Just like that

through heart of cloud, originally uploaded by ñ!§häñt_rÖÄMËR©.

And just like that...we kiss our summer days goodbye. We fold our memories into the clouds and tuck them into bed.

Encourage,
Jodi

Summer Lovin'

We did something unusual this summer Internet.

We went camping. It is this thing where you basically pack up your home and drive to the woods. Then you unpack your home in the woods and you sleep on the ground.

I know. You think I am weird (shhhh..don't tell anyone).

You see, we haven't been camping since my third born was just six months old. That was 6.5 years ago...and it was a nightmare.

This time was different. This time I didn't have to bring diapers or wipes (should have rethought this one) or the other gazillion things that you have to have when you bring a baby with you. This time was gonna be different.


We brought only the essentials....like a playfort made of pink dreams!


And an oven...cuz a family has got to eat.


And don't forget to invite some friends....who have one of these!


And of course, your favorite sleeping buddy...bring him too!


Home sweet home....


We rode bikes.


And we had some street races...he makes me "hot"!!


We did a lot of this (they make it look soooo easy!)


And a whole lot of THIS!!


We played LOTS of fun games...this is the "gesture" queen...well o.k....not really...but isn't she adorable!


We stood around in a circle and sang some songs...."I've got friends in low places..."....o.k.....not really. We did try to sing but then it just got all weird and uncomfortable and so we did what any normal person would do...we tried to find the bathrooms in the dark.


We pretended that we were "mermaids" on the beach. The pic of me in my bikini is pretty "sweet" but this is a "G" rated site so you know....maybe next time.


We enjoyed the company of a couple of different families....I swear this family also has two boys but for the life of me...I have no idea where they all escaped to.


Oh look! I found one...I wonder what he was up to?


Hopefully...he wasn't hunting down poor little innocent fluffy woodland creatures.


We made a special cake for a very special birthday lady.


Shhhh....yes I helped...the "queen of burnt" but don't tell anyone because then they might expect more of me and who needs that!


The strawberry flavored "mermaid" cake had to have some adjustments made before we could take a photo...it wouldn't be "proper" if she wasn't fully dressed.


The happy birthday girl with her "mermaid princess cake" and oh look!....the other Sipos boy!


I made some of the crew stop for some pictures because I'm mean like that.


This is my sweet and my three lovelies....they make me happy and manic depressive all at the same time.


This is "our son"...he is funny, plays with fire and is kind of a weirdo. He makes us proud.


This little one was feeding the woodland creatures (cuz..this is what a good fairy princess would do).


BINGO!! (Yes, we brought "Bingo" with us...don't judge...it isn't nice)


We gave each other names...like "running black foot" and "only #1 in the Raven"...

Then the worst thing in the WORLD happened. Even worse than being in the moutains with 21 other people, a dead motorhome and NO SHOWERS!!!

My camera DIED. Sniff...

So I have no glorious "group" photos to share with you. They do exist though...and I will have to find them and show you just how many of us were there...and yes even the boys (who were hunting rabbit...or is it duck season?) are in the photos.

The long story even longer Internet...is that camping is hard work. You have to pack everything...you don't have room service...or electricity. You have to cook all your own meals and "find" stuff to do without your tele or your computer. You have no ....cell service...GASP!!

Instead, you have this thing called fellowship...mixed with laughter and even a little bit of relaxation thrown in. Anyone game for joining us next year??

Encourage,
Jodi

speak to me

We live in a remarkable world Internet. It is broken...and not at all like it was in the beginning...but His fingerprints remain. I took this picture this weekend while we were camping in the Cascade mountains with the family.

In the wind...I can feel His breath...and it is good.

Encourage~
Jodi

I grow weed

FREE WEEDS, originally uploaded by Through Joanne's eye.

Or should I say I grow weeds?? I have given up this season on the lawn. Visions of the children and I laying on our backs on a carpet of lush soft green have withered in the summer heat.

A wise man once said though..

"Weeds are flowers too, once you get to know them". ~A.A. Milne

PLUS!! Just think of all the wishes we will get to make once they go to seed!

A weed is a plant that has mastered every survival skill except for learning how to grow in rows. ~Doug Larson

Encourage~
J

Summer

Rest is not idleness, and to lie sometimes on the grass on a summer day listening to the murmur of water, or watching the clouds float across the sky, is hardly a waste of time. ~John Lubbock

Then followed that beautiful season... Summer....
Filled was the air with a dreamy and magical light; and the landscape
Lay as if new created in all the freshness of childhood.
~Henry Wadsworth Longfellow


A perfect summer day is when the sun is shining, the breeze is blowing, the birds are singing, and the lawn mower is broken. ~James Dent




Oh internet...enjoy your summer with the simple pleasures of life...

This is a gift from God to you.

Encourage~
J

Photography

Today I will show you a variety of photo's of "yours truly".

"Why"...you ask? Well..."why not"...I reply.

Besides....taking a few minutes to scrub your brain from today's "to-do" list is healthy and I think my doctor recommended a few mindless hours of E-time a week to improve my sanity.

Enjoy!....and encourage one another,
Jodi



This one has a "gritty" effect....it is o.k....but not my favorite.



This one is "groovy"! It reminds me of the pics of my family from the 70's. I like
it.



This one makes the color POP (and also blurs the pic...so don't worry...it isn't you). This isn't a good application for a family pic...BUT it would make my cooking looking SOOOOOO much better. I think I'll keep it.



This one has a color booster and a "Vignette". I love vignette's (and don't deny your passion for them either....I know you have a school photo somewhere in a box in your attic...and it has a vignette). Not sure about the color booster in this one...the vignette though.... is a keeper.



This is how I feel when I drink wine....



In this one...I am starring in my own sitcom (think "The Wonder Years"). I like this one mucho much! I'm pretty sure I will overuse it to the point where it draws boredom.

Peace Out~
J

cupcake

When a girl is given a cupcake and not just any cupcake...but a ginormous cupcake...the girl will usually looks like this.



After the frosting has been licked off completely...this is when the said cupcake is ceremoniously handed over to the "mom" to finish consuming. I'm pretty sure it is some strange rite of passage into motherhood (one must consume half eaten soggy cookies and frostingless cupcakes for x amount of years).

Another one of our favorite things.

Encourage one another,
Jodi

Peep Free

c

Just came home from a weekend away with my "hunk o' burning love" (well not exactly a weekend since we left on Monday and came home on Tuesday). However, we were away from home...for over 24 hours....and no "peeps" were allowed.

Wait for it...

Wait for it...

WHOOO HOOOO!!!!

No one ever told me that having children would give me PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder). Just kidding. I love my peeps. They give me joy and on occasion a headache (but mostly joy). Tomorrow my house returns to normal (our kinda normal of course...which is probably abnormal to you).

Until then, I will eat ice cream out of the container while sitting on my white couches. Shhhh...don't tell.

Encourage one another,
Jodi

The boy

So life goes on Internet.

Things are momentarily back to normal (although with us we aren't sure what normal is anymore and strangley..we are o.k. with this).

Mama cat is doing well. I think the only one going about the house in a grouchy stupor is yours truly. Sheesh.

ANYWAY, the BOY (the one and ONLY) has a birthday coming up. I've been racking my brain trying to figure out what to get him this year (besides a spanking or a timeout). He is hitting the double digits...the big 1*0 next week (yee-haw)!

People tell you that life goes quickly and to "treasure every moment" (which by the way means nothing to a young mom who just wants to sleep for eight hours in one night).

It is true though...time slips through our hands and one day...they grow up.

I'm enjoying the ride, the ups, the downs and even the annoying bumps that we hit along the way. God is good...always.

Encourage one another,
Jodi

heartbroken

All I wanted was to show the children the beauty of life, to let them see the miracle.

Mia had two kittens today and both of them were stillborn. I have laid by her side for seven hours now and no more have come so we think she is done.

Instead of teaching my children about life...they are learning about death.

There are two sides to every stone.

I wasn't prepared for this. I've been praying for these kitties for two months now. The kids and I have been praying each night for the safe arrival, anticipating with joy.

How do you explain this to your children? How can I make them feel better when they think that God didn't hear them? At this moment I'm afraid I fall short in my explanation because I'm asking the same question. Why?

Encourage one another...and maybe me too,
Jodi