No Regrets

My husband is visiting with his grandfather for probably the last time. He's sick, very sick. He has cancer and it has spread very quickly. Matthew has a lot of memories as a child with his grandfather. One of the things he told them was about "Falling Rock" the Indian. Whenever they saw signs that said "watch out for falling rock" his grandfather would tell them that Falling Rock was a lost Indian boy. Its something we tell our kids now too. Kinda sweet.
Matthew's grandfather was the one that bought him his first guitar and really encouraged him to pursue music. In fact, Matthew is there with him right now playing his banjo for his grandfather. It was a request that he asked of Matthew often and today he is playing for him. He may not be all there but at least Matthew got to do it.

My Granny Ruby died 14 years ago... unexpectedly. I only wish I had one last chance to sit with her and talk. I wish she could have met my husband and my children. She would have LOVED Matthew. She and him love the same music. I'm sure she'd have him play for her too! I miss her.

Happy New Years!!!

To all my blog reader I wish you a year full of happiness and blessings! Thanks for sticking with me for all these years. Its been an experience! HA!

This year has been a good one. We moved Jessica to a different school. Started Darcy in school and I enrolled in school! We're finding out how hard it is to raise THREE toddlers and a teenager. We've made some new friends and lost contact with old ones. We're enjoying our small community and all that it has to offer. God has been good to us. I can't wait to see what next year holds for us!!

Have you made any New Year resolutions? Did you keep any you made last year? I didn't... and I don't even remember what they were! HA! I'm sure losing weight was on that list and it will be on it again this year!

Productive

I'm trying to get my house back to normal but I'm having a hard time finding places to store all of the kids Christmas presents. They got several things that need to be stored in bins and kept away from them unless they are being monitored. And I really need to go through the stuff they already had and sort through it. I know they have lots of pieces to different things that need to be thrown away. I'm hoping to tackle their room in the next few days. I would like to paint it, put some shelves in their closets and really fix it up for them. Its the only bedroom that hasn't been 'done' since we've moved in here. I want their room to be a fun place to play. They've just started playing in there and I love not having so many toys in my den! I would like to paint their closet with the chalk board stuff and put glow in the dark stars all over the walls and celin. I have lots of great ideas but finding the time and money is where I have issues. I'm going to not really do a 'theme' per say but I am going to use dinosaurs. Just not the whole bed in a bag deal.

Any cool suggestions?

Now This Interest me!

LOL
When Matthew and his Dad were painting the house they got some paint on the roof and it dried. Therefore it looks like a bunch of birds just crapped all over the roof. The roof was already pretty crappy looking b/c whoever put the last roof on must have bought the cheapest stuff there was... there's places where its faded big time. It looks like someone poured bleach in spots. If I though that roof cleaner would help I'd be all over it! I'm going to look into it!

not so creative

After spending most of the morning posting on different things I cannot think of anything to say about bar stools.... other than i would have liked to have a kitchen with a breakfast bar where the kids could eat before school. yep... i'm fresh out of creative things to say this morning. sorry guys!

Ouch

So you laughed at me too when I said I hurt my shoulder playing Wii... well at least I wasn't the only one. Reading the news article made me feel not so silly. But I just strained mine. Its not like I was one of those people that had to go to the hospital! HA!! Although I might could have gotten a shoulder pain pump. I actually hurt my shoulder months back if you remember... from pulling on the broken garage door! Now that was some serious pain!!!!

Jessica's new toy

A laptop!! And I'm loving it!! I'm actually sitting at the kitchen table right now while the kids are watching their morning cartoons. I love it!! I'm definitely wishing I had one now!! I never really wanted one until recently. But with school starting soon I can see where it would be nice to have one. Last night I laid in bed and played on the internet while matthew read. I could see myself doing school work without having to lock myself in the computer room.

Her laptop is sweet! Its got plenty of computer memory, the ability to burn cd's, and all sorts of great features. Its hard getting used to using my finger for the mouse but you can hook one up to it.

What I didn't get for Christmas

Jewelry but thats okay b/c I'm not much of a bling bling kinda girl. Although I would have liked some casual earrings that I could wear with jeans and stuff. I have diamonds and thats it. I didn't always like wearing earrings but now I find myself raiding Jessica's jewlry box for cute earrings. LOL

Live like no one else...

today so tomorrow you can live like no one else. I'm pretty sure I got that quote right. Its from Dave Ramsey. My hubby and I listened to some of his tapes a while back and we've tried to use his suggestions but every now and then we have to remind ourselves of what he tought us. Instead of WWJD we'd think WWDD what would Dave do for you slow ones. LOL

Some of his tapes talked about owning a home vs renting, term life insurance vs whole life insurance and lots of other helpful things. With the new year we're going to once again review our budget and plan out our year.

Getting There

I am constantly told by others that I look like I've lost weight.... I'm sure I have but I honestly don't know how much. I haven't weighted myself since the last time I posted it here which I think was back in Sept or Oct maybe. I just don't want to be disappointed if the scale doesn't say what I think it should say. I watched the biggest loser this year and I was amazed by the amount of weight they lost in a weeks time. But they've got nothing else going on around them to distract them when they're there on the ranch. I wonder how well they'll do once they're not playing a game. I bet some of them will resort to diet pills to help control their appetites. I think that show gives a false hope to some people.

My Christmas Gift

One of the things that I asked for this year was a yoga ball and yoga mat. I got them both. I hate doing sit ups but since I've been going to the gym and using the ball to do them its been a lot easier. I love knowing that I can do 200 a class!!! Sit up/crunches are a good fat burner exercise.

I plan on using my yoga ball a lot throughout the day. During commerical breaks and whenever else I have a free minute to knock out some. I really want to get my body in shape. This is one New Years resolution that I've made over and over again but this year I've done more to insure that I stick with it. Like joining the gym LOL!!

It is Finished!

I'm so over Christmas. Its sad b/c Christmas is my favorite time of year but this year I was just too stressed out to enjoy it. But the kids really had a good one. And so did we. Everyone got what they wanted and then some. We spent time with our families and made new memories... some of which we can watch over and over!!! We got a new tiny handycam from Matt's folks!!! Darcy got her Dora bicycle that she'd been asking Santa for... you should have seen her reaction on Christmas morning when she saw it! The boys don't really know the whole Santa deal yet. Although, Jacob wouldn't stop singing "Santa Claus is coming to town" last night. LOL They all got plenty of nice stuff... Jessica scored a laptop! I'm jealous :) The Brocks got her one for school. I tried to convince them I needed one too since I was starting school on the 8th of January... no go. LOL

Well I need to get my house back in order. We opened presents on Christmas Eve with Matt's family. Christmas day we went to my parents after lunch and the day after Christmas we headed to south alabama. So needless to say my house was a wreck!!! I had actually forgotten how bad is was until I opened the door when we got home yesterday!

Oh... and I'm not feeling well AGAIN!

Quick Update

The girls spent last night with Matt's folks and they're staying again tonight. They've been making goodies for the past 2 days!

The boys woke up with coughs, red cheeks and fevers. please pray. i'm tired of my babies being sick!

We started wrapping last night but after 3 hours we still have more to do. Hopefully we can finish up tonight. I don't want to be wrapping in the wee hours of the night on Christmas Eve.

Well I guess this is my last post until after Christmas. We're going to be pretty busy tomorrow. I hope everyone has a safe and wonderful Christmas with their loved ones. Holidays are sometimes rough for families so remember those whose hearts are heavy.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Told You So!

Matthew and Jessica laughed at me b/c I hurt my shoulder pitching on Wii... well read this article I found today on Fox. LOL



Doctors Warn: Wii Puts 10 In Hospital a Week
Tuesday , December 23, 2008
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Up to ten people a week are being hospitalized with injuries caused by playing Nintendo Wii games, prompting doctors in Britain to issue warnings of the dangers associated with the video game system.
"There has been a 100 percent increase in patients complaining of Wii-itis," Dr. Dev Mukerjee of Broomfield Hospital, Essex, told The Sun newspaper.
Most patients are admitted after playing tennis or running games which involve sudden movements, resulting in tendon stretching or tearing.
"It's possible Wii-itis may lead to rheumatism or arthritis later in life. Patients often have inflamation of the shoulder or wrist," said Dr. Mukerjee.
Another common injury is dubbed Wii-knee, blamed on the bending of the knee from the Wii-Fit game. This involves a special platform and a series of movements ranging from yoga to strength-training moves.
In extreme cases, the kneecap can be dislocated or pop out of joint.
Doctors treat Wii-knee with cortisone injections, icing, and anti-inflammatory painkillers. Treatment can last for three months.
So, what to do?
As with any exercise program, doctors advise stretching exercises before play.

Weekend Recap

As far as I know Todd is doing better... He was NOT admitted but instead had to give his word to his doctor that he'd go home and stay in bed! I'm pretty sure I would have gotten a call if anything has changed.

We had a good weekend... a sit at home and chill kinda weekend. Jessica spent most of the weekend with her dad's side of the family celebrating christmas. It was the first time she'd seen him since July. She was ready to come home.

We went out with one of Matthew's friends from work saturday night. He's a really nice guy... 37 years old and still single. You're thinking nice guy then why single? Not sure how to answer that one. But now that he's getting older I think he's wishing he'd done things differently.

Last night we went to Zoolight Safari with Matthew's family. It was interesting to say the least. Jeremiah had some issues in the beginning but we finally got him calmed down. Darcy lost her pillow at the zoo somewhere. We looked for it and left a description of it with the lost and found folks. I'm praying they find it. She's upset about it but I think I'm more upset.

Well I've gotta get moving. Today the kids are going to help make goodies with matthew's folks while I get some errands done. The girls are spending the night with them. Once the boys go to bed tonight Matthew and I are going to do some serious wrapping!

pray for us... thats all i can say... just pray.

Good Ole Todd

Prayer Request

This is Todd aka Jessica's basketball coach aka Darcy's bf daddy... he's sick. He has colitis and recently he's been very sick. On top of having some sort of flare up right now he also has bilateral pneumonia. Please keep him and his family in your prayers.

New Do

Did you notice Darcy's new hair cut?


Darcy's favorite thing to do is to take pictures... she's going to be thrilled when she finds out what her Papa D and CC got her for Christmas :)

just playing

one of her christmas gifts to her *ahem* boyfriend is to give him a picture of herself
i like this one

or this one?

Darcy's Christmas party

I was so glad I got to go... she made me stand beside her the entire time. She loved on me every minute she got. I know she was very happy I was there.



She wanted to us to take a picture together.

They got all sorts of goodies.

This is Mrs. Shelia... I'm so glad Darcy is in her class. She's a very loving teacher.
Thank you Jesus for Mrs. Shelia!

Jessica

She sang in a Christmas concert on Monday night.

Santa Claus called DARCY

Darcy got a very important phone call today from SANTA!
She was beside herself. We've been using the "I'm gonna call Santa if you don't _____" for a few weeks now but today... after getting a phone call from him I'm sure we won't have any problems. In fact right after she hung up Matthew told her she really needed to go take a nap and that Santa was watching... she ran upstairs and we've not heard a peep from her!

She sang Rudolph with him.
**thanks Rocky**

My Breakdown

Today is Darcy Christmas Party at school. I wasn't going to go b/c I didn't have anyone to watch the kids.... I actually didn't think I would mind missing it.
Well this morning I was getting Darcy ready for school and she ask me if I was coming to her party. I told her no and she looked at me with those big blue eyes and my heart fell to pieces and so did I. She said "mrs. shelia said all the mommies and daddies could come! and I want you to come!" I immediately got on the phone to try and find someone to come sit with my boys so I could go. I was thinking to myself "what good is being a stay at home mom if I'm going to miss out on class parties!" I couldn't find anyone to watch the boys. I was really worked up by this point. I was throwing up. Finally I called Matthew and without me asking he immediately said he was on his way home. So now I'm waiting for him to get here so I can go to my baby girl's christmas party! Yay for my wonderful husband!

i'm here

I've been busy... sorry. When I'm not at work I'm at a basketball game. Matthew and I finally got to do some Christmas shopping on Saturday. We got a lot done and was gone most of the day. I was home long enough that afternoon to brush me teeth before I had to head to work. Speaking of work.... I'm quitting... again. I start school in January and I'm not going to stress myself out with trying to work too. I'll be going to school 2 nights a week.

We're getting back into our routine. The month of November was chaos... between everyone being sick, out of town guest and going out of town ourselves we were getting off our schedules big time. Darcy missed a bunch of school and we skipped the gym. But now we're back on track. Last week was my first week back to the gym and man could I tell I'd been absent. I love having a routine/schedule. It just helps things go smoothly for us. The days don't seem as long either.

This week....
tonight is Jessica's Christmas production at school. I will stay home with the little ones so hubby can go.

Wednesday I have to appear in court for my traffic ticket. pray for that!

Thursday is the kids therapy day and i have to work.

Friday is a basketball game.

Saturday Jessica will be going to her dad's house for their family christmas. Pray for her. This will be the first time to his house in several years... I think 4 maybe. And she hasn't seen or talked to him since July.

One more thing....

ITS GREAT TO BE A FLORIDA GATOR!

GO GATORS!!!!!!!!!!!

Too bad thats my first night of school... do you think they'd let me skip classes to watch my boys play? LOL

Funny but sorta sad

Last night Matthew and I finally watched one of our netflix movies we've had for weeks! We watched Baby Mama. I laughed but there were parts that were really sad :(
Have you seen it yet?
We've got a few more movies to watch but who knows when we'll have time! We're going to get Darcy's haircut tonight, my eyebrows seperated and then to his grandparents house to visit with his grandfather who's not expected to make it much longer. please pray for his family.

We're Back!

I'm a little slow at posting pics from our trip to Gatlinburg. I was extremely sick the whole trip. I'm feeling much better but I've been pretty busy. I hope you enjoy our pictures!


Jessica and Jacob



We had the whole downstairs to ourselves... it was pretty kid friendly. If you look closely you can see Matthew crawling under the pool table... they were chasing each other.


We got in the hot tub one night hoping it would make me feel better... it did. And the kids really enjoyed it. They jumped all over us yelling "CANNON BALL!"

Family Time

My Granny Jean came with us. We didn't see her much b/c she stayed in her room. I think the kids made her nervous :)


These pictures were taken in front of our cabin.

I like this picture a lot :)

Gatlinburg from a distance!

We rode through Gatlinburg one day heading out to see the elk. I was too sick to walk the streets.
I spent most of the time in bed while we there.

SNOW!

We drove through the mountains to North Carolina... thats the only time we saw snow.



Let me just tell ya... I'm afraid to drive those windy roads when they're NOT covered in ice so you can imagine how I felt when I was sliding! I think I drove on the wrong side of the road 85% of the time just to avoid the edge! LOL

Where's the ELK???

We saw 1 Elk right when we entered into the park but my parents insisted that there's this special spot where you can sit and watch them come out of the woods... we never saw one! We waited for hours!!!

Darcy went from car to car.


The boys got out and ran around for a little bit... it was pretty cold and windy.

Cades Cove

We always spend the day after Thanksgiving at Cades Cove.
Keep in mind that I was very sick!!!! We always get out and walk around at this one certain spot. This year was the first year there with the little ones. They loved getting out and exploring.

this was taken on a trackor in an old barn


I was pooped!


It was a beautiful day... not too cold!

Walking Around

Daddy with Jeremiah



Papa George with Jacob

Us
(jessica's eyes are closed but this was by far the best picture out of 5 attempts!)