A lot to be thankful for

Last week-end was my daughter's birthday party. She turned 8. She wanted a party at the bowling alley. Let me tell you, that was the way to go. The cost was around $14 per child with a 10 child minimum. However, they took care of everything: nvitations, thank you cards, goody bags, shoe rentals for the kids, two bowling lanes for an hour, bowling balls for the kids, pizza, drinks, decorations, and a real bowling pin for Courtney that her friends got to sign. They set up and clean up afterwards. I only had to bring was a cake and items for the goody bags. If I tried to have a party at my house, I probably would have spent a lot more than that especially trying to keep 10 kids entertained for an hour. This is Courtney at her party.

I am really looking forward to Thanksgiving this year. My in-laws and my parents are coming to our house for dinner. We deep fry our turkey. It is sooo yummy and only takes 45 minutes versus the several hours in the oven. Every year I try out a new recipe. Last year was my sister's sweet potato casserole. It turned out so good. Even my father-in-law liked it and he doesn't like sweet potatoes. This year I am trying a black forrest pie. I will still have my creamy pumpkin pie and my parents are bringing an apple pie just in case this new pie doesn't turn out ok. I will let you know.

We have so much to be thankful for this year. My mother is still with us. She has been ill for a few years now. She has COPD and emphyzema(?). She has been oxygen for about 6 years now. She still has her good days, but her bad days seem to be increasing. It hurts me to see her struggle to catch her breath. I thank God everyday that my kids have her around one more day. I lost my grandparents when I was very young so I missed out on the whole grandparent experience. I wish my children didn't have miss out as well.

My father-in-law had a stroke right before I left for my class reunion. He is so young. He is 61 years old. Physically he is doing fine, but he has lost his speech. He is going to therapy 3x a week. They worked with him a lot so he could sing Happy Birthday to Courtney on her birthday. He did pretty good. He got some words out. He has a long road ahead of him, but he is a strong and determined man.

Well, I need to get going. I have some shopping to do as well as some things around the house. I will try not to wait so long to post again.

Until next time....

Introducing the Bradley clan

I just realized that I told you all about my dogs, but not too much about my family. Here is the scoop. Scott is my husband and we have been married for 13 years. He is two years younger than me. We met each other at a grocery store I worked at while going to college. We were friends first for about a year. He is a native Floridian. Not too many of them here. Most of us are transplants. He owns a lawn service business and does very well. The summers here are hard on him with the heat. The downside of this situation is that he does the work himself so we don't get to take a family vacation together too often. Maybe one day.



My oldest daughter is Courtney. She just turned 8. She is my lucky charm. When I found out I was pregnant with her, I just got a promotion and had 5 out of 6 numbers in the lottery. I didn't win alot, but got enough to get the baby furniture. She is very artistic. It amazes me what she comes up with. I have started a portfolio for her masterpieces. She is also very smart. She does very well in school. She is in second grade, but reads at a level of a 6 month 3rd grader. She loves to read. She gets it honestly. I love to read, and I love to read to my kids. We try to read every night. She is having her birthday party on Saturday at the local bowling alley. I will let you all know how that goes later.



My middle child is my son, Mason. He is 4 years old and is all boy. He is quite the shock to the system especially since Courtney has always been a very self-sufficient and self-contained child. Give her a box of crayons and some paper and she is good to go. Not Mason. He is non-stop except when there is a movie or a show he wants to watch. He likes to play rough, but loves to cuddle with Mommy. He attends a VPK (voluntary pre-kindergarten) program at a local Christian school. He loves it, but there is one little boy that is very mean to everyone in the class. Mason comes home and tells me what Sammy called him or someone else everyday. I know I must be doing something right when he tells me that Sammy's behavior is not acceptable. Good boy!!!!



My youngest is my baby girl, Makenna. The funny thing about Makenna is how I found out I was pregnant with her. I was in the ER with a kidney stone attack when they advised me that I was 12 weeks pregnant. She was quite the surprise especially with what we went through to get pregnant with my first two. I was very upset at first. It took me a while to get used to the idea. Now I wouldn't trade her for the world. She is one of the reasons why I quit my job. I missed out on so much with my other two. I figured God was giving me another chance to do what I always wanted to do... be a SAHM. Makenna is 2 years old now. She does her very best to keep up with her siblings. She is very loving, but will certainly put you in your place if you cross her. We will probably start the potty training after the holidays. That should be fun. I am looking forward to removing the expense of diapers and wipes from my budget.



That is my family in a nut shell. Now when I talk about Scott, Courtney, Mason or Makenna, you all will know who I am talking about. Well, its time for us to go to lunch.



Until next time.....

The house has gone to the dogs

I just have a few moments to write this before I leave to pick up Mason at school. As I stated before, we recently added another dog to our household. I will add some pictures of my dogs later, but let me tell you a little bit about our pets. We got Mickey a little over a year ago. We got him from the pound and he is supposedly a German Shepherd/Collie mix. We aren't sure that is an accurate description. We just call him a mut. Anyway, he is a pretty good dog. The problem we have with him is his fascination with chewing paper. He will leave the shoes alone, but if there is a magazine on the table - forget about it! He has even chewed up toilet paper while its on the roll. He has destroyed the blinds in the game room and kitchen. When we first got him, we kept him in the bathroom while we were gone. Needless to say, our bathroom door needs to be replaced as he almost chewed through it. My husband decided that Mickey needs a playmate to calm him down. I never had pets when I was growing up, and my husband had several so I believe him - yes I know what you all are saying and I agree! Anyway, a friend of ours had this dog that they got from someone who was moving and couldn't take the dog with them. Scott (my husband) and this friend got to talking and the next thing I know, he is bringing home this dog. Our new dog is a chocolate lab named Coco. She is beautiful and very calm. I don't think I've heard her bark yet. She doesn't lick, but she sniffs alot! Two downsides to Coco. One she is not housebroken. She is doing pretty good. Its helpful that I am at home, but when I need to get some shopping down, I get a bit stressed over it. Did I mention that we have carpeting throughout most of the house????? Yeah, that makes for a lot of fun. We are planning on replacing the carpet, but in the meantime..... The second issue with Coco is that she isn't fixed. Mickey is - thank goodness, but Coco is not. And wouldn't you know it, the week we get her on a trial basis, she is in heat! Mickey has been following her around for the last few days. He really likes her!!!! Both of these things can be fixed literally so I have a feeling Coco is here to stay. So my house has gone to the dogs. When I am home, I am busy trying to housebreak Coco and vaccumming the dogs hair. And now I pick up all the toys, shoes, papers, etc before I walk out the door. Like I have nothing better to do everyday!!!!!! Oh, the sacrifices I make for my family.... I must go now and pick up my son.

Until next time.....

First time poster

Well, this is my first time posting a blog on this website. I have a few friends who do this, and I truly enjoy reading about what is going on in their lives at that moment. I was a member of a certain village, but I haven't been on for a while and now I can't seem to figure out how to get to my blogs so here I start anew. I am a SAHM of 3 children. I have been married for 13 years. And we have recently added another dog to our lovely family so that brings us to myself, my husband, two daughters, one son, two dogs, and a goldfish. Boy, my house seems so small all of a sudden!

Please don't let my title "Not Just Mommy" fool you. Lately, I have felt like just a Mommy and nothing else. Don't get me wrong, I love my children and would try my best to move heaven and earth for them. HOWEVER.... there are times. When I quit my job, I didn't quit realize that I would be trading in my "worker bee" identity for a larger version of "mommy bee" identity. When my husband quit his job to start his own business, I never thought of him as just a "lawn guy", and I guess he never let himself be that either. That is my issue. He was able to maintain his friends who call him to play cards. He continued to play softball and fish. He really didn't lose anything during that transition. Myself, on the other hand, was not so lucky. I have friends who love me and will be there in a minute if need be, but we aren't the kind of friends who put together a poker game at the last minute. We are planners and organizers. We try to arrange a girls night weeks ahead of time and it always seems to fall apart at the last minute. Why is that???? Why is it that I feel slightly guilty if I want to go somewhere without my kids for awhile???? And why is it that when I tell my husband that we need a date night just the two of us, we end up at a restaurant with the kids in tow???? Maybe if I can figure out why I am made this way, I can figure out a way to fix it and regain a lost part of my identity.... the part that is not just mommy.

Until next time......