WHERE'S JOY???

1. Spending time at the new Target :)
2. Spending hours on the phone making dentist appointments, Dr's appointments and trying to find a Wii (mission accomplished)
3. Spending a half hour several mornings a week at the YMCA
4. Field Trip to the ARCH with 100 3rd graders and 86 parents....we had lunch at the "Old Spaghetti Factory...yumm
5. Girl Scout Field Trip to the Alton Lock and Dam....awesome, something everyone should see
6. Getting ready for Halloween
7. Helping out parents with house renovations (not as much as I should have)
8. Spending time with my in-laws (not as much as I should be)
9. Helping out a friend (wish I could have done more)
10. Volunteering at the kids school and at church (probably more than I should...I did say No to the church Nominating committee today. My family would not be happy if I added another evening away. The Youth Ministries committee would have been fun though.)

Hope to be back soon. Maybe November will be slower!! hahahahahahaha

Retreat

I just spent an incredible weekend with about 40 other women. We spent time sharing, relaxing, thinking, praying, learning, listening and eating, lots of eating. We heard the faith stories of our friends. We met women that we recognized but have never talked to. We also spent time thinking and talking about our own faith stories. We renewed and strengthened established friendships and made new friends. Most of all, I think we all left feeling closer to God and each other. Its amazing what just a game of Yahtzee will do.
My husband will attend the men's retreat in a few weeks. I pray that his retreat leaves him refreshed, renewed and feeling closer to God.
Dear great and loving God, thank you for the experience of the women's retreat. Thank you for the treasure of friendships. Help me to continue to feel close to you and share my story with others. I pray that the men's retreat leaves my husband and all the men that are attending feeling closer to you. Thank you for sending your son Jesus.
Amen

shopping part 2

Our new Target is wonderful. It seems a little silly to be excited about a store, but when you live in a small town where all "the good stuff" is about 20 to 30 minutes away, its exciting to have something so convenient. The best part of the new Target is......it has a STARBUCKS. I thought I was going to hyperventilate when I saw it. I will be spending a lot of time and money there. So good bye Wal-mart. See you later today Target.

shopping

I have had a great week of shopping. JCPenny had a great sale...basically everything 50% off. The best part was that on Weds. I only had about 1/2 hour and I found exactly what I was looking for and........it fit. UNBELIEVABLE!! That never happens to me. Today I went to Kohls and actually found pants that fit. Its a great week of shopping. Nothing cures a down day/week better than a successful shopping trip. I even found things for the kids....that they liked. I only had to exchange one pair of pants for little drummer boy because they were too big. We should be ready for fall now!!!

Later I am meeting Alex at Target. The day has finally come. Our new Target is open. Now I only have to drive 15minutes not 30. YAHOO We have been planning this trip to Target since probably around April. Its a great week of shopping. Wonderful therapy!!!

A Day of Emotion

This has been a day filled with nausea and worry, to my heart bursting with pride. All this caused by my children.
My little girl has been working through some pretty powerful anxieties. Her teacher called me today so that my little girl could talk to me. Her teacher was hoping I would be able to calm her down. My little girl had herself so worked up that she was nauseous. We talked for about 10 minutes. It turns out that her cousin and a quick trip to the nurse got her through the rest of the day. She was so wound up with happy energy the rest of the day that I almost forgot about the heart wrenching phone call. It took all my strength and energy NOT to go get her from school and bring her home to make it all better. We made it through. I am very proud of her strength. Yes mom, I told her that!! :) Hopefully her tomorrow will be better.
Little drummer boy had a school band concert tonight. He told me he had been working on a piece with the tympani (kettle drum). Tonight, just before the 5th grade band was to play. The band teacher said...."We have a 5th grader (little drummer boy) who is going to play the tympani, we don't usually have someone in 5th grade with such skill". I was bursting with pride and couldn't stop smiling. He was awesome!!
So the day didn't start out so well but it is ending with my heart swollen with pride, love and admiration for the accomplishments of my children.
Thank you God for my children!

I've been tagged

Sorry, I have been gone for awhile. Hopefully we are back into a routine and I'll be able to blog more. I'll start with this.....



Besomami tagged me for this meme:



Four Jobs I've Held
babysitter
waitress at Ponderosa
nurses aide
Library assistant



Four Films I Could Watch Over & Over
Top Gun
St. Elmo's Fire
Posideon Adventure (The original...I can't spell it)
Grease



Four T.V. Shows I Watch
ER
House Hunters and most HGTV shows
The Today Show
The Bachelor/Bachelorette



Four Places I've Lived
Louiseville, Kentucky
Las Crucas, NM
Germany
Laurinburg, NC

Four Favorite Foods
popcorn
pizza
anything chocolate
Filet Minon (thats probably not spelled right either)



Four Websites I Visit Daily
email
blogs
whatever peaks my interest for the day
(I know, thats only really 3....sorry)


Four Favorite Colors
Grass green
Cardinal Red
any shade of blue
deep purple

Four Places I Would Love To Be Right Now
snuggling with my kids
a beach in the Carolinas
Breckinridge, Colorado
napping in a bed with fresh clean sheets



Four Names You Love, But Could/Would Not Use For Your Children
Elizabeth
Margaret
Zachary
Michael (we wanted names that didn't have nick names....Michael/Mike.....etc.

I'm tagging:
Tinman
Sheepdays
Lambsoup (if she reads this)
and anyone else who is reading and wants to join in

OK Tinman and Brett, you have been tagged twice!!! I'll be looking

Change

I decided to change the look of my blog. I get bored with things easily. I"m constantly changing my hair. Grow it out, cut it short, highlights, etc. I was starting to get a little bored with the way my blog looked. I am ready for a change. This picture of a harbor was relaxing to me. Just what I need right now. Maybe, I will make this a monthly thing or a seasonal thing. I'm definately ready for fall. I love the changing colors of leaves, the crisp air, the smell of bonfires, and pumpkin pies baking in the oven. It needs to get cool again so we can start making chili and open up the house. Goodbye September, Hello October.

Easy Day

Book Fair is over...whew!! It was an exhausting week. It was also a lot of fun. I finished the financial forms today. I had a lot of other things I wanted to do today too, but I am forced to take it easy. My little drummer boy is home today with a fever. Seems like it wasn't too long ago I was spending quality time with my little girl while she was home with a fever.
I have spent a lot of time on the computer today...not for me, but to watch several computer games. Some on the internet, some on discs. We have built a city with roads and buildings. My son is actually the mayor and has to make decisions based on the cities needs.
We have also played in Webkinz world. He has 5 different animals and each animal has its own room. He had to feed them, harvest his garden, bathe them and put them all back to bed. It is much more involved than that but I decided he needed to get off the computer. He would spend all day on the computer if I let him. Its nice to have time with just him. It is also nice to have a quiet day.
Tomorrow, I go back to my paying job. It will be nice to get back into routine. I miss my friends at work. They are such an incredible source of comfort and support. I need to tell them that. So, book fair is over and hopefully we can all get back into our normal routine. Whatever normal is.