We've Only Just Begun!!

One year ago today at this very moment I was laying in my hospital room recovering from surgery holding the most beautiful little boy I had ever laid eyes on...and he was ALLL mine!!!!

Happy birthday to you my sweet baby boy Ryan!!!!!

My life is better because I have you in it!

Mommy

It's back!

The crud....

Is back. Are you kidding me????

Tonsils are huge, hurt like a son of a gun, my head is full of pressure and with that comes pounding pains. My back hurts, and my chest hurts, espescially when I take a deep breathe. Did I mention that I have a nifty little chill filled fever?

So...dont all jump in at once, but who wants to come tend to Blue Bunny while I attempt to mend far away from him??? Yes it has to be at my house..... Have boob, must stay. He still wont take a bottle of milk.

P.S
Do you think the hospital gives adults all the popcicles they want after a tonsilectomy? If so..sign me up yesterday!!!

In Due time...

So...

My most favorite sister, Nicole is expecting her first little bundle of love from above in 2 days. She truly is my favorite sister, and not just because she is my only sister. If I had 4....she would be my favorite. I adore her....even if I did push her down the stairs repeatedly as a child and blame it on our lazy old mutt, Lady...I adore her =) Gimme a break..I was 5.

Anywhoo....2 days from now she is expecting her first baby, a little boy. Whom I refer to as "Hobbit" First off, because he is a little man...and secondly his name is going to be weird. I can assure you of that one. Gannon was on the top of the constantly changing list for a few days...It sounded very Lord Of The Rings and Hobbity to me...Calling him Hobbit is better then referring to the baby as "it" or "him" So...he is, and probably will ever be to me...Hobbit. I think it is pretty darn cute =0)

I already have a nephew, Caleb who is 2 1/2 and a niece, Alexandra who is 17 mos (yes..my brother has been busy) But I am so much more excited that my sister is expecting a baby, then I was him. I LOVE Caleb and Ali..I wish I could see them more often.....but Im just saying that there is something about the fact that I get to share the most exciting and remarkable and life changing part of my life with my sister that is just UBER exciting!

I already know that Hobbit is going to be late....because well, he is a boy, and he is her first baby..but mostly, because Hobbit is Nicole's son...and Nicole is NEVER...and I truly mean NEVER on time for anything in her life...so why would little Hobbit be?

So..I know he is due in two days...but here's hoping that Hobbit will be official presented to you in a blog sometime next week. Im thinking...May 2nd. My husbands birthday.
Either that, or the 6th...That was the day Nicole's beloved doggie of 15 years (whom just went to doggie heaven in Feb) was born. God likes little coincidences like that....a God wink if I may put it.

Whenever it is....Hurry up Hobbit~ and be good for your Mommy on your way out....she has been through enough already

Love you already!!

Crud (The sequel)

Crud...again. Tis all Im saying. I think I will invest in a pharmaceutical stock... those have GOT to be on the rise. Plus, no matter what. People are always gonna be sick. Especially my family.


P.S.
Doctor is pretty sure Hailey has the chicken pox. culture the doctor took will be back on Monday. Yes..I know what you are asking...she DID have the vaccine. It is only 99.98% effective in preventing it. Hailey is just special that way I guess.

The things she says!

Hailey....

So darn cute, my little Hailey.

Yesterday she said and did so many things that made me just laugh. She is such a little goof ball!

Two that stand out..

After a diagnosis of Chicken Pox.... She was very scared at this, and got rather upset in the doctors office. I thought it was because she thought she head the doctor say "Im going to get a shot" when in actuality it was..."Im going to get a swab" which we quickly corrected her thinking. So, after the doctor left the room (to get the swab) and she was still scared I probed a little deeper and...I was quite surprised when she revealed it was that she didnt want to turn into a chicken. I laughed so hard I about peed my pants. She was embarrassed when the doctor came back in and I told him what she had said, and he laughed too. I promised her I wouldn't tell anyone..and I didnt. I merely mentioned it in my blog.
So, if you come across her. Dont tell her you know....and if you are her older sister and reading this (Grace...this means you) by all means.. can you please stop making chicken noises at her and chasing here around?
Funny as it may be... I can see where a 5 year old might come up with such a conclusion on their own.

The other funny thing she said... Happened right here at this very computer desk. Hailey was playing on the computer, one of the many sites she enjoys going to...but became frustrated..very loudly so, and I came back here to see what the commotion was about and to make sure she wasnt destroying my computer in the process of her meltdown.
Me: What is the matter Hay?
Hay: NOTHING! I can do it MYSELF!!
Me: Okay..if you need my help let me know
Hay: I DONT!
Me: *deeeep breathe* ( I return to the family room to do what I was before)
2 mins pass........
Hay: (said rather meekly) Mommy...
Me: Yes Hailey?
Hay: Can you help me?
Me: Course
Hay: I cant find the numbers
Me: They are on the top of the keyboard
Hay: OHH okay. THANKS MOMMA!
Me: No problem
2 mins go by, and meltdown begins again.......
Me: Hailey? what is wrong??
Hay: I cant find the number!!!!!!!!!!!
Me: Hold on Hailey I will there in a minute....

I walk in to find her VERY frustrated and staring intently at the computer keyboard.

Me: Hailey...what are you looking for?
Hay: MOM!! I cant find it!
Me: Okay! What are you looking for???
Hay: The number 10
I stifle my laughter long enough to try and explain to her that she has to use the numbers 1 and 0 to MAKE the number 10.

Poor little thing....I give her kudos though. She can do more on the computer at age 5 then her grandma can do at age 62

Now what?

I find myself sitting here in my bedroom at 7 in the morning....and Ive been "up" since 5am.
Ryan decided he wanted to be fussy and not sleep, then he wanted to play...but now he is snoozing in his swing (also in my room for JUST such an occasion..thank God for big bedrooms, eh?) I'm not so lucky to fall back asleep like a baby though.
I didn't really sleep well last night anyways..I was tossing and turning long before Ryan had me dealing with him. I woke up at 3:30 from a bad dream involving Kathy Bates hiding in my bathroom, and trying to stab me with a giant butcher knife when I realized she was in there. She had the big crazy eyes, an evil sinister smile, and everything when she was pushing it into my chest. I'm telling ya, it was so realistic....I had to turn on the light before I walked into the bathroom to use it...even if might wake up the sleeping baby. It was creepy..and the funny thing. I haven't seen Misery in a good 5 years. The last movie I saw her in was Disney's Annie for crying out loud!!
I'm not in a great mood today either, and I don't really know why. I'm feeling quite full up on emotions and that annoys me. Before Ryan was born. I was perfectly able to keep emotions, especially mine at bay. I'm not comfortable with them. I don't show or share them well, I don't deal with other people's well.....they just plain make me feel uber uncomfortable. I wear emotions like a nudist would wear a woolly pair of underoos. Anyways...Before Ryan was born...I could keep it contained. Then, I delivered the beautiful baby boy, started crying tears of joy and now...6 months later... I cant seem to stop em. The dam has blown and the floods have torn through. Emotions- to me, make me look weak. I don't see them that way with other people, but for me I guess it is different standards.
So...much to my dismay....I'm feeling a bit swamped by them, and at times I feel as though I'm drowning in them. I'm not sad. Not at all. I'm a happy person. I love my husband, I love my children. I love my friends. I love my life. I'm not depressed....I just don't know what to do with all the emotion. They aren't all sad emotions....so don't go thinking that I'm some sort of crying, weeping, miserable fruitcake. They are emotions, period....The question is? What do I do with them, and why now?

Rubber snakes and a cranky baby..

Gracie and Daddy went on a field trip yesterday to the state forest with Gracie's second grade class. Apparently forests now have gift shops, because...

Gracie came home with a rubber snake, and not just any Ole' rubber snake. Nope, this one grows to 4 feet if you soak it in water for 4 to 5 days. Soooooo, now I have a rubber snake growing in my bathtub (he comes out at bath time) Gross!!

Yes....most folks have nothing growing, lots have the scum, a few have some mold. I...have a rubber snake ***eye roll***

P.S.

Ryan is cranky. What a life

We've Come A Long Way Baby!

FROM THEN...... TO TODAY.....

Ryan is 6 months old today!

I can not believe that this precious little baby boy has been a part of our family (not counting the nine months I carried him of course) for 6 months, half a year, 182 days!! Where has the time gone?

It is exciting but bittersweet, because unless God knows something I don't Ryan is the last little baby for me, the final addition to our family, the piece that completes the puzzle. As Steven Curtis Chapman puts it.."Eeny, Meeny, Miny and No Mo'!" 3 kids. we are full up.

To some 6 months may seem like a lifetime, to others a blink in time. For me it is both. It seems to have flown by so fast, and yet I can barely remember what life was like before this little piece of heaven was here on earth with us. I do remember one thing though. It wasn't nearly as sweet.

How fitting a tribute to your life and the gift from God that you are, that your dedication was just two days ago. I cant wait to see the amazing things I know God has in store for you and until then ....

May the Lord bless you and keep you: May the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious unto you: May the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace." Numbers 6:24

Happy 6 months little man! May the next 6 months and beyond be as full of love and new learning, fun and family as these last 6 months have been for you. We love you Ryan!!

It is inevitable...

It is inevitable.. bound to happen and there is no way I can get around it.

Grace is going to tick me off. That is a given on any day, but today specifically because along with everything else.....

It is inevitable, that they will not only destroy my house.....

It is also inevitable that I will run out of patience LONG before the day runs out of time, That the dishes will go undone until the wee hours of the morning tomorrow BEFORE they awaken for the day, the laundry will yet again remain unfolded and not put away.

It will happen that I will not get a chance to take a shower until 1am in the morning when EVERYONE is sleeping except me because I just finished eating my dinner....that I cooked 5 hours early and fed to everyone else.

It will happen that Grace will somehow find a way to antagonize the snot out of Hailey to the point that Hailey (a normally very patient child) will blow her top and yell, resulting in Ryan being awakened from his nap early and screaming. It will happen.

It is expected that they will NOT clean their room the way I asked them and I will find dirty clothes shoved in the back of their drawers when I go to put their clean clothes away (if I ever get around to fold it that is)

I will have a headache by noon. Unless of course it just decides to stick around from the day before.

They will be bored. They will have absolutely nothing to do. Even though we have over 100 cable channels 7 of which are exclusively aimed towards children 24 hours a day. We have the Internet with endless possibilities for entertainment. They have a HUGE collection of very expensive toys in their bedroom that they only 3 months ago INSISTED they would DIE if they didn't have in their possession. They have bikes and scooters and a swing set to play on outside. Not to mention friends out there to play with as well.

It is inevitable...because it is spring break, because it is April, because it is the 1st Tuesday of the month and the full moon was in the sky for 14.6 hours the other night, because she is wearing blue today, and I am wearing pink. Because I said so, or just because. Because I am Eight and eight-twelfths. Because she is 5 and three quarters. Because I feel like it. Because I don't feel like it. Because I can.

It is inevitable because she woke up on the wrong side of the bed today. I think I'm going to move her bed away from the wall.

Dedicated

On Sunday, March 29th......

Ryan was dedicated at church. Our most favorite pastor, Pastor John Dick did the honors. Thought ya'll might like to see.

We are so blessed!

Pocket full of..Posies??

Why do my baby's pants have pockets?

What do the designers of these outfits think they will be needing them for?

His wallet? His checkbook? Perhaps his cell phone? Maybe they think they will be useful for a handful of cheerios in case he gets hungry along the way.

Maybe they think he will want a safe place to tuck away his pacifier until he has the urge to use it.

Any ideas on this?

The only useful infant pants with pockets that I could come across (I googled FYI) were these ones..

A United States Patent 7089598 (no picture to share...sorry) followed by a definition for patent purposes...

An apparatus for infant pants having knee pads permanently or removably mounted to an inner surface of the pants or to an infant pants inner liner. The infant pants or pants liner have internal pocket panels that extend substantially horizontally from seam to seam and are sewn by vertical, substantially parallel stitching to define generally rectangular pad pockets of desired dimensions with upwardly facing pocket openings. The pockets have retainer panels to secure a replaceable protective pad within the pad pocket. The pants have replaceable protective knee pads that are removably contained within the internal knee pockets to provide protection for crawling infants against bruises and abrasion of the knees during crawling activity.

There is a pocket, I'm sure my infant son would find useful as well. Until then, at least we know where to keep his little baby wallet. Now, if I could only find an infant wallet

Credit goes to Brigette, for bringing up such a blog worthy question =0)

Plastic Eggs..

Soooo..

Plastic eggs and Paradise. The explanation I'm sure you've all waited for.

Spring officially will be sprung tomorrow morning at 7:44am EST. With spring comes warmer weather (in Michigan this is an eventual happening that rarely ever coincides with the actual start of spring, more so a month later) With spring comes Easter. I love Easter Sunday church service, the children are all adorned in their traditional little Easter attire and toting the stuffed bunnies and critters that the Easter Bunny left in their baskets. The girls have on shiny unscuffed white Patten leather Mary-Janes, some of them are carrying tiny little matching purses with their little Lip Smackers lip gloss safely secured within. The boys look sharp in the pastel colored dress shirts and neck ties, It is just an around precious little site! I seriously think I can feel Jesus smile at the site of children in their Easter morning church services. (cheesy? I know..but tis truly how I feel)

With Easter comes one of my most dreaded nasty little nemesis'....the plastic egg. I HATE THEM! I swear...People say that bunnies reproduce faster then we can blink, but I firmly believe they must hatch out of these plastic eggs. We all know eggs cant reproduce themselves, but somehow I always wind up with an overload of these darn things in my house. That is the only logical explanation that I can come up with.

Why do I dislike them so? Well, first off....as I just mentioned the mere number of them I wind up with. I know, I know what you are thinking. If you don't like them...then don't buy any. But, what Easter basket is complete without at least a couple of these stuffed within? I buy, ONE 8 pack a year. No more, no less. It doesn't matter though. I start out with 8, and I end up with 39.

It takes me ALLLLL year to hunt down and destroy the 39. I'm fairly certain that I JUST threw away numbers 38 and 39 last week when I gave the girls room its quarterly annual major cleaning. This will give me 3 glorious plastic egg free weeks, before I start the war once again.

Those plastic eggs, are painful. How can a rounded object be sharp at the same time? Ive asked myself this question while applying many a band-aids. The answer lies in two ways. One would be the lip in the middle that holds the two pieces together. Someone (usually Hailey or myself) get sliced by part of this every year. The other way, and usually the way hubby ends up bleeding as a result is when they get stepped on and they crack and break into several sharp little slivers of plastic death that like to embed themselves in the bottom of the foot, or in the knee, and the ever so embarrassing hinney cheek or whatever other part of the body comes in contact with them.

The annual Easter Egg hunt. I have my own, this particular one doesn't include the children though. The girls don't get left out of the fun despite the fact that I don't include them on mine, they always end up participating in several. I help organize them at church, I do my best to find the perfect spot to hide the eggs. I enjoy watching them run around excitedly looking for the eggs. I just wish the eggs stayed at church.

My egg hunt isn't as fun. I swear, these little oval shaped villains are shifty and move on you, because I can never seem to find them all. Perhaps next year I will just place them all on the ground at church and tell them all to go hide themselves, because they do a far better job of hiding on their own then I do of finding a spot for them.

Long story short...I may temporarily win the yearly battle against these darn things, but I'm doubtful I will ever win the war. I'm sadly outnumbered by at least 1 to 39.

The Paradise.... I guess I will save that part for another day and another blog

Randomness at its best

Currently...

What is running through my mind at this moment in time (scary place to enter I know, but really not so bad once you are there)

1) I wants me a Flip camera, particularly this one
I WANNNNT IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2) Ryan needs a bigger swing. He LOVES to swing and is fast outgrowing his current model, which is just the standard swing Ive featured on here in the past. I dont want a super expensive one, I just want one that has a bigger seat and goes heavier then 22 lbs. Any ideas?

3) I lovvvve my Dyson vacuum. The one vacuum that hasnt failed me. No, my love for this Dyson is not fickle, it is deep rooted. It is as wide a love as the cost of the vacuum was deep. Yeah, I paid $500 for a vacuum, but this a Dyson and it was WORTH it! I will never, never again purchase any other model.

4) Im so grateful the weather warmed up. Hubby pulled out the grill last night and made some BBQ chicken. There is nothing like fire grilled BBQ chicken to signify spring has sprung. At least this is true for my family.

5)With the warmer weather the kids are outside more. They are such good little ones about playing outside, and living in a trailer park I find myself a bit more protective then I would in a classier neighborhood. I dont let them go in anyones house except 1, my lovely neighbor Brigette's...but that doesnt happen often. Trailers are small...mine is small with 3 kids in it, but hers is even smaller (plus her mom works 3rd shift and sleeps during the day) This leaves the kids to be outside and trying to find something to do.... When they were younger..like 4 through 6 this wasnt an issue. We have a swing set..a traditional metal one. It was great when they were that age. They played on it for hours. Not now though. No, now they are almost 6, 8 and 9...there is the baby to consider now (which currently has no place to hang his swing) We NEED a new swing set. I want this one...minus the strange man and the picturesque mountain backgroundHowever, theirs will not include the sandbox below the clubhouse. I have enough dirt to contend with. They can find something else to do with this spot. Oh yeah... theirs wont include all these similing children. Im full up! They can find a new play feature to attach themseleves to. While on the topic of this swing set and other people's children.... I have to ask.... Would it be rude of me to only allow certain children on this swing set? I.E. My own, and a select handful of pre-approved others. I don't like the other neighborhood children. They dress like thugs, lack adult supervision, play with toy guns, use swear words in the appropriate context,they like to be destructive of other people's properties, One of them stole a Littlest Pet Shop kitty cat from Hailey last year, they probably know how to roll a joint if need be and to top it ALL off....I'm pretty sure....their parents voted for Obama, based on his chocolate milk in the drinking fountain juvenile campaign promises. (I'm just kidding...I would never say that, it was kool-aid =0P)

6) My neighbor...who is currently banging on his door to be let in (he does this EVERY time he comes home) needs to invest in a pair of house keys and figure out SOME way to not loose them. Perhaps a good suggestion would be to leave they by his smokes, or his chewing tobacco...maybe set them down by his Natural Light beer cases. He never has a problem finding those items it seems. P.S. He needs a belt, well more so a drawstring on his sweats. Im sick of looking out my window to find him...head stuck inside the hood of his car, with his butt hanging halfway out his grease covered sweat pants....

If you'll excuse me..I feel the need to vomit, and then go poke my minds eye out.

"CRUD"

If you plan on coming around my family anytime soon...You may want to rethink that idea.

I'm living in a crud cesspool. I have spent so much time in the last month at the doctor's office it is pathetic. Seriously, I think Im personally putting his children through college. I'll start at the very beginning ( a very good place to start...la la alaaaa laaaa)

It all started about 4 weeks ago with the insesent sniffles from my 5 year old..followed by a fever, which she rarely ever gets. I decided to take her into the doctor and get her checked out. Called the docs to make an appointment and discovered his office was closed for the day due to the fact that he is the only one in the office and he decided to take a vacation. Sooo, off to the local urgent care walk in clinic known locally as Redi Med. She was seen by one of the two doctors in the clinic and it was decided that it was just one of the many viruses going around and with fluids, rest and some Ibuprophen and/or Tylenol she would be fine in a few days.

Two days later, I ended up back in the clinic with the baby, Ryan. He was unconsolible which was extremely abnormal for him. He is such a happy baby, and rarely ever fusses unless he is tired, hungry or muddy (in other words..poopy) The sure fire sign it was time to take him in was the mild fever that finally hit, and the fact that he screaaaamed bloody murder when I went to clean his ears after a bath and whenever I laid him down when he fell asleep. So, again I found myself at the clinic after a phone call to the family doctor's office went unanswered due to the fact that he was STILL on vacation (Im getting annoyed)

Ryan was Diagnosed with an ear infection and was put on amoxicillin and sent home with a note to see the family doctor in 10 days.

2 days later, Hailey shares her "virus" with baby Ryan (as if he isnt suffering enough already)

7 days later.....Hailey shares her "virus" with mommy (I reference back 3 blogs)

10 days later,(this would be Monday the 9th) Mommy is still sick. We were actually able to get Ryan in to see the family doctor for a recheck on his ear infection.The virus Hailey had shared with him was short lived and he shows no more signs of it being present. The ear infection is still healing, and with the last few doses of his pink junk he should be good as new. YAY! By this time...Hailey has completely recovered from her virus as well. Mommy...is still suffering. UGH

Now....Thursday rolls along. All is well health wise (cept Mommy of course who is STILL suffering) THEN, the phone rings and the girls' school shows up on the caller ID.........

Ruh roh Raggy!

Hello?

"Hi, this is Shirley. Is this Hailey's Mommy?"

Yes, it is.

"Well, I have Hailey in the office. We are pretty certian she has pink eye"

Oh boy. I'll be right there.

So timing was perfect. I had just fed Ryan so he should be good to go for at least 2 hours. I went and picked my pink eyed little lady up from school and decided to call the family doctor's office right from the parking lot as his office is directly across the street from the kids' school.

"Hello. Dr. NeverIns office. How can I help you?"

Hi, I just picked Hailey up from school, they are pretty sure it is pink eye. Can I quick pop in so she can get a prescription.

"Doctor is ALL busy today. No empty spots."

But it wouldnt be anything major..just a quick peek. Isnt there any way at all?

"Nope. you are going to have to take her to urgent care"

Well, I suppose I can just bring her in tomorrow. Let's just make an appt for tomorrow then.

"Well, Dr is out of the office tomorrow. He is going on a weekend vacation."

Suuurrrprise, Surrprrise Surprise.

So, back to Redi Med we go. We walked in and the place was packed! We got the last chair in the waiting room. When I approached the window and inquired about the wait time I was told "ohh, bout an hour. Tops"

Okay, I can do that. Ryan should be good for at least another hour and a half. Hailey and I waited a good hour and 40 minutes. By this time, the waiting room was so full, people were standing along the walls. I called to check on Ryan and was told by my husband that he was very fussy and he couldnt quiet him. Much to my dissmay the process to get back to exam room was taking entirely too long and that was just to get into the room. That wasnt including the wait once you were IN the room to see the doctor. I knew I was going to have to leave and come back later. The receptionist was rather irritated when I asked her to pull Hailey's file (still three away from being called back, FYI) I told her the situation and that I would return. Which I did, 4 hours later.

When we returned later on in the evening it was much slower and I decided while I was there and they werent busy, I would have myself seen as well. As the virus that Hailey and Ryan had came and went in a week. I was on week two and it wasnt getting better. We waited about 30 minutes and were taken back to the examination room together. The nurse took our vitals and discovered that Hailey had a temperature of 100.0F. Well, that is odd...Ive never heard of pink eye causing a temperature before I thought to myself.

Doctor came into the room and went about examining Hailey where he decided that she probably most likely had the starts of pink eye due to what he was seeing, but mainly because of the repeated exposure she was having in her kindergarten class. However, he thought there was more to it then that and decided to do a strep test (that is going around her classroom as well) Quite surprised the test came back positive! So now, no only do I have pink eye to fend off myself and the rest of the family, but we have strep to contend with as well. Oh joy!

Then he came to me..... and he said "My dear...You have what I like to call, 'crud'."

Uhm. Okay, can you be a bit more specific with that, please.

"You have a double ear infection, a sinus infection and tonsilitis."

Oh. Well, that would explain why Im not getting better.

We left the office with no less then 7 perscriptions between the two of us. Four for me, and 3 for Hailey.

Hailey stayed home from school yesterday, because she was still considered contagious. We spent the morning watching the weekday cartoons that she misses due to being in school, coloring in our coloring books, reading her Junie B Jones book and just snuggling. Then as we prepared to go out and run some errands that wouldnt wait despite having contagious child home sick from school, the phone rang.....again. It was the school, and it was Grace in the office with a sore throat.

OYE VA!!!!

You know, it is really really pathetic when you go in to a walk in medical care clinic and they know your face and name. Pathetic I tell ya.Well, if it is the same doctor as last night..then he should be willing to give a prescription just on the merit of our issues, and hopefully on sympathy for me as well. Long story short, it was a different doctor (that would be my luck) She was tested and doesnt have strep...She has enlarged tonsils that are slightly red, but Im think mainly just jealousy at Hailey staying home (most likely), and perhaps some allergies thrown in.

So....I think Id like to find a Lysol Bomb and use it on this peatree dish of a house. Until then...you might want to stay away, or wear a mask and rubber gloves if you come in contact with my children.

Poor Little Southpaw

So Gracie is left handed...

This has never been an issue until today...8 1/2 long years into her life. The fact that she is a lefty is of no surprise to neither myself or my husband, both left handed. Her older brother, Earl is left handed as well. Her maternal grandmother was born a lefty until she was forced to become right handed back in the 50s (a common occurance back then) and she has several family members on her paternal side that are all left handed folks as well.
When Gracie was little..like 2 and 3 we thought it was precious that she was left handed just like the rest of her immediate family. When Grace was 4 and started kindergarten, there were no issues. She used sissors just fine, she held her pencil correctly and wrote legibly enough for a kindergartener. Nooooo being left handed was nothing we even really thought about anymore. Until last month when I sighed her up for her first ever season of softball.
The same day I signed my little southpaw up for softball, I signed her right handed little sister up for Teeball. The next day I went out to purchase the equipment listed that they would need and/or recommended.

• Hats and shirts will be provided by the teams and their costs were included in registration fees. Sweet.
• A water bottle. Check and check. Ive seen loads and I plan on taking them out and letting them pick their own out shortly before the actual season begins in a few weeks.
• Ball pants. No problem! They ALL wear white and they were available for purchase the night I registered them, so I went ahead and got them.
• A bat was recommended for practice purposes but not required. Naaah... I dont need anymore weapons in this house. sticks and stones may break and scratch but bats cause concussions.
• A helmet is required for all players when batting. This will be provided by team, but you may purchase your own if desired. Ohh I desire! Ive been done down that lice road and I made sure to do my best to burn that bridge after I crossed it! Helmets are readily available at many stores as well, in pinks and purples and girlie prints, and as soon as I have their little heads with me to size..we will be purchasing one each of those as well.
• A glove. This is a requirement for all players...and THIS is where all hell has broken loose.

I found adorable little gloves at our local KMart that are pink and purple..they even light up! What is a little girl NOT to loooove about that? I grabbed one for Hailey. I then found one that was light pink and dark pink slightly bigger for Gracie. It was the last one AND it was on sale. Great! Gracie loves pink! This will be great.

I was wrong. I got home and she went to put the glove on...and that is when it occur ed to me...Ohhhhhh, she needs a left handed glove (for those that are lost here, that means the glove it to be worn on the right hand leaving their left one open for throwing the ball) Do you think any store in this town would have a left handed glove? All of them except one didn't carry them. I found a left handed glove at Duhnams Sporting goods. The local sports specialty store. Specialty would mean that they charge more then usual. Poor Gracie is stuck with a glove that is black and barely pink trimmed. It doesn't light up AND it wasn't on sale.

Why must my little girl miss out on the cute little pink and purple gloves JUST because she is left handed. Poor little southpaw. The injustice of it all. Land of equal opportunity, but only if you fit the mold folks!

At least the batting helmet is pink, right?

Mommy MUST haves!

Ryan turned 5 months on March 1st and I cant believe that it has already been that long since he entered our family! There have been many wonderful moments, and many trying moments...and there are a few things that I wanted to tell you about that have saved me through this chaotic and memorable time.........I call them my Mommy MUST haves!

The first month with Ryan, I would not have survived without the swing. WE love the swing!!! All our naps were in the swing. Without this, there would have been no hot meals, no clean laundary, no naps for mommy and NO bathroom breaks. If Ryan wasnt in my arms...he was in the swing!

Next came the paci.....and not just ANY paci (cause we tried a few) the MAM paci! We had the Nuk, and he liked it at first...but once he gummed down on the MAM there was NO going back. I give credit to my somewhat peaceful nights to this little piece of rubber and plastic. Now, if only they would make a bottle nipple shaped like the MAM...I think we might be set.

Free entertainment....and I mean by this, the sisters! Not only is Ryan strong enough now that he can sustain his 8 year old sister carrying him around the living room, he is old enough now to enjoy it! She will pluck him out of his swing when he fusses, or out of his crib when he wakes from a nap, and the amazing thing here is...she wants to help me!!! Hailey, while not strong enough to pick up her 17 lb baby brother loves to play peek a boo with him, and tickle monster, and snuggles with him on the floor...her approach is much gentler then Gracie's, but just as much loved by the baby and her help is always appreciated by Mommy as well.

The infant car seat....not to be confused with the huge convertible one that comes later when the chunky little baby becomes too big for the one they came home from the hospital in. Im talking about the one that removes from its base and snaps into shopping carts, and strollers and carrys ackwardly on your hip all while your baby snoozes happily and undistrubed. This is also a GOD SEND..when your baby has reflux and cant tolerate laying flat without puking their stomache contents everywhere. Also handy, when their big sister shares their cold with them and they cant breathe through the nose unless they remain upright. Also handy when they start baby cereal and cant yet sit up on their own which renders the high chair useless (unless you count taking up space in your kitchen a use). True you could use the bouncy seat, but when the baby likes the food so much that they kick their legs in delight...it bounces the seat and that makes it hard to get the spoon in their little mouth without the danger of spoon being jammed into throat by the sudden jerking movement. Rubber coated utensil for their comfort or not...that would NOT feel good.

THE GRANDMA!!!!!!!!

Every mommy and new baby needs a grandma..although they can go by many names other than grandma...For example Mammy, Nanny, MawMaw, Memaw, Maema( We know one of those) Nana, Nah Nah and Nene (which would be OUR grandma). Nene is a savior! Ryan loves his Nene..and Mommy loves the Nene because she will not only happily hold with no time limits the grandbaby, but she also helps with the laundary and the dishes and WANTS TO! Plus, she truly understands how the Mommy feels, because she too has been there. So whatever they go by.....You gotta have one!!! If you dont have one, get one! No blood relation needed...there are several older women out there that love babies and are just waiting and wishing for a young mommy to grab hold of her cardigan sleeve, yank her to the closest rocker and plop the baby in their lap!

First picture is Ryan with his Nene...She lives in the same town as us, and we get to see her quite often. We are very lucky to have Nene around and we love her very much! The second picture is Ryan with his Great Grandma Mildred Patrick...Mommy loves GG so much, that she named him after her. Ryan Patrick. She unfortunately lives in Florida and due to her health is unable to travel up here to be with us, if she could though...she would be here in a heartbeat.

Back to our list...and naturally we lead into this next one as it pairs so well with the grandma...The rocking chair. This continues to be a great place to sit and feed the baby, and settle him down during a particular fussy moment. I couldnt find a picture of JUST the rocker, as it seems to always be occupied by someone with the baby...so I just picked one that happens to be one of my favorite pics (the corner of the rocker can be seen in the bottom right of the picture ;0P)

Last, and certianly not least.... our current favorite. This provides entertainment like the sissys do....except this one wasnt free. It was actually quite expensive...but the freedom it has brought, the skills it has helped develope, and the joy it brings to the baby, is well worth the $100 dollars in my humble opinion. The exersaucer....

The obvious must haves, like the diapers and the wipes, the ointment, the bottles (which he REFUSES) the breast pump.....the Daddy. Ive left off because like Ive said....they are obvious. So this is my list thus far..Hope you have enjoyed it.

If I were to create a WISH list for baby it would be..

A car seat that not only carrys the baby, but bears the blunt of their weight as well. 17 ISS heavy after awhile!

A Paci locator. You know those little buttons you can push on the base of your phone to find your cordless phone? I want one that locates the paci...or to be more exact..the 13 that are floating around my house SOMEHWERE.

A TRULY odorless diaper pail. The only odorless one I have seen yet is the one that hasnt been used.

An outfit that will fit the baby for more the 3 weeks. Shoes that does this would be nice as well.

While on the topic of feet...socks that actually stay on!

Last...but certianly NOT least.....

A book with all the answers that will grow with the child through the teen age years.

Share! Share! Share!!!

Short and simple...

I don't have the strength for anything more.

I tell the kiddos all the time. Share! Share your toys....share your treat....share your book...share the TV...share the computer...SHARE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yet, they continually hoard their toys, their treats, their books, the TV and the computer....EXCEPT

They are always more then willing to share their germs...and their favorite person to share them with is me.

I think Id rather them not be so generous.

Now.... I need some Tylenol, a nap, and a nice and soothing Hot Toddie...too bad Im breastfeeding. I guess I will have to settle for some gingerale....Will someone bring me some please?????!!?!

A reminder...

As I sat here holding my son...my healthy ,my happy, my beautiful, my growing, my giggling, my joy giving, my uplifting, my energetic little boy I came across a reminder.

We always hear what a blessing our children are...and honestly we all too often let that comment enter our minds... then we smile and quickly move on with our day without letting it really effect us.. These comments dont change us despite the power their truths hold, and neither does our obstinate belief that our children, our little blessings that God breathed His very own breath on.... will forever be with us.

A line from this video really stuck in my head...

At Eliot's funeral they released 99 balloons. One for each day of his life. Upon seeing this his father commented...
"How beautiful it was to watch, how quickly they were gone"

I DARE you...as a parent to watch this video and not be changed

Fair warning here. I am not an emotional person. I like to describe myself as emotionally constipated. I dont cry....well, I didnt....until I watch this. Grab your tissues....watch the video, then go grab your baby!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=th6Njr-qkq0&feature=related

Freakishly funny!

I stumbled upon this video the other day while searching youtube for something else....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2SZj0CnEB8

I still crack up when I watch it, and the comments are hillarious!!!

Pssst!
The end is near....Robots are reproducing!! and just may I ask what is in that robots boob that the little baby bot is so eagerly suckling on? Battery acid perhaps.

Are you missing a little girl???

My girls have a new little friend and favorite play date pal that goes by the name of Ida.I dont know where she came from, I don't know how old she is because the girls have never said, she isn't listed on their school list, so I'm not even sure of what grade she is in. However I'm guessing that she is somewhere around their age because wherever they are, she is too..enjoying their toys and their games and the same food that they are.
I have to add on a side note here that a blog with no picture just doesn't seem like a complete blog....But, unfortunately I have no picture of Ida Know to share with you.
She is here everyday in our house, and seems to have become quite a dear little friend to my girls and I fear she has also become quite the bad influence on them as well. Although quiet (by far the quietest little girl I have ever seen) she is messy and lazy, rude and has become a down right pain in my butt.
Now first off let me say that I like most all children until they reach the age of adolescence, and even then I still like them, I just dont like the attitude and behavior that tends to tag along with them at this age...I have truly formed a dislike toward little Ida though and I just don't know how to fix it.
Ive had other mommy friends tell me that Ida plays with their kids as well....and they have the same issues. For example yesterday I walked into the living room to find someone had managed to leave little kissy marks all over my plasma TV screen. I asked who did it and both the girls said..."Ida Know." Alas, Ida was no where to be found and I got stuck cleaning up the mess.

On Saturday I made Chocolate chip cookies and had a plate cooling on the table. When I came back from nursing the baby, there was 2 cookies missing and crumbs all over the table and floor. Again, I asked the girls who ate the cookies without asking AND who didn't use a plate or napkin and created such a mess on my kitchen floors? Grace looked up at me shocked that someone would do such a thing to my freshly scrubbed kitchen, wiped the crumbs off the side of her still moist lips and simply stated "Ida Know Mom. Sorry"... Hailey looked down at the floor and said quietly "Ida know." Yet again....Ida was nowhere to be found when it came time for punishment.

Whenever the girls get a crazy and stupid idea and it results in a broken lamp, or in reference to our most recent experience, a broken arm.... I always say, Who told you cats like showers? Who said that silly putty was safe to put in your hair? Whose idea was it to climb in the stuffed animal net to see if it could hold all 60plus pounds of you?(this is the one that resulted in the broken arm) Whose idea was it to play superheros in the living room and use the end tables as your launching pad? Who thought the toilet made the perfect jacuzzi for your Barbies? It doesn't matter who really. The answer is always the same. Ida Know.

So....I'm making this official public announcement here and now.
WHOMEVER is the parent of one quiet, mischievous and imperceptible little girl by the name of Ida Know. Please..puuhhleeease return immediately to my house to pick up your child before I toss her out on her hiney to the curb, that is when I find where she has run off and hid. Time to move on and find another unknowing family to release her upon. Try teaching her some manners and responsibility for her actions. Time outs and early bedtimes are great punishments that always work great on my kids...and if that doesn't work. I take their computer or TV time away. Please also know that I'm sorry and my prayers, and sympathy are with you.

Where we are now...

So...
Although Im not a follower of the NFL ( I concentrate on the college league..namely the Gators) I was home alone on Sunday evening...well, the kids were in bed and hubby was out with friends..and I gave it to watching the Super Bowl, mainly just the commercials.

Anyone else notice a change? The Super Bowl is known for the commercials they air during their event. Companies flock and fight for spots and are by general rule-completely full by Thanksgiving at the latest (not this year, this year there were 4 spots left yet to be filled as of last week) These commercials are elaborate over the top ads that people talk about and rave about for weeks. They are usually full of hot chics, fancy cars, dream lifestyles, famous people etc etc yadda yadda ya. You know the ones I am talking about. Not this year though. This year was quite different. There were some of the usual ones that you would expect (i.e. the Clydesdale Budweiser horse)but otherwise completely different then what we are used to and expect. There was an overall theme surrounding these unexpected ads as well- Our economic state. If there is any indication as to our current economic status and where we are now, it is blantantly obvious if you watched the commercials. First there was a commercial for some car company (I dont recall exactly which one it was..but it was one of em) and they showed a car speeding down winding roads while the announcer told us that they understood the times we are living through, and that is was okay to buy a car from THEIR company...because if we lost our job within a year of making the purchase- we can return the vehicle no questions asked with no fees.

The next commercial was Denny's Restaurant....Today only from 10am until 2pm you can get a FREE Grand Slam breakfast. Hmm...kinda like a one day only nationwide chained soup kitchen, eh?I think I'll be gettin me some pancakes for breakfast...heck, maybe even lunch!

There was one for Avon...and it was full of happy women selling Avon telling us how they cant lose their jobs because they are their own bosses.

My favorite commercial though was the one that featured Ed McMahon and McHammer. Sponsored by a company called Cash4Gold. Cash4Gold's commercials are usually best seen during raunchy sitcoms, Talk Shows and between the 2 am airings of the Girls Gone Wild infomercials. This time it was during the much sought after spots during the Superbowl (I wonder if CBS offered Cash4Gold a special last minute deal...they did after all have those last 4 spots to fill) Anyways, sweet little Ed McMahon has been featured in the past during SuperBowls knocking on peoples door, LIVE to present them with a check from Publishers Clearing House for several millions of dollars. Not this year though. Nope, this year Ed was stuffing some of his diamond rimmed gold cuff links into an envelope and sending it in to Cash4Gold for "much needed money". MC Hammer was sending in his gold records....even his coveted gold hammer pants.

That last commercial I just mention is the most accurate portrayal of our countrys current economic situation that I have seen in months. I only hope and pray the writers and actors of Saturday Night Live saw it as well! ;0)



Wanna see the video of the commercial?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrNipeP4HvQ

Photo Tag...

As asked to do on another blog I read regularly.....

The fourth photo from my fourth photo folder, explained. Your turn!!!

This was taken inside the local Santa house on our annual visit during Christmas 2007. Isnt it cute?

In Greed We Trust

So...

I was talking with a friend yesterday....who was quite perturbed to find out that she ended up owing the goverment on her taxes this year. Why? Because of those lovely little stimulus checks that were sent out last year. They originally said that they wouldnt ask us for the money back later on.....but apparently they lied.
So now, my friend is stuck forking out the 400 dollars she owes the goverment. She had a tax credit of 1200, but after the goverment deducted the 1600 dollar stimulus check that was forced upon her last year...she was at a negative of 400 dollars. I, personally dont like it one little bit. It doesnt seem fair at all. She however, really doesnt like it.

This leads me to realize that there is a very grey area when it comes to the whole seperation of church and state thing. I know... going from whining about stimulus checks, and tax returns to seperation of church and state is a big jump...but for me it isnt so big...because it all really boils down to this.
I dont want them connected, because I dont want them compared. Plain and simple.

While I would truly love for Christ to be present in schools and public places, I know that there really isnt anything or anyone that can stop that from happening. We are actually protected by our governed laws that allow us the freedom to liveout our religious beliefs however we see fit, wherever we see fit. Minus human sacrafice and the obvious others of course. If we want to pray before we eat our meals...then we can pray. If we want to raise our hands and sing praises to God in the middle of the school football field...then we can. We can talk about God and our beliefs, no one is stopping us. We just need to be proud enough to do so. As for teachers not being able to do so...well, they werent hired to teach our children about Christian morals, Biblical truths and whatnot. that is OUR job as their parents.And if we do want that included in our children's education...there are schools where we can have that happen. We are their most important teacher anyways....all the experts say that. So shouldnt we be the ones to be teaching them about the most important things??!?

Here is where I like the seperation of church and state. The goverment...despite the whole "in God we trust" line...is a far cry from the idealistic christian way of thinking and living.
Barack Obama is passing a bill once again to allow stem cell ressearch,along with making abortion more accessible and easier, despite the fact that it is indeed murder-the ultimate crime.(p.s. to that, did I mention that we the tax payers will be paying for some of these abortions and alot of this research...cause we are) He is recanting on promises made and he hasnt even been in office a full two weeks.
And again I bring up once again my friends tax woes. Because of something that goverment forced on her last year due to our economic status, yet promised us at the same time this would help our situation and they werent expecting repayment....she is now suffering, because they recanted and lied.
Can I just say..... What the heck?!?! Obviously those stimulus checks were a huge waste of money and time. Because ummmm, you cant say that if fixed our economic situation. All it seemed to have done was provide all the poor folks with basically free plasma TVs and Playstation3s. Perhaps a down payment on a new car for some middle class folks, and the rich folks.....wellllll... We cant really say they were left empty handed. They just sorta missed the ice cream truck on that one at best...but went home and pulled a carton of their favorite frozen treat from their fancy subzero fridges. If you follow my loose analogy there....No one suffered, but the American goverment sure was left looking pretty darn stupid in my humble opinion.

Seperation of Church and state is good. I dont want something that is corrupt, full of lies, idiotic, selfish and hypocritical compared to my God.
Go ahead and keep the seperation of church and state.....cause God obviously isnt in this goverment system anyways.

Im so bad

Im so bad.... but he loves it.

Ryan likes Nickelodeons show, Curious Buddies.

I know he is a baby, and the fact that I plop him in front of the TV is bad....but he likes it.

Just in case you have no idea what I am talking about....click the link below

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jHVFXLyCCw

Tink with a 'tude

One of the many things my girls cant seem to get enough of during the long, cold winter weekends when we are stuck indoors....

Dress up.

Gracie's latest deserved a picture and a blog

I like to call this one....Tink with a 'tude

Go Gators!

Short and sweet...for once

YAY GATORS!!!!!!!!!!!!

BCS College football champions

Tim Tebow...my favorite gator (and not just cause he plays the best) Honestly...he has an awsome story to share.

Spit Happens

So apparently Ryan has an intolerance to any and all formulas Ive tried. Which at current count is 5 different ones (in no particular order):
-Enfamil
-Isomil
-Similac
-Similac Organic
-Enfamil AR

I thought he'd outgrown it. I was wrong.

The results are hours of puking...like amazingly terrible puking.

His tiny little body stiffens up, and from deep within him, he brings up everything in his round little baby belly with a force so powerful I truly believe it would rock a Hawaiian island.

His body wants it OUT!

I love breastfeeding and I love the benefits he gets from breastfeeding. He is a great little nurser and currently, the majority of time this is not an issue...but there are times when it would be helpful to have a supplement. Like today...Grace had a doctors appt and I didnt have time to pump a feeding before I had to leave, and unfortuantely he was sleeping for 2 hours before I had to go, so I knew he would be hungry before I got back. I only have 2 bags of frozen milk in the freezer currently, as he nurses so often that I dont know when I would have a chance to pump. These are the times the occasional bottle of formula would be very handy.

Im so frusterated...and I really hate being puked on. Im sure I hate it just as much as little Ryan hates puking.

Anyone know of any other formulas out there that I havent tried that might work? Someone said just going right to cows milk....something Im just not comfortable with. He JUST turned 3 months!

Sporkville

What is Sporkville?

Sporkville is like a Springfield, or a Mt Pleasant,a Franklin or a Riverside. There is more then one of them in this country...but unlike these other common name places where Springfield, Michigan is vastly different then Springfield, Tennessee... Sporkville is like anywhere USA,they are all the same pretty much, give or take a few minor things...namely their location.
Sporkville, Michigan. Well, that would be where I live. No, you cant mapquest it...Im pretty sure it has the wrong coordinates. Im also fairly positive that you cant find its dot on a map either. I would be more then happy to tell you how to get here though and when you know youve entered it.
First, you will always find Sporkville near the tracks, usually on the other side of them. Why is that? I dont really know...but there it shall be. Secondly, the majority of the homes there will be more of a manufactured quality rather than the solidly built kind. If they arent manufactured they are in disrepair generally speaking. A lot of the times though, you get homes that are both manufactured and in disrepair.
Now moving onto the citizens of Sporkville (herein after known as Sporks). I would like to point out before going any further that not ALL Sporks fit this category. I personally do not, nor do my children, my friends, their children and a handful of others fit this category. First off, they seem to like plaid prints. I think it is the camoflauge of Sporkville....you wear plaid- you blend in. The majority also tend to smoke something, mainly cigarettes, but pipes and cigars are common (along with the illegal smokable substances) as well. Their language is a derivative of your typical English, just spoken in a broken, and slang filled form that pretty much focuses on breaking all the proper grammar rules we were taught in school. Namely, the double negative rule. Aint is very much an actual word here, along with the popular combination words like whadya, as in whadya think?. Racial words, offensive statements and profanity (sadly included in the vocabulary of even the youngest Sporkville residents-herein after known as Sporkees) is also commonly used and widely accepted here as well. Think... an unsensored Mater from Disney/Pixars Cars with a raunchy dash of Fox and MTV video awards thrown in.
You know that old saying that when you have less, you cherish it more? You value what you do have and tend to take better care of it? Well, this does NOT hold true to people here. For all you need to do is take a drive down the street, or watch the people in action. They dont take care of their homes, they dont take care of their cars.... heck, I dare say that many dont even take care of their little Sporkees, and these are irreplaceable! Now, I realize that due to financial issues you may not be able to buy the paint needed to spruce up your home, or give it the repairs needed. You may not be able to afford the nicest car...You obviously cant afford the height of fashion when it comes to your personal look either. HOWEVER cleaning your home costs you nothing, and keeping it that way is free as well! Showers are free and there is no limit or ration on how many one can have in a week or month...so go ahead! Shower daily!! Sporks just dont seem to take pride in what they have...even if it is very little. These items are treated like they can just easily be discarded and replaced on a whim. Where this mentality comes from, I have no idea. I cant afford to run out and buy a new house when mine finally collapses from not being kept up. I cant run to the car lot and pick up a new car because my old one fell apart because I didnt keep up with the maintenence on it. Im constantly fixing little things here and there and doing any preventative stuff to make what I do have last longer.

The cavalier way of life that should be anything but. I just dont understand.

The Spork men here seem to all suffer from the same mental ailment that is Peter Pan Syndrome. Meaning, they just cant grow up many flat out refuse to. Men the world over suffer from this, but for some reason it seems to be more of an epidemic in Sporkville. Perhaps this is due to lack of education, perhaps these men suffer due to lack of a decent male role model in their younger years. Im not quite sure...but it is very much prevalent here.

God is here too....
Amazing things happen in Sporkville. Remember Leave It To Beaver? The neighbors actually talked, and helped each other. They do that here (well those that have good Sporksmenship do) I have seen them mow their neighbors lawn, shovel their sidewalks and driveways free of snow, Fix a broken bike wheel for the little Sporkees down the street, I see them stand outside and visit. Before I lived in Sporkville I lived in a very nice upper class neighborhood growing up, followed by a decent middle class neighborhood before landing here. In those two places I NEVER saw people talk to one another and befriend each other so sincerely as I do here. There are two different types of Sporks here. Those that attend church and are true believers and sadly the majority who do NOT attend church and (judging by their lifestyle-not that it is my place to judge anyone) chose not to behave as if there is a God to offend or answer to. He is here though...and I love watching Him send His servants from outside Sporksville in to help the lost Sporks see the error of their ways. While it is obvious to me, I live here...but it must be much more obvious then I ever realized as we are constantly having our doors knocked on by different denominations, finding literature stuffed in our mailboxes and sitting on our top steps full of ways to find the Lord and the miraculous things He can do for us. Again something that never happened in my other neighborhoods. Big school buses coming in here on Sundays and summers picking up all the little Sporkees whos parents are MORE then happy to get rid of for a few hours. They may see it as a free daycare, but those of us who know what God can do and has done..see it for the awsome potential it has for these little Sporkees. Hopefully they too will see it one day as well.

Why Sporkville? What is in the name?
Well, that is simple if you havent figured it out by now.
Many people are blessed to be born into families of financial wealth that is amazing and unwavering for these fortuate ones. They are said to have been born with a silver spoon in their mouth.
Other folks are blessed to be born into families of familiar wealth that is dependable and decent. I like to say that they were born with a nice reliable metal spoon in their mouth.
Then there are the people like my children, and the residents of where we live. I dont like to think of my children as unfortunate....just that in the financial aspects of life....they drew the short stick. These people were born with a spork in their mouth.
Many amazing people started out here in Sporkville and end up doing awsome things for this world. Look at Mother Teresa, she grew up in a shack! On the flipside Ive seen people that start out in fancy homes, loaded down with money and they do nothing to contribute positively to this world, and they have the financial means to make almost anything happen....The the way I see it is this... You cant take a UHaul with you to heaven...so in the end finances dont matter. God doesnt care anyways. His love for us holds no monetary value. His love for us is so amazing that you cant put a value on it. He only cares about what you did to honor Him, to further His kingdom while you were alive. The sad fact though is that when you are alive it DOES matter to others. BUT as a resident of Sporkville I can tell you this. Money does NOT make the person..the person themselves choose who they are going to be, what they are going to make of their life. Spork or Silver spoon.
Raise your little Sporkees up with manners, and a good education. Surround them with like minded people who desire the same for their little ones. Show them God and what He has and can do for us. Show them what we can do for Him in return. Give them a desire to do better then what we have been able to give them so they can give it to their children.

Me 101

So a little about myself for those of you that dont know me.

Before we go any further...I feel the need to put in a note that I am not the most articulate person ( I pointed this out yesterday-remember?)because of this, I often times find it hard to show you in my writing that I am an extremely sarcastic person. My wit truly astounds me-and others =0)

Sooo, on that note, if you read something that seems saucy, or stupid or offensive. Im not being that way. You just didnt understand me. Im currently trying to find the right font to display sarcasm -short of [INSERT SARCASTIC TONE HERE], but I fear there just isnt one in exsistance. Georgia is just to bubbly and no one can read wingbat. Does anyone else have this issue?

=0/

The Basics...
my given name is Sabrina, but only to a handful of people. My family has an entirely different name for me-Beej (long story) My bestest friend forever calls me Bri, as do a majority of other folks in my life. Another large group refer to me as Wiggie as well (another long story)A small and select number of people call me Mommy-their friends call Mrs DeWitt. I answer to them all. So take your pick and give me a hollar!

Im married. To Ron...weve been together for almost 10 years...which seems strange to me that it has been that long....but time doesnt lie. It is just that at 28 years old, it seems impossible. marriage is NOT bliss, and it has been hard work. We have had our ups and downs, we've lived the 'for richer' moments and are currently living the 'for poorer' moments. Id like the richer moments back, they were easier. We've done the sickness and in health thing...more him for me than I him...but, we've made it this far...God's grace and mercy are definately deeply woven in our marriage. Despite whether or not Ron realizes that, or at that particular moment in time I remember that.

Im a Momma. God has blessed me with three precious, precious little pieces of heaven. I have two little girls. Gracie JUST turned 8 and Hailey is 5 1/2. Im also the Mommy to a beautiful little baby boy named Ryan who recently joined and completed our family on October 1st,2008.

Im a sister to two brothers-one older, one younger, A a sister to a sister -who is slightly older, and slightly shorter then me. I loved growing up with so many siblings (although Ive said differently) Our family was the perfect size...and we truly had like the PERFECT childhood. Kudos to my parents on that one! My entire family, with the exception of my mom live in Florida...we dont. I miss them, espescially my dad and my sister.

We currently live in Midland Michigan. There isnt much to say about that one. Nothing goes on here. There is nothing to do here. We have a tridge as opposed to plain ole bridges (the tridge is just three bridges that meet in the middle-wow!) The weather is freakin cold in the winter and freakin hot in the summer. Downtown main street is truly called Main Street- how quaint, I know. Complete with the brick courthouse and a little Santa house next to it... which is georgeous!!! This "little house" is like 3 stories tall, it has a clock tower with doors that open up and little elves come out every hour on the hour to the one of many different Christmas tunes playing on the clock bells in the background. Awsome enough to be featured on Good Morning America last year. Our Santa is even recognized as the offical Santa of the world....I know I know, I have goosebumps too.

Oh yeah...and just for kicks. We have a cat named Bob. Bob Smith aka: Bobbers aka: Bob Smitty the super fat kitty aka: pain in the rump. He is fat....and I mean FAT. Like obese to the point that he makes Garfield look anorexic. Seriously....we have to ration his food, because he will eat himself into a coma if we allowed it. But rationing his food has its downfalls. he meows for food all day long, and I believe if he werent so fat....he would jump up onto of the dryer and pry open his food container (IF he had posable thumbs that is) and help himself....but he is too fat.

One final note on Bob Smitty- The Super Fat Kitty. He likes to lick the top of the baby's head. I havent decided yet if this is okay or not. Neither has Ryan.

So... that is the basics of me. If youve read this far.....thanks. I realize that Im about as exciting as Midland, Michigan is.....and that pretty much says it all.

'Bout Time

So...

This is offically my blog....and my attempt at actually keeping a new years goal this year. I dont really see it as a resolution...Im not solving anything...Im attempting to start something. This is more of a goal that I am hopefully will not only be made, but become enjoyable to me and those that read it.
Ive always meant to have an actual blog, and keep up with it at least weekly. At one time I had one on myspace and for awhile I did good. But I didnt like the setup and layout of it and sorta lost the battle with that one. Besides myspace has too much of a fratty, childish, dirty stigma behind it that I dont really care to be part of. I still have the page, I use it constantly to post pictures, anduse it to keep in touch with some folks occasionally.
Ive come to this site numberous times though, and always loved the layouts and abilities of blogger...so I decided with it being free...there wasnt much keeping me from doing the blog except my ambitions and modivation to do so.
Im not smart by any means... I dont see myself as exceptionally articulate. Im barely college educated (and in the process of fixing that) I know what I know because Ive lived and learned from the expierences Ive had in my lifetime.
I have lots of things that cross my mind....some of it is relevant to current issues in the world (politics for example...but I HATE going there) some of it mindless babble that crosses my mind and I feel like chattin bout it.
Today perhaps a mix of both..

First allow me to offically apologize for two things:
1) I realize that I do "......." way too often. Sorry. Ive tried to stop, but I just cant seem to. Those "......" that you are seeing are merely my way of showing you that Ive paused to contemplate my thought...or more so to make sense of it. Seldom do I backspace a sentence...I try to think it through before I put it down. This can be held true to my personality it real life too. I seldom ever take back what I say, because one thing I have learned many hard lessons on. Think before you speak.
2) I realize that blogs are meant to be short and sweet.
Rarely am I ever short..... and although I can be sweet. Im realistic. So accept this or move on.

Okay, now that that is out of the way. I feel I can sorta start my offical blog. 'Bout time eh?

Well. That is going to have to wait for another time (sorry, Im really not trying to tease) I have three kiddos ( I will tell you all about them and our life in Sporkville in my next blog), one of which is barely 3 months old and he has decided it is time to wake up and eat. So for now I bid you adue and hopefully I will see you back here soon!