Happy 3rd Birthday, Kyle!

Click here to view Kyle's slideshow!

Happy birthday to my youngest boy, Kyle. When I found out I was having my third boy, and I saw you on the little screen, I knew you were my Kyle James. Many people asked me if I was secretly hoping you were gonna be a girl. But once I saw you, your little heart beating, I knew I would be disappointed if anything other than my little Kyle surprised me. I couldn't wait till the day you came. The day you were born, I noticed your little chin which is just like your dad's. Your cry was so loud, I knew you were gonna be my loud talker that I would have to always quiet in hush restaurants. You proved me right and that's why we call you our "street preacher". Thank you for your sweet kisses in the morning, little giggles in the daytime, and your thoughtful prayers at night. Every day you make me laugh and give me a story to tell others. Happy 3rd birthday, Kyle! I love you!

Building the House 1

I just have one word to say about my house getting built. F-I-N-A-L-L-Y! We have waited a year! Here is the first step. They grated the dirt, put in rebarb, and are getting ready to pour cement for the foundation. It was just the city that was holding things up with the permits. So nice to see something happening. I was about to call the City and ask if they went on an African Safari and forgot to come back.

Wordless Wednesday (Halloween 2003)

Pilates and Further Means of Torture

After I waved goodbye to 2 school buses this morning, I headed straight for my Pilates Class. If you don't know what Pilates is just think of a form of abdominal torture. But they put nice music with it to make you think it's relaxing. So, as I'm doing crunches, I'm thinking about all the things I could be doing right now rather than trying to improve my figure. Like eating a Big Mac with Jalepenos. After about a half hour of blood, sweat, and (almost) tears, I get called to go change Ivy's diaper. Yay! So I escaped for 5 minutes for a blissful diaper changing moment in the bathroom. Trust me, it was a nice vacation. I drug myself back into the class for another half hour. When it was done I was starting to yawn as I always do when I work out hard. You would think that Pilates was enough for me but, oh no, it's not. I headed straight next door to the Strength Endurance class for another hour. By this time my yawns were coming every few minutes. I drug myself to the weights and tried to find the smallest ones. Dang. I couldn't get 2 pounders, I had to go for 5. I was hoping to get off really easy today. When I saw who my instructor was, my shoulders sank because she's like the bootcamp lady. Her name is Chinnaz. Man, she's hard and she doesn't let you get away with anything. Not even bad posture. After about 40 minutes, I was starting to yawn so much I decided I had to go get some coffee before drill instructor Chinnaz seeks me out. I was afraid she'd make me drop and give her 50 pushups. I snuck out, got my coffee and relished it sitting down. When I first started this class, I asked a lady what kind of intensity it was. She said, "Oh it's not a high intensity class." Well, she lied. So, there is my Monday Morning routine. After 2 hours of that, I relax by cleaning the house, washing dishes, and doing laundry. :) Exciting, Yeah?! That's what I think too.

Nursery Duties

Here is a cute slideshow. These are great pics of the night my friends and I had nursery in church. And to think I was too scared to do nursery when I was a teen.... this side of the nursery is just babies. The fun loving toddlers are over behind the next wall. Luckily...I am on the safe side. Whee!

Congrats Destiny!

My friend Destiny and her husband Ben have been wanting a child for 15 years. She finally got her first little baby and it was a miracle she did so well being she was born really early. She's a precious little angel. Congratulations Ben and Destiny! :o)

Pajamas and Hugs

They were being so cute in their pajamas so I had to take a picture! They were being so silly and up past their bedtime. They kept wrestling and this is the most calm I could get them. :o)



Later after prayers and kisses, I decide to check up on them. I checked on Kyle first and noticed his bed was empty! I was like, "oh no"! So I look and....

There he is!!! He snuck next to Ryan and they slept side by side. How cute!

Check out this awesome video!

Make sure you turn off my music on the sidebar before you watch this. It's short but awesome.

Go ahead! Draw on me! You've been waiting to make me look funny for months!

Click Here to get this from FreeFlashToys.com!

Too Much Info!

My friend Donna sent this to me. You can look up your birthday and see all that went on the year that you were born. Even the popular songs that year.

"Okay these are the celebrities that share my birthday."

Daryl Sabara (1992) Lucy Hale (1989) Steffi Graf (1969)
Yasmine Bleeth (1968) Boy George (1961) Donald Trump (1946)
Jerzy Kosinski (1933) Marla Gibbs (1931) Pierre Salinger (1925)
Burl Ives (1909) Harriet Beecher Stowe (1811)


"Okay guys, this is me to the bone! Holy cow."
My personality
Very strong, a bit self-willed, independent, does not allow contradiction or arguments, loves life, its family, children and animals, a bit of a butterfly, good sense of humour, likes idleness and laziness, of practical talent and intelligence

Top songs of 1979

My Sharona by The Knack Bad Girls by Donna Summer
Da Ya Think I'm Sexy? by Rod Stewart Reunited by Peaches & Herb
Hot Stuff by Donna Summer I Will Survive by Gloria Gaynor
Escape (The Pina Colada Song) by Rupert Holmes Ring My Bell by Anita Ward
Babe by Styx Too Much Heaven by Bee Gees

Your age is the equivalent of a dog that is 3.8880626223092 years old.


you are very loving, friendly, and appreciative of others. You have a depth of understanding that produces much sympathetic, kindness, and generosity. The qualities of the 6 make the finest and most concerned parent and one often deeply involved in domestic activities. Openness and honesty is apparent in your approach to all relationships. you are very fond of reading, and retreating to periods of being alone and away from the disruptions of the outer world. You like to dream and develop you idealistic understandings, to study and analyze, to gain knowledge and wisdom. You dream of success in the business or political world, of power and control of large material endeavors. You crave authority and recognition of executive skills. Your secret self may have very strong desire to become an entrepreneur.

"Phew! Okay, I think that's it! Now wasn't that interesting? Hello? ..... wake up...I'm done now. Stop drooling on the keyboard. Sigh, I know, that was boring. Have a good day!"

Click Here to get this from FreeFlashToys.com!

Thursday Thirteen #6

Thirteen Things I love about Charles, my Husband.


1. He found me and married me! How could I have been so lucky?

2. He understands me better than anyone. That man has some serious patience.

3. He loves to just walk around the mall with his family and chill even if we don't buy anything.

4. He is never embarrassed to pick up his little girl and talk sweet to her in front of his friends.

5. He had sisters and a mom so he knows that when I'm having a hard day and I'm a little on the snappy side how to cheer me up.

6. He picked me to be the mother of his children. That's amazing!

7. He brings me coffee on Sunday mornings so it would be easier for me to get up and get ready for church. He knows I'm not a morning person.

8. He surprises me with flowers and candy bars without having to have a reason.

9. He is just like me! Believe me, that is hard to find. When you find someone that thinks like you, believes like you, likes the same things as you, it's just a miracle.

10. He loves to take me clothes shopping and doesn't complain one bit. When we walk past my favorite store in the mall (Charlotte Russe) he always asks me if I want to go in there and look around.

11. He is a neat nik. But not to the point that it's annoying. It makes my cleaning life a little easier.

12. He will watch the kids anytime so I can have a girls night whenever I need it.

13. He will bring me tea and draw me a bath when I am stressed out. :)




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Tribute to JonBenet Ramsey

What a beautiful little girl. Although I am not a big fan of pagents, my cousin was raised in that most of her life, JonBenet was a cute little girl and very talented. I thought I would show this video as a tribute to her since this is the subject in the news right now. She is a precious little angel in Heaven right now. You might have to turn off my music on the right in order to hear the music on here playing.

Ivy Running

This is a cute video of Ivy running. No, she didn't run into the pole. It just looks like it. LOL!

Celebrating with Nana and Papa

After our Saturday night church concert, we headed to McDonalds to celebrate the boy's birthday with my parents. They got pajamas, books, and clothes from Mervyns! It was great and we had a good time! Here are some pics. My 6 year old, Chaz, loves taking pictures so he kept taking pictures of me and the kids! Funny, but he's actually really good with the camera!

Boy's Party

If you cannot view slide show on this site
Click here.
We went to Charles' parents house for a little party for the boys. As some of my friends know, my boy's birthdays are all in August. So we went to their grandparents house to get their birthday bikes, superhero watches, superhero costumes. We had a good time and tonight I'll be going to my parents house to celebrate with them and open gifts. The boys are truly blessed! I know it seems that we are having a lot of parties around here but it's because all of my kids birthdays are 2 weeks apart. In 2 weeks, it'll be Kyle's 3rd birthday so it's like having one long fiesta here!

Ryan's First Day of Kindergarten

This is my first chance to tell you about Ryan's first day of kindergarden. He was so excited about it and when I woke him up on Monday morning, he was just beaming with joy. He was looking forward to his teacher who is so incredibly nice, eating with other kids, playing on the playground, and all the fun learning stuff. He just loves being around other kids. This whole week Ryan has just come home so happy. Ryan's teacher is awesome. Ryan had already lost his backpack so when his teacher saw that, she got him an awesome Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles backpack. Ryan came home today so excited about it. His daddy took him to his first day of school. Charles did that with Chaz also. Here are some pics.

* Chaz started his day on Wednesday after I had a 2 hour meeting with all the teachers. We had to discuss Chaz's IEP plan for this year. Chaz is gonna get some great help in areas he really needs such as in the social arena. They are gonna teach him how to be around other people. Also with speech therapy. He comes home with points everyday and I have to review the information and sign the paper every day. He gets his own bus right to our door. There are only 2 schools in the district that offer this class so I feel so blessed. Chaz is finally getting the help he needs with people who are trained to do it. Even better, he has a older guy teacher who's assistant is his own wife and they work great together. I checked out the school online to see it's rating and I was so happy to see that they rated at the top, "Excelling".

Tahoe or Pinto?

Oh my gosh this is so funny! I'm not into driving suburbans and all unless you need all that room but, geesh, driving a tiny car is dangerous! It's funny when you see these big guys fitting into these tiny little economy sized cars. Too funny!

Diaper Genie

For the sake of modesty I cut out part of the picture! Ivy has this habit of ripping off the velcro strips of her diaper on each side at the same time and in one fast shot, ripping the whole diaper off. She's fast too. This is what she does often. The other day she did it on Sunday before church but it was poopie. Yes. Niiiice. So, after I quickly bathed her, I put on her clothes right away so she won't be able to get to her diaper again. She gets upset when she's wearing pants because she can't take off her diaper and hold it in the air like she is doing here. That's a new diaper in the pic so it's not as if I didn't change her! She's so funny!

Thursday Thirteen #5

Thirteen Responses To Silly Questions I've Endured



*Please remember that I've shared these with you in light humor. I don't mind any question I get from anyone as long as it's not rude. All of the responses are said politely and some with good humor! Never upset. :) I am just learning to get creative since I hear them so much. Hee, hee...

1. (About having children) "Did you know there are ways to prevent this?" My response: "Oh my gosh, they came out with little pills to stop pregnancy? You're kidding me! Wow! I never knew!

2. (To someone saying "My, you have your hands full"), I say back "Ohhh... Not quite sister"! That doesn't mean I'm having any more kids, I just love saying that.

3. "Are they all yours?" My response, "No, I just love the neighbor's kids so much I can't help but take them with me every where I go. I even take them home and feed them to."

4. "Did you plan their birthday to be 2 weeks apart". My response: "Oh yes, carefully planned! Somehow I just happen to conceive at the right moment every single time and I got lucky that they came out when I told them to!"

5. "Now that you have your girl, are you done?" My response: "I'll have to think about that one. I haven't turned the oven off yet. I'll think about it when I'm about 50."

6. "You spank your kids?" My response: "Yes I do, gladly, so I don't have little Hitlers running around trying to rule the world."

7. "My you have a lot of kids, do you know what causes that?" My response: "No!! Do you? I've been going around asking everyone and people just run away from me. I've been wondering why!"

8. "Maybe since you have so many kids, you just need to get a TV". My response: "I don't have a TV. I don't need to watch other people having a life. I like getting out and having one of my own."

9. (I was asked by someone today while walking into McDonalds), "You have four kids? Do you believe in big families? I said, "If you can handle 'em, then feel free to have them. Otherwise, don't have them."

10. "Don't you know how much those kids are gonna cost you?" My response: "Yes, and that's why my husband has a good career. You don't have to give your kids their every wish and desire. Let them know that their wish is not your every command." That's the beautiful thing about having a career, if you lose your job, it's easy to get another in that field.

11. "Don't you know that people should only have 2 kids?" My response: "Sir, do you believe in the bible? You do? Okay, all over the bible, it says children are an inheritance from the Lord and a blessing. If it ain't against God, it can't be too bad for you. The day I care about how the world approves of me is the day I start to get grimy in it."

12. "My, you're young! Are you like 18 living with your mom having kids?" My response: "Gasp! How did you guess?"

13. "What are you gonna do when your kids go to school this year?" My response: "CLEAN, CLEAN, CLEAN!!!!" LOL!


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Ryan's Mini Party!

As some of my friends know, all of my kids birthdays are 2 weeks apart in the order of Ivy, Chaz, Ryan, and then Kyle. Well, today was Ryan's turn and this year I decided to hold little mini party's between just us. On Friday, we will go to Charles' parents house where they will get their big surprise. Batman Bikes! Anyhow, that'll be fun!





*I took Ryan with me to pick out his birthday cake. He was excited about this one and watched the lady write his name on it. He thought that was so cool!


*He's been waiting for this Stars Wars gun for awhile. Chaz has the other one. He was so proud of it and happy we got it.


*Ryan's is beaming with happiness. See? Kids don't have to be shower with hundreds of gifts to have a great birthday! That was my point this year. I don't want them to just expect things. We change it from year to year. Sometimes it's big birthdays, sometimes small. :)


*They are all posing for us. I guess maybe so we would know how well they can defend their country. Hee, hee... they tell me they are protecting us from the terrorists.

Happy 5th Birthday, Ryan!

Click Here to View Ryan's Slideshow!

Happy birthday to my second son who is a delight to my life. My angel. He makes life look easy to ride every day with his smiles and laughter. He is such a giver, even when it hurts, and a hugger, when he knows your sad. Ryan is the child that makes parenting so incredibly easy but he also has a heart that breaks so quickly. A heart you have to protect. Ryan is the one who will give something to you he loves, just because you say you love it too. He is alway using his own Chuck E. Cheese tokens to put into other kids rides who don't have any. He makes my days so delightful and makes my heart swell with pride. In the morning, he wakes up with a smile and a kiss and lays down at night with such sweet and thoughtful prayers. How could I have even been so lucky to be blessed with such a son? God blessed me with you. I love you Ryan!

Wordless Wednesdays (Guy Time With Daddy)

How could I really, honestly be able to be wordless on my son's birthday? I still did this pic but I had to do a birthday blog for my son too. I love Wordless Wednesdays! :)

Shots, Tears, and Cookies

*Kyle having his cup of coffee in the morning.
Well, I am in the middle of switching doctors for my kids and switching insurance so we are currently uninsured in the health department. I don't care about myself, just at least for my kids. I wasn't too happy with my last doctor since he was no help with Chaz so I'm making a switch. So, I found a mall today that lets you get immunizations there so I had to get the boys and Ivy caught up on them. First, I forgot the stroller so I had to walk in the mall with Ivy on my hip and the 3 boys walking beside me. When I got in there, I had to fill out all the paperwork with my hands full. No way was I gonna let Ivy wander off. Then I finally got in and had to hold 3 of my kids down for their shots. After Chaz's shot, he kept posing like the hulk and telling everyone that would listen that he was brave and mighty. So, he kept stopping to show people his muscles wherever we went. Ryan cried for the next 2 hours how the people were mean and he shouldn't have got shots. Ivy had it the worst because she had to have 4 shots. It was not easy holding her since I couldn't touch her arms and legs! Since there was a costco in the mall, I went in there and told them I'd get them all a cookie. After we made our rounds of tasty samples all over the store, they got some big, fat chocolate chip cookies. Then we left. It was a crazy day for other reasons but I'll share later when I can add some pictures!!! Ryan's had an interesting first couple days of Kindergarten. Chaz's first grade starts tomorrow. I hope his day starts better than Ryans did! Hee, hee.... I'll share later. :)

Twins?

OH my gosh. In that last picture, I look like my dad. Little lips and big eyes. What a trip.

Haircuts... Such Harshness

I decided that when the boys were little I would be the one to cut their hair. I used to take them to a barber until we had the 3rd boy. Then I was like, "man, what a waste of money." So, I had to buy a shaver set, which got stolen right away along with my expensive photographers camera. Then I bought another shaver set. I sat the boys down and just learned from there. Years later, wha-la, they got some pretty groovy lookin' cuts. They look good. I like the really clean cut look. After years of tears and crying, they're finally getting to the point where they just groan about it. At first, it was outright screaming, then finally just crying, then to moaning about it. At first they would cry so hard, their head would get sweaty and since I took so long doing it, we would all be exhausted after it was all over. Now, they take it like little men and stopped all the fussing. I just have to hear "are you done yet" every 30 seconds. Here in the picture I'm wearing my hair cutting apron and posing with my little underwear clad Ryan right before his shower. I was like, "you look good, lets get a picture".

Darn codes (& info of my sister's site)

You know, the tag on the side of my webpage, right above the real player, is messed up. Just in case someone thinks I don't know. I just don't feel like fixing it. Arrgh! Anyhow, I've been fixing my sister's template for her website and so I need to get off the computer and fix other things. I have to write to you later about Ryan's first day of school! :) Oh, You guys have got to click here to see my sister's site! She shows a picture of a mall in Capetown, South Africa. The food court is 3 floors. She told me the rich people built it there but of course the poor can't shop there. The prices are very high there. You could go to Children's place here and buy 4 pairs of flip flops for only $10. In South Africa, you can buy 4 pairs of flip flops at Children's Place for $80. Big difference!

Up For Shopping?

I'm at it again on google earth. I just had to show you the little market place I found in Rwanda. It's just so neat to see other cultures. Here's a wider shot from higher up. You can see people milling about.


Here are some great dishes in case you want to order some. Oh wait, I don't think you can order via internet. Hee, hee.. But they're neat to see anyway!


Up for shoe shopping? Brianne, cool your jets. I know you can get excited at the site of shoes but this is Rwanda, you can't go shopping here. This isn't anywhere nearby. Ha! Just kidding, Brianne! (Brianne is my best friend.)

Live Webcam!

This is so AWESOME!!!!!
I was checking out google earth, which is my absolute favorite way to travel. Cheaper that way. I was checking out Israel and then I went to the wailing wall. I discovered a live webcam of people at the wailing wall praying. You don't have to refresh to keep getting a new picture. Just as the minute changes, you'll automatically see a the current shot. It's so awesome. Just click here to see the live feed. I also was checking out Rwanda and I got to look real close at an outdoor market place. It was neat to see what they were selling. Stuff, like bikes, tires for bikes, shoes, rugs, clothes. It was so cool. You could even see a couple of guys looking up to see the plane overhead. You know, I've always wanted to travel, but this is definitely cheaper, safer, and more time efficient. Ha!

Sweet Moments

Do you ever get those days where your kids are just enemies of each other? They will fight over who gets to go to the bathroom first, or who has the blue cereal bowl, or who's got the better fork, etc? I get a day like that every now and then and that's when I break out my tea set and sip on tea to calm down. British people must be stressed because they drink a lot of tea. Well, it works for me. Then there are those days where everyone is practically singing the song, "Kumbayah" and holding hands. Here are some pics of those kinds of days.

This is so sweet. I walked into the kitchen, and before I could trip over everybody, I looked down and saw that they had put a pillow on the floor for all of them and got a blanket. The boys laid Ivy down next to them, gave her the bottle she had, and they just all snuggled. I was like, "wait! Let me go get my camera... ooh!"

I had Ivy sitting next to me while I was on the computer. Chaz got some blankets and tucked Ivy in so she could go to sleep. And she did! It was such a sweet gesture.

The next day I turned around to see who was playing the piano and I noticed that Ryan was holding Ivy up so she could play the piano. He held her up for a long time until he couldn't hold her anymore.

Great Comments!

I am overwhelmed by all the comments and completely loving it! I've had people say, "I'm not sure about wanting kids now", or "I know exactly how you feel", or "I look forward to having more children". I love it when moms connect and we discover how much we really have in common. It's great!! I realize, I'm not the only one that has to have scheduled meetings with the bathroom just to be able to go! I discovered that other moms go through a lot of the same stuff I do. It was great and I am so grateful for you sharing. :) Maybe I'm not so crazy after all! Hee, hee...

Thursday Thirteen #4

Thirteen Things I get to do Once School Starts(I have 2 going to school and 2, thankfully, still at home)

Authors Note: This is not meant to be an insult for anyone that has less than 4 children. Back when I had two children, that was hard for me because I didn't have more. But now that I've gotten used to 4 kids, taking care of only 2 in the day is like having a party. So, hopefully you'll understand!

1. First and foremost, I get to go potty. I'm telling you, sometimes I just hold it for the longest time. If you are single and childless, just relish your quiet potty times. They will soon turn into scheduled meetings. You're just hoping you can get in around noon time and dinner time. Then as soon as you get in, you'll usually hear a "crash". That's when the meeting is over.

2. I get to read the paper. I order the paper, but it always sits there on my patio because I've made a pact with myself that I will not read the paper until I've read my bible. By the time I've had my coffee and bible time, I don't have much time for paper reading. It's okay, I already know what's gonna happen in the paper because the bible already said. :) Hee, hee...

3. I get to make a phone call with only minimal noise in the background. Right now, as soon as the phone rings, for some unforeseen reason, the boys have an emergency they need resolved right then and there. It's like the phone is the ringing bell for the boy's boxing gloves to come out.

4. I get to go to my boys' school activities and events while they are still too little to be embarrassed by me! Whoo hoo!

5. I get to make my bed before noon.

6. I get to sit down and spend some personal time with my 2 younger ones in the earlier hours and then when the 2 older ones come home, I get to do homework with them and spend some time hearing about their day.

7. I get to clean the house quicker without constantly losing my train of thought and forgetting what I was just doing because I had to rescue someone from something. (Like Kyle climbing out of the bedroom window, or Ivy crawling inside of my cupboards, etc.)

8. I can go to appointments without having everyone ask me, "Are they all yours?" When you only have two, the world considers you normal. When you have 3 or more, people start wondering why you are excessively populating the world. Then they proceed to ask what kind of birth control you're on. Yes, people can be very bold. I can be bold back though. Ask my friend Becky.

9. I can maybe paint my toe nails? I don't know, maybe even curl my hair? I do dress nice at home all the time for my husband, but he tells me he likes it when I paint my toe nails. That's nice. Maybe I'll even have time to paint a bunny rabbit on it too. Just kidding. I had a detention teacher that would do that for us once. Everyone loved to get detention. She was eventually fired.

10. I can go back to playing jokes on telemarketers. I used to love to scare them or trick them into believing stuff. Then they would get really quiet. Sometimes if they don't quit, I just give the phone to my kid and he'll just talk their ear off till they hang up. Better yet, I would witness to some and tell them about Christ. I don't get as many telemarketers anymore.

11. I get to keep my house cleaner for longer than 10 seconds. Can you imagine. I could actually go potty, come back, and see that the floor is still kind of clean. That'll be weird.

12. I get to take my two little ones and go back to Kids Club where we all make our kids sit down and watch the funny lady get up their and dance and sing. Eventually, my kids will get up and get into it. Persephone is amazing at what she does. It's a great place to meet moms, and laugh at the funny lady.

13. I get to go grocery shopping without having to have two kids on either side of the cart and two kids sitting in the cart. Then there is no room to actually put food in the cart. By the time I get to the checkout lane, the bread is smashed and someone ate the crackers.



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Wordless Wednesday

My Mom and I

You know, I got a mom too, and she has one too. Some day I wonder what my own grandchild would be like. Would I be accepted as a grandma that could take the child for a day? Maybe with Ivy's kids, but I wonder with my sons, what their wives will be like. Will they be the type that don't trust me? Or think my ways are too old fashion? Will they think I'm not smart enough to know all the tips and tricks? Makes you wonder. I think about how when I was a teen, I thought my parents were so outdated and knew almost nothing! I thought it was my job to inform them how things work! Funny... now as a parent, a young parent at that, I see how with age comes wisdom. By the time I am 34, I will have a teenager. Though in my eyes, I will still be young, my child will think I am so outdated and know nothing about the real world! My gosh. My poor parents. hee, hee... at one point, they thought the same of their parents. The cycle continues...

More of Joseph and Rachel's Wedding

Donna is an amazing photographer. She just started by taking pictures for people in the church and she went and bought a nice camera. Her talent over the years has obviously grown. I actually went out and bought the same camera a few years back but it was stolen right away. Anyhow, I love these pictures!

Birthday Blessings

Chaz got a belated birthday card from his great grandma yesterday. Actually, that was his second card from her being that she had sent him an ecard on his birthday. He was excited to get it in the mail! Along with it was a money gift so he kept asking us if he could go buy a game. We said sure as long as it had a kid rating. We headed to the mall and as daddy took him to the store, I headed into my sister's store, New York & Company, where she works and visited her a while. That mall has a lot of memories for me because I used to work there as a teen. I worked at an amusement park, JCPenney's, Cinnabon, and Souper Salad at different stages of my teen life. It was a lot of fun and I have a lot of good memories. Anyhow, it's not my favorite mall anymore because it's getting a little run down now so that's sad. It's become more of a hang out scene. I realized in this picture that Chaz had just had more birthday cake so that's what is on his face! Soon is the party for all my kids' birthday but with just family, otherwise we would fill the whole pizza place!! LOL!

Cape Town Where My Sister Lives

Kids in the townships of Cape Town, South Africa.
Women preparing Cooked Chicken.

Cape Town, South Africa is where my sister and her family live as missionaries. Click here to view more great pictures of Cape Town as you're flying in, the townships, stores, prison, the oceans aquarium, and more.. Great site.

The Price Of Children

My son Kyle as a newborn

This is just too good not to pass on to all. Something absolutely positive for a change. I have repeatedly seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time I have seen the rewards listed this way. It's nice.

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140.00 for a middle income family. Talk about price shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition.

But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:

* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month, or
* $171.08 a week.
* That's a mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.

Still, you might think the best financial advice is don't have children if you want to be "rich." Actually, it is just the opposite.

What do you get for your $160,140.00?

* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold, usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles and flying kites.
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140.00, you never have to grow up. You get to:

* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs, and
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.

You have an excuse to:

* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watch Saturday morning cartoons,
* go to Disney movies, and
* wish on stars.
* You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect! spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.


For a mere $24.24 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:

* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the:

* first step,
* first word,
* first bra,
* first date, and
* first time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match.

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, so one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren & great-grandchildren !!!!!!!

It's the best investment you'll make!

Hangin' at the Mall

After the sunday morning wedding and service, we hung out at the mall so that we don't have to drive all the way home. We walked around and let them play in the little playcenter. Here, Chaz and Ryan and petting the little bunny in the pet store.










Ivy is mad at her daddy here! She wanted a drink of his soda and he said no, even though she has her own cup. So she was turning away from him. Funny!

Another Wedding!!!

My gosh guys! I've never felt like the Jolly Green Giant until I stood next to my friend yesterday. She had an amazing testimony!! It was awesome. She talk about how she was a cheerleader in high school and hung out with the wrong crowd. She began to get involved in things she knew was wrong. She repented and came back to church, told her boyfriend it was over because she wanted to live for God. Her boyfriend came to church and got saved. He has been living for God and yesterday they got married! There was a lot of visitors and the bride and groom were excited because their family got to hear the Word of God being preached. It was a great wedding.

Adam and Eve Joke

Hee, hee... Funny!