let freedom ring....

On May 5, 1868, General John Logan officially proclaimed a day of remembrance for fallen soldiers. On May 30, 1868 flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery, marking the first observance of Memorial Day.

Over the years, community observances of Memorial Day have diminished. Where parades and memorial services were once held, silence filled the air. Groceries stores were filled with people purchasing food for gatherings with friends, with no thought to those that have shed their blood on battlefields throughout the decades. Parks and lakes were filled with workers thrilled to have a day off of work, while the cemeteries filled with the graves of the fallen remained empty. Our freedom is taken for granted, and those that have given their lives to defend those freedoms have been forgotten.

Today, as we see the red and white strips of the American flag, let us remember the battles waged and the lives lost.

Let us remember...

as we spend this Memorial Day enjoying good food and friendship to take a moment and remember those that have given their lives defending the freedoms we enjoy.

Let us remember...

as we spend the day creating memories with our friends and family, to say a prayer for those that have lost loved ones on bloody battlefields.

On this Memorial Day let us remember...

that blood has been shed to ensure us of the freedoms we hold dear.

Let us remember ...

that a great price has been paid for the freedoms that we take for granted.

Let us remember...

that our freedoms are not free.

friday frivolity...

Looked at the clock and was surprised to see that Friday was almost gone...

So I sent my husband away from the computer so that I could write ramble!
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This post was actually supposed to be written from Alabama...

after the graduation of my friend's oldest daughter...

but life events prevented us from making t down there!

Instead we sat and watched the ceremony live on the computer.

and I was able to sit and wonder where the little girl that let me sit on her bed and play with her and her play food went...

and cry in private!
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The countdown for the end of the school year is down to 2 days...

2 days until no more alarm clocks...

2 days until no more homework!

2 days until I have a 2nd grader and a HIGH SCHOOL-er!!
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And if having a high schooler didn't make me feel old enough...

I feel REALLY old when I read FB status from former classmates announcing the births of their first grandchild!

Yup! Grandchildren! OLD!
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I would like to take this time to thank the individual that borrowed my carpet cleaner...

and put it back on the garage shelf without bothering to clean out the sludge from the tank...

after over three years in the garage...

the smell was priceless!

or stomach turning, repulsively nauseating.
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Michaela came home from school and laid down on the couch...

within minutes she was sound asleep...

For the rest of the evening she was lethargic and pale.

I think she is having withdrawal from not texting for the last week!
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Emma is so ready for school to be over...

she is outside playing from the moment she gets home from school...

and stays out as long as we let her.

She cannot wait to be able to stay out until it is too dark to see!
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I have a question for the new singing artist I hear on the radio...

Is there a reason you have to say your name in the song, often multiple times?

If your good, we will remember your name without hearing it in your songs!

Seriously, can you imagine listening to "I Can't Drive 55" and in the chorus hearing Sammy sing, 'Vaa-aaan Haleeeen'!
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I guess I should close this out and hit PUBLISH.

Tomorrow is a fun filled day of laundry!

And if I am lucky...

I will be able to continue doing laundry through the holiday weekend!!!

Oh if I can only be so fortunate!

for sale sold!!!...

My friend recently asked if Steve and I were rebuilding our house before we put it on the market. We weren't...it just felt like it at times! The minor fixes, putting in new molding, painting, and organizing (and the not so minor tiling), seemed to take forever. As one project was started, another project would come up that had to be done before the first could be completed. A one step forward and two steps back sort of thing. Progress was also slowed because between his two jobs, Steve was only home a few hours a week. And as hard as I tried to work him every minute he was here, he insisted on sleeping a few hours a night.
But the hard work has paid off. The realtor says the house will show really well.
And with our first showing tomorrow afternoon, the real fun begins! The idea of strangers traipsing through my house and critiquing my home is unnerving to me. I feel like I am under inspection.
So I will pray for a timely sale.

And, of course, spend all morning making sure everything is in it's place---or at least hidden from sight :)

remember when...

Remember when we could go days with little to no sleep? We could stay up all night studying (or doing nothing), grab a Mt. Dew, and head out the door running--going all day at full speed!

Well...those days seem to be a thing of the past!

After staying up and sewing curtains for the kitchen until the wee hours of the morning, running around getting the house 'staged' for the real estate photographer, tutoring a hyper 5th grader, and playing chauffeur for the girls, my 3 hours of sleep have dissipated.

I am completely out of steam.

The only place I want to be is...

Getting old stinks :)

friday frivolity...

Another Friday, another week complete.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Another week filled with house projects and organizing...

but with a FOR SALE in the yard to show for the endless work!

Finally!!!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
School is coming to an end...

only 6 more school days...

and then I will be the parent of a 2nd grader...

and a HIGH SCHOOLER!

How did THAT happen!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
One of the reasons we have continued taking dance classes at MJM Studio is that we have never had to worry about the music chosen or the costumes...

until this week.

Michaela's dance team has been invited to dance at a minor league baseball game...

the jazz teacher decided the girls were going to wear dance shorts and t shirts...

um, dance shorts are basically underwear and mac does not own a pair.

So...Michaela told the studio owner that she would not be dancing due to the inappropriateness of the costume.

Standing up for your morals can be difficult sometimes!
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I am pleased to say that after explaining the reason Mac would not be dancing...

Mary Jo sent me an email apologizing, stating she 'must have lost her mind' to think that the shorts would be appropriate.

She thanked me for 'keeping her in line'...

and has sent an email to the dancers changing the costume!

Standing up for your morals can be rewarding sometimes!
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Emma has had another coughing episode.

For the last year she has developed a horrendous cough a few times a month...

which nothing relieves and stays with her for weeks.

This week we had had enough...

so she went to the Dr's.

The Dr heard wheezing in her lungs...

Steve had horrible asthma as a child...

and now Emma has a rescue inhaler!

Definitely NOT one of the traits I wanted Steve to pass on to her.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today was Emma's Fairytale Ball at school...

I braided yards of yarn last night...

and today Rapunzel went to the ball!
I am not sure if she found her prince!
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I am off to get ready for bed.

Tutoring tomorrow...

and mowing and mulching...

if we could actually have day without rain!

Or even just a few hours of dry weather!
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Have a great weekend!

not quite wordless wednesday...

It is F.I.N.A.L.L.Y. in the front yard!!!!!!

The sale price is depressing. We will still make a profit, but not as much as we would have a few years ago....definitely a sign of the economic times!

The only thing better will be...

i know, i know...

Realtor coming tomorrow...

Moving out my armoire---to make the bedroom feel bigger...

Finishing up the 'little things'....

Tomorrow...

FOR SALE!!!!

*** and then maybe I can think and write something with sustenance.

upon the first day of the week...

In HIS time...In HIS time...
God makes all things beautiful...In HIS time.
Lord please show me everyday...
As your teaching me YOUR way...

That YOU do just what you say...

In YOUR time.

ahhhh...

4.5 hours with no electricity!

It is amazing how dark it can get when an entire subdivision, with no street lights... out in the country, looses electricity!

The kids had a great time playing outside until 11:30 with the spotlight from our neighbors work truck lighting their way.

While Emma and T and H rode bikes and scooters, I was able to have some adult conversation in my driveway with a few of my neighbors.

Emma, petrified of the dark house, reluctantly came in and was asleep within seconds of hitting the bed...dirty face and all.

The break was fun...

but I am so thankful to have the fan blowing on me and the sump pump running!!!!!

joy that knows no bounds...

After five years of fertility medicines, doctors poking and prodding, and various medical procedures....

August 14, 1996 wiped away the years of disappointment, frustration, and sadness.

August 14, 1996 became the best day of my life.

As I held my new daughter in my arms and prayed a prayer of thanks to God for allowing me the privilege of this precious child, I was filled with a love that I never knew existed....

a love that knows no bounds...

a love that is all encompassing and never ending...

a love that can only be known when you become, "Mommy".

As my precious daughter grew, so did the love in my heart.

I could not imagine sharing that love.

I could not imagine loving another as much as I loved the sweet child that had stolen my heart.

But the love that encompasses the heart of a mommy is a love that expands...

it is a love that has no limits.

On September 2, 2003, my heart was filled with more love than I knew was possible...

a new love enveloped my heart...

and I sent prayers to my heavenly Father thanking Him for entrusting me with the precious life I had just been given...

as I became "Mommy" to another beautiful daughter.

September 2, 2003 was the best day of my life.

And this beautiful Sunday morning, as I awakened to the sounds of my two beautiful daughters wishing me a Happy Mother's Day...

I once again lifted a prayer to my God...

thanking Him for allowing me the privilege of knowing these two beautiful souls...

thanking Him for allowing me the privilege of being loved by these two innocent hearts...

thanking Him for allowing me to the privilege of loving these two beautiful girls...


thanking Him for allowing me to be their "Mommy".
~~~~~~~~~~
originally posted Mother's Day, 2009

field trip...

Today in Social Studies Michaela's class visited a Holocaust museum located in a local Cincinnati Hebrew school.

Moving. Depressing. the words used to describe the experience. Not as overwhelming as walking through Auschwitz was, but the experience will definitely stay with her.
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Frivolous tidbit she learned on her field trip...

Mac: Some of the students were switching classes while we were there. They looked at us rather strangely.

Me: I am sure that is just you feeling self conscious. If the museum is located in the school, I am sure they have seen people come to walk through it before. I realize you crossed the river, but Kentuckians look just like Cincinnatians.

Mac" OH! and you know how we go to Chicago for our 8th grade trip... They go to ISRAEL!!! I.S.R.E.A.L. mumbling under her breath.. Chicago!. They go to Israel!! Israel!!! Whoopee Chicago.

moving forward...

Comps are being looked at...

a sale price is being computed...

the sign in the yard is closer!!


Now...anyone in the Northern Kentucky area want to buy a house?????

upon the first day of the week...

Thank you Lord for allowing me to become a Mom and hear the words, " Happy Mother's Day. I love you Mommy."

friday frivolity...

Seriously???

90 degrees today....

60 degrees tomorrow!!!

colds and sickness the day after.
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I picked up 3 new students for tutoring this week...

It has been fun planning the lessons...

and all of them are really good kids.

Thankfully, because if I wanted to teach unruly kids I could go back into the classroom!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Why is it...

that we have lived in this neighborhood for 10 years...

minus the 3 we were out of the country.

and there have never been other girls for Michaela to play with.

Now that we are planning to move...

there have been two girls over here every day this week!

Ironic!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ohhhh!

that flash of lightening was rather close!!!!

I think I will shut the computer down.

Because being zapped by lightening isn't on my To Do list!

not quite wordless wednesday...

As I was packing pictures...the stacks and stacks that should be in albums already... I came across Steve's first grade picture.

Does it remind you of anyone?????
Right down to the freckles across the nose.

emma-isms...tuesday edition

Emma Shea was on a roll today! There is never a dull moment when she is around...moments I would like to lock her myself inside a padded room and bang my head...but never a dull moment!

10:45am

After getting her 'wires' (palate stretcher) removed today, the hygienist and Dr. Bert went on and on about how good Emma is and what a sweet little girl she is. And because she was so good while they removed it and took the impression for the permanent appliance, the hygienist snuck (sneaked??) her 3 Starburst---after Dr. Bert left the conference room of course:). Not being able to chew gum or sticky candy for the last couple of months has been the most difficult part of the orthodontia for her (because is, and has always been, a junk food junkie). So when she saw those colorful wrappers sitting in her hands, her face became a portrait of pure joy. She could not get out to the van quick enough to open them up and plop the chewy sweetness into her mouth.

Door closed. Seatbelt buckled. Wrappers flying. And then nothing but "MMMMMmmmmm"

And then, with a mischievous grin and a look of 'no good', she says, "Hee hee hee! I cannot wait to tell Michaela I got to eat chewy candy. She is going to be so jealous because she can't eat it still. But I can. heeheehee

Sweet and good??? More like evil and devious :)

8:00pm

Today I had to tutor two new students, so I was going to be home late. I talked to Emma before I dropped her off at school and explained that Michaela would be babysitting her until I got home. I told her that if she acted ugly (which is the typical behavior seen when Mac babysits her) she would spend tomorrow in her room. Before leaving today, I wrote her a note reminding her to make good choices.

So needless to say I was not pleased when I came home and heard that she was in her room due to a fit she threw outside.

ME: "Emma Shea Martin come down here now!" (All 3 names--she knew she was in trouble)

with tears streaming down her face, she comes around the corner and down the stairs.

EMMA: "I'm sorry. I forgot what you wrote on the note."

ME: " ??"

EMMA: "I forgot the rules you wrote in the note you left."

She forgot the rules I wrote in the note!!!???!!! Because no screaming, no ugliness, playing nicely...are new concepts to her???? Concepts she has never been taught???? HOW did I miss teaching those lessons the last 6 years!?

9:15pm (i.e. every night)

"Emma, go jump in the shower."

"AGAIN!!!! I just took one last night."

"GO!! Now!"

" Why do I have to take a shower EVERY night? Do I have to wash my body again too"

"Yes, that would be the point of taking a shower...washing off the dirt."

"Ewww. I. don't. like. taking. showers."

20 minutes pass..I still hear the shower running.

"Emma you need to get out of the shower."

"Okay, I need to wash my body."

"What have you been doing for the last 20 minutes?"

"Playing!"

Washes her body. Gets out of the shower. Wraps up in a towel and comes downstairs.

"Emma you needed to wash your hair also."

"I did."

"You washed your hair with your hair still pulled back and the ribbon bow still in?!"

"Yes! I just washed the bow too!"

I am pretty sure she takes after her Daddy!

i'm back....

Okay, so I have dug my way out of the rut I was in and refocused my priorities. After taking almost a week off from posting I should have a thought provoking post about attitude and motivation, but instead I am linking a completely ridiculous youtube video that made me laugh!



I cannot believe the products that people think up!!!!

upon the first day of the week...

Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken. My salvation and my honor depend on God; he is my mighty rock, my refuge. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge. Selah
Psalm 62:5-8