Alyssa bought a light-blue colored binder for school so that she could write on and decorate the front of it. So, last night she got a sharpie marker and wrote out Psalm 73:26-28 in big letters covering almost the whole front. (Read the verses...they are really good.) Today, in one of her classes, a guy sat down to talk to her and while they were talking he grabbed her binder and read the verses. He then looked at her and said, "Now, why aren't there more people like you in this school?!". I thought that was soo cool. It does a mom's heart good!

I love this video and song. We are HIS, and He cares about our needs. Never will there be a satisfying substitute for the love God gives.

Alyssa and her good friend, Sarah are at separate schools this year. It was hard knowing they would be separated, but I trust that God is going to work powerfully in each of them this school year. I just wrote in a card for Sarah..and I'm not bragging by any means or tooting my own horn. I wanted to encourage her and so I poured out my heart to her in the card. But what is really cool is that I am encouraged and my spirits are lifted. Because when you love another and encourage a person in their walk with God, it makes your own stronger. God truly is a light that cuts through any dark place. I feel blessed by His presence. And, I kinda needed that today. I have so much that needs to be done right now, but I have a sore and swollen foot that I think needs a rest this morning, so I have it on ice and elevated. I didn't want to do it, but the throbbing kind of demanded it! But, because of God, this has turned out to be a really hour.

Last day of summer vacation! I have never seen girls so excited to start school. Becky couldn't contain her excitement and delightfully shreiked out several ear piercing screams in the kitchen tonight as she packed her lunch for tomorrow. Lol. She's starting 7th grade and can't wait to see her friends. She has reached the stage where friends are pretty much all-important.

Also, my sweet little fun-sized Heidi will turn nine tomorrow...my baby is growing up! She is excited too, but she expresses it in a different way. When Heidi is excited about something, she becomes extremely organized. For example, when she packed her lunch for tomorrow in her new lunch box, she put the food items in as if they were puzzle pieces and decided exactly where her little ice pack would go when she takes it out of the freezer in the morning. And it didn't take just one try to get this puzzle to work, but three tries!

I found a list in her room yesterday when I was looking for her school backpack. She made this list the night before she left for California to spend time with my sister and her cousins. She listed each item she would pack and drew a small square beside each item so she could check it off as she packed. On the other half of the paper, she wrote where in the house she could find each item. Here is what that part of her list looked like-spelling and all (and I may be the only one that thinks this is funny, but hey!)...

Find:
iPod-room
phone-room
DS-room
pladi (her stuffed platypus)-room
Blanket-room
Bible (wow, I was so glad to see this on her list!)-room
games-room
chargers-anywhere
deoderinte-bathroom
lotion-bathroom
tooth paste-bathroom
tooth brush-bathroom
clothes-room

And I don't know why, but on her list of items to bring, she had "decorations". I'm not sure what she was planning to decorate. Hmm..

Alyssa will start out in a new school tomorrow...Arizona Conservatory of Arts and Academics. I think it'll be good and she is so looking forward to it. Of course, I'm a little nervous, because she left her mainstream high school to attend this, and I hope it's the right decision. I think it is...just a little fear of the unknown going on here. She will be a junior...already. I could swear I just walked her to kindergarten yesterday!

Time really flies. I'm seeing that with all three girls and I've been increasingly aware that I need to be "in the moment" with them because all those little moments add up in a big way and can pass by so quickly. I don't want just the big things to be remembered, like birthdays and the beginning of school years, but the little moments...like laughing and cutting up together, talking and praying through situations, hugging on each other, and the list would go on.

Ta ta for now...or as my sister says, "Toodles!" or "Toods!"

Jim and I and the girls are on vacation right now and I am really enjoying myself. Other than the bad mood here and there...lol...here's what that was about and I promise there is a point to this rant.
On Thursday night I didn't sleep well. I tend to worry about things at night that are somewhat (totally at times) out of my control. During the day, I'm fine because I'm AWAKE and RATIONAL! But at night, when my brain is only semi-conscious, it goes nuts. On Friday, Jim and I were planning on flying out to a friend's 10th wedding anniversary celebration as a surprise. Normally, I'm a mess about flying because I hate the claustrophobic feeling I get on the plane. On Thursday night, though, this only semi worried me because what I was really worried about was the fact that Jim's elderly mom would be taking care of Becky and Heidi over night while Jim and I were gone. She really is pretty young at heart for being eighty, but you know...age happens! And I wasn't worried about her ability to take care of them while they were at her house; it was the fact that she would be driving with them. I haven't heard any serious horror stories about her driving...only minor ones! The minor ones drove me crazy that night. "What if this is the time we find out she really doesn't drive safely?? Not only she, but my girls are going to be in that car!" This is the main thought that kept me from sleeping well....ugh!
On Friday morning when I got up, the first thing I did was call my sister-in-law who lives near my mom-in-law and asked her how her driving was. I needed to hear that she was decent enough at it, and that is mostly what I heard, besides the fact that she drives too slowly on the freeway and too fast on the residential streets. But, she was just driving to a place nearby to take the girls to a Chinese art reception (they were thrilled! LOL. It's good for them.), so it should be okay. I felt a little better in a sleep deprived way.
So, onto the airport. I had no idea how much had changed...all of it being irritating! Jim has traveled more than I have recently so he was very aware and cautious about taking 3 oz. or smaller bottles for toiletries. I, on the other hand, didn't really think the airport employees would take my tube of toothpaste. Excuse me, I was hiding my tweezers in there! Not. But, really now, instead of keeping my toiletries in a toiletry bag, I now have to store them in a quart-sized zip locked bag? And they really would go to the trouble of taking my tube of toothpaste out and tell me to chuck it??? They did! (I promise this story has a point. It will just take awhile to get to it.) And what's more...Jim was right in telling me they would do that! I thought he was just a being overly cautious...something that irritates me!
We walked up to the security gate, put our purses and bags, etc. into the plastic boxes, and sent them on to be scanned. Only, I didn't realize I needed to take my flip flops off. So I went to walk through the little security arch and I was told to turn back and put the flip flops on the table to be scanned. Wow, I wore those so I wouldn't have to take my shoes off. While I was feeling pissy about that, the lady ahead of me had her belt on, her watch on, and a metal clip holding her high-haired updo together. She started to walk through, heard the beep, walked out exclaiming "Well, who knew this little clip would set that off!" as she tried walking through again while the security guard called someone for a pat-down. (Right now, I think this is pretty funny...but at THAT moment, I wanted to give her my own PAT-down.)
So, I walked through holding back the urge to not give her a dirty look, and without my dangerous flip flops, and gathered my things on the other side of the scanner.
This is about the time I started getting nervous about getting on the plane. I hate getting onto the plane, the crowdedness of it, and how the air feels. I also don't like the window seat anymore because it is so far into the crowded row! I was hoping for an aisle seat, but this time I was smack dab in the middle of two people. Jim was on my right (and that was okay) and on my left sat down a large, hairy man. Not really large, just large compared to the amount of room he had for sitting in his place on the plane. And large enough to take both arm rests and a share of my PERSONAL space. And large enough that whenever he looked for something in his bag several times, he elbowed me, claustrophobic Lisa.
So, as I always do when the claustrophobia sets in, I point the air vent directly down onto me. (This little bit will come up again later, but on a different plane!) Then I pray, and become a little amused that this is all a quiet little hell that I go through...nobody around me on the plane ever knows that I even feel claustrophobic! Interesting that the amusement and prayer part happens almost simultaneously. That happens a lot with prayer...peace will come in just about the same time I start talking to God. I should have started sooner that day!
Did you know that the airline charges for drinks on the plane now? I'm not talking alcohol; I'm talking water being a dollar and a coke being 2 dollars! And that there is a menu in the back of the flight catalog, where you can order a sandwich if you're hungry (as I was)...but as I ordered the sandwich, the flight attendant cut me off and told me this flight was too short. Okay....
The flight went smoothly. I actually enjoy the landing...you know, when the plane is just about to hit land and we come screeching to a halt! I think that part is fun!
We had so much fun at the anniversary party that night!! I really enjoy my friends and it was a great time! Kat & Perley were celebrating their 10th (I think i may have mentioned this earlier) and Kat had no idea we were flying in for it. I love surprising people! I posted a lot of pictures of it at myspace.com/liusenup.
The next day, we headed back to the airport. Again, more surprises for me about how much the traveling rules have changed. We forgot to tell Alyssa not to pack toiletries larger than 3 ounces, so it ended up she had three bottles of things that would potentially have to be thrown away. We decided we would just throw those things into one of her duffel bags and check it in. Ooohhh was I irritated to find out it would cost $15 to check it! We ended up throwing her toiletries away, seeing that it would be less expensive to replace them.
Our flight was leaving at gate A19. We arrived 20 minutes before boarding time. Alyssa and I sat down to relax while Jim went to buy some drinks for us; I was reading the flight information board behind the counter. I don't remember the city it said, but it didn't say "departing to San Jose". Just as I was reading that, there was a loudspeaker announcement saying the the flight for San Jose leaving from gate A19 would now be leaving from gate A5. I called Jim on his cell, and waited a couple minutes for him to get back to our gate. By the time we got to the other gate, it was time to board the plane.
I was hopeful that I wouldn't get stuck in the middle again, but wouldn't you know it...Alyssa at the window, me in the middle, and an even larger man sat down next to me. Jim's seat was in the row ahead of us. I thought about asking the man if he and Jim could switch, but his mom (it appeared) was sitting directly across the aisle from him and I thought they would want to stay near each other since she spoke only Spanish. While I was thinking that, another passenger came up the aisle, approached them, and asked in fluent Spanish if he would mind trading seats with him. I know he asked this question, because the man next to me graciously got up, and this new passenger sat down next to me. I was irritated. This new passenger (I found out his name is Chris) started talking to his traveling partner about how he really needed to get some sleep. Something came over me then (and THIS is the point of my story!!), and I asked him how long he had been traveling. He was told me he was a disaster relief specialist and had been working in Texas for the last few weeks helping out with the hurricane damage. It was at this point that my traveling became positive and I KNOW it wasn't by my doing. Do you ever get that feeling that someone has just prayed for you? Well, my demeanor, my attitude, my claustrophbia, all that subsided. Even when I looked up, as Chris and I were talking, and discovered that there were no air vents on this plane that I could point down on me! He told me that some planes now just have the vents on the side...I have never been in a plane without those little individual air vents...and to me, they are IMPORTANT! But, this time, I laughed it off (sincerely). I know someone prayed for me, because the rest of the flight was a so enjoyable and I forgot about the irritations and closed-in space. This was not by my doing. It was divine intervention. A God-induced peace. A rough road smoothed and not by my own excavating. Somebody prayed. Chris talked to Alyssa and I about his travels, his work, his learning Spanish, etc. Then he took a short nap, woke up and talked some more, all of it fun and interesting.
My favorite part of the conversation was about our Bible reading. I was reading while he was napping (apparently he wasn't in too deep of a sleep...but I couldn't tell because he had his sunglasses on to block out the light) and when he started talking again he asked if I had ever read Revelations. He talked about the symbolism of the beast (something I know only a little about, but it was interesting) and then we talked about how the Bible comes alive when we read. It was great! I suggested for him to read 2 Samuel and then all the cross references over to Psalms while he was reading it. It is about the life of David and a lot of the cross references go to the prayers he prayed while he faced specific situations. Really cool.
God's been talking to me a lot about prayer in the last couple months. And this traveling taught me a little more about prayer (aren't you a little relieved after that long rant? lol. I can be a real pain when it comes to traveling.) It's a fresh reminder to me that when a friend or a family member comes to mind, I want to lift them up because they are being impressed on my mind for a reason. We need each other...and the prayers we lift for each other are powerful and far-reaching, and through Him, able to make a difference in whatever they are experiencing during their day. God will care for our loved ones especially in the moments when they are beyond our reach. So, whoever prayed for me, thank you...it made a huge difference last Saturday.

I found this on another blog...thought it was fun!!

ALL ABOUT ME FROM A TO Z

A is for Age
43 according to the calendar...but I'm much younger than that if you ask me!! Lets just say old enough to have learned a few things, but young enough that I have a lot ahead of me. :)

B is for Burger of choice
I could eat a burger at least a couple times a week! Cheeseburger, with pickles, mustard and ketchup with some fried onions. Hand it over with a strawberry milkshake.

C is for what Car you drive
An ultra cool Honda Oddyssey mini van.

D is for Dog’s name
I have a small, medium, and a large dog. The small one is Mushu...about 7 pounds and he is the boss. He walks in the room and the 60 pound dog walks the other direction! Mushu loves his people. The medium one is Kitty...about 13 or 14 pounds. She acts like a cat..she lets you know in her time when she wants to be petted or when she wants to be a lap dog (usually for very short periods of time..I think the extra weight she has elevates her body temp!). Libby is our 60 pound labradoodle, almost a year old. She daily steals something from the kitchen and takes it outside to chew it up, whether it is a glass or a spoon, etc. We have learned to not keep a sink full of dirty dishes. She gives great hugs in the mornings. We also have a desert tortoise named Tommy Hildiger. He scratches on the back door begging to be let in the house...that's what woke me this morning.

E is for Essential item you use every day
My fat, green coffee mug.

F is for Favorite TV show at the moment
Thirty days...I love that show! It shows both sides of an issue. A person with an opposing view or opposite situation spends thirty days living with the other person, sharing and living their life. I think it's on FX.

G is for favorite Game
I like Scrabble and will give you a good run for your money. Haha.

H is for Hometown
I was born in Kirkland, WA, but grew up mostly in Concrete, WA.

I is for Instruments you play
Piano hardly at all anymore. I prefer the computer keyboard.

J is for favorite juice
Orange Juice, low pulp!

K is for who you’d like to Kiss
Jim's the only one I like to kiss.

L is for Last restaurant you ate at
Native New Yorker.

M is for favorite Muppet
Hmm...Kermit, I guess?

N is for Number of piercings
I think five in my ears. One in my nose. Everyone should get their nose pierced. :)

O is for Overnight hospital stays
Only for the birth of my little girls!

P is for People you were with today
Jim

Q is for what you do with your quiet time
Computer, read my bible

R is for biggest Regret
A couple stupid mistakes, but I took some valuable lessons from them!

S is for Status
Married for 17 years , mother of 3 beautiful girls!

T is for Time you woke up today
9 a.m. Ahhh...nice!!!!

U is for what you consider Unique
Almost all of God's creation...whenever I look at anything of His up close, I stand amazed.

V is for a vegetable you love
Pickled beets...anybody know where I can get some? Maybe I need to find a recipe.

W is for Worst habit
that would have to be my addiction to the computer! What a wonderful thing...I love the internet!!

X is for the number of X-rays you’ve had
I don't know...in my lifetime? Lets just say the most memorable is the pancake kind...get my drift?

Y is for Yummy food you ate recently
Rice, salmon, and salad layered in a bowl, topped with Ranch dressing. Mmm, mmm good!

Z is for Zodiac sign
Capricorn..what ever.

I think this little questionairre would be even more interesting if you wrote about anything you want starting with the letter a and ending at z. Maybe next time!

One of the phrases in a devotional I read today jumped out at me. It said, "One way to weaken your doubts is by strengthening your faith in God." Sometimes we don't see God work until we really step out and follow Him...get our feet wet like the Israelites did when they crossed the Jordan at floodstage (Joshua 3..I really like that passage in my Bible!). By human reasoning, they certainly had reasons to doubt...who would walk through a river even if it wasn't at flood stage? But God told them He would make a dry path. He wants us to get our eyes off the circumstances and onto Him, to be aware of His presence and HIS possibilities. He takes our willingness to trust and obey and does His great work. He calms our fears and give us peace that passes understanding, and we find out once again after we've acted on our faith in Him that He is completely trustworthy.

One of the devotionals I subscribe to is called “Encouragement for Today”—it’s delivered to my email inbox every morning. This morning’s really got me thinking. The verse to introduce the devotional was Hebrews 11:1...”Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” I have known the passage since I was a child and it’s a verse I have loved for a long time. But, with the devotional today, it sank a little deeper into my heart.

When I was eighteen, I was sent to Bible college-not by my choice, but I have to admit God taught me a lot there. This college was ultra conservative, heavy on the rules, and I had a hard time with that. So, when I saw the name David Livingstone in this devotional, I almost skipped reading this one because I first heard about him when I was at this college. But, I read on and I’m glad I did; I know God wanted me to hear this one. It’s about getting out of your comfort zone…something I’ve really been through a lot of in the last year and a half, but it feels like just the beginning. Scary, but exciting, and worth it. I don’t think God wants us staying too long and settling into a comfort zone. So, here’s what it said basically…

David Livingstone was a missionary in Africa and a group of friends sent him a letter while he was there saying that they wanted to send him some men to help with the work. They then asked if David had found a good road yet into his area. David replied saying, “If you have men who will only come if they know there is a good road, I don’t want them. I want men who will come if there is no road at all.”

“I wonder if God thinks this about us sometimes. I wonder if He ever calls us to obedience without showing us the path we will travel, or the end result, just to see what we will do. Kind of like a test. Will we obey without a road map?”

Getting out of our comfort zone to obey God isn’t easy and it is tiring. And I’m not whining…it’s just a fact, isn’t it. God doesn’t call us to serve with the level we are comfortable. I think He calls us to serve at a level beyond our own security so we can really depend on Him. It gets ourselves out of the way so He can be who He is…great and mighty in all His ways.

In order to grow, our faith must be stretch, and that is uncomfortable. But when we act on the call to obey, it shines light on the truth about our faith. Either we decide to trust that God will show up, or we sink back into our easy chair, believing that God’s power is not as strong as my need for comfort and my own security.

We can’t learn “to trust God by reading a book or listening to a great sermon.” Nor do we learn “to trust God by hearing how my friend trusts God.” No, we learn “to trust God by stepping out into an adventure of obedience” and discovering for ourselves that He is completely trustworthy.

“Obeying when God hasn’t revealed the steps along the way or the final destination is challenging. But when we choose to walk by faith and not by sight”, God is glorified because we KNOW we couldn’t have done it on our own!

Every time I have chosen to get involved at The Crossroads, it has resulted in some growing pains. In the beginning, it was helping out in the office. Then it was letting go of my kids and trusting they would survive being in Sunday School with kids they didn’t know. Helping out with planning women’s activities, taking pictures at church, and then helping lead high school Bible studies have all been stretching experiences for me...way out of my comfort zone. Making a decision to take a stand for what was right at the risk of losing a friendship I held dear was a really crucial time for me in trusting and letting God work in my life. But for most of those stretching times (I’m not sure I enjoy planning women’s activities :) ), I knew deep down that I was just being the person God created me to be. And God has hugely blessed in so many ways. My faith has become strong, and so many friendships have resulted in the last couple years.

I also can’t help but think of so many of people in the Bible that chose to trust God in spite of what they saw or didn’t see. Noah built the ark, trusting God that it would rain, and his life and his family’s were saved. I’m thinking David must have had a voice inside of him that told him he was crazy to face Goliath, but he instead chose to listen and act on the voice that reminded him of how God had delivered him from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear and He would surely deliver him from the hand of the Philistine. Daniel trusted God to shut the lions' mouths while he spent the night in their den. Shadrach, Meshack, and Abednego had to be a little scared to walk into the HOT furnace, but chose to because they knew they worshipped a living God. I could go on, but the pattern I see is that each one trusted God in the face of an “impossible” circumstance, and their faith grew deeply…because God is trustworthy.

I also think of Jesus, who stretched out his arms out of love and died a painful death for us, surrendering to the will of His Father. Talk about not taking the easy road. He chose His Father’s plan because He knew it was eternally trustworthy.

That's the kind of God we follow...one who is completely trustworthy. He will always have our best interest at heart, even when the path of obedience seems a little scary. We can take a step of faith, because it not only pleases God, but it delights Him. And He loves to bless our courageous steps.

Summer's definitely here. Leather seats suck in the summer time here. I think I'm going to line each seat in the van with big beach towels so we can quit walking around everywhere with sweaty, drenched backs. Mmmm...nice visual on the backs, huh?

The girls and I have taken it easy this afternoon. Well, they have. I have been doing laundry, cleaning the kitchen, mopping tile, and cooking dinner. But, it's been pleasant. I made the girls get off the computers and TV, and now they are sitting on the living room floor here playing Scattergories. Heidi had to think of something that begins with the letter "T" that is in the air. Her answer was "Tatum" who is flying on an airplane. Alyssa just thought of a president with the letter "A" and came up with Anthony Hamilton. I don't think that's quite right! I could be wrong. After all, she is my honor roll student. But, she got voted DOWN on that one. Haha. Becky had to think of a product name beginning with the letter A and her answer was "Acne Control". Now they are on the letter "B".

Little incidents from today...
Libby, aged 11 months and still very puppy like, ugh, stole a spatula off the counter that I had set down...and took off out the doggy door. Good thing she's so cute!
A little earlier, Heidi was carrying a mug and a glass to the cupboard to put them away. She slipped and fell, both cups crashed and broke on the floor and she received threee little cuts on her hand. Nothing serious. Just enough to bring me running at the sound. That's what got me sweeping and mopping today.
Kat and I went to New York & Co. to shop...heehee. I hope Jim is in a good mood when he sees the amounts I spent. I say amounts because I found a couple things at that store and followed it up with a trip to JC Penney to get items to match. It was a SUCCESSFUL shopping trip. I usually find next to nothing when I need it. And I didn't spend huge amounts...just enough that it will probably be felt...sigh!


Do people hide rhinestones? Did I spell that right? Becky just answered that as an answer for something people hide.

Okay. I have more to say, but not so much time. Maybe later, m'bloggers.
G'day.

Oh, but one more thing...wasn't Cindy's party FUN last night?? It was great celebrating with her.

It's so nice and quiet here... :)

All I can hear right now are a couple birds chirping and my computer fan. Niiice. Oh---and a dog under my bed.

I need to get the oil changed in my car today. It's one of my favorite errands. And I own a 5 carat, sparkly diamond. And my 3 maids are coming today to clean my house AND the carpets. And my kids are perfect. Yup. ;)

I do really need to get the oil changed, though. This will be try number two running that favorite errand. See, I already had that accomplished feeling yesterday, at Walmart's Lube & Oil, only to be paged after about thirty minutes..."Lucy Liu, will you please see the technician in the Lube & Oil dept? Lucy Liu?". Not kidding. I felt like a celebrity in the house. I walked back to see the technician, where a crowd of people stood to greet me...haha.... I thought the technician was going to tell me the oil change was finished, but instead he told me one of the bolts was stripped at the top of something or other (i'm not a mechanic) and I would need to take it back to the last place I had the oil changed. UGH!!! So, today I will try again. This time to the dealership, where they can charge me twice as much, but at least the car will be clean! I don't wanna go....

Oh, and I went to look for a birthday card at Target yesterday. First, though, I dropped my kids off at Chick Filet, because looking at cards with three kids around is IMPOSSIBLE. When I got to the card section at Target, there was a husband and wife looking at cards also. At first they were both just a few feet away from me, and then the husband walked to the next aisle which also had cards. I was just about to pick up one up to read, and this card comes poking through the rack from the other aisle, and I hear, "Marge, read this one." (I don't remember if that was the wife's name, but she looked like a Marge). It was obvious he thought it was his wife standing there. So, I started laughing quietly, and then he starts shaking the card impatiently, trying to get his wife to take it from his hand. LOL. I looked down the aisle at the wife and said "I think this card's for you." Then the husband heard me, too, and we all cracked up. Ahhh...funny. :) (I wish that had happened at Walmart earlier. It would have made the trip there worth it!).

Well, I guess I should get up. My coffee cup is drained. Unlike the oil in my van.

Welcome to the first day of summer vacation, David & Chloe!!

Have a cool day, to all that lay eyes on this blog. God is good! And I will look for something good while I'm waiting for the oil to be changed. :)

I am finding it extremely comforting to remember God's faithfulness both in my life and in others. When I begin to recall all that God has done, I feel a sense of freedom. Whatever circumstance I am in now, He sees and He will work it for good. The circumstance doesn't have to be a trap that chains me down and sucks out all my joy and energy. The enemy would have it be that way, but God is the opposite. He gives freedom and joy when we surrender our troubles and uncertainties to His all-powerful care, trusting that He is more than able...infinitely more than we are. I like Deut. 32:3 & 4 where it says, "I will proclaim the name of the Lord. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! He is the Rock, His works are perfect, and all His ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He."

Melissa...

how 'bout a blog? lol

Ronald MacDonald House

Nap time yet? I got up at 5:30 this morning to drop Jim off at the bus stop (the truck is in the shop...the fuel guage is stuck on full! Or maybe it is like the widow's oil jar that never went empty...hey, one can hope!!) and head on down to the Ronald MacDonald House. What a great organization. Our church is in charge of decorating and painting one of the rooms. It was fun walking around this morning checking out the progress of the different rooms and talking to the people in charge of each one. One group consisted of two parents and a good friend of a twenty year old girl who died of brain cancer a year ago. She had been dealing with cancer since the age of nine and it finally took over last year. So, they were in the room decorating in memory of her. It was really good talking to them..very touching. There is always a really neat spirit surrounding a situation like that. We all gathered at 11:30 for a good bbq lunch put on by Walmart. (See, Walmart isn't so bad! I know a couple people who have boycotted that store...to each his own ;) That store is too close to my house to boycot! Way too convenient! Okay, I'm writing this post as if I have A.D.D. Hmmm...Back to the point...). I sat in the sun and ate and worked on my farmer's tan and talked to other volunteers. It was so enjoyable--the whole experience. Tomorrow we are going to go back to finish up the room. I'll post a couple pictures...most likely! I will at least write about it.

I would really like to get a group of kids together in September or October and collect donations for the house. I got the phone # of a husband and wife who volunteer regularly there, and she said she would give me the latest at that time for the needs in the house. It would be great to take a load of kids down there and have them get involved with this. Don't you think? I'd like to do this in memory of our Carly as a way to celebrate her life. And I think it is so good for kids to see life outside of their own home life.

It's been a good day :)

What do you do with a girl like Heidi???
She bounces off the walls, alrighty!
She is sitting next to me, wiggling,
reading the words, not giggling.
Oh wait...she is..
and drinking sprite fizz.
Now I have her still;
she waits for the words to fill.
What a silly blog
just like her silly dog
who is carrying around dirty socks.
Heidi really thinks that rocks.
I think it's the grossest,
the dog enjoys it the mostest.
Lets close our silly rhyme...
Now give the girl a dime.

Bye bye...
be a fly
on our wall,
watch it all.
Here online
it's so fine.
It's the end...
see you again.

There you are!
You didn't go far.
There are still lines to be said
so pull up a bed.
If that's too much to fare
pull up a chair.
Sit right down.
Man, Heidi's a clown!
Let's wind this down,
close up town.
Go to bed
like I said.
Or am saying,
No playing.

This is it...
No more wit.

Good night.
Don't let the bed bugs fight.

One last word...
supercalifragilisticexpialadoshurd.

Written by Heidi & Mom
now that's the bomb!

One of my favorite songs...