Just in case I didn't have enough lives to ruin...

I thought I would plant a garden. We have a great backyard. We have a brick planter box that spans the entire perimeter of our backyard. While my mother-n-law was in town, she instructed us in the art of planting, weeding, seeding, and soiling. She has the greatest garden and taught us a bunch. Even how to plant our cucumbers in a hill. We planted cucumbers, jalepenos, green bell peppers, watermelons, daisies, eggplant, crookneck squash, cherry tomatoes, pumpkins, any herb you can think of, and an insane amount of wild flowers. It feels great to take care of our plants. The kids have had a great time checking to see if they have sprouted any yummy treats. When we first got started, Mike's mom asked if we would have to worry about squirrels. I said no, of course in this populated area. Little did I know one little such varmin would come right from the Brewer household....our own resident Squirrel, Addison has been picking the tomatoes! She knows she is wrong to do it, but that doesn't stop her from snatching a little green one and taking off hellishly across the yard. I think she may be a rabid squirrel. Every time she does it, I think of that creepy racoon Will Ferrell tried to hug on Elf. lol.

MOBY

Fathers Day seems to be a time of big changes around our house. Last year I had Sam I Am on the 13, just a few days before Fathers Day. This year, we had a new kind of baby.

This little guy is the newest family member at the Brewer gang. I arranged for Mike to stop by at Lou and Joni's to pick up his fathers day present after work a few weeks ago. He knew what he was getting, but we told the kids he was bringing home a friend. We cleaned the house all the while I fielded a zillion questions about our mystery guest. They were certain it was Pappa Shaun (McConnell) but I told them Daddy's friend was only about two-years-old. WHAT!? They were completely stumped. Mike called when he was around the corner and I made the kids come in the house so there was no early peeking. It was perfect. The kids all went running outside to meet their new friend. Moby was so excited he peed on EVERYthing to leave his mark. He has definitely realized he is not the leader of the pack with so many others competing for attention, but he has found his place at the Brewer's.

He is a great snuggler. Sam regularly uses him as a pillow and Moby loves to sleep at the base of Isabelle's bed every night. Addison calls him "Movie Dog" because that is how "Moby Dog comes out in squirrel language. We have also dubbed him Molblerone, MoMo, MoMan, Moby Richard, and Mo-mer.

The kids wake up every morning and let him out, feed him, and fill his water bowl. We are working on his listening skills so we can let him play out front more, but he gets a little excited at the sight of new face to lick.

So thank you, Friends, for giving us the greatest fathers day present ever for our family.

Oh Thank you Lord!

Math is all done. I got an A. YAY for A's!! That is all for now. Oh, but hey Jessica, remember when you tried to crochet and it was scary? Just wondering.

Conversations in Bed

This was inspired by meesta Ben's post about deep thoughts and his mattress.

Me- You know what is a terrible name for a sandwich?
The Man-what?
Me- loose meat sandwich. It is gross.
The Man- I had a pulled pork sandwich today.::giggle::
Me- ew! That is equally as gross.
The Man- There is Pulled Pork, Loose Meat, Chicken Jerk...
Me- ew. And tube steak. That is gross. I am hungry.
The Man- I think I want to shower before bed.
Me- Kay....

Brew-ha-ha at the Brewer's Pad

Just thought I would give a run down of life and the goings on around here.

Today, Layla Grace graduated from preschool. We are very proud. She got to recite one of their verses over the microphone, which just proved that she really could be a rockstar someday.
She will be homeschooled for kindergarten next year.

Isabelle is almost totally signed up to attend her new school- www.coralacademy.org
She is looking forward to mingling with outsiders. I also think she is a bit apprehensive about stepping out into the school scene again. It has been 4 years since she has been enrolled in a school. :/ It will be great though, because it is totally God calling her to school.

We are ecstatic over her choices of teacher-they are the Mo and Jo of Reno. SERIOUSLY so weird. SHE is totally organized like Joelle, and other than her odd habit of talking over you when she knows what you are talking about, she has Jo's super skills as a teacher. HE has the fro to match his southern counterpart. He also recognized Eli's sweet Napoleon boots for what they are, which gives him an 'A' in our book. He is a math wiz, which will help to cover the areas Isabelle isn't as strong in. We are happy with either teacher.

Addison gave Sam-o-sauraus a haircut. So special. He is shaved completely now to hide the hideous bald spots she gave him. So special. The greatest part for me is when Sam waves, he does this Hitler salute. We look like we are proudly sponsoring the great white race around here. I keep threatening to give him a little Hitler 'stache to go with his new do.

Tonight I take my final exam in math class. This class has been crazy painful for me.

Mike passed the physical portion of his Fire Fighter's test earlier this week. We are waiting to hear where he ranks to see if he gets scheduled for an interview. Many prayers needed!

We have a new addition to the family. His name, depending on whom you talk to, is Moby, Movie Dog, Mo, MOMO, Moby-licious, or Moby-kins. These last two are just weird so we are trying to steer the kids back to Moby. Elijah wanted to give him a middle name. I suggested Richard. To me, it is really the only name that fits. In real life he is a large golden lab retriever. He is super. Even Addison loves him now.

Addison has taken to putting her self in time out. It is helpful because it saves me time, but it is strange.

We have been painting and downsizing. Getting ready for spring has never been so stressful or pretty. We have all new furniture in the living room, and the kids have new room set ups. Things are moving a whole lot slower than I was expecting, but it looks like a brand new house.

We are still awaiting the Wheel check. Soon...very soon. :D

That's about it!

HIstory

Let me just say that I love history, but sometimes I feel better before I learn about things. The Man and I are watching some special on the history channel about the craziness of the 70s. Hilarious generation for the most part....except for Mr. Jim Jones. ::shudder:: For those of you not as familiar, he was the "pastor" that began a church turned commune and then encouraged over 900 of the people to drink their lives away to cherry Flavor-Aid cocktail. I have heard this story in an off the cuff sort of way. Tonight, though, they showed video taken during the mass suicide. They gave it to the babies first. Then they encouraged the families to lay down together, face down, kind of in a pile. There were clusters and rows and rows of people. Those little babies. I don't like sadness. There was one little chubby baby boy, right around Sam -0-Saurus' age. He was laying down next to his mommy. ::sniff:: Stupid emotions. Stupid people. Stupid Jim Jones. Stupid history.

Why I like Mike #14

HE IS HOME!! The Man had a fun filled weekend where he allowed the fish of the east to control his brain. But now, he is right where he should be...asleep soundly on my living room sofa while I tap tap away on my puter. I never thought I would like him as much as I do now. I always thought we would just be existing after 11 years of marriage. God has done a great job of keeping my Hot Lips irresistible. I know that 11 years of marriage and 30 years of bdays isn't really old, but when I was younger, I thought life was over near 25. I remember when Mike and I were still dating. He told me he would be willing to wear cowboy boots when he is 26. I don't know why he picked THAT age, other than we both must have thought 26 was really old! i still haven't been able to get him into those boots, but we have a better grasp on what elderly really means. Here, let's do word association-

black-white

old-new

elderly-Louie (not Louise)

see..we have a better grasp. ::snicker::

traveling

You just have never flown until you get on a (delayed) flight with a drunk guy, a 97 year old birthday boy on his first flight, and a girl and her baby, the girl who is apparently stretching out her earlobes so her daughter can spit spit wads through them when they all get bigger. Oh and don't forget about the guy who has to holler when he speaks. Watch for me on Punk'd. I really think I was being filmed as all of that could not have been a coincidence!

It is good to be home. See you all on Sunday.

Thanks Friend.

My friend No(dot dot) el inspired this post with her blog topic. We are in full spring cleaning mode over here. We have a ridiculous amount of things we are giving away and hopefully selling in a couple of weekends at a neighborhood garage sale.

We have decided to stay put rather than finagle a new house for the Brewer Clan. There were too many what ifs and too many things to wrangle to make it work. Sometimes it is necessary to step out and follow God even if nothing seems to be adding up. Other times God asks you to step out and then allows you to step back once you have made a wise decision and followed him. We are experiencing the latter. It is interesting to be in this space, but I like it much better than pressing my own way, only to have it all fall apart once I am done throwing my tantrum and God has let me have my way.

I don't want to do anything because I have won an arm wrestling match with God. I want to focus on being in God's will and being grateful for the blessing he is giving me.

Anyway, off topic!!

For any of you interested in amphibian life, we have a really great turtle that needs a new home. In our attempt to downsize our belongings, our stress, and our responsibilities, we must say good-bye to Miss Daisy. She really is a great pet. She even has a sweet tank, a gold fish friend, and a pacostimus that works wonders with the algae. Let me know.

I am Seriously NOT making this stuff UP!!!

I know you have all heard that there are two kinds of people in this world- those who love Neil Diamond and those who don't. But those are not the two types of people I am going to talk about right now lol. I am going to discuss the "book smarts" and the "street smarts." For those of you who feel you are a fine balance of both, I am here to burst your bubble and say there is just no such thing. My sweet Layla Grace is turning out to be incredibly book smart. I think you know then that she is a bit lacking in the common sense. She is not at all dumb, just incredibly gullible. BUT without her we wouldn't get to hear super stories created in the depths of her churning wheels like this one:

Scene- Yesterday- Mike stays home from work; he is still in bed; kids and I are getting our morning going.

Addison(stumbles across some of Layla's nursing souvenirs: a large rubber glove and a doctor's mask.

Addison(mask on, glove on, with hand up in a "let me check your prostate" position:

Mommy, FUNNY!

Me: Yes, Addie, you are very funny. Go get Daddy. Tell him to "bend over, Daddy!"

Addison: Funny mommy!!

Addison runs quickly to the bedroom where the innocent man is dozing.

Addison(in a loud voice): BEND OVER, DADDY!! HA HA HA FUNNY!!

Meanwhile, we are all giggling in the other room. Addison runs back out to the living room.

Eli: HA HA HA HA Did you say it, Squirrel?

Layla (confused look) :Did he bend over? : /

Me: ROFL!!!!!!

And the dirty talk just keeps on coming!!

So, I have to backtrack before I tell the story I came here to share. Sorry, Gina. You know I love you, but this was just too funny to keep to myself.

Some time back, Addison was doing what two year olds do when they are naked: getting familiar with their "region." She kept shouting "my butt, my butt!!" then she would giggle and run. When I finally tackled her, I, in a very mommy way, explained that that isn't her butt; that is her vagina. (sorry boys. No one really likes to say that word lol) She said "oh, sorry (giggle giggle) Gina." Gina-as in my friend's name. I didn't bother to correct her.

Fast forward to a couple days later at the dentist's office where my friend, Gina, is our Dental Hygienist. Addison, who we all know as uncooperative, was more than willing to do whatever Ms. Gina told her...only she couldn't seem to remember her name was Gina (Geena) and not G-eye-nah! Sigh. I was cracking right up, but poor Gina. I explained what was happening, but every time Addison had to talk to her, she insisted on using her "name."

Gina: did she just say it again?

me: cracking up!! YES!!

Again, fast forward to two days ago. I was changing Sam's diaper and Addison suddenly became nosey. She said "oh, Sam's Gina." I told her Sam doesn't have a Gina, lol. stop saying that. "she said, "oh-sorry. His genius." I lost it. She didn't get what I meant when I said "I am sure he would like to think that is his *genius!!" LOL

Math

So I am in the math for dummies class, and it is going about how I expected: very sadly. I am relieved that I don't have my usual six papers due in the next five weeks, but my teacher (if you want to call him that) has successfully taken any happy notes right out of this class. I am a words/people person. HE is a numbers/nerd person. We aren't exactly compatible.

When I listen to him explain things, I am reminded of those people visiting a foreign country but speak none of the native language. They are reduced (by their own choice) to moving their mouth largely and slowly while shouting their words in hopes to be understood. Why people think this works is beyond me.

When I worked at a school in Vegas, I had the great experience of working with pre K/K deaf and hearing impaired kids. I found myself trying this strange tactic. The look I received regularly was one of laughter and sadness. They both thought I was hilariously idiotic and sad for themselves that I was their teacher. Sigh.

This is precisely the look I find myself giving to this poor man in charge of teaching my class. Despite his slow speech (not at all for my benefit, but more likely the after effects of his happy hour celebrations) and his obscenely large hand movements, I am just not getting what he is trying to communicate. If I had to tell you everything I have learned based on his communication skills, I would have to say birds with former full beards often get pulled over in the airport for mistaken identity. Yes, I realize this has nothing to do with Algebra. It does seem to have a large deal to do with why I am not learning math from this man.

Thankfully, I remembered my ear plugs last night. I was able to tune out every nonsensical thing he had to say and work with my team. I got almost all of the answers right. Maybe I should ask the University for a raise in pay.

Baby steps

Who knew buying a car could be so chatty. My poor husband. HA! He found us this very pretty vehicle, but the guy selling it has serious chatting skills. I realize this can be a great skill, but it is nothing compared to nun-chuck skills or drawing skills.
The greatest part? On a whim, or prompt from the Holy Spirit, my husband decided to check the Las Vegas RJ classifieds after lots of slow luck in the car hunt. He called these people and they were vacationing in Reno..with the van! He ran out to see it, and they fell in love with Layla Grace. I recommend taking her to any deal.
We are in negotiation with the good ole chatty doctor.
Will keep you updated. Meanwhile, pray for my incredibly
UNchatty husband to be merciful lol.

oh my

Isabelle and I had the second stage conversation of "THE TALK." ACK!! I will spare her the possible embarrassment and just share my favorite line.

From the mouth of my baby ::sniff:: amid fits of giggles- "WHAT! Like the DOGS when they want to have babies??? ::gasp:: YOU AND DADDY h-u-m-p??!!"

and yes, she spelled it out. I nearly ran the car off the road to keep from laughing hysterically.

And the Movies came rolling in...

OOH GOODNESS. Today the UPS man delivered 12 movies to my door. All greats ranging from Fiddler on the Roof, Princess Bride, and The Apple Dumpling Gang, to the kids picks of Princess Diaries, Ice Princess, and Open Season. Tomorrow should hold more greatness...and my Algebra book, but that isn't nearly as exciting.

All of these classic movies are compliments of Wheel of Fortune and my DVDEmpire.com winnings. Check them out, they actually have some good deals!

Farewell to all!!

NO NO!! I am not going to stop blogging. :) I was saying goodbye to our debt! WAHOOOO! The Man and I just paid off a good chunk of our debt! We threw the kids' b-day parties and spent the rest of our tax return on Mike's tires and bills. My Wheel money should be coming soon, so we will be purchasing that long awaited family vehicle. God has really blessed us! We are also in the market for a 4-5 bedroom house. Just in case any of you are selling or know someone who is, send us the info! We are looking to move in July or August.

I realize this picture is also on my homeschool blog, but I didnt want anyone to be left out. Nice and goopy! Gotta love it. lol

Random thoughts

I know I have time to do everything I want and need to do. My choices are all wrong. I am too lazy to drag myself out of bed each morning, I watch too much TV, and spend too much time on the computer.

Lord, thank you for helping me with the areas with which I struggle. I know the bible tells me you are able to do more than I can possibly imagine. I don't mind doing hard work. I just wish I could keep the right balance. I feel you have given me all the tools I need to be a great wife, mom, daughter, woman, and friend. My problem is that I only seem to look at the tools.

It is as if I am window shopping, maybe even testing out the tools to see how well they work. In the end, I don't know how to incorporate them into everyday life. Maybe part of me thinks "they are behind the glass; that will take too long to access. I will just stick to my old ways." What is great is that I didn't even have to purchase them! They are all my gift from you, Lord. Perhaps I am treating them like a never-to-be-handled gift of fine china. My experience tells me you wouldn't equip me with worldly china. In fact, if you were to give me china, it would be unbreakable. Maybe I don't trust the capabilities of the tools you have given me. I am beginning to see where the issues lie. I trust you. I trust and am thankful for the tools with which you have equipped me. The problem is I don't trust myself. I can't rely on me to make the right choice or work properly alongside the arsenal you have provided.

"GOOD!" you say, "allow me. You shouldn't be getting involved anyway. I am God and you are not. Stop trying to control so much and let me love you. Let me care for your children. Let me help your husband become the man I want him to be. I appreciate your effort, but you really have no idea what you are doing."

I can't possibly give God the leading position in my life if I continue insisting my ways. There is just too much of me in every situation. My mouth says I have died to my old self. My haughty glances, in my mind, convey to others that I have arrived. (HA!) My measly acts of service prove to others I am generous. When it comes down to it, there are a whole lot of me's, my's, and I's and not nearly enough glory to God. My actions do not follow what I say in my mind or with my mouth.

Forgive me, Lord. For 26 years I thought I was walking semi-steadfastly down this path toward you. In my mind, I was about half-way to the finish line. Now I realize those weren't strides I was taking, but baby steps. I am still at the beginning.

Conversations with babies

My favorite age for children has to be when they are just learning to form words. Especially when most of their vocabulary sounds like dirty words to outsiders. One very special example of this came about on Saturday when my brother and his wife and children were shopping at Costco, browsing the sample section. My sister offered my nephew chocolate and he was concerned that his 18month old sister was getting left out.

Roni (SIS) Makena, do you want some chocolate?

Makena- Cock

My Brother- Umm. Makena wants something else.

Everyone close by- LAUGHTER!!

Cost of a Costco membership-$30/year

Cost of a Costco trip- average of $100

Hearing your daughter say her first dirty word- priceless.

WHEEEEEEEEEE l

Hey just wanted to send out an invite to any of you who A) read my blog, B) know me personally C) know how to get to the Cook's house, and D) like dessert to come to the Cook's for the Reno chapter of the Wheel Party :) We will meet at 7pm on Thursday March 1st for a little treat eating and watch the show. Don't bring anything except your family and your clapping hands. Give me a call if you are able to make it.

ps- for those of you who can't make it, my show actually airs on Monday February 26th. :) Feel free to call, but we won't be home until after small group.

Those Quiet Bible Times

I was writing in my prayer journal about how lame I was for not getting to my quiet time until just a little while ago. I had my list of reasons all day long, but I could feel God just waiting for me. Anyway, when I asked God to show me something through my reading I expected a gentle nudge toward keeping God a priority or sticking to my commitments. Instead I got 2 Chronicles 14: 14 "..They plundered all these villages, since there was so much booty there." SNORT! I couldn't help but laugh out loud. I can't believe I didn't get to have this one all day. I guess that is what I get for waiting so long lol

*PS I KNOW there is no rule against reading your Biblio at night.. but considering all the pouring out I need to do all day, it works best for me to set up for the day. I think many moms can relate.

Emotional stages

They say there are different stages a person goes through when faced with a difficult situation. I have been through a few with my car situation. Today I am angry. It will pass, I am sure. We can't go to church this weekend because we don't have a ride and The Man has school. Then we can't go next weekend because I will be out of town and The Man will have no way of getting the younguns' there. All of this would be an un-issue (my own special word) if we had a large enough car. I hate being patient. I am no good at it. Four years now we have been praying for a car. Isn't that an overly long time to wait for something? We pray with the kids every night about a vehicle and the only thing we have heard so far is how big it should be. That's all. Just how big. So this weekend I told the kids we wouldn't be able to go to church and they were just so sad. :( This causes me sadness which quickly turns to anger. Not at anyone..just the situation. While I was busy stewing this morning, Isabelle came out of her room and anounced that if she can't GO to church she is going to have church here, in her room. She gathered all of my worship music papers, set her table up for craft time, and opened her bible to Mathew chapter 4. She led the kids in worship, read them their lesson for the day, and ended in "Kidland" with making cards for their Kidland leader family to tell them how much they were missed. SIGH I see in them exactly what Jesus meant when he said we should have child like faith. I have so far to go.

oh, and Ms. Stephanie, thanks for having such a great impact on my children. You are very loved by all of us!

Why I Like Mike #13

Last night at school, he interviewed for the position of class leader for this semester of the Fire Academy. Of course he got it. :) And, it wasn't just any interview. They called in the freshmen and second varsity class, and he had to interview in front of everyone! Talk about pressure! He will be sharing the honor with another guy in his class. I wish I had half the determination he does. He just DECIDES and does it! I tend to come up with a grand scheme, spend some money toward accomplishing it, and take a nap...or spend my night posting blogs. Why can't I get past the laziness. I have zero self discipline. This could be bad.

collecting words

Not enough of you read my homeschool blog to post this there, but I need some help. Isabelle has finished her list of words she needs to know how to spell before the end of third grade. YAY you say, but that leaves us four months of wordless schooling. Here are some samples. Feel free to add some. Isabelle won't appreciate it as much as I do, but thanks.
HELPFUL
ANNOYINGLY
HERSELF
CLOAK
STITCHED
OCTAGONS
STURDY
PLOWING

Keep on Keepin on!

In keeping with my get healthier theme, I have come up with a daily food journal that I feel is helpful. Every get healthy/diet/live it plan recommends writing down what you eat and your accomplishments if you are going to be successful. So far I realize a few things about myself: I don't eat nearly enough food (although what I eat is pretty healthy), I don't drink enough water, I don't spend nearly enough time in the word (not bird or grease), I do not stick to my household routine! On the positive side, I do eat fairly healthy, I do well with my portion sizes, I eat more dairy than I thought which is great because I pretty much hate dairy, and I do a good job of eating every couple of hours. Today, I am working at doing just a little bit better in each section. I can't share my food journal with you people, because I am unable to use the return feature on my blog (stupid) so if you happen to want a copy, email me and I will forward it off to you. :) Happy eating.

Ellen

I am trying to get the life on track, which, for me usually happens when the newest Brewer baby is pushing his or her first birthday. This time, I am not going to wait. Sam Fisher is decidedly a great sleeper and with the rest of the kids so independent and able to help out with The Squirrel, I have a few minutes in the morning to focus on me. I don't know why this is such a struggle with women, but I know I am not the only one who has to decide daily if I am going to read my bible, shower, or exercise first thing in the morning. Probably I should always choose my quiet time, but when I see a window around lunch time that is free from the usual household hulla-baloo (children arguing over breakfast in the next room, children throwing cheerios at each other to see if they will stick, other children hating this game and shrieking in disapproval, first set of cheerio throwing clan riddled with giggles because it is causing so much discomfort-thus an added bonus to the discovery of sticking cheerios...sigh) You get the picture. Anyway, Ellen has recruited Bob Harper (Biggest Loser)the show, not my personal take on him) to get her ready to host the Oscars in about a month. He has given her a list of foods she may eat, an exercise regimen, and opened it up to others with the hope that each of us will lose ten pounds in one month. Now, by the Biggest Loser's standards that is piddly for a months worth of working out and dieting. For me, it is just what I needed; any more would be too much! In addition I am re-starting my bible study, Becoming the Woman God Wants You to Be. The author takes the approach of focusing on every important area of our lives (body, spirit, mind) and adding positive elements that will naturally get rid of the negative (ie, drinking the right amount of water each day will leave you not so thirsty for pop OR memorizing scripture will give you ammunition for battling those lies from the devil.) I am not big on new year resolutions, so I am hoping I am in this for good and not needing to repost this next January. Wish me luck. I would like to hear any healthy tips you all have that seem easy and have stuck in your regular routine. Personally, I am a freak for smoothies, which is a great way to sneak in vegetable servings and yogurt. I have also replaced my computer chair with my exercise ball.

Why I like Mike #12

He still gives me butterflies after 11 years of marriage. Oh, and DAMN he is hot!

This made me giggle

When someone asks me to save his place in
line so he can take his son to the bathroom,
I agree, but when they come back I exclaim,
"Hey, what's going on? No cuts!" Then I
love looking over my shoulder and waving at
the loser as he fumes at the back of the line.
People need to learn just what a true
commitment to Space Mountain involves.

(Doug Sykes)

Life choices

This is going to be a big year, and I don't mean in the form of my belly! HA! At least I hope not. On New Year's Eve, The Man and I listed many of the things that would change over this next year. For us, they note worthy.*We will be debt free by April * Sam will learn to walk :) * Addison will really begin talking* our children will turn 1,3,5,6,and 9. Mike and I will turn 31 * Mike will graduate from the Fire Academy * Addison will begin preschool * We will get a family vehicle allowing our family to ride together and argue on the way to church like a normal family * I will submit my book to the publisher I have been talking with * We will move into a new, hopefully bigger, house that we own * Sam will say his first word * There is a decent chance we will not have a baby * Layla will start kindergarten, Isabelle will begin 4th grade, and Elijah will be a first grader * Eli and Layla will learn how to read * The Man and I will celebrate our 11th wedding anniversary * I will become a sophomore in college * Mike will earn his associates degree * I will get rid of my maternity clothes and any baby clothes that don't fit my existing children * I will get rid of much baby paraphernalia such as the swing, playpen, bouncy seat, pacifiers, bottles, breast pump, etc. * Sam will get more teeth so we can stop calling him baby squirrel * I will get a check from the Wheel of Fortune * I will get to buy $1000 worth of movies on someone else's tab * I will be on national television and Wheel parties will be thrown across the nation in my honor * These are just a few of the great milestones we came up with. I would love to read what the rest of you are looking forward to this year.

A Holy Home

I am reading a book called Finding Your Purpose as a Mom. I realize this won't apply to all you readers as many of you are male, and well,,, you just won't ever be a mommy. The author included a quote found in The Anglican Digest from a passage called The Landisfarne. I read it and reread it whenever I open the book.

We are not citizens of this world trying to make our way to heaven; we are citizens of heaven trying to make our way through this world; we live as those who are on a journey home; a home we know will have the lights on, and the door open, and our Father waiting for us when we arrive. That means in all adversity our worship of God is joyful, our life is hopeful, our future is secure. There is nothing we can lose on earth that can rob us of the treasures God has given us and will give us.

This makes me think of all the things I am supposed to be doing in this life. This book has challenged me to make the most of the very short time I have with my babies. It also makes me feel a renewed sense of peace over the babies I lost. Seeing my friend go through the same thing so recently always stirs some sad emotions. I day dream a little and I even wondered if those three little babies will be waiting for me when I get to heaven. Will they be handed to me in a little bundle as my first gift when I get to heaven. Will they greet me with Sam's perfectly goofy, full of happiness smile? I don't know, but I believe this passage is right. There really is nothing on earth that I can lose that will rob me of the treasures God has given me and will continue to give me.

Sorry no pics

But, we had a great Christmas. We were home, just the seven of us, snuggled in our living room. We played and opened presents. We laughed and took pictures. We made a list of all the movies we want to get with our winnings from the Wheel. We stayed in our jammies until late afternoon when the boys went hunting and the girls snestled in for a movie. The kids all helped in making dinner of chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes and gravy, and green salad. oh yummo! Considering Isabelle woke me up at 4:20 in the morning to open presents, I was a little sleepy, so it was early to bed for everyone. Even Mike and I made it into bed by ten! Just amazing.
We all got fun stuff as well. The kids usually get one present from Santa and the rest from us a the families that love us so. Isabelle got a guitar, Elijah got a real bow and arrow (hence the hunting trip), Layla got a bike, Addison got her very first Cabbage Patch Kid, and Sam I am got a glow worm. I don't have nearly enough blog space for the list of everything else we got, but it was all great. So to all of you who blessed us this year, thank you. And to all of you who think YOU are present enough..you are right. :) GOd bless.

No Pressure

My newest class is COMM110, also known as Public Speaking. My assignment this week is to analyze a public speaker and write about him or her. With permission from my professor, I chose our pastor. I am posting this so late on Sunday so Louie (not Louise) will feel no pressure. But, you better not screw up. HAHA!

King Josiah

I have been reading through 2 Kings and I am regularly struck with questions. I really need to take a class on all of this, or, now that I am done focusing on the Wheel and have one whole week off from school(HA!) I will have a minute to read a book or two on the matter. Here are a few questions/observations that reacently popped into my mind.Again, sorry about the format, my blog won't allow me to use the return key @@. 1- It is interesting how many times the mothers are mentioned. I wonder if it is for historical reference or another reason. I can't help but think God allowed the mothers to be named so that we could be proud of the ones who raised their children according to His will and put a name to those who seriously screwed up. 2-Josiah became king when he was eight years old. That is Isabelle's age. Just amazing. From the beginning he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord. He grew up to be a mighty king. God told him he was going to die and THEN he went out and obeyed God. He didn't spend his time depressed, closed up in his room, looking for a remedy. He spent (I am not sure how long) his time destroying anything that glorified someone or something other than God! 3- God showed him mercy in a strange way. God didn't deliver Josiah or his people from death or from the separation between the people and God. He just promised Josiah he wouldn't live to see what was coming to them. Sad. When I finished reading this, I felt overwhelmed. It was sad to see such a determined king die, only to be followed by his wayward son. Jehoahaz was 23 when he became king. He was imprisoned three months later, but he managed to squeeze in enough rottenness against God for the author of 2Kings to make a note of it. Regularly I pray for my children to follow after God. But, after reading passages like these I can't help but make a mental list of all the things I am forgetting. God's grace is a great gift, but I want my kids to grow up saying the greatest gift they got from me was teaching them about God. I am able to say that about my own mother, and though her shoes are really tiny (little girls size 4s) they are huge to fill.

Tonight is your night bro

Today is the day! The Man is going in today at 1pm for his snip snip-aroo (sing this last part to the tune of chim-chim-charoo). Please pray for accuracy and success. It is a strange feeling to be past so many little stages. Don't worry, I am realistic in the fact that there is still a great chance I will get pregnant again. My prayer has always been that Mike would have this surgery when he felt ready and God was finished adding to our troop. Being the consistent pessimist I am, I am looking forward to A) Mike backing out at the last minute, or B) getting pregnant in six months. What do ya do?! I also have names picked out, and frankly a small part of me is a little sad I may never get to use them. And even stranger still, it is the girl name I like the most. But, The Man has instructed me that you shouldn't continue to have children just because you found a cool name lol. In actuality, God gave us the name Samuel when we were pregnant with Layla Grace, so it makes sense that we should end with him. It makes even more sense that we shouldn't have been surprised to get pregnant with Addison OR him considering we knew we were going to have a Samuel. Denial is a really big river. Along with all of this, my husband is incredibly nervous and could really use the prayers for peace. His dad went in when he was 39 for a routine surgery. He had not been to the doctors in years (pretty much his whole adult life) and was very against having surgery. When he went in for his pre-surgery check up, they found a lump under his arm that proved to be end stage cancer. He died six months later. Mike was only 20 and we had only been married 3months. In fact we moved our wedding up a good three years so his dad could be there for the wedding. His dad's death was all very devastating for Mike. Especially considering neither of them knew God. So pray pray pray. There are a lot of emotions stirring around here.

Hot Lips

I couldnt resist having the chance to include The Man in my Wheel experience and calling him Hot Lips just seemed the perfect way. It is a name I have called him since high school, even before we were dating. Goodtimes. The conversation went something like "Yes, Pat, I have been married for almost 11 years to my husband, Mike, who I like to call Hot Lips Hoolahan, but you may call him Mike." Pat happily answered he would certainly do so and then said those hot lips must be working because you have how many kids? HEE HEE I was also going to try to squeeze in my sister's name during the last puzzle. If I knew there was no hope of solving I was going to shout excitedly "Melissa rocks the Casbah." Instead I realized I did know the puzzle and at the very last second called "standard poodle." Even better times as there was a $1700 prize that came along with that guy! Let me just say that there were only two letters called when I solved this puzzle. It read something like

_T_ _D_ _D _ _ _ D _ _

Christmas cards

Mail time around here is never nearly as exciting as it is for Steve Burns on Blue's Clues. Usually we get bad news by way of bills, but today I almost broke into the Mailtime dance when we got presents and cards from friends and family we don't get to see much. Email is great, but there is just something sweet about getting a card in the mail, with hand written names especially. Even better? when Grandma sends you a Christmas present you weren't expecting. We now have enough money to buy Mike's tires for his Jeep. This means we can sell my car and get a little closer to living debt free. With my sweet winnings from the Wheel, we should be debt free AND own a new family vehicle by June. It is nice to see the light at the end of the tunnel, even if it is still reeeeeeeeaally tiny.

I won! I won!

YAY! The Wheel was fantastic and oh-so-kind. I was paired with two super competitors for my stint on Wheel of Fortune, Satara (who ended up being the big winner) and an incredibly tall man we deemed Big Ben. He stood at a smooth six feet eight inches. Yikes. Mike and I arrived late afternoon on Wednesday and spent the night being a married couple. For those of you who get to do this often, I envy you. For those of you who never take this time, please do so soon. My husband really is awesome..and hot, which is always helpful. We have not been on an airplane without children in nine years, so you can imagine our delight when we just got to sit and watch those people chasing their kids through the airport. It was a pleasant way to begin our trip. After taking the shuttle to our hotel, we focused our night on holding hands, stealing kisses and eating dinner at cozymel's..oh and reviewing the 5 pages of information our cabbie gave us concerning our certain damnation for the meat filled diet we consume and (this doesn't really apply) our overly effeminate/homosexual ways. The next morning was the Wheel. I woke up a million times in the night, which put a crimp in my plans to sleep like a nyquil commercial promises, and finally gave in at 4:11 in the AM. I was too giddy. I showered, read my Bible, and took my time getting dressed. It was still only 6 (the original setting on my alarm clock :/)I kissed the man goodbye and prayed extra that I wouldn't get raped on the way to the studio by a crazed cabbie. All was well. God loves me like that. I wasn't the first to arrive and I made friends with all the other drunk-on-happiness contestants. We were ushered in to a secured green room and entertained between briefings and practice rounds. I seriously felt like I was at Wheel bootcamp. Those people take their jobs reeeeaaly seriously! When it came time to tape my show, I was over the top with happiness. I won a toss up, called some really stupid letters, and still managed to leave winning a little over 8k and 1000 bucks in movies! HOW GREAT IS THAT!?! The two most memorable parts of my show were when I introduced my husband as Hot Lips Hoolahan, but gave Pat permission to just call him Mike, and teasing my competition who had just won a Mexican cruise...apparently to Mexico. The screen to the left of us displayed our winnings throughout the game. Because she won the cruise during a prize puzzle, her label read PP Mexican. You better believe I congratulated her on winning a PP Mexican about a hundred times in the following 15 minutes! Crack me right up. She ended up being the big winner, but I was incredibly grateful.. I was unable to solve the bonus puzzle and she was. She won 25,000 smackers in addition to her.... PP Mexican. The rest of our trip was equally as fantastic, sharing our time with my mom, sister, and close friend who all flew in to see me play. My husband bought me the greatest hat and we chatted it up over margaritas (virgin for me, the lightweight) and guacamole! Goodstuff. When we arrived home on Friday morning, our super great friends agreed to keep the kids a little longer so Hot Lips and I could go Christmas shopping. That was a perfect way to slide back into real life. I am so grateful for my time with The Man and God blessing us so incredibly through this show. I owe so many of you! Thanks ;)

Things to look forward to

It is December. If your life is anything like mine, I am sure you also have a million things on your list of things to do or upcoming events. Since moving to Reno, Mike and I have done a decent job of weeding out our "committments" to simply fall in line with what we feel God calling our family to. It is easy to say no to an invite when you recognize it isn't getting you closer to God's goal. Knowing our season will someday change, we feel right now that God is calling us to govern our children; we keep them close enough to guide them, but allow them enough room for God to move them and shape them. It is a tricky job for parents, this arms length love. But I am off track. Here is my list of things to look forward to in the month of December:

Flying on an airplane and experiencing the airport child-free with my husband.

A week night, kid free, no babysitter to pay, date with my husband.

Sleeping...all through the night for TWO nights in a row!Almost zero chance of getting pregnant on either of those two nights.

THE WHEEL OF FORTUNE!!

My Addison turns two. Just family, cake, and icecream.

Cooking dinners with the kids.

Baking with the kids.(The Man has already done some with them. He even shopped for the goods.)
Filling out Christmas cards and driving to Frenchmen's with the fam. Attempting to use the take a family pic using the timer on our camera. (serious entertainment)

Watching endless Christmas movies.

THE MAN'S VASECTOMY!

My friend's Kwanzaa party (or maybe it is chanukkah?)

Christmas Eve.

Christmas morning.

New Year's Eve.
Sorry about the format. For some reason my spacing feature doesn't work on this blog. Again, I seem to have broken it. sigh.

SQUEEEAAALL!

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! I can't seem to stop saying that.The Wheel called yesterday. I am flying to LA on Wednesday to be there for my taping scheduled Thursday, December 14th. PRAY PRAY PRAY! God has already been blessing us so much. Mostly with happiness. You can imagine how smiley we all are around here :D Please keep us in your prayers for safe travel, kids find a good spot to hang while we are gone, and oh yah- that I win a mad amount of money so I can buy that van from my previos post. lol

This is why we aren't at church....again!

Sigh. My brain hurts. My hair hurts. I am tired of waiting. This is what I would like to have for our family. I am frustrated that I can't even get my kids to church on Sundays if Mike has school that weekend. And he has another year to go. I am tired that our only working car won't start if it is too cold outside! I am going to go read my Bible now. Pray for our vehicle situation please.

The year of thirty..

So I haven't done much ( I have typed this post twice!) But, The Man and I were able to steal away for a birthday date. I got my nose pierced :)!! YAY! We started our date by driving in the same car. Those of you who have a vehicle large enough to seat your entire family should consider this a huge blessing. Someday, we may too. Anyway, we went to a cute little boutique called Fondue and The Man picked out a great little red rhinestone for me. I love it. He took pictures. We finished our date with dinner at In and Out and the new movie Deja Vu. I rather enjoyed it. And God loves me enough to make the chatty three year old seated directly behind my left ear fall fast asleep.


This is me getting prepped

I even got one of those cool little purple placement dots.

And this is the final me. I look a little like Addison who insists on laying her face on the camera while she says cheese. It's the best I can do for a self portrait.

Fire Man In the Making

Mike got a letter regarding the testing and interview he went through a few weeks ago. He ranked 67 out of 103. Not exactly what he was hoping for, but considering there were 97 people who failed before they even got to the interview portion of the test, he did very well. Please continue to pray for him and God's will for the fire dep. We know this is where God has called him, we are just waiting and taking baby steps where God continues to nudge. He is still enrolled at the fire academy at TMCC and doing really well. Thanks for the prayers. We are all so proud of him.

hash browns everywhere, but not a drop to drink

My neighbor (13) stopped by the other day. She played with Addie and the other kids, then helped us get started on Christmas sewing projects, and ended her time her by throwing up on me, my carpet, my couch, REALLY ALL OVER MY COUCH,my wall, the sewing projects, my sewing machine...name it! And to top it off, her parents were at work with no intentions of coming home so I was left to clean up everything. YAY! The only thing that made it more especially super special was the fact that she apparently ate hash browns for breakfast... a lot of them. ew. Now, two days late, we are still smothering our couch in deodorizers trying to rid our cushions of her complimentary aroma. Nothing is working and my mom said I am not allowed to ask the family to pay to clean our couch.

I love techonology (in my best singing voice)

Make photo slide shows at onetruemedia.com

Okay so I am trying this out. If it doesn't work, we will chock it up to the fact that I really do love you more than technology. (Ode to Napoleon)

I can't resist

AND this is Eli dressed up like Sandra Dee. HE IS POSING!! He HAD to know I would use this someday?!

Halloween!

Pics of the fam.



Sam was wearing pumpkin jammies. He, clearly, was happy about the whole thing!

Elijah was Jeff Gordon.

Addison has to be the most serious Cheer Bear ever!


Isabelle and Layla were Rydell High cheerleaders.


I made their poodle skirts with big RH appliques on them.

Why I like Mike #11

Most of you know my hunny has been slaving away every other weekend at TMCC Fire Academy. Well, Friday he took the physical part of his four day interview that could possibly get him hired for several different agencies in the area. HE PASSED! He is still exhausted and sore, but he passed. He said it was so hard, but he kept going becuase he couldn't stand the idea of coming home and telling Eli he had failed. :) That is the greatest thing I have ever heard.

Oh YAH!!

Okay, third class down. I got another A. I was actually scared about this one. This was the first class where My team and I had to write a 15 page paper. Yikes. That still sounds like a lot. Off to do homework.

Daddy's gone a-huntin'

Mike took the kids out hiking. Well, he wanted to take them fishing, but none of them were in the mood so I suggested hiking. For a man who bleeds fish, that wasn't a good suggestion. oops. He is a good daddy though. He took them hiking after they fished for a bit. They each caught a "walter" (a big fish) and went looking for antlers. I am new to this whole outdoor life, but don't the deer need those antlers? Strange. Even stranger, my husband said he got a tag to hunt a swan and he wants to eat it for Thanksgiving dinner. :/

quote from this article. Milk Campaign Hits 200th Moustache

Milk is not a sexy drink. Despite its fun, Freudian calling-card (the milk moustache), moo juice simply doesn't have the social cachet of coffee or bottled water.
Maybe it's a matter of bad public relations. Maybe it's because milk strives for immortality by turning into cheese after a few months in the fridge. Or maybe it's simply because milk is a maternal lactating secretion, something that's hardly, um, titillating.

What's this picture saying?

So I ran across some really great pictures that I feel need commentaries. Feel free to add your own. This one says to me, "Liar. He is such a liar. The mammas can always tell. Silly boy."

is there a term for sermon lifting? well, i am doing it.

So my brother..you know the one our Pastor spooned with ( great story, really, but for another time) gave a speech at his church in Vegas. I think of it regularly, mostly because I felt God calling me to share it with our congregation and I ignored him... :/ I know, I am a slacker. Whatever. I have asked for forgiveness for being a loser and God was willing to let it go because he is cool like that. ANYHOO. Here is what he said:
Predetors hunt their pray in the same way the devil tries to pick us off: he looks for the loners, the rebels, Dotty. (okay I added that last part in myself). As a congregation we are a herd, gaggle, murder- you choose the animal grouping of your liking. When we are scattered or operating on our own, (ie not attending church, not tithing, not praying for our church and leaders, etc.) we are living like those animals hanging out down at the watering hole on our own. After his short analogy he had everyone look around and notice the loners in the back of the church and the wanderers. He pointed out the seats left open between families (gaps in the herd). Then he made everyone get up out of their seats and everyone had to fill in the center seats in the sanctuary. He even had them face outwardly a bit. "Mess with that," he said, mostly to the devil. It is much more powerful to witness a church of 1000 or so on Sunday morning cramming into a defensive circle in the middle of the sanctuary, but you get the idea. This is definitely where God is calling our church. We may not be up to a 1000 members, but the Bible is clear that numbers aren't necesary. If one of us can put a 1000 to flight. Then two of us can send a legion fleeing. Pray, even if you can't make it on Sunday night. Pray with your family before you tuck them in. Then choose to be part of the pack and pray for God's intercession. PS this is not an invitation for ANY of our worship teams to begin singing this song. PLEASE!!

Daddy's boy

If my husband weren't so great I would be frightened by how much my son wants to be like him. He copies everything. A week or so ago, Mike stubbed his toe on the baby's bouncy seat and thought he broke it. All is well, but the rest of the week Elijah limped and threatened the girls if they got near his "broken toe." Moms have it hard. We have a lot of molding, reaffirming, complimenting and more to do with our kiddos. But you daddies....you are the ones who make the biggest difference. Don't blow it. (That is the encouraging word of the day from shontell lol)

This would have been me. Well, maybe my hair would be a little fro-ee-er, but I would have had no problem blending nicely with the 60s: flowers, bra burnings, Woodstock. And my husband, he would have been right next to me tunic wearing, cigarette smokin', fingers forever in the peace position. Only I would have been Joan Baez before she was Joan Baez. I heard a song on the radio today on my way home from my friend No(dot dot)el's house called "I Wish I Was a Punk Rocker." I can't begin to say how many times I have literally said some of the very same phrases from this song.
Oh I wish I was a punk rocker with flowers in my hair
In 77 and 69 revolution was in the air
I was born too late into a world that doesn't care
Oh I wish I was a punk rocker with flowers in my hair
I have always said I was born too late. Funny how God works, but dh and I have always said we should have been born twenty-ish years earlier. We would have made the best hippies ever!

TWO IN A ROW

GIMME AN A!! i just finished class number two (Baby steps onto the bus. Baby steps onto the bus. "Bob, do you think you could hurry, we have a baby schedule to keep?" I know that Wing.) I just completed Humanities 100. A crazy class on the humanities ranging from prehistoric man through Islamic/ Christian eras.This picture is of the Dome of the Rock: thought ot be the site Abraham almost sacrificed Isaac. Sometime in the Middle Ages, Islam created this shrine. It really is an amazing piece of architecture. Very interesting stuff. I got an A and to celebrate, I am going to take a shower!

irritated

I am not overly sure why I am annoyed at life today. Anyone have that feeling ever? And to top it off, the only thing I can think of to do is schoolwork...which I am no longer doing on Sundays. When is Sunday over? Does the Sabbath end at sundown like the rest of those Jewish days? I am stressing about my work. Does that mean I shouold have raised my hand during question time at church today? ::sigh::