Maddie Moo and her Hoodie Too!!!!

Yes, I have become one of those silly pet owners that dress up their dogs. But, I thought this was kinda mild and I don't plan on getting her into any other silly costumes and such. It's a hoodie, and it's cute.

What's funny is she looks like Robin Williams wearing a short sleeved tight hoodie - the hair just goes POOF as it comes out of the sleeve. She's sooooo cute though, I think she'll get away with the clothing thing ok, no other dog should give her a hard time. And anyways, the hoodie saved her life last night as Riley (my best friends cute puppy) thought Maddie was a mid night snack and grabbed her violently. All his mouth was able to get was hoodie and fur. It's all good though Riley, you're still a cute puppy in my book. I'll just have to disrtact you with treats when you come to my house. :)

Been kinda down lately. So, I thought I would just tell the world about it....well, the 4 people that read this anyways. I've been battling this inner sadness. It's kinda like a frustration deep within that nothing I do satisfies. Even in my time with the Lord, the life that surrounds me drowns out anything I would hear from him. It's like trying to talk to your friend in the middle of a carnival. You see the lips moving, but can't hear what they are saying. This would be really bad for me cause I can't even read lips.

My friend recently had this burning in her as well. She took off a day and got back on tract where God's calling her (she's writing this amazing book and I can't wait for her to get it out to the world). I love music, at least I think I do...I used to...I still do....SEE! This is the inner frustration coming out. I used to always have a song in my heart. I used to always put stuff to music and lately, I don't have anything. I know...well, I think I remember God calling me to music. I want to glorify Him so much in all that I do and give Him all that I am. He taught me how to play guitar in 2 weeks. Shortly after I started leading worship at my youth group (only knew 5 chords so, songs we sure limited). There was one time I got so frustrated with always breaking my guitar strings I asked the Lord if he truly called me to worship, that he's going to have to provide another guitar. 2 hours later I got a call from a woman at my church stating that a few people had called her and said that they needed to give her money to get her worship leader a new guitar...these people that gave didn't even know me! You would think after these confirmations, I would have no doubt...

Does God change His mind? Has he withdrawn His calling on my life? Have I held back for too long now it's too late? Why is He so silent, I have no song to sing, no song to write. I feel like my life around me is so loud and cluttered, I can't focus on what I once loved to do. But, the things around me are daily things I must do - I'm a mom of 2 boys, a wife and a friend. I love all that I am but somehow, I feel like I'm missing the mark.

I got a puppy, I got a puppy, I got a puppy hey hey hey hey! :)

This last week my husband just happened next door to the animal shelter (he works for the City and the shelter is next door). He noticed this cute little furry thing that had just been dropped off. In fact, it was an owner relinquish and the owner was still there. Turns out they were moving to a place that doesn't allow dogs at all so they had to send this one to the pound. This little 8 month old girl needed a home. My husband put us on the list and we were number 1! YAY!

When we went to get her on Thursday, we found out there were like 12 people on the list. A few were there right at 4:30pm to see if we in fact did come and get her (if we didn't by 4:30pm then it goes to #2 and so on and so on). They were a little saddened when we were there to get her (HAHAHAHAHA! SUCKERS!!!...that's not very nice is it...sorry.) Anyways, we were so happy to get her yet sad cause we couldn't take her that day. She still had to go to the vet and get spayed.

So then Friday roles around and we got her at about 7pm that night. The vet said she did really good and one of the workers there said we got a jem and was so surprised to see a dog like this come from the pound. She was well mannered but didn't like to be tied up too much (they had to hold her down for the shots and all).

We named her Bailey at first. We called her that for the first few days but, it really didn't fit. Christy (my bestest friend) thought up Maddie cause she's all matted up. (we can't bath her til after 10 days cause of her surgery...she's a little smelly but not too bad.) So we officially named her Madison, Maddie for short. :)

The first and second night went well however, the third night was rather rough. She kept us up ALL night barking at nothing. Well, the power went out and it was super dark so maybe, she was just scared. It got better after we closed her up in our room with us and kept her from the living room and the front door (where she likes to bark the most). Last night was a lot better - slept all through the night. She's potty trained pretty good however, she likes one of my bears that I keep on my bed (it's a Pooky bear from Garfield - poor thing got a tongue bath the other day...it was all wet...).

She really is a little joy. Spastic when we first come home from anywhere but after she calms down, she's a sweetheart. I'll post more as life goes forward with Madison.

Oh YEAH! I'm in the groove. Lot's of stuff being written about DAILY. Oh yeah. :)

Ok, just wanted to share my joy with you today. I was totally down and just sad today. Ever have those days where you're just sad and can't quite put your finger on why? Ok...maybe I'm the only one...any how, that was me for the last few days. I was just sitting here at my desk, asking God to encourage me and to show me how special I am to him and then..... BAM! These show up on my desk. (see picture).

These were from my husband Jeff. He had ordered them a few days ago I guess and they came at just the right moment. I know it was to show how much he cares for me and how special I was and am to him, but I believe God used my husband to show His love to me as well. I felt very loved and pursued both by my husband and my Maker. Couldn't have asked for a better moment today... well, maybe a massage and day and the spa to boot...but the flower will do just perfectly. :) Thanks Jeffrey for thinking of me. Thank you Lord for loving me and creating such beautiful things for my pleasure.

Got my new Mac website up. I pu the video I made from my Ecuador trip up there as well. Check it out. :)

http://web.mac.com/socoolfranny/iWeb/Site/Welcome.html

Totally forgot to tag on my last blog about 10 things I would want to learn to do. TAG! - You're it Christy! :)

Wow, 2 days in a row. What is to become of me! :) Just kidding. Thought I would share a little bit about my move. I have been living in Ramona, CA for over a year now. This was one of the hardest years of my life. God has taken me through some very rough waters and at moments, I thought I was going to drown. God always know right when to pick ya up though.

My husband and I sat down awhile back and after being very frustrated with our landlord, decided there must be a better way to financially get by. I was tired of renting and having strange landlords that don't know boundaries and would help themselves to my back yard when ever they liked. I wanted my own place, one that if I wanted to paint it bright red, I could. If I wanted to take out a wall, I could. If I wanted to put RR ties in my back yard instead of cinder blocks, I COULD! (Another Landlord issue) So, to be able to do this we would need to downsize.

We planned it all out and decided to move into an apartment just around the corner. We will be saving at least $500 a month by making this change. TOTALLY WORTH IT! It was very difficult to pack it all up and downsize a lot of stuff (had to get rid of a lot of clothes, toys, bookcases, all appliances, EVERYTHING just about) but with the help of my best friend Christy, we made it happen.

We moved and totally unpacked within a weekend. It was crazy and I'm still feeling the affects of it all (I catch myself daydreaming from time to time) but it's ok. Small and close, but ok. I want to just give glory to God for opening these doors and giving Jeff and I wisdom regarding this move. I'm excited to see where my family and I will be a few years from now when we're able to hold the keys to our very own place. I want to be a good steward and I feel that in this, God will bless our family. Please as you think of me keep us in prayer as this change was hard on some of us and we did leave a lot behind (my cute puppy Linus wouldn't have been happy in an apartment, he's been free to roam since he was a pup) and missing him has been great at times. Especially for Garret my youngest. Love you all and thanks for stopping by! :)

I'm so sorry it's been forever since I blogged. I will need to change the name of this blog to "A month in the life of the Franster". :) I just recently moved and life has been very crazy (I'll blog about that next month...hehehehhehehe)

I have been tagged by Jennifer to blog about the 10 things I want to learn how to do. So, here ya all go!

10. Learn a new language (I think to learn Arabic would be interesting)
9. Knit or crochet
8. Play some awesome riffs on an electric guitar (Christy you so ROCK!)
7. Fly a plane (so I can travel the world)
6. Scuba Dive
5. Build a house
4. Totally rebuild a VW engine ground up
3. Sew
2. Ride a unicycle
1. Surf - and actually be GOOD at it. (it's been awhile)

Ok, I've been tagged. My friend Christy (www.cedge4jesus.blogspot.com) tagged me to share my 10 movies that I cry over (or cried about... something like that). I have to try and remember.... Here it goes.
10. Any movie where an animal dies (those are too numerous to mention here cause I always cry at those)
9. Million Dollar Baby ( I tried not to cry but, who can stop it really)
8. Life is Beautiful
7. Hope Floats (when the mom passes away)
6. Steel Magnolias
5. Wild Hearts Can't be Broken
4. Dead Poets Society
3. Schindler’s List
2. Green Mile
1. Fried Green Tomatoes

Ok, these are just the few that I could remember. There are a ton more. Tag, you all are it! :)

Few more before and after photos :)

Hello again! Wow, I'm actually remembering to post blogs. Crazy! Anyways, I promised a few days ago that I would put up some before and after of the boys room. I had so much fun redoing it. Jeff and I went and got them a new dresser and TV unit (well, new to them but they were actually used= in amazing condition though). We put up all the furniture in their room Thursday night. Then Saturday morning we went shopping for storage containment units and went to work. Christy and I worked from 12 noon til 10pm that night organizing, cleaning and reshaping this room. I hope when you see the pictures you will begin to feel the need for cleaning. We had so much fun but I do say, I think my children own more than their share of legos but hey, it's their passion (aloing with a millon Star Wars toys...they have some cool ones of those too). Thank you so much my friend for all the work you put in that day with me. Thank you Jeff for carring the dresser down stiars (it was upstairs where we bought it from - again Jeff, I wasn't even thinking about that...I was focused on the deal :) ) and then back up the stairs at our house.

When we got home late that night, they were so exctied to see their room. It was a total surprise for them and they totally didn't know it was coming. Garret was mostly exctied about finally being able to reach the dresser and get his own clothes out (it's been helpful for me as well. It's allowed him to be more independant now). Ethan was exctied that he can finally build his lego creations and leave them out for all to see (the shelves really made a difference in their room). I just love my little guys so much, I wanted to give them a room they could love and want to play in but yet, no get lost in their own mess. It has given them the freedom to just be kids and not have a huge pile of toys at the end of the day.

The room has been so successful that ever since they cam home, it's stayed clean. It's a new record let me tell ya. If you want any tips on organizing or anything, just let me know. I live for this kind of stuff! :)

Timmy. Timmy has been in our lives for 3 years now. He has been my boys little roommate and while we were redoing my boys room (see tomorrow's blog, have to download pictures still), we noticed something wrong with Timmy...He wasn't moving at all. I reached in and picked him up...stiff as a board. Our little Timmy the turtle was dead. I cried. I never thought I would get so emotional over the little guy. I felt so bad for him though. He was at our mercy, in his little cage thingy, and we let him down somehow. I did all that i knew to do, but yet is wasn't enough. It was so hard to tell my boys this morning about Timmy. I found him last Thursday but they had just gotten home late last night. Ethan just looked out at him, Garret lost it and just boo hoo'd all over the place.

We're not sure how he passed. He really was the best turtle ever. He would "knock the rock" on the glass when you would put your fist up to the glass. I loved it when he would climb up on his little log and plant face first into the ground...he was always the extreme thrill kind of a turtle. Thank God we would come home in time to flip him back on the right side. :) He really was the coolest turtle ever.

We are having a service tonight in his honor as we bury him. The boys wanted this kind of closure. If you can, just say a prayer for my little guys. Timmy's passing was rough on them.

Christmas time, come and gone. Just wanted to put up a few highlights of my Christmas time this year. Went up to my mom's house on Saturday. Actually I went up Friday night after doing a worship set for a Set Free ministry in Escondido. Spent the day shopping with my mom and helping prepare the dinner. It was so much fun. Kinda miss doing that with her now that I live an 1 1/2 away. Jeff took the boys around to see his side of the family. Their first visit was to their Papa Danny (Jeff's dad). They had a nice time there.

Then onto seeing Uncle David and Auntie Rachael and Morgan. IT was so cute cause my boys got these toys from Mc Donald’s that were for girls and thought that Morgan would just love them and they wrapped them up to give to her. They were right, she loved them. I think cause she knew it was from their hearts as well. Oh, and they wrapped a tooth brush for her as well. I don't know, again, it was just from their heart.

Then Jeff took them over to see Uncle Darren and Aunt Nadyne. However, she was out shopping with her mom (as I was also at the time) :) but they saw their Uncle Darren. It was a nice time there (they got to play with Peanut, their toy poodle).

After all that we all met back at my mom's house for a wonderful dinner. My brother was very late but there none the less. We all exchanged gifts and everyone enjoyed each others presence. My mom got me gift cards to Ulta (hair and makeup Mecca) and to Starbucks (Mmmmm Chai Latte). I was surprised to get anything really cause a few weeks before she paid for me to get my hair done. That was totally awesome cause it was so long over do and, I love the new "do" we created as well. Trying to grow my hair out hasn't been easy. That will be a while another blog. :) It's so good to spend time with my mom and dad. Kinda miss having them near by.

Christmas Eve was spent at church as we had great time of fellowship. Had a candle lighting service where Christy and I led worship and sand Christmas songs. Then we ate tamales with our Spanish speaking brothers and sisters at our church. Then went back to our house and opened gifts from each other. Got some really AWESOME stuff. Jeff got me $100 in spa certificates and Christy got me a watch, a beautiful picture that I wanted for my house (which I went to go get and mysteriously it was already bought...never even thought that Christy got it.) and Pooky. I'll take pictures tonight and upload them tomorrow. Oh, and she also gave my entire family the gift of seeing the Nutcracker Suite. Her mom Ully got me something cool too - a DVD on massage therapy. That's a gift that keeps on giving (to all those around me) :)

Christmas day was awesome as well. It felt so good to bless my kids with gifts. I have never been a real big fan of the whole Santa thing with my boys. Just kinda got started with the first one (family and all) and it was hard to keep it from the second. Jeff and I decided that we are no longer going to be living this Christmas lie and wanted to get the holiday back to it's original purpose - to celebrate Jesus' birth. So, we told our youngest son Garret that there's no such thing as Santa, but that long ago there was a man who would give toys to children but he died many years ago. But, there's one that still lives that we need to celebrate this season...and we shared with him the birth of Jesus and the importance of His sacrifice. He took it well and now we can leave the lie behind us all. :)

I got so many wonderful things and I want to thank everyone. I hope all of you that read this had a wonderful Christmas this year.

Just wanted to wish everyone a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! Please remember its not about the gifts given or received, or even about the ham or turkey you left in the oven too long...but this is the time we celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus. Without His sacrifice, we all wouldn't have any hope.

Hello to you all! Sorry I've been slacking on writing here. I always wonder who's reading this anyways...maybe I'm just babbling on about nothing to myself...who knows.

Anyhow, I wanted to just share a bit about my last weekend. Totally meant to put this up yesterday. I got a Christmas present early. Don't you love it when you get those! I was just minding my own business this last Sunday, waiting for my best friend Christy to come over and help me wrap presents (I had to hurry and wrap hers up before she got there - wouldn't be too good if I had her help me wrap that one huh). I had boxes, paper, gifts, EVERYTHING laid out all over my bed. Looked like Christmas threw up all over. Then, there's a knock at my bedroom door. I asked who is it (thinking it's my kids and I don't want them to see the presents all over) my friends voice came through "It's me". I got excited cause I really needed help with all the Christmas that threw up all over the bed. So I threw open the bedroom door to see my Christy, standing there all dressed up nice with pretty earrings in her ears and her hair up and pretty and she smelled good too (not that you normally don't my friend). I was surprised by her wrapping attire and asked "Umm, you're dressed really nice to help me wrap". That's when with a big smile she handed me a card and yelled "Merry Christmas!" I opened the card and it told me to get ready NOW cause at 5:30pm (only a few hours away) my whole family was being taken to see the Nutcracker Suite and the San Diego Civic auditorium. YAY!!!!! I jumped for joy and quickly got my dirty little boys all cleaned up and handsome and threw some stuff on my self (got to wear my pearls, it was fun!)

This was such an awesome present on so many levels. I was able to see the Nutcracker (that I haven't seen since Jr High and it's just my most favorite too!) with my family. I had been wanting my boys to see it just forever and give them a great experience. They so enjoyed it which made me enjoy it even more.

Thank you again my dear friend Christy. This early gift was a total surprise and very thoughtfully planned out. You gave from your heart and it will be a memory that I will carry forever, and so will my family. :)

Oh my goodness I had so much fun yesterday. We went to a women's tea thingy that I totally didn't want to go to but my best friend talked me into it. I'm so glad she did. We spend Tuesday night shopping for awful dresses to wear and get all silly fancy. I think we did a good job accomplishing that. :) We had tea and cute little finger foods that were almost too pretty to eat (notice I said almost...they were yummy!)

Here's a few pic's from the event.

Hello and happy Tuesday to you all! I actually got thru the Thanksgiving holiday unscathed. :) It actually was a wonderful time at my mother in laws house in Arizona. My boys had such a great time just being boys out there. They rode their bikes, shot their BB guns and just had fun. Jeff and I had a great time too getting up at 3am to get to all those great holiday deals the day after Thanksgiving. We actually got some REALLY great ones. One of my favorite buys was a Casio EXILIM digital camera- it's super nice. I've included a few pic's from the camera here in my blog. We also got the boys some great stuff as well. I would put it on here but on the off chance my oldest figures out this blog and sees it, it would be hazardous. :)

My mother in law has this cute puppy too named Midge. She's about 6 months old. She's a chihuahua mix with something else. She kinda looks like a miniature German Sheppard.

Well, looking forward to Christmas now. The next month's blogs will probably be all about the holiday's and all the craziness that will take place in my house. Enjoy!

Well, it's almost Thanksgiving. This is really my favorite holiday. Kinda feel bad for it cause it gets skipped over so many times. The retail world jumps from Halloween straight to Christmas without giving our little Turkey friend a second thought. But really, this is an amazing time to reflect all that we are thankful for. So in this blog, I would like to share my thankfulness.
I'm thankful so much for my beautiful children - Ethan and Garret. Althought this is hard to write at the moment cause they've stomped on my very last nerve today however, maybe this is the best time to get my heart and mind back into perspective. I love them so much. Ethan has a heart of gold and he prays every night for the people in South Africa for their hearts to be open to the gospel of Christ when he comes to share it with them. Garret's laugh will make anyone's heart joyful. His blue eyes melt you and his hugs warm you all up. I'm thankful that God has blessed me with these wonderful boys.

I'm very thankful for my best friend Christy Edge. She means so much to me. I can't ever imagine picking anyone better to be that person to me in my life. Not that she's always nice and let's me have my ay but because she's open and honest enough to point out those dark places in my heart that God's needs to refine. And she doesn't do it in an arrogant way, but a loving way that leads me closer to Jesus. She doesn't come up under me, but stands beside me in all situations, still allowing the Lord to lead into he way He want's me to go. She's helped me see who God created me to be and to learn to love that person inside. She's cried with me, laughed with me and even hurt with me. Thank you Lord for sending me Christy to share your light and to encourage me in this life.

And I would also like to say I'm thankful for Jeff, my husband. Although over the past year I would say it's been difficult but, I'm thankful. He's really changed over the last year. He's a wonderful father to my boys. They have "Man Night" every Tuesday and just to see how they look forward to that encourages me. He's become a great provider for this family. Just recently got a great city job and it's really filled that financial gaps. And he's learned to listen to me more and to help where he can. I know he's starting to see the Franny God created and is trying to get to know and love her the way God intends.
I'm also thankful for my mom and dad. They have helped me so much in life. I can't even list all the things they've done for me, it would be a huge list. However, I do want to mention one thing - they have always believed in me. No matter what new venture I was on, they stood with me believing I could do anything. They have bought me so many instruments and such that have really helped me get musically where I am today. Thank you so much for believing in me mom and dad.

Most of all I have to thank Jesus for the sacrifice He made for me. That even when I was yet a sinner, he died for me. His love has no comparison and no boundaries. I am thankful for His unending grace and mercy that I seem to need on a daily basis yet, it never runs out. God, you truly amaze me in all that You are. That you created the universe and named every start yet, formed me in my mother's womb and gave me a purpose and a plan, for good and not evil. Thank you Lord for giving me hope in this life. You are truly amazing.

Oh my gosh!!! I just totally came across the funniest website today. Check it out at http://www.mistupid.com/people/page027.htm I'll be adding it to my fav blog/websites as soon as I figure out that feature on this blog. But for now, log on and check it. These are bad metaphors that college students used in their essays. Wonder where these kids are working now.... Microsoft? Hmmmmmmm, who knows. :)

Ok, I've been trying all morning to get the pictures I took of the new stuff I got Riley however, it just wouldn't work. So frustrating. I was able to get this picture off the web. This is the new toy I got for him but it doesn't have the rope attached to it. Just the stick part but that's what it looks like. I so wish I could get the picture up of his Padres collar - it's hip happenin'. Oh well. About to go get him in a few minutes. YAY for Christy!