{ Scaredy Cat Dog }

{Visualize this}

I am trying to get the girls in the Suburban this morning to take Kinz to school. If you know me, I'm really NOT a morning person and struggle to get the girl to school on time. Before I can get them in the car, Gunner starts barking non-stop. {He finally got his "big boy" bark {Trudy!!!} and it's loud and a little scary}



I'm thinking there must be a wolf or something after us so I yell at the girls to get in the car and I go out to save him.

Turns out he thought Grandma's 10 pound Yorkie was gonna charge. Gunner has the hair on his back raised, barking hysterically and shaking. Yes, shaking.



Keep in mind, he's 75 pounds at 7 months old.

Really, I don't have time for this.

I tie him up and figure he can just fend for himself if Sparky {I know, I would be scared of a dog named Sparky too} decides to attack.

Kinzley is standing there watching this go down. She turns around, rolls her eyes and says
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wait for it....
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"Did you ever think having a dog would be such hard work?"

Oh Kinz, just get in the car would ya?

...............................

If you think having a dog is hard.. Try being the dog....

It's a hard life...

{ Whatcha doin' Kinz? }

Just feelin' my heart pressure...

{ It's becoming an addiction }

I was afraid of this.

I knew once I got the first one I would {need} another.

Sure enough before I had this one on the wall, I was thinking where can I put another one?

The problem was I couldn't find exactly what I wanted.

Just ask my family I am {very} picky about what I like in my house.

I believe you should surround yourself with things you {love},

things that make you feel good about yourself.

I want every room in my house to be my {favorite}.

I don't like to {settle} for something that doesn't truly capture who our family is.

{Lucky} for me, I met my new "friend"Jamie!

Jamie worked with me to create two decals which turned out {perfect}!

Can you {believe} this whole area started with this old headboard?

The other vinyl I wanted made was a lyric from a song sang in our wedding by a close friend.

Isn't it {Great}?

The best part?

Jamie and I {traded}.

I got decals, she got necklaces. Being crafty {rocks}!!!

{ A girl and her shoes }

{Tonight Tim is in Kenna's room tucking her into bed when she starts crying. I hear her so I go in and she tells me the following...}

Kenna: You can marry Daddy, I don't like him.

Me: Oh yeah? I can have him?

K: Yes, I am marrying my boy Joey.

Me: Why don't you want to marry Daddy?

K: HE won't let me sleep with my flip flops on. {trying to catch her breathe between sobs}

Tim: {shakes his head} You have got to be kidding me! That's what this is about?

Me: Hey you don't get between a girl and a new pair of shoes.

K: Right Mom! {sniffle}

Tim: WHY didn't we have boys?!?!?!

{ A lesson in Laundry}

One would think in my new and improved laundry room I'd be chomping at the bit to do laundry.

You'd think.
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Good thing I have help.



Oh, don't for one minute think she was happy about this.



Sorry sister. That's what happens when you are naughty in this house.



I dislike laundry and I dislike when my daughter doesn't listen to me.


Then she tries to tell me "It's not fair! My pile is bigger than everyone else's!"

"Yes it is!!! No one else changes clothes 6 times a day. I've been telling you this for years."



She wasn't overly impressed with my spur of the moment photo shoot.




Who needs a time out chair?

Oh yeah..

I'll tell ya who...

{I'm jumping ship...}

For my one and a half readers who don't know me personally, our family lost a loved one this past week.

Danny "Bud" Seidel, the ex-husband of my sister, the Dad of my nephews and niece, a friend and co-worker to my husband, had a massive heart issue and died instantly this last Thursday night. Only 44 years old.

Obviously it was is a shock to our family. And while I hesitated to even post about his death on my blog, I feel called to do so. Ya see, Bud didn't grow up in church or knowing who God was. Our family introduced him to God and he would come to church with us when we went. 8 years ago maybe he was baptised when his sons were and spent many hours talking with a pastor about Jesus and the way into heaven. After he and my sister divorced I don't know if he gave God another thought.

Of course one of the first things loved ones do when someone dies is wondering if they went to heaven. After talking with pastors and others we do believe he did get to meet Jesus! He knew Jesus was sent to earth and died on the cross for his sins.

At the funeral the pastor talked about a passage in the Bible. {John 21:3-7} Seven of Jesus's disciples were fishing in a boat after Jesus had died. They saw a Man on shore who told them to throw their net on the opposite side of the boat and when they did, they caught more fish than the net should have been able to hold. When John announced the Man on the shore was Jesus, Peter jumped overboard to go to Him, while the other 6 rowed to shore.

The pastor talked about how much Bud had liked to fish and to imagine Bud seeing Jesus on the shore and how Jesus had a shore lunch waiting for him.

Ironically, I happen to be doing a Bible study about the disciple John. 18 hours before Bud died, I was sitting in bed reading these exact verses. Coincidence? I think not.

Reading them something really stuck out to me, something the pastor didn't mention in his sermon. Peter jumped out of the boat. He couldn't wait to meet Jesus again. He simply couldn't wait while the others rowed to shore. He had to get to Him.

When it's my time to leave this earth, you had better believe I am jumping out of the boat. I can't wait see Jesus. To touch His face, to have Him wrap His arms around me, to be in the very presence of the Man who died for me. Who willingly suffered a brutal death so I can go to heaven.

Don't get me wrong, I am in no hurry. If God happens to read blogs ;) take note I have things I would like to do yet. I have kids to raise, a husband to raise, er I mean love, a family to be there for. But in the chance Jesus is ready for me tomorrow, I want my family to know I'm ok.... I know where I am going. They don't need to sit around the table and wonder where I'll spend eternity. It's a really crummy feeling, wondering.

I want them to know I'm jumping ship.
I can't wait to see Jesus face to face and and hear Him say "Well done, good and faithful servant" {Matthew 25:23}

I urge you all, talk with your family. Make sure they know your faith. Don't leave them wondering. If you are unsure if you will enter the kingdom of God, PLEASE go talk to someone. A Christian friend, a pastor, someone. Jesus gave you {Yes! YOU!!} the gift of eternal life. Please take it. You really don't know when your last breath will be. Bud was at work talking to my husband 4 hours before he died. You don't have time to waste. Ask Jesus into your heart. Have faith He died for you. That He loved you enough to die for you.

And when your time comes, you can jump ship too.

......................................................

Bud, I hope you are catching more fish than you ever dreamed possible.

{ Acts of Kindness Part II }

After my last post about random acts of kindness I realized I never wrote about about the reason what triggered the entire post.

The other day I was driving to town listening to a Christian radio station when I heard about the Drive Thru Difference.

It works like this...
You go thru the drive thru and when you pay for your meal, you also pay for the person behind you in line. Then you give the cashier this paper. {Which you would have printed from your computer}

What a neat way to show kindness to others in Jesus's name! It "shouldn't" cost that much :) And just think of how many lives you would touch. The person in line behind you, all the friends/family they tell, the cashier, who is bound to be shocked. S/He will probably tell co-workers and friends. The co-workers may tell their friends. All because you were nice enough to buy a stranger a $5.00 meal.

This is even easier than returning a cart.

{ Random Acts of Kindness }

Remember this concept? Where people just did nice things for each other for NO REASON, just because it was nice? I don't mean doing things for people you love {although you SHOULD be!} I mean for strangers. For people you don't know. Without getting a thing in return. Just to be kind.

Unfortunately kindness is becoming a thing of the past.

People are in such a hurry to get in and out of a store they can't stop to hold a door open, stand aside so the person next to you can grab what they need off the shelf before you get what you need, or {Deep Breath} takeacartfromsomeonethatisdonewithitwhenyouarewalkinginthestoreanyways. {PHEW}

Did you get that?

Don't worry in case you missed, this whole post is going to be dedicated to this SMALL thing because it's one of my biggest pet peeves EVER.

Picture it.

I am leaving Target pushing a cart full of toys and useless things they girls convinced me they need groceries. If I am lucky Kenna is in the front {I call it the front of the cart, Tim calls it the back, {potato, patato, tomato, tamato} or for those of you who are lucky enough to get to go to the store without kids, the place you would put your purse. {Of course If you're a girl}

You still hanging on? The point is coming.

Kenna's sitting in the back front of the cart. Kinzley is either walking next to me or standing on the front back of the cart. Let's just assume it's not even winter in Iowa. It's not 5 degrees outside and windy or snowing with 2 inches of slush/ice/snow that makes it darn near impossible to push a cart of groceries let alone 2 kids. Let's just assume it's a beautiful summer day. Because really it's rude either way.

I manage to lift both girls into the Suburban and get to the back and throw all the bags into the back. I grab the back front of the cart and turn it to look for the cart return area. Now on a good day I was thinking and found a parking spot close to a return area. However more often than not, I have to push the cart at least 5 parking spaces away. Leaving my girls alone in the car. I look back, push the lock button on the remote and run the cart to the return, then run back, thinking "I wonder if Target got that on tape?" Ya know, me leaving my kids unattended in the car. Now I realize 90% of moms/dads do this. Before I had two kids, I used to take Kinzley with me when I returned the cart. Now I just hope they will start buckling themselves in their car seats before I get back.

They don't, in case you are wondering.

The point of this is............

Do you know HOW MANY PEOPLE PASS ME GOING INTO THE STORE? They are walking in to the store anyways? Would it kill them to offer to push my empty cart back in? Would it? Really??

UGH! This just drives me crazy. Now I realize they may not need a cart. Maybe they are just running in for 3 items they can hold in their arms. Still would it hurt to push the cart into the store and leave it? Or {Gasp} offer it to someone else who is fighting to get the carts seperated. {We have all been there!}

It's just the point. It's something nice you can do for others that doesn't require any time or money on your part. And let me tell you, people are SHOCKED when I offer to take their cart. Especially on the rare occasions I am kid free. If I have the girls, I imagine they figure I am doing it to make my life easier {true} but when I don't have the girls, people literally have no clue why I'd offer.

Isn't that sad?

Offering to save someone 40 steps to the cart return is enough to make someones day.

People get so consumed with doing what they need to do as fast as they can, they forget the impact they can make on others, if they will only slow down show a little kindness. There have even been lots of times I have waited in my car for people to finish emptying their cart so I can offer to return it. It doesn't hurt me one bit.

Offering to take someone's cart is just one little example. Try holding a door open for someone. Or letting someone go ahead of you in the check out line. Or stopping your car and letting someone get in line during rush hour, or offering to grab an item off a shelf when you see a short little Grandma who can't quite reach it. There are lots of little things that you can do on a simple trip to town. It's easy for you and could make a huge impact on someone else.

I'll never forget the time I was in town exercising walking with a friend and I waved at passing cars. After the 4th or so car in a row I waved to, she turned to me and asked "Do you know all these people?" I didn't. I was just waving because who doesn't like a friendly wave. I remember her asking me "Why?" Why not? I answered. It doesn't hurt me a bit, actually makes me feel good and who knows if my little wave was the only kind thing anyone had done for that person that day. I know I like when people wave to me.

I really just wonder what the world would be like if everyone waved or offered to take someones cart. If everyone just slowed down a bit and thought of others. As a Christian it's my duty to be kind to others. Because you can just bet, Jesus waved to people He didn't know. I'm thinking if Target would have been around in those days, He'd have took the cart without giving it a second thought. He wouldn't have stopped to consider it was a kind thing. That's who Jesus was. kind, caring, loving, giving, selfless...

And that's who I want to be.

One cart at a time.

{ i love you to the moon....}

Every night before bed, Kinz and I have a "fight" about who loves who the most. It always ends with......I love you all the way to the moon and back......although sometimes it's the Ringers!

Since I wasn't sure how to make ringers into a necklace ;) I thought I'd make the moon instead.

Available with or without a photo pendant.





Both can be found in my shoppe!

{ Dancing with the Stars }

The new season of Dancing with the Stars is scheduled to start March 9th. Some seasons we really get into the show and other seasons we don't watch at all. I had the news on the other day and heard the name Shawn Johnson. If you aren't familiar with her, she is a 17 year old girl from Iowa who won gold and silver in this past Olympics. She is going to be on the new season so I think we'll have to watch. I just thought she was the cutest little thing on the balance beam. Just imagine her waltzing around in the creative dresses the contestants wear.

Speaking of creative outfits....








{Gotta love the tights!}


{I'm thinkin' the contestants at least have clean faces}



I wonder if their wardrobe designers need any help.

Be the first to own a Kurth Originals!

{ Princess or Fairy? }

Do you have either a little princess or a little fairy?

I'd have to say I have 2 little princesses. Although they wouldn't agree.. They are both trying to fight to be the queen of the house. Nothing if not two independent little girls!

Anyways.....

I listed a couple necklaces for little girls.

A princess necklace....




A fairy necklace....
{Your choice of wording}


Both can be found in my shoppe!

{ New Again }

I don't know about you but when I hear a song I love, I tend to play it over and over and over again. My newest song is called New Again. It was inspired from the movie Passion of the Christ.
Even better it's sung by two of my favorite country artists, Brad Paisley and Sara Evans. I do love when well known singers are willing to sing some Christian music!

Brad sings the words of Jesus while Sara {you'd think we were friends calling them by their first names} sings the words of Mary, Jesus's Mother. I had always wondered how she felt having Christ for her son. I had wondered how she felt when he was crucified. But I never grasped that she.was.His.mom.

The same mom I am to my girls. She loved Him as an infant, protected Him as He was young, was proud of Him as He grew and was devastated as He died. Just like I would be. Somewhere along the line I assumed she was in on "the plan." Not that Jesus didn't tell her he was the Messiah, not that God didn't inform her of what was going to happen. Who knows what Mary truly knew. But she was a human. She was like me. She loved liked me. She grieved like me. And to SEE her son tortured the way He was and killed the way He was, even knowing it was God's plan has to be unbearable.

As a mom this song just hit home to me. It made me look at His death through different eyes.

Below is the you tube video of the song.
I do want to warn you, the song is about Jesus dying on the cross. It's actual clips from the movie. There are a few scenes that are a little graphic. You may want to make sure your children aren't in the room or you aren't sitting at your desk at work.

If you don't want to watch the video but still want to hear the song it's on the top of my play list on the left hand side. If you do want to watch the video, make sure you pause the play list.


The song really moved me. The song and video together pierced me to the soul. It makes me so so so sad, yet so MAD to think WE did this to Him! And He loved us enough to go through it. That He knew this would happen and He still did it. I think of the love I have for my girls and know it doesn't even compare to the love God has for us.

But above all I'm so thankful He was making all things new again!

{ Just a quick question }

Do you think I can take a birthday away?

If so, Kenna's is looooong gone.

{ Stinkin' }

Me: Kinzley, did you see Gabe tonight at Awana's?

Kinz: Yep, I did.

Me: Did you talk to him?

Kinz: Well.....He kind of told me something. I'm not sure if it's a naughty word or not.....{smacks lips}

Me: What did he say?

Kinz: Well...............He called me stinkin'.

Me: Stinkin' what?

Kinz: Stinkin' nothin'. Just stinkin'.............Is that a naughty word?

Me: Well not really... Who knows maybe you stink? =)

Kinz: I do not!....................Do I? {Shoves her hand under my nose}

Me: Yeah! Kind of like bananas.

Kinz: Really? {walks away smelling her hands}

Kinz: Mom? Do I really stink?

Me: No honey.

Kinz: Then I wonder why on earth Gabe called me stinkin'?

{ AWWW Young love! }

{ Sunny Side Up }

{ Movin' on out }

Adios, kicked to the curb, so long, see ya later, nice knowing ya, bye bye, farewell, chao

In case you didn't get the drift, we kicked mom out.

Ok, Ok. She left on her own. Practically tripped over her own feet to get out the door ;) I let her go to the Dr. alone~the first time she hasn't been with me for a week and she sends Dad and Joey to get her bed so she didn't have to come back. You'd have thought I held her hostage or something! {Good news is she lost 30 pounds so far!!!!} Later I find out she is emailing all her friends on HER computer at home. At least I learned to never get her a laptop, not only can she not type on one, she also can't use the mouse. It really was like having a third child.

Ok, Ok. It was the plan for her to go home yesterday. Just because I took my her tv out of Kenna's room her bedroom and put it back in my kitchen when she was in the shower didn't mean I was in a hurry for her to leave. It meant I was in a hurry to watch Regis and Kelly while I did some dishes. Just because I had her bed moved to my living room when Dad/Joey came didn't mean I cared if she slept over again. It meant they were coming to get it during nap time and Kenna couldn't be sleeping in the bed they needed to take. Just because I moved Kenna's bed back into her room before mom got her stuff out of the house didn't mean I wanted her to leave. Just because Kenna screamed to get Grandma's bags out of her room before she'd take her nap doesn't mean she wanted her to leave either. {Incidentally once the bags were removed, Kenna laid down in her bed and slept for almost 3 hours. She barely napped at all the entire time Mom was here. I'm just sayin'}

Just because I had my house clean and her bedding being washed when she came back later that night to get her bags didn't mean she wasn't welcomed to stay longer. Because in the hours she wasn't here, it was really quiet. {Well as quiet it could be with 4 kids under 5} Sure the kids had someone to play with but I lost the adult interaction I had for the last week. Staying home with my girls then adding in daycare kids can get a little juvenile at times. There is really only so much conversation that you can have with the 5 and under crowd. It was so nice to be able to leave Kenna with mom when I took Kinz to school, to have someone else be able to read books to the girls, to listen to the funny stories they say all day. Just to have someone here willingly to offer new suggestions for lunch or tell me new stories from her childhood. {Even though she did call my home from her cell phone IN KENNA'S BEDROOM to tell me to save her some tuna salad....really mom!}

Just because I'm a little sad my mom left after one week doesn't mean I'll be a basket case when our girls leave home after 18 years right? RIGHT?

Last night I tucked Kinzley into bed and she grabbed one of their comforters that my mom had used that I hadn't gotten washed yet. She pulls it up to her chin and says

it smells like Grandma's powder.
I MISS Grandma.
I think I'll just hug this blanket and think about how much fun we had with Grandma here.

You'd think she moved to Florida or something. She lives 10 miles away! It's not like we aren't going to see her again. She has the next 4 weeks off work and I told her I'd give her a massage one day. So I KNOW she'll be back! {I just realized some of my faithful readers ;) may not know once long long ago I was a massage therapist.}

Just like it's an adjustment when someone moved in, it's an adjustment when they trip over their feet to get away from your house move out.

Before I went to bed, I checked on Kenna. She had put her pillow right next to her door and was curled into a ball so I couldn't even get the door open. Obviousally her bed was overrated to begin with. Then at 2:30 am I hear her crying. She had the light on in her room, sitting on her bed crying. She had a nightmare~a monster was chasing her. I brought her into our bed and a half hour later she sat up and threw up all over our bed. Then proceeded to throw up all night long. Within a hour of her getting sick, I hear Tim in the bathroom also sick.

I'm tellin' ya, Mom got out just in time....

{ Loft Bed }

It's all pottery barn's fault....

Just look at this bed! How fun would this be?

Now take a gander at the price!

Seriously? $999.oo plus tax plus $150.00 shipping!

Not a chance. I'm WAAYYYY to cheap for that!

Why when you have a husband who is prefectly able to help reproduce one. Although I lost count of the times I heard him say "I am not a carpenter." =)

I didn't think it was that hard ;) It took me longer to paint that it took to built {8 hours straight of painting in case you were wondering}

So from this....

to this....

to this....

All said and done, lumber, sandpaper, paint we spent $150! Long way off from Pottery Barn price!

{ A few more pictures from her room }

Needless to say they girls are lovin' it! They have played "store" and "house" and "castle" for three days.

Peace, I tell ya.

Not only is it way to much fun to play in but also fun to sleep in! Now we just need to convince Kenna that her Sissy isn't to scared to sleep alone.

A LOT of you guessed "the project" was either a loft or a bunk bed! Who knows maybe Kinz will grow up and draw up blueprints. She must be pretty good!



BTW, the round circle at the bottom is a bean bag chair.

Just in case you were wondering....