For my sister

I'm sharing this link and writing this and praying that someone out there will find it in their heart to donate. This is my sister, her car is broken down and she is unable to come up with all of the funds to fix it. Any little bit would help and I would greatly appreciate it and so would my sister and her two young kids.

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MINNIE MOUSE THEMED FIRST BIRTHDAY PARTY

This past weekend we celebrated I's first birthday. We had a Minnie Mouse themed party with friends and family at our home. I'm going to include some pictures of the crafts I made. The first thing is the cardboard number 1 and happy birthday Iva sign. I cut out a number 1 and then just a square out of cardboard, I had bought a black and pink table cloth at the Dollar tree and I cut that up and used it like a wrapping paper and wrapped and taped the 1 and the square, then I printed out Happy Birthday Iva and taped it to the square, these decorations went on our fireplace, next to some fresh flowers. Then, I made a sign for outside, I cut out a Minnie Mouse head shape and covered it in the same black and pink table cloth, then I glued that onto a piece of cardboard I had painted white, I then painted on the words, "Come Inside It's Fun Inside". Next I made a bead sign that said "Iva is 1". I used little glass beads and glued them on to spell out the words, then I cut and glued on a piece of the table cloth as the edge, then I glued on a few pictures of Iva. I also made a very cheap and easy beanbag game for the kids to play, I took two cardboard boxes and cut a few holes in the top, then covered the front with the table cloth, then the kids took turns throwing bean bags into the holes for points. Those are all the crafts I made. For food, we made everything mini/Minnie, we had Minnie taco cups, Minnie Stuffed Mushrooms, and Minnie veggies. I will include recipes in a later blog post so stay tuned.

I want to be a writer

I have always dreamed of writing. I love to read and I love to write. I've had a few poems published and when I was a teenager I wrote a novel but when I got my first negative feedback (from my sister) I burned it. So, I think I've grown from that now and I want to share some of my poems with the world. Now, I love to get feedback, good or bad. So, if you don't comment on anything else I've written, please comment on this post. It would mean so much to me to know how people feel about my writing.

 

CLOUDY BLUE EYES

By: Virginia Ashley Gipson

 

Even though you're in a better place,

The tears are still streaming down my face.

They say that time will heal all pain,

That doesn't seem to stop the rain.

The pain inside is starting to show,

But, I can't seem to stop the flow.

My endless tears are the years gone by,

I find the only thing to do is cry.

In pain, I feel both mad and sad,

But, from time to time I find the glad.

I think of all the happy times that I can recall,

I think of the love that you showed to us all.

Then, I can finally dry up my eyes,

And, see your face in the cloudy blue skies.

 

The above poem was written after my Dad passed away at the age of 50.


NOTE TO MY CHILD:
Dear tiny child inside of me,
You're growing now it's plain to see.
I feel you move, I feel you kick, And every morning I get sick.
My whole life changed in just one day, When I found out you were on your way.
Slowly but surely, I'm watching you grow, I love you more than you'll ever know.
With each day that passes, the day draweth near, When everything changes and you will be here.
I wonder if you'll look like me or your Dad, But, that doesn't matter. either way I'll be glad!

The above poem was written for Iva while I was pregnant.

God has truly blessed me!

God has been so good to me!

Truly, my life is so full of his blessings sometimes it's hard to remember to thank Him for them all! I have a fabulous husband, an amazing daughter, and a wonderful church family. I have some struggles with my family but struggles are what makes us stronger, so I'll take my struggles and pray about them and I know that God is with me! It feels so amazing to never be alone! There are days when baby girl is sleeping and I start to get a little lonely missing her, then I pray, and I know I'm not alone. Baby girl is so very happy! So many people talk about how she's always smiling and laughing. She's brought smiles to so many people, it amazes me! Every single day when she wakes up, she's smiling! It is such a blessing to see her smile at someone and to see them smile back!

Like anyone, there are days when I'm not feeling my best, and my beautiful daughter can look at me and smile and my day gets better! She's so amazing! She has no struggles, no problems, no worries. How amazing it must be to have every need in your life met.

Her smile has touched many people and for that I am thankful. So, I'd like to share some smiles with all of you. I truly hope her smile can bless you like it has me.

My mind has decided to leave me!!!

So, today my mind has decided to leave me. Not sure where it's going or why but it seems like today is much more of a struggle than any other day. It all started at 4am, when I wake up to make coffee and lunch for James before he heads to work. My brain just didn't want to get started this morning. I messed up the coffee and had to start over and then I almost packed his lunch with a sandwich with no meat. Yep, bread mayonnaise bread. That was it. Well, fixed that and went upstairs to wake him up. He got up and I took the boys down to let them out [Shiloh and Sammy are often referred to as the boys, they're the dogs] So, as I opened the door I realized we had about a half inch of fresh snow on the ground. So, I quickly checked on Spot [the rabbit] to make sure he was good and warm. As I turned to return to the warmth of the house, I walked into the glass door!!!!! BAM!!!!
So, I survived my head injury and headed back inside. Tried to get Lil Bit [other dog] to come out of the laundry room with no success, so now I know I'll be cleaning up a mess from her later. But, she's old and does not do good with cold weather. So, back upstairs I go. Made the bed, got James's clothes out and ready for work and turned on the news. Nothing new or exciting, just lots of schools closing because of the weather.
Then, at five James leaves for work but not before I forgot to get him a sweater and a hat. This was just not our morning! So, I headed back up and  crawled into the bed. At around 8 the baby woke up and my day got a little better.  I love walking into her room in the morning and seeing that smile!! She is such a happy child!!! So, I made her eggs and applesauce for breakfast [I have included my recipe for homemade applesauce at the bottom] Then, we got bundled up and went out to let her experience snow for the first time. [Pictures included]

Oh, and I don't want to talk much about it because I might cry, but my dryer died today!!! He will be sorely missed and I'm not sure how I'm going to move on with my life without him in it!!! RIP Dryer!!!




[Homemade applesauce}
INGREDIENTS
-4 apples (cored and cut into wedges, peel if you want, I don't)
-1/2 cup orange juice
-1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
-2 teaspoons butter

Put all ingredients into pot on the stove and turn on medium high.
Cook for about 15-20 minutes or until apples get soft
Remove from heat and let rest
Place apple mixture in blender or food processor (I use a Ninja)
Blend until desired consistency

Enjoy!

Introduction post

Yep! I'm her mom!
And, she's pretty darn amazing! She's ten months old now and my entire life revolves around her. She's my everything.
So, this is just a starter post for my blog, so you can get to know me a little more. My name is Virginia, but most people call me Gin. Except for my family, they call me Ashley, but we can talk about that some other time. I'm married, his name is James. We have one daughter, yep, her!!! Her name is Iva. I am a stay at home mom and a wannabe writer. So, I guess this is my start. I've written lots of poems, I've ,of course, kept journals most of my life, and I think like a writer. I always wanted to be a mom and a writer, so I guess I'm almost there.
So, more about HER, because she is what I want to write about. Iva, like I said, is now ten months old. She's funny, smart, sweet, and always happy! She's such a smiley child! She can say a few words already, [Dada, dog, and yeah]. She can kind of crawl backwards and she can push her walker backwards.
We also have pets. We have three dogs and a rabbit. The dogs and Iva are best friends. Lil Bit is a ten year old teacup Chihuahua, Sammy is a four year old toy fox terrier, and Shiloh is a two year old apple head Chihuahua. And, then Spot is a six year old Holland Lop rabbit. [Spot thinks he's a dog]

So, that's a little information about the family. This is not what my blog will be like normally. I plan to write about Her mostly, but also plan to include recipes, baby food recipes, teaching tips, writing suggestions, pet care advice, and lots of other stuff.

Thanks for reading.