~FAMILY~ All because 2 people fell in Love...

I'm in Haiti...

2009-08-16T15:49:00.002-05:00

Here we are in Haiti... it's been incredible so far. We arrived on Friday and got Jalon Saturday morning. He was quick to love on Jon and I but was hesitant with the kids. Although he is used to having other kids around... he was taken back by my 2 blond hair, blue eyed, aggressive babies :) Within a few hours they were playing and as of today they are already acting like siblings. Jalon doesn't speak any Engish and my Creole is limited to a few words and phrases but we all communicate well. I am convinced the language of love is a powerful language!!! Jalon has learned a few english words... his first word was NO... why is that EVERY child's first word????

We recived quite a shock today... although we were first told that Jalon was only 5 years old... we are now being told he might be closer to 7 or 8. There is no way to know for sure how old he is, he doesn't have a birth certificate. But we are in the process of ordering one. He is very small, we bought him all size 5 clothes and they are even a bit too big. I have been feeding him like crazy, giving him boost suppliments twice a day and loads of vitamins. I am praying that when we leave, the Pastor at his orphanage will keep up with this regiment.

We are meeting with a lawyer tonight, I'm not sure what to expect. I am just going to go in believing God is in Control and with Him ALL things are possbible!

Right now Jalon is looking over my sholder at the laptop. I'm sure he has no idea what it is or what I'm doing... He is so curious about evrything! He is such a smart boy!

I wish I could post some pictures but I have no way of doing it from here so yall will have to wait til we're home in Texas.

I have a couple concerns I would ask for yall to pray for...

#1. We have 2 hurricanes headed right to Haiti. The 1st arriving on Wed. and the 2nd and more powerful one arriving on Thur. They are expecting 110 mph winds. We are planning on flying home on Friday but could be evacuated before then or we could be stuck here longer. Please pray for us... and Pray for Jalon. I don't know what I'll do if we are evacuated and I have to leave Jalon behind to stay in the storm. It will break my heart!

#2. I ask for yall to pray for our health. I know I have felt run down since I have arrived here and although the children are fine, they are being exposed to elements that cold get them sick. Please pray for God's covering and protection to be on us.

#3. I am a litle discourged with the whole adoption process... Please pray for God to move mounatins and give us supernatural favor!

I love you all and am so thankful for your support and prayers! You guys are amazing and I am so thankful for you!!!

xoxox Jen

2009-08-11T13:38:00.002-05:00

Hey yall... we're about to leave for Haiti. We are scrambling trying to make sure everything is ready! I am so anxious about getting to see my little Jalon. I just can't wait. The kids have gotten him some gifts and we made him a photo ablbum of our family, grandparents, the house, dogs, cat, his school, the neighborhhod... ect. I am hoping this will help ease the transition once he gets here. I realize it will barley give him a glimpse of how his life will change but at least he will have a pictre to look at that will help. I will try to get on here while we are in Haiti.
if not I will blog and post pictures once we get back!

keep us in your prayerws!!!!

8 More Days...

2009-08-04T20:14:00.002-05:00

Only 8 more days until we leave for Haiti!!! I am dying to see Jalon Petersen! Yesterday I went out and bought him some essentials for our week together... clothes, underwear, shoes, a toothbrush, ect. It got me so excited. I can't wait until we bring him home and he is finally ours!I am dying inside without him!!!

We ordered some Language CD's. We are wanting to learn Creole. Since Jalon doesn't speak any English it would help him to settle in better if we were able to speak his native language. I know he will learn English much faster than we will learn Creole BUT I want him to retain his native language forever so if we use it in the home he will be more likely to remember it. This is important for me. He is a Haitian and I never want him to forget that, I won't... I am forever in love with Haiti!!!

We have been collecting essentials for the people in Haiti and will be bringing that back with us. All of our friends, even strangers in our community have been so amazing and have been donating to us. Baby formula, medicine, food... all these things are so expensive in Haiti and we are so blessed to have people surround us that just want to help. I am overcome with gratitude! God is so good!!!!

We leave in 2 days for a quick trip to Slitterbahm for the weekend then the mad rush to get ready to leave for Haiti... I promise to post before we leave.

Love y'all... Jen

It's been awhile...

2009-07-22T11:30:00.007-05:00

Hey yall, it's been forever since I have updated this thing! There is so much to tell but I know that yall are NOT gonna want to read it all and I am NOT gonna write it all! So this is how I am gonna do it...

Vacationed alot... Family went to Hawaii for 11 days, it was GREAT!

Jon went to Venezuela and saw God's miraculous working power... however We experienced some trials in our family this year but God is faithful and we have overcome!!!

April we went to Haiti on a missions trip... God worked miracles and I met my son... story to come later!!!

OMG.. I need to mention, I CUT ALL MT HAIR OFF!!! Jon was a Little mortified BUT he's getting used to it!!!!

My favorite niece graduated from HS and has just left to join Hillsong in Australia. We went to Phx for her graduation. Got to see all of our friends while we were there which was great including our BFF's Danny and Stephanie.

Our niece's bestfriend moved in with us (Melannie) she's been alot of fun, but now she's gone and will be going back to Southwestern A/G University in the fall.

We went to Orlando for 2 weeks on a Disney World Family vacation. Mom and Dad along with our niece Rachel and nephew Perter joined us for the last week. We also got to see our BFF's Tim and Tamara while we were there... sooooooo much fun!

Jada got to go to the Dallas Cowboys Cheer leading Camp this summer which has been amazing!!!

We are getting ready to go back to Haiti in a couple weeks. I won't be able to bring jalon home with us just yet but i am believing God for Great things...

That's it for now... I promise to try to keep up with this thing. Life has been hetic and we've been so busy living and not blogging :)

Valentines...

2009-02-24T18:29:00.005-06:00

Jon is the Master planner. He ALWAYS plans everything and does it quite well! He has a gift for it and I never have... or maybe I just haven't had the opportunity???

At my house we do everything up real big... Birthdays, Anniversaries, Holidays, heck, even weekends! And Jon is always surprising me. Concerts, dinner at my favorite place, a weekend trip to the Bahama's... he's amazing.

I realized recently that I have NEVER in the 13 years we have been together planed something and surprised him. (And no babies don't count!) So this year I wanted to plan out valentines day for Jon. Well of cource this freaked him out a little. Ok ALOT! Mostly I think because he knows that I am such a procrastinator and he was afraid that I wouldn't make reservations fast enough and we would end up eating at Golden Corral Buffet. But little did he know I HAD A PLAN!!!!!!!!!

So the day before I refused to tell Jon anything except he needed to dress in basketball shorts, a t-shirt, and flip flops. Jon was so confused, he insisted on knowing where we were going, and when I refused to tell him he decided he wasn't going! HA... like I was taking no for an answer.

The next day, I came in the office at 2pm dressed in a t-shirt, yoga pants, flip flops, my hair in a pony tail and no make-up on and told him we needed to leave. Again... he was very concerned with the way we looked and when I told him we were dressed appropriately, well that just confused him even more! But.. like a good husband he went.

I first has us scheduled for a 1hr couples massage, followed up with these amazing spa pedicures. (admit it men even you need them every once in awhile!) After that we drove into downtown Ft. Worth and checked into the Renaissance Hotel... so beautiful! Once in the room Jon was able to change into more appropriate attire and we took a horse drawn carriage ride to dinner at Ruth Chris Steakhouse. The next morning we woke up, ate an amazing breakfast in the hotel's restaurant and went to see Bride Wars. good movie, I recommend it.

It was such a great time... and he was surprised every step of the way! I think now, he might even let me do a little planning :)

Oh and Jon had these beautiful tulips delivered to the house for me... and i surprised him by having chocolate covered strawberries delivered for him. YUMMY!!!!

Blog

2009-02-24T18:07:00.006-06:00

Hey yall, I haven't been very good about updating this thing... It seems like someone in this family has been sick or hurt for the most part of January and February.... so blogging has been the last thing on my mind.

Jada~Faith broke her arm last month and it was quite the ordeal. Apparently she was being chased by a boy and ran into a brick wall at school. Poor thing, she broke her wrist in 2 spots and had to have a cast on for 6 weeks.

Jonathan has battled sinus infections and the flu 3 times last month. I thought the school was never gonna let him come back.

I have had 2 bouts of strep throat, a sinus infection, and the flu twice. There is nothing worse than momma being sick.

Juicyfruit had her hysterectomy and Jellybean had his vasectomy in January so they too needed some extra TLC...

Jonathan did find a way to keep them calm!

We did have some great times too!

Jonathan's soccer team won the Championship...

We threw our annual Superbowl party, and even though the cardinals lost we still managed to have a good time!

We even managed to sneak in a few date nights...

All in all, we've had a great start to 2009. In our house it's all about fun! Everyday is an adventure, and we're up for anything! Jon always says, a Family that Plays Together Stays Together!!!

Christmas...

2009-01-10T01:14:00.025-06:00

Christmas is my favorite time of the year...I love everything about it. For me it starts in September. The kids are going back to school, the weather changes and so does our beautiful landscape, we got Monday night football, all our favorite shows come back on tv, before you know it Halloween is here then you blink and it's Thanksgiving. Next thing you know you take a nap on a chilly afternoon all cuddled up in your favorite blanket in front of the fireplace while your sugar cookies are baking in the oven and you wake up and it's January 15th.
Where does the time go? I prefer to NOT sleep at all and savor every enchanted, memorable, delicious, twinkling~blinking, delightful, miraculous moment of pure heaven. CHRISTMAS is the most WONDERFUL time of the year!!!!

This Christmas was especially crazy and busy for my family...In a nutshell this Christmas we spent time with friends and family here in Texas and in Arizona... we flew to Las Vegas... and we celebrated the beautiful birth of our savior Jesus Christ with all our loved ones.

Here are a few select photo's of the holidays...

CHRISTMAS PARTY AT OUR HOME IN TEXAS...

MOM'S CHRISTMAS PARTY IN PHOENIX (THE BOYS WENT OFF TO THE PHOENIX SUN'S GAME)...

MANUEL'S WITH MY SISTER AND NIECES AND NEPHEW (I LOVE THEIR FRIED ICE CREAM)...

LAS VEGAS WITH MOM&DAD...

CHRISTMAS EVE AT MOM&DAD'S HOUSE...

CHRISTMAS DAY STARTED AT MOM&DAD'S BUT MOVED TO THE GARCIA'S...

DECEMBER 26TH WAS CHRISTMAS WITH MY SISTER AND GRANDPARENTS...

ZOO LIGHTS WITH THE DELGADO AND HINKLE FAMILIES...

DATE NIGHT WITH OUR BFF'S THE MARSHICKS...

OUR NEW YEARS EVE PARTY @ THE GARCIA'S HOME...

NEW YEARS DAY WITH THE BFF'S AND FAMILY THE MARSHICKS, DELGADO'S, SEASHOLS, GARCIA'S, HINKLES, MOM&DAD, AND THE FAMOUS JESSICA WEST...

SOME ADDITIONAL PHOTO'S OUR OUR WONDERFUL VACATION IN PHOENIX...

And now I have woken up from my nap!!! As I sit here and look thru the hundreds of photos' we took capturing every precious moment we got to spend with friends and family, I thank the Lord for how truly blessed we all are. It's not the material items I look back on BUT it's the time we had to share with people we love the most that brings us true joy.

DATE NIGHT BABY......

2008-12-16T15:19:00.005-06:00

I told you before... Jon and I are religious about our date nights... and since we have season tickets to the Dallas Cowboys and since they were playing on Sunday... Sunday became date night!!!
Dinner at Saltgrass... yummy... then to the Cowboys game to watch our boys stomp on the Giants... What a great day to be alive!!!!
P.S.
Romo has earned my love back!

Let's try that one again!!!

Much better!

Representing the Boys!

There's the man... #9

And this is MY man...he's #1 to me!!!

Decked for the Holidays...

2008-12-16T14:40:00.008-06:00

I posted a few pictures of our home that we have "Decked for the Holidays"... Enjoy!!!

These are pictures of the outside of our home... I'm sorry they are blurry BUT with soooooo many lights it was hard to get a clear picture!!!

These next photo's are of the inside of our home...

OUR "FAMILY" CHRISTMAS TREE IN OUR FAMILY ROOM... ALL HOME MADE OR DISNEY ORNIMENTS FROM OUR ANNUAL DISNEYWORLD TRIPS

OUR FIREPLACE IN THE FAMILY ROOM DECORATED WITH PINECONES PICKED BY THE KIDS EVERY YEAR

IN THE FAMILY ROOM... I LOVE TO ADD JUST SMALL PEICES OF HOLIDAY DECOR BOTH OLD AND NEW

KITCHEN... MY FAVORITE ROOM IN THE HOUSE, YOU CAN'T SEE ALOT BUT THERE ARE PEICES OF CHRISTMAS EVERYWHERE

OUR FORMAL DINNING ROOM... I JUST LOVE THE LIGHTS AND CANDLES

OUR FORMAL LIVING ROOM AND MY FORMAL CHRISTMAS TREE DECORATED IN ALL BLACK AND SILVER

THE OTHER PART OF MY FORMAL LIVING ROOM... I JUST LOVE THE LIGHTS... THEY ROCK

THE STAIRS DECORATED WITH LIT UP GARLAND AND OUR STOCKINGS (WE CAN'T PUT THE STOCKINGS ON THE FIREPLACE BECAUSE THE PUPPIES WILL GET TO THEM)

OUR MEDIA ROOM... IF YOU CAN SEE PAST ALL THE MEN YOU'LL SEE MY INFLATABLE ORNIMENTS IN THE CORNERS AND THE KIDS CHRISTMAS TREE

PICTURES DO NOT DO MY BEDROOM JUSTICE... IT'S MY "OLD WORLD RETREAT"

MY LUXURIOUS MASTER BEDROOM SEE ANOTHER FORMAL CHRISTMAS TREE... I LOVE IT

OUR GUEST BEDROOM (WELL 1/2 OF IT ANYWAY) AND OUR GUESTS EVEN GOT THEIR OWN TREE

Thanksgiving

2008-12-16T13:26:00.006-06:00

Hey yall... so sorry I've been behind on my posts. We've been insanely busy and I'm trying to catch up before we fly to Phoenix THIS FRIDAY!!! We'll be there for over 2 weeks so I have alot to get done!

Thanksgiving was great. We had my in-laws Don and Sharon Henning here for the week as well as my niece Danielle and her BFF Melanie (we affectionately call her smell mel). We were having such a great visit. Shopping, Eating, Movies, Shopping, did I mention that we SHOPPED??? We do love shopping :)

The day before Thanksgiving we went to the Gaylord Texan (our AMAZING hotel near our home... google it) and saw the show "ICE" which is basically a huge ice sculpture exhibit. it is freezing cold in there... -2 degree's I think, but it really is breathtaking.

Anyway afterwards as we were waking thru the shops and shopping again I lost my camera. I didn't notice I had lost it until we went to dinner with my brother Orion and he asked for it. I was just sick to my stomach. 1 weeks worth of photo's were gone! We prayed, called the hotel and hoped they would find it. The next day we got the phone call I had hoped for... they found my camera. since we were on our way up to McKinney (1 hours drive north) to Uncle Tim and Aunt Sue's house for Thanksgiving we decided we would pick it up later that night. When we went back to the hotel we found out that they had indeed found y camera BUT someone stole the Memory card! Who would do that??? I am heart broken BUT... there's nothing I can do about it! Praise the Lord I got my camera back!

Thanksgiving day was great...great food, family, and we went out to see 4 Christmases... sooooooo funny! I highly recommend it!!! here's some pictures, enjoy!

Date Night...

2008-11-15T15:11:00.005-06:00

Jon and I are pretty constant when it comes to date night. we go once a week... usually Sat. nights and Friday nights we do family date night!

So this week (for those that don't know cause you aren't fortunate enough to live in Dallas/Ft. worth) it's FREEZING!!!!!! and I mean COLD! I'm talking 40-50's in the day and 30's at night PLUS the wind chill factor!!!

So our plan was this, we would combined family date night with Jon & Jen date night and do it on Friday then on Saturday after the football/Cheer game, and all 3 kids soccer games we would come home... turn on the fireplace, make a big crockpot of chili, turn on Christmas music and Decorate!!!! It's so COLD that we just wanted to be at home and NOT out in this weather. I'll have to add those pictures later...

So...Last night we went to dinner at the Cheesecake factory... YUMMY!!!!!! I am a pretty eat healthy, no carbs except whole grain, and organic food kinda girl (with the occasional indulgence) BUT I had their Orange Chicken with rice and it was to die for! Jon ate Nachos cause even though he eats what I serve him which is healthy food... he cheats when we go out. But obviously from the sentence above so did I! The kids ate kids food... no biggie.

After dinner we all went to see James Bond Quantum of Solice. I think it rocked but apparently Jonathan & Jada didn't think so cause
they slept thru the whole thing. Jayden loved it though!

Next we were off to bass Hall for STOMP. Jon and I had seen it before 8 years ago BUT it was even more fantastic than I remembered! the kids, especially the boys were on the edge of their seat the whole time!

Date night was sooo much fun! Even though we did have the kids.

I'm getting ready to put out 12 foot Christmas tree up so when the kids are home from soccer they can help decorate it!

Yipee!!!

My smeller...

2008-11-09T17:43:00.004-06:00

So I have probably the most sensitive nose of anyone I have ever met!!! I can detect a foul smell from another room. In fact I don't eat fish cause I can't stand the way it smells!!! I'd prefer to go to restaurants that didn't have fish on the menu.

In my home I am obsessive about candles. I have so many of them lit at one time I would give any fireman a coronary. It is probaly unsafe.

Here in Texas I have a hard time getting Gold Canyon Candles (they're my favorite) so I am forced to use Yankee. Not as good but it'll do! However I feel as if they just don't have the strong aroma like Gold canyon. Oh and they don't make anything that comes close to my all time favorite smell... mulled cider. It screams fireplace, cozy blanket, good book, and a cup of hot apple cider.

Speaking of smells... I am also weird about my smells. In the Spring and Summer I want a fruity smell and in the Fall and Winter I want a cider/cinnamon/sugar cookie smell. Is it weird that I can't use a fruity candle in November???

Oh and my poor kids... if they go outside to play then I can't go near them for at-least 30 min. after they've come into the house. They smell like the outside and I just can't handle that smell!!! My Poor kids I'm giving them a complex! They might need counceling when they're older!

Anyway... the other day I took my little puppies (golden retrievers) to the vet for their shots and I made a comment about their yucky puppy smell and bad breath. He (my vet) called me un-american. Everyone loves the puppy smell he said. To be honest the thought of their smell kinda makes me wanna vomit! Who would like that???

So now saying all this... I pose the question; is something wrong with my smeller. Is it toooo sensitive? My gosh I own like 30 bottles of perfume because I always want to smell good! I sniff myself like 10 times a day to make sure that I smell great. Doesn't everyone else do that?! Am I a freak???? Maybe I'm the one who needs counceling.

Well.. I'm off to light a fire in my fireplace and throw in some cinnamon pinecones... yummy smells!!!!!!

Halloween and the start of our wild weekend!!!

2008-11-03T00:01:00.013-06:00

Friday night...

Friday was Halloween and we did the whole kids thing. Trick or treating, eating way to much candy, and just hanging out as a family! We had so much fun!!!

Jada was a Ballerina...

Jonathan was that fire guy from the Fantastic 4, and Jayden was a clone fighter from Star Wars...

They were so cute all dressed up!!!

I was a fabulous punkrock version of myself...

Jon went out dressed up as a Cowboys fan... go figure!!! (oh and please disregard my messy bed in the picture)

We have such amazing neighbors... my kids got WAY toooo much candy!!!

Me and my love...

Even our puppies went trick or treating. Jellybean was a ladybug and Juicyfruit was a bumblebee! They loved being out there with all the kids.

After walking for a while... a Princess gets tired! My poor baby!!!

After about an hour and 1/2 of Trick or Treating... we came back to the house to pass out candy and hang out!!! I think Jada had more fun giving out candy than she did reciving candy!!

While Jada was busy passing out the candy...The boys decided it was a great oppertunity to get in a basketball game!

At about 9:30 the trick or treaters stopped coming so we went inside to look at our stash.

We had such a great night!!!

Costume parties are the BEST!!!!!

2008-11-02T23:34:00.011-06:00

Saturday...

I so LOVE costume parties!!! I Love dressing up... getting wild with make up... and being silly!!! Ashela & Leslie hosted an Adult ONLY Halloween party on Saturday and Jon and I had been looking forward to this for weeks.

We decided to dress up in a matching theme so we did the Alice in Wonderland thing except I couldn't find and Alice costume I liked so I went with the Queen of Hearts which turned out cute!

Jon was the Mad Hatter... how fitting is that!!!

Now you know that me and Leslie are the original "picture people". Every day is a photo opt and today was no exception so here we are... Me and Leslie... she was the Queen Bee of course!!!

Have you ever noticed that Jon is Always in pictures with girls... What's up with that???

See what I mean!!!

So I decided I needed a picture with Marty!!! Now I realize that it is just Marty... but hey, I think we look cute!!!

Oh... and let me tell you about Marty's costume!!! Marty dressed up as an "off duty" gun dealer! How original since that IS his day job!!! DORK!!! At least his wife is HOT!!!

Us girls just LOVE getting dressed up!!! We'll find any excuse!!!

We had soooo much fun, but man are we whipped!!! Thanks Ashlea and Leslie... you ROCK!!!!!!!!

Gentlemen Start your Engines!!!

2008-11-02T22:58:00.012-06:00

Sunday... Our busy weekend is almost over!!!

We're on our way to Nascar after church and I'm getting excited!!!

Who doesn't love Nascar??? The smell of burning rubber, the sound of engines reeving, and smelly, hairy, redneck men running around topless like 5 year old little boys!!! Kinda reminds me of family reunions on Papa's farm :)

We Love Nascar and this year was Jayden's first time going!!! He had allot of fun... I wish I got a picture of his face when the cars flew by the first time. it was priceless!!!

And what is with the hat??? I am gonna rip that Jeff Gordon Hat off that cute boy's head!!!

As I'm sure you can tell...I am NOT a Jeff Gordon Fan!!! I like me some Jimmie Johnson and Dale Earnheart JR... so as you can imagine me and my son argue thru most of the race about who's a better driver!!!
Now you tell me is it too much to ask for my son to obey his mother and cross over to the winning side???

Well, you'll be happy to know that we made up and have decided to embrace our different opinions... even though his opinions are wrong and mine are right! When he's older... he'll see the error of his ways!!!

Jon's just happy to be at the race!!!

We had such a fun time... we can"t wait till next Spring to go again!!!

Jada~Faith's 7th Birthday Party... High School Musical Style!!!

2008-10-26T14:51:00.011-05:00

I am still recovering from last night!!! It might take me a few days to fully recover!!!

Imagine my reality. 20 children (18 girls) and only 5 adults. I set out on a "Mission Impossible" as my brother put it. For Jada's birthday this year she wanted to incorporate seeing High School Musical 3. Fine - Sure - No problem... Little did I realize what I was doing to myself!!!

So, did you know that you CANNOT rent out a movie theater! Ha, well neither did I until after I sent out invitations reading "High School Musical 3 Movie party". So plan B was set into motion. I had a whole plan set up for 2 adults to go to the theater 2 hours early and save 25 seats. Well... believe it or not, that was the easy part! Once in the theater we had to deal with getting each of them snacks, drinks, taking them to the bathroom, the occasional child crying for what ever reason, and then the spilled food and drinks, the refills AND the I have to go potty again! All that within 30 min. This kind of craziness would make any reasonable person consider suicide!

Then Hallelujah... the movie started and for 2 beautiful hours the girls were fixated on the movie with the occasional screaming every time Troy Bolton (Zac Effron) came on the screen.
Side thought... I think the mom's in the theater were screaming louder than the girls. Seriously people?????? He's like 20 years old, come on!!!!!

OK now, we made it safely back home with all the girls and did the cake, and presents. Some girls got picked up and for the rest the slumber party began.

I had a thought. For my sanity I was gonna create a High-Low experience. So we started with cookies and candy getting the girls on a nice sugar high, we then did 45 min. of a dance off, followed that with a gift exchange, Pinata time, and then turning it way down with craft project.

After that the girls went upstairs into the movie theater... got in their sleeping bags and we turned on HSM1. Within 30 min. by midnight, ALL 15 girls were sound asleep!

The boys slept in my room after they got home around 11pm from Football camp!

Now through all of this I have been soooo sick!!! And only getting sicker every hour. I have severe sinus and allergy infections and I am getting over strep throat. So at Midnight my girlfriend Katie made me some mac and cheese then me, Katie, and Shari cleaned everything up. I finally got into bed at 3am. Thank God for good friends who will stay up ungodly hours with you to help!!!

I do want to say however that PTL the girls DIDN'T wake up once after they went to bed!

At 8:30am Jon had gotten Donuts and Orange juice... the girls ate, got dressed, packed up their stuff, and mom's were here by 9:30am. At 9;45 Jon and my 3 kids, Bailey (Jada's BFF), my niece's Kylie and Abbie, and Sophia (girl from church) all left for church and I crawled back into my comfy bed. AHHHHH I never slept so good!!!

It's now 3:50pm... I am still in my Jammie's eating Chinese food and I don't plan on getting dressed anytime soon!!!

All in All Jada had an Amazing party and I'll go to the Doctor tomorrow and get something to pull me out of this.

Man the things we'll do for our kids!!!!!!!!!!!

JellyBean & JuicyFruit

2008-10-20T11:29:00.000-05:00

I just had to add a few more pictures of my babies. They are growing up so fast!!! They are 13 weeks old now!!! In one of the pictures you'll see that our 10 year old kitty Jett even snuck in! This might be the only photo I'll ever get of the 3 of them.

It's just a Pinkie... suck it up and be a MAN!!!!!!!

2008-10-20T11:16:00.000-05:00

Ok... Please no Cowboys jokes. We are depressed enough as it is!!! Tony Romo is not my favorite anymore... let's just say that I am NOT wearing his jersey until he stops whining like a little girl and becomes a man!!! In fact I hope TO has a little man to man with him this week if you know what I'm talking about!
They are the Dallas Cowboys for cryin out loud!!! The fact that we got our butts handed to us by the Arizona Cardinals just makes me want to puke. Even my 9 year old felt sick after watching the game.
I'm ashamed... I might have to hide our inflatable Tony Romo man. Someone is gonna try to kill it!
This weeks game was even worse!
In rebellion I wore my old #8 Troy Aikman Jersey. At least he knew how a Dallas Cowboys game was supposed to be played!!!

I'm praying that they force Romo back into the game next Sunday against Florida. Suck it up Romo... take it for the team!

Redneck or Not a Redneck...

2008-10-17T12:40:00.001-05:00

Like every rite of passage, in our family we give children shotguns and teach them to hunt. It's a family tradition.

So Jonathan wanted to know the other day why he couldn't go deer hunting. The season has just started and "everyone else was going" and while on the subject why doesn't he have a gun?

Sooooooo... like any good over-protective mother I said "well if it was my choice you'd already know how to shoot a shotgun, when I was your age I did. However your dad doesn't think it's a good idea because you're only 9 and he is not a redneck like your momma". Jonathan's response was... "Dad we live in Texas, get with the program".

It was quite funny. For me, not for Jon. But it did bring up a good point. Jon and I were raised VERY differently. Although in Jon's defence I remember bringing him to Tennessee for the first time to meet the family. Man I was so nervous BUT to my amazement Jon fit right in. Before you knew it he was in the backyard blowing stuff up with the cousins and calling everyone male "son" and every female "darlin". So maybe he is conforming to our ways...

I stole this next part from my friend... it is SOOOO true!!! Enjoy!

TOP 30 THINGS YOU'LL NEVER HEAR A REDNECK MALE SAY..................

30. Oh I just couldn't, she's only sixteen.
29. I'll take Shakespeare for 1000, Alex.
28. Duct tape won't fix that.
27. Come to think of it, I'll have a wine cooler.
26. We don't keep firearms in this house.
25. You can't feed that to the dog
24. No kids in the back of the pickup, it's just not safe.
23. Wrestling is fake.
22. We're vegetarians.
21. Do you think my belly is too big?
20. I'll have grapefruit and yogurt instead of biscuits and gravy.
19. Honey, we don't need another dog.
18. Who gives a damn who won the Civil War?
17. Give me the small bag of pork rinds.
16. Too many deer heads detract from the room's decor.
15. I just couldn't find a thing at Wal-Mart today.
14. Trim the fat off that steak please.
13. Cappuccino tastes better than espresso.
12. The tires on that truck are too big.
11. I've got it all saved on the C: DRIVE.
10. Unsweetened tea tastes better.
9. My fiance, Bobbie Jo, is registered at Tiffany's.
8. I've got two cases of Zima for the Super Bowl.
7. Checkmate.
6. She's too young to be wearing a bikini.
5. Hey, here's an episode of " Hee Haw" that we haven't seen.
4. I don't have a favorite college team.
3. You Guys are so silly.
2. Those shorts ought to be a little longer, Jenny Sue.
1. Nope, no more for me I'm Driving.

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO AREN'T SURE YOU'RE A REDNECK JUST TAKE THIS QUIZ...

YOU MIGHT BE A REDNECK IF...

You think the last words to the Star Spangled Banner are
"Gentlemen, start your engines."

You've been married three times and still have the same in-laws.

Your state's got a new law that says when a couple get divorced,
they are still legally brother and sister.

Your house still has the "WIDE LOAD" sign on the back.

If you can burp and say your name at the same time, you're shur'nuff a redneck.

You may be a Redneck if ... you and your dog use the same tree.

You take a six-pack cooler to church.

Your lifetime goal is to own a fireworks stand.

You've ever been involved in a custody fight over a hunting dog.

You own more guns than pairs of socks.

You own more NON-working cars than ou do working cars.

That billboard that says, "SAY NO TO CRACK" reminds you to pull up your jeans.

Your wife's hairdo was once ruined by a ceiling fan.

You go to your family reunion looking for a date.

If you hang out with Leslie Mabry or if your name is Timmy Marshick... then you're a Redneck!!!

IF YOU REPLIED YES TO 2 OR MORE OF THESE QUESTIONS... WELL THEN DARLIN, YOU'RE A REDNECK!!!

Happy Fall Yall

2008-10-14T23:15:00.000-05:00

Today was my favorite kind of day. Weather was in the late 60's, it rained most of the day, business wasn't very busy, and I just hung around the house in my sweats all day with no make-up on and my hair in a ponytail. How beautiful is that :) Well not as beautiful as it is outside!!! The vibrant reds, oranges, and greens that fill the beautiful Texas landscape just puts a big smile on my face! It's incredible, breathtaking and I find myself just staring at the masterpeice our Lord has created for us!

Days like this just make me want to curl up with my fuzzy blankie, sip hot apple cider, and read a good book. That's my plan for tomorrow anyway! Hopefully it will be cold enough for me to turn my fireplace on!!! A warm fire and a book... that almost sounds perfect!!!

Speaking of good books... I am currently reading "Living as if Heaven Matters" by David Shibley. It's fantastic... and don't be fooled by the soft title. This is a powerful book that will inspire, challenge, and compel you to invest your life into those things that are eternal. My favorite missionary Jim Elliot said "He is no fool who gives away what he cannot keep to gain what is eternal". Reading this book has made me search within myself and ask, is what I am doing now going to matter 100 years from now? Do I want to look back on my life and regret I didn't do more to reach just 1 more lost soul?
I desire to have a heart that hurts for the lost, a heart that loves unconditionally, and a heart that passionately follows after GOD forsaking all else.
I am challenged to examine my own life and make the necessary changes to take up my cross and follow HIM who first loved me.

Well... there's more in my heart that i yearn to share but I think that's enough for tonight. I am off to feed the puppies, then to bed. Morning comes early in this house and with 3 kids to feed and get ready for school, I need a good night sleep!
OHHHHHH I think I'm gonna make pumpkin pancakes for breakfast tomorrow with peacan syrup! YUMMY!!!!!!
Night Night!

It's that time of year again... ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL????

2008-10-07T11:30:00.000-05:00

So our life is completely consumed by football in the fall. Not only do our boys play for the TEXANS football team, our daughter is a cheerleader for their football team, Jon is 1 of the coaches for the boys team, I am the cheer coach for the team, AND if practice 2 nights a week and games every Saturday is NOT ENOUGH for us... We also have season tickets to the Dallas Cowboys... HOW BOUT THEM BOYS!!!!!!!!!

WHEW... even typing it makes me tired! I'm not complaining... we live for this. Fall is our Favorite time of year! Between the football, the holidays, the cold weather, and the Fall clothes... I can't wait for the fall!

Last weeks game (Texans not the Cowboys) was fantastic! Jayden scored his first Touchdown in the first quarter and Jonathan my little Brut stoped quite a few of the other team's passes by ramming their faces into the grass! Oh how I love football!!!

I've added allot of pictures from last Saturday... i hope you enjoy!!!

GO TEXANS... GO COWBOYS *\/*
/\

Texas State Fair

2008-10-03T12:16:00.000-05:00

Every year of our marriage Jon and I would spend the 1st Friday (of the opening) at the state fair. We loved it... it was a tradition for us. We would go, pig out on all things fried and bad for us, spend an obscene amount of money on crap, and drive home at midnight with a stomach ache! What is more awesome than that????
So this year is no different. One of Jon's best friends Danny was in town visiting us so it was our family of 5, Danny, and our friends from church.
We had such a fun time, and so did the kids.
For those of you that know me, you know that Jon and I are major thrill seekers. we'll do and have done it all. Jumping out of an airplane, bungee jumping, swimming with sharks. We've done it all and we never pass up an opportunity to do it all again! SO..... there was this catapult thing at the fair this year. Supposedly you are shot (while being strapped to a little round cage) 300 feet in the air at 110 MPH. For me, I'm thinking no big deal but Danny was like a 5 year old... he was so excited about this thing he couldn't stand it!!! He doesn't regularly risk his life like this. So we did it... I will admit, I screamed BUT Danny screamed louder!!!!!

Jonathan's 9th Birthday

2008-09-28T21:23:00.000-05:00

We have always had huge blowout birthday parties for our kids. The only problem is that there were always more adults at these parties than kids and the kids never really got to do any kid stuff!!! So we have now decided to stop doing the big parties and allow our children to have normal parties with just a couple friends.
So Jonathan wanted a Sponge Bob themed birthday. We did Dinner at a Pizza place followed by Galaxy bowling then back to the house for cake, gifts, games, and a sleepover with an all night Sponge Bob movie marathon. Whew it was a LONG night but he had so much fun and it was all sooooooo worth it. My baby is 9 now!!!

Our 80"s themed Murder Mystery Dinner party for Shari's 30th Birthday at my house!

2008-09-28T20:56:00.000-05:00

OMG sooo much fun!!! What is better than dressing up, playing make believe, and getting to hang out with "like totally Rad people" for a night!!!
Like Gag me with a Spoon... that was the Mystery and I was the murderer... only I didn't know it!!!
So here's how it went down. First off... several people had to cancel last minute because there is a bug of some sort floating around our church and people keep getting sick. We keep speaking healing but this "bug" isn't listening... it might not be saved!!! Anyway so since so many people bailed at the last min. I had to shuffle the characters around and I got a little lost for a lack of a better word. I knew who was going to die but in shuffling characters I forgot to look for who the killer was!
So everyone was having a great time. everyone stayed in character the whole night and even the murder happened without any problems!!! Then it happened... at the end when it was time for the murderer to confess; no one did! We had NO IDEA who the murderer was or why they did it! We were dying...So there we all were mad as heck trying to read back thru all our little cards to find out who "messed up" and wouldn't you believe it, it was ME!!! of corce the hostess is the murderer. I miss placed one of my cards that announced me as the killer and had my whole confession script on it!
Well at least it made for a VERY memorable night, and a Great Birthday for Shari!!!

Cheer Camp

2008-09-17T17:50:00.000-05:00

On Saturday in the middle of preparing for hurricane Ike... we had mandatory cheer camp. Luckily we didn't get as much bad weather as was predicted!
Cheer camp was great this year. I was really proud of my girls. They learned their cheers in almost no time, did stunts correctly and safely, and stayed focused the entire time! I'm always amazed at how much these girls can remember! We throw allot at them in a very short period of time!
I have one of my close friends Leslie as my assistant coach and she is doing an amazing job! for someone that doesn't like kids (not even her own :) she is so great with them!

I am so excited because we have our 1st game this Saturday! my boys will be playing football and my daughter and the rest of my squad will be cheering them on to victory! We're gonna have such a great season!!!

GO TEXANS

I need more hours in the day!!!

2008-09-15T21:44:00.000-05:00

Am I the only one who feels like there is just simply NOT ENOUGH HOURS IN THE DAY!!!

Now for those of you who know me, you know that I NEED atleast 8-10 hours of sleep at night. I'm serious! However it seems that I can only get between 4-6 hours each night and I don't know why! I have every intention to go to bed early and get a good nigh's sleep BUT nooooooooo that just never happens!

Somewhere between doing the wife and momma thing, taking care of the puppies, coaching cheer, running the boys to football practice and games, somewhat helping Jon with the business, and having a little time for (luxury) me stuff... I'm way past the 24 hours mark in a day and can't seem to figure out where it all went wrong!

SLEEP>>>>>>> is that too much to ask for? I'm just asking for 1 day to catch up on my sleep!

If Momma ain't happy then NO-ONE is happy! That is rule number 1 in our house... and if Momma is sleep deprived, she ain't happy! Seriously... I think I'm gonna go take a Tylenol PM! Or maybe I can convince Jon to send me to a spa for a couple days so I can lay on a hammock by the ocean!!! OHHHHH how I miss St. Thomas! In fact, I think I'm gonna retire there... NEXT WEEK!

Night Night... Sweet Dreams!

Back to School

2008-08-30T10:45:00.000-05:00

Hey yall, we made it thru the first week of school! I love all 3 kids teachers. They are amazing! We are so blessed! Jonathan and Jayden are in the 3rd grade this year with our baby Jada~Faith in the 1st grade. Although they are all still getting used to the new schedule, they are thrilled to be back in school.

Summer is always fun... we take alot of long trips, swim alot, and sleep in late. BUT when it's over, it's over and everyone is ready to get back on a regular schedule! As much as I love my babies... it's good to have them back in school!

BUSY BUSY BUSY

2008-08-26T18:11:00.000-05:00

MAN, DO I FEEL LIKE I'M LIVIN IN A TORNADO OF CRAZINESS!!! My life has been crazy, hectic, overwhelming, and beautiful these past few weeks! I don't even know where to begin except by saying, I am whiped!

This Momma is a Momma again... let me say that I have 2 new babies in my home. Jellybean and Juicyfruit are 6 week old pure breed Golden Retrievers. We got them last Friday and they have already turned my house up-side down!!! Now let me prefix this by saying that they are the most adorable little balls of fur that you have ever seen in your whole life!!! I just love them, they are delicious!!! BUT... and here it comes! I woke up the next morning with total buyers regret! At 6am after only 4 hours of sleep these little cuties were waking me up to play! They are sleeping in my bedroom in a kennel since they are NOT potty trained yet and they do not want to be in that kennel any longer than necessary! So on a Saturday... I was up at 6am!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Well we're already sooo in love with them. It is VERY much like having a baby in the house. Every 30 min. we take them outside to go potty. We have to keep an eye on them at all times. They have a tendency to wander and since our house is so large we have to figure out a way to contain them! The other night Jellybean went missing and I looked around the house for 30 minutes in a panic only to find him curled up under a pillow in our formal living room asleep! They are so tiny it is easy to lose them!!! They are so much work but so worth it.

So now as it is our pet count stands at 10...
Jett... our cat
Jellybean... our male puppy
Juicyfruit... our female puppy
Janis Joplin... my fish
Jonas... Jonathan's fish
Jakson... Jayden's fish
Jasmine... Jada's fish
Jeremiah... Jayden's frog
Janie... Jada's frog
(are you starting to see a patern here???)
and last but not least
Orion... my brother
(I threw that last one in to mess with the buttcheese)

No more pets for us. Jett our cat who's been with us for 10 years has had enough. He feels as if HE is the ONLY true pet and that he others are just visiting!!! Jon and I got him on our 1st anniversary... he was our 1st baby!!!

2008-08-09T17:54:00.000-05:00

I love lazy Saturdays. The chance to sleep in, make a big breakfast, snuggle up in our movie theater with Jon and the kids and just spend the afternoon watching movies. There is no place I'd rather be!!!

This morning I had a chance to sit at the computer and just write for a couple hours. It's so rare that I can find opportunities through out the day to just sit and write. Sometimes I fear my book will never get done and I'll just have a scattered mess of thoughts sitting on my computer wasting away like a dream. Then, there are days like today when I feel like I actually made progress.

I was able to write about 5 pages today... woo hoo. I am feeling very accomplished :)I am now patting myself on the back!

Most of my writing dealt with my cleaning tiara. For those of you who know me you will know exactly what I am referring to. For those that don't... you'll just have to buy my book!

After I felt that my creative juices had been completely squeezed dry I did what I always do... read to Jonmy recent writing. It's funny how I can be so completely intimate with him and yet feel intimidated in this area. Jon and I hold nothing back from each other; we've always been that way. He's my best friend and my soul mate yet when I am reading him parts of my book I feel so vulnerable. Maybe it's because I have so much respect for him that his opinion to me far outweighs anything else and I am scared that maybe he won't like what I am reading. Every time I read to him I feel naked and unsure. I'm blessed though because he always proves me wrong...he is always so supportive, complimenting, and loving. what am I fearing??? I guess it's just immaturity on my part.

He did make fun of me a little today. Referring to my writing today and the topic of a clean home...He said I was the only woman in America who has a housekeeper and still cleans for hours a day. I think he actually made a reference to OCD.

Is there something wrong for liking a clean and organized home??? I think NOT!!! Maybe I should just let it get a little messy so that he can be a little more appreciative for what he has ;)

It's 6:12pm my time... Jon is off at a men's meeting at the church. The kids are getting hungry and want to go out. Sounds good to me. No cooking and no dishes. Sounds like a win win situation for me.

Jayden

2008-08-06T23:35:00.000-05:00

So my nephew Jayden who is living with us here in Texas asked Jesus into his heart tonight for the first time. I was so honored to be a part of that! He is such a beautiful little boy... so full of Love and Life and his laugh OMG it is infectious! Just thinking about it brings a big smile to my face!

Jonathan was 4 when he first asked Jesus into his heart. We were on our way home from church and right there in the truck he just wanted to do it. I can still here him saying "NOW Momma I no wanna wait till we get home!" Jonathan will be 9 this October and he has such a heart for God! He tells everyone that when he was 13 months old he drowned in our back yard pool BUT the Lord saved him for a purpose! He's a miracle!!!

Oh and my baby... Jada~Faith, well she was a tough one! By the time she was 5 I was already thinking "Dear Lord.. what is she holding out for?" Every time in children's church when they ask the question she would just respond with "no thank you I'm not ready yet!"

Jon and I were starting to worry a little when one Sunday morning in Children's church she asked her brother to go down to the alter and pray with her. And just like that both my kids had given their hearts to the Lord! Turned out Jada is very sensitive to the holy spirit and is quite the little prayer warrior!

So now all 3 of the babies have asked Jesus into their hearts! Today is a blessed day... a day of rejoicing!!! I am a happy momma!!!

I'm gonna sleep so well tonight!!!

Recent Vacation

2008-08-05T19:58:00.000-05:00

ok... so we're home after 2 very long weeks!!! We went to St. Petersburg Florida for 5 days to visit the BFF's Tim & Tamara Marshick. We had such an amazing time with them... as we always do! We layed out on the beach, went shopping, we ate, the girls went to tea, the boys went to a Tampa

Bay Rays game, we ate, we did the whole waterpark thing, did I mention that we ate? OH and we LAUGHED!!!! We had so much fun with them!

Then we were off to Orlando to 7 days at Disneyworld and 1 day at the Nickelodian Hotel. Our nephew Jayden who is now living with us for awhile met us in Orlando and then flew home with us.

OMG it was so stinkin HOT in Orlando. I thought I was gonna die, and I like the heat!

All in all, we had an incredible time! I might need a vacation from the vacation BUT it was worth it!

New at this...

2008-08-05T18:57:00.000-05:00

Ok so my girlfriend set this up for me and now I'm here! Now what???