SHS 9/30

It's time to join Ashley over at



for some new pictures this week.


Yellow

Nothing beats an afternoon coffee in a cheery yellow mug.
Except maybe a large dollop of whipped cream to go with it.


Getting Ready

 We women take a lot to get ready to face the world. These are just a few essential items.


Bright

 I can never get enough of the gorgeous sunrises and sunsets around these parts. I might not miss a lot when I leave El Paso, but I will miss the spectacular displays every day.


Teeny Tiny

 Someone shattered some glass into a thousand teeny tiny pieces right outside our driveway. It was so sparkly and pretty, I couldn't resist a picture.


Connections

 Isn't this the ultimate connection these days.
Seems like this is the only way we communicate anymore.


You can join the fun here:

Scavenger Hunt Sunday


Next week:

Shadow
Keys
Smile
Unedited
Spice

11 Things

Flowers in fall are one of the most beautiful things ever.

Anne of Avonlea is one of the best series of all time.
We are going to have an "Anne" movie marathon this weekend.

This chandelier needs to be hanging in my dining room. 

A salad for lunch is wonderful and healthy,
especially when followed by a scrumptious brownie sundae.
It's all about balance.

Dads and daughters are a special thing. Cherish it.

My beautiful niece is getting married in 2 weeks.
Man, I'm getting old.

Taking your kids to Toys R Us is an exercise in patience.

Spending a Saturday afternoon ignoring the laundry and watching your husband play video games is perfectly acceptable.

One of the good things about living in the desert is the variety of
beautiful skies you get to experience.

Holding a newborn baby is one of life's greatest pleasures. 

 Sunday afternoon fellowship with good friends.
Good times.

White Sands

Where ever we are stationed, I make it a point to see all the sites and tourist attractions around the base.

Sometimes there is a lot of stuff to do and see.

Sometimes, it is a little more challenging. (I'm talking to you  Ft Polk, Louisiana)

That is one of the perks of military life.
You move around an awful lot and if you are smart, you will take advantage of it.
That's how I have been to 48 states and seen most of the country's National Parks and tourist traps.


Since we are only going to be here in El Paso for a few more months, I wanted to make sure I got to go the the places close by.


We visited Carlsbad Caverns.

Checked out Roswell, New Mexico

These were the only aliens we could find. They must have heard we were coming...


We had a blast at the La Union Corn Maze

And, of course, went to the Albuquerque Balloon Festival.

We are going again in two weeks. I am so excited. It truly is amazing and beautiful.
Even is you do have to get up really early to see the balloon launch.



Just one other thing to check off the list and we would finish the area.
White Sands National Park.

So, I dragged the husband and kids out this past Saturday to check it out.


We went sledding along the sands.

Yep, I tried it. Had a wipeout on the first attempt.

I wasn't the only one.

Jerry built a "sand castle"

 The kids made sand angels.

I wanted a family photo and Jerry had the idea to do it with out footprints.

Pretty cool, huh?


While I was taking pictures of the landscape...

Jerry went over the hill.
When I went looking for him, this is what I found.

It was a very good day.
Even if we did lose the boys shoes.

SHS 9/23

I am not going to lie. I had a hard time with a couple of the prompts this week.

I tried and tried to get "Bokeh" but each time something was really messed up.
So, I skipped that one.  :(
Now it has become a challenge for me.  I will get it.
Eventually.  :)


I did manage to get the other prompts, though.
So, without further ado...here they are.


Cracked

This weekend we went to White Sands National Monument.
I will be sharing more photos from that adventure later this week.
This is one of the shots I got of the amazing landscape there.
Looks very alien, doesn't it?


Fallen

Fall is here.  Woohoo!


Ordinary Color

  Ordinary color, extraordinary beauty.


Fence

 At first, I thought this picture was pretty boring. So, I decided to play around with the colors a bit.
I love how it dramatic it looks now.


I am linking up with Ashley over at



 Next Week:

Yellow
Getting Ready 
Bright 
Teeny Tiny 
Connections

"Perfect" Mom?

I read this article today and it rocked me.

Dear sweet mom who feels like she is failing...

I am in constant fear of failing my kids.
Of sending them off into the big, wide world unprepared.

Maybe they will never understand God's love for them...maybe they will have bad memories of home life...what if I am not teaching them to be independent...what if they want to move very far from me when they are grown...

These are some of the "what ifs" and "maybe that's"  that can plague a mom.
I know they certainly plague me.

I want to be a good mom.
I want to spend time with my kids and teach them they are valuable and beautiful and capable.
I want to remember these days with fondness instead of exhaustion.

This article reminded me to slow down, to lighten up,
to stop trying to be the "perfect" mom and just be their mom.



I want to enjoy playing with them

And baking with them

I want to do more projects with them

I want to let them be kids

And, of course, enjoy the quiet times

I will never be the perfect mom, so I will work at being a good mom.

I am sure I will fail at times, but I will continue to press on.
I will continue to try.

They deserve it.
So do I.

SHS 9/16

Kiss

Being an army family, we don't get to see family as often as we would like.
So, the kids are always thrilled when we get the chance to visit.
James LOVES his Aunt Joy.


Askew

I adore this picture.
It hangs in my kitchen as a constant reminder of the most important thing in this world.
However, it is constantly askew! I have to fix it almost daily.


Fragrant

My hubby made home made pizza for us this week.
It made the entire house smell divine.  Yum!


Simple

Of all the high tech toys my boys have had over the years, it's the simple ones that held their attention the longest. They have had these Army Men forever. And they still play with them.


Plant

Say hello to Ivy.
I have had her for two years now and she is still thriving.
That is really saying something for the desert.



Of course, I am linking up with Ashley at




Next week:

Cracked
Fallen 
Ordinary Color
Bokeh
Fence