So our Christmas was....

Great! Friday night we went to Shawn's aunts house and opened up presents with them. Afterward Shawn and I went to Bishop Hills and looked at all the Christmas Lights. It was fun but the traffic was crazy-azy. Saturday, Shawn and I pretty much lounged around the house and then around 7 went to my parents house. At my parents, we just snacked on a bunch of finger foods that my mom made. Then we did presents. Then we played this game called Sequence. It was fun. Around 10 we left and we to Shawn's Granparent's house to welcome his sister Nyki and her family. We came home and went to bed sometime after midnight. Christmas day we went to my parents house to see what Santa brought us. :) We also ate an awesome Christmas lunch. After lunch, everyone sat around and played a very long game of scene it (One of Shawn's Christmas presents). Then we spent the rest of the day at his grandparent's house spending time with all of them. It was a great weekend, but also busy.

Shawn started his new job on Monday and finished up his training yesterday. He has to work everyday this week, but it isn't too bad besides that more hours more money.

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas!!!

Toodles~

Something funny I forgot to add

Today was my day to watch nap and one of the little girls just couldn't fall asleep. So she was just sitting there listening to the Christmas CD when Santa Clause is Coming to Town came on and she sat up and said, "Mrs. NaTasha does naptime count?" and I said "What are you talking about?" and she said, "Does Santa Clause count naptime?" I said, "Why do you ask?" and she said, "Because if it is just night time and my bed time and I go to sleep then I am good, but if it is just nap time and I try and try to fall asleep does that mean that I am naughty?" I said,"No as long as you try to go to sleep I think you are okay." Then she laid back down and said with a big sigh," I just don't know what I would do if I got put on that Naughtly list."

Toodles~

A Great Day hmmm so far.....

Today was beautiful outside. It was 70 something today. We were able to take the kids outside today and play. A church youth group from Abilene TX came and spent the day playing with the kids. This afternoon before they left they put on an awesome puppet show for the kids and talked about the real reason for Christmas. They also passed out gifts. I am very blessed to work where I work. I think we have helped out every family in need of Christmas presents. A few of the local churches added our kids to their angel trees and we were able to get even more for them. I guess I didn't realize how bad these kids really have it until this month came around. I also thought it was great that my boss made it to where their parents were able to pick up the gifts while the kids were not there and if not we were able to go and drop them off. This week isn't as hecktic as I thought it would be. Yesterday we finished reading the Best Christmas Pagent Ever and then watched the movie. That was on of my favorite books in elementary school. I also remember going to the play at the civic center. Shawn finished his training today and begins working at TootnTotum on Monday. An advantage to this job is that he gets paid weekly. In about 10 minutes we are leaving to go to lil Justin's Christmas Program. We are doing Christmas with all of them tomorrow. Tonight when we get home, I have to make a caramel apple pie to take over there. My first one turned out all right so we shall see how this next one turns out. I can't believe Christmas is this weekend. For some reason I am more in the Christmas spirit than I have been in the past couple of years, but this year seems to be harder this time of year than any of the others. Maybe I am just more greatful, who knows. Well I better stop my ramblings and end this so we can go.

Toodles~

Some Good News

Wow, for a Monday today, was an awesome day. I guess because of the icy roads today, we only had nine kids at work. I arrived at 10 and got to leave at noon because I was the one that guessed closest to the number. While I was at work Shawn went on his interview and he starts training on Thursday. :) After work we went and picked up my sister from my parents, came home and we have been playing ps2 Kingdom Hearts. It is a disney quest came. I love it and I am trying to conquer it along with the help from Shawn and Meghan. Well dinner is almost done.

Toodles~

New Template

For some reason, this last week when I posted on my blog, my template changed. I have no idea why, but I was really mad! I worked really hard on that last template and I thought I saved it but I did not. So now I have a new template. I finally figured out how to do my own backgrounds with clipart and pictures. I know there are a few more links I need to add, but I am calling it a day and heading to bed (It is 12:45 am). I hope everyone's weekends are going well. I will update later on my weekend!

Toodles~

Bugs & Hisses to you!

So maybe I spoke to soon?

I remember thinking the other day that this isn't as hard as I thought it would be with both Shawn and I working and going to school. Well as of lastnight, Shawn no longer has a job. They didn't like working around his school schedule among other things. He had no clue this was coming. So needless to say, this week has started out bad. I just wish they would have waited until after Christmas, but I guess him not being able to work Friday night because of school was the final thing. I dunno. So anyways on to some kind of good news. I got my Christmas cards mailed off this morning. I have to thank my mom for helping me otherwise, I don't think they would have gotten all done. It is rainy and gloomy outside today, but it fits in perfectly with my mood today. On the way to school though, I did get to see a beautiful sunrise and it brought a sense of peace to me. Hard to explain. Well I have stuff I have to get done.

Toodles ~

Santa's Frustrating Day

I have read this before, and it made me laugh again today. So I thought I would share it with all of you. Guess What? Tomorrow is Friday!
One particular Christmas season a long time ago, Santa was getting ready for his annual trip but there were problems everywhere.
When four of Santa's elves got sick, and the trainee elves did not produce the toys as fast as the regular ones, Santa was beginning to feel pressure of being behind schedule.
Then Mrs. Claus told Santa that her Mom was coming to visit. ?This stressed Santa even more.
When he went to harness the reindeer, he found that three of them were about to give birth and two had jumped the fence and were out, heaven knows where. More stress.
Then when he began to load the sleigh one of the boards cracked and the toy bag fell to the ground and scattered the toys.
So, frustrated, Santa went into the house for a cup of apple cider and a shot of rum. ?When he got to the cupboard, he discovered that the elves had hidden the liquor, and there was nothing to drink. ? In his frustration, he accidentally dropped the cider pot, and it broke into hundreds of little pieces all over the kitchen floor.
He went to get the broom and found that mice had eaten the straw end of the broom.
Just then, the doorbell rang, and irritable Santa trudged to the door. ?He opened the door, and there was a little angel with a great big Christmas tree.
The angel said, very cheerfully, "Merry Christmas, Santa. ?Isn't it a lovely day? I have this beautiful tree for you. ?Where would you like me to stick it?"
...and so began the tradition of the little angel on top of the Christmas tree... ?

Quick note or more

I just read today's daily devotion (there is a link in the side bar). It was really good, but I thought it would be really great for someone who has a lot on their plate to think about. It is called Hats Off. If it no longer appears when you click on the link you can click on view past daily devotions by date and then go to December 6th, 2005.
I know this is out of the ordinary, but in our neighborhood everytime there is an emergency vehicle near by, that the dogs can hear, they howl. We are talking about all of the neighborhood dogs. So just now, I guess there was one that the dogs heard ( I didn't hear any sirens) so they start howling. Red doesn't have his howl down yet. It is like a OOOOO breath OOOOO breath OOOO get my drift he can't hold it. It is cute but at the same time it is awful sounding. The other funny thing is Shawn and I both looked at each other and said I wish he would learn to howl. Well I am off to bed. Oh by the way, Who thinks the Colts are going to make it to the superbowl. I will tell you right now, I do, I DO! Dad and I were talking and we both agree that the Jaguars will be a tough game. Well anyways, Nighty-Night-Night!

Toodles~

a little bit of everything

Out of everyone that voted, 75% enjoyed their Thanksgiving which left 25% that did not enjoy theirs. Sorry to hear that, hopefully Christmas is a different story.
This last weekend was fun even though I ended up not going to Lubbock. :( Some stuff happened but the trip is being rescheduled. Even though I did not go, I had a peaceful evening Friday. Just me, the couch, and the tv, until Shawn got home. It was nice especially after a crazy day at work. Next week is the end of the semester for me. I can't wait for Christmas break. Relaxation time and that also means my birhtday will be coming up. I know, I know, my birthday is still like over a month to go, but still. Shawn's semester ended today. He passed his final! I am so proud of my husband!!! He is doing awesome! Tomorrow, he begins his second semester, then he gets a two week break for Christmas and then it is back to school until March 9. It really has flown by, it has been challenging for us, but not as hard as I thought. I do know that now we really cherish and take advantage of the time we do get to spend together. We are suppose to get snow tomorrow, so we shall see if the weathermen and women are right again. Red and Minnie are doing fine, however if we do not get up and feed them at their usual time they are at our bedroom window letting us know about it and they do not go away until Shawn gets up. It is funny except when it wakes you up from a good sleep and they keep scratching or whinning. There isn't really anything else to post or update on. Have a great week!

Toodles~

craft 1

This is a Nativity Countdown Banner Craft Kit that I picked out for the kids to do. It took us all of last week and there are still a couplle of kids that are not done yet. The ones that are done turned out really cute! I think all the crafts I picked out were from oriental trading. www.orientaltrading.com

craft 2

These are snowman charm bracelets. I didn't know what the boys, would think of them, but it was a big hit with everyone. The boys just made them for their moms. I had no complaints on hardness plus they turned out really cute. http://www.orientaltrading.com/

Craft 3

As you can see this is a Penguin and bear on Sled ornament craft. We are doing these this week and yesterday only two girls started and they had a problem getting the glue to stick. So we ended up using the hot glue gun. They turned out cute when they were finished. http://www.orientaltrading.com/

Craft 4

Snowflake inch worm craft. I thought these looked really cute, but I think these might also be hard. I guess I will find out next week. www.orientaltrading.com 

Craft 5

The gingerbreat photo magnet craft. Like the rest of the ones I picked out, I thought these were cute. Some time this week I am going to take pictures with the digital camera up here and then we will probably do this next week or who know's maybe this week. This is the last craft that I ordered from Oriental Trading. They are also going to decorate their own class ornament with the glitter glue and other materials. www.orientaltrading.com

Happy Friday big spill

I am so glad that today is Friday! I already knew that this week would seem like a long one because last week was a short week. Shawn was off on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. It was really nice to come home and him already be home. He even had dinner ready Tuesday night and also last night! And it gets even better it wasn't spagetti. :) So even though this week seemed kind of long, it really didn't bother me because it felt like I got to spend more time with Shawn.
I have always known this, but I just reminded myself again this morning that God has truely blessed me with awesome friends. Autumn called me and asked me if I wanted to go to Lubbock tonight for her b-day and come back tomorrow. I just think that it is kind of funny that I told Shawn lastnight that I just wanted to get away from all of the (let me think of a nice word to say) crap ( I know that is not the nicest but hey) and ta da and wa la I get too and Autumn does too. I know that getting away doesn't mean it all goes away but it does tonight for her b-day. And no I do not mean that I am going to go and get drunk because that is just not who I am. Back to what I was saying, God has really and truely blessed me with great friends and no it is not because I am going on a mini trip. I have a couple of friends that are always there for me and it doesn't matter that we haven't talked in a couple of months. I always know that they are there if I need them and they I hope, or at least it seems, that they know I am always here for them when they need me. Life may pull us in several directions and we may not see or talk to each other for a long while but in my eyes we do not think the other person is being snobby, stuck up, or rude. No, we simply know that they are busy. Like with Lacy, I think the last time I had seen her or talked to her on the phone was in September. But I called her right before Shawn's b-day to see if she wanted to go shopping with me. The whole time we caught up on what was going on in each others lives and just talked. There was no, well why haven't you called or came over, well I thought you were mad at me, well you had time to go do that why could you? Now, if they ever called me and needed a friend I am there as they are with me. I simply have understanding and true friends who don't get offended when I am busy with life. Now, if just the rest of the people in my life could get like that life would be great! :) I can only pray I guess! If you are the type of person who thinks because your friend or who ever is mad at you because they haven't called or came over, try to remember the possibility that they may just be busy with their life or lives at the time and that it is not you.
So there is my spill, if you can not understand what I am trying to say. I am sorry, I had it all in my head for a good while now, but didn't know how to put it into words. Maybe you can call me and I will try to explain it. Well it is time for me to go to work.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!
Toodles

my morning adventure

So this morning I was in this great and wonderful mood for a Monday morning and I was actually on time and even early getting to Canyon for class this morning. That was until I was walking across the parking lot and my foot went in to this stupid pot hole and I did not realize my other foot was on ice and the next thing you know I am on my bottom on ice and mud in the parking lot. So needless to say I did not make it to class this morning and about the only thing I was happy about was having a towel in my car so that my seat did not get muddy. So now my ankle really hurts, my bottom is sore, my coat is muddy, and my pants are muddy as well. Right now I am icing my ankle and my coat is in the washer. What a morning! I am just glad that I do not have to be at work until 1:30 and hopefully my ankle will not be so swollen and I will not hurt as much. I hope everyone else's Monday is going much bettter than mine.

Toodles~
ps There is a new poll it is under the prayer list!

Here is another picture of the Christmas tree.  

This is our first actual Christmas tree. It was really fun decorating it together. We listened to a disney Christmas Carol CD while we decorated. (Remember last year we had a palm tree) :)  

Our lighted trees in the front yard. There are six of them all together!  

It's Snowing out side!

I really didn't think that it was going to actually snow today. Most of the time when the weather people say it is going to snow they are wrong, but they were right today.
Thanksgiving for the most part was a great day! Shawn and I spent the day at my parent's house. Mom fixed a great meal as always. After we ate we all played UNO Blast or something like that. If you haven't played it you need to. It is one of my favorite games now. After we finished up playing Shawn came by the house and picked up his Grandma Mary who is in town until Tuesday and brought her back over to my mom and dad's house. I fixed her a plate and then the guys finished watching football and started watching Stelth I think? After that was over we headed home. On Friday my parents left to Oklahoma so Shawn and I stayed over there for the weekend. Shawn had to work Friday afternoon and evening, so Meghan and I went and seen Chicken little which is a really cute movie and then we went to Micheals where I bought our first Christmas Tree :). The rest of the weekend was pretty much spent being lazy and not doing a whole lot. Shawn gets off work around 6 today and I think we are going to pick up Grandma Mary and go out to dinner depending on the roads. I had a long posting in my head when I sat down to post, but then I just decided not to post what I was going to post. I think I am going to go finish up my math homework and then take a little nap until Shawn gets home. I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving.




Toodles~

God has blessed me with a great day today!

So far today, has been a great day. I did my presentations and I think they went great and Shawn got a 100 on his test this morning. Isn't that great! Today feels like Friday, but I still have to work tomorrow from 10:30 to 6:30 since the kids are out of school, but that is okay. I think this afternoon since we aren't going to do homework time we will play kickball. I love playing kick ball with kids. It is such a beautiful day outside today! Well anyway, I can't wait for Thanksgiving day, we are going to my parents house for the day. My sister and I are making the desserts (yum yum). I am so excited for thanksgiving. The other day while we were at the grocery store getting stuff for the pies I am making, Shawn said isn't it crazy that it will be our second Thanksgiving day together since we have been married. I don't know why, but our one year anniversary didn't really make me think about how fast time went by, but that did. Poor Shawn has to work the day after Thanksgiving and if you have been to Amarillo you know that Home Depot is right by the mall. Shawn said that they call it the black day. I will probably spend the day with my sister since my parents will be out town for the weekend. Hey free food at mom's house :). Well I better go help get snack ready for this afternoon.


Hope everyone is enjoying their Tuesday!
Toodles~

ps no one said anything about my smilies. I am not mad. I just figured I would get one comment of them. :)
p.s.s. todays devotion was a good one
Philippians 2:5, "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus." (NIV)

taking a break

I'm taking a break from my research papers on Traumatic Brain Injury and Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, it is rather depressing. I only have a couple more things to do on it. Then I need to finish up my power point presentations. Friday, was Shawn's birthday so we went and ate at Leals and then went to a movie. Yesterday, Shawn worked from 11 to 6. While he was at work I did a little bit on my paper, then I went with Autumn to take Reagan to the dr's office. After Shawn got off work we went to Mervyns to see if they still had the tennis shoes that I wanted and they did and we saved 20 dollars on them since Mervyns is closing. When we first walked in, we saw Meghan and her date Joey and they were on their way to go eat with mom and dad, so they waited for me to get my shoes and then we went to Country Barn where we ate with my parents and Meghan and Joey. It was really good. After that we went to the new walmart and did some shopping and then it was home since Shawn had to be at work at 6 this morning. After tuesday, I am pretty much done with my special education classes since my presentations and my papers are my final grades, which thinking of it that way makes my happy and not so stressed. I just hate presentations. Well I better get back to my paper.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Toodles

new game site

I just went to www.kewlbox.com and I love it. One of my new favorite games is penga pop, kind of like Zuma. http://www.kewlbox.com/games/game.cfm?gameID=124 I think it is under the arcade games. Well it is almost time to walk over to the gym to get the kids. Hope everyone's week is going well. I am so loving this cold weather, I just wish the wind wasn't so bad, but o well, I will take what I can get.

Toodles~

You're from Texas if....

1. You can properly pronounce Corsicana, Palestine, Decatur, Wichita Falls, San Antonio, Mexia, Waco, and Amarillo.

2. A tornado warning siren is your signal to go out in the yard and look for a funnel.

3. Your idea of a traffic jam is ten cars waiting to pass a tractor on the highway.

4. You know that the true value of a parking space is not determined by the distance to the door, but by the availability of shade.

5. You measure distance in minutes.

6. You go to the lake because you think it is like going to the ocean.

7. You know cowpies are not made of beef.

8. Someone you know has used a football schedule to plan their wedding date.

9. You aren't surprised to find movie rentals, ammunition, and bait all in the same store.

10. You know everything goes better with Ranch.

Finally, you are 100% Texan if you have ever heard this conversation: "You wanna coke?" "Yeah." "What kind?" "Dr. Pepper."

Happy Saturday

I completely forgot that we had pictures on the camera of Red. By the way, like the new template?

Toodles~
Enjoy the weekend!

Here is a picture of Minnie and Red. Red had chewed up their water bowl thing the day before, and at the time that is all I had to put there water in. This was taken right after Minnie got home from school. They now have a new water bowl instead of a mop bucket :) !  

Here is a picture of Red, it kind of looks like he is sticking his tongue out at the camera. :)  

Here is a picture of the muddy hole, when we had a leak in our back yard.  

real quick

I don't have much time to update. There really isn't that much to update on, Shawn and I are both pretty much extremely busy with school and work. I can not wait until Christmas break. It just doesn't look like my school load is going to slow down anytime soon, I have papers due dates coming up and a couple of presentations at the end of this month, in fact I just realized one is only two weeks away. Last week, I finished my observation hours up at a middle school and decided that I really didn't like elementary or highschool, but I loved Middle school. Which I could do any, and some of that was just the teachers that I was observing. Well I thought I would have time to type more, but we have to have a quick meeting before getting the kids. By the way, this is one of the few fall feelling days we have had lately. I am really getting sick of warm tempatures. I know that sounds crazy, but this crazy weather is making head aches a daily thing now.

Toodles~
I don't get home until it is dark (after 6:30) so that is why there isn't a picture of Red.

not even going to say it....

So not a whole lot new going on this week. I am starting to feel better. Yesterday, I was probably in the best mood I have been in for the last 2 weeks and a couple of the kids in my group said, "NaTasha you are feeling better huh", I said yes why, "And they said because you aren't that much fun when you are not feeling good but you sound funny when you try to talk loud when you don't have a voice." I said o really and they said ya so please don't get sick any more. I told them I will try not to :). Tonight is the boy's sleep over. They seem pretty siked about it. I am happy because only about 14 of them are going to stay that is like a 1/4 of the girls we had. Shawn still is not in the system at home depot, so he has been working down at the shop. Yesterday, he went and reapplied at a bunch of places. Surprisingly, I am stressed a little bit but not that much to where my mind is constantly on it. I also found a new game site that I love, it is called squiglys play house. It has tons of games and you don't have to download them like luxor and some word games that I like. Today I played flower frenzy or something like that, it is kind of like bejeweled.
http://www.squiglysplayhouse.com/Games/index.html

Have a great weekend!

Toodles~

ps we get minnie back tomorrow :) , I will get pictures of Red posted ASAP.
Oh ya, Shawn is doing great in school he is in the top 3!

So there hasn't been much going on here to post on. I am sick with a cold and my voice is going in and out. Shawn was suppose to start Home Depot Lastnight only to show up and find out that he is half in the computer and half out and that they lost his time cards for the days that he did work, so he will not be getting a pay check anytime soon. So he went down to the shop to work lastnight. Right now, I am at work trying to get crafts ready for next month. Here are the links to a couple of crafts we did this month. The pumpkin with the candy bar is what my group is making right now for all of the other groups. The hand print bats we punched a hole in at the top put yarn in it and now they are hanging down from the celling all over. After the kids made a couple of those we decided to also glue the template pieces on the back using the same set of hands. It looks even cuter. So here are the links. Hope everyone's week is going good.
http://www.dltk-kids.com/animals/mhandprintbat.htm
http://www.dltk-holidays.com/halloween/mcandybat.htm

Its been a while

Okay so I know it has been a while! Sorry. We have just been extremely busy for the last couple of weeks. Shawn was going to post on Sunday about our new dog and the wt football game, but then he ended up digging in the back yard. I will explain that later. Last Friday night we got a new 5 month old lab. His papers have him as a yellow lab but he is more strawberry blonde. So we named him red. He is such a sweet dog too. Red and Minnie got a long great all weekend. I think she was happy just to have a playmate again. Minnie is now in or at obedience school however you want to say it. She started on Tuesday and we will go pick her up in about two weeks bring her home for a week and then go back for follow up training or something like that. Oh Shawn will post the first picture of Red sometime this weekend. Hmm… what else, oh Shawn is temporarily working for Pizza Hut right now as a delivery guy. Since home depot was on a hiring freeze when Shawn took his drug test and did a back ground check they were not able to put him in the computer. And in order for Shawn to do the last part of his training he needed to be in the computer. So last Friday he went and took another drug test and they sent in another back ground check. I would think they would be a little bit more organized. Last weekend Shawn and my dad discovered that there was for sure a leak in one of our pipes in the back yard, so Sunday afternoon they started digging to try and find it. Well while they were digging it started pouring down rain. So then they finished digging on Tuesday and they fixed it. It was a real muddy mess back there. Shawn took one of his first tests on Wednesday. He made a 92 on it and it was the third highest grade in the class. He said the class average was in the low 80’s. He really loves the police academy.
For some reason this week was not on my calendar and so the two term papers that were due on the 13, I had on my calendar as due next week on Thursday. But the funny thing was is that I was not the only one in my classes that had it down for next week. So anyway, I pulled I guess you could call it my first college all nighter. I started working on my papers at 6:30 when I got home from work and the only time I got up from the computer was to go to the bathroom and get a drink. I didn’t get done with my papers until 5:30 yesterday morning. Then I went to bed from 5:30 to 6:30 got up went to class at 8. Shawn even told me this morning he couldn’t believe I did that. I think the last time I did that was at church camp, but it was pulling pranks not typing up papers. Surprisingly though, once I made it past noon it wasn’t that bad, but I did come home and crash. I do not ever plan on doing that again. The scary part was that we had to produce electronic copies of it and at 5:30 in the morning the cd burner didn’t want to write it to the cd, but then finally it did. This weekend there isn’t much planned. Tonight is the girls sleep over at work. Fun fun, I will probably be up all night with them (but at least I get paid to be) and then on the 28th is the sleep over for the boys. I am observing today at PD from 10:30 to 2 and then next week I will be observing at Whittier Elementary on Monday and Wednesday. So I think that is pretty much it for now.

I'm Back!

WOW

Last week went by really fast! Lets see where shall I start? On Monday, Shawn found out that he got the job at home depot. He was switched the position he was going to do with another one. He is now working in the evenings and whatever he has to work on the weekends to make the week a 40 hr. week. I was glad about that even though it means less money. Shawn starts school tomorrow and that is pretty much what I have heard about all weekend. I am really glad that he is excited about it. We figured out last night that it really isn't a 6 month academy more like a 4 month because he starts in october rather than sept. and then they get out the second week in december and they don't go back until the end of Jan and then graduation is march 10th ( I think I just know it is on a Friday). That was pretty much it for the week. Oh ya, If you have a cool halloweenish craft that 4th and 5th graders could easily do, can you let me know? We are suppose to have at least 2 crafts a week for the kids to do and so far I have a total of 4 that I found on the internet. I went to micheals and hobby lobby but they didn't have much. Maybe even fall crafts. I am not that big in to halloween, but I did find this really cool bat thing that you make with your hands. I will try to put the link on here. I made the crafts they are doing this week, last week. Friday night, Shawn and I, went and seen "Just Like Heaven" that was a very funny and cute movie. On Saturday I had training for work from 8 to 4 and Shawn had to work. It was interesting and very fun for the most part. The last session I had was rather boring, but that is better than a whole day. The first and second session I went to were over love and logic teaching and parenting. It was really really really good. It was pretty much about helicopter parents and teachers and how that is actually bad because it is better for kids to pay the price now and learn rather than pay the price when the price is much bigger. http://www.loveandlogic.com/Pages/0401rules.html
http://www.loveandlogic.com/Pages/0401whatis.html
Saturday evening we went to bushland to watch the lil dons play against the herd and they won. It was a fun game to watch. Well that pretty much was our weekend.
The last thing I wanted to post was from today's devotion. Sometimes it is hard to see the transformation that is taking place here on earth. From time to time, we may still struggle with the old life. Don't let any of your old life lay around. Toss those old ways into the trash and spend time in your new room, a personal relationship with Christ. God says that we can be "confident that where He has begun a good work in you, He will perform it until the day of the Jesus Christ." (Philippians 1:6, NKJ)

Toodles~

Glad that is over with

So, I am done with my chemistry test! I think I might have made an A on this test. This morning, I was thinking that I probably would bomb it real bad. I wanted to wake up early and study a little bit more for the test, but the alarm didn’t go off and so I was pretty much running late all morning.  I always hate it when I my Mondays start off like this, but needless to say I went in, got the test, and started on it and I think I got most of it. There were like two things I couldn’t remember. Who knows maybe I guess right on them. Anyway, now that that is over maybe I can enjoy the rest of this Monday. Well I need to finish printing off the study guide for our next chemistry test and then head to work. Happy Monday all!

Toodles~  

Another one has gone by

This weekend was a fun one for the most part, but as always it has gone by way too fast! Friday night, Shawn and I went to the drive in and watched the Exorcism of Emily Rose. If you really know me, then you know I am a wimp when it comes to scary movies. Some of the kids at work were laughing at me. They were telling me some of the scary movies that they have watched or wanted to see and I would say that 95% of the movie titles that they said, I have not watched and have no desire to watch. But anyway, that movie wasn’t that scary just a little freaky on parts. We didn’t stay for Cave because I had a headache. On Saturday we went to both football games and both PD and WT won their games. I am proud of WT this year they are still undefeated, what a big difference from these past years! I have another dreadful chemistry test tomorrow. I have been studying for it most of the day. I did stop to watch the first part of Extreme Home Makeover and I also found a new template. I think I always cry when that comes on. I am fixing to go watch all of the other shows I missed tonight. Well that’s all for now Folks! Hope all of you enjoyed your weekend!

Tootles~ badoodles~

It's Friday! It's finally Friday!!

Okay since my last post, gas has gone up a little bit as to be expected, I have to say though I haven't seen it up or over 4 dollars a gallon, but who knows maybe by tommorrow it will be. I think it is just panic, but at the same time, I see the reason that it will go up with the shutting down of plants. By the way on Sunday, I filled up my car for 2.41 a gallon. And now it has jumped about 30 cents. Crazy-azy! On the way back from school this morning all of text scrolling highways signs were telling the hurricane evacuees to head to the civic center. When I drove by the civic center it looked full, but that could be from all of the volunteers.
Shawn and I really don't have that much going on this weekend as usual. I have to study for another chemistry test (fun-fun I know :( !) We are also planning on going to the PD homecoming game tomorrow and then we are going to the WT game, that is if it is a home game which I am pretty sure it is. Oh, I will get pictures of the floor as soon as we get batteries for the camera. Oh something else I forgot to include in the last post was about my crazy dream I had. I had a dream that Shawn had pushed me out in to the middle of a stage while a veggie tale musical was going on, except I was in my pjs and my hair was a mess. And in the front of the stage my parents along with Shawn and his parents were like trying to get me to dance and sing along. They were like Come on Tasha you can do it and like they had big smiles and talking to me like I was 2 or something. Very crazy, So ya I don't know what that was all about. The other thing I forgot to post about was a few prayer requests that I have and that they are:
1) That Shawn finds some kind of night time job before school starts. Home depot still looks very promising but they are still on a hiring freeze, so even if we could get something until they go off of the freeze.
2) My friend Autumn just pray for strength and peace right now. Reagan seems to be doing okay, I think she goes to the doctor on Monday for another dye test.
3) that I pass my chemistry by the way I made an 89 on the other one. I just wanted to take my test grade and show it to her but I didn't.

Oh about chemistry, I will tell you the latest thing that happened to me, which happened on Monday. So she told us that we could eat in the class as long as it wasn't during lab, so I was starving and decided to go get a 4 piece nugget from Chickfila. Well it was like 10 minutes tell class was suppose to start and I was almost done with them. She walks in to the class room and goes I smell Chicken. ( She is like using a stupid voice and saying it out loud) Then she goes it smells like chickfila. Then she goes on about how people think that just because it is chicken that it is better for you but it is really not. So then she goes on to this Trans Fat lecture for the first 45 minutes of class. She ended with don't feed your kids peanut butter and jelly unless you have zero transfat peanut butter. So on Wednesday in class this girl came walking in and she has some kind of ice cream sundae thing so she went up to her and asked her what kind of ice cream it had and she went on about a big spill over ice cream and frozen yogurt. So needless to say, no matter how hungry I am I will never ever eat anything in that class room. Well I need to get to work!

Toodles~

Crazy-azy

Hmm... I don't know about all of you, but my week seemed to be dragging. I am so glad tomorrow is FRIDAY! This afternoon has been crazy! Since yesterday, people have been going on about the gas prices going up because of Rita. I know I have many people that care about me because of all of the phone calls I have recieved, especailly today. So after talking to my sister in law I decided that I should call Shawn and ask him about coming and getting my car when he got off work and filling it up for me because of all of this talk. Well he just happened to be at the main office at Tootn Totum, and Shawn asked them what they know about raising prices and the guy pretty much told him your better filling up this afternoon because they were told between 4 and 5 dollars a gallon. YUCK! Well needless to say my car has a full tank again. Thanks for all of the phone calls :) ! I feel kind of lonely at home tonight with out Shawn. He is out working at Chickfila (spell check that one) he is doing and uninstall, since they are putting new flooring in, but he has to be back at 5:30 am to reinstall it. I guess it isn't an easy ice machine either. Which I guess this is how it will be for the most part for the next 6 months. I heard on the news today that all of the hotels are booked and that they opened up the civic center again. I guess the civic center will be used for the elderly. But as I am listening to Fox News it looks like Rita is changing her path just a little bit but it will still hit somewhere on the Texas coast. Well looky there Shawn is home so I am going to go!

Toodles~

hmm... not to busy of a weekend

This was a pretty laid back weekend for us, not much to talk about. Lets see Saturday, we cleaned the house up and then Saturday evening we put new tile like stuff down in the kitchen. I absolutley love it, it was kind of spur of the moment thing, we originally went to Pride to get a celling fan for the back bedroom, since they were on clearance. We just happened to pass by that, but anyway I absolutely love it and so does Shawn! :0) Also on Saturday, we found out that Shawn is going to the police academy, his information finally arrived in the mail. We are pretty excited, but at the same time found out that it is going to be a little bit more money than we thought. We knew that we were going to have to pay for his uniforms I just didn't realize how much the shirts, pants, and hats were going to cost. Today after church, we went and got Shawn his boots that he has to have. Those weren't near as a bad as I thought, we did look at Gander MNT and theirs were priced over 120.00, but then we went to academy and found them for 1/2 of that price. Thanks goodness! Well anyway, I have some reading I need to finish before I go to bed. Hope everyone else enjoyed their weekend! I think this one went by too fast!

Toodles~

Doesn't this just make you so sick to your stomach!

CLARKSFIELD TOWNSHIP, Ohio -- Eleven children were removed from a Huron County, Ohio, home after several of them were found living in cages -- and may have been living that way for three years, according to a search warrant issued after a social worker visited the home Friday.
In the warrant, Joe Johnson said she observed cages on the first and second floors of the home in Clarksfield Township, reported Cleveland TV station WEWS.
According to the warrant, the parents, Sharon and Mike Gravelle, said that the kids, ages 1 to 14, were frequently caged for their own protection. The cages are 2½ feet high and 3 feet long. The document said there was no room for the kids to stand up.
Lt. Randy Sommers of the Huron County Sheriff's Office said a baby slept in a small bed and two girls used mattresses, and the remaining children slept in the cages.
It also said that a large dresser cabinet was blocking two metal and wooden cages that had kids inside at the time of the visit.
Johnson said that there was a strong urine smell coming from the home and there was no bedding inside the cages. They contained small rubber mats for the kids to lie on.
The sheriff described the cages as makeshift cellblocks. The Gravelles didn't seem to think anything was wrong with their treatment of the kids.
"Basically, the parents thought they were providing for the protection of the children from themselves and from each other," said Huron County Lt. Randy Sommers. "They thought it was circumstances that warranted the cages at night."
Neighbors said the family stopped going to church and actually built a church at their home.
"They worked all the time carrying rocks. It was non-stop, continuous," neighbor Ron Wilkerson said.
The kids had been homeschooled. Officials said they are from different counties in northern Ohio. The family received monthly checks for adopting the kids.
The children are now in four different foster homes.
Prosecutors are reviewing the case, but no charges had been filed as of midday Tuesday.


WE LIVE IN A VERY SICK WORLD! I DON'T SEE HOW PEOPLE CAN DO THIS AND THE SAD THING IS, THAT SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT THIS IS A ONCE IN A BLUE MOON THING, BUT IT ISN'T IT HAPPENS EVERYWHERE, JUST DIFFERENT TYPES OF NEGLECT AND ABUSE! MAKES ME WANT TO PUKE! AND I THINK THE FOLLOWING ARTICLE IS MAKING EXCUSES FOR THE PARENTS. THE PARTS IN RED ARE THE PARTS THAT I JUST SAY YA RIGHT! WHATEVER! AND YOU HAVE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME! IF THEY NEVER INTENDED TO HARM A CHILD WHAT DO THEY THINK THEY ARE DOING TO THE KIDS BY MAKING THEM SLEEP LIKE THAT? ONE CHILD WITH SPECIAL NEEDS IS HARD ENOUGH ON ANY PARENT MUCH LESS 11 OF THEM!! I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THEY WERE ALLOWED THAT MANY IN THE FIRST PLACE. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO KNOW THE NAME OF THIS "PSYCHIATRIST" THAT RECOMMEND IT. I UNDERSTAND THE DESPERATE NEED TO FIND HOMES FOR THESE KIDS AND GET THEM OUT OF GROUP HOMES, BUT HOMES LIKE THIS? PART OF ME THINKS THAT THESE PEOPLE ARE SAYING WELL ITS OKAY. BECAUSE IT IS NOT OKAY! ANYWAY THAT IS MY SPILL SO FAR ON THIS, I AM SO ANGRY AND MY THOUGHTS ARE JUST GETTING JUMBLED. UGH!!!
The case of 11 adopted children who were living in one home, some sleeping in cages, highlights the risk of easing up on screening for special needs children who can be difficult to place, adoption experts say."There's always a pressing need to find homes for these children," Kevin Cohen, a Roslyn, N.Y., adoption attorney who himself was adopted, said Wednesday.Cohen said disabled children require more work and patience from parents, and can be the last picked for adoption, given that there are 130,000 children awaiting permanent homes nationwide.Michael and Sharen Gravelle, of Wakeman, have denied abusing or neglecting the children, who are ages 1 to 14 and have conditions that include autism and fetal alcohol syndrome. No charges have been filed, and the children now are in foster care.The parents, who haven't commented publicly, told authorities that a psychiatrist recommended using the cages so the children didn't harm each other.Their attorney, David Sherman, issued a statement Wednesday evening defending the couple."The children have been out of control and have caused serious harm to themselves and each other," Sherman said, adding that Michael Gravelle built the "enclosures" to provide the children with a secure space while their parents slept at night."The Gravelles love and miss their children and are devastated and brokenhearted with worry, since their children have been ripped away from them," Sherman said."Their motives and intentions were good. They would never harm a child."In 2002, the most recent figures available, there were 127,942 children awaiting adoption in the United States, including 54,832 black youngsters, according to the Child Welfare League of America. The organization didn't tally the number of special needs children.The Ohio couple are white and their adoptive children are black, a group that historically has been harder to place."The tradition of adoption in this country is that it's been white, healthy infants, generally adopted by middle-class, Caucasian couples," said Gloria Houchman, a spokeswoman for the National Adoption Center in Philadelphia.Keith Alford, a Syracuse University associate professor who has written extensively on adoption, said social workers may be unaware of the demands of caring for disabled children and may be anxious to find them homes.The Gravelles received "glowing reports" from private agencies that reviewed them for the adoption of one of the children, said Jim McCafferty, director of the Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Family Services, which placed the boy with the couple.Alford said sometimes social workers are duped by parents putting on a positive show to gain adoption approval."Families from time to time present well. They present their home situation in a very positive light because they are wanting services, or in this case more children," he said.Cohen raised another possible reason why parents might seek multiple adoptions of high-maintenance special needs children: the money that comes along with them. "Sometimes, not all the time, there is an economic incentive to taking them in," he said.It's unclear how much the Gravelles received in government assistance. Cleveland's county-run agency paid the family at least $500 a month to care for the one child, a boy born with HIV.Minimum payments of $250 a month per child if the family qualifies for state or federal programs are meant to encourage adoption by ensuring families can maintain their living standard, said Rhonda Abban, chief of adoption services for the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services.McCafferty said that, generally speaking, more than six children shouldn't be placed in a home, especially if they have disabilities.Erich Dumbeck, director of the Huron County Department of Job and Family Services, said there are no limits to how many children may be placed in a home but that his agency makes the child's welfare a key factor. The Gravelle adoptions were arranged outside the county.Ohio doesn't require home visits after an adoption. Dumbeck said his agency did not have contact with the family before Friday's court-ordered search, which resulted from a complaint that he won't discuss.Carmen Stewart, spokeswoman for the state Job and Family Services, said the state requires at least two visits by the county or private agency that handled the adoption during the six months it takes to finalize an adoption. She could not say which of the Gravelle children were adopted in Ohio and whether those visits were missed.

go me!

I have gone a week and 2 days now with out any carbonated drinks! I know that isn't much but hey it is a start. I know that I can do this because I went pretty much my whole junior year of hs with out any cokes and such so, but anyway I am proud of myself!

Toodles~

Have I told you lately how much I can't stand Chemistry?

Today was our first test. I studied some on Saturday, but pretty much studied all day yesterday for the test. So we get to class today and I am feeling pretty good about the test, until I see the grades for the other class that took the test last Thursday. The average class grade was a 56.8 the highest grade was a 79. That kind of made me a little antsy if you know what I mean. The thoughts started going through my head battling at each other, like what if I didn't study the right information and then no I know I studied the right stuff because I did all the practice test and the web tests and did well on those. Well she starts class off as normal Good Afternoon boys and girls as you know today is our first test, if you have test anxiety too bad, this is the only way you get your grades in my class. Then she starts going on and on about all of the test taking seminars and courses that are offered. After that she wants to do a quick over view on the practice test. She also says this is the only test she is going to do this on. The review is going okay, I know all of the answers and then all of the sudden she starts going on and on about something that is not on the review and so I get out my text book and I am not finding it anywhere in chapters 1, 2, or 3, so the other people at my table along with me start to kind of freak out what if this is on the test? Then the TA walks in with the tests and they were thick booklets and so she rushes through the rest of the review talking non stop hardly and breaths inbetween, so if you didn't have test anxiety before the test you did then. Or at least I did. So then I get my test and it was pretty much what was on the review except for questions 15,16, and 17 which were out of chapter 4, even though we aren't suppose to cover chapter 4 until Wednesday? So when I got to work today, I was looking to see if I got the answers right which I don't think I did. I then emailed her to ask her if she knew those were out of chapter 4 she replied and said that she knew and they would still be counted on the test. Anyway let me go back, when I went to go turn in my test booklet and answer sheet, she goes how do you think you did and I said, "Pretty good there were a few I don't remember studying," and her reply was well the last class thought they did pretty good and you seen how they did so if I were you I wouldn't get my hopes up. That just really made me mad, because I went in there thinking I prepared really well for this class and even when my classmates and I were quizzing each other out in the hall from the book, I knew the answers and now because of her I am doubting my ability to take tests. I wish I could just tell her that she is the one that causes test anxiety, but I don't want to make things worse for me seeing how we are not even halfway through the semester yet.
So that was the bad part of my day, the good part was all of the kids at work today were pretty good, I only had to put one kid in time out. Also everyone was picked up by 6:15 so I got off a little early. Shawn is working late tonight, he probably will not be home until 8 or 9 he has been in Lubbock all day today, because they are short on help. Anyway, welcome to my monday! Hope everyone else had a descent Monday! oh ya I also ran into my old room mate Gabby today when I was leaving school, that was interesting, but she seems like she has straightened out since then. The first thing she said to me was I am sorry if I put you in uncomfortable situations and I was like what do you mean and she said when I had guys coming in at all hours of the night. I was like oh thanks. That was nice to know that she was truely sorry about it now even if she wasn't before. Well anyway Shawn is calling!

Toodles~

Taking a Break

This stormy/rainy weather is making me sleepy, but I can't take a nap today. Instead, I need to study for my chemistry test. This weekend has been a great weekend! Friday night we went to an awesome football game! I don't think I have ever been to a football game where it stayed zero to zero all 4 quarters. The Dons won it in OT 8 to 6! Way to go Dons! You can read about the game at http://amarillo.com/stories/091005/hss_2754992.shtml. My favorite part from the article has to be, "In a game in which both teams refused to give an inch, in which both teams put out more hits than MTV shows in a week, Palo Duro and Tascosa decided this OT thriller by an inch."


Anyway, Shawn and I got our new washer and dryer yesterday. I love it! For the first time in my life I want to do laundry, I doubt that will last very much longer though :). This morning we went to church and we also went in to a new Sunday school class, they are studying Romans. I liked it a lot and Shawn seemed to really enjoy it also. This afternoon, I have been studying for my chemistry test and Shawn has been yelling at the tv (football). In about an hour we are going over to my mom's house for Ryan's b-day. He turned 19 today. Thats about it, o ya don't forget to play the trivia game!

Halfway there! Ha'fway thar! Hawfway thewe!

Can you believe it is Wednesday already! I love short weeks! My first chemistry test is coming up on Monday, so I have more studying to do this weekend. Well nothing really more to post about at this time. Wait there is a new thing. Click on the 3rd link down on the side bar to play the daily Bible trivia game!


Toodles~

Dialectized (redneck):
Kin yo' believe it is Wednesday already! Fry mah hide! ah love sho't weeks! Mah fust chemistry tess is a-comin' up on Monday, so ah have mo'e studyin' t'do this hyar weekend, cuss it all t' tarnation. Wal nothin' pow'ful mo'e t'post about at this hyar time. Wait thar is a noo thin'. Click on th' 3rd link down on th' side bar t'play th' daily Bible trivia game! Toodles~

Dialectized (fudd):
Can you bewieve it is Wednesday awweady! I wove showt weeks! My fiwst chemistwy test is coming up on Monday, so I have mowe studying to do this weekend. Weww nothing weawwy mowe to post about at this time. Wait thewe is a new thing. Cwick on the 3wd wink down on the side baw to pway the daiwy Bibwe twivia game! Toodwes~

Your Blog Should Be Blue

Your blog is a peaceful, calming force in the blogosphere. You tend to avoid conflict - you're more likely to share than rant. From your social causes to cute pet photos, your life is a (mostly) open book.

What Color Should Your Blog or Journal Be?

You are nurturing, kind, and lucky. Like mother nature, you want to help everyone. You are good at keeping secrets and tend to be secretive. A seeker of harmony, you are a natural peacemaker. You are good natured and people enjoy your company. You put people at ease and make them feel at home with you.

The World's Shortest Personality Test

Anyone know what today is?

Can you believe it? Shawn and I have been married for a year! WOW it went by really fast! Quick updates:
Looks like the police academy will run from oct. to march and then he should be done!
It has been a pretty good weekend so far:
Friday night- went to the football game
Saturday- just hung out at home did a little bit of laundry, did homework, watched movies with Shawn, played playstation with Shawn.
Today- Celebrated our anniversary
Tomorrow- nothing planned. Shawn has to work. I will probably study for my chemistry test and finish up my math homework.
kind of crazy question and maybe dumb, but in the comic Calvin and Hobbs is Hobbs, Calvin's imaginary friend or pet, if neither what is he? I do know that he is a comic strip character and that is about it. Today's was really cute, so was garfields.

Thats about it Folks
Toodles ~

Trick or Treat! :)

my thoughts take em or leave em

Okay, so I have been at a loss of words as of what to say right now… as I am sure a bunch of us are. There are so many feelings rushing through me right now and it is so hard to describe it all so just a warning, I am going to say how I feel about things it may make since and it may not and if you disagree then so be it you have a right to.

Today I watched on the news people in the media flying around in their helicopters pointing out people sitting on roof tops stranded. Why don’t they just shut up, turn off their stupid camera’s, and use their helicopters to help people instead of bashing the President for not doing things fast enough. Every one pretty much knows the terrible nature of the damage, this kind of rebuilding and restoration takes a lot of time. It is pretty much like this whether we like it or not. I heard today on a CNN report on the radio that people are starting to say it is a racial issue. The people that were driving next to me probably thought I was nuts, I was yelling at the radio. Do people really think that if it were mostly white people that it would already be handled? Seriously you have got to be kidding me! Why do things always seem to turn in to racial and nationality issues? UGH that just erks the crap out of me! I totally agree with the following: "These people have absolutely zero evidence of what they claim and only seek to incite hatred. That talk about racism and racially motivated actions and yet they say that President Bush seeks to divide our nation. They totally discount the animalistic behavior of some of the most uncivilized human beings in our country. I think it is total reprehensible for leaders in our country to act like only one race of people are being affected by this catastrophic event just because it happened in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama. That is a racist attitude if I have ever heard one. I makes me want to puke to listen to Jesse Jackson spew his venom and any of the other Black congressman and other civic leaders that have taken pot shots at President Bush and the Federal Government. I didn't see Jesse Jackson rushing into New Orleans to over his support. I didn't Charlie Rangle rushing into offer his help to the victims. Instead that chose to sit back in the safety of their offices and slam Bush and the Federal Government. "


Right now, I am trying to forget about the media, who wants us just to see the bad constantly. We all know this is a horrible, heart wrenching, and ugly situation, but why not start hearing the heroic stories more and more. Sometimes I think it is so sad how it takes so much time to hear the good. People are always willing to see the bad, but not near as willing to admit and talk about the good things in life. It is very crazy that a whole city and other areas are completely gone. But I trust that God has a plan and it will prevail! “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5-6
There was a lot of history in New Orleans, but at the same time there was a lot of wickedness and evil going on to, and I know that it is everywhere, but it makes me stop and think, is this God’s wake up call to us? I would think so, some people think it is just nature taking its course, but I believe that God is constantly in control and he always has a plan and like I said before it will prevail. “Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you. . . Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God and there is none like me.” Isaiah 46:4,9

I am in a state of shock, sadness, and grief that so many people lost everything. I don’t know what to say except I am sorry it happened to you, you can cry on my shoulder and I will cry with you, and that God has a plan. I am very thankful that my Grandma, Uncle, and cousins made it out safely and are in a safe place now. It looks like they have pretty much lost everything, but in the end, and maybe I don’t have the right to say this next part because I wasn’t there and it isn’t my belongings, but I don’t think it is worldly possessions that matter. It’s the fact that they are all still here and safe. I think my family is blessed in the fact that we know where they are and we are not wondering if they are even alive right now. I pray for people that going through that right now. I still believe and will continue to believe that God has a plan and it will prevail! "Do not be afraid of sudden terror, Nor of trouble from the wicked when it comes; For the LORD will be your confidence, And will keep your foot from being caught." Proverbs 3:25, 26

I know for me at times it is hard not to be joyful towards God, and especially now for everyone involved. I would say that probably a lot of them are asking the why questions just like everyone watching from a far looking at this difficult and devastating situation. However, since this has happened it has given me a wake up call of things of importance and unimportance. I learned recently that joy comes partly from a deep, abiding knowledge that God has everything under control. We can experience joy in spite of our circumstances, when we choose to acknowledge that something good is going to come out of our pain. But, unless we distinguish joy from happiness, we will not experience the fullness of joy. To be happy over certain circumstances would be wrong - but it's never wrong to have deep joy. There for I, "Rejoice in the Lord always.” Philippians 4:4. Right now I only pray that people trust in the Lord and know that he has a plan, even when it seems impossible.
"The LORD is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know Your name will trust in You, for You, LORD, have never forsaken those who seek You.". Psalm 9: 9-10
"Praise be to the LORD, for He has heard my cry for mercy. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in Him, and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song." Psalm 28: 6-7

I think or at least I am hopeful that in a few years and maybe even in the next couple of months we can see this piece of history we just witnessed turn from ugliness into something beautiful and glorious.

I didn’t mean for this to start turning in to a short novel. I still have so much to say, but it is all unorganized in my head. This might not even make since after I post it, but hey I warned you in the beginning that it might not. I really hope I did not offend any one and I know that everyone has their opinions as always. My heart goes out to everyone in this tragic situation. I know my mind could possibly be else where right now too if I was living there. Like I said before I can only hope and pray that people will turn to the Lord for answers and trust that he has a plan and that it will prevail. I also hope that more and more people see this as a wake up call. Now I am really going to end this posting, because my eyes are starting to close as I type. If I offended some one or if you disagree with something I said, or agree. Post a comment and let me know.

Goodnight~

A few prayer requests

Please pray for all of the victims affected by Katrina, but with those victims can you also pray for my grandma, uncle, and cousins who were also affected by this event. My Aunt has done a really good job with updating on her site. Just click on the link Trunnell's to find out more info. The other one is my friend Autumn's baby Reagan is in the hospital with a uti infection and due to even more complications we are unsure when Reagan will be leaving and she will possibly be needing surgery in the next few weeks.

Thanks,

update: http://parishphotosafterkatrina.blogspot.com/ this is a website of pictures showing the area where my family lived.

Calvin and Hobbs

Has anyone been paying attention to Calvin and Hobbs the last few days? Just wondering. I think the last few days have been really cute! Well I need to finish getting ready for school!


Toodles~

Update: 10:24 am

Since this post was so short I decided to add to it. Surprisingly I do not have math homework tonight :). I just added a new class to my schedule tomorrow. I didn't realize that I could take it, until yesterday. I thought I had to be further along, but then I was told a way to by pass that. So now I am also taking Theories of Multiple Disabilities T TH from 9:30 to 10:45. It is in the same class and same teacher as my other special education class. Now I am off to the book store to go get the books for that class! I am so greatful for ACE if not I would have had to come up with 500.00 for books this semester and money for 2 calculators. Well thats all for now.

Toodles~

What A Day

Today was a pretty good day, I am just exhausted and I have a headache. For some reason these last couple of weeks, I have been getting a headache around 5 and 6:00. I have no idea why tyllenol, alieve, and advil are not even helping. My first day at work was filled with filling out lots of paper work. If I didn't know how to initial or sign my name before today, I do now! The kids were great. Some of them were already trying to scheme on me. I guess they think because I am new, that I don't know all of their rules. I found out, I am actually taking a guy I went to school with's position. He is leaving to go do an internship. Anyway, the other staff members told me that today was about the craziest that it would get since we were shorthanded by 2 other staff members. For the first part of the afternoon, I helped all of the kids with homework. Then the second half I was in the computer room helping kids with games and getting on and off the internet. 3 to 6:30 flew by really fast.

I don't know if I told you or not, but Shawn has his interview with the police academy on Sept. 1 st. So please being praying and thinking about him. Well now it is off to read chapter one of my chemistry book. I got some tips from a friend in my class today. She pretty much told me to read and take my own notes from the chapters in the book. She also told me that Dr. K was just begining that gets worse. All I said was O great! Lucky me! but I know I can get through it! Then it is on to biology and then earth science and then I will be done with all of the sciences.

Toodles~

Great Devo!

Instead of laying down I decided to read today's devo! It is awesome. So I thought I would share it with you! If you want to go deeper click on the link in the side bar and if it is not this devotion click on the purple daisy ( I think) it should say view past devotions by date find this devo and then click on go deeper at the bottom of the devo.

"Why Not Her?"
Glynnis Whitwer
Senior Editor, P31 Woman Magazine

Key Verse:
I Corinthians 12:24-25, "? But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other." (NIV)

Devotion:Do you ever wish more people were like you? Be honest. Have you ever wondered why no one seems to work as hard as you do, or gives as much to charity, or remembers birthdays like you do? Isn't everyone supposed to do what you do? Actually ? no.

God designed us delightfully different. Scripture tells us that in addition to being uniquely created, we are each given different spiritual "gifts" through the Holy Spirit. These gifts take the form of special abilities, such as healing, prophesying, teaching and administration, to name a few. (See 1 Corinthians 12 and Romans 12 for more examples.)

Normally, when we receive a gift, it is for us to use and enjoy. But spiritual gifts are given to benefit others. First Corinthians 12:7 tells us, "Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good." In essence, we are to give away these gifts from God.

What wonderful things spiritual gifts are - until our sinful nature gets in the way. Two negative things can happen regarding spiritual gifts: 1) We want the gift that others have, or 2) We expect others to have our gifts, and do what we do. When they don't, we get annoyed. Rick Warren, in The Purpose Driven Life, calls this "gift projection." Gift projection can be the source of much unhappiness and division between friends.

For example, let's say your gift is hospitality. You invite a friend to your home for lunch and you go the extra mile to clean your house, make something special for her to eat, and buy fresh flowers. You spend hours preparing for her visit and you have a wonderful time. At the end of the lunch, she reciprocates and invites you to her house.

When you go to her house, you get a store-bought cookie, a can of soda, and she hastily stacks the newspapers on the floor so you can sit on the couch. Not exactly the reception you were expecting after all the work you did. But as you sit down to talk, it's obvious you are her top priority. Her gift of mercy overflows as she listens to your problems and responds with wisdom and compassion.

What's your reaction?

As we consider our spiritual gifts and those of our friends, we should cultivate a heart of appreciation for the differences. God designed those differences so all the needs of His believers would be met. Guard against resentment forming in your heart, and thank God that He gave your friend a different spiritual gift - one designed to benefit YOU.

My Prayer for Today:Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us spiritual gifts. I thank You that You care for my needs and have gifted someone else to help me. Help me to look at others differently and appreciate their unique spiritual gifts. Please forgive me when I have been envious or resentful about my spiritual gift or others'. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.

Application Steps:Identify a spiritual gift you have. Identify a friend with a gift that seems opposite of yours. Commit to praying for your friend and the development of her spiritual gift.

First Day of Class

I have to say this has to be the weirdest first day of classes I have ever had. At 9:00 I had my fundamentals of Math II class. First of the teacher was 20 minutes late, something about forgetting to take her daughter to the baby sitters house. I guess she drove from Hereford to canyon and got to WT and realized she forgot to drop her daughter off at her mom's house? She talked really really fast and then would take a deep breath and go on about whatever and then take another big breath and continue on and this went on for the remaining of the class. So I thought she was a little weird. Only I didn't really know what the weirdest of weirdness could be until I walked in to my chemistry class. Okay I have been in college for 3 years now, so far before this class have I have not attended a class where there has been a seating chart. I felt like I was in elementary school. This lady had made name cards for everyone. She folded card stock paper and wrote every ones first and last names on both sides of the paper. She first began class in this high pitched GOOD MORNING boys and girls, well since it is 11:00 I should say Good Afternoon boys and girls. The girl next to me mumbles you have got to be kidding me. That is what I was thinking! Then she begins by saying that each name card has a sticker on the side that is facing the front of the class. All of the nursing majors have a grape sticker. So she tells the nursing majors to scratch and then sniff their stickers on the count of three. Well this girl up at the front of the class did not participate with them so she called her up to the front of the class and made her stand in front of the class and scratch and sniff her grape sticker. So then this goes on with the education majors we had strawberry stickers and all other majors had orange stickers. While all this is going on keep in mind a high pitched voice that keeps going up and down. I think it sounded like a 12 or 13 year old boy going through puberty. Get my point? Imagining it! I am still sitting in my chair thinking oh my gosh this is crazy and is she seriously the only one that teaches this class! Then she starts going over the syllabus in the middle of that she starts on chapter one so I am sitting there taking notes about ions and electrons and whatever else she is talking about then she switches back to the syllabus. It is not like she says okay class lets go back to the syllabus nope she just stops in the middle of her sentence about compounds and starts talking about attendance in class and how many tests we will have. Then all of the sudden we are going over safety rules then it is back to the lecture then all of the sudden she says oh class if you ever catch yourself on fire drop and roll and while you are rolling I will run back here to this closet like this ( yes she did run from the front of the room to the back) takes the box with the fire blanket and says I will take this blanket out of the box and wrap it around you. Now this is not a blanket you would want to curl up with it is not soft and she goes on for a good 15 minutes about the stupid fire blanket. Then it is back to the lecture! You are probably thinking that she is a young teacher nope she is in her 50's! Now here is another really cheesy thing about this class if you are in to chemistry you may think it is the coolest thing ever, however I do not! On the inside of our name cards is taped this lightbulb piece of paper with our last name on that. She told us to take that off and look at the back and that would be our secret name and when she posts grades that will be the name she post by. I can't even pronounce mine it is some element name. Then we go back to the lecture and she all of the sudden says Chlorine what is an ionic bond or something like that. So we all start looking around and finally I guess Stephanie realized she was talking to her and answered her. So yes, she will refer to you by your secret name? So how is it a secret! Anyways welcome to my day!

Anyway, on a good note, I start work tomorrow after school :)! I can't wait! I also have my fun class tomorrow well I don't know about fun yet, but it will be an interesting class, Mental Retardation. It is actually something that I have interest in. I am trying to have a postive attitude about this whole chemistry thing, but when she talks to the class like we are in first grade and she is so spastic it is hard to know what is going on and what she is talking about.
Shawn should hear something from Home Depot today or tomorrow. So far today he has heard nothing. Oh ya Meghan's birthday party on Saturday was fun. She is now dating I guess you could call it. I will tell her to update on her blog so I don't spill too many beans! I still can't believe she is 16! Well I think I am going to go take some asprin and lay down. I don't know if my eye rolling and oh my gosh and you have got to be kidding me expressions gave me a head ache. I really tried not to, but it was just weird and crazy. One thing I do know is that you can not zone out in her class for a second otherwise you will be lost! Which is hard to do, when you just want to block the annoying voice out. Okay I will stop complaining because I have until december to put up with this, just forwarning you will most likely hear about it also.

Toodles~

Even more great news

Shawn passed the written part of the test. He did a whole lot better than he did last time. I guess it is on to the police academy in October! Not much else to really update on. If I start work tomorrow, I will let you all know how it went!


Toodles~

Quick poll results

67% said that their second choice would be a carriage ride in Paris and 33% an airboit ride in the Everglades. Thanks for voting!

Great News!!

I got the job at Buckners!!! Depending on paper work, I could start as early as this Thursday! If not I will be starting next week! One awesome thing about it is, that I figured the pay would be around mininum wage if not a little bit more, but I was wrong! I am going to make a little more than what I was making at AIG, except I will not have to put up with certain things. I know every job has it's problems and complaints but I don't think anything could be as bad as my last year was there. I am so happy. I am trying to keep myself from bouncing off the walls! :) Well just thought I would let you know. Kind of weird how the last two days have been. Trust me though I don't mind it at all! I would love to have a week of nothing but good news. God is sooo great!


Toodles~

Kind of Cool News

Shawn went to go take his placement test yesterday afternoon. He did really well on it for the most part. He found out that he can go straight in to the police academy if he can score a point higher than what he did score on the writting part of the test. He will be retaking it tomorrow. So keep him in your prayers please. :) We also found out that he can be done and out of the police academy 36 weeks or somewhere close to. If you ask me retaking one test is a lot better than a year and 1/2 of basics and then the police academy. Saves us time and money. I think after he passes, he is suppose to have an interview with the criminal justice department. The lady on the phone yesterday told him that would not be a problem. They just go over your past history and ask the usual questions or at least that is pretty much what she told him. And if everything goes well with that, he will be starting in October. Pretty AWESOME if you ask me!! However, I do know that the next 6 or more months will also be a trying time. Shawn will be going to school 8-5 and working an evening job. So that doesn't leave much time for us, but I know with God's help we can get through all of it, but as for now I am just happy that it is shorter than we thought! WOOHOO! Well I need to go get ready, so I can go get my books for school.

Toodles~

So hmm...

As normal there isn't a whole bunch going on today. Shawn is in the living room snoozing while the race is on. I think we are going to my parents for dinner tonight. This rainy cloudy weather is making me really sleepy. I would love to go take a nap, but I don't think I would be able to go to sleep when I need to. I should find out about Buckners tomorrow sometime! Tuesday morning, I am planning on going with Emily to Canyon to get our books for school. I am glad school starts Next Monday. Before I know it will be here! The chart I added today, was in an email I recieved from a friend. I thought it was really cool. So for the last 30 min I learned how to make an html table and created that. I think I did a great job. Well the computer is running slow, so I need to restart!


Toodles~

Don't you hate it when,

The sun is shinning brightly outside and the day looks beautiful, but yet you feel so crummy. That is me today. But on a good note, I am glad that it is Friday! The city is working on the water main or something like that, so yesterday from 8 am to 10pm we were not suppose to use our water. Well it was a little after 10 and I decided to start on the dishes. I turned on the water and sputtered for few seconds and then water started coming out. There was not a whole lot of pressure to it. Shawn went to go use the bathroom and he flushed the toliet while I was rinsing a cup and guess what, the water suddenly stopped for a couple of seconds and then it came back. We are not suppose to use our water again today until after 5. Hopefully we will have better water pressure, if not I will be going back to my mom and dad's house to shower.

On to something else. Today on the news at noon, they were talking about this sex offenders website, so I just logged on to check it out. It is really neat. Right now it only consists of 37 states. Anyways what you do is type your address in to the search box. Then click go, it will find your location on a map and then if you have registered sex off. in your neighboorhood a red dot or dots will appear. Then you can click on the red dot to get a picture of the sex off. and their address. You can also click on their name and it will show you what the extent of their offense was. In the side bar there is a list of all the reg. sex off. in your zip code. It does take a while to load sometimes so you have to be patient. http://www.mapsexoffenders.com/

Happy Friday!
Toodles~

Hello! It looks like I will be getting the job at Buckners. I am so excited! I took my drug test today. They said they should get the results by Monday and give me a call, and if that checks out I will be starting sometime next week. I am really excited. I got to meet some of the younger kids today. I can't wait to start! Shawn is taking a test at AC on Monday ( I think) after his test is graded his advisor will help him get into the classes he needs to be in. Minnie is doing fine. We still think she is pregnant. Her stomach hasn't gotten that big, who knows maybe she isnt and she is going through a growth spurt. Somedays she looks like it big time and others she doesn't. She spends her afternoons in and out of her pools. Yesterday I looked out the window and she was jumping from one to another. Then she finally laid down in one. I will try and see if I can get a picture. The thing below is the devotion for today off of the Proverbs 31 Ministries website. They have some of the best daily devotions and the best part is that it is free. I thought today's was great.

Toodles ~

August 17, 2005

"Changes"

Wendy Pope

Director of Development, Proverbs 31 Speaker Team Member

Key Verse:Hebrews 13:8, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." (NIV)


Devotion:
I was having a little pity party the other day. Every now and then a girl is allowed one, don't you think? In the past few months several of my favorite things have been closed or discontinued. Let me bend your ear: my foundation, my shampoo, my favorite Italian restaurant, my lotion and, most recently, my signature lipstick, Chocolate Mousse. Now that is enough to make any grown girl cry! But during my pity party God reminded me of something that has never, and will never, change - Him. Praise God and glory to the Father, that we can count on Him to be consistent. Let's take a look at His track record.

Our God is the same God who:
· created?everything
· closed the door on the ark for Noah
· stopped Abraham from killing Isaac
· parted the Red Sea and dried the path so His people wouldn't get mud between their toes
· wrote the 10 commandments with His finger
· lead the Israelites by day with a cloud and by night with fire
· made the walls fall down around Jericho
· closed the lions' mouths so Daniel would be saved
· cooled the furnace for Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego
· choose a shepherd boy to be a king
· knew you before you were in your mother's womb
· designed a plan for your life
· was conceived in the womb of virgin
· lived a sinless life
· carried a cross to Calvary for you and me
· conquered death and rose again
· left a Counselor to help us on this earth
· is preparing a place for His children
· is sitting at the right hand of God Almighty at this very moment· will come again when the archangel sounds the trumpet

Oh friend, is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob your God today? If not, pray to receive Him as your Savior. Confess your sins to Him now. He is Faithful and Just to forgive you. Confess that you need a Savior. Tell Him that you choose Him above all others. Through all of life's uncertainties, He is the one certain thing.

My Prayer for Today:
I come before You, blessing You this moment for Your consistent power, consistent behavior and Your constant love. I stand amazed at the thought that You, my God, are the same God who closed the door of the ark. Help me, oh Lord, to never forget the magnitude of who You are and the reality of what You can do. Thank You for never changing when everything around me does. In Jesus' Name I pray, Amen.

Application Steps:
Write down all of the blessings in your life. Praise Him for those blessings. Write down the current struggles in your life. Praise Him for those struggles. Write down three things from the list of Who God Is. Praise Him for being Who He Is!!

Going Deeper

Reflection Points:

How do I handle changes?

What can I do to handle change better?

Can others notice a difference in me when something has changed in my life?

Do I praise God continually no matter what my circumstances may be?

Power Verses:

Joshua 3:5, "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you." (NIV)

Joshua 1:5, "I will never leave you or forsake you." (NIV)

Psalm 63:3, "Because Your love is better than life my lips will glorify you." (NIV)

Zephaniah 3:17, "The Lord your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you. He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing." (NIV)