Saturday's Games...

Well, I must say I'm just about PeeWee footballed out! Saturday wasn't too bad, pleasant weather. It stunk that we missed the Ohio State game, but they won so it's all good.
Here's a few action shots...Liam is the kid on the right.

Maggie is the kid on the left. Jump, show your spirit.
Then, in answer to the cheerleaders Liam pushed him back. Sike, for some reason this poor kid literally fell down at Liam's feet. Liam never even touched him - LOL.









We had kind of a yucky weekend. Jon's car is broken and we think maybe it's time for the Sentra to go to the big junkyard in the sky. We are looking to replace it, but in the meantime we both had to work this week and we only had one car. Thank God for the LaFever's. Jon's been driving their truck the last couple days. Youch on gas, but you do what you've got to and we're blessed to have friends that will loan us their vehicle!!
The good thing this weekend was that Mason came over. He has not been over for the weekend since April, I think. So, it was nice to have him here, however short the time. I know the kids really enjoyed it. Sam and Liam at least have really missed him (as has Jon obviously). After church Sunday, Katie and her sister, Jess, and I went to the Prairie Peddler. For the most part, I could not afford anything after entry and food. Stuff was a bit pricey for my current pocketbook, but it was great stuff and I'm really hoping next year I can save up some money and go again. It was definitely the best craft show I've ever been to. They had a bluegrass band...awesome!

Today, I went to the grocery. Yowzers!!! I really hate grocery shopping. I can't say I'm too concerned about this whole credit crisis, but boy gas and food is killing us. I spent an awful lot of money and allow me to say it's a bit ridiculous that milk is $3.79 / gallon. Seriously, I'm thinking about buying a cow, and chickens (for the eggs) and maybe a pig to raise for bacon. That or we may have to sell one of the kids.

I went into the school today and talked to the principal. Liam is REALLY struggling at school. He has failed 2 spelling tests and we're going to try some new tactics for studying this week that Mr. Lambka recommended. In the meantime, he and Liam's teacher are supposed to be getting together to decide whether it would be in his best interest to be placed back in 1st grade. I'm so torn and emotional about the whole thing. I'm worried that I'm going to screw him up no matter what I do. If I let him go, he may always struggle in school...if I hold him back he'll be made fun of. This decision is probably in the top 5 heartbreaking decisions I've ever had to make for my kids. We had a long talk last Friday and he knows if he fails anymore papers I'm pulling him out of football. Which stinks because if there was ever a kid who needs a physical outlet it's Liam!! So, say a prayer that he'll do better this week!!

Sam is doing great. He missed school on Friday because he got the creeping crud. He had to go to work with me and he played on the internet all day. He was so good. Man, he's an easy kid. I was asking him about his interest in girls...basically if there was any one in particular and he informed me that generally speaking "Girls get snippy for no reason and blame things on you randomly" which I found hysterical and very true. He's ahead of the game! He told me this evening that he's ready for baseball season to start. Poor thing, it's going to be a really long Ohio winter for him!! I think he wishes now that he'd signed up for football. He's taking fitness at school this year. It's 2 days a week and sounds like it kicks his butt, but he's enjoying it anyway. Sounds like lots of calisthenics and running. He's actually getting muscles!!

We're all loading up this weekend to go to NC - Liam and Maggie are going to be ring bearer and flower girl in a wedding on Saturday. Sam's a little bummed that he's going to miss the homecoming game, but I'm sure we'll all enjoy getting away for a couple days and getting to see family! Leading up to that we have spirit week at school so I'll try to get pics of the kids in all their goofiness and post it. Love to you all!!!!

Oh how the mighty fall...

Please just allow me to tell you I've recently decided I really love beavers...The Oregon State Beavers!!!!!! Ha Ha Ha - I guess USC did lose to OSU!!

Dad and Anne's Visit

Well, Dad and Anne have come and gone. We had a wonderful visit. Jon and I both had Monday and Tuesday off. Sadly, the kids did not, but we grown ups made the most of it! Saturday was a long day for all involved. Dad and Anne left early to drive up and we ran some errands and went to Liams 3 hour football game. Yes, you heard me...3 hours. The coach's decided (with very little deep forethought) that they wanted the ref to stop the clock between plays so they'd have more time to teach the boys. The first half was an hour and 45 minutes. The 3rd quarter was another 45 minutes...at which point some bright soul on the field realized it had been almost 2 and a half hours. So they decided to let the clock run after that. Thank the Lord!! I was frantic due to the fact that I spoke with Dad while we were still at the field and despite his reassurances that he did not care if the house was spotless, they had already entered Ohio and it's just not in my nature to let it go when I know we have company coming. Especially bi-annual company! So we rushed home and ,God bless him, Jon folded laundry ( 4 loads) while I scrubbed the kids bathroom and remade beds. They called when they reached Mt. Vernon and we arranged to meet them at Highland Pizza. I thought they would enjoy a little local color and you can't beat Highland Pizza for that. After supper we sojourned back to the house (the SPOTLESS house) and the kids entertained them for hours with Nintendo DS games.

Anne was only politely interested.

Dad, however, really got into it and may be asking for a new games system for Christmas. LOL

Then, Sunday, we played hookie from the game Maggie was supposed to be cheering for and went to Apple Hill Orchard in Lexington (Mansfield). It was a gorgeous day and we all enjoyed picking our own apples. We currently have quite a few more apples than we're sure what to do with. The kids have been eating them like crazy and I figure they'll clean their bowels out in short order.
We bought several different types of apples, in addition to Apple Cider, Apple Donuts, etc. It was fattening and delightful and much better than the football game we were supposed to be at!

After the orchard we went to Wal-Mart and Dad bought steaks for dinner and boatloads of candy to munch on at the house. Then we headed back and chilled for the rest of the day.

Monday, the kids returned to school and after we all promised Maggie that we would NOT have any fun without her we put them on the bus and tromped off to the zoo. Dad had not been there in over 25 years and Anne had never been so it was really enjoyable. We have a really awesome zoo here in Columbus! We walked the entire zoo end to end and saw more than we even wanted to!!!! Feel free to ask me about that because I won't elaborate here!! Monday night Dad and Anne went over to Bobby's house to visit and we quietly tucked the kids in bed, then I ran Katie's Melaleuca over to her while Jon watched TV. When they came back Jon and I did some HEAVY campaigning for them to stay another day. And we won!!!! So...

Tuesday, we again put the kids on the bus (can you hear me laughing inside about that?) and headed up to Mohican. While there we explored the covered bridge, hiked up to Lyon's Falls and checked out Clear Fork Gorge.

Don't get me wrong about the kids, I enjoy them but I have to admit...I enjoyed doing these excursions without them too!! I can't remember the last time I went to the zoo and actually looked at the animals! And Mohican was really great. I'm always worried there that the kids will slip and fall or get hurt and it's hard to really soak in all the beauty around you when you're doing the "mama fret". Plus, the kids got to visit with Dad and Anne in August, so Jon and I enjoyed having that time with them both.

They went home Wednesday and Jon and I returned to work. Everything is back to normal now aside from the fact that I was sick today. I woke up around 2 am last night and felt awful. I slept most of the day today. I felt awful about it because they were swamped at work and I wasn't able to make it in. Maggie stayed home with a stomach ache too. I know there's something going around, hopefully none of the boys will get it!!

We have games all day Saturday, I'll try to get some pics and post them. I love you all!!!!

IS beauty only skin deep?

Let me answer my own question with an emphatic NO!! I know many of you are eager to hear about our visit with Dad (which was FABULOUS btw)...but something came up today so I'll upload and update you on that tomorrow. Today, my best friend, my sister of the heart called me crying because a biopsy was performed on her nose and she had a big band-aid on it. I know it sounds silly, doesn't it, but seriously, have YOU ever walked around with a band-aid on YOUR nose?? I believe she was a little embarassed, but more pressing was her concern that her kids would be embarassed. Yea, that's a perfect representation of who she is. One of the single most beautiful people I've ever known. Band-aid or not. I would really like to take this opportunity to share my best friend with all of you who love me. Many of you already know her...to know Katie is to love her. Ask anyone who does. She is selfless. Her kids and her husband always come first. She always comes last. She would do anything in her power for those she loves and even a whole lot for those she doesn't! Katie has served on the PTO, the church softball team, the Sparta Baseball and Softball Assoc. and more. Her time is everyone's but her own. She would give away the clothes off her back and the last food in her fridge if she believed you needed it.

Katie is also a GREAT mom. She's loving and fun and open with her kids in ways that will benefit all of them their whole lives. Her kids are really awesome kids. She has Austin, who is possibly the kindest 11 year old boy I have ever known. Allie, her daughter, is a an 8 year old force to be reckoned with; strong and fun-loving. Then just 2 years ago, she got her surprise child. Cash is every thing you would ever want a boy to be. Wild and dirty and buckets of fun. Daily, Katie gives them everything she's got. She's a wonderful wife too, I'm sure Johnny would attest to that. Oh, and have I mentioned that she loves Jesus above all else???
A month ago she was baptised and her newfound love for the Lord is contagious and inspiring to me.
I know she is going to be fine, because God knows I could NOT handle it if anything ever happened to her. Besides, it was a little spot and she caught it early. I know she'll read this and I just want to make sure she very clearly understands how terribly important she is to all of us who love her. And that it's just a band-aid....and I don't know anyone who's more beautiful than her, because after all...

Beauty is NOT just skin deep. I LOVE YOU KATIE!!!

No School Again Today...

Seriously, I know you cannot believe it but I expect any minute to hear that they will be out tomorrow too. Do you remember when I said such a short time ago that I was READY for them to go back to school. Well, just incase you didn't realize that I meant it...I MEANT IT!! I'm sorry, I don't mean to yell, but I am holding on to my sanity by a thread here. Today, I had to go to work for an hour. It was not a big deal really. My manager Julie had her 50th birthday and I made spice cake and took it in for her. It was my pleasure to do that for her because she's a great lady. My kids on the other hand...

I can't decide who's behaving worse lately. Them or me? I am so frustrated with them at this point that I'm short with them BEFORE they've even done anything. But, don't think it must be me too quickly. While I had them in the office today they were running through the building screaming and laughing playing hide and seek. Did I mention this was a place of business. Now, I DO realize they are kids and I do also realize that they are BORED. But, REALLY!!! They could not PRETEND to be well-behaved for 1 hour... THEY NEED TO GO BACK TO SCHOOL!!!! You see, they behave at school. It's extrememly difficult for me to believe too! But, I'm told over and over that Liam and Maggie are perfect angels at school. It blows me away. Funnily enough, Sam is the one I get complaints about at school and he is my best behaved one at home. Why is it that children are their own complete opposites at school? And just once, why can't I see the sweet, quiet, MEEK (yep, I've been told he's positively meek) Liam??? I'd really like to meet that boy. The one who never yells or cries...never snatches things from people or screams out of anger. He sounds like a GREAT kid to me!! Maybe some day Liam will bring him home from school... if he EVER GOES BACK!!!!

Our Big Bad Weekend...

Well, Ike came through!! We got hit from all sides last weekend!!!! First, our beloved Buckeyes fell in a crushing, humiliating defeat to USC. Add USC to the teams I love to hate (right up there with Michigan, Florida and LSU). While I will admit we were definitely not the better team, I will go on record as saying the officiating was CLEARLY biased!! Before we could lose to USC, Liam's football team suffered a huge loss to Fredericktown (27-0). Ouch!! He didn't get a whole lot of playing time and it was actually very boring and seemed like an abnormally long peewee game. After Liam's game we braved the pre-game (OSU) crowds at Wal-Mart because we had NO FOOD!! Let me just say that Wal-mart was a madhouse and 2 grocery carts/2 hours later we were glad to escape! We went over to the LaFever's house to watch the game and I have to admit I didn't watch very much of it. I couldn't. It was terrible, thank the Lord for good company at least. If I'd been at home I'd have gone to bed and cried myself to sleep. But, bless Johnny LaFever's heart...he talked me around and reminded me that it was after all JUST A GAME. Then, Sunday after church...HERE COMES IKE!! Now, no one in my family claims to have a lick of common sense...so of course, we went outside to play in it. There was no rain, just wind and when I say wind I'm talking hurricane force wind. Some places in Columbus clocked winds at 80mph. It was crazy. The fabulous, Jesus loves us, news is that we only lost our power for about 7 hours. So, we did not lose the 2 carts of groceries we bought Saturday! So many people here are STILL without power for going on the 4th day! We sustained no damage at all. We just enjoyed the whole thing (when we weren't worried about when the power was going to come back on). Jon and the boys ran around the yard like lunatics and tried to catch the leaves that were blowing off the trees.

Maggie attempted cartwheels. Let me tell you that wasn't easy considering that at one point the wind blew her little tail right onto the ground. Liam particularly enjoyed riding his bike in the wind. He discovered that if he went to the corner of the yard and rode with the wind he went really fast! Sam got hit shirtless with the Pokemon move Razor Leaf. We decided after experiencing "Razor Leaf" that it's a strong move!! According to Sam, leaves hitting your bare chest at high speeds really hurts. Mind you, it did not appear to hurt enough for him to go PUT A SHIRT ON!!

The maximum extent of our damage was that half of my butterfly bush ripped out at the roots.

The same cannot be said for our neighbors. They lost a rather large branch and as of right now it's still hanging there. I'm a bit concerned about it and am very thankful that it fell the way it did. I personally think the whole tree needs to go...they are so furtunate it wasn't the dead part that fell. And I'm a big 'ole tree hugger. So, if I say a tree needs cut down you can be assured that it's not safe!

So...a consequence of our big storm is that my kids have not been to school yet this week. SERIOUSLY, they have been out for 3 days and I have little hope that they'll go at all this week. There are SO MANY people without power in central Ohio that the crews don't know when they'll get to our schools. They are hitting the most populated areas first and I think we all realize that's not us! Which is posing a challenge for me. You see, Dad and Anne are coming to visit us this weekend (YIPPEE), and I have a compulsive need to clean, nay SCOUR, my house in preperation. Which is very difficult with 3 kids underfoot. They really need to go back to school!!!!!!! Oh Well, I'll get it done and I can't wait for them to come up!! Drive safe Dad, we'll be ready for you guys!! I'll post pics next week of their visit! Love to you all and rest assured we are all doing just fine (except for my sanity)!

1st Football Game!!

Well, Thursday night was Liam's first football game. It just looked like a bunch of pushing and shoving to me. The best football looks like chaos to me. I love watching Ohio State Football, but during the best planned plays I have trouble following the ball. SO, trust me, it's no small feet trying to figure out what in the heck is going on out there when the participants are between the ages of 7 - 9!!! I'm pretty sure they didn't understand the plays either. I overheard one of the boys tell his mom that we were losing 407 to 0. I believe that was a slight exaggeration... unfortunately I do mean slight. They got beat pretty badly. In defense of our boys, the team they played was 9 year olds. Our boys are all 7-8. Most of them have NEVER played before. There are only 2 other teams in our league who have "intra"teams. Most teams start them at 9-10. So, Liam only has 4 games, 2 teams home and away. Which is fine with me. He's learning...

Then there's Maggie...

Cheering her little tail off...."Our boys go...BOOM...DYNAMITE!!!!!"

She had a lot of fun, when she wasn't rubbing her eyes. Unfortunately, she has inherited her mothers allergies. I feel awful for her. She walks around with puffy red eyes and a head full of snot all the time lately. Not even the Claritin seems to help very much.

Well, I guess I need to get off this computer and do something constructive before the Ohio State vs. Ohio University game comes on. I love you all and miss you!!!!!

Yippee - 1st Day of School!!!!!

Well, that's it, they are all gone!!! They could not wait to go to school and frankly, I COULD NOT WAIT TO SEND THEM!!!! I really looked forward to the summer this year and staying home with them after working during the school year, but all good things must come to an end and i have to admit...i was ready.

Sam started middle school today! He won't admit it, but I think he was excited. I'll give him some credit, he really did not seem like he was nervous. If he was, he hides it well.

I thought I was going to make it throught the whole thing without crying, until I saw what Liam drew on the chalkboard. I have to admit I teared up when I saw it, I could handle my emotions ok, but not Liam's. He cried when Sam went out to wait for the bus, he's going to miss knowing Sam is there at the same school as him. The sad thing is they will never go to school together again...

I'll try to post later, or maybe even let Sam post to tell about his first day at middle school. We read Psalm 91 together this morning. I prayed about today for weeks, consequently I felt a great deal of peace about him going today. I know he's going to be just fine.

Liam and Maggie were beside themselves. Maggie was very eager to go back, I think Liam was just very eager to wear his new tennis shoes! Check by later for an update on how their days went!! Love you all!!