Blog Challenge Days 11-14

Hi friends!  Sorry to take a hiatus like that in the middle of a blog challenge.  Went on vacay.  We had a great time, although there were several hiccups including my phone (and camera source) being stolen.  Yes, I have a big camera - no I don't use it like I should.  So most of the photographic evidence of our trip is gone forever.  Yuck.  But I won't dwell on it....

DAY 11 - Sell yourself in 10 words or less

Up for the challenge.  Does exceptionally well in tough circumstances.

DAY 12 - What (or who) do you miss the most in life?



I miss my grandparents so so much.  My grandparents were such a HUGE part of my childhood.  My grandmother babysat me while my mother worked.  My grandfather picked me up from school.  My grandparents were two of the best people God has ever planted here on Earth. I have so so so many fond memories of my grandparents.  Homemade snacks after school, sleepovers, my grandfather taking me grocery shopping while we complained about all the stops and lists my grandmother had made us. 

My grandparents were old in comparison to my friends' grandparents.  And they were definitely more oldfashioned.  Big bunned hairstyles, white fluffy hair, big lincoln towncars and the pink cadillac my grandmother drove.  My grandfather was born in 1918 and my grandmother in 1920 (I think).  I LOVED to ask them about their lives growing up and what life was like back then.  I loved shucking corn and stringing green beans on their back porch.  I loved when my grandfather, with his liberty overalls and no shirt underneath would give my cousins and me a ride in his wheelbarrow as we rode to the garden in the hot Georgia summers.  I loved that my grandmother's purse smelled like spearmint gum and kleenex tissues.  Sigggghhhhhh.....

My grandfather passed away just days before my wedding day.  And my grandmother passed away 11 days after Brooks was born.  She held him before she passed and told me how beautifully shaped his head was.  With both of them passing so close to major events in my life, it still hits me like a ton of bricks sometimes that they are no longer here.  Like the day the hem came out of my dress at work and I thought I'll take this to Maw. Nope.  She's not alive Jess.  Siggghhhh..... my eyes are burning and my heart is aching now....

DAY 13 - A public apology

Hmmmm.... a public apology.... well there are probably so many things I should apologize for - ha!

But I'll take this opportunity to issue an apology to my children:

Dear Will, Brooks & Tessa Rutledge,

When God gave me each of you, he gave me the greatest gift of all.  Your father and I were trusted by God to take great care of you, love you, nurture you, teach you about life, and raise you to be responsible, God-fearing, honest human beings.

Your father and I take that endeavor so very seriously and so while it may seem that Mommy and Daddy are not your friend today, I can assure you that we love you more than anyone has ever loved another person.  We will inevitably make decisions that you will not appreciate and although I won't apologize for making those decisions, I will apologize for how those decisions make you feel about us. 

There will be events you won't attend, things you won't be given, clothes you won't wear, friends you won't hang out with, places you won't go and other various things that will surely mean the end of your popularity.

We will discipline you, instruct you, and continue to encourage the values that we feel are important.  We will also embarrass you, call you out, punish you, and more than likely make your life miserable at many uncertain times in your lifetime.  I hate it.  I hate that life is hard and that there are so many hard lessons for children to learn.  I hate that we won't always see eye-to-eye (like this morning, Will, when you thought mommy was a "dummy" for not letting you watch cartoons.  I hate that you spent all morning crying in timeout.  Surely you will understand the reason I do not allow that behavior soon enough.)

We love you more than you will ever know.  Until you have a child of your own, you will never understand how beautiful you are in my eyes or how much my heart swells with pride when you accomplish something new.  You will never know how many times I've watched you sleep or held you in my arms until you are doing the same with your children.  You will never know how hard it is to make sure we get this right until you are staring into your own child's little stubborn face.  I love you so much and I am apologizing for all of the things I'm sure you'll see as unfair along our journey.  I hope that in 20 years, we'll meet up on the same side of understanding. 

Yours Truly,

Mom

DAY 14 - 10 things that make you happy

1. Smiling children
2. Naps (for me AND them)
3. Coffee
4. Pedicures
5. Date nights (or any interrupted time with the hubs really)
6. My friends
7. A clean house
8. A fridge & pantry full of good wholesome food
9. A beautiful yard
10. Random emails/texts from my friends

I'm trying to catch up a little at a time without bombarding you all at once.  Come back soon for more :)