Quick Update

We have been so busy lately. Last weekend we drove to outside of Norman for Cooper's birthday party and stayed the night at Jenny and Brian's house. Jonathan also went to a homecoming breakfast at OC. Then we had to rush back for Jonathan to teach Bible class Sunday morning.

Jacksen started getting sick the end of last week. By Sunday night he was really feeling bad. So at 8:30 Monday I called to make him an appointment. The dr. couldn't see him until Tuesday morning. He has strep throat. Hopefully he will be feeling better by tomorrow. On Friday he is having a Grandparents Tea at school so he needs to be better by then.

Friday afternoon we are leaving for Dallas. Jonathan has a work thing there. So we are staying Friday and Saturday night. Then we are rushing back Sunday morning to fix a dish for our family's Thanksgiving dinner at 1:30.

These are just some random pictures I have taken over the past couple of months. Joel with Gravy, Jacksen on his new motorcycle, and Jennah striking a pose (as usual).

This years Halloween activities started on Sunday the 28th and didn't end until Saturday Nov. 3rd. I guess you could say we went Church hopping this year. Sunday Oct. 28th we started at Park Plaza's Fall Party and Trunk of Treats. Then Wednesday the kids both had their school parties Jennah's at 1:45 and Jack's at 2:05. Yes, that is Elvis at Jack's school party (CRAZY PARENTS). Then I checked the kids out early and we went to Aunt Rachel's last college soccer game at 4:00 in Claremore. After that we rushed back home and got the kids in their costumes and headed for Aunt Amy's Church Carnival (thanks for inviting us Amy!). This one was great because it was inside so we didn't have to keep as close of an eye on the kids. Then after leaving that we had to visit both sets of Grandparents and Great Papa and Nana Ila. Finally on Saturday we went with Grandma Janet and Papa Joe's Church Hayride and they kept seven of the nine grand kids! Jonathan and I cut out early to have an evening to ourselves. I feel so bad because I didn't get any pictures of the kids in their costumes. Jack was a motorcycle rider, Jennah was a ballerina, and Joel was a cowboy. Another year of improvising and using what we had around the house; I am proud to say we spent zero dollars on costumes! My kids are so easy.

I am so ready for the holidays this year. I already have a detailed Christmas shopping list and can't wait to start shopping and decorating the house.

This is a picture of what we will be consumed with for the next couple of months. Leaves everywhere! The kids had a great time jumping in them. Leaf raking is also a great punishment for disobeying children.

Lake Murray

This weekend was our annual reunion with Jonathan's family to Lake Murray. This year we were smart and got a cabin instead of tent camping. It wasn't much nicer than the tent we had last year but it was much warmer. Just like every year the kids played way to hard and I ate way too many smores. Nothing really exciting happened just typical family reunion stuff. Just wanted to update.

Acrostics Poem

Last night I was invited to play Bunko with some of the girls from our Bible class. Jonathan has always been great about keeping the kids when I have something like this to do. Last night I had dinner ready and homework finished when he got home so at least he wouldn't have to deal with that on top of keeping all three of them. After finishing up dinner and having an hour long discussion with Jennah about being truthful (a story for another time) it was time for bed.

Jonathan said they were all in bed and Jack got up and told him that he had to get his Grandparents Day projects finished by Tuesday or he would not be able to play on recess. Jonathan went ahead and let him do it thinking I had forgotten about it or something. The project isn't due until the 22nd, but I guess as incentive to get it back earlier she made them miss recess until they returned it. He had to interview one Grandparent and write an acrostics poem for a Grandparent. We had talked Sunday about who he wanted to do each of the projects with. Nana for the interview and Grandma Janet for the acrostics poem. Jack told Jonathan what our plans were and they were off.

The interview turned out great; the acrostics poem on the other hand not so great. I looked at it when I got home last night and laughed until I was crying. Jonathan and Jack are not the most creative people in the world let me show you what they came up with.

Great
Ready
Always nice
Nice
Delightful
Misses
Always ready

Joyous
Always good
Neat
Ever loving
Tries to help

I really appreciate all that Jonathan does, and I am definitely not super creative but poems are just not a strength of his. I was able to help Jack change some of the poem and it turned out okay.

Powdered Sugar

My wonderful husband has taken it upon himself to fix a good breakfast for the kids every morning. His mom fixed a warm breakfast for him every morning and he wants our kids to have the same. Jonathan doesn't remember much growing up but he does remember breakfast. This particular morning he made french toast. After the kids went to school I went to make Joel's bed and noticed my little sidekick wasn't there and I couldn't hear him. I started running through the house yelling for him. This is how I found him. It is amazing what all they can get into in such a small amount of time. Joel loves french toast especially the powdered sugar that goes on top.

Diaper Cake

This is my most recent diaper cake. The couple doesn't know if they are having a boy or girl. Jonathan said it looked like it was for a girl. I used yellow and orange that isn't too girly is it? I think I would like to start selling these diaper cakes. I have looked online and they aren't really big in this area and I really enjoy making them. I just really fear rejection and don't know if I could really do it. Just thinking out loud. Thanks for listening.

Dry Gulch U.S.A.

This weekend we went to our first Family Retreat with Park Plaza Church. It was at Dry Gulch. I had been there a long time ago to ride the Christmas Train. It is the neatest place. The entire grounds were set in the 1880's, even our apartment. We stayed in the Wells Fargo building. The kids thought it was pretty cool. Of course Joel's favorite part was the train. He didn't want to ride it but loved looking at it. Jack and Jennah got to

know some of the other kids their age. We also got to know many different people. We were so worn out when we got home. It was definitely worth the exhaustion. I hope we can make this a family tradition.

Here are a couple pictures from our vacation this summer.

I'm Back!

Finally I think we waited so long I don't really feel as if I need the internet like I use to. I can actually look up numbers in the phone book rather than online. I can go more than 24 hours with out knowing what Jenny, Amy, Shelly, Lita and a few other friends in Ft. Gibson and Edmond are up to. I am sure though in a matter of a week or so I will be back to the obsessive behavior I had before.

I don't really know where to begin. I am now sending Jacksen and Jennah on the bus every morning and they also ride it home everyday! The bus comes right to our house and our addition is the last stop before the school in the morning and the first stop in the afternoons. The age of kids on the school bus goes to third grade. So I don't have to worry about the kids getting bullied. They love riding the bus, and it has made it so nice for me now that I am watching my cousin's baby Riley Paige. Who is quite a handful! Joel is doing very well with her. He just smiles at her and brings her paci to her any time she cries.

Joel is now diaper free! He has had one accident in the past two and a half weeks. So nice! We haven't tackled the paci yet.

Jacksen is now going by Jack. There was another Jackson in his class so he had to go by Jacksen H. that really bothered him so he is now Jack. I almost didn't name him Jacksen because I was afraid people would call him Jack, but I guess it is his name now and not my decision. It really doesn't bother me now like it did back then.

Jack and Jennah have already had a stomach bug and missed school so we are off to a great start! Oh well!

Our House

Here's a picture of our house we love it! This isn't a very good picture but it is the only one I had. We have really been enjoying taking care of the beautiful yard and all the plants. We also love all the space inside. We have had several family gatherings already and we had plenty of room!

Still No Internet

We have been so busy lately with school and birthday parties I haven't had time to call about internet service. I really need to I am so behind on everyone and miss my online blogging friends.

Jacksen and Jennah started school on the 16 they both did well. I was more worried about Jacksen than Jennah just because he is the quite one. It turns out he did much better than Jennah. He made three friends the first day and is so excited every morning about going. Jennah on the other hand does not like school she says all the teacher every does is yell at the kids all day. Jennah's teacher is fresh out of college with 25 kindergartners so I can see why she may have to resort to yelling some!

Joel's birthday party was Friday night we had a house full of kids and adults. I think everyone had a good time. Then Saturday we had two more family parties to go to!

I am hoping things will slow down now that school has started. I have found it very exhausting getting two kids ready for school, (one being Jennah and that curly hair I don't know what to do with) getting two lunches together, and two snacks together daily. In the meantime trying to get Joel to the toilet without an accident. I have started some organizational projects that I think are really going to help with all this.

We visited Ft. Gibson last Wednesday night. We didn't realize until then how much we are missing all our friends and also our Church. We have been out of town for vacation and visiting family and really haven't had time to make new friends at our new Church. I am really missing having friends and staying busy during the day, but I am able to get a lot done at home with just Joel.

I have just discovered the Wal-Mart Neighborhood Market. I don't know why I haven't tried it sooner. It was so nice and quite. I was able to purchase a weeks worth of groceries and toiletry items and get back in my car in 40 minutes (with all three kids). I have waited that long just in line at the Super Wal-Mart. So happy with my newest discovery!

Rehearsal Dinner Pics

Catching Up

We have new neighbors! My cousin Jenny, her husband Allan, and the newest addition to the family baby Riley just bought the house next door. We are so excited to have them as neighbors. Finally someone besides me on my side of the family had a baby!

William finally got married off July 7th. We are so happy for the newlyweds. The rehearsal dinner was my moms responsibility so we had a great time planning it and decided to have a TexMex dinner and invited every one to dress in their best western attire. It was really fun and entertaining to see the outfits everyone came up with. William came in with a handle bar mustache and Rachel came in a very "fancy" dress. The wedding was beautiful out in the middle of nowhere! The rain cleared up for two days just long enough to dry up the muddy path for the three 4x4 pickup trucks to haul all one hundred guests to the wedding sight. Did I mention it was in the middle of nowhere!

Still working on getting the internet at our house. I am planning on posting some pictures of our house this week. We had VBS this week at church so we were busy all week. Joel is doing well with potty training. He goes poopy in the potty almost every time. The peeing on the other hand isn't going so well. Any suggestions would be great! With Jacksen and Jennah I always had the opposite problem.

As most everyone knows Jonathan's sisters are prego at the same time! They are two weeks apart how crazy! Also cousin Shelly is having another baby. As I mentiond earlier my cousin Jenny just had a baby which brings up the question will we have a fourth? I really thought with everyone else having new babies I would get baby fever but I really haven't yet. I have always wanted four but I just don't know. Jonathan says the idea sounds great but he just doesn't know right now. Whatever that means! So I guess we will see. Just on my mind so thought I would write about it.

Still Alive!

We are still alive after the move. It took me five days however to get phone service at our new address then we found out the provider we went with doesn't offer DSL so we have to switch back over the the other provider in order to have internet service. So this explains the lack of posts. Sorry! I am sure there are hundreds of you faithful readers out there that are just going crazy not knowing what we have been up to.

Summer has been great so far. We have been visiting the local splash pad in town pretty frequently. I have found it is much easier to keep up with three kids at the splash pad then at the pool. Jon is loving the five minute drive to and from work. He even comes home for lunch everyday! We have started working on potty training Joel so far he has gone poop and pee once already yeah! We are well on our way to no more diapers!

Yesterday I took all three kids to have immunization shots that was a great time. They actually did much better than I expected. Just one of the many things I still needed to do to get back into the swing of things. Most of the boxes are unloaded and Joel is finally adjusted to our new home. He really didn't like not being able to see me at all times.

We placed membership at Park Plaza Church and I think we are really going to like it there. It is just going to be hard to find our place in a church as big as they are.

How Do They Do It?

I lay in bed last night unable to sleep wondering how teachers deal with students, or should I say parents that neglect their children. Well neglect seems like such a strong word, maybe not neglect but don't give attention like a child needs to succeed in life.

A few days ago Jennah's teacher asked if I would do a special favor for her. We had the Pre-K Awards Picnic yesterday and she wanted me to fix a few extra lunches for the kids who's parents hadn't RSVPed to come. I was glad to help so we made three extra lunches. As soon as all the kids ran to their parents there were three little ones with disappointed looks on their faces. Mrs. Lindsey positively brought them to our picnic and told them they were invited to stay with us. Two of the three kids parents eventually showed up. As soon as they saw their parents they just lit up. As for the last little boy nobody ever came. We had relay races, piggy back races, and a bubble gum contest. During these events this little boy just kind of blended in with the crowd. Then it was time for the awards. The teacher would announce a name and each child would go to Mrs. Lindsey to have a picture taken by their proud parents. When it came time for the little boy he sat right down on Mrs. Lindsey's lap and smiled for a picture but there was no one there for him. My heart sunk as I ran over to take a picture of him so he wouldn't feel left out. My heart aches for this little boy. Not a parent, grandparent, or even a family friend was there for him.

As I lay there last night I thought about how many other children go through this, and how teachers see this every year in their classes. I wonder how they do it. How do they keep from wanting to adopt each one of these children. It's not that they are neglected just not cherished as each child should be. I feel like I need to do something about this. What can I do? What does a teacher do? How is this child going to make it through? I pray for these forgotten children. They are not abused, not starved, just not cherished.

Had to get this off my chest. Thanks for listening or reading.

Quick Trip and Moving

We made a quick trip to Dallas this weekend. Jonathan had a business meeting with a client down there so we decided to make a weekend of it. We had a good time the kids got to play with some distant cousins. We went to Grapevine Mall and ate at the Rain Forest Cafe. It was really neat. Jacksen and Jennah loved it. Joel was a little apprehensive of the gorillas and elephants. About every five minutes they would come to life and Joel didn't know what to think about them.

We are finally packing up to move. We are all so excited. Everything seems to be falling into place perfectly. We will be making the big move the 19th. The kids have school until the 23rd and we don't close the sale of our house until the 30th, but that will give us a week or so to get everything out. I am just planning on driving the kids back here for three days to finish up the school year.

Jacksen's School Play

Those of you who know Jacksen know he doesn't need to be in the spot light like his little sister. He had his 1st grade play last Thursday night and wasn't very excited about it. He knew one set of his Grandparents were coming to see the play and told us as we were leaving that he would rather just go home with them instead of be in the play. He knew every song and every hand movement but you could tell he had better things to do. After the play Jon said how much he reminded him of himself.

The play was "A Froggy Day in Lindentown" there was one little boy who was the main character that Jennah informed us during one of his solo performances "he doesn't sing very well". I just know she is going to love this type of thing.

We had a busy week celebrating Jon's 29th birthday. For some reason around our house we have birthday weeks instead of the traditional birthday. Jon got to eat out with someone everyday last week. I also did something special for him each day of the week. He always has projects around the house he can't get to because his back is hurting or he is just too worn out. We are never home on the weekends to get things in order so that is what I did for him. Cleaned the garage, had the oil changed on his car, etc. he is all about the love language "acts of service". Then Saturday night Grandma Janet kept the kids and we got to go out. We went to Los Cabos and loved it then we got free tickets from Jon's work to see Sam Harris in concert. I wasn't looking forward to the Sam Harris thing but it was much better than the last time we saw him. Thanks Grandma Janet and Papa Joe!

Last Traveling Holiday!

This Easter marked the last traveling on holidays we will have to do for hopefully a long long time. Sure we will still have to make the thirty minute drive to Bristow but that is nothing! We had a great Easter holiday the kids had their school parties on Friday and Joel and I were able to go to both of them. It was way too cold for an egg hunt but we braved the weather just for enough time for each kid to find twelve eggs each (not long). Then we had a rabbit donut in Jennah's class and an ice cream sundae in Jacksen's class. Joel participated in both parties and went home a happy baby. Nobody could resist Joel and his begging.

Saturday we went to visit Grandma Kelley at the nursing home and Grandpa at his house. I curled Grandma's hair so she would look nice for Easter. We went to Shogun's for an untraditional Easter dinner with William and Rachel and Sean and Madison. Mom and Dad ended up getting back from their trip to California early so they joined us. We had a really good time. Then Sunday we went to Grandma Janet's house for a turkey dinner. Everything was wonderful and the kids finally got to have an Easter egg hunt with their cousins.

It was a great weekend but we are really looking forward to not having to drive so much on the holidays.