Friday Favorites: Fair Week!

Here in our town it is Fair Week!!! My Jagger LOVES the fair! He is almost obsessed but I have had to explain to him that we can not go out every single night! With the fair and all the excitement going on, here are some of my favorites....

Favorite fair parade moment:
watching our kids reactions during the parade! Oh, to see things through the eyes of a child!

Love those dimples!!

Favorite fair food:
Fried oreos!! possibly one of the best things I have ever put in my mouth!

Favorite view:  I am not a huge "rider" but I do like the Ferris wheel!

Favorite thing to watch: Jagger riding the super shot! We could not believe he wanted to ride this but he kept on, and kept on. I was scared for him but he did EXCELLENT!! Such a brave little boy!

Favorite Hudson moments: His faces have cracked me up! This was his first time to go to anything like because last year he was so sick! He has had more fun looking at all the lights!

OOOOOOOO!!!

Waiting on brother! 

Link up with Andrea at Momfessionals and tell us what you are loving!!!
Hope everyone has a blessed weekend!
Lots of love..

Stand Up!

I am really getting fed up with the world we are living in! It is awful. This morning during prayer time I barely knew where to start because there are so many prayer requests!! There is so much going on in the world right now that it makes my heart hurt! Last night I watched a few minutes of the news and I wanted to cry. I hate the way our world has changed for the worse in the last 10 years and its only going to get worse.
As a Christian, I am tired of people/groups trying to take away all we have. It's time to take a stand for what we believe. I have been very saddened at the Christians here lately who have let things happen strictly because they don't want to hurt anyone's feelings. They don't want to go against what everyone else is doing even though it goes against God.
What makes me so mad is that everything being done to Christians offends me, but we don't run off and throw a big fit. We don't call all the news stations, NAACP, gay rights, and whatever other group when things go wrong or we get offended. Last week, Arkansas State University was faced with an opportunity to stand up when one person threw a big fit because they had crosses on the back of their helmets! At first they were told they had to take the helmets off, but by the end of the week they were able to put them back on. From what I am told, the community really came together and took a stand! See what happens when Christians come together and take a stand for what we want! If we would just get a backbone and STAND. Wow!! What could happen!
Are you ready to take a stand with me??? If you see or hear something that goes against God's word, then lets take a stand! If someone offends you, tell them! If anything lets do this for God. I mean my goodness, Jesus was beaten, spit on, and hung on a cross to die. I really don't think he wanted to do this or had fun doing it, but he did it for us! If we love him, I think this is the least we can do for him also!
Hope everyone has a blessed day!
Lots of love..

Grateful Heart Monday: Miracles!

Yay! Today is Monday and I am super excited about having a grateful heart!

I have so many things I am grateful for, but this last week our community was brought together by a little girl in our town who became sick very fast! Thursday morning, very early Matthew and I woke up to our phones going off. Both phone calls were prayer chain for a family in our church. Their little girl, Carley, was being airlifted to Memphis. During the day, she had gone home from school with a headache and fever and by 1am she was being airlifted. They had no clue what was going on. The day and night continued to get worse. By 11am, we were getting phone calls that doctors were giving her a 1% chance of surviving. I can not tell you the pain my heart felt. All I could do was cry and pray! Prayers were going up everywhere for this sweet family. Within a few hours, we were getting calls that she was showing signs of slight improvement. The next day,  we were still getting good news reports! This child is a miracle! We watched God take a 1%  chance and work with it! She is still in ICU and has a long road. They still need many prayers but prayer is a wonderful thing and it does work! 

I am so grateful for prayer and that our God is in the miracle business! This whole situation hit home with me. I have been a bawl bag the whole time. I have felt like I have been right there in the ICU with them. For all you new readers, I delivered our 2nd child at 27 weeks and spent right at 5 months in the NICU with him. It was a life changing moment for our family. You can go back and read all about it

Dreaming ...this was just the beginning and you can read on from there! 

Thursday when we got the call, my heart sank because I know what it is like to see your baby lay in the hospital bed and there is nothing you can do. I have seen Hudson flat line several times and had no clue if they could get him back...I have been told he would HAVE to have surgeries and then ended up not having them...I have been told he had a small chance of survival...I have been told he would have many things wrong.......It has been a hard road, and I know there are many more out there who have seen worse, but I know that no matter what God is there! God is with us and I know that we will all receive that healing we are looking for whether it is here or in heaven! So again, I am so grateful for prayers and being able to go to our Heavenly Father about what we need! 

Link up with Ember Grey and tell us what you are grateful for! 

Hope everyone has a blessed day!

Lots of love..

Friday Favorites: Animal Print!

Woohoo..It is Friday and I am ready to talk about my favorites!

 Normally, I do favorites from the week but today I want to talk about my favorite things in my closet, anything leopard print! I have this weird obsession and have had it before my beloved print started becoming popular! Ask my mom! I have pictures of me from 5th grade when I was sporting a denim vest that had leopard print collar. I also had an all leopard print room along with my super cool email address- babyleapord, and yes I know it is spelt wrong, but the right spelling was already taken! Ok, so I am hoping you get the point! Basically, Leopard print is my neutral! You can never go wrong and in my book it is never out of style!!
Here are a few of my favorite leopard print pieces!

 I just bought this shirt and I am super excited about it! I think it will be a great piece for fall. I loved it with black skinny jeans and I am thinking I have some sort of wedge booties that will finish the look off!

A solid black cardigan is a must in any closet! you can do so many things with them! I love it because I have lots of different animal print tanks from summer....solution- throw a solid cardigan over it and boom, you have a fall outfit!

This is just a regular printed top. I enjoy wearing this with a maroon flowy cardigan for fall! I can also dress this up with black slacks or a black pencil skirt!

This is a printed sweatshirt from Old Navy!! I love it so much. The material is so soft and it looks super cute with dark jeans and boots!

Everyone needs a leopard cardigan!

These are absolutely my favorite shoes right now! The leopard sneaker! They are so comfy. I love to throw them on with skinny jeans and a graphic tee! super cute and fun!

Be still my heart!!!! 2 things I love the most! Leopard and a wedge! put them together and it is a match made in heaven! These are just too much for me to stand! I already have so many outfits to wear them with. I can't hardly wait!

I also have several scarves that always make me smile. Oh,  I almost forgot the smoking flat...these look super cute when you are needing a shoe that is a little more dressy!!

I have quite a few other things but I really figure you are thinking this is a little much! ;) This is what I might look like if I knew it was not in complete violation of what is considered too much animal print at one time....

Rock on Shania! :)

Link up with Momfessionals and tell us your Friday Favorites!!
Hope everyone has a blessed Friday!
Lots of love..

Fears!

Fears! Everyone has them. Some more than others. I am one of those that have a few that can absolutely cause me anxiety! I firmly believe that Satan uses these against me when I am weak. Over the years, I have gotten better about giving them to God, but there are days something will creep in my mind and it takes everything I have to lay it aside. Here are some of mine and hopefully you can relate! or just tell me you relate so it makes me feel better ;)

*the fear of not being able to protect my kids- This one at times makes me sick especially since Jagger has started school, and really this is one of the things that made me write this post. I saw something on Facebook about terrorist stuff happening in schools on 9/11. I knew I shouldn't click on this article, but of course, I did and I instantly felt sick. My heart dropped thinking something could happen to him while he is at school and I would not be there! It makes me want to cry right now. I know this is something that I have no control over and I can not live in fear, but it truly scares me. This morning and last night I have been in constant prayer that God would give me the peace that I need.

*the fear of drowning- I have panic attacks thinking about this. I can't imagine having to drown...Ok maybe I shouldn't talk about it. It makes me sick..

*the fear of snakes- yuck..I can't go there either!

*the fear of being all alone- I had a dream one time that I was all alone. I think something had happened to all of my family. I woke up from the dream crying. I do not like the thought of being alone.....

I know this is not the happiest post ever but I do think these are things that everyone goes through. I use to be terrified of the weather!! Like to the point, if a storm cloud rolled up, I would hide in the closet and cry! It was awful! I finally got over the weather thing then moved on to something else that  would upset me.....stuff I couldn't control- gas prices, war, government issues! and I am not kidding you on this. I would get myself SO worked up over gas prices going up, and many other things I had no control over. This was all things that only God could help me with. I have learned that the world we live in is going to cause fears but all we can do is give it to God. Matthew always reminds me that no matter what happens, we will be in Heaven together, so instead of worrying about the things I can't control, think about where we are going!!!
What fears do you have? Are you able to get past them quickly? How do you handle them?
Hope everyone has a blessed day!
Lots of love.

The Countdown!

The Countdown has officially started....the countdown to Disney! Yesterday, we officially told Jagger and I was in tears! I know you are thinking I am a big ol' bawl bag and I probably am, but saying I am excited about this trip is an understatement! This is something I have wanted to do for years!!! We really did not think we would be able to go but it worked out. There are times I wonder if we should have used the money for bills but these precious memories mean more to me than bills any day! I will deal with the bills tomorrow! ;) I am going to give you a small snip from when we told Jagger...

It was a precious moment for our family, and of course now that is all he is talking about! Maybe we should have waiting until the day before! ;)

Today was school picture day! Look how sweet he looked...

Gosh he is growing so much and I am super proud of the young man he is becoming!

Hope everyone has had a blessed day!
Lots of love..

Grateful Heart: Birthday Recap!!

I can't believe it is Monday, and really Monday is almost over! Since I have started Megan's Daily Bread my days are non-stop! I am so far behind on reading my favorite blogs! I hope in the next few days to get caught up on everything!

I have such a grateful heart today! I am grateful for this past weekend. We had the best time celebrating my birthday with friends and family!

Jagger was so excited to give me his present! He said he wrapped it to make it look like the Burning Bush in the Bible! 

Wal-Mart fun!

Cake I made for our good friend, Blake! He LOVE Little Debbies!

Jagger helping Grandma cook my birthday lunch! 

Birthday cake! Jagger put the candles on! He likes to get creative!

Link up with Ember Grey and tell us what you are grateful for!
Hope everyone has a blessed day!
Lots of love...

28 Years!

Yesterday was my birthday and I turned 28! It was one of the best birthdays I have ever had! We are going to be celebrating some more today and tomorrow so I will be posting a recap in pictures soon!

Hope everyone has a blessed day!!
Lots of love..

Throwback Thursday- It's A Good One!

This last weekend when I was at mom and dad's, I decided to go through old pictures! Since they are moving a lot of the pictures are packed up but I did find this goody......

This is just all kinds of wrong!! I don't even know where to start! First.....Mom why didn't you fix your daughter's hair!! what in the world???? I do think this picture was taken in 5th or 6th grade and then the next year we were introduced to the flat iron- thank you Jesus!
My aunt does professional pictures and she would always come to our house and do pictures. They always turn out great and I am so happy we have had her to do them! I just can not stop laughing at this!   Mom-you look so young and beautiful as always!
here is a flash forward a few years...

Do you have any good throwback Thursday pictures!
Hope everyone has a blessed day!
Lots of love..

Names!

I love names! When Hudson was in the hospital I would just walk around and look at the names on the doors! I would always wonder how the family got the name? what made them spell it that way? Is it a family name? There is always a story behind a name!
I am going to share the story behind my two boys with you!

Jagger Preslee- Yes, like Mick, as in Mick Jagger!

I have always known  that if I had a boy this would be his name! I grew up in a family that listened to a lot of music! We were a rock-n-roll kind of family! Lynyrd Skynyrd, Eagles, Rolling Stones, Van Halen, Steve Miller Band, Aerosmith, Tom Petty,  Creedence Clearwater, and so many others. Rolling Stones was one of my favorites! I wasn't crazy about the name Mick, so Jagger it is! and really how many Jaggers do you know?? Here is one of my blog posts that you can read also...Jagger Preslee

Hudson Lynn-
When we found out we were pregnant I instantly started looking at names. I had a million more girl names picked out than boy names! Matthew and I also were having issues agreeing on names! Every time I found one that I liked, he didn't and vice versa! It was really stressing me out and I am pretty sure that I started praying for a girl just so we wouldn't have name drama! I also decided to include big brother in on picking out the name and at the time Hudson was not on the list, although I had seen the name on Pottery Barn kids and thought it was cute embroidered!

So time went on and still no name. December 18th, I was airlifted to St. Louis being told I would deliver my 26 week old baby! Many things went through my mind..No name? No nursery? None of us were prepared for this! I was in the hospital for 8 days before he was born, and one day during that time the doctors were asking me what his name would be....I had no idea?? Jagger was stuck on the name Hudson and was already calling him Baby Hudson! One of the doctors heard Jagger say Baby Hudson and that was the end of it. From then on everyone called him Baby Hudson! I told Matthew that day that his name would be Hudson. His middle name was a given..Lynn is Matthews grandparents last name! They mean the world to us so we thought it was fitting! and now here we are almost two years later and he is still called Baby Hudson by many! ;)
Neither one of my boys have "family" names or any name that is super special but they are names that fit them and I can't imagine them being named anything else!

What is the story behind your name or your kids name??
Hope everyone has a blessed day!
Lots of love..

September Is Here!

Holy Moley! I can't believe it is September!

 Where in the world has this year gone?? but I am super excited because that means we are getting into fall! Pumpkin latte, boots and sweaters, chili, crisp air, falling leaves, pumpkin patches, oh my the list could go on and on! Here are a couple of things going on that make me love September!

*It's FAIR month! I love the fair- the rides, seeing all of our friends and most importantly the FOOD!

* Happy Birthday Month to me!

* We will be heading to Disney! This is HUGE for me! I actually cried when I was booking it I was so excited! This is something I have wanted to do since I was little...Matthew says he is a little nervous I might attack Mickey Mouse when I see him!

*Football season is in full swing! I do enjoy all the football- high school, college and NFL

*All the TV shows start back up!! I am not a huge tv show person but I do have a few that I am really looking forward to!

Do you have anything that you are loving or looking forward to in September??
Hope everyone has a blessed day!
Lots of love..

Grateful Heart Monday: Labor Day!

I love the time I get to sit and think of what I am grateful for!! Here is it...

Labor Day! This is a day I am grateful for even though I don't work! I know everyone that works enjoys a day..

Family - We are beyond blessed with wonderful family! This is something I thank God for everyday! 

My Health!- This is something I at times take for granted but am really starting to be grateful about...Being a stay at home mom, my "job" depends on my health! I can not be the best mom and wife if I am sick! 

Link up with Ember Grey to let us know what you are grateful for! 

Hope everyone has a blessed Labor Day!

Lots of love..