Post Vacation Update

Yes, we had a wonderful time in St. Lucia. We went scuba diving, relaxed by the pool, visited with our friends - Wade, Mary, Chuck, & Debbie - and met some new friends - mainly Jason & Sharon & Kyle (our diving buddy). Blake had a wonderful Birthday - He is 40 now, by the way - and we spent a great day diving, relaxing, and enjoyed a terrific spa treatment as a couple. It was fabulous!

I have a lot of information to add and pictures to send out, but I went from my St. Lucia vacation directly to a conference in San Antonio for work. So, I am here in San Antonio attending a conference until Wednesday. I will send more information about our trip, as time allows. Until then ... just wanted to let everyone know that we are home safely and that we had a terrific trip! Take a look at some of our pictures ...

Camp Update

Megan still has not mentioned Timothy to Blake. Each time he talks to her, he has asks if she has anything else to tell him, and Tim never seems to come up. Blake says that she will talk to him about Tim when she is ready.

Well, she might not have to talk to Blake about him at all. It seems that Megan does not enjoy having a boy follow her around. She said that it is annoying, so she has been avoiding him. When I asked if she was being rude, she said no, but that she was just avoiding him. "Besides," she said, "I probably won't see him after camp anyway." Going out is so "different" at this age. They ask each other to go out, but then they don't talk or see each other. Strange. Looks like the boyfriend is already history.

Almost off for a Vacation

Blake and I are off to St. Lucia tomorrow. Blake's mom is coming to stay with Connor and is then picking up Megan when she returns from Beach Camp tomorrow evening. She will take them to the ranch tomorrow so that they can visit their PaPa and their kitties before heading to Minnie & PawPaw's house. My mom and dad will keep them for the weekend, and then my mom is bringing them here to our house to play for the week. They will have a great time this weekend with Granna and PaPa, Minnie & PawPaw and next week with Minnie and their cousins, who are coming over to visit for a day or two.

Please keep Megan in you prayers as today is her last full day at camp, she is getting baptized in the ocean tomorrow morning, and then they head back home. Please pray for a safe trip home for all of the campers and counselors. Also, please pray for safe travel for us to St. Lucia and for a great week of rest and relaxation with our friends, and pray for a great week for my mom as she spends some quality time time with Megan and Connor.

Camp Just Got a Whole Lot Cooler ... according to Megan

Although Megan was quite reluctant to go off to camp on Sunday evening, she is having a terrific time. She has played in the ocean (got stung by a jellyfish, not so fun), played in the pool, played volleyball, attended several worship services and rallies, has gone go carting, and now ... has a "boyfriend".

This is our first boyfriend - well, there was this young man named Kenton who brought her a huge box of candies and a pink stuffed poodle in second grade, but I digress. A young man by the name of Timothy who is going into the 8th grade at one of our other middle schools followed Megan around yesterday and then asked her out last night at the Go-Cart track. He attends our church, and Megan said that she had met him before but never talked to him. When I asked her if they had held hands, she said, "No! There is no PDA allowed, and I would not do that anyway!" It will be interesting to hear what Blake has to say about this. I can hardly wait for the conversation between Blake and Megan.

I just talked to Blake and broke the news to him. His response ... "She is not allowed to date until she is 30!"

Spring/Summer Cleaning

Each summer, just after school is out, I begin my annual spring cleaning. I clean out the kids rooms, closets, drawers, my bedroom and closet, and then the other cabinets and closets in the house in an attempt to purge things the kids have out grown and to regain some semblance of order and control over our "stuff". It is a great feeling when everything is clean and organized. Well, to me anyway. My kids don't share my need to purge and organize, so it is always a bit of a battle or a job that I do mainly on my own.

I started with my daughter's room this year. I did not make a conscience decision to begin there, but the fact that she is off at camp and the fact that her room resembled a post-tornado site, made it the best starting point. I am tempted to go and take pictures of her room - the drawers, the shelves, and the closet - so that I can remember how wonderful it looked. I did say "looked" because I know that as soon as Megan returns from camp, the organization will quickly be undone, and one day in the near future, I will spend 4-5 additional hours in there purging, cleaning, and reorganizing.

I believe my next room will be Connor's, although he has informed me that it does not need to be cleaned. He likes it just like it is. But, I know that there are many items of clothing and toys that he has outgrown, so I need to get them out of his room.

I am thinking that I will have a garage sale after I return from vacation so that I can get rid of the things that I am purging from their rooms and mine. Blake and I both cleaned our closet on Father's Day afternoon. We started thinking about what we should take with us on our vacation, and this prompted us to start reorganizing our clothes so that we could find what we needed. So, our closet is organized - for now. I have a section of pants that I need to try on and purge, but I have not had the time yet. Since I have lost weight, I have a lot of pants/shorts that no longer fit me. I have pulled out quite a few already, but I know that there are probably more.

Well, I had better get back to my spring cleaning. There are many more nooks and crannies to clean!

Beach Camp Update

Blake and I talked to Megan via txt messages and a few phone calls throughout the day. She was rather tired, but she was in much better spirits. The first time she called she was having pancakes at McDonald's; the second time, a vanilla bean frosty from Wendy's. Although she may not have gotten much sleep on the bus, I think she has had plenty to eat.

They arrived at the Condos about 3pm this afternoon and got all settled in. They toured the facility - saw the pool and the beach - and got a little lost in the process. Megan said that the beach is beautiful. She said, "they have real white sands!" She was thrilled about the beach. When we asked her if she was glad she went, she quickly said yes. I knew that she would have a wonderful time. We just had to get her there.

They have their first worship service tonight and then further Bible study will begin tomorrow. I pray that she will enjoy it all and grow closer to God this week.

Is that the Chipmunks?

I am sitting her trying to catch up on my email, and all of a sudden I hear the song "Had a Bad Day" being sung by the Chipmunks. I snicker and continue to read my email. But then ... I hear a new song begin. It is "Crank Dat Soulja Boy". Soulja Boy by the Chipmunks ... It's time you heard it for yourself. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3h2W4k4bDio&feature=related

A Tearful Send-Off

Last night, we took Megan to the church, loaded her suitcase and backpack on the bus, and got her all settled in for her journey to Beach Camp. She decided yesterday afternoon while we were packing that she really did not want to go. She was getting very nervous about being away from home. We reassured her throughout the day that she was going to have a wonderful time, and that although she might be sad when she left, that she was going to love every minute of camp and be so glad that she went.

She was very tearful upon our arrival, but after her best friend Megan and her mom talked to her, she was starting to relax. About the time she was all settled down and feeling good, the Youth Director called everyone off the two bus to a parking lot meeting - parents and students. He reviewed the rules and expectations of camp so that everyone was on the same page. When it was time to board the bus to leave, Megan's anxiety returned.

We talked to her, gave her lots of hugs and kisses, and did our best to reassure her that she was going to have a great time; she just had to get over this initial fear of being away from us. She tearfully boarded the bus. She sat staring out the window, wiping tears from her face. We watched and waited until the bus departed, waving and blowing kisses to her.

Just as we arrived at home, I realized that I had three txt messages from Megan. Each message said the same thing, "I want to come home." Then, my cell phone rang. It was Megan. She wasn't crying, but she was very anxious and sad, and wanted to know if she could just ask the bus to pull over and drop her off, and if I could come and pick her up? Blake and I both talked to her and convinced her once again that everything was going to be alright, and that she was going to have a wonderful time at camp.

I received a phone call from Megan at 8:00am this morning. She was at McDonald's in Louisiana having pancakes. She was tired and said that she missed me, but she was much happier. Her best friend Megan called her mom about an hour ago, and she said that Megan is doing much better. It is hard to send your child to camp when she doesn't want to leave, but because we know how much fun she is going to have and that she is going to be participating in a week of Bible study and worship, and that she is in God's hands, we were able to do it.

Please pray that Megan has the time of her life this week, that she and the other campers and counselors are safe and blessed by this trip, that each develops a deeper relationship with God and continues their walk with Him when they return.

Father's Day

Blake's father's day started off with hugs from the entire family. Megan came in and crawled in bed with us and snuggled up with her daddy. Later, Connor came in and snuggled up, too. Connor grabbed Sophie and said, "Now the whole family - all 5 of us - are snuggling."

After church, we relaxed in the pool, enjoying the sunshine and the cool water, for most of the afternoon. One of our neighbor families joined us. We all relaxed in and around the pool for a few more hours and then joined them for dinner. It was a rather uneventful afternoon of lounging and visiting with family and friends.

Turf Angels

The Turf Angels, Megan's indoor soccer team, had their first game tonight. They won the game 4-1 against Collision. We have never played indoor soccer before, and Megan has been out of soccer for quite a while, so we were a little worried and did not know exactly what to expect.

Indoor soccer is a very fast paced game of 8 vs. 8. Unlike outdoor soccer, you play the ball off of the wall - there is really no out of bounds. If the ball hits the net, which is about 9-10 feet off the ground, or hits the rafters, then it is considered "out of bounds". At that point, it is given to the other team to kick in at a designated spot on the field. Like I said, it isa a very fast paced game of two 20-minute periods with a 2-minute warm-up before the game and a 2-minute break between periods. Players are substituted often - kind of similar to a hockey game.

Megan's team was in the lead 4-0 until the last 10 seconds of the game, when the other team scored their only goal. Otherwise, their first game would have been a shut-out! Megan played full-back during the last part of the first period and the first part of the second period. She did well - kicking and attacking the ball when it was on her side of the field. When she took the field for the first time, she ran out with a smile on her face. She was excited to be "in" the game. I hope that she continues to enjoy indoor soccer and that she becomes more aggressive and confident as the season progresses.

I hope that you will join us for a game or two. If you need a copy of her schedule, please let me know.

A Bit Restored

My external harddrive, although still empty, decided to start working again today. Therefore, I was able to reload the files that I had backed up. Good news, I was able to reload quite a bit. Bad news, the only back-up I could locate was from January 9, 2008. So, I have lost about 5 months of updates and new work, but ... it could be worse. There are a few things that I will have to recreate, but I am hoping to retrieve some of the lost files from my fellow facilitators this summer. For now, I am glad that it is working and that a large portion of my files are accessible again.

Only two more days of work, and then I am off until August 4th. I am really ready for some rest and relaxation!

Animoto

You can see in my previous blog the Animoto video that I made from a few of Connor's baseball pics. If you are interested in creating your own Animoto video, go to www.animoto.com and check it out! You can make a 30 second video for free. Long videos are available, as well; see site for details.

You can upload your pictures, chose from their music, or upload your own tunes. You can rearrange your pics and even spotlight the best ones or your favorites. Your photos are them animated to the music automatically.

Spring Baseball 08

Spring baseball has come to an end. This was not our first season of baseball, but it was our first season with a new team - the Nationals. Connor had a great time this season; he played catcher most games, and also had the opportunity to play short-stop, 3rd base, 1st base, and a few outfield positions. Next season he wants to try to be a pitcher.

Check out the animoto video that I made from the action photography pictures that were taken at one of the games. Enjoy!

Success!

As you read in my previous post, I erased my external harddrive. For those of you wondering ... no, I have not had a nervous breakdown over it, but ... that could still happen. For now, I am somewhat at peace with the whole thing because I know that there is no reason to fret over it. Fretting is not going to bring my files back. So, I am going to continue to move forward and do the best that I can with the files that I still have, and slowly I will rebuild my resources.

Back to the success! I have had a Blackberry Pearl for a few months now. Connor won it for me at a Verizon Valentine's Bonanza in February. For awhile now, I have been able to get my email on my phone. I have not, however, been able to get my calendar on my phone. So, I have had to enter items on my calendar and then enter them again on my work calendar or hard copy calendar as well.

However, this past weekend, our district converted to Microsoft Outlook which syncs up with my Blackberry! Cha-Ching! I downloaded the software today, plugged up my phone, and within minutes, my Outlook Calendar and my Blackberry calendar were in sync!

You've gotta "love" technology!

A Huge Bummer!

This is my last week of work for this school year. At the end of each year, we reimage all of the computers on our campuses so that they are fresh and ready to go for the next year. Imaging has been a lot different this year and has taken us a bit longer than usual. So, today I set out to get several computers imaged. I configured several computers and preped them for the new image. Then, I received an email asking for a document. So, I quickly plugged in my external harddrive, shot out the document, and was then interrupted by some summer school teachers who had questions about logging into computers, etc.

When I arrived this morning, I had purposely left my external harddrive in my bag so that it would NOT be connected to any computer that I was imaging. However, after helping the teachers, taking a few phone calls, etc., I completely forgot that I had plugged in my harddrive, and it was sitting in a place where I could not see it from the front of my desk.

After imaging several computers and completing the image on my computer, I booted by computer back up and prepared to install the additional software programs that I would need. As I began the process, I realized that I need a serial number. So, I reached down into my bag for my external harddrive, and I was quite puzzled when it was not there. So I began to look around ... and then it hit me. I had plugged it in earlier in the day to send a document to someone. What had I done with it? As I stood up, I saw it ... sitting there behind my phone ... and it was connected to the USB connector. I quickly said a pray that the USB connector was NOT connected to the back of my computer. But ... it was. So, in the process of imaging my computer and cleaning it up for the new year, I ERASED my harddrive. I erased approximately 40GB of files, pictures, documents, ... I erased 40GB of "my life"!

Yes, I do have "some" of the files backed up, but backing up my external harddrive was on my summer "to-do" list. So, once I get it partitioned again, I will begin to rebuild my files. Until then, if you need something that I created for you, you just might have to wait until I either find it on my back-up or until I can recreate it for you. Many of my files I have shared with others, so hopefully I will be able to get those back from them, but many others are, as they say, "gone with the wind" or should I say "gone with the image"!

A New Blogger

I have created another blogger! Megan convinced me to create a blog for her tonight. It is called "All About Megan". She intends to write about things that she likes to do and things that she loves.

Friends and family, if you did not get an invitation to Megan's blog and would like one, please email me and let me know, and I will make sure that she sends one to you. We are keeping her blog private for now. I want her to learn to use it and to make sure that she knows what she can and cannot post on her blog. So for now, her blog is accessible by invitation only.

She has not published anything yet, but I am already looking forward to reading her stories, hearing about books that she has read, and viewing the PowerPoint slideshows that she creates. I can't wait to read her first posting!

Some Much Needed Relaxation

We just finished the last week of school (not for me, but for the kids and teachers) and wrapped up a very busy year. Alongside the last week of school duties, I was working on a graduation video for a neighbor. The video ended up being 45 minutes long and contains over 900 pictures. Needless to say, between the end of school, the video, and the usually work, family, and home duties, I was worn out! We attended a graduation party on Friday evening and an end of year party at a co-worker's house as well. It was great to visit with friends, to celebrate Emily's graduation and the end of another great year, but I was exhausted.

Saturday, after indoor soccer practice and our final baseball game of the season, we took a much needed nap to try to catch up. Today, we continued our much needed relaxation by spending the day relaxing in the pool. Even Megan turned down going to a movie with friends. She told her friend that she was spending the day with her family. Wow!

We ended the day with dinner at a neighbor's house. It was a great, relaxing weekend of family time and some much needed rest! I hope to have many more fun and relaxing weekends throughout the summer.

A New Addition!

Blake and I have a new nephew & the kids have a new cousin. Frater was born yesterday! He arrived at 5:19pm weighing 8 lbs. 12 oz. with rosy cheeks and blond hair. Eden & Frater are doing great. Here are a few of his first pics.

A Day Without a Phone!

I left work yesterday afternoon, picked up kids, deposited them at home, and then returned to work to finish a project that a teacher needed assistance with. I called home about 6:15 to let them know that I would be on my way shortly. Little did I know, that would be the last time that I saw my cell phone for almost 24 hours.

After working for quite a while on a video for a graduation, I went downstairs to get my phone to plug it into the charger for the night. Upon descending the stairs, I found lights on, the tv on, plates on the table, a box of yogurt on the coach, and many other things which were out of place. After turning everything off and putting everything in its place, I headed upstairs to bed, completely forgetting about my original reason for going downstairs .... to find my phone. This morning, I awoke, showered, dressed, and went to get my phone from its charger before leaving for the day, only to discover that it was not there, and the memory of my original reason for descending the stairs last night came back to me. I looked about the house and throughout my car, but no phone. I had to get to work, so I decided that I would just have to come back and look for it later. Upon arriving at work, I searched my desk, my bag, my purse (once again) and everywhere that I could think of, but no phone. It was really upsetting me because I always put my phone in the same place, and I always know where it is.

I went home at lunchtime to search once again, hoping that I would find it. During my search, I stopped a moment and prayed, "Please God. Help me find my phone." Within a few minutes, I remembered that I had stopped at the staff restroom on my way to the car the previous night. Maybe I had set it on the table in the bathroom? A great sense of peace came over me, and I felt certain that my prayer had been answered. I headed back to school and straight for the staff restroom to retrieve my phone. Only, my phone was not there. The fret and worry that I had felt all morning instantly returned.

It was nearly one o'clock, so I headed to my other campus to help with imaging. Shortly after arriving, the secretary came in and said, "I heard you lost your phone, and we've found it." I so wished that it was mine but knew that it was not because I had lost it at my other campus. A few more hours went by before I heard from the night custodian whom I had emailed earlier in the day to ask if she or her night crew had found my phone. She had not seen it and did not know anything about it but said that she would check with her crew.

About an hour later, my phone rang. As I glanced over at the phone before picking up the receiver, I saw my cell phone number on the incoming call display. My friend Kathy was on the other end of the line talking to me on "my phone"! One of the night custodians found my phone and placed it on a shelf for safe keeping. I was SO relieved! Guess where she found it? In the staff restroom on the little table ... just where I "thought" I left it.

Lesson learned ... continue to listen to the still, small voice of peace instead of resorting to fret and worry.