Craft Project

I took a trip to Hobby Lobby this afternoon. I wanted to just look... but you know how that usually turns out. Looking turns into putting something in your basket to think about while you continue to look. Before you know it you're standing in line with 10 items checking out.

I decided to find something for my kitchen wall. I love pictures. I have boxes of pictures. Nobody ever sees them because they are in boxes. I decided to make a quilted photo board. I don't know what they are really called... that's just what I am calling it. Here's some before and after pictures of my newly decorated wall in the kitchen.

I am planning on re-doing this photo board later. I'm one of those who hurries through the project because I am so excited to see it finished. I need to use a different type of ribbon. This ribbon is very sheer and I am noticing that it is starting to fray where I inserted a tack. Also, I think the next one I make will have a solid back. I used a canvas art frame to stretch the material around. It worked well, it just doesn't give much of a quilted look and the pictures don't stay in place very well. I have too many pictures in this one... I just had a hard time deciding which ones to put in there!

Joys of Home Ec.

Cody had to make some oatmeal cookies for his Home Economics class. It's not called "Home Ec." anymore... it's called Life Management. I wish they had a Life Management class for adults. :)

Here's some pics of him baking away! By the way... the cookies were a little... different. Not horrible, just not a good 'ole oatmeal cookie. These had whole wheat flour, dried apricots, and walnuts in them. I spent $15 on the special ingredients. He made 9 of them. 2 went to his teacher for his grade. I tried one. Mike said "no thanks" after seeing the apricots in them. The other 6 went into the garbage along with the $15 in cookie dough. :)

~jen

What's for supper?

Well folks, I've cooked supper for my family 4 nights in a row now. I know... it's amazing. (I hope you are detecting my sarcasm.) We have been in a serious rut of eating out. Night after night we seemed to rotate thru the local fast-food places. It was convenient while we were packing and moving. But it got old real fast (and expensive).
Caden's pre-K teachers and some friends of theirs have created a recipe blog. Check it out for some great recipes. I visit it almost daily and have come across some that sound wonderful. I've haven't tried any yet... but have found a few that could easily become fast favorites of mine! :)

~jen

Mr. Caden

What a mess this child is! Here's the latest:

He needs a separate fork for each part of his meal. Tonight he needed 2 forks. One for the hamburger helper and one for the corn (he refused to eat the black-eyed peas... otherwise he would have needed 3 forks!). Then he needed another for some strawberries and whipped cream.

He questioned my knowledge on where corn comes from. He finally believed me that corn comes from seeds and grows on a farm. We had cut corn at dinner and he seemed to be confused about how that cut corn got off the cob.

He proclaimed in a exhausted tone this afternoon... "Mom, we have 3 more letters to do at school." (Each week at pre-k they learn a new letter.) He then said... "we've done like 10,000 already. I'm glad there is only 3 more to go."

Most of our conversations we have had lately has to do with his upcoming birthday. On the way home from daycare this afternoon he asked if Aaron (his cousin) would be wearing his glasses at the party. At the dinner table this evening he discussed his upcoming birthday plans. He wants his party at Mr. Gattis. Not in the party room, in the cartoon room so he can watch cartoons while he eats. He then mentioned that for his 2nd birthday party (we have always had a small party at home with Mike, Cody, and I. Which by the way... he was quite upset that Mike and Cody didn't have 2 birthday parties last month!) he wanted to make sure we had corn on the cob and a cherry cake to eat. He made sure that I knew that we had to use the "corn-picker-uppers" (word-for-word from Caden) for the corn on the cob. (Corn-picker-uppers are those plastic things that you insert in both ends of the cob to be able to pick it up easier.)

This precious child of mine makes me laugh daily. It is amazing how his little mind processes information. How he comes up with some of these things boggles my mind! :)

~jen

All in a day...

So here's the highlights of the day...

Last night I awoke from a dead sleep after hearing a loud thump... Mike had actually rolled off the bed onto the floor. Of course, my first reaction was "oh, my goodness... are you ok?". Then it progressed to "what the heck is wrong with you?". He got up off the floor and then walked around the living room and then came back to bed. He assured me he wasn't hurt and that him falling out of bed must have been my fault. I must have kicked him or pushed him out of the bed. Wrong. Guess again dork... you just rolled off the bed in a dead sleep! Immediately the giggles started. It took me a while to go back to sleep because all I could picture was him falling out of bed! (Thank goodness he wasn't hurt. He did confess this morning that he was dreaming when he fell out of the bed!) :)

(In all fairness... I've fallen out of bed once before. And Mike isn't really a dork!) :)

While getting gas this afternoon (gas prices... ugh!) I gathered up some trash to throw away. Unfortunately the hand that had the trash also had my keys... yep... I threw away my keys in the nasty gas station trash can (which was 3/4 of the way full!). I had to dig thru who knows what to find my keys... which I did.

Caden decided this afternoon that Boomer sure would love a refreshing beverage. Because, after all he must be bored with just water day after day. So Caden went to the garage fridge and grabbed Boomer a Coke. He opened it and poured it into his water bowl! Poor Boomer only got a few sips before Mike realized what he had done and emptied the water bowl!

This is just a sampling of my crazy day.

Oh... the joys of living! :)

~jen

More pictures...

Here are a few pictures... more to come later.


View out front door/entry:



Entry and dinning room:

Tray ceiling and dining room light fixture:

Another view of entry and dining room. Yes... that's a cradle in the middle of the room. I kept hitting my head on the light fixture (I did it 3 times in 1 day... the 3rd time I broke down crying because it hurt so bad!) so I put the cradle there so I wouldn't hit my head anymore! (One would think that I would have learned my lesson after the first time... but oh no, it took me ramming my head into the fixture 2 more times!)

View of living room from dining room. To the right is the hallway to the boys bedrooms and guest bath. To the right of the fire place is the sun room/3rd living area and the closed door is the entry to our bedroom.



Another view of the living room. I love all the features of this room. High ceilings, recessed lighting, the fan... it's a really neat and huge room. Now if it only had furniture!


Our realtor gave us this "C". I think it looks very pretty on my mantel!


That's all for now. It's been a major accomplishment to get these 2 rooms completely emptied today. Unfortunately... most of the boxes just went to my bedroom until they get unloaded and put up! I'll try and post some more pictures later today or tomorrow.

~jen

Just the latest...

Moving in is going slower than I want. We are still living out of boxes. I still can't find my alarm clock! (Which is very frustrating!) I'm one of those paranoid people who has to have 2 alarms set (I use my cell phone and the alarm clock)... just in case. Mike's been nice to set his cell phone alarm for me so I have a back-up (especially on those mornings that I have to get up at 4:30!).

Back to the boxes... my room seems to have become the dumping ground for all of those things that don't really have a home yet. It's fine... because our bedroom is twice the size of our old room. However, the boxes are getting very old, I've tripped over them more than once. I am ready to have my house set the way I want it and have everything un-boxed!

I hope to post more pictures of the other rooms of the house later today. I need to get some boxes cleaned out first. The pictures won't be too exciting as 3 of the rooms don't even have furniture yet! It may be a while before we actually purchase furniture for them! Moving is terribly expensive! :)

Hope all of you are doing well. Caden, Cody, and I seem to be suffering from some major allergies lately. We finally received some rain, so hopefully that will clear out the air a little bit and there will be a little less sneezing going on!

Cody has 6 weeks of school left. I cannot believe how quickly this year has passed! These next few weeks will fly past very quickly! He's excited for the summer golf tournament season to start.

Caden's doing well. He is finishing up his last few weeks of pre-K. His teachers assure me he is doing well. We've seen such growth in Caden's speech. I feel confident he will be ready for kindergarten this fall. He is so excited about being a Knight (his elementary school's mascot) this fall!

I am doing well. This will be my last week as a nurse educator. I am sad to leave my current job, but we've been just getting by financially these past few months. I've realized that I need to work somewhere that is more stable, more consistent. I am excited to start my new job at the Urgent Care Clinic. I am excited to get back to nursing. I've missed my interactions with the patients.

I guess this is all now. Hope everyone has a great day. :)

~jen

New House Pictures

Here are a few pictures from today. More to come later...

~jen

New house!

Oh... the joys of moving. This time around it is truly a joy since we are moving into our very own home. The internet/cable guy arrived earlier and hooked up our internet and cable. The satellite guy is here getting the satellite up and running. So... we are just about set on the important things (according to Mike and Cody!)

I've unpacked my kitchen and utility room. I even plan on making our first meal in our new home tonight (that's the plan at least... I am desperately in need of a nap... so it may be pizza tonight... but we will at least eat on actual dishes and not paper plates!). :)

My other goal for the day is to get Caden's room done. I haven't started, yet. But... I promised him his room would be ready so I'll get it done.

I'll post some pictures later tonight. I still have some rooms to get cleaned out before I get some good pictures!

~jen

PS... Happy Birthday to Marcia and Angie... hope you both have had a great day! :)

Last post at our old home

I’ve waited until now to do this last post at our old house. The closing is complete. The house is ours. We have finally realized the American dream. There’s a mix of emotions right now. Happy, scared, thankful, tired (and the work’s only half-done!), sad (we’ve lived in this house for almost 7 years… we’ve lived so much in this house), worried, relieved… the list goes on and on. Most of all I am thankful and happy. We have talked about buying a house for many months. I have prayed so many prayers for us to find a way to buy a house. Those prayers were answered. I am truly happy and blessed.

The next post will come from our new home. Call my cell to stop by anytime to take a look at the new house… but consider yourself warned… you may end up moving a box or 2 while you are there! :)

~jen

Boxes, packing, and more boxes... oh my

The saga continues. More boxes, more packing... it never ends! We did get a movable storage building delivered to the house yesterday, so that has helped. (It is one that will be moved to the new house by the storage company and then once we are finished unloading they come pick it up.) At least I feel like I am making progress when I actually take a box from my house to the storage building!

I don't know if we will be ready to move on Monday or not. We got the final word today that everyone (both realtors, the title company, the bank) is ready to close. Talk about waiting until the last minute... we close on Monday! We did get a small repair settlement from the seller's. It doesn't cover much, but I guess it's better than nothing! Hopefully we can get the contractor doing most of the work to come down some on their price. We'll see what happens. We close on Monday at 11:00. Very exciting and scary at the same time.

Please remember us in your prayers as we go through this major life-changing event. I know that is will be stressful over these next few days to weeks trying to get settled into the new house. Hopefully within a few months it will be all that I dreamed it would be! :)

~jen

New job

Well... many of you know by my earlier email (and for a few of you... phone calls) I was offered a job at our hospital's Urgent Care Clinic. I had to sit through an interview with the director and five other nurses (I think I told someone earlier that it was 6... but as I sit here and count... it was only 5!). 5 or 6... it was still overwhelming to say the least. It was very relaxed and casual and once I relaxed a little it went very smoothly.

I feel as though a great weight has been lifted off of my shoulders. As sad as I am to leave my current job (because I truly love presenting our medical lessons) I know that this move is the right one financially. We have been struggling over the past few months. We've been fine... but with the added house expenses, moving expenses, taking off work to prepare for our move... things financially could be very difficult in the next month or so.

I know that there was a greater power in all of this. I know that my (and your) prayers were heard. And more importantly they were answered. God is good. :)

I pray now that I will be happy with this new job. It's going to be hard those first few months. Adjusting to the 12+ hour shifts again will take some time. Adjusting to a different kind of nursing will take some time. I am confident though, this is a good fit for me and I will enjoy the job.

Again, thank you for your prayers. I really appreciate all of your sweet "best wishes" and "congratulation" emails.

~jen

Prayer Request

I have my 2nd interview tomorrow at our Urgent Care Clinic. Please say a prayer for me. I have given an advance notice to my current employer. I have been so stressed these past few weeks, not only worried about the house, but things at my current job have been on a rapid decline.
I need to go back to work on a more full-time, steady basis. We need better (less expensive) health insurance.
I am saddened that this job didn't work out. I love teaching the kids. I love what we are doing to hopefully help decrease the number of teenage pregnancy and STD rates.
I feel like I have been unhappy with my job for the past 18 months. I am ready to find something that I enjoy and something that benefits all aspects of my life.
Thanks,
~jen

Happy Birthday Cody!

Today is Cody's 14 birthday. I can't believe it. I can't believe he is actually 14. Remember last year's birthday post? I feel just the same this year. It seems like yesterday I was holding him tightly in my arms, watching him sleep. Time passes too quickly.

Happy Birthday Cody. I love you more than you know.
~mom

Horoscopes

I am not a horoscope kind of person... but there is a section on my MSN homepage where my horoscope is displayed. I got a kick out of today's.

Motivation must come from within, dear Scorpio. The only thing that can pull you out of bed is your own inner drive. And the fact that my alarm clock is going off.

Too much partying may leave you spent to the point that you don't even want to move. What?? I haven't partied like that since 1993! (Those were the good ole' days... no kids, no husband, no worries... gas was 99 cents!)

Remember to be moderate. Be good to your physical body. Yeah, right. I'm drinking a coke as I type.

Go outside and let your mind radiate outward like the rays of the sun. I'll pencil that in somewhere between 3 appointments scheduled for today, dealing with the ever increasing stress of what may be our new home, oh and trying to clean out 3 bedrooms and a garage for a yard sale tomorrow. I'll see what I can do about getting some rays of sun! Actually, I am a little pasty... maybe a quick trip to the tanning bed will count? :)

Feel the grounding of the Earth below. Whatever.

:)
~jen

Just thoughts...

This is a long one... lots on my mind today...

Today has been one of those days that you just can’t wait to end. All day long it has just been one thing after another. First… Caden’s sick. He started going downhill late yesterday afternoon. After a short nap on the couch yesterday he woke up hotter than ever with fire-red cheeks. His temp was in the 102’s and he was very crabby. No real complaints of anything except a headache. His fever continued through the night and this morning he woke up complaining of a headache, sore throat, and an earache. After a trip to the doctor this afternoon, we found out he has an upper respiratory infection and the start of an ear infection. His strep and flu tests came back negative (thank goodness). We started an antibiotic this afternoon. Hopefully within a day or two he will be back to good ole’ Caden.

We were supposed to have the hydrostatic (water and sewer) inspection on the house completed today. Well it appears that the clean-out valve is covered by the back patio. I’m not quite sure what is going on or how to explain it better. The end result was that they were not able to complete the sewer portion of the test because a new clean-out valve has to be installed… which only means one thing to us… more money will be involved. The good news from today is that they were able to complete the water line part of the inspection and it looks good. They are returning to the house in the morning to install the new valve and finish the inspection. I am completely worn-out by this whole experience. I am so ready for this process to be over.

Cody returned to school today from his extended spring break. They had a snow day yesterday. I think he was excited to be back in school. It seems once spring break is over, it’s all down-hill. He only has about 9 more weeks of school left. Wow. It will be summer before we know it!

I received some sad news this morning. An area teenager (a senior in high school) took his own life over spring break. I discovered after reading the obituary that I knew his mother. She is an instructor at the college I attended. I never had her in class, just passed her in the hallway every now and then. She also helped with a number of our clinical return demonstrations. She was such a friendly staff member, always smiling. I was so saddened by this news. I can only imagine what a nightmare this has been for their family. He was just a senior in high school, only weeks before graduation.

I remember how hard high school was. I remember having those feelings of despair that I would never survive what it was that I was going through. I thought about this for a good portion of the afternoon. I figured that since this was the first day back at school since spring break and this teen’s funeral was yesterday that Cody would probably have heard about it at school. I decided to use this as an opportunity to talk to Cody. After I picked him up from golf practice and before we went inside the house I asked him if he had heard anything about the suicide. He answered yes, that he heard some of his friends talking about it. A number of his friends have older brothers and sisters who attended school with this teenager. I asked Cody what he thought about it. Suicide isn’t something that we’ve ever really talked about. Immediately the “wall” went up. It seems that whenever I have something important to talk to Cody about this “wall” goes up between us. All I hear from him is, “I know mom”, “I know what you’re going to say”, “You don’t have to worry about me”, “It’s not going to happen to me”. I don’t know how to get through to him sometimes. I don’t know how to break that wall down so that he will actually listen to me. I don’t know how to get through that whole “I’m invincible attitude” that almost all teenagers have. I don’t know how to break that mindset that only bad things happen to those people, people who live over there, people not like me. The truth is bad things happen to everyone. I don’t know how to get Cody to where he will truly listen to me… to lose that attitude that I as his mother am stupid and don’t know what I am talking about. I tried to tell him that I hope he never ever feels so lost, or so alone, or so sad, or so miserable that the only solution he feels is left is for him to take his life. I want him to know that he can come to us for anything. No matter what it is, we are always going to love him and will help him with whatever it is that is causing him hurt, pain, anxiety, worry, or anger. There is nothing that we can’t overcome together. I want him to know that there is Someone greater than all of us who will help him overcome whatever it is that is causing him pain.

I pray that he let that wall down just a little this afternoon to hear my words and my pleas to know that he is too valuable to us, that he is too special to us, that he is so loved by us to ever let anything or anyone break his beautiful spirit. I hope he feels loved, that he knows how special he is to us, how proud we are of this young man that is growing up too quickly in a very scary world.

So, that's my day today. It's now almost 9:30. I'm ready for bed. I'm ready for this day to be done. I'm ready for a better day tomorrow. I pray for the family of this teen that they too may have better days soon.

Love,
~jen

2 weeks until closing...

I can't believe we are just 2 weeks away to our closing date. Where has time gone? We had the home inspection last Friday. Only minor repairs are needed. We are focusing on the bigger ones like a few problems with some electrical, plumbing, and brick issues. Everything else can wait (until my dad can come for a visit!!). We had the radon inspection over the weekend and the results were within normal limits. The plumbing inspection is tomorrow. The termite inspection later this week. Wow. This is really real.

Hope everyone had a blessed Easter weekend. We spent part of the weekend with Mike's family. A fun, crazy time as always. It was nice to see everyone, even if it was just for a short time. Now if I could just make all the Easter candy disappear... to the trash. Every year it seems to increase by the bucket-full! That crazy Easter bunny leaves too many eggs filled with such tempting goodies! :)

~jen

Happy Easter

Wishing you a Happy Easter. I hope everyone has blessed weekend.

~jen

Inspection Day... take 2

Today is inspection day. We finally have a contract on the house (2 and 1/2 weeks later from when we started!) and we've locked in our mortgage rate. I can't believe this is really happening. We've given our notice to the owner of our rent house, so no turning back now!
Please remember us in your prayers. So much is going on that my head is spinning. Everything seems to be crashing down at once. I know we will get through this. :)

~jen

Spring is here!!!

Yes... you're on the right blog. It's just been updated a little! :)

Finally, spring has arrived. Goodbye to winter!

Oh, wait... I had a moment of temporary memory loss. I live in the Texas Panhandle. That means the weather changes at the drop of a hat! It is supposed to be near 80 today; according to one news station here... raining and/or snowing and temps in the 40's on Easter!

Nothing like hunting eggs in the freezing cold! :)

Have a blessed day!
~jen

Inspection Cancelled

Well, another document has surfaced that has to be signed and mailed to the seller's before we can have the inspection, so we had to cancel today's appointment. The seller's realtor seems to get these documents to us one at a time, so our realtor is going to give him a call today to make sure we have ALL of the documents signed so we can proceed.

I am ready to get off of this roller coaster ride we are on.

~jen

Inspection Day

Tomorrow's the big day.... inspection day. I pray that there will only be minor problems to be resolved. We plan on attending the latter part of it. The boys are going to see the inside of the house for the first time. I am anxious about their opinions. Hopefully they will love it as much as we do.

Cody had his first golf tournament of the season today. He played in Lubbock. I didn't get to talk to him or Mike but just for a split second this afternoon. I don't think Cody had his best game today. Caden and I didn't attend. It has been very cool here the past few days. I didn't want to sit out in the cold all day today. Mike and Cody also had plans to play at another golf course in Lubbock after Cody's tournament. So, Caden and I stayed here and went to see a movie.

Cody has another tournament tomorrow at our golf club, so hopefully he will do much better playing on his own home course.

I'll be sure to post what we find out about the inspection and how Cody did in his tournament!

~jen

Dreams do come true

We are ever so close to being the proud owners of a lovely home in the southwest part of town. We finally agreed on a contract today and we on our way to having the American dream... our very own home. It is so very exciting and nerve-racking to say the least. We still have to get through the inspection and closing, but we are inching ever so close to realizing a dream that has been in the making for many months.

(I probably am breaking some type of copyright law by posting this picture... but I wanted you to see the house! I'll go take some pictures and post those in a few days!)

Get ready for an awesome house-warming party in a couple of months!!!

~jen

A counter offer

Well... a counter offer has been made by the owners of the house. Mike plans to make one more offer. I on the other hand, want to just get it over with! I am happy to at least know they are willing to negotiate! Their realtor is "out of the office" until Monday, so nothing new will happen until then. Oh the drama of it all! :)
~jen

Numbers game

We found our home. It is in a beautiful older area of town. The house is 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, with 2 living areas. It has been totally remodeled on the inside. New carpet, tile, textured walls, decorator colors, new windows, new appliances, new kitchen cabinets, counter-tops, new lighting and plumbing fixtures, basically all the benefits of a new home in an existing area with beautiful landscape and large trees.

We made an offer yesterday afternoon. I'm letting Mike handle this part of the process. He's the number's guy (since that is basically what he does for a living!) so I am giving up that part of the home buying experience. Believe me though... I am still an active participant; I am staying up-to-date with the numbers game!

We still haven't heard anything, yet. Hopefully we will hear something today. This waiting game is so very hard. I hope (and pray) that this part of the process will go smoothly. I sure don't want to have to start all over if this house doesn't become ours. But... I know it will only happen if it is meant to be. :)

~jen

The wrong sandwich

Meltdowns around here can happen at anytime, for any reason. Case in point... a sandwich can make or break a normal morning routine. Yesterday, Caden wouldn't tell me what kind of sandwich he wanted for his lunch at pre-K. So, after numerous requests for him to tell me what kind of sandwich he wanted, and no reply... he ended up with a grape jelly and peanut butter sandwich.

Well, of course once he realized that he no longer had an opportunity to make his request AND the fact that I had made a grape jelly and peanut butter sandwich, the meltdown began. "I don't like that kind of grape jelly, I only like Granny's grape jelly" (which by the way... Granny's "grape" jelly isn't even grape, it's blackberry). "Make me a ham and cheese sandwich, not a grape jelly sandwich".

By this time a full tantrum is under way, complete with stomping feet and folded arms across his chest. It only escalated at this point because I wasn't giving in because a lesson had to be learned. He has to answer my questions and let me know what he wants, or he's just going to get what ever I make! So... stomping feet and folded arms quickly became thrashing and screaming. (Yes... I am talking about sweet, little, innocent, precious Caden.) By this point a spanking was needed... and delivered.

What makes it worse is we had to send him to school after the whole ordeal. Mike said it was a pretty sad sight dropping him off at school. He was definitely not in the mood to go to school after our morning! (To Keri and Teresa... I hope his mood improved. I can only imagine the look on his face and the comments he made at lunch as he pulled out that horrible grape jelly and peanut butter sandwich!)

Mike picked him up after school and Caden made one last comment... "I don't like grape jelly and peanut butter sandwiches, Dad".

Hopefully he learned a lesson about answering me when I ask "what kind of sandwich do you want?" :)

~jen

House Hunt

We are now down to the final 6 (yes... I said 6. I know it is a lot! You don't even want to know how many hours I have spent looking at houses on-line or how many gallons of gas I have used going to open houses the past 2 weekends!) Mike and I are going together Thursday morning (will we survive being together looking at houses?). Hopefully we will find the right one Thursday. :)
~jen

Birthday Day

I can't let the day slip past without a quick birthday message for Mike (my older-than-me husband), Sadie (my favorite 3 year old niece; all my nieces are my favorites, she's just my favorite 3 year old niece!), and Renay (my very closest friend)!

Happy Birthday to you...
Happy Birthday to you...
Happy Birthday dear Mike, Sadie, and Renay...
Happy Birthday to you!

Hope you all had a wonderful day!

Love,
~jen

Looking up

Things are beginning to look up (on some levels). I have been such a complainer for the past few weeks. So stressed about work, the house, Mike unveiled his 10 year plan for us (I'll go into that later)... everything seemed to become this one gigantic mountain in front of me. I am realizing that I can't go around it, can't go under it... got to go over it. So with baby steps and faith that He will guide me through this things are looking up. I am seeing things more clearly, letting go of some of the uncertainties that I can't control. I think that is by far my biggest problem... control. I want to control all aspects of my life. I want to keep a tight schedule and nothing should change. Well... life changes. I can't always be in control of everything. So... I'm learning to adjust.

A special thank you to Rebecca and Toby for always listening to me on Tuesday afternoon when I pick up Caden from their house. It seems lately that I use that time to download (and munch on some fabulous home-made sweet cinnamon popcorn!). Thanks to my wonderful friends Becky and Renay who have heard me complain non-stop for the past 2 weeks. Thanks for letting me cry when I've needed to, for offering advice and support... thanks for just being great friends.

I've possibly found a job within our hospital at an urgent care clinic. I spoke with the nurse manager there and she was wonderful. She's flexible with the schedule (and with 2 sports active boys that's a plus) and will have an opening within a month. So... please say a prayer that this is the job for me. I need a more stable job and one with benefits for the kids and I. We are paying outrageous amounts for health coverage right now. I am hoping that I can still stay on teaching on a PRN basis. We will see what happens though.

House hunting has been a struggle. I met with our realtor yesterday and we looked at 6 houses. Didn't really find the "right" one. One house would have what we wanted, but a tiny back yard. One would have a huge backyard, but the house wasn't what we wanted. Ugh. I have a list of 15 houses that are within our needs and wants, so hopefully there will be 1 in there that will be perfect for us. I have decided to take our time. I want to find just the right one. We are going to be in this house for a while, so I need to really like it.

While in the midst of a emotional-mental breakdown the other night Mike decides to use that time to unveil his 10 year plan for us. My thoughts.... What? Couldn't you have picked another time? Can't you see I'm already a little stressed? For US... and this is the first I am hearing about it? But anywho... the plan was unveiled. He has a dream to own a... wait for it... a golf shop. Imagine that. My husband the golfer wanting to own a golf shop! :) He wants us to have our home paid off in 10 years. He's created the budget for it. He's talked with our accountant about it. He's done research on owning a franchised golf store. What's more... he's serious. I've thought about it for the past few days. I'm getting on board with this one. Mike never wanted to be a car salesman. He had a dream to be a coach. He would have been a wonderful coach. He probably would have been one that yells... you know how I feel about coaches who yell... :) ... but he would have been great. Well a number of his dreams and my dreams fell by the wayside with a choice that we made. That little + sign on a pregnancy test that was revealed to us almost 15 years ago changed our lives for ever. Neither one of us regrets that little + sign because that little + sign has blessed our lives more than we can measure. I've reached a few of my dreams. I was able to find a way to go to college and earn my degree. As little as it is... it means the world to me. I want one of Mike's dreams to come true.

So... I hope he doesn't get mad that I've shared his 10 year plan for us. I think it is wonderful. I think another golf store is something that would benefit this area. We'll have to see what really happens during these next 10 years. I know though... amazing things are in store for us. :)

~jen

Latest Post

Sorry for the delay in posts. It's been a long, busy week. So here's the latest:

My grandfather's heart stent went well. He is doing fine. Caden and I stayed until last Sunday and came home in time to see the giant, wet, snowflakes falling! It was really a pretty sight! Thank you to those who called to check up on us. Thank you for your prayers.

My grandmother had a myelogram this past Monday and she is also doing well.

I had an interview with the home health department of the hospital this week. Still not sure what I am going to do. I think I would enjoy home health nursing, just not sure about the schedule and on-call requirements. I think I am going to just relax (or at least try to), give everything a few weeks and then look at my options (hopefully more clearly).

On to the good news... we were approved for a home loan this week. Mike received the certificate of approval yesterday. So... let's add another stressor to my life... buying a home. It's an exciting time, especially because we have wanted our own house for the past few years. Now it's about to come true. I've just spent the past hour or so looking online at houses. Mike and I haven't quite seen eye-to-eye on what we want ~vs~ what we need (and can afford).

I still can't quite believe that this is real. I keep waiting for the bottom to fall out and awake from a dream. Hopefully this process will go smoothly. I dread the added stress. It will be all worth it to have our very own house, though.

Hope each of you are well...
~jen

Update

My grandfather had his angiogram this morning. He did well and will stay the night in the hospital so the dye can be flushed out of his body with IV fluids. He will have a stent placed tomorrow morning. Caden and I are leaving early in the morning to be with my family during his procedure. Thanks in advance for the prayers.
~jen

Prayer Request

My grandfather is in a hospital in Denton having an angiogram done this morning. Your prayers would be appreciated.
~jen

Dude...

Cody has had 4 friends over this evening to watch the Super Bowl. I am ready for my house to be quiet once again. I think I have heard the word "dude" 100 times tonight. Boys.
~jen

Stressed

I weighed in tonight at the town club and realized that scale went the other direction. Instead of a loss there was a gain. I've got to get my stress level under control and stop the emotional splurges or I'll end up weighing more than when we started this contest.

The stress is beginning to affect me physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

I've called on a home health job, waiting to hear back from the director to discuss the hours. We'll see what happens.

~jen

Prayer Requests

Mike's grandmother has been in CCU for the past few days. While I was working at the hospital Sunday I went to visit her. She looked well, said she felt fine. Hopefully all will return to normal and she will be home soon.

This next one's for me. I am discovering that my new job isn't quite all that I expected, at least not as many hours. It seems that the schedule changes weekly with a number of cancellations or reschedules. Between the added daycare expenses and the added insurance expenses, everything doesn't add up at the end of the month like we expected. I am considering going back to work at the hospital. I pray daily, hoping to decrease the worry and anxiety about everything. I am not sure what to do. Hopefully the answer will come soon.

~jen

Cadenisms

Mike experienced this Cadenism and shared it with me last night.

A few nights ago Caden and Mike were watching an NBA game. I am not exactly sure who was playing... but one of the teams was the Denver Nuggets. (Knowing Mike, I am sure the other team was the Lakers... but again not 100% sure!) Anywho... Caden was asking Mike who was playing and he said the Nuggets and ____ (whoever that team was). They sat there watching the game and Mike said after a few minutes Caden looked up at Mike and said... "I like that Chicken Nugget team, they're good". So now the Denver Nuggets are known as the Chicken Nuggets at our house! :)

~jen

200th Post

WOW! I just had my 200th post! I cannot believe that I have come up with 200 things to blog about! So... in honor of my 200th post... here are 200 things about me! Just kidding! You can just look over the 100th post 2 times and we'll call it even! :)
Here's to another 200 posts!
~jen

Umm... this is uncomfortable

Today we taught the 7th graders at Cody's school. The 7th grade lesson covers both male and female reproductive anatomy and an STD lesson. We split all the classes by gender... for a number of reasons... but mainly because they learn better apart. Today I taught the boys classes. Everything was going well... until an old high school teacher of mine (who is now an assistant principal at Cody's school) came walking in to sit in on the period that I was teaching (we have to have a teacher, counselor, or principal in each class). So there I am in the middle of the whole male reproductive anatomy part of the lesson, complete with diagrams of the male anatomy displayed on the screen, as he comes strolling into the class! Man... talk about uncomfortable! It's one thing to do this lesson in front of giggling 7th grade boys... but to have an old male teacher of mine sitting there listening is another thing! Thankfully he had brought his lap-top in and never hardly ever looked up at me! There was uncomfortableness at the end of the class after the students left and it was just the 2 of us in the room. Neither one of us really knew what to say! He just said... very interesting... I learned a few things... and then there was is odd silence. Well then... see you later... yep, you too... bye. Then he was off (rather quickly) to his office! Thankfully I will be teaching the girls for the next 2 days because we are teaching the 8th graders and I refuse to teach Cody's friends! :)
~jen

The Biggest Loser... Conrad Family Style

Mike's family came up with an idea to help motivate a number of us to lose weight... a competition similar to The Biggest Loser. We had our weigh-in yesterday. That was almost the one thing that kept me from participating. It took a ton of courage and humility to step on the scale in front of one of Mike's sisters. It was so very hard and I almost backed out at the last minute because I was so embarrassed. But through the tears I was able to let go of that shame and step onto the scale. Hopefully it will be the last time I see that number ever again.

I've added a post to the sidebar of this blog where I've been posting track of my weight loss. It's on the left side of the blog above the site tracker. I've already lost 7 pounds, but will be starting over with yesterday's weigh-in. My goal is still 20 pounds by the end of February. Once I meet that goal, I'll make another one and so on and so on.

See you at the gym!
~jen

What's missing...

Can you tell?

Caden lost his first upper tooth this evening while we were eating dinner at Outback. This tooth has been very stubborn and has been hanging on for over a week now. Caden was acting silly while we were waiting for our food and bumped his tooth on the side of the table. His gums started bleeding so Mike took him to the bathroom and when they returned... Caden had a brand new grin for me!

~jen

I guess it's my turn next...

Well... it's Cody's turn to be sick. 1st was Caden and then Mike and now Cody. He has an upper respiratory infection. The strep test came back negative. I was sure he would have had strep since he had the symptoms. But, he didn't. He started an antibiotic this afternoon. Luckily it's just a five day dose of antibiotic, so hopefully he'll be feeling better soon.

Cade's doing much better. Mike's doing better, too. I don't know who's worse to take care of... him or the boys! :)

Caden will start basketball in the morning. He was invited to join a team from Ridgecrest, so he will have his first game at 8:00 in the morning. Yes... I said 8:00 in the morning! Wow... on a Saturday... yikes! I'll be sure and get some pictures and possibly a video. It should be quite interesting!

Cody had a basketball game Thursday night. Crockett won, but just barely. The game was back and forth all night and at one point we were down about 10 points, but the boys came together and pulled out a win. Cody didn't have the best game, spent a good portion of the game on the bench because he had a turnover. I wish Cody had more fun playing basketball than being stressed out about potentially making a mistake.

He and I went to the town club Wednesday night. I love the way the club is laid out because part of the upper floor overlooks the lower floor gym. So after my work-out on the treadmill I walked the track above the gym and could see Cody playing. He looked like he was having such a great time and was nailing shot after shot. He was playing with grown men with wide ranges of skill and was holding his own for most of their game. I wish he had that kind of fun during his school games. He only has a few more games left, so hopefully he will make the best of them, learn to relax some, and most importantly have fun!

Guess this is all for now. Mike just walked in from work. Have a blessed weekend.
~jen

Scrapbooking 101

I went to my first scrapbooking class tonight. I was the only one there... so that was a little intimidating. But it was a lot of fun. I started on a little scrapbook for someone... which will have to remain a secret for now. When I finish, I'll take some pictures of what I accomplished.
Scrapbooking can be so overwhelming, so I'll start slowly and see how deep I want to go with it!
~jen

Well....

Caden has strep throat. He hasn't been feeling well over the past few days, so I thought since he wasn't getting any better it was time to go to the doctor. Sure enough he has strep. So, we'll start an antibiotic and hopefully he will be feeling better soon!
~jen

Freshman Parent Orientation Part 2

Well, I survived... without tears. They could have come during a speech by the principal as he was telling us that our kids were going to be ok... that we as their parents were going to be ok, and that we would be able to let go. I ended up biting my lip to keep myself from crying. I got it together and made it through the evening.

Mike and I were able to visit with the head basketball coach and the head golf coach. Both coaches knew Cody and spoke highly of him. We found out that Cody will be able to play both basketball and golf (assuming he makes both teams). Cody will be able to start practicing with the AHS golf team this year as soon as his basketball season is over. The golf coach runs our area's summer NTPGA golf tournaments and he said that Cody will make the golf team if he can shoot an average of less than an 85 per round. He's almost at that level now, so with some more practice and lessons this summer, he'll be ready.

One of Cody's good friend's parents caught up with us and asked how I was handling everything. They are the "seasoned" parents as they have already graduated 2 other children. They've been through all of this before, so I look to them a lot for advice and encouragement. They both laughed when I told them that I spent a good portion of this morning in tears.

I ran into an old friend from when I was attending AHS, so it was nice to catch up with her. Of course I took a minute to look at my graduating class' picture. So surreal.

I know that Cody and I are both going to survive these next few months. I guess I kind-of know how my mom and dad must have felt 19 years ago (it can have been that long ago, can it?) . I seriously don't know how Marcia (Mike's mom) did this 8 times!

Children inevitably grow up. There's nothing I can do to freeze time. So, I've got to make the best of these next few years... and pray.

What's worse is that I still have to go through my "grieving" process of Caden starting Kindergarten! Oh my goodness. Mom and Dad... you'd better plan on coming here during those first few days of school this fall! I am going to need all the support I can get. :)

Now the tears are coming....

Hug your babies, they grow up so very fast.
~jen

Freshman Parent Orientation

I woke up this morning realizing that tonight is Freshman Parent Orientation. I knew it was coming up, but these past few days have been a blur (I worked at the hospital Saturday and Sunday) and I can't seem to keep up with all that is going on.

So as I am sitting here the tears are coming. I can't believe that Cody will be in high school in just a few short months (because I know these next few months will fly past us). I know that this should be a happy time, a proud moment for Mike and I, (especially considering he is still alive to see high school in the near future... 13 is hard for parents!) but I am so very sad. I don't want to let go.

I can't do this now... I need to go have a good cry... get it out of my system or I'll be a basket case tonight. I'll post again later.
~jen

Just the latest...

Cody had a basketball game last night against Houston MS. Crockett lost 33-29. Cody had 2 points and a number of assists. He played well. He's decided he doesn't like any of his teachers this semester. I think "summer-itis" is setting in and he is ready to finish out this school year. Hopefully he'll make it ok. We still have a few more weeks to go! Mike and I will be attending Freshman Parent Orientation next Monday evening at AHS. Seriously... I don't think I am going to be able to handle Cody going to high school in 7 months. That's right people... SEVEN MONTHS! He'll be driving in 16 months! You might as well pre-admit me to the local psychiatric hospital right now because... I am going to be a basket case in about 5 months preparing to have him in high school and Caden in Kindergarten!

Cade's not feeling too well this afternoon. He started running a fever this afternoon and complains of a head ache and sore throat. I'm going to give him a few days and see where it takes us. Hopefully he will feel better soon. He sure said he wasn't sick once he saw Mike getting his golf clubs to go play a quick round of golf! Poor thing. It broke his heart that he couldn't go golfing this afternoon.

Mike's doing fine. Staying busy at work. Funny story... I've noticed over the past couple of days that Mike has been getting a lot of personal mail. I was curious as to why so I asked him why he was getting so much mail from a number of his friends. His reply.... "they're joining my fan club". I wish I could think of come-backs like that so quickly. He just sat there and said it with a complete straight face. It was too funny. (The mail was for fantasy football.)

I'm doing fine. Staying busy with my new job (which I continue to love). I haven't done so well with my trips to the gym this week, but still sticking with my plan. I watched Biggest Loser this week and it was very emotional for me. How I wish I could participate in something like that. I know I couldn't handle being away from the kids that long... but wow... what an experience it would be!

Best close for now. I need to get started on supper. The count down to the all new Grey's has begun... only 2 and 1/2 more hours! Withdrawal symptoms were starting to appear! It's been too long since I last saw a new Grey's! :)

Post again later,
~jen

Good news...

Posted 1-6-07 5:26
I spoke with my grandmother today and my grandfather is doing well. Thanks for you prayers and phone calls.
~jen



My dad called earlier to let me know that my grandfather has been moved out of ICU to a "regular" room within the hospital and will hopefully be released tomorrow. Thank you for your continued prayers.
~jen

Prayer Request

My grandfather (on my dad's side) was admitted to ICU yesterday in a hospital in south Texas. Please remember him and my family in your prayers.
Thanks,
~jen

Welcome 2008

(First of all... you're on the right blog... it just has a fresh new look!)

Happy New Year to each of you!

I wish I had some amazing new resolutions for this year, but to be quite honest... last year's resolutions still need to be worked on! So... I'm continuing them for this year!

1. Renewing my spiritual life... a daily resolution

2. Pray. Pray. Pray.

3. Having more patience with Mike, Cody, and Caden. Remembering to let the little things go every once in a while and focus on the big things.

4. Find happiness in everything.

5. Keep a cleaner and neater home. Get organized.

6. Help Caden succeed with his speech and learning disabilities.

7. Spend more one-on-one time with Cody.

8. Financial security. Reduce debt. Save for a new home.

9. Commit to an exercise program and stick with it. Develop healthier eating habits for myself and my family.

10. Worry less. Have more faith.

And... with the new year comes a new commitment to losing weight. So... short-term goal #1 is to lose 20 pounds by the end of February.

So... there they are. My 2008 resolutions. Hopefully I'll do better this year than last! :)

I hope each of you has a blessed 2008 full of good health, happiness, and hope for a better... brighter tomorrow.

Love,
~jen

Pictures of Christmas Morning

Patiently waiting his turn...

Two of the "must-haves" that I was able to pick up at Target the day after Thanksgiving!

Realizing that he get an XBOX 360 from Santa!! Total shock on his face? I think so.

Oh boy! A Leapster from Mimi and PawPaw!

A marshmallow shooter from Aunt Janet and Uncle Stacy! Thanks you guys.... I find marshmallows around my house on a daily basis! :)

A Guitar Hero III for a Play Station 3??? Oops... Mike ordered the wrong one!

What? A box of macaroni and cheese? That tricky Mimi....
Here's the "real" gift... money!

The "infamous" coffee mug from Caden!

Merry Christmas

I just want to wish each of you a very Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year! To family who is reading this from a far... I wish we could all be together for the holidays. Please know that you are thought of not only at Christmas, but each and every day.

With much love,

Mike, Jennifer, Cody and Caden

Random Thoughts

Christmas
Here we are 6 days away from Christmas. I have just about finished up all the shopping. I was at JC Penney's last night until 10:15. I asked the poor sales associate what time they closed and she said midnight. Ouch. I am so glad my retail days are done! All I have left to do is wrap a few gifts. Yea! There is a light at the end of the tunnel!
This is the part of the holiday I don't like. All of the running around, getting frustrated, trying to get everything ready... sometimes I think I lose the true meaning of Christmas in all the hype. I am really hoping that Mike and I (and possibly the boys... I haven't decided on them yet) can get away this Friday evening and spend some quality time together. As much as I would like for it to be a family event... I can't even remember the last time Mike and spent an evening out by ourselves. We'll see what happens...

Reality Time
Well as you may (or may not) have noticed, I haven't posted any weight loss updates over the past couple months. I had hoped to have lost 30 pounds by Christmas and since I am quite sure I won't loose that much between now and next Tuesday... I'm not going to make this goal. There has been so much stress over the past few months... from 2 kidney procedures to changing jobs (Excuses?...probably, valid excuses?... maybe.) that I've lost my focus. My will-power is still there and I am sure it will be greatly renewed as we get closer to the new year and the ever-dreaded New Year Resolutions. So... I'll start over and make another goal and see where I end up!

I hope everyone is well and able to enjoy the holidays with family and friends. Hopefully those who still have shopping to do will finish soon so you can relax a little!
I'll post again soon...
~jen

Full Ride Project

My husband just called me and told me to check out http://www.fullrideproject.com/. I am so proud of Southwest Honda and all of those involved with this wonderful project. It brought tears to my eyes. What a wonderful opportunity for one High School senior in our area! Please pass along this website to any seniors you know so they may apply for this awesome scholarship!
~jen

Caden

Christmas Caroling

Today Caden and his pre-K classmates performed a few Christmas songs for the parents. I couldn't be there because of my work schedule. I am so sad that I missed it but Caden kindly obliged my request for a private showing at home! He was so cute! Mike was kind enough to take a couple of pictures for me. Since he hardly ever takes pictures... only one turned out. I'm not complaining though! He did his best!

*Mom... remember this sweatshirt?

This was once Cody's when he was Caden's age! The front reads... Who needs Santa... and the back reads... I've got Mimi and PawPaw!

There is a Traitor Among Us

Caden has crossed over to the dark side. He's now an OU fan. I don't know where Cody and I went wrong. But somehow Caden has turned his back on his beloved Bevo and Longhorns. He still sleeps with his stuffed Bevo, though. So maybe all is not lost! I am sure that if I listen very closely... I'll hear my Papa yell Boomer Sooner once he hears that Caden has become a Sooner's fan!


Imaginary Friends

Caden just announced that he has 6 imaginary friends. 5 boys and 1 girl. What a imagination this little one has!

~jen

Lost

I’ve been thinking about this post for a couple of days now. I haven’t been feeling too well. I’m really tired, the cold weather seems to be affecting me more these days and I guess a little of the “holiday blues” are setting in. (Please… don’t worry… I’m fine… it’s just been a rough few weeks with adjusting to my new job, Dick’s passing, the kidney thing, the stress of all the holiday shopping, missing my family… etc.)

I feel so lost right now. I don’t seem to understand this world we live in. Between the mall shooting last week, the church shootings on Sunday… and I just read about another shooting that happened yesterday in Nevada targeting junior high and high school students while they were coming out of a school bus.

What in the world is wrong with our society? How does someone think that they have the right to go out and shoot and kill innocent people? Why does this continue to happen over and over? Even as I ask the question… what is wrong with our society… I know what’s wrong with our society… it’s the “world” that so many live in. It’s a world without morals, without the Golden Rule, a world where kids as young as Caden are exposed to guns and violence, and it is a world without Christ.

But where are we safe? Is there any place that’s safe anymore? How does one survive this world that we are living in? How do I send my kids off to school this morning and know that they will be safe? How do I know that my next trip to the mall… or the grocery store… or the post office… or church will be uneventful?

I know that faith in Christ is the only answer to these questions. I know that He is the only safe haven in this messed up world we live in. I know this. But why is it so hard at times to have faith? I know that I have failed Christ so many times. I have not been the person that I was raised to be. I have failed my children by not setting the best Christian example for them. I know all this can change. I know that faith can grow. I know that I can turn everything around and try to do what’s right.

I believe that there is power in prayer. I’ve seen it work in my own life. What this world needs is prayer.

Prayers for a better tomorrow… prayers for a better world for our children… prayers for understanding and peace.
~jen

Cadenisms 1 and 2

Cadenism #1

Last week Caden went on a field trip with his pre-school to go Christmas shopping for all of us (Mike, Cody, Boomer, and I). I had been reminding Caden before the shopping trip that he has to keep his gifts a secret. He can't tell us what he got us. Mike said when he picked him up from pre-K last week that Caden started telling him what he got me, Cody, and Boomer. But he didn't tell what he got Mike. Mike said that Caden got really quiet for a few minutes and he asked Mike all serious like... "Dad, do you drink coffee?" Mike asked "why do you want to know?"... and Caden said... "I just want to know if you drink coffee... that's all." Mike said "no" and Caden replied with "oh" and nothing else was said about the coffee issue.

Caden brought home is wrapped gifts today. He was so excited to place them under our tree. He began telling me that he got Boomer a bone. He held up my gift and said "this one is for you" and smiled. He then brought me Mike's gift and asked... "Mom, does Daddy drink coffee?". I told him no, that Daddy doesn't drink coffee. The saddest look came over his face. "But I got Daddy a coffee cup for Christmas." I assured him that Mike could put his pens in it or even some candy in it and keep it on his desk at work. This seemed to make Caden happy. Boy... I swear Mike better make the biggest fuss over that coffee cup on Christmas morning!

Cadenism #2

Mike and I have been "warning" Caden a lot lately that Santa only comes to see good boys and girls. We've even had to take it a bit further because Caden has been going through a very stubborn streak lately and we've had to "warn" Caden that Mommy and Daddy will start taking his gifts away (yes... I know it's horrible... but one can only deal with Caden up to a point before you start using the threats... aka "warnings"!)
Today Caden brought home his gifts for us and placed them under our tree. This afternoon, I overheard Mike getting onto Caden about something he was doing. Of course Caden became upset and replied to Mike... "That's not nice, Daddy." (This is Caden's new response when someone is getting onto him... "you're not nice".) Caden finished the comment with... "If you are not nice to me, I am going to take your gift away!" He was so matter of fact and very serious. I guess what goes around comes around!

Tagged

I've been tagged by Renay. I had to come up with an adjective for each letter of my middle name that describes me. It wasn't easy... but here's what I've come up with!

Mother; I love being a mom to my boys. I am such a cheerleader mom and I love supporting everything that the boys are involved in!

Indecisive; This is probably the one trait that Mike dislikes the most. As hard as I try to be in control of everything, I usually don’t know what I am doing until the very last minute and I’ve usually changed my mind at least 5 times before the final decision.

Caring; I think I am caring. I hope it shows to those who know me (and those who don’t).

Hugger; I am a hugger. You’re getting a hug whether you want one or not! I make sure to give both boys a hug everyday. Cody puts up a fight, but usually I can sneak one in!

Emotional; I tend to be very emotional at times. It usually occurs at a certain time of the month (if you know what I mean); but can occur at anytime, too! I'm one of those that has to have a good cry every few months... just to get it out of my system!

Loved; I know that I am loved by many.

Love to talk; I love to talk. I can talk to Renay 5 times a day, about nothing. I need details, though. Thank goodness I have Renay, because Mike and Cody are not detail-talkers!

Eager; I am so eager for Christmas to get here. I love the holidays. I love making all my favorite snack-foods for our Christmas Eve get-together, decorating cookies with my boys and my nieces and nephews, the laughter of family, the games, the twinkle of Christmas lights, watching Christmas Vacation for the 100th time, and watching everyone open their gifts.

Now, I am supposed to tag someone else... and since the only 2 people I know who have blogs have already been tagged.... I guess the game ends with me! More of you need to start blogging! :)

~jen

A Very Sad Day for the Conrad Family

Yesterday Mike and I learned that his uncle, Dick Conrad, collapsed and was taken to the hospital. He had been ill for some time now. He passed away late this afternoon.

My heart aches for this family… for his wife, for their children, and their spouses and children. I cannot even imagine the hurt they have right now. As sad as I am at this moment, I know it does not even compare to their pain.

When I became a Conrad, I gained another family (a very large family). As the years have passed, the relationships that I have with Mike’s family have grown stronger. I love each of them as much as my own family. To the Conrad’s reading this… I hope you know just how much I care for you and for your family.

Dick will be missed by many. I will miss his smile and his laughter.

Prayers for the entire Conrad family would be appreciated.

~Jennifer

Cadenisms

Earlier today while at the grocery store I promised Caden that if he was good during our shopping trip he could pick out a sucker. Before we checked out, I sent Caden to the sucker stand which was down just a couple of lanes from the one I was in. He came back with 2 suckers. Here's our conversation:
Me: "Caden, you should have just picked out 1 sucker."
Caden: "One's for me and one's for Cody, Mom."
Me: "Oh, that's nice to get Cody a sucker, Caden".
We leave the store and go home. Caden has lunch and then gets his sucker. A little while later he finishes his sucker. A few hours pass and then I see Caden sitting in the recliner watching TV sucking on a sucker. I asked him, "Caden... I thought you were going to give that sucker to Cody?". Caden replies with: "I changed my mind.". He grins with the sucker in his mouth.

What a little stinker!
~jen

Love, Love, Love My Job!

This week I have been teaching the high school lessons all by myself. I have to say that I truly love this job! Monday and Tuesday I went to a local high school located in the north-east part of town. I have to admit that I was very nervous about teaching at this school. After all it has it's own daycare for the students to leave their children while attending school. It's a very poor area of Amarillo where there are a number of issues that these children face day to day. But... it was such a blessing to talk to these kids. Granted probably 75% of them were already sexually active and a number of kids in each class already had a child of their own. Hopefully there was one who listened. Hopefully I made a difference to one child. It was quite an eye-opening experience, especially after touring the daycare facility on the campus.

This morning I traveled to just outside Amarillo to a K-12 school and taught. It was a great day, too. As the days go by, I've gotten more comfortable getting in front of the class and presenting these lessons. The kids are mature (for the most part... so far I've only taught high school kids), respectful, and want to learn.

Today I even had a little thought... I wonder what all would be involved in going back to school to pursue a degree in education? It's just a little thought... pushed way back there... just something to ponder and think about. :)

Hopefully everyone reading this is well, your families are well. We are all doing fine... just living life day-to-day. Both boys are healthy. Cody is staying busy with basketball. This week was a bye-week, his first official game will be next week. Caden's doing wonderful. He's adjusting to attending daycare a little more than he (or I) would like... but he's doing well. Mike's fine. Nothing new with him. And me... I love, love, love my new job! :)

~jen

The Madness that is the Day After Thanksgiving

Well, I did it. I survived my 1st day-after-Thanksgiving shopping experience. I vow to never do it again, though. For years I worked retail and I always dreaded 2 days... the day after Thanksgiving and the day after Christmas. Both days were absolutely horrible to work. Well I've decided that shopping on 1 of these 2 days is just as horrible.

My morning started at 4:30, and I was out the door at 5:15. The day after Thanksgiving novice shopper that I am thought... "oh there will be just a few people out this early". Boy was I in for a surprise as I drove past Home Depot and noticed that the entire parking lot was completely full.... at Home Depot! Heart rate begins to increase... a sickening feeling comes over me. This may be more than I thought it would be. Imagine my surprise as I pull into Target's parking lot! As I am parking my car, I realize that Target doesn't open until 6:00. The line into Target was about 4-5 people wide and beginning to wrap around the store. I decided to leave and run into Kohl's for a few things.

Kohl's parking lot is completely full, too! I decide to give it a try and enter the store. I notice as I am making my way back to the picture frames that there is a line of people that starts in the middle of the store and snakes it's way all the way through the store, to the back of the store and then back up another aisle to the checkout counter. There are people sitting on the floor, and the line never seems to move. I discover that the frames I wanted are already sold out, so I leave. Desperation sets in... what if I don't get anything on my list... what a waste of time this will be!

I make another quick run into Old Navy... same scenario. I leave empty handed. I decide that Target is where I need to be and drive back over to Target. I arrive at 5:40 and discover that the line of waiting customers now travels all the way down the store and wraps along the side towards the back of the store. Of course at this time... a light snow begins to fall. Perfect. I take my place in line next to "Mrs. Chatty Cathy". It is amazing what strangers will decide to share at 5:45 in the morning while waiting to get into Target. A store employee begins screaming where we can locate particular items. "The CD players are in the Women's clothing department... the video rockers are in the Men's clothing department". I begin to wonder if this is some sick game that the employees are trying to play on us!

Finally 6:00 arrives and after being almost molested by the group of people standing in line behind me... it was cold, but people... that doesn't give you the right to rub all up on those innocently waiting to get into Target!

We make our way into the store. I quickly walk to the Men's department to grab 2 video rockers for the boys. Thankfully I had paid attention to the employee who was yelling to us as to where to look for certain must-haves. I attempted to make my way to the toy section (all the while desperately trying to maneuver my basket with 2 very large boxes stacked on top of each other... which of course obscures my view of those in front of me). This proves to be too great of a task! I make my way to the checkout line. After standing in line for about 30 minutes to check out, and having been hit with the basket directly behind me 3 times, I left with 2 of my must-haves and a present for my nephew. So, all was not lost. The adventure proved to be worthy on some level.

Afterwards, I met a friend for coffee at Starbucks and we decided to venture to the mall. It wasn't as bad at the mall and I was able to pick up some great finds. Overall, I did well today. I have a number of gifts marked-off my master gift list. However, I think next year... I will let my trusty Dell do my work for me. I can shop online... in my pj's... coffee in hand... from the comfort of my own home! No getting up at 4:30, no cold, no snow, no weirdos standing in line next to me, no 30 minute-plus wait time to check out, no idiot ramming their basket up the back of my ankles THREE TIMES, and no grouchy store employees to ring up my purchases!

Ahh.. the joys of holiday shopping!

To all those who shop year-after-year on the day after Thanksgiving... wow! you are totally awesome or slightly insane! :)
~jen

With a Thankful Heart

Today I spent a few quiet minutes thinking about all that I have to be thankful for. There are so many to list... too many to list. Which means that I am blessed... blessed beyond measure.

I am thankful for my relationship with Jesus Christ. I am so very thankful for my husband and my 2 beautiful boys. I am thankful for my family and for Mike's family. I am thankful for my wonderful friends, especially my dear friend Renay. I have a roof over my head, a warm heater, food in the refrigerator, and cars in my driveway. We truly have so much to be thankful for.

I came across this Thanksgiving prayer and thought it was perfect...

Thank you, Lord, for the song of birds,

For the smell of roses,

unexpected, kind words.

Thank you, Lord, for a child's smile.

For the laughter of friends,

time savored in the while.

Thank you, Lord, for the little things

that mean so much to me.

For the new hope of mornings,

the softness of the night

and the knowing that I am free.

Have a Blessed Thanksgiving,

~jen

Whew! What a Day!

This has been one of those run... run... run days! My day started with volunteering at Caden's pre-school. This is always an adventure! Today was pajama day, complete with pancakes and a pillow fight! It was crazy (controlled chaos!), complete with a faulty breaker which caused our classroom lights to go out. We spent a good portion of our morning in the hallway trying to make pancakes! Keri (Caden's teacher) did an awesome job and was great under pressure! Way to go Keri! :) Caden had a blast during the pillow fight. In fact I had to remind him a number of times to hit softly, otherwise he could totally take some of the little ones out! He had such a good time. Unfortunately, he missed out on the rest of the planned activities for this afternoon because he and Cody had dentist appointments.

Both boys were free of cavities, thank goodness. Cody had a baby tooth pulled, which was an experience for him. He came out from the procedure looking very pale! He said he was ok, and it didn't hurt. He's done fine this afternoon. Caden has 4 more loose teeth, 2 on the top and 2 on the bottom! I kept asking if this was normal for his age. He's already lost 2 teeth! His hygienist assured me that he is developing just fine, just a little early. He has a 6 yr molar coming in, also! What a busy little boy!

After our dentist appointment, we met Mike for a quick lunch. I decided to go ahead and let Cody's Thanksgiving holiday from school start a little early, and kept him out of school for the rest of the day.

After a quick run home to drop off Cody, I went to my urologist for an appointment. I have decided to go ahead and have the remaining stone taken care of. Thankfully this time I will not have to have a stent placed! Hallelujah! I could have kissed Dr. Pate when he said no stent, just lithotrispy! So, the procedure is planned for Friday, Dec 7. Hopefully this stone will break up as easily as the last 2 and there will not be any complications. (Prayers would be appreciated!)

So, that's all of our news! What a busy day!
:)
~jen

'Tis the Season...

Well it was 82 degrees today and the air conditioner is running, it's only the 19th of November... so why not go ahead and set up the Christmas tree! :)

Caden and I set up our tree this evening. I know it's a little early... but Caden came across my stash of ornaments and decorations for the tree and has been bugging me nonstop ever since to get our Christmas tree up. Well, a sane person can only take so much... so we put up the tree. It wasn't quite the nostalgic moment that I wished it had been. Cody was rolling his eyes, muttering "I can't believe your putting up the tree this early", SpongeBob was playing on the tv in the background, and Caden ended up breaking a couple of glass ornaments.

So now instead of "when can we put up the tree?" over and over.... it's "how many more days until Christmas?" Ugh...

'Tis the Season...
~jen

A new baby to love

Congratulations to my sister-in-law and brother-in-law on the birth of their new baby boy early this morning. The boys and I stopped by the hospital to see our new nephew and cousin this evening. I got to hold him for a while and it was wonderful! It is so hard to even imagine that my boys were once that little.... especially now when they are both yelling and screaming at each other! :)
Congratulations, Angie and Apollo!
~jen

1st Teaching Experience

Well.. I had my first day of teaching today. It was nerve-racking to say the least! But I made my way through it. I taught the High School STD lesson today to both the girls and boys. I have to say I like teaching the boys more than the girls, probably because I have 2 boys and am used to them. It was a great day other than the fact that I had to leave Amarillo at 6:20 to get to Pampa on time. It was a very long day, but it doesn't even come close to comparing it to a 12 hour shift at the hospital! :) I think I am really going to love this job.
~jen

THE A TEAM!!

Cody sent a text message earlier.... he made the A Team in Basketball. If you are interested in watching a game, let me know and I'll email you the schedule!
~jen

Final Cuts Today

Cody should know at 12:00 today if he made the A or B Basketball team. He was told yesterday by one of the coaches that he made the team, he just wasn't told which team. He plans on sending me a text message with the letter "A" or "B" to let me know which team he made (oh the joys of cell phones!). As soon as I know I'll post a message on the blog. Exciting, exciting! I can't wait to watch him play! And luckily... he has a tourney this Sat, so I don't have to wait too long! :)
~jen

First Day and Other Stuff

Well, today was day #1 at Worth the Wait. I only observed today and it was overwhelming to say the least, but I loved it. I went to Amarillo High today... which was so surreal walking through those halls! After a few periods of the same lesson, I really got to looking at the kids in the class and couldn't help but think... this is going to be Cody next year.... sitting in high school.... listening to his mom talk about STD's. No just kidding... I could never do that to him! :)
Seriously, I really think I am going to like this job. I am so excited. I know that once I get the lessons down, and feel comfortable with them, and get in front of my first class... I am going to do fine. If you could only see the smile on my face... you'd know how happy I am about this job!

Other stuff...
I went to the urologist last week for my follow up. Everything remains the same. I still have a stone in the right kidney, about 5 mm in diameter at this time. The left kidney was clear. Dr. Pate said we could just hang out for a while and see what happens with the stone or we could treat it. He ordered some labs and said to come back in 4 months. I am seriously considering having the stone taken care of sometime over the next few weeks. Financially, it makes sense. I've met my deductible, so I might as well get it over this year. I plan on calling Dr. Pate in the next few days and see when he's available.
I had to take Caden to the doctor today. He has an upper respiratory and sinus infection. His throat and ears were clear. Thank goodness. We've started an antibiotic and a cough medicine. He doesn't act like he's sick, just a little run down. Hopefully he (and we) will sleep well tonight.
Guess this is all for now.
Love,
~jen

Decision Time

Well... here it is. I've made a decision. No turning back now. I've given my 2 weeks notice at the hospital. My director accepted my resignation. She was very pleasant and understanding. I offered to remain on staff PRN (as needed). My director said she would be happy to keep me on the schedule. I hope to work 1-2 days per month at the hospital. I've come such a long way and don't want to lose all that I have learned. I plan on finishing out this schedule, which ends on Nov 24th. I will start with Worth the Wait on Nov 27th. I am nervous, but very excited. We still have a number of issues to work out, but overall everything seems to be falling into place. I feel good about the decision. I just need to have a little more faith that everything will work itself out.

Thanks to all of you who have prayed, called with an encouraging word, or sent an email. I really appreciate your support and encouragement.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.
~jen

Itsy, Bitsy Spider....

Caden was a spider for Halloween. He decided a few weeks ago that he wanted to be a spider and he wanted us to make his costume. We had a lot of fun making his costume. He loved stuffing the legs and helping me glue the eyes on his hat.

Thank you, Renay for inviting us to your church's "trunk or treat". We had a great time!

~jen

Job offer

I received a job offer from Worth the Wait. I've accepted it, but I have second-guessed myself ever since. My hope is to sit in on a few classes tomorrow, and then take some time this weekend and really think this through. As much as I want this, as much as I am ready for a change from hospital nursing, I have to be practical and really think everything through. I would appreciate your prayers during this difficult decision-making time.
~jen