WOW...

where has this Summer gone?

Why are we always in such a hurry when Summer should be "lazy"?

Why has it been so hot that it makes us not even want to go to the pool?

What happened to the body I had just 3 years ago and why does it look "bad" in a swimsuit?

Why is it that in the 2nd week of July, I'm already thinking about school supplies, uniforms and after-school care?

Why is it that I feel the need to make my child do "workbooks" during the Summer?

WOW...a ton of questions of which I don't want to have think about, worry about or deal with...I just want to enjoy the Summer. Darn it!

It's going to be Fall very soon and we're going to wish we had Summer back, but all we do during the Summer is get ready for the Fall.

Today is obviously filled with frustration and questions. So, I've decided to write Summer a letter and ask a few things...

Dear Summer ~
We love when you get here. Pools open. No homework. Summer camps. Lazy Friday nights by the pool. Saturday cook-outs. But, I have to ask...why do you have to go so soon? It seems like our time together just goes by way too fast. And, of course, the heat doesn't help things at all (can you do something about this ridiculous heat we're having?).

Please, stick around for a while. Pull up a chair. Grab some sweet tea and let's hang out. No laundry. No cleaning the house. No ridiculous heat. No worring about back to school. No responsibilities. Just you and us working on a nice tan while listening to the children giggle, laugh and splash us with Cannon Balls.

Think we can make this happen? If you try, I'll try.

Thank you!

Your Summertime friend,
Chasity

He's 41...

Fourty-One. 4-1. 41...

May 31, 1969 was a big day for Brenton Lynn Phillips.
May 31, 2010 was a relaxing day for Brenton Lynn Phillips.

We celebrated by going to beach! Yeah, we celebrate big around the Phillips house!

So, while at the beach, we went over to Uncle Jimmy and Aunt Linda's house for a little celebration -- to make it even better, they live on the water. SWEET. So, we ate. We visited. We played. We fished. We celebrated (with cake). We swam. We had a great time! Happy 41st Birthday to my sweet Brent (and to his Mama for giving birth to him -- it's a big day for her too)!

(I just love this picture. He was doing exactly what he loves to do!)

(Still doing what he loves to do!)

(And, now he has a little helper to help him do what he loves to do!)
(To be honest, not sure how much of a "helper" the little one was!)

(Yep, that's us...Perfectly Phillips!)

(Little Man getting in on the action!)

(Nothing like Daddy's kisses!)

(There's the birthday boy just chillin'!)

(Birthday Boy and the Mom that loves him so much!)

(Brent and Uncle Jimmy -- such amazing men!)

(Brent and Mike -- can you tell they used to aggravate the devil out of each other?)

(Me and my better half -- ignore the fishing pole!)

Yes, I know the hat looks stupid, but I'm getting older, so I'm allowed to look stupid every now and again.

What a great day...and even more fun days are ahead of us. Stay tuned. Cool pics coming your way!

Beautifully Blessed and Truly Thankful to be married to a 41-year-old man that acts like he's 18 (all the time),
Chasity

PS...He keeps life interesting. I think I'll keep him!

Two in One...

night on the last day of 1st Grade.

Peyton lost his first two teeth...WOW! After months of being asked, "When am I going to loose a tooth?" it finally happened. TWO IN ONE NIGHT. Of course, the two happened, because Brent pulled the WRONG tooth the first time (luckily it was ready to come out, just not quiet as ready as the RIGHT tooth)! We were actually kind of shocked that Peyton let Brent pull the second tooth, considering he got the wrong tooth the first time.

Of course, me being me, I tried to capture it all on camera (in between gagging at the site of watching Brent pull the tooth and seeing the blood). I wish I was like my friend Sarah and could handle the blood, etc..., but I can't so, I tried to get pictures1 without really looking at what I was aiming at...makes sense right?!

Here's the action:

(Brent and Peyton doing one of MANY test runs...)

(One last smile with ALL baby teeth in tact!)

(Wiggling it even more...)

(Wiggling it the other way!)

(Little Palmer had to get in on the action. But, it was around 10 p.m. so he was fading fast!)

BTW...they don't get to stay up that late every night, but since it was the last day of school, we let them stay up later than normal!

(Lil Bro getting in on the action...he can't stand it)

(This is it...it's time...)

(It's OUT!)
(He's an official SNAGGLETOOTH!)

(and then he ran to the sink to get the blood out...GROSS!)

(I totally missed the 2nd tooth coming out, as Brent put ice on the first tooth and it numbed it so much that he literally just wiggled the second tooth and it came right out...no blood. So this is the picture I got of the second tooth!)

(Thanks to Brent, apparently, if you lose 2 teeth in one night, the tooth fairy doubles the amount you get. Here's the math: 1 tooth = $2, so 1 tooth + 1 tooth = $4 x 2 (doubled for loosing 2 teeth in one night) = $8 from the tooth fairy - and he got a note:)

My baby isn't a baby anymore! His top 2 teeth are loose too...it won't be long now. I guess getting those Dina pictures done back in March was a really good idea!

Beautifully Blessed and Truly Thankful to have captured all of this on film (and to have had the cash at the right time when I needed it),
Chasity

PS...I never carry cash, but I've been keeping a $5 tucked away for this very night. YAY me for being prepared:)

The End...

of Peyton's First Grade year as we know it...

I can't believe he's done. WOW! They grow up sooooo fast.

(Peyton and his best friend Cannon)

(Peyton and Mrs. Melin -- our teacher from Florida and fellow FSU Alum)

(Peyton and Ms. Cassie -- Whew don't know how they do it).

AND, he ended the year with all E's. Principal's list every 9 weeks (think Dean's list). Amazing how smart he is!

Bring on Summer...we're ready...

Beautifully Blessed and Truly Thankful to have such a smart (and cute) kid,
Chasity

PS...I don't remember the last day of school being mass chaos, but apparently, it was. Not sure who ran out of the school faster...the kids or the teachers!

Time-Out...

Mama Kat's Writers Workshop subject for today:

Who are you giving a time-out to?

The answer: Me, Myself and I.

I'm taking a time-out for myself (before I lose it...really)!

April and May have sucked! Big time. SO GLAD THEY ARE OVER (almost).

So, since I'm placing myself in time-out, I get to choose where this timeout will take place...I choose: Destin! The beautiful snowy white sands and emerald green waters of Destin.

(see the Palm Trees...they're calling my name)

Of course, in order to get out of time-out, there are several things I'll need to do:

First, I have to pack a really large bottle of Coconut Rum and Strawberry Margarita Mix in order to enjoy a nice Cocorita on the beach (yep, that's my name for this homemade drink I've been drinking lately)!



Second, I have to see my Mom! Ok, I really NEED to see my Mom! She decided to leave me by myself for two weeks while she toured Alaska -- really, what was she thinking leaving me alone to have no one to vent to for two weeks.

(Me and Mom at the beach...)

Third, I have to give my Granddad a hug. He's had pneumonia (pair that with a really bad heart) and it scares me, so I want to go see him and give him a big hug.

(Us and my Granddad at Chris' wedding...he LOVES the beach!)

Fourth, I'm going to send my MIL, husband and boys off on a deep-sea excursion for about ummmm 7 days...ok, not really 7 days, but even just 1 day of lying on the beach, by myself, with no one around is a perfect time-out for me!

(I'll make sure to wave as they're leaving!)

Fifth, I'm going to live in my swimsuit (covered up by the cover up) and not do my hair or makeup for a week -- yahoo! Let the curls be curls...leaving the flat iron at home.

(WOW! This was the last picture I have of me wearing my hair curly in public -- 6 years ago!)

Lastly, I'm going to take the time to get my perspective back...remembering what really matters in life, what doesn't matter, and how truly blessed we are (this thought, of course, has nothing to do with the fact that I watched My Sister's Keeper last night)!

So, with that being said, let the time-out begin!
Chasity

PS...Anyone notice that every picture on here has something to do with the beach...I think my self-imposed time-out can't come soon enough!

It's Tough...

being a "girly girl" in an "all boy" world!

Tougher than I ever imagined.

Warning: there's a tiny pity party about to happen, so stop reading here if you don't want to join my party...but trust me, the party gets a whole lot better by the end!!!!

I must first say that until today, I've NEVER REALLY thought about all of this...

For whatever reason, today is the day that I realized just how tough it is being my "girly girl" self in my "all boy" world. All this thought process began because I'm trying to re-do my blogsite design with new colors, patterns, etc... and I'm torn. Torn between keeping MY blogsite (dedicated to my boys) somewhat girlish with a lot of boy OR just going all girly with a little bit of boy. Brown counts for boys, so throw in a little pink, orange, green and that makes it boyish right??

So this got me to thinking...about how it's tougher than I ever imagined.

People always tell me that I need to have a little girl because I'm such a girly girl. BUT, the truth is, I like being the only princess in the family -- not like I get treated like a princess (most days I feel like Cinderella before she met Prince Charming) -- but I'm the only princess nonetheless.

AND, I can't imagine not having boys. I can't imagine life without my little favorites! In fact, if I was told today with absolute 100% certainty that I could have a 3rd boy, I'd have a 3rd boy and never even think twice!

But today, for whatever reason, I want a little pink in my life...

Honestly, I knew I was in trouble the day I found out Peyton was a girl, then...a boy -- all within 15 minutes. Thoughts shifted from ballet pink to little boy blue. Then it hit me even more when my Mom and I went shopping for the first piece of baby clothing, only to realize 1/4 of the store was for boys, the other 3/4 of the store for girls. I chalked this up to "saving money."

When the boys were babies, I could get away with being a girly girl by dressing them in the cute smocked outfits, adorable little shirts with their names on them, footed jammies and matching little shorts sets. In fact, I used to tell Brent (whenever he would say something about their outfits), "I get them until they are 4. After that, they can wear polos and khaki's for the rest of their lives. For now, they're mine to dress them however cute I want." Then the day came that they REFUSED to let me dress them in "Bailey Boys" and oh good grief, I can't even remember the name of the store that literrally took thousands of dollars from me -- Strasburg (I actually had to google it to recall the name -- it's a sad day). Four years old came way too fast for me. I still struggle with the decision of what color polo I can dress them in to make our picture look cute. Shoot, these days, it's hard to get them in anything other than a t-shirt, shorts and tennis shoes. Crocs are about the extent of cuteness -- heaven forbid they have to dress up in polos and khakis for church -- within five minutes of being home, they've ripped off those clothes and are right back in their play clothes. Even jammies aren't cute these days -- Sponge Bob and Star Wars...yay cuteness!

What I really need to know is how to get my boys in some pink??!!

It's tough not being able to buy cute $5 ribbon bows. It's tough not being able to buy super cute shoes. It's tough not being able to buy pretty little sundresses. It's tough not being able to buy the ADORABLE little Lilly Pulizer dresses. It's tough knowing that I'll never be able to buy flowers for a little ballerina for her recital, talk about how stupid boys are, help her get ready for cheerleading tryouts or write my "legacy" letter to my sorority when she's ready to go through rush. I think I'll just chalk all of this up to saving money:)

Instead, I'm a girly girl living in an all boy world -- baseball bats and gloves, karate uniforms, soccer shin guards and cleats. Monkey in the middle, wrestling matches, tickle fights, who can run the fastest races, who can burp the loudest or well, I'll let you guess what kind of competition comes next.

I'm sure if I had a girl, she'd be exactly opposite of a girly girl, knowing my luck!!!!

Cute swimsuits, piggy tails and tutus will all just have to go on existing without me buying a one of them -- again, saving money! For now, I'll just buy a new color polo and try to coordinate it with one of my super cute Lilly dresses (mental picture: me all dressed up in my Lilly dress sitting on one of the boys fighting with him to put on his matching polo shirt -- it happens!)

Pink madras, polka dots and paisleys will all just have to be worn by me. Stripes, camo and super heros are very much in my day-to-day world. Lush, floral pictures are replaced by hunting-shirt, farm pictures (see Dina pictures as an example).

Bottom line, the Lord knew I needed boys. He knew what he was doing when he gave me my favorites. He knew I needed to save money (so I can pay for dates later on down the road). He knew I needed to sweat while sitting out at baseball and soccer games. In fact, he knew I needed to have one in karate so I could work out while my little one is learning to beat up other kids.

The Lord knew drama would be too much for me. The Lord knew my life would be completely boring without boys in it. The Lord knew I would need to laugh more and let go of perfectionism. The Lord knew I would need the hugs and kisses of two little boys to keep me going each and every day. The Lord knew I wouldn't have time in the mornings to do my hair and the hair of a little girl.

Couch jumping, counter climbing, pillow fighting, leg sweeping, ball chasing, mud digging, dog loving, video game playing little boys is what the Lord decided I needed to have.

And I can still have my pink and eat it too:) Granted, they might have to wear a pink shirt every now and again!

Beautifully Blessed and Truly Thankful to have to be creative with color coordinating my blog page,
Chasity

PS...Which one (see below)...I can't decide...Imagine the Dina pictures paired up with this or if you like one of the other's I can color coordinate -- polos for the boys with something of mine:)

Scrapbooking Ideas Photo Tinks by WiddlyTinks.com