tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33188493740822067912024-02-07T13:13:07.995-06:00The Tie that BindsNataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.comBlogger159125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-18890637897581804132012-03-17T14:47:00.003-05:002012-03-17T14:51:02.009-05:00Their Futures Are So Bright......they gotta wear shades:<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5720955354869679586" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8IH87uqfopajtEVD2UHToXoNlX1c0qOT1B6Lbk_JWre3LrTxpHjeSr8JhjjVwDIq7LbrbmA-mBkW4-gFYo3qMIbftyx5hu4_GCTxP2VbIxJaVAOG8YJz2wh23JGmIXSonu5r4haGfwRy0/s400/Cool+Cousins.jpg" /><br />The only thing missing from our Spring Break was some cousin time. Thankfully, these two showed up in town unexpectedly, and Owen and June were happy to drop everything to hook up with Keely and Kaden...even if it means shopping (Owen's least favorite activity besides toenail trimming).<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-64139276122611396032012-03-12T21:07:00.002-05:002012-03-12T21:24:40.790-05:00Don't Have a Grandson with a Dog CollarSo, we've disconnected our cable. As Owen saw Michael unhooking all of the wires, Owen put two and two together and begin to bawl "Dad, but Dad, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-zG5U0v3gU">you won't have a grandson with a dog collar</a>! Believe MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE, not <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-zG5U0v3gU">that commercial</a>! You won't have a grandson with a dog collar. Don't take away the cable!" (to have his problems, right?)<br /><br />Today, when June scratched him, he expressed concern that he would <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7udQSHWpL88">"wake up in a roadside ditch"</a> if I put a bandaid on him. (If you ignore commercials, click the links)<br /><br />Um, exhibit A that we might have been watching too much TV?<br /><br />Dropped off the cable boxes today; not regretting it one bit. <br /><br />PS: Geometry teachers, these would be great when doing logic, conditionals, and properties at the start of the semester.Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-24051267694492326862012-03-12T20:22:00.006-05:002012-03-17T14:47:33.124-05:00I'll Wax Your GibbousOwen makes up a lot of stuff, but the past few weeks, as the first graders have been studying the phases of the moon, he kept talking about the Gibbous phase (both waxing and waning). Did I fall asleep in elementary school science that week? I'll fess up to my ignorance, but here he is, schooling me via Oreos. I found the Oreo lesson online when I was educating myself so I can have a conversation with my child about science. I bought the Oreos because they were calling my name.<br /><br />The young scientist in process (with a future Indiana Jones scratch thanks to a sister who is getting the hang of defending herself):<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf0McRHJRQIKFjWNl2c6pfuuaSnl6UvybiOz9Q19kx3TmDJtszMDrdF3iGb7U3FJH9ZKtMecrVvOCvxQ-eZJLxeN42VtIQH_0xS5ORg26puPHN23y2BDRPcRV5tZyiNkhjaKW4IUOKrbq2/s1600/Phases+of+Moon.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5719186911551025202" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf0McRHJRQIKFjWNl2c6pfuuaSnl6UvybiOz9Q19kx3TmDJtszMDrdF3iGb7U3FJH9ZKtMecrVvOCvxQ-eZJLxeN42VtIQH_0xS5ORg26puPHN23y2BDRPcRV5tZyiNkhjaKW4IUOKrbq2/s400/Phases+of+Moon.jpg" /></a><br />For your reference (and mine):<br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2T_T7cWoQm4iUrkdZq2OVCXD81xIcdUfI12H6sh50gaBBprvRe9oJDjoRZBWTYopU2wzqdPYIMG9kNsgjgWCXA3Hb6naBxV6cj9xRdV2nhZa3jSfluwXCuQYImIAfXg0gN4KUrqExUBMy/s1600/phasesofmoon-21.gif"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 250px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 170px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5719186768689437842" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2T_T7cWoQm4iUrkdZq2OVCXD81xIcdUfI12H6sh50gaBBprvRe9oJDjoRZBWTYopU2wzqdPYIMG9kNsgjgWCXA3Hb6naBxV6cj9xRdV2nhZa3jSfluwXCuQYImIAfXg0gN4KUrqExUBMy/s400/phasesofmoon-21.gif" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br /><div><br /><div><br /><div></div></div></div></div></div>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-79502730737782732232012-03-11T20:49:00.003-05:002012-03-11T21:00:11.265-05:00My Purse, My LifeKnow I know why the Capital One saying is "What's in your wallet?" To ask about a woman's purse would take too long.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoBKbxJ9fNhxd8Gbk1SytUtg9jWdMgG9G9YEZxe3D6Rf0V5vHiDqgQTx7SHh-0Cc3UgZ6eoKOCf4xjnX6_Fr71gd3rp8J5wHHsg_RjqUWa22_hMlJzTXyCTkF6SNpFPuLk-IIh4emGis96/s1600/My+Purse.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoBKbxJ9fNhxd8Gbk1SytUtg9jWdMgG9G9YEZxe3D6Rf0V5vHiDqgQTx7SHh-0Cc3UgZ6eoKOCf4xjnX6_Fr71gd3rp8J5wHHsg_RjqUWa22_hMlJzTXyCTkF6SNpFPuLk-IIh4emGis96/s400/My+Purse.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5718822150916388546" border="0" /></a><br />How that for catharsis? <br /><br />If my purse is any indicator of my current life state, it's no wonder that I feel a little <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">discombobulated</span>.<br /><br />Let's see if you can play armchair psychologist and give me some insight on what these things say about me:<br /><br />a lot of free kids' meals coupons to local restaurants<br />at least 3 mechanical pencils<br />school ID<br />checkbook<br />travel Kleenex<br />green wallet<br />spork<br />fork<br />party favor bag<br />iPod car adapter (no, not iPhone)<br />eyeglass case<br />coin purse<br />toothpaste<br />beaded bracelet<br />Excedrin<br />sunglasses<br />lipsticks and glosses<br />trash receipts<br />Post-its<br />hairbands<br />gum<br /><br />How do you men do it with just a few pockets? Oh, that's right, you ask us to hold stuff for you in our purse. What of my purse stuff is Michael's? I'll never tell.<br /><br />And who knows what else is under that pile? Sadly, this was a week ago, and I put most of this right back in there. Here's to Spring Break, a little R&R, and, maybe, just maybe, a clean purse!Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-31854698989504250672011-12-31T16:31:00.004-06:002011-12-31T16:57:44.575-06:00What Happens at Sushi's House...You've seen the shirts for toddlers, "What happens at Grandma's, stays at Grandma's"? Well, what happens at Sushi's, gets on her iPhone for all to see. On our CA trip, I scrolled through Mom's and Michael's iPhones and emailed myself a few of my favorite pictures of FOOD and FRIVOLITY.<br /><br />Sushi is a cook with gourmet skills; June just eats Vienna Sausage from the can. <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhguu6ox3xQdnIZNV8hENKA_-b2QNmCZKRoIVDswQ5Atj0x93sexueCMze96WyLx7yIxcgIyaUe72Ir6iPQXB8pZt36xGQiVTctRstd4oXc5C3eWslIAyTwFSu99h9IvhzL_EYrOujzD6KB/s1600/June+and+Vienna+Sausage.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhguu6ox3xQdnIZNV8hENKA_-b2QNmCZKRoIVDswQ5Atj0x93sexueCMze96WyLx7yIxcgIyaUe72Ir6iPQXB8pZt36xGQiVTctRstd4oXc5C3eWslIAyTwFSu99h9IvhzL_EYrOujzD6KB/s400/June+and+Vienna+Sausage.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692423928182213042" border="0" /></a><br />Nothing says "235 years of America!" like a giant carbohydrate covered in dyed icing.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdtQof9bJ7xajAVvnRp2ofArJ-kjZ4Eg8UDQM90R8dtDuQ68R6b7snNjAfbpziiaNRl8r9u2X-0RUDKVxXgCfIveZpPEZ7tcC6b2xJoAq3-Kcv41caPjdHmNP8iBfqEqYeTisR8cewqoBe/s1600/Owen+and+a+Cookie.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdtQof9bJ7xajAVvnRp2ofArJ-kjZ4Eg8UDQM90R8dtDuQ68R6b7snNjAfbpziiaNRl8r9u2X-0RUDKVxXgCfIveZpPEZ7tcC6b2xJoAq3-Kcv41caPjdHmNP8iBfqEqYeTisR8cewqoBe/s400/Owen+and+a+Cookie.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692424260817087138" border="0" /></a><br />Clowning around with Sushi and Opa at the circus. Fun fact: every year as a kid, we went to 2 events. The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in March (for my birthday) and the Ringling Brothers Circus in July (for my brother's birthday). Maybe next year, June and Gordon can join in too!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR74o8lmjWJVtsFZXCT1iIo90cb-Ds1O-dv32xsWPGMvu34Qmtur5FbLGPTSscfKIwez0Lqi3R0r37WyHj9P9fyH1fcFG1vImQUDlJUHrFKRjyZa4LWY9HxOr_agWNryT7gaf2IeDrpkNM/s1600/Owen+and+Clown+Nose.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgR74o8lmjWJVtsFZXCT1iIo90cb-Ds1O-dv32xsWPGMvu34Qmtur5FbLGPTSscfKIwez0Lqi3R0r37WyHj9P9fyH1fcFG1vImQUDlJUHrFKRjyZa4LWY9HxOr_agWNryT7gaf2IeDrpkNM/s400/Owen+and+Clown+Nose.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692425028826825234" border="0" /></a><br />Does this hat make me look ridiculous? Or is it the nose? Or the lanyard? Or the oversized program? Or the boomerang? Or the Spiderman umbrella hanging off my wrist? Or the fact that I look pissed at my grandma for even daring to take this picture that proves I am one spoiled kiddo? <br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUW3-X1Nd3OczsGaYwGy3b6bHbTlIFWfCdOfojKpVQDHHC9VoUFS_dxs4F1L72RnRI_NCB23_GUWZx4tz-wJyLvor-ecJ9wRd78thVueKaF8woY487WIXJh41-rEJIXluOx5vNtSBjEJB6/s1600/Owen+at+Circus.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUW3-X1Nd3OczsGaYwGy3b6bHbTlIFWfCdOfojKpVQDHHC9VoUFS_dxs4F1L72RnRI_NCB23_GUWZx4tz-wJyLvor-ecJ9wRd78thVueKaF8woY487WIXJh41-rEJIXluOx5vNtSBjEJB6/s400/Owen+at+Circus.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692425038299691554" border="0" /></a><br />Would you like some hot chocolate with your whipped cream?<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRQ81kaQ7Ry4KInil0B-FvHDQeXLp4Km_iRHWPQBkjmFFtDHICNd0wVVch7eyTt1OVqBIb6F6FXD7EycU23ns9l5htzjc8n8Z35DGklpY6vQqGR3iK674RkPBayLXiM1tlGydDKE5HgzQL/s1600/Owen+and+Hot+Chocolate.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRQ81kaQ7Ry4KInil0B-FvHDQeXLp4Km_iRHWPQBkjmFFtDHICNd0wVVch7eyTt1OVqBIb6F6FXD7EycU23ns9l5htzjc8n8Z35DGklpY6vQqGR3iK674RkPBayLXiM1tlGydDKE5HgzQL/s400/Owen+and+Hot+Chocolate.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692425035188833042" border="0" /></a>Triple cherries, say what?!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiksChs6wITZby3PHQC5NYKDq4GT61CIa8mKn8MzAMabeZmj4Qfs-B8gJA1D6IcFhXTZY-dnYcXouBO5I5sTVzEQG5iBjDHYc59VXMtS9fjS7Adnso9xg5aWH2w23ysgcZOxiIckcWSSReg/s1600/Owen+and+a+Sundae.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiksChs6wITZby3PHQC5NYKDq4GT61CIa8mKn8MzAMabeZmj4Qfs-B8gJA1D6IcFhXTZY-dnYcXouBO5I5sTVzEQG5iBjDHYc59VXMtS9fjS7Adnso9xg5aWH2w23ysgcZOxiIckcWSSReg/s400/Owen+and+a+Sundae.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692424267855859858" border="0" /></a>This one was out with Michael, but who says the grandparents are the only ones who get to treat the kids? Here's the mega muffin at the Snooty Pig.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXnsx2XQ1wDoJ3-fPsp_tWWrQEEYACGepXBNTh0JlLyWJQ8gzArIdUWLgBu1GnvstVaOmArQvbsIpOw6BupbrHKytZotzf9xr6JUkGWYebyR5vd2Yn6nfxkqnafmPPNJP_4ru4z4A6WIh7/s1600/Snooty+before.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXnsx2XQ1wDoJ3-fPsp_tWWrQEEYACGepXBNTh0JlLyWJQ8gzArIdUWLgBu1GnvstVaOmArQvbsIpOw6BupbrHKytZotzf9xr6JUkGWYebyR5vd2Yn6nfxkqnafmPPNJP_4ru4z4A6WIh7/s400/Snooty+before.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692425042634774786" border="0" /></a><br />Oh wait, I think we've gone too far. Nothing like the Fat Face app to put things in perspective.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5AIkDpYCUTGPvLNujSVIw_ucNVIk8RduVhXU5Kv8pT_ytibP_TUBk5rHn-f_4FT-Hg8vJJ3A5qZ3AO1DgtirInc9ujLZle5qmarA7QpLvfowKv0smsPFxlv0_nFojMmS8iLtiun0pidzm/s1600/Snooty+after.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5AIkDpYCUTGPvLNujSVIw_ucNVIk8RduVhXU5Kv8pT_ytibP_TUBk5rHn-f_4FT-Hg8vJJ3A5qZ3AO1DgtirInc9ujLZle5qmarA7QpLvfowKv0smsPFxlv0_nFojMmS8iLtiun0pidzm/s400/Snooty+after.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692425052150570530" border="0" /></a><br />Truly, I love living back close again because now these treats are spread out to about once a month vs consecutive days of a 2 week visit. Talk about some detox whenever we'd go back to LA or Fresno. Whew. Also note, June is growing into these treats. Right now, a Tic-Tac from Sushi's purse will do the trick.<br /><br />Other random iPhone catch ups:<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaaVWm22dgIj2Z4feQIWnp6QdyhdVxj2xaf7HDbthskdXNT8IHRofUJOKDlkeXWXh3emMd32MIczJ8l-cvgGzcA96AavN1pAqf5TOYfLirgJwIm4aZtZiWhUsJn9M1V052Wyd57wY-aflN/s1600/Owen+6+at+Hughes.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaaVWm22dgIj2Z4feQIWnp6QdyhdVxj2xaf7HDbthskdXNT8IHRofUJOKDlkeXWXh3emMd32MIczJ8l-cvgGzcA96AavN1pAqf5TOYfLirgJwIm4aZtZiWhUsJn9M1V052Wyd57wY-aflN/s400/Owen+6+at+Hughes.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692424254073144818" border="0" /></a>Owen's birthday at school (with both grandmas there!)<br /><br />June deep sea diving in Sushi's tub:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQJkKHcuDW6m2T4-M4Qe2RJvZa8GNvgCPdxND_mWx0Ux1Jb8lSeOl146yvVfkAfAMceXnLZMzhT4iTE0xzmxy1hc0Zv75ShaiwZn6g14yT_gKloRZkzC7G3dhGUmoo28ue0qD49SmW2yH7/s1600/June+in+Bathtub.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQJkKHcuDW6m2T4-M4Qe2RJvZa8GNvgCPdxND_mWx0Ux1Jb8lSeOl146yvVfkAfAMceXnLZMzhT4iTE0xzmxy1hc0Zv75ShaiwZn6g14yT_gKloRZkzC7G3dhGUmoo28ue0qD49SmW2yH7/s400/June+in+Bathtub.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692424252687225378" border="0" /></a>June at the pumpkin patch. My favorite part of this photo is the sign.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk2w1HsuMde3skbRoYQ2l46PXhyaISGPFtYPyiFUT2m5xa7OqUnRpM86KOx1vL5KsfciPot59ZgDrSrvkCDQqI5vkzCSAG0sSOwEjHumBkDmNeoAgtjO_znBO5X6QOaUbd4cLL0PwsP-9S/s1600/June+at+Pumpkin+Patch.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk2w1HsuMde3skbRoYQ2l46PXhyaISGPFtYPyiFUT2m5xa7OqUnRpM86KOx1vL5KsfciPot59ZgDrSrvkCDQqI5vkzCSAG0sSOwEjHumBkDmNeoAgtjO_znBO5X6QOaUbd4cLL0PwsP-9S/s400/June+at+Pumpkin+Patch.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5692424246484921474" border="0" /></a><br />Now this reminds me to hijack Grammie's phone and see what the kids have been up to at her house! <br /><br />Favorite Grandparent Quotes:<br /><br /><span style="font-family:georgia, bookman old style, palatino linotype, book antiqua, palatino, trebuchet ms, helvetica, garamond, sans-serif, arial, verdana, avante garde, century gothic, comic sans ms, times, times new roman, serif;">I don't intentionally spoil my grandkids. It's just that correcting them often takes more energy than I have left. ~Gene Perret<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:georgia, bookman old style, palatino linotype, book antiqua, palatino, trebuchet ms, helvetica, garamond, sans-serif, arial, verdana, avante garde, century gothic, comic sans ms, times, times new roman, serif;">Grandmas are moms with lots of frosting. ~Author Unknown<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:georgia, bookman old style, palatino linotype, book antiqua, palatino, trebuchet ms, helvetica, garamond, sans-serif, arial, verdana, avante garde, century gothic, comic sans ms, times, times new roman, serif;">Grandfathers are for loving and fixing things. ~Author Unknown<br /><br /></span><span style="font-family:georgia, bookman old style, palatino linotype, book antiqua, palatino, trebuchet ms, helvetica, garamond, sans-serif, arial, verdana, avante garde, century gothic, comic sans ms, times, times new roman, serif;">On the seventh day God rested. His grandchildren must have been out of town. ~Gene Perret</span><br /><br />With much love and appreciation to our parents, thank you!Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-9985838448648129822011-12-22T14:20:00.013-06:002011-12-22T22:10:54.708-06:00Thankful for CaliforniaChristmas came early for the McArnolds this year. Instead of exchanging gifts, almost all of us* traveled to California to spend Thanksgiving week with friends and relatives. <span style="font-style: italic;font-size:85%;" >*Steph had an exam at nursing school that could not be taken at any time but the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. That's my first (and hopefully, only) "BOO...HISS" that I've ever said towards the University of Texas at Arlington.</span><br /><br />My little family flew to LA 3 days early to catch up with friends from our Pasadena years. We were able to see Bert perform in the final weekend of <a href="http://www.donthugme.com/dhm%20one%20website%20dhm%20ip%20page.htm">"Don't Hug Me! I'm Pregnant"</a>, worship with our friends at Agape Christian Church, and spend time with my teaching friends from my 5 years in Glendale. I did not spend enough time eating Armenian pastries, and we are growing accustomed to the feeling of walking away from our visits with tears. There is never enough time.<br /><br />As we drove past our old neighborhood after church, the waterworks began for me. Owen tried to console me with, "You know, I used to see my friend Riley EVERY day in kindergarten, but now I only see him at recess. It's tough, but I know he's still my friend." Not too bad Therapist Arnold; a little bit of his dad in him after all. :) All of that to say that those 5 years were so extremely formative for me as a wife, teacher, friend, and mother. I am so thankful for the friendships and experiences shared in community there. <br /><br />These days flew by quickly, so I only managed 2 photos. One of June on the plane <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG0ow4HZsOyTIAGbvdqmnmUONycmBycvbkH5zmHbYUcm8GPewsGex5b9-8taBBCHncz9u1OH9g99Z7JOXUG-TOUAj5vxxl0XiG3rj3TJD2K4y-XZvYpyhUfSuyAvypJYV4sgaitDXspuo/s1600/SDC13047.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG0ow4HZsOyTIAGbvdqmnmUONycmBycvbkH5zmHbYUcm8GPewsGex5b9-8taBBCHncz9u1OH9g99Z7JOXUG-TOUAj5vxxl0XiG3rj3TJD2K4y-XZvYpyhUfSuyAvypJYV4sgaitDXspuo/s200/SDC13047.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689053044786127490" border="0" /></a><br />and the other of June and Owen with their favorite lap in all of California...Auntie Rae's. If words could express my affection for her, I still wouldn't write them here. Too much to say, dear friend!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNrMp9In_8-3lEq3omMzt6it4d2o0qXReChRfP5dNOnm8DmaHrcn_6sGfSUl4CluJ3mb0rvRFQVXweFcSo-VrsBnvy6MeELZpo8CPcluXKmczOLnJ75jNuegrqO0olL_Emx4KYK-D2hOk/s1600/SDC13051.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNrMp9In_8-3lEq3omMzt6it4d2o0qXReChRfP5dNOnm8DmaHrcn_6sGfSUl4CluJ3mb0rvRFQVXweFcSo-VrsBnvy6MeELZpo8CPcluXKmczOLnJ75jNuegrqO0olL_Emx4KYK-D2hOk/s200/SDC13051.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689053051073299890" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Off to San Diego! All of Mom's family migrated from farms east of Dallas to California after WWII. They plopped themselves down a couple of blocks away from the Pacific Ocean, and her idyllic tales of growing up at the beach begin there. Owen did not hesitate to reacquaint himself with the ocean...he rolled up his pant legs and then proceeded to wade in up to his chest. He looked like a loon walking down the boardwalk with no pants and a hoodie afterward, but then again, there's no dress code on the beach either.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9UTdaOgis28B7J8LoEJ0ZpYhu6yGqpaq_NLKeeY8SsPZrWV9FCDTurSQgr5mQQ9o3yAg_nLz_lGbhusHBYRK1q12zZ2cRXyc-omKT8tlhFt0aDWgoWNOHnKYxOa9Lscl3FzHLZkXQVJ6V/s1600/Owen+at+Beach.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9UTdaOgis28B7J8LoEJ0ZpYhu6yGqpaq_NLKeeY8SsPZrWV9FCDTurSQgr5mQQ9o3yAg_nLz_lGbhusHBYRK1q12zZ2cRXyc-omKT8tlhFt0aDWgoWNOHnKYxOa9Lscl3FzHLZkXQVJ6V/s200/Owen+at+Beach.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689160125581122834" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdd3gUk24oi7LcmEtflel3jLQh4-T9hUR7yjicUky06PpHqwfm14cEnrIdmgZn4lMg2FUl_NkmLTgs75jM8CeqjWrkvxI8NwvoQNrQ0k9oQwjSR-suQygiQMmbEANO7eKJgVgGW62ne00/s1600/SDC13069.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdd3gUk24oi7LcmEtflel3jLQh4-T9hUR7yjicUky06PpHqwfm14cEnrIdmgZn4lMg2FUl_NkmLTgs75jM8CeqjWrkvxI8NwvoQNrQ0k9oQwjSR-suQygiQMmbEANO7eKJgVgGW62ne00/s200/SDC13069.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689054908688234130" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7uDWPpA6igvoIWVDLLxk4TRG3U7RpZsghwsus43ozt6xWEI5fyvARDOlEKDRwat3FTXJJ98rQnYObAYui24OvbQaG8pndnFWxiG9Lt7tHATLD6OTC8GrKkE5ylNght6rVtjXqk3Koqvg/s1600/SDC13071.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7uDWPpA6igvoIWVDLLxk4TRG3U7RpZsghwsus43ozt6xWEI5fyvARDOlEKDRwat3FTXJJ98rQnYObAYui24OvbQaG8pndnFWxiG9Lt7tHATLD6OTC8GrKkE5ylNght6rVtjXqk3Koqvg/s200/SDC13071.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689054917205590706" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8uO3B1ImVGE2qlwZjjppLgVlcQ-f8l65IdlGXZODp8HBIzLlN349xY73Be34eV_D4xHO3MdFpFd2GkmZiQHGUjNrwOQ-JVi6HFulVaFz1Oqti66cOtScSPlP-IoFva3MaoqF5askgAac/s1600/SDC13065.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8uO3B1ImVGE2qlwZjjppLgVlcQ-f8l65IdlGXZODp8HBIzLlN349xY73Be34eV_D4xHO3MdFpFd2GkmZiQHGUjNrwOQ-JVi6HFulVaFz1Oqti66cOtScSPlP-IoFva3MaoqF5askgAac/s200/SDC13065.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689054903234074002" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgegy8AiqUWBVvTwwLgxd26OL6kpnOgJYvPgDQrbW5NwZdFvm5RKKbDNUEKl65pujOEpPP7oZH1s4KJINnm0CM8itM_-Yik0nghmCMARdpBnQDR0b-XYIZBOtladAY0VcEzk3OItN1DKPk/s1600/SDC13070.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgegy8AiqUWBVvTwwLgxd26OL6kpnOgJYvPgDQrbW5NwZdFvm5RKKbDNUEKl65pujOEpPP7oZH1s4KJINnm0CM8itM_-Yik0nghmCMARdpBnQDR0b-XYIZBOtladAY0VcEzk3OItN1DKPk/s200/SDC13070.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689054916597822354" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVjTxV9RH2ckYjjKEzt_WUQa1WqtCtdmzzEE5UvNSEBpl1ub57BW31_G8vhhCssogdTQrg3ig4rYnLPw5VU2JjpAdqWaNWw_5QgWJjzx4k3AEYFF6aJ-MSDavttO7bhgYS_d9-GTnVrkc/s1600/SDC13053.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVjTxV9RH2ckYjjKEzt_WUQa1WqtCtdmzzEE5UvNSEBpl1ub57BW31_G8vhhCssogdTQrg3ig4rYnLPw5VU2JjpAdqWaNWw_5QgWJjzx4k3AEYFF6aJ-MSDavttO7bhgYS_d9-GTnVrkc/s200/SDC13053.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689054057299032194" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_9obwAsbIkTnvJYjMxNMILJxdtr2eIT_XH-eXEsjVvg3And_tm1oiFviAAtiOkZRNQUwy73-a-hZ6vs-YsAAqWqfOkIki932Vxr-PNTaPhiy5A8xU8v3LRSRqcTGWKV1kZhdOONyGAHg/s1600/IMG_3648.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_9obwAsbIkTnvJYjMxNMILJxdtr2eIT_XH-eXEsjVvg3And_tm1oiFviAAtiOkZRNQUwy73-a-hZ6vs-YsAAqWqfOkIki932Vxr-PNTaPhiy5A8xU8v3LRSRqcTGWKV1kZhdOONyGAHg/s200/IMG_3648.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689050606855009826" border="0" /></a><br /><br />June's issue with dirt extends to sand. She stayed in her stroller, even complaining that her wheels were getting dirty. :p But she and Gordon did have some buddy time while they were parked on the beach with one of the best views in the world.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg25UKznJncxTaNUNfUcfvOVw9C1GscMKNz6MxcPLUWWQok63GnuC2aFYQE9p1uREMq8fy7lkz8Io5N5D2Vs4ExvUSHkhYCqFqr88eB9X_H_SvQFzgUEXPn_nwudPc0a-Awvkwys6pSuzA/s1600/SDC13056.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg25UKznJncxTaNUNfUcfvOVw9C1GscMKNz6MxcPLUWWQok63GnuC2aFYQE9p1uREMq8fy7lkz8Io5N5D2Vs4ExvUSHkhYCqFqr88eB9X_H_SvQFzgUEXPn_nwudPc0a-Awvkwys6pSuzA/s200/SDC13056.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689054071682191746" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnSBIRRNGbr_6krMfdG-I38hmYPvCbA7LUzN7OO1gg7l5mCHgXJ7Gvn-Rq9O8DiN4JhwxzJdpiNepjPXESs8mt55IpaJ-5CUnu0vIHGCYftH0-9brwUH5PihngTkNoL-JqUBB6wsEWecdn/s1600/Me+Opa+and+Kids+at+Beach.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnSBIRRNGbr_6krMfdG-I38hmYPvCbA7LUzN7OO1gg7l5mCHgXJ7Gvn-Rq9O8DiN4JhwxzJdpiNepjPXESs8mt55IpaJ-5CUnu0vIHGCYftH0-9brwUH5PihngTkNoL-JqUBB6wsEWecdn/s200/Me+Opa+and+Kids+at+Beach.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689159966505054338" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ11UWGawLslXIjFZS8jMG4sSkB4Y0sv4LyDycJBlmT9b2uumBb30dqIlU2hC8jgaIARvmg4fEBNfcfXbXl-g5HmFUROR7jkkIv2HKF9Fpp7JQ8iNgXx-Edb2bCxq5o6h3GExkJi_uzGg/s1600/IMG_3645.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ11UWGawLslXIjFZS8jMG4sSkB4Y0sv4LyDycJBlmT9b2uumBb30dqIlU2hC8jgaIARvmg4fEBNfcfXbXl-g5HmFUROR7jkkIv2HKF9Fpp7JQ8iNgXx-Edb2bCxq5o6h3GExkJi_uzGg/s200/IMG_3645.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689050600413812130" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSTfc0Aubfc0iZyzNdiIWF1-fR_drtaVxW-E6TzInMHP5dREOOK1_DzXCqb4CsHt5eOqto1wYW8LQ6HdhDiEjZ-nFoxDcsiyHjwTGyhioOasO-JpjyfsE7AoLXw66PWMgdaopwTuF2RFY/s1600/SDC13063.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSTfc0Aubfc0iZyzNdiIWF1-fR_drtaVxW-E6TzInMHP5dREOOK1_DzXCqb4CsHt5eOqto1wYW8LQ6HdhDiEjZ-nFoxDcsiyHjwTGyhioOasO-JpjyfsE7AoLXw66PWMgdaopwTuF2RFY/s200/SDC13063.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689054903509584370" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />We checked in with Uncle Mo and Aunt Linda on day one because if Uncle Mo doesn't see those rascals within hours of a plane landing, you will hear about it! The kids loved playing with Aunt Linda's walker, and Uncle Mo engaged himself with each of his great-grand nephews and niece.<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzzYqxIoGmaLhIp9IRF-x81VoYMVOSUYy0X5I3f0qDxDcz6a-PERJaUs5vUQ5qqaChFgU5eHxkbysLuRd_dtvBUh1atum-y2lysZExb4RJfQb2uWQOVov3fO8J731HV1eBbcBHVY2iJWW-/s1600/SDC13081.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzzYqxIoGmaLhIp9IRF-x81VoYMVOSUYy0X5I3f0qDxDcz6a-PERJaUs5vUQ5qqaChFgU5eHxkbysLuRd_dtvBUh1atum-y2lysZExb4RJfQb2uWQOVov3fO8J731HV1eBbcBHVY2iJWW-/s200/SDC13081.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689055649149120546" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikRYfIsGCVoa4jOsrc51mNcpX9ay_0QSb6djzVCHN3Mp4iS1risFLHHmVM_3SUci7qhSx82Xwu_8ZxInapZMe__Nh1ndEiyjh371pxB9fvDsWWWNXV2z9PbRNgRB_R4PJ_qAhMDV7GGtZz/s1600/SDC13077.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikRYfIsGCVoa4jOsrc51mNcpX9ay_0QSb6djzVCHN3Mp4iS1risFLHHmVM_3SUci7qhSx82Xwu_8ZxInapZMe__Nh1ndEiyjh371pxB9fvDsWWWNXV2z9PbRNgRB_R4PJ_qAhMDV7GGtZz/s200/SDC13077.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689055631441644530" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAdZC9cYK4Y-S-XfinuKqkHLopW-xXm_ALcAkaD8oujLuTohWWkscuQOe7_VGLvYDZfCRdFWeBpY4lQ0UpvC5gMvoWRVz00SwWZVR_TUPTxLCPQOPeGZp6OBM_q5HcyWMGYZ5hhM2BRdNp/s1600/SDC13076.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAdZC9cYK4Y-S-XfinuKqkHLopW-xXm_ALcAkaD8oujLuTohWWkscuQOe7_VGLvYDZfCRdFWeBpY4lQ0UpvC5gMvoWRVz00SwWZVR_TUPTxLCPQOPeGZp6OBM_q5HcyWMGYZ5hhM2BRdNp/s200/SDC13076.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689055625353674242" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3EuJxYDdIG1QrW_1ZSGEabz2lhAChsrpCMHJaL_hS4-LXGFxFJb9-otJBsm8Ot-ZhLv6jVx3LjJ4vQj22VTFiWDlHRZ7w8ZAskbw6VPhFksmR9HcnHXA0GI2EnWvcLm_9UDjV3V19XHnE/s1600/SDC13078.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3EuJxYDdIG1QrW_1ZSGEabz2lhAChsrpCMHJaL_hS4-LXGFxFJb9-otJBsm8Ot-ZhLv6jVx3LjJ4vQj22VTFiWDlHRZ7w8ZAskbw6VPhFksmR9HcnHXA0GI2EnWvcLm_9UDjV3V19XHnE/s200/SDC13078.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689055638705014242" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPXPH2_lFG2o8EKIxzagKoqzlhgvaAlptUCcFHI7KCVqweeWPbyJwV_FzIVgGdXiiuplocwjiTpZBiYhxqhWdRjrYtFWSqkFzPIIeIK0O0EIwSvJBhCADVmM5AQr_l8RMuMkwAVjzY3_0/s1600/IMG_3631.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPXPH2_lFG2o8EKIxzagKoqzlhgvaAlptUCcFHI7KCVqweeWPbyJwV_FzIVgGdXiiuplocwjiTpZBiYhxqhWdRjrYtFWSqkFzPIIeIK0O0EIwSvJBhCADVmM5AQr_l8RMuMkwAVjzY3_0/s200/IMG_3631.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689050592938251458" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Day two found us ready to hit La Jolla beach, where Mom lived from junior high until her odd choice to move to West Texas. Nothing like Abilene, TX to make you miss home your freshman year of college, right? Owen wore proper swim attire...kind of. It is the last week in November and the water was ICE, but it IS a swim suit. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOhj1bg2HsWtotEBBxm9uOfvURZNespxOM3ovifNxKOpgeEyZYhVS5X_GeguFU8sYXBf94IoVs12u1VjfbaEJYQtjCnyZIaNms0c0Ke-MlCZMz-laFhthHWz39K0VITFjYylJQY9g1KMVg/s1600/Owen+at+the+Cove.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOhj1bg2HsWtotEBBxm9uOfvURZNespxOM3ovifNxKOpgeEyZYhVS5X_GeguFU8sYXBf94IoVs12u1VjfbaEJYQtjCnyZIaNms0c0Ke-MlCZMz-laFhthHWz39K0VITFjYylJQY9g1KMVg/s200/Owen+at+the+Cove.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689160122046637522" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7sJy2RNpGkxVzFGJC8vnjH4LRltnFMUCbAPk44AfbeEsGBaFmL4pv-R_czca8GJE0UR1ySTg9WfAE5VtJ0mzp0qNAK66hlp7vipSqVxR-jrnoSZ5k9ewCSoBay5fas7eLEN1jcn9jxOF5/s1600/SDC13083.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7sJy2RNpGkxVzFGJC8vnjH4LRltnFMUCbAPk44AfbeEsGBaFmL4pv-R_czca8GJE0UR1ySTg9WfAE5VtJ0mzp0qNAK66hlp7vipSqVxR-jrnoSZ5k9ewCSoBay5fas7eLEN1jcn9jxOF5/s200/SDC13083.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689055657005159042" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz0P4xWSBwTUdVEofpa4k3xlNk7ItNWG_DMyaW06MwSIkoI0l1F9bHioLAWbwaGikVTl7Ldou4GZ6iihIUniTpGst7SdTVzYyJ5kTe8-6_yYImX2HaeO2bJ4Iq18nZVXt8mbFuYhYpjxM/s1600/IMG_3675.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhz0P4xWSBwTUdVEofpa4k3xlNk7ItNWG_DMyaW06MwSIkoI0l1F9bHioLAWbwaGikVTl7Ldou4GZ6iihIUniTpGst7SdTVzYyJ5kTe8-6_yYImX2HaeO2bJ4Iq18nZVXt8mbFuYhYpjxM/s200/IMG_3675.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051277902785106" border="0" /></a><br /><br />The Cove links me to some of my dearest memories of my grandparents. When I would travel there in the summers, they would walk the path along the cliffs or through town every day. The breeze, the grass, the sea lions, and the views...my grandfather in a seer sucker suit and straw hat...my grandmother with pearls and silky pants. To see Gordon crawling through the same grass, Owen playing on the same beach, and everyone gawking at those sea lions was a sheer treasure. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg645LU_Dnpj2vo_OH60ATQeBGpHXmLF0sxdtMgqRHnUCro5eb7rg9qM0KvogZRJwYNqr6bQ_h8RO3XDXTMfrdvOTeG7mb-Bv4beti8WN2PyBoUgT58M9uyEStrzkLlXqcQk9giKR5mHJU/s1600/IMG_3679.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg645LU_Dnpj2vo_OH60ATQeBGpHXmLF0sxdtMgqRHnUCro5eb7rg9qM0KvogZRJwYNqr6bQ_h8RO3XDXTMfrdvOTeG7mb-Bv4beti8WN2PyBoUgT58M9uyEStrzkLlXqcQk9giKR5mHJU/s200/IMG_3679.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051278473779106" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKsxpDMzC7bHmkRxMg8YzgtXFA2I2PUXbCsbNmNCqQ6H3uYRXQVuk4RyTFWC_2aK63L2208hEBsjfbf_OpBOIhtqsm2ZPYkKgm9e6lU-JYQcVWOMOIDGQis2RVWxs9cFZSb6fRY6ynDc0/s1600/IMG_3686.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKsxpDMzC7bHmkRxMg8YzgtXFA2I2PUXbCsbNmNCqQ6H3uYRXQVuk4RyTFWC_2aK63L2208hEBsjfbf_OpBOIhtqsm2ZPYkKgm9e6lU-JYQcVWOMOIDGQis2RVWxs9cFZSb6fRY6ynDc0/s200/IMG_3686.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051293081218866" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcCKn38QHefpffdjgHWG7bqmpMg-LK1yYpFoXPdX2d7Y18Ze_Qw7c-m2en5V2aEDzfeDUrKr-SbIU9i4FmdQ4GwXUzQPK0z1ODMkfjwWWh__K0QH952oNEvLYTr30sTmdm7UYnX9QKQRU/s1600/IMG_3684.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcCKn38QHefpffdjgHWG7bqmpMg-LK1yYpFoXPdX2d7Y18Ze_Qw7c-m2en5V2aEDzfeDUrKr-SbIU9i4FmdQ4GwXUzQPK0z1ODMkfjwWWh__K0QH952oNEvLYTr30sTmdm7UYnX9QKQRU/s200/IMG_3684.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051281319323442" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu0b48WmNmlOz7qswL1FfoxjCS-3Ns9fp4VRFPWZGX-aJ8HBvPgq9peG7n45JLf-6n6Utwz5ZtYmp0ZFpXwGeDvekzrGlUeea0cnbp3XjBrM4jzJ5rrfKeM9MOf7l3fLQ3MdZjlCAp-F4/s1600/IMG_3692.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu0b48WmNmlOz7qswL1FfoxjCS-3Ns9fp4VRFPWZGX-aJ8HBvPgq9peG7n45JLf-6n6Utwz5ZtYmp0ZFpXwGeDvekzrGlUeea0cnbp3XjBrM4jzJ5rrfKeM9MOf7l3fLQ3MdZjlCAp-F4/s200/IMG_3692.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051299715585746" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkc06lw3btx_ioh6VOkhBM_UjwSW-f_7My0fQWf0qKhMTS6orAZmJRkPnjDCXc4IvZeGU_4GZsORx0p0L3rOYFKVb9aNQtaf8WJdr0LMuTlMJtAdiX8CYEsbpTEmTA0GHuV2o5RHGyp2g/s1600/IMG_3693.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkc06lw3btx_ioh6VOkhBM_UjwSW-f_7My0fQWf0qKhMTS6orAZmJRkPnjDCXc4IvZeGU_4GZsORx0p0L3rOYFKVb9aNQtaf8WJdr0LMuTlMJtAdiX8CYEsbpTEmTA0GHuV2o5RHGyp2g/s200/IMG_3693.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051698468846386" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Finally, Turkey Day! I'm all for tradition, but this year it was nice to do something a little different and yet, still familiar (Unlike the year we had Del Taco for Thanksgiving dinner in Pasadena...that was just odd). We were able to eat the Thanksgiving meal at Mo and Linda's retirement center, and they did an AWESOME job! Uncle Mo and Aunt Linda are now in their 90s, but this is their first year to not live in that same bungalow they built in Pacific Beach more than half a century ago. So it was all of our first time to experience the center's Thanksgiving meal. Here we all are...dressed up and enjoying the dining hall. PS: That is not "The Dude" from The Big Lebowski movie...that is my Uncle Jerry (who secretly loves it when people <span style="font-style: italic;">do</span> mistake him for Jeff Bridges' character).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif_jMUEmzZVAXfCnlCs2w6xozC7WwpQ-7qly_eZSvJeesQEu8tYvvd3HQzdpMAHIjXCQbFeDxUJjeotDAg4zOSzjdZODp7r7H42iF7zzJuUXX4OqeSYKNokWBpCjJWa-wdI025l__pJnM/s1600/IMG_3708.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif_jMUEmzZVAXfCnlCs2w6xozC7WwpQ-7qly_eZSvJeesQEu8tYvvd3HQzdpMAHIjXCQbFeDxUJjeotDAg4zOSzjdZODp7r7H42iF7zzJuUXX4OqeSYKNokWBpCjJWa-wdI025l__pJnM/s200/IMG_3708.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689053023240715442" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB8O6k7UslT-DgE8jVhkHSfrpOCf1Qg9sBq0q6xgINtWML0YD1N1TSskwZPgs7u4sKOUs8DNyFRp9P38MoaJqr00aai0ZXYNlz3hpx_uv1NpkHNn9HjIliCRFSgFOhowesvyOUADiVm3o/s1600/IMG_3706.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiB8O6k7UslT-DgE8jVhkHSfrpOCf1Qg9sBq0q6xgINtWML0YD1N1TSskwZPgs7u4sKOUs8DNyFRp9P38MoaJqr00aai0ZXYNlz3hpx_uv1NpkHNn9HjIliCRFSgFOhowesvyOUADiVm3o/s200/IMG_3706.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689053025600538882" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkwNCTCAXEntA4TAFdbQrw5__z0cw9EzL7nBi0qGzZFf_NHe6_gVDufeu8VNle8sOtfM0ZM9j28r4xAztnE7J9sIDnfex_UppjAr5WoRj73K830Lu-QXdsjOAovnFapkmh0F0S22ehPeg/s1600/IMG_3704.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 134px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkwNCTCAXEntA4TAFdbQrw5__z0cw9EzL7nBi0qGzZFf_NHe6_gVDufeu8VNle8sOtfM0ZM9j28r4xAztnE7J9sIDnfex_UppjAr5WoRj73K830Lu-QXdsjOAovnFapkmh0F0S22ehPeg/s200/IMG_3704.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051713121888210" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikj-loUK-kLvppoBI4TYH4HO0do80M-jcKk8iuA07e4n1Tj6eaLwDWaQCRToKiMK4HdJ5G0MDt3EMzLJCwPLQLA3WGXNhqzYEn0qqL1HGKL09nROZBCItNI-KLM2tvWy0EaDVgnFKo9rA/s1600/IMG_3702.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikj-loUK-kLvppoBI4TYH4HO0do80M-jcKk8iuA07e4n1Tj6eaLwDWaQCRToKiMK4HdJ5G0MDt3EMzLJCwPLQLA3WGXNhqzYEn0qqL1HGKL09nROZBCItNI-KLM2tvWy0EaDVgnFKo9rA/s200/IMG_3702.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051714256354930" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqY51m2k5TQiD_3r2MmhqWSMaG-R_dJE5W6gxVx3JO1gIg2CmB9ULlWwfYVXnfXCX2HR4CIfkiDqDUaRM_U0W2js2uVLmYf83wuSboWMZIWuMKu8QFf-d7LjoiX690HaW7AqnOjo9Xy1Y/s1600/IMG_3701.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqY51m2k5TQiD_3r2MmhqWSMaG-R_dJE5W6gxVx3JO1gIg2CmB9ULlWwfYVXnfXCX2HR4CIfkiDqDUaRM_U0W2js2uVLmYf83wuSboWMZIWuMKu8QFf-d7LjoiX690HaW7AqnOjo9Xy1Y/s200/IMG_3701.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051712346667602" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfJUNPig2pwESpj7p_CFUnvAzPhHgX-Un5nJOaVMJZmgrrSJRM0Cij6gw3g9VUw4NMxBMWs91heCR_qTE4YVgoPFCLWpyHb0eDeZINCiDGy_EdFhOsb_rNModk-lyqyusuHltMh-vvW4U/s1600/IMG_3700.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhfJUNPig2pwESpj7p_CFUnvAzPhHgX-Un5nJOaVMJZmgrrSJRM0Cij6gw3g9VUw4NMxBMWs91heCR_qTE4YVgoPFCLWpyHb0eDeZINCiDGy_EdFhOsb_rNModk-lyqyusuHltMh-vvW4U/s200/IMG_3700.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689051700540110610" border="0" /></a><br /><br />And because my parents are not in enough of these pictures:<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuFZIg3ugtz7SgXwEMQwHTbhuAKwMzo2KDg54lsUSyBQtr19yWjjtFQHDi7NKuPN93OgGkLhtAWYdHFziCzQ_fD8t9VBYE1GBNvpCd3P7QUnKPCSS8_YlS9Q0B8voT1xlXX16Xv9PAU8/s1600/IMG_3626.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 150px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuFZIg3ugtz7SgXwEMQwHTbhuAKwMzo2KDg54lsUSyBQtr19yWjjtFQHDi7NKuPN93OgGkLhtAWYdHFziCzQ_fD8t9VBYE1GBNvpCd3P7QUnKPCSS8_YlS9Q0B8voT1xlXX16Xv9PAU8/s200/IMG_3626.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5689050588095491874" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Michael and Lee are also conspicuously absent from many pictures too. I think that's a good thing. They were busy wrangling kids, riding bikes on the beach, and surfing. I was able to go on a great walk then stop on the beach to think about the week's events. As I sat on the continent's edge, listening to the waves hit the shore as the sun glittered off the sand, I couldn't help but recall this verse from Ezekiel:<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br />Suddenly, the glory of the God of Israel appeared from the east. The sound of his coming was like the roar of rushing waters, and the whole landscape shone with his glory.</span><br /><br />It was a beautiful moment in a long and satisfying trip.Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-73788814897511217642011-12-22T13:44:00.003-06:002011-12-22T21:23:39.931-06:00Summer Reading and Beyond...<style>@font-face { font-family: "Cambria"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1;II</style>I compiled this list mostly for <a href="http://30intx.blogspot.com/">Kelly S.</a> I like to steal from her reading lists, but for anyone else looking to curl up with a good book over your break, here's what I've been reading since this summer:<br /><br /><p class="MsoNormal" style=""><a href="http://img1.fantasticfiction.co.uk/images/n56/n282507.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 136px; height: 204px;" src="http://img1.fantasticfiction.co.uk/images/n56/n282507.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-style: italic;">The Centurion’s Wife</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="font-style: italic;">The Hidden Flame</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><span style="font-style: italic;">The Damascus Way</span><span style="">, </span><span style=""> </span>all by Davis Bunn and Janette Oke</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="">I enjoyed this trilogy, but I LOVE historical fiction. My fascination with early Christianity AND the Roman empire means that these were right up my alley.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal" style=""> </p> <p class="MsoNormal" style=""><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles"><br /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">First Light</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">Second Touch</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">Third Watch</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">Fourth Dawn</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">Fifth Seal</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">Sixth Covenant</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">Seventh Day</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">Eighth Shepherd</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">Ninth Witness</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles">Tenth Stone</a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://www.thoenebooks.com/bookList.asp?series=A.D.+Chronicles"><span style="font-style: italic;">Eleventh Quest</span>,<span style=""> </span>all by Bodie and Brock Thoene</a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Okay, I'll admit that I end up reading a lot of series. If a book has a follow up, I must continue reading. Even to a fault. Unfortunately for me when I began the AD Chronicles, I didn't know there were 11 (!) books. I also didn't know that one of the last books would be dedicated to Sarah Palin. But, let's not hold that against the authors. Some books were better than others, but I really appreciated the imagination it took to develop some of these minor characters in the Gospels. I don't think I'll ever consider the leper or the shepherds, in particular, in the same light again. All Zionist politics from the Thoenes aside, a good series overall.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal">The above books were my summer. I felt that with going back to work, I had to get all my reading in while the days were long...and when I could take a nap the next day after staying up too late reading.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Now for my school reading...you'll notice a trend away from the first century and in to dystopian fiction. That's my other guilty pleasure. Who wants to read about some unattainable utopia when you could get lost in the dysfunctions of human attempts to create viable and long-term societies? The Suzanne Collins and Michael Grant books are both in the young adult genre, but the Grant books I would save for a high school kiddo with an ability to discern and discuss the choices made by the central characters.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal">The Hunger Games</p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal">Catching Fire</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: italic;">Mocking Jay</span><span style="">, </span>all by Suzanne Collins (can't wait for the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgssLmsOa2s">movie adaptation</a> of this trilogy)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gone_%28series%29"><br /></a></p><p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gone_%28series%29">Gone</a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gone_%28series%29">Hunger </a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gone_%28series%29">Lies</a></p> <p class="MsoNormal"><a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gone_%28series%29">Plague</a>,<span style=""> </span>all by Michael Grant (book 5 due out in April!)<br /></p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://dianamican.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/the-handmaids-tale.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 114px; height: 174px;" src="http://dianamican.files.wordpress.com/2010/11/the-handmaids-tale.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a><span style="font-style: italic;">The Handmaid’s Tale</span><span style="">, </span>by Margaret Atwood</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Other Boleyn Girl</span>,<span style=""> </span>by Philippa Gregory</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> (a brief relapse into historical fiction...fast forwarding to the 16th century, of course. Another Gregory book is my next read)</p><p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51qVo7%2BUPbL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg"><br /></a></p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal">The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo</p> <p style="font-style: italic;" class="MsoNormal">The Girl who Plays with Fire</p> <p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-style: italic;">The Girl who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest</span><span style="">, </span>all by Stieg Larsson</p><p class="MsoNormal"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51qVo7%2BUPbL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 211px; height: 211px;" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51qVo7%2BUPbL._BO2,204,203,200_PIsitb-sticker-arrow-click,TopRight,35,-76_AA300_SH20_OU01_.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a></p><p class="MsoNormal">I won't be watching any of the movie adaptations of the Larsson books. One thing I appreciate about reading is that my mind tends to limit the amount of visualization I can do without having nightmares. If a scene is particularly graphic or gruesome, I can only imagine it as far as my fears will let me. In a movie, the scene plays out, presumably, as the director intends and that is often farther than my nerves or thoughts would prefer to extend. To sum it up, the Swedish title to the first book is translated to read "Men Who Hate Women"...I think that original title better illustrates a lot of the scenes that I'd rather not replay or have in my mind again. Still, Lisbeth Salander filled my first 3 days of Christmas break, including a last minute trip to the library to check out book 3.<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">Suggestions for 2012?<br /></p>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-88938856434712047452011-12-22T13:35:00.002-06:002011-12-22T13:44:13.938-06:00Owen's Definitive Guide to Cursing: Part 2About a week after our last chat about "bad" words, Owen asks me in the car:<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">"Mom, is a$$ a bad word?"</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">"Yes."</span> <span style="font-size:85%;">I mean, I don't even like to type it. ;)</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">"I don't think it is."</span> <span style="font-size:85%;">Of course you don't. Why believe anything I say? Why even ask me? What do I know?</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">"Well, some people think it is. Either way, it's not a word our family is in the habit of using." </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Define habit...</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">"I still don't think it's bad." </span><span style="font-size:85%;">A little Owen-sensor finally dings in my brain; it tells me we are not on the same page.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">"What do <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">you </span>think it means, O?"</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);">"I don't know <span style="font-style: italic;">exactly</span>."</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(153, 51, 153);">"Use it in a sentence." </span> <span style="font-size:85%;">At this point, he's kind of fired up from me disagreeing with him, so in a raised voice he says from the backseat,</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-size:180%;" >"THE SMOKE FROM VOLCANOES MAKES A LOT OF A$$."</span><br /><br />Remind me to make an appointment with the school's speech pathologist.Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-35383105454176094222011-12-20T08:38:00.003-06:002011-12-20T08:50:53.931-06:00Awww, Shrimp!<span style="font-weight: bold;">Owen's Definitive Guide to Cursing</span><br /><br />We have our friends Bert and Rae to thank for so many things in our lives...a deep and abiding friendship, a place to stay whenever we come to LA, Owen's love for all things Star Wars, and, most recently, a revelatory conversation of every curse word Owen knows.<br /><br />Bert is a big movie buff, and the guest room where Owen slept over Thanksgiving led to many questions about the Indiana Jones, Star Wars, and Back to the Future memorabilia hanging on the walls and on the shelves. The tale of Marty McFly going back in time most captured his attention, and he wanted to know if he could watch it on Netflix. <br /><br />"When you're older."<br />"Why? Is it inappropriate?"<br />"Yes."<br />"Does it have bad words?"<br />"Yes." (You see how I keep it simple. No need to elaborate on all of the other reasons he can't watch it...stereotypes of Libyans, explanations of "who is Calvin Klein?", the character Biff as a whole, etc.)<br />"Perhaps, Mom, I DO know a lot of bad words." <span style="font-size:85%;">Yes, Owen uses the word "perhaps" whenever he is trying to make his point. Read: he uses the word perhaps more than any one else I know.</span><br /><br />Long pause..."Lay it on me. What words do you know?"<br />No pause. "The H-word, S-word, B-word, and a few SH-words."<br />I refrained from exhaling any of those words from under my breath. Another deep breath.<br />"Oh, really?" I pretend I know none of those words. "What does that mean..."the H-word"?<br /><br />He whispers..."Hate."<br /><br /><br />My shoulders relax from the anxiety, I hold in a chuckle, and I ask him to go on.<br />"Also, Stupid, butt, and shut up."<br />I concur that none of these words build people up, and we enjoy a comfortable silence.<br /><br />"Oh, and Mom...you know I don't say these words, but there is another one that is very mean...you know, "SHRIMP". You should never call someone a shrimp."<br /><br />Now, I laugh.Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-27983386732138782422011-11-26T15:55:00.003-06:002011-11-26T16:24:17.255-06:00Character BuildingOwen's school skirts the dressing up for Halloween issue by having a "Storybook Character Day". Moms across the neighborhood groan because the Halloween costume most of the kids are wearing is NOT literacy related. So, we end up with two costumes. The girls have a ton of dress up clothes (Angelina Ballerina and Pinkalicious were the most popular, Owen said), but the dudes? From where does the second costume come?<br /><br />Even though Owen had a Star Wars costume planned (and plenty of Star Wars literature to carry around school), he wanted to dress up like one of the guys from his current favorite book "The Official Guide to Lego Ninjago". Yes, I realize that this is a lame attempt at a "book", but give a 6 year old guy free reign at the school "book" fair, and you get what you get. I said fine, as long as he picked a hero.<br /><br />You see, if you're going to emulate someone ALL day, I'd rather it not be Lord Garmedon, whose hobbies are "planning escape and revenge against Sensui Wu; lying and deceiving." (source: The Official Guide to Lego Ninjago). We need the villains as non-examples, but I don't need my son to be mimicking every evil move in an effort to stay in character all day. I steered him towards the heroes section and asked him to find a character who had traits he admired or would want to see in himself. He finally picked Kai, the red ninja. What character traits did he admire? "Mom, look at his hobbies: Music & breakdancing." Close enough...and they do have similar angry eyebrows.<br /><br /><a href="http://images.wikia.com/ninjago/images/2/29/Kai.png"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 328px; height: 308px;" src="http://images.wikia.com/ninjago/images/2/29/Kai.png" alt="" border="0" /></a><br />As Owen sat at the kitchen table trying to brainstorm how to match the costume with what we have at the house (read: my mom is too cheap to buy a second costume), I read on about Ninja Kai...and immediately started laughing.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0); font-weight: bold;">"Brave, reckless, daring, stubborn, inspiring, infuriating - all of these describe Kai, the Ninja of Fire. Of all my ninja, he was the most difficult to train...not because he lacked the skill, but because he lacked patience and was reluctant to listen to anyone else. Still, I saw potential in him." </span>(again, "The Official Guide...")<br /><br />If you know O, you are shaking your head slowly in agreement. If you don't know O, you do now. Psychologists theorize that core personality traits are developed before the age of 6. From this point on, I know that I am parenting the Ninja of Fire.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo-htLXey0xCdb3CVjDvxEF0_hzSuQ7517g_T3Zy8SMhno7ppLxWMQUyCz29QPE3uOKI6-tC3V2qgTrUe_g6-GOqSWpkiCAaOQfpz2kGmdElVs4wmuPQr2-HsCLX5oN48p7JGy6a6CcME/s1600/Kai+the+Ninja.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo-htLXey0xCdb3CVjDvxEF0_hzSuQ7517g_T3Zy8SMhno7ppLxWMQUyCz29QPE3uOKI6-tC3V2qgTrUe_g6-GOqSWpkiCAaOQfpz2kGmdElVs4wmuPQr2-HsCLX5oN48p7JGy6a6CcME/s400/Kai+the+Ninja.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5679431355972592354" border="0" /></a>"Kai" with his Grammy (as the Cat in the Hat)<br /></div><br />For those of you wondering how you can recreate this outfit at home:<br /><ul><li>black skeleton Halloween pj pants on inside out</li><li>red school shirt, also on inside out (a plain red t-shirt would be too classy)</li><li>Mom's black knee-high tied around your waist</li><li>put on another red shirt, then take it off, but not all the way. Stop it at your big melon. Then drape it around your neck like a lady and have your mom safety pin it.</li><li>Finally, get your mom's big hair-tie thingy...you know the one like the soccer girls wear and put it on like Rambo. I know you don't feel like Rambo...if you were any older than 6, you might realize that you actually look like a cross-dressing sleepwalker, but since you are 6, you happily march off to school as a ninja in a homemade costume.</li><li>Cost: $0 now, hundreds in therapy later.<br /></li></ul>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-91048773529059796602011-11-14T15:49:00.003-06:002011-11-14T16:06:31.694-06:00Back to WorkA lot* of people have asked how my new job is going. <span style="font-size:78%;">*By “a lot” read: an elder's wife, a neighbor, and my boss. </span>After 3 months, I wanted to document where I am at with the whole "back to work" thing.<br /><br />I’m a teacher with no “classroom”…but my life is still run by bells. Nothing hearkens one back to the sounds of industrialism's golden age like a bell set to ring at 2:03 pm every day. That’s the start of 7th period.<br /><br />Gone are my 75 to 160 students; here are my 40 teachers. I’m not an administrator or evaluator; I am a support teacher. I am to Tim Gunn as the principals for whom I work are to Nina, Michael, and Heidi. I’ll leave it to them to figure out which one of them is Heidi. As for the teachers (contestants)? Well, it is one wild season. <span style="font-size:78%;">Does my Project Runway analogy reveal too much into my Thursday evenings for you? :P I have to cope with the stress somehow.<br /></span><br />My unofficial job description is to support teacher growth in classroom management, lesson planning, instruction, and assessment. No day is the same, but in the course of a week, you could find me:<br /><br />Co-writing lesson plans<br />Cutting out and laminating manipulatives<br />Compiling assessment data<br />Modeling a lesson<br />Emailing documents between two campuses (I split my time between 2 high schools)<br />Facilitating a team meeting<br />Daydreaming about the next weekend or vacation day with my family<br />Collaborating with the support teachers from other subjects<br />Researching end-of-course exams from other states<br />Doing any random task a teacher or administrator asks...and there have been some doozies<br />Listening…a lot of listening.<br /><br />I’m still working on that part: the listening. If you marry your opposite, consider that my husband is a therapist. He listens all day long. I talk all day long. The discipline of <em>listening </em>to a teacher or team of teachers flesh out a problem, discuss a grievance, share a hardship, or elaborate on a plan has been good for me. I am so blessed to hear what our AMAZING teachers need to say and want to share. <span style="color:#6600cc;">I’m working on being someone who knows more of what she says than saying what she knows. <strong>Toughest part of the job, <em>by far.</em><br /></strong></span><br />Make no mistake, this job is a gift, but I would be remiss not to tell you that it is a gift that comes in a big box with 1,000 pieces and no instructions. And on most days, I am happily working with my eyebrows furrowed and chewing the inside of my lip as I tackle today’s unexpected opportunity. <br /><br />Now, back to work.<br /><br />PS: a post with no pictures and little mention of my children is a rarity. Don't worry, Grandmom, I'll return to our regularly scheduled programming soon with Halloween photos. :)Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-83181303519599798072011-09-12T22:00:00.002-05:002011-09-12T22:17:12.185-05:00Trouble Sleeping??So, Mommy is at Back to School Night and can't tuck you in? This change in routine might be upsetting to some and impede their bedtime routine. What to do? I don't know. <br /><br />But here's what NOT to do:<br /><br />#1 Don't sleep on your comfy bed. Make a pallet for yourself on the floor.<br />#2 Don't bother with comfy clothes. Add an itchy, polyester tutu from your bottom drawer. Pull that over your monkey pajamas. Don't look at the monkeys...they'll give you nightmares.<br />#3 Don't invest in a sleep mask. A pair of sunglasses works just fine. Hint: wear them upside down so they pinch your nose. Might help with the sleep apnea or snoring...pending FDA approval.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4NMZ7EYntbBUTkv0bBbfYuLi22m68H-GLhLU4v-qWHM8ibPN-6l-gYShcnoz7Hf16XtNu5qJphrpHsoVwBDEBJ8J5sk7oKkMkuTBzZGsXEWO_UIGWNhLy-0-E-gzW33wbHtxVm1-nGc/s1600/SDC13025.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgY4NMZ7EYntbBUTkv0bBbfYuLi22m68H-GLhLU4v-qWHM8ibPN-6l-gYShcnoz7Hf16XtNu5qJphrpHsoVwBDEBJ8J5sk7oKkMkuTBzZGsXEWO_UIGWNhLy-0-E-gzW33wbHtxVm1-nGc/s400/SDC13025.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5651674440372267490" border="0" /></a>#4 Don't cuddle with any of your soft lovies. Choose a naked plastic baby and cuddle her feet first. (Maybe her baby doll is a breech baby too?)<br />#5 Don't sleep on your regular pillow. Drag a boppy out of your closet to get your neck creaked just enough to let visions of chiropractic care dance in your head.<br />#6 Don't worry about a bedtime snack. Play Russian roulette with an old sippy cup. Could be water, could be homemade yogurt.<br />#7 Don't worry about bedhead. Did you look in the mirror before you laid down? Already there.<br />#8 Don't bother covering yourself up with a blanket. Leave it to catch the pee that would have otherwise been caught by the pullup you took off and left on the other side of the baby gate.<br />#9 Don't skip nighttime prayers. You've obviously stolen your brother's race car and Buzz Lightyear. Repentance is like a glass of warm milk. <br /><br />Yet, she's asleep. Maybe she's onto something after all.<br /><br />Whatever your bedtime routine may be, I say, "Sleep tight! Don't let the bedbugs bite."Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-78516580946111020242011-08-29T18:46:00.002-05:002011-08-29T18:55:03.735-05:001st Grade Boy (plus one Wannabe)1st Grade, here he comes!
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyX9bHXleJdGTlH52ROA-jvHlLjLHmt0aIHkBPnKWKjvbSDNv-jBF9Qt3tXdoVEkhvHgfXb8sfRm67I1lBp8stGBmeaPP9sp4Sltydm57hs9pudRxzSH1XIdBszQFLrPTfcIVqd4wiQSg/s1600/SDC12879.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyX9bHXleJdGTlH52ROA-jvHlLjLHmt0aIHkBPnKWKjvbSDNv-jBF9Qt3tXdoVEkhvHgfXb8sfRm67I1lBp8stGBmeaPP9sp4Sltydm57hs9pudRxzSH1XIdBszQFLrPTfcIVqd4wiQSg/s400/SDC12879.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646428796235866306" border="0" /></a>Yes, that's a B-Boy shirt he's sportin'. Thanks to "The Electric Company" and "So You Think You Can Dance," Owen spends a lot of time beat boxing, rhyming, and working on his dance moves. It's a hilarious stage...if it's a stage.
<br />
<br />June wanted to wear her skeleton shirt for her first day. That's the beauty of being 2: you can.
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif5SoiB5ZNLdhPk7uC__DHyr8ZQEbjQtLcm4lPYHKLDZ8MG5AzS8Jgu1qXidM_wiEtNEoayg7pI2bAWeZaRjuFplX2waHm6y8XFlulMpvLb6XqjwZUwLZHdhGgNaTuyC6b43NG8nUMCkY/s1600/SDC12880.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 323px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif5SoiB5ZNLdhPk7uC__DHyr8ZQEbjQtLcm4lPYHKLDZ8MG5AzS8Jgu1qXidM_wiEtNEoayg7pI2bAWeZaRjuFplX2waHm6y8XFlulMpvLb6XqjwZUwLZHdhGgNaTuyC6b43NG8nUMCkY/s400/SDC12880.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646428802467920210" border="0" /></a>
<br />
<br />And for those of you wondering, Michael is still not a morning person.
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpXAL-Q6ceeth9Gw-0soyJGSv37lNbcal-07j2WXuXxPkskmehhBAvV8Gw56cPDjRw0HiEvSQ0VW0gcnWCSluHxmrPGH6ReAeNNt68GOSR2INZwdZIUa3Qx7MN2TOFx6e3isckZoedttQ/s1600/SDC12882.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 288px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpXAL-Q6ceeth9Gw-0soyJGSv37lNbcal-07j2WXuXxPkskmehhBAvV8Gw56cPDjRw0HiEvSQ0VW0gcnWCSluHxmrPGH6ReAeNNt68GOSR2INZwdZIUa3Qx7MN2TOFx6e3isckZoedttQ/s400/SDC12882.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5646428808482450706" border="0" /></a>
<br />As for my first day back, I forgot to take a self portrait. Stalkers can hunt me down on some high school's website. :P
<br />
<br />Here's to a great year of loving and learning!
<br />Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-70505015439873525892011-08-20T23:26:00.002-05:002011-08-20T23:54:24.763-05:00Excuse me while I lie to myself...<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUes27bhRmx_zv_-SVK4KhhTZnQV7fG7ixgL4dYYYdRHBFvcTDxpIekiMH7xO9jvPKDAMek2gHh2B3XrUf4vfQcdlxJloaPc3pYtmh0kzNLD5nAILDqfFuA9I6zyScqx8I1mbSt5cyZDg/s1600/SDC12805.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUes27bhRmx_zv_-SVK4KhhTZnQV7fG7ixgL4dYYYdRHBFvcTDxpIekiMH7xO9jvPKDAMek2gHh2B3XrUf4vfQcdlxJloaPc3pYtmh0kzNLD5nAILDqfFuA9I6zyScqx8I1mbSt5cyZDg/s400/SDC12805.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643161304101333778" border="0" /></a>
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq9XllxCVXrGVaWkTtTpakKhhZE3ND7lvuxlchKkB48aUNnDGEMcXklJlw9NsTKcGxz2WLns5Om3CfBBPs8MWpgyOczRfdmhXhWs1P-O4JYarDxQffszcLKUcON5uClcaTw5FNd1dLBqA/s1600/SDC12806.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq9XllxCVXrGVaWkTtTpakKhhZE3ND7lvuxlchKkB48aUNnDGEMcXklJlw9NsTKcGxz2WLns5Om3CfBBPs8MWpgyOczRfdmhXhWs1P-O4JYarDxQffszcLKUcON5uClcaTw5FNd1dLBqA/s400/SDC12806.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643161297572892866" border="0" /></a>
<br />You should be aware that the pictures in this post are not designed to show our full experience with swim lessons. They are designed to ensure that I enroll my kids NEXT summer because my brain will remember these photos...not the actual events that transpired before and after leaving the pool. Also, it was difficult to take pictures while motivating people to put on their suit, get in the car, drying tears, processing fears, discussing why we learn to swim, and handling the pent up post lesson emotions. So much for the lazy days of summer. :)
<br />
<br />
<br />That being said, once O got in the pool, he was his typical "school persona". When at school, he listens very well, focuses on the task at hand, and aims to please. The coaches at the YMCA were AWESOME, and I would recommend swim lessons there for any beginning swimmer. The lessons themselves were never the issue; it was the emotions that came with them and how to handle those emotions.
<br />
<br />O and Coach M. She was patient and calm and she followed up on an off the cuff promise she made to Owen. Two thumbs up!
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT_Z0-F_tMyBPeKH9wAt8b3xZbXUhVMNuoGIM0anb47jusKt2a0yGtWyE8pMtp4WBUmvdSTl-EFTTAKbL4HJcjfTWoRN4Kld-ND474_SpuLlh9fmj21mU465FN0QjyQrEUHdukg3DNeTk/s1600/SDC12820.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 366px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjT_Z0-F_tMyBPeKH9wAt8b3xZbXUhVMNuoGIM0anb47jusKt2a0yGtWyE8pMtp4WBUmvdSTl-EFTTAKbL4HJcjfTWoRN4Kld-ND474_SpuLlh9fmj21mU465FN0QjyQrEUHdukg3DNeTk/s400/SDC12820.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643158324395773794" border="0" /></a>
<br />After two weeks of lessons, Owen looked at me and said, "I thought you said I would be able to swim after two weeks." Hmmmm...am I a liar? What I should have said was, "I didn't realize that you would be carried into the swimming facility, literally, kicking and screaming. I'm sure the stress of such an experience might have limited your ability to acquire the skills necessary to swim or distracted you from absorbing the full intent of the lessons." So, we went back for two more weeks, wanting to end on a high note. Or, I'm a glutton for punishment.
<br />
<br />Praise God (literally, for we prayed for a better behind the scenes experience), weeks 3 and 4 were better. Coach C was a gift! I kept wanting to ask him what he was studying in college because he is a natural teacher. The kids connected with him, and he navigated that tricky balance between motivating the kids out of their "safe" spot and pushing them too far where they were too anxious to try new things. Owen did much better these weeks. I guess I forgot what a creature of habit he is, and he finally adapted to the "swim routine". Sweet mercies!
<br />
<br />
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz-_u-zeRRMWui3BHAdoYpEWwC8MOHlOnmTzR-L8zY968n50KSD5CJIam2HPXtl0R5QKg5WDUb3Hi8bljWCMRtsNvFyudeHkvLTWZwlxwQEVz1mvOoaZ9MVjAwT9nC-GFGUwn1jl0FI70/s1600/SDC12811.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 216px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjz-_u-zeRRMWui3BHAdoYpEWwC8MOHlOnmTzR-L8zY968n50KSD5CJIam2HPXtl0R5QKg5WDUb3Hi8bljWCMRtsNvFyudeHkvLTWZwlxwQEVz1mvOoaZ9MVjAwT9nC-GFGUwn1jl0FI70/s400/SDC12811.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643158335292704978" border="0" /></a>
<br />June, on the other hand, LOVED the experience. So much, in fact, that she did spend most lessons in the YMCA child care center. She tried to take her clothes off and get in with Owen every time, so maybe one of my kids will be a swimmer after all. It was a bit distracting for all parties though, so she played with her little friends in the air conditioned play area. She didn't know how good she had it because it is a hot 30 minutes on the side watching people swim while you sit on hot concrete.
<br />
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIRdsb5G5xH7jxXx_upyhUkgkQzYVD7riBNoVejCN7OhW2hKKKzApQgv-00LRLLnP97s9MRJCvT6nGgzF_oUdIQiAewoRBZ-UH8cNURJi2pC-xa-BkdQlWSNqJMTC8A7l-HBxBYvF2FqU/s1600/SDC12808.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 298px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIRdsb5G5xH7jxXx_upyhUkgkQzYVD7riBNoVejCN7OhW2hKKKzApQgv-00LRLLnP97s9MRJCvT6nGgzF_oUdIQiAewoRBZ-UH8cNURJi2pC-xa-BkdQlWSNqJMTC8A7l-HBxBYvF2FqU/s400/SDC12808.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643158331877219474" border="0" /></a>
<br />The last day, the kids get to go down the big slide. For most of the kids, this is a big motivator. For mine, it's an episode of "Fear Factor."
<br />
<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLPe18xiyydvh4Gcjz0JjVsoNwIerATUGToN_3KITj1wsafVhvHPHWx00P6tNzt8gl9guNZgnWUk_ksnXptqfacYO6ZWHMzILkNI588SNjjkoQAonH1yad9_wYxA3ej-ON3VVo3wrGygo/s1600/SDC12814.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLPe18xiyydvh4Gcjz0JjVsoNwIerATUGToN_3KITj1wsafVhvHPHWx00P6tNzt8gl9guNZgnWUk_ksnXptqfacYO6ZWHMzILkNI588SNjjkoQAonH1yad9_wYxA3ej-ON3VVo3wrGygo/s400/SDC12814.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643158328837983922" border="0" /></a>
<br />
<br />Did I mention we all got reacquainted with some verses from Joshua, sung in the car, in the locker room, at the pool side..."Be strong and courageous and do not be afraid. The Lord goes with you each and every day. He'll never forsake you. Don't be afraid." It's true...both for Mom and Son.
<br />
<br />And here he is on the last day.
<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKa9M3BtpJNl_xIFECgpAuBz2s9clpdfJzGI2vslAi9iismz0H93Z-4trJmM9eqT1TQq6JYK6h8HsvvdHVvdMHijlkTXWyuxmebY2tqxjjz1SOKzKBOzKlMV8zg9ag2GLRmj6_uxqpPr0/s1600/SDC12804.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKa9M3BtpJNl_xIFECgpAuBz2s9clpdfJzGI2vslAi9iismz0H93Z-4trJmM9eqT1TQq6JYK6h8HsvvdHVvdMHijlkTXWyuxmebY2tqxjjz1SOKzKBOzKlMV8zg9ag2GLRmj6_uxqpPr0/s400/SDC12804.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5643158313840719218" border="0" /></a>
<br />Oh, and the delicious irony of Owen...now that lessons are over, we go to this same pool and instead of splashing and playing, he does drills for himself. He picks a skill and does reps until he can go farther than he's gone before. Coach C had lifeguard duty the other day and just shook his head at Owen. He said, "Umm, where was this motivation last month?" Buried deep, Coach, buried very, very deep. All's well that ends well, right?
<br />
<br />
<br />Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-65992360620869553342011-07-16T11:19:00.002-05:002011-07-16T11:36:00.803-05:00Our HomeFrom McKinney to San Diego to Paris to Houston to Fort Worth to Searcy to Athens to Searcy to Pasadena to Fort Worth to Fresno and to Fort Worth...<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Your decrees have been the theme of my songs, <span style="font-weight: bold;">wherever I have lived</span>.<br /> Psalm 119:54<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW1S90xfgo2_oL5yUAVSESpUHfundiGX8e5ULSS60w6fyfc5_b4UKQArKaelWlKZDEgXiyjKuRHnit1oyzeS40zjg7YXngy4ZthoNubbmdcU7CoUyr9OfiWd03e4sGCjwCES0bbswElY8/s1600/SDC12797.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW1S90xfgo2_oL5yUAVSESpUHfundiGX8e5ULSS60w6fyfc5_b4UKQArKaelWlKZDEgXiyjKuRHnit1oyzeS40zjg7YXngy4ZthoNubbmdcU7CoUyr9OfiWd03e4sGCjwCES0bbswElY8/s400/SDC12797.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5629985919748112834" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Praising God, once again, for His faithfulness, forgiveness, and provision,<br />shown to me through every age and stage of my life. <br /></div></div>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-82408767185445665872011-07-13T17:40:00.006-05:002011-07-16T11:19:27.447-05:00Catch Us If You Can...Summer is in full swing (103 degrees) and so are we. Summer schedules (packing, moving, unpacking, swim lessons, grandparent time, play time, popsicle time) are not for the faint of heart. Still, June is taking it in stride.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP90kOB_or7wN1Nwse757sXFWGRfHZwhXDG7DsrLSo_ak7VsGzq76z3W71baswudhR6vM_TQVodqls8WK7P7We4Lfzxgh6_wNBHz8w3VmwlE_D4mmx_mnvYbkw_osvKlp7sGt5ryDn9lI/s1600/SDC12778.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhP90kOB_or7wN1Nwse757sXFWGRfHZwhXDG7DsrLSo_ak7VsGzq76z3W71baswudhR6vM_TQVodqls8WK7P7We4Lfzxgh6_wNBHz8w3VmwlE_D4mmx_mnvYbkw_osvKlp7sGt5ryDn9lI/s400/SDC12778.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628973135293682402" border="0" /></a>Yep, that's how she leaves the house. I said, "Let's go to Sushi's." She said, "I be right back." 2 minutes later, she emerges with her shades, purse, princess ball, and a discovered sucker. A diva moment, for sure.<br /><br />Aside from grandma visits, we've been busy with a list of to-do's and to-go's.<br /><br />Here's a pic of June smiling, getting ready for "my Bible class...my animals". That's June-speak for <a href="http://www.thehills.org">our church's</a> vacation bible school. This year was the story of God's passion for us and promise to us, told through the <a href="http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=genesis%206&version=NLT">story of Noah</a>. She is still asking to go to class and wears her shirt as soon as it comes out of the dryer.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_fiN1UqKmzUXsThQ2zx22VbIGb-0RYhT2EhQI_kyfLraYlfOiitDhKzwHmaRCjtDm77KQETJ_yUfmSwdyhv-Da4oRlFV8f7x_7XBlIzExKJMaLtyMbhNgfUKJHb8QUZNJcRhsKg2pZJA/s1600/SDC12794.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_fiN1UqKmzUXsThQ2zx22VbIGb-0RYhT2EhQI_kyfLraYlfOiitDhKzwHmaRCjtDm77KQETJ_yUfmSwdyhv-Da4oRlFV8f7x_7XBlIzExKJMaLtyMbhNgfUKJHb8QUZNJcRhsKg2pZJA/s400/SDC12794.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628973160682841202" border="0" /></a><br />Owen has gone crazy from two back to back sessions of swim lessons. See how the chlorine is affecting his brain?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0D-EYsJxij8MSMdhqTu2VlpVlyN0uK2Sf9FnmJEvwN_74Ht9bBEEda6nTTZay4PHYdQ5bONuCwam_pd8NLNE6spxmKHW3iCvp_lIsNxHklwNzYOssV-qR-TzAQ_A_I6arQUec577kqJk/s1600/SDC12781.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0D-EYsJxij8MSMdhqTu2VlpVlyN0uK2Sf9FnmJEvwN_74Ht9bBEEda6nTTZay4PHYdQ5bONuCwam_pd8NLNE6spxmKHW3iCvp_lIsNxHklwNzYOssV-qR-TzAQ_A_I6arQUec577kqJk/s400/SDC12781.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628973145522767906" border="0" /></a><br />This is the tough guy face. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidv3v3TlcUbiYyHWBVI-ogsjayIsZ04SahjKu5E1gCpSfs4-IhZS3eDJOK1-ylsueSYrPnoib6t1snZiV4LvsOPSA9vku_ZuXxS3JvUfgeBzMKPPGDHcgb9f0ELZIgTCnZF3k0gQiRtmA/s1600/SDC12779.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidv3v3TlcUbiYyHWBVI-ogsjayIsZ04SahjKu5E1gCpSfs4-IhZS3eDJOK1-ylsueSYrPnoib6t1snZiV4LvsOPSA9vku_ZuXxS3JvUfgeBzMKPPGDHcgb9f0ELZIgTCnZF3k0gQiRtmA/s400/SDC12779.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628973140431705106" border="0" /></a>Even after a <a href="http://mcarnolds.blogspot.com/2008/08/end-of-summer-wrap-up.html">2 year hiatus from swim lessons (or perhaps because of a 2 year hiatus)</a>, the daily trip to the Y was met by weeping and gnashing of teeth. Fortunately for his coach, he suspended all surliness during the lesson, tried his best, and summoned courage on a daily basis. We'll keep practicing.<br /><br />Sadly, we won't be practicing here:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUOH5sLF7Wh0moLSCj-HlOYXQGUI-CDftJjRggkkOvdLDJQWic971MzWKfP7egnESoWbKo72awGQYl_K5VXXFgF-3vIbRpAS33qr_8eJPyjw-DriEnPSiGwEG8SAE95cywY54XY_3Qysw/s1600/SDC12761.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUOH5sLF7Wh0moLSCj-HlOYXQGUI-CDftJjRggkkOvdLDJQWic971MzWKfP7egnESoWbKo72awGQYl_K5VXXFgF-3vIbRpAS33qr_8eJPyjw-DriEnPSiGwEG8SAE95cywY54XY_3Qysw/s400/SDC12761.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628970999593192002" border="0" /></a>Yes, we have moved and will only be at the beautiful <a href="http://lostspursranch.weebly.com/">Lost Spurs Ranch</a> pool if we trespass. Almost 2 years there (our 2nd longest stay anywhere as a married couple) didn't make for an easy goodbye. Blessings to our friends and neighbors there; you are loved and will be missed.<br /><br />We packed the apartment in record time and were blessed to have some Gordon time in the process. Alas, the pack-n-play was at Sushi's, so Aunt Nat thought quickly and made a crib-o-boxes for our sweet nephew. Graco, eat your heart out.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_yzQZ92MmMXRGMwlCWIH-GMumpEHXD0LYkjHcbF84uHUjTiF4GH-u8UG86yILTf8b61pAQjMuscSSsVz9x1FD69ECEK-1qLFv7TOONBFLzJLam9E3w6xJSRVi-R7bmR2YBMtwY0eOztk/s1600/SDC12792.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_yzQZ92MmMXRGMwlCWIH-GMumpEHXD0LYkjHcbF84uHUjTiF4GH-u8UG86yILTf8b61pAQjMuscSSsVz9x1FD69ECEK-1qLFv7TOONBFLzJLam9E3w6xJSRVi-R7bmR2YBMtwY0eOztk/s400/SDC12792.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628972415235527058" border="0" /></a><br />June is naturally affectionate and that love for Gordon combined with wrestling moves learned from Owen leads to headlocks of love.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Qzs-drNQ51M19UEcPhMi-xoLyBDLA6rOVTaHSzmz2Ye-M5jT8M0Sq16YfkXKz6ChwPuUjnsIYptTZqziXdzl1T4uHmuALF1vT_bpeWrXCwuihjfjep2cXvz_FrZpVHTzK_FN8HMsl4I/s1600/SDC12789.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_Qzs-drNQ51M19UEcPhMi-xoLyBDLA6rOVTaHSzmz2Ye-M5jT8M0Sq16YfkXKz6ChwPuUjnsIYptTZqziXdzl1T4uHmuALF1vT_bpeWrXCwuihjfjep2cXvz_FrZpVHTzK_FN8HMsl4I/s400/SDC12789.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628972412457888002" border="0" /></a>June, distracted by the TV; Gordon, engaged by the camera. He's so stinkin' cute!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJr26G9dt5Hx-ve3-tUUZIH35L9oczyrdeEL7iPR8Drj_jRjIlVE6Aieq0VoMzGudooczdRvYeAoQHZOe-UVU-SgPIQefzRYBQ4Btoho51fpRXmdEB3yVwIf_sImIUm3lIPBDXBVThrzo/s1600/SDC12788.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJr26G9dt5Hx-ve3-tUUZIH35L9oczyrdeEL7iPR8Drj_jRjIlVE6Aieq0VoMzGudooczdRvYeAoQHZOe-UVU-SgPIQefzRYBQ4Btoho51fpRXmdEB3yVwIf_sImIUm3lIPBDXBVThrzo/s400/SDC12788.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628972403929077842" border="0" /></a>McNeese grandkids, so happy together!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjprFgRCdbYR0zs7PL3vQzEaaJ2jwj8lwe2rrAwBzicQsNWIait6rzNOB7EZRrZDHNtZoiA1tpiRhZxi3-rapKlLhNyKsLkDJ7nqzLjaPsM9_mcWIzVvSl3YtX9JKmVu0Vjiww1DG4zv8s/s1600/SDC12787.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjprFgRCdbYR0zs7PL3vQzEaaJ2jwj8lwe2rrAwBzicQsNWIait6rzNOB7EZRrZDHNtZoiA1tpiRhZxi3-rapKlLhNyKsLkDJ7nqzLjaPsM9_mcWIzVvSl3YtX9JKmVu0Vjiww1DG4zv8s/s400/SDC12787.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628972398166498754" border="0" /></a>Owen calls him G-Money; Gordon cackles EVERY time he sees Owen walk into a room.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1KNpDPbBKEi-vqC7804PdhmzuBl3lQ4mCtgbL1LlGM2RHGJcryhhFCj9hGeGINHf2FF0BlnI7T1gZHdOtaJqT1WA-Z3ISC5D979D4tiIp-3XNtMtPBdcXSTt8SvKKn-GtYpa3_ayfjJg/s1600/SDC12786.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1KNpDPbBKEi-vqC7804PdhmzuBl3lQ4mCtgbL1LlGM2RHGJcryhhFCj9hGeGINHf2FF0BlnI7T1gZHdOtaJqT1WA-Z3ISC5D979D4tiIp-3XNtMtPBdcXSTt8SvKKn-GtYpa3_ayfjJg/s400/SDC12786.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628972395489224594" border="0" /></a>This helmet hair led to a summer buzz cut for Owen. Yikes!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ0HEMK7-Vr3aRJAYKI5PCWgrTBqiZ5Xa_DOarGIMDwL_aAV6s9XBuQ7p9DipF4cCu6xV2A9pF9dyUIeVYBfl5gBtJOZfWTQwNO8un3mplR1hdv71S_OamsCvxYE6K6LYBOhgGpJVS8gg/s1600/SDC12785.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQ0HEMK7-Vr3aRJAYKI5PCWgrTBqiZ5Xa_DOarGIMDwL_aAV6s9XBuQ7p9DipF4cCu6xV2A9pF9dyUIeVYBfl5gBtJOZfWTQwNO8un3mplR1hdv71S_OamsCvxYE6K6LYBOhgGpJVS8gg/s400/SDC12785.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628971013608794114" border="0" /></a><br />We also caught up with the infamous <a href="http://www.skippyjonjones.com/">Skippy Jon Jones</a> at the Roanoke Public Library. Have you ever read one of those books? Loved by the boy, but they wear my tongue out. Anyone else?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqnPJJFzqLGNZ1qqaQ1zEyFKTtop7a8nhwvMkWMt2-nIX_30WAjMOrDGNJzLNcOWsuTwgPG5uJJl_lSAWJcNo65dvYyCAp7YqW6GTgZmXQd9eZdyKzQxi-h0-KrkxWBhqbOIqyBuSTr10/s1600/SDC12772.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqnPJJFzqLGNZ1qqaQ1zEyFKTtop7a8nhwvMkWMt2-nIX_30WAjMOrDGNJzLNcOWsuTwgPG5uJJl_lSAWJcNo65dvYyCAp7YqW6GTgZmXQd9eZdyKzQxi-h0-KrkxWBhqbOIqyBuSTr10/s400/SDC12772.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628971011263063490" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia_gYY4HNt5VicWYKzsXD4nWJBikfj9PYSfETMzMzVN9bMJXWWXU2PP2nQWvm_aNUWyAJ4el5KWZv9vkQYMgZwBrDyipkvbJMvi6V84vfeUcxpzybRljO7vyb4iN50LHojAixdjiNt928/s1600/SDC12769.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 337px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia_gYY4HNt5VicWYKzsXD4nWJBikfj9PYSfETMzMzVN9bMJXWWXU2PP2nQWvm_aNUWyAJ4el5KWZv9vkQYMgZwBrDyipkvbJMvi6V84vfeUcxpzybRljO7vyb4iN50LHojAixdjiNt928/s400/SDC12769.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628971001592295714" border="0" /></a><br />As far as the house goes: fireplace removed, lighting installed, tile laid, floors laid, paint on, odd jobs ALMOST done, 3 more boxes to unpack, one garage to organize (our first!!), and an Arnold open house will be here soon! With that and the unpacking, I'm exhausted but happy. Many a morning, I have to slap on my "fake-it-'til-you-make-it" face<br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;"></span><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisN9gP7yDF8J9Z-wT3oKPIyDY930HMrTAnbVVP0qJFYS8ASNUdJQrKoTnzWRbcu7l37COxM5gYfDyl3EQ4g4pvTqiSD2sBiUEqCRQaYDfvu2R02qkoTXmbctJWE6jaOj2VgnwPoXknTXA/s1600/SDC12793.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisN9gP7yDF8J9Z-wT3oKPIyDY930HMrTAnbVVP0qJFYS8ASNUdJQrKoTnzWRbcu7l37COxM5gYfDyl3EQ4g4pvTqiSD2sBiUEqCRQaYDfvu2R02qkoTXmbctJWE6jaOj2VgnwPoXknTXA/s400/SDC12793.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5628973169451584594" border="0" /></a>but we are loving the life we've been given and cherishing every moment with friends like you!Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-14531531927432009122011-06-10T09:33:00.004-05:002011-06-10T09:44:58.804-05:00June's House HuntThe house hunting bug was contagious. Who needs a realtor, iPhone apps, and Sunday afternoon drives through random neighborhoods when you have June?<br /><br />According to her, any good house needs<br /><br />a welcoming entrance:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW39Rley274Op6_myjR0wKW45bt8cQURnyvJO86ITOCrrSPNZqGOKbGjua9l9XzIE5d7cdwXLHrhxJPtyyqiidx_neimJWA3DvQZ4wfHsmMLtfNRGvixGS-KMI7BzOzc5D6RgihD0xi0c/s1600/IMAG0764.jpg"> </a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7JqGA57EluqNJ7IXPAf0tIfklJ79J2ftoOzhgsaUuWL0RSgUNKZjpkG3Jvce1d-NOWtcj2S_rhHxZHdJdIXpWITShC71ay2CuJNMn7nrtYWEbN899f3gV0f33NvUT3Kn8UjRxdGWTQQw/s1600/IMAG0881.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 120px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7JqGA57EluqNJ7IXPAf0tIfklJ79J2ftoOzhgsaUuWL0RSgUNKZjpkG3Jvce1d-NOWtcj2S_rhHxZHdJdIXpWITShC71ay2CuJNMn7nrtYWEbN899f3gV0f33NvUT3Kn8UjRxdGWTQQw/s200/IMAG0881.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616599780925205826" border="0" /></a><br /><br />A good view: <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW39Rley274Op6_myjR0wKW45bt8cQURnyvJO86ITOCrrSPNZqGOKbGjua9l9XzIE5d7cdwXLHrhxJPtyyqiidx_neimJWA3DvQZ4wfHsmMLtfNRGvixGS-KMI7BzOzc5D6RgihD0xi0c/s1600/IMAG0764.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 120px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgW39Rley274Op6_myjR0wKW45bt8cQURnyvJO86ITOCrrSPNZqGOKbGjua9l9XzIE5d7cdwXLHrhxJPtyyqiidx_neimJWA3DvQZ4wfHsmMLtfNRGvixGS-KMI7BzOzc5D6RgihD0xi0c/s200/IMAG0764.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616599823952777234" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />An efficient kitchen layout:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1kbA6-p6S90_UuOc5LNqMRw4FXTLnvwBG7ZDMZo_c2cUe9zRMFi5C9-bZnDfOmsIy7AImxQV4s4rSqa-a2aZhzaJakfm16C10rFWsqYzgM4PbZJXfAd0dDCLzp29MrUDqeUINYzRqWoU/s1600/IMAG0765.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 120px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1kbA6-p6S90_UuOc5LNqMRw4FXTLnvwBG7ZDMZo_c2cUe9zRMFi5C9-bZnDfOmsIy7AImxQV4s4rSqa-a2aZhzaJakfm16C10rFWsqYzgM4PbZJXfAd0dDCLzp29MrUDqeUINYzRqWoU/s200/IMAG0765.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616599820234973026" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkWGSr0NOrsLnR1mQFGPyIQ6Zxl9Ek1Ec-uVT_VEfapfL0lqBK0akLwnpLp5swipOQOpkajHT4UBlICo3zFD_0d71523JStf8y8yYtvSq0DORlsRB4FC-KcIZCvm3y3XaS0ih5SAZww8c/s1600/IMAG0774.jpg"> </a><br /><br />A place to entertain with friends:<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkWGSr0NOrsLnR1mQFGPyIQ6Zxl9Ek1Ec-uVT_VEfapfL0lqBK0akLwnpLp5swipOQOpkajHT4UBlICo3zFD_0d71523JStf8y8yYtvSq0DORlsRB4FC-KcIZCvm3y3XaS0ih5SAZww8c/s1600/IMAG0774.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 120px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkWGSr0NOrsLnR1mQFGPyIQ6Zxl9Ek1Ec-uVT_VEfapfL0lqBK0akLwnpLp5swipOQOpkajHT4UBlICo3zFD_0d71523JStf8y8yYtvSq0DORlsRB4FC-KcIZCvm3y3XaS0ih5SAZww8c/s200/IMAG0774.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616599791601873906" border="0" /></a><br />(Embry had an important phone call to take)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7JqGA57EluqNJ7IXPAf0tIfklJ79J2ftoOzhgsaUuWL0RSgUNKZjpkG3Jvce1d-NOWtcj2S_rhHxZHdJdIXpWITShC71ay2CuJNMn7nrtYWEbN899f3gV0f33NvUT3Kn8UjRxdGWTQQw/s1600/IMAG0881.jpg"> </a>A nice porch:<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Szj1QNqzBYpwpH2yY5yQbrPbmIBvSXYvqfRUOP0w9o1mWZD5C1RXj29e0IAIIov6-millwgOSwAGxXOp8Tukeulx0Q1rHzQ5KOzaSJcUanovYIkw6oUhyNEDVlCxgCZw7amnNGBTtvE/s1600/IMAG0823.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 120px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Szj1QNqzBYpwpH2yY5yQbrPbmIBvSXYvqfRUOP0w9o1mWZD5C1RXj29e0IAIIov6-millwgOSwAGxXOp8Tukeulx0Q1rHzQ5KOzaSJcUanovYIkw6oUhyNEDVlCxgCZw7amnNGBTtvE/s200/IMAG0823.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616599833809424034" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Fortunately for us, our new home has all of that and more. Unfortunately for June, Miss Andrea's playhouse was not included in the purchase price. <br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU6Tjm0g8KyHuSVQuXfW0gLmNxhCv08NENbKRiC0zI3hIQhmVfodMkyOREE_h3n7cnQV7pexIy0hOVKKzQlekwK18oOpKDw8DiKyZNZ_1_bq-iDZKdwv8lsVZVfeRyvjDC7RN_0AlkX_Q/s1600/IMAG0749.jpg"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 120px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU6Tjm0g8KyHuSVQuXfW0gLmNxhCv08NENbKRiC0zI3hIQhmVfodMkyOREE_h3n7cnQV7pexIy0hOVKKzQlekwK18oOpKDw8DiKyZNZ_1_bq-iDZKdwv8lsVZVfeRyvjDC7RN_0AlkX_Q/s200/IMAG0749.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5616600062012426082" border="0" /></a>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-43848352873680942422011-05-31T20:54:00.003-05:002011-05-31T20:59:05.145-05:00Ch-ch-ch-changes...As posted to our community newsletter for this month:<br /><br />" <style>@font-face { font-family: "Courier New"; }@font-face { font-family: "Wingdings"; }@font-face { font-family: "Lucida Calligraphy"; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: "Times New Roman"; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; }ol { margin-bottom: 0in; }ul { margin-bottom: 0in; }</style><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: "Lucida Calligraphy";">Thank you from your</span></i></b><b style=""><i style=""><span style="font-size: 14pt; font-family: "Lucida Calligraphy";"> CARES team!</span></i></b> <p class="MsoNormal">It is with sadness that we share the news that this will be our last month here at Lost Spurs, serving you as your CARES team.<span style=""> </span>Since we moved here, almost 2 years ago, we have been privileged to</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span>Celebrate births, marriages, new jobs, and more with you</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span>Mourn with you over divorces, death, and foreclosures</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span>Greet your children at the bus stop and at school functions</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span>Present local charities with your gifts</p> <p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-left: 0.5in; text-indent: -0.25in;"><span style="font-family: Symbol;"><span style="">·<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; font-size: 7pt; line-height: normal; font-size-adjust: none; font-stretch: normal;"> </span></span></span>Eat more than 100 meals with you (!)</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">Basically, <b style="">we have been<i style=""><u> blessed</u></i> to share life with this unique community and we thank you</b> for the welcoming spirit shown to us and your fellow neighbors.<span style=""> </span>We’ve lived in apartments for our entire 11 years of marriage, and there is no place that laughs like you guys!<span style=""> </span>The memories are so rich!</p> <p class="MsoNormal"> </p> <p class="MsoNormal">When we drove over the hill last week, I cried when June said, “Dat my home” upon seeing the cluster of buildings here at Lost Spurs. Thank you for the love shown to our children.<span style="">"</span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br /><span style=""></span></p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="">As for what's next...a new home and a new job. But before I go into that, let me just cry over this one.<br /></span></p>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-76134552108041686912011-05-31T13:25:00.009-05:002011-07-16T11:55:28.212-05:002 on the 2nd!Happy Birthday to Miss Independent!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEeRpHZ84rqXmpRAByFegdhigmy1v9u1Cikyk13OGtYwTxSRHVeGc4q4sxyuLsHc10eEQcyDUZkaSF8bvg-vCWxNO7ngJNt3MFR1K4zEMcuuZAqkxLoUZdiSVNOFkNi0MUIbeTovGcB6Q/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+027.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEeRpHZ84rqXmpRAByFegdhigmy1v9u1Cikyk13OGtYwTxSRHVeGc4q4sxyuLsHc10eEQcyDUZkaSF8bvg-vCWxNO7ngJNt3MFR1K4zEMcuuZAqkxLoUZdiSVNOFkNi0MUIbeTovGcB6Q/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+027.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612950647890140754" border="0" /></a><br /><br />You've come a long way, baby! From <a href="http://mcarnolds.blogspot.com/2009/06/shes-here.html">day one</a>...well, I can't even finish it. My heart overflows with tenderness towards this girl! Unique in a way that brings her Creator glory every day, we had to celebrate!<br /><br />Getting excited!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Unlsd1qg-vB6BWxsCVe4_zU0S4SHTL1n6HyMox0SQ0SdfhFio9AZGEYr66xPJ4VJqzEGstlHNmPNxE8K2bpULsnKJRsvJhHJ-pLjfLCE5Pn_ikSp0zpYUW50HmxVGBLylDmjHiB6xO0/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+014.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-Unlsd1qg-vB6BWxsCVe4_zU0S4SHTL1n6HyMox0SQ0SdfhFio9AZGEYr66xPJ4VJqzEGstlHNmPNxE8K2bpULsnKJRsvJhHJ-pLjfLCE5Pn_ikSp0zpYUW50HmxVGBLylDmjHiB6xO0/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+014.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612952393699406418" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Gordon, your cake is coming soon!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx5YXpHA8PDHudtzzBni6WnH3Xl9a7kKv7a2XoipX6e6WMIeBbJ0GEs8DZGmnO6e49O5wqMaIRCMq-ohnYXzwVx8Lf-2pUvzme6fv_adbvaD4FjDM5DnZup3GwZ7llOj5DYizct_QbPXY/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+011.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhx5YXpHA8PDHudtzzBni6WnH3Xl9a7kKv7a2XoipX6e6WMIeBbJ0GEs8DZGmnO6e49O5wqMaIRCMq-ohnYXzwVx8Lf-2pUvzme6fv_adbvaD4FjDM5DnZup3GwZ7llOj5DYizct_QbPXY/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+011.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612952381593402962" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwDrm09wjuazE3l7Fj-dPGBphc6WD5QWI0L5QgqeBr7ZiG6iT2B0Daczom-6MpO4gjFgBWM4rdoRZabikxquqWAFYICfsXLX_1I5EcVpUYc56I3Gt7oJncFEoGAJKI1eeKm_NeYgewSX0/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+001.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwDrm09wjuazE3l7Fj-dPGBphc6WD5QWI0L5QgqeBr7ZiG6iT2B0Daczom-6MpO4gjFgBWM4rdoRZabikxquqWAFYICfsXLX_1I5EcVpUYc56I3Gt7oJncFEoGAJKI1eeKm_NeYgewSX0/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+001.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612949016698039682" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Wrestle time with Uncle Lee. I didn't know I had a nickname for Lee until June started calling him "Lee-boy." Now, I realize that I rarely call him anything else. The girl is a sponge for words, so be careful. ;)<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTLLKHfExVqhtMCtKF_9OSZCiVrpP3KXv-FIk7qosnu7lw3SYi9W_utCckqdFQ9mk72sR1UzwDU6LkGxv4yliSJgPemE5-sLJXEoLDP4mK7zwsh14lOeUtAk4tgESy3hciFSlI7RuVGOA/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+019.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTLLKHfExVqhtMCtKF_9OSZCiVrpP3KXv-FIk7qosnu7lw3SYi9W_utCckqdFQ9mk72sR1UzwDU6LkGxv4yliSJgPemE5-sLJXEoLDP4mK7zwsh14lOeUtAk4tgESy3hciFSlI7RuVGOA/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+019.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612952986868193122" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Grammie with June's soccer ball. <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjahs60uTzg04xdOFWE1sV64nIbApam2T0g2X1cnK7NEWqhS7kxAV2sjyjTy6dMmYI2wRWG9zAVXLzDC9NMoe8MIh2OaD3__LrSWRfCBc_rUtdBY4lQjG6hHPDv87bgtJrTOaE3H7RiHZA/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+052.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjahs60uTzg04xdOFWE1sV64nIbApam2T0g2X1cnK7NEWqhS7kxAV2sjyjTy6dMmYI2wRWG9zAVXLzDC9NMoe8MIh2OaD3__LrSWRfCBc_rUtdBY4lQjG6hHPDv87bgtJrTOaE3H7RiHZA/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+052.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612952375347332850" border="0" /></a><br /><br />I requested shoes this budding Imelda Marcos could take off and put on by herself!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_W7uuI_NWCZfvMLeGIpTFV2AnEa2Q4xy3vv-KopYh9zLYNdmR1iBt02SgPjsSSGa_eTXcIXlt_cjbGK0yzV8QfW5XeycT4nc_kXLBfdQc64NdgsC8fcAG6NPMoYSbFehHGchmUsst2R8/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+050.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_W7uuI_NWCZfvMLeGIpTFV2AnEa2Q4xy3vv-KopYh9zLYNdmR1iBt02SgPjsSSGa_eTXcIXlt_cjbGK0yzV8QfW5XeycT4nc_kXLBfdQc64NdgsC8fcAG6NPMoYSbFehHGchmUsst2R8/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+050.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612952372793839506" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhP_cuHB-TK-ns-hL5zBvyV3NXNE2M4N-DYjZlnBC87G9Wuoyd1H-ilQsZB7sbCnQvfClP0tG1pPblElDzu-dShai3dell9WabWgKdt-vUr7Q8WSDXsbGf3uDtL1P9NudyqfUPtGQ071o/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+046.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhP_cuHB-TK-ns-hL5zBvyV3NXNE2M4N-DYjZlnBC87G9Wuoyd1H-ilQsZB7sbCnQvfClP0tG1pPblElDzu-dShai3dell9WabWgKdt-vUr7Q8WSDXsbGf3uDtL1P9NudyqfUPtGQ071o/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+046.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612951938649835938" border="0" /></a><br /><br />This is as far as I went with the theme:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-5kJnw7fh1hgOSNj-J2_1-vLjRKJy3-IAtSo3HrRdcaO_pbYUQEznVYlkcEibhKVqhYpP9CiAfEcSUBoELYUmCC32h_4bHEvnpHgAvdmOT4njBFiYAvYfrvh1H1mtFYN_0xWSCScCN_M/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+004.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-5kJnw7fh1hgOSNj-J2_1-vLjRKJy3-IAtSo3HrRdcaO_pbYUQEznVYlkcEibhKVqhYpP9CiAfEcSUBoELYUmCC32h_4bHEvnpHgAvdmOT4njBFiYAvYfrvh1H1mtFYN_0xWSCScCN_M/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+004.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612949025724238290" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />Taste testing. June is a little neat-nick, so the cake smashing thing is not her style.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlsqZR4I59eIE-clbqlZ7X5ZIm8Gou7cOaWbWu0P6Awmu8FLBxf8k5qKEO_eFkrXEf2_d8OZ4aU53KQa42-e1WcIFxRjxB3in3H5xzxcdgVFvtGPnIGg1OMXgLAQTxp5tQXflVJnXhcGk/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+044.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlsqZR4I59eIE-clbqlZ7X5ZIm8Gou7cOaWbWu0P6Awmu8FLBxf8k5qKEO_eFkrXEf2_d8OZ4aU53KQa42-e1WcIFxRjxB3in3H5xzxcdgVFvtGPnIGg1OMXgLAQTxp5tQXflVJnXhcGk/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+044.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612951929657994370" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />Now that she has a spoon...and now that you see my back molars...<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjU7dqWxYWhAUs9H9J1J33nPX6MjI3mFZP6-Q54r4tRUMHWLb8Vi8qLhwicYb8PhqH5izXutSSLXklOHYAppXOzMt1hyiFIy6nXgKQBxoQTlduhT-p-UISaFGHLCX8o3MN6T8apF1eqeY/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+040.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjU7dqWxYWhAUs9H9J1J33nPX6MjI3mFZP6-Q54r4tRUMHWLb8Vi8qLhwicYb8PhqH5izXutSSLXklOHYAppXOzMt1hyiFIy6nXgKQBxoQTlduhT-p-UISaFGHLCX8o3MN6T8apF1eqeY/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+040.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612951349605640338" border="0" /></a><br />Hello, Hello Kitty balloon!<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgko7X6nzBomk91x0phgFWxoINPo_AvBTQxbcka5QKYEzEfFd6nwjqWyLOmAE5pmRqPWaivipiqbW1HxZ5hU8Ma7jwRUH_8i-c4LELgCid3Ngz7HaZ6mM9eNh6YZcqL8SBvRqhsKwDnVQ8/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+031.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgko7X6nzBomk91x0phgFWxoINPo_AvBTQxbcka5QKYEzEfFd6nwjqWyLOmAE5pmRqPWaivipiqbW1HxZ5hU8Ma7jwRUH_8i-c4LELgCid3Ngz7HaZ6mM9eNh6YZcqL8SBvRqhsKwDnVQ8/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+031.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612950656752506194" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoY-oTo6LLeesePUrNZ8vOZBpIXOPC1bJFXBWU09ufHAAAvvoqcLWLeQHo6Ma0uLb4rWkZvASBXd7AKYEpFHAftsuA6lVn4bUg54YcgvRWHqNg4otMDl0CG933AIDs6J93KIBFWEF1ths/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+030.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoY-oTo6LLeesePUrNZ8vOZBpIXOPC1bJFXBWU09ufHAAAvvoqcLWLeQHo6Ma0uLb4rWkZvASBXd7AKYEpFHAftsuA6lVn4bUg54YcgvRWHqNg4otMDl0CG933AIDs6J93KIBFWEF1ths/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+030.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612950654502605138" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_4SoGVOxUEroykzLUS65VOojEl9ycIRIcnBouo2eYlBSbIAgGDg2KeTN8bDuVnkQSIteR8sTwyKztvIV6VuFYWblwp_XN-jiVw7eTvDdbvzKjblGkxZA9ueL0Lxwn2Igrm_VFmf-Wefc/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+029.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_4SoGVOxUEroykzLUS65VOojEl9ycIRIcnBouo2eYlBSbIAgGDg2KeTN8bDuVnkQSIteR8sTwyKztvIV6VuFYWblwp_XN-jiVw7eTvDdbvzKjblGkxZA9ueL0Lxwn2Igrm_VFmf-Wefc/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+029.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612950652105787778" border="0" /></a><br /><br />We try to keep the parties small while we can, so we had a crawfish boil on Mom and Dad's back porch. Joe was in town from LA and had never eaten a mudbug, and that's reason enough to sling some crawdads, potatoes, sausage, and corn in a pot. Digging in...<br /><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3m7U3ylwYUXl8edQufSv9FickIiEsinX4U8l6LvPxeR1oIGTtL3WmeeRnrb2xh2uGuiW2qT9PXIUdRWmuMPxywAUmfbBRi3vuZNhx9QDLyMY9HzdqTWrMq9y1T-kxw-vCoWCZNkB7DdI/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+035.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3m7U3ylwYUXl8edQufSv9FickIiEsinX4U8l6LvPxeR1oIGTtL3WmeeRnrb2xh2uGuiW2qT9PXIUdRWmuMPxywAUmfbBRi3vuZNhx9QDLyMY9HzdqTWrMq9y1T-kxw-vCoWCZNkB7DdI/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+035.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612951321938571554" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbFwhAeuMfQNZsi_hap3AeCVQ9TWVIhMczh1MRVr7wmucr5ZjKmM7dSKwUzxACIL33KHDEGLWQ9vKxk0NXuAgKMFBJbXt_EvOr0Qbbr3-iu3wCybSL7xMH5yf4eJ4frgXZyUgRJSROyS8/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+034.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbFwhAeuMfQNZsi_hap3AeCVQ9TWVIhMczh1MRVr7wmucr5ZjKmM7dSKwUzxACIL33KHDEGLWQ9vKxk0NXuAgKMFBJbXt_EvOr0Qbbr3-iu3wCybSL7xMH5yf4eJ4frgXZyUgRJSROyS8/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+034.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612950662402326146" border="0" /></a><br /><br />More food...bacon wrapped jalapenos.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0dQAxH9LgeJrxQ50CvYABekNSUVdgfzXZVDsGqGZLGCC9JLXybhPUtLFS_xbO5hzHJGk3HN383059NI-M2OrfmB2REwBfktlcC9GmE8-8Ocj3_in0prwHVB5ds7GCzGMMIN9QlG6gNww/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+025.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0dQAxH9LgeJrxQ50CvYABekNSUVdgfzXZVDsGqGZLGCC9JLXybhPUtLFS_xbO5hzHJGk3HN383059NI-M2OrfmB2REwBfktlcC9GmE8-8Ocj3_in0prwHVB5ds7GCzGMMIN9QlG6gNww/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+025.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612949655492744770" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmzLPnSu5IZ_5Hbs-CvpaFK1-5p0ShoXQAfF51_KADNJtspRyG1G8DyhPApRe5u1d0B7E69dqv9bgwaKkvx2D-59IdCk8S9OWMExe5LMLhCirp7UIlwqBWGd4KcImK3n7md1DqQkjRBHQ/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+024.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmzLPnSu5IZ_5Hbs-CvpaFK1-5p0ShoXQAfF51_KADNJtspRyG1G8DyhPApRe5u1d0B7E69dqv9bgwaKkvx2D-59IdCk8S9OWMExe5LMLhCirp7UIlwqBWGd4KcImK3n7md1DqQkjRBHQ/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+024.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612949655294028834" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA9ktHTWcEEGMHTglbX40qilop67Lx45B23eO9PeMcNxTJQiezYabFJkkfk-vrh-4F31VQ65W5eKtWDDzDDJp5ivC610_9yLTMQZvdjQwEGoxu_LUFA3w54tdOEj8cP2VnDVAZ7xnTCDU/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+022.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA9ktHTWcEEGMHTglbX40qilop67Lx45B23eO9PeMcNxTJQiezYabFJkkfk-vrh-4F31VQ65W5eKtWDDzDDJp5ivC610_9yLTMQZvdjQwEGoxu_LUFA3w54tdOEj8cP2VnDVAZ7xnTCDU/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+022.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612949653321839538" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0RvW9lsAFpdLAvqtrGWtA05qmfRzyhlZjaWDeUBKKs1E4VCmmz37WgooHFw2BbpTrpN9scjqn0-dXY9cY-sdVHcJyhzXP48zM0A-JB6ribI0Kf0QEiDJbGvaj94nzNCyMb8Mu7GkE8i4/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+021.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0RvW9lsAFpdLAvqtrGWtA05qmfRzyhlZjaWDeUBKKs1E4VCmmz37WgooHFw2BbpTrpN9scjqn0-dXY9cY-sdVHcJyhzXP48zM0A-JB6ribI0Kf0QEiDJbGvaj94nzNCyMb8Mu7GkE8i4/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+021.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612949646637967906" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnXlrJaJOmi_jjpBaMUQ4nFVirN130B5PHkEBDA7nJ5-8lVzszLsDxxDEi9IBmR0trJ1NjD9gcXn6UDjzt-LT3LyXbXAD61QV_KQt1_GgIuEzFIPRtjEfZcZtFUNFwJJ04jR_pCWJdXbs/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+008.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnXlrJaJOmi_jjpBaMUQ4nFVirN130B5PHkEBDA7nJ5-8lVzszLsDxxDEi9IBmR0trJ1NjD9gcXn6UDjzt-LT3LyXbXAD61QV_KQt1_GgIuEzFIPRtjEfZcZtFUNFwJJ04jR_pCWJdXbs/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+008.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612949029314972242" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYRdkTk3nGYzz2UmSUkfEreBtASlUNU2ntBg_MnvXfbDnNu1vsDxu1ANqQtlu1Z0CUG3AgrPfzgq1fhSzSKnTMprcN-T16FulIfKb7gWdTZdKNeugXkE2-LqGG3O_T8pzc2niYf7ADrEA/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+007.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYRdkTk3nGYzz2UmSUkfEreBtASlUNU2ntBg_MnvXfbDnNu1vsDxu1ANqQtlu1Z0CUG3AgrPfzgq1fhSzSKnTMprcN-T16FulIfKb7gWdTZdKNeugXkE2-LqGG3O_T8pzc2niYf7ADrEA/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+007.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612949031425485058" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihE4h6hevWpHp_PwFchOuLMJ8MQ79ch9IUByyuJO7XvKQty_v0luZm034vwh9rijoAb3L3zizvmmUIxxqaeKUnTl5-8Tr_n-oCchozpv_cMX1yysbm9417k6OXo33OL__lU8DhVr-tE5o/s1600/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+006.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihE4h6hevWpHp_PwFchOuLMJ8MQ79ch9IUByyuJO7XvKQty_v0luZm034vwh9rijoAb3L3zizvmmUIxxqaeKUnTl5-8Tr_n-oCchozpv_cMX1yysbm9417k6OXo33OL__lU8DhVr-tE5o/s400/Memorial+Day+%2526+June+Bday+2011+006.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5612949020764308642" border="0" /></a>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-33562092525137692572011-05-25T14:16:00.005-05:002011-05-28T11:07:34.091-05:00Blog Silence...When a kid-focused blog goes silent, it means either<br /><ul><li>something has happened to the kids</li><li>something has happened to the mom</li></ul>Um, both. My sweet 6 year old (see last post) has morphed into a crazy man which has turned me into a discipline diva by day and a crying/praying mess at night. Oh yes, the blog world sees this:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3p0en5gkaHFNHRM2e7JK0daQIXtQ-UGWOULj2MkfYmU_EkJOVVJ6-fCqgQ8uqthQt6IbDUhcdM8Wl8oHpX5QXpI4hcL_7tTfsZZTAbj63KIHrGQ8DW6BsBxkIOE6Jjzhl6LIN1QiTjw/s1600/SDC12717.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEic3p0en5gkaHFNHRM2e7JK0daQIXtQ-UGWOULj2MkfYmU_EkJOVVJ6-fCqgQ8uqthQt6IbDUhcdM8Wl8oHpX5QXpI4hcL_7tTfsZZTAbj63KIHrGQ8DW6BsBxkIOE6Jjzhl6LIN1QiTjw/s400/SDC12717.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5610735342840042946" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDXo5aeeVon7W50IXgX1YfsZVbYmGC951RQ3PY6at5H9XnQExjSVuFPIABo5kQ-UQBEzWML4i9Gz1m7Mjgb9_rPrsVcPk2kQrmdjc6yh2mqJ7V4vNwq-26FKvxkMmvUE6MFuvDLnTp3YQ/s1600/SDC12716.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDXo5aeeVon7W50IXgX1YfsZVbYmGC951RQ3PY6at5H9XnQExjSVuFPIABo5kQ-UQBEzWML4i9Gz1m7Mjgb9_rPrsVcPk2kQrmdjc6yh2mqJ7V4vNwq-26FKvxkMmvUE6MFuvDLnTp3YQ/s400/SDC12716.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5610735339651078514" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhygc3AdB1dNuNexEjGrbMh-hQSRp5so6BJ-9hn1w_kZrpgszU2avkV8NwYa7ukkcSJ4wiKHwUpe98k0iHg4kJr6q4Bdl5u5JXRfn4xN5dl60bsbMaH_uZZwrUmSnC2RoTJ75RnOPw9P9g/s1600/SDC12715.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhygc3AdB1dNuNexEjGrbMh-hQSRp5so6BJ-9hn1w_kZrpgszU2avkV8NwYa7ukkcSJ4wiKHwUpe98k0iHg4kJr6q4Bdl5u5JXRfn4xN5dl60bsbMaH_uZZwrUmSnC2RoTJ75RnOPw9P9g/s400/SDC12715.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5610735334822646242" border="0" /></a><br />but the pictures don't show the meltdown that happened roughly 30 minutes after these sweet photos were taken. I mean, I could have taken pictures, but then I wouldn't have my hands free for self-defense. Still, I'm trying not to let my memories of Mother's Day dwell on a rage fit (his, not mine) and instead think about a great weekend in Tyler with my grandparents.<br /><br />Here's my dad with his parents. I'm sure he NEVER pulled any of these stunts as a child, right, Grandmom?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOMv0ksCn5i8Uk-EXg0I2RkbwlqyA0tiozkBdri19sfrYiukP7ks-W-QgVbLUgN5NsSyBieVkd1DrZdDJzRUbqouO-NdSn0c7gWZT1corqU70tSYUGAXLhqDWRWS9H5OnQcNPm7JZl2qs/s1600/SDC12718.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOMv0ksCn5i8Uk-EXg0I2RkbwlqyA0tiozkBdri19sfrYiukP7ks-W-QgVbLUgN5NsSyBieVkd1DrZdDJzRUbqouO-NdSn0c7gWZT1corqU70tSYUGAXLhqDWRWS9H5OnQcNPm7JZl2qs/s400/SDC12718.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5610735353749812210" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />I don't want anyone to ever think that my life is only the pictures I post...smiles and special events. That's not life. And yet, not every challenge we face is meant for immediate public knowledge either. In the blog/Facebook world, I struggle for that balance between sharing and what some might perceive as bragging, being transparent and being too raw. I want people to see how our relationship with Christ transforms ALL parts of our lives, especially the ugly ones. For my child, though, some things are his story to tell another time. Some experiences are better left shared when someone asks to hear our story. As for us, no matter how today looks or tomorrow, I know Owen's story will be one of the transformative power of God. If you're a believer, isn't that your story? How I was...and how I am? <br /><br />For me, every day is a new one, and it all brings me back to the example set before us. The psalmist said about our God: "He will <span style="font-weight: bold;">not always accuse</span>, nor will he <span style="font-weight: bold;">harbor his anger</span> forever; he does not treat us as our sins <span style="font-weight: bold;">deserve or repay</span> us according to our iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">so great is his love</span> for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he<span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;"> removed our transgressions from us</span>. As a father has compassion on his children, so <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">the LORD has compassion</span> on those who fear him."<br /><br />I'm clinging to that example as we dig in with our firstborn. Not just for him, but for me. I am so grateful that my mistakes are not my identity. The forgiveness, the freedom, the love, the compassion set me back on the right path every day. So, we start today with a fresh start and clean heart and go at it again. <br /><br /><ul><li>The good news for Owen, we're in this for the long haul, and he's worth every minute of it. </li><li>The good news for us, this behavior is not his norm. Most days, he makes great choices, works hard at the goals he sets, loves friends and family with a fierceness, and shows a determination and focus that would make any obstacle quiver in fear...and he can beat-box.<br /></li><li>The Good News for all parents, the Lord has a plan and purpose for our children and loves them with abandon. I trust in that for me too.</li></ul><br />We take our jobs as his parents seriously: to love, protect, and help him bear the image of his Creator. We are praying for wisdom as we do some course correction on some of our bad parenting habits. And hopefully, one day, when Owen is tempted to list all of our mistakes, he'll extend some mercy to us too. ;)Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-75485630934708341532011-04-06T19:38:00.025-05:002011-04-07T21:14:25.429-05:006 Years of Being SurroundedLook who is a smiling SIX year old?? Nope, not the cardboard self-portrait of Mrs. Butley (though look at those lips!). It's OWEN!<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk1h0fdfMpp98i8ERND8lHeTG3fa1eUo5GtKCqUwYsTLdT8Tlos3_SPWgD4gfsP41d18aM5-86TxvlAePdx2UI8uikBEBfIduflBf4_A6i0Lr9GorTREC_62QSq40nThGk1CFUi26j2lI/s1600/SDC12586.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk1h0fdfMpp98i8ERND8lHeTG3fa1eUo5GtKCqUwYsTLdT8Tlos3_SPWgD4gfsP41d18aM5-86TxvlAePdx2UI8uikBEBfIduflBf4_A6i0Lr9GorTREC_62QSq40nThGk1CFUi26j2lI/s400/SDC12586.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592634782566346930" border="0" /></a>Who knew he'd still have the baby cheeks at 5 years after this?<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6X9J6xf-qz8DwyejsFBXIzDKy85B9V5Jos1IT7l3ggNUwzZg8w7Alq6_z8BAJaNA1oZY74dhU53AMYQtPK8saZF3K4bRFU48bvM9gf2ZivlIMpxkF-cc8tYknwxIynC2GTCM1VpFKAmI/s1600/0683920-R1-030-13A.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 270px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6X9J6xf-qz8DwyejsFBXIzDKy85B9V5Jos1IT7l3ggNUwzZg8w7Alq6_z8BAJaNA1oZY74dhU53AMYQtPK8saZF3K4bRFU48bvM9gf2ZivlIMpxkF-cc8tYknwxIynC2GTCM1VpFKAmI/s400/0683920-R1-030-13A.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592657129037591922" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Reflecting on our life as parents and on Owen's personality (a WHOLE 'nother post in itself), I well up with gratitude at the network of support we have. There have been many days where I felt like we were going at this alone, but I was SO wrong. <span style="font-weight: bold;">For every moment of Owen's existence, he has been surrounded.</span><br /><br />To our friends in Pasadena who helped us to welcome him home from the hospital, thank you for being there for us in our first years as parents. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj63Fw9CCEChwSwZHR4xVZ5FQFArL8tbww3B0q_vz1TKCtj-Vi3X4h1csb2tSm9G6yXYcdqXMPCUXSs3Imunoz-zFhb_LFhMP4fNuOUW0wgNS0s7KsCf61uMjiIkzHWtwZCOESij2AzWcw/s1600/Welcome+Home+Sign.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj63Fw9CCEChwSwZHR4xVZ5FQFArL8tbww3B0q_vz1TKCtj-Vi3X4h1csb2tSm9G6yXYcdqXMPCUXSs3Imunoz-zFhb_LFhMP4fNuOUW0wgNS0s7KsCf61uMjiIkzHWtwZCOESij2AzWcw/s400/Welcome+Home+Sign.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593013939099263490" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH0szlHJBl3_SVLlOODlRVMDdz5NAH98axsu74HEShQmJ-3Gq1A0r3WH3-udqrX2NHPmoY1PmRv1GMQAprqDc_osRhUIzdluV0YnJ0kPv_GfwDKYAQ3maSuf0AieJjyhzAxL_ZMXq-trc/s1600/The+Group+%2528with+Sirvart%252C+no+Rose%2529.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH0szlHJBl3_SVLlOODlRVMDdz5NAH98axsu74HEShQmJ-3Gq1A0r3WH3-udqrX2NHPmoY1PmRv1GMQAprqDc_osRhUIzdluV0YnJ0kPv_GfwDKYAQ3maSuf0AieJjyhzAxL_ZMXq-trc/s400/The+Group+%2528with+Sirvart%252C+no+Rose%2529.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593013930848835922" border="0" /></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxfW81a9r2iHdShC2oRT4xL_uliEtkHSTo-w8azsHFm8cdYxBieriPjj2Ddza9I__6B8G-4Eqax8HTYeagqLRALWJzcB32iz4uKaJOkpvzFNCfvOxn01OJ8eaAejfZhEwR6MrW5V5tCGM/s1600/244+vs+250+Bowling+Teams.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxfW81a9r2iHdShC2oRT4xL_uliEtkHSTo-w8azsHFm8cdYxBieriPjj2Ddza9I__6B8G-4Eqax8HTYeagqLRALWJzcB32iz4uKaJOkpvzFNCfvOxn01OJ8eaAejfZhEwR6MrW5V5tCGM/s400/244+vs+250+Bowling+Teams.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593013002287727986" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTeyMC2N8ftXPqYlTeypfQMZpUDoj1EOZ_Q50A_uYWUOhesBDQmSs5KpqAZTC225CmeFNqC978jWHl5ar9Mg2nx6bBH3TILjYM62e0U2FIK1MmTCLWufpoYvctWfb-wCa9I7cQktzgqg0/s1600/Youngs+and+Arnolds.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTeyMC2N8ftXPqYlTeypfQMZpUDoj1EOZ_Q50A_uYWUOhesBDQmSs5KpqAZTC225CmeFNqC978jWHl5ar9Mg2nx6bBH3TILjYM62e0U2FIK1MmTCLWufpoYvctWfb-wCa9I7cQktzgqg0/s400/Youngs+and+Arnolds.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593014373206325874" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOfBTQ5wl3WDpsHCykuB4Idp9QD4r8UdsRZdE-uQzpr3xe2M3D2eFjF-1mmgO_kAOy1n3oBU8fRF3Hiu_bCfsM6KBWPTr_LFYVIZh2WglEapOenzvgMgE38vNJ-YQ-2vJ1x80QpXMY9eo/s1600/Visitors+-+Auntie+Vanessa.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOfBTQ5wl3WDpsHCykuB4Idp9QD4r8UdsRZdE-uQzpr3xe2M3D2eFjF-1mmgO_kAOy1n3oBU8fRF3Hiu_bCfsM6KBWPTr_LFYVIZh2WglEapOenzvgMgE38vNJ-YQ-2vJ1x80QpXMY9eo/s400/Visitors+-+Auntie+Vanessa.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593013935775705570" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoC2P2FJLwZuGZXgJO-JiBuRnEqlN-w-MtDkauLF-jCrxGEAo4FlSBxHaoPgk8qEHSpafCP2KunhhkVa9lcE9fpdIwuvCyee1qw7haEdIrJDJHKa5ggywvElzWRAJGbzAR5MYr0MjCc9E/s1600/Wendy%2527s+Photos+021.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoC2P2FJLwZuGZXgJO-JiBuRnEqlN-w-MtDkauLF-jCrxGEAo4FlSBxHaoPgk8qEHSpafCP2KunhhkVa9lcE9fpdIwuvCyee1qw7haEdIrJDJHKa5ggywvElzWRAJGbzAR5MYr0MjCc9E/s400/Wendy%2527s+Photos+021.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593014370871365746" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJTa_Fhk0THdBQRMpgxNxFzFavGXHYXyYZwOlS09bKX0XgrVisKsXrPWaD4Vc-Tg2gYgk4ubC84FY_R8JaOML6JTj1pJyR5HFO63BFA9NoQ-nLsT35e9LGvXhKkHrtFu4Zay-LXBnuYs/s1600/Michael%252C+Nat%252C+and+Uncle+Joe.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHJTa_Fhk0THdBQRMpgxNxFzFavGXHYXyYZwOlS09bKX0XgrVisKsXrPWaD4Vc-Tg2gYgk4ubC84FY_R8JaOML6JTj1pJyR5HFO63BFA9NoQ-nLsT35e9LGvXhKkHrtFu4Zay-LXBnuYs/s400/Michael%252C+Nat%252C+and+Uncle+Joe.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593013009720503506" border="0" /></a>(yes, Joe was our only "family" at the hospital until my mom arrived. Hysterically funny to me now that he and Michael were my only support team and I was happy as a clam!)<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZZ3MOkQ84duM83CW6qRVYFALiHEMN0OJN8LYnDcV_pZFctMfor6my-lXq5JJ_gfqHv5ji9P0qRErWyUGFtyjh1oMIv0kZieYvrtTqe7AIIHTneYbOvxWSHry20NTd2lUU4iXULZzXnQM/s1600/Suzie%252C+Nat%252C+and+Owen.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZZ3MOkQ84duM83CW6qRVYFALiHEMN0OJN8LYnDcV_pZFctMfor6my-lXq5JJ_gfqHv5ji9P0qRErWyUGFtyjh1oMIv0kZieYvrtTqe7AIIHTneYbOvxWSHry20NTd2lUU4iXULZzXnQM/s400/Suzie%252C+Nat%252C+and+Owen.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593025097164019714" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnWMfrTpyqJeZv41VBO-LOpUADNXMJrIXfSOggzfC2Nv0MR-E-zBW7qBNUF6WC4RPShY8iOig1yBbJ2bxuC9BWTWgyj4i9Y_ZdXGOjuksNLUBMbn3d91h9CJGeGTi7mztyfJA2kgb_uOU/s1600/Grammie%252C+PeePaw%252C+and+Owen.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnWMfrTpyqJeZv41VBO-LOpUADNXMJrIXfSOggzfC2Nv0MR-E-zBW7qBNUF6WC4RPShY8iOig1yBbJ2bxuC9BWTWgyj4i9Y_ZdXGOjuksNLUBMbn3d91h9CJGeGTi7mztyfJA2kgb_uOU/s400/Grammie%252C+PeePaw%252C+and+Owen.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593025099271219506" border="0" /><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwtjO07kidkSRWhIglYMZgennr_OVMuBZgo2tpLNqj12EqplErZ84eosEMOby8z_UpoK46clvJi00GMJrGKBeMU4apFv0Ez3tY3R17NPuL51i6EQC6JRPDdmCDFIyvdho70VJ9FU4Mbkg/s1600/Wendy%2527s+Photos+008.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwtjO07kidkSRWhIglYMZgennr_OVMuBZgo2tpLNqj12EqplErZ84eosEMOby8z_UpoK46clvJi00GMJrGKBeMU4apFv0Ez3tY3R17NPuL51i6EQC6JRPDdmCDFIyvdho70VJ9FU4Mbkg/s400/Wendy%2527s+Photos+008.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593014323978058002" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIM76IiRZwWFK2DSwD31i9udCKDSj28aY9dsDEiRkVcth_BxDf8mHCm_EYFOLyQ4086B-BzbyP9lHXFzLaLTm7oMQU2HdgIpJwTiIYQbeZKZsJX3jhc57lI-dxrl2E4P4uXG8bdbm_QNE/s1600/Sylvia+%2528Owen%2527s+First+Babysitter%2529.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 266px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIM76IiRZwWFK2DSwD31i9udCKDSj28aY9dsDEiRkVcth_BxDf8mHCm_EYFOLyQ4086B-BzbyP9lHXFzLaLTm7oMQU2HdgIpJwTiIYQbeZKZsJX3jhc57lI-dxrl2E4P4uXG8bdbm_QNE/s400/Sylvia+%2528Owen%2527s+First+Babysitter%2529.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593013926909457426" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrRVVLSYwX3yZtG1opMVRl0AAVpcEdZbciKQ7A0oA9vxCAZOf89ZZTcoJe_tZvouBwW-qWvfFJF4PfCywMKFgWLnz2EcdtqRUtLSqJiHT2E2WLwVH3nO8jbQE1HbBacNeLaaidZ4xtVNQ/s1600/Hostesses.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrRVVLSYwX3yZtG1opMVRl0AAVpcEdZbciKQ7A0oA9vxCAZOf89ZZTcoJe_tZvouBwW-qWvfFJF4PfCywMKFgWLnz2EcdtqRUtLSqJiHT2E2WLwVH3nO8jbQE1HbBacNeLaaidZ4xtVNQ/s400/Hostesses.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593013008854991106" border="0" /></a>My teacher friends, our seminary community, our relatives, and our church family all encouraged us and loved on Mr. Owen since day 1. So many of you are still an integral part of our lives that I kick myself when I doubt God's future provision for us...look at what we have been given thus far! To my knees with gratitude!<br /><br /><br />To our family in Texas who rejoiced as the moving van and little blue car pulled in the driveway with the 3 of us (plus Joe), we love you! Through toddler tantrums and potty training, the relatives got introduced to daily life with Owen at such a crazy age. And even still, they cried tears as we loaded up the truck again.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX7Xg2liSAs5-JkELPiRL53AZRU6_ddhzXp_Jp74Fw-5vBs-henX2q8LTKNpwRVhUxFqpy8bKEVbEJ2UTyDW12PcgKFZHrVOVzy1EI0hNkesRH96I-E-3vvnHUQ0yNG9oFfRoq_S8QPKM/s1600/0683920-R1-050-23A.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 270px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgX7Xg2liSAs5-JkELPiRL53AZRU6_ddhzXp_Jp74Fw-5vBs-henX2q8LTKNpwRVhUxFqpy8bKEVbEJ2UTyDW12PcgKFZHrVOVzy1EI0hNkesRH96I-E-3vvnHUQ0yNG9oFfRoq_S8QPKM/s400/0683920-R1-050-23A.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592657126155555570" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8H8GB0-lhlK7d_YGtm_W8G8OJ-ob1_rlbjvUUSQWC_dsU8nF-ixv5mUnK9gsY3v4oAvgUTiTwPop5efx_Q1K6XTAong77gupLBTA7W8xKX80qhZ-Cxt0nNZltXMBC98mFRVDgTmARGl0/s1600/0683920-R1-018-7A.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 270px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8H8GB0-lhlK7d_YGtm_W8G8OJ-ob1_rlbjvUUSQWC_dsU8nF-ixv5mUnK9gsY3v4oAvgUTiTwPop5efx_Q1K6XTAong77gupLBTA7W8xKX80qhZ-Cxt0nNZltXMBC98mFRVDgTmARGl0/s400/0683920-R1-018-7A.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592657123861491362" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7uJ18NDn1s_1KvulPEJBFNuYJLNYzhgLN7_P2OucU3IcrOs82j1BtU0YSvIpNlXVaSAWNvbsNeC4XHSe1P2Gh2X_r5vVpDLtb72Fdc6K-4Q5YD9EnNX0fRN3aJBHxWY_rEwS4PsHASmI/s1600/100_1745.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7uJ18NDn1s_1KvulPEJBFNuYJLNYzhgLN7_P2OucU3IcrOs82j1BtU0YSvIpNlXVaSAWNvbsNeC4XHSe1P2Gh2X_r5vVpDLtb72Fdc6K-4Q5YD9EnNX0fRN3aJBHxWY_rEwS4PsHASmI/s400/100_1745.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593022898886042098" border="0" /></a><br />To our friends in Fresno who welcomed us, thank you for jumping in to our lives in what could have been such an isolated adventure. Our neighbors at the apartments, Miss Nazeli, our coworkers, our friends at church, Bert and Rae (via LA road trips) and our dear Peter and Jen...we look back with nothing but fondness for each relationship we made in Fresno. Owen remembers Fresno for the sun, the pool, and our friends. They are some of his first articulated memories, and for that reason, Fresno will forever be a part of our family.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-50wZqfm_n_OhopvlHXz_qXMfQdFBfMyRTBo_d_kgpbaAqiIvgNLOGUxkF6v29YxTVaITHEIG2yWMV7hsDasm0JDmrkLDjjjop7-UrXat5GdzV06FJfpMpchmSt6Ubp4smqMtjQyJKjQ/s1600/SDC12148.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 301px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-50wZqfm_n_OhopvlHXz_qXMfQdFBfMyRTBo_d_kgpbaAqiIvgNLOGUxkF6v29YxTVaITHEIG2yWMV7hsDasm0JDmrkLDjjjop7-UrXat5GdzV06FJfpMpchmSt6Ubp4smqMtjQyJKjQ/s400/SDC12148.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593022911790100770" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6b-UU1CjKRtwVuOu5ZxwCUNG9DgoH_QGIQ1lzytGJu0gbKgnuGulx6v-ixoMAW3YyyWfcbhjbe8PqWkkebEBvdi8r70L3r1FuzaEmTbNcS1oxeYQ3_U9vEAch0JtE3oThFh6j1z0SKSI/s1600/0273800-R1-051-24.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 270px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6b-UU1CjKRtwVuOu5ZxwCUNG9DgoH_QGIQ1lzytGJu0gbKgnuGulx6v-ixoMAW3YyyWfcbhjbe8PqWkkebEBvdi8r70L3r1FuzaEmTbNcS1oxeYQ3_U9vEAch0JtE3oThFh6j1z0SKSI/s400/0273800-R1-051-24.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593016816901911154" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhvYPFIrXNCFs0un8XOI8pG4gr5FEUNEyXaYXptya8axSntZvtV1YWzKajEOumoaU59gSGpuxViEN5gS2WT53IUUW5agiW8IMVLALG0y-__TtrhHNj19Lxv9YMi8H7iN0Ma9xveAVmlX4/s1600/105_0672.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhvYPFIrXNCFs0un8XOI8pG4gr5FEUNEyXaYXptya8axSntZvtV1YWzKajEOumoaU59gSGpuxViEN5gS2WT53IUUW5agiW8IMVLALG0y-__TtrhHNj19Lxv9YMi8H7iN0Ma9xveAVmlX4/s400/105_0672.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592649186709018370" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuQ0c7YgMUSze0ttkmqR6vglScESYGx1bzOcWZUia2BfZ9HdQENbqY1xINwR-sclToJ2itg31s1YJSYJyLL1FqOY2zTxmnO3NXbCNoayaZNBlx_XHXRaJxbzIFJoafsutRkkSwWkAUTmM/s1600/SDC10053.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuQ0c7YgMUSze0ttkmqR6vglScESYGx1bzOcWZUia2BfZ9HdQENbqY1xINwR-sclToJ2itg31s1YJSYJyLL1FqOY2zTxmnO3NXbCNoayaZNBlx_XHXRaJxbzIFJoafsutRkkSwWkAUTmM/s400/SDC10053.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592649728817878914" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMfEGJjCk_zHVpNumuG9Aj4Bvkr9HJ7JnW8_zO9HorXpGl2uKG2ZqcElyiPWKsXU4U1ecsq0AxY3KRZX0gEtvPKgw4OFCMWE5TlkUemwPWkobshU7zT7HgK0YJ7USwa05AJWRRnx7L5co/s1600/Super+Slide+4.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 284px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMfEGJjCk_zHVpNumuG9Aj4Bvkr9HJ7JnW8_zO9HorXpGl2uKG2ZqcElyiPWKsXU4U1ecsq0AxY3KRZX0gEtvPKgw4OFCMWE5TlkUemwPWkobshU7zT7HgK0YJ7USwa05AJWRRnx7L5co/s400/Super+Slide+4.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593019947834786466" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcJc52oWrQn8rB_LSrZyv_QEOd1DIs_2bT6cSRjY6RLUjPk2On2k3w8D6Vi_Ryt72Fa9_tuKCITBf8iPY98-yD7Q5UknkioqX4PBaZqxlMfOzaAWPB0VLg6_89P58Mwt60GcjDlJcyYSc/s1600/100_1331.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcJc52oWrQn8rB_LSrZyv_QEOd1DIs_2bT6cSRjY6RLUjPk2On2k3w8D6Vi_Ryt72Fa9_tuKCITBf8iPY98-yD7Q5UknkioqX4PBaZqxlMfOzaAWPB0VLg6_89P58Mwt60GcjDlJcyYSc/s400/100_1331.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593019943612643202" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdo0hgFRF_oYa33IgTi1w_zeCyNfT2AsNEeZFNRrJKrdu5M1YDGSWZiNvQAnqt1V-Oa05SJwP0XfEfiSuwlaH5bTsykA8reiFXmWBb5htf-F6Kq1C8zdWyHABOTBNr8OcNlnAYzvAJO5s/s1600/100_1517.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdo0hgFRF_oYa33IgTi1w_zeCyNfT2AsNEeZFNRrJKrdu5M1YDGSWZiNvQAnqt1V-Oa05SJwP0XfEfiSuwlaH5bTsykA8reiFXmWBb5htf-F6Kq1C8zdWyHABOTBNr8OcNlnAYzvAJO5s/s400/100_1517.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593019564301960162" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi0GQ7u23gWkoxlDonludPrIrGOfJw_m6ZZS_5syalAIwP0RdYTW2XAX9bcakIfI5djkJkpI_OdBESf0rCnoh3-KxDp4xzyzse7LdtbBQF026QF6U5x0Z1Xy42LkfwewWhUivuoMXChck/s1600/100_1058.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi0GQ7u23gWkoxlDonludPrIrGOfJw_m6ZZS_5syalAIwP0RdYTW2XAX9bcakIfI5djkJkpI_OdBESf0rCnoh3-KxDp4xzyzse7LdtbBQF026QF6U5x0Z1Xy42LkfwewWhUivuoMXChck/s400/100_1058.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593019564233711074" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNjKb3_VnXgmBHy71kamU06zSqum3vbrtjtQ0MgWuE5iRpY40Z_APAjwzpK4cEHpn45-8_7nMz1noP9fP2jzOwYTCpwDaE48rnJ9ogN_tzsQWCWGqBVYbZ5dZzQ7bdgB4JZkOPVm5O2c/s1600/100_1053.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwNjKb3_VnXgmBHy71kamU06zSqum3vbrtjtQ0MgWuE5iRpY40Z_APAjwzpK4cEHpn45-8_7nMz1noP9fP2jzOwYTCpwDaE48rnJ9ogN_tzsQWCWGqBVYbZ5dZzQ7bdgB4JZkOPVm5O2c/s400/100_1053.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593019561025851330" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwT4QFdNeU6eR6Ilp5cKHBJ4ciUuK-dk8sgdzrxg9ybVqOxOH8hgcrHA-8_pzgaMDHANWYmKZ6ldrIy8z2CpzYTHHx0eQo2xYTvuuc7GLh44bMmfK1Ad-sHyByJW9bmxxgOZNPYvLWnmM/s1600/100_0807.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwT4QFdNeU6eR6Ilp5cKHBJ4ciUuK-dk8sgdzrxg9ybVqOxOH8hgcrHA-8_pzgaMDHANWYmKZ6ldrIy8z2CpzYTHHx0eQo2xYTvuuc7GLh44bMmfK1Ad-sHyByJW9bmxxgOZNPYvLWnmM/s400/100_0807.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593019555377220850" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr_fUf-ssYecpeDmoA7xjxsZavnhERqzejsmJxPTJVTX6ssf24t_WeVYITpySzrHWrKNb8UuCozinmu3XnqSkJqxtfsWxv1jJj-2l_NgiH7Mop2yFzYEh3K8043jYDVC-USXnJqc-ddi8/s1600/100_0751.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr_fUf-ssYecpeDmoA7xjxsZavnhERqzejsmJxPTJVTX6ssf24t_WeVYITpySzrHWrKNb8UuCozinmu3XnqSkJqxtfsWxv1jJj-2l_NgiH7Mop2yFzYEh3K8043jYDVC-USXnJqc-ddi8/s400/100_0751.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593018788731909058" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYhHikKVfn6pH5X-bpVT6f8nGS6Wtd7MdoeQ4vt4BVw1yT0VEzQxmRkGqaI3UplHD_CXTLX6SSoCQlE43xbL4SoK74Yqq8AijwW491zH2a5e-NKTEwoGjMGqCuY2hbElKuHGF3tIZSE1w/s1600/SDC12186.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYhHikKVfn6pH5X-bpVT6f8nGS6Wtd7MdoeQ4vt4BVw1yT0VEzQxmRkGqaI3UplHD_CXTLX6SSoCQlE43xbL4SoK74Yqq8AijwW491zH2a5e-NKTEwoGjMGqCuY2hbElKuHGF3tIZSE1w/s400/SDC12186.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593022923313227586" border="0" /></a><br />And now back "home"...another cross-country trip in a moving van and little blue car with 2 kids (and Joe)! Owen is now spoiled by grandparents, worn out by cousins, entertained by small group couples, nurtured by teachers, adored by a sister, and loved by neighbors and school friends.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg65yAG6UH5FG1iO1PAaEWTiNGJHjoWFm7t9PZGKYgIlPVGe6om69y3XZo3hZYaVG9_jBDugGgGGap5qBMwkOKlmtX_NvKR0mP18wCMkqw38XtrSPuw5_BH0rBq1yl1ZV6PoD74ibAam0/s1600/Best+Group+Pic.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhg65yAG6UH5FG1iO1PAaEWTiNGJHjoWFm7t9PZGKYgIlPVGe6om69y3XZo3hZYaVG9_jBDugGgGGap5qBMwkOKlmtX_NvKR0mP18wCMkqw38XtrSPuw5_BH0rBq1yl1ZV6PoD74ibAam0/s400/Best+Group+Pic.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593023871737208994" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguY6FxIJOspmmjFjsHtynAggZTsQtEZUUES6rfKJYrc14rMn5Mi5AnZmTV28HADg68rgYYlVNRqbXiXUzSGh_k0wptQOJf5Cex8UhoHWKkILlrK8t12wBUfbtoOTEhLFDC5Nf3txRvhJM/s1600/Glynda+and+Owen.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguY6FxIJOspmmjFjsHtynAggZTsQtEZUUES6rfKJYrc14rMn5Mi5AnZmTV28HADg68rgYYlVNRqbXiXUzSGh_k0wptQOJf5Cex8UhoHWKkILlrK8t12wBUfbtoOTEhLFDC5Nf3txRvhJM/s400/Glynda+and+Owen.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593023871374716274" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTR8zP8FUXImqzpMe0LxeuzGxIC7da5MYAFyxF_wgZIJ3btKWk2X_TYWoHsFnpOYIyyXXLupnzeIgd4FV1TWMtWMOFIxsWlr2u89ophzjyVvuwbjBLr7-HogWaARsdkT0uPy6QNJXF1VE/s1600/SDC12462.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTR8zP8FUXImqzpMe0LxeuzGxIC7da5MYAFyxF_wgZIJ3btKWk2X_TYWoHsFnpOYIyyXXLupnzeIgd4FV1TWMtWMOFIxsWlr2u89ophzjyVvuwbjBLr7-HogWaARsdkT0uPy6QNJXF1VE/s400/SDC12462.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593028527457926802" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIGuyMNS09SH3Mr94Og-lNKN_e3fSzSzBOc7pT0lEkgOLuWqoPmoCbzXp57TcDuU6sjCjcy50a424aqa9oeaLBGJ8QU0r2gRVIumdTcirMxbebqvrLL5uE7uyFawGDQVBJ-3ojHOFDJPQ/s1600/SDC11953.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 304px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhIGuyMNS09SH3Mr94Og-lNKN_e3fSzSzBOc7pT0lEkgOLuWqoPmoCbzXp57TcDuU6sjCjcy50a424aqa9oeaLBGJ8QU0r2gRVIumdTcirMxbebqvrLL5uE7uyFawGDQVBJ-3ojHOFDJPQ/s400/SDC11953.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593028523509514402" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJNgektFmVUFt_ApcNGLHr9S_lYK0oRkGGSkU0ypwYX_lbADdivlIeb4MrkmDoZMsVt0onfSipW4kejDh6p_Gs5m2nHoCELpdPJsZwKASNQ5CJOs9NJo3-44-4JvrvtTjxhKo-YM9DHkA/s1600/SDC11182.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJNgektFmVUFt_ApcNGLHr9S_lYK0oRkGGSkU0ypwYX_lbADdivlIeb4MrkmDoZMsVt0onfSipW4kejDh6p_Gs5m2nHoCELpdPJsZwKASNQ5CJOs9NJo3-44-4JvrvtTjxhKo-YM9DHkA/s400/SDC11182.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593028520027270562" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLdW3-gXWLd1h_t8TI3BQQwsMQkKpoCOmsbwRhH0-79QqF5nO-UvRpfw81RGH6oirLBdR1KE0EaLx-7_uXwCLDSAVvdmQdSsk03_qJPnuLg1D462RW3dUIcR_0s_Hxp7cavW_pMQ03qzI/s1600/SDC11181.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLdW3-gXWLd1h_t8TI3BQQwsMQkKpoCOmsbwRhH0-79QqF5nO-UvRpfw81RGH6oirLBdR1KE0EaLx-7_uXwCLDSAVvdmQdSsk03_qJPnuLg1D462RW3dUIcR_0s_Hxp7cavW_pMQ03qzI/s400/SDC11181.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593027350389275330" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqgB4Xj5Ezp4opv8BjcE6s5sHArlkiMgXe-u8tYAUPgIR7a7PKdILM_-2E_geD0eKLdlVm-eHlvnNBecIEhrRkldYlmMgb7W0Hv9w2C0SGOnDJq6V35vWiSTwsxhAQROiwnsH2sRnx_Wk/s1600/SDC11166.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 339px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqgB4Xj5Ezp4opv8BjcE6s5sHArlkiMgXe-u8tYAUPgIR7a7PKdILM_-2E_geD0eKLdlVm-eHlvnNBecIEhrRkldYlmMgb7W0Hv9w2C0SGOnDJq6V35vWiSTwsxhAQROiwnsH2sRnx_Wk/s400/SDC11166.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593027344466680466" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGHBWLRLbp061l3OS_dhBbtgvSPCYYzNVrIaD4PG2rWLmeGuDfgphJyKonhh6_a-Qnl_dKkRgvQlaNA0G1ULwhMa0pFk83muNiDIvhfngShqpepYy60got45t6T27xfPaZHki-0szMJoA/s1600/SDC11165.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGHBWLRLbp061l3OS_dhBbtgvSPCYYzNVrIaD4PG2rWLmeGuDfgphJyKonhh6_a-Qnl_dKkRgvQlaNA0G1ULwhMa0pFk83muNiDIvhfngShqpepYy60got45t6T27xfPaZHki-0szMJoA/s400/SDC11165.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593027339898044786" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjH1I2USXx_LySHFMz3uYy0gIMDMUU5H4oQ2sxF8LQmXAqMwmUblzUj-lf_VOszyejIZnw0FznxTj7NX853L31jUaAMhf8iMdyp3fWB_0WwSMePINpmbqiWHpGniG6FThSrnoOzPkXTfE/s1600/SDC11162.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 297px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjH1I2USXx_LySHFMz3uYy0gIMDMUU5H4oQ2sxF8LQmXAqMwmUblzUj-lf_VOszyejIZnw0FznxTj7NX853L31jUaAMhf8iMdyp3fWB_0WwSMePINpmbqiWHpGniG6FThSrnoOzPkXTfE/s400/SDC11162.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593027335352854178" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzISFbeF7kw4qh-33yDkytdBgTFESWOf1ydlSRc2YVLjhMmQDgXXLYkPUa62k69TDZ1CKW-87tmjZq0FDZEonDHcHJ3iZW9tUqTxP1AB6vj6RDJ0Gh1vBY8tzDkccGzFaJyO-QOrOTNY8/s1600/SDC11161.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzISFbeF7kw4qh-33yDkytdBgTFESWOf1ydlSRc2YVLjhMmQDgXXLYkPUa62k69TDZ1CKW-87tmjZq0FDZEonDHcHJ3iZW9tUqTxP1AB6vj6RDJ0Gh1vBY8tzDkccGzFaJyO-QOrOTNY8/s400/SDC11161.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5593027330825001282" border="0" /></a><br /><br />So, if you're reading this and you love him half as much as I do, THANK YOU for helping us to surround and polish this little gem we were given 6 years ago.<br /><br />To the Lord: your word says that you "surround me with songs of deliverance" and that for those who trust in you, your "lovingkindness will surround him." <span style="font-weight: bold;">May Owen never walk alone!</span><br />Happy Birthday to my favorite 6 year old!<br /><br /><br /><br /><br />PS:<br />For those of you who can't remember what Mrs. Butley really looks like:<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU965OYYs4UfogFsnRfMzbYIQx25RXjNIAgX1AA77mYPp6CqUsfmbAscPKRFgrxmHAsQvhKvL20cdTmOgKj8I33GMEzCqpe4aaMTHFLwFdKRrZm3d-kN1GQP2I5HjJOkRzFzSSv2FH_iE/s1600/SDC11805.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiU965OYYs4UfogFsnRfMzbYIQx25RXjNIAgX1AA77mYPp6CqUsfmbAscPKRFgrxmHAsQvhKvL20cdTmOgKj8I33GMEzCqpe4aaMTHFLwFdKRrZm3d-kN1GQP2I5HjJOkRzFzSSv2FH_iE/s400/SDC11805.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5592635109583338098" border="0" /></a>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-22513787267872717632011-03-31T19:57:00.003-05:002011-03-31T20:06:10.858-05:00ColdA snap of cold weather this week brought back memories of our CUH-OLD winter! With snow days upon snow days, life in the apartment got a little crazy, but I realized that we are on the go more than necessary. We played with almost every toy and board game (and the ones that we didn't are now bagged up for another family to enjoy) in the house and enjoyed some much needed time as just the 4 of us. <br /><br />Because snow is a rarity, our deep-freeze outfits were a little hodge-podge.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbZD-v9RtB_4JIBarxG3T1vOoENlBxprC3LNe4fsYVIc81K7IvRdQx655N22tN2qX3HxRH-NTH2bbVoJxBCwmM-4GWturnIkAN5ty20xW8Ym9lta4yPjFFutyBLUJBvyL2rRwBCL9P4Uo/s1600/SDC12480.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 223px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbZD-v9RtB_4JIBarxG3T1vOoENlBxprC3LNe4fsYVIc81K7IvRdQx655N22tN2qX3HxRH-NTH2bbVoJxBCwmM-4GWturnIkAN5ty20xW8Ym9lta4yPjFFutyBLUJBvyL2rRwBCL9P4Uo/s400/SDC12480.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590413519262314610" border="0" /></a>Yes, this is June in a silver parka (the best coat of us all), footie fleece pajamas, rain boots, and a random hat. I took this picture before I put her brother's socks on as mittens. You say "trashy", I say "clever".<br /><br />And in the picture below, can you tell one of us was starting to get cabin fever?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigybIQJrKlFz908H8ZrqI7N61WwiV7kiy4LAmYl6JHwKzv6R4bjv5IlDEwL_W8Al1hSPgL2jRGv6ANyBwWTa-mOy6iKr-tbk-coPyWk_zsfPYEOoCrFDJQ1l7TiX4giwb3AGWC2Q4W0bI/s1600/SDC12476.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigybIQJrKlFz908H8ZrqI7N61WwiV7kiy4LAmYl6JHwKzv6R4bjv5IlDEwL_W8Al1hSPgL2jRGv6ANyBwWTa-mOy6iKr-tbk-coPyWk_zsfPYEOoCrFDJQ1l7TiX4giwb3AGWC2Q4W0bI/s400/SDC12476.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590413513119483522" border="0" /></a>Thank goodness that Michael was willing to go up and down the 3 flights of stairs to play in the snow with these fickle friends. We'll be missing that fun when the temps hit 100 in a few months.<br /><br /><br />And the last pic, I give you for free. Buddies walking down the hall at Owen's school:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDO8v2h_qHaPCHvHVCLTIv-rfjtAhp1lEcJowKv8aqi7sm_XxqFoKAhxbuLERmkWJKORgdjABQMhFClDFvDY37yIBakmkq6sy4ktKnLNR56SH5OCDT3-lxzmjWDLrZe07c2nlsYcMVdCA/s1600/SDC12481.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 253px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDO8v2h_qHaPCHvHVCLTIv-rfjtAhp1lEcJowKv8aqi7sm_XxqFoKAhxbuLERmkWJKORgdjABQMhFClDFvDY37yIBakmkq6sy4ktKnLNR56SH5OCDT3-lxzmjWDLrZe07c2nlsYcMVdCA/s400/SDC12481.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5590413520124101698" border="0" /></a>Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-33552564874766194412011-03-27T22:07:00.003-05:002011-03-27T22:22:17.217-05:00First HaircutMarch 17, 2011. 21 months old. Tangles upon tangles...mullet status approaching...uneven growth patterns...it was time for...June's first haircut.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO28lBeUyPCO-9Do252IsWpeY5VldlFShAqpkLtOy_GK9Bo3_f3LePzaYPUw8dVbA6ZM0XuAJ0Q0d785KxjsjoR1cawhFoqxrLUE2BwZrfUESInxAWQCf-iwIuNelZyslhqc4xKxrom_4/s1600/Before+Curls.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiO28lBeUyPCO-9Do252IsWpeY5VldlFShAqpkLtOy_GK9Bo3_f3LePzaYPUw8dVbA6ZM0XuAJ0Q0d785KxjsjoR1cawhFoqxrLUE2BwZrfUESInxAWQCf-iwIuNelZyslhqc4xKxrom_4/s400/Before+Curls.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588963684044400178" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdxI0WioIQseL7mbc1HJj6FUynZh164STawb2596cAO6HcvhL-r_u1bXSn5dGWaxNbNjnx27o8XyhHJ3iWhTngJmROBwOtxwwyQ9w07gcfVh6-IpPALuqI6ZARNJJeIITPT2Yty7NHyY/s1600/Before+Side+Curls.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDdxI0WioIQseL7mbc1HJj6FUynZh164STawb2596cAO6HcvhL-r_u1bXSn5dGWaxNbNjnx27o8XyhHJ3iWhTngJmROBwOtxwwyQ9w07gcfVh6-IpPALuqI6ZARNJJeIITPT2Yty7NHyY/s400/Before+Side+Curls.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588963671900107682" border="0" /></a><br />After much debating among family and friends, I made the executive momma decision to have June's hair cut. By a professional. I know my limits and the world of curly hair is one of them for me. I'm not trying to have June's hair always chin length in a bob (Momma is the queen supreme in that department), but it was getting out of control. Yes, it was sweet to others but a tangled mess to me. The hairdresser promised that trimming a little off the back and even-ing up some of the layers would help decrease tangles, increase bounce, and lead to less upkeep overall. What girl could refuse that? So, let the snipping begin...<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwqckLUGAZv5inVBhpRzd7XMUPoijoE1CaukqBTDIQAJdC9VvU8N1Ejh-jv0V0Q59Am-0scZdV4DSqsMLhq3f9gvPmJDC5o79ryJXU2btFcYMhoSGTI8cglkRmeGkedH07LlZVN_Bq3wo/s1600/Side+Curls+After.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwqckLUGAZv5inVBhpRzd7XMUPoijoE1CaukqBTDIQAJdC9VvU8N1Ejh-jv0V0Q59Am-0scZdV4DSqsMLhq3f9gvPmJDC5o79ryJXU2btFcYMhoSGTI8cglkRmeGkedH07LlZVN_Bq3wo/s400/Side+Curls+After.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588963671259677154" border="0" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbx4H5HUD2LDN0_sRfADGXRM_m-piIPBlO-ZPOsSbEfX1dvkUVB3hopw4uzYp70Sl8hS5OUUbHcBjbrNo7asRFft7NpYWTZCv4lLDS_lFI4bS1xkiiEFkEFEIht1eHUN98hXPYBrWZNho/s1600/June+Sucker.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbx4H5HUD2LDN0_sRfADGXRM_m-piIPBlO-ZPOsSbEfX1dvkUVB3hopw4uzYp70Sl8hS5OUUbHcBjbrNo7asRFft7NpYWTZCv4lLDS_lFI4bS1xkiiEFkEFEIht1eHUN98hXPYBrWZNho/s400/June+Sucker.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588963666223801746" border="0" /></a><br />Yep, they put a bow in her hair and glitter on her cheeks. Um, they obviously don't know my style...but I think they saw a glimpse of June's. So, we went with it. She did great the whole time. Very much in "thoughtful eyebrows" mode the whole time.<br /><br />After, she went with Mom to catch the eye of every lady at Costco while Mom picked up flowers. Yes, she rode on the pallet cart the whole time.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-d4c0yQJ8q-XR3G0lwZq5oEvti1NZ99xfvCpN0OraeuRQstet5hbv0yMa6UtxAY3wksk8UfbOXP03F6JN5L1MmAnyoLfW-8sYRASrVZbqisRLtDwkrsU0PbGOY9XFP8P_YbTpVIOxYec/s1600/June+in+Flowers.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-d4c0yQJ8q-XR3G0lwZq5oEvti1NZ99xfvCpN0OraeuRQstet5hbv0yMa6UtxAY3wksk8UfbOXP03F6JN5L1MmAnyoLfW-8sYRASrVZbqisRLtDwkrsU0PbGOY9XFP8P_YbTpVIOxYec/s400/June+in+Flowers.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5588963671490527058" border="0" /></a><br />And the hairdresser was absolutely right...the curls look so much better, healthier, and sweet. For still being my baby, she quite the little girl!Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-55743178892082040992011-01-31T09:29:00.002-06:002011-01-31T09:37:34.181-06:00Time with GordonHave I told you lately how much I love this little guy?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPy5SS4_Io3bf_Kfx59yY67tiuD_nrSCGWXoKSXfiO29UODR5oJV24gVQHa-8XpntAajCcTOMAqF8PClk7cAobLqLga3p4rtVmUfDjiXtTbEkgM4bhokXzNvHOSQfccUfQvYfgqpJMIUI/s1600/SDC12459.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPy5SS4_Io3bf_Kfx59yY67tiuD_nrSCGWXoKSXfiO29UODR5oJV24gVQHa-8XpntAajCcTOMAqF8PClk7cAobLqLga3p4rtVmUfDjiXtTbEkgM4bhokXzNvHOSQfccUfQvYfgqpJMIUI/s400/SDC12459.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568373211232998738" border="0" /></a><br />Gordon met the cousins and me at Sushi's house for a mid-day playtime while Aunt Nini went to her scholarship's award ceremony. Yep, that brilliant lady is not only starting nursing school, but she's doing it on a full scholarship too! Blessings abound!<br /><br />I don't want her to be too busy, but then again, if it means more Gordon time...happy studying!Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3318849374082206791.post-23776827280211072922011-01-28T07:06:00.006-06:002011-01-28T11:20:07.065-06:00Chain Letters and ColoringThanks to the <a href="http://thecarderfamily.blogspot.com/">Carders</a><a href="http://thecarderfamily.blogspot.com/">,</a> Owen and June received their first chain letter. Yep, "The Sticker Club" letter arrived. The thing about having a reader in the house, is that it's a lot harder to hide things.<br /><br />Things I've been caught on lately:<br /><ul><li>The menu offering at school (Oh, you're right. It IS sloppy joe day. My bad. He loves those things.)<br /></li><li>The time it actually is at night (What? We weren't trying to put you to bed at 6:30. Really...We weren't.)</li><li>Mail addressed to Owen and June (from the Disney video club...that's right, I don't care when or what is released from their vault of profit and mass merchandising...I'm not buying. I know my friend Heather just had a small stroke reading that statement. Sorry H.H.)</li></ul>So, when Owen found the sticker club letter from E & E, he read it to find out that if he sent this to 6 friends, he could receive as many as 36 sticker sheets in return. He loves getting mail and June loves stickers. Jackpot!<br /><br />We began addressing envelopes and apologizing to friends ahead of time. It really wasn't that bad, and I kept hoping our friends didn't feel obligated to send anything. My favorite part about it all was watching Owen hype it up to June every day as they checked the mail.<br /><br />The result: <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhovlXl-8y1JxnBLGVp-IyFyrYd6U8gBtIjZqpMDNsiAerdVo9t2XN2bevWFy9v0wqFmhjFdwpSPR84qWofs-h1_Jtu0uUke8cC5iNJfGnv7OGBsMMroQZVY36bXq5ueQ3VqcsjfOz6gcg/s1600/SDC12425.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 308px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhovlXl-8y1JxnBLGVp-IyFyrYd6U8gBtIjZqpMDNsiAerdVo9t2XN2bevWFy9v0wqFmhjFdwpSPR84qWofs-h1_Jtu0uUke8cC5iNJfGnv7OGBsMMroQZVY36bXq5ueQ3VqcsjfOz6gcg/s400/SDC12425.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5567223101800040130" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZkA3OpoT7MMJNhWNXBASaGb-sy5_UXrO3J-cVPOuzG9xJtz3-1JoGhoN61usk7HRJkpXY4gLUlunWgHVmBnQFO0Mhy8kiKFDOFreDQdYA8grXr03Ix3Rv2vVzsqb1RFwlb9vKI6jPVyw/s1600/SDC12421.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 292px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZkA3OpoT7MMJNhWNXBASaGb-sy5_UXrO3J-cVPOuzG9xJtz3-1JoGhoN61usk7HRJkpXY4gLUlunWgHVmBnQFO0Mhy8kiKFDOFreDQdYA8grXr03Ix3Rv2vVzsqb1RFwlb9vKI6jPVyw/s400/SDC12421.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5567223099365971202" border="0" /></a>A happy baby and content mail box checker.<br /><br />Along with the stickers, June has discovered the world of markers.<br /><br />Determined...<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_zLHsJEXC5WGIpQpi4t-Dw0AghkVqBYBgJrsQrYQ_HoH99snmdDxd3oDyDMh93O4iL_T5G45bChehVy7WXQxQRxQx7oS6i-W-UHH7OD4R3f0vY9auCTt94xktNxp17S1szuQKqpAvwh0/s1600/SDC12426.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_zLHsJEXC5WGIpQpi4t-Dw0AghkVqBYBgJrsQrYQ_HoH99snmdDxd3oDyDMh93O4iL_T5G45bChehVy7WXQxQRxQx7oS6i-W-UHH7OD4R3f0vY9auCTt94xktNxp17S1szuQKqpAvwh0/s400/SDC12426.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5567223105857116370" border="0" /></a>Maybe I'll finally get through the leftovers of my class sets of markers from my teaching days.<br /><br /><br />Showing off to Mini-Spooky.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG8W8ROtNUMfPT3qZFxRmlROECSlAYqEWPzdSge-eE1woiYoWrYhi4l2nZ2V50SZk-Q2xVwQHeosajDuilu6xaAO5u5RDysU4kbRL3NTYF_v5oZVrKJSTwtGg9cU0jxSqC5w5WmdpT7GA/s1600/SDC12431.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG8W8ROtNUMfPT3qZFxRmlROECSlAYqEWPzdSge-eE1woiYoWrYhi4l2nZ2V50SZk-Q2xVwQHeosajDuilu6xaAO5u5RDysU4kbRL3NTYF_v5oZVrKJSTwtGg9cU0jxSqC5w5WmdpT7GA/s400/SDC12431.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5567225722122385026" border="0" /></a><br />Mini-Spooky came from Michael's grandmother's things (she passed away in October). The kids have always been drawn to it when they would visit her, and Michael's mom sent it home with June. June loves to be like her bubba and love on her "Pooky Beh".<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLQ91qBramuljqix8jkzFnkFrqXHMHs0CWBb6KvwGHKrPFyZtodoSdhAH4VIDcM3hJ3IQvz_C2oW4YYUp7614913RXo2S0vclL3YI66My3RravTm_YTMpUmjRaYLYGkdqt_kMBX_a4bEs/s1600/SDC12430.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLQ91qBramuljqix8jkzFnkFrqXHMHs0CWBb6KvwGHKrPFyZtodoSdhAH4VIDcM3hJ3IQvz_C2oW4YYUp7614913RXo2S0vclL3YI66My3RravTm_YTMpUmjRaYLYGkdqt_kMBX_a4bEs/s400/SDC12430.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5567223123717116994" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh2x2mLx8xiKTEYUjbLT1wijehCH7Lj5rHXasXU2vEe2isF0JOW-BwOrfc6wGB0EetCL3oSo22b4BF87DJ392qvlFsaB0BqRvrpDvl4X3RyWvYcxpQlxSAqHEDzMnj9osTOpunJ3IqEU8/s1600/SDC12428.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh2x2mLx8xiKTEYUjbLT1wijehCH7Lj5rHXasXU2vEe2isF0JOW-BwOrfc6wGB0EetCL3oSo22b4BF87DJ392qvlFsaB0BqRvrpDvl4X3RyWvYcxpQlxSAqHEDzMnj9osTOpunJ3IqEU8/s400/SDC12428.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5567223116208794146" border="0" /></a><br />What are the odds of finding another hideous orange teddy bear? If you look closely, his nose is a MasterCard logo. Dave Ramsey, eat your heart out!Nataliehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01535925648047727394noreply@blogger.com1