The Day Has Come

The day that we have all be dreading has arrived. Our little dog Ariel (who I talked about in a previous post) is being put to sleep today. After much thought my mom and dad made the very hard decision to put her out of her misery.

Ariel has really taken a turn for the worst even after my post I wrote about her. She can no longer stand up anymore at all. She has got to be miserable and putting her down just seemed like the right thing to do in everyone's eyes.

My family, including myself, is taking this lose very hard. My mom especially. Ariel has been a loving and loyal part of our family for 16 years now, and letting her go is harder than I could have ever imagined. Letting her go on in pain and agony just so we can absorb a few more precious days with her is not right. She is miserable, and even though there is no place for animals when they die at least she will no longer be in pain.

I am very upset right becuse I will not be able to see Ariel before she goes to the vet. I am at the office and Rick is out on a service call. I am going to see her most likely after it is all said in done, but she will never again be able to gaze up at me with those sweet brown eyes. So, in closing I would like to leave a little something just for Ariel.

Ariel,
You have been our faithful friend for many many years. Your lose is very hard to bear. You have brought such happiness and joy into our lives on so many diffferent levels. We will miss you, and we will even grieve for you. See, you are not like a dog in our eyes, but rather a member of our family. So Ariel, here's to you and your life. We love you.

Emily's Top 10 Movies of All Time

We all know what a huge impact some movies have made in our lives. Though most are fictional, there are some movies that really move us. I want to compile a my list of what I think are the top 10 most wonderful movies ever made. Let's begin shall we.



10. Star Wars- I could not tell you the story line of my life depended on it, but the special effects are awesome!

9. The Hound of the Baskerville- A classic horror

8. Bambi- Hey, it touched me to my inner most core.

7. Shindler's List- Grab your tissues, because you are gonna need em'.

6. Bringing Up Baby- I do not think Kathryn Hepburn ever made a bad movie, but I think this was her best.

5. Halloween- This is where modern day horror all began.

4. Titanic- It's not the love story that intrigued me so much, but the mystery of the disaster itself.

3. Pearl Harbor- Again, it's not about the love story.

2. Forest Gump- Wow.....let's just leave it at that.

1. Gone With The Wind- Some do not appreciate it as much as myself, but no movie will ever be able to steal this #1 position.

So, now you know my top 10 movies. I am sure there are some of you that may be reading this and you wouldn't have any of these movies on your list. That's okay, because I just wanted to give you a little something else that you now know about me. I hope that you enjoyed reading even if you do have different tastes.

Pro and Cons of Business Ownership

For a lot of people owning a business is a dream of theirs. That's great if you really want to do it, but before you take that plunge there are a few things you need to think about. Today I am going to make a list of pros and cons of being in business for yourself. Please take all these things to heart if you are indeed thinking of becoming your own boss.

Pro: No boss, you make all the rules.
Con: The customers are your "boss", and they can be nastier than anyone.

Pro: No limit to how successful you can be.
Con: You have to bust your fanny to make it happen.

Pro: You get a great feeling of power, and more respect from others.
Con: You cannot let that go to your head or you will crash and burn.

Pro: You can work as few hours a week as you please.
Con: You typically will pull any where from 60-80 hours per week at first if you want your business to thrive.

Pro: You can charge as much as you want to for your services.
Con: You will have to adjust prices sometimes so you can keep your clientel.

Pro: You are proud of yourself for all you have accomplished.
Con: There is no con to this one. Give yourself a pat on the back.

So in conclusion, do whatever you feel is the right thing to do. Be sure to pray for wisdom and direction before making your decision. If you decide to go for it than have a great time, but be prepared to work harder than you ever have your whole life.

Romance...Then and Now

Romance from one generation to another changes drastically. I want to do a little comparison today on the kind of romance we have now verses the kind we had 50 years ago.






Then: Leave a sweet note in your husband's lunch box.
Now: Send your husband a sweet email.

Then: Prepare you husband a candlelight dinner with rose petals sprinkled on the table.
Now: Come up with a time you are both free to meet at a restuarant where they do all that for you.

Then: Sit at the table together in the mornings while sipping coffee, reading the paper, and listening to the other talk about their deepest thoughts.
Now: Grab a Pop-Tart on the way out, and scream as you are shutting your car door, "Have a good day".

Then: Take a picnic to the park and enjoy a nice lunch.
Now: Go grap a burger together and eat it going down the road past the park on your way back to work.

Then: Fill your house with dozens of roses for your wife for when she gets home.
Now: Order flowers online and have them delivered to her job.

Then: Your wife sings you a sweet, romantic song when you get home from work.
Now: Your wife burns a CD with a little Marvin Gaye on it and pops it in the CD player when you walk in.

Then: You always remember to say "I love you".
Now: You always remember to say "I love you".
(Well, maybe not everything has changed.)

I think that if you are fortunate enough to have someone to love you should do everything to keep that romance alive. You should try with every fiber of your being to be the best husband or wife you can. God has blessed you with the perfect person just for you, and you should never take that for granted.

Sniff Sniff, Cough Cough

I have one of those pesky summer colds right now. It feels like I am hacking up a lung everytime I cough. It is starting to wear on my nerves. I was just thinking to myself the other day that I have been so blessed to not be sick all year so far. I guess that is what I get for not knocking on wood. Well, at least I do not feel bad all over. It is just concentrated in my head.

I do not know if everyone feels the same way I do, but when I was sick couldn't nobody make me feel better like my mama (pardon my redneck terminology). I don't know what it is about your mama when you are sick, but they can always, no matter what, make you feel better. Maybe it's the warm chicken noodle soup they bring you, or the unlimited supply of Sprite, or the fact they always have your pillows fluffed perfectly, and the remote sitting at your disposal. Well, it could be all of those things I just named, but I personally feel like God gave mothers a special gift that no one else possesses.

Now, if you will excuse me, I am going to go call my mama. Afterall, who better for me to call when I am sick. :)

New Mothers

For any moms that may be reading this you will know exactly what I am talking about. Do you remember the way you felt when you first found out you were going to be a mother? I do not know if it is the same for men as it is for women, but it is really unexplainable. And for me, it was just as special my second time around. But it is an underlying fact with your first child that you become consumed with making sure everything is just right.

Your whole pregnancy you tip toe around as to not jar the baby too much. For what reason we do this I am not sure. Do we think he or she is going to fall out? And Lord help you if you wake up in the morning slightly applying pressure to you stomach. My doctor's phone rang off the hook with me wanting to know if I could have possibly caused my child to be deformed. As the weeks go by you become more and more anxious to meet this little thing everyone has been talking about, but at the same time you start becoming petrified at the thought of labor and delivery. I did not even care about the 17 hours of labor I went through prior to having Arianna, because the end result was more than I could have ever asked for.

Now, for those of you who only have one child so far, let me tell you how much of a breeze my second one was. I am not saying that my pregnancy was a breeze, because to be quite honest it was awful, but what I am trying to say is that you feel like an ole' pro at this baby stuff. You know that it will not hurt the baby if you stay active, and if you are feeling really frisky you might just break out into a light jog. Labor and delivery is not even a concernthe second time. Come on, you did it one time, so it is not a big deal now. After the second one arrives you wonder what was so difficult about taking care of a baby the first time around. Now you know just how to do everything. When your first baby arrives it is earthshattering wake up call and huge life adjustment, but when your second, third, fourth, our even fifth arrives it is just a blessed addition to an already adjusted family.

I am so enraged!

I do not think I have ever been as mad as I was yesterday in all my years. I was walking out of the sub place next door with a couple of drinks. I heard a faint sound that I just thought was my imagination, but it was't. Tavia, who works at the florest next door, was standing in front of a blue PT Cruiser with a look of disbelief on her face. She screamed at me, "There is a little boy in that car"! I ran down there to survey the scene. Sure enough there was a little boy about the age of 2 or a little less shut in the hot car with just a small crack in the window. Well, being the optimistic person I am, I gave the owner of the car the benifit of the doubt. I said they had probably just run in the tobbaco store for a pack of smokes and were coming right out. We opened the door to the store and looked around. No one in there but the employee who said the 2 girls in that car came in there about 30 minutes ago! I could not believe it. Well, there was one place left to check...the liquor store. Tavia was talking to the little boy through the crack in the window comforting him and asking if he was okay. He was drenched in sweat. Just as I was about to swing open the door to the liquor store here comes two girls carrying about 4 bags of liquor a piece. I wanted so bad to ask them what the heck their problem was and give them a piece of my mind, but I maintained my composure.

Why is it that life has to be so unfair to some. That poor little boy did not asked to be born into a family that would neglect him. I wonder to myself what people think taking care of kids really is. They are not like a little dog that you leave in the car when you make a beer run. They are people. I cannot fathom how some people take being a parent so nonchelantly. Having kids is the biggest resposibility I have ever had in my life.

I pray everyday for the children that go through things like that, but even more I pray for the parents or parent. I pray that they will grasp just how big a gift and blessing it is to have children and will not forsake their responsibilities.

The High Society Among Us

Is it the enormous homes? Or perhaps the luxurious cars. There are several things that set the wealthy apart from the working middle class. The wealthy always impress me with their confidence and poise. They know they have worked their way to the top (well, except Donald Trump's son), and they carry themselves accordingly. Now, I am not talking about snooty rich people. And in most instinces the have had their wealth handed to them on a silver platter. I am talking about the people who start lower and work themselves higher. Sometimes it is the little old man who comes in with his overalls and straw hat, but you can always spot the ones who made it big.

I go on some of Rick's service calls when he goes to install wireless networks and such things. You can almost guarentee that they are going to have money. Who else would pay $100 for someone to come in and push a couple buttons and plug it in. Now, I will give them some credit. Most of the ones he goes to have attempted to fix it themselves, but let's face it.....they know their career field and that's about it.

I am not jealous when I see what other people have. I know that one day if I put forth the same diligence and determination I will have the same luxuries. In my opinion, money is no good unless you work hard for it. I am not saying you have to do manual labor to make money matter, but I am saying you aren't going to become wealthy, in the true meaning of the word, just sitting around waiting on it to come to you.

The Search Continues...

Well, I heard back from the company at which I applied to and they were not interested at this time. I've thought to myself what could I have done to make them view me differently. Perhaps I could have spiced up my resume a little more, or been more pushy for an interview, but when it all comes down to it I know there is nothing else I could have done. I know that I posessed the skills needed to obtain that job. It was obviously not where God wanted me to be. I have faith that God will place me where he sees fit. It is easy to get discouraged, but I have decided not to. It is the first place I applied to, and my motivation and drive will give me the endurance to push on and meet my goals. I have settled for what I felt I had to do in my life so many times before. I am not going to do it anymore. I am not going to settle for second best. I will apply for jobs that may seem unreachable in my eyes, and maybe I will be blessed with God's favor and obtain one of them.

Am I Good Enough?

Today I am anxiously awaiting a phone call from a persective job opportunity. I went Friday to do some testing. She informed me that I had passed all the required test and a manager would review my resume and give me a call by Monday at 5:00 if they wanted to give me an interview. This is the fun part. The part where you sit and wait with thoughts running through your head wondering if your resume was intriguing enough to persuade them to call you in for an interview.

It seems like almost everyone's self-esteem plummets when you are waiting on a job to call you back. It is especially bad when you think they have had plenty enough time to call you and they havn't. Why is it that no matter how intelligent you view yourself the majority of the time, you suddenly become the stupidist person ever to walk the face of this earth when you feel as though your are being rejected because of a lack in skills.

I have faith that I will get a call from them, but if I do not then it was obviously was not the job for me and God has something better out there. I will not let my self-assurance drop. I know my skills, and I know what I deserve, and if someone is to ignorant to see what I can bring to the table then I don't want your job.

The Presence of God

I feel like a changed person after the church service we had today. That was the best service I have ever been to at our church, and I think the best one I have ever been to anywhere. We attend Redemption World Outreach Center. Our church just reached the 8,000 member mark and it keeps growing and growing. There is never a Sunday that goes by where you do not get smacked in the face with the presence of God the second you walk in the door. It is so immensely strong you can almost become intoxicated by it. When I walk into that I church I just want to jump up and down and scream what all God has done for me.

I do not believe that it is that church buliding, or the flashy service that causes me to feel the way I do. I strongly believe that RWOC is annointed to do the work of the Lord and nothing is going to hold it back. That church I believe has been chosen to do a tremendous work for God. It is set apart and blessed. Our senior pastor Ron Carpenter and his wife Hope are fulfilling exactly what God had planned for their lives. Whenever you are perfectly in God's will amazing things will happen.

I pray for my pastor everyday, and Arianna has added him to her list of people and things she prays for every night. He needs all the prayer possible. Satan attacks our church from every angle possible because of the threat it poses to his mission. I thank God everyday that I have found such a wonderful, blessed church home.

Changes

Tonight we all went to Chili's for a big family dinner. When I say we all, I mean my whole family. I remember, oh about 3 or 4 years ago, when we all went to dinner it was so different. We did not have to wait 45 minutes for a table for 9. It was maybe a 10 minute wait to seat Mom, Dad, Meg, Ken, and myself. Now they have to prepare a place for Mom, Dad, Meg, Ken, Gardner, Rick, Arianna, Savannah, and myself. The list keeps growing and growing.

That same ritual encompasses my everyday life. I remember what it was like to just hop in my car and run to the mall for a liezurely day of browsing. Now, I have to get both of the kids ready, make sure they both have diapers, Savannah has bottles, get the stroller in the car, and when I get where I am going I have to get the little one out of her carrier and transplant her to a stroller all the while trying to keep my 2 year old from dashing out into oncoming traffic.

To the single woman that does not yet have the life that so many women deal with everyday I wonder to myself why they would want it. Do not get me wrong, I would not take anything for my children, but from an onlookers prospective I don't understand what looks so inthralling about it. Most women's goal in life is to get married and have a family. Maybe when you are not actually dealing with the stress it seems like a magical idea, and the thought of having what those women have powers their life and thoughts. It is definitely a different story when it is a reality. I love it and am so blessed, but being a mother is the hardest thing I have ever done and probably ever will do.

Not A Good Week For Animals

Our neighbors, about 2 weeks ago, got a little dog named Sam. John David, our very own John-Boy Walton, was trying to train him to be a hunting dog. He approached me the other day and said he didn't think that little Sam was going to be very good at chasing down animals considering all he wanted to do was play with them. I had told him a few weeks before that we were interested in getting a little inside dog. He told us that more than likely Sam could be ours if we accepted. Well, I couldn't wait. I thougt he was the cutest little dog that had ever come along. I was just being patient waiting on John David to realize that Sam was about as much of a threat to a rabbit as I was to a bear.

When we got home yesterday evening we were met with some very disheartening news. Yesterday while John David and his daughter Bailey were outside playing with Sam he dashed to the road before anyone could begin to stop him. They both knew what was about to happen as they saw the car coming with no intent to stop. It was inevitable. So today, Sam is no longer with us.

It is amazing the attatchment you can make with an animal in just a short amount of time. Sam was not even my dog yet and I felt so heartbroken when I found out he was gone. Sam had no idea that his short 8 months here on earth would end so suddenly, and neither did anyone else. Sometimes things are just not fair. I don't know why things like that have to happen. Perhaps I, or anyone else, ever will know why.

The Good Ole' Days

I remember the days when we wanted nothing more than for Arianna to start talking and never stop. Let me take that back. Once she got the hang of this talking thing she is making up for lost time. Never in a million years would I have wanted her to not talk so much. We longed for her to say her first sentence or thought so we could finally know what was going on in that little head of hers. Wow, she's got a lot going on in there. Her thoughts apparently change every 5 to 10 seconds because that is now often she starts talking about something else. I am not going to be mean and say I want her to stop talking so much, but sometimes....well, ya know. I really do love to hear that sweet little voice of hers, so don't get me wrong. Let's just say, be careful what you wish for because it may come true in great abundance. It is truely amazing though to hear what goes on in the head of a two year old. Oh, how I wish I could remember what it was like when life was so simple.

Cleaning Isn't So Easy Anymore

What a fun day I have had. It was Summer cleaning day. Basically the same thing as Spring cleaning, but a little out of season. Today was the day where I did everything that I have been putting off until I could not take it anymore. It wasn't like my house was disgusting or anything, but those little things that you really don't even think about were starting to bother me. For example, vaccuming under the couch, organizing the pantry goods in alpabetical order (haha, just kidding), organizing the closet starting with tanks and going all the way down to long sleeves, and don't forget dusting the top of the ceiling fan. We all know we are guilty of neglecting the fans. Well, everyone except my sister Meg :).

I was suprised at how much I was able to accompish with 2 children there with me. Life is no longer simple anymore. Cleaning is hard when you have a 2 year old coming behind you and undoing what you just did. And if you are really lucky, the baby will not spit up in the carpet you just finished spot treating no longer than 30 seconds ago. It is exhausting, but rewarding in the long run.

Well, I am all done with the house now. I am going to go and lay down in my freshly laundered sheets. There is nothing more relaxing than inhaling the fresh smell of Gain as you bury your nose in the pillow case as you drift off to la-la-land.

Emily's Ode to Pets

It only seems right since my sister is devoting this week's blog posts to animals I should at least do one myself. Obviously I am just like my sister in saying that I have grown up with pets and never lived without one until I moved out. Well, my love for animals has the potential to overtake me if I am not careful. I would give all the homeless cats and dogs homes if someone did not stop me. If there is one thing I hate, it is to see an animal not being properly cared for.

It was very hard when I moved out and got married because it was the first time I had been petless. We could not have an animal at our apartment under any circumstances, and I did not like that one bit. I had already adjested to the fact that I would probably never have a cat again due to the fact that Rick absolutely hates cats. Besides, if the truth be told, I am more of a dog person anyway. Well, for those of you that know me well you know that I am not the type to just give up on something. So, I managed to sneak McKenzie over for a 3 day visit about 2 months after we moved in. Well, that flew over like a ton of bricks. See, Mckenzie does not like company at her house. Apparently she does not like company at anyone's house because every time someone visited she barked ferociously (as much as a pip squeak dog can). One of our neighbors called and told our manger that there was a dog barking at our place and that was the end of that.

As soon as we got our house the first thing on the agenda was to get a dog. I was so excited. I acted like a little kid who just got the coolest toy in the world. So, the search began. One of Rick's co-workers mentioned to him that she had 2 lab puppies and we were more than welcome to one. Well, it did not even take a second thought. I wanted one, and that was that. We were going to get one the very next day and Rick could not get in touch with the lady. I was terribly upset that I even had to wait overnight for her. Well, as if I could get any more upset, we ended up have a traumatizing car accident that night. The next day was the day we were closing on our house. We did not even get back from the hospital till almost 6:00 that morning. We caught a few z's after my mom came and picked up Arianna so we could get some rest. By the way, she was fine. She got hit harder than any one of us and sustained the least engeries. God is so good. Well, we finally wallowed out of bed about 11:30, got dressed, and hobbled to the lawyer's office in excrutiating pain from being hit by a 76' Chevy Suburban going approx. 50 mph. We signed what needed to be signed. Then, without a second thought I went to get my doggy. I could not think of anything that would make a horrible course of events better. Well, that is exactly what she did. She brought such a bright light to our lives, and she still continues to. She is nothing but a gentle giant.

These days Lily has to stay in our neighbor's pen. She is a fugitive, and wanted by many animal control facilities since she likes to terrorize our neighbor's chickens. We are in the process of fencing in our yard so she can have adequat room to run. Lily is indeed our problem child.

Retraction

Okay, you can completely ignore my last post. This Monday is a very solomn Monday. My little dog Ariel, who has been my companion since I was barely 5, is verge of passing on. The thought of it seems almost impossible. Almost as long as I can remember, there has been Ariel. As I was growing up we were best buds. One of the fondest memories I have of her was when I would run through the house and she would jump up, grap the seat of my pants with her teeth, and bring my pants down to my ankles. It was like a fifty yard dash every where I went in fear of losing my pants. She is the sweetest, most gentle, loving dog I have ever known (unless you try to mess with her family). Her funny mannerisms make me laugh just thinking about them. I suppose, if one thing had to be an Arial original it was "The Snoot". She sneezed all the time, especially when you were rubbing her belly. Maybe it was some sort of special reflex just found in Ariel. So on this sad day, my little Arial struggles for her life. Day after day she hangs on trying to suck the last bit of this world she can into her life before she goes on. She is deaf and partially blind, but I know deep down that those big brown eyes are trying to etch the memories of her family that loved her dearly into her mind as a final memory.

I Won't Follow the Crowd

Ewwww, it's Monday AGAIN. I don't know what it is about Mondays. They have, for years and years, been given a bad name. They are like the absolute most dreaded day of the week for most people. Maybe Monday is not such a bad day afterall. Maybe it is meant to be a great day. Maybe someone, at some time, had a awful Monday and went around spreading the word that Mondays were the most stinky day ever. To tell you the truth, nothing really bad has ever happened to me on a Monday. I think I am just caught up, like everyone else, in believing that Mondays are from Satan, and if I did not believe that then I would just be un-american. Well, from now on I am going to try to make Mondays the best day of the week. I have never been the type to follow a fad, so why should I hate Mondays. Well, I hope you all join with me in my new love of Mondays.

Family Gathering vs. Headaches

Well, today we had a birhtday party for Rick over at his mom and dad's house. It went well. Rick had an excrutiating headache all day unfortunately. But he did seem to really enjoy himself. I find it quite an ammusing situation when all of Rick's family is gathered together. They are all so funny to listen to, and a lot of times I just find myself sitting back and laughing at them. I know that might seem cruel, but they are funny. His whole family talks about 10 octives higher than most people. Who knows, maybe it is a generational curse. If you were to walk in during a family get together you would think we were all having a knock down drag out fight. But that is not the case. It is just normal conversation, and everyone fighting to see who can talk over who to get their thoughts out. It is quite an experience. I typically keep some Ibuprofen with me because I know that a headache is inevitable.

Busy Busy Bee

Hello everyone! Boy have I had a busy day today. We have been on our toes since we first got into the office today. We actually took in 3 computers today which is very unusual for a Saturday. Well, we aren't complaining. We have had a very busy week all week which is good. It is helping us keep our head above water. Sometimes Rick and I think that it would just be easier to throw in the towel and go back to our respective jobs instead of having all the headaches like, "Are we gonna make what we need this week?", "Are our utilities going to get disconnected?", and so on and so on. It is worth it though in the long run. Once we look back and see all that we have accomplished and how we have bettered ourselves it will be quite self-assuring.

Right now I am hanging out with my best bud Brandi. Her trips to our office every now and then always put a happy light on the day. She is always so happy, and hyper even if her world is crashing down around her. It is great to have one of those people around for a little pick-me-up.

Well, I cannot think of anything else to say for today. Things are pretty much just moving along over here like normal. Please keep on-a-reading.

Home, Home on the Range

Howdy guys! I am at home today just hanging out with the girls. They both have stuffy noses but seem to be feeling fine which is good. We are just kinda taking it easy today. I actually started to blow up the huge infatable water pLay yard we got Arianna for her birthday, but when I almost passed out from lack of air I gave it up. I might see if my neighbor has an air compressor for the sake of my life. Anyway, other than that it has been a relaxing day. Arianna took her nap today in her big girl bed.....YEA!! She really has not wanted anything to do with it lately but she wanted to sleep in in today so I am hoping that will continue. Now Savannah can start sleeping in her crib like most babies do. I am busy trying to break Arianna's spitting habit. She just walks around spitting everywhere she goes. It's not like anything comes out of her mouth but it's just not good manners in my opinion. I have no idea where she got it from. If it wasn't so crude it would be cute. Well, if anything else worth mentioning happens today I will be sure to write about it. Keep Reading!

Changes, Adjustments, and Acceptance

Well, I am at the office right now. I'm sure everyone knows what it is like to have so much stuff to do just looming over your head, and you want nothing more than to just get it done, but you would rather hammer nails in your eyelids. Well, that is the way I am feeling right now. It is really just one of those blah days where you don't feel like doing anything. I even had big plans for last night as well. Rick and I went out to dinner for his birthday at Sticky Fingers. We wanted to go last night instead of today because his mom is taking him out for a big birthday lunch and I knew he would not want a big supper a few hours later. Anyway, I was planning on going home and getting the house all spick and span as to where it would pass a white glove test. Well, I don't know if it was the full tummy or just pure laziness but I was not interested in cleaning when I got home. I curled up on the couch with a blanket, watched an episode of "Sex and the City", and fell fast asleep. So I guess I know what I have to do tonight. Unfortunately it doesn't just go away. Wouldn't that be nice. I remember the good ole' days when all the responsibility I had in the world was to keep my room clean, occassionally unload the dishwasher, and take our little dog McKenzie out to do her business. Oh how life can change. Part of me wishes it was still that easy sometimes, but then again I do enjoy what I do now too. It's like when you live at home with your parents you are just relaxing in a hot tub without a care in the world, and then when you get married and move out it is like being thrown out of that hot tub into a freezing cold pool. It is quite a shock to the body at first but you eventually get used to it. Well, I suppose I will stop rambling on now. I'm gonna actually go and do something useful :).

Should Have Just Stayed in Bed

Hello guys! Well, today is Rick's birthday. The poor thing has had an awful day so far. Anything that could have gone wrong has. He had to go to the office last night at 11 and stay till 3 this morning trying to catch up on a computer a guy wanted done first thing this morning. Then, when he got up this morning his razor broke while he was shaving. By this time he was already running late and he realized his gas tank was on empty so we had to stop for gas making us even later. As we were pulling in the gas station he spilled his glass of coke all over his pants. And as if anything else could make things worse, when I put the gas nozzle up I spilt some gas on my foot and the smell of gas makes Rick almost sick. So the whole way to Powdersville we were cooped up in a little car with the oh so lovely smell of gasoline radiating off my foot. So he finally just gave it up and started praying that God would salvage the rest of his day. Poor little Rick. But I did sing happy birthday to him this morning so at least that put a smile on his face.

My Love

Okay, let me tell ya a little bit about my sweetie. His name is Rick and he is the best thing that has ever happened top me (definitely my better half). Have you ever met one of those people who just understand you even when no one else does. Well, that is the way Rick is. I do not know if I believe in soul mates or not, but if they are real I know I have found mine. I wish everyone could be so fortunate and have the kind of relationship that we have. Well, I'm done with all the sentimental stuff now. I just had to get that out.

My First Born

Arianna, is my eldest and perhaps most mischievous little girl. She is a bundle of energy that never stops. She definitely keeps me on my toes. I wonder to myself everyday how I am not thin as a rail because of the way I have to chase after her. She is a whole lot of fun though, and we are always entertained by her funny gestures.

Butterball

Let's talk about the baby. Savannah is 4 months old soon to be 5 months and is my little butterball. She is a good baby (most of the time). She does require much more attention than Arianna did when she was that age, but no two babies are the same. I guess I thought it would be the same and I would be an ol' pro this time. Boy was I in for a suprise. She is starting to sit up by herself now and just got her first 2 teeth. I didn't think we would ever make it through her fussiness during teehting, phew!. But all in all she is a good baby and I love her more than words can say.

Not so Terrible Twos

Arianna had her birthday party this past Sunday. She turned the sweet age of two. She had a great time ripping open her presents. She did a lot better this year than her first birthday party last year. She really enjoyed playing on her new wooden swing set. All in all she was a very happy little girl.

Someone has been eating cake.




Now that is a girl on a mission.




Look at those dirty feet!




Arianna is really enjoying that swing!