Here's to: The Lady from Alaska

Today is a day for celebration. Senator John McCain announced his running mate for the 2008 Presidential election. For the first time in American history, a Republican woman runs on a presidential ticket. You can't forget Geraldine Ferraro as the 1984 Democrat nominee for VP. I don't know if you can blame the loss in 84 on Mondale and Ferraro...they never stood a chance against Reagan. I am sure I will have more to say about this in the days and weeks to come, but today...I am elated. This is a brilliant decision on McCain's part. I believe the energy this will bring to his campaign will secure a win in November's election. Regardless of what happens, this election will make history. We will either have our first African American President or our first female VP.

MCCAIN/PALIN 2008

"She's exactly who I need. She's exactly who this country needs to help me fight the same old Washington politics of 'Me first and country second.' " --John McCain August 29, 2008

"I'm going to take our campaign to every part of our country and our message of reform to every voter of every background in every political party, or no party at all." --Sarah Palin August 29, 2008

I ran right home an opened the "bubbly." Okay....it was really Pellegrino, but I wanted to share my excitment with my girls. Sabrina and Samantha have a touch of cold and were both sleeping, but I got my Papa Don to take a few pictures of the women of our house celebrating. How fun to have three generations of women together on such a historic day.

It's not too little....

I have had the most interstering morning with Samantha. I spent most of yesterday cleaning out their room and getting rid of all of the toys that they have outgrown. A few special ones, I put away "just in case" we ever need them, but for the most part, they are on their way to the battered women's shelter. This morning, I started on the clothes. If you've been to our house lately, you know that Samantha broke her closet door. I don't know how she managed, but basically, she went into and out of the closet at least a dozen times a day changing clothes. It's her favorite thing in the whole world to do. Try on clothes and take them back off again. With the closet door down, she's had everything they own scattered across the floor. This morning, I recruited Sami to help me decide which clothes no longer fit her. Every time she picked up a pair of her jeans or a shirt, she would say. "I know this still fits mommy." I couldn't quit laughing when she was walking around in her jeans that are literally two inches too short. I was putting everything that was too small in a basket topass on to the other little girl cousins. Since they are mostly 24 months and 2Ts, I was packing a bag for Kenna, and one for Scarlett. A lot of their things were so worn out, I was also making a pile to throw away. So, Sami girl finally realized that not all of the clothes were going back into her closet. In fact, she barely had anything left. We had 1 pair of pants and 2 sets of overalls in a size 3T. She is at a very sensitive stage right now, so she started bawling. I explained that we were giving the clothes to our other little cousins. She wanted no part of it. I tried to tell her that we would buy her new clothes for everything that she was giving away. I couldn't keep her out of the room, because she wanted to make sure I didn't give away anything that was hers. When I was all done, I have to admit it looked grim. For a little girl who loves clothes, this little girl had very few left. I asked Samantha if she remembered when her cousin Riley sent clothes to her that she couldn't wear anymore. I pulled out a bin full of clothes from Riley. There must have been at least 8 pairs of pants and several tops. Then I found the bag that Mema Shirley, Mema Lorelei and I bought throughout the course of last year that were too big...another five or six outfits were in that bag. It happens that way when you buy as much at yard sales as we do. In the end, she was laughing and dancing and trying on her new clothes. When she took off the pair of shorts she was wearing, she threw them into the basket and said, "Mommy, these are for Scarlett and Kenna, cuz they will fit them."

What I want to be.....

Mema called me tonight to tell me what Sabrina said to her today. They had gone to McDonalds and to the park. On the way home, Sabrina proclaimed, "When I get big, I'm gonna be a ROCKSTAR." Everyone just died laughing. So I asked her tonight what she wanted to be when she grew up, "a Rockstar." Last week she wanted to be a gymnast. We've been watching the Olympics a lot.

Samantha has a new thing this week too. She wants to be just like Michael and Daddy. She is constantly telling me the following:

1. I like Batman...just like Michael and Daddy.

2. I really (pronounced WHEELY) like cheese...just like Michael and Daddy.

3. I like blue...just like Michael and Daddy.

4. I like eggs...just like Michael and Daddy.

Pretty much anything her daddy or Michael likes, she likes too.

They both have the cutest voices right now. In many words, they pronounce G's and H's as B's. Such as "Beetar" instead of Guitar. I can't think of the others at the moment, but I will jot them down tomorrow as I hear them and post them later.

Tonight when I went to put the girls to bed, I honestly could not walk across their room. Every one of their books, two toy boxes, and two closets full of clothes had been dumped right out in the floor. It's been getting a little worse each day this week. I have them put their toys away before we settle down for the night. It was too bad tonight to even begin to clean up. So when I tucked the girls in, I told them that they needed to clean up tomorrow. They said no. So I said, "Okay, then in the morning, mommy will put all of the things on the floor into the trash can outside." They gave me hugs and kisses and I left to go get in my bed. About five minutes later Samantha started crying. I figured Sabrina was picking on her so I went in to check. Sabrina met me in the hallway. "Mommy, my sister is crying." I picked up Samantha and she was really sobbing. Big tears running down her cheeks. "Mommy, I WILL pick up my toys tomorrow. I don't want to put them in the trash can." I told her I would help her pick them all up in the morning and I was glad she wanted to take care of her things. Sabrina offered to help in the morning too. I would have guessed it wouldn't have phased them for me to say that we would throw out the toys, but I guess it goes to show that I really do follow through on what I say I will do with them. It does no good to say you will do something that you won't do. They know if I say it, I mean it. I hope we can always have this understanding. Oh right....I already don't have this kind of leverage with my older two.

Dinner Tonight

Sabrina: Mommy, we need a new baby now.
Me: Why do we need a new baby?
Sabrina: Because Samantha and me are not babies anymore, so we need a new baby.

I was unsure of how to argue with this logic. I should have asked her where I should go to find a new baby.

MRI Results

I finally got my MRI results yesterday, along with more tests and more needles. I knew the results without having to be told. I have two more herniated discs. I believe these two new discs have been ruptured for a little over a year. The one directly below and directly above the last two that I had the lower lumbar discectomy on. The good news is they are not going to require surgery anytime soon, if ever. They are not related to the initial injury, but I am pretty convinced that this is hereditary. My dad's brothers and sisters all have back problems. All have either had a major back surgery or have been told they need to have one. My uncle Charles has been walking with crutches for as long as I can remember. Betty is on the verge of surgery now. She's trying to hold off, but her pain is getting harder to stand every day. Gary just had his second back surgery last year, and Aunt Fay had surgery this past summer. I believe I was destined to have this problem. But another good thing about my latest visit is that it is already improving drastically from where it was six weeks ago. I've been feeling pretty rotten today and yesterday, but I believe that was from all of the poking, proding and electrodes....not to mention the doctor pushing the limits to see how far my range of motion is these days. Dr Lazarus believes that I can keep this in check with the therapy I have already been doing and medication. If I treat my back like I did right after surgery, there is no reason for it to get any worse. I haven't picked the girls up in a couple of months. I probably should never have been carrying them around, but I will hold them if they are handed to me and I will sit and them crawl up into my lap. They are too big now for me to bend over and pick them up.

Mystery Wedding Boy

I could not believe my ears when Briana told me that the little boy she was dancing with was her nephew. I haven't seen Olen in a couple of years and I still had him in my mind as a baby. He's not a baby anymore. I pulled a few updated pictures from Briana's slideshow to add. I think this picture of Briana and Ben sums up the whole day. Have you ever seen a more excited bride and groom? Also added a picture of Jonathan, Dawn, Cayden and Savannah. I told you he was too cute not to kiss....

Flowers and Fruits on Callaway Road

Callaway Road has a lot of character and a lot of life, and not all of it comes from us. The land is alive with color this week. We have two crab apple trees, one apple tree, one pear tree, and one peach tree. All of the trees are bearing fruit right now. We planted the peach tree on our one year anniversary of buying the house. This is the first time it's had the chance to produce real fruit. I have a feeling this tree will be much larger by this time next year. The apple tree is full. The pear tree is half full. We need to call out an arborist to speak to us about this one. About a quarter of the way up the tree, the trunk splits into two. One side of the tree is completely dead. The other, is still full of fruit. My rose bush is blooming too. It was a mother's day gift from the kids. I have a smaller miniture rose bush that is just starting to bloom. It was a birthday gift from Peyton and the kids. I don't have a green thumb, but I sure hope that I can maintain the flowers and fruit we already have. Maybe when I retire, I'll have time to really baby my plants. It would be really nice if all of our azeala's were in bloom right now. Callaway is beautiful when it's in bloom.

Happy Birthday Michael

Michael will be 15 on Wednesday, August 20th. If you know me, you know I can't wait to give out presents. So....we had the party this afternoon. Michael didn't really want to invite any friends over. He's too old for all of that now. It's a little sad that his childhood is almost over. We missed so many years of his life. I would give almost anything for copies of his baby pictures. I can only imagine how cute he must have been. He has started learning a few chords on the guitar, so we bought him one for his birthday. It's a pretty nice starter guitar. I hope he will play for many years to come. Peyton told him once that the way to win over his mother was to learn to play the guitar. He is sooo right. I'm a sucker for a guitar player. Samantha and Sabrina helped me bake Michael's birthday cake. It was really good.

Peyton and I took Sabrina and Samantha to Applebee's for lunch on Saturday. It was very nice to be hanging out with two 3 year olds. They colored and carried on conversations, instead of crying and being fussy. I was so impressed with how well behaved they were. We have been so used to rushing through dinner that we were pleasantly surprised that we had time for dessert. Aren't they cute in their pigtails?

Missing Child: 911

I kid you not, I almost called 911 last night. It was around 7pm and suddenly Peyton realized that he hadn't heard or seen Samantha for a little while. He looked around her room and then throughout the house. No Sammi. We went through the whole house and the yard. I was frantic. We had looked in closets, under beds, in cabinets...I even opened the freezer and the dryer. I was in an absolute panic. We were all yelling for her. Peyton was heading towards the main road, and I was reaching for the phone, when Michael found her. She had pulled her toy box away from the wall and crawled behind it. She was crouched down with a stuffed animal propped over the top. You couldn't see her at all. She was HIDING from Daddy.

But Why????

We have entered a new phase with Sabrina. For the past couple of weeks or basically on her 3rd birthday, she started asking why. It doesn't matter what you are talking to her about, you will here..."but why?" at least three times. Example:

Mom: Let's go to the store.
Sabrina: But Why?
Mom: We need to buy groceries?
Sabrina: But why?
Mom: Because we need to food to eat.
Sabrina: But why, mommy...why do we eat?

It's exaughsting. I've heard it a million times before, but this kid never stops. Samantha will ask why on occasion, but nothing like Sabrina.

Ben and Briana Bloodworth

Congratulations Ben and Bre. The wedding was Saturday in Tyrone. It was a beautiful ceremony. Briana did a great job of keeping the officiating minister a surprise. Melvin Jones, our longtime friend and co worker, performed the service. It was perfect. Briana couldn't say "I do" fast enough. I thought for sure I would cry, but she wouldn't let it get too serious. She was far too excited and happy for a teary service. Although when it came to saying her vows, she did tear up herself. One of my favorite moments was during the reception. Briana was dancing with the cutest little boy. I am hoping the photographer got some good pictures of that. By the time I got into place to take one, it was over. The theme year was 1941. The tables ranged from Katherine Hepburn, Betty Davis, Clark Gable, James Stewart...and on and on....I loved the center pieces. The wedding was outside in the garden in front of the fountain. Cayden, Jonathan and Dawn's little boy, is the cutest kid. He makes you just want to kiss him and pinch his cheeks. He has the whitest hair and the sweetest smile. I know there were lots of people from DHL at the wedding, even some former employees who are still great freinds with Bre. I managed to get a picture with Bre and Javaan before the night was over. I don't know how I missed catching Sherry Carroll, Melvin Jones and Jonathan Shirley for pictures. I also missed Bianca, who was wearing a beautiful blue and white dress. But I guess I really only got a couple of the bride and groom. I was trying not to flash when the real photographer was. I won't remember everyone, but we had dinner with Rob and Allison Betzer, John and Sherri Skalski, Clare Brekenridge and Jim, and Elaine Nelson. Marc and Liz Carlstrom and Mark and Christine Morgan joined us for drinks after dinner. Marc and Mark are too crazy when they get together. This was a happy occasion. Ben and Briana were both so happy and so much in love. I was honored to be a part of such a beautiful night.

Puzzles, Puzzles, Everywhere

I can't tell you how many puzzles we have in our house right now. I can tell you that it is NOT fun when they are all being worked at the same time. I start to worry if we will ever see the floor again. Samantha put this one together for the first time only minutes after opening it. I've never seen anyone put puzzles together the way the these two little girls do. I personally get frustrated trying to do them. Not my super puzzle girls...

Happy Birthday Mema Shirley

Mema celebrated her 72nd birthday with Peyton and the kids. I was at work when she came in, but they had cupcakes and ice cream for breakfast.

Rick Springfield and Life Without Kids

I had almost forgotten what life without kids could be like. Peyton and I have had three days without our children. The girls have been at my mom's and Michael is at Blake's house. Funny thing is, the first night, Peyton and I both had to work late. The second night, I picked Destiny up at Kylee's house and my mom brought all of the kids over for a couple of hours when she came to pickup Destiny. Peyton made it home just after midnight from work. He did a job to the Highlands...one of those fun barge, house on island deals that take FOREVER. But yesterday was great. We didn't see one another until about 3pm. Peyton had to return the truck and went by his dad's house to see Owen before he left town and I slept until 1030. Then we went to the Rick Springfield concert. Kim, Kelly, Peyton and I went to Taco Mac before the concert for a drink and some wings. Then we headed to the Fred. We were there less than ten minutes when it started to storm. Trees blowing, raining hard. There is just enough cover at the Fred, which is an outdoor ampitheater for people to gather out of the rain. Peyton and I headed to the bar, while Kelly and Kim decided the bathroom was the safest place to hang out in a storm. Basically, since we were right under a small awning with about 15 other people (all that would fit), the bartender had nothing but time on her hands. I helped her to fill that time. She started pouring the Absolut and by the time the rain cleared, I was cloudy. I have to say this was the craziest and best night I've had in a few years. Rick was fantastic. Even Peyton was really impressed. I can't believe he's almost 60 years old. The music was great and his energy was all that I knew it would be. I have waited 24 years to see him. I was 10 years old the last time my sister, Kim, got to go to one of his shows. I wasn't old enough. She was barely 14 herself. So, I can't imagine sharing that night with anyone else. Kim drove Peyt and I home. Very funny. The cop made us turn left instead of right when we exited the theater. The two of us in the back of the escalade, completely ignoring Kim as she asked, "is this the right way?" We just kept glancing out the window and saying, "yeah....just keep going straight." Well, we were actually on HWY 74 in Fairburn before I glanced out the window and said, "Kim, take your next right, we're in Fairburn." I thought she would kill me, but I couldn't quit laughing. We went at least 7 miles out of the way. It was too funny. We were all so busy singing and carry on like a bunch of teenagers. Kim is having surgery on Friday, so she couldn't drink. Good thing for us because we certainly needed a driver. We made it home about 0030 or 0100. Of course, going to bed was completely out of the question. We didn't have any kids in our house. We took the party out to our back porch and didn't make it to bed until 0545 this morning. I couldn't believe the time. Turns out, we still have a lot in common outside of our kids. I remember this morning why I was so head over heels forPeyton when I met him. He is TRULY CRAZY and CREATIVE in a really fun way. I've never met anyone who makes me laugh the way he does. I'm the luckiest girl in the world. I hope my girls find someone as loving and generous as their dad when they grow up. I won't wish that Michael find someone like me...that might be tragic for him, I'm a little difficult sometimes.

The NEVER ending Birthday

I didn't mention that the day before we went on vacation, Papa Don built two "wardobes" for the girls. They love to play dress up right now, especially Samantha. Papa made these little open fronted closets that are just their size. They can hang up their own dresses. He is putting in shelves next week so they will have places to put their shoes. They are really cute. They also filled them full of new sun dresses. It was a wonderful birthday gift and one that I will never forget. When we came back from vacation, Mema Lorelei came over with presents. We spent the day with her and ate dinner together. Then Peyton came home and brought prensents from Eric, Krysia, and Finley. Followed by a trip to Grandmother and Grandaddy's house for more presents. The girls are a little spoiled these days. Just last night Peyton brought home presents from Great Grandmother Tingle. The girls are pretty convinced that birthday's last for at least a week. Samantha is annoyed that I'm taking too many pictures of her and Mema. "Stop Mommy," she says.

Sabrina and Tyrus I am sure it will seem like no time at all before they are driving real cars.