Reign in me!

God showed himself to me today. I didnt deserve it, but he loved me anyway.
Our van transmission went out today. We were planning on going to the Hermiston waterpark with the kids today. At the last minute we changed our mind and asked C's parents if we could go over and swim. On our way there, we noticed the van making a funny noise. We called the most wonderful garage ever.....the Hiland Garage. This is owned and operated by a friends family and they have always been great to work on our vehicles. Carl (the dad) agreed to "listen" to our car today as he was not really opened, but in the shop working none the less. So we drove there and had him take the car around the block. At first, C and I thought we were losing it b/c we were not hearing the noise anymore. Then he put it in neutral and tried to go to drive again and it was sluggish and making a noise. We barely made it back to his shop and he said it is shot.
**sidebar, can you imagine if we would have gone to hermiston? we would have gotten stuck on the side of the road, in 102degree weather and that would have sucked. ***
Carl went the extra mile with us to check on our warranty and whatnot. We are covered, praise God. Jaimie 5 years ago would have freaked out. Heck, Jaimie 2 years ago probably would have freaked out. Car problems usually stress me out. He said that it is recommended to service the tranny around 105000, we are at 70000. There should be no problems. Carl said that it is completely shot and we should not try to drive it to the dealership. Another praise, the tow is covered under the warranty! So we will be calling Monday morning and getting it to the dealership.
At one point C asked Carl how much it would cost, worst case scenario, to just leave the van there and have them fix it. Labor, new transmission, parts, everything. He said 3 grand. Wow! He encouraged us to use our warranty. I immediately looked at C and said, "this is why we buy new." Thank you God for this blessing!
Next blessing. I think God is trying to tell me to slow down a bit. When I learned that I might be without a car this week (for those who know me, I am a "go" girl. i love to go. hawaiians would say "holo holo") I felt relieved. I cannot go work out. I cannot do anything but stay here with my children. I cannot do anything but work on my house. I can rest. Wow! Who knew I needed to be without a car to realize I needed to slow down? Thank you God for this insight.
So, what did I learn today? I was brought back to the realization that God has all my cares and concerns in his hands. He is taking care of each little detail and I need not worry about "tomorrow". Thank you God for teaching me this and please forgive me God needing this reminder .

James 1:2-4
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith developes perseverance. Perseverance must finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

Seize the Deal

So I found this website yesterday and there is still time to "seize the deal". Currently the deal is to buy a $20 gift card to Fiesta Mexican Restaurant for $10. There is a limit of 1 per person but this free money people. Jump on the wagon. As of this morining there were 44 hours left on the sale. If you click on the link below, I get credit for referring people to their site:

http://www.seizethedeal.com/users/new/yqiSPDKKC

For those of you who have not been to Fiesta, they have two locations. One off Road 68 in Pasco and one in Kennewick by Walmart. They are Christian owned and I continue to be impressed with their prices, food and outstanding service. The owner took the time to come and chat with my husband and I about how they recently went "alcohol free" and our take on that. They have specials thru the week, but our fav night to go is Tuesday. This night they have 1/2 price steak fajitas and C and I share one and come home plenty full. Their salsa bar with homemade tortillas is my fav. part of the whole thing. I seriously could eat just that, but it may be frowned upon.

Anyways, lovin free food and lovin Fiesta Restaurant!

Catcher in the Rye

Years ago there was a movie. In this movie the character could not go past a copy of "catcher in the rye" without buying it. For the life of me I cannot remember the name of this movie but it has put one of my obsessions into perspective. Each year I buy school supplies. Not just for the children I have attending school, but for moi. I love the smell of a fresh box of $.25 crayola crayons from Walmart. I love those almost as much as I love the spiral notebooks that they have for $.15. I bought 12. Some will be for the girls, but the majority are for me. I love the feeling of having a new book of paper to write in. Couponing strategy, absentee notes, finances, you name it. This also doubles for a last minute gift. "art supplies" are a great birthday present. Give a spiral notebook, some crayone and maybe some stickers and the kid will think you are amazing. Little do they know that cost you about $1. Boom. I love school supplies and they are on sale now at Walmart. I bought now just in case they run out when I "need" them.

It's the little things that make me happy! This verse also has been making me happy:

James 1:2-4
Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

coveting prayers

so, one of my fellow bloggers does this and I figured it was fine for me to do too. Please pray. Not asking for spesifics, just asking for prayers of peace, wisdom and strength for my family.

sidebar*** couponed some school supplies this week. walgreens had ten pack of pencils for .19. Killer! They also had pens and 5 pack of mechanical pencils for the same. I got three of each and am quite pleased thus far. I am waiting for the major sale that Walmart does on the spiral notebooks and crayons later in the month. for those of you who know me well, I am sort of compulsive about school supplies. I look forward to buying an abundance of the crayons and spiral notebooks every year. even before the kids ever needed them. Strange, I know. but i love the feel and look of a new book of paper to write in and the smell of a new box of crayons.

c took me to see Eclipse again the other night for a date. It was secretly his way of gettin there to see it but seeming like the stellar husband. he got major points for that one, major!

I got my hair done today. Amy at the Body Botique is amazing I will say. She does my highlights and is great. Im just sayin if you need a hairstylist, she is the lady to call. I love getting my hair done because it is two hours focused on just me. selfish a bit I know, but I am ok with that.

also coveting an ooey gooey carmel brownie blizzard. I have not have one for a few weeks and am miss the love. I iwll have to get one later in the week as time and money allow. looking forward to that one.

right now I am watching New Moon. it is good to have an escape. it is my escape tonight. well that and blogging. 11:19pm and here I am. Praise God. I am blessed.

smooth criminal

So, Leilani shoplifted......again today. C was with me this time, so he got to deal with it. Last time she stole a Hannah Montana contact case from Walmarche which she had to promptly return. Well today we were at Pig-n Pancake and she took a purple crown. There is a long story about how she snuck it out of the store, but I will spare you. Needless to say a lying 4 year old is pretty easy to spot. At the van she backed away from C and hid her hands behind her back. DUH! Luckily for us she is not great at it yet and we can still spot her lying. She had to take it back in, apologize to the cashier (she did not play it up like C had hoped) and then received her punishment. Alli later pointed out in another store, "Hey Lou, here is the crown you tried to steal in the other store." Sisters. UGH!

I want to eat lots of fried food and an ooey gooey carmel brownie blizzard. It is probably good that it is not that close to me or I would be consuming it as we speak. Some of the best food I have eaten this week is; a lick of my daughters sticky bun ice cream cone (delish), Turkey club (always a good idea), fish and chips (halibut) and plenty of french fries!

I am really getting excited for the Eclipse premier. While I will not be hitting the premier at midnight, I will be going shortly thereafter. The midnight showing was pretty hard last time but well worth it. I will be decked out this time in shirt and possibly bedazzled unmentionables. TMI I'm sure.

Have you ever tried a chicken lettuce wrap? I hear they are amazing!

OUt!
J

Inappropriate Mermaid

Today I had a cartoon drawn of me. Big head cartoon body of a mermaid. Well, the artist gave the mermaid something I have always wanted.....double D's. But when I got to finally see it I was like, maybe we should make those seashells a little bigger. Seriously looks like huge gazongas on this mermaid with my face. Inappropriate, highly inappropriate. I might take a pic of it and put it up. Not sure if I am that brave. I told C, "This is not what I would have chosen." He was pleased with it tho and it will be posted in my room not for the whole house to see, so I guess I can be fine with it. LoL

current Jaimieisms:

smartastic

chillax

Im not sayin, Im just sayin...

fo sho'

fo shizzle

Ok that is all I got. G'night!

Seasons

My favorite season is the fall. The leaves are beautiful and the crisp air is refreshing. The days are ending a little sooner and morning stays dark longer. I love that part. We also experience seasons of life. Currently I am trying to slow and enjoy ous. With children we are constantly busy. Always somewhere to go, something to buy or someone who needs us. Some days admittedly, I just try to survive. Usually those are days that I have not started with God. We got these prayer cards at the family life marriage conference last weekend and they have really focused my prayer for my husband and children.
Do you find yourself rushing thru the season of life you are in? I would encourage you to stop and smell the roses. Mel Haug encouraged me to do this as we were graduating from high school. It was good advice then and still true today.
AT small group recently we were talking about how joy is a choice. It is everlasting. happiness is temporary. We have soooooooo much to be joyful about! We are crazy blessed! Someone please remind me of this next time I am having a "bad" day. Chris and I always say that our worst day together is better than our best day apart (refering to his time in Korea or Iraq). Puts things into perspective.
ciao