A little more than 24 hours...

til Signature Sound! I'm so excited! Annie is asleep on the love seat convinced that she has Swine Flu. As soon as she heard it on the news this morning she put her hand on her face then her forehead and said "Mom, I think I have that." She does have a spring cold, piano, softball, CRCT and the pollen has kicked her butt. She felt so bad after school she didn't want to go to piano she just wanted to come home and go to bed, she didn't make it to her room but at least she went to sleep so I'm playing on the computer. Ricky took Brance to his 6 pm ballgame. If Annie wakes up we will go but its far more important to me that she sleeps when she needs it than to go to the ballgame. Brance said he was okay with us not going since she didn't feel good.

I told you earlier in the week that grandma is suppose to go tomorrow night. Today she told me how bad she feels and she didn't think she was going to make it. Of course I don't listen to her and her excuses. She said what if I die there? So I said what better place to die than in a church with Ernie singing. Maybe if you die there he will feel obligated to sing at your funeral. Well that shut her up for the minute. Who knows what tomorrow will bring. I'm excited about going to see the show but more excited that one of my coworkers will put on my make up and one of them will flat iron my hair. Yes, I am more than capable of doing it myself. When we went out of town in March we all fixed each others hair and make up like a bunch of middle school girls. It was a lot of fun sitting back and letting someone fix me for a change. My hair is so incredibly curly that it is a lot of work to get it straight. Not only is it curly but its in the process of a grow out stage and it looks a little wild with many different lengths. I can get it straight but my hands and arms get tired so when I knew I was going to leave from work I asked the girls about doing it. Yeah ME!

We are buying Ricky an Excursion from a friend and I'm sending his truck to Perry to the car lot in the morning. Daddy seems hopefully that he can sell the truck if it sitting on the lot. Now with an Expedition and an Excurison I am considering getting rid of my car. I do love it but is have nearly 100,000 miles and that will be a first for me. I want a Mustang convertible although I'm just not sure I want that full time yet. We are really enjoying the convertible Galaxie, I drive it everywhere! I have drove it more in the last two weeks than I drove the Corvette in the entire year I had it. Ricky drove the Vette a lot, I just didn't feel so comfortable in it, and I didn't have any room for anything. The Galaxie has a huge trunk so I can grocery shop in it.

Well Annie is still sleeping so I need to ramble in the kitchen and look for something to make for supper. The boys will be hungry when they get home.

Saturday, Sunshine and No Kids...

My day cannot get any better! Ricky loaded up his lawn mower and the kids and left! I think he was going to cut his grandma's grass and maybe my mothers. Mom's birthday is tomorrow so I think he is giving her a little birthday suprise. His mom's house is on the way to my mom's so he may stop there also. Who knows when they will be back. I pulled all my shelves out of the refrigerator this morning and took them outside with the waterhouse, a scrub brush and some bleach, my refrigerator looks and smells brand new. We never save leftovers. If there is enough for another meal, I still throw it away. The kids save everything and it spills on the shelves and it just gets gross after a while, Annie will even put a bag of potato chips in their to save them. It drives me and Ricky crazy. I think the only thing in there now is a gallon of milk and a gallon of orange juice, a few slices of cheese and a pack of ham. I am in need of grocery shopping. Since I stopped buying snack food, we all eat everything we can get our hands on, I can't believe the stuff I have pulled out of my freezer to cook this week. Its been kind of nice.

Next Friday I have a date with Signature Sound, well me and about 1000 others. I haven't seen them since sometime back in the fall. I'm taking mom, Annie, Heather (my coworker and friend), grandma and Peggy to see them at Roswell Street Baptist Church in Marietta on Friday the 1st. Annie always likes only one of the guys at a time. Last June she liked Tim until we got there and then it was all about Ernie. Who knows that she is thinking this time. I like them all! But my favorite is Doug. Its a lot of fun because they visit with you before the show and are always appreciative of you being there. They often recogonize you from another show and I like that. Doug says I look like his neighbor and his daughter is the same age as Annie so he always knows who we are. I hope my grandma and Peggy enjoy it.

Beulah is sleeping on the sofa as long as I will sit here beside her. If I move for any thing she jumps right up. I do have a lot I should be doing as long as nobody is here I don't have to do anything!

14 Years! Wow!

Ricky and I have been married for 14 years today, can you believe it? Ricky has lived with my crazy self for a long time. That doesn't count the nutty bunch that I come from that he has not only endured but come to love; one sister, three brothers, five nieces, four nephews and one great niece that we haven't met yet! God is good and we thank Him everyday for His mercy. Add Brance, Annie and Beulah to the mix you never know what is going to happen.

Shake you family tree and watch the nuts fall...

I have a little excitement today...

It appears that a bear has had a little picnic with my trash can while we were gone today! Of course Ricky doesn't believe anything I say because I don't know what I am talking about! After we moved into our house, about 10 years ago, I would iron my clothes by the french doors in my bedroom and every morning I would see this really big buck walking around in the back yard. This went on for weeks and everyday I would call Ricky and tell him and he would not believe me. One Saturday morning he was carrying Annie into the kitchen to get her a bottle and as he walked back into the living room, he saw this big doe in the back yard. He practically threw Annie down and ran in the closet to get his gun. He started jumping around trying to get me to look at it. I told him she was nothing that her boyfriend would be out in a few minutes. About the time I got the words out, Mr. Big Buck that I had watched for weeks walked out. After shooting him in the driveway in his bare feet and underwear in the fall of the year, all 10 points of him hang on the wall in our house. The same thing with the albino deer except I had enough sense to record him on the video camera. Sadly we haven't seen him again but I did have proof. So now this bear thing. The trash can was open and the bags shredded with some trash in the yard but I did see paw prints and they are not Beulahs. I took pictures of them with my camera, as if they wouldn't still be in the mud when Ricky gets home. Also the pull handle on the trash can, the big can that you drag to the street, is broken. I'm anxious to see what Ricky has to say about that. It's not that he doesn't think I know what I'm talking about its just that he is an avid bow hunter and I see all the exciting stuff and he doesn't. Actually this is my second bear claim, the other was just after we married and our dog was going berserk outside, when I opened the door I could hear something growling so I stayed inside. When Ricky got home from work we found the paw prints beside our house. He spends so much time looking for animal signs and all he needs to do is ask for my help. Kinda like Scooby Doo looking for clues and solving crimes but I'm not driving a mini van!

We didn't have ball games last night or tonight but both kids have ball pictures tonight at different times so that requires work from both of us. CRCT started today so at least we don't have homework.

I need to quit looking for clues and start supper before we have to leave. If my sister is reading this, did you forget my phone number?

It's quiet at my house...

Ricky and Brance have loaded the lawn mower up to go cut grass at a friends house. The friends are out of town and offered to pay Brance for cutting the grass, he is so excited to actually earn money. Annie is on the back porch swinging and Beulah is lying in the floor asleep. I am thinking about getting in the tanning bed but can't get off the computer long enough to do that. I don't surf the net, I just play games that are on the computer.

Tomorrow Brance and I are getting a hair cut at 8 am, my hair is growing out again, I hate when I do this! Anyway for those of you that know me well know that my hair is very, very curly and it gets really big the long it gets. You know that higher the hair the closer to Jesus, its a Church of God thing so right now I'm real close. I can straighten it with a flat iron in about 10 minutes I just don't like sitting still long enough to get it straight. I am giving Elizabeth a baby shower on Sunday and I don't want my hair to look like a freak show.

Well it is family fun night and I'm reading a good book so I hope Annie will fall asleep on the sofa really soon and we won't have to watch a movie or play a game. I cooked hamburgers and shells and cheese when I got home today so I still need to clean up the kitchen.

We are watching the news and they are showing the new baseball stadium that opened in Gwinnett County. Its for minor league ball. I don't know that we will go but we did go to see the Tennessee Smokies last May in Seiverville, TN mom and I enjoyed it and the kids LOVED it! If you haven't taken your kids to see a farm team play it is well worth it. We are ready to go to Pigeon Forge as I haven't been since March, but we are waiting on the Smokies schedule so we can see them while we are there. The weekends we can go they are not at home. I want to go before it gets so hot we will be miserable. It is very cheap entertainment. It was kid night when we went so the kids got a hotdog combo meal for free, the cost for the four of us to get in was less than $20 and we had several hours of baseball. The players are huge compared to what my kids are used to and they interact with the children a lot. Anytime they catch a fly ball they immediately throw it up to the kids. They will also sign autographs if the kids ask. Anytime I can get a lot of bang for my buck I like to share it with others.

Well its already after 6 pm so I need to get off the sofa. Have a great weekend!

God is Good!

How often do we forget to stop and truly thank God for all His many blessings? Well I can tell you, it is not enough. My kids are healthy and happy for the most part, they do well in school, they love Jesus and have a personal relationship with Him, Annie has a direct phone line in I haven't figured it out yet. And she is a little bit of a prayer warrior, my Grandma Morris and Great Aunt Ruby would be so proud of her. Ricky and I have a comfortable lifestyle that we can afford and I don't think we ever just sit back and look at God's blessings. Just be thankful for what you have and don't sweat the small stuff. Life is too short.

Now on to the preschool, we are at a little more than 100% capacity! The only center in all of North Georgia that is full, the others are about 75-80% full. We have filled all 60 pre-k positions for the fall and have 18 children on a waiting list! What a blessing! I get to get up and go to work everyday and enjoy it. There are many days that I don't like pre-k but I'm blessed to have a job that is not in jeopardy. Ricky's work is staying steady and he continues to bring home a paycheck every week, even when it rains a monsoon like it did last week.

Brance still drives me crazy! Annie hit him with a baseball bat today across his back and he hit her with the baseball. The joys of motherhood. In less than ten years they won't have time to hit one another with ball bat so I guess I should enjoy it while I can. I continue to remind myself of that everyday. Sooner or later I hope to start believing it.

Brilyn continues to improve everyday. You can look at her and follow Lynn's post at www.caringbridge.org, type in her name, brilynsims. Please continue to pray for Brilyn, her mom Lynsey and the grandma Lynn.

He is Risen

Easter Sunday, I think Easter may be my favorite holiday of them all. Everybody just celebrates Jesus without any hassle or shopping or as I like to say commericalization if that is even a word. I was very suprised to see that a lot of stores were closed today and the entire Town Center Mall was closed, I love it!

Ricky's grandma isn't in the best health so it was important to Ricky to spend Easter with her. The kids wanted to go with him and that worked fine for me. After church we came home and I went to my Aunt Peggy's with mom, no kids! WOW! Ricky's cousin lives just down the road from my grandma and she doesn't come up very often but was able to make it today. Ricky's brother and sister, their spouses and all their kids were there. I was the only one missing. They ate, hunted eggs and played ball in the yard. The kids really had fun.

Lunch at Peggy's was nice. Keith and Scott came with their families but that was really it for kids. It was nice and quiet, I do enjoy that sometimes.

Why do families only get together on holidays? Why can't we just celebrate one another at some designated time each year so that nobody feels rushed? Actually that sounds like a really good idea. I think my siblings are going to get a family letter all about that.

The kids are upstairs watching a movie, Ricky is lying on the sofa and I'm just about ready to go to bed. I've been reading a Lisa Jackson book that's a little scary.

FREE to good home

one little boy! What has happened to my Brance? I was pretty sure that starting middle school this year, 6th grade, would be a whole new experience for him but little did I know that aliens would take over his body. I am so confused that I don't know what to do. It has continued to keep all a's, however he does his school work but it doesn't turn it in. He gets in trouble at school for being the class clown, Lord on knows where he gets that from, and is up to about 30 days of silent lunch. Annie bugs him but he is always picking at her. On the way home today he threw her brand new Easter shoes out the window on Hwy 52! I was furious, they landed almost to the bridge in the curve so it was impossible to attempt to get them I would get hit by a car. I called Ricky and by just happened to be two cars behind me. I got turned around and he slowed down traffic long enough for Brance to get out of the car and pick them up off the side of the road. What in the world possessed him to do such a thing? I don't know what to do with him. For nine years Annie has kept me on my toes, well now Brance is taking over for her, I need nerve medication.

We have had a really slow week this week at the preschool with most kids on spring break. Why do kids think they get a vacation just because they are out of school for a few days. Out of 124 full time enrollment we have averaged 30 kids per day. I expect tomorrow and Friday will be fuller as their parents want to get some things done before they go back to work on Monday. The kids don't go back until Tuesday.

Ricky's grandma isn't doing so well so I think Ricky and the kids are going to have Easter with her while I go to Peggy's with my mom and grandma. Sounds to me like I will have a pretty good day. Well Ricky and I are going to ride up to see his grandma so that's all for now.

Not sure that I know what's going on

Where has the week gone? It has raining all week so all the ball games have been canceled. I get more done when I rush around like a crazy woman than when I have a night off. Ricky left Friday for a car show/swap meet in Charlotte, NC. He is already on the way home. Brance spent the night at mom's. Annie and I went to Longhorn's with Dana and Cole. Annie had Bear Jamboree at her school so she was really tired. When we got home I let her sleep with me and she went to sleep before I ever got in the bed. Of course Beulah slept right in the middle between us. I really enjoy sleeping by myself so needless to say I didn't sleep to good last night.

Lynn's daughter Lynsey was put in the hospital last night in hopes of having the baby on Monday. She is only 33 weeks but the baby has some kind of tumor in her abdomen. After an ultra sound this morning they decided to take the baby today. Lynn and Lynsey were at the hospital by themselves. Lynn's nephew was getting married today so her whole family was tied of there. When Margarett called me Annie and I took off to Atlanta to be with them. By the time we got there Lynn's cousin had made it. We were able to go in the room and see Lynn and Lynsey before she left for her c-section. It seemed like they were gone forever. When Lynn finally came out Lynsey was doing good but the baby had already been sent to Scottish Rite. It was still going to be awhile before we could see her and some of her family was starting to arrive so Annie and I came home. We did get to see pictures of the baby before we left she didn't look so little to us and at that time they didn't know her weight, I just talked to Margarett and she said they thought she was about 4 pounds.

Our sweet baby's name is Brilynn. Please pray for her and her mother Lynsey.