We're off to see the Wizard...

So, Mindy calls.

She says, "What do you think about auditioning for "Wizard of Oz"?

I said, "Sure, why not!"

So we head to Community Theater of Howell and go for it.

I learned a lot about myself. One, I'm old. Two, I can't dance. Never could but I used to be able to fake it. Three, auditioning is fun. Four, there are a lot of talented people in Livingston County.

Mindy and I decided that we would go for the Wicked Witch and Glinda parts. How fun if we were cast opposite each other. We sized up the competition and decided that we owned the parts. We are, after all... us. We already had "chemistry" together. Let's go for it!!! Boy, are there some talented people out there!!!! I couldn't believe the competition. Amazing people out there!!!

Paige and Evy auditioned for Munchkins. Let me tell you...they were the cutest ones out there of course!!!!!

To sum it all up...we had a blast this week!!!

Mindy was cast as Glinda, I was cast in the adult chorus and Paige was cast as a Munchkin.

We are very excited about this walk down the yellow brick road and hope all of you will come and check it out. Opening night is November 9 and plays 4 shows that weekend (2 on Sunday) and the following weekend the same schedule. Tickets go on sale in October.

So, if you see us around town with our dark shades on and Harry Winston and Mia in our purses please don't be offended if we don't say hello right away. We haven't forgotten you. Our security team sometimes prohibits us from talking to our fans. But we still love you and once this is all over in November we can hang out with the public again.

Happy Birthday Paige!!!!!!!!!!!

In the Good Ol' Summertime

Nothin beats a snack by the beach.














HOS has had enough of the beach.

















Playing in the park.




















Our neighbor Chloe and Paige enjoy the frog pond!



















They caught a big 'un.
















Grant and Henry playing on "our" lake.

God Bless America!

Ok....Yes...I'm being totally sarcastic in my praise for our nation. I am FED UP!!!! SERIOUSLY!!!

In late May we applied for passports for our August 1-13 trip to Costa Rica. Are we in Costa Rica? NO!!! Do we have passports??? NO!!! Are we not in Costa Rica because we don't have passports??? No...not really. But still it is the principle of the matter!! We could have been in that situation.

Today, after 3 days without mail, my neighbor comes to me and says that she had just gotten off the phone with the post office. She was told mail has been cut off from our sub until further notice because our mail carrier had been stung by bees 3 times. So I went down to the Howell Post Office and calmly stated my frustration.

Well...maybe not so calmly but at least I didn't have on my 242 t-shirt.

Anyway, by the time I got to the post office the mail carrier lady had been bitten 10 times which is amazing to me that she had been bitten 7 more times in about 10 minutes and she isn't even supposed to be delivering our mail today. Weird huh?

So, I'm thinking maybe our passports are in the mail and we haven't received them due to this buzzing problem. Get it...BUZZING!

Nope, not there.

I love this country.

Water Balloons for Jesus

So, last Sunday, our precious preschool director Laura, asked me if I would volunteer my family to serve during Soakfest; our church's outreach thingy for the Brighton area. Sure, love to help out I told her. "Great!" she replied, "Would you be willing to blow up this 100 count pack of water balloons?"

"Anything for you Mrs. Laura," I answered, "But I can do more than one pack."

"Thanks a bunch. Here's two," she said.

I took them thinking, "I could have taken more but whatever!"

I go about my week.

Then Friday night it hit me. I've got Soakfest tomorrow and I haven't blown up a SINGLE water balloon. OHMYGOSH!!!

So, I begin blowing up balloons. I got very wet and so did my kitchen. And my living room. I got about half of the balloons done.

Got up Saturday. Blew up another 60 or so before lunch.

After lunch I filled up the rest.

All this time I am putting the balloons in a rolling laundry basket with a trash bag inside. Wasn't that smart? I thought so.

So when I am finished filling the laundry basket I roll it out to my van. It is heavy but I figure..."it's only water, right?"

Water is very heavy I discovered!

I couldn't lift the balloons into my car. Kurtis had gone on an impromptu camping trip with Grant and my neighbor wasn't home either. So, Paige and I took each balloon from the rolling laundry basket and put it in a Rubbermaid tub so that I could lift the rolling laundry basket into the car and safely transport them to this outreach event.

When we got enough of the balloons out of the basket so that we could lift the rolling laundry basket into the car we went for it.

We decided we would just lift the other Rubbermaid tub in the car and move them once we got to the Mill Pond in Brighton.

As I drove I seemed to hit every speed bump and pothole and had to make a couple of quick stops. I kept hearing little "pops" in the back of the van.

My precious little balloons were being assaulted by the Michigan roads. I blame the governor. We need better roads in Michigan. But I don't want construction when I have to go somewhere. That's another rant I guess.

Anyway, I get to Soakfest. We had to park a couple of blocks away but at least I had my balloons in a rolling laundry basket right? I lift the balloons out of the car and head toward downtown Brighton.

Paige and I are walking to the Mill Pond and crossing Grand River. (Okies, this is like crossing Robinson or Lindsay in Norman) All of a sudden in the middle of the crosswalk I loose a wheel and it goes rolling down Grand River. Stunned and confused as to what to do, (I mean do I leave it? Do I grab it and cause all traffic to stop on this busy street and leave my almost 9 year old standing in the middle of the crosswalk?)

Thank you Lord, I car drove by and bumped in my direction. I grab it and off I went now dragging the rolling laundry basket through the fair part of Summerfest looking for my 242 Soakfest crew.

When I located them and delivered my precious balloons I was thankful my duty was over. I had filled my balloons. I had delivered them.

And then I watched as my 200 (well more like 150 by the time I got there!) balloons were destroyed in under 2 minutes. It took me two days and I lost a laundry basket in the process but I was ever so thankful that Mrs. Laura didn't give me more balloons to fill and was hopeful that a little life was touched, even though briefly, with my water balloons.

Harry Potter Mania!!-no spoilers here!

I'm a nerd. I know it. I embrace it.

Last night when I was still awake at 11:30 I thought to myself, "Self, I should go up to Wal-Mart and purchase that book."

Well, I'm not that big of a nerd.

So, I went to sleep. At 4:00 I woke up and thought to myself, "Self, I should go up to Wal-Mart and purchase that book."

Couldn't do it then either.

But then I woke up at 8:00, had breakfast, leisurely got dressed and went to Wal-Mart to purchase that book.

By 10:30 I was reading it as fast as I could take it all in. Here it is 5:15 and I have made it to chapter 10 and am totally into it.

I think it is really nerdy of me to be this into a book. I can't remember a time in my life time that such a book as engrossed the world. Literally, the world!!!

It is amazing to me!!

And I was one of them. I have come a long way since passing the books around in a brown paper bag at church hoping no one would see and risking being ridiculed for my interest in something so many were criticizing and hadn't even read.

I have to say. I will be sorry to see the books come to end. But am glad they all reside on my shelf ready to be recreated in my mind as often as I like.

I got to go to Mall of America!!!

For real!!!! I did!!!!

I thought Lib was going to laugh at me until she threw up when I said I wanted to go to Mall of America. But come on!!! Who goes to Minneapolis/St. Paul without going!! Really people!!!!

I know she lives there and everything and I think she hid most of the time so that she wasn't seen by anyone she knew (ok, not really) but we did go and she did ride the roller coaster I might add!!

Mindy was much more gracious. She made me feel better by saying, "Henry has never been to MOA either! It will be his first time too!" Thanks Min!

We did have a great time and we thank our hosts Zac and Lib for all the GREAT food and fun we had last weekend. You are missed!!!!

More Vacation Pics

Thanks Kurtis!!

When I came home on Friday from a month in Oklahoma with the kids, I found the living room clean, kitchen clean and a heap (well maybe MOUND!) of clean laundry on the couch waiting to be folded. Kurtis did all the laundry while I was gone. He washed it, dried it, and piled it right on the couch. He also didn't sort it, read the labels for washing instructions or think to keep the loads to our washer's capacity. Isn't that thougthful!!

Choir robes and everything!

Check it out...
Skip to about 1/2 way through I think.
http://www.shbc-okc.org/video.asp

Jacki Almighty!

Seriously!! I haven't seen Evan Almighty yet but I have read the story from Genesis about the real Noah Almighty and the story is alive here in Oklahoma!!!

Usually this time of year Oklahoma is well into the 100s temp wise, the grass is brown, wildfires are blazing throughout the prairie and we are begging for the Lord to give us a shot of aqua.

Not this year.

Last year at this time Oklahoma was in the news for the constant wildfires and a severe drought.

This year, flooding and recovery efforts of those swept away by the flooding are in the news.

It's unreal. We have had rain every day that I have been home and it is forecast everyday in the 7-day.

In other news....
I have had a great visit. I am actually singing in choir this Sunday with my mom. Choir robes and everything people!!! I did choir practice last night and finally worked back up to my B-flat. It had been awhile since I have used my choir voice and it was a lot of fun.

I pick up Abi and Grant from camp with our old church today. Paige has had a great visit with her cousins and Kurtis's parents this week.

Sunday I went back to our old church in Norman and it was great to see old friends and catch up with some of them.

Last night at choir practice I got to catch up with friends from OBU and other connections that come with being a Southern Baptist in the Bible Belt.

Hanging out with my family has been awesome. I've spent more time with my dad's mom that I have in years.

I've heard family stories I have never heard before and learned my grandfather's (my mom's dad) family history which an aunt has traced back to England in 1683.

All in all, it has been a great visit. I can't believe I will still be here a week!

Happy 11th Birthday Grant!!!

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Sweet Home Oklahoma!

Reflections

Early Wednesday morning I received a call from my youngest brother that my Aunt Maxine(we call her Mappy!) had passed away at the age of 87.

I taught my classes, ran many errands and focused on figuring out a way to get home for the funeral.

Later, that night I talked to my oldest little brother, Max, and we reflected on her and her husband's life (he passed away last Nov) and the nonsense of the years we had together.

What's funny is, this was our great aunt. My grandma's sister on my dad's side. She was such a stinker!! She was the first one to cut up with you-she usually brought it on actually!! We road thousands of miles across country with her, her husband, other great aunts and my grandma (once my great grandma was along at the age of 91). There were no seat belt laws at the time so my brother and I would sit on this big round port-a-potty thing in between the front seats of her conversion van.

They had a cabin at the lake that we went to all summer. I remember us loading on to the boat with Granny (the 91 year old great grandma) bungie corded in her wheelchair behind Mappy's seat (that's an Okie redneck family for you!). She was all secured so that when we said "Gun it!" Map really would and all us kids thought that was so cool.

I could go on and on.

Then I'm up at 4:00 in the morning on Friday. Haven't been asleep since 1:00 a.m. I'm thinking about one thing after another in prep for our trip home. The things I forgot to do, like make a deposit at the bank. Oh, the money that cost over the years!!!

Then I switched to thoughts of Paige's acheivement day at school Thursday. A celebration of her year at school. Oh, how far she has come since the crying and separation anxiety we were facing in the fall. She now is crying because she has to leave her teachers for the summer.

Those of you that know Paige well know that she has a lot of the same characteristics I described about my wonderful great-aunt. Paige will be the first to make you laugh in any situation. She is so much fun and I am so blessed to be her mom.

I am thankful that my kids got the chance to know my aunt. She was a great lady and I am blessed to have spent 35 super years with her.

Ummmm...9-1-1?

I came in from working in the yard tonight and this is what I found:

It kinda freaked me out so I thought- call 911? First, I thought I would see what was up.

I discovered we have four baby birds living under our deck and mama bird had come in to feed them. I laid down on my belly and looked between the crack (of the deck) and there they were. It was a beautiful illustration of the Sunday School lesson I taught a few weeks ago to my 3's. We learned about how God provides food and water for the birds and flowers and we should know that God will take care of us too.

Later, I told Paige about our discovery and low and behold. This is how I found her a few minutes later.

What the Heck????

Some ding dong is posting comments on my blog listing several websites that appear to be in Russian. So, I am moderating comments for awhile.

What is with people????

I'm supposed to be camping right now. I'm supposed to be setting up my tent and finding the stuff we left in it from the previous camping season. I'm supposed to be listening to my kids gathering kindling to start a fire. I am supposed to be grumping about the campers at the next site who aren't watching their kids and who have their music too loud. I'm supposed to be looking forward to pudgie pies and monkey bread that only Mindy can make.

Where am I?
Home.

Why?
Grant's injured ankle and the process of events that followed his diagnosis.

How does that make me feel?
Sucky!

Where are my camping buddies?
On their way to camp anyway.

How does that make me feel?
jealous

It sucked me in!!!

Laugh if you want but I am a Dancing with the Stars fan. Go Joey!! Go Apollo!! But at the conclusion of tonight's episode after the kids were all tucked in bed and Kurtis was snuggled up with his XBOX I came back into the living room where the TV was still on.

It was The Bachelor.

What a stupid excuse for a show!!! Here is this guy who they call a "gentleman" through this whole show who is choosing between these two half-brained-low-self-esteemed gals who proceed to each make out with him and meet his parents to which he admits "he just can't choose between them". OMG!!!! To quote my IMing adolescent. WTH!

Giggle here!!! Giggle there!!! Everywhere a giggle-giggle!!

Both girls giggle their way into his heart. This is so ridiculous.

Yet, I watch. Still. I have to know who he chooses after all.

Now, here's the thing. Each girl knows there is another girl. So they make their last attempt for his heart. This is so dumb. Still watching though. Yet neither is confident enough to pledge their undying love to him. Oh but wait....a gift from one of them and she does pledge her love. How beautiful!!! She loves him!! and HE LOVES HER!!! Even though he is going to make out with the other girl after the commercial break. He is, after all, a gentleman!!! He can't leave the other girl out. It might hurt her feelings. Oh yeah...still watching.

Commercial break........yip, made out with the other one........ in the ocean......in Hawaii.

Can you imagine? I mean really? I just don't get it!! Seriously!!!

Hey Dad, how'd you meet mom?
Well you see son...we met on a reality TV show. Wanna see a clip? This is the girl that I made out with before I asked your mom to marry me. And, yes...I told her I loved her but really it was just for TV ratings. I really never loved her...I just kissed her (and whatever else!) alot. But, you know...I REALLY loved your mom when I told her I loved her...I meant that.

I swear I'm going to turn this show off!!

As soon as I know who he picked.

A Work of Art

Grant cooking his first ever cheesecake with out the help of Zac the professional chef.












The finished product


UMMMMM was it good!!!!

Don't hate me because I'm talented

I got Dance Dance Revolution for Mother's Day. I just got it yesterday but I think I'm getting pretty good.

Anyway, this is me playing DDR but I didn't want to show my face just in case someone saw it and recognized me and wanted me to do a guest spot on Letterman or something.

That would have been very embarrassing.


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