Very Big Day

It was a big day for Ella.  She attended her first Regional meet, along with several hundred other children. She did an amazing job and we are so proud of her.  Ella walked away with 2 ribbons and swam her personal best in every single event today.  She even swam her Individual Medley 14 seconds faster today than her qualifying time.  Amazing!

We left the house this morning at 5:30 and made the 1.5 hour trek to the big city of Tunica, Mississippi. They have a lovely aquatic center and they put on a great meet today.  There were teams from all over the region represented and Ella made a fine showing.  

Look at her beautiful strokes:

It was a building year for our team, but I am so happy to be a part of our town's swim club.  We have wonderful friends there and we have two great coaches.  Thank you Molly and April for all your hard work.  I know it wasn't easy, but we had a blast this summer. 

Ella and her coach Miss Molly

**There is still time to enter the $1000 Spa Finder gift certificate sweepstakes.  Check out my story about Vaseline Spray and Go Moisturizer  HERE.

An Unveiling and HUGE Announcement

Today was the grand opening of the Neuro ICU at LeBonheur and we were invited to attend the event.  First, it was a true honor to be included with such wonderful attendees, but also such a momentous occasion as this time last year Lucy was clinging to life.  We have been blessed beyond belief by both St. Jude and LeBonheur and truly feel as if both hospitals are family.

Today was very special as we got to reunite with our friends at the Foundation, the 7th floor and Dr. B.  Lucy was in wonderful spirits and Ella had a great surprise waiting on her when we arrived.  We took Jack and that was a hot mess.  I did not realize the event was so formal, so volunteers and my father took turns keeping Jack quite in the hallway during the doctor presentations.  I felt like a big idiot for bringing a baby to such an important event.  Sorry Michelle and Kavanaugh!

This is Ella's painting that is hanging as the center piece of the ICU.  She was so surprised and could hardly speak.  I think she was in shock actually.  For a little girl who can steal the show in a play, she sure didn't know what to do with the attention on her today.

Once again, we are so thankful to be on this side of the fence.  In fact, the Go Lucy Go Foundation will be holding its' first annual Fall fundraiser.  It promises to be a huge event--dinner, silent auction, live entertainment, photographers--and a guest speaker by the name of Coach Josh Pastner.  Please be on the lookout for more information.  If you are interested in a formal invite, please leave me your email address in the comment section below.

Save the Date:

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

6:00pm

(location to be announced)

Listening

It's hard to believe its been almost a week since I've sat down to blog.  I have a planner that tells me what exactly I have been doing, but I can sum it up with one word, "living."  And let me tell you, I'm enjoying every. single. minute.

Potty training, art camp, tutoring, swim team, OT/PT, swim therapy, Go Lucy Go Foundation event planning, school board meetings, painting furniture, crafting teacher presents and decluttering/simplifying my house.

These are the things that "normal" families take for granted.  To me, each and every event is a gift.  A wonderful, God-breathed gift.

I started reading my Bible this week.  It's been a very long time since I've made an effort to do daily readings.  As I ended the first day, I pulled out my Jesus Calling book.  I was reminded  that "my mind shuffles back and forth, hither and yon, weaving webs of anxious confusion."  The past few days of Jesus Calling have focused on the importance of speaking...and listening....to God.  I think that it's just so perfect that as I begin to pick my Bible back up, Sarah Young reminds me that it really is so wonderfully important to make time for God.

I wonder what He will have to say tomorrow?

Happy Independence Day

We are celebrating the holiday with family and friends...and no Internet.

Happy 4th of July to you all. Thank you to the millions of brave men and women who have given their lives for my freedom. I am so incredibly blessed.

But...is it July of December?  We are on the lake in layers of blankets watching the beautiful fireworks. It's really cold but sure beats the last two 4ths spent in a hospital. 

**Don't forget to check out the sweepstakes on THIS page.  You can win an LG Oven Range!  Just share your favorite messy recipe and you might just win!

It's a FACT!

Fact: I have very dry skin.  Fact: I very much dislike my dry skin.  I have the kind of dry skin that makes me look two shades darker when I put on lotion.  Fact: I hate to apply lotion.  In fact, I hate to put on lotion more than I very much dislike my dry skin most of the time.

So, this obviously presents a conundrum for me.  My dislike for lotion doesn't lie in the lotion itself, but more in the time it takes to apply it.  I am usually so rushed to get out of the house that taking the extra 3 minutes to moisturize my legs seems too frivolous.  This little unflattering tidbit about myself unfortunately means that more times than not I am scrounging around last minute looking for some way to moisturize my legs.  I secretly love the winter because: 1) I don't have to shave very often and 2) I never have to use lotion.  We all know we should use lotion, right?  It's great for our skin, it keeps us looking young and our body needs all the moisture it can get.

I discovered this spray and I think it has changed my life.  OK, maybe it's not a life changing event but I really, really like this new moisturizer.  Vaseline^® Spray & Go Moisturizer is now a staple in my purse and bathroom counter.  It is a continuous spray moisturizer (I tried out the Total Moisture®, to be specific), which means that I can spray it all over and then quickly rub it in.  Using lotion may be the only area in my life in which I am lazy, but this moisturizer is the lazy woman's perfect solution.  

I trust and love you guys so much that I just posted a before and after picture of my feet.  My feet, for Pete's sake!!  My little sausage toes said "thank you" for the yummy drink of moisture.  Oh, and this was several hours after my morning application of Vaseline® Spray & Go Moisturizer Total Moisture.  What I love about it is that Vaseline® Spray & Go Moisturizer is an allover body spray, and it absorbs in 10 seconds or less.  That means you really can spray, rub in and get dressed.  Carry it in your purse or beach bag and you have an instant moisturizer while you are loading the kids up in the car.  Vaseline® Spray & Go Moisturizer Total Moisture is also chock full of oat extract and it never leaves you feeling sticky or greasy.  To learn more about the other Vaseline® Spray & Go Moisturizer products, check out their Facebook Page. 

The other night I was at the ball field and noticed that I had not used moisturizer after I had taken the kiddos to the pool, and I was so embarrassed at how horrible my legs looked.  I asked everyone for lotion and no one had any to share.  I would have done anything for my bottle of new best friend.  I wanted to document just how much I love this new moisturizer, so Ella tried to capture it on camera.  Give it a try and let me know what you think.  

 Want a chance to win a $1,000 SpaFinder gift card?  Well, tell me how Vaseline® Spray & Go Moisturizer would maximize your morning, and you'll be entered into a chance to win! Entries will be pooled from participating blogs and one winner chosen.

Sweepstakes Rules:
No duplicate comments.
You may receive (2) total entries by selecting from the following entry methods:
Leave a comment in response to the sweepstakes prompt on this post
Tweet (public message) about this promotion; including exactly the following unique term in your tweet message: “#SweepstakesEntry”; and leave the URL to that tweet in a comment on this post
Blog about this promotion, including a disclosure that you are receiving a sweepstakes entry in exchange for writing the blog post, and leave the URL to that post in a comment on this post
For those with no Twitter or blog, read the official rules to learn about an alternate form of entry.
This giveaway is open to US Residents age 18 or older. Winner  will be selected via random draw, and will be notified by e-mail. You have 72 hours to get back to me, otherwise a new winner will be selected.

The Official Rules are available here.
This sweepstakes runs from 7/1/13 - 7/31/13.
Be sure to visit the Vaseline® Spray & Go page on BlogHer.com where you can read other bloggers’ reviews and find more chances to win!