The Walker Pad

my Top 10 Excuses of 2011

2011-12-29T05:30:00.000-08:00

for not blogging this year:

1-lost interest after bloging for three years

2-started homescholing
3-would rather coupon than blog

4-stopped taking pictures
5-someone was always on the computer

6-paper journaled instead

7-my intrathecal pain pump malfunctioned

8-dealt with psychosis of opiate withdrawal for several months

9- too many damn doctor appointments

10-there is nothing positive to blog when you have lost your mind.
Trust me,I know

My Top 10 Reasons I want to blog in 2012:

1-I have most of my mind back, I think

2-wanted to blog one more time before turning the big 4-0
3- I'll get me taking pictures again
4-hopefully blogging will motivate me to get back to scrappin'
5-to keep in touch with family, all four of us
6-productive use of my time
7-will give me a chance to bump someone off the computer
8-want to share some of the hilarious things that go on at the Walker Pad

(warning: parental advisory will be required for some blog posts)

9-need to enjoy my freedom of speech before it's not free anymore

10-the world will be ending on Dec. 21, 2012

Serious Business

2010-11-04T09:40:00.000-07:00

Here's my first 12x12 page I've done in like forever! I'm so excited to share it with you today! This page is all about Forrest and his curiosity of Dad's skills in the auto-mechanics world. George bought him a 1981 camaro last summer and they have been gradually restoring it. What I captured in these photos was a serious conversation about what motor Forrest wants to put in his car and is asking Dad about all his options. This conversation went on for about an hour! I love the bond that this camaro has brought about with George and Forrest but I'm so not loving the fact that sometime in the future they will be building a faster motor for his car!

Title: Talks between Father and Son
Journal: "Forrest is a cut-up most of the time, but when it comes to conversations with his Dad about auto-mechanics and his camaro, it's serious business! "

Do your Duty

2010-11-02T06:35:00.000-07:00

Today is a critical day in our time and I do hope everyone is planning on voting today. I just came home from voting and suprisingly, I walked right in and right out without having to stand in a line. (That wasn't the case two years ago...the line wrapped around the parking lot and it took me 45 minutes to just get inside!) As you can see in my pictures, there are definately last minute efforts to sway your vote. Turning into the parking lot, I was hit with massive amounts of signs of both sides along with huge amounts of flyers that came through the mail in the past two days. We live in a country where voting is a right and a privledge. Let's make sure we all take advantage of this great blessing and turn this country back to it's origin of the founding fathers and so that we can maintain the status of "the land of the free!" Do your duty and vote!

ps-I was very happy to vote but was very discouraged at how difficult it was to take a picture of myself with my new iphone! Can't you tell? lol)

Officially a Teenager!

2010-10-31T20:01:00.000-07:00

Sadie is officially a teenager. The big 13 came back in June but we didnt' have her party until recently. We all met at Bridgestreet for pizza and then had a scavenger hunt. Everyone had a blast! I do have to admit, I love who she hangs out with. She has the best circle of friends. They are all band nerds, have strong values and love life!

ps-check out her invites...I stamped on paint cards from Lowes! I absolutely love being resourceful! The brown bag contained an intialized (is that a word?) glass tile pendant ribbon necklace I made for everyone who attended as a party gift. they were awesome!

Time-Out for the Weather

2010-07-25T16:51:00.000-07:00

Check out this huge storm front that came through during one of Sadie's swim meets last month! They called time-out during the middle of the meet to allow this storm front to pass. Thirty minutes later and Sadie was swiming in her freestyle and it never rained a drop! If you look closely, you can actually see the front moving through in the pictures. Weather is so weird but so facinating at the same time!

2010-06-20T07:10:00.000-07:00

Pants On The Ground

2010-06-02T22:07:00.000-07:00

Pants on the ground, pants on the ground,
looking like a fool with your pants on the ground!

Finger-Lickin GOOD!

2010-06-01T01:34:00.001-07:00

Our Memorial Day was finger-lickin' good! We went to Mom and Dad's (aka-Granny and Grampie) house and brought charcoal, country-style ribs, coleslaw, baked beans and brownies with us. Oh what a feast this was! But the "finger-lickin' didn't start until Granny picked up her rib with her hands and began eating it. Forrest and Sadie immediately looked at her, turned to look at me, and then dropped their fork and knife and started eating with their hands too. This table etique and conversation was definitely worth documenting! Grampie and I were the only civilized ones in the house using a knife and fork to cut up the ribs. We're also the only ones who hate getting our hands dirty! After we controlled our laughter, we did get serious as Granny had a discussion on why we have a Memorial Day.

After clean up, it was relaxin' time. Sadie went on the computer and Forrest, George and Grampie turned on River Monsters. Mom brought out her sewing machine to help me sew a couple of quilting blocks for my quilt guild. (wow, that makes sound like I'm an awesome quilter! haha! I can hardly sew, much less quilt, but more to come on another blog...) After several hours of relaxation, we headed back home.

As Forrest was driving us home, I was able to reflectre on the day and my feelings for my family. I am always so grateful for the time spent with my family and for the rejuvenation it gives to our souls and the strengthening of our family bonds that occur when we're together. Family is what life is all about. Always and forever.

Happy Memorial Day!

Sadie's Recital

2010-05-19T21:33:00.000-07:00

(Mrs. Pat smiled the whole time while Sadie played!)

Sadie's first recital with the Hawthorne Conservatory was last night. She did a fantastic job and we are so proud of her.! She has been taking flute lessons at the Hawthorne Conservatory in downtown Huntsville since the beginning of January. She was awarded a scholarship to the Conservatory and studies with Mrs. Pat Dreger Hinrichs. Mrs. Pat is the best and has a resume that is out of this world. (A couple of her qaulifications include studying at the New England Conservatory of Music and playing lead flute with the Huntsville Orchestra for many years.) The scholarship is good until Sadie graduates from high school and also includes summer instruction. This recital marks the end of the spring sememster and after a well deserved two-week break, summer instruction will begin. We feel so blessed to have this amazing opportunity for Sadie to learn and develop her talents in music.

Ready. Set. GIVE!

2010-05-19T09:05:00.000-07:00

Forrest's Eagle Project was a huge success this past Sunday. It was pouring down rain when we arrived at 7:30am for set-up, but that didn't stop Forrest or the donors from making this project successful. The Red Cross bus pulled into the parking lot at 8am and I have to say, the sight of the bus gave me chills. It made this project real. I have been dreaming of this day since Fo was a toddler and here it was...it was so surreal...By 9am, the first of the 33 donors arrived. Forrest put on his game face and took on his role as leader and project manager of his blood drive. He was "in the zone". He instructed, delegated and directed his volunteers and donors as to what they should do for the full seven hours of this blood drive. To be continued......

Time to Shine

2010-05-15T21:59:00.000-07:00

Forrest will be having a blood drive for his Eagle project today. He's worked really hard at getting everything prepared and now it's time to shine! It's his time to show his leadership skills and run his blood drive. Good luck Forrest!

Another Successfull Activity

2010-05-13T17:57:00.000-07:00

The Young Women decorated cakes as a Personal Progress activity a few weeks ago and they really enjoyed themselves. Tina Wimberly was our instructor (a professional cake decorator) and guided the girls through this expeience. Each girl brought their own pre-baked cakes and I brought the ingredients for the frosting minus the milk. I totally forgot to buy milk, so the frosting was really thick and didn't want to cooperate, but with a little patience, the frosting managed to spread over the cake. One of my girls lost her patience and used her hand to spread the frosting on her cake! Whatever works, right? After much labor,
the girls were successful in decorating their cakes and after an hour of clean up, the leaders were successful in cleaning up all the mess! lol

WANTED: Manuel or Electric!

2010-05-11T20:25:00.000-07:00

Spring Concert

2010-05-11T20:10:00.000-07:00

Sadie's band spring concert was Thursday night and what a night it was! She plays in the Sym 1 band (top band) and they nailed every piece they played. There were a couple of songs where I had chills because they were playing so well! I'm so proud Sadie. She has worked really hard this year in her music and it has paid off for her. I have really enjoyed getting to know her circle of friends along with all of the band students while I was up at the school couple of days a week this year doing treasurer work. Even though the treasurer job was time consuming, the time I was able to spend with Sadie and the band kids was worth it.

Never Say Never!

2010-05-10T18:02:00.000-07:00

Growing up, my mom and dad would listen to "talk radio" 24/7. Now, to a teenager, that was torture! Even after I moved out and had a family of my own, talk radio continued to be a staple in my parents home. I have always listened to rock with a little bit of country on the side until we moved to Hazel Green five years ago. Not wanting to listen to my normal music for the thirty minute drive to school, I began flipping channels and discovered a Birmingham talk radio station 101.1 and a local station 92.5 that talked about local politics. I instantly fell in love with these two channels. I couldn't believe I actually enjoyed listening to local and national politics! Today, I can't drive in my car without having one of these two stations on. Trust me, it drives Forrest and Sadie crazy!!!! In he past several years, I have become great friends with Dale Jackson, Dave Ramsey, Rush, Luara Engram, Hannity and Mark LaVinn, to name a few! And I especially love the national and local news that come on every hour and every half hour. Looking back, I should've known better than to tell my parents I would "NEVER" listen to talk radio, because everytime I say "NEVER" , it always backfires on me!

Cross Over of Myth

2010-05-09T06:03:00.000-07:00

Sadie noticed her bird on the bottom of the cage and that he was limping. She picked him up and recoginized his feet were curled up and white as a ghost. She instantly begn to cry, because she realized he was dying. We had a small memorial for Myth as he was
"crossing over". More tears came from Sadie. I told her this was the hardest part of having animals as a pet. Myth has lived a good life (four years with us) and now has joined Buster in heaven.

Bartered Goods

2010-05-07T14:22:00.000-07:00

I have picked up a trade I have learned from my husband: bartering. My friend and I have been bartering for a while. I absolutely love office supplies and he absolutely loves homemade cookies. We've had this barter for a while. I was tickled when I found this box in the back seat of my car after church a few weeks ago. He even left me a "receite" on the side of the box! This barter works out perfectly, because we both understand each other wants. What a great way of exhanging goods!

Over-the-Top Invites

2010-05-06T22:39:00.000-07:00

No. 2 Post

I was asked to create invitations for the newly-turned 12 year olds at our church for a program called "Walk with God" that will explain to them and his parents about the Young Men program along with the scouting program. I was honored that I was asked to use my scrapbooking skills to come up with the perfect "over-the-top" invite for this program and that I would be reimbursed for any costs I have in making this project. No pressure, right? I had three weeks to complete this task and the first two weeks I stressed about how I was going to pull this off. I prayed for inspiration and after playing around with an idea or two, this is the final result and I couldn't be more happier. I honestly felt like I had a walk with God because He really and truely inspired me in creating these invites. I absolutely love how the invite incoorperates a compass along with a map (with script writing stamped on it) to help illustrate the importance of this program and the course these young boys can take with the help of God. The cost was almost nothing to make, but the experience was priceless!

More than Words

2010-05-06T14:02:00.000-07:00

No. 1 Post

Last night at Young Women, I prepared a Mother's Day project for the girls to do. I took three pictures of each girl with them expressing three words for their mother: I Love You. What I wasn't prepared for was for each girl to express their own unique personlity in each picture that totally defined them. After the photo shoot, I used my laptop and printer and had each of my girls choose an option for their pictures (color, sepia, black & white, etc) that would best fit their project, which was to mount the pictures in an 8x10 picture frame. I have to say, I was so impressed by the final results of each girl's frame. They totally rocked this project. Come Sunday, there will be some very happy mothers. Luckily for me, I didn't have to wait because Sadie gave me my frame last night, but I'm only going to show you her pictures now and you'll have to wait till Sunday to see the frame!

Disclaimer- this project ensured me a gift for Mother's day! lol

A New Focal Point

2010-05-05T20:03:00.000-07:00

No. 2 Post

I was out taking pictures of some flowers in the back yard last week and was on my last shot (or so I thought) when Benny decided he wanted to be in the picture too. The camera was focused on the flower, but when he put his "hindside" in view, the camera refocused on his big bushy tail and he became the focal point. You know, when I want a picture of Benny, he runs all over the place and will not stay still, and when I don't, he's showing his butt off, literally!

Get off Me!

2010-05-05T11:45:00.000-07:00

Every morning before George goes to work, he lets the boys out to play in the back yard and when I come home from seminary and dropping Forrest and Sadie off at school. This is our normal routine, so when I let the boys in this morning, I was caught off guard when I saw what Benny had brought in with him. My reflexes weren't fast enough to get away from Benny's hug and kisses before I realized I was mudy too. As I pushed him out of the way, he gave me the look that said, "What did I do mom?" I don't know who's heart should be blessed, his or mine. I say mine, because I had to clean up the mess!

Btw, I am going to be posting "two-a-days" on my blog starting today. By doing so, it'll help me get back into the habit of blogging again (I really do miss blogging) and will give you the opportunity to catch up on what's been happening around the Walker Pad!

Best Friends, On & Off the Field

2010-04-11T22:26:00.000-07:00

You know you're the best of friends when you can play against each other on the field to win and afterward the game, you're still friends. That's what Forrest and Gentry do each soccer season. This past Thursday, we were up 2-1 with eight minutes to go when Gentry's team scored. When the clocked ran out, the game was tied 2-2. Unfortunately, a tie means neither claims the "bragging rights" That's probably a good thing, because I am positive that Gentry's mom would not have liked to hear all the trashing that comes with the bragging rights for the next week during early morning seminary!

A few cards to share!

2010-04-01T07:18:00.000-07:00

It's Been Too Long!

2010-03-14T16:22:00.000-07:00

It's been too long since I have blogged! How does one go from blogging regulary for two years, to hit and miss, to a complete STOP? It's called Life! lol Lot's have been happening around here and I'm along for the ride. It doesn't help that the desktop is being worked on and I have to share my laptop with two teens! Anyway, I'm back!

I wanted to share with you from a couple of weeks ago...Since we live in the country, there are lots of cotton fields on both sides of the roads. On our the way to drop Forrest off at school, something seemed strangely out of place...there was a yellow VW bug in the middle of the cotton field! How odd is that? After driving by this "bug in the field" for three weeks, I decide to take a few shots. Good thing I did, because the very next day it was gone!

Better Luck Next TIme

2010-01-10T18:16:00.000-08:00

I have really enjoyed watching the Canadian geese fly over me as I'm driving here and there and have always thought it would be fun to take pictures of them in flight before they turn into little dots in the sky. Unfortunately, I never seem to have my camera in the van. But just a few days ago my luck changed, or so I thought. As I was driving home, a flock of feese had just taken flight over me and I remembered I had the camera in the van and quickly pulled over. Unfortunately, the time it took to pulled over, dig the camera out of the case and focus the camera, the geese were already little dots in the air. Better luck next time, right? So after I got back into the drivers seat (with my camera still in hand) I realized I didn't shut the van door. I tired a couple of times to shut it, but my camera bag was in the way. As I was reaching around to move the camera bag out of the door way, I missed the strap and my hand hit the door itself. A scream came out as I felt pain instantly. I broke a nail! It throbbed all the way home and all night long. All I was trying to do is take a few pictures of flying geese and I come home with pictures of the worst nail break I have ever had. As I said before, I sure hope I have better luck next time!

just one more picture!

2010-01-03T22:10:00.000-08:00

(this post is dedicated to my Dad!)
My Dad absolutely loves taking pictures of his family and I have to admit, had it not been for him and his obsession with his camera, I wouldn't have any pictures of my children when they were babies and in their younger years. But for some odd reason, when his camera comes out, smiles turn into frowns and the panting, grunts and sighs begin! Dad doesn't take just one picture, he takes tons and even experiments with different settings and says, "Just one more picture!" There are times that he will call for pictures when we are literally walking out the door! It reminds me of when we were growing up when he would whistle at us driving away and shout, "Don't forget to check the oil!"

On this occasion, Dad did give us fair warning tbefore we went to bed that he would like to take some pictures in the morning at 7:45am before we left for school. I'm not sure if we were all awake, but in 10 minutes, we were able to get a couple of half-smiles, a grunt or two and the ole "sigh" before we had to rush out the door to get Forrest to his semester exam, which was over an hour's drive away.

In hindsight, the ritual we go through for Dad's pictures every time we visit is hilarious and it has become part of family tradition for years. We just accept that our looks along with our attitudes will be forever captured in the moment on Dad's camera and that he will always ask for one more picture!
I love you dad, tj

Since my Last Post

2009-12-30T16:54:00.000-08:00

This has been the absolute longest I have gone between posts! This wasn't a planned absence, but started after the laptop had to go into the shop for a couple of weeks. With the laptop gone, I thought it would be a great time to start rereading the Twilight saga to get me ready for New Moon. Well, I didn't just stop at the second book, I had to read all four plus the Melissa Marr trilogy books. By the time the laptop came back, Forrest and Sadie devoured it and I just didn't feel like fighting for it. Since the last time I posted, I was involved in someway or somehow with the following activities:

*spend 4-6 hours at the middle school doing my treasurer duties for the band each week

*I've substituted several days for the band director. I absolutely loved it!

*Went to my sister's house in Georgia for Fall Break

*Helped put on a Stake Barn Youth Dance for our youth at church

*did my VT each month

*took Forrest and Sadie to their orthodontists appointments each month

*after school band practices

*more monthly Band Parent Mtgs and weekly treasurer duties

*Helped with the Band Fundraising Rock-a-Thon and stayed up all night long rocking in chairs!

*helped mom and Dad put up some shelves and watched the Bama game

*more substituting for band and a 6th grade class

*Painting bedrooms and bathrooms to get ready for family at Thanksgiving

*Saw Twilight by myself and then took sadie later that night-we both loved it!

*Forrest's orientation to begin working on his Eagle Project-YEAH!

Family over for thanksgiving and shopping on Black Friday!

*Helped put on a band Spaggetti Dinner and Auction. It was a huge success!

*JUde Collins tutored forrest in his math class. Fo played a little too much in the first semster!

*Went to several holiday concerts

*Hosted a band Holiday Dance

*soccer conditioning after school

*george working overtime

*I have rediscovered the joy in writing in my personal journals again

*taking care of my beautiful young women at church

*Our youth at church decorated 120 Christmas cookies as a service project

*made my sister and mom Christmas cards (but none for me! Lol)

*went to the Christmas Festival for the first time this year. It was beautiful!

*3rd Annual Cookies with Cay last weekend. we had a last and left with tons of goodies!

*Getting Forrest and George off to winter camp this week

*Participated in my first cookie swap last weekend. Note to myself: too many cookies to bake!

*I was suprised with a visit from my brother and his family this past weekend . My sister's family spent Christmas in salt Lake Sity, UTah and will be coming home tonight

*I was able to make a card of two during the last couple of months but I haven't scrapped or
even taken more than a picture or too since my last post but I've looked at tons of sites for when I'm ready to scrap!

So there there you have the watered-down version of what we've been up to in the past several months. We are alive, happy and I'm a day younger today! Yes, it's my birthday today ,but I'm only getting younger, not older!I hope you had a beautiful Christmas with your family and friends and please know that you are always in our thoughts and prayers during this Christmas season.

More to come!

Closet Creations

2009-10-01T14:08:00.001-07:00

I did these pages during Feeling Scrappy's Sketchapaloza class a couple of months ago and I wanted to share them with you. I had a blast creating these pages and with each challenge, I would discover more joy in the creating process of scrappin'. Since this class, I

haven't scrapped any pages because I have found a new kind of joy in making cards! I love learning new techniques and the thrill of making cards in bulk. I'm so thankful I have an outlet to go to or I should say, a closet to run to! It's been two years now since I converted the livingroom closet into my scrappin' closet and I officially named my closet Closet Creations. In the next couple of days, I'll post some cards I've created along with some of the cards I'm making in Feeling Scrappy's class "Simplify the Season".

Father & Son Tree Service

2009-09-22T19:18:00.000-07:00

When George bought a chainsaw last year, I had no idea what was in store for our property. The main attraction of our property use to be all the trees and the shade and privacy they provided, but not anymore! George has cut down a few trees in the back yard, but after the county came and cut down three mature bradford pear trees in the front yard (in the power lines) he has directed his attention on the front yard. A couple of Saturdays ago, my Father & Son tree service cut down two trees in the right side of the front yard (bottom picture). George tied his repelling rope around the tree and on the back of his Samari and had Forrest drive the Samari forward, guiding the tree to fall in the right direction as George did the cutting. I wished I had this on video as it was a sight to see! He and Forrest had this particular tree cut down, branches to the street and logs cut and stacked within an hour!

So far, George has cut down fourteen trees in the front yard and we still have a couple in the back yard to go. I have to admit, I do like the property better now than before. I asked George how much we have saved by doing this ourselves and he said on average, it's $1200-$1800 or more to have a tree cut down (depending on size of tree) so we've saved a a big chunk. The best part about cutting down our own trees is having stacks of wood for the stove during winter time. By the time it's all said and done, we'll have 5-6 years worth of fuel for winter!

THursday Night Football

2009-09-21T09:40:00.000-07:00

Look at how much fun Sadie has at the middle school football games! The 7th & 8th grade band students play during the middle school football games on Thursday nights and I have to say, I'm pretty impressed at the songs they were playing! I wanted to do some dancing like Sadie and grab a sax and play my high school songs, but then that would have embarrassed her! THis Friday night, the middle school band will play with the high school band at their football game. I think that is so cool! Being around the band and the students are making me feel young again and I like that!

Manna from Heaven

2009-09-18T13:52:00.000-07:00

As you all know, my purse was stolen mid-July at Youth Conference in Troy, AL at Troy State University . But what you don't know, is that exactly one month to the day it was taken, manna from God was dropped from heaven in the form of a Fed-Ex box on our front door step. Forrest and Sadie ripped the box opened to find my purse had been found and returned! I screamed with joy in amazement at this wonderful blessing from God. My purse hadn't been rummaged through or damaged in the slightest! Even my half- empty bag of peanuts was there! lol. The only thing missing was the cash.

I have to admit, I suprised myself by recognizing how I was feeling the minute I discovered my purse was stolen. I was extremely calm about my purse being taken and not the total opposite. I had the feeling this was in Heavenly Father's hands, not mine and for some unknown reason, I knew in my heart this would work itself out. I have often had the thought that this wasn't my test, but a test for the individual who took my purse. This person failed the honesty test by taking my purse and failed the Good Samaritan test by not shutting my trunk for me!

I will forever be grateful to the person(s) who found my purse and turned it so that the Troy Police could return it to the rightful owner, me!

No Words Neccessary!

2009-09-10T11:29:00.000-07:00

What the BLog?

2009-08-20T19:57:00.000-07:00

What the blog is going on here? Has anyone seen my blog because I sure haven't! THis summer has come and gone so fast that I haven't had time to blog some weeks and I thought I would never miss a beat with my blogging! It's been very busy around here. June and July flew by and August is on auto-pilot. My calendar is so busy I can't even pencil in scrappin' time!

School started last Monday with seminary starting the next day. Mom had her other knee replacement also last Tuesday so I have been traveling back and forth to see her and Dad in Athens. My sister MK came up to help out with Dad this past weekend and Sadie and I got to hang with her and we had a blast. (I didn't realize it's been almost eight months since I have seen her!) Sadie and I will bust mom out of rehab this Saturday and bring her home. She is doing such a fantastic job and is such a trooper! Grampie misses her so much and can't wait for her return.

Forrest turned 15 on August 8th and on the same day as mom's surgery he skipped school and took his learner's permit test-and PASSED! He's doing a great job driving but I swear, it's driving me crazy! I stress too much. The thought of putting my life (and his) and my car in the hands of a 15 year old scares the *&^%$ out of me! He gets good practice time by driving to seminary every morning and to school. ( there's not much traffic going in our direction! lol) He'll get in more driving time when soccer conditioning begins in the next couple of weeks. He and Sadie are growing up so fast! Just this past weekend, Sadie opened a Facebook account. Both of my babies are social networking!

I began my official duties as Sadie's middle school treasurer/secretary today. Football season starts next week with Sadie playing in the pep band. Believe it or not, I haven't picked up my camera in the last couple of weeks. I only realized I needed it ofter the fact. Oh well. Life happens.

Even though life is busy right at the moment, we are not loosing out on family time. I'm making sure we get in our time together and having our family dinners and hang out time. Family is all that matters in this crazy world and I will not loose them to craziness! Well, you know the 411 on us and hopefully the next blog I'll have a picture to post if I don't forget my camera! lol

Proud Moment

2009-08-03T10:56:00.000-07:00

Forrest receive his Life rank in BSA last Wedensday along with several merit badges he has earned this summer. After he earns a few more merit badges during the next six months, he'll be ready to begin working on his Eagle! My favorite part of the Court of Honor is when Forrest escorts me to the front of the room and he pins me with the mother's pin every time he advances a rank. It's really a special moment when Forrest says thank you to me for all the help and support I give to him. Now if I can only get him to help me sew the badges on his sash!

Sadie's Turn

2009-07-22T20:12:00.000-07:00

Sadie has been asking me for the last six months, "When am I going to get my braces?" I never had an answer to tell her until last Wednesday after her consultation visit with the orthodontist. She doesn't need major work like Forrest did, but it is enough to warrant metal in the form of brackets on her teeth. While Forrest was getting his six week check-up , Sadie and I had the consultation with Dr. Walker (no, we're not related) and it was then I was finally able to tell Sadie, "It's this Tuesday". Her reaction was priceless. She was happy, excited and nervous at the same time. She did really well during the two hour visit on Tuesday and came out wearing a big metal smile on her face. I was able to answer one question and hopefully it will be awhile before I hear her next question of "When am I going to get by braces off?"

Headed to EFY

2009-07-20T02:43:00.000-07:00

I beleive this is my earliest post, as it's 4:15am this morning. I take Forrest and four other youth from our ward to Especially For YOuth (EFY) in Bowling Green Kentucky. It's a week long youth conference that really boosts their testimony, values and friendships amoung peers their ages. I'm so excited Forrest is able to go this year. The youth had two yard sales to healp raise the money, but fell really short. Each person costs $415 and we only raised about $650, which comes to $119 each youth. Our Bishop didn't give up hope and wrote to the EFY in Kentucky and told them our situation and they replied, "Send us your youth and your money". What an amazing blessing theyouth received, so here we come!

The Challenge

2009-07-17T20:39:00.000-07:00

Our Relief Society issued a challenge of reading the Book of Mormon back in June and our family has taken has taken the challenge of reading two chapters a day (and I am also reading it personally.) To help motivate us to press forward and continue in our reading, the sisters were invited to watch John Bytheway's "Heros: Lessons from the Book of Mormon" last night. What an amazing video! Bytheway has such a talent in sharing his testimony and telling stories that keeps his audience's attention and wanting more. I'm so thankful I brought my scriptures so that I was able to follow along. (it also helps my mind not to wonder!) In our last televised Stake COnference in January, Sister Beck challenged use our Book of Mormon as a workbook. I have no problem marking and highlighting in my scriptures and by the time the movie was over, my poor marking pencil was so dull! Lately, I have discovered I'm marking in every chapter I read. I am so happy that our family is reading the Book of Mormon. With everyday that we read, we are increasing our testimony of our Savior Jesus Christ and moving closer to our goal of finishing by mid-September.

Down and Back Again

2009-07-16T07:27:00.000-07:00

As my last post said, my purse was stolen last weekend and I was headed back to Troy, Al to make a police report. On Tuesday, we began our journey. I was able to find Troy State University with out any problem and went straight to the campus Police Station. The sergant who took my report was great and after finishing the task we came to do, we celebrated by eating at Ruby Tuesday. When it was time to leave, I wasn't aware I hadn't reversed my directions from the way I came and after traveling over an hour, I realized I wasn't seeing any familar land marks . After we passed an aviation college the sergant had told us about and remembering he also said the beach was only two hours from Troy, I had the feeling we may be going the wrong direction. Luckily, the next exit was a rest stop and it was there I was told we were only 38 miles from the Florida state line and 105 miles from Panama City Beach! When Sadie heard this, she begged me to continue in that direction! We all laughed at our situation and it was then I decided to take our picture to document this adventure was had gotten ourselves in! After getting us back on track and going the right direction towards home, we settled in for theride home. Those six hours passed by very quickly. We talked about everything and anything and more of the same. It was truly the best time I have ever had with my mom and daughter. After being gone for thirteen hours, driving for twleve hours, one police report and 700 miles later, we were home! We can honestly say we drove "down and back again"!

(this trip was the equivalent of driving to my sister's house in Lagrange, Ga twice! Lagrange is located on the right-hand side of the ALbama map above. I'm sure Mary Kate would have loved for us to visit her instead! lol)

My Purse is GONE!

2009-07-13T16:44:00.000-07:00

It's been a crazy couple of weeks around here with Sadie and I going to camp and and this past weekend George and I chaperoned our youth to Troy State for Youth Conference. It was Forrest's first time and the whole experience was a blast, but the ending wasn't a blast for me-my purse was stolen! I remember putting it in the trunk of the Civic on Friday along wtih my camera so I would'nt have to carry it around with me during the workshops and when I came out an hour or so later, my trunk was opened! All I could think about was my camera. As soon as I noticed it was there, I drove off. It wasn't until Saturday afternoon that I noticed I couldn't find my purse. WHen I went to fill up for gas, it was nowhere to be found. It was then that I remembered that the trunk on the civic wasn't closing correctly when I packed the car and George took care of it and so when I opened the trunk to put my purse and camera in it, I guess it didn't close and so someone helped themselves to my purse! (I'm so thankful my camera wasn't taken. It would take me a over a year to replace it.) They got away with a good amount of cash and my favorite purse! (looks similar to picture, lol) Today I went and closed my bank accounts and opened new ones and renewed my drivers license. BOth sets of keys to my van were in my purse so I will need to get those replaced. They might be expensive because they have a chip in the key and will need to be programed. I still have lots to do to recover my identity. Sadie insisted I call the Social Security office Saturday night when she said, "I do not want to loose my identity at age 12!" She's so funny! I couldn't file a police report over the phone, so my mom and I will make the four hour journey back to Troy State University tomorrow. What a hassle it is to loose something so private and intimate as your purse. I'll be drinking a case of Sundrop tomorrow as I'll be gone for about 12-11 hours. Wish me luck!

Off to Camp!

2009-06-29T18:42:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow Sadie and I will head out to our Young Women Girl's Camp for the week. Our church bought the land and built this camp especially for the girls between the ages of 12-18yrs old and this year is Sadie's first year to attend. She is so excited and has been packed for a couple of days now. I wished I could say the same as this year procrastination and family affairs have taken my time when I should have been packing. I went out today and bought all the food and supplies and have the majority of my things packed. This is my fifth year going as Camp Director and my second year going as both Camp Director and Young Women's president. I'm very thankful it will be 10 degrees cooler than last week. I'll take 90 degrees over a 100 anyday! Off we go!

Under the Influence

2009-06-28T06:05:00.000-07:00

I created this page under the influence of my friend Rachel. She is an awesome scrapper who has been such an influence to me for over the past couple of years. I absolutely love everthing she creates and am amazed at her talent. I needed some inspiration for my layout and thought to myself, "What would Rachel do?" So I went to her blog The Scrappy Side and decided that her Week 1 Challenge called "Magical" hit the spot. I went to scrappin' and after three hours, I was done with my scraplift. Thanks Rachel for your influence!

The journaling reads: Sadie absolutely loves Mustangs. She goes crazy everytime she sees one. This Mustang show brought tears to her eyes as she told us, "They're beautiful!"

Cookies & Obstacles

2009-06-23T23:57:00.000-07:00

I've never been a cookie lover and up until a couple of months ago, I have been very satisfied with Keebler and Nabisco taking care of my family's cookie needs. But since I became a stay-at-home mom this past year, I thought I should fulfill my motherly duties and learn how to make cookies! I was really impressed by my friend Ashley and how much she enjoyed baking cookies weekly for her family. I do not enjoy cooking, much less baking, but after watching her in action and the joy she has making cookies for her family, I decided I wanted the same joy for my family. After adjusting my attitude towards baking and learning through trial and error over the last couple of months, I can honestly say I am totally in love with baking cookies! Seeing my family gooble up the cookies I make and hearing the words, "Thanks mom!", I am hooked. The best part of adjusting my attitude toward baking, and the most unexpected, is the change in my attitude toward cooking for my family. What a blessing it is to finally overcome two obstacles in a couple of months that have plagued me for sixteen years of marriage. Never would I have guessed it would come in the form of an oatmeal-butterscotch cookie!

(btw, we didn't eat all of these cookies. I gave most of them away! lol)

And It Came to Pass...

2009-06-22T21:21:00.001-07:00

Happy Father's Day Dad! You're the best dad ever.

I love you! (And you too, Mom!)

Forrest gave me a big hug when I picked
him up from Boy Scout Camp. He earned several merit badges
and is close to begin working on his Eagle.

Forrest wasn't thinking of the consequences of
eating the first piece of Sadie's birthday cake
without asking. He made her another cake
to make restitution! Sadie forgave him.

I absolutely love Willowtree, so I thought Sadie's 12th birthday
was the perfect time to give her her first Willowtree.
I picked out the "Spirit of Giving" because Sadie has so
much to give to others!

Sadie has been waiting to turn 12 so that she could
"graduate" from primary to Young Women at church.
She was very excited when we came to kidnap her
for good!

Up the road from our house is a new subdivision
that has only two houses and a one mile loop that
I allow Sadie to drive around. She is actually
pretty good! I can see her being a soccer
mom in her future!

Sadie and I thought it would be fun to look up our marriage
license while we were in the Fayetterville, TN courhouse.
It's been 16 years and the memories were there as if it were yesterday!

The past couple of weeks have come and gone so fast that I was thinking only a week had past from coming home from my sister's but in reality, it has been two weeks! "Business" has really crept in along with a calendar of events and that has left me no time to be on the computer. Entertaining the kids is an art and is neccesary so that boredom doesn't set in!

The pictures above are just a couple of things that have filled the days in the past couple of weeks. The kids and I went and stayed a couple of days with Mom and Dad this past weekend. I cooked dad a Father's Day dinner and spent some time him and mom. Sadie is officially 12 and with that she is officially a teenager! She is really loving being in Young Women at church and not in Primary with the little kids. Forrest is working on merit badges to get done with Scouting. THis weekend, he and Dad will go on a camp out and he'll finish a couple of merit badges and will only lack two from being able to start on his Eagle. Last week, George was able to build shelves for my scrapbooking closet and I was able to slap a coat of paint and I am so ready to make some time for myself!

THe next several weeks will be filled with the following: next week, Sadie and I will be going to Girls Camp for the week, the next weekend will be Youth Conference at Troy State, the weekend after that, we'll head back to my sister's and when we come back from Georgia, I'll drive Forrest to Especially For Youth in Bowling Green, KY. When he comes back, we'll have a week before school starts back to shop for school cothes and supplies. And in between all of the above, I'm going to be scrapbooking!

Home Sweet Home!

2009-06-04T09:00:00.000-07:00

We're headed home today to Sweet Home Alabama! After two weeks in Georgia, it's time! We have had an absolute blast living my sister's identity while she is away with her family visiting in the Phillipines. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end, so we are Bama bound! (Thanks Chris for entertaining us! love ya!)

Check it Out!

2009-06-03T09:03:00.001-07:00

Go check out http://feelingscrappyclasses.blogspot.com/ at Feeling Scrappy and see a couple of my pages on today's blog post! Wow! I took a class called "Get INked" recenty and learned lots of fun ways to use inks on my pages. The class was awesome and next week they will have a new class to get you "shimmering" on your pages!

No Obie!

2009-06-01T08:57:00.000-07:00

We are house sitting my sister's puppy, Obie, at her house in Georgia while she and her family are in the Phillipines for a few weeks and let me tell you, it's no walk in the park! Obie is so sweet when you look at him, but let me tell you, his teeth are sharp and he will bite the hand that wants to pet him! He loves to chew on anything, including my legs when I walk by! He loves chewing up any paper products and plastic bottles he can find. He has even discovered a corner of the couch he likes to knaw on! No telling how many times I have cleaned up after him. Oh, and getting him to go to the bathroom outside is impossible! We will walk him and he does just that. Walk. And at his own speed and his own time! He hasn't hit the potty pad once! And as you can see in the pictures, he snuck up behind me and took my camera bag when I wasn't looking! I couldn't tell you how many times we have said "No Obie!" in the last week and a half. But I can tell you it's almost as much as we have said, "I love you" and "You're too cute" to Obie when we weren't having to pick up after him!

One Down, Three to Go

2009-05-27T18:23:00.000-07:00

These pictures were taken to celebrate the ending of Forrest and Gentry's first year of early morning seminary. Every day for the entire school year, these boys got up and attended an early morning bible study of the New Testament for 50 minutes. Gentry was lucky enough that seminary was held at his home, but unfortunatley, Forrest wasn't tht lucky. He had to get up at 4:45am to get ready and we drove the 20 minutes one way to be at class by 6:15am. This program is designed for the youth to help strengthen them against the challenges they face everyday. Forrest didn't want to miss a day of seminary. even when he was home sick! Not once did Forrest ever complain he didn't want to go. He knew what was expected of him and come to find out, he really did enjoy it! Plus, it was really fun to stop at our country gas station for a sausage bisquit and a Sundrop! I am really proud of Forrest and Gentry to enduring to the end. What a great feeling of accomplishment they felt when it was over! Great job boys! One year down, three to go!

Scrappin' Homework

2009-05-24T06:04:00.000-07:00

My online scrapbooking class at Feeling Scrappy just ended and I thought I would share with you my homework assisgnments. The class was called "Get Inked" because the main topic was INK! We learned how to use a variety of inks (pens, ink pads, alcohol inks, etc) It was very informative and as always, I really enjoyed myself!

"Sweet 16"

2009-05-22T17:03:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, George and I celebrated our 16th wedding anniversary. It seems like yesterday that George and I eloped to Tennessee and were married. We were married by a lady judge wearing a hot pink windsuit. I know it sounds a little red-neckish, but I didn't care. I only wanted to be George's wife!

After dating for a year and a half and being engaged for a year and George calling off the wedding once, it was time for him to make up his mind. It was time for action! I went to his work on a Tuesday and demanded a date. George wanted to wait until the fall when he had a break from touring with Diamond Rio, but I couldn't wait that long. I looked at his calendar and saw he had the coming weekend open and said to him, "Marry me this weekend or we're done!" Needless to say, he took me up on my offer. On May 21, 1993, we were married. It was the happiest day of my life!

A year later, on our first anniversary, we were sealed in the LDS Atlanta Temple. George has asked me a couple of times over the years if I would do it all over again with him and my answer is "YES!" everytime. Unfortunately for George, he's stuck with me forever! lol

Mustang!

2009-05-20T09:24:00.000-07:00

Several months ago, Sadie fell in love with Mustangs and points out every Mustang car she sees. At first, it was very annoying as I wasn't use to the clapping and excitement of joy every 15 seconds in a closed environment of our car. SInce then, we have made a game of counting every Mustang we see. I didn't realize these are extremely popular cars and we see tons everyday! So, it wasn't a surprise when Sadie got all giggly on me when she saw this brand new Mustang out in front of Sams. THe other pictures of the cars are from car show at the mall a couple of weeks ago. She was so excited to see all the Mustangs that she started crying! When she gained her composure, she said, "They're so beautiful!" and started snapping pictures from insde of the car of the Mustangs. She's too funny!

PS-I want to congratulate Sadie on making the top band for next year's school year! She made the Wind Ansemble 1 band, the highest in middle school. Go Sadie!

I'm still Cool!

2009-05-17T16:58:00.000-07:00

Sadie has just completed her first year of playing the flute in the middle school band. She really has a talent in the music department and has been first chair for the majority of the school year. She plans on being in the band for the rest of her schooling and hopefully earn a scholarship to college. So to support Sadie in her carreer in band, I was voted in to be the secretary/treasurer for the band next year. Am I a sucker or what? I am just thrilled to be able to spend the time with Sadie and am very thankful she still thinks I'm cool and wants me to be around! I wonder how long that will last? How long will I still be "cool"? Forrest doesn't think I'm cool anymore so I'm going to milk this with Sadie for as long as I can!

Attack of the Wiper Blades

2009-05-13T06:52:00.000-07:00

"Would you like to go for a ride?" Forrest asked the Boys (Benny & Carhartt) yesterday as he went outside to sit in his Camaro. Knowing the Boys would follow him, Forrest already knew their answer before asking the question. Btw, I love how Forrest talks to the pups. It's like a mom talking to her sweet baby using her "baby" talk voice. Anyway, I peeked out the window and I knew I needed to capture this moment. We found out a couple of years ago that Carhartt doesn't like the windshield wipers turned on. He goes balistic and pierces our ears with his ferocious barking! He will try to get up on the dashboard to attack the wipers. So, it's not unusual for Forrest or Sadie to "tease" Carhartt every now and then by turning on the wipers. (The teasing only last a minute or two because the eardrum can only take so much!) As you can see in the pictures, Carhartt is very serious about taking out the wipers. Forrest turned the wiper on and then off. When the wipers were turned off, Carhartt waited in anticipation for them to come on and was ready to pounce them! Forrest wanted to see what Carhartt would do if he put him out of the car. Carhartt didn't like it and went to begging to get back inside. Benny on the other hand, is cool with just hanging out. We so much enjoy our pups and every aspect of their personalities. They are truly an important part of our family!

Garden Olympics

2009-05-11T08:39:00.000-07:00

I went outside to take a few pictures of Forrest kicking the ball around and as I was walking towards him, I noticed mud on his back legs. When I asked him how did the mud get on him, he said, "I'm doing the running long jump in the garden!"

Since we have recieved so much rain in the last few weeks and haven't planted our garden yet, I thought by letting Forrest continue would help till the garden some more! So, I began taking pictures of as he was doing his running long jump. That lasted a few minutes and next he began doing handstands and before I knew it, he was running and flipping in the mud! Now as he was doing these acrobats, Benny, our standard poodle, was running along side of him through the garden. He is such a playful pup! Carhartt, being the "weenie" he is, stayed in the safe zone away from the garden. Forrest didn't like that much, so to help break the ice for Carhartt, and broke the ice for him! He put a coat of mud on him. And to help Carhartt not to feel like he was being picked on, he also gave Benny a coat of mud!

Sadie soon joined us in the fun, but she wasn't as dareful as Forrest, but she did manage to get just as dirty. After 30 minutes of Garden Olympics, it was time to clean up. You should have seen the tub after I washed the dogs....and the footprints coming from the backyard through the garage.... and the handprints on both the Firebird and Camaro.....and the mud on the sidewalk from Forrest and Sadie cleaning up.... and 140 pictures I took (don't you love digital?), I would definately say we had a blast! I give this experience a perfect score of 10!

Forrest in Action

2009-05-07T11:16:00.000-07:00

I absolutely love action shots of my children so I was thrilled to catch Forrest in action as he plays a sport he absolutely loves. The first picture is of him in the "follow-through" position of kicking the ball down field (I still use my physical education terminolgy!) The second picture he had just used his head to hit the ball (ouch!). The third picture is self-explanitory and the last picture he had just kicked and is entering the follow-through. These pictures are priceless and I would love to have one made into a poster for his wall, but which one?

My 12lb Baby

2009-04-28T19:41:00.000-07:00

My twelve pound baby needs to find a home! This is over a year and a half pages scrapping and I have been just dumping the pages into a rubbermaid containers. I use to scrap in chronological order (and still wnat to go this way) and cut the half inch off the edge of the page so it would fit in the CM albums. Cutting the edge off the paper got on my nerves so I gave that technique the boot and now I'm paying for it because none of my pages will fit on the CM pages without me cutting off part of a picture or journaling. I have over 13 Creavtive memory albums and I would love to continue with the style, but they are really expensive. I would love to see my options. What albums do you use and why? I've got to take care of this 12 lb baby before it gets any larger!

Static Clinge and Then Some

2009-04-20T21:04:00.000-07:00

I just had to share these pictures of Forrest and Nate with you. Nate is my sister's son and he adores Forrest. Even though Forrest is almost 15 and there is an eight year difference in age between the two, they are 100% static clinge when they are together! You can't keep them seperated. Either Nate is hanging all over Forrest or they are on the floor wrestling. A couple of years ago, Mary Kate was worried that Forrest would not want to come to Georgia anymore because he would be a teenager and wouldn't want to hang around with little Nate. Forrest has proven her wrong! They will carry this bond between them forever.

In other news...

Mom is doing fantastic! I brought her home from rehab last Saturday a week earlier than expected. It's been four weeks now since her surgery and her other knee bothers her more than the new knee. Hopefully in the fall, she'll be able to have it replaced. She's such a trooper. Forrest had his last soccer game in Florence today and Mom was able to go with us! She really enjoyed getting out and seeing her grandson play. I am so proud of her and am very thankful for the opportunity to help and Dad.

Forrest's soccer season (JV) ended tonight, but he will play with the varsity in their tournaments next this weekend. He played last week with them and was able to play almost half the game while some varsity players sat the bench. We are very proud of Forrest and all of his hard work he puts in his sport. George will miss the soccer season as he loves to watch Forrest play.

Sadie and I will go to Alabama Adventure this Saturday with the band. It's a miniture SixFlags with a water park in Birmingham, AL. She is vey excited about going. She absolutely loves band. Every morning during Forrest's early morning seminary (6:15-7am), she practices her flute. It's a wonder I haven't gone deaf! She has been first chair for most of the year and is very excited to advance to the wind asemble next year.

I'm really enjoying taking care of mom and dad while mom recovers from knee replacement surgery for the past four weeks. I really appreciate all of your thoughts and prayers during this time. Last week, I put down the paper cutter and picked up my paint brush as I started painting a couple of bedrooms for some dear friends and when I'm done there, I will do some painting for my parents and my sister in the next couple of weeks. I really love to paint (especially the trim) as much as I love to scrapbook. I sub-contracted some of the rolling to Forrest so I won't wear my back out and he's happy to earn the extra money. I am really enjoying working side by side with my son. I cherish these moments with him because it will not be too long before he will leave the nest!

Stress Reliever

2009-04-03T16:04:00.000-07:00

Since I have been taking care of mom for the last week with her recovering from her knee replacement surgery and going to rehab for visits along with driving to Athens to take care of Dad, and along with taking care ofm y own family, I have been in dire need to relieve some stress! The only way I know how to relieve stress and be productive at the same time is to do some scrappin'! I was able to scrap two pages and 25 cards in the last week. Since my mom hasn't made cards in months, I picked through her supplies and added them to mine. I felt like a kid in the candy store rummaging through her stamps, ribbons, punches, stamps and papers, etc.

I went for a visit with mom this morning and she looked fantastic! She is doing so well! She's walking as if she hasn't had surgery! She told me her walker was just in the way, but must use it for safety precations. I have an interdisciplinary meeting for her on the 9th and hopefully we can bust her out of rehab and bring her back to Dad where she belongs! When I visit tomorrow, I'll post pictures of how wonderful she looks!

Worth My Efforts

2009-04-01T09:49:00.000-07:00

Mom's in rehab and is doing great. I've been traveling back and forth from Rehab in Huntsville to Dad's house in Athens and back to my house in Hazel Green, and that's not including early morning seminary! I'm driving about 300 miles a day and that doesn't leave me much time to myself. I really am enjoying spending this time with my parents. I am thrilled to say mom is doing great in her recovery and Dad is taking good care of himself in her absence and that is well worth my efforts. Right now, I'm taking a break in helping dad vacuum the little dust bunnies and I have a feeling this break will be longer than intended, because my eyes sure are getting sleepy!

Out With the Old

2009-03-25T07:46:00.000-07:00

I took mom to her knee replacement surgery yesterday. As you can see, she's been in pain for a very long time. Her knee is was so disfiguring that it made my stomach upset. Mom was very brave, as she was past ready to have this surgery. I was very concerned with how I would react seeing her in pain, but thanks goodness for nerve blocks! When she came out of surgery, she was all smiles! She felt absolutely no pain! She couldn't even feel her leg! They will have her up doing physical therapy this morning. I still can't believe that a total knee replacement surgery only takes one hour to perform! I waited five hours in the waiting room but I didn't mind. I rearranged the chairs and slid a table in the corner and spread out my scrappin' supplies and made 8 cards! I'm so thankful for modern medical technology. I'm thankful we live in free country where we have the freedom of choosing our doctors and treatment and I pray to God that it will stay this way!

A Midnight Run for Edward

2009-03-21T10:06:00.000-07:00

At 12:o1am this morning, the movie Twilight was released and at 12:10am, Sadie and I decided to make a run into town to Walmart to buy our copy. I asked the cashier if she had sold many and she replied, "Oh yes!". That was what Sadie and I were thinking as we walking out of Walmart with Edward and Bella in our hands. By the time we drove home and put the movie on, it was 1:15am. Forrest couldn't hang as he fell asleep an hour into the movie, but Sadie and I were troopers! After the movie was over, we watched both special feature disks We finally went to bed at 5:ooam. It was so worth it! We have plans to watch it again this evening, but I promise you, I'll be in bed by 10:00pm. I need to be awake in church!

A Lazy Spring Break

2009-03-20T11:39:00.000-07:00

Because our plans to visit my brother in Knoxille fell through, we decided to just stay here for Spring Break. Sadie asked if she could set the tent up and George kindly gave up his spot in the garage so the tent wouldn't get wet in case it rained. So, every night this week, Forrest, Sadie and I have slept outside in the tent along with Benny & Carhartt. Now, we aren't "roughing" it too bad, as we have brought out two twin mattresses and all of the blankets and pillows to keep us warm and cozy. But let me tell you, there have been some cold nights and a few annoyances when the dogs decided to bark along with other dogs who were miles away!

We have had the best time together playing Runscape, watching movies and scrapbooking this week. You would think we would have gotten tired of each other, but we haven't! I'm sure we will pay for all of this laziness and staying up all night long when early morning seminary and school starts back on Monday, but today, I say it's been worth it! I have greatly enjoyed being with my children and I know they have enjoyed being with me!

Another Closet Creation

2009-03-18T07:42:00.000-07:00

Here is the one and only page I created yesterday and I'm so in love with it! It's really hard for me to comprehend that this creation came from me! I took this picture of Forrest and Sadie for our Christmas cards in 2005. Forrest was 11 yrs. old and Sadie was only 8. I can't believe they have grown so much! I thought "Pure Joy" fit for a title and my journaling reads, "Loving you defines pure joy". Again, I can't believe this came from me!

Sleep or Scrap?

2009-03-17T07:12:00.000-07:00

Sleep or scrap? I shouldn't even have to ask the question! I have absolutely no problem burning the midnight oil if I'm scrappin'. That's exactly what I did last night and I hope to get more pages done today, that is, after my nap!

Change of Scenery

2009-03-13T18:22:00.000-07:00

Ever since I took the Feeling Scrappy Card class in February, I have fallen in love with making cards! I really love the instant gratification creating a card gives to me as compared to the half day, love-hate relationship of creating a scrapbook page. Scrappin' will always be my first love, but I welcome the change of scenery. I made these three cards today using my scraps and to my surprise, they turned out great! But more surprisingly, I realized that I didn't "cardlift" or use anyone's card sketch. This is my very own design! I will definatley be making a few more in the days to come!

My Leave of Absence

2009-03-12T19:07:00.000-07:00

Hello my friends and family! It's been a month since I have posted and from the content of my last blog, my leave of absence could have been very easily caused by my two beautiful children driving me crazy! But I am here to report, that is not so! Here's the 411 on our family (not in any order):

1. A couple of days after my last post, my husband and I made a consequence box for Forrest and Sadie with every kind of chore we could think for inside and outside of the house, including dusting the baseboards to raking leaves in the yard. If it is a chore that has to be done, it's in the consequence box! We held a family counsel meeting and discussed the negative behavior we didn't like and that with each offense, they would have to pull a card (chore) from the consequence box in addition to their daily chores. OMG! The first day we put this box into effect, it was a day from h-e-double hockey sticks! BOth Forrest and Sadie had to pull four cards from the box. That was four weeks ago and since then, ony three cards have been pulled. Effective baby! And on the flip-side to this consequence box, we have always taught our kids that every choice has a consequence, either positive or negative, so on each consequence chore card, there is a dollar amount. So if the kids want to earn extra money, they can pull from the box and earn as much as they want! We are very happy with the outcome this system giving to our family. Hopefully this consequence box will keep the gray hairs away! lol

2. I was asked to teach the ladies at church how to make their own altered star with pictures. Twenty signed up, but only half came and five hours later, they took their stars home to hang on their wall! I thouroughly enjoy making these stars!

3. I used alot of my free time this past month to re-read the Twilight Series again. OMG! They were so much better the second time around! I savored every word and even marked in my books like my I do my scriptures! lol George doesn't show my love for Twilight. He made the comment, "I'll be glad when I don't have to go to bed with Edward anymore!" 4. The past several days, I have been gaining my strength back from being sick for 10 days with pneumonia. As soon as I was on the mend, Sadie decides this past weekend to run a fever and have a cough for three days straight and missed three days of school. (Today was her first day back.)

5. I made 50 of these invitations to send out for my best friend Cay's birthday party. I have never made anything of this magnitude and was a little nervous after I said, "Sure, I can make that!" My friend Rachel helped me gather the supplies and also volunteered to punch out the tags and flowers for the cards. It took three trips to Hobbly Lobby and one to the local scrapbook store for supplies and a total of 2 1/2 days to perfect the invites. When I showed Cay her invitations, she was flabbergasted! I knew by her reaction, she was well pleased, and so was I! ( Cay's mom told me after she recieved her invitation that Cay didn't want a birthday cake, but had requested a lady at church to make her favorite cupcakes for her party and that the stamp, "celebrating one cupckake at a time" was perfect for the invitations!)

6. George is almost done converting our carport into a garage. He has done a great job so far and only has the back wall to finish. I am very proud of what he has done and he is proud of himself, as a lot of this was a "first" for him, like putting up garage doors and the automatic door openers. He really facinates me with his knowledge and talents. By him doing this himself, he is saving us thousands of dollars! And in the next couple of weeks, when the garage is finished, I will have the utility room as my big pantry as George will move the water heater, washer and dryer outside in the garage. YEAH! I would love to have that space for my scrap room, but that idea didn't "fly" with George. I sometimes have to remind myself to stay FOCUSED! lol

7. Forrest's soccer season began a couple of weeks ago so that means games several times a week along with traveling, eating dinner out and getting to bed later. It's all worth it to see him play. The only complaint I have is that admission into the games are $4 each! I'm upset that I have to pay for me to see my own child to play, along with paying the $250 soccer fee, buying his equipment and gear, travel expenses for all the practices and all of my time that we spend supporting him and the team! It drives me crazy! I remember my mom telling the money collectors at the gate of my softball tournaments that she didn't think she should have to pay to see her own daughter play. it used to embarrass me to death, but I understand now! For us to watch Forrest play, at $4 each, times a minimum of two games a week, it comes out to $128 a month! OUCH! I found out if you teach in the county, you get yourself in plus a guest for free! Even if I was still teaching, it wouldn't apply to me, as I taught in the city. What about the parents? I vote for a parent discount! I have found a way to get Sadie in for free-if she works the game on the sidelines chasing after the soccer balls, she gets in free plus she gets a free drink and snack! And she loves doing it!

Run, Forrest, Run!

8. Sadie was one of four students in her school to be invited to go on a four-day field trip to Daulpin Islands in Mobile, AL. We loaded the charter bus on Feb. 19 and headed for Mobile. It took us eight hours to get there. We stayed in old dorms that haven't been updated since the 1950's, but it was the adventure of staying somewhere new that overrided that complaint. The field trips were amazing! We had the absolute best time ever! It was so nice to see Sadie experiencing this trip with her friends and to learn about the ocean and all of the residents that call the ocean HOME. The food was fantastic! I was really suprised. We were able to visit Fort Gaines Sunday before we headed back to Home. The night before we left, two kids started to throw up. The next morning, two other kids followed suit. By the time we left for home, another two started throwing up. On the bus ride home, another two joined the sick club and by the time we arrived back in town, twelve kids had become sick! The stomach bug was everywhere and I'm just thankful it got to me and Sadie before the trip (see next topic) I would not have wanted to be sick on the ride home!

Daulphin Island trip

(disecting a squid!)

Marching off to the marsh! Sadie walkes into the marsh and

is up to her thighs in mud! It was so funny seeing her try

to walk in all that mud! The instructions said to bring clothes that you

could throw away immediately after being in the marsh. I was

quick to discover why-the marsh's mud is very stinky!

Group shot at the Beach -we all

had the best time ever!

Gathering plankton to put under the microscope

9. Here is Mr. Clean again! He represents Sadie and I getting the 24 hour stomach bug 1 1/2 days before we were to leave for the Daulphin island trip! I'm very thankful that we were able to go, because I never found out if our money would have been reimbursed and I had a feeling, it would not have been! When we walked on the bes, it had been 24 hours since we had fever or had thrown up. We weren't the only ones who had the stomach bug right before the trip either. Like I said in before, I am so thankful that we got sick BEFORE the trip, because it would have been horrible being sick on the trip and especially on the bus on the way back home! After we get back from our trip, Forrest and George get the stomach bug! Mr. Clean needs to take up residence in our house premantely!

I hope you have enjoyed the 411 update and my longest blog post ever! And I hope that I will never have to repeat this long of an absence again, as I have missed blogging and have missed visiting with you in Bloggersville!

Just being a Mom Lately

2009-02-10T08:32:00.001-08:00

The last couple of weeks I've not had too much to post about. I don't think you want to see pictures of a sink full of dishes, a pile of laundry that needs to be washed (or folded) or my daily "things 2 do" list of the everyday household duties I'm responsible for.

One of my biggest challenges of being a mom lately is that of being a referee to Forrest and Sadie. Their hormones are driving me crazy! Sadie can't breathe without Forrest telling her to "STOP!" Forrest really can't stand his little sister these days. They argue over the most stupid things and nick-pick each other to death. Each of them must have to have the last word in the conversation too. And when I correct their behavior, the first thing out of their mouths is, "Sadie did it first" or "Forrest did it and didn't get in trouble", etc. If you have teenagers, you know exactly what I'm talking about! I'm 37 and haven't found a gray hair yet, but I'm positive that won't last much longer!

Jibber-Jabbering

2009-02-06T17:30:00.000-08:00

I just love my Sadie-girl! She's at the stage where she can talk a hundred words a minute and make absolutely no sense at all! On the way to seminary this morning, she rambled the whole way there and the whole way to school. This is definately a girl thing because Forrest is totally the opposite. He has a one word vocabulary, as most teenage boys do. I really enjoy rambling myself and now I have a partner to just jibber-jaber with. Like mother, like daughter! Tonight, Dad was on the receiving end of Sadie's jibber-jaber as she kept him company while he worked on the garage.

Under Attack!

2009-02-03T06:06:00.000-08:00

I arrived home from taking my father-in-law to his doctor's appointment to find that our house had been attacked! Attacked by paintballs that is. Exactly what you see in these pictures is what I saw but multiply it by thousands! A good friend of ours gave Forrest all of his paint ball equipment in exchange of Forrest painting his kitchen in the near future, however, the equipment made it in the house before the painting has even been scheduled. I knew something of this nature might happen when I noticed the box of paintballs still sitting on the table and more than a few purple paintball shells littering in the backyard. I told George to put the equipment up ASAP, but he forgot. It sat on the table a day too late.

Forrest and Sadie thought it would be fun to have a war against each other and looking at the damage, they had a blast! I really didn't mind them having the paintball war, but what I did mind was the huge mess they left behind! After they bragged to me about all the awesome details about the war and who got in the best shots, etc, I gathered up the cleaning supplies and told them to get busy cleaning and to not forget to clean the paint off the back door, the screen door, the patio, the hardwood floors (in the house!), the back wall of the house, the grill, the shop door, the picnic table and anything else that had became the target of their paintballs! I believe this will be in their Top 10 childhood memories to tell their kids one day. I know it is definately one of my Top 10 stories about raising my kids I'll never forget!

(thanks Jude! lol)

2009-01-28T20:15:00.000-08:00

George now has a new nickname: "The Bread-Man". He has a co-worker who's husband is a bread delivery man and so when he pulls the bread from the shelf for that day, instead of throwing it away, he'll let the wife take it to work and give it away. THis is what was left after everyone picked through it today. This is the good bread made by Pepperidge Farm, the nine and 15 grain bread that costs $3-4.00 a loaf along with the fruit bread that I pass by in the grocery store because it is so expensive! George will come home several times a week with 8-13 loaves of bread and after he puts it on the table, he calls me in so that I can see his "bounty". You should see the big smile on his face when he shows off his bounty for the day. He's so funny! His "bounty" is shared with friends and family because there is no way we could eat that much bread!

Working on Being a Success

2009-01-23T15:14:00.000-08:00

I'm taking a 10 day online class at Feeling Scrappy called
"From Mess to Success". It's a class to get me organized in all things pertaining to running my home successfully. To be honest, I haven't had time this week to fully participate like I originally planned to and that gave way for me to think that I couldn't possible change from the mess I am to success in 10 days, so why try? This was how I was feeling up until this afternoon, when I decided to give it another try. As I downloaded and printed out the documents this class has provided me in the past eight days, my attitude began to change. I can do this! I need to take full advantage of the vital information the very talented design team at Feeling Scrappy has to offer. I want to get organized so bad and I can't as long as I have a stinkin' thinkin' attitude. While Goerge and Forrest attend a youth Temple trip tomorrow, Sadie and I have plans to stay home and do a couple of projects from the class together. It's time to replace the mess with success!

My New Mixer

2009-01-16T14:10:00.000-08:00

Ok, for those of you who know me, I hate to cook, much less bake. But for the past year, I have had a facination with the Kitchen Aid stand mixer. Why? Because maybe if I had one, I might cook. (I use that same strategy with scrapbooking, why not use it in the kitchen? ) Well, I looked at all the models and questioned all of my friends who had the mixer and was convinced that I could use one. On Black Friday, I went to Walmart in hopes to buy on for $130, but they were sold out. I then went to Sam's and bought the professional model for $250. When I came home, I just wasn't feeling the love for it. Did I spend too much on a mixer? Would I use it enough to justify spending that much? Did I have false expectations of myself? After I decided that I paid too much and that I would buy the Classic model for $200 instead, my brother called me and told me to go to Sears.com. Sears was having a Black Friday sale on Hamilton Beach mixers. I checked it out and the mixer was reg. $200 and on sale for $99 with a $30 rebate. SOLD! I was able to get free s/h and with tax, I spent $75 on a new mixer! Although it's not a Kitchen Aid, I'm in love with it! I saved $175 and I now find eays to use my new mixer!

Red Rooster Results

2009-01-13T21:29:00.000-08:00

I had a great time at my scrapbook retreat. I needed the "me" time and when I came back, I was rejuvinated! I am so thankful that my sister drove 3 1/2 hours just to be with me and to share this experience with me. Even though she doesn't srapbook anymore, she was able to tackle her preschool and seminary lesson plans. After drawing a blank the first night, I was able to do a few pages but not like last time when I did 51 pages! I can't wait till Septemeber when we visit again! I recommend everyone visit the Red Rooster at least once in their lifetime!

Rockin' at the Rooster

2009-01-09T07:26:00.000-08:00

I should be posting some scrapbook pages but instead I'm posting a image of 80's music! I get here at my retreat and I go into a blank where nothing is happening in my brain. You would think I had never scrapbooked! So what's the next best thing to scrapping? YouTube and Big Hair Bands! We sang to Van Halen, Journey, Violent Femmes, Warrant, Alice Cooper, etc. After the 80's we moved into the 90's with Hanson, N'Sync and even Milli Vanilli! We ended this freak show with today's popular and trashy-up beating music.

To pep us up, we danced along with Beyonce's "All you Single Ladies". That was a sight to see because our bodies do not look like hers, yet alone move like hers! After the owner learned of our newly aquired dancing skills, he understood where the banging/thumping noises where coming from! We probably gave his parents (who lives in the basement) a heart attack with all of the thumping around we were doing!

Around midnight, Mary Kate called it quits. I was just getting started with my creativity and didn't go to bed till 2am. It was a shame that I spent money to come here the first day to go blank, listen to YouTube, and dance with Beyonce, but I'll remember the crazy time I had with my sister long after the acid-free isn't free anymore!

Off to Red Rooster!

2009-01-07T22:23:00.000-08:00

I am off to my scrapbooking retreat with my sister this morning and will be back Saturday night. All I wanted for Christmas was to be able to go on this retreat. I missed the last 2-3 because the timing was off, but before then, I went to 7 straight! My sister Mary Kate went with me once and now she's hooked with me!The last time she and I went, we were able to complete 102 pages together in our two-night, three day stay. I'm going to go and enjoy myself and my sister and if I put a dent in my stack of pictures then I'll call it a successful retreat! I do hope my family will manange without me while I'm gone. Hopefully not much partying will be going on in my absent! lol You should check out Red Rooster Retreat and see why we love it sooo much!

45 Reasons I Love You

2009-01-05T11:15:00.000-08:00

Today is my husband's 45th birthday. When he turned 40, he laid on the couch and claimed "I'm half dead". He cracks me up so much! THis blog post is dedicated to all the ways I love him and appreciated him.

1. He's the most honest man I know
2. He's a hard worker and is very picky at his work. It has do be done correctly-no half-ass work allowed!
3. He has a great work ethic (that hopefully is carrying on to our kids!)
4. He loves me unconditionally
5. Even when I fail, he still loves me!
6. Even though he is eight years older than me, he treats me equal (he should be spanking me! lol)
7. Mom knew he loved me by the way he looked me in my eyes.
8. He's the best husband ever
9. HE is the best father ever
10. He doesnt' mind doing dishes, cooking dinner or a batch of laundry!
11. He supports me in my scrapbooking and loves to look at my pages with me
12. He's an excellent organizer of his things. His co-workers tease him at work for having the neatest tool box and desk area in the shop.
13. He'll eat anything, even if me and the kids won't touch it!
14. He loves to joke and horse play around, but not with me. I'm "too sensitive" he says
15. He knows everything about old muscle cars. I'm amazed at what information comes from his mouth!
16. He'll help anyone
17. He loves to watch Forrest play ball.
18. George knows everything about cars. HE's the best mechanic!
19. He is currenty converting the carpot into a gargage. How does he know how to do that? He amazes me!
20. He has so much patience! I'm amazed at how much patience he has with me and in general!
21. He's quick to love and slow to anger
22. he knows everone in Huntsville. We can't go anywhere without bumping into a buddy!
23. He wants to please his family and provide for us. Failing is not an option.
24. He supported me in my decission to come back home and to live off of one income.
25. I love how he still opens the car door for me and opens the doors for me.
25. I love to watch his butt in a pair of Levis!
26. I'm amazed he fell in love with me! I was 19 and he was 27.
28. I love how compassionate he is.
29. Everything he does is his best. He has always practiced this moto.
30. I love how he is a great example to our children and to me.
31. I love how he offers to give me his Christmas bonus for my birthday so that I can go shopping.
32. Everything he has or gets goes to the family.
33. Very little does he ever ask for much.
34. He comes from a humble background and wants our children to appreciate what they have.
35. I love how he holds my pinky with his pinky when we go out on a date.
36. I love it when he kisses me off guard.
37. I love his hug chunky hands! His wedding band is size 16 1/2!
38. I love working with him in our youth program at church.
39. I love how he will just sit and listen to me ramble for hours.
40. I love how he loves me and takes care of me and the kids.
41. I love how we trust one another and always have in our 16 years of marriage.
42. He is the backbone of our family and the Patriarch of or family.
43. He takes out the trash everyday!
44. He adores his in-laws and his family
45. He's the best wheeler-dealer ever!

Happy Birthday George! We love you!

Grampie's Surgery was a Success!

2008-12-31T11:24:00.000-08:00

My dad's surgery to remove his prostate cancer went very well yesterday. I had plans to visit him, but he was in a lot of pain, and I told my sister Mary Kate that we would come up today or once Dad became comfortable. I do not do well in these situations. If MK wasn't here, I could. I'm such a drama queen and sissy-girl when it comes time to do something like this. But, I'm working on it! I have had Sophia who is 9 and Nate, who is 7, here all week so that I can watch them and that lets MK focus more on MOM and Dad's needs. She'll leave by Friday and then I will become the primary care giver to Dad and to mom. I am just so thankful that the cancer had not begun to spread! We will have our dad/Grampie for a very long time! YEAH! Thanks for all of your thoughts and prayers on our behalf. WE love you! Dad is a survivor!

Santa wuz Here!

2008-12-27T13:59:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas this year. This was the first Christmas that both Forrest and Sadie knew almost eveything they were getting. It was also the first year I didn't wrap a single gift! Forrest wraped all of Sadie's and vice versa. They didn't spill the beans about each other's presents either. I told them if they did, I'd take back their presents!

Forrest received a home gym that takes up a ton of space in his room. We bought it on Black Friday, so he's been antsy for it for a full month! Sadie was antsy for her Sperry's too. She also received an MP3 player and other goodies. This year it wasn't about the quantity, but the quality and you know quality costs $$$!

I cooked egg crackle for breakfast and a traditional ham dinner in the evening (that's excellent for me, who hates to cook!) We watched movies all night long. I love spending the Holidays hanging at the house with my family. I hope you and your family had a wonderful Merry Christmas too!

Merry Christmas to Me

2008-12-24T16:50:00.000-08:00

I had my first mamagram a couple of weeks ago and was caught off gaurd when they called me back to do more testing. You would think I would have been nervous since my mom survived breast cancer back in 2003, but I wasn't! I didn't stress a bit. I went yesterday to do the further testing and the ultrasound found the mass to be a cyst. Merry Christmas to me! That was the best gift the Lord could have given me.
I didn't know the cyst was there until the tests found it. I am so thankful for all the advancement in technology and medicine we have available for our use. And I'm really thankful for BC/BS insurance as I didn't have to pay a penny for my visits!

On a Spiritual High

2008-12-18T08:34:00.000-08:00

I have to share my love for our youth at church and the amazing time we had last night:

If you do not already know, I'm the Young Women's president and George is the Young Men's president at church. (We were both called to these positions within the last 5 months ) Every other month, on the third Wednesday of the month, we alternate a combined activity with all of the youth. This month was the YW's turn to host the activity and we chose to go Christmas caroling and have hot chocalate. I know some of the boys weren't too happy about going caroling, but George and I were so proud of the boys who did come to "endure" the caroling. Little did they know that it was too rainy and too wet to carol, so we went with plan B. We did sing a couple of Christmas carols to set the mood for the 5 minute Nativity video. After the video, we all made gingerbread houses made with graham crackers and then had some delicious hot chocalate with a "triple the serving" of marshmellows! The youth had a fantastic time! We as leaders had a fantastic time! I feel that we all bonded together in the Spirit of Christmas and increased our friendship and love for one another. We came home on a spiritual "high". We love our youth so much and are very thankful that we have the opportunity to serve them, teach them, love them and to be an example to them.

November Preparedness Goal Accomplished!

2008-12-09T04:50:00.000-08:00

In the month of November, I set some preparedness goals for our family on the side of my blog. My biggest goal for the month was to dry pack all the bulk items I have bought and have been taking up space in the kitchen and livingroom. We borrowed the dry-pack canner from the church and tackled the task at hand. During the month, we dry-packed over 120 cans. It's so easy to use the dry-pack canner that Sadie did it all by herself. It was a great experience for our family.

My Husband, the Handyman!

2008-12-04T14:38:00.000-08:00

We have been wanting to put up beadboard for a while in the kitchen and the Thanksgiving Holidays gave us the perfect "excuse" to get it done. (You know the routine, family will be here, let's fix the house up ....) we were very suprised at how inexpensive the supplies were. It was only $150 for the wood/trim/glue and stain. The expensive part was having to buy the handyman a tablesaw! Once the saw was in action, the peices went up quickly. Forrest, Sadie and I stained the wood as George finished putting on the trim. I am blown away at the knowledge my husband knows around the house and everything else. No telling what labor would have cost us. We are so proud of our work!

Everyday is Thanksgiving

2008-12-02T08:04:00.000-08:00

Everyday is Thanksgiving to me. I have the most wonderful family in the world. Each time we get together, our loves grows even more. I have such an abundance and out-pouring of love for my forever family and for my friends. I am so thankful for the Attonement of Jesus Christ that makes it possible for us to love at this magnitude. What a blessing it is to have been born of "goodly parents", who taught me correct principles, siblings who love and care for me, a husband who adores me and our children and is a great provider, and good friends who love me for who I am. What more could I ask for? For this purpose, Thanksgiving is everyday for me. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you, my family and friends!

I'm Thankful for Scrapbooking!

2008-11-25T20:15:00.000-08:00

Find more photos like this on Feeling Scrappy Classes

My month-long scrapbooking class at Feeling Scrappy Classes ended yesterday and thought I would show you what I did! The class was a sketch class where the design team members provided a sketch and I would then use it as inspiration to create my own page. Hope you enjoy!

Featured Scrapbooker

2008-11-20T21:22:00.000-08:00

I am this month's Featured Scrapbooker at Feeling Scrappy Classes . It's a scrapbooking blog that has weekly challenges and also offers a four-week technique class every other month. I was shocked and excited all at the same time when I received the email congratulating me of this honor. Check out the fun that we have at Feeling Scrappy!

(You may access the direct link by going to the left-hand side and clicking on "Highlights" or scroll down to mid-page to the Monday, Nov. 16, 2008 entry)

Fall Acrobatics

2008-11-15T20:36:00.000-08:00

I noticed the house was awfully quiet, so I went to see what Forrest and Sadie were up to. They were outside playing in the leaf pile they had made. Forrest would swing off the tree limb while Sadie would give him a big push. He would then let go and fly through the air into the pile. It was so much fun to watch! (Jumping in the leaf pile was soo yesterday!) Sadie, on the other hand, was too short to get the air she needed, but that didn't stop her. Forrest would help her reach the limb and then try to swing her, but he did more pushing than good. The best part about this fall acrobatics is that Forrest and Sadie didn't leave Carhartt and Benny out of the routine! While Sadie racked the leaves back into the pile, Forrest would chase down Benny,our 65 lb. standard poodle, pick him up and then throw him into the leaf pile. It was a sight to see! After Benny, Sadie would throw Carhartt in. Carhartt didn't seem to enjoy it that much, but Benny did!

Have a Coke and a Smile

2008-11-06T16:51:00.000-08:00

George has always been into the coke memorabila and when the opportunity came to him to buy a coke machine, he couldn't pass! It's smaller than the average coke machine and was made in the mid 1980's. Doesn't the wood grain siding add character? It needs a little TLC and filling up with coke products (plus a Sundrop or two for me) and it's good to go! George has plans to move it in the carport once it is enclosed in the next month or so. The price is set at forty cents per coke and I'm not sure if George will raise the price or have it remain the same. It guess it will all depends on the economy!

I'm Alive!

2008-11-02T20:17:00.000-08:00

I'm alive! I survived my surgery last Monday. I arrived home Tuesday evening to begin my recovery. I was doing great until Saturday and had to revisit the hospital. I really appreciate all of your visits, cards, meals and phone calls you have given me this week. As I mentioned before, I have the best family and friends ever. I love you so much!

In other news, George, Forrest and Sadie also survived this past week. They have been very supportive and helpful and have really kept the house up! Not that I doubted them.... Besides taking care of me, they were able to have some fun. On Wednesday, they went to the Halloween festival at church and on Firday, they went trick or treating with our close friends, the Ropers. It was the 14th year trick or treating with them. We began the tradition in 1994, when Forrest was three months old and Cody was two months old.

Sadie receved her eye glasses on Friday. I am such a bad mom. She had been telling me she is having a little bit of trouble seeing for almost a year, but it wasn't enough "nagging" for me to make the appointment or she would remind on the weekend or a time where I couldn't do anything about it. So, I promised her I would make the appointment by the end of the week or I would give her $50.00. Nothing like pressure to get you on track! Sadie realy thought she was going to hit the jackpot. NOT! I made the eye appointment two weeks ago and we foudn out she is a little nearsided. I couldn't believe how many letters she was missing and it made me feel just as little as those letters! I helped her pick out the glasses. She totally looks the role of a teenager. Now I need to learn how to take pictures so that there is no glare from the glasses! Any suggestions?

Again, I want to thank you for all of your thoughts and prayers on our behalf. I will be forever grateful!

Today's the Day

2008-10-27T01:01:00.000-07:00

Today is the day I have been putting off for over 10 months. I go in for surgery at Crestwood Hospital at 7:30am to correct a prolapse. I found out the first of the year that I would need this surgery. I just had a partial hysterectomy last summer and was not happy with the news of another surgery. I tried to put it off as long as I could.

Of all the times I have been under the knife, this one I have stressed over the most. Maybe, it is because I know I'll be down for at least six weeks and a good six months for my body to recover. And, the only way to correct the prolapse is to do an extensive episiotomy. I remember the pain from having Forrest and Sadie. It's not a walk in the park! Don't you love being a female? This all comes with the territory with having beautiful children.

Forrest will have an advantage of sleeping in for another 1 1/2 hours everyday when I come home on Tuesday, as I will not be able to drive for 2-3 weeks and that means no early morning seminary! However, he will be doing home study until I can drive again.

I did have the time to get the house in order so that my family can exist while I lay helplessly on the couch. I do have to admit, I'm nervous about not being able to do any housework. Believe it or not, I have come to enjoy cleaning my house! Now it is up to George, Forrest and Sadie. I pray that they will be able to stay "ahead" and not fall behind in the next six weeks as I recover.

I will not be too bored out of my mind recovering for the next six weeks. I have set up a table with my scrapbooking supplies so I can participate in my online class at feelingscrappy.com. It begins today and is four weeks long. At least I can be productive in some way! I appreciate all of your prayers for me and my family at this time. I have the best family and friends in the world who I adore and love with all of my heart!

6 crazies about Me

2008-10-23T08:21:00.000-07:00

I was tagged about a week ago by Amy Boston and now my sister, Mary Kate. I don't know about you, but coming up with information about myself is really hard for me and I have been thinking about this ever since Amy tagged me (no Amy, I haven't forgot!). Here it goes!

1.Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Share 6 nonimportant things/habits/quirks about yourself.
4. Tag 6 random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
5. Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

1. After several back surgeries in 2002-2003, I had the intrathecal pain pump implanted to give me a better quality of life. One draw back... When I go through any security checkpoints, like the courthouse and the airport, I buzz the security wand and they tell me, "You must kindly step out of the line please", How embarrassing! By now, everyones eyes are on me!

2. Lots of people in Walmart complain about not being able to be checked out faster. I do agree with them, Walmart does have problem there, but I do not let it bother me. I pick up the PEOPLE magazine and begin to read! By the time I'm done reading it, it's time for me to check my groceries out. SOmetimes, when it is really slow, I have thumbed through several magazines. Thank you Walmart for helping with my patience as I read your magazines!

3. I love to paint trim in the house. It is so relaxing and I think I have become beter at it over the years. If I do not have a good paint brush, I refuse to trim. When I'm in a tight spot, I cannot paint unless I have my tongue sticking out like Micheal Jordan. I get this from my Dad. He has stuck his tongue out a time or two growing up and now the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!

4. I absolutley love to journal and doodle. I have been writing in a journal since I was 7 and havn't stopped. I have a journal for the kids that I write in for them, along with my own personal journaling. During high school, I used to doodle everywhere I could. It sorda helped my pay better attention if I was doodlingor taking notes. I love to writ me name everywhere. Sadie came home from school last week and showed me her sheet of paper that had her name written all over it and she said, Look mom, we both have the same disease!" YEAH! My girl loves to write her name! Crazy, I know!

5. I love tennis shoes. When Goerge and I were dating, he knew his wallet was in trouble when he saw a poster of all the NIKE Air shoes that were ever made at that time in 1990. Since then, he has bought me plenty of tennis shoes! Some girls go for sandles or heels, give me some NIKES and I'm happy.

6. I have to smell everything I put in my mouth first. Something about the smell, will let me know how it will taste. Weird, right? I bet someone reading this does the same thing to!

Well, these are my things you didn't or may not want to know about me. I tag anyone reading my blog! If you read mine, I would like to read yours!

Third Annual Skeet Shoot

2008-10-19T13:53:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, we went to the ward skeet shoot at a member's house on the Flint River. George came up with the idea a couple of years ago when he was in the Elder's Quorum and it's been a hit ever since. Lot's of people were in attendance. There was skeet shooting, volleyball, horse shoes, canoes and great food. There was even a clean prota-potty with rasberry-vannila soap to wash your hands with! Forrest really enjoys shooting the guns each year with Dad. When the shot gun shells run out, he goes to the volleyball court. Sadie loves the canoes and this year she had her cousins with her to canoe and skip rocks together. The weather was absolutely prerfect. It was a huge success and a family event we look forward to going to each year.

Fabulous Fall Break!

2008-10-16T06:19:00.000-07:00

Fall break was absoluely fabulous! The first part of the week we spent a couple of days with Granny and Grampie in Athens. We went thrift shopping and just had the best time hanging out. It was so wonderful! Forrest and Sadie love spening time with them. They really enjoy watching Grampie interact with their birds. Mom and I watched "Meet Joe Black". I love that movie! If death looked as good as Brad Pitt, I wouldn't be so afraid of it! Mom was so funny as we bagan watching the movie. She had recently told me that she had seen "Legally Blonde 1 & 2". I asked her where she saw the movies, (since she and Dad only watch FOX & BYU) and she said, "I found a really good movie station." When I asked her what it was, she replied, "Oxygen!" I thought it was so hilarious! It's not a new movie station, but it was new to her! (I love you mom!)

After spending a couple of days with mom and dad, we headed to Lagrange, Georgia to visit my sister and her family. We arrived Thursday and Mary Kate quickly put us all to work: ceramic tiling her sunroom! I've heard about sweat labor, but never thought I would be involved personally! Forrest and Sadie were very excited to play with their cousins Nate and Sophia and their new wiener puppy, Stella.

Friday, we went to the West's house for a cookout. They are an awesome family who is in MK's branch and has a son, Ryan, who is Forrest's age. The past year and a half, the two have really grown to be good friends. Their daughter Natalie, husband Jack and two-month old son Jackson were visiting from Utah. Jackson was too cute!

We took Ryan home with us for the next couple of days. He and Forrest were the "hard-laborers" for the weekend as they patiently and willingly answered our calls to move the entertainment center, bookshelves and packages of ceramic tiles
for us while playing video games. We were able to lay the entire floor by Saturday evening. Sadie was a great help too. She loved sreading the concrete and even layed a tile or two!

Afer the tile was finished, everyone went outside to ride bikes. Ryan entertained us with his unicycle. Forrest gave it a try and was able to stay on it a few seconds.

We were sad for Sunday afernoon to come. The vacation was over. Even though we were put to work (lol), we had a fabulous time! We made the four hour drive back to Alabama where George, Carhartt and Benny were waiting for us.

Two Thumbs Up in a 'Z" Formation

2008-10-07T16:35:00.000-07:00

After reading the amazing Twilight Saga by Stephanie Meyers, I was craving and wanting more! I decided to buy "The Host", also written by Meyers. I was skeptical at first, but after I read the inside book cover, I was hooked. This book is amazing! If you enjoyed the Twilight series, this book you will love! Stephanie Meyers makes the characters come alive and they become part of you. I'm not going to tell you anything about the book. Just go read it! If you have already read the book, tell me what you think!

Never Say Never!

2008-10-03T15:32:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I checked the mail and received my Sam's Club credit card statement. Normally, I do not open my mail for a couple of days, but since I have a zero balance on my Sam's card, I was curious to see what the statement said. As I unfolded the statement, I noticed purchases had been made and that the card was maxed out. I was for certain I had received someone else's bill. NOT! It was my bill! I freaked out! There was a $470 purchase in Bessemer, AL on Sept. 12 and a cuple of gas fill-ups totaling $50 in Tuscaloosa on the 14th. How could I have made those purchases as that was the weekend Forrest had his birthday slumber party?

You hear about identity theft and think, "It'll never happen to me!" Not me. I have always taken grave precaution because I don't want it to happen to me and to have all the stress, etc that comes with it. I have always been one to never purchase over the internet, to keep all my receits and to shred all papers that could possibly invite these evil fraudulent scumbags to my accounts and still, I'm a victim!

I immediately call Sam's Card and told the customer service lady my side of the story. She informed me that the lasrge purchas was for a Play Sstation 3 and a NFL Madden 2008. Oh, and the stupid scumbag(s) returned the game at the University Walmart, where I shop! They probably thought they would get cash back, but instead it was credited to my account. SUCKERS!She also said that they used a card in my husband' name. How can that be? We both have our card in our possession! The account was closed and is now under investigation. They'll check signatures, etc. I was told to wait until I received correspondance through the mail and to reply quickly.

I wasn't satisfied and as I was speaking to a friend, she advised me to call the police and file a theft report. The Sherriff's Deputy stopped by late last night and the report was filed. An investigator will call me next week. They can pull the video where the scumbag(s) returned the game. If anything, that will prove us innocent! I want to know how did they get a copy of our card? Was it an inside job? Onling job? Thank goodness we only wanted a $500 line of credit and not thousands! Even through all of this, I am calm. I know I didn't do this and what good will stressing do? I know that the Lord is with us in all of our trials. Now it's time to check our credit reports. Who knows, our family may be joining the dudes on the commercials, playing guitars and singing as they're selling t-shirts in a tourist shop!

My Little Sister

2008-09-29T23:07:00.000-07:00

I made this scrapbook page of my sister and her family in my online scrapbook class this last week. I cherish my sister Mary Kate and the realtionship we have developed over the past 15 years. We couldn't stand each other growing up, but as soon as George and I were married in 1993, our relationship began to change. She is the most unselfish, paient, loving and forgiving person I know. All of her life, she has put others before herself. She chooses the right in every situation possible. I have learned so much from her. When I think about her, she is my big sister. She is such a strength and a great example to me. I should be her little sister, not the other way around. Mary Kate has a great love for her Savior Jesus Christ, for her family and her friends. She has great compassion for her fellowman. She is a diamond in the rough. I'm very privilege to call her my sister.

Because MK and I didn't grow up knowing any of our six cousins, we both made a pack that we would always be close and that our children would know one another. They would be true first cousins, no matter the cost. Since then, we have logged in countless hours and countless trips back and forth to Georgia and Alabama. Our two families have gone on many vacations together. Because of the time and effort we have spent on developing our relationship, we can definately see and enjoy the fruits of our labors for many, many years to come!

Mary Kate was afraid since Forrest is almost eight years older than Nate, he wouldn't want to come to Georgia to visit her anymore. I had no doubt that Forrest would come with us. Forrest and Nate are static cling when they are together. Even though Forrest is a teenager, he would never abandon his six, almost seven year old "Buddy-Nate". Nate idolizes Forrest. They wrestle, play video games, play outside together and most of all, they stick together at all times. Their relationship will only mature over time. Nate makes it fun for Forrest when we visit. I look at my son in "awe" as he sweet talks and nutures Nate. Is this my son? Yes, it is!

No worries about Sadie wanting to come for a visit with her cousin Sophia. A Sadie adores Sophia and the feeling is very much returned. You can barelly tell the 2 1/2 age difference between the two, besides the physical appearances! I didn't think anyone of us would have a relationship with their Sophia during her first year of life. "Fia" would only go to mom and give everyone else dirty looks! I must say, I had my doubts! But she came around and Sadie and Sophia fell in love with one another. I love to watch them together. They're both very artsy-crafty and love to play pre-tend, dress-up or any other hands-on activity. They get so excited to see one another. Both are drama queens! I'm very confident this felling will never end!

One of my favorite joys of Mary Kate's family is her husband Richard. Our family wouldn't be the same without him. We have such a wonderful, unique relationship that I can't express in words. I smile everytime I think about Richard! I love how he gets so excited about us coming for a visit. Richard will call me a couple of times (as I'm driving the 200 miles to their house) just to let me know he's excited to have us come. He'll call Mary Kate during the day and ask her if she has cleaned the house and have groceries for when we get there. How sweet! Richard will take off work just to go with us shopping or to go with us to Callaway Gardens. He'll stay up really late to watch movies with us when he should be in bed. But most of all, I love how he loves my sister and his beautiful family.

Mary Kate, this one's for you! I love you with every fiber of my being! You're the best sister in the world! TJ

UPDATE on the Walker's

2008-09-29T06:33:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Forrest was bored and since we have been talking about adding an addition to our house (sunroom/scrapbook room)Forrest was antsy to begin taking down the back roof-decking and fence. With George supervising, he handed Forrest a sledgehammer and the demolition began. Forrest had a great time beating this wood down! It took him about 20 minutes to complete the project. When Forrest gets in a mood to help, we get out of his way! It's not often he initiates work, but we sure appreciate it when he does.

The kids are doing well in school. Forrest had soccer tryouts last month and is conditioning after school a couple of days a week. He loves physical exercise and always has. Sadie is really doing well in band. She is third chair with her flute out of eleven. They have challenges every Friday to advance. I can't believe how fast this school year is moving. Next week begins our fall break for a week. What will we do?

This past month, I have been involved in an on-line scrapbooking class at feelingscrappy.com. The class began Sept. 2 and ends today. The theme is "Sew Scrappy" with emphasis on using stitching/fabrics on scrapbooking pages. I feel I have definately got my moneys worth as I have participated in almost every challenge. Now that the class is over, I can put my attention back on the house! lol

A couple of weeks ago, George was called to be the YM President in our ward. I was called to be the YW President two months ago. This will be fun working together! I am very excited that George is Forrest's leader. Forrest needs the influence of his father more than ever now that he is a teenager. And next summer, Sadie will move up to YW. If you ask her, she is ready to move up now! Soon, we will make Wednesday night a family affair as we all attend mutual together. Also, this month Forrest earned his Deacon's Duty to God certificate and Sadie earned her Primary Faith in God award. I am very proud of my children!

Trees Gotta Go!

2008-09-10T07:16:00.000-07:00

Back in July, the county came out and advised us to let them cut down our three huge bradford trees in our front yard that were all in the powerlines. They offered us $70 voucher for each tree (x3 trees) and they would even grind the stumps down too. Sold! That was back on July 21 and we haven't see since them until yesterday. They rocked and rolled and got most of the work down yesterday evening. Out house has a different dynamtic look to it. It'll take some time to get use to it. We'll take the vouchers to Bennett's nursery and buy some landscaping supplies for around the house. It had definately opened up our front yard. Change is always good in my book.

Net Fishing at Flood Lane

2008-09-02T18:21:00.000-07:00

We first discovered Flood Lane creek about 10 years ago. We heard it was a great place to go mudding in George's Samarui. We'd go mudding every weekend. Mudding has long been replaced with net fishing. Our family loves to wade in the creek and try to scoop fish up in our nets. No telling how many times we have been to this creek. Since our plans fell through going yesterday, we piled in the Samarui and headed to Flood Lane. ( On the way, we stopped by Scott's Orchard and picked up some apple cider and carmael apples. Yummy!) George doesn't bother parking on the road and walking to the creek. He drives his little 4x4 down the bank and straight in the middle of the creek! Since I had the camera, I stayed at ground zero while George and the kids began to net. I love to watch how "into" they get! As you can see in the pictures, we take net fishing very serious! George and Sadie took off on one side of the creek and Forrest the other. Shortly after, Forrest is screaming, "I caught a bass! I caught a bass!" He runs to show me and then takes off running after Goerge and Sadie to show them his catch. I was able to snap a shot of Forrest running and all I could say in my mind was "Run Forrest Run!" We didn't catch much today, but we were able to net a few more family memories together at Flood Lane.

Free Haircut!

2008-08-30T17:01:00.000-07:00

As you all know, Forrest has had long hair for over two years. George and I had told him a couple of weeks ago that it was time for a trim. He responded by saying, "Mom, will you cut my hair short?" We flipped out! I haven't cut his hair in over two years and really didn't feel comfortable cutting it, but I knew if I didn't jump at this chance, Forrest would change his mind! I said a huge prayer and went to cutting. It took about 45 minutes to cut through his mop of hair. You would think Bigfoot came for a trim looking at all the hair on the floor. I was pleased with the turn out and so was Forrest!

Here in the Real World

2008-08-28T19:01:00.000-07:00

I'm in my third full week of being a newly stay-at-hom-mom and I have found that all the things of my "Things I'm Going to Do When I Come Home" list are not getting done! So my title speaks correctly. Here in the real world, or realitiy, cooking, driving to early morning seminary, cleaning the house, doing errands, paying bills, enertaining kids, etc. are taking the place of all the wonderful things I have planned! I have only scrapbooked twice during the last three weeks. I just knew I would be scrapping every day! I can't give up hope. I'm still in the "adjusting" stage and haven't yet created a set daily schedule. For almost 9 years, Huntsville City Schools set my daily schedule for me. It was very easy to follow and I was held accountable. Now I'm on my own! I'm accountable to myself and that's scary! I would love some help from all you stay-at-home moms. How do you make your schedule? How do you discipline yourself to stay on schedule? Do you have set days you do laundry? Any help will be greatly appreciated!

Saturday Evening Drive

2008-08-19T19:27:00.000-07:00

George has been talking about buying a 1981 Chevy Camaro to turn, but when Forrest heard about it, he immediately jumped into the equation. He wants it for his first car. Goerge thought about it and it's a win-win situation. He and Forrest will have a father/son project they can work on together and Forrest will drive the end result! Forrest made a down payment to George and we picked it up Saturday morning. It has been sitting for three years, but after putting some new gas in the tank, it ran like a charm! It's body is straight and has no rust, which is great for a 27 year old car. Besides needing a paint job (George and Forrest will do this together) and a new interior, the car is perfect shape. The V-6 engine will get a tune up and it's good to go. The car will be ready for the road before Forrest is 16! All of this is made possible by George. He is the best mechanic ever and knows how to wheel & deal with the best!

Saturday evening, the kids wanted to drive the car, so we all get in it and ride to Hazel Green High School's parking lot. Since Sadie helped vacuum and wash it, we decided she would drive first. This was the first time Sadie has ever driven a car sitting in the front seat by herself. She has always sat on our laps, but she is getting too big. She was so thrilled to drive first and by herself! She did a great job driving! Forrest and I laughed when we saw the blinkers on everytime she turned! She drove for about 15 minutes and Dad even let her "punch" it! (translation- pedal to the metal!) She enjoyed herself so much! I was very happy for her. Forrest was able to drive for about 20 minutes. He loves his "baby". We had a great Saturday evening drive as a family!