Day 20- Showing off a talent

I wrote this first poem right after I married Matt. It still holds true!

Many Meanings
Love is euphoria.
Euphoria is indescribable.
Indescribable is extraordinary.
Extraordinary is phenomenal.
Phenomenal is rare.
Rare is incomparable.
Incomparable is unique.
Unique is orginal.
Original is love.



I wrote this one right before we got married, when he was away for training and I was missing him.
Sensing Passion
I feel your warmth.
I see your smile.
I hear your breath.
I smell your sweat.
I taste your lips.

You feel my hand.
You see my body.
You hear my giggle.
You smell my perfume.
You taste my lips.

We feel the passion.
We see the joy.
We hear the beating of hearts.
We smell the romance.
We taste our lips.



I wrote this one is high school for a project in poetry class! The assignment was to write a poem and then completely rewrite it, so this is the second draft!
Dark Alley of Life
The intense darkening cloud carrier is the color black.
The crescent shape beams out into the darkness.
The twinkeling stars seem to fade on and off as if it were a light switch.
Streetlights no longer work as if all the bulbs have burnt out into the empty space.
Possums lurk and coyotes all howl,
the creatures of the night hunt and scowl and go about their ways,
As if it were really daytime.
All of the cats hiss and get into their fights,
But the daylight peaks and soon gone is the night!


Hopefully others can enjoy a few of my poems as much as I do! Writing to me is a simple pleasure!

God Bless!

Day 19- How has your life changed over the last year?

January 2010 started off with Matt getting called in to do staff duty a day after he had already done it. Then the next day he went out into the field, it was supposed to be for 2 weeks, but he got sent home after about 4 days. He went and played basketball that night and the next morning he was told he would be sent to Haiti. So starting with last January, we didn't really see him. He was gone for 6 weeks, but it was 8 days before we had heard from him at all. Those 6 weeks, which were sudden, helped me understand how a "real" deployment would be. We celebrated a fifth and a first birthday! Matt got home February 26, and we celebrated the boys late birthdays.

Last March, I turned 24. We celebrated my birthday with Chinese food and a good movie! We went to Monkey Joes and the childrens musuem and made time for extra quality family time since Matt had been gone. We got to finally go see Matt jump out of an airplane this month also, and that was so amazing and fun! In April we took our first real family vacation and went to Atlantic Beach, which is about 3 hours from here. It was a wonderful time, and we had a great view of the ocean from our deck. In May we celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary, and Matt became a jumpmaster on the same day as well! June was Matt's birthday, July was our long trip to Iowa to spend the holiday with family. August was our first experience with back to school because Bruce started kindergarten. September we went hiking, October we went to the pumpkin patch and did a cornfield maze and we also took the boys trick-or-treating, trunk-or-treating and to a carnival. In November I cooked us another Thanksgiving dinner here. December was just a great overall month, filled with fun, parties, Christmas, family and snow!

This last year has taught me how to be even more patient and how to realize that Matt could have to leave without notice at any time, so appreciate the time that we do have together and cherish every moment. I have learned that the boys are little, but they teach me lessons just as much as we teach them!

Never forget the reason why we are here, and give thanks everyday, not just the last Thursday of November. God bless!

Day 18- If you had 3 wishes what would they be?

I try not to wish. I try to be happy with what I have. I pray, I hope, I believe and I have faith, but I don't wish too often, not literally at least. But, for the fun of the topic I will pull something out of my hat!

Wish number 1 would be the obvious and cliche Miss America Pageant answer of World Peace. I just wish that everybody could co-exist in this world and keep their business to themselves. In this scenerio, we don't all have to get along, we just have to butt out and leave each other alone! But, in reality, we can't...

For my second wish, it would be for more decent politicians. No more liars, no more thiefs, no more cheating or scandals. No more politicians that speak a bunch of things that people want to hear, but do nothing about it. No more money hungry people who don't really have any compassion or care for anybody but themselves.

My third wish would be for no taxes! They are ridiciously high and I am tired of paying them! (I wanted to throw in a fun one!)

God Bless!

Happy Birthday Bruce! We love you!

Today marks 6 years since I have been a mother! Time goes so quickly, yet still so slowly! I cannot believe that it has been 6 years now! He was very excited today and very happy! He already said, "Now I am 6, which means I am almost 7!" Oh brother! We are so blessed to be the parents to such a wonderful and unique little boy! He had to wear his dress shirt and tie to school today because he said he needed to look good since it is his birthday! We are so happy, but I am a little sad also. A little sad that he is growing up, but such is life and we know he will grow more and more and hopefully into a wonderful adult!

I took pictures of all of these old baby pictures of Bruce, because they are in a scrapbook and I couldn't scan them very easily, so they are blurry but they get the general picture across!

He was 1 day old here.

1 week old and very grumpy that he wasn't wearing any clothes!

He was about a month here and happy!

Sleeping baby! He was about 6 months here.

10 months old here!

He was 18 months and not happy about taking a picture with mommy at Chuck E. Cheese!

20 months here and relaxing in the car!

His very first picture with me!

This looks just like Levi!

Sad face...

Smiling little boy, he was about 2.5 here.

He was 3, and this was one week before our wedding!

Back when I had only 2 handsome guys!

Having fun, he had just turned 2 here.

Little ham!

2 weeks before his 6th birthday and doing schoolwork!

Last Sunday, fell asleep after Church! Levi was asleep on the other side of the car as well!

He was 4 here, November 2009.

One year ago, 5.

Back in November at dad's basketball game!

Day 17- Write about your last birthday and how you plan to celebrate your next one...

I love birthdays! I love my birthday, my childrens birthdays, Matt's birthday, your birthday and everyones! I get a little sad when someone says, "I am not celebrating my birthday," or "I don't like birthdays, it is just another day". It is the day you were born! Getting older, to me, is a privelege! I can't wait to be 90 and think about all of my past birthdays! Plus, this is a good subject since tomorrow is Bruce's 6th birthday and 2 weeks exactly later it will be Levi's 2nd birthday! (And then 4 weeks after that it will be mine, but who is counting ;)?)

Last year Matt came home 6 days before my birthday! We had no idea when he would be home, so it was great that he got to come home and be my birthday gift! Last year we woke up, Matt had to go to work, but I made coffee and we enjoyed breakfast together. Then I made my birthday cake, strawberry chocolate chip with strawberry cream cheese icing! Matt got home and I got Chinese food delevired and flowers!

A picture of my flowers/balloons/bear from my husband and the Chinese food in the background!

This year, my birthday is a Friday, so we will probably go out to dinner and then go shopping for something (perhaps new tattoos!) I am not sure what else though, but I am excited for this one because I will be 25! Finally in my mid-twenties!

God Bless!

Day 16- Upload a picture of your room and talk about your day...

Well, my camera died and the battery is charging, so no picture... Plus, our bedroom is for us and I want to be selfish and not share it! ;) I will talk about it though! We just rearranged our bedroom a few weeks ago, so it has more open space than it did before. The bed is on the wall with the window and we have a dresser with a mirror on my side and a taller dresser on Matts side. We have too footstools that equal one "bench" in front of our bed at the foot. We have a treadmill along the wall where the door is, and we have a big collage picture frame on the side where our bed was... Pretty simple, but we like it!

Now on to my day, not too much. We stayed in today, and started to finally get reorganized since Christmas. With Matts leave and then the snow and Bruce missing a whole week due to the snow days, it was hard to get back into our normal routines! Yesterday and today we finally did it! The "man-cave" looked like the Army threw up all over it, with ACU's, bags, boots, PT's, socks and special underwear thrown everywhere in there! I managed to fold it all up and put them back on the shelves where they belong. The boys had books everywhere, and I reorganized those and made it neat and tidy again! Before all of that though, Levi and I watched his alotted amount of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and I enjoyed my coffee, and Levi decided he wanted some too... Well, he grabbed the pot (it is stainless steel) and he brought it to me, I said no and he sat back down. After that he waited a while and then got back up, he was in the kitchen for about half a minute when I told him to come back. He came back and he had his whole face, mouth, hair and hands full of coffee grinds! He dug in the trash and got the filter out since I said he couldn't have coffee, and he tried to eat the grinds!!! Needless to say, he got a bath and he defiently didn't get any coffee. :)

After all of that excitement, Levi took a nap and I clipped coupons and planned for the next two weeks meals. I also did more birthday party planning for the boys party that will be in 2 weeks! All in all, it was a fun day!

God Bless!

Day 15- Write about something you worry about a lot...

Writing about something that I worry about can be pretty easy, but hard at the same time. I would like to say that I never worry about anything and I leave it all up to God, but I haven't been able to let go completely, and I still do worry sometimes...

First off, I am a wife to an airborne Army infantry soldier, whats not to worry about? He trains every month for an unknown amount of time, he goes to schools and takes classes, he jumps out of airplanes as a part of his job and he goes on deployments. I worry that he will get hurt, but for the most part I know that things will be ok. I worry about the economy and the fact that 49,000 are needed to be cut from the Army, but I think about a little more and feel better and no more worry. I worry about the boys. They are boys! They are rough, they are growing up and they scare me! They are daredevils and I worry about them like any mother would! So yes, I worry, but then I say a prayer and my worry goes away. I know that in the long run things will be ok, or they will turn out differently then planned, but they will still work out for the best!

Day 14- Post your favorite book, favorite movie, favorite band, and favorite food.

My favorite book changes all of the time. I love reading a variety of books, so I don't really have one that is an absolute favorite, but I do have one book that sticks out in my mind. One year ago, while Matt was in Haiti I bought my first kindle book, and it was Dear John. I read this book before the movie came out, and I will tell you that I do not like the movie as well at all. I loved the book though. It was sad for me, and it did not end the way I wanted it to, but I think it was well written and it made me think of my husband. The good parts were good, the sad parts sad and the rest of it was entertaining!

My favorite movie also changes a lot as well. I love movies, and it is trully hard for me to pick just one. I don't like fantasy movies very much. We don't watch horror, scary or creepy movies really either. I love romance, romantic comedies, comedies, dramas, true life and military type movies. I love the movie "Planes, Trains and Automobiles with John Candy and Steve Martin, it cracks me up everytime I watch it and it is a classic to me! I love "It's a Wonderful Life" because, really, who doesn't? I also enjoy the movie "Blackhawk Down". "A Few Good Men" and "Men of Honor" are two more that I just can't watch too many times either. I absolutely adore "Forest Gump" and the message it sends out. "Casablanca" is a classic that is too good to pass up! "Dirty Dancing", "Grease", "Mannequin", "Annie", "Pretty Woman", "Hitch", "Eye Spy" and "How to Lose a Guy in 10 days" are some of my very favorite movies to just sit and watch! I have recently liked, "P.S. I love You", "Bounty Hunter", "300" and "The Ugly Truth" (and yes they all have the same starring male lead, coincedence?)! But, I will have to say that no matter what movie comes along, or what mood I am in, I will always think that "The Notebook" is the best movie for me!

I started to like music when I was about 5! I mean real music, not childrens songs or Church songs, but real music that played on radio stations! I never started to have a favorite band until eigth grade though! I loved blink 182! I had every CD, poster, book, sticker or anything about them that you could imagine! I loved them until afer HS, but I have outgrown the childish music now, but I still love a lot of their songs! I say that now I don't really have a favorite band, but a favorite genre/song. Christian hymnals is the winner! But, just like with movies, I know my music pretty well also!

My favorite food, if you are talking food and not a meal, would be cheese! I will eat cheese plain, cooked, cold, cubed, flavored, aged, with holes, shredded, melted, mixed and as a dip! I love cheese! But, if we are talking meal wise, it would be steak or chicken curry! I will eat either of those every week, year round! The steak has to be cooked medium rare though, and soft, not hard and burnt! I like it when the steak practically melts in my mouth! Oh, and I love potatoes too!

God Bless!

Day 13: What are your plans for the future far and near?

Plans change all of the time no matter what your job is, but when you are married to a Soldier in the Army there is no room for set in plans because they could change one hundred times before the date gets here. We can't book a hotel room for a vacation until we know for sure it will happen, which is usually the last minute because they will say you won't get leave, you will, you won't, and then finally the day before the plans you find out! We can plan for the far future a little better, but we still don't have definite plans because all we know is that Matt wants to stay in for at least 20 years or until "they kick him out" and he is almost at 10 years, so at least 10 years or more. The kids will be anywhere between 14 to 20-ish around the time Matt will possibly retire, so we don't want to move right away and have them change schools right before graduation. We also have no idea how the economy will change in the next 10 years either, so the only plans we really have is to build a house or buy one to renovate. We want double ovens, a big garage, basement that is finished and a big "man cave" and bathroom. Future plans are really to just own a house, take a lot of vacations and travel, for us to both have jobs and to have more money saved up after retirement.

The near plans, like very near are pretty easy. In 6 days Bruce will be 6 and in 20 days Levi will be 2, so we know that we are having a birthday party for them! Tomorrow I am getting a root canal, which was planned so that counts! My birthday is March 4, a friday this year and we are planning to have a baby sitter and go out, which is already in the works. And Matt has JRTC and that is pretty set in stone. Other than that, after March we really don't know what is going to happen for certain! And the funny thing is, I am a planner! I tend to plan week to week though, because that is usually easier to keep track of!

Plus, no matter what we have planned, God already has a plan and we are just along for the ride (so to speak)!

God Bless!

Photos old and new that are of places or things more than people...

These are some of my favortie shots from Atlantic Beach and our backyard in the sun and snow.

I edited some of these a little bit, but I took all of these! Hopefully someone can enjoy them!

Where has the time gone?

We are creeping towards the end of January, and it barely feels like it has started! January brings a lot for us. It brings a new year, playoff games for the NFL and several birthdays (including a very special one). That is right, in one week from today Bruce will be six years old! I always thought that when he turned 5 and/or started kindergarten I would cry, but I didn't. I do believe that six is hitting me harder! He has learned so much this past year and has really grown up a lot more. It is hard to believe that he can read and write a lot better, tie his shoes, open his own lunch food (which he couldn't as the start of the year) and so much more. Memories are great to have and pictures are great too, because time seems to go so quickly that we need the reminders of small and simple things sometimes.

We are also nearing some other special days for us. In 3 weeks from today Levi will be 2! We are so amazed at how much he has grown up in the past 2 years, but mostly in the past 9 months! He went from walking slowly and babbling to running and learning several new words a day it seems! He can help get himself dressed and undressed, reconizes and says a few colors, puts his shoes on, sits still to watch 30 minutes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse sometimes and so much more! We are so blessed with both of our children and we are really starting to see them shape into their own little by little. It feels like yesterday when Bruce was 3 and we found out we were expecting Levi!

And one more upcoming day is happening in 6 weeks and 1 day! Yes, I will be 25! I love getting older and I will probablly always love it. I feel like the older I am the more wise I can become and the more I can share! 25 is the last BIG birthday until 30, because I will be a quarter of a century old, get even more cheap car insurance, and be in my mid-twenties!

Those are all of the upcoming positives that will be happening soon! So far this year is going well, lets just hope that by the end of the year I can say the same thing and I can become an even stronger person!

God Bless!

Day 11- The best day...

When I think back about good times and great days, in the most recent years there have been a lot! I will mention a few though. I am not going for the obvious, because of course those are the best! Our wedding day was absolutely perfect and it truly was a breathtaking day and one of the best! And the other two given best days are the days that our children were born...

But, to be non-obvious, the day that Matt and I went on our first date was wonderful. We went to Ihop at 3:00am and had breakfast, and it was just so natural feeling and so nice! I got home at 5:00 am and had to be at work at 11:30. When I got to work (I was a server at Ryan's buffet) Matt was already there waiting to eat! And we didn't have a kiss or hug or any contact on our first date and that made it much more special (plus it wasn't planned)!

Our first family trip to the Ocean last April. It was my first time (and the boys) to see the Ocean and it was chilly, but so beautiful! It was good to be on our first vacation just the 4 of us, and being at the water was amazing! I got to try lobster tail for the first time and it was delecious!

The day Matt got home from Haiti. He was gone for 6 weeks without notice, so it was a really nice surprise to see him (we had no idea he was coming home until that same morning)! I will never forget that day, and what I said to him! I looked him and hugged him tightly and then I said, "I love you, I have missed you! You are so tan, and you smell really bad...". Lol. That is what popped in my head, and it was true! :)

There will be many more "best" days in my lifetime to add to the common ones and the not so common ones!

God Bless!

Day 10- What is the meanest thing anyone has ever said to you...

The meanest thing that I can recall being said, wasn't to me, but was said about me. While I was pregnant with Bruce somebody told someone else (someone that was closer to me than the other person) that they knew they would probablly have to call DFS on me because I would be a horrible mother. I found that out when he was 4 months old. I also found out that the same person kept threatening me with calling DFS on me, but they had no reason. I took care of Bruce pretty much by myself until he was 18 months old. I didn't work his first 11 months, and then I worked full time and paid for everything on my own without any help. I got a better job that paid more also and did it all while living on my own and working from 11:00 am to 8:00 pm 5 days a week just to provide. I kept the house clean, I cooked food (most of the time, sometimes we just ate cereal) and I paid all of the bills that needed paid. I was very distrought by the fact that somebody (2 people actually) wanted me to fail as a mother and a person, but I got over it, prayed for them and made my peace.

Now I have two wonderful boys who are healthy and very intelligent and I get to be a stay at home mother for now. I also cook and clean and plan everything for all 4 of us and we are happy and better than ever!

It just goes to show you that sometimes (not always though) age doesn't matter!

God Bless!

Day 9- The nicest thing anyone has ever said to you...

This one is tough. The older I get, the more nice things I hear, but I can't seem to pinpoint just one! I can think of the nicest thing anyone has done for me, or the sweet things that Bruce tells me everyday, and Matt. And the cute things that Levi does for momma, but I am having a hard time thinking of the nicest thing said to me.

Bruce tells me everyday (or most days) that I am beautiful or pretty. He will say, "Momma, you are so pretty today," or he will say, "You are the most beautiful mom". I also get comments from him that I am the best cooker ever too. :) Levi will say, "Ove you mum-mum" or grab my face and give kisses and say "muahh"! And then there is of course Matt, who says nice things without even having to use his words (he says pain in the butt things too though, lol).

I get compliments a lot that I have very well behaved children, or a polite son and quiet younger son. I get told that I have cute kids and that I look good for having two children! I get told that I am pretty and that I look young (which people see that as a compliment, and hopefully the older I get the more I see it as one too!) I am told that my cooking is pretty good a lot! So, I may not be able to choose one nice thing that goes above the others, but there are a lot of nice things that strangers (and people we know too) tell me and I am glad for that...

Oh yes, one more thing. I get told all of the time that I am an inspiration becuase of how genuinely happy and upbeat I am! That is a great thing to say and I appreciate it!

God Bless you all!

Day 8- How do you feel today?

I feel refreshed and very well!

For the first time in 2 weeks my mouth isn't hurting too badly, I got my hair cut and thinned and it feels so light and airy and I had a great night last night that makes for a good day today! I woke up this morning and I had some alone time while the boys (including Matt) slept in, and then I got in a shower without interuption and then got dressed before waking them up! And then we went to Church and the message was very powerful and amazing, which always makes a great start to a week! And then we cooked hotdogs and ate and I went and picked up my friend Emily! We went and got our hair done, although the lady that did mine took way too long! And when I got home we watched some football and I got hugs from the boys because they missed their mommy!

Overall, I am usually in a great mood and today was no exception! Life is wonderful for the most part, you just have to find the good and make the most of it!

God Bless you all!

My Christmas presents...

I love to give gifts! I love the reaction of peoples faces, I love to give nice things, useful things and things that are a reminder of something or an inside joke sometimes! I love to give! I appreciate getting gifts! I don't expect, nor beg or want things, but I do love the things I get!

This year I got a lot of things that I use a lot! My most favortie items have to be my kitchen items! I have gotten more and more into cooking and baking and I love that I have some new items to help me make new things and display my creations!

I got a panini press/sandwhich maker/griddle and grill, and I have used that thing just about everyday since Christmas! I make different varities of grilled cheese, with different meats, cheese and bread. I have made quesadillas for the first time and I have made fajitas! We have used this for a lot and we are using it to make steak tonight and hotdogs and hamburgers tomorrow! I love this thing, and it has made my love for sandwhichs come back, because I just don't like them cold! So, thank you guys again for the great gift! And to the others that got kitchen things, I love those too!

Day 7- A recent picture of myself...

This one is a tough one becuase I am not usually the one that gets pictures taken of myself, I am usually the one that takes the pictures! But, I found 3 recent ones!

This is my build-a-bear from my husband. I can cuddle with this bear that has a real heartbeat when Matt is gone. I even sprayed cologne on him to make him smell just like Matt!

This one is of me also, but it has my 3 favorite people in it as well!

And this picture is of me and the boys playing in the snow that day after Christmas! Other than these, I don't have many recent pictures that have myself in them!

God Bless and have a great day!