Ray of Hope

Today was the best episode of Oprah. Oprah had Dr Oz on and the show was on medical miracles. I turned it on right in the middle of the show. She was starting to tell the story of Jason Ray. I already knew his story because I used him in one of my speeches last summer. For those of you who have no hear his story, here it goes. Jason Ray,21, was the mascot for University of North Carolina. On March 23, 2007 he was with the team in New Jersey. Before the game he decided to take a walk to a nearbly gas station for a bite to eat. While walking on the shoulder of a busy highway he was struck by a car. Three days later he died. Ok, so I know you are wondering what the miracle of this story is. As many of you know, my grandfater recieved a liver transplant almost eight years ago. Ok, you are still wondering what does Jason Ray have to do with my grandfather. When Jason Ray got his driver's license he said yes to becoming an organ donor. He sat down with his parents and stressed to them how important this was to him. When the doctors asked Jason Ray's parents if they would want to donate his organs they knew that is what Jason wanted more then anything. Jason Ray saved or made the lives better of over a hundred people. Isn't that amazing?!! Not only were his organs donated, his tissue was donated too. His heart saved someone, his pancreas saved someone, both of his eyes went to two differnet people. The speech I had to give last semester was a persuasive speech. My teacher told me the story of Jason Ray and I knew that if just one person would hear his story and register to be an organ donor then I suceeded in my speech.

I know that this is a debatble subject for most people. My grandfather recieved his liver from a lady who died in a car wreck. I cannot imagine what her family went through but because of her wishes to donate her organ she saved my grandfather's life and probably several other people's lives. The doctors told my mom and grandmother that if my grandfather had not recieved his liver when he did then he probably would not have made it.

Becoming an organ donor has become my cause. I want to educate more people on this. Many people say yes when they renew their driver's license but never tell their families of their wishes. Dr Oz gave America homework to sign up as an organ donor and let your family know of your wishes. Letting your family know is the key!!

I am sure someone is dying to leave me a nasty comment on how you should not donate your organs. But obviously you have not gone through what my family has gone through!! What if your child or spouse needed an organ? So please, keep the comments to yourself.

If you would like more information check out http://www.organdonor.gov/ or you can read Jason Ray's story on http://www.oprah.com/.

In the news

That is my dad in the picture. He is on the front page of the Pine Bluff Commercial today. He has tried for many years to not to get in the paper and they finally caught him!! Sometimes his back was in the picture or we could tell it was him but no one else could. He isn't too excited about his little fame but I think that it is pretty cool for Tyler and Landon to look at and know what their Peepaw does!! Every time Tyler sees a firetruck she says that her peepaw lives on a firetruck. Why he lives on it, I am not really sure. But she has been to the station many times while dad was at work. She loves getting on the firetruck and listening to the sirens. In Missouri the firetrucks are yellow. This confuses Tyler so much because Peepaw's truck is red. My mom has a picture of Tyler and I standing on the firetruck when we were really young. I can't wait to get one of Tyler and Landon. I am sure she has one of all three of us but I always remember the one of Courtney and I.

For credit purposes this picture was taken from www.pbcommercial.com. You never know!!!! Always better to cite!! Ok, I have been in school way too long!!

Nice Day........................

So this morning I am leaving the house around 6:30 and it is a beautiful 55 degrees. I am thinking, oh yeah bring on spring. However I did know that a cold front was coming in later in the day. I drop the kiddos off at the cdc and head to school. Go to my 8:00 class and take my test. Morning is going good. After I take my test, I go outside to go to library and the cold air knocks me down. I spent about an hour in the library studying for my test in my 11:00 class. I go back outside and I promise you it felt like the temperature at dropped 10 degrees in one hour. After my test in my 11:00 class I start making the long walk to my next class, in the cold air when it starts lightly snowing!! SERIOUSLY, it was 55 degrees at 7 a.m. I get to class and someone said that it was 19 degrees. About 20 minutes later it is a blizzard outside!! UGH!! It snowed for a good 3 hours but it never got bad. However it always amazes me how many cars you see stranded in a ditch!! So here is my tip for the day, when it is snowing SLOW DOWN!! The temperature is now 9 degrees with a windchill of 2 and more snow coming on Thursday!! How many more months of winter????? And that dang groundhog better see his shadow!! Or is it the opposite? I always forget!!

A Bit of Comedy for the Day

In Tyler's class they frequently ask the children a question and write their reply on a poster for the parents to see. If you need a good laugh for the day, go look at the posters!! This afternoon they had a new poster up and the question was: What does your mom and dad do at work? Tyler's reply:
She does homework in reading. Daddy's job is to hold open the door!

HHHHMMM, Maybe I ask David to hold open the door for me too much!!

Week Two

I lost 2lbs this week so that is a total of 5lbs!! I was really excited because we went to Chuck E Cheese on Friday and I had 3 slices of pizza anda coke and I still lost weight!! YAY!! Mondays are my weigh in day so I will post on here my loss and then also post a new recipe that I have tried that is low in points. Last night I made chicken and potato soup!! It was delish!!

Chicken and Potato Soup
8 cups of water
3/4 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/2 medium onion, chopped
1 can 98% Fat Free cream of chicken soup
1/2 stick light butter
3 medium potatoes, cut in one inch cubes
salt and pepper to taste

In large pot, put water with, salt, chicken and onions. Cook until chicken is done and then remove chicken from water. Add potatoes to same water and boil until done. Shred chicken put back in pot with cream of chicken, pepper and butter. Simmer for 15 minutes before serving to thicken.

ENJOY!!!!

A little Late But....

On Friday, January 25, 2008 was Landon's first birthday!! I cannot believe it has been a year already!! It seems like just yesterday that David was picking up my mom and dad from the Salt Lake City Airport the day before I was scheduled to be induced. I can still see my mom and dad reading my contractions and my dad saying, wow that was a big one. I would look at him and say, "Yeah, I know!! I am feeling it!!" Then it came time to push and David and my mom were right there with me in the delivery room. It was such a special time. Especially since we didn't have any there when Tyler was born!! (We lived in England then and war had just broken out!!)

We had the best day at Chuck E Cheese. Landon loved watching the animals sing!!

Landon also had pizza for the first time!! He loved it, he had 1 1/2 slices!! I can only imagine how much he will eat when he is a teenager!!

After Chuck E Cheese, we went to Toys R Us and he got his first 4 wheeler!! Daddy is so jealous!!

After Toys R Us we went to the mall. I got the kids some clothes on sale at Baby Gap and Old Navy for practically nothing. Baby Gap and Gap Kids was going out of business. All of their sales were an additional 25% off. I spent about $50 there on Landon: a pair of cords, fleece camo jacket, a sweater, a shirt, and Tyler: a pair of fleece pants and I forgot the other thing I bought!! Old Navy was take an additional 50% off their sales. I bought me a shirt (oops it was maternity, but I have a cousin that is pregnant so it worked out) and a sweater. Landon: a tshirt and Tyler: a sweater, a winter coat, a Sherpa (I forgot how to spell that) jacket, and 2 shirts. My grand total at Old Navy was $38!! I was so excited!!

Tagged

Ok, so Allison tagged me to do this and I have 30 minutes before my next class. What else do I have going on, right?

Four jobs I've had:
1. CDC provider (the reason I am back in school)
2. Bank Teller (never again will I do that!)
3. babysitter
4. Receptionist/Accounting Asst (I loved that job)

Four places I lived:
1. Whiteman AFB, MO
2. Hill AFB, UT
3. RAF Leakenheath, England UK
4. White Hall, AR
(there are so many more!!)

Four movies I've watched over and over:
1. Top Gun
2. Wizard of Oz
3. Ferris Bueller's Day Off
4. The Breakfast Club
(Yes, I love the 80's movies!!)

Four shows I watch:
1. Grey's Anatomy
2. Private Practice
3. Desperate Houswives
(That is about the only ones that are a must to watch. And with the ridiculous strike I am not able to watch those! UGH!!)

Four places I've been:
1. London
2. Colorado
3. New Orleans
4. St Louis

Four people who e-mail me regularly:
1. Mitzi
2. Brandy
3. Rhonda
4. Cissy (we seriously keep having conversations through email. We really need to get back to yahoo IM!!)

Four favorite things to eat:
Right now, anything low in points!!

Four places I'd rather be:
1. Somewhere warm
2. At home
3. Shopping
4. In my warm bed watching a movie

Four things I look forward to this new year:
1. Landon's 1st bday (on Friday) and watching him grow
2. Tyler's dance recital (Feb 9)
3. Loosing weight on Weight Watchers
4. Having a long overdue date with David!!

Four people to tag:
1. Mitzi (you can email)
2. Brandy
3. Rhonda
4. Cissy (you can email!!)

How adorable is this!!!!!

Tyler is wanting new bedding and decor for her bedroom for her birthday in March. She really wants Hannah Montanna but I think I am persuading her to go with something that we could use longer!! I found this today on http://www.companykids.com/. Tyler even fell in love with it!! But it is SO Tyler!! Tyler said that it is like what Hannah Tana would decorate her room in!! I wish we could paint her walls. But all the color would definitely bring color into her room. White walls are so boring!! We even found some bedding that we liked for Landon when he is ready for a twin bed!! Which may be sooner then later. But I am still holding out for later!!

Week One

Today marked my first week of Weight Watchers!! I lost a total of 3lbs. I was a little disappointed because I cheated and got on the scales on Wednesday and I had lost 3lbs by then. But after going on weight watchers website it looks like 3lbs is the average weight loss on week one. I only made it to the gym twice last week so hopefully I can make it more this week. I have been good at resisting all the temptations. David even made hamburgers on Saturday night and I made a small baked potato and a salad. It was very yummy!! I am learning that I can still eat good food and it is healthier for me than a cheeseburger!! Now it is on to week 2.

It's Official.....

Landon is doing the Air Force crawl. Yes, I know it is called the Army crawl or low crawl, but daddy is in the Air Force!! He is trying so hard to get his knees under him but it isn't happening yet. But we are getting somewhere now!! And he is actually putting weight on his legs now when we try to stand him up!! I guess he is giving in to us now!! I will try to get a video of him this afternoon scooting around. It is too cute!!

I Wish....

I am very happy to be back at school but the only part I dreaded was walking from building to building in the freezing cold! My hands get cold, my nose gets cold and even worse my feet get cold. I have been wanting Ugg boots for about 3 years now. I just cannot break down and spend the money on them. But walking in this blistering cold air really makes me want some!! Too bad stores are sold out of them until April. By then it should be warm here, RIGHT? Here is a picture of my dream boots!!

Cute huh!! David calls them uggly boots!! What does he know. Even if you do not think they are cute, if you could try a pair on you would want them. Courtney got Tyler a pair of sketchers pink boots that are like Uggs. They are the only pair of shoes that Tyler will wear now. She always tells me how soft they are!!! The only bad thing is that they are pink, so even if she is wearing orange, she wants to wear her boots!! Oh well, she is only at the CDC!!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!! Stay warm!! The high for us tomorrow is 15!! I think we will stay in!!

Landon got another tooth!! That must explain why he has been in a better mood the past 2 days. It is a bottom tooth. He has 4 on the top and 3 on the bottom now. And we can see where molars are trying to come in. UGH!!

Easy and Low Points Recipe

Mexican Chicken

Chicken breasts
1-2 cups of salsa
1 can of corn

Throw it all in the crockpot on low for 7-8 hours. It was very yummy!!!

I know I am not supposed to look at the scales until after a week but I had to peak yesterday. I needed some good news for the day!! I lost 3lbs already. Yes, I know it is more water weight then anything but who cares!! I only care what the scales say!! I know I will be able to see a difference in my clothes shortly. I gotta start somewhere!!

We did have a little excitement last night. Landon did try to get his knees under him while lying on his belly. But after two tries he gave up and started rolling around to get where he wanted to go. I can't blame him, why mess up a good thing!! We had his appt yesterday at Children's Mercy in Kansas City. We do not know anything on the allergies yet. They could not do the skin tests on him because his eczema is so bad. So we had to do the blood tests once again. Then we will go from there. It sounds like it is going to be a long drawn out process!! UGH!! Why can't things me quick and easy? But they said that no matter what the results come back as that we need to keep him away from eggs until he is two and any kinds of nuts until he is four. Children with eczema as bad as his tend to have false positives or even negatives!! And they also tend to have reactions to eggs and nuts so it is better to delay introduction of those foods!! After the results come back next week then we will decide the next step. We may start eliminating foods one by one for a week or they may have him come back and offer him foods to see how he reacts. They are telling his PCM that he needs to be seen by a dermatologist. Maybe the clinic on base will listen to a professional since I am getting no where with them on that one. But they did give us lots of ideas to try on him. We now have to give him a 10 minute bath twice a day!! Only once we have to use soap. After his nighttime bath we have to apply his steroid cream, then his lotion, then damp his pajamas with warm weather and put them on, then put dry pajamas over his damp pajamas. This should be challenging. I will admit, we didn't do it last night. We were a bit worn out. But the doctor said it may be best to start it this weekend so we can do this all night and all day!! Whew, I am exhausted just thinking about it. But I will do anything to make my baby feel better. They couldn't believe how happy he was during his appt. He was in the best mood, so it made the appointment so much easier.

After getting lost for 30 minutes in Kansas City we are in the market for a GPS for the car!! Yikes, they are expensive. But with all the traveling we do, we know we will get our money out of it!! Allison, you may want to invest in one before you move to KC!!

OH , and please continue to pray for my Pap. I know you are asking what for and I am not giving any answers. I am just not ready to talk about it and there are not a lot of answers for the questions I will be asked. When we know more I will let everyone know!! THANKS for understanding!!

Please....

Say a prayer for my pap tonight!!!

Thanks!!

Walgreens

I went to Walgreens and saved $18.81 today!! Heck Yeah!! Not too shabby for my first go round!! I spent $24 and change but here is what all I got:

• 2 jumbo Huggies diapers for $16 and free Huggie wipes plus I had a $1 off Huggies diapers and 75 cents off of the wipes.
• Buy one get one free Revlon makeup tool plus I had a $1 off coupon.

I had several other good deals but I left my receipt in the car and it is freezing out there!!

On another note, I finished my first day with weight watchers. I am really excited. I will post some good recipes on here after I try them out. I am really excited about this!! Who wants to join with me? I know you are thinking that you don't have time to go to the meetings? I don't either, I am doing it all online!!

Mondays!

Here is a rundown of how my morning has gone so far!!!

• 6:30 a.m. Alarm goes off, David is nudging me to get up.
• 6:55 a.m. David is still nudging me to get up.
• 7:00 a.m. Holy crap, I better get in the shower.
• 7:10 a.m. Out of the shower and trying to get ready while Tyler is asking me 101 questions.
• 7:20 a.m. I am ready, gotta get Tyler ready while David gets Landon ready.
• 7:40 a.m. I am running around the house getting everything ready for Landon to take for his first day at the CDC. Yes, I know I should have done it yesterday but isn't more fun to stress out in the morning? Ok, maybe it is just me!!
• 7:50 We are out the door. David takes Landon in his truck, I take Tyler. Yes, I am aware that they are both at the CDC now, but I have to go to school afterwards and David has to go to work at 4:30 this afternoon.
• 7:55 We are at the CDC getting the kids situated. And I am saying a little prayer for Landon's providers. She is going to have her hands full today with five new one year olds. Please say a prayer for her also.
• 8:10 HOLY CRAP, where are my keys!!
• 8:20 I finally found them after the second trip back to Landon's room!!
• 8:30 Made it to school, taking it easy before my class at 9:00.
• 8:55 Six of us wondering where everyone, including the teacher is.
• 9:00 We found out that class was cancelled. Seriously, it is the first day of classes!!
• 9:15 Post my first thread for my Internet class.
• 9:50 Decide to post on here to tell you how crazy my morning has been!!

My next class is not until 11:00, so I decided to hang out at the computer lab in the library!! Maybe that will keep me from spending money on cokes and junk food. Oh by the way, I am starting weight watchers today. Wish my luck. Happy Monday!!

Cheap Entertainment

This is how we have spent our afternoon!! It has been the cheapest entertainment that has had all four of us laughing!!! Landon got this ball popper for Christmas. We finally put it together this afternoon and him and Tyler have had the best time!! Landon loves to push the balls down the hole and Tyler stays busy chasing after the balls. They are still playing with this toy as I type this post!! You have to go get one of these for your little one!! I highly recommend it!! Now that I know how to post videos I will try to post more videos now. Maybe we will have some footage of Landon walking or at least crawling!! Just don't hold your breath waiting!!!

This wasn't my favorite video but it was the only one that was short enough to post. Now I have a better idea of the time capacity!! ENJOY!!!

My New Addiction

Yay, it is Sunday!! Sunday is now my new favorite day because it is when the coupons come out!! Yes, I should be getting ready for church right now but we got up really early so I have been checking several blogs to check out the coupon situation for the week. This is where I have to tell you how much I love the blogging world. Through my friend Allison, who had a post on couponing that got me interested, I was linked up with coupon world and Sarah. I go on all of these sites for motivation and through Sarah's blog I found money savings mom (I have all these links on my blog to the right). Money Savings Mom tells you what the deals are for the week and what coupons to use. She does all the work for you, all I have to do is find the coupons. I can so handle that. Especially with school starting back tomorrow time will be sparse so any less work that I have to do is fine by me!! Well I am off to get ready so I can go get those coupons. I will let you know of my good deals!!

Back to Normal!!

I woke up this morning feeling 95 percent better!! My energy level was at 110 percent so I took advantage of it and started organizing some closets that I didn't get around to on my Christmas break!! I finally got into Tyler and Landon's closets and got out all of the clothes that they have outgrown. Landon has two bags full of clothes. I can't wait for it to warm up so I can have a yard sale!! Organizing led me to decorating and wanting to rearrange furniture. The rearranging part did not go as planned. The layout downstairs makes it a challenge to arrange furniture but we do have some ideas. But the ideas involve money so it will have to wait!! We did manage to put up some pictures on the walls that I had not gotten to yet. But that was partly because I just did not know where I wanted to put them!! We have so much we want to do to the house. But I am sure as soon as we get everything we want the AF will send us to another base!! Gotta love the military!! But it does feel good to accomplish some tasks that I haven't had not been able to start on. Tomorrow will involve cleaning up my mess. Why is it you have to make a mess to clean up a mess? Or is it just me? HHHMMM!!!!! Either way, I feel like I got something done today!! Now if I can just teach my husband to keep it organized!!

How cute is he!!!

How cute is this picture!! Thanks Mitzi for capturing this adorable picture of my baby boy!! And now I really really want an awesome camera!! I love this picture of Landon because it captures how excited he gets over something that he enjoys!! Who doesn't love to see a baby or a kid get excited!!

Things have been crazy since we got back from our little trip back home. I have a cold, due to the major changes in weather from AR to MO!! Yesterday we had orientation at the CDC for Landon. I love his new providers and cannot wait for him to start on Monday!! I also went to the school to buy my books for the semester. That doesn't seem to eventful but it was pouring down raining and snowing!! Seriously, when is it going to warm up?!

I really need to get back to school. I have been sitting on the couch all day because I do not feel good and I am running a slight fever. Well of course I check out Old Navy and The Children's Place's websites. They were having huge sales. I got Landon a winter coat for next year for $10!! Heck yeah, it was normally $40!! I also got him and Tyler a few shirts and pants for next year. The Children's Place didn't have as much to pick from but I did get Landon some short sleeve shirts for about $3 a piece!! HECK YEAH!! I spent $25 at Old Navy and bought 4 things. I also only spent $25 at Children's Place and bought 5 things!! Of course I had to pay for shipping but when you don't have an Old Navy nearby you don't have much of a choice!! Both stores had a better selection for Landon then Tyler. Buy hey, a deal is a deal!!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!!

There's No Place Like Home

We just got home late this afternoon after a short trip home. I love going back home to see family, but there is no place like home!! Sorry, The Wizard of Oz is one of my favorite movies!! We had a good trip. We threw a small birthday party for Landon, went ice skating and shopping! I am so tired though!! I will post some pics soon!!Tomorrow it is back to the daily grind. I have to go buy books for school and do all the laundry from the trip and put all of the kids toys that they got for bday and Christmas together!! I really do not know how we got all their stuff home. We seriously need a bigger SUV!!

Today is not only Elvis' bday, it is also David's bday!! Happy Birthday David!! Too bad we had to celebrate it on the road. But he knows I will make up for it this weekend!!

On the Road Again.....

We are leaving this afternoon to go back home for some post holiday fun!! The highlight of the trip for me is getting to see Tyler!! I didn't know that I could miss her this much in just 5 days!! But that is a long time!! She has had a blast spending time with my family!! I cannot wait to hear the stories!! I probably won't be on here much for the next few days. We come back home (our home!!) next Tuesday on David's birthday. Then it will be a rush for me to get everything ready to go back to school and the kids back in the routine of going to daycare. We have gotten so spoiled just taking it easy over the past month. But at the same time, I am ready to get back to the life that we call CHAOS!!

The title was chosen due to the fact that this is our third trip home since Nov.

Happy New Year!!

Yesterday's post was dedicated to the year 2007. Today's post is dedicated to the year 2008!! I am pretty optimistic about this year. We just moved, so at least there is no chance of us moving this year. That is always a plus in my book!! However, David will be deployed. But that just means that we can get excited for his return home!! (No, we have no dates yet!) Landon will be one in just a few weeks. Considering he did not become mobile in 2007, that only means that he has to become mobile in 2008!! RIGHT?! I am really excited to see how much he changes this year!! Tyler has her first dance recital this year!! It is also on my birthday!! What a present that will be!! In August, Tyler will start kindergarten. I can't believe it!! She is so excited to go to the big kids school, as she calls it!! David will miss her first day, but I will make it even more special for her. We are going on a huge shopping spree. She has to be stylin for school!! David tests for Tech Sargent in February. Please say a prayer for him. He has been studying and wants it really bad!! I know he can do it!! We are also excited to get to know the area more. Maybe we will adventure out to KC more. But shopping with a baby isn't that much fun!!! As for me, it is school as always!!!

Sorry this post is a bunch of random thoughts that aren't even in order. But I am really excited to see what a new year may bring. So long 2007, hello 2008!! OH, I just realize that 2008 also means that David and I graduated ten years ago!! UGH!!

I almost forgot!! I am really anxious to see how the razorback season will go this year. With a new athletic director, new head coach and practically an entire new coaching staff things will be a lot different. I have faith in Petrino. But I would have faith in anyone that is coaching my hogs!! Great things have to come!!! I will miss #5!! And I am not a Patriots fan, at all!! So is there even a tiny glimmer of a chance that he may not go there. I know it would be a great opportunity for him, but eeewww Tom Brady. And it isn't because he is a bad ass quaterback. He is, but as a person, I am not big on him!! Why can't he go play for the Colts. I love Peyton Manning!! With that being said, GO HOGS, BEAT MIZZOU!! Seriously, I may not be able to wear all the razorback stuff that David bought me if we loose today!!