Derby!!!!

The Track....

The loyal race fans..

The anxious racers...

The stiff competition, almost 30 cars.

Those nail biting moments...

The wild and crazy M.C.... Shane was loving that microphone :)

Shane, Jackson, Mason and Isaac with their awesome cars ..."The Speed Demon", "The Green Hornet" and "The Black Widow"

And the winner is.....Jackson!!!! We were so happy for Jackson because last year his car didn't even make it across the finish line. Way to go Jackson!!

I was also REALLY proud of Mason for cheering for his brother in the finals and being excited for him when he won. Mason and Isaac both showed great sportsmanship.

I Really Want Paula Deen to be my Best Friend

The one magazine that ALWAYS catches my eye every time I go through the checkout stand is the silver haired, bright eyed, smiling face of Paula Deen, and the delicious plate of triple layer red velvet cake she is holding. I love Paula. She's the quintessential southern Mama --the kind of lady you want to come home to after school because you know she'll be standing at the door with a big smile and warm hug to welcome you. If you're having a trial in your life, she's the kind of lady you can imagine showing up with a big ol' cheesy casserole at your front door. She's the kind of lady who makes living in the south a great experience, the kind who's always always saying "Hi y'all" and blessing your heart.

So I bought my first "Cooking with Paula" magazine and I made the ultimate chicken pot pie ... it was a big hit. I've made several different variations of chicken pot pie and this is the best one yet... plus, it's pretty. When I have time I'll post the recipe if anyone is interested.

I also had a really touching experience this week...

The other day I dropped Isabella at preschool and as I was walking through the parking lot I saw two of the moms talking. One of the ladies has muscular dystrophy and was very upset and crying. I was so touched when I saw this young mother take her by the hand and begin praying for her. It nearly brought me to tears to see this young lady take a break from her busy life and stop to listen to and pray for a friend in the middle of the parking lot.

We get busy, we get distracted and caught up. That morning I was reminded, never be too busy to stop and listen and pray for a friend, family member or stranger.

Keep out of Reach of Children

Mommy blogs are notorious for always putting a shiny, happy glow on day to day life. It's tempting to leave out all of our not-so-proud moments and let people think we are great mothers at all times. Maybe we worry that people will know we aren't perfect. So here I go... I'm not perfect-- far from it.

This week I got distracted. Shane and I were cleaning out cars and I was in and out of the house. Bella wasn't feeling well and I got out the ibuprofen. I took a dose to her in the bathroom and left the bottle open on the counter. I went outside and brought some more items in from the garage. I saw the medicine bottle on the counter and went to put it away when I realized all of the medicine about 4000 milligrams was gone and Bella was standing in the kitchen. Panicked, I questioned her,

"Did you drink this?"

"Yes Mama, but don't cry Mama, I'm sorry."

My heart sank, Shane walked in the room and we called Poison control. Poison Control called the hospital and told us to get her there as fast as we could. We were both terrified.

I could barely get the words out, but I called my friend Tawni to pick up my poor boys who were completely distraught... moments after arriving at the hospital, two more friends, Allison and Shannon showed up. A member of the Stake Presidency also came only 10 minutes after we got there to help give Bella a blessing. It was a HUGE comfort to have the support of so many friends.

They gave her an IV and she didn't even cry, she also had to drink charcoal. It was black and gritty and terrible. They mixed it with chocolate milk, and she did a fantastic job drinking it. But by the end she was saying, "No, stop it. I hate chocolate milk" Our friend Dr. Wild, bribed her with a barbie princess and got her to drink the rest. His wife and my friend Allison delivered BIG TIME on the barbie promise.

Here she is after drinking her charcoal like a big girl with her barbie doll princess as promised.

She had to stay the night at the hospital, they were watching for kidney function and electrolyte imbalance. Isabella did fantastic and we came home the next day with no serious side effects.

I'm thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who is merciful to us, who knows our hearts and our intentions.

I'm thankful for priesthood blessings.

I'm thankful for loving friends who drop everything in a time of need to just to hug you and sit with you, and tell you it's going to be alright and that you're not a terrible mother.

I'm thankful for friends who are there in a moments notice to hug your kids when you can't, and feed them pizza, and make them laugh.

I'm thankful for the phone calls and texts and prayers of family members far away.

I'm thankful for the power of prayer and especially for forgiveness.

Isaac's Mad Science Seventh Birthday

Seven? Did I really just type that?!!! Can't believe my Ike is seven. When we moved to Texas he was two and I remember thinking that when it was time to leave, he would be seven. Seemed impossibly far away then, yet here we are.

For Isaac's birthday he kept asking for "Science stuff" so we decided to throw a Mad Science Birthday Party. We usually aren't the most exciting parents to have when it comes to birthdays, but the theme was nerdy enough to be right up our alley. So Shane and I went to educational outfitters and went a little crazy coming up with experiments and ideas.

Shane dressed up like a Mad Scientist and looked hilarious.

Biohazard goodie bags...

We dressed up the kids in safety goggles and "lab coats" (adult white tee shirts, cut down the middle).

Then the geekiness ensued:

The mad science lab... can't really see the water vapor from the dry ice in the pictures but it looked cool! Shane was the proud creator of the molecules.

The tornado tube

The balloon blow up-- achieved by mixing vinegar and baking soda

We also had a science scavenger hunt around the yard which ended in finding the treasure which was test tubes filled with Mike and Ikes.

Then time for "Mad Science" cupcakes... or white cupcakes with blue sprinkles.

Soda Geyser Finale ... or as my friend Allison said, "a waste of perfectly good diet coke!"

Happy Birthday Isaac! I hope you have happy memories of this special birthday we celebrated together. We love you!

Youth Confrence

A few weekends ago, I went to the Waco stake youth conference with the young women from our ward. I absolutely love working with the youth in the church. They inspire me and give me great confidence in the future. They are hard working, thoughtful, innovative, and caring. Working with the youth is one of the greatest joys in my life, and I'm so thankful I was able to be with them to witness some small miracles happening.

They spent the morning working at the World Hunger Farms hauling wood and water, and other things, at least that's what I hear. I wasn't able to make it to that part of the conference... and no, I wasn't just trying to get out of the service project :) Afterwards they plodded on over to the Ropes Course area at Baylor University where I met up with them. Here they did team building activities and really started to bond as a group.

They were really supportive of each other and so brave to take on the difficult challenges and obstacles they were faced with. So much like their daily challenges in High School and family life. Challenges I don't think most of us in the pre-internet, pre texting...etc. era can truly comprehend.

Here are some of the pictures of our amazing youth!

This one makes me laugh... these boys loved the challenge of lifting the girls through the spiderweb thingy. And flexing their muscles :)

Cup Stacking 2011

I promised my mom I would post the latest cup stacking tournament. I felt really bad because I didn't make it to Isaac's competition due to the power outages messing up the schedule, but I'll see if he'll let me take a video of him cup stacking at home. Anyway, all of the kids at Lakewood are getting better and better every year and the competition is getting tough!! Here are some clips from Mason and Jackson's stacks... excuse the bad cinematography it was shot with an iphone.