Happy Birthday Cole!

Cole turned 7! What a wonderful son he is!

Artwork

I am tired, but it has been a while since I posted and I am tired of looking at the previous title. So, just to change things, and since I can't think right now, check out this oil painting that Jan Bower did of Cole and one of Jan's daughters. They are sitting on our front porch. Isn't it neat! I have a couple of prints that I am going to frame for some family Christmas gifts. If you want to check out her web site, it is really cool. http://www.janbower.com

Week Off

Well, I really haven't done much the past couple of days. Slept in, went to conferences, and have just been catching up on things here at home. It is really nice. The kids have enjoyed sleeping in and realaxing and playing together at home. I made a nice dinner last night; chicken, fresh green beans and rice. It was really good. I didn't get time to make dessert, but we don't need it anyways. :) Today I am hoping to get some shades for some of our windows. We haven't had any shades or blinds in our livingroom, and we just have sheer curtains. Well, I will let you know how it goes.

Update

Update on Katie~ Thank you for the prayers, she is doing amazingly better! If you would like you can check out her 'carepage' at www.carepages.com patient page name is knissfamily

It gives updates on her progress. It is very neat to see how God has healed her so quickly.

THANKFUL

• I am thankful for a VERY hard working man who takes care of us
• I am thankful for my three wonderful children, each different in their own way
• I am thankful for a loving God who cares enough to listen to our prayers....I have seen a whole lot of miracles this year!
• I am thankful for living near my family, including my aunts and cousins
• I am thankful for my friends who are always there for me to have laugh, cry, and have fun
• I am thankful for the family of Christ who support eachother in joy and sorrow

Wow! It has been a while!

Well, things have been busy, nothing too exciting, just lots to do. Morgan had a kidney infection, so that kept me home from work one day, and home for the next 3 days. She is doing much better now. We have been praying specifically for a total healing of her kidneys. She has a reflux and this causes the infections. At work thy moved me back to the 4 & 5 year olds. This is a nice change. I love working with the babies, but it gets kinda busy, with NO down time since we have a ratio of 1-4! So, the change has been nice, but I am not sure how long it will be for.

It has snowed here, and it looks so pretty. I have put out some Christmas decorations, I love Christmas! For Thanksgiving, we will be going to my aunt's for dinner along with my mom. It will be nice to cook only a little bit, but I love having people over too.

I have this whole week off from work! I am excited to relax. We have no plans except 2 hours of parent/teacher conferences, and Thanksgiving dinner! Oh, and SHOPPING on Friday! Yea! Well, I hope all have a wonderful Thanksgiving week!

Happy Birthday Buckwheat!

Happy 28th birthday to my little Brother! I love you!

We Are Toasty!

We are warm and toasty now. Minor details, Mike's brother forgot to close the door on the furnace, and it somehow automatically shuts off for security, and doesn't come back on until the door is closed. Mike found it, and screwed it shut! Yea!

Heat Is Nice

Okay, I am posting wearing my winter ski jacket. Our furnace has been on the fritz. On Tuesday it went out over night, but Mike was able to get a part and fix it on Wednesday. Well, on Saturday it went out and we called Mike's brother (who is a furnace guy) and he thought we needed this certain part, wait until Monday. So today he put the new part on and I got home and it is 59 degrees in here. I am chilly. So, I am not sure what will happen from here. I hope we don't need a new furnace. I hate spending money on things like that :(

My Friend Katie

Pray for Katie. She has been in a very serious auto accident.

Picking Apples

 

Fun At The Pumpkin Farm

We went to the pumpkin farm with brownies. Tori is in pink. Morgan in the blue coat.

Our Yellow House

Both views are from the front. The roof is green, but it doesn't look like it because it is wet.

Update

Let's see...Morgan's sleepover went well. Only 4 other girls plus our 2 (and Cole). They all got along pretty well, but were up until 1:30am (which is when I went to bed)or later!

My birthday was great! I had a wonderful birthday. I had the day off from work. I met Mom for breakfast and she gave me these bowls I have been wanting. She also gave me some money to go pick out an outfit, which is always fun! So off to shopping I went! All day! Because Mike also gave me money to buy.........you guessed it.........a DIGITAL CAMERA! I got to shop to pick it out! It is a really nice one and so far has been easy to use. I still have not downloaded any pictures to try to blog them or e-mail, but I think I will later tonight. I also got a couple of cards, and my brother sent me the best card I have ever gotten, a REALLY nice letter. He also gave me some money to buy something special....which I still haven't done.

The weather has turned to winter already. I don't remember there being snow on my birthday ever! It is so cold and yucky! Makes me want to move somewhere warm.

I have another busy week. Girls night out tomorrow, Wednesday night church, and Friday night is a young marrieds party HERE! FUN!

Have a good week.

Sleepover II

The second sleepover gets underway at 6pm tonight. A few girls are coming this time. I think only four plus our two. Although, I am more concerned about this group of girls, hopefully there are no hurt feelings and pouting. And I am all by myself, Mike will be working this evening at a job that could only be done at night. Should be interesting.

Fall Weekend

Hello again! I had a great weekend. Somehow my schedule at work has been Monday, Tuesday, adn Wednesday for the past 5 weeks now. This is nice because I get a four day weekend. And this weekend was BEAUTIFUL! I love fall. My dad and stepmom took the kids all day Saturday, so Mike and I had a nice day and got a lot done. We were even able to go out to lunch together and do a little bit of shopping.

I made the reservation for our upcoming vacation. That is nice to have done. I have been kinda stressing over it because there are SO many places to choose from as far as where we wanted to stay. I am VERY excited to go on vacation, and leave the cold for a couple of weeks! We are driving to Florida, so it will be at least two weeks that we are gone. I am looking forward to it.

Honor

We were talking about Honor tonight at Young Marrieds group at church. I think it is an interesting topic. I personally think that people feel honored in different ways, partly by your personality. What do you all think? List some things that make you feel honored. For me I feel honored when someone takes time to spend with me; I feel honored when I get an invitation; and I feel honored by me children when they try to copy things I do. I don't know, just some thoughts on my mind tonight.

Sleepover Update

The sleepover went very well. The girls all got along well. However, they stayed up until 12:45! And were up all of them by 7:15! Ugh!! I rolled out of bed and made them eggs and hashbrowns. We get to do the whole thing over on the 13th for Morgan.

Today was a nice day. We went to church and then out for brunch buffet. When we got home we relaxed and read the paper and layed around. It was nice. The house should be done soon. We hired someone to do the trim now. We just don't seem to have the time to get to it, and when we do, it is raining or something. So, if we want it done this YEAR, we should hire someone. Hopefully I get a camera soon and can post a picture (I asked for one for my b-day!).

Sleepover

Tongit Tori is having all of the girls in her class over for a sleepover. It should be interesting. This is our first in the house. It should be fun. I just hope that all of the girls get along. Cole has escaped to Grandma's, so he should have fun over there. I am not sure what Mike will do. I am sure it won't be here though. Have a good Friday night!

Chiropractor

Today I went to the chiropractor for the first time ever. At the advice of my good friend I went to hers. It was great. I feel so much better. Occasionally I suffer from stiff neck, can't turn my head, etc. He checked everything out and said that I have quite a bad mis alignment, and even a bit of scoliosis. That freaked me out! Don't older people get that?!?! He said it is a different kind, and mine is not bad, but enough to make me uncomfortable and in this pain. He did some cracking, and snapping, and voila, I feel GREAT! I need to go back a few more times, to make sure everything stays where it should, it is worth it to me.

I Don't...

I don't have a digital camera. The picutres I posted were e-mailed from a friend. Didn't she take good pictures? And I even figured out how to post them...it took me a while, but once I figured it out it was actually easy. I am kinda proud of myself for posting them.

Girls Getaway!

This is where we were shopping.

This is the room we stayed in at Bay Harbor. So pretty!

My Dream House

We now have a yellow house with white trim....I love it. Our house is a two story 100 year old house with a nice porch, so the yellow with the white trim looks really nice. I am not too sure what Mike thinks about it, but he said I could pick the color ;)

Our Busy Weekend

Let's see.....Friday I worked all day and it was a long one for me; 8:45-6. After work my Mom and I met some friends at a park and we visited together and let the kids play. Mike was having his 'guys game night' at our house so we needed to find somewhere else to be. After the park we went to my Mom's house and spent the night (the guys are usually very late). I slept on the hide-away-bed on my Mom's couch with 3 kids. Needless to say I didn't get much sleep. Saturday the kids woke up early as usual (since they had slept fine through the tossing, turning, and kicking me). Mike and I had a wedding to go to at 2pm, so I headed home to get ready for that. It was a nice wedding, and we had hired a babysitter to stay all day and evening with the kids at home. So we had a nice time without ANY kids and we actually got to have a conversation without being interrupted by ANYONE. The reception was beautiful and we had a great time dancing and seeing people. This morning church was great! The worship service was awesome! After church we had the church picnic and the kids got to play on inflatable bouncy toys and eat icecream and just have fun. After the church picnic we had to go to Mike's parents house for a family reunion! I am exhausted!

On another note, I had my first ever Krispe Kream doughnut today. It was great! I thought that it was just as good as everyone has raved! I think I will be having more of them in the future!

Random Bullets

• Okay, so this TV thing hasen't really caused me to be a great blogger or anything. I have been doing much better on reading. I have been reading the Bible every day and have been reading some books too. Does anyone else start like three books at once? I don't know why I do this. I should just start one and finish it.

• Summer is going by way too fast. I have gotten some school things done, but also have a lot more to do. Cole insists that he needs a new backpack. He doesn't ask for much, so that will be added to the list

• We will be going camping Labor Day weekend. This will be fun, but I am not sure about the timing with the start of school on the 5th and all. And I will have a lot of work to do to unpack and clean everything, on top of get the kids off to school. The good thing is that they will all three be in school everyday, so I should have more time to do house things...supposedly.

• We have a wedding to go to this weekend. I am so looking forward to it. We haven't been on a date in a long time and it is well over due...the sad thing is we have to have a wedding to go out alone :)

• Our house looks like a shack right now. There is no paint on it because it is all scraped off so that it can be repainted. Mike and I have been working hard on it. It will look so nice when it is done, but it looks really bad right now. We also had a window installed in the family room. It looks really nice. We also had some siding replaced because it was getting too old. I am excited about these "updates".

• We went to the library yesterday and the girls each got a huge pile of books. I was thinking that they wouldn't be able to finish them by the time school starts, but they have each already read on chapter book in less than 24 hours, so maybe they will finish....I hope they love to read like I did when I was younger......I got to travel to so many places through the books. I just surprised me because they haven't gotten that into a book yet.
• The girls have gone to basketball camp all week. They LOVED it! Morgan is quite the little star on the court. I am pleasantly surprised. She got the coaches award. They have both been so tired it is great because they go to bed early and sleep in until I have to get them up.

Have a great weekend. I won't be home much. I am going to my mom's because Mike is having his "guys game night" and Sat is the wedding, and Sun is a party at church and a party at Mike's parents house.

The Woes of Parenting (a dog or a child)

Change of plans....Jen will not be coming this weekend. We are going to make it another weekend. Finding a dog sitter is as hard as finding a kid sitter :) And you feel more funny bringing your dog to someone's house than bringing your kid :)

Competition of the Twins

Well, it is official, I have one 'passing' swimmer and one 'not passing' swimmer. Now this is hard when they are twins, and to top it off the pass was for Morgan who has the "special" hand......Tori thinks the instructor mixed them up :) I told her that he didn't. I have been watching and Morgan was swimming awesome! Not that Tori isn't doing good, but the class was really hard and actually above their level a little bit. Tori has done great and improved a ton! I am so proud of both of them! It is hard for them because they are so competitive with everything they do! I guess it is just life.

Work was good today. We have a new lead teacher in my room. This is weird. She is my boss, but I could do her job, but I don't have a degree saying I can do her job. She is only 23 and has no kids. I also feel weird because she is technically my boss and I am showing her how to do her job.....I guess I have never been in a situation like this before..... Soon she will be running the place, but for now it is weird!

I know I need to go to the gym when......

.....my sweet and loving 8 year old daughter Morgan says to me "Mom, when you walk when you are in your underwear your butt jiggles"

How do you respond to that?!?!?

Back To The "Olden Days"

Hopefully I will be better at posting this month......we have agreed as a family not to watch ANY t.v. at home for the month of August. This means no movies either.....so maybe I will keep up with the blogging a little better. The kids were such good sports about it. They said that they don't watch much t.v. anyways and it would be fun to read more. It is almost like we are watching t.v. just to watch it even though there are others things we would like to be doing. It has only been 2 days, but I don't miss it at all. The peace and quiet is kind of nice. It would be harder to do in the winter because we can go outside now and it is light out later in the evening. After August we will hopefully slim down the t.v. watching somehow....not sure yet.

VBS today was good. I helped in the snack room, which I enjoyed. I like to be busy and work fast. We made ice cream cones with cool whip on them and graham cracker sticks stuck on them to dip. It was a really cute idea they came up with. The kids loved it.

My friend Jen is coming up this weekend from down state. I am excited to see her. We are going to do some tourist things around the area here. It is amazing how many things I have never done even though I have lived here my whole life. So Jen and I will be tourists in my hometown. I also hope to get to the beach on Saturday. We will be at the beach on Sunday with the group at church. It will be a lot of fun.

Tomorrow is off to work, so I had better get to bed. Take care!

VBS, Beach, and Girls (Mom's) Night Out

Today was the first day of VBS. My kids have been counting down the days for about 2 weeks. They look forward to it so much. They had so much fun today and I helped in the craft room which was a lot of fun for me too! The kids will be going every morning this week (thanks to Stacy for helping me the days I work) :) They are really excited.

After VBS this morning we went to the beach. It was 97 degrees again today and we don't have air conditioning. We do in our upstairs bedroom, but no where else. The beach was really nice and I got some nice color. Tori said to me tonight, "Mom, how-come you like to get a sun burn?" and I told her that I don't like to get a sunburn, but I do like a tan :) The heat has been really exhausting. I don't want to complain because I don't like the cold winters either, but this is really hot and humid, so tonight going out for girls' night was GREAT. I didn't have to make dinner, and we got to sit in air conditioning and visit, what could be better! Mike and the kids made it okay, but they weren't sleeping when I got home, bummer :P

Well, take care and try to stay cool!

The "Creek"

Today we had a SURPRISE birthday party for my Mom's 50th. It was a lot of fun. TONS of work, and boy was it hot. It was outside, at 4pm, so we were getting set up during the hottest time of day and it was about 98 degrees out and humid. Well, she was surprised and had a great time. I had a lot of fun too (other than the heat).

After the party we cleaned up a bit and my Aunt Mary, Mom, Aunt Melanie, Amy and her 2 kids, Mike and I and our kids all went to the "creek" to cool off. Well, we had never been to this creek. It is just down the road from Amy's house. I am thinking it is a little wading pool in a creek. Nice cold water, but not enough to get all of the way into it. Oh, no! It is AWESOME. There is a culvert about 4 feet in diameter and a small 6" drop into a huge pool that is at least 11' deep. I couldn't even touch the bottom when I jumped in! It was so fun I felt like a kid again. We were jumping in, going through the culvert on our tummies, and just having fun. The water was SO cold, and very refreshing. The kids really surprised me. They were not afraid of the waster or the cold, or the current. They had a blast. As Cole came out of the culvert the first time he said, "That was lovely!" I thought that was in interesting choice of words to say the least! It was great and I will be visiting the "creek" again!

End of July

Well, busy week. Summer seems to be going by way too fast! This Sunday I am having a surprise 50 birthday party for my Mom. As far as I know she has no idea. :) It is a lot of work! I think I have things under control. Just need to do food shopping. I have the list and need to just do it. I am waiting until tomorrow because we don't have much room to store it. Today I had a Dr appointment for my knees. They have been hurting for a while and sometimes it is so bad I can't walk up the stairs! Wow and I am only 28. So I finally went in and they said I actually have something, which I was thinking they would say it was nothing. I need to go to physical therapy for a couple of weeks and then come back. So that will be fun, not, but if it helps, then good. They just want me to strenghten certain muscles that support the knee cap. Well, swimming lessons are going better. They look like they are swimming to me. As long as they can save themselves, I'm good. They love lessons so much, it has been a great experience!

Mike is out golfing today. (well, this afternoon). We are planning on going to the drive in to see Ant Bully. I haven't really heard much about it, I hope it is okay. Even if it is lame, the kids have fun going to the drive in. So tomorrow and Sunday will be busy, next week is VBS at church and I took off an extra day at work so I can help a little and get the kids there some of the days. Well, take care and try to stay cool. I hear it is supposed to be in the 90's and humid the next couple of days!

Sink Or Swim

Well, as you know the girls have been in swimming lessons. On Tuesday after class the instructor came out to me and said that he needed to talk to me about something. I'm immediately thinkin 'oh no, they are acting up'. He basically starts to tell me that they are not going to pass the class because they can't float. He is really nervous, like I am going to be upset it they don't pass. I put them in the class so that they would be more confident in the water and then naturally they would become better swimmers. Well, Mr. Ken is going on about how if you have no fat on your body you have a VERY hard time just floating and there is no bouancy. He said this is the category they girls are in. So, apparently this is an issue. Too skinny, I wish this were my problem. :) However, as I watched the girls swim last night, they were able to swim the length of the pool. So basically I look at it like the are doing great because it is even harder for them! They couldn't do this at the beginning of class, so that is great. I think the instructor feels like he is being a bad teacher and has to explain it to me or something. I don't mind, as long as they improve on their swimming. They don't have to meet all of the criteria required to get a certificate. That is all for now.

I LOVE The Cherry Festival

Okay, so I took this week off from work. I figured I would have more time and be able to post, but no......as you know, I haven't. Well, this week was really nice. I enjoyed sleeping in and spending time with the kids. Mike was home last Friday, thru Tuesday, so we had a little mini family vacation time. I enjoy doing the Cherry Festival fun things. I guess because I grew up in T.C. that it brings back good memories from when I was a kid. This year I took the kids to a lot of events. I haven't in the past years. We did a cherry pie eating contest, parades, two fireworks displays, mid-way, concert in the open space, and just walking around and people watching. Last night we were down town at the beach waiting for the fireworks to start and it was so nice and relaxing. I felt so at peace. We were watching the sunset and the water was calm and there were people around. It was really nice. Vacation is not over, I still have tomorrow off.

I have a lot to do this week. The girls are leaving for Brownie camp Wednesday so I need to get things ready for that. They are so excited. It will be fun for them. I am also planning a 50th birthday party for my Mom. So far it is a surprise, but I think I will tell her a couple of days before...I don't know. I need to get started buying things for the party. Wow, lots to do. And on a completely different note, I REALLY need a new bathingsuit, and have tried several on and don't like any of them. I like the top from one and the bottom from another, and in the mix and match, the same thing...I find a bottom I like or a top, but not the other..............frustrating!

Just A Nice Week

Well, I am a little bit tired (since we had to get up early on Saturday). I took a nap this afternoon. That was nice. I planted some flowers and a bush. They look really nice. I moved some of my hanging baskets around because two of them were not doing so good in the shade where they were and I moved them into a sunny place. Because as much as I liked them where they were, they don't look so good a yucky brown color.

I had a wonderful week. Very relaxing. It is nice to have some days off where we can sleep in and relax with the kids. We went to the beach on Tuesday and Thursday. Thursday we went up to North Bar lake/Lake Michigan with my friends Stacy and Trish. The kids and I were there all day (12-4:30). It was fabulous and beautiful. I love the lake! Friday I worked and did a little shopping afterwards because I had to get a bridal shower gift and Cole needed a gift for a friend's birthday party. So we hit Bed Bath and Beyond and Walmart. We then went over to the county pool and I registered the girls for swimming lessons. They will be on Tues/Thurs nights. The girls are so excited and so am I! They start this Tuesday!

After the pool (and a swim test) I came home to the message from the balloon guy and then I had to quickly get the kids ready to go to Mom's so she could watch them for us. They spent the night over there, but I didn't get them there until 11pm. I then had to get up at 4:00am to go to the balloon ride! If you know me that is NOT enough sleep, but it was worth it! So I am still catching up with a little nap here and there!

My Mom is trying to get me to go to Vegas to visit Joel. I am a little scared to leave the house for four days! I mean, can they survive without me? Would things be okay? I need to relinquish control! UGH!!!!!!!!!! I don't know if I can do it. It would be a nice trip and cheap! We can stay with him so it would just be the plane ticket. I will have to see.

Well, I hope everyone has some exciting plans for the week. Have a good Monday!

We FINALLY Did It!

Well, it is official! I have now been up in a hot air balloon! It was so amazing! We were supposed to go Monday morning, but late last night the balloon guy called and said that they had an opening for this morning and would we like to take it. I said sure because the weather report was a great one and who knows what would happen by Monday morning in northern Michigan :) So it was a beautiful morning. So peaceful. So quiet up there. I loved it. It was not scary in the least bit. Just plain beautiful. We could see all of the way to the Manitou Islands. After the ride Mike and I went out to breakfast and then came home and got the kiddos on the way. What a wonderful way to start the day!

I Love My Hubby!

I came home from work and there were flowers for me. Nice ones too! From a floral shop. Just because. I love it!

It Is Raining

Well, let's see........what have we been busy with. Wednesday I worked and then we just did chores around the house. Thursday was the last day of school....which makes it official...I now have 2 third graders!!!! Seems impossible! I worked on Friday and then the girls and I went to the Great Wolf Lodge with the Brownie troop. I was a chaperone and it was a lot of fun. We were all exhausted! Played hard and stayed up late. Last night we were pretty much recooperating and relaxing. This morning we went to church and went out to lunch. We had gotten Mike a golf tee time for Father's Day. It was for 3:00 so we had a little time to kill in between. We went to the mall. I found a pair of sandals that I had been wanting (or something like them anyways). They are Columbia and are similar to Tevas. Very comfortable for work. Mike went off to golf. Unfortunately it was raining. I had prepaid for the game, and he said a little rain wouldn't hurt. So, he went. The kids and I have been home cleaning and getting ready for the week.

Boys

This morning I got up and took the girls to school and Cole and I came back home and cleaned up a bit and had breakfast together. My friend Stacy had invited me over for lunch, so on the way we got Cole a haircut. He looks so cute with a fresh cut. He looks older and like Mr. GQ. He is so handsome. Well, lunch was fun and Cole had fun playing with the other kids. Boys, they are so loud and rough. Just going outside they slammed the front door and knocked a candle holder on the floor. We tried to keep them outside most of the time, but of course they wanted to come in :) And of course they made "weapons" to fight the "girls" which the girls came in immediatedly and told on them. Good girls.

Does anyone else have a hard time with teaching your kids which things are okay to taddle about. I noticed this today as I watched someone else, and it made me think of my own girls. They like to taddle, but some things are okay to taddle about........hummmmmmmm..........

Sorry about the rambling..........:)

It Is Sunday

Well, yesterday was nice. My mom called and she wanted to go yard saling with me. We went for about 4 hours. Mike stayed home with the kids and they had a lemonade stand. They made $25 in about 2 hours *that is as long as their attention span is*. Not bad money I should say. I found a few things, but they were just little things. I found one really cool thing. It is a box of old match books. They all have advertisements on them. They are from the 40's and 50's. I think they are cool to look at. I paid only $2 for the whole box of them. After saling we took Cole to a birthday party and we went to Williamsburg for an open house. After that Mike and Tori went on a date and Morgan and I stayed home and I did a minicure for Morgan. It was fun. Nice and relaxing day. Today, no plans. I love that. We went to church and out for lunch and now Mike is taking a nap on the hammock and I am hoping to kick him off soon!

Leisurely Day

Today is turning out to be a nice day. This morning I dropped the girls off at school and Cole and I went yard saling. I found a couple of things. Then we came home and cleaned up a bit and went back into town to pick up the girls at noon. We went to B.K. for lunch (our usual Friday lunch) and now we are home and the kids are playing with a new board game I got at a sale. We are about to lay down for a "rest" and then later tonight a babysitter is coming over to play with the kids and Mike and I are going to some friends' for a pot-luck. I LOVE days off. I wish everyday were this stress free. I think it is just nice to know that I don't have to be back to work until Monday : ) Not that I don't like my job, it just makes home more stressful! Tomorrow will be more sales (It is the community sale weekend) they are everywhere in the neighborhood. I can just walk to them. The kids want to have a lemon aide stand tomorrow....we will see....last year they made $21 in about 2 hours. I wish I could do that, but somehow I think if I were to set up the stand it wouldn't make as much :] Well, have a great weekend!

Beautiful June Day

Today Cole and I went to the beach. My first visit this year. It was so nice. 81 degrees and dry. No humididty. We had a great day. He thought it was great that we were alone. No sisters. They were at school. Cole was done with school last Wednesday. The girls go into next week. This Thursday Tori has a field trip to the Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes. My mom will be joining her. Tori is so excited! I had the honor of going with Cole's class to the Dunes last week, so I recruited Mom for this trip...whew.....I don't know if I could climb up the dunes one more time! Lots of work!

Well, My cousin Willie and his wife Elizabeth had there baby yesterday. A beautiful baby girl. She looks so perfect! And 'mom' looks great too! Wow!

That is about all of the excitement around here.

Downed Blog

Sorry I haven't posted in so long, I have not been able to access my blog. I could access everyone else's, but not mine for some reason. I contacted by email, and now it is working! Yea! I will post more tomorrow. I am tired......good night!

Life is 'Grand'

Well, again I got to go to Mackinaw Island to Grand Hotel. It is so fabulous there. They treated us like princesses. No cleaning and not preparing meals. Being waited on hand and foot. It was so great. The guest speakers were Steve and Annie Chapman. They were wonderful. I didn't want to miss a word they said or sang. It was just a wonderful time. I enjoyed the time spent with my friend Charity and my Aunt Mary and cousin Jessica. We had a great time. The best part is that it is pre-paid, so you don't feel like you are spending any money. It is so "Grand".

Well, again this week was busy preparing to go to Mackinaw, and then going. Yesterday was a beautiful day weather wise. Mike and I both had the day off and we went into town and did some shopping. We FINALLY bought the livingroom rug. I have wanted it since the livingroom has been done, but wanted to wait until we had the money saved up. It looks so good in there. I wanted to get it before the babyshower that will be here next Saturday. We also looked around for patio furntiure to put on the new patio bricks. I didn't really find anything I liked except that which was expensive, so we passed on those (at least for the day). We are hoping they will go on sale soon.

This week will be busy again. Tomorrow work and brownies. Tues work and shopping for shower. Wenesday work. Thursday field trip to sand dunes with Cole's class and Friday, Dr. appointment for Tori and Morgan. Busy. I can't wait for summer when things slow down even more :)

Have a good night!

The Blessings on Mother's Day

Well, Happy Mother's Day to all of you. As I reflect on the many blessings I have, I realize that it is so easy to take them for granted:

• The first blessing is my mother. She taught me how to be a good mother. How to be loving, and to take time for my children. She has been such a blessing as a Grandmother too. She is always spoiling my kids and she takes them overnight a LOT! Which is a blessing for them and me:)
• The second blessing is being a mother. Although at many times it is a chore and a lot of work there are the rewards that go without earthly value. The times when the kids crawl in bed with me in the morning. I love to cuddle with them under the warm covers. I love it when Cole gets in trouble for something and he comes back to me and says "Mommy, can I have a hug?". Or when Tori says "Mom, you look so pretty today" and I just woke up and my hair is a mess! I love the way Morgan always wants me to hold her "special hand" and not "the one with 5 fingers" :)
• The third blessing is the other women in my life who are like mothers to me. My aunts and other women who I look up to for wisdom and life experience.
• The fourth blessing is my husband. Of course I wouldn't be a mother without him. He is such a great partner to have raising our children. He helps so much around the house and tries to make my life easier, anyway he can.
• The final blessing to be listed here are my many friends who have supported me as a mother. Who have helped me SO much in raising my kids. Whether it is planning a girls weekend getaway, or helping by babysitting, or by doing crafts together, or just plain having fun together. Thank you to all of my FRIENDS!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

Gotta LOVE Spring

It is so beautiful out. It was 75 out today. The flowers are all in bloom and you just want to be outside. We finished the patio. It is so nice. I love it. We had a porch sale at my Aunt Mary's over the weekend. I made about $100. Not bad. Just sold old junk laying around. I had to work the sale on Saturday, and it was perfect weather. I even got a little burnt.

Yesterday we went to the mall and picked up my wedding ring in for repair (again). We stopped in at Target and I got a new pair of sandals they are really cute and trendy. I never buy trendy, so I was kinda proud of myself. When we got home Mike had a surprise for me. A mantle clock. It is really pretty especially considering it is just Target. It even chimes, Westminister Chime song. I love it. I was surprised he didn't save it for mother's day. Silly guy!

Tonight is Brownies. Thursday I have to go to Grand Rapids for the day. Dr.'s appointment for Morgan. Just a check up. Hopefully I can catch up with Kelli while down there. Maybe meet for lunch. Friday night I have to go to a baby shower and Saturday Cole was invited to his first "friend from school" party. He is so excited!

I am getting excited to go to Mackinaw. I will be going Thursday the 18th. My friend Charity, Aunt Mary, and Jessica are going too. It will be so fun to get a little pampering and relaxation time. Well, gotta go and get dinner!

Still Tired

Last night Mike was gone with Cole, so the girls and I went out to eat. We did a little shopping, but I was so tired we only went to one store and I didn't buy anything. We came home and started a movie, but we all fell asleep by 9:00. I moved them into their beds and I hit the hay. I slept okay, woke up a few times to blow my nose. Slept in until 8:30. We skipped church because I was NOT up to going anywhere. We have been home all day. I went up to the store to get the Sunday paper, and that is about it. Oh, and I took the kids to my Mom's. She called to see if they could all spend the night tonight. I said sure since I am so tired. She will take them to school and daycare. Yea, makes my morning easier tomorrow.

Mike got the patio blocks done. It looks great. It is nice to have more area to use. I want to get a small cafe patio table with 2 chairs to set on the patio. That makes more seating when people come over. Well, I hope everyone has a great Monday!

I Am Tired!

Yesterday I took my dad out for breakfast for his birthday. It was nice. I love breakfast and my dad used to always take me out for breakfast when I was a girl. At least once a month on Saturday morning we would go get breakfast at 'Bells'. Good memories for me. After breakfast Cole and I ran some errands and then picked up the girls from school and came home and packed for and OVERNIGHTER with the AWANA girls at church. Needless to say I am exhausted today. I started catching a cold Thrusday morning and now it is full fledged and I am all stuffy and hoarse. I am so tired. I can't wait to go to bed tonight.

Mike got half of the patio blocks in where we are putting them in the back yard. It looks really good. I am excited to have some more useable space for sitting and playing. It will be nice when it is all done. Have a great rest of the weekend!

To Have Kids Or Not....That Is The Question

Check out my friend Jen's latest blog posting.....I laughed so hard.....

Much Better

Well, today went much better at work. I felt a little better once I woke up this morning. And today was un-eventful, which was nice. The mother of the child was so nice and she reassured me that there were no hard feelings, and that it was not my fault, and she gave me a big hug. That made me feel much better. So, tomorrow should be even better. :)

We went to young marrieds tonight. It was good. We only have one more meeting and then we are off for the summer. We will not be there next week though, because there is an A.W.A.N.A. closing ceremony and we can't miss it. The girls both finished a book this year, so they will be getting an award of some kind. It will be fun. Tomorrow I work the late shift, 10-6. I hate that because I don't get home until about 6:45. Then I have to get dinner around, and baths, and bed. I don't even get to spend time with the family. I am glad that I don't work that shift much. Well, I am starting to ramble, so good night.

A Bad Day

Okay, today was the worst day at my job ever. I have had P.M.S., so I was feeling a little down on myself. I was like getting vibes that my co-workers were irritated at me, etc. You know what I mean....a little paranoia and on the vurge of tears all day. I didn't get my lunch break until 2:45, and I leave at 4:45. So, just little things that normally don't happen. And then the worst thing happened. One of the kids got hurt and it was my fault. Not really. But it could have been seen as my fault and I felt REALLY bad, and it was serious. Everyone was like "don't worry about it" and things, but I was crying. Just a bad day. There was an equipment failure, and that is the REAL reason she got hurt, but if I had just done one thing different, she wouldn't have even gotten hurt. It just STINKS! I want to take a shower and go to bed right now. Hopefully tomorrow goes much better.

Easter

Well, I had a really nice Easter. We went to church at 10:00 and they put on a drama called 'The Promise'. It is a re-enactment of the life of Christ. It was really good. They do it every year, but switch it up a little bit. This was the first year that I think the kids understood most of it. It was great. After church we came home and I put the ham in the oven. I bought a spiral ham at Sam's it was FABULOUS. I highly reccomend it. It was so easy and tasted GREAT. I got a couple of side dishes together and relaxed until my mom got here. Then we had dinner. Yummy! After dinner we cleaned up and relaxed a little. Later in the afternoon Amy came over and brought the kids for an egg hunt. It was so fun to watch them run around racing to get them. All in all just a nice day. Again. I hope you all had a nice weekend.

Not so good now

Okay, after I posted earlier I started coming down with something. I was out and about in town and started feeling aching in all of my bones. I feeling like I am catching a cold or something. I just hope the baby I was holding last night doesn't catch anything. Yuck! And it is such a beautiful night I want to be outside getting something done, but it doesn't look like that will be happening. Oh, well.

Brandon still doesn't have movement in his legs. Please pray for a miraculous recovery of the movement in his legs. He is getting really bummed out about it! He is in tremendous pain from the surgery! All in all it was a success, but very trying in MANY ways. Just keep him in your prayers. The Carepages web site (found below) has pictures of Brandon before surgery and you can read all of the posts his parents have done for the past couple of months. Check it out.

Just A nice Day

Yesterday I had a really nice day. In the morning I went tanning and then came home and did some things around the house. I met my mom at a little cafe downtown and we had lunch. It was so nice to visit with her. We don't get to do that much w/o the kids there. After lunch we went to Tori's classroom for her presentation. She did such a cute and good job. Later in the evening we went to our friend's for dinner of grilled burgers. It was nice to get together (and I got to hold the baby a lot!) It was just a nice day. I like days like this.

Today we are getting ready to go to town and run some errands and take Morgan to a birthday party. Have a great weekend.

Remember the REAL reason for Easter is to celebrate the resurrection of CHRIST JESUS ! Have a great Easter!

Brandon

Brandon's surgery went better than expected. God was at work. He normally even has a hard time waking up after anestesia, but he did great. Apparently he can not move his legs though. Continue to pray for healing with that issue. They knew that it was a risk that could happen. He is apparently a little upset, but the Dr.'s think that it may come back and that they just have to wait and see. Brandon didn't even require a transfusion; that is how good eveything went! Yea!!

Thursday

Well hello there. I know that I am not good at keeping up with these postings. Sorry. The weather has been beautiful. We have been getting a little bit of yard work done. I am going to buy some grass seed to fill in some areas. It really needs help.

Today is the day that our nephew Brandon has his surgery. You can keep up with his blog at BRANDON and type brandonlawrence for the patient name. They are keeping up with the blog and anyone can post a message on the message board. Keep them in your prayers today and for the next couple of months.

The kids are doing great. The girls had their last dance class last Friday. They did a little recital at the end. It was so cute. They love to dance. On Sunday we went to the ballet in Traverse City. It was Cinderella. The girls had a lot of fun. We went with my friend Karyn and Katlyn.

Cole is getting so big. He is wearing some size 8 pants. I need to find him some new uniform pants. He has outgrown all of his. They are hard to find this time of year. I am going to look at Goodwill and see if there are any there.

We are still planning on painting our diningroom. I am thinking a shade of yellow. All of our furniture in there is dark wood, so I think it would be a good contrast. Hopefully we will start it soon. I got a beautiful wardrobe from my aunt and cousin. It will go perfectly in there and I can use it for a coat closet since we don't have one in there.

Well, I hope all of you are doing well. I will update on Brandon's progress.

We're Gonna Party Like It's 1999.....

Okay, so I am a little exhausted after this weekend. Three parties in total. On Friday was Tori's with her friends. Saturday Morgan's. Sunday party with the family. Friday I took Tori and her 2 friends and Morgan and Cole to the Ice Age II movie. It is so cute. I liked it a lot. The theatre was packed. We had a great time and the girls were so good ($25.00 later just on snacks). Saturday I decided to take only Morgan and her 2 friends. This made it easier and since Mike was home to watch the others it worked out. Well, Morgan's friends know eachother a little better than Tori's friends, and they acted like sisters. They were fighting with eachother and pouting and the whole "diva" thing. Morgan was like 'quite fighting you guys' all day long. Not that I didn't have fun, but I could do without the drama. Well, I did make it through Ice Age II again (I am glad that it was actually a cute and funny movie).

Saturday night Charity and Ryan took us out for dinner because Mike did some tile work for them in their bathroom. It was nice to go to dinner with no kids and sit and visit with friends for as long as we wanted. We went to a new resturant in town called the 'Arizonia Steak House'. The food was great and nice atmosphere, kinda' south western. So that was great. We didn't get home until 11:30 and we forgot about the time change. Oh well. Up early Sunday for church and home right after for ANOTHER birthday party. This time with the family. Mostly Mike's family came. Only my Dad, Mary, and my Aunt Mary came. That's okay. It was kinda nice not to have ALL of the other kids running around and things. Our kids are the youngest on Mike's side, so the others were all older.

So, that is it. That sums up my weekend. Busy, short, and PARTY!

Let The SUNSHINE In!

Well, sorry for the long interval between posts. I have no excuse, except that I really don't have anything new to post. So I will just let you know what my days have been like. Nothing too exciting. Here it goes.

This week has been great. The weather is great and it is spring break. I took two days off this week, so I only worked on Wednesday. Even our evenings have had NOTHING planned. We have all been home together and had dinner together, and no one had to go ANYWHERE! It has been great. I have been sleeping in a little with the kids, which is good. Except on Tuesday I got up and they were outside on the trampoline, NOT okay. We had a little talk about not going outside while I am sleeping! NO WAY. It is okay if they are in the house and like watching T.V. or reading or something, but not outside. I think they understand now. Needless to say, they have been outside a LOT this week. We got all of the yard raked, Mike, ME and the kids. Mike did most, but the kids and I did a lot too. We are now making that list we make every spring of the things we would like to get done outside. Planting, moving, painting, etc. We would like to put in patio blocks where we used to have wood chips. It would make better use of the space because we would use it more, and we wouldn't have to replace the chips every year. So now we are waiting for a sale to happen at one of the stores. We would also like to paint the outside of the house sometime this summer. Our next project will be our dining room and then the bathroom. We also need to stain a lot of things outside. Wow, looking at this list I am getting a little freaked out. I don't know if we can get it all done. Oh well. We will do our best. I also need to get some beach days in this summer, and they come first :)

Tomorrow is the girls' 8 Birthday. I can't believe it! Already! They are so excited. They are having their friends over Friday (Tori) and Saturday (Morgan) I will let you know how it all goes.

I hope all is well. Enjoy your spring!

HAPPY SPRING

Well, the girl's weekend was great. It is always nice to do a little get-away. Jen' house is so nice and quiet and relaxing. We went to a great place for dinner called 'Cheeseburger In Paradise' it is a Jimmy Buffet type place. That was a lot of fun. On Saturday we did a little window shopping in Grand Ledge and that was fun. We went in to a home decor store that was absolutely beautiful. Saturday night we went out to Bravo again. It is an Italian place that has the best food.

This week was the same old same old. Mike had his last basketball game on Thursday (for this season anyways). His team lost the tournament, so that was a bummer, but there is always next year. The girls had ballet on Friday. They are so cute. Saturday was busy. The girls had a field trip with brownies to the pool, and a pizza party. Morgan was ALSO invited to a birthday party at Phys Kids which is a gym type of thing for kids. It was a lot of fun. They have a better social life than I do right now!

I am planning Morgan and Tori's birthday parties since they are coming up before I know it. They both want to go see Ice Age II for their party. I told them they can invite 3 friends each. I decided to do it seperately. I think it will be easier with less girls and go on two different days. They are so excited! It will be fun.

Well, let's see....that is about it. Nothing too exciting. We have (MIKE) been doing some raking and yard work. He put up the trampoline. That is fun!

Girl's Weekend

Well, this weekend I am going to my very good friend Jen's house. She lives in Lansing which I am sure most of you know. I am so excited. It is nice to get away for a little while and relax. Jen is such a wonderful hostess. She makes it such a wonderful time. I will be leaving tomorrow afternoon. I have a busy day tomorrow. Laundry, clean, pack, pick up kids at school, get a bite to eat, go to dance class, drop Morgan off at her friends', meet Mike at home, and head out to Lansing. Mike will have it pretty easy since Mom is taking Tori and Morgan will be at her friends over night, so just the boys hanging out. I hope that they have fun.

I am excited to also see my friend Kelli. She is preggo and due in only one month. It will be very good to see her. Her other little boy is 2 today. They will be such good buddies. So we will all three spend Saturday together and just hang out maybe a little shopping, but I don't want to wear Kelli out. We will most likely do some home stores and coffe shops. Just relax.

I talked to my brother on the phone for a long time tonight. It was so good to talk to him. It seems that calls are so far and few between and it is great to hear from him. He is planning a big move to Vegas. He will be traveling out there next week to check it out before he moves all of his things out there. I am sad. It is so far away. He seems excited and I hope that it all works out good for him and that he stays out of trouble.

Well, I hope that you are all doing well. Comment if you want to. :)

Another Week

This week again, busy. I just can't wait for summer when things slow down. They should slow a little bit because Mike will be done with basketball for a while at the end of this month. Monday worked and went to brownies. Tuesday I had a good day. I was off and all kids were in school. I went and ran some errands around town and visited with my friend whos little boy just passed. She is doing okay, but of course it is hard. She is amazing. She is doing all of the right things. I enjoyed the visit and we got some of her thank you's completed. Hopefully I helped some, I don't know. You just don't know what to do to help in situations like these. Wednesday worked and church night. Thursday work and I had a meeting after work and Mike had a basketball game. Now let me tell you, I remeber why I don't like going to his games. THE KIDS!UGHH! They are so rotten when we get in there. The games are at the 'Y' and it is pretty big. There is also an upstairs. Well, they all run around in different directions. You would think they were 2 again or something. I lost it. I was on the brink of tears. My eyes were welling up. We left after about 15 mins, (that is how long it took to round them up). Right when I thought I had them all I would look and another one was missing.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Today was nice. I went into the school to help. I enjoy that. Tonight we went out to Cracker Barrel for dinner and went to buy a new phone for at home. Not much excitement. Nothing planned for tomorrow. I like it that way. Sleep in!!!!!!1

The "Woodpecker"

The funniest thing happend. The girls and I were dancing in the kitchen while making brownies. We were having a good time to the tune of "Dancing Queen" by Abba. Cole came in the kitchen and started dancing too. We were all bustin' a move and Cole calls out "do the 'woodpecker'" I am trying not to crack up wondering what this new move is. He puts his hand on his forhead pointing out like a beak, and makes tail feathers with the other hand. And he informed me that you must have something to 'peck' or it doesn't work. I was laughing so hard. He also told me he made this move up himself. My little coriographer.

My Week

This week was BUSY. Monday I worked, the girls had Brownies at 6:00, then off to the viewing for Kody, then rush home to meet Mike so that we could trade off with the kids so he could go to bible study. Tuesday was funeral, and that basically wiped me out. It was a sad funeral. At the end the mom and dad got up (which they are divorced) together and the dad said basically that we should cherish every moment we have with those who we love; make sure they know it every day. There was not a dry eye in the house. Even most of the men were crying.

Wednesday work and A.W.A.N.A. at night. Thursday work and POTLUCK at work. Which is fun but then I had to prepare a lot of food, just one more thing to do. Thursday night we just stayed home and stayed busy with a lot of chores and homework. Yesterday dropped the girls off at school and Cole and I ran some errands and I got my hair cut. The length is pretty much the same but it is more of a shag. I needed a change or else I would cut it all off again. Today has been pretty much chores. I am actually caught up on the laundry. It is even all put away. That rarely happens around here. Tomorrow church and then off to start another week.

Tonight we may go over to Aunt Mary's. My cousin Morgan is moving to Newago (near Grand Rapids) so they are having a going away party for him. Before that though, we need to go to town and get some grocerys and ballet slippers. Have a good rest of the weekend.

FRIDAY

Well, I did make it to Grand Rapids today. It was pretty bad roads on the way down, but the way back was fine. The appointment was GREAT news. The cardiologist seemed very surprised at Tori. He said that her heart looks really good and that the once small leak is now gone. Which is Super news. Two years ago he said that she would need surgery after puberty, but he is now thinking that it could wait "for a couple of decades" to use his exact words. I was so excited! He said that she can play any sports and with NO restrictions, not that she has ever let me put any on her teee hee hee.

On a VERY sad note..... when I got home a had 10 messages on the machine, and one of them was a message that Morgan's best friends' brother passed away yesterday. He is 5. I am so sad. I have been welling up with tears ever since I heard. I will be going over there tomorrow. I can't sleep right now so I am up dating my post. Please pray for the family. I can't even imagine how they feel.

On a completely different note. I did loose 5lbs. on my diet and today is Friday. So that is not bad. I weighed myself at the doctors office at Tori's appointment. You know how long they have you wait in those little rooms, and hey, there was a scales in there, I might as well use it!

Another Snow Day

Today is another snow day from school. Again I happen to have the day off from work so it worked out great. We slept in and are relaxing now. I am hoping tomorrow is not bad weather, but they are calling for a blizzard. I have to drive down to Grand Rapids with Tori for a Cardiology appointment. Let's hope the weather is okay.

"Skinny Minny" by no means

Well, I actually stuck to the diet the whole tree days. I have never done that before. I always cheat. I feel like my tummy is a little smaller, but I don't have a scales, so I am heading over to my Aunts to check on hers. I was at the doctor about a week ago and they weighed me so I will go off of that amout. We'll see.

Still On The Wagon

Okay, today was day 2 of the "cleanse". I feel good today. Fruit only. Last night though.....I got a terrible migraine. It was a doozie. I was sick and it even hurt to lay down. That is why I think it was from a sinus infection. My co-workers think it was from only taking fluids yesterday. I am not sure, but tonight I feel good. I haven't felt hungry the whole time. Although I still want certain valentine treats that were EVERYWHERE today. The good thing is that today was fruit day and that at least gives some natural sugar. I hope tomorrow goes well. As I mentioned before I didn't weigh myself, but I do feel like my tummy is smaller, but that could just be because I haven't eaten carbs. Not sure.

"The Cleansing"

So I was reading this article my Aunt Mary gave me and it talks about this "cleans" that is like a diet, but only lasts 3 days. You are supposed to loose 9lbs. She lost7 and kept it off. After that she did it the next week and has lost another 3. So anyways, I started it today. It is going good so far. Protein shakes all day and now I get to eat a HUGE salad topped with tuna. Tomorrow it is fruit all day and salad and fish/chicken for dinner, and the same on Wednesday. We will see how it goes. They only Stupid with a capital S is that I never weighed myself this morning and left for work so I have no clue how much I will actually loose. I am hoping just to fit better into my jeans. That would be great.

Broke down in the Tundra

Another busy week. Superbowl Sunday we went over to some friends' house for a little get-to-gether. We drove seperately so that I could leave early and put the kids to bed since it was a school night. Just so you know it was like a blizzard here all day. I drove down the road that the friends live on and it was very deep snow. I had a great time chatting with the ladies and holding my friend Carter (who is crawling and so cute!). I got the kids around and ready to go and we loaded up the van. As I pulled out of the drive something didn't feel right with the van. There was no power steering and the lights seemed a little dim. It didn't register at first so I kept driving about 4 miles down the road. Well, it started getting worse and I got a little nervous since we were a ways out in the country and there weren't many houses and it was COLD! I turned around to get the cell phone from Mike. The plan was I would go and call him if I needed him so that he could watch the game. Well, I didn't make it far with the cell phone and had to call him. The van died! I mean died. Nothing. No light, no heat, no engine, nothing. It was REALLY quiet waiting there to be rescued. A couple of people stopped and asked if I needed help and I told them Mike was on his way. He got there and I told him I thought the alternator was out. We jumped it and off we went. Only 5 miles and it died again! We did this like four times. We were FROZEN! Finally I was like we are calling a tow truck for a tow tomorrow and going home where it is warm and the kids can sleep.......We did and it was great. So worth the $. We had it towed to the mechanic and he fixed the belt that had come off from all of the snow! When Mike picked me up from work on Monday to go get the van his "light' came on and come to find out his alternator had burned up jump starting the van. :( When it rains it pours. However, his brother replaced it for free and we just had to buy the part. Thank goodness for brothers!

The rest of the week was just the normal busy. Mike's birthday was on Tuesday so we made him a cake and had presents. Wednesday, church, Thursday LAUNDRY, and Friday, dance class, friend over, and we rented a kids movie for them to watch. Bambie II. It was cute.

Last night I went to my friend (and co-worker) AErin's and we had a girl's night. Fun we ate so much and visited. It was so fun.

Oh, my friend Stacy had a baby girl and she is so cute! PERFECT!

Prayer

Please pray for our nephew Brandon. He was born with many complications. He has survived the odds and is now 15. He is facing a MAJOR surgery which involves his spine and back. He will not be able to move for 6 weeks. He is a normal 15 year old, except that he cannot walk. The surgery is to straighten his back from scoliosis, which is slowly crushing his insides. He fully knows what is ahead and has such a good attitude. Please pray for him and all of his family. His surgery will be the middle of March. Thanks.

HodgPodge

Okay, here is an update. When I went to the college I got lost. It has been 8 years since I have been on campus and went to the wrong side of the campus. It was a really wet snow and coming down fast. By the time I got to my appointment I looked like a drowned rat! I am sure the counselor didn't care anyways. She was quite helpful and I got a print out of all of the classes I have completed thus far. Good to know what I have done. The printout also showed what classes I would need for certain degrees. I can get an associates in Science and Arts from N.M.C. and then this can go forward from there to a couple of different options at the University Center here in T.C. So I wouldn't need to commute or anything for any classes. Sounds good. I didn't actually sign up for anything. I just mostly wanted information to see what direction to go and how much work it would actually be. Which I knew would be alot. So I am hoping to get some information on scholarships and grants and maybe get that sort of stuff underway. My employer also will help with college courses. They will pay 50% if you pass the class with a c or higher. So that is a nice opportunity also. I am mostly thinking of taking a class or two at a time. I don't want to get overwhelmed with work/kids/school. I mostly don't want the kids to miss me. Cole will be in school in the fall full time and I will still only be working part time. So I think it will work. Every little bit that I peck away at helps. I kind of feel scared. I haven't done "school" work or book work in so long and I am afraid I have forgoten what the square root of nine is and such......;p

So that is the update on "school" The girls started dance class last Friday. We have never been able to afford it before. I finally broke down and said now or never because they are growing up so fast! My Mom is paying for half so that is a huge help! The girls are so cute. They wear little leotards and the class is ballet and jazz together so they are also learning dance routines and it is so cute. They are shaking their little booties. I am hoping it wears them out!

Tonight I was shopping with my friend Charity. We had a lot of fun. We were shopping for her work clothes which is fun because I don't really get to dress up anymore and it is fun to live through her wardrobe. And it was here money so even better. We found some great deals for her! And had a lot of fun too!

Well, that is about all of the excitement around here. I hope all is well elsewhere!

Student

Well, today I called NMC which is our local community college in Traverse City. I have an appointment with a counselor tomorrow. I am hoping to take MAYBE one or two classes just to peck away at some degree. The funny thing is I don't REALLY know what I want to be. I am hoping that tomorrow will shed some more light on it. I will keep you posted.

Snow Day

I love snow days. They are great. You just feel like you are getting away with something. Tuesday was a "snow"day due to very icy roads. It turned out that Mike didn't have to work either. He planned on taking the kids to school and letting me sleep in. It was so sweet and I loved every minute of it until 10a.m. That's right, you all heard it. I slept in until 10 on a Tuesday morning! So Mike was a little bored and he thought we should go to a movie. We waited until the afternoon and went to the 3o'clock show. 'Hoodwinked' was the only kids' show, so we all sat there, and it was a really long one let me tell you. Even Tori said that it was long, so the movie wasn't so great, but it was fun to sit there with the kids and they enjoyed being on our laps and having fun together. We even got to sneak in a Mrs. Field's cookie after the show. I love their cookies. So anyways, snowdays are great and relaxing.

Seven In Seven

I was challenged by Kelli to list a "Seven in Seven" so here it goes:

Seven things I want to do before I die-
1.) Visit Ireland
2.) Go to New York City
3.) Go on a Mission Trip to Africa
4.) Go on a family vacation to Disney World
5.) Graduate from college
6.) Go on a hot air balloon ride (which is not too far off) :D
7.) Have a guest bedroom/suite where people can come and stay and relax


Seven things I cannot do-
1.) Draw
2.) Play organized sports (I am not coordinated)
3.) Sing beautifully
4.) Return the library books on time
5.) Be lazy at work
6.) Play the lottery (I feel like it is such a waste of $)
7.) Pay full price for any clothing item......ever


Seven things that attracted me to my husband-
1.) He is tall
2.) He is strong
3.) He is a very hard worker
4.) He is smart
5.) He is generous to me
6.) He is loyal
7.) He is predictible


Seven things I say most often-
1.) Are you listening to me!?! (to my kids)
2.) Walking feet (daycare kids)
3.) No yelling at eachother (to my kids)
4.) Use your inside voice (both daycare and my kids)
5.) Where are you working tomorrow? (to Mike)
6.) Have a good day
7.) How was your day?

Seven Favorite Series/Books/Authors-
1.) Anne Of Green Gables
2.) Gene Stratton-Porter
3.) The Bible
4.) Little House On The Prairie
5.) Gary Chapman
6.) Left Behind Series
7.) Max Lucado

Seven Movies I Watch Over and Over-
1.) Dirty Dancing
2.) The Sound of Music
3.) The Notebook
4.) Bambie
5.) Finding Nemo
6.) The Wizard of Oz
7.) Toy Story

Seven Places You Have Been-*I added this myself since I don't have anyone to 'tag'
1.) Cancun, Mexico
2.) Creel, Chihauha, Mexico
3.) Daytona Beach, FL
4.) Lima, OH
5.) Orlando, FL
6.) Picutred Rocks, Western U.P., MI
7.) Chicago , IL

Seven People to "Tag"
*I have none because I don't know anyone additional to tag. Sorry!

The Spikes

Well, Cole is turning into quite a big boy. He got a new hair cut last Friday. He told the lady that he wanted a spike. She did a great job and did a modern spike. It is so funny because every morning he gets him self dressed and goes in the bathroom and gets his hair wet and towel dries it and puts his own gel in it. He stands there and works the spikes until he thinks they look okay. He looks so much older to me!

Um....let's see.....Mike's work has been good. Keeping busy which is a huge "Praise the Lord!" I was a little nervous when venturing out on his own. But there have been no worries and he seems to be great at being his own boss and taking care of business.

Tori has been inviting all of her friends to A.W.A.N.A. it is so cute to listen to her call them. If they say they can't come she puts them on the spot and asks why. She is so bold. The kids have all been getting along so good. It is neat just to watch them play together. They make up games and read to eachother and just love being together, except when it comes to the van. They argue EVERY time we get in about who is sitting where. If anyone has any ideas on how to solve this I would appreciate comments. So far the new plan is a rotation in a clockwise circle. For the whole day they sit in this spot. It seems to have helped a little, but there is still complaining going on. Morgan is our little chipper one. She is always smiling and postitive. She will try to find a way to make everyone happy, even if she isn't. I have to tell her she can't make everyone happy. She is so sweet.

Well, not much going on. Just the same old. I took a day off from work this week. So I only work 2 days. It is really nice. I have so much to do today. Lots of cleaning and sorting. So I had better get started.

Ringing Or "Puking" In The New Year

Well, our new year was not that exciting. We stayed home and I was shampooing our family room carpet and Tori said she had a stomach ache. I didn't think anything of it because she has just spent all night and all day with my Aunt Melanie and I figured that she had eaten too much junk food or something. Well, not the case. She had the stomach flu. From 9p.m. till 5a.m. I didn't sleep. Morgan got sick starting about 11:30p.m. I was exhausted from not sleeping and from cleaning up and doing laundry. So, we missed church Sunday. Not because we were out partying till the wee hours, but we were exhausted either way. I didn't even wake up until 10a.m. (which is when church starts). So anyways, not the most exciting New Years I have heard about. Sunday about 6p.m. Cole got sick. The good news is the flu was a quick one and they were over it right away. I hope everyone else had a much better time.