Lazy days

Before I go on, let me add... I don't know what I was thinking when I said I was going to homeschool, but I'm not. End of story.

Summer is hard on me living here. We are out in the middle of freakin' nowhere, with nothing to do. Sure, I could find plenty to do in my house or outside, but that gets old after a while. We did go to AZ, and big girls went to my parents for almost 5 weeks, and Josh went to a few places, but that's it. It's not like this area has a lot of places to go do with kids, and the places they do have cost big $$. I hear Shreveport has an awesome Science museum, but again, I'm to poor to even drive there unless I really really have too. Basically I've become a recluse in my own house and only go to Walmart or church when I have too. I am going to a baby shower tomorrow (yipee!), but I also have a million other things I have to go do as well since I am making my weekly visit (okay, it's my 2nd visit this week since we took Josh out Tuesday night) to town.

My friend posted about about the fire department coming to let out some water, and her kids had a grand time with that. I don't even know where the closest hydrant is at! Actually, now that is scary to think about! Kids do get out in the garden in the mornings, and help with chickens & goats (we have 3 new baby kids!). They have been picking and cleaning veggies to take to the Farmers Market here in town, and they made quite a bit this morning, so they were happy. Joey is a constant mess who keeps my house is a constant mess. I think I am to old now for anymore little ones. Oh, I am so glad I said that!

I've signed up for Netflix, and we've gotten some good movies lately. I've been getting Disney ones, and kids love them. Recent one I got was Fun & Fancy Free. It was filmed in 1947, so it's old, but the kids love it! I love it! Today we got a Disney Classic Tales. A lot of cartoon shorts.

I did take the kids to the lake on Monday MYSELF (thank you very much!). They had a great time. We went to Lake Greason about an hour NE of here. We are going again on Saturday. Any local friends are invited to join us! I don't know when we will be there, so call me.

Josh's day & a good movie

He had to be at work at 7am, so after he was off we were going to go take him to a movie. We wanted to go see Dark Night because well, it's grossed over $300 million in 1 week, and everyone has probably seen it except us, so we went to the 4:10 show. We were the first ones in there, so we got the best seats. About 25 followed us, so it wasn't a sell-out show.

IT WAS AWESOME!

A few swear words, yes... but not a lot. I can really only think of 1 that caught me off guard, but it wasn't the fudge word. Heath Ledger did play a fantastic job. I was hoping that all the critics weren't praising him because he had died, etc... He was awesome! He played the Joker very well.

Afterwords we went to the Cracker Barrel to just try it again (it's been years since I've been to it here in Texarkana), and let's just say... it may be years again. I just wasn't impressed with it. I rather have Cheddars or Black-eyed Pea but since Texarkana doesn't have those, I rather go to Outback or even Chilis! They sang Happy Birthday to him, which he hated, but loved too.

We then got home, and the kids had decorated his room with some streams & balloons, and made a card for him. He was not in a good mood because he says he was tired. So we sang Happy Birthday to him again, and he went to bed.

Josh is 18 today!

Wow! Can you believe it?
Hope you have a great day!

Another milestone for me

Decided to get unlimited family texting on our cells. Wow! Lauren is getting a cell soon, so we figured it would be cheaper for us all to pay the $30 a month for all of us instead of $20 per phone. If you know my cell #, and have texting... text me! LOL!! I'm pretty slow though. Josh is a speed texter. He wants to be in a contest.

Tongue-tied no more!

Joey had a short tongue. You know (and I am so not a doctor, and I don't know the correct term for it)... that piece of skin that attaches your tongue to your mouth? Well, his was right at the tip, so today he got it clipped. I had to have him in Shreveport @ 6:15am... so yes, I was leaving my house at 4:20am! He slept most of the way, and I almost did too. LOL!! Surgery & recovery was like 30 minutes, no IV, and we were on the road home by 9am. I just gave him some Tylenol 3, and he is sleeping now. Maybe it's a good thing I put him on the bottle? Doctor only wanted him to drink liquids today, and he wasn't doing the sippie cup at all! He has taken the bottle well, and is overall doing great! He goes back in 2 weeks for a follow-up.

I'm officially old?

Do I look that old? How can I be this old? Old enough for a mammogram? It's schedule for August 26th in Shreveport. Just weird to think about! But because of a few women I have known in my life who's had breast cancer, my Gramma for one, I am going to do it without to much complaining.
And this is dedicated to all our men out there...

Thanks Hil for sending it! :-)

Salsa anyone?

In the past 3 days, I've made 10 quart-size jars of homemade salsa. All the veggies in it (tomatoes, onions & all sorts of peppers) are from our garden. And it's quite tasty too! Another thanks to Suzanne for her awesome recipe!

A beautiful blend of yummy veggies!
And this is my cake from last night.

And did I get anything from the list that hung on my frige for 20 days? Nope. Nada. Nothing. Those were the only things that I wanted. Instead I got a lot of my favorite candy. Yes, I love my candy that I got, and I certainly could say that I "needed" it instead of wanting it, but I needed the candy like I needed a hole in my head. I am trying to loose weight, so the candy is going back, and I am going to get me some cardstock/scrapbooking paper instead. I also got a dozen of red roses. They are pretty.

Happy Birthday to me!!

Yep, the big 3-8! Some of my past birthdays:

age 8: My family was staying at the beach in Niceville, FL. My dad fixed me a homemade German Chocolate Cake, and I loved it! It's still my favorite cake, especially with the homemade icing. Unfortunately, I'm getting a Duncan Hines German Chocolate cake today... at least it's a cake, right?

age 18: My parents took me and my bestest friend, Kenna (who just so happened to have her sweet Ella on July 18, 2003...), to Red Lobster in Austin. I think we went to the Highland Mall afterwards, or maybe Barton Creek Mall, or maybe both.

I thought I was soooooooooo cool!

age 28: I was 6 months pregnant with Jacob, and very hot. Literally... no pun intended! LOL!! That summer just so happened to be record-breaking heat wave, and it was horrible! We

rented a house with only window units, so I was not always a happy camper. I so do not even remember my birthday that year because I think the heat fogged my brain or something!

That Darn Dog?

Another movie that I got from Netflix is this one. I remember it as a kid, and I really liked it. We got it last week, and the kids have been watching it a lot. In fact, I have "ordered" a lot of older movies like this from Disney, and I can't wait to watch them again. Anyway, this was the conversation I had with Krissy last night.

Krissy: Mom, are there any FBI men here in Ashdown?

Mom: I don't know. Why?

Krissy: Because I think we need to have one come to our house.

Mom: Why?

Krissy: So that he can follow Ollie like on That Darn Cat.

Mom: What does Ollie do that he needs to be followed?

Krissy: Well, he barks a lot so maybe someone is out there.

Mom: Okay, Krissy... you're silly!

New Movie alert!

I have to say, I really really love this movie. I thought my last pick was good, and it really was (what was it? I can't even remember now!), but this is my new favorite! I got it from Netflix, and I have watched it like 4 times already! Thanks Suzanne for recommending it! I sent it back today, but if anyone would like to get me a present for my birthday in 2 days, I would love it! :-)

I absolutely loved loved loved this coat!

And this was my 2nd pick.

And I loved this scene. I am glad Andy finally stood her ground to Miranda, but I will say... I secretly loved Miranda. Thought she was awesome! Hehehe!!

T.M.I.

When I get sick, and it feels like I am going to puke, I hold it in. I refuse to puke. I can't remember the last time I puked. I know I puked once before finding out I was pregnant with Lindsey, but at that moment, I was not pregnant. I think it was because I had just started taking an iron pill, and it made me sick. I've may have puked once since moving to Arkansas, but not sure. After Lauren (b. 1995), I don't puke while pregnant. Like I said, I refuse. On the other hand, Shawn loves to puke it all out because he says it makes him feel better. GROSS!! I mean why do you want stuff coming up from your stomach, and into your mouth because it only taste worse? Oh, it just grosses me out!

For the last 10 days, I've had sickness in my house. And everyone except me, Shawn (like I said in another post, has not gotten sick) & Joey have puked their guts up again, again & again. And not only that, but for some reason my kids cannot puke in the bowl that they have. They carry the bowl with them, but totally miss it. Josh comes down the stairs with bowl in hand, and where does he puke? All over the floor. Totally misses the bowl even though the bowl is right there. I mean, WHAT IS THE DEAL? The 2 big girls have been good this time, but they both have been known to puke all over the beds, just like the little girls, or all over the carpeted floor (like Jacob this time). Joey & I had it coming out the other end (enough said). But everyone else... puke! Let me give you the run down for the past 10 days:

Josh: July 7

Me: July 8

Joey: July 9 (and lingered with it for 4 days!)

Kristen: July 11

Lindsey: July 12

Kayley: July 12

Jacob: July 15

Lauren: July 15

Kristen: July 15

Lindsey: July 16 @ 6:22am

Yes, already this morning, Lindsey has puked all over her bed. Kristen was really good last night, because she ACTUALLY puked in the bowl that she already had beside her. I've already emailed Shawn this morning and told him my day already sucked. I mean, how can I possibly have a good day when I'm already cleaning up puke, and giving kids YET another bath?

LDS Business College?

Josh really wants to go somewhere else, and I really can't blame him. Nobody is here his age, especially once Nick leaves to BYU. Josh didn't want to go to BYU-Idaho (I mean he did, and then he didn't), but didn't have a high enough ACT score to get into BYU, even though it was good. He decided that LDS Business College would be good for a year just so that he can be close to BYU and to other kids with his same standards. His plans are being there by September 4th. Deadline for registration is July 31st. Yikes!

Temple Trip

Josh & Lauren went to the Dallas Temple on Saturday (July 12th) with the youth group in our ward. Cousins Brandon & Rebekah also showed up (Thanks Brett & Cindy for bringing them up!) and were able to do baptisms with our youth group.

Cute picture of Lauren.

Texarkana Ward Youth

Just a nice picture. Thanks Suzanne for allowing me to borrow some of these! :-)

Don't ask

Yes, that is milk in my pan sitting outside for the dogs to lick. Yep, I know... so redneck. Don't have to be reminded! I told Shawn, who did it, that we didn't need to make our redneck status any more obvious. Why the milk in the pan outside, you ask? Because after returning home from Walmart with 3 gallons of milk, I asked kids to help bring in. Jacob brings it in, and basically throws it on the ground, thus breaking the jug in the plastic bag. Shawn quickly picked it up, transfered leftover milk in the jug to another jug, and put the split milk that was dumped into the pan, outside for the dogs.

And as of this morning, the last 2 kids who did not get sick last week, Lauren & Jacob, are now sick & throwing up. Only Shawn hasn't gotten sick, and he claims it's because he eats like 3-4 Yoplait yogurts a day. Jacob is bummed that he is sick because he started his Diabetes Day Camp yesterday. He goes in Texarkana, and yesterday he had a great time. He really loved it. They tied-dyed shirts yesterday, and he was going to wear it today. Hopefully he can return on Thursday. Last time Jacob got the stomach virus, he ended up at Children's @ LSU in Shreveport. I hope he doesn't get that bad. Sickness & diabetes do not mix well.

Another day in the kitchen

The kids that weren't sick, got busy with peeling & chopping veggies so we could freeze for later use. They loved doing it.

Some of our fresh veggies... don't mind the other mess.

Lots of potatoes... yum!

I did 21 quarts of potatoes. I've never done them before, so hopefully they turned out okay and not kill us later this year.

Fun Times With Cousins

Rah Rah Ree, Kick 'Em In The Knee! Rah Rah Rass, Kick 'Em In The Other Knee!

I tried to post the video of the girls cheerleading, but unfortunately, it was causing my blog to be super slow since I am only on dial-up. If you would like to see those crazy girl cousins, click on my sister, Hilary's, blog.

Also, my nephew, Austin, had to do this cheer. I think we have some blackmail for the future, don't you think?

On July 1, the kids went to Austin Park N' Pizza in Austin. There was a lot to do there and they had a really fun time. Kayley and Lauren rock climbed. Kayley did make it to the top but fell as she was trying to hit the bell. Again, my sister has more video on her blog with Lauren & Kayley.

Then our last night at my Mom's, the kids were doing "small people." That is, they were kneeling down and putting shoes on their knees so they looked short. It was pretty funny. I was Oklahoma laughing too! Then Lauren wanted to walk on her knees. Cracked us all up! I guess it was one of those "You had to be there" moments!

Relax... take a deep breath!

Remember a few months ago I posted about a huge cellphone bill? Well, this one was worse! $864.13!! I had the broadband connect for all of 3 days, but with the connection fee and all that... about $238. Understandable, and I got $200 back. No problemo. Shawn's & my phone bill... normal. Nothing different. Josh's: $499.57! Yep! And it's a good thing he has the money to pay me. I told him "that's why cell phone companies love teenagers! They do stupid things to run up the bill!" Good thing he is getting a better paying job.

The reason for my poll...

is well, Shawn & I have only been by ourselves ONCE since having kids. We've never gone anywhere ourselves. When I was 100 months pregnant with Jacob, ok, I had 6 weeks to go, Shawn & I went to Kerrville, Tx for 2 nights, but that was it. It was nice, but I was pregnant! In a few months it'll be our 19th. Hard to believe sometimes that next year it'll be 20, but it's true! This is the year that I've spent 1/2 my life with Shawn so far... crazy! I'll post some pictures of us youngin's when it gets closer to our anniversary. Anyway, we figured next year, close to our 20th, he & I will take Josh to Utah to report to the MTC, so I'm pretty sure we won't be able to go anywhere else exciting (since we will have to get him ready to go). Shawn said to plan somewhere to go this year. I'm poor. I don't know what he wants me to do because I can't pay for it yet. But I guess I can plan it. I would love to go to La Jolla since Shawn has NEVER BEEN TO CALIFORNIA, and I thought it was so beautiful when I went a few years ago (brother Scott got married in the San Diego Temple).

But then again, I would love to go to Capitola, CA where I spent a few summers at my Gramma's beachhouse. It was sold, and if it's possible to rent out, I would love to rent it. I loved going there. Capitola is in the Monterry Bay area just north of Carmel, CA. So pretty.
My brother, Brett & his wife love Sandals, and I think it would be fun to go there too.
And Shawn has never been to FL either, and I went to the Destin area every summer until I was 11. I loved Ft. Walton Beach. I always had so much fun. Problem is, I want to go to all, but I will only be able to (barely) afford one place this year.

Yucky day so far...

Up all night with an upset stomach. I hate being this way. Then I had to get Lauren to the church by 6:45am (remember 25 minute drive 1 way!), and I had to stop along the way to make a pit stop. It's so not fun. Lauren is going to be gone for a total of about 54 hrs. Camp is only 2 nights and barely 2 full days. I guess with the funding (Pioneer Trek in June), there just wasn't enough money to pay for the big camp area they always go to at Zwolle State Park in Louisiana. She'll have a great time though.

Josh seems to be doing better this morning. He got up, ate a banana & took some more pain meds. His face isn't as swollen. He is waiting for Wadley to call him back to come in for a drug test.

Kayley is glad to be home. Was so excited to taste her first zucchini of the year last night. Since she's been gone, the zucchini came in full bloom, and she was excited to have it cooked the way she liked it (Mimi may have fixed it that way... but I'm not sure). She is asking for another Blackberry cobbler too (yuck to food right now!).

The other kiddos are doing good. Playing and playing and doing whatever.


I was going to post about our 4th of July. After I got to Killeen with the 2 little girls, we had a BBQ at my sister's (Heather) house. She just moved in to her new house that shares a backyard with my parents. That's pretty cool. After my 4 girls ate, they, my mom & I went to the high school to get on the bus to take us to Ft. Hood. They have an awesome fireworks show. After getting there, I realized that I hadn't been to Ft. Hood fireworks since 2004! It didn't seem that long, but apparently it has. Lindsey thought they were cool since she really hasn't seen them before. Ashdown doesn't have a great show... but then again, Ashdown has nothing great. After the 40 minute show (it really was awesome!), we headed back. We stood in line to get back on the bus for almost as hour, and we finally got home 11:50pm! We had a great time, and I was glad we went.

Texarkana does their fireworks show the Saturday after. I don't know why they do that. It's soooooooooo dumb! Josh and his friend, Ashley, went to go see them, and he said that it was only like 15 minutes. Oh, well.

Monday sick blues...

After returning home from Shreveport this morning, I started not to feel well. Mamaw is already sick (and it's her birthday even!), and Josh just puked all over (great! How's that for fun with a swollen face?). I hope I feel better tomorrow.

The girls are home

After almost 4 weeks of pure fun at Mimi's, hanging out with cousins and whoever else... my girls are home. The little girls and I left on July 4th to go get them. We stayed 2 hot nights at my mom's, but we survived. My mom doesn't like a/c. I don't know why, but she doesn't. :-D We left Sunday morning to come home. The girls did great being crammed into the Honda, but it was cheaper to take that then the Suburban. Hilaryanem arrived a few hours after we got home, and stayed the night before heading back to KY today. I had to leave before they left. Shawn said they left about 8:30am. Hilary will be posting some pictures of the girls, so stay tuned!

Wisdom teeth

Josh is getting them out on Monday @ 10am. He isn't looking forward to it. Oh, well. I still remember getting mine out, and was expecting tons of pain, and I didn't have any! I wanted them out ASAP since he is starting his new job soon. Besides he would've had to have them out before he could go on his mission.

On the 25th is Joey's surgery on his tongue. Anyone else?

UPDATE:

The wisdom is gone. I hope having these things pulled will still keep Josh smart... LOL!! We got to Shreveport at 9:15am. At 10am, they called him back, and by 11am we were on the road heading back. Josh was quite hilarious on the way home. He loved playing with his big lip, and we played "Guess what I am saying with wads of cotton in my mouth?" It was rather amusing to watch Josh drink a Sonic milkshake and take a pain pill at the same time. We shall see how the rest of the day, and the next 24 hrs go...

102 baby! Eat this Mr. Leone!

102 words

Speed test

Let's just say Mr. Leone didn't like me, and I didn't like him, and I barely passed typing class in 10th or l1th grade, and could only get 41 wpm. But, that was so not fair back then because we had to use big ugly green typewriters, and they were hard to use! ;-)

*Just to let you know, I am saving this website so that I can try to beat my wpm!

Well, that was short-lived!

Wow! Can't believe how short-lived my wireless broadband was. But it's not to be for right now. It was so slow that my dial-up was faster. I called Cingular (AT&T) and they told me that the closest tower to us for 10 miles away. Apparently that is the tower way south of Ashdown... 10 miles! LOL!! Rest assured though, they told me... AT&T will have another tower closer to us within the year! Until then, I've cancelled my $60 a month internet, and went back to my $14.95 dial-up.

Yum!

After Joey went down for a nap @ 10:30, I made 7 pints of Blackberry Syrup. I thought I would have more, but I guess I didn't have as many berries yesterday as I thought I had. I've made a lot of jams, frozen quite a bit, and have given lots of blackberries away, and that was only on 25 blackberry plants. Next year we will have over 200 plants! YIKES! What will I ever do? Good thing blackberry season only last 6 weeks. I don't think I could do this the whole summer! Next on my list for this afternoon is Grape Faux Jelly. Sounds cool, huh? I'm using yellow squash as the filler. Just like my Apricot Surprise Jam... I used zucchini as the filler, and Oh.My.Gosh! It was soooooooo yummy! I am sure this will be good too. I also have a lot of onions & peppers to chop to get ready for our salsas. I hope the tomatoes will be done soon! :-)

Devil child, devil child!

One of my favorite movies is Hairspray. In one scene, the mother is tying Penny up from going to find Tracy. She turns on the "Lords Prayer" and tells her that she is only going to get bread & water, and to pray for Tracy. As she leaves the room, the mother shakes a rosary at Penny saying "Devil child, devil child!" LOVE IT! Cracks me up!

And so this phrase has captured Shawn & I, as we call our little sweet innocent Joey: devil child, devil child! You certainly can tell he is the last child, and even if I *was* planning on having one more, he has certainly became instant birth control! Just as I was writing this, he looks up at me on the couch and gives me a devilish grin... and then he dumps the whole bag of Candy Land cards upside down. I mean, why not?

He certainly keeps our house in a constant flow of mess. Between him & Lindsey, I know my house will never stay uncluttered for at least another few years. Lindsey isn't bad as just dumping toys... just not wanting to pick up.

It's not normal not to have cereal of some sort dump all over the kitchen or living room floor everyday ALL DAY. He insist on feeding himself, but hasn't mastered yet. It normal to have dinner all over the floor or his hair. It's normal for me to search the trash can daily for things that shouldn't be thrown away. It's normal for things to fall or being knocked over constantly. It's normal for his sippies or bottle to be drained of all liquid. It's normal for the diapers to be ripped off. It's normal for loud unnecessary noises at all times of the days, and if it's ever quiet you know you better go find him. The bigger the things for him to get into, the louder he gets. Why can't I have a quiet little boy like everyone else? Oh, wait! I had one of those already... actually I had 2 sons already like that, so it was only normal to have one that wasn't. LOL!!! He loves to climb up and up and up, and they higher he is getting into something, the better he loves it. He loves to climb into my bathroom sink and sit in it. I'll go in there and there he is... sitting in the sink, both toothbrushes in his mouth, everything else knock on the floor, and the water going soaking him. One of these days, I'll get a picture. Why shouldn't I have paper plates all over my floor (like now), plastic ware thrown all over? I have gates, crates, boxes, doors closed, you name it... but the moment one thing is not in it's place, he is there (like the bathroom when girls forget to close the door). Last night he refused to lay down in his crib. I was tired, Shawn was tired (had to work today), and we were both tired of listening to him scream. He goes into my bed. Shawn & I just lie there as he jumps all over us, sits on us, you name it. Finally he calms down after 10 minutes and is asleep.

Is it because we are "old" parents and we have done it all over & over & over & over, and almost tired of it all (as colored paper & bills are being thrown off the table...)? To any of my friends out there who want large families... have all your children within 10-12 yrs of marriage. After that, it's just to hard with babies, & teenagers at the same time! But, it's so worth it, no matter how large the mess, and how much your toddler is the "Devil child, devil child!"

Welcome to the REAL work world, Josh!

He applied for a job last week at Wadley Hospital, and got hired today (at least he thinks he has...). He got the insurance packet today, and has to take a drug test next week. He is going to be an ER Tech. He has to wear navy blue scrubs (thank goodness I didn't get rid of Shawn's old navy ones... and yes, they do fit), and his job is M-F, 7-3pm. He is sooo excited!

Speaking of excited... I am so not excited about this wireless broadband. We don't have any signal strength at all, so it's almost just as slow as dial-up. Shawn is going to give it another day or so, and if it doesn't get any better, we are going back to dial-up. $14.95 a month is a lot cheaper than $60 a month for the same slowness!