not quite wordless wednesday...

Dear Santa,

You will find my name at the top of the naughty list, but if you bring me some itunes cards or a new cell phone I will try REALLY hard to be good this next year!

love,
michaela


Dear Santa,

This year I would like either my very own laptop or a stable, horses and all the stuff that goes with the horses. I have tried very hard to be good this year. I listen to my mommy and daddy...well I do some of the time. I am nice to my sister...mmm, well when she is nice to me anyway! I keep my room picked up...scratch that! I brush my teeth and take a bath without whinging....errr,maybe not! I brush my hair without drama...okay, not really! You know what Santa, never mind that nice list, add me to the 'I am cute and funny' list!!

love,
emma shea

she's got groove....

I'm talking pedicure on my toes, toes
Trying all our clothes, clothes

Tic Tok on the clock
but the party dont stop...

Who knew she could be so ghetto???

11....

eleven days until Christmas...1 gift purchased...motivation is lacking...
time is running out...HO HO HO BAH HUMBUG!!!

road warriors....

3:00pm---Steve left Louisville to make the drive home....

4:40pm--- he walks through the door

he is working overtime this weekend, but he drove home to take care of the mess the wind made this past week.

5:10pm---Michaela and I leave to make the drive to La Grange...

6:05pm---arrive at the Allison's

it was the Christmas party for the teenagers tonight...

I had planned to drop Mac off, say hello to Camilla and Bill and then head home...

I ended up staying...

10:55pm---I pull into my garage!

NOW----bed!

Tomorrow....Emma's party after church!!!

it really isn't...

It is said that it is the thought that counts...

I disagree!

Because, if it was the thought that counted...

than when I walked out Wednesday morning and I saw the trash all over the street and the Christmas lights hanging off of the roof...

and I heard that stronger winds were on the way...

the thought, "I should probably take the umbrella out of the patio table so that it doesn't blow over!" would have been enough.

If it is the thought that counts...

I would not have come home to....


...of course engaging some common sense may have helped the situation :)

not quite wordless wednesday...

Emma has a new trick!!!!

~~~
For more wordless wednesday go to:
OmniCouple
Wordless Wednesday
Seven Clowns

cue taps...

23 years ago, the military life of Stephen M was born.

It was a life filled with many adventures; many trials; many unforgettable experiences.

In the course of this life, many acquaintances were made, many friendships were formed.

It was a life that lasted longer than anyone expected; a survival not without it's struggles.

But, after 23 years, we are here to celebrate the passing of that life.

And we bid you a final farewell.

Farewell weekend drills. Farewell camouflage and combat boots. Farewell useless forms in triplecate.

Farewell monthly paycheck, YOU will be missed most of all.

OH WAIT....

the paperwork for retirement was not processed in time? the life has to be extended for 4 more months?

If only you could see the look of pure (un)surprise on my face.

in search of the perfect tree...

Our trip to the tree farm....

pictures of two very cold girls...
hoping I hurry up and get a good shot...
so they can put their coats back on!!!Steve arrives...
the search begins...

nope,
not this one...
'Hey, I am taller than this one'...
'This one is too small!'...
THIS ONE IS PERFECT!!!
time to cut it down...
a new tradition...
Steve usually carries the tree over his head,
he said he couldn't because the tree was so big...
we say it is because he is getting old:)
everyone doing their part...memories...
with each ornament they pulled out of the box...

lights on..time to decorate...

while adding ornaments, the tree falls over...
engineering to stabilize the tree...
30 minutes later...
decorating resumes!
Christmas Beauty....

sweet sister moments....

One of the best parts of looking for the perfect tree....

Sweet sister moments captured!!!

it's beginning to look alot like Christmas....

We went to the tree farm after Steve got out of Guard duty...

Had a short time to pick one before they closed...

but it was today or never!

Found a nice round one... my favorite kind!!

Loaded it up and took it home.

Steve and Mac put the lights on... one strand stopped working once they got it on the tree...

we took them off... they started working again!

Lights on... decorating begins...

tree falls over!!!

luckily Michaela and I caught it with out heads:)

Much engineering and 30 minutes later, the tree is secure and straight--ish...

decorating part 2...

BEAUTIFUL SUCCESS!
more pics Monday...I didn't expect to finish the tree at 11:00pm!!!!

friday frivolity....

Happy, happy Friday!!!!

I am so thankful that this week has come to a close...

Time to relax a little and get ready for the craziness of next week!
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Steve is home tonight...

He drove home after work for a night of rest and relaxation finishing the lights outside...

5 times climbing onto the roof...

but it was worth it!Do you think I would be pushing my luck to ask him to put a bunch around the tree and bushes?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This is SUPPOSED to be Steve's last week end with the Guard...

After 23 years he is retiring...

but as with all military procedures there is a problem with the paperwork....

he'll find out tomorrow if he has to drill for a few more months....

military intelligence~~~HA!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Michaela worked past her fear of singing in front of people...

and tried out for a part in the 8th grade play...

the cast list came out today...

she is a candy kid...

We do not know what part that is...

We do know it is a minor, minor part...

but we are so proud of her for stepping WAY out of her comfort zone and trying!!!

Michaela is just thrilled she does not have to sing a solo on stage!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Emma had a GREAT week..

It is almost scary how well it has gone...

She is reading everything in sight...

Hard to believe just a few months ago we couldn't get her to willingly read anything...

soon the days of spelling things we do not want her know about will come to an end:(
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
While Steve was up on the roof tonight he looked down and said..

"Have I mentioned how much I like my job?"

My response...

"Have I mentioned how much I like you having a job?"

It's the little things--paychecks and insurance--that make me happy.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We will be cutting down our Christmas tree this week-end...

a family tradition we were not been able to do for the last few years...

I cannot wait to see Emma searching for the 'perfect one'...

It is the anticipation and excitement in the girls' faces that make the season special!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Steve and Emma are downstairs watching Santa Clause is coming to Town...

Michaela is in bed reading...

I am upstairs enjoying peace, solitude, and.....
I LOVE WINTER!!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tomorrow is filled with cleaning and studying...

so I am going to enjoy the rest of the fire...

and then go up to my nice warm bed compliments of my husband who sleeps on my side of the bed until I come up so it will be nice and warm for me!!!!

it's one of the reasons I keep him around!

aspiration...

Emma had a project assigned to her this week at school.

She was to research a country and dress a paper form in clothes authentic to the country chosen.

She of course chose England!

We would like to introduce Mr. Pete-named for our friend in England who was a guard for the Queen.
While Emma and I were working on her project, she asked if Mr. Pete (the real one) had gotten to see the Queen when he was a guard.

I told her he probably had.

She was very impressed. There were lots of "Wows." and "He was lucky!"

She then asked of there were 'girl guards' for the Queen. I told her I did not know but that we could look it up.

She thought for a moment...

and then...

"I know, if there are not girl guards for the Queen than I can be a servant for the Queen and I would be able to see her then!"

Servitude to the Queen, what aspirations!!!!

rain, rain go away....

Is it wrong that I am wishing we wake up to this in the morning?

its new math....

1 king size bed
- 1 husband that works out of town
-------------------------------------
SHOULD= lots of room for me

But there seems to be some new math being calculated in my house.....

1 king size bed
- 1 husband that works out of town
-----------------------------------------
SOMEHOW= 1 VERY crowded bed

she is her father's child...

It was a glorious 60* today...

so we took advantage of the sunshine and were very productive outside...

At 5:00 the temperature dropped to about 55*...

Emma takes after her Daddy when it comes to cold temperatures...

she thought it was 'freezing'...

so she went in and got her winter hat...

and one glove!!
What a goob!!!

friday frivolity...

Well, I did not brave the crowds at 4:00am this morning to snag the 'great deals'...

but I did go out later in the afternoon to buy some christmas lights...

and if the traffic, full parking lots, and people loaded down with bags is any indication of the economy...

then I would say the recession is ending...

or that there is going to be ALOT of people that need Dave Ramsey after December 25th!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Thanksgiving holiday is past...

the pumpkins and scarecrows have been put away...

the ornaments and snowmen have been brought down from the attic...

and I am still wondering how it is almost December already!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It has been so odd having Steve home for the last two days...

and he will be here over the weekend...

I better be careful or I may get used to having a husband that lives with me:)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And even more surprising than Steve being home for more than a few hours...

the fact that he just sat on the couch and watched an ENTIRE movie with me...

with his eyes open!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Michaela is supposed to be trying out for a part in the 8th grade play...

and I say 'supposed to be' because her confidence is waning...

and I think she may chicken out.

It is sad that SHE is the only one that thinks she cannot do this.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Emma has been her normal bi-polar self...

we are never quite sure what emotion we are going to encounter with her...

Every day moment is a new adventure.

I am not sure which one of us would benefit greater from a prescription of Prozac!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I think the tooth fairy may be finally coming to visit us again...

Emma told us "My teeth are ready fro Ms. Katrina on Sunday."...

and if they both come out...

she'll be singing "All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth"!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We received Michaela's State test scores...

Distinguished in English....

and Proficient in Math and Science...

just a few points away from Distinguished in both!

we are so proud of her!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The new term has begun for me...

I am not enjoying this term at all...

but it too shall end.

Just not soon enough for me!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am going to go enjoy the last of the fire in the fireplace...

and then head up to bed.

Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving...

and have a great Saturday!

happy thanksgiving eve...

On this the eve of thanksgiving I am thankful for...

friends who invite my daughters to spend the night...

friends who take Michaela to see New Moon again~~~so I don't have to:)

my husband who is snoring next to me for the first time in almost a week.

she is going to give us a run for the $...

Last Thursday, Emma was invited to spend the afternoon playing at her friend Madeline's house. She is a sweet girl that lives a few houses down from us and she and Emma play very well together. Emma would go there everyday if she was allowed, but we always wait for an invitation.

Don't want to wear out her welcome!

On Friday, Emma comes running into the house after getting off of the bus. She throws her book bag and coat down (if only that was an unusual occurrence) and starts talking a mile a minute....

Mommy, Can I go play at Madeline's again?

Were you invited?

No, but I heard Ashton talking about going over there at school today.

You just played there. You need to wait until Ms. Jessica invites you.

Yeah, but they have a rule that Madeline can only have one friend over at a time. Hurry Mommy! Please can I go?

and then I finally understood the urgency in her voice...

So you want to hurry and run down there before Ashton gets there so you can be the one to play with her?

YES!!!

Hmmmm. No!

Yes sir, a run for our money!!!!

self collage...

Well, it s 11:28pm...

I have a self inventory collage due tomorrow...

Can you guess what I am doing right now?

Yep... the collage!!

Can you guess what one of my descriptive words is on my self reflection collage?

Yep..procrastination!!

I must get back to digging deep within myself to find out what influences and events have caused me to become the person I am:)

friday frivolity...

"Amazing!"

"Fantastic!"

"So worth staying up until 2:30am!"

"Oh, I cannot wait until the next one!"

These were some of the many squeals of delight I heard after the showing of New Moon last night this morning~~~and sadly mostly from grown women!

As the credits rolled I stood up, thankful that the ending had finally come and thought "Really??? that is what the hype is all about? Really bad acting, low budget looking werewolves, and CHEESY frolicking in the meadow scenes?" I lost hours of sleep for THIS??

But the girls loved it...

and that was the point of the evening!
~~~~~~~
I did learn a few things while sitting in the movie theater for an hour and a half before the movie started:

• some people would probably NOT chew gum in public if they actually saw how they looked.
• no matter what advertisers say, having a large bump in your hair is NOT a look that should be embraced
• some adults (and I use that term lightly) are ridiculously immature~~~you were asked to move over one seat. Was it really that big of an inconvenience? Was the yelling necessary?
• some guys have no clue as to what girls find attractive...to the Jacob wanna be,the long stringy hair is really not what the girls on TEAM JACOB are liking. I am going to take a guess as to the attraction and go with the well chiseled abdomen he kindly showed throughout the movie...Mr. Jacob Wanna Be, THIS you clearly did not have.
• there were 3 guys in Louisville that were really trying to impress their girlfriends...they actually sat in a theater full of girls and women and watched a vampire movie at 12:00AM.
• that 23 year olds sound really ridiculous complaining about how 'they are too old' to be out this late...especially as they sit next to a 40 year old woman.
• I am too old to be out at a movie until 3:00am:)

~~~~~~~~~
Michaela and I made it home at 4:20AM...

We met Steve at the door as he was leaving to drive back to Louisville for work!!
~~~~~~~~~~
Steve is working alot of overtime...

time and half and double time are GREAT...

except we won't see him until Sunday afternoon:(
~~~~~~~~~~
I am whipped...

and Mac has Ballet Corp. in the morning...

so I am off to sleep!

Have a great weekend..

vampires and werewolves....oh my!

Tonight is the night that Michaela and her friends have been waiting for since last November....

The opening of New Moon!!!!

I am off to pick up Michaela from dance practice and then we are heading to La Grange to pick up the rest of the crew...

and then it is off to the 12:15am showing.

Michaela says I am going to be 'cornfused' since I have not read the books or seen Twilight...

I am pretty sure I will be able to keep up!

I can't wait to see all the crazies that will be there tonight:)

not quite wordless wednesday...

When Steve was offered the job in Louisville we knew that we would be putting the house on the market...

after talking things over we decided that we would wait until Spring~~giving us time make a TO DO list and to finish some home improvement projects to help the resell value.

At first Spring seemed a long way off~~leaving plenty of time to complete the list, but then one day REALITY reared its ugly head! As I walked across Home Depot's parking lot it suddenly hit me that we plan to have a for sale sign in the yard in only 4 months!!!

And pressure mode ensues!!!

One of the major projects to get underway is the girls' bathroom. When we built the house, I took 3 year old Michaela and many of her friends to paint tiles at a pottery store. The tiles were then used to tile her bathroom. {Emma does not have any tiles represented because in 1999 she was still in the planning stages:)}
Many of the tiles were painted by people that we no longer have contact with so they hold no value to me. But there are many, such as Steve's tile he painted after he returned from Kuwait{with the phrase he would tell Mac whenever he called}, the 'Best Friends' tile painted by Ms. Renea, and Michaela's ABCs and potato people that I wish to have in one piece when they are removed. I recently went into a tile store to inquire about the removal options we have. Ha! the list is short. We {and by 'we' I mean Steve} can 1). cut around the tiles, removing the entire tiled portion of the wall, or 2). use a thin tile 'spatula' thingy {yes, that is what the professionals call it} and GENTLY slide it behind each tile~~~hoping that the top layer of the green board comes off thus increasing the chances that the tile will remain intact.

I voted for number 1. Steve, not so much!

So now the fun begins!

Wish us luck!

I will post the final results~~~as soon as the final results occur:)
~~~~~~~~~~

for more wordless wednesday go to:
seven clown circus
5 minutes for mom
wordless wednesday
omni couple

please help, i need a medical diagnosis....

Because we have a new insurance policy, I have been going over the out-of-pocket expenses and what is and is not covered. So far I have been pleased with what I have read. We have no yearly deductible to meet, it pays between 80% and 100% for office visits and procedures, and vision and basic dental is included~~for half of what we paid before. As long as the actual service is as good as what looks like on paper, we should be okay.

And truthfully, it could not have come at a better time because our household has been hit by something ugly. It hit Michaela first and with greater intensity, but Emma Shea is also showing signs of this virus. I have scoured the internet for a diagnosis, but have not come up with anything concrete as of yet. I have even used 'home remedies' to alleviate some of the symptoms; they work temporarily but eventually the symptoms return. I am at my wits end with this infestation.

So I am hoping that maybe someone out there knows the name for this bug that has infected the Martin girls and can help me with a remedy before it gets completely out of control.

OUR UNKNOWN VIRUS...

It affects mainly the ears, eyes, and mouth with the following symptoms being manifested:

EYES:

• rolling of the eyes upward

EARS:

• directives are heard as suggestions
  
• many conversations are not heard at all
• frequently hear conversations that never occurred
• often translates the words into an unknown language causing confusion or misunderstanding
• seemily lose the ability to hear at all, requiring rules to be repeated'

MOUTH:

• causes the words spoken to be in a nasty tone
• often speaks in a disrespectful manner
• contradicts everything that is spoken by the mother
• tries to justify behaviors be pushing off accountability

If anyone out there knows what the cause of these symptoms are, please let me know. I am afraid that an extended exposure will have dire consequences for the girls.

not sure it is really worth the racing heart...

Just imagine it...

It is your first Friday off in almost a year!

12 months of functioning on little to no sleep...

Rest, relaxation, and an evening of just doing nothing!

Sounds like bliss.

But wait...

who would want to just sit down and watch a movie or read a book?

Wouldn't it be MUCH MORE FUN...

...to climb up a ladder as daylight fades and hang Christmas lights from the 2nd story?
...to have your wife snap pictures as you climb up a ladder that is on the peak of the garage roof, telling you to be careful as she ages about 20 years watching you climb higher and higher.

(actually telling him that is was still worth 1/2 million with the Guard, so if he fell to make sure he did it right~~but some may not see the humor in that statement:) so will just stay with the words of encouragement scenario:)
...to sit on top of your roof, in the dark at 5:45 pm, and untangle the mess of lights you just carried up.
...to realize that you get to climb up there again because you dropped the brand new strand of lights and broke four of the bulbs!

I am thinking working security is looking ALOT safer!!!

{the ladder is on the garage roof in the first picture...my heart was pounding with fear as I was watching him!!!!}

friday frivolity...

What an uneventful week.

I took advantage of my days off of school and accomplished so much hardly anything I wanted to...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Steve's new job is going well...

He seems to enjoy it...

and he is able to pick up overtime...

so his night job is GONE!!!!

Will I know what to do with him NOT functioning on M*onster drinks all day Sunday???
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am thrilled with Steve's job too...

Well, the paycheck, for starters, is a plus...

and almost 2 weeks off at Christmas~~paid~~definite plus....

cuz' you know there is a LONG honey-do list waiting for him...

but the best part...

THE INSURANCE BEGAN THE FIRST DAY!!!!

no waiting period...

after almost 4 months of being insurance-less, we can NOW get sick!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tonight I will be home ALL ALONE...

Steve is working overtime today and tomorrow...

So after school I am driving half-way to La Grange and making a transfer

Emma is going down to spend some time with him...

and will spend the day with the M's tomorrow...

Michaela is going to a lock-in...

an will spend the weekend with the M's...

I am going to stay home and enjoy the rare non~mommy moments!
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well SHE was wrong...

I DO NOT feel better now that my 4.0 is a 3.85...

really, would rounding up .98% points been too much to ask????

**sigh** perfection gone!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I am home alone...

and what do I do...

I study the Nerve System...

a week early!!!!

Ugh! I am so boring:)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Steve will be bringing Emma home tomorrow evening..

and he will be hanging Christmas lights on the house...

a little early, but the weather is nice...

and we will NOT be turning them on until December!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well I must get back to nerves and the nervous system!