vacation and school

Well the girls will be starting school next Monday, you ask why so early, well we are going on vacation at the end of August. We finally decided on Backbone Park. We loved the cabin we did a year ago and it was very affordable, it was 300, gas and groceries for the week, how easy is that. Backbone is up in NE Iowa but that will be okay, the same thing in MO is 500 a week. MDK had her friend over last night, gigles and screaming abounded but currently they are sacked out on the couch.

Yesterday we spent all day making the rock candy soap and we all have wounds to prove it. Very sore fingertips as the skewers we used to put the pieces on are quite sharp and you can poke yourself alot. We cleaned yesterday but unsure if it looks like it. The girly conference is Saturday and I need to set up my display later tonight hopefully.

Had another couseling session with this whole big scenerio that is going on. The mom in the situation is upset. She cant seem to let anyone talk to us or others without being in the middle of it.

Well better go for now.

peace or done

Well we are almost done with the craziness Dave got short with both of them and said there is an offer on the table that is a good compromise for both. After tonight there will be no more involvement from my family or the church so hopefully that will work out okay. Either way it gets us out of the middle.

MLK is still snotting and her voice is going, but seems to feel a little better. MDK and MLK worked on food for the youth supper fundraiser today, Dave and I spent most of yesterday at the office. We both worked on computers and got alot of stuff done. We are hoping tommorow to take some time off and get the house in order.

We are going on vacation to a state park in Iowa in a cabin, havent decided which one at least not yet. Will reserve that on Friday when Dave gets paid. Vacation will be August 24-31. I have to send that off to Dave's boss and my interpreter schedule.

Well better get around.

drama and a deadline

The drama continues just not at a fevered place because we are all exhausted, there has been an offer on the table then it was switched, so Dave sent both parties the offer and said decide by Sunday night or I am done and the church and everything will not be helping. MLK is fine becuae she is knocked out with drugs she has a bad summer cold. She is floating in OJ and high on a cold med.

The house is a little out of hand but we should get on top of it soon, going to help Dave with church stuff today. More later.

a troubled teen

Well the last five days have been extremely crazy due to a troubled teen and her family. This teen tried to run away she has tried this before. She is adopted by this family and was taken from her family at the age of eight for severe neglect. So she has alot of baggage. This mom is very strict and controling (like micro-managing to the max), so there is blame to go around. The girl is very determined that she will be living with a friend in Dekalb, the girl is 17 ( a tricky age where law enforcement will not make them go home). So she was at a nuetrual location, till she burned her bridges and got kicked out. We were going to take her in for a while, but our conditions is that she be on an anti-depresent and be in counseling. (the history of trying to stay alive in her birth home was horrific and so she NEEDS counseling that she has never recieved). She was getting ready to bolt and run away last night, so she finally agreed to Bob's house. Well Mom is not pleased she would perfer to have her here, as Mary bi-polar is all over the map most of the time. Bob has a notion in her head that this girl is innoncent and that Mom is all at fault. Dave says a few days of that girl living with her and that should take care of the problem. I just hope that Bob is wise enough to handle Mom with the right spirit. We will see what today holds for this ongoing drama.

MLK has been doing so well of late, I am very proud of her, she seems to have matured alot in this last month. Hope this continues! MDK is at Denise house as nurse maid as Denise had her gallbladder out on Monday. Denise is being stupid and trying to do too many things way too early so I gave MDK permission to thunk her on the head if she misbeheaves. Well I had better go for now.

so very tired this morning

Went to bed really late out helping Dave finish, and the dog wakes me up early so not happy. Have the celebration day for VBS tonight, have a job this afternoon and an art lesson this morning.

MLK took her drivers test but didnt pass so more practice, but at least she knows what she needs to do now. Her good friend had the same thing happen.

MDK got her Iowa Basic Skills back and very good scores! Her reading total was 10th grade (wow) her language total was 8th grade 7th month. Her Math total was a little low (which was wierd) it was 7th grade and 7th month. Her core total was 8th grade 6th month. Her Social Studies test was beyond high school and her Science was 10th grade and 5th month.
Her Source of Information total was 7th grade 5th month. Her overall composite was 9th grade 5th month. She did very well.

Well better get around.

three more pounds

Well weighed in and lost three more pounds, three more to go hope I can get there, hope I have time to swim after I get home and before VBS. Hopefully it all goes well. VBS has had four kids come to know the Lord, yahoo!

Had an interesting discussion with a mom of a wayward teen, the teen came and helped voulenteered this week because her mom was there. She says she wants to rededicate, Bob talked to her and said are you willing to put certain things behind you. Well of course she got hung up on that and Mom was upset at Bob and tried to get me in the middle of it. I agree with Bob that her attiude and williness needs to change. I am amazed at how people want to excuse alot of stuff because of a techniciality of how someone talks to them. Makes me wonder if they really want to rededicate or not. If you want to be sold out to God you just are and silly things dont keep you from it.

Today we sign up for enrichment classes and bowl so I and the girls are looking forward to seeing people again. I am exicitied to have school getting ready to start however I am not as prepared as I am usually by this time of year. However next week should present a good time to get ready. I dont currently have any jobs.

I screwed up my schedule yesterday, missed a job on Tuesday having written it down for Wednesday. Opps, hope it isnt a huge deal. Mistakes do happen. I do worry if I will be getting more jobs, as they have a new person as an interpreter, and I live pretty far out, so mileage is more costly. I quess if Idont get alot of jobs I will do other things. Dave makes enough to live on without me even working, esp. now that we are close to having all the bills paid off, 1000 left to Cameron and 150 to Childrens Mercy, we have 240 payments every month till Dec with Saint Lukes Hospital. That's it now that is still a chunk of change but a long ways from where we were. St Lukes was extremly expensive as it was mental health and we only had 60% coverage on that. It was one of the big bills that we are slowly paying off but they got impatient and so we had to set up monthly payments. However we have paid off a huge chunk of stuff in the last year and half and hope to be completely done in December.

Well better get going.

Brochure is done, and a bunch of errands and work

Well today I have a bunch of errands to run and an interpreting job to do. The truck has a tire that has a slow leak and I am picking up both lawnmower tires he has fixed. The deck on the mower had a part that rusted through so after that I will take it to the guy here in town that does lawnmower repair to get that taken care of. I finished my brochure done will take it to the printer. I hope that sinking some (not much) money into this business will be worth it. I would say that I will put about 200 in it for advertising, so if I do 3 shoots I will recover that. My art portfolio and table stuff has all been ordered and recieved. After putting back the money for the advertising I plan to save up for a simple lighting system and background about 350. Also need to use most of the rest of the years interpreting tax money giving it to Uncle Sam.

The girls are doing really great helping out with VBS and keeping up with their chores. They have a birthday party this weekend. Dave has been so busy with VBS and Redbox this week, I hope it doesnt kill him off. Next week should be a little less crazy. We will start not being so crazy busy with summer activities.

Our local school is in finicial trouble thier tax levy did not pass, mostly because the last one they had was not spent where it was said to go. So they have now instutied a pay to play plan. Any extra curricular activities have a 100 fee (one fee for all sports). Wow this is not going over well at all. Personally I think a year without any sports would adjust alot of parents that school is about education and not sports but my opinion is not popular. Obvious this doesnt effect us at all.

Went swimming yesterday and been doing okay on my liquid diet, cant seem to get five of those carnation breakfast down, so I am using a little more milk with each one. I did have a small tuna cracker thing last night as I was feeling a little light headed, seemed to help, it was only two points hope it doesnt break the bank but cleared up the light headness.

VBS has been a blessing and a recharge for me this year, I dreaded it starting but have enjoyed it alot. We have alot of mature people that love the Lord and I dont always see them on Sunday morning, I see the naysayer, backbiter people and so I need to refocus and not listen to the noise as Dave calls it.

Have prints and wallets of Dave single and the family so remind me family so I can get them to you. Gotta to get going on the portfolios for the girls and getting ready for the school year coming up.

Time to jump into the shower and start my day.

liquid diet, VBS, and starting my business

Okay so I only lost a half a pound when I weighed in on Monday so I called the doc's office and they suggested I do liquid diet for a week so that I can qualify before the doctor goes on his three week vacation, so I am drinking my weigh to the goal. I have caranation instant breakfast with milk, water limited fruit juice, popsicles, crystal light, veggie juice and tomato juice, and broth. I have three jobs this week for interpreting and I have worked these last few days getting my brochure in order and getting my portofolio ready. I will be presenting my business at the ladies retreat.

We are doing VBS this week, I am doing a supportive role which is something new to me. I enjoy it though, it is amazing to just let someone else do the brunt of the work and be the support person.

The girls have been watching TV and doing chores the house looks pretty good. Well going to take a 30 minute nap before VBS.
Bye for now

vbs, photos and so much more

Well, it has been a long weekend getting things ready for VBS to start tonight, still have alot to do this afternoon. My heart is not into this year as much as it usually is, that is rather odd as I am a big VBS person. I quess years of doing it can burn you out. Ministry in general has lost it's luster, I dont ever want to do it out of a sense of duty, but that seems to be where I am landing right now. I am praying about it, I know it is the right thing to do but my heart needs a revamp or a renewal or something.

Doing prints of my pictures to do a display at our ladies retreat at the church. It is August 1st. I am putting the finishing touches on my business to be able to do it up right.

Been swimming every day this week, I am unsure if the weather will hold and I can do it today or not. Looks really overcast.

Got the year end reports done for the girls, now I just need to get their portfolios put together. Then start entering assignments for this next year.

Well better get around.

jimmy hoffa cleaning, swimming and enrichment classes coming up

Well yesterday I went to the church to help Dave with some stuff he made very clear instructions what he wanted the girls to do, three hours later he comes in the front door and it is not done. He was hot, I needed to go swim so I left and he proceeded to have the girls jimmy hoffa clean (that means they are cleaning so well to be able to find jimmy hoffa). The kitchen and living room got a deep spring like clean. I swam so hard that I got a knot between the shoulder blades that I have finally loosened up this morning, proably from the breast stroke.

1,200 calories a day is not much and has been a tad challenging, but doable, I plan to weigh in beggining of this week.

Got the homeschool records caught up, the program is reinstalled but the database would not merge, so I had to do a make shift thing for the records, but they are in. Now just portfolios to do. Interpreting has been very slim pickings, and I wonder if I will have less due to the structure change at Meril, another employee was added to the deaf dept. and Sarah is now full time just focusing on interpreting so she may have just sallowed up alot of jobs. Dave says not to worry focus on your photography so that is what I will do.

Enrichment classes will be MLK - Karate, Choir and Ensemble MDK Choir, Adv. Theatre, and Adv. Chess. We have bowling and sign up this Thurs. Always enjoy the time together. Well better get around.

just six more to go

Well I have six more to go in two weeks, the dietian has taken me down to 1,200 calories a day and swim 5 times a week. My depression meds that I changed to have kicked in and I am finally after a long haul feeling myself again. I want to lose more like 8 lbs so that I can have a little wiggle room. I plan to weigh in on Monday to see if I have made any progress.

Have been getting stuff off the old hard drive, and I mowed yesterday the deck wasn't quite right and it looks like a crew cut and I have lumps of grass everywhere, oh well it is mowed for this week, maybe the rain and wind scattered it some last night.

I have been having tornado dreams and when I have them there is never one little tornado, no there is always like 7-11 tornadoes, and then I am driving trying to find shelter and the are tall and skinny but dangerous. I wonder what that all means.

Had the roller skating fundraiser so I am unsure how much we raised but we had a fun time anyway. I dont do skates, no thank you!

Well better get around MLK has an art lesson.

on the edge yesterday

I was very very edgy yesterday, the stupid fireworks tent thing wont go away. The lady didnt tell me we needed CVC numbers off the back of the cards when we did them by hand so now I am tracking down them and I am not sure we will get them, what a mess.

Went swimming though and that calmed me alot, MDK went to practice the VBS skit, and MLK and I went swimming, she was to practice driving but misplaced her permit.

Today I am going out with friends and their kids. Hope it doesnt rain on us.

hairy wolf girl

Hairy wolf girl that is what MLK says when you need to shave really bad and I have been rushing around every morning to go to the tent that I am at that stage, must shave before I do turn into a wolf.

I am one exhausted person, worked alot at the tent!!!! Yesterday was a long long day, but it was nice that someone came and relieved us for the last two hour. The tent brought in alot, we just get a flat fee usually. We close it out on Monday.

Today is Dave's birthday, I am so glad for him, he is such a sweet man. Still very much in love with him after almost 19 years.

Going to start school on August 3 as I will be off for my surgery (hopefully) the middle of the month. MLK has started some art lessons. She has been working on a Pen and Ink only using one shape very modern looking and intriquing. She has really enjoyed that. She had one assignment to do before Friday this week, and she has done two and is working on a third. This will be Art 2, she will also being doing Spanish, Sign Language, Geometry, LA 3, Health, US History,Chemistry, Bible, and a spattering of other odds and ends.
MDK will be doing Sign Language, Spelling, LA 1, Geometry, Algebra 2, Physical Science, US History, Home Ec, Health, Bible, Typing, and a spattering of other things.

We recovered stuff off the hard drive of the laptop, so am getting all that organized on my computer, I will just need a day to get all of my computer work done and finish off everything I need to get my business going, and get things caught up on records for the girls. Another day to do their portofolios. Well better get around for church.