Dental visit

I have been so busy with the kids that I haven't been able to find time to blog....well its either that...OR....I have been spending way to much time on facebook playing Bejeweled. Surely not me!! It's doing me no good, everyone I know seems to be beating my score... Booo!!!

Anyway, I went to the dentist last week and found out that I had a cavity. Yuck!!

It is only the second one I have had in my life. What can I say, I come from good stock. So, as you can imagine I was horrified that I had a cavity. She, the dentist, actually said the word decay while looking in my mouth. Trust me, it was horrifying.

I must clarify, the first cavity was after a horrible pregnancy with my first born. I had spent months on end barfing in anything I could find to barf in. So, you can imagine what that might have done to my teeth. Maybe, just maybe this second cavity was a residual effect from three similar pregnancies within four years. What? You don't believe me? Just because Camden is 7 doesn't mean that it couldn't happen. I know for a fact that all that chocolate that I ate while waiting for Catie Beth to come home has nothing to do with this.

My only saving grace is the poor woman in the chair next to me was not having a good visit at all. The lady was totally failing her periodontal exam. As the machine shouted out high numbers followed by "Danger" I suddenly felt much better about myself. Is that bad? Sorry!!

I got my cavity filled a few days later and now I no longer have *gulp* decay. Ahhh, much better now. Oh, and it only cost me $13 to be inflicted with pain.

So, I've been holding out on y'all......

Will you forgive me?

I just wanted to be a little further along in the process before I mentioned anything on the blog.....but............WE HAVE A CONTRACT ON OUR VACATION  VACANT HOME IN KANSAS!!!!!!!!!!!  God is good and faithful ALL the time.  It was not in our timing, but He did come through for us.  Sometimes it is not about OUR timing but HIS!!

After 9 months on the market and a realtor change we finally have a buyer.  The house has been on the market since early Nov of 2008 and we had to move (thanks to uncle sam) in early March....So......we have been paying a mortgage and rent for the last 5+ months.  I will admit, I haven't been a very happy person over all this and it has been extremely tough on our entire family.

We were starting to lose hope that the house would ever sell....we even talked with our realtor about the possibility of renting it out.  That is not what we desired but making two house payments was putting a huge strain on all of us.  The savings account took a BIG hit and we were running out of options.  Our sweet realtor asked us to give it just a little more time.....we did, and a few days later we got an offer.

 It was not a good offer, but an offer none the less.......After a week of stressful negotiations we had just about come to an agreement on a price.....and we got another offer.  The second offer didn't amount to much as the second buyer didn't want to get into a bidding war with the first buyer so we signed the paperwork and the process began.  We are taking a pretty good loss, but at this point it would only take us a couple of months to make up the difference.  That is much better than paying two house payments for who knows how long.  

If all goes well we are scheduled to close on Aug. 21.  I really believe that God was saving the house for this particular couple.  They seem sweet and the house will be a perfect fit for them.  So far everything has gone off without a hitch.....it is a little hard b/c we are so far away and we aren't "in the know" as to what all is going on.  But, I guess no news is good news.  

We have been so blessed by that beautiful home.  I am actually having a hard time letting go.  It truly became HOME to me.  We move so often that I had never let myself get attached to a house....but, this house was different.  First off, we owned it.  Secondly, we lived in it for four years.  That is the longest we have ever lived in one particular dwelling in our entire marriage.  Plain a simple....It was home....we have many, many, many good memories of that house that we will always cherish in our hearts.

I feel like I need to go back and say Goodbye.  But, I am not sure that is feasible at the current time.  Steve leaves Sunday for a three week TDY and the kids and I will stay here to get ready for school to start.  I guess I will just have to "let it go" from afar.

May the new owners be just as BLESSED!!!!

I will leave you with these......Just a few....There are way too many to post. 

Fall 2008

Winter 2007

Early Spring 2009...just days before we moved

Summer 2008  Catie Beth's Homecoming!!

Early Fall 2008

****SIGH****

Thankful!!!!

Today....How do I start?.....I guess the only way to describe today is by using the word THANKFUL!!!  I am so thankful for God's provision and care over me and my family.

Today was meant to be a quiet day at home with the kids.  We had nothing planned other than the unbelievable mounds of laundry that have been piling up for days.  I felt no need to get all fancy and dressed up for my laundry, so I wore my shorts that I paint in and an old faded t-shirt.   No make-up, and frizzy, unworked hair put up in a sloppy pony tail.  Doesn't that paint a pretty picture?  I know, I admit, I looked (and still do look) awful.

Anyway, lunchtime approached and Steve called to let me know that he wouldn't be able to make it home. (He has a new job that is very time intensive....He works incredibly long hours.)  Anyway, he called and I offered to bring lunch to him.  He agreed this was a good plan.  The plan was to drive thru BK on base, grab a quick lunch and drive it up to his place of work, he would run out, get the food, and head back to work to eat it....The kids and I would go back home and eat our food there.  Great plan, don't you think?

Little did we know that we would never make it through the drive thru.  The kids and I hurriedly piled in the car (remember the part where I told you how bad I looked) and headed out to BK.  We got to BK, which happened to be very busy.  Lots of cars going in and out of the parking lot and two different entrances of people trying to merge into one drive thru lane.  The line was moving pretty slow and I was totally unaware of the traffic jam that was occurring behind me b/c I was busy trying to figure out what my crew wanted for lunch.

Then out of the blue....We heard the loudest Bomb/Wham like sound I have ever heard in my life.....Followed by what sounded like glass breaking and falling all over the top of the van....I clutched the steering wheel bracing for an impact.....Only nothing hit us from behind....The van was just shaking from side to side in a very strange fashion.

I got out to see what had happened and a lady from across the parking lot yelled "Did that just hit your car?"  I yelled back "What was it?"  She walked closer to me and told me how a little old man had hit the power line....Well, he actually ran over the line that was staked into the ground next to the pole, which made the power lines give way.  They gave way just enough to smack into the top of my van and send sparks flying.....Then after his tire drove off the line they (the power lines) sprang back into place.  The lady described it as a bungee looking affect.  Anyway,  our car was subjected to all the electrical currents that run through the lines.  As it hit my car the spark was so big that it blew out all the electricity to the entire city block.  BK went dark and every electrical outlet in the place shot out a spark filling the building with smoke and the smell of an electrical fire.  The Fire dept and ambulances arrived fairly quickly to put out what was thought to be a fire in BK.  I am not sure what actually happened inside the building but people came flooding out and were standing around trying to figure out what was going on.  I called Steve in tears and he came up to BK to make sure we were all okay and see first hand what his crazy wife was crying about.  I am so thankful that he was here (and not TDY which will happen on Sunday) to take care of all the details of the reports and such.  Have I ever told you how much I love my husband?  Well, I do, with all my heart!!!

Did I mention how bad I looked?  I had to get out of my car in front of all these gawking people and actually talk with the firefighters about the event.  I looked so bad that I might have been crying more from embarrassment than from the actual event.****SIGH****

After coming home I realized just how lucky we were that none of us were hurt in this unfortunate event.  I am having some pain in my fingers, wrists, and elbows....Just an achey feeling, but I wasn't feeling that way before the incident, so I think it might be from gripping the steering wheel as all that voltage was flowing through the car.  Or it could be from touching the roof of the van just after all that voltage had passed through....who knows for sure.

Here are a few pictures of the top of our van.  The pictures don't do the damage justice.  In two of the spots you can see how the line hit and then splattered whatever that is.....Paint maybe?  The third spot is just burned.  There are also spots on every single window of the van that have some sort of melted debris stuck into them.  You will have to click on the pictures to be able to see some of the damage.

  

Like I said before..."Thank You Lord, for you constant care and provision for my family"  

You know it's time to go shopping when.........

~The laundry has been piling up for three days b/c you ran out of Laundry Soap.

~You have to shower and shave your legs with shampoo b/c you ran out of girly shaving cream a week ago and the body wash ran out two days ago. 

~The dog has been eating table scraps for three days.

~Your daughter is wearing the last diaper in the diaper stacker and we are down to the last two in the diaper bag.  

Guess what I am doing this afternoon?  How about you? 

Jumping Jamboree of Joyful Juveniles

What have we been up to? 

 Jumping, Jumping and more Jumping!!!  

We recently acquired this fabulous trampoline.  The kids are in Jumping Heaven and can't seem to get enough time in their day to jump.  If I dare to tell them that I need to go to the store they all lay down on the trampoline like I just delivered the worst news ever.  

How dare we ever need to leave the house.   

Oh, how I wish I had their energy. 

splish, splash

Catie Beth loves to help her Daddy, she especially likes to help him wash the cars.  Daddy loves the Help!!!  They are a match made in heaven.  (like we didn't already know that)  I had no clue how deep the bond would be between Steve and his little girl.  Aren't they precious?

RBI clinic at Fanfest 2009

Hi everybody,  this is Caleb,

I am taking over Mom's blog for the day.  I have a fun story to tell you about.  

A few weeks ago I was chosen along with 18 other baseball players by the Scott Youth Center to go to the 2009 Fanfest on July 14th 2009. 

 

Yesterday I got up early and went to work with my Dad.  He dropped me off at the Youth Center at 8am.  We played for a few minutes.  Then they passed out a cool blue t-shirt and a draw string bag for everyone.  We loaded up on a bus and drove over to the Metro link (like a subway only above ground).  We bought tickets and boarded the train.  It took us about 45 min to get to downtown St. Louis.  

Once we arrived at Fanfest we went to the RBI clinic.  Which is where you can practice throwing, catching, batting, and sliding.  It was a lot of fun.  I met Tony Batista, and Brooks Robinson.  They helped me with throwing accuracy and catching grounders.  They also helped me bat by teaching me how to concentrate on the ball.  Later, while the other group was doing the RBI clinic we did a running activity.  After the running activity, we went to watch the rest of the RBI clinic.  

After the RBI clinic was over we got to go to lunch at a really good pizza place.  I forgot the name but it was really good.  I even burned my chin on the hot cheese. 

 

After lunch, we went back to Fanfest and went upstairs to do more activities.  While I was up there they made a REAL baseball card of ME!!  I chose to wear a Diamond Back jersey.  It was way too big for me but it was a real jersey.  Very cool!  

After that we went down stairs to go to the gift shop so we could buy some stuff if we wanted to.  But, I didn't buy anything because it was very expensive.   

I also got to sit in on a live press conference.  It was kind of boring but Awesome!  

They passed out more t-shirts, wrist bands, head bands, baseballs, and a REALLY COOL catchers helmet.  This is me with all my new stuff.    

Joy in every bite!!

A few weeks ago I bought a Fun Food magazine that was written by the makers of the taste of home magazine.  We have had fun looking through the magazine and drooling over the yummy recipes.  So last Friday after a very stressful week I decided to try out a recipe from this fun magazine.  

Cookie Cupcakes Yield: 1 dozen

by Sue Smith of Joaquin, Texas

1/2 cup butter, softened

6 tablespoons sugar

6 tablespoons packed brown sugar

1 egg 

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda 

1/2 teaspoon salt

FILLING:

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 egg

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

~In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugars until light and fluffy.  Beat in egg and vanilla.  Combine the flour, baking soda and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture and mix well. 

~Fill paper-lined muffin cups half full.  Bake at 350 for 10 minutes or until top of cupcake appears set.    

~Meanwhile, in a small bowl, beat the brown sugar, egg and salt just until combined.  Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.  

~Drop filling by rounded tablespoonfuls into the center of each cupcake.  Bake 10 minutes longer or until a toothpick inserted in the cake portion comes out clean.  

~Cool for 10 minuets before removing from pan to wire rack to cool completely.  

~Watch children drool over cookie cupcakes while waiting for them to cool.  

~Wait for daddy to come home and serve the family a yummy late afternoon treat.  

As Cody was eating his cookie cupcake he said "Mom, its like there is joy in every bite." Priceless!!!  I love my family!!

I can't wait to try out a few more recipes.  Now, go to Wal-mart and buy the new Fun Food magazine.  Your kids will love it.  The current issue looks like this....

  

The Ups and Downs of life.....

When they all seem to happen in the same week....Life becomes a bit stressful.

I know blogettes, it has been a fairly long time since I last updated this blog....but once you read about my week you just might understand why.

Lets just start with last weekend.

My brother and his wife and their two precious kiddos came for a visit.

We had a blast!!  We visited the St Louis Zoo for the first time.

Then, on the 4th of July we went to the arch to watch the fireworks along with a few other hundred thousand people.....making the ride home quite the adventure.

On Sunday we just hung out here at the house and tried to recover from the madness of the previous two days. 

Monday, my brother and his family had to head home so we said our goodbyes.....

I tried to get the house back in order b/c the boys decided Chad and Stacy had to see a demonstration of every toy we have in our home.  I am sure they enjoyed every bit of the mass show-n-tell that went on here in Mi Casa....

That afternoon we took another adventure down to Children's hospital where we had Cody's ticker checked out.....He had a tiny hole in his heart that had to be followed by a cardiologist....We were so excited to find that this tiny hole called a PFO had corrected itself and is no longer present in his heart.  He was so happy to find out that there is no need for us to visit the cardiologist any more.  God is sooooo Good.

I am going to back things up a bit now....back to Sunday.....my SIL Stacy and I noticed Catie Beth had a few red bumps on her face and arms that we shrugged off as bug bites.  She was itching them but they really did look like mosquito bites.

Apparently, that is also what the Chicken Pox looks like when it starts out.   We would soon find out that Catie Beth has been exposing everyone she has come in contact with since Friday (including  her brothers and my niece and nephew) with that lovely childhood disease.  I knew she was extra cranky all weekend but I chalked it up to the horrible sleeping pattens that we had all been participating in.  The thought never crossed my mind that she might not be feeling well.  Great Mom......I know!!!!   (rolling eyes)

So this has pretty much been our precious girl for the last several days.  She wants to be held all day and night.  By being held I mean Standing up.....If you sit down this face is sure to follow.   

CRANKY is totally the understatement of the year.  She is miserable.  Her fever finally broke today but she is still very uncomfortable.  She has about 30 Chicken pox bumps on her body.  Mostly on her arms.  Do you see the two on her sweet face?

Monday evening I met up with a bloggy friend for the first time.  We had a play date at a park near our house.  Her name is Jaime, she is just as sweet as can be and has the sweetest little boy EVER!!!  Ummm Yes, Catie Beth exposed them to the Chicken Pox as well.  Can you say....embarassed?!?!  Nice way to meet a new friend...."Oh it is so wonderful to finally meet you face to face,  Here you go, please take some Chicken Pox home with you" 

I was supposed to attend a Simplyfun party with her the following evening but was unable to attend because we had a pressing matter that had to be addressed asap.  

I will have to be vague about that matter for the time being.  But we would really covet some prayers about our house in KS.  We are making some Big decisions blogettes....BIG!  The kind of decisions that make you lose sleep at night and wonder what God is up too.

That brings us to today....Steve has apparently come down with pink eye....He looks awful and feels just as bad.  Can someone please tell me how I can have two very contagious ailments circulating in my home at the same time?

So as the title goes lots of UPS and DOWNS!!!  I guess that is LIFE!!!  A crazy life....But its our life.....Oh no, I just sounded like John and Kate +8......We better hurry and Fireproof our marriage.

Gotta Go!!!!!!!! 

 

T minus 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1......Blast off!!!

Who needs fireworks?  

The boys pulled their allowances together for the last two weeks to buy this Rocket.  It was supposed to shoot up to 100ft into the air.  I am not sure what the actual height was but it did get pretty high.  

Who had more fun, the boys or their Daddy? 

This and That...

It has been a busy couple of weeks for us....

Steve had to go on a TDY to NJ for a week .  He flew home early Sat morning.  

This is what we were up to while he was away... 

The kids and I wrapped up the baseball season.

My parents and sister came for a visit.

I took all four kids to the *gasp* pool by myself.....this is a HUGE thing for me since I for one Hate going to the pool with a passion.  I just don't like walking around half naked in a skin tight piece of nothing they call a bathing suit.  Although, I shouldn't be so tough on myself as proof by the others walking around with even skimpier suits that just should.not.be. (*shudder*)  I am still shaking my head. 

The kids and I went to the park with my new MOPS group....More to come about this......I have recently joined the steering team for the new Scott Military MOPS....I am so excited that God has already given me a place to serve. 

I went to my first MOPS Steering team meeting on Friday morning.  The kids had fun meeting some new friends.....and Mommy did too.

Like I said before, Steve came home on Sat. morning, then turned around and took Caleb to a Grizzlies baseball game that night.  Caleb and his baseball team got to go out on the field during the National Anthem.  The other kids and I stayed home and watched a movie.

On Sunday, we had a mock Fathers day celebration (since Steve missed the real thing) 

Steve took leave this week, since it was the only week open to take leave for the rest of the summer.  So, we are on a Staycation,  thanks to our vacation home that is apparently never going to sell  (I know, I know, sorry for the complaint, but I am highly disappointed right now and very tired of waiting.)  

We gained and new family member.....only to set him free a day later.  

We went to Six Flags yesterday and are headed back to the pool later today.....((*SHUDDER*))  Oh the things we do for our kids.....and husbands.   

My brother and his family are coming into town for the 4th of July.  I am excited to see them and play with my precious Nephew and adorable Niece.   

In other news, I did hear back from Mr Jose ole this week and got a coupon for any Jose Ole product Free.  I will be taking them up on that offer later this evening when I do my commissary shopping. 

So to wrap up this very unorganized and Picture free post.....We have been busy.  How about you?