Magic Cookie Bars

You'll need:

1/2 C butter, melted

1 1/2 C graham cracker crumbs

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

2 C semisweet chocolate chips (I used the minis)

1 1/3 C flaked coconut

1 C chopped nuts (I used pecans)

Mix your butter and graham cracker crumbs and spread in a greased 9x13 dish

Pour your sweetened condensed milk evenly over your graham crackers

Mix together the chocolate chips, coconut and pecans

Pour your chocolate chip mixture over graham crackers and press down with a fork. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes or until golden brown.

Serve with an entire gallon of milk :-)

(Make sure to let them cool before you try to cut them otherwise you will just have chocolatey goop!) ENJOY!

It's a Love Story

Sunday, March 6, 2005 - I woke up to look out my window and see palm trees. I got ready for church and off we went. I didn't know anyone but the person that I came with, so I sat with her right on the front row. I'm sure people were wondering who the girl with the pastor's wife was. After service she introduced me to Steve, the student ministries pastor, who politely invited me to a bonfire later that night. I thought to myself,

"Thanks, but probably not, I would be way too uncomfortable, but then again this whole situation should have be a little bit uncomfortable."

It's amazing what you find yourself doing when you ask God to lead you.

Let me back up a minute.

Earlier that week I was a 19 year old freshman in college, living at home, working as a bank teller. I was lost but wanted desperately to be found. For the last few years of high school and most of my first year of college I had been living for myself. I had disregarded all I knew that was right and tried to do life on my own. I was in and out of bad relationships, bad friendships and making bad decisions. In January of 2005 my boyfriend at the time broke up with me, and it was the best thing that ever happened to me.

I finally got to the point where I was tired of lying to myself. I had tried to make myself happy and had failed miserably. So I begged the Lord to take back control, and He did.

Earlier in that first week of March I told my Mom that I wanted to get away for Spring Break. I had no one to go with, not much money and zero ideas. She mentioned her friends that lived in Florida. I was very cautious at first, these people were old friends, but we hadn't actually seen them in 16 years. The husband was a pastor and his wife a teacher, but did I really want to go a strange town and stay for a week with people I didn't even know?

She was sure they would be happy to have me. She called them up and they said, "Send her on down!" So I bought a plane ticket, packed my bags and off I went to stay with people I hardly knew in a place I had never been!

Now, back to my story. After church we went to lunch on the beach. There was great food, and great company all in the most beautiful setting!

Later that evening the family I was staying with was hosting their small group at their house, they said I was more than welcome to stay but that I would probably have a better time at the bonfire. As I was leaving for the bonfire the first couple in their small group arrived, Ron and Alecia. Alecia mentioned that two of their sons would be at the bonfire, and to look for Travis and Spencer. She also mentioned that I might want a sweater, but who packs a sweater to come to Florida? :-)

When I arrived back at the church Steve and his wife Erin were just setting up, we talked and others started to arrive. I met Travis and Spencer and made small talk, but mostly with Travis. I think Spencer maybe talked to me twice, I just assumed he was very quiet or really snobby!

Monday, March 7, 2005 I had spent the day out and about and was back at the house. I had made dinner for the family I was staying with and they were asking about my plans for the night. I told them I had no plans and they told their son he should help me find something to do. The next thing I know their son comes out of his room with the phone and hands it to me.

"It's Spencer."

"What?"

"You said you needed something to do, and I was on IM with Spencer and he said he would do something with you."

At this point my heart was racing, my hands were sweating, my face was all red and I didn't know what to do, should I talk to him...he didn't seem to like me much the night before, maybe I could just hang up on him.

I reluctantly took the phone, I mean this was the guy that hardly spoke to me the night before, how awkward would it be to be alone with him? Besides, I didn't know the guy, he could be a crazy killer!

"Hello?"

"I heard you needed something to do tonight, we could go see a movie or something."

"Um, yea, do you think a group of people would want to go with us?" (Since I don't know you and don't really want to be alone with you!!)

"Well, let me find out and I will give you a call back."

Ring ring

"Hello?"

"I talked to some people but no one could do anything."

"Ok, well I guess if you want to do something we can, maybe we can just rent a movie and bring it back here."

"Ok, see you in a bit."

At this point I was seriously on the verge of tears, I was scared, I was nervous, I was a mess. I told the son that since he got me into this mess that he was going to have to watch a movie with us once we got back from the video store!

Well Spencer arrived and we went to the movie theater and I said that there wasn't anything I really wanted to see, but renting a movie would be fine. We got our movie, went back to the house and much to my surprise he was not at all the snob or the psycho I though he was :-) I can't even tell you what movie we watched because we talked through the whole thing. At the end of the night he left me his phone number so I could call him if I needed something to do another night :-)

Tuesday, March 8, 2005 - After being out for the whole day I got back to the house to see a note taped to my door that said, "Call Spencer before 11." My heart went pitter-pat and I looked at the clock, it was 10:45pm. I immediately grabbed my phone and called my mom.

"Mom, Spencer called and wants me to call him back, what should I do?"

"Call him, honey!"

"Ok, I'll call him and call you right back."

"Hello?"

"Hi, Spencer! I had a note to call you."

"Yea, I was wondering if I could take you to dinner at the beach on Thursday night. I have ultimate frisbee that night too and you can come if you want."

"That sounds like fun, I'll see you then."

Not only did we go out on Thursday, but we went out on Wednesday and Friday too! Thursday night after dinner, ultimate frisbee and a movie we had our very first kiss. I can honestly say that night I knew that Spencer was going to be my husband. I don't know why, I just knew.

Friday came and it was time for me to go back to Ohio. It just so happened that two weeks later Spencer was coming to Indiana for his college roommates wedding and we made plans for me to meet him there and then bring him back to Ohio to meet my family. We dated from Ohio to Florida for about 5 months until I moved to Florida with my family. We were engaged on October 15, 2005 and in December of 2005 I moved into his parents house and started planning our June wedding.

On June 17, 2006 I married the man of my dreams and my best friend. I am still amazed when I think of how greatly God blessed me when he brought Spencer into my life. He is a man of character and integrity and he showed me what true love was. God used Spencer to show me that even though I had made mistakes and tried to do things on my own that He still had a plan for me and I still had value in His eyes.

Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart.

A Day In the Life - Show Us Your Life

Today at Kelly's Korner the topic is "What is your typical day like?" As a mom who likes to stay on a fairly regular schedule I think it will be good to see what other families' days look like!

7:30 am - Rise and shine! Everyday the boys (and mommy!) get up at this time, we change diapers and eat breakfast. (I am not an early riser unless I have to be, some days I have to get up for a doctor's appointment or something, but otherwise I sleep in as long as I can!)

8:00 am - Daddy heads to work and it's just mommy and the boys! Between this time I get the boys dressed for the day and they play around the house. I clean up from breakfast, work on some laundry, read to the boys, etc.

9:30 - 10:30 - Joshua takes his morning nap. During this time I do my work out while Andrew watches/plays/giggles/attempts to work out too! Then I put a show on for Andrew so I can take a shower and get ready for the day.

10:30 - 12:00 - This is my window of opportunity for out-of-the-house activity. That could mean getting groceries, running errands, taking the boys to the park or just going for a walk. I try to get them out of the house everyday even if it's just for a walk.

12:00 - Lunchtime!

12:30 - 1:00 - Un-wind time, I let the boys play for a bit and then we change diapers and get ready for naps!

1:00-3:30 (sometimes 4!) - Afternoon naps. This is when I get stuff done! The very first thing I do is clean up the kitchen from lunch. I can usually hear the boys talking and giggling for about 15 minutes, so I do whatever work needs to be done in the kitchen so I don't wake them up later! During naptime I do my quiet time/Bible study and then work on whatever there is to do around the house. Fold laundry, iron, clean, work on whatever craft project I am in the middle of, plan menus, blog, make grocery lists, make phone calls, etc. I love to put a movie in and listen/watch the movie while I am working on whatever.

4:00 - Snacktime! Joshua has his afternoon bottle while Andrew has a snack (or 10!) While they are eating I start on dinner.

5:00 - 6:00 - Survival hour! Haha! Sometimes the boys are happy to play, color or read and sometimes I can hardly get a thing done! I am usually in the middle of cooking dinner and sometimes that means letting them watch tv until Daddy gets home!

6:00 - Daddy's home! By this time we are all happy to have someone else around! We eat dinner at this time as well.

6:45 - 7:00 - Bath time! Daddy usually mans bath time while I clean up the kitchen....again! I find that keeping at least the kitchen clean goes a long way in my outlook on the whole house!

7:15 - Joshua gets cereal and bedtime bottle.

7:30 - Bedtime! We say prayers, kiss clean faces and put them to bed!

8:00 - 10:30 - Alone time! Some evenings I finish whatever didn't get done during the day and sometimes I just veg out! Spencer is also very sweet about letting me run errands some evenings so I can just be alone!

Now having shared all that let me share this....life as a stay-at-home-mommy can be very unpredictable! Some days I have fussy boys that keep me from getting much done, or something unexpected happens and we have just have to adapt. It is important to have a schedule but it is just as important to be flexible. I like my boys to get outside of their routine every once in awhile without pushing their limits too much. I think that children need predictability in life to feel secure, but they also need fun and spontaneity!

Besides all the day-to-day activities there are boo boo's to fix, manners to teach, memories to make, runny noses to wipe, encouragement and discipline to be given and so much more! Some days I am so tired from the previous days that I take a little nap when the boys are sleeping! It seems like once I feel like I have it all together something changes, I am learning everyday!

Being a mom is wonderful and challenging all at the same time, the best way for me to be successful is to be organized and stick to a schedule as much as I can! If you are a new mommy the best advice I can give is to make a schedule and stick to it, but to be flexible when you need to be!

A Cruisin' We Will Go

I am so excited because at the end of May we are going on vacation! Like, a REAL vacation! I go to Ohio multiple times a year to see family, and as much as I love it, I don't really consider that vacation! haha

Not only are we going on vacation, but WE = Spencer and I....no kiddos! We will be joined by my sister, Emily, my brother-in-law and both my brothers! I am very excited! (Can you tell?!)

When my mom went back to school to get her degree four years ago I told her that when she graduated we were going to take her on her very first cruise as a graduation present. This May she would have graduated from the University of Findlay with a degree in elementary education. God had bigger plans than we did. She is now living everyday in paradise with Him! When she passed away in October my siblings and I decided that we still wanted to take a vacation together this Spring.

My sister and I are having a great time talking about the cruise and making plans. We both, of course are also very excited to think about the shopping that *needs* to be done! haha

I told her that I would share some pictures on here so she could see what I have gotten so far!

I found this dress at TJ Maxx in GA for $10!

This dress I ordered from Chadwick's online for $15!

This dress I purchased knowing that I have 2 weddings coming up, but thinking it would be good for the cruise too. I found it at the Dress Barn outlet for $17!

I splurged on this next dress, I got it at Ross for $40! I brought it home to show Spencer and he didn't love it. So I thought maybe my sis would want it, here you go Em, what do you think? There is a bow on the waist but it's hard to see.

So there you go. Obviously I enjoy buying dresses! I have to say that I am pretty proud that I got all 4 dresses for $82! Now that's a deal!

Birthday Bash

Yesterday I celebrated the big 2-4! I share my birthday with my father-in-law and cousin-in-law! March 1st is a popular day!

Saturday we celebrated with Spencer's family. My mother-in-law made an awesome dinner, we had crabcakes for appetizers, steak, salad and potatoes for dinner and chocolate cake for dessert. Mmmm! I got cute new pajamas, flip flops and....shopping money! Woo hoo!

Here are some pictures from the night.

Yesterday, on my actual birthday I spent the day with some great friends, Erin and Jessica and their little ones, Payton and Easton. When I first came to Florida the first girl I connected with was Erin. She and her husband, Steve were friends with Spencer and Steve was the Student Ministries pastor at our church. My friendship with Erin comes so naturally, we can always just pick up where we left off. They moved away shortly after Spencer and I were married but luckily for me her parents still live in Florida and we always try to meet up when she comes for a visit! I met Jessica through Erin and she lives about halfway between me and Erin's parents, so we met at her house! These are two beautiful women and I wish we all lived closer! You can check out Erin's blog here and Jessica's blog here!

We spent the morning letting our kids play and talking about anything and everything!

Andrew and Miss Payton on their first date! Ha!

Joshua wanted in on the action!

Today my friend, Mandy took me to lunch to celebrate. I didn't get any pictures because we were wrestling 3 little monkeys the whole time! We ended up moving the party to her house because there was no way to sit and visit and keep all the boys entertained. We always chuckle at how much our lives have changed in the last couple years! She was so sweet to treat me to lunch and get me a cute new top and some pretty lip gloss!

Spencer and I have yet to really celebrate, I think we might get to go out this Friday. But he did give me a sweet card and Beth Moore's new book, So Long Insecurity. I mentioned that I wanted to read it and he picked up on my hints :-) I also got a new closet, but that's a whole other post!

I had a wonderful birthday with lots of friends and family!