Monday, November 30, 2009

Don't judge me


these are the yummiest little creations ever!!! seriously!!!!

as we shopped the aisle's at Fred Meyer on our girls weekend we spied these little delicious creations. when i saw them i said "i like ritz crackers" barbie said "i like chocolate!"

so into the cart they went!
we opened them
we loved them
we hid them from the kids!

Girl's Weekend




my friends from school! a girls weekend away! with kids?????

it was a chance for us to get away. to shop at the outlets. to relax. to talk girl talk. to refresh.

and the kids really took care of themselves! we did not cook. we had coffee. we stayed up late. we laughed. we all ended up sleeping with our own child! ha ha. mine ended up staying up until 1am!!! finally got him to sleep by turning on my ipod and sticking the earbuds in his ears! it was very stormy and it sounded like the building was going to come down around us!

but it was a great night to just get away!

TAG

I love my daughter..............i really do! she is such a unique and creative individual. she is precious and adorable.

but as you know i have shared my "battles" with her. everything from not wearing jeans to cutting tags out of shirts so she can wear them. and of course all of this goes along with the dreaded seam in the sock not being lined up when you put your shoes on! she is slow and methodical and very, very sensitive. she does not like bright light, loud noises, chaos, she does everything in her own time.


now with all of this being said..........we have worked and worked with her to help her overcome most of these issues that she has. she has come such a long way....she wears jeans now!!!!! she does not fight me every morning over what to wear. she can manage her time fairly wisely and she is becoming a little more aware of others in regards to how her slowness affects them.

at the beginning of this year i sat down with our school counselor, again! i adore her and relish her wisdom and advice. we spoke about my daughter's stress level and how it was affecting her sleep patterns, etc. we finally got around to talking about the fact that syd is a TAG kid and have i ever looked into how that molds and shapes her? i had not. so i left her office with lots of info in regards to how TAG kids operate and think!

as i read the literature i could literally see this child i have, come to life. it was completely eye opening for me! i have come to view syd in a completely different way. she will always be this way and it is her normal! she is so verbal and can carry a conversation with an adult, but when it comes to her peers it is hard for her to make new friends. so many aspects of her personality were explained to me.

now it is still our job as parents to help her to identify what aspects can be controlled and managed to help her succeed in the long run. and this is where it is physically draining for us as parents. she requires so much attention and her needs are greater than her siblings. but that is our job and we love her with all of our lives.

so our journey continues............

where to even start

so obviously i failed again with my blog..........someday i will manage to keep up with it on a daily basis! too many other things have gotten in the way......like work, kids, husband, laundry, cooking, cleaning and of course the dreaded facebook! seriously what a huge time sucker that is! i had no idea when i joined it a year ago that it would consume my life!

so i sit before you again vowing to blog more! i will attempt to catch up on the month of november...not too much occured, but i will try and find something to blog about. the problem is, i am friends with all of you on facebook anyway, so you have already seen my pictures of GWL and tree hunting!

but there are stories to go with those pix................priceless moments to cherish and remember. so here i go again!

Thursday, November 05, 2009

delayed



so sad today.........we have had to postpone our trip to great wolf lodge! we were suppose to head out for some family fun. this time we had reserved a big suite because we were going with my brother and his family. but alas.......the piggie flu hit their family just in time to delay our trip. but we rebooked it for thanksgiving week.........so we still get to go enjoy our time! and maybe they will have it decorated in their winter wonderland!!!

Saturday, October 31, 2009

trick or treat


the clone trooper and the kitty


this is her third year as a cat...at least the boots spiced it up a bit!

she was so excited to put makeup on!


this is his 4 year year as a star wars person!



another year, more candy and fun costumes! this year was a mellow year for us, since we had just been sick the rest of the gang......ryen and luke, grandma and grandpa decided to stay home and not get sick. so it was just the four of us! it was nice.

as we do every year, the candy fairy visited us again. luckily i remembered at 8pm that i had to go buy some CF gifts! so while the kids sorted their candy, i ran up to target and bought some small gifts for the fairy to exchange for candy!

it amazes me that they are getting so old and they still look forward to the fairy coming! i am pretty sure that they know by now, but they enjoy it still!

Friday, October 30, 2009

the dreaded piggie flu


has arrived out our house! it has been an interesting week. one full of flu facts, doctors that contradicted each other and lots and lots of clorox wipes!

noah started showing signs last saturday and by sunday he was into a low grade temp with lots and lots of coughing. we finally ended up calling in to the peds clinic because of his asthma and of course they told us to go to an er.........needless to say, i did not want/need to do that!!! but we did take him in to be seen on monday morning, just to make sure that it had not hit his lungs. and all was well. he was started on a new inhaler and it really helped a lot.

he pretty much stayed low grade fever for 3 days and then was fine, except for the coughing. we decided to brave school for a day......we made it four hours! by that evening his coughing was worse, so we went back into the clinic and again all was well.

i will say that the most frustrating part for me was the mis-information given to me by the doctors. our normal doctor told us it was a virus, not swine flu. that there were lots of other things going around out there. the next doctor told us it was the swine flu, nothing else going around! i asked why the first doctor told me what he did and was informed that due to hysteria some doctors were trying to minimize the information being told! hmmmmmmm????? i appreciated being told the truth, no matter what. it made me more secure in knowing what we were dealing with and which symptoms to look for next.

in the end........it truly was not as bad as i expected it to be. we were lucky.
i think we have all had it and we all survived!


Tuesday, October 27, 2009

rememberances

i was driving to woodburn on saturday, it was a beautiful day. the sun was shining, it was a great drive and the radio was blasting.

then i saw it. the roadside rememberance of a family who had lost their mom on that very road, in that very spot, several years ago. i know because i was in a car with family members on our way to my sister in laws book signing, when we drove by a white suv..........upside down on I-5. the first responders were not even there yet and there were kids hanging upside down in the back of the car, screaming. it is a horrible feeling, this helplessness. there was nothing that i could have done. there were motorists that had stopped and were helping. as we drove slowly past......i saw her. the mom. there was no way that she had survived. her image is burned into my memory. i started praying for the people in the car immediately and to this day i still do! i pray for the kids and husband who have lost their mother and their wife. i pray for their healing. i pray that God has used a horrible, tragic situation to draw more near to Him. i pray that the family can release their anger, remorse and grief.

are there people in your lives that have touched you that through the years you continue to pray for? people that you did not even know? people who you spoke with once? or loved ones and friends?

I have several people in my life that i pray for..........some i had never met, like the mom. or the budhist grandma that i sat next to on a flight home from chicago. we struck up a conversation about our faith........and in the end i promised to pray for her! i look forward to seeing her glorious face in heaven one day. i believe that God has placed people in her life that drew her to Him.

my awana friend from way back when....who died of sickle cell anemia. who's favorite song was "it only takes a spark to get a fire going!" i think of her from time to time and the way she touched my life. because of her my empathy for friends in need became what it is today. she has always touched my heart.

these people that are put in our lives for a reason............God knows why. God uses these experiences to touch us, to grow us closer to him.

i am not a great evangalist. in fact it is my true hold up. i am not comfortable speaking to others. but i belive that God has used me anyway. I just continue to pray.............for the people i don't know, the people i have only spoken too and family and friends.

Monday, October 26, 2009

mine is in the mail!





cannot wait to get my cookbook tomorrow!!! i love to thumb through the pages of a new cookbook and find all recipes that i want to make! this is a cute segment from today''s bonnie hunt show with my favorite blogger...the pioneer woman. love the audience guy who comes up to taste the taters!

Monday, October 19, 2009

dear reality show contestants

please stop proclaiming in your intro videos that you are christians.....talking about your purity and your faith and all of these things that you feel like you need to put out into the reality universe. because here is what breaks the deal for me.............

when you use the Lord's name in vain while you are on the show.

so does that mean that you are a sometimes christian. because i don't recall a verse that says it is okay to use His name while yelling at your teammate. i am pretty sure it says to NOT, NOT, NOT take God's name in vain.

the other thing that irks me is when the cute little "christian" brothers proclaim loudly to the universe that they are christians.........but suddenly they turn to one another and say that last year they came out to each other!!! so what you are gay? and you felt it was important and part of your agenda to put the two together???

and it also upsets me when "christians" talk about karma or saying things like i am so mad i want to rip her head off right now????

i think that while you are on game shows you
should just model the walk, not talk some talk!!!

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Explosion Volleyball 2009

sydnie and her friends, ready for their first game

their super fun volleyball socks!

ready to play

almost, but not quite there

ready for the ball



sydnie had her first volleyball game this past saturday. she was a little apprehensive for the first game, but she really did a great job. she had been having some problems with her serve in practice, but she got several over the net and was excited. my favorite play was a bump that ended up being an assist for her friend. the whole crowd went wild and she turned to me and game me a slight shoulder lift....."like what just happened....i was trying to get it over the net...why is everyone cheering?"

so adorable. so we talked afterwards about how somethings in life don't even go the way we expect, just like the ball........but God can do amazing things with it when we are faithful! it ended up being a great life lesson, as well as a great volleyball play!

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

more football


celebrating

getting open for the ball

run noah run

hike!!!



right before he pulls his first flag

there it is........just hard to see!!!

let me clarify regarding my last post......there is a male code for football that i, as a woman, cannot understand. i just know that the mama bear in me has to bite her tongue a lot this year, to let go of stuff that is bothering me and just be in the moment while my little guy is playing! because that it was this is about, him learning, gaining knowledge, growing up and learning to do things on his own. so i might have sounded harsh in my last posting, but this is my blog and sometimes you just need to vent. but with all that said, he is really having a fantastic year and he truly does love it!

Saints Football


since i had fallen a little behind on my blogging in september i did not have a chance to share our football experience this year! noah is playing boys and girls club flag football again this year and he is so pumped about it! at this point he really loves the social aspect of it more than the actual game, but as the season has progressed so have his skills and his willingness to learn.

it has been an interesting season. one wraught with macho men and their warped views of the game, but noah does not know about that. he just wants to get on the field and play. he is only in second grade and has many years to spend in practice and getting better.......let him enjoy it now!

this year i thought i would try a bribe in order to get his keister running out on the field and since he was only allowed to play defense, i told him for that every flag he pulled i would buy him a candy bar. first game out = two candy bars purchased. not too bad!

he is now allowed to play offense, but not allowed to "touch" the ball. he has been hiking the ball to the quaterback and then running to get open for the ball. since he will never get the ball thrown to him (partly his own fault because he is still not comfortable catching) i have nothing to really bribe him with. but he is loving it so much and this week he went out and practiced with his dad and caught every ball that was thrown at him!

"the more i practice, the luckier i get" Jerry Barber

Monday, October 12, 2009

more hours

i am back to work again and really enjoyed the fact that my year only started with 2 hours a day.....although i really started getting bored after 3 weeks. but i have now increased my hours and am working 6 hours a day. so far it has been going really well. we know the routine, we survived last year as the first year that i went back to work and it was a good thing for the kids and i.

i did have to make a decision about applying for a permanent 5 hour job.....oddly enough that decision was super stressful for me. i guess that when it comes down to it, i still have the option to not work if i don't want to. if i had applied for that job and gotten it, it meant a for real, full time job. the odd thing is, is that i want to work. i enjoy my job. i enjoy being part of the work force again and contributing to our family finances. i want to work.

the issues of mommy vs employee played into the decision as well. my kids appreciate that i can come home from work with them. that we both get out of school at the same time. my kids are homebodies and they want to come home after school, have a snack, relax and finish their homework! and it mattered that both of my kids requested that i wait for a job that would allow that! i am still their mom, first and foremost.

fortunately, i received that in 4 hours of overload for the time being. i go to work with them and get off of work with them. it just works. so i am working full time. life is good. God truly does provide if we just put our trust in Him.

Sunday, October 11, 2009

Jogathon 2009



the music was too loud for her ;)



ha ha ha....this one make me laugh!!!

another year, another great day for our school pta fundraiser......our jogathon. our school has always been very, very successful in their fundraiser and this year i am sure will prove to be the same. each of the kids decided that they wanted to run more laps than they had ever run before. now each of our laps is 1/4 of mile and an awful long way for those little legs to run.

noah really wanted to run 12 laps, he ended up with 10 laps. sydnie ended up with 10 as well. she was really happy and proud of herself for her accomplishment, and she should be. they each ran 2.5 miles! that is a lot!!!

career week





i love second grade! i love the endless possibilities of who you are and what you will become. at this age anything is possible! you are still interested in becoming a police officer, an astronaut, a vet, a teacher............the list goes on and on. that is why the teacher's at my children's school are so incredibly clever! they created a parent job share month, where a student can learn about what different jobs are out there and have fun dreaming of the different things they want to become.

this year noah has had many different "jobs" represented: police, fire, emt, doctor, sales reps and even someone who has worked at the white house for many years came to speak to them. his favorite were the doctor..........obviously from the pictures you can see that the kids each got some surgical stuff to wear home!

his other favorite..............the perfume sales rep!!! no lie. the kid came home with a bottle of tim mcgraw cologne. now i love tim mcgraw....but if he smells like that, i might have to reconsider! maybe in smaller doses, but noah enjoyed it so much that he sprayed himself and anything else that had legs about 50 times!!!

so bless you teachers for the amazing gift of stinky perfume that lingers in my house til this day!

Saturday, October 10, 2009

the patch







it was a beautiful day to go to the pumpkin patch! the weather was perfect, the patch was not too crowded and we were with good friends! we have gone to bauman farms for many years now and each year there is something new and exciting to do. this year they had added the pedal carts.....which were an additional expense and afterwords found out that they were suppose to go around the track twice!!! ha ha. oh well. they had a blast. of course our visit included apple cider donuts and a bunch of fun. what a great way to spend an afternoon out of school and enjoying the fall day!

Friday, October 09, 2009

off to the patch



fall is one of my favorite times of year. i love the soft sunlight as it filters down on us. i love the colors of fall....most of my house is decorated in the beautiful shades of brown, green, orange and yellow. i love the crisp mornings and sunny warmer afternoons. did i say that i love fall?

one of my favorite times is going to the pumpkin patch. i love going and watching my kids frolick in the hay. roll in the dirt and jump from hay bale to hay bale.

so today we are going to the patch. a day off of school with nothing to do but play in the warm sunshine. cannot wait..........the apple spice donuts might have something to do with it as well.

Thursday, October 08, 2009

i heart glee







although it overtly pushes an agenda and i love this show....i eagerly look forward to watching it each week. waiting to see what songs they will pull from pop culture and use in an inventive way! i have most of the songs downloaded and listen to them on a regular basis!!!

one of my favorites was "on my own" from Les Miserables! but i cannot seem to find a good clip of it on youtube. and of course the football team dancing to single ladies!!!

so even if you have not seen this show yet....enjoy the video!!!

Wednesday, October 07, 2009

i am not preggers....but fun little sidetrack


i am constantly amazed at how the human mind works. it tells us when to eat, when to breath, when to sleep. amazing how something that is not even used to the fullest capacity can run our entire body.

i was sitting in a classroom today, just doing my job, gluing writing books together. when suddenly my mind says...........ummmmm why have i felt like i am going to be sick for the last couple of days? am i late????

now i know, know, know that i am going to be getting my monthly visit any day. i know this. but somehow as i sit their gluing together books, with nothing else to occupy my mind, it happens. i think like every other woman on the planet who has ever been pregnant.......................could i be pregnant????

again..........i am not. but for about 30 minutes (yes i sat there that long gluing) it was nice to daydream, let my mind wander to the possibilities. i saw the kids and their reactions, the impact to our family, the moment where we welcomed a new little one into our family.

maybe it was the fact that we have always wanted a third little person in our family. maybe it was that i was bored. maybe it was that every woman secretly, deep down really wants to experience that first moment where you feel the baby kick, when they get the hiccups, the first time you hold that newborn in your arms!

so my question to you......does anyone else ever do this?
am i alone in this daydream adventure?

Tuesday, October 06, 2009

who is who




one picture is of me and one is of sydnie. the same deer. it used to sit in my grandparents yard and now resides in my parents back yard. tucked away. a reminder. i have a great scrapbook layout of these two photos.....it is one of my favorites!

Thursday, October 01, 2009

date night

tonight i took syd on a little date to borders for some coffee/hot cocoa and some girl time. sydnie has recently been reading the warrior series and had been dying to get them. since i got my first paycheck this week, i decided to splurge! it was well worth it..........she was so excited. it was great to spend a little time alone and just hanging out with a ton of books!

pretty in pink






this made me laugh today.....just because women like to talk, does not mean that we are all born that way...

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

penguin or person?



my beautiful daughter has decided that this year she is in orchestra....and she was fitted for the cello. i was really hoping for the violin as it is a much smaller instrument, but alas she was fitted for the cello. so we decided to rent from a local music store that is a rent to own situation, so that if she truly falls in love with it eventually it will be ours! but let me tell you, when they brought over this case??? I just about had a heart attack. i don't think that this case could have been any bigger!!!! the amazing thing is that all the rest of her classmates that were chosen for cello have these small cases, not this huge strapped on number! but syd does not want to ruin her cello....so we are keeping the monstrosity!!! so we walked to school the first morning of orchestra and by afternoon, my shoulders hurt! because i am a loving mother, i carried it myself. wow!

we now drive on orchestra days!!!!

Monday, September 28, 2009

my post for kim

love that you care enough about my blog to make me post something again. thanks for keeping me on my toes and reminding me why i loved to blog. that i could tell my story. so that when i am old and feeble and cannot remember how to type, i can look back on my blogging days! so that i can capture my kids' everyday moments........to record, to cherish, to live.

so thank you kim for the big shout out!!! i promise to post more and to add some new photos and tell our story!!!

love ya!!!

Sunday, August 16, 2009

cousins


after a long day playing at the beach....off to a hotel room for the night. good memories.

all time favorite as well


caught in the moment

love this one too


summer




this is one of my all time favorite shots of noah!

Saturday, August 15, 2009

Beach Olympics

God's majesty


randal's message....invitation....10 new kids for Christ

worship on the beach @ sunset

matilda - the trophy
the winning team spray paints her the winning teams color


120 kids - ona beach
these kids played hard! lots of games, lots of fun and laughter


i have attended beach olympics one other year and i missed all the games! this year we arrived right at lunch and watched the kids play their games, running back and forth. it was amazing. lots of activity. lots of fun. not too many medical issues. just lots of kids on fire for Christ!

the best part was after dinner we all headed back down to the beach for a time of worship, prayer and an invitation to know Christ! the winning team was announced........red team won. each team mate took their turn spraying matilda red! the kids took their seats again with their gold medals gleaming in the sun, the look of winning showing on their smiling faces. they had won beach olympics! as randal walked to the podium the sun slowly faded into the horizon, the worship band led us in some amazing worship, reminding us that God is the creator, the King!

10 kid accepted Christ that day.