Christmas Roller Coaster

What a wonderful Christmas we had!



My brother came for Christmas! It was our first one together EVER!

He brought his son Peyton with him...so the cousins all got to play together for four days!



They played games like operation while Aaron played his guitar...



We all took time to relax by doing the things we like doing..like Mafia wars!



And playing games like Rumicub...



Christmas eve we had a great dinner and wore goofy hats!




Did I mention the great food?



Christmas eve also saw us opening a gift!



Christmas morning found us rooting through stockings...



And wearing our new hats...even Dexter got something in his stocking!



Santa is a smart man! He brought Paige and Ben Mario Cart for the Wii!



And Peyton did the dance of joy when he saw that Santa had brought him the texting pad for his Xbox 360!




Paige got a unicycle of her own!!


And Ben got a BB gun!




The best gift? Turns out it was the box! :)



You'll notice there is one person missing from all these pictures. Shelby. She was supposed to fly out on the 23rd. Her mother refused to put her on the plane. Absolutely REFUSED. This woman is going to find in time that all of her evil tricks and plans bite her in the ass. The people who are most damaged by her are Mark and Shelby. Mary thinks she's succeeded in stopping them from having a relationship. Stupid woman. What she doesn't know is that they WILL have one, maybe not for a few years, but they will. And when that happens, hearts will heal. But I can't blame Mary for trying...after all, her life is truly in the toilet. She is going through her third divorce and it is VERY messy...she has no friends in her life other than her mom and dad. This is not an exaggeration , she only has 'friends' when she is married and that is because they are her husbands friends...so she is alone..the only person she has is Shelby..and I guess she just couldn't face another Christmas alone and miserable. Oh well...she'll have to explain herself to a judge this time. But in spite of the evilness that resides in her that we have to put up with on a consistent basis, we had a LOVELY Christmas!!!

Hugs to all,

Jaye

Sorrow....

Yesterday, a guy I graduated high school with had a heart attack while cross country skiing with his 14 year old son. Doing what he loved most with one of the people he loved the most, Dominic died. At 43. With a whole lifetime of adventures ahead of him. Dominic was the kind of guy who would help you with anything....anytime. He was a HUGE guy...6 foot and then some all through high school...and wide too..not in a 'fat' way..he was just a big big guy..he played rugby with vigor...he was always smiling...always with a joke. And even in high school you caught glimpses of the man he was to become...and amazing for high school, he was never a jerk...just a nice guy. He belonged to the Cadets (Canadian version of ROTC). At that time in my life I was anti war, anti gun..ok..I was a tree hugging hippie...and I used to get into great debates with Dom about how I couldn't understand how he would WILLINGLY train to kill people! Imagine the chuckle he got when we were all grown up and I told him I had married a Nuclear Submarine Sailor! He got a real tickle out of that one...and although Dom never made the military his career..he did make a career out of serving people...he became a paramedic..and who knows how many lives he saved....He will always be remembered by the graduating class of 1984 a a big teddy bear of a guy...

An acquaintance of mine blogged today about the two year anniversary of her brothers death. He too was young...with young children and a wife and a whole lifetime ahead of him. From all she has written about her brother, he too was a wonderful man. An amazing father..a great husband..and a brother rivaled by no one..he was her hero..that comes through in her words loud and clear.

So todays blog is for Dom...a guy I knew briefly for five short years when we were teens...and whom I will always remember...and for Mike..a man I never met, but who I know touched many lives.

RIP Dom....you too Mike. Two men taken way too soon. You will always be remembered by your friends and families.

Hugs to all,
Jaye

Playmobil Advent Calendars......

I blogged before about the wonderful Advent calendars I purchased for Paige and Ben this year..instead of the annual 'chocolate' ones, I found these cool ones at Playmobil. Instead of a chocolate each day to Christmas, the kids get a piece of a 'set' until Christmas eve when the set is complete. Paiges is the 'forest animal' set with Santa being her toy on Christmas eve...Bens is the "Knights" set. I can't tell you how much fun they have every day with their sets. Each day when they get a new piece, they haul out all the other pieces and play. They've even come up with games where the forest animals and the knights play together. Right now, Bens knight is telling the forest animals that for a small fee he will keep them safe. So what if it sounds a little like the Sopranos...they are getting along..and as every mother knows, THAT is the whole point! ;)

Hugs to all,
Jaye

Tree and Wreath of '09

Our tree is up and decorated and I got our wreath made today. I love our tree as always! I went a little more 'natural' with the wreath this year and I really like it..simple but sweet! Now I just have a swag to make for the living room window!


We still have two bins of ornaments not on the tree...I guess we need a bigger house so we can have two trees! :)




I used three kinds of greenery from our property as well as pine cones from our property..it turned out rather nice I thought...heck..at least it didn't cost me $40 for a wreath at the Christmas tree farm! :)




Merry Christmas everyone!

Jaye

Thursdays ten happy thoughts

1.My brother is coming for Christmas
2.My brother is coming for Christmas
3.My brother is coming for Christmas
4.My brother is coming for Christmas
5.My brother is coming for Christmas
6.My brother is coming for Christmas
7.My brother is coming for Christmas
8.My brother is coming for Christmas
9.My brother is coming for Christmas
10.My brother is coming for Christmas

We grew up as Jehovah's Witnesses. We never had Christmas as kids. I moved to the States before had my first Christmas and life and jobs and life kept us apart over the Holidays. NOT THIS YEAR! He and my nephew will be here! WAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOo

Hugs to all,
Jaye

Thursdays Happy Thoughts, Thanksgiving style!

Ten things that make me happy and Thankful....

1. I have a family...who loves me unconditionally. I didn't have that growing up. I do now!
2.I have friends who mean the world to me and who would have my back no matter what...oh..and they'd have bail money too! :)
3.Our puppy is potty trained..truly something to be thankful and happy about!
4.It's raining and windy...I don't like Thanksgiving on a nice sunny day! lol...
5.My Christmas cards are all done and ready to go, and half if not more of my shopping is done!
6.We get our tree tomorrow!
7.Mark isn't on duty today! YAY!
8.Eight more months and Mark is out of the Navy and onto a new adventure....can't wait to see what it is and to see where life takes us!
9.The kids school conferences were awesome! They are right on target for their grade levels, and that isn't their 'true' grade levels, that's their 'gifted' grade levels!...I am so proud!
10. I have a Church family that is amazing!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Hugs,
Jaye

First Snow of the 2009/2010 Season!!!

November 21.....That's right, not even Thanksgiving and we've had our first snowfall!! WOOHOOOO!!! This happened last year as well and we had one of the snowiest winters in WA state history! Our last snowfall last year happened in APRIL!!! So it will be interesting to see how this year goes! Mark woke me up at 1245 am to let me know it was snowing. Being the children that we are, we both leaped out of bed to go outside. We TRIED to wake Paige and Ben up but they were having none of it. So we woke up the dog! After all, he's never seen snow before! He didn't quite know what to make of this cold stuff on the ground, but dutifuly made some yellow snow, then ran back into the house and hopped back onto our bed, looking at us as if to say 'you people are WEIRD'. Guess he's onto us!
I had to convince Mark that the neighbors wouldn't appreciate it if he fired up his new, as yet untested snowblower! :) Maybe on our next snow fall!



Mark and Dexter out in the first snowfall...





The swing on our front lawn all covered with snow....let it snow, let it snow, let it snow..

Hugs to all,
Jaye

RIP Gramma Ruth

Yesterday morning, around 830am our time, Grandma Ruth passed away at home surrounded by family. She was a few weeks shy of turning 99...such a long and wonderful life.

Born in 1910, she arrived on the scene only a few years after Ford offered the first car for sale. She was four when the first world war broke out...she lived through the Great Depression and was a young woman on the cusp of her 30's when the second world war broke out. She gave birth to and raised two sons, one of whom she outlived. Grandma also outlived Grampa Elmer...and although she missed him and talked about him every day, she managed to live the rest of her life with happiness and a joy that was infectious.

Having lived almost a 100 years, Grandma was able to watch as the world changed around her...not only on a global scale, but right in her own backyard. She was also fortunate to live long enough to be able to know not only great grandchildren,but Great GREAT Grandchildren!

Grandma will be missed by all who knew and loved her. She was a part of a family that is large and loving and joyous and her presence will be missed for many many years to come.

We are Thankful for her long life and the fact that almost right up until the end, she was able to get around on her own and enjoy a daily routine. She is with Grandpa Elmer now and that brings a comfort to our hearts....

She was a neat old lady...as Grandma herself would say 'She was a real corker'.

RIP Grandma...we love you.

Hugs to all,
Jaye

Thursdays Happy Thoughts!

Here we are..Thursday again! Here is my list of ten things that make me happy this week!

1. It's been raining most of the week. The kind of torrential downpour accompanied by wind that we get every Autumn in WA state. The leaves are ripped off the trees without apology and at times, the wind is so wild that the rain is coming at you sideways! I love this weather!

2. Ben did an outstanding job at his Veterans Day performance....he can name all 50 states off by heart!

3. I had a day off midweek! YAY for days off!

4. I have incredible friends...strong, amazing women who inspire me constantly. It's good to be inspired!

5. I am happy that Marks Grandmother has been able to have such a long life. She is nearing the end and that makes me sad...but she is almost 99...we should all be so blessed!

6. My three year old daycare girl sat in the backseat of the van yesterday on our way to go grocery shopping and she sang 'Rudolph The Red Nose Reindeer'. It just isn't the Christmas season until you hear a child sing a carol.

7. Shelby is coming for Christmas!

8. Our building is done! We can finally get all our closets purged of storage bins and the other outdoor shed we have can finally be organized as well..wooohoooo.....our house will feel a million times bigger now!

9. Mark has a job. I have a job. Sam has a job. Three jobs in one house. Not bad for this economy!

10. I am loved.

Hugs to all,

Jaye

Finding my happy place on Thursdays!

When we were back in WI in August, Mark and I went out with an old high school friend of his and her husband. We got to talking about Mary and all of the crap that goes with it and at the end of it all, she looked at me and said 'there are days when you just have to find your happy place'. She's right....and I DO do that....but in the spirit of it all..and wanting to do MORE in that vein, I have decided to take an idea a fellow blogger friend has (hers is Ten on Tuesday!) and turn it into something productive for me as well as giving my fans at least ONE post a week to read! lol
So here I go...the Launch of my 'Ten Things on Thursday that Make me HAPPY'

1. It's raining today. I love the rain.

2. I have a coffee date with a great friend tomorrow! I look forward to my earl gray tea and my cherry galette. If you have NOT had the cherry galette at Starbucks, I recommend you get your butt down there TODAY! :)

3. Another friend just called and I am going to Kohls with her to give her my opinion on clothes! Woot woot! I have great friends!

4. My dog is SO cute!

5. Ben made the most awesome clay musical instrument in art and brought it home yesterday. My kids continuously amaze me!

6. Christmas is coming and I've started my Christmas shopping..and we'll do it debt free again this year!

7. I am making my mom the most AWESOME Christmas present this year. She's going to love it! (And she reads my blog so this will drive her nuts! ahahaha)

8. I am going to bake cookies today. Ginger cookies. Yum.

9. Tomorrow is Friday. Then the weekend.I love the weekends!

10. I had closure this week. After 27 years.

Hugs to all,

Jaye

Please tell me Karma will bite her ass!

So the saga continues. We filed our contempt motion against Mary...who waited until 11:57 am the day before the hearing to file her response (she DOES have till noon..not sure why she squandered those last three minutes!). It was 16 pages of pure, unadulterated lies. One of our issues in the contempt motion was that we haven't received any pictures of Shelby in over a year, even though the parenting plan stipulates that we get pictures on a regular basis. She's been in contempt on this issue TWICE before. Her response? "I'm not sure WHY Mr.Greene would say I haven't sent pictures. Either he is lying OR his wife has hidden them from him in order to further her agenda against me"m (uh...yah..because I spend all my waking moments plotting against her dumb ass...jeez). And she goes on to enclose 'copies' of two letters she 'wrote' to Mark that say she is enclosing 25 pictures (in one letter) of Homecoming,Halloween etc and 37 pictures (in the other letter) of Christmas, her bday etc. Only problem? We've never seen the pictures OR the letters!! She completely made them up for court! She has purjured herself but we can't prove it...the rest of her documents are similar..and her statements are all lies..but most of those we CAN prove!
Anyways..please tell me Karma is going to bite her ass soon...cause after 15 years of this, I am done.

hugs to all,
Jaye

Parenting 101

As most of you know, I earned my Associates degree in Legal Sciences 18 months ago and am now able to be a paralegal. I will also be starting my Bachelors next fall in Psychology so that my long term goal of being a Guardian Ad Litem can be fulfilled. What is a Guardian Ad Litem you might ask? A GAL (acronym for!) is someone who is on the side of the children in any hearing. Be it divorce, custody,CPS etc etc. I just really think kids get a bum deal in the legal system and I'd like to sort of level the playing field, even if its only one child at a time!

In the meantime, I have opened a before/after school care program so that I can stay home with my kids while they are still young as Mark is out to sea so much. I get to be home, bring in a little cash...it's a win/win situation. In doing so, I sure do get to see how some people interpret 'parenting'. OH MY.

I have one set of parents who have two boys. One I had last year on a half day basis as he was in Kindergarden. His older brother meanwhile was in the Y kids program at the school before and after school. This year, they are BOTH with me before and after school. The younger one because he is now in Grade One and only needs before/after school care, and the older one was yanked out of Y kids because his parents just weren't happy with the program (as are a lot of parents in this area). Now older brother is a bit of a.....well...I'll just say it..he's a bit of a little shit. There. I said it. He enjoys tormenting other kids. He barely knows basic math facts (he's in fourth grade!!!). He has learned that if he sits like a lump at the table, his parents will eventually do his homework for him. He lies. He forgets constantly to turn in assignments. He fails tests.The kid has issues ok?In spite of it all, Mom and Dad reward Jr. with all sorts of things, like soap box derby racing...and unicycling club to name a few. I have been working with him since September and he's made GREAT strides! We are working on his memory. I've got a notebook in his backpack that goes back and forth between his teacher and I so that we can each know what is going on. Now his parents are under the MISTAKEN impression that I am his Nanny or Tutor or something and not simple before/after school care! After a weekend, the boys have not done ANY of their homework. Mom and Dad figure I can help them with it. Often their dad drops them off in the morning and tells me "oh, you need to tell C's teacher that he needs ________' or 'S has an envelope in his backpack, you need to ensure it gets to his teacher'. My response has always been "Oh no..YOU can tell his teacher by writing it in his notebook" or "actually, getting the envelope to his teacher is S's concern, not mine". And I smile sweetly. And dear old Dad doesn't quite know what to say. I have also had to tell Mom that the help her child needs with his homework is BEYOND just 'homework time' at daycare, but goes well into 'tutoring'. That if she would like to pay an extra fee, I would be more than HAPPY to tutor him in the mornings, but I cannot take that much time with ONE child when I have six others to attend to at the same time. (or here's a thought. She could actually work with him on his math facts at home!)

Anywho....yesterday, I get a call from dear old Mom. She says to me....now don't let your jaw drop to the floor..I know it will even though I told you not to...but don't say you weren't warned ok? She says to me "Hey, S has an 11 oclock Doctors app't and a 1230 dentist app't tomorrow, You can do it right?". UH? WHA?? Now my first thought is, What parent in their right mind asks their daycare provider to take their kids to their doctor/dentists app'ts???? Doesn't she want to know what is up with her kid? Due to Hippa laws, they aren't going to tell ME anything. So she kinda needs to be there! Secondly, does she not think I have a life and maybe, just maybe other things going on? That maybe I'm not just sitting around waiting for her to call so I can run after her kids for her?

Anyways. I told her I had made other plans. She got huffy with me and said "Well fine then, I'll just have to get off work early or something'. Yah..like every other parent! Hello! I told Dad this morning that while I am willing (for a fee!) to take their kids to app'ts I am NOT going to just change my schedule at the drop of a hat and that I need more than one days notice. I also need to be consulted as to the time of the app'ts as I have other things scheduled into my days. Ugh.

These are the same parents who sent their one son to daycare this morning with no socks. Keep in mind we are in the midst of an Autumn storm. Wind. Pouring rain. cold. And a kid with no socks. ugh.

Don't even get me started on the parents...the obese parents...whose two children ages 6 and 3 are both overweight and eat nothing but crap at home.

sigh.

See? This is a good training ground to be a GAL.

Hugs to all,

Jaye

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving

Happy Canadian Thanksgiving to all my friends and family! Tomorrow is our families 'first' Thanksgiving, complete with a ham dinner and chocolate moose pie. In November we go with the traditional American Thanksgiving fare and have a lovely Turkey dinner.

I am Thankful for so much this year.

My children are all healthy.

My husband is not out to sea for this mission AND we can see the retirement 'light at the end of the tunnel' light. Nine and a half months....that's it. And then after 20 years of service to his country, the love of my life starts a new adventure. I have no doubts he will embark on something equally fun and exciting!

I am Thankful for having a truly deep relationship with God. It's taken a lot of years to get back with my walk with God and it feels nice to feel his power in my life.

I am thankful that we no longer have stress or grief over Shelby. Don't get me wrong. Mary is still a raging nut job. She has gotten progressively worse over the years, but we no longer allow her to bring stress into our home and it's nice to have finally gotten to this point.

I am thankful that in this economy, Mark and I both have jobs (at least he has one for another nine and a half months! lol)...

I am thankful that I am married to a man who loves me unconditionally. No questions asked. He just loves me. And I love him. He is good for me...and I am good for him. And I still find him the most sexy man alive! :)

I am thankful for my friends. I have surrounded myself with the most amazing group of women and I am truly blessed to have them in my life.

I am thankful. Just that...Thankful. And I never take any of it for granted.

Hugs to all,

Jaye

K-Tel

Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and start thinking about the oddest things! Last night was a prime example. For whatever reason I started remembering old 'K-Tel' records commercials. For those of you reading this who are thinking 'records?' I mean VINYL music disks! Yes...I am old enough to have been around for them. In fact I have a whole BOX of them in our shed...most of the artists are dead now...I have Elvis...Sonny and Cher...yah..I am THAT old! ;)
Anywho...the one commercial I remembered in particular was the one when K-Tel came out with this nifty contraption you could put your records into..sort of like little slots..then all you had to do was slowly pull the first one towards you and all the others would slowly flip so you could go through your records easier to select which one you wanted to hear. My father was a 'gadget' NUT. We owned them all. The blitz hacker (I kid you not, that was it's name!), potatoe fry cutters...you name it we had it. He was like a man possessed when it came to gadgets. And so...we were one of the first families I knew who had the K-Tel record storage/flipper thingy...in fact, we actually had TWO! Yes..TWO. We rocked! Literally! :)

Hugs to all,
Jaye

Thats my BB yo!

So I haven't blogged about the whole 'Jon and Kate plus 8' saga simply because I don't think the world needs any more opinions on the whole thing...until TODAY. There was an interview posted on the internet by TMZ (think people magazine gone scummy but on live video!) showing Jon Gosselin outside some business or other in New York City. The reporters (and I use that term loosely) asked him if he had plans to spend his day with the twins tomorrow as it was their birthday and what his plans were. He said he will be spending the day with ALL the kids, when asked what he wanted to do to celebrate the twins birthday he said 'I'll get them a cake or something' (uh..their bday is TOMORROW...shouldn't he have this a little more thought out? But I digress!). Then he says 'I just got an email from Kate and she doesn't want to see me'. He then pulls out his blackberry and starts looking for this email. One of the camera men starts to film the blackberry screen and Jon pulls back and ......and I kid you not...says (keep in mind this is a WHITE KOREAN GUY) 'this is MY bb yo!'. Uh.........SERIOUSLY? BB YO? He did NOT just say that?

I get that they are going through a divorce and it's going to be contentious. There is a lot of money involved both earned and potential. There are going to be the usual custody things to sort out...who gets what holiday etc etc. Then there is the whole other side of it, in that Kate and Jon really hate each other...Jon is out with exceedingly younger women and not hiding it....and I really GET all of it..I do...But TURNING GANGSTA????? Really Jon? You have 8 kids....going through a high profile divorce..and you think being all 'cool and gangsta' is going to get you far?

sigh...see? This is why I don't blog about them. They are both Stupid. Capitol S. Selfish...another S word.

Hugs to all,
Jaye

Colds.......Advent calendars...and coffee

Ben is home today sick with a cold. He has no fever, but I wanted him to stay home and just 'rest' so that instead of one missed day today, he doesn't have to be home ALL next week because he pushed himself while he was tired and run down. He is thoroughly enjoying laying on my bed watching movies and tv and doing crafts.....oh to be 8 again!

Every year I buy advent calendars for everyone in the family. I usually buy them at the END of Christmas one year, to be used the following year...after all, they only have the dates on them, not the DAYS and chocolate doesn't go bad, which means I end up with advent calendars for everyone that cost me 49 cents each...yup..49 cents..Anywho...last year, I found these 3d houses that have chocolates in various doors and windows etc of the house. Kewl! And as they were marked down to 1.49 from 8.99 I was stoked! So they sit in my closet waiting for December first to arrive...then I found these WAYYYY cool advent calendars while I was shopping at Playmobil.com. Each day there is a piece to a playset (playmobil is like lego only BETTER!) so that by Christmas eve, the child has one complete playset! Soooooo...I spent 15 BUCKS (yah..not near 49cents right?) and bought Paige the woodland creatures set and Ben the Knights set. They should love them as each day in December they will be able to open a small gift and then have a complete toy to play with by Christmas eve! I also bought each one an additional 'extras' pack (an animal family for Paige, an extra knight with weapons for Ben) to put in their stocking..after all, Santa SO knows what they are up to! :)

Coffee dates...the adult version of 'playdates'! I love them! It gives me a chance to connect with a friend over a cup of something yummy and maybe a snack to boot! Recently, I have reconnected with a woman who's husband used to be on the Alabama with Mark. We didn't have much in common with them other than the guys were in the same division (sonar techs in same duty rotation). We'd see each other at birthday parties or boat functions. While we weren't mortal enemies or anything, we certainly weren't 'freinds'. Flash forward three years. She is now an Ombudsman for her husbands new command as am I for Marks. Our kids are older and into the same things. And for whatever reason (cosmic karma??) we reconnected last month and OMG. She is wonderful...and she gushes about me! I have found a new friend whom I adore! We have LOTS in comman and have the same warped sense of humor! So we've been having 'playdates' once a week and thoroughly enjoying them! I was able to gripe to her a few weeks ago about how my entire command support team ditched me to do other things, and therefore I didn't go to the Navy's annual Ombudsman Appreciation Dinner as I didnt' want to go alone. What I DID do that night was to attend a hastily thrown together dinner that the wives organized as they too were 'dumped' by our command support team. This was SO wrong of our team to do, but they did it and in the process snubbed alot of people. While I COULD have gone to the formal dinner and sat with my new friend (aptly named Joy!) and her husband, I felt my place was at the wives dinner supporting THEM as the guys are gone AGAIN. Anyways..when I showed up to the dinner, ,there was a GORGEOUS bouquet of flowers waiting for me from Joy! She'd snuck in ahead of me (on her way to the formal dinner) and left me flowers with a card that said 'she was so proud to serve with someone who serves for the right reasons and not for the glory'. I was sooo touched! So this week when we meet at the Starbucks in Barnes and Noble I'll be taking her a nice loaf of homemade Banana Cranberry bread in a nice ceramic loaf pan in celebration of Canadian Thanksgiving and our new found friendship! :)

Hugs to all,

Jaye

One Million Preemies

There is a new article on CNN tonight that talks about a new statistic released by the March Of Dimes organization. It states that more than 1 million premature babies die before they are a month old. Its a staggering statistic....but one that really put something into perspective for me. As most of you know, my 18 year old son Sam was a twin. His brother Brian died in utero at 32 weeks, and Sam was born 8 weeks premature weighing a whopping 4lbs 4ounces, which is actually quite heavy for 8 weeks early AND a twin. However, I couldn't help but think during that time that I was 'supposed' to have twins. I had to mourn that loss. How come it happened to ME? WHY? Why did MY son die? How come women all over the place seemed to be having twins, while MINE had died? It seemed that everywhere I looked, there were sets of twins. Even people who didn't want ONE baby seemed to have conceived twins and given birth to them successfully...heck, there was a mother in the hospital with me who'd managed to give birth to TRIPLETS! It was a hard time in my life and I deeply mourned the loss of my son..even though I did it silently.
After having read this article tonight....18 years later..I realize how LUCKY I was to have Sam survive. Yes, we lost his brother...and that was a sad thing. But we could have lost Sam too, and I just never realized the stats on such a preemie baby actually MAKING it. So my healing has come full circle. From 'why ME?' to 'Wow....ME...I got to have my son live!'.
Truly fortunate...

Hugs to all,

Jaye

Wisconsin Vacay!!

I am now in Wisconsin till the end of the month. What Mom and Dad and the rest of the family didn't know was that Mark was able to come back with us for six days! We pulled a great stunt when we got off the plane. The kids and I walked off the plane and met Mom and Dad and Terri and went to baggage claim....while Mark waited back until I texted him. Once he knew we were down in baggage claim, he called my cell and wanted to talk to Dad. He got on the phone and said "HI!" (keep in mind that everyone thought Mark was out to sea!). Dad said 'where are YOU?' and Mark lied his ass off and told him the sub broke and they pulled into San Diego to fix it. As he was saying this he is walking towards us all. Dad keeps talking away with his back to Mark. In the meantime, Mom spies Mark and is trying to wrap her brain around this guy walking towards her who LOOKS like Mark but isn't he in San Diego? This whole process takes about 20 seconds before she realizes it IS Mark! She lets out a great big SCREAM and Dad turns around to see 'what the junk' is going on...all in all it was a great surprise! Now we are here and having a great time. The kids have been swimming both days and we've done an awful lot of eating! lolol...



Paige on the shuttle to the airport....



Ben is coming too!



So is Mark!


Oh yah..and me..don't I look just thrilled??



Having breakfast at the clubhouse with Mom and Dad...





Guy is loving Paige...



Gramma Ruth..not bad for 98 years old!




Ben is ready to go swimming!





Fields of corn...




And Soybeans...





And country roads...








And huge farmhouses...




and Water towers..... I love Wisconsin!



Too much fun with Grampa wears a guy out!




and a girl!


More pics will follow as we take them! :)

Hugs to all,
Jaye

ONE HUNDRED AND FOUR!!!

Yes, you read that right, 104. That was how hot it got here today! Thank GOODNESS Mark installed AC in the house before he left for sea this last time! Thank You Honey!!! We spent the day in the house, enjoying the cool air, watching movies, playing on the computer and generally keeping it low key.

So WHAT do you do at the end of a long, hot 104 degree day??? Why thats easy to answer!
You play in the sprinkler of course!





Paige trying to pull Ben into the sprinkler!





Success!!!


Ahhhhh...that feels SOOO good!!!




Hope you are all keeping cool and not having a heat wave like we are!!

Hugs
Jaye

Whaling Days Parade

Last year, when Paige was still at Green Mountain Elementary, she was in the uni cycling club before school. Once she was accepted into the gifted program at Emerald Heights that came to an end. And then Mr. Lancaster, the best PE teacher ever, got a hold of me and asked if Paige could be in the parade this year. She was able to join the club at their practices this summer and she did a really good job catching up with her skills and tricks. So last weekend, Paige joined her unicycling club in the parade! Ben and I were button holed to pull the cart with the music in it and so WE were in the parade as well! Woo Hoo! It was a fairly hot day, and we ended up being in the sun for three hours. We were tired by the time we got home, but it sure was fun! Now we can all add 'been in a parade' to our resumes!


Paige and her friend Alycia posing..they've been friends since kindergarden..






Green Mountain Unicycling Club..






Paige in 'rest position' while some of the other kids showcase their skills..





Waiting for the 'Mount Up' command...




Mr. Lancaster has invited both Paige and Ben to join the club in their before school practices. Paige and Bens bus to the gifted program doesn't leave the school until 830 so they will be able to join their friends in October when practice starts up again. It is AWESOME that they will be able to have an extra curricular activity once again!

Hugs to all,

Jaye

Cyclists........grrr...

So I was driving down the road yesterday afternoon on my way to a friends house for a bbq. I turn onto one of the main roads in our area, get my speed up to 50 (the posted limit!) and start cruising. Only to have to come to an almost complete stop and drive at about 10 miles an hour. Why you ask?? Because there was a cyclist in the road. She didn't move over onto the shoulder, and I couldn't go around her to pass as there was a long line of traffic coming the other way. Now don't get me wrong. I like a bike ride as much as the next person. But SERIOUSLY? You are going to drive IN THE ROAD, tying up traffic because you are too self centered to think beyond yourself? I understand that pulling over onto the shoulder may have meant that she would have had to stop for a few minutes, thereby halting her workout or whatever..but come on. She doesn't pay road taxes (part of the gas price you pay is for roads!)..she doesn't have to pay for tabs or a license to ride. So she is riding on roads payed for by motorists for FREE. Granted, I am sure she has a car and pays taxes too, but surely CARS have right of way on a highway??
Anways, I finally got passed her and layed on my horn (yes, road rage! lol) and she FLIPPED ME OFF! I should have just hit her when I had the chance! :)

Hugs to all,
Jaye

What the HELL is going on?!?!

Yesterday, in a town not too far from us, three men tried to kidnap a 14 year old girl in BROAD DAYLIGHT in the middle of the day!! A month ago, another little girl was taken midday and has yet to be found. A few months ago, a child was taken at Pike Place Market here in Seattle RIGHT FROM HIS MOTHER! Fortunately, she had the guts to chase this guy down and take her son back! All over the United States, kids are getting snatched. It used to be you could say 'well, sad for that kid, but REALLY, where were their PARENTS?'. It used to be that it was only kids left alone for long periods of time that were vulnerable..the so called 'latch key' kids, the kids whose parents were raving alcoholics who left their kids in the car while they were inside the bar. No more. Now it's kids whose parents are often RIGHT THERE..or at least right inside the house. They look out the window to see their child then look away to grab their coffee cup and turn back and their child is GONE. I don't know about other states, but in WA state, the laws are NOT stiff enough. Family law in general is a joke in WA state (Mary has been in contempt five times, sixth motion filed next week and she's only been fined, never seen a jail cell!).

So...what do we do? We be vigilant. Even though we don't want to, we teach our kids that this world ISN'T safe...that everyone DOESN'T love them. We educate them in reality. We equip them to deal with not just 'stranger danger' but that seemingly 'nice' people may not be so nice. And we pray. Maybe NOW is the time to start that again if we don't already. Pray like we've never prayed before. Love our kids like we've never loved them before. Appreciate every single MOMENT like we've never done before.

And then we take a deep breath...and we let go. We let our kids be kids as much as we possibly can. It may not be much these days....but we MUST let them be kids as much as we can...because if we don't...we let the bad guys win.

We can be smart AND safe...and our kids CAN have a childhood dammit. I swear MINE are going to!

Hugs to all,
Jaye

Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwww.....

So I was cleaning out the fridge today and found a container of potatoe salad from the 4th of July. It was one I had bought from Albertsons, so it wasn't nasty it was just 'out of date'. Instead of using a spoon (and hence adding one MORE thing for me to wash) I just dug it all out with my hand. The kids were almost GAGGING! lol....'MOM, that is so GROSS'.

Yah well..I am a MOM. I've done worse things. And it all started with the birth of each child. Anyone who's witnessed, or in we ladies cases, experienced child birth, we know it's not all the spiritual moment it's cut out to be. Yes, we DO get to see the beautiful gift God gave us, but that is precluded with blood, sometimes puking and various other body fluids. We then move on to the growth of these precious bundles. There are the malfunctioning diapers when they are little and the poop shoots up their back and down the arms and legs of their sleepers. Theres the projectile puking of breast milk when they've over stuffed their little selves, and sometimes, ok, MOST times, this lovely fluid ends up all over US. In our hair, on our clothes, and if we are open mouthed at the time....well, you get the picture. Then they get older. They ask for a sip of your soda or juice and we deal with the 'backwash'. They get even older and we deal with pets...the hairballs the cat horks up...the hamster poop on the table (I've told them a MILLION times their hamsters don't REALLY want to eat with us!)...the dead frogs/lizards/tadpoles/fish etc we've had to pick up and then ready for burial. There's the middle of the night puking that NEVER starts in the bathroom but usually in their newly made beds, and it soaks EVERY inch of EVERY blanket. There's the sippy cups of milk behind the couch we find a week later...the mouldy glob of whatever it used to be that we find underneath the car seat.....

Not pleasant things..but I make my point. Scooping out potatoe salad with my hand is about the LEAST gross thing I've had to deal with in my lifetime!

Hugs to all,

Jaye

Back to Court we go......

Sometimes I need to vent in a safe place with friends and family who understand. So sometimes, this blog is about me getting things off my chest. Comment if you want as this blog is private and the people mentioned in this blog are unable to access it! :) So here goes....hang on to your seats!

Mark hasn't spoken to Shelby in almost a year. It's not that he hasn't been trying! 17 phone calls with messages left on the machine or with Mary to have Shelby call back. Numerous emails. Texts. Letters. All gone unanswered. Not a word. And now, a few weeks ago, Mary actually had the guts to RETURN a letter that we wrote! We addressed it to 'Shelby Greene' (keep in mind, the courts have ruled TWICE now that we can use either Shelby Greene- her birth name OR Shelby Knispel-Greene...the name Mary wanted to change her name to) and Mary wrote across the letter 'NO PERSON BY THIS NAME LIVES AT THIS HOUSE'. Now she has no problem with using just 'Knispel' for Shelbys last name (Marys maiden name) which is in DIRECT VIOLATION of the court order. But God forbid we use 'Greene' (Shelbys birth name and LEGAL NAME!). We've tried. Countless times. So now, with Marys blatant thumbing her nose at the court order, we have no choice. We are having to take her in for contempt (she's already been in contempt five times!) again, in an effort to get her to smarten up and once again put Mark in contact with Shelby. We know that the court system is screwed up. At most, Mary will get yet another fine and a 'stern talking to' (Like she even cares!) but it DOES get her to smarten up for a bit.

We know that with her going through her third divorce her life is in turmoil again. She isn't getting what she wants from her soon to be third ex (she wants the house they built without having to compensate him for it. They both owned homes and they both put the profits from said homes into this new house and were only married 2 years!) so she is on her usual spiral. She is making his life hell but can't get through to him in a way that really affects him (he no longer will speak to her other than through his atty) so the only OTHER way she can 'vent' is to play games with Mark and Shelbys relationship. The sad thing is, it doesn't bother us at all, but Shelby is the one who pays the price for her mothers complete insanity. Shelby will be with us at Christmas this year (due to Marks crazy sea schedule this year, she had to miss her spring break with us as well as her summer visit) and it will be an opportunity for Mark and Shelby to reconnect. I am detached. I could care less at this point. sigh...

I am so tired of this. Tired of Mary getting away with having broken EVERY SINGLE order ever issued and US having to foot the bill to enforce them. If Mark had ever missed ONE CENT of child support, the state would go after him at NO COST to Mary and get the money, but she can violate court order after court order and WE pay for it.

On the bright side, we only have 2 years and 11 more months of dealing with Mary! but who's counting.......

Hugs to all,
Jaye

Sam Graduates!

It seems like just yesterday when I was being life flighted into the city to give birth to my 8 week premature baby boy. He was 4lbs 4 ounces...but a fighter right from the get go. After only two weeks in the hospital (still 6 weeks premature) he was able to come home, and he gained a pound a week for the next 8 weeks. He still eats enough to fortify a small army, but fortunately, the pound a week tradition is no longer! :) Now that little four pounder is a grown boy....quickly turning into such a wonderful, funny, kind, genuine man. We are SO proud of Sam....SO. PROUD.


Sam and I just before he headed to the venue. "Mom, I don't have time for a picture!"..."C'mon Sam, just ONE!"...and look who won THAT battle! :) Moms rock!




Ben in the car on the way to Grad. Not too sure about the whole thing. All he knows is he had to dress up....




The auditorium where Grad was held. 400 graduates. 7 tickets each. YOU do the math!





Paige and Ben waiting for the Ceremony to start....



Sam coming out of the auditorium after the ceremony...he's so cute!




Sams 'posse'. The greatest group of guys you ever want to know. Sam made GREAT choices in friends and we've never had any trouble with this group (that we know of! hehe)



Sam and Mommy after the ceremony!



Sam just LOVES his siblings!




Sams Dad flew in for Grad...


Sam and one of his best buds, Skylar. Great guys....



Sam and his gorgeously funny girlfriend Dani....


Hugs to all,
Jaye