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Merry Christmas 2011 – Alleluia

December 25th, 2011 at 11:30 am / Amy Bennett / No Comments »

Alleluia – used to express praise, joy or thanks.

Alleluia

Close your eyes, lift your hands and say thank you.

Alleluia

My soul quakes and my flesh feels the waves of thanksgiving. We celebrate him abiding in flesh as a babe but today He abides in me. In His church. In the body, not a body.

I hope that’s truth for you. That this Christmas when you stretch your hands out with alleluias, you feel Christ abiding.

Merry Christmas to you and yours.

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The Hobbies

November 29th, 2011 at 7:24 pm / Amy Bennett / 10 Comments »

Emma spent Lexi’s taekwondo practice drawing pictures of each of us doing what she perceived as our hobbies. I gotta say, she nailed it.

The Facebook cracks me up. Curious, what would Emma draw for you?

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Future Classic: The Chicken Pot Pie Crust

November 15th, 2011 at 8:10 pm / Amy Bennett / 7 Comments »

OK, so this is going to be funny. Hang in there.

This all started with this tweet last night:

And I was exhausted! But super proud of myself for thinking about dinner the night before. All it needed was the crust which was already frozen in a disc in the freezer. I even remembered to sit it in the fridge before I went to bed. Last night I asked Scott if he thought he could roll it out and put it on and have it in the oven 30 minutes before I got home from the office. He’s really good about cooking if you tell him what to do. I asked him if he wanted instructions then or wanted to do it over the phone while I was at work today. He brushed me off and said, “No, let’s deal with it tomorrow.”

This morning I emailed him instructions telling him lots of details like to sit it out on the counter so the butter would get to room temperature and put flour down and make sure to put slits in it, etc, etc. He never asked any questions.

So this afternoon I get a call while I’m talking to my manager. I ignore it. When I’m done, I call Scott back and he starts in on an aggravated (but not mad) rant. “This dough will not roll out right! It keeps breaking apart! Is it old or something?”

I said, “No, I just made the other half of that batch like 2 weeks ago and it was just fine. Maybe you put too much flour on it?”

Scott says, “No, I didn’t. Even before I started it was falling apart. I rolled it back in a ball and tried again but then as soon as I touched it, it fell apart. So I just picked it up in pieces and laid it on top. I just wanted you to know when you saw it.”

I said, “That’s fine, honey. We’ll still eat it.” And it really was fine. It was 5:00 by this time and I was stuck in traffic. I really didn’t care what it looked like. And I was super proud of him for doing it without grumbling. On the rest of the way home, I was just thinking about what a good guy he was and when I cut my piece out of the pie I would enjoy it so much more knowing that he had done that for us. Yadda. yadda.

Then I get another phone call before I get home. Scott says, “Was that sugar cookie dough you had in a cylinder tube in the freezer?”

It dawns on me immediately what he’s done. “Yes. You didn’t use that did you?”

Yes. He did. He didn’t read the email carefully so immediately went for the first frozen thing in aluminum foil in the freezer. Little did he realize I had already put the pie dough in the fridge so it was already thawed for him. He said he even checked the freezer up and down when it was flaking so badly and still didn’t see anything.

So he says, “It tastes pretty good though. I figured it out when I took a bite and it was so sweet.”

Holy cow. Funniest thing EVER.

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Lexi’s 7th Birthday Parties

November 5th, 2011 at 10:34 am / Amy Bennett / No Comments »

The past two days we’ve been in complete birthday mode for Lexi. Normally we do a family party on their actual birthday and then do a combined party the week between Emma and Lexi’s birthday at a place like Chuck E. Cheese. This year, both girls wanted separate sleepovers.

Thursday was a complete blur. Lunch was spent gathering the cake, balloons and a present that I didn’t really need since I forgot I ordered American girl stuff. I was a little wiped out before the party even started.

But it turned out to be a great evening. Lexi was ecstatic when people actually started showing up. I think she was legitimately worried people wouldn’t come.

By Friday morning I had to take a deep breath and do the whole birthday thing again but this time with 7 girls. Overnight. I kept it pretty simple as far as decorations go. Lexi wanted all her friends to watch Soul Surfer together so we made it a surfing theme. We had a cool cake made and borrowed a real surfboard and let the girls take pictures on it like they were Bethany from Soul Surfer. Between pizza, cake and presents they danced, played Twister and red rover. They finished out the night with the movie. I was feeling pretty good about this whole sleepover thing. Until the next morning.

This morning I woke to find that during the night, some of the girls had taken the pretzels, goldfish and other snacks I had out and put them on other girls as they slept and generally made a mess of all the food in the living room floor. It was so bad Emma had the cheese from the pretzel sandwiches in her ear. No one would own up to it. I kept my cool (outwardly) but gave them a full-blown “that was rude and disrespectful” speech. I think they thought I was an evil stepmother about then. Scott’s only comment to me was well, just think, if they were boys, it would have been shaving cream. I do know pranks are part of sleepovers but I wasn’t prepared to see that this morning. All is well though. We moved on and got some breakfast and they got some good play time before everyone headed out.

I can’t believe my baby girl is 7 and all the work was definitely worth seeing all her smiles.

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Not on the Honey-Do List

September 20th, 2011 at 9:04 pm / Amy Bennett / 3 Comments »

Remember that honey-do list I mentioned? Well, next on the list was the pool cover stand. Just 2 4x4s and a metal bar could have done the trick so we could roll the cover off the pool onto it for storage instead of dragging it off. But Scott says, “Why don’t I take our swing set down and use the 4x4s from that for the pool stand and build a whole new swing set?” Well, um, ok, honey, but you could just go buy 2 new 4x4s. Look, I’m not complaining that he wants to build the kids a new swing set and honestly the steps were in bad repair but it seems a little much to do the WHOLE thing.

But, guess what I came home to today? Wait. Here’s the before of our swing set. It’s a 3 year old picture of Scott’s mom pushing them but you get the drift. Simple, standard swings and slide. PS Lexi’s hair was oh so long and cute and her wegs are so teeny tiny. Lexi! You’re distracting mommy!

Well, here’s the ginormous swing set I found in my back yard this evening:

Apparently he realized a little too late he got 10’ 4×4” boards instead of 8’ boards. Just a wee bit different. I have to give him props for getting all this up in one day and the kids are ecstatic. But dear mercy, I just hope I get my pool stand out of this.

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Living Proof Live – Charlotte and a Surprise

July 23rd, 2011 at 6:35 pm / Amy Bennett / 7 Comments »

Golly, the past 24 hours were so good. So. good.

I keep typing and backing up and typing something else. Where do you start? How do you put into words 6 pages of notes and a very full heart? First I will tell you this. And it is what I walked away with. That story? I’m gonna write it. No lie Beth said the words “We always want our past to be our past. To pretend like it never happened. But we must use our past as our testimony. We have to offer hope.” There are many more things she said that completely confirmed my thoughts scripturally and enlightened more. Above all, I walked away with the affirmation just once again just how much affection He has for me. He is not tolerating me, he DELIGHTS in me.

There is no way to fully explain all of what she talked about but I will hit the highlights. Our two words for the weekend were HOLD FAST. Hold fast and cleave to God. She gave us eight reasons we needed to hold fast as an acrostic:

H: His affection is set upon you. She went into the many ways he loves us. But be assured he is loyal, faithful, emotional, passionate, devoted to you.
O: Only He is your praise. The good of the universe loves YOU and wants good for you. Praise him.
L: Loving Him Awakens Your True Heart. We do not know ourselves until we cling to him. He is what makes life work.
D: Doing His will Does Us Good. He cannot lead us wrong. God uses everything that happens to you for your destiny.
F: Fleeing to Him means Fleeing From Him. He is always with us.
A: Any Tighter Embrace Will Also Replace. Oh boy, do I know this one well. We are supposed to love but when we cling to something else harder, it becomes a stronghold.
S: Satan Wants What You Have. He wants your marriage, children, church but most of all your faith.
T: The Lord is Your Life Col 3:1-4 Choose life.

So good. I wish every one of you could hear every word. But I’ll just say this. Hold fast to Him. He is the answer. Your life should not be a train wreck. If it is, fall into Him. Hold on for dear life. When you are walking with Him, things work. It may not be easy but there is peace. Whew, I could go on!

I do want to tell you about the lovely people I went with and got to meet.

Susan, Dani, Michele, me and Heather. I was so happy Heather. At the last second, she was able to snag one of their Siesta Scholarship tickets. If you need one of those, it was so painless and such a blessing.

I also got to meet up with my good friend Becky

..and Beth who sadly I didn’t get a picture with.

And I’m especially happy to have finally met Boomama. I have been a long-time reader of Sophie’s blog and let me just tell you she is a DELIGHT. I’m not sure there is another way to describe her. And she is the same in person. She’s down to earth, and funny and Southern to every bit of her core. I just love her.

OK, so I must quickly tell you about a surprise last night that happened after we got back from LPL. Yesterday afternoon I talked to Emma. I told her I was excited to see her in one day! I talked to Scott last night just after we got out and he said the girls were asleep so I didn’t get to say good night. When I got home, I went almost straight to sleep as my alarm was going off at 5:45am. Scott called right at 11 and said, “I hate to do this but Corporal has to come get my radio to use it tonight can you go get it out of the closet and put it on the bench out front.” So I did and when I walked out the front door, I saw car lights on and thought Corporal was already there. I started squinting really hard when I saw a shadow of a child and saw that it was Emma! “You’re kidding me”! I said when I realized it WAS Emma and Scott was also walking through the yard. Scott had completely surprised me and travelled back that evening. I can’t tell you how happy I was!

So between the conference and having my babies back last night you can imagine I’ve been on cloud 9 today! Hope your weekend is going well!

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Show Us Your Singles

June 23rd, 2011 at 9:05 pm / Amy Bennett / 8 Comments »

Kelly’s Korner is hosting a Show Us Your Singles carnival and when my cousin, who by the way is also named Kelly, emailed me to suggest I participate by writing about my sister Heather, I just couldn’t pass it up.

So how does the carnival work? You write a post about a single friend or family member and then everyone links up back at Kelly’s. People start match-making and apparently, sometimes, it works! A few people have started dating seriously from this process and one couple even got married! Since Heather is into online dating recently I figured this couldn’t hurt.

But how in the world do I tell you all the great stuff from 30 years of sisterhood?

How can you start to capture all the times she’s made you laugh?

Or gone to a concert with you?

Or hugged your kids because she loves all babies so much?

Or celebrated with you?

How in the world do you describe just how much she loves animals?

Maybe it’d be a good time to tell that story how she literally swam through a lake to save a drowning dog’s life?

How can I describe how she’s been by my side through everything, even little things like meeting Spongebob.

Should I tell you how much she loves music and movies and TV or how much she loves pens and post-it notes? Or just how much she has a heart for God and what He has in store for her mate?

Or were you looking for “the stats” like

She’s 30
5’4” (I think?)
Resident of Fort Mill, SC
Graduate of a 2 year school with graphic design
Works with my mom at her custom blinds business
Owns her own house and car

Or maybe I should just tell you how beautiful she is inside and out

because she is. And how any guy would be a LUCKY. GUY. to get her.

Yeah, ok, so maybe she doesn’t get a date out of this post but I sure hope she gets just how great I think she is. I don’t say it a lot.

But I mean it a lot.

Love you, sissy.

Oh and cute, single men, well-meaning mothers, sisters, aunts, cousins and friends, leave a comment if you have a good match for her!

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Top Ten Tuesday: Photo Booth

December 28th, 2010 at 12:45 pm / Amy Bennett / 4 Comments »

It sounds silly but one thing I will really miss about my MacBook is Photo Booth. It’s a sample camera that takes pictures with different effects applied and you can see yourself as you take the picture. The kids loved it and it’s the one thing they mentioned they would miss. Probably because it’s the only thing I would let them do on it. It was always a fun time to take silly picture with one another at random times. Most of them are garbage but there are a few that I would be sad if they disappeared and make me happy.

The three of us piled onto my bed one night.

A quick hug at my desk.

Not sure but they effect was really cool. I feel like Marilyn Monroe.

Being silly on the couch.

Being extra silly on the couch.

Impromptu family portrait in our bedroom. Can’t leave out the Build-a-Bear.

Love my girl!

And we’re good at being silly sometimes.

Did I mention silly?

Lexi stealing the camera by herself one day.

Emma stealing the camera, feigning surprise, I’m sure.

Fun right? So different than the usual family pics we grab around here.

I think maybe what I’ll miss the most is not the Mac or Photo Booth but the moments we let ourselves be silly.

This post is linked up to ohAmanda’s Top Ten Tuesday

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Christmas Recap

December 27th, 2010 at 1:49 pm / Amy Bennett / 1 Comment »

We had a lovely Christmas weekend. Scott had to work Friday and Sunday but we fit in a trip to each of our parents’ Friday night and Saturday. Sunday was spent at home trying to figure out where to put everything AND playing in the SNOW. I think it was the first white Christmas in Charlotte in 60 years or something. In true Carolina fashion, the sun was out as soon as it was done and is quickly melting it today.

I have a few favorite memories I hope to keep with me from this year.

I created a “package station” where the girls had their presents in stacks, labeled with handmade paper snowflakes above it.

Making the snowflakes brought back great memories of doing them in school.

But seeing the girls see something new and fun that I actually managed to hand make was WAY better.

We still have the snowflakes up and really I have no desire to take them down.

Mom and Dad bought Lexi a police officer outfit. Cutest thing ever. Lexi has Emma in handcuffs as I type this and Scott is telling “security” to “take her away please” as he sits at their new Barbie cash register at the “mall”.

Lexi was quite animated opening presents. This particular score was over new earrings.

Emma was just as excited but reserved in her reaction. Her best reaction was over a Taylor Swift CD. I loved reading the lyrics in the jacket cover as she played it on her new CD player my aunt got her. I haven’t done that since 1997.

It’s not that she hated her unicorn pillow pet as I assumed when she busted out crying after opening it. It was her last gift in her pile, none of which included the American Girl doll she was desperate to have. I thought I’d be clever and put all but their big presents out and at the end say, “I have one more present for you." and then bring it out with much fanfare. Christmas FAIL. She calmed down when I explained it but wow, she really wanted that doll.

Which makes this pictures of the girls with their American Girl dolls oh so wonderful.

Love this impromptu family picture. We had all piled in the chair in preparation for opening presents at Scott’s parents Saturday.

And finally, Emma and Lexi cackling over something at the snow man yesterday. Not much better site than that.

I hope you had a wonderful weekend!

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Merry Christmas 2010

December 24th, 2010 at 11:31 am / Amy Bennett / 5 Comments »

My heart is so full this Christmas. I hope you experience His rich, rich love during this holiday season.

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Christmas Weekend

December 21st, 2010 at 10:57 pm / Amy Bennett / 5 Comments »

…and we’re back. Again. We spent a long weekend back in Maryland/Pennsylvania visiting family for Christmas. It was a whirlwind of Christmas parties. Friday night we had dinner/presents with my mom’s dad. Saturday we had lunch/presents with my dad’s family. Sunday was spent with the rest of my mom’s family. My favorite moments:

The kids playing Twister Friday night. My cousin was twisted up and looked like a pretzel on the board.
The kids playing Hedbanz and everyone getting a good laugh when I got the “I am a pig” card.
Having a wonderful breakfast made from our hosts so I didn’t have to worry about it.
Our hosts having special Christmas presents for the girls.
Getting to meet my cousin’s new little baby and remembering what it feels like to hold a sleeping baby while you eat and telling your birth story ad nauseum.
Realizing we have two new husbands and one new baby since last Christmas. No boyfriends this year at Christmas!
Having my grandmother healthy and happy after getting cleared from breast cancer this year.
Eating a steak sub from D’Atri’s.
Having Lexi pick up a napkin and try to wipe my hands clean from the messiness of the steak sub.
Seeing my cousin’s little toddler toddle around and remember what it’s like to have to follow them around every single second.
And then remember what it’s like for your kids to still have nap time.
Seeing the kids presents all in stacks, just like we used to.
Getting a set of my great-grandmother’s dishes from my aunt with homemade cookies on them.
Playing with my uncle’s iPad. And loving it but still being ok that I don’t have one.
SNOW TUBING with my family, parents, sister and uncle’s family. The best fun in a really long time. Please see videos below!
A really, really quiet ride home.

It was a really fantastic weekend.

So this snow tubing…you’ve gotta do it! It takes absolutely no skill whatsoever, it’s fast and fun!

This is me and Emma going down the hill:

It looks slow until you’re on it! Here is Scott and Emma going down:

It’s a must, must do!

Hope your Christmas weeks are going well!

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Heart Desires

November 12th, 2010 at 8:23 am / Amy Bennett / 9 Comments »

When did they…

…become them…

I almost don’t recognize them. And I don’t mean the missing bad perm and braces. That couple is a happy couple in their 30’s with 2 kids, a dog and a picket fence. And most days I feel a lot more like that 15 year old a lot less like that 32 year old.

But somehow that’s us and every single dream that 15 year old had 17 years ago got wrapped up in a few pictures yesterday.

I’m so blessed.

Psalm 37:4 Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.

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The Family Meets Danny Gokey

September 16th, 2010 at 9:29 pm / Amy Bennett / 7 Comments »

This afternoon I had the chance to take Scott and the girls with me for a meet and greet with Danny before he signed autographs at the Southern Women’s Show in Charlotte. Because of the site, I’ve been in more contact lately with some of his management and they were gracious enough to let me meet up with him. We ended up in a closed cafeteria just outside the showroom and it was very easy-going. Well, eventually it was.

The girls barely wanted to turn the last corner to see him. Between nervous laughter they were all but pulling me back or down to the ground. They were smiling ear to ear but nerves were taking over. Finally I had to pick Lexi up and take her over. Danny didn’t spot us behind him until we were nearly at his table but he seemed happy to see us and was glad to finally meet Scott. He gave him a big handshake and bear hug. He was wonderful with the girls and told them how beautiful they were. We all sat down and Danny answered all the questions I had. We filmed a video and took pictures.

The picture deal was pretty funny though because at first I wanted to get a picture with just the girls and him but they would not do it. So I went and stood by Danny and they finally ran over. Scott started snapping pictures. But then I think we all realized at the same time it was kind of awkward because it looked a little like a family Christmas portrait with the wrong guy in it.

AWKWARD

Although it looked awkward it wasn’t awkward and I just asked Scott to get in the picture and Danny was like uh, yeah…let’s get someone else to take the picture. It was actually funny. So then we got the picture of all of us. As you can imagine, pretty epic picture.

Much better! Don’t be surprised if this is our Christmas card.

We talked a lot about his single and his foundation. You never have to worry about what to say around him, only that you might not get to say something at all. He is a talker! I think we actually made him late for his signing and he asked his people if he would have time to talk to us after the signing and they said yes. So guess what? We stuck around to talk to him! We shopped around, ate some dinner and watched the signing as he finished up.

Oh, I did let the girls go through the autograph line when it was slow and he ran out of pictures The one thing Lexi wanted was a signed photo like I have. He promised to get them one at the next time and Lexi agreed to him signing her arm instead. Emma had already decided that’s what she wanted so it was cute. Yes, I realize I’m probably a terrible mother for teaching them all my fangirl ways! But aren’t they so cute?!

Anyway, after the signing we didn’t get to talk much. He seemed pretty tired and we made small talk before he was called out to get to the airport.

It was hilarious though at that point because it was more Scott and him just chit-chatting. They were standing in front of each other both with their arms crossed while I listened. I really wanted to take a picture of the two of them like that. They both really hit it off. When we left Scott said he was a really “real” guy, very down-to-earth and genuine. Which is exactly what I always say. Anyway, it was nice that they all got to meet after me being the middle man for so long.

So yeah, pretty simple autograph signing to some, but memorable one for us!

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Jumpity Jump. Welcome to Another Yard Accessory.

August 15th, 2010 at 7:00 pm / Amy Bennett / 4 Comments »

OK, so the kids have been begging for a trampoline for a long time. They used to jump years ago at my parents’ neighbors house. Last night they jumped on our neighbor/family friend’s and I realized they are at a great age for a trampoline. I snuck a peek after church today at Craigslist and spotted one in near excellent condition that was just posted this morning. We trekked up to North Charlotte this afternoon, disassembled it and the reassembled it this evening. The kids love it and it’s a great compliment to the pool in the backyard. I mean, if you consider the pool a bath tub to wash off the grass stuck to them from running back and forth. *ahem*

True to fashion, Scott couldn’t assemble a trampoline near a pool without scooting it close and making a jump and dive into the pool. And of course, the kids had to follow suit.

I’m praying for no broken bones and lots of fun for years to come!

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On the 12th

August 8th, 2010 at 7:00 am / Amy Bennett / 13 Comments »

Today is our anniversary. Twelve years married. TWELVE. Add that to four years of dating and we’ve been together more than half my life. Nothing compared to 30, 40, 50 and even 60 years but 12 is something. A lot of people don’t make it that far these days. And if they do, many are not happy ones. Ours haven’t been all happy but we are today. In fact, a few years back I wondered if I’d ever be happy again. But we are and it’s only because of God’s grace and guidance. And I don’t say that as a cliche. I’m serious, without Him, I’m not really sure what we’d look like right now. I don’t get sentimental and mushy a lot but I want to take such a mushy day to talk about all the mushy stuff I love about Scott. How about 12 things for year 12?

Sometimes I can’t stand how good of a Dad he is. Just yesterday he took them on a breakfast date to McDonald’s AND brought me Starbucks on the way home. Today he was really upset he didn’t make it to paint pottery with Emma and I just so he could spend time with us before work.
I love how he leads. I don’t know what it is but people listen to him. Sometimes he doesn’t give them a choice but he’s got this weird way of making people respect and listen to him. Some people call him to find out what to do in a rough spot even if he’s clueless on the subject.
I love that he’s a handyman. He can fix or build just about anything. There’s nothing sexier than watching him use a drill. What can I say? Blue collar men can be hot too.
I love his sense of humor. MOST of the time. Sometimes it seems he can’t be serious for anything. But most of the time, he keeps me laughing and I love that.
OK, fine, I love most of his OCD tendencies. This house would be freakin’ disaster without him and I know it.
On that note, specifically, I love that he doesn’t mind helping around the house. He’s been known to wash dishes regularly and vacuum and do laundry when necessary. Talk about scoring points!
I love that he loves people. He’s always wanting to invite someone over or go do something with someone. He’s so much more outgoing than me and it really balances us out.
I love that he thinks I’m beautiful and tells me a lot. Even if sometimes it seems he says it so much it doesn’t mean as much but I know I’d be lost without that. I just hope he thinks it when I’m 85 and wrinkled!
I love how generous he is. He’s taught me so much about compassion and giving and I know he’d out-give me any day of the week and I consider myself pretty generous.
I love that he loves to learn. Even though it bores me to absolute death to watch the History channel, I love that he has a passion for learning.
I love how athletic he is. He’s strong and healthy and I’m so proud when he takes off on his bike or whatever he is doing! It seems like he can do just about anything he sets his mind to.
And of course, most importantly I love his love for Christ. If there is one thing that is most attractive in a man it is the ability to humble themselves before God. It seems so backwards that humility would be so attractive but it is. I can’t explain it but on that account alone, it’s like a magnetic pull. I love God so, so much and to find a man out there these days (well, 16 years ago) that still proudly stands up for his faith too, well, I consider myself quite the lucky one.

So, yeah, mushy, mushy. I know I talk a lot about how much I love this TV show or that one or this celebrity or that one but if you can just imagine how much I go on and on about that, my love for Scott is 1,000 times more than that. I just choose not to gross you guys out about it too often. You’re welcome Actually, I think it’s kind of nice to hear that this marriage thing actually works every once in awhile. And it has. So very, very much.