The Sticklers!

2011-03-04T19:37:00.002-06:00

Let me start this by saying that if you work at Children's in Birmingham, you think I am crazy. They nurse told me to call on Friday if I hadn't heard back. I thought I would get a jump on it and called late Thursday afternoon, thinking they might return my call that afternoon, or at least I would be the first call on Friday morning. By lunch on Friday, I had no call back, but I had called them several times. I knew they closed at 4:30, so about 3:45 I called again. I told the sweet girl who answers the phone that I just wanted some things cleared up by the weekend. She said that it had been noted that I had called 7 times(psycho!) and the doctor would call me before the weekend. She didn't say psycho, but after she told me I had called 7 times- she didn't have to! At 5:20 I got a "blocked" call on my cell phone and I jumped into action- I had written every blood test they had ordered down on a piece of paper. I was ready to write the numbers down (I had already looked up the all the test with google-psycho!) He didn't give me any numbers. He did let me know that her markers did not indicate leukemia. That was key for me! I felt like a weight had been lifted. Thank you Jesus! Now we just have to figure out what she does have, but knowing what it is NOT makes things a little easier. Thank you for your prayers!

Fordy Girl

2011-03-01T22:15:00.004-06:00

We have been in Birmingham all day trying to figure out what is going on with our baby girl. She has had a rough few weeks. A variety of problems all pointing to arthritis- maybe. But no diagnosis yet- apparently it is harder to diagnose than you would think. After 10 vials of blood today, we should be able to rule out some pretty nasty stuff on Friday! I left today's appointment wanting some kind of answer, but I didn't get any. On the way home I asked how she was- "My knee pits hurt" after a good, much needed laugh, I felt sorry for her- this is just not normal. Saturday she said her feet couldn't hold her up any more!! She does play "through" the pain, but I am very ready to find out what is going on with my active, playful child. Please pray with us for answers. Thank you!!!

"T" is for...

2010-09-20T10:31:00.002-05:00

T is for Tea Party. When you are in 4 P at our school, you have a T party- T is the letter of the week. They work on manners, and a little dance. The boys pull out the chairs for the girls and push them up to the table after they are seated (or shove them as baby did). When Sissy was in 4P, her partner would not dance with her, she hasn't forgotten it...

Here is Baby at the "T" party

"T" is also for thirty- and here is what baby will look like when he is 30!

I have had several post that I wanted to do, but when I started putting the pictures on the screen, they all had one thing in common- Baby! Maybe it's because he is with me most of the day, or maybe it's because he cracks me up, or maybe it's because he is my baby!
I will come up with a post that does not include him- it's going to be hard, but I think I can!

Baby

2010-09-01T09:36:00.003-05:00

The make-up kit that Aunt Lee got sissy for her birthday is really coming in handy-

The girls had a wonderful time try out new colors-
But don't be fooled- baby did too- even if he kept saying "I don't want to be kissy face anymore!"It was just a little hard to understand him while he was laughing so hard.

We Have Been Busy

2010-08-28T10:03:00.002-05:00

It has been a while... but since my last post, we have started school( the wonder twins and sissy), our house was struck by lightening- ripping a hole in one of the wonder twins walls- throwing parts of my fireplace into his room, started another school (baby), been to so many "back to school" meetings I wondered if I would ever see my family again,had a Sunday School party at my in-laws lake house, had my brother-in laws birthday, my father-in-laws birthday, my sisters birthday and my parents anniversary. We have been busy! While doing all of that, I found a wonderful cookie recipe that I have to share! I found it on Food Network- it is one of Giada's. I usually do not make anything she makes and I don't know why- this just might be my new favorite!

Espresso Chip Meringues

These are the ingredients- pretty simple right?

Egg whites(this means they are healthy), salt, superfine sugar, cream of tarter( I know everybody has this laying around- go buy some you will make these often),vanilla extract, instant espresso powder (I used instant coffee) and mini chocolate chips

Place your oven rack in the center of your oven. Preheat to 250

With your whisk attachment, beat the 3 room temp egg whites and a pinch of salt- special note here- if you send your children to get the eggs, and they get them from underneath the chicken- wait a few hours- it is very hard to separate the whites and the yolks right after and egg has been laid- just a fun fact to throw out at a party!

Whisk this until frothy- about a minute

Next add the 3/4 cup of sugar about a tablespoon at the time- I didn't have any superfine sugar so I put "regular" sugar in the blender and it became- super-fine! I think I just heard some real bakers gasp...

Add the 1/8 teaspoon of Cream of Tartar, the 1/4 teaspoon Vanilla, and the 2 teaspoons of espresso powder or if you are like me you can use 3 teaspoons of instant coffee

Combine all of this on high until it holds stiff peaks- 3-5 minutes Next stir in 2/3 cups of mini chocolate chips- I just throw in 1/2 the bag

Spoon out the mixture onto a parchment lined baking sheet- I did not have any parchment, but I am ok with that. You should be able to get 12 large cookies

Bake for 25-30 minutes- do not burn them- do not open the door!!!!! Now here is the hard part

About 20 minutes into the baking, your kitchen will smell out of this world, but you can't open the oven door. When the buzzer goes off, you can't open the door. You turn the oven off and set the timer for 2 hours, yes, you have to smell the wonderful smell, for another 2 hours, coming from an oven that is off and YOU CAN NOT OPEN THE DOOR. The first time I made them I thought it would not be a big deal, I had laundry to do and my kitchen needed a good cleaning, but that smell- oooo that smell it beckoned me to open the door... but I did not.

Make these today- you will find love in a cookie! ( leave the coffee out if you must and they are still great)

I also made this...

Homemade Salsa! It is FINE!!! This post has already been too long and the recipe came from a friend, so I will have to get her permission to share it! Just know it is the best salsa you will ever have!
Have a great weekend!

Perfect For A Foyer

2010-07-22T23:53:00.008-05:00

Sometimes when it is hot outside, The best thing to do is ice skate
In your foyer

All you have to do is pick out your best "skates"

Or you pick some of your mama's shoes-

Either way- it is some kinda fun!

Thoughts on Exercise

2010-07-13T15:36:00.003-05:00

Exercise... It is something I do not like! It makes me sweat, it wears me out, I can't sit down the next day, I just don't like it. A couple of years ago, I started walking with a friend on mine. She talked me into it.

The night of the Auburn/Alabama game I was at her house with a group of people who started talking about running a 5K. HA! The next day, she was at my house and we were printing out a 5K for dummies running plan. She talked me into it.

I really wanted to like it-really! we started "training", we ran exactly the way the plan said to, but for some reason, I wasn't loving to run. I have always heard that once you start running you will love it- anyone who says that is lying! It got cold during our "training" and my running partner was not a softy- she would not stop, I think she almost killed me! My lungs would burn, I mean like- on fire burn- wonder if that bout of bacterial pneumonia I had the year before had anything to do with that- oh well. My lungs burned,my appetite increased, my knees hurt and I swear I cracked my hip- I know this because I watched The Biggest Loser, and the exact same thing happened to one of the contestants that season. Anyway- I was not loving to run. It did give me some relief to know that the 5K was at the beach, in March- so that meant warmer weather.

The big 5K weekend was upon us. We had finished the "training" and we were ready. I was secretly hoping that my running partner would say- let's skip it- she did not. We got to the beach- met a great group of girls, laughed a lot, signed in for the 5K in the rain- not a good sign! The big run was on Sunday- it was a record cold day- like it started off in the teens- and add that breeze off the gulf and you have yourself a miserable run! I called my family to see what they were doing-they were playing in the snow- yeah, it was cold.

This blog has been long enough, I won't go through all the thoughts that went through my head as I picked up my legs made of concrete to carry them across that finish line (yes, I did finish). Just know this- I will not be doing another 5K. I will go down to the beach to laugh- hard with friends, but not to do a 5K!

Now that I look at this picture, all those girls have i-pods, maybe that hurt my time...ha, ha,ha!

A Serious Medical Condition

2010-07-09T14:06:00.003-05:00

My mama helped out during Vacation Bible School this year (which was the best VBS we have ever had). During that week, she picked up Brown-ky-eyetus.

Now you may never have heard of this condition, but my two youngest children were scared for her, and thought Sissy was sure to be next.

You see, Sissy has brown eyes, but Baby has blue, so he is in the clear- I did have to check a few times to make sure his eyes were "weally, weally not bwown"

We went to visit her a few days after she was diagnosed, and she thought it was strange that my two youngest kept looking at and asking about her eyes- when it was her lungs that bothered her- her bronchi to be exact. Crazy that they would name something that effects your respiratory system brown-ky-eyetus...

You will be happy to know that the antibiotic knocked it right out!

Birthday Extraviganza!

2010-07-07T09:39:00.003-05:00

A few weeks ago, we celebrated Sissy's birthday. It was a week of fun for her! It started off by getting to go to a restaurant with her Uma and Grandeddy- the waiters sang and brought a wonderful dessert for her- she was thrilled- as you can tell from the picture, she doesn't like attention! After lunch, they went to pick out a birthday cake. She should not wait to tell me how beautiful is was going to be when she got home- "wait until you see it mama! The white on the cake is so white that it is really going to make the other colors pop! And there is a 7 on it, but not a stand up 7, a 7 that is down in the cake- and the 7 is going to be so wonderful against the white, white top"! She said all of this so fast- I'm not sure that she took a breath!

On Friday, she got to go with Gi Gi to pick out birthday gift and to watch Toy Story 3. Then it was over to Uma's house for swimming, burgers and a the best cake you have ever seen! It is always fun to have a cousin birthday!

Sometimes we like to scream Happy Birthday as loud as we can- be thankful you can't hear them

Now you can see what she means.. look how those colors POP!
On Sunday, we had a shared party with this little guy- she loves her cousin and was very excited about a "double" party.

Another cousin party- not quite as loud, but so much fun! Gi Gi let her pick out the Hula theme at the party store.

Sissy will want to turn 7 every year if she can have a week long celebration!

Perfect Father's Day Gift

2010-06-16T12:00:00.002-05:00

Sometimes it is hard to pick the perfect Father's day gift, but I am about to make it very easy for a few people- or maybe just one. If you have a husband, daddy and father-in-law, I can hook you up! You see, the puppies are ready and everyone knows that dogs are man's best friend!
Look at these pictures and e-mail me which one you want. I don't want to stand out in front of Wal-mart and give them to random people, I want them to go to good homes. So if you think you might want one- donastickler@juno.com. I would love to deliver them to you if you live in my town, if you live somewhere else, we will meet half way!

This is Butter, she is sweet and is the biggest. She is all white and is so cute!

This is the only boy. He loves to be picked up. He he has blue eyes and white hair(fur). He is the prankster of the group. He will sneak up behind or Shepard and jump on her tail. He is FUN!

This is Cutie-Pie. She loves to sit in your lap and enjoy your company. She is very laid back- calm and cool. She has more "gold" in her- her brother and sister are all white. She is also the smallest of the group, but sweet and cute!

They will be 7 weeks old this Friday and they are ready to join you at your home! Let me know!!!!

Nap Time

2010-06-05T12:27:00.004-05:00

Sometimes it gets hot and you just need a nap.

It can be hard to get comfortable,

But once you find just the right spot...

It's heaven!

Have a great weekend!

Fishing

2010-06-02T10:32:00.003-05:00

We had a wonderful weekend! A lot of the time we spent fishing or watching this show called "River Monsters". If your haven't seen it- the wonder twins can tell you about every episode- they got caught up this weekend. It is about this man who studies fresh water fish that are"monsters". The first few I saw were in far away places that I knew I would never visit. Then an episode called Snake head fish opened in Sunny Miami- ahhhhh. A fish that looks like a snake- yuck!!!! After watching as much as I could, I walked into the kitchen to take a break from the "River Monsters", when I returned this is what I saw

He had to wrestle this monster, but was so proud of his catch!

Summertime

2010-05-28T11:07:00.002-05:00

This is what I hope our summer looks like! We have Vacation Bible School in a couple of weeks, then we will be doing a lot of this...

I will be back after the weekend with pictures from our weekend and maybe a few recipes too!

Have a safe Memorial Day!

Triplets

2010-05-24T20:41:00.002-05:00

Ok- not what you are thinking ( but I must say I would not be disappointed). We adopted a dog from the pound about 6 weeks ago. It was one of those "tomorrow she will get the square needle" stories. So Ryan fell for it and got our dog named Sunny. We took her to the vet, got her shots, brought her home to let her get use to us before we sent her off to "get fixed". Her appointment was on a Monday, and guess what happened the Friday before... triplets! Sunny was much with puppies and they forgot to tell us when we adopted her. We have had a lot of questions at our house, and the children love them- they also know they will all be given away. So with that, let me introduce you to them:

There are 2 girls and 1 boy. They have names, but you can rename them when they come live at your house!

They should be ready around Father's day. Just let me know which one you would like one- I am sure they will all go quickly!

Give Me Just A Little More Time!

2010-05-21T12:39:00.002-05:00

Ok, so I have been gone a long time... but summer is almost here and I will be back. I have several things to share. I will leave you to think about this-TRIPLETS! See you soon...

Dinner Is Served!!!!

2009-11-11T10:06:00.004-06:00

When the Wonder Twins get to decide what we are having for dinner, this is what happens.

Take a package of Crescent Rolls- who doesn't like Crescent rolls??? Take a package of Hot Dogs. I would ask who doesn't like hot dogs, but the answer would be me!!!

Unroll the Crescent rolls.

Cut into the package of hot dogs and roll them up in the Crescent rolls.

This is what the will look like after you roll them up and put them on a pan.

They were very excited!!!

This is what you get when they come out of the oven. Perfection!

No matter how difficult this recipe looks- just try it! With enough practice, I really believe everybody could be eating this tonight.

Enjoy!

Halloween Weekend

2009-11-04T09:35:00.002-06:00

I am not sure what I have been doing, but I have been trying to get this done since Sunday afternoon. Here is our Halloween recap:

Saturday, after lunch, some friends came over. Behind them they pulled a trailer full of toys- 3 motorcycles and 1 four wheeler. They said it was for the children, but when I looked outside to watch the children having fun, what I saw was the three daddy's riding and the children playing in the dirt. My camera sat on the kitchen counter, and not one picture was taken!!!! That is a shame, because from the scabs on my husbands elbow, there were some great photo opportunities. We hope to see that trailer pull back up Thanksgiving week!

We then went to trick or treat with this pumpkin- she is so cute I could kiss her face off. This one had a bath in the kitchen sink while I was there- it was all I could do not to jump up and get some pictures, but I had already taken about 20 of her and I didn't want her mother to get concerned! Then I spotted this one:

CUTIE PIE! Her cousin is the sweetest, most doting older cousin I have ever seen. I'm not sure what's going on over in "Maseyville" but they are doing something right!

Handed out candy with these lovely ladies, laughed pretty hard as we sat on the front porch under our "wedding knot" quilt. Good Times!

And now my trick or treat-er line-up:

Baseball player- went over much better than the ghost!

Pizza delivery guy- he didn't have a costume, I asked him to take the pizza box to the trash and he came up with Pizza guy. That's a deal-for $10.00, we got dinner, lunch and a Halloween costume!

Modest Super girl (her outfit was just a little too big, so she put on a t-shirt under it)

And of course- Spider man

Sunday, we had the time change, that left me time to take some pictures!

It was a great weekend!

Crack Me Up!

2009-10-29T09:47:00.003-05:00

I got this e-mail the other day. I get tons of e-mails everyday that have forward this to 10 friends or you will have 7 years of bad luck or forward this to 10 friends and you will receive 10 blessings in the next 30 seconds. I am thinking that neither bad luck nor blessings are given out by passing along e-mails. So, I normally do not forward them. The one I got Tuesday was from a friend of mine and it made me laugh-hard! I wanted to share it with you so you too can laugh-hard! Here it is- read the whole thing...

What Do You Do All Day?

A man came home from work and found his three children outside, still in their pajamas, playing in the mud, with empty food boxes and 20 wrappers strewn all around the front yard.The door of his wife's car was open, and so the front door to the house and there was no sign of the dog. Proceeding into the entry, he found an even bigger mess. A lamp had been knocked over, and the throw rug was wadded against one wall.In the front room the TV was loudly blaring a cartoon channel, and the family room was strewn with toys and various items of clothing.In the kitchen, dishes filled the sink, breakfast food was spilled on the counter, the fridge door was open wide, dog food was spilled on the floor a broken glass lay under the table, and a small pile of sand was spread by the back door.He quickly headed up the stairs, stepping over toys and more piles of clothes, looking for his wife. He was worried she might be ill, or that something serious had happened.He was met with a small trickle of water as it made its way out the bathroom door.As he peered inside he found wet towels, scummy soap and more toys strewn over the floor.Miles of toilet paper lay in a heap and toothpaste had been smeared over the mirror and walls.As he rushed to the bedroom, he found his wife still curled up in the bed in her pajamas, reading a novel.She looked up at him, smiled, and asked how his day went.He looked at her bewildered and asked, 'What happened here today?'She again smiled and answered, 'You know every day when you come home from work and you ask me what in the world I do all day?'Yes,' was his incredulous reply.She answered, 'Well, today I didn't do it.'

The problem with posting an e-mail like that is what kind of picture do you put with it? Maybe my piles of laundry, my playroom floor, the dog hair scattered throughout my house, every bed that has not been made today- I guess the choices are limitless here, but I have chosen this instead.

This picture cracks me up- if you could see underneath that ghost's sheet- you would see one very mad Wonder Twin. Needless to say, she will not be dressing up like a ghost this year!

Special Request

2009-10-27T19:04:00.002-05:00

Several people have requested to see pictures of the Breast Cancer 5K. I normally do not like to show pictures of "someone else's" event(Melinda's), but she has cancer and I'm not sure when she will get pictures up. Here are a few:

Here are some girls showing off the t-shirt that won! Who knew that there was a t-shirt competition???

Melinda with part of her posse- the other 1/2 was running late. I was going to do this picture really big, but I thought I looked like Casper the friendly ghost- so you will have squint to see it- it is after all, all about me! What a good friend!

Here is Melinda with our Sunday School teacher- they both rock! Have you seen her new haircut-she looks hot!

This is what true athletes do before a big race... coffee, cell phone, shopping- life is good!

It was a great day! Even if I didn't have the best finish time, (you have to start the run to finish it)I felt like a winner when I got in my car to drive home!

Do NOT Take Your Camera To Whole Foods!!!

2009-10-22T13:12:00.003-05:00

Yesterday, my mama, my sister and I took a day trip to the big city! We were going to visit my aunt Ka Ka and my cousin who just had a baby boy. We were excited, so at 5:30, with camera in hand, we were well on our way. We were making great time. We got 1/2 way there and the traffic came to a complete stop. We looked over and noticed a man that obviously had a driver- we knew who he was from the sign on the sides and back of his car- he wants to be the next governor of our great state. We were just sitting on the interstate for awhile and then we noticed his driver pull to the side of the road and continue traveling down the side- on the side of the road. Others followed him, and so did we- if our next governor can do it- so can we. It looked like it was going to be a great trip- I was driving or I would have taken his picture- a celebrity sighting!
We made it to my aunts house and then followed her to the hospital. It was then that it hit me, big city life is not so different from life where I live. Here, when you visit someone in the hospital, you pull in to the parking lot, park and walk in. In the big city, you pull into the parking garage, get a ticket to park, drive around the garage several times, park in the "blue" zone, take the "green" elevator to the second crosswalk, take 3 flights of stairs down, exit the building, enter another building, take the elevator up, pay your ticket and try to remember how to get back to your car. See - not so different. We did make it to her room and we got to visit with my cousin and that sweet baby boy- man those cheeks!

My sister found ways to entertain herself while she waited her turn to hold him.

Don't worry, she never got her hand all the way down. We visited for a while, then we were off to eat lunch.
We went to The Cheesecake Factory. Have you been there? It is out of this world good! My sister got this salad-

I got it last time I went and wondered the entire time I sat and watched her eat it why I didn't get it this time. My mama and aunt got cheesecake- they love it!

I got a chicken and avocado sandwich- it was wonderful. I snapped pictures the entire time, I think the table across from us thought I was a food critic-I'm not sure why. I took 1 picture of people and about 20 pictures of food- huh?
We then went out for a little shopping. Lee found a friend,

but the rest of us just window shopped- really we just enjoyed being together- laughing a lot!
Then we went to Whole Foods and this is where our trip went bad- very bad. Well, not really bad- just sad for me. We had looked forward to this trip since we found out my cousin was expecting. We didn't know what all we would do in the big city, but the one thing we did know is that we would go to Whole Foods. I started outside. They had this pumpkin display that was "so fall". I took several pictures outside of there wonderful plants, then we moved inside. The way they display their produce is a work of art, so I began to snap away. We walked over to a counter where a lady was cutting up some fruit. We asked her what an item was and she made us guess- we all missed it- it was a Young coconut- it was white and perfect. I had to take a picture of that. Then we moved to their grains and nut display. I had my picture framed up, the a customer walked up. I backed up because I didn't want her to feel like I was taking her picture. I couldn't wait to get this shot- I knew it was going to be a really neat picture. I then heard "Excuse me-" I turned around to find a very nice looking young lady standing beside me- she told me that I could not take pictures at the store, and went on to explain that there were pictures on their web-site if I wanted to look at some. She was nice about it- I was very, very disappointed! The longer I walked around, the more I saw I wanted to shoot with the camera that hung on my arm. Wonderful things, colors, textures, different brands, all things I wanted to share with you. I decided not to post the few pictures I did take there(before I was told not to)- something about it just doesn't seem right. If you want to see what it looks like- you can visit their web-site. I guess that is what I will be doing from now on.
All in all, it was a wonderful trip! We can't wait for her to have another baby!

Our Weekend!

2009-10-19T12:54:00.002-05:00

We started out this weekend with excitement! We had watched the weather and we knew it was going to be cold! When you start to see these coming to town, you know the cold air is not far behind.

So, on Friday afternoon, when daddy got home from work, we headed over to get firewood and some pine cones.

We loaded it up and headed back home.

On a side note, notice that nice driveway that has just gotten paved- if you live around here and need a new driveway, trees knocked down, old building knocked down(you know because a lot of people have old buildings they don't want any more) a pond, or really anything around your yard- call a wonderful man named Ryan at Heavy Earth Construction- they rock!

Back to our weekend- we stacked the wood on the back porch.

Then we waited for the cold weather to come.

Well, it came and we made some yummy soup and sat by this...

This just might be my favorite time of year!

Fall Break

2009-10-13T13:32:00.003-05:00

It's fall break around here and we are enjoying it! We took the Wonder Twins to lunch yesterday for their birthday. They chose O'Charley's.

I have a hard time going there. When I was pregnant with them, I was very sick- all the time. Gi Gi had her birthday party at O'Charley's. I got sick on the way, got up twice during the meal and sick on the way home. I just can't seem to get past those memories.

But the Wonder Twins do love the rolls there- and that is why they chose it.

Today, we haven't gotten out of our PJ's.

I have done house work, they have all just laid around- it has been wonderful!

From a wide shot, you can tell that they are not worried about the house work at all.

I hope the rest of the week is this good! Homeschooling looks better and better!

Ghost!

2009-10-08T13:58:00.004-05:00

I have had several questions about the ghosts that we have been making. I took the idea from a neighbor, and changed the faces up a little. They are so much fun and anybody can do it!!! You don't even have to sew them- they can be hot glued! They are felt, cut into a ghost shape. Then you hot glue the letters and get creative with the faces- it's all felt! One quick tip: hot glue all the stuff on the front before you sew or glue them together- you don't what the front to stick to the back! Then go to Wal-marts and get you a tomato cage- cut it to the right length, wrap tape around the pointy top so it will not stick through the head of the ghost and you are good to go!

I have just spoken with Darby and she asked for a "ghost tutorial". I realize that I did not give a lot of information, nor did I have any pictures. Here is a little bit more detail on these little guys:

You will need: A little over 1 yard of felt for the biggest ghost, less than 1 yard for the next size, so if I were doing 2 ghosts I would get 2 yards of felt and it comes out with a little left over- which is perfect for the teeth and eyes. You can see that there are different sizes, so keep that in mind- you might not want to go too small, so you can add ghosts as you add to your family!

For the "color" felt, I got the felt squares. I got pink, black, and orange. I ended up going back and getting 1/2 yard of orange for my letters- it was way more than plenty!

Directions for making the ghosts:

Put your white felt on a flat surface, the fold it on itself, so you are cutting it once, but you have two pieces (a front and a back)
Trace out a "ghost"shape- use the entire width at the bottom , getting smaller the higher up you go. This will depend a lot on how wide your tomato cage is- just do a quick check, you don't want a ghost needs to go on a diet!
Cut the ghost shape out
Rest- look how much work you have done!!!
Get a color felt and cut out the letters you will need to make the names of your precious babies- do this free hand- it is for Halloween after all!
Have fun with the face- I did orange eyebrows for my red-head, eyelashes for the girls, dimples for my big dimpled child. You could use buttons, or those googly eyes- go crazy and have fun!
Get your hot glue gun ready!
Put the face on first- lay it all out before you glue it.
Drop down a little and add the name
Let the glue dry- it won't take long
At this point, you can either sew it together or you can hot glue it together. Either way, put the wrong sides together (so his face is facing his back). Start at one end and sew/glue all the way around
Turn him right side out and presto- a very cute ghost!

I know this would have been so much better with pictures, but I don't have any and I don't have time to whip up any ghosts this afternoon. I will be making some this weekend and I will put the pictures up asap!

Team Mmac

2009-10-05T09:23:00.002-05:00

I will be back with pictures and posts soon, but this is a Melinda update. If you ordered a Team Mmac t-shirt, it will be ready to pick up this Friday at Melinda's house from 3:30-5:30. She will be going to Birmingham this Wednesday to meet with Dr. Bland. Please be in prayer that this appointment goes very well and that she and Ted will both be comfortable with what his team decides for her. Thank you all!

Quick update on Melinda

2009-09-28T10:58:00.002-05:00

A quick update- after a lot of phone calls, and a lot of prayer, Melinda is on her way to get a CAT scan and several other tests right now. WOO HOO!!!!!!!!!! Please keep her in your prayers as you go about your day. I will update as she calls me. Thank you all so much!

Team Mmac!

2009-09-25T13:20:00.003-05:00

Hey! We are getting together a team for the breast cancer walk on October 10th. We will be team Mmac. We will have t-shirts printed, and we want as many people on Team Mmac as we can get. If you would like to join us- we will be walking all together- please leave you name in a comment and the t-shirt size you will need. You can also e-mail me at donastickler@juno.com . I will scan the art work tonight and post it. I am going to get my order to the printer Tuesday at lunch, so if you want one let me know! Have a great weekend!

Home SIck

2009-09-24T08:59:00.002-05:00

This one is home today. He was sick yesterday, and I am not one to rush them back to school so he is home today to fully recover. He will have about 5 tests on Friday- what a welcome back to school gift!

This picture makes me say- bless his heart- he will not be happy about this in his teen years.

This one got to stay home- well, just because his brother did. Sometimes it is fun to be mama!

I threw this picture in because it cracks me up! I had said three times that morning- don't forget your belt. Do you see a belt in this picture? One of the Wonder Twins thought my picture taking was going to make us late, one said don't worry about it! Sissy was nervous about her first real day of school, and the baby was asking me not to say "Say Cheese" because "mama, you know I love cheese!" It just cracks me up! Have a great Thursday!

Melinda Update

2009-09-22T14:10:00.003-05:00

Check out Melinda's blog at http://www.melindamcclendon.blogspot.com/ She will update through her journey and beyond! You can also click on "My Cups Runneth Over" on my sidebar! Enjoy.

Hide and Seek

2009-09-21T09:33:00.002-05:00

Thursday morning, I was ready to go. All I had left to do was put on C's shoes. I had a full day and was right on time- things looked good. I told C that it was time to put his shoes on- where are we going? I told him it was a school day, and with that he ran upstairs. I heard him yell as he rounded the corner- I'm not going today. About twenty minutes later, I found him, we put on shoes, and I was now running late. I would have just let him come with me, but I had a lot to do, and I thought that would be a great lesson- hiding from mama= getting to skip school. Sometimes it's hard to be mama!

Urgent Prayer Request

2009-09-16T13:46:00.003-05:00

This is my dear friend Melinda. I love her and I love her sweet family. Melinda found out about 1:45 this afternoon that she has either stage 2 or stage 3 breast cancer. I cannot believe that I have just had to type those words. It is in her lymph nodes. When I talked to her, she said the fight is not hers- it is God's.

Please pray for Melinda. Ask everyone you know to pray for her. I will be updating as I speak with her for specific prayer requests.

Crazy Thoughts on this Wednesday

2009-09-16T08:52:00.004-05:00

Have you started thinking about Christmas? I have. I have started thinking about gifts for people, and I have started thinking about our Christmas card. I start buying Christmas gifts early- very early. Two years ago I found a lamp in March that I really liked. I thought it might look good in our family room. I also thought that my sister-in-law would love it. It reminded me of her from the minute I saw it.

So I got one for me and one for her. I put them both in storage. When we moved into our house in December, both lamps got moved, I wrapped hers up and put mine in the family room. I'm not sure if she likes it, but it looks great at her house. Now, I have told you this to say, that I guess I am always on the look out for a good Christmas gift.

Christmas cards are a different story. Since the baby was born, I have taken the same picture every year. To the people who get a card from me, I know this seems strange and very boring, but to me it is wonderful! I will have a record of my children and how they have grown over the years.

2006

2007

2008

I usually take it the first weekend in November, if the weather cooperates- I always do it outside, the sunlight is so much better on skin than "fake" light. It's the card that gets me. The first year, I had them made, but every year since then I have made them. I'm not sure why I do that to myself. There is a store here that has the most creative people I have ever met- cranking out the most wonderful Christmas cards I have ever seen, but why make it easy on myself- it's not like I have anything else to do! So if you see me this week, and I am in La-La land, just know that in my head I am planning my Christmas card and making my Christmas gift list!

38 Horses and a Monkey that Sees No Evil

2009-09-14T09:51:00.002-05:00

I told you I would take some new pictures this weekend, I just didn't say what I would be taking pictures of. It is football season. At our house that means, you sit and flip between the 5 games that are on at any given time. I enjoy watching football, but I do not enjoy watching 5 games at one time, so when asked to help with a craft for pre-school, I jumped up and down- yes, yes, yes!!!! The craft was turning a paper grocery sack

into a cute horse.

The children will put her mane on and she will be put on a dowel. She will be cute, but she will only last about 3 days at our house. I will photograph her when she comes home complete, and before she is completely destroyed.

I also have this monkey that I am trying to finish. I started him at Darby's house. She said it was a two hour project. I guess I need remedial classes because after about 3 1/2 hours, I left her house and he had no arms, no tail, no mouth, no ears, and no eyes. I am still working on the eyes, I can't decide what color(that's code for I'm lazy and don't feel like sewing two buttons on). He will be a gift for my cousin who is having a boy in October- I'm thinking that it is safer for a baby to have a monkey with no eyes- so he won't choke. When my children saw him, they all fell in love and are wondering when I am going to whip one up for them... let's see, when do I have 5 hours free to whip up a monkey, no make that 20 hours free to whip up 4 monkeys? And the monkeys are supposed to be for burned children, so add one more to the mix- wow! I'm tired just thinking about it!

I am working on another craft project. I started it(them) last year, but I wanted to add just a little to them this weekend. I will show you when they are ready to get delivered! They are a gift and I don't want to spoil it! I will tell you this, it is a craft I love! So after you see them, if you want on, let me now. I might start a factory!Here is a hint- they look like this, but different!

Have a great Monday!

Time Keeps On Slippin,Slippin

2009-09-11T13:32:00.003-05:00

Do you ever feel like you have no time to get everything done? Like you need about 12 more hours in your day, but if you had those 12 hours you couldn't take it because you are already so worn out?

I have been wanting to blog for days, but haven't had time. Our school has started up a new "fun" project, that will end up being wonderful, but it is getting it started up that has taken away my blog time.

I have no new pictures to blog with so I will use old ones, just pretend you haven't ever seen them.

I promise I'll work on some new one's this weekend. I will also be getting with my sister-in-law about some ideas I have that "we" need to work on- I might need to twist her arm. More on that later. Have a great weekend- I'm getting ready for fall!

Dad-Gum Posts

2009-09-08T19:32:00.002-05:00

What do you get when you combine posts, paint, boards, more paint..

Some really hard workers and some really hot weather...

Some workers wore their night gowns, some wore their fur coats...

Many water breaks were taken

But the end result was a very nice looking fence!

No, that's not South Fork you are looking at and Sue Ellen sure didn't paint those dad-gum posts. It's our house and I painted those posts- they just about killed me, but looking at it now- it was worth it!

The Scanner

2009-09-02T08:32:00.002-05:00

I got a scanner. Actually I have had it and have never used it. It is my printer, and I have just figured out how to use it. I had to show off my skills and what better way to do that then with a wedding picture.

Then maybe a picture of the Wonder Twins about 5 minutes after they were born. I was not available for photos- for a while, a long while!

Then we can scan a picture of Sissy's baby dedication at the church

We can't leave out baby, although most of his pictures are digital

And I guess it wouldn't be a post about scanning if I didn't include a picture from my childhood.

Ahh- to have those legs again!!! I was ready to tear up the water!

Ok, I'm not sure I have ever put my picture on the blog- you might have overdosed on me, so I promise I won't be putting my picture up for a very long time.

Have a great day and go out and scan some pictures!

Connect The Dots

2009-09-01T07:49:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, Baby went to a birthday party. It was a circus theme. There was cake, popcorn, cotton candy and a train. He had a great time!

The ants and mosquitoes also had a great time seeing him.

His blue mouth is from the cotton candy- not anaphylactic shock from all the bites.

As you can tell, it really bothered him...

One Mean Mama!

2009-08-31T13:35:00.002-05:00

Last night we had a birthday party for Pop Pop, Raiger and Aunt Jennifer. When my family got home, they told me it was so much fun! I didn't get to go. I have a child who does not like to study, write, or go to school.

I told the wonder twins yesterday afternoon that they needed to start studying for the test they had on Monday. One did. One did not. A few hours later, I walked in the room where they were watching TV. I told them I was glad they had finished their studying, because we weren't going to go to the party if they had not. They both jumped up telling me they needed a little more time to study. After about 20 minutes, they both assured me they knew it. I explained again that if they did not, we would not be going. So, I called out the material and checked their work- one at a time. Wonder Twin #1- going to the party. Wonder Twin #2- not! He wasn't too concerned, he knew I would change my mind and let him go... then, everybody left. Yep, pulled right out of the driveway. And it was just the two of us. A very sad child and one "mean mama"!

Sometimes it's hard to be mama...

What Happened?

2009-08-27T16:26:00.003-05:00

I'm not sure what happened. Sissy looks the same as she did when she was 2. But...

This one grew up. All of the sudden. He went from a little boy(who happened to be 9) to a big boy who is 9. Sometimes I look at a picture of him and think- that's what he will look like when he is 20.

I'm working on the look of the Blog- obviously I am needing more work on the sizing of my picture on my header, but I couldn't stay away any longer- hey, Rome wasn't built in a day!

Thank you Rhonda for the easy margin fix!!!!

Help Me, Rhonda!

2009-08-24T09:20:00.003-05:00

Ok- so this is not Rhonda, but it is someone who is helping me expand my margins and get my pictures bigger. I won't give you her name, because I don't want her to be flooded with blogging questions. I will only tell you this- she is a blog master, she can do anything, she rocks and she has added a child to her family since this picture was taken- I will not give you her name, I won't do it! She so busy, she really doesn't have time to help me, but I bother her until she does and she feels like she has to since she is my sister in law.

Maybe by tomorrow Rhonda will have me fixed up!

Baby

2009-08-20T13:01:00.001-05:00

August 2009 153, originally uploaded by Fordy3.

Baby

2009-08-20T12:58:00.005-05:00

August 2009 300, originally uploaded by Fordy3.

What is the deal with this child? Man- I love him! He is and will always be the baby- unless I have a few more and then I think he will still be baby! He pretty much gets away with anything, but smiles that red-headed, missing tooth smile. He might look like he works at a carnival with that missing tooth, but he is our carnival worker and we adore him.
Pre-school started Tuesday for Baby. I was told by one of his wonderful teachers that he would not be the same little boys at the end of the year that he is now. I let her know that that kind of language would not be accepted, and informed her that he was not a little boy and would still be a baby at the end of the year- she now confirms that I am a tad bit crazy.

After his first day, he said he had a good time, but he wouldn't be going back. I bribed him this morning- telling him that I bet one of his teachers had candy. Ahh- candy. It is amazing what it will do for Baby!

Please pretend that all the Baby pictures are on this post.I am still trying to figure out Flickr- sorry!

Baby

2009-08-20T12:58:00.003-05:00

August 2009 279, originally uploaded by Fordy3.

Mrs. G

2009-08-19T09:12:00.002-05:00

This is my new hero. Her name is Mrs. G and she is Sissy's new teacher. I'm not sure how, but she made a very bad thing( going to first grade) a very good thing! The day of orientation for first graders, Sissy was asking why we were making her go. She was scared and just wanted to stay home- she almost had me convinced that it really would be a good idea for her to stay home and help me. Then she went to orientation and met Mrs. G, and our lives changed! I'm not sure what happened during that 45 minutes that they were together, but my child went from horror to pure excitement about 1st grade. Everyday since has been wonderful! Thank you Mrs. G- you rock! Have I ever mentioned how great the administration and teachers are at our school? Well, just in case you didn't know, I think they are pretty great!

Coming Up For Air!

2009-08-18T15:35:00.002-05:00

Do you ever feel like you are covered up with "things" in your day?

Like you just need to come up for air?

This week has been FULL! And it's only Tuesday afternoon.

This is about where I am right now...

This is where I would like to be.

I have so much going on, I just need to breathe.

We did take off and go to the lake this weekend. It was wonderful! I took tons of pictures. I'll share some when I can. I am trying to figure out how to make my pictures larger. That is how I spent the 25 minutes of free time I had today. I couldn't figure it out, so I am hoping for 30 free minutes tomorrow. We'll see...

Leo

2009-08-14T13:45:00.002-05:00

I took these pictures last weekend. This is my deddy's cat. I am not a cat person, I used to be, but the cat I loved got worms, it grossed me out and that was it for my love of cats. Anyway, this is not a normal cat. He will come when called-sometimes. He goes inside and outside. He is not scared of dogs. He doesn't sneak up behind you and creep you out. But just looking at this picture is making my throat itch- I think I need to go take some Benadryl. Have a great weekend.

Party Picture

2009-08-13T10:16:00.004-05:00

Have you ever taken a picture and then looked at it- I mean really looked at it, every person, the expressions how they are standing and where they are in relation to other people? This picture is from last weekend. It was my brother-in-law's birthday, but notice who is really blowing out the candles... she thought nobody would notice-SISSY!!!! One of the Wonder Twins is holding that last note of the Happy Birthday song- that's not obnoxious at all! And is that some strange growth growing out of Davids back? Then notice the cake- what do you see on top- Strawberry Shortcake and a rubber duckie. When the cake arrived it was chocolate- no characters, but when left on the counter, someone is going to practice their decorating skills. Mama would be thrilled that I cleaned her counter top before taking the picture. It might not be a crystal clear shot, but it is one I love!

You Gotta Do What You Gotta Do!

2009-08-12T16:54:00.004-05:00

Thank you google for this picture

Do you know what tomorrow is? That's right, the dreaded Miracle treat day at Dairy Queen. Do you know what that means? Yes, you have to go to Dairy Queen and buy a Blizzard-dad gum it! It is for a good cause! We might have to go several times-how many flavors are there?

Cowboy Hat

2009-08-12T08:41:00.004-05:00

My baby found this hat in a box in our garage. He was so excited to find a "cowboy" hat that fit him perfectly. Looking at the hat closely, you might think that it looks like a hat from a Safari- maybe a VBS theme from a few years back. You would be wrong- according to Baby. It is a cow boy hat!!!

He loves this hat!

He loves his daddy!!

He loves this tractor almost as much as his daddy!

I saw a friend of mine the other night at school. We were talking about Baby starting school. She asked if he had any self esteem issues. Like does he get embarrassed when he does something wrong. I laughed to myself and thought- in his mind he has never done anything wrong! I answered with a definite "No- he has no self esteem problems". I'm not sure where it comes from, maybe it has something to do with the fact that we all still call him Baby...

Last Day Of Summer

2009-08-10T07:35:00.004-05:00

Hello! It is the last day of summer at our house. We will be spending it at the school. I have tons to do up there to get ready for some events tonight and tomorrow. When I think of my children, this is how I think of them...

too young to be in school! Where did my babies go? Well, at least I still have one

Enjoy your last day or days of summer!

Who Knew?

2009-08-07T16:16:00.003-05:00

I have started watching this show, on Food Network, called Food Detectives. It comes on Tuesday nights at 8:00, but I catch the re-runs on random days. A few days ago, the show was on cooking with alcohol and how much cooks out of your food. I was shocked! You know that banana's foster that flames up- I thought that was all the alcohol burning off. I learned that very little alcohol burns out of the foods we eat. So the tip for today is: if you are cooking with alcohol or if you order something in a restaurant that has alcohol in it and you think it is all cooked out- think again! Don't eat and drive!

This has been a public service announcement! Thank you!

Last, But Not Least!

2009-08-06T07:07:00.004-05:00

Before I give you the recipe today, I wanted to show you what happens when Sissy gets my camera and tries to take a picture of her brothers:

Look very closely, he is there-barely!

This makes for one frustrated Sissy!

I did want to share the Garlic shrimp and Grits recipe with you. It was such a treat and very impressive! It came from Southern Living, so you know it has to be good- and yes, to one of my anonymous people out there- I guess it is a southern thing- and a darn good one at that!

Prep: 20 min., Cook: 15 min.
Makes 4 servings
Ingredients
1 pound unpeeled, medium-size fresh shrimp, cooked
3 cups water
1 cup whipping cream
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup quick-cooking grits, uncooked
1 cup (4 ounces) shredded extra-sharp Cheddar cheese
2 garlic cloves, minced
Garnishes: chopped fresh chives, peeled and cooked shrimp, freshly ground black pepper
Preparation
Peel shrimp, and devein, if desired.
Bring 3 cups water, cream, butter, and salt to a boil in a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium, and whisk in grits. Cook, whisking constantly, 7 to 8 minutes or until mixture is smooth. Stir in 1 pound shrimp, cheese, and garlic, and cook 1 to 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Garnish, if desired.

Speaking of impressive:

Several of the pumpkins were ready to be picked. This one is huge! You can't tell from this picture- I will take one this weekend with the baby sitting on it.

I am off to get ready for the New Parent Orientation at our school tonight. Have a great Thursday!

Honeymoon With Mini Cinamon Rolls On Top

2009-08-05T07:25:00.004-05:00

We had these mini cinnamon rolls for breakfast this morning. They are the same ones we made for the teachers yesterday. I thought I would snap a picture and share the recipe.

Mini Cinnamon Rolls

Refrigerated Crescent Rolls

Cinnamon

Sugar

Powered Sugar

Unroll the Crescent rolls to form 4 rectangles, press along the perforated lines. Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon- as much or as little as you like. Roll (like a jellyroll). Cut into 8 pieces. Place on a baking sheet. Cook at 375 for about 8 minutes.

Mix powered sugar and milk for icing, spread over rolls when cooled.

Don't forget to cut the Box Top off the Crescent Roll paper for your school- we raised a lot of money for our school last year just by cutting Box tops!!!

Oh, as for the Honeymoon part of this post, it's the name of my china in the picture. I love it! I love it so much that I never use it. In fact, these little gems are the only food that has ever touched any of the plates. You might think there is coffee in that cup, but there is not- I would never risk staining the inside- ha ha ha - how ridiculous is that???? I do think that when my children are old enough to carry their own plate without dropping it on the brick floor(bye, bye china) we will pull out some real plates and use them!

All this reminds me of a story that I will now share with you because I love you and I know you want to hear it. When Ryan and I got married, we moved into my grandmother's house. She had a living room that we really could not go in when we were little(it had white carpet) much less sit on the furniture. When we got ready to move into our new house, my deddy was asking me what furniture we were going to put in out den. I told him the sofas from grandmama's living room- he looked at me with a little bit of shock on his face and said," you mean people are going to.." he couldn't finish before I interrupted and said, "yes, deddy I am going to let people sit on those wonderful sofas"! We both laughed at how silly it was that for years and years nobody had ever been able to enjoy the sofas because they were too nice.

Have a great day and enjoy what you have!!!

We Love Our Teachers!

2009-08-04T13:45:00.004-05:00

I am on a committee at school that "helps" the teachers and administration. This morning we welcomed them back with a breakfast. It was so nice and they were thrilled!We love the teachers at our school and we want to spoil them. This year we have a few surprises for them, we love doing new things because they so appreciate everything we do! Normally at the back to school breakfast, we have the typical breakfast casserole, fruit, juice and some kind of pastry (from Sam's). This year the menu was different: Garlic Shrimp and Grits, homemade mini cinnamon rolls, individual ham and egg "muffins" ( I call them "muffins" because you make them in a muffin tin, but that's the only "muffin" thing about them), a variety of fruit and plenty of juice and coffee. It was wonderful.

I thought I would share the recipe for the Baked Ham and Egg "Muffins":

Thick sliced Virginia baked or black Forrest Ham

Eggs

Medium Cheddar Cheese

Put the ham down in the muffin tin, like you would a paper cupcake wrapper. Beat eggs and pour into the ham "wrapper". Salt and pepper to taste. Top with cheese and bake at 350 for about 15 minutes.

The lady who gave me this recipe said she cooks this in the morning before school in a coffee cup, in the microwave, for 2 minutes and lets her children eat it in the car on the way to school- how great is that!!!! I am not even a big ham or egg fan and I thought it was really good! I wish I had gotten a good picture of them, but you can see one on the plate, of the teacher in the brown shirt- she is great too!

By the way, the teachers in this picture might not look happy, but that's because they hadn't eaten yet!

A Pie You Gotta Try!

2009-08-03T12:13:00.005-05:00

Ok- summer is almost gone and I have been promising you this recipe. You gotta try it before summer is over- make it for your family now, then wow your friends at a big Labor Day party! It is so good! It is very refreshing and everybody loves it!

Wow your Family Peanut Butter Pie!

Crust:
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter (I make mine a heaping cup)
1/2 cup light corn syrup
2 cups Rice Krispies cereal
Blend peanut butter with corn syrup. Add Rice Krispies and stir until coated. Press into an 8 inch pie pan- Refrigerate for 1 hour

Pie:
1/2 gallon ice cream- vanilla, softened (I have used chocolate before- it's good too!)
Fill crust with softened ice cream- I get the Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla in the 1/2 gallon container- I get pretty much the entire thing in there- you have to mound it up-it might not be the prettiest pie you have ever made- but it sure tastes good. (I do have a very pretty pie I make in the fall/winter, more on that one later...) Re-freeze for about an hour before serving or leave it in the freezer for up to one week.

I got out every drop I could

Hot Fudge Sauce:
1 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cocoa
1 tablespoon dark corn syrup
1/2 cup milk

1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
Combine sugar, cocoa, corn syrup, and milk in a med. sauce pan- bring to a boil. Add butter, salt and vanilla- stirring constantly. Serve hot. Pour it over the large slice of pie before you serve it. I pour it into a mason jar so I can warm it up each time I cut myself a piece of pie. I know this chocolate seems like a lot of work, but do it- it is so worth it!

Ta da!!

You can tell how happy he is, can't you!

Why Sleep When You Can...

2009-07-31T08:39:00.004-05:00

We got one of the Wonder Twins a camera before she went to camp. I guess I should have taken it away from her when she got home. I got it yesterday morning to put the pictures on the computer and I guess instead of sleeping the night before they did this:

This is just a small sampling of their "photo shoot", there were 111 pictures total. I think it started out with just one Wonder Twin because there were just pictures of her feet and stuff in her room. She must have been joined by the other Wonder Twin next and then Sissy got pulled in- she doesn't want to miss out on a good time! Now remember, this was all after we had brushed teeth, said prayers, gotten tucked in, and the baby was fast asleep! AHHHH- what is it with my children and sleep?!?!?

Lunchtime!

2009-07-30T09:15:00.003-05:00

This is what I had for lunch yesterday- it was wonderful! I started with some homemade honey/wheat bread that mama picked up at the farmers market, I toasted it-twice. I then put on a thin layer of that mayo that has olive oil in it- I know it doesn't look like a thin layer in this picture, but after I added everything it all squished to the edge-really! I cut up some local tomatoes, added some turkey bacon and then topped it off with 1/2 an avocado- hey that's good fat! I get a sandwich at Atlanta Bread that has avocado in it and since it is summertime and I am a recluse, I thought I would just make one. It isn't as good as Atlanta Bread- they won't be calling to offer me a job, but for my kitchen- it was great! It is tall- you might pull a muscle in your neck trying to open your mouth wide enough, so be careful, because if you do, you might not be able to iron that afternoon! Now run to Yall-mart and grab an avocado and get busy- you will be glad you did!

Head In the Clouds

2009-07-29T10:59:00.004-05:00

Do you ever wish you could just do this?

They stood and looked up at the clouds for a long time.

They found all kinds of things floating in the clouds- it was great to hear what they were seeing- it was also very interesting to hear the difference in the things my left handed children saw and what my right handed saw.

I am hoping to take time this afternoon to do a little cloud watching with them- it won't be long before we are homework watching!

A Fun New Toy!

2009-07-24T15:01:00.006-05:00

The other day we were working in the yard and my parents came by. They were walking around near the road (our house is set back from the road a bit). My mama spotted a great new toy!

It is amazing how this toy can provide hours of fun, but the baby doesn't get to ride- so he gets his own toy to push around!

Don't worry- we are always safe- the Wonder Twin put a car seat in there!

Have a great weekend!

Lessons

2009-07-22T13:18:00.003-05:00

I thought I would share a few things I have learned from the first half of this week:

I am not ready for school to start back

Camp- it is a fun idea before you go, but when you get there it might not be

I am not ready for school to start back

Our family is out of whack when one of the children is gone

I am not ready for school to start back

I love it when the summer reading is almost done!

I took one of my children to camp this week. It was not a good experience. I thought it would be ok- it was not. I am sure by now, everybody at camp is having fun, but this child of mine has never spent the night away from home- maybe twice with grandparents, but that covers it. My husband says that this is the last camp experience any of us will ever have- we will see about that.

I had a meeting at school yesterday. It was a great meeting, but it made me realize that summer is quickly coming to an end and I am so not ready! I think I am in the minority, I hear parents say all the time that they are ready for school to start back. I guess I just feel like they will only be home for so many years- I just want to enjoy them! There are also some things we wanted to do this summer that we haven't done yet. We have been to the river, but we told them we would go to the lake. The lake is about 45 minutes from our house- why would we have not taken our children there? Is the yard work really that important? There are 3 weekends left- maybe we will get there...

I need to go comfort my out of whack children!

Weekend Plans

2009-07-17T14:32:00.004-05:00

It's Friday and we hope to be doing a little of this this weekend

And some of this

Maybe some of this

If the weather cooperates, some of this:

And, we hope, a lot of this!

Have a wonderful weekend!

I have a great pie recipe for you next week- it is yummy!!!

Hair Today... Gone Tomorrow

2009-07-16T12:45:00.004-05:00

Well, I have acknowledged in the past few weeks that it was time for Baby to get a haircut! My sister asked if we were growing his out for Locks of love and stated that in only a few weeks his hair would be ready to make a full wig for some lucky child- it wasn't that bad! But it was time! Really it was just the back that was bad, very bad! We washed his hair and got him excited! Right out of the shower

After a little help from a brush

Haircut time!

Result- too big boy for me, but it will work for now-

Before:

After:

Killin' Time

2009-07-15T08:16:00.002-05:00

I had a cute blog planned for yesterday, but Ryan borrowed my camera for work on Monday. He brought the camera back, but forgot the cord to get the pictures into my computer. I took my camera with me yesterday on our outing. I got home, got ready to post on our morning and I couldn't- it would not be a good post without pictures, so now I am waiting, just waiting and hoping that the cord makes it home at lunch...

Short, But Sweet!

2009-07-13T07:59:00.005-05:00

This post is going to be short- I have tons to do today, but I wanted to give you this recipe. It is soooo good! You can use what ever you want for the "base"- blueberries, blackberries, or like the one Lee did here- chocolate chips. I will warn you, the chocolate chips make it very sweet. I am a chocolate person and I liked the blueberry better- especially the next day-WOW!

So here is what you need:

Here is how you do it:

Take a 9 x 13 dish and butter it

place chocolate chips (or blueberries) in the bottom to cover

In a bowl, combine 1 box Confectioners sugar, 1 block cream cheese- softened and 1/2 cup of water- stir

Pour on top of chocolate chips

Let that sit for a while

Next, pour a box of yellow cake mix on top- do not add anything to the cake mix, just pour it on top!

Now take 1 stick of butter and cut it into thin "pats" and place them on top of your cake mix

Pre heat you oven to 350 degrees and pop it in for about 45 minutes

Watch it- don't let it burn. When it comes, out it will look like this

Then get your brother-in-law to scoop out some ice cream and blob it on top-

Enjoy!

Gotta Go!

No Sleep Till...

2009-07-10T08:00:00.007-05:00

I went out to dinner last night with Natalie and her saintly sister. We had a wonderful time- Natalie looks great and is doing very well! When I got home, I was greeted by Banka- it was past his bedtime and he was sitting on the stairs. I went over, kissed him on the head and told him to go to bed. He got down on the ground and crawled toward the family room telling me that his foot was hurt. I took him to our bedroom with an icepack and let him sit there while I got ready for bed. Ryan explained to me that he had hurt it playing on this blow-up water"park" that Ava let us use. Tonight was the first night we set it up and of course, we have an injury. Ryan said when it happened the baby started saying - you need to go see Dr. Webber over and over again- this is the doctor he saw at Allsouth Urgent Care and really the only doctor he knows. He says something about seeing doctor Webber every time he gets a scratch. He thinks of a doctor as someone who looks at you head, eyes and ears and then says you are alright and gives you a sticker. Ok- this was not supposed to be a post on Dr. Webber- follow me back to the part of the spiderweb about Banka- he ends up conning us in to letting him make a pallet on the floor- mistake! Everything is fine for about an hour- I can tell he is not asleep, but he is ok. The he crawls over to me to let me now he is going to the bathroom- crawling and breathing heavy. It takes a few minutes and he is back on his pallet- words are exchanged between his daddy and him- something like- it is amazing how your foot did not bother you for two hours while you watched that movie- now GO TO SLEEP! About 30 more minutes and he crawls over to me and tells me his foot hurts- I tell him that daddy has to work tomorrow, please don't wake him, and to put a pillow under you foot. Another 10 minutes go by- lots of moaning and groaning and daddy is awake asking if we have any liquor in the house to knock him out. This starts a lot of crying from Banka who is afraid to be knocked out- I let him know that daddy is kidding and he puts a bigger pillow under his foot. This scene continues until at least 2:00. I did remind Ryan of our rule that Sweet Banka cannot watch movies before bed because he won't go to sleep- the TV way over stimulates him before bed. This morning, he was up bright and early. He is a child that needs very little sleep. A wonderful trait that he has inherited from his uncle.

Ryan tells me that Justin could go to bed very late and wake up very early and be just fine!

While I am on the subject of Banka, I thought I would let you know that little sleep is not his only good quality. He is also a child who loves- he loves his brother and sisters more than any child I have ever seen, he loves his cousins more than any child I have ever seen, he loves the Lord, he loves his parents, grandparents and friends. He is a sweet, sweet child who has a very innocent spirit. I am so blessed to have him as my child! And I have to say, if Banka turns out to be a mixture of Ryan and Justin he will be an all around wonderful man!

Have a great day- I am hoping to get a nap in-HA HA HA!!!

Courtney's Black Bean Dip and A Dead Coffee Maker

2009-07-09T08:04:00.004-05:00

Today I am bringing you the recipe for Courtney's Black Bean Salad, but it is really a dip. I have not gotten Courtney's permission to give it out, I have tried. She is at the beach and her cell phone gives me some lame message about not receiving any phone calls at this moment- whatever! I spent yesterday cleaning toilets and sinks, doing laundry and vacuuming and she was sitting on the beach, so, today I am giving you all the recipe.

I made this dip before we left for the river. I did not take any pictures of the process, but you won't need any. Here goes:

3 stalks of celery- chopped

1 large Bell Pepper- chopped

1 large purple onion- chopped

Then I put a big colander in my sink and pour in-

2 cans Shoe Peg corn (15 oz each)

2 cans black beans (15 oz each)

1 large jar pimento- diced

Obviously since I am pouring them into a colander, everything above is drained!

Place all the ingredients in a bowl

Then start on the marinade

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup white vinegar

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tsp salt

I make this in a jar and shake it well, then pour over veggies

Let it marinate for at least 3 hours or over night. I love this in the spring and summer. Like I have said before, it is cool , crisp and taste very fresh- just like summertime! I have a different one I like to do for fall and winter, but that is for another day!

Yesterday, Ryan got up to get his coffee- we have one of those coffee makers that has a timer on it so when he wakes up it is ready- anyway- the coffee was not made- the coffee maker is dead! Do you have a coffee maker you love? Let me know. We are using an old one he had from work, so we are not in a big rush, but I would love to hear about your favorite coffee maker!

Have a great day- enjoy the recipe! By the way- she really won't care that I have given it out- that's just the way she is, so please no comments about me being mean and giving out her recipe without asking first!

Taco Dip

2009-07-08T08:01:00.005-05:00

This recipe is so good! Get some quickly, because it doesn't stay around long!

Start by layering a can of Refried Beans in the bottom of dish

In a bowl, combine small container of sour cream and softened cream cheese

Add 3 tablespoons of Taco Seasoning

Add about 3 teaspoons of pressed garlic or more if you like garlic- I love garlic so I would add more

Stir

Place sour cream mixture on top of the beans

Top with "Mexican Style" grated cheese- there is no right or wrong amount here- Lee just took out a couple of big hand fulls. As you can tell, my model was pretty tired of me taking pictures of her, but don't think I let that stop me!

We added one can of chopped black olives, about 10 of those Roma tomatoes and chopped 5 green onions. You could add peppers, salsa, cilantro, or whatever Mexican condiment that you like - go crazy!

You can now save it until you are ready to serve it or you can go ahead and pop it in a 350 degree oven for about 10 minutes- this is really just to melt the cheese and warm it through. While you wait you can

paint your toe nails to look very patriotic or

look super cool driving a boat!

Then pull it out of the oven and get ready- but wait a few minutes before you dig in- it will burn your tongue and you won't be able to taste anything the rest of the day!

A very special thank you to Lee for making this wonderful dip and letting me take pictures while she did it!

It Was A Yummy 4th!

2009-07-06T18:35:00.008-05:00

We had a wonderful 4th of July weekend! For some reason, when we get together with my family, we eat, and we eat and then we eat some more! I thought I would do a post on the food we ate this 4th of July. Then I'll do another post on the other fun we had, but let's get to the important stuff first.

My mama made some spinach dip before we got there, so we would have something to snack on after the long ride to the river.

Then she pulled out her pimento cheese. I am not a fan of pimento cheese, but hers is sooo good!

We had not been there long, before the women got in the kitchen and started cooking- first we made this olive bread- my, oh my! You have no idea- this was out of this world. I got the recipe from another blog I read and we were not disappointed!

My sister got right to work on her blueberry dessert- it was slap yo' mama good, and it's even better the next day- you will not believe how easy it is either.

The boys were outside at the grill, cooking the steaks, but after we tasted that olive bread, we could have cared less about the steaks.

We also made a crunchy coleslaw- it was just right!

When we finished with dinner, the dessert was ready to come out of the oven. We put a little vanilla ice-cream on top and it was perfect!

We enjoyed dessert so much that after dinner, the girls piled up in the car and we headed to Wal-Mart to get ingredients for dessert for Saturday night.

We had a good breakfast, then we moved right into lunch. We had the olive spread from our olive bread as a dip- it was fine! Then we pulled out some of Courtney's Black Bean dip- it is so good. It is fresh, crisp and just right in the summer heat!

Lee then started on her Touchdown Taco dip-

It is full on Mexican goodness!

She then started working on her chocolate goodie dessert- it's just like the blueberry, but with chocolate chips instead of the blueberries- man alive!

A quick side note- this is my husband, he is not insensitive. A friend of mine commented that sometimes men say the right thing at the wrong time- and she was exactly right. When he said it, I gave him a hard time for a while, then we both laughed about it!

Have a great day- recipes to come later!

A Nice Thing To Say, But Not To Your Wife!

2009-07-06T10:23:00.003-05:00

A couple of weeks ago, Darby made dinner for Sissy's birthday party. It was wonderful! Enchiladas, black beans, all the fixins' and super-duper cupcakes. It was all so good! That night we started talking about her baby's birthday which was a few days later. I told her that I would be bringing dinner. She was happy to let me do it.

We got home, put the children to bed and I got out some of my favorite cookbooks. Ryan came in the room and asked what I was doing. I told him I would be making dinner for his family at John Martin's birthday party. "What do you think I should make" His reply "Call Darby and get her recipe for those enchiladas"

Pots

2009-07-02T09:12:00.005-05:00

Well, I should not have told you yesterday that I was going to do a post on pots. When I walked outside this morning, it looked like most of them had all had a heat stroke!

I took this picture with great sadness in my heart- how could you be so droopy?

But with a little water, some started to perk right up!

There are my hydrangeas- I have always loved hydrangeas- my mother has this huge oak tree with tons of hydrangeas under it. I have asked her if she will dig up the flower bed and move the 30 year old oak and all those hydrangeas to my house. She said no- she is often selfish like that!

I have rosemary in the full sun- where I have always heard it is supposed to be. It is very hard and stiff, my children call it poinky.

Please do not look at my petunias- they are so leggy and sad. You can look at what is holding all that soil in- we'll get to that a little later.

I have one that is in the full shade- it is soft, has gotten twice as big as the full sun rosemary and is wonderful! I have several of these rectangular pots. Picture them in the winter with the wonderful rosemary in the center surrounded by white pansies on all sides. It is as close to a winter wonderland as we get at our house.

Then there are these strange pot holders. I did not have pots that would fit so, a couple of years ago, I put co co liner in them and planted away. This year I got smart and put burlap, yes, the cheap stuff from any fabric store, in them. Let me tell you, it is wonderful! I will never go back to the peat moss or Co Co liner!

I have different kids of fern- I love them. They are happy on my loggia and my screen porch, they come in all different shapes, they are great fillers, and they just need a little love- they are great!

I liked this pot- if you can't tell. It is a rabbit holding a bowl. I put a rabbit's foot fern in it- ok- corny I know, but what else are you going to put in that little space?

Since around March, I have been on the look out for some Maidenhair Fern. I love it and would love to have it in my foyer. But it continues to elude me- it doesn't want to live here- I think that it thinks it will have a very short life at our house. If you know where to find some- that won't cost me an arm and a leg, let me know please.

Then there is my pot that I like with the plant that I strongly dislike- cast iron plant. It reminds me of snakes- as in, when it is planted in the ground, I think snakes live all in it- it completely creeps me out! So, until I can dig it out of my pots(I have two just a like), I just put a couple of flags in there and call it my patriotic pot!

Then there is this beauty! I had to let you see it from every direction- isn't she lovely? Isn't she wonderful? Isn't she precious? Less than one minute old- oh sorry- Stevie Wonder took over for a second. This pot is definitely more than one minute old. And the older it gets the better it looks!

I have a lot of empty pots, but I didn't think you would want to see them. My geraniums were not ready to have their picture made this morning- but they are spectacular! Most of these pots came from my mama. She has several greenhouses and is a certified Master Gardner. I can call and ask her anything about plants and she will have the answer. If you have any plant questions, you can call her any time of the day or night. Her phone number is... just kidding!

I have an idea for tomorrows post-check back in the a.m.

The Name Game

2009-07-01T09:26:00.005-05:00

Do you have nicknames for your children? When we were getting ready to name our 3rd or 4th child- I can't remember which one now, we were talking to this couple that we were friends with. We were discussing names and the husband looked at the wife and said- it doesn't matter what they name this baby, they will call it something completely different. You know what- he was right, but I didn't realize it until he said it. When I think about the children I know, a lot of them have nicknames- Darby talks about Baby John's nicknames in her post from today. I have been thinking about a nickname post for a while so here goes:

When they were born, we called this one Ladybug, which turned in to Bug-A-Lena, and has now been shortened to Bug. Just as soon as her twin could talk, he called her Ya Ya. This quickly caught on when any other sibling could talk. She loves it at home, but would die if any of her friends at school knew- so don't tell anybody-ok? And in the past two years we have added Wonder Twins to the list. We never really called them "The Twins" it just didn't have that special something we were looking for in a nickname.

This one we call Bank-A-Pina, which, of course, was shortened to Pina. Ok- I have just typed out several more of his and I have no clue how to spell them-and I was laughing so hard I cannot continue with his- I am afraid he would just end up looking like a boy with a lot of dorky names. But we can add Wonder Twin to this list.

This one we call Fordy, Sissy, Tiny Dancer, Princess Girl, cutie-pie, her cousins call her Giggles, and strange as it sounds, we call her Pants- it started off as Fordy pants, but ended up as just pants- it does not remind you of Michael Jackson calling his child Blanket- no it does not!

This one, as you know, is Baby. We also throw in Apple and Apple Pie. He also gets a Tiny Dancer every now and then. Mr. Mr. has worked, we had Mr. Man for a while, but then he met and grew to love someone he called Man, so the nickname Mr. Man just confused him. We tried Red for a while but it didn't work. Occasionally he is mama's red headed baby boy and the most touching, baby terradactyl- this comes from the delivery room- where his first sweet sounds made me wonder if he was a baby or a pre-historic bird!
I am sure I have left out several from each child- we might have a problem- why do we even bother giving our children real names? It is a serious question I might need to ponder the rest of the day- the laundry, the chores, lunch and dinner will have to wait...
As I ponder, I will be taking pictures of pots- stay tuned!

Over The Driveway and Through The Woods

2009-06-30T09:52:00.008-05:00

Well, through a group of trees, to Uma's house we go! On Saturday, we went to Uma's house to celebrate Sissy's birthday. We started by taking a little dip in the pool

After seeing his hair wet, I decided the mullet look was not becoming on him, so I think it is time for a haircut!

After drying off, we headed down to see some of our fine feathered friends.

Look closely and you can see one of my friends on her nest

With all the heat we have been having, they have really slacked off their job. Normally we get two of these egg crates full, but this week we only got 14- not that I'm complaining

Do you see those numbers on the eggs, that is how we tell how fresh they are. You notice that there are 3 with 6/27- yes, we took them right out from under her!

We told them thanks for their hard work and headed back to the house for dinner and some cake.

We had corn on the cob for dinner and you know what that means- well, maybe you don't. At Uma's house, when you have corn of the cob, you get to take the empty cobs to the goats- they love them and look hilarious eating them! Here's a picture- oh, wait, I forgot my camera. The baby asked if we could take a ride down the pizza road- we have no clue where that came from, but we took him for a ride around the lake. Then it was over to the orchard

We have a great time picking apples and peaches

Then we run around and try to make our faces as red as our shirts.

Sissy got a bag full of plums- those are not Doritos in that bag- we went to the orchard very unprepared- I had to send my nephew back to the house for my camera and forgot to ask him to get several big buckets for all the goods!

The blueberries are about 1/2 ready, 1/2 not- it is not fun to get the 1/2 that are not ready!

The pumpkins are coming right along

The grapes are looking grape! HA HA HA!

The scuppanons are not near ready(I have no clue if that is spelled correctly-I am the world's worst speller- don't laugh)

While I was taking this picture, one of the wonder twins walked down to the lake and said "hey, look at that BIG snake"

Ok- party's over- everybody on the golf cart- we are out of here. But wait, what's that? The perfect ending to a perfect day!

The Right Tool For The Job

2009-06-29T10:36:00.006-05:00

I have a project list. It is long- my poor husband! I love a project- he doesn't love a project, but he doesn't complain about it -much. I am big on having the right tool for the job- I think it is something I got from my deddy. He always has the right tool for the job. He doesn't say- let's just see if we can make this work- he has the right tool- so it works.
This is my favorite tool for cleaning the dishes.

I love it! Saturday was project day at our house and it started with my scrubber. I had to clean the eggs out of the pan from breakfast. It worked like a charm! Next we moved on to the project that we had started the night before (when I say we, what I mean is, I come up with the project and Ryan gets to do it- with help from his father-in-law)! The slope of our pond was driving me crazy. When I would look out my kitchen window, I would see a big black pipe and a messy slope.

I told Ryan I wanted it to look like walking into ocean- without the sand. He said he could do that, and it helped that he had the right tools for the job! First he made big mud pies for the children to play in- they loved it!

Then he got to work. Grandeddy got a little too close to the water... it starts to slide, Uma starts to sweat, and Ryan is just happy that it happened to Grandeddy and not him!

So, he had to be pulled out- again, we had the right tool for the job!

The next morning, it was back to work. We all went to watch, just in case he got too close to the water. 3 children were excited to be outside, 1 was not. I'll let you guess from the pictures who that 1 was.

Ryan worked all day ...

and it looks great! He says he's not finished yet, but it is so much better- I am thrilled!

When he finished, we headed over to Uma's for dinner and some fun, but that's tomorrow's post!

Natalie

2009-06-28T20:49:00.002-05:00

A quick update on Natalie- and a prayer request. Natalie came home from her long trip to Cleveland on Friday. She was in pain, but was ready to get home. On Saturday, her home-health nurse came by and took some blood. Her white blood count was way too high, so her sister rushed her to a local hospital. They did tests and it doesn't seem to be from the surgery- they are thinking it might be a secondary infection. So she was admitted to the hospital for a few days for an antibiotic drip. I know this is way too much information, but I am telling you this so to ask you to please pray for Natalie. Pray for a quick recovery from the surgery and that her body and the medication can fight this new infection. Thank you!

Ma Ann

2009-06-27T14:08:00.002-05:00

I know that you might not know our back door neighbor, but we loved her! I had known Ma Ann I guess all of my life, but when we were in our rental house, she was our back door neighbor. Every time we went outside the children wanted to go visit her- and you know what she wanted them to- every time! When she would go to the grocery store, she would buy cookies for them, but mainly for the baby. You see, when we moved into the rental house, he was crawling and wasn't talking much. It didn't take long before he was running to her house saying cookie- so she kept them in a special place for him. She was even more thrilled when he started saying Ma Ann! I loved to sit and talk with her, she was "old school" and knew all about our town. She also knew everything about everybody who lived here- sometimes I learned a lot more than I wanted to know. On Thursday night, as our family celebrated Sissy's birthday and the world watched as they learned that Michael Jackson had died, Ma Ann went to be with the Lord and the husband that she had missed so much! She will be missed, but she is thrilled to be where she is!

I Can't Think Of Anything Better...

2009-06-25T13:18:00.004-05:00

I can't think of anything better to do with my entire morning than iron our mountain of clothes!

I know some of you are thinking that you might rather be on a beach somewhere with a cool summer breeze blowing the salt air, toes in the sand and the sound of crashing waves. I had the wrinkled mound of clothes, a warm iron, the sound it makes while it turns the cool water into steam- oh, you know the sound, standing over the ironing board for a few hours, hearing Mommy, I'm weally, weally hungry! When is wunch?- that started about 9:30. I let him know that I would fix him lunch when I finished ironing- he then threw himself on the floor- knowing he would not be getting a meal for days! When my back told me it was time to stop, I had gotten about 1/2 way through the pile. My kitchen island looked like this- look at the clothes- not the mess! Focus-clothes-not the messy countertop!

I will now "spiderweb". Do you see that dress, the green one?

Ok, now you see it- it was a dress I got it several years ago- I'm having a give away. If you leave the 4th comment, you can be the new owner of this dress- HA! I am so not giving this dress away- you know why? It is now a shirt! It looks so cute with her little pair of jeans or some cute pink pants. That is why if you look closely, you will see 5 dresses of this style hanging there and about 7 more in her closet (you can't see the ones in her closet in this picture)- all ranging in size from a 1- the green one up to 5- not shown. Anyway I love this style- I call it my thinking ahead style- a dress for a couple of seasons, big growth spirt and it becomes a cute top!
For those of you who have never heard of "spiderwebbing", let me explain. It is what we girls do. Most of the time men do not "spiderweb" and cannot follow when women do it. Let's say we are talking about my mother and I am going to tell you where she lives. I would start by saying you head down the highway and you pass this bar-b-que restaurant- they have the best turkey salad and their strawberry shortcake is to die for! Speaking of Strawberry shortcake, I'm not sure if sissy will have a Strawberry shortcake party this year, I haven't talked to Gi Gi about that, but I did talk to Darby yesterday and she is making dinner for the surprise party. She will be bringing Enchiladas- I have a wonderful recipe for enchiladas too, I'll have to post it next time I make it. The recipe did not come from my mother- she has never even had my enchiladas!

Do you see, I started talking about one thing that lead to another, which lead to another and then back to the person we started out talking about- how many of you followed that? I got the term "spider webbing" from the conference we went to last fall and I thought it was great!
You all probably need a nap after all that- I think I'm a little crazy after all that ironing-maybe all that steam got to my head.

Water Snob

2009-06-24T13:59:00.004-05:00

We have a water snob at our house! Here she is

She has three of these bowls, two outside and one inside. They are all clean and we even put ice water in them on occasion, because it is so stinking hot!

She will not drink out of them.
When I go outside to water my pots, she will drink from the hose, as long as I am holding it, and a cool stream of fresh water is coming out.

Her favorite bowl is inside... or should I say bowls. They are nice- very nice. They are white porcelain. They always have water in them and with a family of 6, they are always being replenished with new water!

Please do not be offended that in the past two blogs I have told you about ants in my kitchen and now how we use the potty a lot around here!
Stay Cool!

Nothing But The Kitchen Sink

2009-06-23T13:52:00.004-05:00

You have heard- everything but the kitchen sink. Today I thought I would show you my kitchen sink.

First let me say that this sink started my love affair with e-bay. It was my first purchase there. I saw a sink that I loved in a kitchen magazine when we first started building our house. I called the magazine and they told me it was an Absolute Black granite sink. I called every stone company in my town to see if they had any or knew anything about a granite sink- they told me they could make me one. After picking myself up after passing out from the price they gave me, I looked on E-bay. I typed in Absolute Black Granite Farm sink and guess what came up- this beauty! I got it for less than 1/2 the price of someone here making it for me.

Second, let me tell you that I LOVE MY SINK!!! I know that sounds crazy, but I do. It is very wide, I can fit my largest cookie sheet on the bottom of the sink and scrub away any cookie remains that have been left on the pan for days because I was too lazy to wash them when the cookies were baked. It has rounded corners making it very easy to clean, and best of all it can hold(hide) a lot of dirty dishes, and because it is so deep, no one even knows they are there!

By the way, my sink is never empty, nor are my counter tops this clean. We had ants all over our kitchen this morning(lovely- I know you are now wanting to have a meal with us). The bug man came out and sprayed, so I had to clean off the counters. I thought you might be a little too impressed at how clean things "looked"!

S-U-R-P-R-I-S-E-!

2009-06-22T17:22:00.002-05:00

I know, two blogs in one day, but I just had to get this down, so I didn't forget! I was talking to Gi Gi and she said she would like to have birthday party for Sissy, but she needed to know what kind. Sissy will usually pick Hello Kitty or Strawberry Shortcake- it's a hard choice, but she always makes hard decisions like that. I got off the phone with Gi Gi and called Sissy into the kitchen, this is how the conversation went: "Sissy, Gi Gi wants to have a birthday party for you. She wants you to decide what kind you want- like Strawberry Shortcake or Hello Kitty or whatever you want".

"I know!!! I want a surprise party! I have never had a surprise party and it will be so much fun. I want a pinata there, and we won't have to buy one, because Gi Gi already has a hello Kitty one (pause) or could I go to the party store with her and look around?!?!?!?!? And then everybody can get down like this (she is crouching down as low as she can get) and jump up and yell surprise- this is going to be great!!!!

I tell her that of course we can have a surprise party at Gi Gi's house. I did not mention that most people don't plan their own surprise party- or maybe they do, and I just never knew that. Wow, you really do learn something new everyday!

There's something in the Water!

2009-06-22T13:45:00.005-05:00

We went to my sister-in-laws yesterday. They have just finished their new pool. It was wonderful, but I was very tired from counting heads oh- about every 30 seconds. Not just the heads of my own children, but the other 4 children that were there. I found myself going 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8- really fast, over and over again. So, I learned a lesson that I really already knew. Water(pool,lake,ocean,river,creek,puddle)+8 children=one nervous mama!

Stay cool!

CHEESE!!!!!

2009-06-19T08:28:00.010-05:00

I got my big camera out the other day. I haven't used it in a long time- a very long time. It had been packed up, in a safe place while we were in our rental houses. As I got it out and started playing with it, I heard "take my picture, take my picture- I have something to do for you..." And so he did:

Woo- slow down now, it's a still shot

This would be a mix between a yawn and that silly face I'm trying to do

Ah, there it is the silly face

Sissy and I have been practicing this for weeks

Can't remember what I'm supposed to do next

How about this?

Not very silly, out of focus, but look at that sweet face and those eyes. Oh, who is that trying to slide in on this photo shoot?

How surprising, it's one of the Wonder Twins- nice to have you with us Wonder Twin!

Happy Friday!!!

May Recap

2009-06-17T09:15:00.013-05:00

Lots of pictures- very few words...

This is actually the end of April, but who's keeping up with the details? Roses from Uma's garden- this is about 1/4 of the roses from the 4 bushes she has like these- the smell and the color-unbelievable!

We used the roses to decorate for the ACSI "tea" on April 26- it was very nice

And when I got home, this is what I found for super- what a wonderful surprise!

On May 8th we had our Mother's day tea at Sissy's school- do not adjust your computer- she had been sick on the Tuesday and Wednesday before- hence her grey appearance.

May 10 we had our nephews baptism, and spent mother's day at Darby and Justin's house enjoying the food, the pool, but most of all the company!

May 11th I helped with a tea for the pre-school teachers- this meant FUN for Sissy and Apple at Aunt Lee's house- yes, that is water coming through the trampoline!

May 13th- Sissy's splash party!

May 14th was the Mother's Day Tea for the Wonder Twins!

This one said the prayer- I could not have been more proud!

May 17 welcomes 12 wonderful years with my Construction Man!

Please do not be concerned- he is not sick, this picture was taken in January about 3 years ago- right before our fourth child was born- notice the nervous smile. He normally does not wear a jacket in the month of May!

May 21st is Sissy's graduation

Not many children in K-5 have a cheering section, but Aunt Lee never lets us down!

Memorial Day Weekend was spent at the river with my side of the family

May 27th is the Roman Feast at the Wonder Twin's school

Add in there some hanging out by the pool, several VBS meetings, a couple of Eagle's Guard meetings, a cataract surgery for Uma, several haircut appointments(with all these children, I need to learn how to do it myself), Study Club, lots of praying for various reasons and you've got one busy May!

By the way- this pool was a birthday gift from Aunt Lee last year- it made the move with us and has turned out to be the best money Aunt Lee ever spent! thanks for HOURS on fun by the pool !!!!

Natalie Update

2009-06-17T08:33:00.002-05:00

Please keep my friend Natalie in your prayers. On Monday, she had the surgeries that she had been needing for sometime. Everything went well, she is up and walking a little, but is in a lot of pain. Her sister, a saint, and her family drove Natalie to Cleveland on June 7th. They had to go through several doctors appointments and tests before they could do the surgeries. The doctors have told the saint that it will be a 10 day hospital stay. Please remember Natalie, Valerie, Mike- her husband and Maddy, their 5 year old daughter in your prayers! Sorry I have no pictures today- I wish I had one of that Maddy- she is so stinking cute!!!
Have a wonderful day and try to stay cool!

I Heart VBS!

2009-06-16T09:40:00.003-05:00

This is the craft room- can you tell that they are very crafty?!?!?

This is our Worship Rally- pictures do not do it justice. I am in awe of the talent that is used for our children!

Here is the Bible Story room- they children wrote their names on those crosses on the walls- it was pretty cool to see all the 1st-5th grade names written on those crosses, knowing that Christ died for them.

We had a great week at VBS this year! Beth and I start planning on Wednesday of the week of VBS for the next year. We try to have several meetings with the children's minister and the preschool minister from January to May- so by the time it gets here, we are ready! We should have known on Sunday night at the kick off, we would have more children than we had planned for- we ran out of drinks, plates and we had very little food left. On Monday, when the craft teacher came to let us know we would not have enough to do the 4 and 5th grades, we knew we had a great problem- more children than we had had in the past 3 years!!!! It is always hard work, but when you have the very best teachers as we do, the children have a blast and learn about how much they are loved by Jesus- what could be better?

Because we have the best VBS teachers in the world, we have a teacher treat room where they can come get a snack during the day- I'm not talking Goldfish and water- we had quiche, trifles, dips galore, fruit and veggie trays, homemade cinnamon rolls and the list goes on and on. It is a very small way for us to say thank you for all you do.

I will now be taking a list of names for people to work VBS next year as we go on An Adventure on the High Seas! Get ready- it's going to be great!

Great Book

2009-06-14T14:33:00.003-05:00

I am not a reader. Now, with that being said, I have a book you need to read. I got a list of recommended books a few years ago and this was one of the 56 books that was on the list. It is called Hind's Feet on High Places. It is by Hannah Hurnard and it is a great book. Today in Sunday school we were talking about great books that we need to read and this one popped into my mind. The "teacher" asked me if I had a favorite and I blurted it out. It seamed that no one had heard of it. How awful! Every Christian needs to read this book. It is about the struggles and trials that we are going through or will go through and how God uses them to bring us closer to Him. As we go through each struggle, He is bringing us closer and closer and building our faith. It is a hard book to start. The characters names are funny, and it takes getting used to (the main character's name is Much-Afraid). By about chapter three, you do not want to put it down- you have to find out what she is going to do next and if she will trust God to get to that High Place. I am telling you, IT IS GOOD! If you are a reader, you could easily finish this book in an afternoon. It will be one that I try to read every year! Hey- don't leave me hanging, if you have read it, let me know.

Checking In

2009-06-05T14:48:00.003-05:00

Thought I would check in on ya'll to let you know that VBS is almost here!!!! I think this week if Mother of the Year awards were given out, I would be in LAST place! I have been on the phone, on the computer and at meetings all week! Yesterday, while I was on the phone, C followed me around crying- well, screaming, for no reason other than the fact that I was on the phone AHHHHHH!!! I feel like now, when the phone rings, he starts crying, screaming and demanding stuff. I'm thinking that 3 is the new 2! I have lots of pictures to show you from the month of May- I will leave you with these...

Gota go help my mama make 400 haystacks for VBS!

Jon and Kate Plus 8

2009-05-29T15:37:00.004-05:00

Ok, so I know a lot of people are talking about this one. I haven't posted in so long and this is what I have chosen to come back with??? Yes! I had not watched in a while, I won't go into the reasons why- I just hadn't. I did watch this past Monday night. I figured they were making the previews look bad to get viewers and when I watched they were going to say - we are fine. That is not how it went. It was horrible! To watch a marriage crumble- my heart was breaking. To hear Kate say she didn't know what happened and she was happy, he was not. Then to hear Jon say that he was told to quit his job 2 years ago to stay home with the 8 children while Kate went on trips to "work". If I had her e-mail address, I would let her know what happened and a very easy way to fix it. I don't have her e-mail and as silly as it sounds, I was disturbed. I could not sleep. I kept thinking of the marriage conference that we went to this past fall- if anybody needed that book, Jon and Kate did! I got up and sent the people who wrote Love and Respect an e-mail at about 11:30 that night, then I prayed for them. The next morning I woke up and had a reply form Love and Respect that said something like: they had tried to contact Jon and Kate and they had tried to get them the book- no calls had been returned, we all just need to pray for them. So, I had prayed for them all day- until I talked to a friend of mine. She was telling me about another friend who was expecting a baby girl. They were told that the baby had trisomy 18 and were sent to Birmingham. They waited to hear the news about their baby girl. It turned out better than they could have hoped- she didn't have trisomy 18 and she was fine! This was a couple of weeks ago, when we talked on Tuesday afternoon, she had gone into labor on Sunday- it was early- too early and the baby didn't make it. I started thinking about this as I prayed now for this sweet family. They had no control of their situation- none of it. Then my thoughts went back to Jon and Kate- they have complete control of their situation-so, I will pray for their marriage, but I will not be watching the show. I know this all seems strange that I have put these two stories together. I cannot imagine what either family is going through, but one had no control over their situation, and the other has complete control over saving their marriage.

I am in charge of Vacation Bible School in a couple of weeks- I will be back with pictures and a wrap up of May when it's over! Thanks for being patient with me!

We Are Still Here!

2009-05-14T09:47:00.002-05:00

Hello to my 3 readers! We are still here. I feel like I have crammed 3 months into the past 2 weeks. The children don't get out of school until the very end of May, then VBS and I will be able to breath again. I normally love the month of May, but this one has been tough. I have just started a study (again) on the 23 Psalm. It is so good! You can listen too here: http://walkintheword.com/ just go to the broadcast icon and listen- be sure to have your Bible, a pencil and paper- you will want to take notes. I'll catch you up on my month another day.

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside the quiet waters, He restores my soul.

The Tree Is....

2009-04-25T20:43:00.003-05:00

An Elephant! It really does look just like one in person- it is kinda hard to tell from the picture- I took it driving 65 mph. down the highway- nice! The winner get to pass the tree anytime she wants to. Darby- next time you are going to the farm, look for the elephant- it's right before the turn to our house. I'll have another tree animal soon- it will be harder to get- it only looks like an animal from one tiny spot- I'll have to pull over and get on my car! that should be funny- the children will think it is great that mommy is on the car!
To answer a question asked- no C does not sleep in the car. I have to wake hi up to make him come with me to pick them up- so he cries most the way to school, but is better the 29 minutes back- fun times!
Have a great Sunday!

Name That Tree Animal

2009-04-25T07:24:00.002-05:00

We pass this tree everyday - several times a day. We think it looks just like an animal- what do you think? We have two more animal trees that we like to see- hey, it takes 29 minutes to get to school and 29 minutes to get home- do that twice a day and you might see animals in the trees too!

This has been a crazy week! The twins had SATs at school- woo hoo!!!! That means no homework all week! It was wonderful- it made me think what life would be like with no homework at all- grand! I am helping welcome a committee of people who are coming to observe our school next week. We did some fun baskets and planned snacks for them for Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. A little planning and a lot of running around made for a long week. Then there is Vacation Bible School. Planning is going great so far. We are changing things up a bit this year. I am looking forward to it, it will be so much fun! It is a lot of work, but when it is done, it is so worth it!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Don't Pat Me On The Back

2009-04-15T13:17:00.002-05:00

Thank you so much for the sweet comments that you left after my last post. I did feel like I needed to respond- the way my children share Jesus does NOT come from me. I have a lot to learn from them. If only I had their faith and courage. Thank you for being sweet, but I think it comes from their school, church and something that God put in them that they are using. I can't explain it, but it is there and has been for a long time. They are unique children!

We had a great Easter! He is risen!!! We got to spend time with both families and I got some pictures, but ended up doing more talking than taking pictures. Hope you have a great week.

Disney Cruise: The Mission Trip?

2009-04-10T21:49:00.003-05:00

I forgot the best part of our trip. After naps on Saturday, I met Ryan up at the pool. I looked over and saw B, LL and Charlie (one of our friends that was on the ship) talking to another boy. B is not a big talker. He normally doesn't say anything unless it is a subject he loves. When I looked over, he was talking away. I knew what he was talking about- I don't know how, but I just knew. On our way to dinner that night, I walked with B. It was just the two of us and I asked what they were talking about at the pool. He told me that they were playing and they asked the boy if he knew Jesus. He told them he did not. He then asked them if they were Muslim. They said no and explained a few things about Jesus. B said he didn't think the boy became a believer that day. Later, I was talking to LL about it. I asked if they had told the boy about how much Jesus loves him. She said,"No, but I did tell him if he didn't turn from his sin and accept Jesus as his Savior, he would go to hell". She isn't one to dance around the truth. Maybe we should work on our delivery. I was trilled that they took this opportunity to share what they love. What an example they are to me. I have told them that a seed has been planted, someone else will come water it and maybe it will grow. I could not have been more proud!

Spring Break Final Post!!!

2009-04-09T09:02:00.008-05:00

Friday night, after we had seen our "towel animals", we headed up for the pirate party. There was loud music playing and they had started to bring out all kinds of buffets. These are chocolate ships- they were huge!

I won't tell you whether or not the wind was blowing- you will have to guess...

Right after I took this picture, B said he wasn't feeling so good- the motion had started to get to him. He started turning green as we went down to our room. Everybody else stayed with daddy at the party. They had a blast. We all went to bed pretty late- again being rocked to sleep by the waves.

The next morning, C got us all up early asking if today was the day we got to ride on the boat.

We got dressed and headed to breakfast- a sit down breakfast today- buffets are too hard with 4

children! Some of us were awake for breakfast...

Some of us -not so much

After breakfast we were going to get off the ship to go to Disney's island. It was one of the prettiest places I have ever seen. The water color looks fake. It is breath taking!

The wind was blowing- hard! When the sand hit you it hurt. We stayed on the beach for a couple of hours. I thought I was covered by an umbrella, and I mostly was- everything but one shoulder. It was purple by dinner that night-ouch! I did get a few shots on the beach, but the pictures don't do it justice!

We aren't sure if this kid ever got out of the sand...

Just kidding, he was a friend who was on the boat with us!

B read a sign they have posted at the edge of the sand that said something about a warning- there are real marine life in the ocean- sharks, jellyfish, barracuda, sand lice etc. I can't remember what else it named. I saw him sitting in this chair.

I asked him what was wrong and he asked me if barracuda have very sharp teeth. Do they take just one big bite or do they sort of gnaw your skin off. I told him I didn't know, but I didn't think he needed to worry about it- he told me that he was going back in the water. LL decided she wasn't crazy about the ocean either-

Now please remember, it was about 70 degrees in the sun, the wind was blowing and that water was freezing!!!! I'm sure this won't have lasting effects on whether or not they ever get back in the ocean!

We went to lunch on the island, then it was nap time. So we all headed back to the boat. I had to get one picture of my children all together on the sand. You can't tell but they are all getting "stung" by the sand! Thank you for being good sports for the sake of a picture!

That night, we had dinner at Animators Palate- it was WONDERFUL! In true Disney style, the restaurant starts off in black and white, then, as you meal progresses, so does the color in the restaurant. It was a show in itself.

For dinner that night I tried the polenta with portabella mushrooms- it was the best thing I had on the ship!!! Then I had the black bean cakes with rice and veggie mixture. For dessert- the sweet temptations- orange cranberry cheesecake, double fudge cake and an orange flavored cookie with cranberry cream in the center topped with a strawberry slice- very nice!

It was our last night with our waiters- they had been with us every night and were wonderful. They even "Disneyed" up the ketchup.

We had to have our picture made with them before we left.

We then headed to our last show- Disney Dreams-wow! They saved the best for last! It was so good! they pulled out all the stops! Before the show got started, the cruise director came on stage and told us we needed to give the captain a big hand. He docked the ship in winds over 30 mph. He thought we wouldn't be able to do it, but he did.

We then headed back to our rooms to finish packing and get our bags out side our cabins. The Disney crew takes your luggage and puts it right outside of customs for you, in rows, by color and room number. It took us about 20 seconds to get our luggage the next day- they are amazingly organized- I love it! We needed to get to bed because we had breakfast at 6:30 the next morning. We made it, with a few fits pitched. We then looked at the pictures that the photographers on the ship had made, took a potty break and headed off the boat. We had to stop by lost and found. LF had lost her sand toys on the beach and guess what- the fine people at Disney had put them in lost and found. We then got our luggage- we were asked if we needed help- but who needs help when you have 4 children who all want to carry a bag?!?!? We went through customs- which I was worried about it taking a while, but it was very easy then walked out to get in our car.

I almost forgot, our last towel animal-

LF was so excited because it had her sunglasses on! Thank you Disney for a wonderful trip!

I do feel so blessed that Ryan was able to take us on vacation. It is not often that he takes off work. I had a wonderful time just being with my family and some very good friends. I don't think it matters where we go, but the memories that we made all being together were worth every penny. Thank you Ryan- I love you!

Spring Break '09- part who knows?

2009-04-06T13:32:00.006-05:00

Well, this has taken a lot longer than I thought it would. I had thought about this while I was on my trip and had envisioned a three day blog about our trip. Oh well- I meant to tell you in my last post what I had for dinner- because I am sure you were wondering... I had the Caribbean roasted chicken with corn kernels and spinach with a spicy glaze and mashed sweet potatoes. It was all wonderful! For dessert, I got the "Sweet Temptations" this was a small portion of three desserts- lemon meringue pie, cheesecake and chocolate smore cake. The lemon was the best and I am a chocolate person! I also meant to show you that C an I slept here

and Sissy slept here

After breakfast, we walked around the ship. We found some friends and had a picture made with them. Even B got in on the action

I have just noticed that LL and B are holding hands- pretty normal that they are holding hands with each other and not with Sissy!

After we walked around a bit, 3 of the children wanted to go to the kids club. We signed them up and off they went. The twins were going to art class. I couldn't wait to see what they were going to make. LF was going to cooking class to make chocolate chip cookies. That left us with just one child. It was fun being with him. I'm not sure that Ryan and I have been with him- just him and the two of us. He had a great time. He "got naked like daddy" (took his shirt off),

he got to meet Captain Hook,

then he met Donald Duck and we got to take him to lunch. It was a fun morning!

It was then time for a nap. After nap time we met Ryan and the twins at the pool. Let me take the opportunity to let you know that I am not a fan of a public pool.

Right after I took this picture, I bribed the two little ones with cookies to get out.

They did and we went to the room to get ready for dinner. We ate at Tritons that night. It was wonderful. I know you are wondering... I got the shrimp cocktail- 3 shrimp with a wonderful sauce to dip them in, a citrus and avocado salad with a lemon dressing that was out of this world! For dinner a wild mushroom risotto that was very good.

We were then off to the show. It was Toy Story and was very good. The children had a front row seat again, and they loved it.

When we got back to our rooms, this is what we saw

and this in Ryan's room- we think it is a dog- maybe a bunny

Gotta go pick up the twins- see ya real soon-

I'm Trying...

2009-04-03T18:29:00.005-05:00

I have been trying to get back to you since Tuesday. When LF got home from school on Tuesday, she told me about a game they are having at school where you read 20 books and you get to write them down and turn it into your teacher. She was so excited. I explained to her that she could read 1 a night and we would finish on time. She said she would gather up the 20 books she wanted to read after her nap. When we got home from picking up B and LL from school, it was raining. LF said she wanted to start reading, so she could finish up tonight- I laughed. She sat in my lap and started to read- 19 books later, I told her she had to stop so daddy could enjoy reading time- I was exhausted! We read #20 the next morning and she finished! She was thrilled- her teacher- not so much. We are now reading one book a night- much better! Obviously, no time to blog on Tuesday.

Wednesday, C was jumping on my bed. He feel off and hit the back of his head on the bed-side-table. His nose started bleeding- I thought this was very strange because he hit the back of his head. All I could think of was that actress who just died from head trauma. We went to to the same place I took LF for her fever virus, we got the same wonderful treatment we got with her- I love that place!!! He's fine- no blogging on Wednesday.

Late Wednesday night, B's eye was red, I knew what it was and I knew where it came from. I also knew what I would be doing on Thursday. We headed to our favorite eye doctor, and he confirmed- pink eye- yuck! Lots of people get souvenirs on trips- B got pink eye. LL was getting out of school early because of the weather- everyone was at home with it pouring rain outside. I was trying to keep B from touching anything or anyone. Then Ryan got home and told me what had happened to Darby's brother-in-law. Read the story on her blog. It is crazy, but was very scary for a while. Chance is his name and I feel so lucky to know him. I have to say he is really a neat guy! He would not want to be known as neat, but he is. He can fix anything, he loves his wife, and he loves Darby's children. He is the type of person who would do anything for you! He is neat! Daddy-boy(Darby's daddy) is truly blessed with two wonderful son-in-laws!!! So say a prayer for Chance and Erica please. Again- no blogging for me on Thursday.

Now it is Friday. B and LL are at their baseball game. C and LF are going to bed in a little while and I knew this was my chance. So here goes...

Spring Break '09 part 2

We were ushered into a large restaurant where we had our first meal. Our rooms were not ready yet, but we knew it wouldn't be long. Ryan spent most of the meal on his phone. I told him I knew our vacation would start when he turned his phone off. I thought this would work- it did not. He did turn it off as we were pulling away from the port. We had a great meal, saw Donald duck, and went up to the top deck to wait for our rooms to be ready.

Once we got in our rooms, it was time for C to take a nap. The pack and play was too big for the room, so I had to put it on top of the bed. I put him in it, shut the curtain that separated to bed from the room and did not talk to him. It took about 5 minutes and he was out. The captain came over the loud speaker- which was right above the bed- 4 times. It didn't wake him until the last time when he was telling us we had to put our life vests on and go to our safe area for practice before we could disembark. It was pretty funny seeing all these people in orange life vests.

After that, it was time for us to leave port.

On the video they send you, when the ship is pulling out, all these people with Mickey gloves on, are waving like crazy to the people on the boat. I guess only two people got the memo that we were leaving.

Right after we had left the port, we passed an asphalt plant- a reminder of home for Ryan- so I had to take a picture- what are the chances that we pass an asphalt plant on a cruise?!?!?

At dinner that night, we got a surprise. Some friends of ours were at our table with us. They have 4 children too, so it was a big table with a lot of fun!

The first night was very rough. We were going fast and the seas were rough. People were getting sick on the decks and right down from us during the show. The show the first night was really good. We had great seats and we let the older children sit on the front row. We were all ready for bed after the show, so we went to our rooms. When we got there we found a swan made out of a towel- it was very exciting!!! LF was in the room with me and asked what that noise was- it was the coat hangers in the closet hitting each other with each wave! We were rocked to sleep that night.

We woke up early the next morning thanks to C. He wanted to know when we were getting on the boat and was Grandeddy going to drive. We went to breakfast, then we docked in Nassau. We could see the Atlantis during breakfast and knew we had better take a picture. This was probably the only time we will ever see it. It is huge! It was a little windy- as you can tell from C's hair!

I'll start here tomorrow. I have two little ones to put to bed and a lot of laundry to do. See Ya Real Soon!

Spring Break '09- Part 1

2009-03-30T13:35:00.004-05:00

I am doing this in two, maybe three parts because of time and really who has time to read a lot- especially about someone else's vacation! We left the house Wednesday about 3:30 p.m. I knew we would be leaving late because Ryan got a call that they could pave that morning before the rain came in. He had said we would be on the road way before 2:00- but I knew better! Off we went. I had gotten us all packed, the car loaded, all the laundry was done and I had vacuumed the house! We were headed to Ocala to spend the night. We stopped at a Steak and Shake to eat dinner- my children were thrilled! We did not go in- just to the drive through and it took at least 20 minutes. We arrived in Ocala. I had booked a room through travelosity- so I had no idea what it looked like- it was very nice, very clean and we were very pleased!

The only problem was trying to get the children to settle down after being in the car so long. C just wanted to run, but we were in a hotel. By the time we got in the bed, he wouldn't stop talking- not really about anything-he just wanted everybody awake and everybody was! We finally got to sleep, Ryan woke me up early the next morning to let me know he was going downstairs to talk on the phone. We were expecting some rain in our town and he needed to get somethings settled. A little while later, he came to get the children to go down to the breakfast that the hotel had. Then we packed up and headed south- well, southeast.
We arrived where we were going, after taking only one wrong turn. Ryan parked the car and we started the process of checking in. Show your licence here, your birth certificate here, get your picture made over there and your children's arm bands over there. WOW! It was a busy time- especially with 4 children. I was very glad we had taken the stroller for C. The lady that was taking the pictures for identification purposes asked us to put him back in the stroller so she could get a clear picture of him. When he got out, he would just jump.

We got all the important paper work taken care of and we just had to wait until they called our number to board- yes, we were going on a Disney Cruise! I'm sure you could tell from the picture, you can see the boat and Mickey. Let me tell you, they are not fools. While you are waiting, they bring out Mickey, Goofy and anybody else they can- nobody minds waiting because the children are so happy to see them!
B was not too excited about the characters-well, I think he thought he wasn't supposed to be. He really was, but did not want his picture made with them- I told him that was fine, but he did have to have his picture made with me!

He was fine with that, but everybody else wanted Goofy!

C told Goofy that he watches him on TV- Goofy didn't say anything back. This was very disturbing to C and wanted to know for that day and the next why Goofy wouldn't talk to him. Right after the picture was made it was time for #'s 2-8 to board the ship- that was us!! So on we went!!!
We got in line and my phone rang- it was my sister. I answered and C started crying because he had to go to the bathroom- it was one of those times where I knew he really had to go- he was doing a little dance. We couldn't take him. We had already shown our id's. We were sort of half on the boat, half off the boat. He just needed a distraction- Aunt LEE!!!!! He loves to talk on the phone and he loves to talk to aunt Lee. It was perfect timing- thank you Jesus! It worked, we got on and found the bathroom- which was very nice I might add!
More tomorrow! See ya real soon!

Share Spring

2009-03-24T07:15:00.004-05:00

I went by Gi Gi's house the other day. When I pulled up, I saw this

They are so pretty! This picture does nothing for them. She had them in two different locations and there must have been hundreds of them. They are amazing!

Just thought I would share a little spring with you today!

Happy Spring Break!!!

Natalie Update

2009-03-19T14:00:00.002-05:00

Wow- the past two days with Natalie have been crazy. She visited two doctors yesterday. Her 11:00 appointment, the doctor told her - surgery asap. Her 3:00 appointment, the doctor said- they, the other three doctors, are reading this MRI wrong- you do not need surgery. She was ecstatic to say the least. He was going to call for another MRI and blood work to confirm. She had them last night around 8:00- what a day. This afternoon, she got news that he was wrong- very wrong. It is bad and surgery is needed. She will be looking at one option at the Cleveland Clinic or back to Chicago.

I listen to a bible study on-line . He is doing a series called Always True: 5 Great and Precious Promises from God. It is so good! Man! It is feeding me with things I love to hear and things that sting me! One thing he said yesterday that I wrote in my notes was, "I don't know your situation, but wrap your arms around this: God is in control- no matter what!" Sometimes I think that might be hard to hear- you might question where He is and how could He let things happened. Other times it is so comforting. For me, looking at my friend who is hurting, it is very comforting, but I know for her it is hard. Please pray fro my friend, Natalie.

More Yucky News

2009-03-17T19:05:00.002-05:00

Please continue to pray for Natalie. She saw another doctor today who told her she need surgery asap! This is NOT what she wanted to hear. She has two doctors to see tomorrow. Please pray for another way. She does not want to have the surgery they are telling her she has to have! Thank you so much!

Prayer For Natalie

2009-03-16T21:16:00.003-05:00

I asked for prayers for my friend Natalie a few weeks ago. She has been home taking treatments. She went back to Chicago yesterday. She met with one doctor today who gave her some bad news. She will meet with two more doctors in the next two days. Please pray for different options for her. I know this is very vague, but I am not comfortable giving out details about this right now. Just know that she, and her daddy who is with her, both need your prayers.
Thank you!

Happy Birthday Gi Gi!

2009-03-16T13:11:00.001-05:00

Last night had all of Ryan's family over to celebrate Gi Gi's birthday. It was so much fun! I have a great time talking to the girls- at this point we can almost carry on a conversation for about three minutes before somebody needs us. Here is Darby- she finally got to start eating- after she had gotten up at least 5 times- then I decided to take her picture with food in her mouth- food in the mouth always makes a great picture!

The children all play together well- they are all very sweet. The guys all gathered on the back porch while Ryan grilled some of our dinner. Most of the time, when we get together, Gi Gi disappears with all the children, so the sister-in-laws can talk for a little longer- it is very nice to be able to see them and catch up!

Here she is with all the grandchildren- minus this one who was in a highchair and nobody got him out! Man- he is a cutie-pie!!!!!

We had two kinds of pork- both recipes from friends, potato casserole also from a friend, grilled asparagus that had been marinated in balsamic vinegar and my mama had made a birthday pie.

The food was great, but the company was better! Nothing fancy here- just good fellowship! We hope you had a wonderful birthday Gi Gi! We look forward to celebrating with you again!