A FLY ON THE WALL... IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE....

Do you ever wish you could be a fly on the wall?  I do!  Especially when raising teenagers.  I beg for pictures!  But I don't always get them.  And sometimes I read my friend's blogs hoping to be a fly on the wall into their lives too.  And what about knowing "the deep stuff?!"  I'd love to "understand" others.
Soooooo....  Thanks to Sweet Tarts (who is my daughter for the week!) I got to be a fly on the wall to a fun, little outing for these cute teenagers:

Maple, Andrew, Taffy, Kotten Kandy and Sweet Tarts

(Almond Joy is taking the picture... so not pictured....)

They saw the Lego Batman Movie.  And went roller-skating!  I'm glad Sweet Tarts takes pictures!

These two are my daughters this week!  I kinda like them - like a lot!

And I'll claim Maple as my own ALL the time!

Please, can I adopt her, Maeva?!

Taffy makes me smile...

Apparently he makes Kotten Kandy smile too... in this picture.

Almond Joy and Sweet Tarts

(I forced Almond Joy to be in a picture.)

Maple

And here's my reader's chance to be a fly on the wall into my soul.  Lately I've been thinking about friendships.  I have been blessed with a couple (read FOUR) great mom friends!  And I count myself EXTREMELY blessed!  One of my dear friends (Teresa) calls us "our tribe!"
Being a mom can be lonely even if you're never alone.  And I have discovered that I need the friendships these wonderful women and I have.  Friends enrich every stage of our lives.  And studies have shown how important friendships are to our mental, social, spiritual and physical health.
Soooo... Here's my shout outs!  (I wish I had pictures of each of my friends... but I don't.)
Thank you, Amy Bettenhausen for being my first friend in Kentucky and my best friend for the past 7 years!  I love exercising, visiting, learning and growing with you!  I love sharing our love of books and our love of each other's children!  I couldn't navigate this crazy thing called life without you!
Thank you, Maeva Coolbear!  I know we only have gotten to know each other in the past few months, but already you have made my life better!  I love sharing music education with you!  I love your cute kiddos!  And I am so excited to strengthen our friendship!  PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE move closer!  (Although 1 hour isn't so far away as to include you in "our tribe!")
Thank you, Teresa Pina!  You are one of those amazing people who are easy to love and so accepting!  I want to be just like you!  I love that you share your sweet kids with me!   I love that you embrace me and my craziness!  I love that you call me "family!"  I've learned so much from you!  And I'm glad you are part of my craziness!
And thank you, Sheila Schmid!  Sheila encourages me to be a better person!  She loves my sweet daughters - as I love her great kids!  I've loved sharing special, important occasions the past few years with y'all and I love that we get to celebrate together!
I know these thank yous just scratch the surface of how blessed I am.  And I really am!  I'm glad for a support group of women who I truly love!  Heavenly Father knew what he was doing when he sent these friends to me!

I read another book: Be Happy by Hank Smith.  It was ... well... happy!  I enjoy the study of optimism and happiness!  And Hank Smith teaches about happiness with wit, humor and skill in this book.  Hank Smith gives excellent advice - some of which I've already put into practice!  I've started a gratitude journal and looking for more positive things in my life.  (Hence this entire post.)  I enjoyed the book.
So I'll leave y'all with some random photos:

This picture of Karmel is for my youngest daughter....

Yes, our dog is kinda cute!

And she is VERY cute!