Happy New Year 2007

Here's wishing all my new friends out there a very jappy New Year. If you all read the six weird things about me you would know that I am expecting a very good 2007, just because the year ends in a 7. No offense to the number 6, but I'd much rather be in 2007. I hope all of you have a very happy and healthy year. God Bless.

Resolutions

I don't do resolutions. Never have, never will. I do make up funny stuff just to mark the new year. Last year my resolution was to never run out of french vanilla creamer. I actually did it. Not really a resolution, but a goal. This year I am not sure what it will be. Maybe never to run out of Gevalia, my favorite coffee in the whole world.

I wish all of you a Happy New Year and I hope your resolutions are a success.

Moon Sand

Has anyone seen this product? It's like an indoor sandbox. Of course my neighbors want to know why I would buy a 3 year old and indoor sandbox? Can't answer that. I did buy him play dough also. Thank God I own a $1200. Rainbow vacuum. I have had to use it at least 7 times a day since Christmas. The kids seem to like this stuff. It molds real well. You can make sandcastles and things and it is definitely easy to clean up. It vacuums right up and doesn't seem to stick to the carpet. It does harden when left out but stays soft when kept in it's closed case. I will let you know if cleaning up after this stuff starts to drive me crazy in a few weeks.

My present

Hubby sent me this for Christmas. Click here. Isn't he a great guy? Now I can blog while watching tv at the couch.

This was the best present the kids got this year. We all love air hockey and I am still the champ. So far I beat everyone in the house at least twice. Hubby thinks he will usurp me when he gets
home, but I told him he had better find an air hockey table to practice
on while he's over there or else. He must be crazy if he thinks I will
let him beat me. No, no, no way!! Can you hear me now? Air Hockey
champion.

Merry Christmas

Baby Jesus born in Bethlehem
Baby Jesus born to save all men
I have come to crown you king
I give my all my everything
How foolish I would be to turn away
for wise men still follow you today

Twins

Here I am as twins, Most of you don't know that my mom actually gave birth to twins when she had me but one didn't survive. My twin only made it a few months, who knows how many in utero. Now that my new IMAC, that hubby sent me for Christmas, has an ICam, I can take photos in mirror image so I can see what it would be like to have two of me. I was told we were identical so this is very interesting to see for me. What do you think? Very strange indeed.

Piccolo practice

Vanessa practices piccolo while Darrian looks on. I hope he can offer some good critique.

6 weird things about me

Oh how will I ever think of 6? Just kidding. Linda (another of my favorite bloggers) from Middle Years tagged me for this one. So here goes.

I hate odd numbers. Whenever I go to the mall, or out to eat, or wherever, I drive my husband crazy by not letting him park in odd numbered spaces. He always asks "is this one Ok?" Duh, how long has he known me? Is it odd numbered? Not to hard to figure out. I think he gets confused with the double digit numbers like 17, because although 17 is odd, I love 17. I love it because my lucky number it 7. Anyway 37 and 87 are out because I don't like 3 or 8.

I don't like heights. I get dizzy just thinking about heights. In fact I only go up into big building no higher then where the ladder on the fire truck can reach. I usually avoid high buildings. This fear does not pertain to flying. I don't know why but flying doesn't bother me.

Like Linda I talk to myself and to my cat Emma. But truly the weirdest thing is I talk to our goldfish (three fin spike tamayo).

I don't step on sidewalk cracks even today. Who knows why. I'm sure it won't break my mother's back, but I avoid them anyway. I am not paranoid, if I step on one I don't freak out, but I try to look down and not step on them anyway.

Again another odd number thing but only pertaining to the number 3. I brush my hair in 4 strokes, never 3. I take sips of my drink 1, 2 or 4 at a time. If I am on number 3 sip I will take an extra just to be sure.

I line up the cans in my cabinets so labels are facing me and If one is off, even at someones house I will face it correctly. Like if their salt shaker is not facing forward I will reach out and grab it and turn it, and I will do all this non chalantly so that no one notices. They probably notice, but are too nice to say anything

I read several books and magazines at once. I think it's the ADHD, but I can't sit down and read one thing for a long time, like an hour. I read a little of one book, then a little of another, and then a magazine, then maybe something off the computer. It's just the way I like to do it.

Now I have to tag 6 people so I tag Barb, Jen, Sandra, Julie, Liz, and Janice.

This is a hard day's work.

Darrian

After a hard day's work.

I make homemade pizza all the time and this time I decided to try calzone. It came out pretty good and was yumm-o too. As Rachael Ray would say.

Finished product.

I thought I would share these pictures with you all of Honolulu at dusk. My daughter is on the paddling team and when I go to pick her up this is the view I get to see. I don't mind picking her up at all. This is very relaxing.
Here is one of their canoes coming in as we sit on the hillside enjoying the paddlers. Isn't it strange that it looks just like summer here. Not a hint of winter. How weird it must be to everyone.

My decorated house..pictures in post below

I posted a glimpse of my decorations so I could join Boomamas Christmas
tour of homes. This is my tree and then the area where I blog. I also
showed my favorite Christmas blanket and my decorations by the front
window. I didn't go all out this year because I have barely gotten my
regular decorating done due to my broken wrist. I only started using a
hammer a few weeks ago. Anyway I hope to be done soon and then be able
to go all out for next years tour. Wish me luck.

PS Notice the bottom half of my tree lacks decorations. This is because my kids hang all of them up high so their baby brother doesn't ruin them.

My decorated house

Christmas meme

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate? Both, but I like egg nog a little better.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Wraps them, but Santa may do something different this year like set them under the tree.

3. Colored lights on tree or white? White

4. Do you hang mistletoe? Not all the time.

5. When do you put your decorations up? Usually the day after Thanksgiving. I can't wait because I love Christmas.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? Stuffing.

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child. I have a few. One is going to my grandmothers house (me me) on Christmas eve to spend with my cousin Gale and her family and the other is Sharing Christmas with my grandparents on my mom's side especially when my grandpa stopped at the backery for cupcakes.

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I think I heard it at school in about 3rd grade.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Yes the gifts that come from relatives and not from Santa. Otherwise it would be too confusing to know who bought what.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? This year white lights and decorations collected from over the years.

11. Snow! I love snow, but I don't miss it. I like the hot weather better, but it would be nice to see a white Christmas once again.

12. Can you ice skate? Yes...I think...Although that is how I broke my wrist this year. So I guess the answer is still I think.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I think it was roller skates one year.

14. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Pumpkin pie!

15. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Christmas eve when we get to midnight service although our church does it at 7:00pm. Then we come home and have hot coccoa, yes even in Hawaii, and we read Christmas books usually from the Christian book store. This year we may ice skate. Hopefully I won't break my wrist which then would be a tradition.

16. What tops your tree? Usually an angel although the boys want me to buy a star this year.

17. Which do you prefer Giving or Receiving? Giving, but only if it's something I really thought about not just a gift because you have to give one, but something that you know the other person will enjoy.

18. What is your favorite Christmas Song? Felice Navidad

19. Candy Canes yuck or yum? I don't love them, but once in a while I will eat one.

20. Fruitcake? I don't like it, but my southern friends swears they make the best fruitcake in the south and that everyone likes it. So I guess I don't really know.

My friend Jen over at "A good cup of coffee" got this one going for me so go check her out if you want to join in. Also say a prayer for her little one Miller who needs surgery on Dec. 22. Poor little guy. Hopefully this will make him all better.

Awesome Christmas tradition

I wanted to let you all know that my friend Linda over at her blog middle years has posted one really neat Christmas tradition that she shares with her friends. This tradition includes bingo, presents, great food and, well, I will let you all read the rest for yourself. I love Linda's blog because she always has something fun to write about and a lot of other stuff. So go on over and read all about this one because it is a tradition I think a lot of people would enjoy. I know I will.

PS Linda is a very sweet gal with lots of kind things to say. Just another reason I love her blog.

Happiness is?

No I am not happy about the Cowboys loss to the Saints, but I am very
happy about the return of my all time favorite Amazing Race all stars,
Rob and Amber. Team Romber will appear in the next race, the all star
version. I know you all probably think I'm crazy, and that many people
didn't really like them, but I have loved them since they fell for each
other on Survivor. Who doesn't love a good love story. I just think
it's cool that they fell in love on Survivor, made it to the end of the
Amazing Race, and then got married, and well, so far, have lived
happily ever after. I guess we will find out if the magic is still
there. Yes I am one of those nutty people that even viewed their
wedding and what a wedding it was, just like a fairy tale. Well that's
my news for now. It takes so little to make me happy. Wait until hubby
reads this. He already thinks I'm nuts and he will probably be glad he
doesn't have to sit through another episode of Romber. Allthough in the
end he ended up liking them. Even hubby can't resist a good love story.
Of course he always says "It'll never last." So far it has.

A little clip for babe

and anyone else who might like it...

Here

We love you babe!

PLEASE CLICK ON PICTURE AND WATCH IF YOU KNOW ANYONE SERVING IN THE US MILITARY OR EVEN IF YOU JUST WANT TO SUPPORT OUR TROOPS.

My little elf

This isn't the greatest picture but I didn't take it so bear with me. Brandon my 14 year old is dressed as an elf. He is a teen center volunteer for the fun fair and that is what he has to wear. We took the kids over to the fair on Dec. 2 and boy what a great day it was. I filled out a few raffle tickets and then went home toward the end. I was home about an hour and Brandon called me to tell me I won a survival bag. A backpack filled with survival stuff. Then when I got home I got a call from the guy in the booth next to the survival bag guy and he told me I won a $50.00 gift certificate. Once I got home from picking this up my son Brandon called me again to say my son Jr. won a cake in the cake walk, but this was not the biggest news. The biggest news was Jr. also won the XBox 360. Brandon gave Jr. his ticket and when the winner was called Brandon thought it was this other guy who was walking toward the stage, but then he saw Jr. jumping up and down and coming toward the stage. Miss. Angie was handing Jr. the XBox 360 when Brandon came up to say his ticket won. Miss Angie said sorry Brandon it's the person holding the ticket who gets the prize. Anyway she was just messing with them. Jr. and Brandon decided they both won and that's great for them. They share this with my other kids so that makes it a gift for all. My hubby was glad since the next day he was leaving for Iraq and this took some of the focus off that.

Oh and how can I forget. The Dallas Cowboys beat the NY Giants. WooHoo!

Ramblings

My oldest daughter who lives in Washington with her family was complaining I don't put pictures on my blog anymore so here are some.

The first is my daughter Vanessa fooling around with the camera. Her friend Jennifer and her like to take wacky pictures. This is one of them.

Next my son Darrian, who is sick with a cold, is taking a swim in the Jacuzzi. The jacuzzi clears him right up so he can feel better for school.

My little village comes next. Since Darrian thinks they are toys there is no way to set them up except put them out and let him mess with them.

Last but not least is my tree. It's a real tree, bought here in Hawaii, for only $32.00. Can you believe this deal. I love it. You can smell it the moment you walk into the house. Boy am I going to miss this smell when Christmas is over.

Eve

Here is something interesting I read that I thought I would share with you all. Something to ponder:

Biochemists have shown that every man and woman on earth-past, present, and future-can be traced genetically to one human woman via mitochondrial DNA. To that one woman they gave the name "Eve," which means "mother of all the living."

The following post

I want to thank Barb for pointing me in the direction for the post below and to Susanne for e-mailing me instructions on how to paste it in my template. Also thanks to my son Brandon for helping me put Susanne's instructions into action. Thanks to these people you know what time of day I am.

By the way this one had me pegged. I can't believe how it was so much like me. Try it if you like.

Midnight-that's me

You Are Midnight

You are more than a little eccentric, and you're apt to keep very unusual habits. Whether you're a nightowl, living in a commune, or taking a vow of silence - you like to experiment with your lifestyle. Expressing your individuality is important to you, and you often lie awake in bed thinking about the world and your place in it. You enjoy staying home, but that doesn't mean you're a hermit. You also appreciate quality time with family and close friends.

What Time Of Day Are You?

I love books

I found this one at Susannes blog and had to give it a try.

1. Where do you most often buy your books? Amazon.com

2. If you buy online, which do you prefer B&N or Amazon.com? Ebay? Christianbooks.com? or elsewhere? Amazon.com

3. Do you put your name in your books? No

4. How do you feel about loaning books to others? I don't mind since I never read a book more than once. Most of my friends who read also take great care of their books so I can trust them with mine. I usually don't lend though, just give them away.

5. Do you highlight or mark your books as your read? No. I only highlight in my Bible. Sometimes I might copy a quote down.

6. How often do you visit your local library? At least 2 times a month. Sometimes in the summer we go more often like once a week.

7. Do you collect any certain kind of book? No I don't collect books.

8. What do you do when you are done with a book and you no longer want it? I donate them. I sometimes do book crossings and release them, but not that often. I give them to my mom if she hasn't read them yet, especially if she is here in Hawaii visiting.

9. Do you keep a list or catalog of books you own? No

10. Any other book habits you'd like to share? I buy books all the time. I have over 500 in my so called library. I sometimes love the hunt for a book as much as the actual reading of the book.

Any one else want to join in on this one, be my guest.

Hawaii beats Purdue 42-35

Last night my son went to the Hawaii vs Purdue football game which wasn't supposed to be a win for us, but it was. We are very lucky to have a quarterback like Colt Brennen playing for us. My son and his friend were very excited when they got home. It was such a close game and Hawaii finally pulled it off. As you can see most of us here like football. We don't have an NFL team here in Hawaii but we have the college team. We live in walking distance from the stadium. In fact my son has walked to the last two pro bowls. That's about it for news today.

Today I will put up my lights for Christmas on the outside of my house and at the end of this week I will go buy a Christmas tree. They are in from the mainland and the parking lots of all the major stores are putting them out. The one store close to my house seems to have the freshest ones so I think I will try this. Soon it will be time to shop. I have to shop for Christmas presents and my son Dominic Jr.'s birthday which falls on Dec. 20. He will be 9 and is having a Mexican party. We are renting a water slide. We usually do something like this since how often will he get to have a water party when he is born in Dec. Only in Hawaii. We take advantage of this fact. He wants pinata and nachos and party bags with candy from Mexico thanks to my daughter Kira. Her hubby is Mexican and went with her to the Mexican store to pick out all sorts of authentic Mexican candies for the party bags. I will post pictures when the party is over. We will probably be having it on Dec. 16.

Have a great week everyone and I will try to post a little more often. With hubby getting ready to leave for Iraq on the 4th we are very busy getting his stuff ready and spending time with him. I'm sure though when he is gone and I don't have him to do things with when the kids are in bed I will be on the blogs quite often.

Happy Thanksgiving

I just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving before I need to go watch my Cowboys game. I was lazy and ordered my meal from Safeway so that me and hubby can enjoy and entire day of football. Go Cowboys! I will pick up dinner at 9:00 am and then eat after my game. Of course this leaves time for Pumpkin Pie and Greys Anatomy tonight. I hope all of you are enjoying your holiday meal.

Go Cowboys!!!!!

I JUST HAD TO SAY IT.

Hawaiian Waters

Yesterday me and my friend and her kids took a ride to Hawaiian Waters water park here on Oahu. My friend has season's passes and kept telling me how awesome the park was, but until yesterday I had never gone. I am so glad we did. The kids had a great time and so did their moms. My 16 year old daughter felt like lounging most of the day at the kiddie pools, the wave pool, and the lazy river, while me and my friend Tracey went on all the rides, several times. The park is not too big and was not crowded at all. My favorite ride was a slide that was enclosed in a tube and your rode little raft like tubes down it. It was pitch black all the way down so you had no idea if you were up or down or whatever. My daughter later told my hubby that we were like two kids running all over the place going on rides. We all really did have a blast. We packed a cooler and ate at the picnic area which is directly in front of the park and off of the parking lot. Not only is the walk short, but the area was clean and well kept. We spent from 10:30 opening time until 4:30 closing time. I am definitely going to grab some season's passes which with our military ID cards make them quite a deal. Only one event took place that was heart stopping. While in the kiddie pool all of a sudden the life guards started frantically blowing their whistles and yelling for everyone to get out of both kiddie pools, while they all started heading for one spot in front of one of the pools. My daughter said "Oh my God it's a baby." They seemed to be working frantically on this baby until some of the people realized it was a doll. Apparently for their drills a doll is thrown into the pool sometime during the day and they see how long it takes the lifeguards to spot it and rescue it. I told everyone that they were so quick at least we know if your going to need a rescue do it here. My daughter commented on it by saying that it was a little bit too realistic. Of course today we were all worn out so it was nice to just sit and watch my Cowboys beat the Colts.

Thursday 13-13 things that make me happy

I had to copy of Susanne and do this list since I thought it was a great one for today.

#1. My son Brandon (14) who was awarded the Excellence in Teen award at the Teen Center last night. Every year they pick a teen who strives to make a difference in community and attitude. This was a proud moment for me and his dad.

#2. My hubby who allows me to buy anything I want whenever I want it. I don't take advantage of this, but it's nice to know he works so hard so I can do this.

#3. The library

#4. Books

#5. coffee

#6 CoffeeMate french vanilla creamer

#7. So many new blog friends and so many great blogs.

#8. Reality tv, sitcom tv, drama tv, TV!

#8 The Dallas Cowboys (especially when they are trying to take the NY Giants #1 slot.

#9. Amazon.com

#10. strawberry shortcake

#11. My Jacuzzi

#12. Having a great church with a great youth pastor who gets the teens involved and helps them to find the joy in worshipping the Lord.

#13. Christmas. I love Christmas

Like I need more books

First mistake, I went to the library today to look for a book. Second mistake, checked out two books, walked over to the BXtra, air force term for store similar to Wal-Mart, and bought another book. For someone like me, who has at least 500 to be read books, why would I need more. I had to buy Beverly Lewis's book "The Brethren," because I just finished the first two of the series and just had to have the third. Picked up "One Tuesday Morning" by Karen Kingsbury on several recommendations from my blog friends, and then on the way out spotted "House" by Frank Peretti and Ted Dekker. House is a scary book, sometimes I need a little dose of fright. Last mistake, having three books and trying to figure out which to read first. Any suggestions. That my friends was basically what I did today. Of course this is after grocery shopping, cleaning, laundry, homework, etc.

Last but not least I can't leave hubby out. Since he has been on leave we have been having a lot of fun. Today in fact I found a little tidbit in my magazine that stated Pluto is no longer a planet. Hubby pondered this for quite awhile. He says if it revolves around the sun it's supposed to be a planet. The International Astronomical Union says Pluto isn't a planet because its orbit overlaps with Neptune's-under new guidelines, orbits have to clear all 0ther objects. So now there are only 8 planets. What do you think hubby said when I showed him the article with proof of the official dumping of Pluto? He said "so what does that mean. Pluto is nothing. Non existent." To this I replied .................................."Who Cares." Apparently hubby cares. He thinks this is stupid and you can't just oust a planet. I think hubby is bored. He loves his job and now we all know why.

My 14 year old son was reading this over my shoulder and he says Pluto is a moon. I said no it's not. Brandon says yes it is. I say not according to the International Astronomical Union. Brandon says he doesn't care Pluto is a moon and someday we will all be enlightened to this fact. Hurry someone better let the Astronomical guys know. Why? Because Brandon says so, that's why.

Another favorite blog

Go on over and check out Jen's blog A good cup of coffee if you haven't already. Jen is another one of my favorite bloggers. I am a huge fan of coffee to begin with so the name of her blog is one of the things that drew me to her. Her new look, featuring, of course a cup of coffee is warm and inviting. Oh and I must not forget that Jen loves creamer, just like me. I can always count on the fact that Jen will let me know when a new flavor is out.

Jen's blog is full of energy, positive energy. She is an awesome person who always has something kind to say. It is no wonder that she will be in charge of hospitality for her new MOPS group. Jen is an upbeat person and an awesome mom to her daughter Madison who is 9, and her little boy Miller. She writes about her hubby Scott and her children frequently. I can always count on Jen's blog to give me a little pick me up. Jen can make just about anything sound interesting. So go on over and check her out and I promise you will feel welcome. Don't forget, while your there, to enjoy a good cup of coffee.

PS I almost forgot Jen can cook. Many of my bogs I read are by women who can cook and they post awesome recipes. Well Jen is one of those women. She sometimes posts the most delicious sounding recipes so check out her archives and I'm sure you will find some new one's to try.

Your five factor personality profile

I found this test over at Barb's blog and it caught my attention so here goes. This is what my answers had to say about me:

Extroversion

You have high extroversion.
You are outgoing and engaging with both strangers and friends.
You truly enjoy being with people and bring energy into any situation.
Enthusiastic and fun, you're the first to say "let's go!"

Conscientiousness

You have medium conscientiousness.
You're generally good at balancing work and play.
When you need to buckle down, you can usually get tasks done.
But you've been known to goof off when you know you can get away with it.

Agreeableness

You have high agreeableness.
You are easy to get along with, and you value harmony highly.
Helpful and generous, you are willing to compromise with almost anyone.
You give people the benefit of the doubt and don't mind giving someone a second chance.

Neuroticism

You have low neuroticism
You are very emotionally stable and mentally together.
Only the greatest setbacks upset you, and you bounce back quickly.
Overall, you are typically calm and relaxed-making others feel secure.

Openness to experience

Your openness to new experiences is high.
In life, you tend to be an early adopter of all new things and ideas.
You'll try almost anything interesting, and you're constantly pushing your own limits.
A great connoisseur of art and beauty, you can find.

For the most part this was accurate except anyone that knows me will tell you I am totally neurotic, so where they came up with all that I don't know. If any of you want to try this you can go here.

New friends

Sorry it's been a few days in posting but my hubby is on leave and we are spending a lot of time together as a family before he leaves for Iraq. You can pack a lot of things into one day.

Yesterday me and my friend Tracey were standing outside watching all the kids play at the park. They were squirting each other with hoses, riding bikes, playing tag, etc. I remarked to Tracey that it is so weird here in Hawaii because it is like any summer evening you would spend on the mainland except it isn't summer. Sometimes I even forget it is winter for everyone else. It's a very unusual feeling to realize your mind actually tricked you into thinking it's summer when it's not. Anyway there was a lady watching her kids playing at the park and she walked up and introduced herself. Her name is Cherise and she has 4 kids. She just moved to Hawaii 4 months ago and was saying how she missed Virginia, where she came from, because she really hasn't met many friends yet. We told her she could hang with us and we all had a great time outside chatting for about 3 hours. I told her that we go out with the kids every afternoon once it is cooler. She said she would come by to see us. I told her she just had to give it a little time and then before she knows it she wouldn't want to leave Hawaii either. Sometimes when you are changing to a new duty station it takes a little while to get used to your surroundings and all of your new neighbors, but eventually you can't imagine being anywhere else. I am sure now that Cherise hangs out with us she will acquire many new friends. In fact we will all head up to the chapel on Tuesday for Praying Women of the Chapel. Many women attend this and she will surely find new friends here. Cherise is a really nice person and I am sure we will all become great friends.

prayer

This will be quick. I just wanted to let you all know of some prayers needed around blogland. First of all go on over and check out Amy's blog. It's the Wilhoite prayer blog and Amy is due to have her bone marrow transplant on Monday. Amy is an inspirations to us all. Her husband Brandon had written a very heart wrenching post recently about this experience. Please pray for Amy, Brandon, and Gary.

Also Liz from looneybin4sure has recently posted about a boy named Micah who is in need of our prayers. Micah is only 2 and has cancer. You can check for updates here. Micah is an adorable little boy who is going through a lot. Please keep their family in your prayers also.

I know our list is growing, but there is always room for more.

Holiday Traditions

Hop on over to Sandra's blog, Diary of a Stay at home mom, and check out Holiday Traditions. She is hosting a spot for us to share our traditions and read about other peoples traditions.. I hope you will all check this one out because the last time she hosted it many people had some great traditions that I myself am going to try.

My family moves around a lot because of being in the military so we don't really have any traditions we share with extended family. One thing we still do is open the kids gifts from their grandparents on Christmas eve. This way they can see what they got from their grandparents and we can also take pictures of them opening their gifts that come from far away. This leaves Christmas morning just for Santa.

Another think I do is serve crackers, cheeses,, and pepperoni, throughout the day so the kids can snack anytime they want before our big meal. I find they don't want to eat early because they are excited to open their presents so I just let them have cereal and then snack on the other stuff throughout the day. It's also nice to add some cut up veggies and dip. That way if anybody pops over, you can have a little something to share with them besides cookies.

We usually go to church the night before because I love the candlelight service. This always gets everyone excited and the kids usually perform in some kind of Christmas play. The church here usually has a living Christmas tree that is kind of fun to go see.

One other tradition we have is to go over to the Ft. Shafter Christmas Tree Lighting in early December. The kids love this because Santa comes on the fire truck and throws candy out at them on their way out. They also enjoy the Army band that plays Christmas carols. It's nice because it is warm here so they can play around in the big field behind us while the adults can enjoy the speeches.

I can't wait to see what others have written. Like I said hop on over because this will really get your Christmas spirit going. I hope you enjoy reading about all the other wonderful traditions out there. I know I will.

Favorite blogs

I am going to start from the top of my list and post once a week about my favorite blogs. This week I am going to start with Barb's blog A Chelsea morning. I love her blog because she is such a warm person and it shows through in her posts. I learn many things about being a Christian from her biblical posts. I also love her cooking. She posted about homemade burritos last week and I can't wait to try them. Barb posts some pretty cool crafts also. She had made these gourds that were sparkly, they were so pretty. I am going to actually give these a try. Barb also posts a lot about her husband and beautiful daughters. I love reading these posts. It's obvious she is a great mom. I can't forget that Barb has one handsome grandchild Cameron. He is a cutie and we get to see pictures of him enjoying his day with grandma from time to time.. Last but not least is Chelsea. Chelsea is Barb's cute little doggie. Her blog is named after Chelsea. If you get a chance go on over and check her out. She is one awesome lady with one awesome blog.

Random update

I saw the orthopedic doctor yesterday and he says my wrist bones are all healed. I still have soreness but not much. I am about 80% back to normal. The doctor says I can go ahead and skate next week, I will let you all know how that goes.

Darrian had a meeting at child psychology and he did well. Acted like his usual crazy self. The psychologist recommended they test his hearing. I told him he can hear, but he is ignoring you. Sure enough he passed hearing with flying colors. I am trying to get him ready for school since they start early here,age 4, and he just started preschool this summer. If he gets into this program here he will begin all day preschool so that he can be ready for Kindergarten.

Hubby is getting ready to leave, but he is going to get 14 days off so that is good news. Of course with the Army anything can change and that could be cut short, but we are keeping our fingers crossed.

Tonight is pizza night where I make homemade pizzas for the family. I use Sandra's recipe form her cooking blog. It is fast and easy and yumm-o. The kids love pizza night because we all watch something together and it gives us bonding time. Of course my 16 year old Vanessa is at youth group for church, but we do another night during the week so that she gets to enjoy it too. If we are really brave we stay up late and when she gets home we do it then. The kids loving staying up late.

Sandra did holiday traditions on her blog, but I missed it. I wanted to share one with you. At the end of Nov. we go to the library and get some Christmas themed books, then we pull out some old ones from home, and then we pick 24 that we will read. We will read one each night until Dec. 25 is here. I also read that one woman wraps the books in Christmas wrap so that they pick one every night, but they don't know which one it will be. It sounds kind of fun like this. Anyway go on over to Sandra's blog and check out Nov. 1st post for other peoples holiday traditions.

One more tip, for all your readers out there Sandra also has a book blog that I love, Reading Nook. Check it out here.

As for me I am going over to check out some of my favorite blogs right now. Over the next few weeks I will tell you all about my other favorite bloggers and why I love their blogs so stay tuned.

Another brilliant comment

Last night I was trying to figure out what to make for dinner with the ground beef I took out of the freezer. I finally came across a recipe on the Internet for Spanish rice with ground beef. I didn't exactly have all the ingredients so I had to improvise a little bit. Hubby got home and as he was eating he asked if this was a recipe I came up with on my own. I knew what was coming and said "kind of." I asked him if he liked it and he said "I like it better when you follow a recipe." for the disclaimer he added "I can't blame you, you didn't have much to work with." translation, shopping day is tomorrow and we're out of food. Somehow I don't think this is a compliment. Basically he's saying if I came up with it on my own, it sucks. Or maybe he's saying I had so little to work with, meaning my brain. No that's not it. He's too nice (or maybe to scared) to even think this one. What he really wants me to do is to follow the recipes he likes, never changing a thing. I guess it's back to my bloggy friends for more ideas, don't worry I won't change a thing when copying your recipes, or else the food chain as we know it may come to an end. Just ask hubby.

Happy almost Halloween

I want to wish everyone a Happy Halloween today since I will probably be too busy to do it tomorrow. Trick or treat starts pretty early here so after school and homework we will be off. What is everyone out there doing for Halloween? Have fun and happy candy eating!

Driving

Since my daughter Vanessa has turned 16 last May she has been asking about getting her drivers permit. I really haven't thought much about it, but now that my husband is due to leave next month, it may be about time. He should have 14 days off so he is going to take her to get her permit tomorrow. I probably should have gotten it awhile back, but didn't. So instead of guess who teaching her to drive I am hoping my husband can show her the basics this next month. No way am I going to let her drive me around. Call me paranoid, but I don't let many people drive me anywhere, so why would I let someone without a license drive me around. I think I will leave this to my brave husband. I'll let you all know how it goes after their first drive.

teenagers and the idiot box

I have stumbled upon a way to use tv to keep my teens in the loop with me. In fact my friends ask how I get the teens to not only talk to me but to watch something with me. My answer is the way I use tv. I will admit, I love tv, but during the day, except for The View, the tv isn't on. The kids have tv's, but I control the parental controls, so they don't watch much during the week. What I do is pick shows, sometimes educational, sometimes fun, and sometimes just a movie, and the teens are welcome to come down and watch with me and hubby at night. I have found if given the choice between no tv, and appropriate tv with mom and dad, they will choose tv with us. Sometimes we will just watch Animal Planet, or even tivo Oprah if it is on a subject I want my kids to see, like teenage sex or drug abuse. We always pause a lot and discuss the shows we are watching. I will tell you I have found so many things out about them just from doing this than any other activity. For instance we watched an Oprah show on mom's around the world, that even my son had opinions on. The kids could not believe how awful some mom's have it around the world. Somehow during this show my daughter ended up bringing down the Guinness Book of World Records to look the oldest mom up and me, my hubby, my son and daughter were up until midnight reading all kinds of facts. I am not saying tv is the greatest thing for everyone, but for those of us who aren't willing to give it up, there can be ways to use it to your advantage. Don't tell them I said this or they will never look at tv with mom and dad in the same way again.

Another great event we viewed together was Steve Irwins wife's interview with Barbara Walters. This really affected the kids and I am glad we viewed it as a family instead of them closing themselves off from us to view it. I have even used Survivor as a learning device. We will watch it and during it I will comment to the kids on how they think the contestants could do things in a different way then lying and deceiving. Believe it or not they come up with some good points.

Jericho

Is anyone else out there watching this new show? I am so hooked on this. Last night I was pondering why. I turned to my son and said "why do I watch this?" I asked because the show is about the once peaceful town of Jericho where a baffling explosion occurs off in the distance. The town is in chaos, cut off from society, and living in fear of the unknown. Doesn't sound too hot, but the reason I watch it, and the reason I really believe this show is quality, is because the shows underlining theme is not devastation or disaster, but Hope. It shows what could happen in any town in America, if America was actually attacked and they were cut off from communication with anyone, and electricity, etc. The results of this explosion and there seclusion from the outside world is that the people of Jericho band together and believe that they are still here. They are survivors, and they will take every day as it comes. Whenever someone gets down and wonders what will become of Jericho there is always someone to reassure them that they will cross any bridge when they get to it, together. If you are all wondering why they don't just drive out of town, it is because they saw a huge cloud when the explosion occurred from the direction of Denver and they don't know if there is radioactivity outside of Jericho because they tried to head that way and found many dead. Dead from what may have been radiation. I just wanted to let everyone know about this because in the world we live in anything is a possibility and I do believe that people turning toward each other, instead of away from each other, might be the key to survival. And this is what Jericho is really about. HOPE and SURVIVAL

Homemade gift idea exchange

Hop on over to Kisses of Sunshine and check out the awesome post she has done for Christmas. All the gifts that she posted are awesome and check out the links to the other peoples blog's and see what they have come up with. I love the idea of giving gifts from the heart or using our God given talents to create something for the people in our lives. Here is my idea. It's not super original and someone may have the same one, but I love it. One year at my sons Karate Christmas party his friends mom handed me a homemade gift bag filled with their own peanut brittle. Now I have never tried peanut brittle but I think I could find a recipe for it. I thought this was a very touching gesture. She told me every year she creates gift bags and her husband makes the peanut brittle and they hand it out to friends and family. Everyone loves this so much that friends ask every year when Christmas rolls around if they are making their peanut brittle this year. Anyone else with a great idea can go over and post their link at kisses of Sunshine.

"The Haircut"

This is my husband giving the boys their monthly haircuts. Basically he only knows one style, you know the one they give you in basic training when you join the military. He also likes to fool around and cut the kids hair in silly styles before the actual finished product. It's no wonder that my 13 year old son now makes me take him to the barber shop for his cut. He says he knows his dad does a good job, but he has had the same hair style since he was 4 and he really wanted something different. The other night before his JROTC thing I forgot to take him for his cut so he was stuck with dad's. Thank God Brandon is easy going and didn't really mind. It was kind of funny when I got there because I realized none of the other kids had the military cut. The new cut is a little longer with bangs. Now I see why we've moved on to the barber.

Just a little note to let you all know my husband will be deploying for a year in Iraq toward the end of November. I know we will miss him and the kids are not too happy, but they know he has to go. Please keep him in your prayers.

Math tip

I bought this abacus for $2.99 at the thrift store last week. Damian was having a little trouble with money. He couldn't grasp the concept that if you paid $1.00 for an item, but the item cost $.70, you would get back $.30. After trying this out on the abacus a few times he was able to understand. I would recommend this for any child who may need to visualize math concepts.

Brandon

Here is Brandon at the JROTC ceremony. Sorry it is so blurry but dummy me had my camera on the wrong setting. Brandon got promoted to Seaman First Class and was awarded a few more awards.

Sandra's food blog

I have to say for those of you who like to cook, you must check out Sandra's food blog full bellies, happy kids. I have made several of her recipes and they are definitely to die for. The first thing I ever made was her rice pudding. If you like rice pudding this is one awesome recipe. Last week I made her fried chicken. My hubby said it was the best fried chicken I ever made and I have to agree. Last night, pizza night, I made her pizza dough. Oh my goodness was this easy and delicious. I also used her idea for the sauce. Once again my hubby would like to thank Sandra. He had at least 5 slices over the evening. The kids liked it and so did I. I will be making it on pizza night every week. Go over and check out the recipes and her beautiful pictures of every one's favorite thing...food...Need I say more. Thanks again Sandra.

My favorite thing

Yesterday I put up my favorite indulgence. The Jacuzzi. I bought this over a year ago on the Home Shopping Network and I love it. The temp is up to 94 and I can go in once it reaches 104. This thing is very relaxing. After the kids are in bed me and the hubby can go in here for 20 minutes and just enjoy it. Of course when the kids are up they think it's a swimming pool. Last year when my parents were here my dad decided to give it a try. My dad had hurt his knee and was not really able to put weight on it, but we didn't consider this before we got into the jacuzzi. Once me, my mom, and my dad were in we enjoyed it for about half an hour and then it was time to get out. Getting out was easy except for dad. He couldn't get out because he could barely lift his leg over the side. Me and my mom decided to kind of pull him out where he ended up on his knees kind of hanging half way in and half way out. Me and mom went hysterical, big help we are. As we are still trying to figure all this out my 16 year old and her friend come around the back yard on their way home from school and upon hearing the laughter, me and mom again, they peak in. Immediately they hide their eyes. Seeing mom, grandma, and grandpa in your jacuzzi is not a pretty site to a 16 year old. It's even worse having your friend witness our Laurel and Hardy act while trying to get dad out. All ended well. Dad finally got out never to return. So much for relaxation.

Am I the only one on this planet

who picks up a book, the whole world seems to love, and basically can't stand it. For my sister's book club the ladies chose a book called The Thirteenth Tale. Everyone seemed so excited to read it. The reviews at Amazon are mostly 4 or 5 stars. My hubby ran out and got the book for me, like I need another book, and I started it as few days later. I got to page 38 and really it didn't get my attention. Now I am on page 67 and I'm still not loving it. What would you ladies do? Keep reading in hopes the book gets better, or quit and pick up something y0u know you'll actually enjoy? I don't know why I don't like this book, it could be her style of writing, or the fact that the book seems so predictable, or whatever. All I know is so far not so good.

Prayer request

I know all of you out there have seen the power of prayer working it's miracles in blogland. I wanted to add my cousin to the list. She is 42, I know Gale you are a month younger than me, and was just diagnosed with breast cancer and has had surgery and is going to need more including chemo and radiation most likely. I would really appreciate you all praying for her to make a full recovery. No matter what path God chooses I know he will give her the tools she needs to get well. As we have been witnessing lately our praying really seems to be working. If anyone doubts God is alive and well they have never really looked. His power is awesome and He is really alive and working in this world. Please send prayers to my cousin Gale.

I leave you all with this message. Here is the power if you want it.

Lefty or Righty????

How many people think you are born one or the other? I used to think so, but now I am not sure. Since I broke my wrist, I have developed my left hand into something totally usable. I never could write lefty, or hammer a hammer lefty, or anything else lefty. Over the past 2 months I have noticed my writing is almost exactly like my right hand and I am now favoring my left even though I am getting use back of the right. Even on the computer I now have the mouse on the left side and don't feel comfortable putting it back on the right. How normal is this? I was just pondering this today. Most of you are probably thinking "that girl needs a life." My kids just chalk it up to "more stupid things that amuse mom." What do you all think? Is it learned or inborn, or is it inborn yet can be changed?

The Bachelor

Today I was watching "The View," and on it Elisabeth and Rosie were talking about The Bachelor." Joy said why do women do this show, none of them ever get married. Well there producer, who was in the audience and is a very straight laced guy said Trista and Ryan got married. He then realized he outed himself. He said why do I know this information. I thought that was so funny. Elisabeth made the comment that she gets her hubby to watch this with her too. I subject mine to this show also. Apparently many other women do too. Rosie said she is like the forerunner for the women's movement and yet she watches a show like The Bachelor where woman are portrayed as being desperate and having to fight to win one man. Of course I watch this, it's one of my favorite. How many out there will admit to this?

Earthquake

I just wanted to let you all know that everything is fine in Hawaii. Thanks to God's good grace, the earthquake didn't cause any lost lives. We are not on the big island so the only think that happened to us was the loss of power from 7:20am until 4:30 pm. I heard we were lucky though because some of the island had none until 8:00 pm. I will be checking in with all of you later after I play catch up. Boy is hard to miss a day because of electricity. My daughter said "mom, I can't be Amish." I told her she was just used to having all the modern conveniences. Of course I haven't gotten on the computer until today because the kids basically hogged it as soon as the electric came on. Thanks for those of you who asked and I will check with you all later.

Talk about a senior moment, or adhd moment ,or whatever

Just now I posted at someones Else's blog a comment. After posting my own, and then reading the other comments, I started reading the last comment and didn't realize it was my own comment until halfway done reading it. Maybe I need more sleep. I thought everyone might get a kick out of this one.

How cool is blogging?

I was thinking today about all the things I used to hear about meeting people on the Internet. Things like, you can't get to really know anyone online, or you can't make friends online, or you can't really care about people you've never met. I have found this to be so not true. One of the things I like so much about blogging is finding new friends. I never expected to meet so many great people, or to really care about so many of you and your families, but I do. It's kind of like getting a present that you open and then later find out that their was a little extra surprise you didn't even see when you first opened it. I find myself praying and caring for other people and their families often. I will say to myself, yes I am one of those who talks to myself, things like, I have to remember to pray for Cameron and his first day of day care without grandma, I wonder how Sandra's MIL is doing, is Jen having a great time in Tennessee, I must keep praying that Emily's hives don't return, etc. You all know who I am talking about and also all of you others out there who I did not yet mention, I will eventually. I just didn't want to wear your eyes all out with one post, there are so many blogs to visit in one day. Anyway does anyone else have these feelings about blogging? I'd love to hear your opinions.

Clarifying

To everyone who asked, yes my previous post was supposed to be funny, so no one offended me. With 7 kids I think I have developed a pretty good sence of humor.

Pamela made a good point asking how Darrian got away from his teacher long enough to hide. I was actually in the classroom at this point and the kids were eating breakfast. Darrian was in the bathroom, it's a pretty big room, but not that big. Well he never came out. He was only lost for about 3 minutes. For some reason we just didn't think he was in the closet in that room because it locks with a hook type lock and the lock is about 5 ft. high. We figured out he climbed onto the sink and unlocked it. I'll tell you the kid is good. He can scale our 6 ft. wooden fence in the back yard in 10 seconds. I might have forgot to tell you all he climbs well too. We refer to him as spiderbaby. He used to open out child proof locks in the other house and climb out the window. Most nights we put him in our bed because we are aftraid he will try to escape. It's hysterical to watch as my friends will say he can't climb that, and what does he do? Climb it. We were once at the Hale Koa pool here in Hawaii while my parents were here and they have the kiddie pool with a lock that you have to pull up and push at the same time. At this point he was only two. The lifeguard was pretty amazed when he walked up to it, fooled around with the lock for all of 60 seconds, and let himself out. He is a little nut. You actually have to see him in action to believe him. I never get him a baby sitter, I don't want to inflict him on anyone. As lovable as he is, he has a nind of his own.

You know your not crazy when

You call the elementary school psychologist, where your 8 and 7 year olds attend school, for a speech and occupational evaluation on your 3 year old and the psychologist, whom you've known for 4 years now, starts laughing hysterically when you tell her your 3 year old might be just like his 7 year old brother Damian. The kid she told me last month I named just right. Don't get me wrong, I love my school psychologist, and she loves my kids, but everyone knows Damian is a handful. Not badly behaved, just extremely hyper and vocal, about, well, everything. My little one so far has escaped his Head Start teacher 3 times and nearly scared the woman to death hiding in the classroom closet well silently waiting for Miss. Carol to find him. Now Darrian says "Miss. Carol cries?" I told him it isn't nice to make Miss. Carol cry, but he thinks it's all just a game. She has been teaching for over 10 years and she told me honestly she's never seen anything like this. I told her to ask Miss. Desi, Damian's teacher from 2 year's ago and she'll tell you she has seen something like this, and his name is Damian. Luckily Damian takes medication and until it wears off at lunch time he is able to learn quite a bit. His teacher last year said she always knew when it wore off, because as soon as it did Damian would start mimicking her and wouldn't stop until he went to the nurse for his afternoon dose. This is the kid who last year went on a field trip where his teacher forgot his afternoon dose. She called me to let me know that all the way home on the bus she sat by him where he repeatedly sang "Who Let The Dogs Out..." while hanging out the window. Thankfully everyone around knows Damian and the school has come up with a saying just for him. Whenever we mention Damian, everyone replies "Well you know, that's just Damian."

Slow cooker Thurday

Thanks to Sandra we now have slow cooker Thursday. I made this dip recently to send with my 14 year old son to his teen centers pot luck. It was a big hit. All I got back was a dirty crockette. The crockette is the little crock pot.

Cheese & Chili Dip
1 pkg. 12 ounce hot or spicy sausage
18 oz. process cheese spread, cubed
1 can 15 oz. chili without beans
Cook sausage and drain. Place cheese in sprayed slow cooker. Add sausage and chili. Cover and cook on low 1 1/1 to 2 hrs. until cheese is melted. Stir once cheese is melted. Do not continue to cook. Serve hot. Add sliced black olives if you like. Can use ground beef instead of sausage.

Thank you all

Thanks to everyone who sent prayer's Kai'lie's way. She had a bunch of tests today at the cardiologists and her heart is fine. It is a murmur and not a serious one. They are thinking her panting may be from an allergy. Her dad has allergies and she may have them too. I really appreciate all of you thinking of Kai'lie and so does Kira and her family. Thanks again.

Prayer needed and praise offered

Please pray for my grandaughter Kai'lie who has to go to the cardiologist tomorrow. She seems to have a heart murmur which in itself is of little concern to her doctor, but the fact that she pants and also that in her dad's family there are heart problems, they are concerned enough to let the cardiologist check her heart. I know all of you guys know how the power of prayer works, as we have most recently witnessed with Sandra's mother in law. Please also pray that Sandra's MIL stays on the road to recovery.

I also wanted to mention I would like to offer a praise offering to the Lord for Dawn and Donnell's daughter, who swallowed some magnets today, but do to her mom's quick thinking, she had surgery and is now doing fine.

Thank you to all of my friend's in blogland for supporting everyone with prayer. It really seems to be making a difference for a lot of people. God is Good, All the time.

My daughter Kira's blog

I finally convinced my daughter to get her blog going so I could see pictures of her family. It is a cute little blog. If anyone would like to say hello it is www.chipsandsalsa2007.blogspot.com. My grandson has a new spongebob Halloween costume Kira made him and it is so cute. She posted the pictures of her creation.

How pathetic is this?

I found out after the season started that the CW Network was not being shown here in Hawaii because the cable company and the network couldn't find a local channel to carry it. My favorite show on all of tv is 7th Heaven, so what am I supposed to do about this? I have to give a big Thank you to my mom and dad who are not only going to tape 7th Heaven, but also Supernatural. Supernatural is a show my boys just love. Today I found out that The Dish Network was airing it out of Los Angeles. I went down to my local Dish dealer and they verified that they are indeed carrying the CW Network and people here are able to view the LA station. I signed up and am having it installed on Saturday. I came home and called my cable company and told them yes I am switching to The Dish because they are not carrying the CW Network. That may of seemed like a dumb reason to them, but there are not too many shows out there I want to miss, and some of them are carried by the CW. I will also be able to view The Gilmore Girls once again. I can't wait and I'll let you all know if I get my CW on Saturday. The Dish has also thrown in 3 free months of HBO, so how could I pass this up?

Happy Birthday Dad (Grandpa)

Wishing you a happy birthday here from us in Hawaii. Here is a little piece of strawberry shortcake we thought you might like. Sorry you can't be here to enjoy it with us. Maybe someday. I still think you should visit us for Christmas sometime. It would be nice to have you here for the kids instead of having to leave before all the fun begins. You guys really would enjoy a Hawaii Christmas.

reading, reading, and more reading

I am reading the book "The Preacher's Daughter," by Beverly Lewis and am enjoying it immensely. Ms. Lewis is a Christian writer who writes many books about the Amish. Her books are contemporary I believe. I started this about a week ago and am almost finished. I will go back to the library for more of her books when I'm done. Does anyone else enjoy her books? Any recommendations on other Christian writers you can give me. I love Janette Oke also, but have read quite a few of hers.

My wrist is healing well, but my hubby and kids are doing a lot of things for me so it frees up more time for reading. I am glad to have a little extra time for my favorite pastime, but eventually it will be back to business. I hope you all enjoy your day.

Ta Da

I had my cast taken off today and here I am in the removable splint. Thank God.

On a more serious note I wanted to say how much I respect the Amish community who lost their young girls. I heard that not only have they forgiven the shooter, but have reached out to his family. I think that the Amish truly show the grace of God in everything they do. Their forgiveness is amazing. There is so much we can all learn from them.

Crockpot Thursday

Here is my contribution to Sandra's crock pot Thursday post. Check her out here.
To Die for Pot Roast
1 pkg. dry Hidden Valley Ranch Dip Mix
1 pkg. dry Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix
1 pkg. Dry brown gravy mix
Put pot roast in the crock pot. Toss dry mixes on top. Cover. Cool low for 8 hours. Slice and serve with gravy on rice or potatoes. Enjoy!

Introducing Mr. & Mrs. Pumpkin

I bought these pumpkin people a few years ago at K Mart. I think they are sweet. If you notice Mrs. Pumpkin has a purse. Mr. Pumpkin came with a purse, but my husband doesn't want me to make the poor boy carry it. I really don't think Mr. Pumpkin cares. Apparently hubby does. I wonder what Dr. Phil would say about this.

My new friend

Yesterday the boys decided to make me a robot out of household items. So here he is.

Compliment the 3 year old way

I was a little reluctant to write this, but it was funny, so I did. Last evening I was chasing my 3 year old on his scooter and working up quite a sweat. After all it is still in the 80's here on Oahu. When I got inside I sat down to take off my sweaty shoes and socks so that I could take a shower. My 3 year old turns, looks up at me, and scrunches up his nose. Then he says "Ew feet smell, stinky poop feet." Gee thanks, like I needed his opinion.

Donnell and Dawns Tribe

My daughters friend Dawn just started blogging, so hop on over and give her a welcome. I think she would like it.

Testimonies

I was raised Catholic, but attended my first born again church at 19. I thank God every day that I had this opportunity. I didn't realize that being a good person and not committing mortal sins was not what Jesus was all about. Having a living personal relationship has been the best thing ever. So pop on over to a humble heart and read the testimonies to what it is like to really know the Lord, you won't be disappointed.

spaghetti

I'm the type of person that when you tell me I can't have something I want it. I want it so badly that until I get it I think about it all day, all night, and everywhere else in between. I realized a few days into wearing my cast that I wouldn't be able to make spaghetti. I figured not only couldn't I open the can with my can opener but draining a pot of spaghetti would be all but impossible. Over the next week and a half I thought a lot about spaghetti. In fact I thought about it so often that I finally went to the store to see what I could make that resembled spaghetti. I think by the time I got to the check out people either thought I was the extremely obsessive type or just plain crazy. With a smile on my face I unloaded my stash. 4 boxes lasagna hamburger helper, 4 cans of spaghettios with franks (pop top of course), 4 cans of spaghettios with meatballs, 2 cans Chef boyardee with mini meatballs, 4 cans of Chef boyardee with large meatballs, and several brands of spaghetti type tv dinners. I immediately went home, popped the top off 1 can of spaghettios, heated it up, and devoured it, right out of the pot. All I can say is bon appetit!

Everyone's a comedian

I was in the commissary today wearing a shirt my mom had given me. On it says "Queen of Everything." I passed a lady who had two adorable children in her cart and when she stopped I started chatting with her kids. She turned around, took one look at my shirt, and said "the queen of everything shouldn't break her arm." We both burst out laughing. It definitely made me smile.

Thanks

I just wanted to say thank you all for your prayers. My surgery went great. I have a soft cast on and my hand feels great. My doctor showed me the x rays before and after, and boy what a difference. My wrist bones are all back where they are supposed to be. I will be checking in on all of your blogs tonight when the kiddies are in bed to see what you've all been up to. I would of checked in sooner, but had a little trouble with my DSL line last night, and Hawaiian tel was out here at 8pm fixing it. I seem to be back in business. Thanks again for thinking of me.