The House Full of Boys

My Dad Herbert Kennedy Sr.

2010-08-11T12:20:00.000-07:00

It has been almost a month, and time for me to sit and get my thoughts about my dad's last few months out of my head and on paper............A quick background about my dad for those who didn't know him..............He was strong, independent, private and proud.........

The beginning of what I will call "the end" started in February, the weekend after my Grandmother's funeral.........my Dad ended up in the hospital with Congestive Heart Failure. His wishes were that his information not be given out, so that he wouldn't have a tirade of people running through his room.......full of loud talking........He was in great pain, and when I arrived, I was told that I wasn't allowed in the room.....he wasn't taking any visitors. It took some time, and I was not really nice to the nurse and he finally got pain meds and was able to take visitors....there were only a couple of people that knew where Dad was, but sure enough he ends up with a whole room full of loud "visitors", and he was furious that he had been betrayed by his own. Showing that he was allowed no rights to his wishes. He got well enough to go home........but never well enough for my mother to go back to work.

Along comes April, Dad gets sick again, and Mom takes him into the doctor.......they do some lab work, and she goes home. I call her later in the evening to see if she got the results from the labs, and she hadn't, so I called and eventually got the results.............My Dad was in complete renal failure, and needed to go to the hospital immediately. I called the Urologist, and we had a conversation, and he stated that he would see us at the hospital. He decided to a procedure that ended up blowing us all out of the water.......Dad's prostate cancer had returned, and the tumor was growing into his bladder, and towards his kidneys.........he suggested another procedure.....stents in his kidneys. This would be proactive in keeping the kidneys open, and functioning. Dad wasn't really "for" it, but I thought it would be a good idea, so he finally decided that he would go through it. (Having not journaled this, things seem a bit fuzzy already.....but this is my best recollection of the events in order). He ended up having a CT Scan, and Bone Scan to find out that he had extensive metastatic disease in his pelvis, hips, ribs, lymph nodes.......and then they found a stricture in his colon that appeared to be caused from disease as well.........WOW! Not exactly what we expected to hear........WOW again........they suggested HOSPICE. This is my DAD they are talking about!!! The Urologist had a different more proactive take on things, but Dad had been through so much in this hospital stay that he said he wouldn't have anymore surgery, and his choice was hospice. Dad made a phone call to his brother Frank in Alabama to tell him the "news"........at which time he told his brother that he wanted him to sing at his funeral............then he called his nephew "Bud" (Frank Jr.), and told him "I am dying, this cancer is all over my body, and I want you to preach my funeral". He agreed that he would be honored..............Not the call I think he was expecting, nor was it anything that I enjoyed hearing.........but it was what it was, and he felt he needed to take care of those things. It took me a couple of days before I was able to accept that dad was planning his own funeral, but finally I got on board, and we talked about it together, and there was nothing in his funeral that he was unaware of.......He chose down to the songs that he wanted sang.

It was time to make phone calls and tell family what was going on..........He ended up with exactly what he didn't want.......he had up to 25 people a day in his room "visiting". There were times that his mind wasn't always right, and that was hard to watch.

Once deciding on hospice, he ended up being released to go home. My brother from Ohio came to visit for a week, as well as my cousin from Alabama. We had some very good times with family and Dad. Dad had good days and bad days over the course of the next couple of months. We had lots of family get togethers with my family and my cousin Lewis and his family.....Dad enjoyed them and the kids. Dad got weaker and weaker, and we had to get a hospital bed for the living room.........so he spent the days in the living room, and slept in his own bed at night. Father's Day came and went, and I missed seeing Dad only because I was admitted to the hospital that day for 4 days.......I did speak with him several times throughout the day, wishing him a Happy Father's Day. Mario spent the day with dad, and that made him happy......He also received a phone call from his son Fredrick.............but that's it.....

On July 5th we went out as a family to see Dad, and he was up and moving having a really good day...........he wanted BBQ, so Lydell went to town and got some ribs, (because that was his request) and came home and grilled them for Dad. He also wanted some potato salad.......when all was cooked, he took one bite.......and it didn't taste good.........as had been the case for the last 4 months.....On July 6th I spent the night at my parents, it was a long sleepless night for my mom, as Dad kept getting out of bed, and was becoming more and more agitated and confused.

Hospice was called, and the nurse decided that it would be best for dad to go into the Hospice house.............It was a very hard decision to make, but we were no longer able to take care of dad at home.

The care he received at the hospice house was absolutely amazing.......There was very few times that we felt that dad was "with" us........most of the time he had a blank stare, and didn't respond to anything. There was one day that I was there and it was obvious that he was trying to tell me something...........I thought he wanted his nose scratched, and so when I tried to scratch his nose, he wrinkled up his face, and I could tell that he was upset...........what he wanted was his eye wiped..........mom knew immediately.

The day before dad died, I took the boys up to see him............On the way there they were making "get well cards" in the backseat. Jayden proclaimed that dad would love his card because he did his very best..........I told him you are correct. Isaiah said, "he won't even know it's there"...............(that hurt my heart, but he was correct) Isaiah continued on making his card all the while being very secretive about what was in his card. When we arrived, the boys jumped out of the car and ran in ahead of me..........when I arrived in the room, dad had two get well cards on his chest. I immediately picked up the card that Isaiah had made............The words I read, made me cry and have to walk out of the room. Inside the card read.........."For God so loved the world he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him shall have everlasting life in heaven"..............Amazing from my 9 year old son...............I thought to myself amongst my tears.........."He gets it, praise God"

On July 14th, I got off work, and went straight to the hospice house............knowing that dad could go at anytime. When I got there, he was still staring straight at the ceiling, and didn't acknowledge that I was there.......Around 7ish the nurses came in and gave him a bath, which seemed to agitate him quite a bit, and it seemed that no amount of medication calmed him down. Mom and I were going to go and get some soup in the kitchen, but the nurse was going to call the doctor to see if they could give him more medication............so we decided to stay with him...............we were talking to him, and telling him how much we loved him, he got a great big smile on his face, took a deep breath, and we watched the life go out of him.............It was most amazing, and heartbreaking all at the same time...............but my mind will never forget the smile on his face as he breathed his last breath............he knew we were there, and it was his way of telling us that he loved us too.

We made all of the phone calls to family, which was very difficult.

Hospice called the funeral home, and they came to get dad................I was able to stay in the room while they put him in the "black bag"...............well, it was blue. When I said that I wanted to watch, they explained to me everything that I would see them do, so I wouldn't be shocked. They got dad in the bag, but didn't cover his head............then all of the hospice staff lined up and we walked dad out to the van that took him to the funeral home...............It was an amazing experience, almost like a ceremony.

IT'S REALLY BEEN OVER A MONTH??

2008-09-30T19:00:00.000-07:00

Okay, I am sitting here without the help of my Calendar.....it's at work........and since I spend what seems like most of my time there, I make sure that I write important things on the calendar at work, such as doctor appointments, and field trips, and what days the kids don't have school.
I have established that back to school shopping was a disaster......and I didn't even get into looking for school supplies and the list we get for these kids.........I think that the only thing that I didn't have to get for Isaiah and Jayden was toilet paper, and I thought about putting that in their back packs. I had to get things like a box of quart zip lock bags, a box of gallon zip lock bags, wet wipes, disinfectant wipes, paper towels..........and then there is the "earthquake kit" that I haven't put together that includes some solar blanket that I have to try to find......because we are at great risk for an earthquake............Last year at Isaiah's old (public) school we had what they called an "emergency kit" that contained a bottle of water and a granola bar.......and when they had the school on lock down because they had a sniper threat...........I guess they forgot about the "emergency kits" because my child got home from school and hadn't had anything to eat all day because they couldn't let the cafeteria workers into the school.......because of the lock down.........I'm not quite sure what would fall under the classification of an emergency so that you could get into the "emergency kits".......but evidently that wasn't it..............so, the point I am trying to make here.......what in the world do they need an "earthquake kit" for???? I know I am difficult.
So..........on to the first day of school. For some reason...........and it escapes me....(don't have my calendar)......might have been vacation I wasn't working on the boys first day of school. I was able to take them, and get them to class, meet with the teachers, and then head home. Isaiah really didn't want to go to school, he wasn't quite ready for summer to be over..........and Jayden was VERY excited to get to school............until we got their. Jayden really doesn't like big crowds of people, but out of the two youngest boys he is the child that more people are drawn to when it comes to trying to carry on a conversation.........so, he had kids saying "hi Jayden" and wanting hugs (he loves to give hugs) and it was a little overwhelming for him at that moment, and he was hiding behind my legs and up against the wall...........never mind there are people EVERYWHERE..........my plan was to drop Jayden off at his class and then take Isaiah to his. One look into the classroom and Jayden was having none of that, and decided that he was going to stand outside down the hall. So, I figured that I might as well take Isaiah to class and then by the time I came back downstairs Jayden would be in class and all would be well...........I go and take Isaiah to class and meet with his teacher and get his backpack put away and head back downstairs only to find Jayden still standing in the hall with a "volunteer mother" standing there trying to coax him into the classroom. NOT WORKING! I look at him, take a deep breath, and say............"okay, this really is fun, but we are no longer going to play this game and you will now go to class"...............with that we head to class, and I leave................I have a great day doing I don't remember what (probably taking a nap) and the time comes for me to go pick up the boys from school..........Jayden gets out at 3:00, and Isaiah gets out at 3:10....so, I pick up Jayden and head to the car and I am packing the backpack thinking all the while that it seems pretty heavy...........so we get in the car, and I open the backpack to find ALL of his school supplies in the backpack........so I turn around and say "Jayden, did you not need any of your school supplies today"? and in this tone as if I am the dumbest person on the face of the earth he says to me......."well..............I suppose not!"..........so.......out of the car we get and march back into the school to talk to the teacher. Not quite sure what to say, I look at her and out of my mouth comes........"did the kids not need any school supplies today"?...........now really, what kind of a question is that??? They are at SCHOOL!! She looks me dead in the face and I almost fell dead at the response that she gave me..........she said "when I asked Jayden for his school supplies he told me that his mom didn't buy him any".........as I am standing here wanting to crawl in a hole because I am thinking to myself what kind of a mother does this woman think I am?? How can you send your child to school..........on the first day no less with not even a pencil to write with??? I can laugh at this now.........because only Jayden would say something like this.......something that given time to think about, made me wonder why in the world would the TEACHER not check the backpack..............where else did she think he would have supplies, and why would I send him with an empty backpack????
The boys are in the full swing of school...........Jordan being a Junior now........that is very trying all in itself......being almost 17..............I've thought about amputating his tongue........but I'm not sure I could find a doctor to do it, and I am not fond of even the thought of jail..........so, I guess I will have to maybe find some sort of earplugs so I don't have to listen to the mouth. Isaiah really likes his teacher, and seems to be doing well.....there is a little girl in the classroom that I think may start some problems.......he seems to like her a little bit.......got in trouble the other day because they were "giggling"......a mother's got to "nip that in the bud" before it gets started................brainwash them............girls are bad! LOL

Oh, with all of the back to school, I almost forgot to post that Isaiah turned 8............and he is such a mature 8. He had established before school ended in June that he wasn't celebrating his birthday until his best friend Jonathan got back from Panama. He went to spend the summer in Panama, and wasn't coming home until just before school started. Isaiah turned 8 on the 26Th of August and Jonathan didn't get home until the weekend after that..........late that Saturday evening......(Labor Day weekend).........so, after having a discussion about celebrating.....(and it really isn't too big of a deal in our home) he decided that he wanted his presents on his birthday, but didn't want cake until he could have it with Jonathan.........so, on Labor Day we went to Oak's Park and they had a good time......It was super super busy, but all in all a good day....because it was spent with his "best friend"!

Before I go...........one last funny Jayden story..........I am not going to repeat Jayden's version of conception........(was in an earlier post titled "Just do it").........so, in Jayden's "history" class they have been studying creation, because we believe this is the beginning of history as we know it........they have been talking about Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel........with all of this new information Jayden comes home VERY excited with the new added information that he has learned about conception............and says with much excitement to his voice and sharing this life changing information........."MOM, I WAS IN EVE'S TUMMY FIRST"..............I just love it!! I don't know what I would do without his revelations!!!

I HATE BACK TO SCHOOL!!!!

2008-08-25T13:06:00.000-07:00

The title says it all...............I have really become an Internet shopper. If I have to go to the store with the kids..........then it's just no fun. Back in the day, I loved to shop...........those days are long gone. I think it has to do with taking 3 kids into the store.....there is nothing even remotely fun about that to me..........Well, the end of the summer is here, and it's just a little over a week until school starts, and time to get busy and get my kids something to wear..........I did try on the boys uniforms to see what we had to work with..........Isaiah's pants were hitting mid calf........(what's really sad is that he didn't really care.) I had this great plan to go to no more than 2 stores to get what I needed for uniforms. Sears and JCPenny.... Didn't work..........so, we I ended up shopping from what seemed like dawn til the middle of the night trying to find "uniform" clothing........THAT FIT! Both Isaiah and Jayden are slim, so finding that was a challenge........then it came down to finding shoes..............I am a little on the anal side when it comes to buying shoes for the little ones........So, off we go to Nordstrom for the shoe fitting........and of course I have a idea what they should be wearing for shoes. Over the course of the last few years I have come to KNOW that when it comes to kids shoes you just can't beat KEEN. They are virtually indestructible when it comes to my boys and they are comfortable and they don't complain about their feet hurting. We had already dealt with getting non-Keen shoes at the first of the summer, and listening to them complain about the Merril's I decided to make sure that they only got Keen's for school. We go into Nordstrom only to find that they do NOT have any Keen's other than sandals......................She even had the nerve to tell me to go to REI.............and that's exactly what I did.............after getting the information to file a complaint for them not having the shoes that I wanted. ;~)

So, off I go to REI and find that they do have the shoes that I wanted for the boys...........but what they lack is the "trained professionals" to fit my children's feet. So here I am trying to figure out just exactly what size shoes I should have my children wearing. This was quite the sight........especially if you have any idea of my idea of children's shoe shopping. This is how I think it should work...........and has always worked for me in the past. I walk up to the shoe counter at Nordstrom, tell the lady that I need to get shoes for my kids. She asks what I would like, to which I reply.........."I would like you to measure their feet, and bring out everything that you have in their size so I can choose"..............it just came to me right now........do you think this lady may have known who I was, and just sent me off to REI so she didn't have to bring out 20 pairs of shoes???? LOL So, here is my logic on them bringing out all of the shoes in the right size.......it seems that every time I find a shoe that I like, when I ask for it I am told........"we don't have it in his size".......so, I eliminate them telling me what they don't have, and they can just show me what they do have...........it's "the glass half full" theory.......LOL
Anyways, I got the shoes at REI and am now a lifetime member.........haven't figured out if I am going to Boycott Nordstrom children's shoes..........doubtful. But I am for sure going to keep up a stink until they get a selection of Keen shoes in again!!
I wasn't going to post this, but when I logged on to update my blog, I had started this, and figured I might as well finish it..............now on to the next post that I started...........a long time ago!!

2008-08-18T18:45:00.001-07:00

CLARK COUNTY FAIR

I can't remember the last time I had been to the fair......now I know why.......it's just something that you want to forget. It's like walking into hell! Jordan had been raising 4H market lambs, so he spent the week at the fair. My parents were kind enough to be there with him most of the time, and they took they're camp trailer, so they had a place to stay and didn't have to be in the fair full time. I was there the last Friday night, and ALL day Saturday. Saturday was the auction for the lambs...........I was told it started at 1:00 pm, but nobody told me that it was all of the livestock that started at 1:00........so, it started with the goats.......one goat sold for almost $2000..............yes, you read that right.........and it was going to be butchered for meat. From there were the pigs, and one sold for over $14.00 a pound, and this pig was almost 300 pounds........again going to be butchered.....most only sold for $2.00 a pound. The market chickens sold for $200 a chicken.......butchered............by the time they got around to the lambs, people were tired and had left so the lambs didn't sell for a whole lot. Jordan got $2.50 a pound for the male, and $3.50 a pound for the female. We sat for so long that finally we took the little ones to ride the rides, and came back and they were still selling pigs. I have a few pictures of the fair..........

This is a picture of Jordan's male lamb. The female is on the backside....the one you can't see.

The boys did ride a couple of rides together, but Isaiah is so much bigger than Jayden, that he can ride more rides.......leaving Jayden on the "kiddy rides"

Isaiah talked his dad into riding a few rides with him.

We waited in line for at least 20 minutes so that Jay could ride in this boat. This lady was by far one of the most miserable people that I have seen in a VERY long time. She never said one word. Just pulled the kids to the side when it was time to get out.

I guess it was worth the wait..........even though it did nothing, he was loving it.

Jay got to ride the small swing, and Isaiah got to get on before they took off.......he had just gotten off of another ride.

Duck Racing GRAND CHAMPION!! On Friday evening Jayden wanted to go race ducks.......so, I went with them to race the ducks, and Jayden wouldn't do it. So, Isaiah was picked out of the crowd to race, and I had to go with him to race. We as a team were the Friday night Grand Champions........and he got this goofy duck hat. So, on Saturday Jayden wanted to race ducks again, this time for real........so, he got picked and they went on to be the GRAND CHAMPION duck racers..........so, I have 2 duck racing champs in my house.......If you look in the back ground of the picture you see the guy in the red shirt. He was in the first heat, and he actually works with Lydell............that was kind of funny.

The announcer named Jayden's first duck "Big Brown" (any clue why??)
The winning duck was "Patrick" (from sponge bob)

CAMPING IN 104 degree HEAT!!

We finally got to go on our annual camping trip to Prineville. The weather was scorching hot, but the water was PERFECT!!! We spent most of the days on the water.........because it was the only comfortable place to be. The boys enjoyed themselves........Jayden has finally gotten comfortable in the water.......we could barely get the boat stopped before he would "dive" off the side and into the water.........he would stick his hands over his head like he was going to dive, and jump and do a belly flop into the water, and every time I would hear........."mom, are you watching me dive?" He actually wanted to ride the tube and did.......got a little bold in making fun of Lydell for not being able to knock him off the tube.............he didn't understand that we weren't trying to knock him off the tube........he thought it was his skill that was keeping him on there........and we let him have his fantasy........we want him to like riding.

We had awesome sunsets, and then the sky was full of stars....................It was truly beautiful at night..........now I am back to reality and headed to work tomorrow.

MAJOR SURGERY!!!

On the way home from the camping trip, Isaiah discovered that he had gotten a sliver in his foot. (That's what happens when you don't wear shoes like you are told) He wouldn't let Lydell or I get the sliver out, because we were going to use a NEEDLE. He wanted to go to the doctor and be "put to sleep" to get the sliver out..............I have no idea where he would come up with something like this ;~) It just happened that we had a doctors appointment so, I told him that he could talk to the doctor about it when we got there.........but first I had to stop by my job and pick up some papers that I needed to take with me to the doctor. He proceeds to tell the nurse at my job, about his sliver and she took him to her "operating table" and had a look. That's when she came up with the "plan"........to soak the foot until the sliver came to the surface, and then pull it out with tweezers. I told her that we had a doctors appointment, and if he didn't get it out then we would be back. Well, we went to see the doctor, and he got out a SCALPEL and proceeded to cut away some of the dead skin on Isaiah's heal.......it was at that point that Isaiah put a stop to his work, and told him that he has a nurse that is going to take out his sliver when we leave here. "She is going to soak it out." The doctor tells him "you can soak it at home"......anyway...........we went back and let Susie take care of the soaking, because when I offered to soak it, I was told......."well, how will you know if you did it right?"
He wasn't happy when I broke out the camera to take pictures of his "surgery"

Our office isn't equipped with "soaking pans"..........so this lovely bedpan worked as the pan.....remember........it has to be done "right".

Jayden was the "assistant" and was so excited, and getting his gloves on........couldn't pick up anything but he was the "assistant" and Susie made sure that's how she addressed him.

This was a "sterile" procedure and had to be treated as such.

If you look closely, you can see the little splinter that is paining his foot.

When it had been "soaked to the surface" then Susie got the tweezers, and got the sliver out....

No surgery is complete without the bandage...and he has a nice BIG one.

He can now walk on his foot again. Of course he is still limping. He wanted crutches before surgery. Susie told him........."Your mom had major surgery, but yours is definitely MORE major than hers was"

Happenings in the House!

2008-08-05T11:20:00.000-07:00

I am really trying not to let a month lapse before I make another post..........although I have been having lots of fun on Facebook finding people that I haven't seen or heard from/of in 10+ years. Some of them it's been 20 years.

On to the drama in the house..........we did make it out on the river the weekend of the 26th...........It was nice and hot, and I got some more sun......this time I did peel........and boy does that look cute coming off your nose. ;~) Isaiah spent lots of time on the tube........never once falling off. Being the mother I would tell Lydell "okay, I think you need to stop he looks tired." When Lydell would stop the boat Isaiah would yell "dad go faster!" He has decided that he needs a wet suit for riding the tube. It was really fun for Isaiah because this has been the first year that he has been heavy enough to go by himself without the tube sinking. Jayden wouldn't get on the tube, but did state that he will get on when we go camping in a couple of weeks...........yeah right, I'll believe that one when I see it!

The best part of the day was when my girlfriend Andrea and her husband Corey showed up to play with us...............she is quite the tuber herself. Can hardly wait for camping with them in just a little over a week!!! YEAH!!! This will be our first camping trip of the summer. We use to go several times a summer, but for the last couple of years we have only went once in August. I really miss camping.

What would my post be without a little DRAMA FROM THE QUEEN!!!! (what can I say......I'm the only one in the house)...........I had been dreading this doctors appointment that was fast approaching me........7/30/08........it was my first trip to the podiatrist. (I had an ingrown toenail) When I made the appointment, they told me that he would be doing the surgery when I came in.....no consult, and then make another appointment, just come in and start cutting on my toe......So, I was a bit nervous about the whole ordeal, but not so bad that I canceled the appointment, but I did think about it. So, here's the run down of the week of the 28th........(I really do feel sorry for my co-workers.) They had to listen to me everyday whine about my appointment on Wednesday............but in my defense I had to listen to things like "Oh, you'll be okay" and then get these horrible pictures sent of people with no toenails......I will spare you the pictures, because they will make your stomach turn. I had two big issues with the surgery.......the fact that they were going to put a needle in my toe, and that the foot that I was going to have surgery on is my "tattoo foot"......so then I had to hear comments like..."well, I guess you will have to have a tattoo transplant because your toe will be so ugly".........the morning of the SURGERY I had to ask one of the doctors that I work with for a xanax just to get me through the procedure, because I had literally made myself sick! Not to mention that I went on youtube and watched an actual procedure.......(not a good plan.) When I arrived at the office they take me back, and the doctor comes in, and I tell him my concerns as well as letting him know that I had to take a xanax to be there in the first place..........he says, "oh it won't hurt, and it will look perfectly normal in 2 weeks." So, I am a week out...........can't say that it was totally pain free............did it warrant a xanax???? Well...................no, but what can I say. I did have to take a couple of days off work to recoup.......and this was what I heard from my phone calls from friends.........."Are you still alive?" "Did you make it out of ICU?" I just don't understand........you would think that I am a hypochondriac................hhhmmmm

On Saturday we got the pleasure of going to Isaiah's 1st swim meet............and I must say.......he had a great time............us on the other hand..........well, being new to the whole sport had no idea what we were in for. We head out to Mt. Hood Community College, and get there to see people walking in with chairs on their shoulders..........we soon find out that the bleachers are concrete........and wide enough for chairs......this is going to be a long evening. It started at 4:30 (for warm-ups) and we had no idea that it didn't get over until around 8:00........our child was in the 3rd event and the last event.........lucky us. Then we read the roster only to find out that Isaiah was racing against in his last event ages 11-15..........and our first time 7 year old. With that we were quite worried about how this would affect his confidence as a he had never swam in a pool this big, nor had he been in a competition before. So, I took my concern to the coach who assured me that it was a very informal meet, and Isaiah was just out there to establish his time. He was fine with that, but I was not. I felt he should be in an age group that was more appropriate, but I went ahead and left it alone........because just my luck, instead of being in the 1st heat of the last event, he would have been in the last heat of the last event..........and there were about 20 heats for the last event. He struggled a bit with his first event which was the backstroke, but did okay........freestyle he did really good.......after getting off to a false start. He jumped in at the whistle instead of at the horn. But he just got back out and when the horn sounded, he waited until everyone else jumped in and then he was off........we were quite impressed, he was behind until about 2/3 of the way across when he passed up this 14 y.o..........so even being the youngest by 5 years, he wasn't the last to come in......(which was my biggest fear for him) The wait between events was 2 hours...........and he is only 7, so he was off playing in the dirt, running up and down the bleachers, and generally running me crazy in between times...........not to mention dealing with a 5 year old that has no interest what so ever in any happenings going on there.........it was a long evening and we were really glad to be home...........next time we will make sure that we will have lawn chairs, and a cooler with snacks to get us through the long day.

Tomorrow Jordan takes his lambs to the Clark County Fair...........he is pretty excited about this. He will be showing them at some point tomorrow....not sure what time that will be, and then they will stay there for the duration of the fair and be auctioned off on Saturday.....so, I get to spend Saturday at the fair and watch an auction...............The things parents do for kids huh?

I will try to get some pictures of the swim meet on here in the next day or so......not in a place that I can download them.............I better get back to doing what I am suppose to do...............work!

JUST DO IT!!!

2008-07-22T17:43:00.000-07:00

Here I am finally just taking the time to update the blog! I am alive, and yes, I was in the 90th percentile, and the blood patch DID work! Thanks for the prayers. The spinal headache was 100x's worse than the actual migraine itself...........will I ever complain again about a migraine??.........hmmmm............YES! (I wouldn't be me if I didn't complain about something would I?) Will I ever have a spinal tap again??? NO!!!! I had 3 children without one, and get a headache, and let them do that??? I really must be crazy! But NEVER again!! We learn from our mistakes...............and let me pass this on to those who have never had a spinal headache.........YOU DON'T WANT ONE!
Okay, enough of that.................what else has been happening in the Ross family? More sickness! Just when I get to feeling better, my father in law ends up in the hospital. Not going to go into too much detail, but he really needs our prayers............and, Jayden is sick this week....so, I have been home the past two days with the boys.........and am I ready to go back to work! Jayden has been running a fever for the last 3 days, and yesterday when it got up to 104.1 I took him in to Urgent care......ended up with a Physician's Assistant that was as dumb as a rock! But then I am one of the people that knows they will be "dumb as a rock" when I find out they are not an MD!".........This is my funny story from the office..........This idiot was trying to listen to Jayden's lungs, and asked him to "sit up and breath so I can listen to your lungs", and pulls out the stethoscope........as he leans over to listen to Jayden's lungs, Jayden snatches it out of his ears and says......."gimme that, I know how to do this" This poor man had absolutely no bedside manners, and not a clue how to deal with a child. Anybody that knows me, knows that I don't allow my children to behave like this, and it was really hard not to laugh out loud at this...........and I don't think there has been one time since I left that office that I haven't laughed when I thought about it. Jayden seems to be feeling better today and I hope to go back to work tomorrow.........Lydell is just going to have to take time off if there is another day of this!

Sicknesses over, and on to other happenings. The boys have had a pretty busy summer. They got to go to Auburn Camp meeting with my mother for a week...........that was nice to have a break............(the day they came home was the day I got the migraine...........coincidence???? hmmmm..............Probably not.) ;~) Lydell and I didn't get to do anything fun while they were gone because we had to work, and most nights he doesn't get home until after 7, and who wants to head out that late?
Jordan went to football camp while Isaiah and Jayden were at camp meeting. That was a long 4 days for him............he did nothing but eat, and play football.......with a little sleep thrown in for good measure. He did say that the food was better this year than last. The most of Jordan's summer has been spent raising 2 lambs for this 4H project that he decided he wanted to do. He will be showing them at the Clark County Fair in a couple of weeks, and then they go to some auction and onto someones dinner table..........he has really gotten attached to the male because he follows him around, and is much more like a pet than the female is......she will stamp her foot and charge at you..........I guess we will see if he can get her a little more comfortable so that he can show her. He did take the male up North and show him a few weeks ago, and won 2 second place ribbons with him.........so, it will be fun to see what he ends up with at the fair.....there will be lots of competition. In a few short weeks, he will be entering his Junior year of high school.............YES!!! only 2 more years!! LOL It seems to get more expensive as they grow. I still have to get his Letterman's jacket. He lettered in Football and Decca (some marketing club) last year..........so, I really need to get on that quickly. This year I will have prom to deal with.........and all of the girls that go along with it. (I am not fond of GIRLS!!!) I will NOT make a good mother in law I am sure.
I will move on to the next child............Isaiah. He has been in swimming lessons most of the summer............and has gotten quite good. Good enough to be on the swim team. He started that last week, and I was VERY impressed with what a good swimmer he has become. The head of the pool said that it isn't often that she gets to see a kid with his natural talent, and really wanted him on the team. She wanted him on water polo as well, but he isn't old enough yet, but we will put him there when he is 9. They might let him play next summer because he will be close to 9 at that point. He finishes this season of swim team next week, and then will start up again in September.......it runs year round, so I have quite the commitment on my hands......but am happy because we have finally found a niche for him. He really hasn't been that interested in sports, but really loves swimming. He is trying to master the breast stroke right now, and it is a challenge because of the coordination of hands and feet at the same time. When I try to think back to my own swimming lessons, I don't think I was introduced to the breast stroke at age 7. One thing that impresses me about the lessons that they are taking, is that they are not kept in the same class for the entire session........they move into the next class when they are ready. They may move up 2 classes in one day if they pass the test..........big ego boost for the kids, to see progress instead of waiting 2 weeks to move up 1 class. Isaiah has moved from level 3 to level 8 so far..........Jayden on the other hand............
Doesn't particularly care for swimming, although he is starting to come around........it doesn't come natural for him to say the least. He has moved from level 1 to level 3.........which means that he is finally getting his head in the water, and putting his arms out in front of himself and kicking.......all this from the child that can't breath if his ears get wet! He does want to be on the swim team.........because "you can be on swim team if you are 5 mom, and I am 5"............he doesn't understand that you CAN'T be on swim team if you CAN'T swim. LOL (but he thinks he can)..............I have to share the fun stuff he told Lydell and I last night. I am not sure if it was the fever talking or just random ramblings.....he is lying on the couch and out of the blue says........."mom, I didn't know your name when I first met you" and with a straight face I said........"really? what did you think it was?".........and he says in a matter of fact way "phone". I had to take a little walk so that I could laugh at my child. So, then a few minutes later he says to me........"I was in Isaiah's tummy before I was in yours"..........I take the bait......"how did you get in to my tummy?" "I got my screw driver, and screwed myself out of Isaiah, and screwed myself into you"..........another walk...........
Saturday Lydell got the oil changed in the boat, and we were on the river on Sunday. It was so nice. This is the first time we have had the boat out all year. Lydell has went fishing a couple of times, but we haven't been out having fun until now.......The weather really hasn't permitted it, and the water in the Columbia has been REALLY high up until a couple of weeks ago. I got a bit of a burn, but I don't think it is so bad that it will peel. Can hardly wait until Saturday when we get back out again. The boys played in the water all day. Isaiah thinks he would like to learn how to wake board this year.........anybody out there that can help teach him??
I better get back to seeing what is happening in the house..........as it is awfully quiet..........and quiet isn't good in "THE HOUSE FULL OF BOYS"!

PRAYER REQUEST!!

2008-07-02T21:50:00.001-07:00

I am suppose to be lying flat on my back...........but I am in too much pain, so I thought I would get up and just send out a prayer request. I haven't really talked to most of my friends in the past week, so there aren't many that know what is going on with me. I will make this quick.......(I am suppose to be in bed) Saturday morning when I was drinking a glass of water, I was really weak on my right side.......to the point that I could barely hold onto my glass. I though maybe my blood sugar was low, but it wasn't. By afternoon, I had this raging headache on the right side of my head..........long story short, Lydell took me to the ER..........I had a CT scan that was normal, and then they decided that I should have a spinal tap........that came back normal as well....Thank God!! But the down side to that was that I have ended up with a "spinal headache".......my head has hurt non-stop since Saturday, and I am just about ready to cut it off. I went back into the ER today, and the anesthesiologist did a "blood patch" on my back where they did the spinal tap because he said that I am probably losing some fluid.......there is a 90% chance that this will work..........so, please pray that I am in the 90th percentile when it comes to the procedure..........I will update my blog later when I am feeling better.......I better go back and lie down before Lydell catches me out of bed. Thanks so much!!!

I've Been Blessed!!

2008-06-11T16:58:00.000-07:00

Back at the beginning of my blogging days.........was when the boys started their new school..........I had been stressing about what I was going to do with them when Cindy decided to retire....The Lord led our family to Crossroads, and things have just been great. The boys are doing well in school, and are with CHRISTIAN people all day long.....School is out, and I am still blessed.........My kids get to spend the summer with new friends........mine and theirs. One of the parents/school employee has been kind enough to keep the boys for me while I am at work. She has a busy summer planned. The boys will be taking swimming lessons all summer, going on field trips, and getting to play with their friends............and to top it off............SHE TAKES PICTURES!!!! She got a new camera for her "BIRTHDAY MONTH", and she is snapping lots of pictures......Just thought I would share. She is well on her way to being a great photographer.
I got a couple of pictures at graduation of Jayden.......(her camera is way better than mine).

These are the "Kids under construction"

This is a good picture of the Pre-K "Gowns"

These were taken today just out in Michelle's back yard.........she did an AWESOME JOB!!!
Oh, and I am also blessed to have BEAUTIFUL kids!!

I've Been TAGGED!

2008-06-10T18:19:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm a little.....(lot) behind on my blogging, and I got tagged weeks ago......so, I will do my best to answer the questions......only because they are different this time around.

5 THINGS I AM PASSIONATE ABOUT:

1. My God!
2. My Family.
3. Cancer Research.
4. Rules.
5. My job.

5 THINGS I WANT TO DO BEFORE I DIE

1. See my children grow up to be happy successful adults.
2. Be able to travel....(without kids) too many places to list.
3. Go on a Mission Trip with my family.
4. Make a positive difference in the lives of others.
5. Live my life to the fullest and die without regrets.

5 THINGS I SAY OFTEN

1. REALLY?????
2. DUH!!!
3. I wish I was sleeping right now, I'm so tired.
4. Radiation Oncology this is Danita (all day long)
5. I Love You.
6. Can't you see I'm on the phone.....quiet!! (this one just came to me...you know how the kids are when they see you are on the phone)

5 BOOKS I HAVE READ LATELY

1. Bible
2. Battlefield of the mind.
3. Hagar.
4. Being a Great Mom raising Great Kids
5. The Miserable Mill (Lemony Snicket)

5 MOVIES I HAVE WATCHED 5X OR MORE...........mind you this is under protest....not because I wanted to watch these movies.

1. Transformers
2. The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe.
3. Cool Runnings
4. The Sound of Music.
5. The Wizard of Oz.

Now I have to tag.......I won't have the quota, but here goes.
I am tagging:

1. Pacgirls
2. Tiffskids
3. DruBek
4. Andrea

Marathon Post from the last Month!!

2008-06-09T18:10:00.000-07:00

I will try to keep things in order of the events.....Sorry it's taken so long for this post.....but I will try to fill in the last month.

MOTHER'S DAY WEEKEND

Mother's Day came upon us......Trying to convince my husband that was "Mother's Day WEEKEND" was quite a job......He told me that he couldn't find anywhere that it's called "Mother's Day WEEKEND" With that in mind........here is how My Mother's Day weekend went. Saturday evening Jordan watched the younger kids.......(as well as our neighbors Brad and Corena) and we went out to dinner and the 4 of us had a hot meal for the second time in a year and a half together. Corena and I got to eat as soon as our food came and didn't have to take kids to the restroom....(that's the norm for us when we go out to eat) When we finished with dinner we went shopping........didn't quite know what to do with ourselves without having to fight kids the whole time, so we were wandering around aimlessly in the mall not knowing what to do with ourselves without kids. We had to get home early because Jordan was calling from the front porch....he said that Brad and Corena's kids were crying that they wanted to go home......which is understandable.......beings that the only people that watch them are their Grandparents, and it was time for bed.......that means GET HOME NOW!!! Which worked for us.....like I said before.......we were lost without our kids anyways.....(REALLY SAD HUH?)
So, Mother's Day finally rolled around, and my boys brought in the presents they made me at school and their cards, and Lydell brought me a really cute card........when you open it up it sings the song......"Still the One".......the one from the 70's......"we're still having fun, cause your still the one" Very cute...........So, it's Mother's Day and I am expecting my BREAKFAST........and there was none......so, I had to ask where my MOTHER'S DAY BREAKFAST WAS AT.........and was told that I got my Mother's Day "last night"......ummm it's MOTHER'S DAY WEEKEND .....somehow that was forgotten.......there was redemption on the way, because we did get to go out for breakfast.............and neither Corena or I got to eat when our breakfast when it came.

Isaiah's class made these darling planters with flowers in them.

This is a close-up of the planter. The middle of the flowers around the planter have his picture in them, as well as the head of the bee.....cute idea. He was so proud of his work.......he especially loved the bee.

Jayden made a couple of things....the first is a bouquet of "lillies" They were made by tracing his hand and cutting it out, and rolling the cut-out around a straw and taped. Then they were put into a pop bottle that was covered in tissue paper.

The other thing he made was this tile. The flower petals are his thumbprints, and the grass is his pinky prints. They were both so proud of their gifts, and they of course are VERY cute in MY eyes...................;~)

WORLD'S FAIR

Isaiah's class did a semester long research project that ended with them throwing a "world's fair". Each child in the class had to choose a country and do research on that country and then stand up before their class and parents and give their presentation on their country. Isaiah chose Japan....."because my dad lived there". We as parents then had to make a dish from that country that everyone could eat at then end of the presentations. When we arrived Isaiah's teacher had him over in the corner going over Japanese words with him, and making sure that he knew them. He was struggling just a little with some of the words, and I was a bit nervous for him. He wrote them down, and attached them to the microphone stand.....(it really was quite humorous). He was second to the last to give his presentation, due to the fact that Lydell doesn't always get off work in time to get to functions....but he made it in time for this, and Isaiah was really happy about that. I sat there and watched all of these presentations, and was getting more and more nervous for Isaiah........he had never spoken before in front of a crowd, and some of these kids were just awful, but I guess they were up there trying so give them credit for that. Then it came Isaiah's turn, he stepped up to the mic, took his little cheat sheet, looked at it.......and started his presentation. I was literally sitting there in amazement as this child gave his little speech. He didn't stumble over words, knew exactly what he was saying, and I really don't even think he said "um" one time. I WAS DUMBFOUNDED!! Didn't know he had it in him. I have the makings of a public speaker on my hands here.

This was the poster board that he made......I asked about the backward letters and his teacher told me........he is in 1st grade....and by the time she saw them, had she taken them off it would have looked worse than just leaving it the way it was........

If you look closely at the microphone, you can see his little cheat sheet that he took his quick look at before he started.

This was his group that gave talks. They split the class into two groups. There were too many students to try to do everything in one night. What I found interesting was the children that were born in other countries, didn't know any of their native language......

CHILDREN'S MUSEUM AND ZOO FIELD TRIP

Jayden's class went on their last field trip of the year to the children's museum and the zoo. It just happened that it fell on our vacation, so Lydell and I were both able to go. We ended up with 3 boys in our group and it was quite the challenge. Not anything really wonderful to tell about the trip........if you've been once, you been a million times. I do have a few pictures to share though.........

This was the class picture in front of the Children's museum.

This was at the zoo in the Eagle's nest......our three boys. Thomas, Jayden, and Danny....."the most handsomest boy in Pre-K".....by a little girl in the class, the day after he got his new glasses....all the boys wanted glasses after that day.

At the zoo they have this area that is like a farm.......the smell and all......Danny wouldn't go anywhere near the barn area, he just stood outside holding his nose, but Jayden had to ride the "horse"

I think all kids have to ride this goat..........we got lucky and didn't have to stop until the way out of the zoo.

IT'S MY BIRTHDAY MONTH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Lydell had been planning my birthday present for a little while........not sure how long, but he had planned none the less. Everything was a secret........and anybody that knows me knows that I HATE secrets. The kids were even in on it. The only thing that I knew was that we were going out of town. I wasn't sure if we were taking the kids or not.........he wouldn't tell me.........I did get a little hint on the way to school........Jayden let slip........"mom, where are you and daddy going to be while we are with Gammy and Poppa"..........BINGO...........no kids!!! So, we did the whole field trip with Jayden's class and then took the kids to Lydell's parents............While we were sitting at the table eating dinner, Lydell's dad says......."which beach are you guys going to?"...........BINGO AGAIN!!...........headed to the beach with no kids for the weekend...this was just looking better and better to me.........oh, forgot to mention this part..........IF LOOKS COULD KILL, LYDELL'S DAD WOULD HAVE BEEN DEAD AT THAT MOMENT!! He didn't know that I didn't know. Lydell still wouldn't tell me which beach we were going to so, he did get a little surprise out of it. We ended up in Seaside, he had rented a beach house from a friend of his from work........It was so nice and peaceful. We walked around downtown and went in and out of the shops, and went out to breakfast........stayed in and watched TV without children.........It was suppose to be the weekend to do whatever I wanted to do .........I soon learned what the translation for that is...........as long as it's what he wants to do too. I wanted to walk on the beach.......didn't want to do that.......didn't do that.........I wanted to play monopoly.......didn't like that......although he did play for a little while.........complaining the whole time.........not saying I didn't have a great time.....I just have to learn to modify what my wants are for MY BIRTHDAY MONTH..........and any other time if I want to have a good time. You can't expect more out of someone then they are capable of......and I am grateful that he planned a trip to the beach all by himself (as far as I know.)

As we were driving to the beach, we came upon what appeared to be a "clear cut" from a distance. I was telling Lydell how ugly the hillside is when they just cut all of the timber off the hill.........as we got closer, it wasn't a clear cut at all.....this was damage from the storm that we had earlier in the year, all of those trees are broken off.

The damage was unbelievable to me...........there was hillside after hillside. On our way home, on the other side of the road, in one area all you could see was trees that were literally uprooted at the edge of the road.

GRADUATION/CLOSING CEREMONIES

At Crossroads the Pre-K and Kindergarten have a "Graduation"........the Kindergartner's have actual caps and gowns.......VERY CUTE! Jayden's class made their own "gowns". They had over sized T-shirts with hand prints on them. When you get up close to see the prints, they are the hand print of each child in the class with their name under the print.

This is Jayden's teacher Ms. Hickey..........she is an awesome teacher.......this is her last year at Crossroads, and she will be really hard to replace. Jayden started Pre-K the end of January, recognizing the upper case alphabet, and knowing only 4 letter sounds........and he just finished the first 10 reading books, and has started on the next program. All of this in just 4 months. She is an AMAZING teacher!

The kids had two outfits.......the orange shirts underneath are from the first part of the program, they were construction workers.

Isaiah's class sang the crayon song......we don't often hear Isaiah sing out loud.........."I sing in my head" is what he tells us, but he was singing really loud so that we could hear him over the other kids for his class song. He blossoms in public evidently. I am not sure what he had done to the top of his crayon, but it was originally pointed like a crayon, he just messed with it until it broke off I guess.

I did get a picture of the boys together outside of the school........the pictures inside the church were not the greatest. The lighting is really bad, and my "expensive" camera just didn't cut it.........now if I could just get a new camera for my BIRTHDAY MONTH then all would be well huh???

I am now hearing that it's "Father's Day Week"...............NOT!!! It's ANNIVERSARY WEEK!! ;~) Lydell always seems to get slighted out of Father's Day. Our Anniversary is on the 16th and that is always right around Father's Day...........I want an Anniversary and he wants Father's Day............

Family, Family and more Family

2008-05-05T17:56:00.000-07:00

Most of you know that I dealt with the loss of a co-worker recently. He chose to take his own life......Just as life was about to calm down, I lost my dear Aunt "Honey Honey" (her real name was Rosie Lee).......but I don't remember anyone calling her anything other than "Honey". It was a sad time, but it turned out to be joyous as well. She was buried on May 1st, and that marked the anniversary of the death of her husband (my Uncle Earl). Uncle Earl was my dad's older brother, and growing up my dad really only visited him...........so, I was pretty close to them growing up, and when he passed it was pretty hard on me, and losing Aunt Honey was just as hard.........They were two of the most giving people you could meet. It is a great loss to our family that's for sure.
I won't go into all of the details of the funeral........it was very nice, and there were lots of people there................LOTS of family. Why does it seem to take a death to get together as a family?
I was blessed to have family here from Virginia, Alabama, Texas, California, and Nevada. It was so nice to see everyone....I will share some photos from the times that we were able to get together.I am putting them in order of being taken........starting with pictures from the cemetery.

This is my cousin Lewis (aka "Little Lewis")...to this day, that's what family calls him. His dad is my dad's brother..........Lewis. He brought his family, wife Maggie, and 3 boys and 1 girl. One of his boys is Isaiah....we have lots of Isaiah's in our family. I have a brother with a son named Isaiah as well. (we didn't know this when we named ours)

This is a picture of my dad and my brother John..........can you tell who is 73? (did I say that?) I always say...........lifestyle makes a difference when it comes to how you age. nuff said!

This picture was taken after the funeral back at the church. Back row from Left to right. Me, my niece Bonita, my sister Felecia, my Aunt Lucille (baby sister), my sister Gloria, and in the front, my Aunt Lois. Both of my Aunts were here from Alabama.

This picture is of my dad and his brother and sisters. My dad is on the left, and then Lucille, his brother Nathaniel, Lois, and Willie (Aunt Tiny). Uncle Nate, and Aunt Tiny live here in Portland.

My dad and his sister Lois.

Jordan and my niece Bonita.

My cousin Antonio, his wife Leisha, and their oldest boy Antoine.

This is my cousin David (Antonio's brother) his wife Vipa, and his son Purnell.

This is my nephew Mario aka Possum........when he walked in the room, I had to do a double take........I thought he was Jordan, and Jordan just didn't happen to be at this get together. Now for the possum story..........he lived with my parents for several years when he was young......and anytime we would go somewhere, he would lie down in the back seat and pretend that he was asleep and listen in on conversations...........it didn't take long before we were all hip to what he was doing.........so, one day my dad says, "well, I guess we will just stop at McDonald's and get something to eat..........it's a good thing Mario is asleep, because we don't have to get him anything."................Mario, who was "sound asleep" in the back seat sat straight up when he heard McDonald's..........and that's how he got the name possum.......by playing "possum" in the back seat.

My cousin Tiffany and my boys......she flew in from Virginia....it was so great to see her. She was a bridesmaid in my wedding. I think I have seen her once maybe twice since the wedding........that's been almost 7 years ago. I got to spend a little time with her.......not enough, but something at least. We are going to do better at keeping in touch now......she started a blog....you can find her link in my favorites.

Friday night we had a get together at my cousin Kim's house.......there was lots of dancing, and playing domino's........this is a picture of my niece and my Great nephew.......that poor boy.....bored out of his mind.....

This is my sister Felecia and her two boys Tre' on the left and Ethan on the right...........they were pretty bored as well.........there were lots of kids there, but they were just a little bit younger than her boys, and they didn't want to play with the younger kids.

My cousin Chad's boy Keon and Isaiah...........they had the best time together......what is sad, is that Keon lives in Portland and I don't think they have seen each other in about 5 years.......too long to even remember each other.

My cousin Dee and his daughter. Dee came out from Vegas to California and then on to Portland. He got the pleasure of helping care for his Grandmother (Aunt Honey Honey) up until the end.......I'm sure there are good memories as well as sad ones.

I got the pleasure of spending a little time with my cousins from Alabama.......for some reason I really didn't know them.........and it was GREAT to finally spend some time with them.......they are both so fun and funny. They are both my Aunt Lois' boys. Caesar on the left and Dee Dee on the right.

You just had to be there to get the full effect of this picture...........but my cousin Eddie D was showing some new moves when it came to dancing.............I think one of the most entertaining things I witnessed over the course of the past week that's for sure.

You know how I like to share the "best for last"...............this is a picture of my Great Nephew.......his dad had warned me that his is not the most well behaved child around......as he so nicely puts it..........the Pit Bull dog hides under the bed when he sees him coming........can you see that when you look at that sweet face?? Well, I never witnessed anything myself, but Isaiah comes up to me out of the blue, and said............"mom, do you want to know who the worstest kid is here?"............and he points out this sweet face..........LOL I really did laugh out loud, and then had to go tell Paul (his dad) and we laughed, and he said...."see, I told you so."

Stuff on my Cat

2008-04-28T14:05:00.000-07:00

Just have to share.........I sent a picture of Jayden and JT sleeping in to Stuff on my Cat at least 3 months ago........and when I was looking today, they actually published my picture.......so, if you want to see it, click the link in my favorites, and it was published on the 26th. You have to scroll through the pictures until you come to the date of the 26th and then the picture of my 2 cuties sleeping..........back to work for me.

The WISE words of a 7 year old!

2008-04-22T09:39:00.000-07:00

I was dreading coming to work this morning.......and was talking on the phone with my mother when I said to her......"ugh...I really don't want to go to work today"........and from the back seat Isaiah says..............in this "duh" tone............"mom, nobody wants to go to work, you just go for the money".................LOL wonder where he got that from????
Quite actually I like my job for the most part.......there are things that I would change, but the things that I would change, aren't going to........so, it becomes the task of just trying to live with things the way they are, and get on with it..................on the other hand, Lydell does NOT like his job at all......but has been there to long to leave and get paid the same amount of money.........
I figured that I better share that story before I forgot it.........like in the next 15 minutes or so. LOL That's what happens when you get old!!

What Happened to my peaceful weekend?

2008-04-21T20:31:00.000-07:00

I took the day off on Friday..........to go to Chuck E Cheese with Jayden's class..........his class goes on a field trip just about EVERY Friday. He was quite excited about this trip, and had been praying every night that his "mom and dad can both go to Chuck E Cheese". I had already planned on going, took the whole day off, because I was heading to the beach for a relaxing girls scrap booking weekend, after Chuck E Cheese........and believe me.........I WOULD NEED IT!! Little did I know that Lydell had asked for the day off........because of the prayers of his son.......and got it. So, his prayers were answered......both mom and dad got to go. Lucky us.......because when the teacher found this out, we got all of the "good" kids in our group. There was two of us, and she felt we were better able to handle them because of that..... and this is a direct quote......"I have tried them with all of the other parents before, and they always end up back with me". (well thanks a lot!) Lydell is really good with kids, and has the patience of a saint, so it wasn't really too bad. We didn't get the bus for the trip, so the kids had to ride in parents cars........we didn't sign up to be drivers, so the only kid we had to have in our car was our own.........YIPPEE!! When we got to Chuck E Cheese, it was raining, so I went and waited by the door under cover with my child, while Lydell went to get our 3 "children" from the other cars.........This is what I heard while they were walking across the parking lot.....(no kids names mentioned) Child to Lydell..."boy your hands sure are warm" (he was holding his hand) Lydell..."I don't like cold hands, so I try to keep them warm". Child to Lydell...."well, when I wet myself, I get a whoosh of cold"...........I didn't hear the rest of the conversation, as I thought I was going to "wet myself".......anyways, long story short, we survived the big RAT, and I was on my way to the beach.............(no pictures....thought I lost the camera)
That was heaven!! I got a WHOLE scrapbook finished........from start to finish. I went with my mother, and that was nice to be able to get away. Lydell had the kids for the weekend, and I got to just sleep in, and do what I wanted to.......there wasn't even a TV! We woke up on Sunday morning to about an inch of snow, and it was beautiful. It melted in a couple of hours, but I had never been to the coast and had snow.....so, it was a first.
Last night we took the boys to Big Al's http://www.ilovebigals.com/ It was lots of fun. Isaiah and Jayden bowled for the first time ever, and did better than I did..........no kidding. Had a blast. Lydell doesn't like to bowl, so in 10 years we have never been bowling. I am part of the employee activity committee at work, and this was a sponsored event......and he came even though he didn't want to.......and had a really good time.
So, now I get to my headline...........what happened to my peaceful weekend? I went to work!!! Today was the first day of our move from our current area to the new cancer center. Everything went VERY fast! The movers got there somewhere between 7 and 7:30 am, and had EVERYTHING that was moving out of our department by 1:30. I don't think I ever want to move again without the help of movers. It was unbelievable to watch. Especially if you have any idea the size of our department. The IS department had all of the computers and printers dismantled in less than an hour.............but during all of this, I felt like a homeless person. I had no computer, therefore why sit at my desk...........my boss was really kind. She went to the new building, and let me feel helpful in the department, by walking around, and making sure everything got moved....so, I did that for almost 5 hours....walking and walking and walking some more. By afternoon, it was time to staff both departments due to the fact that just about everything was gone.........that proved to be disastrous, and I almost had a mental breakdown............if it keeps up at the pace it's going...........I should be in the crazy house by Friday.....just in time for another peaceful weekend.........only because I will be on meds.....LOL So, keep me in your prayers, that this too shall pass, and everyone will do their part in making it go smooth............and that those that don't..........well, you know........get reprimanded!!! Yeah right! Not going to happen in this lifetime or the next. Unfortunately, not everyone has to live up to the same standards at my job......and it really frustrates me.......and I teach my kids that life isn't fair..........so I better just suck it up and get over it huh?
Anyways, I better get to bed, because I bet I am going to have a VERY long day tomorrow as well. I have my pedometer ready to check my steps tomorrow.....wish I had had it on all day today.......I bet I walked 5+ miles.

More pictures from Reunion

2008-04-21T20:08:00.000-07:00

Well, I thought I lost my camera......I went to the Humane society with Jayden on the 11th and I hadn't been able to find it since..........as it turned out, it fell under the front seat in my car. YEAH!! So, I am able to share a few pictures from the reunion.

Here is a picture of the kids that I could get to sit still long enough to get a picture. The two girls in the middle are Thom and Debbie's girls.....the oldest is Helen, and the younger is Rachael. Sadie is on the right. She is Allison's daughter, and of course my two on the left.......and as always Isaiah has a CRAZY look on his face............that and I am a master of taking great pictures. LOL

Here is a picture of Allison and Sadie.

For some reason not everyone that was there made it over for our "class picture". (the one that I posted last week) But I did get a couple of pictures of those that missed it....Here is a picture of Michelle and Andy.

and Jacki.............like I said, I have a knack for taking pictures at just the right time.........

Even though this one is a bit blurry, I just had to add it.......Marci had probably the last of the "class of 88" sweat shirts from our senior class trip, and Mike was kind enough to model it for us..........we all had a good laugh.

Can you believe it's been 20 YEARS???

2008-04-07T18:27:00.000-07:00

This is it!!! Those of us "brave" enough to come back after 20 years!

On Saturday April 5th I went to my 20 year class reunion. I had mixed feelings about going, but sucked it up and went....................I am so glad I did. I hadn't been in the church since they did the renovation, so that was really nice.........and they had the ground breaking ceremony for the new building on Friday night, and will soon be tearing down the old "Ad Building". My morning started out with a call from one of my dearest friends Karen asking if I had a belt............bringing us right back to high school 20 years ago, worrying about what we were going to wear. (I didn't make it home from work on Friday until after 8pm because I was out shopping trying to find something to wear) We laughed, and then I got a call from another friend asking me what time I was going to be there, so that we could meet........she wanted to make sure she found a parking space, so she was there bright and early. Karen and I decided that we would meet at 10:30, because we didn't want to be there too early. When we got inside the church, we did see a few of our classmates in the lobby, and visited for a minute, and then went to have a seat and the sanctuary was of course full, so we headed up to the balcony. We ended up being some of the first people to get up there, so we had a choice of seats. We sang the "school song" that I hadn't heard in 20 years.........thank goodness!...........I hope I don't have to hear it for another 20 years actually. A few minutes later I feel a poke in the back and turn around and see Mike, Ken Jorgensen, and Allison. (I am naming names for my classmates that read my blog and missed the reunion) Mike lives in Vancouver, and I can't remember the last time I saw him..........I don't think it's been 20 years, but well over 10 I am sure of that. He is not married, no kids..........Ken lives in California, and is married with 3 kids. He has an 18 year old daughter, a 10 year old daughter, and a 3 year old son. I haven't seen him in 20 years...........and didn't recogize him until Karen asked me "who is that Ken guy?" Then I knew who he was. Allison looks the same as ever..................except she has the most beautiful little girl named Sadie. I haven't seen her in 20 years. When I got to looking around the balcony, I think that most of the people that showed up in our class were in the balcony............(if you know anything about our class, that is just about right) Jacki flew in from California, and her daughter Brittany drove over from Walla Walla. Marci came over from Bend and brought her family, She has 2 boys. Jay was there with his 2 boys, Troy has a baby boy that just turned 1, Andrew and Rebecca have 2 children, and are in the process of adopting 2 more from Ethiopia. Becky Halley drove over from Idaho, and she has 2 beautiful little girls. Jennifer Johnson has a boy and a girl. Steve Oster has 2 boys. The oldest told me when I asked his name...."I am 8 1/2" and the youngest is only a couple of months old I believe. Karen has Justin who is 14 I think.....growing up so fast. Last but certainly not least is Thom and Debbie with 2 girls........and all personality! It was great fun, hope that we can get together and do it again before another 20 years is up........definately not the same group of people from 20 years ago.............I think it's safe to say, that we have grown up........I didn't hear any bickering or complaining at all........which is SUPER!! Everyone that I know of had a really good time..........I didn't feel like we had enough time to catch up with everyone, and it would have been great if more people had shown up.......but all in all.........IT WAS GOOD!

I will try to get some more pictures up later.......am just too lazy tonight. I just figured that I better get this posted since it's 2 weeks over due.

Easter Pictures and update!

2008-03-31T17:40:00.000-07:00

I had it all planned out............I was taking the boys to an Easter Egg hunt this year........growing up Adventist, we were NEVER allowed to go on an Easter Egg hunt, as we were at church during all of the Egg Hunts...................I guess I really didn't know that I wasn't missing anything......Just a bunch of kids pushing each other down trying to get to the next egg. Then I had this wonderful idea that I wanted to take the kids to build a bear so that they could build their own stuffed animal for their basket. Lydell REALLY didn't want to go, but was a good husband and just humored me and went along for what I told him was "an experience". He has been through that "experience" a couple of times before, and didn't really want to have it again. When we left Build a Bear I had planned for us to go sit on the Easter Bunny.........Jayden is still afraid of the Easter Bunny, but Isaiah did sit on his lap, and Jayden ended up sitting in a chair in front and let the Easter Bunny know "I'm watching you, and you better not touch me". I guess I will have to find a scanner to get that picture scanned in. It turned out very cute.

The Employee Activity committee has an annual Easter egg hunt..........eggs all over the ground, and this scary bunny running around scaring kids. LOL

Once the hunt began, I didn't see Isaiah..........he was busy fighting for his 5 eggs. Poor Jayden......every time he would pick up an egg and toss it in his basket, he would over shoot it, and it would go out the back side and back onto the ground...........resulting in someone else stealing his egg. I think he got 2 eggs, and Isaiah was really upset when he had to share his eggs.

Isaiah chose just a basic bear, and he named him "Brandon Roy". He is becoming a blazer fan like his father. He actually named him that because he found this really "cool" blazer outfit for the bear...............that cost more than the bear itself!!

Jayden actually chose a basic dog and got the sound in it that says "I love you" when you squeeze it's tummy. He named his dog "Spider Man"...................a direct result of the outfit he found for his as well.

Jayden of course had to "wash" his puppy for a very long time..............he was extra dirty. Isaiah had washed his by the time I got there with Jayden, and wasn't about to wash it again!

I was a good mom, and let them color some eggs..........you can tell that Jayden was pretty excited about the whole process.

The end results of the baskets...............with the Million dollar stuffed animals......

The boys loved them..........even though they knew what animal was going in them, it didn't even seem to matter..........I just told them up front that they were going in the Easter baskets, and that was that.

I have to share this picture, and the story behind it....................On the Friday before Easter, I was on Craig's List and found a Jack Russell Terrier for free............my parents had been looking for a house dog........so, I called and ended up with this dog for my parents...........who were headed out of town to see my Grandmother.............so, I got to keep this dog for 2 days while they were gone....................We are a CAT house!!!! I really don't think that I ever want a dog in my home again. I had to take this thing for walks, and scoop poop and the whole 9 yards! NOT MY THING! The first think Isaiah did when he brought the dog in the house was take her upstairs and "introduce" her to JT................who of course ran under our bed, and didn't come out until bedtime, and then got up in our bed and slept between mine and Lydell's shoulders all night......( I have to tell you that JT doesn't sleep in our bed, and that is his choosing......so he was scared out of his mind). He spent all of Saturday under our bed, and when he finally figured out that the dog was in a crate he ventured out in the open just upstairs. Well, sometime Saturday evening Winnie got herself out of the crate and ran upstairs and chased the cat again. So, now I not only have a dog in my house, I have an escape artist to boot..........so I ask Lydell to go and buy her a new crate....and he comes home with this nylon crate that has a zipper.......I put her in that, and she figures out how to unzip this thing...........so, I have a snap holding the zipper closed so that the dog won't get out and chase my cat.........so what does this crazy dog do??? She figures out how to roll this nylon crate all over the house so that she can get to wherever she wants to but is still in the crate. It was none to soon when my parents came and got that dog.......and once JT figured out she was no longer in HIS house, he came downstairs, and this is how he fell asleep..................finally comfortable in his own home at last!!

OMSI

2008-03-18T16:10:00.000-07:00

Well, today was the OMSI trip with Isaiah's class. It turned out to be great actually. There were 15 parents, and 17 children. At least that is what I think the teacher said. That was WONDERFUL for me. I only had my own child!! We had a really good time. He was a little impatient with the lines for some of the hands on things that they had for them to do, but we just found something else, and came back to it later. We went to the Omnimax theatre, and it was all I could do to keep my lunch down. We saw "The Coral Reef" It was really good, but way too life like for me. I was dizzy and queasy.......really sad, since I was just sitting in my seat. Isaiah's teacher had the right idea. She took Dramamine before we went inside and she was fine......I will know better next time.
A couple of fun things I overheard in the car on the way home from OMSI...........Isaiah talking to my mother.......she asked him if he "learned anything new" His reply................"I learned how babies come out of mommy's tummy's"! I bet she wasn't expecting that one............The picture will be to follow at the bottom of the post.
We got to shop in the gift shop, and Isaiah collects rocks.........so, we have a bag full of rocks from OMSI. We bought Jayden some plastic rain forest animals........and we get in the car, and I hear Isaiah tell Jayden......"Look what mom bought us to share" I told him that they were only to share if he was willing to share his rocks............."never mind" he said. So, we are a little closer to home, and I hear Jayden ask Isaiah.........."when we get home we can play with your rocks, and my animals".............to which I hear Isaiah say..........."you are NOT playing with my rocks, they are FRAGILE"..............(you have to be careful of "fragile" rocks)
Today is Lydell's birthday, and Isaiah wanted to stop at the store and get Lydell something for his birthday..........."Let's stop and get dad some Nutter Butter's mom, you know it's his Birthday" Anybody that knows Lydell knows that he LOVES Nutter Butter cookies. So, I guess we are going to have to make a trip to the store and get some and wrap them up for him from the boys.

We got to see the Dinosaurs.......and there were lots of them.

Fossils from 100 million years ago.......;~) (I got a kick out of that......since I don't believe in evolution)

It was amazing to see the amount of fossils from Oregon.

The kids got to "dig" for fossils............actually brush sand away with paint brushes that barely had any bristles left.

This was sand that had buried puzzle pieces in it, that the kids had to find. All of the pieces had a number on it, and they put it together and the result is below.

Isaiah with a couple of classmates after they got the dinosaur together.

We made paper airplanes.........this is mine, and it flew straight......it is hooked up by a clip, and has wind blowing it, and you are suppose to see if you can make a plane that will fly straight......I did it.

This is a picture of Isaiah and his friend Jonathan. I think this is the only time they were still for the whole time we were there.........well........maybe for the Omnimax.

I saved the best picture for last...............This is how Isaiah learned.......how babies come out of mommy's tummy's.....................THANK YOU OMSI!!!
LOL

Finally an update!

2008-03-13T19:39:00.000-07:00

What has been happening in my family?? Well I think we all are pretty well. After the last round of yuk that the boys had, I finally thought it was over, and Jayden ended up sick again this time with pneumonia. My dad ended up with the same stuff.........only at 73, it wasn't a very pretty sight.....He was quite blessed, and is feeling much better, but it was really rough for a good week and a half for him. To the point that it was really scary for me. I took him to the doctor and the hospital in 1 day.......Never go to Legacy Salmon Creek Medical Center........not going to go into it too much, but.......... they are worse than Kaiser, and Southwest Washington combined!!! And..............ANYBODY that knows me knows how much I detest Kaiser and Southwest...............so, I guess that leaves PROVIDENCE!!! Yeah Providence.

Jordan started track, and is training to run the 200 meter. He didn't think he would like track, but he seems to like it pretty well. He did come home the other night and tell me that his coach asked him if he had had a serious "injury" before. Why in the world would he think that? Jordan was evidently having some trouble getting into the "racks" (that's what he called them), so he thought he may have had an injury..................NOPE............he is just a little stiff. ;~) I think they must have figured out something, because I haven't heard another word about it. His next assignment/goal is to make sure that he gets his LETTER in track. I think I am like one of those horrible sports mothers........because I expect that he gets a letter in whatever sport that he is playing...and what's sad, is that I don't think there is an excuse why he shouldn't get one. So he has some work a head of him.

Isaiah got his first grades a week or so ago, and is doing really good. I am so happy with the things that he is learning. It's as though they are tapping into his learning style much more than the public school was...........not to mention that they actually seem to care there. Isaiah's teacher spends 1 day a week after school with him helping him get caught up on the phonics that he didn't learn in the public school. Next week Isaiah will be going on his first field trip at the new school. Jayden has been on probably 10, so he is really excited. I get the day off to go with him, so I am looking forward to that........(I think) We will be spending just about the whole day at OMSI and will be getting to go into the omnimax and watch a movie.

Jayden is loving school, and learning lots. They have went to the fire station.....(he wants to be a fireman when he grows up), went to Winco foods, Tri-Met and got to "drive" the train (Max), he was sick and missed the trip to the airport and the umbrella parade......we even bought a new umbrella for the parade. When the class got to the fire station nobody was there, so they waited around for a bit, and luckily the firemen returned..........and he got taught about 991......yes, I said that correctly...........991. So, we get to hear at least 4 times a day......"Can I use your phone?" so, we have to ask..........."what do you need the phone for?" This is the reply 100% of the time.....the only thing that changes is the name that he inserts............"I'm calling 991 because _____ hurt my feelings" The name he uses depends on if he didn't get to do something that he wanted to do (then that would be Lydell or me) or if Isaiah or Jordan says something that he doesn't like.

Work is as busy as ever...we will soon be moving to the new cancer center. If you have a moment check it out.... Here is the link. http://www.providence.org/centerofhope/center_of_hope.html
It is an amazing center, and exciting to be able to be a part of it.

March is a big Birthday month in my family. My mom will turn 58 on Sunday the 16th, and Lydell with turn 37 on Tuesday the 18th. I haven't quite figured out what I am going to do for them. If anyone has Ideas..............PLEASE let me know. I am clueless right now.

I was going to put some pictures on here.......but that is going to have to wait. I will try to get that done in the next day or so. I should have a little more time.....the weather sucks right now. It had been so nice, that the boys got to spend a lot of time outside in the evenings.

Where in the World do kids come up with the things they do???

2008-03-13T19:22:00.000-07:00

I am sitting here at the computer tonight looking at one of my favorite funny sites.........stuffonmycat, when out of the blue I hear this............"Mom.......Me, Jayden, and Jordan are lucky to have made it out of your tummy". To which I reply......."what in the world are you talking about". He says......and this is a direct quote........."some people come out combineded" I am sitting here thinking to myself.......what in the world???? But before I could say anything, (because I am not sure what to say) he goes on to tell me that they had a substitute teacher today, and she was telling them about this baby that was born with "two heads". I kind of put it together...........(not quite sure what sparked this conversation with FIRST graders), but she must have been talking about Siamese twins. He also shared that his teacher had to go pick up her sister, and it was "a good thing they didn't come out combineded"...........so, now there is the new word...combineded.......definition: a person born with two heads.

I had to share that..........Now I will try to get some updating done.

Bathtub Fun

2008-02-20T21:50:00.000-08:00

The boys got their hair cut tonight, and then up to the tub before bed.......Jayden loves bubbles...........Isaiah hates them. Jayden got his hair cut first, so he got in the tub first......and got bubbles. I told him that he had to wash his hair.........he doesn't like getting his ears wet (because when water gets in his ears he "can't breathe"- those are his words not mine) Needless to say when it's time to get his hair washed it's a fight everytime. Tonight he decided that he would go ahead and do it himself, so that I wouldn't have to waste my time, and he wouldn't have to get his ears wet. He calls me into the bathroom, and this is what I see...........

as he asks..........."mom, is my hair clean?"

He did let me go ahead and wash it tonight without too much fighting. I think one reason was...... that Isaiah wasn't in the tub to try to splash water in his eyes, and just be the "nice" big brother that he always is.

I come back into the bathroom a few minutes later to find JT babysitting Jayden while he is bathing. This is where I can find JT when the kids are in the tub. If he isn't on the toilet lid, he is on the edge of the tub.

Once JT figured out that I was taking pictures he had to stand up and "smile" for the camera.

I mentioned that Isaiah doesn't like bubbles............this is how he sits in the tub if there are bubbles.........he keeps his arms out of the water.....when Lydell and I asked him why he sits like that his response was this.........."I don't like the bubbles to touch my armpits, because when they do, it makes my armpits soft"...............I kid you not..........it makes his armpits soft!!!
Sometimes I really wonder where in the world these kids came from. ;~)

Good night for now.........I am as up to date as I am going to get today!

The 100th Day of School

2008-02-20T21:44:00.000-08:00

I am not sure what planet I have been on for the last 10+ years. This is the first time I have EVER heard talk of the "100th day of school". The kids have been talking about this for at least 2 weeks. Very excited, and planning a big party at school. Isaiah had to bring 100 Jelly Beans last week in preparation, and then he had to put together some sort of presentation that had 100 of anything he wanted in groups of 10.............and true to form..........I waited until tonight to help him get his presentation done. I had been thinking about what he should put on his poster board. I thought about pennies, but then thought that someone else might use them, and I didn't want him to have the same project as someone else.........after all this was my first 100th day of school.........;~) So, it was off to Wal-Mart to get poster board and something to glue on it.....( just have to tell this part of the Wal-Mart trip even though it's kind of off the subject) As we get out of the car and are walking up to Wal-Mart on the side of the building it says "Always" and Isaiah says "Always..........mom, they say they always have low prices but they don't". Just as matter of fact. I really didn't respond other than "oh, really?" and that was kind of it. Okay, on with the story.............we get inside, and get the poster board, and are looking for 100 of something to put on it...........and come accross those little craft eye balls, and that's what he decided that he wanted on his project. We get home, and he gets them counted out in groups of 10's and then when it came time to glue them on they wouldn't stick very well, and I had to pull out the scrapbooking double sided tape to make them stick...........so, I sat and glued on 100 eyeballs, while he got his hair cut..........LUCKY ME!!!

The instructions were to put them in groups of 10.

So he carefully counted out 10 piles of 10 eyes.

And of course gets credit when mom gets through with all of the hard work!

Jayden has to take 100 fruit loops to school. So he washed his hands, and started counting out his piles of 10. He had counted out maybe 3 piles before he was too done with that. How many 4 year olds do you know that are excited about counting 10 piles of 10??

It started out good, but all too soon got boring............just an FYI that is about 400 fruit loops.........SERIOUSLY

I am really glad that I don't have to estimate as part of my job...........I'd lose it.

That little amount in that zip lock sandwich bag is 100 fruit loops.

The Lunar Eclipse

2008-02-20T21:42:00.000-08:00

I was sitting here tonight trying to get this blog updated when I heard the doorbell ring. It was the neighbor coming to find out what the boys were doing, because he thought that they might be interested in seeing the eclipse............so, I called them out and we showed them the moon. They looked at it for about 10 seconds..............I said, "let me go get my camera and see if I can get a picture." I think before I could get back to the front porch, the boys were trying to get back into the house to see what was happening on the TV show that they were watching. I guess either they weren't interested in the moon, or were just more interested in the fact that they were only allowed to watch 30 minutes of TV and knew that they were wasting time.

Not the best pictures..........but this is what my "high tech" camera came up with.

This picture was a few minutes later....you can barely see the little bit of white moon there.
I actually thought it was pretty fun to watch.

Isaiah and Jayden are both Sick

2008-02-20T18:44:00.000-08:00

By Friday both boys are sick, and I have to take another day off work. So, out of 5 days........I worked 2. Lydell was kind enough to stay at home 1 day so that I could go to work 2 days. The days home with Isaiah went pretty smooth.................he was lethargic. ;~)................and EVERY mother loves that one once in a while. (Isaiah is my child with the most energy most all of the time so this really was a treat) So then Friday rolls around and Jayden (who is more laid back) is sick..............I don't think I have ever heard so much whining in my whole life. Wow was that a long day!
Below was the highlight of my day for sure!!!!

It was so nice to stumble upon this..............

and this.................

The weekend proved to be more of the same. The boys felt better on Saturday, and we went out to breakfast, and went car shopping with my in-laws..........My mother in law got the car from HEAVEN!! Brand new Toyota Avalon. This car does just about everything but drive itself. It doesn't even have a key. Just a key fob, and press a button. The doors even unlock when you get near it. I'm not sure, but I think I am more excited for her than she is for herself. LOL It is a much deserved car, and I hate that I didn't have the camera to get a picture. The car buying experience turned out really positive as well. The manager of the whole dealership ended up being one Jordan's football coaches, so we got the "family" discount/treatment. It was really nice..........and I don't know that I want to do anymore car shopping any place else. I have never had an experience quite like it.........and it didn't take all day.

By Saturday evening the fevers were back, and the kids were sick again. Sunday we spent all day home with sick kids...........They seem to be doing pretty good now. No fevers, but are still dragging a little.

Valentine's Day update

2008-02-20T17:55:00.001-08:00

I meant to get this updated sooner, but sick kids and life got in the way. Valentine's day at our house started out early in the morning. Once the boys got up they went and got the cards that they had gotten for their dad and gave them to him. He proceeded to let us all know that "Valentine's day isn't until tonight" When I questioned why that would be the case.............he said "because I said so." (aka.............I didn't get you anything yet) Anyways, I had went the day before and got him a box of Moonstruck chocolates......(I was last minute too......got them from the deli at my work, but at least I did it the day before right???) Got up early and put them on the dash board of his truck. I was a little upset that he didn't even acknowledge that I put anything there. But then that's Lydell!

This was the only day that Isaiah felt good all week, so he went to school and traded Valentines. We spent what seemed like hours the night before writing them up. Doing this for 2 children is no fun, because they get really tired of writing names in about 3 minutes, so you can only imagine what I had to go through. We managed to get through it though and they are still alive to tell about it. Jayden was really excited when he got home from school to tell all about his day.......and this of course is the first time he has traded Valentines, so it was pretty exciting for him........I think it pulled a close second to Halloween. ;~)

When the boys get home from school they decided to dump candy on the floor (like Halloween) and look at Valentines...........

This is only a fraction of what my house looked like.

You just dump and go. Lucky me! I actually threw everything in the garbage....Not my job to pick up the things that you just dump and leave.

When it was time for bed Jayden was still full of energy...........or candy maybe.

This is how I found Isaiah on the other hand................he said that he had only had 1 piece of candy all day..........obviously still wasn't feeling good.

And when it was actually "Valentine's Day" (after Lydell came home) He brought me really beautiful flowers. The Lillies Smell Really Really good. I am just glad that they are in my home and not on my desk. The smell would have been too much.

George Goes Back to School

2008-02-12T13:08:00.000-08:00

We had a great night with George, and he went back to school today. Jayden tried just about everything to leave George at home. He didn't want to take him back. On the way to school, he was just about in tears, and told me (in his famous words) "I'm not having a good day".
He wasn't satisfied that we had dressed George for school and written in his journal. That seemed too final for him. He wanted to keep him another day.........didn't want to have to share him with someone else in the class. So, then he started crying because he was going on a field trip today, and I couldn't come with him because Isaiah is still at home sick. I really hope that he ended up having a good day. The class is going to Tri-Met to ride the Max train. They were even suppose to be able to drive the train. I can't wait to hear the story about the fieldtrip.........unfortunately I will have no pictures.

Curious George Comes Home For A Visit

2008-02-11T16:37:00.000-08:00

Today Isaiah was sick with a fever of 103 so I spent the day at home. Jayden felt good, and wanted to go to school, so we did get up and get him to school and then it was back home in bed for Isaiah and I. I really didn't feel great myself, but I would have went to work had I not had a sick kid. When I got to the school to pick up Jayden he was on cloud 9. It was his turn to bring home George. Had I known, I would have had the camera ready. It was really quite the sight. He had his backpack on and carrying George and his backpack. (George's backpack is heavier than Jaydens)

He has ragged poor George all over the house, tossed him up in the air, and changed his clothes, put him down for a nap, and had a snack all in 1 hour.

He didn't really want to have George near Isaiah, but I insisted.

Isaiah spent the day in bed, holding onto the cat, sleeping, and watching TV.

He was happy when Jayden actually left George to get his backpack, then he actually got to touch him for about 30 seconds.

Twenty 4 year olds and a Submarine!

2008-02-11T15:54:00.000-08:00

Last Thursday we went on the first of many field trips for the Pre-K class this month. They are studying transportation and the letter of the week was S. So, we got to go to OMSI and tour the Submarine. I guess I really hadn't thought this one out, because I thought it would be great! WRONG!! I am claustrophobic (I only thought my feet were.....not) It all started on the bus when my knees were touching the seat in front of me........that was a very long 15 minute bus ride to OMSI.

Once we made it to OMSI we had the kids line up on the side of the building, got into our groups and made our way into the building........(Do you happen to notice the diversity of the 3 boys in this picture? A big reason that I am so happy with this school.)

This is where it all began........

Everyone of us had to climb through this port hole to see if we would be able to maneuver our way around the Sub. I should have taken a clue here, but I think it was too late......I had already committed myself just by saying I would go.........did I mention that only 6 parents we able to go? So I was one of the "lucky" parents that got to go.

On the walk down to the Sub, we stopped by the Memorial and took a few pictures.

This is the actual propeller off the Sub that we toured.

The kids got to pretend that they were driving the Sub.

Got to test out the sleeping quarters....I don't think that there was 12 inches between bunks.

And on the way back up from the Sub, we stopped by the memorial again for a picture of the whole class.

When we made it back to school the kids got to eat "Sub" sandwiches.......I heard the teacher asking one child if he wanted a ham, turkey or peanut butter and jelly Sub sandwich........I knew that was my clue to head back to work..........peanut butter and jelly sub sandwich????? YUK!!!

Tagged???

2008-02-01T20:09:00.000-08:00

Well, I guess I have been tagged. (whatever that means)

I have never done this and all of the blogs that I follow regularly have already been tagged. But I will go ahead and complete a what I can............the 7 strange/wierd facts about myself.

1. My teeth have to always be cleaned and flossed. (so I can feel air go between them) I carry dental floss everywhere, and floss my teeth at my desk at work.

2. My feet are claustrophobic. I most always wear slip on shoes without socks.

3. I think I was suffering from a mid life crisis and got a tattoo when we were in Vegas last October............and want more. (Lydell will kill me if I get more)

4. I love having surgery............my list is long, and I sit around and think about what I can have surgery on next. Any ideas??

5. I love my job most days.

6. I have a VERY sensitive sense of smell.

7. The only places my children can spend the night is at their Grandparents or Lydell's sisters house.....This goes for my 16 year old Jordan as well.

Wow! That was hard considering I thought I was pretty normal..........guess not!

Isaiah and Jayden Start a new School

2008-01-31T10:23:00.000-08:00

I tried to get these pictures on earlier in the week, but things just got too busy...........even though I was home before 5 pm everyday this week. I hardly knew what to do with myself. I have been traveling to Battle Ground everyday and then back to Portland to get to work. My commute totalling 3 hours a day. Now the boys are in school 3.5 miles from my job, and it is like absolute heaven.

Lydell and I got a New Year's present from our old sitter telling us that she was retiring at the end of January, so we had 30 days to find new daycare. I was quite stressed about the situation, and did lots of praying about what we were going to do with our boys. We knew that we were going to have to change schools for Isaiah, but had no idea what we were going to do about before and after school care for him let alone what we were going to do with Jayden. Then one day when I was picking the kids up from my in-laws I passed this Christian School. I called, and got some information, and did a little research and we decided that we were going to try to put Isaiah in this school...........(God had other plans) I still had no idea what we were going to do with Jayden, but I knew that we wanted Isaiah in this Christian school. So, I started looking into before and after school care for Isaiah as well as full time care for Jayden. With the cost of tuition and daycare the price was just way out of our league, and would have been better for me to quit my job and stay home. So, I prayed about it some more, and when I got to work I did a google search for Christian Schools in the area..........and found the school that TOTALLY meets our needs. They have before and after school care right at the school, as well as full day/5 days a week pre-K. Not to mention that it is less expensive than what we were paying for daycare. I talked to the school, we went and had the boys tested and they started on the 28th.
Talk about an answer to prayer huh??? The boys LOVE school, and the diversity is great. I think it is just about the most diverse school I have found..................not to mention Christian teachers.

I had to take a couple of pictures before we left the house on Monday. Jayden was much more excited than Isaiah was to be going to a new school.

He was dancing around singing "I'm going to school". In case you hadn't picked up on it, they have uniforms that they have to wear too. I kind of like that............don't have to worry about what to wear......they can either wear navy blue pants and light blue shirts, or light blue shirts and navy blue pants. LOL

Just had to add this one, because I love the faces..........Isaiah is really a nut!!

Happy 16th Birthday Jordan

2008-01-27T23:22:00.000-08:00

Can you believe that Jordan is turning 16???? I know I can't........I don't know where the time has flown. Only a couple more years and he will be gone........who knows where........from what I am being told, it's harder to get rid of the boys than it is girls..........I will never know that's for sure, because I will never have a girl........(can't even get a girl cat).

After a somewhat eventful afternoon, we made it to Who Song & Larry's for Jordan's Birthday Dinner. There ended up being 17 of us there. It also was Winter Formal for a few of the Local schools. (not Jordan's) So, the place was packed........not to mention REALLY LOUD! But we had a great time, and the food was good.

Jordan got to wear the ragged sombrero while they sang to him.

He got deep fried ice cream for dessert, and blew out the candle before I had a chance to take a picture, so I made him light the candle again so that I could take a picture. :~)

He opened presents while we were there, I think his favorite present was new headphones for his Zune. We got him a new Bible with his name engraved on the front............not exactly what he wanted, but exactly what he needed..........

These next few pictures were taken by Isaiah. He really likes to take pictures, they just all turn out the same. He says just a minute, let me get a little closer before I take the picture.

He will make a fine photographer someday..........LOL
This is a picture of my mom

One of my best friends from way back in high school.........Karen.

And this lovely picture of my dad......I guess he is growing out his beard again. He does this about once a year. Last year it had to do with his hunting season, and he wasn't going to cut his beard until he caught a bobcat.............not sure what the reason is this year........Can you believe he is 72 years old????

Just want to say............GOOD JOB ISAIAH!!

Snow Day

2008-01-27T16:58:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, we went up to the snow with our neighbors Brad and Corena and their family. Once we really started getting to the snow, we came across trees in the road from the storm that we had the week prior......that doesn't stop the "myth busters"

Here Brad and Lydell are devising a plan to get this tree out of the road.........after all..........They had a chain. So, they hooked the chain up to the tree, and Brad pulled on the tree until it finally broke.......

Now we could proceed on to higher ground and more snow.

Here is a picture of Jayden and his "girlfriend" Niciah.
Shortly after Brad and Corena moved next door to us, Jayden fell "in love" with Niciah. He didn't know her name at first so he just called her "girlfriend". One day when I told him that girls don't like it if you don't know their name he says to me............"it's okay mom, she doesn't know that I don't know her name".............but at least now he does know her name.

Isaiah wanted to make me a snow Angel...........He thought that was lots of fun.

He had to do it a couple of times, because every time he would get up, Jayden would run over and jump in his Angel...........(because he is such a nice younger brother), and mess it all up.

Finally he got one done that Jayden didn't mess up, and wanted me to take a picture of it.............so, here it is...........Looks really cool doesn't it???? I thought so too......LOL

On our way home, we stopped and looked at the water falls that we past on the way up to the snow. I was really beautiful.

Jayden is my boy that loves to have his picture taken, and will jump in front of the camera whenever he sees it in your hands.

This is the other side of the bridge and waterfall.
It was a fun day, we couldn't get too far up in the snow, because it was so wet and slick.....but the kids had fun, and so did the men........

Myth Busters

2008-01-27T16:36:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, we went in search of snow with some friends of ours. The guys had this plan laid out before we ever left home that they were going to play "myth busters"............by dumping gasoline in the snow and lighting it on fire..........This is what you do if you are stuck in the snow........It will melt the snow thus clearing a path so that you can continue on...........(This is one of those things that a woman would never try) So, they decided to start safe and pour it in the middle of the tracks just in case.....................nothing happened. (Did you really think it would??)

So, then they figured they must not be doing it right, so they better pour the gas in the tracks so then they could get the desired results they longed for............

Still couldn't get anything to happen.................

So now we have these two yellow spots of gas in the road and can't get them to light on fire....................

The only thing that would burn for them was the paper that they were using to
start the fire.......................There were a couple of "reasons" why this didn't work......one of which was that the gas can must not have gas in it...........It had been sitting around for a long time, and (my husband) wasn't sure what was in it...........so I guess that leaves the test inconclusive right??

Where to start????

2008-01-24T20:14:00.000-08:00

I decided that I too should have a blog, but where in the world do I start? I grabbed the camera to see what fun picutres that I might have on there, and decided to start with the day after Christmas with Jordan's trip to the oral surgeon. He had to get his Wisdom teeth out before the end of the year...........(had to use those benefit dollars up)

It was all fun and games when it started................little did he know.

what was in store after all of the monitors were hooked up....

It's off to never never land for you...........at this point I got kicked out of the room......and of course I was quite disgruntled...............Did they not understand that I AM his MOTHER and I should be in the room for this procedure? This was Jordan's first time going completely under anesthesia, and I should have been able to be there just in case anything went wrong!!
Instead, I got sent to the waiting room to wait...........this is what I was brought in to see about 45 minutes later.....

Now, any of you that know Jordan knows that he is quite the loud talker. The nurse is trying to wake him up so that he can walk to the car and go home, and she seems to be talking too loud for his taste so he starts motioning his hands in an downward motion as he is telling her "your talking to loud".....of course you can barely understand what he is saying with the mouth full of gauze. We had an eventful trip home.............he opened his eyes long enough to tell me that he wanted to stop at the motorcycle shop because he needed a part for his motorcycle. Then about 2 miles from home he flings his seat belt off, and when I asked him what he was doing, he stated....."I'm getting out"..........at this point I was going about 65 mph. I got him settled down, and he went back to sleep for the remainder of the ride home......The fun part is that he doesn't remember any of it and gets quite embarrassed at my telling his story.

Wow, that was a lot of work for a first time blogger..............I had more pictures to post, but that will have to wait until the weekend, when I don't have to go to work.