The Reed's Gettin' Down for Christmas!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

A friend and fellow blogger had done this on her blog and I couldn't resist!

AAAAHHHH, So Much Better!

Wow, what a good night's rest can do. My neck is feeling 80% better. I'm still trying to be ginger with it, but a far cry from yesterday! Grandma came out of surgery well. The Dr. said it was a really bad break. It took them a couple of hours to set in a rod and pins. She is in much more pain, especially when they get her up to walk. I couldn't believe it either that they would get her up to walk with no cast, nothing. I'm sure she uses a walker, but wow, walk on a broken leg. She is really down about the whole thing especially when there are no visitors. I hate to say it, but I dread calling her cause I know she will a)talk for an hour or two, b)she'll again ask about the boys and what preschool they are in, to which I will reply that we are homeschooling, to which she will reply with disgust. With that said, I know I should call her, but I am waiting for the time and courage to do so. I did send flowers and an email to her though. I couldn't believe it. You can send emails to patients now. The hospital prints them out onto cards or something and gives them to the patient, how cool! Best part is, the service was free!!! Well, I am going to get more cleaning done.

Cleaning with a Crick in my Neck

I absolutely hate it when I wake up with a sore elbow or knee. Even more so when I wake up with a crick in my neck. Since Ryan is working 1st shift till Christmas I am able to get a lot more housework done, but boy is it tough with a sore neck. Even worse is when I forget that it is sore and I turn it just a little too far and get a stabbing pain shooting down my spine! OWWWWW! I can't wait to go to bed and wake up to a better feeling neck. That usually does the trick for me. I am getting a lot done though. A little bit in each room. The boys have clean beds, I have a clean bed, almost all the laundry is DONE, almost all the dishes are DONE, most of the toys are picked (still a few stragglers), and I have a my decorations up. Left on the list is the bathroom, vacuuming, picking up all the stuff & putting away all that laundry. I can't wait to start the weekend off with a clean home! Gabe and Brandi if you are reading this, we'd love to have you over anytime!!! Let me know when you have a meal open :)

Urgent Prayer!

My grandmother (Grandma Cheyney) who lives in Washington, IA, fell yesterday in the McDonald's parking lot around 8pm. She was transported in ambulance to the local hospital. They discovered that she had broken her leg bone near the hip and it was a bad break. She was in a tremendous amount of pain! They then transported her further to Iowa City, IA's Mercy Hospital where she was doped up on morphine till this mornings surgery. She should be out of surgery now, but I haven't heard yet how it went. She is nearly 85 and was, till yesterday working fulltime at the local walmart. The family has erged her to retire, but she wouldn't. I think this will force her to. She will probably spend some time in Iowa City recovering and then be transported to a nursing home in her area that has a rehabilitation wing. Ryan is off till the 12th of January and my mom wants to go up to see her mom. We are looking into the possibility of taking her up there and staying a few days. Please pray for my grandmother's quick healing. It is very difficult for bones to mend at her age and condition. Also pray that she would have peace with the situation as she will not be home for Christmas.

Still Hope

Since yesterdays news from my dr., it got me thinking of a lot of questions. What if my progesterone is low, but I am still pregnant? What if my progesterone levels were tested too early? And so many more. So I got to googling. Coem to find out there are many women who have gotten the near same results and wound up pregnant, much to the astonishment of their dr.s. So we still have hope that maybe, just maybe we might have conceived and the dates are just a little off. I guess we will see. I have already had early pregnancy signs, but not sure if it;s all just mental. I will be keeping a relaxed eye on everything and try to be patient and see what next week brings. I will be able to test then. It's all in God and only he knows truly what my body is doing or not doing for that matter :)

Seeing God's will revealed for now

Well I got some rather disappointing news that was rather hard to take today. In fact the news was so disappointing that my doctor called me to give me the news. My progesterone levels are horribly low, near non-existent. Which mean, I more than likely didn't ovulate, which means I am more than likely not pregnant. This was the second and final round of clomid that I decided to take. This last round gave me dizziness, headaches and moderate depression for about 3-4 days. Dr. McCollum seemed stunned and amazed that the medicine didn't at least get my progesterone up. The next step would be infertility doctors, but I am ruling that out for now. It must not be in God's will for us to have children via biological right now. And as far as adoption, we are very open to it, but don't have the time, money or energy to go through such an exhausting trial as adoption is. It's too bad it takes so much to adopt a child. It is all very hard to swallow and I will admit that it is difficult to rejoice in the will of God right now. I write this in tears because my heart so longs to carry a child and hold a newborn again. I see this as an opportunity to enjoy what we have and get a lot of things sorted, organized, worked out and dealt with. It also a time to rejoice that we were given two great boys! We are so thankful that we let go and let God immediately after we got married for if not, we may not have had these children. God is so good. Please pray for me, that my heart would be softened and I would turn to God and rejoice right now.

Oh the woes of a housewife/mom...

I am finding out this year more than ever how hard it is to clean, decorate & organize with two young ones running about messing up my work. Whew. I love to have pretty candy out in candy dishes, but can't leave it unattended for fear I will find my boys with candy rings around their mouth and an empty dish beside them. I'm disappointed how hard it is to find spiced gum drops in holiday colors and whopper snowballs. These were always the candies of choice when I was growing up. I am happily surprised that there has been no peeking of the gifts or early unwrapping! I'm still behind getting my outside decorations up. I will eventually. Christmas Eve counts right!

The last several years my mom has had a shadow box coffee table that she puts a snow village in in the winter (sometimes the village stays up well into summer :) I'm going somewhere with this. My dad found an identical table at their neighbors garage sale several years back and put it aside. I finally have room for it, so I'm the fortunate owner of such a lovely table. I then found a set of snow village houses at goodwill for a cheap price. I now get to pass on the tradition of the snow village. To me it's basically an adult version of a doll house. I loved playing with dollhouses when I was little.

We also did out Christmas tree shopping last weekend which went something like this: 1st stop, Home Depot, who only carried Frazier Furs. Next stop a well needed dinner after missing lunch. Now that we were all happy again we went on to search for our tree. A couple of lots also only had Fraziers :( . Alas, Lowe's across town had some Douglas Furs. By now it was 8 pm and the boys fell asleep. So...I ran in and practically got the first one I saw (in the dark) that was tall enough and snatched it up. Once home I realized the bottom is rather bare and it's not as fresh as I would have liked. But, oh well, it adds character and I'm not going to be like my mom who actually bought a tree, got it home, put it in the stand and decided it wasn't quite right. She loaded that thing back onto the car and RETURNED it to the store! I try as much as possible to not be a perfectionist, but it's hard when I married a perfectionist.

In other news: I've been feeling particularly yucky this week. I sure hope this clomid stuff works cause this is the last time I'm using it. He upped it and boy did I notice. I had about 2-3 days of depression like no other while I was taking it. Thankfully that was went away once I took the five days worth. I'll test again next week to see if it helped me to do the "O" word, but I won't find out if I'm preggers or not till hopefully the 23rd. I'm seriously thinking of surprising Ryan Christmas morning if I find out it is positive! Thankfully he doesn't follow my blog religiously so I think I can slip this one by him :) On the other hand, I'm finally keeping up with everything on the calendar so he is more in tuned to where I'm at, which means he'll probably be asking questions. Well enough rambling got to get some stuff done.

What do ya think?...

Does this color look good on me or does it wash me out? You like! I thought it is a little more in season.

A Wonderful Anniversary!

Five years ago tomorrow, which again falls on the SEC Championship, I married the love of my life. It has taken me five years to be able to admittably say that. We had a lot of struggles those first 5 years but it finally seems that we know enough about each other to get along. In all actuality we learned more about ourselves and our own sin than the other persons. In our first two months of marriage Ryan got laid off, I found out we were expecting, I got in a accident which totaled our good car, we were left with a car with no AC and 300,000 miles on it, and I got fir..I mean laid off :) . Whew! It was a rough ride and yet I am so thankful that the Lord put us through such trials. We never got that honeymoon period where everything was lollipops and roses. Nope we had all our cards laid out on the table from the beginning and boy did we have some ugly hands of cards. Our marriage has been tested in ways I never knew of before. With all that said, I am so excited that we have made it these five years. I look forward to the next five and whatever it brings (hopefully more little ones :) Happy 5th Anniversary Honey!


I don't often like pictures of myself, but this one is wonderful of Ryan and I :)


Proof--Our Invite


Okay, to explain the weird hand thing, I went to go hold Ryan's hand and he missed my hand and barely held the tippy top of my fingers and the picture was shot :|


This is from our honeymoon to the arctic zone in Destin, FL. Seriously we should have brought some Fur Parkas and the sand mights as well been snow.


This is the summer after we got engaged and Ryan said "hey, you wanna got to the beach tomorrow", and I said "WHAT!?", and he said "ya, my aunt and uncle live in NC and the coast is only a couple of hours from there, we'll go for the day and come back the next day". That was the longest trip for an hour of fun on the beach.

My Beloved Grinch

This is so funny I had to share. I constantly tease Ryan about being a grinch at christmas time. He doesn't go for all the tree, lights, presents, and holly jolly like I do. It took two years to talk him into getting a tree. His heart is growing towards it though :) . This is where the funny comes in. I had gone to the store one morning and tuned into some holiday tunes on the radio since Ryan was not with me. When Ryan started the van to go to work the Grinch song came right on on cue. And no I didn't call the radio station and synchronize it, though I do go to great lengths at times to tease him.

Official Tag

Coincidentally, the same day I posted my unofficial tag post I was tagged on Gina's blog. So to be fair I will do this tag too. Here goes:

Four Jobs That I've Had:

Babysitter for next door neighbor and a couple of others
Kroger (worked in almost every dept.)
Walgreens Cosmetic and Photo Dept.
Knoxville Pediatrics as a Nurses Assistant

Four Movies I Can Watch Anytime:

We don't celebrate santa, but growing up my family did and I still enjoy Santa Claus the Movie :)
The Love Comes Softly Movie Series
Willy Wonka (old school)
Anything with Julie Roberts or Tom Hanks

Four Places I've Lived:

Iowa City, IA
Jackson,TN
Knoxville, TN
Loudon, TN

Four TV Shows I Love:

Little House on the Praire
Office (probably not the best, but I've had similar coworkers)
Dancing with the Stars
The Biggest Loser (I so want to be on there)

Four Places I've Vacationed:

Panama City Beach, FL
Destin, FL
Litchfield Beach, SC
DC

Four Novels I Have Enjoyed ReReading:

Novels must be fancy for books...?

The Bible
Shepherding a Childs Heart
No Even a Hint
I Kissed Dating Goodbye

Four Websites I Visit Often:

EBAY, EBAY, EBAY
PayPal (to get my earnings from EBAY)
Craigslist (to spend the money I earn on EBAY)
Target (for their coupons)

Four Places I'd Like To Be Right Now:

Hawaii
Disney World
Australia
I'll settle for my bed
(one of my places should really be heaven, though I know I don't long for it enough)

My First Ever Tag--Without Officially Being Tagged

I've always seen on my fellow bloggers blogs these things called tags. You answer these random questions that are usually on varying topics. I've never had anyone tag me I guess (I'm not sure how they do it). I've never ventured into doing these "tags". A fellow blogger-friend did a tag about her husband and I thought it would be a great opportunity to venture into the world of tagging. So here goes:

1. He's sitting in front of the TV, what is on the screen? CSPAN, news, sports (mainly football) or crimetime type shows.

2. You're out to eat; what kind of dressing does he get on his salad? Usually ranch but sometimes honey mustard or italian. He doesn't like a whole lot, whereas I load it on.

3. What's one food he doesn't like? Pepper Jellyn & Gulash are pretty much the only things I have found that the leftovers don't get eaten. He'll eat anything, though you wouldn't know it by his 160# frame.

4. You go out to the bar. What does he order? We don't drink too often, but I would say he would get a coors lite.

5. Where did he go to high school? Farragut High School, Knoxville, TN.

6. What size shoe does he wear? oh, please don't go there. He buys shoes either too small or too big, wears them a few times and then I sell them on EBAY. I would guess an 11.

7. If he was to collect anything, what would it be? He doesn't collect ANYTHING. He throws everything away. Though, he does have like three rolls worth of pictures of commercial airplanes from his times as a ramp/ticket counter agent that he won't part with, which I scrapbooked for him.

8. What is his favorite type of sandwich? Ham & Swiss Loaded with Veggies

9. What would he eat every day if he could? My Loaded Potato Soup

10. What is his favorite cereal? Raisin Bran Crunch, Raisin Bran Crunch, get the man some Raisin Bran Crunch!

11. What would he never wear? I'm with Marsha, Pink or anything close even many pastels.

12. What is his favorite sports team? I converted him to Tennesee from Georgia, though he is also starting to add on the Iowa Hawkeyes which are also my team.

13. Who did he vote for? Ron Paul! Yep, you better believe it. We wrote in ol' Ron Paul.

14. Who is his best friend? His brother!!! Though he really doesn't spend as much time as he would like with him since they are in GA. We do everything together and Ryan is happiest with that.

15. What is something you do that he wishes you wouldn't do? Call him a grouch or pour cold water on him in the shower, which after awhile you can pull warm water on him and it gets the same reaction psychologically. He also hates cuddling or putting my cold feet on him.

16. How many states has he lived in? Three: NY,GA,TN,GA,TN

17. What is his heritage? ????? All his family is from NY. His mom would say they are Irish and his Dad would say english, german. We don't really know.

18. You bake him a cake for his birthday; what would it be? Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Velvet Frosting

19. Did he play sports in high school? No, though he did play for years for AYSO, but not during High School.

20. What could he spend hours doing? Watching airplanes land or take off and riding in them.

21. What's something cool about him? hmmmmmmm...cool?...hmmmmmm, well what I find to be "cool" about my husband is he sacrifices a lot to provide for his family. He is currently working full-time in a factory. He left his former job as a ground crew/ticket agent for United to make more money for our growing family. And every time we go by the local airport, he slows to a crawl on the busy highway just so he can see the planes take-off and land :). He also would never hold back having more children if I am desiring more. He has deep convictions and is stronger at turning to God and having family prayer times. Honestly, I have had MANY times that I have grudgingly had prayer times with the family, instead of being delighted in them as he is.

So for some victims:
First Fruits Farm NE
The Clan McLeod
Jeneric Jeneralities
Smoky Mountain Christian Living

Fixing a Bland Blog

I have always felt like our blog is well...a little bland. Well if you are in the same spot as me I have a solution :) The Clan McLeod is hosting a give away for a free custom blog design by Judi at Doodlebug Designs. Come on over here to her blog to see all her fabulous designs and choose your fav. Then go on over here and follow the rules. I sure hope I win, or else you will have to continue to view my boring ol' blog.

Our Lil' Singing Preacher Man

Joseph has ALWAYS sat through church. He never liked nursery at church and was so good and quiet that we enjoyed having him in church with us. We've had many people tell us that children won't get anything out of the service because they won't understand it. I tend to disagree and think the preaching has rubbed off a little too much onto Joseph. Periodically we will catch Joseph "preaching" or "singing" to either us, Thomas or a line of stuffed animals. It's always hard to get a picture or video in the moment, because as soon as he hears the camera turn on he gets shy. I managed to discreetly get him on film. He thinks it all up on his own. The plant stand he fashioned into a pulpit and he collected all the bibles, hymnals & christian books he could find. This is one of the more subdued moments as he usually gets pretty fired up or gets going on the guitar. Also notice his feet in the video as he is wearing my heels I had left at the door :) Oh boy, being a mom is sure entertaining!

My BFF Is Expecting Baby #1

I'm so excited. For those of my readers (probably not that many of you) that don't know, I grew up half of my life in Jackson,TN, a sprawling little town in West TN. In middle school I met a wonderful young lady who quickly became my best friend. I admired her love for the Lord and learned a lot from her friendship. She's an only child and her grandparent's lived in my neighborhood, so she rode the bus home with me to my neighborhood everyday. I even got to go with her to a youth event at her church. At the end of my 7th grade year my family abruptly moved to Knoxville,TN. We kept in touch (she, better than I) as I would receive letters and even little presents from time to time. Slowly we lost touch. It had been since our freshman year since I had heard from her when her picture popped up in a search for her on Facebook. We reunited via the internet and it seems like we never lost touch. Crazy as it is, she married the same year as Ryan and I did. Sadly her father, whom she was very close to, past away just weeks before her wedding. All that said, she is probably one of my dearest friends and I just found out SHE'S EXPECTING!!!!! Yep, she and her hubby Gabe are expecting their first child, how wonderful. I am just so thrilled for them. As a mom of two I think back on when Ryan and I had Joseph and how new and wonderful it all was, just to be repeated with the joyous bith of Thomas. Congrats Alex and Gabe!!!



This is our 7th grade year pictures. Like my tapestry vest and big bangs, thanks mom!



This is one of our school dances. All the girls I hung around with. Weren't we fashionable. I think I wore my brothers shirt, weird!



In our Social Studies class working on our China Palace Contest Project (which we won!)

Remembering and Celebrating Christian

I met a fellow blogger several months back. I found out about the Drews through one of the most difficult of circumstances. Late summer this family was stricken with the lose of their 3 year old son, Christian as he went to be with the Lord. In seeing videos and pictures he reminds me of both of my boys. He has the personality of Thomas and resembles Joseph. Christian's 4th Birthday is today and he has something, no one else on this earth gets on their birthday; he is celebrating his 4th birthday with Jesus. My what a birthday that must be. We all should be longing for heaven, in all its greatness. It's overwhelming to think of leaving this earth to be with Christ. I am filled with a mixture of emotions. On one side I don't want to leave those I love here on this earth and on the other hand I long to be in a sin-free, struggle-free place as heaven. It's also the fear of the unknowns. But with it all said, I know when that day comes I will have no grief, sadness, hurt, or sorrow because I will be complete in Christ. I will be in full knowledge and that brings me unending comfort. In celebration of Chirstian I vow today to hold my boys longer, enjoy the hard stuff, cherish the little things and hug them more. I long to be patient, long-suffering, gracious, merciful...I long to be Christ-like. Happy 4th Birthday Christian, a.k.a "Dozer". Please pray for the Drews that the Lord would see them through this day of tears, joy, love & laughter as they remember their littlest man :)

Sickness, School & CLOMID?!

Well I was turning around for the better until I finished my antibiotics and it is all coming right back. That's the last time I use Omnicef, it always seems to do this for me. I dread what is probably the inevitable, another sinus surgery :( .

Ryan's hashing out school as he nears the end of his third quarter. I don't know if I should be excited or scared as the classes seem to get harder and harder. And so far it's looking like he'll have all Saturday classes next quarter, from 9-5pm with a 30 min. break, yikes :O

Ryan and I have been trying for a third child and anytime I see my mom and comment that I'm tired, or not feeling well, her eyes bug out of her head. She'd love it if we'd wait awhile, like maybe when Joseph's in high school ;), but we're really desiring a teeny tiny little one to add to our family. I miss having a baby around the home. How you can tell the older children, "shhhh, the baby's sleeping" and they actually quiet down! Of course it is all God's will and that is what we long for, baby or no baby, just fulfilling God's will. I've been reluctant to mention what I am about to mention, because it is a rather opinionated topic and being that I am rather emotional about the topic, I've put it off. We have many family members who do not support our having children and even more who would not be thrilled to find out that we are diligently trying (if that's the right word). We are slowly coming to realize that it is our decision to make as a married couple. No one elses. Ultimately God knows and wills it. So that is why I have decided to post about all this. I've struggled ever since having Thomas with a lot of irregularity with my cycles and hormones. I've been off and on several medicines to fix the problem, but found out just recently that I have virtually no progesterone and not even ovulating ( and suspect that I haven't been for some time, hence the irregularity. SOOOOOO, my wonderful OBGYN of 11 years put me on progesterone and CLOMID!!!!! First of all, I am on the lowest dose possible and second of all the chance of multiples is 8% (for me probably more like 50% since there are 4 sets of twins in my family :). So imagine how excited my mom is with all that news! She took it better than my sister though, who was near panic and insisted on telling me over and over of the risk of multiples. Now, because my mom works at the pharmacy I go to, she gives me the bug eyes every visit (as to ask, "are you pregnant?!"). The verdict is still out as to whether or not the clomid has worked, but I do go this week to test my progesterone levels and see if they are back where they need to be.

Mom's Sick But We Got Some Cool New Old Bunk Beds!

What a week! I got hit with the yuck bug otherwise known as a sinus infection. I always seem to struggle with allergies here in East TN, and have been with the season change for the last couple of months. (when I was 18 I had sinus surgery which helped for a couple of years) It all hit me Tues. and just worsened throughout the day to cap of the day with a migraine that induced, well you get the picture. Anyways, Ryan was in for it when he came home from work around midnight to a messy house and a woozy wife. Thankfully I got some antibiotics the next morning and the Lord is slowly healing me as everything is seeming to move south :P

Before all this happened we were in deep search for semi-nice used bunk beds for the boys as their crib/toddler beds were recalled. So I've been an ebayer awhile and thought maybe good ol' ebay would come to my rescue, but there were NONE in our area. Ryan kept trying to find one around Atlanta so we could find a really good excuse to visit family and Chalcedon, but nope, no good deals. Finally I decided to reluctantly turn to craigslist. After several days I was disappointed how much people were holding onto their stuff, and then wham. After looking every hour to see if new beds were added, one popped up. A nice family out in Kingston, TN practically gave them away (with mattresses)to us real cheap. And they are so nice! Boy are we blessed! The funny part is, the man told us later that when I got off the phone with him he thought that I responed quickly and was puzzled why it went within seconds of him posting it. Then as he waited for us to pick them up he got four more calls--I bet those people are disappointed! :( We ALL stayed up past midnight getting these beds put together. I also found these nice quilts on craigslist. The lady sold me 5 identical twin quilts for $45, another steal! I'm going to take one of the quilts and make shams, valance and possibly a couple of toy bags for the end of their beds.

It's a bitter sweet to not have any cribs in our house after ,more than fours years of having at least one up (but two cribs for over 2 years)! I would love to have a crib filled with a little baby, but it's just not been God's will for our family. I am so glad to see the boys growing from toddlers to kids, but also so sad to see them starting to leave toddlerhood :(

Ron Paul Same Today as 1988

Another cool giveaway!

A fellow blogger friend, whom I've grown very fond of due to all her fabulous giveaways, is having another great giveaway. She is giving away a product called, Soda-Club. You make and mix your own sodas, isn't that cool! Go on over here to her site and check it all out!

Our Views on the Economic Crisis

I am sure we are not the only couple who frequently discuss these economic hardships. It is a near daily accurrance because it affects everything we do. Every two weeks we get Ryan's paycheck and are reminded of the problems our leaders have got us in. When we mail postage at the post office we are amazed. When we get that dreaded utility bill in the winter, we are frustrated. When we buy ANYTHING, we are down right angry! It might seem small that Ryan's work has asked them to take off 8 unpaid days to benefit the company, but that is compounded with the fact that there is NO overtime available. The plant has nearly cut out a whole shift, which nearly affected Ryan. I am sick of everyone blaming it on the mortgage loans. Sure there were way to many loans given to people that could not afford them. But, we neglect to realize that anyone who got a lone 3-4 years ago or more was to expecting the outrageous gas prices. Ryan and I are now regreting buying a house with gas heat. Thankfully everything else is electric. These gas prices have doubled. Therefore our grocery bills, utility bills, and all other spending took a major hit. I know Ryan is making more than he did 3 years ago and we are still straped due to the prices. What frustrates us so much is that the prices are quickly dwindling down as our country has finally hit a breaking point. We can't help but think these oil executives have a hand in all this. I am sure there are plenty of families who would still be living in the comfort of their own homes had these gas prices not sky rocketed. With all that said, we know that the Lord will provide for all our needs and really we don't deserve such lavish lives. I will say it has made us more witty when it comes to trying to make do. But I hate to think that we are just wasting our money so the suit wearing executives can have their summer homes and indoor basketball courts.

A Pilgrim's Progress Giveaway!!!

Click on this button above to learn more about how to enter in this GREAT giveaway. I'm entering myself as I have heard great things about the book and am eager to see what all the fuss is about!

Birthday--BOY?!!!!

Our little toddler is growing up and is officially a little boy and not a toddler. I can't believe he is four now. Joseph turned four on Sunday. We celebrated his birthday with our little family on Saturday with the usual food, cake, ice cream & a couple of presents. The Mooses and Pop & Mimi sent him balloons and boy was he excited when a man brought them to the door just for him! Papu will be proud that he chose football themed sprinkles on his cake. He was so excited to get a red apron, matching chefs hat & rolling pin all of his own (and thanks to a fellow blogger it was FREE!). There is always a fight over Mommy's one extra apron and it usual ends in Thomas wearing a dishtowel. We still have a few more presents to open at his big party, but I find it very interesting that he was so content with the few presents he already received. He knows that there are more presents wrapped, but doesn't really care to much about them. We will do his big party with family and friends on the 18th at a nearby park. Where has the time gone? To make it harder he is humongous for his age, Dr. Green is amazed too! Bless his heart his body is growing faster than his brain can catch up and he seems so awkward when he runs. The little 7lb.9oz., 19 1/4 in. baby went from 50% to 100+% very quickly and continues to stay there. He is now past my waist in height and isn't slowing down, as some said he would. I am also encouraged that Dr. Green doesn't put a lot of weight on his learning level, as he is behind in some areas due to regressing with a younger brother and Joseph always seems behind around other people due to his shyness. We spent his birthDAY at some friends, The Wilkersons, for some fellowship and fun. Oh how the boys love playing over there with the freedoms and dirt and all those kids! It's sad to say I am not used to my kids having all those freedoms to run off in the woods and just be boys, but it just can't be done here in this little city. But enough of my rambling, my first born little toe-headed boy is growing up before our eyes! It has been a great four years and I couldn't imagine life without him!

Kids Really Do Say The Darndest Things--So We're Learning!

The other day Ryan took off work to catch up on school work and take us out to brunch at Cracker Barrel--One of our fav's. As we waddled out with full bellies we noticed a couple parked beside our van getting off their motorcycle. Joseph was gazing at the big shiney Harley, as any boy would and I commented to him that it was like his Uncle John's motorcycle. Without hesitation he commented back, "yeah, and I have a tricycle!" I followed with, "yep Joseph, you do have a tricycle don't you." The couple of course got a great tickle out of it and the husband agreed with me that children are so simple minded ;)

Just Our Chaos!!!

Well blogging may have slowed down, but our lives have not. I've just been so busy for the blog world as I am slowly cleaning out our house with a perpetual yard sale in the cyber world. That's right I am a self-proclaimed EBAYer. You name it, I've probably sold it. The funny thing, is that 99.9% of everything I have sold is USED!!!! I use up as much of it as I like and then sell it. Sometimes I even sell it for more than I bought it for! Unfortunatley though, it has a habit of taking over our time, house & energy. I have slowed down somewhat, but do it more in spurts rather than constantly. Praise the Lord for providing via EBAY for Dr.'s visits, groceries, clothes, and the dreaded gas "crisis". Basically it picks up for the shortages Ryan is going through at work.

We are also organizing the donations for Ryan's nephew in Afghanistan and have the 7 boxes stacked and ready to go, awaiting the expensive postage as we can afford it. So that is also taking up our dining room. Our ding room should now be labeled: dining room/office/library/post office box! That's how you do it in a small house--"multi task"!

Lately the boys are into being "Daddies". They also think up people they can marry and although there are some cute girls I wouldn't mind them thinking of, Joseph comes up with Daddy as his prospect for marriage. :/ I have to admit that I think Ryan's a good catch, but nope there are just too many reasons for Daddy being an impossible prospect! Joseph like to think up names for the baby dolls we have scattered through the house and I think he gets his inspiration from the bible

Kalia is naked baby #1
naked baby #2 has an even more interesting name, but he forgot it :)

We also have crazy kittens running around, climbing, scratching, escaping & screaming!!!! They drive Ryan nuts the most, but are slowly working on my nerves. They still nurse on momma cat although they are almost her size. I find it hilarious when they lay over her from behind to nurse :\

On top of all that small stuff, Ryan and I are learning & embrassing the covenant theology which can be so overwhelming, learning so much and interpreting what the bible teaches.

There's also a few more things that we are busy with, but I will leave that for a future post, so come back and see what else we have going on!!! Ya'll come back now ya here!

Here are the pictures of chaos:

Sadly this is just ONE of our many ebay/misson afghanistan piles :(




Thomas came up to me tonight to introduce me to his new baby (not new--was mine). They say you turn out the way you are raised, well notice Thomas' baby is also missing clothes.






Here's Joseph's peanut butter smile!






No need for words!

Women Are Equipped--Does Not Mean They Are Called

Okay! This is going to be a sore topic and very unpopular, well at least my views which are God's. We all know and are slowly seeing all the blog postings about this coming election, especially since John McCain ruffled feathers and chose Palin, a female. First of all let me say that I am thankful to be a woman and I believe we are a pretty nifty group, we women. Women are usually multi-taskers. We women can nurse a baby, eat our lunch, take a phone call and instruct the older kids all without skipping a beat. God has blessed many women with great qualities and many have used their qualities to do great things for our nation. With all that said, God's word is clear that women have distinct roles, just as men do.(Proverbs 31:10-31) If you are gifted in a particular area that doesn't always mean God calls you to use that gift. Young wives are called to be in the home raising the children and tending to/helping their husbands. When our children are young there is so much to be done. To think that a woman can "have it all" may be true, but her family suffers for her gain. By the way, there are many things that many men may be gifted in that God does not want them to persue, like staying home with the children or being a passive/submissive husband.(Ephesians 5:22-33) There are even issues of a women/men deciding that God didn't make them right and they mam their bodies into what they think they should be. In one such case a woman made herself physically into a man and artificially impregnated herself.(1Corinthians 6:12-20) Just because she and the other woman were blessed with a baby does not mean that God allowed this unholy union! God does not tolerate homosexuality in any form!!! Be careful not to add or take away from the bible. There are things in the bible that were not ordained by God and yet society accepted it. If we truly have our faith in Christ and profess Him as our God, then we have to be living by His word and not twisting it to what we want it to say for our culture. God will rebuke those who do this. When you read God's word you have to realize what was societal norm (and sometimes against God) and what was God's will/commandment to His people. The issue of Deborah in the bible was a time when Israel had no men that would step up and lead their country (Judges 4-5). Deborah was elected to the position and God punished Israel. We have plenty of men willing for the position as commander in chief. One in particular who holds Godly values, like giving power to the people, lowering taxes, pro-life starting at conception, separating church and state, freedom to home school and the list goes on. This man is Ron Paul. He was unpopular on all the major networks. He didn't receive all the donations and publicity, but he continues to fight for we the people of our nation. I have heard many republicans who do not like their choice, and yet they are going to go to the poles and vote in someone who is better than the alternative. People do not know that we have the power to write-in our vote. That if enough people right in Ron Paul he can win the presidency. Do not think that you are throwing away your vote and increasing O'Bama's chances. We will one day have to give an account for ALL of our actions. God will not accept excuses. It is better to not vote at all than to vote for someone who does not hold Godly values. Please feel free to comment, but know that I moderate, so ugly words and rudeness will not make the cut! Thanks for reading.

I'm Alive and Blogging!

To all of those who keeping checking on my blog and wonder if I fell of the face of the earth, well here I am. All my spare time has been wrapped up in a little thing called EBAY! With the rising gas prices and Ryan's work cutting back, well EBAY has been a huge blessing. To all of those who wonder, "can you really make anything on EBAY?" well yes you can. The more time you put in the more you get back. It does take time to enter in everything and then keep watch for messages from customers and mail out the stuff. Not to mention setting up PayPal and EBAY memberships. Once you get started though, it's fairly smooth sailing. EBAY & PayPal track things and do most of the work for you. The hardest part is not spending all your earnnings on new stuff! I would give a link to my EBAY page, but I'm afraid you maight find a gift or something you gave me! It ahs been a great decluttering tool and I'd rather do EBAY than sit outside and sell a couple items in a yard sale.

Also I recently had the pleasure of guessing Skeet's Tuesday Teaser which put me in a drawing, which I won!!! Skeet live in the great state of HAWAII and used the help of a hative at Starbuck's to draw the name. Yay a Starbuck's gift card, I wonder who will get that, (Ahem, Ryan!) :)

The boys are definetly alive, and kicking and screaming! They are a handful as usual, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. Ryan and I got to drop them off with the some friends, Gabe and Brandi and go to one of my old friends' weddings. We had a good time but had to leave just before the dance floor opened. I don't know whether to be glad or sad :/ Get this, the happy couple was gifted TWO WEEKS in HAWAII--Hey maybe Skeet will see them there!

Sunday we had a church fellowship picnic so here is some pic from our time:



Ryan and the Boys checking out the huge bamboo patch at the park



More checking it out



Thomas charges!



And gets out of there quick. He is so active it wears me out thinking about it.

Congrats to Ryan For Highest Honors!

Just wanted to spread the news of Ryan's accomplishments thus far. He currently has a 4.0 and received highest honors for his grades at ITT. He had a lot more work this past quarter and didn't receive as much help from me, although I did quite a bit of cheering and encouraging to stick it out. Way to go Ryan!

Mustard Seeds has a Charm Giveaway!

Go on over to Christina's blog and check out how to get in on this giveaway! Just click on Mustard Seeds above to find out more.

Here's What Five Weeks Does to Growing Kittens

The kittens have reached the stage where they are oh so cute, and yet oh so much trouble!!! They are getting into EVERYTHING and praticing their dueling skills with anyone and anything. The picture above is our favorite time as they do absolutely nothing. That usually lasts all of 20-30 mins. or until Thomas locates their where-abouts and snatches them up, tormenting them. I figure the kittens will either be really tame or really mischevious due to all the boys put them through. I am actually amazed they have lived through these five weeks. We found out that one is a girl who is very uptight and nervous and the other is a boy who is laid back and carefree. We are getting so attached that it will actually be hard to let the girl go as we are giving her to the Igarashi's from church. But, she will have a great home/farm and I know she will be well loved by all those kiddies and goats ;)

Update on Collections for John McDonald's Troop

We are thrilled by all the responses and donations we have received from family, friends & strangers. We have had one monetary donation of $25 and I was able to get some clearance outfits for the baby along with some nice body soap/lotion for Cindy. I also have been working on John's box and have it 3/4 of the way full with books, games, snacks, candy, & personal hygiene items. Ryan and I recently took care of the nursery at church and got all the little ones to color up some pages I made to send to the troop. All of that was right in the beginning and then it kind of trickled off, but we were pleasantly surprised and blessed to find some items in the collection box at church. I have had a few people promise monetary gifts and items that we are waiting for before we send the boxes out, the boxes are flat rate after all.

Here are the pictures of our progress:



Here is the progress on the box for Spc. John McDonald in Afghanistan



Here is the progress on the box for John's Wife and Baby in Texas

Urgent needs for our troops!

After posting my previous post I felt a desire to help these soldiers in anyway I could here in the states, especially after speaking to John’s mother, Teresa. John had the luxury of calling his wife, Cindy & daughter, Savannah this past Sunday and give updates. The situation out there is dyer. With no running water this means to restroom facilities. They have no way to wash their hands or bath for that matter. There are about 20 men total in his troop and they are finding shelter in a shack made of 2x4’s and a tin roof on the side of a mountain. The average temperature is 130 degrees. They have no electricity and no means to call/email home, except for every 2-3 mos. when the government provides them with a special military satellite phone. Currently they have not built their guard tower so his job in tales keeping watch while sitting in a hummer. He works three hours on three hours off, rotating shifts. When they first arrived to their location they thought they were under attack, but it ended up being off in the distance. They have not experienced any attacks since then. They have been told that he will have leave to come home in Nov. or Dec. but often times plans change. His total deployment time with be 12-15 mos.

Back home his wife and 3mo. Old daughter are keeping their spirits up, but weary at times. She has befriended to other military wives, whose husband are in the same troop. She decided not to come back to TN or GA to stay with family because she didn’t feel right to be here without John.

My reason in writing you this letter is to explain their circumstance and ask that if it is on your heart to do so, that you would help out with their many needs. The needs are varied and you can really give as much or as little as you please. Please do not feel obligated to do so, as we believe you should only participate in this act of giving if the Lord presses it upon you and so provides the means for you to do so. My desire is to pull enough items and financial resources together to possibly send enough for all 20 troop members. Also, I would like to put together an additional box of items for Cindy and baby Savannah (so as to not forget the sacrifice they are making too). Many items are specific due to information from the soldiers.

Food:
Beef Jerky (Slim Jims, etc. with no cheese)
Non perishables (no cans)
Twizzlers, Tootsie Rolls, Suckers, hard candy, Gum
Kool-Aid, Crystal Light, Gatorade (the small dry pouches you add to water)
Nuts/seeds
Instant coffee
Granola bars, cereal bars
Pretzels, Cheetos, Fritos, Chex Mix
Easy Mac, Ramen, Soup mixes
Cookie packs & cracker packs
Condiments, spices, sugar, dry creamer, lemon juice (in packets)

Hygiene:
Hand Wipes (individually wrapped)
Hand Sanitizer
Chap Stick (squeeze tubes so it doesn’t melt)
Instant cold packs (that activate when squeezed)
Finger tip tooth brushes that are disposable
Toothpaste
Mouth wash
Liquid soap, shampoo, conditioner in small bottles
Q-tips
Foot Powder
Razors (disposable)
Shaving soap or cream (no cans)
Travel toilet tissue
Kleenex pouches
Deodorant – unscented
Sunblock
Bug Spray
Shoe Insoles

Misc.
Writing materials
Envelopes, paper, pens, mechanical pencils
One-time use cameras
Hand written letters, cards to boost their spirits
Crossword/puzzle books
Bibles (new or used in good condition, no writing in them)
Godly Books (small)
Tylenol, IB Profen packets/samples
Small toys (Frisbees, balls, hackey sacks
Playing cards, UNO, Yo-yo’s
Travel sized laundry detergent
Flash lights that are friction generated (not battery)

Cindy & baby:
Calling cards-to call family
Nice bath soaps, lotions
Candles
Small things that women like
Handwritten cards, letter to boost her spirits
One-time use cameras
Godly books
Small baby toys (3m. & up)
Baby items
Gift cards
Stationary

*Since this is going out worldwide I ask that you make monetary donations if you do not live in the East TN area (email me at rprmsr@hotmail.com to see about sending the donation). If you do live in this are please contact me to let me know where to pick up the items from you (contact me before you make purchases to make sure you are not to far out to pick up the items). If you do not have the time to buy the items listed you may also give monetarily. Money will be used to buy these items and also for the postage. I have gotten free flat-rate shipping boxes from the USPS and it costs $10.95 per box to ship, no matter the weight, so I will be using every square inch of the boxes. I will be mailing them out to John and he will distribute them among the troop. I will send them out as soon as I have enough items and money to do so. I encourage the children to get involved and make little crafts to send the men. If you have any questions please contact me at church or home (865)657-9543 or rprmsr@gmail.com . I appreciate in advance your considering what the Lord would have you and your families to do. May God be glorified as we meet the needs of these soldiers. Most importantly than giving is praying for these soldiers and their families through this time.


Thank You,
Megan

Urgent and Continual Prayer Request

Ryan's brother's step-son, John McDonald, was deployed to Afganistan on July 3, 2008. This is his second deployment (previously in Iraq). He is now an Army Specialist and they have changed his job to, Security as a Guard Tower Sniper & a Checkpoint Guard. This is one of the most dangerous positions to be in. To make matters worse, he was not sent to the area they had originally told him. He is now in a 100+ degree desolate area with no running water or electricity and his only means of communication is USPS(mail). He leaves a wife and 3 mo. old daughter back in Nolanville, TX. She has family in GA and TN but decided to stay in TX. Ryan's brother, John Reed, Jr., has asked for anyone who has a church prayer list, to please place this family on such list. Also, I encourage anyone who feels a desire to send letters or care packages please let me know, I can give you their addresses or send it out to them myself. I know both John & Cindy need encouragement in this difficult time.

Dollywood Adventures!

We got in another visit to Dollywood this past week. With Ryan off all week it was a nice break from our cabin fever. The nice thing about season passes is, we can come in later and not kill ourselves trying to ride everything. We had a day full of veggies, heat, water, rides, heat & water. The veggitales were at the park and got to enjoy a live show in the AC of their theatre. Hopefully we can go back before Zaboomafoo leaves.



Joseph & Daddy pose by the Dollywood Express that we got to ride.



Thomas & Daddy pose too!



Here the train engineer is loading up the coal in the fire to prepare for the ride ahead. The last two times we rode we sat in the first car and since it's an open car, we ended up with coal dust all over us. It's also very loud up there.



There was a sandcastle making exhibit. There was actually a person there making this castle as we watched. And believe it or not this was 100% sand & water. Incredible!



Joseph finally got up enough guts to ride these cute little duckies after seeing Thomas go alone. Joseph, Joseph, Joseph...What are we going to do with you?!





Here are the boys at the Beaver Creek area of the park. It's a great place for little ones ( and Mommys ;) to cool of in the running water. Both boys managed to break the no running law and both left with bumps on their heads to prove it.



Here Ryan and Joseph rode together on the 50s style Rockin' Roadway. Ryan was sure glad he didn't get the pink, purple or aqua car.



Thomas drives Mommy around on the Rockin' Roadway. AAAAHHH!

The Kitties are Here, Jen!

Yesterday evening "Lady" went into labor with her kitties. She insisted I stay and mid-wife the whole thing as she followed me anytime I left her. So for 3-4 hours straight she labored and birthed three cute grey kitties as I assisted. I know I must sound like some crazy animal lover who thinks cats are human, but really they pretty much do the same thing we human-women do. I have to give it to them for birthing multiples and some other gory stuff they have to do that I won't mention. She's been a good mommy cat and doesn't get to bothered when we handle them. At one point I was handling a kitted who started to scream and "Lady" gave me a genlte nip as to tell me, "I really don't mind you holding them, but I think I should take over now." Unfortunately the first one was still-born even after my attempts to revive it. I think she just labored to long with it as it was the largest of the three. Here are the pics.:



This was kitty #1 who didn't make it


This is kitty #2 who is the laid back of the two.


Joseph was excited at the chance to hold this wiggly kitty as Mommy-Cat birthed #3 (He was also hyped up from all the chocolate ice cream Daddy gave him)


Kitty #3(left)who is feisty and a little more slender. He gave me a scare as he struggled to breath at first. Good Mommy-Cat nurses one baby while cleaning up the other.


By the way there are plenty more yucky pictures if anyone is teaching biology! ;)