My New Toy!!

I'm so excited about my new toy, the Acer 9inch laptop! I'm sure it has a "proper" title, but who knows. I got it off of Craislist for next to nothing. I have wanted one for a while and now I can type and blog from the comfort of my own bed!!! Ahhhh!

PRAYERS PLEASE!

Please lift our family up in prayer. We have been blessed for 6 months with little Bruce, our 20 month old foster son. I can't put into words how we feel about this little boy. From the day he came to live with us, he has brought so much joy and happiness to our family. We love him as one of our own and pray that he may one day become an "official" part of our family.
With all of that said, we have been faced with the very real possibility of losing Bruce. Not to be reunited with his birth-Mom, but to be moved to another foster home to be with his sisters.
We were given a 5-day notice today for him to be moved from our home.

Please pray.... for Bruce, for our family, for the judge, the attorney, and all the DHS people involved in this decision.
Because we have had him for 6 months (this Sunday) we are granted a chance to be "heard" in front of the judge. Please pray that we get that chance.

Thank you all so very much!

Nightstand Refurb!!

So you all remember this cute nightstand that I got off of Craigslist for $15?

Well my plan was to sand and paint it lime green for Laynie's room.... so here is my finished product (minus the hardware, it needed a second coat of black so it's yet to come).

Special thanks to my wonderful husband for sanding it and helping me paint it! xoxo

Bruce's Letters

In my attempt to make little man's room a bit more "little man'ish" I bought these letters at Hob Lob for $2 each. Then I found some ca-ute paper that goes great with his bedding and the theme I'm going for (cars, transportation, etc).... $.59 ea.

I traced the letters onto the paper and cut them out. Then I put mod-podge on the letters and attached the paper. They came out looking great. I still have the 'E' to do, but so-far-so-good!!

Dollar Store Find

I'm attempting to be "thrifty" in my quest to decorate with cute things. So where does that land me? Browsing at the Dollar Tree of course!

So here is what I found....

A cute teal picture frame for my kitchen. It was a little boring though, so I added a sweet saying "Cherish the Moment" (Hob Lob, $2.00) and viola!!!

I may add a little something more, but for now... my $3 pic frame is cute and goes great in my kitchen!!

My Attempt at Vinyl Lettering

So, I have wanted to put up some vinyl decals in my house. I got on Etsy and found this cute one for my laundry room. I wasn't sure how it would turn out since we have very textured walls... why oh why?!

Clint and I did this very carefully and with a LOT of patience.

And it still turned out crooked!! I'm wondering if the entire decal was crooked to begin with! (Please ignore our version of "high-speed" internet in the window!!)

Operation Organization in 09!!

My first attempt at getting organized was to try and get some of my crafting supplies under control. I didn't take a before picture, but I should have...it was crazy! I ordered some vinyl words on Etsy and picked up this handy plastic storage bin at Target....and viola! I still have plenty to do, but it's a great start!!

Hercules! Hercules!

This weekend the weather was really nice on Saturday. While outside playing, we decided to have a weight-lifting challenge (aka...catamaran beach tire lift)!

Clint started it off...

Then I had my turn at hoisting it! Pretty good I must say!

Then Laynie gave it a try and got to her waist!

Blake's attempt was very wobbly and dangerous. At one point we thought he was going to take out the side of my car!!

Later that evening we "babysat" our neighbor, Grace, and played Candy Land.

And the two BFFs watched Kung Fu Panda. And Little Man swept the kitchen floor!

Laughter is the best medicine!

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Bruce has decided that Blake is a pretty funny guy. No matter what Blake does, Bruce laughs! It can go on for hours! Last night after dinner we were sitting around and Blake was making faces at Bruce. The laughter went on like this for a while!!

Valentine's Day Project

So I'm moving on to V-Day now. I finally have ALL my Christmas stuff down and out!! I found this CA-UTE idea from a very "crafty" blog called Little Birdie Secrets. Check out the tutorial here.

With Laynie's help, we cut out a bunch of 2x2 squares and I started sticking them in the styrofoam heart. I didn't get very far before running out, so the last picture is the stack Laynie cut out for me last night. She's a great helper!! :)

So, I will post the finished product later...

CHEESE!

Me? Lazy?

I'm not sure if "lazy" is the exact word I would use. I just haven't been in the blogging mood lately. Christmas and New Years have come and gone...and I'm not all that sad it's over. I love seeing family and creating new memories, but when it's all over and I can just sit and relax I really love that too!
We were very blessed this year (as we are every year). Christmas was wonderful and so was New Years. I can't believe I stayed up to ring in the new year, but I did...along with other friends and the kids.
I'm not really into making resolutions. I find them to be just a way to set yourself up for failure. I know that there are things I will hope/plan/strive for this year, but that's about it. No official list or anything. I'm just happy to be alive and well and have a wonderful family to love.

So on with the new year!

Tomorrow we go to court again for little Bruce. From what we have been told, they will be requesting the court to terminate the parents rights. We will have our attorney there as well. You never know what you are going to get... last time they wanted DHS to look into putting little Jr. back with his sisters in that foster home.... this is why we have an attorney now.
Please just keep us in your prayers tomorrow.

Everything else is good. Bruce and I are getting over some kind of bug that's been going around. He has had a high fever and lots of mucus this week and I found my home to be the lovely commode the past few days. Oh, it's just been wonderful at the Ellis house! My poor hubby...having to take care of us. I told him yesterday just how wonderful I think he is. It's true...not many husbands will put down the remote long enough to cook dinner or change diapers or offer for you to go to bed early. Mine is special!!

So anywho....I promise to stop being so lazy about the blog. I will update everyone as to how court goes tomorrow!
xo