Reward for a Job Well Done

Well, here it is: the magical trophy that made all JJ's dreams come true. He ran four consecutive races this summer, which entitled him to receive this lovely piece of plasic immortality, on the bottom of which is a list of his races and his times. Very impressive that he finished top 10!

I had to work until after 6 last night, so my mom picked him up from the Y parking lot and took him to get his reward, knowing I would get there with JE and Baby G ASAP; little did I know that JJ would be the VERY LAST KID to get his trophy!! Needless to say, we got home late and the kids were dead tired this morning. Will try for an earlier bedtime tonight.

Your Power Color Is Magenta

At Your Highest: You energize yourself and push others to suceed. At Your Lowest: You feel frustrated and totally overwhelmed. In Love: You are suprised by who you attract. You're a love magnet. How You're Attractive: Open and free spirited, people want to explore the world with you. Your Eternal Question: "What is my next source of inspiration?"

What's" Your Power Color?

My Big Baby Is (Finally!) Home!

JA (1 of 4, for all you Trekkies out there) has arrived, safe and sound, back in O'town looking tan and manly. He and his dad actually got in late last night, so he spent the night at the man-shed (where his dad is living- no, not a gay thing) and I picked him up before church this morning. JJ, JE, and Baby G were beside themselves with joy, and I could not quit hugging and kissing on him (though I did stop before we walked into church- didn't want to embarrass him in front of his peeps.) He seems very happy to be home, a little uncomfortable at first, but his attitude has softened a bit and I think being away did him a world of good. He has decided not to play football this year and instead he wants to focus on getting his life together in the next couple of months school-wise, since he has credits to make up for last year and his GPA is terrible. If anyone can do this, it would be JA; he is by no means lacking in brains, he just needs some determination.

While he was away, he discovered he is quite a strong swimmer. Iam going to encourage him to continue swimming through the summer months and into the school year; after he turns 16 next year he can take the lifeguard course and work with me!!

More pix after the jump- just for you, Kara!

Baby G and Best Buddy M Play Polly Pockets

So much girl-type fun to be had! After having three boys, it still amazes me to have pink clothes in my laundry baskets and dolls around the house. Is she a drama queen? Yes!! Does she think sequins and purple eye shadow are appropriate for day time wear? Yes!! Can she chat and gab until she's blue in the face? Yes!! I do love me some Baby G...

Funny Post du Jour

This just cracked me up!

#3 of 4 (JE) Just Because

Today I am posting pictures of JE (or #3 of 4, kind of like the Borg on Star Trek- just a little family joke there,) because he has not yet had a post all his own. It's not that he doesn't

'do' anything (G's muffins, JJ's running,) he is just usually playing or tagging along or watching super heroes on t.v. (his fave!) JE is the most lovable, cooperative kid in the family, wedged in between three very strong personalities- pray for him!

Other JE facts: loves all super heroes, eating pizza, cheetos, and cocktail weinies, playing video games, and listening to hip-hop music.

Isn't he great?

Bathing Beauties

Lord, has it been a long day! But very full and very fun- we started with church (and my church is fun, y'all!) had a quick lunch at a friend's house, then headed for the pool at about 4:00pm (reduced rate after 4, duh! I'm a single mom, so I have to look for cheap entertainment wherever I can.) Now understand: JJ (almost 10) and JE (8 in a week and a half) have only attended two sessions of swimming lessons, and can swim just enough to save themselves from drowning, and Baby G does not swim at all, so I have been hesitant to take them anywhere near water. But today was so beautiful, I couldn't resist.

The place where we swim has three pools: a 3 1/2 - 4 1/2 footer, a 12-foot diving pool, and a baby pool. For most of the afternoon, the kids stayed in the first pool, playing and paddling with friends and generally making a lot of noise. But then JJ watched my friend dive into the 12-footer and was immediately determined that he was going to jump off that diving board and try it himself! This struck holy terror into my heart, but my friend promised to stay in the pool while JJ did his dive- AND HE DID IT!! Again and again and again. And it gave him so much confidence that he began really swimming around, having a great time. I was so proud!

Now we're home, kiddos tucked into bed, gearing up for another crazy week. If you're a praying kind of person, pray for me: finances are going to be tight this time around, and I'm looking into another job to supplement my income.

But life is so good- I am so blessed- God is so good- and for the first time in a long time I look forward to every day. This is living!

Baby G Bakes Muffins

Here is Baby G, honing her culinary skills in preparation for the day when she marries a 'spiney little man with a brat of his own' (pardon the Rugrats reference!) She has decided to take some to daddy when he picks her up for their movie in a few minutes; I hope there aren't any little crunchy surprises left in them from the egg shells.

It should be noted that JJ and JE also helped in making the alleged muffins, but since they were still in their boxer shorts, I decided not to photograph their efforts. It would just be *too sexy* for y'all to handle.

The Cheetah

Here is Jon, running with the Kennekuk Kids this evening. He was disappointed that he did not finish 'Top 10' like the last two runs (13th this week, 7:48 mile) but he ran his little heart out and, as you can see, poured some Gatorade over his head when he was done. If he runs again next week, he receives a trophy- and God knows a trophy is the whole object of running!

Tired

I just got home from work- I could really use a good nap, but, as we all know, there is no rest for the wicked. I spent 3 hours in certification training for SilverSneakers Yoga Stretch and another 3 hours in SilverSneakers Cardio Circuit. I won't actually by teaching these on a regular basis (that I know of) but I can sub. Well, at least I get paid for my time. My check today was so freakin' tiny...

Better go. Guess we're going to eat...

A Big Purchase

I received a forwarded email from my sister-in-law, Kara, which contained little snippets of wisdom from Maya Angelou. One 'quote' said a woman should own at least one good piece of furniture that has not been previously owned by a family member. I took her advie: behold the SOFA!

Now, why on earth would son #2 (JJ) son #3 (JE) and baby G be lounging on bean bag chairs or on the floor instead of this glorious new piece of furniture?

BECAUSE THEY ARE NOT ALLOWED TO SIT ON IT ANY MORE!!!

See the first picture? Happy smiling children relaxing on the sofa together. This idyllic situation did not last long. Less than 24 hours later, it has already been bounced on, mauled, and generally accosted; since I am paying for the sofa, I refuse to have it abused (and the hardwood floors are going to be a wreck if they keep it up!) As you can tell, JE is not a bit happy about being on the floor. Boo hoo. Cry me a river and stop using my sofa as a trampoline!

Blast From the Past

For several months, my lovely digital camera refused to work. I changed the batteries, messed with its knobs (tee hee!) and tried talking nicely to it, but no dice. Then, one day a couple weeks ago... poof! It started working again. And I found photos I had taken last fall! Enjoy!

My Big Baby

Son #1, whom I shall refer to as "JA" from now on, is visiting my soon-to-be ex-brother-in-law (whew! that was a hyphen night mare!) in an undisclosed location (brother-in-law, Jace, is in the military, so we'll just say his job is very 'hush-hush'.) He is having a great time visiting, wrestling with his cousins, and playing at the beach, but the main reason he was allowed to go was to get him away from the Divorce Drama that is playing out in our lives right now. At 15, he understands just enough about the Divorce, about the relationship dynamics between his dad and me, and about the circumstances surrounding our separtion to put him through the emotional wringer, but not enough to give him a secure grasp on the future of our family. Hopefully, this time away from home will help him grow as an individual, give him some peace & perspective, and enable him to face the situation with a renewed calm.

Wow! What alot of rhetoric. Bottom line: kid is freaking out, totally confused and an emotional wreck and needed a breather. End of story.

Enjoy the pics (thank you, Kara! Check out her blog: Organized Chaos.)

Happy 5th Birthday, baby G!

Well, my baby is five years old now. Doesn't seem possible that she will be starting Kindergarten in August. Not that she isn't ready- she'd go tomorrow if I let her!

Her birthday(s) seemed fairly happy, if somewhat simple this year. Going through a divorce, I explained to her that I did not have the money to give her a great big pool party at the Y like I did last year, but she didn't act like she was suffering. She still got 2 parties from Mom (since my parents can't be in the same room together, even though they've been divorced since 1999!) and one from Dad, and lots of nice presents- including pierced ears with money she received from Grandpa Jim and Grandma Pat! I am so proud of my Baby G... isn't she just beautiful?