Ball from Heaven

Joy and Leah love to ride their bikes to Grandma's house on the street behind us.  Grandma didn't answer the phone, but my girls wanted to make sure she wasn't there since she got a new phone and they got a weird message.  They pedaled over with strict instructions to come back or call me when they got in.

Leah called me all out of breath, completely laughing, and thrilled.  Apparently, on the windy day, a huge exercise ball rolled out of nowhere and hit them as they were waiting to see if my mom was there.  As if that's not enough excitement for a kid, just as they turned to go home, Grandma pulled up in her car.  A visit with Grandma too!  They lugged the ball into her house and then it ended up back at our house.

Besides the color, it's the same ball we got rid of awhile back because it was big . . . big and in the way and a big source of arguing.  I'm not sure things have changed too much, but they sure are having fun with it.  We'll see how long it stays around this time.

Pennsylvania Visitors

The kids decided to dress up for our special visitors, though they are at various stages of disarray by the time we snapped this picture.  :)

We had the privilege of meeting Shawn's half brother and his wife a few years back.  Shawn's dad had always wanted to find him and it finally happened!

We met Scott and Carolyn for the first time about three years ago while visiting Shawn's sister, Cherie, in South Dakota.  We traveled out at the same time they did and were tourists together.  It was a fun first meeting.

They live a short distance from where Shawn's dad lives in MD, so we get to see them when we go back to see Carroll.  Last week, they made it to our house since Carolyn was in Arizona on a business trip.

We didn't have much time with them, but got to enjoy dinner and a night of conversation together.  We are thankful for their addition to our extended family.

We enjoy spending time with them and the kids love all the fun at their house.  Here are a couple pictures from our vacation last spring.

Bargain Believer

Most of you who read this probably know, (of course, I don't really know who all reads this, but that's beside the point!) . . .

I've been consumed lately with my latest adventure, starting a bargain blog.  It's www.bargainbeliever.com.  I'll be pointing out all kinds of savings and match up current coupons with sales for the best deals.  Wow!  Getting those together took a lot longer than I thought.  I'm learning as I go, so it should be quicker next time, but I survived week one of grocery ads!

My usual method is to flip through the food ads and quickly see if there are more than one or two good deals.  If there are, I analyze it a little bit more and see if it's worth the trip.  I usually go to a grocery store and/or Walmart (for ad match) twice a week, though every once in awhile I'll do three or just one.  It just depends on what's luring me there.  Since I'm doing all four major grocery stores and have to find specific coupons and links, it's taking awhile.

I really hope somebody (bodies!) is/are benefiting from it.  I guess time will tell.  It's only been up for two days now.  As I sent out the email telling people about it, I prayed that God would either bless it and get the word out or would quickly kill it -- after other prayer before that point, of course.  I have a super top secret counter on there, so when I see that hit one, I will have to investigate who that is and just call them each week.  :)

Anyway, I thought I'd officially post my progress here.  Someday I hope to print this blog to remember what in the world we did.  Right now, for me,  . . . it's typing up grocery bargains.  Yes, my life is pretty exciting, isn't it?  Ughh . . . now I have to hobble out and get them all with my chauffeur, or send Shawn alone.   What a guy!

Grapefruit & Ducklings

Today, Shawn spent a couple hours with Joy, Luke, and Paul (neighbor) getting all the grapefruit off our tree.  (Leah was busy playing with a friend and decided the work was not worth the money being offered.)

When Shawn moved from a ladder to our slide, they developed a fun system of dropping the grapefruit under Joy, down to Paul for bagging,  Joy was pretty much just a tunnel.  I couldn't discern any other useful purpose she was serving.  That might explain why she got paid the least out of the three.  Fun is rarely paid in dollars and she didn't mind her lower wages!

I had the sitting job of juicing it.  By "it," I mean some of it.  I have a lot more grapefruit than I have ambition.  We were able to give a bunch of bags to two friends who will put it to good use.  Luke, and maybe the girls, are willing to help me finish up the task and get some more in the freezer.

After a break, we were off to Mike & Karen's to see a duck with her eleven ducklings.  They had just hatched earlier in the day.  Before we got there, Mike had to devise a ramp for the trapped ducklings to get out of their pool.  That mama didn't want any other type of help.  I wonder how Mama gets any sleep with eleven little creatures nestled under her.  What a job!  (I forgot my camera, so I'm stealing Karen's Facebook pictures.  We only saw one swimming, but they saw all of them swimming earlier in the day.)

Besides duck viewing, we enjoyed burgers and playing Dominion with them.  If you haven't tried it, you should give it a try.  It's a great game that you can change the cards out, so it's kind of a like new game each time.  If you're gamers, let us know and we'll teach you how to play!  Even if you're not, we can still teach ya!

Happy Birthday, Luke!

Today was Luke's official 10th birthday.  I can't believe that my little guy is ten.  It seems impossible that he was born a whole decade ago.

Grandma, Aunt Sue, and Uncle Sam came over to feast on Luke's dinner of choice.  He requested shrimp scampi.  I paced myself and with help from everybody, got it all done.

For dessert he opted for double strawberry Sierra Mist floats.  It wouldn't be my first choice, but I'm not ten or Luke.  He also made cookie/brownie bars today (from a box) all by himself, so we had a choice. 

I have loved watching this kid grow and mature over the years.  He has a big heart for toddlers and babies.  He likes to get down and make them laugh -- unless he's playing video games and they're interrupting him.  His current passion is Halo 3 on the XBox 360.  I know more than most about the game, but less than he thinks I know.  :)

I love seeing his grandpa in him.  He enjoys building things out of recycling materials, popsicle sticks, whatever!  He'll probably master woodworking like Grandpa someday.  He also loves the outdoors and exploring God's creation.  He does a great job tending to our small garden area.

He has a soft spot in his heart for most creatures.  He sincerely loved the goldfish he won at an Easter party years ago and also the sparrow we saved.

I sure love this guy and I'm glad to call him mine!  What will the next ten years bring?

Welcome Shiloh!

We're thrilled to welcome Shiloh Patience to our extended family.  Shawn's sister, Cherie, had a healthy little girl yesterday afternoon.  My foot surgery is probably going to delay our visit, but we'll be off to South Dakota sometime soon to see her cuteness in person!

Congratulations Shawn & Cherie!  (Shawn, her husband, not my husband . . . so confusing!)

Here are her stats:  12:46 PM, 19 3/4", 7 pounds 6 ounces

Luke's Birthday Party

With the help of many, we pulled off a football party for Luke's 10th birthday.  Luke's friend, Jeremy, helped his mom make a football cake.  I borrowed Tammie's pan last year, but this year my broken foot came in handy and I got more than just the cake pan!  :)

Another friend, Karen, came over and helped me make these football brownies.

Karen also helped iron the finishing touches on the shirts.  Each boy got to pick their number and whether they wanted their first or last name.

We had a similar (okay, almost exactly the same) party last year.  Luke liked it so much that he wanted to do it again.  Last year it was raining, so we got to go inside and play at Shawn's work.  (They have an small indoor football field since they took over space that a sports training place rented.)  This year, we went to Mequite High and used their field.  We checked carefully for signs telling us we weren't allowed, but couldn't find any and decided to go for it.  Grandpa came and was the official, among other duties.

It was better than a park because . . . well, it was a football field!!  The boys got to try to kick field goals.  There were several that made it through, which surprised me.  What talent they have!

Some sisters were there to cheer on their team.

We went to another nearby park for shade and tables.  We had pizza, cake/brownies, and opened presents.  It was a very simple party for me since I had a lot of helpers before and during the party.  Luke had a great day and all the boys seemed to be having fun.

Cool Gear & Shortened Sentence

I have to share a picture of my fun medical equipment with you.  You just put your knee of it and wheel yourself around.  It's pretty much a raised scooter for the crippled like me.  You can get some speed on it if you have an open space, just don't hit a bump!  The kids also love it.  There's probably a market for these at Toys 'R Us.  The Lovely Leah is modeling it . . .

I get up for 5 to 10 minutes from time to time now, in addition to my bathroom treks.  It doesn't sound like much, but it's rather nice.  I can go accomplish something quickly before my foot starts to swell too much.  I've also been on big adventures with Shawn driving us.  We've made it to Walgreens, Michael's and Fry's.

Shawn just loves Michael's.  He could spend days there.  :)  I had to get some shirts and iron-on letters and numbers for Luke's football birthday party on Saturday.  Yes, it's still a go.  I can do most preparations from a sitting position . . . and for what I can't, I have those 10 minutes here and there to take advantage of.  Shawn's going to run the games and we'll order pizza.  Fairly simple to me.

Oh, the other good medical news beyond my awesome wheelie thing . . . I only have to wear my cast for four weeks and then I get my boot for six.  On Monday, when I got my cast, the doctor said that he would see me back in four weeks.  "What, only four!?!?!?" I immediately asked him.  He told me he was going to credit me for time served.  I guess the two weeks after surgery that I had the splint (which is pretty much cast-like) counted!!

As you can see, I went with purple.  It's dark enough not to get too disgusting, but not as boring as black.  I've even gotten around to painting my toenails.  I was sick of staring at my yellow stained nails from surgery.  Currently, I have many foot problems, but so far fungus isn't one of them!

I got a good report.  The x-rays show everything in place.  The doctor told me that we really wouldn't know if it was successful until it heals and I test it out.  He expects that it could take up to a year to be able to tell, but I should have some indication before that.  Baby steps . . . well, in a literal sense I'll have to wait a while for even those, but at least I'm crawling!

More Sitting Blessings

The kids have been great helpers . . . most of the time, with a little prompting -- gotta be honest.  :)

We have a deep washing machine and Joy jumps right in and helps, almost literally!

Tonight our Bible study (aka:  Homegroup) came over to clean our house.  I have to say that I felt very odd sitting there watching them work, but they kept trying to convince me to relax and enjoy.  They also brought dessert to chow down on.  What a blessing!

Joy took a couple pictures, but most of them didn't turn out.  She got a "Mommy Working" shot and a "Kid Playing" shot.  That sums up the evening.

We've also had many meals delivered.  We have not prepared a single dinner (and few lunches) and only ordered pizza once since we got home from California.  I have loved every meal.  They've all been tasty, but in all honesty, I don't think I care what it is.  If I don't have to prepare it, it's a wonderful meal!!

We've also had the opportunity to see people we don't always get to see on a regular basis.  A couple families have stayed to eat and play games with us after delivering a meal.  I've had rides to doctor's appointments and my kids delivered places.  I even had help organizing the girls' summer clothes today.

I told our Bible study that I was going to have the doctor carefully cut my cast so that I could put it back on whenever I needed a meal or cleaning.  I could definitely get used to some aspects of this injury!

Easter Fun

Every year Mrs. Dale has an Easter celebration on Good Friday.  It's full of all kinds of fun including an egg hunt, crafts, Resurrection eggs, food, and more.  They also write a message to Jesus on a helium balloon and release it.  It's a fun time for all.  I had to miss it this year, but am thankful that Karen could take the kids so they didn't miss out.

Emily got to join them this year . . .

Then, on Sunday we did an Easter basket hunt at our house.  The kids were a little worried that the Easter Bunny was crippled this year and they wouldn't get one.  What they didn't know is that this bunny has been bargain shopping for them since after last Easter and also has a great friend who loves Target and has a willingness to help.  They were covered!

Next . . . . I got out!  It was more than just out of my chair too . . . out of town!  We went too far north to feel the earthquake, to the Prescott Valley area.  Aunt Lois and Uncle Al made our day special.

The kids loved the egg hunt . . .

 Games . . .

 Old fashioned playing with Uncle Al . . .  

And the favorite annual egg toss . . .

After that we went to my cousin's house for some treehouse fun.  The kids stamped their handprints on the outer walls.  They also rode a go-cart around.  It doesn't get much better than that for a kid . . .  a mess and speed.

We had a great day of country excitement that we can't get around our city house.  Fun, fun, fun!

Sitting Blessings

Leah had needed some Mommy time lately.   (I'm not sure the other kids have missed me since they are content playing with neighborhood friends and their cousin, Emily, who is staying here on her spring break.) 

We've been mostly reading books together in my chair.  Yesterday morning she wanted braided piggy tails.  It's nice to cuddle up and enjoy that precious little girl!

Besides that, I've remembered two things that I left off my previous daily schedule.  I am getting plenty of time to read my Bible and play with my already sagging calf fat on my left leg.  There's much more time for the important things in life now.  :)