"Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal- is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he has been robbed. The fact is that most putts don't drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, and most jobs are more often dull than otherwise. Life is just like an old time rail journey with delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinder, and jolts, interspersed occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride."---Pres. Gordon B. Hinckley
Leelou Blogs
"The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one." - Elbert Hubbard

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Wednesday, July 30, 2008

itsy bitsy teeny tiny......

gosh we are so in love......... he is such a doll.....



Monday, July 28, 2008

Saturday, July 26, 2008

I get why people hire photographers........

I am tired. There, I admitted it. Tired and sore and well, really tired. Yet I want photos of this... these moments that are flying so quickly past me.... however I also want to do nothing more than sit on the couch and stare at my new baby. I understand the need to photograph this... I truly do. He is so serious and tiny....and new all wrapped up. He is amazing. I am going to try to get a photo tonight of all of the kids....yes of all 5 of them...... someone quick please send me some luck!




Thursday, July 24, 2008

A few quick snaps....



Mr McCall is here!!!!!

Pictures to follow, but here is a quick update :)
Sammuel McCall Bennett is here!!! He arrived Monday night at 10:26pm weighing in at a teeny 4lbs 15oz and 16inches long. We brought him home this afternoon and he has dropped a little bit of weight, he weighed 4lbs 10oz this morning....
I am uploading photos now, I promise to post some soon.... he is a doll and we are all in love!

Monday, July 21, 2008

New dress for Etsy......

Im just in love with this new design that we are working on for Etsy. This dress is a size 1-2. I just adore the apron top with its antique buttons and the muslin pants with the flounce at the bottoms.... tooooo cute I just want to keep it!!!





Monday, July 14, 2008

he really does smile :)


Last days of being the only son.....

He has been asking for a brother for as long as I can remember..... and girl after girl we get. Its hard to believe that he will not be the only anymore... the only grandson, the only son. I can only hope that his little brother will be like him... kind, sensitive, sweet, rough and tumble... a little bit country. I had to beg him to let me take some photos.. bribe him with star wars logos.... he is growing up... time waits for nothing especially childhood.



Sunday, July 13, 2008

A girl and her dad.....

I love the adoration in her eyes... I love that he was letting her put chalk makeup on (think hot pink) I love that they are the world to him.... its the little things that really are such big things.

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

One more...

gotta love laughter....

How Lucky.....

to have your inner beauty match your outer beauty. What fun Bronte & I had tonight, she is truly a special girl that I am lucky to have as a friend. There are tons more Miss B.... but here is a sneek peek for you tonight :)




Monday, July 7, 2008

4th of July fun............

Sorry for the image overload :) We had tons of fun! Savanah loved the fireworks, Mason loved all the games in the park and Miss Austyn LOVED her face painting!!! Everyone had a wonderful day, played hard and ate way too much junk food...... good times, good memories!!! Just think, next year for the fourth we will have 5!!!!!!!!!!!!








Thursday, July 3, 2008

Im invisible....

im not sure who wrote this but I just love it......


It all began to make sense, the blank stares, the lack of response, the way one of the kids will walk into the room while I'm on the phone and ask to be taken to the store. Inside I'm thinking, "Can't you see I'm on the phone?"
Obviously not. No one can see if I'm on the phone, or cooking, or sweeping the floor, or even standing on my head in the corner, because no one can see me at all. I'm invisible.

Some days I am only a pair of hands, nothing more: Can you fix this? Can you tie this? Can you open this? Some days I'm not a pair of hands; I'm not even a human being. I'm a clock to ask, "What time is it?" I'm a satellite
guide to answer, "What number is the Disney Channel?" I'm a car to order, "Right around 5:30, please."

I was certain that these were the hands that once held books and the eyes that studied history and the mind that graduated summa cum laude - but now they had disappeared into the peanut butter, never to be seen again. She's going she's going . . . she's gone!

One night, a group of us were having dinner, celebrating the return of a friend from England. Janice had just gotten back from a fabulous trip, and she was going on and on about the hotel she stayed in. I was sitting there,
looking around at the others all put together so well. It was hard not to compare and feel sorry for myself as I looked down at my out-of-style dress; it was the only thing I could find that was clean. My unwashed hair was pulled up in a banana clip and I was afraid I could actually smell peanut butter in it. I was feeling pretty pathetic, when Janice turned to me with a beautifully wrapped package, and said, "I brought you this."

It was a book on the great cathedrals of Europe. I wasn't exactly sure why she'd given it to me until I read her inscription: "To Charlotte, with admiration for the greatness of what you are building when no one sees."

In the days ahead I would read - no, devour - the book. And I would discover what would become for me, four life-changing truths, after which I could pattern my work: No one can say who built the great cathedrals - we have no record of their names. These builders gave their whole lives for a work they would never see finished. They made great sacrifices and expected no credit. The passion of their building was fueled by their faith that the eyes of God saw everything.

A legendary story in the book told of a rich man who came to visit the cathedral while it was being built, and he saw a workman carving a tiny bird; on the inside of a beam. He was puzzled and asked the man, "Why are you spending so much time carving that bird into a beam that will be covered by the roof? No one will ever see it."

And the workman replied, "Because God sees."

I closed the book, feeling the missing piece fall into place. It was almost as if I heard God whispering to me, "I see you, Charlotte. I see the sacrifices you make every day, even when no one around you does. No act of kindness you've done, no sequin you've sewn on, no cupcake you've baked, is too small for me to notice and smile over. You are building a great cathedral, but you can't see right now what it will become."

At times, my invisibility feels like an affliction. But it is not a disease that is erasing my life. It is the cure for the disease of my own self-centeredness. It is the antidote to my strong, stubborn pride. I keep the right perspective when I see myself as a great builder.
As one of the people who show up at a job that they will never see finished, to work on something that their name will never be on. The writer of the book went so far as to say that no cathedrals could ever be built in our
lifetime because there are so few people willing to sacrifice to that degree.

When I really think about it, I don't want my son to tell the friend he's bringing home from college for Thanksgiving, "My mom gets up at 4 in the morning and bakes homemade pies, and then she hand bastes a turkey for three hours and presses all the linens for the table." That would mean I'd built a shrine or a monument to myself. I just want him to want to come home. And then, if there is anything more to say to his friend, to add, "You're gonna love it there."

As mothers, we are building great cathedrals. We cannot be seen if we're doing it right. And one day, it is very possible that the world will marvel, not only at what we have built, but at the beauty that has been added to the world by the sacrifices of invisible women.

Puppy update :)

Here are 4 of the 5..... the little girl has found a good home but the males are all still looking. They are just so sweet!




Wednesday, July 2, 2008

what a week....

Mason finished his soccer camp and we have moved on to swimming lessons. He seems to be having fun & learning bunches. This summer feels so busy, so full.... and it is hard to believe that it is July already. The girls have been having tons of fun playing with the puppies.... and swimming in their pool that Aunt Kathy brought them. Savanah has taken to sucking her fingers all the time & Austyn has a new very serious look that makes us all laugh. The puppies are finally old enough to go to new homes (hint hint I know you want one Kath) & we are getting ready for an influx of family visiting this weekend. I hope everyone has a safe & wonderful 4th!