Long lost blogger...

I've been out of the blogosphere world over the past couple weeks. Work has had me bogged down to the point of almost no return but I thought I would quickly return to drop a few words and post some pics just to let yall know we're still here and kicking...I think...

It's been a challenging couple weeks. I've been in three cities in less than seven days....in a snow storm, stuck in airports, to warm weather, then to colder weather (9 degrees to be exact), then back to warmer weather, then cold again...meeting after meeting, audit after audit, client dinner after client dinner...12-15 hour days...I've been in hotel beds more than my own. Even in another bed, 1600 miles away from the kids and Gaines waking up every 2 hours, I've still managed to get no sleep. As I stumble through the days, I often wonder if I'm a walking zombie or if I'm alive and kicking. Clay has been a real trooper and he's started calling himself Mr. Mom....and he is Mr. Mom at this point. Thank goodness he is able to step in and keep it all together while my work is demanding so much time and energy from me.

During all this, Clay has lost his job. This will probably be our biggest challenge we've faced as a family yet. As of now, we're optimistic and hope this is a blessing in disguise as he was miserable and working nonstop. There have only been a few moments of tears (One bout came yesterday at a client meeting but that's ok). We have support from all parts of our lives...family, friends, acquaintances, work colleagues...We've received more "We love you" and "We're there for you" and "We're thinking of you" comments than ever before. It's nice to have the support to help get us through. This is also a time when we (Clay and I) can look at each other and our beautiful children and say with confidence "This is what it is all about"...it's not about money or how much or how little we have...it's all about our family and the love we have for each other. This is what gets us through and what will get us through these tough times and I believe we'll all be stronger for that.

This leads me to my New Year's resolutions. I've been meaning to post them but just haven't had a chance, but I think it fits perfect with the hard times, hard work and all the obstacles we have right now...the resolutions seem more fitting than ever. So, here they are...

Read more....

Run more...

Love more...

Want less....

Pretty simple...not much to it...self-explanatory but still very powerful. When I got home last week from one of my trips, Clay had written these resolutions on a piece of paper and put them on the fridge....I think he's also made them his own resolutions (minus the running I would assume). We now wake up and see these four resolutions...go to bed and see them and try to follow them on a daily basis.

Love these series of pics of the kids and Belly Bear...she is so good to them...licks and all...

Some pics of Lo and Boo Bear at the farm hanging on the porch. Lola loves this dog more than anything!

Regardless of everything going on right now, I can't help but look at these pictures, smile and feel full of happiness! I'm so thankful for what I have!

I leave you with this last statement that I heard this week and loved...."Life is about making mistakes…that’s how you learn who you are and who you want to be..." I truly believe this!