Lukes first Choir Concert

Since Luke is our attention getter I switched him from Veggie Connection to Choir on Wednesday night and he loves it. Sunday we had our first concert and he was a little unsure at first but he ended up loving it. I could not get him to perform both services but he did great in the first. He was a grumpy bug from lack of sleep and so we left because we had a busy day ahead of us. He was a champ and lasted the entire day without a nap. He was treated with Sushi at the end of the day. Yes- my children love Sushi!!!!

Updates on our house!

I want to start off by saying that Matthew is so talented and amazing. I am absolutely BLOWN away by how wonderful our house is turning out. He has changed and tweaked so many things and please take notice of the stone around the windows. He picked that out and I love it! We have hit our first bump! Matthew and I went to pick out the lights and it was a STRESSFUL experience. Our likes were on opposite ends of the Depot. I like Traditional and he likes Contemporary!!!!! Any help in this area would be wonderful! All of the choices make my head hurt.

Happy Birthday to Blake and Luke!

We have had a blast celebrating birthdays this past month or so! We celebrated Blake's in mid September and Luke's party was last weekend. Blake chose to have a party at home roasting smores and playing flag football. I thought that was a great idea until the day came and I realized how much work it was going to be but it was worth it in the end. Luke wanted to have his at the My Fun Zone and he had about 15 friends show up and he had a blast jumping on all of the castles and slides in the room they provided. Now this was my kind of a party. I just showed up with my kiddos and they did all of the work. At this party the kids were great! It was daddy that I had to reprimand. He and the older kids, my brother and uncle Michael were having a blast nailing people in the head with the balls that they provided. Some of the mothers sat their watching with an alarmed expression on their faces. WHEW! Glad that is over and no one got hurt but I was also glad to see the bigger boys have so much fun. Blake could have had this but he wanted a "bigger" present and a less expensive party. So now he has a Wii to enjoy thanks to his sacrifice. When this house gets sold I am going to practice and actually win a game on the Wii! I can't believe my babies are 9 and 4 and I what is even harder to believe is that Matthew and I are 30! Wow- it seems like just yesterday when we were living in the ghetto in Knoxville at the young age of 21 raising our first child. Time goes by so fast! It is the moments like these that we will always remember.

Gluten Free Lifestyle

It has been way too long since I have posted. I am not great at this because it takes what little time I have left over and consumes all of it! Well- Blake's headaches are getting closer together and he is having to miss half days at school here and there. For those of you who do not know, Blake and his daddy suffer from migraines. Sometimes they are severe and other times they are not as bad but for a 9 year old they are all BAD.
Today we are starting a process that leans more toward natural healing. This weekend I started researching a Gluten Free diet thanks to my friend Brooke. I have been very impressed with what I have read. Dr. Asa Andrews believes their is a connection between gluten and headaches. So today we have eliminated all wheat and flour from Matthew and Blake's diet. OH NO- you might ask- Is this the end of chips, snacks, cakes, and breads????? Well- last night I made a trip to the oh so expensive Whole Foods market and I just wanted to sit in the aisle and cry. There were so many choices and I did not want to spend a fortune on snacks that taste like dirt! My first experience with a gluten free shortbread cookie was a bad one. The birds probably left that cookie in my yard it was so bad.
Well- as I was frustrated God sent a couple of angels in my path. Some were headache sufferers that were buying gluten free products and others had digestive problems. They pointed away from the bad stuff and toward the good stuff.
So- I am proud to say that Matthew and Blake sampled tons of yummy treats that I brought home last night and only ONE was a no go!
Blake had gluten free waffles this morning and in his lunch box he had a parfait with gluten free granola and organic fruit. He also had a gluten free rice cake topped with peanut butter and honey, which he loved tasting last night. For a treat I added a gluten free chocolate wafer cookie that tasted amazingly good.
For his snack he took nut thins. They are crackers that are made out of almonds and rice and they are flavored with ranch seasoning. They are sooooooooooo GOOD!
So- as odd as all of this sounds it is very tasty. I packed Matthew the same lunch. He did not want to full blown parfait so I omitted the yogurt and sent that separate.
Tomorrow I am thinking I will pack a baked potato stuffed with cheese and butter and sour cream. Thank the good Lord he can still have potatoes and rice!!!!!!!!!!! They only meet we have to stay away from is Pork. But after reading about how disgusting pork is I am fine with my decision. Pigs are scavengers and they eat some pretty nasty things and then we turn around and eat them. And shellfish are the scavengers of the sea and their main job in life is to keep our oceans clean from waste. Just some food for thought!

Blake is looking at this as a fun adventure!!!! I am so proud of him.