"Saw VI"

I know the movie hasn't come out yet but I swear you could have used Kyle's bathroom this morning for part of the footage!

For the past several years Kyle has been prone to nose bleeds. This morning he was eating his breakfast at the bar and kept sneezing ( a normal morning routine for Kyle).....after the 3rd sneeze I told him to go to his bathroom and blow his nose.
He gets down and goes back to his bathroom while I head off to the laundry room to iron his shirt ( yes, I do all my ironing in the morning...I never think that far in advance to do it the night before....don't judge me!)

Anyhow, back to my horror movie......when a few minutes pass and Kyle hasn't returned to finish his cereal, which is now forming into wallpaper paste, I yell for him to hurry up. When he doesn't answer I head back to his bathroom to add a little "morning momma modivation". As I turn to walk in his bathroom I actually scream!!!!!

Why you ask????? Well, lets just say it looked like the St. Valentine's Massacre took place in this 6 X 11 bathroom! Kyle is standing at the sink holding a Kleenex that is soaked in blood up to his nose and the rest of bathroom is COVERED in blood spatters. When I say covered.....I mean COVERED...the sink, mirror, wall, shower curtain, toliet, floor, rug....EVERYTHING!

It looked like someone to a weed wacker to the poor childs nose!!!!

Come to find out, he said he sneezed as soon as he walked in the bathroom before he had a chance to get a kleenex.....Yay think????

I tell ya, it was even to gross to take a picture of. And it was too early in the morning for me to be scrubbing up blood (which I just noticed got on my pants)

But at least he did make it to his bathroom and I didn't have to clean up all the blood from my kitchen...and his breakfast...YUM!

The worst part is, I cleaned his bathroom from top to bottom on Saturday. Even washed the shower curtain and liner too....(don't start Heather, yes I wash the liners cause I'm a tight wad)....oh, well back to square one!

Hope your morning went better than mine!

Say what?!?

okay people, Kyle just sent me a text message and said

his text "Madison(his girfriend) asked if I could come over to her house Saturday night. can I go? She asked her mom and she said ok"

My text "and do what?"

his text "idk, watch a movie or something"

My text "how about you guys get a group together and meet up at the movies"

his text "is that a no"

My text "let me tlk to ur dad"

his text "k"

....okay Dad, ball is now in your court on this one.....AND don't let me down!!!!

I don't think I am doing very good on this whole teenager thing.....I might need therapy or medication or a something....he's too young to go over to some girls house with some parents I don't know and do God knows what when her parents are not paying attention in God knows where and ......oh goodness I can't breathe.......


HELP!!!!!

Ahhhhh......the Fair.....

Let me start by saying that I HATE THE FAIR!!!!!! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE roller coasters at places like Kings Dominion, Carrowinds & Kings Island. And I must be in the very front seat when I ride....cause if I die I want to see what is about to chop my head off :O)

But I hate county fairs! This being said, where did I go last night???? Hmmmmmm....let me think........oh, that's right! THE STINKING COUNTY FAIR!!!!!

Being the wonderful, most awesome, fun loving, nice, sweet, caring mother that I am I took Kyle to the fair. All by myself I might add!!! He was dying to see his girlfriend cheer at the compition they hold at the fair each year and then all his friends were going to ride the rides. And let me just say that Kyle has been to the county fair the past 3 years with friends and each time he has thrown up from the rides.

So we watch the cheerleading, which Woodington Middle School won 1st place....GO RAIDERS!!!!!! Anyway.....and then he was off with his little group of friends to the rides....and I was left alone to fill over 2 hours of "down time". So I walk around and look at all the exhibits and vendors and still had 1hr & 45 mins to kill :O)

So then I found a picnic table and sat back and decided to do a little "people watching".....that my friend was a scary experience.....man do fairs bring people out of the woodwork or what?!?

Finally, at 9:30 Kyle made his way back to eat his slice of pizza I had got him for supper. And boy was he pale as a ghost...I knew this was going to be bad. He said he felt to sick to eat his pizza and that he just wanted to go and close his eyes. His girlfriend just sat there and laughed.

He rode the entire way home with the windows down and his eyes closed and I told him to give me plenty of notice if I need to pull over for "puke stop". Thank goodness we made it home where he climbed in bed with his handy trash can close by his side.

.......ahhhhhhh....the fair..............

Birthday Pals!

Here is a picture of me & the girls after our dinner out to celebrate my 34th birthday!!!! Man I look good for 34.....don't ya think?????

We went to Logan's for dinner and drinks and had a great time...then headed back to my house for presents and cake. We were all stuffed from dinner but crammed the cake in anyway :O)

Thanks girls for a wonderful birthday....I didn't spend it on the football field like the past two years and there was no hurricane...like the 3 years in a row before that.....YIPEEE!!!!!

Happy Birthday to ME!!!!!!!

Today is my birthday!!!!! YIPEEEEEE!!!!!

I am 29 AGAIN :O)

No really I am 34.....but who keeps counting after 29?


.....so here it goes....a 1, a 2, a 1 2 3.............

Happy Birthday to ME
Happy Birthday to ME
Happy Birthday dear ME
......HAPPPY BIRTHDAY TOOOOOOOOO MEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!

Don't ya just want to sing along too????

Hurricane Floyd-1999

This week marks the ten year anniversary of Hurricane Floyd. I hate to say it but I witnessed this storm up close and personal as it slammed the eastern part of North Carolina.

It was my first experience with a Hurricane so I was not really sure what to expect. We new it was heading our way and that it could get bad. But I didn't know just how bad. Chris had been sent to the Outer Banks in Dare County to help evacuate the coast which left Kyle and I at home to weather the storm.

The rain started early that morning but I went on to work dropping Kyle off at daycare, he was only 2 1/2 at the time. I don't remember the rain stopping the entire day and by 3 that afternoon my work decided to close. I picked up Kyle and headed home. When I pulled up in the driveway I was greeted by my neighbor next door saying that our Chow (who we had to keep in a dog pen at the time) was up to her stomach in water. Once I had her dry and safe in our shed I headed in side. I stayed glued to the TV the entire night. Chris called as much as he could with orders on what I needed to do.....fill the tub with water, fill ever empty container I had with water, flash lights fresh batteries, propane for the grill and canned foods. I wasn't really that worried at the time I guess because I wasn't sure what to expect, I mean how long could it really last????? The next day everything will be back to normal....right???????

Nice thinking on my part but.......WRONG!!!!!!!

Later that evening the rain and wind were pounding every window in the house and it was so load I couldn't have slept even if I wanted to. We lost power around midnight so I layed with Kyle in our bed until the wind got so bad I was afraid the windows that were right over the bed were going to break. I grabbed Kyle, pillows and blankets and headed for the hallway. We were renting an older home in town at the time, you know the kind that has a door you can close from the livingroom to the hall.....so I closed all the bedroom doors, bathroom and livingroom doors thus leaving us barracaded in the hall. And that were we stayed until Chris made it home and to our rescue!

We all slept in the hall that night and when the sun came out the next morning it was a horrible sight. Tree's and powerlines were down everywhere. All the major roads and bridges leading in and out of our town were flooded or washed out. There was no way in......and no way out of or town!

The water began to rise and buildings, business and homes were flooded. Dead livestock floated down the roads along with a few coffins that had surfaced from an old cemetary!

Our home was spared from flooding but we were without power for 4 days. I learned to cook any kind of food you an imagine on a grill and thank goodness Kyle liked to color because that was all we had to do.

That first experience with Floyd opened my eyes to how bad it can get and the effects it leaves. I am now perpared for every hurricane!!!!

Pay it forward

This little diddy right here is an awesome way to give someone you know or may barely know a huge smile when they check the mail and get something other than bills and stupid junk mail!

One of my favorite blog buddies "Erica" over at www.d6scotts.blogspot.com has the cutest little game called Pay it forward. It's away to meet up with other bloggers and get a cute gift all at the same time. Check it out and see!

But just go and look cause you just know I am gonna win!!!!!

I remember.....

.........the exact spot where I was sitting on this very day 8 short years ago......do you? It was a day that changed all of our lives forever even if we did not personally know someone who perished on 9/11 in the attacks.

It was a beautiful morning as I sat at my desk working...okay maybe I wasn't really working...... anyway, one of the guys that worked in the shop came up and needed change for the drink machine. When I gave him the change he said "did you hear that the World Trade Center has been attacked?" Hearing the word "attacked" gave me chills as we all raced to the breakroom to turn on the small TV (complete with rabbit ears) to watch the live footage unfold.

The images I saw that day, the fire, the smoke, the screaming people as they ran down the streets looking for a safe place and innocent victims jumping from the buildings was vivid enough to bring tears to everyones eyes. No one spoke.....just watched and listened.

The phones at our office began to ring non stop, all seven lines, as people were calling to inform us and their family members. My after school sitter called to see if I wanted her to go pick up Kyle from school. Everyone was so unsure of what would happen next...if anything?

As the days passed you could not turn on the TV without it being coverage from 9/11. All regular programming had been cancelled and news updates were a constant reminder.

With each 9/11 anniversary that has passed, I always pause for a moment of silence and rememberance for those who lost their lives. But this year, it was different. This morning I was in a meeting that began at 8:30 with several other people and I asked that we please take a moment of silence to remember the victims. Each person closed their eyes and bowed their heads.

For me, this 9/11 anniversary has taken on a whole new meaning. You see, this passed year Kyle and I went to New York City and visited Ground Zero. After, seeing the massive whole in the ground, the tile memorials painted by school children and pictures of loved ones hung in the fence, my heart has been forever touched. I stood there, on the same street that everyone had been running down to find saftey, I touched the same white concrete benches that gave fire fighters a moment of rest and I saw the look in my sons eyes as his fingers linked through the barricaded fence where the towers once stood.

I hope we all continue to remember..........

Hard working man.....?????????

Sunday morning I went into Kyle's room to wake him up for church and I did something that I have not done in a long time.....I took his right hand and held it while I TRIED to get him to wake up.....all the sudden I felt something gross and yanked my hand back......"what the world is that????"

I opened up his hand and looked at his palm and you will not believe what I saw.....his entire palm and fingers on his right hand are covered with hard calluses!!!!

You would think that with Kyle only 13 years old that we have subjected him to HARD core child labor or that maybe he got the calluses from putting up hay or working in tobacco and corn this summer (hey don't judge me!.... He loved working on the farm and he loved the thought of earning his own money) or maybe he got them from his weekly job of sweeping out our 3 car garage.......these are all thoughts that ran through my head but they were all.....WRONG!!!!!!

As Kyle started to stir I asked him how in the world did he get all the calluses from?

Kyle "they are from riding the 4 wheeler"

Me "well then why are they only on your right hand?".....I mean I was just guessing on this but the last time I checked it did have two handle bars??????

Kyle "Mom, the gas is on the right!!!!"

Me "so why don't you have them on your left hand?"

Kyle "duh, cause that's the brake side!"

Me "enough said"

So there you have it folks. My son has permenant calluses on his right hand from driving his four wheeler. However, the good side is that it could be worse....it could be from playing the Playstation!!!!!! And evidently we can go ahead and disconnect the brakes cause he must not need them!!!!! God help me!

Oh, I took picture with my cell phone to post for all you guys to see but now that Alltel has merged with Verizon I can't seem to access my pictures online...THANKS VERIZON!!!!!!!!

No BIG Plans

For the past two years our Labor day plans have including the following......

last year - we sat at home watching Cat 1 Hurrincane drench our house with rain and wind. Also the same weekend Chris tore his ACL in his knee (which sweeled up the size of a basketball) so he layed on the couch with ice packs the entire weekend and wound up having to have surgery to repair it a few weeks later.

year before- spent that Labor Day in the ER getting stiches in Kyle's leg from a 4 wheeler accident....yes, I am fully aware that 2 yrs ago he was only 11 and you are thinking "What mother in her right mind lets her 11 yr old son ride a Honda 350 all alone with flip flops???????"......lets just say it's all his DAD'S fault! :O)
That's why I called his Good Ole' Dad on the way to ER so he could meet us there. Cause let face it, when I saw that yellow fatty stuff sticking out of the blood I was NO HELP!

So let's hope and pray that this Labor Day weekend is accident free!!!!

18 Kids & Counting......

.......you can't be serious????? Have you watched this show???? And now the tabloids say that baby 19 is baking in the oven as I type??????

For those of you who are not fascinated with the Dugger Family like I am I will catch you up to speed. They are a sweet family complete with 18 kids ranging in age from 20 to 8 months and all the childrens names begin with the letter "J".....Joshua, Jenna, Jessa, Johannah, Josiha, Jennifer, Jordyn, Jinger.....oh, Lord I'm stuck at 8 names......good thing I'm not the Mom, I would never be able to remember them all and would wind up calling half of them by the dogs name!

Anyway, they live in Arkansas in a humungo house they built themselves.....and I can speak from experience that building a home yourself is no walk in the park!

Now, on to the main point of my post. Michelle Dugger a.k.a Mom age 45 is now prego with kid #19 while all the while her oldest son Josh is expecting his first child(Michelle's first Grandchild) next month. Things of this nature never cease to amaze my little "Mom of 1" brain! But I must say that I am addicted to this show and don't miss an episode.

I guess the thing that has captivated me is the fact that the house always seems to run smoothly. Everything is ALWAYS so nest and tidy, the kids are always very clean, well behaved and well dressed.....(my 13 yr old has to be told to brush his teeth, take a shower, do his homework and most days even be reminded to breath!)
I just don't see how she has pulled all this off while keeping her sanity intacked. I mean honestly folks I am give slam out each night by the time Kyle goes off to bed and I only have 1 child to keep track of and he is equipped with a cell phone and I still struggle......maybe I need to get him a tracking collar?!???

Michelle and Dad "Jim Bob" always speak to their kids in the sweetest voice. Never raising their voice or yelling. I would love to know how they get a teenager to do something without yelling...I have to know the secret! The kids are alway polite and get along together very well (or at least long enough to tape the show) the older ones help out the little ones and no one is running around half dressed or just in a diaper sporting the ever fresh "bed head".....NOPE.....not on Momma Dugger's watch!

So have any of you watched this show and become addicted like me? They are most awesome family in my eyes. I have never really had the desire to have multiple children, much less 19. Nor can I begin to understand why anyone would want such a hectic life. God has given me one wonderful son who is full of life, energy and laughes. And last time I checked 1 child is enough to make me a Mom!

That time of year~

Can you believe it is the first day of September!!!! I can't....this year has just flown by as I stand by with a dumb expression on my face that says, "uh, where did it all go???"

Fall is a mere 21 days away. Fall is my absolute favorite time of year! I know most people love Christmas time and the warm summer, but for me it is the cool, crisp fall mornings that I love. When the first cool breeze blows I run to the mail box to rip down my summer flag and put out my fall one, replace the bright colored wreath on my front door with one for fall. Complete with all the wonderful reds, yellows and browns!!! I also have a horrible addiction to candles!!!! And when I say addiction...I MEAN ADDICTION!!!! All my candles even have their own little "home" in my home....well actually it is a double cabinet in my kitchen but it is totally devoted to ALL CANDLES!!!! Yep, Partylite, Yankee, Scentcy or Doller Tree....hey, I don't descriminate! I burn a candle or put a fresh tart in my tart burner almost every night. I love the smells!!!! Baked Apple Pie, Fall Festival, Autumn Leaves & Harvest.....ahhhhhhh....I can smell them now.



And the best part is that Yankee has come out with a bunch of new scents for Fall that I got a wiff of last weekend while shopping at the mall and oh man did they smell gooooooooood!!!!!!!!!

Hmmmmmmmm

I am really thinking that all I want for lunch today is an M&M McFlurry from McDonald's........


enough said........

~Oh Sooooo Me~

As some of you may or may not know...I was born and raised in the wonderful bluegrass state of Kentucky. I grew up riding horses, watching UK basket ball and the Kentucky Derby. So when I came across this poem on another Kentucky girls blog I could not resist posting it.

For those of you who do know me can agree....THIS IS SOOOOOO ME!!!!!!

Tough girls come from New York.
Sweet girls, they're from Georgia.
But us Kentucky girls, we have fire and ice in our blood.
We can ride horses, be a debutante, throw left hooks, and drink with the boys, all the while making sweet tea, darlin'.
And if we have an opinion, you know you're gonna hear it.”

Blindfold....PLEASE!!!!!!!!!

OMG!!!! I know I never use that stupid text short cut, but in this case it was needed to refrain me from using words far more worse and descriptive! TRUST ME! Kyle and I went to school orientation on Thursday night....Chris was working...lucky him...and since that time I have been pondering in my head the sights that I saw while walking the long locker filled hallways of the middle school.....middle school...keep that word in your mind as I finish this story!

Anyhoo, we started walking the hall with his schedule in hand looking for room numbers. Well, he was having to look for the room numbers because my eyes seemed to be bulging out of my head as I passed all these girls walking the hallways dressed in nearly nothing!!!!!!! You must be kidding me!!! These young 12-13 year old girls were wearing tight little see thru tops that you could see their cute little demi cup Victoria Secret bras through. I mean honestly, some of these girls has boobs as big as mine...and I am not too lacking in that department. The tops were accompanied by short little shorts or tight jeans that I am pretty sure had to be painted on and given time to dry before leaving the house!!!!! I was just dumb founded! I know my mouth was tragging the floor as we made it from room to room. It was not just one or two girls that were dressed like this but ALL OF THEM! I don't have a daughter so maybe I am just way off on this subject but if I did, I can assure that Chris would never let her leave the house in some of the outfits I saw that night. And I know girls mature faster at this age than boys do but Lord have mercy if those girls were mine I would have snactched them up by that pretty little head of hair and drug them back to the house to put some clothes on!!!!!

Kyle is just getting into girls but they only seem to last a week or two and then he is on to better things. I think they may get upset because he still has the "take em or leave em" mentality. Which I know will be changing soon but if I can prolong it I will. But as we walked the halls of school he seemed not even to notice the girls. Maybe it was just because "mom" was with him and I was cramping his style but if that is what it takes I have no problem walking with him to class everyday :O)

It is so hard to let him grow up. Well I guess "let" is not the correct word because it will happen weather I "let" it or not. All we can do as parents is pray that we have given them what they need to be leaders and not followers. But if I could just put a blindfold on him from 8-3 each day that would be great.....do you think that would be too embarrassing if he bumbed into lockers as he tried to make his way to class?????

Bachelorette Weekend with NO BOYS!!!!

I am off to spend the weekend at the beach for my friends Megan's Bachelorette Party! I am pretty sure that no inviations were mailed out to any guys so I am really bummed that Hurricane Bill thinks he can come in and be a PARTY CRASHER!!!!!!

Even though he is forcast to stay well off the Carolina coast we will be getting tons of rain this weekend......but the party will go on.

GO AWAY BILL!!!!!!!

Happy Birthday to my Heather!!!!!

Today is my BFF's birthday...so......HAPPY BIRTHDAY HEATHER!!!!!!

We have been best friends since the first day of Junior High....not Middle School...which is what it is called now......does that give away my age......maybe not :O) It wasn't that long ago really?!? 5 or 6 year maybe?????

Well, more like 21 years!!! That's right folks this month will make 21 years that we have been best friends. There are few people in this world that know me better than she knows me. Which when you really think about is scary as crap!

We have been through so much together during those 21 years. And I am sure if I didn't have her by my side during some of those times I would have never been able to cope. Together we have survived Junior High, High School, first "real jobs", the death of a parent, the divorce of parents, marriage, step families and childbirth. She was with me the entire 28 hours I was in labor with Kyle. Except for the few hours she disappeared and then came back wearing a white Dr. coat....where they heck did she go anyway?????????

We have more inside jokes than you can ever imagine and wonderful memories that will last us a life time. She loves me in spite all my crazy and set ways and would be on the next plane out of Lexington if I needed her....I would just have to reimburse her for her luggage fee's when she got here!

So Happy Birthday Heather!!!! I love you dearly and thank you for always being my friend. I hope you have a wonderful day and even though I can't be with you to celebrate I will hold my own "cute little hula girl glass" high and say
cheers to YOU!

Just a lil color

Okay, so I got this bright idea yesterday that I would try and color my hair myself and save about $50 bucks. I never attempted to color my hair before....I ahve always left that up to the professionals...but how hard could it really be????

After church I head off to pick out the "right shade". That was the hardest part. I wanted to pick a color that would cover my really blonde streaks and my ever increasing little gray friends. Did I just say gray...Oh Lord I did...I am way too young and cool to sport any gray hair!!!!

Anywho, after much consideration of all the brands and colors there are too choose from I settled on Loreal Feria Expresso Medium Brown. Sounds pretty huh??? So I head home and straight to the bathroom to begin. It was actually a pretty easy task...you mix bottle #1 with bottle #2 and then add tube thingy #3 and shake well. Being oh so careful not to leave the flat cap on too long due to the hint on the directions that it could explode!!!!! Thanks for that hint in the fine print....and I am getting ready to put this exploding chemical on my head.....yep! I was pretty good in Chemistry back in High School so off I go like a mad scientist.

I get all applied and gooped up good and proceed to waith the 25 minutes to rinse.
After the 25 minutes and head to the tub to rinse all the color out and add the shine conditioner provided in the kit....I would hate to have to sport the dull mousey brown!!!!!

And here are the results....before and after pics below. Let me know what you think. I am pretty pleased with the out come. It's a little darker than I thought it would be and did cause Kyle to run screaming down the hall when he first saw me but I am sure it will fade in few weeks.

Happy Anniversary to US!!!!!

Today is our 14 year anniversary....WOW!!!! It doesn't seem like it was that long ago when I pulled up at that stoplight in Myrtle Beach and began to talk to the cute guy in the truck next to me.
That's right, we met while we were both on vacation in Myrtle Beach. He was in the Army and stationed in Georgia and I was still living at home in Kentucky. We spent that entire weekend together at the beach then he had to leave. But only after he promised to come back the next weekend again.....I was thinking "Yeah, whatever!" So I spent the rest of my vacation week enjoying the beach. On Friday he did come back and found me driving up and down the strand.....crazy huh! And we spent that entire weekend together.
We met on August 1, 1994 and were engaged on December 24, 1994. I know it was a short time but the long distance was driving us nuts! Even when I think about it.....it was CRAZY....we were engaged and had only seen each other once a month since August.....for those of you counting that is only 5 times!!!!!! But there was no second guesses or any fear. The minute he proposed I knew the answer.....YES!
I spent the next 8 months planning the wedding while he went back to Georgia. Still only seeing each other once each month.
Once we were married I moved down to Georgia into an apartment Chris had found and our life together began. It has not been an easy road. Being the wife of a military soldier and now a State Trooper......but being married to me is not an easy task either :O)
He is truely the love of my life and the person God made just for me. Some people don't believe in love at first sight, they believe you first have to be friends and then it grows into love....I disagree.....I loved him from the minute I saw him. Without knowing his flaws, his bad habits, his back ground, his career choice or quirks. I loved him, just him, plan and simple.
And now after 14 years I know him as well as I know myself. I know what makes him smile, I know his achievments, his faults, his fear of snakes, when he is quite I know what he is thinking without a word being said, and his love and devotion for God and his family.
I thank God every day for the wonderful gift he has given me. Some people go through life and never find that special person but I am blessed to have found mine by the grace of God and one red light!

Happy 13th Birthday Kyle

As of 2:54am this morning I am officially the proud Mother of a teenager! I'm not sure if Kyle feels any older but it sure does makes me!

To catch you up to speed from the last post (if you are keeping track).....if you remember, my water broke around 11:30pm on July 25, 1996. However, my little bundle of joy decided he would take his time and come on his terms.....which ment...I'm not coming out, your gonna have to come in and get me!

So at 2:54am on July 27, 1996 that's exactly what the dr's did.....IT'S ABOUT TIME!!!! I was beginning to think I needed to go ahead and fill out a change of address form with the post office cause this was taken forever....well not really....but for those of you who are counting it was almost 28 hours.....yep, 28 hours from the time my water broke to my c-section! I think I need another award for that :O)

Now you guys know why I only have one child. Even though they say the second comes in half the time that would only take me down to 14 hours and I'm not dumb enough to test that theory out.

After the long labor and c-section I had spiked a fever. I was not doing well and neither was Kyle. When they took him out he was not crying at all. I heard the Dr say, "call pediatric respiratory STAT!". They wrapped him in a blanket and put him in an incubator. Wheeled him up by my head and I heard the nurse say, "Say Hi to momma" and then they wisked him out the door. He spent the first few days of his life in the NICU on a ventilator with tons of tubes all around him.

His birth was not an easy one and both our stays in the hospital reached 8 days. We could not wait to be free and head home.

These first 13 years have not been easy but he has truely been a blessing to us. He has taught me more than I have taught him. Isn't it funny? When you have a child you think you will be the one leading them through life and teaching them new things but I believe it is the opposite. Kyle has taught me how to give until I feel like I can't give any more....but then you do. Love until my heart hurts, laugh until I cry, see the good side in everything and believe without seeing.

He is a special child, my child. My only child. And when he is a grown man with children of his own he will still be my baby boy. And no matter where his life may take him my heart will go with him.

So Happy 13th Birthday Christian Kyle Owens!!!!! Our lives are complete because of you!

Due Date-Part 3

So how was the vacation to the little island out in the middle of no where????

If you are new to my blog see post on Due Date & Due Date-update....other wise you may be lost reading this post.

For those of you who have been following me since my due date on
July 15th......isn't it fun waiting and waiting and waiting and waiting.......well your just gonna have to wait some more.

Look, don't be mad at me. I wasn't the hold up! Trust me!

I was all ready bags packed, grandparents all ready and waiting and SO tired of the hubs following me around with a brown army towel to sit on (just in case my water decided to break on our new furniture!) Yes, it was not a pretty picture!!! I gained 70 lbs while pregnant. The thought off it gives me the willies!!! And along with the 70 lbs came the feet swelling to point of explosion and hauling around a baby complete with 4 gallons of amniotic fluid...that's right 4 GALLONS!!!!! I was a walking Big Gulp from the 7-11! About half way through the pregnancy I was diagnosed with Polyhydramniosis (not sure about the spelling Mom, she types medical transcription so she will let me know if I got it right) Anyway, it just means you have excessive amounts of amniotic fluid....YAH THINK! I'm pretty sure I hold the world record with my 4 gallons!!! I should really have gotten an award or something.

So enough about all my bodily fluid and back to the task at hand....well actually a little to the South :O)

I was so tired of waiting. I was almost to point of thinking he was never coming out!
I had to go in the Dr. every 2 days past my due date to be measured and have Kyle monitored to see if he was under any stress. I just think they wanted to see how much longer I could go with out exploding! But each time I was sent back home with no talk of enducing my labor...COME ON ALREADY PEOPLE!

So after the last Dr. appt, on July 25, 1996 I return home with my family thinking it would be another boring night with my new best friend "the brown towel". I enjoyed a wonder meal of homemade tacos and even a strawberry daquiri...don't judge me...I deserved it! Anyway, we all called it a night around 11 and went to sleep.

It was around 11:30 when I awoke to a loud "POP". No one believs me and Dr's say your water breaking doesn't make a noise. But I think those Dr's who I'm sure are all males and have never been pregnant much less with 4 gallons of amniotic fluid!

Well, let me tell you that theory has been shot all to pieces....cause mine did! It sounded just like a water balloon busted...wait.... did I just call myself a water balloon?!?

So, at that point, I grap my handy dandy brown towel, which I have been laying on thanks to my hubs....and cram it between my legs! I turn to Chris and tell him my water just broke. And replys with, "get a towel" and rolls back over!!!!

You must be kidding me! Those words did not just come out of Mr. Brown Towel Toten maniac's mouth!!!! So I get up and hoble all 212 lbs of me to the bathroom while trying to hold the brown towel between my legs...if I would have a video of this I would be $10,000 richer!

Once I reach the bathroom I drop the brown towel and the flood gates open! The amnionic fluid falls to the floor so hard and fast it is splashing back up on my legs. To give you a visual, it was just like someone had taken a gallon of milk and poured out on the floor.

We all rallied together to clean up the mess, got my bags, loaded in my parents new Lexus complete with leather seats(thank God the had leather)....and a new brown towel to sit on.

During the 20 minute drive to the hospital we all talked about how Kyle's birthday would be July 26th since it was almost midnight on the 25th.......boy where we wrong!
And now looking back on it I am sure at this point that God does have a since of humor....he could have just sent me an angel that said "hang on little lady, there will be no baby born unto you on July 26th!"...hey it could have happened, it did to Mary....right?!?

So we were off to the hospital. The first thing the ask is if my membranes have ruptured. I tell them "yes" but they still want to do some type of little tissue paper test to see. When the nurse comes back in with the "positive test" and tells us "yes" my membranes have ruptured.......YA THINK! I could have just filled the Grand Canyon and 2 olympic size swimming pools!!!!!!

The go ahead and get me admited and hooked up to all the bells and whistles and we all settle in for what we hope will be a quick delivery....I mean it can't take much longer with my water all ready broke right?!? WRONG!!!!!!!

Stay tuned for more............

Old Friends

This picture is of myself with two old friends...well not too old since we are only 21....tehe :O)

We met back in middle school and remained close all the way through high school.......well mostly Heather and I since Jennifer played hooky 4 days a week!!!! We still wonder who her Mom paid off for her to graduate. :O)

We all got together for a "Girls Night" went I was home in Kentucky. We had a great time and really enjoyed catching up on "Old Times" and recent gossip.

The times I shared with these two ladies were some of the best! We got into trouble alot (blamed that all on Jennifer)but we sure made alot of memories!!!

Thanks for all the wonderful laughes, goodtimes and memories you girls have given me.....I love you both dearly!

Due Date~ Update

....so how's that book coming....hehe....I told you that you had plenty of time :O)

It's been 1 week since my due date...and well, were still waiting....{{clock ticking}}.....still waiting......

Maybe it won't be too much longer?????

My Bubba is home!!!!

Yippee skippy...can you see me do my happy dance?!? {{shake, shake}}

He did have an "awesome" time but was super duper tired. He is still at home as I type catching up on his ZZZZZZZZZ's.

They had a live band called Living Water. And they really spend alot of time with the kids and even gave some of them a few guitar lessons.

As much as I missed him I know it was a wonderful experience with all his frinds and the Lord!

Now I have to tell you about the phone call I received from him on Friday night...well, actually it was sometime in the wee hours of Saturday morning but I really couldn't see the clock that well thru all the sleep in my eyes....but the first teary words he said when I said hello was...."momma...I'm saved".

At that moment my heart melted and I wanted to be with him. But he assured me he was fine and that a counselor was with him. They had devotions, bible studies and chapel everyday but it was during the final concert night that God spoke to him and he went forward to the alter to make his commitment to the Lord.

Now how does a Mom go back to sleep after a call like that?!?

God is GREAT!

~Cravings~

Ice Cream...oh how I love thee....let me count the ways......in a cone , in a cup, in a dish, in a glass, in a spoon straight from the carton, off the floor......just kidding on that last one. Well maybe not, I would have to weigh my options. If it was the last scoop in the carton and I had mopped the floor in the past week then yep, probably so!!!!

I thought I would do a post on one of my cravings since I am keeping with the "due Date" theme....and boy was ice cream at the top of my list.....spicy food was running a close race for 2nd place!

For those of you who know me, you can agree ot my all time love and dear passion for this wonderful desert!!!! However, I am not a name brand junkie when it comes right down to it. It doesn't have to be Bryers, or Edies or even Ben & Jerry's as long as it's cold and frozen with no hunks and bumps in it...that just slows me down and gets in my way!!!! Just plain chocolate, vanilla or maybe some fudge ripple.

But I must confess that I have some form of ice cream EVERY night! If you don't believe me you are more than welcome to asks the "hubs" he will tell ya! The bad thing is that I have passed this trait(fettish) of mine along to my son....he is my ice cream eating partner in crime :O)

Seriously, how many people can say they wrecked their beautiful sports car while on the way to the store for none other than ......you guessed it....ICE CREAM! That would be me! My senior year in high school I was have one of my ice cream craving fits so I left a friends house and scooted of to the nearest Kroger. An dof course the wreck happened on the way back from the store....and DANG IT...my ice cream got all melty while waiting on the cops...so my passanger side door was all busted up and I had melted ice cream....I was not happy!

So there you have it, my oh so wonderful love for the frosty frozen treat!

Due Date

Yes, my due date has offically come and gone. It was yesterday July 15th...just not in 2009 but 1996. I bet some of you are thinking to yourself right now "what! I didn't know she was pregnant"...well, you can now stop holding your breath and release it before you pass out because I'm not..NOT ON YOUR LIFE!!! NOT EVER AGAIN!!!!! But 13 years ago...I was, and yesterday was my due date.

Not a year has gone by since Kyle's birth that on July 15th I don't think...."today was my due date"....am I the only one that does that....maybe?!? Oh, well.

So, I thought since Kyle is getting ready to cross over into his "teen" years this would be a perfect time to take you through my due date, labor and delivery on the exact days they happened.

......so, get comfy, grab and good book, your labtop, take a vacation to some island far away...no kidding, even though yesterday was my due date you have plenty of time before he comes...this is gonna take a while!

Awesome Camp

Well, Kyle made it to camp safely. He left Monday morning at 9:45 and we finally heard from him last night about 11pm.....what's up with that???? I was beginning to think that maybe he was not going to call us all week long(my heart would have been broken and he would have been SO grounded when he got home!)

It was a short conversation that went something like this....

"Hey Momma"

"Hey Bubba, are you having a good time?"

"yep"

"Are you doing okay"

"yep, I'm fine"

"What have you been doing?"

"Hey Mom, they have a live band. this place is awesome!"

"who's cellphone are you using?"

"Will's"

"oh, have you been eating good?"

"yes, mama, the food is awesome"

"HEY WILL! YOUR MOM'S CALLING ON THE OTHER LINE! Well, Mom I gotta go."

"okay Bubba, I love you, have a good time"

"I will, this place is awesome...love you"

So, that's how it went....I may be way off on this but I think camp must be pretty AWESOME!

Give Away!!!

One of my favorite blogs I follow is Life, New England Style @ www.lifenestyle.blogspot.com.

She is having an awesome give away for L.L. Bean.

So drop on buy her blog to registar to win......

Feared by many....Loved by few

Most normal people would think your first "major purchase" as newly weds would be a house or a car or even perhaps a washer & dryer...well Chris and I are much to different for that. Our first "major purchase" as newly weds came in eth shape of a little furry ball with a dark eyes and a not so wanging tail. Yep that's right, it was a puppy!

We bought her just 4 months after we were married from a pet store in the Augusta, GA mall. I remember carrying her out of the mall in my arms just like I remember carrying Kyle out of the hospital as a new born....she was in a since, of first child.

She was a Blue Chow Chow and for those of you who have a Chow or know anything about them will agree when I tell you the following things. You have to be a special person to love and raise Chow's. Their breed has more of a cat personality (ya know, I can live with ya or without ya kinda mentality). Well, that was our Daquiri. She always did things her way. When SHE wanted to do them and not a second before. Chris and her had several Alpha Male battles :O) She never played with toys. Her theory was "you threw it, you go get it". She wasn't prissy at all but very stead fast and strong willed and everything was her way. She would never give up anything without a fight.

She was also very pertective of the 3 of us!!! The first time my parents came to visit us in Georgia my mom woke up before everyone else and decided she would get up and make coffee....Daquiri on the other hand did not agree to this plan. She had slept in front of our guest room door all night and when Mom opened the door she just layed there and growled.....so Mom just shut the door and waited.

Then when Kyle was just an infant we had a yard sale. I had Kyle in his walker playing under the carport during the yard sale. Well, there was a man at the yard sale who had walked over and WAS going to speak to Kyle...but Daquiri was not too keen on how close the gentleman was getting to Kyle and took matters in to hear own paws and bit the man on his heel....YIKES!

She was always on guard, especially when Chris was not around. She was always my peace of mind when Chris worked nights. And I can honestly say I slept very sound knowing she was out there on patrol.

About 3 years ago her hearing began to get worse and eventually was lost all together. Being deaf made things even harder for Daquiri and harder on us to comunicate with her. But she was a fighter. Each time someone left the house you always had to go around and make sure were Daquiri was before you backed out of the garage. Well the one time I was in a hurry and didn't look for her....guess where she was???? That's right...under my tire!!! It was the most horrible noise I have ever heard and it broke my heart! Chris rushed her to the vet and she had to have surgery to repair her broken leg....her ego would have to heal over time.

I guess I could go one forever with stories about Daquiri but that would not bring her back. Daquiri gave up her long fight and left us on Friday night for "Doggie Heaven"....after 14 years our first "major purchase" was gone. It broke our hearts to see her go but we were all there with her to say goodbye. Daquiri was not liked by many because of her moody ways and bad attitude....but she was loved so much by the three of us!

P.U.S.H

Pray Until Something Happens

These four small, but oh so strong words were written on a small piece of paper and handed to my son by his bus driver on his last day of school as he got of the bus for home....(and some people think public schools are bad?!?)

So I felt the need to use this as my post today. I have several friends and family members who are going through some very hard and difficult times right now so I thought this would be fitting.

Remember the Lord will never leave you or forsake you.

Just remember to PUSH!

How will I cope?

So I need some help......Kyle leaves for church camp on Monday morning and I am wondering what in the Sam Hill(who ever he is) I am going to do without my one and only son around for a whole week!?!......besides the obvious thing of MY HOUSE WILL STAY CLEAN.....Hooray!

But on a more serious note....really what am I gonna do? He has been away from before so that's not really my main concern. I know he won't get homesick. I just wonder how many camp kids are gonna pass out from his rank breath if their is no one there to make sure he brushes his teeth....or even worse...if the B/O kicks in from lack of body contact with soap...oh Lordy, my head is spinning and swooning just thinking about it!!!!! Don't get me wrong I carried this child for 9 months(wait it was longer than that, I went 2 weeks past my due date)and I love him with all my heart but he really has the attention span of a gnat. So I know with all the fun and action going on around him he will be off in "Kyle Land" and more than likely will have to be reminded to breath!

They are also not allowed to take any cell phones to camp. So I will have to rely on him to call me each night(and for the tooth brush issue that will be way too late!)

So if any of you Mom's out there in Blogland have any brillant ideas on how you helped your child when they went away to their first camp please let me know....my only hope at this point is that he will meet a cute girl and that will give him enough cumption to take some pride in his appearance and at least make sure his clothes match!

That's more than likely a long shot but hey....a Mom can dream ...can't she?!?

Vacation pictures

Here are a few pictures we took over July 4th weekend while my BFF Heather was visiting. We always have a great time when she is in....go lay out by the pool, go to the beach and go out on the boat.....ahhhhhh fun in the sun!!!!!

Wrong Hole

....yep, that's the name of our boat! The great part is that is can double as a fishing term since my husband always seems to fish the "wrong hole" and doesn't catch anything and for the putting the gas in the "wrong hole" on the boat.

It is most fitting....don't ya think?????

What's in a name?

Speaking as a parent, when you first find out you are pregnant you begin the long task of picking out a name for your baby. You know, throwing names out to see how thay roll off the tongue and how they sound with the middle and last name....ever parent does it...right?

Well, the same is true for my husband and his baby(a.k.a his boat baby)We have had our boat for about 3 years and have been tossing out names since he first pulled her in the driveway. Since he din't want to name her after me :O(

Anyway, he wanted to think off something clever and funny that fit him and his personality. We bought the boat for the family but for those of you that don't know my husband...HE LOVES TO FISH...not that he is good at it...but he loves it! So he thought up the following names....Spot Remover, Croaker Choker, One More Cast, Bite My Worm, and 10-42(off duty) which I really like since he is in law enforcement. But none of those really struck his fancy so to speak.

Well, we pull out on Saturday morning with the boat to head out for a fun day on the water to tube, float around and watch the fireworks...sounds like fun...right? But first we have to stop and fill up the boat with gas. My friend Heather, myself and my son wait in the truck while Chris goes to fill up the tank on the boat. After a few minutes Heather notices Chris wiping his hands on a towel and that there is gas all on the ground. So naturally we just thought he got the tank too full and it over flowed...NOT THE CASE! When Chris gets back in the truck he starts laughing and then fills us in on why this is all so funny. Instead of putting the gas nossil in the gas hole he put in fishing rod holder!!!! Yep, thats right folks my angler of a husband filled the hull of our boat full of gas!!!!! We all start laughing so hard...what else can we do? This man has been fishing since he was old enough to stand up and hold a rod and can't remember where the gas goes...honestly! So we enoyed a nice day on the boat sky high from gas fumes and not to mention depressed and how much money we had wasted in gas!

So, now back to the whole name bit. We have finally decided on the perfect name for the boat. How many of you can guess?????

I will give you a hint...it can double as a name for fishing or the "gas incident"

And Heather you can't guess since you were there to witness the entire mess and already now the answer :O)

Uh.....has any body seen my desk????

seriously people......I was sure it was here when I left for vacation last week! I have been here at work for 2 hours and I just found my keyboard!!!! And at this point I am not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing!

It is so hard getting back into the swing of things after being an vacation for so long. My trip to Kentucky was great. And Kyle and I really enjoyed seeing all my family. Except I'm not sure why I am calling it a vacation since I really don't think we stopped at all to rest and relax.

I got to see a ton of old friends from school and enjoy a night out with the girls...what fun..hehehehe! I will have to post some pictures later for you guys to see.

Well, I better get back to work for now cause todat is the only day I am working this week then it back for another mini-vaca to celebrate July 4th with my BFF Heather on the boat....ahhhhhhh....bring on the sun and the fireworks!

River Rats.....thats us!

So we spent this past weekend on the river enjoying the sunshine and cool water. We did a little tuben some sunnin and a lot of eatin..... He are a few picture I snapped of Kyle and his snazzy jumps off the boat(with Dad as the attack shar)....du-dum du-dum du-dum....

Kyle also drove the boat as Dad tested out the waters on the tube...what fun that was to watch Kyle stry his hardest to throw his Daddy off the tube and into the water!

Beach Pictures

On the road.....again

I can hardly stay in my seat as I write this post because I am too excited! I leave for home tomorrow morning...well not really my home since I didn't grow up in the house where my parents are currently living...but anyway...it's where my Mom is and so we will call it my home in Kentucky.

Kyle and I will set off on I-40 bright an early tomorrow morning to make the oh sooooooooo looooong 9 1/2 hour drive. Did I mention it takes 9 1/2 hours .....{{Sigh}} my legs are going numb just thinking about sitting that long! Not to mention making that drive with my VERY hyper and talkitive 12 year old ....but I think it will be great for me to spend some time with him and make some great memories along the way.

So adios to my blog friends. My road trip will be underway shortly and I will send you a post tomorrow night when we are safe and sound at Mimi's house in Kentucky! But first I have to go home and finish packing and re-packing(since I really haven't unpacked from our beach trip last week.)

~Until Next Time~

Back in the real world!

What a wonderful vacation we had! We enjoyed the awesome weather at the beach and some time at the river on our boat. It was so nice to get away for awhile...but now it is back to the grind for 2 days and then I am off on vacation again...YIPEEEEE! That's right...Kyle and I leave on Wednesday morning to head to the wonderful Bluegrass State.... aka.....KENTUCKY! This will be our first "road trip" alone without Dad to be our driver...but I am up for the challenge...I will just take my duck tape for Kyle's non stop chitter-chatter and away we go!

Here are a few pics of the bech I took with my phone. I will have to post the ones from my camera later when I am in Kentucky. So you will have to check back cause I took some great ones!

~Until Next Time~

Vacation Time

We are off to enjoy the rest of the week on the beautiful North Carolina Coast....see ya on Monday...I know your jealous...right?

Bubba the Barber

So, I get home Friday after work to rush in and get Kyle and rush right back out the door for VBS.

Kyle has already had a shower and should be ready to go. As I run in our bathroom to tell my husband bye(since he will be working ALL night) I notice several pieces of long wet hair in my sink.....since Chris has really short hair I ask him, "did you cut Kyle's hair?" to which his answer is "no, why?".....

I yell for Kyle who comes bounding in the room with his hair still wet from his shower and a Yankee's cap on.

Me -"Kyle, did you cut your hair"

Kyle- "yes"

Me-"why?"

Kyle- "because it didn't look right over my ears in this hat"

Well, by all means then hack it off!!!! Honestly, you would think of a toddler getting a hold of a pair of scissors and hacking away at their bangs but who would think you need to put scissors out of reach of a 12 year old.......NOT ME!

So then I ask him if he was trying to play barber....to which he replies...

Kyle- "what is a barber"

Me - "it's what a man is called that cuts hair"

Kyle - "then what do they call a women that cuts hair a Barbara"

Oh good grief I give up...this boy is a mess!!!!! I can never stay upset with him too long he is way to funny!!!!

So needless to say we headed off to VBS with a "new do" still hidden under the Yankee's hat!

Friday Thoughts~

Not much going on today...still recooping from out HUGE cookout feast here at work yesterday....I just LOVE food days...Yumm :O)

So instead of spending this weekend in NYC like I did last weekend I will be teaching at VBS(Vacation Bible School) I will have the young teens. I really enjoy teaching this age. They are not to "big for their britches" and young enough to enjoy some crazy games. Tonights game involves water balloons..hehehe.

One of my fondest memories as a child was attending VBS each summer at my oh so tiny country church slam out in the middle of "God & Nowhere". I always loved that week spent with old friends, fun games, and snacks. But most of all learning the nightly bible verses and theme songs. I still remember one year we had a song called "Arky Arky" come on Jennifer, you know you want to sing it with me :O)

Uhmmmmm....Let me clear my throat...memememememe

okay, I'm ready...

The Lord told Noah to build him an arky arky
Lord told Noah to build him an arky arky
Build it out of gopher barky barky
Children of the Lord

The animals the animals they came in by twosy twosy's
the animals the animals thay came in by twosy twosy's
elephants and kangaroosy roosy's
Children of the Lord

It rained and poured for forty dayes dayes
rained and pured forty dayes dayes
Almost drove those animals crazy crasy
children of the lord

The sun came out and dried up the landy landy
Look the sun!
It dried up the landy landy
Children of the Lord!

So there you have it....one of my all time favorite VBS theme songs!!!

~Until Next Time~

HOLY CRAP!!!!!

No, I did not just get a phone call from Kyle all in a panic!!!! YES I DID!!!!

Mom: "hello"

Kyle: " Mom, my turd won't go down the toilet!"

Mom: "Do what?" keep in mind I am sitting in my office...WORKING!

Kyle: "I tried to flush but it won't go down!!!"

Mom: " Are you serious", laughing like crazy!

Kyle: getting a little upset with me for not having an oh so clever "fix" to his potty delimma..."Mom is NOT fumnny it's as long as my leg!"

Mom: now I am really laughing so hard I can barely breath." well just use my bathroom or the 1/2 bath until I get home"

Kyle: "No mom , it won't go down, I have to fix it"

Mom: (now my motherly humor kicks in) " Well you shouldn't have crapped such a huge turd. Just let it sit in there and soak, maybe it will break up"....quick clever thinking on my part..huh?

Kyle: "oh, yea good idea...I'll call you back later and let you know"

Mom: "oh, take a picture of it", I say this in a joking manner by the way,only to get this response.

Kyle: "I already did, I'll sent it to your phone"

Well I must go and wipe my eyes from the tears of laughter so I can see the picture clearly when the picture message comes in!

Man I love that boy~

Honest Scrap

Tamela @ Burnette making it one day at a time gave me this "little activity"...thanks Tamela!!!

All you need to do is post 10 true "honest" things about yourself...then pass it onto other bloggers to follow with the same.....should be easy enough since I did "100 things about me" in a post not too long ago....I will try and get 10 new things so you guys don't think I have such a boring life :O)

1. I met my husband at a stop light while on vacation in Myrtle Beach. I know I have posted this before but it still is an amazing story we will enjoy sharing with our grandchildren one day.

2. I hated college...guess that's why I only lasted 1 semester...that and I was engaged and getting ready to move to Georgia.

3. I was born with MAJOR hip problems and had to wear leg braces until I was 1 yr old and I still kinda walk like a duck.

4. I hate seafood...if it lives in water I DON'T EAT IT!!!!!!

5. I was locked out of my house by Kyle when he was only two...while he stood in side and laughed!!!! Can you say grounded for life!

6. I once locked Kyle in our black car with black leather seats while he was strapped in his carseat...keep in mind the keys were in the front seat not doing me ANY good! The hubs never found out about this and still doesn't know....SHHHHHHH it's our little blog world secret....I guess I could say I was just getting even with Kyle for locking me out of the house :O)

7. I was in labor for 28 hours!!!! My reason for only having 1 child!!!

8. I don't know how to drive a stick shift...nope tried several time...gave up...don't have the hand eye cordination or the brain compasity.

9. I am a neat freak...really everthing has it's place

10. I love big hair bands from the 80's & 90's....Guns & Roses, Def Lepard, Bon Jovi, Warrent, Poison.

I am now passing this along to....

Ashley @ The Heath Bunch (maybe she will do a new post...hint hint)
Nikki @ The Mills (maybe she will do one too)
Kristen @ Your Daily Davis Dose
Future Mama @ Baby Making Machine

Have fun you guys!!!

Last Day!!!!

That's right folks..... Today is the last day of school!!!! Even though it is the last day, well actually 1/2 a day since they only go until 12:30. I still had to drag Kyle out of the bed! I told him he didn't have to go but if you read my previous post you might say he has his "eye on the prize" aka a HUGE plaque for having prefect attendence for all 3 years of middle school..which we won't get until next year during the 8th grade awards day. So anyway, 2 yrs down...1 to go!

On another great note...we leave for a our beach vacation in 1 week.....YIPEEE! Thanks to some great friends who let you use their place right on the beach in Top Sail Island. We always have the best time just the 3 of us relaxing, tanning, fishing, crabbing, eating & lounging...sounds great...Right??? And since my son doesn't have a shy bone in is body and will make friends with a wall makes it even nicer. He always finds some boys to hang out and boogie board with. Last year while we were there Chris caught and small shark and all the kids had a blast petting it before Chris turned him free.

Well, that's all for now, better run and get back to work...DANG IT!

~Until Next Time~

Bus wreck!!!

Our bus guided tour had a little oopsy!!!!! When they honk it means...MOVE IT!!!!!

Kyle & Courtney

Ground Zero

New York City

New York City in less than 36 hours = EXHAUSTED!!!! But I am famous....that's right ladies...I made it in time for the Today show and made it on TV......YAHOOOOO!!! I know a ton of people saw us because the second it was over everyone's phones started going crazy with text messages and calls that they had just seen us on TV....it was soooo neat and Kyle was really excited about it. The plus side was also that I didn't have to act too crazy to draw attention to get us on TV :O)

We had a great time. Kyle has decided he NEVER wants to go back to China Town but other than that it was great. Here is a list of the places we got to see.

1. The Today Show
2. Rockafeller Plaza
3. China Town
4. Ground Zero
5. Statue of Libery/Ellis Island
6. Time Square
7. Empire State Building
8. Wall Street and the famous bull
9. St. Vincent Hospital-famous for the 9/11 victims
10. Radio City Music Hall
11. The subway...YUCKY
12. NYC taxi cab ride...even YUCKYER! (Kyle hailed his first taxi, but after he did he wasn't sure what to do next...it was too funny!)


Kyle and I both were so tired yesterday. We slept quite a bit on the way home but it still was not like my comfy bed at home. We got home about 7am Sunday morning and went right to sleep. I slept until 11 Kyle on the other hand I had to wake up at 1pm!!!!

But overall it was a great trip and time well spent making memories with Kyle. And we are already planning another trip for the fall....anyone want to go??? :O)

Hope you enjoy the pictures!

Look out New York City.....

....here I come!!!! And my Bubba too....that's right ladies the count down has begun. T minus 8 hours and counting....in rocket time :O) Then I will be on a bus and on my way to the BIG Apple to shop it up in China Town with several great friends. I am so excited!!! I am just as excited for Kyle to see the Statue of Liberty, Time Square and Ground Zero.

We are going to try to make it to the Today Show, if the bus gets there in time. So watch NBC at 8am tomorrow morning....I will be the crazy lady upfront with a long haired red neck 12 year old boy,making fools out of ourselves so Daddy will be soooooo proud of us back in North Carolina......CHEEEEEEESE!!!!!

Well, I will post pictures for all to see on Monday.....

~Until Next Time~

ABC's of ME!

Okay here we go.....

A - Age - 33

B - Birth Place - Lexington, KY

C - Car - actually, I drive a Ford Explorer SUV

D - Dog - yes, 2 Chevy a Chocolate Lab and Daquiri a Chow Chow

E - Exercice - not on a regular routine but trying to get one

F - Family - Me, Chris & Kyle

G - Goals - be debt free...but don't we all have that goal

H - Hobbies - blogging, reading & shopping

I - Ice Cream - yes, love it love it love it!!!

J - Jewelry - Gold & Silver

K - Kids- yes, 1 12yr old son Kyle aka Bubba

L - Love - yes, I believe in love at first site...happened to me a stop light in Myrtle Beach.....see next comment on the outcome :O)

M - Married - yes going on 14 years in August!

N - Nickname - Myrtle...I know, don't ask...something my Mom gave me

O - Outdoors- yes, I love being outside camping, fishing, boating, tanning...whatever!

P - Parents - Mom-Melissa/Step-Dad Bennie/Dad-Ricky

Q - Quick - NO WAY! I don't run at all..... period!

R - Relaxing - I love to relax by laying out on the beach reading

S - Sports - Not really, love to watch Kyle play but that's about it

T - TV Shows - my fav is Jon & Kate & Tori & Dean on the Oxygen Channel

U - Ultrasounds - yep, several while I was pregnant

V - Vacations - Flordia, New Orleans, Tennesse, Kentucky, New York, Myrtle Beach, Outer Banks of North Carolina

W - Wreck - wrecked two cars before I turned 18....oopsy!

X - X-rays - yes, chest, sinus, wrist, back, & hips

Y - Yummy Foods - ice cream, mexican, cheese cake, fried chicken

Z - Zoo- yes, I have been 3 times in my life. I love animals!

Thanks Cari for the great blog idea!!!!!!

Whew...that took alot of brain power. I am going to rest!!!!

~Until Next Time~