Middle Age Golden Girl

I have decided I have turned into a middle age Golden Girl....and honestly if you love the Golden Girls like I do you will find this is not a bad thing.  I will be 36 in February and as a true southern lady I prefer to age gracefully. So as I attempt to age gracefully I must share the breakdown of my turning into a middle age version of the Golden Girls!  Not sure if grace and the Golden Girls go together.

In true Blanche Devereaux fashion I rather be overdressed any day than underdressed for an occasion!  (Even though my aging feet have began to beg for more comfy shoes! So for all the ladies that have told me the past 20 years one day my feet will be paying for all those high heels I wear... "You are right!") Each event calls for a special outfit, and yes I will do my best to plan it to the T. And of course if anyone is questioning why I am doing something in a particular way, I always have some southern lady excuse even if it is just "Because that is how my Momma did it and how her Momma did it and how my daughter will do it one day."   Which can be applied to the overdressing.

Oh my sweet Rose Nylund.  I do hope I wear a smile as often as you do.  I also I hope I enjoy everyday as you seem to portray. Some of you may say I am a little naive and innocent like our sweet Rose...and others may know better!  But in sweet Rose fashion I find myself telling stories of our big city Talmo.  Much like St. Olaf not many people know where Talmo is or even if it is a real town.  I will be honest when I met my husband and he told me where he was from my response was "No, that is a ranch." I find myself sharing stories of the small town I grew up in.  I think it is safe to say growing up or old in a small town will give you lots to talk about.  Just ask Rose.

As I get older my patience runs thin with stupidity and ignorance much like our straight talking friend Dorothy Zbornak.  So many times while I am shopping at the local grocery store I just want to yell "Move it to the right, don't take up the entire isle!"  Out in public "Houseshoes and pajamas are for the HOUSE not PUBLIC." (I know! I still don't understand why people do this!!)  I may not yell them, but I promise my facial expression tells the story.  Probably as I get older I may yell such comments and bring out the pointing finger. Only time will tell.

Spunky Sophia Petrillo, I hope to be just like you when I have grandchildren.  I want them to always be shocked and surprised with my quick whit and humor.  I hope to live long enough to embarrass my children at least once like they have me often over the years.  Until then I will carry what we have in common proudly.  I love a good cardigan and will not be found far from my handbag. Hey, this Christmas I may just ask for a zip up housecoat like my Momma, Grandmother, and Aunt all liked to sport in true Sophia fashion.  Or maybe I should wait until my 40th Birthday.






Life is too short not to live like the Golden Girls!

Thanks for stopping by Prissy Dixie!

Help! Momma has fallen, but her eyes have been opened.

A little over a week ago I was just simply walking down the front porch steps and tore a ligament in my right foot!  I mean I seriously have no memory of turning it over or anything...and yes I was wearing flats.  The injury reminds me of hearing elders speak about walking and their hip giving out. Hip giving out = broken hip.

The same situation with me and my foot.  I was just walking down the steps and then I heard an awful tear and break sound with awful pain!!! The next thing I know I am rolling in the front yard holding my foot screaming in pain.  To anyone that passed the house that day and saw me rolling in the front yard...now you know why.  Poor Haylen thought I was dying.  I asked Hart to call Daddy (of course he was at the FD).  I got Jonathan on the phone and told him to come home immediately that I thought I had broken my foot.  I also called my sister Amanda, because when I have a near death experience (ok, i may be exaggerating a wee bit) I call my sister to let her know it!  Now she laughs and tells me she could barely understand me on the phone from all the pain I was in.

After the call to Jonathan I honestly just remember being in awful pain. But some how I managed to get back up the porch steps and inside on the couch.  Followed by getting the kids to help me remove my chipped toenail polish.  I may of been in awful pain, but this Southern Belle still has her pride to keep in mind.

Looking back I guess adrenaline took over and I managed to get in despite the pain.  What a blessing because now when I talk to the kids I realize how much my injury really frightened them.  The pain was awful, I honestly compare it to childbirth!

So why am I sharing this embarrassing story of me falling and the awful pain???  What is my point???  Hurting my foot that Saturday afternoon forced me to find the time to read a book I have been trying to finish for months now.  A book that was recommended by one of my favorite people Candace Cameron Bure.  (Ok, she is an actress but she is one of my people)  The Way of the Master by Ray Comfort

And this is where my eyes were opened!  I can say in my 35 years I have experienced pain.  I have had two children and Haylen alone made sure I understood what true contractions felt like!  I have had the stomach virus which I call the "Devil Virus" so bad I thought death would be the only option. I have also lost both of my parents and I can say losing a love one such as your parents the heartache alone is a pain like no other and you will never forget it.  But as soon as you hold your newborn you forget all the pain and exhausting hours.  Days after the "Devil Virus" passes by you realize you can live through such torture and you do have an appetite again.  Now the death of a parent or a love one is a different story.  You will always have a hole in your heart where they once were here on Earth with you.  But our Heavenly Father sends you sweet reminders of the joyous time we spent with them here on Earth, so you can smile through the tears and share stories of why you love and miss them so much!

So why am talking about all this type of pain? From a torn ligament, childbirth, stomach virus, and even death of a loved one.  Close your eyes and think about the most pain you have ever been in.  Try to remember how it felt? The cold sweat, the sharp ripping pain, pain that left you unable to sit still, the pain that left you so exhausted looking back you must of just passed out.  Then read the below passage out of Ray Comfort's book The Way of the Master.  This is where my eyes were opened to how much Jesus loved us to die for our sins.

However, the death of Jesus of Nazareth, which purchased our salvation, didn't come swiftly.  Jesus himself told us that He would suffer (Luke 9:22).  When commenting on Psalm 22:14, Charles Spurgeon said:

The placing of the Cross in its socket had shaken Him with great violence, had strained all the ligaments, pained every nerve, and more and less dislocated all His bones.  Burdened with His own weight, the august sufferer felt the strain increasing every moment of those six long hours.  His sense of faintness and general weakness were overpowering; while to His own consciousness He became nothing but a mass of misery and swooning sickness... To us, sensations such as our Lord endured would have been insupportable, and kind unconsciousness would have come to our rescue; but in His case, He was wounded, and felt the sword; He drained the cup and tasted every drop.

The risen Savior retained the scars of the Cross for a reason. Calvary's grisly wounds must remain before the eyes of the Christians.  They stand as a fearful testimony, not only of God's unfathomable love for sinners, but also of His incredible love for justice.

Reading this while laying in bed in great pain opened my eyes! "To us, sensations such as our Lord endured would have been insupportable, and kind unconsciousness would have come to our rescue..."

My entire life I had heard how Jesus could of called out to God and asked to come down from the cross but He did not. Proving His love for us, He endured all the pain as a sacrifice for our sins. People mocked Him for not coming down from the cross.  We read in the Bible "He saved others; Himself He cannot save.  If He is the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the cross, and we will believe Him.  He trusted in God; let Him deliver Him now if He will have Him; for He said, "I am the Son of God.'" Matthew 27:42-43 NKJV

Jesus endured it ALL for our sins!  Every pain, cold sweat, contraction, severe nausea...what ever you can picture to make you understand He endured it ALL!  I can honestly say I have heard this my entire life, I have read this and thought I understood His pain during His sacrifice on the cross for my sins.  But until I was forced to lay in bed and read the words again were my eyes truly opened.  I reflected to how kind adrenaline kicked in to get me up the porch steps and back in the house.  At no time during Jesus' sacrifice did He have such an experience.  He endured it ALL so we may have everlasting life.  

 I encourage you to read Ray Comfort's The Way of the Master.  It is eye opening in so many ways.  It is a great read for new Christians as well as those who have been in church and reborn again for years!

Thank you for stopping by Prissy Dixie!

Welcome "DUDE"..or however you welcome a horse onto the farm.

These poor kids don't have a chance with two animal loving parents...they ask and sooner or later they shall receive!  Except for the baby black pig Haylen has been asking for the past couple of years.  Of course I vote YES because what can be cuter than a tiny oinking pig?!?!  Her Daddy on the other hand who deals with hundreds of large hogs on a weekly basis says NO!  Maybe one day she will get that tiny pig to her Daddy's surprise...

Jonathan and I both love animals and being outside, thankfully we have been blessed with two kids that do as well.  Haylen has asked for a horse for a while now.  I think they are beautiful, but I have a fear of horses.  Crazy I know!  I can be around any size livestock all day, but put me near a horse and my heart starts pounding.  Add in the tiny fact I have been told my entire life horses know if you fear them or not (which I believe is true with any animal) and I picture myself being kicked straight in the teeth!! (Sorry, I do not mean to offend any horse lovers just what I picture).  So Jonathan reassured me he would find the kids an older gentle horse.  And of course I trusted him on this adventure of bringing a horse to the farm. 

Thanks to the help of a farrier friend Jonathan was told of a woman near by that was looking for a new home for her ex-therapy horse.  Dude a registered paint horse has spent many years working with children.  I think it is so sweet to know over the years what joy he has brought to so many kids and parents with a simple walk or trot around.  Not only is Dude a gentle horse but his owner proudly showed Jonathan all of his trophies, ribbons, etc. he has won over the years competing in Western events. 

Dude is 16 years old so I do believe his Western competition days are behind him.  But what I do know his future holds is our family loving and adoring him everyday.  He has already taught me to forget my fear and just respect him like any other animal.  He has also taught me how in less than a week he can love my kids like an overgrown dog.  We can come walking up to the gate and he will just look up at us, but let him catch a glimpse of the kids and he will come running like a dog!! I act surprised, but honestly we have a Black Angus bull named Moonshine we bottle fed as a calf that will run the fence line chasing after us!  (Just a little FYI if your child goes to school talking about "Moonshine" at the barn make sure they explain he is a bull!  Thankfully we live in a small town and people know our family has a livestock barn.) 

Speaking of Moonshine the bull.  He has been the king of the hill at the barn for a while now and he is JEALOUS of Dude.  I find it very funny how Dude and the three bulls stand at the gates staring each other down.  Their pastures are right across from each other.  Moonshine moos in jealous anger while the two broncing bulls look confused.  They have these looks on their faces like "hey, I thought people rode us...what is going on here?"  And don't let me forget the shocking aroma Dude experienced for the first time getting off the trailer near the hog barn.  If you have not experienced it lets just say is smells nothing like sausage and bacon frying in the morning! 

Just look at those smiles!  Can you tell Dude will be loved?  I would not trade this farm life for anything in the world!  I pray we have many more years to come with Dude as well as many more years of the kids loving being at the barn and around livestock....well and around us!  HAHAHA!

Book Review - The Best Yes By:Lysa Terkeurst

The Best Yes Available Here

 

I can't tell you how many times I picked up this book or read about it over at Proverbs 31 Ministry, but every time I thought to myself "I am not a Yes woman."  I mean I am being 100% honest I never thought of myself as a yes woman, people pleaser, etc.  Don't get me wrong I like to help people and I am always game for any event or gathering.  But as my late Mother would say "If you want and opinion ask Allison, if you don't want you feelings hurt as Amanda (my sister)."  In my mind this book was going to be about how to tell people No, how not to let people run over you, or how to be an independent woman again.  Boy was I wrong!!!

 

My friend Danielle over at Butler Party of 3 sent me a message one evening highly recommending me to read The Best Yes.  She saw me post on FB on my son's 6th birthday finding myself wondering how my Mom who always worked full time when my sister and I were growing up, and my Dad who drove a truck full time and was gone M-F on the road... how in the world did she find the time to make homemade cupcakes for our birthday parties at school?  Needless to say Danielle could tell from my words in that simple post I was overwhelmed and exhausted.  Danielle is one of those ladies in my life I count as a great mentor.  If she recommends reading it I am going to grab it up!!

 

 

So of course I grabbed the book up ASAP since I was heading to the beach the following week.  And am I glad I did!!!  I am once again being 100% honest when I say this book has been life changing to me!  It made me realize I am a yes woman!!  I will never for uttering those words out loud while reading.  I have recommended this book to everyone I know and even given it as a gift.  I can't tell you how many times I have text or emailed the above picture of me at the beach telling friends to go get it!!!  Now let me tell you why you MUST READ The Best Yes!

 

 

Ok, read the above quote again!  How many times have you felt this way?  How many times have you said to yourself "How I wish I had the time for_____."  or "How I wish I just had a weekend of doing nothing and going nowhere."  Guess what...You Do!  This is exactly what the book The Best Yes will teach you!  This is where Lysa Terkeurst opened my eyes to me actually being a yes woman as much as I thought I wasn't. (This is also where I added her to my list of must meet women...SHE IS SUCH A BLESSING IN MY LIFE!) 

 

 

You know these ladies or you may be one.  I am guilty of sitting back and thinking to myself "How does ____ do it all?"  And where do I even start about how Pinterest has brought being a Wonder Woman/Mom to a total new level!  Yet, I have come to realize from trying to be a Wonder Woman/Mom it is exhausting!!  We may look like to the outside world we have it all together, but if we had a camera following us around or in our home you would quickly realize the people we should be taking care of and loving at 100% are the ones paying for us trying to wear that cape.  They are the ones that see us exhausted, see the tears, or hear our angry tone (or yelling if I am being honest).

 

 







"I will not let the awkward disappointment of others keep me from my Best Yes appointments with God" - Lysa Terkeurst The Best Yes

 

Above is just one of the meaningful points made in Lysa's book that I hold close to my heart when making daily decisions.  In chapter 3 Overwhelmed Schedule, Underwhelmed Soul in The Best Yes Lysa shares this great point. The decisions we make dictate the schedules we keep.  The schedules we keep determine the lives we live.  The lives we live determine how we spend our souls.  So, this isn't just about finding time.  This is about honoring God with the time we have.

This opened my eyes even more to the job which is a blessing that God has entrusted me to be...a Wife/Mother.  In the past I have said yes to so many things I should of said NO to.  And guess who has suffered...my husband and children.  Looking back was it worth it?  NO NO NO!  In my life it is the little yes that causes me anxiety.

For example saying yes to an early Saturday morning event on a day Jonathan is at the FD causes severe anxiety.  May sound silly to you, but after working 40 hours all week and knowing I have to be somewhere to be with the kids on a Saturday morning by myself by 8am or 9am sends my heart racing as I type this!  Thanks to Lysa Terkeurst opening my eyes to this I now assess my decisions before just saying YES.  Ex. If I say yes to being somewhere at 8am on a Saturday morning that I know Jonathan will be at the FD will it be worth the stress and anxiety it will bring me and the kids?  Who is the event pleasing?  Me and my family or the person that is asking me to attend?  Is this honoring God with the time I have?  Sometimes after asking myself these questions the answer is Yes and sometimes the answer is a simple No.  And I am ok with that!  And if the person asking me is a true friend or family member they are ok with my answer as well!

I won't give away any more of my favorite points from The Best Yes.  Why?  Because I want you to make your best yes and order the book!!!  I promise it will be life changing!!  This book along with Candace Cameron Bure's book Balancing It All helped me decide on my goals for 2015.  Reaching for a "less is more" lifestyle.  I promise a book review soon on Balancing It All as well as more on this "less is more" lifestyle!  Stay tuned!!  If you have read The Best Yes please let me know what you think or if you haven't let me know how eager you are to grab it up. 

Thank you for dropping by Prissy Dixie!





Introducing my little family! My entire world...my McEver Madness!

Here is my sweet little family this past Christmas.  Well some days more sassy than sweet but I promise I would not have it any other way!!!



My husband Jonathan (photo bombed by our youngest Haylen).  We have been married for 10.5 years with two wonderful children!  He is a very quiet dry sense of humor man with a great personality that makes me laugh daily.  As you can tell from the sweet Christmas pics I was trying to make...he just loves having pictures made!  He is a full time fireman and full time farmer working on the family farm the days he is not at the fire dept.  Jesus, family, and livestock are his passions and I would not have it any other way.  I promise to share my real farmer's wife confessions that are guaranteed to make you laugh and may have you counting your blessings you are not married to one!!!

Here is our oldest Hartwell but we call him Hart who is 6yrs old.  A true cowboy in every way and has been since he was old enough to understand going to the barn with Daddy meant hogs, cows, and loading and unloading big trucks.  At 4yrs old he could tell you about the difference between most of the tractor and trailers on the road as well as trucks and livestock trailers.  He builds and designs on a daily basis rodeos and barns with loading docks for the trucks.  He tried mutton bustin' for the first time back in November and has fallen in love (which I knew he would).  So has Mommy & Daddy! For those not sure what mutton bustin' is I will share in my terms.  Similar to bull riding where grown men get on a large bull and try to hang on for 8 seconds, young kids climb on a sheep and hang on as you can tell by the above picture having the time of their life! He is not interested in the normal sports and I can't complain.  I rather spend all day watching kids at a junior rodeo than sitting in the stands at a ball field any day. But that is just this Mommy's opinion.

 

Last but not least when it comes to personality is our sassy Haylen 3yrs old!  Where do I even start with her as you can tell by her last picture.  She loves all animals but is scared of bugs!  One minute is singing and dancing in dress up heels and a princess dress and the next ripping it all off to head to the barn to dig in the red clay dirt!  She loves anything artsy such as coloring, painting, cutting paper, etc.  Can't wait to see what excitement to brings us the years to come!!!

 

 

And that is my sweet little family.  I love everyday with them!  Some days I am stressed more than I should be, worrying more than just relaxing and enjoying the time with them.  Praying this year I slow down more and enjoy the days that seem to fly by the older they get!  Praying that we as parents can set the example that spending time and not money is more important on each other in this life!  Praying blessing and good health to you and your family for this year to come!!

 

Thank you for stopping by Prissy Dixie!

 

 

 

 

 

2015 Happy New Year! Starting the year off with Family, Friends, Firearms, and Fixins'!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!  Can you believe it is actually 2015??

First and foremost THANK YOU SO MUCH for stopping by!  After being told by girlfriends the past couple of years I should start a blog I have decided to take a leap of faith with much encouragement and guidance from great friends and do it.  Here at Prissy Dixie I hope to share with you a little view into my world as a simple country girl living in a small town raising two young kids with my wonderful husband. (Introductions to come)  As much as I love livestock, cowboy boots, and being outside I equally love fabulous jewelry, great heels, getting dressed up for no reason at all...well Prissy Dixie fancy things in general.  (More about that to come as well)

More about my New Year celebrations and what I hope and pray 2015 will bring to me and my little family!  My wonderful sister and best friend Amanda and I decided back a few months ago we would hold a New Year's lunch for anyone who wanted to join us!

Me & Amanda

 

Here in the South family traditions tell us if we eat black eyed peas and collards it will bring us wealth in the New Year.  We also have been taught what we do on the New Year's we will do the rest of the year.  Now I am not going to hold my breath that eating my black eyed peas with cornbread and onions along with my collards is going to make my checking account swell up over night...but right after our New Year's lunch I do believe I was the wealthiest woman in Georgia!  Right after lunch my sister's driveway starting filling up with family and friends that may not of made it to lunch but was dropping by for a little skeet shooting, laughs, cheers (yes, skeet shooting does turn us ladies in cheerleaders which was cracking the guys up), coffee, and just simple good family time.  Now to me that is RICH!!!

 

 One of my goals for 2015 is to slow down and enjoy more simple family time.  We did this a little this past year, but for 2015 I honestly want to make it happen more often!!  Spending time with family and friends on purpose not just because it is a holiday or someone's birthday.  This is the type of "wealth" I prefer in the years to come!  Below are a few more of my goals for 2015.  I prefer to call them goals over resolutions, to me goals are something you work towards where resolutions have to start at midnight and you can't look back.

2015 Goals:

1. Spending more alone time focusing on my relationship with Jesus Christ and growing in His word!

2. Cleaning out clutter and living a life "less is more"!(Recently read a new friend's post on FB about this and it brought me to tears and wanting this type of lifestyle more.  Thank you again for the wonderful post you know who you are!)

3.  Making a family budget and sticking to it.(helping me reach the "less is more" lifestyle)

4.  Spending more quality with family and friends making great memories for years to come.

5.  More dates with my husband!!!(easier said than done with 2 kids)

6.  Getting back to working out on a regular schedule.(with the busy holidays I have fallen off this wagon)

What are your 2015 goals?

Thank you again for stopping by Prissy Dixie!