Coffee for Breakfast

Daydreamy that is... As my husband and myself are approaching a certain age that is not considered youngsters, we find ourselves thinking hard and often about our future. We feel like now is the time (even though younger would have been better!) to really consider how we would like to live our older years together. We are young enough, and healthy enough, to make our future comfortable...if we work on it NOW. We have some lofty goals to meet. We have moved over fourteen times during our marriage. Most moves were job transfers. Because of the temporary timeline of some of these jobs, we made a decision to rent rather than buy. Renting was necessary until we were in a place we would "settle". Since we have been in our current area for about 5 1/2 years, I guess we are staying. We now find ourselves at a point in life where most of our peers may be paying off their mortgages, or close to it. We find ourselves just beginning. We are finally ready to buy. We have locat...

I was one year old in 1970. This  was the year our most cherished family tradition began for me. Of course I can’t remember that particular  annual family reunion, but several during that decade ar e etched in my heart memories forever.  Each  year the  entire family on my Daddy’s  side, gathered in  the small Texas town of  Stephenville .  My grandmother,  Mamma w , only saw her extended family ,  the third weekend in June, annually. As much as I loved actually attending the reunion ,  part of the excitement for me as a young girl, was the long road trip itself.   Mammaw  always rode wi th us. One of our traditions was that I would always sit in her lap during the  car ride. This was long before the requirement of  seat belts . The most memorable trips included a stops along the way. One year we stopped in  Glenrose , Texas  at Dinosaur Valley. I w ill always treasure the snapshots fr...

I have a cute little friend who I lost touch with several years ago, when we moved away from my hometown. Actually then she was just a little girl. A playmate to my oldest daughter and a week long love interest of my son. LOL I distinctly remember her coming to my son's costume birthday party dressed as a princess. :) We moved away and have been gone for lots of years now. Facebook reintroduced us. She is now a grown up married lady! How time flies. As we reconnected through a few text messages, she told me the thing that she remembered most about me was how I always made a weekly menu plan. She thought it was a very weird thing to do. LOL Seems to me that I was way ahead of my time. Menu planning seems to be a very popular topic online nowadays. Having five children at home all day everyday made it necessary to plan meals. Who knows, my friend Summer may be finding menu planning a little less weird now that she is cooking for her own new family. This is mine for th...

I'm not sure when it started. If you know Aubree, you know she is a huge animal lover. She loves to watch Animal Planet. She is a self proclaimed expert on all kinds of animal knowledge. She knows breeds, habits, and habitats. Her strategy in animal ownership is to ask and ask and ask... "Can I have a dog?" "Can I have a fish?" "Can I have a bird?" The asking isn't a problem. It's the non-stop asking. She has managed to get a "yes" to quite a few of these requests. The horse obsession was satisfied for a while with learning to draw them accurately, reading lots of books, and watching every horse movie she could find. Actually this is a homeschool mom's dream. Your child shows an interest in something and being the great mom that you are, you turn it into a learning opportunity. But, if you know Aubree, those things will not satisfy her curiosity. She is very determined. Before you know what happened... ...

    I haven't added any photos in quite a while. I spent some time tonight uploading a few to my new computer tonight. I had to "borrow" a few from facebook! lol The top two are of our beautiful granddaughter, Journey Saige. I love her more than words can say. She is absolutely precious!!! The bottom photo is of my three youngest daughters. They are wearing the crochet headbands they had me making this winter. They were quick and fun to make. They even sold a few to their friends. I'm hoping to start using my camera again and hopefully take time to update this blog!

Well this month was quite eventful!!! •My new little very first grandbaby girl and I had a week to get acquainted! Her mommy, daddy, and her cute little self visited at my house. Just to let everyone know, she is the most perfect baby... Ever! Gorgeous! Her parents are pretty cute too.;) •My oldest daughter, Courtney, surprised us all with a wedding. Hers. We didn't even know she had a boyfriend until a few weeks ago. Again, gorgeous. She made a beautiful bride. I hope her day was everything she wanted. Twenty-three and as independent as always. I know her biggest dream of a wedding was for it to only be about her and her husband. I think that was accomplished. :) •We have found a new church home in our new hometown. Awesome presence of God! Freedom in worship, unity in spirit, and love. Sunday morning service was like a cool drink of water to quench our thirst for more and like a burning fire to ignite our hearts to follow God's call. It's been too...

My fingers are itching to sew. With all the new babies all around me, my creative side wants to make every cute thing I see. I've managed to do a little but that is how much time I have...little. It's just one of those busy seasons in life. Not the sports season kind of busy (yet) but the season of life kind of busy. My list-making self also has a ton of homemade Christmas gift ideas that will more than likely not happen. I love the holidays but this year they will be a little different. Not a bad kind of different. Just different. We have spent almost twenty years forming our family traditions. I love the way we spend Thanksgiving. Usually, with the exception of only a couple of years, we are all together. The seven of us enjoy our traditional Thanksgiving dinner and spending the day together. Most years we enjoy watching my husband put up our Christmas tree. He is very picky and doesn't let us help. Lol This task has involved anything from power tools to well, whatever he...

Feeling SUCH an urge to update my blog... Just wanted to let any curious readers know that all is well at the Bracknell home. (just in case you were wondering) I have another urge to say: "The truth is... I'm with a wonderful Christian man, living the dream...wonderful family, wonderful job, fabulous life!" LOL So, let's keep it REAL here. The real honest truth is this... I am married to an awesome husband who loves the Lord. He is wonderful because I am not living in a fantasy world. He is wonderful because he loves me so much he admits his shortcomings. He can do this, as can I, because our love is unconditional. I am definitely living out my dreams. Is this because everything is perfect? No. It's because everything is imperfect and I don't live under the pressure of having to pretend. My wonderful family... Yes I have a wonderful family! They are wonderful to me because they are mine. If you knew them like I do, you would have to agree! I'm ve...

We arrived in Springfield on Monday, March 14th. We will be leaving tomorrow, six days later. Homeschool Basketball Nationals is a very tiring week, but one we look forward to each year. I'm not sure how many games we attended this week. There were alot! My 14 year old daughter had 5 games. She had a great week with her friends, and made some wonderful memories! I'm exhausted and longing for my own bed and some home cooked food. Even though I'm feeling this way, next year, during spring break... I'm sure we will be back!

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My favorite new item on the first day of the year is a book. A book full of blank pages. I have always journaled off and on throughout my life. It is only more recent that I have consistently journaled. I'm not consistent in a daily sense, but consistent nontheless. I have managed to keep a yearly journal for the last couple of years. These treasured books have some stories to tell, but I don't really share these most private thoughts on this blog. Someday, I possibly could, but for now I will keep these stories private. These stories are about the last couple of years of my life. The pages contain some of the absolute lowest points of my life. They also contain some of the most wonderful moments. I often wonder how I could live in such contrast. It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it w...

This morning I received a call telling me my new great nephew had arrived! His name is Wyatt (undetermined middle name). He weighed 8 lbs. He is pictured here with his mom and big brother Mason. Mason was much more interested in seeing his mommy! lol I can't wait to see him and hold him.

Several years ago we moved 500 miles away from my hometown. We have moved several times since then. That first move was one of the hardest. It is hard to move away from the only thing you have ever known. Not only did we move away from all of our extended family, my Mom lived next door to us. My kids had grown up with the freedom to walk next door to see "Gobug", their grandma, whenever they wanted. For us, moving that far away, meant probably only yearly visits, at most. The expense and scheduling conflicts with my husband's job and five children made visiting more often almost impossible. We eventually moved a little closer and had more frequent visits. Then we even moved back for a short while. Now, we again, live 500 miles away. All that to say... Last week we had a wonderful visit at our home with my mom and sister! We had a wonderful time. We went out to eat, went shopping, had our hair and nails done, and enjoyed relaxing. I can't wait until the next visit. I...

Just a little over a year ago, we drove our son to Teen Challenge of El Paso. I remember having mixed feelings and being full of various emotions. On one hand I was reluctant to leave my son in the hands of strangers. But mostly I felt so proud of the decision he had made and I felt he was totally safe in God's hands. I recall having the most restful sleep that first night. I experienced the peace that passes all understanding. I didn't go to bed worrying about his safety for the first time in several years. Dear Shelby, A few months before you made the decision to go to Teen Challenge, God promised our family restoration. I'm so overwhelmed with the goodness of God. He never fails us. I am so proud of you for making a stand to change your life and serve God. I am a very blessed Mama! I know this has been a hard year, but growing pains are never easy. I am blessed to have a son who can stand up and do hard things. It is amazing to be a witness to the power of God. With God,...

Proud daddy! Big sister testifying how she had to stop fighting with him and start fighting for him! She has her best friend back! Teen Challenge staff and former graduates speaking. A hug from Pastor Albert. Teen Challenge Graduate! Shelby giving his testimony. Shelby with the cake that Ms. Mary made him. The family! Kaitlyn singing to her big brother. Shelby with Teen Challenge director, Pastor Albert Iberra. Shelby with the girls! I'm so proud of my son!