Future Praise Leader?

Anna absolutely loves to listen to Twila Paris. She knows a lot of her songs on the "He is Exalted" CD. Anna also loves to sing. Put that with the guitar she got for her third birthday and what do you have? A praise leader, of course! Here is the video of Anna singing her heart out:



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6 Year Old Hair Cut

Alright, I admit it, I trusted my daughter to have access to scissors, until today. She decided it was time for her own hair cut. She took about 5 inches off one side of her head in a 2 inch section or so. Thank goodness for her, her hair is long and it is mostly covered. Good grief. I guess there are no more scissors down for a while in our house.

A Girl and Her Horse

I went in to check on Anna before I went to bed last night and this is what I found:

Anna had fallen asleep with her belove horse from her birthday and was half using it as her blanket for her top half. Here is the close-up:

After I covered her correctly with a blanket, I of course immediately downloaded the cute pictures. I couldn't resist posting them here for all to see. They were super cute. Hope you all enjoyed them.

Back to School

Well, its back to the same ole, same ole stuff. Back to work, (for some, I was never really off) back to school, back to ballet and gymnastics. Its back to reality for most of us. I told Anna we had to start back to school today and her response was "YYYEEEESSSS!!" My girl looooves school. I couldn't believe how excited she got. This of course was followed by some dancing and jumping. She was so excited to get back to our routine. I sort of am too, but I want my day off. LOL! The only day off I got last week was Thanksgiving. I have worked all kinds of extra hours all the way around it and so I just want a break. I am betting my next one will be Christmas Day? What do you think?

Anyhow, as for things done over the past week, (since my last post) I will make a list:

1. Family Thanksgiving
2. Work
3. Pick up Anna's Christmas pictures (which turned out great by the way)
4. Have a family picture done (at my 6 year olds request)
5. Work
6. Clean out Anna's room (boxed up all the toys she doesn't need or play with anymore)
7. Wash laundry
8. Start Addressing Christmas Cards (They will go out late this year for us, in about 3 weeks)
9. Work
10. Shop for Anna's gifts (I had to buy some online, as the stores here didn't carry what she wanted any longer. I didn't want to do that, because that adds on shipping. Oh well, she will be one happy girl Christmas morning.)

Alright, I know I did more, but it is time to get ready for the day. We have gymnastics at 10am and we need to have school pretty much done before we leave. Have a great day all and God bless.

Happy Thanksgiving All!!

Just wanted to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving. Enjoy your time with family and friends. God bless.

Goal Semi-Complete

The goal of cleaning kitchen is semi-complete. We keep finding more kitchen boxes. I have two counters just overflowing with the dishes I washed today and I will have to go back tomorrow and wash the rest of them. We found two more boxes today. There are pictures to hang and about 10 boxes left to sort through. Not too bad for two days. Anyhow, I think I am about done with what I can do. The boxes that are left are mostly a bunch of papers and things that my mom needs to go through. I would end up trashing over half of them, and probably get in trouble, so I am done after tomorrow's dishes.

As an update to her disability cases, we still have nothing through yet. She has a lawyer for her SSI Disability, and that should help move that right along, but it will be after the holidays and such. Her work disability we are also getting ready to appeal for the second time. Thanks for all the prayers and keep praying.

Anyhow, I better go, because my "this house is soooo boooring" daughter is not impressed with me typing away on the computer. Have a great day all and welcome to town Tiffany and Steven and crew. Can't wait to get over and see you all.

Today's Goal

Goal for today: Clear my moms kitchen floor of ALL boxes. She has lived there since August 30th, but she still isn't all the way unpacked, which is my job. I was down to two boxes there yesterday, but we made great progress yesterday and found two more boxes in the spare room.(This is where most of the boxes ended up.) We still need to get through it all though. I hope I can do that much at least, but there are 4 boxes on the floor and I am washing dishes by hand. We will see. I have two day to get it all done. I think I can do it.

School: We are out for the week. Anna will have homework for each day, which is one sheet from each subject, but no actual schooling. There is a lot of family in town and we need to have time to visit with them. The public school kids are in though. LOL!! I told her it was her lucky week. We are taking it easy for a few more minutes, then it is time to get up and start back to my mom's to finish. I think we can do it, or at least I hope we can.

Alright, time to get busy. I need to strip her bed and take it to wash today and want to get as much done this morning as I can at mom's. Take care all.

Homeschool vs. The Alternative

I got this off a message board I read and thought it was very cute.

Two women meet at a playground, where their children are swinging and playing ball. The women are sitting on a bench watching. Eventually, they begin to talk.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: Hi. My name is Maggie. My kids are the three in red shirts — helps me keep track of them.

OTHER MOTHER: (Smiles) I’m Terri. Mine are in the pink and yellow shirts. Do you come here a lot?

HOMESCHOOL MOM: Usually two or three times a week, after we go to the library.

OTHER MOTHER: Wow! Where do you find the time?

HOMESCHOOL MOM: We home school, so we do it during the day most of the time.

OTHER MOTHER: Some of my neighbors home school, but I send my kids to public school.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: How do you do it?

OTHER MOTHER: It’s not easy. I go to all the PTA meetings and work with the kids every day after school and stay real involved.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: But what about socialization? Aren’t you worried about them being cooped up all day with kids their own ages, never getting the opportunity for natural relationships?

OTHER MOTHER: Well, yes. But I work hard to balance that. They have some friends who’re home schooled, and we visit their grandparents almost every month.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: Sounds like you’re a very dedicated mom. But don’t you worry about all the opportunities they’re missing? I mean they’re so isolated from real life — how will they know what the world is like — what people do to make a living — how to get along with all different kinds of people?

OTHER MOTHER: Oh, we discussed that at PTA, and we started a fund to bring real people into the classrooms. Last month, we had a policeman and a doctor come in to talk to every class. And next month, we’re having a woman from Japan and a man from Kenya come to speak.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: Oh, we met a man from Japan in the grocery store the other week, and he got to talking about his childhood in Tokyo. My kids were absolutely fascinated. We invited him to dinner and got to meet his wife and their three children.

OTHER MOTHER: That’s nice. Hmm. Maybe we should plan some Japanese food for the lunchroom on Multicultural Day.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: Maybe your Japanese guest could eat with the children.

OTHER MOTHER: Oh, no. She’s on a very tight schedule. She has two other schools to visit that day. It’s a system-wide thing we’re doing.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: Oh, I’m sorry. Well, maybe you’ll meet someone interesting in the grocery store sometime and you’ll end up having them over for dinner.

OTHER MOTHER: I don’t think so. I never talk to people in the store — certainly not people who might not even speak my language. What if that Japanese man hadn’t spoken English?

HOMESCHOOL MOM: To tell you the truth, I never had time to think about it. Before I even saw him, my six-year-old had asked him what he was going to do with all the oranges he was buying.

OTHER MOTHER: Your child talks to strangers?

HOMESCHOOL MOM: I was right there with him. He knows that as long as he’s with me, he can talk to anyone he wishes.

OTHER MOTHER: But you’re developing dangerous habits in him. My children never talk to strangers.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: Not even when they’re with you?

OTHER MOTHER: They’re never with me, except at home after school. So you see why it’s so important for them to understand that talking to strangers is a big no-no.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: Yes, I do. But if they were with you, they could get to meet interesting people and still be safe. They’d get a taste of the real world, in real settings. They’d also get a real feel for how to tell when a situation is dangerous or suspicious.

OTHER MOTHER: They’ll get that in the third and fifth grades in their health courses.

HOMESCHOOL MOM: Well, I can tell you’re a very caring mom. Let me give you my number—if you ever want to talk, give me call. It was good to meet you.

Homework and Pictures

Homework started at our house yesterday. Anna was so excited this morning to tell me her and Daddy had done the homework last night. I implemented it as a way to make Daddy more involved with our schooling, since he is at work while we school. I also implemented it because Anna insists that all school kids get homework and she REALLY want to have some. In any case it has started and she will have homework Monday through Thursday. I figure with the weekend, Friday is a freebie day with none. She earns an extra sticker on the chart for every homework page she completes and as always, when she fills a chart, for good school days and now for homework (it will have a different sticker) she gets to pick out the book of her choice. Thankfully she usually picks out one that is less than $10, but she is unlimited on her choices. We love Barnes and Noble.

As for pictures, my mom bought Anna a beautiful Christmas dress yesterday and we HAVE to get her picture taken today. LOL! I can't wait to see what we can get this time. She takes pictures so well and I love having Anna's beautiful pictures over the entire house. We usually take them about 2-3 times a year, even if only for the base package. Anyways, I called Penneys yesterday to see what was open this week and they said today at 11:30, so today it is. I can't wait!! We will do family pictures in a week or so, so we can get our Christmas cards in the mail. (That could be a whole day in decision as well. I have 4 full sets to choose from. LOL!)

Anyhow, time for breakfast and school. Have a good day all and I will try to upload the pictures to here later. I am using the part of my card that gives me free web access for her pictures, so hopefully they are good so that we can use that and share. Take care and thanks for reading.

Meeting Today; New Slide Show

Meeting Today: I am taking my mom to meet with an attorney today to get the help that she needs with getting her disability through. She is not doing good health wise, and we have been fighting disability for the better part of the year. It is time for extra outside help. Please pray that this is the right attorney and we feel God's peace with who we picked out. She comes highly recommended and is supposed to be one of the areas best. Thanks to everyone who has stood by us as we fight this battle. (I will update tonight after the appointment and work.)

Slide Show: Jeremy has a few new slideshows on his website that we would like you all to view if you can. They are of Anna's birthday party this past Sunday and there is another one, but for the life of me, I can't remember right now. Anyhow, click on the Dad's Highway link on the right hand side and it will take you there.

Update: We saw the lawyer and she is filing the appeal today. She is very nice and even told my mother how she could get some extra outside help and where to go. She will be a good lawyer and I am glad we have her. Thanks for the prayers on our meeting and please keep praying for a swift outcome. Thanks all.

Happy Birthday Anna!

Today is my little girls birthday. She is getting so big! We had a birthday party on Sunday and she loved it.


Here is the picture of her sleeping this morning:





How does she sleep like that? I know she must be comfortable, because the pictures I took didn't faze her in the least. She loves those pajamas by the way. Not sure why, but she begs me to wear them. It has got to be cold at night for me to let her wear them though.



Today she got a bigger gift from us and we let her have the gift from her Grammy. She was so excited. Actually I think she was more excited about Grammy's gift than ours. Here she is:




I have a strong feeling she is NOT letting that horse go for a while. If you don't know my daughter well, she looooves horses. We have all different types and sizes of horses (real looking ones.) Anyhow, she was thrilled to death with this horse as it is almost as big as she is.



We got her a camera. It losts its luster really quick and is not near as good as everyone claimed it to be. We may take it back and get something else that works a bit better, but this thing is NOT, I repeat not very good at all. This is even after reading the best online reviews to the darn thing. I will have Wyld look at it when he gets home and see what he says, but it would be better for us to get her a cheaper 35 mm and lots of film for the price. It just is not turning out the way I want, but I am not the camera expert, so we will see. (Added later: It does better with a memory card and Mommy forgot that it Is for a 6 year old. She loves it. LOL. It will stay after all.)


In any case, it is my girls birthday. She is now 6 years old. I can't believe how fast she is growing up. She is so smart and so beautiful. She is growing up to be such a sweet caring girl. Horses, of course are her favorite thing, followed closely by Mulan and her horse Khan. (You think its the horse? LOL!) Anyways, Happy birthday baby girl. Mommy and Daddy love you very much!

Tree is up!!

Anna's tree is up! Yes, her pink one that Santa dropped off early last year so he could put something under it in Anna's room. (Actually its the one that Anna fell in love with at Kohl's and really, really wanted it, so we got it for her right before Christmas when it was half off.) She still loves this tree and it is up. Here is a picture:

AND.................Our tree is also up! LOL!! I know, I know!! It is early for us even. We usually wait till the week of Thanksgiving, but we had all the stuff just sitting there in boxes in the middle of the living room, so in order to clear them out and not have to dig them back out, we set up the tree. We still don't have our place decorated all the way yet, all that we did was put up the tree. We still have lights and garland for somewhere and all the fun stuff to go. We love Christmas though and so I thought this was the perfect time to put it up. Anyhow, here is a picture of it. We don't have much room, so it is stuck in a corner very closely followed by our couch on one side and television on the other. We are now very cramped in here, but our tree is up and that was important to us.

Anna's big concern now is, "How is Santa going to get in to the apartment?" We have no chimney and we are downstairs, so she is VERY worried that he will have no way in. I told her we could leave the door unlocked for him , but then she asks if the "bad guys" will get in. (We keep our door locked at all times when we are home.) I don't know what else to say. I have half a mind to "mail Santa a key" with her so that he can get in that night. Do you think she will buy it? LOL! I will try it because anything is worth a shot at this point.

Anyhow, I better go. Two more days till Anna's birthday. We had her party yesterday, but I am waiting on pictures till Wednseday. Have a good week and take care everyone.

Fall Pictures

Here are some various fall pictures I have been meaning to post:

Pumpkin Patch (weird face is due to wet bottom, the ground was very wet):

Cotton Field (it was right beside the pumpkin patch):

Isaac (Anna's Pumpkin Contest Picture):

Ready for some fun (Anna as Mulan):

Avery's Costume (Little Mermaid):

The Two cousins together last night (it was cold):

I know some people don't understand why I took the girls out trick or treating, but to them it is just the fun of getting dressed up in a costume and going to get candy. At this age, they really don't understand all the "bad" stuff and when Anna is old enough to start understanding that and starts realizing that, we will probably find a church carnival to attend that night so it is Christian related. In any case the girls both had a great time.