Saturday, September 20, 2008

Pink Sox ROCK!

Lexi is now playing fast pitch softball. She wasn't too thrilled when her mom signed her up. However, after her first practice, she was really excited. As the night of her first game neared, so did dark clouds. While driving toward her playing field, the rain started coming down in a steady drizzle. We arrived to find her on the field and warming up.

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Sorry for the far away pics but remember, it was raining and I didn't want to chance getting my camera wet.

Lexi was very excited and eager to get into the game.

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It was finally her turn so she put on her helmet and was ready to go.

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While I would love to end this post with something like "Lexi hit a homerun" or "Lexi made the winning run", the fact is, it didn't quite happen that way. My two boys were having an "off" night and were fighting so we left the game early. Life goes on, right? ::sigh::

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Who needs entertainment when you have KIDS?

We recently went to a family bbq at my cousin Kim & Billy's house. They have a beautiful house they designed themselves on 15 acres of land. While the adults sat on the back porch in the shade and talked, the kids played and kept us entertained (without really realizing it). Thankfully, they had a badmitten set up and even though none of them had ever played before, they took right to it.

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After playing for HOURS, they decided to venture out a little way and check out the scenery. It wasn't long when we looked up to see this scene play out before us:

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They had discovered a pile of cut hay and decided they could create something with it.

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Needless to say, we all just sat back in awe of their creativity and the fact that we no longer had to worry if they could survive on their own .. LOL.

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My kids and grandkids are a true joy and this is just a little glimpse of why.

Wednesday, September 3, 2008

With a heavy heart .....

I'm sad to report that my little hamster friend, Cotton, passed away during the night. After her last sickness, we managed to nurse her back and she was doing very well. Then, about a week ago, she started showing signs of getting sick again. I found her laboring very hard yesterday morning and I really thought she would be gone by the time I got home yesterday. However, being the trooper she was, she was still alive and continued to struggle. I'm thankful that her struggle is now over and she's at peace. I will miss her more than I ever thought I would. She taught me that not all rodents are bad.

RIP my little friend.

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Sunday, August 31, 2008

Blogging without Backup

My posts seem to get fewer and farther between. I have a good explanation ... I really do! I think there is an unwritten law that says all blog posts must be accompanied by photos. That's been my problem lately ... even though my camera goes where I do, I'm finding it harder to take the pics of our activites.

The biggest change in my life this past month is I now have a J-O-B. I feel very fortunuate to say that I love my job and wouldn't trade it for anything. Since I haven't worked for 11 years now, I really thought it would be difficult going back but it wasn't. To begin with, I'm working at the school my boys attend .. Kaufman Christian School. I'm the Administrative Assistant there so we go to school together. My days haven't been dull so far so time is flying by quickly.

I attended the Women of Faith conference last weekend which was amazing! I always walk away with a new perspective on life and a heart full of blessings.

Yesterday, Brad, the boys and I went to Hawaiian Falls for the last time this season. I think we managed to get our money's worth from our season passes since over the summer, we visited at least once/week.

So, as you can tell .. my life has been anything but boring. I do have lots to document. I just wish I would remember to take pics as it happens.

Monday, August 18, 2008

Supporting the Farmers

We spent part of Saturday walking around the local Farmers Market in Dallas. I love going down there to buy fresh fruits and veggies. Saturday's weather was wonderful .. the temps were in the 80's! Many other people had the same idea because the place was buzzing with activity. Everything looked so good .. it was hard to decide how to spend our money.

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Of course, sampling all the goodies is half the fun!

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And you never know who you'll run into ... this guy has a honey display:

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One things for sure, you'll always walk away with bags of the freshest available produce.

Sunday, August 17, 2008

Baby Dedication

Today was a special day for my family ... Brylea Nicole was dedicated to The Lord. She looked stunning in her gown. It's my prayer that she will grow into a young girl that loves God with all her heart.

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Tuesday, August 5, 2008

A new life in Christ

My oldest granddaughter made a very important decision this summer. While attending VBS with her other grandmother, she asked Jesus to live in her heart. Needless to say, our family was very excited for her.

This past Sunday, she followed through with her decision by being baptized. She seemed very happy when she arrived that morning.

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When the time came, we went upstairs and she changed into her baptismal outfit.

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Pastor Leeman led her into the water and the ceremony began.

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Now tell me, does this look like a happy child or what? I'm so proud of her!!

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Saturday, August 2, 2008

Let's make a difference together ...

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Do something nice today for someone else ... make a donation, no matter what amount. I read this blog faithfully and their story touches my heart. I'm sure it will yours too:

Confessions Of A CF Husband: CFHusband Goes Bald

Monday, July 28, 2008

An answered prayer

Update: Cotton was nibbling on a piece of strawberry when she suddenly fell over and couldn't get back up. My daughter took her to the vet. He seems to think she has suffered a puncture wound from the cat and it's become infected. He is treating her with a steroid and antibiotic and seems to think she will get well and recover. I certainly hope so.

Last night, I had to have a serious talk with Jesus over my baby girl, Cotton. We've had Cotton for a little over a year and she is the sweetest thing.

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I know ... some of you are shuddering right now. Trust me, I used to feel the same way. This is the ONLY member of the rodent family that is allowed in my home.

Anyway, there has been a handful of times that our cat, Baby D, has snuck into the room with Cotton and pulled her cage to the floor. This is Baby D, by the way:

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She looks pretty innocent in that picture but I'm not liking her much at the moment.

Back to my story ... about a week ago, Baby D managed to knock Cotton's cage off again. She seemed to be okay so I didn't think much of it. Well, three nights ago, one of her eyes started to water. It was then that I realized she wasn't moving around as much as she normally does. It's part of her daily routine that she will "monkey bar" across her cage and is pretty active throughout different parts of the day. I started watching her closely and saw that her appetite wasn't the same .. she wouldn't take her favorite pumpkin seeds from my hand and eagerly crack them open. Her condition seemed to worsen each day.

Before going to bed last night, the boys and I huddled together for our nightly prayer. This time, the focus was on Cotton. I couldn't stand the thought of her hurting. I prayed for Jesus to heal her or let her go to sleep and never wake up. I went to bed with tears streaming down my face (those of you that shuddered earlier are probably thinking I'm acting ridiculous at this point). Both boys came to me at different times later crying .. it was real mess. I reminded both of them that I had done all I could do.

I woke up this morning and checked on her .. she was inside her igloo and wouldn't come out to greet me like she had in the past. Things were not looking up :( We left the house (I started a new job ... I'll post on that later) and returned after lunch. I made a few phone calls and found a local vet that was willing to work her in today and not charge me a small fortune. As we were headed out the door with her, she came out of her cage and I saw that her eye was back to normal! It was a miracle! I headed down the road with her since I wanted to make sure her legs were okay too. While I was driving, she started climbing up the side of her cage!! I knew then that God had answered my prayer so we turned around and came home. I feel like Cotton is back on the road to recovery and will continue to improve each day. I'm so thankful for answered prayers .. even when they are for the tiny creatures in our life.
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Saturday, July 26, 2008

Caleb turns FIVE

Yesterday my grandson, Caleb, celebrated his 5th birthday. We joined him at the restaurant of his choice, Texas Roadhouse, for dinner. After completing a wonderful meal, they loaded him up on a saddle.

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As the staff sang to him, Caleb was instructed to swing a napkin around his head which he did without complaining.

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Today, we went to Cold Stone Creamery and had his official party. He received an official cap to wear as we got started.

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The kids were given a guided tour to the back where Caleb was able to help make a batch of vanilla ice cream.

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He then washed up and was ready for his next task.

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After a brief lesson on how to mix in your own ingredients, he had the difficult job of choosing only two toppings.

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He caught on really quick and went to work.

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Of course, the best part was sitting down and enjoying his creation.

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Afterwards, he opened a few gifts. He was really excited about one of them ... a rocket!!

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Happy Birthday, Caleb! Hope you had a wonderful day!!!

Tuesday, July 22, 2008

Gone but not forgotten ...

Yes, it's been a while since I stopped long enough to post. A lot has been going on lately. I truly meant to document last week's adventure with pictures but with temps over 90 degrees everday, I simply didn't have the energy to take snapshots of the sweat dripping off our noses.

Ashlea and I (and Brylea, of course) drove to Kerrville last Wednesday to a) be with Megyn when she had her sonogram and b) move her back home. We left out by 8:30 in the morning after dropping off our 4 kids .. all in different locations :) We made great time despite the fact that Brylea didn't take to the road as much as we had hoped. Poor baby was strapped in that car seat for an awfully long time .. who could blame her for wanting to get out and stretch?

We arrive in Kerrville just in time for me to drop Ashlea and Brylea off at the hotel, fill up the pick up and head over to U-Haul. Yes, that's right .. I was going to be pulling a U-Haul back with us. Joy.

We leave the truck hitched up and go with Megyn (in her vehicle) to the doctor's appointment. We learn that we will be having a baby boy join our family late November. Afterwards, we head back over to pick up the truck, along with it's new accessory.

Thankfully, Megyn was very organized and had all her stuff packed, marked and ready to go. I believe we had the truck and U-Haul loaded and ready to go in under an hour.

We spend the evening having dinner with family and get up early the next morning (in fact, Brylea had all three of us up at 4:30) and we are back on the road.

Megyn has now settled nicely. We have some things left to do to her room before she can completely unpack though (painting, putting in a wood floor, purchasing a wall unit, etc.) but we are getting there.

I'm so glad that she is back home where she belongs. I know God has big plans for her and this unborn baby. Life will certainly never be dull in this house.

Saturday, July 12, 2008

To be a kid again .....

We spent a little time at a local park today to let the kids run and play. They almost immediately ran to the swings and took off. I still have vivid memories of swinging ... those were simpler times.

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After that, the kids took off in different directions.

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Not sure where Tanner was at this point. Being a nature lover, he was probably already in the woodsy part exploring by now.

Meanwhile, Brylea snoozed away in the summer heat.

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Afterwards, when everyone was nice and sweaty, we headed to a shaved ice place to cool down.

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Before heading back home, I had to get my hands back on Brylea and get some pictures of her in all her cuteness. It's funny but when we put a bow on her head, we get this reaction most of the time.

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I gave her some loving (and got rid of an air bubble in the process).

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Decided to take off the pestering bow.

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And she quietly took another snooze.

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Ahh, to be a kid again ...........