New necklaces

A friend of Emma's has a similar necklace to the "bottle cap" necklace pictured on the left, we were looking online for Christmas ideas and we came across these "scrabble tile" necklaces (pictured on the right) and LOVED them!!!  So, I  have 2 questions for you my blog readers...

1. Would you purchase these for your daughter, granddaughter, niece, cousin, etc.?

2. How much would you pay?

I would really appreciate some honest and serious feedback!!!  Thanks :)

Donating

I had the opportunity to give blood on Tuesday at our church's blood drive through The American Red Cross.  Donating blood is something I have done often in the past (while in college & while I worked at the YMCA).  My blood type is O (positive) which is a universal blood type and can be used by many people.  

There are 4 steps to blood donation:

1. Registration & medical history (to ensure blood is healthy to give to others)

2. Mini-physical (check Iron levels, take temperature, & blood pressure-to ensure you are healthy to give blood)

3. Donation (takes about 10-15 minutes) & you even get to relax in a chair!

4. Refreshments (juice & cookies).  Click here for facts about blood donation.

After my second pregnancy ended in miscarriage I ended up in the Emergency Room because of the amount of blood lost within a certain time frame.  Even after the ER gave me shots to help my uterus contract I was still bleeding heavily and ended up with an emergency D & C.  At that time I had lost so much blood they had me sign consent forms and prepped me for the very real chance of a blood transfusion, pretty scary.  Fortunately for me once they got in and performed the surgery they realized I did not need a blood transfusion after all!  It made me realize  really how easy it was for me to donate and help others who may have been in the same situation or just needing a donation.  I haven't been able to donate since then because I was either pregnant or had just given birth!


The kiddos were of course asking a lot of questions, "why do you need to get your blood out"-Lizzy.  Emma asked why I was giving my blood to someone else and not keeping it for me?!  It gave me a chance to explain that this was something small I could do to help someone else, someone I didn't even know!   People get into car accidents or have surgery and may need help from someone else (blood donation) to help fix them.  They all asked if they had to be there with me or if they had to watch, so funny!  Jody doesn't like needles either so they got to go with Daddy for a little while during the donation.  

Check out The American Red Cross's website to see if you are able to give blood and if so where you can do so.  Your body replaces the donated blood within a few weeks and you are able to donate again in 56 days!  You can also help people with certain types of cancer, leukemia and many other health problems by donating not only blood but platelets and plasma!   Donating blood does take a little bit of your time, but what I was able to donate (3 pints) can be used to help 3 people!  This is an easy way to help others and I encourage you all to do so!!!

Road Trip

This past Thursday was our 10th wedding anniversary!  Click HERE for my anniversary post :)  We had really wanted to go on a trip somewhere (like on a plane), but didn't have the time nor money to spend.  We were however able to spend a day and a half together which was the point, celebrating together 10 years of marriage together!

My parents planned on coming in from North Carolina to stay the weekend so we could go somewhere without the kiddos, 4 kiddos are a lot to handle by yourself and I'm so glad both my parents were able to come!  They got here Friday afternoon just before Emma got off the bus and Jody and I were able to catch an early movie and a quick dinner!  Then home to spend some time with the kiddos and my parents before bed :)

We woke up Saturday morning and headed out to LaGrange, Georgia, a small town near the Alabama border, but only about an hour and a half away from us.  Jody looked up day trips near Atlanta and LaGrange came up so off we went after eating breakfast with the kiddos and my parents.  Our first stop was an old church (1800's) that had been converted into a restaurant called A Taste of Lemon.  What an interesting place!  Jody & I were so curious about this little church/restaurant but haven't been able to find any information or history on the church or restaurant!  I'm hoping to dig a little deeper and see if I can find out some dirt!!!  I asked for  coke and the waiter said "ain't none of that here" :)  Our menus were hand written on pieces of paper and did not include any prices?!  The food was absolutely delicious, I've never had southern food like this!  My plate was overloaded with yummy smothered fried porkchops & rice, broccoli casserole, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes with gravy & cornbread-of course I didn't take a picture...what was I thinking?  My plate looked as though I hadn't eaten much at all when I got done!  We kept a watchful eye on those guests checking out, after the "coke" incident we weren't sure they even too debit/credit cards and we only had $4 cash on us!  Thankfully after a few guests paid with cash a guest paid with a credit card and we knew we were safe :)

Our next stop was "Explorations in Antiquity Center", Jody also discovered this place when he was looking for days trips!  The Explorations in Antiquity Center in LaGrange, Georgia, is a living museum of life in ancient times. Through archeological replicas, Biblical meal presentations, lectures, and other personal experiences, ancient Middle Eastern life becomes real today.  Basically the museum exists to help people experience the ancient Biblical world, its history and culture. I'm not really a history or museum buff, but Jody is, so I was happy to check it out with him!  There was a guided tour through the gardens, but it didn't start until 4pm and it was noon when we arrived :(  After a short orientation with a staff member, we self-guided ourselves through the 23 stops of replicas.  Each stop had an explanation of what we were seeing,  it was very interesting!  They even had a kids dig site where kiddos are able to "dig" and explore finding replicas of artifacts from actual excavated sites!  

We decided to mosey around town looking for shops, but most everything closed early on Saturday?!  So we decided to head back towards home.  It was dinner time when we got back to Kennesaw and Jody wanted a steak dinner, so off to Outback Steakhouse!  We ran into a few church members and had a great dinner without kiddos :)  Godiva Chocolatier is my absolute favorite treat, rarely do I get anything there because the chocolate is so expensive!  But I really wanted a piece of chocolate, so off to the mall, got my double raspberry truffle and headed home just in time to get the kiddos in bed!  Wanka & Papa had already given the kiddos their baths (yay!) and we were able to hang out with my parents for the rest of the evening.  

Sunday we got up for sunday school then church, afterward we headed to Cracker Barrell before my parents had to get back to Raleigh.  We had the camera in the car the entire time and I only snapped 1 picture with my phone :(  We had such a great weekend, not what we had originally planned, but Jody and I were still able to spend it together, celebrating our marriage!!!  

What's up with my back and foot?

My feet always seem to hurt.  I'm on them majority of the day doing things around the house, so I didn't think much of it when they started hurting Tuesday during the day...but by evening my right foot was hurting so badly I was in tears and could barely walk on it.  Usually when my feet hurt at night they are better after a good nights sleep, but this was not the case.  I woke up Wednesday morning and my first steps out of bed were shooting pain from my right heel, way more intense than the night before.  I immediately put on my Chaco sandals (they cushion my feet the best), but they barely helped.  

To make a long story short I got in to see a chiropractor (my back had also been hurting a great deal).  He took a look at my feet, had me walk, poked & prodded and told me it was planter faciitis.  Plantar fasciitis is irritation and swelling of the thick tissue on the bottom of the foot.  The plantar fascia is a very thick band of tissue that holds up the bones on the bottom of the foot. This fascia can become inflamed and painful in some people, making walking more difficult.  This condition is one of the most common orthopedic complaints relating to the foot.  Plantar fasciitis is commonly thought of as being caused by a heel spur.  See picture to the left for anatomy of the foot!  

Apparently I have high arches, which I had never been told before and I wasn't wearing the proper shoes for my high arches, problem #1.  We have hardwoods throughout the downstairs of our house and since I am barefoot almost 100% of the time my high arches weren't being supported at all, problem #2.  I have a large swollen spot on my right heel, I'm developing a heel spur, problem #3 (blue dot in the picture to the right)!  He also took x-rays of my back (which has been bothering me for months) and also realized my spine was torqued and my body was compensating for the spinal mis-allignment thus putting pressure on other parts of my body, namely my feet and back, problem #4.

So, after the chiropractor aligned my foot (I had never heard of such a thing, or had it done before!) and back he had me try on shoes that supported high arch people and what a difference!  He then showed me that even with my Chaco sandals on, my arch never touched my shoe!  My treatment is simple, either wear my tennis shoes or a pair of sandals (I ordered to support my high arches) at all times when I am on my feet, even if I get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom!  I have to make these changes or my feet will not get any better, even with the help of "mechanical devices" or surgery (if it gets worse or not better)!  This is such a change for me, I am always barefoot, even outside!  I went home and immediately looked through all my shoes and realized I had very few pairs of shoes that supported my feet!  Almost all my dress shoes were completely flat bottomed and provided ZERO support for my arches!  They may look pretty on, but what a waste and what a problem they are causing for my poor feet!  I am only 30 years old, it's not normal for my feet and back to hurt every single night!  Hopefully my arches will be supported enough with my current shoes and the damage is minimal enough not to require a "mechanical device" or surgery!  We'll see, I go back today to see how I'm doing!        

Ramona & Beezus

Some of my favorite childhood books were by Beverly Cleary, especially the Beezus & Ramona or Ramona Quimby Age 8 series...LOVED them :)  I never had a sister, only 2 younger brothers, but I always imagined what it would be like to have a sister and the stories in these books were so entertaining, I could just imagine!
When I saw they were making a movie based on the books, "Ramona & Beezus-A little sister goes a long way"-I knew I wanted to go see it and who better than Emma who will be 8 in January!  Here's "the story" from the movie : The adventures of young Ramona Quimby and her big sister Beezus come to life in this all new film based on the best-selling books (over 30 million…and counting) by Beverly Cleary.  Ramona’s vivid imagination, boundless energy, and accident-prone antics keep everyone she meets on their toes.  But her irrepressible sense of fun, adventure and mischief come in handy when she puts her mind to helping save her family’s home. 
A friend and her little girl asked if we wanted to go with them to see the movie this past Saturday and we gladly accepted!  One of our college students went with her Mom too :) I don't have any of my old Beverly Cleary books, so I looked them up online to show Emma before we went to the movie, Emma is now intrigued with the series!

I didn't get any pictures of us at the movie theatre because we all were running late and there were bad thunderstorms when the movie let out!  But the movie was great, a great movie for all girls :)  Emma absolutely loved the movie, I think because Ramona is close to her age, and it had something for the mommies...not going to give anything away, you'll have to go see it for yourself!  Ramona reminds me so much of my little Anna (Emma even said so too), I know Anna would have loved the movie and I think Lizzy would have enjoyed it as well :)   The movie had a great story line, no profanity, no violence, no sexual content (all musts for me), what a great reminder for parents, siblings and even little sisters of how life is shaped by everyone around us, even those who annoy us sometimes!!!

All this...

for FREE!!!  I went to a Thirty-One party a few weeks ago on a whim.  I had seen on Facebook a lady from our church was having a birthday/1 year with Thirty-One celebration at her house!  I had a really crazy day with the kiddos and that afternoon I called Jody and said I'm going to this party (even though I only knew a few people)!  To make a long story short, I ended up being the mystery hostess (after a random drawing) and was able to get everything you see to the left absolutely FREE, it is just under $200 worth of products!!!  I will also add that this was my first ever Thirth-One party!  My first thought was to buy things for the kiddos, but Jody quickly convinced me to buy things just for me :)  I was even able to have some of the bags monogrammed...

It was a great evening meeting new people, snacking and getting FREE stuff!!!  Pictured above, I was able to get a large duffle (biggest bag with rings), an organizer bag (green straps, striped, monogrammed), a makeup bag (smaller striped monogrammed), 2 smaller bags (1 striped & 1 navy blue) and a coin purse to match my polka dot bag!!!  I am so excited to use all of my new bags :) 

A gift for me :)

Here is my Mother's Day gift, I absolutely love it!!!  Handmade (the best kind of gift) by my awesome hubby and fabulous kiddos!!!  Thank you guys so much for making Mother's Day special for me :)

This is for my Mom & Dad, to show them how my toe is doing...

This was 8 days after breaking my pinky toe on my left foot.  As you can see the swelling has gone down considerably and mainly bruising is left.  

Still can't get a "real" shoe on, but hopefully in the next few days!!!  Click here for my original toe post :)  

Q & A: Marriage

These are answers to the questions you asked concerning marriage, read here from my original post!  My answers are shorter, is that a bad thing?!

1. How did you and Jody meet?

Jody and I met at a Judgement House (Youngsville, NC) in October of 1998.  He was attending college (SEBTC), and I had a friend who was attending the same college.  She was asked to go to the Judgement House with a group of friends from school, she didn't know them really well and asked me to go with her.  We were in a group of about 20 people that night.  We talked on the phone, Instant Messenger and group dated/hung out for a few months, we actually started dating in March 1999 :)  We were engaged in February 2000 and 6 months later (August) we were married!!! 

2. How did your brothers like Jody when the two of you started dating?
I guess they liked him ok, never heard anything bad, my parents liked him right away too, in fact everyone loved Jody instantly:)

3. What is your favorite thing about being married?
Probably knowing that there is always someone there to love you no matter what, (despite the fact that you don't look the same and things have shifted a bit ;), to encourage you and to push you when you need it, even when you don't want to!

It's just a toe...

So I was moving a chair Sunday night at church (heavy & bulky) and went to step around it and caught my left pinky toe. I am naturally clumsy and have broken toes in the past, so I knew from the intense pain it was probably broken. Since we were still in our youth service I just sat down in my seat and tried really hard not to cry. I took my sandal off, looked at my toe and knew something wasn't right (the first picture).

Now, as you can see from the next picture this is how my right foot and toes look.  When the service was done I asked Jody to come over and help me, he came over, I told him I "stubbed" my toes, he looked down and said we probably need to go have that looked at.  I agreed and to make a long story short I ended up at urgent care.  They took a number of x-rays and in fact my toe was broken (I "stubbed" the toe next to it as well and thought I may have done something to my foot, thus all the x-rays).  Basically it was a large fracture (almost completely across) very close to the joint that joins your toe to your foot in my left pinky toe and that's why my toe was bent outward.  They numbed up my toe/joint/foot and the doctor pushed it back in place (set it) then took more x-rays to make sure it was set properly.  The doctor wasn't confident that the bone would stay in place because of the way it was broken and because it was my pinky toe.  So he referred me to an orthopaedic doctor to ensure I didn't need a pin to keep it in place.  They buddy taped 3 of my toes together, put a boot on my foot and gave me crutches.  I was told to be extremely careful until I saw the orthopaedic to ensure it stayed set, absolutely no walking without my crutches and the boot had to stay on!  Since I'm allergic to Ibuprofen they gave me vicodin (not a big fan because of all the side effects) for pain.  I had an appointment the very next morning with the orthopaedic where they took even more x-rays.  The Orthopaedic thought it did not require a pin at this time, but I had to keep it taped for the next 3-4 weeks.  I am to wear the foot boot as well as use the crutches for a while, crutches until I felt comfortable walking and wasn't really painful!  They will take more x-rays to ensure it has healed properly at my appointment in 4 weeks.

I tell this story to say that even though I've broken a few bones before (my other pinky toe a few times, a finger and a thumb), it's always good to go to the doctor to make sure it isn't more serious!  Although it's very frustrating having to use my crutches to get around and having to rely on others so much for our everyday life, I am very thankful that my injured toe wasn't more serious and especially that it did not require surgery and a pin!!!

Our new fave

One of Jody's favorite stores is REI (Recreational Equipment Inc.), he loves the outdoors. He received a giftcard from REI for Christmas. After browsing the store he came across this mug: REI Vacuum Infuser Mug. Here's the mugs description...

Always on the go? Use the REI Vacuum Infuser mug to brew your tea or coffee as you hurry from place to place!
•Simply drop your tea leaves or fresh coffee grounds inside the cylinder and pour hot water on top; your drink then steeps inside
•Removable stainless-steel screen filters leaves or grounds as you drink through the bottom half of the 2-part lid; or, remove the screen and simply pour your drink into a cup
•Double-wall, stainless-steel construction keeps drinks warm for up to 6 hrs.; keeps drinks cool for up to 10 hrs.
•Food-grade sipping collar lets you drink a hot beverage without worrying about burning your lips
•Rubber on the base keeps the mug from slipping
•Hand wash; do not microwave

He spent his entire giftcard on ONE mug?! I thought he was absolutely crazy. He used it the first day, came home and showed me that his coffee was still warm (hours later). He kept showing me for the next few days until I decided to use it for a day, SOLD. I went the very next day and bought myself one with my own Christmas money! I have to say this is completely worth the price tag (I don't say that much about anything). I drink coffee every morning and was re-heating my coffee several times a day, with this mug it stays as hot as you pour it in the cup for hours! I don't do any of the fancy brewing or anything, just make my coffee the regular way in the pot then pour it in my mug! If you are looking for a mug that does exactly what it says it will, this is the mug for you, click HERE for the link to REI :) Oh and my Mom liked it so much she bought one too!!!

Georgia Residents

We finally were able to go get our Georgia driver's licenses! We've tried a few times, but every time we've had the kiddos and there has been a very long line. My NC license expired on my birthday (Feb.14th), and I was getting kind of worried about driving around illegally!!! Jody's day off is Fridays, so we woke up the kiddos early, got Emma off to the bus and off we went to the DDS (Department of Drivers Services)! They open at 7:30 and because of traffic we got there a little after 8. Hardly had to wait in line, but I forgot one important document, our marriage license! I had looked online to make sure we had everything we needed, but apparently the DDS employee didn't agree! The website said I only needed my social security card with my legal married name on it to prove my name had been legally changed from Sarah Marie Goodew to Sarah Marie Livingston! So I and the kiddos hopped in the car and drove back home, got the marriage license and back to the DDS. It really wasn't that bad even with 3 of the 4 kiddos! Above is a picture of me and my temporary license, my "real" license will be mailed to me in the next 2-4 weeks! Jody would not pose for a picture!!!

What's in the box...

This month at Sweet Sisters we had a white elephant mug swap! In years past we've done purses and ornaments! Since our move a some months ago, I had gone through and gotten rid of all my mugs that didn't match my dishes, I couldn't give one of those away! So I headed to the goodwill and bought a mug for the mug swap for $.50 (it was a great mug that a lot of ladies wanted too :)

Before the night was over I had had a few mugs, but was super excited to take home my Mary Kay mug :) Isn't it such a great mug? And the box it was wrapped in was just as pretty!!!

Spider Bite

I wanted to share what's been going on with me the past few days. I got bit by something Monday night around 6:30pm. I was heading out the door so I took my sweatshirt off and took a look, there was what looked like a mosquito bite about the size of a penny, I put some cortizone cream on it and left for church. The next morning the area had spread, was very red and very itchy. I thought it was a spider bite and went on with my day. When Jody got home that evening, he asked to see the bite and this is what he saw (the 1st picture below-24 hours later). He was shocked, so I talked with my cousin who is a RN to see what I should look for in case I was bitten by a poisonous spider. I didn't have any of the symptoms she mentioned, but she told me if it got bigger I should probably get it checked out. The next morning I woke up and it had spread again (2nd picture). I called the doctor and got in late yesterday afternoon. When I got there I was running a fever, which I didn't know about. The doctor said it was cellulitis, a bad bacterial infection, bacteria got into the bite and it was spreading like crazy. He put me on antibiotics 3 times a day for the next 10 days. I did not realize the severity of the cellulitis, but he warned if we don't get under control it could require iv antibiotics. The bite is very close to my lymph nodes which also makes it worse. The 3rd picture is what it looks like this morning, the red swelled area is now down past my elbow.

I'm telling you all this to be aware, I thought it was just a weird bite! My warning to you is that if you have a bite that is abnormal, just go to the doctor, pay the copay and have it checked out!

Sarah, Sarah how does your garden grow?

Not very well I'm sad to say...until just recently!!! My dad helped me start a garden....he planted starter plants and my job is to keep them alive! I did not inherit my gardening skills from either of my parents whose yard and garden look AWESOME with tons of flowers, floweriing plants, fruits and veggies! I finally after a few months have fruits & veggies starting to grow! Here is a picture of my garden of pots of cucumbers, tomatoes, rosemary, sage, basil and peppers!

Purple Girls

because we both have on purple shirts!!!

My new hair...

is taking some getting used to! My present from Jody was to go get my haircut, kid free! Hair has always been hair to me...it will grow back. I like it shorter for the normal reasons, easier to take care of, fix and won't end up in a ponytail....and Jody prefers longer (on all our girls too). I've kept it long for the most part since I've known him. This time he said "do what YOU want so you are happy with it." So I did, I said "I don't care, do whatever" to the hairstylist! I don't get my haircut very often but I do go to the same person, he does a fantastic job and has been telling me for a while to get it cut shorter! When I came home it was straight, Anna said I had "silly hair", I wasn't sure if I should take that as a compliment so I did anyway! I've been wearing it curly these past few days since it's much easier! I have bangs too, haven't had them in years...those are the most getting used to part...so I'll fore-warn you I look a tad different. I can't wait to see what my Sparks kids say tonight at AWANA, kids are so honest!

Touchy Subject...

Many of you know I get fired up when it comes to politics and religion, but as the election draws near I want to make a plea for those registered voters who are reading this blog. I am very aware that my husband is in ministry therefore I will not say either way who we are planning on voting for. I feeel it is very necessary for people of faith to know what they believe and why they believe it and where it falls in line with the candidates of this upcoming election.

Politics and religion are "touchy" subjects when it comes to many people. There are many issues (abortion & homosexuality) at stake this year that have been pushed aside for more "important" issues. Funny how God has already shown us examples of people in the Bible with the same problems thousands of years ago, He even gave us His instruction book to tell us what to do.

Our country was founded on "religion". Is it our job to freely give the government our money to fund projects stemmed from bad decisions made by some Americans? Many of these "moral" issues have taken a back seat to the name calling and negative campaign ads. Many americans have abandoned their "morals" and have decided they are on their own, whatever decisions they make are theirs to make and if it was a bad decision someone will come along and bail them out. Basically the attitude of I'm responsible enough to make the decision but not responsible to deal with it if things don't go my way. I hear all the time that "the government owes me"? But why? In reality we should all be saying I owe my life to the one who created me and thanking those who came before me who gave their lives.

I want to know what each candidate believes so that I can make a very well informed decision. Many registered voters I feel will vote this election out of ignorance and I ask that not be the case with you. I ask that you really do your research and dig to find out what each candidate for this presidency believes, stands upon and has supported in the past. There are so many places to find information, TV, internet, books, that there simply is no reason for people not to know what each believes. I will not let the media, celebrities or my family dictate who I should vote for. My ONE vote counts just the same as the VP of NBC, Bill Gates, the garbage truck driver, Brad Pitt or the McDonalds worker. It's sad to me that we have been given this right and so many people don't feel it is important enough for them to take it seriously! Don't be swayed by smooth talkers who will promise you the moon and never plan on following through, actions speak louder than words and voting records do the same.
Whoever is voted into the White House this November will certainly make a change, good or bad and it will affect all of us for years to come. I ask that you realize that your actions today will affect our children and grandchildren and so on, even if something doesn't pertain to us now, it may pertain to someone we love in the future.

I made the decision to follow Christ many years ago and I have been called as a believer to stand on God's word. He has given us the Bible as an instruction manual for our lives. Everything we need to know is in His book. He has promised that He will never leave us and He is always in control no matter how crazy our lives seem to be. He created us, He loves us and He died for us. If you are a fellow believer I challenge you to look at the candidates and see where they fall in line according to God's word. We won't always agree with everything a candidate says, on the other hand we can make an informed decision and vote against another candidate and what they are trying to accomplish.

Before and Afters

I promised a few weeks ago before and after shots of my hair...I have recently found our camera so here are the pictures! Beware I do not have any makeup on in the before pictures...

Before and After of the Front

Before and After of the Back

Before and After of the Side

I do not know exactly how much she cut off, but you can see from the pictures it was quite a bit!!!

The Journey...

Before kids when I styled my hair & before Jody lost the weight...so proud of him!

Us before contacts...

In our prime!