Dad's Special Day

Father's day is obviously a day to celebrate the men in our lives.
Old Dads,
New Dads,
and all of those in between.
Usually my blog is a place of girly goodness;
a place for scrumptious ruffles,
delicate stitchery,
and fabric deliciousness.
Today I ask you to join me
in celebrating the manliness that is DAD.

I was lucky enough to grow up with the most amazing Dad
that a girl could ask for.
He is kind and loving,
and always does his best to do the right thing.
He is a man whom I admire with all that I am,
whole heartedly respect,
and adore more than I can ever express in words.
He has taught me to love God,
love others-
even when it hurts,
and to never compromise my beliefs.
Daddy’s girl?
Yep, I’d say so.

In a couple weeks it will be five years
since my first husband passed away.
He was killed in a truck accident
on his way home from a fire company meeting.
After he passed away,
I wasn’t sure where my life was headed.
It had been a rough marriage
and I was ready for a new start.
I prayed for God to help me find a man like my own father;
a kind and gentle man
that would be good to me
and my five year old daughter.
He answered that prayer pretty quickly when I met Darin.
For the first time in a long time I had some serious fun -
I knew he was “the one”.We married less than a year later and came home from our honeymoon
with baby on board.He has been such a blessing to us as a husband and father.
He works hard.
He drives several hours a day
commuting to a job that he loves.
I am then able to stay home with our daughters and run a small business.I am a lucky woman to have him and his love.
Things aren’t always perfect, but darn close.
Just ask her….

I am also blessed to have four other “Dads” in my circle.
Our band,
THRU ME,
is definitely a family of sorts.
We are complete with family drama
and ups and downs,
but we have a mutual respect for each other
as people, parents, and musicians.
I am deeply thankful
that God has brought us all together
to share our faith and our gifts
that He alone has given us.
I want to wish them all a very Happy Father’s day.

Our talented drummer Brianis celebrating his first Father’s day
with the most gorgeous baby boy... ever!


Our rhythm and lead guitarist, Jim,has a breathtakingly beautiful
18 year old girlie girl who owns his heart.
He has also helped to raise two grown stepsons.
Don’t let the scary pic fool you, he’s a really nice guy.
Shhhh…….

Our lead guitarist,
Brian,has his hands full with two handsome teen and
soon to be teenage sons who are
becoming awesome musicians
with the guidance and direction of their Dad.
It is amazing to watch them grow into men.
They now tower above me.
As do most toddlers at this point.

My co-lead Kevin,my partner on the mic,
is an amazing Dad with two teenagers and a grown daughter.
He is a kind and gentle man
(with a rockin’ fantastic voice)
who works hard to be a Godly man and father.

The bass player is my handsome hubby Darin…
Enjoy your day guys!
Whether you are celebrating your dad with a
phone call,
a card,
a gift,
or treasuring him in pictures and memories,Happy Father’s Day to all of you.
I wish you all peace, love, and less gray hair this year!

Summertime Mamahood

Vacations and camping,

pools and fireworks,
picnics and sweaty kids….
Summer is here!

As Mamas we are ready for summer to begin
and thankful when school starts!
I have been known to dance and sing when the school bus arrives.
Having kids off school for the summer also lets you know what you are made of.
I have an independent toddler and a pre-teen (entering 2nd toddlerhood)
who will be keeping me quite busy this summer.Before I became a Mama,
I got to sit and eat leisurely meals,
sip coffee,
and read a good book for hours if I was so inclined.
Before I became a Mama
my clothing was stain free
and I got to talk on the phone- for more than 5 minutes at time.
Before I became a Mama I got to stay up late and sleep in as late as my heart desired.
Before I became a Mama I got to take long hot showers
and spend hours getting ready to go out.
Now I am lucky enough to wear the Mama ponytail!
Before I became a Mama,
I hadn’t been
peed on,
pooped on,
spit on,
chewed on,
or had the skin under my arms pinched by little fingers.
Before I became a Mama,
I never had to hold down my little ones while the doc gave them shots to keep them well-
and cry right along with them.
I never knew what it felt like to have my heart hurt when I could’nt stop their pain.
I didn’t know what it felt like to look into little crying eyes
and feel the tears streaming down my own face.
I never knew what it felt like to see that first smile,
cheer for that first crawl,
and cry with joy at that first step.
Soon our lives will be filled with more firsts as our oldest starts 5th grade.
Boys, ugh.Before I became a Mama,
I never held a sleeping toddler for two hours
simply because I didn’t want to put her down-
I wanted to cuddle her and smell her hair, knowing she’d be up and running in minutes.
I now know love at first sight.
I now understand how someone so small can change my life in every way.
I now understand how it feels to love someone so much my heart hurts.
Before I became a Mama I didn’t know I was capable of so much
joy,
strength,
and wonderment.
Being a Mama has taught me so much about myself-
a never ending lesson in humility,
selflessness,
and heartache.
We love them with every fiber of our beings
and cry with them as we give them their wings to fly.

I plan on using this summer to help my daughters add feathers to their wings.
I keep reminding myself as stress creeps up,
my nerves fray,
and my body aches
that each day is a gift with my girls and to treat it as such.Have a wonderful summer dear friends,
I hope to have many Half-Pint adventures to share with you!