Oh my goodness ... 100th post

Note ... the girls are running freely upstairs doing whatever they want to, mostly singing and playing Barbies from what I can hear, and Camden is downstairs playing the Wii. Just so I can try to post some photos for you to look at. Hopefully no one will get in trouble during this time ...

Most the photos that came out are of Eva ... she was closet to me during the Spring Music Concert, and the most candid of course! I picked a bad spot to be in to get photos of my kids, though I could have gotten up and moved, but I did not want Eva to follow me ... that is my excuse I am going with at least for right now. I will let the photos speak for themselves if you do not mind!

just a few things

Oh, it has been a week since I posted anything ... and it wasn't much was it!

I have been busy following two stories, MckMama's baby is in the hospital and it is very serious heart condition ... I have been spending much of this week on my knees, and in general anywhere praying for Stellan. You can check out her blog at mycharmingkids.net for more information.

The other prayer goes out to our family in Indiana going through an adoption as we speak, the baby girl was born Thursday morning and I am praying the should be signing the papers very soon. Please pray for Megan & Matt.

So that leaves me ... I have been having a rough week with my ears, which I have been praying for a friend Barb Wilson who is receiving a Cochlear implant today (which sounds like it went well). I saw my ENT doctor for the first time last week, and I just not sure if I have enough faith in his answers. It does sound like I have the very beginning stages of Meinear's Disease which I really was hoping this would all go away, but after three plus months I guess not. At some point I might elaborate on this, but for know I am still trying to process everything the doctor told me. As for my day to day struggles are getting easier, but it is not always easy learning a new way of handling pain. I am learning to push though the pain, which is not always easy and at times just really does not seem worth the trouble in the long run. Then I have reminders that I don't have it as bad as others do, like MckMama or Barb my troubles don't seem as hard, they seem very dull and why bother complaining to a doctor about them.

In other big news ... starting next week, Eva will only be going to Aunt Cheryl's (my daycare provider while I work) two days a week instead of four. And at some point she will be home full time, slightly nerve racking as I do work a full time job out of the house other than being a mom. This will tremendously help us out financially. Part of me is very sad to give up my freedom, but the other part of me knows I am gaining something I have been missing out on too. Lets just hope I can keep my job! So feel free to pray for me as I start this new journey as a stay at home mom again!

Well, I should get some work done. Thanks for letting me ramble ... soon I hope to post some photos from last nights Spring Music Concert Camden and Em participated in. And also some of Grandpa Ron's Birthday. -b

Flashback Friday

Baseball sign-up is tomorrow morning.
Part of me can hardly wait for the season to begin, then ... there is another part of me that can!

MOPS Photo Fundraiser

If you are interested please let me know! -b

Sweetea

Okay, it IS a play on words but it was fun ... just like yesterday was fun to make Sweet Tea! It was a warm 79 degrees, and I just could not resist making some sun tea when it was that beautiful of a day outside. Of course today feels cold in comparison with no sun (well, it is just peeking out at the moment) and it is about 55 degrees, but I am not complaining one bit!

Jon made some "sliders" and potatoes to go with my sweet tea, it was a Yummy meal! -b

More, Crafty Me!

So, I stayed up way past my bed time last night! I really don't even know what time it was when I finally saw my pillow, but I know I didn't sleep enough last night. Somehow though it felt a little rewarding to know what I accomplished.

I started back to work on the kids jeans that needed patched, even though it is getting warm and they have almost grown out of them! I got to work and had some fun with it again. I was about to call it a done job, and then sent Jon up to get his jeans since I knew it might be awhile before I got myself to set down like that and focus for that length of time! Here are a few photos of the kids jeans for you to see.

Can you tell I had some fun again! Camden asked why his patches couldn't be on the outside like Em's ... I said I could try, I just didn't think they would be that cool. He told me he though differently. -b

If you'd like to see my other Crafty Me projects check out these two posts:

http://marnerfamilyspot.blogspot.com/2009/01/crafty-me.html

http://marnerfamilyspot.blogspot.com/2009/02/post-for-sara-boys-and-jeans.html

Kindergarten & Arabic

Really, this was to be my daughters thank you note to Uncle Scott, Aunt Brandi and Mason for her Target Gift Card for her birthday. Do you see what is wrong? This child is excelling in kindergarten ... no problems, but with being taught Arabic because of a grant our elementary school she attends has, I see one in this picture. I don't mean to hurt any ones feeling on this, but it is only slightly bothersome. She is very excited to learn other languages (including her excitement in learning Arabic as it is something fun and different, it is not something she comes home telling me she does not want to learn), she also loves it when Marianne teaches her little bits of German or when someone shows her Sign, she loved that in Preschool, and still does in Kindergarten.

Is this confusing my child? Is she writing right to left because that is how Arabic is being modeled to her? NO, I am sure she is just having fun with this new way to write ... it looks different, and I am not going to any board meeting to voice my opinion so this is not really my soap box right now. I guess if I continue to see it as an issue then maybe I will press on and find a soap box to voice my opinion from. -b

He made us proud!

WOW! Camden came home with this paper in his back pack the other day from school. They had been each writing stories for St. Patrick's Day, and Camden wrote what he remembered it was about. I have to say impressive memory since we have not talked about it for awhile nor watched the episode of Veggie Tales that talks about it, but if you can read the following here is what he writes:

Leprechaun Day is a fun Holiday to celebrate. One time when I was watching Bob and Larry it was about St. Patrick and he got taken away with pirates and went to Ireland and when he grew up he became a minister and helped people of Ireland not worship things and other stuff. He helped them worship God and Jesus. Have you ever saw a leprechaun. Have you ever got gold from a leprechaun.

If you follow this link to YouTube you can watch a short about St. Patrick's Day from Veggie Tales. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TCB5QhHVJA I really do like the lesson it gives, gosh I grew up never really knowing this until watching this on Veggie Tales with my Kids!

Not Me! Monday

Wow, it is so beautiful here today! It reached an amazing 71 degrees outside, and we found some signs of spring when we looked around this weekend. We found a few blades of green grass, and some of my spring flowers have already "sprung" from the ground. Looks like we have another warm day ahead and then after that it might be normal into the 50's.

So it is Monday and I thought I might get back into the routine of Not Me! Monday. It might be short, but at least I will have tried, right! So, welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

This week I did NOT have a youngest daughter that announced while at church that she peed at Jesus' house! Very happily too. Nope, Not Me! While I am on the topic this so called daughter of mine may have had an accident while playing outside in the garage. When I got home Jon did NOT tell her to show me what happened, when she did Eva did NOT claim the spot looked like Mickey Mouse! Sorry folks I couldn't take a photo of it ... I just was not going to be that die hard of a blogger at that given moment!

I did NOT have a child that choose to cut out his own photos from school before we even said that we would keep them. Silly me, I always keep track of what comes home from school especially our kids photos.

I did NOT have a daughter who after loosing her first tooth prepared for the tooth fairy by leaving notes/clues for the tooth fairy so that it could find her tooth. She did NOT have lots of questions about the tooth fairy the next day when she found money where her tooth had been. This is NOT the same daughter that just a few weeks ago told me the the Easter Bunny was not real only that Grandpas hide Easter Eggs.

We did NOT raid our pantry to go to a family grocery shower tonight. I did NOT find several things in my pantry that are past the expiration ... I however was nice enough to keep them in my pantry and not give them away! When at that family event tonight I did NOT find out that my husband asked his cousin Natasha "and who's baby is this". Really Jon, are you not in the loop? They go to our church, they are in our Family! WOW. I guess we have been back in the Sunnies room a little too long!

So what did you NOT do this week?

two stayed ... not by choice!

That is right, read it again if you have to. Two photos sheets stayed in our house, $24 gone just like that ... no choice! They where all going back, I made up my mind I was saving our money for better things.

As I was tucking away the photos I noticed the girls had 5 sheets each in their envelopes but Camden only had 3. I was a calm mom, didn't have time to worry or jump to conclusions ... (This was so a GOD thing because I normally would totally flip out) ... so when Camden got home I asked him if he knew where the rest of his photos might be, and he claimed he did not know and then moments later he went off up stairs.

As I finished up a few odds and ends in my office he came in to get some tape, and I asked what he might need some tape for. "Nothing important Mom, just something for my room" Okay ... but as his fingers slip when grabbing the second piece of tape, and it is a really big piece of tape I stop and nicely said to him, "Camden bring me the pictures now please."

He had taped a sheet of wallets up with what double sided tape he grabbed before hand, as if I could return them that way! He was so excited to cut them up, I am sure he so badly wanted to share them with his friends, I don't know. I just wish he did a good job of cutting them, I can save them I think but I won't he needs the reminder of what happened. And he had also cut up the 5x7 sheet, so at least Grandparents can have a good giggle every now and then too!

What was I to do ... so many things where wrong, but I was so calm and cool. I just told him that Mom and Dad don't have $24 just lying around to pay for this, they where not ours to keep. He quickly told me that he would pay for them what ever he had in his piggy bank was ours. I said to him, wait until dad and I have a chance to talk this over, I think he should pay for something and we did choose to make him pay half ... I am just upset he choose to be secretive about it. To hide it from me, to not ask if he could do it. I feel like we are going down a wrong path here, and no matter what we seem to be doing it is not working. What are we doing wrong? Are we being to strict with our discipline methods, or not enough? Oh, boy!

I really need a mom's group that deals with the after preschool age! Is this my sign to start something? or get something going/find something?

Tooth Fairy Loan Needed

Well, we have a proud daughter who pulled out her own tooth at school Thursday! She has been very excited to tell everyone she sees ... and get this "Mom, don't say anything, let me tell them" does my daughter know me ... so some of you I might have given it all away, but I am sure you can be excited for this girl!

Eva is quite the proud little sister too!

Can you tell?

Should they stay ... or should they go?

Not the kids, the pictures of the kids ... I have to return the spring school pictures tomorrow. So that means I have to decide tonight what I want to keep/pay for. I really should just take the kids to Sears and have their photos done quick, but I don't know. These are $12.00 a sheet, I really was not expecting them to be so much!

So, here is my question ... that is if I am not asking to late. I will check before I send the kids to school in the morning at 8:00 am.

Should I keep them, Should I send them back and keep my money for better things, Should I go to Sears, Should I ... Help me, please.

I am leaning towards letting them go, but ... when will I find the time to get them all together for a photo shot?

Thanks for helping me choose! -b

Comfy Cozy Eva

Well, those words (comfy cozy and Eva) usually go hand in hand weather she is sick or healthy. Though yesterday she was sick, but she put me to work as a MOM for sure with this fever yesterday. We have been fever free all day to day so far, which is good ... hoping to make it though these afternoon hours as we have not had any Motrin or Tylenol since bedtime last night.

I thought I would post a few of these photos of Eva's set up. I covered the chair up, and she has applied all the accessories other than I did set up the DVD player for in hopes that I can get some work done in the office. It is slow going today, that is for my office work ... but I am enjoying my Eva time! Though I have to admit I am catching up on my blog reading too.

Eva and her "best friend" goes every where with her, her groovy girl. And remember Grandma Helen, it is not a "baby" it is a "dollie"!

Eva is trying to play Sudoku in this photo ... every now in then she will call out to me to ask, "mom choose now 9 or is it maybe a 4" ... then after a few beeps "no mom it is a 2".

Hope you enjoyed these photos. -b

Miss Piggly Wiggly

Oh, did you think this was going to be something with Eva? Nope, it is Em's loose tooth, can you see how loose it is. How soon will it be till this one falls out? I had a dream, at least I believe it was a dream that Em begged me to pull it out! And that she got ancy and pulled it out herself, so that part of it must be a dream, since she still has a loose tooth. -b

Just a few thoughts

Well a week come and goes just like that these days, and no matter what I do I can't seem to slow things down! Eva was all excited to go to G&G Marner's today as that is what she gets to do every Wednesday and have both of them all to herself on most occasions. Though today I got the call about 11:00 that she didn't seem to be feeling all that well, and went to pick her up. By the time I got her home she was spiking a temp and I knew she was just out of sorts. Though once the Motrin kicked in about an hour later she was more than herself again ... couldn't believe I took her to the doctors, but glad I got her ears check. Poor thing, they swabbed her throat and it was negative for strep. So we just have to watch her fever, and I always get nervous with her when they get high so fast as last year she had that seizure because of that. So she seems to be more than better with Motrin/Tylenol controlling her! Can't keep her still, mom's gotta get work done!

Emily announced last night when I picked her up that she has a loose tooth, I almost cried! Really, I think I had a tear. Her tooth is quite loose, and I had many dreams about this loose tooth last night too. I am not sure now what was a dream and what was Emily ... but I do know the loose tooth is REAL!

My dreams have been crazy because I have been on a lot of powerful drugs the past few days, since Friday night, I have had a really bad Migraine that I just have not been able to shake. But, thanks to my Mother-in-Law Ruth and Sister-in-Law Cindy they have been praying for me and I have not had to take any meds today. I was set to go in for a shot this afternoon/tomorrow if I was not better. So PRAISE GOD!

Camden, well he is being a boy these days I guess. At school they have "refocus" forms when they get in trouble. And we have been seeing a few of them these days, and mom is not the happiest about them. It really is for silly things, but not so silly. Like the other day, he chose not to respect his teachers by not staying quiet in line. It really hurt when that came home, because he chose to lie about it/cover it up with a lie. This last one that came home was one of those that I was "really Camden" he chose to play tag in the classroom when they came back in from recess. Oh, I love this boy, for every challenge that we have to incur as little as these are right now I am so thankful for them, that I get to pour my love on this little man and help mold him into a Warrior for God!

Well, I have to go get Emily and Camden from G&G Marner's ... have a great rest of your Wednesday! -b

Wordless Wednesday

Not Me! Monday

After several weeks off, I will attempt to be honest and bear all truthful attempts of being a Mom this past week! So welcome back to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did NOT hear my oldest child tell me that he wore two pairs of underwear to school one day! WHY! Jon and I did NOT laugh uncontrollably that Camden did not know what to do with us.

I did NOT think it was a grand idea to take my daughters out shopping and to Olive Garden for lunch with Grandma Helen as a great treat for not spending any money while shopping. I did NOT have to take off several times in the restaurant because Eva felt all to comfortable in going to the bathroom by herself. I really did think I was going to enjoy this time, but Grandma Helen seemed to get many laughs out of it. While waiting for our food Eva did not yell off at the waiter serving the table nearby "Don't forget our food"! I just wanted to shrink down in my chair, who was this girl anyways, NOT mine?

I did NOT get excited last week when Target had Wall-E and Horton Hears a Who on sale for $10.00, I did NOT by them! I do NOT just love to watch Eva watching Wall-E because she thinks she really is "EVE" from the movie.

We did NOT have plans to make it to first service on Sunday. Jon did NOT let me sleep in (THANK YOU) and he did NOT fall asleep in the recliner while watching Horton Hears a Who with the kids. Thankfully we made it in time to teach second service Sunnies class.

I was NOT at all giddy to watch my dad being interviewed on TV! That was just awesome. I also did NOT just fall over happy to drive my mom's brand new car off the lot, and put the first 20 some miles on it! It was a good week last week!

Eva did NOT sing while going potty the following song "Who let the dogs out" ... we did NOT laugh ourselves silly in the living room listening to her.

Eva does NOT talk in her sleep, she does NOT sing "Happy Birthday Emily" in the middle of the night unknowingly.

The other day when using spell check on my blog I did NOT think something was wrong when it told me no misspellings found. How was that possible, I am one of the worst spellers ... I don't deny!

We do NOT take candy away from our kids Valentine boxes each time they get in trouble. Who needs a sugar fix, nope NOT me!

I did NOT get photos of my nephew in Atlanta GA playing in the snow this weekend! It was NOT fun to see him wearing Camden's old winter coat. Cute photos, thanks for sharing Uncle Scott.

Uncle Scott's birthday was NOT January 27th, and his Birthday present is NOT still on the freezer in the garage. NOTE: lets get it mailed this week!

Okay, on a real note ... Jon is on his third rolling layoff, and to say the least it is quite frustrating. Really, that is all I can say right now! Have a great week, we are hoping for a warm up!