Bunches of Funches

Back to school!

2010-08-23T13:08:00.002-05:00

Today is the first day back to school! Z started 3rd grade. And M started JR High in 6th grade. It was the same ol same ol when dropping Z off. I took him to his class and he was excited. Then I took M to his school. We missed orientation because of vacation so I walked in with him to get his class schedule and find out about the buses. All was well there too. He went right in after allowing me a hug and a SMALL kiss on the forehead. Both boys are riding the bus home. It feels good to have some free time again :-)

I also picked up another weekly cleaning account today! YAY!

Blessings all around, thank you Jesus!

Our last night!

2010-08-20T17:43:00.003-05:00

Tonight is our last night here in Myrtle Beach. We have had such a great time while we were here. Some highlights of our time:

> spending three mornings at the beach
> two nights of fireworks, 1 at the pier on the beach
> lots of quality time with Dad and Karon
> a full day at the water park!
> making friends on day 1 with a mother and her 9 year old son, Tami and Seth. This friendship bonded everyday we were here! Even exchanged #s so we can stay in touch.
> Zachery only got hurt once, on our last day :-(
> Mark and I got to spend some great time with the boys during this trip!
> Lots of sleep and relaxation was had by all of us.

Dad and Karon are taking us out to dinner tonight at a fancy restaurant. We are all excited. Then it will be time to fold the clean clothes in the dryer, pack up the luggage, and get ready for our 9am departure tomorrow morning. Its been a wonderful week. A~

Must remember OFF

2010-08-16T12:28:00.004-05:00

We made it here to Myrtle Beach, SC yesterday around late lunch time. Perfect drive from TX. We drove through one little storm and that was it. We stopped half way in Alabama and stayed in a hotel. Nice queen beds and nice pillows! Last night Grandpa and Zachery went out to play some catch in the yard. 20 minutes later, he came back in with 2 mosquito bites on his forehead and 1 on his neck. I FORGOT TO PUT HIS OFF ON! I knew better then to let him go out without it. ggggrrr. So today Dad (my husband) and Zachery went out to play ball and I did not forget it! I really want Z to enjoy our time here and if he is all eaten up, he wont.

This afternoon Grandpa and Grandma Karon (from on the Gs) will be taking the boys to an amusement park here in town somewhere. Gs told me we could come with or we could enjoy some alone time to play around town. Such a hard choice cause we love spending time with our boys. But we love spending time today too. AND the boys love being spoiled by Gs and sometimes when us parents are around, we say no to some things.... hhhmmmmm we will let the boys decide parents or no parents! Either way, I'm sure fun will be had by all :-)

The boys are home!

2010-08-12T10:59:00.003-05:00

I am so happy to have the boys back home! Monday evening I picked them up at the airport. I had never been in there and our airport has two gates, one on each end of the building. Funny. The first thing they wanted to show me was the pictures of the pilots and the flight attendants they took on their new DSi's. The pilot told Marcus he could take his pic as long as it didn't end up on Facebook!! I thought that was hilarious. The boys said the flights were fun. The time at the lay over room in Dallas was kinda boring! But they were very happy to fly alone and not make another 24 hr drive home!

Since their return, we have gone bowling each day, yesterday we had the pleasure of swimming over at a clients house. The night before we got to swim with friends in the pool at their apartments. Today we are going bowling, then going to have lunch with Mark at work. The kids are really excited about that! But now I hear Zachery screaming at the top of his lungs because he was bouncing around in his room and hurt himself. And of course he wont tell me what happened. And to think it is only 11am. I still have the whole day ahead of us! LOLOL Off we go :-)

A summer of spoiling

2010-08-08T21:15:00.002-05:00

Mark and I are blessed to have our families! The last 2 years we have sent the boys back "home" for the summer. This year they have been spoiled rotten. First Mark's mom, then his brother Mike, then Auntie Julie, then my Mom and finally my bothers Shane and Frank. Marcus and Zachery have been to the movies more in the last month then all year. They went to Knotts Berry Farm with Aunt Julie and cousins Cassie and Tony, Uncle Mike bought them toys, and to cap off the summer Uncles Shane and Frank bought them thier Bday gifts. Each of them got a new DSi XL and a game to go with it. Less than a week after they get home we will be going on vaca to Myrtle Beach. Needless to say their summer has been full full full of fun! that is what summer should be about right? Im praying life long memories are being made! I cant wait to hear about it tomorrow night.

2 years later......

2010-08-07T22:19:00.002-05:00

We finally got our things up on the walls that should have been there all along! I think that was the official last faze of my decluttering. Mark was awesome and spent about 2 hrs hanging pictures, shelves, posters, fixing my curtain rod. When all was said and done, my wish list was empty and my love tank was overflowing!

My very own closet

2010-08-06T11:23:00.003-05:00

I am so happy that I now have my very own closet. For the last two years Mark and I have been sharing one. It is not that big. We both hang alot of our clothes. It was a source of frustration for me when it came to putting clean clothes away, which has turned into my most disliked chore. Well yesterday I cleaned out the top shelf and floor area of the front entry closet. Later that day, I had the bright idea to move the jackets to the closet of their owners' and that would empty it out for me use it for my clothes! It was a perfect idea. Last night I made the big move! I didn't realize how happy I would be to have more closet space. And Mark is sure to be happy too. I only wish I would have thought about this sooner :-) Its the simple things in life.....

decluttering

2010-08-02T12:59:00.002-05:00

The last few weeks I have been decluttering non stop. I think I am "nesting" for our future foster kids! This weekend was a great weekend. Mark I spent lots of time together......cleaning out his garage. LOL After 1.5 days of working hard it is now all organized and cleaned out. I told Mark I don't thing it has been this clean since we moved here 2 years ago. this morning I went out and opened the garage for a quick look to be sure I was not imagining how clean it was. Nope I wasn't. :-)

In the process of all this cleaning, we have really been blessing alot of families on Freecycle with our junk! It makes us feel good to give things away rather than make a buck off them. A nice reward for being patient for 24 hours and not just dumping it all at the Goodwill!

What can I clean next? The top of Z's closet!

wonderful husband

2010-07-31T12:32:00.003-05:00

I'm so thankful for Mark. Over the last few days he has seen me de-cluttering the house and some of the closets. So today being Sat he is out in the garage working on changing out the truck beds. It is great for a few reasons. 1 he has wanted to get this done for over a year. 2 we need the space in the garage the replacement bed was taking up. 3 getting this done is going to motivate him to continue cleaning and get other projects finished. In an effort to help him de-clutter his garage, I was able to get 2 CD racks for this HUGE box of Cd's that he keeps moving around. He was very happy to see them full of his Cd's. I'm still looking for 2 more! progress is being made and that makes me a happy wife :-)

I am alive

2010-07-30T15:02:00.004-05:00

I cant believe that it has been 3 months since i have posted a blog update. Alot has been going on here at the Funches house.

The boys are in CA for another 2 weeks. They have been gone for the 2.5 weeks. Mark and I have been enjoying our free time. This is the only time we get all year without the kids :-)

When they get back we will be heading to my Dad house in SC. This will be the second year in a row that we vacationed there the week before school starts back. We are all very excited about it.

In Sept. Mark and I will be starting the PRIDE classes to be licensed foster parents. This will be a fun and new adventure in our lives and sure to be full of ups and downs. We know God is calling us to this so we are trusting Him for everything during the process. He will provide.

Last night I went with the Calvary Ladies up to another Calvary Ladie's house and we had dinner and fellowship and prayer. It is the second time we have done that and both times have been a complete blessing to us all.

Last night, Angie asked me to be in her wedding!! Im so excited for her and her future husband. I am also very excited to be called her friend, help her with planning the event, getting to arrange for her bridal shower and what ever else she may need or want along the way.

God is doing amazing things in our lives right now. We are open and excited about each and every one. We are always happy to wake up and wonder what He has in store for us for that day.

So there you go, a quick update with highlights from the Funches household!

Friendship

2010-04-18T12:14:00.003-05:00

Today in church we talked about friendships. It was perfect timing for me as I am still working very hard in this area. I wrote a blog post about it a couple weeks ago. Today confirmed to me that we do indeed need friendships. They don't need to rule our lives. We don't need to put them before our friendship with God. But we do need them. It was great to see the model friendship between Johnathan and David. It was great to read about this pure, non perverted love between two people with such a strong friendship. So many times in our society when two people have such a friendship the world says it should not be so. When two men or women have this friendship, they are looked at and people may think, "are they just friends?" Or when a man and a woman have this great friendship, people may think, "are they just friends?" I wish this was not so. I wish the world could look at two people hanging out and having a deep conversation or relationship and the first thing that comes to their mind be, "WOW. Those two are showing what friendship should look like!"

So I posted the above post then thought about it some more and I have more to say! We live in a sinful world. That is why the above stereotypes are what they are! of course this is just my thought. There is so much sin happening that when when pure friendship is happening it is questioned. The other day my friend posted on her FB that she was out having lunch with her guy BFF. This is great! This tells me a couple things about her. She and her husband are safe and secure in their marriage. The guy BFF is safe and secure in his marriage, if he is married. And that my friend values her friendships whether they are with a male or female. Growing up I always had more male friends than I did female friends. We always hung out. Went to eat. It was always pure. I still have male friends. But I don't get to spend time with them, because of what I think the world will think. Maybe that is the problem. I am too concerned with what the world will think. God wants us to have friendships; he gave us great examples to live by. ok thats all for now. My brain is on overload.

bbbbzzzzz

2010-04-17T17:09:00.002-05:00

That's the sound I hear as I am sitting on my bed reading my book. I looked up and saw a bunch of bees outside my bedroom window. You see, this has been a fear of mine since we replaced the windows in this house last fall. We didn't re trim them. So that means the bees can get up into the walls and make them their home. I called Mark at work and told him what I see and he said he would take a look at it this evening when he gets home... In the mean time I pray the bees don't find a way into the house from the walls or the outside. Scary to me....

Simplicity

2010-04-08T21:28:00.002-05:00

God is teaching me less is more and that I need to simplify my life a little more than I already have. Today was another emotionally humbling day, and a move in the direction of simplifying. I'm working on it! HE wants more of me.

Is this what they call a "storm'

2010-04-06T16:27:00.002-05:00

You hear people say all the time you are at the top of the hill but wait till you are in the valley. OR

You just wait till the storm hits, this is just a drizzle....
OR

When it rains, it pours...

I could try and think of more analogies like this but I think you get the idea.

Anyways, I think we may be in the middle of a storm, to the world's view. But to God's view, I think this is just a continuation on the Faith lesson he has me on.

Here are the issues we are dealing with that make me feel like I am in a storm:
1. Our renters are moving out of our rental in CA.
2. We found two water leaks in our house here in TX.
3. Had the chimney guy out yesterday, he said the fire place cover thingy is too small and water is coming down, hence the leak #1. Cost $200 to custom make a cover.
4. The other leak is outside the house on the slab where the wall meets it from our master bathroom. Yes that's right, that means we have to demo the bathroom and see where the water is leaking from, repair it, and then redo the bathroom. Yes the WHOLE bathroom is tile, so that means I have a lot of work to do and a lot money to cough up for new tile!
5. Our AC is leaking and soaked the carpet last year. We turned it off, but it needs to be fixed. Call and got a repair guy to come out tomorrow afternoon. BUT church family, Wayne, is coming to see if he can fix it first so we can save some money!!
6. Rental Management company called me a bit ago to tell me the renters say there is a water leak under the dish washer in the house. aaaaahhhhhhh!!
7. Praying nonstop (well almost) for missions trip financial support money to start coming in.

There is the short list for now! Here is the funny thing. I am not stressing over all this. I mean I think about it, and I make the calls to get it all taken care of. But I am at peace with all these issues happening all at the same time. I know that God will take care of the details. I know that he will provide the money to get this all taken care. And I know that he has good plans for me, us, our family. Plans to prosper us, not to harm us. I can rest in knowing this!

Alive from the dead!!!!

2010-04-05T20:02:00.002-05:00

About 10 years ago my brother, Shane, bought Mark and I a NICE self propelled lawnmower. It was great! I looked forward to taking care of our yards each weekend. Well when we moved here, it started giving us problems. The gas tank leaked. Then the leaks got worse. It was guzzling the gas. When it would run out of gas and we refilled it, it would not start. A few other things were also going out on it. We pampered it the first year it gave us trouble. Last year it was just too much for me. I would get so frustrated with it cause I would get part of the yard done and then it would quit on me. FRUSTRATING!!!

Off to Home Depot we went. Got a nice used mower and off I went. Towards the end of the summer the self propelled part was now Angie propelled. Again, frustrating. I was so happy when the grass stopped growing for the winter cause I didn't have to deal with having two mowers that I could not use.

It is now spring time and I am longing to get back out in the yard and get to work. Mark went and got a belt for mower #2. Wrong belt, didn't work. Now the mower would not crank. Mark gave up and I took it to the shop!! Finally an end to some mower drama! I got a call today that it would cost $105 to fix it. I was so happy.

Well in the mean time, Mark decides to take apart the gas tank on mower #1 and glue up all the cracks! 1st try was good. He got the tank back on, and mower started and pulled beautifully, but then gas started leaking out again! Darn!! He took the tank back off and did some more gluing. Put it all back together tonight, and mowed the front yard!!! I WAS SO HAPPY!! Now he is speaking my love language!! Mark said there was a couple more little repairs that he needed to do, but it works good in the mean time.

This last weekend, I had 2 mowers and neither of them worked! This weekend, I will have 2 mowers and they BOTH will be working. Music to my ears :-) I'm a happy girl with a wonderful husband!!

Thank you Shane for buying us a great mower that with a little TLC is still working 10 years later! Your money was not wasted and we are so thankful for that gift!

BOY Scouts

2010-04-03T14:57:00.003-05:00

It is called that for a reason. It is full of boys, led by boys, to teach and encourage boys.....

So why did I think it would be OK for me to "tag" along today while the boys helped out a fellow scout on his Eagle project? This was our first time to help with an Eagle Project and it happened to be my favorite outside activity, yard work. When the fliers came home I thought, oh this will be a fun thing for our family to do together while helping someone else out. And it was. But I was the only female there till the end. I helped, I cut down little trees, pulled weeds, helped the boys learn to use a drill to screw wood planks to the foot bridge. But when all is said and done, I kinda felt out of place. Moving forward, I will leave this fun family time to Mark and the boys. I will resist the urge to want to go along. I must remember that the boys are getting older and more independent and that I don't need to be with them all the time. This will be great stuff for Mark and the boys to build their relationship on.

I need to adopt a little girl! Or learn to enjoy the free time while the men in my life are out doing "boy" stuff.

Brain Dump #4

2010-04-02T16:20:00.002-05:00

All I need is Jesus!!!

This is so true and wow did it go in one ear and TRY to go out the other one but instead it got stuck in the mumbo jumbo of my brain!! and that's a GREAT thing.

There are many days since moving to TX that I am by myself while Mark is at work and the boys are at school. I find myself being sad that I don't seem to have many friends out here. I know a lot of people but they are not "friends." They are not people I would call and ask out to lunch or the movies or for walk at the park or call and bounce thoughts of. I had lots of friends in CA that I would do these things with. I loved it. I really am a people person. But since being here this area of my personal life has been a struggle.

Then I was at a teaching at the CCWR and the speaker said:

"If we have a husband to come home to that loves us, what a blessing! But if not, WE STILL HAVE JESUS!"

"If we have friends that love us, what a blessing! But if not, WE STILL HAVE JESUS!"

Right then IT hit me!! I am looking for love and acceptance from all the wrong people and places. I should not be looking to man/the world to make me feel good or to make me feel accepted. I should be looking to Jesus to fill these needs I have. I have been over committing myself in many areas trying to "feel the love" and it has not happened. Well DUH! Its not going to. I am only stressing myself out and getting my priorities out of whack! This here is a direct result of not seeking out God FIRST!

This last week, I have had a chance to do a lot of thinking and I think my thinking is getting back on track! I need and want to put God first in all I do. When I do that, I will be in prayer more, in His word more, and in return, I will have that close 'friendship" I have been desiring. I have already felt and seen the difference from doing this. I have gotten back to the correct order of priorities God, Mark, Boys, then....... everything else!

It has not bothered me this week that my phone does not ring, that my email does not have messages, that there are no comments on my blog, that I don't have a lunch date. Because I know that Jesus is my friend, He is calling me ALL the time, I have a book full of "emails" written just for me (!) and He always want to have a lunch date with me! I know that if I can work on this friendship, He will send others to me. Perfect friends, in His perfect timing. In the mean time, I will trust Him with the few he has blessed me with, because I am so thankful to have them!

Brain Dump #3

2010-03-30T08:19:00.002-05:00

I will trust the Lord. I will trust the Lord. I will I will I will. Must remember this.

One of the lessons we learned at CCWR was to trust the Lord and when doing so I will have His peace. I like the idea. I think it is way easier said than done. I am real quick to pray and talk to God about things but I have a hard time LEAVING them at His feet. I like to pick them back up and think about them some more and more and more.... I learned that I need to worry about nothing and pray about everything. I am doing the second half well and well I'm working on the first half :-) I think the real problem is my "I'VE got to have everything under control 100% of the time" way of thinking needs to change. I like order. I like knowing my plans. I love knowing I am saved by grace cause God is cringing at my worriedness right now. I knew that since this is the way I am, and that He has a huge sence of humor, He would be sure to give me a lesson in this area right away and sure enough He has wasted NOOOO time getting right to it!

Our renters gave 30 day notice to our management company yesterday. This is our first time dealing with one tenant moving out and another moving in.....hopefully soon. We were always afraid of this day. The wondering of how long our house will be empty. How long before we have new renters. How much will they be willing to pay? How much will we have to pay to cover the mortgage and for how many months will the house be empty. What does our house look like? How much work and money will it take to get it back to rentable condition? AAAHHHH all these questions running through my head.

Oh Lord, I come to you now with these thoughts. I trust you with them now, Lord. Please go before us, and bless our current renters in their new rental house, that it would be a perfect fit for them, their kids and their dogs. Lord, please bring us new renters in your perfect timing, hopefully soon. Please give Mark and I your peace during this transition. Help me to leave this at your feet and not pick it back up. I truly want to give this over to you. Please guide Mark and I as we have to make the decisions for our plan to move forward. Thank you for hearing my heart. Amen

Brain Dump #2

2010-03-29T08:48:00.004-05:00

Foods!!! This is another area God spoke to me about this weekend!

So we are NOT the healthiest eaters in this world. Shock shock!! Well lets be honest, you would for sure put us in the "Horrible Eaters" group. But I am going to attempt to change that a bit! Now don't go falling off your rockers, because I don't think we will be eating any more veggies than we do now, but I plan to change other areas of our diet. The first one is we are going to switch from white bread to wheat bread. We are out of bread at the moment, so now is the perfect time to make the switch. Another change, I will be adding fruit to every meal we eat. I told the boys this morning on the way to school that for now on we will be eating fruit with our meals unless they would rather I make veggies. Well I am sure you know how that went!! They choose fruit. I have lots of it in the house. Fresh green and red apples, oranges, grapes. I have canned peaches and pears. I am going to increase the monthly fruit budget to help in this area.
Another change will be healthier after school snacks. Like less chips and cookies and more peanut butter with crackers. Or cheese and crackers. Or sandwiches.
We also will not be drinking sodas. Now we already hardly ever have them, but for now I wont be buying any soda at all. I know this wont be hard to implement because Mark does not ask for soda for work either. We do tend to eat out more than we should. Especially when we have full cupboards and a full freezer. I will be making more of an effort to plan ahead for dinner meals. I will HAVE to remember to take out some meat to defrost. That is the main problem. I forgot about the meat. Moving forward my goal is to be better about that! I also need to make sure that I remember my family first before all other things that cloud my mind. I forget that we have busy nights and that I need to cook dinner before we leave the house in the evenings. I can not continue to think that I can cook a good meal after boy scouts or after base ball practice.
So there you have it! Brain dump #2. It sounds like I need to prioritize and make better decisions for our family. And that starts NOW!! Please pray for us!!

Lots to do

2010-03-28T17:49:00.003-05:00

WOW! I had an amazing time this weekend at the Calvary Chapel Women's Retreat in the Ozarks, AR. The drive up with beautiful. I had lots of drive time to look at the surrounds all around me, knowing each and every thing I saw was perfectly created by the one and only God. Who else could have do all this? It was the prefect way to start out a weekend that was all about Him and what He is doing and going to do in my life. I knew at this point that I was in for a God filled time with lovely ladies that love the Lord as I do. What I didn't know, is that in my opinion, I have so much more learning and loving to do. To see the love of Jesus pour out of these ladies was so inspiring and I could do nothing but take it all in and weep. Weep for the fact that I thought I loved Jesus will all I had, and I clearly saw that He wants to much more of me, so much more of my life, so much more of my heart, so much of my mind, so much more of ME as a whole! and the fun thing is that I am ready to give it to Him. I know its not going to happen over night. I know that loves grows as the relationship grows. I know that that relationship can not grow if I am not talking to him daily, reading his word daily, and implementing it in my life daily.
We were challenged a lot this weekend to give our WHOLE life over to Jesus. That's whats he wants from us. I kept hearing over and over in my head the one area that I have been holding onto so tightly is what I read. I have subscriptions to People magazine and US magazine. I know that I should give those up and I will. I also know that He wants me to give up the majority of my unread books as I know they are not appropriate material for a Christian lady to be reading. The funny thing is that I have had all these books for the last 4-5 years and have not read them. I got them all on sale at Barns and Noble back in CA. But since then, I have been reading all Christan novels, books from church, and Godly books loaned to me by other Christian ladies. My heart has not even been to read these other unread books, but I didn't want to give them up. Well I am finally ready to. I am going to post them to http://www.paperbackswap.com tonight and when I trade them and I am going to get all Christian books. I am very excited about this change in my heart. I am realizing that I was holding onto materialist things (books) instead of my relationship with Christ. I know this may seem pretty lame, but for me this is a big deal. Please pray that I would desire to draw closer to Jesus. This is my prayer and I am going to try everyday to evaluate what I could be doing to please Him with my obedience.
I have so much more to "download" from this weekend. So the blog will be full of "brain dump" for a while to come! If I can be an inspiration to someone else to grow in their own relationship with Jesus, it will be worth it to share my thoughts and progress with others.

Blessing! Angie

The Adventure Begins

2010-03-26T07:17:00.003-05:00

I always feel like I am going on an adventure when I start the process of planning for a missions trip. It is a fun adventure with lots of unknowns. This trip will be much the same. I have been down to Mexico many many times. Loved each and every visit. This time I am going to the complete opposite side of Mexico, down on the Yucatan area. Merida is a city of about 1M people. I am told it is safe, clean, and only a short drive to the coast lines. Right now the exciting thing to me is that I will be staying with a host family instead of staying in a hotel. The not so exciting thing to me is thinking about what am I going to eat??? LOL You may think that is crazy, but if you know me, you know how picky of an eater I am. This is always a challenge for me when I leave home. This trip I will view it as an adventure and will hopefully be able to try some new foods. I will keep you posted.

If you would like to be apart of my prayer team, please email me at afunches@cableone.net so I can add you to my group!

Prayer Team/Support letters are going out today. If you get one, can you pls pray over it and see where the Lord leads you? Once I get the funds raised I can focus on other important stuff!!

A~

God clearly said "Go!"

2010-03-25T21:46:00.001-05:00

And go I will!

Dear Family and Friends,

I remember my last missions trip to Kenya like it was yesterday, even though it was over three years ago! Many families were blessed beyond measure during that trip. The Gospel was shared, lives were given to Jesus, hearts were changed, medical outreaches occurred in the “bush” and many other great things happened, all to give glory to God!

My heart has longed to go on another trip and continue the good work of sharing the gospel and loving on others in whatever ways possible, but I heard God say “be still” and so I have been obedient “being still!”

After being still for 3 years, focusing on other areas of life, and much prayer, God has said, “Go!”

Our church Calvary Chapel Texarkana with Pastor Craig Rose, has been invited to visit Calvary Chapel Merida, Mexico for a special week of training teachers, church members, and children on the topic of Creation vs. Evolution based on the teachings of the Bible. We will be leading classes teaching this very basic, very important subject for the majority of the time. A VBS style teaching will be held for the children of the church and surrounding community.

The details are being worked out and that leaves me with two tasks to complete! The 1^st would be a team to focus on prayer covering during the trip and the 2nd is raising the amount I need to cover the expenses J

Roundtrip airfare is $395.00

Food is estimated at $25.00/day X 8 days $200.00

We will be staying with church families J so no hotel cost!!

Travel within the Merida area $50.00

Incidentals $100.00

Estimated total $750.00

More than financial assistance, the team and I will need A LOT of prayer covering!!

Would you please pray about what your role in supporting me might look like? Our trip is from June 11^th thru June 19^th. I do need to have raised the amount of $750 by April 20, 2010. I know the Lord said “Go” and go I will! With His clear directions to me, I know He will raise the funds to see glory given to His name!

If you would like to be a part of my prayer covering team please email me @ afunches@cableone.net

If you are able to be a part of my financial support team, please see the attached sheet for all the details.

Thank you so much!

Angie Funches

Boys

2010-03-24T21:15:00.002-05:00

You know your raising boys when they feel the need to tell you how big and what shape their poop comes out in.

His passion

2010-02-16T07:16:00.003-06:00

Mark is an artist. He loves to paint, draw, music, anything that is artistic. Well Marcus's den needed a flag made for their promotion into Boy Scouts. My eyes got real big and of course I volunteered Mark for the job. When i took him the little tiny pic that one of the kids brought to the meeting to turn into a flag, he was so excited. I was even more excited for him since I know that he has not painted anything other than cars for at least the last 10 years. He enjoyed drawing the picture over and over to make it perfect and larger and in the end:

The whole den loved it. Each of the kids looked at it and their parents did as well. I was so proud of Mark. He did such a great job. Its not done, we still have to add a few things to it. I will post more later.

I love savingsss

2010-02-15T21:24:00.003-06:00

Thank you Lord for the snow day on Friday. I was able to hold off on shopping for the class party till today and I got it all at 50% off. I even got bags with stuff and the boys! Came home and made a heart shaped chocolate cake for Mark and the kids. They all enjoyed their V-day gifts. My vote is to celebrate all holidays one day after the actual day cause we can save a lot of money and get more stuff for the same price!!

Here are the goodies I had in the bags for the boys. Little toys and 1 little box of candy!

Here is my attempt at being creative with making a heart cake! Mark liked it. He liked it more because he knows that being creative is not my strong suit....

Here is what they all came home too after Boy Scouts tonight!

Happy Valentine's Day to my Hubby and sons!

peeyew

2010-02-05T06:51:00.000-06:00

Men/boys sure can stink up a bathroom. Maybe this is one reason why God gave them me and my love of scented candles! Now... where are those matches??? LOL

so emotional...

2010-02-04T07:54:00.001-06:00

but for a good reason, kinda. I was moved. To tears...in the check out line at Wal-mart.

I was standing there at the express check out and looked around as I was day dreaming. I saw a man with an employee over in the bakery area. She was helping him put a cake in his buggy. I didn't think anything out of the norm but I blinked and the next thing I saw was him pushing his buggy to the check out stand....WITH HIS CHEST. You see, he has no arms. Only stubs up at his shoulders. He had only one leg and an artificial leg. He immediately started unloading his few items WITH HIS TEETH!!! He had 2 2 lt bottles and some other stuff. That is when I teared up, watching him do this. I was in shock. I just stood there. Staring. I have never seen this before. I know people loose their arms, legs, eyes, and they have to learn to adapt. This guy did for sure. After the second bottle of soda a young kid about Marcus's age went to ask him if he could help. The guy accepted, not too proud! I teared up again. I was so happy that someone went to help him. That could have been me helping, should have been me helping, but I was still in shock and didn't move. There were a few people in line before me so I had a few minutes to get myself together before I had to speak. Thank God. I was reminded by this event of a few things. To be thankful for my arms and hands. I take them for granted. To be thankful for my two natural legs. I need to use them more, they are a blessing. Also, to share this story tonight with the boys as a teaching moment on how to show God's love to someone at the grocery store, even though I fell short on this opportunity and someone else got the blessing. I think that is the real lesson, hearing God speak and do what he is telling you to!

Unwelcome Guests

2010-02-03T15:24:00.002-06:00

So this week has been full of fun with our unwelcome guests, better know as mice!!! The good news is so far they are only in the garage and maybe up in the attic. In the last 2 days 5 mice have been caught! That's great. But its also scary thinking how many more are there??? Mark and the boys are having so much fun with this it is crazy. They all wake up in the morning with one thing on their mind. Going to check the traps to see if they caught another one!!! As soon and the boys gets home from school, the first thing they want to do, is go to the garage and check their traps. ALL BOY I tell you. All 3 of them. I hope this ends soon, cause I don't like mice. Although in my mind, this is much better than dealing with a million ants!!! I'm knocking on wood right now!

$3

2010-01-28T07:48:00.000-06:00

$3...That's what I gave Zachery on Monday. He woke up at 6am with his dad. When dad left for work, Zachery came and got in bed with me. He was not tired and didn't want to lay down. So..... he rubbed my back for 30 minutes and asked for $3 in payment! I gladly gave it to him and said please come back again! This momma loves her back rubbed and he knows it!!

Confirmations

2010-01-27T07:10:00.001-06:00

Each day He gives me many confirmations that I am doing good things for my children. Today Zachery brought home the newsletter from the school. He is listed under the "All A Honor Roll" and "All Es Work Habits"! This would be very normal for Marcus, but unfortunately not for Zachery. Therefor this is a great confirmation that Mark and I did make the right choice for Zachery. They both bring us such joy.....

Im a people pleaser

2010-01-26T21:57:00.003-06:00

When I do things for people I love to hear that they are happy with what I have done. Doesn't everyone? I like to go above and beyond the call of duty when I have time and I can. Yesterday I did that. I cleaned out the fireplace and brought up the trash cans from the street for my client. Both things are not part of my normal duties.

Tonight I received a txt message from her saying:
Oh my gosh. You are such a jewel. I intended to text you yesterday and tell you how much we appreciate you bringing in the trash cans. I was also very pleased with everything else. The house was spotless. But tonight when I sat down and glanced at the fireplace I was speechless. It is cleaner than it has ever been. There will be a bonus waiting on you when you get here on Monday. You are awesome. Thanks for everything you do.

Little notes like this make my day and bring me such joy. Even though I don't like cleaning, those of you that know me well, know I really don't like cleaning, I clean for each client as if I am cleaning for the Lord. He is rewarding me now via this little note. :-)

Learning...

2010-01-26T07:51:00.000-06:00

I am learning to go to the Bible for wisdom and understanding! Sometimes I dont understand why things happen the way they do or why people say the things they say. It can be hurtful. This time He led me straight to Proverbs 15. There were a few verses that "hit the nail on the head." I feel better after praying over my feelings and hearing from His word. I am reminded of a few other verses as well. Jeremiah 29:11-13, He has good plans for me! Psalm 147:5, How great is our Lord! His power is absolute! His understanding is beyond comprehension. When I dont understand, I know He understands. I will rest in trusting Him.

Its happened!!!

2010-01-25T08:30:00.002-06:00

I have become THAT mom. That mom who takes her kids to school in the morning while still wearing her house robe! It was so comfortable and warm..... LOL

the constant pull.....

2010-01-23T07:57:00.001-06:00

Every day I do some sort of "office work" whether it be at home balancing my check book, doing work for the school, vol for Favor of God, or tracking giving for my church. Everyday I feel the natural pull of my heart telling me to go back to work full time in an office environment because I miss it so much. But I have to remind myself that for now, I am doing what He wants me to do! I know that one day I will go back to work. I want to go back to work. Maybe tomorrow, maybe next year. Maybe full time or maybe part time. I know He will present to me the prefect job He has for me and I know beyond a shadow of doubt, that the timing will be right according to His plans for me. Until then.....I wait and listen for the still small voice.

He learned all he needs to learn at the age of 10

2010-01-22T09:07:00.000-06:00

Last night I took the boys to BB practice and on the way home ever heard this conversation between them:

M: Mom next week can I choose the place we eat out at?

Me: Sure

Z: When I get older I want to choose where to eat.

M: When you get older and want to have a good relationship with your girlfriend, you need to ALWAYS LET HER CHOOSE WHERE TO EAT! Cause then she can't be mad at you for not liking the food!

I just had to chuckle! And tell them that was a good rule of thumb! :-)

They are growing up so fast!

Been busy

2010-01-21T14:55:00.004-06:00

So its been 3 months since I have blogged. That's too long! A lot has been happening. Today one thing on my mind, did Mark and I make the right choice to help Z with school by putting him on adhd meds. We got his last report card and what a difference it was! He had ALL E's on the behavior side. Last year it was all F's. He now has more friends in school and more friends that want to come visit with him outside of school. He seems to have more self confidence and is not in trouble so much. All in all, we have seem some MAJOR improvements. The only down fall....... He is not eating lunch. And he wants to. He likes to eat. He gets the food, then just talks to his friends and doesn't even touch his plate. I noticed this, so when I go to the school on Thursdays and Fridays to eat with him, I don't even have him get the food. We have been going to the school library and getting books of his choice for me to read to him. (he can now sit and enjoy listening to a good story!) He seems to like this. He gets good books and helps read them too. But he complains about not being able to eat. Today after reading for 15 minutes, he tells me he is hungry. So we go get the tray lunch. He did not want to eat it once we sat down. I don't show him any of my frustration, cause he has his own. I did manage to get him to take about 4 bites of his burger and a few sips of milk. We went to the docs for a follow up visit and they said this is normal and that is still doing good, because he had gained 6 pounds since starting. So I am doing my job well, making sure he eats breakfast and dinner.
I type all this just to vent. I really feel like we are doing the right thing because the pros out weigh the negatives by many times over. I just wish there was a PERFECT solution, before we get to heaven. :-)

bad dogs!

2009-10-16T10:07:00.002-05:00

We have two big dogs that like to get out of the back yard even though it is 1/3 of an acre. We live on a semi busy street and that is not good when they get out. So we have decided to hot wire the fence. The day Mark got it installed, Chloe went up and over and we thought maybe she didn't get popped. Right now I just let her off the leash and she TRIED going UNDER the fence, and got popped again. It is not like her to go under the fence. We have never seen her do that. I am thinking that she indeed DID get popped when she went over the other day. I am now in the house and she is in the back yard, not on a leash. I am praying that she will still be in the back yard every time I check on her. Then we will have victory over the dogs getting out and they can enjoy being dogs again and not staying on a leash all the time. Also, we must have victory because it is now ILLEGAL to have your animals tied up on a leash or chain. They have to be free roaming, WE WANT THEM FREE ROAMING, but in the BACK yard!

6 vs 10

2009-09-01T07:24:00.000-05:00

This is a simple way to see the mental difference between an almost 7 year old and a solid 10 year old.

Both beds are made and I am happy. They do not complain in the mornings that they have to do this and I am happy for that! Nor do I tell Z that it is not done correctly. He did it well with a good heart and intentions and that is all I am asking for now. Last year we did not make beds, this year I am trying to add it into our mornings. We are getting up with plenty of time for this and we have not had to "rush." This year is going so much better than last year. I think a big part of it is that Dad is home in the mornings and the boys are excited to see him before he leaves! I'm praying this easiness lasts!

Soccer

2009-08-31T07:11:00.004-05:00

Last year we started playing sports with Basketball. This year we are adding Soccer to the lineup. Last week Zachery started practice and had a great time. The only problem is he talks so much.... Im sure in the next few practices he will be running some laps for this. Better for him to learn now than later. Marcus starts practice this week. Add this to Bible Study on Wed nights and Boy Scouts on Monday nights and we are a very busy family. Our intention is to keep them so busy with sports and church and Boy Scouts that there will be no time for getting into trouble in later years! Lets see if it works......

Break time, needs liquids! See how sweaty he is? Yuck!

Practicing drills. Marcus is working as an assistant since he practice starts next week.

You want me to sit on the ball? Why, when I can stand and hold it?

Dad tighening shoes again!

Zachery meeting his coach!

Its been awile!

2009-08-27T16:22:00.003-05:00

Playing in the sand after a full morning of playing in the ocean.

This what we did every day for the mornings from 9ish to 1230ish. WORE THEM OUT~

Enjoying time with Dad on the balcony of our room.

My dad and Karon took the boys to this amusement park in the afternoons for two days. It was cool with a few big coasters and lots of other stuff to do.

This is the view of the ocean from our hotel. I would sit on the balcony in the mornings before Mark and the boys woke up and just listen to the waves and enjoy the peace in them.

So its been a LLLOOONNNG time since I have blogged. It has been a good summer and a slow summer for us. The boys spent almost 5 weeks back in CA with our families. They had a great time. Before the left, Ozell, Mark's mom came to visit for 2 weeks. She took the boys back with her. When they returned to us, they brought with them, my mom. See visited with us for 1 week. We enjoyed all the visits and our quiet time while we were alone. Our summer ended with a family vacation to Myrtle Beach, SC to visit my dad and step mother. It was a fun and very relaxing time. Mark and I think it was our most relaxing vacation since we married 10 years ago. Enjoy the pics. Now that school is back in session I will be blogging more.

Lots of stuff all at the same time

2009-05-18T14:35:00.002-05:00

I have been going going going and haven't stopped to blog. A few things on my mind today:

1. I had a GREAT weekend with my boys at the mom and me camp out with the cub scouts. It was a great time of bonding with Marcus and Zachery. We did ALL the activities, including kayaking, crafts, BB guns, scavenger hunt, hiking trails, and I even raced them a few times up the rock wall. One of the things I learned this weekend, being around other moms and their boys, is that I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE, who has a high energy child that does not always listen and that is not always behaving. Sometimes I think I am the only one in the world that deals with this. I know I am not, it is just the enemy trying to get inside me.
2. This weekend I made 3 new lady friends!! God is so good to me and places me in situations where I can make friends and get to know other ladies that are in the same season of life as me. These ladies also like to do the same activities that Mark and I and the boys like to do! I have been thinking about them since I got home, I found them on Face Book, and now I pray for opportunities to have fun with our families! Oh! They are all 3 Christians, so that is an added bonus :-)
3. Bible Study has been great. I am learning so much. I could be learning so much more if I was doing my homework each night and really devoting time to God like I should. Today our study fell right in line with that and I am even more convicted to get my priorities in order. I have a great leader who is patient and understanding and meets us all right where we are. Could I ask for more? not really.
4. Today I am thankful that my husband is making friends and hanging out with them. Yesterday he had the chance to go on a bike ride out to Hot Springs with his friend. Mark said it was a beautiful ride and a place he wants to take me to. I was frustrated when the day moved on and he was still gone when I put the boys to bed at 830. My thoughts were the boys and I have been gone all weekend long and shouldn't he be rushing home to see us? Well I got over that quickly as I realized I was being selfish with his time and that he really deserved to have "Male Bonding Time."
5. I need to be spending more time in prayer. I have lots of things I need to give to God. I also have friends that I could/should be praying for. I know of many issues (mine and others') that need to be lifted up to Him. So! If you have something I can add to my prayer list for you, let me know :-)

All in All, everything is great at the Funches residence!

Its the dogs AGAIN!

2009-05-09T21:19:00.003-05:00

I brought them inside during the storm and put them in the bathroom. If I dont, Chloe pees on my carpets......

They found the stash of TP behind the toilet and shredded it. Like $6 down the drain... sucks!

Please help send Jen out to serve our Lord!

2009-05-03T21:03:00.002-05:00

Hello Friends and Family!

I am writing to you on behalf of a dear friend of mine, Jen. Jen is leaving in a few months to serve in the missions field for the next 2 years. As you all know it takes a lot of spiritual and financial support to make this happen. As she nears the end of her time stateside she still has a LOT of funds to raise. Would you please prayerfully consider supporting her either spiritually or financially? I have her support sign up sheet and a detailed budget showing you where the money is going. Please let me know if you are interested and I can email you these forms! Any and all amounts are appreciated as they add up before you know it! Below is a letter from Jen sharing her heart for missions.

I hope this letter finds you well! This year has gone by fast, and amazing things have been happening in my life that I am excited to share with you all!
As most of you know, I have been working on my Creative Writing Certificate from Cal State San Bernardino. English and creative writing have been a passion of mine, and a field that I’ve been blessed to work in before.
Even though I finished my Bachelor’s in English last June, I really felt that this certificate would bring my skills up to the next level. In doing so, I have been using my passions and talents to help my community through Sandals Church in Riverside. I have been given the opportunity to minister to local shelters, facilitate Sunday School classrooms, and edit “The Wire,” our newsletter for local and global outreach. Sandals has given me opportunity to serve others while giving back to the community through deeds and work.
Even though I have made wonderful friendships and have really started to feel at home here in Riverside, God started calling me to break out of this comfort zone to work and serve overseas. In prayer for finding out which path I needed to follow after completing my degree, I was contacted by Pacific Islands Bible College (PIBC), a fully accredited four-year college and graduate-level seminary servicing four islands of Micronesia, including Guam.
After much prayer and consideration, I accepted a 2-year position as an English Instructor at PIBC. I will be working closely with the English department to facilitate tutoring, instruct introductory courses, and open a writing and resource center. Also, as a member of the Sandals’ global family, I will be supported further in my own spiritual needs. The tasks ahead will be nothing short of exhausting, but it is with God’s grace and strength that I will be able to take part in serving through my field of expertise.
With much technical support, I am now in need of spiritual and financial assistance. In order to keep the cost of attendance low and education accessible at PIBC, the university staff is funded by support from friends, family, and organizations.
In the past and coming months, my church, small group, and close friends have been and continue to be so helpful in planning fundraisers to help raise support. However, as the departure date draws near, I am still in need of financial assistance. Any amount that you could give would be a huge blessing to this ministry. It’s imperative that my income from sponsorship be approximately $1,600 per month, with over $8,000 to start out on. All donations collected will offset the cost of living expenses and provisions at a modest minimum wage level for the full-time PIBC position.
I am so excited to be able to work in an area that I’m passionate about while providing spiritual support for others. I fully believe that love is best shown through being the hands and feet of God, and because of this, I cannot wait to dedicate my time and talents to Micronesia. Thank you so much for your prayers and support!

Love always,

Jennifer Rydzik

Family Nights

2009-04-30T08:33:00.000-05:00

When Mark and I decided that we were moving to TX one of our selling points is that we would be able to spend more time together as a family since I would not need to work. We started having Tuesday Family Nights as our special one night a week to do what the kids choose. We usually go out to eat because the community resturants have "kids eat free" on Tuesdays and you know I am always looking to save some money.
This week we ended up at McDonald's becuase my Mom send the boys gift card to here for Easter. It is their favorite place and as you can see they were very happy! They ordered their own food and payed for too! I had to chip in cause they eat adult meals now that cost more than kids meals!

Before dinner we went to the movies and saw Earth! We really enjoyed it. Zachery made it through most of it but at the end he fell asleep. I should have know better but I tried to fit it in before his daily "crash time" It didnt work. Can you tell the sun is in our eyes?

Mark and I!

The kids never say no to an offer of a bike ride! However, someone told Mark this week that you have to be 14 to ride on the back....so I need to make a call to the DMV and find out for sure. Cause since we have moved here the boys have been on MANY rides.... we dont need another ticket.

Random fun over the last couple weeks

2009-04-29T12:15:00.002-05:00

marcus and Baily have been doing crafts at the house and these two pics are what they created. I need to make a trip to Micheal's to replenesh the craft supply.

This is the note that Zachery wrote to the tooth fairy to let her know that he lost his tooth on the bus but that he still wanted his money.... and the arrow so she would know that he was on the bottom bunk so she would not give his money to his brother on the top bunk. :-)

Me and my Zachery. I love this pic. I am going to have it printed and framed! I dont get these big hugs very often!

I guess the top of the house has a better view???

Camping part 2

2009-04-28T12:13:00.003-05:00

Filleting the fish!

Oh No! You just cutt the head off! and now you are cutting off the tail???

Let me do it let me do it!!!

Big ol buffalo!

Zachery flying his kite! He and his kite did the best during out flying session. Look at the view of the lake!

We are scheduled to go back in June for Fathers Day! Dont know if we can wait that long for another trip, we had so much fun as a family. The kids got to run wild, play with other kids, ride their bikes and scooters all over the campgounds....eat eat eat. The work NO was not said very much! :-)

Weekend of Camping!

2009-04-28T10:26:00.005-05:00

Here are some pics of our camping weekend. Were were out there for 4 days three nights. Had a blast! Enjoy:

Zachery caught a fish!

Mark and the boys fishing for dinner.

This is the campsite and our view of the lake. It was georgous.

Here is our ol' faithful trailer that does not let us down. We used the lights, stove, sink, and the toilet! It all still works!

This is were the boys slept for the weekend. This tent was given to us from my Uncle Jim! We would not have been able to go camping without it! The boys dont fit in the trailer anymore!

This is the nice room also donated to us by my Uncle Jim and Aunt Cathy! Thanks :-) It even has this cool little covered area to keep the coolers in, It was perfect! Zackery enjoying the campgounds and his bike! Marcus had his scooter.

Zachery is the trailer eating or something.

Mark and Marcus flying the kites. Mark's brother (Uncle Mike for the boys) bought them these for Christmas and we finally got to use them! It was so beautiful out and a fun time for us all.

Marcus posing by the lake! He is getting so big and becoming a young man!

Mark and Marcus with the kite!

Another 1st!

2009-04-15T16:41:00.003-05:00

Zachery came home today missing his tooth! He has been wanting to loose a tooth for a while now...it finally happened. The school nurse put it in a little plastic tooth on a rope necklace. Do you think it made it home? NNOOOOOOOOOOOO! He lost it somewhere on the bus coming home. Oh well. There will be more.

Fun.... at the Funches House

2009-04-13T19:37:00.001-05:00

This young guy is at our house alot. He and Marcus are friends. They go to school together. The last time he was here he asked if I had a wig. He was SHOCKED when I told him I did. So he put it on and was a great sport for me to take a pic of him. Fun times at the Funches House! You just never what we are up to.

Happy Easter....HE is Risen!

2009-04-12T19:15:00.003-05:00

Today started off with a great Easter service at church. Worship was awesome, moving, and got right to my heart. After church we BBQed in the rain some Carne Asada and it was yummy! Then we had an Easter Egg hunt in our front yards. Over 200 eggs for three kids!
Tarrance and Maria joined us for the day along with Dayna. Maria got here this morning and Tarrance came over when he got out of work!

Mark and Zachery decided to practice casting their new fishing poles (courtesy of my Uncle Jimmy!)in the front yard as if it were a lake. I mean I know it was raining and all but there was no water in sight!

Mark fishing for grass in the yard!

Kids having fun with the eggs. Who needs baskets when you have reusable grocery sacks???

Well he couldn't reach it but he really wanted it, so he climbed the tree for it!

Skipping right along!

Is Dayna so cute!!

Do you think he needed to go potty? LOL
Great Easter Day with friends. We are happy and our love tanks are full!

Tress are all gone.....almost

2009-04-10T09:09:00.004-05:00

Lots of tractors, lots of trailers, and even more tree brush! That pine tree behind the trailer is the last one to go!

No more Pine Trees in the front yard!!

Dang, we busted another water line!! Hurry with the tractor and move this big tree so we can dig it up.

Last tree to fall in the back yard. It was a biggie.

This was the 1st water line to break. Easy to find and easy to fix. We like these kinds of setbacks as apposed to a tree falling on the house.

I really am blessed

2009-04-09T20:06:00.002-05:00

So this is an email I just read received from a very special friend! God really has me in the palm of his hand and has placed the perfect people in my life and the perfect time. So like HIM!

I just wanted to tell you that I read your blog this morning and looked at all those great pics of the kids! Wow! We have such a great life EVEN THOUGH we get so frustrated!

However, I got really sad reading your blog about Zach. I know how frustrating and sad it can be for us dealing with ADHD children (you know I KNOW!), and you know I have felt right where you were that day too, but I wanted to just remind you that God CHOSE Zach for you! He did not give him to any other person. He gave me B and he gave you Zach. And, if we trust him, LIKE WE KNOW WE SHOULD, we will know that He, as He promised, would not give us more than we could handle. He knows WE CAN HANDLE them even when we feel we cannot.

You are a wonderful mom to Zach! You are consistent and firm and you provide him structure and boundaries and lots of love - I notice how you hold him and give him affection. I have always been told that is what ADHD children need. And while Zach may struggle in school not fitting into the little MOLD of what society expects from our children, he is sweet and caring and giving and SMART, and I just find a lot to be positive about with him.

I know and I KNOW YOU KNOW I do struggle sometimes with seeing the good in B when people around me are always pointing to the bad, but know that there is a lot special that I can see in Zach and he will soar in areas that "typical" children do not.

You know a scripture that helps me - "in our weakness, He is made strong." So, if we just continue to give our little ADHD angels over to God every day like we should, God will do in them what we cannot.

I just pray over B a lot this prayer "Lord please bridge the gap between what I am able to provide and do for B and what he needs." And, I believe He will do that for us both!

So, BE ENCOURAGED, you are a great mom and God is just making us both stronger!

I love you! You are just bringing so much into my life and into my kids' lives AND SAVING me some money! I am SOOO appreciative for yesterday! Be encouraged! :)

REALLY??? Could I have been given any better of a friend than this??? I am so lucky! Thanks T!! I love you too!

Fun Saturday

2009-04-04T17:13:00.004-05:00

Today was a fun day. This morning we went to an Easter egg hunt at a local church. Pretty interesting how they were able to tell the story of Jesus with a dozen eggs. I liked it! Then we went to another Easter egg hunt at the local park! It was a big one. TONS of kids and tons of eggs. Boys were having fun with the Armadillo from Texas Roadhouse

Starbucks was there....and they were making FREE drinks!!!! So of course we had to stop by for that!!

All the kids sitting on the bench with the Starbucks. Good thing it was free! And yes they were on a sugar high for a while!

This was at the park egg hunt. We walked around the pond and looked at the ducks. Zachery and Parker were watching John David so he did not fall in.

Marcus and Matthew looking at what was in their eggs. Zachery was watching since he was grounded he was not participating.

Our friends that we went with: Erin and Parker. This was at the church.

Again at the church. Lots of candy!

Everyone is happy and ready to have fun looking for eggs. Like our baskets?

ggggrrrrrr

2009-04-03T15:36:00.002-05:00

This has been a hard week for me emotionally. It always is when Z does not behave in school and then I have to deal with it at home. I know that it is our responsibility as his parents, but I hate it. I hate the fact that no matter what I do he can't seem to stay out of trouble. He does not listen to his teacher and he does not know how to keep his mouth shut. Last week I was gone and he was in trouble every day, with his name on the board, with check marks and even hole punches on his tiger card. I thought maybe this week would be better since I was back home and everything would be back to normal and that would translate to better days in school. Well it didn't. I feel like every day I dread the boys coming home cause I can never ask, "How was your day?" and get a good answer from both of them. I hate spanking him even though I do. He is going to get a spanking today and he is grounded this weekend. Tomorrow we are going to an Easter egg hunt and now he won't be able to participate. Its days and weeks like this when I wish I could go to the doctors and get some antidepressants for me and some ADHD meds for him. But we still don't have any insurance. I also hate it when I let myself get into a bad mood over this and then I don't treat Marcus and Mark with the happy cheery mood that I would like to. It just sucks. And the thing that puzzles me is that when he is at home he is good. He listens and does what he knows needs to be done. Sometimes we have issues with homework but overall he behaves. Why can't he do the same in school? AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH I am so frustrated today. I hope with him being in his room, grounded, I will be able to focus and enjoy the weekend with Marcus and Mark. Can you please say a prayer for me and Zachery? Thanks

Bye Bye Grandma

2009-03-30T19:04:00.004-05:00

I have been up in Ohio for the last week for my Grandmother's funeral. Funerals are never an exciting thing. However the upside to them is that we get to see family that we otherwise would not. That was the case with us. I have not been to Ohio in over 20 years. So I have not had the chance to have a relationship with Aunts and Uncles and Cousins. Well now I do. I spent the week with them and even stayed an extra day with my Uncle Jim and Aunt Cathy and cousin Josh. I am so glad I did that. Here are some pics from the week.
My sister, Natalie, Cousin Josh, Me, Mom, and Shane

All the boy cousins carrying the coffin.

Uncle Jimmy, Aunt Cathy, Cousin Jimmy, and second cousin Robin.

Aunt Mary with her two sons, Nathan and Brandon

Frank, Mom, Shane, me, and Natalie.

Caldwell Zoo

2009-03-25T08:10:00.000-05:00

This was a cute little zoo in Tyler, TX. It is very small compared to the San Diego Wild Animal Park we are used to. But it was fun none the less! Adult admin was $8.50 and kids were $5! Another great day of cheap entertainment.

Marcus and Bailey acting like they have never seen a big fish before!

All four boys for a great photo opp.

The boys are having fun on the steps outside the Zoo while Terri and I bought the tickets.

My battery for the camera died and these were the only pics I got. I was sad but at least I got these! The zoo was fun, but Zac was bored. He wanted to go back to the water park.... Still another successful day for me and boys! :-)

The Waterpark at the Villages

2009-03-24T08:48:00.000-05:00

My friend Terri knew of this indoor water park in Tyler, TX. She wanted to go and invited the boys and I to go with her! It was so much fun. The drive was only about 2.5 hours south and it was a tree lined drive the whole way, absolutely gorgeous. It was only $20 for general adm. and $17 for Zachery (kids). cant beat that for some fun!
This is Parker coming out of one of the "body" slides. all smiles, all day, such a happy kid!

Parker on the lazy river.

Me on the lazy river! The water was so warm, it was perfect!

Bailey in front of the sigh and the play area. There is a BIG bucket at the top of this play structure that dumps every 10 minutes or so. It was so loud and so much water falling!

Marcus coming out of the slide.

Marcus and Bailey racing down the slides!

Zachery coming out of the slide! This was the first time that he got to ride "big" slides and he was so happy!

Parker and I racing down the slides and I won!!

Marcus and Bailey hamming for the camera! Happy boys = happy moms!

We all cant wait to go back here! It is a time share resort that has the water park. I plan to arrange for a "tour" so we can stay here for free for the weekend and come back and play some more! Don't you think that is a good plan? Me and free= perfect!

Chuck E Cheese's

2009-03-23T08:34:00.002-05:00

Where kids can be a kid!! And mine did! And had a great time!

Marcus, Zachery, and Dayton!

Marcus and Dayton playing around, having a playful time!

Zachery smiling! mmmmm cake and ice cream!

Birthday girl, Dayna, blowing out her candle on her Dora cake!

Boys having fun with the camera!
I even got 30 free tockens for taking in their report cards! 15 each! I love free stuff :-) Did you get somthing for free today?

WARNING!!!!!!! GGGRROOOOOSSSSSSS

2009-03-22T08:29:00.000-05:00

This is what one of the dogs threw up on my living room carpet! They got loose, jumped the fence, ran around the neighborhood, came home, and gave us this gift! It is the insides of a small animal. GGRROOOSSSSSSSS!!! It stunk so bad! This is the grossest thing I have ever had to deal with. Good thing Mark was home to handle it. I did have to hold open the bag but he picked it up. We talked to the vet and she said it was the best thing the dog could have done, throwing it up....but really???? on my carpet??? needless to say they stay on the chain now. No more running loose around the back yard. We need to get a big kennel area for them so they can not be on a chain but for now it is what it is.....

Trial Mix

2009-03-21T21:23:00.002-05:00

You know that feeling when you want some trail mix and when you go to get it, you look to see what is in it and there is always something you really don't like? Well I got tired of that and decided to make my own. When I made my monthly shopping trip I picked up all the ingredients and made two bags, one for me and one for Mark. You see his bad has alot more dark stuff in it and that dark stuff is CHOCOLATE!!! I don't like chocolate. So I made mine with peanut butter chips. Yummy stuff and a nice snack to have when I get the munchies. There are Cashews, honey roasted nuts, craisins, peanut M&Ms, peanut butter chips, and raisins. hhhmmmmm

Need more freeways

2009-03-17T15:57:00.004-05:00

so I can drive faster and not get another DANG ticket. I got one last week for driving 56 in a 45. The bad thing is that I got a ticket back in CA for running a red light so I am not elegible to take the defensive driving class. The good news is, this is the south, and I can request to see the judge and ask her to put me on probation for 90 days. If I am a good girl then the ticket will not be reported to the DMV or to my insurance company. FOR SURE....I will be doing this. :-) OH! the ticket is $210! WOW that was not in my budget for this month...or the next...... Please pray for my lead food. Lesson learned.

Enchiladas

2009-03-15T21:48:00.001-05:00

Maria made some yesterday and today. They are delicious. I cant stop myself from eating them. Mark told Maria she is fattening me up. He said that was not a good thing. My wonderful Z said, "Fat mommies are good cause then you can jump on their bellies!" uuhhmmm I don't think that is a good idea at all. But it was funny!

News Boys!!

2009-03-13T07:17:00.000-05:00

On Thursday the 5th we were treated to a NewsBoys, Vota, December Radio, and Bread of Stone concert. It was so awesome! We love going to concerts, love it when they are local and love it even more when every seat in house is a good seat! We got lucky and got front row balcony. Next in concert is Big Daddy Weave and then it is Todd Agnew (sp?) Cant wait!

Watch out below!!!!!

2009-03-12T07:05:00.000-05:00

Final cut, they laid down the bulk of the tree. Amazing how they are able to measure the length and know where it will fit. Look how close it came to the next tree. This portion was 27 feel long.

This was an upper portion that they cut and just let it fall to the ground. Every time a big log fell it sounded like a bomb and felt like an earthquake. You can see some of the other chunks in the back round.

Look at him way up in the tree. He was having way too much fun up there!

As he is going up he is clearing away the branches. He started in the tree beside it to clear some of those branches and then swung across to the other tree. CRAZY! If you ask me.

We are so glad this tree is finally down. We can sleep a little better knowing that a good wind is not going to knock it over. We also got a really good quote from the guy to cut the other 6 trees in the back yard down. I will be saving to have this done in the next couple of months.

Big Ol' Rat

2009-03-11T07:55:00.000-05:00

This little dog was in the parking lot when we got out of Bible Study on Wednesday. We didn't want to leave it there for fear it would get run over. We brought it home. Our BIG dogs had a fit and wanted to eat it for dinner. We had to keep them outside or her locked in a room. It was a mess. Well Friday AM when I opened the door to let the boys out to get on the bus the dang dog got out in between my legs. We tried to get it but it was like a rat and darted everywhere. We did not get it. We all left to school and work. I got a call from the shelter, they had it. I told them it was lost and that we picked it up. So now they are trying to find its owners! For now it is in a foster home and that is good for us. The lesson I learned from all this, goes along with my core sin, is stop being lazy and get tags for my dogs.

Big Rat! This is a reminder of why we chose BIG dogs! Aren't they so cute? Heart dog tags! Lesson learned. Amazing how He uses everything for good.

No More Basketball

2009-03-10T08:48:00.000-05:00

The Green Machines
Here is the year end pic of Zachery's B-Ball team. He had so much fun. He looked forward to practice every week and then the games on Fridays. He was a happy boy! It was so fun to watch these boys learn the fundamentals of the game and how much they improved from the start of the season to the final game. They had the best coach that had so much patience with them. He gave every one of the players a Dallas Mavericks Jersey after the final game. He really was great. The final game was the best Zachery had and his couch gave him $5 for doing so well. Zachery's first question was can I spend it on candy? I said yes!

You never know....

2009-03-10T06:32:00.003-05:00

What your kids are going to say to you.

A-Zachery, Are you dressed yet?
Z-No Mom I don't know what to wear.
A-OK here are some pants and a shirt.
Z-No Mom I don't like those pants.
A-OK I will get rid of them so they are not taking up space.

A few minutes later:

Z- Moooommmm, don't get rid of those, I want to save them for my kids when I grow up!!

HAHAHAH He is 6 years old and want to start saving stuff for his future kids!

Final Scouting Banquet

2009-03-09T07:42:00.001-05:00

We came back from Houston on Monday because Marcus had his promotion banquet. It was a big special deal. Now he is in Second Year Weblows. For now we do not have the Monday night meetings which is nice so we can do other stuff or just not be rushing from place to place. Marcus will be going out on a couple of camping trips over the next couple months. He is still excited about Boy Scouts and I hope it stays like that! Zachery is also doing well in scouts but he is not old enough for the camp outs, so that makes him sad. Hopefully the next few years rush by for him!

Marcus getting his award!
These are the "Arrows of Light" that the scouts get when they promote from Weblows to Boy Scouts.

These are the tents that Marks Den made for the table decorations. Great food, fellowship, fun and awards!

R.I.P.

2009-03-08T08:09:00.000-05:00

Mark's Dad pasted away on Feb. 17th, 2009. It was a little bit of a shock but not so much. We were down with him the weekend before Thanksgiving and again over the Thanksgiving Holiday. It was a good time for the family. We were all together and grew more as a family unit. This is the side of Mark's family that we just met 4 years ago. While we were there his dad got a call that he wife, who had been in a coma, had passed away. The blessing was that he was not alone getting this message. Since this time he has been very down and depressed and he is not healthy. When we got the call from Angela about his passing, it made sense. The blessing from this situation is that Mark finally got to meet the third sister from his dad. Her name is Pilar, her husband Marcus, and two boys Jailyn and Malik. They are all stationed in Germany and flew in the same day we got to Houston. We all meet at the viewing, and then went to dinner. It was so much fun to get to know this fabulous woman and her amazing family. Mark was so happy when we got home to finally know "all his sisters!" The joke while we were all together was, " do you think there are more of us out there somewhere?" Our boys and her boys are right around the same age so they played played and played the whole 4 days. It really was great! We only wish this all happened under better circumstances. We did make an agreement that we were going to get together more often and for good times! Mark and I and the boys are already excited about this vacation even though nothing has been planned. Here are some pics from the time we were down in Houston.

From Left to Right: Kim, Pilar, Angela, and Mark. Finally all together!

Zachery and his baby cousin, Liala (sp?)

Pilar, Malik, and Jailyn. Great Boys with a great Mom and Dad!

The boys having a final fun moment before we left to come back home! :-( We did not want to leave yet.

Its been a while....

2009-03-07T12:01:00.003-06:00

So truth be told, I am addicted to the computer and whats worse is I am addicted to wanting people to love me and know what my every move is. I decided that I really should be a better steward of all this time I am spending on the Blog, Facebook, Myspace, Yahoo messenger, and Email. I think I am still dealing with not having many friends here and this is how I have been coping with it. But I have plenty of other stuff I should be doing. Like volunteering at the Pregnancy Center, cleaning my house, spending time with the kids and Mark, reading, doing my Bible Study. The list could go on and on. I have been working on this problem, so that is why I have not been blogging. I started it with all the wrong intentions. Moving forward my plan is to create a weeks worth of blog entries in one sitting and then schedule them to post daily. I am also cutting back my online time with all the other sites. I need to figure this out and get it under control. Thanks for reading and caring about us!

God and Family with the Boy Scouts

2009-02-17T08:31:00.000-06:00

Last Sunday was Scouts Sunday in TX. For the last 6 weeks the BS have been doing a program called "God and Family" that is geared to teach the boys about God and the way He works in our families. It was a great program and Marcus and Zachery learned so much. Each boy received a Pin to go on their uniform. There was a big ceromony for this special occasion. God and Family is so important in TX that our Congressman Ralph Hall came to award each boy their Pin.

Here is where the boys are waiting to receive their award.

Marching into the worhsip center. There are about 150 boys in our pack and 14 were awarded the "Eagle" title this day. What an honor. I hope our boys continue all the way to the end to earn "Eagle." After what they say this afternoon they said they wanted to. I will do all I can to help them. This is such a great organization. If you have boys and they are not in Boy Scouts, I would encourage you to enroll them.

Boys and Boys and more Boys

2009-02-16T08:25:00.000-06:00

This has been the scene at my house for the last couple of Satrudays. A bunch of boys! I learned quickly that it is nice to have them all around cause they keep each other occupied and then I can get "me stuff" done! I also enjoy being able to give these boys time away from home, their siblings, and just some veg time! I think all kids need that since they are going going going during the week with school anf sports. Plus it gived their parents some alone time too and I know we all need that some time. I am ready for mine! I have been SSSSOOOO sick this last week. I could use some myself. Do you usually have a house full or do your kids go thier friends' houses?

House Guest!

2009-02-15T08:18:00.000-06:00

I just love having house guests. For the last few weeks Maria has been staying with us so she could work here and make some money. We have enjoyed having her here. One thing we loved the most was when she taught me how to make enchiladas! I am always looking for new things to cook and this was perfect. Mark loves enchiladas and so now I can make them for him when ever he wants. It was also the first time I had ever tried them, and I loved them. Now I can add another dish to my "likes" list. :-) Thanks Maria for everything you did for us while you were here!

Family Night

2009-02-14T10:09:00.002-06:00

On Tuesdays we have our weekly "Family Night." Last Tuesday we decided that it would be nice to go to the park and go for a bike ride. It was beautiful outside! We knew there was a riding trail we just did know how long it was. We were very surprised and bummed out to find it was only 1/4 mile long. We rode it a couple of times and then went back home. Even though the ride was short, we took time to look at the views and to watch the sun set behind the trees. I am going to ask around and find us another trail to ride. It is something we all enjoy, and it is great exercise! What do you do for Family nights?

Briefs, Bikini, or Thong

2009-02-05T07:01:00.001-06:00

Ok so this may be a little personal and maybe even TMI but here it goes. I received a gift card from my mother-in-law for Christmas to Victoria's Secret. I love this place! Mark took me there today to do my shopping. I have not purchased any new panties in like 3 years. This is of course is what I wanted to buy. I immediately went to the table with the high-leg briefs and chose 4 pretty prints. Then I stopped and looked at Mark and thought to myself, does he care that I wear these "Grannie panties" instead of the cute little bikini or thong styles? Then the second thought came to mind, do I want cuteness or comfort? Being the sometimes selfish person I am, I chose to go with comfort over cuteness and only got one pair of bikini panties and 4 pair of high-leg briefs. My excuses are that I dont like the thong for obvious reason, my big butt, and the bikini rides right below my C-section line and fatness. HA! Mark did not say anything.... maybe it does not matter to him.... or maybe he was just not going to go there!!! LOL So I ask you, cuteness or comfort? Does your significant other care?

PotLucks

2009-02-04T06:43:00.000-06:00

Ever since moving here to TX and taking on the role of full time House Wife, I really have changed the way I think and the things I do. Here is a recent example:
We went to a Super Bowl Party at our pastor's house. We had so much fun! I had so much fun cause I got to cook and prepare food for others. Usually when I have a potluck dish to make I think of the easiest, quickest, cheapest thing to make. Not this time. I have really learned to enjoy cooking for others and giving it my best. This time I made lasagna, deleved eggs, and this platter with cheese and crackers. I know it may seem silly that I would post about this and how it made me feel, but I felt so good and so proud of what I created! Everyone there enjoyed the food. :-)

To be or not to be.....GREEN

2009-02-03T06:35:00.000-06:00

This year one of my goals is to be more environment friendly. I have always been this way but now I want to be more intentional about it. I love to car pool, ride my bike, or whatever I can do to save gas fumes in the air. I always recycle stuff. Reuse plastic bags. Wear clothes a couple times before washing them, unless they stink. I just really have a passion right now about our environment. I went to the market the other day for a few items and realized that I seem to make more trips to the market for 1 or 2 things at a time, since I am only shopping once a month for the majority of our grocery needs. I figured buying this bag for $1 and using it every time would be a good way to help. I can fit a lot in this bag and it is so much nicer to carry than the plastic bags. Even two gallons of milk! It makes me feel like I am contributing to the green movement. Are you? What do you do in an effort to be more Green? Do you care about the condition of our environment?

House full of BOYS!!

2009-02-02T08:04:00.003-06:00

Saturday was a really FUN day. It started out with Marcus's basketball game, which they won. Then we dropped Zachery off at the bowling alley for a birthday party. This was the first time that he had been invited to one. He is finally at that age now!! While he was there Marcus and I went and met with some friends at the local park. We packed a picnic lunch and took all the balls with us. At 2 I went back to pick up Zachery and brought him to the park. We left there at 3:30 to go home. On the way home we stopped over at Jaderious and Micah's house and picked them up for an afternoon of play time. Then at 4 Bailey called to see if he could come over to hang out! At this point I was like, sure, the more the merrier. I had this house full of boys till almost 9!! It was fun. They were taking turns on the computer, playing the Wii, and watching the flat screen. There were no fights, no arguing, no crying. I loved it. I did tell them that the first sign of any fighting, everyone was going home. Maybe that helped keep the peace! I was so happy I even fed them dinner and baked them a batch of brownies! Well I would have fed them dinner anyways, but the brownies were a treat! It was a good time had by all. We must do this again soon!

Upwards Basketball

2009-01-30T21:11:00.002-06:00

They boys are playing upwards basketball. It is a league put together with the churches in our area. Here is Zachery looking upwards and probably praying he makes a basket.

During half times there is a little devotional time where they learn a lesson from the Bible. It is so cute how they teach the kids these stories in little more than 5 minutes.

Before and after each game they pray together and ask the kids if there anything they need prayer for. They also ask if any of the players want to say the prayer. Pretty cool!

So tonight, Zachery had his third game of the season and he must have forgotten that we were playing basketball and not football because he fouled out with 5 fouls for TACKLING!!! Go figure. Next Friday night is another game and another shot at not fouling out! It sure is fun to watch....

Help? No thank you

2009-01-28T21:31:00.004-06:00

Z said he was trying to help me so I would not have to do it for him. I said to him, if he is trying to help, then he can remind me to sign his paper.

I know it is kinda blurry but if look closely you will see that my 6 year old has decided to forge my signature on his homework calender. The only one I really signed was Monday. He signed the others and signed for a day that was just instructions, not even an assignment. So we had a talk about what can happen when you sign someone elses name to something. He said he would not do this again. Iwonder if his teacher even noticed? It is always interesting around here. :-)

Best meal of the week!

2009-01-25T16:16:00.004-06:00

Every Sunday morning after church we always come home and cook the best breakfast! We always have good stuff. Today we cooked eggs, bacon, biscuits, and country gravy! It was delicious....could only have been better if we had some orange juice, but we drank it all.

Papa Meal

Son Meal

Mama meal. SSSSOOO Yummy. I could have breakfast for every meal of the day. How about you? What is your favorite meal?

Report Cards

2009-01-22T20:03:00.002-06:00

You know you have an ADHD child when report cards come home and your child has straight A's in academics and straights F's in behaviors. Please say a prayer for my child. Thanks

Out with the old, In with the new: Set 6

2009-01-22T12:38:00.004-06:00

New cook top stove!! So here is the deal on this nice new piece of kitchen equipment. We got the gift card from our Home Warranty comp for the new wall oven. Remember? Well since Mark can pick up our products we save on delivery and he can also install them so we save on installation. Well as it turned out, I got a great deal on the oven and saved so much on the Del and Inst. that we ended up with all but $25.00 of the money to buy this new cook top stove! That's right, it was not free but practically free, only $25.00 out of our pockets!

It matches the new oven and the new dishwasher! It was about an inch too wide for the hole so Mark shaved it a bit till it slid right in. Then he had to run an extension cord to the area cause the new stove has an electric igniter. These were the only two issues we had. Not too bad!!

This new one has sealed burners so the food wont collect under the burners. I like that part.

Here is what the old one looks like. I am telling you, this think is as old as I am. Half of the burners did not work all the time and the knobs were all melted and didn't turn the way they should have! It was time for an upgrade!

Ugly old white cook top! Bye Bye, see ya later, don't you come back no more no more no more no more!!

Doing for others

2009-01-13T19:12:00.004-06:00

This last weekend we learned in church about being a blessing to others and using the gifts we have to bless others. It has been on my heart and mind about sending a little care package to our friends that are serving in East Africa. It is one of those things that you have to intentionally do, plan for, go to the PO and get the right envelopes. And lots of times I forget to get the stuff. So today I did it. I went to the PO got everything I needed. I went shopping and bought a few items, packaged it all up, and it is ready to go. I love the feeling I have when I get to do things for others like this. I cant wait until next time. BTW: It costs $12 to send up to 4 pounds in this envelope. I PACKED it FULL. 4 pounds worth. I'm not wasting an inch or an ounce.
If our friends are reading this...a package is coming your way!

I still got it!!!

2009-01-11T15:06:00.001-06:00

Yummy!! I asked the family what was the first thing they wanted me to bake and they said Cinnamon Rolls. They came out PERFECT!!! and they were delicious.

Out with the Old...In with the New: Set 5

2009-01-11T14:06:00.003-06:00

FINALLY!!! After three months of not having one....we have a new oven!

Out with the old white one.

Nice clean whole for the new one. Look how easy it is to install... one set of wires!! That's it, so don't ever pay for one of these to be installed.

My wonderful installation guy! Isn't he cute?? And he was FREE. Well kinda....

aaaahhhhh!! I nice shiny new black wall oven custom with our very own finger prints. :-) Off I go to bake something.

tomorrow is not promised

2009-01-08T22:44:00.002-06:00

Please read here and then pray for this family. They need us and our prayers more now than ever.

Love the yard...

2009-01-08T17:11:00.002-06:00

But the yard work that comes with it.....not so much!! We did all the yard work right at the start of fall. LOTS of it. Then we saw that the leaves and pine needles were STILL falling. So we decided that we were not going to do any more work till the trees were all empty. Well that was three months ago and now it is time to clean up. I started a few days ago before the rain and got 2/3 of 1/3 of the back yard done. Doesn't it look nice?
This is alot of yard in the picture.

This is the second section and I am almost half way there.

Here is the largest section and it looks horrible. I saved this till last. When I am done in the back... I have to start the front. And it is three times the size of the back yard. Boy am I glad that we bought a house on only 1 acre. But I do love enjoying the yards when they are all clean! Have you started your fall clean up yet?

No more extra nice...

2009-01-07T18:24:00.004-06:00

I was trying to be nice to the dogs and make them as comfortable as possible when they have to be outside. Mark and I washed out their new houses, bleached them to kill any left over dogie germs, and got them placed. Then I found our old blankets to put in them so they would have something soft to lay on. I even wrapped Chloe's blanket around an old pillow so it would be fluffy. I did all this yesterday. This is what I woke up to this morning.....
She decided it was funner to tear it all part than to lay on it! So now after cleaning all day, back hurting, and just plain ol tired, I have this to clean up. Maybe tomorrow...

Out with the old..In with the new: Set 4?

2009-01-05T08:21:00.003-06:00

I love my husbands creativity! A few days before we left for our trip to Cal someone decided to run off the road and right over our mail box. We didn't have any time to take care of it, so the post master didn't deliver any of our mail while we gone. I called the next morning to see where our mail was and Mrs. Postmaster told us we MUST put up a new box to get our mail delivery back. So take a look at what my husband put together! All for under $20! He is awesome...

This is what we saw! Someone totally ran into it....HARD! This is a solid metal post that has been pushed over. Mark had to hook the chain to it and pull it straight with the truck.

Hanging on for dear life.

All better now. Straight up and down with two nice mail boxes on it!

Like the Kawasaki Green Flames?? We do... I hope our uppity neighbors do too. :-)

Mark did such a great job!

Out with the old...in with the new: Set 5 to come in 5 more days!!

My legacy

2009-01-04T07:24:00.000-06:00

"character is what you do when nobody is looking, and I now think that friendship is what you do when nobody asks you. True friends just know, they just understand. Friends don’t have to be told, they sense it. They fill you up when you are empty, and they pick you up when you have fallen."

I read this over at this blog today and starting thinking, this is what I want people to think of when they think of/remember me. I love to love my friends, help them when I can, be there for them when I can. I always wonder to myself, have a done enough for this person? Have I met their needs? Have I been a good friend to them? I am sure the answer has been No, many times, but my desire is for the answer to always be YES, I have been the best friend I can be, doing all I can do.

Reading Michell's Blog for the last 5 months has really changed my outlook on life. I am reminded that tomorrow is never promised, to live as if this is your last day. I am reminded to spend more time with my boys, doing the things they want to do. So many times they ask me to play and I am preoccupied with this or that, really nothing important and I am loosing out on precious time with them.

I am reminded to share in Mark's hobbies because it brings him joy. So many times I just think I will be so bored, but I am learning how to find things we can share in because it means more time I get to spend with him. I am always being reminded that I am a piece of molding clay, being shaped, formed, reshaped, reformed, often, sometimes daily, with the goal of turning into the master piece I know He has planned for me. 1 day I will get there, while trying, I am learning to be the best friend I can be and hope to gain many friends like this along the way.

My Sister

2009-01-03T06:57:00.000-06:00

One of the things I miss the most from California is my sister, Natalie. Over the last three years we really built a strong friendship. I longed for that my whole childhood. I was so happy to see her and we spent a lot of time together while at my brother Shane's house in AZ.

I would love to be able to fly her out here for a visit. This is one of my goals for the first half of the year. During our Christmas visit I was reminded how much I miss my family but I know we are here in TX for many reasons. I love you Nat!!

Christmas with Mark's Fam!

2009-01-02T06:50:00.000-06:00

We stayed with Mark's mom, Ozell, while we were in California. This is Christmas morning when we opened presents there. This is also 4 hours after Mark and Michael brought their mom home from the ER! Needless to say we were so happy to just be together as a family and enjoy the time we had together before we left for AZ.

Uncle Mike and Marcus playing Chinese Checkers

All four of the "boys" are putting together the new Bionicle type transformers Uncle Mike got Zachery and Marcus for Christmas. Mike got his/Zachery's put together first! It was nice to see Mark and his brother spending time together. We hope he can make a visit out here soon. :-)

Guitar Hero....the new adiction

2009-01-01T18:04:00.003-06:00

Christmas at Shane and Frank's house. Yes that is an arcade game in the backround that has over 300 games on it.
This was the scene the whole time we were at Shane's house. All the kids playing games...non-stop!
When we got home, Marcus and Zachery knew exactly what they were going to do with their Christmas money. Off we went to buy Guitar Hero games and accessories for the Wii. At first I was like, " you are not playing this 24 hours a day!" But now I am realizing that they are occupied, have not gotten into any fights, and I can read while they are playing!! I LOVE Guitar Hero!

In-N-Out!!

2009-01-01T17:43:00.003-06:00

One of the first things we did when we got back to the west coast, was make a trip to In-N-Out!!

He cant believe he is really enjoying some in n out food!

Like father like son part 1

Like father like son part 2.

We stopped to eat here on our way in to California and on our way out!! It was so yummy!

An adventure for sure!

2008-12-31T11:06:00.003-06:00

We left for California last Saturday and returned late last night and it was an adventure for sure! The drive out was not too bad, the boys were awesome, truck did great! We arrived on Sunday evening, got showered and went to Central Community for the Children's Christmas Program. We all went home, I changed my clothes and went back to church so I could go to the streets of skid row in LA for Jackets for Jesus. I was so happy to be able to make this annual Christmas Party on the streets as I have for the last 4 years. The next day was busy with helping our friends get a storage unit for their stuff and I had a date with my small group ladies for dinner. It was so nice and refreshing to be around them and share what we have all been up to for the last 6 months. It felt like I had just left yesterday since most of us have been in touch. Tuesday was full with moving everything in storage so T & M could make the move to TX. Oh I also got my hair done and had lunch with Dorothy!! I love seeing my friends and spending time with them. Wednesday was more moving into storage! Went home around 7ish, had dinner, then started a game of Monopoly with the boys. That was fun. All 4 of us playing, on teams! We paused the game at 12:30 am. Went to bed. Was woken up at 3:00am Christmas Eve by Ozell, Mark's mom, fainting and hitting the wall and floor hard. We flew out of bed, Mark at her side trying to wake her, me on the phone with 911 since she could not talk and was laboring to breath. SCARY SCARY SCARY!! Fire dept came, ambulance came, they took her to the ER. Mark went with her, I stayed home with the boys, who never woke up during all of the drama, and I called the family to let them know what happened. A few hours later they were back home, Docs ruled out stroke and Heart Attack and said it was a BAD case of anti gas (??) that put too put pressure on her diaphrame and caused her to faint. WOW we were so happy to hear that!! Went to bed for a few hours, woke up Christmas AM for fun, food, and presents, and LOTS of calls from family checking up on Ozell. We planned to leave this day to go to my brothers in AZ but decided to stay the night to make sure all was well with Ozell. Up in the am, off to AZ. got there and had tons of fun for the next couple days. My whole family was there, Mom, Nat, Nick, Shane and all the kids. It was great! I hope we can do this every year. We should have left to come home on Sunday AM but we were waiting for T & M to meet us, however that did not happen. They were having trouble pulling the car and trailer with their big 4x4 truck. So we went back to Desert Center to help them but pulling the trailer with our truck. Our motivation was that we were scared they would fish tail out of control and roll the truck/trailer. We hooked up the trailer, got on the freeway and our worst nightmare came true. We fish tailed the trailer, lost control and almost went over the side of the freeway. We dented up the driver side of the truck and dropped the trailer for T & M to deal with. AAA came and got the car off the trailer, we went to Blythe to get a room. T brought the trailer to the hotel room and we all got a few much needed hours of sleep. Woke up Monday AM. T had to figure out what to do with the trailer, we left and went back to AZ to get our boys and get on the road to come home. We drove to Benson, AZ got a room, relaxed and got some good sleep, got up Tuesday AM and drove the rest of the way home. About 130 miles from home we stopped to get gas and heard our truck's valves ticking. Our hearts just sunk to the ground. We just wanted to get home. We had to put 4 QTs of oil in the engine. We kept driving just hoping we would make it home without the engine freezing up. We stopped about 20 miles later to let Z go potty and the ticking was gone!! Mark said we would be fine and I relaxed. When we pulled in the drive way we were so excited! We unloaded our cooler with our meat and went right to bed!!! A long adventure, lots of issues, but even more blessings. We are thankful for the time we had with our friends and families!

What have I done???

2008-12-17T07:47:00.000-06:00

I have created internet monsters. They both know how to go to their favorite websites. They know that they are not allowed to go to any sites I dont enter for them. If I allowed them to they would be on here all night long.
Zachery is listening to the Jonas Brothers web site and playing games on biggreenhelp.com

Mark is on the same website on my laptop.

This is the scene in the fireplace room each night the kids get there homework done and reading finished before bed time. There are four in this family and only three computers. We may need to invest in another one.

If this happens again...

2008-12-16T07:33:00.000-06:00

Our dogs are going to be using the dog houses more than they would like to. I am tired of getting up in the morning and cleaning their little messes. I didnt sign up for this part of pet ownership. I signed up for the loving and cuddling part of pet ownership! aaahhhuuurrrrr

Shoes

2008-12-15T07:25:00.001-06:00

Why? when son #1 (he asked his name not be used) has 4 brand new pairs of shoes in the top of his closet......nice ones too...vans, schetchers, nike....
continue to wear shoes that look like this....

and this?

I think he is trying to embarass me, really. So now I will pay more attention to their shoes before they leave the house in the mornings. I am still a parent in training.

Its another B-day party!!

2008-12-14T19:38:00.000-06:00

Matthew, Marcus's best friend here, turned 10 last weekend. This weekend he had his B-day party at the bowling alley. Yummy pizza, soda, and cake! Does it get any better?

His parents, who you see in this picture, have been secretly sent to us be Him. They have showed us the way things are done down here in the south, where and how to get our kids involved in the community and sports, and have been great resources for us.

Marcus and I :-) arent we so adorable?
marcus and matthew! Burning up all the extra energy they seem to have.

It was a great afternoon and gave us something to do while Mark was at work.