Wednesday, October 31

Last Post for October

Autumn has fallen...literally
On a drive through our town
some streets are filled with leaves
Crunch, crunch, crunch
That's a favorite sound I hear these days
As the leaves are falling to the ground
and the kids are playing around
We pick up from school and
The leaves have fallen
Red, yellow, orange, and brown
the leaves have fallen to the ground
Go on a nature hike
in the middle of a city, no doubt
and the leaves have fallen to the ground
crunching leaves
throwing leaves
giving leaves
the leaves have fallen to the ground!

~Sendy



I wish I had a picture to go with it, but we've been enjoying the leaves falling so much, I haven't had the chance to capture any of the "kodak moments!" Maybe sometime in the next couple of days...

Monday, October 29

18 days until ... D-day!

We sure have been doing a lot - all of us! My wonderful friends and family, you who teach, raise beautiful children, care for the orphaned, and all of you going through some most difficult struggles at the time. My thoughts have been with all of you, even as we go through our busy times!

Jo has finished soccer and we think he is going to miss it. But Jeff and I are glad that the next two Saturdays are going to be time that we can spend preparing for Alex to arrive! This was a great season! It took pretty much the whole two months for Jo to really get in there and try to get that ball to his goal, to really understand it. He got the idea outside of games and practice, but when other kids were around the ball, he froze up. This last Saturday he did so great! He got in there and kicked the ball so many times! Yay for Jo! After the game, we all headed over to McD's for the after season party. All the kids received medals. Jo is so proud of his medal. We made some good friends on the team and have made plans with them to continue to keep in touch and hopefully get together! One of the boys - K, he and Jo were like the bash brothers! It was adorable. K's mom and I are definitely going to get them together for play days! One of the moms - R and I are due within a week of each other so we are going to keep up with each other for our babies. She seems like a great woman and I look forward to getting to know her. Their son, J, is a cutie and I think Jo and he will be good friends as well. This is a special family. They've really got quite a year to remember. Back in February, they began the process of adopting a little girl from Guatemala. Then sometime in March or April they found out that they were expecting and due in Nov! They went to pick up JC a few weeks ago and now are two weeks from the due date! JC is 8 months old and so beautiful! What a handful R has!

Our work with the education program at church is going well. We've been meeting with our team and making a lot of plans. We have our first teachers meeting planned for Nov 12! I'm nervous and excited at the same time. We've had so much clean up to do and we've done some reorganizing. We are currently working on getting the work room in better working order and making the classrooms better for teaching. December is going to be a slow month, but hopefully in January we can see some fruit from the work we've been doing so far. I've been so tired lately and uncomfortable, it has been hard for me to do as much work as I wanted to, but we are getting there. And the team is so supportive of Jeff and me, it is all going so great. My concentrations now, need to turn to LTC. We've got a dead line Dec 15! Just got to get in touch with our kids and get the ball rolling.

Adie is doing well, but she sure is a ball of fire! She has got so much energy, it's hard to keep up with her! She likes pretending she is a monster and sometimes gets very hyper with it! She is also very stubborn sometimes! Nap time is becoming extremely difficult. It is often more time spent in persuassion, than enjoying the quiet time. She has also decided that she is not interested in all in being a big girl. So we are still doing diapers and separation anxiety has taken a toll. I guess we have come to the time when we will just have to say, "it's time!" The kids are going to spend the night of Nov 14 with some friends from church and I'm so nervous about it. I hope they can all get some sleep!

Jo is going to be fine that night, hopefully he can help his sister make it through. Our friends aren't worried about it. Last week, Jo's kindergarten class went on a field trip to a farm! It was great! Adie and I tagged along. Yesterday I learned that one of the teachers was very worried about me going, being as pregnant as I am, but our teacher friend assured her that I was fine. It was funny. Jo has a great class. We all had a great time and learned some neat things about the farm! Adie really got a lot out of it too. She loved all the animals. Jo loved the horses and ponies. I don't think he had a favorite though. Kindergarten is going alright. He has made lots of friends and is doing so well with all of his classes. Yes, classes. He has three teachers and goes from class to class each day. They've got a homeroom and they do "specials" everyday. Specials are art, music, library, and PE. His least favorite is PE, because one of the kids in his class is very onery! This little boy, B, likes to pull the fire alarm and Jo does not like that at all. He happens to try it the most during PE. He has been learning to draw really good and brings home lots of artwork each week! Well, actually, a lot of the art work is from other little kids in his class...little girls actually. It seems as though our little Jo is crushed on by a few girls in his class! One in particular, E, has given him so many pictures. Hearts all over the paper, both of their names written together, and now, pictures of the two of them hugging! Several weeks ago, I had began writing Jo a little note saying "I 'heart' you" and that was something he said helped him get through his day, it made him happy. Last Friday, I found a note from little E that was just like what I had sent with him! My baby has a girlfriend! Ahhh!!!! Jo said that she tells him she loves him and he told me that he loves her. What do I say? We talked about it a little bit. Jeff and I still think he may be oblivious. But some things he's said are starting to make me wonder. Jo - my little heart throb! He does have a sweet, sensitive spirit that grils fall for, and he does get his great looks from his daddy! ;) Oh, we are in trouble!

Yesterday was great. Jeff taught the adult Bible class. It was a very good class, I'm so proud of him! We've been going through Matthew and he led chapter nine. I won't be surprised if he's asked again to lead a class for the adults, but I'm not sure when he'll be asked, or even if he'll say yes for a while. He did say he liked it. He got more response from the adults than he does from the middle school class he's teaching on Wed nights and the younger ages he's taught before. What he said about that was funny!

Well, I've written a lot. I realized I hadn't posted very much this month and wanted to catch you all up on what's going on. I don't always get on to write but I've been watching other blogs and it seems that we are all in the midst of some very busy times! We are coming upon the holiday season, wishes to you all for a great one! I don't know when I will be on again (probably before Alex comes, but maybe not). I'm just not sure. Jeff has told me that he will get on to post about the baby when he comes, I'll try to make sure of it, and that he adds pictures too!

Love to you all!

Monday, October 15

Loving Autumn!

You Belong in Fall

Intelligent, introspective, and quite expressive at times...
You appreciate the changes in color, climate, and mood that fall brings
Whether you're carving wacky pumpkins or taking long drives, autumn is a favorite time of year for you


This was cool and so fun! Fall is my absolute favorite season! As soon as September hit, we pulled out all the fall decorations and we went out and found all kinds of fall crafts to do together. I think we were the first on our block to put out pumpkins and all the other outdoor decorations we had. The kids and I have been picking up pretty leaves we find on the ground. I was so excited that we could make hot chocolate again! Fall sports are a blast and we are anxiously awaiting the changing of leaf colors here! (Though, we've been told this is looking to be one of the "not so colorful" years - boohoo!) We love going on walks in the fall. And we are excited about the cooler days settling in! We love fall!

Friday, October 12

An onery and little more busy...

Little Alex is an onery little boy! It has been a good week, but Wednesday, I thought things were going to change! Tuesday night, he didn't move in his usual way. I tried not to think much of it, but I began to get worried when each time I flipped over, there was no movement. When I woke up to take care of business, there was no movement. At 3:00 I couldn't stand it any longer, I couldn't sleep. By 5, Jeff could tell there was something wrong. We went down stairs and he got me some orange juice. There he was, a little bit of movement. But as the day went on, he still wasn't the same. When I called the drs office, they had me do the orange juice thing and some yogurt. That time, no real movements at all. Little knocks here and there, but nothing big like he always had been doing with little snacks like that. Alright, I was certain things didn't look good. So the docs office had me go in to the hospital. As soon as the monitors touched me, he started bouncing all over the place! He was a playful little fella, but onery! He even turned his body in a way that we couldn't hear his heart beat, but was still kicking around. Big kicks! The nurse, she was funny. She looked down where he was, and said, "Okay sweetie, that's impressive, but I want to hear your little ticker!" It took a couple of minutes to find the heart beat again, but it was very faint. Then one of the nurses said that he was showing hyperactivity, and when I asked about that, they said he is just the most excited little baby they have seen come in at that age. His heart rate was getting into the 160s and they asked me if that was normal. Most of the time, it's been in the 140s-150s. I asked if that meant something was wrong and they said that since he was calming himself down and the heart rate was going up and down, he was very fine.
Oh, dear, what are we in for?! He really had me going Wednesday. We were all a little concerned. And it's just good to not take any chances. I'm so glad he's okay, but I think he's really going to be quite a turkey! (And he is my turkey, coming right before Thanksgiving). My little Alex turkey - silly boy. I can't wait to meet you!

Monday, October 8

Nesting...

Our internet went down late last week sometime and I couldn't post this, but I put it in notepad last Friday so I would have it ready to go. It's been fun getting ready for baby. Here's a little bit of what I've been up to!

Picture this:
I'm fluffing my feathers, and making room in our nest. I've been cleaning out the bad and bringing in some new. I've been getting all the "eggs" in order and I'm ready for my baby to arrive!

A few months ago, I went nuts thinking about all I wanted to get done before the baby comes and we got busy. Our garage is not perfectly clean, but it is in so much more order than any of our garages have been in a long time. Woohoo! I could definitely do more cleaning down there, get more things in order for sure, but it is in good condition.

I went through all of the clothes the kids have been growing out of that I have held on too. Organized and separated Adie's from Jo's. Currently, a friend of ours is going through Adie's clothes to see what she will need for her baby. It felt good to get some things being stored out of the way! Jo's, I organized into sizes and then got them all into our really huge storage bin, to pull out every few months for Alex. Earlier this week, I soaked the baby bathtub and the bath seat in bleach, then scrubbed them down and they both look brand new! That felt good to get done, but when we were filling up the tub, Adie wanted to get baby Alex and put him in the bath! It was so cute! I guess my nesting is getting everyone ready to have Alex here now! Ha! We pretty much have the house in good order all around. The kids rooms are looking great and we've even gone a little farther in the decorating this year! Today, I realized that it would be fun to show y'all some pictures of what their rooms look like. I guess I could upload pictures of the whole place, we'll work on that. We've got the crib up, blankets inside. We've been slowly getting bottles (I don't like to hang on to them after one baby is finished using them, too much to store and they are in such good supply!). Today, I washed all the clothes that will fit Alex pretty much right away. We've needed to find a dresser for the boys' room, and I've been watching the garage sales, but haven't been able to find one. So we are sticking with the good old plastic drawers for now. Hopefully next year, we can start saving to get them a nice dresser to have in their room, hopefully. I'll be working on getting all of his clothes put away later today. I have his baby book filled out, just a few things to write before he gets here. We got the carseat cleaned up looking real nice and it is now in the van ready to go! We finished getting all of our summer cards with pictures sent out (sigh of relief) and I've got our winter letter written up and will be ready to print it off and sent with new pictures of the kids (all three this time!) sometime in December. We covered the couch and chair with some blankets we had around and now they look nicer - woohoo! I've been able to find all of our harvest decorations and our house is so cozy now! I didn't realize how much I love scarecrows! I've been collecting things slowly over the years and we've got so many of those cute things, it looks nice. I really didn't do it on purpose, but it has really worked out.
Now, for the last thing, our kitchen floor. How often do you mop your kitchen floor? Really, I want to know! I haven't ever really mopped all that much. I mean, we did to keep the place clean. But I've got to tell you, this floor is the absolute worst I've ever lived with. It's terrible! I think there is dirt litterally ground into the grooves of this floor from 5 years ago! It's crazy! I guess you could say I've been a little obsessed with it lately. I just can't seem to get it clean and now it seems to be getting worse. I really don't like it at all. I've now tried three different mopping things and I'm not sure what's going to do the trick. I really like the swiffer mop because I can just throw it in the trash and there is no messing with buckets and water and mud sloshing around. Back in Lubbock, we got a Bissel Flip-It for our wood floors. It is nice, it vacuums up the dirt so we don't have to worry about sweeping it and the chance of dirt getting missed and dusted up into the air. This thing doesn't miss the dirt. BUT the water. For the wet side, we have to mix it with a soap solution (no problem there). I haven't fully figured out the wet side (we quit using it after moving to Killeen). But when I do use it, I can't clean 1/4 of the floor without having to get more solution done, AND the dirty water is absolutely filthy! It is actually disgusting to me! I can't stand the thought of my kids playing on the floor in there because of how dirty I know it is. And now I've got one on the way that will be crawling everywhere, I can't keep him off the floor. I've got to figure something out. Today, I found a mop that, after using it, might work out. It's got a nifty little scrubbing brush on the flip side and the sponge is big and it looks like it holds a lot. But I have to deal with the water. And, oh that water was yucky! Also, after 10 minutes of mopping, I was so hot and out of breath, I couldn't even finish the whole floor. I do think it will get us started though, in the right direction. Jeff has Monday off, so we are going to clean that floor all day! I've got to get rid of the dirt, and I think it's going to take a mopping everyday or every-other-day at the least to keep it looking the way I want it to. Is that right? Everyday mopping? I've never heard of that, and I've never seen anyone do that. So tell me, what do you all do? How often do you mop your kitchen floors? I really want to know! :)

So, here I go, fluff, fluff, fluff. I'm fluffing these feathers and getting the nest ready, and we're ready for Alex to be here!

Wednesday, October 3

Fall Time Happeneings

Well, things have considerably slowed down for me! Adie and I will be able to enjoy our time at home with no other things to think about for two full weeks! Yay! We have been playing games, with balls, watching princess movies, cuddling, reading books. Today, we brought out the stocking I'm going to make for Alex and she is very interested in being involved in that! So, I guess we will look at some more crafts to get into. We are also going to be cleaning up some things for Alex: his bathtub, the bath seat, learning seat, car seat. I'm just so ready for him to be here, it's fun getting ready! The ladies at church gave us a shower on Monday. They were all so sweet to do that! When asked what we are needing, all I could come up with was diapers. One of the ladies said something so funny, "Real ones or fake ones?" I couldn't answer for a minute, it took a while to figure out what she was saying, I think I was just so confused by the fake diaper question! So, we got six pkgs of "fake" diapers! A few very cute outfits, a few bibs, someone made a little blanket - so cute, and a new toy. That was about it, all such wonderful gifts - thank you friends! We've got about 6 weeks, and I can't believe it, it's coming so fast!

Jeff has decided he likes taking Jo to school on his way to work. Jo likes it too. So, the mornings have been slightly less rushed. I think Adie likes keeping her "jamas" on longer in the morning! School is still going well, he's getting more comfortable there. They have already sent home two fund-raisers this year! Ahh!!! For one of them, we were to find family who would support him. So we made a couple phone calls. I never liked doing fund-raisers when I was younger and I still don't. It's just not fun asking people for money. When we called my mom, I told her that the part of school we didn't like has arrived. She laughed. It was rather funny. So, the grandparents are going to help out with that one! The second one, on the envelope, it specifically said that he was not to go door knocking. That's nice, I wasn't looking forward to doing that kind. Jeff has taken it to work and hopefully we will get a couple of people to help Jo out. Oh, fund-raisers, aren't they wonderful! But they're for a good reason, the school's got to get money from somewhere, and not all the parents can fork out all the money they need for things!

Something else that has Jo excited is the Fall field trip coming up at the end of the month! He thought it was going to be the 5th, I had to explain to him that it won't be until the 25th. He was a little disappointed, but he's still excited! They need parent volunteers, I think Adie and I will try and get in on that one, it will be fun to go with his class! There is also a book fair coming up and they asked for parent volunteers. A couple weeks ago, Jeff described me as a "yes ma'am." Apparently I've been saying yes to way too many things in the last several weeks. He very gently told me that I should really say no to this one. It was hard, but saying no actually made me feel pretty good, I won't have too much to worry about. I've got a baby on the way!

Jo is loving soccer. We had our third game Saturday and he did great. We were also told of a clinic after the game. We went to that and Jo really got a lot out of it. He says he really likes the game. I wonder what the future holds... This Saturday, the kids have a double header. All the teams this fall will have one. His first game is at 9 am! Ahh!!! That means an early morning! The second will be at 11 am. So we'll have time in between for a snack and a little break. One of the things I've loved about this, (just one small thing), his appetite has gone up! He's eating quite a bit more these days. Keep that boy active, huh? Love it. :)

Well, I suppose I should really go now. Hope you all are having a great week!