Are you ready for some football?

We are. Is it obvious?

No need to call Dallas just yet

As part of Mooka's birthday presents, I let her go to this cheerleader camp offered by one of the local high schools. The way day worked was 3 hours of camp in the morning, then a break for lunch, then come back and perform during the second quarter of the football game.

When I came to get her from camp, I walked up to see her squatting and twirling her hair.

We went to lunch and talked about how her morning had gone. She said that cheering made her tired and hurt her legs. She then asked if she could take swimming lessons again.

She had a great time once we went back for the actual game. She just did her own little thing and looked adorable doing it. There was a storm that had been brewing all morning but had held off, until the last four minutes of the quarter.

Then.it.poured.



She was pretty bummed that they didn't get to finish the quarter, but she's excited about starting swimming lessons again.

The birthday cake

I was actually pretty impressed with the way this one turned out. Unlike some of my other attempts to be creative in the kitchen, this one actually resembled the picture in the book.





I got the idea from this great book called "Hello Cupcake." It has a ton of great pictures and provides step-by-step instructions.

And most important, the birthday girl LOVED it!

Happy Birthday baby girl!

Dear Mooka,

I cannot believe how quickly this past year flew by. It literally feels like yesterday that I was sad because you were turning five. And now you are six! Six! We now have to use two hands to count your age.

The things I will remember most about you being five...

You LOVE your brother and you do everything with him.



You LOVE to read and you read everything to us.
You eat like a bird, unless we are having fondue or sloppy joes.
You hate to have your hair combed.
Your favorite girl singer is Taylor Swift.
Your favorite band is Skillet (and you can sing most anything by them).
You save every single note I write and stick in your lunch box (even if it's on a napkin).
You flip out at the thought or mention of the squirrel from the movie Ice Age.
If kids were allowed to compete on American Gladiator, you would be first in line for try-outs.
You still suck your thumb and twirl your hair.
You still crawl into bed with us most nights.
You are absolutely the sweetest little girl as long as things are done your way.
You love to make us laugh.


The biggest difference I have noticed in this past year is that you have gone from being a baby girl to a little girl. So much about you has changed. I wish I could just stop time and keep you this size forever.

But, no matter how big you get, Daddy and I will always think of you as our little baby girl.

We love you so very much. We thank God each and every day for blessing us with such a wonderful gift!

Love - Mommy and Daddy

Fired up...again

Unless you have been living under a rock, you have already heard about how the town we live in just made national news with a horrible bullying attack on a school bus.

The whole ordeal has made me sick and brought me to tears for several reasons.

First - I can't stand bullying. I was never in the popular crowd, but I also wasn't an outcast (at least not in my own opinion.) I hung out somewhere in the middle. But, I always have had compassion for the person who isn't quite like everyone else. I remember in grade school, I would make it a point to play with the kids from the special ed class because no one else would. I didn't mind if everyone in high school thought I was a freak. I worked for The Salvation Army for thirteen years and once ate Easter dinner with a prostitute and a "John". I never once felt like I was entitled to something more or better than them. My point is, it doesn't matter what life experiences a person has walked through, everyone is on a journey to be better than they were the day before. I believe everyone deserves to be treated equally and with respect. To me it doesn't matter how different a person happens to be, they still are human with dreams, hopes and feelings. At the end of the day, each person is going through "something" and as humans we should help each other in this walk. With all my heart, I believe no person is better than another regardless of race, education, title, gender, you get the picture. When I see or hear about someone belittling another person or attacking someone because they feel like they can, it makes me want to vomit.

Second - The media should be ashamed of themselves for continuing to promote the video. I will not link to the video or any stories that provide the details about what happened. There has been entirely too much promotion. Kids now think it is cool to gain notoriety by posting videos of beating the crap out of each other. The media is continuing to feed the monster.

Third - My heart breaks for those of us raising children in this day and age. While society has continued to make advances in technology and science, it has also taken major steps back in areas like values, respect, and family. I know in our house, it takes a LOT of work to make things work. We have also made the commitment to raising our children in love and letting them know every single day that our lives are blessed by their presence. And each day, it feels like we are slipping into the minority.
Babies have become accessories. Children are raising themselves and I think we are starting to see this generation act out survival of the fittest. We now have kids that are mature way beyond their years overtaking the innocence that once was childhood. The things that some children are exposed to now in grade school, I didn't have figured out until I was out of high school. There is just so much evil attacking their little souls.

And finally, I pray that the school takes a stand. A FIRM stand. I think the kids that did the beating should be taken out of the school system and put into serious therapy. I think the parents of those children, should be put into crisis counseling. I think the children who cheered on the bullies should be suspended and if any of them are seniors, they should not be allowed to walk with the rest of their class in the spring. The school has to let it be known that this type of behavior or supporting it, will not be tolerated.

Parents - hug your kids. Turn off the tv and read them a book. Tell them how much you love them. It's up to us to make a difference with this next generation.

How was your day?

It's the standard question that I ask when we sit down to eat dinner. I usually follow it with, what did you do today?

The typical response that I get from the girl is "good and nothing."

The boy, however, tends to be a bit more unpredictable. His days are much more adventurous and he usually ends it with "and we ate green beans for lunch."

Yesterday, was no exception.

Me: How was your day?

BB: Good. The teacher brought in baby polar bears and then they got angry and scratched off the teacher's faces. Then we played with them. Then we had meatloaf and mashed potatoes.

Me: Silent.

BB:Oh, and we had green beans.

Me: Of course.

Aspiring artists

I bought some cheap craft paints, recycled some displays from my last job, handed the kids some sponges and said "CREATE!"

This is what they came up with...

Mooka's



Baby Bear's



Instant modern art for our dining room! The whole project cost me $3. Not too bad for two custom art pieces.

An update, but only so Aimee will still be my friend

There is nothing going on, but at the same time things are a little chaotic.

The kids - They are great. Moo is settling nicely into school. She comes home daily to tell me about her new friends and then proceeds to roll her eyes when I ask their names. Apparently, she is not one to get bogged down by those details. She is also motivated by rewards. Last week, she came home and insisted that she learn her phone number immediately so that she could get this FABULOUS ribbon. She then spent the next ten minutes recounting the details of the colors, pattern, and size of said ribbon. (Maybe if her friends wore more vibrant clothing, she could recall their names.)

The boy has been moderately traumatized because his best buddy has not been at school for the past two weeks. Each day he gets in the van and asks if she will be back today. I think the economy has taken a toll on her family and they have elected to have her out of the school for a bit. Hopefully, she will be back soon because his big sad eyes just break my heart everyday.

The job - Well, it's officially over. Fortunately, I am only technically unemployed today. Tomorrow, I start a temporary position through the end of the year. Not the ideal situation, but I am not going to complain (I spent Saturday feeling sorry for myself and now I'm over it.)

And that's about it. Life is full of surprises, but at the end of the day I've got an amazing family and that's all that matters to me.