Things I've Done

I this on Aurora's site from Sunny Side Up. Thought it was pretty neat so I copied her and decided to show mine is in bold :)
1. Started my own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3.Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than I can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland/world
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sung a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught myself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child (have attempted w/o success)
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown my own vegetables (with mild success...)
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitchhiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of my ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught myself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had my portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie (does it count if it was at universal studios)
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had my picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

change is in the air

Yes, it is true....i have changed the name of my blog. Tonight it sounds like a good title, but i reserve the right to change it again. I am searching for something fitting. a few ideas have popped into my head....but being the indecisive person that i am lead me to contemplating this more than the normal person might.

UPDATE!!!
Friday mrs k left our nest to go back into the big bad world that many of us will never experience. mrs k (being the fourth child that we have let go), was a far different experience than the babies. she had woke up grumpy and determined not to follow any rules. she refused to get dressed. attempted to beat me up and tried to hold baby axel hostage. my conclusion: k did not want to leave. it was heart breaking to see her drive away. i hope her past few days have been nice....but to those who know the story deeper...can only hope her mom will mess up again soon so that way k can have a chance at a better life.

I've been picked

Jen over at The Stewart Stuff picked me to tell 7 random things about myself. Here it goes:

1. My dream car is a SAAB convertible. although, i do not know if i could really spend that kind of money on a car.

2. I once marched in the Hollywood Christmas Parade.

3. I love sleeping with the windows open when its windy or rainy (my guys hate it)

4. One of my very first concerts was Madonna on her Virgin Tour

5. I now take my son to rock concerts

6. My favorite young adult job was lifeguarding and teaching swim lessons

(although, my sister and i also worked in a convenience store)

7. I am contemplating buying a pair of $100 jeans

I now pick:

Melissa

my mom Kim

and

Jodie (you've been picked twice)

please don't forget me

late this afternoon, i received a call saying that mrs k will probably be leaving us at the end of the week. i was told that it was against the will of her personal advocates. i was encouraged to tell mrs k the news. as we were driving to pick up nate i told her. to my surprise, she was not too happy and became teary eyed. k expressed to me, that although she wants to live with her mom, she was afraid of never seeing us again. she asked me to let her have visitation with us. not knowing how to answer that request, i put her on the phone with her advocate. all we can do is see what her mom and cps say. the rest of the evening was spent with k singing sad love songs that went something like this...."don't worry i'll come looking for you. please don't ever forget me". it breaks my heart.

in school suspension....really!

tonight nate broke the news to me that he has two days of in school suspension starting tomorrow. what led to this....donuts. last week, nate and three other swimmers walked across the street to the donut shop after morning swim. against the district rules...yes. but to his parents we say lame. however, rules are rules. coach had sent us an email stating that if it happened again consequences would occur. i guess coach mentioned this to the principle and well he said suspension this time. coach is regretting this as they have a big meet friday and now the boys can not practice after tomorrow. lets say coach is not happy now as she is big on never missing practice......and four good students will be missing classes. i wonder....were the donuts and the getting upset really worth it?

too much halloween excitement

Halloween was filled with a lot of chaos and excitement! it was quite an adventure seeing a group of teenage guys enjoying the night

(Lt 2 Rt)

Matt, Issac, Mark, Nathan and Trent

getting ready to leave for teen guy trouble

Damon did not join the family for the night. he was off with a friend

Oscar and Diego ready to trick and treat before the tired crankiness kicked in


hunter, mrs k., mary and the un-named doctor
at trunk-n-treat
later that night the teen girls went out to cause some good girl trouble


the aftermath of Halloween night the following morning!

halloween was almost a bit too busy for this mom this time around. trying to juggle one too many kids. the evening started off with nate having an orthodontist appt at 4pm that brought quite a bit of bad news....humhum...parents don't schedule appts like this on halloween. we rushed home to find out more kids were coming and i was not quite sure steve would make it home in time for trunk-n-treat. nate and i were trying to figure out who would be tied to the roof of the car. after trunk -n-treat it was a race home for nate to meet the guys at the house. so off went all the teens guys in one direction, girls in the other. taking the younger ones out in the neighborhood. off for free chipotles. back home to drop off kids at their houses and gathering the guys together for their trip to chipotles. These guys are all about free food! alll i can say is exhaustion hit at the end of a long evening.