scenes from lisa's life

I don't understand

2010-11-13T21:35:00.006-06:00

Since I started this blog, y'all have been through the good the bad and the ugly. This post will be one of the latter.

A week ago tomorrow one of my dear friends took his life. I went home to be at his funeral. I have been sad since I found out. I found out a work by a text from a friend who thought I already knew. What a shock. Not the place to find out. I had a hard time keeping it together and how I got through the next day and a half at work, I don't know. It's a blur.

I got to the funeral home and saw many old friends and their spouses. I saw my friend in the casket looking very unlike himself. Just lifeless. You may laugh at that but it's true. I was used to seeing him smiling and cracking jokes and being full of life. Him just lying there with bad makeup on and hands just as lifeless as they can be was just not him.

Then the funeral. Many friends from the night before and some different ones, again, great to see, just not under those conditions. Another friend from childhood gave a eulogy. He said he didn't want to be there. Neither did I. I don't think anyone did. No one ever wants to be at a funeral, but, I don't think people are as sad when it was a life long lived and comes to an end from natural causes or even when an illness is involved. At least you know they are at long last free from the bonds of the illness and whole again, in heaven. To me, this was unnatural, preventable. But was it?

I may have just answered my own questions. I wasn't understanding. I wasn't angry. I was just sad.

I guess if I look at this as though it were a physical illness, I should be happy for my friend. He's no longer in such a black place that even the light of his children couldn't get through. The light of friendships long standing, the light of a mother, sister, wife's love, the light Jesus himself couldn't shine through.

I know God has him. I know he doesn't hold it against him that he took his life. That kind of illness had such a hold on him and he hid it so well, most of the time, that no one could know the blackness that was his depression. I've often heard that depressed people can hide it well. While I don't think there are any of us who knew him who didn't know of his depression, I don't think any of us thought that "now" was the time for him. And, granted, I hadn't talked to him in the last couple of weeks but, I had no idea. Perhaps those closest to him had an inkling, that may be what caused them to send the sheriff out to find him when they couldn't reach him. But, on the whole, I think it caught all of us by surprise.

I think - no - I know that he could have called anyone who was in that chapel yesterday and any one of us would have been more than happy to drop what we were doing to help him. He who had for so long brought us joy and laughter. If only he had reached out. I know that's part of the darkness of depression. Thinking no one understands, not wanting to bother people. It's wrong.

If I ever thought for a second someone I knew was close to doing harm to themselves, I would do anything in my power to stop it. I realize that is me "traveling by bubble", thinking I can change the world or even one person by trying to help. Well, maybe I could. Maybe he just needed one person to say "your life is worth living". I guess maybe I think his blackness was so deep that even that wouldn't help and this was his answer. Being in the light of Jesus sure sounds preferable to that dark hole he had to have been in and I'm not even suicidal.

I guess I have written myself into feeling a bit better. Working out that now my friend is finally in a bright place. A place where he can finally be happy and at peace. I'm still sad. I still miss my friend but, I know at least he can finally smile and mean it.

Rest in peace my friend. At last.

2010-06-01T21:29:00.005-05:00

Ok, I have downloaded these pictures twice and lost them the first time and can't move them into the right order. There is NO rhyme or reason to the downloading of photos on this blog. Perhaps this summer I can spend some time figuring it out. Anyone out there reading this who has already figured it out, please feel free to enlighten me.

Anyhow...Today, the baby of my babies graduated pre-school. She is officially a Kindergartner now. They did a really good job of their little graduation at Brennan Academy. She graduated cum laud (with honors) because she turned in ALL her homework assignments (one every month). They were family projects so perhaps we all got honors today, along with her.

Everybody came out for the occasion, Even Nonnie. Thank you, Nonnie! And thanks for dinner at our favorite celebration place...El Chicos!

This is Anna and Tate. He'll be going to ACA next year, too. When he asked the teacher who was testing him if Anna would be going to ACA, too, and she said "yes", he said "oh, you know I'm going to want to talk to her". He's a cutie!

Here's all my babies...big and small!

They sang a bunch of songs before the graduation. She actually sang all of them!

I didn't even cry! I probably will when she graduates Kindergarten. For sure will when she graduates High School. But, that's a blog for another day.

I can't believe all my girls will be in one school next year for the only year that will happen. But, it should make it a heck of alot easier. WOOHOO!

Congratulations, Anna. We're all so proud of you.

Look who's coming to dinner

2010-04-28T20:16:00.001-05:00

We had dinner at jon and Tyler....

Happy admin prof day

2010-04-21T15:53:00.001-05:00

So, today was the official holiday known as administrative professional's day. I walked in this morning to a lively potted arrangement that will find it's way to my garden eventually. Then the cookie that I stuck in the arrangement as you can see in the picture. I was treated to lunch, chocolate covered strawberries, a Joann's gift card and two dozen roses. Not a bad for a holiday I totally forgot about.

Just ducky

2010-04-20T20:25:00.002-05:00

There's a lady who comes in everyday to pick up. A student from Homework & Health (our after school care) and lately she's been bringing me a duck tucked into odd places like her pocket or sleeve. Today, this picture shows where it was.

I'm updating from my phone so I hope this goes through. If so, you'll be seeing lots of new posts!

Bookfair at Barnes and Noble

2010-04-14T12:25:00.002-05:00

If you would like to help our school's music department by doing something you may have already been planning to do...

Go to www.barnesandnoble.com
Pick yourself out a few things you'd like to purchase
Go through the normal check-out process
After you enter the credit card information, there is a small box underneath that says "Check this box if this is a bookfair order". CHECK THIS BOX!

Enter the code: 10158616

finish checking out and that's it! You've helped ACA Music Dept. make some much needed (and appreciated) money!

I will be posting about Sadie's performance last night at the Barnes and Noble here, later. Keep an eye out!

Saturday in the life...

2010-04-11T11:41:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was a busy day in WanglerWorld, and it oozed on over to this morning.

First thing yesterday morning, and I do mean FIRST thing (like 6:30 we had to get up) Sadie had her last race of the year for running club at school. It was at the new stadium so everyone parked at our house (because Jerry was charging to park for a race - whatever!) and walked/ran over there. I stayed and waited for the stragglers and off we went. The race just started when I got there but about 8 min. later, two ACA boys come running down the final stretch to take the race. I was so proud! Some big ol' boy tried to put on the burners down the final stretch but our ACA boys kept on and won. Then Sadie comes down the stretch (well, there was a bit of time in between the first place runners and Sadie and several runners) but she finished 3rd girl out of ACA's runners. I was so proud.

They had all sorts of things for kids to do after the race so the girls went over and jumped, ran through obstacle courses and who knows what else and Conrad and Anna met us there, then I walked some people home.

I was hoping that Conrad didn't think I was planning on walking back to that stadium because I wasn't. But as I sat in the front yard debating the idea of going back to bed, it occurred to me that I could cut that stinky tree down that is in our garden. So, I got the hand saw and started sawing. I had that thing down and cut up into "garbage truck take-able sized" pieces before Conrad was even on his way back home. Our garden has now been de-treed and de-leaved (otherwise known as raked) and it is looking pretty good. My dream is to put some sort of stone flooring in it like bricks or what-have-you and put our table on it and leave places for plants in the stone. Like I said, that's just the dream. I'll let you know what we do with it.

Then, after the girls got home, I took Mads for a gift and to meet a friend who was taking her to a birthday party. Then the rest of us worked in the yard and then sat and talked to neighbors and listened to the Ranger game until it was over.

After the Ranger game ended, all Wanglers and Brady walked over to the ballpark to hear Clint Black in concert. It was a really good concert and yes ladies, Clint still looks good in those jeans! While we adults were listening to the concert the children went over to the hillside to roll down the hill. If there's a hill, kids are going to roll down it, right? So, we're watching that and listening to the concert when I suddenly notice Anna isn't with the other kids. Conrad goes over and I can see him really fussing at Mads and I catch his eye and do the universal motion for "so, does anyone know where she is?" and he gives the universal sign for "OMG ANNA IS MISSING"!! So I go find the nearest uniformed men and tell them the 4 year old is missing, what she's wearing, what color her hair is, etc. and they get on their radios and get the word out. Then, a ballpark security guard comes walking up with her. I hugged her and thanked her profusely. She told me that Anna didn't know her name and I assured her she knew her name that she could even write it. I then told her she just doesn't talk to strangers. She acted like I might be trying to pull the wool over her eyes but said "OK". So, Anna didn't leave our sight after that. Conrad was getting on to Mads earlier because while he was trying to find the youngest child, she's all worried because Sadie is trying to use her cardboard to slide down the hill. He's trying to impress upon her that Anna is missing, cardboard doesn't matter!

Then we came home and discussed going to the implosion of Texas Stadium this morning. I kinda wanted to go, the kids really wanted to go and I could tell Conrad wanted to go, too. So, I talked him into letting me sleep in and watch it on TV while he and the girls went out there. I'll be honest, as soon as they left, I decided I wish I had gone. I did watch it on TV...well, I napped during it on TV and had to rewind to see the actual implosion. I have it recorded if anyone wants to watch it. In fact, you can click here and watch it.

And, the last bit of the weekend, Mrs. Froese (Sadie's running coach) ran the race this morning over at the stadium (adults raced today) and won! We're so proud! I only know this because she parked at our house this morning and she came to get her car and told us. Way to go Mrs. Froese!

So, now we're taking it easy, even missing church to catch up on sleep and sanity. I am doing laundry and will grocery shop and get all this stuff picked up outside but, other than that, I'm not doing much today. I'm hoping God forgives for us skipping church one day.

So, how was your weekend?

2010-04-07T17:37:00.005-05:00

Opening Day of the Texas Rangers winning 2010 season (hope springs eternal!) has come and gone and it did NOT disappoint. My hot dog bun was even fresh! Read why I wrote that one here: http://wanglerworld.blogspot.com/2008/04/im-sorry-for-delay-in-posting-my.html

The only thing that isn't good is that my traditional "walking to the ballpark" pic I took got deleted due to a glitch in my camera. Meaning, I purposely deleted all pics on my memory card before we went so I'd have plenty of room for pics and I got two, 2, count 'em, one...two, pictures on there before it told me my memory card was full. Blasted memory card! So, I did the only thing I knew to do and that was reformat the card which meant I lost everything on there. (All two pics.) So, unfortunately you won't see the traipsing through the neighborhood on the way as you usually do. Is that a collective "awwwww, shucks" I hear? I know, I feel your pain.

Here's a link to the first blog about opening day '06 http://wanglerworld.blogspot.com/2006/04/play-ball.html

But, a great time was had by all, with the possible exception of Anna who did NOT like the fireworks that went off before the game started, nor the loud cheering of the 40,000 + fans at the ballpark. But, after awhile she settled in and everything was good.

Here's everyone lined up before the National Anthem. Sung by Neil McCoy (again). I think he sang it the year I was so upset about not hearing the flyover, remember that? (see the first linked post above)

The big flag. I love the big flag. It's so...um...big.

Here's the end of the National Anthem along with the big flyover!

The a paraplegic, who lost his legs in a training exercise, parachuted (yes, I said parachuted) in with the game ball that Roger Staubach threw out. Roger was asked to do it to promote Superbowl 45 to be played right down the street. Like it needs to be promoted, right? Anyway, he did a great job throwing it out.

And the Rangers won in the ninth inning. How could you beat a day like that? Beautiful weather, not too hot, not too cold. Sun came out about the 5th inning so not too much sun. I wasn't at work, I'm thinking it doesn't get much better than that.

Say it with me..."GO RANGERS"!!!!!!

2010-04-04T20:40:00.004-05:00

HAPPY EASTER, EVERYONE!!! This is one of my favorite holidays. The church services are so inspiring and reminders of why we serve God. He gave his ONLY son to save us and today we celebrate that HE conquered death and evil, thereby giving us eternal life if we only choose to believe. How cool is that? The church is decked out in it's white finery and beautiful songs are sung. I just love it.

Another reason I love it is that it's a family thing for us. Last year, Aaron was here as well as Jon Michel. This year it was just Jon but he carried on in the tradition of being here and participating in the egg hunt, although this year, I delegated the stuffing of the eggs so he didn't have to do that.

The morning started off with a visit from the Easter Bunny. Anna got her stuff out of her basket and Banda quickly took over.

Then to church, as I said, beautiful flowers, lovely Mass, beautiful music. Then, the traditional Easter egg hunt. Anna was off to the races as soon as they said "go".

Then home for the traditional Easter dress pictures. Here's Sadie...brown, hmmm, how different for her...NOT!

And Anna...cutie patootie. Mumsey, I know you will notice the shoes. Yes, she has her Easter shoes, we're just not sure where #2 is. Earlier, I had found one so I put it on her dresser. Then, last night, I decided to look for the second one so I wouldn't be in a tizzy this morning...you know, not gettin' my blood pressure up and all...so I go look in the closet in her room and lo and behold there it is. So, I go to put it on the dresser and the first shoe I put up there isn't there. I looked for awhile, but I finally "let it go" and told Conrad he'd have to find it because he was the one who let her wear them before Easter. This morning she went to church in these pink sandals which looked cute but, that's not the point is it? "Let it go"...

And, Madeline. Not really surprised about the dress, looks just like something she'd wear. Nonnie took them Easter dress shopping so I didn't know what they got until they got home. Mumsey, you did good!

After the picture above, guess what Mads had to do?

Yeah, "that".

A neighbor saw us out taking pics and offered to take all of us together. Thanks Hillary!

Here's Jon!

Peggy (Conrad's mom) also came but I just realized I didn't get one picture of her while she was here. Major shame on me.

Dinner was a group effort. I had food cooking in my oven and so Lisa cooked the rolls. She also brought the salad, which was really yummy. My friend Jackie came and brought chicken, potato casserole and banana pudding. Conrad smoked a ham and I made corn casserole and cupcakes. It was a delicious meal shared by great friends.

As I said earlier, I delegated the Easter egg stuffing out to my neighbor Andrea. Then she and Kelsey hid the eggs in her backyard and the kids found them all.

Jackie's husband and son also came and took part in the festivities.

Hunting eggs.

Jackie got a new car! It's a beauty! Congratulations!

I was so happy Jackie and her family could join us.

I hope your Easter was a lovely time, shared by family and friends.

HAPPY EASTER!

Happy Anniversary, Dear!

2010-03-15T22:17:00.004-05:00

13 short years ago, we were standing before James Armstrong, a man of God, professing our love and promising forever to each other before family and friends.

13 years ago, how could we know we would have 3 beautiful children together?

13 years ago, who would have thought we would be more in love now than we were then? Shouldn't that be the way love goes? Your wedding day is the day you love each other more than you think you ever will but in reality not as much as you ever will?

13 years ago, who would have known we would make every home opener of the Rangers since our marriage?

13 years ago, who would have known all the firsts we would experience together? First steps of all three girls, first words, first opening day for each of them. First day of school for two of them and this year we'll see the last one start Kindergarten. First overnights with friends. First lost tooth, first haircut, first Christmases - Easter - Thanksgivings... First race at TMS...first game at the new Cowboys's stadium...I'm sure there's more but that's enough for now.

13 years ago, who knew the people we would bury, the illnesses we would see each other through.

13 years ago, how could I know that the man I married would surpass every expectation and every wish I could have for a husband?

13 years ago, I married my best friend. I'm still married to him...

13 years from now, I will read this and think "you only thought you loved him then...".

Last post about this heart stuff

2010-03-10T20:43:00.004-06:00

I'm sure y'all are tired of hearing about all my illness stuff but I want to share with you the things that have happened lately.

One thing is that I realize I am not nearly as young as I think I am. I thought I would just bounce right back from this. Not so much. I am proud of myself for knowing my limits and instead of working until 6 on Tues. I went home at 4. I did work until 6 today and it did kick my hiney but I didn't give out until close to 6 instead of the earlier 4 and 5 of earlier in the week. I came home and went to bed and let Cornad worry about dinner. I'm still in bed and will be until I take my shower, then I'll be back there until I get up in the morning. Yep, Mumsey, I'm learning how to slow it down.

Another thing is that for whatever reason people are happy to see me back at work. I'm guessing they're happy when they say "You're back". Maybe it's the "Ewwww, you're back? I thought we got rid of you" but they're hiding it? Mostly, I think they're happy to see me and it's a little weird because I always think everyone hates me up there (not the staff), for making them do what they're supposed to do, like signing in, not going back into the school in the morning, you know, just following the rules up there. I've found people don't necessarily like that - finding out rules apply to them. Anyway, I digress - see why parents don't like me? I get off on that "the rules are for you" tangent and everything else fades to gray. OK, back to the subject at hand.

It's nice to feel the love/concern from the parents and staff of ACA and I have to say that while I wouldn't want to go through this again (I was going to say "to save my life" but that would have been stupid - of course I would do it to save my life), it has been nice to see how much people do care about me. Touching even.

Thank you everyone, family, friends, students (yes, I've had my fair share of hugs and "welcome backs" from them), parents and staff for all your sweet comments and concern. Sorry if I'm redundant but I truly am appreciative.

No one deserves more thanks than my mother. I just realized yesterday she was here for a whole week!!!!!! She cleaned, she washed clothes, she watched kids, she sat with me endlessly, she worried over me, she kicked my hiney at cards (more than once). She loved me like a Momma does. Thank you, Mumsey. I truly do appreciate what you did for me. I'm thinking I thanked you in my last post but I don't think I can thank you enough (besides, I doubt I said anything about the hiney-kicking in cards). I love you!

And, Conrad, you continue to support me in my recovery and I love you for hangin' tough! I see bright and wonderful days ahead! I love you!

Ouch!

2010-03-03T19:14:00.003-06:00

Yesterday morning, I woke up at 4am or there abouts and couldn't go back to sleep. I knew the nurse would be coming to prep me for my "procedure" at anytime and I was a little nervous. By the time the nurse came in I had worked myself into a big bundle of nerves and was crying (not that sobbing cry but quiet fearful tears). My nurse, Nana, once again to the rescue. When I grabbed her hand and said "no one has died from this have they?" she didn't say no (because I'm sure that would be an untruth. She said "people have died from NOT having it done". In an odd way, that made me feel better. So she prepped me and then let me take a shower.

While I was in the shower, I thought things like: Surely this isn't my last day on earth and here I am taking a shower in this hospital room. Did I do everything God put me on earth to do? Is he going to say "Well done my good and faithful servant"? Does everyone know how much I love them? Is this going to hurt? What are they going to do to me? When do I get my Valium?

Oh, you can bet I asked about that Valium. I mean, I enjoyed that morphine, why wouldn't I like Valium? Surely that would calm these nerves.

After I was all showered and ready for my big procedure, Joan came and got me. I was hoping I would get to see Conrad and my mom before I went in but it wasn't looking good on that front. They weren't there when I went down to the Cath Lab.

Joan is a lovely nurse who came and talked to me and told me everything they would do to me. Calmed my nerves and also reiterated the fact that people had died from NOT getting this done (WAY more often than from getting it done, her tone suggested). Then, she did give me a Valium and benedryl. Talk about a calming effect on someone, by the time Mumsey and Conrad got there I was feeling no nerves about this.

Then they took me back. A large man, Mark, came and got me and he was so nice and turns out, he's a nurse and did the final prep work for this Angiogram. He introduced me to DeeDee and Pam and apparently they had been on the TV the week before introducing this robot that only they had in this surgical room. Don't ask me what it does but they were talking about needing to name it so I asked if I could help. "Of course!" they said. So I came up with "Robbie" and they liked it. I'm not sure if they were just blowing hot air up my hospital gown or if it's really going to be called that but, I believe they are so, that's enough for me! I feel like I did something good while lying on that table.

I don't remember alot about it, except that it did hurt (I think someone said something about the anesthesia not working quite as well as it should have with me) but only when they poked me and plugged me. Not the inbetween part. I didn't get to see my heart on the 6 monitors they had going - very disappointed in that. They know how to warm a blanket in that hospital. And, it didn't take long at all. I have no idea how long I was back there but it didn't seem long at all.

The Doctor went and talked to my family then came and talked to me. And, oddly, they have a different recollection of what's wrong with me. He told them that I have an almost non-existent artery, a congenital condition that I can do nothing about. He told me that I have a mitral valve prolapse which there's not much to be done about that as long as the valves aren't leaking (which they aren't). So, no blockage, no stints, just some foreknowledge that can come in handy if i should ever get leaky in my valves.

I became aware of some things while in recovery. I know 3 hours spent on your back will make you hurt like nobody's business. I know one of those nurses in that Cath Lab can flat rub a back. I know two darvocet will make me not care that I'm lying flat on my back for three hours and it takes about half an hour* to get them and another 20 minutes for it to work. I know you can have all the cranberry or cran-grape juice you can drink in recovery and they have good ice, much like sonic drive-ins. I know it's alot harder to go on a bedpan than one would think. I know that Joan has to be one of the kindest people I've ever run across and I so appreciate her wisdom, kindness and humor.

Finally, it wast time to go home! First, I got to get up - slowly but surely, then I got to walk to the bathroom and clean up a little. I know that sounds like not that big a deal. But, that bathroom was a million miles away when you'd just been lying on your back for 3 hours and had just had something jabbed/plugged into your leg (and up into your heart). But, then I got to put on my new "New Orleans Saints Superbowl Champions" shirt my Mumsey brought me and walk out that hospital door and back to my house. I don't think I've ever been so happy to see my house...EVER!! My bed was a welcome sight and a place I haven't left too often since I've been home. I'm to be a couch/bed potato for 2 days so I'm happy to stay here, as long as I'm HOME!

I'm happy to see my cats (and even a little happy to see Paco - as long as he's not jumping on me). Happy to be available whenever my children need a kiss or hug. And, really happy to be lying beside my sweet husband again who has been a real saint through this whole ordeal.

I want to thank Conrad from the bottom of my heart for being there for me and the kids during this time. Not complaining, not ever making me feel like I have put him out by asking for him to bring things (mostly clean underwear - in case you want to know) up to me. For just being the strong rock of a man I've always known him to be but tender enough to show emotion and show me how much he loves me at the same time.

I love that my children's face lit up each time they walked in the door of my room and in turn warmed my heart just by seeing them.

I so appreciate all the people who took the time to come see me or phone me or send me emails and prayed for me. You will never know how much I appreciated those.

And Mumsey? Thank you for being there for me. You just don't know how much you need your Mom until something like this happens. Sure, I could lay in my room all day by myself, but would I have really just laid there? No, I would have gotten up to make myself something to eat or what have you. Well, today I wouldn't have gotten up, I didn't have the energy. I anticipate tomorrow having a bit more energy so I may try to cheat a little. Mom is here to make sure I keep it in check and don't do too much. Thank you, Mumsey for taking time out of your life to come take care of me.

So, now this ordeal is over. I will, in 10 days, clear up exactly what the Doctor told me as compared to Conrad and Mom and I'll let you know what the final diagnosis is. But, I thank each and every person who had a hand in helping me through this. I love you all.

* I don't know for sue that it took half an hour to get the darvocet, but it seemed like an eternity.

Heart beats

2010-03-01T17:30:00.002-06:00

This morning I did something I didn't think I would ever need to do. A stress test. And, when I thought about a stress test, it didn't stress me out. I really thought it would be a get hooked up to electrodes and take a spin on the old treadmill kinda thing. Well, let me tell you it was NOT.

They injected me with some sort of radio active isotope thing in my IV and immediately I felt like a big steaming bowl of crap. My stomach hurt, my head felt tight, I felt like I could projectile vomit (if it wouldn't have gotten the lady in trouble that told me it was OK to eat a little something when I went to my room to wait - yet again - on the Dr. so I could take said stress test) and I was scared. And when I say scared, I don't even mean I think I'm going to die scared. It was a I have no idea what is going on and all I can do is cry scared and that's what I did. And it all hit me at once, not a slow little creep up on you "I don't feel good" creep up, a rude minding my own business and someone pops out of nowhere and slaps me across the face with a cold wet hand kind of thing.

After the radioactive stuff ran around my body for a few minutes I got pictures made 360 degrees around my heart. They had me hooked up to a monitor that I could hear my heart beating out loud in the room. It took me awhile to figure out that was what it was but once I did, I thought "that is a fast heart beat, I wonder if I can slow it down?" So I thought about Conrad, slower it got, all 5 of my children's faces went before my mind's eye, slower still. Then "the" urge came over me and off to the races went my heart because I didn't want to do that on that table. (For those of you confused ones, if I said "BM" would that help?) Apparently, radioactive stuff is a laxative for me. It was cool listening to my heartbeat. I tried to keep it steady and slow but that didn't always work.

After the test, we had to wait for the Doctor to come give us the results. We waited, and waited, and waited. Finally, he came and delivered this little bundle of joy...I have to have an angiogram/heart cath, whatever you want to call it tomorrow. Yeah, again, I'm not going home. But, I have meals, complete with desserts, ordered until lunch tomorrow so I'm good.

I've had my moments of panic with this. I won't deny it. But when my Mumsey left this evening, she said a prayer for me and a peace and calm washed over me. Jim from the church came and read from the Bible and gave me communion and prayed with me. I have nothing to worry over, I can't do anything about what's going on so I'm going to leave it in God's hands.

My nurse, Nana, and I had a conversation about being grateful about this. And, I am. I am grateful that my Doctor didn't give up where some would and ordered this test which I thought was pointless yet may have found the reason behind the problem. Thank you Dr. Taylor (best Cardiologist in Arlington - do I get a discount now?)! Grateful that we found this while I am young (quit snickering - I am) and can do something about it and that I didn't have a heart attack because we got it early. This really could have all ended much worse so I am grateful that Jackie made me call my Doctor because, trust me, I'm not the kind that would. Thanks, Jackie!

So, worry not for me my friends. Worry, instead, for those Doctors who have to see me naked tomorrow. Couldn't possibly be a bright spot in their day. Pray for wisdom and clarity for them while the procedure is going on. Pray for peace and calm for my family during this time. And, thank you all for the prayers, visits and phone calls. They are all appreciated!

Oh, one more bright spot...I get to have my first Valium tomorrow!

Nice little respite?

2010-02-28T06:01:00.002-06:00

So, on Thursday I felt a pain in my shoulder and it kinda went into my chest and really, I thought I had indigestion. I had just eaten a sandwich, so Jackie offered me some gas-x. Took the gas-x and some advil liquid-gels for the pain in the shoulder and neither one made a dent in the pain. It go so bad at one point that it took my breath away and brought tears to my eyes. At that point, Jackie made me call my Dr. who told me to go to the ER.

Well, I'm really not the ER type. I don't want to go to the hospital for anything and I always think anything going on with me is minor and will fix itself or go away, I just have to endure it. So, I called Conrad and all I could get out was "can you come get me?" before I broke down and couldn't talk anymore. I handed the phone to Jackie and she told him what was going on and he was on his way. Jackie then sent me down to the nurse's office to lay (lie?) down but it hurt more to lie down so I just sat there then there was a knock on the door.

Mr. Simon (the principal) and my boss, Dan were there (talk about scary!) just to keep me company and calm me down. Mr. Simon took my blood pressure (note to self: Don't let Mr. Simon take your blood pressure!) and I don't remember what the top number was but the bottom one was 115 the second time and I think it was higher the first time. That was crazy! I think my blood pressure was up because I was scared and in pain.

So Conrad gets there and I have him take me to Care Now (Doc-in-the-box) and that Dr. told me that if I were his mother, I would be in the ER. I couldn't really find any argument to that because as he said if it's your heart (which all indicators were pointing to) you don't mess around. So, Conrad took me to the ER.

I just had him drop me off because we had all three girls with us - I mean really? What are they going to do but hang out in the ER waiting room and collect germs. I sent them home. My friend Chrstina called and asked where I was and she said she'd be right there. I told her she didn't need to come but she was having none of it. I got called back pretty quick, had an EKG then was sent to a room and Christina was there not long after and after another minute, the phone in the exam room was ringing.

Now, me? I was thinking "why is the phone ringing?" The nurse lady answered it and handed it to Christina. Then I thought "how does anyone know she's here?". Not thinking real clearly, I don't think. It ended up being my mother and my first thought was "Oh, Conrad called Mom" and then I thought "but he's going to worry her needlessly". And then I thought "quit thinking, just get better". OK, I really didn't think that last part but I'm tired of the quote marks. Anyway, I couldn't understand how my mom got the number for the ER exam room and I was a bit confused about all the things going on around me.

Here's what I remember about the ER exam room visit: Star Trek was on the TV and there was no sound. Christina was there and being my advocate and I was happy she was there. I was told I'd be spending the night in the hospital - a first since the only time I'd ever been in a hospital, since I was about 5, was to have a baby. I was scared. I had my first dose EVER of morphine and I liked it.

So, up to my room, we met Conrad and Madeline on the way up because for some reason when they move you to a room, they wheel you - in your bed - through the halls of the main hospital. My room is actually very nice. I have two windows (although I am above the garbage dumpster which gets emptied at 4 am - just in case you wondered) and wooden floors and very grape leaf looking wall paper. It's large, I think. Of course, I don't go to the hospital much so I don't have much to compare it to but it's home until tomorrow.

So, I thought I would go home on Friday but the cardiologist came in and wanted to do a stress test and an echocardiogram. Bad news - they dont' do stress tests over the weekend so I have to stay until Monday. Great. Not happy about that. I told him I'd happily stay if I could have some more morphine. He said "NO". I think he thinks I liked it a little too much. But, my cardiologist is nice and has a good bedside manner and made me laugh which is more than I can say for any of the other doctors I've seen (or not seen) in this hospital.

So, here I sit, in a comfy hospital bed, watching olympics at will, playing on my computer and phone and taking it easy. Yeah, I would actually rather be home but since I'm not, I'll make the best of it and treat it like a mini vacation (expensive mini vacation).

OH, mom knew about my episode because Sadie promptly went home and posted on her Facebook that her mom had gone to the ER. My cousin must have seen it immediately and called my Aunt, who promptly called my mom. So, FB has it's usefullness. I didn't think to call anyone because I wasn't really thinking clearly. But, it's obvious to me that an emergency plan will need to be in place in case this ever happens again. Hopefully it won't!

So, right now, we're in a holding patteren just waiting for the stress test tomorrow. I'm sure I'll get to go home on Monday so my incarceration is almost over! Mom is here and I plan on beating her at a few games of cards and I'm involved in about 7 games of "words with friends" on my phone. And, of course, there's a constant stream of people in and out of my room daily. Some more welcome than others! So, I'm keeping busy. Please feel free to stop by if you're in the area - you'd be one of the welcome ones!

2010-01-23T01:42:00.002-06:00

Today is Madeline's birthday. She turns 9. It started out with a whimper and ended with a bang. This is one of those times when we just really didn't have the money to do anything before-hand so we had to scramble to get it all done in the 2 hours after I got off work and had to work in getting Sadie to and from piano theory class during that time as well. Not easily done but managed. And, of course, I found myself almost out of gas during said running around so a stop at the gas station was a must. Anywho...

Several things impressed me tonight as Madeline and her friends played during her sleepover birthday party. One was that Mads has a really nice set of friends. I don't think she's ever had all the same people over for any particular party/sleepover which means 1) she's got many different friends and likes to spend time with all of them or 2) she doesn't keep the same friends for long. Well, I happen to know #2 isn't true so I'm impressed that she spreads her time with friends over all of them.

And those friends are just plain nice. They all thanked me for having them over, used their manners when asking for more pizza, etc. Included Anna in all their games and during one game when Anna didn't win, the girl who won offered Anna her prize (which Anna promptly turned down). I thought that was incredibly nice (or the girl doesn't shop at Dollar Tree - the prize was a gift card from there - I choose to think the best, she genuinely wanted Anna to be happy).

Another thing was that Madeline is genuinely nice. As she was opening her gifts, she got some cool things, a gift card to Target, a robotic drawing thing, some cool girly things and some make up from her big sister. Anna got her a play fishing pole with plastic fish from Dollar Tree that she picked out herself. When Madeline opened it, you would have thought she gave her a pot of gold. She gushed over it and Anna asked her if she liked it and Mads said "Yes, I was going to ask for one of these" then thanked and hugged her.

Most of my birthday posts include pictures of the child celebrating their birthday. But, because Madeline has shown her most beautiful part tonight, I want to honor that by sharing with you those things that can't be captured on film or in digital form.

Madeline for the reasons stated above and for so many more, I am now, and will forever be, proud of you.

Happy Birthday - I love you,
Mother

Christmas '09

2010-01-02T14:31:00.007-06:00

So, I'm a little late in my Christmas blog. Well, what's new? Even with time off I can't seem to find the time to sit and write my blog. Hmmm, what's up with that?

OK, well, one of my favorite finds of this Christmas season, and I didn't find it until almost too late, was this Chex Mix Muddy Buddy. It's like puppy chow (for people - that our family loves to eat) that you don't have to make! How much better can life be? I got the last bag Wal-Mart had and I haven't found it anywhere since. But, it was delicious and I guess I could always actually make some if I really got the hankerin'.

I accidentally just deleted the picture of Anna as an angel at the church's Christmas pagent. But, as always, our Christmas Eve includes this tradition (when we're home). This year, Sadie opted

not to participate. Oh please, does this mean she's growing up? Egad! Anyway, Mads was a reader this year and Anna was an angel. This pic is of Mads reading and I thought she did a great job.

Apparently the pics loaded in whatever order they wanted to so we'll just take it pic by pic, OK?

The girls and Nonnie made gingerbread houses this year. I was given one by my secret pal at work and then a parent also gave me one as a gift. Very thoughtful, I thought. So I left to go grocery shopping and left my Mumsey to handle the construction. Teehee...they actually have fun doing this and if I were here I'd be all perfectionistic wanting to put the icing on myself because they weren't doing it right, etc. and Nonnie just lets them do it. Of course, sometimes the result isn't exactly what you expect (see photo at right).

And then sometimes, you get it right. But, either way, the quality creative time with Nonnie is priceless.

I guess now, we're on to Christmas morning. Here's Anna in what Santa brought her. Oh my, thank God it came a blizzard here on Christmas Eve, thereby eliminating the need for Santa to go to Midnight Mass, allowing a two hour head start on this cute little jeep. But, hearing about Santa's 2 hour ordeal putting the stickers on and the rubber "rims" (they actually go in the middle of the tire - for more traction) and all the other little pieces and parts which were apparently not expected by Santa, was a jolly tale, indeed.

I know it was a labor of love for Santa to do this but, man, it sure took a long time!

My Sister and her husband were flying in from Detroit on Christmas Eve and almost didn't make it in but finally did after a harrowing flight into the blizzard of '09. They had been up visiting friends and timed it just perfectly to spend Christmas with us. Here Greg is reading the girls the Night Before Christmas (on the computer since somehow we have not one copy of this book in our house). My Opper (beloved grandfather) always read it out of the paper for us. If we weren't at his house, he read to us over the phone.

Jon Michel spent the night with us Christmas Eve. I love that. All my babies under the same roof (except Aaron who got left in Natchitoches due to poor planning on his part, but I digress). It just warms my heart.

Our white Christmas. Maybe it didn't snow on Christmas but there was fresh snow on the ground so I (and probably 90% of the population of the DFW area) consider it a white Christmas.

The snow on Christmas Eve before anyone stepped in it.

Christmas Day, snow angels!

And, of course, snow ball fights. Conrad has his new robe on.

I show you these new shoes of Anna's because when she steps and leaves footprints, it's of the animal that the shoe is. (Anna's are cats.) And...

...ta da...can you see the paw print in the snow? How cute is that? They're called pollywalks I think.

All in all, it was a great Christmas. Exept for Aaron not being here and us not knowing if he was even alive for a little while there, it all went swimmingly. The Aaron story is one for a different day. I'll tell you about it some other time.

I hope your Christmas was blessed, family and friend filled. May we all have peace, prosperity and joy in this coming year.

Sadie's Birthday

2009-12-12T20:45:00.003-06:00

Today is Sadie's 11th birthday. And, no, it wasn't quite the birthday she wanted.

Earlier in the week, she came to us and had these gradiose plans for her party, complete with cake walk and bobbing for apples (and, yes, it was about 25 degrees out when she planned this).

The next day we broke the news to her that it would be a family only birthday "party" but, she'd have cake and presents and her family around (including her brothers). I could tell when her Daddy told her when I walked into her room by the look on her face. What a sad face she had.

So, today comes and all is good. Madeline had us all wake Sadie up with our rousing rendition of "Happy Birthday to you" complete with party hats and noise makers and a sign that Madeline made last night and we all signed. Plus, she had decorated the living room with streamers.

Then various trips to various stores for various gifts and a special trip for Sadie to pick out her cake, special just for her. She picked a lovely winter themed, blue iced marble cake that smelled deliciously like buttercream. It had a snowman and trees and "Happy Birthday, Sadie" written on it. Great job!

Then while I took yet another trip to the store for bowls for the red beans and rice I had made (because we have about 3 bowls in this house - they keep getting broken) she convinces her Daddy to take her down to the parade of lights because the running club (she is a member) is sponsoring ACA's float and she wants to be in the parade. When I got back she had 5 minutes to get there and no one had eaten, she hadn't had cake, blown out candles or opened presents. I overruled and devastation set in. But, she bounced back because she had cake to look forward to as well as presents.

Finally, we all eat. Time for cake. We light the candles, Conrad takes it into the living room, I run to get the camera. When I got back (maybe 10 seconds later) chaos has broken out. I come in to see cake on the floor and Anna freaking out because she thinks the house is going to catch on fire. Aaron takes care of her and Conrad picks up the cake, now unfit to eat (maybe in a cleaner house you could have salvaged it but we have animals and kids - need I say more?). Sadie was less than pleased. Crying in fact. But, I have to give her credit, there was no tantrum, just a broken this-isn't-how-I-thought-my-birthday-would-turn-out little weep session. I couldn't blame her. This is what the cake looked like after Conrad picked it up.

Apparently, what happened was...Anna was sitting on the stool that Conrad had planned to put the cake on and when he asked her to get up she jumped up, arms flailing, and knocked the cake out of his hands.

So, she had to settle for a big bowl of ice cream (chocolate) instead. Not quite the same thing.

This is all my kids (and their significant others) after no cake, lots of ice cream and presents had been opened (hence the smile on Sadie's face).

All in all, I think she handled all the disappointments of the day well. Hmmmm, I guess that means she's growing up...or getting used to living in our house. Nothing seems to go exactly as planned. But, hey, fun things happen when you're open to the flow-of-normal changing.

And, this is my new Grand-dog, Alice. She is the sweetest thing and wobbles when she walks. How cute is she?

Wow, my Sadie is 11 now. How time flies.

She has started being more responsible with her work at school, rarely do I get emails, now, telling me she forgot to bring this assignment or that paper. I'm very proud of this turn of events. She was even proud of herself for bringing up her grades from her report card to her next progress report. Way to go, Sadie!

As far as I can tell, she's not that into boys yet. She did have one crush at the beginning of school but that seems to have cooled off. I haven't heard his name or seen any other sign of her liking him in quite awhile.

She's in the running club now. She seems to have found something she really likes to do. She'll be running in some races when it gets warmer so we're looking forward to that. And, she's in the choir and student council. She's not dancing anymore so no recital this year. But, she's finding her way and I think the dancing exit had alot to do with her feeling overwhelmed and over extended. I'm glad she realized it herself and there was no argument about what should go. I thought she was good at it but she must not have felt that way.

I do love the fact that she's become more demonstrative towards her father and I. She just comes up and hugs me or just leans against me for no reason. And, she actually came and kissed her Daddy and I goodnight a couple of nights ago. Totally surprising, but most welcome.

She's also becoming quite the beautiful girl. Of course, I may be a little biased but, I've heard other people say it too.

Sadie, I'm enjoying you watching you grown up. I love you!
Mom

First regular season home game

2009-11-05T19:00:00.003-06:00

I was perusing my card for my camera today picking out "turkey leg" pictures for the school...don't ask, it's a carnival thing for the school. (But it sounds fun, doesn't it?) Anyway, I realized I never blogged about the first official Cowboy game at the new Stadium, or other things that I will blog about later.

Meanwhile, we got "party passes" to go to the first "official" Cowboy game at the new stadium. Party pass means you can go into the stadium and you can eat, drink, cheer and in all other ways soak up the atmosphere in the stadium, you just don't have a place to sit your hiney down. But, you can also say "I was there when..." so there.

On our way to the stadium, we saw the motorcade with President George W. Bush, but didn't know he was even coming to the game. But, of course he would be, this was the biggest event since...well, heck I don't know. I just know in my neck of the woods, it was a BIG event. Sadie's the one who said who was in the black SUV, not the van in the picture but the SUV behind the van. I took a picture just in case it really was him. Sure enough, he was there - more to come on that later.

Here's Conrad and the girls with Tom Landry standing on Conrad's head. Well, really, they're outside the stadium.

After we got "in" ("in" meaning not actually in the stadium but only "on" the grounds) the doors on either end started opening up as did the roof. It was pretty cool. That's a picture of everybody already "really in" the stadium.

Well, I just lost a picture of Conrad and the girls lounging on these lovely leather sofas outside the stadium. Very plush.

This is the only time I actually saw the field with my eyes. This usher invited me to look out of this balcony. If you are any kind of a Cowboy fan, you know something is missing from this field...can you tell? Where is the star??? Those men in the middle of the field must be wondering the same thing...

Oh no, they were guarding where the star would eventually be revealed! Ta-da!

And, how can you go to a Cowboy game without taking at least one picture of the cheerleaders. How about this for angle?

Oh, and remember I said George W. Bush was at the game? Well, not just George, but Laura too! They did the coin toss! How exciting was that? I had no idea (other than Sadie screaming at me that "that was George Bush in that SUV!!") that he would be there. Very exciting.

More George and Laura...

Then Jordan Sparks (past winner of American Idol) sang the National Anthem. Pretty cool.

I totally expected a flyover of huge proportions and so I snapped away at that open roof and man, nothing. Nothing at all. Nada, zip, poof, nothing. But, I got a picture of that nothing so you have to look at that, too.

Conrad and the girls left right before half-time and I stayed to usher in Jon Michel and his friends using the party pass as an actual "pass" as in Conrad passed it them. Hey, Jerry (as in Jones) is the one who told Conrad to do it, not personally, but in some article or something he said he envisioned people coming taking a look around and then passing the pass to someone else and letting them take a look around. So, that's just what we did.

During half-time they unveiled the Ring of Honor. The picture at right shows the Triumvirate of Smith, Aikman and Irving. How cool to see all three of them in the same place. I got a picture - thanks to the big screen.

Got this one of Staubach the same way. Awesome!

All in all, I think it's something we will all remember at least for a long time, if not, for the rest of our lives. The girls will be able to look back at this when they're ready to demolish this behemoth and say "I was there the first regular season game that was played there". They'll talk to them on TV and the girls will regale them with stories of how we lived 2 blocks away when they built this big ol' thing and how we went to several events there the first year there and however many we go to from here on out. And Anna will tell them how she didn't want to go to anything there because she thought as soon as she walked in she'd get a nosebleed because everytime we'd drive by we'd say "well, there's the nosebleed seats". Oh how everyone will laugh!

It's been enjoyable being a small part of history. Hopefully they'll buy us out soon and we can move somewhere new and start new memories in a new place. One can hope...

2009-09-19T08:33:00.003-05:00

A week ago, we loaded up into the van and headed East. The purpose was to be there when Mumsey and Gail played their piano/organ concert, an event we've been looking forward to for months. In fact, I think back in May, Mumsey told me to save the date for this concert. Heck, could have been at Christmas, I just know we've been waiting a long time. And, can I just say...

TOTALLY WORTH THE WAIT!!

From the beginning strains of the Toccata in D (which Gail played quite well on the organ) until the final notes of the beautiful "Lord Here I Am", it was a glorious evening of music.

They had two grand pianos and an organ and they each played each instrument at some point. That was pretty cool.

Mumsey had both girls turn pages for her on a song and they did a fine job. I loved that she included them on her big night. I know it's something they'll remember always.

The pic to the right is Sadie doing her job.

The pic under this is Mumsey and Gail, aren't they cute?

To the right is Mumsey relaxing before the event with her hair all "did up".

Sadie and Madeline also handed out the programs before the concert. Hmmmm, free child labor, and in the church to boot. Better not let the labor board hear about this. teehee

OK, the first video should be of Madeline helping Mom turn pages during "My Tribute".

And this was just one of my favorites.

I've always known my Mumsey was a gifted and talented piano/organist but I was so proud of her on Sunday evening. She (and Gail) treated that whole audience to an evening of beautiful, uplifting music. The crowd was pretty big, I thought, especially since there was a torrential downpour going on outside. They braved that weather to watch the concert and they were not disappointed.

Mumsey, you have a gift and I am so happy you give your gift so freely to everyone. My Nonnie and Opper would have been so proud of you. I bet they were listening!

I had to remember the names of the songs from memory so if I got them wrong, I apologize. I can't find my program anywhere. I'm sure I'll find it later when I start cleaning. Wish I was in Shreveport now, thinking about the cleaning ahead of me. I digress.

I think I speak for everyone there at the concert when I say that we are looking forward to the next one!

2009-09-09T20:35:00.002-05:00

You may have to enlarge the picture to get the full effect. You see the truck parked under the tree to the left of the "no parking" sign?

The picture of "rules don't apply to me".

Arrrrggghh!

Maybe that sign only means "you're not supposed to park - just right there - where that sign actually sits. Hmmmmm....

new take

2009-09-07T22:32:00.003-05:00

I've been thinking about a new take on the ol' blog. Almost everyday, I see something that is the "picture" definition of a word.

Today's post was actually taken yesterday at a birthday party for a friend of Anna's, Caden. While watching him open presents, I caught her being the definition of "a prim and proper lady".

Sadie's dance teachers (who also teach etiquette) would be so proud.

So, in the coming days, I will try to take a picture of things I see that are the very definition of a word.

I hope you enjoy this new venture!

update

2009-08-31T20:03:00.003-05:00

We have started school. In years past, it was YAHOOOOO time. Now, since I work at the school it's survival mode for me. Here are the girls on their way to school!

One of the cool things at the school this year is Mrs. Alvarado's hedgehog. She got her for a classroom pet and boy is she cute! I call her Persephone, her class voted and it was split between Spike and Angel so they call her AngelSpike. I know what her real name is. Here she is...

In the middle of June, two days before we came back from our vacation, we had a power surge in the house. The oven got fried as well as the vent-a-hood and multiple other electrical items (including the computer). We finally got our settlement from said power surge (it was caused by a tree-trimmer, not the electric company otherwise, we'd just be up a creek without a paddle) and got an oven and instead of a vent-a-hood we decided on a microwave/vent combo.

We decided on an oven/cook top combo instead of our range and wall oven set up we had before. That oven is huge! This is a picture of the oven/microwave today, cooking my beef for my first big meal made in the lovely new appliance. I made lasagna....look below! The oven cooked it just right!

And then do you know what it did? It cooked the cheesy garlic toast perfectly! Now, what do you think about that? Sounds to me like I'm going to be expected to cook alot in the days and weeks to come. What was I thinking?

Today, we celebrated Mrs. Alvarado's birthday and one of the mothers made cupcakes for her class and look how cute they are! They're HEDGEHOGS!!!!

4 pictures of a 4 year old

2009-08-13T22:35:00.003-05:00

Since Anna turns four today, I thought I would post 4 pictures of her, taken today.

This morning she woke up to the sound of her momma singing "Happy Birthday" and was wished a happy birthday by everyone in the family. And opening her present that she told her Nonnie "this is what you are going to get me for my birthday" and sure enough, Nonnie did. Then to Mrs. Jennifer's where she was greeted by "Happy Birthday" by all of her kids.

They then decorated birthday cupcakes and in general had a very pleasant day, by all accounts that I heard.

Then back home and more birthday presents from sisters and some money from them and Mr. Phil - she's got more cash than I do! Then to Chic-fil-a and ice cream from Marble Slab and sitting by the fountain in Lincoln Square. Now we are home and trying deperately to get these darn children to bed.

Now, I think I will tell you four favorite things about Anna.

1. Anna has this look she gives you when she's done something wrong that she thinks is conveying her innocence. It cracks me up so much that I can't keep a straight face so she thinks she's getting away with whatever it is she's done. But, Momma knows!

2. The way she says vanilla. It's more like va-willa.

3. How she still has her blankie that my step-sister, Nancy, made for her. While this is also a non-favorite - as in "how long is she going to carry this thing around?", I'm impressed that it has held up so well and that she is so true to it. Since she got it, right out of the box, it has been "her blankie". And, heaven forbid we leave it somewhere, there is heck to pay if that happens.

4. Her verbage. She uses "actually" correctly and other words I would consider too old for her.

I remember 4 years ago, this time of the day (10:55 as I am typing, now) we were holding our little girl and oohing and aahing over her sweetness and marveling, once again, at how we had been blessed.

From the beginning, she has been Aaron's baby and still is. She gets excited when he comes home. He argues that her dates will have to answer to him, her big brother. He would always pick her up at her slightest whimper and he was the first to weigh her.

Sometimes I feel like she's not getting a childhood or getting to be a "baby" because she wants to do everything her big sisters do. It's hard to watch her try and fail, but I guess she's gaining character and strength from such failings. And it's very exciting to see her try and succeed at things she probably shouldn't be able to do yet. Momma is proud.

She likes feeding the animals, especially the fish and considers it a special treat when she does. She and Paco have a love-hate relationship. She loves to run from him and hates it when he chases and (generally) catches her and nips at her. If Paco lives through Anna's childhood, he'll be a tough dog, indeed. She's usually picking him up by the legs or pulling too hard on the collar or something equally painful (I'm sure) for him.

She will start a new school this year. She's going to be a few places down from us at school so she'll be close and go to the same place everyday. She's excited about this and is ready for her new adventure. One last year before she starts "real" school. Momma is ready (she thinks).

I thank God for the gift that is Anna. Wrapped everyday in a sweet hug and a smile reserved just for me.

Some days one of my children will do something very kind for me and I tell them "you're my favorite". She always asks me who my favorite is that day and she says "children" "child-wen" and it always makes me smile. Today, Anna, you are my favorite.

Happy Birthday, sweet girl.

Lots of catchin' up to do

2009-08-09T21:55:00.004-05:00

Week before last, we were all sitting outside when all of a sudden a bird essentially flew all upside my head. I thought it was a humming bird but it ended up being a parakeet. After several screams by some of us it finally landed on the side of the van and Conrad caught it.

Here's the pretty birdie. We gave it to some people who had a bird cage on their front porch (after we tried in vain to find the owner) with parakeets in it.

Then, last weekend a family invited us all out to a place called Lifetime Fitness to enjoy the facilities and they have a really cool pool, all sorts of exercise stuff and a big indoor soccer field. Here's a picture of all the girls together. We really had a great time and enjoyed spending time with the Augons.

Today, we (Catholics) celebrated the 40th anniversary of the Ft. Worth diocese. There was a huge mass at the Tarrant County Convention Center. The picture at right is the dais (I'm guessing that's the correct term -if not, blame Conrad). Those beautiful banners were made by the Carmelite nuns. Awesome.

I took part in the celebration as a member of the diocesan choir. Below or to the right depending on how this loads (- he's in a black jacket) is the director of the large choir, Russell (I never got his last name) and next to Michele (choir director at my church) he's my favorite choir director. He seemed to enjoy what he does and was a joy to sing for, and very expressive.

I also got to meet the man who wrote the Misa Luna which is the new music for the mass that we've been using all summer. He gave me permission to sing the new verse of the Gospel Acclamation (for you non-Catholics that's the Alleluias we sing before the Gospel is read) at our church. OK, Sallie was there, too, and I asked him to tell her I get to sing it first but he didn't go that far. It was a blood bath between us fighting about who would sing it first. I think she Cantors before I do so she'll probably win.

That's him in the white shirt and tie

I think every priest in the diocese was there at this mass. I know there was at least one Bishop, and maybe two Archbishops many (maybe all the deacons and these Knights of the Holy Sepulcher who had on really cool capes and even cooler hats. I'm sure that's sacrilegious on some level but they did.

Speaking of hats...at the Tarrant County Convention Center, there's a star made out of hats. Here's the picture. Really cool.

All in all, I was enthused after I left and infused with excitement for our faith and ready for choir to start again (we take vacation during the summer). I hope all faiths have an event such as this to help get their "flock" enthusiastic.

The video is for my Mumsey, it's of the organist playing as the procession takes place. The organist was not only good (of course, not as good as Mumsey) but a Methodist as well.

Why I use a shop vac as my vaccuum cleaner

2009-07-17T16:49:00.003-05:00

I had alot of titles for this particular post:

1. Why I am ready for school to begin again.

2. Why it's a good thing I already got 4 kids past the age of 4 (because 4 out of 5 ain't bad).

3. Why flour might be the bain of my exsistance.

4. Why was the flour in the living room in the first place?

5. Flour must feel good between the toes.

6. Why staying in bed after the kids get up isn't always the best idea.

However, you see what I chose.

When I got up this morning, I could smell flour. You know, the baking kind. The kind of flour that makes yummy cookies, cakes and other treats? Yeah, that kind of flour.

Now, last night, I saw the cannister of flour in the living room, but, it was late and I put the top back on and just left it sitting there, knowing I would put it up in the morning when cleaning the rest of the room. BIG MISTAKE...

Sadie and Madeline were still asleep so they catch a break on this one. However, Anna and Cherokee were very awake (Cherokee is a girl from down the street I watch during the week) and apparently finding that flour feels good between the toes. When I went in there, I saw the small mess and thought to myself that surely when I tell them to clean this up they will. Yeah, I wasn't quite awake and still in my dreamworld. And, yes, I did see Cherokee put a hand load of that flour back into the cannister and put the top back on it. YUCK!

So, having told them to clean it, I returned to my room before my head started spinning around "Exorsist" style. When I got back up to face the mess, not only was it not cleaned up, but the top was back off the cannister and now ALL the flour is all over the living room floor and a certain guests' feet were barefoot, toes dallying in the flour.

Now, I have to say Anna, at this point was nowhere near the mess so I don't know if she's learned at the tender age of 3 that being next to the mess isn't a good idea because you can always blame it on your sisters or if she really wasn't a part of the mess. It doesn't matter. I hold it against her. And, she is lucky indeed that she has her 4 siblings to thank for making me one of those moms who says "that flour was probably old anyway" and "my shop vac will get that up in no time" instead of beating her black and blue and making her suck it up in a straw and spit it out in the trash can. Lucky, indeed.

And introducing...

2009-07-09T17:03:00.003-05:00

Last week, Aaron came home and requested to go to a Ranger game. Here's the whole family all enjoying the Rangers WIN!!!!

On July 4th we had a battle royale, and our

weapon of choice was, you guessed it, water balloons

And, this is the newest member of the Wangler household. Because our life isn't chaotic enough, meet Paco. A guy at Conrad's work had him one night and beause he whined all night, they didn't want him. So we took him in and he didn't whine once. Finally, a little one that doesn't whine. Anyway, he's kinda cute and he still has puppy breath and I'm getting used to puppy kisses. So far, the cats haven't really given him the time of day but also haven't killed him, either. So, I guess that's a good thing.

Yeah, he's kinda cute.

Pirates and wenches

2009-06-24T08:08:00.002-05:00

We decided to go out to eat on the first evening at SPI. We stopped a local out for a walk and asked her where she would suggest and one of the places she suggested was Pier 19.

So, off we went to Pier 19, delicious food. Great locale. Then we went onto the actual pier and while out there a pirate-y looking mate asked if we would like to be a part of a pirate show and really? Do you think we would say no?

So we successfully scared away the pirate ship

and I'm sure those scurvy pirates don't want

anything to do with us pier rats!

AARRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!!!

Vacation post #3

2009-06-22T13:55:00.004-05:00

After San Antonio, we went to South Padre Island. My first visit to the island and, hopefully, not my last. I loved it there. A nice cool breeze was always blowing. Although, I do have to say, even though the sand is a part of the island and it wouldn't be SPI without it, I really got tired of it. You cannot walk from the surf to the car without tons of it getting into your shoes, very tiresome. However, we persevered. Here is the bridge going over to the island.

Various shots of the family at the beach.
Anna found the first seashells. I'd be surprised if there were any left from the amount that we brought back with us.

I'm not sure why Mads was so upset except it had something to do with those goggles but I love this picture of her.

This is actually a combination of our two days at SPI. I'll download the pictures from the camera and our pirate adventure for my next post.

2009-06-20T14:29:00.004-05:00

Here's the next day (day three, I think?) This day, we went to Fiesta Texas. Here's Sadie and Mads with Sylvester and Bugs.

Anna loved the fact that Fiesta Texas has "Wiggles World". We sat through the show and I have such sympathy for those charachters in the costumes and the ones not in the big costumes. Sweat pouring out of them like a water fall.

We went on the Roaring Rapids equivilent down there and right before we went on, they inspected all the tubes shutting the ride down for probably 1/2 an hour. This totally deflated Sadie and Madeline as you can tell from the picture.

After Fiesta Texas, we went down to the Riverwalk and ducked into a place that looked like it might have good food. Turns out it was a bar also and they had karaoke, to boot. Sadie's drinking root beer out of a bottle. (I promise, it's root beer.)

Madeline got up the nerve to karaoke Taylor Swift's "Teardrops On My Guitar" and got the biggest round of applause. We have now taken our girls to their first bar and watched, with pride, Madeline's first karaoke. If that ain't redneck, I don't know what is.

Then we took the riverboat cruise along the river. Here they are actually looking like they're getting along.

Anna, not long for this world in this picture, was quite content to sit on the non-river side of the boat, thank you very much. She didn't last the whole tour...

...as you can see.

Ok, the differences between SeaWorld and Six Flags (be it over Texas or Fiesta). One, SeaWorld is so spread out, we didn't even see everything. Six Flags is more compact. We did everything we wanted at Six Flags, including the water park. We didn't even see the water park at SeaWorld.

Two, SeaWorld is less expensive on alot of things. you can rent a locker to put your stuff in for 50 cents, at Six Flags, it's two dollars, I think and that's just to put your stuff in for the duration of a ride. All day lockers are $15. We have a season pass for SeaWorld for the price of a one day ticket. The season pass for Six Flags will pay for itself in about 2 1/2 visits, nice when you live next door or go to places with other Six Flags as we do/have.

Three, Six Flags has misters at every turn, at all the lines for rides, at the games, everywhere. If you get over heated, it's really your fault. SeaWorld is HOT. HOT. HOT. There was NO relief. Although a bottle of water is only $2.50 or so, still, put up some misters already!

Four, Anna couldn't ride ANYTHING (except the kiddie rides) at SeaWorld. We slipped her onto Journey to Atlantis (shhh, don't tell) and she loved it. She couldn't even ride the Shamu roller coaster which is built for little 'uns. Come on! She is fearless. She loves coasters and rides everything she can at Six Flags and loves every minute of it.

OK, there's my comparison of SeaWorld and Six Flags. I'm not sure who wins. Well, yeah I do...Six Flags. Not to say we won't go back to SW, but this time we know what to expect.

Tune in tomorrow for more tales of the WanglerWorld vacation!

not a vacaation post

2009-06-20T00:18:00.002-05:00

So we got home tonight at 10:45 and we have no air conditioning. Our neighbor Lisa (who fed our cats while we were gone) told us that a tree trimmer did something to a line a few houses down and electricity went out again and several things were "burned" out in our neighbor's house. Our air conditioning, main computer, the main bathroom, the living room fan are all non-functioning now. And all except the air were off at the time.

Oh, we'll be getting to the bottom of this!

In the meantime, it's too late to find/post pictures so I'm going to do it tomorrow in the light of day and after a full night's sleep in my own bed, albeit a hot night. What I would'nt give for that loud air conditioner in that first hotel, huh?

Vacation post # 2

2009-06-18T21:41:00.003-05:00

Our first full day in San Antonio, we went down to the Alamo. Actually, this was a request made by Madeline. She really wanted to see it. She's a big history buff and I couldn't be prouder.

So here's the Alamo. And, oddly enough, we could tell something was about to go on or had just gone on and lo and behold, who did we see?

Our esteemed Governor Perry. He was signing in a bill that, coincidentally, may come into play in our lives sooner rather than later. It was an imminent domain bill that we're not sure what they ended up making the bill say but, since "we" (a real estate firm) are marketing our neighborhood to, hopefully, take advantage of the locale it could play a part. We're hoping that it doesn't come to that (no matter what the bill says). We want someone (or company) to come in with buckets of money and throw them at us. But, I digress...on to the rest of the second day...

Here are some pictures from SeaWorld. A place that was hot and spread out so far and wide it was hard to do it all. Conrad and I were also not feeling very well so the heat did nothing for us. We got the season passes (same price as the one day pass, don't understand that but we took advantage of it) so we can go anytime we want, should we desire. Or if anyone is going down there and wants to take our kids, feel free!

Dinner anyone? Biggest lobster I've ever seen.

Mads and Sadie got to feed the dolphins and Mads actually got to touch one.

Our girls, actually getting along!

Madeline and Anna riding something at SeaWorld.

And, below, Mads with one of the pirates after the pirate show. (No, not the one we got to participate in - more on that in a later post.)

Then onto Shamu!!!! Yep, we sat in the splash zone and got wet. I don't know if you can see the whale jumping out of the water in the pic on the right but it is. Amazing!

And below is a whale showing off for us.

A great time was had by all at SeaWorld. More fun for some than others, due to various "not feeling goods" but we persevered. Tomorrow, I'll tell you the differences between SeaWorld and Fiesta Texas (aside from the obvious differences in themes).

Vacation post #1

2009-06-17T22:36:00.003-05:00

Hello Everyone from beautiful South Padre Island, Texas. We're here on a family vacation after a stop in San Antonio. So, I'll start with SA. We left from Mom's house (after a high school reunion which I'll have to post pics from next time) in Shreveport, LA to go to San Antonio. It's a heck of a lot further from Mom's than our house, but we made it.

Here we are at our first official vacation stop...Sonic. I, unfortunately, stopped up the toilet there, keeping any of the rest of us from using it. We had to go next door to McDonalds for any subsequent calls from nature.

OK, truth be told, I don't think the person who flushes actually stops up the toilet, I think the person before does it, the next person just reaps the "rewards" of said stoppage. Embarrassing? Yes. Let's just say we won't be visiting that particular Sonic again.

I got on Priceline.com to get our hotel in San Antonio. $55 for a 3 star hotel. Not bad, huh? Well, let me tell you for that $55 a night, we got the LOUDEST, no internetest, least amount of TV channels you could get in San Antonio. It's saving grace?...sleep number beds. I have fallen in love with them. I think I'm about a 55 on the ol' sleep number.

The girls liked the pool and the hot tub. We didn't like the restaurant, the internet (or lack thereof) or the loudness of the air or bathroom fan. It was an OK hotel, just not what I expected from 3 stars.

We're in a Super 8 tonight, paying more per night but the air isn't loud, I have internet and the girls have Animal Planet. Does life get any better?

We'll be beaching it all day so if I'm still alive tomorrow night, I'll post more pics of our first full day in San Antonio.

quick update

2009-06-16T10:08:00.002-05:00

For those of you who check without reminders, here's you a little nugget:

I have no internet access right now or you'd be seeing all our vacation photos etc. It all started with the power going out on Wed. night of our childless week then this hotel's internet and my cute little laptop don't communicate well so, you'll just have to wait until we get back.

See you all soon!

Recital

2009-06-09T21:56:00.004-05:00

Today's post comes on the heels of a Ranger loss. I know this because we went to the game...childless!!!! When we first got there, we got to hear both the Canadian and American National Anthems. (Hey, the Canadian National Anthem is a good one!) Then we saw Kelsey's boyfriend, Shane, selling peanuts. We were sitting in the seats in front of our seats and the people came in to claim their seats (where we were) and we knew one of them, our former neighbor Clark. Then after talking to him awhile, I turn around and the guy behind me looks familiar and I said that to him and he says to me "well, I'm an attorney". Now, I don't know if I look like someone who uses an attorney often or what but I did actually know him, his kids go to ACA. I look down and there is one of the PTO people I served with last year. Then, I see another neighbor who sells cotton Candy, Eugene, and talk to him and then another PTOer texts me and says she saw me coming in and asked where we were sitting. Now, I realize I've lived in Arlington almost longer than I've lived anywhere else but this was weird. I don't think I've ever seen that many people I know in that short a span all in one place.

This post is actually about Sadie and Madeline's recital. I may post another one about it tomorrow night because it takes so darn long for videos to load and I'm tired and ready for bed. Sorry. The picture of Sadie with her lips kissy-fied is her and Madeline not wanting to get their picture made. Then the other one is of them before they started their jazz dance. The video is part of their jazz dance.

Tomorrow night will be the ballet.

2009-06-08T19:35:00.003-05:00

I promised my Mumsey that while she had the children I would update the blog with all my pictures I've taken over the last week or so. You have her to thank for these updates. There should be one each day.

This one is Anna's end of the year program at her "school". They made these t-shirts, the rainbows are made with their fingerprints. Very cute.

OK, I saw the blog after Conrad opened it up and all my pictures were in a nice neat row, like they're supposed to be. I don't know why they don't look like that when I put the blog together but I'll just have to deal.

As you can see, Anna's come out of her shell a bit. They used these scarves when they sang "She'll be comin' 'round the mountain".

And, proud moment for us as a family. She knows all the words to "Take me out to the ballgame". Excuse me while I wipe away this tear. Enjoy.

2009-06-07T18:12:00.006-05:00

So, I am way far behind in updating, I know. However, I'm going to start with the latest and greatest.

I'm not sure why the pics loaded the way they did, but we'll work with it. These are only a few of the pictures I took last night at the official first event of the new Cowboys Stadium... at the right is Conrad and Phillip approaching the stadium. Unlike most of the people who attended last night, we only had to deal with foot traffic. It took us maybe 5 minutes to walk there and there were many police persons along the way to help us safely cross streets. I thanked each one of them, personally.

Then, at the right someone offered to take our picture outside so I let him. Thank you, kind stranger.

This is the first glimpse I had of inside the stadium. Awesome sight.

The picture to the right is the first line I stood in for a t-shirt. They actually had one (and only one with all my requirements. It had to have: inaugural event, George Strait, cowboys stadium - in word or picture - and the date. The one they had had all of that. I should have taken a picture but I didn't think about it until just now. I'm wearing it.

Because it took me so long to get the t-shirt, I missed 1/2 of Lee Ann Womack, all of Blake Shelton and about 3 songs of Reba. She can flat sing, that Reba. This is a picture of her during her set.

And below is a picture of her in her encore performance of "Fancy" ( a personal favorite of mine - the song, not the dress, although the dress ROCKED!!)

At right is the picture of what $12 will get you. One very tasty margarita in a take-homable "cowboyrita" glass. But, shouldn't they have been called "cowboyrebas" just for the night?

OK, well the pics moved, the pic of Reba is now to the right of this writing.

Phillip and Lisa before George came out.

At right, Conrad and I before George hit the stage.

Here's George!!!!!

Thanks to the HUGE video boards in the stadium, it doesn't matter where you sit, you're face to face with whomever takes that stage.

This is the video of George having us tell Jerry (Jones) to open the roof. It was AWESOME!!!!! You can see the roof opening, slowly. It takes 12 minutes for it to open fully. I hope the noise doesn't blow your speakers!

So you now saw the official first opening of the roof at an actual event. Don't you feel like you were there?

Other than the fact that it took so dang long to get the shirts and other stadium glitches, like no straws, and no forks and the fact that most places couldn't take credit cards because something went down, things that Jerry will have to fix and didn't really affect me since I ended up not being able to eat because I REFUSED to stand in another line and no one thought to get me anything to eat when they stood in line, I really had a great time.

The ABSOLUTE BEST PART: George Strait, himself, sang "The Chair" while my husband and I danced. You just can't beat something like that. It's a memory I'll have for a lifetime. Thanks, honey, for being so brave to go online and get tickets for us. You're the best!

playing a little catch up

2009-05-25T13:15:00.006-05:00

Hi! Been awhile, I know. Lots has gone on that I would show you in pictures, however, when I started taking pictures on Saturday, I deleted all the pictures in my camera - not thinking that I hadn't downloaded all of them yet - so we'll just start with Saturday.

Saturday was very busy. First was Sadie's recital. She did very well. We were all so proud of her. Nonnie came in for the event and, while it was a short stay, we all enjoyed her being here.

This is Sadie receiving all her ribbons and her bronze medal for piano this year. She has really improved, I think.

This is her recital piece. It's Minuet by Bach. She's so impressed that she learned a piece by Bach. Thanks to Nonnie, she memorized it. Nonnie put the edict down that she should practice 30 minutes a day and after the second day, she had it memorized. Sit back and enjoy.

I put this video of a song another young man played (yes, I only got a portion of it) that hearkened me back to my youth. Sundays on the way to church with my sister and my Daddy. He taught us all sorts of songs. Well, I should say, he taught us new words to songs that already existed. Here are the words to this song. My Mom, sister and Aunt Janis will probably already know these words. Go ahead, you know the tune. It's the one in the video...Sing along!!!

Give a cheer, give a cheer

For the boys who drink the beer

In the bathrooms of ol' Blytheville High

They are brave they are bold

And the liquor they can hold

Is a story that's never been told

For it's guzzle guzzle guzzle

As the beer goes down the muzzle

Shout out your order loud and clear

"MORE BEER"

For wherever you go

You will always know

That those beercans

Just won't flush away.

After the recital and after Mom left, I went and took a nap. I intended to just sleep for an hour or so but, apparently, I needed some sleep and got up just in time to get ready for church, for Monsignor Joe's 50th anniversary celebration Mass. (50 years in the priesthood, pretty good, huh?) Here he is in his Monsignor robe. I've never seen him in these. I missed the mass where he was Monsignored or however you say it.

Immediately after that little shindig, I went home and we all went to Ethan Hale's birthday party. You know, Ethan Hale - Becky Hale's son, and that means Becky Hale cookies!!!! Since it was at a water park, the cookies were nautical themed. Aren't they cute? They were delicious, as usual. Thanks Becky!

It ended up that everyone had to get out of the water due to lightening but we'll get to go back at some point. So, two parties for the price of one. Can't beat that!

On to today...Happy Memorial Day. I hope you all are remembering those who gave their lives in the service of our country. We needed a new flag so Conrad and the girls went out to get one. Mads helped put it up.

(And, Mumsey, if you're wondering why Mads isn't in her new swimsuit, she's been in the new one for two days and it needed to dry.)

And our Amazing Rangers play the icky Yankees today and one of the perks of living where we do is that we get the flyovers. This Memorial day it was 4 helicopters. I just happened to have my camera out and caught it. Had to run like the wind to get it but I made it.

I hope this Memorial Day is one of rememberance, cookouts and just plain enjoyment for you all.

2009-05-03T14:34:00.002-05:00

This weekend was the annual trip to San Antonio for the Cinco de Mayo Soccer Tournament. The "Killer Ducks" (Conrad's team) always stay at the same place, although it changes names from time to time. It's now known as Hawthorne Suites and when we got there, these were in the fountain out front.
Think they appreciate us? We've stayed there for 10 years now so, I'm sure they do. We always have a lovely time and there's lots of soccer and a "banquet" at a local restaurant after the Saturday games. Now, for the Ducks, it's not a tournament they hope to win, that's not the point. The point is to get together and play for the weekend. And, when I say play, I do mean soccer but I mean play in other ways as well. Nobody plays like the Ducks! However, this year, they fooled around an won two of the three games on Saturday which means they had a playoff game on Sunday morning. For the Ducks, this is hard, because the aforementioned "playing" really kicks in on Saturday night at the banquet so, it's hard for everyone to get up for an 8:30 game, not to mention the three games they played the day before have taken a toll upon their "duckly" bodies.

Last night at the banquet, we got a call that Anna had a fever, so we were more inclined to go home on Sunday morning than play/watch soccer so, inadvertently or not, we ended up sleeping until 8:15 and would have missed 3/4 of the game anyway so we just went on and headed home. We hope the Ducks did well in the playoffs. Sorry you didn't have Conrad to help out.

However, on Saturday night after the banquet, we decided to do something a little different for us. We went downtown and strolled along the Riverwalk and went to Alamo. As witnessed here.

That's my sweet husband in front of one of Texas most historical landmarks. We enjoyed being away for the weekend (without the girls - big shout out to Anita for making that happen) and just being together and with other adults. San Antonio is a lovely city (when you don't live there - been there, done that!).

I hear we missed exciting weather here. I hope you all "weathered" the storms and your house is more sturdy than the Cowboys training facility! That news even hit SA out on the soccer fields. Have a great week, everyone. Stay away from "flu-ish" people and stay healthy!

The elusive #500

2009-04-25T19:01:00.005-05:00

Welcome to the 500th post of the "Wanglerworld" blog. Because coming up with some sort of monumental list or memorable post essentially scared me into not posting for over a week (call it writer's block), I am posting about a wonderful event in the Wangler family: Madeline's first communion.

Today was the day! Madeline's turn to finally take first communion. And, here she is with her Godparents, Paul and Anita.

Nana even came to town to see the wonderful event. Although her GPS led her astray and she didn't get there until after it was over. We were happy to see her anyway!

In all her glory!

With Nanny and Parrain.

And, sister Sadie.

All three of my girls.

All of my family except Uncle Howard, and the Armstrongs. Cool.

One down...

...two down...

...one more to go. See y'all in 5 years for my next "first communion" post!

Cathartic

2009-04-13T20:54:00.002-05:00

Wow, this is post #499. A milestone of 500 will warrant some sort of celebratory post which, of course, will scare me into not posting for forever so I will try to stay focused and put out a really good #500.

In the meantime, this post will be a cathartic one. I have come back to the roots of why I started this post and it was brought home to me tonight in spades.

First, of all, Conrad took the girls with him to his soccer game which wasn't supposed to start until 7 which meant that they wouldn't be home until 9:30 or so which is late for a school night but, I had to work late and so this is the arrangement he made. That was fine with me. I would have some much needed "me" time and I appreciated his willingness to handle things. So, I came home, ate and relaxed, watched the latest TiVo'd Grey's Anatomy and all was well. Then, around 7:45 or so, here come the troops. Hmmmmm...

Then the girls played outside for a little while and then I made them go in to get ready for bed. I was talking on the phone to a friend and it took awhile so when I went in, I found Madeline making pancakes. Now, this is something she is able to do and has been wanting to do for a few days, the timing just hasn't been right. It would have been right tonight, had they not gone to the soccer game (that was cancelled, Conrad just didn't know it) and already eaten once tonight. So, I tell her that I really don't have a problem with her cooking but not after I've already told her to go to bed. So, I am a little hacked off at this point. And, frankly not handling it as well as I probably should have because I blamed it all on their father who was ensconced in reading his internet news and not paying attention to what his children were doing. (Of course, neither was I, I was on the phone, remember? - but I blame it all on him - so would you, don't kid yourself!)

So then, I go to take clothes out of the dryer which have been in there for a day and a half now (this is where the origin of the blog comes in) and notice that the already fed cats now have overflowing cat food in their bowls. Now, we have started giving the cats very little food (about 1/3 cup (each) two or three times a day. This is to keep all the strays out of the house. Well, that doesn't really work because they've (the strays or maybe a raccoon) figured out a way to get the seal off the Tupperware container we keep the food in. Smart animals!

Now, used to be, I would have taken a picture of this awful mess and put it on the blog and put with it the fact (and this is true) that Anna said when asked why she put so much dang food in the bowls "the bowls were almost not full" which, I will admit, was funny and would have been funnier if I had caught it on video (and, of course, I would have posted that as well) because the earnestness with which she said it was too cute. But, no, tonight? Tonight, I had to get all uppy-settey and fume whilst I cleaned up said mess. And, I'm sure Anna felt horrible about making the mess since I was fuming and fussing the whole time I cleaned it up (well, I can pretend she did anyway). And it was while I was cleaning up this mess, I realized, this - this was a perfect blog moment. The very thing I used to post about. The very thing that would drive me crazy but when I turned it into the amusing story that it already was if you looked at it from the blogreader's point-of-view then it was manageable. I could even find the humor in it.

So, dear readers, I apologize for not getting a picture of that dang cat food. For getting away from all the funny things that would happen daily in the life of the Wangler family. I'm sure they still happen, I've just been to busy to notice them or I just haven't found the time to post them and haven't had my camera at the ready like I used to. I'm sure my children would appreciate a little more of that mom that used to kinda laugh at the messy or crazy things they would do, because if I said "stop - let me take a picture of that" then I had to acknowledge that it (whatever it was) wasn't the worst thing in the world. I could use a little more of her. She was kinda fun to be around. I'm sure my kids kinda miss her, too.

Easter '09

2009-04-12T16:36:00.004-05:00

Today's post is gonna be a long one! Lots of pics to share since I took all those pictures in Shreveport of the girls in their Easter finery. Believe it or not, you're glad I did that because we never got all three of them together in their dresses!

So, I'll let you peruse these at your leisure. Feel free to use any of them for your screensaver or wallpaper. I give you permission.

OK, well I don't know what happened to the single pics of Sadie. I had some good ones. I'll see if I can find them and put them on here. Be looking for them.

Last night was Easter Vigil Mass. For the non-Catholic readers, that's when the new Catholics come into the church. Baptisms, confirmations, first communions (for adults not Mads age), as well as the bringing in the new paschal candle and a whole host of other things happening. Father Joe, last night, compared Easter Vigil to the Super Wal-Mart of the Catholic year. So much going on and so much to see. It cracked me up. It is, however, my favorite mass. Oh so much going on, always ending in the "Hallelujah Chorus". Even I had chill bumps on my arms when we finished last night.

This morning, we got up, and did it again. Not the Easter Vigil but going to church and the Hallelujah Chorus. The kids hunted eggs at church, inside since God had provided rains to drown all the fires burning in Texas. Thanks!

When we got home, the boys came over and we ate yummy brisket, cooked by my darling husband and then the egg hunting proper ensued. First we hid eggs for the girls.

Jon Michel hid one of the "money" eggs in his back pocket. Guess who found it?

Oh yeah, she's no dummy!

Then, the girls hid eggs for the big kids. "Extreme Egg Hunt" they called it.

Look how excited they are!

Jon found one!

Conrad came away with the mother lode!

This is why they called it extreme. That's an egg perched on the roof of the house.

Jon payed Madeline two dollars for hints at the last egg which was "extremely" hidden. He started over to Ruth's yard with everyone else in tow.

So with extreme patience and some help from me, he finally found it. So then, I asked him if he gave her the dollars from the eggs the girls had found before and he said "yes", and I was extremely amused by this because those were Mads and Sadie's (and Anna's - but I'm sure she still had hers with her) dollars to begin with. I nearly fell on the ground laughing.

Well, then the boys hid them for Conrad and I and we're talking EXTREME extreme Easter egg hunt. It took forever for us to find them all, but we did!

I took about 3 or 4 shots of this and this was the best one.

My boys.

My baby boy and Jaime who still seemed to like me even though I thought she could be preggers.

Anna's found her place!

I hope you each had a blessed Easter and hope it was filled with God, family, friends, and chocolate.

Home in the nest

2009-04-10T21:48:00.003-05:00

Proud moment for me...All my babies home tonight. And, my big ones have their significant others with them, Jon has Tylar and Aaron has Jaime. Jaime is a lovely young lady and NOT with child as I had feared when Aaron told me he wanted to come home for a few days and bring Jaime with him. I just remember making that same phone call and what I told my mother when I did come home. I couldn't help but think that that would come around to bite me on the buttocks and I would have one who did that.

Oh, Jon Michel had a big laugh...after I talked to Aaron I called him and asked "why is your brother coming home?" He told me he didn't know that Aaron had just texted him and told him that he was coming. Oh, I was convinced! Then, when I called Aaron to find out what time they'd be here and he told me they wouldn't be leaving first thing in the morning because Jaime hadn't been feeling well, that they would wait until around noon, well...that just fit, now didn't it? HELLO? morning sickness!!!!

Then JM just called Aaron and point blank asked him and Aaron told him "no". Yeah, they're still laughing at me about that one.

Everyone will be over here for Easter. Y'all should come join us! We're puttin' a brisket on, y'all come!

Opening Day '09

2009-04-06T18:43:00.008-05:00

You know what time it is? It's Baseball Time in Texas!!!! Opening Day for The Texas Rangers and Major League Baseball in general. WooHoo!

I've turned off the music today so you can hear the videos that I uploaded. I hope you enjoy!

So, the day begins abnormally. I actually didn't mind getting up! Then I did the happy dance several times before the girls even got out of bed. Now that will always get some groans out of them. My happy dance can be unbearable for the embarrassable.

Then, on to school. We all went until 10am when they are marked present and the school gets their money for the day for the students. Then out the door we go. Pick up Anna, go home get dressed warmly for the temperature did not get out of the low 50's the whole game. And that wind was whipping!

Then Jon and Tylar came over and we all walked to the game. As we were going over the bridge, we saw a little family of ducks and, I know this shocks you all - but, I took a picture.

OK, well, if you enlarge the pic by clicking on it, you can see them.

Then, finally at the Ballpark! Mads played a game sponsored by Coke and recycling and won this cool shirt. Sadie won a lapel pin.
Then, inside the Ballpark, these guys are here every year. It's like coming home, frankly, when I hear them. Take a listen, play the video.

OK if you look above the top of the lower seating bowl, you can see a strip with stars and strips and Omar Vasquez. This is new this year and it's pretty cool.

This one, I'm not nearly as enamored with. This used to be the manual out-of-town scoreboard. Now it's the digital one. I miss the old-fashioned manual scoreboard.

Big flag...held by a troop that sang the National Anthem to the stadium while over seas on Armed Forces day last year (season). HUGE flag.

You may remember last year's Opening Day post and how disappointed I was in the flyover. You know, now that I think about it, I think I was disappointed in alot of things last year. You can read all about it here. Well, this year, the flyover ROCKED!!!! See for yourself, play the video.

Governor Rick Perry.

OH, yes, that's him Former President George W. Bush!!!!

GWB throwing the first pitch. He wasted NO time. He walked out there and threw.

GWB signing the ball for whoever caught for him.

Now, this is the best part of the day. You'll have to enlarge the picture to see what I mean.

Yes, it says that we won!!! 9-1!!!! About the only thing that could have made this day better would have been for it to be warmer. As I said before, it was cold and windy. REALLY cold and windy.

I would like to say that my "Open Letter to Tom Hicks" last year must have worked. (if you didn't visit the link to my last year's post above, you can do it here to read the letter) The hot dogs had soft buns, the french fries were warm (when I got them), they had "value" meals that included hot dogs, french fries and a drink for just $6.75 and there were funnel cakes right by our section. Well, I did forget to take advantage of that little perk but don't worry, the season just started and with a grand start like that, I anticipate a great season for my Texas Rangers.

Two days worth

2009-04-05T22:44:00.003-05:00

OK, first of all, I couldn't find music to fit both of these activities on here so "Chariots of Fire" will have to do.

Yesterday was Ben's birthday party. Ben is Elaine's oldest son. Elaine is Anna's Mom during the day while her real mom works. hmmmm, feeling guilty? nah... Anyway...This is Ben, he turned 5!
This is Anna on the way into the party.

Ben loves mice. Hence Anna's whiskers and pink nose which you can't really see in this picture. But, look at this cake!

And look at these! Amazing, huh? I'm sure Anna's snacks are just as cute everyday.

They had a bounce house!

Yes, that's Anna. Can you believe how big she is?

And this is one of the gifts one of the guests brought. Creative, huh?

So, tonight, Conrad and I got to go have dinner with some high school friends of mine. Marty and San. You remember San, right? She's the one we went to Canton with. It was great to see her again and a hoot and a holler to see Marty. He will flat keep you in stitches!

Marty and San.

All of us together. Joe, San, Marty, Me, Conrad.

Marty and San acting like children. Now, Now!

Oh my, what a lovely evening. I haven't laughed like that in ages. Thanks, Marty and San for such a lovely evening!

Good luck, Marty on your job interview tomorrow. I hope it all goes well and you get to move here!

By the way, tomorrow is the Wangler Family Household National Holiday...OPENING DAY FOR THE RANGERS!!!!!! George W., the family and I will be going. You know the former Pres. is throwning out the first pitch. I'm so excited, I can't stand it. I'll have pictures!

JRFH and PSIA

2009-03-28T18:02:00.002-05:00

Friday was Jump Roper For Heart at ACA. They get to wear their field day/trip shirts for this event and whatever shorts they want. I also wore my "field day" shirt (I put it in quotations because the chances of me going to field day this year are about as good as me growing to 6 ft. tall tomorrow). But, I digress. Since I had the camera there, I asked Jackie to take a picture of all of us in our shirts. Here we are in my "habitat".
Now, you have all read about "Becky Hale" cookies on this blog, many times. Well, her cupcakes are on the border of being just as good. They are certainly just as pretty. She made these in honor of one of a teachers' birthday. Aren't they beautiful? Almost too pretty to eat...almost. Yes, that red thing on there is an m&m decorated like a ladybug. AMAZING!!!! Becky you outdid yourself on these.

Here's Sadie Jumping Rope for Heart.

And Madeline.

Today was PSIA. It stands for Private School something that starts with an "I" and something that starts with an "A". I think the "I" and "A" should stand for Intercranial Athletics.

Did you ever see the movie Searching for Bobby Fisher"? How the parents are all there during the chess matches and the kids are stressing, etc.? This was just as intense. The kids are all sitting around in their school groups getting that last minute studying in and all the parents are looking around, sizing up the competition (I am guessing that's what they were doing) and encouraging their children.

Sadie did Art Memory. That is where they memorize famous paintings (well, not so famous like Mona Lisa or anything, I had never heard of any of these paintings) and the artist. They are shown some of those paintings and they have to know the name and artist. Sadie placed 6th. I am very proud of her.

This was a surreal experience for me. I walked into a situation I knew NOTHING about which hasn't happened in probaby at least two years. Most of my activities in the past two years have been either ones I've done before or ones I've planned. I had ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with the planning, orgainizing, recruiting, teaching, signing in or anything else for PSIA. Frankly it was a little overwhelming.

I did judge two events. The first was storytelling for 1st graders. They are read a story and then they come to another room with judges (ME) and retell the story. They can make it their own or tell it like they heard it or a combination. As I sat there and listened to the various tellings of the same story, I thought "This is something Madeline should do". She would excel at that. I will encourage her next year to do it, but I won't force it.

The other event was Prose for 6th graders which is a little like the storytelling but they choose a book before today and put their spin on it. I'm not sure if they read it verbatim or if they can paraphrase but we heard some good stories. They are supposed to emote, etc. It was very interesting.

All in all, it's been a good week.

Spring Break at Nonnie's house

2009-03-21T21:46:00.005-05:00

Hang on folks, it's gonna be a long one...

As you know, this week was our spring break so we went to see Nonnie in Shreveport. We had several reasons for going, not the least of which was just to get to spend time at Nonnie's house soaking in her radiance of love. OK, now that you're finished with your insulin shot...

When we got there, it was a trifecta of goodness. Not only were there Oreos there, but DOUBLE STUFFED Oreos! And, then, she handed me my very own key to her house. And, then, I opened my Christmas present from Auntie B. who had forgotten it at her house at Christmas time and look at it, it's an M&M's watch! How cute is that?

You know, the belated Christmas thing is quite all right. I still have the presents I made for my family in my scrapbooking stuff. There's a little hint for y'all (the family) - not the general reading public, I didn't make enough for everyone. Yeah, yeah, I know, I should have but heavens - I only have so much time...ANYWHO...maybe they'll get them before next Christmas, maybe not. My choir buddies didn't get their gifts until Lent had started. But, they still liked them!

After getting out of the van, the girls decided it was hot enough to play in the hose. So, play in the hose they did.

Then, we put together this awesome High School Musical puzzle. OK, the puzzle was actually awesome, not necessarily the subject.

One of the reasons we went (besides the aforementioned love radiation) was so Nonnie and Mads could shop for her first Communion dress. Here are the intrepid shoppers about to go off on their adventure.

This is the only preview you get. I sent Mom with the camera and she says she took pics of the "discarded" dresses, but I didn't see any. That's OK, Mom, y'all picked the best one anyway.

According to Mumsey, When they went to the store, the first dress Mads saw she said "that's the dress I want" and although Mom made her try on several more, the first dress was indeed the dress and that's the one they got.

After they got back, we went down to the park and fed the ducks...

...and took pictures...

...lots of pictures.

Another reason, well, we actually decided to do this after the trip was planned, was to take pictures of Mads in her Communion dress and the girls in their Easter dresses at the Norton Art Gallery.

Here is my sister, Pamela, in charge of the veil.

We were scouting out places to take pictures when we ran across...

Pamela had an unnatural fondness for him.

Aaron even came up to see his Mommy and his sisters!

You may be wondering why no pics of the girls in their finery. Well, it's been a long-standing tradition on this blog not to post Easter pics before Easter and certainly, I could not post a first Communion dress picture before the actual big day. You'll just have to tune in for those big reveals.

Today, on the way home, we stopped between Longview and Kilgore to see an old high-school friend that I'm now in touch with thanks to Facebook. We have other plans to get together but at least we saw each other a few minutes today. Thanks, Colleen, for taking time out of your day! I enjoyed it!

This is Colleen and I (her son Zack is only months older than Anna!). She runs (alot). I don't.

Hey, if you're not on Facebook, you should go on there and just check it out. I've gotten in contact with lots of people from my past. It's really a neat thing. http://www.facebook.com/

Spring Break day 1

2009-03-16T21:30:00.002-05:00

First day of spring break and all is right with the world. The sun was out, the house was clean-ish and I slept in. Hmmmm, not a bad way to spend the Monday of spring break. One of the things I did do today was Sadie's hair. Yeah, the "Princess Leia" (or however you spell it) look is back . Yep, that's a bun on either side of her head. It's kinda cute but very hard to do.
A sure sign of spring about to be sprung is the popsicle guy having a swarm of kids around him. Proof positive...

And, for our evening meal, Madeline prepared a lovely dining experience for us in honor of our 12th anniversary which was yesterday. Here is the menu.

It reads "beautiful by Madely" and "Just desserts". Inside, you had the choice of several sandwiches, chips with dips, hugs, kisses, a variety of drinks and several desserts.

She took the orders, made the food and delivered it. She even had candles lit and music.

What a lovely way to end the first day of spring break '09. Thanks, Madeline, you really made the day special.

Looks like there's not many more posts before the 500th. Be looking for something especially something for that. No, I don't know what it will "especially" be...creative? moving? heartwarming? all of the above? who knows? I sure don't. I guess we'll just have to see.

Goodbye forever ol' Blue!

2009-03-09T21:39:00.003-05:00

This Saturday, we took ol' Blue to her final resting place. A nice "car graveyard" where all good cars go and they are treated car-ly (car equivalent of humanely). This is ol' Blue's journey to the end...her last trip out of the 'hood.

Her last "head shot"...

Phillip saying "good-bye", not pushing her.

As it should be, she had a procession to her grave, Conrad drove her, Phillip behind him and I brought up the rear. We had our lights and flashers on, more as a warning than out of respect, since we were only going about 40 on the highway. I even got misty-eyed on the way over there. Once we reached her final resting spot, it appeared she may have thrown a rod, the equivalent of a heart attack for a human. It was just too much for her, I guess, being said "good-bye" to, leaving us all for the last time.

She served us well, these past 16 1/2 years. One "heart" (motor) transplant and that's about it for the major work done on her. Heaven knows she never had any cosmetic "surgery". May you come back as a solar powered car or something equally useful in your next life, ol' Blue. We'll miss you.

Canton

2009-03-02T20:26:00.002-06:00

Yesterday, Conrad, the girls and I met a friend of mine that graduated from High School with me and her family in Canton for some catching up and shopping. I would have known her if I ran into her on the street. She hasn't really changed much. Well, her hair is shorter. San always had lllloooooonnnnngggg hair in HS. Although, I think before we graduated she got it cut for a pageant or something. Anyway, here is the whole gang, mine and hers. She's the one in the shades.

Her children are adorable, by the way. I'm kicking myself that I didn't take pictures of just them. Miss Josephine is beautiful and Tobin is all boy. Handsome but all boy. Hopefully we'll get together again and I'll take better pics.

San and I - quite obviously facing the sun - hence the squint.

San found herself.

This was my big purchase yesterday. $12, personalized just for me (with some bling, mind you). Pretty good deal, don't you think? Well, I really like it so there.

"Taking Chance"

2009-02-22T08:59:00.004-06:00

You may be wondering why I have a picture of Kevin Bacon on the blog. Well, I took this picture just last night. Ok, not really, I've never met Kevin Bacon but I'm sure I am only separated from him by six degrees. (If you don't know what I'm talking about, google six degrees of separation - Kevin Bacon.)

Conrad had me Tivo a film last night that played on HBO. It's called Taking Chance. We watched it before going to bed. This is one of the most informative, moving, beautiful, simple and never-swaying-from-its-purpose movies I've seen in a long time.

I believe the purpose of the film was to show us what happens when one of our own falls in combat. It is non-political, doesn't say if the war is right or wrong, just shows us the respect our fallen service men and women are given on their way home. I am telling you now, you won't be able to watch it without a tissue. Well, you can watch it without one, but you'll wish you had one.

I am impressed the more I think about this film because of it's simplicity. Simply one man escorting another man to the simple town of his final resting place. Sound boring? IT. IS. NOT.

It is beautifully filmed, scenery, simple shots of people paying respect, grief, people dealing with it realistically. The way the officer deals with the unexpectedness of respect for someone he doesn't, nor anyone he comes in contact with on the way to the soldier's home, knows. It really is a wonderful tribute.

I encourage anyone, no matter their political view, view on war, religious preference or any other persuasion to view this film.

Taking Chance is worth the hour - hour and a half you will spend watching it. It's the least we can do for our fallen soldiers.

For more information, go to http://www.hbo.com/films/takingchance/

All sorts of stuff

2009-02-21T22:02:00.002-06:00

As some of you may or may not know...ol' Blue died for the last time last Thursday. You know, the truck I've had since 1992? The truck that was my "statement of independence" when I became single again, "so I wouldn't have to rely on a man for anything". The truck that had a string of beads hanging from the rear view mirror since about the second summer I had it because Aaron made them for me (they're still there). The truck that drove me and my two cats to Wisconsin, lived through all that snow with just some sand in the back. The truck that got Conrad to work and back for many, many years after I couldn't drive it when I got pregnant with Sadie and couldn't fit behind the wheel anymore. Yeah, that truck. Last Thursday, I could hear Conrad coming from much further away (usually I could hear him when he rounded the corner) and poor ol' Blue...she just couldn't go any further. She just died of old age.

After much car lot searching, jumping through every financial hoop known to man and the finance company deciding they didn't want us to have two car payments (they wanted us to trade in the van or pay it off - yeah right) Conrad decided to purchase from an individual a truck that would "just get him to and from work until we could get the van paid off". Well, let me tell you, the man can shop. Meet the newest member of the Wangler Family...
It's a 2000 F-150, black with a white stripe at the bottom, back seat for the girls, with 4 doors (only two have handles) and it's. paid. for.!!!!! No extra car payment! It rides like a dream. Seems to be a really good truck and for a good price. I'm very happy for Conrad and he's happy to have something that doesn't announce his arrival five minutes before he gets somewhere. He brought it home Wed. night and Thursday I called him to see how his drive to work went. I said "you didn't even have to shift gears, did you". He said "That truck is so smart, it shifts its own gears!". Now we have two vehicles that will fit the whole family and how nice that is going to be. Indeed.

Now, onto other things...

The upside to the tree being cut down was the insurance. The insurance adjuster came out and after surveying the damage, decided we needed a new roof. Go figure. So, today, that's exactly what happened. We got a new roof. See...

The pictures don't really show off the blackness of the shingles.

Now, I'm not too partial to the black color of the roof. But, I am WAY partial to the newness of it and the no holes in it. The people putting it on are relatives of the guys who did the second cutting of the tree. Those guys are fast. They started around 9am and were done by 4 or 5 this afternoon. I was amazed.

The thing that took the longest (in my opinion, don't ask them) was getting up the nails that fall to the ground while all that roofing is going on. This was my magnet...

full of nails. This was theirs...

much bigger than mine. But, mine could get into smaller places, like in between all those huge logs still in our back yard from the tree. It was actually kind of fun running that thing through leaves and such and coming up with a huge magnet full of nails. Scary, too. No barefootin' it for us for awhile. Or else, tetanus shots all around.

Father/Daughter dance '09

2009-02-14T11:45:00.003-06:00

Last week, ACA held the second annual Father/Daughter dance. My intention was to post the pictures the next day (considering I had gotten home very late - or very early depending on how you look at things). It was then that I discovered that my camera dock wasn't "talking" to my computer. Out of nowhere, the weren't speaking to each other. Today, I sat down, yet again, to see if I could fix the problem and I thought I would just see what happened when I pushed the "magic" button on the dock. Well, lo and behold, they've made up and are speaking to each other again. I would love to say my technical expertise had a hand in it but that would be lying. So, without further ado, The Father/Daughter dance blog.

The original plan for the Father/Daugter dance was that Madeline's escort was to be Uncle Paul. She asked if she could ask him and she did and he said "yes". However, as you remember, Mads came down with the flu. Our rule is that if you don't go to school, you don't get to do whatever is going on after school and unfortunately, her fever didn't break until the wee hours of Friday morning, so no school for her. So, it ended up being just Sadie and Conrad going. My heart was broken having to tell her she couldn't go but she took it well and understood. She also got to go with some friends to "The Main Event" the next night which was described to me as "Chuck E. Cheese on steroids". She came home with a soccer ball, a hoola-hoop and 3 watches. I think she had a good time and that, hopefully, made up for it.

Back to the dance...

Conrad and Sadie had to drop me off at Susan's house so I would have a ride to the dance. He was taking Sadie out to eat and I had to be there 45 min. before anyone showed up so, out of necessity, I rode with Susan. It is at her house these pictures were taken.

Sadie and Katelyn. BFFs (Best Friends Forever for those of you not "in the know").

The two of them "cutting a rug".

Video of them dancing.

It was really a lovely evening. Tunes were provided by Iphone and Ipod, DJing by me. The decorations were black, pink and silver/gray. I think everyone had a lovely time and I even saw some teary-eyed Dads there. I hope this tradition continues.

Mads tribute to MLKJ

2009-02-08T12:55:00.002-06:00

Madeline had to write a "paper" on Martin Luther King, Jr. This is her finished product.

Martin Luther King Jr.’s name was Michael Luther King, Jr. when he was born. But he later had it changed to Martin Luther King. Jr. He was born January 15, 1929 at 501 Auburn Avenue in Atlanta, Georgia. His parents were Martin Luther King, Sr. and Alberta William King. He had one sister and one brother. His brother is dead now. Martin Luther King, Jr. died on April 4, 1968.

He started school at the age of 5 but because of the law, he had to stop going until he turned six. He was very good student. He ended up graduating from high school early, when he was 15 years old.

He liked: Reading books, singing, riding a bike, football and baseball.

Martin went to Morehouse College and earned his BA in Sociology. Then he went to Crozer Theological Seminary. He also went to Boston College and Harvard University and was awarded his Doctorate in 1955.

He was a civil rights leader. He made long, important speeches. The one I liked best talked about being important to America and the way you do that is to volunteer. He said:

If you want to be important—wonderful. If you want to be recognized—wonderful. If you want to be great—wonderful. But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That's a new definition of greatness.
And this morning, the thing that I like about it: by giving that definition of greatness, it means that everybody can be great, because everybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don't have to know about Plato and Aristotle to serve. You don't have to know Einstein's theory of relativity to serve. You don't have to know the second theory of thermodynamics in physics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul generated by love. And you can be that servant.

Martin was shot standing on a balcony at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee on April 4, 1968. A jury thought that the government was behind the assassination of him.
His big accomplish means to me that I can treat my colored friends no different than anyone else. Everyone is the same, no matter what color their skin is.

My life has been affected by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., because we get a day off of school on the holiday of his birthday.

His accomplishments have affected the world because Barrack Obama is the President of the United States of America.

something different

2009-02-07T16:06:00.001-06:00

I'm not sure if this link will work, but hopefully it will. This is a really cool video for music lovers, Star Wars enthusiasts or just plain enjoyment.

Enjoy!

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/video/video.php?v=51089666314

Face

2009-02-04T10:02:00.002-06:00

This is the face of the flu.

Yesterday, Mads came to the office telling me she ached all over and didn't feel good and felt like she was going to throw up. There were tours of the school scheduled (Jackie's job, but someone has to be in the office while she's giving the tour) and re-enrollment packets coming in right and left. Just not really a good day for me to be packing up and leaving. So I took her temp. (99.2) on our school thermometer - which I despise) and told her to get my blanket (that I keep up there for those cold days when the door opens 5000 times and the cold air comes whipping up under my desk, freezing my legs) and go lay down on the sick bed. It was finally decided that after the next tour, I would take her home.

Well, we left with Sadie in tow so I wouldn't have to go back up there, stopped and got Sadie, Conrad and me some lunch and back to the house. As soon as she got out of the van, she started puking. Conrad helped her into the house and told me that she felt really warm. I took her temp. again and it was 103.1. Ewwww, my baby is really sick! We put her in my bed and warned Sadie not to go in there.

Then, I asked Elaine if she would just drop Anna off since Mads was so sick, I hated to leave her there for any length of time, even if she was just sleeping. So, while we waited for Anna, I took Mads' temp. again, 104.2. Up to this point she has refused any medicine (I think in fear of it coming back up) so now I told her she had to take some motrin. So, in goes the motrin and about an hour later the fever was down to 101.1. Later in the evening, she had some crackers, gatorade, sprite and some soup. Everything is staying down now but she's still achy and has fever, 101.1.

So, it looks like we'll be home for another day. The rule for school is 24 hours fever-free before they can return. She needs to get well, she has the father-daughter dance to attend on Friday night.

So, everyone out there in bloggy-land, please pray for Mads. I know it will run it's course and all will be well, eventually. It's just so sad when Mads isn't her lively self.

Happy 8th Birthday, Mads!

2009-01-22T19:37:00.002-06:00

Yep, this is Madeline. Mads, I like to call her. She is 8 today.

As usual, this is my "birthday" blog, so I'll let you know how Mads has grown this past year.

She loves her webkinz. "Nonnie" got her 3 for her birthday. Well, there was a buy-two-get-one-free special on at the Hallmark store and how can you pass that up? She picked the hedghog (cute as a button) the bulldog (the free one) and one other that I can't remember but it's pretty cute, too. If you don't know what webkinz are, they are stuffed animals that come with codes and you can put the codes in at "webkinz.com" and play with them online and you get points for doing things like jobs, etc. They can also play with their friends who might be online, too. She loves it and if she's on the computer, it's usually playing webkinz.

She also likes to read my blog. I think she is fulfilling my ideals of her. I see her reading the blogs about her and I notice her being more and more like the previous "birthday" blogs I've written about her.

The way she dresses is still "avant garde". The unusual is what she likes. Lots of colors, stripes, the wilder the better.

She's still a pleaser. Last night when we went to store I think she could sense I didn't really want to cook cupcakes for her to take to school today. Maybe my saying "I really don't want to cook cupcakes tonight" gave her a clue. She picked brownie bites instead. I love her for that. Yeah, I may be denying her real wants but, hey, let's face it, I'll have to make a cake this weekend so she'll get what she wants, eventually. She loves those brownie bites, anyway. I hope.

She's always coming up with funny things to say, too. One day we were leaving school and she told Sadie something that wasn't necessarily a lie but not really the truth and Sadie said "why did you say that?" Madeline says "look, I'm stressed out, OK?" We (Jackie and I) laughed at her even the next day about that one.

Jackie has fallen in love with Madeline. She keeps telling her she's going to be her momma because sometimes I'm not in the office when Madeline gets up there and Jackie tells her she's going to take her home and be her momma. At first, Madeline was a little taken aback, but now she's warmed up to it and loves Jackie, too. For Mads' birthday, Jackie made her a bag (well, bought the bag and embroidered on it) that says "Princess in training" and put her "M" on the other side. It's very cute.

She's still a snuggler. If she's had a bad day or isn't feeling 100% she wants to crawl up with me and snuggle. I don't think I'll ever get tired of that. Madeline snuggling is the best. She'll snuggle with her Nonnie when she's here, too.

My Madeline is growing up. I don't know where the time has gone. I can remember the day I had her like it was yesterday (or the few days ago when it was frigid cold out). It was a very cold day and she came fast. Maybe 2 hours from start to finish? She knew what to do when she got out, too. Literally crawled right up my tummy and found the food (if you know what I mean, and I think you do).

I can't wait to see what this year holds. I know she will take first communion this year so her spiritual growth is already taking place. She had her first "penance" or "confession". Didn't take her long, as she said "I only had two". Hmmmm, not to judge or anything but a little more examination of that conscience might be in order. But, that's between her and God.

All in all, she is still a great kid. Funny, bright, beautiful - inside and out - and special in many ways. Madeline, I look forward to this next year with you. I love you!

"P"

2009-01-20T19:13:00.008-06:00

My bloggy friend and keeper of my precious child, Elaine, has given me a letter and I am supposed to tell my 10 favorite things that start with this letter. My letter is "P".

Hmmmm, "P". Letter "P", how do I love thee, let me count the ways...

Top 10 things that start with "P" that I like/love/enjoy...

1. My sister Pamela. She is the smartest person I know about alot of things. I am so proud of her. She's a great sister, a great Aunt (as in a wonderful one, not as in my children have children, therefore she is a great Aunt) a terrific daughter (at least that's what I hear) and a great friend. I love spending time with her and hope that we can take more trips together like we did this summer. If I could go on the Amazing Race and couldn't take Conrad, she'd be my next choice, hands down.

2. My "pistol-packing" Mumsey (I hope adjectives count!) What a woman! Now, I have to say that in this little tiny picture, I just glanced at it and she looks just like my Nonnie in it. I'm sure if you open it up big, she looks like her but I'm really OK with her looking like my Nonnie. My children love her like I loved my Nonnie and I know that is only one of the ways that she would measure success but even if it were the only one, she excels, with no question. She's got a Doctorate (I have a copy of her dissertation if you'd like some enlightening reading), two great daughters, two great sons-in-law, 5 wonderful grand-children, numerous grand cats and dogs and even a great-grand-dog. She is the kindest, most giving, non-cooking, loving, musically "p"roficient mother and I count myself lucky to have her.

And this picture would include my next entry...

3. Parties. I love going to them, throwing them making food for them. I get that from my Auntie "B", I'm sure. She's a party-puttin' on woman. She and I share a love of corn-dip, sauce piquante (I hope I spelled that right) and spinach dip among other yummy party foods. She and Pamela were the brains behind my Mumsey's birthday party and they did a fantabulous job.

4. People...namely my family. I've got the greatest husband, two fantastic sons and 3 beautiful girls. Who could ask for more (besides that lady with the 18 kids...no thank you!)?

5. Pretty pictures. One of the reasons I started this blog was to keep family and friends up-to-date with life in the Wangler family, complete with pictures. I really like this one, even though I didn't take it.

6. Plays. As in Broadway. Loved "Wicked". Would love to see it again on the real "Broadway". Along with "Mama Mia". Cats is closed so no Broadway on that one but I'd pretty much go see anything on Broadway. I love plays/musicals.

7. Pussycats. Especially Puss-in-Boots and Rosie. Rosie sleeps in the crook of my knees and I am most soundly sleeping when he is. Love my kitties.

8. Pillsbury products. Especially the cookie doughs and carmel rolls. However, the carmel rolls are becoming harder to find. I hope that's not a "p"ortent of things to come.

9. Pens. Yeah, I am somewhat of a pen-a-holic. Love to try new pens and these are two of my all-time favs. Both are made by "p"apermate (for real). The first are called "Liquid Expresso" medium point (of course). They're kind of expensive (OK, really expensive if you consider the pen world) so I don't actually have any right now. Haven't for a while but my sister (Pamela) has some and I covet them - yeah, I'm a sinner-I admit it, let's get on with life.

And then, of course, the traditional "p"apermate felt-tip (or "p"orous-tipped as they are called these days) pens - in all colors. The wilder the color the better, as far as I'm concerned. And, again, you have to do medium point. I find I'm a medium point person as opposed to a fine point. Gives me the heebie geebies, those fine-points do.

10. Puzzles. My favorites are sudoku and you know those Dell puzzle books you get at the grocery or drug store? I love those. I have several sudoku puzzles on my Iphone as well as other puzzles to do on there.

Which brings me to a bonus "p". My "p"hone. As in my Iphone. I have my calendar on there, my games, my phone numbers, my pictures, my music, everything. I would be very sad, indeed, if something were to happen to it.

So, my friends, those are my 10 (plus a bonus) favorite things that start with "P". I hope you enjoyed it.

2009-01-17T21:51:00.003-06:00

Today, Conrad came to me and asked if I wanted to go see his Mom in a little while because George and Barbara (his brother and sister-in-law) were at the airport picking up Bud. Conrad has an Uncle Bud and I was excited because I thought I was going to finally meet Uncle Bud.

Meet Bud:

To get the full effect of Bud, you have to watch the video.

Yes, that's Bud snorting. How funny is this dog? He's just a big ol' bundle of slober, tongue and wrinkles.

2009-01-11T19:36:00.010-06:00

The tree...

On Thursday, Conrad came home and told me that Ismael would be following him home on Friday to take a look at the tree. Ismael works with Conrad. He said that Ismael had been a tree cutter in Mexico a few years ago. Yeah, I'll admit, I was nervous and apprehensive. After all, don't we all have enough holes in our roofs?

Ismael and Jacob (another co-worker of Conrad's) came and looked at the tree and seemed to not have a problem with it and said they'd be here bright and early Saturday morning. I couldn't wait to see if they showed up with beer. That would tell me right there what kind of day it would be.

Well, show up they did, along with Donato and Marco. Ishmael hoisted himself up the tree on a pulley system and went to work. I knew it must be going better when Conrad didn't stay outside to watch every move. I went out when they first got out there and took a picture of what was left of the tree.

They chopped and roped that tree one branch at a time and not one limb hit Ricky's house or ours. I cannot tell you how impressed I was at their know-how. At one point they were bringing down a part and they tied off to the tree in the front yard and I didn't see how it could possibly not hit our house and Conrad tried to explain and this is what it sounded like to me "this rope that way one rope over another blah, blah, blah...). I decided I would just watch. Had I had my camera with me, I would have taken video because it was amazing. That limb fell and stopped about 3 ft. above the house. I applauded their efforts. They would chop until they could push the limb over then assess the situation then proceed with caution. It was beautiful.

This video is from today, when they came back with a bigger saw for the part closer to the ground. This is one of the pieces coming down. Creative use of a ladder, don't you think?

This is from left to right; Jacob, Marco, Ismael, and Donato. (I don't think there should be a comma before the "and" - what do you think? Any grammer gurus out there?) This is right before the last piece came down. I thought there should be a picture, after all, it's a major event, right?

This is the last piece coming down.

Where once a tree stood.
Man bests tree...

...with an axe...????

We have enough wood to feed fireplaces for awhile. The big ol' trunk, we'll probably fashion a table and chairs out of it. Yeah, right.

Thus ends the saga of the tree...hopefully.

The music is "Oak Tree Dance" by Carl Wilson. While this wasn't an Oak, it still conveys our joy at having it down with no one injured.

The tree

2009-01-03T19:36:00.002-06:00

The last post, I talked about the house might not be standing the next time I wrote. Well, we're lucky things worked out the way they did. We "hired" Richard and a friend to come take down a tree that stands between our house and our neighbor Ricky's house. Here is said tree...

...pretty tall tree, huh? Well, here's Richard up in the tree...

...and to give you a little perspective of how high he was in that tree. I will say that Richard is a hard worker. Not afraid of anything, like heights or steeply pitched roofs, which he dealt with today.

They got about 2/5 of the tree down. Only 2 holes in two different roofs (ours and Ricky's) and one broken-some-more window, two men hanging on for dear life and a wife/sister-in-law having a hard time breathing for fear that someone was going to hurt themselves by falling off a roof/tree later and we're over it. We're going to hire someone to get the rest of the tree down.

The first couple of limbs came down fine. Then a limb took off some facia (sp?) board off a dormer of Ricky's house (already repaired) and poked a hole through the roof and down into the sheetrock in a bedroom. Yeah, that needs to be fixed. Then a couple more successes then a HUGE limb (think trunk) came down and lifted both Conrad and the companion of Richard right up into the air. Had I known all that was going to happen, I would have SO taken video. It was a bit humorous but at the same time I was praying that Conrad would hold on and not fall. That big limb put a hole in our roof over the garage. Then a few more and one that broke the already broken window on Ricky's upstairs (that same tree did the damage in a windstorm). Ricky hasn't been home yet. Everytime a car comes down the street, my tummy tightens. I hope that makes it tone up a bit. If so, I'll be looking good tomorrow.

Anyway, no one is hurt (too badly - Conrad's very sore, or will be tomorrow) and we have lots of wood if anyone needs any.

Happy New Year, 2009!

2009-01-02T04:41:00.002-06:00

New Year's Eve we spent in our usual way. Sitting in Lisa and Phil's driveway, with the chiminea, enjoying each other's company and having some adult beverages while the children ride scooters and, in general, keep us up since all we want to do is go to sleep.

This year, we roasted marshmallows and here's Anna roasting hers. It's pretty much the only good shot, I'm guessing adult beverages and picture taking don't mix. OK, it wasn't the adult beverages, I just wasn't thinking about taking pictures so when I did it was just general shots and nothing to write home (or blog) about.

But, we had a great time and rang in the new year with all the hoopla and revelry we could muster, which was pretty good considering how only 3 or 4 hours before we all wanted to go in and go to bed. Then we ended upstaying up past 1 getting everything in and saying our good-byes. I love our neighborhood traditions.

So now, because of my staying up late and having adult beverages, I went to bed extremely early and woke up at 1:30 and can't go back to sleep so I'm doing laundry, updating the blog and having a bowl of Frosted Flakes. Yummy.

Tomorrow should be an exciting day around here, but I will put it in pictures here for you tomorrow, assuming the house is still standing. You'll understand what I mean when you see what goes on.

Wangler Christmas Party, '08

2008-12-28T22:37:00.002-06:00

Today the Wangler Christmas party was held in Chandler, Texas at the lovely home of Chris and Lyndie Wangler. Lots of cousins, brothers and sisters were there and a great time was had by all. Here are some of the pics (taken, of course, by my new camera!).
This is Dana's family. Dana is #1 of the 10 children of the Wangler clan. All of her children and grandchildren were in town for the event. We loved seeing everyone and how much Nick and Natalie have grown. And little Chloe (who is expecting a new sibling in May of 2009) has really gotten big. What a lovely family.
The Paul Wangler family with 2 of their 5 kids with them. Hannah (who started college this year) and Daniel are in the wagon.

All the first cousins.

After all the pics of families were taken, Conrad was left by himself with the Paparazzi. Hmmm, you know, pictures were taken of our family but for some reason they didn't show up when I downloaded. I wonder what happened to them. Well, if someone got one, please e-mail it to me and I'll put it on here. Crazy!

We always do a present exchange and, used to be, Sadie and Mads were the only kids and we made sure we got something they would like because they would end up with it anyway. Now they are not the only ones and it was amazing how many kids were there. In the end, Mads ended up with what she brought after all. She was happy about that. Anna did, too. Sadie got lip gloss and she was just fine with her haul.

By the way, there are 3 new babies due this coming year to the Wangler family. The first, in Feb., then May and June. Who knows how many new ones there will be by the end of the year. Congrats all you parents to be.

This party was wonderful. We saw all the cousins, sisters, brothers, in-laws, out-laws (not really, there aren't any in the Wangler clan - that we would admit to, anyway) had great food and fellowship. The Wanglers are a great bunch of people and I was very lucky to marry into such a loving family.

I hope yours was blessed, too!

2008-12-27T23:43:00.004-06:00

Well, MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

I have some old business to take care of.

On the 19th, we went over to Shreveport to get ready for Mumsey's 70th birthday party. Auntie B and Pamela had done all the pre-party preparations and had our duties lined up for us on party day so everything went smoothly. Yeah, right.

First, the florist was late. We kept calling and they would tell us "he's 10 min. away" and an hour and a half later (from the first phone call) he showed up. The flowers were gorgeous. Then, when our men arrived with the cake, it had slid a little so it was mussed and the sandwiches "weren't fit to serve at a tailgate party", according to Auntie B who had specifically requested certain kinds of breads and those did not show up. Now, in all fairness to Kroger, the chicken salad (which for some reason I decided to try) was tasty. However, in Auntie B's defense, it wasn't what she ordered and had every reason to be upset. You decide if you want to order sandwich trays from Kroger. If you ask Auntie B? She won't be doing that again.

Now, I wasn't at any of these festivities, I was at Sonic trying to get the 2 Dr. Peppers and one cherry-vanilla coke that I ordered. First, I went to the drive thru and the card reader wasn't working. Well, I didn't have cash so they requested that I go to Brookshires (a grocery store for those unfamiliar) that was located behind the Sonic and use the ATM. Excuse me? I'm not paying a fee to get cash for a place whose responsibility it is to make sure all their equipment is working properly. aaarrrggghhhh! Well, it just so happened that we needed some last minute things (OK, just a pen for the sign-in book table) so I decided to go to the store anyway. Figured I'd get cash back when I bought the pen. Walking in, I was nearly bowled over by a pre-teen who was either blind (no disrespect meant) or just plain rude (I'm betting on rude) because I had the audacity to walk in the "in" door and, apparently, that's where she wanted to be walking. Didn't matter that I was already there. I was dumbfounded. I wish I had video of this because describing it doesn't do it justice.

Anywho, I've now checked out and gotten some cash and am back at Sonic. Instead of drive-thru, however, I've decided on a stall because the drive thru is backed up. When I call, I tell the nice person on the other end that I've already ordered these drinks through the drive thru and if they still have them, they can just bring those out. He tells me he'll check it out. He comes back "welcome to Sonic, may I help you?". I said - in my head "forget it, just order them again", so I did. You know how when you go somewhere you have a preconceived notion of how long something should take and when it starts taking longer you check the clock? Well, I checked the clock after that preconceived amount of time and 5 min. later, still no drinks. I'm sure the truck a couple of stalls down has gotten their order, which they ordered after me, but I can't be 100% sure so I call in and ask and they say they'll be right out. Another truck pulls in and orders a cup of ice and onion rings. I think to myself "if they get their order before me, I will get my 'Auntie B' on and they'll be sorry. (We say "get our Auntie B on when we feel we have been wronged and decide to tell someone about it instead of letting it slide - powers that be need to know these things.) So, sure enough, Mr. cup o' ice and onion ring gets his order and my hand flies to the red button. "Welcome to Sonic, may I help you?" says the person on the other end. "I HAVE BEEN EXTREMELY PATIENT AND ALL I ORDERED WAS 2 DR. PEPPERS AND A CHERRY-VANILLA COKE AND I STILL DON'T HAVE THEM" I said rather insistantly into the little box. I'll be right out there ma'am comes a voice aquiver with fear. OK, it didn't sound scared, but I like to think that it was. Sure enough, here comes my drinks in less than a minute.

Now, you may ask yourself why I sat there for at least 15 min. after I ordered my drinks. Most people would have just left. Well, part of me kept thinking "they're on their way". "Surely it won't be long now". "Really? Well, let's just see how long this thing takes" was the final thought. Besides, I needed a Dr. Pepper and nothing soothes the savage soul like a Sonic Dr. Pepper, unless, of course, the savage-ness was cause by Sonic in the first place.

OK, enough grousing. The party was fabulous. I saw all sorts of Mom's friends, most of whom I had met and one in particular that I had not. I was so excited to meet my mother's high-school sweetheart, Henry Whitlow. What a fabulous, cheery, hugable man. One of the first things he said to me was "I love the blog". That someone my mother holds in such high esteem likes something I do was a heart warming thing for me. Thank you, Henry Whitlow. You are a wonderful person. Not because you like my blog but because you are a dear friend to my mother and took time out of your busy life to honor her with your presence at her party. You made her party even more fabulous. I'm sorry I didn't get to say goodbye to you, I must have been in the back, washing dishes in that fabulous dishwasher (for real, it was fabulous, washes dishes in about a minute and a half - I want one for the house!). Hopefully we'll see each other again, but if not, I enjoyed meeting you.

Two of my step-sisters were there and it was lovely of them and Perry to come and all sorts of people from various walks of my Mom's life were there. I know she enjoyed it (because she told us so, several times) and we were happy to do it for her. Great big KUDOS to my Auntie B and Pamela for making it happen. In the words of my Opper "you done good".

I have no pics because my camera was again on the fritz. I think it was the battery (I know it was now - you'll know why in a minute) and I didn't even bring it. I knew Auntie B. would have hers and Pamela hers so I'm hoping I get some pics from them to post on here at a later date.

Now, onto Christmas...

On Sunday afternoon, Conrad and I got to go home, leaving the girls with my Mother and, for one night, my sister. How lovely it was for my darling Conrad and I to have some "one on one" time. Thank you, Mumsey and Pamela for a truly special Christmas gift.

Then, we went back Christmas Eve. Spent some time getting ready for the big day, and then, BAM! It was Christmas morning. I was awaken by Sadie at 5am and if you can believe it, I told her to go back to sleep. Actually, I turned on the TV in our room and told her to watch "The Christmas Story" (you know, "you'll shoot your eye out with that" movie) which is a favorite Christmas Day showing of ours. It plays non-stop on TBS or TNT or some cable network and we love it. Anyway, I think she went back to sleep and we ended up getting up at a more respectable 7am. I am normally a "let's get up at 5am" kinda girl but I was feeling kinda crappy, lots of yucky stuff accumulating in my head like the snow in Wisconsin, so I opted for a little more sleep.

Then, Aaron lit the advent candles and Madeline read the Christmas story out of the Bible and Conrad said the prayer. Then the presents...I got to open one of mine first...a new digital camera! WooHoo! A new Kodak EasyShare M863. Let me tell you something, it's beautiful, it's red and best of all, IT WORKS!!!!! And, tonight, when I plugged in the new dock (which charges the batteries while it sits there) it just poof, worked like a charm, like it was made for this computer and everything is hunky dory! I love Kodak! That's why there are pics for this part of the blog.

Here' s Mumsey with her new sweatshirt. See the snowflakes?

This is her telling me "I told you not to get me anything, my party was present enough". Yeah, yeah...you know those snowflakes? They are all our names...this is Sadie.

Cool, huh? My mother is impossible to buy for. So we have to get creative. My friend, Jackie - from work, told me her embroidery machine would do this and so I gave her the sweatshirt and she turned it into this beautiful piece of art that my mother will treasure. Thank you, Jackie!

Anna got a scooter and it came with all the pads, the helmet, a backpack and a phone. Just what every girl on the move needs.

Then we traveled down to Natchitoches (well, really, Campti) to see Pamela and Greg and their 3 dogs and 6 cats and have Christmas dinner. My sister puts out the spread!
After opening presents, Mads gets fashionable with the bows.

It was a lovely Christmas, spent with family, as it should be. Next year, we will be here. We will put up the Christmas tree the Saturday after Thanksgiving. I promised the girls that since we didn't even get the first Christmas item out this year we would really do it up next year. So, watch out, world, Wanglers will go Christmas on you next year!

I hope your Christmas was blessed, safe and family-filled.

The letter

2008-12-18T21:48:00.002-06:00

Today, we got a letter in the office, placed on the desk behind me where I would see it, but not right away. I scanned it and sent it to myself but apparently didn't save it right because it won't upload to here. However, this is what it said:

"Sorry Mrs. Jacky and Ms. Lisa for going up there to the office every time of the Day. I won't go there anymore for the year, and will show no more bad things. And I will stop telling stories about missing lunch."

Now, after dissecting this letter, we surmise it probably came from our little "FOV12" (see previous post). What gave it away was the "show the bad things and telling stories about missing lunch" this boy does this often (the lunch thing, not the "bad" thing).

This amused me and touched me and made me quite aware of some parenting going on here. I appreciate his mother making him write the apology, I bet he does quit coming up there so often. However, I like to think we're just such loving, wonderful people that he enjoys coming to visit. Well, we'll see what happens next year.

And, yes, I know the whole quote should have been indented at the beginning and end of the lines but I indented the first line and fully expected to go back and do the rest after I finished but seems my keyboard and my blog aren't really speaking to each other except for the most basic of commands, like typing so, all you grammer/speech people out there, as Sadie is fond of saying "build a bridge and get over it".

Hope y'all enjoyed all that cooooollllldddd weather! Yikes was it cold or what?

Ziplocs, who knew you could use them for this?

2008-12-15T19:16:00.002-06:00

This post has no pictures but this blog was made for (true) stories like this.

I was walking down the hall at school today and a 3rd grader tells me a boy is throwing up in the bathroom. I asked him "Is he really puking?" and made a retched puking sound (because 3rd grade boys are impressed with bodily function noises) and he said "yes" and I thought to myself "well, I'll be seeing him in a bit". So a little time goes by and here comes we'll call him "frequent office visitor #12"- or FOV12 for short.

I look at him out in the hall and he holds up (and no, I'm not making this up) a large ziploc with...yes, you guessed it...what can only be called the remains of whatever he ate. I said "I know you did NOT puke in that bag to show me". He just stood there. I told him to go throw it away, and he actually told me "I have to keep it so I can throw up in it again". I told him that there are toilets and trash cans all over the school and that those were proper receptacles for such an activity, ziploc bags were NOT.

Frankly, it was very hard to keep a straight face through this whole ordeal. Never in my life would I have thought I would see such a sight. When he left the office to, I hope, to rid himself of the evidence. Jackie and I laughed and laughed. I nearly wet my pants I was laughing so hard.

I hope you enjoyed my little tale. I have witnesses that can attest that it's true. They'll laugh when you ask them about it but they'll vouch for me.

I hope where you are it's warmer and less precipitation coming down.

2008-12-13T00:06:00.003-06:00

Happy Birthday, Sadie!

Today is Sadie's 10th birthday. We took cupcakes to school (and no, she didn't bring me one!) and then went to see Abby (the one in the middle of the picture) in Fruitcakes playing at Theatre Arlington. I highly recommend it. Very humorous and touching. My favorite line? Uttered by Abby herself "Lord, Momma, there's chicken pox in heaven!". If that doesn't make you want to go see it, I don't know what will. I have discount coupons up at the school if you would like to go see it and get a deal. It's a good holiday show. Anyway...

Sadie has two girls spending the night, both named Abby (although, one is Abby and one is Abi). We'll have a "real" party after Christmas when all our Saturdays (and those of her guests) aren't taken up with Elf shows and other family obligations.

I'm sure you're all waiting for my traditional "Birthday toast" to my oldest daughter. You shan't be disappointed.

This year I have seen my Sadie blossom. She has come out of her shell, so to speak. She's taking dance (of her own volition) and I was worried about her performing in front of people especially these "Elf Shows". (Elf shows in case you're new to the blog are Christmas shows performed at local nursing homes and other holiday occasions such as the community Christmas party at our church tomorrow - frankly, they are as much a holiday tradition around Arlington as...well...I don't know of anything except perhaps the parade that has gone on as long as Elf Shows.) In these shows, the kids are right there in front of the people. Sometimes that's more daunting than being up on a stage where you can't see people. However, I could tell after the first one, the performance "bug" had bit her. She loves doing them and if she takes dance next year, I don't think there will be a problem with the recital.

Also, I have seen her "blossom" physically. I think you all remember the post when I announced to the world she now has a bra. If you don't, well, you are now up to date.

She has her own style completely different from her sisters (and, frankly, mine) and that's OK. I want her to be her own person.

The girl is smart. She's not necessarily motivated but she's smart. She's still a procrastinator and would rather wait until the last minute to do something and many times there are extra points for just getting me to sign an assignment or test. Does she do this? No. She doesn't need the points. She has faltered from her straight "A"s but considering I'm not on her 24-7 to get her homework done, I'm impressed. My theory (probably wrong but, too bad) is that I've spent the last 5 years saying "get your homework done...do your homework...did you do your homework...GET YOUR HOMEWORK DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!! If she hasn't gotten it by now, she is just not going to get it. If it's a big thing, yeah, I'm on her. But for her everyday assignments, that's her responsibility. If her grades drop, she will suffer the consequences. I haven't figured out anything that works, yet. But I will. Oh the joy (for me) when that day comes.

She has loyal friends and they fight and make up and act like 10 year olds and I love every minute of it. She stands up for herself when they fight and while I appreciate that in her and, actually admire her because I didn't have that much self-confidence when I was her age, I feel for the friend who has offended her because she isn't quick to forgive. (Thank you, Katelyn, for being patient with her and waiting her out.)

She is getting out of "kid" stuff like cartoonish movies and very much coming into the "pre-teen" world. Right on target. She's listening more to "mainstream" radio - country is her style -than Radio Disney although there's tunes on there she still likes.

I dread the day that those hormones start raging because we already clash on most everything but, forewarned is fore-armed. I'm preparing mentally now and stocking up on Valium and tequila for the event. (I'm kidding. I don't know anyone who takes Valium and I drink the tequila now!)

So far, boys are only in the "like from afar" stage. I've seen evidence of a crush and nearly fainted at the show of affection (a big sign with her "crush's" name on it) it gave me a reality check. Man, this boy thing isn't far off is it? Perhaps drinking all the tequila now isn't such a good idea. Conserve, woman!

Even with all this growth, she's becoming more of a Momma's girl. She hugs me more often than she used to and is just as likely to want to snuggle or crawl up in my lap as Madeline. I like that change.

All in all, I really kinda like who she is becoming. And while I don't understand some of it (like where she gets her self-confidence because, again, at that age, I didn't have it) I appreciate it and just stand back and let her deal with things. I am hoping that's right and that she will someday appreciate it.

Sadie, I can't wait to see what this year brings...or can I? Keep being the lovely girl you are. Stand strong and stick to your guns but know when to bend - not break - for the sake of friendship. Some friendships are worth that. Study hard, please? Work smart. The work is so much easier when you do it a little at a time instead of cramming a whole report into two days. Keep on growing into the beautiful young lady you are becoming. I love you.

And, since it became "the day after Sadie's birthday" since I started writing this post, Happy Birthday to our neighbor Phil!

Oh, and since it's now 1:17 am, I'm going to put this on here since I know Jennifer reads the blog. That "Azul margarita" is the best. thing. ever.! If you like margaritas, this stuff is in a bottle (duh) and you put it in your freezer and it slushes up and you squish the bottle for it to come out but it's still easy to get out and it's the smoothest margarita! No "ooch - wow, I can taste the tequila" feeling in your mouth, just smooth enjoyable yummyness. Thank you for the "just 'cause" gift, you're t-rrific.!

2008-11-26T19:00:00.002-06:00

Today's post has no pictures.

I'll tell you about my day yesterday...

I started off knowing it would be a tough day. The principal of our school, due to parking limitations had proclaimed that only the room parent of each room could come to Thanksgiving Feasts that took place at school. We have a very active parent body. This news did not go over well. I was prepared for battle.

Due to generous people who gave of their time yesterday morning, delivering food items to classes while I dealt with normal everyday tasks that happen every morning, the first part of the day went well. Then, thanks to a constant flow of yummy goodies delivered to my desk during the day, the rest was bearable. Until...

...about mid-morning, Aaron (whom I had tasked with making the red beans and rice for dinner) called and asked if I had any bandages. I asked him if he cut his finger and he said "No, I just sliced off the tip of it". I, of course, repeat that for confirmation and the people around my desk all stopped and looked at me like I had 3 heads or something. I told him I would have the cavalry on the way and hung up and called Lisa (my neighbor) and Kelsey (her daughter) took him a band-aid (I think). The day only got busier so I never had a chance to check. I talked to Mumsey not long after that and she told me she was going to Albertson's so I had her pick up a box of band-aids for him.

Regular run-of-the-mill-no-parents-can-go-to-feast-day frustrations from there but Jackie and I made it through with flying colors (well, at least we made it through with our sanity - such as it is - and all our limbs). Then, when I left work, I called Conrad to let him know that I was now off for 5 days!! And he asks me if I'm finished talking to the police. I'm thinking "what the heck is he talking about? So I ask and he tells me that Madeline called 911 and the police showed up at our house.

Now, I am no expert but I'm going out on a limb here and saying about 2 out of 5 children are going to do such a thing because 2 out of my 5 have. Jon did it and would not even look at the police when they got there.

My mother was about to walk out the door to take the girls to dance and the police were there when she opened the door. She thought they were the community patrol just dropping by until they told her they had a 911 hang-8pup from this address. She turned to the girls and said "OK, which one of you did it?" Madeline stepped up to the plate and admitted it saying "I dialed it but I hung up". So, like a big girl, she listened to the police. Then my mom tells her that she, Madeline, will have to tell her father and I that Nonnie was not going to do that. It took her awhile but she did it. I'm sure the facing of the police officers and our stern talking to were punishment enough and I doubt she'll ever do that again. Now, Anna? I guess we'll have to see about her.

So, that was my day yesterday. I am happy you went along memory lane with me.

For today, I've been thinking about all the things I'm thankful for. Here's a few:

My family (All of 'em! - in case any of you were worried.)

The fact that I have many friends and that I was able to invite some for Thanksgiving dinner without worrying if we would have enough.

That I lived long enough to see a woman make a great run for the Vice-Presidency (yeah I remember Geraldine, but I don't remember the race being so close and I don't think she changed the race like Sarah did. And, that I saw history made in this country when an African-American was elected to the Presidency. I may not like it but that's also what I like about this country. I can NOT like it and live to tell about it.

That my family loves me with all my foibles and faults and I overlook theirs.

That my mother-in-law has a safe place to live in with people to take care of her and she now has constancy in her life. And that her children care enough to visit.

That my mother is able to come over for holidays such as this and that we're going to celebrate her 70th birthday this December. (And that she is catching up my laundry even as I write this - THANK YOU, MUMSEY)

That my sons are grown up and making their own way in this world. I am so proud of them.

That I am able to write things that happen to me and write my opinions on this blog and people read it and I'm not persecuted (except for grammer mistakes) for it. What a great thing this freedom of speech thing is.

That no one is going to care that I did not actually make any of the pies that will be served tomorrow for dessert but that we were able to provide them in the first place.

There are a million more things but I'll leave it at that. Please pause a moment, tonight or tomorrow and remember all the things you are thankful for. It will make you feel better!

My hope and prayer for all of you is that you are surrounded by loved ones, that you are helping those in need in some small way, that you feel the love from friends and family and that you get at least one piece of your favorite pie this Thanksgiving. Remember: BE THANKFUL!

A mother's fear

2008-11-15T09:42:00.002-06:00

OK, so ACA had a fundraiser and first prize was a scooter. A real scooter. A scooter that has a motor and goes while you sit on it. A scooter that every mother hopes her children don't want for fear of the repercussions. You know, riding, falling, breaking (limbs and scooters). Well, my fears were realized yesterday with the immortal words "and the grand prize winner, Sadie Wangler". Yes, Sadie won the scooter (with help from her sister - that's a story for another day) and now the flaming beast resides at our home.
Here's Madeline, she got the first ride, because without her, Sadie wouldn't have won.

And, Sadie.

I rode it, too. and I have to say, it's fun! It just scares me when Madeline, who can't even reach the ground while she's on it, wants to go. Pray for me and the safety of my children.

Happy Birthday to my Seester! Who is in Nashville this week and I'll get to see her tomorrow when she flies back and I pick her up at the airport! I've visited with her car this week since it's parked in my driveway. The girls get so excited when we drive down the street "is Nanny here?" I get asked everyday. Her birthday was yesterday but I only just now got to sit down and update.

And, congratulations to our nephew Nathan. Cindy and he had a baby this week, he was born at 32 weeks so he's very small, 2 lbs. 11 oz. but Nathan says he's pretty healthy for being so small. He had a hole in his lung which they fixed and he'll be in the hospital until January, probably. His name is Payton Lee. I can't wait to see him. Keep him in your prayers, too.

Y'all have a good week!

Tammy Markham

2008-11-09T14:56:00.003-06:00

Growing up, I was friends with a girl named Tammy Markham. She was a beautiful person, inside and out. She had a lovely voice and a beautiful smile and she was my friend, no matter what. Her family was my family. Her momma was the one who got me to like fried shrimp and I'm sure a whole host of other fried foods. That woman could cook and I was always excited to be included at their table. Tammy also taught me the joys of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. My hips and thighs thank you!

I spent many a night at Tammy's house and when I ran away, it was always to there. Not that I did it too many times but when I did, Mumsey always knew where to find me. I first watched the movie "Somewhere In Time" at Tammy's house, it is a favorite of mine, still.

Tammy had two cars. A Volkswagon Bug and a convertable "Thing" (remember those?). We were driving down the road one night and decided to put the top up or down and did it while driving. I learned that night that you should stop to do such a thing. One time, a youth group was visiting our church and they were staying at several houses in the neighborhood. Tammy and I were taking them there and we were in her "bug". I'm sure you know those cars hold at most 5. Well, (brace yourself, mother) we probably had 8 in there. I ended up in Tammy's lap steering, her doing the foot pedals at my command since she couldn't see. We got everywhere safely, though how, I don't know. We had more fun together.

Her sister, Sherry, called me today to tell me Tammy had passed away on Tuesday, she went into cardiac arrest and never recovered. A while back, she had suffered some sort of "episode" that left her paralyzed and rendered her essentially speechless so this was a blessing in most ways. But, it was comforting to me knowing where she was and if I had some extra time going home I could always stop by Longview and see her. But, I didn't do it often enough and for that, Tammy, I am sorry.

But, please know that tales of you and I will live on and I will always remember you as a beautiful soul, lovely singer and the best friend a girl could have.

Can you believe I've updated?

2008-11-02T17:21:00.005-06:00

Well, howdy folks! Long time, no update. As you can imagine, the life around here has changed drastically. Long days filled with work, dance, piano, driving here and there, then dinner, then homework, blah, blah, blah. I'm enjoying the new life, however, it does put a damper on updating the blog. However, here I am updating you on the last few weeks. Starting with...

The State Fair! We went, courtesy of free tickets from school (a perk of working there is I get a free ticket, too!)
Big Tex...the trademark of the Sate Fair of Texas.

This is Anna on the Merry-Go-Round. It went fast and she loved it.

Sadie the little flower.

And Mads, too. I actually like Mads picture better because of the sunlight and shade in the picture.Madeline, Anna and Sadie on a ride, having lots of fun.
Anna won a big ol' stuffed animal at a game and she didn't last much longer after that. Her head is on it, if you couldn't tell.

A neighbor of ours who has BIG dogs and know we have cats and love cats always comes to us when a cat is stranded at his house. This time it was a baby that was probably 4 or 5 weeks old. Precious little thing and, of course, we all (except Conrad) fell in love with it (I don't know the sex of it, can't tell). Our neighbor, Ruth, took it in and is loving this little baby to health and happiness. We're so happy it all worked out. Oh, it's name is Zoey.

On to Halloween.

Sadie's pumpkin. It's a dog. Can't you tell?

Anna's pumpkin. She had a little help from Daddy.

Madeline was a lollipop (not a sucker!). You can't really tell it from here but she was pretty cute.

Sadie was a dead veterinarian. And, Brady was a ....

Anna was "halloween girl". I went to WallyWorld with the intent of getting her a ladybug costume but they had nary a one. So, I got her a cute little outfit to wear after taking off the ladybug costume that I fully inteded to go buy at Party City when I got a free moment. When I got home, I showed her the outfit and she said "I love my costume". Ding! I said "yes, that's your costume! And you are?..." "Halloween girl!" She said. Problem solved. We did get her a crown and a scepter to add to her outfit and she was very happy being "Halloween girl". She didn't even make it around the block trick-or-treating before she fell asleep. Still, she wasn't lacking for candy.

On Saturday, the girls and I went to Shreveport. Anna and Madeline stayed with Nonnie while Sadie and I went to see Romeo and Juliet at NSU. Aaron was the "Master Carpenter for the show and here is the gorgeous set he built.

It was a lovely show and very well done and that set? Man, it rocked!

We also got to meet his girlfriend, Jamie. She was in the play as a dancer. She was very good. We also got to meet her Mom and Dad. What a lovely weekend.

Although, the drive over to Shreveport was not without incident. We stopped at a rest area to use the facilities and Anna told me she had to go so I got her out. When I did, I noticed quite a bit of "tasted" halloween candy. (Here's a free tip: Don't let your children take their halloween candy on a long drive, you'll regret it) So, I took a moment to pick up all this unwrapped, tasted and discarded candy so it wouldn't melt onto the floor of the van. Anna runs up to me with her pants and panties in hand. I said "what are you doing?" She said "I had to go potty". I looked over at the picnic area and there was a big puddle right there, for everyone to see. So, I guess Anna has left her mark in Van, Texas.

Y'all have a great week! Hope to update again, soon!

Levitt pavillion

2008-10-12T20:42:00.001-05:00

We're at a concert, outdoors, at Levitt pavillion. This is the coolest place in Arlington. Well, the Ballpark will always be number one but this is number 1 and a half.

And, I'm posting from my phone! If I ever figure out how to put pics on here, we could really be on to something!

I tried a "day in the life"

2008-10-05T19:00:00.002-05:00

My intention last week was to show you, everyday, what my day encompassed. Well, I took pictures on Saturday night and Sunday, then skipped on over to Tuesday, then forgot I had my camera with me so the rest is just going to have to be pictured in your imagination.

Saturday night, Madeline spent the night out with a friend so Sadie, Anna and I had a girls night. Conrad was at his brother's house trying to fix his mother's car (no, she doesn't drive it anymore!). First we went to Dollar Tree and Sadie got some stuff to be crafty with. Here she is actually making her sisters visors. Very thoughtful in my opinion.

Sunday, I started with laundry...
Then Madeline came home and Anna was very happy to see her.
And before I left the house, I caught Conrad washing dishes...
...apparently, that's all the dish washing that got done, because when I got home it looked just like it did when I left.

I had meetings at the school. One was turning over my beloved Griffin Buck Truck to these lovely ladies, Cory and Amy. I told them how I did it then gave them the keys and let them go at it. I've heard no bad comments about it so I guess they did a great job!

Then, the PTO had to figure out our new by-laws so we could present it to the general population at a later date for voting. Here we are setting up for the meeting. It was a long one.
Skip to Tuesday! Here is Anna with her weekday family: Elaine, the one in the purple shirt holding Gavin and Ben has the stuffed animals in his hands. She really likes it there. Every time I pick her up, she asks if she can come back "Tuesday" which for her is tomorrow.
Then, skip to today when Father (oops, Monsignor) Joe showed us his new bat signed by Josh Hamilton. He had spoken of Josh in one of his homilies and a trainer for the Rangers goes to our church relayed that to Josh and he sent him the bat. Josh is just a really neat guy, by all accounts.
I actually sat down to do this blog on either Wed. or Thurs. night but due to technical difficulties (read - I was so tired at the first road block I gave up) it didn't get done until now.

Work is going well, I love the job. I saw and diagnosed my first broken arm this week. I don't think I can get any more detailed than that due to HIPA laws but, I was proud of myself.

So, there you have my week in a nutshell. I'll try to do it again soon. Well, Fall break is coming up so I'll be sure and have some updates for you then. Hopefully I'll keep you updated in the meantime.

Pancake Breakfast

2008-09-27T11:47:00.003-05:00

This morning the ACA PTO had its first breakfast "eatsie's night". In case you don't know, "eatsie's night" is when ACA converges on a restaurant and the place donates a portion of the proceeds back to ACA. As the name would imply, they are usually at night, during the week. However, Applebee's has a deal where you sell tickets, give them back $2 and you keep the rest. It's all you can eat pancakes, sausage and drinks. They only give you 1 sausage per plate but, it was enough to last through the pancakes. Teachers, staff and PTO Board members served as waiters/waitresses, busboys, table cleaners (as well as some 6th graders - Carter Poe rocks as a busboy) greeters, floaters and money takers. A good time was had by all.

We showed up earlier than we wanted to on a Saturday but it was for a good cause. Madeline got to try on Mr. Simon's chef hat...
And here's Mr. Simon (the Principal) all dressed up in his chef gear.
One of our first grade teachers, Mrs. Sullivan, trying her hand at waitressing.
I have to say that all our teachers and staff who volunteered their time on this Saturday morning did a great job. I heard no loud crashes, no complaints and everyone really enjoyed the "eatsie night". Thank you, everyone!

Wow!

2008-09-19T19:51:00.004-05:00

OK, so there's alot of stuff going on, most of it making me very tired.

First, the new job. Very wonderful job. It's fast paced. I answer phones, questions, "cure" sick children or send them home (what I wouldn't give for a school nurse) help the teachers with stuff, it's just never ending and that's the way I like it. I love the people I work with, I get an occasional hug from my kids or those who I know and in general just enjoy the heck out of it.

It hasn't been without controversy but I won't get into that. Hopefull it's passed but you never know. And, just for the record, it's nothing I have done but the actions and offensive (toward me) words of others. My mother and husband wisely suggested (demanded) I not get in the thick of it and I am the better person for it. The controversy has shown me who my friends are and what wonderful friends they are. What doesn't kill us makes us stronger, right?

On to bigger and better things.

Anna has adjusted well. She loves going to Elaine's house. Her name comes out more like "Lynn" than Elaine but I know who she's talking about. She loves Ben and Gavin and in general loves being over there. Maybe because she can walk in the house without tripping over something. I hope to remedy that here tomorrow.

Conrad starts working Saturdays tomorrow. Yeah for the paycheck, boo for the time away from family and help with the house. We'll survive that. His birthday was Wednesday.

If I were to write him a letter or a memory page like I do the girls, it would go something like this:

Dear Conrad,

Who knew when we met 16 years ago that our lives would be forever entwined? You are the love, strength and light of my life. The person I go to when things get rough, my shoulder to cry on, my favorite friend to laugh with and I would rather spend time with you than anyone on earth. My favorite times with you are when we are sitting outside "talking story". I never get tired of hearing about your life before me, shocking though some of it may be, and am glad you decided to make me a permanent part of your life 11 years ago. I haven't regretted one minute of it.

Never once have I doubted your love for me. That's HUGE.

I love the fact that when I really grumpy for no reason you know I probably need to eat or sleep. I appreciate the fact that when I do need to sleep, most the time you let me. Well, I guess I understand why when faced with the alternative.

I also appreciate the fact that now that I'm working you're not overly upset at the state of the house. Probably because you know I'd tell you if you don't like the way it looks, you're arms aren't broken - clean it yourself. I also appreciate the fact that you knew it was important to me to work and this job (although a couple of years early) was the perfect one for me. Thank you for your support.

You make me laugh. You make me want to be a better person. You make me see the good in me. You even make me see when I'm overreacting to something stupid. You also accept my apologies when I am less than who I can be.

If I can even do half of what you do for me, I will consider myself a success. I love you and am glad you love me.

All my love,
Your wife.

Well, it would go something like that anyways. Hope you're all not going into diabetic shock right now. If so, drink some orange juice. Or better yet, hoist a margarita in my darling husband's honor.

Madeline lost another tooth this week. Yep, the tooth fairy made a visit to our house.

The new-to-me camera is working, but the dock isn't, so tomorrow I'm going to sit down, in between cleaning, and post some pictures from Aaron and see if I can just connect the camera via the USB cable that I have. I'm sure it will work.

Be looking for a new post tomorrow! If I don't, you'll know I got really into the old housecleaning...awww who am I kidding? I'll be posting.

FYI: The song playing is the song Conrad requested to play when he calls me on my phone.

New job pics!

2008-09-10T19:59:00.002-05:00

As promised, here is a picture of me at the new job. I'm the first people see when they come into the school. For some, that's OK, and for some? I'm sure they'd rather see, oh...some beautiful blonde, buxom thing. But, I'll have to do.

Me at my desk!
This is my "partner in crime" Jackie. She is the sweetest thing and knows OH SO MUCH MORE THAN ME! She really is a fountain of information. And, the best part? She loves chocolate and Dr. Pepper! Were we a couple made in heaven or what?
One of the perks of the job is I get to see most of the teachers at some point during the day. We do have a wonderful staff of teachers at our school. I knew this because I've been the PTO President, however, working with them has been a great thing because I get to see them "in action". This is Mrs. Reller. She's a sweetie! And those things she has in her hands? Griffin Bucks. Just in case you've heard me talking about them before, that's a good look at 'em.

Oh, and news on the Aaron front. They posted the jobs for the first productions and he is Master Electrician for the first one and Master Carpenter for the second one (Romeo and Juliet). I can't remember what the first production is called. But, we'll be there!

WooHoo! Go Aaron!

pictureless musings

2008-09-05T19:06:00.003-05:00

Another day, still no pictures. However, I understand my "gently loved" camera is on it's way. WooHoo!

So, tonight I did what I knew would be coming. What I knew eventually would happen someday, given my "plumpness up top". We went shopping for bras for Sadie. Oh, yeah. It's happening. My little girl is growing up. Share it with me, internet friends and family, let's celebrate. I think.

Let me tell you a little something about shopping for bras for 9 year olds. They don't size them like us wiser ladies. I felt so pleased that I had thought to measure her before we went. Very proud of myself, I was. Until we got to Wal-Mart (no, no Victoria's Secrets here - we're redneck women). The smallest they came in was a 30A (not what Sadie measured). However, we "tried it on" and it fit so we got it and another one. She's so pleased. I'm so unsure of my feelings. What a year for me with changes! One son off to college, one daughter off into bras...

...and then there's this little monumental change. I got a job! I will be working at the school (ACA) as the receptionist. I'll essentially have the same hours as the girls and Anna (as I've already told you) will be well taken care of. So it's an exciting yet tumultuous time. Lots of changes and growing.

I'll try to get Ms. Jackie to take a picture of me at the desk on Monday morning and post it here.

Be on the lookout!

Anna's first day of school

2008-09-03T14:36:00.004-05:00

Hello All,

Since my camera is broken I'm going to link you to my friend Elaine's blog so you can see Anna ready to go to her first day of school for this year. Elaine is keeping her while I work (no I don't know if I have the job yet, I'll keep you posted) so she took her to school yesterday along with Ben and Gavin. Here's the link Elaine's Blog

On the camera front, Auntie B has offered one of her many cameras to me so I can continue my bloggin. Thank you, Auntie B!

So, on another note: Don't you think I'm shooting low? I mean Sarah Palin was a PTA President and look at her now! She's the running mate of John McCain! Me? I'll be the receptionist at my kids' school. Not a lowly job, by any means, and not mine, yet, either. However, I'm going to have to give this some serious thought! I mean, Vice-President of the United States........

OK, also, I'm glad Louisiana is OK. Granted, alot of destruction but not nearly as much as feared. Way to go, LA! However, now I'm hearing grumblings that too much caution was taken. PEOPLE! DO YOU HEAR YOURSELVES? Too much caution? Get over it. That's all I'm saying about that.

That's all for today. I'll try to get the pics of Conrad "fixing" my phone on here tomorrow. I took them on my Iphone. Love that thing!