Friday, August 3, 2012

Friday vs. Mom (aka me.)


So glad to have my hubby and Emma home!!!

After starting a few loads of their dirty STINKY laundry it was time to head out in the gorgeous NW weather and do some yard work... 

This is something I really don't enjoy until AFTER when it all looks nice.  I am the person who likes to lay on the chaise lounge with a book and look at beautiful grounds... not make them beautiful.

Anyway.  Kids were pressure washing and helping load weeds, juniper shrubs, etc. etc.

When I walked up to the wheel barrow and step HARD on a rake and it came up and seriously whacked me in the face.

I now have a rather nice egg on my left temple...

This was after I ran into a low tree branch on the same side of my head.

After the tears began to flow Josh said why don't you quit and go get your parents at the airport?

Nice idea... until their Excursion decided to die in the MIDDLE of traffic and WOULD NOT START back up.

My awesome father had to get out and push the Excursion across 3 lanes of Friday afternoon Portland traffic to the smallest shoulder ever... we were hanging into traffic.  

For fun it was 90 degrees and AAA said it would be 90 minutes until they could get there.

Almost an hour into our wait Dad tried for the millionth time to start the car... 

and amazingly it started and we milked that sucker home.  

Simple blessings.  I am so glad we didn't get in a wreck our something.  

There is always something we can be thankful for when things don't go the way we hope.

In other news:

1.  After the car situation my thumb got smashed while getting my parent luggage out. :(  Good news is I hope to keep my thumbnail and it was my left hand instead of my right!  See... thankful!

2.  Allen and Bruce took McKenna and Sydney out to the lake and taught them both how to water ski - - Syd even going over the wakes and learned to wakeboard as well :)  Bad news about that is that Josh and I didn't go... Personally I was too busy smashing into things.  I think the lake would have been softer for sure.

3.  I enjoyed watching Emma and Jack and Libby run through the sprinklers.  The simple joys of summer!

4.  Cleaned out a HUGE area of weeds, shrubs, and my kids pressure washed the fencing in that area.  A huge relief and sense of accomplishment for me.  Do you know what I am talking about?  That feeling of pure exhausting yet the thrill of knowing that you actually accomplished something that makes a difference?  My feet, legs, FACE, arms are all showing their battle wounds!

5.  Tomorrow my hubby leaves again for Tennessee this time.  Teacher Convention.
I will miss him.  It is also the day that would have been my grandmothers 95th birthday.

I miss her too.

Goodnight.

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Mom vs. Teenage Room

So Sam is away at Teen Camp at Big Lake...

And while I was wiping down the doors inside our home with Green Works I got sided tracked when I entered the room of my eldest teenage daughter... and was hit with the reality that now was my time...  (I should mention that I already overtook Emma's room when she was at camp!)

My arsenal....


So what you can't see here is that the corner by the nightstand is all kinds of water bottles, socks, bags, stuffed animals...  and a lot of dust.

This is her desk area and I must say I already moved a bunch of stuff like her chair out of the way to start the cleaning process...

I spent like 3-4 hours cleaning & scrubbing & moving furniture, while blasting Group 1 Crew, Brit Nicole, and Jamie Grace.  I hope no one was standing outside her window!

This is the end result...
I hope that she loves it when she gets home from camp.  I did not go through any drawers, so she is going to need to finish up on her own... but she has a good head start now. :)  Oh and since this photo  I moved the guitar by her dresser instead of my her desk.  AND I washed her sheets and made the bed.

Why I ask myself is it so hard for a teenager to make their bed????

I think I need to have a "room check" slip like I was faced with in academy.  Seemed to do the trick for me...

Food for Thought... I think yes.



In other news I am still loving the Olympics...

Shedding tears with all the great stories they find on the athletes.

I wonder why can't we find those types of stories instead of all the bad things that are going on?

and EMMA AND JOSH ARE HOME!!!

Whoot!  See you!

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

What's in your bed?




Sam is at Big Lake Teen Camp...

Josh & Emma are at Auburn for NBC Camp...

McKenna & Syd are asleep in their own beds...

and the Dude is in mine...

He knows that when Daddy is gone its his chance to cozy in bed with mom.

Only problem is that I like my own space and the boy loves to cozy in.

We have a king size bed and I almost fell out of it last night because I think I was trying to escape the heat of the little man.

I am looking forward to Josh coming home tomorrow... which means no room for the boy!

--------------------------
Summer news, since my last post a month ago.

1.  The olympics are on nonstop at my house.  I LOVE it!

2.  Our house has been lifted.  Twice.  We pray it works.

3.  Josh painted all the black trim.  On a 30 ft ladder.  I am glad he's done.

4.  We went to Seattle for a day... and visited the gum wall amongst other things!

5.  Spent the 4th of July in Yachats :)

6.  Spent a week in the motorhome at Campmeeting.

7.  Spent 6 days in Sunriver and visited with good friends the Dickinsons.

8.  Rearranged and cleaned my eldest two daughters rooms.  Wow.  What a job.

9.  Picked blueberries.  Froze Raspberries and Blueberries.

10.  Made Jam.

11.  Worked a few days.  No official job yet... but I work whenever I can, and trust that God will meet                                                   our needs.

12.  My mom's sister from Kansas came for a visit and stayed a couple nights with us.

13.  Oh almost forgot... finally got the window replaced in the library... its been broken since we moved    
       in 4.5 years ago.

14.  And how could I forget... SKY Vacation Bible School.  5 nights.  Just under 200 kids.

Wow.  Summer Love.  Feeling lucky and blessed.  Enjoying the blue skies and warm sunshine!

Hope this finds you out enjoying your loved ones and enjoying the sunshine!