Blessings to Praise - Reagh Family News

Last post on Blogger

2008-06-17T12:56:00.003-05:00

Blogger has been good to me. But now I'm on do newer, better things! :)

My genius husband has switched my blog to Wordpress - in blog world, it's the cutting edge ... at least that's what I'm told. :) While making all the required changes and updates, I wasn't able to blog over the weekend!! So hard!

Now it's ready to go - in all it's glory. It looks great and I had nothing to do with it! ;) A huge thank you to my wonderful hubby who spent hours finding a skin I liked, tweaking the layout, importing the archives and comments and generally doing it all, so all I'd have to do is a "moving" post. What a guy. :)

My new urls are www.reagh.org/wordpress OR www.thereaghfamily.com Please update your blogrolls accordingly. :) Don't want all the random clickers from your blogs to be sent to the old site! Also, all of you feed reader people will have to update too. And everyone else, make note to type in my new blog urls from now on - www.reagh.org/wordpress or www.thereaghfamily.com seems to be the easiest.

Thanks! Good-bye Blogger!

Surprise lake trip

2008-06-13T15:57:00.005-05:00

After camps yesterday, I surprised the kids with a trip to the lake. We stopped briefly at the house to gather the necessary lake items and munchies. It was a perfect lake day, hot but breezy, making it nice and cool when you're in the water or wet sunning yourself. :) We had the lake largely to ourselves. It was so relaxing and peaceful. We spread out and spent the whole afternoon there.

At one point there was a group two pavilions over blasting obscenity-filled rap across the water.(!) I don't deny a person's right to their own choice of music, but it just makes sense not to have it around young ears. Thankfully, they were nice about it when I asked them to turn it down and they left soon after. You know, I always feel weird about saying something to people in those situations. (we've encountered more than one) But keeping silent isn't an option because I won't have my kids subjected to that type of thing. Thankfully, it's always been received well, people seem to generally be respectful of a polite request from a mom. :)

Putting the hat that Jen passed on to good use!

We love this lake because it's so kid friendly. They can go out 50 yards in every direction and the water is still only to their waists. :)

Taylor swam out to the buoy just to get to a place where she couldn't touch. :)

They all had a grand time!

After 10 minutes splashing in the water, this is where Aaron spent the remaining 31/2 hours. He was conked out!

Look Mom, I'm swimming! In ankle deep water... impressive! ;)

It's over

2008-06-13T15:28:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was the last day of Chandler's soccer camp. No more running all over town everyday with soaring gas prices! Yay! :-P

Last day pictures- Relay race. Look at that runners form! lol

Getting in the thick of it to get the ball.

Receiving his end of camp reward bag from Coach Chris.

Certificate of Completion.

He did a great job. It was very hot most of the days but he worked hard and never complained.

Oh I forgot to write about this. The second day there were a few tears again when I had to drop him off and run to get him water. He was clingy and Taylor was even with him because her morning session canceled due to the rain. Anyways, later that evening, I was talking to him about that and how tomorrow I'd have to leave again to pick up Taylor but his friends and his friends moms would be there so we weren't going to have tears. His eyes welled up just thinking about it and he said he just didn't want me to leave. I asked him why and he told me that he kept thinking of the dream he'd had in Oklahoma. He said in his dream that I drove away from him and I never came back! He said he cried and called me over and over but I didn't listen. He had never told me about that. I was so sad for my boy -to think he'd kept that bottled up for so long and was afraid it might actually happen. His reaction suddenly made a lot more sense and I was just heart broken for him. It was such a horrible dream for a little boy to have!!

I gathered him up in my arms and assured him I would never, never leave him. I might be gone for a little while, but I would ALWAYS come back for him. He never needed to worry about that. I told him my kids are the most important thing to me in the world and I'd never leave them ever. I guess that was all he needed, a little extra love and reassurance. He did fine the next two days. :)

I think I take his happy-go-lucky nature for granted sometimes. He so rarely gets upset by things and when he does I don't give it the attention it needs. It usually takes something very important to upset him and I have to remember that. :/

I'm learning, ever learning how to be a better mom! :)

My daughter

2008-06-13T10:38:00.001-05:00

Watching Taylor grow and mature reminds me of the book I read as a teen, Beautiful Girlhood. I didn't appreciate the book at the time, but now looking at Taylor, I have a new respect for it. She lives what is taught in that book without having read it, without even trying. It's the spirit of God within her. She is so full of grace, kindness, innocence and love. I love this girl so much. Thank you Lord for entrusting her to my care.

It just melts my heart

2008-06-12T22:16:00.000-05:00

They're all tuckered out.

Water baby

2008-06-12T21:49:00.000-05:00

Aaron's first time in the water. I think he liked it. :)

Picture of the day

2008-06-12T21:12:00.001-05:00

My little shar pei baby.

Shutting down

2008-06-11T17:03:00.003-05:00

I'm shutting the computer down for a few days..... or a day....

ok, the night.

I can't be unconnected for that long! The point is, my house is worlds behind thanks to my brilliant self who scheduled two kids for two separate soccer camps on opposite sides of town. I'm running ALL morning long and Taylor has an evening session. It's about to kill me. All I want to do in the afternoon is read blogs, blog, check email, nurse, and sleep. And that's about all that has gotten done the past 3 days. Ha, the hilarious part is I look at that list and think, well dang, that is a lot! Fortunately, I have gotten the kitchen and living areas straightened and dinner cooked each day... mostly.... ;) So I'm not a total slacker. BUT! Laundry IS piling up in bedrooms, the vacuum HASN'T been used in at least 3 days... and there's a funky smell emanating from my laundry room. I think there might be water under the washer. Yuck.

Who's the crazy person that said summer vacation is relaxing??? I actually have 3 weeks of a similar schedule since our church's VBS is next week and then Kid's Kollege at First Baptist is the following week! I'm a crazy woman. And I'd better get a handle on this house NOW before it takes over--- blog ya later!

Taylor's camp

2008-06-11T14:27:00.000-05:00

Taking a snowcone break.

Taylor with her friends - old and new. I was the "cool mom" with the "sweet camera". Ha. They asked me if I worked for the newspaper and said I was too young to be a mom. lol Taylor was all, she's my mom! The girls were impressed. She got major cool points in their eyes and I swaggered off, thumbing my nose at all the uncool moms. ;)

Oh the girl drama. The little girl in the front has been very unkind to Taylor, saying mean things and not letting her be in "her group". Taylor has handled it very well. We talked a lot about it, she knows the right thing and has been kind to her, I don't think it would never occur to her to do anything else. (I, on the other hand, want to take the little snot out -- but that's the Mama Bear in me!! ;) ) Taylor is such a sweet girl and is never ugly to anyone. It's beyond me why some people just want to wound others

Good report today - Taylor told me that Danielle has been nicer to her and she even smiled at Taylor. It made Taylor's day to see someone turn around like that. I was so proud of her and told her so. She turned an enemy into a friend. And for in 9 year old girl land, that's no small thing. :) I'm so glad we've largely escaped the girl drama thing up to this point. :)

Soccer camp Day 1

2008-06-10T01:07:00.001-05:00

Today was the first day of soccer camps for Taylor and Chandler. It was a mad scramble today at 7:40 when I realised that this week was soccer camps! I'd completely forgotten that morning and the night before. Oh and Taylor had to be at her field at 8!!! Amazingly we would have made it on time, but I went to the middle school instead of the jr. high! Ugh. Then it was off across town to Chandler's camp that started at 9. Thank goodness they have different start and end times!!

Taylor knew what to expect since she went last year. It was hard on Chandler - I had to leave him for a half hour while I went to pick up Taylor. He was so silent and sad, big ol' tears welling up in his eyes because he didn't want me to leave. I was so sad for him. He so rarely gets upset by anything, I was really at a loss for what to do. :) I'm very glad that he ended up having good friends on his team - that help him acclimate quickly and I was able to leave without anymore tears. :)

The far away shots are so bad....

I bet Josiah really got it bad on his head! It was blazing out there in the sun!

Taylor's camp does 2 hrs in the morning and 3 at night. It's really intensive and she's loving it. She has several friends from previous teams she's played on that campers too. I didn't get pictures of Taylor's camp until the evening session. Again with the missing memory card! :P And then they turned out so grainy.

Hopefully by the end of the week, I'll have better pictures. :)

Surprise visit

2008-06-07T19:47:00.000-05:00

Our friends the Moores stopped by today to say hello. Their daughter is Piper, the little girl I watched for over a year. Then her brother and Aaron came along within 2 weeks of each other and I gave handling 4 kids and 2 newborns a shot, but it was too much, even for me. :) It was back in March that I stopped watching them so, we hadn't seen them in awhile. It was so nice to see them. We miss Piper and Maddox very much - the kids are always asking when they and Conlan are coming back. :) Tom and I also miss having Russell and Ginger around nearly everyday. It was always fun to chat and talk politics when they'd come to pick up the kids.

They even came with gifts! Ginger had made some awesome Amish Friendship bread - soooo good, Ginger! - and a starter so I can spread the love. And they brought this. It was meant to be a parting gift for me when I stopped watching the kids, but it wasn't ready in time. Isn't it just beautiful? I love that picture of the kids. When we have a portrait taken of the whole family, I'll put it in this. I really cherish this. It's one of those grab on the way out if there's a fire items. :)

Caught up

2008-06-06T21:45:00.003-05:00

Finally. I go through spurts of blogging everything as soon as it happens then something like a house guest happens and then it seems like an overwhelming task to catch up and I procrastinate. I'm good at that. :)

Today started out a bummer but ended up good. The plan was to head to the lake for lunch. Things just weren't falling into place so we opted to spend an hour or two at the pool, only to find out they don't open for the season until Monday. :/ It turned out to be a blessing in disguise though that we didn't go anywhere. About midmorning I got a migraine that would not let up and it rained! I'm glad I wasn't out at the lake or the pool when either of those things happened.

I spent the afternoon on the couch, working on laundry and watching Little House, while the kids made a water slide in the backyard. Kids are so flexible when it comes to water. :) Around 4, my migraine medicine finally kicked in, along with some much needed energy, owing mostly to the caffeine in the medicine I think. I got up, scrubbed down my kitchen, dusted the living room, vacuumed the front of the house, and made dinner... and a cake to boot. :) Gotta love caffeine! I don't care where the energy comes from as long as I have it! (Good thing I don't have access to speed) I'm totally kidding, btw. ;)

Summer Reading Club

2008-06-06T21:43:00.001-05:00

Yesterday after the homeschool skate, we stopped off at the library to peruse the books and get the two oldest signed up for the Summer Reading Club. We haven't been to the library much lately because I buy so many great books for the kids that they really don't need any supplimentary material. :) But we always do the reading club, so we checked out some to read. They were beyond excited. I must have done something right, because they both have an insatiable love of reading. :)

In 24 hours Taylor had already read 3 of her 5 books that she checked out! :) It's such a special bond that we share in our love for reading. I can't tell you how exciting it is for me to handpick the best books for her that I remember reading when I was her age. It's such a neat thing. I remember my daddy picking out one of his favorite books as a child, "Rascal" on one of our first trips to the library. I was a bit young for it, so I didn't appreciate it at the time. Now, it's such a sweet memory and the fact that I get the same chance with my own daughter makes it even sweeter. She actually read Rascal last summer and enjoyed it very much. :)

Chandler had fun picking out readers that he can read to himself. He's doing so well. It's a conundrum when it comes to his grade... I never know what to put down. In ELO, he was preschool last year since he wasn't 5 until December. But he did all the K material and more at home! So hmmmm. I think he'll just have to be both. A young 1st grader at home and a smart kindergartner in ELO and sunday school. :) When he gets around his friends, his maturity level tends to be in the younger grade. :)

5 months

2008-06-06T21:24:00.000-05:00

Late again -- his birthday is the 28th. We remembered it though! It was the same day as my sister, Vanessa's birthday! We called and sang to Vanessa. I tickled Aaron's feet and sang to him. Happy Belated Birthday... to both of you! :)

I love his sour faces. He's cute even when he's being a toot, which is only reserved for pictures and the 3rd hour of being in the car. ;)

Neither one of them is very happy about this pose.... :)

He's found his feet. Actually he's been doing this awhile, it's just the first time I got a picture of it. I love it when babies find their feet. :)

I need to get a picture of him sitting up. He's doing so well. He rolls all over the room now! He's so smart! And fast! All my babies have been fast though. :) When he's on his tummy he scrunches up on his knees and then thrusts out in a superman pose. It's so funny. He'll be crawling in no time. His favorite sound right now is raspberries with his lips. He loves peek-a-boo. He laughs and laughs at me. The kids are enjoying interacting with him - anytime they make funny faces or surprise him he just cracks up... which in turn cracks them up and that cracks him up, and the laughter just goes on and on. It's contagious too, because I always end up laughing at/with them ;)

They are home!

2008-06-06T20:34:00.005-05:00

My mom and Emma finally got clearance to go home on Wednesday! Praise the Lord. It was a huge answer to prayer that everything worked out. It was very stressful for everyone for there to be a question of whether the adoption would be approved or not by the state of Oklahoma. If they had not approved it, the adoption agency would have been forced to find another family! It's a good thing that it didn't come to that, because my family wouldn't have gone down without a fight!

It was such a nice visit, too bad it was under stressful circumstances. This is the first time we've ever had a week with Grammy all to ourselves :) (without me being on bedrest that is!) and likewise with Grammy having the grandkids without a dozen (literally!) aunts and uncles to have to share with. :) We really enjoyed having her. It was great having her here. I loved being able to actually "host" and not have to be taken care of. ;)

We said more than once that Aaron makes 2 of Emma! And they're only about 6 weeks apart!

Someone in Target asked us if they were TWINS!! We got a good laugh over that. Then we had even more fun explaining that she was his aunt!! The looks on their faces were priceless. :)

We didn't do a whole lot of running around since she had to be close for important phone calls, plus I was getting ready for the party a big chunk of them being here, then I was sick Sunday and Monday! However, on Tuesday we went to see a movie and went out to lunch, Grammy's treat. I protested, (my dad is still not working due to his work related injury) but she told me I had to let her do "Grammy" things once and awhile. :) I'm used to being independent and the indulgent grandma is not a role she gets to take on often since she has to many of her own small kiddos. :) It was fun to let her "Grammy" the kids.

These are from their last day here, Wednesday the very day they got clearance to travel out of the state. They were anxious to get home - none of my sibling there had even been able to meet her yet, except through pictures. They couldn't wait to hold her! So we decided to meet my dad half way so that they could get back that day instead of having to stay one more night here. We met him just over the state line. The kids were teary in the van about saying goodbye to grammy and Emma. So was I for that matter. I love hanging out with my mom.... we miss you, Grammy!!

In love with my new little sister. :)

Dare devil

2008-06-06T19:09:00.001-05:00

So I realise this is showing off what a horrible mom I am - sending in the one of the other kids to get my camera while my poor boy is crying to be helped down, but it was so funny, I couldn't resist. He gets himself in these predicaments due to his dare devil personality (remind you of anyone, mom??) It's actually rare that he suddenly gets scared like here.... he usually figured a way out of it. I have to admit, I might be scared too if I were his size. ;)

Then the very next day, he pulls this! I have to admit, I was very amused and sort of proud. lol. It's so what I would have done... at age 10! He's ahead of the curve in climbing ability. I love it that Taylor isn't that way. We don't have to worry about her.... it would never occur to her to try something like this. She follows C's lead.

This is Brayden saying, "I want to get up too!!"

Surprise!

2008-06-06T17:36:00.009-05:00

At last I'm posting about this! It's been the ONLY thing on my mind for the past month. Right after it happened I was all fired up about it ready to post pics, but then I was waiting for Steff to talk about it since it was her party. :) Then I sort of lost steam. Plus I've had my mom here all week, and it just didn't seem very polite to sit and blog when I could be hanging out with her... it's so rare that I get a whole week alone with her. (relatively alone that is. ;) it was GREAT... but more on that later.)

Yes, I planned the surprise party to end all surprise parties! Or so Stephanie says. :) Dana and Jess help A LOT, so major props to them! :) It's been in the works for over a month and it was all I could do not to spill the beans. I talk to Steff about EVERYTHING .... I so wanted to ask for party planning tips. :) She's the resident party planner.

There were so many layers of fun to surprising her....it was the best part! We were pros and just played it cool the whole time. Dana had even set up a decoy engagement, offering to babysit so Steff and Ted could have a date night! Ha. Ted made an excuse to swing by here (not out of the ordinary) and then SURPRISE!!

We had a Survivor theme since that is her and Ted's favorite show. Dana made the perfect cake - tiki hut and a beach theme...even a little campfire. It was super cute!!
I was able to do some nice island decorating to set the mood.

Like my lamp turned palm tree?? :)

She was TOTALLY surprised, thanks to Ted stalling and keeping the secret. Props to Ted too. :) She came in totally blown away, and her face was so worth it. The whole time I was planning and stressing, the thing that kept me going was the look I knew would be on her face when she walked through the door totally clueless and how happy she would be that we'd thrown her a party. She did not disappoint. :)

Ummm... what???

No way!!

Wow!!

It was a great night - we split into "tribes" and had challenges... there was no voting off, just a winning tribe.

Making and naming our tribal flags.

GiTaJeFaDa and the Woo Hoo tribes!

Faydra doing the water relay.

Haha!! :) We won this challenge! Go Steff!

Limbo!

Dana was our winner for the GiTaJeFaDa tribe - they went on to win!

Everyone brought tropical food for a potluck. It was all delicious.

Digging into the cake!

There were a few of us that partied into the night, and by partied I mean talked. ;) We're so exciting. But it was fun to bond more with girls I hadn't seen in awhile.

Most of the crew - there were a lot of people who couldn't come. But Steff felt special that all her important people in her life had been invited. :)

The only downer was that the scratchy throat I had Friday got progressively worse the whole night until I was laid out on the couch with a blanket by the end of the night. I wasn't even able to go to church in the morning. I felt horrible, but thankfully it passed quickly.

So that was the party! For more pictures, go to Dana's blog and to hear Steff's take on the surprise, click here. :)

Oh, you might notice some construction going on in the background. That's where my big strong hubby knocked out the wall between the play room and dining room! He's putting and arched opening and columns there, mirroring the other wall of the dining room in the the living. It's coming along splendidly! He's so wonderfully handy... and virile. (my new favorite word to describe my hubby, borrowed largly from the Pioneer Woman) Virile. Yes, my husband is that. Is it getting hot in here? It's only me? Alright, carry on.

Fun with big brother

2008-06-06T17:22:00.001-05:00

Chandler is always holding Aaron and playing with him. I think it sort of shocked my mom while she was here how much I let him handle the baby without being concerned. He does such a great job and is usually very careful. He makes sure to pick him up under the arms or under his shoulders and knees. He loves to talk baby talk to him and remind him over and over in a sing-song voice, "I'm your big brother and I'm going to take care of you!" It's so cute. Aaron is used to it by now and very patient with him... and all the kids actually. It helps that's he's so laid back. ;)

Marathon blogging

2008-06-01T15:32:00.002-05:00

My blogging is so behind! This has been an insanely busy week - so busy I haven't had a minute to blog. I feel absolutely horrible, thanks to the summer cold that came my way on Friday. I really don't feel like sitting at the computer for a marathon blogging session, but it's the only thing I have the energy for.

So here it goes..... and just to make it easier for my dear readers, I'm putting the posts in order, so you won't have to scroll down to the bottom and read up. :) Have fun.

Memorial Day

2008-06-01T15:20:00.003-05:00

I never told the rest of the Memorial Day weekend story. :) Well, on the way home from church, before we even knew we were having an unexpected party at our house, Tom had jokingly said the Forringers could stay the night and we could to breakfast on the grill and everything. You don't joke about things like that with me, because I'll take you up on it! So they packed their stuff and spent the night! Tom was all, I was joking but cool! :) I have to say he is such a good sport and the best hubby in the world.... he's not the party or sleepover type but he puts up with me and my party animal best friend on an almost weekly basis. :) It helps that he and Ted are such good friend too. Steff and I were so excited. The kids went down after the lifegroup left and we played games until after 2.... and then finally crashed. Who does this?? Us, that's who. We're the cool parents. :)

We had the idea that we'd sleep in.... with 8 kids? What a joke. It was decided that Steff and I would take the older kids to Tyler State Park to swim... with everyone and their dog. :) The guys were kind enough to stay home and watch the babies. How lucky are we to have husbands that are so accommodating?

We had a great time. It was rather crowded, but not bad. I got lots of pictures... only to return home and find that I had nary a one. The memory card wasn't in the camera!! That's so aggravating. We had great timing too - we left early because we heard thunder. We decided to drop in on the Growdens since they were close. As we were driving out of the park, it started to pour! I was so happy that we'd left before the rain. Loading up all the coolers, chairs and towels with 5 kids would not have been fun.

We hung out with the Growdens for a few hours, had dinner and then headed home.

Oh I forgot to say while we were at the lake, Tom had called and said they were a bit bored and could he and Ted tear out the wall between the dining and play rooms? We've been talking about it for a long time, so I said sure. So we returned home to a huge hole in my dining room... all the windows were gone and Tom had a very satisfied look on his face. So that's been the latest project. He's been working on it all week. It's progressed a lot, he's taken out the door too. It would be ready for paint soon. It looks great - he's done such a great job. It's so nice to have a handy hubby and even nicer when he's willing to tackle such big renovations. :)

So that was our Memorial Day weekend. It's funny how plans change when you have a party planner for a friend. :)

My new sister

2008-06-01T15:09:00.000-05:00

Meet Miss Emma Victoria. She's #14 for my parents. :) She and my mom are staying with us until they get clearance to leave the state. Adoptions are tricky. Miss Emma was born with two large holes in her heart, heart problems are common with down syndrome kids. She had open heart surgery last Tuesday to repair the holes. It went extraordinarily well and she was able to be released not even a week later. We went Wednesday to pick them up. I got to meet the birth mom briefly. It was a neat experience. It was a long day - the last hour of the drive home, BOTH babies were screaming. Not fun. But we made it home and settled in.

They are hoping to be able to go home (to eager siblings and daddy) tomorrow, but it's not a sure thing. They need lots of prayer that the adoption with be approved with ICPC and DHS in Tulsa. There's a lot of red tape this time and it's been hard on my mom.

She is a little trooper - she's eating a lot - making up for lost time. She only weighs around 8 lbs and she's 2 months old. Her cheeks are filling out quickly. She's such a cutie!

Lola's bath

2008-06-01T15:00:00.000-05:00

She looks so forlorn.

She makes her escape! :)

Last minute festivities

2008-05-26T21:46:00.008-05:00

Those are always the best. We had absolutely no special plans for the long weekend. We were going to have a nice long relaxing weekend with nothing at all to do. The only thing on my agenda was to get my room picked up. :P

Just after we'd walked in from church yesterday we got a call from Stephanie. "I've got good news!" she was absolutely bubbling, "our life group is all coming to your house for a party!!" I can hear her smiling through the telephone. Then she snorts. She always snorts when she's happy. Parties make my best friend ridiculously happy. :)

I love parties too, I just don't like getting ready for them.... especially in 3 hours! Toss out the nothing to do all weekend. :) I was stressing out for the first 15 minutes, wondering why in the world I can't say no to my snorting friend. But my freak out passed and it was all good. The house got clean and everyone was thoroughly impressed with my mad, on-the-fly hostessing skilz. ;)

I was SOOOO glad we did it. Not only did my house get clean in record time, it turned out to be the best evening! We had so much fun. I've decided there needs to be more words in the dictionary that mean fun because I use that word far too often... because it's just the only word there is like it! We had a gay time? No, that doesn't work anymore. ;) Ooh, Merry. Eh. I'll just have make one up someday. Jolly. Ripping! Ok, getting side tracked here.

Tom and the guys threw some meat on the grill like the alpha males that they are.
After some pretty oppressive Texas heat during the day, it cooled off perfectly after dinner to sit outside in the shade while the kids played in the water.

I think Josh's face says it all. Look up the definition for fun in the dictionary... this picture will be next to it. ;)

The evening reminded me of older times. Better times. Slow nights of lemonade, front porches and rocking chairs. Neighbors. Quiet conversation and evenings by the fire.

Then the guys broke out wii mario kart. And the spell was broken. :)

At least us ladies were still in keeping with the pace of the evening with a quiet board game.

The best part of this story is that it was just the beginning of our weekend of FUN...........

My new hobby

2008-05-26T21:22:00.000-05:00

Tom got a really expensive early Father's Day gift. That's how much we love our Daddy. ;)

He was testing it out the in backyard Saturday and I took a turn. I'm hooked! It was awesome. And I was a great shot too! See that itty bitty hole where a door knob should be on the shed?

I got a bullseye! :)

It's a paintball marker, in case you're wondering. Brayden was so cute with is pop gun pretending to shoot with daddy. :)

It's been a good week

2008-05-23T13:05:00.000-05:00

Despite my pessimistic take earlier in the week, the week turned out to be quite nice and things fell into place.

Wednesday we went the park to hang out with friends. It was a fun day because I borrowed the Johnson's big van (12 pass) and picked up the Forringers who's car was in the shop, and took them with us. Afterwards they came back to our house for a movie - Waterhorse, GREAT family movie - and Steff worked on my laundry that I was lamenting. She's such a good friend like that. It helps that she enjoys doing laundry. She did my dishes too! I like dusting and windows, so I'm going to her house soon to return the favor. :) Ted was working late so they stayed for dinner. Then we put the kids to bed and watched a chick flick. It was such a fun day. I love days that are fun AND the chores get done too.

During Waterhorse, we pushed the couches together to snuggle with the kids. It was so ... fun! the only adjective I know for this post, apparently. :)

Thursday was a little funky because of several things - the terrible news of SCC's daughter passing so tragically, a super weird phone call from a friend and just general ponderings doubled with grief that had me really wound up. I spent some much needed time in Job and Psalms. It wasn't as comforting as I'd hoped but it got me through the day.

Today is busy - I have a long list of things to do around the house. (one of them was get caught up on blogging! Check and check. :) I told the kids when all the chores were done, we'd go out for a surprise. They're working hard so I'd better get going so I can hold up my end of the bargain. :)

Finally - choir pics

2008-05-23T12:36:00.004-05:00

Like I mentioned, Monday night was the Taylor and Chandler's choir recital. They did such a great job! We were very proud of our singers.

Last minute instructions from Miss Dana

Lined up to go in

Filing in

Eager parents and family

The older kids' ensamble - that's Taylor, 5th one down from the left.

The whole choir - Taylor is second row 4th down, it was so hard to get good pictures of her. Chandler is in the front far right.

The little ones singing their medley and clapping along.

Showing off their choir pins that Dana gave them.

The cupcakes were yummy!

At the house

2008-05-23T12:15:00.005-05:00

These are from Sunday just before we left. It was such a short trip. I hope we get to go back before summer is over. :(

My dad's beautiful garden. He says it's the best garden he's ever had because of being off work (still!)

Hannah and Aaron

My family home

"A few" of my siblings and my kids - Micah, Brayden, Judah, Chandler, Taylor, Angel, Sophia and Mirah.

My kiddos with Grammy and Poppy

Helping Poppy in the garden - picking the potato bugs off the plants.

Best friends - aunt and niece ;)

Jonah is such a softy with Aaron

Mom and Sophia, her biggest fan.

Graduation and party pictures

2008-05-23T12:05:00.003-05:00

Hannah and Noah had a beautiful graduation. In the homeschool graduations, the president of CHEF hands the diploma to the mom and dad and they present it to their graduate, It's a really cool thing to see. (and experience 8! years ago) There was standing room only at the church - over 1300. Noah performance on the piano was stunning. I'm so proud of them!

It was a fun day with family and seeing old friends.

Tired and behind

2008-05-20T23:41:00.003-05:00

It seems to be a constant state I'm in lately. Friday we left for Oklahoma when Tom got home from work. It was a quick, jam packed weekend with my family for Hannah and Noah's graduation. I'm so proud of them! We got back on Sunday night, piled everything in the living room and collapsed in bed. Monday was oh so full, the morning/afternoon being piano and choir practice, then the choir recital that evening. It went really well. The kids did an awesome job.

The trip to OK and busy Monday has really thrown my week off. I guess that is a very pessimistic statement as today is only Tuesday, but darnit, it's almost Wednesday! My laundry is all behind now, my house is a mess -- a slightly straightened mess thanks to Dana stopping by today, but still a mess nonetheless. :) I was just too tired to do much more than straighten and do the dishes. Tomorrow is lunch club so I'll probably put it off the deep clean one more day and go hang with my homies at the park. Going to the grocery store at some point tomorrow would probably be a good thing too. We've eaten out 4 out of the past 7 days. It's pathetic.

I have lots of pictures to post of all of these events, but I don't think I will. I'll think about that tomorrow. (name that movie!) I just want to crawl in bed and sleeeeeeeep.

G'night.

Rag doll party

2008-05-15T23:54:00.000-05:00

Today some of my girlfriends came over to have a rag doll making party. There's prison ministry here that gives these out to the kids of prisoners. Here are our creations! I had no clue what I was doing so mine turned out to be a weird little girl monster... she's the cute green thing with the bow. :)

From left to right - Taylor's first doll, Stephanie's hip old lady doll (totally my favorite- she was so creative! notice that the grooving grandma even has little toes!!!) Leigh's cute softie girl, Dana's calico prairie girl, my weird monster girl, Taylor's second doll - she did a really great job sewing, she loves stuff like this and was soaking up all the info Leigh had to share with her.

Thanks ladies. The kids are going to love our little people!

Oops I did it again

2008-05-15T23:39:00.000-05:00

And I went even shorter this time! It's so sassy and fun - I love it! I'm going to grow it back out now that it's healthy again - Tom likes my long hair best - but for now this is super easy and breezy for summer. :)

DIrty kids Part 2

2008-05-13T22:56:00.000-05:00

He wasn't the only one like this... but he was the only on willing to show it off. :) The Forringer kids were here yesterday, so I had about 5 kids covered in this mud/grease/rust concoction that apparently is seeping out of the the soccer goal. They thought it would be just the greatest thing ever to play in it. Kids! :)

Chunky monkey

2008-05-13T22:40:00.000-05:00

This little guy is in the 95th percentile for his weight. Still no worries there. :) I am just eating him up. I am so in love with my baby. He is just about the most perfect baby ever. I'm always talking about it and I'm sure it drives people nuts. :) He acts like he's teething lately, chewing on his hands and toys all the time. He's getting to the curious stage too, pulling toys to himself when he's on his tummy. He lights up like a Christmas tree when he kicks the toys on his bouncy seat and the lights and music comes on. It's so cute.

Six Flags Panorama

2008-05-10T16:56:00.000-05:00

Get ready

2008-05-09T20:58:00.008-05:00

***Picture overload alert!!***

Yesterday was homeschool day at Six Flags!! I was more excited than the kids I think. The night before I couldn't fall asleep because my mind was racing so much. 5 hours sleep just wasn't sufficient for the long day we had. It started at 5 to get ready and out the door by 7:30. We dropped off Aaron and Brayden with the Johnsons (so great to go with just my oldest 2!), picked up Taylor's friend Bronwyn, and then the 21/2 drive! Enchanted (which Bronwyn hadn't seen yet!) made it go by pretty fast. No matter how many times I see that movie, I still laugh my head off and sing along with all the songs. I love it!

We got there right as the park was opening, it was great timing. The park wasn't over crowded, so the lines weren't bad and the day was lovely.

First order of business was to pose with Tweety. :)

The Mexican Hat was our first ride.

It was just a taste of the fun to come.

The Judge Roy Scream roller coaster. Both my kid's first real coaster! They both loved it!

After the roller coaster, Chandler wasn't happy with the "kiddie" rides. In fact, we never even stopped in Looney Toon land.

Just inside the gate - the big beautiful merry-go-round (that we didn't ride) in the background.

We finally caught up with the Akins and Hills 3 hours into the day! Aimee, that just doesn't look like the peace sign from far away. lol

Model T cars - so thrilling!

But they all wanted to drive. T and C switched out to both get a turn (totally against the rules!)

And caused a traffic jam!

We ran into the Fritz's at the boot ride.

C was so disappointed he couldn't ride with the girls. (Mrs. Akin didn't count, I guess!) I got so many great blackmail pictures of Aimee....

Like this one! I think she was doing the can-can here.....lol

One of the nicer characters - we had a bad run-in with the Joker. :/

Taylor and Bronwyn on the Gunslinger. They stuck to the safe rides!

That's about it on the park pictures.... I didn't take as many as I thought. I got some great shots of the whole park from the Parachute ride- I want to stitch them together to make a panoramic picture. I'll post it when I figure out how do that. :)

I wish I'd gotten a pic of Chandler on the Shockwave! It was a coaster with two loops on it... the girls didn't want any part of it, but Chandler will try anything once... and he loved it! And went a second time too. In his own words, "It was so awesome!" and his favorite ride. Taylor was so cute - beaming with pride that her brother was so brave. Taylor agreed with Bronwyn on the snake/bobsled coaster as their favorite.

I was a little bummed because without Tom around I wasn't able to ride the really good rides. I did ride the Titan at least - AWESOME - my personal fave. (C begged to go on it but he was too small) I couldn't talk Taylor and Bronwyn into it, thank goodness Laura hadn't gone yet! The Shockwave was decent too. I can't wait to go back with Tom and do the Superman Tower, Batman, Mr. Freeze, Flashback, and even though I was advised against it, I want to try the Texas Giant at least once. Taylor promises me she'll be brave next time and do the Titan with me. She still wants no part of Mr. Freeze though. :)

We were done with our last ride (Judge Roy Scream a second time) at 5:45 and got out of the park before the huge crowds left at 6! We all went to Steak and Shake for dinner. It started as 3 families but grew to double that. We totally freaked out our waitress. ;)

This was minus 7 kids that came later.

We took up a whole section of the restaurant.

We got home in record time (thanks to catching Eric's draft all the way down the interstate!) - right at 10, after stopping in Longview to grab a "thank you" java chiller for my awesome husband who picked up the little boys after work and didn't complain about having to watch them all evening (when he thought I'd be home at 6..... WHAT???) :)

I missed my little guys so much. I was happy to be home, get to kiss my babies and have some good snuggle time before they crashed 20 minutes later. :) I wanted to crash too, but Lost was tivoed!! It was well worth staying up. ;)

24. Days off to play/big kids to play with
25. A handy husband who's working on duct work as I type.
26. Friends who will trade out babysitting favors.
27. Steak and Shake chili cheese fries :)

Girl's day out

2008-05-07T10:30:00.000-05:00

Monday after choir Taylor, her friend Hannah and I went to Mud Hut for some girl time. My girl is so crafty. She loves to paint, sew, beadwork... anything art related. :) Hannah shares her passion for crafts so they're a great pair.

Mr. Personality

2008-05-07T09:56:00.000-05:00

Macaulay Culkin called, he wants his hair back.

4 months old

2008-05-07T08:08:00.000-05:00

Last MONDAY! It didn't go by unnoticed at the time, but the days just got away from me to blog about it. :)

Ittle Dittle is growing up so fast. He has perfect head control - no more bobble head baby. :( He loves to be tickled and has the most wonderful giggle you've ever heard. He sits up for about 10 seconds all alone and spins like a clock when he's having tummy time on the floor. He gets that big head going and has rolled over (tummy to back) a few times. He likes being thrown in the air, swinging outside and getting kissed in the folds of his neck! :)

He's rocking the bald head right now. Just as handsome as his daddy!

He still loves to dance, (I'll have to post the video some time, it's hilarious) still has a smile that will melt your heart and still puts up with the kids man-handling him (for the most part).

In other news, he has a not-so-little burn on his left foot! I was cooking with him on my hip a few nights ago, very sadly not being careful enough and a piece of broccoli popped out of the skillet onto his little foot. I felt so utterly awful for my baby. I called the dr and went the pharmacy... but no one had much advice to give. They all thought he'd be fine. And he is. It still doesn't make me feel any better though. :/

Broken heart

2008-05-05T23:20:00.003-05:00

I was going to blog about stuff from this weekend and catch up on stuff I missed from last week. But it all seems so vain and empty now.

I just came from the blog of a friend who ministered on Skid Row in Santa Clarita, CA. If you get a chance, go by and visit her blog. She really has a hold of truth and the heart of God in her passion for the broken. It shakes me to my core to think of what a self absorbed life I lead, thinking only of myself, of my family's happiness and well being, this air tight happy bubble where I blog about how perfect my life is. (it's not) Of what use am I?? I'm oblivious to the dying world around me. What about the broken heart of God. What about the broken people in my own town who need love. What about that? What can I do? God show me what to do.

As I read Miriam's blog I began weeping for the broken. I wept for God's broken heart. I also cried tears of gratitude to God that I am still able to weep. I want to FEEL more. I want to WEEP more. I want to know the things that break God's heart and be moved to take action.

I was talking to a friend today about all the activities and camps I have lined up for the kids this summer. What a waste! I wept again thinking how much more my kids would benefit from coming alongside and helping with something like one hope ministry - my parent's church's outreach to the inner city kids of Tulsa. But my mind reels to find something here, something local, something tangible that we can do. I've felt a tug towards Highway 80 rescue but I haven't been able to decide if that's wise or not. I need wisdom.

I had a glimpse of the broken heart of God tonight. I don't want to lose sight of that again. Lord help me to find my niche, my place to serve. Show me a way to get to the broken. I need to be there.

Chandler's last game

2008-05-03T18:21:00.000-05:00

Chandler's division doesn't keep score, so they all got participation trophies. Chandler was so excited about his first soccer trophy. :) After the game, we had pizza and cake at Mazzio's for the team party.

Luke is good friends with Chandler. Chandler already knew him from ELO so it was great that he was on his team too.

Division Champs!!

2008-05-03T12:37:00.000-05:00

Today is the last day of soccer games. Taylor's team won today (6-1) and came in FIRST for the whole season in their division!! We are so proud! They got a big trophy to take home and had fun after their win with silly string and they were all singing "We are the champions"! Their final tally was 6 wins and 2 losses. They had a GREAT season!

Celebrating First place

Taylor with her coaches, Poppy and Miss Janna.

We're number One!

Tornado!

2008-05-02T10:17:00.000-05:00

Pray for us! We're taking cover now.

Dirty kids

2008-04-30T14:31:00.000-05:00

I have some of the dirtiest kids around. Yesterday they spent the better part of 5 hours outside climbing, jumping, running and generally eating dirt. The older two asked me to come out and see their antics on the monkey bars. Of course, I went one step further and brought my camera to record those antics for the ages.

Chandler's new trick - this and crossing all 6 of the monkey bars all by himself. It was quite a feat!

Taylor's not as brave, but she probably won't ever spend the night in ER for a broken leg either. :) (twice, I might add!)

It should be noted that the boys aren't normally sans the top half of their clothing. It was "hot", the hose was engaged to counter that and well, boys will be boys. :) Look at that dirty face!

This kid is going to be scarred for life from being manhandled by his two big brothers. :)

Thankful

2008-04-29T21:07:00.001-05:00

23. A gloriously answered prayer - 5 years in the making. God is so faithful!

Tired

2008-04-28T00:05:00.002-05:00

Saturday was busy, even more so than normal. :) I was overtired after we got home midafternoon. Taylor and I had planned on going to the ballet recital of several of our friends but we had forgotten that she had to go to Nikki's for the night. (15. extra days and nights with Taylor during soccer season) Taylor was very disappointed about missing the recital. I was going to take Chandler since his friend Abi was dancing, but after our long day, I was much too tired. I even felt sick and was in bed by 7.

Today I still feel achy and Tom's back is still out. We are quite a pair. :)

16. making great memories with my family

17. laughing with Tom

18. cool weather

19. taking a day to cuddle and nurse my baby to build my supply back up

20. backwards hugs in the kitchen from my hubby

21. chatting with Taylor while I'm combing her hair after her shower

22. sleep!

Busy day part 3

2008-04-28T00:00:00.001-05:00

After the park, we ran home for Taylor to change and to pick up Tom and the baby. Then it was on to Taylor's soccer game. We told her if she scored a goal, she'd get $20!! Of course, today she was playing goalie! :P So instead she got $3 for each stopped ball. :) She could have racked up some big bucks, but unfortunately for her, the team they played wasn't great. But she did wonderful and stopped BOTH balls that came near the goal. :) They ended up calling the game at half time 8-0 because of an injured player.

My gorgeous little Super Star. :) She had stars painted on her face at the park to match her team. :)

After the game we all went to Sonic for a treat. Chandler's team had won their game also! It was a great day for everyone.

Busy day part 2

2008-04-27T23:24:00.001-05:00

The second order of business was to meet up with Stephanie and her kids at the park. The city was hosting a Rec day there. Tom's back was acting up, so he stayed home with Aaron. They took a nap together. :)

The city had fun stuff set up at the park like face painting, a bounce house, and a scavenger hunt. Oh and free hotdogs! :)

Mother's League was there with a Mother's day craft for the kids to make. Taylor made a big production about not letting me see my present until it was finished. She loves getting the chance to make her own presents and she takes it very seriously. :) It was a beautiful candle holder that she had hand painted. I put it in my kitchen window - I need to remember to get a votive to put in it. :)

Brayden wanted to do the bounce house, but Chandler had a tough time with this part, I didn't think Brayden would be able to make it alone. (and they wouldn't let adults on it! :P)

Taking a break from playing to eat our hotdogs.

Sweet Amara - Steff's minime

He sings AND dances! :P In person it was much more impressive and quite hilarious. :)

Finishing up the scavenger hunt - she had as much fun as Steff and I do on ours! :)

All done and heading home. Brayden was showing signs of needing a nap!

Busy day part 1 - Superior pianist!

2008-04-27T22:56:00.002-05:00

Saturday, our day started early with Chandler's soccer game at 9 and Taylor's piano competition at 9:15! After a super yummy breakfast (14. toasted banana bread!), Tom and I divvied up the kids, then we were out the door.

Taylor was my beautiful princess as always. She really impressed the judges with her poise and they even made a comment about her beautiful hair! :) They were very impressed with her piano performance too, because she received superior marks in everything! She played her piece flawlessly, they even marked the overall score Superior+! She is getting to be quite the little pianist. We are so proud of her!

Normally I wouldn't be allowed in the competition room, but she played right before the judges left for their break, so we were able to get some pictures at the piano!

Taylor with her new piano teacher, Miss Charity.

To celebrate her accomplishments, we went out to Starbucks for girl (and Aaron) time. :)

Thankful

2008-04-25T20:27:00.003-05:00

One of my lurkers made the comment that I'm so positive. It was such a nice thing to say. I've always thought of myself as a positive person, but day to day it can be hard. Looking back at my last few posts, I've been anything but!

Taking a cue from my fellow bloggers and friends, I've decided to start my 1,000 gifts list. Here's an excellent quote from Jenna about it:

I am determined to see beauty in the everyday, in the mundane, in the ordinary. I am determined to notice. I want to see all of the blessings that God has graced me with- showered me with. I want to praise Him for all of His goodness and not gripe about dirty laundry and spilled cheerios. - Jenna

Amen, sister!

I may still have a rant or two about overflowing toilets or peanut butter smeared cabinets, but hopefully next time, I'll see the humor in it more than the inconvenience and hug my kiddos tight. Because one day I'll wish for the days I had smudges on my front door, I'll wish that they were still so little!

The beautiful things I'm thankful for today:
1. a baby who is happy and giggly 97% of the time

2. the smell of the happy baby after his bath

3. playing Disney scene it together after bathtime

4. sick days where my sweetie is a little sick (more tired than anything) but takes a sick day just to be able to hang out with us all day

5. the super excitement of a 3 year old middle child to have "all alone even without Aaron time" with mommy

6. when I tell Brayden we're running back to the house for the camera, he responds with a knowing, "Ohhhh yeah." (funniest quote of the day!)

7. my hubby's old jeans that have holes in the rear so I have a better view. ;)

8. educational computer games

9. the sweetest daughter who tells me I'm the best mommy in the whole world and gives me lots of hugs and kisses to go with it

10. leftover pizza after a hang out with daddy (week)day

11. a clean house and only one more load of laundry to do!

12. kids who do an amazing job on the 10 minute pick up

13. blogging - my form of therapy :)

Thank you, Lord.

Pictures

2008-04-25T17:20:00.001-05:00

Not many pictures to show for the week. Either I forget my camera or take it and realize after several pictures, I've forgotten the memory card! I always hate that.

These are from lunch on Wednesday.

Whatever

2008-04-24T22:54:00.003-05:00

Funny story: I thought I heard Taylor say that (whatever) to me awhile back. I about jerked her baldheaded but a friend quickly jumped to her defense. I can't remember now what she had said, but it wasn't that. I was so glad - it's not at all like her. She got the whole lecture anyways, just in case it ever crossed her mind in the future. You don't sass yo' momma! :)

So after the rough start to my day (I didn't get to go back to bed, despite my well laid plans) things came together pretty well. The house was clean top to bottom by 6 (with a little extra help from Stephanie who came early - THANKS!!) Oh, that made me soooo happy. What a leg up I have on tomorrow!

Then everyone else got here and the fun began! (no pics! what's up with that??) I just love parties. I love having a houseful of friends and I love entertaining. Have I said that before??

We ordered in pizza, had lots of wonderful homemade desserts, and talked the night away. We almost forgot about Lost! Just almost. We're not that chatty. :) Everyone had to leave to get home before it started, :( except the Akins. It was a LOST party, people. :) I get the bedtime thing though. The episode was a good one. I missed parts of it talking and trying to get last minute Six Flags tickets online while it was on. Good thing it's tivoed. :)

So I'm going to bed with a happy about my clean house and high from my party fix. Lifegroup's at my house Sunday! ;)

Toilet drama

2008-04-24T08:31:00.003-05:00

You know what's worse than being told by your 9 year old that the toilet overflowed and your brand new bathroom towels fell victim to the nasty poop water? I'll tell you what. Being told 5 minutes later by your 3 year old that the toilet is overflowing AGAIN. The said 3 year old apparently doesn't realise the gravity of the situation or value my sanity AT ALL because he was grinning from ear to ear when he said it.

I'm having a houseful of company in about 8 hours. And my house reeks of raw sewage. And there was no way to wipe my feet after sludging through 15 soaking towels and 2 inches of standing poop water.

I'm going back to bed.

Drat

2008-04-23T23:39:00.003-05:00

Why oh why does it always rain after I've spent an hour scrubbing down my van and making it sparkle???? At least the cleaning out and vacuuming doesn't get undone!! Wait, I have 4 kids. Never mind.

DOUBLE drat.

Procrastination is my middle name

2008-04-23T23:13:00.002-05:00

So I'm procrastinating AGAIN. It's late and I should either be asleep or mopping floors, but I don't feel like doing either at the moment. :) I'm doing some cleaning for the party we're having tomorrow - Lost is back! We're having a Lost/pizza/game/movie/wii night. That's counting the kids activities. :) There should be about 7 families here, not even counting us, so it'll be a full house and so much FUN!

Today we brown bagged it with the lunch club at the church park. We were eaten alive by some mysterious insect with oddly large wings and eyes in comparison to it's body. lol It was very muggy, but bearable in the shade. I hate thinking of this weather as hot, because I know it will only get much worse! Darn Texas weather. Why couldn't my internet sweetie be from somewhere cooler, like say, Pennsylvania or Alaska?? I moved SOUTH. I swore I'd never move south from Oklahoma. :) (but I'm so glad I did - it was worth it)

After lunch we made a stop at the store. I remember now why I only go in the evenings WITHOUT kids. The kids were great, but just the logistics and constant talking makes me stressed. I just want quiet when I'm shopping. :) Another gripe - how I can go in for 5 things, end up with 30 and spend $100, is beyond me!!!

As noted below, we recovered the dining room chairs tonight! Ok, so Tom did it. :) They were in sore need of attention. Upholstery, 3 year olds (or 5 yo's for that matter) and spaghetti just don't mix! It was such a great accomplishment. Big check off the to do list before the party. :)

Well, I'm going to get some caffeine so that I can mop the floors and scrub down the stovetop and cabinets. If I can get the kitchen good and clean, I'll feel like I can go to bed with a clear conscience. :)

What a difference!

2008-04-23T19:37:00.002-05:00

Who knew $8.00 could make such a dramatic difference!? :)

Before: (please ignore the dead calico cat pelt that adorns our floor. I'd love to just rip it out, but who wants to have a 4 month old on acid etched concrete?! (what we're planning on doing) Sure it'd be pretty, but we're waiting until it's a little more practical for our young family.)

After: So pretty. (ignoring the dead calico cat pelt, of course)

I picked out the fabric, but my handy hubby brought my idea to fruition. What a guy! I was thanking my stars that he'd gone ahead and bought the air compressor that ~~I'd scoffed at~~ I told him to buy with a smile!)

Our new friend Rufus

2008-04-22T15:56:00.000-05:00

If you ever hear the sound of ridiculous laughter/screaming coming from the backyard, do not be alarmed. Your kids have found a lizard and are giddy/frightened about it all at the same time. :)

My dear readers

2008-04-21T00:09:00.005-05:00

When I write on my blog, there is a hierarchy of people who read my blog somewhere in the back of my mind. First is my family, who I created this blog for 2 years ago, but who still needs reminders to stop by. :) Then my wonderful mother in law who is far away from grandkids and checks this blog daily. Then all my blogging friends, some I know from church, others have moved away, some I know via the homeschool group. In any case, we all know each other in person but stay up on each other day to day by checking in on each other's blogs every day. :)

Then last comes my lurkers. Yes! I have lurkers! Up until I got that little counter thingymajig, I very truly thought only a sparse few came to read my little corner of the blogosphere. That is not so. I have friends/readers/lurkers/creepy stalkers all over the country!

There are hits from here in Longview, of course! The list is longer than my arm. I assume I know all those, but who knows! :)

Then there's Shreveport where my dear friends Jonathan and Kelly moved and I know Kelly reads my blog. But then some of those hits could be from someone at the church in Shreveport who is a sister church to my parent's church in Tulsa. So there's that.

Then Tyler - it could be my sister in law, Stephanie, though I didn't know she read my blog. It could really be anyone. :)

Gladewater is probably my sil or bil or fil... someone around there related to me is checking up on us. :)

Tulsa - could be my parents, my grandparents, could be an old crush from Faith or BC... :)

Then we get to the places where I don't know anyone from! It makes me wonder how they found me and what keeps them coming around? It can't be my charming personality or stunning good looks. :P

Jerome, Idaho. Welcome friend.

Saint Paris, Ohio. How'd you find me?

Harrisburg, VA Could be my old friend Stacy from CHEF.... is that you??

Beaverton, OR. This one cracks me up because I'm on their bloglines. I'm just posting pictures
and a scant narration of my boring (but beautiful) life and you add me to your bloglines? I'm really that interesting? Yay for me! :P

Spring Lake NC that also comes up on feedjit as Fayetteville, NC. I do believe that this is Pam, but why it sees her as from two towns she's not. I do not know.

Monument, CO. Donita! I do know you. It's funny to me that you check my blog more often than my own mom. :) Tell Amee I say Hello!

Chapel Hill, NC. Hey there, you lurker you. You're on again, off again, but you always come back to see the newest pictures of Chandler.

Soldotna, AK. I know that it's a Broussard, but just not which one. :)

Dallas, TX. I don't know anyone in Dallas. Whoooo are you?

East Rockaway, NY. Long Island. Cool. I can't wait to visit the city sometime.

Kansas City, MO. Hey whatup?

Coeur D Alene, ID. Cool town name, dude.

Raleigh, NC. Lots of returning readers from NC. I think I've got a fan club in North Carolina!

Grand Rapids, MI. Welcome to my blog again!

Wausau, WI. I've seen you a few times. Hope you've enjoyed looking around.

Redwood City, CA. Wouldn't be surprised if it is who I think it is. Regret is an evil mistress.

And these are just the visits who have been here twice or more. It's not counting the random search hits. I always get the weirdest ones.... pregnancy related clumsiness.... guess who's blog pops up??? Yup.

So speak up everyone! All you lurkers (and friends) out there hit me up in the comments about how you found me, why you read my blog, and if I might actually know you! If you have a blog, tell me! I'd love to get to know my "readers". It's a very loose term. lol

This whole post has been very self involved. I wondered about even keeping it up. I took it down then changed my mind. I obsess about weird stuff. Like the strangers that read my blog. It's so silly that it makes me ridiculously happy that more than 3 people that read my blog. It also makes me want to puke. Because I'm enigmatic that way.

My first garage sale!

2008-04-19T23:09:00.001-05:00

This has been a looooong weekend already. Aimee, her friend Stacey and I had a garage sale at Aimee's house Friday and today. It went really well. Our mornings started at 6 and went until laaate. Like I said, Thursday I was up till 1 making pretzels for the kids to sell. Friday the Akins and us spent just about every waking moment together. Talk about bonding. lol Tom even came over after work to hang out with Eric and we watched Nancy Drew with the kids after dinner. Made it to bed "early", at 11, then back up at 5:30 am to start all over! Who knew sitting around all day gabbing with friends and selling stuff could be so exhausting!!?

The kids sold the pretzels and the cookies and lemonade the Akins make to earn money for summer camps. They did SO great! Every one is a sucker for kids! Especially when they're serenading you. Thank you Chandler. :P Everything sold out and they were rolling in "dough". ;)

Dirty boy. He told me it was dog poop! He was joking. :)

Our little entrepreneurs .

Goofing off between customers

This little girl was sooooo precious. She was insistent on touching Aaron's face even though her mom tried stop her. He ate up the attention as you can see. :) As if he's hurting for it!

This guy didn't get a nap, so I wasn't surprised to see him resting on the couch around 4. :) Playing is hard work!

They made over $60 just on Friday! My face matched Andrew's. :)

Divvying up the cash!

Saturday morning - the littles selling again. Andrew was gone with Eric on a canoe trip and Taylor had her soccer game (They won!!) I was not about to make 40 more pretzels, but I did make some muffins and cookies. As you can tell, Abi is Chandler's new crush. :P He told me the other day that he's just falling in love with Abi so he wants to see her all the time. What?? I really really don't encourage this!

Pretzels and laundry

2008-04-19T20:26:00.000-05:00

On Thursday, Stephanie came over and swapped pretzels for laundry. I thought it was a good trade. :)

Jessica and her girls got to visit too! It was the three amigos, together again! So fun.

Here are the kids helping me roll out the dough. No pics of Steff working on the laundry... though she got it whittled down a great deal! Thanks friend! :)

Jess had to leave early to get back to Van. :( S and I watched Hairspray. Um, yeah. It was a beating. And I say that as someone who loves musicals and dancing. :P

Ted came after work and the Forringers stayed for dinner and Guitar hero. (all the while steff continued to do laundry!)

I had made a triple batch of pretzel dough so the kids could sell them at the garage sale we had the next day. I was up until 1 rolling and baking those suckers. :) I should have made more cinnamon/sugar ones - they were a hit!

Puke

2008-04-17T11:05:00.000-05:00

Yesterday morning Aaron decided to puke all over the arm of the couch. Lovely. Taylor's thinking - At least it wasn't all over me! :)

After all the puke was out and his clothes stripped, he was ready to play. He likes to be up on my knees when I'm laying on my back. I've done that with all my kids, and when they're old enough, I raise them on my feet straight up in the air.... they love it. :)

Ugh, mom, don't you remember what I just did? I should not be in this position!

Oh no. Too late. :)

Playtime with Aaron

2008-04-14T10:32:00.000-05:00

Aaron is developing such a cute little personality! He loves to stick his tongue out and make me laugh. He grins and does it again. He does it right after nursing too. He eats for 2 minutes and then pulls off and sticks his tongue out and wants to play. It's so cute. I'm just eating up this fun stage!

Today

2008-04-14T00:29:00.002-05:00

I've already posted a bunch to catch up. Mondays are always busy so I had to get it done. :) Again, I'm up way too late. This is becoming a pattern! ugh.

Today was such a wonderful day filled with simple pleasures, I couldn't pass up posting about the highlights... really quick in bullet point format!

-Bud's sermon on the Power of the the name of the Lord in prayer; praying with Tom over our marriage and family, praying with Kelly and hopefully offering some comfort, seeing Kelly and Jonathan and Conlan!

-getting a nice nap after the long day we had yesterday!

-watching my daughter use her talents to serve others and bring glory to God

-riding bikes to the park with Chandler and Taylor; Chandler told Tom later that "Mommy can do this for a long time!" and stood demonstrating, holding arms straight out - totally leaving out the part that I was on a bike!

-during our bike ride, stopping to teach my kiddos how to sip the "honey" out of honeysuckle!! It thrilled me to get to watch their faces light up as they experienced such a simple pleasure for the first time. Ah, such great memories were made today!

-watching "Royal Wedding" with the kids as I made dinner, hearing Tom groan about it and watch Chandler try to imitate Fred Astaire!

-being so sad to put the kids to bed, we'd had such a nice day together.

Quotes of the day: On our bike ride, Chandler called out, "Stop, I need to do something!" I turn around to see him picking his nose. "That's what was so important?" I asked. He wrinkled his nose at me, "Yeah, my nose was asleep and it hurt!" Silly boy.

It tickled me to hear Taylor make a comment about the new American girl movie that's coming out this summer. (she's super excited!) Chandler said that Royal Wedding was the new Kit movie. (weird notion, but ok) She responded, "It's not either. If that were the Kit movie, I'd be totally freaking out right now!" It was such a girly, teenish thing to say. It was cute.

Shining her light

2008-04-14T00:24:00.001-05:00

The other night during devotions, Tom talked about how we have to do kind things to shine our light to other people. Taylor looked up and said, "I can't do much, but I think God wants me to do something nice for the the Swinney's. (our elderly neighbors) I'll bake them some muffins!" So today, she did just that all by herself. And they were perfect!

Taylor has such a gentle heart and sweet spirit. It's so awesome to watch her grow in the Lord and see her respond so readily to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. I have so much to learn from my wonderful daughter.

Chandler had to get in on the delivery.

Taylor's soccer tounament

2008-04-13T23:57:00.002-05:00

Taylor's team did a wonderful job at the tournament yesterday. They tied the first game, 2-2, the second game was a huge win, 8-1, and the last one was another win 5-0! It was a very windy day and we had to make adjustments to our wardrobe since I'd planned for 70 degree weather! It might have been 70, but the wind made it seem much much colder. Our lips and cheeks are sorely chapped today.

We set up camp under the trees and had hot dogs with the team families between games. We also hung out with Taylor's friend Haleigh and her mom Jody. H. plays for another team and we got to watch her play a bit. The highlight of the day was when the ice cream man made an appearance! Ice cream is always a welcome treat even when it's cold!

Taylor got a nice metal- her team was first in their division! Another great family day for the books.

CHEC potluck

2008-04-13T23:28:00.001-05:00

Somehow I totally forgot to blog about the CHEC picnic last Saturday evening! I uploaded the pics and then forgot about them. ADD woman, that's me. :)

The potluck was at this lovely farm of a family in our group. They have some gorgeous acreage near Diana. Their home is up on the top of a hill, offering some breathtaking views of the Piney Woods. Such a beautiful spot for the picnic. It was great to get to introduce Tom to all my CHEC friends I'm always talking about and also meet their husbands.

Midway through the evening, I abandoned Laura with the baby and took off hiking with Brayden. I was so in love with their land. I was just aching to explore the woods and hills and rolling meadows that made me want to sing "The hills are alive with the sound of music!!" It was great. Brayden did a great job keeping up - their house was at the top of one steep hill, so we hiked down the back of that, across the field and up another big hill with wonderful views. I wasn't able to capture in the pictures just how high up we were. Then we circled back around the hill the house was on to the horses. Brayden wasn't too sure of them, and I really can't blame him. He's never been around horses and they're like 10x's his size! He touched one's nose and that was the end of that. :) By the time we got back people were already leaving. I wish I'd gotten to visit more, but it was fun hanging out with Brayden too. :)

We have plans to go back on Tuesday. This was Taylor's friend, Ilsa's house and Kim (Ilsa's mom) invited us out so Taylor could ride horses with Ilsa! I hope Kim doesn't mind watching Aaron, 'cause I want to ride too! ;)

Chandler's faux hawk

2008-04-13T15:43:00.000-05:00

Chandler loves doing his hair this way. He's always going into the bathroom to slick his hair up and make faces at himself. :)
Yesterday I did it that way and let him wear it like that to the tournament. He was so excited. :)

It didn't last very long, we didn't have any "product" except hairspray to make it stay well. :) It was fun while it lasted.

Still up indeed

2008-04-12T01:04:00.000-05:00

I just read Kelly's post "Still up" and that was posted an hour ago! lol

I need to be in bed with the long day we'll have tomorrow. I need to be in bed with ANY day I'll have tomorrow! I'm just waiting until the washer is done so I can get the load in the dryer. Just like Taylor to bring her dirty uniform right before bed and say that it needs to be washed for her game. :) And just like me to procrastinate about starting a load until 12:45am!

I spent a lovely evening with my friend Leigh. Her hubby is laid up with a bad back injury so I suggested that she and Tom swap houses. I knew she must be in the mood for female company and vice versa for Jon. :) It worked out great. Tom took some "manly movies" over to watch with Jon and we stayed here with chocolate pie and a chick flick. Only we didn't watch it because we were talking so much. :) It was really nice to spend some one on one time with Leigh, we've always been in group settings and it was great to get to know her better.

She left about 11ish before Tom was home and then I started the movie and savored the blissful state of being ALONE. It doesn't happen often, baby. Just me, my movie and chocolate pie. It was delightful.

Then Tom came home and ruined it all. lol j/k! He stayed awake though exactly 3 minutes of it and then he was snoring for the remainder.

So anyways, here I am after the movie (The Martian Child, not bad, not great) washing clothes. I should have done it during the movie, but that would have required me to fold the load in the dryer. I'm not a multitasker when it comes to watching tv....ok, yes I am, I can totally eat and watch, but let's put it this way, I'm not a multitasker when it comes to tv and laundry! That's why they call it vegging. You don't do anything! Ugh, I hate doing laundry. :P

Busy day tomorrow - Taylor has her soccer tournament! Three games all in one day. Her team is doing a cookout/hang out between games again. It should be a fun day. The weather is supposed to be really nice too. Ooh, gotta remember the sunscreen.

Ok! Enough incoherent rambling and procrastination.

Comfort carbs

2008-04-11T23:15:00.000-05:00

I need to be in bed with my hubby, but I'm waiting for the kitchen floor to dry so I can put everything back.

We had a wonderful day today - nothing out of the ordinary happened, but it was a nice stay-at-home-all-day school day. :) We also did quite a bit of housework - got a jump on it for tomorrow. I always like to get things really nice and clean before the weekend comes.

I worked one on one with Chandler and Taylor today on their choir songs. Chandler needed help staying on pitch and Taylor is a very timid singer. She has a lovely voice, but needed encouragement to sing out. She was afraid of making mistakes and people hearing her. :) We worked on the words and melody so she was firm in her memory and could make her voice carry without feeling self-conscious. She made a 100% improvement just over the 30 minutes or so I was able to work with her. I was so impressed and proud of her. Chandler needs no help singing out! He just needs to make sure he's in the right key and knows the correct tempo. :)

Highlights of my day: making slushies with the kids (or at least trying to), accomplishing a big chunck of my "to do" chore list, singing with my kids, talking with them about the importance and hospitality benefits of keeping our house "company ready" instead of just picked up (and the in-depth discussion and questions that followed), grocery shopping just Taylor and me after soccer practice, evening family devotions and prayer.

Oh and making cinnamon bread and rolls for my dear sweet husband. He's been making such great strides over the past few weeks in his role as the leader of our family and I wanted to do something special to honor him and surprise him.

Only, my bread was a flop - literally. After baking, it was sooooo pretty and was just about perfect when I tried to check the sides to make sure they were done. Somehow I flipped it into the floor (that I was just about to mop!) and being piping hot, it smashed all in a mushy lump. This was all that was left of my beautiful loaf of sweet goodness. Pride goeth before the fall!! lol

I am a strict follower of the 5 second rule so I munched on it as we watched American Idol together (it tasted GREAT btw, despite appearances), but Tom waited for these to come out of the oven... ;) They don't look very big and puffy, but these are great big "muffin" tins shaped like mini bundt pans. There's breakfast for tomorrow! Woo hoo!

I've been on a baking kick lately and I need to stop it. Comfort carbs are not good for my post pg weight loss. lol

What kind of coffee drink are you?

2008-04-10T10:06:00.002-05:00

The quiz sweeping the Longview (and Shreveport) blogosphere today. :)

It's pretty accurate - chai lattes are usually my favorite. It depends on if I need LOTS of caffeine (triple shot mocha) or just a little, the chai latte. :)

ELO Picnic

2008-04-09T16:10:00.006-05:00

Just a few pictures of the picnic. It was like pulling teeth to get myself motivated and out the door today. I just didn't feel like going anywhere. Of course, once I got there, I was so glad we'd come. It was beautiful day for it.

The kids played relay/racing games for the first hour, then we had our potluck lunch and hung out talking.

Ok, so there's more than just a few... but who's counting?? :)

Taylor got it! You can't see it, but there's two lines on either end and when Laura called out your number you raced the person from the other team with the same number to try to get the ball in the middle. It looked like a really fun game.

So cute - Abi and Suzannah doing the ball relay

They were so excited to do this game together.

Taylor's team won the sack relay!

Taylor's friend, Ilsa, brought her pet lizard. See him?

They all wanted to sit right together... practically in each others laps. :) Chandler, Abi, Suzannah, Isaac (aka Steve) and Sam.

Aimee, Andrew and Taylor waiting in line for the food.

After this, my batteries went dead, dash it all. I think I got enough though. :)

What is this??

2008-04-09T15:45:00.000-05:00

See that splotchy pale area on his side and belly?

I'd never noticed it before last Monday when he was at the dr. I saw it right before she made a comment about it just being a little depigmentation of the skin. I was so surprised, I wasn't thinking and didn't ask what caused it, if he had been born with it and we'd never noticed it, if it would spread or go away.... nothing. I didn't start obsessing about it until we got home. lol

Now I think I see another circular place more the left side of his belly where it's starting to pale. It worries me. It feels just like his other skin, it's not dry or raised or bumpy. The dr. didn't seem concerned at all, so I'm going to take a chill pill and think of it as a pale birthmark until I find out otherwise. ;)

Dr report

2008-04-08T23:17:00.002-05:00

Yesterday was a whirlwind day with piano before lunch, choir midday, and a dr appt for Aaron late in the afternoon. Several errands were crammed in there too. After going to the store and the pharmacy for prescriptions, we didn't get home until almost 6!!

We did oral math drills in the car all day between stops and called it school for the day. :) Chandler is getting to be a math whiz all on his own. He was calling out problems and solving them just because he knew it from memory. Taylor was doing great as well. Getting the times tables down wasn't easy for me - but she seems to have the knack for it.

Anywho, I was concerned about Aaron not getting well since we were in last Monday so I took him back. He has a bad ear infection! It likely the cause of his congestion and stuffy nose not clearing up. I feel so bad for him. He doesn't want to nurse because he's hurting and he just whimpers and looks at me with his sad little eyes. :( Hopefully the antibiotic will get him back to his cheery baby self.

I had our dr check Brayden's ears too since he's had a horrible stuffy nose for weeks now, and sure enough, he had a bad ear infection too! It really surprised me. It's the first time any of the boys have had ear problems. Chandler hasn't ever had one. I guess it was bound to happen though. :)

Tomorrow is the end of the year picnic at the park for ELO. We're praying we don't get rained out! It'll be very sad if we have to cancel it.

I'm headed to bed now - yawn - Night!

Family game night

2008-04-08T22:47:00.001-05:00

Tonight we played Disney Scene It together- boys against girls. :) Taylor and I were beating them pretty handily for awhile but then they caught up and past us. We managed to pull out the win, but it was close. It's a great game for the family. I like it because all of the kids can really get into it and participate.

As they were getting ready for bed, Brayden said to me in his most pitiful voice, "Mommy, we didn't win." "You did really good though," I said, "It's ok, hon." He shook his head "It's not ok," he said sorrowfully. He's was very upset by it all. My little competitor. :)

My little girl is growing into such a beautiful young lady!

It was nice to have the time with just the older kids. Aaron had gone to bed early, so they had us all to themselves. :)

Curses

2008-04-07T14:44:00.002-05:00

Curses on you, Jen, for telling me about the oh-so-addictive site - The Pioneer Woman! I've been late for two appts today because I lost track of time. (I even ran the kids to piano today in my "never leave the house, frumpy lounge clothes!!")

She is totally warming my heart with the stories of her 40yo, developmentally challenged brother, Mike. Or as she (very lovingly) refers to him "My Retarded Brother, Mike". :) I love it! And her step by step, meticulously photographed, scrumpious recipes make me jealous!

You've been warned! Visiting this site will result in a huge derailment of your time management efforts for the day!

Fun night/morning

2008-04-05T21:03:00.004-05:00

We got in from having dinner with the Leas around 1:30 last night! Haven't done that in a while. So fun. I'm glad God didn't intervene on this one! ;)

Chandler was asleep when we left and got home - this morning he woke up and said "I was trying so hard to stay awake, I was having so much fun. I want us to adopt the Leas so we can spend the night next time." lol

Thanks Jen, for a wonderful night and yummy dinner!

Cutie patootie

2008-04-05T21:00:00.000-05:00

Rainy day

2008-04-04T16:19:00.000-05:00

The week has brought the verse from Jeremiah sharply into focus. "I know the plans I have for you" I plan out my day and post it on my blog no less, only to have the Lord put on the brakes and say, Wait a minute, I'm in charge, not you. :)

Today, like Monday was nothing like I planned. I didn't get to visit Jessica because of a still coughing baby and the rainy weather I was loathe to get him out in. Deb didn't need help packing either. I really didn't mind my plans being changed, it was actually nice to have the rainy day at home. God knows better than me! :) So we spent the day doing school -- math drills and more math drills! -- and babying our sick little guy. So far dinner is still on with the Leas, but I'm expecting God to overrule that any minute. :)

My accomplishments of the day are: building with lincoln logs with my kids, mopping the floors, and making these.....

Notice the cinnamon and sugar ones in the background. :) They are insanely delicious. I didn't have high expectations of the pretzel recipe I tried, but it really surprised me. At least now I have something good to take to Jen's tonight! As long as I don't eat them all before we get there. ;)

Sigh

2008-04-03T21:57:00.001-05:00

Today started out yucky. (Ever notice as a mom how your vocabulary starts shrinking to the size of your 5 year old's?? What's up with that? lol) I was hideously nauseous AGAIN and to put it discreetly, was making very frequent trips to the bathroom. :P I spent the morning curled up on the couch, directing the kids on school and chores.

By noon it seemed to have passed and I felt much better (PTL!) I was able to take the kids to skating - though I would have much rather not gone, I'd sort of promised them. :) They were very happy to get to go.

I saw that the park by the skating rink was open again - it had been closed for construction for several months. So after skating we spent a few minutes there and the kids ran off even more energy. It was a beautiful day for it. The Fortier's had the same idea to come after skating and I chatted with Cheryl for awhile, which was nice since I hadn't gotten to visit with her very much at the rink.

After dinner Tom suggested we get hopped up on caffeine and clean a bit. lol Sounded like a plan to me. :) I was so happy to have his offer of help. I've been struggling to catch up since we finally got well and it just hasn't happened this week! I have the best hubby. He's so willing to help out where he's needed. We knocked out our room and bathroom, so it was time for a blogging break. :)

Tomorrow will be more running around, in the morning a much needed visit with Jessica (one of my bestest friends who moved away) and in the afternoon helping Deb pack for their move to Ukraine! They are shipping everything over on Monday!! How wild is that? After that, we're having dinner with some friends with whom we've been trying to get together for ages! It's finally happening even though we're both just as busy as ever. I'm really looking forward to it.

Enough hum drum. I find that lately I'm posting more about the details of each day, instead of my normal pattern of only posting when I have pictures. I find it therapeutic but tedious and I never know if people get tired of hearing the monotonous details. Actually, I'm sure they do. :) Connie does a better job capturing the essence of her day by relaying about the feelings and attitudes of her kids and herself and sometimes conversations, unlike me, just siting the events of the day. I'm going to try to get better at that. :)

Well, I'm off to tackle another room.

Azaleas in bloom

2008-04-03T10:46:00.000-05:00

Yesterday was the last day of ELO. :( I will miss it, but the lunch club is still meeting over the summer so I'll still get my weekly dose of adult conversation. Yippee!

When we got home, we took some pictures with the azaleas that are in full bloom. Can you believe how big Aaron looks when Taylor holds him? :)

Monday stuff

2008-04-01T22:55:00.004-05:00

So very little of what I had down for yesterday actually came to fruition. I have very good excuses though. :) The baby had a rough weekend (still sick) and after an especially rough night Sunday after I'd made my "to do" list, I had to make an appt for him to make sure his stuffy nose and cough wasn't anything serious.

On top of that, Tom had called in sick because he had come down with the what we had last week! He slept all day and felt much better that evening. It actually worked out nicely since I was able to leave the kids home with him when I went to the dr first thing. He was konked out on the couch and I left Taylor to do her school while the boys played in their room. The dr said it his lungs were clear (Praise the Lord) and it was just a cold. She put him on something to help him sleep better. Last night he slept through the night like normal, it was great!

It was pushing it getting back home and to piano on time, but thankfully the kids had obeyed and were ready with their books when I pulled up. After that it was on to choir. I helped out and taught the younger ones a couple of new songs. It was fun to see everything in action.

Oh and then I went to Walgreens to get Aaron's prescription only to discover I'd left my purse at the church playground! Ugh. Back to the church and then back to Walgreens -- we finally got home about 4. I was done for at that point - I didn't even attempt my chore list. Instead I grabbed a few minutes on the couch with Tom. :)

Dinner was pot pies - hooray for stocking up on easy "in a pinch/don't feel like cooking" food. :) I made a half hearted grocery run after dinner and managed to check off my Lifeway errand too.

Today was more normal, Tom was well enough to go back to work and we did school together. It was our intention to get the chores done from yesterday, but it was just too nice out and the baby was much too cute. ;) Maybe tomorrow. :)

Special event

2008-04-01T22:46:00.000-05:00

Tonight after Chandler's soccer practice, I took Taylor and Chandler to my good friend Leigh's art show for her students. It was mostly for Taylor since she loves art so much and will be taking lessons from Leigh very soon. Her friend Bronwyn had some of her artwork displayed at the show - she's taken lessons for several months now and is very talented.

We ran into the Johnson's - this is Taylor's friend Hannah.

Chandler was just along for the ride. He found his friends and the skittles and was totally groovy with that. :)

Ittle dittle

2008-04-01T22:21:00.001-05:00

That's Tom's nickname for Aaron and now I call him that all the time. It's babyese for "little dude" lol It works so well when you're already doing the baby talk thing. :)

He's getting really good at the thumb thing. Even down to the pointer over the nose. That always reminds me of Jason Holland, an old childhood friend.

As much as he looks like Brayden sometimes, B. just never looked like this! It's much more Chandler to me. And like Taylor too now that I think about it.

I love the dimples at his elbows.

To do list for Monday

2008-03-31T00:13:00.004-05:00

Just a quick sticky note to myself for accountability. :)

School 8-11

Piano at 11:30, quick lunch on the playground at 12:45 and Choir at 1:00

Errands to run while I'm out - gift at Lifeway, pay water bill

Chores:
-Mop kitchen and playroom
-Clean bathrooms
-Finish unpacking my stuff (always last, of course) and pick up our bedroom
-Vacuum house
-Get boys clothes reorganized that became very unorganized since coming back
-Get clean laundry put away and be finished with all the laundry in the house! :)... that is until more dirty clothes pop up that night.

Start dinner prep at 4:30

Kids' bedtime/parents alone time 7:30

Full day and I'm losing sleep by the minute! :)

Random things

2008-03-29T20:26:00.001-05:00

Praise God, we seem to be well now, save for a few lingering runny noses and coughs. That sick feeling I had Thursday turned into a definite something different from the flu! I was nauseous all day Thurs and yesterday I was vomiting so much I became severely dehydrated. No good. It was violent but quick, thank God. I was able to get rehydrated and felt better this morning. Hopefully, no one else will get it!

This has been such a rough week, I forgot to tell about the sweets we received from Tom! The Kopoha bar is from Ukraine and the big box and other three bars are from Holland. (They had a layover in Amsterdam.) The kids were thrilled with their exotic chocolate and my box was just beautiful with all the inlay of different chocolate! What a treat!

Almost to pretty to eat.... I said almost!

The scene on Wednesday - so sick and watching Enchanted... our new favorite movie. :)

Ittle dittle is 3 months old, yesterday in fact! I looked up at midnight last night and realised I'd let the day slip past without "celebrating" with him. I scooped him up from his crib and sang to him. He just looked at me sleepily. It was so sweet. This picture is from Thursday, I didn't get any from the actual day. He's had several near laughs... he talks and coos so much now. He sits up great in his bumbo seat. He loves to dance with Daddy and listen to Chandler read to him. He lets Taylor put her doll hats on him and puts up with Brayden's rough ways. He loves being outside and grins at anyone who talks to him. I love my baby boy.

Life is getting back to normal now with all the sickness ending and us settling in to being home and together again. Today was spent at soccer games, doing some housework, rearranging the living room and getting the laundry done. It felt great to be productive again.

I'm still soaking up having my hubby around. I can't put into words the elation I felt going to pick him up Sunday night. I was as giddy as the first time we met, I couldn't stop shaking. The whole first night he was home, I couldn't stop tearing up and saying over and over " I'm so glad you're home!" He brought me flowers on Wednesday and it was such a loving, genuine gesture, I got weepy all over again. I am incredibly blessed to have such a wonderful, caring husband by my side. I love him with all my heart and cherish him beyond words.

Ok, I'm done with all the mushy stuff. :) Gotta go get the dishes done!

Oklahoma trip in pictures

2008-03-27T13:27:00.002-05:00

Enjoy the pictures - I am in no way up for typing the novel that was our week. :-P I seem to have relapsed after feeling so much better yesterday. Or I have something totally different, who knows.

Be sure to read the captions! :)

Yes Aimee, I'm alive

2008-03-26T22:56:00.004-05:00

We all returned home safely Sunday night, the kids and I at 8:30 and we picked up Tom at 10. (I'm so glad he's home! --- insert giddy gig here ----)

The reasons for my lack of posting are threefold:
1. I've been much much too busy enjoying having my beloved husband home to even think of posting ;)

2. The achy/sick feeling that was plaguing me at my family's house hit all of us full force the last two days of our trip (turns out it's the flu!) Monday was even worse so we've all been camped out in the living room with kleenex, juice and crackers, cough syrup, saline and bulb syringe for the baby, movies, and our fave tivoed shows (Extreme Home makeover, Jon and Kate plus Eight and I love Lucy). Today was the first day we even moved from the couches.

And then if 1 and 2 weren't reason enough.... :)

3. Our wireless router decided to go bananas on us and we haven't had phone or internet for 3 days.(!!!) (oh the horror!... but I've been so sick, I've not even missed it, imagine that.)

Full report and detailed slideshow tomorrow. :) Night!

I miss Tom

2008-03-20T00:56:00.003-05:00

The last few days have been very much of a catch up after such a long and exhausting weekend. Catch up on SLEEP mostly. I've been in such a funk, feeling sick and depressed. I'm sad and miss my husband so much. I can't wait to see him again. I miss my friends. I miss my home. And I miss comments on my little blog. It's my only link to the outside world. It's very isolating to be with out highspeed! :) To feel lonely in a house with 19 people living in it is true irony. lol

After moping around the house since Monday, I perked up this afternoon, and seemed to be coming out of my bluesiness. I ventured outside and wandered down to the creek where my siblings and I played growing up. Brayden was with me and I showed him the rocks we'd have picnics and where I imagined I'd build my dreamhouse. Taylor was fishing with my brothers nearby. It is so cool to have my kids experiencing and seeing the same things I remember doing 20 years ago! I love that my parents live in the same house where we grew up. It makes the memories that much sweeter when you can show your kids exactly what you're telling them about!

So, yeah. Despite the funk, the kids and I are having a grand time. Any visit is great, even if it is just sitting around the house. The kids always have tons to do outside. And they love it! Tomorrow we're all going to Incredible Pizza with Mimi and Papa. What fun! I'm glad I'll feel up for it. I have some visits to make and shopping to do before Saturday. That should fill in the rest of my week. Easter will be here and then it'll be time to go home! Home to my hubby's arms. Yay!

I'll post more pics some other time. There are so many... I'll probably have to get another sd card before this trip is over. :) See ya!

Baby love

2008-03-20T00:42:00.006-05:00

Saturday at the kids' games, everyone had to get cuddles with Aaron. I didn't see much of their games.... I was too busy taking pictures! I do know they both won, though, and got great placings in the tournament. It was so cool to be with the whole family who turns out to cheer them on at this event.

It was the first time Mimi and Papa had seem him!

First time for Aunt Holly too.

Fancy lunch

2008-03-20T00:13:00.003-05:00

On our way to Oklahoma City on Friday to meet up with my family, we stopped at the American Girl Place in Dallas. It was the first time we had been to it, I'd been promising Taylor a trip there ever since her Birthday. And actually we still are going to go back to make a girl's day of it with her friends. Anywho, since we were going through Dallas, we stopped there to look around and have lunch. It was a very fancy affair with cloth napkins, three course meal and after lunch mints. Ooh la la! They even had little chairs for her dolls. :) She thoroughly enjoyed it and we all got our fill of American Girl stuff. She picked out an outfit for her dolls and the latest AG magazine and we were on our way.

I do believe the boys were the only males in the place! They didn't seem to mind. :)

I hate the funk

2008-03-18T04:14:00.002-05:00

The funk you get in when you've had a bad weekend and there's no one there to be your rock, your shoulder to cry on. Your husband and best friend is half a world away and you miss him so terribly, but there's no way to reach him. You can't hear his voice or feel his arms around you. You feel so utterly alone that you feel physically sick and achy. Plus you're not in your own home, there's no high speed and no way to upload pictures!!

Ok, rant over. I hope the rest of my trip is better. Right now I just want to go home. Details of the weekend from you know where later on. I need to get back to bed.

If you're reading out there in Ukraine...I love you, baby. Come home soon!

One last thing.....

2008-03-14T07:08:00.005-05:00

I'm having fun with my camcorder.... and hooray for editing! I just had to put up this clip of Taylor's game a from a few weeks ago.

Ok, I'm really done blogging.... see ya

p.s. I just spent the better part of an hour making our "away message" for the voice mail. Ugh. Priorities! Making the perfect message shouldn't be anywhere near the top! lol

On the road again....

2008-03-14T05:05:00.003-05:00

It's 5 am and we're off! lol Hardly. I'm up tending the baby. I am incredibly tired. I'm going to need some major caffeine to make a 5 hour drive! Thankfully we're driving to Dallas first, stopping off for lunch and then on to OKC. It splits it up enough that I think I'll be fine. We plan on leaving the house at 8.... I think we just might make it too since I'm up so early. I'm so excited about this trip. All the adrenaline may be enough itself without any caffeine!

I've gone major OCD on this trip. I've been on this perfect house (as perfect as it can be with 4 kids) and laundry always caught up kick... (here's hoping it sticks this time!!!!!) that incidentally makes me oh so happy! Anywho, now it's transferred to the packing. I've made lists after lists.... and then lists of lists. Everything that was packed, the exact number of each article of clothing each person has, each toy, personal item, books, electronics we have. I've also labeled 7 huge ziplock baggies with the days of the week and put an outfit for each of the kids... this is to eliminate digging through suitcases and making HUGE messes and inevitably leaving something under a bed or whatnot. We just have SO MUCH - packing and listing and organizing for over a week for 5 people is daunting, let me tell you. I just do not want to leave anything. Hopefully my lists will help with that. Just watch, I'll lose my lists!! ha! I also have a list of the errands we need to run before leaving Longview, in the exact order we have to go.... I'm about to go insane.

If you know me at all, you know that this is so unlike my personality. Usually for a trip to see my family, I just throw whatever's clean into a laundry basket and call it good. Or have to wash 5 loads of laundry to have enough to take! I'm baffled and irritated and very pleased with myself all at once. It's so much more work, but much more rewarding.... I got 2 hours sleep, but my house will be nice and clean when we get home. Ok, enough rambling. I need to get my shower. Maybe that will wake me up.

Well, I don't know if I'll get to blog in OK. I will try though. Tomorrow and Saturday we'll be in OKC for the finals of my sisters and brother's national basketball tournament. Sat night we'll drive back to Tulsa and go to church on Sunday. After that I'm looking forward to a very relaxing week. Then we get to celebrate Easter with my family! I do believe it's the first time since I moved here almost 5 years ago! Wow.

Please keep Tom in your prayers. I don't know if or when I'll hear from him. It's hard having no communication at all. I pray that God uses him in a mighty way... and I also just want him to come home safely. :) If you get to read this, I love you dearly, Baby.

Everyone have a great week... don't have too much fun without me... and Happy Easter!

A few family shots

2008-03-13T17:04:00.000-05:00

Our first family pictures since Aaron was first born! Tom wanted a family pic with Aaron in it to take to Ukraine, so we tried getting in a few before the sun went down last night. Then we went on a date! It was wonderful to have the alone time together. It was special too since he left today. :( We just dropped him off at the church and they're on their way to Shreveport. We miss him already.

Thanks to Ginger for taking these for us AND for babysitting! It was a blessing.

First video!

2008-03-13T01:48:00.003-05:00

Pretty self explanitory; Chandler working on his very first lesson of piano. :)

And this is an easy day

2008-03-11T00:15:00.005-05:00

I got just about everything done on my list. Today was a great day!

Today's Master List

CHORES:
1. ~~Mop all tile areas~~
2. ~~Wash all bedding~~ (and it all made it back on the beds BEFORE bedtime!)
3. ~~Straighten kids' drawers and closets~~

PLACES TO GO:
~~Peruse personal library sale at 10~~ Made off with LOTS of great books for my bookworm... and me!
~~Drop kids off at Aimee's at 11~~ And hang out for lunch afterwards... check!
~~Dr. Appt at 11:30~~
~~Chandler's soccer practice at 5:30~~

BASIC TO DO:
~~School with Taylor and Chandler~~
~~Breakfast and lunch~~
~~General pickup 5x's a day~~
~~Dishes and wipe down kitchen 3x's a day~~
Piano practice and ~~reading~~ (Grrr.)
~~Free time~~ (I actually got a.... wait for it..... NAP! :)

~~TARGET~~ DOLLAR GENERAL LIST: (it was closer)
~~Heaps of kids' hangers for organization chore~~ (I hung up all the the boys shirts, Steff - aren't you proud??)
Secret sister Easter card (DG cards are cheesy)
(and a mocha as a quick pick-me-up?) didn't happen

DINNER:
~~Lasagna and salad with pudding for dessert.~~ Simple is best on soccer nights, otherwise it ends up being take out, which we all don't like.

So that's our day in a nut shell. There's no set order to my day unless there's an appointment(s). But I have my list; there is a method to the madness! I just try to have everything checked off by the end of the day. It works for me. I'll let you know how tomorrow goes! :)

There's my blog post.

2008-03-09T18:33:00.005-05:00

I had just sat down to write something on my blog, but unsure as to what since not much has happened this weekend besides soccer games (2 wins!) and church (great worship, but missed the preaching because I had to run home for the diaper bag!) and grocery shopping, and return trip to Walmart today to grab the items I forgot! :)

Anywho, as I sat wondering what to write, it dawned on me I hadn't seen Brayden in quite awhile. I had been on the phone with my Grandma for the better part of 2 hours just before sitting down, and several times I'd had this vague uneasy feeling that something wasn't right (that 6th sense that mom's have) but we had Taylor's friend Hannah here to play so I just thought it was because of the extra face and being on the phone.

When I realised it had been at least an hour since I'd seen my little guy, I was calm and told myself that he must have been tired and laid down in his bed. Then he wasn't there. And he wasn't in Taylor's bed. I was worried then because Tom's been outside all afternoon working on the yard. I pictured him wandering out to see Daddy, then deciding to walk to the Johnson's (who live around the corner) Ack! I glanced in my room and didn't see him... my heart rate going up the whole time... then something caught my eye. I walked over to the baby bed and this is what I saw...

My first thought was, "Well, there's my blog post and picture of the day." :) My second was, So, cute, but why did he have to uncover Aaron!!? :) THEN "Oh yeah, I'm glad he's ok!" Ha!

On a related note, I'm starting to think in blog titles-- like when Taylor and I were at Abi's party the other day, my title was going to be "Another day, another party" (it seems we're always at a party!). But then I didn't have my camera which meant no pictures, so it didn't happen. Thinking in blog titles is a sign of too much blogging, I do believe. :)

Baby, it's cold outside

2008-03-07T16:09:00.003-06:00

We got snow in Texas again! And it was even enough to play in! The kids were beside themselves with excitement. Even before breakfast they were layering on clothes to go out. School was put on hold and we went out to enjoy the rare treat of snow. :)

It took a good half hour getting everyone ready.

It had been raining first, so it was a very wet snow and the ground was all muddy.

Beautiful snow! Our neighborhood looked like a snowglobe.

In no time, they were wet to the skin and ready to come back in to warm up. Cocoa did the trick! They were content after that to watch the snow from the front door, sipping their hot chocolate. :)

What a wonderful day - and as Aimee pointed out, yet another reason we love homeschooling! :)

Today

2008-03-05T22:49:00.003-06:00

I can't string along words to form sentences right now - I'm in a lovely haze called codeine. Long story short, today was just ok.... it was stressful and busy and tiring, but had a nice ending.

(reading back over this, I should have just ended it up there and been done with it. lol)

I felt like monster mom trying to get out the door to ELO, which made me guilty and that put me in a bad mood pretty much all day. I had bad news from the dentist... I have to see an oral surgeon for my tooth, it's beyond repair and requires more than he's comfortable doing.

So the kids are all grounded from any and all electronics until further notice. Their rooms get out of control far too often, so until they can obey and keep their rooms presentable (not perfect, just picked up) I've declared a moratorium on tv, computer, wii, and ds. And dessert. :) We'll see how long it takes them to shape up. :) Tonight Taylor asked if they could get a spanking instead. It was all I could do not to laugh. I told her I think this will be much more effective. (as already proven by her question) And I added, "It's not punishment for what you did or didn't do, it's discipline to mold future behavior." I think she got it, but I'm not sure about Chandler. He just knows he wants to watch a movie. lol

I'm so tired. ELO days are always long, and then throw in a dentist appt - Laura and Rebecca Johnson watched the kids while I was gone.. and God bless them. It stresses me out to ask someone to be willing to take on 6 kids when I have a dr appt. Luckily I have great friends. also we went to Ted and Stephanie's for dinner... it was lovely not to have to cook. We had a good time talking politics and such. Again, I have great friends. Thank you, Jesus.

Ok so it wasn't long story short... it was long story long.... and very disjointed. Sorry about that. I guess can write under the codeine haze... it just requires much more concentration... and spell check. :) And dedication on the part of the reader to follow my ramblings...

The End

Another thumbsucker

2008-03-05T22:48:00.000-06:00

Aaron has discovered his hands! At least as far as his mouth is concerned. :)

Teehee

2008-03-04T15:50:00.001-06:00

Someone isn't liking the whole group hug thing. lol