Rock On

I know. I know.

I'm slacking off on my blogging. I miss blogging and I miss your blogs. I will get back on the blogging circuit, I'm predicting, after Appreciation Week is over at my kids' elementary school. I have been working night and day (along with an army of awesome volunteers) to put in place a ROCKIN' Week - that's our theme, anyway. Rock and Roll. I cannot WAIT to post how the week turns out. Look for that in late April!!!! I will be rockin' the blog that week!!!

On another Rockin' note, my cousin, my sweet and awesome cousin, is turning 50. So, in honor of her, we threw her a 50's Surprise Party!!!! And was she surprised....We all dressed up for the occasion. Kami, wearing the white jumpsuit below, dressed as Elvis, but Granny, who loves get ups and disguises, snagged the wig and the sunglasses with sideburns, making for a pretty laugh-worthy moment.
Here is the King herself, waiting for Ronda to arrive.And I had to get in on the Elvis action. This Velvet Elvis actually belongs to my mom, though she does not, I repeat, does not, have it hanging in her home.Here is Ronda getting ready to blow out her candles,...And the boys? Ahem. They liked the records. Mom and Granny....
Me and my friend Chere'. She is much better dressed than I am.
Thanks for reading... and until next time, ROCK ON!!!

I Lied

We had another Spring Break outing besides our adventure at Redbud Valley.

I didn't mean to lie. It was an accident (as Luke says).

On Friday, we took a couple friends and went to the new, hands-on, children's museum in town, called Kaleidoscope.The kids had a good amount of fun. It is really nice to have a place like this here in town... when the girls were little, we traveled all the way to Enid to Leonardo's. And of course, back then, it was all new and wonderful and exciting (even for me). So, 5 years later, our trip to Kaleidoscope was fun, but kind of muted fun for our grown up little 8 and 10 year olds. It did provide for many cute photo ops, and for me, that's what it's about anyway, getting the pic! Forget the fun, give me the pic. Just kidding of course, but I will admit there are times that I have to back off the photo thing, stop brainstorming on blog post titles, and just enjoy myself! Their very favorite part? The rock climbing wall. Luckily for me, free rock climbing started at 5:00, so they climbed over and over for the last 45 minutes of our time there. A pretty good deal considering I paid two dollars apiece for one climb earlier in the day. So all in all, it was a fun time, but I have to admit another thing: I was a little bit jealous when I read Amanda's blog post about her trip to the Houston Children's Museum, WOW.

Tulsa Treasure

Our Spring Break was different this year... the last few years we have been out of town at a basketball tournament, so it almost seemed strange to be at home with nothing to do. But do you know what I liked about it?

We were at home with nothing to do.

So, truth be told, we actually did nothing much... lots of days at home with friends or just hanging out with family.

The one outing we went on is what I am highlighting in today's blog post: Redbud Valley. Redbud Valley is a nature preserve that lots of Tulsans don't seem to know about. It is near Catoosa, and is a place that I first explored when I was a little girl. If you like a good nature hike, Redbud Valley is absolutely beautiful and a fun walk. The Main Trail is about a mile long and isn't for sissies. It's steep, rocky and what Luke called "a great place for boys." There are other forks to go on, such as the Woodland Trail and the Prarie Trail, and my kids can't wait to get back out there and walk on the rough and challenging Bluff Trail.

It's hard to describe the beauty of the place, the habitats you see on your hike differ so much... so here is an explanation from the website:

The habitat here was created where Bird Creek and its tributaries cut through a thick limestone layer. This has formed valleys edged with tall limestone cliffs. The limestone, in turn, has been dissolved by water to create several small caves and springs. Where the tall cliffs face north, they shade the area from sun and keep it cool and moist. This special combination allows plants like ferns, Columbine and Dutchman's Breeches to grow, and shelters native Oklahoma Sugar Maples. Many of the plants in this habitat are more common in the Ozark Mountains to the east. On top of the limestone, however, the soil is thin and dries quickly, allowing plants like yucca and two species of cactus to flourish. There are also many plants here common on the prairies to the west. One tree of interest found here is the Smoke Tree, Cotinus obovatus. The combination of the dry and moist habitats, existing side by side, gives Redbud Valley its special character. The weather was absolutely perfect the day we (Me, my kids, a friend, and Gran Carolyn- Tom's mom) visited... clear, fresh and comfortable, like a gift from heaven. The terrain wasn't too muddy and there weren't that many bugs around yet. The only regret we had was that the Redbuds didn't seem to be blooming yet.... here at my house, they are in full bloom, but things were still pretty drab in the valley. Below is a peek of the purple blooms to come... and click here to see a previous trip to Redbud when the trees had leaves and the browns were green.

Or better yet, go for a visit yourself! You will discover quite a treasure!

(Check hours of operation and directions on the website)

A Wise Gal

When Ellie was cast as a "wiseguy" in Fellowship Bible Church's musical focusing on the life of Daniel, we all had a good laugh.

Ellie has been a wise one ever since she's been a little bittle - always cracking us up with comments that seem way ahead of her time.

At 2 years, she would yell "privacia" at us when she wanted us to get out of the bathroom.
At 3, she described something as "smokin' hot."
At 4, when she was cold, she told us she was "freee-ee-ee-ee-zin her beak off" (a quote from the movie Ice Age, I think.)

And so it goes. She constantly says the funniest things and always nails the context of the comment perfectly.

(just wish I'd written some more down from when she was little!)

Definitely NOT a trait inherited from me. I am pretty slow and not witty whatsoever.

Anyway, she is a true delight to us and brings lots of light to our family.

But she was wise in a different way this time. During a basketball game at the state tournament, I found her making the beginnings of a list she called...

"100 things I want to do in my lifetime."

Here are the first Ten....Translation:
1) Go to a Harlem Globetrotter game.
2) Go to the Bahamas.
3) Meet a dolphin. (I just Love the word "meet" in that sentence).
4) Sky Dive
5) Be on a Major Soccer Team.
6) ME find my OWN arrowhead.
7) Go camping with my family only.
8) Go skiing.
9) Always agree with my family. (this one is a work in progress - not easy for the little, wise one)
10) See a baby tiger.

My prayer for the ever sharp Elle Belle?
Proverbs 3:7
That she will not be wise in her own eyes; that she will fear the LORD and shun evil.

He Really Does Have Strep Throat

Tuesday, when I picked Luke up from school, I could see 50 yards away from him that something was not right. And when I got a good look at the kid, he appeared to have been hit by a Mack Truck. We drove directly to the pediatrician and my diagnosis was confirmed: strep.

I brought him home and deposited him on the couch where he literally did not budge for about 22 hours. Finally, Wednesday afternoon he started acting a smidge like himself, but still had a fever and ate next to nothing. Thursday... the gusto returned, but the strep breath (have you ever smelled it?) and low grade fever were still present.

So what I have on my hands today (Friday) is Luke in all his Lukeness with the added element of NO SCHOOL! I know it is even more exciting since his sisters had to go to school! AND HE IS HOME FREE!!!

One discovery we have made during this time is RedBox - those red vending machines of movies. I have noticed them for sometime, but never really paid attention. This time, I tried it and in the last 3 days, we have made several trips to Redbox, getting oh, probably 7 movies... for a grand total of 7 dollars. Now that's a deal! (just can't forget to return them within 24 hours or you have to pay another dollar per movie).

Below is our latest trip to Redbox. I had to laugh as I took my poor, "sick" son to pick out a movie. Apparently, it took a hybrid of Batman and Bible man, with a cowboy gun and some kind of PVC Pipe weapon thrown in to wrestle the evil Red Box free of Luke's coveted videos.

Luke, in case you're wondering, is BACK! Full Force.

Just in time for Spring Break!

Annie Needs...

I've seen this on blogs before but never taken the time to do it myself. So, when I was tagged by Rena, I decided it was high time.

My instructions were to type my name and the word “needs” in the Google search and then list the first ten responses that make sense.

There is definitely a theme going in most of my answers.
Warning: It ain't pretty.

1) Annie needs a spanking. (I kid you not - this was the first thing that came up)
2) Annie needs prayers. (oh yes I do - keep 'em comin')
3) Annie needs to release a live album. (God help us all)
4) Annie needs a home. (there were several of these... I guess there are lots of poor, little, orphaned dogs named Annie)
5) Annie needs the basics. (uh-huh!)
6) Annie needs a miracle. (everyday.)
7) Annie needs some advice. (do you see the theme yet?)
8) Annie needs more students like Jack H. (whoever he is, I hope he's a good student)
9) Annie needs to be rescued by the armed forces. (save me!)

and finally.... the be all and end all thing that I need...

10) Annie needs Jesus. (And that's the Blessed Truth. Amen)

Tagging: Chere, Shannon, Kim, Amanda, Amber, Jonni Valerie, Michelle, and Roxanne

(if you've done this already, just ignore me! Lord knows I'm just a poor woman who needs a lot of help anyway.)

Birthday Bliss

Well, the Big Day has come and gone.... and it's official..... I am part of the 40 and over club.

I get to check that little box that says 40-49 now.

I'm fine with it. What? I AM! I really am!

And if you don't think I am... just listen to what happened to me for my 40th birthday.

Courtesy of an amazing Mom and Sis, I had...

40 Fabulous Days of Fun,
Family, and Friends.

Starting January 24th, (40 days before my 40th), I got something everyday from a different loved one in my life! Here is the calendar that gave me a hint of what was to come each day such as "This Friend will Rock your World" or "Expect a Sweet Treat Today"

So over the last 40 days, I have received among other things...
-an awesome scrapbook from a long-time friend
-cutie patootie notecards, stationary and notepads
-a care package from a faraway friend
-GC for manicure/pedicure
-green tea!
-a specially made bracelet that represents different parts of my life
-gift cards galore (Jamba Juice, Perfect Touch, J. Spencer, Hideaway)
-lunch with a friend at the Wild Fork
-dinner with a friend at Red Rock Canyon
-homemade goodies from a dear friend
-breakfast at Panera with an old friend
-roses from Granny because I am her "Rosebud"
-a facial from Ilhoff
-a framed portrait of my kids on Santa's lap
-artwork from a family member
-a darling box of beauty products and Hershey kisses
-a blessing box - (Bible Verses)
-a triple cross necklace
-a beautiful Brighton bracelet
-a ticket to a Third Day concert
-a night out with friends- dinner and movie-
-a "crazy cake" made by a friend who makes cakes (on the last post)
-a naughty little goody bag from CoCo that I cannot tell you any more about.
-a scarf hand knitted by my Aunt
-a list of 40 things that my cousin loves about me.
-Oswald Chambers
-a weekend in Stillwater with my high school buddies
-spa day in Stillwater
-a "beach party" from my friend whose last name is Beach - had a GC to Red Lobster and some fun, beachy stuff for my kids
-a prayer journal
-a photo key chain
-lots of sweet and funny 40th bday cards

And on my birthday.....

-40 pink roses
-"Happy Birthday Annie" donuts
-cash! (should I buy myself an Iphone?)
-lots of calls and more cards
-a zillion Facebook messages
-an amazing Shutterfly photobook of our Big Cedar vacation
-a Nike jogging suit
-more J.Spencer Gift Cards
-dinner at Ted's Escondido - (what setting did hubby have the camera on?)
-a card from Ellie "Mom - You Rock"
and................ drumroll.......................
-a perfect day from Luke - 5 smiley faces - (this is huge - rarely happens!)

I think it's safe to say that my 40th birthday was incredible. The gifts and visits made it wonderful... but it's the friends and family who made it possible to begin with. And when it all boils down, I think that it's the peace God has given me with my life and the blessings of friends and family that make ok to be turning 40. Thanks soooo much Mom and Kim for organizing it and for all my loved ones for helping me feel awesome on my 40th.

The Big One is Coming....

The Big One is Coming...
The Big One is Coming...

Ellie and Papa on the Farm

Here is a video my dad posted on You Tube some months ago. It has had 8,195 views, Miniscule in terms of You Tube hits. But Huge in terms of how much I Love It.


It is a slice of time that Ellie and Papa spent together out on the farm "checking the whales."

When Ellie was 5, she really thought that Dad had a large farm of blue whales. And that he went out to check on them every morning, feeding them fish and other things. In her little big imagination, she thought that he would pet them and play with them.

So, one day he took her out to check the whales, and she found out that there were really no whales at all, but oil wells, and lots of cows, horses, rabbits, fences, hay, gates and other wonderful sights and smells you could imagine out on the farm.

Checking the wells became a fun thing for Ellie and Papa to do together and this is just a funny moment from one of their trips. (sorry Luke).

For me, it isn't the poopy moment caught on tape, it's the conversation between the two, Ellie's cute little voice, Papa's interest in all that's around them, the beautiful green of the farm where I grew up, and just remembering our girl at an age that has passed us by already.

Looney Toons

Do you know who this is?
Well, it's our beautiful daughter, Ellie.

My only consolation? She's not the only looney-toon around!

Bits and Pieces

*I have been asking myself lately when I used to fit blogging in?!! Holey Moley! This month I am lucky to find time to put on deodorant.

*Valentine's Day was lovely. Our little family had a Valentine's Breakfast, which was nice since our Valentine's evening consisted of the oh, so, romantic Valentine's Day Basketball Game. The best thing about the evening? 2 of my awesome friends keeping me company through an exciting/stressful basketball game.... AND.... ORU won! Love you too, honey- that's a great present any day of the year. (I did get flowers - below - and a very sweet card).

*Not that we had mac and cheese for our Valentine's Breakfast, but speaking of food, am I the only one who is amazed at how different Mac and Cheese seems the older my kids get? When they were little, one box of mac and cheese went on and on. It was like the fishes and loaves. Now, I stir up a pan of it and it looks like such a piddly little pile of pasta. It's just a strange feeling that I can't quite get over for some reason.

*Here is our energy-filled little boy at the beginning of his basketball game this past Saturday. At Upward games, they announce the names of the kids (Luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuke) and they run out and get all excited. Luke may get a little more excited than most. He has a lot of gusto.*All your comments on my last post really encouraged me, complete with the necessary round of tears. If you ever get that Loser Mom feeling yourself, take a look at all those comments. I completely intended to personally respond to every single one of them... they truly lifted me up!!! Thank you so much for your thoughts and encouragment. This is a better week. Plus I had a crazy friend who called me at 7:30 AM on Saturday just to make sure I wasn't missing our bball pictures. Ha! Nikki - I miss your Florida-living self.

*Oh, and the lesson? The bigness of God's grace and that I in my human condition need to extend that grace to all people. I need to quit looking at that speck in other's eyes when there is a log in my own. Cuz I was on the other end of that and it did not feel good.

*One thing I am so busy with right now (besides life in general) is being in charge of Teacher Appreciation Week for our school in April (220 people). The theme is JEE Faculty and Staff: YOU ROCK! We are incorporating a rock and roll theme and it is going to be so fun! Though right now it feels like a full time job. Having meetings, organizing activities, contacting people, getting donations, being creative and just thinking it all through. Woh!

* I sure miss reading your blogs too! I just haven't. been. able. to. :( I miss the bits and pieces that you share. You know me, always getting inspired by you! Miss you!

*Oh, and Elle Belle who is always taking pictures, grabbed my camera and took one of herself. I love the crumbs on her cheeks and how her freckles pop. So Ellie. I love that little girl. I love her to pieces.*Good night, my friends! Blog and non-blog! I know you are out there. XOXOXO.

What's the Lesson?

Things seem to be happening in my life that are right along the same theme.

The theme of Loser Mom.

And I am looking hard for the lesson.

***With 4 kids in tow (my 3 and a friend) and running on fumes (this was day 5 of Tom being out of town), I decided to take my kids to a church activity. Remember, we are going to a new church, trying to meet people, etc. We were to decorate the doors of the residents at a nursing home and then go bowling. Everything was fine until I stepped away from the group for a few minutes to retrieve some more valentines from the office. I left Luke behind with the other moms, which looking back was so amazingly dumb of me. He is a wild 5 year old boy. Sometime while I was gone, another mom of a kindergarten boy decided that she did not like Luke or his antics (he IS wild), and began telling him to calm down. Telling Luke to calm down is like telling the sun to stop rising. Things went from bad to worse and my hopeful good first impression went down the drain. Needless to say, we did not go bowling, and I cried the whole way home.

***Remember the coach who saw me forget both Ellie's and Luke's picture days? Well, last night, it got worse. I dropped Ellie at practice and ran over to Hobby Lobby to work on a couple of looming projects. Being EXTREMELY aware of the time, I was done and ready to head back with 10 minutes to spare (practice was only a 45 second drive away). That's when my phone rang. It was the coach. He said, "hey, practice is over, where are you?" This cannot be happening!!!! I guess they just ended practice early and that I shouldn't have cut it so close. My embarrassment factor is off the charts. I swear, I think I look like I am on drugs or something.

These are just two examples in my life that I would classify under "Loser Mom."

I KNOW I am NOT a loser mom (not looking for sympathy), but I just hate making these impressions on people. I feel like I am being unfairly judged. I just want to jump up and down and yell, "I am a responsible mom! I work very hard to discipline my children! I take care of details! I am really quite organized!!! LISTEN TO ME!!!!" But then I really WOULD be a loser mom, now wouldn't I.

I am looking for a lesson....

Could it be to....
1) try harder and think deeper? could be.

2) realize that i am going to make mistakes? that's already been proven.

3) slow down? well, uh, yeah.

All these have gone through my mind. But what I keep coming back to is this:
I need to care less what people think.

The Lord knows my heart. He knows how I parent.
Darnit, HE Himself gives me the measure of strength and energy to make it through each day.
And if I'm being unfairly judged, well, God knows that too.

and maybe, just maybe, He's telling me this...

that when I notice a MOM in a sticky situation, I can do this:
judge less and reach out more. GIVE MORE GRACE.

It just might make her day. (thanks Amanda for making mine yesterday.)

Luke Haiku

At the blogging dinner a couple weeks ago, I met Maggie at Maggie's Mind, who does Friday Haikus on her blog. If you know me at all, you will know that counting syllables is really my thing. Thanks Maggie for introducing me to this little blog carnival (is that what it's called?)- it is so up my alley.

So my subject of the day is Luke. Yesterday was the 100th day of school. They did all kinds of exciting, one hundredish types of things. Including making this hat. But when I saw him get into my car wearing his onery little grin, I had to laugh because as sweet and wonderful as his teacher is (and I mean that with all my heart), I'm sure that the message "Hip Hip Hooray! We've been here 100 days!" was closely followed by a huge sigh of relief. (and I mean THAT with all my heart.)
So in honor of all that, here are my haikus:

one hundred short days

faster than a lightning bolt

precious baby boy

you test your limits
bursting right through the stop signs
not yet looking back

kindergarten year

each day a monument to

a patient teacher

In my life I have

never received notes from school

Now? Wow! One hundred!

You make me Prouder

than the President's Momma

you are Strong, Smart, Mine.

Luke James... your own name
makes my heart leap up with love,
even on hard days.

Growing, Learning. How

Dare I underestimate

the Power of Days?

You too can participate! Click on the box for more info.

Wordless Wednesday

Every Mom Makes Mistakes (right?)

Dawn gave me this Mom of the Year Award (thanks Dawn!)

and it could not have come at a better time.

One of the rules of the award is that you have to post a bad-mom moment, and I had to laugh because I recently had not one, but two.

Our two little ones are playing Upward basketball. With such activities, you always have picture day. And picture day always seems to mess with my head. You have to be there early, looking decent and have $ ready to shell out.

Two Saturdays ago, Ellie had a one o'clock basketball game. I was at lunch with my mom and sister and my dad was planning to take Ellie to her game, me to come later. My cell phone rings as I am enjoying a leisurely lunch and it is Ellie's coach. "Hey," he says in an even voice, "we are all here getting ready to take team pictures. Are you all coming?" Oh man, my heart sinks and my face turns red. I didn't want to tell him that actually, NO, I had totally forgotten, that I was stuffing my face full of chips and salsa, and that Ellie wasn't even with me, so I said, "well, my dad is bringing her, but I didn't tell them about pictures. Just take pictures without us. Sorry." I feel horrible, but we go on with lunch. The phone rings again, "We don't want a picture without Ellie in it. We're going to rearrange and take the picture afterwards." Ok that is soooo nice, but I feel like a heel. Everyone knows that it is me, Loser-mom, who has inconvenienced everyone. I know it doesn't sound like that big of a deal, but one thing I may not have told you about myself is that I HATE making mistakes. I'm not a perfectionsist per se, but making mistakes, forgetting something, especially in front of other just makes me feel like dirt.

Fast forward one week. Luke had a 9 AM basketball game. I thought I was doing great to have all the kids up and ready by 8:30. Tom was out of town, and you know how hard that can be flying solo. However, there was no fighting, everyone was wearing the correct uniform and I was feeling like Supermom. Phone rings. It's Luke's coach this time: "Uh... we're here waiting for you all... trying to get our team pictures taken." CRUD. My heart sinks again. I sigh as I say to him, "well, I'm so sorry. You'll have to take them without us." I get off the phone, but it rings again. Get here as fast as you can. We don't want a picture without Luke. Wow. That is so great... as I stand there in my robe with no makeup on. So, I jump into clothes and we take out there like madmen. It took us a full 15 minutes to get there, and I am so mad at myself the whole flying way. As we walk in, I begin apologizing to the coach. But guess who is there? Of all people? Ellie's coach. His son is having pictures at the same time.

oh my.

So on to the next rule and that is this: to list 7 things your love about your kids, doing with your kids or that your kids love about you.

1) I love to hold their warm, little and sometimes grubby hands.
2) I love to hear them laugh.
3) I love to enjoy each of their very different and distinct characteristics.
4) I love to hear the funny things they say.
5) I love to discover a quality in them that I do not possess.
6) I love to hear them express their faith in God through simple ways.
7) I love to see them interact with family - their dad, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins.

I surely LOVE being a mom, bad-mom days and all.

And who to pass this out to?
I'll try some of my dear out-of-town friends:
Shannon @ IA Pilot Wife
Kim @ KimNOW
Roxanne @ Roxanne Kristina
Rena @ Insert Grace Now
Kathleen @ Treasured Chapters

Here are the official rules:

1) Admit that ONE thing you feel awful about involving being a mom. Get it off your shoulders. Once you've written it down, you are NO LONGER allowed to feel bad. It's over with, it's in the past. Remember, you're a good mom!

2) To remind yourself that you ARE a good mom, list SEVEN things you love about your kids, you love doing with your kids, or that your kids love about you. These are the things to remind yourself of EVERY DAY that you rock!

3) Send this to FIVE other Moms of the Year that deserve forgiveness and a reminder that they, too, are the best moms they can be!!! Remember to send them a note to let them know you've selected them, and add a link to the person who nominated you!"