School and lips

Hannah's first day of 1st grade with Daddy-- I
wasn't yet dressed-- so no picture of me-- whew! Riley and Ellie wrestling for who's in charge while
Hannah's gone.

Someone came by the house on Wednesday to

speak with Ashley, so while I ran up to get him

Riley fell out of a chair and landed pretty hard on

her little lip. That is one fat lip! The biggest

reason she fell out of the chair was her love of

standing on things-- hope this broke her of it, but

I doubt it!!!

She is still smiling even with that lip!!! What a

trooper!

Summer's End

Hi all! I am sad to report that school has begun and summer is officially over (at least for Hannah who started 1st grade on Monday). We were able to enjoy the last of the season by going camping in Hendersonville-- beautiful and breathtaking-- and visiting Carowinds (we had passes so that was something we did a lot of this past summer-- but a trip to the rides with Daddy was a nice way to end the summer). Camping actually came first, but I struggle getting pictures right on this thing...


The girls on the Dora Train...
Ellie loving on Blue...

Nothing cuter than a naked baby.

She got soaking wet in the waterfall pool we were

playing in, so I striped her naked and changed her

into just a diaper, but I left her naked for a while

before I put it on!

White bottom! She has a great tan!

Ellie playing by the edge of the waterfall-- too cute.
My kids all got in the water and got SOAKED. And

then we found several baby Copperheads basking

in the sun nearby. Oops! A little scary for mom.

What's better than mud pies with friends?

How about you?!

So, I found this on a friend's blog and liked it. Just star what you have done!
1. Touched an iceberg
2. Slept under the stars*
3. Been a part of a hockey fight
4. Changed a baby's diaper*
5. Watched a meteor shower*
6. Given more than you can afford to charity*
7. Swam with wild dolphins
8. Climbed a mountain*
9. Held a tarantula (never—they give me the creeps!)
10. Said "I love you" and meant it*
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris*
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea* (the best!!!)
14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise* (over the mountains and the ocean)
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game *
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables*
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope*
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment* (CHURCH)
21. Had a pillow fight*
22. Bet on a winning horse
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill* Yep
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping* (I wouldn’t try it in the ocean though—not that I would know)
27. Taken an ice cold bath*
28. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar*
29. Seen a total eclipse*
30. Ridden a roller coaster*
31. Hit a home run
32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking*
33. Adopted an accent for fun*
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors*
35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment*
36. Loved your job 90% of the time*
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied*
38. Watched wild whales
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Gone on a midnight walk on the beach*
41. Gone sky diving
42. Visited Ireland
43. Ever bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant* (we try to always pay for soldiers meals)
44. Visited India
45. Bench-pressed your own weight( are you kidding??)
46. Milked a cow
47. Alphabetized your personal files*
48. Ever worn a superhero costume
49. Sung karaoke*
50. Lounged around in bed all day*
51. Gone scuba diving
52. Kissed in the rain*
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Done something you should regret, but don't*
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Been in a movie( I'm guessing you don't mean home movies?)
60. Gone without food for 3 days
61. Made cookies from scratch*
62. Won first prize in a costume contest
63. Got flowers for no reason*
64. Been in a combat zone
65. Spoken more than one language fluently*
66. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone* (strictly an altercation)
67. Bounced a check
68. Read - and understood - your credit report*
69. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy
70. Found out something significant that your ancestors did* (I am a genealogy freak!!!)
71. Called or written your Congress person* (All the time—I am particularly mad at Lindsay Graham right now—traitor!)
72. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
73. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
74. Helped an animal give birth
75. Been fired or laid off from a job
76. Won money
77. Broken a bone
78. Ridden a motorcycle* (Love it, but Ashley gets to motherly and doesn’t like it!)
79. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph (ridden, but not driven—the motorcycle thing)
80. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
81. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing
82. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
83. Eaten sushi*
84. Had your picture in the newspaper*
85. Read The Bible cover to cover (I skipped some begats, but otherwise yes)
86. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about*
87. Gotten someone fired for their actions (Ashley did at Carowinds, but I helped)
88. Gone back to school* (After my mission)
89. Changed your name*
90. Caught a fly in the air with your bare hands
91. Eaten fried green tomatoes* (Ashley’s are the best—hands down!)
92. Read The Iliad* (I think in high school)
93. Taught yourself an art from scratch
94. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
95. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language*
97. Been elected to public office
98. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream*
99. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
100. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
101. Had a booth at a street fair
102. Dyed your hair
103. Been a DJ
104. Rocked a baby to sleep*
105. Dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all fours* (I am sure I did as a kid
106. Raked your carpet (what is that?)
107. Brought out the best in people*
108. Brought out the worst in people*
109. Worn a mood ring*
110. Ridden a horse*
111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap
112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe*
113. Buried a child
114. Gone to a Broadway (or equivalent to your country) Play
115. Been inside the pyramids
116. Shot a basketball into a basket*
117. Danced at a disco*
118. Played in a band
119. Shot a bird
120. Gone to an arboretum
121. Tutored someone*
122. Ridden a train*
123. Brought an old fad back into style
124. Eaten caviar
125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need*
126. Ridden a giraffe or elephant
127. Published a book
128. Pieced a quilt
129.Lived in an historic place
130. Acted in a play or performed on a stage*
131. Asked for a raise*
132. Made a hole-in-one (miniature golf DEFINITELY COUNTS)
133. Gone deep sea fishing
134. Gone roller skating*
135. Run a marathon
136. Learned to surf
137. Invented something
138. Flown first class
139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite
140. Flown in a helicopter* (my grandfather’s when I was a little girl.)
141. Visited Africa
142. Sang a solo* (it was sad—never again.)
143. Gone spelunking
144. Learned how to take a compliment*
145. Written a love-story
146. Seen Michelangelo’s David
147. Had your portrait painted
148. Written a fan letter*
149. Spent the night in something haunted
150. Owned a St. Bernard or Great Dane
151. Ran away
152. Learned to juggle
153. Been a boss (hello, I am THE BOSS)
154. Sat on a jury*
155. Lied about your weight*
156. Gone on a diet*
157. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget
158. Written a poem*
159. Carried your lunch in a lunchbox*
160. Gotten food poisoning
161. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission*
162. Hiked the Grand Canyon
163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks*
164. Gone to the opera* (never again)
165. Gotten a letter from someone famous*
. Worn knickers
167. Ridden in a limousine*
168. Attended the Olympics
169. Can hula or waltz
170. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books
171. Been stuck in an elevator
172. Had a revelatory dream*
173. Thought you might crash in an airplane
174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert
175. Saved someone’s life
176. Eaten raw whale
177. Know how to tat, smock or do needlepoint
178. Laughed till your side hurt*
179. Straddled the equator
180. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
181. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival
182. Sent a message in a bottle
183. Spent the night in a hostel
184. Been a cashier
185. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
186. Joined a union
187. Donated blood or plasma*
188. Built a campfire*
189. Kept a blog*
190. Had hives
191. Worn custom made shoes or boots
192. Made a PowerPoint presentation*
193. Taken a Hunter’s Safety Course
194. Served at a soup kitchen*
195. Conquered the Rubik’s cube (does taken it apart and putting it back together count?)
196. Know CPR (knew—need to retake the course)
197. Ridden in or owned a convertible*
198. Found a long lost friend*
199. Helped solve a crime

My nephew, Sammy, has been staying with us this week while his mom attends a workshop and this is a conversation that he and Ellie shared just a few minutes ago-- Graham, my brother-in-law, is going to love this!
Sammy-- loud screams and squeals
Ellie-- You're not a girl! You're a boy!
Me-- Why are you telling Sammy that Ellie?
Ellie-- Because he screams like a girl...
That is pretty funny!!!! I love kids...

These are the Times...

I was reading a Magic Tree House book with Hannah about the revolutionary war-- it recounted the crossing of the Delaware with George Washington and his soldiers-- and it brought tears to my eyes... It quoted the words of Thomas Paine,
"These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the
sunshine patriot will, in the crisis, shrink from the service of their country.
But he that stands it now deserves the love and thanks of man and woman...
The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph... What we obtain too
cheap, we esteem too lightly. It is dearness only that give everything its value.
I have such great faith in the principles upon which this country was founded. I believe that the writers of our Constitution and our Founding Fathers were good (on the whole) God fearing men that put their country and their desire for their children to enjoy freedom before their own security, prosperity and lives. I believe that we fight a different battle for freedom today-- political correctness, moral apathy and over-taxation are a few of our many battles. I always try to remember that freedom is a gift from our Heavenly Father as we use it wisely.

Great article

This is a great article about WHY we should vote for McCain and not for Obama. It actually got me a little excited about voting for McCain-- Can you believe it? I just don't think people really understand what old Barack is all about...http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/07/how_mccain_could_win.html
ENJOY!!!

Busy, Busy and more Busy

I need to take some great pictures to post on my blog... But, I feel like we just run through each day trying to keep up! Does anyone else feel this way? At night the kids get to bed about 8pm and I have time to read, watch a little TV, send out emails, clean and do whatever else needs to be done. By then I am exhausted and after a little work--whatever it may be-- I just want to be in bed. I guess another reason we have been so tired (the girls also) is we have been going to the pool everyday for swim lessons and just enjoying the summer sun. I think I need to take them swimming everyday, so they will sleep better at night. We have also been going to the library all the time and enjoying the great library programs that are offered. I can't believe it is already mid-July! I feel like the summer is running away from me and I can't catch it. I LOVE having Hannah home and playing games (she and I usually play a game together every morning--usually Sorry--and she is super cut throat and GOOD--it's great!), reading fun books (I love the Magic Tree House books and Junie B. Jones) and playing at Carowinds and the pool. Ellie has been a joy learning to write her name, practicing her letters and numbers and teaching her to swim at the pool. She is learning to play computer games and she does really well with the mouse! And her squeeze hugs melt your heart--those skinny little arms really pack a punch... And we all really enjoy watching Riley discover the joys of life. She has no fear of the water and LOVES it. She isn't too crazy about water over her head, but otherwise she full steam ahead in the water. Carowinds is perfect for her! Her vocabulary is also increasing. Her new words include: on, up or uppy (same meaning), all done, down, daddy (refers to Ashley or myself-- I guess mommy will be back soon), sleepy, swim, suit, cheese and so many other words... So cute to hear her little voice. She even tries to sing Ring Around the Rosy-- we have been playing that and Wheels On the Bus in the water. So dang cute!
I will be going to Girls Camp as a leader with the kids from church in a couple weeks--woo hoo tent camping and bugs for a week. But, it will be so much fun and I will love it. I hope I get to go when my girls get bigger and spend Camp with them! I will let you know how it goes. I can't wait for Breaking Dawn-- 2 weeks to go. I am trying to read the 1st three books, so I can be ready. I just read Enchantment by Orson Scott Card--pretty good-- I was pretty impressed. Fairy tale with a twist, but very sweet and what marriage is really about!!!
Ashley is starting Harry Potter from book 1 again... He says, "I am in Potter world." I am kind of jealous. I am going to go back to Harry after Breaking Dawn. I miss Harry tremendously. I want to read it with Hannah so bad, but she still wants some pictures, so we will have to wait. Oh well. Off to read Twilight...