Of Girls, Grownups, and Get togethers

N decided that Miss E needed to be a present for her birthday! N set the bag up very carefully, filled the bottom with paper and placed Miss E inside. Here Miss E is working her way out of the bag.
N opening her gift from Grammy. Her first question was if she could use the backpack for school. She was disappointed when I told her no.

Miss E dug into her carrot cake. She didn't care much for the icing, but the cake was gone in no time!

Who can resist a face like this one?? I think somebody was ready for CAKE!

Getting in on the action! Just look at that grin!

The kids got to have a water balloon fight because N wanted party games and I only know girly party games... Besides, who doesn't love a good water balloon fight?

The kids did get a little bit wet while I was filling the water balloons. But most of that is from balloons being pitched.

First Day of Kindergarten!! I don't think she was too excited. Now though, she asks me if she can walk to her class all by herself. I let her because I want her to be excited about going instead of having a screaming fit because I want to walk with her.

4th grade already! Where has the time gone?? My baby is 10 and my newborn is 1. She has really enjoyed the school here. Most especially the fact that they do not change classes.

Miss Bri & Miss E before we moved. Miss Bri is a very sweet young lady who loved our children and they loved her back!

Miss Jenny & Miss Jessie. (Jenny is on the right) These 2 are the daughters of my friend Cathy who died in April. These are also 2 special gals!

I hope you have enjoyed these as I wade through the backlog of photos.

Of Butterflies and Beautiful Flowers

N had this butterfly land on her finger when we visited the Airlie Gardens with my youngest sister, Sarah. The girls enjoyed the visit to the gardens almost as much as they enjoyed being able to hang out with Aunt Sarah!

One of the African Daisies that N grew in a container in our driveway.

And the Zinnias that she had in the same container after we thinned them out. They grew to be about 3 feet tall. If you look closely, you will see the daisies in the lower corner of the container.

A close-up of one of N's zinnias.

And finally a magnolia at the Airlie Gardens.

Of Mulching, Moving, and Motorcycles

We had cleaned out the old mulch because first it was thin and second I kept getting splinters under my fingernails. But, to make things look pretty, we filled the back of the truck with mulch and shoveled it off into the beds.

The girl's room after it was packed.

This stack dwindled as the day went on.

And this truck was filled in just a few short hours.

But before we left, N drew a picture of her & Michael taking a motorcycle ride together.

shot records

Those pesky little things.

Every time my girls got shots, I'd get a copy of the up to date record. Well, as time goes by, I would also tend to lose the copy, even if I tried to remember to put it in the file cabinet.

Now, our former doctor's office (Naval Hospital) has a copy of those very important records. We have tried since Wednesday to get them to fax us a copy of N & A's records since they failed to include A's most recent shots and they also did not include N's shot records at all when they copied our medical records.

I was finally able to get a complete copy of N's shot record from her last school. I called the Preschool Office to get a copy of A's. The lady, who is known for not doing anything in a timely manner, said if the school here called and made the request, then she would fax them the record. I tried to stress the importance of having it done today since school starts on Monday. A can not start school without this one last piece of paper. (not to mention she is not feeling well tonight and may not be starting on Monday due to that)

Please pray that A's record is there on Monday and that she is feeling much better by tomorrow. N & E's parties are tomorrow.

AHHHHHH.....

Nothing beats the feeling of being back in your own bed.

Steering wheel or Spare tire?

I saw a thought provoking sign on the back of a truck this evening.

We were headed back to Rachel's house from our house when we encountered a major accident and were forced to make a u-turn. On the route we took to get to the interstate, we were stopped at a traffic light when I saw this sign. It said:

"Is God your steering wheel or is He your spare tire?"

What an incredible way to look at it.

Is God the one steering my life or have I stuck Him in the trunk to pull out in case of an emergency?

Another update

The place I mentioned in the previous post we did go ahead & offer $100 less a month. The owner said that he wanted to hold out for the full amount. Considering the age of the home, the price he wants is a bit high in our opinion (and in that of our realtor).


We looked at another house today that we decided to try to rent. When our realtor called, there was one final thing that had to be done before the listing was taken down. It was well worth the price and in our humble opinions, we are amazed the owner had not asked for $200-300 more.

We are at Rachel's house this afternoon because during our lunch break, our realtor took her car to have the oil changed. Between the time she dropped it off & picked it back up, she had an item stolen out of the car. So, she is handling that and we are resting. At least the girls are quiet right now...

Tomorrow, we will be looking at 2 more houses and we are praying that one will open soon that is squarely within our price range and fits our needs perfectly.

Updates

The house we were interested in has been taken off the market. It was owned by more than one person and one of those people just died. It will probably be placed back on the market on August 1st.

We have continued to look and have made an offer on a place that fits our desires even better than the other place. It is closer to where Michael will be working and it has a large yard & an indoor laundry area. We are hoping that the owner will accept $100 less a month than the asking price. I really have a peace about this place. As I said, it fits perfectly with what we were looking for.

We appreciate your continued prayers as we search for a place to call home.

The Great Search

We have arrived safely in Texas and are now looking for a house.

We thought one we were interested in was leased, but found out today that the folks backed out. There are still about 4 or 5 other applications in on this particular home as well so we are not confident that we will be the ones to officially lease the house.

I am very thankful though that I have family here instead of having to stay in a hotel!

Bleach

Bleach, how I love thee.

You clean better than just about anything.

You leave a fresh smell. After a while.

You kill those nasty little germs that invade our home.

You are flexible beyond belief.

You clean swimming pools and bathtubs.

You clean floors and counters.

My doors look beautiful thanks to you.

Do you think Clorox might be able to add a moisturizer to the next batch so my hands don't dry out??

Empty house

The house is empty except for cleaning supplies.

We are trying to track down the same type of paint used by the previous tenants.

And what a blessing, some of our friends are planning to help us with painting. Amazing. I love our friends here.

We had a goodbye party with the praise team on Friday night that was just a sweet time.

We are going to miss this place.

today's the day

the sun is shining, the tank is clean and we are getting out of.... THE TANK IS CLEAN!!!

Actually, the house is a MESS. I think we may finally have most everything ready. I have some last minute things to do, but otherwise, we are good to go.

Except for one small item...

My back.

Yes, I lifted a box that we are bringing with us and hurt my back doing it.

I'd planned to strap Miss E to my back so she would be safe & close. Guess I'm not doing that now.

Please pray that my back will heal soon and that I can find some place safe for Miss E.

Getting close

This week will be a whirlwind of activity!

Monday (today) we will be putting some final touches on the toy boxes, front flower bed, and gathering like items together. (I really want to have all my pictures in one place instead of scattered across the house. )

Tuesday we will be taking the final items to our friend's house. We will be staying at their house while we have no furniture. We will also be doing the final round of laundry and dishes to make sure everything is clean and ready to pack.

Wednesday the first round of packing begins. Michael will not have the day off of work, so a friend and her son will be coming to hang out with us.

Thursday the packing will continue. We are scheduled for 2 days of packing because the company moving us is currently averaging 22 moves a day.

Friday everything will be put onto the truck. The truck will drive off into the sunset and we will start cleaning.

Saturday = cleaning
Sunday = church then cleaning
Monday = painting then cleaning
Tuesday = painting then cleaning
Wednesday = cleaning
Thursday = cleaning
Friday = hopefully passing the final inspection then packing the truck
Saturday = the beginning of the long drive to TX

Pray for us

We are having some issues that need to be resolved in the next couple of days.

Praise God for answered prayers!! Michael called and everything is sorted out!

3 weeks

The goodbyes begin.

I think I will need LOTS of chocolate to make it through. And maybe an industrial size box of tissues.

Prayer Request

We found out today, after waiting to see if Miss E's eye would improve, that Miss E has pink eye. Conjunctivitis for all you formal types. In both eyes.

Please pray that enough of the medication gets into her eyes to fight the infection.

Medicating a cat has nothing on trying to put eye drops into a 9 month old's eyes. (love ya Hanes!)

Also, when the doctor was doing the normal "listen to the heart/ lungs" check, he heard a murmur. He had another pediatrician listen as well and since there is no record of a murmur except for a short time after birth, they believe it is an innocent murmur. However, they both said that with the way it sounded that it was in the gray area between innocent and not so innocent. We will be asking Miss E's new doctor at her 1 year appointment to check for a murmur. If the murmur is not heard, then most likely it is the innocent type. If it is heard, then we may need to investigate further.

N had the innocent type of murmur that she outgrew by the time she was in Kindergarten, so I am not too concerned at this point. But we would still appreciate the prayers.

Countdown

21 Days until our house hold goods are picked up.

28 Days until our final inspection on the house.

31 Days until we arrive at Rachel's. (We can still stay with you right?!?)

Ought to be loads of fun!

Summer Camp

And N certainly was looking forward to it.

We have the camp schedule posted and she had completed several of the items before I got out of bed a half hour late. In my defense, I have been sick and spent yesterday in bed dealing with the illness and the late night the night before. (we had an ER run because A's ankle was at least twice the size it should be and we couldn't figure out what had happened. turned out to be a reaction to a bug bite)

We are trying to sort through things as well as clean the house in preparation for our move. So, we have a 3 hour Cabin CleanUP in the morning followed by Chow Time and Kitchen Duty.

Today, we got the living room, dining room, and kitchen back into an ordered state.

Tomorrow, the goal, after grocery shopping, will be to rearrange some furniture. We will be combining the girls beds into one room and everything else into the other room. I hope it will allow us the opportunity to sort through things easier than trying to work around nap schedules.

Now, it is off for some Quiet Time followed by Rec Time!

Enjoy your day!

Practice, practice, practice

WARNING: This post will contain a small rant about practice.

Ok. When you get a band together, what do you do?

You practice.

When you have a choir or singing group, what do you do?

You practice.

There is soccer practice, drill team practice, piano practice, basketball, baseball, you name it practice.

What is practice for?

To help a team or individual gain the necessary skill or knowledge to achieve the desired results.

Makes sense, right?

I like our Praise Team. We have come a long way since we first started.

Tonight we did a mini- concert for the youth group's party to celebrate the end of school.

Did we practice before we played & sang?

Nope.

Am I irritated that our leaders CHOSE not to practice?

Yep!

Or that they didn't even get a song list together before we showed up tonight so we could practice on our own?

Yep. Irritated.

But, I read on another blog something that struck me about attitude. This young woman found out she had an aggressive cancer shortly before her 1st wedding anniversary. She & her husband just celebrated their 4th anniversary this year. Anyway, she said that when people ask about her attitude that it doesn't matter if she is upset or happy. Either way, she still has cancer. So she chooses to be as happy as she can be.

So, even though I am irritated about the lack of practice, and all the mistakes and issues we had tonight, I will still choose to be happy. God is moving in the lives of our youth. It doesn't matter that the music was awful and the sound system was out of balance. God is changing hearts.

7 Down

Since May 6th, I have lost a total of 7 pounds.

Ummmm... quite a few more to go. I don't think I'm ready to share just how many to go quite yet.

And that time period included 2 family visits at our home and one whirlwind trip to Texas.

There have been several days where I have gone to bed wondering if I would even be able to walk the next morning. And some days were worse than others when I got out of bed. But I can now walk the 2 cul-de-sacs just down the road from us in about 5 minutes. I know it does not sound like much, but it feels like a great accomplishment.

Now I'm gonna have to buy some new pants... I think I'll deal with the loose jeans though until I can fit into my pre-baby jeans. I only have one more size to go for those!

Catching up on Canoeing

Back to the catch up posts!

After Laura & her family left, we left for a camping trip with our church. There were about 30 kids and 12 adults. Miss E was the youngest and I'm not entirely sure which teen was the oldest, but we also had a few of our older adults as well. (definitely into the 60+ age range)

The girls and I arrived on Tuesday a few hours after everyone else got there. I'd been up quite late and decided that sleep was much more important than following the bus.

We set up camp and I immediately needed to make a trip to Walmart for some water shoes and a couple of other things I had forgotten. While I was at Walmart, I saw another of our group there. She had gone canoeing that day with her family since they had arrived on Monday.

Lisa mentioned that she was going to stay at the camp on Wednesday because she was extremely sore from the canoe trip that day. I asked if she would be willing to watch Miss E for us so I could go canoeing on Wednesday. That was the one part of the trip I was really wanting to do. Lisa agreed & I added a bottle and some formula for the little one to the cart.

Wednesday morning we woke up bright and early and arrived at the launch point only a few minutes late. Michael, A, and I were in a canoe together and N was with a couple of the youth. After a few confusing minutes of instructions and directions, we pushed off.

Before launching, we obtained another child to ride along. A & A sat very well together on the bottom of the canoe while Michael & I shouted at each other as we tried to figure out how to steer. We had several mishaps during the course of the trip, but we never ended up capsizing! Though we did get upset with each other several times as a result of the mishaps.

That night one of the adults received the news about Jenny's mom. We told Jenny and I went to get some sleep in the hopes of being able to drive her to the hospital where her mom was.

Today's praises

#1 - Michael mowed most of the yard this evening.

#2 - Date night tomorrow!!

#3 - House showing went well and we even got a compliment on the house. The realtor said that our walls looked great. Michael & I looked at each other and then she said that with little ones she usually sees handprints all over the place. We just smiled & said thanks.

#4 - If this couple decides to rent the place, then we never have to crisis clean again while we are here!

#5 - I had a good visit with my counselor today

Our notice...

I gave our (new) property management company our 30ish day notice.

Our last definite day here will be July 16th. Michael's new unit has requested that he check in to the unit earlier. We are still waiting to hear if the current unit will play nice with others.

Even though things are all up in the air, we at least know where we will be going and that we will have family very close by.

So, the praises have to begin. Otherwise I think I'll lose my mind.

Praise #1 - See above statement. (paragraph 3)

Praise #2 - the Spanakopita turned out well, even if the butter was a bit overwhelming.

Praise #3 - Michael went to pick the girls up from church and the house is quiet with Miss E sleeping.

Praise #4 - I walked for almost 30 minutes today. And got a shower while I was at it!

Praise #5 - The drop-off location for our trash & recycling was open today.

Politics explained

From Dear Abby: (Scroll down to the 2nd letter)

COMMUNISM: You have two cows. The government takes both of them and gives you part of the milk.

SOCIALISM: You have two cows. The government takes one and gives it to your neighbor.

FASCISM: You have two cows. The government takes both cows and sells you the milk.

NAZISM: You have two cows. The government takes both your cows, then shoots you.

BUREAUCRACY: You have two cows. The government takes both of them, shoots one, milks the other, then pours the milk down the drain.

CAPITALISM: You have two cows. You sell one of them and buy a bull.

Abby, what happens in a democracy? -- MRS. J. MC C.

DEAR MRS. MC C.: In a democracy, everyone has two cows, then a vote is taken, and whatever the majority decides to do, you do, and that's no bull!

Tooth and tick

A lost her 2nd tooth this morning at breakfast!

I noticed when she came home that something looked a bit different. She was excited about having her tooth in a tooth box.

And then later today...

N was in the back seat as we drove home from school. She started screaming because there was a bug on her. It turned out to be a Lone Star tick. Interesting coincidence as we will be moving to the Lone Star state...

A word to the wise and a Copy Cat

This is the result of placing the baby in the high chair next to the phone.

And this is the result of Chicken & Dumplings. And for those who do not read Rachel's blog... click here.

Conversation

Me: Are we going to have to work on knocking and asking permission to come into my room?

A: Oh man! I forgot!

Me: I've noticed.

A: I just keep barging in to your room!

Later...

A knock at the door. "May I come in?"

Me: Sure.

A (opening the door): Now I didn't barge in this time!

Backtracking

At the end of March, Laura & Scott & their 4 came to visit. We had a wonderful time. We went to the Wilmington Railroad Museum, the Pine Knoll Shores Aquarium, Mike's Farm, Airlie Gardens, and most importantly... the beach!

The only problem with where we live is the location. We LOVE where we live until it comes time to go somewhere. Anywhere. Unless we are heading to church, Food Lion, Michael's work, school, or a friend's house, it literally takes us a minimum of 30 minutes to get there. We enjoy not living in a large community. We lived near D.C. for long enough to know that we like a bit of room between us and the neighbors. We enjoy the closeness of a small community. We don't know everyone, but we know enough. We enjoy being able to tell our children that they can walk down the main road of our neighborhood and not worry about them being hit by a car or kidnapped.

So, when Laura & Scott were here, we traveled. We drove, we saw, we drove some more. Even the closest, decent hotel at a decent price was 20 minutes away. We were glad to have time with them, but it felt more like time in the car. Well, in our case, the truck & minivan!

So that bring us up to April and the camping trip. Pictures and more posts to come.

Mother's Day

I woke up this morning fighting to stay asleep. Instead, I was feeding Miss E by 6:30 am.

I called my mom and had a nice chat with her before I ate breakfast and went to church.

Today's sermon was on marriage. One comment that stood out from the sermon is that marriage is like a crucible. Michael & I just looked at each other and laughed! We have shared many trying times over the last month with differences on housekeeping and moving among other things.

We came home and ate lunch. Well, I ate lunch, put Miss E to bed, told the other girls they could fix their own food and went to take a nap.

I was awakened moments after laying down by girls with questions. And then a few minutes later by the phone ringing. And then by Michael's phone ringing. And ringing. And ringing. And then by my phone again. At that time, I put the phone on silent and proceeded to drift gently off to sleep again.

Only to be awakened by Miss E screaming to eat again. Eventually I gave up on trying to nap.

Michael & I had agreed that we would go to town today to look for a bicycle for me. But, he finally returned the call from our friend who called and called and called.

Brent & his daughter were in Wilmington and wanted to stop in to see us. They could be here in an hour and a half.

Not too much panic on my part because I have been working to keep the house (at least the living room, dining room & kitchen) neater. I put the girls to work while I fed Miss E and things were done in about 25 minutes. (would have been faster if one young girl had decided to return after she put each item away)

Then came the real moment of panic! Brent likes my sweet tea and I WAS OUT OF TEA BAGS!!! Oh NO!! Not to worry, I had one cup of tea left in the pitcher and if they stayed for dinner, I could send the guys out to get more tea.

Brent & his daughter agreed to stay for a while and the girls have been playing well together. The big boys have also played well together. ;D

We had a pleasant dinner together and plenty of tea.

Now I need to wash Michael's uniform for tomorrow...

Hope your day went how you planned!

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

we're good!

I got the results from A's biopsy today. I thought at first it was bad news because I had missed the call and the voice mail simply asked that I call back.

The doctor told me that it was simply a mole in the beginning stage of development and nothing to be concerned about.

Praise God!

So, thanks for all of your prayers and please pray that the removal of the stitches on Monday goes smoothly.

Less silly prayer request

A went to see a dermatologist this morning. She had some spots that would come up, and if they were opened, they would become badly infected until we forced all the junk out of them. They were diagnosed as a type of Molluscum, which is nothing to really worry about.

However, the doctor looked at 3 other spots that had been around longer. With those, we were give two options. Watch and wait or biopsy.

I called Michael and both of us agreed that a biopsy was the right thing to do since it is better to know than to wonder.

A did beautifully through the biopsy. She had a lollipop and talked through it all. Until the stitches. Then she cried the most heartbreaking cry I think I have ever heard from her.

Ice cream made everything better.

We should have the results of the biopsy in a week or two. The stitches will come out on the 10th of May and I need to schedule a follow up with A's regular doctor for the 10th or 11th as well.

Please pray that the results show nothing serious or something easily treated.

Silly prayer request

********UPDATE********
The A/C IS FIXED!!!


Two of our major appliances are not working well. Plus, we came home last night to discover that our A/C was not working.

Michael's parents arrive this afternoon.

See where I'm going with this??

Please pray that we can figure out what is going on with our A/C, dishwasher, and dryer. And that it is an easy & inexpensive fix.

I hate to think that our landlord may end up having to replace all of the appliances that are in the house during the 3 years we have been here. We have already replaced the refrigerator and the microwave.

One to go

One funeral to go. Tonight's service went well.

Thank you for all your prayers.

Jenny, Jessie & Cole

Please pray for these three over the next two days.

Cole's grandmother died on Good Friday this year and his great-grandfather died yesterday. The funeral for his g-gpa will be on Friday.

Jenny and Jessie have arranged for a memorial service to take place for their mom tomorrow night. Please pray for both of them as I know it is a difficult time for both of them.

Recovery

The process has been slow, but it is beginning.

We throughly enjoyed the time that our family was here and the camping trip had some tense and exciting moments. Add that to the hard emotion of grief, and we have been on a rollercoaster ride over the past two weeks.

We praise God for the very tangible way His presence has been shown during this time.

I will admit that I have struggled since I stopped my antidepressant just days before the rollercoaster began. Driving past the tree where Cathy crashed her car has been difficult and I have begun to find other ways or reasons not to pass it whenever possible. For a couple of days, I have felt so weighed down that I didn't think I could even get out of bed. And once I did, all I wanted to do was to go back and sleep to escape. Today was better. And I pray that tomorrow will be even better than today.

We Will Dance

Sing a song of celebration, lift up a shout of praise
For the Bridegroom will come, the glorious One
And oh, We will look on His face
We'll go, to a much better place

Dance with all your might, lift up your hands and clap for joy
The time's drawing near, when He will appear
And Oh, we'll stand by His side
A strong, pure, spotless bride

We Will dance on the streets that are golden
The glorious bride and the great Son of Man
From every tongue and tribe and nation
Will join, in the song of the Lamb

Sing aloud for the time of rejoicing is near
The risen king, our groom, is soon to appear
The wedding feast to come is now near at hand
Lift up your voice proclaim the coming Lamb

Note from me: I want this song played at my funeral. You can click on the title of the song to hear it.

In which I cry...

again.

Jessie was able to be reached and gave consent for Cathy to be removed from life support. Cathy died sometime yesterday. (Saturday) Jenny was in church this morning and seemed okay. She did mention to me that she wants to make a scrapbook so she can remember all the things that God has done throughout the past few days. I know she is hurting, but she is also seeing how God continues to work.

Ken, one of Michael's friends & who trained as a chaplain at the hospital Cathy was taken to, preached this morning. The message came from 1 Thess. 4:13-18. While we grieve, we do not grieve as those who have no hope.

Miss Patsy, who loved our children and watched them grow under her care in the nursery, died on April 2nd. Cathy, my friend who struggled with many things, died on April 10th. And Miss Riki, the lady we helped raise funds for a lung transplant, also died on April 10th. (see posts here and here.)

Yet, we have the hope that we will see each of these precious ladies again. The amazing ways that God has shown His great love for us over the past few days have been simply breathtaking. As I told Jenny this morning, if only we could, would, see the ways God works during our every day lives, instead of just being amazed during times of great joy or sorrow.

Latest update

Cathy was declared brain dead today.

Please continue to pray for Jenny & Jessie. Especially as Jessie returns home from Afghanistan.

UPDATE

Cathy was supposed to have surgery this morning to fuse the C3 and C5 vertebrae. The surgeons were unable to do the surgery because Cathy developed a high fever and her blood pressure remained very low. They have been unable to stabilize her enough to do any surgical procedures as far as I am aware.

Please continue to pray.

Jenny is on her way home to find some clean clothes to take back with her.

Jessie was reached in 2 hours through a Red Cross message and should be home within the next 2-4 days (depending on travel times)

EXTREMELY URGENT PRAYER REQUEST

My friend Cathy was involved in a single vehicle accident late last night. I was on a camping trip with a group from our church, including Cathy's 17 year old dd, Jenny. We were about 4.5 hours away from home.

At about 12:30 am, a man with our group and I drove Jenny to the hospital where her mom is. We arrived about 4:30 am and a surgical resident spoke with us around 5:30 am.

Cathy's worst injuries are a head wound, from which she lost a massive amount of blood, swelling around her brain stem, and one or more crushed vertabre (sp?) in her neck. She also broke some fingers, an arm and shoulder.

Cathy has been unresponsive since before she was removed from the car. CT scans & MRIs show that she should at least be able to respond to stimulus to her face, but she has not even moved. She has not been sedated at all as far as I am aware.

The major prayer requests would be:


•that Cathy will begin to respond

•that Jenny is able to cope with her mother's injuries and the stress that comes along with such news

•that Jenny's sister Jessie will be able to return home from Afghanistan very quickly


The major praises in all this are:

•that I drove my truck to the campground instead of riding the church bus so I was available to drive Jenny back

•that I had someone who was willing to drive with us because I had gotten about 15-20 minutes of sleep

•that we had a man with us who had trained as a chaplain at the same hospital that Jenny's mom was taken to who was able to talk Jenny through the process that particular hospital went through with major trauma cases

•that we also had a man with us who was able to get things rolling for a Red Cross message to be sent to Jessie

•that our pastor left last night to drive back home so he could hold a funeral service for a different member of our church, so he was already here and able to give Jenny support

•that Evelyn did amazingly well with being woken up at midnight to drive back.

•and finally that we also had one of our youth leaders who was able to meet us at the hospital to be with Jenny and as a Marine, she was able to very quickly find and pass on all the information to have Jessie brought home on emergency leave


I am amazed at how God had everyone in the perfect place to support Jenny and her family in all of this.

Train Museum & Airlie Gardens

Note to Mom: If you are able to come visit North Carolina in the spring time, do your best to visit Airlie Gardens in Wilmington. It is absolutely beautiful and there are tulips EVERYWHERE!!

The day started out like any other. We got the girls up and off to school.

Once everyone else was ready, around 10 am, we headed down to the hotel where Laura & Scott are staying. On the way there, Michael looked at me and told me that he thought we should take the girls out of school and bring them with us. I had thought about it earlier, but I decided that N really needed to be there. We ended up at the hotel and Michael decided that since Laura & Scott's van seat 8 people he would send Miss E & me with them and pick up N & A.

So, we headed off in different directions. We arrived at the train museum around noon and the children enjoyed a scavenger hunt with a display in the gift shop area. When they each had found all of the items, they received a prize. I believe most of them picked a train shaped eraser.

Michael and our girls arrived just as we were finishing up with the last pictures outside on the caboose. We decided lunch was a great idea for our next activity. We pulled into a Chick-fil-A that literally had only one parking space the first time we drove around. But, enough people left for us to park.

After lunch, we headed for Airlie Gardens. Airlie Gardens is a beautiful place. Originally it was used by a very wealthy family for entertaining their guests. Later, another family used the property as their primary residence. In 1999, the family sold the property to the county which has restored it and had it placed on the Historic Register. Even the children enjoyed exploring the Gardens. Miss Arty-Pants (Laura's oldest) especially enjoyed sketching the flowers that were blooming.

I apologize to my family for not discovering this beautiful place until now. I would love to have all of you visit in the next few weeks so I can share spring time with you!

And of course, pictures to come as soon as I get them downloaded onto the computer!

The invasion has begun!

Laura and her family arrived safely last night.

The fun begins today!!!

coming soon!

SPRING BREAK IS ALMOST HERE!!

We are so looking forward to the break. Michael's sister & her family are coming up for a visit. I have been working on cleaning the house for their visit.

The girls are getting excited about the visit. N & A asked me today who was sleeping where. All the sisters are together. The brothers & their parents will be staying at a hotel nearby.

There are so many things that we can do while they are here, it is difficult to figure out what to do. I think the one outing I am looking forward to most is the adults only dinner. We have a babysitter lined up and trying to reach another one to assist. It has been 7 months since Michael & I have gone out together without the girls. And I have no idea how long it has been for Laura & Scott.

Can hardly wait for Friday!

Pics from tonight

Once again, we had a blast with Daddy tonight!

Daddy's home!!!

Michael has been working some crazy hours this week which has resulted in him seeing the girls long enough to kiss them goodbye as he walks out the door to go to work.

Tonight, the garage door began to open at 7:50pm. Shouts could be heard from all corners of the house...

"DADDY'S HOME!!!!"

So, Daddy got cleaned up from the day and snuggled with his girls for a while. Then they all got up to play Wii. 100 pin bowling ROCKS! They had a great time laughing and playing together.

I, of course, served Daddy some dinner and took pictures of the family.

Now to get the pictures onto the computer. Look for an update to this post later on this evening.

We are thankful that we had the opportunity to spend time together tonight.

Dear Grammy,

Guess what? I have a new thing that I like to do. I pull my knees up like I'm going to sleep on my tummy, but I don't go to sleep. Instead I like to rock back and forth. It is really fun. I giggle a lot when I do it too.

I love you,
Miss E

Success hurts!

Now, don't get me wrong, we had a wonderful evening.

I got up at 7am to feed the littlest one. By 8, I was in the kitchen working on dinner. At 9:45, we drove out of the garage on our way to pick up a few last minute items and pay a couple of bills.

We were home by 12:30 at which time I fed Miss E again. By 3 we were at the church with pans of Orange Cake and a crockpot full of meat for the Pastichio.

A few missteps later, I had the cream sauce going and the pasta cooking. Unfortunately, I didn't get done as quickly as I had thought I would. Instead I spent almost 2 full hours stirring the cream sauce. First to heat it up, then to cool it down. I placed the pot with the sauce over a larger pot filled with ice and water. It took much less time to cool than it did to cook. Dinner was in the oven by 6 and we were eating by 6:45.

Since I was standing with the cream sauce, I missed A's soccer practice and got Michael in a bit of trouble. We are not supposed to leave children A's age at practice without a parent. Which totally does not work with our schedule. N has art lessons on Mondays at 5pm. A has soccer practice on Mondays at 4:45pm. Michael has not been home to help with the dropping off, but he was able to pick the girls up tonight. So, for about half of A's practice, I have to drive N to art and then drive back to the soccer fields.

We ended up with a total of 17 people at dinner tonight instead of the 35 or so that had been invited. It was a wonderful time.

But, now that I am home and sitting down.... I hurt! My legs, knees, feet, ankles... they hurt! But it is totally worth it!

Trying again

Dinner is back on!

We need to run get the final touches, but as of 8:04 am EST everyone in our home is well.

I am really looking forward to this.

Pray it goes well??

Gluten Free

Since my dear sister has a child who is allergic to wheat, I've sent her websites/blogs that I run across that deal with that subject. I was reading a blog tonight and I have copied several recipes that look amazing.

I'm going to try these over the next couple of months. If anything turns out good, I'll share.

Hopefully we will be able to find some things that my nephew can eat when he comes to visit. Which I hope will be often!

Photo Roundup

A had her 1st soccer game this past Saturday. She did much better than we expected, but she still had her moments. Like this one...drawing in the sand while the rest of her team was off chasing the ball.

The windup.

Her 1st goal kick in the game.

1st corner kick

Before the 1st game. (they played 2 games on Saturday)

My birthday celebration was small considering all of the sick kiddos in the house.

N sat down one afternoon and read a book to Miss E.

Snow day! N was packing snow for their "snow princess" as A called it.

We don't usually see this much snow. Two years in a row was somewhat amazing.

A was ready for her 1st practice. All dressed up and ready to play some soccer!

Miss E didn't think too much of her first bite of cereal. But she has eaten well and very quickly figured out how to protest when she thinks I am not feeding her quickly enough.

Admiring her Daddy.

Hope you have enjoyed the photo round up from the past few weeks!

Made it!

We all made it to church this morning!! I feel as though I have not been in a month.

It was so refreshing to be in the worship service and just listen to the people praising God.

And the fellowship in Sunday School was wonderful as well. We laugh and have a good time, especially when our leader (R) and one of the ladies (L) disagree. Our leader tells her that he is ready to debate and lets her talk. It makes for some very interesting discussions.

This morning we talked about how Jesus' message never changed and how our churches seem to be meeting society halfway and compromising the message. R asked if holding Christian concerts and the like were a compromise. Well, L stated that Jesus varied the delivery of His message, but not the message itself. We agreed that the delivery of the message does need to be tailored to our audience, but not at the expense of the gospel. If the gospel is changed, then the delivery of the message is worthless.

On another note, I'm getting photos sorted off of my camera and will have some pictures posted very soon!

Just when I think we are on the mend

Miss E starts coughing...

The runny nose has to be the worst part though.

I wore her today in the wrap.
Facing my chest.
With a runny nose.
And she kept giving me "kisses".
With a runny nose.

EEEWWWWW!!!!!

Please continue to pray for my family as we try to recover from everything that seems to be floating around our house. I am so glad that tomorrow will be sunny. Gray skies and illness do not make a happy mommy!

24 hours

No one has gotten sick in the last 24 hours. If they have, no one has notified me with the "Mommy, I threw up" line.

N went back to school today and A will return tomorrow.

I will get to fold the 3 dozen or so loads of laundry that have piled up in our living room. These were washed as vomit and drool and runny noses were cleaned up.

I think N's mattress was salvaged! I will have to double check in the morning, but I believe the stain & the smell are gone.

In other news, we took N back to the doctor today to follow up about her headaches. We ended up doing an allergy screening for her and should have the results in about a week. N did not like having her blood drawn. And since I don't remember if I updated after the eye doctor... N does NOT need glasses!!! She may have her daddy's eyes which would be a wonderful thing.

Thanks for all the prayers over the past few days.

6 Hours

We've made it 6 hours without incident.

If anyone else gets sick... I quit!

I let N jump on the bed today. Found instructions online on how to clean a mattress. It said spray it with a cleaner made for cleaning urine, etc and then to have the heaviest person in the house stand on it until the towel was no longer wet. I took the mattress to the garage & told N to jump to her heart's content.

Never thought I'd ever say "Go jump on your bed!"

Now we are praying that Miss E does not get sick too. And Michael because he left for work this morning telling me that he did not feel well.

I have washed 3 more loads of laundry in an attempt to wash everything that might possibly be contaminated.

I think I have a bit more to do since I don't want the girls reusing their blankets tonight without them being cleaned.

2 steps forward, 1 step back

Yep... I heard those words again this morning.

"Mommy..."

"I threw up..."

This time it is A's turn.

Dinner is canceled.

I am disinfecting the house.

I think I will have washed about every pillow in the house.

I have cleaned 3 mattresses.

I have held hair out of the girl's faces as they throw up.

I have slept on the floor.

I wish for one birthday that everyone would be well.

Pray for me?

And the sick kiddos of course.

10 Hours

Since N last threw up! Celebrating any progress toward health!

Just the words you want to hear...

...at one o'clock in the morning.

"Mommy..."

"I threw up..."

Please pray for our girl. N is not handling this very well.

And I have had a tough time cleaning her bed, bedding, clothing and toys.

I thank God that Michael has a strong enough stomach to help me out.

Recent Happenings

Let's see...

We had some friends come for dinner on Feb 18th. Their daughter had just started showing signs of a cold that afternoon. The little girl was playing with a microphone clock that N has. She was putting her mouth all over it as she talked and sang. After they left, I walked back into the house to find A talking and singing with her mouth on the microphone too. Which of course, led to the transfer of germs and A getting sick over the weekend.

N had her final Quiz Meet for Bible Quizzing on the 20th. We were supposed to travel to a town about 4 hours from here, but we were able to arrange to hold a separate meet at our church. N is in the more difficult group. They have 2 or 3 rounds of 20 questions. N only missed one question out of all of them. She also was able to say all of her Bible verses correctly. So, the next step is the Quizzing Finals in March. If she continues to do as well as she has been, she will be on track to attend the Regional Meet in April.

N has also had some pretty bad headaches over the last month. We are not sure if they are from allergies, eye issues or something else. Right now, she is taking allergy meds to see if they help. We are also taking her for an eye exam even though the screening shows that she is only slightly nearsighted. As the doctor said, she doesn't think N is nearsighted enough to cause the headaches.

Michael is getting excited about the move. I am not sure if it is because we will be moving away from this duty station, though he wishes he could take the church with us, or if it is because he has been told that Galveston has been the best duty station his soon to be boss has ever been at. I'm just excited that I'll get to hang out with my sister on a more regular basis.

As for Miss E... well, she is growing up. It is hard to believe that she will be turning 6 months old tomorrow. She has discovered her toys, her toes and people's faces. She has also decided that she really likes eating "big girl" food. So far, she has enjoyed oatmeal, sweet potatoes, and peas. Since A is staying home from school today, she will be getting to help me feed Miss E. A is practically insisting that Miss E eat pears for lunch today. I'm thinking we will just stick with the peas for today.

I am planning a meal for 15 adults, 8 children, and 1 baby. Every year that we have lived here I have tried to get some friends together for a meal and fellowship for my birthday. I didn't want a party, but I just wanted to have a good time with friends & my family. It looks as though this year we might actually be able to pull it off! I have wanted to provide a dinner for Michael's Bible study group for some time now but it has not ever worked out. So, I decided that since his group meets on Mondays and my birthday is a Monday this year, maybe I would be able to combine a birthday get together and a dinner for the guys into one event. I am really excited about this. Except for the part about figuring out how to make Pastichio for 23. No worries though... it should be fun!

Oh yes, pictures to come...

helping with the laundry

Pretty girl helping with the laundry.

Happy birthday!

Happy Birthday to my one & only Bear!!!

Love you lots!

Snow much going on!

And no, that is not a typo in the title! We have snow. It started falling around 8 this evening. We were at dinner and as we traveled home, the snow got heavier. I praise God that we were able to make it home safely. Especially considering the number of bridges we had to cross to get home.

Another big praise is our tax refund. It arrived today and we are $7000 closer to being debt free. Michael is finally on board with this and it feels great! Now we just need to figure out how to set up a recurring transfer online. Michael has to be the one to set it up it if we go in person. Then we can turn our regular payments on what we paid off into extra payments on what we have left! I thank God for the blessing that He has given us as we work to pay off our debt. And that we can pass that blessing on to others a little sooner.

Finally, Michael talked to his soon-to-be boss today. We are definitely still moving to TX. But, Michael may not make Rachel's birthday party. Apparently Michael will be deploying for 6 months very shortly after we arrive. I am pretty sad that Michael will most likely not be home for Miss E's 1st birthday. But, I am grateful that I will have Rachel & her family nearby, as well as Andrew, Shery & Laddie.

Krispie Kisses

We just did probably one of the coolest activities with A's preschool class. We make Rice Krispie kisses.

With my hands covered in Rice Krispie treat mix, I was not able to take pictures, but when A brings her treat home, I will snap some then.

All we did was follow the recipe for the Rice Krispie treats. Instead of pressing it out into a pan, we put them into funnels to shape them like a candy kiss.

The kids had a great time and the adults all decided that it was a treat that we would make again.

Out with the old...




In with the new!

It has been nice to have a computer that works well. We can actually use the screen instead of the TV.

Orders have arrived!!!!!

This summer we will be moving to....

...


...


...Galveston, TX!!!!!

We will be about an hour from Rachel and her family as well as close enough to visit Andrew & Shery regularly! Not to mention Aunt Laddie lives just a short way from Rachel too!

Rachel is excited because I will be able to bake her birthday cake this year instead of her having to talk Andres through the process. I'm just excited that I will be living near enough to my family to celebrate birthdays and other events with them.

Michael will be gone at least half the year with his job, but living with family close, we can get by just fine.

We do ask that you pray for us as we begin preparing for our move. We are already in the process of cleaning out our garage and home of the items that simply taking up space.

Need prayer

Michael and I have been asked to make a decision that will greatly affect our family. Please pray with us over the coming days.

Thank you.

Soccer

We got the call tonight...
1st soccer practice: tomorrow, unless it is raining - with an 80% chance, I really don't think practice will happen.
1st game: Feb 20th... when we will be out of town for a Bible Quiz meet

And what did I think of earlier today? That I need to get cleats... and shorts... and shin guards... and balls... and...

Oh yeah, I need to get 2 of each since both N & A will be playing.

A's practices will be on Wednesdays and Fridays. So, we will have some interesting scheduling on Wednesday nights with practice and dinner.

Dinner with friends

There is a couple in our church whom we have not seen much of recently. Chris is working on a fishing boat and is out both night and day. His wife, Catherine, teaches Sunday School and is currently a stay at home mom.

God laid it on my heart to invite them to dinner.

Nothing fancy, just good food and conversation.

Something to let them know that we still care. We are still concerned about their lives. That we want to remain connected.

So, I invited them to come. And once Chris heard I was planning Lasagna, he was committed to coming. Even when his boss asked him to show up at the boat 2 hours earlier than originally planned. Chris was coming for lasagna!

Since we had leftovers and I knew Chris would be out tonight, I set some aside in 2 containers to send with him. Instead, Chris thought to take one to another person in our church who would appreciate it as well.

It was nothing fancy. Just some lasagna and garlic bread. But, we enjoyed the company and the time together. I am thankful that God laid them on my heart and prompted me to invite them over.

Pictures

I have updated with pictures from Thanksgiving and Christmas. They start with Christmas Take 4 at the top and end with Thanksgiving near the bottom.

I hope you enjoy them. There were way too many to choose from.

Christmas Take 4

And finally, making new friends. The ladies in the following pictures I have known for a couple of years, but we finally met in person in 2009! Terryl, in the 1st picture, enjoys photography and we have shared pictures over the years. She takes some amazing photos. And to make it even better, she is absolutely wonderful in real life!

Kim and Hope were amazing as well. Mom came to dinner with us that night and in talking with Hope, found out that they knew some of the same people. And Kim is just so sweet. I loved meeting both of them. Makes me kinda sad that I know so many people that live so far away...

Christmas Take 3

We'll help with the candles! Happy Birthday to a very special Grammy!

We went to the zoo and I thought this was the coolest toad. Ever.

I touched her foot! Alex & Miguel were sweet about touching Miss E.

Amazing picture of the eagle.

I'm glad that we were meeting this guy with a fence between us!

Christmas Take 2

Familiar skyline.

I give up!

Me too!

I'm not leaving until I get LUNCH!!!

Too many cameras to look at. Don't drop her... don't drop her...