October.. soo busy.

October started with FBA

competition in Troy. The band did a superior job, hence, earning the highest

score..straight "1's". We were so proud.

Uncle Jack and Hunter were able to join us .. of course the grandparents

as well. :)

Jacob is in his first season of fall ball.. he is learning so much and has amazing coaches this time. We are at
the ball park every Tuesday and Thursday for practices and every Saturday from 8:30 - 3pm for double headers..(2games). It's a long day.. but it's worth it.. .. and ...

Here I am at the dumb doctor's office about to get stitches..worst part of the whole experience. Of course it had to be right smack dab in the middle of my forehead..and of course they had to shave some of my hair away.. so I feel a tiny , eety beety bit self consious about this big huge white bandage in the middle of my head.. on top of everything I have my job interview on Friday.. should make for good conversation.. goodness. The good news is.. they got ALL the cancer. So happy about that. I know everything will be alright.. :)

Birthday..

Well.. this year my birthday came with it's very own present.. one which I didn't have to open. In August I noticed a bump on my scalp. I went to the dermatologist and had it removed. They sent it off to the pathology lab and I found out on September 13th that it was cancer. Squamous cell carcenoma. I have to go back October 19th to have it removed. I have done some research and found out if you leave it, and do not get it removed that it could kill you. I want to let everyone know that if you have ANYTHING on you that looks like it doesn't belong, looks odd, or maybe you think it's fine, get it checked out ANYWAY!! You can never be too careful when it comes to your health!!
That being said, the rest of my birthday was good. My sweet husband totally spoiled me with a gorgeous bracelet (vera bradley) and a very cute purse (juicy) he has very good taste. If we wern't married, I'd have some serious doubts ( he has an eye for great shoes, purses and jewelry!!). Just so luck!!
What a year it has been...  :)

MMMMM Shrimp Boat.. amazinggg..

My handsome hubby.. :)

The boys snorkling.. having fun

The boys were able to "drive" the boat.. lol

They are all growing up so fast.

Labor Day, Birthday..

My sister and her hubby

took us to Shell Island, we all had such a good time, the boys are still talking about it~

That is how we spent our Labor Day (best one we've had so far) we voted on doing

this every Labor Day!!

Back to School...

Well here they are, all dressed and ready for their first day of school. Austin is a junior at Bay High, Logan

is an 8th grader at North Bay Haven, and the twins are in 6th grade at North Bay Haven.

It has proven to be a difficult start to the new school year. Cobie and Jacob are having

a hard time adjusting. They got upset last night after family prayer.. they didn't want to go back.

We spoke about it, when we were done, they felt better and went to bed. This morning

they were a little teary eyed, but put their brave face on. We had our morning prayers, then off

they went.. pretty smooth. Tim went by and waved at them in thier classroom, when he left, they came barreling out crying after him...After I got to work, Jacob called just bawling.. wanting me to pick

him up, that he missed me and wanted to go home. I told him that he needed to stay..

the staff at the school are amazing.. very sweet. They are very understanding.

I wonder if this is normal? Logan didn't have this problem when he started middle school.  Maybe

it's because they are the "babies" of the family? Hard on the moma too. I just want to

fix it and go swoop them up and take them home... just can't do that.

I hope things get better.. it's killing me. :(

Summer time.. almost over :(

Well, summer is winding down.. we've packed a lot in a couple of short months.. boys went to scout camp and Kids college, Austin had his band camp and youth conference... we were able to have our nephew for a couple of weeks.. a very sweet boy! He was a good influence on our boys.. loved having him :)
The twins had their birthday Tuesday.. we had a small cake and walked the mall.. payday is Friday, so we might go do gocarts or something.. we'll see.
The start of another school year.. a little scary with my small ones going into middle school.. ahhh..that scares me probably more than them. I know they will probably do great.. Jacob into everything that is sport related and Cobie maybe wanting to join band... Logan will be in 8th grade, big man on campus now and Austin-already a Junior in high school.. looking at getting his learners permit before school starts.. one of my goals. Life is flying by in record time. When you are young, you just can't wait to get older..when you're older, you wish you were young. Are we ever happy?? lol I've come to accept this life as a challenge, how many people can you help, how can you put your life to work for the Kingdom of God? You know, it's not all about us.. just something to think about. Life is so short, make an impact..a difference. Ok, off my soap box for now..   .. as far as work.. mine is changing.. I (elearning) am being combined with testing..so i will have a new boss.. and i will have to interview again.. kinda nervous. Tim ..well he isn't sure which school he will be at.. he's hanging in there like the true trooper he is. We both have jobs, and we are so thankful.

Up the twirly slide!!

The boys had a lot of fun

at Frank Brown last Friday.. we spent the day, brought a picnic and just lazed about in the sun.. boys were

lathered well with sunblock.. no sunburns! :) 

Jacob blowing out his candles,

We had to do them both seperately of course!! I made my first ice cream cake.. it wasn't pretty, but oh my, was it ever so goooood!!!

Summer, July 2010

The boys had their 11th birthday Tuesday

I just want to know where all the time goes???

July.. Lots of happenin's around here!!

Well, June went by very fast.. July was here before I knew it. My friends came down ( Natalie from Dover and Lindy from Texas ) and Melisa and Mollie (they both live here) .. we were all able to get together.. It was nice seeing them all :) Me and the twins watched fireworks with Natalie and her family.. they fixed a big rib dinner and I brought some banana pudding.. we had a good time.
Now .. July is about half over, school will be starting back before you know it.. the boys will be going to "Kids College" the last two weeks in July. We will be having our nephew stay with us as well.. It should be fun. .. 5 boys under one roof.. lol I'll have to shop in bulk this pay period!!
Tim has been gone almost this whole month so far. Definately missed him.
He is coming home Thursday night.. can't wait.

Me and Nat.. ( 2009 too I think) What movie did we go see?? I can't remember.. Oh, I think It was the Proposal.. ??

This is our Girls Night Out 2009

Where was Melisa?? Think She took the picture :)

It all started June 26, 1993

What a roller coaster we've been on.. Just when I think

I can't love you more..

I do.

You make my heart race, my palms sweat

Feel like the luckiest girl in the world to be surrounded

by four strong boys and the most handsome man

I've ever seen, no one else will do

I wouldn't be me without You.

 

I can't believe we've been a family for almost 17 years. The time has gone by so very quickly..  The boys are growing soo fast!!

He is satisfied with very little.. like this hot dog roller he got for Christmas..thought this was the best present, EVER!

He is a very hard worker and a wonderful provider for our family.

Happy Father's Day to my Best Friend

I feel so lucky to be married to my best friend.. he is an amazing father to our boys.. takes them places, teaches them all kinds of "guy" stuff, and is a great example.

As you can tell by all these pictures, he is a very serious guy. Never laughs or thinks anything is funny. .. lol

Summer..it is SO hot!

Summer is offically here.. it is so HOT and humid outside.. it's really terrible!

We had a busy weekend. Tim had to work security all weekend, in the bugs and the heat. Saturday me and the boys went to North Bay Haven Charter Academy and helped out, cleaned, ect. Then it was off to get their physicals for scout camp. When that was done, we headed to the beach. Gosh, it was a beautiful day and the water was crystal clear! The sandbar reached the shore and you could walk out for what seemed like a mile. Came home and cleaned up the house a bit. Later that night, Jacob was running a high fever. Gave him some med's and it came down. Dad and Jacob stayed home from church. Around 6pm I started to get a bad headache, turned into a migraine. Worse one I've ever had. Felt like I was going to get sick. Took some Tylenol and it helped some. Didn't get much rest last night. It's been really busy at work.. midterms.

I need a vacation from everything.. dreaming of some place other than Florida to live.. maybe one day.

Beach Day with Logan ~

Me and Logan had a beach day last Saturday (May 22). We had such a good time! Only bad part was I accidently left my phone in my little shorts and walked into the Gulf without realizing it.. So I am without a cell phone. Got to wait until I get paid to afford the copay to get a replacement. Oh well. It was worth it. He is getting really good at Skim boarding..and I think he had a really good time. I know I did :)

The other boys want to go next time.. so maybe Memorial Day weekend we will head out there if it's not too busy.

I feel very blessed to have such good boys. We have our ups and downs, but as a whole, they are amazing. Our family is growing up.. life goes by so fast.

Austin only has two more years of high school left.. the twins will be in MIDDLE SCHOOL next year.. seems like a dream.

I was just an at home mommy, watchin' Blue's Clues, Sesame Street and Barney

snuggled up on the couch, munchin' on cheerios.

Now , everything has changed. Life is speeding by..so very fast.

If your at home, with your little ones, give them an extra hug, take an extra picture, go to the park even if you really don't feel like it

have a picnic outside, lay down with them at naptime, these moments

are precious.

My oldest is... omgoodness.. 16!!!

My son, he is 16 today. I can't believe it. He has grown so much ..especially in the last year. Although he gives me a LOT of grief (talking back, thinks he is right all of the time, grades, you know, typical teenage stuff) I love him so much. He is the example for the rest of the clan to follow.. partly why I am so hard on him.. He is a wonderful son. Has great morals and values, knows his place here on this earth and knows where he is going. He is going to be an amazing missionary...
He loves band, food, and sleeping. LOL !! Probably in that order! He's fast becoming a man and I just want to press the ::pause:: button. ..going too fast. Just yesterday... he was.. toddling around the house watching Barney (gare-gare) getting his first birthday cake all over his face and hair, learning how to walk, learning how to ride a bike, starting school, tying his shoes, ... Love is.. being a mom. Happy Birthday Austin! Love you SO much!!!

Starting over.. am I really?

I look at this picture and think.. my husband is sooo handsome! Then I glance over at me.. and just get totally grossed out. Why do we do this to ourself? I think I have a pretty good outlook on life, I try to be positive, until it comes to my weight. It's like... it takes over who I am. Like, I'm less of a person because I don't exercise as much as I could. Got to retrain my brain.

Life is good. I've got to get over all of this ... geesh!

I did go to the gym on Monday, couldn't go Tuesday (i was being a good friend and brought some sunshine to someone who needed it) I couldn't go today because Cobie had a dentist appointment. You know what? I'm going to go change, and get on my bike! Like a true "fat bottom girl"!!! lol don't ya love Queen???

Tomorrow I am going to the gym.. and Friday too!

At my last girlie doctor appointment I asked bout the "lap band" the one that closes off some of your stomach... they got out the weight chart thingie that says if you are fat enough to get it.. I wasn't. Actually I was kind of disappointed. Sounded like it was something that could help me.??

I guess the natural way is best..it is the hardest way, so it must be for the best!

Chow, I'm headin' out the door before it gets too dark!

What a Week!!!!

It's over..thank goodness. finals just about did me in. I survived thou, and I am pretty happy. Mother's day this weekend, got to run to the store to get my mom a card. Gonna start this "losing weight" crap again this week. The gym was closed this week anyway.. so just gonna dust myself off and try again.
Life has been pretty rough lately. All kind of stuff, hitting me from all directions. I keep spinning around looking for the huge target on my back so I can rip it off.
Just have to remember.. trials make us stronger.. we grow. .. most important: we are being good examples to our children.

It's a typical weekend..

Welp, I did get a lot accomplished this weekend, sort of. Tim helped me take his old shop fridge to my office at work, ran some errands..bought groceries...laundry, more laundry, dishes, still to do: clean the floors, tidy up my room, and there is always, laundry. Tim is working tonight.. just like last night. 8pm-4am. Church in the morning... I have a meeting..so I've got to go in early.
Down to the nitty gritty.. I did walk the dogs today, and rode my bike.. so I did get some kind of exercise. Don't forget about that little bit of housework.. I coulda been sittin on my hiney drinking a wine cooler..
HA HA!!! Just kidding.. I just heard all the "gasps" from all my church family..hehheeee..
No dinner for me tonight.. heard your biggest meal should be in the morning.. I'm gonna try that this week. I get up at 5am to take Austin to seminary.. So I think I'll start preparing a little breakfast.. eggs.. what not. ..light lunch, like always, snacks in between,.(under 100 cal.) then maybe a slim fast shake or something for supper?? Can't hurt to give it a try. Will be shootin' for going to the gym right after work. .. most days this week. Won't be postin' tomorrow.. church and stuff.. nothin' too exciting anyway.. check back Monday.. I will be a crazy woman as it is the last week of finals.. all those lovely last minute shoppers needing to take their final, and think that they will be able to make arrangements...HA!!! oh boy. I think I'm gonna need some caffeine to survive.. :o)

Time to get it into gear..

How many times do we start out with great intentions, then fail.. horribly?? For me..this happens all the time. I almost hate to tell anyone that I am trying to lose weight because.. i know.. i am just going to fail. Why is it that I can't stay on the right path?? I am good for a week, sometimes a month.. a few times, six months. .. but gradually I quit, go back to bad habits and no exercise.
*** WHY can't I be at a healthy weight?? WHY can't I be happy with myself?? Thinking of putting on shorts.. well, it's not a pretty sight. Here I am.. I live in FLORIDA.. and my "shorts" are Capris. I just want to go into a store, and wear whatever I want... I'm sick of fat people clothes.. they are like drapes... to cover the massive bulges hanging out everywhere. I just want to be happy. I'm a productive person, I work a 40 hour work week, I manage a household with four boys and an awesome husband, I TRY and do my church calling to the best of my ability, it's not like I sit on my big ol' butt all day and cram food in my face. I've got to find a happy medium. Stop thinking I've got to be "treated" everytime I go to the gym, or NOT eat a sugary snack. I'm not a teenager anymore.. I've got to grow up. .. I hope "blogging" this won't be in vain.. but rather a springboard to my success. I can look back on this as a new beginning..::shudder:: my luck, it will end up deleted... here I go again.. This time, I want to win! Can I do it?????????

Wow, What a trip!!!

We had such a great time!! First stop was Savannah, GA.. just to get out of town and get a head start. Williamsburg, Va was next.. What a gorgeous town. Roll down the windows and it smells like bath and body works! The trees were all in full bloom, just so pretty! Our hotel was great, got two rooms to spread out. Spent two days there.. took in all the sights and ate some authentic Virginian BBQ, I'll keep the south's anyday.. it was alright, but they don't have anything on us!! Then it was off to Natalies! We all went to Washington DC there, believe it or not, we brought the hot Florida sun with us.. it was 90 degrees!! There was a cool breeze though, but it made it hard with all the walking we did! Our dogs were barkin' thats for sure! Tuesday we made our way to Philly.. that was a cool town. Not expecting much but to see the liberty bell.. But we saw so much more than that! Lots of museums, shops and tons of monuments. We took a double decker bus (the only way to go) Got lots of great pictures from there... really neat! Wednesday it was off to Pennsylvania.. we stayed in a small town called Strasburg and stayed at a neat little hotel that made the rooms out of old train cabooses! Fun :) Met up with my parents and went out to eat.. Left Thursday and headed home. Stayed over in Virgina .. Friday we were on our way home.. boy what a long ride.. stopped off in pensacola to get our dogs, then went home, didn't get there until after midnight.. it took us a while to get rested.. we are still tired!! It was such a huge blessing and a wonderful trip.. lifetime of memories.. SO very glad we did it!!

Getting ready for our trip over Spring Break!

Oh my goodness, we are so excited about our trip. We are leaving Thursday as soon as Tim gets off work. Our first stop will be Savannah, GA. We will spend the night there and be on our way to Williamsburg, VA. We will be visiting Colonial Williamsburg and Jamestown.. catchin' all the sights, taking the ferry, shopping.. should be alot of fun! We will leave Sunday and head to Dover, DE to see my best friend Natalie! We've known each other since middle school and she is one of my very dear friends. She is letting us (all six of us) stay with her for a week.. now, that's what I call friendship!! Monday and Tuesday we will be traveling back and forth to Washington DC to see the Smithsonian and the monuments. Wednesday we are going to Strasburg, PA to visit a local train museum .. spending the night at the Red Caboose Motel, check out this link:
http://www.redcaboosemotel.com/
Should be a once in a lifetime experience! lol.. Then off to Gettysburg.. where Tim has a few late ancestors who have died in the Revolutionary War!! How cool would that be to find them?? :)
We also want to "drive thru" New York, don't think we are brave enough to get out.. lol We'll see. The boys are so excited, and so are we! I will be posting BUNCHES of pictures when I get back!!

Spring...

I am ready for spring.. it has been a hard start of the new year. But, it looks like we are coming out of it alright afterall. Cobie is back to normal, still have a ton of bills, but that's why they have monthly payments. Life goes on.
Everyday I thank God for my health, it really weighs on me how important it is. I've got to start getting back to exercising, even if I don't see an immediate result. All the boys are doing well in school.. we've hit a couple of bumps along the way, but for the most part, they are doing great. We are really looking forward to our Spring Break and visiting my parents and my best friend!! She is kind(crazy) enough to let all of us stay with her up in Dover, DE. Then we will meet my folks and get to visit them as well. The boys are so excited to be going somewhere they've never seen before. It should be pretty awesome, my goal is to arrive back home with all 4 boys. :)

takes care...

Life is full of surprises. Some are so unbelievable ..it's like a dream. While I was running errands on campus at work, someone left an greeting card with money to help with medical expenses for Cobie. I was so overwhelmed, I started boo-hoo'ing like a baby. Of course, they didn't sign their name, but if that someone reads this blog I wanted to tell you..so much.. Thank You. I know God loves me because he has special people on this earth who look after me.. those near, those far away. That amount of money will go a long way .. paying off copays...
No words can express the gratitude I feel.. so whomever left that for me, .. a huge burden has been lifted.. Thank You, Thank You, Thank You! xoxoxoxxoo

Stress... going down.. :)

Well it's getting more back to normal at home.. The boys had Jr. Deputies w/ Tim and I had a meeting at church. When I left the house, I started a anti virus spyware removal tool on the home computer, when I came back it was finally complete. Re-booted and all looks good. So glad it's not done for.. at least not yet. Still don't feel 100% today.. stomach still unsettled and my throat is bothering me. Hopefully all that will pass soon. Still on my path to reading the Book of Mormon in 100 days. Trying to stay on track. Work is going good. We are so blessed. I recently found some old photos and scanned them.. I am enjoying the trip down memory lane. :) Wish I still had the size 4 body I once had!

Yay, It's out!!!!

I am very pleased to announce that the IV port was taken out this morning!! No more antibiotics, and life gets to go back to normal!!! Cobie will be able to go to school in the morning ( Tuesday ). I am so happy!! I think we may go out to celebrate.. (hey, mickey d's has a dollar menu!!)
He will still need to go to physical therapy.. hopefully, not for long. He doesn't have full range of motion on that arm (his right arm).
Gosh, what a relief!!!
Thanks for all the prayers that were said on our behalf!
Now, if I could get my home computer to work again, life would be great!!

S T R E S S ~~~~

I am definatley feeling the stress.. hospital bills, co pays to three doctor's offices a week, IV's, schedules, worry, job, Church..
Temple take me awayyyyy!!! Wish I could go. That's where I need to be. Me and my baby..
Well, I've also taken on the challenge of reading the Book of Mormon in 100 days. This has given me a feeling of accomplishment. Even if the house stays dirty , the load of clothes don't make it to the washer, the bed goes un-made, I can still say.. I read my scriptures today. That.. makes me happy. So take that, SATAN!!! :) I see you, and you are gonna lose this battle, so move on to someone ELSE! ..
Sleep deprived a smidge too.. if you can't tell.. lol
Struggles are great when your done. You feel so much stronger than you did before.. just wish someone could tell me when I will be done.
Say an extra prayer for us.. :)

Weekend.. :)

Why does the weekend always go by so quickly? At least I got to get out of the house with a good friend.. just took a walk at pier park and had a small pizza at red brick pizza.. it was cloudy and cold.. but it still was nice. We are so lucky to live here in Panama City.. you can drive 20 minutes and see one of world's most beautiful beaches.. I do miss the mountains though.
Cobie is doing alright.. he misses playing outside the most I think... and he can't "play around" with his brothers. I can't wait to be done with the antibiotics..

New Calling..

Well this past Sunday I was called as the Relief Society President for Panama City Ward. I am still in shock... but very excited. I am looking forward to getting to know the sisters better and serving them. The start of the new year has been a rough one, with Cobie and now my new calling.
Cobie is still at home, he will need his IV port for at least another three weeks. We are hoping to have a homebound teacher to start coming to our home to help with the school work. He gets overwhelmed easily.. poor guy. It's hard to tackle so much. We try and break it up.. but I think it will be much better when there is a teacher telling him what to do rather than mom and dad.
I'm very thankful for my inlaws for stepping in to watch Cobie three days out of the week.. it has been a HUGE help!! There is no way we could make this work without them. Tomorrow is my day to stay home and I am so looking forward to it.
It's also payday.. yayyyyy :)

Cobie..

It's been a roller coaster to say the least. Wednesday we were walking in the doctor's office to see what he thought was wrong with Cobie's elbow.. thinking it was just stiff, or he bumped it. Of course it was something much worse.. septic joint (I think that's what they called it) and it was really infected... required surgery right away. They were hoping it was not in the bone. They still cannot tell me if it is or not. We ended up staying in the hopital one day shy of a week.. he is on some pretty powerful antibiotics and required an IV port to be put in .. upper arm near his chest.. When we were finally released, a home health nurse came out to show us how to give him is medications by IV. Not fun, you worry a lot about infection.. and wishing you had a huge bubble to put him in. He is doing alright.. he is normally so active, this is really hard for him. He isn't able to go to scouts tonight and is kind of upset about that as well. It looks like he will be on the antibiotics three times a day for three weeks. Plus two doctors visit per week.. when they say all of this to me, all I can think of is how much money this will all be.. we still aren't through paying for Tim's hospital stay back in 2006 when he broke his leg .. now this. I guess we all go through trials for a reason.. to make us stronger.. to grow. What a way to start off the new year, huh? I have no leave time left.. so when I stay home from this point, it will be without pay. Goodness.. I know we will get thru this.. Everything is going to be alright.. I just know it. :)

Cobie's arm

Gosh, here we go again! Well it started Thursday morning ( Jan. 7) Cobie woke up complaining his arm hurt. I just assumed it was from sleeping on it weird and we went along our merry way. Friday he went to a friends house and Saturday when I picked him up, he was still complaining. He is now unable to extend his arm out past a 90 degree angle. I notice that it is a little swollen, but not bad. He is having trouble putting on clothes and feeding himself , and is now running a low grade fever, so I make an appointment first thing Monday morning to see his peditrician. She doesn't like the look of it and sends us to get an Xray done. The results are faxed back to her office and the nurse calls to say it is either a dislocated elbow or a fluid filled sack that is infected. She doesn't feel qualified enough to make the distinction so she makes an appointment to see an orthopedic surgeon. Hopefully we will be able to get in there before the week is out.
Where did this come from?? The only thing we can think of is he fell on that same arm last month, maybe even more than a month ago, diving for a football and landing on the concrete. His elbow (same one) was scraped up quite a bit, and left a scar (mainly because he picked at it non stop), but I couldn't believe it wasn't worse than it was. This incident was probably what started it. So, NO MORE football at our house, first it was Logan jumping up in the air to catch a football in the yard and landing on a huge pine tree root and slicing his knee wide open , almost requiring surgery.. he still needed physical therapy! Not to mention the HUGE scar across his knee.. more like indention really. Sports.. not a fan!

Here we go.. 2010

A new year, a fresh new start. The house really looks good.. I worked on it during the break and I am really happy with it.. Now to get the yard looking half way decent.. needs to be raked.
It's been really cold here lately.. in the 20's in the morning.. I tried to put a blanket on my plants, but it came off during the night and the plants froze... I upset about that. Hopefully they will come back.
Work is going well. .. getting caught up and starting new spreadsheets and folders for the new semester.
We had a really nice Christmas this year.. I did a lot of baking (and gained 5lbs, respectfully..lol)
Time to get back to the gym.. just have to muster the motivation..