Just A Place to Clear My Mind

2010-04-30T00:49:00.001-05:00

I traded eyeliner for dark circles, salon hair cuts for ponytails and braids, long showers for hairy legs, late nights for early mornings, designer purses for diaper bags and I wouldn't change a thing! With Mother's day drawing near lets see how many Mom's will forward this. Mom's don't care what we gave up and will continue to give up for our kids :)?If your not a mom then send it to a mom you do know.

~Athenia ~

With Mother's Day coming up I thought I would repost this one

2010-04-27T00:53:00.001-05:00

Why Women Cry
A little boy asked his mother, 'Why are you crying?'''Because I'm a woman,' she told him. 'I don't understand,' he said.His Mom just hugged him and said,'And you never will.''Later the little boy asked his father, 'Why does mother seem to cry for no reason?'''All women cry for no reason,' was all his dad could say.The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry.Finally he put in a call to God. When God got on the phone, he asked,'God, why do women cry so easily?'God said:'When I made the woman she had to be special.I made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world,yet gentle enough to give comfort.I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth and the rejectionthat many times comes from her children.I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up,and take care of her family through sickness and fatigue with out complaining.I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances,even when her child has hurt her very badly.I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults andfashioned her from his rib to protect his heart.I gave her wisdomto know that a good husband never hurts his wife,but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfaltering.Finally, I gave her a tear to shed.This is hers exclusively to use whenever it is needed.''You see my son,' said God, 'the beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears,the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair.The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes,because that is the doorway to her heart - the place where love resides.'

After

2010-04-27T00:43:00.003-05:00

Remember totally never do this kind of editing but the family needed 6 month pics of her.

Before

2010-04-27T00:41:00.002-05:00

I loved this picture

Myli

2010-04-27T00:27:00.000-05:00

My brother in law came up with his youngest and fiance. I grabbed her one afternoon and took her shopping. Wish i had taken the sticker off.

My niece Natalie Irene 7lbs 8oz 19.5 images long. born sept 4th

2009-09-06T20:56:00.001-05:00

My new baby camera.

2009-06-30T23:31:00.002-05:00

I finally got my Giftcard from Sears for the defective camera I sent back. This isn't the one I wanted but the next step up. So far I am VERY happy with it. It has all the ~~toys~~ options that the GE had plus some. So far my favorite option is the Backlight, so many times people/subjects turn out to be ~~shades~~ dark because of a poorly lit room. Now I do not have to worry about it. I was playing with it last night using first my foot as the subject then, under my bed lol. My foot got to use the backlight option as I was holding my foot up in front of the ceiling light, under the bed was the night mode. I did both of them without the correct option first and then with the correct option. Lemme tell you, there is a HUGE difference and I no longer grumble about the fact that although the web said they had 3 of the ones I wanted and the store said they had none. Happy days indeed lol.

Update

2009-06-27T00:32:00.002-05:00

Update on Hubby's Aunt and Cousin:
The Dr's went in and looked at the mass they noticed and found that it was a cyst so that is very good news. Cousin L (oldest son of Aunt S and Uncle B.) is having kidney function trouble and I believe lung problems as well. (it is all on their caringbridge site) He was advised to stay away from dust which is hard considering his career but he has started to wear face masks when he goes out. He is to be married in 2 weeks which is VERY exciting for everyone. A little good news is so very welcome for that family right now.
Please keep them in your prayers that Aunt S keeps responding to treatment and that Cousin B has no further problems with his grafts as well as Cousin L's treatment to work so that he does not have to wear a afce mask to his wedding.

Father's Day

2009-06-22T05:36:00.000-05:00

Father's Day is a bittersweet time for Hubby and I. We love that the boys get into celebrating Dad and all that he is to them, but this is the 3d Father's Day without my FiL to celebrate it with. He passed away just before Father's Day in '06 and not a day goes by that we don't think of him. We go out many times during the year to visit him, but always make sure to see him on Father's Day and all the major holidays/important dates. This year Lil One was very cute, he told Grandpa Happy Father's Day, I love you and Miss you and then looked at his dad and said....Dad, Tell grandpa Happy Father's Day. Of all the grandkids, Lil One held a spot in Grandpa's heart, he loved them all but our ~~lil~~ big one had him wrapped around his finger from the time he was minutes old. We lived, and still do, and hour away but grandpa would come out at least twice a week to see his Little ~~sh!t~~ monster and just hold him and talk to him for hours. Because of this Lil One knew Grandpa the most and always had a smile. When grandpa passed away he would still talk to him at night before he fell asleep. He was 21 months old at the time and was still learning his words but no matter what through the baby monitor we heard babbling and grandpa come out of his mouth for at leat 1/2 an hour before he would go to sleep. It always ended with Ni Ni Grapa. Yesterday as we were leaving to go home he said I will talk to you later Grandpa..he never says goodbye. He believes that grandpa is here protecting him and keeping him safe and I gotta tell ya...I don't think he is wrong.

Yes Real Men play with dolls save lives

2009-06-22T04:15:00.001-05:00

Oldest pulling the dummy to safety at fireman's training.

A Boy and his toys Hose

2009-06-22T04:08:00.001-05:00

Lil one at annual town festival learning how to aim the hose at fireman's training.

Prayer Request for a Dear Friend and also a Member of my Extended Family

2009-06-22T03:26:00.000-05:00

I got a call from a very good friend from High School Kim asking for prayers for her husband Peter. 3 years ago Peter fought and beat colon cancer but it is now back and has moved on to his liver, lungs and kidneys. They were told that without treatment he had 3 months to live and with treatment maybe up to a year. The last time he had theis battle he was very ill from the chemo and radiation and they had to pray on what course of action they wanted to take, did they want 3 months of him feeling 'ok' or a year of him dealing with the side effects of chemo and radiation. They decided to fight it as aggressively as they could with the hopes that the Dr's were wrong and that he could beat the odds and be around for many more years. Please pray that Peter is able to enjoy whatever time he is blessed with, with his children and the rest of his family.
Another prayer request for my Hubby's Aunt S. She has been fighting Breast cancer since Christmas and was thought to have been beating it, last thursday they found another mass in her lung when doing a routine x-ray to check the progress of the chemo. This family has had many difficult trials the past year with their youngest getting third degree burns on his legs from a burning gas can and their oldest getting diagnosed with a form of vasculitis. Please pray for all 3 of them as well as my Hubby's Uncle B as he helps his family through these trying times.You can view the caringbridge site for updates on all of them. You do need a caringbridge visitor account to sign in.

Sad Day for Me

2009-06-12T04:09:00.000-05:00

I just dropped my 3 month 14 day old (for me) GE A835 8 MP, 3X Optical Zoom Digital camera in a UPS Drop Box to be shipped to the claims department of Sears. I have been having problems with it for over a month. I would put in brand new batteries and it would A) tell me that battery power was exhausted or B) not even turn on. Last weekend I was in charge of taking pictures for my nieces birthday party and it was a pain in the behind. I had to hold down the power button, hold up the battery compartment (to get a connection between battery and camera) and push the button to take a picture (all 3 with one hand) I had major hand cramps and many times my fingers would loosen up on either the power button or battery compartment and the dang thing would just turn off. I had called the claims dept on friday but did not like that I would have to A) get a shipping label and send camera back and get a gift card back 3+ weeks after they got the camera (1 month of no camera during busiest picture taking time) or B) go buy another camera and wait 3+ weeks to get reimbursed again after they got the camera back. I could not get permission to just go get another camera first so I called the claims dept back today and got stuck with a male who could not figure out what I meant when I asked him questions. All I wanted to know was how they determined the camera did not work and how many times they tried because sometimes out of nowhere the camera would work for as long as the batteries (which it sucked dry pretty quickly) lasted but as soon as I replaced em had nothing but trouble again. He took this to mean 'how do they determine if it is a defective camera or it was consumer maltreatment of product' I finally just told him I was tired and busy so did not have the time to spell it out for him and to just file the claim to which he said 'Oh you want to file a claim?' Well DUH! Then asked did I buy the product protection plan(PPP)...again DUH! why else why would I call the Product Protection Claims Dept if I did not buy it in the first place? It was 15 minutes of utter CSR horror. I wish I had been able to talk to the person I had gotten on Friday, at least she was female and understood what I said. (not that I have anything against guys mind you) ANYWAY I have been looking on Sears website since I can't get a check from them to buy my camera at another store I have to get a gift card, and all the cameras I want are not available to be shipped to the store..they have to be paid for online and shipped to me, not too bad if I did not have to pay extra for the PPP and I am looking at getting a Nikon (I hope) which is a bit more and all I get back is camera cost as well as tax. I do not want to pay S&H and I HATE to use my CC online, just not a comfortable thing for me with all the hackers out there. I am hoping when I FINALLY get my GC from them that they will have this camera in stock at the store or this camera, I just do not want to do GE again if I can get away with it and I am really not a Kodak fan.

Please Pray for April Rose those in need

2009-06-08T23:01:00.000-05:00

UPDATE: It appears as if B mom of April Rose is a fraud and was exposed as such. I do not know the whole story but I do know that the blog has been removed and is no longer available for viewing. I am removing the widget from the side bar and removed the link from this post.
UPDATE 2: Here is a link to an online article about Beccah's story You can also go to MckMama's website and read what was posted here and again here
Please pray for all families who have loved ones in hospital or are caring for them at home.

April Rose was born Sunday, she was born alive and thankfully is still here with her loving parents. Please Pray for April as well as B & D as they go through a very trying time. They have had many nasty hate e-mails and I think if all believers showed their support and prayers it would be most welcome.

Many Happy Nights Days to come

2009-05-26T01:45:00.001-05:00

June is coming and with it we have many special occasions from Birthdays to ~~Dad's~~ Father's Day. Family friends will be coming to stay at my MiL's for a few days so we can catch up with them as well. Of course as ~~you~~ I know July will be even bigger since that is official ~~run away~~ vacation month for us. My Mum will be coming for awhile and we are hoping to go to the Black Hills again. So hard to believe we are already talking about vacation, seems like we just got back from vacation.

Mobile Update Happiness Sadness

2009-05-26T00:34:00.000-05:00

I found out the hard way that I cannot upload pictures to Blogspot via my phone. All I get on the blog is funky little letter/symbol things and since I have yet to figure out how to delete a full post I now have 1 blank post. Maybe I will go back and put ~~something inane~~ another prayer request in. At least I can still do updates from my phone..just not the fun ones I was hoping for.

Sweet Cousin Emma

2009-05-05T10:08:00.003-05:00

Please Pray for my cousin Robin's little girl Emma,you can read her full story here

Please Pray

2009-05-05T10:08:00.001-05:00

Please Pray for Baby Faith
Update: Baby Faith is now in the arms of Our Heavenly Father please lift her and her family up in your prayers

2009-05-03T00:49:00.001-05:00

Just doing a test run to see if my mobile updates work.

Weekend

2009-03-31T01:35:00.000-05:00

I had a busy busy weekend. Saturday was Oldest's birthday party at wowzone. All the kids had a blast, Youngest bowled with them and was hilarious to watch. He would roll the ball using both hands and then jump while watching the ball go down the lane, run back to me and jump some more until the ball hit the pins..usually 8 of them. Then we ate pizza had an awesome cake, (will upload picture of it later)It was a picture of a boy holding a Laser Tag gun and even though they did not know what oldest looked like the boy looked exactly like him without glasses. It was awesome lol. Then after food and gifts the boys used their gamecards until the laser tag arena was open. Youngest ended up not doing laser tag, the dark scared him. I do haev to say that having the party there was great for me since it came with a Party Host. I had to do nothing, worry about nothing...loved it! I am usually running around making sure everything goes smoothly so miss the excitement of the party. On yes a FUNNY..I had told oldest to out the bag of goodies for his party in the car before we left. he went outside with it and came in without it. On the way to town I asked him where the bag was, he said 'you did not give it to me.' I told him I had given it to him earlier and that he had gone outside with it and returned empty handed. I got to thinking then asked him if he had thrown it away, he said the FCO bag? I said yes and he said um...yeah. lol so hubby brought us to the party and turned around to get the goodies, luckily they were tied up in the bag so did not fall out in the can, that and the can was empty so there was nothing to dig through. At the time wasn't funny but as I think back on it, it is pretty funny.
Ok after party we had Jungle Boogie (fundraiser for lil ones Pre-K)at the secondary school and oldest had Saturday night madness at the rec center. Both boys had fun and I got many pictures of lil one dancing and playing at the Hippo Hop.
Sunday we woke up bright and early to go up to Como Zoo in St Paul...we were there an hour and a half since it was still a bit cold so the outdoor exhibits were closed but we had fun watching the sea lion and the gorillas. Plus there were some tiny babie monkeys born just a few weeks ago. On to the Mall of America in Bloomington, we walked around, had lunch, kids played at LegoLand and then we went and had fresh Crepes...we shared a strawberry one and a banana nutella one and man were they YUMMY. The boys said they didn't want any and ended up scarfing both of them down, hubby and I got like 2 bites each. I got one of those water massages...talk about heaven...I paid for 10 minutes got 15 and did not want to get out, I could have sworn had only been in there 5 minutes lol. After some more walking and browsing we went home, we were only in the Cities for 5 1/2 hours but man was it a full 5 1/2 hours.

The NEW Three Stooges

2009-03-26T04:10:00.000-05:00

Not sure if the casting director got all the possible actors for characters right.

Sean Penn is set to play Larry, and Jim Carrey is in negotiations to play Curly.
Benicio del Toro is a rumored possibility for the brothers' taciturn leader, Moe.

Stellan

2009-03-25T23:55:00.000-05:00

Way back in August, when little Stellan was still in the womb and the doctors had given him a pretty grim prognosis MckMama followers from near and far started sending her pictures of Stellan's name spelled out in snow, apple pie, crayons and other crazy, beautiful things. And it encouraged MckMama and displayed to the eyes what was happening in the spirit. People were loving, remembering and praying for Stellan. Fighting for him the only way they knew how.In MckMama's own words from her August 8th blogpost, "What a testimony it will be to see such reminders of all the people who prayed for Stellan, that he would live!"

contest

2009-03-05T09:19:00.000-06:00

Please Please vote for #11 lol, is an opportunity to get a picture put to painting for free.

http://x.jimanddoni.com/?p=903#comment-38843

Contest is open until Sunday March 8th 8pm mst

Arrow of Light ceremony

2009-02-23T04:32:00.000-06:00

Oldest one officially went from Cub Scout to Boy Scout yesterday in the Aroow of Light ceremony held at the annual Cub Scout Blue and Gold Banquet. We wavered between happy and sad moments...the happy moments are obvious but the sad moments are because my FiL was not able to be there to watch Oldest walk across the bridge. He passed away two and a half years ago suddenly and there has been a hole in our hearts since. He was the one to help Oldest build his first pinewood derby car since dad was in Afghanistan that year. He had gone to every scouting event Oldest had from banquets to pinewood derbies even down to the Flag Ceremonies on Memorial Day, Labor Day and Veterans Day. Anything that Oldest was in he was there. He was such an awesome man that he is still missed to this day from all who knew him. Next month is the last Pinewood Derby for the oldest since this year the Cub Scouts are letting the ones who crossed over come back 1 last time and Oldest said he wants to do another memory car for Grandpa. Every year the car has something of grandpa on it, usually his family racing numbers and his name. This year we are going to put grandpa's patch from when he was a scout on the car. This is the time of year that we miss Grandpa the most, when all the scout things are happening. I know he is up there watching Oldest take this next step in his life, and rooting him on...I just wish he was still here to see it from this angle in life.
On a happier note...Oldest made Great-Grandma's day/week/month. He asked us to bring him to her house last weekend and when we got there he formally invited her to attend his Blue and Gold banquet/Arrow of Light ceremony. He told her that he wanted her to be there as he shaed the blue uniform for the tan one. She was so excited that she told any and everyone who would listen that he made sure to ask her himself in person. Nothing was gonna stop her from going. Hubby went to pick her up and he said the whole way to our place to get the rest of us she would not stop talking about it and then the whole way home she kept telling him how proud she was of Oldest and that he (hubby) better make sure and tell oldest how proud he was also. She is a true spitfire my Great-Grandmother-in-law.

Black History Month Writers Contest

2009-02-10T16:55:00.001-06:00

Please click the link below if you are interested in the details of this contest.

http://coloronline.blogspot.com/2009/01/black-history-month-writers-contest.html

Endoscopy is over and now on to others

2009-01-26T01:58:00.000-06:00

The endoscopy went well other than a bit of a reaction(seizures) to one of the meds I was given. They donot know which med of the three I was given caused the seizures since they were all given simultaneously via IV. I am just hoping my next procedure that I am having this wednesday does not go the same way. I did talk to the Dr and he said he would use the old method of sedation instead of the way used last wednesday. I have had the upcoming procedure many times before using the old way and have had no problems at all. I will be allowed to take my meds this week though as one of them prevents my migraines and after the seizures I was gifted with one of the worst migraines I have had in years. I so do not want that to happen again. Will update as I can on Blogger, Twitter will of course be updated more often...

Road to pain free

2009-01-19T17:09:00.000-06:00

For a few months now I have been having some severe abdominal pain. I had gone into the ER where a CT scan showed 5 spots, 2 in intestines, 1 in right kidney, 1 in liver and 1 on left ovary. The Ovary is a normal so I was not worried and now we know kidney is cysts which will be taken care of at a later date and liver is due to the kidney. I finally got into the GI last week and he is telling me the worry spot is the one past the stomach, he needs to go in and assess the damage so an endosopy will be done on the 21st of this month or wednesday this week. It is a simple 5 minute procdure with an hour recovery. Their only worries is my asthma which has a tendency to cause me to stop breathing during any thing that I have to be put under for and the endoscopy is one of those things. I am used to it by now but I don't think nurses ever get comfortable with it. I of course always have a few worries but know that all will be well and I will have my Best Friend with me holding my hand until I go back. She has always been and will always be my biggest supporter as I am with her.

New Year's

2009-01-03T21:32:00.001-06:00

This year is the first year we let Older one stay up to ring in the new year. I had talked to him about to see if he thought he was up for it and he jumped at the chance to stay up so late. (go figure) We had planned to junk out on snacks and play chess/checkers all night but dad had bought a new Wii game that just had to be played so we did one game of chess and I snacked while they tried to beat each other at Wii football. I did share with them when they looked away from the TV. At about 11:30 we turned on Dick Clark's rocking new years eve, lemme tell you it was very sad for me to see how much the great man had aged in just a few years. He used to be ageless then happened his stroke and the aging process began. I was happy to see that Dick was able to participate and thought he looked amazing considering, but in my mind I will always think of him as the ageless Dick Clark. Below is the only video I could find of it that wasn't too blurry/shaky.

As soon as the ball dropped we sent Oldest to bed and I sent myself to bed since I worked the next night. I woke up when the Littlest came into my room about 8am, oldest was in bed until 11am and hubby woke at about 12pm then napped when I did. All in all I think new years went well and the 1st was a great resting day.

Christmas

2008-12-27T13:53:00.000-06:00

I am a very big fan of all Holidays but I think Christmas is one of my favorites. Even though we live within 40 minutes of everyone we usually only see them at the holidays. Sad, I know but we all have kids who have different activities to be driven too and usually all in the oppposite direction. This year we went to Janets house for Christmas eve and I think this was the first year all my hubby's Cousins were together, there are usually 2-3 missing. After that the boys and I went to my dad's house to exchange gifts and back to our house to open the family gifts, then youngest went to bed to wait for Santa to come and Oldest and I went to the candle light service at church. It was a beautiful service but ran long this year, we did not get home until midnight, needless to say the kids slept in Christmas morning. I did not get pictures of the boys with their gifts (guitar hero for oldest and a Diego Wii game for youngest, Hubby got a sweat shirt that said Dad on it) but when I opened my box I found 2 cans of green beans and a coloring book (used) I knew that was not the gift lol but had to figure out where to find it, as I rifled through the coloring book I found a picture of the boys behind a lighthouse portrtait. I am very into lighthouses and have been for years but I am very picky about it, I want tasteful not cartoony as some of the pictures/figurines can get. I have been to many houses where people have rooms devoted to lighthouses..any and all lighthouses and some make it work but others are not to my taste..ok enough of the 'criticism' now.
Christmas morning I was up at 5:30 to get the cooking/baking done for my contribution to the meal at my MiL's house. Oldest woke up at 8 and youngest finally got up at 8:30 (with a little help from brother of course) Both boys were happy with their gifts..Santa brought Oldest a glass Chess/Checkers set and a remote control escalade as well as some Modeling clay, Youngest got a Disney 10 pack games set, Color Wonder book with paintbrush/markers and a plastic tool set. After a very non-nutritious breakfast we played with the games/toys until it was time to go to Grandma's. I think this was the best year at my MiL's, in years past all have concentrated on the gift part and this year with everyone being a bit hit by the economy very little was purchased in the form of gifts. The boys got clothes and 1 toy from everyone...both hubby and I are happy with the 1 toy they got as were the boys since they had to choose a toy to donate to the homeless shelter for every new toy received. The biggest gift was spending time with the grandparents and great Aunt and Uncle with no interruptions of football games or any other sport. Unfortunately we did have to watch alot of the Christmas Story.
After my MiL's Hubby, Boys and I went out to see FiL. We try to get out for all Holidays and Birthday as well as the Anniversary of the day we said Goodbye. It was -15 degrees so we had the boys stay in the car and we were out for a bout 5 minutes..long enough to clean off the snow say a prayer and do a bit of reflecting. It has been a little over two years since he went home to Our Father but it has not gotten any easier yet. We really feel the loss at Christmas, no matter how many Christmases we had in a year, we made sure to see him or have him over so the boys could listen to his stories and Corny jokes. Oldest knew him longer than all the other grandkids and remembers many of the stories and such, so he likes to sit down with youngest and tell him some of Grandpa's 'exploits' as a kid. Youngest was not yet 2 when he passed although he does know which one is Grandpa when he sees a picture of all the 'kids'. I still remember the first Christmas without him the boys and I were at Wal*Mart in the Christmas section and youngest found a Santa in a biker jacket with a bike in his hand (grandpa had a beard and mustache and rode a harley Softtail) and said, grandpa..buy him, buy him..daddy like (remember he was 2..not much articulation) so that was daddy's first gift that year. Youngest walked up to him with the gift and said, Daddy..Grandpa..for you..always here, it now sits on top of Computer Armoire year round. Still brings tears to my eyes when I think of it. Hubby thought I put him up to it, but my kid is amazing on his own.

Hunting Season

2008-11-11T14:46:00.000-06:00

I recently had a discussion with someone about hunting..specifically deer hunting. She did not agree with the fact that I and my husbands family hunt and we are going to have our boys hunt as well if they want to. I brought up that if we did not hunt deer that they would become over populated end up starving and getting disease that could kill out the entire herd. Her response...overpopulation or being pushed out of their environment. Ignorant people really do bother me. I kind of got on my soapbox telling her that the area I and my family hunt is heavily wooded with very little development happening. The people in the area would never give up their hunting land to developers...that is how they feed themselves all year long. The DNR keeps an eye on the population of deer constantly..they decide how many permits to allow..they require registration of every deer that a hunter has gotten so they can keep as accurate a count as possible. There is also that time restriction for hunting...9 days for firearms hunting and that is it until next year. I asked her how she thought her ancestors fed themselves back when the United States was 'wild & untamed' when they could not just hop in their cars and go to the grocery store...I bet they weren't vegetarians... she then tells me that she is not a vegetarian either and that she enjoys venison.. I had to stop at that...I mean who eats venison then does not agree with deer hunting?

Obama

2008-08-19T10:50:00.001-05:00

I read this response on a blog recently and thought I would share it..The poster is anonymous. This is political so if you don't like to hear negative things don't read on.

Will I support Obama???? This is the United States of America.... He is not the type of leader our forefathers and their families have sacrificed themselves for... He didn't use the Holy Bible when he was sworn into Offices... He will not say the pledge of allegiance... He and his wife are racist... In HIS book, he stated there was a very influential father figure in the early years of his manhood...This FIGURE happens to be a radical racial extremest... Obama has since denounced this figure once the media had an opportunity to interview this great influential man... (funny huh)... His father was a radical Muslim, and a US hater... His family members have financially supported Radical Muslim Extreme Groups... He attended a radical Muslim school while over seas... Recently he went overseas to visit our troops... (after a great deal of pressure from his supporters) He DIDN'T acknowledge any of the US SOLDIERS while exiting his plane!!! He did however play in a prearranged basketball game ... I will not let you know what ethnic background of the players and spectators were.... While boarding HIS leased plane (painted with the O Logo, nothing stating the USA, America or even the American Flag) he walked right past the soldiers and officers serving this GREAT COUNTRY, (so people like you and I can go through our so called rough lives) He didn't even share a glance with them... Our jobs are important, but nothing can hold a candle to the bigger PICTURE... We are in a great deal of trouble but nothing compared to what our kids will face and endure if people like you and I don't stand up... Is McCain the answer??? I don't think he is...but he is our best choice... how can anyone judge his loyalty to this county and its citizens... how many of us can say we understand what he went through while a POW!!!!! NOT ME... he is proud to serve and will do what is best for the USA.... Will our problems be mended overnight or in our lifetime??? No, but we need to take baby steps before we can walk.... Sorry to ramble on... but I'm sick of ..... non loyalty!!!! All the answers to your questions can be found with very little research.... I challenge all of us to do our own research and formulate our own opinions!!! Quit taking someone else's word and trust your own!!! What does it state in the Bible about the Anti-Christ???? Might sound a little familiar...OK OK I'm off my soap box...

Merry Christmas from Heaven

2007-12-24T03:21:00.000-06:00

I still hear the songs
I still see the lights
I still feel your love
on cold wintry nights.

I still share your hopes
and all your cares
I’ll even remind you
to please say all your prayers.

I just want to tell you
you still make me proud
You stand head and shoulders
above all the crowd.

Keep trying each moment
to stay in His grace
I came here before you
to help set your place.

You don’t have to be
perfect all the time
He forgives you the slip
if you continue to climb.

To my family and friends
please be thankful today
I’m still close beside you
in a new special way.

I love you all dearly
now don’t shed a tear
cause I’m spending my
Christmas with Jesus this year.

Why Women Cry

2007-12-17T04:39:00.000-06:00

A little boy asked his mother, 'Why are you crying?''
'Because I'm a woman,' she told him. 'I don't understand,' he said.
His Mom just hugged him and said,'And you never will.'
'Later the little boy asked his father, 'Why does mother seem to cry for no reason?''
'All women cry for no reason,' was all his dad could say.
The little boy grew up and became a man, still wondering why women cry.
Finally he put in a call to God. When God got on the phone, he asked,
'God, why do women cry so easily?'
God said:'When I made the woman she had to be special.
I made her shoulders strong enough to carry the weight of the world,
yet gentle enough to give comfort.
I gave her an inner strength to endure childbirth and the rejection
that many times comes from her children.
I gave her a hardness that allows her to keep going when everyone else gives up,
and take care of her family through sickness and fatigue with out complaining.
I gave her the sensitivity to love her children under any and all circumstances,
even when her child has hurt her very badly.
I gave her strength to carry her husband through his faults and
fashioned her from his rib to protect his heart.I gave her wisdom
to know that a good husband never hurts his wife,
but sometimes tests her strengths and her resolve to stand beside him unfaltering.
Finally, I gave her a tear to shed.This is hers exclusively to use whenever it is needed.
''You see my son,' said God, 'the beauty of a woman is not in the clothes she wears,
the figure that she carries, or the way she combs her hair.
The beauty of a woman must be seen in her eyes,
because that is the doorway to her heart - the place where love resides.'

A SOLDIER'S CHRISTMAS

2007-12-12T03:23:00.000-06:00

TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, HE LIVED ALL ALONE,
IN A ONE BEDROOM HOUSE MADE OF PLASTER AND STONE.
I HAD COME DOWN THE CHIMNEY WITH PRESENTS TO GIVE,
AND TO SEE JUST WHO IN THIS HOME DID LIVE.
I LOOKED ALL ABOUT,A STRANGE SIGHT I DID SEE,

NO TINSEL, NO PRESENTS,NOT EVEN A TREE.

NO STOCKING BY MANTLE,JUST BOOTS FILLED WITH SAND,
ON THE WALL HUNG PICTURES OF FAR DISTANT LANDS.
WITH MEDALS AND BADGES,AWARDS OF ALL KINDS,
A SOBER THOUGHT CAME THROUGH MY MIND.
FOR THIS HOUSE WAS DIFFERENT,IT WAS DARK AND DREARY,
I FOUND THE HOME OF A SOLDIER,ONCE I COULD SEE CLEARLY.
THE SOLDIER LAY SLEEPING,SILENT, ALONE,
CURLED UP ON THE FLOOR IN THIS ONE BEDROOM HOME.
THE FACE WAS SO GENTLE,THE ROOM IN SUCH DISORDER,
NOT HOW I PICTURED A UNITED STATES SOLDIER.
WAS THIS THE HERO OF WHOM I 'D JUST READ?
CURLED UP ON A PONCHO,THE FLOOR FOR A BED?
I REALIZED THE FAMILIES THAT I SAW THIS NIGHT,
OWED THEIR LIVES TO THESE SOLDIERS WHO WERE WILLING TO FIGHT.
SOON ROUND THE WORLD,THE CHILDREN WOULD PLAY,
AND GROWNUPS WOULD CELEBRATE A BRIGHT CHRISTMAS DAY.
THEY ALL ENJOYED FREEDOM EACH MONTH OF THE YEAR,
BECAUSE OF THE SOLDIERS,LIKE THE ONE LYING HERE.
I COULDN'T HELP WONDER HOW MANY LAY ALONE,
ON A COLD CHRISTMAS EVE IN A LAND FAR FROM HOME.
THE VERY THOUGHT BROUGHT A TEAR TO MY EYE,
I DROPPED TO MY KNEES AND STARTED TO CRY.
THE SOLDIER AWAKENED AND I HEARD A ROUGH VOICE,
'SANTA DON'T CRY,THIS LIFE IS MY CHOICE';
I FIGHT FOR FREEDOM,I DON'T ASK FOR MORE,
MY LIFE IS MY GOD,MY COUNTRY, MY HOME.
'THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER AND DRIFTED TO SLEEP,
I COULDN'T CONTROL IT,I CONTINUED TO WEEP.
I KEPT WATCH FOR HOURS,SO SILENT AND STILL
AND WE BOTH SHIVERED FROM THE COLD NIGHT'S CHILL.
I DIDN'T WANT TO LEAVE ON THAT COLD, DARK, NIGHT,
THIS GUARDIAN OF HONOR SO WILLING TO FIGHT.
THEN THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER,
WITH A VOICE SOFT AND PURE,WHISPERED,
'CARRY ON SANTA,IT'S CHRISTMAS DAY, ALL IS SECURE.'
ONE LOOK AT MY WATCH,AND I KNEW HE WAS RIGHT.
'MERRY CHRISTMAS MY FRIEND,AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT.'

I wish you enough

2007-11-27T01:24:00.000-06:00

I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright no matter how gray the day may appear.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun even more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive and everlasting.
I wish you enough pain so that even the smallest of joys in life may appear bigger.
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess .
I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye.

When you are sending someone on a journey whether it be work, school or a trip send them off with an "I wish you enough" instead of good-bye

Holiday Horrors

2007-11-26T17:10:00.000-06:00

It is the time of the year that I have grown to dread. Don't get me wrong I love Christmas and the meaning behind it, I just hate what it has become. The stores here have had Christmas in the aisles since September. I had a hard time getting Halloween costumes for my boys, because the shelves had been cleared for Christmas. There is so much commercialism this time of year that it can make a person ill.
I am not of the 'old mind set' mind you, but I do miss when people thought more about family and friends than what gifts they would get. My fondest memories are of going to Grand-Mum's on Christmas Eve and seeing all of the family in one place. I would catch up with family that I only saw once a year, we all had our roles in the meal preparation. My cousin and I were in charge of the shrimp salad. Now this salad was a green salad that just had shrimp in it, but by the time my cousin and I got the salad to the table the shrimp was gone lol. Every year we were in charge of it and every year the shrimp salad would be shrimp-less. I think it took Grand-Mum 2 years to finaly buy an extra can of shrimp. After the meal and caroling we would go look at Christmas lights, this was back when the houses didn't just take a string of lights and throw them in the trees. People took the time to get a ladder out and string the lights nicely. Nowadays you can't even go to the neighborhoods that were known for their lights and enjoy them. People just don't want to take the time to hang them any more.
So now as a parent I am trying to show my boys the way Christmas is meant to be celebrated, with Church Services and family gatherings. I limit how many gifts they get every year from me and other family. They get one gift from me, 2 from santa plus their stockings and anyone buying them gifts cannot go over a set limit. I think it is working so far, whenever my oldest is asked what he wants he says, I don't need anything, I already have my family and friends and that is enough. This year on his own he chose a little girl's name from the sharing tree and bought her an outfit and with my help a baby doll for her to cuddle. He used his entire paycheck on her gifts instead of buying something for himself. Now if only he would be that selfless the entire year.

Black Friday

2007-11-23T15:14:00.000-06:00

You hear so many horror stories about Black Friday..I have even lived through a 'horror story' lol. Today was so amazingly un-Black Friday like it was scary. I get off work an hour after everyone opens their doors and go to the 3 stores I had planned plus a few more. We were done by 745am..not bad when you basically wander the stores trying to find where they are hiding everything on sale. We even had time to stopfor breakfast before I had to go into Mom mode. Of course the Breakfast could have been better, but who is gonna bitch? Not me, well not much anyway.

People Who Type to See Their Thoughts in Writing

2007-11-23T03:08:00.000-06:00

I am on several sites where you can do live chat. I have found that many chatters like to type even if noone wnats to hear or read what they have to say. How do you tell them to shut up nicely? I have yet to figure it out, so I just keep talking with the other people in the room blowing over the 'big mouth'. Even then they try to put in their tw cents worth.

Lemming Philosophy

2007-11-21T03:25:00.000-06:00

Lemming Philosophy is when people go along unquestionably with popular opinion. I see this in my day to day life as well as my "Net" life. Wouldn't it be nice if there were actually mass amounts of people who thought for themselves? I wonder what the statistics would be for Lemming to Non-Lemmings in each population. Would I be surprised and find that more people think for themselves than not? I actually hope that would be the case.

Blog Comments

2007-11-21T03:15:00.000-06:00

I am part of another site, that includes Blogs as part of the profile page. Many people utilize the Blogs and the 'Spotlight' them which basically means they are posted on the home page f the site for any/everyone to read them. I had clicked on one of these profiles and basically thought that person was a bit pathetic. All of her comments were sympathetic towards her even though anyone I knew who read it thought about the same thing as I did. I made a comment to said Blog which was not sympathetic and basically was all me. I checked back about 2-30 minutes later to see if there were any more comments. The user was online, I thought nothing of it but when I checked the comments mine was no longer there. She had deleted it. My main question was if you do not want people to comment on your Blog why put it in the spotlight? You are not always going to find people who agree with you. When a comment is deleted, it says alot about that person and how they are only on for gratification not real life. I did put a rebuttal Blog on my profile but the 'girl' did not comment on it, when i know she did look at it. I do not think she liked me referring to her as a Lemming.

First Blog

2007-11-17T01:04:00.000-06:00

I am new to this, so it may take some time for me to get the hang of it. There may be times where I do not blog at all for weeks then other times where I blog a few times a day. Be patient with me. hopefully in the long run it will be worth it.