1/31/09

Welcome to the new blog

I just couldnt stand paying for a blog when I could have one for free so I spent most of last night moving everything over to this blog.

I hope you all find me here now...lol

1/30/09

Random Ramblings

I found this on another blog and thought it looked like fun. So feel free to copy and paste onto your own blog and then we will be able to learn something about one another... random silly things anyway... Things in blold are things I have done!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis

10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new Language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater

55. Been in an independent movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Gotten flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible... not yet but working on it now!
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

Im so sick... send help!

What is it with me lately? Everytime I have something really important to do I get sick. I was supposed to attend Kamp Kaotic with the girls from my Sunday school class but I managed to get that nasty stomache bug thats going around. *sniff, sniff*

Someone send the vomit buckets for me ok... and lylsol and purell and... you get the idea!

Craft Night

Friday Jan. 23rd @5pm! Be there!!!!

Happy New Year!

Wow... its so hard to believe that 2008 is over and we are begining 2009. 2008 was a good year for us. We found our faith and a wonderful church, were baptized in May, didnt lose a single family member and really cant complain too much about anything.

Makayla is growing up entirely too fast. She is such a happy girl and a delight for Robert and I. God certainly knew what he was doing when he blessed us with her. I took her today to get her hair cut and Sherry was so sweet to her. She got the works with having her hair washed and conditioned, cut and then Sherry even took the time to give her some Shirley Temple curls. Makayla was as happy as a little lark and looked beautiful too. I love that she is about to be four but hate it at the same time. They just grow up entirely too fast. Speaking of wich...

Devin... whoa boy... Devin. He is my first born and a beautiful gift from God. I honestly dont know what I would do without him. He has an incredible sense of humor and can make me laugh like no other. He is handsome and a very sensitive and caring young man. I love him more than life itself however... He also has a way about him that makes me want to knock his lights out at times. He is heading into his last semester of high school and then going to enter this cruel world. That is if he can manage to pay this big fat speeding ticket (50 in a 30) he got last night. Mommy wont pay that for him... no way, no how!

My new baby Bella (Katrina's Lil Isabelle Rose) is growing and getting to be a sassy little puppy. Remi has taken to her very well and they have become fast friends. I was hoping since we got a girl he would be receptive and he was.

Robert and I are doing well. I still have a pretty horrific back problem that isnt going away but I am giving it to God and he will lead me in the right path on what to do about it.

I hope that everyone has a safe and very blessed New Year! We love you all!

P.S. Maddie I will get some more videos up for you very soon!

Just for Maddie

Maddie... Your mommy told me today that you didnt like that the picture of Bella wasnt a movie so I have one here of the new puppy just for you. You can hear her bark for the first time just like we did!

We miss you sweetie and hope to see you sometime soon! Enjoy hearing my new puppy bark! Isnt she just the cutest thing ever?

Christmas Eve

We had a great night tonight. Its a tradition to go to Granbury to Grandma Tennants house for dinner and presents. We left the house around 3:00 and met Devin in town so he could ride with us. Then on our way I was able to stop and pick up my present!!!
Meet Isabelle or Bella as she will be called! I asked Robert for a puppy for Christmas and I really wanted a Corgi. Remi has been such a good dog and I read nothing but good things about this breed so I really wanted to stick with it. She is such a cutie and we have already fallen in love with her. Im so happy to have such an understanding and wonderful husband. I am truly blessed!



Once we got home I had Makayla and Devin open their presents from Michelle, Doug and Maddie. Here are a couple videos of them.





Do you think Devin could be a little more enthusiastic about things? geeeeeeeeez Thanks so much Michelle, Doug and Maddie for thinking of us at Christmas.

I will definitely have more videos up with other presents soon so be sure to check back often!

Visit with Santa

We headed to Hulen today to have our annual visit with Santa. Makayla was really anxious waiting in line for her turn. She kept peeking over the railing and having daddy lift her up so she could sneak peeks of that jolly old elf.



Finally it was our turn and she marched right up to Santa and jumped in his lap like she has known him for years. This is a great improvement from the last few years which resulted in major fit throwing that he was a crazy and scary old man. She took an awesome picture with Santa (and lets NOT forget Mooey) and proceeded to tell him all her wants for Christmas, which of course included... HORSES! What else!



We had a great day of shopping and she wsa so cute with Santa. Here is the picture for your viewing pleasure. Family if you would like a copy I have ordered the disk with the ability to print as many copies as you would like!
Merry Christmas everyone!

Dont Mess with This Chick

A few weeks ago Devin's truck broke down after church. Being the wonderful girlfriend she is, Robin couldnt stand letting him get greasy and work on this thing all by himself. Like any good girlfriend she HAD to help. I will let these speak for themself...










Enough said???? LOL I just couldnt resist sharing!

Fun Fun Friday

What a day we had today! It started out with meeting Jessica and Luke at the bouncy house place where we had two fun filled hours of boucning. Makayla had too much fun while we were there and cried when we left. Jessica and I had to laugh at her a few times when she got her attitude going because other children there werent listening to her. We dont call her mini me for no reason! hehehehe

Then we came home to take a nap. After that I had to run to my doctor who finally came back into the country to get the game plan going for my back. He really explained to me all the goings on with my back complete with diagrams. Things are much worse than I originally thought. Basically my disk is herniated but its also compressing my spinal cord and nerves. I told him that I wouldnt be having any surgery until it was absolutely necessary so he is sending me to a specialist that will give me some steroid injections in my back that will act as an epidural. This will relieve all my pain and give me the ability to function again. Its basically a bandaid fix but its the cheapest route to take so thats what we are going with. He is calling his doctor friend this weekend and told me to call on Monday to make the appointment. We will see how much this is going to set me back. I hope it wont be anything like the $750 consultation fee the neurologist was going to charge me!

Tomorrow is a fun fill day of last minute Christmas shopping... woot woot! Ill be going through pictures soon and updating again later!

A Prayer Request

I know I have told most of you but in case you havent heard I have had a little health crisis lately. Since September I have had a pretty severe pain in my back that I have been taking pain killers for. I also did three rounds of steroids to no avail. I finally was able to afford the MRI to find out what exactly was going on and what we found is that I have a pretty severe herniated disk in my L5/S1 and a slight degeneration in my L3/L4 disk.

Of course as most of you know we dont have insurance so that means crappy doctors and mega unexpected bills. I am in the process of doing some research on some different options and am asking for your prayers. I am praying for a miraculous healing or at the very minimum finding the right treatment that doesnt require surgery. So if you are the praying kind (and most all of my friends are) please say a quick prayer for me, I would very much appreciate it!

OOPS its been a while again

Update, update, update... I am really bad at blogging but I am definately better than I used to be! hehehehe

Today Makayla and I had a great time. We invited Nana to go with us to see Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer at Casa Manana. Jessica and Luke were going to go with us but unfortunately Jack (Lukes older brother) had to go to the doctor this morning for strep throat so they werent able to make it. Makayla was really excited when we got there and asked me where the movie screen was? It was so fun to explain to her that we werent going to be seeing a movie we were going to see live actors do a play for us. She definately loved it and it turned into a magical day for her. She told us that seeing a play was definately better than going to the movies!

Then we came home and took a nap!

Tonight we had our childrens Sunday School party from 6-9pm. All the kids in the church were treated to Chick-fil-A, cookies, hot cocoa, crafts, games and even a hay ride! Makayla had a ton of fun but Robert and I are pooped!

Tomorrow is a fun filled day of shopping for Christmas presents, going to the eye doctor for more contacts (yes I lost my last contact at Casa Manana), and going to the Sims for a Christmas party... I wont be forgetting the cheesecake!

Happy Birthday Maddie!

I cant believe my neice is FOUR years old tomorrow!!!! I still remember my sister calling me and I told her I had a dream she was pregnant only for her to hang up and call me back a week later to confirm that she was indeed pregnant! I knew she was having a girl too but what I didnt know is that in three months I too would be pregnant with Makayla. God sure has a way of throwing curve balls at you doesnt he?
Its unfortunate that we cant all be together tomorrow for Maddies birthday. I hope you have a great party Maddie. This little video of Makayla singing happy birthday is as close as we can be with you! One of these days we are going have to get you to embrace the phone again so we can hear your cute little voice!

My Twilight Adventure

So last night my crazy friend Jessica and I went to the midnight showing of Twilight! We were surrounded by the giggles and silliness of 200 teenagers but it was definitely fun! Im certainly paying for it today! There is something about being 34 and staying out until 3am that just doesnt work. Everything in my body is screaming at me! Of course being sick doesnt help either, I cant stop my nose from running off my face and I feel like I have been hit by a light mac truck.
We started by meeting at Boo Rays where we had some iced tea and fried pickles! yummmmo Then like a couple of crazy people we headed to the movie theater where we stood in line for an hour waiting for our seats! We did manage to get the best seats in the house!
Jessica introduced me to the Twilight series and I fell in love with the books and the characters so I couldn't help but want to see the movie. You know the movies are never as good as the books but this one at least stayed true to the book. They didn't add a bunch of scenes in the movie that weren't also a part of the book. They did however leave out a bunch of the book. I wish they would have done more with Alice's character because she was such a vital part of the series and of Edward and Bella's relationship. I was disappointed with the prom and the way that played out in the movie. All in all though it was fun to see the characters come to life. The cinematography was incredible and I agree with Jessica in that it totally made the movie!
I am so thankful that God brought Jessica into my life! I love having a new pal to hang with! Jessica we will have to do that again sometime... after I recover from last night!

School Pictures

A while ago I posted that we had Makaylas school pictures in but I had to take the time to scan them to show them to you. Well... I have scanned them today! I know the calls will be coming in telling me that CANT possibly be baby Makayla but alas... it is definitely her, all grown up *sniff, sniff* Get your hankie before scrolling down, you will definitely need it!











Its crazy how big she has gotten in such a short time. I nearly died when all the baby had left her face and I could see what a mature little girl she has become and at such a young age! *waaaaahhhh* I want my baby back! They just grow up all to fast!

OH OH OH... Thanks Jess!

Ok So Jess finally updated her blog (the Sims link to the right under blogroll) and has some awesome pictures of Trunk or Treat up finally! Be sure to check out her blog to see her cute kiddies but I sniped the picture of my trunk from her! So in all its award winning glory... our mad scientist trunk...

We had all kinds of icky stuff in jars... brains, fingers, eyes, bats, and snakes. It was a lot of fun to put this trunk together and well worth the effort. I cant wait for next year... think Disney princess gone bad...muhahahahahaha (Shelley and Jess are to blame for the next one too hehe)



Shout out to my Peeps

Just a quick shout out to all my homeschooling peeps since I shared my blog link with you! My blog isnt much but its the way I communicate with friends and family. So welcome!!!
Be sure to leave comments so I know who visited and when! I love getting them!
I was thinking of having the kids make Christmas cards at the December meeting what do you all think of that?
Hope to see you all on Friday weather permitting!

Time Marches On

Funny how time has a way of getting away from you. I don't know how this keeps happening to me but it does.
When we arrived at preschool this morning I was quickly reminded that it was the day to pick up the pictures we had taken two weeks ago. I was SHOCKED to view Makaylas pictures. She had not only grown but her face had changed. Not a subtle change either a dramatic change that instantly brought tears to my eyes. Her baby face is gone... how in the world did this happen? I will soon get the pictures posted here on the blog and also show the picture of her from exactly one year ago. You just wont believe the change in her! It will take your breath away for sure.
Im so proud to announce that Devin received his acceptance letter yesterday to Texas State Technical College. He was so excited about it and is really looking forward to attending next fall. I am trying to talk him into taking the two year associates program but he is barking about it and only wanting to take the one year certificate program. Of course I will be scanning a copy of that to share on the blog as well!
Sunday night was trunk or treat at the church and wow what a great time Jess, Shelley and I had with our tables. Shelley was busy as a little bee doing the dry ice experiments, Jess was showing the kids how to make slime and I was passing out candy and doing a little craft with the kids. We had oodles of fun and even managed to take first place with the trunk decorating contest! We won a little trophy and when I say little I mean this thing was a total of about three inches high... its so cute! As soon as I get Jess to forward me some pics (hint hint Jess) I will share those on the blog too!
I spend the entire weekend reading the Twilight series of books by Stephanie Meyer and let me just tell you that they are SOOOOO GOOD! (thanks Jess for turning me onto them) I have to say thats its one of the best reads I have had in a good while and I am almost suffering from depression now that the series is over. I was left wanting more... much more of the story. Maybe Stephanie will write more about Bella,Edward and their many adventures. If you love a good romance with a lot of action, near death experiences and a werewolf or two thrown in for good measure you cant beat this series of books!
I had a great day at school today and love teaching the kids. We have a great group of little ones that are just a delight to work with. Judy my co-teacher is fabulously fun to work with too! I have to come up with something good for her birthday party this year because she will be turning the big 5-0 so if anyone has any great ideas on what to do for her birthday I would love some input. The funny thing is that her birthday is Jan 31... what a quinky-dink (thats Devin's birthday too)!
Welp thats all for me tonight! As soon as I get the computer hooked up to the scanner I will get the pictures scanned and share them with you! And Jess if you are reading this... send pics soon!!! *giggle*

Homecoming 2008...



Devins Senior Year!! Where in the world does the time go? This year he had a super cute and very sweet girlfriend that I happen to like very much. She gives Devin a lot of grief and I love her for that. heheheehe
Devin was stressing this year thinking he wasnt going to be able to afford much in a way of a mum for her but he bought just enough for me to come up with this little gem...




Clark Gardens

We love going to Clark Gardens and its been a while since our last trip out there. Last Friday Shelley set up a field trip with our homeschooling group to visit Clark Gardens. I couldn't help but be excited about going. The gardens are rich with foliage and colors that you just don't find in an average garden. Not only would we see the many splendid flowers, trees, bushes and ponds but they had hundreds of pumpkins set out for their fall harvest that weekend. We couldn't have chosen a better weekend to go.



The weather was gorgeous and Makayla was in a very good mood. It couldn't have been a better day! As soon as we got there Makayla found the pumpkins and I managed to snag this shot...


After walking around for a bit we had lunch at the pavilion and I couldn't let another day go by without getting a good picture of Makayla with her very good friend Elisabeth. They held hands all the way through the gardens because you know... thats just what best friends do and who am I to interfere with what best friends do? Aren't they just too cute together!!!!!


All in all it was a great day and although we had a mini meltdown when it was time to go we still managed to get some good pictures! I love that we have found a group of friends that we love and are loved in return, aren't judged and all have the same beliefs. We are truly blessed!


Busy Weeks...

Wow we have just really had an unusually busy couple of weeks and I really dont see an end in sight for a while.

Today we had to put Makayla's ferret Cocoa to sleep. She was really sad and distressed about it but I spent $200 and a week trying to save his life to no avail. The vet felt like he had kidney disease and probably was ill for a very long time. We really loved this little guy and will miss him a lot. Makayla told me today he is with God and the angels now and she will get to see him again some day. She is wise beyond her years.

Im working now at the preschool and having a great time. I teach with Judy in the twos class which is a lot of fun. Our class is all boys with one girl on Tues and two girls on Thurs. Its very different having an all boy class! Boys are just little bundles of energy!

Last week Makayla went to the fire department with her preschool class and had a great time! She learned all about what to do if we were to have a fire in our home, she was able to spray the big fire hose and even got her very own fire hat!

Next week we will be super busy too! On Monday we will be having our first riding lesson! Be sure to stay tuned for the pictures of that! You know how much Makayla LOVES horses! Till then TTFN!

Makin' Cookies...

You will just die with laughter and amazement after watching a three year old make chocolate chip cookies all by her self (well with a smidge of help from Mommy and Daddy).



Dont say I didnt warn you that she was the cutest thing on the plant. I just nearly died when she double dipped the beaters back into the batter but o'well we didnt share with anyone that wasnt family...LOL
Today was a busy day with Robert and Devin helping Papa put up his new shed. They almost have it done! Tomorrow after church they will finish it up. I wont start my new job working at the church preschool until the 14th but I am already looking forward to it. The extra money will be wonderful and watching Makayla interact with her friends is a bonus.
Devin is doing great with his new job and he says he loves it! There was a little issue with one of his teachers at school but I spoke with the counselor on Friday and hopefully that will soon be resolved. Its hard dealing with super anal people when you have a kid that is so hard headed!
I will do my best to get more videos done this week and keep you updated. Be sure to leave me some comments so I know you are visiting and let me know what you think about my blog!!!

Mainstay Farm



We had the best time yesterday going with our homeschool group to the Mainstay Farm! They open their farm every year at this time to the public. Makayla had a great time creating her own scarecrow, roasting marshmallows, taking a hay ride, finding her way through mazes, playing in a three story tree house and sliding down a 100 ft slide! After the hay ride we returned to the barn to pick out our pumpkin!


Then it was home to make a batch of chocolate chip cookies. A video is to come of Makayla making cookies all by herself I just have to get around to editing it!

Parkfest 2008

This moring Robert went to work so Makayla, Devin and I decided to go to the parkfest that Willow Park was hosting. Its the first time we have been to parkfest and we had a great time!
I started by trying to donate blood for the Carter blood drive but after spending 45 minutes waiting and filling out questionaires and having a quick physical my iron was too low by .3 points so they didnt allow me to give! fooey! I guess next time I go to donate blood I need to eat a steak or two first!
The fest was full of fun vendors, face painters, helicopters and even a very inspirational disabled skydiver named Dana Bowman. http://www.danabowman.com/ what an inspirational guy!
Of course the day couldnt be complete without getting a video of my happy girl with her new butterfly friend. Enjoy!

A Season of Change

Change... something I tend to resist. I mean who really likes change? Change to me is like yanking teeth, I put it off as long as I can.
With that said God has led me to some change over the last week. Since March I have tossed around the idea of letting go of my ownership of the Shanty. When I took over the shanty it was a fun, lively place with a lot of talent and inspiration. The women were friendly, loving and giving of time and advice. I am not sure where or when that dynamic left the site but it did along with many of the ladies that were original to the site. Dawn pointed it out to me when she left and I knew it then but I thought it was something that could be turned around. Dont get me wrong... there are a ton of ladies there that I have grown to love and care for incredibly but it was just different, the entire atmosphere had changed. I stuck it out for several months but after getting the feeling that I really wasnt welcome on my own site anymore I prayed, and prayed and then prayed some more and the only answer that kept coming to me was to let it go. I could have been spiteful and just shut it down, and trust me that thought crossed my mind more than once but I guess In the big scheme of life and all of my day to day problems I just couldnt let this keep eating at me. I had to just let it go, so thats what I did. I wish all the gals still at the Shanty all the best!
Now on to another season of change. Most of you know that I have been subbing at Makayla's preschool on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I love working with the kids and have a ton of fun with them. The other teachers there are great and so fun to work with too. I am so thrilled to announce that Karen has hired me full time now... no more subbing for me! YAY! I have been praying for this and God has answered my prayers! I will now contribute to the family (just a little but its something!) and Makayla will love having me at school with her. I dont have to worry about coming up with tuition any longer (thank you God) because it was a struggle trying to come up with the money.
I guess thats all for this update. There is so much to tell but those are the super important things going on in my life right now! Everything is going well with us and I keep praying that it stays that way for a while. I love when life is calm and uncomplicated for a change.
Welp the begging worked!!! HE SAID YES!!!!!!!!!!!! I love that man... he is always quick to spoil me and it didnt take that much begging to get what I wanted either. So now we can video everything!
Let me start by showing my adorable daughter. All I said to her was sing a song and this is the tune she busted out with...



Now I ask you, how sweet is that???? *sigh* she just melts my heart!
In the future look for many many new videos because I got my new little flip and I just adore it!

Welcome to the Family Blog

OOPS I sent you to the wrong blog. Im trying to keep my business blog seperate from my personal blog so the one you should come to is the family blog. Leave it to my blonde brain to screw things up right away...hehe
Anyway... WELCOME!
I am so thrilled to have a new blog with all the new fan-dangled toys that come with it. Its been fun spending time learning all the new bells and whistles today. There is still much learning and tweaking to do but on a whole I am happy with how its all turned out.
Ill be spending some time over the next week trying to get some things organized on here and hope to be able to post weekly updates! My goal this week is to buy a cheap video camera so I can video some simple technique tutorials as well as my adorable daughter! That of course all depends on the success of begging and pleading that will commence as soon as Robert gets home!
~Hugs