Child taken because he is 555lbs.

Yesterday afternoon I sat down and was flipping through the channels and stopped on The Drs.
They were telling about young 14 year old boy who weighs 555lbs. whose mother is a single parent and he was taken away by Child Protective Services because of his weight. It was interesting to hear them debate this matter and what is right for this child.

Was this mother killing her son with food? Yes. She could at any point find her son dead because of the effects on his body from severe obesity. Would we be out outraged if this mother was giving her son alcohol, so much that he passed out drunk every night. Or if she at age 14 supplied her son with drugs and helped him load the needle to shoot up. Yes! And although food is not an illegal thing to take at age 14 as in everything we need to have self-control and moderation.

Now could this mom be working 10-12 hrs a day and not have a whole lot of control over her son buying junk from the vending machines or stopping by the grocery store after school and eating a bag of chips before she got home. Yes. But somewhere in her head when she saw him at 200lbs. or so an alarm should have gone off "Huston we have a problem".

After listening to this discussion I started thinking of this last season on the Biggest Loser. There was a contestant Sean who was a church youth pastor and obese. I thought we all sin and have problems but being overweight to that degree is an obvious sin. Would I allow my child to be under the guidance of a youth pastor who is battling an addiction....probably no. Unfortunately, it is a sin that everyone can see. It is also a sin that is not talked about in the church. Would I be under the leadership of a Pastor who was an alcoholic, drug addict, pornography addict, adulterous, smoker, etc. My answer is no. Why, because those are sins that people let control them. Food can be the same thing. It can control you, instead of you controlling it.

The Bible talks about our bodies being Holy Temples of God. We are to treat them like that by not putting in them things that can harm you. The Bible does talk about gluttony although these are verses we don't "talk" about much in the church. In Proverbs 23: 20-21 it warns us not to join those who drink too much wine or gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and drowsiness clothes them in rags. Proverbs 28:7 declares, “He who keeps the law is a discerning son, but a companion of gluttons disgraces his father.” Proverbs 23:2 proclaims, “Put a knife to your throat if you are given to gluttony.”

Physical appetites are an analogy of our ability to control ourselves. If we are unable to control our eating habits, we are probably also unable to control other habits, such as those of the mind (lust, covetousness, anger) and unable to keep our mouths from gossip or strife. We are not to let our appetites control us, but we are to have control over our appetites. (See Deuteronomy 21:20, Proverbs 23:2, 2 Peter 1:5-7, 2 Timothy 3:1-9, and 2 Corinthians 10:5.) The ability to say “no” to anything in excess—self-control—is one of the fruits of the Spirit common to all believers (Galatians 5:22).

God also commands us to be good stewards of ALL he has given us. Everyday He gives me life and a body to be on earth with and I am command to take care of that body that He has given me. Just as I am commanded to take care of my husband, children, house and everything in it, cars, animals, all our possessions that He has allowed me to have. I am told to be a good steward of all these things.

So with that in mind thinking of the young man who was taken away from his mother, without all the info. I initially support that decision that the authorities made. I hope he is not put in foster care but taken to a weight loss in-treatment center where he can be observed by doctors and can start on a path to learning how to eat better and deal with whatever problems brought him too this severe point of being close to death. And that he can if he doesn't know, come into a relationship with God, and know that God loves him.

And I hope for Sean the youth pastor that he does step down and can too get some help on learning how to deal with problems better then over eating to fill whatever void he is filling and then he can come back a be a huge testimony to youth and adults in that church a like and God's power, grace, and forgiveness will shine through him.

Interesting Information about Christmas

Yesterday I needed to take the older lady I help to the bank. Now I could tell you a story about that but I will stick to the point of this blog. While waiting for her to cash checks, I was looking at a free magazine called City Revealed. Flipping through I came to as section by Carol L. Ballard about Christmas and why we use red and green colors and what the meaning behind "The Twelve Days of Christmas" song. I found it interesting and so I thought I would share it with you.

Why the colors red and green? Green stands for eternal life. Red represents the blood Jesus would shed for us on the cross. This was also the first color chosen for Santa's costume when Coca Cola used it for advertising on their pop bottles during the last part of the century. Red and green are also one of the reasons for using holly to represent life and blood.

The Twelve Days of Christmas song: when Oliver Cromwell came to power in England Catholics were not allowed to practice their faith openly. So in order to teach their children to understand their Christian beliefs, The Twelve Days of Christmas was created. Here is what they symbolize:

Partridge in a pear tree: Jesus. A partridge will sacrifice its life to save its young, and Christ sacrificed His life for mankind.

Two Turtle Doves: the Old and New testaments of the Bible as well as Mary and Joseph at the birth of Jesus.


Three French Hens: faith, hope and charity. Or three gifts the wise men brought to the new King.

Four Calling Birds: the 4 evangelist Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

Five Golden Rings: the first 5 books of the Old Testament.

Six Geese a-laying: the six days of creation, or six days of human labor.

Seven Swans a- swimming: the seven gifts or sacraments of the Holy Spirit. Wisdom, understanding, counsel, strength, knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord.

Eight Maids a- milking: the eight Beatitudes from the Sermon on the Mount.

Nine Ladies Dancing: nine choirs of angels, Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels and regular angels. Or the nine fruits of the Holy Spirit, love, joy, peace, kindness, goodness, patience, gentleness, faithfulness, self-control.

Ten lords a-leaping: The Ten Commandments.

Eleven Pipers Piping: the eleven faithful Apostles.

Twelve Drummers Drumming: the twelve articles of belief in the Apostles' Creed.

And there you have some interesting facts about this holiday that we celebrate.

Constructive Criticism

Before you start to read this let me just say if you like Sarah Palin....don't read it! I'm a Democrat and a Christian and DON'T vote on 1 issue(abortion) in any election. I found this column in the Sun newspaper written by a guest columnist and really enjoyed it and have the same feelings as the writer. So in order to keep up my blog I decided I would share what he wrote with all who wanted to read it. So as I said if you like Palin stop reading now. If you don't care for her then continue on.......

In an interview with a Christian Broadcasting Network, during the publicity blitz for her new book, "Going Rouge", former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin called her critics "lonely", "shallow" and in need of prayer.
Gee, Thanks, Mrs.Palin. It humbles me that you would single out someone like me-who, while far from being your biggest fan wouldn't exactly call myself your most bitter detractor-while speaking to the friendly folks over at the CBN.
You're right; clearly I'm so vain that I think you're talking about me, so I could certainly use your prayers to get over those character flaws. But even after the loneliness is gone and I wake up to find my vanity cured, I still won't find you presidential material. Sorry.
I mean no offense. You wear that folksy northern charm like a Snuggie everywhere you go, be it in front of the cheering throngs, talking to Katie Couric or chatting it up with Oprah. You carry a grudge as well as the best of us, as evidenced by the ongoing feud between you and your grandson's father, Levi Johnston.
You're human; I respect that. But just as I would never think I should be president, I don't think you should, either. As Vonnegut would say, so it goes.
Sarah, (You don't mind if I call you Sarah, do you? We're just ordinary Joe Sixpacks, after all.), you'll have to forgive me, but I won't be picking up your book. Not because I'm not interested in hearing your side and being better informed, but simply because I fear the book is your way of forming an exploratory committee, that the sales will be parsed to gauge your national popularity. And I can't bring myself to give you the false sense that I want you to be our commander-in-chief.
As you can see, Sarah, I am being critical (still). And while it may make me lonely and shallow, I would be remiss in my responsibilities as an American citizen if I didn't critique those I encounter on the ballot at the polls. Because if we all cast our votes for those we'd like to have a beer with, or who we think we'd have the most fun hunting wolves with in our private helicopters, then who knows who'd be leading our country?
That's not to say I wouldn't accept an invite to grill moose burgers with your family while drinking cold American beer (not Budweiser, though, they're Belgian now) and playing Scrabble. It's only that it all wouldn't be quite the same if the cookout were at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

-Brandon Wellman The Sun newspaper Dec. 10, 2009

Thank you Brandon although I would have thrown in a little more sarcasm and hits on her you did a great job and I agree with you which is why I posted it on my blog.

Christmas Tree hunting 2009

Our family tradition is every year sometime after Thanksgiving either Friday or Saturday to go to a tree farm and get our Christmas tree. We like to wonder around and pick out the perfect family tree. Last year at the tree farm we have been going to their were none that were perfect enough to cut down ourselves so we had to buy one out of the barn. This year we went again on Saturday which was 50+ degrees and beautiful out. Because of all the rain on Tuesday and Wed. they had standing water around the white pine trees which is what we buy. We looked and looked and found two OK ones and found another that everyone liked but Alivia. So we went back to the the other two and Darryl and I vetoed them in comparison to the third tree that all liked but Alivia. So we walked back to it. It was not the "perfect" tree but it was fat, tall and white pine. So Alivia gave in and we cut it down.

Now the reason we raised our ceilings back up from 8ft. to the original 1900 height of 10 foot is so that Darryl could have a taller tree. This one is taller then the one last year and almost touches the ceiling. We carried it slowly to pay for it and they let us know that they can not put it in the shaker because it is so big it might break it....darn! But the needles are soft so fine. We pay for it load it up and head home.

Saturday was a busy day and I was not in the Christmas Tree decorating mood so I waited until last night to do it. The kids helped me and here is our Christmas tree for 2009.

Laundry is a Major Pain

I don't think that I have had pain like this since I first hurt my back 13 1/2 years ago. I was 8 months pregnant with Trevor and working at a Veterinary clinic and I was by myself. I took a black lab out to go potty before I went home and it didn't want to go back into the cage. So I bent down and lifted it in and have had back problems ever since. Luckily Dr. Nolz was new in town and Darryl and I were friends with him and his wife and he was able to see me.

I have problems off and on with my back if I'm moving heavy things around or lifting incorrectly but it is a pain that will go away in a few days with over the counter meds and an ice pack.

On Thursday I was doing laundry leaned over with NOTHING in my hands and felt a sharp pain in my lower back that almost took me to my knees. Wow....I really did it this time I thought. So I went right away and took some ibuprofen and continued on in a more careful way. By dinner time I was just about done for. At that point you could have offered me any drug to take away the pain.
Why did I not go to the doctor some may ask......answer no health insurance. So no matter how you feel about health care reform, I want an affordable public option. But that is another subject.

So Darryl helps me cook supper as I can not bend over to get anything and I lay on ice and continue to take ibuprofen. Thursday was my day off from running anyway so to keep the muscle loose I told Darryl that Alivia and I were going on a walk.

We started out and as we get closer to the park I here cheering and such, so I say to Alivia let's go see if Dr. Nolz is over there. Thursday the clinic is closed or else I would have seen him, but I thought I would ask him some things to help make me comfortable until I could see him tomorrow.

There are good and bad things about living in such a small town...bad: people are nosy and want to know your business...good: you can chat with your chiro at his kids soccer game.

So yeah, we find him. He asked how I was and told him I was in severe pain and what I did to get in this pain and he said Logan's game is almost over come to the office and I will take a look at you. I told him that was not why I came over and it was his day off and he needs to ask Shelly so she is not mad that he is doing this etc.

Beings we are friends with him and he is so nice....Alivia and I walked over to the clinic and he gave me an adjustment. I went again today and he gave me another adjustment. Although he did laugh at me and the way I was standing and walking and told me I look like an old lady....but at this point he can laugh at me all he wants. I will be seeing him again tomorrow morning and according to him a lot more this next week.

So please pray for me and my pain. I'm thankful in this case to live in a small town where when you are in desperate need of help, your chiro is there to help you.

Also have learned that laundry can be a major pain.

Update Your Bathroom

We moved into this house 11 years ago. I was 8 months pregnant with Alivia so lucky me was unable to help a lot with any lifting and moving stuff. But also since I was pregnant I was also unable to paint walls etc. So sometime after Alivia was born and life was back to "normal" I had been watching HGTV and sponge painting was "in" and really big. So I convinced Darryl to let me do the downstairs bathroom since it had wallpaper on it and in general I don't like wallpaper. So he said fine...but I had to do it since he hates painting. So I did it and it turned out great as you can see.

But here lately I've been watching more shows about Flipping Houses and from that they talk about neutral colors for being able to sell the house. We will at some time in probably 3-4 years get the house ready to sell. So when we re-did the living room I picked good neutral colors with one dynamic wall and decided I would do so for the bathroom. I mean there was no way I could sell even if it is not for years, with a sponge painted bathroom.....it's too out dated. So I picked colors in the same family as the living room and made one dynamic wall and the rest lighter...it's actually the same color as the square ceiling part in the living room and here you have an updated bathroom that has a lot of potential for the new buyers in 3-4 years.
But most of all it's neutral and I like it!

A day in with......the old lady

As many of you read on Facebook I was not really looking forward to my trip in to Cedar Rapids with the 93 year old lady Labreta that I help. Let me explain how it all started.......

Darryl's dad had originally done work for her and that is how Darryl came to do work for her after he took over Studt and Son Repair. Now it hasn't been until the last 3 years that she had Darryl over to her home doing lots of different stuff and about every Friday he goes over. I come into the picture because in the winter of 2007 she needed someone to get her mail for her about every other day and hang it on a hook outside where she could get it. I said fine on days I go by her house I can do that. Then last year started getting mail all year round plus taking her to Dollar General, Gary's, the bank etc. She now expects her mail everyday, and that I am on call when ever she needs me. I don't do people telling me what to do very well and pushing me around and that is what she seems to like to do. Because she is paying me she thinks she can boss me around and I don't work like that. She never use to be this bad but as the years go on she gets worse. Her and Darryl have had there go rounds as well, but he is more frank and rude to her then I am. OK I told a little to much in the story about our relationship with her....but I do help her out.

So yesterday we went into CR and I will try to make this as short as possible. In general when she finds a person to do something for her she doesn't like to use anyone else. So one time she went into Walmart on the Westdale side of CR and the Korean lady gave her a pedicure. Ever since that one time she thinks NO ONE else on earth knows how to give a pedicure. So we start out to go to Walmart and I ask her where all she needs to go. I have to ask because she will say Sharon (that's me, sometimes it is Shannon lots of the time Sharon) can you take me to the bank. I go over pick her up and take her to the bank. But then she adds on Gary's and maybe something else. So I asked her where all do you need to go...she said to get toes done, Lowes, Walmart and Aldis. I explain that Lowes is way over on the other side of town and it would be better to go to that side since they have a Walmart, Aldi's and I'm sure a pedicure place. Finally after wanting to pull my hair out I some how convinced her.....Praise the Lord it is a Miracle that just happened. I'm still in awe of it!!!

Since we were now going to the NE side of town she wants to stop at Bed, Bath and Beyond to look for a toilet seat. They didn't have a cream colored soft one so we left. I'm waiting at the stop light with the mall right in front of us and she asked how far is the mall from here. I said it's right there across the street. She tells me that's not the mall. I say yes that is Lindale Mall across the street you see where it says Sears. Well that's not the mall where's Younkers. I say way on the other side. I stop arguing with her because I'm not a retard that she thinks I am, I know where the stupid mall is.

Next, I take her to Lowes and all of that goes well besides she buys a cream soft toilet seat, and a white one with some flowers on it which I reminded her the whole reasons we "had" to come to Lowes is because she "had" to have a cream toilet seat. But whatever she wants. It just means I'm going to have to return one of them and I'm never around Lowes.

We went to Aldi's and that went fine and then onto Walmart. There she couldn't find the perfect wastebasket for in her dining room to throw papers away. Right now she just uses a plastic Walmart bag and I show her wastebaskets in about 10 different colors but she decides she will go to Walmart in Anamosa and they will have the perfect wastebasket :)

So all in all it was OK. It was a 4 hour trip with her and I was defiantly tired by the time I got home. The best part of the trip was of course 30 minutes of feet pleasure...and here is a pic of my purple pedicured feet!

Iowa State Fair 2009

Us city folks loaded up the van and headed to Des Moines to the State Fair. The time of year when we go to look at all the animals that you country folk raise, and see the sights of things made out of butter, big vegetables, hot tubs, saunas, other stuff people want to sell me that I don't want or need. You also learn things at the fair. I learned that Linn County is the third largest place that sex offenders live behind Polk and Scott Counties. Alivia learned that if you decide to get soaking wet on a low 70 degree day where the sun is going in and out of the clouds that you will be cold. Trevor learned that at the fair you do lots of walking which make you very tired.

We were able to see a lot of things and just happened to be in the exhibit area each time it rained which was great. I was sad that people voted NO on a butter statue of M.J. so instead they did an astronaut.

The fair is filled with lots of things to do and we never do the midway and it we still end up spending the day there. It's always fun to see the biggest pigs, a big elk and the world's smallest cow plus all other kinds of animals. The kids and I had fun and as normal were very tired at the end of the day. We only had a few injuries and those were caused by senior citizens who can't drive there motorized little bikes. One lady ran over Trevor's piggy toe and didn't even apologize and another old lady ran right into the back of me. I can't remember what I said it was towards the end of the day, my throat was sore and my allergies were getting bad, but I'm sure after she saw my face she knew I was ticked off and she did apologize. I think the fair people need to have them take a motorized bike driving test before they are allowed to operate those things. And had I been able to find the lady that ran over Trevor's toe I would have let her have it....in the best Christian way possible :)

Otherwise it was good day and I'm sure we will go again next year.

Adventureland 2009

Last Monday the kids and I headed over to Adventureland with Sherry, Aubrey and Olivia Sullivan. My kids are not roller coaster kind of kids which is why we don't go to amusement parks but go to waterparks instead. Now the last time we had been to Adventureland was in 2003 and that too was with the Sullivans. But the kids were younger and so did a lot of "kid" type rides.
When I was a kid we went to Adventureland with my sister Donna. I was probably 12 and she had me go with her on the Tornado...I think that was the only roller coaster at Adventureland at that time. Let me say...I'm afraid of heights...anything where I'm free falling. But somehow she talked me into it. So the whole way up the first hill I'm crying. I seriously thought I was going to flip out of the seat and die. Donna was trying to clam me but to no avail. Once we went down the first hill and I screamed all my anxiety out I was able to enjoy the ride, and did it again on that visit. Trevor is also afraid of heights and so I knew no roller coasters for him but thought I might get Alivia. The first high ride we did was the Log ride. Trevor would not go on it but Alivia, Olivia and I did. They take your picture on the big hill going down and after the ride we looked at it and Alivia had a look of terror on her face. So no roller coasters for her or Trevor or mom that day. Trevor loved the Silly Silo and did it 4 times. Alivia and Olivia did the Gallon. The ship that goes back and forth. Trevor did not want to because of how high it goes up but the girls were in. Well for Alivia that was not a good choice. She got sick from it. After that ride we were going to take the sky lift to the other side of the park to do Kokomo Kove but she was worried she might barf on someone below her if she rode on it...so we walked. The poor girl can't do roller coasters, can't do spinning rides, all that was left for her were little people rides which she did and enjoyed.
So I guess we learned that still amusement parks are not a great fit for our family and we will stick with waterparks where everyone loves the rides.
I was just happy our tickets to Adventureland were free and so the day was good and at zero cost....thanks Mark :)
Alivia did buy herself an airbrush tatoo which made her day and all the kids enjoyed the little Sawmill Splash ride. It was a fun, beautiful day spent with wonderful friends and only a few hitches so we called it a success.

Sauerkraut Days 100 year Celebration

This year was the 100th year of celebrating Sauerkraut Days. The festivities started Tuesday night with a movie in the park. Wednesday night a play which told of how Lisbon came to be. In the play was Darryl, Trevor, Alivia and myself. We played a number of different people depending on the era we were talking about. Thursday night we invited some care group friends over for fireworks, Friday at 4pm is when rides and festivities started, Saturday morning Darryl and I ran in the 5K. His time was 24:38 and mine was 31:52. My goal was to beat my time of last year which was 36 something...I guess I did that. I was really just hoping to be around 34 minutes. I pushed myself a little too hard and felt it later on :( But I was very happy with my time and Darryl was with his. There is a pic of all the candy Trevor got from the parade. A favorite is the bathtub races. Adults and kids alike love throwing waterballons at each other and those competing. As you can see Trevor loved breaking one over Alivia's head. We had a fun week and I was exhausted after all the activities we did. Here are some pics to show of our time at Sauerkraut Days.

Camping and Winning

We went this weekend camping, since the summer is winding down and we need to go more then twice this year. The weather was great, except for the storm on Friday night. Here were some of the clouds that blew in. They look like big marshmallows and made me hungry for smores.

So since it was raining on Friday night my mom, Darryl and brother-in-law Brian decided to play Euchre. I had been a long time since I had played so I was a little rusty. We played 4 games with the boys winning 2 games and the girls winning 2 games. It was getting later so we stopped.
The next morning after breakfast Trevor and I decided to play Battleship, I ended up winning so he decided to play Darryl....and Trevor won which was just the begging of Darryl's losing streak.
We then decided to play Sequence and Trevor won a game and I won a game and Darryl won 0 games.
After supper my sister got out a new game she bought which is like redneck golf except the thing you throw your balls on to spins. You can kind of see it in the picture. So Trevor and I played against Darryl and Brian and guess who won twice.....That's right Trevor and I.

So after another defeat we decided to finish our Euchre game since it ended at a tie. Darryl and Brian wanted to do the best out of 7 instead of best out of 5 so my mom and I agreed. And low and behold who won the next 2 games.....you guessed it baby my mom and I. Darryl took it in stride but he did have a losing weekend. Getting beat by his wife and son at all the games we played.

It was a fun weekend.

NYC Funny stories and things seen

Since I already did a basic NYC vacation blog in this one I'm going to include funny tales.....or at least funny to the four of us that went.
When we set a date to stay in NYC we needed to look for a place to stay. We had always stayed at a hotel that basically had two beds and a bath and no room to move around in for $200 a night. This time we decided to look on craigslist and VRBO web sites to try and find an apartment to stay at where we would have more room and at least a mini fridge to hold some breakfast items. Sherry Sullivan found a place in SoHo so it was south of Times Square. But that was OK because the price was right and we spend most of our time in southern NYC anyway. I think it was about 3 weeks before we had to leave the owner of the apt. e-mailed her to let her know there was a fire in the building and the place we were going to stay in had smoke and water damage and he didn't know if he would have it ready in 3 weeks. So we started looking again. This time it was harder because the cheaper places were gone and we were all on a limited budget. Well I was able to find a place off Times Square and was able to negotiate the owner down to an OK price. We had never met this man, I just knew his name was Eran and his accent sounded like he was from the middle east. So not knowing anything about him and paying all up front via paypal we hoped for the best. We arrive and Eran is there to greet us, and he was a very nice Jewish man around my age (mid 30's). I didn't ask and his ad didn't say what floor the apt. was on. And yes you guessed it it was on top the third floor. But hey it was only 39 steps up each time......and 39 steps down :( He did help carry luggage all the way up and we laughed at the climb we were going to have to make every day. I believe Sherry S. took a picture of it to use as black mail on me since I found the apartment.

So between the 39 steps straight up each way and walking about 10 miles a day in NYC and climbing I don't know how many subway steps up and down......my butt and calves should be made of steel by now as well as all the other girls. I'm in shape running 2-3 miles a day but I have to say next time we go I need to work the muscles you use when climbing steps. There were times I was so tired when we came back that I had to pause during my 39 step climb. One thing about NYC the only obese people I saw were visitors . Otherwise because of all the walking people are in great shape there.

On Sunday we did our department store shopping. We happened to find a Burlington Coat Factory which we didn't know that they had, but I love that store and make Sherry S. take me to it when I visit her in Des Moines, since it's the only one in Iowa. So I found some clothes to try on and go to the dressing room......standing outside the dressing room talking to someone was a French Lady. Now you ask how do you know she was French. One the language she was speaking and secondly she had her arm up and was wearing a shirt that only went to her shoulder. That's right ladies.......full armpit full of black hair. It was the first time I have ever seen that and I hope the last. I think I'm still having nightmares about it strangling me. It was one of the grosses things I've seen in a long time. And I was in NYC where lots of gross stuff happens.

Another day when we were out and about we had the go light to cross and out of the corner of my eye I see a guy in weird clothes on a bike that has a flashing light. It's the middle of the day so there was no real need for a flashing light but considering what he looked like fine and I crossed and ignored him. Sheri Jones and her niece Tara were behind me and said did you see who that was on the bike with the strange outfit. I said no I didn't look because I thought he was just one of the many strange people in NYC. While neither one of them could think of his name but said he had been in some movies and he had almost ran into them on his bike. So after two days they came up with his name Matthew Modine. Sherry S. pulled up his pic on her iPhone and still a no with me. Even if he had almost hit me I wouldn't have known him, since he is a minor celebrity, beings that they didn't know his name.

We always go and see a Broadway show and this time we went to see Mary Poppins. It was very good. I would recommend seeing it in Chicago or if it comes around here. The set of it was as impressive as the performance. I don't know who did it....but bravo....come to my house and do it up. It truly was awesome.

I'm trying to think of any other funny or unique stories but am drawing a blank right now. As of now we are planning a trip back to NYC in October 2010. It's a little earlier then normal, we usually have at least two years in between but with Sheri J. having Mac graduate we need to make it earlier. Eran told us his apartment on the FIRST floor sleeps 8 so if you are interested in seeing NYC with Sherry S., Sheri J. her cousin Tara and myself, start planning and saving. You will need about $500 for air and room (maybe less depending on flight prices) and about $150 - $200 per day to spend depending on if you are looking for clothes for yourself or just shopping for others. We do go down to the wholesale jewelry district. This is where Ann Silva gets most of her jewelry for the Silver Spider at a great price. We also buy designer purses at a discounted rate. Plus sight seeing and a Broadway show at a discounted price of $50 - $70.
NYC is expensive but it is an amazing place that I love to go. So think about it....Oct. 2010!!

Back in the Big Apple

I got back last night from the Big Apple and had an amazing time. This would be my third year there and every year we see new things. The city is filled with so many historical buldings and museums and there are so many things to do.
This year we saw the broadway musical Mary Poppins and it was great, we went into Central Park and went to Belveder Castle again but also went to this fountain which was further away. We went shopping in SoHo for the first time and found some great shops and saw the Flatiron building. We went to Regis and Kelly on Thursday. While walking actor Matthew Modine almost hit us on his bike :) Went to the Metropolitan Museum of Art, went to the top of the Rockefeller Center Building and got some amazing pictures of the whole city. We were able to see the Naked Cowboy, and the Navy ship the Intrepid.
It was a great time with a lot of walking and climbing up and down subway stairs and the 39 stairs it took to get into and out of our apartment we rented. My butt and calves should look great after 5 days of doing this.
So much fun and you are exhusted every night from all the walking....but it is so worth it. As of today we plan on going back September or October 2011.

Interesting vacation......weird events/people

Since it has been a month since my last post I guess I better get with it and put something up from our vacation. Now I already posted a photo album of different stuff, but I will use this blog to tell some interesting stories.
We went to Sea World twice on Monday and Wed. On Monday when we were leaving to catch our trolley back to the hotel, I see a lot of black smoke. As we get out of the park and closer to our pick up spot there is this city bus with the back on fire!!! The fire dept. was on there way but here is a pic that Darryl took.

So on Wed. we go back to Sea World and I don't have a pic of this, but first let me tell you that there are a lot of people from Europe that go to Orlando for vacations. And let's just say they are a little more daring with their clothes then us here in the USA. So it is getting later in the day and the kids and us are moving on to the next place to see. Darryl and I notice in front of us walking is a man somewhat dressed up and his wife/girlfriend. She too is dressed up in 3 inch heels and I white dress. The only problem is, is that the dress is um, see through. She was wearing a white bra and then your eyes moved down a little more. We could see a white line across the lower part of her back and then just a very small upside down triangle and then it disappeared into her......yes you are right. She was wearing a thong!!! Now, for her this was not a good look, had she been more of the size 0,2,4 or even 6 yes maybe but at a size 12,14 not so much. Luckily the kids didn't notice but it was a funny sight for Darryl and I.

Now let's move onto Disney's island. They had crab races. We were able to be the last team to get signed up and therefore the last crab which was #8 whom Trevor called Snapper. They did 4 heat races and then the top 4 would race again for the final race. Finally in the third heat Snapper won. We moved on to the final race.....this was for everything....a picture and a button :) It started out with #2 crab heading for the finish line and Snapper was still in his shell. But we cheered and told him to get out and off his butt and to get into the race. He listened to us. The #2 crab was far ahead and we had no hope but we just kept cheering and yelling at him to go. He started going faster and faster and catching up to the #2 crab and then he passed #2 on the left and the were so close. Then Snapper got that extra boost of if I finish will you people please leave me alone and let me be a crab and do what crabs do....and he WON!!! So here is our proud pic with Snapper the winner of the crab race on Castaway Cay.

The last Easter egg hunt

This morning was the Lisbon/Mt. Vernon Optimist Easter Egg Hunt in Lisbon. We have been doing this since Trevor was 3 I believe. Every year you take down to Gwen's 3 eggs with your child's name and grade/age on them. The Optimist Club picks them up in the morning and spends time hiding everyone's eggs plus a Golden Egg.

The goal is to find your 3 eggs first, second or third and tell the club member who is in charge of your age group. But also hidden throught out the park in a much harder spot is the grand prize of a golden egg.

This is Alivia's last year of doing the egg hunt as it only goes up to 4th grade. Although being that she's homeschooled and we so enjoy the egg hunt I thought about saying we held her back a year just so she could do it next year, and they would have to take my word for it since I'm the teacher:)

It was cooler this morning and attendance was on the low side. But they gave out the object of the game and sent the kids on there way. Alivia was busy running around trying to find her eggs and did find the first two pretty fast. She was having a harder time with the last one but in the meantime of looking for her last egg found the Golden Egg.

Now every year it has been that you had to find your three eggs first before you could look for the Golden Egg but this year they didn't say that. So before she picked it up Darryl went and asked the club member and he said, you could find the Golden Egg before you found your own three eggs. So Alivia grabbed it and ran off to tell the club member and give him her name.

So a BIG Congrats to my baby girl on a great job of finding the Golden Egg on her last time of doing the Lisbon Easter Egg Hunt.

April Fool's Day.....Red Hair!!

As I start this, I first have to say that I am the QUEEN of April Fool's Day jokes in our house.
I get Darryl every year with the kitchen sprayer joke. That is where we use clear tape and tape down the handle of the sprayer so when he turns on the water he get nailed. Now this morning it was all ready to go but he was running late and didn't have cereal so he had no need to turn on the faucet. So this morning we didn't get him but rest assured the day is not over yet :) My other classics are making fake puke and calling him during the day and telling him that Alivia is not feeling well and after he got home and he was in the back room she made puking noises and I yelled oh no Alivia just threw-up as Alivia and I went into the bathroom. Darryl got out all the cleaning supplies and just as he started to clean it up he realized it was fake puke.
Another really good one was after he got "fixed" I called him and told him I had been late and took a pregnancy test and I was pregnant. I think I may have even had one of my pregnant friends pee on a pregnancy test for me so I could show him as proof. On this one he was mad at the thought so I came clean soon after he got home :) But it got him good.

So today I did get him in a different way.....a red hair way with help.

Last week I scheduled a hair appointment for Darryl and it just happened to be today. At the time I set it up I had thought about doing something funny but didn't know what.

So on Monday after working out I stopped into Salon 30 to talk to Michelle about if there was any type of shampoo she could use that would color Darryl's hair. I had did an Internet search and couldn't find anything. Michelle was not there so I asked Laura and she didn't know of anything so I thought oh well we will just do the sprayer joke.
But Laura did give me Michelle's cell number and so I called her and she told me of a product called Fancyfull. It's a shampoo you can use to help keep your hair colored until you can get it colored professionally.

So yesterday I was in town went to Sally's Beauty Supply and found the product. Now most of the colors were that of normal hair color. I told the girl with purple hair who was helping of my plan. The only odd color was a bright orange. So I bought it for $6.00 and was on my way.
After getting back in town, I stopped by Salon 30 gave her the product and we went over the plan. I asked her if she was sure about helping me and although I think she was nervous she said "yes" she would.

That night we happened to get breadsticks from Paul Reever's and who happened to be working but a guy named Mike that works with Darryl. I told him of my plan and that I was going to drop off my camera so someone could get a pic. He said they have a camera there and he would get a pic.

So I go today and workout at 12:00 and he goes across the hwy for his haircut @ 12:15. I'm working out praying it goes well and he doesn't notice until it starts to dry at work. My plan worked.

Darryl gets to work and two guys give him a weird look and say nice hair. He thinks it is just because it was long an hour ago and now it is short. Then someone else says the same thing.
He goes into his office and the guy he works with also gives him a weird look but is on the phone so he can't say anything.

The two original guys come stand at his door and ask why his hair is red. Darryl laughs at them thinking they are trying to get him to look at his hair as an April Fool's joke. He leaves his office and another guy says why is your hair red. He also thinks he is in on the joke about his hair being red. To bring this story to an end he looks in the mirror sees his hair is red and calls Michelle @ Salon 30. She tries to do her best as he is giving her a hard time and tells him it washes out. He goes to where they have a large sink sticks his head under the water and out comes the red.
Now I would love to show you a pic but Mike didn't see Darryl come back to work and was too late in getting down there before Darryl rinsed it out :( But this is another April Fool's Day that will go down in history!!

The kids are already coming up with thoughts for next year. I can't wait...I love this day ;)

Hello Kitty

Although we live in town, around our area there seems to be a lot of
outdoor cats. Our beautiful calico kitty "Stinky" is strictly an inside cat. So when we do see another cat around the window we grab Stinky and let her see the outside cat so her animal instinct kicks in and she protects her home.
This involves her grunting and hissing and the hair on her back standing up as she lets the other cat know to get away.
It seems mean but we all get a big laugh out of watching her get all
worked up.
Yesterday a cat came and sat at the back door, you can kind of see her on the cement in the pic. I told Trevor grabbed Stinky and she did her thing. For the first time the cat just looked at her and stayed. So there you see Stinky sitting watching her and every now and then hissing but the other cat is sitting there looking at Stinky like yeah so what are you going to do. Your stuck inside with no claws and I will eat you up if you try to fight me. Or it was something like that in their smack talk.
Eventually Stinky got tired of just watching the cat and got down and soon after that the outside cat left. I guess the outside cat held her ground and won the face off of not leaving just because of Stinky.
It was a devastating loss for Stinky Studt and the first one in the 10 years that we have lived here. She is now on a strict training program to get her booty in shape for the next challenge of defending her home.

The new computer

It here and set up......our new computer.

This past Christmas Darryl got me an iPod nano. I wanted it so I could put tv shows and movies on it knowing I was going to go back to NYC this spring and also I liked the slimmer and lighter weight of the newer iPods. But with our old computer I was unable to download the shows I bought from iTunes on to my iPod. We also were unable to download the latest iTunes 8.0 version.
So besides that there were other things we were unable to do because of the oldness of our computer.
So with tax return money we decided to get a new computer and an electric start snowblower since I wanted to take a sledge hammer to the two in the garage that you have to pull start. But that's a different story. And after much talking with our computer man Bill here we have it.
It's a Compaq, it has Windows Vista (which we are getting use to), 2GB of memory, 250GB of hard drive space, and it came with keyboard, mouse, and a 19" diagonal widescreen LCD flat panel monitor with built in speakers.
I think we are going to have the kids use this keyboard/mouse set and we will take back the cordless set we got from my parents for Christmas that is on "their" computer now.

We are very happy and thankful for this new computer and I'm especially happy that I could download iTunes 8.0 and I now can use my iPod :)

Alivia gets Honorable Mention

This past Wed. night was the first Awana Derby Car Race. They gave the kids a basic kit and then the kids had to design and paint their car how they liked. Now this is the first year for this at Awana and my first Derby Race as well. They had a couple of work days at the church for kids to come and work on their cars in case the parents didn't have the saws and things required in making a pattern/design for the car. Darryl does although he did take both of the kids' into work and had them cut there. But as part of school the kids and I sanded them until they were nice and smooth and ready to paint.

Trevor had an idea for his he wanted it to be all black and then in red on the top he painted a cross and put #9000 on each side.

Alivia who loves the color pink and soccer asked Miss Keri to help her out by painting a soccer ball and Alivia's jersey no#5 on it. Since Miss Keri is a artist we knew it was going to look great! And as you can see it does! Thanks Keri !!!!

As far as the race goes the kids had fun but neither one's car was the fastest. But as far as the "car show" Alivia did not win but her and a few other kids did get honorable mention for having very cool looking cars.

Way to go Alivia for the idea and Miss Keri for the painting !!!

Psyco lady and 8 more kids

There are different things I could have blogged about but since this is such a concern let's vent out about it.
First I don't think this women should have had more children. My guess is she isn't a Christian because we are told that we need to care for the children we are given as a blessing.

Now growing up the hardest time in my families life was when Reagan was the Pres. also at that time we had a Republican for a Gov. in Iowa remember Terry Brandsted(boo, boo boo). My dad was a union ironworker and worked his butt off everyday. During the reign of Republicans there was no work for ironworkers and it didn't help the Republicans are not a friend to union laborers. Anyway I do remember my dad being out of work and he didn't want to take any government assistants. Many nights we ate bread torn up and put in a glass and added milk and little sugar to it for supper. I remember eating that a lot. Finally after weeks of no work my dad hated it but we did get on food stamps, plus people (friends) in the church helped us out by bringing meals and food. Us kids were also able to have free lunch at school.

This is what the system was originally set up for. To help those in need on a temporary basis. As soon as my dad found work in Illinois and sometime he went to Minnesota we were off Government assistance. Just like we should be.

So here is a lady who cannot care by herself for the six kids she has without the help of the government and tax payers money. So knowing that she should have been done and been trying to find anyway possible to get off assistance.
The Doctor who put the fertilized eggs in her should never be able to practice medicine again because he is a total idiot and has no common sense. I mean even this girls mother told him not to do this and why.
So do the people of her state and county have a right to be outraged. I think yes! They are the ones financially caring for these children. Just like I absolutely hate having to support people in Linn county who may not have that many kids but who are life long recipients of the welfare system.

We are told to take care of the things God gives us. If you can't afford the children you have why do you have more? There is many places you can go to get free birth control and /or condoms. I think it shows poor judgement to continue to have children when you can't afford without government help the ones you have. God didn't say anywhere to rely on a non-Christian governmental programs to meet your needs.
These programs are set up for short term help. Unfortunately it's the children who suffer the pain by a parents bad choices. Just as I feel sorry for all her children. I think the eight should be placed in good foster homes until she can get her crap together. She shouldn't be allowed to have these children in her home and the state should look and see if the children she has in her mom's home now should be allowed to stay.
God gave her a brain and she should have used it. God gave the Doctor a brain and he should have used it as well. Children are a gift from God but there are so many more verses in the Bible that you have to look at and not just keep on reproducing just cause you love babies and they fill a void in your life.
Government assistance programs are a temporary fix not an 18 year give me plan.

Being a good Steward

Darryl and I are taking a financial class at church during the Sunday School hour. The biggest thing is being a good steward of what God has given you. So in this aspect of finances and possessions all belongs to God. Everything you own is God's and He can take it away at anytime. So we need to look at our possessions and make sure we don't love them more then what we love God. Also the money Darryl makes is God's. He has in trusted Darryl and I to use it for His glory and in a way that is biblical.

After studying being a good steward of finances I thought what else are we suppose to be good stewards of. Here are somethings......our bodies, our children, the animals, the land, and there are more. The one I want to talk about is the first one our bodies.

When God created us He did so in His image. We belong to Christ and He is the one who gives us life and breath everyday. So we need to be good stewards of our bodies. Here in America we are overly blessed with an abundance of food everywhere we go. Which is why we are a country full of overweight people. Being a good steward of your body isn't something you hear Pastors or others in ministry talking about to much. Why, I ask. Are they afraid of hurting someones feelings and they leave the church or they are overweight themselves as Leaders in the church so they don't talk about it. Gluttony is a sin but it's a sin that is never talked about in the church as being a sin. We all struggle with different things and we all continue to sin daily. Food for some is that sin. Unfortunately it is an outward sin that all can see just like the person who is drunk and gets picked up for drunk driving and their name is in the paper, or the teenager or unwed women who is pregnant, it is a sin we can all see. Many of us have closed door sins that maybe your family doesn't even know about but God does.

But back to being a good steward of our bodies, after studying this based off of finances I have applied this to my mouth and what goes in it. I think before I eat and ask will this nourish my body or just fill a void. I stop eating when I'm content and don't overeat just because it is there.
And lastly I make time to workout 4-5 times a week to keep my body healthy for Darryl and for my children, and for God.
Was your New Year's Resolution to lose weight????
How is it going???
Maybe it will help you when you think about it as God commands us to be good stewards of all He has given us. He has given you your body and life and you need to be a good steward of it. Next time you go for whatever "trigger" food think is this for nourishment or to feel a need I have right now.
This is my life right now focusing on being a good steward not only of my finances, but my possessions, my animal, my children and my body.
It is a daily struggle and I sometimes fail(getting buttered popcorn at the Bijou putting M&M's on top of it and getting a re-fill when I ate it all gone) but I press on towards the goal of being healthy!

Hotel for Dog

Today I took the kids to Mt.Vernon to see Hotel for Dogs. To tell you the truth I wasn't excited about going. The last movie I saw with the kids was at Christmas and I was so so bored. So I asked Trevor earlier if he would like me to stay or could I just drop him and Alivia off and come back for them. Unfortunately he wanted me to stay so I went.
I somewhat new what the movie was about from previews but not to the extent that it went. It was a really good story line about a sister and brother who are in foster care with a couple who really don't like them and are just doing it for the money. The foster care mom is played by Lisa Kudrow (Phoebe from friends) and she does a great job...it reminded me of Friends. Anyway she does things like padlocking the food cupboard so the foster kids can't just eat whenever, and the food she serves them is gross.
The kids have a Jack Russell Terrier named Friday who roams around during the day and they try to find food for him. The kids get into trouble and Friday happens to find this abandoned hotel for him and the kids to hind out from.
Over the course of the movie the foster kids and 3 other children rescue dogs from the area so they don't have to go to the pound and get killed.
They get caught and get into a lot of trouble. Their social worker who always made sure they stayed together had to separate them after their foster parents didn't want them anymore because the stole things from them to make items for the hotel where the dogs were.
In the end the social worker and his wife decide to adopt these two kids (I got teary eyed), and the Hotel for Dogs lived on as a adopt a dog program plus.

If you are thinking about it , go see it. A good movie for both kids and adults with a lot of good lessons to teach your kids after it's over with if you want.

Tuesday nights = TV Night

After a busy day in Marion/CR all day I look forward to a relaxing TV night.
I have to flip back and forth between American Idol and Biggest Loser, then at 9:00pm it is my naughty show Nip Tuck and I go upstairs for that and then put the kids to bed and watch the season finale of Real Housewives of Orange County until 11:00pm.

So for now I'm off to make an easy supper of tomato soup with grilled cheese sandwiches and then get all my chores done quickly so by 7:00pm I'm ready to veg out.

Hope you all have a great Tuesday and remember to relax and enjoy a wonderful night of TV watching.

It's too late to blog

It's amazing how many nights I lay awake thinking of things that I should have put on my blog that day. A lot of times it political stuff because those that are in the GOP are really ticking me off but I'm trying not to do to much political stuff.
Although, I did tonight see the first part of Bristol Plain's interview on Fox w/ Greta and I have she say she gives an interview like her mom. In short she sounded dumb and her answers had no truth behind them they sounded prerecorded. She just needs to get away from the camera and focus on being a teen mom.

Then as I was getting ready to workout, and republican friend ( yes, unlike the GOP and others I'm able to be bi-partisan) who had just finished his workout started talking politics with me. He went on about Rush and I went on about what an idiot Rush is and I can't believe he has his own talk show because he sounds like an idiot 99% of the time. But he likes Rush and that's fine I like Keith and how he makes fun of the idiotic things Rush says almost everyday.

Tomorrow will be another day in history as Obama signs the Stimulus Bill @ 2:00pm. I again will be in Marion running kids around.....Vanessa are you having me drive on purpose on Tuesday so I miss my friend Barack when ever he talks??? Just kidding girly I know it just happens to be that way :)

Is this bill perfect??? No. Is it great???? Maybe. Is it good??? YES!! It will help Americans get jobs and create money back into our economy.
The bible says that we should seek counsel from others, this stimulus package has been looked over by a lot of economic leaders and they all agree it will help our economy. Are they Christians... I don't know but they do understand things that we don't about our economy so I put my trust in them and in God that this will help our country and all the people that are hurting out there that we don't see.

What saddens me is how you have those in the GOP who vote against the stimulus bill and then get on camera and say how great specific things in the bill will be for their state. This is hypocrisy and it is coming out on all the news channels. So it raises the question...did they just vote no out of spite or to prove a point to the new President that they don't want by-partisanship, or did they vote no because they believe this was not the best package for the people they represent.

My thoughts are they voted thinking of themselves and of the party, but not for the millions of people in this country that are out of work and losing everything they own. Because they aren't in their shoes.... they have 2,3,4, maybe even 9 houses so they don't know how desperate the middle class in this country is. How desperate we are for something to change and for someone to help us out instead of just thinking of themselves first.

OK wait, I guess I did say I was going to do less talking about politics and then here I go again.
I'm done......for today.

6 month check-up

Today was Trevor and Alivia's six month dental check up and cleaning.
Trevor went back and after about 30min. came out with a clean bill of dental teeth. No cavities!!!!!

Alivia went back at the same time so when her appt. took about 10 min. longer I thought maybe we were in for some bad news. And I was correct. She has a cavity on her back baby tooth that will get fixed on Thursday and then she has the beginning of one on the other side of her mouth on a back adult tooth.

After getting her teeth pulled last summer and fainting after they did it she is not a big fan of the dentist because she is scared. Now I told her this is just a cleaning and if she had cavities they would fix them at a different date. So pray for her and her trip in on Thursday. I will probably go back with her so she is more relaxed.

We talked about how she has to slow down and brush better so that way she only has to go to the dentist twice a year. Because she dislikes going I hope that, that is motivation for her to brush better.

Hopefully all will go well on Thursday, if not I'll let you know :)

Busy Sunday.....No rest :(

It's not to often I like to be busy from morning until after the sun goes down. That is unless I'm in so warm tropical getaway or even NYC but I wasn't on Sunday I was here in IOWA.

We went to Sunday School, Darryl and I are taking a financial class by the christian finance group Crown Ministries and it is so good but a lot of work to prepare for it. We are learning so much about how we view "stuff" and also of how we treat "stuff" are we good stewards of what God has given us. So with this class I have a lot of time praying, about how we are doing on the way we (mainly me) spends Darryl paycheck. Darryl has been blessed with a job he has been at for a while and so he earns enough for us to pay the bills and then some all without a college education. That is why I do feel so blessed by his employer because he didn't go to college and makes the amount he does. Also they are doing another round of layoffs at his work because the buying of Chiropractic tables is low but his department in the service area is staying busy so I'm thankful he has a job. So anyway we were up early for Sunday School and then into church.

After that we had a birthday party in CR at Chuck E. Cheese. We get inside and the dorky worker said "are you guys ready for some fun?" I said "sure do you have any drugs?". Oh relax it's not that bad. Have you ever been to Chuck E. Cheese on a Sunday afternoon..... it was packed with hundreds of kids running everywhere and let's just say there was more then just me that left with a headache. But the kids had a good time so I guess that's what matters.

We got home at 4:00pm and we had our Care Group from church coming over at 5:00pm. I did all the cleaning on Saturday knowing I would be gone all day Sunday. So the house was clean it just needed a tidy up. So I did that, made punch, dipped strawberries in chocolate and got out cups, plates and silverware for all to use. We had a great time and learned about 3 of our couples trip to Moody Christian college. Everyone left about 8:30 and I plopped down on the couch and didn't move until 10pm bedtime.
Put the kids to bed and woke up at 9:20 this morning. A much needed sleep in after a long Sunday.