Friday, December 10, 2010
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Note I wrote to Jasmyn's School...
Please excuse Jasmyn for being late. She over slept & missed the bus AGAIN because she really wants to do some extra chores at home for making me drive her to school :) [So, I get both floors steam mopped tonight, curtesy of Jasmyn.]
Saturday, December 4, 2010
Saturday, November 13, 2010
Circling toys they want for Christmas!
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Mirabeau Park Waterfall
Friday, October 29, 2010
Ethan - crazy hair day
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Monday, October 11, 2010
I went out to the garden & what did I find???
The squash came from the squash plant that I did NOT plant. Seed fell out of compost bin last year & up came a squash plant right in front of my compost bin. The squash & cantaloupe I planted on purpose this year have yet to produce anything.
Also notice the carrot we call the "twisted sister". It has a carrot that grew around it.
Chicken order Zaycon Foods
Www.zayconfoods.com is doing another chicken order. Check their website for a delivery near you. Skinless, Boneless chicken breasts for $1.48lb. In Spokane we have to order by Oct. 22nd. Good chicken - I ordered from them about a year or so ago...80lbs and we have a few pkgs still left in our freezer. Be sure to have freezer bags on hand & when you get chicken cut it up & add spices if you want & freeze in meal size portions...
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Spring's Surgery and other stuff
Below there more information than you will probably ever wanna know about my surgery I had on Thursday. I went in at 11:30am to Sacred Heart Doctor's Bldg - Day Surgery and at 1:05pm they wheeled me into the surgical suite, I laid down on the bed and then the next thing I know I am being wheeled into the recovery room. They gave me local sedation, they called it the "michael jackson drug". I think it was about 1:45pm. They told me when I could pee, I could go home. So about 2:30pm after slugging down a couple glasses of apple juice I went to the bathroom by myself - much to the chagrin of my nurse. She caught me right before I closed the door - I guess I was supposed to wait for her to ask me if I had to go & take me. Since she didn't have time to put their special little "measure my pee pee cup" in the toilet, she said we might have to wait until I went again or do an ultrasound to make sure I emptied my bladder. So, they ultrasounded & it was bone dry, just like I told her. So, I was able to go home at 3pm and Dave picked me up around 3:15pm.
I realized when the doctor said the surgery would just feel like I had been riding horses for a couple of days - it wasn't the procedure that caused it - it was the fact that my feet were put up in stirrups and my knees were at my ear lobes and my knees were jacked wide open (I wasn't awake, I just know from doing these procedures. So, the soreness I felt was from the positioning. I only felt my stitches inside once, mostly it felt like I had been wearing a Tampon for way too long! This was a breeze compared to birthing an 8 pounder vaginally without any meds!
However, I was VERY tired...probably from surgery but most likely from all the stuff I have been doing for others this last month. So, I slept all Thursday, Friday and Saturday. I did venture out to eat and pee. I would bring the food back to my bed & eat it laying down.
I did go to half of church today. Was glad to sit on the cushy chairs. Now my back is causing more trouble than my "surgical area". I worked on organizing Marley & Graysons room - going through all their clothes & seeing what fits and what doesn't and putting their initials in everything. Marley & Jasmyn went and visited their dad in rehab yesterday. Jasmyn said there were some pretty scary people in there. Only 4 people are their voluntarily (Ken included) the others (mostly for drugs) are court ordered to be there. Jasmyn had to drag Marley off her dad - he didn't want to go. Then they went to a birthday party at Jump & Bounce. Thursday during my surgery they spent the day playing with Ayden and had sooo much fun (I wasn't quite in the mood to hear ALL about it at full volume on the way home from the hospital - but lucky me - I got too!!).
Grandpa Dar & Grandma Tami came by at 4pm and picked up all the kids and took them to Chuck-E-Cheese. Its hard to say who had the most fun - the kids or the grandparents! Jasmyn fell in love with their little dog Sparky and really wants a dog. So, Tami told her she can dogsit once they move up. I suggested she volunteer at the animal shelter thats so close she can ride her bike too.
So, if anyone wants to send letters to Ken (Curtis) he'll be in rehab until November 3rd. The address is PO BOX 9977, Spokane, WA 99209. We heard back from the apartment complex and since he doesn't have a rental history in his name in the last 3 years he needs a co-signor, but it has to be a relative of his or Marley's. Marley's grandma Carol Ann called him today and she may be coming up to visit him on October 30th.
So, below is more info. than you'll ever wanna know (unless you too suffer from peeing your pants when you laugh, sneeze, run, jump on the trampoline, etc, etc, which is caused from having children):
MonarcTMSubfascial Hammock
The MonarcTM Subfascial Hammock treats female stress urinary incontinence by placing a narrow strip of mesh in your body to support the urethra. The Monarc uses what is called a transobturator approach to place the supportive mesh. The transobturator approach avoids the retropubic space, the area of loose connective tissue between the bladder, pubic bone and abdominal wall. With this approach, narrow mesh carriers are passed through an area near the groin at the obturator of the pubic bone. The mesh is then attached and pulled into place under the urethra.
Once placed, the hammock cradles your urethra and gives it a point of support.
Most patients are continent immediately following the procedure and can resume normal, non-strenuous activities within a few days.
The Monarc offers several benefits:
•Patients generally recover quickly and experience immediate continence.
•It is minimally invasive and suitable for a wide variety of patients.
•Incisions in the groin area are small.
•Can be used in patients who have retropubic scarring resulting from prior pelvic surgery.
•The hammock can be loosened or tightened during and immediately after the procedure.
Placement of the MonarcTM is a minimally invasive procedure that typically lasts less than 20 minutes under local, regional or general anesthesia, depending on what you and your doctor choose.
In general, placing the Monarc sling involves the following steps.
1.Two small incisions are made near the groin at the obturator of the pubic bone and one in the vagina.
2.Narrow sling carriers are passed through the groin incisions and exit through the vaginal incision.
3.The mesh is attached to the sling carriers, and placed under the urethra.
4.Sling carriers are removed.
5.Mesh tension is adjusted.
6.Incision is closed.
The Monarc Subfascial Hammock is a single-use procedure kit that includes two stainless steel needles each specifically designed for right-side/left-side. The needles are designed to move away from the obturator canal, avoid the retropubic space and minimize blind needle passage.
The Monarc TOS series allows physicians to select from three needle types to better accommodate individual patient anatomy:
Standard Monarc - Tight, centered helical passer for small to medium or large patients
Monarc+ - Wide, centered helical passer for larger patients
Monarc C - Passer for physicians who prefer the C shape
I realized when the doctor said the surgery would just feel like I had been riding horses for a couple of days - it wasn't the procedure that caused it - it was the fact that my feet were put up in stirrups and my knees were at my ear lobes and my knees were jacked wide open (I wasn't awake, I just know from doing these procedures. So, the soreness I felt was from the positioning. I only felt my stitches inside once, mostly it felt like I had been wearing a Tampon for way too long! This was a breeze compared to birthing an 8 pounder vaginally without any meds!
However, I was VERY tired...probably from surgery but most likely from all the stuff I have been doing for others this last month. So, I slept all Thursday, Friday and Saturday. I did venture out to eat and pee. I would bring the food back to my bed & eat it laying down.
I did go to half of church today. Was glad to sit on the cushy chairs. Now my back is causing more trouble than my "surgical area". I worked on organizing Marley & Graysons room - going through all their clothes & seeing what fits and what doesn't and putting their initials in everything. Marley & Jasmyn went and visited their dad in rehab yesterday. Jasmyn said there were some pretty scary people in there. Only 4 people are their voluntarily (Ken included) the others (mostly for drugs) are court ordered to be there. Jasmyn had to drag Marley off her dad - he didn't want to go. Then they went to a birthday party at Jump & Bounce. Thursday during my surgery they spent the day playing with Ayden and had sooo much fun (I wasn't quite in the mood to hear ALL about it at full volume on the way home from the hospital - but lucky me - I got too!!).
Grandpa Dar & Grandma Tami came by at 4pm and picked up all the kids and took them to Chuck-E-Cheese. Its hard to say who had the most fun - the kids or the grandparents! Jasmyn fell in love with their little dog Sparky and really wants a dog. So, Tami told her she can dogsit once they move up. I suggested she volunteer at the animal shelter thats so close she can ride her bike too.
So, if anyone wants to send letters to Ken (Curtis) he'll be in rehab until November 3rd. The address is PO BOX 9977, Spokane, WA 99209. We heard back from the apartment complex and since he doesn't have a rental history in his name in the last 3 years he needs a co-signor, but it has to be a relative of his or Marley's. Marley's grandma Carol Ann called him today and she may be coming up to visit him on October 30th.
So, below is more info. than you'll ever wanna know (unless you too suffer from peeing your pants when you laugh, sneeze, run, jump on the trampoline, etc, etc, which is caused from having children):
MonarcTMSubfascial Hammock
The MonarcTM Subfascial Hammock treats female stress urinary incontinence by placing a narrow strip of mesh in your body to support the urethra. The Monarc uses what is called a transobturator approach to place the supportive mesh. The transobturator approach avoids the retropubic space, the area of loose connective tissue between the bladder, pubic bone and abdominal wall. With this approach, narrow mesh carriers are passed through an area near the groin at the obturator of the pubic bone. The mesh is then attached and pulled into place under the urethra.
Once placed, the hammock cradles your urethra and gives it a point of support.
Most patients are continent immediately following the procedure and can resume normal, non-strenuous activities within a few days.
The Monarc offers several benefits:
•Patients generally recover quickly and experience immediate continence.
•It is minimally invasive and suitable for a wide variety of patients.
•Incisions in the groin area are small.
•Can be used in patients who have retropubic scarring resulting from prior pelvic surgery.
•The hammock can be loosened or tightened during and immediately after the procedure.
Placement of the MonarcTM is a minimally invasive procedure that typically lasts less than 20 minutes under local, regional or general anesthesia, depending on what you and your doctor choose.
In general, placing the Monarc sling involves the following steps.
1.Two small incisions are made near the groin at the obturator of the pubic bone and one in the vagina.
2.Narrow sling carriers are passed through the groin incisions and exit through the vaginal incision.
3.The mesh is attached to the sling carriers, and placed under the urethra.
4.Sling carriers are removed.
5.Mesh tension is adjusted.
6.Incision is closed.
The Monarc Subfascial Hammock is a single-use procedure kit that includes two stainless steel needles each specifically designed for right-side/left-side. The needles are designed to move away from the obturator canal, avoid the retropubic space and minimize blind needle passage.
The Monarc TOS series allows physicians to select from three needle types to better accommodate individual patient anatomy:
Standard Monarc - Tight, centered helical passer for small to medium or large patients
Monarc+ - Wide, centered helical passer for larger patients
Monarc C - Passer for physicians who prefer the C shape
Medical Family History Form
So, Grandparents (Aunts & Uncles) please fill out for grandkids, so we can have complete health records! Thanks!
Form says "Please fill in the blank with the relative of this child (birth parents, brothers, sisters, grandparents, aunts, uncles, or first cousins who have that disease or condition).
Monday, October 4, 2010
Marley is ready for Winter!
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Our Exhibits at the Spokane Fair
I have tried to publish this post with pictures and I can't move or edit photos once I select its position. So, if you want to see pictures go to my facebook page - its much easier to load photos & takes a quarter of the time. Also, my camera ran out of batteries so I couldn't take pictures of all that we entered & ribbons.
If you want to see the pictures Jasmyn & I entered & vote for the People's choice award here are the numbers of the pictures we entered (its easier to find by number than by name). We both entered in the OPEN catagory, and they only give out 4 ribbons per catagory. 1st-3rd place & honorable mention. So competition is tough.
If Jasmyn would have entered in the Youth section, I bet she would have got blue ribbons on all her photos!
Color Photos: 439, 438, 479, 475, 460, 254, 286, 318, 341, 381, 97, 94, 178, 399, 506, 510, 444, 213, 167, 73, 281, 152, 187
Black & White Photos: 641, 554, 561, 529, 523, 598, 587, 648, 610, 636, 625, 607, 619, 644, 584, 620, 526, 553.
The Photos that placed were: #641 Tiger licking his lips (she took this when she was 9yrs old). She got 2nd place. #644 Grayson in the snow, 3rd place. #610 her Converse shoes and rocks placed in a heart (took at 12yrs old), honorable mention. #648 A picture of Ethan that she took, but I hand colored & entered in the hand colored section. Placed 2nd.
When you walk into the craft section at the fair and you look to the right there is a wall of photos. You will see a picture of Jasmyn as a vampire. She took the picture of herself on her cell phone & then I digitally enhanced it - gave her fangs, red lips & enhanced her eye lashes. Right next to it is her picture of a purple flower.
In the kids craft area Jasmyn's mini red album placed 2nd and her homemade scrapbook placed 1st (she made it in beginning of 7th grade for a school project).
Ethan's Pinewood derby car is in the Scouting section and he placed 1st!
I entered a bunch of stuff just for fun. I realized as I was thinking of things to enter that I made a bunch of stuff in all different catagories, but have given most away as gifts!
My Strawberries, Raspberries & Blueberries received 1st, 2nd & participation ribbons, which is funny because as far as I could see I was the only one to enter those berries!
The Crafty stuff I entered was:
Wood: One Nation Under God - 2nd place
Wood: Mouse pinewood derby car - 2nd place
Cards: Love Valentine with Chocolate bar inside - 1st place
Scrapbook Page: "Every family has a few nuts" - 1st place
Card: "Bee" Happy Birthday - 3rd place
Card: Heart Felt Thanks (used my cricut) - 1st place
Handprint Painting (made in 2005 for all the grandparents) - 2nd place (hanging up)
Scrapbook Page (hanging up) "American Flag" - 1st place
Cub Scout Treat Bucket - 3rd Place
Sign: Happy Birthday BSA B&G Banquet - 2nd place
Sewing Section: Red Cub Scout Vest I made for Ethan - 2nd place
If you want to see the pictures Jasmyn & I entered & vote for the People's choice award here are the numbers of the pictures we entered (its easier to find by number than by name). We both entered in the OPEN catagory, and they only give out 4 ribbons per catagory. 1st-3rd place & honorable mention. So competition is tough.
If Jasmyn would have entered in the Youth section, I bet she would have got blue ribbons on all her photos!
Color Photos: 439, 438, 479, 475, 460, 254, 286, 318, 341, 381, 97, 94, 178, 399, 506, 510, 444, 213, 167, 73, 281, 152, 187
Black & White Photos: 641, 554, 561, 529, 523, 598, 587, 648, 610, 636, 625, 607, 619, 644, 584, 620, 526, 553.
The Photos that placed were: #641 Tiger licking his lips (she took this when she was 9yrs old). She got 2nd place. #644 Grayson in the snow, 3rd place. #610 her Converse shoes and rocks placed in a heart (took at 12yrs old), honorable mention. #648 A picture of Ethan that she took, but I hand colored & entered in the hand colored section. Placed 2nd.
When you walk into the craft section at the fair and you look to the right there is a wall of photos. You will see a picture of Jasmyn as a vampire. She took the picture of herself on her cell phone & then I digitally enhanced it - gave her fangs, red lips & enhanced her eye lashes. Right next to it is her picture of a purple flower.
In the kids craft area Jasmyn's mini red album placed 2nd and her homemade scrapbook placed 1st (she made it in beginning of 7th grade for a school project).
Ethan's Pinewood derby car is in the Scouting section and he placed 1st!
I entered a bunch of stuff just for fun. I realized as I was thinking of things to enter that I made a bunch of stuff in all different catagories, but have given most away as gifts!
My Strawberries, Raspberries & Blueberries received 1st, 2nd & participation ribbons, which is funny because as far as I could see I was the only one to enter those berries!
The Crafty stuff I entered was:
Wood: One Nation Under God - 2nd place
Wood: Mouse pinewood derby car - 2nd place
Cards: Love Valentine with Chocolate bar inside - 1st place
Scrapbook Page: "Every family has a few nuts" - 1st place
Card: "Bee" Happy Birthday - 3rd place
Card: Heart Felt Thanks (used my cricut) - 1st place
Handprint Painting (made in 2005 for all the grandparents) - 2nd place (hanging up)
Scrapbook Page (hanging up) "American Flag" - 1st place
Cub Scout Treat Bucket - 3rd Place
Sign: Happy Birthday BSA B&G Banquet - 2nd place
Sewing Section: Red Cub Scout Vest I made for Ethan - 2nd place
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Ethan needs letters of Recommendation for ASB
Ethan is running for the position of ASB Representative in his 3rd grade class and needs letters of recommendation. Would you be willing to email a letter of recommendation, with comments about his leadership skills, positive character traits, strong work ethic or other abilities to his teacher by September 12th? And if you could email a copy of it for me to save for his scrapbook that would be great! Thanks, Spring
His teacher's email address is: lockm@evsd.org
His teacher's email address is: lockm@evsd.org
Thursday, September 2, 2010
High School is Expensive!
Everyone tells you to save up for college, but nowadays you need a savings plan for high school!
Jasmyn is taking spanish, career choices, pre-ap science, algebra (i took my jr yr), seminary 3rd period so she could get out of her PE class, & english. She LOVES high school, but yesterday she was so tired from her first day that she came home & slept until 8pm got up to eat & went back to bed!
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Monday, August 30, 2010
Staples shopping trip
some of t/best sales are in July, tho Staples has a couple .01 items each week still. I LOVE that!
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Ethan's 1st day of 3rd grade
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Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Sights at the Zoo...
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Battle wound from the beach
Ethan LOVES driving grandpa's lawn mower!
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Friday, August 6, 2010
Grayson asleep...and snoring...
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Thursday, August 5, 2010
Grayson enjoying his snack bag!
My snack bag is a little harder to fill. Trying to find snacks that are fat free AND sugar free is very challenging. You can find sugar free, but then it has sat. fat or if you find fat free it has sugar in it. I did find some chedder flavor rice cakes that are pretty tasty.
Finally on our way to Oregon
We are finally on our way to Oregon to visit Grandparents & to go to my 20 year reunion! We were supposed to leave yesterday morning, but Jasmyn and I were still working frantically until 9pm last night trying to get our pictures ready for the fair. Next year we will start 3 months ahead of time, not 1 day. The deadline is while we're gone on vacation. I never realized there was so much to it. We drove all over trying to find the correct size mounting boards, several trips to costco & wal-greens to pick up photos (cause sometimes what you thought would look good in an 8x10 doesn't...). I went without sleep from Monday morning at 6:30am until Wednesday morning at 2:30am, working on fair photos). We entered 41 photos and luckily the other items don't have to be there until September! Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Jasmyn at Girl's camp
Grayson finally gets his donut!
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Happenings...in July...
I can't believe July is almost over - it just started!
Floating the River:
We have been floating the Spokane River, which is a lot of fun, but the water level drops daily! We'll be walking it soon instead of floating it. We start at the Harvard Centennial trail head and walk up to the 4mile marker, there's a bench there & a trail down to the water, that's the start of the rapids just before the Harvard Bridge. Sometimes we'll get out & ride those rapids a few times before floating to our house. We get out right at Meyers & Buckeye, less than a block from home. We put Grayson & Marley in a float tube with a mesh bottom, that way they can't fall out.
Swimsuit Shopping:
Let me just say - NIGHTMARE! Jasmyn & I went out a few weeks ago so both of us could get new swim suits. We were out for 12 hours and closed down a few stores (we didn't get home until 2am) and the FIRST place we went and tried on suits is where we ended up buying them! (we put suits on hold & went back the next day to pick them up).
Jasmyn Summer Classes:
She finished her broadcast media classes and is now taking multimedia graphics - which we thought would be more about taking pictures and lighting and angles and stuff, but they spend most of their time on photo shop editing pictures (and watching shows on HULU.com). By the way Jasmyn says Creative Memories Memory Manager is way better and easier than photo shop! Her fave is piknic.com (not sure I spelled it right) to do funky fun stuff to her pictures.
Ethan's Summer Classes:
Ethan gave up on holding "school" for Marley & Grayson. I can't even bribe him to do it...Not even for for fifteen minutes! I guess he had enough in the 2 days he did it!
Ex-husband Status:
Ken and Marley are still living with us. They are staying in Grayson's room. Grayson has a mattress underneath Ethan's bed and I made a "Fort" out of sheets for each of them around their beds. Ken is our "live in Chef", he loves to cook, so we told him he should find a cooking job. He applied for a cook job at The Otis Grill yesterday, they are looking for someone with 3 years experience (being paid to cook), but maybe he'll get it...and they'll be able to find a house.
Marley:
He hasn't said a cuss word in 3 weeks and he's actually doing really well behaviorally. Still working on chewing food with his mouth closed and not crying or pouting for not getting what he wants, when he wants it. Grayson and Marley have been playing really well together, they were so cute yesterday - they were going to take a nap is Grayson's fort...well, i went to check on them and they had little army men spread all over the bedroom floor & we're having all kinds of conversations.
Bake Sale:
Last weekend Ethan wanted to have a Bake sale so Friday night we made cookies & cupcakes & brownies (Ethan lasted until 11pm, Mom lasted until 2am). We also decided to have a garage sale since a few of our neighbors were having them and they had all the signs out. Ethan's bake sale brought in $26 and our impromptu garage sale $112. We took turns floating the river during the day because it was soooo hot! Austin & Ayden were over for the day and went floating with us too. Ayden went twice! Austin borrowed jasmyn's guitar and put out a tip jar by the bake sale and started playing for tips - he actually made some money! Ethan was doing magic tricks for tips too. Grayson and Marley were digging out all of Grayson's pennies from his piggy bank to buy cupcakes at the bake sale. They left a trail of pennies from the bedroom, down the sidewalk to the bake sale tent.
Today:
I took the boys to the Library for "storytime" though neither one was interested when we got here. Grayson listened to books on the computer, Ethan checked out books and I tried to update our blog...but the boys want to go home NOW. And I need to get ready for our 2 day garage sale and bake sale this weekend. I've been cleaning out every nook and cranny and found stuff (like a tin Passion Perfume lid) that I have had in a "Junk drawer" for 20 YEARS! And Ken keeps saying as I find more stuff to put in the garage sale "Is that the ...." from before Jasmyn was born? "You still have that?". Yes, I am a HEREDITARY pack rat...but NO MORE...it all MUST GO!!!!
Floating the River:
We have been floating the Spokane River, which is a lot of fun, but the water level drops daily! We'll be walking it soon instead of floating it. We start at the Harvard Centennial trail head and walk up to the 4mile marker, there's a bench there & a trail down to the water, that's the start of the rapids just before the Harvard Bridge. Sometimes we'll get out & ride those rapids a few times before floating to our house. We get out right at Meyers & Buckeye, less than a block from home. We put Grayson & Marley in a float tube with a mesh bottom, that way they can't fall out.
Swimsuit Shopping:
Let me just say - NIGHTMARE! Jasmyn & I went out a few weeks ago so both of us could get new swim suits. We were out for 12 hours and closed down a few stores (we didn't get home until 2am) and the FIRST place we went and tried on suits is where we ended up buying them! (we put suits on hold & went back the next day to pick them up).
Jasmyn Summer Classes:
She finished her broadcast media classes and is now taking multimedia graphics - which we thought would be more about taking pictures and lighting and angles and stuff, but they spend most of their time on photo shop editing pictures (and watching shows on HULU.com). By the way Jasmyn says Creative Memories Memory Manager is way better and easier than photo shop! Her fave is piknic.com (not sure I spelled it right) to do funky fun stuff to her pictures.
Ethan's Summer Classes:
Ethan gave up on holding "school" for Marley & Grayson. I can't even bribe him to do it...Not even for for fifteen minutes! I guess he had enough in the 2 days he did it!
Ex-husband Status:
Ken and Marley are still living with us. They are staying in Grayson's room. Grayson has a mattress underneath Ethan's bed and I made a "Fort" out of sheets for each of them around their beds. Ken is our "live in Chef", he loves to cook, so we told him he should find a cooking job. He applied for a cook job at The Otis Grill yesterday, they are looking for someone with 3 years experience (being paid to cook), but maybe he'll get it...and they'll be able to find a house.
Marley:
He hasn't said a cuss word in 3 weeks and he's actually doing really well behaviorally. Still working on chewing food with his mouth closed and not crying or pouting for not getting what he wants, when he wants it. Grayson and Marley have been playing really well together, they were so cute yesterday - they were going to take a nap is Grayson's fort...well, i went to check on them and they had little army men spread all over the bedroom floor & we're having all kinds of conversations.
Bake Sale:
Last weekend Ethan wanted to have a Bake sale so Friday night we made cookies & cupcakes & brownies (Ethan lasted until 11pm, Mom lasted until 2am). We also decided to have a garage sale since a few of our neighbors were having them and they had all the signs out. Ethan's bake sale brought in $26 and our impromptu garage sale $112. We took turns floating the river during the day because it was soooo hot! Austin & Ayden were over for the day and went floating with us too. Ayden went twice! Austin borrowed jasmyn's guitar and put out a tip jar by the bake sale and started playing for tips - he actually made some money! Ethan was doing magic tricks for tips too. Grayson and Marley were digging out all of Grayson's pennies from his piggy bank to buy cupcakes at the bake sale. They left a trail of pennies from the bedroom, down the sidewalk to the bake sale tent.
Today:
I took the boys to the Library for "storytime" though neither one was interested when we got here. Grayson listened to books on the computer, Ethan checked out books and I tried to update our blog...but the boys want to go home NOW. And I need to get ready for our 2 day garage sale and bake sale this weekend. I've been cleaning out every nook and cranny and found stuff (like a tin Passion Perfume lid) that I have had in a "Junk drawer" for 20 YEARS! And Ken keeps saying as I find more stuff to put in the garage sale "Is that the ...." from before Jasmyn was born? "You still have that?". Yes, I am a HEREDITARY pack rat...but NO MORE...it all MUST GO!!!!
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Saturday, July 10, 2010
Big radish from my garden
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Ethan's Summer school class
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Friday, June 25, 2010
The Cat's favorite resting spot in the morning...Grayson!
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Sucky Public transportation!
So, before sending Jasmyn on the wonderful public transportation system I researched for 5 hours all different routes, times, and bus stops near her school & our house, then i typed it up, summary fashion, attached the detailed schedules - tabbed them and everything! And NO WHERE on their trip planner or Khow to ride" the bus information sheet did they state that there are 2 #90 busses going from downtown to the valley. Nor did it state that one goes to Greenacres and the other one goes to Mirabeau. So, today Jasmyn ended up 5 miles from home instead of a mile. Which really screwed up our schedule! (not to mention stranding my daughter). So, Dave had to pick her up which meant I had to wake up 3 kids, rushhh them out the door barefooted so i could get Ethan to BB camp on time.And yes, I had to walk him into the H.S. with 3 barefooted kids - 1 crying at the top of his lungs, the other 2
running way ahead all over the place - so much fun, NOT!
running way ahead all over the place - so much fun, NOT!
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The last few weeks cont..
up! Found out today they have 2 busses with the same #'s but they go in 2 different directions!
Monday, May 17, 2010
Naptime for Grayson & Sophia
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Friday, May 14, 2010
Dave
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Graysons favorite thing to do at the new park.
Dave
Dave
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Dave
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Dave
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Jasmyn's Poem "Love Ship" to be Published
Jasmyn is having her 2nd poem published! She entered the spring contest and is one of the finalists. The top ten will receive a cash prize. Judging spots are still open if you go to www.poeticpower.com and enter to be a judge, you can pick your top ten...one of them being Jasmyn's of course! :)
Here is a copy of her poem:
Love Ship
By: Jasmyn Walker
The Love Ship floats above the stormy sea, Waves crashing, thunder roaring, and fog making it hard to see.
Love floats above all, Good times or bad, Just hold on tight and I'll take your hand.
The blue sky is turning gray,
But my love for you is here to stay.
The clouds rush in and the rain starts to fall, We all run to safety and wait for the call.
The ship starts to tip,
And we all start to scream.
I grab onto the rail,
Awaiting the lean.
The lean doesn’t come,
I see panic in your eyes.
So I look up and pray to the
dark stormy skies.
The bow of the ship begins to tip up
As I have a flash back of us growing up.
And a tear falls down my cheek
I watch it fall into the cold dark ocean peak.
I look into your eyes for what
might be the last time
You tell me not to cry
But there might never be a next time.
Your hand starts to slip
And I start to scream.
You say not to worry everything will be fine
But I know by the look in your eye that life will never be that way,
With a tear in your eye you say “I love you with all my heart and that will never change”
I agree trying to talk but all that comes out is the sound of a cough
This love ship was nothing I expected
but what can ever be planned?
The storm of love and the gray stormy skies is everything we want to avoid in life.
But to discover the true form of love we must go through the trials and storms of life.
Who is Creative Communication?
Since 1993, Creative Communication has been devoted to the promotion of language arts. Each year we award thousands of dollars in prizes and awards to writers and their schools. We recognize writers for their work and give them an audience. We help teachers motivate their students.
Why do you sponsor this contest?
We started our contests to reward creative writing. Teachers wrote thanking us for providing “a motivation for students to express themselves.” We also received requests for a publication of the best of the contest entries. We wanted to offer a creative outlet that honors our youth.
Do you publish every poem or essay you receive?
No. Our goal is to be selective enough that it is an honor to be accepted, but not so exclusive that is is discouraging to enter the contest. This approach results in our rejecting more poems and essays than we accept to be published.
To see why our contest is different from others, go to www.poeticpower.com.
Are you required to purchase a book?
No. To be published, each writer must only return his or her proofsheet. Unlike other writing contests there are no entry fees and never a requirement to make a purchase in order to be publlished. The purchase price covers the cost of having the entries judged, typed, the book formatted, printed and bound. Just as you would buy a yearbook to preserve school memories, we provide a literary yearbook that preserves your writing.
How are the prizes awarded?
Prizes are awarded by grade level for each contest. The top winners in each level receive a monetary award and a complimentary copy of the anthology. The top ten winners are noticed two to three months after the contest is over and will be listed on our website, www.poeticpower.com.
How are the entries judged?
The judges are poets, writers and educators in elementary, secondary and higher education. Poems and essays are selected on their literary merit, creativity or social signifcance.
When will you receive your anthology?
Creating a book that you will be proud to display and show to your friends
takes time. If you place an order, you can expect to receive your books four to
five months after the proofsheets have been returned to us. This anthology reflects the insight and perspective of today’s student writers Poems and essays are published with the author’s name and grade Each author’s name is indexed Each book is hardbound with a full color cover.
What others have to say about our contest and anthology:
TEACHERS
“Thank you so much for providing a wonderful opportunity for students to become published authors. You stimulate such excitement and enthusiasm about writing poetry. What a wonderful service you provide.”
Kathleen F. Esmiol Teacher, Eagleview Middle School, Colorado
PARENTS
“The news of having our daughter’s poem published in your anthology has boosted her self confidence and determination to be more creative and competitive. She has gained more respect among her peers and is now taking more leadership roles in class. Keep up the good work of recognizing our future leaders.”
Dr. and Mrs. Takya Parents, New Jersey
POETS
“It is quite an honor for me to get my poem published. I’m so proud that I put my book on my desk to read it every night. Thank you so much!”
Kimberly Yee Poet, New York
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Another one bites the dust.
Another one bites the dust. And another hamster gone, another hamster gone, another one bites the dust.
Dave
Dave
Grayson goes shopping
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Grayson at New Discovery Playground
Monday, May 10, 2010
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Can Crusher
We're at the Spokane Valley Heritage Museum Old time tractor event. This is a video of the old time "can crusher"
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Bake Sale & Car wash
Bake Sale & Car wash 8am-12pm today 21022 E. Wellesley. Girls raising money for camp. Otis Orchards. Free "garage sale" going on there too 9a-2p.
Friday, May 7, 2010
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