About Alena...

Tonight I would like to introduce you to my 7 year old daughter, Alena. We recently sat down for an interview. (Just so happened to be in the car while I was driving, but eh!) Here is an excerpt from that great interview:

Mom: Thanks for meeting me for this
interview, Alena. I'm glad you could finally pencil me into your calender.

Alena: Oh, you're welcome. Just make it fast please. I've got
people to see, and things to do...

Mom: Yes, yes,
surely. So, tell me. Who are your three most favorite people in the world.

Alena: (long pause....) My mom. My dad. (another long pause...)
and myself.

Mom: Oh, very good. It is a very good
thing for people to like themselves. Now tell me, what is your most favorite
thing to do?

Alena: I have lots of favorite things.

Mom: Ok, well if you had to pick ONE thing....what would
it be?

Alena: (shrugging shoulders in a bothered manner) I like
hanging out with my friends.

Mom: Great! Friends are
lucky to have you to hang with! Now, if you could go anywhere in the world,
where would it be and why?

Alena: (without hesitation) Paris!!

Mom: Paris? Why??

Alena: It has lots
of cool things to do there, like shopping.

Mom: I
wasn't even aware you knew about Paris. Interesting. So, what would you like for
Christmas?

Alena: (A very, very long pause.) I don't know. I
guess a Nintendo DS.

Mom: What is you favorite color and number.

Alena: Oh, I think Pink, and 16.

Mom:
What do you like most about school?

Alena: Math is my favorite
subject, but I like having lunch the most.

Mom: What
do you plan to do when you grow up?

Alena: I am going to be two
things. First, a singer. And second, a veterinarian.

Mom: A
singing vet...that would be cool! What do you like most about being in a family
with so many kids?

Alena: I don't know.

Mom: What is the worst thing about that?

Alena: All
the yelling, and never any quiet.

Mom: Well, thank
you Alena for meeting with me tonight. As an ending question, tell me what you
would like people to know about you.

Alena: Um....that I am nice.

Well, there you go. That is my Alena.

A bunch of stuff...

First, my sweet sweet girl, Alena, made her first reconciliation yesteray at church. For all us "old schoolers", that is neuvo for "confession"! Alena is a very sweet little girl, who unfortunately, gets overlooked sometimes, as she is not as "emotional" and needy as Allison, and she doesn't need as much "mommy help" as the little guys do. So, I often feel guilty for not having enough time to devote to her, because she is really the sweetest little girl, who just wants some attention. It was nice to be able to go and watch her and her class do something they had been preparing for all year. Next....first communion!

Second, I have a super wonderful friend named Loryne. We have a lot in common, and we've known eachother for years. Strangely enough, we've never met, lol! We are "cyber" friends. We first met on an ebay selling bullitan board, and now "talk" daily on another "sister" site! Last year, Loryne sent me TONS of stuff for the kids, and myself for Christmas. So much so....that I was and still am amazed at the kindness of a person who has never met me or my family. Well, yesterday, I got yet another Christmas surprise from her. It was a red ball, an ornament actually. Her sweet note said, "this is all ready to go, just turn on!" I had no idea what it was really, and thought it was going to play music or something. So, I turned it on....and like a little television, a slideshow of pictures of my kids just started flashing by on the cute little screen. I was dumbfounded at the amount of time she must have invested on making this. Downloading pictures then uploading them....buying this sweet gift....mailing it. It was just heartwarming. Thank you Loryne. I will cherish this always.

Third, I got my NEW camera!!! Another wonderful "cyber" friend of mine, Stacey, let me put her Canon Rebel Xti in Lay-a-way with her! She was selling it. So, I sold my gold, sold some stuff on ebay, and made small payments over a bunch of months....and I finally got it! I am STOKED!! Now, all I need to do is figure out how to use it! :) Here are some pictures I have taken. These were all just point and shoot...no fancy footwork yet. Maybe my Uncle Bill can give me some photo pointers while he is here on Christmas Eve...wink wink....








And this one....she was digging in the dirt, and then her nose. What a little princess!

You know you are living in 2008....

This list made me lol....(and yes, Dad and aunt Mary, that means Laugh out loud...as in, I just giggled after typing that)..... ha ha!!!

I have BOLDED the ones that I have actually done....

1. You accidentally enter your PIN on the microwave.

2. You haven't played solitaire with real cards in years.

3. You have a list of 15 phone numbers to reach your family of three.

4. You e-mail the person who works at the desk next to you.

5. Your reason for not staying in touch with friends and family is that they don't have e-mail addresses.

6. You pull up in your own driveway and use your cell phone to see if anyone is home to help you carry in the groceries.

7. Every commercial on television has a web site at the bottom of the screen.

8. Leaving the house without your cell phone, which you didn't even have the first 20 or 30 (or 60) years of your life, is now a cause for panic and you turn around to go and get it.

10. You get up in the morning and go on line before getting your coffee.

11. You start tilting your head sideways to smile. : )

12. You're reading this and nodding and laughing.

13. Even worse, you know exactly to whom you are going to forward this message.

14. You are too busy to notice there was no #9 on this list.

15. You actually scrolled back up to check that there wasn't a #9 on this list.

Things I'm Thankful For...

Happy Thanksgiving to all those I love! I wanted to take a few minutes out of my tiring life to write down some things I am thankful for...

1) My mother. Without her, I'd be lonely, bored, sad, missing, and a whole lot more crazy. She gives me the few hours I need to get my sanity back sometimes by watching the kids. She graciously drives all the way to the city 1-2 times a week to babysit. She makes the best chicken n' dumplins ever. My kids are so lucky to have her as a gramma. Thank you mom. And this song...the million dollar song...is for you. :)

2) My Dad. He knows how much I love him and am thankful for all he has done and given for our family. Most importantly, himself. Thank you for being you, Dad.

3) My Aunt Mary. She has been so wonderful to me since I was born. And now, she is just as wonderful to my kids. I am so grateful for her coming over to watch all 900 kids every Monday. I KNOW that is a long day....and boy am I ever grateful for you. I am thankful for what she gives to us to help the kids get things for school, and pretty dresses for holidays, and ALL that!! Thank you Mary!!

4) My husband. I am thankful that he works so hard for us. I am thankful that he is a stable, sane and honest person. I am thankful that he loves me regardless of how fat and ugly I've become. I am thankful beyond measure for him.

5) My kids. Of course. They are all I ever wished for. Well, that and my million dollars.

6) My home. Trust me....I am so thankful to have my home.

7) My job. I love it there. They like me. And I am SO grateful in this day and time, to not have to worry about my employment.

8) I am thankful for my kids school, and the ability to send them there. It is by no other way than the grace of God that we are able to send them there.

9) I am thankful for Diet Pepsi. It makes my world so much more tolerable.

10) And last but not least, I am thankful for God, and the faith that I have that he is my driver in this crazy world. I am thankful that I am have had the hard times these past few years, so that I can see how wonderful and simple this world really is.

Advent Conspiracy...

CLICK HERE....

Because I don't know how to upload a YouTube video here.

Please watch.

The Walker Scottish Rite Clinic

Long time, no blogging, and I'm sorry. :) But, I'm back and will be updating here more frequently...I promise.

Last night was one of the best nights of my life. Back in October, I was asked by Julianne's speech therapist to give a parent testimonial at the clinic's annual Gala, their big fundraising event. Of course, how could I say no? I owe them, the Walker Scottish Rite Clinic, more than I could ever repay. They are such a wonderful organization. They offer free speech and language therapy to families at no charge. A blessing. Especially in this day when speech therapy usually is not a covered benefit in most insurance plans. They have helped over 13,000 families over the past 20 years, and 1000 families just this year alone.

So, I have been working on my "speech" for the past couple of months. I tried hard not to think too much about acutally "giving" the speech, because I didn't want to start freaking out. But, slowly, I've been working on what it was I wanted to say, and I had been helping Julianne to say, "Thank you for helping Children like me....".

Last night finally arrived. I actually had on new clothes, and shoes with heels. :) I haven't worn shoes with heels since I've been married, since you know, I'm already way taller than Jeff...but for this night, I went ahead, and didn't even feel self conscious about it. Even though my wonderful friend *adult acne* decided to visit me, I still felt like I looked decent. I even colored my hair to hide the gray.

When we walked in, it was like we were royalty. Everybody knew that we were Julianne's parents, and Julianne was the designated star of the evening. It was awesome. Julianne's picture was everywhere. They even had her picture on the first page of the "program" with a little blurb about her. She looked fabulous in her pretty purple dress and her fancy curls. She felt like a princess.

I gave my speech without any fear. Julianne said her line at the end. Jeff even said I did a great job...I think I surprised him....:) He didn't think I could handle the job. But I did, and I must say...I did good.

Here are a few pictures from the evening. Remember, you can click on them to make them bigger.

Here is Julianne and me:


Julinne and Dad:


Here are a couple of my favorite decorations:

The dinner table. There was almost a "hissy fit" until we assured her she did not have to eat the salad.

The "stage":


There we are....


Here is Julianne with Mr. Walker himself, and a big wig who just presented a check for $20,000.


And what it looks like after all that partying. :)

Halloween Pictures...

Well, another Halloween has come and gone. Allison is at the age where she went with her friend, and her friends mom, and did NOT want me to go with them. *sigh* Oh well. The other kids still "need" me. :) Allison was a "tattoo artist". Alena was a "dead cheerleader". I'm not sure what the deal was with the "dead" title, but it seemed to be the theme of costumes this year. Interesting. Mason would have been a knight/pirate/cop, but he was grounded...and did not get to trick or treat. Trust me, the punishment DID fit the crime... Julianne was JoJo The Clown. And Audrey was just a kid in a stroller. Yeah, I'm not the best "dress em' up" mother at Halloween time. But, you get what you get. Here are some pics... Again, you can click on them to make them bigger.

And can you find the cutest girl in THIS class????