High Intensity Pigment

Yesterday, I went to church for the first time in at least three months. I don't think I've been more than one time since we moved back from the coast in October. I've had excuse after excuse, some very valid and some not so much, as to why I couldn't go. And ALL of these excuses had to do with my children. "Aiden has a cough, The girls are too little, The nursery doesn't fix the bottle right, Carsen cries when I leave, AIDEN cries when I leave..." The list goes on and on. So yesterday, I decided to get up and go to church because it was the Minister of Music's last Sunday and I wanted to see his work one last time. He is uber-talented and the choir in phenomenol and always a blessing. I also went to support my Daddy, a devoted choir member who is devestated (not his words because he's a man's man, but I know he is devestated), by the loss of the such a talented guy. So, that said, I got all dolled up for church-and because I've lost five pounds and my clothes are getting loose and one of my chins has gone away-I felt pretty good about myself. I put on my makeup extra-nice, and I used my new mascara, which is a color that I call SCARY BLACK. It's part of L'oreal's HIP (High Intensity Pigment) line, which is made especially for those with ethnic skin tones. Those of you who know me know that I am the whitest white girl ever...literally. I'm one step from Albino now that I've given up tanning. So naturally, I got the HIP mascara. I wanted my lashes to POP. Ha. Well, they did and I was impressed. So off I went to church, with Aiden and my HIP eyelashes in tow. (Anthony kept the girls at home because he didn't bring church pants this weekend. He wasn't planning on going since we never go lately. How sad is that?) Mom and I dropped Aiden off at Sunday School. He was geared up for it because we told him they would sing and learn about Jesus (He LOVES "Jejus"). Well, in true Aiden fashion, he teared up when we got there and he didn't know anyone. I looked at the teacher and said, "He'll be fine! But I did promise him that he'd be singing this morning so if you could throw in a 'Jesus Loves Me' even if it was unplanned, that'd be great!" He nodded and took my crying baby from me and we rushed off to church, which had already started. The first few minutes in church after leaving a crying child are pointless. You wonder if you should have just brought them with you or if they are still possibly crying, but after a few minutes, it usually wears off. Plus, they'd have paged me if he kept it up, right? So anyway, I finally settled down and began to worship. That's when it happened! Something came over me like I haven't felt in SO long. It was the spirit of the Lord speaking to me louder and clearer than I've ever heard. All of the sudden I knew why my life had been so chaotic and crazy (aside from my three children under two and my husband who I only see two days a week). It was because I was trying to handle it all without God. This has been my problem all of my life as a child of the King. I have SUCH a hard time giving up the reins and letting God lead me. I went through this right before I found out I got my job in Jackson. I had an epiphany then, too, and ended my stuborn streak by finaly telling God that I'd be fine if I had to stay where I was, and giving up the bitterness that was consuming my life and my joy. I remember telling God that I was sorry that I'd been trying to fit everything into my time instead of His. It was so humbling and SO not long ago. God blessed me then by showing me that he wanted me to have the desire of my heart (He loves me THAT much!!) and the very next day I got a call saying I had gotten the job in Jackson. How did I forget that lesson so soon? Well, God reminded me yesterday, in a split second, I tell you, that all I need to do to make things right is to just show up, come to Him and be willing. I could have shown up and not come to Him, or I could have shown up, come to Him and not have been willing, but I did all three...and I was SO blessed. I have decided that I will be an active participant in Crossgates Baptist Church, which is where my family attends. I want my children to know and to love Jesus. Aiden and I pray every night, which is so sweet and such a special time, but God told me yesterday that I can't do it on my own. I need Godly leaders to reinforce that lessons that I teach my children at home. It may not be Biblically based, but when I hear the old adage that it takes a village to raise a child, I automatically think of the many Godly men and women that were put in my path as a child who taught me about the love of Jesus. It is my desire to be a Godly mother and wife and I can't do that without the support of a church family. All of this was revealed to me yesterday. It was just amazing! And I tell you this, in true Mandye style, I blubbered. I could barely contain myself. I was moved by this being the last Sunday for the Minister of Music, I was moved by the lesson that God was teaching me and I was moved by the spirit of the people around me. It was clear that this was a loving place, and a place where I could belong and worship. I pray that when Anthony is permanantly here come April 13th, we will be able to join as a family and truly be home at Crossgates. In the mean time, I feel that God has called me to transform my blog from More than a Mommy to a blog about the trails and tribulations, the blessings and joy, of raising my three children in the way of the Lord. The name may change, because I really don't know yet what I want to call it. I want everyone to know that I need your prayer. This world is not friendly anymore, especially not for children. I need prayer to keep my children safe, keep them healthy and to help them grow in the Lord. I am already teaching Aiden how to pray, and I am so blessed by his simple prayers. Oh if we all would just humble ourselves like children when we prayed. It is so genuine and pure. And God places people on his heart already, at two years old. Sometimes he prays for family or his friends at school and sometimes it's a surprise like the time when he prayed for Mary Kellan Sartin when she was sick. He didn't know she was sick and needed prayer, but he followed what was layed on his heart and simply said her name. God moves through children, and he has already taught me lessons through mine.

Lord, I pray that this blog will be a place of encouragement and will at times serve as a beacon when there's a mom out there who is feeling lost like I was, and needs to find Your sweet light again. I pray that others will learn that finding You is as simple as showing up, coming to You, and being willing. I am willing, Father God. Please use me. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

After the service I found my sister and asked her if I had High Intensity Pigment all over my face. She laughed, hugged me (like good sisters do) and said no. Aparently the money you pay for that stuff keeps it in place. Praise God! That could have been a scary sight!!! Oh, and when I asked Aiden what he did in Sunday School, he said he sang"Jejus Woves Me!" and proceeded to sing it to me. Praise God for Godly teachers! My village is already pitching in!!! Love to all! -Mandye

EDITED TO ADD: I decided to just start a brand new blog called A Page Is Turned for my journal and to keep this one open to update on anything else I want to talk about. Check out A Page is Turned!

My Last Post for a long while

Mary Kellan Sartin (Katie's little one) as the Chick-Fil A Cow
Camden and Carsen as 2 Peas in a Pod
Aiden as Dr. McCutie

I just can't keep up a million different sites anymore. I'm sorry! I'm not going to delete this one because I'd love to pick it back up when I have more time. It's just a little hectic right now, as you can imagine. I will continue to update the kids' site because it's pretty easy to keep up. And I'll check my myspace weekly. So, in honor of my last post...here's my cute kids at Halloween!

Reinstatement of the Food Diary

Ok, some of you may remember pre-twins when I started my daring food diary. Well, it was actually working for me, so it's time to start again. YAY! I encourage others to join in and post your own food diary in the comments section if you would like to do so. Have fun!

Hello, My name is Mandye and I'm a Greysaholic

Ok, so I have been OBSESSED with Grey's Anatomy this week! I've been reading everything Grey's that I can get my hands on. I even started reading Grey's fanfic, which sufficiently satisfied my desire until the premiere last night. So? Did everyone else watch it? Was it not fantastic? Actually, it wasn't up to par,if you ask me, but it was still great!

Things I didn't like:
-The whole plague thing...what was that about? I thought they had antibiotics for that now.
-Meredith's anticlimactic behavior when McD showed up at her house. Hello? He could have DIED! Callie did a much better job of acting elated that her man didn't die of the plague.
-Finn's reaction to Mer/Der. Grow some and act like you care if you want our girl, Finny Finn Finn. And SHAVE already! Chris O'D cannot pull off the scruffy look.
-What happened to Bailey's edge? I hope she finds it soon. From the looks of the promos, it won't be gone long.

Things I did like:
-Izzy. Perfectly appropriate grief. Katherine Heigle is the best thing on that show right now.
-Cristina crying at the end. Sandra Oh rocks!
-Georgie and McD's talk. Georgie rocks, too.
-Callie! I thought she was refreshing last night! And I'm glad George has someone who loves him.
-Addison washing and folding the underwear before putting it on the bulletin board! Enough said.

I have been an Izzy/Alex fan from the beginning. They're my couple to root for on the show. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Mer/Der and their intense looks, but Alexie have got to get together. My fave moment ever on Grey's is when Izzie is laying in the bed with dead Dennie and everyone is trying to get her to leave and then out of nowhere you hear Alex talking. I felt such relief for her that he was there. And it showed a soft side of him. Can't wait to see them play out.

I'm indecisive about who I want Mer to pick. If she picks McD, it's gonna be a bad season because you KNOW that there will be turmoil. They'll probably make Addison preggo or something just to ruin it. I'd rather her choose Finn Finn and see where that goes for a while. Let Derrek be single. We've never seen single Derrek before. That could be interesting!

I also am a fan of George and Callie. We'll call them Gellie. I like Gellie together. She may just be his lobster! (for all you Friends fans!)And I can't wait to see what happens with the chief. We shall see!!!

Did anyone else catch the 'moment' between Alex and Addison last night? I hope it was just a glitch because I don't know if I could take an Alexon pairing. Plus, I'm holding out hopes that McSteamy comes back, just for my aesthetic pleasure.

Ok, so the real question you are all asking is, "Why did Mandye, mother of 3 BABIES, have time to watch Grey's Anatomy???" Well, as luck may have it, all of my babies were alseep or falling into sleep by then. YAY! Let's hope it's a trend.

Feel free to comment with your own take on GA.

Letters to My Children

Dear Aiden,
I am so lucky to have you as my beautiful little boy. And your sisters are so lucky, too, because they look just like YOU!! I watch you sometimes and can't believe that your Daddy and I made something so gorgeous THREE times. You are such a funny little man and so full of life and energy. I like to sit back and watch you as you learn something new, and I feel like I share every new discovery with you. Yesterday you watched Bob the Builder for the first time and you picked up immediately on Bob's key phrase" Can we build it? YES WE CAN!" It's so cute to hear you say that! And as I hear you say it, I can't help but hope that you are able to truly pick up on that can-do attitude and carry it with you for the rest of your life. You already think that you can do it all, and I don't ever want to dampen that fiery spirit. You are such a Momma's boy right now, and I love every minute of it, hoping that it never ends…though they say that around 10 or so I'm going to drop off the radar. Who are they and what do they know? You love watching your educational 'DbeeD's' and I love letting you because you are a little sponge and you are soaking up so much good knowledge from them. 'Go Diego Go,' is your favorite right now, and everyday when we get into the car you ask to watch him. You also LOVE shoes, which is so funny to me because Mommy loves them, too. You now have 8 pair of Crocs and you hate to put on anything else but them. You still love to be outside, especially at Neener and Papaw's house and especially when Papaw lets your drive the tractor. You also love to play on the playground…any playground, especially the swings and the slides. I can't wait to get you a jungle gym for home. Maybe Santa will bring one. You still love to go and get a book and bring it for Daddy to read to you. He is your favorite book-buddy. Right now you like the look and find books and Winnie the Pooh is your favorite subject. You also like to point out all the colors, all the body parts, and you can count to ten! You are SO smart! You love your little sisters, and I am so glad that you do. You get down in front of them and say, "Hey, Babies!" You also like help Mommy hold their bottles. You are a good helper and you're very good at cleaning up your mess, especially when you get out your flashcards. You always pick them back up and give them to Mommy and Daddy, just like a good boy. And you are good boy, Aiden, with such a joyful countenance. Sometimes people stop when we're out just to look at you, especially if you are laughing. You LOVE to laugh. And your laugh is simply contagious! It has to be the best sound in the world. You think it's funny when people fall or when they are hit in the head, which is a little bizarre because Mommy thinks that's funny, too! You also give really good 'sugar' (kisses) and hugs, which always brighten any day. You are a blessing, my funny, little man, and I thank God for your sweet spirit and your loving nature. You are my heart.
Love,
Your Mommy



Dear Camden,
You are such a beautiful girl! I love to watch you as you sit back and take in all that's going on. Sometimes when you're sitting there, looking at me with those big blue eyes, I expect you to talk to me, "Hello, Mommy. How are you today?" I can tell that you will be a deep thinker like your Mommy. I'm sure you'll have lots of deep thoughts to share with us soon because I can just see the knowledge brewing behind your eyes. You love it when anyone sings to you, especially your Mommy and your Papaw James. We have high hopes that this means you'll sing lead in the Flowers Family Trio when you’re a big girl, although you may have to fight your sister to be able to stand center stage. Though your sister likes to be held a lot during the day, you are my nighttime snuggle buddy. You just seem to sleep a little more sound when Mommy is around. You really like Baby Einstein, just like your Bubba. You will sit in your bouncy and watch the pretty colors and music until you drift off to sleep, while your sister is jumping like mad in her Jumperoo. You don't really act interested in jumping just yet, but you watch her like you're trying to figure it all out. I'm sure that one day soon I'll put you in it and you'll jump like you've been doing it all your life. I'm also sure that as time goes on you will continue to be my easy-going little angel. You will be the one to keep me grounded and remind me of the importance of watching others and learning from their mistakes before trying it on your own. I love you, sweet CamCam, and I am so glad that God chose me to bless with you. You are my heart.
Love,
Your Mommy

Dear Carsen,
Just like your big sister, you also are SO beautiful! But unlike Camden, you are definitely more of a mover and shaker. While your sister sits and takes it all in, you want to be the center of attention, which, as a former beauty queen, I think is great. I love to put you in your Bumbo seat while we are eating dinner because you love to feel like you're a part of things. You just sit there and watch us eat, smiling like you taste it, too. I can't wait until you really can taste it. That will be so much fun! And boy do you love to jump! I put you in your Jumperoo and you are in heaven. While you haven't mastered the art of graceful jumping yet, you have a blast flailing around and giving it your best shot. You just LOVE it! You smiled so much last night while you were jumping that I thought your little face would be sore. You're not so much into Baby Einstein just yet, though you will watch it for a little while. I'm hoping you grow to like it just like your brother and sister because there is so much you can learn from just being still and watching. And Carsen, though you may be smaller than your sister, know that size that does not matter. What you lack in size, you definitely make up in personality. You are a spit-fire with a temper to match any I've seen. You turn bright red and scream to the top of your lungs when you're angry because Mommy is too slow fixing your bottle. I call you my little Carsen-Rouge because you turn so red! You are a very social baby and already love to smile and coo at strangers. When we took you to the family reunion this weekend, you loved 'talking' to everyone. I truly have no doubt that you will continue to take center stage and that you will always let me know when you need something, even if it's just to be held and loved, which I will always be here to do. I love you, sweet Carsen, and I can't wait to get to know you more and more. You are my heart.
Love,
Your Mommy

House Plan Drama

NEWS FOR THE DAY: We're moving HOME!!! See more about that on the kids' site. My last day at work here is September 29th. AH! So we are going to sell our house, buy some land and build...living with my parents in the interim period. It's going to be a blast. A blast of what I'm not sure. J/K We are hoping to have the house built before we wear out our welcome, even though my incredible parents assure us that they don't mind. So I start my new job at the Jackson VA on October 16, if all goes well. Now our new drama is over houseplans and what to build.

Here's the rundown: We need to stay between 2000 and 2500 square feet. We need four bedrooms (one for each child because the twins will eventually want their own space) an office and a playroom. Of course I want walk in closets and an island in the kitchen. We are building this house on a lot that will be between 2.8 and 4.8 acres, so it needs to be sprawling and not narrow. This criteria is not exactly easy to come by. We've found a few that I'll share with you:

1. This one is ok. We would brick this and do something more modern and stylish with the outside.I have some ideas. Now I had my doubts about putting the kids upstairs, so this is still a maybe. I would use one of the bedrooms as an office and the playroom would be the gameroom until the twins want their own room. Then it will all switch. I love that their are two bathrooms so that Aiden doesn't have to suffer with the twins hogging the bathroom. I also like the downstairs, but would like a bigger kitchen to fit an island. What do you think?

2. I have lots of ideas for this one. The bonus room is actually large enough to have it as a bedroom /playroom for the girls. I like the idea of putting window seats with separate hope chests in each window so that the girls can keep their keepsakes in them. The kitchen has an island, which is great. There aren't walk in closets in all the bedrooms, but I might be able to fix that. I know I can put a couple of them in the bonus room.

3. This is basically what we have now, but bigger and with a huge bonus room. We could change up the front to make it cuter. I love my house now, so I wouldn't mind a different version. I do wish it had walk-in closets, but I might can work with an architect on that. I want all the bedrooms a little bigger on any house, so I might tweak that, too.

Ok, Let me hear what you think!!!


I may start posting permanantly on the kids' site and on my MySpace. I can only do so much now. I'll let you know soon!

Finally Back Home

Well, we're back on the coast and back in our home! Actually, I went back to work yesterday, so we are now working on getting a routine in place. Aiden is really cute with the girls. He tries to comfort them when they cry by showing them things. He'll say, 'What's That? (he points to the fish mobile on the swing) Fish. What's that? (points to star on the swing's light) Star.) He has tried a few times to pick them up, which is scary, but pretty cute. We're always close at hand to there's no worry that he'd actually do it. A few times he's tried to pick one of them up and they've gotten startled and cried out. Well then he got embarrassed because she cried and put his little head down. Next thing we knew he bopped her on the head. It wasn't hard, but it was hard enough to warrant us getting onto him so that he doesn't ever try to hit her hard. Monday we went for a ride and took all three kids. Aiden fell instantly asleep and the girls pretty much cried off and on the whole time. By the time we got home, Aiden was awake. When we got into the driveway, Aiden looked over at Carsen and Camden, who were reaching a hysterical lever with their screaming, and yelled, "Stop!" We thought it was pretty funny! This was much more polite than our little 2 year old cousin, Katie Banks, who in no certain terms told baby Carsen to "Shu'up Carsen!" when Carsen was crying over getting her diaper changed. It was too cute! This is the same child who, when asked what she wanted to eat while she was dining out the other day, replied " Sh@t!, " (or something close enough to sound like it!) much to the embarrassment of her aunts and mom. The waiter didn't catch it, thank goodness. They are SPONGES. Never forget that!

I have taken new pictures of the girls, but I haven't posted them from the camera yet. Maybe tonight. Depends on how the night goes.

More later!