Joyful J-Walking

Jenna

2012-02-15T04:33:00.003-08:00

If this won't get you to smile on a Wednesday, I don't know what will. I caught her like this studying with her dad when I got back from the gym. If you will notice, she lost ANOTHER tooth (3 in two weeks). We are going broke!!

Also, I figured out how to put my menu back on the side bar. Happy Wednesday!

New Adventures

2012-02-13T07:24:00.000-08:00

Today I started down a new path. I am watching Hannah. Hannah is a sweet little 2 year old from our church. It was so hard to give up subbing, but after my discussion last night with Jack, I know this was the right thing. Next year there will be someone doing their student teaching at Southside, so they will have a "built in sub" while she is there. Also, the chairman of the school board's wife just filled out a form to sub. Her daughter will be in kindergarten next year so she will be able to sub now. I really feel like that was two strikes against me of not getting enough sub jobs. God is really opening up paths for me too. Doors seem to be really opening up that I'm not even sure what the future will hold for next year. Right now I will just walk through this door and enjoy Hannah for the rest of the school year!!

A Mother's Heart

2012-02-09T10:25:00.000-08:00

As a mom, I always want what is best for my children. Sometimes, you just don't know what is best. One of my children struggles a little at school. I will be happy to discuss it privately with you if you would like to know how to pray for us. I am torn as a mother to know what is best for my child. They have been on medicine for several months now. The first medicine was a nightmare and this one is much better, however this child has had a lot of problems sleeping at night. I have given the child a break on the weekends from their medicine. Last week I accidentally forgot to give them the medicine. The teacher noticed a big change in my child. The child was more outgoing and actually acted more involved and asked questions in class. I did the same thing yesterday (on purpose) and again the teachers told me what an improvement in personality they saw in my child. She told me that she would much rather teach this child than the personality they are on with the medicine. My first reaction was "ok....we are taking the child off the medicine" or possibly decreasing the amount.....but my child told me today that they feel they can work better when they are on the medicine. My heart is torn to know what is the right thing to do.
On the same note this child really wants to be home schooled next year. J told me (instead of using the word child) that they thought the work load would be much easier and thus we could drop the medicine. Part of me would be willing to do this, but I don't want J to think that they got their way or that when life gets hard there is always an easier way.
And finally my heart is heavy because for the first time in my life, we owe taxes. I guess Jack's severance and bonus was to blame. I know I will send at least one child back, but I'm worried about the other two. I know I could home school, but I don't feel the "calling" right now. Like I said before, I want what is best for my kids and for us, I think that is attending a school.. All I can do is pray about the other two and watch God work.

Menu Planning Wednesday

2012-02-08T04:09:00.000-08:00

Here is what is on the menu for the week at the McLean household:
Wed: twice baked potato/salad
Thur: breakfast for dinner
Friday: out (date night......FINALLY)
Sat: pork chops or hamburgers (whatever is on sale)
Sun: roast, corn, potatoes
Mon: chili
Tue: crock pot lasagna

Fun with Friends

2012-02-06T13:56:00.001-08:00

Part of Josh's birthday got extended to this past weekend. We were able to get the Hurricane's tickets again for $10 each and $1 hot dogs. I told him that he could have 3 friends go to the hockey game with him, so he chose Brandon, Gabriel and Travis. I'm glad the hot dogs were $1 each as those boys can really down the hot dogs:) I know I can be cheap, but at least cheap is fun:)

Joyful January

2012-02-03T11:31:00.001-08:00

It's hard to believe that January is over and a new month has begun. I was trying to think of a word to describe the month but couldn't come up with one. The month started really slow. Later in the month, things picked up for me work wise. It ended up being a great month for the extra money that was prayed for. I wanted to earn enough money to send Josh and Jake to the Wilds, and that came in. That was a huge blessing. I also started praying that God would provide me a job......even if that was next year when the new preschool year starts. Then a couple of weeks later something weird started to happen. Things started to come at once. I started to get a lot of subbing jobs, and I LOVE to sub! Then one day I went to the gym and my old preschool called and wanted me to come in to sub for the morning......but get this, the same afternoon Missy called me and asked me to watch Hannah on a permanent basis. Wow.....be careful what you pray for:) I went from nothing to maybe several doors opening up. Missy told me to pray about it and talk to Jack.
It's funny because one of the times I kept Hannah in the past I told Jack that if I had a little girl to watch like Hannah, I would do it because she is so good and she doesn't keep me from what I need to do. Jack was so good and said "what's there to think about?" I knew that if I turned down this job, than I couldn't complain about not having a job. I didn't even think I could pray about another job if I turned this one down. I had turned down a preschool position in Smithfield a few weeks prior to this. Although the money isn't as good as subbing, it is a consistent job and I can still do my normal routine. There are days like today where I know I'm gonna miss subbing (where the kids run up to you and hug you and say "Mrs. McQueen.....yes that what some of the little ones call me) but I am looking forward to keeping this sweet little girl and possibly even doing "preschool" here at the house with her. I start February 13th.
January was also Joshua's 11th birthday. The time is just flying by. We enjoyed it by eating out at Chili's and having cake at the house.
I've also been spending a lot of time at the gym. I so enjoy cardio dance. That by far is my favorite class. It doesn't even feel like exercise.....it's that fun. I also enjoy the step aerobics class, although that is truly a workout. The discouraging part is that I haven't lost any weight. I sometimes feel like one of the defeated contestants on the biggest loser. I probably should count calories or do something like that.....but it's hard when you have to cook for your family. I know what they like and what they will eat, and I don't want to make separate meal for me. I guess maybe I might move to eating a frozen meal or a protein bar at nights to see if that helps. That was my January in a nutshell. Can't wait to see what February holds.

Jenna...and Wednesday's Menu

2012-02-01T13:21:00.000-08:00

Jenna lost two teeth last week! I think the tooth fairy has officially went broke. Here is a picture of her. She has a white nose and rabbit ears because she did a book report and had to bring a prop or dress in character so that is why she looks silly.

Wed.....hot dogs and ff

Thursday: swiss chicken

Friday.....appetizer night

Saturday.....going to a Cane's game with $1 hot dogs

Sunday.....we were going to have a super bowl party, but changed our minds.....not sure what we will do

Monday: shrimp and french fries

Tuesday: spaghetti and garlic bread

My menu isn't the greatest for the week.......I need quick things as I have been working.....getting home at 4, starting homework, cooking dinner, etc!

Happy Birthday, Joshua

2012-01-29T12:30:00.000-08:00

My Joshua turns 11 today. Hard to believe that he is that old. Time sure does fly. He'll be a teenager before I know it. I remember wanting to be a mom so badly. We tried and tried and there were so many tears shed. I remember asking God why teenage girls could jump in the backseat one time and get pregnant, and yet there were two loving people who could not get pregnant. God answered my prayers. I took pregnancy tests so many times. I remember waking up early to take this test. It was positive. I knew I must have messed it up because I turned the test upside down, so the results were not right. We didn't have a Walmart here back then, so I remember waking Jack up around 7:15 and telling him I was headed to Food Lion for something I needed. I'm sure he was dazed as he didn't even ask me what I needed. I ran up there, came home and took the test again and it was positive!! The pregnancy was a pretty easy with just a few cravings. The last month the doctor moved me from full time to part time work. A week or so after that, I got moved to "bed rest" only because I was swelling so bad. Joshua was due on the 25th of January. Of course, he didn't come on his due date. I remember it was Sunday and I didn't feel too well. We stayed home from church and took it easy. Later that evening, I started feeling pain, but the pain didn't come too often. I did call the doctor, but she told me to wait until the pains got closer together. I sat up and watched the entire super bowl with Jack (he was hoping I would make it till the end:)). I couldn't even tell you who was playing, but he could. I remember that it was getting late and then the first ever survivor came on. We stayed up and started that. The pains were getting closer, but nothing really bad. The doctor called us to check on me and told me to come on in. When I got to the hospital, my contractions were not registering on the monitor so she told me I would probably have to come home. They decided to check me and I was 4 cm so she told me I could stay. We took a walk around the hospital and when I cam back the pain was so intense. I couldn't bear it. I had to have my epidural. Finally at 5:50 am, Joshua Caleb McLean was born. Joshua you have been nothing but a joy to us and we love you so much!! Happy Birthday!

Menu Wednesday

2012-01-25T10:24:00.000-08:00

Do you ever have one of those weeks where you are being pulled in different directions.....when you wonder how on earth everything is going to come together? Well, this is one of those weeks. I had my day all planned out today. I even broke everything down by times so that I could keep a schedule! I was on the elliptical and got a phone call from preschool wanting me to come in a sub. Well, there went my day! I managed to get a few groceries and had to put everything else on hold. I'm working the next two days, and have a ton of things to get done by this weekend. I'm just praying it will all come together. I should be ok by Sunday night!! Here is the menu for the week:

Wednesday: shrimp and french fries
Thursday: Ham and cheese roll ups (hoping to get out to our ladies group)
Friday: pizza (Josh is having a friend over)
Saturday: taco salad (we didn't use all the shells from last week)
Sunday: Josh's birthday......out to eat
Monday: bacon and Parmesan pasta (by request from the kids)
Tuesday: swiss chicken

Have a great week!

My Life Song

2012-01-23T07:53:00.000-08:00

I hate it when my husband is right (am I the only one like that?). Yesterday after church we stopped by Bojangles (he needs to own stock in Bojangles) so that he could get some sweet tea. He bought a half gallon of it and put it close to my feet. In the meantime, Casting Crowns came on singing their song "Let my lifesong sing to you".....and or course as you know I'm one of the biggest CC fans (partly because of the role model the lead singer is for Josh....same situations). My husband calls me a CC "groupie". So I'm singing along and Jack pulls off and puts on his brakes and the tea goes flying under his feet. I let out this big sigh (even though I don't remember it) and Jack reminds me of the song I am singing. Of course I didn't take it well at the time, but it's been in my mind since then. Here I am singing this song about letting my lifesong sing to Him, and I am getting upset because the tea went the wrong way and it is such an inconvenience to me!! Ok sweetie....you got me:)
It also brings me back to Saturday. I'm trying to get out the door to go to gym class and Josh wants something that I had not planned for him to have for breakfast. I told him no and this "discussion" breaks out. Our discussions sometimes get elevated because we both like to be right and have the last word. I guess I have a lot of work to do, especially in my parenting. I can't wait until I'm finally right and Jack is wrong.....but thank you for showing me I have a lot to work on:)

Meal Planning Wednesday

2012-01-18T13:11:00.000-08:00

Whew....my week got thrown off. I was scheduled to work yesterday and then got called in today. Yeah for work, but bad because this is grocery day! Needless to say, I had raid my freezer and pantry and was able to come up with hamburger rice casserole for tonight. Everything else will just have to be pushed down a day.

Wednesday----hamburger rice casserole
Thursday-----chicken and dumplings
Friday: taco salad
Saturday? hoping for date night
Sunday: subs, 7 layer dip (playoffs)
Monday: Chili casserole
Tuesday: crock pot lasagna

Jenna and Olivia

2012-01-14T11:04:00.000-08:00

Jenna has been bugging me for weeks to let her friend come over, so I finally told her she could. Olivia came to visit us. Olivia and Jenna were in the same kindergarten class but got "separated" during first grade. They are back together again this year and are loving being in the same class. Olivia is such a sweet little girl and comes from a good home. I painted their toenails and fingernails and Jack set up the air mattress for them. They had so much fun when Jack let the air out that he filled it back up just to let them do it again! I am so thankful she has good friends. I loved hearing all the giggling. It makes me want another little girl, but don't worry that is NOT happening!!!

Wednesday Menu Week

2012-01-11T11:10:00.000-08:00

I decided to go back to putting my menus down. I'm doing this because I put my list in my purse and then sometimes lose it and I forget what I had planned for dinner (and that is what happened last night). I totally went blank and so I improvised and had pancakes, eggs, bacon and hash browns.

Wednesday: chicken nuggets and french fries (I had a big lunch today so I will just eat fruit tonight)

Thursday: I will be gone and Jack is taking the kids to McDonald's for 69 cent cheeseburgers (In Raleigh)

Friday: got invited to friends house for dinner

Saturday: Steak and baked potatoes

Sunday: pizza (in honor of football playoffs)

Monday: spaghetti and garlic bread

Tuesday: chicken dish....(i have frozen chicken breasts in the freezer) probably chicken and dumplings or baked chicken with sides.

What Goes There?

2012-01-07T09:31:00.000-08:00

Most of you know I have totally re-done my kitchen and I love it. We put new flooring on top of our old one, took done the wallpaper border and painted it a sage green (which doesn't show up on the pictures) and then switched everything to black, including my new table. We also just finished another change (see second picture). Remember that old ugly phone hanging by the light switch.....well, Jack was able to take everything done and re patch the wall, so that UGLY phone on my wall is gone. If you will notice on the other picture, I still have a very blank wall (the top picture). It is SO naked!! It really needs some work up there. I thought about maybe one of those large clocks.....but I wanted my readers to give some more suggestions.....be careful if you suggest it, you might have to help me :).....if you find something at a thrift store, just let me know!

Goals

2012-01-03T13:26:00.000-08:00

I'm keeping my goals for 2012 pretty simple. In fact, I'm asking my readers for some advice and help.

1. I did a lot of home improvements over 2011, but I'd like to continue that in 2012. My top ones are doing the kid's bathroom floor and repainting their rooms.

2. Continue working out at least 2/3 times a week. I'm VERY discouraged right now as I've been working out harder than ever, but have not lost one pound. Not one! I am working on portion controls and may possibly do weight watchers, but I don't want to "diet diet". (that only discourages me more)

3. Find some sort of Bible study. Right now I just have been reading a Proverbs and maybe a Psalm or some other passage, but I would like to start some sort of study. I tend to be a little more consistent if I have that. Any suggestions?

4. Find a part time job. Now let me clarify that I did have something come my way, but it wasn't the right fit for me and there were a lot of different things that just didn't give me peace. I would love to be back at a preschool (not a daycare) or some job like that. If you know of a good family that needs someone to watch their child, I would be willing to do that as well. I really need something to occupy my time, but I want to be home with the kids and during the summer as well. I'm feeling like I need something to help with the extras and I need it to make me feel like I'm valuable for something.

Any help in any of these areas would be greatly appreciated!! Happy 2012

Hurricanes Game

2012-01-01T12:32:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!!! I haven't set my "goals yet for 2012" but will post that soon. I surprised the family (even Jack) with tickets to the Hurricanes game the day after Christmas. Of course, the McLean's do everything cheap!! There are several games during the year that they consider "family nights" where you can get $10 tickets and they also have $1 hot dogs!! We took advantage of both. I had an extra ticket, so we invited Jack's best friend, Lai to go. The Canes won and it was a lot of fun. We plan on going again for Josh's b-day later this month.

Donuts and friends

2011-12-28T09:38:00.000-08:00

I've enjoyed the week before Christmas. The kids and I stayed really busy. One day we took on our summer fun day by going to Fuquay Varina.....we started with Krispy Kreme donuts and then went to the thrift stores. After that we went to get groceries at HT. My kids love doing this. Tuesday night we met my friend Rudine and her daughter Sarah. We had a nice dinner together and then went to see the Chipmunks with the girls. Jenna loved having "girl time" that included her and a friend.

Christmas Memories 2011

2011-12-26T08:15:00.000-08:00

My brother Mark came over a couple of weeks ago and baked cookies with Jacob and Jenna (Josh was at a friend's house) and Jack and I got out for a night. I didn't get too many pictures on Christmas morning.....mainly because there is something about getting up at 4 am:). Yep, the kids were up at 4 am. (better than 3 am last year). They opened all their gifts and then Jack and I went back to bed (and Jenna did too). It was a very nice Christmas. I'm like the kids though.....it goes by way too quickly:)

Kids

2011-12-22T18:44:00.001-08:00

Since I've shown pictures of Jack and me and pictures of the family, it's time to show pictures of the three kids. I think they all turned out great! These were just a few of the many shots she got. Sure love my kids!

Company Party

2011-12-21T06:01:00.000-08:00

Jack's company had a Christmas dinner on December 3rd. That was such a busy day for us. We had to leave play practice and then after the party, Josh and I left for the Clemson game. The party was held at the Shriners Club in Raleigh. I really liked how they made this a family event. They did family photos (which turned out awful) and then had clowns making balloons for the kids as well as kids crafts. They even had a kids friendly buffet line and an adult buffet line.....which was so good!! They had a magician for the kids and then every kid got a wrapped present (1-18 years of age). Josh got a cool dart game and Jacob and Jenna also rec'd some nice games. Of course at the end, Santa came to visit. Thumbs up to Golden Corral on this one:)

Family pictures

2011-12-18T16:41:00.000-08:00

Last time I showed pictures of my sweetheart and now I would like to show some of our family shots. I have some things come up the last couple of weeks where I just had to say "thank you God for my family". I'm very very blessed. I always wanted to be a wife and mom and didn't think it was going to happen to me, but it did and I am very grateful to have my family.

my best friend

2011-12-15T18:04:00.000-08:00

We wanted our family pictures taken once again this year. I always admired these outside professional shots, but I knew there was no way we could ever afford it. After talking to a couple of people, we got our friend Michelle to take some pictures for us. I thought this would be a bust. Our first "appointment" we had to cancel because it was so cold and the winds were very very blustery. We re-scheduled two weeks later. Again, I thought it would be a bust because we were supposed to go to Clemmons Forest. Michelle beat us there by 3 minutes and called me on my cell to tell me the park was closed until March!! Seriously? So, we went to Clayton Community Park.......but oh my word, I couldn't have asked for better photos. These are only a few of what we got. I was so impressed! She got some of the three kids together, the family, Jack and I together, the kids individual and other shots. So what better way to start than to post about the love of my life. How did I ever get so blessed?

Christmas Program

2011-12-11T15:56:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday the kids had their Christmas program at church. They all did such a good job.

Clemson mom?

2011-12-06T13:23:00.000-08:00

I don't know if I'll ever be a future "Clemson mom" but right now, I guess I am in another way a 'clemson mom". Before I tell you about the time Joshua and I spent together going to the ACC Championship Game, let me tell you how God worked it out for us to go. Joshua wanted to go to this game for a long time, in fact, he wanted this for Christmas more than anything. Once Clemson "clinched" going to the championship game, I looked into tickets. Once Clemson clinched the tickets were like $80-90 per seat in the nosebleed section!! I told Joshua we just could not pay this (on top of gas and food). He was ok with it and I made arrangements for him to see the game on TV (since we don't get cable). Thursday, I get an email from a friend who knew someone who had tickets and said they were seven rows back on the 20 yard line (incredible) and to "make and offer". I knew that there was no possible way to afford these. I knew I would insult the person. Jack and I talked it over and decided that we would offer $75 for the pair, but that would be an insult. Before I got the chance to email, our friend said that the man would take $60 for the pair.......can you believe it? Wait!! It gets better......I saw our friend Saturday and he said he needed to talk to me. He handed me back the $60 and said the man said "Merry Christmas"......wow!! I took this chance to talk to Josh and told him how God wanted him to go to this, and how God cares about even about the little children and what is special to them!!

Saturday we went to the Christmas rehearsal, ran out of there and went to Jack's company party..(more on this on another post). Josh and I went to my dads to change clothes and we headed off to the 8 pm game to Charlotte. We got there around 5 and later caught up with our friends, Scott, Traci and Travis. The game was great, mainly because Clemson won and goes to the Orange Bowl. Josh wanted to stay to see the trophy and try to get some autographs. He did get two and was so happy!! We drove back and got in at 3 am!! It was fun to spend time with him. Funny part is that he wanted me to go and not Jack!!

Early Christmas

2011-12-02T12:52:00.001-08:00

I got my Christmas a little early this year.....my counter height BLACK kitchen table with 6 chairs!! I was so excited to finally find one on Craigs List and Jack just happened to have the day off. It has a leaf underneath that I can pull out to have a bigger table. I love it, but I am still trying to get used to the different shape (perfectly square). Thanks, honey!! I love you!! Now I just need to find someone to buy our old table and chairs!!

worn out

2011-11-29T09:19:00.001-08:00

This is what happens when you play your heart out at your soccer game!! She did great this year...scored 2 or 3 goals and continues to improve.

Biltmore Trip

2011-11-25T09:18:00.001-08:00

this is a tiny bat

We were very blessed to get to go to Biltmore for a couple of days during the holiday. We left Tuesday and came back Thanksgiving afternoon. We went to Grandfather Mountain but the bridge and top of the mountain was closed due to high winds and cold, snow, sleet etc. We were a little disappointed as the kids were looking forward to this, but we went to Linville Caverns and they liked that. After that we headed over to Biltmore to look around. We had tickets to the candelight Christmas tour. It was at 6:30 and the house was all decorated for Christmas with fire places going, 57 Christmas trees etc. One tree was real and was 35 feet tall. The house was quite impressive and very beautiful. I would love to go back and visit as I feel that I didn't get everything the first time.

civil war field trip

2011-11-20T17:52:00.000-08:00

Jacob and I had a really good time on his field trip. It is such an enjoyable field trip. We drove to right outside Petersburg, VA to Pamplin Park and spent 5 hours there. I really enjoy having a tour guide do this trip as I feel you get so much more. I guess I have to go one more time next year with Jenna.....by then maybe I could get paid to do the tour:)

Abe

2011-11-16T12:26:00.001-08:00

Jacob's class has been studying the civil war and today they presented their projects. Jacob choose to do Abe Lincoln. The class did a really good job presenting their work. On Friday, we are going to Virginia to one of the battle fields to learn more about the civil war. I love this field trip. I hate that it is 2 hours away, but it is worth it. I went with Joshua when he was in third grade. I'm not a history lover, but I so enjoyed this field trip.

Cute

2011-11-07T15:55:00.001-08:00

This hardly ever happens, but when the football game is only 3-3 at the half (Alabama vs. LSU) Joshua falls asleep out of boredom!!

Proud Mom

2011-11-05T05:45:00.000-07:00

Report cards came out yesterday. Jacob and Jenna got Pastor's list (straight A's) and Joshua got A/B honor roll. I am so happy. If you only knew what we have been going through with Joshua, worrying we did the right thing, questioning our decisions, you would know that we are flying high with his grades. I've learned as a mom that it's ok if we study spelling for two hours and he gets and 88%. I've really calmed down about it and taken a deep breath and realized this is ok. He even got an A in math....and that totally surprised me!! I've also learned with talking to one of his teachers that getting a "C" is like a "B" or low A" in a public school....that has really calmed my nerves.....but we didn't even get a "C"! I know things will get harder and he may get those "C's" but we're on the right track, mommy is calmed down, and things will be ok!!

Catching Up on Thoughts and Stuff

2011-11-02T08:58:00.000-07:00

This is a random blog full of thoughts and things. First of all, let me catch up by showing some pictures from last week. We kept Hannah Wednesday and Thursday. The kids were off school on Thursday, so they really enjoyed keeping her. I think Jacob wants another baby around the house because he seemed to enjoy her the most.

It's been over a month since mom died. I've learned a lot through this experience. One of the things I learned the most is how important it is to follow up on people after the death. Things don't end just because the funeral is over. Also, I learned how important it is to say something....anything to someone who is going through this. I realize it is hard to know what to say, but not saying nothing is worse than anything. I won't let that happen again. I've learned now that I should say something even if it is just "I'm praying for you". I learned how much going to the funeral or visitation really encourages someone. I will admit although there have been people who have not said a word, some people surprisingly stepped up....people that I never really had contact with before. It's almost like now we have a common bond which has made us instant friends.

My last thought is that I really want a part time job. I greatly miss my preschool class and having something to be proud of.....something I can call my own. I am a little picky about what I get as I want to be around for the family and not miss out on things. I really would like something for when the kids are in school. I've been looking, but have not had much luck. I've enjoyed being at home....doing projects like painting etc, but I really need more. I had a feeling that I wouldn't get called as much this year, and it is true. Most of my days are known ahead of time and my phone has only rung once at 6:30 so far this year. I'm really needing something to have some sort of feeling of self worth. Jack and I also will celebrate 15 years next summer and I would love to get away for a couple of days......something I can't do unless the extra income comes in.

Halloweens from the past

2011-10-30T10:57:00.000-07:00

We are not trick or treating this year because it falls on Monday. I know for sure Joshua will have a Latin quiz the next day, not to mention other homework so we thought we would stay put. The kids did get to go the church fall festival and I bought some candy for them, and I have some other treats in store for them. I thought it would be fun to post some old Halloween pictures.

work in progress

2011-10-27T04:37:00.000-07:00

my kitchen is slowly coming together. I spent most of Monday night tearing down the border. That was a job, but I got it done. I swear I don't think I will ever put up wall paper or border ever again!! Tuesday I went and bought paint and have spent the past two days painting. I'm about 80% done. I have to move the fridge and get behind there and do some touch ups as well. I'm in love with the sage green color. I can't wait until everything is done, and then of course to get my new black or brown table:)! (it was hard to capture the color with the camera....it kept making it looked washed out)

awww.......

2011-10-23T10:34:00.000-07:00

I am using Jack's computer and I found this picture that Jenna took of him. I had to figure out how to get it to my blog! I think he looks cute in his little hat!!

Don't even ask......

2011-10-19T13:44:00.000-07:00

Jenna trying to get a smile off of mommy after the funeral:). Don't even ask me what she was doing after her bath.

Family/Friends

2011-10-17T04:16:00.000-07:00

These were pictures taken at the funeral. The top picture is Mrs. Cole. Mrs Cole has been the church secretary for as long as I know. When we moved to NC we rented a house in Wake Forest. I used to ride with Mrs. Cole to/from school. She is such a sweet, sweet lady. She helped prepare the lunch for the family the day of the funeral. Second picture is me, Josh, my brother Mark and my cousin Victor. We weren't really expecting any family, but Victor drove down from Washington DC. Victor is really into the Wagher history and was able to help Joshua on a family history project last year. Last picture is my cousin Debra (Victor's sister) who flew in from Atlanta and completely surprised us. Debra is a very successful corporate attorney. I haven't seen Debra since my senior year of high school. I was in her wedding. I hated that she had to fly back home immediately after the burial, but I was thankful for the few minutes we had together. I am a little embarrased to be taking pictures with her. She is like a thin fashion model and I seemed to take up the entire picture.

Soccer/Football Mom

2011-10-12T12:15:00.000-07:00

After a rain out one Saturday and other family situations, my kids were able Saturday to resume their sports. Actually, this was the first game for Jacob and Jenna. Jacob scored the only two goals for his team and Jenna won the first award for sportsmanship. After they played, we ran to Joshua's football game. He made one fantastic catch toward the end and came close to scoring. Too bad both teams lost, but I certainly do enjoy watching my kids play and I love being football/soccer mom!!

History Project

2011-10-09T09:42:00.000-07:00

I'm going to jump around a little bit. I have a couple of more pictures to show of the funeral, but I didn't want all the other stuff to get old. Friday Joshua had his first project of the year. They have been studying features such as seas, volcanoes, valleys, craters, etc. They had to make their own country and come up with a theme and a name for their country. They also had to have at least 10 of the 13 geo terms/features on their board. Joshua of course wanted to do a sports theme, so we made it "Collegiate Country". We had Michigan Mountain Range, Clemson Crater, Virginia Valley, Virginia Tech Volcano, Rutgers River, LSU Lake, Iowa Isthmus, Maryland Mountain, Duke Desert, Illinois Island and Stanford Sea. I think it all came together nicely and I am so pleased with it. Hopefully he will get a good grade off of it.

Here today, Gone tomorrow (a week in review)

2011-10-06T03:50:00.001-07:00

I sit here writing this post thinking of the Casting Crowns song that says "here today and gone tomorrow" and that is what I feel like. Last week was a whirlwind that totally took me off guard. I can't believe that it has been a week already since my mom passed away.
Monday: I wake up, get the kids to school, take a nice long walk, come home and clean, cook and get things caught up.....all the while not knowing that my mom had a bad morning. She had not felt well, wasn't responding right and eventually felt dizzy and fell. I didn't get the call from my dad until 2 pm, still not knowing how serious things were. I rush to call Jack. I rush to call a friend to arrange for the kids to go over. No answer. Call another friend. She could take the kids. I pick the kids up, rush to do homework, rush to get some food down them and then we are out the door. Pick up Jack, run to the hospital. Mom is in Cardiac care. Not doing well. still unconscious. Doctors said she would not make it through the night. I take Jack back to pick up his car and head home. I turn the radio on and what is the first song I hear? "I'll praise you in this storm"
Tuesday: Start my day again. I wait for my sister to come home from the beach to go to the hospital with her. Mom made a "miraculous" recovery. Awake. She can squeeze your had and nod gently. A ray of hope perhaps? The doctors can't understand. But then the doctor says that she now has a 10% chance of survival.
Wednesday: Drop the kids off, run to get some things for their lunches and go home. I'm waiting on my sister to come to the house to pick up her dog and she calls. She is almost at my house but we have to go to the hospital NOW!! I just got out of the shower, so I scramble to leave. We get to the hospital and meet with the doctors. Mom's kidneys are 90 % down, liver is almost gone. She is being kept alive by the machines. Dad makes the difficult choice with our help to let her go from the machines. They come get us around 12:30....mom's breathing is changing....maybe 20 minutes or less. Mom ends up holding up until 4:30. We were there when she passed away......here one moment, gone the next......and went very peacefully.
The rest of a week was full of making arrangements, and of course the funeral.
I knew mom was sick, but I didn't know she would go so quickly. I still can't believe that it has been a week already. Some days have been ok, some have been really hard. Yesterday was an extremely hard day for me. Thank you for all of you who have sent emails, sent cards, provided meals, came to the funeral....etc. It really means a lot to me. I heard this song on the radio yesterday by Jeremey Camp.....There will be a day with no more tears, no more pain, and no more fears. There will be day when the burdens of this place will be no more, we'll see Jesus face to face.

Beautiful Flowers

2011-10-05T04:36:00.000-07:00

Field Trip

2011-10-02T06:02:00.000-07:00

Things have been so crazy that I have not gotten the time to update my blog. So much has happened in the last two weeks. I guess I will just go in order of the way my pictures were taken. Two weeks ago, Jenna's class had a field trip to the Museum in Durham. I hate the drive, but I love this place. It is one of my favorites. For the first time I was able to see the bears and the foxes.....part of their living exhibits. Jenna had fun hanging out with one of her best school friends, Olivia.(the one with the red headband) Her other best friend Reagan is in the other second grade class. Delany also hung out with us (another of Jenna's friends) and we had a blast hanging out together. The first picture shows the girls with Jenna's teacher, Miss Harmeling.

Future Runner

2011-09-25T11:28:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday after church Jack and Josh ran in a race. Jack runs in a couple of long races during the year, but this was Josh's first run, and it was a mile. I think he ran it in just a little over 8 minutes. He did a good job. I sure wish I could run a mile.....or just run a little:)

Acorns

2011-09-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

My friend Sara recently posted about making acorn treats. (sara-mincy.blogspot.com) I got inspired to make some treats with my kids. I didn't have the donuts or sprinkles on hand. Yesterday I found this on another blog making miniature acorns. You take Hershey kisses (so hard not to eat while you are making) mini nilla wafers (didn't know they made mini ones), frosting, and pretzels for the stems. I dabbed a little frosting to the wafer and attached the kiss and a little frosting on top and put a pretzel bite on top. Jacob and Jenna and I had so much fun making these and I will make them again soon!! Thanks, Sara for the idea!

Babysitting

2011-09-20T13:55:00.000-07:00

Last week I got the opportunity to watch Hannah for the week. She was such a joy and so easy to keep. She went everywhere I went or did whatever I had to do. My kids loved seeing her and wished they could have stayed home from school. Even Jenna wanted to stay home, and that doesn't happen much. Maybe we should consider adopting......JUST KIDDING!!!!

My Monkeys

2011-09-14T14:17:00.001-07:00

I think Jenna has Jake beat by just a little bit! I was telling Jenna about a little girl at school that could make a really good monkey face (when I subbed last week). I must say Jenna isn't too far behind!

Kitchen Floor

2011-09-09T04:27:00.000-07:00

I was able to start the kitchen floor. This was a much bigger job, and we are about 95% done. We have some tricky corners yet to cut and under the oven. Thanks to my sweet husband who has done some of the tricky cutting for me:). Now, I am wondering what to make as the official wall color of my kitchen now that I got rid of the blue specs in the floor. Oh, the possibilites....I'm not even sure which color to choose. This will also look so cool once I get my black table!!

The Tooth and the Teacher

2011-09-05T05:07:00.000-07:00

Some of you may have seen Jenna with her front tooth that was VERY loose! It was driving me crazy. Last Saturday we put Jenna on our bed and Jack tried to pull it with dental floss, but Jenna broke out sobbing so we stopped. Wednesday night I put Jenna to bed and then Jacob and was sitting on the couch when Jenna appeared out of her room. I'm thinking "now what.....do you have a tummy ache....need a drink or what". I asked her what was wrong and she said "my tooth came out". I was so excited to have that tooth out of there!! I hurried around between my wallet and Jack's wallet to get some money put together and the tooth fairy still came!! Yesterday I saw her sitting here playing school with her dolls. It was so cute. She was embarrassed when I came in and wouldn't let me sit in during her class!

Decorating

2011-08-31T07:33:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a boring title. Couldn't think of anything better. I've been trying to do some updates around the house. I'm hoping to do the kitchen floor soon. Several months ago I painted my bedroom, got rid of some furniture, and now I'm looking to fill in the empty spots. I'm still looking for a mirror for my dresser. A couple of weeks ago Jack took the boys to a football camp for the afternoon so that meant Jenna and I had girl time. Can I tell you how much I treasure this time? I love the boys, but something about girl bonding steals my heart. Jenna and I went to Pizza Inn for lunch and had the buffet and then started our shopping journey. We stopped at Home Depot (great girls spot...right? but I was looking for my kitchen floor) a shoe store, Target (we have to do target) Lifeway, the dollar tree and then we went to Home Goods. While I was there, I found this piece and fell in love with it. I knew right away it was going over my bed, so my sweet sweet husband put it up for me. By the time I get it together, I'll change my colors again :) (Just kidding)

Saturday Fun

2011-08-29T07:42:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning we woke up to the remnants of hurricane Irene. We lost power briefly for a couple of times. I decided that I wanted to venture out so we took the kids to the Child Evangelism Fellowship fun. It was kinda like our family fun fest, except it was at the fairgrounds and it was inside. They had about 15 different bouncies, free popcorn and snow cones and drinks and free face painting. The kids also like the clowns that made balloons for them and Josh had a mini-karate lesson!! Jenna got to meet Miss Garner and Miss Teen Garner, that was a part of HIS radio. It was a nice free event on such a rainy, messy day when you really couldn't do anything else.

Praise you in the storm

2011-08-25T19:37:00.000-07:00

It's been a rough/interesting week. I really needed to get out tonight and thankfully, I had a ladies group to go to tonight. I was so ready to get out of the house. I'm not a mile down the road and what song comes on (one of my favorites by Casting Crowns) "Praise You In the Storm".....perfect timing.

I was sure by now
God you would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in to save the day
But once again I say "amen" and it's still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear your whisper through the rain
"I'm with you"
And as your mercy falls
I raise my hands a praise the God who gives
and takes away

And I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
that you are who you are
No matter where I am
or every tear I've cried
You hold in my hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise you in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry to you
and you raised me up again
my strength is almost gone
how can I carry on
if I can't find you

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear you whisper through the rain
I'm with you
and as your mercy falls
I lift my hands to praise
the God who gives
and takes away

I'll praise you in this storm
and I will lift my hands
that you are who you are
No matter where I am
or every tear I cry
you hold in your hand
you never left my side
and though my heart is torn
I will praise you in this storm.

I lift my eyes unto the hills, where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord the maker of heaven and earth.

Ordinary

2011-08-24T09:58:00.000-07:00

Wow, is it only Wednesday? Seems like it should be Saturday by now. It's been an odd week. The kids started school on Monday. So far so good, except I can tell having homework to do is hard for them to get used to. They have all seem to adjusted well. It should be interesting having a child in middle school with 3 teachers!! I hope I'm ready if the road becomes bumpy!!
Yesterday, Jack and I had our 14 year anniversary!! Wow, he put up with me for 14 years!! We did get out for about an hour and a half for a quick bite to eat together. It was hard to stay gone with bed times, baths, homework, etc, but we did get that precious hour or so together.
Yesterday was also a beautiful day so I decided to sit on my porch a few minutes before I had to pick up the kids. I felt the porch shaking. It was so weird. The wind wasn't blowing but I could feel the porch moving!! I looked over to the storm door and could see it shaking as well. I had no idea what had happened until a few minutes later and the news came on saying it was an earthquake!! Wow!! Funny thing is that Jack never felt a thing.....even though his co-workers did.
So after 2 1/2 days full of adventure, today seems kinda "ordinary". I did my normal load of laundry, cleaned the bathroom, got groceries, and mowed the back yard. I guess something still could happen....but I think I'm ready for an ordinary day!!

First Day of School

2011-08-22T06:41:00.000-07:00

Today the kids started school. Things went pretty smoothly because I had the clothes laid out, lunches packed, book bags packed.....Josh starts middle school today so I am a little worried, but hopefully things will be ok for him. I started my morning by walking them in, and then going for a 35 minute walk at the park. I'll finish my day by cleaning and organizing for Jack's upcoming yard sale. I'll enjoy today, but I hope to fin something to do with my spare time, or I'll be lost!!

Orientation Night

2011-08-19T04:54:00.000-07:00

The kids went to see their classrooms and meet their teachers. Joshua officially starts middle school, so he has 3 teachers. One for Bible and History, one for math and science, and one for reading/writing/spelling. He has a locker too! His home room teacher is Mrs. Kraus....love her! She loves anything snoopy or peanuts themed! Jacob will be in third and has Mrs. Burden. I have had her before with Joshua. She is more relaxed, but a great teacher. She is a Pastor's wife over at Bethesda Baptist. Jenna starts second grade and has Miss Harmeling. She is new. She just graduated and is the daughter of Southside's pastor. I think I will love her. She seems very nurturing and that is what Jenna loves. Josh is excited to have Brandon in middle school with him. They will have lunch and PE together. Hope we can all get up and out the door on Monday!!

Mudcats Game

2011-08-16T05:33:00.001-07:00

A sweet friend gave us 6 Mudcat tickets to last night's game. Jack and the kids have never been to a Mudcats game before so we decided to go. My brother, Mark, was still in town so he was able to go with us. I think we may do this more next year as the tickets are pretty cheap and if you take the back roads, it's not that bad of a trip over there. It was a good way to end our last week before school.

Goodbye, Summer

2011-08-15T06:22:00.000-07:00

This is our last week before school starts. It's been a different kind of summer. It's one of those summers where I feel that we made the most of it, where I don't wonder where it went. I am going to miss the days of not rushing around in the mornings, but I think it is time for them to start. This summer has been filled with activities.....trips....our annual beach trip, a trip to Busch Gardens and Jack and I went to Charleston. It's been filled with activities.....swimming with friends, camps, VBS, sleep overs etc. It's also been a summer filled with tough decisions to make. I'm still left wondering if we are making the right decisions in certain matters.....but all in all, I say that this has been one of the best summers. My computer crashed over the weekend, so my pictures have not been restored so I won't post any pictures that go along with the summer. Hope to have that up and running again this week.

Jacob, Jacob

2011-08-08T05:09:00.000-07:00

Jacob was goofing off the other night and spiked his hair all by himself. He can't do this for awhile now because Jack cut his hair!! The other picture was of him working outside. It just finished raining and for some reason my camera fogged up and it came out blurry!

Last few hours of Charleston

2011-08-04T19:15:00.000-07:00

Jack and I woke up Sunday and went for a horse and carriage ride around part of the city of Charleston. It was very relaxing. After that we went down to see Rainbow Row and back to the Open Market. It was so incredible hot!! Jack wanted to do something "spontaneous" so we went back to the hotel to get our bathing suits on and we went to Waterfront Park to run through all the water fountains that the kids were enjoying. I must admit, it was fun and it did cool us off!

More Charleston

2011-08-02T18:27:00.000-07:00

After we went to Boone Hall Plantation which was in Mt. Pleasant (outside of Charleston) we drove into Charleston and hit the streets. We started just roaming the streets, but it go SO hot!! I was happy that we found the City Market and I got to look around there. We ate lunch and then headed back to check into our room. As soon as we cooled down we headed back out for a 90 minute boat tour of Charleston. I really enjoyed seeing more of the city and Ft. Sumter and all the other attractions. We walked back the hotel, cooled down, and then hit a local seafood restaurant which was very good. We ended the night by going to Waterfront park and got to see part of the city in the dark. We were pretty exhausted after our full day, but we still had Sunday to go. More pictures of that in my final post.

Charleston

2011-08-01T05:07:00.000-07:00

Jack and I had the excitement of getting away this weekend. We had a free airline ticket, but prices were so high that we couldn't use it. Since we had the rare opportunity of someone that was willing to take the kids, we decided to go somewhere closer so we chose Charleston. Neither one of us had been there and we both loved it. I'll post pictures during the week of the different things we did. We left at 4 am on Saturday and arrived at Boone Hall Plantation before 8:30. I'm glad we got there when we did, as it got brutally hot. I loved this place. Even though I'm not a history buff, I loved it. I loved seeing the slave cabins, taking a bus tour of the entire plantation (which was HUGE) and seeing the house. I also enjoyed the HUGE trees everywhere. In a couple of my pictures you can see the long drive coming up and the beautiful trees that meet over the drive. There have been several movies filmed here, including North and South. I could imagine how it must have felt coming up that long beautiful drive in a horse and buggy to that beautiful house (which is not the original).

Catching up

2011-07-24T18:45:00.000-07:00

I'm grateful to have a phone now that takes pictures because there are moments that I encounter that I wish I had one. This happened about a month ago when Jacob and Jenna went to soccer camp and the Carolina Railhawks showed up for part of the first night. Both of them got their shirts signed and Joshua and his friend also go pictures taken with them. I still haven't figured out to get the pictures off my camera, but that's when I'm grateful to have an IT guy in the house that can do it for me!!

Babysitting

2011-07-20T18:46:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday the kids and I watched Bryson and the twins (Austin and Brianna) so that Michelle could go to the consignment sale. It was alot of fun and a great way for me to get my baby fix :). Brianna really loved going in to Jenna's room and playing with the big girl toys. She was content for over an hour in there. Jenna loved having her too.

Good Deals....

2011-07-18T07:07:00.000-07:00

coat $5...two years worth
sheet...half striped, half dots

reversible comforter

the way we have it now

curtains

Patsy Aiken dress $8...but she can get 2 years with it (kids exchange)

Bonnie Jean winter cord jumper $2.49...only one year for this

Josh Air Jordan's for $5

Kids exchange treasure....Jenna just saw this in the catalog two days prior.....$40 we got it for $10

Shaq shoes $1

My kids now love going to thrift stores. Sometimes we go to Fuquay to get groceries, go to Krispy Kreme and thrift shop. This week we had plenty of opportunity. Wed we did just this and went to Fuquay. I got Jenna a shirt and me a pair of shorts. Thursday was the kids exchange. Josh needed an extra pair of shoes for the Wilds and I didn't want to pay more than $5 for ANOTHER pair of shoes.....he found some Air Jordans and they were $5. We bought Jake a pair of shoes, and Jenna some stuff. She wanted a changing table for her bitty baby and saw one in the catalog for $40....we got it for $10. Friday I went out with Veronica and we went to several thrift stores. I found a Bonnie Jean purple dress for Jenna. My big treasure was finding this comforter/bedroom set. Last November, I found this comforter set at Penney's that I wanted for Jenna. It was called "Little Miss Matched". Comforter alone was $85. I've been checking on ebay a lot trying to find one with no luck.....(still runs about $65 on ebay). Well, at the last thrift store we found the same comforter but it was a different brand. I got two pair of sheets sets, the comforter (reversible....thus little miss matched) and curtains for less than $14!! Yeah!! Saturday I woke up to go to a community sale at my friend's neighborhood. First house.....prices were a little high, however I found a pair of Shaq shoes (another thing Josh wanted) almost brand new. Since he was so high, I figured it would be at least $5. He said "make me an offer" so I said how about $1....HE TOOK IT!! Needless to say I gave him the money and ran before he could change his mind! The shoes are about a size big for him, but he is very happy.

Friendly game of football?

2011-07-15T10:32:00.001-07:00

After family fun fest last week, Jack's best friend, Lai, came over for dinner. After dinner the kids and the two of them got into a "friendly" football game (Josh was at Gabriel's house for a sleep over). I think I have signed Jenna up for the wrong sport!! The last two pictures show two grown men trying to get the ball out of the tree! It was so funny to see them trying to shake the tree to get the football down. They had to give up and find another football to play with!

Jenna, Jenna

2011-07-12T05:39:00.001-07:00

Look who finally go her hair cut! Bad news....no pony or pig tails for awhile.....Good news.....She loves it!

Family Fun Fest

2011-07-10T11:43:00.000-07:00

Our church had it's annual Family Fun Fest Saturday. It was a lot of fun, but it was very hot. Jacob had fun just roaming around on his own, Joshua helped at one of the booths and also ran around with friends and then spent the night with Gabriel. Jenna got to spend time with her friend Olivia at the church and at fun fest, so I think she had the best of both worlds. Jack and I worked together at the food tent again. I don't think I want to see another hot dog for quite awhile....but at least they weren't red this year!!

Blessings

2011-07-08T07:38:00.000-07:00

I heard this a few weeks ago on the radio and then someone sang it at church and I keep hearing it again and again on the radio.....now my kids are singing it too.

We pray for blessings, we pray for peace
Comfort for family, protection while we sleep
We pray for healing, for prosperity
We pray for your mighty hand to ease our suffering
All the while you hear each spoken need
Yet love is way too much to give us lesser things

Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
what if your healing comes through tears?
What if a thousand sleepless nights
are what it takes to know you're near?

What if the trials of this life
Are your mercies in disguise?

We pray for wisdom, your voice to hear
we cry in anger when we cannot feel you near
we doubt your goodness, we doubt your love
as if every promise from your word is not enough

And all the while you hear each desperate plea
and long that we'd have the faith to believe

Cause what if your blessings come through raindrops
what if your healing comes through tears
and what if a thousand sleepless nights are what it takes to know you're near?

And what if trials of this life
are your mercies in disguise?

When friends betray us, when darkness seems to win
we know that pain reminds this heart
that this is not, this is not our home
It's not our home

what if my greatest disappointments
or the aching of this life
is the revealing of a greater thirst
this word can't satisfy?

And what if the trials of this life
The rain, the storms, the hardest nights
Are your mercies in disguise?

New Floor

2011-07-06T09:46:00.000-07:00

before

after

after

I'm so excited!! I got a new bathroom floor. The great part is that it cost less than $20 to install it. I was able to do part of it myself, and then Jack helped cut the corners for me. It was less than a half day project too. I can't wait to do my kitchen and the kids bathroom!! I'm sure the kitchen will cost more like $100, but I still can't wait to do it. I just hope Southside has me subbing a lot so that we can do these extra household projects.

4th of July Parade

2011-07-04T07:58:00.001-07:00

Our church had a float in the "Cleaveland Community Parade" today for the fourth of July. It was a way for us to get the word out about our Family Fun Fest on Saturday. The kids enjoyed being in a "parade" for the first time!

soccer camp

2011-06-30T19:23:00.000-07:00

Jacob and Jenna have been in soccer camp each night this week. They seem to be really enjoying themselves. They are in different groups, based on their ages. Every night the coach picks 1-2 players who did a great job and are "campers of the day". Wednesday Jacob and Jenna both got campers of the day! Monday night the Carolina Railhawks came out to visit and they got their autographs on the back of their shirts. I didn't have my camera with me, but I was able to snap some pictures off my camera phone. I'll try to get those posted once I figure out what I am doing!!

first spray painting project

2011-06-24T11:12:00.000-07:00

I was trying to get a desk to fit in the boy's room, but it was just too big. I had big plans on having a place where they could work and also have a lap top in there (closely monitored of course). I did re-arrange a few pieces of things and then I got the notion to change the shelves in their room, so I spray painted! I like the black a lot more than the lighter version. I've now painted both, but haven't got the top black shelf up yet. (still drying). Next, I want to attempt to get Lydia over here to show me how to best paint my table and chair set.

Casting Crowns

2011-06-21T18:26:00.000-07:00

Part of the reason we went to Busch Gardens is that Casting Crowns was doing a concert. The concert was free with paid admission. It was kind of a two for one night. The concert was awesome. I was so amazed by them and their testimonies. I really liked looking over at my kids and seeing them singing all the songs. I would definitely go see them again in concert. Joshua really likes them (him and I like them the best) and he didn't know about Casting Crowns until we pulled up to Busch Gardens. He could not believe it when I told him his surprise was that we would be hearing them sing.....and we were only 4-5 rows back.....totally awesome!

Busch Gardens

2011-06-20T05:04:00.000-07:00

We got away Saturday and went to Busch Gardens. The family had a great time. The kids did a great job. Not once did they complain about being hungry or how hot it was. The wait time was really not bad. In fact, the longest ride we waited for was one of those stupid things that take you up in the sky and across the park. We could have walked it in the time it took us to wait and then actually got over it. Josh was brave enough to get on the Loch Ness Monster with me (I love roller coasters) and once he figured out it wasn't bad, he got right back on with Jack. Jack then took him to a "bigger" roller coaster, and I think Joshua thought Jack was trying to kill him!! Jack looked at Josh and thought he was going to toss his cookies!! It was so funny to hear Josh talk about it for the next 45 minutes or so.

Thankful

2011-06-16T16:36:00.000-07:00

Today I am thankful for:

1. Friends, especially after they knew something was wrong on Sunday and check up on you. I'm also thankful for friends who watch your kids with no notice at all. I'm thankful for random emails and cards and any kind of things that show me that they care.

2. My husband. My husband takes care of me and for some odd reason loves me very much. I will never understand that, but I'm grateful for his love and support.

3. My three kids.....as imperfect as they are they are still wonderful and a blessing and I love them very much.

4. Health insurance......after going 5 months without it we are making great use of it. It seems like my summer is full of doctor and dentist appts for all of us.

5. Summer vacation.....even though I don't have much to entertain the kids with over the summer, I'm thankful for days where we can go at a slow pace and relax.

My list is short for today, but these are just a few of my blessings!

Mommy and her babies!!

2011-06-09T07:37:00.001-07:00

Beach Trip

2011-06-05T16:34:00.000-07:00

We were blessed to go to the beach again this year. We pinched pennies, did research and got the best possible rate. We got a corner "partial" view of the ocean this time which saved us a lot of money, but it ended up being GREAT!! The downside of our vacation is that Jack had to work and does not have vacation time, so he couldn't come until Friday night. It was a glorious reunion.....and we headed straight to Krispy Kreme for our annual HOT donuts.....yum! We had a great time and I finished my book in no time. It was great to relax! We love this place.....indoor water slides, pools (indoor and out) hot tubs, lazy rivers, putt putt golf, etc.

Happy Birthday, Jacob

2011-05-29T10:00:00.001-07:00

My little buddy turns 8 today! Wow....time is going so fast! Happy Birthday, Jacob. We love you!!

Readers Advice

2011-05-24T13:35:00.000-07:00

Jack and I would like to go away for a weekend this summer. I wanted some tips on where we could go. If airline prices are not high, we are willing to fly (we have a free ticket). We've been to Chicago, NY, San Fran, TN, FL and New York city, and I'd like to try some place different. I was thinking about NY city and then going to see the Cake Boss in NJ. Please....give me some ideas of where we could go (and not spend too much money)

Company Picnic

2011-05-19T14:15:00.000-07:00

Sunday afternoon we were treated to a company picnic. I forgot how much I loved these, as Jack's old company stopped doing it. They had the picnic at the Angus Barn Pavilion. The picnic area was so gorgeous. It could have been closed in if it rained. The kids enjoyed all the free snow cones, popcorn and cotton candy they wanted. They also had all the drinks they could possibly want. There was also bouncies, a "mechanical bull" a log roll, etc. They could play carnival games, and they came home with TONS of stuffed animals and prizes!!! Of course there was face painting too and they had two horses taking people for rides in a wagon. The meal was hot dogs, hamburgers with all the fixins, beans, pasta salad, corn the cob, fried chicken, ribs and a wonderful chocolate dessert!! This is the type of fun the McLean family loves.....FREE....and boy did we take full advantage of it.

Baby Kara

2011-05-16T13:51:00.000-07:00

Saturday Jenna and I took a meal over to Chad and Lauren. For those of you who do not know, Lauren was Jenna's kindergarten teacher. Jenna wanted to meet Kara, so I let her go with me to take the meal. She was so surprised when Lauren told Jenna that she could hold Kara. Jenna was so excited and talked about it all the way home. (and she was full of questions too)

A New Appreciation

2011-05-11T18:03:00.000-07:00

I have a new appreciation for certain people. The first is full time working moms. I'm not sure how moms work a full time job, come home, cook dinner, clean house, laundry, help the kids with homework, give baths, and prepare for the next day. How do they ever do it and still find a few minutes to themselves? I am totally exhausted. I'm barely getting dinner on the table, laundry is piled up, and of course my house is not clean. The kids are getting homework done so I guess that is one thing.
My second appreciation goes to teachers. Wow.....you think they have it good....I mean they can leave by 3-3:15 every day and have summers off....wow that's easy. Wrong!! I have to be at work by 7:30 which means we are running out the door earlier. I have to give tests and homework and have that all graded and recorded. I have to assign homework. I have to work on lesson plans....I definitely can't "wing it" like I normally do as a sub. I have to give seat work, prepare for reading groups, the room has to get cleaned. On top of this, I have to get this done in addition to my other tasks (maybe that's why I can't get it all done). I've always thought my kids had great teachers at Southside, and I still do, only now I have a greater appreciation for all they do!

Catching Up

2011-05-07T15:35:00.000-07:00

Seems like it has been awhile since I've blogged. Guess that's because I've been working. I honestly don't know how working moms do it. Between packing lunches, fixing breakfast (even thought it's just a pop tart) getting out the door, fixing dinner, homework, cleaning up, laundry....I don't know how they do it. I've taken over Jenna's class for the next 3 weeks. I had to miss Monday because Joshua was sick, but the first week went ok. Friday was field day, so I just helped and didn't have to teach. I definitely have a lot to learn, but I guess I am holding my own. It's a lot more work than I expected.....keeping up with her lesson plans, giving tests, grading papers, sending homework home.....etc. The money will be good for us....hoping to do something extra with it. I also started during teacher appreciation week, so Tuesday I got a biscuit, Wednesday a milkshake, Thursday the teachers got a lunch and Friday this little girl brought this cute basket filled with strawberries (yum) freshly picked from her grandparents berry farm (Beasley's Berry Farm) strawberry soap and a muffin. How sweet. It's nice to have some supportive parents!!

Last week Jacob's class had a mothers day lunch, so I got to spend that time with him. They made us plants. They had to do it last week because of field day on Friday.

Toothless

2011-04-30T18:21:00.000-07:00

Jenna's front tooth was loose, but definitely not ready to come out. Jacob and her were playing on Monday and Jacob accidentally knocked it out for her! She was so upset, until the tooth fairy came, and at least this time the tooth fairy remembered!! No corn on the cob for a little while!!

Easter Program

2011-04-26T15:14:00.000-07:00

This past weekend our church put on two performances of an Easter play. It was the first time our church did this and it was the first time Jack and I were involved in something like this. I played Martha. I was scared to death. I've never been in a play not to mention have a speaking part. I was so proud of Jack.....stepping out of his comfort zone to play Jesus, and He did a tremendous job. I wish I could have gotten pictures of him carrying the cross, but I couldn't do that since I was up on stage. I was glad our entire family could be a part of this.

Strawberry picking

2011-04-21T11:49:00.000-07:00

We've been enjoying our spring break. I've been sleeping in and catching up on work (which I won't be able to do in two weeks), having friends over, and today we went strawberry picking. I miss this at the preschool, but we all had fun picking strawberries together. Tomorrow, Jack and I are biting the bullet and paying a babysitter to come and watch the kids so that we can go out to lunch. We'll save up again and hopefully go out in June!

Georgia

2011-04-15T04:25:00.000-07:00

So part of our trip was for Jenna's birthday. We went to the American Girl Store in Atlanta. I have been to the one in NY and Chicago, but I wanted Jenna to go visit. She loved the store. I wish I could afford her more things, but she was able to pick out an outfit for her dolls to share (Kit and Lanie). I enjoyed this time with her very much.

My baby girl is growing.....

2011-04-13T03:58:00.000-07:00

Happy 7th birthday to my sweet little baby girl, Jenna! Jenna, you are such a joy to this family and we love you very much!!

Stone Mountain

2011-04-11T04:09:00.000-07:00

Last summer, I thought Jack might have another company trip to Atlanta, so I started researching what our family could do if we went back again. I found out about Stone Mountain. Jack never had to go, but I knew I wanted to take our family, and thus my wheels started turning. I had planned to go spring break, but with the church play and Jack's new job, things just didn't work out so unfortunately, we missed another anniversary Sunday. I picked Jack up on Friday after work and we drove to Concord Mills. We looked around for a little while until the stores closed and then drove to Kings Mountain, NC. We spent the night there. We woke up and drove to Stone Mountain on Saturday. We arrived at the park around 10:45. I LOVED going up the mountain and looking around. It is so gorgeous up there. You could go and spend the entire day up on top. The kids enjoyed a 4-D show, rock climbing, a train ride, ride the ducks, and big barn full up slides, air guns etc....and we didn't even get to do anything. At 8:30 the park showed an INCREDIBLE light show/firework display. It was so awesome, so impressive.....set to about 12 songs! We were tired, but I'm glad we got to see this. I'll post more about the rest of trip later. I'm just so thankful for the family time we can spend and the memories we make for our children. I'm thankful for the credit card points that help pay for the trip (although we don't get much of those any more thanks to Dave).

Just another year......

2011-04-05T18:12:00.000-07:00

Sunday was my birthday. I won't say how old I turned, but I'm sure you can figure out how old I am and feel!! I guess the older you get the quieter they get. Jack and the kids spoiled me, but other than that, I felt like it was pretty quiet. Having a b-day on a Sunday is also hard. I had play practice until 2 and I was supposed to go Sunday night, but I played hookie, had the house to myself, took a bubble bath and relaxed.....ahhh....that was a nice couple of hours!

kitchen update

2011-04-03T14:08:00.000-07:00

I replaced the small plaque I had in the kitchen with the picture I got at the ladies retreat. I thought it tied in nicely to my "black" theme. Now if I can only get brave enough to paint my table and chairs!! Sorry, still can't get my pictures to save to the normal viewing, but you can turn your head and get the idea!

Fun at the Beach

2011-03-30T12:47:00.001-07:00

cold Michelle

My x-roomie!! (she really didn't want to be in with me, the snorer)

Miss. Elsie

My cards...am I really heartless and misunderstood?

Playing Apples to Apples....love this game

One of my roomies, Ethel.....what can I say about her....love her so much.....one of the sweetest ladies I have ever known.....a very special friend!

Emerald Isle

2011-03-28T09:52:00.000-07:00

I left Thursday for Emerald Isle. The trip was fabulous. I absolutely love the ocean. I'll post some "fun pictures" later, but these are some that I captured for Josh's NC book project.

Final Stop

2011-03-23T13:06:00.000-07:00

Our final stop on our field trip was the capital bldg. This was fun too, although my favorite by far was going to the governor's mansion.

Stop 2 on our field trip

2011-03-22T08:56:00.000-07:00

So stop 2 was the legislative bldg. This was good, but I would have liked to have seen the Senate side as well.

Field Trip

2011-03-19T18:17:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went with Joshua and his class on a field trip. Other than his field trip last year, this has definitely been one of the best trips I have been on. Since the kids have a big NC history project due at the end of next month, we went downtown to get pictures and info for their notebooks. Our first stop was the governors mansion. I really enjoyed this. It was a smaller version of when we went to the White House last year. We had to get security clearance, although we never had to show our ID's. After the governor's mansion we went to the legislative building. We sat outside and ate our lunch....and it was a beautiful day......and then headed over to the capital building for a tour of that. I'll post pictures of the legislative and capital in the next few days. I'll just concentrate on the governor's mansion for today.

Praising God

2011-03-17T06:36:00.000-07:00

Well......I have good news to report. Jack got a job!!! Yeah!! I am happy because he is very happy about it. And the big surprise is that he starts Monday! I'm so happy to see him happy and excited again. The only bad thing is that now I may not be able to go on the ladies retreat next weekend. I'm trying to get child care issues worked out, or once again, I will not be able to go. I told Jack that if it doesn't work out, than he will owe me a weekend away....and he said he knew that :) Seriously though, after getting such a wonderful job, I shouldn't complain. I certainly can't ask him to get off early or come in late on his first week at the job. I guess if it's meant for me to go, I will go and if not, MAYBE next year I'll get to go!!

Birthday Celebrations.....

2011-03-15T05:32:00.000-07:00

My brother came home over the weekend so we all went over to my sister's house on Saturday for a family cookout. It was a lot of fun to have the entire family together again. My brother's birthday is today and my niece's birthday was last Tuesday so we had a big b-day celebration. My niece turned 21 (ugh) and my brother.....well, let's just say he is over the hill AND older than I am!! Happy Birthday, Mark (and Tiffany)

goofing off

2011-03-11T18:14:00.000-08:00

The other night we started goofing off with the camera......kinda a stress reliever from the previous weeks. Things were much better this week and we received a lot of hope. Jack had so many interviews this week and I worked two days again. Hopefully next week we will receive some really great news and I can't wait to pass it along to you!!

The Roller Coaster

2011-03-03T13:13:00.000-08:00

It's been one of those weeks. It's been a roller coaster of emotions. It's not been a good week for me. Other than one week in December, this has been the first time that I have not worked at least one day at school. Now is the time we need it the most and I'm just doing nothing but worry (yes, I know that is a sin). After having some hope, everything seemed to take a nose dive and I must admit, I'm at one of the lowest points I have been at in a long time. If you know me, I am not a patient person and it's not easy for me to wait. I'm stressing so bad over things......when will we have an income again, oops.....I spent more on the grocery budget this week,(ugh) what if now I don't have enough in my envelope to last the entire month, do I have enough in the "clothing budget" to get something (bad timing for taking Dave Ramsey.....I certainly don't have financial PEACE) ....how are we going to pay for tuition, am I going to have to home school next year, what if we have to start cutting into savings, and the list can go on and on. It's gonna be ok, I know.....at least I know it in my head, but my heart doesn't know that yet!!

More Updates

2011-02-28T07:47:00.000-08:00

The painting in my room is finally done. I do have a few holes that I need Jack to putty and then paint over them and them I am officially done. I don't know why I think these projects are going to get done so quickly! Painting my room or the living room is so different than the bathroom. Anyway with my new improved room comes more changes. One is that I always hated this "medicine cabinet" by my sink. I thought it was an eye sore, so when it was time to paint that area, the cabinet came down once and for all. It's now in a new "yard sale" pile. I'm still thinking something needs to go up there, but not sure yet what it is. I also took down a plate that needs something to replace, and of course the big mirror that I want. Now that I am in Dave Ramsey class, none of these things are in my budget, so I'm not sure if I'll ever get them.....especially a mirror which is about $45. I guess I can wait until Christmas, and hopefully we will have a "Christmas budget" by then!!