December Happenings....

1) 12 days Christmas with Mazlin & Milayah - a) Heart Necklaces, b) Christmas Socks, c) Ornament Making night, d) Movie Night - Charlie Brown Christmas Tree -E) Ornament for their tree f) Snow globes for parents g) holiday lip gloss h) scarf & gloves I) delivering Monkey Bread to neighbors & singing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas", J) Gift Certificates to Baskin Robbins
K) I Love you Smore!!!

2) Elijah's Christmas Concert

3) Adrian's Band Concert

4) Weco Food Drive

5) Adrian turned 13

6) On KHQ News for Food Bank

7) Wilbur Christmas Party - Antler Games, Jay Face Plant, Annette Knee Slapper, Terri's -Victoria Secret Shot, Caroling in back seat with Annette - You know it's a good party when your shoes stay in the front seat for two weeks :)

8)

Alfredo Lasagna Roll-Ups.....

Alfredo Sauce:
1 pint heavy cream • 2 Tablespoon cream cheese
1 teaspoon garlic powder • 1 stick of butter& Garlic Pepper
1/2 - 3/4 cup Parmesan cheese

In saucepan, combine butter, cream & cream cheese. Simmer until it's all melted & mixed well.Add Parmesan & garlic powder. Simmer for 15-20 minutes on low.
Now that you have that ready, let's make some lasagna roll-ups!

To make 6 roll-ups, I used:
8x8" glass pan
6 lasagna noodles
alfredo sauce
2-3 chicken tenderloins
Italian seasoning
Mozzarella & Parmesan or whatever cheese you like

Prep pan by spraying with a little bit of non-stick spray and pour some alfredo sauce in to just cover the bottom of the pan. Start cooking the chicken with a little bit of Italian seasoning, and it helps to start boiling a pan of water for noodles at the same time.
When chicken is done, cut into small (slightly smaller than bite-size) pieces and split into 6 piles. When the water is at a rolling boil, drop in noodles and cook for about 8-10 minutes (or until al dente). Drain and rinse with cold water to prevent them from sticking to each other. (*Very Important!*) Lay out the noodles on some wax paper & blot dry with a paper towel.
Spread a little bit of alfredo sauce over each noodle. (Don't put too much or it will make a bigger mess for you to clean up later.) Sprinkle a little bit of Italian seasoning. Take one of your little groups of chicken and try to spread them out evenly over the noodle. Add a little bit of cheese. To roll up, start at one end and roll the noodle over the toppings. They can be hard to handle if they weren't dried. You won't be able to roll them tight and will have to lift the noodle a little over the chicken, otherwise you will end up pushing all the toppings out the other side.
Place the roll-up in the pan, seam-side down so they don't come undone. Once they are all in the pan, pour some more alfredo sauce overtop & try to get in between the roll-ups so they won't stick together. Sprinkle a little Italian seasoning if you want, then add cheese on top. Then bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes, or until the cheese is completely melted on top.

These are absolutely wonderful!!!
I love how they are single-sized, so you don't end up with a bunch of leftovers and they are great to pack in a lunch or freeze for later.

R.I.P - Marley.....

Marley was Vanessa's dog. Not sure what type of dog he was but I can say he was a total pain in the butt kind of dog... I actually called him Hudini... That dog could get out of everywhere... He ate everything.... you never knew what you were going to find in the living room.. It ranged from thong underware(no not mine) lol, to shoes, to 1/2 eaten toy plastic soldiers, eaten plastic balls.

Marley, although you were a pain.. I will miss you.. I miss your 4:00 whining when Vanessa would leave for work.. Your cuddling up next to you while watching tv & I definately have to sweep the floor more.. as for the vaccum that you were is now gone..

I felt so bad for Vanessa.. She hates being alone.. This was one of her Christmas Presents but I felt that she may need it a little early... A Seahawks Pillow Pet... (She's a total loyal Seahawk fan) .

R.I.P. Mar......

I LOVE BEING A GRANDMA!!!

Warden Food Bank.....

Wilbur Ellis has held a food drive for the past 3 yrs. 2 yrs ago we started an annual Wilbur Ellis-Warden High School Homecoming Food Drive. We go to the homecoming game and collect food from the spectators as they come in. This year we had collected 600#'s from that evening. the food bank was so thank-ful as the shelves were getting bare and they were definately in need of stock. Things have been so crazy at work that we were having a hard time getting it delivered. Finally one afternoon two of our employees, the boys & myself went and delivered it.

Well between last Tuesday & Sunday somebody broke in and stole all the food... I couldn't believe it. We wrap our food drive up by the 15th of this month, so I know we will be able to help restock BUT they have nothing at this point. I just recently joined "PAWS"- parent group at the Warden Elementary & we are holding a food drive from the grades k-5 ... Wilbur Ellis is going to provide a pizza/rootbeer float party to the class that brings in the most items. Hopefully we can get those shelves stock sooner than later. At one point they told us that they were feeding 85 families on a weekly basis... WoW!! It was a very humbling feeling walking in there & knowing people depended on them for food.. I'm so proud to work for a company that is willing to go the extra mile for their community & the people that work for them....

I'M NOT QUITTING........................

Elijah....

So the plot thickins.... It's been almost a month and 1/2 and Elijah has yet to have homework.. hmmm RED FLAG... I finally take a moment to email his teacher & suggest we meet and she agrees. As we all know Elijah has ADHD also.. He doesn't seem to have anger issues or resentful issues just extremely hyper issues *lol*


So I proceed to meet with her & guess what.. I found out a) Elijah can't sit still for more than 3-5 mins. B) Elijah hasn't turned in any homework C) Elijah has not completed one assignment and they are all shoved into his desk & literally I have to pull them out layer by layer 2 months worth of school work D) Elijah has a free bathroom pass ANYTIME he needs it & yes it gets up and out then most of the kids (duh-wouldn't take me long to figure that out)...

I was frustrated!!!! I asked her when she thought she was going to call me and let me know what was going on .. she said " Oh I was about ready to" Really!!!

So obviously we need to call dr.-medicine change - 2) need to schedule a meeting for a 504 plan cuz this kid definately needs help and 3) I need to communicate more with his teacher because obviously it's not high on her priority list...

So back to the doctor we go. ... the following week we will have new meds & a 504 plan implemented life should be good...

Amen.....

An Emotional Week...

Our appointment was on Wednesday. Adrian had been out at Kevin's for several days, and I was still crying at a drop of a hat.. I was at the breaking point.. I honestly thought I would never say this but I was done... I could not keep pouring all this love into Adrian only to have him be disrespectful, be down right mean, and make every morning and every night living hell. I was married for 4 yrs and in a situation where I felt I was walking on egg shells and once again that's where I was.

As I've said in the past I'm not perfect and I've known that when my emotions get me going I've said some things you probably don't want to say especially to an adopted child but I'm ashamed to say I have... There have been some pretty stressed times in the past 6 weeks that I wanted to quit & I've told him that. Probably shouldn't have but I did... You pour all your love and emotion back into a child that absolutely resents you and manages to take every good situation and turn it into a nightmare... it starts to weigh on you... Adrian has meltdowns... they go from whining, to crying, to screaming, to possibly throwing things, to freaking out acting like animals then when he finally breaks (this goes on from anywhere from 45 mins to 2 hrs)... he lyes down in the fetal position and crys uncontrollable. I had told him in one of the past meltdowns I wanted to quit, he had drained me of everything. I was going to talk to the counselor we spoke with before when he was little and see what she could do .. whether it was to help us or to find him a better fit for a mom because I just couldn't do it anymore... He begged me not to but I kept threatening. When the meltdowns are finished ... there normally isn't any apology, he usually just passes out into sleep cuz he has completely wore himself out.

Well we had our first appointment with the counselor. I didn't tell Adrian that we were going. I didn't know how he would respond. He was still staying with Kevin and I showed up at the school and took him out. He asked me where we were going and I told him. He was not happy.. He sternly looked at me and said No.... I'm sure he was remembering the threat of me quitting. We headed over & I explained to him that this was not about him it was about our family and making US work.. He still wasn't impressed. We got to Deb's and went in and sat down. He slumped into the chair pretty much ignoring anyone around us. Deb came out and spoke to us asking how we were doing & commented on how he had grown. He wouldn't acknowledge her. She calls me back into the room and we sit down. She informed me she got my email.. and she was going to call me and have me NOT bring him but decided the little "SHIT" needed to sit out there for an hour and wander what we were talking about.. We visited for well over an hour. I cried, I laughed, I was reassured it wasn't anything I did or had done to make this happen. Unfortunately Adrian not only has ADHD but he has the Attachment Disorder (thanks to mom walking out) and instead of being happy that I took him to live with us, he resents me.. The next two things broke my heart... I was told Adrian will probably never love me like my other kids do , he will never accept me completely.. Oh that hurt... .but underneath the tears and the pain I understood. This poor kid had a mom and a dad and neither of them thought enough of him to fight for him.. but the other side of me is angry and bitter .. here I've tried to be the best mom that I can and he would rather hate me and hang on to her BUT as it was explained, it is very hard to break that bond between mother and a child not matter what they do.. The other part that killed me was that she said he probably will end up going to juvy / jail. And just prepare myself.. She gave me the statistics of how many of these kids turn for the good and it wasn't a very high number.. She also told me she would work with Adrian BUT not to put the expectations to high BUT she could work with me and my parenting skills and how to handle him. Wow.. I was so overwhelmed...

#1) Don't engage..... He thrives off of pushing buttons and getting a reaction - Don't react!!! Do you know how hard it is to not react when you have a 12 yr old standing in your face.. yelling at you ... walk away ... really??? Isn't he winning then ....the answer was NO!! He wins when you react or engage.. He is only happy when there is chaos.. not when things are going well..

#2) I'm a helicopter parent - Quit hovering.. He wants his independence.. give it to him.. Sometimes we have to let them fail instead of always making them succeed.. This sucks... Accountability... Really ... he flunked 2 classes last year where was the accountability ??? The Washington State School System - " NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND".... Didn't get held back.. doesn't have to make up the classes ... Where's the accountability... Left up to the parent again... aghhh...

#3) XBOX - It's a reward not a neccessity...No XBOX Monday - Friday.. If he does well on his behavior and in school.. He can have it for 3 hrs Friday, Sat & Sunday... Be direct with the time alotment.. it won't allow him any wiggle room "BUT YOU SAID a few hours!!

#4) Practice these phrases and say them with no emotion and walk away..:

I'm sorry you feel this way - Use this when he is yelling at you... throwing his fit & etc

I love you to much to argue with you - Instead of battling back and forth

Short Sweet, no emotion, directness & don't engage.....

OH MY GOSH!!! I can't do this... but then I decided I could I wasn't ready to quit & she gave me my second wind...

#5) I purchased Love & Logic for teens.. we talked about that .. said it's a good read but don't be suprised if it didn't work.. for example... He refuses to take garbage out.. go put it in his room on his bed & shut the door so it stinks.. most children would probably take it out and he problem would be solved.. Adrian probably would knock it all over & leave it just to prove he could out last me.

#6) If he ever goes into a rage of fit and throws things around the house, tries to hurt himself or others I'm to call the police.. and when he is screaming at me when they take him away.. I'm to look at him and say "Your behavior is unacceptable" and walk away...

#7) Don't let him see you cry... You hold everything in tell you can get by yourself.. and then let it out but if I lose it or cry , he will definately think he won...


Before I left she told me to hang in there.. She'd help me get thru this & if I needed anything before the next appointment to call. We walked out and Adrian got up thinking he was going back and I told him that we were leaving.. So we get in the car and he SMUGGLY says.. So how was it mom..... I just looked at him without EMOTION and said it was great.... I know he was stewing back there...


I was emotionally drained after this visit.... My head was spinning, even though I came out knowing it wasn't my fault, and I was on the right track I was still an emotional mess.

The Email...............

First I would like to thank you for fitting us in Wednesday of next week. You have no idea how much I appreciate it. I'm not wanting to focus on just Adrian. I'm wanting to focus on both me and Adrian and making our family work. It's been 8yrs since he came to live with me & I don't consider myself a quitter but something has to change. It's not healthy for him, me or Elijah to continue in this environment that has been created.

I truely believe Adrian has anger issues with his mom for walking out and not wanting to fight for him, therefore I believe he has channeled that anger into mine and his relationship. I'm not the perfect parent by no means but have tried to give him a positive, loving environment to be raised in and however has pushed me away and pushed me past my limits. He has ADHD which adds to the issues. He is currently taking 20mg of Adderall XR-takes at 7:00 am, 5mg of Adderall-takes at 2:00 p.m. and .1mg of Chlonidine-takes before bedtime. Dr. Bond is our pediatrician and works very closely with me on his meds.

On Thursday morning, it started off as a normal morning. The 2nd time I told him to eat his breakfast is when all Hell broke loose. He ran down our hall and circled into the living room and purposely ran into the wall head first, screaming in rage. How he didn't go thru the wall I'm not sure, but he immediately began screaming it was all my fault and I was the reason he did things like this. The fight was on then.. The words were exchanged and he finally went and sat down to eat. I probably should have kept my mouth shut but I was ticked and he wouldn't back down. I finally had had enough and told him if he didn't like where he was and didn't want to follow my rules he could use the door and this time I wasn't going to follow him. He got up and left no shoes or socks. I kept getting ready for work but called my son Kevin, who works for the city, and told him if he was in the area just to watch for him. I took some stuff to my car just to see if I could see him & he had climbed in the backseat. I told him he needed to get out that that was MY car. He came back into the house and started taking off his clothes. When I asked what he was doing, he told me he was giving me his clothes because those were mine too. I told him to put his clothes back on. I left the room and we were still bickering and when I turned the corner he bolted out the front door. I chased him down the street and caught him about 1/2 block. I grabbed his arm and marched him back to the house & sat him down next to our couch and told him not to move. I then called my son and asked if he could help due to the fact from past experiences I knew he wasn't thru. As I walked towards the bathroom he jumped up in rage, pushed my couch around the living room, screaming and then pushed it into the fireplace. He than proceeded down our little hall in our kitchen and either grabbed or kicked 5# of potatoes. Then bolted out the backdoor, jumping off our steps, grabbed the swing on our patio and tipped it over, the whole time screaming in rage. I grabbed his arm marched him inside and sat him down as my son was walking in the door. He proceeded to yell at him, had him bag up his clothes, made him clean his room and each of the messes and took him to stay with him. We kept him out of school that day as we were afraid he would bolt. This is probably the worst experience I have had with him but I will say they have all been building towards this.

I contacted the school counselor and explained the situation and asked for help. She did assure me that asside the one incident in school that happened about a month ago, they had never seen this side of him and the was a good thing and she felt he was channeling all his anger towards me. She also felt that I needed to allow Adrian to stay at my son's house for a week or so allowing him to be away from me. It's only been 2 days and it's killing me. He has confided in my daughter in law to be that he feels I don't love him and he stays and plays alone because he always gets in trouble if he plays with others. I have told Adrian on more than one occassion that no matter what he does I will always LOVE him but that doesn't mean I like his actions or I like the way he is being, but not to ever doubt my love.

As I said I need help in learning how to parent him, whether it be the ADHD, his anger, or his teen thing he is starting to go thru. I don't want our family split but I have no idea where to turn to. Once again, I thank you for your help and look forward to our visit on Wednesday. My contact information is attached if you need to get ahold of me before our appointment.
Sincerely,
Darla Mast

Consumed by ADHD & Attachment Disorder....

I've been pretty quiet lately due to the fact my life as been on a down ward spin.. I think it's better to stay quiet than to make everyone thing that I can't find the good in anything but this morning I got to thinking about how much time I spend searching for answers to help me and the boys out with ADHD & thought if I could give one bit of information that has worked or not worked for us that could help out one other person it would be worth it. So here goes..

The past few months have been HELL...Between Adrian growing like a weed, hormones kicking in ( and they say only women pms - ha) med's not working, and his anger building it has been pure hell. The final straw was about 3 weeks ago. Adrian was pulling his typical morning crap & I sternly asked him to go sit down and eat his breakfast. He ran down the hall, around the corner as fast as he could, screaming with all his might and ran his head directly into the wall. He than proceeded to turn around and scream at me and told me that I was the reason he acted like this and I made him want to do things like that. Well the war was on... He finally calmed down enough to sit at the table but the fight was not over.. I finally told him if he didn't want to leave under my roof with my rules there was the door and he should use it. So he did.. I did not follow. However, I did call Kevin and asked if he was in our vicinity working just to keep an eye out for him. I continued to get ready with a pit in my stomach. I ran some items to my car giving me an excuse to see if I could see him & low and behold he was in there. I looked at him and told him he needed to get out of MY car. So he proceeded to come in to the house & began taking off his clothes. When I asked what he was doing he handed me his shirt & said I suppose these are yours too. I told him to put them back on and to quit acting like a 2yr old. As I turned to walk into the bathroom.. he took off running out the front door and down the middle of the street.. Alls I can say is THANK God I lost weight. I was able to catch him barefoot and all (however he slowed a bit when he saw a white pickup that looked like Kevins in cross by the street) BUT I still caught him. *lol* I marched him back into the house and had him squat next to the couch on the floor.. I went to call Kevin for help knowing that this battle had just begun. As I hung up the phone he jumped up took my sofa and slid it across the floor into the fireplace, screaming frantically.. i went to grab him & he bolted towards the back door picking up a 5 gl bucket of potatoes and tossing them & bolted out the back door, jumped off the stairs and grabbed my double patio swing & literally picked it up and threw it, the whole time I was bolting after him & Elijah was in the wing crying... I grabbed him by the arm marched him in the house as Kevin was walking in the door. He was not impressed at the least ... He refrained from touching him, got in his face and proceeded to tell him that if he wanted to mess with someone or hit someone he could go after him but if he ever laid a hand on me or did this again there would be hell to pay.. he pointed him towards his room , gave him a garbage bag & made him pack his clothes. He told him if he thought his life was so bad here than he'd find out what life was really like living with him. He made him clean his room, he made him clean all the messes up he made.. and he marched him out to the car & took him to his house. I didn't fall apart until he left (never let them see you cry) I was a mess.. I called Eric he came and grabbed Elijah and got him to school.
I spent the day at work calling school counselors, doctors, made an appt. with Deb Holt, whom had counseld us both when the adoption was going thru. He however spent the day and the next week cleaning floors, pulling weeds, eating whatever was put on his plate.. instead of the luxury of what he had at home.... When talking with Dr. Bond, since we were able to get into counseling with Deb Holt so soon, he didn't want to tweak the med's just yet. It's not good to make all the changes at once cuz then you really don't know what is working...
(to be continued)

Are You Ready For Some Football???

Elijah's first year of Warden Grid Kids. His Coach was Robert Arredondo. He had a great time, learned alot & can't wait till next year...

Friends.....

Friends....

Catching up with friends this afternoon was just what I needed.. Thanks Deb, Sandi, Mindy,Anita & Taffy... I had a great time.. Can't wait to start scrapping again :)

First Day of School ...........

Elijah is in the 4th grade & Adrian is in the 7th.. I can't believe how fast they are growing up..

Love you guys!!!

Not Good Mail...Grandma Mail ......

I received a phone call about 4:30 p.m. from an employee's wife. She asked that I wait for her she had something for me. When she arrived she pulled out two baby blankets her sister had made. She said that every Grandma needs extra blankets.. It was so sweet & so special.. The attached pictures doesn't do either of them justice...














Blue Fish Print



Pastel foot prints & hand prints Print


Janice, thank you so much !!! These are truely adoreable and they will get plenty of use :)

Working Backwards Once Again.......

Well, it's now been a month and a 1/2 for a post from me. I decdied to go unprivate. We will see if the Chinese Porn Stars will leave me alone now!! So much has been happening but once again, I will start with current & go backwards... Why do I do this???? I guess the good thing is I do get it posted for my journaling purpose but it would be so much easier to do it on a daily basis..

Well here goes!!!

Best Date Ever.....................

I paid for the tickets to get in ................... $15.00

I paid for dinner & dessert........ $20.00

But I had the best looking date ever...................PRICELESSS.................

Ephrata Speedway

Mini Sprint Cars

12th Man - Seahawk Car- His favorite

Weight Update..............

Well, I'm officially at my 1/2 way point... My weigh-in today, I almost let out a scream of joy!!

Down 31 1/2 pounds... Jan. 12, 2011

July 9,2011

July 4th................

I love that our country celebrates July 4th & I love what it stands for. BUT, I hate the fireworks!! Actually, I should say that I hate that people are so irresponsible, so selfish and ruin such a wonderful day!!

In the area I live it is considered "County" and Fireworks are allowed. Of course no one follows the guidelines but hey rules are made to be broken right.... NOT!!! Friday night the fireworks started before it was even dark and continued pass 1:30 a.m. Therefore, not a lot of sleep was gotten. Once again on Saturday night, they started up before dark and didn't stop till after 1:30 or so.. Well, on Sunday I was completely feeling the no sleep.. I have neighbors behind me that I really wish would move. When ever she has a get together something bad happens. You just count on it. Well once again, they started but they weren't the normal fireworks they were the really nice ones. At first they were pretty, then they got annoying. They were shooting them everywhere. I tried to lie down about 11:00 p.m. but no such luck, the kids were running between houses. I went out front and they were in my yard looking to see if the left overs that had fallen may have had any charge left. So I told them to get out.. They took off running.. Finally about 1:30 it ended... I went to bed and at 2:30 woke to several people running between the houses & 4 pop,pop,pop,pop.. It sounded like gunshots.. I shut my window and ran to the front of the house opened the door but saw nothing. I shut the door and started to head back and heard this really loud clatter.. I opened the door and looked and the neighbors bush and front of house was on fire. I had my cell, immediately called 911 and grabbed my hose. DeAndre's mom lives in the other side of the duplex and she was outside calling 911 and had her hose too... The man across the street came running over and started pounding on the back doors and windows to get the girl to wake up so we could get her out. Several Sherriff's car's arrived very quickly but I swear it took the fire dept. forever!!! Gina (D's mom) and I actually had the fire out by the time they fire dept. got there. I guess they need to practice mapping skills or need a GPS cuz as we were standing their with our hoses they drove right by the street.. AGHHH!!! The cops questioned the lady behind us but of course by that time her visitors had left (quickly I might ad) and she knew absolutely nothing about it... And of course they had my story but I didn't see anyone.. just heard them :( Well the fire dept. gets there and I guess you always have to have a "Commander" in charge. This guy seriously walked around like a puffed up pigeon.. strutting around.. He was asking each one of us what we knew. The sherriff's were all standing by their vehicles and or sitting in them.. The man asked me what had happened and serioulsly had the gall to ask me "Have you bothered to tell the police this?" No you idiot I figured I keep quiet.. .aghh!!! and then what really got me was he seriously asked me "Have they been standing over there the whole time or have they done anything?(refering to the Sherriff's).. I sooooo bad wanted to say " No you idiot as you dorks were driving past the street they pretty much had everything under control.. ".... He was an arrogant A### if you ask me..

Well the good thing was everyone got out safe, there was minimal damage but as for the sleep factor.. I finally laid down at 6:30 and slept till 8:00 a.m. Here is a thouht for us all..... As I was standing there spraying the house & bush and I saw the neighbor run by in his boxer shorts, I had to look down slowly and wander what in the world I was wearing *lol* I had on a shirt and shorts ...oh how I was relieved *lol* Well, the other thing Mr. Commando should have concentrated more on the fire because the next day it started back up... this time they found the street .... It was a very long 4th of July for me.. It did have it's good points. I had my family over for a bbq but I can honestly say by the end of the day I was totally wiped!!!

Cars 2 in 3-D

Tonight, I took the boys and the girls and went and had a movie night. We went and saw Cars2 in 3-D. They had a blast and I loved seeing them so excited...

Conconully or Bust!!!

Our annual Conconully trip was a complete success.....

1) Mckenzie's first camping trip

2) Adrian was able to fish

3) BB guns were used daily

4) Great food - Monkey bread in the dutch oven - Total success - Already on next years list

5) Bugs were few & bears were none :-)

6) New faces came this year

7) Weather was good

8) Family time was wonderful

9) Memories were made

10) The horseshoe tournament was great fun as usual -

And the winners were....... (Mike & DeAndre)

Can't wait till next year!!!

It's Officially Over..............

The biggest loser is officially over at work...... And I lost a total of 24 lbs........ Excited is an understatement!! I officially have given myself a year to see where I'm at .. I wanted to lose a total of 60 but I've decided to break it down in 20's. So in 5 month's I lost my first 20 & I will deem round one a total success!! I actually have boughten some new shirts - normally I would by shoes cuz they always fit *lol*... the sad part is I haven't dropped a pant size.. I'm getting close but the reason is... I have tucked myself into the same size forever and trust me that's alot of tucking *lol* and I had 6 pairs of that size in my closet but weren't able to wear them they were all different styles & so instead of having to buy new jeans, I just keep on trying different pairs on and each few weeks, I find another pair or two pairs that fit... YEAH!!!

So round two has started for me.. and hopefully willl be another success...

Memorial Weekend.....

This was a very busy but very special memorial weekend...

I not only had all my kids home, I had both the grandbabies home too!!!

Carson James & Mckenzie Leigh

We bbq'd on Saturday & I deemed it a huge success when I woke up Sunday morning, to sleeping bodies strewn around my house sleeping in the only open spots they could find, the 3 dogs or my kids say GRANDDOGS (whatever) sleeping on beds with the boys, and a crying baby!! What a great weekend!!!

Tacoma or Bust!!!

Adrian qualified for State Bowling. The tournament was held over in Tacoma. We left on Saturday, so he could get a little bit of practice in. Since we have been playing baseball everynight and almost everyweekend, I can say that he hasn't thrown a bowling ball since he bowled the regional tournament. He's a little nervous knowing that he hadn't practiced.

I decided I don't like Seattle/Tacoma a) people are rude - not only in their driving but in their personalities.. b) the bowling alley was dirty looking .. c) they were way understaffed for a tournament that big d) the motel was nice but the staff was rude & only had one person checking people in and that was the hotel that was recommended for the "bowling rate" ...aghh.. People were lined up outside to check in .. absolutely ridicoulous...

The best part of the trip was Adrian and I got to spend some quality time together, and Amanda and Kevin drove over from Bremerton, so I got some Carson time.

Adrian didn't bowl very good but he had fun and that is what matters. That's a long trip over & back for a kid that has alot of energy... :)

My new found friend "Garmin"!!! Won't leave home again without it!!!