A Shameless Plug for the One I Love...

Last week Jason decided to take a hiatus from facebook. I applaud him. I am not there yet, but I applaud him anyway. One of the reasons he did this was because he wanted to spend more time with me.

And the other reason was because he wanted to spend more time talking to Jesus, reading and writing on his blog.

:) And, of course, me.

Back to his blog. Jason has a new blog that you can read here. I have always loved reading what my husband has to say. I love his wisdom and his passion for Jesus, the church, his family and life. You will probably see some talk about music, food and politics in there as well. And me.

All in all, his blog captures the mind. Except for the part about me. That probably won't capture your mind.

Anyway, check it out. You can click there...or here....

Or here.

Ciao.

Family Update

Sometimes I forget that there is family who read this blog and don't get to see my kiddos all the time. :) So, here's an update in the life of Jackson & Reagan.

This picture pretty much says it all. The fact that she is in her Princess pajama gown and wearing a bow even says it more. Jason changes and puts her to bed every night. I thought it was funny he left the bow on her. She is such a girly girl who loves her daddy. She's talking more and more these days and continues with her love of food. This morning was her first time to be put in timeout. She threw a fit over not getting a cookie for breakfast and I had to stick her in the corner. She cried and then told me she was "saaahhhry". She still melts my heart even when she's misbehaving. I taught her a New Kids On The Block song that she sings along to, as well as, Taylor Swift's "Love Story". That's my girl.

Jackson.

My sweet boy. Key word....boy. I snapped this picture in the car recently. We were listening to Bon Jovi (courtesy of Jason) and he was rockin out on the "air" drums. He also got a new hair cut and looks even older to me. He'll be 4 on May 28th. I am already re-living the day we brought him home. So crazy. We are going to celebrate in Houston by taking him to an Astros game. His first game ever. Jason is so excited and I know this will be as much, if not more, of a celebration for him too. He still gets up every single night and wants to get in bed with us. He starts out in Reagan's room, but finds his way to ours around 2 am. I am usually so tired that I don't even realize he's in there with us. He still love school and LOOVEESS music.
Jason and I are doing wonderful. We just celebrated 6 years of marriage and couldn't be happier. We have been very blessed and are constantly seeing God provide for our family in every way. Our marriage has never been better. Jason has found a new love with yard work. (Or got sick of me saying things about it.) He is out there almost every day trimming trees, prepping to lay new grass, killing weeds, moving rose bushes, planting new flowers...etc. We've been eager to make a lot of changes in our home, but are taking it one step at a time. At this point, I don't care much about what we end up not getting done. I just love that we are excited about doing life together. Recently, Jason surprised me with a Pandora charm for my birthday. I love everything about it. He knows I love Pandora and he bought this one because it was the 6th Anniversary stone. I know that he was really thinking of us when he bought this. Really meant a lot to me....and now I'll stop gushing.

My sisters will be watching the kids this summer Tuesday - Thursday's. I plan on having a list of chores for them each day. Just kidding. I was 12 when they were born and I had my fair share of raising them. I'm just loving that they have to wipe bottoms 3 days out of the week.

We plan to spend lots of time at Landa Park in New Braunfels and the neighborhood pool this summer. I want a tan...and the kids want to swim...and I want a tan.

So, there it is. That's what's going on!

A Passion

Jason and I lead a small group on Wednesday nights. We've lead it for a little over a year now. I love our small group. I really do. Not just because they cook great food and kiss my babies either. For some reason, we recently hit a very fruitful spot in our group. Not that it was ever bad....it just wasn't "flowing". Jason and I really prayed about it and felt like God was leading us in a time of "getting back to the basics"...and in our minds that just meant sharing life together and loving Jesus. So, we kind of started all over and told everyone to start bringing a side dish. We had a lot of mac & cheese the first few weeks, but we all hung out, loved on all (what felt like) 42 children and got to know one another. In the meantime, our group started growing numerically and spiritually.

Tonight is one of those nights. Just got back from small group where we had awesome tacos. But even more so, I just got back from a night where I saw our group BE the church. A family in our congregation recently lost their father. It was totally and completely devastating and unexpected. There are 2 teenage boys involved and a now widowed wife. My heart has ached for them in every possible way over this past month as they have dealt with this grief. On top of it all, they have had some major home repairs come up and when you have just lost your husband, it all looks overwhelming I'm sure. But.... I have been brought to tears as I hear things like this from our group.....

"I got an unexpected check recently and have been wondering what we should do with it...I want to give it all to them...."

"I think I'll go tomorrow after work and do some painting at their house..."

"Yeah, let's pull together and go fix up the yard."

"We just felt like we were supposed to give them this check..."

And on the 8th we, and some other groups at RCCC, are going over there to do whatever needs to be done.

And they don't even know these people. They're on fire. They are living passionately. Being the church. Just as it should be.

I'd eat 2 lbs of mac & cheese every Wednesday night to see more of this.

painting problems

Yesterday, I started painting our guest bathroom.

And I haven't finished.

Because I ran out of paint. And this sucks because I have to go back and do it again today. Blah. And Jackson keeps telling people it's "brown". It's not brown. It's called Crisp Toast.

And then tomorrow I'm moving Reagan and Jackson in the same room together. And I'm going to paint that too. What color do you paint for a little girl and little boy sharing a room together? The other room will be for my twin sisters who will be staying with us for the summer! They are going to be "nannies" for the kids.

Sweet revenge.

I have no pictures, but I have great stories.

Okay, you see...I suck and have no pictures for the birthday week. Cause that's all that really mattered last week. (Try and believe that there IS heavy sarcasm with that) I have pictures of Jack & Rae's Fiesta Floats, but that needs to be a post by itself because of the insanity of just making those things for a 19 month & 4 year old....to only see them get thrown in the back of my car after they used it for 2.5 minutes ....but whatever. I will show you those pictures later.

Maybe.

Anywho, my week was FANTASTIC. No, seriously. It was. To be honest with you I never make a big deal out of my birthday. Jason and I go out usually, but this whole "birthday week" business has never come up before. I jokingly referred to it that way because of the little things that I was being "surprised" with all week. But now that I have experienced a birthday week...

GAME ON. It will be like that every year. You better believe it.

Kidding.

Kind of.

First, I was blessed beyond belief with this beautiful thing. I will not give names, but this someone special said that it was a gift from God and to say nothing more. So, that's all I'll say...plus..

HOLY COW..OMG...SERIOUSLY..WHAT? THIS IS THE BEST THING EVER.

Second, my friend (and our pastor's wife), Lauri, took me to this awesome little place downtown. It's one of my favorite places to go in the world. I love it and we had such a great time together.

Then, I got to go to here with my Mom on Wednesday. We sat outside, ate lots of food and Reagan got a pat on the head from the Mayor who was sitting next to us. You know, just normal day to day stuff that happens in the life of Natalie.

Wednesday night I was too tired (and sick) to go out, so we flipped a coin and had pizza. However, it was really good.

then i made fiesta floats. boo....(that sentence doesn't even deserve proper capitalization)

Friday, we had an awesome dinner at our friends house. The food was outstanding and the company was even better (and seriously the food was SOOO good)

Saturday, I had the Beth Moore conference. This had nothing to do with my birthday, but I'll just pretend it did. I woke up at 6:00 am to get ready and was out the door by 6:30 so I could get some vocalizing done. I know that sounds really weird, but I literally had no voice and didn't know what to expect since I was singing that morning. I got in the car and my cute, white, linen dress ripped. Dude. So, I went to Walmart because that is the only place open at 6:30 am. I found a really cute little jacket and THESE jeans. I'm a big boned, tall girl (I can "securely" say that.) and have a hard time finding jeans that I think look okay on me. I loved these. I seriously could not believe that I found a pair of jeans that I liked there. And they were only $20. ANDDDD...I had so many compliments on them. The conference was amazing. AMAZING. I definitely am saying "So Long, Insecurity".

So you should all have birthday weeks and buy jeans from Walmart.

The end.

Under the weather..

I have had such a great week celebrating my birthday. I say week because there seems to have been little surprises coming every day. I want to share it with you, but I am not feeling all that great (boo) and have a lot on my plate. Plus, I have one more thing happening that I want to capture.

In the meantime, I love my friends and family for being so kind and thoughtful. I love my husband for his sweet and thoughtful heart. I do not love making Fiesta floats. But I do love cheesecake.

The end.

My Birthday Week...(I'm a dork)

And I don't care if that sounds prideful!!!

Ha ha. Actually, it is a little weird for me to say that. But, then again, why not be excited to celebrate another year? You only live once! My birthday is not until Wednesday though.

So, I'm a big dork.

However, I have already gotten to celebrate it 3 times!

Again, big dork.

BTW, I found something else I love......

.....more on it later. :)

This week...

This Week...

-no one got sick. :)

-lead worship for prayer night with my hubby. i love doing ministry together.

-rearranged my bedroom. i'm officially crazy.

-went to lunch with a friend.

-experienced a great amount of fear.

-conquered it.

-saw god's amazing and miraculous provision for our family!

-was excited about ministry.

-went to small group and ate too much.

-was convicted.

-went to lunch with my mom.

-had a "last minute" girls night with the worship team ladies at Macaroni Grill.

-hugged my husband for more than 4 seconds.

-prayed.

-was challenged.

-went to HEB only one time. a new record for me.

-was blown away by my son's heart for worshipping Jesus.

-drank more water.

-wished (once again) for a trip to any place with clear water and white sand.

Twas a good week. I'm a little tired today. We were going to plan a last minute trip to Corpus, but this weather is not ideal. Guess we'll just sit inside, watch movies and lay low. Equally as good.

Things I just can't live without.

I found a few things lately that I've decided I can't live without. I love them.

1. Lemishine - I've talked about this before, but I truly believe it is one of the best things out there. My dishes aren't cloudy anymore. People will actually drink out of glasses now without fear that they will die from some sort of bacteria. Good stuff.

2. Sephora Lip Gloss - I usually don't buy expensive lip glosses, but this one was given to me and I couldn't turn back. It's the best stuff ever! I love it. I also learned recently that dark lip colors can add "weight" to your face. I'm not sure how true that is, but I'll take what I can get.

3. Vanilla Breeze Glade Plug-in - I have stock in these. Everyone comments on my house smelling good. This is why. It's not like I clean or anything..I just keep these plugged in everywhere. (kidding) It covers the dirty diaper aroma going on. :)

4. Beverage Server - I got this exact one from Southern Living for Christmas. I LOVEEEEE it. I have used it so many times. It's the best thing ever and it's pretty...and I like pretty things.

What are you favorite things these days? I really do want to know because most times I just steal them.

Kitchen Idea

We've been in our home for 2 years. There are some major changes that I am wanting to make to it. We've already been working on the yard. We are going to be putting grass down in our front yard in 2 weeks. I'm excited about that. :)

But the BIGGEST thing I want to do is paint my kitchen cabinets white. I want it to look like this. :)

Now, obviously my kitchen isn't laid out like this, but I love the clean look...and the wood floors, but I'll keep waiting on that.

I love this. I think I'm going to make it happen soon.

What do you think?

Superhero & BBQ Day!

This Saturday was Aaron & Bre's big moving day to their new home on the Northwest side of San Antonio. I told Bre that I would watch the kids so they could get everything done and Jason went to go and help move. We had such a great time together. Abby helped me clean my house (she asked), disinfect toys (from Reagan being sick) and we painted our nails together. Sometime during that morning, Amanda surprised the kids with a HUGE box of superhero costumes that she found at a garage sale for $10!!! FANTASTIC!!!

All morning they saved the world and played outside. :)

That afternoon we went to a "Thank you" party for a young woman that we have been praying for this year. Last year, right before Easter, she was in a horrible car accident and was basically told that she would never walk, talk or think for herself again. Miraculously, because God is an amazing God, she is beating the odds and is making huge progress. She is already able to communicate by writing words down on paper. Her parents wanted to throw a party at the old Wetmore Store BBQ restaurant for all the people who've supported and prayed for her. Super nice! We had a blast, ate some good food and enjoyed the beautiful weather.

So glad I could spend some time with Abby & Carson. We are so happy for Aaron & Bre and are excited to see what God does for them.

This truly cracks me up.

All the kids.

He's shooting a web. Very scary...

I just liked this face.

Fun, fun, fun.

Sick Day

Reagan woke up yesterday throwing up...all over my car. Ick.

I thought she was better, but apparently not after she threw up all over my nicely folded laundry.

3 loads later...

Here I am. Sitting at home with her and Jackson. It's kind of nice though. I'm not doing anything. I'm too tired to start really doing anything major because when I start she cries.

So I'll just sit here. Breathe deeply. Eat tuna sandwiches with Jack. Drink Iced Tea. Watch New Moon.

That's it.

All the laundry I did.

Reagan's "bed" for the day.

Jackson's spot. And today I just don't care that the t.v. hasn't gone off.

This week...

So, this has been an interesting week. A good week, all in all. I'm going to be a little long in my post.

Monday I had to sing at a funeral for a little girl in our congregation. Kelly Lewis. She was 11 and had been on dialysis for 8 years. She was so sweet. So inspiring. It was, by far, the hardest thing I've ever had to do. EVER. I can't imagine having bury my little girl and to be honest with you, I had to stare at the back wall the entire time. Good thing I did because I lost it when I left. Completely. Jason was a pallbearer and I know it took a toll on him too.

This picture....

Well, the little girl (to the right, in pink) is Katy. Katy is Kelly's sister and she spent Easter with us. I was so glad she was with us. She got to just be a kid. Hang with friends. Hunt Easter eggs. Be a kid. I am not sure she is processing everything completely yet, but I hope we can be there for her.

Here's the rest of my week..

Tuesday I worked.

Tuesday night I stayed home and did nothing, but enjoy time with my sweet girl.

Watched Sherlock Holmes.

Wednesday I had off. Sean (my pastor) forced me. Thank you, Sean! :)

Ironed all our clothes for the week. I'm weird.

More yard work.

Wednesday night we went to IHop. Kids eat free.

Enjoyed my family.

Today I drove to work.

Reagan threw up all over herself.

Went back home.

Reagan slept.

Was totally fine after that.

Came back to work.

Jason stayed with Reagan.

Was surprised with a Sonic Peach Tea (unsweetened with extra ice) from a friend.

Ate popcorn.

Now...getting ready for practice and SOOOO thankful that my week was a bit of a "down" week for me.

I can now breathe. All is well.

Have I ever mentioned that I love chocolate covered raisins. Just a fun fact about me. :)

My Brother

My brother called me this morning to ask me to listen to a Buxton song that he and one of his band members covered. First of all, it meant the world to me that he called. Second, he has some rocking vocals! Seriously, I want him to come here and sing with me.... He's also a drummer, bass player and acoustic guitar player. I don't care that I'm bragging on him. I'm so proud of him. Oh and he's the one on the right.

Just a little bit of happiness....

There.....

are no...

words...

that I could....

say...

to describe how...

much I love...

(and I'm glad I can laugh at myself...)

my life.

sweet love.
sweet reminders.

An Awesome Easter

We had such a great Easter. Of course, I have no pictures of Jason and I, but my MIL sure did capture some beautiful ones of the kids.

Our services this morning were amazing. We had almost 1900 people there. I was so proud of our congregation for inviting their friends and family to come. It truly was one of the most hope-filled, celebratory Sunday mornings I have ever had. Totally overcome with his presence. I couldn't have been more proud of our worship team, nursery workers, first impressions team, etc....

and it was ALL to glorify God. He is so good.

I am so thankful.

We had Easter dinner at our house with our family and friends who didn't have family in town.

This is the 2nd year we have had Easter at our house. It was such a blessing. We had so much fun and some GREAT food.

One of my all time favorite pictures of Jackson. Classic.

Just look at those legs!!!

She sure loves her Uncle "Moose".

Reagan is already learning to assist Poppy. ha. :)

Jackson was given a guitar today by an amazing man in our church. He was in HEAVEN. This was also a special moment for him and Sean. :)

Thank you Lord for sending your Son, Jesus to save us. He is risen. He is risen, indeed!!!

I'm here...somewhere

This has pretty much been a crazy week.

Insanity!!!!

Okay, there, I said it...

I screamed it too. :)

It really was a crazy, busy week.

Monday - blogged about that already.

Tuesday - started on stage design for Easter. (So thankful for friends who help me during my crazy times.) Lead worship at prayer night where I pretty much decided to sit on a stool and sing. It was nice though. I can still worship and sit on a stool. God still loves me.

Wednesday - shopped for more fabric, went to Hobby Lobby, cashed checks, went grocery shopping with both kiddos, picked up Jason, had 35 people at our house for small group (kids make up the most), went to bed with dirty dishes in the sink ...cause at that point I couldn't stand any longer.

Thursday - went to work late....:) , stage, stage, stage, stage, lunch with hubby (awww....), fed kids dinner, practice at 6:30 to 9:30, got a migraine for the first time ever (I think), felt like I was dying, passed out...

Friday - woke up to a broken AC, staff prayer, remembered there's a reason why I have weeks like this, worshipped God, AC fixed, finished the stage, came home with my family, AC NOT fixed (booo!!!) sat, waited for AC guy, didn't move, blogged....

Tomorrow- Getting a pedicure and not feeling bad about it!!!!!!

Sunday - Celebrating, worshipping, exalting Jesus! It's going to be truly awesome and totally worth this entire week.

It's nothing compared to what He did for me!!!!