bring joy

15 minute veggie noodle soup

(I think these Texans are rubbing off.)

You said so many great things on yesterday’s post.

Joya pretty much sums it up when she says, “Kids!! We can’t take a moment for granted, that’s for sure.”

And I also really loved Alanna’s comment about how wonderful it is when women seem to come together, & all social norms fall away, when tragedy strikes.

She writes:

“You perfectly described the sheer terror of thinking you’ve lost your child. I’m sorry you went through that, even a taste of it is torture. We lost our 4-year old once during a family photoshoot when he wandered off following a puppy. He realized he was lost and hid between a bush and a fence. It was near a busy ferry dock and large body of water. After a few minutes of calling his name I went into a mode I didn’t know...

And, life changes in an instant

popular posts, family, be inspired, parenting

photos in the post from June of last year, at a Padre Island, Corpus Christi

I filed our taxes,
I thought I had lost Amalia for a matter of 15 minutes (but it felt like much longer), &
I witnessed a drowned boy be resuscitated.

, is rather dull, so I’ll skip over it only to say I personally filed our taxes (which I’ve done for the last 9 years of our marriage). We will get a healthy sized return, enough to fill our coffers for a day or two & give us the illusion of being rich. Of course, after that, it will go to our debts. But we’re getting that much closer to our goal of being debt-free, & we are grateful.

The next two incidences, though more interesting, are of the sort that make you want to curl up under a blanket with your kids huddled close. The kind that make you want to...

frugal dates & why you need to date your husband

marriage, frugal life

Last week, in our discussion on distinguishing between needs & wants, I pointed out how date nights are a need for this marriage (& all marriages, for that matter) & how in order to save money it had been suggested that we trade babysitting with another family, & how, hahahaha, I would never do that, because hahahaha, who would seriously watch all of my kids plus theirs??

Well, turns out, I have a friend who actually offered, & so, this past Saturday we did it. And you know what? It was amazing.

Joseph dropped off the kids (minus the baby) & we had a date at home.

For you single or childless friends (or even those of you with just a baby), this may not sound so exciting. But for us, it was like being at a bed & breakfast. No shouting, wrestling, whining, jumping, throwing things down...