I am....

I am a smile, a kiss, a tear, a hug, a laugh.
I am a friend when life gets you down.
I am a to do list.
I am 100 pairs of shoes in the closet.
I am a text message.
I am a finished book at 2 a.m.
I am a happy song on a rainy day.
I am a country song.
I am a dozen daisies.
I am a funny story that does not make sense.
I am a shoulder to cry on.
I am a highlighter in a Bible.
I am a lover, not a fighter. But I WILL fight for what I love.
I am a strong heart.
I am a second chance.
I am a wink when you catch my eye.
I am a smile when I should be crying.
I am an honest word you did not want to hear.
I am a leader.
I am a set of stairs to trip up...and down.
I am a strong opinion when no one stands for anything.
I am a sinner who put Christ to death.

Happy Birthday, Granny

On September 12th we celebrated my Granny's 97th birthday! WOW! What a celebration! Granny enjoys the simple things in life: chicken strips, potato salad, baked beans. We added in some garden tomatoes and cucumbers and she loved her birthday meal. It's not a birthday without cake and ice cream!

She received a big yellow mum, a nice bouquet of flowers, a candle to get her ready for the fall season, new dishes, and a few other gifts. Monet took her a plate of her homemade cookies...Monet is the baker in our family of four. She made banana drop cookies, chocolate no bake cookies and our newest peanut butter cookie.

Happy Birthday, Grandma Perry

Labor Day weekend is also a time to celebrate Grandma Perry's birthday! The family all ate dinner at Salty Dog (Grandma's favorite place that can accomodate our LARGE family) in Liberal followed by desserts at her residence, Liberal Springs. Grandma had family from all over in attendance~some from Colorado and Arkansas were there along with all the Kansas residents.

Grandma received a variety of presents. A beautiful bouquet of roses, the bouquet of all red flowers, candles, a "Mom" music box, family pictures in frames, and various other gifts...too many to mention. Grandma is 93 years old, she enjoys her daily one mile walk around the inside of Liberal Springs, playing cards, bingo, and visiting with her friends.

I have a great picture of Monet, Mylen and Grandma but apparently having a little bit of trouble getting the picture to download. Guess it will be later than this post.

Labor Day Weekend 2010

Labor Day weekend was supposed to be another trip to Colorado Springs...unfortunately there were too many other irons in the fire that encouraged us to stay home. The house repairs continue....roofers were here on Friday and Saturday. The painter was here on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday afternoon....not much painting got done due to the air gun giving him "fits"...he did help Mark get the covered patio "closed" in for more durability and strength. The roofers will be back to roof it to match the house, it was just too weak for them to be putting the shingles on over the weekend.

Monet was busy with volleyball practice...no coach until the last minute which means marathon practices! UGH!! And in our case...a sick girl! Too much running, in and out of the hot gym and into the cool windy day isn't good for the sinuses.

A day of rest and then Monet decided to run in Kismet Little World's Fair 1K, 5K, 10K run. She has recently loved running. She participated in a 5K in May and several people from our community attended this run on Monday morning. She didn't bring home a medal but enjoyed it nonetheless. Her cough and runny nose isn't much better but she said it was worth it to participate in the race. Good job Monet! This is the group of Haskell County residents who ran the race this weekend. WAY TO GO!! Lots of medals for our small community.

Afternoon Showers = Rainbows, Sweet Lesson

In Colorado Springs the afternoon showers are so refreshing! We were at home this afternoon...everyone was going about their ways. The little ones were out front riding bikes, seeing who could use the hula hoop the longest, and playing basketball. The afternoon shower started and we just stayed outside to take it all in. We saw the most inspiring rainbow. It covered the entire sky! Unfortunately, this only shows a small quarter of the beautiful rainbow. God is so great! Melodie shared with Mylen why God sends us rainbows...so sweet...

Genesis 9:8-17 (New International Version)

⁸ Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him: ⁹ "I now establish my covenant with you and with your descendants after you ¹⁰ and with every living creature that was with you—the birds, the livestock and all the wild animals, all those that came out of the ark with you—every living creature on earth. ¹¹ I establish my covenant with you: Never again will all life be cut off by the waters of a flood; never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth."

¹² And God said, "This is the sign of the covenant I am making between me and you and every living creature with you, a covenant for all generations to come: ¹³ I have set my rainbow in the clouds, and it will be the sign of the covenant between me and the earth. ¹⁴ Whenever I bring clouds over the earth and the rainbow appears in the clouds, ¹⁵ I will remember my covenant between me and you and all living creatures of every kind. Never again will the waters become a flood to destroy all life. ¹⁶ Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth."

¹⁷ So God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant I have established between me and all life on the earth."

America the Beautiful Fountain/Park

Sometimes you just need a break from the everyday life of cleaning, unpacking boxes, getting out of the heat, and overall rewarding the kids for "using their words" and getting along. I don't remember all the events of this day but I do remember that the older girls were a little cranky, the younger ones were ready to "do something" so after driving around this was a great place to go! The fountain was beautiful...the water felt great...time out of the car was just what the little guys needed. Happy hour at Sonic for the four of us and a Bobo tea for the tween girls! Another fun, fun day in Colorado Springs.

"Sweetheart" Beach

In August we were fortunate enough to spend one week in Colorado Springs. This was the best week I'd had in a long time! It was a great end to our county fair, the heat of the summer, work, and house repairs! I helped Melodie with her new house and we did a lot of relaxing and fun stuff!

We loved the "sweetheart" beach....you'll say anything to encourage good behavior, "using our words", and overall sweetness!! What a great day! We packed snacks, drinks, sand toys, and loaded up all the kids for a great afternoon of relaxation.

Monet and Maya, Mylen and Charli enjoyed the afternoon. Mylen and Charli are so "cool" in their sunglasses. The scenery was beautiful, the company was the best, the snacks were delicious, and in Mylen's words, "This was my best day EVER!"
We were all done, getting ready to load up all our belongings in the car. One last picture of the "sweetheart" beach!