Happy Fathers Day...Every Day

This is a post for Father's Day. Yes, I realize that Father's Day was almost 2 weeks ago, but I have been experiencing computer problems and this was a post that I just didn't want to get lost in the shuffle! (Sidenote: until the problems are resolved my posts may be a bit more sporadic, but I hope to get back to regular posts asap so don't give up on me!) I wanted to post this in honor of my husband, Craig, who is possibly one of the worlds best dads. Seriously...I know that I am blessed SO unbelievably to be parenting alongside him. In fact, he is better than me (...but don't tell him I said that.) Not only is he one of the most patient people I know (really) but he invests in his children. He invests attention, lots of love, and time. So if Landon and Savannah were able to better express themselves I believe this is what they would say to their Daddy...

Thank you for holding me up...

Thank you for letting me tag along... 

Thank you for cheering me on...

Thank you for letting me help...

And for teaching me how...

Thank you for being silly with us...

The other day Landon and Craig were playing a game and as I walked by the room I heard Landon say "Daddy, you're my best friend."...I think that pretty much sums it up.  

Happy Dad's Day, Craig, It may be long past, but you deserve it every day. We love you!

Impressions

I spent the last week in Asbury, West Virginia celebrating the home-going of my Papaw Taylor. There were moments of joy as well as sadness. Many of the images I saw stood out to me and begged me to stop and take them in. The following are just some impressions of the week...a way for me to remember the things that I thought and felt.

Things are out of place...physical reminders that you are gone...but also reminders that where you are, there is no need for lift chairs, wheel chairs, or walkers.

There are remnants of you everywhere...

We all find ways to remember you.

The kids are blissfully unaware of our grief. Landon often reminds me that you are in heaven.

The kindness of friends comes in many forms.

I know that I will see you every time I see your chair. This is last place I saw you. This is where I kissed your bald head goodbye for the last time...

There are smiles after tears. We have each other.

We will continue making memories...but oh, how we will miss you... Life truly does go on.

Papaw

As I write this post, my Papaw - Charlie Taylor - is walking streets of gold. The same streets that he told me about when I was so young. He used a wordless book...he carried one everywhere he went. Tonight, after a long struggle, Jesus finally called my Papaw home. I am relieved...and I am mourning my loss. If you know our family, you know how tight knit we are...and if you don't then I only wish you could have been there for one of our cookouts, bonfires, camping trips, or holiday extravaganzas because it was something truly special. I know that it always will be, but I also know that it won't be the same. It never could be for me.

One of the few fortunate things about a slow death is that you have lots of time for making memories and saying things that should be said. I am so thankful for the moments we shared. Even this past weekend I was able to make one last trip to WV to see him. While there, I sat on the edge of my Papaw's bed and held his tiny, frail hand. We were able to talk, and even laugh. I will forever cherish my memories of him. The following is something I wrote for my Papaw before he passed away:

My Favorite memories of my Papaw...

Walks to the spring with Lady and Waddles.

Rides on the tote-goat.

Bedtime stories about Old Blue.

How he played “Charlie horse” with us...I thought that was really how the song went!

How he rarely calls me Leah. It is Le-le or Turkey-Lips-Totten (I prefer Le-le!)

Trips to visit those in the nursing home...seeing his compassion.

How he endured hardship to serve his country.

How proud he is to be an American.

Camping trips and backyard bonfires.

Papaw specials! Chocolate chips on the bottom of an ice cream cone? Genius!

How he always had a wordless book in his pocket and the gospel on his tongue.

Hearing him sing or whistle around the house.

Listening to old acapella music in his car.

How he wasn’t afraid to live by faith.

How he encouraged me to sing, and gave me so many opportunities to do so.

Watching him as he watched his family when we were all together...

Watching him with my own children and seeing how much they love him.

Hearing him pray...which I often have.

How much he loves Jesus and longs to walk with him on those golden streets...

These are the memories that I will be blessed with all of my life. These are the memories that I will share with my children, and my grandhilden. Thank you, Papaw, for these and so many more...

Love you Always,

Le-Le

Crafting With My Mom

I don't sew. I mean I really don't sew. If a button falls off of something, I just don't wear it anymore. Yes, I know that is so sad! So if you think the craft idea looks to difficult, believe me when I say if I can do it you can do it! My mom called me the other day and said that she wanted to come over and try a new craft with me. When she came with needles and thread instead of a hot glue gun, I was nervous... (Also, she was a little bit shocked that I didn't know what to do with them...) But it was more simple than I imagined so I thought I would share it with you.

If you would like to make one of these adorable fabric flowers here is what you need:

Fabric

Buttons
Needle & Thread
Scissors

Hot Glue Gun

Barrette Clip or Pin (Optional)

I used quarter cloths of material and I cut each cloth into 4 squares. You will need 5 to 7 squares for your petals. There is no set measurement. Different sizes will create unique petals/flowers so experiment!

Once you have your cloth cut you will need to fold it into triangles and iron each piece.

Now for the sewing. Start at the bottom corner of one side and make long gather stitches across the triangle to the other side.

Once you have stitched to the opposite corner, gently pull your thread to gather your petal. Knot your thread and cut if. (Mom said that is was self-explanatory but I'm trying to simplify for non-sewers like myself!) Repeat this process with each peice of material until you have the desired amount of petals. They will look like this:

And finally I got to use my hot glue gun! (Anybody else love theirs?) Select a button for your center and glue each individual petal to the button. From the back it will look like this:

I used a small extra piece of material to cover this. A piece of felt would look even better but I didn't have any and this worked just fine. Then I attached a small barrette because I plan to use this as a bow for Savannah's hair or to clip it on a bag. You could also attach a pin to pin it to a bag, scarf, shirt, etc. Endless possibilities! 

This was my finished product and it wasn't perfect, but it was a prototype, so I'll keep working on it. (Mom has made some really cute flowers!) Try using different patterns for each petal, or making two-layers, find some really unique buttons...get creative! Thanks to my mom for this tutorial!

Life is Messy...(and sometimes colorful!)

OPI nail polish: One of my favorite things! Since we sell them where I work (and I get them discounted!) I have a little bit of a fetish. They're gorgeous and have awesome names like My Chihuahua Bites and A Good Man-darin is Hard to Find! It's always exciting when we get new colors in. What can is say? I'm a girly-girl who likes to paint my toenails especially now that its flip flop season! Recently I started painting Savannah's toes as well. She gets so excited and she loves to just look at the bottles. I mean just look at them, they're so pretty! Unfortunately, this newfound interest led to recent disaster... I do keep my polishes put up, however, on this particular day I had purchased a new polish and it was in my purse... You can already see where I'm going with this.

She decided to paint her own... She missed.

This particular shade? Ate Berries in the Canaries. Unfortunately, Savannah wasn't in the Canaries. She was in my bedroom. And where, you ask, did she decide to beautify her little pigges?

On my bed. On my beautiful, creamy white quilt. Sigh... The truth is that I have had this particular bedspread on my bed for over 6 years now. It needs replaced but I have searched and searched without finding anything that I like! (Its hard being a person who isn't fond of change.) I can't even remember how many comforters, quilts, and coverlets I have bought, thrown on the bed, and said "Hmm...nope." Back to the store they go. I was able to get the majority of the nail polish out...or at least faded to a very pale pink. So for now I'm just going with it. It's just another reminder that life is messy. But how can I complain? I've got a little girly-girl in the making.

Staycation

This year we aren't taking our usual family vacation to Florida. So in lieu of that, we are taking a summer "staycation." There are a lot of great things to do and see right here in our area. Many of our staycation days will be spent at Dollywood's Splash Country. Today was the first day of the season that we go to go and the kids loved it!

Landon was brave (which is a big deal for him because he has his mama's courage...) and he tried some bigger slides. At one point today he said to me "Mom, that slide was so fast I just couldn't believe it!" He also told Craig that his "heart was beating in his tummy!" I loved watching him splash around and play. Savannah did great as well. She is a dare-devil and I was afraid that she would be hard to keep up with, however she didn't care for being splashed, so this worked to my advantage keeping her a little bit closer to me.

It didn't keep her from trying new things though. She loved all of the slides!

It was a beautiful and HOT day. The water was perfect. I absolutely love the kids areas here.

And here is picture overload because I was snap-happy today and I couldn't decide what to post!

This is one mom who is SO glad that summertime is here...