Merry Christmas!

I got this version of White Christmas and had to share it, too. Enjoy!!

http://www.mesasoftware.com/merrychristmas.htm

Teenage Rules

As of yet, we don't have any teenagers living with us...some of our kids THINK they are teenagers, but they really aren't. But I found these rules for teenagers that I thought were great and had to share them. And when my children do become age appropriate, you better believe we will have these posted in our house. :)

Teenage RulesRaising teenagers is a challenge. The following rules are to help kids understand what is expected of them during their pre-adult status.

Rules of This Household

1. If you are not here for dinner, too bad. This is not a fast-foodplace where the cook is on duty at all times. The cook works full time and does not need a second job.

2. If you make a mess, clean it up. The dishwasher is open 24 hours a day to service you as are the vacuum, broom, and sponge. Please help them to help you by using them. If you need assistance, ask the cook -- she will be happy to give you training on any of the equipment.

3. The taxi service for this household is not on call 24 hours. You must make reservations at least 12 hours in advance. You have two good legs, skateboards, and bikes that are somewhat operational; one of you has a vehicle that works. Use them. By the way, skateboards are to be used on the outside of this house and are never to be used in the living room just because the landing is softer when you fall.

4. We are not a bank and you have no collateral to offer us. Face it: We own everything you have and I have receipts to prove it, so don't ask us for loans. Get jobs! We have them. Try it and you might like it (not so much the work as the money).

5. Curfew is negotiable, but try not to be late too often because it could go either way.

6. Tell us where you are going. GOOD GRIEF! I am way older than you, and I still tell my mother where I am going when I am at her house. Leave us a note or try to form words describing where you are going while we are in the room with you. Honestly, we don't bite unless provoked.

7. You know how to use a phone. Some of you even have cell phones. We like to hear your voice if you are going to be late. You can use a phone to find out what's for dinner, to let us know you made it to wherever all right, or just to let us hear your beautiful voice.

8. No food in your room, the living room, the bathroom, or anywhere in the house other than the kitchen or dining area EVER! How many times do I have to say this?

9. You do not contribute financially in any way, shape, or form to this household, so try to pull your weight in otherways: Clean something, put something away, surprise us by doing it before we ask. Otherwise, you may find yourself financially supporting yourself on the OUTSIDE of this house.

Season's Greetings!!

Wow!! I love this time of year. I am even learning to enjoy the season without snow. But I love that everyone is thinking more about others and there is just a different feeling in the air.

Here are some new quotes I'd like to share:

Tomorrow is often the busiest day of the year.
— Spanish proverb

Whenever God closes one door He always opens another — even though sometimes it's hell in the hallway!

You must be the change you wish to see in the world.
— Mohandas Gandhi

Success is more a function of consistent common sense than it is of genius.
— An Wang

There are no miracles for those that have no faith in them.
— French proverb

Happy Thanksgiving!

Our family would like to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!!

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.
— John Fitzgerald Kennedy

We must be willing to get rid of the life we’ve planned, so as to have the life that is waiting for us.
— Joseph Campbell

Happy Halloween!

Here are some pictures from our Halloween week. I set up a 'photo area' in our office to take some pictures of the kids. Zack LOVED it!!! He kept getting up on the table begging me to take his picture. What a cutie!! We had fun going Trick-or-Treating in our neighborhood and the kids got a TON of candy. Awesome!!

I went as an old dirty prisoner.

Zack was Woody from the Toy Story movies.

McKayLeigh was a butterfly princess.

Ben was a 'Hockey Fan'.

Halloween Dinner

I tried my hand at making Halloween Mummy-Dogs. The kids were a little uneasy about eating them, although they thought they were cute. They were fun to make.

Happy Halloween!

Here are my two little ghost Trick-or-Treaters that I made for our yard for Halloween. The kids wouldn't let me draw scary faces on them, so they are Happy Ghosts. They love them, but KayLeigh keeps asking why they are outside and not inside. (They were waiting to go outside for so long, she just thought they were inside decorations.) I tried to get the kids to enjoy a 'family project' when we were doing the paper mache' heads, but they HATED it and hope we never EVER do that kind of project again.

Food Storage?

The other day McKayLeigh was supposed to be napping. She obviously wasn't. She decided to play with the bottles of juice we have in our food storage. It was such a site to see. The things kids find interesting to play with!

Future Engineers

This is a great clip about future engineers. The sound really doesn't matter...it is not in English. But it is still great!

Little Girl and the Claw Machine

This is the funniest thing I have seen in a while. I was laughing so hard. Enjoy!

First Day of School 2008

Today was the first day of school for Ben and Zack. Ben started 2nd grade and Zack started preschool. McKayLeigh had her first day without her brothers. They all enjoyed their first day...and so did I. We took some pictures and of course KayLeigh had to be in some, too.

Of course, Zack was wore out and this is him AFTER the first day of school. He came home and crashed on the couch for about an hour. Poor thing!

Happy Birthday, Zack!

Today is Zack's 4th Birthday! He was so excited to finally have it come. And he really is enjoying saying he is 4 now. For a while he wanted to be 2 again. He got some new "Beat That!" (Hotwheels) toys, which he LOVES! Plus, he got a dry-erase board which he loves, too. He can't wait to go somewhere in the car because he knows he can take it with him and do it on the way. Cute! And, in other Zack news, he will be starting preschool at the First Choice Learning Center on the 18th. He is so excited for that, as well. It is the first day back for Ben, too. Yeah! We've had a great summer, but it is time for school to start again!

Oh...by the way...Adam and I celebrated our 9th Anniversary yesterday. And I use the word 'celebrated' lightly. We said Happy Anniversary to each other and I made brownies for us to have after dinner because they sounded good and my kids don't like them anyway. So...another year together and it is the BEST! I really have married an AWESOME man! I love him so much!

What's Good For the Goose...

There's that old saying that came to mind when I saw KayLeigh with Shasta's dog bowl today. You know the one...what's good for the goose is good for the gander. It kind of applies here. I had to just laugh.

Just a Thought...or two!

I have been getting a daily thought email for the past while and I have been saving my favorites to post here. I finally got to it, so here it goes....some of my favorite recent thoughts:

Whenever you see darkness, there is extraordinary opportunity for the light to burn brighter.
— Bono

Love is not blind — it sees more, not less. But because it sees more, it is willing to see less.
— Rabbi Julius Gordon

Remember always that you not only have the right to be an individual, you have an obligation to be one.
— Eleanor Roosevelt

It's not what you look at that matters, it's what you see.
— Henry David Thoreau

Every day may not be good, but there's something good in every day.
— Anonymous

Shasta!

Okay...we have gone and done it. We have moved up a phase (or across, however you want to look at it) in this 'game of life'! We have added a puppy to our family. Her name is Shasta and is 12 weeks old. The kids absolutely adore her. We were at the animal shelter just browsing and thinking about adopting a dog and a man brought in 3 puppies to donate that he couldn't keep. Well, we went outside to look at them and ended up taking one before he gave the rest over to the animal shelter. So she ended up being free, which is GREAT! She seems to be a terrier mix of some sort. But she is cute and she is still a little nervous about her surroundings. But she really warmed up to Adam when he came home from work. He is her best friend. She is really growing on me, which is REAL big because most of you know, I am not a big dog person. But I guess people can change. :)

School's Out Party

Last week Adam was down in Tampa, FL for a class. He was just getting some training on new stuff. Ben had his last day of school on the 5th. So, as a spur of the moment thing, I picked Ben up from school at 9 am on his last day and we drove straight down to Tampa. It wasn't too bad of a drive...at least with my 'No-Doze' pills. We got there by 5 pm. The next day we went to Orlando to the Hard Rock for lunch and a pin. Then we drove down to Busch Gardens where we spent the evening. Military and dependants get in free. It was great. Ben wasn't brave enough to go on any bigger roller coasters. But he said next year when he is 8 he will be braver. But we all had a great time anyway. We did forget to stop by the Tampa Hard Rock for that pin, so that just means we will have to go back again...which is just fine with everyone.

All Dressed Up

We finally got ALL the kids clean and dressed nice AT THE SAME TIME on Sunday so we hurried and snapped some photos. They LOVE to dress up nice and the boys REALLY love their suits. They looked so great.

Easter

We had a great Easter, too. Our church had a big Easter Party on some member's property. It was wonderful. They hid so many eggs. The kids really loved it.

Trip to Valdosta, GA

Here are the pictures of my kids. They REALLY did not want pictures taken and they are REALLY not being very cooperative.

Recently we met up with some old acquaintances in Valdosta, GA. It was great to see them all again and hang out all together again. We went and saw the houses we lived in while we were there and ate at our favorite restaurant, too. It was very fun. Here are some pictures of everyone.

Zack's Bike

Adam put the training wheels on Ben's old bike for Zack last night and he LOVES it!! He has been riding it non-stop all day. In fact, we noticed the light on early this morning. It was Zack. At 5 am he went out into the garage and got his bike and started riding it. Yeah...he LOVES it!!

McKayLeigh's Birthday

Here are some more pictures from McKayLeigh's Day. She had a wonderful birthday. Since her birthday fell on Sunday and I am her teacher in Nursery at church, we took her birthday cupcakes to her class to share them. They were a big hit.