More Pictures...

Connor has a head full of black hair!! He also doesn't like bright lights...

Again with the bright light... Isn't that the cutest sad face ever...

Ahh...that's better. Now he's happy...
Our first "self pic" with all four of us. The girls and I love to take our own picture and look at the silly shots.

Connor James Louis Devore

9lbs. 2oz.

21 inches long

Super Cute!

Here's the happy family...

Being introduced to Aunt KK...
Madison and Callie were waiting patiently for him this morning. Maddie's shirt says, "I'm the big sister." Callie's says, "I'm the biggest sister." Cute.

Reflection on 2008

Things I could have lived without:
-cancer for anyone
-jobs and schools that took my hubby out of town
-Hurricane Ike
-losing my engagement ring (I was never supposed to mention that again. This is the last time-I promise, honey!)
-having mono, the tonsil surgery, and the stomach virus (Jonathon calls me Typhoid Mary because I had such a sickly year.)
-the divorce of friends :(
-Jonathon's kidney stone
-ISTEP testing



Things I will never forget:
-finding out I'm going to be an aunt again
-the ExCel award
-being so blessed with Kristen, Kelli, Terri, Alison, Jami, Heather, Aimee, and Jesse who all helped to throw showers, bachelorettes, and brunches for me. I felt soooo loved!
-my honeymoon
-having my uncle Jimmy and my friend Tim give me away at the wedding. (Trust me, without a mom and dad my friends and family were so protective and supportive of me when I found Jonathon. Most guys have to get the approval of a dad. Jonathon had to get the approval of the whole village!)
-Chicago trip for Nora's birthday
-having a lot more quality time with Carrie and Nora this year :)
- Derby Dinner with my nieces
-Many get togethers with friends. I have the best friends!


My Ultimate Favorite of 2008:
-Marrying the most perfectly matched for me man of my dreams. I love my husband!!

Christmas at The Wesely House

We had a wonderful time spending Christmas Day at Jonathon's parents' house. We started out with a gift for each of us. We all got a pocket calendar and lottery ticket. I got three numbers so I won $2!! That was followed by a yummy dinner. I made green bean casserole for the first time. It was pretty good. I had never cooked nor tasted a green bean casserole so I guess it was normal. :)

We opened gifts the way my family used to do it. We each opened up a gift one at a time so we could see what everyone was getting. Jonathon and I both got magazine subscriptions and some games. His parents know how much we love game nights! We also got a beautiful Family Bible with our names embossed on it. We love it.

Jenny loved the sweater she bought for me so much that she got one for herself too. We had to get a picture in our matching sweaters...

Bob wore the camo santa hat while he passed out presents...

Christmas Eve at Kristen's

We kicked off the Christmas festivities at Kristen's house. The food is always good and the snacks are even better! We had fun watching the kiddos open gifts and we even played some charades. It was a fun time!!

I love self pics...


Here are Callie and Madison in a sweet moment. They sat like that for several minutes. It's amazing the magical powers held in a DS...

PS. My trifle was a big hit. :)

My First Trifle

From the time I began going to pitch-in dinners as an adult I have always loved looking at trifles in trifle bowls. I also loved eating them. When we registered for our wedding I remember our trifle bowl being on my top ten list for things I hoped we would get. It's like one of those things you want but you don't want to buy yourself, you know?

Well I made my first trifle tonight....

Those of you who make them all the time know that they are super easy, but I'm venturing into this cooking/baking thing and I got to use my trifle bowl. I was so excited!!!! It's the little things in life that make you happy. :)

SNC Bringing Back the Memories

If you haven't heard of the acapella group Straight No Chaser, they are a group of ten guys who sang together in college at IU back when I was there for my undergrad. A member of their group posted an old video of them on youtube and now they are a hit sensation. I've been watching some of their posts and I'm flooded with memories. Jonathon has had to endure my story telling as I reminisced about standing in line to see them, gushing at their concerts, and the picture I had taken with Dan Ponce. (Nora, that's the picture we were so proud of until we had it developed and we looked like elves. Ha!)

Anyway, if you like acapella music you have to check them out: http://www.sncmusic.com/

I love going down memory lane...

Bad Blogger

I have been so busy lately that I've become a bad blogger. I at least have time to hop on and check updates of my friends but there's no time to leave comments or post my own stuff. Ugh. The next two weeks should be different....

This weekend has been a mix of fun and worry. Friday night was a CHS basketball game. Jonathon came to the game and got caught up with Tony and Sulayne. Then after the game we headed to Steak N Shake with the Paxtons and Gillespies. Oh how I forgot what late-night grease tasted like. It was fun.

Yesterday we slept in until 9:30. It was heavenly. I went out to do some shopping and Jonathon stayed home to clean up a little bit around the house. When I got home, he was down with the stomach flu (so we thought). I felt so bad because I had a case of it earlier in the week. I thought I had welcomed Jonathon home with it. I had to go to a dinner party at Chris Morgan's house by myself because he was feeling so badly. Check out Megan's post about last night's fun and games. I didn't have my camera out. It was a great time catching up with everyone!

Today Jonathon woke up feeling awful....not so much stomach flu but horrible pain. We ended up going to immediate care after church. From there we were sent to Clark Memorial. The diagnosis: Kidney Stones. Poor Jonathon! Last night was more of a side effect rather than the stomach flu. I feel so sorry for him. He's hurting pretty badly.

So now I'm home trying to work on my Christmas cards. In my adult life I believe last year was the first time I ever got them done early and on time. There have been several years that I didn't get them done at all. I'm not good at that kind of stuff!! One year I actually took the time to make them out but never mailed them. I should have mailed that batch the next year but I was afraid I had written timely messages in them. Oh I'm a mess sometimes...

Help Wanted

In this time of financial strain, I have a lead for a job. My brother-in-law is trying to hire someone at his work that is responsible and looking for a job that pays $13.50 per hour for 2nd or 3rd shirt. This is a forty-hour per week job with possible overtime. The applicants must be at least 18.

He has been interviewing people and can't seem to find the reliable candidate he's looking for. I told him I would post it on my blog in case anyone knows someone who would be interested. The position is at a food lab. The job requires tasting and testing food. Yummmmm....sounds like fun!!

If you know anyone...email me: kmhooser@msn.com and I'll let you know who to call. Thanks!

P.S. I'll post about my weekend soon....Jonthon is almost on his way home....

Friends, Food, and Fun

This weekend has been full of friends, food, and fun! It started out with a trip to Seymour on Friday night to have a slumber party with my friend, Kelli. Her kids were gone for the night so we grabbed some food and watched a chick flick. We got up Saturday and shopped at the outlets north of Columbus. It was a great time catching up and hanging out.

Last night I went to the Gillespie household for the annual Friends' Holiday dinner. We rotate each year who hosts and then we have a pitch-in dinner. It's our way of saying "Merry Christmas" to everyone. It's always good times. We missed you Russel and Michelle!!

Heather and Craig wrestled a little bit. I think Andy taught her a thing or two growing up!

Tim and Lindsey got the "best dressed" award for sure.

A group shot...

Today I went to church and grabbed lunch with The Kaelins. It's always fun to catch up with Tony and Sulayne. We'll have to turn it into a double date when Jonathon gets home.

Here's to the start of another busy week...

Black Friday 2008

Kristen and I continued our tradition of Black Friday shopping this year. We weren't sure how she was going to feel about it being pregnant and all but the adrenaline kicked in and she was sitting in my driveway at 4:00a.m. A mother's dedication to getting Christmas gifts at a bargain knows no ends!

We started out at Walmart again this year. Last year we were in and out in forty minutes. This year....it took us three hours! I've never seen it this bad before. You couldn't walk through the isles. It took us an hour to grab everything we needed and two hours to get through the lines. If only the prices weren't so good!!

Next we headed to Kohl's in Jeffersonville. It was like a ghost town compared to Walmart.....it was so nice! We did have to wait about ten minutes in line to check out but the experience there was so much more pleasant. You could walk freely around wherever you wanted to go. We also both earned enough Kohl's cash to come back on Sunday and shop a little bit more!

I got 95% of our shopping done so it still makes it all worth it. Jonathon and I bought a new TV on Wednesday so we are counting that as our Christmas gift to each other this year. We love it! No more squinting from across the room to watch TV anymore.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving Day!

I hope everyone is able to stop and think about things they can be thankful for no matter what life has brought their way. I'm most thankful for my health, my husband, Jesus, my friends, and my family. (Not necessarily in that order.)

We ran the Fast Freddie's Five Miler this morning. It has become my Thanksgiving Day routine for several years now. Jonathon has been training well so he took off and finished way ahead of me today. I ran with Carrie and Travis. We had a good time. Travis has always been good at talking non-stop to keep our minds off of what we are doing.

I ran into Leigh Ann and Tamara. Congrats to Tamara for finishing her first five miler!!

I hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving. It's time to go catch up on all those calories we burned this morning. It should be yummy.

Jonathon is Home!

The homecoming sure makes the being gone more bearable. We've had the best day together. I haven't taken any phone calls and we have been hanging out all day. We went for a run, grabbed some Pizza King, shopped for our joint Christmas gift this year (a tv!!) and I think we may top if off later with a trip for ice cream. How could this day get any better?!?! I love him so much!

Things...

Things this week are GREAT! I've decided to limit my school time. I've given myself a cut-off time for school work. What gets done will be great. What doesn't will have to wait until tomorrow. For this, I have been much less stressed this week. It feels good to let go!

Coaching two squads at one time is proving to be...exciting. I'm loving it so much. I'm also learning that I have so much to learn...

I also started a running schedule again. I forgot how much running helps my stress level. Jonathon and I are running the Fast Freddie's Five Miler on Thanksgiving Day so I decided I should probably run a couple times between now and then. It should be interesting...

Jonathon and I have been texting, calling, emailing, and talking so much more this week. It's like the closer it gets to him coming home, the more we can't stand it! He will arrive at some point in the wee hours of Friday night/Saturday morning. We are counting down the hours.

It's almost Friday!!

Five Days to Go...

Jonathon comes home in five day...Just thought I would put that out there...

Sweating the Small Stuff

I totally sweat the small stuff. There are two things I struggle with on a daily basis with the small stuff...

Worry: I can find anything to worry about. When I was in college I would worry over the small details of every little thing. I remember asking my friend, Nora, once about the details of a trip we were going to take. She was so laid back and said, "You worry enough for the both of us." I remember liking the fact that I tried to take care of so many little details that she knew she could count on me, but now looking back it was the beginning of a very bad habit. In the past week I've caught myself worrying about things that I shouldn't even be thinking about yet. Once I solve one thing, it's like I have to find something else to worry about. Why do I do that?

Guilt: I'm not talking about deep, dark guilt over sinful things. I'm talking about silly guilt when I think I've hurt someone's feelings or spoken too sharply. Nine times out of ten when I apologize for things I think I've done, the other person doesn't even remember what I'm talking about. Last week my step sister Jill told me, "Karen, your rude is everyone else's normal." This was after I apologized like seven times because I thought I had been rude. The thing is if I didn't apologize I would have felt guilty for days so it was better for me to just make the attempt. I need to just let things go.

I have a copy of Max Lucado's Traveling Light on my nightstand that I read several years ago. I think it's time to revisit it...

Why so angry?

I've noticed that a lot of people seem to just be angry in general. I feel sorry for them. Anyone who knows me knows that I don't like be sad or angry. I love when everyone just gets along and I don't like negative energy at all.

Today I had pulled up next to Kristen in a parking lot to tell her something. I wasn't blocking any traffic behind me so I knew it would just take a minute. I was going the correct way so I wasn't breaking any kind of direction rule either. When we finished I turned my head to take off again and there were two pedestrian girls walking near my car. I had started rolling forward slightly but when I saw the girls approaching I stopped quickly. My mistake. Let me tell you first that the girls were at least two feet away from my car so there was no chance I was actually going to hit them.

Well, the girl in front stopped suddenly and shot me a dirty look. Inside I thought, "Oh no I'm so sorry, please go ahead and cross. I notice you now and I will not hit you. Very sorry." I know my facial expression had to be saying the same thing. I mean, it was an accident.

She obviously didn't feel my thoughts because she proceeded to shout a bad word at me. Why are people so angry? I mean did I ruin her existence by making her pause for one second before proceeding forward? I realize she may have just been having a bad day already but come on!

I shouldn't care but in my mind that girl hates me. She doesn't know me. I made a mistake. Nobody got hurt. I told her I was sorry....

Why are people so angry?

Is it Friday yet?

It's almost Friday! Jonathon asked me last night why I haven't updated my blog in a while. I had no answer besides being busy.

First of all, the weekend in Cincinnati was awesome. Carrie, Nora, and I don't even do very much besides grab some food, shop a little, and watch movies but I love spending time with them. They are my forever friends from college. I know we may not get to keep each other up-to-date on a daily basis anymore (oh how I miss those days) but every time we're together it's like we never skipped a beat. I love those girls!

The rest of the week has nothing good to talk about. I've been really stressed out and making a bigger deal out of a lot of things things this week. I've been unsatisfied with lots of things going on in my life and I finally came to the conclusion that I MISS MY HUSBAND!

I don't think anything is as bad as I've loaded it on myself to be...I think I'm just missing my husband and that's put me in a foul mood. I've had to apologize twice this week for being snippy and I'm never like that.

Honey, you have to hurry up and get home so I can stop being rude to people! I don't like the rude version of myself.

Update

This week has been a roller coaster to say the least...the election, cheer practice every day this week, feeling like a failure, feeling like the greatest, missing my husband, wanting to get up early, wanting to get more sleep, getting some sister time in, not having enough time for friends, cleaning up, making more of a mess, getting organized in one area, piling things up in another, pants getting tighter, can't make time for working out, eating on the run, no time for blogging...

I'm glad this week is over!

It has a happy ending though...I celebrated Jesse's birthday tonight. It was just Aimee, Adam, BD, Jesse and I but we had the best time. We started out trying to go to Lucky Strike but they were all booked up. We had dinner at The Pub (mmm fish n'chips) then heading back across the river to go bowling here. First stop: the alley on Eastern Blvd. They were booked too! We did stay long enough to absorb smoke into our clothes and to witness a man hooked to an oxygen tank holding a cigarette. Nice.

We ended up at Blakiston Mill. It was a great time bowling with all the high school kids on a Friday night...Add in a stop at Steak N Shake on the way home and it was a perfectly unhealthy, wholesome night of fun! Happy Birthday to Jesse!

Of course I had to complete my night with a phone call to Jonathon. My night wouldn't be complete without it...(love you, babe)

I will be in Cincy the rest of the weekend living it up with Carrie and Nora. It's shopping time!! I'm hoping to get a jump on the Christmas thing and maybe find a little something for my own closet. :)

Happy Weekend...

Halloween Season Over

This year my Halloween lasted about a week. It started with a costume party at Aimee and Adam's last weekend. I went as Sarah Palin. I didn't have my camera so as soon as I get a picture from some friends I'll have to put in a post. I had the hair fixed, a tiara, a black suit, and I carried a rifle with me. Ha!

I stopped by to see my nieces trick or treat at their aunt's house close by on Thursday. Here are some pics:

I spent the official Halloween celebrating Travis Dunn's wedding at The Grand. It was lovely. I'm so happy for him and his new bride, Megan! (Again...no camera.)

Last night I went to another costume party but I just wore JOnathon's army uniform. I wasn't feeling like wearing a skirt. Tim and Lindsey hosted the part at Tim's dad's house. It was so much fun. We played games, sang karaoke, and I even won a pool game!

Good times...

Cornhole Tournament

MISSION TO MALAWI
CORN HOLE TOURNAMENT
NOVEMBER 15, 2008
Located in the Charlestown Jay C Food Store Parking Lot
Check-in/Registration: 10:00a.m.
Rules Meeting: 10:30a.m.
Tournament Begins: 11:00a.m.
Proceeds will benefit the mission team from Charlestown Independent Church planning a mission trip to Malawi, Africa in June 2009.

Email kmhooser@msn.com for a registration form.

My #6

Oops....

#6. I hate scrubbing the bathroom.

I Got Tagged...

-Link to the person who tagged you.
-Post the rules on your blog.
-Write Six Random Things about yourself.
-Tag six-or-so other people at the bottom of the post.
-Leave comments on their blogs, letting them know they've been tagged!
-Let the person who tagged you know when you've written the post.


1. I don't like belly buttons. I don't like touching my own belly button and I can't stand to see anyone else touch their's either.
2. I love wearing hoodie sweatshirts. It's my shirt of choice from fall to spring. I even sleep in them. They are just so cozy!
3. I am a pile maker. I have my own style of organization. I can usually find anything I need or at least know which pile to look in to find it. The bad thing about this form of organziation is that the piles are everywhere. I have one pile on the back corner in the kitchen usually full of bills and such. Another pile stays under the intable between the two couches. I also have at least two piles at all times in the bedroom, usually clothes. Thank goodness Jonathon is a patient man!
4. I overbook myself all the time. If you are ever trying to make plans with me or if I ever forget to do something very simple, please keep in mind that it's probably because I have so much going on at all times that I forget things unless I write them down. Tell me to write it down...
5. I love to dance. Sometimes I turn music on when I'm by myself and get it out of my system. It's good exercise and it energizes me. It doesn't matter how silly I look because nobody is around.

Okay, so now I tag Jami, Megan, Laura, Sulayne, Terri, and Michelle.

Emotions

Tonight in my small group we talked about this quote:

No one can be betrayed who hasn't loved, no one can be disappointed who hasn't tried, no one can be disillusioned who hasn't dreamed...

I think you have to go through disappointments to really appreciate the highs of life. This caused some debate.

Would you rather have a life of constant contentment or have a life of emotional highs and lows?

Needed Weekend

I spent the weekend with my family in Bowling Green. I slept in on Saturday and didn't wake up until 11:00 our time. Wow! I never sleep in. I think when I visit my aunt and uncle's house I'm able to leave my work and house behind and relax. I needed it too!

On Sunday we met up with my cousin, Kelli, and her husband, Scott. They just returned from a two-week vacation in Europe. They had so many stories to tell. One included a trip to a nude beach. They didn't realize where they were going until it was too late! Can you imagine?!?!? They didn't take any pictures of that particular vacation spot. They said they were amazed at how everywhere they went the Europeans were following the US election and had their own opinions about things.

Sunday evening it was back to Louisville to watch my cousin and his Southern Gospel Quartet, Triumphant, perform at a church in Shively. It was so good to see Jeff perform in person. It had been a couple years since I had seen his group. He stocked us up with cds so I listened to one as I drove around running errands today.

I have an announcement: I'm going to help coach cheerleading for the basketball season at CHS. I'm really excited about it. I go to most of the boys' home games anyway so when the position came open I thought it would be fun to get involved in the sport at the high school level. Several of the current cheerleaders were on my squad at JJ when they were little so this should be fun.

Happy Monday. Have a great week!

Different Stuff

• I'm having a great school year. I think I've said that before in blog entries but when the going is good, it's worth celebrating. I have a GREAT class, I'm teaching writing (my favorite) three times per day, morale in our building is great....Things at school are great!
• I'm very forgetful. Seriously forgetful. I forgot to do something for Kristen this morning. She asked me to leave something for her in my mailbox so she could pick it up. When she told me to do it, the first thought in my mind was "I'm going to forget to do this." I did. Thank God she knows me well enough not to be surprised. Am I the only person that has to literally write everything down? I will forget complete conversations unless I write it down. I get so mad at myself!
• The election is coming up and I'm scared. I have been reading and watching media clips and there's so much to think about. It's scary....
• I'm ready for Fall. I want to wear my sweatshirts and feel cozy all day long.
• I need to start running again. I've taken the past year off pretty much. I've never really recuperated my motivation since the mono. I remember the days when I felt addicted to working out. I long for those days again...
• I have tomorrow off! I'm going to sleep in, excercise, make some items for an Africa trip fundraiser, grade some papers, and pack my bags for Bowling Green. I'm driving off to Sticeville for a visit with the family.
• Have a great weekend!

Happy Birthday Jonathon!

Today is Jonathon's Birthday!

Jonathon,

I love you more than I can put into words. You are my best friend and I can't imagine my life without you. Even when you are nine hours away from me I still feel close to you. Our phone call each night is the highlight of my day. I can't wait until you are home again. Have a great day!

I love you,

-wifey

I Passed!!!

I got my scores today for the School Leadership Series test....the one that allows me to get my administrative license. I passed!

I was worried because I'm such an idiot sometimes. When I was taking the 6-Hour test I made a huge mistake. During the first section, we had 10 scenarios we had to respond to and an hour to do it. That's six minutes per situation. My brain flipped that somewhere between the beginning of the test and the end to be 6 scenarios with 10 minutes each. After #6 I thought I had plenty of time left so I went back and started adding details to my other answers. The proctor announced we had ten minutes left when I realized that I hadn't answered #'s 7-10 yet. Yikes!! I quickly scribbled something out for #7 and wrote about a sentence for #8, leaving #'s 9 and 10 blank. I have been terrified that my stupid mistake was going to keep me from passing. Duh!

Well, I've been stalking the website for the past five days trying to see my fate. Today the scores were finally posted and I'm soooooo relieved!!

I'm not rushing to get a different job or anything. I just didn't want to pay the $480 to take it again. Ugh. Also, there have only been like two people from IUS to not pass it and I didn't want to become #3!!

So anyway, another educational chapter completed. Shew.....

Callie's Post

A message from Callie about our Saturday:

at socr I brot scnks. Me and KK wint to chdrs.
(At soccer I brought snacks. Me and KK went to Cheddar's.)

I thought I would let her tell what we did but it took an hour to get that so I told her I would finish. Ha ha. As you heard, Callie had a soccer game then we went to Cheddar's for lunch. After lunch we went to see Journey to the Center of the Earth at the dollar movie place. It was really good but I think it was a little too much for Callie to understand. We topped off our day with a little spa treatment at the nail salon. Callie was so excited. She just kept thanking me. It was so sweet. I took her out for the day because it was my birthday present to her. I'm trying to buy less "stuff" for the girls and instead do more "stuff" with them for their presents.

Kristen dropped Madison off at my house around 5:30 and we had a slumber party. We made dinner, baked cupcakes for the Fall Festival at church, and played games on the computer. It was a good time.

Madison is carrying around Kristen's first stuffed animal. It's a 33 year old stuffed dolphin. It has a little metal winder on it because it used to play music. Maddie asked me why it didn't work and I told her it was too old and rusted and it won't turn anymore. I heard this:

Callie: How does she know that?
Madison: I bet she read a book about play dolphins.

Ha!! It was hilarious to me......I guess you had to be there.

Okay, we are off to church and the Fall Festival.

Busy Week

One week without Jonathon down!! It really went by very fast too. Here are a few highlights...

On Wednesday Brian started his Inner Circle services. I didn't know what to expect when I heard about this new Wednesday night service but I really enjoyed it!

On Thursday I went to Brian and Maria's new house and helped paint a little bit. I also enjoyed a home cooked meal from Becky. It was fun hanging out with the Tibbs and Hammonds.

Last night I went straight from school to the Charlestown Pizza Company with a group of friends. We went to the Homecoming at CHS. I ended working the crowd instead of hanging out in the stands. I was feeling especially social last night. I think it was because I didn't have Jonathon with me. I tend to stay in the stands and focus more on the game when he's with me. I missed him! After the game I went to Dairy Queen with a few people. We sat there forever giggling and telling stories. It felt like we were in high school again. Good times!

I have a busy, busy day planned. It's full of niece time. I'll post stories and pictures...

9:00 Phone Date

When Jonathon is gone we have a standing agreement that he will call every night at 9:00. I look forward to our phone call all day long. If I'm busy at night or at an event, I get nervous if it's approaching 9:00 and I'm not home ready to take the call. We try to review our days and update each other on important things. My night wouldn't seem complete without it.

Jonathon is on the Road...

I got a hug and a kiss good-bye this morning as Jonathon hit the road for Alabama. This is the first time since we got married that he'll be gone for nearly two months. Say some prayers that he gets there safely!!

It's funny because this morning it felt like any Sunday night or Monday morning that he left for the week. I'm sure it will hit me on Friday when he's not here for our date night. The weekends will definitely be the hardest.

Here's to the start of week 1....There's only 7 to get through.

Jonathon's Birthday

Jonathon and I went out for his birthday last night. His birthday actually isn't until the 16th but since he's leaving on Monday we celebrated last night. We went to The Olive Garden. Jonathon loves Italian food so much. I tried something new last night: The Mixed Grill. Wow, it was good!!

We came back to the house and had a boring Friday night which is exactly what we love to do together. I picked up an Oreo ice cream pie so we'll spend the weekend munching on it. Mmmmm, so good!

Happy Early Birthday, Jonathon! (I love my man!!)

Callie's Birthday

Callie's birthday was last Saturday. She had a full day. It started with a soccer game... Here's Callie getting some directions from her coach...
She had many family members at the game to see her play. Then we all piled in our cars and went home to shower and get ready. We met back up at Kobe. I love hibatchi grills!!! This was the best food I've ever had at a kid's birthday party. Callie's a popular little thing. We filled up two whole grills.
AFter the food, the caravan headed back to Kristen's house to have cake and ice cream. Callie opened up her gifts too. It was a great time!

Okay, Now I'm Begging...

PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE come to the Applebee's Pancake Breakfast!!

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 4
Clarksville Applebee's

8:00a.m.-10:00a.m.

It's only $5.00 and it's ALL YOU CAN EAT!

You get your belly full! We raise money to support a mission trip! I know it's early but think about the yummy pancakes. Think about the support you would be given to the orphans in Malawi and the ministry there.

I hope to see you there!

Date Night with Jen and Ryan

Last night we went to Ruben's with Jen and Ryan. We love our date nights with Jen and Ryan! It's usually at Rubens or Chick-fil-a and followed by a $1.50 movie. Sometimes we get crazy and top it off with ice cream....but not last night.

We like Ruben's except when they have their mariachi band. Don't get me wrong, I like all types of live music. I just don't like it when they come around table to table. It's way too loud! Luckily they weren't there last night. They have the best salsa.

We went to see Get Smart. It was hilarious! It's been a while since I've seen a movie that cracked me up every thirty seconds. It also included material that seemed to hit on a lot of inside jokes between Jonathon and I. We kept looking at each other when we laughed. We also ran into Rebecca Drake, Hilary, and Julien Birke. When I saw them I said, "Hey, are you all here by yourself?" They laughed and looked at me really weird then I said, "I guess you are old enough huh?" We had good laugh. I remember when they were in my 3rd-5th grade Sunday School class. Oh how time flies....Good times!

We've already been busy this morning. We ran the Feat of Louisville. It's a race that supports the efforts to treat autism. We finished right at 28 minutes. Not bad for two people who haven't done a thing in about two months! I gotta start exercising again. When I get home a night I tell myself that I'm too tired, but if I could get my lazy self off the couch I know it would energize me!

Today is Callie's birthday dinner at Kobe. I'll take my camera and post pictures. Happy Saturday!

Mid-Week Update

This week has been L-O-N-G! We are taking ISTEP at school so it makes the days drag out. I've been working late each night but for some reason my to-do list keeps getting long rather than shorter. That's the kind of week it's been!

Say a little prayer for my niece, Maddie. She has had walking pneumonia for two weeks! Kristen says she's been a little trooper and never complains. The doctor said he couldn't believe she wasn't acting more sick because it was bad. They have her on meds so it should get better.

Some shopping news: The Kohl's in Jeffersonville opens this weekend! The grand opening isn't until Wednesday put a little birdie told me that the doors really open on Sunday. Just about everything is going to be 50% off. I'll meet you there....

I'm looking forward to seeing my hubby tomorrow night. He's going to be home for an entire eight days in a row. Yeah!

Pancake Breakfast

I know I have an on-going advertisement to the right of your screen but I wanted to pump up the support:

Applebee's Pancake Breakfast

OCTOBER 4, 2008
8:00a.m.-10:00a.m.

All you can eat pancakes and drinks! The cost is $5.00 and proceeds will go toward the Mission to Malawi 2009!

You can purchase tickets ahead of time or buy them at the door.

A Break

Wow, I never knew a week off in September could be so relaxing. I think what made it relaxing is the fact that I didn't have anything planned because I was supposed to be at school. When I know there's a break coming I usually find things to fill up the free time.

I wish I could say I accomplished a lot but really I didn't do anything blogworthy. Sorry to disappoint! I feel kind of bad since I've heard others went to the zoo or Brown County. I did some laundry and took some naps. Shame on me!

This weekend has been super fun though. Friday was the CHS football game (which was not a happy ending), yesterday we hung out at a fun party with friends, and today I got to see a friend of mine baptized at Northside. You can imagine how happy I was in the whirlwind of social fun this weekend!

Jonathon is about to head out to his last week in London, Ky for the season. I would be celebrating the fact that he will be home but in two weeks he leaves for Alabama and he will be gone for seven weeks straight. No weekends with him! It will go by fast though and he'll be home for the holidays.

I'm gearing up for what will seem like "back to school" all over again after being off for a week. This makes me wonder what the "alternative school calendar" would be like. I have to admit having a week off after being in school for a few weeks was nice. We'll see how the kids adapt this week....

Wind Cancelled Day 2

I feel like I'm in summer vacation again. I was able to drive over to Louisville and take care of a couple errands today. It was nice to knock them off the "to-do" list without taking time out of the weekend.

I stopped by Aimee and Adam's rental house they bought in Jeffersonville. They've been working on it for a couple months now and it's really looking cute. If you know anyone wanting to rent in the downtown Jeff area, let me know!

I came home and it seems like I sat on the couch talking on the phone for three hours. As soon as one person would hang up another one would call. I talked to Megan for a long time today because we have both been waiting for a long time to get our wedding videos from our video guy and I picked mine up today. She got hers a couple weeks ago so finally that battle is over. Anyway we also got to catch up on all the baby happenings ans such. It was nice.

I'm also trying to work out spring break plans with some people we may go to Florida with so I've been online and on the phone trying to see details about rental houses. I already can't wait!

JJ is being turned into a shelter for showers and meals this week for the community so I may go by and see what's going on there on "Day 3"...

P.S. Jonathon got to come home again tonight. ;)

Ups and Downs of the Wind Storm

I'm a lucky girl. I was on my way to a bridal shower in Utica when the storm was in its fullness on Sunday and I just want to type for a minute about what a dummy I am sometimes. I drove through a tree covered road dodging fallen trees to get to that shower. Who in their right mind drives through a scene like that when a wind storm is still blowing? Thankfully, God was watching over because a tree never landed on me on the way there or back.

When I returned home I found my house in tact without any damage at all. I was very lucky because the rest of my neighborhood got hit. There were shingles from houses around me in my yard. My electricity was also out like everyone else in the county...or at least I thought. I started out at Jami's passing some time then went over to Heather's. I love living in a neighborhood of friends! Heather and Zoe were hungry so we ended up grilling some burgers from my thawing freezer. Yes, I had a very lovely candle-lit dinner with Zoe, Alex, Heather, and Craig! Aimee called to tell me that her electricity had never gone out which is really bazaar because she lives in my neighborhood. Heather and I went over to her house so Alex could take a breathing treatment and I could steal some electricity for my phone.

I called Kristen to find out that they have some roof damage but she thinks they can get it fixed quickly and without much cost so that's good news too.

Today ended up being pretty fun. School was out so I hung out with Jami all day long. We went to Target, had lunch at the concessions area there, then came home. Later I went back over and had chili-dogs with her and Steve. Since school is out tomorrow I'm sure Jami and I will get some more time to hang out.



I got a call about an hour ago from Jonathon telling me he's on his way home! He has to report in Louisville tomorrow to do work with the Louisville clean-up. I hate to celebrate the fact that there's so much damage going on that my husband had to be called to the area but in the spirit of looking on the bright side....I GET TO SEE MY HUBBY! I'm sure anyone suffering right now from no electric, no water, and trees down will probably not find much happiness in that so for that I'm sorry.



Okay, I must go finish up the power clean. Jonathon should be home soon...

Callie is Growing Up

No, she's not getting married. Ha! I just wanted to throw up a pic of her. Last night she called me to ask if I wanted to buy anything for her school fundraiser. About five minutes into the conversation it hit me that Callie was in total control of our conversation. I could hear Chris and Kristen in the background just doing the family thing. Kristen wasn't hanging out next to the phone telling Callie what to say. Callie was describing all the products to me and telling me how much they were. If I had questions I could hear her flipping through the catalog to the appropriate page to find the answer. I was having so much fun listening to her that I just kept asking questions. I could tell she was having fun being little Miss Responsibility. She's like a little adult!

Get this...Her birthday is in two weeks and she has decided she doesn't want a party this year. She wants to go to Kobe. Is she going to be 7 or 17???

It's so much fun watching my nieces grow up. They definitely have their own personalities. It has always surprised me to see what they know and what they can do. They just soak everything in. I love being an aunt!! I'm gonna need help with the boy that's on the way. What do you do with boys??????

BORING Friday Night

I wish I was talking about one of mine and Jonaton's "Boring Friday Nights" when we pop in a movie and lay on the couch. Tonight I've been hanging out by myself studying. Ugh. (Okay so really I had a movie playing the entire time distracting me.) Tomorrow I have to take a six hour exam for my principal's licensing exam. Ugh, again. I'm ready for it to be over with already. My wrist hurts just thinking about it. (It's ALL essay.)

Wish me luck...

Malawi Here I Come...

When I stepped off the plane from Malawi in July last year I was already counting down the months until the next time I would go back. I knew without a doubt that it would happen again. In the past year I have to admit that my priorities have been spread all over the place and I was beginning to feel like maybe it wasn't meant for me to go again.

With the economy the way it is here and there I thought maybe the money that would be used to get me there would be better spent on things the kids need instead of my visit. I get consistent text messages from one of the teachers there who asks "when will you visit again" so when thoughts were crossing my mind about not going I really didn't know what to think.

Brother Gentry (the mission leader) met with our missions group on Sunday and when I posed the economy question to him he said, "Would a granddaughter rather see her grandma in person or be sent a $2000 check to spend?" He made a good point. He knows how great the need is and he could easily have said, "Just give me your money instead," but he didn't. I know the kids there want me to come back. I know the teachers do as well. So, with thoughtful prayer, my mind and heart are refueled for the mission.

I am on fire again. My heart is so full of things I want to accomplish this time. My step-sister, Jill, is planning on going back and I know we will work even harder this time to make a difference for these kids. Our whole team will!

So, Malawi....Here I come-AGAIN!

IU Football....Again

Okay, so Jonathon and I bought these football tickets when we thought we would be able to attend the games. We didn't realize how nutty his schedule was going to be. So, I have two tickets with a parking pass to the IU football game on SAturday, September 20 at 7:00p.m. The tickets were $28 each and I don't even remember how much I paid for the parking pass now. If anyone is interested in the set for $40 let me know.

Email me at kmhooser@msn.com

:)

Weekend with My Husband...

I should probably say "40 Hours with My Husband." He wasn't actually home for an entire weekend. Jonathon and I had the best time together this weekend. I feel like we fall more and more in love every time we see each other. I miss him terribly when he is gone but the time we do have together is so awesome. Sometimes we still have those moments when we think "Is this real?" I'm sorry if you're not into mushy but I'm so happy with my marriage so far!! I totally feel like God created him for me...

We didn't really do anything while he was home besides hang out and talk. I love to hear him talk about his job and everything going on with the people he works with. He LOVES his job and works very hard to be good at it. I found that attractive about him from the beginning....work ethic. I don't mind hearing about some things that I don't totally understand because I love to see him talking about it. He always humors me when I have to stop and ask him the meaning of some terms.

He just pulled out to be gone for another two weeks. The countdown begins until our next "40 Hours."

Finishing Up the Weekend...

Sunday- I met up with my friend Jen and spent the afternoon at her dad's house catching up and chatting. Her brother Josh is also a teacher so there was lots to talk about. You can't get two teachers in the same room without talking about school! I had a great time hanging out with her family.

I went to Kristen's for dinner. I don't think I've mentioned it yet, but Kristen is having a boy!! We are all so excited. Now that we know the sex we can think about shopping....

Monday-I shopped the Labor Day sales and got a couple great deals. One was I found and bought two different wedding bands. We never got the chance to pick out a band for my ring because of getting the replacement ring back a couple days before the wedding. Well, we've both been so busy we just haven't shopped for one. I knew the jewelry stores would have some sales today so I picked out a couple. When Jonathon gets back, I'll have him pick which one he likes the best. He was telling me I needed to find one I like because I "didn't look married from across the room." Ha, ha...He's so funny.

I met up with Jonathon's sister for lunch today. We had a great time. It's the first time we have done something with it being just the two of us. It's fun to continue getting to know my in-laws!

Tonight I've been catching up on some much needed laundry duty. I had four loads.....of just my stuff! I'm really bad about keeping up with the laundry.

Jonathon called me with an update a few minutes ago. He's flying into Louisiana tomorrow to begin search and rescue/damage assessment. With the news of the two other storms that have formed in the Caribbean there's no telling when they will be finished...keep on praying!

Here's to getting GOOD sleep tonight and starting the week of right...

What?!?!

Yeah, that was my thought as I rolled over to see that it was 10:35 when I woke up this morning! That's five minutes past the time I should have been sitting in my pew at church! Those of you who have known me for many years know that oversleeping was something that happened often in my youth but for the last few years it is rare that I EVER sleep late. I have that whole rhythm clock thing going on. I vaguely remember hitting snooze on the alarm around 8:00 this morning because I was feeling extremely tired for some reason. Well, I'm guessing my hand turned it OFF instead. There was so much I needed to do at church today....besides hearing the sermon which is the number 1 reason for going.

It's now 11:30 and I'm usually not home so why not blog, right? Here are the highlights of my Saturday:

I met Heather and Jami for a little breakfast at Cracker Barrel. It's nice living on the same corner as both of them. We can pile into one car and go. We ate and then sat and talked for a long time. Then when we got home we sat in the car and kept talking. Then we stood in the driveway and kept talking. I guess we need to do that more often because we had a lot of catching up to do. I REALLY had a good time. It's amazing how much you can miss seeing and talking to people that you live right beside! Life is so hurry, hurry that we still don't get to spend as much quality time together. I'm so glad they are my neighbors. If any of us move we are going to have to look for a buy one get two free(or at least reduced) sale in a neighborhood nearby! I love you girls!!

Jonathon and I went to my friend Jen's Father's wedding yesterday afternoon. (Did you follow that one?) Her mother passed a way a few years ago and he got remarried yesterday. I've been close to their family for a very long time and I am so happy to see him happy!

On the way to the reception Jonathon got "the call" about the hurricane relief so we made a different turn and headed home. Yesterday afternoon and evening was a blur of him packing, making phone calls, and checking things on the Internet. I ran up to Walmart to buy him some things he needed and when I got home I had great news. He didn't have to leave last night. They changed plans a little so he got to stay home and leave at 5:30 this morning. (I also vaguely remember him waking me up to kiss me good-bye.) So we watched a movie and just enjoyed the evening. They told him to be ready to be gone a week but three years ago when Katrina hit his company was there for two months. He didn't go then but other were telling him all about it. Let's hope the evacuation plans are better so they really can leave earlier this time.

I was so proud of him yesterday. He quickly jumped into action and I thought....This is what they trained him to do....I know part of him is ready and anxious for the challenge....I was really sad because this week he was only supposed to work two days and then be home and I have really been missing him. How can I be upset though when he will be helping out people in need. I'm so proud of him. Did I already say that?

Okay, it's time to get my Sunday started....

Please Pray...

Jonathon just got "the call" telling him to pack his things and head to the hurricane area. He will leave tonight to meet up with everyone and they will fly out tomorrow morning. They want to position them before the hurricane hits. So...please pray for his safety, the soon-to-be hurricane hit areas, and all the people who will be affected by this.

It Feels Good to Win...

Jonathon and I made it to the CHS football game last night. We didn't know if we would make it because he was driving in from London and I had cheer tryouts after school BUT we both pulled in the driveway around 6:45 and quickly headed out to the game. It was so exciting. The scoring went back and forth the entire game. We have a female kicker on the team! I didn't know that. She's pretty good too. She went four for four!

The game ended with some under one-minute plays that lead to a touchdown for CHS in the end to pull out the win. It was GREAT! I love that feeling. You can't recreate it. It wasn't only the win, but fans were turning around hugging and slapping hands with anyone around them whether they knew each other or not. It bonds a town together! I'm loving the school and town spirit that has been building in Charlestown over the past couple years...

Sunday

This morning started off not so well. I woke up with a sore throat! WHAT?!?! I thought after my tonsil surgery there would be no more sore throats!! Well, I was wrong. I think it's the beginning of what I call The Back-To-School Cold. I get it every year around the beginning of September. Welcome back germy drainage in the back of my throat! I hope you don't plan to stay very long...ugh!

I made my way to our couples' Lifegroup class....husband less and late....Jonathon's absence causes both of those things. Ha! Then it was on to the regular service but I had to leave early.

I went to my step-nephew's birthday party in in Columbus this afternoon with Kristen and the DeVore gang. It was pretty fun riding up with them. I was in the back seat with the girls watching Flushed Away on the mini DVD player. Maddie kept telling me to watch different parts and she would study my face to see if I was enjoying it as much as she thought I should. So cute.

I made it back just in time to attend our last Homegroup tonight. Wow, the past six weeks really flew by! We had a great pitch-in dinner and listened to Fred and Tony play a little music. Good times. Sulayne and I also had a marathon conversation about school. This happens often during the school year!

I'm home tonight and just thirty minutes away from my bedtime. Now that the Olympics are over I plan on being in bed by ten every night. The only thing is Jonathon hasn't called yet.....Hurry honey...it's getting close to lights out!

Saturday

Weigh-in: Jami was the biggest loser this week. Congrats! We may be adjusting our accountability system soon. It's harder to keep the schedule of meeting now that more of us are back to work. We'll see.

I spent all morning and afternoon grading papers and organizing. It always feels good to get things marked off the to-do list! I celebrated my achievements with a nap. Ahh....it's been over two weeks since I had a mid-afternoon nap. I miss them...

I went to dinner at Kansai tonight with some friends. That place is so good. I kept eating and eating!! We missed having Jonathon with us. He left this morning for an Army thing. I won't see him again until at least Thursday night...BUT it will be labor day weekend so I'll have extra time with him....counting down the days...

I came home after dinner and Heather called to let me know I could come over to play Rock Band. I had never tried it before. I'm okay at the guitar, stink at the drums, and I'm even worse at the singing. I kept asking, "where's the clarinet?" Ha!

Happy Saturday...

What a Week!

This week seems like it has been a roller coaster ride...lots of ups and downs!

I had some sister time with Kristen one night this week. We had dinner and went shopping at Kohl's. Great times! We should do it more often.

I finally got our wedding pictures back this week! It will take some time for me to sit down and scan them so we'll see when I can get something posted. Coming soon.....

We had a meeting for people interested in Malawi 2009 on Thursday night. There are five-six interested so far. We'll see what happens in the next few weeks. I'm excited already!

When I got home from the meeting at church Jonathon was waiting for me at home. I love him! We hung out and watched tv thinking we would have a relaxing night at home. I decided to log onto our bank account to check on a couple bills and found out that we had been hit with identity theft this week! Luckily, our funds were protected and will be returned to us soon. It could have been a lot worse but we will for sure be more careful from now on with our Internet purchases!!

Today is my birthday and Jonathon took me to Babby's Steakhouse for dinner. I was ready for dinner when I got home at six so off we went. The steaks there really are the best I've ever had in my life. So good! We came home and enjoyed some ice cream cake. Now we are having one of our famous "boring Friday nights." I love it......I'm so tired!!

Pet Peeve..

One of my pet peeves is driving behind people who haven't turned off their turning signals. It just goes blink, blink, blink, blink, blink, blink, blink....you get the picture. Well, today I caught myself doing it. When I realized it, I just wanted to yell to the drive behind me: "I'm so sorry!"

Anyway....I guess nobody is perfect....
:)

I love Leigh Ann!

Leigh Ann King stopped me in the hallway at church today and gave me a hug and some awesome words of encouragement. It wasn't anything heavy. I'm not carrying any huge burdens right now or anything. It was just something I really needed to hear in the moment. I love my church family and I'm so glad we can all be there for each other. God places us together for a reason at different moments and for different purposes. Thanks for being my encourager today, Leigh Ann!!

So Much Fun!

Yesterday was so much fun! Jesse Ledbetter had a day of fun at her dad's house in Lexington (IN). We started with a meal that was very yummy. We actually grazed on the food all afternoon and evening. We swam in the lake and then BD pulled out this awesome water slide. I wish I had pictures of it! There were seven late-twenty/early thirty-somethings crawling all over that thing like we were five years old! It's the most "feeling free" fun I've had in a very long time.

We ended the day with a cornhole tournament (of course). Once Jonathon and I were out, we left....didn't stick around to see who won. We were sooooo tired! I don't even remember actually falling asleep last night.

Aw to feel young again...

Saturday Update

This week has been pretty busy, but everything went well with the first week of school. Jonathon came home as scheduled on Thursday night and he had a full day to spend at the house on Friday. I think he really enjoyed it.....not having to do anything in particular but having the time to get some things done as well.

Last night we met Jen and Ryan for Chick-fil-a and Scrabble. Yes, it was a night full of adventure as you can tell by the sound of it! Ha. Three weeks ago Jen called to invite us to do something and we were wanting too but Jonathon had to work the past two Fridays. So after cancelling twice, we finally had our double date night. We had a great time!

We had our weigh-in this morning. I'm up 0.4lbs. It could have been worse I guess... Our biggest loser was Heather with -3.2lbs! Way to go Heather!

Have a great Saturday...

Back to School

I have a great class!!! The past two days have been full of organizing and anxious wondering about the beginning of the year. I told the kids that I get as nervous as they do. I'm home from my first day and I have to say I think it's going to be a great year. Yay!!!

Sunday

Jonathon woke me very early just to give me a little kiss good-bye for the week. He had to go to guard duties in Frankfort and then he drove on to London (KY) for the week. I'm so glad he got to come home Wednesday night because if it had been Friday like usual we would have had about four hours of time together this weekend! I headed off to church by myself this morning to attend our new Lifegroup: Newlyweds....It's a class for couples who have been married for a few years or less. There are five couples so far so that was an exciting surprise this morning. I'm really looking forward to learning with and from each other.

Today's sermon: Maria said it a blog earlier this week and I'll say it again: Brian is on a roll! He's had some awesome messages lately and today was unique as well as good to hear. It was also great to hear Mariah sing. She sang in my wedding and I LOVE her voice.

This afternoon I came home and took a long nap. I've been so tired lately! I'm afraid the days of a mid-afternoon nap will be coming to an end as of tomorrow.......Ugh! I'm actually ready to go though. Bring on the new year!

Busy Saturday Morning...

Weigh-in: Jami was the biggest loser at -1.0lbs. Go Jami!! It wasn't that great of a week for the rest of us.....

Golf Scramble: I joined Aimee and Jesse in a golf scramble for Steve Doherty at Hidden Creek this morning. Adam, BD, Todd, and Larry had a team of their own. Joellen (sp?) joined the three of us for an all girl team. Yeah! So we came in last but we had a ton of fun. I won a $15 gift certificate to Red Lobster! My camera is dead and I can't find the charger so I'll have to wait until Jesse emails her pics to me. It was a FUN morning!

Tonight: When Jonathon gets home from his guard duties, we will join Kristen and Chris for dinner at Carabas. It's Chris DeVore's birthday dinner. HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRIS! Maybe I'll find the charger and get some pics.....

Jonathon's Day at the Track

Jonathon and his dad had their day at the track. The National Guard has an Indy racing car so they let some soldiers and guests tour the garage and take three laps in a car. They got to wear the racing gear and everything. He's been wired up since he got home tonight. It looks like they had a great time. I know his dad enjoyed it as well...



Jonathon all suited up...



Jonathon in the car...

Bob all suited up...

My baby going 165 mph...
Bob taking his ride...(He's in the back.)

It must have been some ride! Jonathon has been going on and on about G Forces and other things I don't totally understand. I was so glad they had a chance of a lifetime experience. (I call it a chance in a lifetime because it costs $500 to do it again.)

Wednesday Surprise

Jonathon got to come home tonight! He was given the opportunity to attend some kind of National Guard event at the Kentucky Speedway tomorrow. He will get to ride in a car and hang out in the pit. I'm not really into racing but it sounds pretty cool. He gets to take one guest with him....but I have to work...boo! He's going to take his dad which is probably a better choice anyway. His dad is a huge race fan so he'll have a great time. My prize was getting to see my husband two extra nights this week! This was a great week for him to come home early because he has his regular guard meeting this weekend. That means little to no time with him on Saturday and Sunday.

The End of Summer Break

Today I spent my morning with Angela taking in what is probably the last free day of summer for me. We worked out then spent three hours by the pool relaxing. It was so nice! I have in-services on W-Th-F so I guess you could say my summer is over. It was fun while it lasted!

Great Message...

Don't ask me why but for the past two weeks Jonathon and I have been talking heavily about "when we have kids." For the record-WE ARE NOT PLANNING ON HAVING KIDS RIGHT AWAY. I felt the need to say that since sometimes blogs have a way of getting rumors started.

Anyway, I mention that because Brian's message was about raising your kids. It couldn't be more timely for us since we have had lots of discussions about it lately. There are two reasons I fear having kids: 1. I don't want to be pregnant. 2. I am terrified of the teenage years. Let me go into further details...

The pregnancy thing-All of my friends keep telling me that I'll change my mind when I'm actually pregnant but I've heard enough pregnancy stories that have totally zapped my desire to actually be pregnant. Don't get me wrong...I want to have kids and I want them to biologically be mine, but I just wish there was a way to do it without the whole pregnancy thing. I realize how selfish that sounds and I hope I don't sound like the most horrible person on the planet but I really fear that nine months of sickness and backaches. I have always been a bit of a hypochondriac and I know I'll think something is wrong just about every thirty seconds. This part of my fear will have to be overcome on my own and through deep prayer as I know that it must happen in order to have the babies. Unfortunately, Brian's sermon today did nothing for this fear. Let me get to that part...

My #2 fear is having teenagers. I know that new parents talk about the sleepless nights with babies and infants as being a hard time, but in my opinion the teenage years scare me more. I lived with my sister during the first 8 months of my niece's life and while I wasn't a 100% participant in all those sleepless nights, I think I have a good idea of the commitment those young years entail. I'm afraid of messing the kids up....That's what scares me.

Brian's message was very soothing. He basically said: You know your kids and you know if you can trust them. There is no magic rule about when and how to let them do this or that. Give them a Christian upbringing and protect their innocence as long as possible. Then, give them opportunities to gain your trust. You don't have to lock them in the basement until they are thirty. (This was Jonathon's idea of keeping them out of trouble.) Know what they are doing, keep a watchful eye, and put up barriers to temptations you know they can't handle.

Although I know it will still be hard, it was a comforting message at a time when I was freaking out about the kids I don't even have yet. The timing was perfect as Jonathon and I had been talking about all these issues just yesterday. I believe Brian hit on every single thing we brought up. We kept turning to each other and smiling (almost laughing) during his sermon because it was uncanny how he hit everything.

It's amazing what I choose to worry about. Jonathon and I were laughing at lunch today because sometimes I think "what if" and start planning for those "what ifs" to happen. My time would be better spent thinking about the "what is" parts of my life.....

Happy Birthday to Grandma Robic

Last night we went to Jonathon's parents' house to celebrate his grandma's 87th birthday. We had a great time. Grandma Robic was so sweet opening her present. (Jonathon's mom secretly bought her a birthstone ring she had admired while they were out shopping one day.) She also received a few birthday emails while we were there and I got to read them to her because she wasn't wearing her glasses. Her face lit up. It was precious!

We had dinner and celebrated with ice cream cake. The party must have gotten pretty rowdy because I took a little nap on the couch. Oops! I remember laying my head down and "closing my eyes" for a minute.....Ha ha....fell right asleep.

Anyway, Happy Birthday to Grandma Robic. She has been staying in Louisville since our wedding and will be going back home to Pennsylvania this week. We are glad we were able to spend a little time with her while she was here.

Saturday

Weigh-in: So the good news is I was the biggest loser at -0.2lbs. Yeah, at that amount of loss you can guess that it was a bad week for everyone. I think there was a lot of eating out among the group. We'll do better next week!!! Sulayne didn't make it this morning, so who knows she could have been a repeat for the title???

We have a busy day ahead. We are going to Laura Hammond's wedding this afternoon then we are off to do a little shopping in Louisville on our way to Grandma Robic's (Jonathon's grandma) birthday dinner.

The wedding is at 2 and the dinner is at 5 so I thought it would be a good time to stop by Ann Taylor Loft on the way between the two. I LOVE that store! I usually only allow myself to go about twice a year and now's the time. I need some work clothes and they are having a 60% off sale today only. Add to that the "Loft Loves Teachers 20% Off" card I got in the mail and I'm set for my shopping spree. (Actually I have a tight budget and only about 30min. to shop so it won't be much of a spree, but I'm excited nonetheless!)

I hope your Saturday is awesome!

Jonathon Comes Home Today!

He was supposed to be home yesterday but mother nature had different plans. If they have a rain-cancelled day then Friday becomes a workday for them. I know farmers need the rain, but I need my hubby! So, I've decided to pray for rain on Fridays! (I know it doesn't work that way...)

Last week I was busy enough that I didn't get to complete the power clean and I could tell Jonathon noticed. This week I've been a much better wife. I had things ready for him on Wednesday night and I tried very hard to keep them that way yesterday.

Okay, I'm off to start my busy Friday...run with Kathy, meet up with Angela, and maybe go to school for a couple hours. Then.....come home and wait for Jonathon! I can't wait to see him!!

Getting Somewhere...

I feel a lot better today! I started my day with an 8 mile run(5ish)/walk(3ish) with Kathy and it really got me energized. I went home, got cleaned up, and headed up to school to get more accomplished. I really feel like I'm close to being ready now. The class lists were final so tonight I can work on all the "tags" that need to be made. Getting that done always makes me feel a lot less stressed for some reason.

Tonight I picked up Callie and Maddie then met Chris and Kristen at Mark's Feed Store for another Kids Eat Free night. It was fun. Chris has jury duty this week so while he couldn't talk about the case he gave us some info on what it feels like to be on the jury. That was pretty cool. I've never been called to jury duty but I think when my time comes I may enjoy it.....well, I guess it all depends on the case though. I don't think I would enjoy sitting on a jury with crimes against kids or anything. Ugh...now that I think about it...never mind. I don't wanna!

Anyway, now I'm home and settled in waiting for my hubby to call. We have a 9:00 phone date every night......Happy Tuesday!

Getting Nowhere...

I spent the entire day at school working in my room. I arrived around 8:20a.m. and left right around 4:00p.m. I have to say that the room doesn't look much different from when I arrived. It's amazing how much time it takes to reorganize and think about what you want to do with everything. Ugh!

I was hoping I would be ready to go after today but it's going to take another day I think. There's just so much to do to get ready for the new year and new group of kids. Getting things organized gives me a feeling of excitement about the new beginning though. It's coming soon....

I'm not the only one looking forward to going back to school. My niece, Callie, has been counting down the days all summer!

Busy Week

This week I picked up Callie and Maddie each day and took them to VBS with me. I ended up working for school on Wednesday and Thursday so that made things pretty busy. I don't know how you full-time working moms do it!! All-in-all it was a very busy, but fun week.

Jonathon got home very late Thursday night but we were able to hang out most of the day on Friday. We didn't really do anything specific but I love having him home. The girls were counting down the days all week until they got to eat pizza with Uncle John. They were excited to see him too. After VBS I came straight home so we could have a "boring Friday night" together. We watched Hannibal. This summer Jonathon has been catching me up on the Silence of the Lambs movies. I had never seen any of them. We have one more to go.

We had our weigh-in this morning. Sulayne was the biggest loser this week with -0.8lbs. Yeah! I had a loss again this week so I'm on track to meet my six-week goal. Although I noticed that Ice Cream Willie's is opening back up on Charlestown Pike. Oh......I will pass by it every day and I'm not sure what that's going to do to my diet!!

Happy Saturday!

Update...

It was such a crazy weekend! Here's the recap...

FRIDAY-Jonathon (and I) have been waiting and waiting for the opening of Batman:The Dark Knight for months! Even though we hadn't really seen each other in two weeks, we wanted to make sure we got to see the movie on opening night. So poor Jonathon got home, changed clothes and we were out the door. It was really good. I have to say I was worried about all the hype but The Joker definitely makes the movie. I do see why everyone is talking about an Oscar for Heath Ledger.

SATURDAY- It started off with our weekly weigh-in. We kicked off our second round and Heather Jackson is joining us now. I'm so excited about that! I'm proud to say that I was the biggest loser last week with -1.6lbs. Oh the pressure to perform well again!

Craig Jackson's 30th Birthday- Saturday afternoon and evening was filled with celebration! Heather pulled out all the stops to celebrate her honey's birthday. It was so much fun!
Check out the water slide they created in the backyard:

The coolest thing was definitely the cake. I had to take close-ups of all the little scenes to show all the details.

SUNDAY- Jonathon was off to work again and I headed to church to watch the babies in the nursery. I really wish I could have heard Brian's sermon. I heard it was a good one!

MONDAY- Day of fun with the Callie and Maddie....Chuck E Cheese, Toys R Us, Walmart, and VBS. Lots of fun!

This week we are having BOOT CAMP for our VBS program at church. I will be picking my nieces up every night and heading over to help out. It should be another crazy week!