Hoarder???

AFter reading a friends FaceBook status this week, I went on-line to www.aetv.com and watched a couple of episodes of a show called Hoarders. I had watched a couple of these shows here and there over the past few months, but when I watched a couple of the shows on line, I have seriously begun to look around my house and have some very small inside panic attacks. Here's my thing...I like a place for everything and everything in its' place, whereas, my husband likes a place for everything all over the place...no kidding! I am a neat freak. I like countertops to be free of clutter, nothing but the crock pot and some bananas on top of the fridge, nothing on top of the microwave, and my goodness, I hate to use my kitchen table as a catch all! On the opposite end of the spectrum, my DH views ALL of the aforementioned spaces as useless wasted space, and frankly, since I can't beat him at it, for the most part, I join him at his game. Then, when I start to have these little panic attacks [I use this phrase so lightly, basically it is just disgust at the way things look that make me upset, so not real panic attacks], I drive my husband nuts making mad dash sweeps through the house thowing out this, storing that and arguing with him about what needs to be put away and what doesn't. So, when I watch this show, I totally do not understand the hoarder mentality. I will give to you that it is a mental disorder...the people on the show are just plain crazy...but I think I have a little OCD on the opposite end of the spectrum. I am an organize it junkie who just can't get organized. Do any of you mothers feel that way? I have two small kids, 3 and under, I babysit 9 hours a day two other small kids, 4 and under, then I have my big baby, my DH, who I would not trade for anything in the world. I just can't keep up, so I give in to the pressure and usually end up with a messy house most of the time. I will say this, though...watching the show has made me make a huge pile of things for my hubby to take to the basement when he wakes up! Happy fall to all, and get rid of your junk!!!

Some of my sewing creations...

Here are just a few of the dresses I have been working on. I love to sew and these are so simple and cute for little girls!


This was an apron for a cousins little girl. I love the fact that it doesn't pull at the neck, but wraps around and ties at the waist.



I have been trying to add a few embellishments to the dresses I make so they all don't look just alike. I pratty much specialize in the pillow case dresses because they are so easy to make and soooo cute!

To sew or not to sew, that is the question!

Last week, I did not do any sewing because I felt that it had become and all-consuming thing for me. I was in a zone and there was not much else I wanted to do or did while I was sewing. I did complete about 20 projects to sell from the week before, but the week before, I also did not have a very clean or organized house, I did not make dinner, Danny did, and time with the kids was at a minimum because I was consumed. So, this week, I want to get back into my sewing, but I must prioritize my time better. This is what I think I will do this week: I will cut out my sewing projects when the kids go down for their afternoon naps, and when they go to bed for the night, I can get about 3 hours of sewing in. That way, my time with the kids is not compromised, dinner is cooked, and I can also focus on the house being clean and organized. This is a lot of what I have been thinking about today and feeling guilty over letting my sewing get out of hand. Sewing is something I have grown to LOVE and even though it is also a means to make money, I realize I have to give it is proper time and place. There is a limit I must learn!!! What kinds of things do you let get in the way of your time keeping house and training your kids? How do you prioritize and plan? I would love to hear your thoughts and ideas!

WAY PAST DUE

I am sorry because I am WAY PAST DUE with a Hodges Family update. There is so much going on and so much to tell, so let's get to it!

Okay, so the last update was my broken ankle, so let me start there. Thankfully, my break was not too bad, so I spent about 3 weeks in a non-walking cast. I was down and out, meaning, I wasn't supposed to be walking at all, just using crutches, but remember, that was a joke! I couldn't use crutches, the cast came up too high to use the knee walker and a boot that was put on was affecting prior nerve damage in my leg, so that was a no go. It was really humbling! I wasn't really able to do much of anything but sit and watch the kids through the day, and that was with no lifting and not getting up on my leg. By the Grace of God, I got my cast off, and about an hour later, me and the kids hopped in the car and headed for GA! No, I am not joking!!! I was in a caravan with my cousins here in Roanoke and we made it in time for the SHoal Creek 4th of July meeting. It had been forever since I was able to be there and it was soooo enjoyable!!! I got to see and visit a lot of people I hadn't seen in a long time and being under the sound of the Word was awesome! What a great meeting!

So, I stayed in GA for almost two weeks, just me and the kids. I spend a lot of time with my younger brother, his wife and kids and I also went to visit my cousin's family and my older brother and his wife and kids in south GA. I really enjoyed spending time with my mom and Granny too. ll in all it was a great and needed trip. I was beyond thanful to be back home though. I missed my husband and the kids missed him so badly too!

You may be asking how I was able to take a couple of weeks away from my job and make it to GA. Well, that is another thing. A few things came up at home making it necessary for me to leave my part time job and come back home as a full time stay at home mom. I loved my PT job, but I love more being here with my family full time where I am completely and 100% needed. We were having some problems with Josiah that required a lot more of my attention that it was getting. Praise the Lord the situation seems to have gotten a lot better since I left my job.

Since leaving my Pt job and coming back from GA, I have been really sick with bronchitis. Who ever heard of bronchitis in the summer...not just the summer, but the heat of the summer? What a bummer! Danny and the kids finally came down with it too, so we have been down and out for a couple of weeks. We seem to be on the upswing now and I am ready to get on with things. I have been really busy this week cleaning, organizing and purging. It has felt really good. I am getting ready to start babysitting again full time so I can afford to stay at home. It will be difficult, but still worth it. I have been working on other things too. I have been sewing a whole lot - especially little girls items, and we are about to begin the adventure of some mild preschooling. I am excited about everything.

Well, this is a long post, so I am going to close for now and hope to update you all again soon!

Crutches Stink...

I remember when I was little I always wanted to break a lower extremity because I thought about how fun it would be to walk on crutches. I thought it would be so cool and so easy and so fun. Now, I am an adult and am having my first experience with crutches and I want to scream! So, let me take you back a little...

June in Roanoke brings out our delicious wild raspberries in the backyard. We have spent the better part of this last week picking raspberries and Josiah has fallen in love with picking raspberries fresh and eating them for hours at a time. It takes him quite a while to get all of the fuzz off of the raspberry, so he doesn't eat many, but loves telling me all about "drinking the raspberries". So, Wednesday night after I got home from work, Danny told me there were more raspberries to pick and we needed to get them before the birds did. I agreed...I wanted some raspberry cobbler and so did Danny. Danny needed to go to the basement so he took Josiah with him and I told him I was going to take Bethany down the back porch steps. Now, let me tell you, I have NEVER had a good track record with stairs of any kind. I am not allowed to carry anything up or downstairs any more, per my sweet husband, and this time was no different. Bethany is a hefty little girl, so I basically don't carry her anywhere anymore unless really necessary. I started to walk her down the steps, she was two steps above me, and I thought to myself: "The steps are a little slick...what on earth will I do with Bethany if I start to fall?" About that time, I started to slip, and I pushed Bethany backwards hoping she would sit and not fall, which worked, but I fell down about 5 more steps on my bottom and back. I got to the end and was in a little bit of pain, especially with my ankle, but I still didn't know if I was injured badly. My foot continued to hurt, but I got up and picked raspberries for about an hour. My foot was swelling quite a bit and was a little bruised, but this had happened before and was not a big deal, right? I got up and went to work the next day, all day, still in pain. I got up and went to work Friday, still in pain, but relieved when I was told my team got to leave at 2pm. I knew where I was headed...URGENT CARE. I took myself in and was seen and had xrays and they told me...I have a broken ankle! AAGGHHH...They put a big splint on it and told me I need to go to the orthopaedic specialist the next week to see what the next course of action was. Now I sit here, unable to do much of anything for myself or my kids and feeling cmpletely helpless! My sis in law came over and helped me get the kids some lunch and put them down for naps, so that was a big help. My mother in law is going to help take me to the specialist and my cousins are going to watch the kids for me when I go. In the middle of all of this, I still have to go to work part time and all that fun stuff. I am just praying that the spcialist can put me in a walking boot or something like that so I can get around, because crutches DO NOT get along with me!

Well, enough for now, off the computer and time to hobble around!

Playing catch up with the Hodges Family

Sorry for no recent posts. We have been busy, busy, busy! What have we been busy doing, you ask? Well, I am glad you asked...here is what we have been doing:

Danny has been busy working in the garden. We are not as far along on it as we had hoped, but this is the week that we will finish planting so we can have some produce! We do have some lettuce varieties sprouting, but that is all that has been planted so far. Danny will also be planting a wide variety of tomatoes. My only request is grape tomatoes so I can make tons of salsa! I love fresh garden salsa. I don't use any hot peppers in mine, though, so others might be disappointed. We are also planting squash and zucchini, cucumbers, cantaloupe, watermelon, and the rest I am drawing a blank on. Our back yard is covered with raised bed containers and container gardens. As for me, I am going to buy/plant some herbs. I want cilantro, basil, rosemary and thyme. We already have chocolate mint, mint, and lemon balm.

We also recently took a trip to GA. It was a sweet time of fellowship with all of my immediate family, but hard at the same time because it was the first time we have been together without Dad. At one point, we were about to eat a dinner outside at my brothers house and my brother looked around at everyone and said, "Okay, who's missing?" I just cracked up because the only one missing was Dad. That laughing then turned to a few tears. Things will never be the same going back to GA. That's not good or bad, just a fact, you know? We did have a major answer to prayers when we were preparing to head to GA. My mom called me and asked me what we decided about Dad's car. I was a little confused because months ago we talked and I told her we weren't able to buy it. She was a little confused that I was confused, so I told her again that we just couldn't afford to buy it. She said, no, she paid it off and did we want it? Wow. I was dumbfounded. Our cars still work, but we can't travel in them anymore because they are old. Danny has taken really good care of them, they just don't travel. So, we came home with a new charcoal colored 2006 Nissan Altima. Praise the Lord. Sometimes it is hard for me to be really happy about it because it is just another reminder that Dad is gone, and truly, I would rather have Dad, but as Josiah says, "That's just the way the story goes!"

Okay, that's enough of our busy-ness...I leave you with some funnies:

We were on the way to Mee-maw's house one day and this is our conversation:

Josiah: Mommy, is Mee-maw going to slap me?
Me: No, Josiah. Mee-maw has never slapped you and will not slap you today.
Josiah: Are you sure?
Me: Yes, I am sure!
Josiah: [After thinking for a minute] Well, Is Meemaw going to smack you?


My favorite Josiah funny of the week:

We were on the way to the grocery store and this is the conversation:

Josiah: Mommy, will you turn it on Boortz? [Neil Boortz is talk radio]
Me: No, I will not turn it on Boortz!
Josiah: Well, then, will you turn it on Rush? [As in Rush Limbaugh]
Me: No, I will not!
I thought to myself "Daddy has been found out!"

My favorite Bethany funny of the week:

We were leaving Meemaw's house one day and Bethany saw Pap-pap coming out of the house and says:

"Ohhh, Pap-pap! I want him, I need him, I want him, I need him!" Which she said through tears ALL OF THE WAY HOME!

Hope everyone has a good week!

Discipline...such a hard task

Today was hard with Josiah. Almost anything I said to do or not do, he disobeyed. If I told him to do something, first words out of his mouth was no mommy or growling or pitching a fit. He was disciplined MANY MANY times today. So, when we got home, I don't remember what he did, didn't do or said, but he got in trouble and was disciplined again.We usually quote Ephesians 6:1, Children, obey your parents in the Lord for this is right, after a moment of discipline....after this moment, he was in stubborn stand-off mode and would not quote the verse with us. We stopped, prayed about it and prayed over him, but he still pitched a fit when he tried to say the verse. Then, as we are quoting the... See More verse to him again, we hear from the other room: "Chiwen, obey parents and Lord this is right!" This was shouted out from Bethany, who said it pretty clearly, as if to tell Josiah..hey, it's just that easy! We decided after praying to go and take naps. Josiah took a three hour nap. The first words out of his mouth when he woke up was "Hey, mommy! Children, obey your parents in the Lord for this is right!"