tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35735926929312818162024-03-06T00:05:59.011-08:00the long and the short of itaimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.comBlogger45125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-48187147479459729662012-02-07T21:05:00.000-08:002012-02-07T21:50:51.991-08:00One more thing: Gymnastics!<div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">Tegan has been, nearly from birth, one of the bravest toddlers I've ever seen. He has no fear of heights, always lands on his feet, and was doing somersaults by his first birthday. So I always thought I would involve him in gymnastics. So, two weeks ago, we started! He is doing fantastic and he LOVES it! I'll post more pictures and videos as they come!</span></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwbCDaqmSTjXZf8XKx9xOaYCfvs9jMpB5qL0ilx3RhXLqPrk5ZF-fqvkbQBiT1SuY2_hLjqzrMjRVvOHjBt' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><div><br /><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">The video was shot by my eight year old, so be forgiving!</span></div></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-52979963948085690862012-02-07T20:24:00.000-08:002012-02-07T21:27:58.217-08:00Bowling!<div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">It occurred to me some time ago that we have never taken our</span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">kids bowling! I mean, what kind of parent are we?? So we remedied that tonight! While it was a little more expensive than I would have liked (around $25 for the four of us to play 1 game), we did have a blast! I think that the expressions on both Payton and Tegan's faces were PRICELESS!</span></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div><div style="text-align: left; "><br /></div></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1-anZftErvQ9sf-I7BkD3qramS8oc1Krnk1hk01idBdDuxSGV3tZ1zv6TjHYGpGCyiszT5FUBuot1ANuhjLJ_p0LBT1By-ZfnxswDZWyqMC5_K04O_bwOe7XBBMTQLAmsnYRWUaCDXc/s1600/_DSC9459s.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEij1-anZftErvQ9sf-I7BkD3qramS8oc1Krnk1hk01idBdDuxSGV3tZ1zv6TjHYGpGCyiszT5FUBuot1ANuhjLJ_p0LBT1By-ZfnxswDZWyqMC5_K04O_bwOe7XBBMTQLAmsnYRWUaCDXc/s400/_DSC9459s.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706624752169862050" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR97mvao2UMpRP9m30tqqJXhr0YKDpmkI7P06RJjV8ueKgXNY7Y_Z9UYEQ5pap-EBbyhleFsFs6I1zzSTjspOU3UTSJU8lGhxcvDSm9h0aLShaJi8mcdl1-eRyMCvJYvWhIDlL6TCRe5U/s1600/_DSC9456s.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 265px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR97mvao2UMpRP9m30tqqJXhr0YKDpmkI7P06RJjV8ueKgXNY7Y_Z9UYEQ5pap-EBbyhleFsFs6I1zzSTjspOU3UTSJU8lGhxcvDSm9h0aLShaJi8mcdl1-eRyMCvJYvWhIDlL6TCRe5U/s400/_DSC9456s.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706624745895126466" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzeC7VwAuri6uNwSwmDo4bMxmiiKuEq9kqoKFJtXsIqG00QPqONmjOi8tpkjXlLAVY8s1x4fawQReEKOdBGAxx0JKzJDUGNe72zQPlt-04Cx0CY7dLuLWYOFInRWduDY0nDcKiV2Cpnrw/s1600/_DSC9454.JPG" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 286px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzeC7VwAuri6uNwSwmDo4bMxmiiKuEq9kqoKFJtXsIqG00QPqONmjOi8tpkjXlLAVY8s1x4fawQReEKOdBGAxx0JKzJDUGNe72zQPlt-04Cx0CY7dLuLWYOFInRWduDY0nDcKiV2Cpnrw/s400/_DSC9454.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706624740189546818" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5G5axel5JaxF5lszAZsrx7ctjTzPDVwb1vTOePMqJ2djgrTUViiXPoS6WsKyFMbRIn6G766NKHcCjDJ0tjakdbCSZVKezev4Q5y-mcqWJ4oPIwng1xn8pWCn7QAPDqHwOdVLJw-4e6yE/s1600/_DSC9451s.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5G5axel5JaxF5lszAZsrx7ctjTzPDVwb1vTOePMqJ2djgrTUViiXPoS6WsKyFMbRIn6G766NKHcCjDJ0tjakdbCSZVKezev4Q5y-mcqWJ4oPIwng1xn8pWCn7QAPDqHwOdVLJw-4e6yE/s400/_DSC9451s.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706624250360891362" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWEcL_NEgrPJGHONaKi7S_3OYVxZQ3KDi4vVsHYRNEhstlRCJTPZ4f9c6ueafST2lHOTb4DJIlWFmMBaFEcr49fzcVfKZjq4QTMwus-7a5zpOVtUhtLj3WKnaATqqomaoPv6RgOAjJQwI/s1600/_DSC9443s.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWEcL_NEgrPJGHONaKi7S_3OYVxZQ3KDi4vVsHYRNEhstlRCJTPZ4f9c6ueafST2lHOTb4DJIlWFmMBaFEcr49fzcVfKZjq4QTMwus-7a5zpOVtUhtLj3WKnaATqqomaoPv6RgOAjJQwI/s400/_DSC9443s.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706624245949706834" /></a><br /><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieWNRm0XNSSJwccZSN7hsAwnvX60DIkb9O4Hg_pAq2SihmIkZ6vepYvui1xsAcDCtxhkfZ6E94WWLnhvtYy7h5aYXxzyG7Uf-ZGTlXx4nufLUdHuGQvHFNrRJFlpugmkbLkFG3O04lcEY/s400/_DSC9425s.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706624225514056370" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 265px; height: 400px; " /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDNhnG5EftclSOrlLyfBSH1Ri-YWea97DKIEJLQstsidz3BCQHMvRx_n78jeIjFdldaYH08pRMzgpGnEOVLsnsdDyHlrdpR8zwQdkYqyAzUwlfZClNqHccKVXnxCfCqDcpZyMY9DyaLfY/s1600/_DSC9439s.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="text-align: left;display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; cursor: pointer; width: 265px; height: 400px; " src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDNhnG5EftclSOrlLyfBSH1Ri-YWea97DKIEJLQstsidz3BCQHMvRx_n78jeIjFdldaYH08pRMzgpGnEOVLsnsdDyHlrdpR8zwQdkYqyAzUwlfZClNqHccKVXnxCfCqDcpZyMY9DyaLfY/s400/_DSC9439s.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706624239333555570" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT1Ay9SV3gnRvH5ZhVd1oBFVkH1xVexaxnlHCg0rIFiNWcNdeFcdIOawCNUvA1Xo3zckzi3ypGNPB8kM7t-GVLRgMUw7OXPvaWOCg-EmDHf6_QKk9vBIvH45Fcuo1QIG23cBLGKc2-Q6A/s1600/_DSC9432s.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 265px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT1Ay9SV3gnRvH5ZhVd1oBFVkH1xVexaxnlHCg0rIFiNWcNdeFcdIOawCNUvA1Xo3zckzi3ypGNPB8kM7t-GVLRgMUw7OXPvaWOCg-EmDHf6_QKk9vBIvH45Fcuo1QIG23cBLGKc2-Q6A/s400/_DSC9432s.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706624232165000754" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJW8LCamLalTDM5EYj0IF-HgZ26XmsPAs7u2By2OL2cfTbDc3_4t3VGfQfOe6dVI6lHnKBF9Z3HRPqFTiSrTtq-R7Zvqw_jMFzU0CKtW9f82zoHM11q5G4DC1bPCaC5mE3BEeYHLqyM70/s400/_DSC9463s.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5706624757843416306" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 265px; height: 400px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:130%;">Of course, no photo session would be complete without my oldest making a crazy face.</span></div></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-27417744316087460682012-01-15T19:42:00.000-08:002012-01-15T19:54:00.163-08:00Fast-forward a year.So, apparently it has been 1 whole year since I last posted a blog. Woah. I find that crazy. <div><br /></div><div>Anyhow, I guess I've decided to pick it up again. So here's my 2011 recapped:</div><div><br /></div><div>My kids are a year older. Payton turned 8 and Tegan turned 2!</div><div><br /></div><div>Richie and I celebrated our 11th anniversary! Yay us!</div><div><br /></div><div>I took up photography a little more seriously. Aimee D. Photography. That's the name of the "business." I love it! But not so much that I want to try to earn a living from it. </div><div><br /></div><div>We took our first "big time" vacation! We went to Mexico for a friend's wedding. One thing I learned from Playa del Carmen...I want to live by the ocean. </div><div><br /></div><div>We did some camping and canoeing! We have become outdoor people!</div><div><br /></div><div>We tentatively decided to become foster parents, though that is sort of on hold. We are taking very cautious steps toward this decision as we don't want to make any mistake about exactly what we're supposed to be doing.</div><div><br /></div><div>I, once again, have decided to go back to school. Ugh, even saying it gives me a headache. Anyhow, I'll be doing some pre-reqs at OCCC and then applying to the RN program and with any luck, I'll get in the first time I apply. </div><div><br /></div><div>I fell more in love with God, Richie, and my children! And this is the biggest blessing of all!</div><div><br /></div><div>2011 was great. 2012 is going to be even better!</div><div><br /></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-9802522404082196702011-01-08T12:32:00.000-08:002011-01-08T13:09:13.152-08:00Past and FutureThis post is a little slow on the up-take considering we're over a week into the new year, but I'm posting it anyway.<br /><br />With every new year, I like to reflect on the previous year and plan for the one to come. So without further ado....<br /><br />What I Learned in 2010:<br /><br />-G<span style="font-style:italic;">od is all-powerful and when I trust in Him, miraculous things happen.</span> For years now, my husband's brother has been an addict. He was arrested several times this year and as we approached the year's end, things were not looking promising for him. But Richie and I continued to pray. And by the power of Christ, he is now in rehab! Which leads me to my next learned lesson...<br /><br />-<i>Don't give up on those you love.</i> Keep loving them the way Christ loves. Continue to pray. Expect God to show up. He will. And He will not disappoint. <br /><br />-<i>God does not answer prayers the way that I expect.</i> I prayed for a generous heart, but God did not give it. Instead, he gave me several situations in which to be generous. It was hard (very hard), but the most fulfilling thing so far I've done as a Christian. <br /><br />-<i>God will remove excess from your life in order to give you in abundance</i>. This year was hard for me in the friendship department. But in hindsight, God was simply removing what was not necessary at the time in order to bring even more and greater friendships. (To whom it may concern in this area: I love you! I have forgiven you and would love to be friends again whenever you are ready. I am here with open arms!)<br /><br />My Plans for 2011:<br /><br />-<i>Seek God first</i>: I commit to reading my Bible and spending time with God daily. And so far so good. <br /><br />-<i>Continue to be generous</i>.<br /><br />-<i>CONSISTENTLY workout</i>: My body is a temple, the only one I'll get here on Earth. I want to live a long and healthy life. I want to see my grandchildren. <br /><br />-<i>Pay off my car</i>: November of this year is the goal!<br /><br />-<i>Learn photography</i>: I love art. We'll see if I'm any good at it.<br /><br />-<i>Take a vacation with my family</i>: MEXICO! Can't wait to see two of my favorite people start their lives together!<br /><br />-<i>Relish everyday</i>: My kid are growing so fast and I don't want to let a single moment slip by. Life is much too short and I refuse to chase after the wind. It's meaningless! <br /><br />God is good. LIfe is good. It's going to a great 2011!aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-64046895566998719022010-10-19T06:02:00.000-07:002010-10-19T06:37:19.775-07:00MRIAfter much discussion and prayer, my son's pediatrician and I decided to move forward with Tegan's MRI.<br /><br />I'm was not sure why I had such a difficult time with the idea. For a while I thought it was because it involved sedation. But he get sedated everytime he has a laser treatment, so that couldn't have been it. Then I thought that it was because the procedure was going to be done at the OU Medical Center, and our last experience there was a complete disaster. However, while the EEG was done on the adult side of OU, I knew that the MRI would take place in the Children's Center and would result in a completely different experience. Why was scheduling the MRI such a challenge for me? After much thought and evaluation, I honestly think it was because I truly didn't want to know. I didn't want him to be labeled. If there was any sign of birthmark on his brain, regardless of whether or not it affected him, he would be diagnosed with Sturge-Weber.<br /><br />But we did it anyway.<br /><br />The MRI was surprisingly pain-free, even for Richie and I. We arrived and were immediately taken to our pre-op room. Vitals were taken and we got the run-down of how the procedure would go. Then, when everyone was prepped and ready to go, Richie and I carried him to the MRI room and held him while they put him to sleep. :( For us, this was the hardest part of the whole procedure. We waited in the cafeteria for what seemed like forever and after about an hour and a half, we were called back to his room where he was recovering from the anesthesia. After a short amount of time, we were released to go home and we were glad to have the procedure behind us.<br /><br />We haven't received the result as of today, but the results are just about the furthest thing from my mind. All I can think about is what a perfectly healthy and handsome little boy God has blessed me with. <br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5529750154076197250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijtBf7BvT7cBYz4h0e8Us4Jjp0aFBhsqNXbR0NDeKQUjBA4xaW7Hh8T82P_r2jNGRFTa_80kCFz4A1xTqMdIsUEJr6Bo8H8G8TeUD5yeq8UI_iv2zg-piqdPaC0KHJgWZvGidN7QIHZsQ/s400/DSC_0097.JPG" border="0" />aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-87423725606573031722010-10-12T20:14:00.000-07:002010-10-12T20:30:27.143-07:00DIY Child's ChairSince my photographer up and moved to Missouri (kidding! Love you Melissa!!), I have been on the hunt for photo props to use with my kids. I found this little $3 treasure at Goodwill.<br /><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeJMi2_4g481CFJ1q-6X6pwxHhr_bBjT_qK2Ig4_YyJ1-jVPlJ1OZH3hMYTLh-Y9zwF5oCgTPs-oaEVFkvJkyHl4C-CLfdGEbTZt36h1MjcRQ5umsqi_rKpVF_Hv0olokhsWIQz6hlC0k/s1600/DSC_0017.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527364889045599986" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeJMi2_4g481CFJ1q-6X6pwxHhr_bBjT_qK2Ig4_YyJ1-jVPlJ1OZH3hMYTLh-Y9zwF5oCgTPs-oaEVFkvJkyHl4C-CLfdGEbTZt36h1MjcRQ5umsqi_rKpVF_Hv0olokhsWIQz6hlC0k/s400/DSC_0017.JPG" border="0" /></a>Obviously the seat had to go. </div><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhudXwnya_p2hWLgW1BySC2kN1QrSY5kIlBIF7NOqtuTMgelqwlbm6F6LccRRRoo01nLFbeJoESg3YnDgN8f4DzNqIyqrfmHZtadC0CbnfysFWb_S3yVr-BoqjN4OO0tuJ1fyXDeCBUpeE/s1600/DSC_0002.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527364685398442386" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhudXwnya_p2hWLgW1BySC2kN1QrSY5kIlBIF7NOqtuTMgelqwlbm6F6LccRRRoo01nLFbeJoESg3YnDgN8f4DzNqIyqrfmHZtadC0CbnfysFWb_S3yVr-BoqjN4OO0tuJ1fyXDeCBUpeE/s400/DSC_0002.JPG" border="0" /></a>I bought some simple pieces of wood and used my son's tools!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3o5mne7FtzLTj0yBEbkXu0flynBcQNTSM9OVN1K3l9NFaJFuv0IuS15Kp31TLUHGW3obxdxOUg1zJ66ogIFv1958Uc8IF2cI_Vve5iJ341ot04vX88ebP4rlMt-1aYaF-rqlrtpgJdQI/s1600/DSC_0003.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527364682659945874" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3o5mne7FtzLTj0yBEbkXu0flynBcQNTSM9OVN1K3l9NFaJFuv0IuS15Kp31TLUHGW3obxdxOUg1zJ66ogIFv1958Uc8IF2cI_Vve5iJ341ot04vX88ebP4rlMt-1aYaF-rqlrtpgJdQI/s400/DSC_0003.JPG" border="0" /></a> My youngest helped me paint.<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp6BECdU1lxMEMR5GDGQZiBJQGK57z8a6Ub5JjRl1iAcLcU4sf91kv2yqWFTs2g4xmuPncq2f6ZpxMaVFrH9hfacVVYq6P5VFbKDXAnheo6uwDjoCFnn3FM59tl67k-hILjVFE5q2o8S4/s1600/DSC_0007.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527364675946486690" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp6BECdU1lxMEMR5GDGQZiBJQGK57z8a6Ub5JjRl1iAcLcU4sf91kv2yqWFTs2g4xmuPncq2f6ZpxMaVFrH9hfacVVYq6P5VFbKDXAnheo6uwDjoCFnn3FM59tl67k-hILjVFE5q2o8S4/s400/DSC_0007.JPG" border="0" /></a>We painted the base an avocado green. Love it!<br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1SL59htNXG3qwWWRfoph3ayt-t8OD3Of-zgB1_ssn_K4aN_sIMrlj7BPWAgYEKAnbZkUa6aY6NfFYeZ4Z8d8pb3RfIoC53pJry67vVx8sFXsNWUrPxwOEK576EtkQdhTWLEWtQz1MVGU/s1600/DSC_0009.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5527364673414229266" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1SL59htNXG3qwWWRfoph3ayt-t8OD3Of-zgB1_ssn_K4aN_sIMrlj7BPWAgYEKAnbZkUa6aY6NfFYeZ4Z8d8pb3RfIoC53pJry67vVx8sFXsNWUrPxwOEK576EtkQdhTWLEWtQz1MVGU/s400/DSC_0009.JPG" border="0" /></a> I applied a cracked ivory finish. </div><div>I can't wait to use this for taking some very amateur shots of my kiddos!<br /><div> </div></div></div><br /></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-78589409438551709802010-08-07T10:20:00.000-07:002010-08-07T10:29:24.889-07:00Pryor and SpavinawA few weeks ago we traveled to Pryor to visit my last remaining grandmother (Ma as she is called affectionately).<br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502720312999738530" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-K_juoYh-Z-p5HtfTzbkuhOP7G2zZx1bIEQ0TThIUMV_a7wGIgWeG0AnLL1W56ESYHE4bG1oorPTHHGwdHovQw-RN-yLh6d76iD4fDI0X91NHWgJ8id3R56RuDbfJh9zuGyX5c1b319M/s400/DSC_0110.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br />While we were there, we decided to venture up to the Spavinaw Creek, a place that my sister and I loved to swim growing up. My kids loved it just as much as we did.<br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502720298970444370" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiITxg-NMkw58LO_cfOb2mUglu6ukl8RLgsUH-IHucJ2afy9eIQQQp7OKKxHtVq_oL3nRGO13_ypFmNYEMsETHzwJK1agI3KQr4izc5RTbQajjagV01hSF2_b04PrnNvHXaf8RUauIvcgY/s400/DSC_0102.JPG" border="0" /></p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5502720306123124514" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFluPZfwmVEnNRr7sSyxC7pZumViAVaYp7X0DUvKatSrfp7mQtXGALt3qSqjbQh_1OVTEadSijQ5AEEn0LG5aB92KCNfZxk_JXm27oXNnmxS_GAPCLsiA5IgADl5JpxBOfr4B-UyIYj6I/s400/DSC_0096.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>We had a great time and look forward to visiting again this fall!</p>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-24461373200452459062010-07-06T04:37:00.000-07:002010-07-06T05:19:03.418-07:00Pulse-dye laser treatment #2<div align="left">A few weeks ago we made our trip to Little Rock for Tegan's second laser treatments. For those of you who don't know us well or are not familiar with my son's birthmark, here is a bit of background. Tegan was born with a vascular birthmark called a port-wine stain, a malformations of tiny blood vessels that connect the veins to the arteries (capillaries) located in the upper levels of the skin. </div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Our trip was fairly uneventful (besides getting my nails filled in a VERY scary part of Little Rock) and Tegan did great! He loved the Children's Hospital; there were so many things for him to play with. He woke up from anesthesia much better this time around and even wanted to run around and play in the recover area only minutes after waking up. His "purple dots" have healed already and Richie and I can already see a slight difference in the "before" and "after" shots. Here are some pictures:<br /><br /></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490756941015328978" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjziUGBx3aIl8eay7WYB8QEyOaFtmIDI3KPPjnEesSRKcWPbbzWPLP9n6EIy8nfAIanPjgl7s_WDmSmewK3xKt3gZu5Xk8TX89VIKHm94cmx8NB0M8LIzpmKeEHt7kK6LcItadO8CbF01U/s400/DSC_0108.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Before: waiting to be taken into surgery</div><br /><div align="center"><br /></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490762394374529154" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRvSH83DocJEN4UugG5kjPHRvkAYwW01lOZPDr-mtN27GSh0VlxRsLxfrq4Hdhz7Lc743FsclDc87YL1TTfZk262TJZABrNW7xsGC5iJbsOdFN0ZEa8Js4HPtQVK5rF7Hs8Dp0BK4JmOQ/s400/DSC_0126.JPG" border="0" />Only minutes after leaving the recovery room </div><div align="center"></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490756929546214034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhV8Tw63GyK-t8JLiC5T_QOU6sdFZ_jJdUIwRrSETrDEUPPlyGC-7BKzQ0UWGwzagpbNA9uhOutwoTboMcxK9o-4X1aQZxvOVaUs218LIzhNxSErMpqnZxjNL_7VlTM67O85FsQxNYRGkU/s400/DSC_0015.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Healing: one week in </div><br /><br /><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490757435792466018" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNb_z7eCwDfPGQk544ai7nvDxcI9hptJsgIj4ly7JSGhcfL9m0X75uKmO4uWMAhkJ9joD0ElCI6V8Jt4zetgZB6vTjooG_B8ny0I34VIxuiYWd86ppFjPBcvn13doNrgq4NtSk3atoMAc/s400/DSC_0017.JPG" border="0" />Week 2: almost gone!<br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5490761816725344658" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-547OxG2yDgKnsWxtma6EeA_xiJ_qFbyOXf90FpMb764sC138hhGDROuqEKYV2j1y0oQ53E0KMytuezzXSFbONcwtBFwPmua1yW98Sf8wawyvgCpKw-KQiiSMYkVUw9gNX77etoNkinQ/s400/DSC_0025.JPG" border="0" /> <p align="center">Week three!<br /></p><p align="left">With any luck, we'll be heading back for another round during fall break. We'll continue treatment indefinitely. These types of birthmarks never fully go away with laser treatment, but the goal is to fade it as much as possible. </p><p align="left">Until next time.<br /></p>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-81780143459880951442010-06-21T06:52:00.000-07:002010-06-21T07:04:44.207-07:00BaptismSince Payton accepted Jesus into his heart last year, he has been begging to be baptized. So when LifeChurch announced that they were having a "Baptism Bash" at Frontier City, I knew this was our opportunity. Here are some pictures of the event.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485226165351546178" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1YjoSnuZighF5_wfhw-VrJgTom2ysgCjWUwnD39OXV8n3KvAgNHGGWFFstqznS02dWSKg3ornnq9IFJI1UG_wcr65DpeENQ1H7LqcqIQ8OK2vCbvp2UdVGZ5cucK9IPDGeixCQbaOsdM/s400/pbbaptism1.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485226140077302210" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn0lmRTZzCwFrlDXavzHsN8B54cpfDKnue9hTV3MK5gdRKGX6TOaluk2Pd8h1o2AbE8q59XrX7hqj0Ms2ICBFNvO_-QqjePEisSZJJBZq_UPq_AKMUjiaRfYv69RAtvNX9iQ46cwxTwU0/s400/DSC_0079.JPG" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485226148755810306" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCC-jMqB4nemeV-LDU2wMkeWu5H8OBzaOmOxlllGQTM-QQ6fNnW37mDULUMMViNlRzVUKIpGSYxNpxBOUdqXBM5ZGaMMb6vlR1Oh5OHPRxYE2Q4c-g6fFXWRe1wqcdSlZjyBF4GuuqfcQ/s400/DSC_0080.JPG" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485226171513617810" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnfO2TxpOASKqq1FBwIgH_E1YcSe6xfH1uhELSfjV3vEJ_M41aVd9VUFI66odX5VYf9WA3WFhghrBPRueJudQ-JIl2r-wSDkUFFK2n_tFqx8spzmnGBxXya2TeKW5m7BkrK5HzTSge5Sg/s400/pbbaptism2.jpg" border="0" /><br /><p> </p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5485226157919195682" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCZuRqaW5MyAVAZd6OWgSFUsSV0pc1Yjflbt7DnRPFuORHyicVf2KB5FFJDYQVObW6Fx8i6R_seHlN9Q6TbbpKszaFSM-w74FTTW1NPSfCDIWIkY9grLO_JI9KKM18wMI-Lv17U8BphQI/s400/DSC_0083.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>What a proud moment for a parent! God is good...all the time! </p>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-8268991896081723232010-06-13T11:56:00.000-07:002010-06-13T12:30:05.606-07:00Let GoToday's sermon was one of those sermon's where you're sitting there thinking, "Man, I'm glad I made it to church today." <br /><br />Today's message was on living an Unstoppable Life and how so many of us want to give up or lie down and die when the circumstances around us change. And, ahhhh, I was the perfect example for today's sermon. I mean, they could have just brought me up on stage and said, "See this girl. Yeah, this is what we're talking about." I am the perfect definition of my church's message today. I dwell. I wallow. I beat myself to death over things that have changed, ended, or died. For example, I nearly ruined my marriage a few years ago. To this day, I chastise myself for the mistakes I made. I unexpectedly lost a good friend a few months ago....and for the life of me I just can't seem to get past it. I quit school when I was so sure that my goals were completely God-given and God-directed. I have been struggling with my purpose in life and hating myself for not being able to clearly see my path. These are just a few things that I struggle with, oh, at least once a day. <br /><br />The pastor explained, though, that things <em>do</em> end. Things change. Some things die. But that "the end of an era is not the completion of your destiny." Situations are destined to change. Relationships always have a possibility of ending. But just because things change does not mean that we are to lie down and die with them. We are to rise up and look forward. It is not the end. In fact, the best is yet to come! <br /><br />Instead of chastising myself about my mistakes, I must live and learn and love. I must forgive myself and Christ has already forgiven me. I must cling to the strength of the Holy Spirit who will enable me to be the wife and mother I strive to be.<br /><br />Instead of mourning over the friendship lost, I will move on and realize the end of our relationship had nothing to do with me. And I won't be afraid to make new friendships for fear this will happen again. And I will continue to love her despite the hurt.<br /><br />Instead of dwelling on my lack of direction, I will rejoice in the things I know. I know that I'm a child of the one true God. I know that I am a wife to the most amazing husband. I know God has trusted me to be the mother of two incredible little boys. I have been blessed so far beyond what I am worth. And from today on, I will look forward to the future and what God has planned for me.aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-20013319984781971182010-04-10T15:20:00.000-07:002010-04-10T15:41:26.701-07:00Easter at Red Rock<div align="left">We spend Easter day at Red Rock Canyon...and what a beautiful day it was! We spent quite a few Easters at this State Park so it was pretty nostalgic for my entire family. I just had to share a few pictures I took while we were there (and hopefully this isn't seen as "narcissistic." Haha!)<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirtLg1obvkdcJhP5VLpWLgTbrTRVpX-82OieA-0GhNpE_Vytwr30D_DqlRbVJRlQKAy2gj1nvnMo9BrIfFZOgaTl6NGQxdeXW0PHruxjvCn109LASvs9R22cvdM_W8Xai12JR_zlKyoaQ/s1600/easter7.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458639005964947586" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 286px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirtLg1obvkdcJhP5VLpWLgTbrTRVpX-82OieA-0GhNpE_Vytwr30D_DqlRbVJRlQKAy2gj1nvnMo9BrIfFZOgaTl6NGQxdeXW0PHruxjvCn109LASvs9R22cvdM_W8Xai12JR_zlKyoaQ/s400/easter7.jpg" border="0" /></a> Happy Easter Hayden!</div><div align="center"></div><br /><br /><div align="center"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiohUxaI5LVrl_i3ykgPcMgio0sLPKsJy94ZQZ5nNIXGyPsI435jo0f0SUCTLjUEVVjs1HDKEBfK1wY6WN9OEp0nZvHumzPCORh_eKRWZ6Zu2JHwqrbwdEUXNPyogioniOupu26-H8q-LM/s1600/DSC_0032.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458638175454871458" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiohUxaI5LVrl_i3ykgPcMgio0sLPKsJy94ZQZ5nNIXGyPsI435jo0f0SUCTLjUEVVjs1HDKEBfK1wY6WN9OEp0nZvHumzPCORh_eKRWZ6Zu2JHwqrbwdEUXNPyogioniOupu26-H8q-LM/s400/DSC_0032.JPG" border="0" /></a> Best Buds</div><div align="center"><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG6Nxxwu-t1OdqlWn2PfNH_Ohy7Zis7uQPmYCfNh0Tm-5cJgwnLVWsw6FZ21iYHuaf5U4R9yyGYlAUIIiuiOW_YwxiDbPHwHFOPpMHdNQVQuqBGV4zfaXwC9q3WjLOXlkch4QoW7ZsEHQ/s1600/DSC_0011.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458638165480575714" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhG6Nxxwu-t1OdqlWn2PfNH_Ohy7Zis7uQPmYCfNh0Tm-5cJgwnLVWsw6FZ21iYHuaf5U4R9yyGYlAUIIiuiOW_YwxiDbPHwHFOPpMHdNQVQuqBGV4zfaXwC9q3WjLOXlkch4QoW7ZsEHQ/s400/DSC_0011.JPG" border="0" /></a> Tegan James his Aunt Barb<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSswcn_-ixOraTP7rLp1Cn4BvrNfvefgdQPva6fOeOxWhlNfGPfjpKuc6xaVUaGP46ARnN9qeVmg3-KG0MKZwpF7kUABzr22t3TLG22FhWwG-7S93CjOxdHK23C1_Gw7xRmDuVVhCdo7o/s1600/easter6.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458638154927983794" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSswcn_-ixOraTP7rLp1Cn4BvrNfvefgdQPva6fOeOxWhlNfGPfjpKuc6xaVUaGP46ARnN9qeVmg3-KG0MKZwpF7kUABzr22t3TLG22FhWwG-7S93CjOxdHK23C1_Gw7xRmDuVVhCdo7o/s400/easter6.jpg" border="0" /></a> Look at those teeth comin' in!<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUZR7LRSyYI7NAIoFfh6ErlrZYbnCrpZfRyI_nzs1BZ-afj10ML0hnQTiWSXaJfYVI4Orp-5OFY9kyE51_WPIZib9eYCsklpDQHZ9gi5lKqr7ebjYDvd-VKe_kHtwI0X1mPOAv2oaBPiU/s1600/easter3.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458637694117958290" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUZR7LRSyYI7NAIoFfh6ErlrZYbnCrpZfRyI_nzs1BZ-afj10ML0hnQTiWSXaJfYVI4Orp-5OFY9kyE51_WPIZib9eYCsklpDQHZ9gi5lKqr7ebjYDvd-VKe_kHtwI0X1mPOAv2oaBPiU/s400/easter3.jpg" border="0" /></a> Hayden Lee</div><div><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihHdxqe1IRwrXgG6NwjlvyHDuPLH0BbG9e_3Z7SHpiqu4UD_7O-rwHC3f4UknCjLasPUvmHWJW0fJEvOAgABq1InVSIq_b6-u14mpMKAdyAgRSg8Iyg1ivQtJenioAwN4MvbM9vAe64uk/s1600/easter+5.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458637685762513794" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihHdxqe1IRwrXgG6NwjlvyHDuPLH0BbG9e_3Z7SHpiqu4UD_7O-rwHC3f4UknCjLasPUvmHWJW0fJEvOAgABq1InVSIq_b6-u14mpMKAdyAgRSg8Iyg1ivQtJenioAwN4MvbM9vAe64uk/s400/easter+5.jpg" border="0" /></a> Finally got the egg open to find JELLY BEANS!</div><div><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCCSUjp1y25JEFIcmI01iRaISkm2JbxWx8WoaHEFg9Hxy_4sMRXbvtJvWGpCB5eT8s5HLx4Zm19baCHJk15eE7vxw0rY8dvy64HRgXWrCSdA5YIoBPB_89ZTYJLL0_nZExhnJDVvMligw/s1600/easter2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458637681100096898" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCCSUjp1y25JEFIcmI01iRaISkm2JbxWx8WoaHEFg9Hxy_4sMRXbvtJvWGpCB5eT8s5HLx4Zm19baCHJk15eE7vxw0rY8dvy64HRgXWrCSdA5YIoBPB_89ZTYJLL0_nZExhnJDVvMligw/s400/easter2.jpg" border="0" /></a> Linds and her goofball fiance, Andy (you fit in perfect with this family!)</div><div><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1zUTGCq_RcfGZFmeKL7Hh0KtE6Jaf3VZzLdbeX80ctOiiJjqcnQVorY513cpOg1o70lKLANlE-r1eqEyiug4MsHwA1sYeHaR59375fF3syD3TTdNMEePzOPRg0moCyhlRbXGbc_PvP2g/s1600/easter1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458637669305412866" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 294px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1zUTGCq_RcfGZFmeKL7Hh0KtE6Jaf3VZzLdbeX80ctOiiJjqcnQVorY513cpOg1o70lKLANlE-r1eqEyiug4MsHwA1sYeHaR59375fF3syD3TTdNMEePzOPRg0moCyhlRbXGbc_PvP2g/s400/easter1.jpg" border="0" /></a> My sis and her beautiful family</div><div><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghOcEQp55AO0q45lUmS9Ea9QdnRMrJFpz_zZGq5i2lBQo6X1sYrRW8EYRbfH320siHNf9noJtUtIwfgU7TgFIftliaopuQ8wL6m9j8xnQrMQOdaMfKUMvBSPnSJfRP7Wbjupb85rjI_zc/s1600/DSC_0001.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458637663007761010" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghOcEQp55AO0q45lUmS9Ea9QdnRMrJFpz_zZGq5i2lBQo6X1sYrRW8EYRbfH320siHNf9noJtUtIwfgU7TgFIftliaopuQ8wL6m9j8xnQrMQOdaMfKUMvBSPnSJfRP7Wbjupb85rjI_zc/s400/DSC_0001.JPG" border="0" /></a> Teg loves his Uncle Billy </div><div> </div><div align="left"><br /><br />Though we all went home slightly pink from our day in the sun, we had a great time enjoying great company. It was the best time we've had in a long time and we all agreed that it should happen more often. <br /><br /></div><div></div></div></div></div></div><br /></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-66622180045728297912010-04-09T11:40:00.001-07:002010-04-09T12:48:44.093-07:00A Brother's IndiscretionSomething happened a week ago today that may change the dynamic of my husband's family from here on.<br /><br />For anyone reading this (especially those would be offended), please be advised that I blog as a therapy. I have been very careful in my selection of words and have left out the true names of those involved.<br /><br />As many of you know, Richie and I own a food service business that has several different locations, kind of like LifeChurch ;). Richie also has a brother that has been in and out of trouble for as long Richie and I have been married. For confidentiality, let's say this brother's name is "Alex." So Alex has an addictive personality and has been arrest multiple times for drug possession, usage, and driving under the influence. He has also overdosed at least once to my knowledge and wound up in the emergency room. Alex has a VERY difficult time with gainful employment due to showing up late and, in most cases, not showing up at all. One could only attribute this to the lifestyle he lives. Even Richie has hired and fired him multiple times due to his inconsistent work ethic.<br /><br />Back in November I believe, Alex met a woman named "Liz." I was introduced to Liz when Alex brought her over to my home. I remember distinctly pulling her asside and pleading with her to not fall into Alex's lifestyle. I begged, "Liz, don't let Alex pull you down to his level. Be strong and be the example he needs." She responded, "Oh, there is no way that will happen. I have a son; I have too much to lose."<br /><br />Through the month of December, I noticed that everytime Alex brought Liz around, she was nodding off during conversations and interactions. I knew...but I didn't want to admit it to myself.<br /><br />They were both arrested at the beginning of February with possession and under the influence of hydrocodone.<br /><br />Clearly needing help, Alex and Liz have moved in with Richie's mother and step-father, which we were not opposed to. Alex has gotten a job at a restaurant. Richie and I were both under the impression that they were both improving. Then they showed up at my son's 7th birthday party. Again, Liz was nodding off in the midst of the party and couldn't hold a conversation to save her life. She wished my nephew a happy birthday, clearly too high to tell one from the other. My heart sunk.<br /><br />To this, Richie contacted his mother to advise her of their current state. Our thinking was if Alex and Liz were living with us, we would want to know if the drugs had begun to take over again. We would not to be oblivious. However, Richie's mother defended them both and was adement that they were clean. Saddened, Richie threw up his hands.<br /><br />Then, last Friday, there was money missing from our register and the John Conrad Golf Course. Richie's nephew, "Scott," manages this facility for us and reported the missing money. The next morning, in shock and horror, both Richie and Scott reviewed the tapes with revealed Liz nearly emptying the register. It was only days later that, upon further review of the footage, Alex was also collecting more cash only five minutes after Liz.<br /><br />This weekend has been one of anger, resentment, hurt, disappointment, and saddness. When confronted immediately after the the incident, Liz claimed she had been in the register "paying for hot dogs." Scott had <em><strong>given</strong></em> them <em><strong>free</strong></em> hot dogs that were going to be thrown out at the end of the night. Not to mention, the video shows Liz clearly pulling money out a total of 5 times and never once putting money in. After the denial, the attack began. Richie received multiple threatening text messages and I received a very hurtful email from his brother. Finally came the admissions. The first excuse, in a desperate attempt to protect his girlfriend, was that Alex had told Liz that Richie was loaning them $60 and to go ahead and grab it from the register and that "she had no idea she had done anything wrong. Unfortunately, this excuse fell flat at the video shows both of them completely emptying the draw. The next excuse came in a last resort. They had both grown desperate and had not further explaination for themselves. They admitted to taking around $150 (which the video clearly shows them taking more than that) and that this was not the first time that they had helped themselves to our money.<br /><br />Richie's heart is broken. But not because his younger brother stole from him. He is heartbroken because his mother and step-father have turned their back toward the entire family for taking our side. His mother will not speak to him, nor any of the other family members, due to the fact that we are pressing charges. He had no idea that doing the right thing would ultimately lead to his mother disowning him.<br /><br />From here, we move forward, regardless of his mother's decisions. We press on knowing not only have we have done right by our family, our business, and by the law we all adhere to, but we also have done right by "Alex" and "Liz." We know, regardless of the opinion of Richie's mother and step-father, these two need serious help. I only hope they get it before it is too late.aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-74991093931259623542010-03-27T18:56:00.000-07:002010-03-28T20:49:19.413-07:00Payton's BirthdayPayton's 7th Birthday was a huge success! Over 20 kids came to enjoy the entertainment of the Mad Scientists of Oklahoma. For those of you who were unable to make it, here are some pictures of the event!<br /><br /><br /><div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453888598149282210" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjygBxo8neJhgqPAVE6UBjYzTWyAezUzkuIm-GnqvKHkr-QqP_7lNgY2H3L2xsERZSoXLaYuAytHd4Yd9AFpemnQNpW8MixOm6ZhTqefcbuacuIHAqufZDH4uDZ72FU4cuKCQ-YIzMrAKQ/s400/DSC_0039.jpg" border="0" /> <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453888602490147250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 334px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB-citKy6SjCAdiaM3zP3NjZxBfOeKswvLv6RifJeSNezCraZXf6xnrvul4OroaDrnInSBSV5HVd4-xRZP81smJlm6gHCzsUA83_aFl7kTsZWIrUqeB2uMXs7jFLA7UcWcmDofwB22TAQ/s400/DSC_0041.jpg" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453888607678468226" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyZylsJqNqMIKxXT_EJlmwXUaMeLqiMITS45zuuUwe9E9i6TPY9osMwFGIBdEvyKrMD9vTAzQgBjE6NVsW0xy_NhR3pYLcl9l2tMs4ZvmSjtQsxV4eBmjwBY0PvQWSQ_d-t8FgWdXWtac/s400/DSC_0042.jpg" border="0" /></div><div align="center">This amazing cake was created by my sister!!<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453888616077160626" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 259px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc93Cn9KNx6JV4CeYw5ES_ZIx7ZDYdMeqxitTYbdZEK_6cYT0pumHTpxvrSHZLY-j9HMiSLvQz9RGWSsz5myPfCXf3OIiqXB-FyvCtgiIF5238-R4salYBfJnbdzj946f_s3kE7gfPzNo/s400/DSC_0040.jpg" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Some extra cupcakes made in case we had more people that expected (which we did!).<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453888619178574274" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKV5EkUGXzRsjZM5FVv8EBk9_a0AtZOs5OUL0ZokZmkJfQ8_dc-ylZ5XKqF1Eqts_aMw3bIQdn-cV3GSrROMj7oREWSCEKOB6nyOre4uE9nleVyAr3iu9KFX7CZgS9u4Y8rZMFHbI6Y8U/s400/DSC_0043.jpg" border="0" /> </div><div align="center">Some of the "crowd" enjoying the Mad Scientist's experiments.<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453889170060874914" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsOmiTq-1saF8FhJoODkz7_CfCauIGTEVbvPwLXImle17V5KLIWjUlEW-NSs43fj3QZLXkv_T60tHE068ms99-iAPArpyzxHCMZiH7hU5vhx2OF44SJcaWp4tKFVuIfBllfkxxoHgkmek/s400/DSC_0056.jpg" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Making "goo."<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453889161824073442" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRzYzqf4EnBliaowz5jdxXIkiz-cked3fWHk5xwHETOuSkGXmGHRlTSksauoqJ1S3kxiIs7_79WsqlunWylpNNFWD7_Au5IdkmJT2AzQEZP26cNNd0MN4d2yeGfUb1IU_K3ATQFE71fXo/s400/DSC_0055.jpg" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453889173967545970" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 269px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjar2PxLIxWLdhAZWEfwdIyh5SGYkRmR5X0ny8W3AM1Lf1croHa5ZAnaoN1dTMXDg4YkDoyxaV9q96eJjug73e1tHC82zcS_RhZxcms_elrVFLgF_ZV12JulsSWAOZMfFw1i9Av5UgRCOk/s400/DSC_0065.jpg" border="0" /></div><div align="center">The birthday boy getting to set stuff on fire! :)<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453889176572467810" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 290px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVdNO_9waCoUPtkTDqDuuD7JewEQBvGLptLeoiZz6JBR-ArJ1Pha4lBk1ZGuvS6TklnqSDL9xRauyD4mXSIxIW9cayeh8SHQjiFCuvOKUetAOEUJ2rU_6Wj9JuJpiTHxCMTbzxlo22SIk/s400/DSC_0072.jpg" border="0" /> </div><div align="center">Getting instruction on how to ride the hovercraft (and visibly a little panicked).<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453889187558808130" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 373px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5gduT6aNdzPaT6qE_SObbkU4GcWHSkZTNjiMHRSR5Xt5b9DbGf4dW9fmhCBi45MLPyIMUyDVY8Bfcbp-rbexovM7AhCTZMNsMnipm3txAwisKrnB4VB5kCKqtIs_e-H9Z2CUf5-1ZXT0/s400/DSC_0075.jpg" border="0" /> </div><div align="center">Payton and the Mad Scientist<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453889893530385074" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1LUUIXKH5Jni-fWeUB5Eyf5PeyUR8sEGRHO65exp100PmEHr9pqDf_Y_aIWHo_kuyHbRmD_VZxKRCnJSZiw_0GjCCxokn73sJfg1d3rxtrAGKQIAskHTlheIKka8S1eEMCXS60TPbFsQ/s400/DSC_0087.jpg" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Opening gifts surrounded by great friends.<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453889887846930994" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGxy-KZRo7IwADy6nP_I-hfUgkb3FIsbEuzQOAlClX2skUMlDEZRcyvk24qpScrlFBTA4S9ulkKq_o6ZIlxAsoQ59cKcSGOZEb6c3jJywDkGKvMWx0F7CI2MDRJpn5MRhUOSx69BkskLY/s400/DSC_0084.jpg" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Such a sweet moment between Payton and a classroom friend.<br /><br /></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div align="center"></div><div></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5453889898609931554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZUxiiteu3Igat5eBXrbgI_j8DFUWb-4ubO_sRAAPJRGrok9hblq5COWa5LCQG0Dk71dQ7S87TYpKpkspcnSCKtjv3Byj4OJow7q-cUp3NA74uxyi-Vl5uc1IJY0LJHEnvWXGyf8PeThs/s400/DSC_0092.jpg" border="0" />The birthday boy and the end of a great day!</div><div align="center"></div><div align="left"><br />Such a great party! A HUGE thanks to Amanda...the cake was better than amazing! To the Mad Scientists...only you could have held the attention of 20+ children! And to all the family and friends who made it to celebrate my oldest's 7th birthday...thank you so very much for making his day!!<br /></div></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-1627765941108848722010-03-16T20:09:00.000-07:002010-03-16T20:13:24.397-07:00I had the opportunity to watch my nephew a week or so ago and while he was here, I caught some pretty cute moments between him and my son. They were enjoying just being next to each other and were pretty excited to be on my gigantic king-size bed. Have a look!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRfusGhF5hLHzBV3fbsDgisQI7QuXcMF2tUdlaJNK9eVdDIOIKp8hAbRpC3w5PHYRzYROuowxfbwnnrLM-yux5oSs0memzEI5oJ8IB3mXvOnSXNDfU-_1HW6tEue58RtOM5waZCZkrofo/s1600-h/DSC_0020.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449435010322442498" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRfusGhF5hLHzBV3fbsDgisQI7QuXcMF2tUdlaJNK9eVdDIOIKp8hAbRpC3w5PHYRzYROuowxfbwnnrLM-yux5oSs0memzEI5oJ8IB3mXvOnSXNDfU-_1HW6tEue58RtOM5waZCZkrofo/s400/DSC_0020.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAR9ynx5CfXRym8VbkX5RXgxcqrTCWs-xiV8_AZjqnSsBpD_zbDVeTUz6eOYADcX_Gs-BMjJikJb7xgrvvCylMQKeqo2Y3CH89hrVAMqyJHQDC-dgOYpu5lRu4kDJ_usFKOgJS-UGvcm4/s1600-h/DSC_0019.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449435008619962034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAR9ynx5CfXRym8VbkX5RXgxcqrTCWs-xiV8_AZjqnSsBpD_zbDVeTUz6eOYADcX_Gs-BMjJikJb7xgrvvCylMQKeqo2Y3CH89hrVAMqyJHQDC-dgOYpu5lRu4kDJ_usFKOgJS-UGvcm4/s400/DSC_0019.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDTxzZN-AeEsSclwO84a3TYRtZZs_Azhq6cHmTiKkBGqlOT53unAX1cYNs2ozu4EZSSuwdtBt0LcDxXQQWjOir5i-4B1Cwo9YoQseSp76I37LTdmHwG79-up7SH2epTcgpPN102yMylGs/s1600-h/DSC_0018.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449435001337747922" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDTxzZN-AeEsSclwO84a3TYRtZZs_Azhq6cHmTiKkBGqlOT53unAX1cYNs2ozu4EZSSuwdtBt0LcDxXQQWjOir5i-4B1Cwo9YoQseSp76I37LTdmHwG79-up7SH2epTcgpPN102yMylGs/s400/DSC_0018.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGREu0o6pxRR5VC4IIpp35cKi6eFUqVmUB8Jr8JsRKXG4WoO-AuDnP3APVtyQIZURBcXHmw7599KEapGNvJqBUuTMjy8WPBnOI-HqGqFCwUaASLtfaDl-61dXR-h72a1DS-ZZhD8fXAkU/s1600-h/DSC_0015.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5449434990567436338" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGREu0o6pxRR5VC4IIpp35cKi6eFUqVmUB8Jr8JsRKXG4WoO-AuDnP3APVtyQIZURBcXHmw7599KEapGNvJqBUuTMjy8WPBnOI-HqGqFCwUaASLtfaDl-61dXR-h72a1DS-ZZhD8fXAkU/s400/DSC_0015.JPG" border="0" /></a><br />Are these two not the sweetest things you have ever seen? I'm a pretty luck momma and aunty!</div><div> </div><div>Aimee<br /><div> </div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div></div></div></div></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-67839332466058235262010-03-15T20:45:00.000-07:002010-03-15T20:53:29.584-07:00FDR's Economic Bill of RightsFrom the mouth of someone way ahead of his time, Franklin D. Roosevelt led this country out of the greatest hardship it had ever known. Someone like that should be someone we take some pointers from today. Here is an excerpt from President Roosevelt's January 11, 1944 message to the Congress of the United States on the State of the Union:<br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">"It is our duty now to begin to lay the plans and determine the strategy for the winning of a lasting peace and the establishment of an American standard of living higher than ever before known. We cannot be content, no matter how high that general standard of living may be, if some fraction of our people—whether it be one-third or one-fifth or one-tenth—is ill-fed, ill-clothed, ill-housed, and insecure. </span></strong><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">"This Republic had its beginning, and grew to its present strength, under the protection of certain inalienable political rights—among them the right of free speech, free press, free worship, trial by jury, freedom from unreasonable searches and seizures. They were our rights to life and liberty.</span></strong><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">"As our nation has grown in size and stature, however—as our industrial economy expanded—these political rights proved inadequate to assure us equality in the pursuit of happiness.<br />We have come to a clear realization of the fact that true individual freedom cannot exist without economic security and independence. “Necessitous men are not free men.” People who are hungry and out of a job are the stuff of which dictatorships are made.</span></strong><br /><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">"In our day these economic truths have become accepted as self-evident. We have accepted, so to speak, a second Bill of Rights under which a new basis of security and prosperity can be established for all—regardless of station, race, or creed.<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">"Among these are:<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">The right to a useful and remunerative job in the industries or shops or farms or mines of the nation;<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">The right to earn enough to provide adequate food and clothing and recreation;<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">The right of every farmer to raise and sell his products at a return which will give him and his family a decent living;<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">The right of every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home or abroad;<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">The right of every family to a decent home;<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">The right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health;<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">The right to adequate protection from the economic fears of old age, sickness, accident, and unemployment;<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">The right to a good education.<br /></span></strong><br /><strong><span style="font-size:85%;">"All of these rights spell security. And after this war is won we must be prepared to move forward, in the implementation of these rights, to new goals of human happiness and well-being.<br />America’s own rightful place in the world depends in large part upon how fully these and similar rights have been carried into practice for our citizens."</span></strong><br /><br />Inspiring, isn't it? My husband said, "His words are probably the type of words Jesus would be preaching if He walked among us today." I think he's right.aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-16014489304370604682010-03-10T10:25:00.000-08:002010-03-15T09:37:26.052-07:00Sad RealizationsWhat happens when you think you know a person well, and that person turns out to be nothing like you thought?<br /><br />I never thought I'd lose a friend for nothing. I mean, I've lost friends over petty disagreements before. I've lost friends over misunderstandings. But at least I lost those friendships for something, even if they were stupid reasons. But as of late, I had never lost a friend over nothing.<br /><br />This particular friend gave me the friendship "pink slip" by deleting as a friend on a well-known networking site. How passive-aggressive is that?? Since being "de-friended," I have tried to call, text, and email her, to no avail. She has not responded to any of my attempts in contact. She has given me no reason for the break and seems to be holding the reason hostage. She has, however, emailed my husband to give him the benefit of knowing that "it wasn't him" that has her upset. Wow. Really? You could email my husband, but you couldn't email me. Coward. Not to mention, what jab. To email Richie knowing that he tells me everything. Knowing that he would let me read the email. Salt in a wound.<br /><br />It is so hurtful that someone who you've been so open and honest, someone you really thought you knew, could so easy turn on you. Someone who claims to be a Christian, but is being so far from Christ by being so unforgiving (if, in fact, I have done something wrong...). I don't want to be that kind of person, that kind of friend. When I befriend someone, I will always give them the opportunity to explain if they have done something to offend me. I will give them the benefit of the doubt. I will love them and forgive. And to know that, if the shoe were on the other foot, if the tables were turned, this is what I would have done for her. But she could not do that for me. It goes to show how much our friendship meant to her.<br /><br />It's situations like this that make me want to be ugly and hateful. To retaliate in some way. It makes me bitter and makes me wonder if it makes a difference whether or not I try to show love the way Christ shows love. But I will do it anyway. I will keep loving people as I always have, forgiving them when they fall short because I realize people are people. We all fall short. We all make mistakes. I also will not be controlled by situations like this. I actively choose love and forgiveness over bitterness. Bitterness is a root that, if allowed to grow, will take over your existence. Not me. I draw my line in the sand.aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-45260695500870784842010-03-07T16:09:00.000-08:002010-03-07T16:35:18.315-08:00My Littlest's 1st BirthdayWe had Teg's 1st birthday party today and it was fantastic! As you will see from the pictures, it was a "ball" and we had a "bouncing" good time. We shared food, cake balls, and a video of Tegan's first year of life (posted at the bottom). There was even a good hearty ball fight and the adults even joined in. It ended with Tegan face first in a cake all his own.<br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446050219804729906" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTXmgcgvUywz71tRGbckLNEHBJDBx-J_I8W1lmFqJZDbH7RqlPPhpaRN9ougj-Q4lvWz1GLPEqeoiTW_vpjzuZPctlyiAcmw-FHi2h9agRdaVdZ9mh0uMQideuhnNDgbOyuLDpmh84tuY/s400/DSC_0011.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446050228052112690" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOCOAAXwffZTDN9VTcSYnGQnwxqAoBDYaRIQ4wXarGGpKJlujYc9oy7jwn_kgOWyRJTGwn9csbhXBUZJJJOzvXhp3WXy6PKJ6IbT8buZjZ3Zdd-KQSzcqt-O7wY138ebY7uUwGTjcYyX4/s400/DSC_0012.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446050238347692978" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlWZjQXJxBhIPIZBEjdZa_6i-zzDtVWBqFR72T3OWthSJu_gbT-WL4CmZzMbIyIMc22pNxLyAI-WxR1d_dSm3LwukRUo79-VdWH7svYYygiTHGNovBE4Fbs4dvgylXClmsHUWOQggFxSY/s400/DSC_0013.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446050250851074834" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnZK1dErdHwhBj4jMh2nhVlFN-mC0nLzjJXRxA_0E5FeKnYO6RUB8o0bvTcsSEaJm1uvVrrOi1palQz4hxgQIx-QE5P5nZlDm9m96EOP-mYQnwGHcthU0sTMSaDGNlDa0leoH7pwkhuSA/s400/DSC_0014.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div><div><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKqc9pGw8oxiR_t2MdbrVJLXigS7Pxkb4hbQTZFAA1Jo5LmQ3wWVyaCHxb3swV8isf4-jnxcWdSik-KVeaI0GsoEnMcPrlRHQcLd-aONf_QHk58xr2hrf4TFYLLp36e7vClHXovkVCZo/s1600-h/DSC_0040.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446051354154202674" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJKqc9pGw8oxiR_t2MdbrVJLXigS7Pxkb4hbQTZFAA1Jo5LmQ3wWVyaCHxb3swV8isf4-jnxcWdSik-KVeaI0GsoEnMcPrlRHQcLd-aONf_QHk58xr2hrf4TFYLLp36e7vClHXovkVCZo/s400/DSC_0040.JPG" border="0" /></a> <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446053415059275730" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrbdOZvEs6oV9CzwHciTDF-CeX9gYka_WoCvsLTMeLO_SvfRqsxWqo1IRscxOQsL6ncw_tAfcZRegCRddzp2bdEPeArZxfQBP0w1Xvs-fxghBFpCaZA5KL5Jka9qCdkisfLcJZzR3nNkw/s400/DSC_0019.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZNE4XHqzC2D0f7_GTp94Txke6kJfegmetvVXqVJX5etnCRVe7DOfIZxgmGx66XxjQKPHxnhWVPGBBFgwHEZOn1YqulEFWQQ4kvJFF7Gle5tJZnotycjC5z2dBq7qiy_ztCNcRGfwFTbQ/s1600-h/DSC_0020.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446051336358347346" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZNE4XHqzC2D0f7_GTp94Txke6kJfegmetvVXqVJX5etnCRVe7DOfIZxgmGx66XxjQKPHxnhWVPGBBFgwHEZOn1YqulEFWQQ4kvJFF7Gle5tJZnotycjC5z2dBq7qiy_ztCNcRGfwFTbQ/s400/DSC_0020.JPG" border="0" /></a> <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446053407749276034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXxMIQgPU111SzKTUhzB62LQHcE6YNKWYgCK33Yo3mKx2dGo3NgIlt1E6ZKtTeJtkifNCuuf1mp489Xoe0txoq8vTN5o0ryGI1Ggz8qXnuiTRBbZD_Jeo4BmGV7MZ-x9l_KuMZNmF_rIQ/s400/DSC_0017.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihGGQbqFXXuEY5HxzjkMktjJfZH0WvusAEaLwrOqBReWVSD36-2fWkoWj1ApIFzRpCJNCdqjPuoSK5JQwYltQ48UjHr3x6ozCKfjWZ_EMBMtWmZHhtAPTxYau5NGg4D4Knp8Ni6_js_sk/s1600-h/DSC_0059.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446050846241226930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihGGQbqFXXuEY5HxzjkMktjJfZH0WvusAEaLwrOqBReWVSD36-2fWkoWj1ApIFzRpCJNCdqjPuoSK5JQwYltQ48UjHr3x6ozCKfjWZ_EMBMtWmZHhtAPTxYau5NGg4D4Knp8Ni6_js_sk/s400/DSC_0059.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrQQ_ZN4Gmk8M4bVYSZ8eApvw3JHhHDq6xwG_NQluor4KNvDWecI4HGJQEMfHeXs6-d0rqwPmF1HwnhugWd5lFLzMiHjhzHoqjnbTcC_COavNzTrKxy7VRGLMfXB_V1KUFnszJmvtRXF0/s1600-h/DSC_0063.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446050836734875378" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrQQ_ZN4Gmk8M4bVYSZ8eApvw3JHhHDq6xwG_NQluor4KNvDWecI4HGJQEMfHeXs6-d0rqwPmF1HwnhugWd5lFLzMiHjhzHoqjnbTcC_COavNzTrKxy7VRGLMfXB_V1KUFnszJmvtRXF0/s400/DSC_0063.JPG" border="0" /></a> <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446053427328855474" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkMPTApczxSu3bMxWG7WwJa4sUP8x3V1wwGIQKhsS2qdL31f8O-7ewVcEAtbcqkvf_JAgfeiYmAo8A0vXoxcniYM6Ve4IRfXCh7TCYhGuVwyVRJ4lx3sc7xtCNGDgagS1NgX-tSGW0x1A/s400/DSC_0053.JPG" border="0" /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446051362475028706" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6s3Q2GL9F9cT86ReoxEhrjbMzBJhXspIl88-Za50jVl9Whiy5Kiht-9WndgGz5S7-0_7PL5mzkusI7E9M0KQWbO5cCM8leLW1a9LOEGtGBxTvHdEsS6vbWpTKrZh-_7iMkbMl9Q_I8Ms/s400/DSC_0066.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8L3FfQY_EWrVlUIBtd66w-waUjcP0ByBunrCa3gxRf6aIJlrLMOXxTiGUPQNY4s4XDeBWQsfz7hvAqKmIc3d2SPELZB6Ev-iaXmeP89igGHox7Q8SqgwlY7lPbLBufREITG07FAN-81Q/s1600-h/DSC_0069.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5446050833470434146" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8L3FfQY_EWrVlUIBtd66w-waUjcP0ByBunrCa3gxRf6aIJlrLMOXxTiGUPQNY4s4XDeBWQsfz7hvAqKmIc3d2SPELZB6Ev-iaXmeP89igGHox7Q8SqgwlY7lPbLBufREITG07FAN-81Q/s400/DSC_0069.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div><br /><tr><br /><td><a href="http://smilebox.com/play/4d5455304d546b314d54593d0d0a&blogview=true&campaign=blog_playback_link" target="_blank"><img style="BORDER-RIGHT: medium none; BORDER-TOP: medium none; BORDER-LEFT: medium none; BORDER-BOTTOM: medium none" height="303" alt="Click to play this Smilebox slideshow: Tegan's First Birthday" src="http://smilebox.com/snap/4d5455304d546b314d54593d0d0a.jpg" width="386" /></a></td></tr><br /></div><div></div><div>A huge "thank you" to those who came and made the get-together a party!! We love you!</div><div> </div><div></div><div>Aimee <div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-15261711735319383102010-03-05T16:32:00.000-08:002010-03-05T16:45:23.839-08:00A Change of CourseIn my last post, I spoke of the huge leap I was taking by attending OU and taking the pre-requisites needed for medical school. It was only approximately 2 weeks after that post that I had a change of heart. Through a series of events, I withdrew from my classes and have decided to take a small break. This, however, does not mean I will not pursue my dream of becoming a doctor. It does mean that I am restructuring my plan of action and reconsidering everything. Some thing I have learned as a result of my failed attempt at this semester:<br /><br />My family needs me more than I realize. Even when I was trying my best to be present in the moment with the children, I found it very difficult to focus on them completely. I cannot let this happen in the future if and when I return to school.<br /><br />My husband needs me more than I realize. The constant stress of school work held my attention across the board and caused my marriage to suffer as a result. Again, I cannot let this happen in the future.<br /><br />OU was not meant for me. After attending a small, private, learning institution, the transition to an extremely large, public, research university proved to be too much for me. <br /> <br />In short, this semester was a loss. But it was not a total loss, as I learned some very valuable lessons. I will in turn take these lessons and not repeat my mistakes. In the meantime, I am planning two birthday parties and have decided that, while I'm not in school, I will devote my extra time to helping my husband with our business. I am excited to be taking a small break without the stress of school. I am excited to be reconnecting with my family.aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-29152108059473274862010-02-16T11:09:00.000-08:002010-02-16T11:37:24.614-08:00TransitionsOnce again, it's been awhile. But for good reason. I started school again this semester. As many have asked, "Didn't you just graduate." My answer is, yes, I did just graduate....with my Bachelors. But, really...you didn't think I'd stop at the four year mark, did you?? ;) Some of you know that I have talked about becoming a doctor for quite some time. Well, that's the plan. Right now, to be admitted to medical school, there is no specific Bachelors degree required, you simply have to have a Bachelors degrees. There are, however, pre-requisite courses required, all of which I do not have. And these courses will probably take me a good 2 years. Yikes!! And then after obtaining these courses, I will (hopefully) be accepted to med school. <br /><br />I am attending OU and I am taking Trigonometry, Chemistry I, and Biology. Three courses that total 12 credit hours. I am 4 weeks into the semester and it has been a difficult and exhausting start. It is truly testing me, and I feel like God is helping me prove to myself how much I want this. My family has been great about this transition and have been incredibly supportive and encouraging. (Although I would have to say that they make it incredibly hard to leave for school everyday. I just assume stay home and cuddle and play with them all day!) But I know it won't alway be this way. And in the meantime, I have decided to become a master in time management. Scheduling my time is not only beneficial, but necessary, and I'm learning to prioritize my time. With all that being said, please be in constant prayer for me. I'm going to need it this semester and for the semesters to come. <br /><br />Payton is doing great, excelling in school and growing, growing, growing. He will be testing again for his yellow belt at the end of this month. Tegan is a handfull and completely opposite of his brother. Payton was always (and still is) very clean and neat. Tegan loves to make a mess of everything! Unlike his brother, he doesn't mind being sticky and dirty. In fact, I think he would prefer it. I believe we're going to try to make another trip to Little Rock for a laser treatment over Spring Break. I am also in the process of planning 2 birthday parties! Boy, having two little ones born in the same month makes for a busy and expensive March! Tegan will be 1 and Payton will be 7! How time flies. <br /><br />Richie is doing well also. Business has been slow with the weather, especially at the golf course. We also sold one of our locations in an attempt to streamline the business. Aside from work, he has been the most amazing husband and father. He has scheduled his time in such a way that he is able to stay home with the boys while I go to school. He has been the most supportive person in my life and believes in me when I don't believe in myself. I praise God for coupling me with such an amazing person. I COULD NOT do it without him. But enough with all the mushy stuff! :)<br /><br />Until next time!<br /><br />Aimeeaimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-79461114289865923612010-01-15T11:35:00.000-08:002010-01-15T12:50:08.779-08:00November/DecemberIt is really hard to believe I haven't posted a blog since just after Halloween. Time sure does fly when you're having fun (and when you're really busy!). So here are the updates you must be dying for ;)<br /><br /><br /><div><div><div><div><div><div><div>Thanksgiving was very nice. Normally we gather at Granny's house, but this year was different for very obvious reasons. Instead, we congregated at my house and I was more than happy to host! Though Granny was missed, we had a very good time reminiscing and laughing. </div><br /><div>Christmas was also fabulous, especially for the kids. Payton got the science stuff he had requested from Santa along with some other great gifts. Tegan could have cared less. </div><br /><br /><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427054544541725282" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMfx0MqIPeqW0Uv3G8TF-mAcw5BZcq-DIUq_frjkUUIVw_rWsjVytTAGqAcfPvu4AtF1eoxTjmabL2xOnfkKHXJiiioRTzccU48gJ292gjPNRWNRdAW9tqj_mgXozZkb9BT0LZkV3VmQA/s400/DSC_0093.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427054548883268498" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiljvojTVgOUv_zwtRYxrvTKHbqRq9WT-eKDBvNF1DRMQ_gV21c1PZAKHQK31Gqy1vx0SmCyHZqUAuPf9J5ZUkPsAzGIGPh2XZpJh53fC3nYh_r7wxdtKlx_EXHFuxYWADR3RdPUC2vvlo/s400/DSC_0095.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427054555275896882" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQEVolZ5Yp-JV7m0UXqrB-tErOzeNV9AQDf4duLRh-55qdaY3W-AtT6Xj4V1pYmqPPe7Z4Uhg_ARH5xS-sUaY02ZMm0WN34sW4epHq1hIomPZX-qCRsci0biSXZc3G_Pi3gPKjFkQPUZU/s400/DSC_0099.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427054567521792802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIyFL34uiHrUZkv3_WmiiXXi3iDNSA3r253rgmiA_5HjexksyeVlPfuS5TnLXMU26gKcr0CnQXS7eczdF3WTDvdNO49UJH5BFhKZhfAkKlpOsYiBuwwKPpXkULqZp6sLFs-FR_fu2C3A0/s400/DSC_0100.JPG" border="0" /><br />And, to our surprise, our female Shih Tzu gave birth to six puppies on Christmas morning. These pictures were taken a few days because, frankly, they were not the cutest creatures on the day of their arrival.</div><div> <br /><br /></div><div> </div></div></div></div></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427055933978319794" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjzBk1l-eIz8UQ4QE6ZCloSkv6v-2AXjSXBmIsf89u1HuAZYW3kNid_q7UhuOGhLaCPJR8LwaBZ9goeSpLJ5qaIVvXAzcsTs_H-aCkyz0apWzgPtNi0pEJKSbgKPTpFLKyDByv_L1pM5U/s400/DSC_0109.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427055947745444354" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbNqlKYBoo0GcP_VpYakHW6D9wnwfJMTXNl6Fh6XZn0RD-ePsNX0FbXsziFwSFvUzeAFrtONFZO-i51Z8cc62gGZLRqK8LLDGK9alO_U7ri23DF9DMfN-HoPYWXFAot32tBH_YS7FXBxk/s400/DSC_0112.JPG" border="0" /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427055943045827426" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhR0ZnUVTg5tP3w4Yi5RjWHtfDmPVx3PQEU2_3WJoKcCEt_zUqWs_48m2V-HEkeVWCKPw_66JhTVoehOhinU1QY7d-esQjRuS_VPBsDcT4x10Q9xv5mR8FZIdnNQJW593hFLonzbQpAPRo/s400/DSC_0110.JPG" border="0" /></div></div><br /><br /><p>Also, in the month of December....I graduated! </p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5427057280069819170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMTx7hScuuFXdGWphv-oHQweECJc_a_jlDCapMivlUSOsbi_MVxp7v2SlCdjrzuK3WS-ZFD-oWmqUSWpysE_d1wQWZDyN_WSO66X0T_LVDncWaAKGF__5oJVBTkDevrH0HJtk9-H9aHkk/s400/DSC_0003.JPG" border="0" />Thanks for reading!</p><p>Aimee<br /></p><p></p>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-60987504823099267592009-11-15T13:36:00.000-08:002009-11-15T14:06:19.972-08:00Halloweeeen! (serious picture overload)First I want to point out how cute our Halloween theme was...Payton was Bumblebee the Transformer and Tegan was a bumblebee!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448975970002130" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOY_ZULdeb2xXBYQFucMB8L6L0k4jqKVoB6U9xtzBRde7td2WNKTCsXR5q4o-vwvBqvWbBdqfGL5fwjWWvpZLP1LWQvZ1i3G7v3SWs9X0SUyA5sfbfK7PP49gg7elOWIBWz6k4UNnpQCM/s400/DSC_0071.JPG" border="0" /><br />The night before Halloween, we visited Mustang's "Spooktacular" were we Trick-or-Treated in the library, played carnival games in the gymnasium, and visited a haunted house in the Senior Center!<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448059901960962" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNmle_QYmVG3EntrB7ZWJsSXSkxF6szXwiwsnFQPRXHx3XKuvYa5rmqJzw8JXVGZFgS38xxxxzVAkP9J9HgWfxzkewdfeEHsW5AIiyz7jV5XkoLLQT-nDH_HUSZdFSe6GCFBF7DnrfBTg/s400/DSC_0013.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div align="center">Waiting in a long line to get into "Spooktacular."</div><br /><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448064327861714" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirV7A_aYD3AvGS8BBlScJjoUAeyC0BuMUwbPSRSWeIXmK5rYXB20RfeP0D7_JxpriKDUBBAIkVyUURlmjxjRuZfN1e0p04JCZwUp-MTuvBWKE0gP4G0ZjpM21gXYMmf0vPQHrM9Vg9QoY/s400/DSC_0016.JPG" border="0" /> He won the first Bingo game of the night!!! </div><div align="center">And picked out a whoopie cushion as his prize. Haha!<br /></div><br /><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448073216934034" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjM-JHdbBqNU9DkJjPgSV71Nw4OC4_r-jyaGv2gRca8PBaPpCiLSQ2pcZEfL2VrcwXyjG16RDj_n8dyCB7_uBxwjzw3huplr9gH66xmbD4E67Q5OHukE7_Apvs9OUzuE8UVbt103GeBNow/s400/DSC_0024.JPG" border="0" /> Playing games.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448076662483714" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUdejgJCEp0l-vCKbBH8uIaesGMrhWyRBTtp8NCpsgWZBXqF2vvJi261-EYioY_xgjDnyhN5BENBpVQ10aJR_1vV0pdpVwTz_bPh7BMhQ7BUFwQ7Jv0SUfLO-ZpWHf5pB6HzTj0Qyy5Tg/s400/DSC_0038.JPG" border="0" /><br />Taking a break from all the business and listening to spooky stories in the library.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448963864151586" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjBYnkuTUmg47JPZzf2qFvJr-rx-7Hp-wEc9psMPuJXDucXu0etabR5k6xuOL973SWyX0EibYFFOwjc2ll2kDNSjumt3GUMxE6h2xz_Wu5P_TiZf_cSP4qg7v4rw0YJORbtDLzlA1c3ppo/s400/DSC_0040.JPG" border="0" /><br />Tegan found a cute little girl to flirt with.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448550753457138" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRF3JNWxV_4d0u6GEzHwaS_Z8D5QzX3TYvw_pMjwnlFFVOmw4328j1BxwOeVnPeS6XvSw8MaTSqh4dhzrLa8sTJQPKRK04b9_98Zw_aP21qAb6k-mvWX1_hghWQVXQhVAD9sTAbenGrhk/s400/DSC_0042.JPG" border="0" /><br />"Please, Mom...<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448554545329250" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirIXqDTG9vGwa8TuhTnuXnNpgds-pxBYuqaqxhm2OuyU7wXqMKiKP3VT3yhWGbj_kiivWi7XOqiFhBqSTAjj0gtHfnTnIJKVBNbmNG9UtB70gRoqZC8vwd5nIOvDm6WfLc6UmaP0NSiTM/s400/DSC_0043.JPG" border="0" /><br />...no more pictures!"<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448542720684930" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGNTZnYhGcg37dNGI1zbm070vLx2f_0huIeku9JQdUqYgLS9RecVfv-IC8HOkP_v9GQpwG_BEbnljpH3ECBCN1RFi9F4sxH8lGe8W6CdGYMwaYqicf8mUp7PiQg5fNMPIh_GXRz7Vu9Hk/s400/DSC_0025.JPG" border="0" /><br />Payton with friends Jackson and Elliot.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448545194207170" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4d9nVLcLpix1i_e7Ek13VdkNbNnBx1PCQwqfvKavs0fTClCtUFL4f__29RXfNxqsQlejBme8xj8ET88hZTh07_78GxmJFnjKIkWW8ac3XYu1pdekU554pCLIl_ySWD4-3g-oXQIXHn8o/s400/DSC_0032.JPG" border="0" /><br />At the Haunted House in the Senior Center.<br />All the ghouls and goblins were seniors! It was hilarious!<br /><br /><div align="left"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448069104910082" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGyoAxvNuJZKsxuVqqT_beIRHvgh8B4-aVZ3VyftZKTuZOlBsv1QxC8E25lc-NBZO5Xgfql8ls7twAfFaOtblb_wO9mvMVbsiQknCucBv5TxUZABfYcwAgyCggb0c6tCDkCeNyTczvWx8/s400/DSC_0021.JPG" border="0" /><br />Halloween night was spent over at my Granny's house. For as long as I can remember, we have always gone to Granny's house to Trick-or-Treat, and this year wasn't going to be any different. Although we missed her greatly, we had a great night of pumpkin carving, good conversation, and laughter.<br /><br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsPiFMKQLpFb5LGtVw2I8pc_J6KD1r2kDGikAv9I8YFp5Qg5drBzEzVYqu8JMRswJkdowh9E3Zhp9bIpcCTNXGROzQR4UzHYmsMQAOEQI3pc1WPVFjq6CAnT9LqjYuBMijqLAaDFrLuGA/s1600-h/DSC_0094.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448971284578642" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsPiFMKQLpFb5LGtVw2I8pc_J6KD1r2kDGikAv9I8YFp5Qg5drBzEzVYqu8JMRswJkdowh9E3Zhp9bIpcCTNXGROzQR4UzHYmsMQAOEQI3pc1WPVFjq6CAnT9LqjYuBMijqLAaDFrLuGA/s400/DSC_0094.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="center">Fireman Hayden</div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448965358833538" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9D2FVHvpp6NenKmGzla-W_MittbH8uPaR8l4Nv-ADTNH-PQFL1f9ydahLQYk04SOl5vxaV-Gmiej2YvbZkoGnVPRHd8gkdpSGmNH-QDtMf9ef_4nmJL1tdf2pXTLAsXu7LWi85enzdl4/s400/DSC_0085.JPG" border="0" /><br /><div align="center">Cousins</div><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448981339794242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiihjdIqh8uxc__QMn3q-1nVAN2LYdT5Y4wAen0HpaR6HTjYIy9th4Vq8GVpyW6o7UVuHXKayhyKn8PrI1BZDsg9nVk5X57YD3ob1OkWWJ4vrmDJGWkPIuxlY4WQNfR5zM6c1WhLtT5_1M/s400/DSC_0102.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">My sister and her family</div><div align="left"><br /></div><div align="center"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404448557562786994" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6Ol_afwHUjJl1CQ5KjXZSKSM0JggCteREXEkf1sXq8hO6842IJUF288qj8Oj0gcuhV_x5uoFMg8P5nJhgHwsDejK3W37RxqfOzPxe2Ay8V72-or5wJxm88ZI4g9SwJ-NzmYW1VNgaL2Y/s400/DSC_0079.JPG" border="0" />My littlest bee.<br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404449203187918754" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhniN_p6HS_UIxlTyZzWZa0obsb7v1hGR5_rYo6rUMrTvJrDQnBBUy9_wFUOq6CJoQxtQ-NfTchstyd2MBKw6JLK1CpYE4sj2D1RVr9bZePe3J2d13-Y2bPyVXXgylCNvn-dnLC1Gp3po8/s400/DSC_0095.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">All tuckered out, and it was still daylight outside!</div><div align="center"><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404449196301016546" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkgJFmn0hNql17g9SyRi5I8LRJMl0A-sc1cuHCfmy9Cqo_B7vwfIxLVfWAeOuYmZTKCovfWCoIRe022YOIg4i2BhrT9frmbZm0Sq4Xhe7TrYfm4qGSe7d-zGWsrHOaDlvUyosqu2dG8pQ/s400/DSC_0100.JPG" border="0" />Momma and her bees. Gosh, I love these little boys!<br /><br /><div align="left">Anyhow, that was our Halloween adventure for the year. Hope you enjoyed the pictures!</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Aimee<br /></div><div><div><div><div><div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-79578934394320345592009-11-15T13:10:00.000-08:002009-11-15T13:27:07.782-08:00Portraits From Long AgoThis post is long overdue. I don't know why I have put it off for so long, but without further ado, here are our first ever family portraits and include Tegan's 4 month pictures and also some of Payton.<br /><br /><br /><div><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404441443030463090" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEge5-377k9RoMK3B7HGwwxSpCOCGRPI7DeSnDgJRIHKcQUJ5ZG5PB0ce9d8rBsiEnoqX0biyJq7E3OMnZ0XqKk0vw55iRZE5SHJvs3iqSE5dV4PKABQoTcl0BAlTcgSkzEhBt65qqF3tZY/s400/Picture+004.jpg" border="0" /></p><br /><br /><br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404441921678669906" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6HHpmS2x7vJ4shGuR5FZAxWMR1ESWY8iq8EaVgIoPyQdPkwE6cGPJVoNVHJNJ7O6CKgCRhgy4CRuMuyNXwfLB1f78r3pwF691u08IwoFQJkPQjNRwWGe74xY_YP15y-_1c6V2m5GCWpU/s400/Picture+006.jpg" border="0" /><br /></p><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbl_wpFQphD4m87SVgH4xBqhqmX0xBfJVs5cRqxo_oBJMAVeM7AmZL6OoqLAPBSRz9XHqxPyEg-JqFmP8H8eVwoUjjncq1QswwPaHMnNdssLSjRfITMNhdNUC1I9mdzmsylXfBxxYzS_8/s1600-h/Picture+021.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404441934977067074" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbl_wpFQphD4m87SVgH4xBqhqmX0xBfJVs5cRqxo_oBJMAVeM7AmZL6OoqLAPBSRz9XHqxPyEg-JqFmP8H8eVwoUjjncq1QswwPaHMnNdssLSjRfITMNhdNUC1I9mdzmsylXfBxxYzS_8/s400/Picture+021.jpg" border="0" /></a> </div><br /><br /><div><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404442785890860242" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj32vBvWH2EoKqUS9NU9EieNmNmTmjr80CbYjwD_ryw37H4EE1TaDiR-9buW5-EBhlxVPM7Xm_LzCXxLZAbWv6NzlJFZZIRyBmhVr0gNAzjAyHurdMGtsiFDShJLEntFZ4xfn8PHJUrQcQ/s400/Picture+022.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTyDe6BvY_98sNj8u6ja7SBzBPcUupKahd2E27j4Xym-ttWRCTlk3B4KSoyAOOr6WnCGgwEwxMMT2kP6hJUmaMaZE3hQJBE7sQO0Bof4phQoGFw-ROIZwIswZjs4UcsfQSfRaZwt3osWo/s1600-h/Picture+014.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404441932979538018" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTyDe6BvY_98sNj8u6ja7SBzBPcUupKahd2E27j4Xym-ttWRCTlk3B4KSoyAOOr6WnCGgwEwxMMT2kP6hJUmaMaZE3hQJBE7sQO0Bof4phQoGFw-ROIZwIswZjs4UcsfQSfRaZwt3osWo/s400/Picture+014.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBXRS1VQ-aG_KLelwWzdZ60-fuxG78oiHP_pwXisbzXo6iu_tvV8MvB2UT0vLJ1bbyOYZ6iEO1zNFam6uU0WZuglVxqF0N6gKR4OLxwGZA_z28iAyiya7vT_NBOOVAVSwpJeiz5awKLgs/s1600-h/Picture+009.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404441927599451330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBXRS1VQ-aG_KLelwWzdZ60-fuxG78oiHP_pwXisbzXo6iu_tvV8MvB2UT0vLJ1bbyOYZ6iEO1zNFam6uU0WZuglVxqF0N6gKR4OLxwGZA_z28iAyiya7vT_NBOOVAVSwpJeiz5awKLgs/s400/Picture+009.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div><br /><br /></div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404441939057593330" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 267px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhknxZ1VIVitf04SbQS0z2FblEHImU-ZBCCM0rLBos1NWKTl9L_vFAM5wLtkavIiKAHql5ANvcdwlrnSIn0lQFxGAbPzU0CQyyH2Qm0z-XJ16X0EmmE_4pTPQsMZMFNdxM7KkIExOajpeI/s400/Picture+024.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404442783257923186" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 267px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilfFUKVqtPPy2xCYvCzjbEYKh0cv7xCkFj1nggZ7UvCtZaM4KOOCgxP87PROwnSxIdMp0nqVbUV-YgIglxSoO70JSYQ89JDm6PBNyObAZx5Fjruv5Zks2xD3bBAY3KZaA0TYZJSq-1iS0/s400/Picture+028.jpg" border="0" /><br />I know some of you have seen these on my Facebook account already, but I wanted to post them for those of you who don't have a Facebook and haven't seen them yet. </div><div> </div><div>Again, these portraits were taken by my good friend, Melissa. Check out more of her work at <a href="http://www.naturalphotography.smugmug.com/">www.naturalphotography.smugmug.com</a>. <br /><br /><br /><div><br /><br /><br /></div></div></div></div></div>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-66834308016142280352009-10-23T12:04:00.000-07:002009-10-23T12:16:57.044-07:00Payton's New ThingBaseball season is over and we've been wanting to find an winter extra-curricular activity for Payton. I immediately thought "karate." So I called around to some dojos around the Oklahoma City area but their rates were outrageous! It was at the Mustang Days Parade that I received a flier from a karate group that meets at the Mustang Community Center. They only charged $30 a month for a student to attend twice a week for 1 and a half hour! I was so stoked! So after discussing it with Payton and after fall ball ended, he began a new hobby! We are so excited about karate; Payton really enjoys it. I thought that the time would be a problem...I mean, I can hardly focus on anything for 1.5 hours. But he LOVES it! Here are some pictures I captured on his first day at the dojo.<br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395875663983601042" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiUtjv3dB1_NImt_9yiw61mgHgqspfwWGEXVrSrYLcR_NXEvyoYTiqE76WVDTPbPmTvLbqqCc-Bn9oJ8Jyk49qxNVGm_Lw3o-SiEkHoB6eeAtyLKY3dzdE8xGK5EwKGdLOKGyT1hwyufiw/s400/DSC_0035.JPG" border="0" /><br /><p> </p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395875665714855554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqMEI4PYG0IRRY9V0ZzwPGKclrXwYAwAFr_mrkVjFQK3aY8yiUFASBvduDywfoSWNbwMBPark9ZHThDIxBNuPm-q65iinACwgi_xrrpYurmXSF9aGBmpLFvSiIrRO6LfG9IYt_HFfWy4k/s400/DSC_0036.JPG" border="0" /></p><p> </p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395875674832796002" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhm74e84Kfy-Juaa_F8GCkOpj0SRCZ79GJJzHleV6o_UKBYPqulRCxSIrAtnWOb14inE9LJIXY50lnL0mORhBc3Y29EMESys_XkUudUA0o7x8oTzzp7lmK-dx8p3sMCH8gs3VsPQKIIEo8/s400/DSC_0038.JPG" border="0" /></p><p> </p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395875677991443890" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-0uhtsdYaaiEaiTqRXdQbPfOsxioazvYMXCnFunwOsut_CHs9bl-wcok0_VuCHksssV7UQ5k01dWpNcVotGt-JrnukMGa-MUF2nNpHsSG1Nf52NYOy1oV57TIb6X4v_L4NpLZZYQmSEw/s400/DSC_0040.JPG" border="0" /></p><p> </p><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395875685298556722" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOS0pJEioZsQg7dzNYIJ6mN5ojBnvUNdH1RlbwgXl9_FcuAvG44JyAhs0CE9Xey_S6bcxZ6yysdXyJ5aBpbMEkaR29orP_B7hPWbZwEdSOn9J9G24VM0koyGFLXjNJ_DYzbG-R2XspXCQ/s400/DSC_0041.JPG" border="0" /></p><p>Thank for reading!</p><p>Aimee</p><p> </p>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-6145696281608785902009-10-22T07:26:00.000-07:002009-10-22T08:09:54.576-07:00A Granny Like No OtherOn Saturday October 17, my granny left her earthyly body and joined her Heavenly Father. She had recently been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and only 3 weeks ago had a successful procedure to remove the tumor. After her surgery, she stayed at my Aunt Barb's house so someone would always be available to her. Everything seemed to be going so well. A week ago today she had a check up with her surgeon and, although he expressed some concern with her platelet count, he seemed to be pleased with the way she was recovering overall.<br /><br />Saturday seemed like any other day. She had not complained greatly about the amount of pain she was in and seemed to have more of an appetite than usual. But Saturday was not like any other day. It was the day in which she would have a massive heart attack. <br /><br />I received the call from my dad who informed me that my aunt and cousin Lindsay were taking her to the ER in Yukon...and that things didn't look good. He let me know that she was having a heart attack, but because of the major surgery she had had only a few weeks earlier, the medical staff could not give her any medicine as this would cause her to bleed out immediately. I rushed to the hospital. When I arrived, she was still in cardiac arrest. She appeared to be gasping for air, but we were informed that this was just a bodily reaction to the dying process. They had her on an oxygen mask and were pumping her full of pain meds so she would not feel anything. It was the most surreal feeling standing there watching my grandmother die. There was nothing anyone could do...and there was nothing I could do.<br /><br />Barb asked me to pray. We all joined hands and I began to speak to God. I prayed for peace. I prayed for our family. And just as I began to pray to commit her spirit to Him, her blood pressure bottomed out and her heart began to stop. If you were in that room, there would be no question in your mind that God is real. <br /><br />They removed the oxygen mask. Her body had completely relaxed. She was no longer in cardiac arrest. Her heart was no longer beating. She was gone. <br /><br />She was the kind of granny that wouldn't let my parents spank me. She was the kind of granny that would let me eat Kentucky Fried Chicken in the middle of the night. She was the kind of granny who loved completely unconditionally. She was the kind of granny who would give you ANYTHING she had. And if she didn't have it to give...she'd find it. She was the kind of granny who would listen...just listen. She wouldn't judge or question. She would just listen. Sometimes I felt like she was the only person who really listened to me. <br /><br />She will be missed by so many people, one being my oldest son Payton. He had a special relationship with her. They were very close and she thought he could do no wrong. Every time we went to Yukon, he would ask to go to Granny's. He enjoyed her and her home just as I had in my youth. There was something about going to her house and having nothing expected of you. At her house, you could just be. He would go there, eat what ever his heart desired, watch cartoons, and play with the toys that had accumulated there. Their bond was strong and I am so thankful they had a chance to get to know each other. <br /> <br />Granny, I love you. More than you will ever know. <br /> <br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/jwk0wYAAO9A&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/jwk0wYAAO9A&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3573592692931281816.post-89915918168674239352009-10-10T18:54:00.000-07:002009-10-10T19:29:01.621-07:00Loosing and Gaining TeethI know, I know. It's been forever. I must admit, my boys (especially the littlest one) keep me very busy. So, here are some updates.<br /><div><div><div><br /><div>Tegan is now 7 months old and is learning to crawl. He rolls all over the living room and scoots/army crawls to arrive at his thought-out destination. He's pretty quick and keeps me on my toes. He is also pulling up with little assistance and loves to hold my hands and walk anywhere and everywhere. Of course, he is not interested in his toys, but would rather pull books off the coffee table or find pieces of lint to stick in his mouth. He HATES to be left alone, which seems to be quite the opposite of my oldest. He is also teething. Although no teeth have erupted yet, he chews on anything he can get his hands on, leaving said object coated in baby slobber. </div><br /><div>While I have one child trying to get teeth, I have the other loosing them! He has lost both of his front teeth! Richie and I joke, saying he looks like a member of Fight Club. He is doing very well in school. I am still so please we chose to send him to SWCS. It has been such a blessing. Baseball season is over for him and we are looking at starting him in karate on Monday. I think this extra-curricular activity will be perfect for him as it will teach him focus, discipline, and respect. </div><br /><div>I have finally finished my requirements for my Bachelors of Science degree!!! I will graduate in December, which can't get here soon enough. My degree is in Family Studies and Gerentology. Many have asked, "What are you going to do with your degree?" And to answer, I say, "Not much." However, you do need a Bachelors for medical school, so that fulfills a requirement for my life goal. I will now spend the next 1.5 year attaining my science pre-requisites for med school. So, yes, I'll be in school offically for the next 5.5 years (at least). And I'm okay with that. The reason I'm okay with it is because I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that this is what God has called me to do. I find peace in knowing that, although this is a huge endeavor, God has cleared the path for me. Richie is the most supportive husband I could ask for; he believes in me just as much as God does. With all that being said, I am excited about embarking on this new journey and am excited to take on the challenge.</div><div> </div><div>Here are some newer pictures:<br /><br /></div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391160903748626162" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ2BZ8CI0DwHEamgeF18cMuaUl3j99vVTfDZjgIsYA6xLjkQl-_ETTqa7r2eaOh7NWr1i-AZTzozp4p8xyAl-bgB1XRt8jEGfHyQQ7APqd6KzyJQ9ntdXPjAcyHxWxIGhUeP6yNXEQKBM/s400/DSC_0001.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">At a SWCS football game, freezing our tails off!<br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391160919177023730" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 268px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 400px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSf7GWCy_5xQDDrzlsS1aB2xz3ydjP3uGlprXmKO6PJ5Ys66qnmJB7Qg8dl4ObhXq8Qw1nAOs8x1H-AFRJkj9JqD0ZYjy6tNOAHP_pzi-2HQtQz5jGTU-6_F4mNKVwSMfsiGmZPg-9WhI/s400/DSC_0002.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">Posing with a football at the SWCS game (before loosing the front teeth).<br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391160924245263042" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnA8cjWYeVlvyAXiVGwE2CVHQbu_ZuQEAZrOkCapffoRXFeC1nwGN3ILJfX__93vFUknpiHUyaRo8BsU3GGCH7zKfYUGrKCY7i95oHn6oIle4BRy8_BYnTnUS-F2tZoagSxF5ptqnwTPU/s400/DSC_0020.JPG" border="0" /></div><div align="center">This kid is a ham, always smiling for the camera<br /><br /><br /></div><div> </div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5391160933609748658" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 268px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLT0CnwAPg0t_P5dkeYdmRPKb_9P3JvlixWM3ke0Sh196zaOVrxcO0_WEK1v6GMq66xY-csoIeHI5nJs3W-b0bujDXTvQ-uToZV68r0e51PSma05A0BBIxw1O_CELrP1Snu5ohJMFNN9Q/s400/DSC_0032.JPG" border="0" /></div></div></div></div><br /><p align="center">After loosing the two in front. No more corn-on-the-cob for him!</p><p align="left"><br /><br />Well, that about brings you up-to-date. Until next time.</p><p align="left">Aimee</p><p> </p>aimeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08158376894995039843noreply@blogger.com0