Breakfast With the Sandhill Family

We had some breakfast guests this morning! Meet the Sandhill Family...mommy, daddy, and baby! These are Sandhill Cranes and they're everywhere around here. They are highly annoying birds to the natives around here, but we Texas folks think they're pretty darn amazing and we're fascinated by them, as you can see! The girls were outside eating donuts that were left over from a church event last night. Cary and I looked out the window and saw the girls feeding them pieces of their donuts, which I'm pretty sure is illegal, but the birds didn't seem to mind! And the mommy bird would take a piece and give it to her baby. So sweet! We thought they might not need to be eating donuts, so we got out some birdseeds for them instead and they ate that too. And for my Texas friends who are looking at this picture thinking..."Is that your neighbor's house behind you...where's the fence???" Um, yeah, fences aren't really a popular thing here in FL. I think it's bizarre too. Like my neighbors really want to look at the swingset, sandbox, and trampoline! Not sure why the no-fence thing is okay with people here. In Texas, you buy a house, it comes with a fence! You can't have without the other. It's like oreos and milk, peas and carrots, pizza and tomato sauce! So yeah, this has taken some getting used to for me. Having to walk the dog on a leash is getting old!

You may have to click on the picture to get a nice big, clear view!

They were covering their ears because these birds do make a very loud, squaky, pterodactyl type of sound, it's actually quite beautiful, but freaks out my kids. The birds had just seen Candice in the window so they were sqauking..."Big, spotted dog, about to eat us, fly, fly away, save yourselves..."

Things That Make You Go Grrrrrrrrrrr.....

I never knew until I started working at the church how many needy people there are in my community. Many of them want nothing to do with God or the church, but by golly when they're in need that's the first place they come for money! And we do have a benevolence ministry for that purpose, so we are able to meet a lot of needs which is great. But there is this one young man that comes often. In fact, he's a regular on the church property. I say, young, because he looks like he's about 20, but his 17 year old daughter was killed in a car accident last week so he has to be more like my age or older. Although I can't imagine having a 17 yr old, but I guess it's possible if I got started at the age of 17! This young man is somewhat mentally challenged...I think. It's hard to tell. He has tried to get numerous jobs but loses them due to his felony records or bad hygiene. I'm not sure if he's homeless. He certainly has a way of making people feel sorry for him. He's a master at that puppy dog face. Our church has helped him all we can and now I think he just comes around to get sympathy or a quick counseling session now and then or a free Wednesday night meal or something, not sure. Anyways, today he approached Cary and told him that he got a job at Checkers but that the supervisor said she was going to have to let him go if he didn't improve his hygiene. So my dear sweet husband felt sorry for him and went up to Checkers to put in a word with the manager for him, then he went to CVS and bought him a razor and some shaving cream, deodorant, soap, toothbrush, and toothpaste and I don't even know what else. But he said he wanted to do something nice so he threw in a Milky Way candy bar "just because". When he got back to the church, this young man was waiting for him and he gave him the bag of hygiene products and said, "Oh and there's a little snack in there for you too." The young man pulled out the candy bar and said, "What, you didn't get me a drink?!!!" My husband was so mad when he called me. You try to do something nice for someone...Grrrrr...

Memorial Day

I am not a fan of the Atlantic coast beaches for some reason. Too murky, too choppy, too crowded, yucky sand. But I needed a tropical fix and we refused to spend $80 bucks on gasoline to drive to St. Pete for the day. So we made the short drive to Melbourne instead. Despite it being too murky, too choppy, too crowded, and having yucky sand we still had a wonderful afternoon. And don't buy Winn Dixie brand sunscreen...if you want to get any sun! That stuff is bullet proof man! We came home just as white as we left.

Cary dug the girls a water hole and I looked over at them and saw them sitting just like this, sunning themselves. I'm not really sure where the learned the art of sun worshipping from....hmmm...

Then Lexi asked to wear my shades so she could look "like a mommy".

And yes, unfortnately, the sand that goes in the swimsuit must come out of the swimsuit...all over my freshly mopped bathroom floor.

Good Eats...Part 2

In the post below, "Good Eats", I told you all about the crazy scrumptuous feasts we've been having lately. Well, the feast continued this morning. PMS maybe? I don't know! We really don't eat like this all the time. I promise! But I think we've started a new family tradition. All holidays will hereby be known as "Crazy Waffle Topping Day" in our home. The girls opted for hot fudge with Reece's Pieces and whipped cream on their Texas waffles. (I told you of my aversion to maple syrup right? Totally NOT allowed in this house!)

I opted for the much more "healthy" option...strawberries (soaked in sugar water), bananas, hot fudge, and whipped cream! With a diet sprite...to cancel it all out!

Relax all you Sugar Natzi Moms! Sometimes, as Lexi says, "You just gotta jump in without your floaties!"

Live a little!

Good Eats

Now, being a product of the great state of Texas, I KNOW me some GOOD FOOD Y'ALL! When we found out we were moving to FL, I was excited about DisneyWorld and great beaches and palm trees AND GREAT SEAFOOD! But, there's just one problem....we don't really have seafood! When we came on our first official visit for an interview back in Sept '06, we asked the pastor where we could go for some great FL seafood and he said, "There's a Red Lobster near the mall." I just about croaked. Red Lobster? Come on! We have those in Dallas, hundreds of miles from an ocean! I mean S.E.A.F.O.O.D.!!!!!! I thought, I know this place is surrounded by salt water on 3 sides, there has GOT to be some good seafood nearby! Well, we do have The Catfish Place in town. That hardly qualifies to me as "seafood" since well, catfish, well, you know! I guess what I had in mind was more like a wooden shack up on stilts, where you can sit outside over the water and hear the seagulls and smell the saltwater in the air and listen to Jimmy Buffet music! So we headed to the coast, about 45 minutes away. Still no seafood!!! Apparently the Atlantic ocean doesn't have shrimp or fish or something??? We have since discovered that to fulfill our seafood fantasies, we really have to drive about an hour and a half the other direction, towards the gulf side, to get our seafood fix. Which, with our current gasoline crisis, is not going to happen any time soon! Oh, our favorite place is in St Pete. It's called Sea Critters. HOLY FREAKIN COW! So good! But...remember the great Publix meat sale I told you about? Well, I went! And I loaded up on SEAFOOD! The other meats like the steaks, ground beef, and chicken were still higher priced than Walmart even while on sale! So I didn't buy any of those. But I did get 2 pounds of crablegs and I got 2 shrimp rings, with some new pototatoes, sweet corn on the cob, and a watermelon (for $2.75 from the produce stand!) And folks, we had us some SEAFOOD last night! Oh, it was HEAVENLY! I kept eating and eating and eating. And it was a $20 meal easily, but we didn't have to spend $80 to drive to the beach and $40 on a restaurant meal, so I think $20 is pretty good for a meal such as this! It was so good, I'm actually considering going BACK to Publix before the sale ends and loading up AGAIN!

Today, before I went to church, I put a roast and some carrots in my slow cooker. Then after church, I made us some homemade mashed potatoes and cornbread in the cast iron skillet. YUMMO! It's been some good eatin' round here lately! Just call me Martha Stewart! Actually, please don't call me that! She's a little too uppity New Yorkerish for my liking. And her voice puts me to sleep. Call me Paula Deen! She's much more my style! And I did use a half stick of butter in my mashed potatoes...Y'ALL! Mmmm, mmmm, gonna go fix me some left overs now!

Is it a full moon??? Anyone???

Is it just me, or are your kids crazy lately too? I don't know WHAT is going on but my kids have been in trouble morning, noon, and night lately. Nothing out of the ordinary is going on in our lives and I don't think it's ME that's acting differently. Seems like every time they go through a phase like this, I later discover there was a full moon. Or at least, I'll use any excuse I can get!

Gotta run...we're going to our old house to move our swing set over FINALLY. Maybe they can go outside now and get all that energy out on the swingset. Last night, I was asking Lexi what she was thankful for at dinner. Long story, we had turkey and dressing, which makes me want to give thanks! Anyhoo, she said she was thankful for her toys and I said, "SO AM I!"

Oh and I'm on a quest to win a vacation! My friend, Angela, who came to visit a few weeks ago told me about the Beaches resorts where they have all the Sesame Street stuff for kids. AMAZING!!!! I checked out their website today (just to dream, not like we could afford it) and I entered to win a vacation. You should enter too and if you win, maybe we can go together! http://www.beaches.com/general/sesame.cfm I've been praying for a dreamy tropical vacation! I know God is not my geenie in a bottle or anything, but surely He wants me to have a vacation every now and then right? That's Biblical! Resting is Biblical! So if you come across any "enter to win a free vacation" sites, please send them my way! I have a feeling that's the only way I'll get a REAL vacation is to win one!

Guns Up...

In Texas, "Guns Up", is a Texas Tech thing. No, I haven't suddenly become a Texas Tech Red Raider fan or anything crazy like that, HOWEVER, we did attend a dinner show this weekend at Arabian Knights with a Texas Tech Red Raider graduate. And apparently Lexi was feelin' the Red Raider spirit cause the girl wanted a GUN! Our veternarian, who also happens to attend our church and is a Texas Tech grad, invited us to this charity event that her vet office was helping to sponsor. The show was a tribute to the Wild West. Lexi won some tickets playing games and guess what she wanted to "buy" with her tickets....A GUN! Not a princess crown, or a sheriff's badge, or a cute keychain, or a stuffed animal. Girlfriend wanted a gun! I see no harm in toy guns (GASP! I know!) I had a few cap guns myself as a young girl and I'm not like overly agressive or a husband beater or anything crazy like that. (Well, I'm crazy, crazy enough that my husband would probably never buy me a gun!) When we got home, Lexi threw a cryin' fit because she didn't have any cowgirl boots to go with her gun. Not sure why guns and boots go together but apparently they're like peas and carrots. So Granny left her some money to go buy some boots, which we did yesterday. She wore them to school today, which I kind of knew might result in a little teasing cause you know, it's Florida, not Texas, but teasing is after all, CHARACTER BUILDING in my opinion, so I let her wear her boots and she was darn cute. When I picked her up from school she said she did get teased and they said she looked like a boy! But she said, "I think they're just jealous Mommy! Can I wear them again tomorrow?" That's my girl! Cowgirl with an attitude!

Before the show...Princess Lexi

After the show...
Well, does this picture really need a caption?

Ballet Recital

Lexi had her ballet recital this past Sunday during church. I think I've mentioned that she took lessons this past semester from a girl in our church who only charges a fraction of the amount it would cost to take from a studio and she's GREAT and is awesome with the kids! Since 3 of the girls already had tutus from Lexi & Ashton's birthday party, we thought it would be cute to just make a few more for the other girls, all different colors and that's what they danced in. So my tutu making skills were put to the test yet again, but they all turned out so cute and the girls did a great job!

Just 'Chilax' Moms!

Chilax is my new word. It means, chill out and relax! A little over 5 years ago, I became a mom. Giving the word "chilax" a whole new meaning! I had good intentions. Oh, I read "BabyWise" a gazillion times and I wanted to be one of those "parent directed feeders" not giving in to the demands of my children. They were going to be on MY schedule by golly! They were going to do things MY way! And they were going to potty train when I decided it was time!!! Yeah, right! What was I smoking? Over the last 5 years, I have learned that babies are hungry when they are hungry and you BETTER feed them or else! And I've learned that children get tired when they get tired and you'd BETTER let them sleep right then, or else! And I've recently learned that children will potty train ONLY when they are ready, and not a moment sooner, and you'd better pay attention or else! Now I'm not saying we have Kid CEO's in this household. They very much know the rules and the consequences and they know who's boss, but when it comes to the small stuff, like potty training, just CHILAX moms! Why do we as moms stress and worry so much about these little things? I've decided to just let them be. I've learned this lesson first hand recently. Ashton is 3 and has all the sudden decided that she wants to wear panties, and insisted upon it. She would have no part of a diaper whatsoever! Where this came from, we have no clue. Just happened! 6 months ago, we couldn't have bribed her with anything under the sun that would have made her want to wear panties. It has happened on HER terms, not ours. She has been in panties non-stop for about a week now and has not had one single accident. I don't even have to help her unless she has on buttoning or zipper pants. I haven't even had to remind her to go potty. She just does it all on her own. It's insanely wonderful I'm telling you! She's even been wearing her panties around town. We went to a dinner show Sunday that lasted for 3+hours and she wore her panties there and did FABULOUSLY! She's worn her panties to church and out to eat and out running errands and today we were out and about for 6 hours...not one single accident! Piece of cake! It took me months to let Lexi wear her panties out in public, but Ashton is about a year older than Lexi was when I potty trained her. Now if I had tried to potty train her 6 months ago, it would have been disastrous and I would have been cleaning up teetee and washing underwear non stop! But because it was on her terms, there has been no "potty training" really. She didn't need training. She just did it! Thank you Ashton for again reminding me to CHILAX and not sweat the small stuff! Here's my big girl!

Must Sleep Now

No time to blog lately. Haven't been a good bloggin' buddy! Sorry bloggity friends :-( We've been so busy lately and I'm totally overwhelmed right now with projects at work, home, volunteer, etc etc. My to-do list each day is twice as long as the day! Had a fun weekend with Granny here for the ballet recital. Will post pics soon. Must sleep now. Can't hold head up any longer. Just wanted you to know I'm still alive.

Purrfectly Precious!

Tonight Cary brought the girls home from church at 8ish and I stayed and kept working for a couple more hours. I had the diaper bag with me, which apparently had Ashton's pacifier in it. So when he got home and put the girls in bed, there was no paci. :-( And I'm not sure who was more upset about that, Ashton or Daddy! She kept standing beside her bed looking for a paci and finally Daddy convinced her to just hug her kitty cat REALLY REALLY tight to help her fall asleep. It must have worked because when I got home a few hours later, this is how I found her sound asleep!

Purrfectly Precious!

Shout to the Lord...huh?

This morning on the way to school, Lexi was singing her praises to our King like she does all day every day. Melts my heart! The girl loves her some Jesus songs! This morning the radio wasn't even on, but she was just singing out, making a joyful noise..."Shout to the Lord all the earth, lettuce ping, showers and raises we sing..." okay so that's her version, she fills in the words with what she THINKS they are singing and it's too darn cute to correct her.

But all the sudden she stopped singing and she said, "Mommy, is that naughty?"

"Is what naughty baby?"

"Is it naughty to shout to the Lord?"

I was trying not to laugh. Children are so innocent and take things so literally. It's just precious! So we had a talk about what it means to "shout to the Lord" and then she carried on with her song.

Mother's Day Madness

So this was my 6th Mother's Day! I remember year #1 like it was yesterday. I was so excited to finally be on the receiving end of this wonderful day of the year. We piled ourselves and our 2 month old baby in the car and headed south to my mom's that weekend. Sunday morning came along and I expected that my normally VERY thoughtful, creative, romantic husband would have gotten up to fix all three of us moms in the house breakfast. But he didn't. My mom did! But I thought, oh well, I'm sure he got me a wonderful gift for my 1st mother's day. I waited and waited. Nothing. That afternoon at about 3 p.m. he headed off to Walmart. He came back a few hours later and handed me a white, plastic Walmart bag and said, "Happy Mother's Day!" IT WAS A MOP Y'ALL! A Swifter wetjet mop! Now, granted I had mentioned that I wanted one, but I meant like along with diamonds or a massage or something grand. Not just a mop. I made such a big deal about my disappointments that the following year, year #2, I got breakfast in bed, diamond earrings, and a homemade video of me and Lexi put to that Martina McBride song, "In My Daughter's Eyes". It was a wonderful day and made up for year #1. Year #3, I just don't remember at all. Year #4 I got my picture made with Lisa Welchel (Blair from Facts of Life) who was a member at our church in Dallas and she spoke that day at church. I also got my first digital camera that year. Year #5, that was last year. My mom and grandmother were here in FL with us and we went to the beach. And TODAY, year #6...drumroll please...I got...a PEDEGG!!!! Yes, like the infomercial! Well, in his defense, I asked him to PLEASE not spend money on me because we've had lots of crazy expenses lately and more to come. But I am about to go be the recipient of a back massage by Lexi and a pedicure with my pedegg by Cary while watching Little Bear. What could be better? And besides, it's not about the gifts. My children are the best Mother's Day gifts I could ever get! Mother's Day is a day to celebrate the incredible gift of motherhood, right? Who needs presents! We did eat lunch at Texas Roadhouse, which was wonderful. Except for the fact that I left very depressed. Every time I come to peace with the fact that Florida is now my home and I'm okay with that, I go and do something stupid like listen to country music (There's a Texas connection in EVERY country song), or I eat at TEXAS Roadhouse, or I open my Texas Aggie alumni magazine, and I just lose it! When will the homesickness go away? We're going on a year and a half now! Oh, but I also got one other wonderful Mother's Day gift today...Lexi got her ears pierced!!!! YEA!!!!!!!!!! Goodbye sticker earrings which end up all over my floor and car! Goodbye clip on earrings that don't really clip on! I couldn't be more thrilled about this right of passage which took place today. Here are some pictures and despite her tears, we DID NOT hold her down and do this forcefully. It was her idea and she was insistent! And we have not been able to get her out from behind the mirror all afternoon.

10 seconds after this photo she was laughing and smiling...I promise!

And right now as I'm typing, Lexi just threw up! Thank God it's Mother's Day and I don't have to clean it up! She's been complaining of a tummy ache all day and she's not a thrower upper. She's only thrown up like twice in her whole life! After she threw up she walked in here and opened her mouth wide for me to look inside and said, "Is my uvula still there?"

And we all watched Little Bear and lived happily ever after...

This morning when Cary and I woke up, we were laying in bed just cuddling and talking and I said, "Do you know what I miss?" I'm sure he thought I was about to say, "Texas, REAL Mexican food, bluebonnets, Aggieland, my friends and family back home, etc etc." But for once, that's not what was on my mind. I said, "I miss Little Bear!" And no, that is not code for something sexual. Y'all get your minds out of the gutter! In case you fell off of a turnip truck or were born yesterday, Little Bear is the GREATEST kid's cartoon EVER created! And I'm not much of a cartoon fan, nor are my children. But we all LOVE Little Bear! When we moved to this house 2 months ago, we switched our satellite service b/c we got a better deal. But the package we got didn't include the Noggin channel and I truly thought I could live with that sacrifice for the sake of a lower payment. But what the heck! What's $5 bucks a month right? Little Bear is priceless! So we clicked on a few buttons and voila, within seconds, we had the Noggin channel! Isn't technology great? When it works! We quickly discovered that there was a Little Bear marathon starting at 4 p.m. So we rushed to get done with all our chores for the day so that we could have some family time on the couch. We popped some popcorn and got all geared up to watch Little Bear. And it was pure delight. All four of us sharing slurpees and popcorn. Except that after a few minutes, I looked over and the girls had gone off to the playroom and it was just Cary and I sitting on the couch watching Little Bear. But that really didn't bother us. We watched and watched and laughed and laughed and got all full of warm fuzzies!

Oh and long live Duck...my favorite character on Little Bear! We DVRed all the episodes today so we can have Little Bear whenever we want!

Hot Tamales!

We went to Disneyworld today and it was HOT! Hot tamales! Africa hot! Steamy hot! I have a splitting headache from the heat and I drank a TON of water and haven't peed since 10:00 this morning. It's almost midnight! Is that scary? We had a great time, despite the heat. And crowds. And crowds. And more crowds. As we got into the park, you know it's the year of a million dreams (for the second year in a row, is that funny to anyone else?) And this park employee came up to us and asked if our girls would like to go to the VIP room to meet some princesses and take some pictures. Well, duh! Who wouldn't want that! So she set up an appointment for us and we got over there all excited but it was just ONE princess (do I sound like an ungrateful brat) and that was Cinderella. I mean, I guess it was nice and all because we didn't have to wait in line and got to take unlimited pictures with her. But we had to walk clear to the other side of the park for that. In the heat. And crowds. But a good time was had by all. We only had a few meltdowns today at the "Happiest Place on Earth".

And while I was there, I thought to myself, this place hasn't changed like EVER, I mean I think the employees are even wearing the same costumes they wore 30 years ago. But yet, people pay an absurd amount of money to go over and over and over again and it's the "vacation of a lifetime" and all. And it made me think about the local church. Your church, my church, every Christian church. We are working so hard to update and be culturally relevant and be with the times in order to attract people, yet so many are still not attracted. In fact, so many are completely turned off to church, to God, to Christianity in general. And yet Disney does nothing to change in 30 years and it's the "place to be". They have NOTHING to say, but can say it in so many ways. The church has EVERYTHING to say, yet so often we don't know how to say it.

Sorry to get all deep on ya, but it was something in my head today.

Guess What I'm Doing Tomorrow???

I'M GOING TO DISNEYWORLD!!!! I have a friend in town from Texas. Let me say that again. I have a friend in town from Texas. Did you hear that all you friends in Texas? You CAN come visit me, you know! Southwest Airlines flies both ways! I live in the entertainment capital of the world! I have a guest room! Hint Hint. My friend even left her husband and baby at home to come visit me. Did you hear that all you friends in Texas that have husbands and babies? She did bring her 4 yr old, who is having a blast with my girls. So all you friends in Texas, book your flights. Make your reservations at the Texas Aggie's Bed and Breakfast. (But please don't come June-September. I love you all dearly, but it's WAY too hot for me to show you a good time!)

I Finally Got Polled

Do you ever see those crazy political polls on the evening news and wonder where on earth they find so many liberal people??? I've always wondered, How come I never get polled? I must be too "normal", to "mainstream" cause those kind of people never get polled apparently! I vote in like EVERY election and not once have I been polled on my political views! It's kind of like all the crazy negative media attention public schools get. And every time I hear one of those stories I'm like WHERE DO THEY FIND THESE SCHOOLS? Cause from 1st-12th grade and again all through college, I attended public schools. And I taught in public schools and tutored in public schools for 10 years! And I've never seen the kind of stuff that makes its way onto the news and Focus on the Family! But, chasing rabbits...on with my other soap box...I FINALLY GOT POLLED Y'ALL! I did! They asked me all about Hillary and health care and Obama and the war and how I feel about women in the presidential cabinet and everything I've always wanted to answer in a political poll! And I know you're all just dying to know how I answered those questions. Well, that would be so politically incorrect to share my views. Just know that I scored one for all the "NORMAL" voters out there!

Gatorland

Today was Lexi's class field trip to Gatorland in Orlando. Definitely an attraction everyone should see when they visit! You gotta go once in your life! Lexi loved the gators! She's just becoming a regular zoologist/entomologist! At the souvenir shop, she had her choice of anything and she picked a plastic snake that's about 4 ft long. And against my better judgement, that's what we came home with. She has carried that snake around all afternoon. But she did tape its mouth shut, like they did to some of the gators today. I thought that was pretty funny.

Our New House Pictures

But the pictures don't do it justice! Especially the girls' room. I can't get good shots of their room, but it turned out so precious. And toy free! The Master bath is still not done, so I didn't take pictures of it. I don't even have mirrors up yet in there! And those are the girls' artwork from school hanging in the playroom.

Certainly Not Missing Twister Season

It's tornado season in Texas! Every Spring, I would tell Cary, "PLEASE get me out of North Texas before next Spring!!!" I lived in fear every day! We had SO MANY close calls with tornadoes when I lived in Dallas/Ft Worth. It seemed like the tornado sirens went off daily from Feb-June. I remember one scare in particular, which actually ended up being one of my most embarrassing moments. There was a twister in South Fort Worth moving our way. We lived in the North East side of Fort Worth at the time. We had a tornado closet under our stairs (which we used ALL THE TIME). That day, I gathered the pets and got in the closet. The weather man was tracking the storm and naming streets in the path of the twister. The streets were all very closeby. Cary stayed in the living room watching the T.V. until the dern satellite gave out due to the rain. Gotta love satellites during severe weather! So he came and got in the closet with me and the pets. I began praying. OUT LOUD! You know, so God could hear me real good and all! All the sudden, we heard THE NOISE that they always tell you to listen for. It sounded just like a freight train. I was trembling from my head to my toes. "DEAR JESUS, SAVE US! Oh Dear God, protect us!" I went on and on and on. I yelled at Cary, "PRAY!" And he yelled back, "I already did!" And I yelled, "PRAY HARDER! It's coming. I hear it. Oh sweet Jesus, save us!" I just about passed out! And the noise went on and on and on and on for what seemed like an eternity. "How long will it last?" I finally asked Cary. "It should have been over by now. Must be a big'un!" The walls were vibrating. The noise was still there. Finally, after several minutes, Cary said, "I'm going to open the door." "NO!!!!" I shouted. "We'll die!" He cracked open the door (because he never listens to me). Silence. The sun was peaking through the windows in the dining room. The rain had stopped. The wind was still. The T.V. was working again. "I'm confused. If that noise and vibration wasn't a twister, then what was it?" I asked. "The A/C!" We were under the stairway right next to the A/C unit. It came on while we were in the closet and was so loud, it sounded just like a freight train! The storm passed over us and the twister actually touched down about 2 miles from our house, but we were safe!

But truly there were so many days and nights I felt paralyzed with fear over the severe weather in North Texas. That is one of the very few things I don't miss about Texas...being in Tornado alley! We do get summer thunderstorms here, but mainly just lightening and a little rain then the sun comes back out. Nothing like that crazy Texas tornado weather! It's been so beautiful here the last few weeks. The weather here just makes me want to have a pool and be a sun goddess! That's probably why God didn't bless us with a pool...I'd have skin cancer!

Oh and...

It cost me $73 to fill up my tank today! I was spending close to $50 to fill up 3 weeks ago! That was the first time I had filled up in about 2 weeks. It's just been TOO PAINFUL to fill up so I've been getting like $20 at a time, which yes, I know, is all the same, I was a Math teacher! But somehow it makes me feel better to only spend $20 at a time than to spend $73 all at once! We won't be leaving the house this summer! And to add insult to injury, I heard tonight that we're about to have a rate increase on our water. Add to that the rising food and electricity costs. We're going to have to get second jobs just to survive!!! The forclosure rates in Central Florida are astronomical! Is it this bad everywhere or am I just in a hard hit recession area? It's really bad here. You know it's getting bad when the BBQ place lowers their All You Can Eat price from $9.99 down to $6.99! And I thought we had job security, you know, working at a church cause people will always need them some Jesus! But truthfully, when people can't afford to tithe, then what? Even the schools around here are having such bad budget cuts that TEACHERS are getting laid off. INSANITY! Oh, forget it. I'm going to drown my economical sorrows in a chocolate donut!

Did you Know...

Did you know that lemon juice will make you die? That's what Lexi told me tonight. She told a lie in the car on the way home. She had a bandaid and Ashton had a bandaid, but Lexi stole Ashton's bandaid and then pretended to not know where it was! (Are anyone else's kids obsessed with bandaids??? We go through a box a week! You'd think they were candy!) Anyways, when I discovered that she had lied to me I told her she would be getting her punishment when she got home. I wanted her to think about how awful of a punishment it might be ALL THE WAY HOME! Remember when your parents did that to you? Sometimes thinking about the punishment for a long time was much worse than the actual punishment!

So when we got close to home, she asked, "Momma, do you know what my punishment will be yet?"

And I replied, "Yes, baby. I do know. You're getting lemon juice on your tongue for telling sour words with a sour attitude. There was silence. And more silence.

"Well, okay, but Momma, you DO know that lemon juice will make me die so I guess I'm gonna die!"

Then I said, (while holding back a chuckle) "You're not gonna die. You might wish you died when I give you a swig of lemon juice, but you're not gonna die! I assure you!"

So we got home and Lexi went straight to the refrigerator and got out the lemon juice and brought it to me as if to say, "Go ahead, let's get this over with!" So I gave her a dab on her tongue and my child who normally CRINGES at the mere thought of a lemon said, "Mmmmm, that's good stuff Mommy!"

"Oh really, should I get out the hot sauce instead?"

And she immediately said, "I mean, I HATE lemon juice!"

And then we had lemonade and talked about how much better it tastes than lemon juice just like sweet and kind words are much more pleasant to hear than sour, ugly, mean words. And then there was a big lovefest and we all hugged and kissed and said how much we loved each other and how I might could win that mother of the year award and all!




Oh and on a sidenote, Ashton (adamantly) wore panties from 2:00 p.m. till 9:00 tonight! And she was at church for most of that time. YEA!!!! Why can't she insist on giving up her paci like she insists on wearing panties?