My Chatterbox

Trip to Grandma and Grandpa's House

Two cups of coffee - $Free from home :)

One tank of gas - $60.00

One McDonald's lunch - $6.00

2 1/2 hours in the car with my daughters - Priceless

Kara, who is normally the quiet one, was quite the little chatterbox today as we made the drive from Wichita Falls to Plano. I thought I would share some excerpts from our conversation. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

About 1/2 hour into the trip...

Kara: Are we still in Texas?
Me: Yes we are.
Kara: Well Texas sure is a big world.

Kara: Would it be funny if those cows over there were dancing in the middle of the field?
Almost immediately followed by...
Kara: Mommy, do you remember when we saw that buffalo poop?
Which was followed up with...
Kara: I smell a skunk. I think it must be skunk time. Mama, how can we smell a skunk in the car?
Me: Skunks have a very strong odor, Kara.
Kara: Do you mean they stink?

A short while later...
Kara: Are we there yet? My tummy is really hungry.
Me: Not yet, we still have a way to go.

When she wasn't rambling on she was singing to herself in the back seat. She loves to sing and when she can't think of a song she will make one up. I couldn't make out what she was singing today but given the conversation of the morning, I'm betting she was making it up as she went along.

The chatter continued with...
Kara: Where's Emma? I can't see Emma! Did we leave her at home?

Just before we made our mid-trip potty stop she asked...
Kara: Are we almost to Gatorade?
Me: To where?
Kara: Gatorade! You know...where we always stop.
Me: It's Decatur, Kara.
Kara: Oh...well are we almost there?

Kara: Mama, can you tell us when we get to a different state?
Me: Grandma and Grandpa's house is still in Texas.
Kara: Oh, well are we there yet?
Me: No.
Kara: I'm hungry though.
Me: I know, Kara. Just a little further.
Kara: Is there a McDonald's there?

After our potty stop...
Kara: Is Plano not far away from Grandma Judy's house?
Me: Plano is where they live.
Kara: But I thought you said they live in Texas.

Kara: Are we gonna sleep there?
Me: Yes, Kara.
Kara: Emma, too?
Me: Yes
Kara: All of us?
Me: Yes, Kara.
Kara: Why?
Me: Because we are going to be there until next Thursday and we can't stay awake that whole time.
Kara: But what if the phone rings?
Me: Well, someone will answer it.
Kara: LIKE ME?!
Me: Uh, NO! - like Grandma or Grandpa.
Kara: Oh.

Shortly before our arrival...
Kara: Does fired mean when you have a job you don't have a job anymore?
Me: Yes (wondering how much more random you can get than that).

Just after we hit the exit to Grandma and Grandpa's house...
Kara: Mommy, I'm tired of sitting.
Me: Me too, Kara.
Kara: Why do we have to stop at the red light? Move cars, move, I'm tired of sitting.

What a total crack up! She is never that talkative. I wish I would have had a way to record it all because I'm sure that I didn't remember all of it just as it happened. On the flip side of things, Emma was unusually quiet. I guess she couldn't get a word in edgewise.

Today is the Day!!!

Almost 24 1/2 years ago I had the distinct honor of watching my husband-to-be graduate from the United States Air Force Academy and become a 2nd lieutenant in the Air Force. Two days later we were married and the great adventure began. Within a month of that, we moved to Arizona and a few short months later he started pilot training. And the rest, as they say, is history!

It has been a good 24+ years. We have made some wonderful lifelong friends and we have enjoyed everywhere we have lived. We have seen many friends from the old days get married and we have stood by as a few very dear friends were laid to rest. We have met a lot of people and we have said lots of "goodbyes".

As I have worked on Keith's Air Force scrapbook these last couple of weeks, I was struck by the inevitable "finis" flight at each base...the final flight before moving on to a new station. There are many of those flights chronicled in his scrapbook. It reminds me of the saying that "all good things must come to an end". And so...today will be the final "finis" flight of his Air Force career...weather permitting...followed by his official retirement ceremony. As Keith's time in the Air Force comes to an end, I am moved by the fact that our God has always proven Himself faithful to us. He has seen us through the ups and downs of the last 24 years and has honestly blessed our socks off. On top of it all, because of God's grace, we know that we have eternal life...one good thing that will never come to an end. So...thank you, Lord, for your grace, your hand of protection, and the many, many blessings that you have bestowed on us these last 24 years, and thank you for my husband.

And, since I don't get to speak at the retirement ceremony, I figured I would take this opportunity to publicly thank my husband for letting me come along on this ride. It has not always been easy. When the boys were all little and Keith was flying F-16s, yeah...many of those days were tough. But the memories are so sweet and I wouldn't change any of them. God showed himself to me through those sometimes difficult circumstances and I learned much about Him and myself in those days.

I am proud of my husband. He is a man of honor and integrity. He has served his country well. He loves me and his children; but he loves the Lord most of all, and that is what makes him special. He has very high standards...he says what he means and he means what he says. He is gifted, motivated, trustworthy, and seeks to honor God in all that he says and does. I am honored to be his wife.

So...Keith...thank you for sharing your life with me. It has been a grand adventure and rather than look at today as an end or even a new beginning...I see it as a new day that we get to spend together, and I am thankful. I thank God for the man that you are and for blessing my life by putting you in it. I love you dearly! Congratulations, Hon, on this...your special day and thank you for all that you have done to preserve the freedom that we enjoy!

Not to be outdone by her sister...

...today is Kara's 5th birthday!!! It really is fun to have the girls' birthdays so close together. It adds to the excitement of it all. Happy, Happy Birthday to my girly girl...the one that always has a song in her heart. We love you!!!

Happy 7th Birthday Emma!

Today is Emma's 7th Birthday!!! Seems like it's impossible that she is 7 already. Yikes! I hope you have a wonderful birthday Emma...my little bundle of energy that keeps us from ever having a dull moment. We love you!!!

Answered Prayer

It has been a busy summer around here. I have a lot that I need to update on here but since several people have asked about my Facebook status, here is the story.

Tuesday night was the first meeting of a four week inductive Bible study that I am leading at my church on the book of Ruth and our Kinsman Redeemer. It is a Precept Upon Precept Bible Study. I have worked hard to get ready for it and was really excited about it.

This first week was supposed to be more of an intro to the study and a how-to lesson for those that had never done a precept study before. Keith taught me how to use powerpoint and I had worked up a fairly lengthy pp presentation teaching the method of inductive Bible study. I was all set.

Then Satan went to work trying to mess everything up. It started at 3:30 Tuesday morning when Emma woke me up. Both girls were wide awake and it appeared that they had been for some time. I won't bore you with all the details but 2 hours later they were still awake and consequently so was I. So, I was tired from the get go. It was one of those difficult days where everything you do seems to be wrong or go wrong.

I fixed an early dinner and started packing up to head to the church. I started a pot of coffee to take with me and the coffee pot was sounding very strange. I went to check on it (it is a new pot that we have only had a few months) and I had forgotten to put the lid on the carafe before I put it in the coffee maker so the water wasn't flowing through to the pot it was just filling the basket and running over into all the guts of the pot which was now full of grounds. Ugh! Keith cleaned it all out for me and ran a pot of water through it and then made another pot of coffee. It worked fine, thankfully.

So, then I get to the church. The projector at church has been having some issues but I really needed it for that powerpoint presentation. Keith had helped me set it up Sunday night after church. It took him a good 20 minutes to get it to work. Then he just put it on Standby so it would be ready to go Tuesday night. Well, when I got to the church the projector had been moved and unplugged. My heart sank because I just knew after the way the day had gone, that projector wasn't going to work and there went my entire pp presentation, which was all of the info that I needed to cover that night. I was going to have to wing it and I was nervous enough already. You know, that standing up in front of people thing.

I plugged the projector in and the power light wouldn't even come on. Turns out the plug I was using had been disconnected earlier that day. I switched to another plug and initially got nothing on it either but then the power light blinked so I knew that at least the plug was working. I worked for a solid half hour to get the projector to come on and it wouldn't even hiccup. I was down to 10 minutes and still had to set everything else up.

My head fell into my hands and I prayed, "God, Satan has been working against me since 3:30 this morning. I'm tired, frustrated, and discouraged. I know that this is your will and He doesn't want it to happen but I also know that you are so much greater than him. Please make this projector work and light a fire in these women to know your word. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.

I lifted my head and put my finger on the start button and that projector lit up just like it's supposed to, not even a hint of a delay. I kid you not. All I could do was sit there and bawl like a baby. It was so incredible. That had to be the quickest, most obvious answer to prayer that I have witnessed in a long time. "I am the Light of the World" comes to mind. Beautiful!

The rest of the evening went well without even a hint of a problem with that projector. So for those that were wondering about my Facebook status...there you have it. God is so good and this is going to be a great study!

22 Years Ago Today...

Wow...I can't believe it has been that long! 22 years ago last month, I was hospitalized with pre-eclampsia. The day that I was admitted to the hospital, 5 weeks before my due date, the doctor said that I would be there until I was a mother...and I was.

On May 4th, 1987, when the doctors could no longer control my blood pressure, they induced labor and Jeremy, my firstborn, came into this world at 2:06 pm. It was a glorious day and we were so excited to be entrusted with the care of this awesome little being.

Jeremy...on his "birth"day

Jeremy at 2 years old

Jeremy at 5 years old

Jeremy in the 5th grade

Jeremy in the 9th grade

Jeremy as a senior in high school

22 years later, Jeremy is living and working in Africa. Who knew when that little baby was born what God had planned for his life. Jeremy, we are praying for you and excited to see what comes next in your life. I wish we could celebrate with you today but know that we are thinking about you and loving you dearly.

Happy Happy Birthday Son, from your proud Mama!

Easter 2009

Saturday dawned bright and early and dying Easter eggs was at the top of the schedule for the day. The girls were very excited. The box of PAAS that I purchased for the occasion (the original PAAS, not those newfangled things that never work the way they are supposed to) was short some of the color tablets so we had to make do with what it did include. The girls didn't seem to mind and they had a good ole time dipping...waiting...and removing their eggs. Emma is not so good at the waiting part.

Rain was in the forecast for Easter Sunday so we had the girls' Easter egg hunt on Saturday afternoon. Keith hid the eggs all over our front yard and then the girls set to work.

And because I rarely make it into the photos...

Celebrating Easter causes me to focus intently on the most important thing in my life...Jesus Christ. Not only did Jesus die for me but He conquered that death and lives again. Therein lies the victory!

We had a great service at church. Our pastor spoke on the significance of the resurrection...in other words, where would we be if Jesus was not raised from the dead. Praise God that He lives!

Here are a few pics of the girls and the family taken before and after church.

After church, we had some great friends over for lunch. We had quite the feast: ham, twice-baked potatoes, green beans, corn, deviled eggs, rolls, jello salad, fresh fruit, and an awesome dessert that Bonnie (my friend) made. Yumm!

It was a cool and wet day here but we enjoyed it immensely. We really needed the rain so it was a welcomed treat.

I hope you all had a very blessed Easter Sunday. We really should celebrate the significance of Easter every day.

Happy Happy Birthday Keith!!!

I know...most of you have given up on me and this blog thing...but I couldn't let the day pass without wishing my husband a wonderful Happy Birthday!!!

We celebrated last night because Drew and Tyler have to work tonight but I did make his favorite strawberry rhubarb pie which we will enjoy after dinner in honor of the occasion.

This is the 25th birthday that I have had the honor of celebrating with my beloved and I can honestly say that I love him more today than ever and I pray that God will give him many more happy birthdays and that I will be around to celebrate them with him.

I love you dearly, Keith. I hope your day was truly something special.

New Year 2009

Okay...this is the final installment of my holiday recap. Hey, it's only the 3rd of February...it could be worse.

My parents came up to spend a few days with us over New Year's and we had a great time. We played lots of games, mostly cards, and just generally enjoyed being together.

Mom had a craft session with the girls while she was here. They love anything that has anything to do with paint, glue, glitter, etc. They had a great time working on some flower magnets that they got for Christmas and I think Grandma had fun helping them, right, Mom?!...Mom...are you there, Mom?...Mom?!

While Mom and the girls were having their fun, Keith was trying to help Dad with a problem on his computer. They ultimately figured out that it was a Vista problem and one without a fix...go figure! Here is my handsome hubby...

My Dad loves genealogy and spends lots of time on his computer working on tracing our family lines. He has uncovered some interesting tidbits over the years. I don't know how he keeps all that information straight. I would have the lines all criss-crossed if I were him.

These pictures were taken the day they left to go home. I didn't have a recent picture of them together so I had to snap one while I could. I think they were both in the midst of saying something when I snapped the camera. Oh well...I tried.

Here is Grandma and Grandpa with the grandkids. Well, some of them anyway.

We really did enjoy the time that we had with all of our family over the holidays. It is always a blessing to be together and we miss them when they are not here. After Mom and Dad left, it was back to the old grind stone and it took us several days to find a real routine again. I think I prefer those days when the routine gets tossed out the window in favor of doing the fun things but if we did that every day we would never get anything productive done around here.

So, that sums up our holidays. If it had taken me any longer to recap them we would be prepping for Thanksgiving all over again. How is it that the months fly by so quickly. I know that age has a lot to do with it but this is crazy. January is gone already and Valentine's Day is on the doorstep. Since I do such a poor job of keeping up with this blog, maybe I should wish you all a Happy Valentine's Day now...then I won't feel bad when it's February 20th and I never did a Valentine's post.

Here She Is

As predicted, Emma lost her other tooth yesterday morning just before gymnastics.

Our little girl is growing up!

All I want for 2009 is my 2 front teeth...

I am almost to the end of my holiday recap but I'm going to take a short detour today.

Last Friday Emma lost one of her front teeth on the top. The other one is very loose and will probably be out within a week. She has already lost the two on the bottom but the permanent ones were already coming in when those fell out so it never was obvious that she had lost the baby ones.

This time is different. There is now a gaping hole in the front and she has a beautiful toothless grin. Oh, the milestones of childhood!

She has been really good about losing her teeth. This time she was eating a bagel for breakfast when it fell out. I was in the other room when she came walking in holding her tooth and grinning. This girl has such a high tolerance for pain that most of life is a breeze for her.

Sometimes her pain tolerance level grieves my heart. I have to wonder if she figured out early on that crying over things didn't elicit a response from anyone so why bother. That makes me sad. It's amazing to me that so much can be learned and remembered in that first year of life outside the womb.

Anyway...I wanted to share her milestone with all of you. Here is a pic of my gorgeous girl with her beautiful new smile. I'm sure that another picture will be forthcoming in the next week or two with an even wider gap in the front. :)

Mr. Breakable

As I mentioned in a previous post, and most of you know already, Austin has taken up position as resident King of the Broken Bone in our house. We have decided that football is not his sport if he wants to stay healthy.

In October of 2007, he broke his right arm (both bones) playing in a football game in Paint Creek, Texas...picture the middle of nowhere surrounded by nothing but cotton fields. Thankfully, the bones did not pierce the skin and we made it the 2 1/2 hour drive home to the hospital without incident. He spent the night in the hospital and had surgery the next day where the doctor had to insert a pin to keep the bones in place until they healed.

Fast forward to October of 2008, and then hit the repeat button. Actually, this time it was his left arm, he was injured during practice here in town, and the break was a buckle fracture...much less traumatic than last year. He wore a cast for 4 weeks and a brace for 2 more and he was good to go.

That brings us to the day after Christmas 2008. He and Tyler were up at the school by our house playing football with some friends. Austin punted the ball and felt his hip pop. He fell to the ground and couldn't get up. Tyler came home to get someone to go and pick Austin up. I was in the middle of cooking with Kara and her new oven and didn't think it could possibly be anything serious and so I let him sit up there for the next 10 minutes waiting on me. Yea, I know...Mother of the Year. :(

As soon as I got to the school, I could tell that things were worse than I expected just by looking at his face. His face was flushed but he was really white around his eyes. I could literally see the pain in his eyes. I felt horrible.

I brought him home and called our doctor on base. He said to take him to the local walk in clinic since the base clinic was closed for the holidays. The nurse practitioner that was on duty didn't think it was anything other than a strained muscle until she saw the x-rays...then things got chaotic fairly quickly.

Turns out that Austin experienced an avulsion fracture where the tendon that runs from the knee up to the side of the pelvis actually pulled part of the pelvic bone away from the rest of the bone. In an adult the tendon would have sustained the injury but in kids, where the bones are still growing, the injury occurs in the bone and not the tendon.

We left the clinic with pain medication and crutches and orders to put no weight on the leg until he saw a specialist on Monday, which we did. If the displaced bone had been more than 1/2 inch away from the pelvis it would have required surgery to fix. Thankfully Austin's was not. It should heal on it's own eventually...the doc says 6 weeks to 3 months.

He is now walking without crutches and can do pretty much anything he wants within reason. The goal is to not reinjure the hip during the healing process. My goal for him is to not break anything else either.

Because of the number and nature of breaks in just a little over a year, the doc decided to test Austin for bone issues. All of the tests came back normal and the doc says he's just "unlucky". My personal thinking is that he has grown so much in the last year his poor bones have had a hard time keeping up. That...or he's trying to make up for his older three brothers that never broke anything.

I knew when Austin burned his hands when he was 13 months old and it didn't phase him we were in trouble. Nothing keeps this kid down. He is amazing. He can't wait to be cleared so he can go back out and play some more football. Mom's not so sure about that.

Petite Chef and Artiste Extraordinaire

For Christmas this year, we decided to encourage the girls' individual interests.

For months now, Kara has been enthralled with all things kitchen. She loves to be in the kitchen with me and pushes her little step stool right up next to me whenever I'm slicing, dicing, sauteing, boiling, mixing, baking or just making "peanut and jelly" sandwiches.

She loves the kitchen so much that at the tender age of 4 she requested a cookbook for her birthday. She wanted her very own cookbook and that is what she got...Paula Deen's My First Cookbook to be exact... and she was thrilled.

So...for Christmas this year she got an Easy Bake Oven along with her very own Chef outfit. When she opened the oven on Christmas Eve she shouted "MY OVEN!". She was so excited. It didn't take her long to figure out how to make chocolate cake in her own little stove. Here are a few pics of our personal chef and her new oven.

Emma's current interests are a bit different than her sister's. While she enjoys messing around in the kitchen as well, she has begun to excel in the art arena. She can color like it's nobody's business and can draw things that really look like what she's trying to draw. She obviously has not learned this talent from her mother.

So for Christmas we bought her an art set full of all the various implements that one needs to create. Daddy will have to teach her how to use them all because Momma is clueless. Along with her set of goodies, she received an art smock and an artist's beret.

The girls seemed really excited with their gifts and we are hoping that they will enjoy many hours of fun with them.

The day after Christmas, as Kara was busy watching her cake bake in it's oven, Tyler came rushing in the door from the football field to tell us that Austin had been injured while playing ball with some friends. I left Grandma Jan to finish the cake with Kara while I went to pick Austin up. We were a bit surprised by the nature of Austin's injury but you'll have to tune in next time to hear that story.