You say it's your birthday.......

Today is a special day for a special lady. How do I know she's special? Two reasons. One, because her friends that are also my friends told me so. But second, because she and I have spent some time together posting our thoughts and wishes and comments with each other for the past few months.

She has shared her family. She has shared her fears. She has shared her home. She has shared her love for the Father. So, how do I know she's special? Because she's shared a piece of her heart with me.....that's how I know.

Today is her birthday......making today a 'most' special day!

Happy Birthday, Tracey!!! I hope it's your best one yet!

Friends are friends forever

"My God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory." Philippians 4:19. When I am tired, I find rest in my Father. When I am hungry or thirsty, I can eat from the Bread of Life and drink from the streams of Living Water. When I am overwhelmed with life, I am calmed by the Spirit.

God shows Himself to me in so many different ways. Through the stillness of His voice on my heart, He speaks. Through His written Word, He speaks. But sometimes He shows Himself to me in more tangible ways......through my friends. God has blessed me with some amazing friends.....Indescribable friends. Friends that have walked through the fire with me. Friends that have loved me even when I wasn't very lovable. "A friend loves you all the time....."Proverbs 17:17) Friends that have showed themselves true more times than I can count. "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13)

There is a wonderful verse that has been playing over and over again in my mind: "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you....." Colossians 1:3. I think of my friends when I read this passage in Colossians. It goes on to say....."In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the Gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus....."

I know God is not done with me yet. And I know that whatever path He chooses to take me down, I will have the best friends I could ever imagine walking that path with me.

I thank my God upon every remembrance of you.

Wow!!

If you haven't seen High School Musical yet..........I highly recommend it. Do not delay. Head to your nearest Blockbuster and rent it.

Tonight.

My daughter has been wanting to see this movie for two months now, but every time we go to Blockbuster, there are no more copies left to rent. Many times she has left disappointed. Not tonight, however. Just after dinner, I asked the kids to go get in the shower and then I would be up in a minute to kiss them goodnight. Suddenly, out of my bedroom comes a voice......."Guys!! GUYS!!!! High School Musical is on Disney Channel!!!" The next thing I knew all five of us were in my bedroom on the couch and on the floor watching this movie. And what a great movie/musical this is. The block time on TV was two hours.....8:00-10:00. This presented a problem as the kids are normally in bed by 8:30. But because I am the nice mom that I am....I allowed them to watch the first hour, then head to the showers and bed. What was so comical was, every time one of the boys needed to use the bathroom.....they paused the TV so they wouldn't miss any of the movie! It was great.

We TiVo'd it, so they'll be able to watch the second hour tomorrow afternoon. Unfortunately for the kids....when they came down after having their showers, they caught me watching the movie and they were none too pleased.

Ah well.....they'll get over it.

Sunsations!!

Music has been a big part of my life since I was a little girl. I remember singing with my mom's choir when I was in elementary school. I sang in every choir and ensemble that was available to me all the way through my college years. I love to sing and I love music.

So when Joe and I got married I prayed that that same love would pass on to our children...whether it was through singing or an instrument. God answered my prayer! Our oldest, Daniel, plays the french horn and takes piano lessons. He also sings in the Middle school choir at church. Trey plays the piano and will be starting the saxophone after Christmas. He sings in the Childrens' Choir at church. Julia just began taking piano lessons this fall. She loves to sing and is very expressive when she does, prompting many people to tell me she is a chip off the old block, so to speak.

Which leaves Josh. Josh didn't seem to have the same love for music the other kids did. He didn't enjoy the few months of piano that he took and singing hasn't been that important to him. I wanted to be a little disappointed when I realized that Joshua didn't seem to be as gifted as the others in music, but then I'm reminded at how special each of my children is. Each of them has their own unique style.....their own unique gift......their own unique talents. To try and mold them into my vision for them is nothing short of shallow and just plain selfish on my part.

So when Josh busted through the door after school today and made the announcement he made, I was surprised. "I made Chorus!" Chorus. Wow. The 4th and 5th grade Sunsations, as they are known, is a 'by audition only' singing team. Joshua had to try out and had to have a perfect score in order to be on the Chorus. He did it and he made it.

He seemed very proud of himself and very excited that he made it. I am thrilled, obviously. This is our third year with at least one boy as a member of the Sunsations. Daniel and Trey both were last year, Daniel the year before and now Joshua this year. Trey decided he didn't want to try out this year. He wanted to focus on band. Julia's time will come when she hits 4th grade and rest assured....she will try out.

Playing catch.....

.....with my kitten is something I never thought I'd do. But yet, here is Limerick, my orange and white tabby bringing me a green puff ball, dropping it in front of me, waiting for me to throw it and once I do........chases it down and begins the cycle all over again. A puppy in a kittens body............What a goofball.

On another note, tonight I went to a meeting at my son's middle school regarding the new math curriculum the state has adopted. When I first heard about the program last spring, I was skeptical if only because some math concepts are very difficult for me to grasp. Algebra....Ok. Geometry........forget about it. There is no way. And this new curriculum is so good, my son, by the time he finishes 8th grade will have mastered things I didn't learn until I was a Junior.....and what I did learn stayed back there in 11th grade...it didn't come with me to 2006. So, this was a concern to me. Then we found out toward the end of his 5th grade year, that Daniel qualified for Accelerated Math. So now, not only is he learning in middle school what I learned in High school, but he is learning it faster than other 6th graders.

This current school year is the second year the 6th grade teachers across Georgia are teaching the new curriculum. In the Spring, the entire state took the CRCT standarized tests. All grade levels....every subject. We were told at the meeting tonight, that our County ranked tops in the state in scoring in 6th grade math, making this mom very happy God placed us where He did.

Daniel is really enjoying middle school. He does his homework and practices his french horn and reads like crazy. After 11 days.........so far, so good.

Only 169 more to go.

Young Musicians

If you had told me 10 years ago that I would be one of the directors in the children's music ministry, I would have thought you were crazy. No way would I ever teach anything.....let alone music.

But it's amazing what God can do when all He has is a willing participant. I started my 'career' in children's music as a sub 7 years ago. If a teacher were out for any reason, I would go and take their place. This meant I had to know how to 'teach' all of the small group activities that came in the quarterly pack as I never knew from one week to the next who's place I would be taking. It wasn't a whole lot of fun, to be honest, but it did start me down a road that, frankly, I couldn't imagine not being on right now. Afte subbing in 3rd grade, I became a permanent teacher....just helping out the director and helping the kids learn the words to the songs they would be singing for the church. The next year, the 2nd grade director ended up going back to school to get her Master's Degree, leaving that age group without a leader. I was approached about being the director.....I was excited about the opportunity, but scared to death. I really didn't know what I was doing and I did not have a particularly fun time.

The next year, the 3rd grade director moved on to other opportunities, leaving that ministry role open. After some prayer, I realized that part of my difficulty was the age group.....I do much better with older kids, so I decided I would 'graduate' with my second graders and move on to directing the 3rd grade Choir. We had a great year! The next year, the 4th and 5th grade director stopping directing.....Are you seeing a trend here? Yep....I did it again, I moved up as Director of the 4th and 5th grade Choir. By the time the kids I began with in 2nd grade moved to middle school, I'd been their director for four straight years and they were the most precious years for me. I was able to get really close to every child and still today...2 years later...have special relationships with a lot of them.

Tonight was the first night of the new year of Young Musicians and this year began like every other.....How many kids will we have? Will they behave? Will they think I'm a goofball? Will they like to sing? Will they want to come back next week? Will I run my teachers off?

We had 32 children tonight....what a great group of kids. Most I already knew. Only a couple I had never met and we had a great night. This year's theme is Created by God, the Master Designer. We had a chance to talk about what a designer does and what God's purpose was for designing each of us.

We read Ephesians 2:10, "For we are His creation—created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared ahead of time so that we should walk in them." It was a good time to remind them, that even though they may get in trouble....even though there are times when it seems like we can't do anything right....we were created to do good works!!! I was also able to share with them the fact that God created us so He could have fellowship with us. He doesn't need us. But He wants us. He wants to spend time with us each and every day! It was a precious time.

We sang one of my favorite songs..."How Great is Our God." And we ended our night watching a DVD about praying all of the time. In the morning. At noontime. In the evening. When we're down. When we're worried. Pray. Without ceasing.

I love teaching children music......but it's not just teaching them the words and notes and helping them understand time signatures and dynamic markings. It's about believing every word they are singing. It's about understanding why we sing praises to our Lord. It's about living every word we sing. It's about worshipping a Living God....the Maker of Heaven and Earth, a God so powerful He was able to create every living thing on this earth, but yet is so loving and so tender we can go to Him, lay our burdens at His feet, fall into His arms and know we are loved.

Thank you, Father, for Your gift of music and Thank You for using me to share Your gift with these precious children.

Question.....

How do you know when your kids have been jumping on the oldest child's bed a few too many times?

Answer: When the slats inside the box spring have broken enough to pierce through the batting that surrounds the boxspring, enough so that Tymin, one of the new babies, can climb inside and hide.

Last night, I said Goodnight to Daniel, bent down and kissed him....scratched his back while I prayed for him, turned the light off and closed his bedroom door. As I was kissing Trey goodnight, Daniel came out of his room and asked me if I knew he had kittens under his bed. Hmmmm, I think I remember a comment about that, but it went right on past me. I finished saying goodnight to Trey and headed back into Dan's room to retrieve said kittens. Limerick was under Dan's bed and wouldn't come out. Tymin was inside the Box spring....and, you guessed it.....wouldn't come out.

Understanding the only solution, I pushed Dan's mattress off his bed and lifted the boxspring up off the slats hoping this would inspire Tymin to come out, come out wherever he was. Realizing this was a job bigger than just Dan and I, I hollered for Trey to come join the fun. I asked him to grab Limerick and then asked him to coax Tymin out. No such luck. He was staying put. And the more I pushed up on the boxspring, the further he moved away from the opening. And the slats inside the Boxspring were jagged enough that no kid needed to be fishing a cat out of it anyway. I peeked in and sure enough...there he was way back in the opposite corner from where I was.

Seeing as how I had the box spring almost completely vertical, I got a good look at it and WOW, was I surprised. The thing was completely trashed. Several of the boards inside were broken and there were a couple of holes in the batting where the boards had cut through. Craziness. Seeing as how it was a disaster anyway, I grabbed the batting and yanked it right out of the frame. Wah-lah....Instant cat access. I grabbed Tymin by the nape of the neck and handed him to Trey.

We will probably need to 'deep six' the box spring as it is now leaning against Daniel's bedroom wall. The cats......well, they're not allowed upstairs anymore. Too many hiding places. Not enough people around during the day to keep them out of trouble. But I'm sure they'll find enough trouble to get into downstairs anyway.

In our house.....with four human babies, three feline babies and one canine baby.......There's always something going on.

A tale of two tires

So you got the story on my Krystal expedition in the midst of a right-rear tire blowout.......

Well, that was 4 days ago and, No....I hadn't yet gotten my tire replaced. In all the research I've been doing, I've learned that tires for a gas-guzzling SUV are not cheap. $180 each. Craziness. One of the places I searched on the web did not have prices listed on their site, so I decided I would run by there and see them in person and get an estimate. Hoffman, with an H, Tires. Very nice people. I walked in and told him that I had a blowout, that I was driving on my spare and that I needed an estimate on four new tires.

He walked out with me to take a look at my car and told me that I didn't need four tires. I only needed three. My spare is a full-size spare....that is identical to the other tires. He said they can put my spare onto one of the front wheels and then take the best of the other three and make that my new spare. Ok....I like the guy already.

Done. We make an appointment for Thursday morning 8 am....Then he makes a ridiculous comment. "Don't run over anything while you're driving. Remember, you're driving on your spare." Yes Sir!!!

And off I go. Onto Jonesboro to meet a couple of gals for lunch. I'm listening to my music....lost in my thoughts. I turn onto Tara Blvd from 54. And BAM!!!!!

What was that? You must be kidding me. I didn't, did I?

I did. I ran over something and there was this crazy knocking sound coming from the left-rear of my truck. And this was not 15 minutes after Mr. Hoffman himself advised that I not run over anything. This must just be my day. I'm looking in my side-view mirror trying to see if there is any tread flying up, but I can't see anything, but this awful noise is still coming from the back of the car. I pull into the children's building parking lot and assess the damage. Ok....no tread flying off. Good. But there is a piece of metal stuck in my tire. Not good.

I know what all of you are thinking. I can hear you yelling at your computer now........'Don't pull it out!!!!' Ok....I thought about that myself, but decided not to listen to the little voice in my head. I pulled it out. This wonderful SSSHHHHHHHHHH sound comes from the tire. Fabulous. Idiot, jpv.

Well, since I'm at the church to meet friends for lunch, I head over to the office. I found Chip and asked him to take a look at it, but he couldn't find anything wrong with the tire. And honestly, it wasn't too terribly flat. Just low. Knowing that Mr. Hoffman was going to the Warehouse during his lunch break to pick up my new tires, I made my way back to his shop. He stood up when he saw me, looked out at my truck and said......"You have a flat tire." Uh.....yep!

I told him he never should have admonished me to not run over anything. I pulled out of the shop 45 minutes later with my spare back under the truck and with two new tires replacing my two rear blown-out ones. I will return in the morning to get the third new tire put on and the spare put back on. They are going to see if they can patch the one I biffed up today before they decide which tire actually becomes my spare.

So, there you have it. A tale of two tires. One.....went flat. Then shredded on Hwy 85. The other......seemingly met its Maker in the form of a road hazard on Hwy 19/41. Then may get new life at the hands of the techs at Hoffman Tire.

Take me out to the ballgame.....

Baseball.....America's pasttime. Like apple pie and Chevrolet. Could there be anything better?

I've been a baseball fan for as long as I can remember......and a Phillies fan for even longer and last night I got to hang out with a couple of friends at Turner Field (AKA The Ted) and watch my Phightin' Phillies take on the Braves. The Phillies won........of course. There was some great defense....and some sloppy defense. Some 'small ball' and some long ball. There was something for everyone and we had a great time.
This is Ryan Howard....The Phillies homerun machine.
I took this picture during his at-bat in the second inning. Eye-level, you say? Yep, I have access to second row seats. Yes, I said second row. Right on the field. Awesome!

I went with Cantini and Jatha, two gals I had the privilege of being on staff with at the church and have become good friends with as a result.


We had a blast. So much so, that I'm sure we'll be doing this again.

First day of school

The first day of school is always a highly anticipated time. It's when the kids get to see their friends again. It's when they get to be in new classrooms. It's when they get to meet new people and do new things. But the best part of the first day of school for my kids is getting to wear their new clothes. Yes, my kids think this is a big deal.

Last night before they went to bed, they all had their clothes laid out neatly in their rooms. They knew exactly what they were going to wear today and they were pretty excited about it. Check out their new threads!!!

Getting out the door today was the easiest it's ever been and probably the easiest it will ever be. Trey was insistent when we went to bed last night, that I get him up at 5:30....maybe as late as 5:45. He wanted to be up and ready this morning. I got him up at 6:00 and he let me know of his dissatisfaction with me that I'd gotten him up 'late.' Just you wait, 'enry 'iggins,' just you wait.....when it's impossible to get you out of bed here in a couple of days.

It's been a tradition for our family for me to take the kids to school on the first day and take their picture at their new desk. Julia, since her room was the first we came across, had hers taken first. I am reserving judgment about the teacher she was given. I have not been given the most positive feedback by those who've had this teacher before, so we're praying she has a good experience.

Josh was next. He is never too sure about school. Josh had a rough 3rd grade year and wasn't looking forward to today at all, but we believe that God gave him the perfect teacher and are praying that he has a good year.....at least enough of one to erase the bad memories from last year.

Trey's room is literally the furthest classroom from the front door and by the time we'd gotten there, he decided he did not want me taking his picture. He is now way too cool for that. So, you get a picture of him with Tymin.

And lastly....I am now officially a Middle School mom. Daniel was pretty pumped about today. He'll get his schedule this morning for the first time and hopefully he'll remember to bring it home so I can see it!! I'm dying to know what he's doing right now. God is good. He has given us two fantastic schools to send our kids to and teachers that love to teach. I'm looking forward to a great school year.

Adventures at Krystal

I am a priss and a snob. I know it. I claim it. I am a priss and a snob. I believe that the county I live in is better than anyone else's. I believe my kids schools are the best. I don't like getting my fingers messy when I eat. I don't like my hair messed up and I don't like my face being touched. It's just me.

Because of this, I have never eaten at Krystal. I have also never even had the desire to eat at Krystal. Krystal just seems so.............trashy. So............cheap. So..............I don't know......So........not me. Am I judging a book by its cover? You bet I am. But that's just me. Love me or hate me for it? Ok.....I am what I am. Saturday night, the Lord decided He would show me a thing or two about myself and being the willing participant that I am, I went along for the ride.

On the way home from White Water on Friday, we noticed that my right rear tire was beginning to go flat. No worries. I would just take the car to NTB on Saturday and get it taken care of. So, on Saturday as we were leaving the house, I noticed something very strange about the way the car drove. It was rocking so violently from side to side, it was as if I was running over something. And it kinda freaked me out. I got out of the car and sure enough.....the tire was completely flat now and it was just beginning to storm. So, we continued on our way to the NTB. It didn't take me long to learn that I wasn't able to drive more than 20 miles per hour without the car shimmying and shaking in an almost scary manner. And the fact that it was raining so hard it was almost a monsoon didn't help either. With hazard blinkers on, I prayed our way through the downpour to the NTB......probably a 7 + mile trip. We got 3/4 of the way there when I heard some strange goings-on from the tire area. I called back to Trey....."Look behind you and see if there are pieces of tire flying up from the car." Trey's response....."Yes, mommy. There is."

Fabulous. Had the tire not begun to shred I would have kept driving, but since I knew I was in danger of some serious rim damage, I pulled off Hwy. 85 into the nearest parking lot.

The Krystal parking lot.

We sat while the rain came down.....And the thunder pounded and the lightning struck. The lightning struck so closely there was no...and I mean NO wait for the thunder. There were more simultaneous flash/bams than I cared to count. And the Bradford Pear right next to where we were parked just decided it wanted to lay down right where it stood. The kids were scared. I was awed. God's glory and power were in full display at 4:00 yesterday afternoon. I got out of the car to assess the damage......if the tire wasn't too bad, I would consider making our way to the shop. We were so close I could almost see the building. But sure enough. It was bad. And the rain was coming down so hard and the wind was whipping so strongly, the umbrella was flipped inside out and I looked like I'd gone out without one to begin with. I went through my cell phone to see who I could call to come help. Mark was at a wedding. Tommy was in Macon. Joe B. didn't answer his phone.......Now what? Then it dawned on me.............

The little blue button. "Thank you for calling Onstar, Mrs. PV....How can I help you?" It was like a voice from Heaven. It was a beautiful thing. I told them my plight and they assured me they would send Roadside Assistance out to help us as soon as they could. A great sigh of relief washed over me and the kids. The storm continued, but the anxiety began to dwindle. Suddenly from the back of the car came a voice....."I'm hungry." "Well, guys we really can't go anywhere. We need to wait here until the tire gets changed and then we'll grab dinner." "But mom.....we can eat at Krystal."

Huh? Krystal? I don't think so. "C'mon, Mom....we're hungry." Feeling like I was in the twilight zone, I sent Daniel in to get some Krystals. Out he came with 5. And he only spent $4. I'm not sure what it is.....but something about spending $4 for 5 little burgers seems disturbing to me. The kids each took one. I did not. And the response was unanimous......."Mom, these are best burgers EVER." "Mom, I can't believe you've never taken us to Krystal before. These are awesome." "Mom, we need to add this to the 'Great Restaurant' list." Ok, now I draw the line.....Krystal? A restaurant? Puhleeaze!!! I went ahead and ate my little burger, too and I will admit it was better than I expected it to be. Next, the kids decided they were thirsty too and since we couldn't go anywhere we might as well go inside and eat for real. Now, I know I've gone off the deep end. We head inside. Everyone orders and we sit down with our food. On one wall is a sign that says, "Krystal Lovers Hall of Fame." Trey looks at me and says, "They need to add me to that list." What a goober. We finish eating and head back to the car. The call came in telling me that it would be at least another 30 minutes before Roadside Assistance would get to us. At the same time, a very large black pickup truck pulls up beside me. And out walks our angel. Brad. The man that built our house was driving by, saw the kids near the car and then realized what had happened. He got out and asked one question...."You want me to do it?" YESSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!

It was wonderful. I called OnStar back and cancelled our request for assistance. And within a few minutes Brad and his boys had our tire changed.

God showed His awesomeness once again....not only in the power of the storm, but in sending just the right person to help us as well as providing us with a good meal. It was a good couple of hours.

Now the kids are asking for Krystal for every meal.

Hmmmmm, let me think about that one...................No.

White Water

White Water is such a fun place to be. We've only been twice in the 8+ years we've lived here, but both times I've asked myself...."Why don't we come here more often?"

Oh yeah, cause it's expensive. But no mind....we went yesterday and a good time was had by all. It was sunny. It was hot. But the water was wonderful and the rides......pretty great. I must say, though, that the highlight was the Tornado. The line looked menacing, but in reality it wasn't. In fact, the park as whole was not as crowded as I was expecting, for the last 'official' day of summer. We had no trouble finding multiple chairs in a row to lay our towels and we waited no longer than 30 minutes start to finish for a ride.

We decided on a couple of rides that we would go boys on one and girls on another. The Tornado was one of these rides. The boys went first and we girls had a good laugh watching them try and get that huge 4-man tube up the stairs. They did well once they figured out how to work together. We girls were two groups behind the boys. This was our first time riding the Tornado and wow.....we'll be riding that again someday. It was great. I must say, when we went up into the funnel part of the ride, I was convinced we were going to flip, we went so high. But we didn't. We came down laughing and ready to head to the next thrill.

My boys had a couple of moments where they didn't want to wait in line......they wanted to head straight for the Atlanta Ocean. Why, I'm not sure. It's just a wave pool, but the adults and Julia won out and we waited in the lines we were in and then headed to the wave pool.

The one downside was the end......No, not because we had to leave. But because we couldn't. At 4:20, Chelsie began to round up the kiddoes from Little Squirt's Island. One by one they came out for a sip of Diet Coke and to hear that we were leaving. One by one....each boy was on board with what was going on. The girl.........not so much. For those of you who know Julia, you know she can be 'all that' and has a ton of personality, to say the least. For those that don't know her....well, there's no way I can describe her and give her any justice. She is a joy. A doll. A pain in the neck. Our sunshine. Our hormonal mess. A flake. A flirt. A tease. A perfect mix of her three brothers. A chip off the old block in her mother. The apple of her daddy's eye. The Queen Mother, as my father calls her. A diva. The only granddaughter for my parents. She loves to learn new things, but thinks she knows everything. A brat. And just plain wonderful.

When Julia was told it was time to go, she decided we would 'wait right out here' for us while we finished gathering up the boys. By the time, we made our way out of the Island, not 10 seconds later, she had taken off in the direction of Captain Kid's Cove. Daniel, being the oldest and because he can run faster than I can, was sent after her. We waited for a bit but they never showed. Chelsie and I decided I would head back to the chairs to gather the stuff and she would head over to gather Daniel and Julia. As I was finishing up folding the towels and gathering shirts and flipflops, up walks Chelsie......alone. Shaking her head, she tells me she couldn't find them. Most parents would probably flip their lids in fear. For some reason, with my kids, I'm not like that. They have shown themselves in so many situations to be able to handle different things and handle them well. They have been approached by kids at school to do the wrong thing and haven't. They don't talk to strangers. I've watched them ignore people who say HI to them because they don't know them. They have been trained in self-defense.

Does that mean I don't worry about them? Absolutely not. I am very careful with my kids. I just don't hover over them and watch their every move. So, when Chelsie said she couldn't find them.....I knew where Julia was. She wasn't lost or stolen. She was playing somewhere. We decided to go two different directions to the exit in hopes of coming across the two kids. We didn't find them right away. Neither of the adults found Julia........Josh did. And sure enough, I was right. She was in the Wave Pool.......living it up. Having a great time. Daniel was nowhere to be found. I made my way toward her and she saw me. We mothers have 'the look'.....you know the one. And she got it. And she hung her head knowing she was dead meat. She got a good scolding and I seriously considered spanking her right there, but figured there were way too many people who would take what was once considered good parenting, and twist it into abuse. She knew she was in trouble. She got the message. Now off to find Daniel.

Within 30 seconds he walked up. He told me he chased Julia toward Captain Kid's Cove but she got away via the Suwanee river. He had gone around again trying to find her, but couldn't. He's such a great big brother. He was as frustrated as I was as he knows his role as the oldest.

This took 30 minutes. 30 minutes. I had promised Chelsie we would have her back to my house between 5 and 5:30, so she could head to a commitment she had and so Noah could go to his Open House with his teacher. Now, none of this would happen, which did not make me happy. Chelsie and Noah were OK with it. I was not.

But all in all, it was a good day. We ate dinner on the way home, so no cooking for me last night, which is always a blessing. Today, we're cleaning and cleaning and cleaning and doing some laundry and going and finishing up getting what the kids need for school. It'll be a long and busy day. But I ain't complaining. I've got my human babies.....and my feline babies. Just missin' the husband, but he'll be home in 5 weeks.

What a Thursday

This has been a day!! First, we had guests last night. Yep, that's right. Four active children just wasn't enough for me. I thought I'd add a couple more. And it was great!

Aubrey and Parker spent the night last night just to make things a bit easier on Cantini and Red Ranger. Hopefully they used their time wisely last night........

Anyway, I digress. The kids had a blast watching Parent Trap again and playing with the Star Wars toys that Aubrey brought over.

When we designed the house, we put the Master Bedroom on the Main level on one end and the main living area of the basement at the opposite end. Genius, I know. So, the children were in the basement, and I was in my blissfully, silent bedroom.....not hearing a thing. I did have to re-accompany a couple of kids back downstairs, but other than that....once they fell asleep, they stayed asleep.

Today was Meet the Teacher Day at the schools. Allycat's younger daughter came over to sit with the kids for the hour that Daniel and I headed to his new Middle School. And much to my surprise...it was exactly as they said it would be. Meeting the Teachers. No schedules. No locker assignments. No nothing. It was as simple as finding Daniel's name on the big board, paying the $35 in fees they need and walking to his homeroom to meet his teacher. That was it.

I found myself a little disappointed as I was hoping to 'show him the ropes' so to speak about middle school life. You know...checking his schedule against all his friends so they can see if they have any of the same classes, changing classes for each subject, finding his locker and learning how to open the combination, how to stack the textbooks in the locker in the same order as the classes so they're easier to transfer to the bookbag......That kind of stuff. But no. All we did was meet teachers. Funny how it's called Meet the Teacher Day. Craziness.

We came home for lunch and got ready to take Aubrey and Parker back to their mommy and head to the younger kids Meet the Teacher time at their school. We've done that for the last four years, so nothing was a surprise there. They all seem excited about their teachers and are looking forward to Monday.

Joshua had the first football practice he could actually attend tonight and it went really well. It appears they are going to put him on defense as he spent the whole time blocking and tackling. He is loving it, thankfully.

And finally, to close this most exciting and news-worthy post.....I present you Limerick.
First, who could not love this face. (I think he is posing in honor of 'di-dan's' Sweet Kitty)

But second....this picture was taken just after he decided he wanted to rub his face against my toothbrush, and then chew on it.

Goofy kitty.....

And if I wasn't enough of a psycho....I'm taking my kids to White Water tomorrow. But I'm not going alone....One of my most favorite teenagers is coming along and probably bringing her younger brother. It'll be good.

But even if the whole day turns out not so great tomorrow....one good thing will come out of it. Compared to some of the 'physiques' stuffed inside bathing suits and bikini's at that place.....I'm Bo Derek. I know I can hold my head high and stick my 4-kid poochie out there for all to see, because there are thousands of other women who look far worse than I........

At White Water.....I'm a '10'

No doubt about it.

I just can't do it......I refuse

I'm stamping my foot in complete and utter disregard to the advice given to me today.

Last Thursday or Friday, I noticed I was having some congestion issues. Because I have always had overactive sinuses, I didn't really think too much about it until Sunday when it seemed to get worse.......then Monday, worse yet....Tuesday...... today. Concern washed over me. What is up with my throat and my chest?

Holy Canoli.............NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!! It can't be. I refuse to believe it. I won't. NO!

But, yet, it's true. According to the doctor......I am, in her words, 'highly allergic' to my new kittens, and a cat allergy is, in her opinion, 'very difficult to treat.' Then she gave me her recommendation and like I said.....there is no way I am going to do what she recommends. She actually had the audacity to tell me that I need to consider getting rid of the kittens before the children get too attached. Children, shmildren. I'm the one that's attached, dangit.

They're my babies. How can I give them up? She asked me if they could become outside cats. No. I'm not comfortable with that, especially since there only 4 months old. Is there a way to enclose them in a porch or carport? No, my house is wide open.

So, that's my quandary. She gave me Nasonex and Allavert to get me through the crisis, but then said again to consider giving them up.

Blasphemy!!!