A Long Six Months

  It's been a long six months. I know I've probably lost all my followers. My last post was only a few days before my brother in-law passed back in February. Needless to say life has had it's ups and downs.
 
We've had to deal w/some problems for Cody at school. He's had a couple more belt testings, is now a red belt, will get his red/black in a couple weeks, and become a black belt in December. We took Cody and went to visit our sister in-law in TN, when he got out of school for the summer. We still had our yearly summer get together w/ friends & family last month. And now it's August, I can't believe how fast the time goes by!  I can't believe our little boy is going into 5th grade this year!

  Will post some pictures of some of our adventures this summer a little later today.


 

1st Reginonal Taekwondo Tournament - Makes My Monday

Cody competed in his first regional Taekwondow tournament Saturday. He was a little nervous, but he did great, being his 1st one! I can't believe how many competitors were there, and family!! It was hard to take picures because of all the people, but we got a few. Everyone that competed receieved a trophy, which I thought was really cool!

This was just a few of the competitors.

(Kind of blurry) But This was Cody during warm-ups, doing a jump kick.

And Cody with his trophy! He was very proud of it! So were we!!

His lead instructor did a demonstration before the competition that was really impressive too...

All in all it was really neat to watch. Being the first competition, we weren't sure what to expect. But it was a fun experience, and can't wait for the next one!!

His smile after receiving his trophy 'Makes My Monday'

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A Fun Weekend but a Long Week

This last weekend was fun. We went to my sister & brother in-laws for their son (Luke's) b-day get together on Saturday. It was a lot of fun, and were able to share in the fun with the rest of the family. I still can't believe he's 2 already!!

He had fun opening his presents.....

But the cards didn't really interest him at all!

His cousins had fun too, especially his youngest cousin Adam!!

The cake was yummy!!!

The neopolitan cake with vanilla ice cream was the best!!

Sunday night wasn't so fun though. Cody gave me a hard time about going to bed. The first time he came out of his bedroom he said he couldn't fall asleep, the 2nd time he was carrying his waste basket & said he didn't feel good. Well I thought it was a ploy just to stay up, this was all about 9pm. I was doing some laundry downstairs and I heard him get up and go into the bathroom......

Well Mom was wrong about the ploy to stay up!!! He got sick, and sick all over, from his bedroom to the bathroom!! I was trying to clean things up, while he was still sick. And I didn't know what to do first! I wanted to care for him, but I also needed to start the clean-up, and Mike was working. Needless to say I called Mike frantically ....."you need to find someone to work for you so you can come home"......................."never mind I've got it together now, see you in the morning". I guess I just needed to hear my honey's voice, then I felt better. I had to be at work the following morning, and when I was getting ready, Mike calls "I'm sick too"!!! Well I had to get someone to work for me so I could stay home & take care of my guy's.

They're feeling much better today. Cody went back to school, and everything is getting back to normal!!

Why is there such a thing as a "24hr bug"? I don't like it at all!! I'm just glad they are both feeling better now. Geeesh, what a long couple days!!

Hard to let them grow up!

  They grow so fast it's hard to keep up! I realized today that I do so many things for Cody, that he should do himself. You don't think about it sometimes. You remember bringing them home from the hospital, pretty soon it's off to school. The mom instinct never fades. I'm definitely not a helicopter mom, I don't hover over everything he does. But it's just weird how there are certain things that I do for him that I don't think about letting him do, because that's just what I do. For example - letting him get his own glass of milk, or cut up his own chicken at dinner time. Just things like that, and there are others. I guess deep down on a subconscious level I still seem him as my little boy, and that's how I'll always see him. And even though he's independent with a lot of things, I guess I need to let him be, even more so. I love to watch him grow, and venture into new aspects of his life. I love that he's so smart, and always willing to learn new things. I love his wild & crazy imagination!
  It's just hard to watch them grow up so fast. I wish they could stay small just a little while longer. I'm am very blessed though to have such a loving & caring boy.  I hope someday when he looks back on his life, and he thinks about mom & dad, he can say we did a good job, and that he's had a good life. 

Take care & smile! ;0) 

A Fat Cat That Likes to Play

  This is our cat 'Sally'. She's almost 4 years old and I can't believe she still likes to play as much as she does! She is so much fun to watch sometimes. I like Cody's belly laughs when he watches her, especially when she's running around the house like crazy! She'll come walking down the hallway sidways with her tail all puffed out and the hair standing up on her back.

  I caught her the other night with the camera, finally, playing with one her foam balls underneath the entertainment center. She bats it under neath then tries to crawl underneath to get it. I just wish I could explain to this cat that one of these days she's going to get stuck!!

It's a good stress reliever if nothing else, to watch this cat!!

My Nephew's 1st Birthday & Family Get Togethers - Makes My Monday

The family got together Saturday to celebrate Adam (my nephew's) 1st birthday. It was a fun day, a lot of friends & family!

I always love spending time with my family. All the kids had a blast playing, running around, eating pizza, and cake!!

I just wish we all lived closer so that we could get together more often. O'well I guess it just makes it that more special when we are able to spend time together.

Thanks again to Barb & Paul for such a great day!!

Playing along with Makes My Monday

The Computer Blues

I've been trying to keep up with my blog, facebook too, and everything else, but my poor puter is acting up. I have a feeling I'm going to have to take it to a computer Dr!! I don't know if I can be without it for very long, but I guess I might have to. It's so hard to know what's good or bad as far as visiting web sites, or downloading things. I think what the problem is is that a while back the power cord got stepped on right about where it plugs in to the computer, and created a small crack. I took it to Bestbuy to have it looked at and they told me it would cost about $150, and they would have it for 2 weeks. Needless to say that wasn't possible at the time, and I wasn't having any problems with it then. It's just hard to believe that's the cause of the problems I'm having right now. Oh well, I'll find out soon enough. Wish me luck!! I'll try to keep up either on my puter if I can, before I take it to get it fixed, or on someone elses.  :(

Take care!!

Back to school & being 9 (going on 19)

  I wish I could snap my fingers and make Cody's ear infections disappear! The Dr's told us he would outgrow them by this time! Well, I guess that goes to show not everyone knows everything!!! Anyway, after being sick the whole weekend (and Mom not getting any sleep) he finally went back to school Wednesday. He could have gone back Tuesday, but I wanted to let the antibiotics get a good day in the system before I sent him back.

  Well, I can honestly say that he's feeling A LOT better! Gee, how do I know this, his talking back along with a little atitude!! That was my cue to say "pack your book bag for school sweetie, because it's school for you today!!!" (I can't fib, he wasn't all that bad... but bad enough!!) Can anyone else relate?!?! If anything, my two sisters with little ones 3 & under can take notes for later on!!  ;0)

Way Back When-esday : I know reading is good but...

I know it's a good thing to promote early reading, but I never thought he would want to start out with the newspaper!! I always wonder when I look at this, what was going through that little mind!! We're very lucky that he does like to read so much, it sure has helped him in school!

I guess letting him read the newspaper when he was small has contributed to him being able to read & write at a 7th/8th grade level while still in 4th grade!

Play along with Way Back When-esday, stop by Twinfatuation

Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Texting, Webcams.... does it ever end?

Well I told myself, and everyone else that I wasn't going to join Facebook. Guess what I did Saturday? I'm still not sold on it, it's just one more thing I've got to keep up with.... just like my blog, that I hardly ever post on anymore!! It was all really addictive in the beginning, but it all wears off after a while. I guess I'm just not a finatic about it like others are. I can't help it, I seem to tell everybody how much I hate all this technology, like cell phones and computers. Life just seemed a lot easier, slower paced. But I guess things have to change. I just don't like it sometimes. That's just me, I'm not a big computer person. My mailbox has been screaming at me to actually send a letter & for bills too I suppose!!

I do have to admit, the blogging thing is nice for keeping in touch with people, that is when you keep up with your own blog too!!(speaking of myself)  ;0)  All I can do is try & that's what I do.

Everyone take care & smile!!

A New Year

A New Year to try and start fresh:

Try things you've never done;

Go places you've never gone (which could be right outside your door);

Take risks even when you're afraid of the big unknown;

Write that letter to someone you've been thinking about (Yes, snail-mail, it used to mean a lot to people, and still does to some!!);

Try a new recipe, a new food;

Sit down and color with your child, or read a book (life goes by too quick!);

Catch yourself when you tell them to be quiet while your watching the news (the news will still be there tomorrow, your child will be just that much older!);

Enjoy it when people want to spend time with you (A lot of people don't have anyone or are too hateful for others to want to be around);

Enjoy being loved, and love all that much more;

Pamper yourself once in a while (buy yourself a book, a music CD)

Don't worry about what the experts say, do they really know it all anyway?!

Live one day at a time: I'd rather forget the past, not worry about the future (cuz I can't change it anyway), and treat today like the present it is!

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Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and fun ringing in the New Year! I had an awesome time spending it with all my loved ones.

Take care and smile!! ;0)

Closer and closer to that Black Belt!

This past Saturday Cody tested for his brown belt. He didn't want to go at first, because he thought said he "didn't feel comfortable" with his form. I convinced him that he would do just fine if he did the best he could, and that the rest would come. Well he did great, I knew he would remember all of his moves once he got started. It was awesome!

Here is part of his routine with his Nunchakus.

Part of his form.

This was some of his Sparring. I tried to keep him centered, but didn't have a lot of luck. There were

so many people there and not many places to sit, and the place I sat happened to be the spot everyone had to walk by!

Class picture

Cody with his instructor (Mr.Faett-5th degree black belt) & Mr. Faetts boss Mr.Lance (with 17 world championships under his belt)

Take care and smile, Christmas is almost here!!

A Big History Week

Before I get started with this post I just wanted to tell my hubby I had a very nice time on our night out for our 15th anniversary! And thank you Mom & Dad for watching Cody for us!!

We had fun with Cody's class this past week. Mike & I  volunteered to be chaperones for their 'Big History' week, and when I say all week I mean all week! They went every day last week all day long (8:30-2:30). We spent most of the time at the Historical Museum. On Monday we walked to the Capital and spent some time there, actually I missed Monday because I had to work, then Friday we walked to the Hall of Justice for an hour or so. It was a long week, but it was really fun, especially having tour guides at the historical museum. It was really interesting! Their teacher had a lot of fun assignments for them to do, for instance she had them, at one point, pick out 4 or 5 artifacts from any of the many exhibits, draw a picture and explain why this particular artifact was important. She had many things for them to do. It was really a neat experience for them.

This is the Historical Museum where they spent most of the time. Most of the exhibits they studied were on the 2nd & 3rd floor. The other half of the museum is the library, where they learned about looking at news papers on micro-film, and also learned a little about geneology. They actually let them look up relatives, from the 1930 census on the computers.

Watching, listening, and learning. They had quite a bit crammed into those little brains.

They walked around with their pens and notebooks, did the assignments and drew their pictures.

With all they had to do, I'm surprised they had as much fun as they did!

....and have time to play too!!

The State Capital

Click here for a neat interactive tour through the rotunda at the capital

Hall of Justice

All in all it was a very interesting and informative week. I think everyone had fun!!

My Son and His Talent : Makes My Monday

Cody hasn't used this chalk board in a long time. But he had me bring it up from the basement last week. He's been using it for practicing his math for school. The other night he was busy at it, and I wasn't paying attention to what he was doing. Well with the holidays soon approaching he's been thinking about Christmas (apparently). This is what he drew, and this "Makes My Monday".

Visit & play along with Make My Monday

School Picture

  I never thought we would receive Cody's school pic's, but we finally got them last week. The first pic's with his glasses on. He was really excited about it. I can't believe how big he's getting!! I wish I could snap my fingers and keep him the way he is! I also wish I could keep myself from getting older. The gray hair, and sagging face. Oh well, life goes on, I'll get used to it.

  I got my hair cut the other day, and she asked me where I wanted my hair parted, and I said the side to cover up all the gray patches! They say the 40 is the new 20..... I don't know if I beleive it or not. I remember when I was little, I always wished I could grow older faster, now sometimes I wish I could go back and not have to worry about taking care of family, working. Not that it's a bad thing, but just to have that free spirit, to play and to have fun. Don't get me wrong, I love my family, and wouldn't trade them for the world. I would just like to be able to have that child like spirit, and imagination again. Wouldn't  it be great?

Where Does The Time Go?

  I can't believe it's been so long since I've posted anything! A lot has been going on. Cody's doing good in school. He just got over a middle ear infection that moved into an upper respiratory infection, this was about a couple weeks ago. Mike was chosen to take some classes in Alabama put on by the Department of Homeland Security. He was gone the last week of October (the week Cody was sick), and again this last week, infact he just got back yesterday.
  Is this coming week really Thanksgiving already!?!?!?! I can't wait to spend time with family, and eat all the yummy food that were going to have! The only thing now is thinking about getting ready for x-mas!! We haven't even started our shopping. It seems to be the norm every year!! Anyone else in the same boat? It seems like it gets harder and harder to buy gifts for people, not knowing what to get.
  Hope everyone had a good weekend, and has a good week to come! Take care!

First Day of School

Well today is Cody's first day back to school after a very short summer!! I can't believe the trees are already starting to change. Not that I don't mind the colors, but that just means that cooler weather and you all know what follows after that!

Cody has been very excited about going back to school. One of the reasons why is that he has glasses now, and second because he said I got the "Teacher of my dreams". I never wanted to go back to school, the only reason I looked forward to it was because of new clothes and a new lunch pail! I would have much rather stayed stuck in the summer and played!!

Here a few weeks ago Mike & I realized that Cody was setting his chair in the middle of the living room to watch TV. We asked him one night to sit on the couch to watch, and he said he couldn't see that far away. Well, we took him to the eye doctor and sure enough! He picked out his own frames, he thought that was really cool, but we had him pick from the bendable frames. So hopefully it will save on having to buy more because of broken glasses!!

Anyway he's at school right now, and I'm hoping everything is going good for him. The other thing I forgot to mention is that he was really happy because one of the kids, that used to give him a lot of grief and torment, was supposed to be going to another school. Well guess who we saw this morning?! O'well, at least he's in another classroom! I'll keep my fingers crossed that he wont have any problems.

I didn't think I would, but I kind of miss him! Not used to having peace and quiet!

Twos-day - Shoes

  I can't believe how fast the summer went by.  I seems like just last week Cody was bringing home all his belongings from his desk at school. I guess I must have blinked one too many times!! ;0)  And now it's that time again... New backpacks, pencils, erasers, notebooks, etc. 
  We had to get Cody (another) pair of shoes.  I can't believe he is only nine years old, and his shoes are almost as big as mine!!! I always joked with Mike that Cody would be wearing the same size clothes as him before he hit middle school!  Well, I didn't actually think
this would be the case!! My gosh they grow fast, don't they?!?!
  Sorry about not having people for my pic, but I just couldn't help it when I saw his shoes sitting next to mine! (and yes I know, I need some new sandles!!)
 

Stop by and visit Debi to join in 'Two for Tuesday'

Have a great day!!

A Fun Couple Weeks

Cody had belt testing in Taekwando last weekend. Yesterday afternoon one of the students had a birthday party, and last night they had what they called "Ninja Night", it was just a fun get together for all the students with games, fun competitions, and it gave the parents the night out. They had pizza and drinks for them, also at the birthday party earlier that afternoon he had pizza and cake. I think he's had enough pizza to last him for quite a while!!

The testing last Saturday was held at a local park. It was really nice. Afterwards they had a balloon fight and then a cookout.

Cody receiving his Blue belt.

Class picture.

Then the balloon & water gun fight started! I didn't get too close, I didn't want to get blasted with water, while taking pics with my new camera!!

They all had a lot of fun, I think the instructors got soaked the most!!! The kids loved that!!

The cookout was great! Everyone brought a dish to pass, and all the food was very yummy!!

Things That Make You Thankful!

It's funny how becoming a mom changes so many things in your life, and I'm not just talking about having another little mouth to feed. I mean giving up the things you would usually do for yourself, and (besides loving your husband) knowing that you would give your life for the little one(s) that you bring into this world. Knowing a whole other love that you've never experienced before. And I think we take for granted (sad to say) that those little ones will always be there, and that you will go before them.

This past Thursday I had a reality check, that I think will forever change the way I look at the outside world. My Dad had been over to visit, Mike was working, and when he left, Cody does what he always does. He ran along the side walk to the corner waving good-bye. Mind you we only live 2 houses from the corner. Well, after my Dad pulled out of the drive, I went back inside to pick up from lunch. As I was going to the sink I happened to look out the side window and seen Cody, running like crazy, and by that time he was half way from the corner to our house. When he came in, he was out of breath and sort of rattled. I asked him what was wrong and he told me that two men tried to get him in their car, that was right behind my Dad's van. At first I couldn't say anything, just look at my son, while a warm unpleasant feeling came over me. All I could do was ask him where and how! Then, besides Cody, I wanted my husband. Thankfully he only works a block away! When we got there all I could say was someone tried to take our son, then the tears started! I didn't think that going to the police would do any good because there wasn't a liscense plate number taken, and I never saw the car. But Mike had us go next door to give a report to the police.

My life has been pretty hecktic with other things crowding my mind lately, and then this... I'm still numbed by the whole thing. And just VERY greateful that God was watching out for our little boy. It's wierd how minutes can seem like hours, and how fast things can change in the blink of an eye.

It's sad that our kids today cannot experience the kind of life we had when we were their age. It makes you doubt all your beliefs that you once had, It makes you do a lot of thinking. But then certain things happen that make you thankful too!

Mike & I are very thankful right now!!  And I hope that God keep's all little ones safe from harm!