Ferris Bueller lives.

I have a mini Ferris Bueller in training. Thursday morning Colton wakes up saying he's sick. We take his temperature. No fever. So he proceeds to the bathroom to try to throw up. Oh! He must be sick if he's trying to throw up. But I can't miss work, so I tell him he's got to get up and go to school. 

Later, Ava and I are in the kitchen. She asks me to make her lunch, but of course we're running late to I say no but I'll make it for her tomorrow. Colton overhears this and says, "Wait. What day is it?" "Thursday," I say. "You mean it isn't Friday?" he asks. "I wish!" Well he then tells me, with a big ole' grin on his face, that he thought it was Friday and was only pretending to be sick so that he wouldn't have to take the spelling test. 

CAN YOU BELIEVE IT? I about died laughing. I couldn't believe he would pull something like that and then tell me about it! He get a stern talking to after that though. 

Love,

Sunshine

I am only writing this because...

I promised my grandmother I would update the blog! I am shamefully unapologetic about being a very inconsistent person. It's just who I am, no need to fight it. Anyway, sorry for the long delay. I was going to post Christmas pictures, you know last Christmas, but I didn't see a single one. Not one. It was a busy time and I took for granted that everyone around me had a camera so I didn't bother taking any. The normal after-get-together picture share somehow missed Jesse and I. So...I just never posted anything and then made up lots of excuses until I finally just forget about it.

So here's what you've missed. Colton turned 7 and we had a great birthday at Wonder Works. It's the "upside down building" on the beach that has lots of cool science displays. You can lay on a bed of nails, ride a bicycle that flips upside down, view some cool eye-tricking art and lots of other things. We all have a good time and go whenever we get the chance. 

Colton had a good school year. His teacher was involved in a very bad car accident during Christmas break and never returned to the class. But he still did good. 

The kids had an exciting summer, too. They got to stay with my parents on their little farm. They rode horses, fed chickens, gathered eggs and just generally got to play outside for 2 weeks. One of their favorite parts is going down to the pond and catching catfish for dinner. Colton caught a huge snapping turtle and Grandpa promised to send him the shell once it was cleaned. He's still anxiously waiting for it to arrive in the mail. He has informed me that if I see a big package show up, it's probably for him.

Ava on Rosie.

Colton riding the hay bales.

Colton on Bo.

We also went camping at Falling Waters State Park, about an hour and half up the road. It was beautiful! There were lots of trails to explore that went into some beautiful woods. The water fall was dry, but it was still cool to see where it is in the rainy season. It probably looks like Niagara Falls right now. I made the kids go exploring by themselves. Colton of course made friends with some fellow campers and then more friends down at the lake. I love how everyone in the camp is so friendly and you don't have to worry about your kids.

Speaking of camping, Jesse is planning on going on his annual hiking/camping trip in just a few weeks. Three weeks in the smokey mountains does his body and soul good. He and his friends look forward to it all year. I got to go horseback riding in the Rocky Mountains with Dad, Uncle Paul and cousin TaNeil. We had a blast. We spent the week trail riding and exploring. It rained the first 2 days and almost everything got soaked, but we were all in good spirits. Our dads took good care of us. There was lots of hot coffee and hot Tang being made. It took us three days to get to our campsite because of the rain and just general craziness. Our pack horse, Bo, fell off the trail at one point. That was scary. But he thankfully wasn't hurt. There was also lots of horse drama. Dad and I had three horses and Paul and TaNeil had three horses. Well none of them wanted horses from the other pack riding the trail near them. But they were all super excited to get on the trail so keeping them all apart proved to be a challenge. 

Jesse's dropping me at the airport. One carry-on. That was it.

This beauty was hand-made by Uncle Paul and given to me as a present. The handle is made from stag horn and camel bone.

Colorado is absolutely breathtaking. Everywhere I looked, it seemed that God had planned every little detail so that everything was filled with peace and beauty. The natural wildlife and landscape is just perfect. You get a sense of what life should be like. Living in the city truly disconnects us from the earth and from God. How can you be grounded when every day you're surrounded by things man has created? It's sad really.  

Somewhere in Colorado...

Any hoo...Summer is gone and things are moving right along. Colton and Ava now live with Jesse and I full time. Michael and Ashley moved up to Missouri to help my mom and dad clean their house up to sell it. So we also switched schools. His new school is right down the road from our house, which makes it very convenient. He already knows some of the kids in his class because they went to the same summer program together. His teacher, Mrs. Luciow, seems really nice and very good. Our only problem is that Colton hates homework! 

Colton's first day.

Ava's first day of pre-k.

Ava also started pre-k this year! She is so excited. I can't believe that she's going to be five in a few short weeks! There are only three kids in her class so she gets lots of attention, which she loves! She also likes showing me all the pretty pictures she colors and letters she's practicing writing. She also got a haircut! There was probably 6 inches taken off. She actually looks like a little girl now, not my baby.

She got a treat because the teacher said she used her manners really good!

                        

Her haircut!

It's amazing how absolutely opposite Colton and Ava are. Colton likes to spend all day in his pajamas on the couch watching movies and playing games. Ava never sits down to watch a full 20 minute show. She is always moving, even in her sleep. Colton sleeps bundled up in pajamas and socks and has the blankets pulled over his head. Ava only wears a pull-up to bed and never wants covered up. If I'm looking for books, I go to Colton's bed. If any toys are missing, I check Ava's bed.

Another new thing in our lives since my last post. Gizmo! He's the sweetest, most perfect dog for us. We found him at the animal control shelter. He's a Pomeranian/Chihuahua mix. He likes to lounge around with us and is very well behaved. He's also our little riding buddy. His favorite words are "bye-bye." That boy will do circles waiting for you to leave. As soon as he hears car keys jingle, he's up and at the door waiting. The only thing he gets in trouble for is chasing cats and barking at the neighbors when they're in their own yard. But he loves to curl up with the kids and sleep and always keeps Momma company. He's my little shadow. 

Colton and Gizmo's perfect day.

I also got a newer car. It isn't good for anything but hauling groceries and babies. Ugh. Even the kids miss the jeep. Oh! We went to Disneyland for my birthday (Jeep broke down then, nice reminder, huh). We had a blast and wore the kids out! Thank goodness for the double stroller. The weather was absolutely perfect and the lines weren't that long. There was so much to see and do for everyone. We stayed from open to close. It was beautiful and wonderful! Thanks Mimi!

Early morning!

Notice Ava's dead tired stare.

Having a little fun at the pool.

Jesse and Barb at Cinderella's castle.

Oh yeah,  work two jobs now. My night job is at JoAnn's fabrics. I love that store!

Other than that, I think that's about it. I've probably forgotten few things along the way. But I'll try to update the blog more regularly.

Love,

Sunshine

Our monkey turned 4!!!

Happy birthday to the most beautiful, smartest and most helpful girl in the world! Ava Raine Bevany turned 4 yesterday. She chose donuts for breakfast. Colton and I were both happy about that:) Then we got to watch Colton get his A-B honor roll award. At daycare, her Aunt Ashley brought treats for her class. Oh! She got two birthday princess buttons to wear all day, too! We ended the night with a nice, warm, slippery bubble bath. All in all, a good day.

Saturday, we're going to the Flutterby Festival in a nearby town. It's all about butterflies. They get to make crafts, read stories and learn about butterflies, which are migrating right now. We'll do cake and presents and have a little party at the park for her. 

Ava's getting big, too. I've realized over the past few days for some reason that she is getting a little too big to carry around all the time. Neither one of likes that idea! She likes to be a big girl until it's time to walk. Then she turns into a baby again. 

In other news, Colton is super smart, but we all knew that anyway, right? He made the A-B honor roll his first semester in 1st grade. His teacher even said he was very smart. He tested above the school average in almost every subject in the standardized testing. He's very creative, too. Almost every paper he brings home has doodles on it. His teacher said she thinks they're adorable, but of course some teachers wouldn't like that. 

Jesse and I finished the bookshelf I started while he was gone. It went so badly that I just gave up on it. Then, I dragged in out onto the porch to work on it, and the whole thing just felt flat onto the deck.But in my defense, Jesse said the drill I was using was absolute crap. It's no more than an electric screwdriver. He really saved the day! It was so much easier with him and we knocked it out of the park. Of course, he had ideas to improve on the next one (in the near future) and thought I was crazy for adding the "x"'s on the sides, but I had a vision and I wasn't  going to stop until it was complete. I just finished painting it, and really couldn't be happier. 

He is super happy, too, because he now has an outdoor knife throwing stand and an indoor one. His man cave is really taking shape. He added new lights and got it all extremely organized and now has his favorite hobby in there too. Colton loves to throw knives in there also.

I think that's about all the news I have for now. Have a good one!

Love, 

Sunshine

Happy, happy! Joy, joy!

Hello, Everyone!

Our Jesse finally came home! He's actually been home for a week now. I thought he might be home Thursday night at the earliest, but last Wednesday night, around 11:30, I  get a text from him saying there was a package at the front door. Of course I ran to the front door and there he was! We were both very happy to see each other. My dad nicknamed him Sasquatch and I would have to say Jesse reminded me of him at that point! After he brought all his gear in, the whole house smelled like a campfire.

He has lots of good stories to tell and made some good memories. It was everything he was hoping for. He's got lots of great pictures, too.

This was a typical night at camp.

He went with his 2 best friends and they spent 2-1/2 weeks camping and hiking the Appalachian Trail in Tennessee. They got to experience some great things, like this:

And this...

But then there were days like this one, where they had to hike 14 miles, uphill, in the rain.

But they eventually got to this...

I'm pretty sure it was worth all the trouble. 

While he was gone, we were busy doing this:

This is how we spent the first day of fall...

 Of course there were boo-boo's involved...

And this is what happens when Colton tries to style Ava's hair...

But we did spend some time being productive and made a new window treatment. Notice the beautiful model...

Mimi and Mr. David treated us to Gulf World where we got to pet the sting-rays and see all sorts of cool creatures...

They even let us take 2 of them home with us...

It's life back to normal now. We're all healed up from the boo-boo's and sniffles and ready for Halloween. 

Love,

Sunshine

Sick, sick, sick

Well, tis' the season for the sniffles! Colton was sick two weeks ago with major congestion. He missed half a week of school. Of course, I thought it was just a little cold so I didn't take him to the doctor until Thursday. Bad Momma! I felt terrible when the doctor told me he had bronchitis. So we all stayed home Friday and had a good day playing, laying around and watching t.v. 

Then, last week I start with a little congestion and a cough.No big deal. But it's all gone down hill from there! Ava's got it too now. Thankfully not as bad though. Medicine doesn't seem to help much. I resolved to go to the doctor if I'm not better by tomorrow. 

But then....

Colton woke me up at 4 o'clock in the morning Monday complaining that his ear was hurting. I gave him so Tylenol and sent him back to bed. Haven't heard another word about it. Until this morning when his teacher calls (she probably has me on speed dial by now) and says he's complaining about his ear. I learned my lesson from his previous illness. When he says he's sick, he his. So off to the doctor we all go. We're gonna get our money's worth today! A 3-for-1 special! 

I'm going to venture to say that when Jesse hears about all this, he'll have a list of things I should have been doing this whole time. Hind sight is 20/20. 

On a good note...
JESSE'S COMING HOME!!!! I'm super excited. He's been almost three weeks now. He should be back by Friday or Saturday. We haven't talked much because he doesn't get good signal up there in the Smokey Mountains, but this trip has been everything he wanted it to be. He and his two best friends are hiking and camping on the Appalachian trail in Tennessee. It was sort of a back to nature and know thyself trip. They all start out the day together and then go at their own pace and meet at a certain campsite that evening. Of course it's the perfect time of year to go, too. 

We've definitely missed him being gone. But the babies like riding in his truck! I asked them earlier this week if we should start driving the jeep again and the both shouted, "No!" But we'll have to give the truck up eventually. Easy enough trade for me:) 

When I tell people that I would be all alone for an entire week, they all say, "Oooh. Isn't that nice?" Not really. I love my family and miss them and don't like to stay in a big old house all alone. It's lonely. I would much rather have two fighting babies than to spend and entire week alone. It's so quiet. 

Oh, I had big plans, too, for all the things I was going to get done that one week I didn't have babies or Jesse. Ha! That was a joke. I think I got one thing checked off my list of 10 things. It's amazing how much time a person can actually waste doing absolutely nothing. But I wasn't doing nothing. I just wasn't doing what I had planned. Surprise! I have come to realize that I have a hard time staying home. Maybe because there wasn't a reason to stay home? 

Anyway, that's about all there is for now. You know all the latest and greatest. Hope everyone stays healthy this winter!

Love,

Sunshine
 

Let's play a game...

It's called "Catch Up." I"m sorry I haven't written in a while. Things have been hectic and then I haven't actually felt like writing. But here's the latest in our world:
1. Jesse's fixin to leave for the A.T. (Appalachian Trail)
2. Colton and Ava are big kids now.
3. Colton loves school
4. He was also very sick last week.

Tomorrow morning, Jesse and his friends are finally heading out on a 3-week camping expedition in the Smokey Mountains. They've been planning this trip for a long while and have all been working extra hard to get a project finished at work so they could actually leave. Jesse is ready for an adventure plus some self-exploration. Wouldn't it be wonderful to just take off and spend three weeks in nature? I'm jealous! But I"ll miss him like crazy. I plan on keeping busy at the house. There are lots of projects rolling around in my head- anyone who wants to help build some bookshelves or hang pictures, feel free to stop by!

A few weeks ago, I went to tuck Colton in bed and noticed his feet hanging over the edge of his little boat bed. I decided maybe it was time to get him a big boy bed. It took some time, but I found a set of used bunk beds that are just right. The kiddos are excited. Of course, they have bunk beds at their dads, so it wasn't too special. But that meant we had to buy new sheets and comforters. Ava picked out Hello Kitty while Colton picked out Angry Birds. The mattresses just got in last week so they're going to get to try out all their new stuff tonight! We're excited!

First grade is going great so far. Colton really likes his teacher, and she is good at communicating with me. She let me know that on Monday, he had to pull a card for sliding on his knees in the hallway. ( Each child has 5 different cards ranging from green to red, like levels of trouble). He told me Wednesday evening that he had to pull a card and I asked, "For sliding on your knees?" His little eyes got really big and he said, "Yeah! How did you know?" It was so funny! Momma's know everything. 

He also has some congestion last week and missed 2-1/2 days of school. I finally took him to the doctor on Friday and he had bronchitis. Of course I felt like a bad momma for that one.  I didn't think he was that sick. But we ended up having a good day. The three of us ran our errands, and then went home and hung out. 

Ava actually talked to stranger, too. That was surprising. We stopped for lunch at a restaurant, and I left the babies at the table while I got our drinks. As soon as Colton saw me, he tattled on her, "Ava talked to a stranger." Definitely didn't expect that one. Colton yes, Ava no. But some lady was just telling her how cute she was and asked her name. 

Well, I think that's about it. Not too much going on around here. Just going to work and school and home. Enjoying this nice cooler, dry weather! 

Love,

Sunshine

Lesson Learned

Colton: "Mommy, can I have a  new game for my iPod?"
Mommy: "I just bought you three new games."
Colton: "But I want another one."
Mommy: "When you learn to be happy with what you have, then you can have another one."

This was a lesson I had to teach my little boy this past weekend. No matter what I give him, he seems to always ask for more. He's extremely polite and sweet when he asks, too. It's hard to tell him no, but then again, it's annoying to constantly feel like the only time your children want to talk to you is to ask you for something. 

While cleaning the dining room table the other day after this little lesson, I had an epiphany. That was the lesson God had just taught me. 

Last year, I lost a wonderful job when my boss closed her business. I was very upset, but quickly found another job. At the time, it felt like a blessing, but it didn't take long for reality to set in. Within days, I knew this was not the place I wanted to be. I let everyone know that I was looking for another job. I downloaded every job search app I could find on my phone. Every day I would comb the wanted ads. For months, I was absolutely miserable. 

I came close, once. A part-time job as and interior designer came up with a local builder. The interview went well and it would pay well enough that I wouldn't have to work full-time. I was devastated when I didn't get it. That might well be the first job that I've interviewed for that I didn't get. 

My hope came with the thought that I knew this was only a temporary situation. Eventually though, I gave up my quest. It's exhausting to be so miserable. Things got better at work. So much better in fact that my boss made a comment one day that made me think. He said, "Now you're starting to think like me." That thought honestly scared me. There was nothing about this man that made me want to be like him. He isn't a bad person. Just now the kind of person I want to be like or work well with. But I had started to realize this job was a little more permanent than I thought and I had better just adjust my attitude. So much of this life is determined by attitude. I learned a long time ago that you either change your situation or change your attitude.

As things went on, I realized things weren't that bad. I didn't wake up dreading the day anymore. But I certainly didn't enjoy it either. Finances were not that good either. I started looking for a part-time job to help even things out. 

Then, it happened. Out of the blue. Not even looking for it. The job for which I had been waiting. The job that was everything I wanted. The hours were good, the pay was great, the people seemed nice and I would be a designer again working with antique furniture and fabrics all day. Pure heaven! 

I am proud to say that I have been the new interior designer at Specialists of the South for 3 weeks now. The people and atmosphere are wonderful to work in. Every day, I wake up glad to go to work at a job I love with a wonderful family to come home to.      

So back to Colton and the lesson he made me realize. In the middle of my every day life, I realized the lesson I was trying to teach Colton was the same lesson God had taught me. He has blessed us in so many ways this past year, that it is truly amazing. He gave us these emotions. He must understand what they feel like. We are his children and we are constantly asking for more and more. I thank God every for everything he has done for us and for keeping everyone safe. There is no harder prayer and praise that I give than the ones for keeping my family safe. But he must get tired of being asked for every little thing. We need to bask in the glory of all that he has given us and all that we have because of him so that we can be happy. Once we truly appreciate the things we have and things he has done, will we begin to understand his love. 

It can't be forced appreciation either. You know how children go off and pout a while when they don't get their way. Then they're back 10 minutes later asking for more again. It has to be a genuine appreciation and thanks. The kind that makes you forget you're lacking anything. 

Most of you who know me, know that I am reserved when it comes to my emotions. (Jesse thinks it's strange that my family and I don't say "I love you"!) While I am a little embarrassed to share such a personal story, I just feel like I need to share it. Plus, when I write, I don't have to face anyone, I can just write for myself- which is the easiest thing in the world for me. So I apologize now if I ever share too much information with y'all!

Well, it's past my bedtime and I think I've said about everything I wanted to say. I hope y'all enjoyed the Sunday school lesson. One of these times I'll have to tell ya about the lesson Ava taught me. It stills get me teary-eyed. Till then...

Love,

Sunshine