Pre-Christmas

Tis the season to be busy. Let's see: December: David turned 17 on December 4th...he sang at Epcot on the 7th. The above picture is of Chelsea and Brian & then Niel and Me, we all met at Epcot to hear David sing. I must admit, I love Epcot at Christmas time...they have all the different Santas from all around the world there near their country (guess the north pole is empty during this time...because they are at Epcot)...Well, below is a picture of me and the French Santa:


While at Epcot we ate at the Land....it was wonderful. It was country diner type of food and it was all you can eat. I will say, Brian really liked the place. When you have a child in the concert, to guarantee a seat to watch the performance, you need to purchase a meal & ticket deal from Epcot. You do need to eat but it is a gimick. But it is nice to have a nice meal and then watch the show. So it was worth it. Again this year, I sat in the perfect seat...David walked right by me again.



We have been busy with Christmas parties: Niel's work party was on December 5th; our Churches Christmas party was on Dec. 13th (my parents came down and enjoyed that with us); my work Christmas party was on Dec. 20th. So...every weekend we were holiday out. ;o) I will say my favorite was Niel's....we got to eat with some of our friends and it was a nice time. Niel's Christmas party is more eliquent than the rest, everyone dresses semi-formal and it is really nice.

Mark flew in on the 19th....which he turned 20.Can you believe, Mark is no longer a teenager..he is now a man. Where did the time go? He was suppose to fly in on the 18th but the fog in Dallas had their planes in Oklahoma City grounded...so, to get another flight, they drove to Tulsa and flew out the next morning and arrived home on December 19th @ 2:30....I had him balloons and a welcome home sign. If he had made his first flight, I had arranged for a bunch of his friends to go to IHOP at 12:30 am on the 19th ...but that did not happen...but it would have been cool. Instead he got to choose where he wanted to go to dinner. He chose a place called Grills at the port. A very nice fishy place.

School is closed for winter break. We had our exams the 16th - 19th, as well as David. So, we are finished with school until January. Myself, well, I will be working on my AP Government class....they start up on January 8th. It is a very demanding class but I love teaching Government, so it is also fun. It is wonderful to totally enjoy ones job.

Brian & Chelsea arrived here yesterday evening. When they got in at 9 pm...all three boys and their girlfriends went to the movies together. They sure do have a great time together. I love having all three boys home. The house seems so alive when they are home. They love spending time together which I love to see as well. Yesterday I was able to spend time with Mark and David....it was wonderful.

Everyone seems to be stressed about the Christmas season, especially in these economic times...everyone looking for the perfect gift to give to those they love. Well, the perfect gift does not cost money, the perfect gift is your TIME. Yesterday, just having time with the boys was wonderful. TIME is the perfect gift.

Today my folks arrived in town. We all went out to lunch ...the boys love spending time with them...since I no longer have the van, we had to take two cars. PopPop road with the boys...he sure does love his boys. They love spending time with him as well. This after noon we made Christmas cookies...yes, I made Christmas Cookies...it is fun and everyone seems to like to eat them. Now mind you, they will not win any awards but they sure do taste good. Yes, we also ate cookie dough while we made the cookies.

I want to wish you all a very Merry Christmas...take time to enjoy each other's company.Spend TIME with each other..that is the perfect gift...your time with someone else. That is all everyone really wants....is time together. Tomorrow I will have about 13 friends and family for Christmas Eve dinner...it will be wonderful...TIME together. Enjoy your time with your family and have a Very Merry Christmas. Expect more post after Christmas with pictures.

Thanksgiving Weekend

Wow...I feel totally stuffed...guess that is how one should feel after Thanksgiving.

We had a quiet weekend....Thanksgiving Day was full of friends and family. (Myself,Niel, David, my folks, Niel's dad, my friend Mike and his son Mark Tim, and Brian & Chelsea) We had 10 at our table this year. We ate about 1:00...sat around afterwards talking and watching football. I believe some took cat naps but noone admits too it. Brian and Chelsea had to head out for another meal. Around 7 pm we went to see a movie: We saw Australia....good movie but long (at least David thought it was long). Oh...almost forgot the special guest....Throttle, my new grandpuppy.


Before we ate (we had turkey and ham...for those that really want to know, and yes, I did the cooking). Everyone stood around the table (nicely decorated with paper products)and said what they were thankful for. I had so much to be thankful for, wonderful family, friends, good health....the list can go on. I am truly blessed with a wonderful husband and 3 wonderful boys. My boys are very blessed to still have both sets of grandparents still around. It was nice having my parents and Niel's dad with us.

Before people came over on Thursday I was able to get a few of the Christmas Trees up (2 out of 4)--> Niel thought I was a tad bit on the crazy side but I knew it had to get done and why not during some down time.I got the den decorated for Christmas and my bedroom. I saved the Kitchen and livingroom for Friday.

The Den:




My Bedroom's tree:


Friday morning I did not get up at the break of dawn. I slept until 7 and then headed out for a few sales. I went to Lowells, Kohls (total mistake...too many people and not really that great of deals), and then Walmart. I got a few things accomplished but not as much as I truly wanted to. When I got home, after having coffee and pumpkin bread....I worked on turning the living room and kitchen into Christmas central. Tree is up and cupboards decorated in the Kitchen, decorations and tree is up in the livingroom. The tree has lights on it but we will not decorate it until Mark is home from college. Niel and my dad had already started putting the outside lights up. The outside of the house looks like a living candycane (red & white lights).

Saturday My parents headed back to Ocala and I spent the day cleaning out the closet(finding gifts I had bought and forgot about) , looking at my Christmas lists, and wrapping presents. Basically we stayed around the house. Niel fixed some of the lights that were not working. He is also coming down with a cold. We then went out to dinner to celebrate Chelsea's birthday with her family....we had a great time.

Now...it is Sunday...Brian & Chelsea have just left for Tampa, David is writing a paper (okay, he is suppose to be writing a paper), and Niel is watching football...the house is too quiet, I know I am strange....I love the commotion of the house full of people.

I hope that everyone was able to enjoy the holiday weekend. Even when things are bleak, we always have something to be thankful for. God is in control and He knows the big picture.

Family Weekend in Novemenber

Well...it is Saturday morning and the weekend in full swing. Last night David's football team had a game under the lights. Now to most people this seems normal, but David's team's field does not have lights, so usually our games are at 4 pm. But last night, being senior night (last home game, you honor the seniors) so they rented or someone donated these lights for the field. So, we had a game under the lights.

This game was great, nice cool weather (another thing we usually do not have at our Florida football games). But this game was even more special. Now, we have the lights, the weather....what more could there be...well....in the middle of the game, at 7:50 , the refs stop the game so we could see the shuttle go up. It was amazing, the glow in the distance and then the glow flying through the sky. Did I mention the sky was a beautiful background for this shuttle.....clear sky, moonlite night.

THE GLOW IN THE SKY IS THE SHUTTLE:


Still....that is not just it to make it special. So, we have the lights, the weather, and the shuttle....what more could make it special.....well, Family to watch the game. David had his own cheering center. Bob & Denise came down from Virginia to watch, Brian & Chelsea came over from Tampa, and of course David's favorit fans Niel & I were there. It was amazing sitting together and watching the game (Even though I think we stood more than sat...something you do when you watch football).Now....those that are my friends and know that my divorce with Bob totally hurt me (usually happens when someone you trust cheats on you) and those that know that, know that Denise is the one that he ran off with. So most think, how can you sit with her. Well, God is good, and we must move forward in our life. I have the most wonderful husband now who adores the ground I walk on (okay...I will not go that far because you know, I am who I am. But in reality, life is too short to be angry and upset. We need to forgive and move forward. Is that not what God tells us to do? Is that not what my faith is all about? So, that is what I am trying to do...learning to forgive and moving forward. Now, I will admit, at first when I see her, I do get a hurt in my stomach, but I will say, each time is less than it was before....I am a firm believer if you turn stuff over to God and if you do not hold it in and you talk about it to someone, you will be on the road to recovery.(this is important...you can't keep these hurts inside, you have to talk to someone about your feelings..the more you get it out, the faster you will heal)

Now back to the football game and the family weekend news:
Niel even used his Major Robbins voice to cheer some, which totally blew Brian away. I don't think Brian realize what a major in the army sounds like when they use their army voice. You should have seen his eyes,he was looking around to see who had that roaring voice. Now mind you, since I am David's number one fan and I sit next to David's number two fan....I have heard the major roar before; but I will admit that when I first heard it, I too looked around to see where the large cheering voice was coming from. Because those that know Niel, no he is soft spoken with such a tender heart...who would know he had these large sounds inside him.

Here is a picture of David, Bob, & Brian after the game.



Now, since this was senior night. After the game they had a BBQ. So we were all able to get some BBQ and sit down as a family and enjoy more one on one time with the football player. You know the coaches don't let you have one on one time with the players while they are playing. It was just an amazing football night. Oh...for you football stats guys...we lost the game, 13-12. One of those nailbiter games, we lost in the last 4 seconds of the game. Per Niel and the paper, the early turnovers is what killed us during the first half. Another factor, the team we played is one division higher than us. We might have lost, but it was a great night for Merrit Island Christian Football.

The game is over...so what is in store for this Saturday...yard work, NO, house work, ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?...okay, I know those are normal weekend things we do around here...but this is FAMILY WEEKEND....so we are heading to Ocala today to visit my mom, she is 78 today.





I wanted to show you David's hair...yes, he is bald. Even though Mark was not at the game, he was still part of the family weekend. Seems like the boys are always conneceted..which is a good thing (most of the time). This week David went to see his brother in Oklahoma and to see Oklahoma Christian College as well (where Mark goes). Well, Mark, his friends, and David thought it would be cool to give David a Mohawk. Yes a Mohawk....mind you David goes to a Christian School and can not have weird hairdos (which is a good thing)...so when David got off the plane from Oklahoma he looked the picture below....hence why he now has a bald head, the pictures above:

Nov. 2nd

It is a nice rainy Sunday today. Does not seem like it is already November. I will have to admit, I love autumn. It has always been my favorite time of the year. I remember my days in Maine, raking leaves and of course jumping in them. I remember my high school days at Dublin...hay rides and making

As I read the paper, watch Meet the Press, I like every American know that in two days history will be made. We will either have the first African American as President or the first women Vice President. I will have to admit that it has been an exciting year to teach government but I will also have to admit, I am ready for this election. I will not tell anyone how to vote but I would like you to vote. I try to stay neutral when I teach my students but I am passionate about people not giving up their right to vote. Yes, I have voted (I am one of those that do vote early) and I will stay up and watch the elections on Tuesday nights. I will be excited or disappointed when the outcome does come, but I will say, no matter who gets in office, I will dedicate myself to pray for that person.

Niel's dad moved down to Florida this past week. Niel was able to help him unpack his pod on Wednesday. It is amazing how we hold onto so much stuff...even when we move. I try to pudge so much of my stuff yet, I look around and I still have more stuff. I guess that is how it is with everyone. How much stuff we collect...gets overwhelming at time. I have DVD's that I still have not open or even watched. I did purge the kitchen when we remodeled, that was easy, Brian and Chelsea needed stuff for their kitchen.

I went to see my folks on Saturday. I will say, watching ones parents gets old is very hard (at least for me). My mom's health does not seem good and she only weighs 80 pounds. I so wish I could give her some of my weight. How nice that would be....it would help her and me as well. We surprised her....we just showed up. I do not think I will do that again, she almost passed out....she was so shocked to see us.



It was a good weekend for football. David's team won bigtime, 42-6. This win puts them in the playoffs. That gives him two more games, Nov. 14th & Nov. 21st. The GATORS beat Georgia bigtime as well. I even heard that Georgia Tech smashed FSU. So...I guess it was a big weekend for big games, unless you were one of the teams that lost. I really love football season....I love watching David play ball. I use to love listening to the band when Brian & Mark were in the band. Friday nights at the field...was time consuming but also really fun. I have great memories of football seasons pasts and we are making great memories for football season now.

Oct 18th

I know it has been awhile since I last posted but it has been busy here in Florida. David had homecoming week worth of activities and then the following week was my week at school of homecoming activities. Then this past week...I think I was just plane worn out and I went to sleep early everynight. Guess I needed my sleep.

Last weekend a friend mentioned a book for me to read, The Shack and then another mentioned a movie to go see :Fireproof. So, on Monday I bought the book and started reading it & Friday I went to the movie (with Niel) of course.

First, the book was wonderful. I recommend it as a MUST read. It mainly deals with someone that deals with a major lost in their life and moving forward. Even if you have never lost a loved one...I recommend the book. We have all experienced some type of lost: Lost of a loved one, a friend, a divorce, loss of job....something we ask God..why me? This book helps this person get through their loss but it also opens up ones eyes that one can not move forward without forgiving those that have wronged us or even who we feel have wronged us. It also explains that forgiveness does not mean that you will forget but forgiveness means you can move forward with you life. God wants all of us to move forward in our life. I told Niel this morning, that I never could have moved forward in my life if I had not forgiven Bob for what he did to me. That does not mean I have totally forgotten the hurt he caused but I have forgiven him and as I move forward in life, the hurt does slowly disappear. I am only mentioning this to help others. If you have someone in your life that has wronged you or you think has wronged you...you need to forgive them to move forward in your life. God can use something bad that happens in our life for something good.

Second, the movie...I totally recommend this movie. At first I was really leary about it....it is about a couple thinking about a divorce and how they use this program Love Dare to slowly work it out....it saves their marriage. I was leary because those that know my past, know that Bob & I had done a type of Love Dare program through a Christian outreach. It was to save our marriage. Obviously it did not work but as I look back on it and I realize it did not work because we both were not working at it. Bob's heart had already been given to someone else. His heart was not in it...it is not all his fault, that is just what it is. But I did learn some wonderful helps to use in a marriage and this movie reenforced some of the same ideas. But in all honesty...when you put someone above your own needs, they do turn around and love you more. Mates just want to know that you love them unconditionally.You see that in older couples when they are taking care of each other. I see it when my dad goes in the bathroom to dry my mother's back because she has a hard time doing that. I see it when Dad Schmidt planned the most awesome surprise birthday party for Mom Schmidt. It is putting your mates needs above your own because you love them so dearly. In the movie the dad of the couple reminded me of Dad Schmidt...a dad that truly cares and is there for his kids. As we were leaving, Niel said, who did the dad remind you of....I said Dad Schmidt...he said me too.

Today....Niel & I went to a friend of our's dad's memorial service. I did not know Ron's dad but I knew what a wonderful man Ron was, so I knew his dad had to be one fantastic guy. After sitting through a very moving memorial service, I was right. It was really emotional, as my friend and his brother got up to talk about their dad. What great influenced he had been in their life...how he helped guide them to be the men they are today. It makes one wonder what ones own kids will say at their memorial service. All I know is I have done the best I could and hopefully they will have nice stories to tell about me...but more important, I sure do want them to play music at my service. I want Brian to play "An Old Rugged Cross" on his sax....I want Mark to do a drum solo, and I want David to sing I think "I can Fly".....I might start laughing in heavin because I will remember him doing the skit he did this year to that song...but at my memorial service I would like him to do it normal. He has such a nice voice.

This weekend has been relaxing and an eye opener. Open to good things and do some deep thoughts..but that is okay. We all need some self evaluation...especially if we want to better ourselves...which I hope we all do....I know I sure do. I want to be the best daughter, the best wife, the best mother, the best friend, and most important the best Christian God wants me to be.

Weekend in NY

This past weekend we spend in Rochester/Syracruse NY at Niel’s niece’s wedding. We arrived in Rochester on Thursday, Sept. 25th…Brian’s birthday. I think I called him four or five times during the day…still can not believe he turned 21. I have a 21 year old….am I really that old? Does not seem possible to have a child that is 21….but I guess I do & when I look in the mirror, I see that I am old enough to have a 21 year old. When did that happen?

Well…back to Rochester… We landed and headed directly toward the nursing home to see Niel’s mom….she was asleep and personally unaware that we were even there…so, we were going to stay at Niel’s sister’s house, she left us the key (she had already headed to Syracruse to help with the wedding planning). Well, when Niel was unlocking the door to the house…the key slipped out of his hand behind the cement stairs. We did try to retrieve the key but were unlucky…so off to a hotel we went. Once we unpacked we headed over to Rick & Laurie’s house (dear friends of Niel’s and now mine). We had a wonderful dinner but more important, fantastic fellowship. We love to get together with them…..such great friends. Sure wish we lived closer.



Friday after having a wonderful breakfast at the hotel we checked out to start our trip to Syracruse for the rehearsal dinner & then the wedding. Before we headed out of town, Niel wanted to help his dad with putting on a storm door. Niel said, it would take an hour or two and then we would be off to the mountains to look at the foliage. Well, 4 ½ hours later the storm door was up & we were having lunch at Applebees before we headed out of town toward Syracruse. The morning weather was beautiful, so a good time to put on the door but once we headed out of Rochester, it started to rain…so no luck in tromping through the woods and taking pictures of the foliage.

I did get some pictures from the car. Now, we arrive in Syracruse and get ready to check into our hotel…except they said our reservations were canceled by Expedia (which is strange since I book straight through them and not expedia). So….they hooked us up across the street at a hotel called the Maple Wood…we got a queen bed instead of a king…but at least we found a room. Mind you, by now…my morning blown, my hotel room blown, the weather is raining….I am wanting to head back to Florida. But..we came for a purpose, a wedding of a wonderful young lady and young man…..so after taking a nap in the hotel room….off to the rehersal dinner we head. Wow..the food was so good and everyone was wonderful. Joe (Jen’s niece’s fiancé) family is wonderful. They made everyone feel like family.



Next day was wedding day!!! It was suppose to be an outside wedding..but the rain just would not stop. The wedding was in a lodge that had the most breathtaking overlook. I can see why they picked the place and why they wanted an outside wedding here. Since the lodge was so beautiful, they were able to get married infront of the fireplace. Very romantic. I really loved how the tables were decorated. Since they both have a love for gems….each table was named after gems. Really a cute idea. Again..the food and fellowship was wonderful!!! We had a great time being with friends and family. This was the reason we came to NY…to celebrate with family and celebrate we did.


Above: Geoff, Karen (Niel's sister & husband), Jen, Joe, Joyce (Joe's mom), Stoyll (Niel's dad)



Above: Lauramay & Niel


Above: Renee', Jen, Tia (sisters...Niel's nieces)

Sunday we headed back to Rochester and on the way back we stopped off at Senica Falls and I was able to get information for my government classes. It was a nice touch. Niel saw it on our way up and thought I would love to see that. He knows me so well. Once we arrived back in Rochester….we went back to Niel’s sister’s house …this time we were able to get in, since she was home….we then visited for awhile & then headed to Rick & Laurie’s to watch the Bills play. Again…a wonderful time of fellowship.


Today…we spent time getting ready for our trip home and visiting with Karen (Niel’s sister). We also were able to go to the nursing home and see Niel’s mom again. This time she more awake and in a very good mood but again, do not think she realized who we were.

David’s team won his football game this weekend…so that was good. It is a conference game. This week is David’s homecoming week. His game is Thursday. He has the homecoming dance on Friday. I will be busy getting back into the swing of teaching again and getting ready for our homecoming the following week. A lot to do!!!

Traditions

We have been busy the past few weeks so that is why I have not been able to post. Work has been busy....for me, this is my busiest time of the year. I have homecoming to get ready for, get my student government up and running, my Senior Beta club up and running, and my Model Student Senate up and running. It seems like I have a early meeting every day of the week and two in the afternoon. Part of being the government teacher and the sponsor of the student government associations. It is just busy getting all the clubs up and running. Homecoming is a major job, our Homecoming this year will be Oct. 11th....that whole week before will be a busy week..spirit week and flag football game on Friday night.

Last weekend I went to a benefit for a friend who has cancer. A very talented women who loves the Lord dearly. The benefit was an all day concert of local musicians trying to do what they could to ease the pain of the finacial burden that comes along with cancer. It was amazing the talent that was all in one room with one goal to tell this one person how much they cared for her and her family. She beemed with life that day....I know she had to be in pain but there was no pain on her face...just delight that all these people care for her. The amazing part is that I had not seen her in 10 years. I had moved to the church that I was working at and Sheryl and her family had switched to a church that Leon (her husband) could do some preaching. I connected back up with this family when Mark was a junior in high school and needed to do a project at a music studio (they have their own studio). Now again, through another friend (Gail from my church) sent out a prayer request for a person in the music industry that had cancer and local musicians were getting together to throw a benefit for her. What a small world....we might move forward in life but we continue to connect back to people we knew. The world is not as large as we all think it is.

This past week Niel's dad was here looking for a place to purchase nearby. He found a condo in Melbourne (about 30 minutes away on US 1). But in the process of finding a condo, he got sick and was put in the hospital. He is doing much better now and as I type this blog he is on his way back to NY to get his house ready to sell.



This weekend was FOOTBALL for David. His team lost but they fought really hard, they played a team from a school twice their side. They did get on the score board, 41 -14. Missy & Granddad came to the game along with my friend Patty. We all watched as Davide played really hard. I feel each game he gets better as an offensive guard. But Football on Friday afternoon or evenings is becoming a tradition at this house hold. We carry chairs in the back of the car incase the games do not have good stands to sit in. It brings back memories of years past when football games was another tradition...then as band parents....this time as football parents. The only difference between a football parent & a band parent, you really watch the game...as a band parent you are busy making sure the band has their needs met before they head on the field for half-time show. But football has been a tradition in this family and will continue on, just a tad bit different view point.





Yesterday, Saturday, Niel & I headed to Tampa to celebrate with Brian who will be turning 21 on Thursday! Their apartment is so cute! Chelsea & Natile decorated the apartment to celebrate Brian's birthday and Chelsea made him a birthday cookie cake. It was wonderful! We all went out to eat at WASABI which is a Japanese Steak House. It has become a tradition for us the past three years to take Brian to a Japanese Steak House....so the tradition continues, just at a different location. Tradtions are fun and I think it make us all feel more connected together. Here are some pictures from the celebration:







In the above picture, you will notice Brian is holding a lunchbox. Chelsea got it for him for his job...yes, Brian has a job, at a place called Tuffy. But if you look at the lunch box really close, you will see that it is a transformer called Bumblebee. The funny thing about this, when Brian was little, I made up a song just for Brian, it was called Bumblebee Brian. So...I guess tradition goes on, he might be 21 but he will always be my Bumblebee Brian.

David is doing good in school this year...intern report was outstanding (all A's & 1 B). Him and I went to a college fair at his school. I can not believe he is a junior and we are looking at colleges already. We looked at 70 colleges at the fair. It was very informative and an eye opener for me. David is a junior in high school and we need to start thinking about where he wants to go to college in just a few years...two to be exact.

Speaking of college....College Boy Mark is doing good in college. He loves his greek class and is doing wonderful in it. He is also rushing a club this year. Janel is also enjoying her time at OC and is rushing a club as well. They are both enjoying college life. This year Mark has a new roommate but is in the same quad as Chen.

Next week we go to New York to go to Niel's nieces's wedding.

I would like to leave you with this thought. Traditions....traditions can keep us connected and help us hold onto happy memories. Traditions can trigger a past memory while making future memories. The world is not as big as we think it is and people make inpacts as we go through this life....what kind of impact are you leaving on people.

Now...to end....which one is the football player or who looks meaner?

David in action

Football Season

David is Football player Number 79:



As you can see, football season is here. As parents, you will find us in our blue/white shirts on Friday afternoon or evenings watching the MICS Cougars Football team. So....if you want to know where Niel & I are on a Friday night.....we will be at a football game. He has had two games so far. First game 34-30 WIN; second game 28-0 WIN!!!!! David is a starter Offensive Lineman. He had some really good blocks during this last game. He played hard, his whole outfit was totally wet.

So far we have been blessed with a bypass on the storms that have been stirring in our Atlantic waters. We do have our shutters up and plan on taking them down next weekend. This gave us a time to organize them and get them labeled so both Niel & I understand my labeling system.

We have been getting a lot of rain from the storms as they stir out in the Atlantic so we are now looking on reroofing the garage. Niel has found two leaks. He gets the fun about calling around getting estimates for a new roof for the garage.

Last night David and our youth group went to Universal Studios to the Rock the Universe. It started at 4 and ended at 1. They were listening to many different Christian Rock bands. They had a ball. I was totally surprised to see so many kids up during this morning service. David slept in...I felt after Friday's night game and then Saturday night...I thought he needed the sleep. Guess I was the only parent that thought that. I knew he had homework today and I wanted him to be awake enough to do that. Well, homework is done and he is off to see two of the girls in the youthgroup play soccer.

My folks are in Maine right now visiting my brother's family. I know they are enjoying their grandchildren and great grandchildren.

Work is going well....again, what a year to be teaching Government!! It is an amazing year for politics.

Have a wonderful week!

A Historical Week

Wow, what a great time to be a Government Teacher. It is amazing inspiring my students to be politically aware. Last week for extra credit I had them watch the Democratic Convention, this week they will earn extra credit to watch the Republican Convention...which is doing a first, they are basically postponing tomorrow due to the Hurricane Gustav. This year, come Nov. 5th we will have either the first African American President or the first Female Vice President. It is history in the making. The discussions are wonderful in class....any teacher's dream, students discussing the subject with passion.

What a week....I have been one tired person at the end of the each day. But I will admit, it is partly getting back into a routine...give me a few more weeks and I will be into the routine. Did I mention that I have wonderful students and I am totally enjoy teaching my students. I love what I do.

David had his first football game for the season on Friday. He is a starter this year and they won their game. (34-30) It is just a pre-season game but it does make them feel good when they win the first one. Not too bad with having a week off of school as well. I was not able to go to the game since it was 3 hours away and I knew I would not have been able to drive back at night...game did not start until 7. He got home around 1:30.

Niel was gone for a few days this week.....his first business trip away. I will have to admit, I did not know what to do with myself....okay....I did watch the convention and get my toes painted...but there were moments I had noone to pick on. But in all honesty, I sure did miss him. I like talking to him every day and I love his hugs that give me a comfort that is totally hard to put in words.

To be honest, I was really not looking forward to Friday night....David away and Niel gone as well....so I stayed at school grading papers until 6 and headed home. I was going to pick up Chinese and watch tv and go to bed early. Well, right before I called the Chinese place, Brian called and said he was in town for the weekend. Wow, what a surprise....Brian & Chelsea home for the weekend. I picked them up Chinses and we had it together. I was so happy to see them. Saturday Brian mowed the lawn for me and Chelsea washed our cars for us.....for all their hard work, Chelsea and I went and got our toes done. A girl needs to pampher herself now and then. I had a hard week at work and Chelsea had a hard week her first week of college...walking, trying to find parking....so we needed our toes done. A matter of prayer, Brian still has not found a job, so we are praying this week we will be the week.

Today was another first....our church auditorium was redone and it looked wonderfully but more than that, the whole inner works of our church has taken a major move...to live for Christ and to be Christ for the community. We have gone from an a cappella service to a mixture of instruments and a cappella. It was amazing. God is so good and God is in Control.

Today after church we went out to dinner with friends. What a great time of fellowship we had. The best part was chatting with Chuck & Diane about the trip to Oklahoma. It was fun hearing the stories. It is wonderful when people love my son as much as I do. I know Diane & Chuck enjoy Mark and treasure him like I do. Here is a picture of Mark....he had Diane take the picture since I am a government teacher and would love the picture....I agree...I love it:


Take care and have a wonderful upcoming week. Tomorrow is Labor Day...while we are enjoying a day off, Mark & Janel we will be taking classes at Oklahoma Christian...they start classes tomorrow. The college students in Oklahoma:

The neighborhood

Just took a drive through the neighborhood to take some pictures. Here are some of the pictures.

Tropical Fay still here!

Well, when we woke up this morning to get Mark ready for his trip to Oklahoma, we noticed that part of our yard was under water.


Our neighbors yard is a much larger lake today than it was yesterday evening:


Here is the part of the backyard that has the firepit in it:


The sad part, the rain keeps coming. Per the weatherman, the storm in stalled. On a good note on that....Mark, Janel, Diane, & Chuck headed out to Oklahoma this morning around 8:30. With the storm hanging over us, this gives them a chance to get ahead of the storm. We think it would take them about 2 hours and then they would be out of the worse of the storm. So please pray for their safety as they travel to Oklahoma.

Niel is off again today but keeping himself busy with jobs around the house. David is still sleeping...and me...well, I should be working on my class but I am blogging instead. I am tired, I did not sleep well last night, hearing the rain and knowing Mark was leaving today...so I am dragging.

Tropical Storm Fay

Well...I am into my 2nd day off of work and expecting another one tomorrow because of Tropical Storm Fay. The storm that is loaded with wind and water has caused havoc on Brevard County (where we live). There has been a lot of flooding in many parts of Brevard County. As I type this we are trying to drain part of our pool...it is over flowing. I can understand....walking around our property we noticed the ditch behind our house is totally full (any more water might back it up into our yard). Our yard is on a high part of our neighborhood, our neighbor has a new lake in their front yard. Here are some of our pictures:


Personally, I will say it has been a blessing. Mind you, I was excited about my classes and would like to be in full swing of class routines and teaching. But Tropical Fay has given me extra time with Mark. Yesterday we spent the day going through his closet and getting him packed for College. While we were doing that, we got to talk...I like talking to Mark. Mark was able to work on his college papers and I was around to bounce things off. I like that...I sure do miss him when he is at college. Today I spent the day doing laundry, helping Mark get his car ready for his trip, and taking Chen to the airport. We have totally enjoyed having Chen with us for a month. He is a wonderful young man and I feel totally blessed to have had him with us for a month. I am hoping he decides to come home for Christmas with Mark. Here are a few pictures:
Niel, Me, & Chen

Here is a picture of Mark & Chen:


Tomorrow Mark leaves for Oklahoma with the Andersons' and Janel. Niel & him will pack his car later when we get in a down time from the rain...it does happen some. When we were walking around the property, that was one of those times. We have mostly everything in the livingroom ready to go...just waiting for the right time.

Niel & I both have off tomorrow (because of the storm) so we will be here to say our goodbyes to Mark. See, another blessing from this storm....otherwise I might have been at work. This is a lesson ....even when things are not what we want ( I did not want three days off of work right when school started), we can still get a blessing from it. SO, look for the positive in things.

First Day of School

Yesterday was my first day back to work with students and David's first day in 11th grade. Every year since the boys were little I took a picture of them on the first day of school. It is used to start out in their classrooms and then when they hit middle school, the pictures were either inside the house or outside the house...but heaven forbid I go into their classroom and have them sit at their desk and take a picture. I know better but incase I did not, Brian & Mark told me come 5th grade...pictures at home only. So, I took my normal first day picture yesterday. Now there is only one in the picture and he is a junior. Yes, David is a junior. He drives himself to school as well. SO I thought you all would love to see how excited he was to start school:


Can you not see the excitement. Okay....he hides it well. But last night at dinner (Niel grilled cheeseburgers) he said it was okay. He likes his classes and thinks it will be a good year. He did give me a complement....he was telling the table last night (Mark, Janel, Chen, Pat, Niel, and myself) about the first day of talk I give to my students.(I taught David in 8th grade history but I usually have the same type of talk...change it up some for my 11th graders but it is my dog and pony show). He says I come across real strick but by the end of my talk the whole class usually loves me. I do make them laugh. I give my rules, what I expect from them, but I also add humor to it. Hey, I work with teenagers and I love my job....so I must survive with humor.

My first day was wonderful....I have great kids...I know I say that every year but every year I get great kids. I love what I do and I love my job. This year I teach periods 1-5 without a break, I have last lunch during 5th period, then I teach 6th period. My planning is the last two periods of the day 7th & 8th (this semester....it changes next semester). My day flew by.....by 7th period I was ready for some down time.

Well, if you all watch the news...you will see that we have a tropical storm called Fay sorta keeping us wet today. Because tropical storms can sometimes have major winds, they cancelled school today. They do that because the law states that busses can not go over the causeways when the winds get above 35 mph. So...I am being a bumb today....so is David. He is still asleep. I have dinner planned already.....meatballs in the crockpot....we are having meatball subs. The worse weather is suppose to hit us about 5 pm - 8 pm......so if we loose electricity, dinner will be ready. I just heard the news, right now, in parts of Brevard County they are clocking wind gust up to 30 mph....like I said, it is suppose to get worse as the day goes on.

Brian & Chelsea are in Tampa, near where the storm came through. I talked to them yesterday and they seemed very prepared. I knew they would be. Brian has always been a major help here when I used to get ready for a storm. He knows what to do.....it is a habit.

Niel had to go to work today but I am hoping they let him off early before the winds get to high. He has to drive 35 - 40 minutes to get home...so I am hoping he is able to leave work early. He usually works until 6 - 6:30 and that is when it is suppose to get really nasty.

Keep us in your prayers.

First Week Back to work

Okay...I will admit, I am one tired person. Going back to work has been great but it has really worn me out. It has been hard getting back into the swing of things. Today my plan is to work on some government power points for my classes. Trying to get things accomplished before the first day of school. I will say I am ready, the room looks nice, lessons are done for the first two weeks, but I do like to stay ahead....it is always nice to be one or two steps ahead of a teenager...I deal with 100 aday, so I like to be way ahead!!!! Here are some pictures of my classroom:





So, the room is done...just missing the students but come Monday they will all be there. Today we played parents and went to MICS to get David's schedule and meet his parents. David is taking the following classes:
Math Analysis
English III
Life Quest
American Government Honors
Vocal Ensemble Honors
Physical Science
Weight Training

Mark and Chen are working on their college classes...time is crunching down. Niel is outside working on the yard. I am working on my government....okay, I am blogging but I am getting ready to work on my government. Well, Niel is back in so I guess I better get to my "real" work.

Back to work

Well ...today I went back to work. I am really excited about being back to work. I really enjoy teaching and seeing my teacher friends. It is nice to get back into a routine. But I will admit it is really tiring. I do not get students until next week, this week is meetings, getting the classroom back to normal, and working on lesson plans. I will have to admit, I did start today tired because Niel and I had last week off doing things around the house and visiting relatives. You know how you have to take a vacation to rest up from the vacation.

Last week we worked around the yard. Niel and the boys cut down some hanging branches and tried to clean up the yard some. We made a trip to South Florida to see Niel's brother Eric. We had a nice visit. We got to go to David's football camp dinner where the players wait on the parents (one of my summer highlights). On Friday we headed to Gainesville for a weekend of suprise and fun with family.

Friday afternoon we arrived in Gainesville and then went to Heather's house for dinner and band practice. The grandchildren were putting a band together to play at Missy's surprise birthday party. We got to meet Amanda (my niece whom I have never met) and the boys got to meet her mother Laura as well. Laura is such a wonderful person and has done a wonderful job with Amanda. It was so good seeing Laura again, the last time I saw her was 19 years ago. Here are some pictures of Friday night.







Saturday was spent getting ready for the suprise party and partipating in the surprise party. It was nice. All of Arlene's children, grandchildren, and great children were able to make it to the party. Amanda and Laura coming the farthest from Kansas City. The guest that came the farthest was Chen (okay...someone try to beat China). Dave did a great job organizing it and getting everyone involved. We had the grandkid's band, I gave a story on how the Name "Missy" came about. I have the power point if anyone wants more detailed. The grandchildren talked about their trips with Missy and Arlene's kids talked about how much they love their mom. Dave gave a Missy fashion show from her many ski suits and bathing suits. Personally, a women can not have too many ski suits or bathing suits. The food was great. When the day was over, we headed over to Arlene's and Dave's to visit some more. Again, great family time. Here are some of pictures of the surprise party:

Laura & Amanda


Missy being surprised:


We had a great weekend. Sunday morning we got up and stopped by Arlene's & Dave's before heading back to Gainesville. Amanda, Brian, & Chelsea went to the nearby creek to look for shark's teeth (which they did find some). The rest of just used this extra time to visit.

But now we are back to reality. Brian is over in Tampa living....they left from Gainesville to drive to Tampa (yes, I did cry). Hopefully he will find a job soon over there. Niel & I are back to work. David has started afternoon football practices and I am trying to get him into a routine for school next week. Mark and Chen have one more week and then they head off to college (they leave on the 21st).