Sermon Notes...

Well this Sunday had an interesting sermon but one that was much needed among my particular age group. I feel like my generation is always looking for the easy way out, the shortcut or the loophole in the scriptures. Making the scripture fit in to our mold. I mean if you are like me you have said or have heard this said, "BUT Jesus turned water in to wine..." So it must be OK. Or "a glass of wine is good for your stomach..."
Our Pastor talked directly to us about why our church believes in abstaining from alcohol other than the old timers explanation of "Your body is a temple of GOD and you shouldn't put anything in it to destroy it and that it will kill your brain cells" The pastor made the point that most of the people figured...I already have destroyed brain cells...what are a few more or we think we are smart enough that we can spare a few. He had all the members stand up while he read directly out of the manuel of the Church of the Nazarene that clearly states that as a member you agree that you will abstain from any use of alcohol. He also backed this up with scripture.
The passage in the bible he used was Proverbs 23:29-35 and it says
29 Who has woe? Who has sorrow?
Who has strife? Who has complaints?
Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?

30 Those who linger over wine,
who go to sample bowls of mixed wine.

31 Do not gaze at wine when it is red,
when it sparkles in the cup,
when it goes down smoothly!

32 In the end it bites like a snake
and poisons like a viper.

33 Your eyes will see strange sights
and your mind imagine confusing things.

34 You will be like one sleeping on the high seas,
lying on top of the rigging.

35 "They hit me," you will say, "but I'm not hurt!
They beat me, but I don't feel it!
When will I wake up
so I can find another drink?"

It amazes me that even when the bible was transulated that verses 32-35 describe perfectly what the affects of alcohol can do to a person. The pastor went on to give statistics of what alcohol can do in our every day life... For instance.
Every 22 minutes someone dies from alcohol or alcohol related disease/accident.
50% of all rapes are alcohol related
36% of suicides are alcohol related
50% of child abuse is alcohol related
75% of all child deaths are alcohol related (this one scares me!)

Wine in bible times is not the same wine that we are used to in our time. The wine in that time was used for medicine to settle the stomach because the water was full of bacteria. Example 1Timothy 5:23

23 Stop drinking only water, and use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses

It was also mixed in most settings in the bible as in Proverbs 9:2-5

2 She has prepared her meat and mixed her wine;
she has also set her table.

3 She has sent out her maids, and she calls
from the highest point of the city.

4 "Let all who are simple come in here!"
she says to those who lack judgment.

5 "Come, eat my food
and drink the wine I have mixed.

He spoke about our preferences over our convictions and how when we prefer things it is for convience. For example...most parents prefer that their kids don't drink, but it is Ok if they do. Most parents prefer that their kids go to church even if they don't. If we had a conviction about those things and believed strongly in it then we would be making sacrifices. Making sure that our kids can follow our example and teaching them that a drink is not all that important. Making a sacrifice in sleep or time to make the effort to come to church. Conviction is sacrifice. Christians should take a stand to make sure that they are not just blending in with the world. If you are out somewhere and someone sees you with a beer in your hand and another person who is obviously not a christian holding a beer in their hand then how will they know that you are a Christian and that you are making sacrifices to show what you believe to a very critical outside world. Let's face it the world is waiting for us Christians to screw up so they can point fingers at us and call us a hypocrite. We are supposed to be images of Christ and he would have abstained from alcohol in our time so he could be a good example and a good witness to the world. Our pastor ended his sermon with these statistics:

If a child can abstain from using alcohol until the age of 21 then they are more likely to never drink

The average age right now in the US for starting to drink is 11 for boys and 13 for girls. The average age that people begin to drink on a regular basis is 15.9.

He asked which catagory do we fall into...Abstainance, Tolerance, or Acceptance. As members of the Nazarene Church we should be falling under the Abstainance catorgory but it seems that lately we are falling under the tolerance or acceptance. We aren't fazed by the fact that our kids see us drinking and we can't give a good excuse as to why they can't have some. The only thing I could think people could say to their kids would be it tastes awful and it makes you sick...(THEN WHY DRINK IT). Some people can stop at one drink but how do you know that if you are influence that your children use to decide to drink that they will be that person that can stop at just one and that they won't end up on the statistical side of alcohol.

So that is the sermon and what I interpreted him as saying...I would love to hear any comments from those of you that attend our church who might have gotten something different out of it or that agree with what I think.

Romans 12:2
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.

The begging shall cease!

After much begging I am writing a blog. I have been really busy...(OK not really). Actually this has been a pretty slow week so I have tried to be as lazy as possible. I have managed to get together a few times with friends. Some interesting things happen when you have a house full of screaming, running and sometimes laughing kids. For instance...we were all sitting in my friends living room when one of the children was digging for gold...I mean she was scratching her brain if you know what I mean. When my friend Brenda said..."Did you get it?" She said Yes....AND THEN SHE ATE IT! I think Brenda threw up in her mouth. I was laughing so hard that I thought I was going to have to put one of the baby's diapers. Last night was also Samuel's first official sleep over with his friend Riley. I would like to be able to say that he was devastated to see me leave and that first thing this morning he cried and cried for me but no...he loved it, he didn't even know I had left. It is hard to believe that he is getting this old. He was so devastated by not being home last night that he decided to stay the night at his "Mop"'s house tonight.
The second thing I wanted to blog about was how we sometimes get so wrapped up in our own worries and frustrations that we miss the fact that there are people and friends around us that are going though "stuff" too. I was awaken to this the other night as I was sitting "listening" to a friend tell me about some of the stuff that they have been dealing with. I thought...WOW...have I been so blind and completely caught up in myself that I missed what was happening to my friend. I think that sometimes we need to talk less and listen more. I feel like my friends have listened to me alot lately about Josh and about me, me, me...that I forgot to listen to them. I forgot what a real friend is...a great listener. I apologize to my friends if I have been selfish in my stories and in our time together. I will try to do better. Sometimes I wish that I didn't have the past and the life that I have because it has afforded me a lot of stories that seem to always fit right in there with someone elses story. I never want to come across like I am trying to have the "best" story or the "worse" problem or the "YEAH...well my..." kind of story.
Philippians 2:3
Don't be selfish; don't live to make a good impression on others. Be humble, thinking of others as better than yourself.

One side note...here is a picture of Josh for my brother...I think him and Tyler are starting to look a little alike. I can't wait to see them together in November.

Words have changed over the years.

My friends and I were having this discussion about how words change over time. For instance...my grandmother uses the word "dope" for any topping that we put on ice cream. Now if I said to someone that I am going to put "dope" on my ice cream they think it was some illegal drug I was topping it with. Then the older crowd sometimes call butter, "oleo". No one know why. One other thing I was thinking about is the confusion I feel when I go over to grandma's for lunch and she calls it dinner. Now I think dinner is later but she calls that supper. In my terms...it is breakfast, lunch and dinner. In her eyes it is breakfast, dinner, and then supper. She also refers to things as "tooting" and we call it farting. She calls the toilet, "the cammode" and calls underwear "pants". Over the years I have been able to understand her foreign language and I thought that she might just be the only person on the planet that says stuff like that. BUT NO...I have several friends that have 1 or more people in the family who still use these different words. I would be interested to know if any of you have any more examples of words changing over time.
(Sorry so short)

Friends...

I have been thinking a lot about what makes a really good friend. I wouldn't say I am expert on this topic because it wasn't until recently that I found a friend that I would consider a "best friend". I have learned over the years that you can have a lot of friends and aquaitances but only once, maybe twice if your lucky, a true best friend. When I was younger I longed for the friendship that my cousin Andrea had with Nicole and the friendship that my cousin Kelley had with Kismet, one that survives through all years and seems stronger with every year. What I admired about both of those friendships is that they didn't have to spend every waking moment talking to each other but when they did they were on the same page. They had the same likes and dislikes and any differences they might have had didn't keep them from respecting each other. I have to say that the relationships that I have recently found, came at a time when I have been trying to straighten my life out and started going to church. I think it is possible (mom you might have been right), that I was looking for friends in the wrong places. It is so nice to have christian friends and have christian families to hang out with. I am excited to watch all of our kids go up together in the church. While those relationships are very important to me, my best friend is the one person that I can call when I am feeling low and she makes me laugh or I find something funny in what she is saying even when she is not trying to. What I like most about our friendship is that we don't even have to talk to each other for a week and we can still call each other and talk just where we left off. I have never been more thankful for a friend to lean on than now since I have been going through so much with Joshua and my health. So thank you, Sarah, for being there for me and for making me laugh even when I don't feel like it. I don't always express to you how important you are to me and how much I appreciate our friendship, thanks again. To my other friends...thank you for all of you support and prayers during this time. I am realizing how important friendships are during rough times.

And to let everyone know...I have to go back in another 6 months for another mammogram (4 in less than 2 years). The next time they said they might have to do a biopsy. As far as Joshua goes...I took him today for an EEG. It was so stressful and tiring for both of us. I had to wake him up at 6:00 am (sorry Sarah I told you 5). Anyway...I had to try to keep him awake all the way to Columbus by myself and then during the test I had to hold him down as they attached about 36 electrodes to his head with glue and a mini hair dryer. I won't know the results for about 10 business days. We also have an appointment with the neurologist at the end of August. I suppose if there is something really bad that shows up, they will have us in before then. So this week has been a little busy and if I have not returned calls or called you, I am sure you all understand.

One more thing...Did you know that a fiesta taco salad from Taco Bell is 630 calories and 39 fat grams, it doesn't even measure on the weight watchers scale (sorry I had to throw that in there). So much for a salad being good for you!!!

5th Birthday a Success!

The birthday party was absolutely wonderful. We had a awesome turn out. I think we had a total of 35 people. Our theme was Superman but I was calling Samuel "Pooperman". He is like any other 5 year old boy, he thinks any word related to bodily functions is funny (poop, fart, burp, butt, you get the idea). I wanted to have a water balloon toss "Kryptonite Toss" but the big kids (Wayne, Mike, Anthony and Steve) decided to start throwing balloons and it wasn't long until the little ones joined in and all of the balloons were gone. They had a blast and the pool was a big hit considering it was mid 90's on Sunday. Here are a few picture of that day.


Samuel getting ready to get me with a water balloon..."STOP I HAVE THE CAMERA!"








Aaron Lovell









Tyler and Riley Brown

Taylor Jones and Brandon Wolbert

Abby and Elizabeth Boyd.

We had a wonderful time. The kids enjoyed the pool and the trampoline and the adults enjoyed the adult company and some opted for the air conditioned house (mom).



Thanks to all that came, it made the day special for Samuel.

Awkward

Ever wonder when you child is going to say that one thing that makes you angered and embarrassed all at the same time? Well...I have a friend who experienced this with me this weekend. We were all going to Buffalo Wild Wings and I was teasing her son as we were getting out of the car and boom...out of retaliation he says "You are Fat!" I said I know...He said "No, You are really fat!" This is the point that the mother realized what he had said. She was instantly mad and embarrassed all at the same time. I wanted to quickly say...Well...he is very observant. I mean it is like calling the kettle black as my mom would say. I found it funny but was trying to let the mother handle it the way that she wanted. I must admit it did corss my mind to say something childish like "I may be fat but..."
I was actually not offended by the honesty but wondered to myself...I wonder how long it will be before Samuel or Josh say something to someone that I will want to hide away somewhere. For story purposes, I will edit the actual word used, but I was told by a someone that they were with their child in a store somewhere where the guy in front of them was being less than polite and her daughter noticed him and her mom's expressions and loudly blurted "Mommy, Is this guy being a jerk?"
What was funny about my friends situation with me was that after the scolding by his mom, he told her "I am going to runaway!" She calmly said "It is raining" He responded..."I guess I will runaway tomorrow!" When she told him that he would miss Samuel's birthday party, he said "I will be back for that". KIDS SAY THE DARNEST THINGS!

So...in other news. I am hosting a huge 5th birthday party tomorrow for "Superman" Samuel. I think the number of kids is up to 12 but I may have forgotten to count a few. I forgot how hard this planning thing is. I think I get more excited about it than he does. I bought a pinata tonight (a pull string, VERY SAFE), I always wanted one as a kid. So wish me luck and as always lots of prayers as our house will be filled with a LOT of people. Here are the pictures that I put in his invitation.

Another Family update

So after taking Joshua to the ER on Friday for the seizures, I took him to the doctor this week who called and made an appointment with a neurologist. We go on August 29th. The doctor thought that maybe the medicine that they had been giving him for his appetite was causing it so he took him completely off of it. We hadn't given it to him since Friday and the doctor said if the seizures occur again then it is not the medicine. So...yesterday we found out it is not the medicine because he had a little seizure in the car on the ride home from my grandparents. I can't wait until August. I looked back up Cerebral Palsy (which is the first thing they thought he might have) and it was like reading a novel about Josh. Everything on the mild side of CP is what we have dealt with. So I hope that they re-examine this as a possibility. If you have any questions go to this http://www.webmd.com/hw/raising_a_family/aa56612.asp
Also in the midst of all of this with Joshua, I had to have my 3rd mammogram of the year. In October of last year they found something and I have had to go back every 4 months. Today I went a whole month early because I found something else and now I am a bit paranoid. Today they not only did a mammogram but they did an ultrasound. I have a doctors appointment scheduled for Tuesday to get the results. The wait is the worse! Sorry that all of my posts lately have not had the usual dose of humor but I have a lot on my mind and my sense of humor is the first thing to get pushed to the side. So as before, please pray for me and my family. Somedays I feel like this: (I still have a little bit of a sense of humor...hopefully my best friend still has hers.)















I love those girls!

What chair are you in?

So today we went to church and man was I glad I did. Our pastor struck a nerve with me and I felt moved to take action. Here are the highlights...He was asking what chair in life are we in...Chair number 1 consists of committment, love and priorities. Chair 2 is compromise, lukewarm, and pleasures, and finally chair number 3 was conflict, lostness, and perplexed. He was describing how each of fit into one of those. He related it to the church and how the church as a whole used to be In Love with Christ, that He was the first priority and that people were committed to the church and God. Now it seems as though most churches are sliding from chair one to chair 2 from being in love with Christ to talking about how the church of the past was on fire and how the church of the past were really committed and how the church of the past was the priority of people. The churches in chair 2 are more likely to talk about the history of the church and be lukewarm rather than being the chair #1 like we are supposed to be. Chair # 3 was not forgotten in all of this. This is the church that falls apart from conflict, lostness and are perplexed. He also talked to the parents and asked where do you think you sit? And where do you think your children sit? And where do your children think you sit? Most children are one chair below their parents so if you are sitting in chair number 2 then most likely your child is sitting in chair # 3. If we compromise our beliefs and are caught up in the pleasures of this world (that fine line), and are just lukewarm in our beliefs then our chidren are most likely going to be in conflict, lost and perplexed. If your children see you living your life from chair # 1 they are more likely to strive to be there with you. Wayne and I both took what he said very seriously and made a committment to make it a priority for our children and show them that we love our church and we love our God. "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!" Joshua 24:15. Please pray for us that we can be strong examples to our children and that we can raise them up in the way that they shall go. I don't want to be responsible for letting my kids down and making it easy for them to sit in chair number 3.

Can't Win

Do you ever feel like you can't win for trying? That is exactly how I feel about Joshua and his health. We have had him to specialist after specialist, done more tests than any kid should have to go through, currently giving him medicine for indigestion, a medicine to increase his appetite and a liquid vitamin that makes your tongue feel like you have been sucking on a fork all day, we have been told by numerous people and friends that there is nothing wrong with him yet something is not quite right. Today while we were eating he bent over in the highchair and started making this weird face and his right arm started jerking. It only lasted about a minute and then he went right back to his rotten self. So Wayne and I decided that maybe he was just being goofy but I continued to watch him. Tonight I was sharing this experience with my grandma and my mom and grandma said that yesterday at her house he did the same thing that I was describing and she wondered what it was too. Well tonight as I was eating at Bob Evans with my mom and grandma he bent over and started jerking and when I reached over and grabbed his arm, he quit. He looked blankly at me for a second and then made a funny face and laughed. After we got home he seemed to have a hard time walking, he kept tripping. So tomorrow morning I begin the task of calling the doctors and specialists to see if I can get new answers which I am sure will be followed with more tests. I get so frustrated and angry that I have a hard time not crying. I think I have spent most of tonight trying to fight back the tears. This sucks! I told my mom that I feel like people think that I am just trying to find something wrong with him but I am not. I just want to have an answer, whatever it is! Please pray for me as I start this new road to answers.

As Promised....TOM

That is right...I do have another brother other than the almost funny and sometimes famous, John. (I think I said that backwards...almost famous and sometimes funny). Anyway...I have proof that he exists...see the picture. Now don't be alarmed it really is my brother and not my sister, I promise, at least that is what my mom told me as a child. The hair is to keep people guessing. He is actually the smartest of all of us and since he says he never reads this, then I feel safe that it wouldn't go to his head. I think the growing of the hair has to do with the fact that my mom is constantly "suggesting" (nagging) him to cut it and he is not going to just to spite her. Tom is what we call in our family "the creative one". I think it is the same in every family, there is always that one that does everything different than their siblings. Tom is that person. The strange thing is...the kids all think he is cool. (WHATEVER!). Samuel thought Uncle Tom was cool when he taught him that the color brown was called "poop" and that he should refer to my half brother, Justin, as "punk". Tom likes to buy the toys that make the most noise or the one's that don't have an off button. He gets great pleasure in torturing me though my kids...he says it is payback. But for what I can't figure. I mean I was a perfect sister and very loving towards him going up and we used to hug and laugh and play games....OH WAIT....That wasn't me and Tom. We used to fight constantly and I thought a few times that I may be sent to an early grave. But we have both matured...(Well I have at least...just kidding). Now Tom is the person that I could call if I ever needed anything. This includes helping me fix things and helping my husband fix things and burning CD/DVD movies for my kids, even if some of them have subtitles from China or Africa or somewhere (I don't ask...he don't tell). He also has built the neatest things...wooden wagons, corner cabinets, cradles, and high chairs. They are not just neat they are really good and most of them he made without any plan. I still think Sam's wagon is heavier than Tyler's. Anyway....I think I have said enough, I will let my mom and John fill in anything that I left out.

This is Tom in front of a desk that he built for grandpa.

It must be working...

So...I as you know, I have been tanning and I think it might just be working. I only know this because I noticed the half circle tan lines on my biceps were getting more white. If you are wondering what I am talking about, imagine me laying in a tanning bed and letting my "stuff" fall where it may. I decided that if I were to use the stand up tanning bed, I would look like a zebra across my stomach from letting things lay where they want. SORRY...TMI I know. Anyway...I also think that weight watchers is finally paying off. Samuel told me 2 days ago "Mom, I think you are losing weight...you are getting shorter" Kids say the darnest things.

Ok...one more thing...fat only looks better tan if you are not in a white outfit. My mom and I went to the chinese restaurant last night and this rather enourmous woman walked in wearing a white running suit. Now I am not sure which was funnier to me...the fact that she shouldn't be wearing white or the fact that it was a running suit and it was obvious that she had not been running in a while. Now you may think we were being insensitive but we have a free pass to make fun of people who are big because we are big. The reason that I know this is because there where two smaller ladies sitting across from us at the restaurant who found the same thing funny but they were scared to laugh...that was until they saw a big person like me laughing. It was like giving them a free pass to laugh also. It is that whole minority thing...if you are black you can make black jokes. If you are fat, you are allowed to make fat jokes. If you fat and black...WATCH OUT, you will be down right hilarious.

Have a good day. Tomorrow...TOM.

The demand of One...

So since I have had a least one person ask for a new post...I thought I would try. I have been trying to think of a topic for my new post for a couple of days but nothing has struck me as blog worthy. I am thinking I am going to have to have another party at my house so I can gather some blog material. It is weird that since I decided to blog everyone is afraid to share things for fear that they will be blogged about.

So when all else fails...talk about the kids. Today we took Samuel to gymnastics. We have finally found his sport. He had taken gymnastics once before but I thought he should try basketball, soccer, and t-ball. When I told him that we might be going back to gymnastics...he expressed that he didn't understand why I had put him in all those other things because he never liked any of them and that gymnastics is all that he wanted to do. He is really good at it too. Unfortnately for me the more that he participates the higher the price is for him to do it. If he continues the price for 10 weeks at age 6 will be over $250. So I am saving now. I have decided to include a few pictures of Samuel at t-ball, he looked good in the uniform...that was about it. He hated every minute of it and wasn't afraid to tell me.


Ever wonder if your kids will turn out like you? Well mine are well on their way. Wayne had asked Samuel to pick up his toys out of the living room and he already had both hands full and he looked at his dad and said "Does it look like I have 3 arms?.....NO" and he walked to his room to unload and came back. We were too busy laughing to disipline. I have been TOLD that I was a bit like that as a child. I don't remember. And just like me and my brothers...yes I have 2 brothers, John and Tom (Tom doesn't like for us to talk about him so I am thinking that the next blog I may just dedicate to Tom), ANYWAY! Me and my brothers loved going to grandma and grandpa's house. My kids can't get enough. Samuel stays over there any chance he can get. I think it stems from the fact that he thinks that just maybe he can convince grammy to take him to the toy store. (it doesn't take much convincing!) Joshua also has found his love for the old people (I say that with much love). Every time we go down their street he screams out PAPA...GRAMMY! If we don't stop, the screaming turns to crying. They are the best grandparents known to man. Now this is my grandparents and their great grandparents I am referring to. My grandma once said...I wish I had grandkids...TO ME...HER GRANDDAUGHTER! They are truely the reason that my kids are the little adults that they are. I would love to take credit for the fact that Sam is starting kindergarten this year at barely 5 but I think it was the constant attention that his grandparents gave him when they watched him when I worked.
So...Joshua is I think gaining weight. He has been eating great but he seems to have more energy so I am not sure if the weight will stay on. He is a hoot! I don't even have a way to tell you how funny he is. His expressions are not something I can express in words and since he is still not talking in sentences I can't tell you anything cute that he has said. I hope this fulfills my blogging for a couple of days. I am sure I will have something to talk about by then.
Samuel's new spike do!

PS...I have noticed on my site meter that someone from Illinois is reading...Comment so I know who you are. Just curious!

Update on Josh:
I took him to the doctor today at Children's. I would like to say that we never have to go back but we do. They said he only gained 1/2 pound in the 2 months since we were there last. I explained that he had been sick and I was sure that this was why he was not gaining. I tried to defend myself to the nutritionist that came in that I am really sharing all of the food with my kids and not eating it myself but I could tell what that little skinny thing was thinking..."SHARE THE FOOD" Well...maybe I am overly sensitive due to the fact that I do at times catch myself sneaking fries from their plates. I would like to tell everyone that this time at Weight Watchers has really made a difference but I have only kept off .6 pounds. NOTICE THE POINT in 4 weeks or so of going. I think it is from the fact that the first time I was weighed I forgot to pee first and now I am just maintaining what was already there. I was hoping that after all the hard work I would be down to a slim 145 lb by Sam's birthday......Oops...I had to take a moment and laugh. ANYWAY!....back to Josh (boy I wished I had little of his problem), he is not liking food most days. He doesn't really show any interest. He may take a bite or two for breakfast and not eat the rest of the day. So the doctor wants to see us again in 2 months. He said if he doesn't gain this time we might have to go down in his stomach with a scope. I will most likely not be present for that test. I had that done and I think I made one of the nurses throw up because I was gagging so much. So Wayne will have to handle that test. Let's just pray he gets his appetite and starts gaining before these 2 months are up. So...that is it. They said to continue to do what I had been doing. Great...that is working SO well. So pray for me that I will have the patience to do what I need to do for him. This is it for the night.

So...I have always said that fat looks better tan. I know a strange way to start a blog but here I go. So I have decided to tan the fat! I have been going to the tanning bed now 2 weeks...I am a little tanner but today I GOT BURNT. Now burnt red doesn't make fat look better, it makes people look directly at you as if you had a neon sign hanging on your back. I am afraid to scratch my back for fear the tears will start rolling. I am sure this too will pass. But it does help cover the bruises that I received from my recent flop on the ground from the ladder (or latter if your my mom).
Wayne is still on medical leave and I am not sure what has gotten in to him but I am beginning to think that I need to go back to work and let him manage the house because he has been on a cleaning spree. He has done laundry the last two days (folded too), he has done dishes more than once and PUT THEM AWAY! I mean I could get used to this. I think he is bored and I am sure that once he returns to work he will expect the same from me. (GOOD LUCK!). This week has also been VBS at our church and I am one of the crew leaders. We had 219 kids today show up and they raised $219. It is amazing to me to see this many kids all crammed in the sanctuary. God has been really working in our church and you can tell by the number of people that have been coming.
Tomorrow I take Joshua for a follow up appointment at Childrens since he has not been gaining weight. He has actually been doing so much better. I get so excited when he eats that I am afraid that if he ever gets his appetite he will expect praise everytime he eats. He is such a great kid. He is my comedian and I don't go through a day that I don't find him, knee slapping funny. And the best part, his best friend is his brother Nannel (Samuel). He adores him but doesn't like it when Samuel adores him back. And Samuel, he is what seems like 12 or 13. He talks like he should be in jr high. I tell him every night he is my best friend and he quietly lays his head on me and says...Thanks mom. It melts my heart.

Well...enough for tonight. I will try to post tomorrow about Josh's appt.


PS. Brenda I just want you to know that it was all Sarah that fed your dog the cookie. But Sorry...can we please come back over or are we banned for life from your house (LOL).

My sign hasn't made it to me yet and it was no more obvious than tonight that I needed to wear it. I decide to help Wayne get some work around the house done since he can't and so I climbed the ladder to clean out the gutters. I was going a long just great, when I noticed a slight bend in the one leg of the aluminum ladder. I climbed to the top and down I came. I am sure it was graceful as I slid my face along the grass. I laid there for a second...the only thing I could think of was...THAT WAS STUPID. I mean I am sure I exceeded the weight limit for aluminum. I mean no one this big stands on a pop can and expects it to hold them so why I thought I could climb 6 feet in the air on it, I have no idea. Needless to say...I am fine. I finished working on the backyard and played in the sprinkler with Sam. I only have a small cut on my finger to show for my fall, but this only happened a couple of hours ago, ask me tomorrow...I may be hurting a little more by then.
I have had a lot of requests to my to update my blog and many wondering if they will make it in the blog. So I tell them stories I was GOING to put in the blog and then I don't feel like including them because they lose the humor if I tell them more than once. But here are a few.

On Friday night after Wayne's surgery, I did what any other wife would do after their husbands gets home...I left. I went to a Point of Grace Concert in Columbus. I rode there and arrived there...only BY THE GRACE OF GOD! I rode with a person who I feared was driving "high on life" or "Drunk on Jesus juice" or something. I have since been told that until recently she would only right turns into traffic so that she didn't have to cross over in front of cars. This information would have came in handy BEFORE we decided who was driving. The first clue should have came as to how the trip was going to go when she mowed down the reflector at the end of our driveway. The fact that I was the front passenger in a minivan, that has no front end, and we were traveling 60 mph until about 50 feet from the stopped cars and then the brakes would be hit and I felt like I could touch the trunk in front of us, didn't help my peace of mind. AND that was just the trip down. On the way back as we are leaving the concert she mentioned she didn't think the brakes were working right...GREAT I thought I am going to sitting in back seat of someone's car as we rear end them on the way home. BUT WE HAD A GREAT TIME...no really we did. The concert was great and I couldn't get over the fact that Point of Grace looked so old but they were good. Thanks to the girls that went with me. And sorry to that driver who will probably read this. (Actually I told her I was going to write about it).

My next little entry has to be about one of my dear friends who decided to play a little prank on me as I was standing in her living room. I had my knees locked looking at pictures on her TV stand when she came up behind me and tried to buckle my knee...now most people remain standing it just makes them off balance. NOT ME. I went down like a ton of bricks on the floor. Now you would think that she would ask if I was OK...she may have but I couldn't tell over her laughing. WELL...TODAY WAS PAYBACK. I didn't even have to do anything. We were all over at a playdate when this hilarious friend got up to get on of her kids as they fell outside and BAM!!! she ran right into the screen door. Love ya, Sarah!

I have made some realization about this blogging. As much as I would like for it to be a outlet for all of my thoughts and problems, a person just can't write about it all without making someone mad. So if I don't write for a few days it is because I am trying to sort out everything going on in my life at that moment and decide what is blogging material and what isn't. Plus I can be a little lazy like my cousin Holly has been with her blog...you said it Holly not me.

ALSO...HI to all of you secret readers...Brenda, Beth, etc...etc. And please read some of my friends and family's blogs...see the links on the right, they are funny and some very insightful.

So I haven't written for a couple of days but I have been busy. As many of you know, Joshua has been sick and Sunday we took him to the emergency room. He had went on a eating strike starting Friday night and by Sunday he was so weak from not getting anything in his body that he couldn't even stand by himself so I decide to take him to the ER. The only thing nice I can say about the visit is that they did get some IV fluid in him. But they also put a cath in him to get a urine sample (OUCH!), ran x-rays of his chest and put an IV in the bend of his arm for which they had to strap his arm to a board with tape so he wouldn't bend it. ARGH! Remarkably he barely cried, just wined a bit. Starting yesterday, Tuesday, he was feeling so much better but the doctor is still concerned that he is underweight and not gaining. He goes to Children's on the 21st of this month and even though I don't want anything to be wrong with him, I wish there was some treatable diagnosis so we can move on. So...that is the update on him.

Today. I helped Wayne trim a tree in our backyard. He climbed up in it about 30-40 feet up when he decided that it was TOO RISKY to go any farther. About 10 feet up I would have come to that conclusion. I actually had to quit watching when I lost him in the branches because I kept having visions of him crashing down on our shed. So we decided to do what any other redneck would do...we tied an extension cord to the branch pulled it to the ground and he climbed on a step ladder and cut it with the chainsaw. We came inside and had a shasta and ate moon pies. LOL. We go this week to get fitted for our "You're Stupid" signs. But it makes room for our poor people pool. All of this so we can get 30 more minutes of sun directly on our pool so it will heat it up. YEAH RIGHT!
Friday I have to take Wayne in for hernia surgery and we will be stuck in the house together for at least 2 weeks SO pray for me! I know that sounds bad but if you know us you know that we hardly see each other because he is always working and I don't know how I am going to handle him being around ALL THE TIME! Maybe this will be a good thing for us. He is a really great man and I would happily marry him again tomorrow (but he has to come debt free, hee hee). I know I don't talk about him a whole lot because I can be really sarcastic and I don't want it to come across wrong. We have a great life together and two wonderful and perfect kids and he has been a great husband and father. Sometimes I don't say it enough about how much I love him because I have this tough independent exterior I need to maintain. Here is a picture of my lovely husband.


JUST KIDDING!!! (Here is our lovely family)

I have earned a Silver star this week in my mommy crown. I am a stay at home mom with 2 kids and most days things go pretty easy, but not this week. I have had a sick kid. Now I know all of you other moms are thinking...so what, don't we all at sometime. BUT wait. I spent all of Wednesday night cleaning my furniture and floors while carrying or holding up a child. The first incident happened in the play room as Samuel and I were cleaning. I was working my way towards the toy box when Joshua, who was standing in a large pile of toys, started crying like he had stepped on something. Both Samuel and I asked him what was wrong...when Sam asked the second time, UP IT CAME. All over the toy box, luckily not in, but all over the toys on the floor, all over Samuel and well...just all over. All Sam said was..."I didn't need to see that!" I had to get all of the toys in the bath tub, scrub what could be scrubbed and I trashed a few, don't tell the kids. Then I scrubbed the floor. We all headed in the living room where I decided to call my mom to tell her my ordeal. As I was talking...UP IT CAME AGAIN!! I quickly hung up and stripped down Josh and myself (who got it this time) and cleaned the new pergo floors and cleaned the new leather furniture off with the special cleaning product it came with. (I tell you that because it was quite a long process and I want you to know this was not a quick clean up). So I decided maybe he needs some tea to settle his stomach so we went to the kitchen. As I prepared the tea...UP IT CAME! I mean he doesn't eat much so I don't know where it all came from. Luckily it was right beside the sink so I took the hose and doused it with water, added some soap and began to scrub as Joshua laid with his head on the floor next to me. So I am sure that the tea will settle his stomach and I take him back into the living room with tea in hand. He loved the tea and was drinking, WHEN IT CAME UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! SO...I gained 1.8 pounds at Weight Watchers this week. I think it was from the weight of my new silver star. I know you all wanted to hear about my puking kid but I told you that so that you can pray for my little man, he has been sick most of his little life. He has been tested for everything from Cerebral Palsy to Cystic Fibrosis and we have been trying for almost a month now to get him to gain weight. When I took him to the doctor on Thursday he is a 1/2 pound LESS than he was the last visit. Today he has been very serious and lazy and very clingy (is that a word?). Anyway...Please pray that he gets better soon and gets back to his little rotten self.

It's over and America can go back to watching reruns of Friends. Taylor Hicks won. I am not happy but I didn't think Katherine deserved to win either.

I also wanted to update everyone on my mom. She is out of ICU, out of the hospital and back to work in record time. Now if I was her I would have milked it a little longer than a week. The BP seems to be down slightly since getting out and getting better with the new cocktail of medicines so thank you to all that prayed for her speedy recovery. WE LOVE YOU MOM!

I wasn't sure what to write about tonight so I read though my relative's blogs to get inspiration. I will start with my brother's blog. I am so shocked it has been a whole school year since you have been gone. I think time definitely speeds up each year. I am NOT looking forward to next May when I will be going though the same experience with Sam, it just doesn't seem right. I took him for his Kindergarten screening hoping that they would say he was a genius but at the same time hoping that they would say he needs another year of preschool. What I wasn't prepared for was that they thought he was as smart as I thought he was. I mean most people when I say he is smart they just nod their head and think to themselves...BOY she likes to brag. They are right, I mean doesn't everyone think they have the smartest and most wonderful kids. Since the screening I have had a few worries as to his listening skills but I am assured by my friends it is normal for a 4 year old. Here is a good example. We were getting ready to go out to lunch and he was completely ready to go except for his shoes. I told him to get his shoes out of the closet. He takes off and comes back with a pair of pants from his drawer. Confusion...when I asked what he was doing he said, I thought you told me to get pants from my room. I know you are thinking...they sound alot alike. Whatever. I will just pray that he can follow in his cousin's footsteps and be as happy and proud as she looked at her graduation. CONGRATS Kaitlyn. I am proud of you, John and Kristena, for being such awesome parents and for taking the time to make her day so special.
On to my cousin Kelley's site...Wow... I too have been putting a lot of thought into where I should be spiritually and seeking out what I should be doing. I have to praise God for answering prayers. Wayne is going to be on medical leave starting June 9th for what could be 6 weeks for hernia surgery and we were a bit worried about finances during that time but GOD will provide. This week we have gotten word we will at least have two weeks covered completely because of some money we didn't know we would be getting. It really does pay to pay God first. For the first time in my life I have been tithing faithfully for the last year and it has been coming back to us in so many ways. We love our church and our pastor. I mean anyone who has known me in the past would be shocked to hear me say that. I have always been a skeptic. I never liked church because I felt that people never lived what they preached. I feel like we have found a church and a group of believers that live the way they say they live and are bold enough to say it. I think too many times we are afraid to be bold in public with our beliefs for fear we might offend. (I personally have never had this issue, I just lacked the approach). We need to stand up and defend prayer in every spectrum and make sure that the word GOD is never removed from our money or anything else. I am working on my witness and trying to make sure that I change my life to reflect that of someone who wouldn't mind if Jesus himself were right there sitting next to me every moment. OK...I better stop for now because I might just preach a whole sermon, it runs in the family.
I will write more tomorrow about Holly's blog but I have to go to bed. I have about worn off the "ce" on my backspace button because I keep misspelling words. Have a good night. Here are some pictures of the kids...Sam is 4 and Josh is wild and 2.

What an interesting mother's day my mom and I have had. I have just returned home from spending the last 2 days sitting in ICU with my mom. She decided to make this mother's day one for the books. On Sunday when I sat down beside her after sunday school she told me she wasn't feeling good and I have to say she didn't look like it either. She was kind of grey. She kept assuring me that she thought she would be fine so we sat through the choir singing and the congregation singing and then I looked over and saw that she was looking worse. She said she felt like she was going to pass out or get sick right there. So during the prayer we snuck out and got in the car but not before they called for the nurse at the church. The nurse followed us out and checked her blood pressure before I took her home (which is where we would have went). Her blood pressure was 220/110 or so. The nurse looked horrified and suggested we take her to the ER. So I drove her there and the first reading the got was 238/126. Now those of you who are not up on what normal is, it is usually 120/80. They started pumping her full of drugs, I mean lots of drugs but nothing worked. It went up in fact. 250/111. YIKES...so they decided to admit her and put a nitroglycerin drip in. Now you would think that with all the medicine and the nitroglycerin it would drop but no...it went down for awhile but climbed back up. So they scheduled a heart cath this morning and the most unbelievable thing...they said her heart was completely heathly as well as the arteries running to her kidneys. So...what does that mean. She will be in there until they can get this under control. So far it looks like it may take awhile for her body to get used to the lower pressure, it seems to be fighting it. The doctor said that she has to reduce the stress, which if you know my mom, say a big prayer for her. It also means our whole family is going on a huge diet to lose weight and support my mom in her battle to get healthier. WE LOVE YOU MOM and we are SO glad that it is nothing major. So I tell you all of this to say thank you to all of you who prayed for my mom and our family. Sorry no funny stories...maybe later we can look back and laugh but today was a sobering day and a day of reflection of where we all could be if we don't take care of ourselves.

Well I really don't have anything exciting to report. SO I guess I will tell a few stories. Many of you have heard these before but here I go. John and I have worked for my mom over the years not just at home but she hired us as employees. (SILLY HER). Anyway we did job coaching for people with disabilities and these are a few of my more memorable days. I was working is a lady we will call "Rosemary". Well Rosemary had a Ph.D in something I can't remember. I guess all of the studying pushed her to crazy. I was asked by my boss mom to go to her house and take her out to fill out applications, I called Rosemary and told her that we were going out the next morning at 8:00. So I went to her apartment. When I arrived, she was ready alright, as ready as any crazy person could be, she opened the door in nothing but a bra and underwear. I remained calm and simply said...I don't think we can go looking like this. She was all frazzled. So I waited in her apartment with her "pycho"olgist who she had called early because she was having anxiety about going that day while Rosemary found something to wear. Now I would have thought the professional sitting on the couch would have made sure she had clothes on but it didn't seem to bother her. So we finally get on the road and we go around to fill out applications, NO BAGEL shops though, the police that are there are probably there to get her. So after a long day of hearing about her dreams of arguing with the angel of God and how Kurt Douglas was going to call her and ask her to be in a movie and her constant referral to "Jesus said I need to watch out for this or that or Jesus said you were nice" I didn't hear him talking but I think she was getting messages all the time from him, we pulled up to her apartment. I said I will see you next week and I could tell she was getting anxious again but I didn't expect her to do what she did. She looked down at her watch and said "Let's just sit here a minute" And so we proceeded to sit for a full timed minute. She opened the door and got out. Nothing more was said. I would like to say that was the last story of Rosemary but it wasn't. The next week I had to bring her to the office for my mom to have a meeting with her and discuss how things were going. Once again I picked her up (this time she was ready, clothes and all), I took her to the office. Once there my mom had me sit in the meeting with her. Rosemary was distraught over not having enough money to do anything or buy anything. She said "I don't have money for shampoo, soap, a brush, toilet paper, a douche, toothpaste....(wait did she just say what I think she said!!!) Yes... she decided that my mom and I were the perfect people to tell that she couldn't afford her feminine products. The rest of the meeting I kept my head down for fear we would start laughing out loud. You know these have to be true stories because who can make up stuff like this.

Now...on to Mother's day and in response to my brothers blog.
Thanks mom for putting me in the best coaching jobs ever. HA. You are the reason I have so many funny stories to tell. You are also the reason that I can look at every situation and have some sense of humor about it. Thank you for teaching us that if the kitchen goes up in flames...just shut the door and go out to eat. Thanks for teaching me that if you leave a curling iron on all day it will smell like someone died in the house. Thanks for teaching me to use paper and not the GOOD stuff all the time. Thanks for teaching me you can repeat anything as long as you use quotes. Thanks for teaching my kids to scream at the top of their lungs and laugh after each scream. Thanks for teaching my kids to fake cough so I can't tell when they are really sick. And finally thanks for teaching my kids that DONUTS MOP...go with every meal. THANKS...THANKS for being the best mom in the whole wor....state of Ohio. And thanks for always taking time with my kids even when you are tired from driving and working all day. Thanks for teaching me to be a good mom. I can only wish that my kids will want me around like we all want you around now. I am so proud of you for showing us that you can make it though tough times and come out semi-normal. (that is what you say about us all right, semi-normal). I really do love you and I hope that you have a wonderful mother's day, well I know you will because you are coming here. You are the best and I hope I can be as good of a mother as you have been. Thanks again. AND here is an extra Thank you that I forgot on my wedding day, I LOVE YOU AND THANK YOU FOR SUPPORTING ME IN ALL MY DECISIONS...(I know you didn't always like the decisions but you let me be my own person).

I will write more later. I have a baby who has learned how to take his diaper off and I have to go put a new one on with DUCT tape around the waist.