Pic from behind my house

Here is a pic I took the other morning behind my house before the fog lifted....

Today's score....

3rd Grade
Owasso Black - 34
Glenpool Blue - 0

Please keep one of Glenpool's players in your prayers. He was hit pretty hard toward the beginning of the game, and an ambulance was called after about 30 minutes. We are all praying that he is okay.

Sport's schedule for the weekend

Here's the kid's schedules for this weekend....Ashleigh - 10 AM (Owasso Sportsplex (they play in the back right corner)) GO DRAGONS!
Zach - @Glenpool (Glenpool HS field) at 12:30PM
Dylan - @Home (Owasso HS field) at 3PM
GO RAMS!

Powerful Video

A friend of mine sent me a link from "YOU TUBE" today... it's very powerful and to the point! All I could say was "WOW" at the end....
CLICK HERE TO SEE VIDEO

Ashleigh's first slumber party

Ashleigh went to her first slumber party last night. It was at her cheerleading coaches house and she had a blast!
I think it was harder on me than it was her cause it's not very often that I don't have all of my little ones "in the nest"! But I did OK and so did she.

Team of the week

Every week, there is a FOR (Future Owasso Rams) "team of the week". This week Third Grade Black was selected! It's a great group of boys and is well deserved! Congratulations, boys!

Sept 9th Football Game

My son's team won their football game today over Jenks. As Zach put it, "they kicked some Trojan butt"
Owasso Black - 33
Jenks Gold - 6

GO RAMS!!!!!

Sanity check

After Saturday, I may have to have a sanity check done. It's gonna be a BUSY day! Zach has football pics first thing, then a game, then 30 minutes after Zach's game starts, Ashleigh has a game to cheer at. Then, she has practice afterwards and a slumber party.... after Z's game, we have a neighborhood block party to go to for a little while that afternoon and then Zach has a football party later that evening.... So, after all of that, I may need to have someone check my "marble count" because I only have a few more "marbles" left and I think that I may loose them all after Saturday!
Ashleigh's coach asked if they could do team pictures that day and when I frantically said "could we do it some other time?" they, thank goodness, changed the time to sometime next week!

My little Cheerleader

Tonight was Ashleigh's first game to cheer at and they all did a great job.... Ashleigh, of course, was the loudest.... and if you ask me, she was the cutest! (I might be just a little biased tho!)

Goofy dog

Okay. It's official. My dog Joey is GOOFY!
I bought him a dog waterer so that he wouldn't run out of water so quickly.... and everytime it refills itself after he takes a drink, it bubbles.... it makes him jump back and run away every time.... I am hoping that he would be a little more brave if he ever had to protect the family! I knew that Joey was skiddish but I didn't realize he was THAT jumpy!

TODAY'S GAME

UNION - Crimson - 0
OWASSO - Black - 14
GO RAMS!

MRI

I have a MRI scheduled on Monday morning to see what is going on with the herniated disk in my neck.

"Joe Cool"

The other day, my husband found his old goggles.... he just HAD to put them on our Golden Retriever, Joe... doesn't he look cool?

1st day of school (August 17th)

Ashleigh's first day of Kindergarten

Showing off the backpacks

Allie had to get into the picture too, she's having "school" at home with mom....

Zachary's 1st day of 3rd grade

Zach's first scrimmage

Here are some pics from Zach's first scrimmage.... the team scored 5 touchdowns on Jenks in 15 minutes... the boys did really well... (Zach is wearing the black jersey with white pants...)

Zach's first football practice....

Here are some pics of Zach's first football practice.... he's the one in the red shirt, black shorts....

Went to the doc

Well, after much prodding from my son, I finally went to the doc. It seems that it wasn't a sprain or a fracture. I have something called a "Ganglion cyst" on my wrist... it is a benign cyst, but causes pain and discomfort.... the doc said that I may have to have it surgically removed.. I am going to see an orthopedic doctor soon to see what he/she says. But, the ganglion isn't what was causing the majority of my pain.... it seems that I have another problem causing the pain. I have a herniated disk in my neck causing all my pain... right now I am on some meds that will help that but have a MRI coming up soon to see just how bad it is.... ONLY ME....
Thank goodness my son was persistent.... most of the time I am NOT thankful for that, but this time I am!

Hurt my wrist last week....

Don't know what I did, but I hurt my wrist last week! I wore a brace for 3 or 4 days but got tired of it..... now it's swelling up again, so I guess I had better put my brace back on and possibly go to the doctor. Ho Hum....
I have had several people ask me what happened, then offer me their opinion.... most have said "you may have fractured it..." others have said "it looks like a bad sprain...."I hope they are all wrong, cause I don't have time to have either of those things be wrong (or anything else for that matter)!
I mainly quit wearing the brace because I got tired of people asking me what happened and then getting their opinion about what I "should do, shouldn't do" etc...... (Sometimes I feel like having a hand out made of what happened to give out to people when they ask me.... so that I don't have to explain it over and over again or have a t-shirt that tells the story....)
Sigh... guess I will break down and go to the doctor.... eventually. At least it is still attached. As I tell my kids when they get hurt "It will feel better when it quits hurting" :)

Zach's 2nd scrimmage....

Zach's team had a scrimmage in Wagoner on Saturday. The team did really well.
We even did well against the Tulsa Boy's Club team. They are a pretty good team with some really good players and they only scored on us once.... and it was during our 4th session during the scrimmage, so the boys were worn out, and still did pretty well. Zach even took some pretty hard hits and bounced right back up. When I asked him if it hurt, he said "NO! It doesn't hurt at all" Guess he is getting tougher. I'd only get hit once like that and would say "I'm not playing any more!"

Football Schedule

Here is Zach's football schedule....

Date -Grade -Time -HomeTeam -VisitorTeam -Field Game
8/26/2006 -3 1:30 PM -Union Crimson -Owasso Black -TUTTLE
9/9/2006- 3 10:30 AM -Owasso Black -Jenks Gold -H.S.
9/16/2006- 3 12:30 PM -Glenpool Blue -Owasso Black
9/23/2006 -3 6:00 PM- Owasso Black -Broken Arrow White -H.S.
9/30/2006- 3 2:00 PM -Berryhill- Owasso Black- BERRYHILL
10/7/2006- 3 1:00 PM -Owasso Black- Pryor Blue -TRACK
10/14/2006 -3 11:00 AM- Sapulpa Blue -Owasso Black- H.S.
10/21/2006- 3 11:30 AM- Owasso Black -Sand Springs Black -TRACK
10/28/2006- 3 11:00 AM -Collinsville Black -Owasso Black

Zach's 2nd scrimmage

Zach's 2nd scrimmage is this coming Saturday, from 8AM - 10AM in Wagoner. You all know that I don't do mornings very well! (Last weeks was from 8AM - 10AM in Inola.)
The good thing about it is that we get to play while it isn't quite so hot.... and we get done early enough so that the day isn't "gone"..... but MAN it's early!

Son's first scrimmage

My son's football team, Owasso Third Grade Black, had their first scrimmage on Saturday. They played really well considering they have only practiced together for 2 weeks!
They did well on offense and defense. They scored 4 touchdowns in one 15 minute scrimmage against Jenks!
They have another scrimmage this Saturday and have their first game on Labor Day weekend.
GO RAMS!

What kind of American English do you speak?

Thought that this was fun to do. I found it on a friend's blog.....

Your Linguistic Profile:

65% General American English

15% Dixie

15% Yankee

0% Midwestern

0% Upper Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Too funny not to share (sorry OU fans)

This was in an email I received yesterday..... I assume that it was started by a Texas fan.....



When my son heard about what Bomar did on the news, he said "Well, THAT was stupid!"

Which Sesame Street Character are you? Here are my results, I'm Ernie!

You Are Ernie

Playful and childlike, you are everyone's favorite friend - even if your goofy antics get annoying at times. You are usually feeling: Amused - you are very easily entertained You are famous for: Always making people smile. From your silly songs to your wild pranks, you keep things fun. How you life your life: With ease. Life is only difficult when your friends won't play with you!

The Sesame Street Personality Quiz

BUSY.... BUSY.... BUSY

Well, my first week in Oklahoma has been really busy! Zach had football camp 3 evenings last week. We also changed my cell phone number, got a home phone, unpacked boxes,ordered Zach's football uniform, ordered his sports goggles, unpacked more boxes,got Zach's football equipment checked out, unpacked boxes, my inlaws got us a new fridge, we had our cable installed, unpacked more boxes, removed plastic and foam inserts for blinds etc... in our house, put together a new lawn mower, unpacked even more boxes, put together a new bed with a million pieces for Zach, cleared away cobwebbs in about every corner of the house, unpacked more boxes .... and the list goes on and on.... in the middle of all of that, we have been catching up with friends and family!
Even after all of that, it's great to be HOME! When we told some of our friends in Virginia that we were moving back to Oklahoma alot of them asked us "Why? Do we like heat and tornadoes? " or made comments like "You are moving to Oklahoma on purpose?" .... and when we told them that we grew up here and this is HOME for us, they said, "Well, that is the only thing that can explain why you'd want to live in Oklahoma!" .... they think that they have a sense of humor. I for one will be glad to be away from those hurricanes. Went through one and that was ENOUGH for me (and we lived about 70 miles from the coast!)
We're glad to be home!

We are officially in Oklahoma again

We are finally in Oklahoma. We got here last Thursday and it has been a whirlwind ever since! Lots and Lots of unpacking to do! And Zach has already started football, so we are already busy!

Moving Day is almost here!!!!

Wow! I can't believe that moving day is almost here! It seems as if we have been wanting to move back for sooooo long, and it's unreal that it is finally going to happen. I moved away from home in '94! I can't believe it's been that long!
God as always been faithful and has taken care of me no matter where we have lived. He has ALWAYS watched over me and provided for me all these years! God is ALWAYS faithful to take care of His children!
I have loved the 4 years that I have been here in Virginia. It a beautiful place to be and I feel blessed to have been here! It's so full of great people and lots of American history!
I love my church and my church family here. The folks at our church, knowing that we are away from family,have taken us under their wing and taken care of us like we were their family. They also have acted like family to my kids and have spoiled them rotten! Ashleigh's class even had a pizza party today in her honor! We are going to miss everyone and miss serving in that church.
But, we will be near our family when we move back to Oklahoma and I will get to be near my childhood friends and watch their kids grow up! And all of my "little" cousins are all starting families as well, so that will be a blast!
I will also get to be near my god-children, Hannah, Jordan and Harlee. I've missed so much of their lives being so far away!
I will also get to start rooting for my POKES in person. For some reason, they don't care much for my POKIES up here! Something about that Virginia/Virginia Tech thing...! I just can't understand it... HA HA!
One thing is for sure though! They don't like OU either, so we DID have that in common. So watch out POKES! I'm comin' to root you on!
We are leaving here on the 18th and will be moving into the rental in Owasso on the 20th, so look out OKLAHOMA, here we come!

SEARS

The following is from an email that I received today.... I checked it out on snopes.com and it is true! What a wonderful thing for Sears to do for their employees.....!!!!!

"Thought this information was important to share. Our National Guard and Reservist troops need to know that we want the Sears policy to become our national policy!!

Let's all show up at Sears
I assume you have all seen the reports about how Sears is treating its reservist employees who are called up? By law, they are required to hold their jobs open and available, but nothing more. Usually, people take a big pay cut and lose benefits as a result of being called up...Sears is voluntarily paying the difference in salaries and maintaining all benefits, including medical insurance and bonus programs, for all called up reservist employees for up to two years. I submit that Sears is an exemplary corporate citizen and should be recognized for its contribution.

Suggest we all shop at Sears, and be sure to find a manager to tell them why we are there so the company gets the positive reinforcement it well deserves."

July 4th - Update on Gabriel

Here is an update on Gabriel.... Sorry I haven't posted in a while about this....

From an email from Dawn received on June 27th....
"Many people have asked us when Gabriel might be released from the hospital.It's certainly something we've been interested in as well. We are thinking of taking bets. :) Until this weekend there was a possibility that we might be able released this week That hope has since been dashed. Still we want to keep everyone informed as to what we do now know.

Our current situation is this: The decision to put a feeding tube into Gabriel's side has been made. We are now only waiting for a series of two tests which will tell if he has reflux. Depending on whether he has reflux tendencies or not will determine what sort of surgery they need to do to put the tube in (and whether a band needs to be put above the stomach). Once both tests are done, then they can schedule the surgery. Then, after the surgery there will be a span of three or four days of recovery and watching before we can be released (assuming no infection or fever).

Until this we had not experienced any great delay in getting tests done, however this test was scheduled for Monday, then pushed to Tuesday, and now appears to be set for Wednesday morning. This test is of dye that is put down his throat and take only minutes to resolve. The second test takes place over hours. The second test can't be scheduled until the first test is concluded. We are hopeful that they can get both tests in on Wednesday, but there is no guarantee. After this, they will start to schedule the operation. Depending on how busy they are at that time, that could be as early as the next day, or as late as five to six working days.

So here is the best case scenario that we are hoping for: if we can get both tests on Wednesday and scheduled for surgery on Thursday or Friday, perhaps they will count the weekend time after surgery as "recovery" and we can go home to NW Arkansas early next week. I'm still holding out hope that we can all get home before July 4th but dark clouds are hovering over that prediction."

From a email from Dawn received on June 30th....

"Hello again from Little Rock,

Late last night we were informed that Gabriel's stomach button surgery will be Monday at 7:30am. We are relieved to know the date and that it is Monday and not any later. After trying to work on the bottle feeds, Gabriel is loosing weight due to the use of so much energy. The doctors strongly recommended this procedure so he can be fed directly into his stomach. We are told this is very typical for babies like Gabriel. On Wednesday, he was tested for reflux, which he has "significant reflux"...so the doctor will do a procedure, putting a "nessin" (? spelling) which will block the flow of reflux.

As he grows he will improve and at some point will not need the button feed. For now, he needs to grow and gain strength and to do this he needs a little help.

Today we moved out of the Ronald McDonald House. Yesterday Gabriel had moved from a semi-private to a private room where we can both sleep with him.

I cannot begin to tell you how homesick we all are. The children have been doing good in OK with the grandparents, but they are missing us and home too. We need to be together again...and soon. Since his surgery is on Monday, we are hoping to be home by next weekend. Our hopes are high.

Thank you for all the prayers. Please continue to pray for Gabriel, his surgery and speedy recovery."

MOVING TO OKLAHOMA

Well, the official word is finally here. We are moving to Oklahoma this month. We are packing up here on the 17th and will be arriving sometime the 19th.... then we will be unpacking at our house on the 20th! So if anyone wants to help us out, either here in VA or there in OK, we could sure use the help!

Too much time on your hands....

You ever wonder what could happen when people have too much time on their hands? Check this out.... COKE & MENTO GEYSERS

Book

Cristina Meier, a member of my church and a 6th grade teacher at SVCA, has had her first book published. It is called A STORY OF A KNIGHT
Check it out when you get a chance.

June 24th - Gabriel Update

FROM DAWN:
We are now in the Cardiac step-down
unit of ACH. We still have a long way to go but most of the critical stuff is over. We have spent the last few days learning to feed Gabriel through a feeding tube, dress his wounds, mix his milk so that it is a motor-oil consistency, take his pulse-oxygen level, crush his medicine and thicken it, and CPR in the cases where he may aspirate. As over-whelming as it is, we are eager to learn so that we can go home.

The doctors have not given us a date specifically that we can go home, but they indicated a lot would depend on how well he improves this weekend. Currently he struggles to get 30 out of 50 ccs of his thickened milk before wearing out, and that is just for 3 of his 8 feedings. If he is to go home on the bottle he needs to progress to 50ccs by bottle for all 8 of his feeding. The other option is a smaller surgery to put a more permenant feeding tube in his belly. The doctors are not eager for this and are trying to evalute the delay another surgery would create verses how long it will take him to learn to do all his feedings by mouth.

Please continue to pray fo us.

Gabriel Update

Here are some parts of the email that I received from Dawn today.

"The last few days have been very busy and tiring. I cant remember when I
updated last so I will review. Monday morning he had a swollow study to
determine if he would asperate when eating....he did fail the first two
tries but passed the third. Basicly it means he can have milk by mouth and
bottle if it is thinkened. The Ocupational Therapist called it "honey"
consistancy. We are being taught how to give him a bottle and mix it
properly."
"Yesterday was a very busy day with Dr.s and nurses and such...they moved us
to the CV East. WE ARE OUT OF ICU!!!!! Last night was the first night to
be with Gabriel all night. I slept a total of 3 hours. He eats every 3
hours, gets his diaper changed (which he hates), and it takes about 30 min.
to 45 min to calm him down after his diaper changed. He gets very unhappy
and his resperation is high. We are learning more about him...his
sounds....his personality. Our specific prayer request is for wisdom and
courage to know how to care for him. We are very nervous about his special
needs and our ability to care for those needs. Although the Drs and Nurses
are very supportive...they are teaching us to do more for him. He may be
sent home on a NG tube plus the bottle. As he gets stronger the NG can be
removed.

Please pray for us as we near the end of our stay here...we may still be
here for a couple more weeks...all depends on Gabriel and Mom and Dad's
abilities.

We do know that life for us has changed. We will be needing to stay home
more and for Gabriel's health, have limitied exposure to the world. He
still needs time to heal and his ability to fight infections is severly
deminished."

"On a more personal request....I am having some complications from the
delivery. I will have to wait till we go home to see the Doctor for myself.
Please pray for my healing as well."

Update on Gabriel

This is from an email from Dawn....
"Chest tubes came out today and we got to hold him for the first time after
surgery (only the second time we've ever got to hold him). He likes being
held. He was held for over an hour and was loving the whole time. Brian had
to leave behind his hand afterward for him to sleep next to or he would get
cranky. It is neat to spoil him finally."
GOD IS GOOD!

UPDATE ON GABRIEL

Gabriel is doing very well and is breathing on his own now. Please continue to pray for this family!

ONE STEP CLOSER

Well, we are one step closer to getting a house in Owasso. We are working on a contract right now. Looks like the move back home is all systems go!!!!!

Moving back to Oklahoma

For those of you who haven't heard yet, there is a big possibility that we are moving back to Oklahoma this summer in time for school. Hoping to live in Owasso. We are very excited to get to move back to our "home".
I will post more when I know more.

Update on Gabriel Cross

The following is a part of an email from my friend Dawn about Gabriel!

"We are almost 24 house out of surgery and all looks good. The first 24 to 48 hours are
the most critical. Gabriel is doing "very good" according to the Dr.'s"
" Please continue to pray for Gabriel's recovery to be smooth and steady. We
are still expecting to be here at least another 4 to 6 weeks."

PRAYER REQUEST

PLEASE PRAY! Some friends of mine from my school days back in Oklahoma could really use your prayers.
Brian and Dawn Cross' 4th child Gabriel Michael was born on June 7th a very sick little boy. Before he was even born, an ultrasound discovered that he had a heart condition that would require surgery after he was born.
Little Gabriel's surgery is today, June 12th and started around 9AM. It is a very complicated, 6-8 hour surgery. Please pray for baby Gabriel and his family! I will keep you posted as soon as I learn anything!

Zach's last day of school

Today is Zach's last day of school as a 2nd grader. Me and the girls (Troy is out of town on business) went to the awards assembly this morning. Zach made the all A's honor roll again! I'm so proud of him. I will post a picture of his class that I took this morning soon!

Book Character day

My son Zach had a book character day at school. He is in 2nd grade. He chose to be "Luke Skywalker". Here is his costume. I made it myself. He said that he had the only "home-made" costume in the whole class. Unfortunatly, he couldn't take the light saber with him to school because it is considered a weapon, so, he took a flash light instead.

Ashleigh's dance recital

Ashleigh had her dance recital on Saturday. She did a great job! I was one proud momma!

This is a pic with some of her classmates.

This is a pic of her in her jazz and tap costume


This is Ashleigh and her friend that she made in the class, Breanna


Here is her and her class doing a jazz dance to "Pop Music. It was so cute!











This is Ashleigh in her Ballet costume

FUNNY!

I received this one in an email today. I thought it was a good one!

God is good!

Just a little update. Ashleigh had her doctors appointment today at John Hopkins and she got a clean bill of health. The doctor said that the PDA was so small that it doesn't matter and isn't affecting her health at all. God took care of my little angel and I give Him all the glory!

Global Impact Celebration

Our church is hosting a Missions Conference this week. I am really enjoying getting to hear from these people who have sacrificed their lives for the cause of Christ. It is awesome. We are hosting THUMB missionaies (T=Tribal, H=Hindu, U=Unreligious, M=Muslim, B=Buddist) as well as missionaries from Score International
I have always been excited about missions! In Acts 1:8 - it says that "you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" Most missionaries that we all hear about are taking care of the "Judea and Samaria" parts of the world but what about the "Jerusalem" places?
I learned something very important a while back... I learned that the Jerusalem that Jesus was talking about is wherever you live? So, you become a missionary for "Jerusalem" when you become a Christian. The rosponsibility of carrying out the "Great Commission" is not just the job of your churches pastors and staff! When you become a Christian, it is YOUR job as well!
You may ask yourself "How can I carry out the 'Great Commission'?"
Here's the answer! Get involved in your churches ministries! At our church, we have many ministries that our members can get involved in. Here are a few examples:
We have a Prison Ministry where our Pastors has a Bible Study at our local prison.This is carrying out the "Great Commission" to people who society has shunned and forgotten about. Most of these inmates feel that noone loves them, but our Pastor teaches them of the unfailing love of Jesus!
We have a MOPS ministry where moms can come and get a break from their kids as well as learn how to be better moms! This is carrying out the "Great Commission" because the mom's needs are being met by not only getting a break from their children but they are also learning Biblical principals about parenting and life in general.
We have people from our church that volunteer at the ABBA Pregnancy Crisis Center here in Winchester. T
Even volunteering in your church nursery is carrying out the "Great Commission" because by volunteering, the parents can go and hear the Word Of God!
Take the time today to consider and pray about what you are doing in your own "Jerusalem" community.

Ashleigh's doctors appointment

Ashleigh has a doctors appointment with a pediatric cardiologist at John Hopkins tomorrow. She has PDA - Patent Ductus Arteriosis (not sure if I spelled that right).... it's nothing too serious that it can't be fixed, so we are putting her in God's hands and are confident that He will take care of her!

Whoooops!

In my last post, I forgot to include pics of my son! Aren't I a WONDERFUL mom! I also couldn't resist putting the one of Troy!

Trip to Disney World

Well, since the last time I posted, Troy and I took the kids to Disney World! We took them there for spring break and it was a total surprise to them. We had a wonderful time! We stayed at the Disney All Star Movies resort. The pic of the pool is the pool there at the resort!
On Monday, we went to the "Animal Kingdom". On Tuesday, we went to the "Magic Kingdom". (The kids liked these two parks the best) That night, Zachary and I went by ourselves from 9PM - Midnight. We had a blast!
On Wednesday, we went to MGM. Zach and Troy went one way in the park and me n the girls went the other way. This park wasn't quite as fun as the other two, but, we got to see a lot more of the characters. The pic with Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum was taken at MGM! (no, Tweedle Dee and Dum ARE NOT me and Troy!)Me and the girls also got to meet Mickey Mouse and Goliath and Jo Jo.
On Thursday, we went to Epcot... this one isn't quite for kids but we got to see what was inside the "big golf ball" (as Troy calls it) And then we went back to the Animal Kingdom for an hour or so and got SOAKED on the "Kali River Rapids". That was the kid's favorite ride! We rode it 5 times in a row so I don't think there was a piece of dry clothing on any of us! After changing quickly, we went on to the Magic Kingdom to see the fireworks and to ride more rides. We stayed to closing that night too, so that was a fun night.
Early Friday 4AM, Zach got sick.... we aren't quite sure what caused it but it wasn't pretty. By noon, we thought he was OK so we headed to the Animal Kingdom. We found out that he wasn't okay when he smelled food as we stopped to get some lunch. So, Zach and Troy went to the hotel while me and the girls stayed and saw the rest of the "Animal Kingdom".
By that evening, Zach was feeling much better, so we went to the Magic Kingdom to catch the Fireworks one last time (they were awesome by the way)

Then we got to see the "SpectroMagic" Parade which was pretty cool too!

I will post pics from the first part of our trip later as they are on Troy's laptop. I should have them soon to share!

Big Step.........

Well, we turned in our application for our kids to go to SVCA yesterday. We are really looking forward to it.
Ashleigh is excited to be going to school with her best friend, Jessica, but Zach, on the other had, isn't taking it too well. I think that he will be fine once he goes and visits his classroom and all.
This is a really good time to transfer him though. The county schools are opening up a new elementary school next year and our neighborhood was one of the ones that they are transferring. So, he would have to go to a new school anyway.
He'll be in the 3rd grade and that's about the time they stop thinking that mom and dad "know it all" and start the "mom and dad don't know anything" stage, so a little resistance has been expected.
We have been praying about whether we should send them to SVCA for a while. I think that the straw that broke that camel's back was when he came home from school one day and said "hey mom, what's right? Creationism or Evolutionism?" - instead of wigging out like I wanted to, I calmly asked him "So, what do you think?" and he said, "creationism, mom. But why do they teach us that other stuff if it isn't true?"
So, my kids are going to SVCA this fall, as long as they get accepted.

Only me...........

I think that lately I have been an accident looking for a place to happen! A few weeks ago, when we had our 8" snow, I was trying to shut the hatch back on my van. Now, that should be a easy job, but my driveway is on a slope. So, I would get my footing, then reach up to shut the hatch back, and I would lose my footing and almost fall. After catching myself several times, I finally planted my feet on the ground beside my driveway, twisted and stretched and finally got the darn thing closed. I'm sure that my neighbors got quite a laugh! I was proud of myself though for getting it done, well, proud until I started to walk into the house. I had pulled my shoulder muscle and my back muscle. I also twisted my ankle! This was on a Friday afternoon! I went to my massage therapist and then to the Chiropractor the following Monday and they helped me out quite a bit... when I announced that I wouldn't work out my chiropractor, who happens to be a sports med chiropractor, told me that I needed to work out my arms because it would be better for them. So, I worked out my arms, thought I would die cause IT HURT! But, he was right, later in the day, I felt much better! That part of me is pretty much healed now.
Today, I hurt the pointer finger. Don't know how. The knuckle is bruised and swollen. BTW.... you don't realize just how much you use that finger until you can't. (I have it wrapped to my middle finger to keep it still). (also, I didn't realize that while typing, I use my left hand more that the right!) - See, I have learned something that I didn't know!

WHEEE HOOO!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah! The snow is almost all melted away! I can finally see my green grass again! (yes, I have green grass in my yard all year round! A special blend I guess!) I have to say that it does look a little strange having green grass during the dead of winter, but I for one love it!
It got up to nearly 70 today. It was sooooo nice! A friend called and talked me into bringing the girls to play with her little girl at the park. I almost said no, but I am sure glad that we went. There is a big playground at one of our local parks and the girls had a blast and it was so nice to be out in the sunshine!

UGHHH!!!!! SNOW!!!!!

For those of you who know me well, you know how much I hate snow! I like it in pictures or when I see it on TV and it's SOMEWHERE else! Not in my own yard. sigh

My kids had a fun time in it today though. So did my 4th kid, my hubby. I got the kids all bundled, which takes FOREVER! Thankfully, everyone but Ashleigh stayed out longer than the time it takes to get them bundled up. After about 2 hours, I had to tell Allie to come back in. (Troy was "in charge" of Zach. Plus, I figure that if he isn't smart enough to come in when he gets cold, then it's his own fault!)

We got about 8 - 10 inches. They tried to build a snowman, but the snow was too fluffy and wouldn't pack very well. Maybe tomorrow when it starts melting. Zach will have to try it when he gets in from school. I thought that school would be canceled, but they are just having a 2 hour delay.

It is suppose to get warmer (in the 40s & 50s) by the end of the week and is suppose to rain on Friday. YeeHaa! The rain helps to make the snow melt faster! When we had our 32" snow 3 years ago, there was still snow here in JULY! So, I am hoping that this snow goes away fast. I'm already tired of looking at it.

If anyone wants some snow, I will gladly mail it to ya. (Can't guarantee that it will still be snow by the time it gets to ya!)

Fun with my son!

On Friday, my hubby took the girls to a father/daughter Valentine's Banquet. The girls looked like little princesses, and my husband looked as handsome as always!

While they were out at the banquet, my son Zach and I got to go on a "date". First we went to a movie. I let him pick and we went and seen "Hoodwinked". If you haven't seen it, it's pretty funny. (If you want a long explanation about the movie, ask my son when you talk to him, I'm sure that he can repeat at least half of the lines, and it will be the 100th time that he will have repeated them!)
After the movie, we went to an arcade and played some games. Then, we grabbed some "Burger King" and came home and watched the rest of the opening ceremony for the Olympics.

All in all, it was a great night! I always love to get "one on one" time with my kids. Especially my son. He still thinks it's pretty cool to hang out with his mom. After all, he is only 7. In a few years, he won't want to hang out with mom anymore, so I am gonna soak it all in now! He is starting to get that way. He won't let me kiss him anymore, so it won't be long 'til mom isn't cool anymore. :-(

Big decision

Well, we had a meeting at the christian school at our church. We are strongly considering sending our kids there.
Here is the website if you are interested. www.svca.net

We are very impressed with the school! Please pray for us as we make this big decision for our family.

Finally better

Well, I think that the Thompson "sick house" is back to normal. (well, as normal as it can be)
We thought that Allie was getting better after her Chicken Pox went away, but then, she complained about her ear hurting. I took her to the doc and found out that she had 2 different infections in her right ear. We also found out that a chicken pox spot on the end of her nose, has Impetigo, so she has been on ointment for that. So, after a week of treatment, I think that she is healthy again!
WooHoo!

Okay, I finally did it.

I am one of those people who has no patience when it comes to books or movies that I know are going to have sequels. When the "Left Behind" books first started coming out, I would read them as soon as I could and then have to wait a year for the next one. I got tired of doing that cause like I said, I have no patience. So, I waited for all of them to come out and now I am going to start at the 1st one again so that I can refresh my memory, and I am going to read them back to back!
Now, onto what I finally did. My husband decided to rent the original "Star Wars" movies so that my son could see them. My only regret is that they watched them back to back and basically stayed up all night. I wanted to join them, but SOMEONE has to take care of the girls during the day, so I didn't get to see them. Well, then they rented the new ones all at the same time, and I didn't want to miss out on those. So Tuesday through last night we watched them one at a time. I loved them and hated them at the same time. First of all, they made me like Annikin in the first one, and as the movies progressed, you could tell who he was going to become, and that made it tough. That was the hardest part for me and I felt awful for Padme and Obi-Wan. Other than that, they were awesome and my son was thrilled.

Ever have one of those days?

My son Zachary has become a Washington Redskins fan. I figured that it would happen since we live so near the team and that is ALL you hear about. Well, that, and about their hatred of the Dallas Cowboys, and since I am not a fan of Dallas myself, I found that I could accept that my son is now, a Redskins fan. For Christmas, he begged for a Redskins Jersey. So, after looking everywhere for a youth sized jersey, we finally found one, a Clinton Portis jersey. (for those of you who don't know, he is "the man" when it comes to Redskins football) He opened it up on Christmas morning and wore it for 4 days straight. I finally told him that if he wore it one more day, it was going to stand up on it's own, so he better part with it so that it could be washed, or we were going to have to throw him in the washer while he was wearing it. He didn't think that it would be a good idea to have it washed while he was wearing it, so he let me wash it. He still cherishes it and wears it often.
As I was looking at the information for the DC Auto Show, I saw that Clintin Portis was going to be there signing autographs last night. I thought "wow, that would make Zach's year!" so we set out as a family to go.(the crazy things we do for our children!) We are about an hour and 1/2 from DC so it's a fairly long trip to go and come back in one night. (plus the traffic is enough to make anyone lose there minds!)
So, after driving for a long time, we finally had just 10 minutes to go. I was all excited for my son, getting to meet his "hero" and all. Then the announcement from my son came, "MOM!!!! I NEED TO GO THE THE BATHROOM REALLY BAD!!!!!" Now, through the whole trip, he doesn't mention a word about that, so now, that we are only 10 minutes from our destination, and there is NO PLACE to stop, he mentions that he has to go. So, we told him that he would have to hold it until we got to the convention center. Well, about 2 minutes passed and he tearfully announced, "MOM!!!!! I had an accident!" So, at 6:30, we started a search for a place to buy him some dry pants, etc..... because we weren't about to make it a wasted trip. So, we set out to find a place. An hour later, we finally found a Target (by the way, FYI there is NO place to buy a little boy pants located anywhere in downtown DC). So now, it was 7:30 and the convention center was at least 30 minutes away, not counting the time it would take to park and walk, plus Portis was only there between 6PM - 8PM.... so, our whole trip was a bust! (now I know why some animals eat their young!) The only good thing about it was that we now know where the nearest Target is from DC. As we were driving out of the Target parking lot, to go find a place to eat, my son announces "well, it's ok that I didn't get to meet Clinton Portis, I really didn't want to meet him anyways." Let me put it this way, that boy is lucky he still has a head!

Thought this was a funny one

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alt="Knight Intended for Masterful Battle, Efficient Repair and Logical Yelling"
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I found out about this on one of my friend's websites.

Ok... .so it's been a long time

Well, yes, it has been a long time since I last posted! It's been a little crazy lately and I haven't had time!
We had a nice Christmas. My mom and her husband came to VA to spend Christmas with us. That was nice having my mom here!
About a week and 1/2 ago, my little one, Allie, who is 3, broke out and had spots all over her. They were Chicken Pox, to be exact! While mom was here, she broke out with shingles, except no one knew that it is what she had! Anyway, we have been calling Allie's chicken pox "Okie Pox" since my mom brought them here from Oklahoma. Allie has been taking it pretty well and only complains now and then. Her biggest complaint has been "When do I get to go somewhere?" Ashleigh got a few Okie Pox on her even though she had her shot, so she is stuck at home as well!
We has to postpone the girls birthday party until they both are clear and Allie had to miss her best friend's birthday party as well. Troy and I have been taking turns watching our little Pox girls as well as taking turns going to the gym and going to church.
I am doing okay except I have laryngitis and have a cough that won't go away! My son Zachary actually told me the other day that he would be glad for me to get my normal voice back cause he said that he misses me yelling at him!

Does anyone read this?

Just wondering, does anyone actually read my blog or am I just entertaining myself? Just curious of who reads about my life?

Long time

Ok. Ok... I know, it's been a long time since I have posted. We've been really busy lately and I haven't had time to post!
Me and the girls are always busy, but have made a few special outings lately. 2 weeks ago on a Friday, we went to a big crafts show near Harpers Ferry, WV. It was more for me then it was for them, but they still had fun and even got to "buy" a few things and get their faces painted and get balloons.
Then last Friday, we went to a working farm called "Hill High Farm" with our MOPS group. We got to see some farm animals, go on a hay ride and pick a pumpkin and an apple. We all had a fun time.
This week, it is really going to be quiet. Troy has a Veterinary Conference at Oklahoma State to go to this week, so he took Ashleigh with him so that she could spend some time with her grandparents. It has been really quiet since they left yesterday morning, cause Ashleigh is my loud and high maintenance child. I know that she will have fun. She is so excited!

Penny Wars!

Today in the Winchester Star , there is an article about the "Penny War" that my son's school did for a fund raiser for the people affected by Katrina. The school's 580 (1st - 5th grade) students raised $3,951.76 in just 4 days! Way to go SENSENY ROAD ELEMENTARY SUPER STARS!

Out of the mouth of babes

Last night while I was shopping at our local Christian bookstore with my 2 girls, I asked Allie, my 2 year old, what she was doing and she said "Mom, I will give you a quarter if you don't talk to me!"
Don't know where she got that from but it was so hard to keep a straight face!

Something to make you think

I recieved this in an email today....

Billy Graham's daughter was interviewed on the Early Show and Jane Clayson asked her "How could God let something like this happen?" (regarding the attacks on Sept. 11).

Anne Graham gave an extremely profound and insightful response. She said, "I believe God is deeply saddened by this, just as we are, but for years we've been telling God to get out of our schools, to get out of our government and to get out of our lives.

And being the gentleman He is, I believe He has calmly backed out. How can we expect God to give us His blessing and His protection if we demand He leave us alone?"

In light of recent events...terrorists attack, school shootings, etc. I think it started when Madeleine Murray O'Hare (she was murdered, her body found recently)complained she didn't want prayer in our schools, and we said OK.

Then someone said you better not read the Bible in school . the Bible says thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not steal, and love your neighbor as yourself. And we said OK.

Then Dr. Benjamin Spock said we shouldn't spank our children when they misbehave because their little personalities would be warped and we might damage their self-esteem (Dr. Spock's son committed suicide). We said an expert should know what he's talking about. And we said OK.

Now we're asking ourselves why our children have no conscience, why they don't know right from wrong, and why it doesn't bother them to kill strangers,their classmates, and themselves.

Probably, if we think about it long and hard enough, we can figure it out. I think it has a great deal to do with "WE REAP WHAT WE SOW."

How to tell if you have been speeding

A FUNNY

Better fuel gauge

This was sent to me in an email today. Wouldn't having a fuel gauge like this one make more sense? LOL!

HOW YOU CAN HELP IN OKLAHOMA

For those of you who read my blog and are from Oklahoma, I thought that I would let you know, if you didn't already know, that Falls Creek Baptist Assembly is taking in Hurricane Katrina victims.
If you went to Falls Creek as a teen, you know how special a place the Falls Creek is. They are asking only for cash donations right now and will get out a list of needs ASAP. To find out more about the relief efforts at Falls Creek, go to www.bgco.org

Never a dull moment

As you all know, if you have kids, there is never a dull moment! There is always some crisis to deal with!
Yesterday's major crisis is that when Ashleigh started to come down the stairs out our house, she tripped on the top of the stairs and tumbled all the way down to our hard wood floor at the bottom. She is okay though! It scared her and it took a long time to calm her down, but she is okay. After the fall though, she kept on complaining that her right wrist was hurting, so Troy took her the vet clinic that he works at and took an x-ray of her arm to make sure nothing was broken. Everything looked fine, but she sprained her wrist and now has it wrapped up. Her daddy wrapped it in a bright pink bandage and even cut out a blue heart from the bandage material and put it on there for her. (isn't that a good daddy?)

How would you like to find one of these in your house?

This is an article about what one man in Britain found in his house! I gave me the heebie jeebies!

Get Involved!

As we all know, the disaster in the Gulf Coast states is the worst one in US history. After that happened, I for one have reevaluated my life. I have became more thankful for what I have. I have a home to come home to everyday. A warm bed, air conditioning, comfort, clothes, food and as I am sitting here, I am enjoying a hot cup of coffee. These may only seem like a little to you, but to those people who lost their homes, their lively hoods, those who lost all of these things, they would be happy with just one of the comforts that I listed about. If you have those things, then you should be thankful! Thankful that you have a home, no matter what kind of home it is. Thankful for clothes, even though they aren't the designer fashions that you wish that you could afford. You should even be thankful for your whining child that is always saying "MOMMY!!!!" - because, my friends, some of the moms who are facing the long road ahead after this disaster don't even have their children. Some of the moms that are in the Gulf Coast states lost their little ones to the fast rising waters. Their little ones slipped out of their arms never to be seen again. Start being thankful for the things that you do have and stop worrying about the things that you don't have!
I encourage you all to first of all, Thank the good Lord above for the blessings that He has given you. Do you realize that He gives you a gift every day? Just the fact that you wake up alive every morning is a gift from God! While you are thanking Him for all He has done for you and your family, ask Him what you can do for others. Ask Him what you can do for those affected by the hurricane. The Red Cross is short on blood, if you can give blood, please call your local Red Cross TODAY! Several churches in my area are collecting supplies to take to the area hit by Katrina, find a church in your own area that is collecting supplies, and see what you can do to help! Give money to the Salvation Army! Just do something because, remember, that the next time disaster strikes, it could be you that's in this situation and you will be begging for people to help you! GET INVOLVED!

Happy day tomorrow

Well, tomorrow will be a happy day tomorrow and a sad day at the same time. My little sis, Mandy, is getting married tomorrow! I am really happy for her! The sad part is that I can't be there!!!!! I wish her the best!

Good start

Well, another proud momma moment for me! Zachary came home yesterday from school and again has been given the advanced spelling words! He is still doing great and is one of the youngest ones in the class. His homework last night was to put his spelling words in Alphabetical order! I had to help him a little bit, but he caught on to the concept really quickly! He also went to his first machine pitch baseball practice on Friday! He says that he likes it alot better than tee ball. I can't wait to go to the games!

Proud Momma Moment

I just put Zachary on the bus for his first day as a 2nd grader. He was so excited to go back to school. He got to meet his teacher yesterday, and even knows a few of the kids in his class. I can't believe that he is in 2nd grade already! We went to an outlet mall on Monday, and I let him pick out his clothes. He didn't do too bad of a job, but he is sooooo picky already and he is only 6 (almost 7)! Here is some pics I took of him with my camera phone.
Allie doesn't like that Zach had to go to school. She asked him this morning "Will you come back to me after school?" It was so cute. Ashleigh didn't seem to mind that he is going to school. Maybe it's because she knows that he always comes back home!

Getting geared up for another school year!

Well, it's that time again! We are getting ready for another school year. My son, Zachary (age 6 - turns 7 next month), will be going into the 2nd grade this year. He is really excited about it. We still have yet to get his school supplies. I need take him but Wal-Mart's school supply department scares me! Think we will go somewhere else! Zach just got glasses and he looks so handsome and grown up in them. This year will be busy, like always! Zach just finished up summer baseball and will be playing fall ball soon. He is getting to move up to the machine pitch league, which he is looking forward to. He also wants to play pee wee flag football. that should be fun to watch. Ashleigh (age 4 1/2) and Allie (age 2 1/2) will be at home with me for the school year. I will be homeschooling Ashleigh for her preschool time, then she will start Kindergarten next year. Ashleigh is also taking dance again and will be in gymnastics as well. Allie will be learning with Mommy and Ashleigh and possibly taking tumbling. We are starting the potty training process without much success, but I'm not into to big of a rush, cause she's still my "baby". I've always heard that they potty train before they start Kindergarten, so I still have a while : )

Finally figured it out

For those of you who know me well, you know that I kind of stick out like a sore thumb on my mom's side of the family. The majority of my cousin's are brown haired, blue eyed beauties - while I have dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. ( one of my girls even has Blonde hair and blue eyes, while my other two has dark hair and eyes, go figure!)
I learned that it's not because, as my friend Kelly use to say, that "I'm just really full of it and no one has knocked it out of me yet", but because I am 1/16 Cherokee Indian. I just found that out last night! My uncle has known for years, he and his kids and grandkids even are on the roll, but they neglected to let the rest of the family in on our ancestry! I will be calling my family soon to learn, as Paul Harvey puts it "the rest of the story".

ON MY SOAP BOX

As I read the stories about Israel and the Gaza strip, it concerns me more and more. Imagine if you were an Israeli and you have lived there all of your life. Their family history goes back generations and generations. That is the only life that they know. And, they've been told all of their lives that it is the land God promised their people. The war between the Palestinians and the Israelis has been going on about since about the beginning of time, that is the only life they know.
Then the Israeli government, whom the Israeli put their trust in to not give away God's promised land, tells them that they have to pack up and leave the only life they know. Leave their ancestry, leave their home, etc....
I can see why some people don't want to leave. That is their home!
It is sad that their own government is using bodily force to drive them out. Let them decide where they want to be!
I don't know what I would do if I were in the same situation. Knowing me, I would probably leave, because I wouldn't be willing to stay and fight, but that is because I wouldn't want any harm to come to my children. I would probably be a conformist and leave. I would've left soon after I heard that it was going to happen, not wait until the day of. But, I can see why some are refusing to leave.
Okay, I am off of my soapbox now. I'm sure that I will be right back up on it soon!

WENT TO THE FAIR

We went to the county fair last night and took the kiddos. There is nothing quite like it. The kids had fun riding the rides and I enjoyed getting my cotton candy. I do share it with the kids but it's hard to share it! Zach is finally tall enough to ride the "big kid" rides and he loved it. He looked a little concerned at first but wouldn't let us know if he was scared or not. He came bounding of the rides all excited. He was so excited after one of the rides that he tripped a fell as he was coming out of the gate, but got right up and said "I'm all right, I'm all right!" (I think that was for my benefit, you know how mom's are!) The girls rode the kiddie rides. Allie wanted to ride the big kid rides, but of course, she couldn't. Guess she's gonna be a little dare devil. Ashleigh talked me into going into the little fun house with her. Let's put it this way, it is MADE for little kids, not adults! But, I went in anyways and did fine until I got to the very narrow slide at the end. It's a good thing that I am petite, or there would be NO WAY! By the time that we got home ALL were tired and had no problem going to sleep!
Here is a link to the county fair website: http://www.frederickcountyfair.com/
I also started a new business venture. I am a Independent Beauty Consultant for Mary Kay. If you are interested, just let me know and I will send you the link to my Mary Kay website.

GETTING BACK TO "NORMAL

Well, we are getting back to some sort of normalsy. As if anything is ever normal around here! Zach is playing t-ball again this summer. He seems to like it okay, but doesn't like playing T-ball. He missed the "machine pitch" cut off by 2 months. I was told that he will be able to play machine pitch ball in the fall. He is looking forward to getting into that league, since he is the oldest on his team. He has only played 1 game since we got back from vacation. The games are run much like a practice, so they don't count outs. They also don't keep score. They are concentrating on teaching the kids the rules of and how to play baseball. When Zach isn't playing first base, he spends his time pointing to first base after every hit because most of the kids can't seem to remember what they are suppose to do. He has this "oh, come on guys!" look on his face the whole time. We will see how he does the rest of the games. They don't start true league play until age 9 here, so we will see how he does.

Back from vacation

We had a great time on our vacation back in Oklahoma and finally got back to Virginia early Tuesday. It was a really long drive! I didn't think that we were ever going to get home!
Now that we are home, I need to get back into some sort of a routine. There is so much to do, that I don't know where to start. I keep on hoping that if I put it all off long enough that it will all go away! LOL!

HAPPY JULY 9th!

Just updating my blog finally! Blogspot didn't let me log on from the last computer I tried. My kids and I are in Oklahoma visiting with my mom.
I got together with some old friends today for lunch. It was so good to see them again and I hope that it's not long before I can get together with them again!
I have been pretty busy since I have been here and have enjoyed every minute of it. We have visited the Children's Museum in Seminole, OK; the Oklahoma Aquarium in Jenks, OK; and Incredible Pizza in Tulsa. The kids had a blast. We also have visited with friends and family alot and look forward to the next week or so.
For the 4th, we went to a family cookout and celebration. I think that being with family is 100% better than any "big show" celebration!
Will post again later. Hopefully it won't be so long 'til my next post.