Suffering the consequences.....

Well the day of reckoning has come and TI has been sentanced to one year and one day in prision and fined 100,300 dollars.

Ive been following T.I's story since I happened upon his show on MTV which was put into motion after he was caught purchasing machine guns and silencers. WHAT??

Yeah that's the first thing that crossed my mind as well, but then i began to watch his show and learn more about this young man.....and you know what....i really like him.

The thing about this situation is that I wasn't raised as he was, i didn't grow up without my parents and I have no idea what its like to watch my best friend take his last breathe after being shot because I got into a fight, and i certainly cant imagine how scared he must have been to be purchasing weapons such as these. But what i do know is that this young man has taken what he considers to be a dark time in his life, and used it to inspire change in youth that seem to be following the path that he was once on.

I think the punishment that was handed down is fair. And although i like the guy i think he needs to suffer the consequences of his actions. My heart breaks for his wife and children but I believe in the end the high road he has taken will leave a legacy that pass to his children and inspire a generation of young men and women to think before taking the same path. I wish there were more artists who would realize their mistakes as he has and use it to inspire change.

I believe no matter how many times you screw up, you deserve the chance to prove you can do better. That of course does not mean you don't pay for what you have done. I hope he continues to walk to same walk when he finishes his sentence.


BTW i totally love his new song with JT "Dead and Gone" inspired by this situation....

UPDATE here is the video....just so you can see how talented the guy is....im not usually a rap kinda girl...but i like this song!!

Under construction, A CONTEST and A LIL LOOKSIE LOU

Good Morning Ladies and the 1.5 gents that read my blog!!

Just wanted to remind you that we will be revealing our NEW business site VERY soon......and because we love you all we wanted to give you a lil looksie (preview) of whats to come!!!

SO if you wanna win a new makeover for one of your friends AND a lil somethin somethin for yourself......then head on over to our new and improved BLOG for Blogalicious Designs and follow us!!

I hate to say it, but if you already are following Blogalicious Designs your gonna have to follow THIS page as well since we decided to make a whole new page for blogging on the site.

HERE YA GO!!! GET EXCITED!!!

http://blogaliciousdesignsblog.blogspot.com/

And thanks to SITS for linking to my page today!! If your visiting me for the first time WELCOME!!! If you have yet to visit SITS you must, they will hook you up with blog support like you've NEVER experienced!!

Under Construction AND A CONTEST!!

Blogalicious Designs is UNDER CONSTRUCTION because we will be unavailing a new look soon!!! Please bare with us as our site under goes this awesome transformation.

But take note with the unavailing of our fresh new site, we will be having (drum roll) a CONTEST!!!! But the best part of this here contest is that not only will you be winning a make-over for one of your friends but YOU your self will be winning a lil somethin somethin. Yes that's right you AND a friend can win.

Here's what you need to do:

1. Stay tuned, when the new site is revealed the instructions will be posted on the "Blogalicious Blog"
2. Tell all your friends to stay tuned as well.
3. And if you aren't already a follower of Blogalicious Designs, Staci's Heart and Live Laugh Love then mosey on over and become one already!!!

We cant wait to show you all what we can do!!! Get excited and be thinking of a friend to nominate for a new make-over and why you think they deserve it.

Bully Beat Down....my new favorite show

Omg!! Is it wrong for me to LOVE the concept of this new show??



I was sitting on my couch watching this giggling like a lil girl....i love it when bullies get whats comin to them!!

Move over movers!!

Meet the imagination movers.

Scott, Rich, Dave, and Smitty.....comparable to the Wiggles although musical they aren't quite as British (or is it austrailian)and my gaydar doesn't go off quite as often.

Anyway, the movers have a show on Disney and they specialize in the business of solving problems.....

Like the one on their show this morning where they had a pumpkin that was too big to fit through the door, now it didn't take them TOOOO long to figure out HOW to fit it through the door, only 30 mins. That's pretty quick for a man. ;)

But my three year old, he must be a genius because within the first few mins of the show when they say "OH NO, how are we gonna get it through the door??" he turns to me and says

"Mooom, they cant get the pumpkin through the door......they should cut it up!!!"

In closing id like to say that maybe we should be in the business of solving problems......it would sure stimulate the economy if i could figure out how to say win the lottery or make money grow on trees.....

An interview with a three year old....

Cut and paste these questions and ask your kids their answers....it is a RIOT! This is so much fun.

Answered by...Landon Ray 3 years old (answers in blue)

Typed by...mommy (observations in red)

1. What is something mom always says to you?

Landon: "HELLLLLOOOO" (hahaha)

2. What makes mom happy?

Landon: he makes a BIG smile on his face, and says "like this" (this is already killin me sooo funny)

3. What makes mom sad?

Landon: "ugly makes u sad" (haha he means when hes ugly it makes me sad, although ugly looking people DO make me sad ;) j/k )

4. How does your mom make you laugh?

Landon: "tickle" (when i tickle him)

5. What was your mom like as a child?

Landon: he laughs and says "ha ha you cry, and you put shoes on" (random)

6. How old is your mom?

Landon: "um" *holds up his hand*

I say "five??

He says "yeah your five and im only fwee"

(i wish i was only five)

7. How tall is your mom?

Landon: "your really tall right there, you gotta grow up right there" (its like he's TRYING to compliment me and then just decides to be honest)

8. What is her favorite thing to do?

Landon: "on the computer" (oh lord i was afraid of that, i am a web designer people LOL )

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?

Landon: "go bye bye" (observant lil guy isnt he?)

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?

Landon: "I dont know, can i have some gum??" (OMG this child has an obsession with gum)

11. What is your mom really good at?

Landon: "um for poo poo" ( thats not true im rather backed up at the moment ;) )

12. What is your mom not very good at?

Landon:"eating candy" (really??)

13. What does your mom do for a job?

Landon:"the computer" (he forgets i am his mommy his maid and his chaufer, lol)

14.What is your mom's favorite food?

Landon:"loni and crackers" (bologna) this is HIS favorite food

15.What makes you proud of your mom?

Landon:"when she laughs" (cute)

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?

Landon:"BIIIG super man" (do you think he's calling me fat??)

17. What do you and your mom do together?

Landon: "play castle" (he has a batman castle)

18. How are you and your mom the same?

Landon: "same mouth same eyyyyes same hairs same poo poo" (dieing)

19. How are you and your mom different?

i accidently skipped this for landon but there is nothing different about us we are clones!!

20. What does mommy do to show you she loves you?

Landon: "Biiig squeeeze" (this is what we say when we hug)

Now go and interview your lil ones!!

Crazy Cousins Campers!!!

So every year we put this shindig on for all the kids in our family at our family ranch. Its called cousins camp.

They have to be at least 5 years of age, and its a no parents allowed type of thing.

My Aunt has organized it since 1998 and I began helping out over the last 3 years. I have a feeling the boss title will be handed over to me eventually.....and i will accept with honor :)

Anyway, sometimes some of the older cousins (such as myself, jay, and several of the other graduated kids) come out to help, we have a BLAST going to the river

and hiking and at the end of the 4 day adventure the kids put on a talent show for the parents and we all have lunch together.

We even throw in a lil fear factor action.....Yep but not all the stunt man action, just a lil disgusting object for eating action....here's a lil looksie at some of the fabulous stuff we offer:

There is lots of this:

And this:

And this:

Oh and don't forget this:

I LOVE my face in that one....and Aaron is SUPER excited at the idea that Kayle might blow chunks!! Look at that look of anticipation on his face!!!

Yes it is a riot....with LOTS of laughter and fun!!! Here are the winners! Yep if you can keep it down you win the quoin!!!

Now Logan has been coming every year since he was born in 2001 we have always at the very least made an appearance, and he has been around lots of young silly girls taking pictures like this:

And this:

I think it is beginning to wear off on him because when my aunt developed the disposable cameras she hands out every year she found these:

Oh no hes teaching his younger brother!!!

There is WAAAY more where that came from but we'd be here all day!!! In all there was about 30 pics of his silly mug!!!

I look forward to the next cousins camp this summer!!

Anyone do anything special with their family on an annual basis??

Id love to hear about it!!!

Freaky Furby

Youve seen em......

Yes im talking about Furby....only the one that resides in my home is named TOE LOU.....ask me how i know this...

He told me. He DID!! I swear....

And then he told me he was bored. And then, as if to mock me, he began to snore.....

creepy....just creepy!!

"The Proposal" Part 14 in the saga

Part 1





Part 2





Part 3





Part 4





Part 5





Part 6





Part 7





Part 8





Part 9





Part 10





Part 11





Part 12














Part 13









There were lil hints everywhere, one that still makes me laugh to this day.....





The phone rings



"hello" i say



"Hey, its Dad"



"hey Dad whats up?"



"well you tell me??" "That boy called me today and asked if i could go to lunch??" "why would he want to do that??



"DAAAAAD??" i say


"whaaaat??"


He really had no idea.....I hung up the phone giggling at the possibility of what was coming....



For days I was on edge trying to figure out when it would be....how he would do it. I'm sure when my Dad actually did get the opportunity to talk to him he understood that he may have just outed "that boy" and made sure he dragged it out for a while so i wouldn't know when it was coming.







So the days dragged on and i eventually went on about my business as usual. I even started to believe maybe i was wrong....maybe this wasn't happening.....


We had just gotten back from the annual "Spring Thing" which if you remember is where we met.... (If you don't PLEASE refresh your memory HERE because its important to the rest of the story)......and this particular year we were old enough to be Spring Thing counselors....so you can imagine i was DRAINED emotionally and physically after dealing with a bunch of teenagers...




Anyway, we had just gotten back the weekend before and i was excited to have a weekend without plans, ya know just to relax....so when he called me up and said "hey wanna go to dinner with The Bucks and Gorena's and D.R?? Remember D.R, our youth pastor?? And the Gorena's well you should know who they are by now, if not CLICK HERE and the Bucks are very good friends of ours as well....


Anyhoo, he goes on to say that Buck man had left some of his equipment for his video camera up at the sanctuary at T Bar M (which is where we hold spring thing) and we needed to go by and get it so we were gonna go out to the "Gristmill" and eat and pick it up on the way home......The Gristmill is located in historic Gruene (sounds like green) Tx, and it is RIGHT on the Guadalupe River where we go tubing every year. It too is a historic building and it has WONDERFUL food, and the town is fabulous to go antiquing in!!!



Anyway I was EXHAUSTED and i wanted NO part of it....but he convinced me so i threw on a t-shirt and a sweat shirt of his, and some jeans and did nothing with my hair and hopped in the car......frankly i looked like ARSE!!!






The whole time at dinner "That boy" was acting strange....he kept getting up to go to the bathroom, which i might add is not unusual "that boys" stomach is ALWAYS acting up....but i could tell there was something else going on.







Now you might think I'm the dumbest person on earth....but i never suspected a thing because i always imagined it would just be He and I for the proposal....ya know?? So I'm just stuffing my face and carrying on like it was nothing special....but wondering all along "what the heck is wrong with him??"







Anyway we are all done with dinner and by this time I'm grumpy.....grumpy as all get out.....if you know me you know that i am grumpy when I'm tired and when I'm hungry.....i had just eaten my face off so it was nappy time.....and it was late....I wanted to GO HOME!!!! But Buck says:







"hey lets go to T bar M now and pick up my tripods"



just then D.R says :



"I gotta get home to the Mrs." "ill see yall later" and he leaves





and then "that boy" says



"lets go with the Buck's and Gorena's to pick up that stuff, come on it'll be fun"

and everyone else follows with a



"yea come on"



I'm like "FIIINE lets just go"



Everyone gets in their cars and we head off..... I make sure and tell "that boy" how tired i am and i just want to get there and get out no hangin around.....he just smiles....



When we arrive everyone gets out and I'm like "SERIOUSLY" just tell him to go get it and lets GO!! but he convinces me otherwise and i oblige.




We walk down the path that leads to an open field with soccer goals and grass, over to the left is a forest of trees and i gently laugh to myself as i remember us meeting for the first time on a swing in that same area several years before. Up ahead is the sanctuary, as we approach the sanctuary buck says :







"hey, whats that?? this is where i groan to myself







And then that boy says "yeah what are those lights"







I'm thinking PULLLLEASE i just want to be in my bed.....but no, we have to go inspect....and as we got closer i realized that i really should have wanted to inspect this more than anyone..... as we pass a big tree someone (D.R) walks out with a video camera and this is what comes into my view......

(Im sorry about the quality, it gets clearer a lil into the video, i recorded this off my TV cause it was on vhs...please pause my music player at the bottom so you can hear his beautiful song!!)




Yes that is "that boy" who has been my husband for almost nine years now, Jason. He wrote me a song entitled "oh Staci" and knelt in the place we met 7 years prior for my hand in marriage.

Here are the beautiful words he wrote just for me

Oh Staci todays the day, we made a commitment and were on our way
the roads been long, but were here now,
were gonna make it someway somehow

Oh staci you mean the world to me
and i will love you for eternity
and i will do whatever i have to do
just to show you that i love you
i love you

It wont be long till we are one,
And we'll live happily, together with the holy one,
Were on our journey, with God as our guide,
Were gonna make it, side by side

Oh staci you mean the world to me
and i will love you for eternity
and i will do whatever i have to do
just to show you that i love you
i love you


I could to say that this is where the story ends, but its just the begining of our lives journey.... with God as our guide.

Stay tuned to learn how i met the two "other" loves of my life ;)

Circa 1993

There is nothing that can make my day like spandex, big hair, and the running man. Oh and don't forget Will smiths rendition of "Ring my Bell"

Exhibit A





Embarrassing....... yes, but necessary....I promise i got better!!!



Yes I'm the one who cared more about flipping my hair then actually dancing .....the best part is when we say "bust out" and forget we are actually performing.

Our awesome dance instructor Angie was a silver dancer for the spurs (GO SPURS GO)...she was a cheerleader with ALOT of spunk "bust out" was a regular phrase of hers....we did it as a tribute to her....but it definitely threw me outta whack which should be obvious....



But my favorite part is when we kneel in worship as they lift Amy in the air!!! As if shes jesus on the cross.....priceless!!!

AHHH memories...like the corners of my miiiind!!!

This was 7th or 8th grade.....good stuff!! incase your wondering i am the one the camera focus' in on most of the time....

How I met the loves of my life Part 13

Okay I know its been forever, and im sure those that loved to read it in the past have looong moved on, but i decided i would continue the story anyway because i should finish it for myself.

This is the story of how i met my hubby, its a loooong story and you cant read one part without the other, i would suggest starting at part one, then if it doesnt catch your attention no worries!!

And without further ado, here is the continuation of the story you all know and love to read "How I Met the LOVES of my Life" its been waay to long.....



Part 1





Part 2





Part 3





Part 4





Part 5





Part 6





Part 7





Part 8





Part 9





Part 10





Part 11





Part 12


And now Part 13:

It was so obvious to me, she had a thing for him. But I tried to chalk it up to my paranoid insecurities....i mean after all she WAS my best friend. Writing this makes my stomach turn.....but the truth is it was all women's intuition....ya know, that feeling you get when you KNOW shes after your man. And your almost always hitting the nail right on the head.

I tried and tried to pass it off, to push it aside for the sake of our friendship...AND my relationship with "that boy" because frankly she KNEW things....lots of things about me, that were secret, that were hidden....and what would happen if i approached her about my gut feelings.....would she out me?? It is a sad thing to admit, but i knew if I pushed her even in the slightest, she might go to him and turn my world upside down.....not that i didn't maybe deserve that.....but what kind of friend would do that?? What kind of friend has THAT much power over you??

It wasn't like she ever said anything to me like "if you push me ill tell him" but it was the snarky under toned things she would say to let me know she had the power like:

"you know, i didn't really like you when we first met, i only pretended to because i thought Jason was hot"

YEA. SERIOUSLY.

Or "you know you and (enter her boyfriends name here) are soo much a like and me and "that boy" are so much alike we should trade"

Again, YEA. SERIOUSLY.

Every time she would make one of these comments it was like a kick in the face.....part of me wanted to beat the everlivin out of her.....but the other part felt i deserved it. In my journal dating back to 1998 there is entry after entry asking God to help me with my thoughts where she was concerned.

How pathetic was I??

And even though I had ended the relationship with Keen, i still felt horrible and like i should be punished. I knew what it was like to be taken advantage of.....remember superman??? I mean, i should know better.

As time went on, it seemed to get worse, and somehow i became the bad person in the situation, because even though i didn't know she was going behind my back trying to convince him i was "no good" for him....i still had made a mistake she "couldn't say".......she had leverage....and I'm sure her mouth was saying things like "i cant say what shes done but its not good"

I finally got the courage to confront her....and like i said.....she used it to her advantage and I became the bad guy......she had at one point convinced "that boy" that she was better for him, and all i could do was fight for what i wanted.....

Eventually she faded out of my life for good....but the scars she left from stabbing me in the back still ache from time to time like a phantom arm after amputation......

You may not believe it from hearing this story, but i have actually forgiven her. YEA RIGHT, you might be thinking but i swear its true. She was one of the best friends i had ever had( before she tried to come between me and "that boy") she was funny, outgoing, she loved to dance like me and we would spend hours watching different boy bands just so we could learn their dances.....we even got to meet nsync together.......

But forgiveness does not mean you forget......and it would be hard for me to trust her again. I truly only wish the best for her.....

And unfortunately, in order to tell the story....all the gory details have to be revealed.

This was just part of the tale that led to the most important night of my life.....

The finale when "How I Met the Loves of my Life" continues!!! :)


"

Road trip.....suggestions???

So this summer in August my husband and I are kid free for a whole week......HOLLA!!

Actually, i dont know how im gonna handle that, my kids spend at least one night a week with a family member and I can barely handle that.

Anyway, my parents are takin them to Disney for the second time (the first time we went as well) and so we have a whole week to do whatever we want.....it will be the first time we will be able to go on an extended vaca without children......

So here's why im writing.... we talked about going on a road trip, and so i thought i would post about it and get your suggestions on where we should go.

Your assignment is to comment here about where i should visit and why, put places i should check out and why they would be fun!!

Come on girls (and the one boy who reads this) lets hear it!!!

And remember, if you don't have a blogger account you can still comment all you have to do is click anonymous and leave your name in the comment.

This will be very helpful!! I cant wait to see what yall come up with!!

Oprah actually appeared this afternoon....

I was both very intrigued and disturbed when i saw a story about a young child named Danielle on the Oprah show.....im convinced Oprah has been kid napped from Harpo Studios because as of late i haven't been able to watch a second of her show because of all her new age segments (im not judging....im just sayin its not for me)



Anyway, apparently the old Oprah made a cameo and began to talk about an issue that tears in to the very core of my heart.



Child abuse.



Thank you Oprah for stepin back in to reality for a moment so that you could break my heart.



This particular segment was on child neglect. This beautiful 6 year old (now 9) child was rescued from an unbearable situation.



She was 6 and could not talk,



she could not feed herself,



she wore a diaper and she was covered in insect bites from head to toe.



And as if that weren't bad enough, she was so neglected, so alone, that she rocked back and forth back and forth, like a elephant in captivity.





Now i know i said "intrigued" so let me explain


what was so interesting to me was this picture...



The picture on the left is a picture of a healthy normal child who has been loved.


The picture on the right is a picture of a child who was severely neglected.



Can you see the scars this unloved child has had to bare? There are HOLES in this child's brain that could be filled with knowledge, with love. Not to mention it is MUCH smaller than the other.



Here is something else the Dr. said that was interesting



As you grow, the brain is essentially like a sponge," Dr. Perry says. "It's absorbing all kinds of experiences. So if a child is not held, touched, talked to, interacted with, loved, literally neurons do not make those connections, and many of them actually will die."


It is not surprising to me, since God created us to be relational beings....he created eve from Adam because He knew Adam NEEDED to be loved.....and this proves it.

The other thing that doesn't surprise me is that i asked for this.... you see one of my favorite praise songs is "hosanna" by hillsong united. If you haven't heard this song you must....in fact ill go ahead and play it for you on my play list....but one of the lines in the song says



Heal my heart and make it clean


Open up my eyes to the things unseen


Show me how to love like You have loved me


Break my heart for what breaks Yours


Everything I am for Your Kingdom's cause


As I walk from earth into eternity


I sang this incredibly loud in the car the other day, i prayed afterwards that God WOULD break my heart for what breaks His....

"show me how to love like you Lord"

So, my eyes have been opened....and he has broken my heart for what breaks his....and he has shown me how to love like he has loved me.


How?? Because the good news is this precious child was rescued and adopted by a VERY loving family who already had five other children. It has taken alot of patience i am sure to teach this child how to function but she is making progress.

She is now potty trained, she is also feeding herself. But there are times when they know she is taken back to that very dark place she once was.....she sometimes still rocks very violently.

My heart is broken for Danielle and the many many other innocent victims unnamed. Please join me in lifting her up in prayer.....that is one way you can love like HE has loved you.


For more information on Danielle's story visit http://www.oprah.com/

Sit and Be fit....like Ni ni

Anyone familiar with the show on PBS "Sit and Be Fit"?? well if you aren't here's the scoop, basically it is a Senior Fitness television exercise program....

Annnd boy ill tell you what it ENTERTAINS!!!

okay it doesn't...

It can put a kid hyped up on red bull to sleep....but im sure its useful to someone out there, it must be cause its been on PBS for as long as i can remember!!

Anyhoo, so today Landon played in his playroom and i sat on the floor with my lap top designing, we had left the tv on "sid the science kid" downstairs when we decided to go upstairs. When it was time for lunch i didn't pay much attention to what was on the tv, i just walked right past it into the kitchen to prepare Landon's pb&j. Just as i was finishing up i yelled out

"hey kid, your lunch is about ready, why don't you come sit down"

to which he responded

"oookay mama ill be there in a minute"

to which i responded

"oookay well its ready"

when i came around the corner i IMMEDIATELY had to find the camera.......so i could capture Landon getting his daily dose of exercise in......




gotta love em!!

Where does Jesus reside??

The other day i was just driving along drivin along....and typically if im alone my mind begins to wander a bit....somehow i end up at my destination...does that ever happen to you...ya know you completely forget your driving and start thinking, and then all of the sudden BAM ....your home and your like "what the??"



Well this was my state this particular day, and i began to think about the world in which we live and how things aren't as safe like they used to be, and how many people are suffering....and i began to feel this urgency....ya know to make sure that i had talked enough about Jesus and his purpose and why he died. I talk about him alot to my children, and Logan seems to know alot about the Lord, and why he died and how he's forgiven and so on and so fourth.....


but my baby
my sweet baby boy, he has just begun to understand who he is. Im sure you can understand the urgency.....i guess im just paranoid.....but i began to think,


"what if he comes tomorrow, will i have taught my beautiful child enough about what his eternal father did for him?"


Now im not saying that sweet lil innocent things like this don't go on to heaven......but in all honesty i really don't know the answer to that question, i have learned that we are ALL born into sin, and if that is the case will he be forgiven if he doesn't grasp the concept...and he is MY child, my responsibility to teach him....and darnit if i don't want to do everything i can to have my child with me when i reside in heaven. There is lots of debate on this issue i know, i hear it all the time and have thought about it alot. All i can really do to secure their place in heaven along side me is just make sure they know HIM.


So that's what i do, maybe that's me not trusting the Lord....and shame on me for that....but i admit i have trust issues.....or maybe its just me loving my child sooo much that i cant bare to be separated from him. Whatever my heart is feeling my hearts desire is that he know HIM the way i do.


So yesterday I asked Landon while we were eating as a family:


"Landon, where does Jesus live"


and he responded


"in my haaaut" (heart)


and i say: "that's right baby" "and do you remember what mommy told you he did for you on the cross??"


and he said


"yeah, he falled down and died" :)


Were getting there......