Long Time No Blog

Wow! It has been a long time since I have posted!

I'm incredibly bored at work this week, so I thought this might be a wonderful time to update my blog, even though I am sure at this point that I have lost my two readers. Oh well, journaling is good for the soul!

Life has moved quickly since my last post. At that point we had arrived in California and were at the start of an amazing vacation. We had a great time, saw some amazing sights, including the Grand Canyon! It was incredible.

The summer was crazy busy. We traveled ALOT! We were able to take a family mission trip of sorts and went to Liberty Retreat where we have some wonderful friends that manage a camp up there. Tyler was able to participate in the camp, while Kayla helped out. I was the cook for the week and Craig was the handyman. It was a fabulous week!

Summer quickly turned into the start of another school year. Kayla started middle school this year and it was an adjustment, but I'm so proud of how well she has done. The second day of school, she started an almost week long process of trying out for the softball team - which she made. We were ridiculously proud! The coach said that she probably wouldn't play much because he pretty well had his team set, but it would give her the benefit of practicing with the team every day and growing in her game. And grow she did! It was a grueling couple of months of two-three hour practices every day and two games a week, but it was a great time. She did get to play a little and we are looking forward to doing it all over again next fall. She is doing gifted classes and they have been tough, but she is hanging in there with them. She also joined our youth group at church and has thoroughly enjoyed every bit of that. Craig and I have commented several times on how God has put leaders around her in youth that continually reinforce what we are teaching at home. It is very encouraging!

Tyler played flag football this year and had a great time. It was a little like watching paint dry, I must confess, but don't tell him I said so! :) They are so little and sort of clueless about the game, but he had fun anyway! He started first grade in the fall and has the same first grade teacher that Kayla had. She is the most wonderful christian lady and we feel so blessed to have her as his teacher! Last month Tyler made the decision to make Christ his personal Lord and Savior. I wish I had his prayer recorded where he told God that he wanted to follow His Son, Jesus. It was the most precious thing I have ever heard! Craig was the one who led him to the Lord and that was just a blessing! I was able to lead Kayla to the Lord several years ago and I was so thankful that Craig was the one to talk with Tyler.

We are now in the midst of the Christmas season and I will confess that I have kind of missed the point of Christmas this year. Praise God that He is bringing me around this week and showing me that my focus has been all wrong. I have been so busy working, shopping, cooking, etc. that I have turned into a grouch this year. I'm working on that! Things will be done differently within our family next year. Enough said.

Craig is in his final week at his current job. A couple of months ago he was offered a different position within his same company and he will begin making that transfer next week. He will be an Airframe Sales Manager...I think that is the right title! It is a corporate job, but he will still be able to be based at the facility here in Augusta where he is now, he will just move to a new floor. This job is something that we have prayed for over the last few years and God just carved this job out special for him. In September, he had his 40th birthday, and we traveled to Michigan to attend his first University of Michigan football game at the Big House in Ann Arbor. It was a huge deal for us...something that he has always wanted to do. We had an amazing time. It was the opening game in a newly renovated stadium. Very cool.

I'm not going to promise to be a better blogger, but it feels good to reflect on all that has happened the last several months. Merry Christmas!

Arrived!

Yesterday was, maybe, the longest day ever, but we have landed safely in California and arrived at my sister-in-law's house and caught up with all of the family.

We woke up at 3:45 a.m. yesterday to be ready to catch our flight at 6:40. The kids thought that the plane ride was amazing. Kayla did fabulous! Tyler was a typical six year old little boy. A little wild but not too bad. I think he was so overcome with everything going on that he couldn't figure out what to do. He finally fell asleep about five minutes before we landed in L.A. Go figure! We had a short wait in L.A. to wait to meet up with Craig's aunt and uncle. Once we met up with them, we had about a 45 minute bus ride to meet up with Craig's brother-in-law. From there we had about an hour ride to get to their house. It was a loooonnnngggg day! By the time we all arrived we were all tired and hungry. My sister-in-law had a wonderful meal ready for us. We hung out on their outside patio by the pool all evening. The weather here is amazing. There is 0% humidity and a constant breeze blowing. So, even though it is hot, it doesn't feel that warm.

We are staying in a 5th wheel in my sister-in-law's back yard, so even though there is 12 people here, it feels like we have our own little home, complete with running water!

Today's agenda consists of hanging out by the pool and getting caught up from yesterday! More to come soon....

It's Finally Time

Well, after months of planning and saving, the time has come. We are leaving for vacation tomorrow morning! This will be the kids first plane ride and I cannot wait to see their faces when the plane takes off!

Craig's sister lives in California, not too far from Los Angeles. His oldest nephew is graduating from high school on Thursday, so we are flying out for the occasion. His mom and dad are already out there and his aunt and uncle are also meeting us out there. Carrie, Craig's sister, has done an awesome job of planning a vacation for us to enjoy while we are out there. Here is the breakdown:

Tuesday - Get up ridiculously early and fly to L.A. Wait on Aunt Linda and Uncle Dave. Arrive at Bill and Carrie's house around supper time.

Wednesday and Thursday - relax by the pool and attend graduation

Friday - HOLLYWOOD!!! This was Kayla's pick for the day. We are going to shop on Rodeo Drive, see the stars, and catch Toy Store 3 at the El Capitan theatre, where we will also get to meet the cast! My children are going to flip over this. We are having dinner at the original Spaghetti Factory on Sunset Boulevard and then heading home!

Saturday - graduation party and pack up

Sunday - church and leave for Loflin, Nevada

Monday - Hoover Dam and then travel to Williams, Arizona

Tuesday - Travel by train to the Grand Canyon

Wednesday - Grand Canyon and back to Williams, Arizona

Thursday - Home

Friday - relax by the pool

Saturday - back to our own beds!

To say we are excited is an understatement. We don't usually do big vacations like this and I am in awe of how God has provided for us. I believe with all of my heart that God wants His children to have time away to rest and relax and enjoy His incredible creation.

An obnoxious amount of pictures to come when we get home!

The "Season" of Our Life

Well, 'tis the season, baseball season, that is! It is upon us. It is killing me! And we love it!

Last year Kayla played softball and Tyler did the CCRD B.A.T.S program which is like training for underage T-ballers. We didn't have too many scheduling conflicts last year, but we haven't been so lucky with our schedules this year. Add to that, all of the end of the year school activities, like plays and honors night, and you have yourself a pretty crazy life. I'm not complaining just stating the facts. We are at the ball field several nights a week. Most games are on Tuesdays and Thursdays with a few scattered Monday games. Kayla's coach loves to practice and those usually fall on Monday nights or Saturday mornings. So, there you have it.

The kids are having a blast and so are Craig and I. Tyler's games are a little....slow. We are used to the older kids playing and have forgotten what the T-Ball games are like. BUT, he is learning and has one coach on the team that is fabulous! Tyler listens well to this guy and has improved greatly! Last week he threw a kid out at second base. I was stunned (and I think he was too!)

Kayla's games are a whole other story. They are so much fun to watch and so many of the girls are just getting really good. Kayla loves to play catcher and I just want to say that she is awesome at it! The girls can steal bases in her league and are encouraged to do so. She has gotten really close to throwing some of them out.

For about three more weeks we will eat, sleep, drive, and live baseball/softball and we will enjoy every minute of it. It is so worth it to see everything that kids get out of it. They are coordinated, athletic, and I think it is helping to build their self esteem.

So, here you go, pictures from the first games...










This is the only bad thing about playing catcher - her back is always to me, so it is hard to take a good picture! :)

Pictures!

Here are the pictures of Craig and I's trip to Atlanta last weekend. We had such a great time!


This is what he found when he got home on Friday. I gave him only enough information so he would know to bring his clubs and what kind of clothes to pack. Told him to be ready to leave the house at 7:00a.m. Saturday morning.


Here he is suiting up! He doesn't look a day over 30, does he? I love this man!





Did I mention that I love this man? I do!


This is not good!



Us at the Cheesecake Factory. Craig couldn't believe that I asked the waiter to take our picture, but I did!


Buffalo Blasters - these will light you up! But they were yummy!


Original Cheesecake with cherry topping! Can I just say that it does not get any better than this folks!

Happy Day Before Your Birthday!

Craig and I have a corny birthday wish thing that we do...we (more he than me), wish each other a happy day before your birthday or a happy day after your birthday. I told you it was corny! Anyway, this year my husband will turn 40 years old and I've been trying to come up with fun ways to celebrate the days leading up to this monumental occasion. So, since May 5 will mark 4 months before his 40th birthday, I decided a "Happy Four Months Before Your Birthday" celebration was in order. Since the 5th falls in the middle of the week we had to celebrate a few days early!

Can I just stop and say that this is probably one of the only surprises that I have been able to pull off with Craig not finding out where we were going ahead of time? He didn't know where we were going until we were almost there! It was awesome! We left at 7:00 a.m. this past Saturday morning, stopped for breakfast and then traveled 2 1/2 hours to the Chateau Elan to play golf on one of their courses. Pictures will be in the next post, but let me tell you, it was beautiful! I haven't gone golfing with Craig since we were dating. We had the best time. I didn't golf, just rode along, but I did prove to be a pretty useful caddy! He even let me drive the cart a couple of times! We had a great time. He taught me all about the game and the etiquette involved in the game. Who knew that so much went in to playing golf.

We left the course and drove to Atlanta and got checked in to our hotel, then went to have dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. Yum!!! Yes, I took pictures of our food - it seems that, in blogging, that is the new thing to do. Again, pictures in the next post. After dinner, we went to Dave and Busters. If you don't know what Dave and Busters is, let me tell you... it is like Chuck E Cheese on steroids. It is Chuck E Cheese with slot machines. It was so much fun! Craig and I both discovered that I have a little addiction to one of the games - it wasn't pretty. I dropped 15 tokens in about 15 seconds. So much fun!

We spent the night in Atlanta and traveled back yesterday. It really was one of the most enjoyable trips we have had. It is always fun to get away, but this trip was just all about Craig and the kind of things that he likes to do. So, Happy 4 Months Before Your 40th Birthday babe! Glad you had fun!

Spring Break 2010

Ahh, spring break! I have slept until 8:30 or 9:00 for the past two days. It has been bliss!

My in-laws are here this week and they are helping with a few home projects. I think we are always doing home projects. We are a little over half way done with our master bathroom and I hope to be able to post before and after pictures of that soon. However, the big project for this week is Kayla's room. It is being painted today and she is so excited! I didn't really get any great before pictures, but I will post what I took when I also have after pictures to show! It will be a while before it is all complete, because we have a couple of pieces of furniture to buy and that probably won't happen this week. Her room is going from grass green and flowers to a sophisticated brown and turquoise. It has taken most of forever for her and I to agree upon a bed set, but we finally found one that we both liked. Can't wait to share!

Other than home projects, we have made a trip to McDonalds and Monkey Joes -that is always a spring break/summer vacation favorite! Tomorrow we are going to the movies with some friends, and we are even going to try to get in a picnic and a trip to library this week. BUT, today is stay at home and relax day, and I am loving every minute of it! It is almost 11:00 and I'm still in my PJ's! Yay!

Tyler's Birthday

Happy 6th Birthday to my not-so-little Tyler man! Last Monday was Tyler's birthday and we celebrated the weekend before with a birthday party at Chuck E Cheese. This was our first-ever party away from home! I had one friend ask me if I had lost my mind. It seems that the crowd was a little restless outside the doors at Chuck E Cheese and several of my friends felt as though their lives were in danger. Go figure! :) It actually was slightly intimidating to show up for a scheduled birthday party and find a line of people waiting to get in. Imagine then how those people felt as they directed our party attenders in ahead of all of them! Yikes! Thankfully, everyone made it through the party unharmed!

Tyler had a great time with his friends! His big gifts this year were Legos. As a matter of fact, almost all of his gifts were Legos. As a matter of fact, guess what he bought with the money he got for his birthday???? That's right, more Legos!!! The kid is a Lego maniac and can occupy himself for hours with a Lego set. I fully expect for him to go into architecture and make lots of money to support his parents in their old age! It is freaky really. He sits down with the Lego sets and the directions and goes step by step until he has built his masterpiece!

This child has blessed our lives tremendously, as has Kayla! Tyler keeps all of us laughing and is always coming out with something that cracks us up. You never know what is going to come out of his mouth. It has been an amazing blessing to watch this child grow over the last six years. It breaks my heart that he is growing so fast though!

And now, for your viewing enjoyment... pictures!!!!

What is a U.N.F.O.?

Well, let me tell you what a U.N.F.O. is... it is an Unidentified Non-Female Object that appears at your door one afternoon to see if your daughter can come out and ride her bike around the neighborhood with him. WHAT??? Yep! So, Kayla has boys that are friends from church and once in a while one of them will come over to play, but it doesn't happen very often. So, imagine my surprise when a very cute young man shows up at our door on Tuesday to see if Kayla can go for a bike ride. Um, excuse me, cute young man, who are you???? Well, apparently, he is a boy that goes to Kayla's school and he rides the same bus as she does. Thankfully, Kayla was grounded on Tuesday and has a flat tire on her bike so I didn't get too much grief over not letting her go. However, we did discuss that she will not be going bike riding with anyone around the neighborhood except her parents! Yeah, yeah, call me an over-protective stick in the mud, but... that's just the way that we roll. We welcome all children to come and play in our front or back yard, boys and girls alike, but my child is not traipsing all over the neighborhood with a U.N.F.O.

For clarification purposes, apparently this young man is just a friend, but still...

The past couple of weeks have been rough parenting weeks for Craig and I. We covet all of your prayers and will have blisters on our knees from our own prayers. This is the time in our life when we are hearing, "everybody else does, why can't I". This is also the time when I am learning, really learning, that it is not about being my children's friend, I am a parent. That is a hard lesson, especially when you feel as though your child is continually exasperated by you and your rules. Each new stage brings good and bad with it. Lord, let me focus on the good!

Fridays

Fridays have become my new favorite day of the week! It is the day that I don't work and I just feel so incredibly blessed to have one day a week where I can almost do whatever I want. However, this is also the only day that I have that I cram in errands, grocery shopping, house cleaning, relaxing, a manicure, haircuts, doctors appointments, etc. You get the picture right? I have found myself with not much to do on Fridays the last couple of weeks, and I love it. It is like I have finally caught up or something.
We went grocery shopping last night. I cleaned half of my house yesterday. So I here I sit wondering what I will do today. Hhhhmmmm... the possibilities are endless. But, truth be told, I will probably finish cleaning my house, go to Sams, and probably back to WalMart for the things that I didn't get last night. I think I will throw in a manicure/pedicure today just for relaxation sake!
We are hosting game night tonight. We have two couples that we get together with about once a month or once every six weeks and we play games. Sometimes the competition is fierce!!! We have a great time and we all have kids about the same age. Usually my ear drums are about to explode from the noise by the end of the night and my house is trashed, but it IS fun! Boys will never cease to amaze me. The girls go in Kayla's room and you hardly hear from them during the night, except to come out and ask if they can give each other makeovers. The boys... well, they usually make us dizzy with laps through the kitchen. There is usually at least a couple of fights to break up over who had which gun first. One of the last times we had game night here, I walked into Tyler's bedroom to find that they had completely removed ALL of his bedding from his bed. I mean down to the dust ruffle folks! Where did that come from? Tsk, tsk! Boys will be boys!
Hope everyone has a happy Friday! And, somebody better leave a comment and say that they are proud of me for posting two days in a row!!!

Where Have I Been?

Ugh! A horrible blogger I am, I am! I quit blogging because I just didn't feel like I had time to do it and when I did have time I was too exhausted to come up with anything witty to talk about! :) It's true!
However, we happen to be going through an extremely slow period at work right now, so maybe that will give me some time to catch up a little bit. No promises, but I'll try!
So, what have we been up to since the big wedding in November????

Well, the week of Thanksgiving we took the kids on a mini vacation and headed to Atlanta. We had a great time! We went to the aquarium, the World of Coke, and the Foam Factory! The kids had a blast. If you haven't been to the Foam Factory, I would highly recommend it. This place is like Adventure Crossing on steroids!!! Inside the building, they have a three story playground with foam balls and "guns" to shoot the foam balls. It was very cool. Outside they have a lot of rides and I got jerked every which way riding them with the kids, but I loved it!

From Atlanta, we went on to Tennessee and spent Thanksgiving with the folks. My mom and Ruth and I were at Toys R Us in Clarksville at midnight on Thanksgiving night. It was the most insane year of after Thanksgiving shopping that I have ever done. Write this down people - I may NEVER go again. They had to call the police because the crowd outside Toys R Us got so unruly. Let me tell you something - I don't need anything that bad!

Christmas was really different for us this year. Ruth and Ron were in California. My mom and dad went to my brother's house. We had a few friends over on Christmas Eve, but Christmas morning was spent with just the four of us. It was quiet but nice. We had breakfast and enjoyed watching the kids open their gifts. Sometime around noon we left and went to my brother's over in North Carolina. It was one of the worst driving trips that we have ever had. It poured the whole way. Between the wind and the rain, it was a very scary trip! But, we had a nice visit with the family once we got there.

Since Christmas, we haven't had a ton of stuff going on and that has been a nice change of pace! Kayla is playing basketball and has her last game coming up this weekend. She has done really well this year and has scored a few points for her team. She just had softball evaluations and will start that in another month or so. Tyler will be playing T-Ball this spring so we will be spending a good portion of our time at the ball field. But, we love it!

Does this catch me up???