Koleman's first BB gun

Our men's dove hunt at church was this weekend, and Khris took Koleman for the first time. Of course he didn't get any pictures, but he said Koleman was so funny! They didn't shoot any birds because everytime Koleman saw one he'd yell and point with flailing arms, "There's one daddy!" Or, Khris would look over and he'd be off shooting a cactus or a tree...LOL!!! So funny!!

But, I do have some pictures of his first shots with his new BB gun. Khris sat him down in the living room to make their list of what they needed to bring and said, "OK, son, what's the most important thing we need for hunting?"
Koleman: "A gun!"
Khris: "Well, I've got my gun, where's yours?"
Koleman looked like he was about to cry, "I use your Wed Widuh BB gun"
Khris: "No, that's my gun...go check the gun case for YOUR gun"
(Khris had the unopenned box sitting in front of the gun case.)
Of course his eyes were very wide and he was very excited!! So here's his first shots:

The last hurrah...

I had the most wonderful day! Now...to be fair, we woke up to this this morning:
But the precious angels who did this (the girls in our church youth group) came back to clean it up at 10 am...well, 2 of them did - Kelly and Julie - thank you sweet girls!

Then my parents came for a visit and we had a great time. Momma and I went shopping and I got some GREAT deals which included 2 new pairs of shoes!

My Dad's birthday is Monday, so we made him some "chocolate greatness". Koleman was so excited, he sat in front of the oven for 8 minutes (that's right, Koleman sat still for 8 minutes!) waiting for it. He started counting down at 30 seconds left. So funny!

As always, the kids had a great time with Mamaw and Papaw, but the favorite today was my dad's new iphone. He and Koleman were having so much fun playing games! So cute!!
And now, my summer is officially over...Monday I start school. I really am very excited about it. Our team was awesome last year and I think it's even better this year!! What a great way to end the summer!

Koleman's playing football

I just had to laugh last night at the dinner table, because I could not squeeze a word in between Koleman telling us about his first football practice. I haven't seen him this excited since he got his four-wheeler. Khris said he was one of the most aggressive boys on the team...he dove to the ground with abandon, and ran as fast as those little legs would carry him. He was talking about how he tripped his friend Cooper on purpose, so he wouldn't get his flag (it's flag football) and he asked, "Is that appropiate in football?" (I know how to spell - that's just how he says it:) ) And of course, my husband who is relishing every moment of this responds, "Whatever it takes, son!" LOL!! Koleman was one of only 2 boys on the team who caught a touch-down pass! I normally don't care anything about football (I'm so sorry hunny!) but I cannot wait to see his first game!

The Innertube Fiasco

At the request of many...I have decided to post the innertube story in correct chronological order, so you can grasp the full hilarity of the situation:

We went to Splashtown in San Antonio and we wanted to go on the "lazy" river. Khris made sure everyone was safely on their innertube and then decided to get on his own, he picked a 2 person tube at first so he could spread out on top...he jumped on...and fell off...
Huh...OK...let's see here...
How, in the world, am I supposed to get on this thing?!
Let's try laying on my belly...WHOA!!
Ok...just get situated...almost there...
Alright...let's turn over...CAREFULLY...
AH...see...
Whoa...rassum frassum...
No wait...I got it!!
Um...no he didn't...he flipped right after that picture..."Are you serious?!"
Daddy...you just lay like this..."Thanks son!" (with a lip curl)...
So he kept trying....


And kept trying...this time I was laughing so hard, I forgot to put the camera down...


And kept trying...


And finally made it into the tube and decided it was not worth the effort...they don't make those tubes for men as strong and powerful as my man!!! (You like that hunny??) LOL!!!

We're home!!

My sugar bear is home, safe and healthy. I want so bad to be overjoyed - but I'm actually feeling very humbled and sobered. As I walked around that hospital, I saw so many children who are not leaving healthy, so many who obviously have cancer or severe injuries, so many little bitty babies. I feel bad about saying, "Yeah - God answered our prayers!" Didn't all those families pray the same prayers? When my cousin died of a brain tumor when he was 11, it certainly wasn't after a lack of prayer. When so many of my friends have faced challenges and deaths of their children - it wasn't for lack of prayer then. Now - for fear of starting a very slippery slope - I FIRMLY believe God calls us to "pray without ceasing", and "the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective", and that God tells the elders to come annoint with oil and pray - which we did. Our wonderful elders annointed Kensey with oil and prayed over her in the ER. I think what I'm trying to say is that I don't deserve for my daughter to be leaving healthy! I don't deserve to be home safe and sound. I am absolutely not any more righteous than any of the other mothers who are still sitting at the children's hospital! I am so thankful and feel so unworthy of God's faithfulness to my family. My heart breaks for every mother who is fearing for the life of their child! Would I still sing the Lord's praises if the outcome were different? If they found something horrible in Kensey's brain, would I praise the Lord? Would I still acknowledge that God is good despite my circumstances? I want to be able to say yes. I want to be able to claim that God is good no matter what, even when His answers to my prayers are not the answers I asked for. I can almost guarantee Mary, the mother of Jesus, prayed for her son's deliverance! We know Jesus prayed that "this cup" could pass from him. I'm confident He was a "righteous man" and that His prayers were powerful and effective! I guess what I'm trying to vocalize is:
"Thank you my Lord, for taking care of my Kensey this week. We committed her to you when she was born, and she is still Yours to use as You need in Your plan! May her life bring You glory and draw people to YOUR name!! Thank you for allowing her to stay in my arms a little longer! Thank you for the outpouring of love and prayers from the wonderful brothers and sisters in Christ You have allowed us to do life with!"

Waiting...

Isn't waiting always the hardest part of any trial?? We are still at the hospital, waiting for the neurology team to read the MRI, MRA, and MRV and work their magic. Kensey and I both slept well all night. And the nurse put fresh coffee in my blingy mug this morning. I haven't had even one moment to worry from all the texts, emails, and facebook entries. It really is wonderful! I feel so incredibly blessed. People all over the world, LITERALLY, are praying for my baby!

Scary Night!!

It all began last night around 6 pm. We were on our way to drop the kids off at the church so Khris and I could go to an elder meeting. Kensey said, "OW! There's something in my eye!" I told her to look at me and I noticed that one eye was fully dilated and the other was very small. I had her close her eyes and open them again - and the same thing happened. After we had her look into a bright light and the same thing happened, we decided to get her to the ER. On the way to the ER, she got a horrible headache, nausea, and dizziness. At one point, her eyes rolled back in her head and she couldn't make sense when she was talking to me. It seemed like forever by the time we reached the ER. Within hours, they were using very scary words...brain tumor, aneurism, stroke, cancer, blood clots, etc. They did a CAT scan and found nothing. Then, they did a CAT scan with contrast and still saw nothing. So, by 1 am, they decided to move us to Children's Hospital in Dallas. By 5 am, I was finally able to lay down with the thought that my baby will probably be OK.

Since we've been here, the doctors and nurses have been absolutely fabulous! The neurologist really thinks this is migraine related, but we're waiting for an MRI, MRA, and MRV. So, we still have no idea what's wrong, but the doctors really think it's much less serious than we first feared.

I have been overwhelmed by the outpouring of love from our church, community, coworkers, friends, and family. It is a very good thing we have unlimited texting!!! :) Our elders were wonderful - they annointed her with oil and prayed over her. Tons of friends have come by!! We are VERY blessed!!

Please continue to pray that we find answers and there is a good solution that will allow my precious Kensey-bear a long and healthy life!

Not enough hours in the day...

I know I'm doing a HORRIBLE job of keeping up with my blog, but there just aren't enough hours in the day to accomplish everything I need to accomplish! And, I feel guilty for blogging when I'm not done with important things like laundry and preparing meals!

But, here's pics from Koleman's test for his yellow belt in karate and the girls went the Daddy-Daughter dance.

Funny story...

My friend, Jill, picks my children up from school each day and yesterday she had a funny story to share when I got there. Kensey and Joy had decided they were going to use their homework pass and not do their Math homework. Jill asked them if they knew where their homework passes were. Joy said, "It's in my binder, in my folder, where I keep all of those things." Kensey said, "If I were my mother, that's where mine would be too!" LOL!! (However - she is NOT her mother - and therefore she still has to find it!)

Back to normal

Well, it's back to the normal world, until Summer. This week was so wonderful. It was so nice to be home with my family, laugh with my babies, hold hands with my husband, and go when we wanted to go and stay when we wanted to stay. Ah....

But, today I turn back into full-time working mom. I am very convicted about not grumbling or complaining. No one will want to be back at school. I felt, in my quiet time, like God was encouraging me to be the happy highlight today. You know...make the world a brighter place for my kids, my students, my husband, my friends, etc... Obviously, we would all like to just live in Spring Break - but that's not reality. So, I'm praying this morning that God will empower me to be the light in a dark world!

Camping

We had such a wonderful time camping last night. We went to our duck lease land that we rent with Patrick and Emily Berg. It's only about 40 minutes away, near Valley View, TX. Patrick & Emily, and the Holland family came with us. The kids had so much fun exploring together! After we got the tents and kitchen set up...
we sat around and shot some skeet. It was so much fun. Koleman thought it was a little loud, but the guns were still cool!

Khris was so excited to teach the kids how to build an A-frame fire. Koleman was breaking sticks over his legs. All the kids were making the fire together and having so much fun!
It was so fun to cook out, sit around and roast s'mores, sing, laugh, and enjoy the outdoors. The weather could not have been more beautiful! And, aside from Kensey running into a tree in the dark, everything went well...except Khris couldn't sleep. Apparently, SOMEBODY (me..tee hee) snores like a bear. Oh, and when you put 5 people in a 3 man tent, it's a little squished! But it sure was sweet this morning to wake up and all snuggle together on top of Daddy - precious memories!!

I'm in love!

I was just sitting here wanting to blog about something, but not really sure what to share about. I could tell you about what Koleman said this weekend. He was spending the night with a friend and they went to a family member's house for dinner. The man of the house said, "Well, hello, what's your name?" and Koleman replied, "I'm Koleman Dean Kennedy - I'm the preacher's son!" tee hee Our friend's response, "Yeah, cuz there's only one preacher in Prosper!" tee hee.

Or I could share about how precious Karis was yesterday when she came home from spending the night with her friend. She snuggled up with Daddy on the couch and I came over and started smooching her face and she let out a big contented sigh that made Khris and I both giggle. We love that our babies are so happy and content!

Or I could talk about how worried I was about Kensey yesterday. She had an allergic reaction (I think to cats) and her eye swelled shut, her nose and ears were all congested, she had hives, she was breathing heavy - you know the routine. I watched her and remembered back to my childhood. I don't want this for her! I don't want her to be out of shape because she's afraid to exert energy for fear of an athsma attack. I don't want her to be the weird kid that can't go to certain people's homes because they have cats. I don't want her to have to deal with all the itching, sneezing, coughing, swelling, etc. I don't want to worry as I drive to the emergency care place to get a steroid - and then watch her gain weight from said steroids - OH - I worry too much!!

But, as I looked at my computer screen, trying to decide what to write about, I looked into those beautiful steely blue eyes my husband has and I let out my own contented happy sigh. That man is so incredibly wonderful!! Did you know he has NEVER gotten on my case about the house being clean? He is always the first one to tell me to rest or take a nap INSTEAD of cleaning! Did you know he makes coffee every night so that when I wake up in the morning, I have fresh coffee waiting for me? (and it's all old by the time he gets some - if he gets any at all before he has to leave) Did you know he is constantly complementing me? Did you know he says in front of our children, "I sure do love your momma" so much that my kids now roll their eyes - "yeah, we know..." Did you know he clears the dinner table while I load the dishwasher every night? Did you know he buys me shoes and clothes alot. I don't even have to bat my eyes!! He just likes to spoil me! I have to be careful to mention anything I might want - because he'll go get it for me!! He is the first one to suggest getting something to eat at a resteraunt if I'm tired! He makes me breakfast when we're running late for school. He calls me and texts me just to say "I love you" or "I missed you today". He is absolutely amazing and I love him more than I can express in words!!! I am so incredibly blessed!!

Sleep over...

I made it through my first 10-yr-old sleepover! Now, you have to understand, I was the kid who couldn't make it through sleepovers when I was young...my bra always got frozen!! (Which was fine because I didn't need one anyway until college - tee hee!!) But I was very pleased - the girls were sweet to one another, nothing got broken, they didn't keep me up past midnight, it was as wonderful as I could have hoped for! My cousin's fiance was so helpful - I couldn't have done it without her - THANK YOU CAITLYN!!!

Interviews with my babies...

1. What is something mom always says to you?
I love you.

2. What makes mom happy?
Me kissing you

3. What makes mom sad?
Me getting spankins (Karis - which happens most of the time, Kensey - so she's sad everyday) tee hee

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
You kissing me

5. What was your mom like as a child?
A baby and she was never obeying her parents

6. How old is your mom?
uh...102

7. How tall is your mom?
102 feet

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Pick her boogers (hysterical laughter)

9. What does your mom do when you're not around
Go on dates and kiss Daddy

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Kissing me on the cheek (I'm seeing a pattern)

11. What is your mom really good at?
Singing to me when it's time to go to bed.

12. What is your mom not very good at?
Makin' like chandeliers and windows, like that kind of stuff

13. What does your mom do for her job?
Um...teach kids in school

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
Ravioli

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
Vacuuming the floors (I AM appreciated)

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Superman

17. What do you and your mom do together?
Kiss each other

18. How are you and your mom the same?
We both have eyes

19. How are you and your mom different?
We both are not a girl

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
Cuz you always kiss me

21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
Go on dates with Daddy to fancy places.
1. What is something mom always says to you?
Go Upstairs

2. What makes mom happy?
People playin' with her hair

3. What makes mom sad?
When Daddy goes away on a trip

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
I'm not sure

5. What was your mom like as a child?
She never told me!

6. How old is your mom?
uh...34

7. How tall is your mom?
I don't know...um, 5.6

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
watch Smallville

9. What does your mom do when you're not around
Kiss Daddy

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Bein' President

11. What is your mom really good at?
Math

12. What is your mom not very good at?
History

13. What does your mom do for her job?
She teaches

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
Uh...What is your favorite food? I know I know - Fettucini Alfredo!

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
That she's a great Mom

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Mickey Mouse - not Minnie, Mickey

17. What do you and your mom do together?
SHOP!!

18. How are you and your mom the same?
We both have the same hairdo!

19. How are you and your mom different?
I'm funny and she....(hysterical laughter) "Just Kidding!"

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
cuz she kisses me

21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
Kohl's
1. What is something mom always says to you?
She says I love you.

2. What makes mom happy?
Going shopping

3. What makes mom sad?
Lying

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
When she used to say "Piece of monkey smack!" and she goes, "Rassum frassum rassum..."

5. What was your mom like as a child?
Everybody thought she was a geek

6. How old is your mom?
34

7. How tall is your mom?
I know she's 5 foot somethin'

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
Shop with me

9. What does your mom do when you're not around
I'm not sure

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
Singing

11. What is your mom really good at?
Singing

12. What is your mom not very good at?
Saying No to clothes

13. What does your mom do for her job?
she's a Math teacher

14. What is your mom's favorite food?
Fettucini Alfredo

15. What makes you proud of your mom?
When she helps me with things and she helps me with Math and schoolwork and I get the right answer because she helps me

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
Probably Daisy Duck because you get mad but you're really nice most of the time.

17. What do you and your mom do together?
Shop

18. How are you and your mom the same?
I look exactly like her when she was a kid and I have the same personality mostly.

19. How are you and your mom different?
She's grown up

20. How do you know your mom loves you?
I know because she's really nice to me and she says I love you all the time.

21. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
On dates with Daddy to fancy places.

My baby just needed some TLC!

As you can see, my precious Karis Danae is feeling MUCH better - and just in time for her field trip tomorrow! And, Mommy is feeling MUCH better after being a caregiver and homemaker for a day! This is absolutely when I feel my most "worth"! Sorry for ranting the other day...I'm just glad so many of you let me know I was not alone!! Thanks my friends!!!

This is NOT meaningless!

This is my precious Karis Danae - who is normally FULL of joy and life. But this baby hasn't eaten (except a couple noodles) since MONDAY and she is miserable! But, today, mommy is home - right where I SHOULD be!!! Mommy can wash sheets, stroke hair, make chicken noodle soup, etc...THIS is NOT meaningless!!!

What's the point?

What is the point of my current insanity? I have to wake up at 5:15 am to spend a little time alone with the Lord before my family wakes up and my insane day begins. I rush my children through getting ready for school because I am more worried about being on time than whether or not they ate a healthy breakfast. Really?! When it's typed out in a sentence, it is so extremely obvious that I have those priorities backwards. Now, as a professional organizer, I'm sure I would have quipped (very self-righteously) about how you just need to plan your morning better so you can feed them a healthy breakfast AND arrive at school on time. (By the way, I am so sorry if I caused any undo stress to any of you who had me help you get organized!) ...sigh... Then, I head to my job as a Middle School Math teacher - I don't know if ya'll remember middle school, but learning Math is not high on their list of priorities. I used to gripe and complain about the pointlessness of being a stay-at-home mom, and being under appreciated, and repeating instructions a hundred times, yada, yada...um...I'm STILL doing that!! Except now it's with a room full of hormonal 12 year olds who hate my guts because I want them to find the surface area of a polyhedron and show all their work WITHOUT a calculator! So after the best hours of my day are spent, my feet are sore, my throat is dry, and my nerves are shot, I head back home to my most important position as wife and mother - except I have nothing left to give...sigh...(again)
So - I go pick up my children at my friend's house - and I'm greeted with, "Aw mom, do we have to go?! Can't we stay a little bit longer?!" (Ya'll know you see these children EVERY day right?!) And I'm sure my friend is thinking, "YES!! You have to go!! Please don't stay - you people are CRAZY!!" We FINALLY get in the car and head home with these questions, "What are we having for dinner? Can I have a sleepover this weekend? When are you going to plan my birthday party? When will it be summer? Can I play on the computer when we get home? Do I have karate tonight? When will I have karate? Is that after this day? Are my jeans clean? Don't forget we need to finish my project..." So, in the 1 mile we drive to get home I go from on the brink of crazy to full-blown lost her ever-lovin'! Sooo...let's go prepare a delicious healthy meal from scratch!! :) (Oh, and clean up the dishes so the kitchen is spotless when we wake up tomorrow.) And, don't forget, your students wanted their test grades back tomorrow - so you better stay up and grade them. Oh, and an organized mom would do at least one load of laundry a day. Wait, those kids didn't do their list?! Why do I have a list? (I'm sure their response would be a snotty, "That's what we've been trying to tell you - why DO you have a list?") ...sigh...well, everything isn't done, but we better go to sleep so we can do this all again tomorrow - YEAH!!...3 am..."Mommy, I threw up..." And instead of compassion, I think, "What? You can't be sick? Who's going to take care of you? Mommy and Daddy have to work!" WHY??? Why can't I stay home and rub the forehead of my sick baby?...What is the POINT?! Meaningless, meaningless, it's all meaningless!!!!! (Wow, I feel better - don't you?! tee hee)

Serving others

It was so good for us to serve as a family this weekend! Our church combined with some wonderful people from around the community to help clean up downtown Prosper. I am so sore today from raking leaves, sweeping, and gathering trash!! But it was very fun to serve as a family!!







I was really amazed at how hard my kids worked! They did great until...Daddy and the men knocked down the tree these baby squirrels were living in. After that, the day became all about saving the squirrels. Our worship pastor's wife researched on the internet and found that momma squirrels never abandon their young, so after their tree was cleared out, our worship pastor, Wayne, helped them build a new nest in the hole, so that momma could find them. So cute!!