.  A time that I've been truly surprised was        when I was strong enough to finally end a bad relationship....I actually surprised myself for just doing it so quickly and firmly....I'm definitely non-confrontational, so it was a big step  .

6.  I am so thankful for        my husband and my children, my job, and that Jesus died on the cross to save me from my sins....    .

7.  I feel loved when       I am spending time with Chuck and the children....we don't always get along, so when we are cooperating, it is really special....five strong-willed people (with 3 being teenagers) are bound to have disagreements every now and then, but we're still family and committed to one another..

What I'm Loving Wednesday

I'm loving that we have a wood burning fireplace in our den so I can stay super warm when we have these cold, snowy days.

 I'm loving that Larry, Chandler, and I were able to go to NC to visit with our dear Aunt Mary, our daddy's only living sibling.  She has always been one of my favorite aunts and I love her so much!

I'm loving that I finished the book that I've been reading this month, The Boy Who Came Back from Heaven by Kevin and Alex Malarky.  It was such an inspirational book that I'm sure to remember for a long, long time.

And, of course, I'm loving my sweet husband and my outgoing children.

Top 2 Tuesday

Top 2 Strange Addictions

 1. I must have a tall glass of Diet Coke over ice every morning.  That gets me going, and I drink coffee afterwards...

2.  The bread on my sandwiches, and anyone elses, must be matched up correctly.  My husband says it really doesn't matter, but of course, it does!  He calls me "The Bread Police."  (Could be worse, I guess....)

Miscellany Monday

[one]

More snow!  Snow, snow, snow....and now it is supposed to sleet and/or rain and then freeze!  We were out of school today (Monday) and have already received the call that school is cancelled for tomorrow. I am definitely not liking being trapped in the house, and definitely hating the cold!!  But, I must say that Chuck has kept the fire in the fireplace burning all day, so it has been relatively warm here in the house.  The bottom line for me, though, is, "Snow, snow, go away!"

[two]

I'm still waiting for good news, and hope that it will come by Wednesday.  I continue to keep my fingers crossed, and am praying that God's will will be the deciding factor.

[three]

My sister Chandler and her husband Gary are supposed to fly home to Berkeley tomorrow.  It was so good to have time to visit with them and the rest of the family over the past week or so.  I'm so excited that she will be back in March probably, for the birth of her first granddaughter!  I'm so happy for Happy and Robert!  I'm sure you two will be great parents.  A wonderful example of motherhood was given to you, Happy, by your loving, caring mama.  Remember all that she taught you and you will be a super mama too!



Chandler and Gary



[four]

I love my children!  They are so full of life and energy!  L and MJ (and friends) are always into something or another....and Charles is usually on the go...

therefore no new pics of him.....

Lawren skyping with friends....

Ariel, Josh, Matt, MJ, and Lawren....just hanging out..

One would think that we were hosting
Wrestlemania 2011....

There's never a dull moment here at our home!

They are such good girls....especially
when they are sleeping!!  :)

The Simple Woman's Daybook

FOR TODAY: January 10, 2011

Outside my window... it is very cold....snow is all over the ground and on the tree branches.  The dogs have made paths all through the yard, up to the porch, into their doghouse, and over to the gate.  We live in the south, so we don't have snow very often...thank goodness....

I am thinking... boy, that's a lot of snow!  I hope it does not start to sleet now and make the roads messier than they already are. I am also thinking about how we missed school today and will probably  be out tomorrow too, so that will mean we will have two days we have to make up between now and the end of the school year....

I am thankful for...the opportunity to reconnect with my siblings over the last week or so...I love them all so much and wish that we could regain the closeness we had when Mama was living.

From the kitchen... comes the smell of the warm chocolate pound cake that I just took out of the oven....

I am wearing... a long sleeve white t-shirt, blue jeans, and white socks....

I am creating...a big pot of chicken bog for my families' supper.

I am going... no where today because of the snow.  There is no way I'd go out driving in this weather.  Matter of fact, just now Chuck and Charles left home to go on a wreck call about a bloclk or so from here...overturned vehicle.  God help the victims and the rescuers...

I am reading...The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven by Kevin and Alex Malarky and am going to read The Help by Kathryn Stockett as soon as I finish the other book.

I am hoping... that I will get good news from "the man." 

I am hearing... a commercial on the television and the sound of the blower on the fireplace. There's not too much else happening here in the den since the firefighters rushed out.....

Around the house... is the usual clutter.  One of my New Years Resolutions is to dejunk and organize our home, but I just havne't started yet....tomorrow may be a good day to start....or maybe not.... 

A Picture I Thought of Sharing...

7 inches of snow....U N B E L I E V A B L E  here in (usually) warm and sunny SC!

Meet Me on Monday

I am linking up with Java at Never Growing Old for this week's edition of Meet Me on Monday.  It is a great way to learn a little about some fellow bloggers.

Questions:

1.  Have you (only you..not a group) ever won first place in anything?  Well, I received several scholarships my senior year in high school, so I would consider that coming in first place....but other than that, no....

2.  Are your toes always painted (sorry guys...this question for girls only)?  No, not always....only painted when MJ feels like treating her mama to a little TLC

 

3.  What color eyes do you have?  blue

4.  Look to your left....what do you see?  Through the sliding glass door, I see the backyard covered in snow....tracked up with puppy dog footprints...

5.  Soft cookies or crunchy cookies?  I like crunchy cookies usually, but soft cookie are good too!!

Davis Family Gathering - January 2,2011

Well, I'm finally getting around to blogging about our Davis Family Gathering last Sunday.  It was the first time that all five of us siblings have been together in one place since Chuck and I got married in June of 1992.  Chandler and Gary came to SC/NC for Happy's graduation from nursing school, so it was the perfect opportunity to  reconnect with each other after oh-so-many years.

Here are a few pictures of the lunch and our time of visiting. 

Chandler, Evans, Kathy, and Gary

My beautiful great-niece Victoria and me



My middle brother Frank

My oldest brother Larry and his wonderful wife, Gayle

Charles and his Uncle John

My beautiful niece, Kit Scott



My nephew Evans, a senior at Clemson

Not only my niece, my friend.....Mary

Jeff and his sweet son, Law

Great-nephew John, and his daddy Douglas

Mary and Jeff, and little Law

Kit, John, Mary, Jeff, and Law





My brother John and my husband Chuck

Sweet Victoria

My smart and handsome great-nephews John and Harvey

Mary Jo

Lawren

Charles

After lunch was over, we all went outside to take family and a group picture.  These pictures are truly a treasure to me!

Larry's family:  John, Harvey, Gayle, Victoria, Larry, Jeff,
Law, Mary, and Douglas

My sister Chandler and her husband Gary

Brother Frank and Teresa

John's family: Kit, John, Kathy, and Evans

My family:  Chuck, Lawren, Mary Jo, me, and Charles

The five Davis children:  Larry, Jo, Frank, Chandler, and John

Our children....

You don't choose your family.  They are God's gift to you, as you are to them. 
                             ~Desmond Tutu