2012 UPDATE!!

We are still here and definitely kicking!!  It is already MAY...can not really believe that...but dealing with it!...As always with four growing children, we have been busy!  Keith and I try to spend some quality time together like right now as we are sitting in the Living Room together he is working on his computer on  a project and I am working on this blog that I haven't touched in a while.  We are really good at this quality time thing...LOL!

    Jon is playing both JV and Varsity lacrosse! It is so much fun to watch and see his excitement for the team! His summer league is going to take him to NC and Huntsville...so excited to use it as an excuse to see Elizabeth!! (yes it is all about ME!! LOL) He is almost a sophomore ready to drive and getting better.  Jon is, should I dare say enjoying school, He is a great young man..and a joy to be around! His small group at church is absolutely fabulous and he loves his small group leaders!!!  Thanks Dustin, Steven, and Patrick!! you guys rock!!

Anna is becoming a wonderful young woman.  She just finished her first season as a track runner.  I am not so sure she will run track again though.  Although she did hint around that she was going to try to run Cross Country in the fall.  She is doing great in school and is a member of the National Beta Club.  She has gotten to where she loves to read!! Going to see the midnight showing of The Hunger Games was a great fun time for Jon, Anna and I!!

Jessica is into her 5th month of cheer tumbling.  She and I spend some of our days outside working on what she needs to accomplish.  She is so close to landing her back walk over with out slowing down.  She wanted to work on some jumps on Sat so she and I went out front and I showed her how to do the jumps.. It was fun especially the fact that I still can do them....he he he... Jessica is a whiz in school she also has straight A's and she has a great homework ethic.  She is going to become a great young woman!!

Christian is a little Rock Star who is always going and running in many different directions.  He also just ran his first season of track and did well too....man those meets could go really long... He is a great Lacrosse player as well and has a tournament to play in this weekend.  He is so excited to play then and he loves his team!!  He plays Middie and loves it...but also likes to play attack.  In school, Christian is doing a fantastic job He often brings home hundreds on all of his papers, yes it gets monotonous after a while!! He is a smart young boy who is very inquisitive and wants to know so many different things? He just asked me the other day if Santa was real!!

Oh yea, they all are on the swim team and practice starts this Monday....Yes life is crazy...We have also had the extra challenge of Mike being in a car accident and confined to a wheel chair since March 2. He is getting better by the day, but he still has to have prettty much 24 hour assistance.Well, that brings us up to date for now...I will try to do better at keeping this updated..

YEAR in REVIEW!!!!!

I really can't believe that it is already 2011!! This past year really seemed to fly by! It was only yesterday that Alabama won the National Championship and all were saying "Roll
Tide"!! to start the year off!! We had a great year! Mike and Connie were back and forth in preparing to move south. They then sold their house in Virginia and moved in with us. Yes we were slightly cramped for seating and they were only able to us a very small portion of their belongings, but all was good!! It was a good thing having them here with us. Summer flew by quickly!! We had swim team and great visit to the beach for the last week of summer... Pictures were in the previous post!! While on vacation we noticed Anna was having some simple, yet weird symptoms....lets just say she was in the bathroom alot!! Well on the third day of school, I listened and borrowed Mikes blood sugar monitor and tested her blood sugar... mine was 89 hers was 264... Standard protocol for kids is three days in the hospital at Scottish Rite Childrens hospital of Atlanta!! All in all it was a great visit at the hospital if you can have a great visit at a hospital!! Anna has been a trooper and is adjusting beautifully to learn how to take care of herself!! Ofcourse some days are better than others!! She has decided to try her hand at band and has had a recital for school playing the clarinet!

Jonathan has had a good year. His football team made it to the state semifinals and even beat the 3 year reigning champions!!! It was one of the most exciting games ever!!! He has had a few too many girlfriends for my taste!! But he is a great guy and cute to boot!! You know you always pray for cute and adorable kids, but when they stay that way, sometimes you wonder!!! Did I really want this? He is currently wrestling and will begin Lacrosse sometime soon. Then he steps right back into football!! and Highschool!!! UGGGHHH!! He is growing up too fast!

Jessica is as adorable as always!! She is ready to get started with some gymnastics.. I am hoping she can start her first class next week!! She gets perfect grades and loves going to school!! I don't think she really likes the homework part of it, but she does it all with out a word from me! She loves singing and dancing at church with her friends! Jessica is my ROLL TIDE girl!! She would sit in my lap during every Alabama game!! Her goal is to go to Alabama and be a Cheerleader!! Woohoo!!!

Christian or CMAN!!! What can you say?? He is all Energy!! It is never a dull moment in our house!! Tyler and Carter are his best buds!! He has decided that he wants to play Lacrosse this spring!! Saturdays are going to be crazy!!! Christian isn't a big fan of school, but he makes great grades!! 100s all over the place!! I do believe recess is by far his favorite subject!!He is excited to get to wear a tux this Saturday in his cousin Rachels wedding. The girls are flower girls for her too. I will definately post pictures too!!

Keith and I celebrated out 18th wedding anniversary with a visit to the Cirque de Soliel!! It was good, but I dont quite get the ovo part of it... what was in the egg?? I really want to know!! Thanksgiving was GREAT!!! Went to Camden for the week, got to see my Grandaddy and got to see Felecia after 10 years of not seeing or talking to each other.. It was as if we had never stopped and who knows why???

Well Christmas was wonderful!! Woodstock saw its first white Christmas since 1882!!! It was absolutley beautiful!! We spent New Years in Camden with my family and got to hang out with Felecia again that Wednesday and Elizabeth and Gary for New Years Eve!! Lots of fun!! That is our year in review!! Whew!!

Life Change!!!

BACK IN THE SWING!!

School has started again and so far so good!!

Jon has been loving his classes. That is a good thing seeing that he is now a teenager!!However, he did have a hard time when we had him moved back into Advanced Math. Football season is coming on in full force!! Go Wolverines!!

Anna is so excited about switching classes now. We have a great system to keep her organized this year.. We will see if works!! She seems really happy with her teachers and her classmates!! Yeah!

Jessica is one of the most easy going kids I know! She has a great teacher and already knew the majority of her class. The school they attend has what they call intact families. She has had the same core class for 3 years now. I love it.

Christian is a spunky second grader. He has more energy some days than the energizer bunny. I really wonder where he gets it from? He is in the same family as Jessica and loves his class. He has some great friends..

Summer did disappear way too quickly! :( The last week in July we packed up the car and traveled south to Panama City Beach! The shore was gorgeous and the water was spectacular. They call it the Emerald Coast for a reason! We did get a lot of algae on the last two days, but the shells found so made up for it. We had a house full of people, the beginning was a little dificult, Keith had to go to a trade show in Savannah, so he couldnt come til Wednsday. That was hard for me. I mean had a good time with my family (mom, dad, Courtney, Marcus, Eric, Mindy, and all the kids), but I kindof felt like the odd man out and just missed my Hubby!! :(

Anyway we did have lots of fun! Then mom, dad and Marcus had to leave by Tuesday night! another bummer.. Keith came in on Wed. (yea)!!We had a great week together!
All Sixteen of us! Can't wait to do it all again!!

Wow what a world we live in!!! I can sit in the doctors office and check my emails, find a blueberry farm and then blog about it all with only using my two thumbs!! Who woulda think it possible??? I can also recommend you check out this other wonderful blog of Cynthia Miller she is having an ARC giveaway!! Some absolutely fascinating books!!! Ohhhh I so hope I win!! Here is the link: http://tinyurl.com/2axev4l

ENJOY

Summertime!!

Well it has been a while again!!! This summer has flown by just like a hurricane would. We started the summer getting up at 730 am every day to start swimteam practice and would stay there typically til 11 am. Ok yes that is a long time! I didnt stay and do that EVERY day, but it was often enough! The great thing is that our team had a fabulous season!! WE won all but one meet and only lost that one by 13points!! One race!! We have some great swimmers!!

I also had a job the first ten days of summer and believe it or not, it was really fun!! yes stressful, but really fun! I got to know six other women really well!!It was a hard decision when I chose to leave that job and go to Panama City with our church youth group!!! Big Stuff is the name of the camp and it is PHENOMENAL!! Just imagine...1500 kids in one room litterally rocking out and praising God!! It was so cool!! I roomed with 12 other girls as we shared two rooms that joined one another!! Our room was a MESS!! but it was a fun mess... dance parties til 2am and long talks at strange hours... We were the place to get snacks!! we would have made out like bandits had we charged for the stuff!!! I pray that the girls got as much out of the week as I did!! It was life changing!! Oh not to mention the bus breaking down on our ride home!! We luckily, as the kids put it "we landed in PARADISE!!" It was a very nice mans' land with a pond and we got to swim in it!!!

Fast forward to the here and now!! WE have laid low and seen all kinds of movies, played games, gone to the pool and just hung out together!! Life is great and we are done with swim team! And we are going to Mom and Dads in Camden AL to hang with them and the family for the Fourth!!

Oh yeah, somewhere in there, I turned 38!! I had a great weekend with my sister!! It was a blast!!! And I had my first head cutting ceremony with my best friend from high school!!She is so totally amazing!! I cant believe how postively well and courageously she is attacking her breast cancer!! I never knew she had it in her!! But man I am so glad to see it!!! Well that is our summer so far!! Cant wait to see what the month of JULY holds for us!!

First Swim Meet

WE ARE VICTORIOUS!!!! Yes, it was a great evening watching the kiddos swim their little hearts out!! They all did a fabulous job. We were against our rival Wyngate. Last year, they beat us by one point!! Since we have lived here, every time has been really close. Jon, Anna, and Jess had to each swim 5 events! I think Jon had atleast 3 first place finishes!! He da MAN!! Christian had 2! Jess I think had 2!! and Im pretty sure Anna did as well!! It was great!! I will get pics as soon as my phone is charged!!

Summer Time

Yes the offical beginning to summer time!!! School is out tomorrow. I cant wait!! But for now I have business to blog about. I just entered a contest on my sisters blog. I even put a scene in, it was fun to do, so i thought I would post it here. She gave the word "wicked" and you were to use it in a scene, or flash story. This is what I put exactly as it was entered (BTW i was writing it on my phone and then my phone wouldnt let me correct anything, so instead of redoing all of it, I just posted as is) so here goes.....


As we continued to fight our breath came morequickly and shallow. I don't know about his, but I do know that my body was spent. Every muscle fiber had been used and abused I was beginning to fade and fade fast. I felt the exhaustion as I contined to kick and swing at him with that was left iniside of me. He seemed to be faltering as well he moved a little slower and stumbled a few times. It won't be long now I said to myself. One of us will be victorious! In a flash, we became tangled leaning heavily on one another, I heard him whisper, "she will never fit with you, she doesn't fit into your world. If you really love you will let her go."

For a fraction of a second, I paused in thought. Looked around the arena and focused on those crystal blue eyes. Hazel wisps of hair blew in her face our eyes locked and the love we share was clear in her smile. My love for her swelled and gave me a renewed strength. As I turned back to alexander, I caught the wicked gleam in his eye as the painseared up my right side fear over took me. I reached down grabbing the blade from his hand and shoving it through his heart! I could not let her live with a wickedness like his. The rage over took me as I began to stab him repeatedly.
exhausted, we fell together in a heap onto the sand floor. I rolled onto my back and looked to the sky my side ached painfully. As I closed my eyes, relief flowed through me with the knowledge seeping in that it was over. I was still alive for now. Warm lips touched mine with a sweetness that was all consuming, warmth and love radiated to my bones. Opening my eyes I gazed into the ocean of blue before me.

With a voice as beautiful as birdsong she whispered "Stay with me my love we are now free to be with each other. I love you with all of my heart. please dont leave me." I touched her porcelin skin and all went black.

Hope you enjoyed it!

Contests

My Little sister is working on her book for YA and is constantly meeting new authors and really fun people. I am totally enjoying living a fantasy role through her. I dont think I could put three good paragraphs together to make up a story...Ive thought about trying, but every time I do, I just freeze!! Anyway, I keep hearing about these ARC's and am wondering how I can get one!!! My hope is that I win a contest!! Here is the link for the contest!!

http://lafemmereaders.blogspot.com/2010/05/spring-cleaning-giveaway.html

I hope you stop by and enter on your own!! She has some really fun reads over there!! I really need and ARC!!