I'd like to thank the Academy....

I got a wonderful surprise the other day in the form of a Stylish Blogger Award from my friend Carter!  What an honor that I should receive such an esteemed award!  I'd like to thank God, the Academy, my family, my.....oh.  I guess I'm getting a little carried away.  Anyways, thank you Carter for the nomination!  I shall treasure it always. 

So, after receiving this award, I must now list 7 random facts about myself.  Here goes nothing!

1. I LOVE to read.  I've always loved reading for as long as I can remember.  Going to the bookstore when I was young was the biggest treat for me.  My favorite books to read when I was growing up were the R.L. Stine Fear Street books.  I would read them over and over again until I could finally get a new one!  Even to this day, scary murder mysteries are my favorite books to read.
2. I studied sociology & criminal justice in college.  I have always been fascinated by criminal behavior and often you'll find me watching crime documentaries on TV.  Maybe one day I'll put that degree to good use!
3. I am and always will be a Daddy's Girl.  My dad died when I was 12 years old and there isn't a day that goes by that I don't miss him!
4. I am TERRIBLE at math.  Always have been, always will be.  I think my life would be better without it! Thank God for calculators!
5. I love, love, LOVE pickles.  I think every meal should be served with a pickle.  Mmmmm!
6. I am addicted to my blackberry crackberry. As soon as I see that little red light flash, I have to pick it up right away and see what's going on.  I sometimes just pick it up and look at it for no reason. It's a sickness I tell you! 
7. I love my little boy more than life itself.  My life has never been more wonderful or fulfilled than it is now.  Being a mom has changed my life so completely and I wouldn't trade it for the world.  (as if yall didn't already know that!)

Now, I would like to pass the Stylish Blog Award to...............(drumroll please!!!)......... my friend Melissa! 

Life Lessons

 A few days ago we learned about the earthquake that has brought so much devastation to Japan.  To watch the news and see what the Japanese people are experiencing is absolutely heart wrenching. If you're anything like me, you just feel completely helpless.  Even when I'm praying for these people, I'm at a loss as to what to pray for....how will they find peace? comfort? protection? It just seems like such a hopeless situation. At some point we just have to trust that God knows what He's doing even though we can't fathom it. 
We also had a local tragedy last night.  A young mother was shot and killed, along with her two very young children.  The man who shot them (the mother's ex-boyfriend) then killed himself.  This happened just a few minutes from our house...we even heard the sirens all night, not knowing what had taken place.  We didn't know this girl, but it still really hit close to home for me.  Just thinking about the senseless murders of those people just brings me to tears, especially the children.  Who deserves that?? My heart breaks for the family that is now picking up the pieces of this tragedy.  Their lives will never be the same.  It's so hard to understand why things like this happen to people.
These events really got me thinking about how fragile our lives are.  In an instant, everything can be taken from you.  We hear all the time that we are not promised tomorrow...and I think we forget that. We are always putting things off because we assume tomorrow will come. We put off mending our "broken fences" because it'll be there in the morning. We put off telling people how we feel because they'll be around later.  We think we have all the time in the world, but the truth is, we don't.  As cliche as it is, we should be living each day as if it were our last!  Life is too short and too precious to waste by being hateful, carrying around resentment in our hearts, and letting petty, unimportant things ruin relationships. We shouldn't miss an opportunity to tell someone we love them, to right our wrongs, to mend a broken relationship, or to do something nice for someone else.  Seize the day! Seize every moment! Make this life count because it's the only one you've got.

What's with the screaming?

All you parents out there know what the most irritating sound in the world is.  Yes--your kid screaming at the top of their lungs while you're riding in the car.  I.CAN.NOT.STAND.THIS!!!!  My son has been an expert of this since the very beginning.  He has never been a huge fan of the car and we have spent many a car ride listening to horrifying shrieks from the back seat that make you want to rip your ears off and throw them out the window. (too much?)
Fortunately, the older Bryson gets, the less frequent these deafening car rides are, however we do still have them occasionally.  Today was one of those days.  For an entire 20 minutes this child screamed his head off over who knows what.  Oh and to make matters worse, you know what he screams the whole time?  "MAAAMAAAA, MAAAAMAAA, MAAAAAMAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"  Never Daddy.  Always Mama.  Ahhhh toddlers.  I'm thinking an investment in some high quality ear plugs is long overdue.