Almost the new year!

I Cant believe its been 3 months since I've blogged! I finally received my NAC license and a nice raise to go along with that! We are getting cold now, BOO! Today was 8 when I went to work and I really hate.Our weather lately has sucked! Negative temps for a week or so, makes me wish it was spring already! I have been baking all this week, well ok yesterday and today lol. My big cookie/ornament party is this Saturday so I'm trying new recipes (thanks pinterest) out on the boys, they are not minding lol We had snow a little bit one day but it didn't last long, suppose to get it next week, wed, thur and fri of course I work all 3 days. The boys are fabulous, eager for Christmas break. We went up to Forks for Thanksgiving, didn't want to leave! We love my family up there, such amazing people. We baked and cooked and ate all week, ugh we were so full lol! The boys want to move up there and I wouldn't mind it either, but alas, no processing plants up there. We had a 2nd thanksgiving at my dad and joyces Friday and that was nice, came home Saturday and my mom had made a huge dinner, but we were so full we took it to go :) and it was yummy! I still cannot upload pictures on this stupid thing! Well that's all for now!! Merry Christmas!

120 Days until Christmas!

I am excited for Christmas! Of course I am not ready for cold weather, but what can ya do? So summer is over, school starts tomorrow, the boys are excited! Cleaned their rooms and closets and drawers, picked out their clothes and got back packs ready. I have to work tomorrow at 6am :( So Don is going to work late so he can get them off and take pictures for me! 10th,8th,3rd and 2nd grade! Where does time go? We had a fun summer! We spend 5 days on the west side and it was just what we needed! Makes me think about moving back, but I cant, not while the boys are in school. I took them to some of the fun places we went growing up! Like Fort Worden to do the tunnels, the beach, putt putt golfing, Slys donuts, Fat Smittys, and just played games and roasted marshmallows! It was so fun! Work is going good. I got rid of all my nightshifts so I am SO happy about that. I know everyone is sleeping at night but there is something about being away from home at night, so I'm happy about the switch! I am SO excited for thanksgiving! Now, this is not a fav holiday of mine, I don't like the food lol! But this year we are leaving on Tuesday morning and heading to Forks for the week! We are spending it with my family up there, then Friday heading to my dads for Thanksgiving number 2! I just cannot wait! Well I best get ready for work! Tonight is 2-10pm!

Summer days!

I love summer! I love the warm weather, we average about 95 degrees, sometimes higher sometimes a few degrees lower. I love not having a set time to wake up, unless of course I have to get up at 4:30 for work. I love not having a schedule, just coming and going or just laying around at home. We normally spend most of our time at the pool, and its wonderful! We go to the movies, bowling, west side and always make a trip to Silverwood, but this year the boys would rather do Scarywood in October instead of Silverwood, so I'm excited cause it will be fun! Me and Don seem to get more dates during the summer, dates are so important, not only do you need to take care of your kids, but you have to take care of your marriage. Last night was date night, now normally we go to dinner and grocery shopping haha! Last night we went to the Laundromat LOL and goodwill, another LOL and to Taco Time. So my dryers heating element went out and I had about 4 loads I needed to do to get ready for heading to the west side in 2 days. So we did all the laundry, then I wanted to find some jeans for Parker (don't tell him I went to goodwill lol) he is a size 32x32 now. Don said he loves that I'm a cheap date haha! But we had the best time ever! Just talking, laughing and enjoying each other. He is amazing, I know I say that a lot, but I really mean it. If he died today, I would know exactly how he feels about me, because he tells me and shows me everyday! I get tired of it sometimes if I'm being honest, just overwhelmed I guess because I have never been treated like this before. He is honest, understand, VERY VERY PATIENT lol, hard worker, and just really wonderful! Everyone that knows him loves him! Well brag session over haha! We are going bowling tonight and tomorrow will be full of packing :) Wednesday I have to register the boys for school since they start in 2 weeks. I'm not excited about it, well part of me is ha! I am getting so frustrated! I cannot upload any pictures and its pissing me off ugh!!

Update

Quick update, My bubba turned 9! Can you believe it? He is such a joy, so loving, wonderful and absolutely funny! He always kisses and hugs me and tells me he loves me! He makes me smile ;) Work has been an adjustment. Nights, then days, then nights again. I have been tired and a bit emotional. I hate nights, I miss my family at night so much. Next month isn't as bad, just 5 nights and the rest are days. You know, I find myself consintly saying "hurry up and put your shoes on" "hurry and brush your teeth" "hurry up and get dressed" "hurry and finish eating" hurry, hurry, hurry! Then I stopped and thought, when my men move out and start their own lives, I will long for the days when they were home, and here I am trying to rush them when I want them to stay just how they are. So I will be working on that now, no more rushing, just enjoying every single moment I have with them, whether I am in a hurry or not! My men are my life and I need to just relish in the day with them. Parker passed drivers ed! So November he can get his license! He has to have his permit 6 months! We got him a car, a Honda accord. It will be a good beginner car for him. We start school the 28th, I am not excited about school starting! I like the boys home,even during the fighting! I keep trying to download pictures of Joshua but my laptop wont let me! Ggrr!! The weather has been hot, so we have been at the pool a lot and just enjoying summer. Next week were off to the West side, were going to Lake Sylvia and Fort Warden and Fat Smittys, Saturday we have a family reunion to go to. So we are excited! Well I'm at work and its time to do rounds, only 4 more hours until I can go to bed!!!

16 years!

16 years has FLOWN by, I mean, I cant even remember half of it ha! I thought I would never get to today, this day where my first born turns 16! When I say it seems like yesterday I was in the hospital for 22 hours of labor with everyone in the waiting room finally able to get him out! My 2 sisters were pregnant and very uncomfortable, well not as uncomfortable as me haha! He was SO beautiful, the most perfect baby ever! He was an amazing baby, fabulous toddler, never did hit the terrible 2's or horrible 3's, he has been an ideal teenager, just such a blessing. I have realized the last couple weeks that he is a lot like me, in the sensitive ways, he has such a kind heart and so honest and I can't believe this amazing person came from me! We love you so much Sparkler!!

Pictures!

I'm feeling HOT, HOT, HOT!

Suppose to be 108 tomorrow and 102 on tuesday! We have had such wierd weather! We had thunder and lightening all day yesterday, I hated it! Then the rain and hail came, so bizzare, now its 98! I think summer is finally here! We are headed to Splash Zone tomorrow since our pool is closed on Mondays. It will feel amazing to swim with the boys and be nice and cool! I have been working nights then days, then nights and days so I have been out of it lol last night I went to bed at 7pm and slept unti 8:30 ok, that never happens ha! It felt so good. Then we tackled Parkers room then I hit Josh and Jareds, much better now! Were sitting inside with the A/C going and I am so thankful for it. I am also so thankful for my sweet husband. He got our riding mower working and started tackling the weeds everywhere, and there are a lot! Such a hard worker he is. He put in wood flooring for our neighbors so he can give me extra spending money in Vegas! 3 more weeks, woohoo! So excited!! Rented the pool for Parkers 16th birthday! Yes, 16th! I can hardly believe myself. Where has this 16 years gone? No, seriously where have they gone?! He brings so much joy to me, sent straight from God himself right to me! He came to my bed a couple nights ago (Don was at a golf tourny) and he wanted to talk, so he spilled his guts about everything. His gf that broke up with him, his trust issues, I mean everything! I realized a couple things, he is so much more like me than I thought and 2 he is such an amazing person. He said they only 2 people he really trusts are me and dad. That boy has had my heart since the moment I saw him! He is more precious then he even knows!!

Adoption Day!

Can you believe its been 9 years since the adoption happened?! I am SO thankful life has turned up the way it has. The boys are happier, I am happier, everyone is happier! There have been some struggles I wont lie, mainly the boys wondering why and why they were not good enough. But we tell them the same thing every single time "Chris was in a bad place in his life, he wanted you guys to have the best dad ever and he knew that Don would be the best day for you guys, it had nothing to do with you boys, he was just not ready and in a bad spot in his life, he did this for you"! so if we say it over and over maybe they will believe us? It hasnt happened for a couple years and Chris did do the best thing ever, let Don raise them because he is doing an amazing job teaching them how to be men! I love him so much!!

Whew! What a busy month!

June is so crazy busy! School got out on the 7th, and drivers ed plus Vacation Bible school started the 10th! Let me back up lol, I started at the hospital and LOVE it! Love the residents, staff (well most of em lol) and the facility! I did a couple graveyards, days and 12 hour shifts. The boys were SO happy about school ending! Free at last! Sunday the 9th I left with a couple ladies from my NAC class and we headed to Walla Walla for the night, got checked in, went and got some dinner than back to the hotel to study for our HUGE state test! Monday we woke up and got ready and off we went! The written was 70 questions, it took about an hour, then we had to wait for hours to do the skills test, that was more nerve racking then the actual test lol! Took me 15 minutes to do the skills test and I PASSED! I am offically an NAC! Next up nursing school!! I was so nervous AFTER I got home that I was sick to my stomach and went to bed ha! Guess delayed reaction? Then onto VBS! I was in the kitchen for Jr High, I love helping with the Jr High, so much better than the little kids haha! What a great busy week! I had 2 extra kids all week, so by the time they left on friday I was happy LOL!! Its hard enough to feed 4 but add 2 more ugh! I worked sat and sun and today wanted to sleep in, but alas Parker has drivers ed at 8am Mon-Fri june and july! I work this saturday so I have this week off!! Love it!! Fathers day yesterday was odd ha! I worked til 2 and Don was in Spokane visiting his grandfather who is now with hospice as he is not expected to live to much longer. It was an emotional day for him, but when he got home we had pizza and cherry pie with ice cream, makes everything better! What a fabulous man I have. I mean really! He was 22 when we met and got married, most 22 year old males are selfish and want to just worry about themselves, not my man, he loved me almost instantly and loved my boys, our boys. Patrick was 2.5 when he met him so to him Don has always been dad. He is so hardworking, loyal, honest, kind, caring, sensative and he loves his family more than life itself! We love him so much!!

HE DID IT!

Parker got his permit!! He drove home and was SO nervous! So was Don ha! I was at work and was SOO excited when they texted! He has been driving all weekend and is already getting so much better! He starts drivers ed in 2 weeks and I am so sad and so happy at the same time. Where did the time go? Seriously?? The littles went to a birthday party yesterday so of course they had to wear their cowboy clothes lol! They saw Epic, and loved it. Today we are having some friends over for a BBQ, of course the weather is unpredictable, its not raining, but it doesnt look very promising! Before the BBQ we are planting grass incase it does rain ha! This year we are really working on the outside of our house, which is a lot of work! This thursday after work I am picking the 2 littles up at school and heading to the West side! We are out of here til sunday! I am SOOOO excited! My daddy is going to make tacos on saturday lol!! This week I work 33 hours in 3 days! Bring it on I'm ready! I love my job at the Hospital! Last week I was in the ER side, so exciting and fun! LOVE IT!!! Well I'm off to plant grass!! Happy Memorial Day!!

So this pretty much sums up my life this last week. I do WHATEVER I need to do to protect my babies hearts, I will do that even when they are adults, I am their mom and that is my job, end of story! So when I get verbally attacked I fight back and its not pretty. I have not always been a fighter, come to think of it I hate doing it, I like everyone to get along I am a peace maker, do whatever it takes. Well marrying into my ex family, you speak your mind or you get lost, they are a very drama filled family and I know God got me out right in time, he is so faithful that way. All I can say is I am very and I mean VERY thankful for my husband who doesnt have a dramatic bone in his body. He talks me down when I am at my wits end and he loves me when I am so low I dont think anyone should love me. So be warned: I will do whatever it takes for my men and I have a husband that will support me in whatever decision I make!!

Great week!

I have been working in Ritzville and am glad I'm done there lol! I am happy that I now work at Odessa Hospital! I am so excited! I start on Monday. Yesterday I had my ablation and I am so happy I got it done! I was pretty crampy yesterday but after I took my pain pill I have been fine. Today is a good day, no pain in my stomach, but my neck sure does hurt, probably from the breathing tube, well it wont last so its fine with me! Patrick is done with track! Came in 1st for discus and 23rd in the whole state of Washington for 7th grade boys! He is so awesome! Parker is getting his permit tomorrow :( my baby driving! So not ready for that!! I will post a pic after he gets it!!

Lovin this weather!

Oh this weather is amazing! Suppose to be in the 80's all week! That makes this girl extra happy!! It was my first mow of the season! I love to mow the yard! Its a push mower, we have a riding one but we need a new starter on it, when we hydro seed the other half of the yard I will probably want that riding mower! This has been a great weekend, very low key and quiet! Very quiet since Patrick was at my moms house all weekend ha! Don is finally off graveyards, he worked 78 hours this week! Man, I wish he wasnt salary, I would have so much fun with that extra $3000.00! I got my biopsy and ultrasound results back, all normal which I figured, so onto Ablation! Woohoo!! The boys have been outside riding their dirt bikes all day! Tomorrow Patrick has an interview for a summer job! He is so excited! Its with the Youth Ecology Dept, Parker had an interview also but he will be in drivers ed so he cant do it! Its a 3 week program and he will make 1000.00 for his "car" fund lol

I did it!!

I graduated from NAC class! That was the longest shortest 3 weeks of my life! I have my HUGE state test on the 23rd but I got this! Today I went to the Dr and got a biopsy done and tomorrow is my ultrasound, no nothing is wrong, I'm getting an ablasion done in a couple weeks and its just to make sure all is good. I am SO excited to get this done! No more worrying about Aunt Flo! Ha! Don is on graveyard this week, I hate it so much, good thing I have 2 littles that keep me company and help me not sleep cause they are kicking me ha!

Week 2 down!

5 more days of class to go! This 2 weeks has gone so fast! I am LOVING it! We have finally been on the floor with the residents and its my calling for sure! I am exhausted! 4am is for the damn birds thats for sure! Yesterday was my Bears 7th birthday! Oh my! Already 7!!?? Time sure does fly by way to fast. He is such a sweet hearted boy who can stress me out most of the time, but he melts my heart so fast! I mean look at that face! Well I am going to bed! Can I just shout out to my husband Don who will never read this ha! He has been way more than amazing these last 2 weeks, he has been Mr. Mom and Mr. Dad lol! Dishes, laundry, kids to bed, homework, patience, love, understanding and everything else! I have homework every night and he is just awesome! Yup, I'm super lucky! The boys have been so amazing also! I just got a new pink stethescope and the boys want me to hear their hearts all the time! They are so cute!!

Sick again!

Ugh, yes I am sick again! Darn it! My days off have been so wonderful, I have ran all around and got to have lunch with my mom 2 days in a row! She actually hemmed all my scrubs since I'm short ha! Much better now! Today Parker joined us and I loved it! Patrick was at track and the little ones were on a hike with cub scouts. The weather is so beautiful I am so happy about that! My eyes hurt, my throat and I just want to go to bed! But alas, tonight is the dance recital and Josh has already told all the girls in his class that he will be there to watch them ha! Such a ladies man. Tomorrow isnt an early day for class, it starts at 8 so I dont have to leave until 6:50, but starting Saturday we have to be there at 6am, ack! So i have to leave at 4:50 BOO lol! So as of right now I have changed my "major" I am still going to be an RN, but I dont want to do labor and delivery anymore, I want to go into Hospice. Some people are suprised about that, but since starting this class my heart went to Hospice and I really want to do it. My grandma was on Hospice and she loved them and they took care of her. People dying deserve to be honored, respected,loved and die with dignity, I can give them that! So there is my new journey! Well I have to think about dinner before the recital!

WOW!

What a whirlwind week! Last thursday I started my NAC class. Holy information and TESTS! I have not had to test since high school and come on that was 18 years ago! Today we had 4 tests, chapter 4 and 5 the AIDS test which had 50 questions and the abbreviation test which there are 80 abbreviations I have to know, well I only missed 1 on that test and 10 on the aids test ha! So if your HIV positive you might want someone else to take care of you! I am learning so much and I love it! We finally get to go on the floor with the residents on saturday! Today is my "friday" so I have the next 2 days off! It has been an adjustment going to school full time 8-4 for now and starting next saturday 6-3, doing laundry, cooking dinner, doing lunches for school, cleaning. Thank the Lord I have such an amazing helper! Don has been absolutly wonderful, so supportive and helping with every thing. The boys have been incredible! Being good while I do homework (yes, I have homework, I didnt even do homework in school ha)! My laundry is getting done and put away and the house is clean, cant complain to much! Well I can complain because I woke up to snow, yes, snow! Dammit! So I am applying at Odessa Hospital tomorrow for the open NAC job so we'll see, if I dont get it I will work in Ritzville until there is an opening! Which it is a nice facility so I wouldnt be to upset. I have 3 friends coming over wednesday to scavage through our barn. I told em to have fun ha! Not my thing at all, but some people love old stuff like that! Well I am going to make dinner and RELAX!!!

Sick

Ack I hate being sick! But I would much rather Don or I be sick than the boys. Don was super sick last week and he is so sweet so he shared with me! Its not bad sick, just a head cold, throat, aches a bit, but it could be worse! The big Desert 100 was this weekend, its a big group from Seattle that uses 100 acres of land in Odessa for this big race/poker run. Don and the the 2 middle ones did the poker run and had so much fun! They had friends riding with them so it always makes it more fun. Josh fell a few times but once landed on a rock and has an "awesome" bruise lol Patrick got a big scratch, no clue how ha! They got home from riding and rode for another hour! Crazy boys! They slept ubber good last night! Today they are at the races watching more racing. I slept until 10 am today, but of course was up most of the night so it evens out. My CNA class starts on thursday and I am SO excited! One step closer to Heather Valverde RN :) Tonight I am making million dollar spaghetti, thanks to pinterest, so I better get in there and make some bread sticks to go along with it!! Spring break is officially over today, I'm sad about it, I enjoy the boys being home with me!

Feels like Sunday!

Spring break always throws me off, I think everyday is Sunday ha! This spring break has been awesome! The weather, the family time, all great! We headed over to Bellingham on monday and stayed a couple days. We love going over there, so peaceful and fun! The boys were excited to get home so they could ride. The big desert 100 is this weekend in Odessa, we get a lot of people from the west side that come over, its a lot of fun! This year Don, Patrick and Josh are doing the poker run. Today it started raining which works out perfect because we fertalized this morning! So this afternoon I had my interview to get into the CNA program! I will know monday after my background check comes back, I passed my drug test haha! Thank goodness I was stressing about that one, ok not really ha! It starts next Thursday, it goes for 15 days and then I'm officially a CNA! So I am pretty excited! It feels weird not being on the west side all spring break visiting family :( but we are getting a bunch of stuff done outside and we need to so we can get ready to plant the garden and the other half of the grass! Tomorrow I have to go grocery shopping. My throat has been hurting a couple weeks, darn Don got me sick! I am tired and ready for bed and its only 5:45 pm! I am SO obsessed with Breaking Dawn 2. I am serious about this ha! I always seem to go to bed earlier than Don so after he tucks me in I watch it, almost every night lol! Wow, I am sure there is a group for these kind of people!

Busy

This is a busy time of year! Patrick started track on Monday, Josh and Jared started baseball on Monday also! Don has been at work all week, and I mean all week! Wednesday he went to work at 5am and got home thursday at 6am, yes that was 24 hours at work ha! He slept yesterday, then had to go to bed early to get up at 2am to go back to work, he was in charge of a HUGE project at work that he designed and they gave him a $500,000. budget! So he finished before his dead line which of course he rocks! Today is a half day to start off spring break! We are SOO excited! Monday we head to Bellingham to visit Tina and the kiddos! I am SO excited to see her! I wish she lived closer! For all you readers who are wondering lol Tina is my ex sister in law, but she is my sister, has been since my senior year! She lived with me while she did highschool and I love her! So I interviewed at the Odessa Hospital for housekeeping, they offered me the job but I declined, I have an interview for the CNA program and I am SO excited!! The program is 2 weeks and starts April 11th! I will be a certified CNA which will be awesome for my nursing! I am missing my dad and joyce and am going to have to take a weekend trip over there soon to visit, I hate living 5 hours away, but sometimes I love it ha! No drama over here! I got to visit with Lois yesterday, she looks amazing! Dr's are so awesome and the things they can do! I signed up for a quilting class, I cannot believe I did that ha! I must be getting old. I have some quilts I want to make the boys when they graduate, so I will make my new nephews quilt as a practice and I will use my bridesmaid dress that I wore in their wedding as part of it :) I love that idea, thanks to pinterest! I am baking like crazy! The boys love it haha! Well I hope you have a blessed Easter, remember Jesus is the reason for ALL seasons!

Love!

Oh I LOVE my new bed frame! We have had this bed for years but added the head and foot board and the posts, I am so excited to get sheer material and make it into a canopy bed!

Lucky!

I know without a shadow of a doubt that we have the most handsome men ever! Can you believe how tall my Sparkler is? He just keeps getting taller and taller! Patrick has grown over 3 inches since last summer, thank goodness! He starts track tomorrow, oh yippee! I like football much better ha! This weekend we went to the west side, it was such a fast trip, for my moms birthday party. It was a great party and saw a lot of people I have not seen in a long time, was great! We left early this morning to get home so I could do laundry and get ready for the week! I bought a new bed frame for $20.00 and I CANNOT WAIT until its all put together! I have always wanted a canopy bed, well guess what? It is a canopy bed, King size with head board and footboard. I will post a picture tomorrow! We re-arranged our room and it makes it seem so much bigger!I have been baking all week lol! I need a job, ha! I have an interview on tuesday at Odessa Hospital so I am excited, its only part time, I dont want anything more than that. The boys love that I am home when they get home and so do I.

Prom!

Oh my it finally happened! The anticipation, the money, time and excitement! He had SO much fun! We picked the other couple up and headed to Spokane. They have prom at the Base in Airway Heights, and its a bi-county prom which means there are a lot of schools there, all small schools of course. We met Alexy at the bank where they were doing pictures then we took her and we went to the Casino for dinner, the 2 couples sat on the opposite side of the resturant from us lol! The pictures, oh the pictures I love. The first one is Parker in his first tux ever at our wedding 10.5 years ago! The bow tie was bigger than him lol!! And of course Dad has to help him get ready, he even had to spray cologne on him. I cannot believe how fast time has gone! Where has my baby boy gone??

Amazing Day!

What an amazing day today was. It was Transplant Tuesday haha! My mom picked me up at 6:15 this morning and we headed to Spokane. We got there and Lois was in her bed ready to go, they didnt take her back for surgery until 9am, it was a little emotional when they were wheeling her out, but we had hundreds of people praying, and boy did they work! We got updates every hour from the nurse and it was amazing. The 2nd update she said that the kidney had been taken out of Dale and was ready for Lois, so the next update was the nurse saying it was in and it WORKED! Amazing, we all just relaxed! The Dr came and talked to us and showed us the pictures of her new kidney and the picture of it hooked up with stitches, again, amazing! We went to lunch and went back and were able to see Lois. She was asleep but looked good! The first thing I said was "she is going to want her lipstick" she opened her eyes and said "yes, I do please" so I put it on for her and life was good ha! We visited for a few then let her rest. What an awesome day that I was a part of. She is so couragious, brave, strong, gracious and amazing!

Sick Day

Patrick has had some stomach thing for a week. He has been in the bathroom all day! I feel so bad for him, not quite sure what it is. Josh, Jared and Don are out riding dirt bikes again, Josh is riding Jareds becauase he wont get his back until Tuesday. Yesterday was an all day event. They had SO much fun, and were SO sore. This weekend is their first race in Vantage so they are trying to get ready for it. We got the yard all cleaned up SO excited to get ready for the other half of my yard to get grass! Will look so much better! Got my house clean also. Josh wanted only him and me to clean his bedroom lol so we changed sheets, cleaned everything and he vacuumed! Looks so much better! Almost done with laundry. Don has tomorrow off and I might also just depends on if Lois has to have dialysis one more time, if not then I am off too! I have completly slacked about losing weight this last few weeks. Time to get back on the losing train. I have been swimming and I love it, I sure have been sore using muscles I didnt know I had ha! Went walking with a friend one night. Its going to be a good week full of changes!

Weekends

I guess everyday for me now is a weekend. My job ended yesterday and it was SO much harder than I thought it would be. We both cried and hugged. Its a relationship that will never fade. She calls me her angel. Her transplant is tuesday and I hope you will all pray with me that she, the donor, her family and the donors family have a calming peace about this long surgery. I will be there so I will update. 20 months is a long time to be with someone each day, holidays and everything. But I am excited about this new journey in my life. I'm ready for God to just point me in the right direction! Hopefully it is school and to become a labor and delivery nurse. I should hear this week about the CNA program so I can get my foot in the door. Good things are coming for both me, but Lois! This is the year!

Apartments!

Ok, this is just a short quick post about my house. I seriously love my house, the outside is ugly lol needs a paint job but Don worked SO hard on the inside, each wall, ceiling he re-did, I painted each wall and ceiling, we did have the carpets put in cause we were exhausted. But since I have met and married Don, never have I lived in an apartment. There is nothing wrong with them at all, my first marriage that is all we lived in unless we lived with one of our parents. Granid its so much cheaper over here, so much! We live on 4 acres, with a barn, dirt bike shop and our house is 4000 square feet and we paid $60,000. Ok, I know that is SO cheap, and our mortgage is $500.00 a month again, I know super cheap. I guess today I am just reflecting on how lucky I am, and what a wonderful supporter my sweet husband is.

Sunshine!

Damn cookies lol Joshua and Macey! I love that Jared looks just like Don! Oh I love the sunshine! It does make me happy! Last night Parker and Patrick went to Rock and Worship Roadshow in Spokane last night with their youth group. They had an awesome time! Patrick won drum sticks and Parker bought a cd. I love that they love Jesus! Saturday we went to Spokane so Parker could hang out with Alexy and so I could go to the mall and get Lois's birthday gift. Joshua went over to my bff jennifers house to play with Macey. And did he have SO much fun!! He wants to be a rancher/farmer so badly. Him and Macey have been best friends since preschool. She told him "your my boyfriend because I said so" HAHAHA!! Love it! So on Saturday it was Don, me and Jared that went to Red Robin for lunch and then onto grocery shopping. I wanted to go to Winco to see if its cheaper than Walmart and safeway. I dont think it was, so I will just continue to do the same thing I do every week. Yesterday I taught sunday school and then went and had lunch with my mom and john after church. When I got home I made Dr. Seuss cookies for the boys partys today, oh my gosh those sucked! I followed the pinterest recipe and I had to google a new technique lol I found one that was SO much easier! I dont work today! Lois is in Denver until tonight, so I only have 5 more days of work and her transplant is next tuesday! Holy cow! I contacted the lady in charge of the CNA program, so hopefully I will get to do that program so I can work and make some money until school starts next fall! So today I get to go to Moses Lake and get new tires again, ugh! But my mom is going to pick me up and were going to have lunch and go to the bread store and walmart! Fun day!! Tomorrow I am starting to go swimming at the Harrington pool with some other ladies. They go tue, wed and thurs to do lap swim, I'm very excited!! Well I'm off! Have a good Monday!

Insecure

Its no secret I have always been insecure. My first marriage damaged me...a lot, more than I even knew. I know it wasnt all my 1st marriage, but myself, I have always been an insecure person, I think a lot has to do with my weight and how I feel about myself, I dont like myself, I dont know if I ever have. Don has been SO patient with me through these last 11 years. Me constintly asking if he is going to leave me, if he loves me, am I enough for him, and he answers each with a smile, a yes and a hug. I wish I didnt feel this way, and I am slowly getting better, I think losing 30 pounds so far has helped my self esteem. I am glad I dont have girls, because I would hate to have to try and teach them to love themselves when I cant love myself. But on the other hand, I have boys, so we have to teach them to love their women the way she is and make her feel important, beautiful, loved and adored, that is so much easier for me! Is our marriage perfect? No, but we love, respect and adore each other, so thats all that matters. He is patient with me, loves me and I'm all he wants, thats enough for me!

Life is good!

I love me a good relaxing saturday morning. Josh is gone at his friends house, Parker is dogsitting at my moms, Jared is playing ball with the kitties and Patrick is playing his dirt bike video game and I am on pinterest and fb. Ahhh the life! Don drove to Portland yesterday to get Patricks dirt bike. An 85 KTM. Now before anyone in my family starts judging as they have before, Don has worked his ass off doing an addition to a friends house, about 700 square feet, he has saved that money so he could buy Patrick this bike! So now, Joshua gets Patricks old bike and Jared gets Joshuas old bike, love hand me downs! Racing season starts soon so the boys are chomping at the bit to get out there. Racing is the only sport Patrick doesnt injure himself lol, he has ran into a tree, our porch and a tractor, and nothing has happened, but he jumps 2 feet in a uhaul and brakes his ankle and toe lol! Go figure! Its been very cold here the last few days, windy and just bone chilling cold, I hate it. But today the sun is out and I'm hopeful it will warm up past 35 degrees! We got snow last week, thank you Lord it didnt stick or stay around very long. I am so wanting to go on a date with my man, but alas I will wait until Prom, which is only a couple weeks away, were going to go to a movie during prom, and of course the kids want to eat at Olive Garden, doesnt hurt my feelings to eat there :) We have a van full for Prom, I love that the kids want to go with us! Well my boss is at 2 weeks from her new kidney! Holy cow, how amazing is that? I am so excited to be a part of it!!

My heart!

How can your heart be so filled with joy and also filled with such saddness? Let me explain. I started a journey 20 months ago with Lois. We spent an entire month together in Spokane and 5 days a week ever since. I have worked every holiday except Christmas day, sick or not sick. I am pretty sure I know everything about her, and she with me. I share everything with her, even female problems and bowel issues haha! She has never once ever said "why me" or felt sorry for herself, that is just not her. She is strong and I admire her more than she will ever know! Our days are spent visiting, laughing, talking, some crying and just relaxing. And now she is getting a new kidney and I am over the moon excited. She is going to start life, live without doing dialysis everyday. Then there is me who will miss her SO much. It will be so weird not spending everyday with her. They have made me a part of their family and trust me with everything they have. I am so excited to be able to be there on her big day, when her life will forever change.

My kitchen

I love my kitchen. I come in, put on a little Pink and sing while I bake and make dinner. I find peace in here and when my friends come over we always seem to gather in here and I love that. The boys love riding their scooter and rip stick around the island and into the dining room. Makes me smile. The sign above my kitchen door says "Kitchens are made to bring Families together" and thats what it does!

The weekend!

Well we have had a good quiet weekend! Don is SO close to finishing the bathroom upstairs. Friday night he painted and yesterday was putting the toilet and sink in, but missing a hose for the darn toilet! So today we will pick one up when were in Moses Lake for a birthday party. We are going to Dons favorite pizza place, Chicos for a party. I hate their pizza lol to greasy and the crust is SO thin. The sun has been so lovely! Our snow is MELTING! So next month we can finally finish our yard! We did half the hydro seeding last year and this year is the other half! Get rid of the mud! Today was Church, my last day teaching Sunday school with the Jr highers. I enjoy them so much! But I'm still doing childrens church so thats good! The boys dont have school tomorrow, but we both work, we tried to tell them thats what happens when your adults, you work lol! Patricks first game he gets to play in is Tuesday! He is beyond excited! I cant wait to watch him in action!!

Blast from the past

Ok, I had to post this picture, I was looking back on some of my old posts and this is from December of 2007. That pretty much still sums up my men haha!

The Sun!

This picture was taken yesterday, it shows us 2 things, 1st that our barn is still upright lol and 2nd it shows just how much snow we have! Now that it is finally warming up, I am praying it melts. Dont get me wrong it is beautiful, but it was beautiful 2 months ago! It has been so nice the last couple days....FINALLY! Tomorrow it is suppose to be 48 degrees, holy cow! Tomorrow I am spending the day with my Mama after work. We are going out for lunch and then grocery shopping lol! Thats what you do when you feed an army, you always grocery shop! My bill isnt as much as people would think actually, I normally spend about 600.00 a month on food, for feeding 6 people that isnt to bad. I have loved getting new recipes off pinterest and I have been making a lot of bread, yum!! My sweet husband got me roses for todays love day. He is so sweet to me, even when I dont deserve it ha! Our bathroom upstairs is ALMOST DONE! Oh my gosh I cant believe I am writing that! We have to paint, grey of course because the shower curtain and garbage can is Crimson for the Cougars, but I told Parker we would get purple rugs and towels for the Huskys! Divided family. I'm thinking of repainting my bathroom since it will be mine, but I'm at a loss of what to paint it. If it were up to me I would do pink since nothing in my house is pink haha! I really do hate painting though, but when you paint almost 4000 square feet almost all by yourself you tend to hate it! The house seemed SO big when we bought it, then we moved in and now it seems so small, crazy how that is! Well I am off to await my mans return from work! Happy Love day all!!

My funny Valentines

Oh I love these men in my life! These 5 men are the reason I know how to love. Parker is the reason I am the kind of mom I am, he started it ha! Patrick is the reason I have humility, he is so much like me! Joshua is the reason I smile all the time, he is SO funny! Jared is the reason I forgive so easily, he tries my every nerve! Don is the reason I am sane, he is my sanity when I feel like mine is gone, which is actually a lot! I do complain about how stressed out these men make me, or how I have to dye my hair so no one sees my greys sticking out, but they love me unconditionally and always forgive me when I mess up, which is a lot. I would be utterly and completly lost without them in my life.

Pinewood Derby

It was a good year for the Valverdes! The last 2 years the boys have come in dead last lol! This year Jared got 2nd and Josh got 5th, woohoo SO much better! Don always stresses out about it cause it reflects on him haha! I cant believe its only tuesday, ugh! This week is dragging on and on! Tomorrow for work we head to Spokane to get the declot meds, so that always makes for a long day. Well I am going to bed, I am still so tired but it is getting better but I'm still exhausted!!

Crazy!

33 pounds is what I am holding, which is how much I have lost so far! It weighs a ton, I cannot believe I have been carrying that 33 pounds around for so long. It makes me really excited to lose the rest, but I dont think I will be able to hold 80 pounds when all is said and done lol! Today was a perfect day! The boys went to school and it was just Don and I. I had the day off and he took the day off so it worked out wonderfully! We got ready and headed to Moses Lake. We had lunch at a new spot, it was good, I had a taco salad and Don had a big burger. Then we parked on 3rd and walked around town to get some excersize, then off to walmart to get a few things and lastly to the dirt bike shop so we can give them the go ahead to fix Patricks dirt bike. Ugh, 400.00 later. of course we forgot sheetrock for my bathroom upstairs and pellets, darn! So back we go tomorrow!! Sunday is Church and laundry in there of course! The Pinewood derby is sunday for cub scouts, the boys get so excited for this! I will post pics of their cars Sunday.

I really am obsessed with this man. He is pretty fantastic!!

Only Wednesday??

Isnt that true? Then I wonder why we think we have it so badly when things dont go our way? I am guilty of this time after time, but it does make you stop and think doesnt it? This week seems like its taking forever lol and its only Wednesday! It has been a good week so far, just busy, busy, busy. Patrick had a game Monday, 1 more week til his cast comes off! Parker is at FBLA winter conference today and FFA tomorrow. He applied for his first job!! He will make $1000.00 for 3 weeks if he gets it, which will help with gas and stuff since he will be driving then. Its the job corp road crew, so basically picking up garbage!! Not to shabby for a first job! They are growing up so fast! Prom is next month so we have to get Parker fitted for his tux! What a fun night that will be for him! Neither Don or I work Friday! I am so excited! A day with my sweetie. Whatever shall we do? :) Besides Church on Sunday this weekend is pretty low key, which I love!!

Exhaustion!

Man my butt is getting kicked! My iron is so low plus I think I am getting the head cold going around, Im just so drained! Tonight is leftovers so I dont have to do much lol! I made spaghetti with home made breadsticks and they taste just like Olive Garden, they were amazing! Of course I'm not suppose to eat them, but who cares lol they were worth it! Patrick has a basketball game tonight, soon enough he will be able to play! So this is my house today, and all the darn snow still!!

To say I'm sick of snow is an understatement! BUT, it did warm up to 49 yesterday, I almost died it was so warm! This weekend is just a relax weekend, besides going grocery shopping, which is expensive and not so fun now that I'm an adult and buying for 6 people! But thanks to Pinterest I have made so many new things, and the men love them! Tomorrow we have to go to Spokane to do Dialysis again, time for de-clotting meds, but on a good note, 3 of the 4 people were matches for a new kidney and they have chosen the person who will continue on with tests and be the donator. So were thinking March is when she will become a new person!! How awesome is that? How awesome is God!! Well thats all for me, I'm going to finish the bread sticks and go lay in bed and watch Twilight :)

Sleep eludes me!

I will be SO glad when my iron gets up to a normal level! When I went in my iron level was 16, thats really bad, no wonder I was pulling over on my way to Ephrata to rest lol its only a 55 minute drive and I couldnt do it! Im sure it doesnt help that I have not used my c-pap machine for a few months, ugh! I know I should and I will start back up after I get a new mask. Patrick has basketball tonight, sad he still cant play, only 3 more weeks! Yesterday Don took a blow torch and melted some of our ice and snow, now I have a sidwalk again!! I will be SO glad when it warms up, to at least 35! Well I am at -32 pounds! I have offically lost my Josh and Jared weight and the weight from our cruise lol! So its been 10 years, better late than never HA! Now I'm working on Parker and Patrick weight, ugh, ok that has been longer like 15.5 years haha! My friend Cindy brought over a bunch of new jeans for me! I only had 1 size of the current size I just got into! Holy cow! Its been 10 years since I have been in this size! I have failed a couple times this week when it comes to food, but thats ok I dont do it everyday or even every week, so I forgive myself :)

Calgon took me away!

Ok, actually my husband took me away lol! We had date night and it was SO needed! I have not seen the man in a week! He has been so busy at work, I guess when your the boss that happens. So he has been getting home around 9pm and I'm alreay out for the night. My dang iron is so low that it makes me exhausted all the time, so bedtimes are early lately. So after school I dropped the 3 boys off with my Mom for the weekend, and we picked up Don and headed to Spokane. Parker was going to the Sadie Hawkins dance with Alexy, they have to dress the same, he had SO much fun! Picked him up around 11pm got home around 1am, I am to old for that stuff lol! Meanwhile, Don and I had gone to Chilies for dinner, YUM! How I wanted a burger so badly, but alas, I had a grilled chicken salad, it was SO good, a bit spicy for this wimp but good! Had 5 glasses of water lol ok maybe really spicy. Then we walked around the mall before heading to Walmart to grad doggie food and cereal, the 2 things we always run out of in a house full of pigs! Then back to Liberty to pick them up and take Alexy home. It was a fun and much needed night. Thank you sweetie!! Today we are being lazy bums. Well Cassie did come over to visit so I did take a shower and brush my teeth ha! We also did have to run to the store to pick up pizza stuff so I can make them pizza for dinner, but before that Parker and I are making home-made pop tarts, thank you Pinterest!! Excited to see if it works and if the boys love them!! Tomorrow is Church, so I teach Jr High sunday school and childrens church, then home for laundry! I do miss my boys, but oh how quiet my house is!!

This week!

My poor Patrick! He does not need surgery, yay!!! But he is in a cast for 3 weeks where hopefully he can finish out basketball season! He is ready!

I got my hair done. It was suppose to be a reward for losing 30 pounds, but alas, I only lost 28.6 lol but I did it anyway because 28 pounds is a lot! I have had a stressful week in the weight department. I have bounced between 28 and 29 pounds all week, its very discouraging. But I think I snaped out of it lol I was drinking sugar free Chai teas, and come to find out they are not sugar free ha! So hence why I have not been able to get under 29 pounds! I hate that things say sugar free even though they are not! Jared was in a foul mood this morning, always makes life rough when he is! Hopefully he comes home all better! Tonight I have a school board meeting, I really enjoy being on the school board and of course I rock on it haha! Friday Parker is going to the Sadie Hawkins dance at the girlfriends school, he is so excited! So thank you to my mom for taking the 3 other boys so we can drive to Liberty and drop him off, so were going out for dinner and a movie while Parker is dancing the night away!

Parker and Alexy :)

AAHHH!

Non school days tends to stress me out! The boys have spent to much time together so by Monday they are all in rare form. Ya know, i know they are such great boys, but oh man there are days I wonder if I will survive!Tonight is for sure a night they go to bed EARLY! This weekend my Sissy came over with the girls, so Saturday Tara, Me and my mom went to Spokane and had lunch and did the mall. SO much fun! The older kids went to the movies with Parkers girlfriend. Good times had by all. Don has been working on our bathroom upstairs...finally!! We got a stand up shower for it, so he did the plumbing for it, just need a floor, mud, sand and put the toilet and sink back in! Then, I dont have to go downstairs, through the kitchen through the laundry room into the bathroom lol! The weight loss is still going, tonight I had 2 cookies, not good for someone not eating sugar ha! But tomorrow is a new day so I actually didnt stress about it much, still drank 120 ounces of water so Im doing good! Tomorrow is my hair appt, I cannot wait for it! I have not had my hair done for SO long, and I mean like 6 months or so, my grow out is awful! Its my month to teach Jr high sunday school, I do enjoy it, the kids are so great! After the lesson we always play hangman with only words from the Bible, some of them are crazy long words that you cant even pronounce! Patrick broke his finger and his growth plate last week! So he has an appt with the surgeon tomorrow, ugh, hoping he doesnt need surgery! Poor Patrick, he found out the day of his first basketball game! Had to stop football cause of a concusion, then he broke his ankle and toe and now this! He has had a rough 6 months! Hes so strong though and rarely complains! Well I'm going to put my boys in bed, woohoo!!

Weight Loss

Lets face it, losing weight sucks ass! Its the hardest thing I have ever had to do, even get a divorce lol! I have struggles since I had Parker, so ya almost 16 years! I have lost some, gained some, but mostly stayed the damn same! For me the hardest thing was thinking I could do it. I have failed at SO many things, that every time I failed at a diet I would say "your a failure, your going to be fat forever". I honestly believed I would be! That makes me feel awful! I always feel like a failure about something, my mothering skills, my wifey skills and especially my weight. But guess what? Im NOT a failure! Do you know how hard it is to believe that? I have Don telling me all the time how beautiful I am, how much he believes in and he knows I can do it, and you know what? I CAN! I'm down 29 pounds so far! I have about 50 more to go, but who cares lol I'm down 29! It has been so very difficult. I enjoy water so that part is easy, I am not a fan of exercising at all! My weakness is cereal, mac and cheese and diet pepsi. Salad is ok, but mac n cheese is so much better ha! I have given up so many times, quit like the quiter I was, not anymore! Even now, I still slip and eat something I shouldnt and guess what I do? I chalk it up to normal human behavior and I jump right back in! Here is a pic of me before and one around Christmas, I have since lost 14 pounds!!

STAY STRONG! You can DO IT!!