Lori and her new (Scentsy) Buddy!

I don’t know about you, but everyone once in a while I walk in to my kids’ room and I’m hit by a wall of some mystery smell that I can’t pinpoint. How can kids that are so cute, smell so bad? Well what do you do? You can’t light a candle, and I guess you COULD spray the heck out all their things with an air freshener or something but then what happens if they put one of those things in their mouths? That’s no good either. Well. Scentsy has come up with a solution. Scentsy Buddy. Scentsy Buddies are stuffed animals with a zipper pocket in the back which allows you to add a scent to it.

There are 6 buddies to choose from, “Lenny” the Lamb, “Mollie” the Monkey, “Ribbert” the frog, “Penny” the Pig, “Ollie” the Elephant and “Roarbert” the Lion. I got Lori “Ollie” the Elephant, since elephants are her favorite animal and so far, she has been loving it and so have I! I love that her room smells fresh, AND that everywhere she brings him starts to smell nice too. I was thinking of asking her to take him with us to the store, just so my car would start to smell fabulous too. (But Scentsy actually has a product for that, which I’ll probably be trying soon!)

I am usually very hesitant to get stuffed animals for my kids, cause I don’t want them to have TOO many of them, but I don’t consider Scentsy Buddies to be just any stuffed animal. It’s more than just a cuddly friend, it’s an air freshener, and depending on what scent you choose, aroma therapy (think calming lavender scent).

Right now the scent packs come in 15 AMAZINGLY vibrant scents Berry Blush, Black Raspberry Vanilla, Camu Camu, Cucumber Lime, French Lavender, Havana Cabana, Hemingway, Mochadoodle, Perfectly Pomegranate, Pima Cotton, Satin Sheets, Sunkissed Citrus, Sweet Pea & Vanilla, Vanilla Cream, and Vanilla Suede. And the best part is, they are interchangeable! So if you, or your child, want a different scent, just contact your Scentsy consultant for another one!

For more information contact Chilly. You will not be disappointed, nor will your kids!

OH, and an added bonus... the box had handles, windows and a door that pop out, turning it into a house! Lori LOVED that part!

Weep, Remember, Live

As many of you know this has been a very rough summer for me and my family. Not long after losing my cousin in Afghanistan, we lost a dear family friend to cancer. All in all, it's safe to say that I'm glad the summer is over and I'm looking forward to starting fresh this fall. It seems like every time I think I'm done crying, I'm not. I have never had to deal with death before, at least not of anyone this close, and then times it by two... wow, I'm emotionally spent.

Something that has helped me tremendously are words spoken at my cousin's graveside service. They were given as a benediction of sorts and I honestly feel like it was directly responsible for starting me off on the path of healing. (Which is proving to be a much long and tougher road that I ever expected.) I contacted the Chaplain, Chaplain (Colonel) Larry McCarty, and asked him for his exact wording, and while I still think that the three words; Weep, Remember, Live, are powerful in and of themselves, having the extra explanation in there just adds to it, and makes it even MORE memorable.

Weep — Jesus wept and so must you. Weep, grieve by leaning on your family, friends and above all your faith. 2 Corinthians 1:2-4 teaches that as we weep, the God of Comfort and Father of Mercies will hold us close. And He will give us the strength to one day help others who are going through the same storms of life.

Remember — Hold on to the precious memories. Cling to them. Never let them go. Remember the precious promises of God, promises like John 14:1-3 (see bottom of post for verse.)

Live — Live life fully. Seize the day. For life is a precious, fragile gift from God. Live your life fighting the good fight of faith and finishing strong. 2 Timothy 4:6-8 (see bottom of post for verse.)

I know it's going to be a long long road, and certain things like my guilty pleasure of Lifetime's "Army Wives" will never be the same, nor will a show like "The Big C" (a COMEDY about a women living with cancer) ever really seem funny to me.

Another part of the healing process for me was getting my first and probably only tattoo. It's to replace the prayer bracelet that I wore during his deployments, until it broke during his last one. (I know, I don't even wanna think about the "omen" that turned out to be, good thing I don't believe in those! Anyway...) It was much bigger than I originally intended but the more it heals, the more it "grows" on me. It makes me feel like there is no chance I could ever forget, it's hard to explain really, it just makes me feel like his memory will always be with me... everyday. I hope that every time I see it I will be reminded to pray for Brian's wife, brothers and mom. I know it will be harder for them than I can even imagine!

So in the words of Chaplain McCarty, I'm gonna Weep, Remember and Live (repeat)

(“Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” John 14:1-3)

(For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:6-8)

My cousin, my Hero!!

On July 19th, I lost my cousin and friend Sgt. Brian Piercy. He was fighting for our freedom over in Afghanistan.

(handsome huh?)

My dad was the one who told me, and ever since I have been filled with every sort of emotion you can think of. Sorrow, angry, numbness, denial, guilt, even hatred. Acceptance comes for a few seconds and then goes just about as fast as it came. He was a good man, he IS a good man. Its funny, I can say "was" but typing it seems odd, too permanent maybe. This first picture of just him and I makes my heart hurt. I can only look at it so long before I realize that I'll never get to hug him again. It's just weird.

Brian, his twin brother Eric and I are only 4 months apart and we have always gotten along really well. They lived a few hours away but we always got together for Christmas or Easter or family weddings as well as a few other times a year, We were always getting in to some sort of trouble... always fun for us, but trouble for our folks. As we got older we saw each other a little less until high school when our busy schedules finally matched up. It always seemed like it was only 2 of the 3 though. (Brian and Eric have a younger brother Kevin) Either Brian and Kevin or Kevin and Eric, but rarely all 3. (THOSE times were and are extra special)
One time in particular it was just Brian and Kevin and we were board and watching T.V. I think Brian was channel surfing and as we were passing a certain channel Kevin screams out "OOH!! UNCLE BUCK!!" Brian and I looked at each other and in confusion and then BUSTED UP laughing. I mean seriously, Uncle Buck?? (not saying it's not a good movie, it's just that it didn't seem to warrant THAT amount of enthusiasm.) And that was the first time we laughed so hard together it hurt! It seemed like every time we saw each other after that we laughed until it hurt. I've never laughed so hard, with someone so often in all my life. I will always have that with him, always.The other thing about that trip that stands out is that for some unknown reason, our parents sent us to the corner market for snacks, or maybe we just went on our own, I don't remember. All I know is that some how we ended up buying Dreyers Scooby Snacks ice cream as a joke which turned out to be our new FAVORITE ice cream flavor. We would talk about it all the time, as well as Uncle Buck and to this day I do not see that movie with out thinking about Brian and Kevin.
I have never had to deal with death. Most of my family members who have died, died either before I was born, before I could remember anything OR where on the older side and were "ready to go". This was not like that. He was taken from us, it was someones fault. I know that he did not suffer, and that he died doing what he loved and I do find some comfort in that. But for the most part this is still very foreign to me.
One of my favorite pictures! (Not only cause my jacket was AWESOME (purple corduroy!) but because it was all of us together!)

It was very rare that we were ALL together at the same time, like I said it was usually Kevin and one of the twins, I think that's why I love this one.

Back in 2006 Brian married Christina, and she made him happier than I'd ever seen him. They are a perfect match. Please pray for her as she grieves the loss of her best friend and sole mate. I can only imagine what she's going through.

THIS photo (sorry, there's been a lot I know) was taken 6 days before his death, he was apparently giving orders to his squad, which I think is very cool. I love looking at it cause when I do I see strength, courage, and confidence. I see a hero. Brain was my hero and even though sometimes I don't understand why or who he was fighting, I know that he was fighting for what he believed in. I miss him terribly.

6 months!

I can not believe its been 6 months since Davey was born. He has grown in so many ways, which is to be expected I suppose. I am just beyond in love with this little boy! As of July 8th he can sit up by himself with out falling over and as of yesterday, July 14th he is CRAWLING! Ok, so crawling my be a SLIGHT overstatement, however he pulls himself towards the toys that he wants, usually my phone or one of Lori's shoes, more than a toy really. It still counts in my opinion cause he sees what he wants and he gets there... usually.
He's such an interesting little kid. Jorge and I talk about how different he and Lori are all the time. For one, he's WAY bigger!! When Lori was the size he is now, she was 9, probably 10 months old! He's a MOOSE! He also laughs more than we remember Lori doing. Which is special for me since he's middle name means "Laughter". He also loves to watch T.V, unlike his sister who couldn't care less about T.V until just recently AND play with toys. Lori didn't have much interest in toys until not too long ago. I love watching the two of them "play". Most of the time it's just Lori trying to convince Davey or I that he is done playing with the fancy light-up, music playing toy by trading him for something not NEARLY as entertaining. "He aw done. Day-Dee aw done" "Uhh, yeah Lori, I don't think so." Haa ha, never a dull moment with these two. They are also similar in the sense that they are both basically good natured, happy, easy going kids.

Happy 1/2 Birthday Big Man! We love you and are so proud of you!

(photos curiosity of Aunt May-Me photography. haha )

Jesus Love me!

Lori has been "singing" for a while now, but hasn't really gotten the whole "lyrics" thing. She would sing "Jesus Loves Me" by saying "Bible, Bible" over and over again. It was cute and I enjoyed the sweetness of it. But just the other day she surprized me by singing the actual words! I was THRILLED! So thrilled that I have started trying to teach her Michael Jackson's "Human Nature" which is comin' along quite nicely. So far we have "Why? Why?" and "Looking out... across the night-time" and then "No I don wanna!" (not the lyrics... just her protest)

Here is a couple of videos I took on my phone (probably should invest in one of those flip cams huh?) of Lori singing her version of "Jesus Loves Me" with the promise of her rendition of "Human Nature" to come soon.

Just what I've always wanted!

This Mother's Day was AMAZING! It started out with Lori bringing me my travel coffee mug, with a NEW insert that she and Jorge made. It was the most wonderful thing I've ever seen! In all honesty it was. As you all know I am a pretty crafty person, and having worked at a school, I was the one who made all the crafts and gifts for kids to give there moms. In the back of my mind, I always thought I'd be the one makin' my own keepsake crafts with Lori. But Jorge did it for me. Now all she did was "color" a little part of it, but still, it was so special! He even have Davey a crayon and had him help a little too!


David's part is the purple on the right and Lori's in the red. (Jorge helped her write her name, she's not THAT advanced)

Then we went to church where I received a rose for being the mom of one of the youngest babies in the service. :)


After church we all came home for peanut butter and honey sandwiches and while eating lunch our neighbor came over and said he was going to have our backyards mowed and edged as a gift for me for mother's day!! Isn't that awesome? I thought so! :)

The rest of the day went like this, Lori took a nap while Jorge watched the Cubs game and Davey and I stepped out for a bit. When I got in my car I heard the familiar sounds of the Glee soundtrack that Jorge had slipped in to my CD player which hadn't worked in MONTHS!! He totally surprised me, which trust me, is very hard to do. We drove to the used book store, the Goodwill and Micheals, just cause I wanted to. Once we got home, we all drop to the Super Target where we met up with my sister and her family for "Frappy Hour" (1/2 priced frappacinos) and the Starbucks there. After THAT, (wow this is turning out to be a rather packed day isn't it?) we went for a walk with my sister and her family, and our good friends the Kuykendalls. Then came home, put the kids down and had pizza! It was great!

worth while moments... (working title - anyone got anything better?)

The other day I had to run errands and naturally Lori and Davey came with. I took the kids to Hobby Lobby and after about 2.5 seconds Lori was done with the cart! "Running Lori?" (yes she does mean run and yes, everything she says is with a "?" at the end) Needless to say, I wasn't about to let her run around the store, so I had to do my best to entertain her. Eventually she grew tired of me and desided to lay down. This girl is a kook and a half and makes me laugh! (ok that rhymes but it was unintentional... I promise.)