Going green...

Do you remember the post about the "chittlins"? Well I am finally trying to stay true to my word and feed my family better this year. I have always wanted to plant my own tomatoes and today me and the boys planted some organic tomatoes and lettuce. Ask me if I knew what I was doing, the answer is no, however I planted them in boxes so I wouldn't too much damage to the yard. It was actually very easy. I am very excited about the possibility of my fresh produce. You know tomatoes are expensive these days. If everything goes well, I will do more veggies in the future. If not then I did give it my best shot. I will let you know how it goes. I hope things go well because I really want the boys to see their hard work pay off.

Jackson's soccer progress

Ok as I stated before Jackson always shows out with me at soccer and not his dad, the picture that you will see is him at a game about three weeks ago sucking his thumb in the middle of the field while his teammates are running around him kicking the ball. To his credit, he did decide to enter the game and have a good time but it has taken a couple of practices for him to warm up when I am there and not his dad. Lately though he is all ball player and a team leader. So we are very proud of him and the progress he has made. For a minute we thought we were going to have to substitute Caiden for him because my little man is always ready to play. Matter of fact we are constantly running him off the field. Anyway the season is coming to an end in a few weeks and we are gearing up for t-ball. I will keep you posted on how that goes, we are thinking that the transition will be a lot easier.

Teaching on Marriage...

On Sunday, Norris and I taught our first young marrieds bible study class that we go to every Sunday after service. We were very nervous as we had never taught together and we didn't want to come across like we knew it all but we did want to share some of our experiences that we felt could be valuable to others. Overall, we thought we did a good job and the message was well received.

Our lesson was on boundaries in marriage. We recognize that when we get married we become one, however we are two individuals merging our lives together. We have our own minds, attitudes, behaviors, etc which brings with it challenges in a marriage. The basic idea of the lesson is that we must take responsibility and ownership for our own actions, and not blame our spouse for our behavior even when we feel as though they "made" us act in a certain way because of this or that. Lord knows this lesson was for me! I am daily dying to self and trying to become more Christ like, breaking those generational curses that have tended to follow me in my marriage is so difficult. But I have come so far and I know Norris appreciates this. Anyway the book was called "Boundaries in a Marriage" by Dr. Clouds and Townsend, it is really good and we learned a lot.

Renita

Am I there yet?

Hey you guys, I know I usually get on here and talk about the kids but today I just wanted to send a note of encouragement mainly because I need it myself so sending this out is therapeutic for me. I am convinced that when we go through hard times either because they are self inflicted or the enemy is hard at work, God is always in control, his love for us is enduring, and we must trust that he will get us through those tough times. I continue to have major issues while getting my degree, if it isn't one thing it's another, and sometimes I promise you giving up has been an option at times. I ask God, "Why is this so hard?" "Do I really have to keep going?" "This is for the birds, Lord!". But somewhere inside I just keep going in spite of every obstacle that tries to stop me. But one night in having my breakdown about everything, my husband continues to remind me of the purpose in this moment and how it is making me stronger and how I will be able to minister and helop other young (black) women in similar situations when it is all said and done. So I just want to say to you, no matter how tough things are "Don't give up" because clearly if things are working against you then your blessing must be so big that the enemy doesn't want you to meet your destiny. This is what I keep telling myself, almost like there is this big gift with some awesome things God wants me to have in it once I finish my degree and I just have to make it to the finish line. I will keep going, I will not give up. Pray for me in my journey.

The Phenomenom

I must say something about my little phenomenon Caiden. He makes me think of that old song "something like a phenomenon" (you have to sing it to get the full effect). I forget who sings it (LL I think?). Anyway, nothing can stop this little boy, yesterday he had a fever of 102.5 and you would have never known. I must admit on any given day he does give us a run for our money, but even with such a high fever he still can't be stopped. He was still in that toilet searching for something, what I will never know. And his acrobatics are amazing as he will climb up on everything and just find something to get into. The sure will and determination of Caiden will take him very far, I am definitely looking forward to the journey.

The latest funny thing that he does is that He thinks that he knows when he has to potty, as he has watched his brother go to the potty, so he now grabs at his diaper and makes these sounds like "uhuh". I humor him and say "you have to potty" and sit him on the potty. One day Jackson said to Caiden "you didn't even pull your pants down Caiden". I winked and said "Caiden went to potty Jackson" and he got it. So now he says after I take him to the potty "good job Caiden, you went potty, high five". I think it is the cutest thing. Hopefully it will lead to him getting out of those diapers soon!

It's me!

I know it has been a while, between going to Mississippi for Uncle Harold's 60th birthday bash, Jackson starting soccer, and succeeding in a great Valentine's night out with the Hubby and close friends, things have been pretty hectic around here. In regard to Jackson and soccer, I have figured out that "it's me", that is I am the reason that he does not want to participate at soccer practice and be fully engaged. I determine this as fact because my husband informed me excitedly when coming back from soccer practice a week ago that "Jackson was great!" "he did this and he did that", he even shook the coaches hand upon arriving and leaving- saying "thanks coach for the practice". Now I must reiterate that "it's me". I couldn't get him to barely touch that ball, let alone talk to anyone asides from "ummm"-meaning leave me alone. If I give him the benefit of the doubt, I would say he is just getting over bronchitis and an ear infection and didn't really want to be bothered. But if I were honest with myself, I would say that I think that It's official, and I have a momma's boy. We will see though because this Saturday is his first game and dad has to work, hopefully all will go well. I'll keep you posted.

Eboni's going away party

I finally am on my way to the party and miraculously made it on time. I am so excited to host this party because Eboni is the sweetest person I know and I would do anything for her. There are not many people who go out of there way to love and support people as she does. So Eb, Houston is definitely going to miss its Angel! This was a fun night as I got a chance to connect with my line sisters and a lot of old college friends who I hadn't seen in a while. Eboni had a great time and seemed really happy to get a chance to see everyone before she leaves in a couple of weeks. Eb has committed to doing a blog while in Australia, so we will get to be apart of her experience. Below are just a few pictures of the night.



Me and Line sister Rashandra



Me and Pressy



Me, Andrea, Bernie (LS), Chaka (LS), Rashandra(LS)



Me, Dee and Sherry



Me and Eboni