Changes

Its amazing how much my boys have changed over the last 4 years especially Josh. Josh has filled out and gotten bigger. Kyle is always lanky and tall and so is Jo Jo. We swore when Josh was born he would be Joshua not Josh but that was not to happen..though his given name is Joshua everyone shortened it out from the beginning. Kyle well that poor kid was called either Chango or Mowgli most of his life for being so dark and climbing anything not tied down..the kid from the jungle book. He hated that and used to come out swinging. I have no idea what they call him now that is printable :) and probably dont want to know!

He has grown up more than I ever imagined. Im told his girlfriend is at least partly responsible for that she is really nice and keeps him centered. She went off to college this year but comes home for weekends. Jordan does not have a girlfriend right now and neither does Josh. Josh is working back in construction and doing really well so far. He adjusted really quickly to being home and he is back into the swing of things. I hope he does not let anything mess him up his parole time is very very long.

The three of them are all living together and it seems like a good deal. They want to find a house so that they all have their own bedrooms. Their dad had hoped to have Josh live with him but he felt like he needed to be on his own. He is 23 and needed to find his own way out in the world now. I can only pray it all works out the right way.

Ive been feeling better lately now that the weather is letting up. The constant storm fronts were just not helping the chiari symptoms at all. Martys dad had a real scare he flat lined for over 30 seconds after a routine test and a shock to regulate his heart. Its been pretty eventful here at our house but things are calming down.

Girlscouts started back up and this year I am troop leader. We let the girls pick the activities they wanted to do and what a mess it will be a fun one but a mess all the same. Goo Glop and gunk all the way, interesting when a few dont like to dirty their hands I will have to experiment at home with neater methods for that part of the group.

Kristy is determined to get the top prize for reading at school this year and at the rate she is going shes headed in that direction. She already has 100 percent in her AR lab and is on her 4th Harry Potter book. She loves fiction of all sorts and Non fiction to. If it catches her eye she will read it..

Ive been a lazy blogger

Ive been very lazy about blooging lately. Ive been reading them but not posting mine. The summer was busy school started in late August and so far it has gone very well. Little Miss got the award for "being there and being present" thats their character trait of the month for August which she was excited about. She usually doesnt get one till the end of the year. She played baseball and her team took first place. They were undefeated and they played some very tough teams. She spent time swimming at the pool, over nights with friends and going to several different vacation bible schools. She enjoyed all of them. She went to a Methodist, Luthren and her Baptist one so far. This year she wants to go to the pentecostal one her nephew went to its Apostolic they speak in tongues and do things very differntly but she likes to learn how differntly each church does things. Her church has very few young kids in it but she loves it so much. It surprises me that she goes no matter what. She was the only one in her Sunday school class last week and she still enjoyed it She goes to the Wed. nigh programs they have also. I think she just loves how much all of the people who go there love her and they are all much older like having tons of granparents!

My oldest son got home from prison finally. It was the worst thing in the worls having to have him go to such a bad place but the best thing to hear his voice after 3 years. He looks so much more grown up. I have a picture of all 3 boys together now for the first time in 3 years. I cant wait to visit them this summer. I am determined that even if they only spend a few hours with me at least we will get to see them and Kristy can enjoy a vacation.

Im still adjusting to the idea that the program I wanted to do for school was not going to work so I have to take something else but I know it will all work out. I saw a good movie today I really liked it. It was on cable and called facing the giants. It was about a christian coach who lead his team to the lord and then to the state championships and a whole lot of other things all becuase of the faith he and his wife had. It was a very powerful movie. It made me think and I was glad I saw it. It seems like each time I have my doubts something comes up. I get chills during some parts of it. ..well im going to post the picture of my boys...just so i can see them each time i come to my blog :)

Stairway to Heaven......

I took this picture at one of Kristys last baseball games. The weather was really weird. It looked so odd and reminded me of something a friend really into spiritual stuff had said. She always thought of the rays of sunlight filtering downward (they looked more spread out than that when I shot it but the car kind of reflectd it) made it look like stairways up to heaven where peoples souls were going up into the white light like an elevator or someting. I couldnt ever get that image out of my head and usually dont have my camera aroudn when I see it but this time I did and took a few shots but didnt get the other one on here. The big blue ball is what she calls the Orbs its to the left of the rays of light...she was pretty much into the ghost hunting and ghosts and used to go all over to see famous ghost houses an take picutres and things and had some very intersting ones....made me wonder...you just dont know...I suppose not everyone can cross over to the other side to be with God if they are not ready or what have you...anyway I just like to take pictures of the clouds with different shapes, colors and rays...and dont feel like being to deep at the moment and lots has been going on..i will try to update more later..

Wow a title!

It actually let me post and even let me make a title and I came up with that one go figure..i decided to post this old layout. I have no idea why just becuase I was going through so me old layouts that i had made for variuos challenges when i first started out that I didnt have to try and remember who or what on credits since they were pre crash..I made the ribbons, I took the photo the only thing I didnt do was create the scripture or the challenge to scrap the layout obviously...but I did create the layout..it was for a gotta pixel challenge I think...it was a series of 3 pictures taken...

The other layout is an old one Jan Reed Ive gotta be me..

I made anew layout...and updates on life in general

Ok layout first in case someone comes just to see that...a new one using Mindys kit it was a freebie just called "mini dude freebie" the full kit is so awesome. Her kits are some fo my favorites and you can find her link to her shop below on her blog until I figure out how to get my blog all set up with the little blogs I read and good stuff just the way I want it without self destructing it since i forgot how to code html again ..dont use it and you loose it :)

http://pjsthoughtsofrandomness.blogspot.com/

Now onto the layout..i modified a few things to get the look i wanted.. its still not exact but it was as good as it would get for this computer. The little boy is Martys grandson.

Kristys ball pictures should be out soon they finally took them last week. They got rained out twice. Her team has won all their games so far. Tonight they won just by a squeak. They were actually loosing and a kid hit a ball way out there and brought in all the runs and time ran out and they came out 2 ahead. They were all so happy. These kids hate to loose and they range in age from 6 to 9. Thier parents are not even pushing them its the kids themselves thats the scary part..

Summer school ends tomorrow and then we get to deal with at least a month of the im bored what do we do now...mom can we huh can we :) but then before we know it school starts again.

Heres a really old layout I made in 2003 before I even had a clue how big digi scrapping would get...i made the paper out of a photo I took at Sea World and the borders from a font..and people actually wanted them..thats how little there was out there then..I look at it now and laugh..it was so rough..

New 7 things and Scrap layouts

The credit for everything in the fun in the sun layout except the photo goes to Mindy whos link is below in #1. Its her fun in the sun quick page. I only inserted the pictures she did the hard part in designing such an awesome kit.

The first kit is her Cheetah freebie quick page and again all I did was add text and a picture.

OK looking at my 7 things I realized a lot were more on the negative side and I really hate being negative ( i unforunately am in a very negative environment at the moment at both work and around my inlaws) so I decided to put a new list up with 7 more positive things about me so here they are...

1) I love digital scrapbooking I am fully and totally addicted. I spend all my free time (well what there is of it haunting my favorite designer blogs like Mindys http://pjsthoughtsofrandomness.blogspot.com/ who was the one who tagged me to begin with.

2) I love that I have been able to keep in touch with my cousin Angela through her blog now.

3) I am really excited that my son who had made a really horrible choice and ended up in prison will be home in just a few months and I might be coming here to visit with my other two sons. They are all grown now at 23, 19 and 18.

4) I love spending time at the river bank watching the water its almost as pretty as the ocean just in a different way

5) I am the troop leader for my daughters girl scout troop

6) I sent in my information so I can go back to school at a local tech college for medical administration (office work)

7) I love Seafood, Salsa chips and guacamole and I would way a million pounds if i could eat it every day :)))))))

Thanks for looking and visiting

Ive been Tagged....

Someone else actually read my blog other than my cousin. Good thing Angela asked me to finally post on it or there would have been nothing but blank pages here.

Mindy just couldnt stop herself this time from playing along in the tagging blog game and somehow it is very catchy so....i just had to play...

What can I say?!

7 things about myself:

1. I was born and raised in Southern California


2. I have a very rare brain anomaoly called Arnold Chiari Malfromation that only affects one in every 1000 people. It causes my brainstem to smash down into my spinal canal. Oh and it took them 38 years to figure that out by the way..i kept being told your fine its pms, its stress etc..

3. I am actually shy with new people, I cant stand talking on the phone. I would rather email someone or write than call. I wasnt always that way but for some reason I feel like im an interuption or something.

4. I am my own worst critic

5. I dont do drama yet everyone around me seems to live and breathe for it...constantly wanting to create and inovle me in it...Its driving me looney..someones gonna find me in one of those white I love me jackets one day saying not me not i no sireee... ;)

6. I hate milk, i cant stand the taste of it the texture the smell, I hate mayonaise and sour creme to! I am also lactose intolerant the stuff will make me puke!

7. I went through a point in life where I literally had no personality of my own. If my ex said it was so I did it, believed it or said it. When we split up and I could breathe again people were shocked I had a personality of my own...

So there you go..7 totally useless things about me in a nutshell...

but now to find 7 new people to tag thats a whole new ball game...hmmmm more pictures later working on a layout...my first in ages...the mojo is finally coming back...block is over...yeahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

trip to Libby Loo

The girl scout troop took a trip to Libby Lou for one of their picks on how to spend the money they made from selling cookies they had a blast so Im posting a few pictures of kristys makeover choice. She did the Hannah Montana package. She loves that show its one of her favorites. She loves to watch disney but she also watches a few things I wish I hate....its the redneck girl coming out or so I am told..she has fallen in love with Jeff Foxworthys red neck routines...she loves Blue Collar Comedy though she has no clue what the more off color aspects of it mean. I usually make her turn it if its getting really rude or off color but most of the time its just silly stuff..Uncle Robert and his wife sent her a Larry the Cable guy doll she absolutely loves and a Git er Done hat thats pink she has both attached to her most of the time!

Life in the fast lane...

Definately will make you loose your mind..not that I have one to begin with :) I usually only have part of one on any given day. We have something going on every day except friday this week and thats after work and summer school. Kristy started baseball and we are still wrapping up the girl scout events. They had the pool party last meeting and this Saturday we go to the St. Louis Zoo. Its pretty nice there we went last year and barely saw a thing. The troop leader was trying to do way to much and we had to hurry hurry because we started out late and practically ran through the zoo. This year we are leaving early and going through the zoo slowly!

I have lots of pictures on a disc but dont have much time for editing them to load them tonight. We had her first baseball game Monday, they won. Her good friend who she has been friends with from head start Joey had his first game tonight so we went to that because his family came to her game (everyone has the poor kids married off already at 8 yrs old) and tomorrow she has practice. Thursday she has an appointment, friday is our one free day. Saturday is the big Zoo day and then Sunday I have to work and she usually goes to Sunday school and Church for most of the AM and part of the afternoon.

Martys disability is still in the wait and see process could be six months could be six years for all we know. The new neurologist says he needs back surgery to free that nerve and that will help him. I hope it does help. He did get his medical through the state though so thats a good thing. Its a little ironic though that they say he is disabled enough to give him medical help but not to give him is disability he has paid into for years..go figure...makes no sense...he cant stand long cant sit long...cant concentrate half the time ...and at times is even loopy loops like someone with parkinsons or something from his meds or the nerves being cramped in his neck and back...yet they want him to be trusted with money and a cash register...yeah uh huh that will happen...nope I dont think so.....just a waiting game....

Not much else going on..I will post some more pictures when i have a chance have to be at work at 4 am time to get to bed

More photos

A very small and blurry picture of Josh in the upper left corner the only one I have of him in the last 4 yrs his step mom has some but hasnt sent them yet. The other three are of my middle son Kyle. He is 19 now and was my He double hockey stix child for a very long time but has totally turned around. He has a job, his own apartment, is taking in his younger brother to share the rent and bills. He now keeps his apartment immaculate to the point of OCD from what I am told and he stays out of trouble. A big change from the kid he was. He has the will of iron that would break a saint but a smile that would melt anyones heart to. I will post more photos as I can get them. I stole these from their myspaces and had to edit them to make them fit here and be able to use them since most had other people in them.. More to come later..

More Family Pics and updates

Martys Daughter Jen 18. My son Jordan who just turned 18 the pic on teh left is him with his ex girlfriend but it was such a cute picture...the one on the right was him at prom. He looks more like his dad than me these days.

I think thats all it will let me post on this one I will find some more of the others and post them

A New Day

Well today is definately a new day and I have decided to figure out this blog and use it more often. I dont know why I let it intimidate me. I think becuase it is so different than my xanga or yahoo blogs. Those are pretty intense posts so I dont always tell people where they are for fear of them worrying to death or worse yet scaring them away from wanting to keep in touch like just the mere mention of some of what is in them does to some family members. I cant help what happens with my kids, they do what they do but at least they have finally gotten theirselves on track and are doing better.

Josh is on the short term way out of prison he will be home on 9-19-07 and from what I have been told will never ever mess his life up again to the point of jail or prison. I pray that is true. Kyle the most stubborn and messy of them all is 19 now and the kid who would never clean his room is now totally OCD about how immaculately clean his apt. must stay! He has never had less than 1 job but usually has two so he can make sure all his bills are paid and is trying to keep his credit good.

Jordan turned 18 yesterday, hes still a little on the unsure side of what he wants to do he graduates in July after a rocky patch. He works full time and is moving in with Kyle. I never pictured all 3 boys being so close but they finally are true brothers and very close. I am very proud of how much they have grown and am glad they are finally growing up and getting over the past. It was not easy when things went bad with their dad.

Now to try and get a picture in..

my new blog

Bare bones here but im learning html and hope to use this blog to post some things i am working on making