HI!

How do you like my bright "HI"? I found the site from Melanie's cute blog. She has cute little hearts on hers, so I wanted to add this fun hi, but we couldn't get it small enough to fit on the side bar. It looks like it belongs on Keanna's blog. If you haven't checked out her blog you should. It is bright and cheery, just like her.

I'm Going Batty!!

It is now dark when I am driving home from work, and I go through a lot of fields at one point. You have to be careful and watch for deer and during the summer there are tons of bats flying around. The other night as I was almost out of the fields something hit my windshield and it got stuck under the wiper. I was on the phone with Ray and told him "I just hit something on the windshield and it is stuck under the wiper". I wondered if it was a bat, no way I thought, or was it just a big moth thing. It was dark so I couldn't tell. Ray told me not to pull into the garage when I got home in case it was a bat. I told him to meet me out there, eek, what if it was a bat. So he and Ashton were waiting in the drive way with a flashlight to check it out. I wasn't going to get too close. Ray shined the light on it and sure enough, it was a bat. So then we had to figure out if it was dead or not. Nope, it was alive. When Ray put the light up close you could see it's little face making funny faces. So he proceeded to put on some leather gloves and he got a small garden shovel. He lifted the wiper with the shovel and was going to get the bat with his other hand but instead the bat just took off flying. It hit Ray's arm when it took off. We couldn't find it anywhere so we assume it was ok and flew away to go try to find it's family again. (he he) But honestly, what are the chances of that happening? Crazy!

Happy...18th...B-day Ambrea!

Monday was Ambrea's 18th b-day. Our little girl is on her way to becoming an adult. I know I say it over and over, but where does the time go? I still remember the day she was born. And Ray wondered how he could ever love another child as much as he loved Nate. One look at her and she won him over. She still holds a special place in his heart.

She works at Power Sports (one of her jobs) and all the ladies she works with there took her to Chili's for lunch. Yum! Her friend Jordan gave her some beautiful flowers and her friend Cole decorated (or had Keanna and Ashton) her room with glow sticks. We gave her a certificate for a massage (for her "aching back").
Doesn't this cake look familiar? It's the same kind she chose for her graduation luncheon. Let me just remind you, it is a 7 lb. cake. And it is so rich you can only eat a very small slice.

Some of the glow sticks in her room. When I was taking the pictures it reminded me of the olympic rings.

Back to School...

Well, our rest and relaxation of the summer days are over. The kids went back to school today. It was a little strange to not have Ambrea go. Keanna is in 8th grade this year. She went to a new school so it will be a new adventure for her. Eight classes and the block schedule. And Ashton is in 5th grade. He was very nervous this morning but came home very happy. His good friend Andy is in his class again. The fifth graders are the oldest grade in the school, so they are the "big men on the campus" this year. And I am back to crossing-guard. The joke is I "work the corner". I actually work on a very busy corner so you have to be aware at all times of what is going on around you. Last year we witnessed I think four wrecks. Nothing to serious though, thank heavens. It's amazing what you learn while watching everyone drive by. A lot of people are eating their breakfast, or on the phone. And some people are very kind and obey all the laws, where others are down right rude and don't even stop when we are crossing kids through the cross walk. We are not in a neighborhood, it is a major intersection, so like I said, it is very busy and you have to watch the traffic all the time. I wasn't sure if I was going to like it when I started last year, but you really start to like the kids and look forward to helping them get to school safely.

Ashton in his new school clothes. I have to be to the corner by 8:00 so Ray helps Ashton get off to school. Thanks dear for taking his picture. Keanna looking cute in her new clothes also. Keanna likes bright things and things that make a statement. I have some pictures of her in some pretty crazy outfits that I will have to post later. We did her nails a bright blue and colored her hair. It's hard to tell in this picture but in the front she wanted stripes that match the dark underneath. They aren't stripes that go with the "grain" of her hair, they go across. She had a teacher that told her she absolutely loved it.

This is my crossing equipment. We are very bright with our yellow vests on. You shouldn't miss us, but some people still just do not want to stop.

Life, What a Roller Coaster!

Well, I feel like my life is such a roller coaster. If it's not one thing, it's another. Our most current coaster is that Nate and Hazel are moving back up north. Nate has been offered a job working for Smith's making more than he is here, and also health insurance for half the rate of what he was paying here. And it is family coverage (here he only had himself covered). Which will be very important for them at this time because...Hazel is pregnant. Yes the test was positive. We are so excited. She is due in February.

So as I said, I feel like my life is such a roller coaster. An emotional roller coaster. I understand why they are making this move and it really does seem like the right thing, it just messes with my emotions. And if anyone knows me very well at all, you know that I cry over anything, so ya, just trying to keep it together. And it's not like they are moving across the country, we will see them, and they are really good to visit. I just love having them close by, so not having them just a few minutes away is hard. I know I will come to terms with it with time.