i'm abnormal. and i like it. :)

earlier this week, makenna, my 5th grader, asked if she could go to the movies this friday night with a friend. i asked if her parents were going and to which movie they would be going. she wasn't sure so she said she would find out and let me know. i realized this morning that i hadn't heard an update so i asked her about the movies tonight and what the plan might be. she said "oh, i'm not going." and i asked why? she said "i dont want to go. well, i WANT to go but they are just being dropped off and they're going to see 'something borrowed'."

ok now, is it just me or is this HIGHLY INAPPROPRIATE for 5th graders to be dropped off at the movie theater, not to mention going to see a movie where the main premise is a girl who steals her "best friend's" fiancee and proceeds to have a secret sexual relationship with him?!??? ummm, WHAT?? and can i just say how PROUD i am of my daughter?? i have to be honest with you, back in the day, i probably would have "forgotten" to mention the absence of parental supervision or the movie of choice... and then i think about their "role models" today - rihanna, britney spears, katy perry, ke$ha (a dollar sign? really?) lady gaga... my heart literally aches for these girls right now. (both our girls AND the "role models") am i overreacting or are these feelings justified? (honestly, it doesn't matter what the consensus is, i'm sticking to my guns here.) it is up to US, as parents, to protect our babies' hearts and minds for as long as possible - call me old fashioned, call me a fuddy-duddy, but i refuse to subject her to the CRAP that our culture claims is "okay" and "normal". i pride myself on being abnormal and i am striving for that with my sweet girls, too. :)

hang in there, moms (and dads!) we can do this!

hugs
jen

so freaking excited!

seriously, i can hardly contain myself! i keep pulling my husband over to the computer screen to show him my newest layout or blog button. i don't understand why he's not nearly as impressed as i am. :| i am officially in love with my blog again! this time thanks to a most fabulous site that i found courtesy of my sweet friend christine's blog and it is now one of my new favorites - www.leeloublogs.blogspot.com - some of the cutest FREEEEEEEE (sing with me...) layouts, buttons, etc. i've ever seen! (ok, STILL trying to figure out links. bear with me...)

also, another thing i am SO FREAKING EXCITED about are a few of the contacts i've made in the blogosphere, just through browsing and commenting. there are so many AWESOME girls out there. i'm just blown away. come to think of it, one of my favorite people is a girl i met via her blog during the 2008 election who then invited me to write some for her blog and we are now good friends. i've never met her in person but we are confident we will meet this side of Heaven. (and if not, we will be SURE to get mansions on the same golden street.)

another thing i am SO FREAKING EXCITED about today is the opportunity to celebrate my sweet friend, amelia peterson, at her graduation/see-ya-later party today. talking about God bringing people together, i met this darling girl at our church and we immediately bonded. she is originally from zimbabwe and has the coolest accent so i could just sit and listen to her for hours. :) and she gives the BEST hugs :) she has been one of the MOST authentic, genuinely encouraging sisters in Christ i have ever met. i think it's just AWESOME that God would allow two people to move 1000s of miles (literally!) to converge upon valparaiso, indiana at just the right time in history and become fast friends. i love you amelia (and mudiwa!), and KNOW, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that we are now FAMILY and will be forever. love you girl.

that is all for today, my friends - again, let me know what you think of the changes and if you have any additional tips i would LOVE to hear them. :) i'm new here.

enjoy your saturday, dearies :)

jen

so whaddya think?!? :)

doesn't it make you want to eat cotton candy??

i realize it may be a bit overwhelming, what with all the girliness, but it is still a work in progress (kind of a metaphor for life, is it not? lol) i found the MOST fabulous websites today - i believe i linked them up to the right of this post (or the left? good gravy...) the first is www.shabbyblogs.com and it has the most adorable backgrounds, blog buttons, etc. for FREEEEEE! (yes, i am throwing my head back and singing that word right now. it feels so good.) the other is a way cool blog by a girl in utah who designs fancy artsy stuff (i'm not describing it very well - i highly recommend you NOT take my word for it and check it out yourself.) find her blog at www.myconcretesky.com. if i had the ability to put to paper all the fun thoughts in my head, her stuff is what it would look like. :) she's good.

as my new favorite blog addition says "if you are here, you are awesome" :) that pretty much wraps up my sentiment towards you all. as busy moms, i KNOW your time is precious and short and i can't tell you what it means to me that you would drop by and waste some of it on me :) have a wonderful evening and rejoice in the fact that tomorrow is FRIDAAAAAAYYYY!! (yes. again with the singing.)

love you girls!
jen