Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Art by Susan Carter
Pablo Picasso
All through my childhood I have memories of my Mom coloring with me or drawing for us. I was always in awe of the beautiful horses and such she would adorn our paper with. I wished so much that I could make a pencil magically create a masterpiece the way she could with such ease. Unfortunately for me, I was not blessed with that gene. She however, just keeps getting better. Hop on over to my Mom's new blog and see one of her pencil drawings. Better yet, send her an e-mail and inquire about purchasing one! Mention my blog and get a 10% discount off any prints. I hope that you see it with the same wonderment that I do. Keep checking back, there is more to come...
If my link doesn't work simply go to http://carters3oaks.blogspot.com/
Saturday, October 31, 2009
A Boooootiful Evening!
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
I Will Give Myself to You...
Friday, October 16, 2009
Happy 70th Birthday Daddy...
"Dance as if no one's watching, sing as if no one's listening, and live every day as if it were your last."
Thursday, September 24, 2009
My BABY is officially a TEENAGER...
He is 5'9, 175lbs, and wears a size 13 shoe!
He loves to eat and never cleans his room.
Most important thing to remember...I love him with all my heart (even when I want to wring his ever lovin' neck :) )
Monday, September 14, 2009
More than a mustard seed...
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Always growing and changing...
Her vocabulary seems to grow everyday and keeps us laughing as she mimics us. She has started calling Wes Da more than Daddy. Sometimes when I call out his name you will hear this sweet whisper of her saying, "Wes" behind me. When Wes was peeling her banana (her favorite breakfast) she said, "me, me,me, me, me, me" while motioning her hands as if to say give it to me! The week before last, she clearly said, "bye" as she hung up her play phone. We have been trying to get her to say Grammy forever and on Thursday she Finally called out to her plain as day with Gram! I think it made Grammy's day. I am sure I will have to come back and add to this list but here is a list of words and phrases she now says: Momma, Daddy, Da, Bubba, Me, dog, dog sit, I did that, it did that, whats that, shoes (shoosh), Gram, Papa, Nana (was nana for banana but she quit calling it anything at all), love, and today she said, "thank you" as she handed me the dirty laundry over and over. She can sign more but not as often as I would like. I will ask Wes and Hunter to remind me of the words I have forgotten in the morning.
As for me and Wes, we are still praying that he finds a job soon. The financial strain puts such a heavy weight on all of our emotions lately. Whenever I want to feel sorry for myself I am reminded of how blessed we are to all be healthy and for our beautiful children. There are so many worse pains and burdens so many families struggle through. This is hard, but we will recover. We still have faith that God has a beautiful plan for our family.
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Picture Perfect Tutu...
Monday, August 10, 2009
Finally, Hunter is Home!!!!
Hunter came home standing about 5'9-5'10 and wearing a size 13 shoe! My little boy is now a very handsome young man. We had some issues to go over and new ground rules when he got home. He handled the change really well and we had a great first week just hanging out at home. We took his little girlfriend to the movies too. Hopefully this week we will get out and about and see more of his friends. Off we go....
Monday, July 20, 2009
Morgan's Photoshoot with MaddiePie Creations
Go on over to her blog and check out her work. Better yet, book a session with her. You won't be disappointed!
If you can't stand the heat, get out of my kitchen...
On top of my normal routine to cook all day and night on Sunday, I was treated to a fun surprise when we opened the deep freezer on Saturday and found that it was not working!!! HORROR!!! Most of the food was still good and some was even still frozen. God must have sent an angel to keep it cool in there. Seems like it had been 103 plus temperatures outside all week and yet, my food was spared. We had a smorgasbord of food Saturday cooking the thawed frozen dinners. What we couldn't refreeze we cooked, and cooked, and grilled, and cooked. Wes grilled steaks & pork chops. We made homemade BBQ chicken in the crock pot. I am trying to satisfy Wes's request for "cool" foods to help him beat the heat so I prepared Honey Mustard Chicken Pasta Salad, Italian Pasta Salad, Chicken and Grape Salad, Fresh Salsa, and a bushel of fresh fruits for him. I had to rescue the frozen hashbrowns so he also ended up with a Hashbrown Casserole and my variation of a Breakfast Pizza. You can click on the meals above to view the recipes.
BREAKFAST PIZZA
1 lb. bulk pork sausage
1 refrigerated pizza crust
1 c. shredded cheddar cheese, Swiss or Monterey Jack
2 tbsp. Parmesan cheese
5 eggs
1/4 c. milk
1 small onion
1 bell pepper (I used yellow but red would have been better)
1/2 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. pepper
Brown sausage and drain. Roll pizza doe out on cookie sheet. Press over bottom and up sides to form crust. Sprinkle with sausage. Cover sausage with chopped onion and bell pepper. Top with cheese. In bowl, beat eggs, milk, salt, pepper and sauce. Pour over sausage. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and bake in 375 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes. Supposedly great for that holiday breakfast.
****I was originally going to use a bag of frozen hashbrowns (thawed and patted dry) but ruined them and had to improvise...it was delish!!!
Let me know what you think of the recipes. Smooches y'all!
Saturday, July 18, 2009
It is toooo HOT!!!
Sunday, July 5, 2009
Happy 4th of July!
Monday, June 29, 2009
Scott Family Updates...
As you know, Wes has been looking for steady work since late April, when he completed the power plant in Colorado. Until now, nothing promising has been offered. Bless his heart, he has applied for well over 300-400 jobs in the past few months. As a wife, this has been one of the hardest things to watch. He prides himself in providing for our family. Those of you, who know us well, know that he has climbed unimaginable obstacles to get where he is. God obviously has big plans for him and I couldn’t be more proud of him. We heard promising news that the Boilermaker Union that Wes works for is hoping to have more work by September…that is wonderful, but we will starve and be homeless by then! We are so grateful for the odd jobs my Mom, Dad, and friends have had for us to help us get by. More than anything we are holding tight to our faith that God will provide for us. He always has. Wes has taken a job welding in Tyler, TX. The pay is horrible, but is more than we would earn on unemployment so it is a blessing. They do pay for his hotel and his food allowance will help with fuel. Also, Tyler is a whole lot closer than Colorado so that is a HUGE plus for me.
I cooked all day yesterday so that he would have a weeks worth of food without it costing us anything more. I sent him with a cooler full of my meatloaf meatballs, crock pot chicken, rice, summer squash casserole, buttermilk chicken, watermelon, cantaloupe, oranges, yogurt, sandwich fixings and baked him some butter crunch cookies. So now that I have finally gotten used to having him home for meals as a family, he is gone again...but with good food. I hope that when he is having his home cooked dinner, he can see a little of how much I love him.
After many years of long commutes and being mentally and emotionally consumed with work, I have been incredibly blessed this past year in being able to be home with my children. I love taking Hunter to and from school and getting him off to practice on time. I know that it isn’t enough to make up for all the years he spent in after school care, but he knows that I was working hard to take care of him. Being home with Morgan has been equally enjoyable. Being here to watch her learn and grown is so awesome. The two of them make me feel as if I have done something wonderful everyday. With that said, I couldn’t let Wes work so hard to find a job and not try to help more, so I updated my resume and applied for work too. Who knew that taking just a year off would cause me to feel so out of touch with the rest of the working world? This was a practical, but difficult decision for me. I truly believe that I serve my family better being home, but I have to try. Just the cost of childcare and fuel alone makes the job search a daunting task. So far no bites, but as we all know, God is good. After the 4th of July holiday, I will be taking care of two adorable little girls, ages 6 & 10, every other week. I also have a house lined up to clean every other week where I can take Morgan with me! My Mom has a list of things I can do for her to help her get caught up and organized too. This isn’t what I was looking for at all and will need to find a few more houses to clean or drop in’s to make it profitable, but what a blessing!!! I am so excited!!! They are so well behaved I don't worry about bringing them with me to MTM play dates!!! I miss you girls!!! Maybe I can offer a Mother’s Day Out to my friends a few days a week and see how that goes. I am just happy to be able to help Wes and still be here for my children.
As for the kids, Hunter is having a blast with his Dad and Charity in Houston. They took a long weekend and went to the river. He is like me, happy anywhere there is water and family. Morgan is learning and changing every day. She grabs on to our legs and coos oooohs and ahhhhs. It is adorable and melts your heart. Of course, it is usually after she has touched a million no no’s, pulled the outlet covers out, turned off my computer, drooled on my phone, and pulled my clothes out of my drawers and thrown them all over the house. She is going through a stage of separation anxiety. Even people that she normally goes right too are causing her to grab on to us tight and cry. She too, loves the water.
I need to end this here. Nap time is almost over and as you know, I could go on and on all day about my children…can’t we all? Again, please keep praying. I hate that we have been so out of touch. We have been trying to save money and stay focused on the job search. We would love to hear updates from you too!
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Happy Father's Day
A man of knowledge uses words with restraint,
and a man of understanding is even-tempered. (NIV)
Happy Father's Day Wesley! You have worked so hard for us and you deserve more than an evening of rest. I hope that you enjoyed your evening of grilling and family time. I know Morgan loved it. She had a blast playing on the patio with the hose for the first time. She had us cracking us chasing poor Red around with the hose yelling, "DOG SIT!!!" She fully intended on bathing him, I just know it. (Don't forget to double click on the collage to get a better look)And just what did we eat to honor Father's Day you ask? We had steak, sauteed summer squash w/onion and mushrooms, grilled corn and lil' baked potatoes. YUMMY!!!
Friday, June 19, 2009
Desperate
This is the air I breathe
Your holly presence, living in me This is my daily bread Your very word, spoken to me And I........I'm desperate for you And I ........ I'm lost without you...
from "Breathe" by Michael W Smith
Monday, June 15, 2009
Just because they made me smile...
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Faith
God, Please help me to put my faith and trust in you all day every day. Thank you for the blessings that I know are coming our way. Amen.
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Hello Summer...We missed you old friend!
Monday, June 1, 2009
Happy 1st Birthday Sweet Morgan!!!
I think she is thinking, "Seriously Mom! Pictures while I am eating...again?"
I am always telling myself to write things down as the kids do them so I don't forget when a milestone happens. I know I am forgetting to list a few things but this is a good start to a list of where she is at. Morgan started walking pretty well about a week before she turned one. She was cruising with her toys and the furniture for about four months before she went more than ten steps alone. She is saying, Dada, Momma, Bubba, Hunna (Hunter), Dog, Yes, No, That, Banana, Nana, Good, Love, and I am sure I am forgetting some. While she can wear 18 month clothes and is healthy looking, she can still wear 6-9 months clothes. She loves to splash and swim in the garden tub and even likes the shower. She is still nursing in the early morning and at bed time and sleeps throughout he night most nights. She will eat so many things that we eat but her favorites are cheese, bananas, bread, pasta, Nilla wafers, cheerios, green beans, apple sauce, flour tortillas, guacamole and beans. She has a HUGE appetite. I have never seen a baby eat as much as she does.