7th Grade Formal

I thought that I would share some of the pictures from Lindsey's Formal with everyone.

I can't believe how much she has changed. My little girl is not a little girl anymore. She is becoming a young lady.

The Formal was held on the last day of school, May 17th and it was for the entire middle school (7th and 8th grade).

We met some of her friends downtown Bowling Green at Fountain Square Park to take some pictures. It is a really nice park in the middle of the square. It has two stone archways, a fountain, several benches and four statues. It is a really neat place to take pictures.

They look like a good group of kids, don't you think?

Lindsey looks so grown up.

The girls looked so pretty. They had a great time getting all dolled up for the Dance.

I think the guys liked taking this picture best. They really liked getting to climb up into the tree.

Joining The Working World

My son has joined the working world. He has had 2 part time jobs for quite some time, one in an afterschool program and one in the Alumni office at WKU, but this week he started a full time job (for the summer) at the Corvette Plant. I think he has been working 10 hour days. Quite a change from just a couple of hours after class each day. He has to be there bright and early too, no more sleeping in.



He has been teasing me about how he is making more money than me now, of course that isn't saying much.


He says that it is a challenge to keep up with the line, but that he is hanging in there.


He has worked with his Dad some, so he does know how to do physical labor. I think this will be a very good experience for him.

Choices

This has been a strange week for me. My normal routine has been disrupted, because of inventory. I normally don't work nights, but because I am the Jewelry supervisor, they think I need to be the one with the inventory team while they are counting the jewelry. Thank goodness it's only once a year. This working 'til midnight and being up again early the next morning sucks. One of my bosses said," Well you have the next day off, what's the big deal?".
Kids don't just magicially get up and to school on their own. Especially Lindsey. She has never been a morning person and sometimes it is a real chore to get her moving in the morning. Plus I take her to school every morning, so even on my days off I have to be up, dressed and out.

It seems this week that everyone has been asking for advice. It actually has been kind of wierd. Working in retail you commonly have people that will ask you for your opinion with choosing which color shirt they need or which style looks better on them, is this size too big or small, do I need the belt or purse with it, which shoes........ If my bathroom is pink will these gray towels look good in there? My daughter has blonde hair, will this yellow blouse look okay on her? This type of thing I'm used to. But this week I've had people coming to me for life advice.
Questions like......Should I have this surgery that the Doctors want me to have, should I stay in this relationship, what do you do when a relationship is over, should I take the new job I've been offered or stay here, should I let my boyfriend move in............
I like that people feel they can come to me, and I'm honored that they want to hear my opinion. I just feel like my own life is one question after another, that I have plenty of problems making my own decisions. I'm sure in no position to help make decisions for anyone else. But I listen and try to give my support as much as I can.
The whole week has made me think about choices......... We make choices everyday, and each one we make has consequences. The route we choose makes a difference. We have no way of knowing beforehand how something we do will effect things. The only thing we can do is try to make informed and smart decisions.

If It's Not One Thing, It's Another

Yesterday was my day off and I was all set to run a few errands, get some laundry and cleaning taken care of and then to just relax and enjoy the rest of the day.
That did not happen.............

The day started as usual with me getting her up and then taking her to school. However, Barry called about the time we were leaving and asked if he could take her to school instead of me, as he does sometimes on my days off. I had not gotten far from the house when he called, so I just met him and he took her to school. No big deal, but just a change in our normal routine.

So I came back home, checked some emails, started the laundry and jumped in the shower. I then got myself ready to get my errands done. But then my phone rang, it was Lindsey calling from school. It seems that after one of her classes she was getting up to head to her next class when she got really dizzy and sick to her stomach. She was so dizzy that she nearly fell and the teacher caught her. He asked if she had eaten anything and she told him that she had not. So he made her stay there and he went to get her a banana. She ate part of it, but was still very dizzy. He suggested that she go to the office. A couple of her friends had to help her up there.
The nurse in the sick room thought that her blood sugar was low and gave her some juice and candy. This is when they called me. So I head to the school to pick her up thinking that she has caught some bug going around and after it runs its course, she'd be fine.
When I got there she was in the sick room. Pale as a ghost and very upset. She was still very dizzy and nauseous. I don't think I've ever seen her that pale. She was so dizzy that I had to help her to the car. So off to the emergency room we went.
We got there, got her checked in and saw the triage nurse. The nurse seemed to think that she had an ear infection. I, however knew that it was more than that. Heaven knows that we have been down that road enough to know. Both of my kids have had plenty of experience with ear infections. Lindsey has had tubes put in her ears three times, the last time being in 2006. With the tubes still in place, I knew that she would have drainage from her ears if they were infected. I began to get concerned.
The Dr. came in to examine her. He said that her ears and throat looked fine. Her chest sounded fine and she had no fever. He said that they needed to do some blood and urine test. So we waited for someone from the lab to come. In the meantime, the ER nurse asked Lindsey to give her a urine sample, which she could not do. Nothing........not a drop. Granted she had gone right after we got there, but still not a drop. (I know I can go and five minutes later go at least a little). Then a nurse from the lab came in to draw some blood. She checked her arms and started to try to get the blood. She stuck Lindsey's arm and could not get any blood. She tried moving the needle around to get it, but still nothing. Fearing that this is hurting Lindsey, she says that she will try another vein. She pulls the needle out and believe it or not, it didn't even bleed, not a bit. How on earth can you get stuck in the arm and not bleed. The nurse tried again and finally got the blood that she needed. They had to give her some water to drink before she could give them the urine sample.
It took awhile for them to get the test completed and Lindsey was able to take a little nap while waiting.
Finally, the Dr. came back in and said that her blood was fine. No Anemia, no Diabetes, no Urinary Tract Infection. The only thing that showed up was Ketones.
Ketones are produced when the body burns fat for energy or fuel. They are also produced when you lose weight or there is not enough insulin to help your body use sugar for energy. Without enough insulin, glucose builds up in the blood. Since the body is unable to use glucose for energy, it breaks down fat instead. When this occurs, ketones form in the blood and spill into the urine. These ketones can make you very sick.
The Dr. began asking about Lindsey's routine and if she was trying to loose weight. Which she has. She has lost 20pounds in about 4 months. I knew that she was loosing weight and she seemed to be doing it the right way. She has cut out the junk. No soft drinks or candy and she has cut the portion sizes way down of the things that she does eat. All the things I wish I could do. The problem is, that in the last month she has started volleyball conditioning again. So 3 days a week she is exercising and running alot and although this has helped her to loose weight, it has been hard on her body. She has seen the weight loss and liked it, so she started eating less and less to lose even more. She has been skipping breakfast, eating very little for lunch and then eating dinner (the meal I actually see her eat).
The Dr. says that she should take a multi vitamin and drink lots of fluids. He told her to drink Gatorade when she is in volleyball. And of course, she needs to eat.
That was my day off........................
Please, keep us in your prayers that this incident has shown Lindsey the importance of proper nutrition. I sure hope it has.

Sometimes Things Do Go Right

I went to Cingular, after receiving the outragous bill, to change my cell phone plan. I now have a plan that will cover all the calls and texting that everyone seems to think they have to do. While I was there, the lady that was helping me suggested that I call in and plead my case about my bill being so high. She said that since I am a long time customer and that I have recently changed my plan to suit our changing needs, that they would maybe make an adjustment to my bill. So I called.
The lady I spoke to said that some of the Mexico charges did seem to be a bit too high and that because I had made changes to my plan that she would relay this to her manager and that I should receive a call from him in 2 days telling me how much of an adjustment they would be able to make to my bill.
I got the call yesterday.........I can't believe it, but my bill went from $728.00 to $332.00.
I was so glad. I had really been sweating how I was going to pay that bill. I guess ALL my luck is not bad afterall.
So it does pay to question things.
Just thought that I would share this with everyone.
Have a good Thursday..............

Back To Reality

I can definitely tell that I am not in the Magical World Of Disney............
No fairy tales or Pixie Dust anywhere to be found.

It seems all there is around here is STRESS!!!!!!
Stress at home, stress at work....UGHHHHHH!!

While I was in Disney World my stomach and intestines were fine. I pretty much was able to eat what I wanted to, with only minor problems. I didn't go overboard with the spicy or fried foods, but I did eat french fries, hotdogs, chinese food, and ICECREAM. I love icecream and usually it does a number on my tummy. Every now and then I can sneak a bowl in without any problem, but usually dairy products kill me.

Anyway, as soon as I got back, reality and STRESS..........

It started with the phone. I am constantly telling Lindsey that she is on the phone too much. I know that she is a pre-teen girl and that is what they do, but I think the phone is permanently attached to her ear. I received my phone bill the other day and I knew that is was going to be higher than usual, because of Adam's trip to Mexico, but I sure never dreamed that it would be $728.00. Some of my rollover minutes expired and we used up all of the ones that I had left. The Mexico calls were high, but there were some charges that were really high (like one $45.00 charge for data transfer) and then all the text messages that my kids think they have to send. Add in all the overages that they charged us for the calls over our plan minutes and you have a $728.00 phone bill. My daughter alone talked 4,000 minutes. I love to talk, but 4,000 minutes a month..........I don't have that much to say.

At work, things are always behind when you come back from a vacation. I have spent the last week getting things caught up and now we are getting ready for inventory on May 7. Inventory is a task in itself. I have been pre-counting the jewelry in my department, which means, once it is counted if you sell anything or receive any new items that the counts have to be changed. So it takes longer to do the everyday things. Plus it's my job to keep a check of the counts, because the night time people don't always change the counts like they are supposed to.

Then we have my son, who over draws his checking account and comes to Mom for help. Nevermind that his rent is due in 2 days (which I pay). So I sent him to his Dad. Dad needs to help too, afterall, which he did. But then a day later I come home to find my son here at 5 pm when he should have been at work until at least 6pm. So I ask, "How come you are here so early?" He says,"You probably don't want to know." So I am thinking that he got fired. No..... he quit. He has two jobs thank goodness and has applied, interviewed and taken a drug test for a summer job at the Corvette Plant. I sure hope that he gets that one.

He got to work (his afterschool job) and they told him that they needed him to go to one of the other schools and that he may have to work there until the end of the school year. He has been there for quite sometime and felt like someone else should have to go instead, but they told him that it had to be him. So he quit. He didn't stop to think that they just might want to send him there because he has the most experience and that the others at that school are new employees.

Of course we can't leave out 2 sources of stress in my life. Michael and his son...........

They can be two of the most spoiled people on the face of the earth. The two of them have been so used to getting their way that it can really be a challenge to deal with them at times.

Am I ready to go back to Disney World or any other place far far away...........YES!!!!!!!!

Take me away.......

Our Disney World Vacation

Thought I would share a bit about our trip.

We arrived at the airport around 5am and began the check in process. Lindsey had no problem, she had her boarding pass in about 2 minutes. It took a little longer for me. It seems that my name is on the "Watch List" so my information and ID had to be checked more throughly. I could not be checked in curb side, I had to be escorted inside to a counter to be checked in. After about 20 minutes or so I had my boarding pass and we were on our way through the security check point and on to our departure gate.
Our flight took of on time. It was a thrilling experience. We had some turbulence, but I guess that is normal. Our seats were not assigned, but Lindsey and I were able to sit together. We even managed to get a window seat on the flight to Orlando. That was really cool, looking out as we were flying. I especially liked flying through the layers of clouds. At one point on the return flight I saw another plane flying by......that was really neat.

A couple of things I didn't like about flying was the fact that it hurt Lindsey's ears, especially when the plane begins descending, and the having to maneuver through the airports. Nashville airport wasn't bad at all, but Orlando was a bit more difficult. We arrived in one building and had to make our way to the Disney Welcome Center, which was in another building. So we had to take the tram to the main building and then go down three levels and follow the trail of people there with the big Mickey Mouse hands waving you in the direction that you need to go. Not that we had any trouble doing it, but it just makes me nervous. I was so afraid of not being where we needed to be at the right time. But we did fine........

Our plane arrived around 8:30 am and by 11:20 we were checked in to our hotel and inside Animal Kingdom.

The weather did not cooperate fully with us, it was cold. Thank goodness we had worn jackets. It was in the upper 50's with slight rain our first day. I thought Florida was supposed to be warm and sunny. LOL.......

We managed to be inside most of the time that it was raining, either on a ride or watching a show.

On Tues. it was a bit warmer, in the lower 60's, but cloudy. We went into the park early. Magic Kingdom opened for resort guests at 7:00 am. The crowds were much lighter and we got to do alot of things before the park opened to the general public. We did what we wanted to do there and then hopped over to Epcot for awhile. It started to rain quite a bit and we were tired from being up so early for two straight days, so we went back to our resort for awhile.

We rested a couple of hours and then it was on to Downtown Disney for dinner and shopping.

Mousesavers.com rated The Earl Of Sandwich a good place to eat for a decent price and I'll have to agree. We liked it alot. It wasn't crowed like alot of the other places and it was really good. They have hot sandwiches and the bread they

are served on is awesome!!

Wednesday was cloudy, but much warmer with temps in the lower 70's. We returned to Epcot to do all the things that we didn't get a chance to do the day before. Because I am a Disney Visa Card Member we got to have a special "Meet and Greet" with some of the Characters. That was really neat. They let you take as many pictures as you want and take time with you. Usually they kind of rush you with the characters, which I can sort of understand, because there are so many waiting and they are usually outside and you know they have to be sooooo hot inside those costumes.

We got to meet with Mickey, Minnie and Goofy.

After a full day of being at Epcot we returned to our resort to freshen up a bit and then headed to Magic Kingdom to grab a bite to eat and to steak out our spot for The Spectro Magic Parade and Wishes Fireworks Show. We had the "Perfect Spot" on the balcony of the Train Station facing the castle. It was AWESOME!!!! and we were close to the entrance of the park so that leaving and reaching the bus stop was easy. We had just arrived back at our room when some rather strong storms hit. They didn't last long, but were pretty intense with 55 mile per hour winds and some heavy rain.

Look at the crowd gathering for the parade.

Thursday was more like a typical Florida day. It was sunny and hot. The temp reached a high of 88 with a heat index of 92. MGM was our park to visit on this day. Lindsey had a really good time riding the rides there. Her favorite one was the Rock 'N' Roller Coaster. She rode it twice.

She also liked the Tower Of Terror alot.

Friday was our last day in Florida and our day to just hang out at the resort before flying home. Lindsey slept in and I got us all packed up.

Next time I'll have to remember to allow room in the suitcases for soveigners.

We had a wonderful trip and I am very glad that I got the chance to do this with my daughter. It is something we will always remember!!!

Here are some random pictures from our trip.

Vacation At Last

I am finally on vacation. I will be spending the weekend getting everything packed and ready.

I am so looking forward to this vacation. I have always wanted to fly and now I will get my chance. Lindsey is excited about it too. This will be a great experience to share with her. We have been reading alot of info about flying. Trying to pack everything correctly so that it will be an easy and quick process.

The only thing I worry about is getting to the right place at the right time.

I would really hate to miss my flight. Thank goodness it is a non stop flight. That does make me feel a bit better. No lay overs or connecting flights to worry about.

I Hope that the weather is good next week. We have our little ponchos, just in case it decides to rain. Hopefully it will be sunny. Heaven knows my pale white legs could use some sun.

I really love Walt Disney World, there is so much to do. One of my favorite things is THE CASTLE. I guess I have some left over childhood dreams of being a Princess and living in a castle with my Prince Charming, having people to wait on me hand and foot, not having to work but just doing whatever I feel like doing all day.....everyday. Ahhhhhhhh..........to be a Princess.

Hey maybe they will pick Lindsey and I to spend the night there, after all it is "The Year Of A Million Dreams" and that would be really cool. Keep your fingers crossed for us.

Well gotta run, still have lots to do before we head south. Keep us in your prayers that we have a safe trip. HAPPY EASTER to all!!!!!

Talk to you soon!!

Feeling Better

As you all know, I have not been feeling well lately. However, I will not be having surgery.

It seems that my gallbladder is functioning. It does have some degree of abnormalities, but the Dr. says that it is borderline. He says I fall into the "might" catagory. Surgery might help and then again, it might not. The IBS could be what is causing the abnormal functions of my gallbladder. So..........if we can get the IBS under control, then the gallbladder should function in a closer to normal way.

To get a handle on the IBS, means to STAY on a special diet. A low fat diet. This is not an easy thing for me to do. I am supposed to avoid all dairy products, all fried foods, all spicy foods, and the "trigger" foods (the ones I know cause problems), like Broccoli, califlower, brussel sprouts, cabbage, cucumbers, radishes, onions, peppers, eggs, etc, etc.......

Watching what I eat, has made a difference. I have been doing pretty good with it lately (unless you count the fried onion rings that I ate last night at Smoky Bones-----and I did pay for it, I was miserable).

The biggest thing I could do to control the IBS is to reduce my "STRESS", I don't really have any good ideas on how to do that. Winning the lottery would help, but since I don't play it , don't really know how that is going to happen. But, my vacation starts in 6 days. I will not have to work for 10 whole days.....YEA!!!!!!!! Lindsey and I will also be in Disney World. What better way to leave all the stresses of your life behind. I can't wait!!!

Hope everyone has a good weekend and a wonderful Easter!!!

Still Testing

Nothing with me is ever simple or ordinary. This is no exception.

I saw the surgeon, on Tues. but he said that the sludge in itself is not reason enough to perform the surgery. He wants to know more details of what is going on inside me before he does any surgery. Which makes sense, but means that I have to be poked and injected and pictured and so on.

So on Friday, I had a "hida scan with a ccr injection" performed. It is a gallbladder function test. It wasn't as bad as what I had read, but wasn't a day at the beach either. With this test you lay flat on a table with an x-ray type machine very close over the top of you. There was a monitor to my left and it was positioned so that I could see it. I was then injected with a radioactive dye, which shows up on an x-ray and the screen. I watched it go through my right arm, into my heart and then into my lungs. This was pretty quick, only a few minutes. The dye then proceeded to go into my liver, which took a bit longer. I began to see the dye going to one spot near the bottom of my liver.......my gallbladder.

The technician explained the test to me as we were going along. He would say," the dye is now entering your ______" and "in a few minutes we will see it enter the _______". It was kind of neat, but scary at the same time. The machine would take pictures every couple of minutes. The technician would adjust the lighting on the screen every now and then, as to see the other organs that the dye had moved from (mainly the liver).

Once the dye had entered my gallbladder and began to go into my small intestines, I was given the second injection (the ccr part). It makes your gallbladder contract, which you CAN feel, and then empty as it normally does with the bile.

The fact that the second injection is given means that there are no blockages entering or exiting the gallbladder. No stones, no tumors etc......

That is about the only thing that the technician was able to tell me. He could not tell me if my gallbladder emptied as it is supposed to. (40% of the contents should empty)

So I will have to wait until Tues. (27th) to find out the results and to see what the Dr. recommends that we do.

In the mean time, I watch what I eat and take alot of Mylanta. This has helped somewhat. The pain and indigestion aren't as bad. Not totally gone either, but not as intense.

I'll post again, when I know more.........

Hope everyone has a good weekend!!!!

Gallbladder Sludge

Art Work By: Secret Agent Josephine

Have you ever heard of gallbladder sludge? Well, I had not until this week.

I have been having some digestion problems for quite some time, but really had not been too concerned due to the fact that for about 15 years I have had IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome).

So when I was having eposides of nausea and indigestion, I was just concluding that it was due to the IBS. Usually I can watch my diet, try to eat healthy avoiding the high fat foods and dairy products, and only have a few episodes of misery. But in the last few months it has become a almost constant problem. I first thought that I was just overeating or eating the wrong foods too often. Like the icecream that I know is going to cause me problems. I started paying attention to what I was eating and tried to stay away from the things that I know cause problems, but still I was having indigestion and such. So I began the ritual of following my meals with tums or rolaids. Then came the pain........ I started having this gnawing pain in my upper abdomen. This went on for a few days and then it began to hurt into my upper back, between my shoulder blades. Sometimes it can get pretty intense.

I decided it was time to visit the doctor. So I did just that this past Tues. He said that we needed to do some test. Upper GI and an abdominal ultrasound. Which was performed on Thurs. I got the results on Friday. Dr. says I have "Gallbladder Sludge" and that my gallbladder needs to come out. I see the surgeron this coming Tues. ( 20th)

Three weeks before our vacation to Disney World and I need surgery................Just my luck.

I'll keep you posted.

Spring Break

Spring........warm days, flowers blooming, more daylight hours, no more having to wear a coat........Come on Spring!!!

I am so tired of being cold. I know that Spring is just around the corner, but I am growing impatient.

However, I am looking forward to SPRING BREAK!! My kids are too. Each of them have started counting down the days.

Adam starts his Spring Break this weekend. He will be off to Cancun on Monday. Flying for the first time. He is a little nervous about that part of it, but very much looking forward to the trip. He has been busy getting everything together to travel. I know he is going to have a wonderful time. Of course, I will be worring about him the whole time he is gone. Thinking about all the things that can go wrong, like a Mother does. So, Please, keep him in your prayers.

Lindsey and I also have travel plans for Spring Break. We will be going to Disney World. Just the two of us. We have to wait until April, but are still making our plans. We have our, "Unofficial Guide To Walt Disney World 2007" and are going through it deciding what we are going to do when. A big Thank You to "A Travel Expert" aka, Michael, for helping us with this. He has helped us with booking a Disney Resort Hotel, our Park Hopper Tickets, and our flights there and back home. We, like Adam, will be flying for the first time. Thank goodness, it is a non stop flight. I am a little nervous about it, (fear of the unknown and all) but I have always wanted to fly and now will have my chance. Plus I get to share the experience with my daughter. Adam says that he will be able to give us the scoop on flying, since he gets to do it first. A fact that he seems to be taking great pleasure in. He keeps saying," I get to fly first!". So keep all of us in your prayers, Please, that we have a safe trip.

Well got to run, it's my day off today and I have tons of errands to do. Hope everyone has a Good Friday and a Great Weekend!!!

Dentist.....YUCK

It seems that everyone is visiting the dentist lately.

Lindsey and I have both visited and will be visiting a few more times to get all the work that needs to be done completed.

I hate going to the dentist. I have never had good teeth and they can always find one that needs filling or crowned. This time was no exception. I lost a filling and knew that I have needed to visit the dentist for awhile, so I finally did. Of course the filling I lost couldn't just be replaced.......no, it was infected. So I had to go on an antibiotic for a week and let it heal so that they could do a root canal and then crown this tooth. I had never had the pleasure of a root canal before. Believe me I NEVER will again. I have NEVER in my life had a tooth hurt so much. I felt my heart beating in my mouth for several days. I was on the verge of calling the dentist and saying, "Just Pull It". He gave me some pain pills to take, but it is hard to take those things and work. So I would take tylenol every four hours untill I got home from work, then take the pain pills and sleep. Finally after almost a week, it stopped hurting. I got my permanant crown in and it was time to move on to the other problem teeth.

They started with a cleaning, which I hate, but it does make your teeth feel better....cleaner....etc. This, of course, does lead to the finding of all the other problems. Like the what they say will be a small filling, until they start to fill it. Then, it turns out to be a small cavity under an old filling, which means, that the old filling has to come out. Making the small filling into a rather big one. Which , of course needs to be crowned. This was the story of not one, but two of my teeth. Both on the left side of my mouth. One on the top and the other on the bottom. The one on the top was a real pain. It was the very back tooth and is not exactly straight. So it wasn't the easiest tooth to get to. The dentist kept saying I'm sorry that we are stretching your mouth so much. Add in the fact they are trying to put what seems like twenty things in your mouth at the same time and they have you practially standing on your head in the chair. Plus you have been injected with so much novacaine that you can't feel your nose or mouth for hours, and when they are finished, they ask you " How does that feel?" Like you can tell at that point. Of course when the medication wears off you can answer that question......IT HURTS!!!!!!!! Duhhhhhh, you have given me 5 or 6 shots, had my mouth pryed open as far as you could for 2 hours, hit me in the mouth with instruments and had not only your hands, but your assistants hands in my mouth at the same time. How do you think it feels?

I am so looking forward to my next visit. They can start on the right side of my mouth......Joy, Joy.

I guess I could just have all my teeth pulled and get false ones. It probably would be cheaper. Oh well..........

Snow Day

Finally, we have enough snow to build a snowman.

We had a snowball fight, built the snowman, had another snowball fight........



Then we decided to walk up to the school. The snow was so pretty. No one had been up there and there were no tracks anywhere. So we had to change that. We walked a few laps around the track and then headed to the playground, to have yet another snowball fight. We also made snowangels on the front entry way. It was alot of fun.

The snow was perfect. It was easy to quickly pack together a snowball.

I am glad that this is my weekend off. I have actually been able to get out and enjoy the snow and got some exercise in too. It felt good getting outside in the fresh air and not having to rush to do anything or trying to do twenty things at the same time. All I had to do was make a snowball and hit whoever I was aiming at.

I did manage to get some cleaning and laundry done. I can't stand it if I don't do at least one load of laundry a day.

Hope you guys are enjoying the snow too........

The Gang

We managed to get everyone together for a family picture, so I thought I'd share them with you!!

I haven't blogged in quite some time. I have meant to, but just haven't.

Since my last post was in November, I guess I have a bit of catching up to do.

We did the Christmas thing (thank goodness that is over) it is soooooo stressfull anymore.

I really think I could just skip it.

Then comes Jan., we are busy at work still with all the returns and the bounce back from the holiday season. Bounce back also means, cleaning.......YUK!!!!!! We have to take down all the holiday signs and such and clean everything. Then there is the beginging of the clearance process of all things winter. Gloves, hats, scarves, etc.... Get rid of all you can before the summer stuff arrives. Like the bathing suits that start coming in before the end of Jan.

It still amazes me how many people buy bathing suits in Jan. and Feb. I guess they have to get one before Spring Break.

As for the kids, they are doing just dandy. Lindsey is definately a girl......her world revolves around her cell phone, makeup, shopping, wanting to hang out with her friends and talk about boys, and primping. I don't think she can pass by a mirror without checking her hair and makeup. She has also become Miss Attitude. Questions everything........and she's only 12.

Another thing she loves to do is take her picture. She does it constantly and is actually pretty good at it. She can set the timer or just hold the camera and take her own picture, and they are pretty good shots. She is so photogenic.

Adam is busy with his classes and working. He is still working in the afterschool program 3 days a week and working in the Alumni Office at Western 2 days a week. He does find time to hang out with his friends and of course attend Westerns ballgames. He is planning to go to Cancun for Spring Break. He has never been in an airplane, and is a bit apprehensive about it.

Hartsul comes to visit almost every weekend. He usually finds something to keep himself busy. He is always on the move, usually kicking or tossing a ball of some sort. We have a big yard and he loves getting out and playing.

Michael spends his time working. He is either at his office working, at the dinning room table working or on the phone working. He does manage to play some ball with the kid and is always willing to help with homework (especially math) if needed.

Well that is what we have been up to lately.......

Try to stay warm all, talk to you soon.