Thursday, November 13, 2014

Funnies

Just a few funny stories I want to get recorded somewhere...

Ace was leaning on me during dinner, which is sort of sweet, and sort of stinking annoying.

I said to him, "You're so sweet. Some people wouldn't believe me if I told them that."

He said, "It's our secret." Haha Yes, indeed it is.

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Abby brought me a coin she found in her trick-or-treat bucket. She asked me to read it to her. On one side, it had John 3:16. On the other I read aloud, "Where will you spend eternity?"

"Where ever I want."

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After a long day of cake decorating, I was lamenting my lack of energy. I said, "That's okay, I'll get a second wind."

Jacob added, "Or a second mocha."

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I recently got my hair colored bright red, as most of you know. When I went to wake the kids up the next morning, Abby said, "Did you sleep in that hair??"

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Confidence

At what point have you overshot "instilling confidence" and arrived at "cocky little sh*ts"?

We might be there.

How do I know? Here are a couple of examples:

-As I dropped Jack off at school this morning, after our typical morning mayhem, I said, "Hey." And I waited for him to look at me. "You are awesome." Without missing a beat, he said, "I know." He hopped out, slammed the door and off he went.

-Josh and I were talking about his upcoming audition for the Crossmen. I was trying to prepare him for the fact that he most likely won't make it through this first year.

I said, "You know, most people don't make it the first time they audition." His response? "Most people aren't the best baritonist in Oklahoma."

-Abby has recently decided the song "Jolene" as covered by Straight No Chaser is one of her favorites.

One line in the song is something like "her beauty is beyond compare." Abby pipes up from the back seat, "They said booty!" I corrected her, "No. Beauty. Like, she's beautiful." Abby said matter of factly, "NO. She is cute, IIIII am beautiful."

Well, if confidence counts for anything, my work here is done.


Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Because of You

Because of you, I go to sleep at night wondering if kids need another blanket.

Because of you, my kids cry when we don't have time to go to the park.

Because of you, I worry that the guest bathroom toilet is still leaking.

Because of you, I work hard for a paycheck.

Because of you, I worry that I need to get the kids to the dentist.

Because of you, my kids eat too much junk food.

Who are you? The veteran. The soldier. The warrior.

Your sacrifice makes all of this happen.

Because I have a home with walls and a roof where my family is safe. I don't worry about bombs blasting holes in our sanctuary.

Because my kids are able to play outside under the open skies and I don't have to wonder if they will be ripped from my arms and taken off to be soldiers carrying automatic weapons and committing atrocities of their own.

Because you support a way of life where electricity, running water, and even internet are readily available.

Because our society and way of life allows me to work outside the home as a woman, and earn a pay check and support my family.

Because we have ample medical care to keep my children healthy and thriving.

Because I can go to the store and buy good food to feed my family without having to worry about food shortages, lines for rations, or fire fights in our streets.

These simple things that we take for granted every single day. Not a single one would be possible without men and women like you fighting for our way of life and to keep enemies at bay.

I don't say it enough, but you should know I do think about how blessed I am. I think about it all the time. I think about your families who have to send you into harms way to protect me and mine. I appreciate it more than you can ever know.

I know it's not enough, but it's all I have...thank you.

Tuesday, June 3, 2014

My Wall Needs This

So I was scrolling through my Facebook feed today and came across a piece of art that a "friend" (totally in the Facebook sense of the word, as he is an old high school friend of my brother's) posted. He posts his original art for sale on there from time to time, and I've often seen things I would like to have. And heaven help me if he ever does one that fits in with my color scheme, because my art budget is nonexistent.

But today's piece stopped me in my tracks. And I do not know why. I literally had a physiological reaction. My heart skipped a beat, almost the same way it would if I saw something that frightened me. My heart started pounding and everything.  Isn't that strange?


"Beyond the Ebb & Flow". 2014. 48"x36"
by Travis Jenkins


I wonder what would cause such a strong reaction? I don't know, but I love this so much. If I had the money, it would already be on its way to Tulsa.

When I scrolled past it again, I thought "fireworks." And the third time, I saw some sort of scary beast in the reddish tones in the center.

I love art that reaches out and grabs me like that. THAT is the type of thing you need hanging on your wall. Something you can look at a million times and see something different each time. (I just looked again... do you see the doberman with the red eyes? Am I crazy? Don't answer that...) And of course, then I wonder how the title relates? What the inspiration was?

Maybe I like it because it's a little dark. If I have to choose a favorite artist, I always say Goya, and my favorites of his pieces are decidedly dark. Even his happy pieces have an ominous feel.

Have you ever experienced art that really touches you? And I don't mean in the "aww what a cute puppy" way. I can't be the only one...

If you're interested in seeing more, check out Travis Jenkins on Facebook. This piece is different from a lot of what I've seen him post. He's immensely talented, and I would love to hear what you think of his work. And if you're looking to buy, he has a wide range of pricing, and I think he will do commissioned work. And you know, if you're wondering what to get me for my birthday...

Again- check him out  Travis Jenkins and give him some Likes at least, since he was gracious enough to let me use his photo here.

Monday, December 2, 2013

I'm Alive

I was listening to music from my own collection (versus the radio) on my way into work this morning. It occurred to me that most of my life, and personal views on things, can be explained through music. And all of that can be boiled down to this one song:

I'm Alive - Kenny Chesney with Dave Matthews

A snippet that I particularly like:

"...I'm Alive

And today you know that's good enough for me
Breathing in and out's a blessing don't you see
Today's the first day of the rest of my life
And I'm alive and well..."

And proof that I am...

My friend Linda's daughter is a budding photographer and I needed some new pictures. So this weekend we did a little photo shoot. She took a TON of shots, but this is what she has edited so far:







She worked some magic, for sure! But indeed, I'm alive and well.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Hello Again.

Wait.

Has it really been a year since I blogged? Almost! Wow. Time flies.

This is just a quick "catch up" post.

Here's where we are these days:

Josh is 14. (!!!!!) He's quite the musician. He plays the baritone euphonium and trombone with the school band. He's also started piano lessons and plays drums. And according to him he also plays several other instruments. He just has a natural talent that amazes me.

And of course he's gorgeous. Fortunately his little girlfriend Britni helps me chase off all of the other little girls. Now I just have to keep an eye on Britni! haha

Jacob is 11 going on 45. So witty and smart. But definitely has that firey red-head temperament. He is ten times funnier than most adults I know. I love that he has inherited my love of trivia too.

He is also playing in the school band. He started as a trombone player but just this week switched to tuba. He is playing both school soccer and rec league soccer this spring. Practice hasn't started just yet, but I told him he probably needs to start running now to get in shape. I really enjoy watching him play.

Jackson is 8. He's my sweetheart with the big brown eyes that will bring you to your knees. There's not much he can't get away with when he unleashes those puppy dog eyes. And he's so... conscientious. Homework done the first time I ask. Everything by the book.

Jack will also be playing soccer this spring. He sat out during the fall season and really regretted it. He loves Minecraft (borderline obsessed) and his Legos. Even his older brothers are impressed by his skills- and we all know how hard it is to impress older brothers!

Avery is 3. My little towhead. It would suit me just fine if he kept the blonde hair, but I doubt he will. He's such a cuddly little thing. He loves to color and clean. Both are okay by me.

Abigail is 3, also (obviously). She is a little firecracker. She's so tiny but don't let that fool you, she can hold her own with all these boys. And she is completely obsessed with Zac Brown Band right now- especially the song "Keep Me In Mind." She knows all the words and loves to sing along in the car. Don't know where she gets that. haha

And as for me- I'm doing so well. I've recently been promoted at work. I was making noises about finding something in Kansas City. I'd love to be closer to Travis and Becky and their clan. But apparently the management team here likes me enough to want to keep me around. They made me quite an offer - so I'll be in Tulsa at least another 18 months.

Our house is crazy busy, but we're managing it all fairly well. Actually not much has changed, except a lighter, happier atmosphere- and I'm so glad for that.

Here's a pic from Christmas. I'll start posting more often with stories and pictures to keep you up to date and just because I forgot how much I liked blogging.

(Hi Aunt Jo! I'm back!)



Sunday, April 29, 2012

Chicken Sook for the Soul

It's been a looong week here at our house. Ace started running a temp Monday night. A little vomiting and a serious lack of appetite. We kept him home all week from daycare (and Abby too).

One night (I don't remember which- they all run together) I put the babies to bed only to hear Ace crying about ten minutes later. I went to check on him and this is the conversation we had:

Me: "What's wrong?"
Ace: "I'm MAD."
Me: "You're mad?"
Ace: "YES."
Me: "What's the matter?"
Ace: "Pillow messy." (points) "Elmo messy."(points again) I wish I could express the tone of his voice. He was completely exasperated. lol

Yep, he had urped. Nice.

By Friday, 1) I needed to get. out. of. the. house. and 2) I decided maybe I should get him in to the doctor. So I worked for the first half of the day and then ran home to pick him up and go to the pediatrician. Thankfully Dr. K has always made time to see them the few times they've been sick.

They looked him over and did a strep test. **Note to self: strep test triggers Ace's gag reflex. Additional note to self: surefire way to get him to stop urping is provide a receptacle to urp into. If he can't hurl directly onto his own clothes or mine, it's just not worth doing.**  The rapid test came back negative, but we should know Monday about the lab test.

Here he is on the way out. By then he had a sucker and was pretty happy. I can't believe how blonde his hair looks!


So yesterday we did soccer games, etc. And Abby starts running a fever. Fantastic. 

This morning, they slept in after a 6 am diaper change. We went straight from their bed to the couch. We watched a ludicrous amount of Barney and they didn't seem to want to move. I figured since I was trapped anyway, I might as well read a little. 

I'm in the process of rereading the Sookie Stackhouse novels. They're the ones the HBO series TrueBlood is based on. I've never watched it, but the books are good in a semi-trashy romance novel kind of way. 

And then it happens. Ace wants to read too. And Abby. So you'd think they'd want their own picture books. Nope. Has to be mine. Has to be a Sookie book. I got them each one and they sat beside me, each with a book cracked open and they "read" with me for at least 30 minutes. I would have taken a picture, but none of us were dressed decently. Who would have thought they could be entertained with a non-picture book for so long? And at this point I'm just grateful they can't actually read. SO not age appropriate. But hey, if it makes a sick baby happy, I'm all for it.