Matt's shop building after the concrete was poured. (All the walls are on now---but my camera is broke---so no new pictures yet) 
A picture of their entryway. Didn't this picture turn out neat? Grant walked into the shot at the last minute and it made a really neat picture!
This is a picture of a baby bird we found laying in the barn. It must have fallen out of its nest. It was alive and quite squeaky. Cute, huh!?!
I can't deny it...I believe I am turning into a real redneck! This was how my day went today: I crawled out of bed at 7:45 am, peed, brushed my teeth, threw on a sports bra, shorts and tennis shoes and was outside by 7:51 ready to help my hubby build a fence. (that is RECORD timing for a girl like me!) Luckily for us, the kids slept until about 9, so we got lots done before Grant joined us outside. Poor Brooklyn woke up with a fever and headache so she stayed inside and rested. Once the fence was done, I used a hoe to "till" up all the dirt inside our 16' x 16' yard, removed all the grass and weeds and ended up with a nice, smooth sandy surface to put our pool on. I then cleaned out the very slimy green pool WITH MY BARE HANDS and drained all the water out. Next we moved the pool into the new yard, smoothed it out and began re-filling it. I ran inside to get some water and realized it was 12:56 pm and we hadn't eaten a single thing all day!! We decided to run to Lowes and get a few things we needed and grab something to eat. I threw on my new OU hat and off we went. (no make-up, no freshly-shaven legs, no LIPSTICK!!) We ended up just grabbing a Cheesy Rice and Bean burrito from Taco Bell(YUM!!) and going back home to finish the pool-project. Then we cleaned all the toys up out of the "old" yard and Matt changed the oil in the push lawn-mower so I could mow. I then push-mowed the front, back and side yards of our house while Matt mowed the rest of the acre on our riding mower. When I finished with that, I was exhausted and HOT and my face was tomato-red so I ran and jumped in the freshly filled pool (fully dressed) and cooled off rather quickly. When I went inside, I saw that it was 5:40 and my dad reminded me that my brother and his family were coming over at 6 for dinner!!!! Off to the shower I ran, thereby setting another record for myself of being completely showered, dressed and presentable in 17 minutes!!! (including silky smooth legs and lipstick!! ha ha) After a wonderful dinner of grilled burgers, tabouli (sp?), baked beans and french fries, we watched Cheaper By the Dozen 2, which was So cute. It was such a fun day. My hubby and I got to spend some MUCH-NEEDED time together. I guess there probably isn't much I love more than he and I working side-by-side doing some kind of project. It's intimacy in wonderful and different way.
Well, I hope you all had a wonderful Memorial Day as well. I am posting some pictures from this weekend (while mom, me and the kids were out of town). My camera is still broke, but I was able to use my sister-in-laws camera to upload these while we were there visiting. Love you all! J
hi ya'll! I have absolutely nothing interesting to talk about or say..but it's been a couple of days since I've posted so I thought I'd ramble a little bit-just to, ya know...keep my sub-title honest! ha ha
Tomorrow me, my mom, the kids and Kendra and her mom are all going out of town to my neice's high school graduation. We are getting a hotel with a great out-door pool and I am really looking forward to it. Besides laying out by the pool, which will be fun, I can't WAIT to see all of our family. They are a BLAST to hang out with and there is NEVER a dull moment! I am going to miss my hubby though, who has been unusually sweet to me for the past day or two. He would have had to take off work to come, so he decided to just chill at home. Actually, he won't be doing much chillin'. We have a long to-do list for around here. First and foremost, we are moving the swimming pool out of our back yard and building a fenced in area JUST for the pool. In addition to that, he is going to put up a pretty lamp-post beside our driveway and finish putting the metal on his shop building. Whew! What a man!!
Well, guys, that's about all I can think of to say. I hope your weekend is wonderful. Love ya! Jen
BEFORE YOU READ THIS, YOU SHOULD KNOW EVERYTHING TURNED OUT OKAY!
I had one of the most terrifying experiences today. I had left Grant outside in the back yard with another adult while I was in my bedroom putting away laundry. I walked out into the house to find that everyone was walking out the front door hollering, "Grant!?" "Where are you Grant!?!" I immediately ran out there and found out that they didn't know where he was. The person who was watching him said they were on the phone and he'd been right there but when they turned around, he was gone. Immediately I knew that if they were in the back yard and the gate was still latched and locked, then there was no way for him to have gotten out and that the only place he could be in that yard where he couldn't be seen was in the pool. Instantly a picture flashed into my mind of my precious baby boy floating upside down in the pool. Words can't begin to tell you the emotions that ran through my body and as fast as my legs could run, I frantically sprinted for the back yard, tripping over bikes and toys. I was terrified to actually look into the pool, yet, I think I made it there in lightening quick speed. I looked....He wasn't in there! Relief flooded my body and my heart began beating again. It turned out that my mom had gotten him and they were perfectly fine. Me on the other hand....well, I was FAR from fine. I went and locked myself in my bathroom and sobbed while my entire body trembled and I felt suddenly very nauseated. That mental image was the most awful, horrific thing and I wish I could permanently erase it from my mind, but I just keep seeing it. I am almost afraid to go to sleep tonight and take the chance of having a nightmare about it. I wanted to run out there right then and there with a big knife and cut that pool up into shreds. I didn't of course, and now, I am a little more rational...although I will be INSISTING on putting up a saftey-fence around the pool.
(for the record, if the person or persons family who was watching Grant ever reads this, please KNOW that I don't have anything against you...it could have just as easily been me) I just praise and THANK the LORD that nothing bad did happen and I hope that this will always remind me to be vigilant when it comes to watching my babies!
In other news....at the moment, we have 11 people "living with us." It's all very temporary and actually 3 of them are just here visiting but it's a "Full House" to say the least! Me, being the people person that I am, sees all of this as just one big long slumber party. Matt on the otherhand, is a little more private and not quite the "party-animal" that I am, so this is a little hard for him. I can't blame him...a guy should be able to walk around his own home in his underwear if he wants. Anyway, it's kinda straining on our relationship and I know it will be good when things settle down and go back to "normal."
My mom and dad's house is coming right along. They have bricked, painted, and stained it all. Only 17 days until they are supposed to be moving in. One significant thing that has happenend though...the electric contractors who put in their service cut an oil line while they were digging. It has turned into a big "oil spill" and our channel 6 news came out and did a story on it today! It's getting to be a pretty big deal. This morning, one of the workers was walking around the big "hole" and he was about 2 feet away from it when he just sank into the ground. Apparently the oil has seeped out all around and it's making the ground very soft. Hopefully they will get control of it before it reaches the ground beneath their house...or else we'll be in for some big trouble!
Hey...by the way...I know this is very long but it's been so long since I've updated I am just full of stuff to talk about! ha ha My camera is loaded with new pictures but somehow the cord that connects my camera to my computer got broken, so I am not able to upload them.
Brooklyn is out of school now and today was our first day to just "stay at home." It was WONDERFUL! I actually got up early and got my work done before everyone was really up and about...which was great because then I had the whole day to spend with the kids. I hope to do that everyday!
Well, I could probably go on and on, but I should really try to get to bed. It is exactly midnight right now and I should be getting up in about 7 hours. Love you all! Jen
okay...here's the deal...currently we have 3 other families living us...so that is why it's been SO long since I've written anything. I'm so busy, I feel like I shouldn't even be taking the time to write this tiny little post...so I promise I will write again soon! don't give up on me!
So, it's Mother's Day and as usual, nothing extraordinary is going on around here. When I say extraordinary, I don't mean I expected any great, big exciting plan, I just mean extra-ordinary...meaning just out of the ordinary. But, like any typical Sunday at our house, we got up and went to church, came home and ate lunch and now my mom, Grant and Matt are all napping, Brooklyn is playing with her Barbies and I am doing normal mom-stuff like paying bills, balancing the checkbook and cleaning up the house. Am I a horrible person to be bummed that I don't get any special treatment on the ONE day a year that celebrates the day I traded in my simple and selfish life for a complicated self-less one? Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that I am the World's Greatest Mom or that I'm never "selfish" anymore, but still, this makes me wish there was no such thing as Mother's Day. That way there would be less disappointment. I don't know....even as I write this I am thinking what a hypocrit I am. If nothing else, even if I don't get any special treatment, I could AT LEAST be putting my energy and time into giving my OWN mom some special treatment. Oh...what is the matter with me? I bet you all are tired of hearing me complain every time a holiday comes around about what I "didn't get." For the record, I love my husband more than words can say and even though he flunks when it comes to gift-giving and holidays, he lets me know all throughout the year that I am special and that he appreciates and loves me...so Hey, I guess that is better than a husband who saves it all up and only does it on special occasions, right? Or, even worse, I could be married to one of those husbands who thinks that HE HIMSELF is the gift to his wife, thus there being NO need to even acknowledge special occasions! (Sorry dad...but mom deserves SO MUCH MORE!) Ugh...which is even the more reason I should be making this day special for her!!! Okay, this post is depressing me. I started it out feeling sorry for myself and now I am thinking I am pretty rotten. One thing I know for sure...I would LOVE to quit having expectations when it comes to holidays and just be pleasently surprised if I do get something. For instance, for probably a month now I have been mentioning that Mother's Day is "just around the corner." I also bought my own mother a gift as well as Matt's mom at least 2-3 weeks ago. I have thrown hints out for the last couple of days and yet still, this morning, while we were at church (together) Matt quickly bought me a candle in our church bookstore as my gift. My mom thought this was so sweet and thoughtful of him, while I am standing there trying to control my frustration at the fact that he ALWAYS waits until the LAST minute. I can't seem to find a way to convey to him that the gift isn't the "big deal" it is the THOUGHT that is put into it (or the lack of thought, I guess I should say). Just for once, it would be nice to think that he has been planning and preparing for a special occasion. Am I wrong to be disappointed when my birthday or our anniversary comes and he has to "run to the store real quick" on the ACTUAL day to grab something for me??? Honestly, I'd rather just not have anything than to have something that was completely thoughtless and done out of "duty." I guess that is where he and I are different. I get SO much joy out of picking out just the right present for someone and seeing the look on their face when they see that I thought about their likes and wants and found something special just for them. Maybe, guys don't get satisfaction from stuff like that? Maybe they only get satisfaction from ONE THING!!?? (oops, did I just say that!?!?) Aughhh! I shouldn't be thinking "out loud". There is a good chance that he will read this someday and will probably get mad at me. I am way more "open" with my feelings and thoughts than he is. (but aren't all women?) Anyway, I know this is getting long and you are probably tired of hearing me whine, so I will end this and try to quit wallowing in self-pity. I will probably go throw a load of clothes in the washer and maybe vacuum and mop. Not the most glorious way to spend Mother's Day, but then, at least I have a wonderful, beautiful family who loves me EVERY day and not just on May 14th. I hope you all had a great day, got lots of special attention and gifts and didn't have to do any housework or cooking! Happy Mother's Day and really, I am sorry for such a negative post. I'll try to refrain next time...Love you!
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