Just living life...

Well since I last checked in Brendan has been to Florida and back, Kamdyn and I have been to cheer camp in Birmingham and back, Koby has been to Super Summer at Mississippi College outside of Jackson and back and Brian and the dogs have enjoyed some peace and quiet at home!

We were finally all back under one roof Friday night after a little over a week of travels but only to get the laundry done so that Kamdyn could leave today for soccer camp. I think Brian is ready for school to start so we can get back to our normal way of life!!

I thought it best to share some pictures with y'all as a way to catch everyone up on what has been going on for us...

This was what Brendan packed to take on the trip to Florida when he went to see Ellie! I think it is safe to say he takes after his father!! Candy is always an essential on any Bailey trip, even when you are by yourself. And since Ellie's family tends to have healthier eating habits than we may use here, Brendan wanted to be prepared! It was very difficult to let him go on this trip, not because I think he is irresponsible or unable to take care of himself but because it is one more sign that he is growing up. While I realize this is the way life unfolds, I still want to push the brake on life sometimes. Maybe you can relate.

Brendan and Ellie never let me down! They always send me some kind of funny or silly picture and this is really more to her credit than his. If you know Brendan you know it is a bit out of his comfort zone to be silly and it is one reason I am so thankful for Ellie in his life. She keeps things light and fun!

So let's move on to cheer camp! And really that is about all I can say. We had such a great four days with these girls and after all the hard work was done they performed so well! While I don't necessarily enjoy the cheer part of cheer camp I do enjoy spending that time with the girls and just having fun and laughing and loving them. I wouldn't want to go back to the their age group for a moment, with all of its awkwardness and drama and now on top of that technology. I pray for them and love them and was glad to see the week come and go. I'll just be honest and say I am not as young as I used to be and frankly I now require much more than 4 or 5 hours of sleep each night!

 

This is Kamdyn with two of her best friends on the first day of cheer camp...

...and with me on "Fun Day". I am pretty sure she was super excited that I was at camp with her, and this was confirmed when I heard her say to another cheerleader, "don't you love when your parents are at everything?" And just to be clear, it was not said in exciting tone! However, I do my best to give her space and typically she is good with having me around or close by. I have been so proud to just watch her grow into a young lady that is determined and tough and persistent in what she does. 

At this point I would love to share some pictures with all of you from Koby's week at Super Summer, a Southern Baptist state wide camp for those who meet certain requirements in their journey of faith. Koby was one of four who went from our church and one of about 1500 at the camp and if you think for one minute he had time to send me a picture then you are wrong. I was not expecting daily updates or pictures but I finally text him late Wednesday night "are you alive?" which is my code for "PLEASE TELL ME HOW THINGS ARE GOING!" because I am a details kind of person. True to everything that is Koby he text me back, "Busy but fun" and that was pretty much all I had to go on. I would get occasional messages from him and he finally put a picture on Instagram on Thursday which I was thrilled to see! I picked him up Friday afternoon and he immediately launched into more details than I could have hoped for as he told me about people he had met from all over this state and then he told about the messages he heard and how great the band was and it made my heart full to know the fullness of God continues to grow in him.

And now we are winding down our summer, just living life day by day. Brendan is getting ready for his college final and we hope Ellie is coming to visit before school starts. Koby is waiting to see if the therapy he is having for his shoulder can keep him from surgery. Kamdyn finishes soccer camp at the end of the week and then she and I are heading to a youth girls Sunday School retreat this weekend. Brian is looking into teaching some online classes and continues to hold us all together as we come and go. I hope summer is good wherever you are and that as you are living life you are enjoying each moment.

I am heading off to see what all the men tell on the Bachelorette tonight!! Who is your favorite?

Our Life in Snapshots

Well  I have not fallen out of the cyberspace world! I have however enjoyed a break from some things to enjoy the last little bit of my summer break from the school office. While I have not made anything from my Pintrest boards or scrubbed the grout in the kitchen tile or even cleaned out that overcrowded hall closet, I have read a book by a favorite author and found some new recipes to cook and enjoyed time with my family. Thank you Lord for summer break!

So much has gone on since I last wrote from Texas and I thought the best thing to do might be to just tell what we have been up to through pictures. (You know I love them!)

 

 

 

While we were home in Texas we enjoyed an afternoon on the lake with Kasey and her family. Also making the trip was my oldest and dearest best friend (and some other classmates from way back in 1995). It was so much fun to spend some time with them and let the kids play and relax!

 

 

 

We made it back home in time for July 4. Kamdyn fixed Rocky and Johnny up in some patriotic attire and the family was able to enjoy our neighborhood fireworks show! It was fun to be with family in Texas but it was really good to get back home to Brian and the dogs. We enjoyed our holiday weekend along with local flooding because when I tell you it rained I mean it RAINED! I have recently been reminded of the feeling of the rainy season in Guam, which was sun, humidity, afternoon rain and more sun and humidity. It was as awesome as you are imagining!

 

 



Apparently this is the summer of goodbyes! This weekend Koby and the rest of our family said good bye to a family that we are great friends with. Koby and Haley have been friends since kindergarten, growing up in Sunday School, youth group events and countless days of school. Haley always added excitement to whatever Koby and the others were doing and there is no doubt we will miss her and her sweet family as they begin a new journey down on the coast.

I am back at work part time this week and in the middle of cheerleading practice for camp next week. Brendan is literally counting the hours until he arrives in Florida to visit Ellie. I am excited for him to see her and we are still adjusting to not having around here. Koby leaves for a church camp next week and that will be his final trip of the summer. Kamdyn is staying busy with soccer practice and cheer practice and as I type this she is taking an afternoon nap between the two events.

So that is what is going on around here! I hope things are going well wherever you are and I will be back to a more regular blogging routine starting today.

Just one more thing...

Because I have been on the go, I am behind in catching up with all my blogging friends. And can I say as a side note, being on the go and summer should not really go together but for me it seems to!

Anyways, I was getting caught up on my blog reading this morning and came across this one from thebigmama that I had to share!

http://thebigmamablog.com/14258/and-then-they-rode-away-on-their-segways/

Hope you will read it and enjoy! As always, Melanie makes me laugh out loud and her perspective is one I admire!

A day in the life....

Every summer we try to travel home to Texas to visit with our family. When the kids were smaller, we would come for a week or longer. As they have grown and our summer has become more consumed with sports and church activities, our time to visit doesn't always last as long.

Traveling home this time brought a new experience however...

After being in the passenger seat for countless trips across I-20 this time Brendan drove us! I won't lie, it was a kind of surreal and maybe I kept my eyes glued on the road instead of in a book or magazine but it was nice to not have to do all the driving. He really did a good job and got us all the way to Vicksburg without any trouble!

As we continued west the kids begged to find the Duck Commander warehouse and in all honesty they did not have to twist my arm too much. So we stopped in Monroe, got some quick lunch, got a little bit lost, and then found our way right to the warehouse!

It was really neat to see where they film and to see the crowd gathered around the place. Koby even found a friend!! We shopped and took lots of pictures and waited to see if Willie (or Sadie) would walk by and then we got back on the road.

We finally made it home in time for the boys to do some fishing and entertaining for Aunt Glenda and Kamdyn was just in time for a "tea party"...

 And that is how we spent a day getting back home to Texas! We are looking forward to fishing, family and fun for just a few days before getting back on the road. More pictures are guaranteed to find their way on to the blog! Hope your staying cool wherever you are...

Enjoying our summer...

So we have settled in to our summer so far and I am happy to report that at last we are all home and under one roof! Koby made it in from Cincinnati yesterday evening, with lots of stories and dirty laundry. He seems to have enjoyed his trip yet again, although I can tell he seems to have connected a little deeper this time to the work involved with church planting and to the missionary there.

Kamdyn and I had an exciting Friday...

We have had big plans to spruce up her room for a while now. So, we found a great new comforter with just the colors she was hoping for and we set to work painting her dresser and a desk for her room. I have no idea why I thought painting Friday afternoon in the 100 degree heat and humidity was a good idea, but she and I did enjoy ourselves. My muscles did not so much enjoy themselves and I am still trying to recover from the squatting and the bending that comes with painting furniture! We were pleased with the results though and have since cleaned out and reorganized her closet and rearranged her room.

Brian recently saw a post on TexAgs  informing all Aggies that HEB (which is a grocery store that I have not heard of ever) in San Antonio was selling Whataburger ketchup!

This is like Brian's dream come true!!!

I feel like I need to tell you that Whataburger is an amazing hamburger place at home, by which I mean Texas, that also has breakfast 24/7. We love it and LOVE the ketchup!!!!! Maybe you can't relate but just indulge me as I tell you this story...

A good friend of ours has been in San Antonio for the last six weeks and was planning to stop at our house on his way home to West Virginia this past week. So, Brian sent our friend a text asking him to please bring us back a bottle of the ketchup and what a friend we have because he went to FOUR HEB stores before finding the ketchup in stock and then bought that last five bottles that the store had.

Hallelujah!!!!! I have no shame in telling you we quickly tore into one bottle and have planned meals for this week around the ketchup. It is hard to tell how long five bottles will last but hopefully until we can get to San Antonio to buy more!


In other exciting news, this Saturday a friend and I went to Starkville to meet Sophie Hudson, author of "A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet" and also known as BooMama on her blog.

I actually met Sophie last summer when I was with my girls at cheer camp in Birmingham so this wasn't my first time it was just my first official time. Plus, she signed my book so now I feel like we really know each other. Sophie even recalled our chance meeting last summer, saying she was just thinking about that event last week. I knew I made an impression!! Anyways, I am still making my way through the book but what I have read of it I have enjoyed and identified with. I hope you will pick up a copy of this very entertaining book and if nothing else stop by her blog. She is truly a treasure.

Not everything about this past week was as awesome and happy. Unfortunately we had to say good bye to someone that our family has become very attached to. On Thursday Ellie's family loaded up to leave Columbus for the sun and fun in Florida. The truth of the matter is this day has loomed in front of us for about 8 months now and I hated to see it arrive.

I have prayed for Brendan and Ellie since that time and I have begged the Lord to go before them in this time apart and give them peace and comfort that only He can provide. I think this will be a great life lesson for them both and pray that each of them will see only God is constant and only He can meet our daily needs. Their relationship has been a joy and Ellie has been a source of laughter and fun in our home for a long time. We will miss her and look forward to her being back with us very soon! I hope you will join me in praying for her as she adjusts to a new home and new school. I am confident the Lord is going to provide for her and Brendan both as they plan for their future.

So, this is what has been going on as we have been enjoying summer. I hope things are going well for you and yours!

Finally catching up...

So in the middle of starting summer and our beach trip and VBS there have been several things that I have intended to blog about but just haven't been caught up enough to do. Today I am sitting down to take care of that! Mostly because we watched the Bachelorette last night instead of putting it off until this morning so now I feel like I have some free time I was not counting on!

By the way, I really like Des and I am hopeful she finds a good guy on the show. Our family is also glued to The Voice on NBC and tonight is the final for it. Besides these two shows I am pretty much stuck on HGTV or Friends reruns. I have no idea how I have gotten sidetracked on my TV habits so let's move on!

This time of year I love to cook! Mostly because I seem to have more time to search for recipes and also because we are at home and not in a gym or on a field watching our kids play a sport. I was catching up on my DVR episodes of Pioneer Woman a few days ago and here is a recipe she made that I am thinking about trying:

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2013/06/mocha-brownies/

MOCHA BROWNIES!!!! Yes please! Anytime or any day I will be happy to try these. Also Ree has the cutest mixer on the show and it does make me slightly jealous when I see her using it to mix everything! I am trying to be content with my $19.99 hand held mixer but who wouldn't want to cook more with a professional model stand up mixer! So, I'll let you know how it goes when I make these but I wanted to share the recipe with you now while I was thinking about it.


Our summer Bible study is "The Seven Experiment" by Jen Hatmaker.

If you watch the Today Show you may have seen Jen on last Monday. She is an amazing Christian blogger and author who makes no apologies for living a very real and authentic faith. This particular study is something Jen did to wage war on the excess in our lives in seven areas - clothes, spending, waste, food, possessions, media and stress. OUCH! She will be in your business in this study, but it has been very eye opening so far and I am trying to be open minded about some adjustments I need to make for myself and our family where we not only waste stuff but allow stuff to get in our way of serving God. This is also a stand alone book so if you don't want to participate in the Bible study you can just buy Jen's book.

I have shared one of her blog posts here before about teacher appreciation and she was on the Today Show because of her blog post about being the worst end of year mom ever. I am including a link to her most recent post about summer here:

http://jenhatmaker.com/blog/2013/06/13/surviving-summer

If you have a chance, check it out.


I wanted to tell you what I am reading this summer. Two of my favorite bloggers have new books out and they are both AMAZING! Funny, true and inspiring are all appropriate descriptions of these books...

Sophie Hudson's first ever book is "A Little Salty to Cut the Sweet". In her book Sophie discusses her southern childhood, her walk with the Lord and how much she loves bacon! I think you can see why I relate to her. I have shared a post or two from her blog before, but if you have never read anything by Sophie please look her up at www.boomama.net.

I am also reading "Ever After; Life Lessons Learned in my Castle of Chaos" by Vicki Courtney. I have read lots of Vicki's books and this one is quickly becoming one of my favorites! She and her husband have raised three children pretty successfully and other than the fact that they are supporters of a college in Texas that I am not fond of, I read Vicki's material like she is my personal mentor.

This book is about the realities of marriage and motherhood, giving you pieces of her reality behind the fairy tale she thought she would be living out. I am relating in so many ways and this would be a great book to give a friend for their birthday or just as a happy!

Speaking of marriage, Brian and I have just celebrated our 18th wedding anniversary!

Here is an appropriate time for you to join us in shouts of praise because it is only by God's grace that we are celebrating 18 years. My fairy tale would not have included the ups and downs of the last 18 years, but I can see now how my faith grew in the valleys and carried me to the mountain tops. There is no doubt I am married to my best friend, constant comedian and source of strength for all of life's challenges.

By the way, I was 18 when we got married so I am starting to realize that I am in fact getting older! I have known Brian longer than I have not known Brian. I pray the Lord sees fit to bless us with many, many more years together!!

So now you are all caught up with me! Kamdyn is home, Brendan is wrapping up basketball camp and Koby is in Cincinnati alive and well. I wouldn't be certain except for the response he sent when I text him "You alive?" the other day and he replied "yes but my phone is only at 8%". Which I took that response to mean "can't talk but if I had battery life I would tell you how much fun I am having and how much I miss you and how I love doing this mission work". At least I think that might be what he meant!

Have a great week!!!!!

This is my dad...

This is my dad at the beach a few weeks ago. And honestly, this photo is everything that my dad is!

The straw hat on his head will tell you he is Texan to the core, raised to love the land God created and to care for the animals that He put on it. I've seen my dad in this straw hat, in his black felt hat and in a variety of baseball caps all my life. I will never think of him that I don't see him in my mind with a hat on because that is who my dad is. In a house full of girls growing up we might not have always taken his fashion advice. Well, OK...basically we didn't at all but he still gave it and I loved him for it. In my phase of red lipstick, big permy hair or shoes he couldn't stand Dad always wore his own style with confidence - a hat in the appropriate season for the appropriate occasion and never at the table!

The red shirt will tell you he loves this country with all that he is. American through and through, dad spent time in the navy and then raised us to be proud of where we grew up and of the freedoms we enjoy. From local politics to presidential elections, dad knows what is going on and has an opinion. He probably doesn't know that I can remember how he would come home from work, watch the news and be willing to discuss with us anything going on in the world while we ate dinner. He kept me interested, informed and curious about the world around me.

The fun print he is wearing will tell you that at heart, he loves to laugh. I have heard that laugh forever - as we had friends over and talked about boys, as Brian and him formed a bond as deep as any father/son and as our children talk to him on the phone or Skype. My grandfather had that laugh, a smile that lit up his eyes and dad has that, too. I love when dad tries to tell a story and gets to laughing as he tells it. I love when I hear Koby telling the story and dad laughing at him. The laugh means he is listening, he is caring, he is creating one more memory.

Standing on the beach, dad is strong. The conqueror of my bad dreams, the pat on the back when my heart was broken as a teenager, the one who said "her mother and I", the hands that held my children at the hospital all came by way of that strength that I've always imagined he possesses.


Yep, this is the dad God placed me with- to raise me to love Him, love others and love this country. So Happy Father's Day daddy! Thank you for your love, strength, laugh and endless fashion advice. This only scratches the surface of who you are to me and who I am because of you.