Geuss who's back...back...back...back again...again..

Only for a little bit. I have to pick up the kids from daycare in 30 minutes. Wheew! Is all I have to say. Since my last blog so much has happened, yet now it seems unimportant. Not that it was really that important to begin with. First, I want to give a shout out to Me-ma and Nana. These two woman single handily saved me this month!! My mom(me-ma) bought all the kids clothes for school! Woo-hoo! And to make it even better my fabulous mother in law(a.k.a. Nana) bought all their school supplies! I am so blessed!! THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart ladies. I love you!

Another blessing: When we moved into our apartment. Jason took off his ring b/c his fingers tend to swell in the heat. Well, then I lost it! We were both so sad. After much prayer, I FOUND IT! In the bottom of a laundry basket that was housing misc. junk from the old house. Go figure! I never would have looked there normally, but something drew me to it! So after a month of being ring less, and arguing about buying another one, the original is back on his hand. WOO-HOO!

As mentioned above my kids are getting ready for school. I'm excited yet sad. My "baby" is going to kindergarten. Yes, kindergarten. Sob...sob...sob....
Jonathan's hair is soooo long. I need to post pics. They both are so big. I'm the mom of big kids. Crazy.

This weekend my sister is keeping the kids overnight. Praise the Lord! Jason and I will get some alone time. I can't wait. We are planning on cooking dinner together, then perhaps a movie...we'll see!

I got a new job, sorta. Same company, just a new job within my team. Instead of impacting loans, I "package" the loans to send to the investor. I am their contact when they have questions regarding their loans that we service. Lots of spreadsheets!! I can't wait to learn more.

Going scrappin next weekend. I haven;t scrapped in SO long. I'm hoping to get some pics from Melibelle to scrap. You know the ones where I look HOT in my striped sweater.

Is this enough for ya'll? I know you miss me, who wouldn't??? I miss you too! Love, hugs, and all that mushy stuff!

HI!

I'm still here. Just busy. I can honestly say I LOVE not having a computer in the house. We spend more family time together, Jason and I spend more time together. It's an all around good thing. We don't plan on getting it hooked up any time soon.

All is well in Hallock Land. The kids are waiting for school to start. Savannah is dying to start buying supplies and clothes for school. Jonathan is just hanging in until football season starts. He's playing tackle this year instead of flag. Can we say STOKED! Yea, he is!

If you need me e-mail me at work or the the cell-y. Peace out!

How Angel Got Her Groove Back!

That's right folks.
I'm sick of being funky.
EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON!
GOD IS IN CONTROL.
We don't like to think that when bad stuff happens to us.
But it's true.
He loves more than we will ever know and he knows what's best for us(Jer 29:11).
Whatever doesn't kill you makes you stronger.
I firmly believe that.
I will be stronger.
I am stronger.
I have already overcome so much more than I ever though I could.
Experienced stuff that I surely thought would kill me if I ever experienced it.
Guess what?
I'M ALIVE.
Do I like what I'm going through?
Not a snowball's chance in hell.
I hate it.
However life is what you make it.
And damn it, I'm gonna make it a good one!
I owe it to God to bring Glory to His name,
I owe it to my children to give them the mother they deserve,
and I owe it to myself to practice what I've always preached:
Be happy.
Life is what you make of it.
Fake it till you make it.
Trust in God.
Everything happens for a reason.
You are only as good as you know you are.
Know What?
I'm awesome.
I'm not being egotistic.
I am fabulous.
I'm a good person.
A great mother.
A wonderful friend.
A loving wife.
Those who don't like me, well, oh well.
There are not many anyway.
Most who meet me love me.
I HAD that kind of personality.
It's coming back boys and girls.
I will be happy,
I will be successful at all I set my mind to.
The pity party has ended,
today is the first day of the rest of my life.
Oh yes my friends Angel's got her groove back and this is just the beginning.....

Randomness

Blogger got blocked at work:( I'm really gonna have to get the net at the house:( Thankfully our apartment complex has a "business center" with 'puters and such. Even wrapping paper! Rock On. Jason won tickets at work to the Rangers game last night. We had fun. Savannah lost her first tooth:) Jonathan is so jealous he didn't lose his first one till he was 7! Now he has 3 of them lose though:) More unpacking to do. So much laundry to do. And I have to work my first Saturday at CW. Boo-hoo. Sucks to be a grown up sometimes. Okay, all the time!!

We are all moved in. We still do not have internet, so I'm limited on my communication. I can only get on the net at work. Which means no hotmail or myspace for now. If you need to get ahold of me, e-mail at work or leave me a message here. We of course still have our cells if you want an immediate connection. We moved all day Saturday and Sunday! Some stuff went into storage and some in to the trash, but most of it went to the apartment. Which is about 1/4 unpacked. We have the kitchen, dining room, and part of the living room unpacked. We still have the other have of the living room, the kids room, and bathroom, as well as the master bedroom, bathroom, and my scrap closet! Wheew. Sounds like a lot but I hope to have it all done by the end of the weekend. Maybe not the scrap closet, but everything else for sure! I have to say it's AWESOME living 5 minutes form work again. I love it. I'm even OK with the apartment living. I thought it would be hard since we have only lived in an apartment once and it was 6 years ago, but so far so good. It's almost better to have a small place b/c everything has a place and there is no place else to put it. You don't have to worry about stuff getting stuck somewhere. There is no extra somewhere! Everything has it's place. The kids are loving daycare. They never been in one before and they think it is so cool. Me personally, I can't wait till school starts so then it's only after school care! Even with my CW discount it's $$$$ for 2 kids! Such is life though. It's only for the rest of the summer.

Overwhelmed

This doesn't even begin to describe how I feel. Between work and home I feel like I'm being pulled in 547,875 directions. We found an apartment(finally!). It was a horrible experience. We didn't get the first one we wanted. Then the 2nd one wanted a HUGE deposit. I was about in tears. Finally they called back and said we added your "points" wrong, and you don't have to pay a deposit. Praise God! Between deposits and transfer fees for everything else I was about to drive off a cliff. So I have been working on getting Dad's old car out of the garage, finding a new home for Joe(don't even get me started on this!), transferring or canceling electric, cable, gas, water, and bills. Not to mention going through stuff, throwing away stuff, and packing(sort of!). We spent all last weekend moving stuff from our garage to storage. We decide to rent a uhaul instead of making 46 trips in the mini van. Oh yea, plus I've had to feed,bathe, nurture, and raise the children during all of this. A few months back I had bought tickets to the The Fray concert tonight for Jason's birthday. However when I bought them I didn't know we'd be moving this weekend:0( We decided not to go, but now since it's such short notice I ended up giving the tickets away! AGH! I hate wasting money. Please pray for a weekend of smooth sailing....

If you don't believe in God, read this!

This is is the story of of our associate pastor over this past week. He is a wonderful, Godly man. Jeremy and his wife Jodi have been a tremendous source of strength for our family life in the past few months. My heart breaks for what they are going through, yet swells with the knowledge of God's graciousness for how they handled this situation.

...so a storm was in store. The problem was we were not expecting it this time. I secretly pride myself in being able to adjust to situations and challenges in order to best handle them. I even catch myself working through different results of situations and analyzing what I will do if "y" happens instead of "x". I know. Kinda disturbing. If you have not yet been a part of the group to be informed of our recent challenge, than take a moment to read this Powell update. If you are in the know, than scroll down until the current date to catch yourself up to speed. There's no need for you to reread the story you know. If you are fresh to the story, than read it segments. I have not had a computer for 4 days, so I had to cram it in one email. Precious prayer warriors, God came to us in a BIG WAY again. Please understand this important message here: if you are a skeptic that still does not believe that God did not necessarily have complete control of Jeremy's medicine working "all-of-the-sudden"; that God is a God that STILL performs MIRACLES, than make no mistake. This story WILL change your mind. If you are one of those readers of the Powell Update who is not exactly sure where you are with Our Creator and at the close of this message, you need to know the God who does these things, WRITE ME BACK. I WILL GLADLY, PERSONALLY, INTRODUCE YOU TO HIM.

Monday, July 2: Jeremy comes home from work to have lunch with his girls. He shares with me over lunch that he is all of the sudden not feeling so well. I told him that I would get him some medication and he declined. He called me around 3:00 and told me that he felt feverish and was coming home to crash for a little while. We settled him on the couch with a Tylenol and he slept for about an hour. He arose and felt somewhat better, but was still sluggish. We had dinner together as a family and eventually worked our way to our evening ritual. We usually put Emma down for bed with a series of steps and then immediately begin his nightly IV infusion. The infusion takes roughly an hour. As the hour began to close, Jeremy began to complain of a fever again. He began to shake VIOLENTLY. I got our heating pad and covered him with several blankets. He eventually vomited from the shaking and fever. The fever spiked to 104.1 and then broke. I left to go to the drugstore to get some Motrin and juice. Jeremy and I both decided that he must have a virus because this came on so quickly. We alternated Tylenol and Motrin throughout the night and he maintained around a 99.5 low grade fever.

Tuesday, July 3: Jeremy awakens me at 6:30 asking for blankets again. He was chilled, but not any where near the same shaking that he had the night before. I told him we were going to the doctor so that we could have a professional assessment. His fever spiked again to 103.7, so we packed the family up and headed to the doctor. Emma got to play with Jonathan and Katelyn for the morning while Mommy and Daddy went to the doctor. Dr. David treated Jeremy with caution and we are thankful for that because she does take such care for him. She decided not to risk writing off this fever as a viral infection and to instead attack it as if it were bacterial, just in case. Remember, with Jeremy, bacterial infections can become critical. She gave Jeremy a shot in the doctor's office of an antibiotic and sent us home with a prescription for doxycyclene. If you remember back in the lung infection and early back infection days, Jeremy was on doxy as we were still deciding as to whether this infection was bacterial or fungal. Doxy has a tendency to induce nausea and vomiting with Jeremy. So needless to say, we were not looking forward to this. ON the way to the doctor, we stopped at Sonic and bought Jeremy a large Sprite. He finished this by lunch time and crashed out on the couch still alternating Motrin and Tylenol. Emma and Mommy decided to quarantine Daddy and we set up a playland downstairs. His fever moved between 99-102 throughout the day with moments of breaking off and on. He began to feel somewhat better and went downstairs to take a shower. He went back upstairs and Emma and I followed to go through our nighttime routine. After Emma went down, I proceeded to begin Jeremy's infusion again. Again, at the close of the infusion, Jeremy began convulsing violently complaining of fever chills. I took his temperature and it was 100.8 (note the placement of the decimal). So I was really concerned because I didn't think chills on this severity were normal for such a low grade fever. Then his lips began to turn purple. I called his mother and had her agree with me that it was time to go into the ER. I called the Alexanders at 10:15 and asked that we bring Emma by on the way to the ER. Kristina offered to send one of them to get her. While I was getting Barney out for one more time and packing my purse to go to the ER, Jeremy arose from the couch and had a series of events that began to lead to a state of incoherency. Zack arrived and ran us out of the house and took care of everything for me - this includes getting my dog inside, getting my daughter and her bag packed for a night away, locking up and alarming my house. Have I ever told you guys how God continues to minister to me through people who SELFLESSLY and TIRELESSLY love on us with the love of the Lord? Amazing. I drove somewhat speedily to the hospital and Jeremy's demeanor and alertness faded rapidly as we approached our local hospital. I feared coma or seizure, but not being a medical professional, I tried not to alarm myself because I didn't want to make it bigger than it was. I arrived at the ER and ran around to heave my husband out of the car. His mobility was gone. There was a cluster of people standing outside of the doors to the ER who graciously came behind me and shut my car door as I carried my soaking wet husband into the ER. A kind officer took Jeremy's other side and helped me get him into triage. It was obvious to the people that he was already in a deep state of emergency. Let me tell you, this was the first of many small prayers running through my head that would be answered. I knew that waiting in the waiting room of the ER would be detrimental. I sat in triage with my no responsive husband FILLING OUT PAPERWORK. Oh you precious medical professionals, I think I would pay the extra money if you guys would help me find out a way in the ER for patients to receive treatment while dictating all of the crap that needs to be written out on all of those papers. I know insurance companies are to blame for most of it, but it is an ER!!! The E is for EMERGENCY. Ok, enough of that tangent for now. Jeremy's condition RAPIDLY worsened in front of my eyes. He was sweating profusely and refused to let me get his sweatshirt off. His precious brothers, Clay and Zack, arrived shortly after I did and immediately went to work for us. I am sorry, but I am welling up with tears as I stop to tell you this part. Jeremy had completely doused my passenger side on the way to the ER and Zack took my keys and proceeded to clean up my car so that it wouldn't sit in that state all night long. That is a friend. I know you will read this Zack and think nothing of it, but really. Your love for my family is a strong testimony to your love of the Lord. Than Clay joins me in triage and helps me fight Jeremy to get his sweatshirt off and holds his brother's head as he struggles to expel more liquids from his body orally. You must know that this also speaks volumes of the Love of Christ that radiates through Clay. First of all, he was ill with an infection in his eye and really needed to be home sleeping and second of all, he is a sympathy yacker. Yet, he made it through this event. I decided to demand attention and strongly stated to the ER staff that it was imperative that he be seen IMMEDIATELY. They got him into a room and my husband was completely gone from the man that you know by now. As he fought to escape the grasp of the medical professionals and myself, they were able to wrangle him down and proceed with assessing his vital signs. His heart rate was at 200, his BP was incredibly low, and his fever had spiked to 108.0 (NOTE THE PLACEMENT OF THE DECIMAL). Did I lose it? No. I couldn't. How would God respond to a person in hysterics? How could I help my husband if I couldn't hold it together? I immediate began praying even harder. "Only you, Oh God, can restore him from this state. ONLY YOU, OH GOD, CAN SAVE HIM FROM THIS DESTRUCTION. I cannot. These professionals cannot. I give him to You and ask that you hold me through this so that I can be a tool for your use as you save him again. I ask that you not take him yet. His ministry is only beginning and we know that you have called him to do great things for your kingdom. Don't take this man of God! Don't take this willing vessel! Not for me. Not for Emma. Not for our baby. But for You, oh God! But God, if this is his time, than please, PLEASE, PLEASE don't make him suffer!" I can quote you this prayer because I repeated it over and over again FOR HOURS. They packed Jeremy in ice and the Q&A began. You remember, my husband does not have a normal immune system. I declared this to the ER professionals immediately upon entry of the hospital. I had to explain his condition to them about 5 different times. This quickly put them on edge. I could see the fear and concern in their eyes because they knew his condition was traumatic. I had to give his medical history along with explain what was going on with this PIC line in his arm. They relocated Jeremy to an OR in the ER and decided quickly to go ahead and remove the PIC line. This was after they had poked him numerous times to try and find a vein to begin meds and IV fluids for this severely dehydrated man. (Remember that sprite I told you about earlier? He had that and a Gatorade over the course of the entire day) I have to admit that when the removed the PIC line, I winced - not because it was gross, but because I saw the progress we had made disappear with the fungal infection. They wheeled Jeremy down the hall for x-rays and a CT scan so they could assess the damage done to his brain from the heat of the fever. We got to the X-ray when your author stupidly remembered - All of the Sudden - I can't be here. I'M PREGNANT. They than ushered me back down the hall and my heart began to ache because I couldn't be with him. He was sedated though and didn't know where I was, so I had to take that satisfaction. X-rays came back with splotches, but I told them that they really needed to compare them to other x-rays. You see, Jeremy has lots of scar tissue in his lungs from previous infections. To an unknowing eye though, they appear to be spots of infection. Here's where it gets even better. It's after midnight. What day does that make it my friends? That's right - INDEPENDENCE DAY! Hooray! Government holiday! Did I mention the National Institute of Health is a government funded facility. So to wait until the start of a workday for this information would mean to wait until THURSDAY! So once again, I had to pray to the Lord to maintain them with wisdom on how to treat him until then. Jeremy returned and would come in and out of sedation. His fever dropped to 105.1 and then about an hour later it dropped to 103.7. Can I tell you how happy I was to see that number on a thermometer. Than God began to give me glimmers of hope. His CT scan came back NORMAL. My husband maintained NO NOTABLE brain damage from this astronomical fever. Believer? You will be.

Wednesday, July 4: We eventually get to a state where we are ready to admit Jeremy to the ICU there at Harris Southwest. Did I mention that Clay, Zack and Randal were still there and were pretty much holding it together with me through this enormously trying time. They walked my frail pregnant body along with Jeremy's frail dehydrated body up to ICU. I know that I could have done this alone, but I don't know how except for added strength from the Lord. They were the added strength that got me through this and their love for my husband is phenomenal. Believe me gentleman, I have made Jeremy very aware of your sacrifice and his heart wept with gratitude. They had some difficulty switching Jeremy from the gurney to the ICU bed and it was best that they left me in the waiting room. After the transfer, I went by myself for a one-on-one consult with the ICU General Internist - Dr. Jennifer Alexander. Can I tell you that once more, God provided a glimmer of hope. Although she was not quite familiar with Jeremy's disease, she had taken the time to briefly read about it before our arrival to the floor. I explained everything to her once more and saw her immediately begin to set her wheels into motion about how to properly address the most adequate care for my husband. The admitting nurse was named Jessica and she took such care to make sure I was secure in my settling in this room for the night. The boys came back and had prayer with my family for the evening and then left. Zack came back with Abby about an hour later bringing me clothes and necessities to get us through the next few days and Abby sat with me because she knew I wouldn't sleep if I was alone. Every time a nurse comes in, I sit up because I want to know what they are doing. She sat up for me so I could rest. Again, the love of Christ radiating. I slept in 45 minute increments and then decided it wasn't worth it because I was still too distressed. Doctors began pouring in and the fishbowl that we were living in was unavoidable. Jeremy was the talk of the hospital. "Did you see the 29 year old who spiked 108? He's a miracle. There was no brain damage. His kidneys have returned to functioning!" This also was accompanied by nurses passing by our room and staring at him - I am not kidding. About 7:30am, the next nurse took her shift and came in to begin some preliminary work with him. She shared with Abby and I that Jeremy shouldn't just be brain damaged, but he shouldn't be here at all. She didn't know anyone who had survived that high of a fever. Believer yet? You will be. As we wept with that reality, she also shared with us that the kidneys that had gone into failure had miraculously began to work again. He came in producing nothing and yet being pumped full of fluids. In that short amount of time, he began producing adequate amounts of fluids. Jeremy began to arouse around 8ish and I was able to make eye contact with him and he acknowledged who I was. I shed a tear of joy. He faded again. About 8:30 he came around again and became aware of his restraints. I shared with him that he had been a little unhappy with being there, so we had to secure him to insure his stay. I shared with him that he had numerous tubes coming out of his body and I needed him to promise to not pull on them if I let him go. He told me he would be good and the nurse and I released him. He received numerous guests early that morning and surprisingly conversed with Steve Tigner, a church member about putting. He remembers nothing from Tuesday or Wednesday. So you precious souls who came to love on us, I have told him a few times of your visit so your time there wasn't for naught. He later that morning had a neurological examination performed by Dr. Chin and passed with flying colors. AGAIN, A MIRACLE. He responded to vision and hearing stimuli as well as physical mobility. I was astonished. He slept on and off throughout the day on Wednesday and concluded the evening with my explanation of what had transpired the evening before which left him silenced. He had asked how long he had to be there and I told him that they could keep him until October if they wanted because they saved his life.

Thursday, July 5: A new day begins. I slept about 4 hours the night before because of visits from the nurse and Jeremy detaching himself from the IV during the middle of the night. That was an ordeal - again one he does not remember and I am glad. ;0) However, my eyes were opened widely at 7am receiving a call from a NP from the NIH. We could now start making some further progress because we could finally get access to other medical records. Dr. Alexander took great caution to outsource many of Jeremy's conditions to specialist. As of date, we have seen a neurologist, 2 hematologists, an infectious disease specialist, a nephrologist, a gastro-intestinal specialist, along with a breathing specialist and numerous other consults. The NIH was very pleased with all that Harris had done with Jeremy and did not have any further suggestions. We did start getting test results back. None of the blood tests came back positive, but the culture on the PIC line revealed staph. This explained the convulsions. Every time I pushed his meds, I pushed this infection into his bloodstream. I felt horrible, but I have come to terms that it isn't my fault. God knew and God knew he needed someone to get that PIC line out. Jeremy and I had a long talk about his current condition as I had to explain to him what had happened and I had to explain to him the most recent test results from Dr. Alexander. Thursday, we started to see residual effects from the high fever. The kidneys had completely repaired themselves and were functioning on their own thanks to intense flushing. However, the liver was beginning to fail and revealed itself as such with extremely elevated liver enzymes. His muscle enzymes were also elevated revealing damage. So again my prayer was big and specific for God to restore his liver and to do it by his personal touch on Jeremy's body. Jeremy and I took this as another hurdle and I surrendered again to God to heal him. I knew the specialist could set him up to a road of recovery, but I didn't know how. God did. Long day of lots of doctors closed with Dr. Armstrong, our GI doctor coming in to explain how the liver was an innocent bystander of this traumatic event. He felt fully confident that this organ can and would repair itself after the infection began to push it's way out of the body. Jeremy had many good things come about on Thursday though besides this news of hope from Dr. Armstrong. He made it through the entire day without a fever reducer whatsoever. I knew we were on our way to recovery.

Friday, July 6: Jeremy and I slept in until around 8:00 after another night of every 2 hours. I went to my doctor's appointment to visit with our baby via measurements and heart monitors. I returned to Jeremy visiting with his mother who had surprised him from South Carolina. The doctor came in and shared with us another bit of miraculous news. Jeremy's liver enzymes had dropped DRAMATICALLY and his blood platelet level was on the rise. She would most likely let him go to a room today. He also began his clear liquid diet for breakfast. Jeremy was struggling with congestion and so she prescribed a Mucinex for him. Jeremy's grandparents arrived around lunch and we all visited. Around 3:30 they began to allow us to pack for the transfer and they had the paperwork already complete. Just before they were going to take him out of the room, Jeremy's mother found a large splotchy rash on his shoulder. There goes our exit ticket. Dr. Alexander wanted to continue to monitor him and said that he needed to stay. Jeremy took it well. In fact, he just rolled back over and went back to sleep. They gave him some Benadryl and it went away immediately. However, he is spending one more night in the ICU. Tomorrow is anticipated transfer to room and physical therapy. I will keep you posted.

Our dear friend, Judy McDonald, from Alabama asked that I sing this song to Jeremy today and I did. I believe it and I know you do to. If you didn't before, you do now.

My God is So Big
So Strong and So Mighty
There's nothing My God Cannot Do!

NOTHING!

Happy 4th!

Happy 4th of July my friends! I hope you get to eat many hamburgers, hotdogs, and steaks today:)

Waiting,waiting, waiting...

I'm waiting on Jason and the kids to get home from the airport......

..............Waiting to find out if we get this apratment..................

.............Waiting on Jason to find a job...............

.....................Waiting on life to improve..................

.................Waiting for a bombshell...............

Waiting

Betcha thought I died :)

Nope, still here alive and kicking. Just enjoying my time with my hubby. Everyone has been asking what I've been doing since the kids are gone. Unfortunately the answer is not very exciting. I work, then I come home and lay in bed with Jason watching TV. Every once in awhile we get wild and crazy and have a bubble bath Yahtzee tournament.(We have a handheld game, no dice in the tub:) Last weekend we went apartment searching. We will be giving up our large, expensive house for a cheaper, smaller apartment. We are actually pretty excited about this. We found one we really like, for a good price. Best part? It's 5 minutes from my job! Woo-hoo, Praise the Lord! It's not in the ISD we wanted, but it's not in a bad ISD either so it'll be OK. The crappy part will be moving ourselves. We turned in our application yesterday, we should know something by the end of next week:)

The kids come home on Monday. YEAH! We have enjoyed our time, but we miss those little buggers too! They are going to be so bored here after Nana and Grandpa did exciting things with them everyday!

If I haven't posted a comment on your blog, it's NOT b/c I don't love you. I do! My computer is getting old and when a pop up comes up it locks up the whole computer and I have to restart it. So I just stay away from the pop-ups! I do read, and think about you though:)

I guess that is all for now. I'll to be better about this blog thing. I love reading others and hate when they don't update. So I will try to post at least 2x a week! Nothing compared to my everyday I know, but when you have a handsome fellow waiting for you on the sidelines who wants to be on the 'puter???? :0)

I really wanted to update...

but Jason is waiting for me :0)



Maybe this weekend...I know...I say that every weekend!

Rest assured nothing exciting is happening in my life :)


****Love you all****

P.S. Kids are doing great in PA, and nope we aren't ready for them to come yet!

Family Pictures!

Check 'em out!

http://www.photographybymelibelle.com/

Gone

My kiddos left today for PA.

Alive!

Just wanted to let you know I'm alive. Busy with work, and the family. I'll try to update this weekend:)

More funky photos

I wish had the negatives to these pics. I 'd get real reprints.

These were taken in July of '96. The top one is 4th of July Weekend.

Jason came to Derby to spend it with me;)

Not sure about the bottom one. I know it was in Jason's room.

I told Jason today that June 2nd starts our new era.

That I'm not waiting for 2007 to be over before making it better.

It's been years since we celebrated the day we met.

I'm still not sure what we are going to do,

but we will be something to commemorate this day.

Golly, we were goofy looking! We have definitely gotten better looking with age!

Happy Memorial Day.

Please remember all of our Service members past and present.

June 2, 1996

Can you believe that in 6 days Jason and I will be going on 11 years? I'm going to count down this whole week. June 2, 2007 is going to begin a new era for us. An era of only good things. That is insane to me. 11 years. Almost 1/3 of my life! We met on June 2, 1996 at a Village Inn in Manhattan, Kansas. Jason likes to tell people it was love at first sight. Or at least it was for him. I took a little convincing. We were introduced through a mutual friend. I had just decided that I was giving up on men (at the tender age of 17! HA!) So when Chad approached me wanting to introduce me to his friend, I about ran in the other direction. I figured I'd be polite and meet this fellow, but that was all I intended to do. What follows is "our story". It's so cheesey, so cliche', so Jason and Angel.

I walk up to the table with our mutual friend where Jason is sitting.
Chad says, " Jason, this is Angel. The girl I was telling you about."

Jason looks at me smiles, and says....." So, this is Angel, the woman of my dreams. I'd marry you."

And he did. How about that? We didn't have a long courtship. 4 months. We were crazy, young, and in love. I was 18 and he was 21. We had no business getting married. But we knew. I knew he was soul mate, I knew he was the father of my children, I knew I was going to grow old with him. There was never any doubt in my mind.

This is one of our first photos together. It was taken in Jason's barracks room.

I don't even know if we were "officially" dating yet.

This picture was taken at Country Stampede. This was about 2 weeks after we met. It was a 3 day country concert that we went to together. Like the sunburn???
I think this is the same weekend as Country Stampede.

This is Jason packing to go the field.

It was his first of many times leaving me for weeks at a time!

***Sorry about the weird crappy pics. I had to scan them from my first scrapbook pages!***

Lazy Day

Today is a lazy day. It's dreary and rainy out. I'm passing my time with laundry and cleaning. I've paid a few bills, updated my myspace page, now my blog. Trying to organize and clear out as I clean. We have so much crap! So much we don't need or use. I'm a sentimental pack rat. I keep everything anyone has ever given me. Cards, notes, photos, everything. Then there is this scrapbook room. I haven't scrapbooked in forever. Months, and months. Unfortunately, I have almost NO desire. What desire I do have is hampered by my very cluttered area. I can not scrapbook in a cluttered area. It's insanely cluttered. There isn't even room to work. It's just crap everywhere. I know when I get the pics from Melibelle I'm going to want to scrap, but first I have to clean that area. It's a disgrace.

I have a 4 day weekend! Yipee! Monday CW is closed, and I used my floating holiday to take Tuesday off. Jason has Tuesday off too. It sucks that he works retail and has to work 3 of the 4 days I am off. I'm ready for him to get an 8-5 like me. Our family needs it.

Last night I had a dream we had triplets. 2 girls, 1 boy. Mimi, Lyle, and Olivia. Don't ask about the names I have no clue what's up with those. I don't remember much else about the dream. I guess it was on the brain b/c Jason and I were discussing the probability of us having a 3rd child prior to bed. Don't freak out, it's was just a discussion. There are NO plans for any baby making here at the Hallock house.

I Hate Thursdays

AGH! Is this day over yet???

TEASE!

Here are some of the pics from our shoot with Meli. She is so incredibly talented with that camera it's almost unfair! There is another one more I wanted to share, but for some reason it's not working right now. Enjoy! And call Melibelle to book your session now, not long until she's of Annie Leibowitz status and won't do photo shoots for peons like us anymore!

MY NECKLACE FROM JASON!!!

THE HALLOCK FAMILY!

A Good Weekend

This has been a great weekend. It started out Friday with some good news at work(ask away, but I won't tell!). Then on my way home Jason called and said he was getting off early AND he had a surprise for me! I LOVE surprises! When I got home Jason had me close my eyes....and when I opened them, there he stood with a little grey box.... I almost started crying just looking at the box! Then when he opened it up, I did cry. It was an opal and diamond necklace!!! So beautiful, and so perfect! Yes, sobs and kisses followed! Then Jason and I took the Savannah and her friend to see Shrek 3. It was cute. Better then Spidey 3 in my opinion.

On Saturday we woke up at the butt crack of dawn to take family pics with Melibelle. She did them at the canal in Irving, and they are going to be so stinkin' cute! I can not wait to see them. We did family shots, Jason and I, Jason and the kids, Me and the kids, the kids alone, me alone, Jason alone. Pretty much every combo! Melibelle even took pics of my new necklace! I'll post one soon. Then Jason called in sick and we just spent the afternoon together as a family. We went to lunch hung out, took a nap, basically chilled.

Saturday evening I took my friend Karla out to dinner. She has been keeping the kids for us after school since Misty moved out. She has been a total lifesaver and I wanted to let her know how much I appreciate her. We went to a little seafood joint that was yummy! To make it even better, she had a gift for me! She got me Victoria's Secret Dream Angel Heavenly perfume. It smells so good.

Today has been pretty normal. Jason is at work. Jonathan went to NRH2O with the youth from church. Me and Savannah Banana have been cleaning the house and doing laundry. Ok, I've been cleaning and Savannah been been whining about helping! I'm getting ready to leave and go pick Jonathan then it will be back home to finish up chores and get ready for the week. I hope ya'll had a weekend too.

Dear Lord,

Please let today be better than yesterday

My Song

Jason knows I'm a music girl. I really identify with music and I use songs to express how I feel a lot. I asked him to think of/pick/find a song that expressed how he felt about me. This is the song that was playing when I walked through the door tonight. I knew it was his song for me, b/c this song was not already in our itunes library. The words are so perfect for us right now. I feel hopeful when I listen to this song.....



I'm alone
Yeah, I don't know if I can face the night
I'm in tears and the cryin' that I do is for you
I want your love - Let's break the walls between us
Don't make it tough -
I'll put away my pride
Enough's enough
I've suffered and I've seen the light
[Chorus:]
Baby You're my angel
Come and save me tonight
You're my angel
Come and make it all right
Don't know what I'm gonna do
About this feeling inside
Yes it's true -
Loneliness took me for a ride
Without your love -
I'm nothing but a begger
Without your love - a dog without a bone
What can I do I'm sleeping in this bed alone
[Chorus]
Come and save me tonight
You're the reason I live
You're the reason I die
You're the reason I give
When I break down and cry
Don't need no reason why
Baby , Baby[Chorus]
You're my angel
Come and save me tonight
you're my angel
Come and take me allright
Come and save me tonight,
Come and save me tonight,
Come and save me tonight,
Come and save me tonight,
Come and save me tonight

Do you think it's a sign?

Stewart died today...R.I.P...

Sushi

I love it!

Last night Jason and I went out and had sushi and it was so good! I thought it would be nasty, it wasn't it! It was priced well, and tasted so yummy! What was I thinking? Why didn't I want to try it? I guess it was the country girl in me that thought it was too "city". I'm not sure what my reason was, but I'm so happy I have found it! Now I see Sushi places everywhere, and I want to try them all.

Happy Saturday Folks....

Stewart

Meet Stewart.

Stewart was meant to be dinner for Vince(our Gecko)

Vince didn't want to eat hm,

he wanted to snuggle with him.

After 2 days of snuggling we figured we'd better feed the little guy to keep him alive.

So Stewie has been eating cheerios and soy milk.

He's a baby. His eyes are not even open yet.

You know the animal loving Hallock family...

we have to keep him

So..if you have any advice, ideas,

or experience with pet mice

please let us know!

Right now we are just trying to keep the little fella alive!

Where do we go from here?

That is a power packed question. It means so many different things....

Moving. Jason and I are thinking about moving. Out of Texas. My job has a location in AZ. So does Jason's. He has already put in a transfer. If we hear something back I will put one in too. We are weeds. We have no roots. I guess it's the Army in us. We like TX, but it hasn't been good to us. It's time to spread our wings. See where God takes us. We are discussing another place as well, but we'll see...

Savannah Got A Haircut!

This is what Savannah looked like at 8 a.m.
Notice her hair has not been combed.

Combing her hair was a nightmare,

that's why we are getting a haircut ;0)

Washing
Waiting after washing
Cutting......
Doesn't she look beautiful!
A true Savannah pose!

Princess Belle, with a short do'

The joys of having an 8 year old....

You get to go see Spider-man 3 on opening day.........

Exhausted

I'm so tired, I want to sleep forever. Tonight is a 2 hour GA! Woo-hoo. Finally something good coming my way :0)

Randomness

Here's a little bit of this and that from me:

I have insurance! Yippee! We've been without for almost a year. We still don't have dental b/c we missed the sign-up with Jason's company and my dental stinks. We have medical though! It's decently priced, and has pretty OK prescription coverage too. Nothing like Tricare, but military insurance is a dream.

Toilets: the pottys at work flush automatically. Sometimes I forget this while at home and I start to walk out of the bathroom without flushing. I always catch myself and go back and flush, but WOW what a luxury to have!

Veronica Mars-Oh how I have missed my sweet Veronica! Her and Logan are broken up. Tonight he saw her kissing Piz, he was jealous. Serves him right for throwing that party for Parker. They will get back together. It's almost fun watching them be miserable without each other though.

MY SISTER GOT A JOB! YEAH sister! She will be working at a restaurant called either Tavern 29 degrees OR 29 degrees Tavern. I can't remember. She's excited, so I'm excited for her.

RED: It's my power color. Don't get me wrong. I still love orange, but red makes me feel confidant, sexy, and powerful. Wore red earrings yesterday, and a red necklace today. I totally rocked the red!

All about Jason

I always fill these out for myself, but I thought it would be fun to do one for my fella!
Here's to my hunny!

What is the love of your life's name? Jason
How did you meet? At Village Inn, we shared Dino Fingers
When did you meet? 1996
What were your first thoughts? That's the jerk who wouldn't talk to be at the bar!
What/where was your first date? Olive Garden
When did he/she meet your family? In July, my aunt Brenda showed him her boobs....long story
What did your family think?My mom liked him right away and I still swear she loves him more than she loves me! ;)
When did he/she meet your friends? He knew most of them already, and the rest he met right away
Have you talked about marriage yet?A few times:)
How long into the relationship was your first argument? I don't know
What did you argue about? I don't remember, we don't argue much, but when we do it's BAD!

THE FUN STUFF
Who flirted first? He did, he gave me the cheesiest, sweetest line ever
How did you know he/she was into you?He called me all the time
Did he/she use a pick-up line? If so, what was it? Yes
What is longest you have gone without seeing each other?8-10 weeks
Were you friends before dating? nope
Do you like the same sports teams?yep, we were just watching the draft together this afternoon
When did you meet his/her friends? I already knew all his friends
How do you feel about his/her friends? Is this present tense or past?
When you are both in the car, do you agree on the music? most of the time
Did you get nervous before the first date?yes, i really liked him

THE HARDSHIPS
Have you been through anything really tough together?Heavens YES!
Have you come close to breaking up? Once
Why did/do you feel it was/is important to work things out? Because he's my person(you have to watch Grey's to get this!)
Has he/she seen you cry? Of Course
Has he/she made you cry?of course
Have you made him/her cry? of course
What do you do to fix problems in your relationship? Pray, talk, tickle, laugh

THE PERSONAL STUFF
Who held hands first? no clue
What was the first kiss like? (on the cheek, the lips, etc.) wonderful
Who kissed who first? I think I kissed him, because he was taking forever to kiss me! He said it was b/c he liked me too much and wanted to take it slow:)
How did you feel after that first kiss?weak
How long into the relationship did you umm... do the "deed"?Um, I'm so not putting that out there.
Are things in the bedroom still 'hot'? Yes

HOW MUCH DO YOU REALLY KNOW? (About your partner...)
Birthday?July 13, 1975
Parent's names?Karen and Norm
Pet's Names? Joe and Vince
Favorite Food?Pizza and Wings
Favorite Song? Boston by Augustana
Favorite color? Blue and Green
Favorite Animal? Probably dogs, but he loves them all
Favorite TV Show? Sportscenter
Favorite sports team? Buffalo Bills
Favorite Movie? Shawshank Redemption
Dream Car? I don't know honestly ** I asked this question after the quiz, and it turns out I did know I just forgot!** He wants a 1970's Chevy C-10 2 tone-Orange and white :)
Where was he/she born? Cuba New York
Where did he/she grow up?East Coast, all over
Who is his/her best friend? Me
Worst Fear? That I wouldn't forgive him
Biggest Celebrity crush?Rachel Ray

Draft Day!

Today is the NFL draft. It's a big deal in our house.

I needed to go to work today, but couldn't b/c Jason had to work. So the kids and I hit the streets and went to Target and the grocery store. Then we went to a Men's cook off at our church. It was nice to hang out and let the children play. Jason just got home and now him and Jonathan are tuned into ESPN watching the draft.

I'm not sure what I will do. I'm thinking of cleaning my pigstye of a scraproom. I know I will feel better in the end, and maybe will actully sit down and scrap, but I don't really want to. I think I'm going to go lay on floor in the living room and chill with my boys.

Still Alive

Not much going on. Yet so much going on.
My head is full of thoughts
None I want to share
If you've called me and I haven't called back
I'm sorry
Same with e-mails
I'm taking a little time for me and family right now
We need it
I need it
It's all about the Hallock's for awhile
Actually, it's all about Jason and Angel
How selfish! I love it.
Slowly we will integrate others back into our lives
Not now though
This is the key to our survival

My head and heart are heavy....

I have so many emotions running through me. I think I have experienced every human emotion in the last week.....

fear
disbelief
anger
shock
fury
pain
hurt
peace
lonely
guilt
nervous
insecure
judged
contempt
empty
detached
abandoned
dejected
glorious
free
ecstatic
unsure
loved
unloved

Wheew! That's list, but I have felt them all. Some for longer than others...Some are not gone yet, just in smaller doses. I despise uncertainty. I have had to trust God more in the last 6 days then I ever had in my entire life. I felt him, my strength came from him. Even Jason said he knew he was there. It's hard to deny feelings like that. It's even more difficult when you are feeling all of the above emotions, AND trusting in God because of the circumstances causing the emotions.

It's not all figured out yet. If it ever will be. I am taking it day by day, minute by minute. Admittedly some minutes are better then others. I'll be doing great, then a flash or memory from nowhere attacks me and I'm reduced to silence and sometimes tears.

Praise God

People always talk about peace. How to get it. Where it comes from. It’s hard to get. Unless you know where to go. This morning I was about to throw up I was so apprehensive. I prayed for peace. I know others were praying for me too. No matter how hard you try to give something up to the Lord, human nature is to hold on to it. To fix it yourself. I know I can’t fix this alone. Honestly I don’t want to.

A very wise man said this to me:

You can’t fix this, only God can;
you can’t control this, only God can;

If you know me at all you know this is hard for me. So hard. I’m a fixer, I’m always in control….but I’m not right now. Part of me is going insane! I need to fix this! I need to make it right. Then there is another part…the part that is hard to hear…that part that says….

You helped break it....

only God can fix it…

only he can make it better…

give it to him…

your hurt…
your anger…
your frustration….
your guilt….
your trust…
your life…
your love…
give it all to Him……..

3 weeks....

That's a long time for no blog. I haven't felt like it. Nothing good to say. Plus I have been trying to limit my time on the puter.

Work is going well. I've pretty much grasped the concept of what I do. It's not hard. I only have questions when something is out of the ordinary. I can put on my cruise control and work all day with out much thought. That has come in handy a few times in the past few weeks. They have approved OT until the end of the month, so I'm going to try and get as much as possible. I'll need it for my deductible.

Yes, deductible. Last night a bad storm blew through with golf ball size hail. Wouldn't you know some of that hail found it's way to my windshield. Go figure. Thank the Lord I only have a 250 deducible. Not sure how much windshields cost...I'll call USAA today and start the process.

We got our new bed :) It's a queen size, adjustable sleep number bed. It was hard for us to go from a King to Queen, but I really wanted the adjustable. I'm so glad I did too! Totally worth it. I love that I can sit up in bed and watch to TV! Plus it has a massage function..... If anyone is on the fence about one of these baby's, don't be! Call Jason right now and order one. HE can ship anywhere.
www.selectcomfort.com

Beef.....it's no longer what is for dinner. Bison all the way baby! I had a bison burger in our cafeteria at work the other day and it ROCKED! Bison has way lower fat and calories then beef, turkey, and chicken. Basically any other animal :) And it's good! Beef has always had funny taste to me, but the bison didn't. It was so good. Now the bad part...it's so $$$$. Eating healthy costs so much money. I think that's the plan. That way you can't afford to eat junk in your time of weakness! I've been pretty dedicated for 2 weeks and I've lost 7 lbs. Only 105 to go! Wish me luck. If I can keep up this pace I'll be at my goal weight in 7.5 months.

I got my e-mail yesterday at work to sign up for benefits. AKA..insurance. I can not believe I will have to pay for medical coverage. Never in my adult life have I paid for medical. That is the 1(yes 1) thing I truly miss about Jason being in the service. Thankfully Countrywide has several p;ans to choose from based on your needs. So I have been a researching fool. Jason's job offers it too, but it's more expensive. His dental is better, we'll get that through his job. I'm going to try and get my sister a job at CW. She needs the insurance BAD! She's falling apart. Seriously, I just picked her arm up off the floor...I hate when she leaves her body parts laying around...hehehehhe. But seriously, she needs insurance.

Happy Saturday my friends.

Hit the nail on the head.......

Jan 01 to Jan 11- Fir Tree
Jan 12 to Jan 24 - Elm Tree
Jan 25 to Feb 03 - Cypress Tree
Feb 04 to Feb 08 - Poplar Tree
Feb 09 to Feb 18 - Cedar Tree
Feb 19 to Feb 28 - Pine Tree
Mar 01 to Mar 10 - Weeping Willow Tree
Mar 11 to Mar 20 - Lime Tree
Mar 21 (only) - Oak Tree
Mar 22 to Mar 31 - Hazelnut Tree
Apr 01 to Apr 10 - Rowan Tree
Apr 11 to Apr 20 - Maple Tree
Apr 21 to Apr 30 - Walnut Tree
May 01 to May 14 - Poplar Tree
May 15 to May 24 - Chestnut Tree
May 25 to Jun 03 - Ash Tree
Jun 04 to Jun 13 - Hornbeam Tree
Jun 14 to Jun 23 - Fig Tree
Jun 24 (only) - Birch Tree
Jun 25 to Jul 04 - Apple Tree
Jul 05 to Jul 14 - Fir Tree
Jul 15 to Jul 25 - Elm Tree
Jul 26 to Aug 04 - Cypress Tree
Aug 05 to Aug 13 - Poplar Tree
Aug 14 to Aug 23 - Cedar Tree
Aug 24 to Sep 02 - Pine Tree
Sep 03 to Sep 12 - Weeping Willow Tree
Sep 13 to Sep 22 - Lime Tree
Sep 23 (only) - Olive Tree
Sep 24 to Oct 03 - Hazelnut Tree
Oct 04 to Oct 13 - Rowan Tree
Oct 14 to Oct 23 - Maple Tree
Oct 24 to Nov 11 - Walnut Tree
Nov 12 to Nov 21 - Chestnut Tree
Nov 22 to Dec 01 - Ash Tree
Dec 02 to Dec 11 - Hornbeam Tree
Dec 12 to Dec 21 - Fig Tree
Dec 22 (only) - Beech Tree
Dec 23 to Jan 01 - Apple Tree


TREES (in alphabetical order)
Apple Tree (Love) -- quiet and shy at times, lots of charm, appeal, and attraction, pleasant attitude, flirtatious smile, adventurous, sensitive, loyal in love, wants to love and be loved, faithful and tender partner, very generous, many talents, loves children, needs affectionate partner.

Ash Tree (Ambition) -- extremely attractive, vivacious, impulsive, demanding, does not care for criticism, ambitious, intelligent, talented, likes to play with fate, can be very egotistic, reliable, restless lover, sometimes money rules over the heart, demands attention, needs love and much emotional support.

Beech Tree (Creative) -- has good taste, concerned about its looks, materialistic, good organization of life and career, economical, good leader, takes no unnecessary risks, reasonable, splendid lifetime companion, keen on keeping fit (diets, sports, etc.).

Birch Tree (Inspiration) -- vivacious, attractive, elegant,friendly, unpretentious, modest, does not like anything in excess, abhors the vulgar, loves life in nature and in calm, not very passionate, full of imagination, little ambition, creates a calm and content atmosphere.

Cedar Tree (Confidence) -- of rare strength, knows how to adapt, likes unexpected presents, of good health, not in the least shy, tends to look down on others, self-confident, a great speaker, determined, often impatient, likes to impress others, has many talents, industrious, healthy optimism, waits for the one true love, able to make quick decisions.

Chestnut Tree (Honesty) -- of unusual stature, impressive,well-developed sense of justice, fun to be around, a planner, born diplomat, can be irritated easily, sensitive of others feelings, hard worker, sometimes acts superior, feels not understood at times, fiercely family oriented, very loyal in love, physically fit.

Cypress Tree (Faithfulness) -- strong, muscular, adaptable, takes what life has to give but doesn't necessarily like it, strives to be content, optimistic, wants to be financially independent, wants love and affection, hates loneliness, passionate lover which cannot be satisfied, faithful, quick-tempered at times, can be unruly and careless, loves to gain knowledge, needs to be needed.

Elm Tree (Noble-mindedness) -- pleasant shape, tasteful clothes, modest demands, tends not to forgive mistakes, cheerful, likes to lead but not to obey, honest and faithful partner, likes making decisions for others, noble-minded, generous, good sense of humor, practical.

Fig Tree (Sensibility) -- very strong minded, a bit self-willed, honest, loyal, independent, hates contradiction or arguments, hard worker when wants to be, loves life and friends, enjoys children and animals, sexually oriented, great sense of humor, has artistic talent and great intelligence.

Fir tree (Mysterious) -- extraordinary taste, handles stress well, loves anything beautiful, stubborn, tends to care for those close to them, hard to trust others, yet a social butterfly, likes idleness and laziness after long demanding hours at work, rather modest, talented, unselfish, many friends, very reliable.

Hazelnut Tree (Extraordinary) -- charming, sense of humor, very demanding but can also be very understanding, knows how to make a lasting impression, active fighter for social causes and politics, popular, quite moody, sexually oriented, honest, a perfectionist, has a precise sense of judgment and expects complete fairness.

Hornbeam Tree (Good Taste) -- of cool beauty, cares for its looks and condition, good taste, is not egoistic, makes life as comfortable as possible, leads a reasonable and disciplined life, looks for kindness and acknowledgment in an emotional partner, dreams of unusual lovers, is seldom happy with its feelings, mistrusts most people, is never sure of its decisions, very conscientious.

Lime Tree (Doubt) - intelligent, hard working, accepts what life dishes out, but not before trying to change bad circumstances into good ones, hates fighting and stress, enjoys getaway vacations, may appear tough, but is actually soft and relenting, always willing to make sacrifices for family and friends, has many talents but not always enough time to use them, great leadership qualities, is jealous at times but extremely loyal.

Maple Tree (Independence of Mind) -- no ordinary person, full of imagination and originality, shy and reserved, ambitious, proud, self-confident, hungers for new experiences, sometimes nervous, has many complexities, good memory, learns easily, complicated love life, wants to impress.

Oak Tree (Brave) -- robust nature, courageous, strong, unrelenting, independent, sensible, does not like change, keeps its feet on the ground, person of action.

Olive Tree (Wisdom) -- loves sun, warmth and kind feelings, reasonable, balanced, avoids aggression and violence, tolerant, cheerful, calm, well-developed sense of justice, sensitive, empathetic, free of jealousy, loves to read and the company of sophisticated people.

Pine Tree (Peacemaker) -- loves agreeable company, craves peace and harmony, loves to help others, active imagination, likes to write poetry, not fashion conscious, great compassion, friendly to all, falls strongly in love but will leave if betrayed or lied to, emotionally soft, low self esteem, needs affection and reassurance.

Poplar Tree (Uncertainty) -- looks very decorative, talented, not very self-confident, extremely courageous if necessary, needs goodwill and pleasant surroundings, very choosy, often lonely, great animosity, great artistic nature, good organizer, tends to lean toward philosophy, reliable in any situation, takes partnership seriously.

Rowan Tree (Sensitivity) -- full of charm, cheerful, gifted without egoism, likes to draw attention, loves life, motion, unrest, and even complications, is both dependent and independent, good taste, artistic, passionate, emotional, good company, does not forgive.

Walnut Tree (Passion) -- unrelenting, strange and full of contrasts, often egotistic, aggressive, noble, broad horizon, unexpected reactions, spontaneous, unlimited ambition, no flexibility, difficult and uncommon partner, not always liked but often admired, ingenious strategist, very jealous and passionate, no compromise.

Weeping Willow (Melancholy) - likes to be stress free, loves family life, full of hopes and dreams, attractive, very empathetic, loves anything beautiful, musically inclined, loves to travel to exotic places, restless, capricious, honest, can be influenced but is not easy to live with when pressured, sometimes demanding, good intuition, suffers in love until they find that one loyal, steadfast partner; loves to make others laugh.

I have had something on my mind lately. I'm not done churning it yet, so I'm not going to put it out there tonight. This weekend I will probably do a long, intense blog about it. It's nothing bad. It involves no one but myself. It's just thoughts. Or should a say a thought.

ordinary
1. of no special quality or interest; commonplace; unexceptional
2. plain or undistinguished
3. somewhat inferior or below average; mediocre

extraordinary
1. beyond what is usual, ordinary, regular, or established
2. exceptional in character, amount, extent, degree, etc.; noteworthy; remarkable:

**MOD**

I am totally digging the 80's fashion comeback. I love the black and white polks dot shirts, the black and white stripe sweaters. The chunky beads in both braclet and necklace form. The bright colors that go with the back and white. The shirts that have the little tie around the waist! I got me a red and white polka dot one:) It's so fun. The only thing I'm NOT digging is the shoes. I don't really like the glossy slides. Ewww. Who knows I may change my mind..I did about the whole blog thing...hehehehe. So anyway, orange is still my most super favorite color, but for now I'm living in black, white, and red moment. Have a great week friends!

P.S.
Ten-Get another blog, we need to stay in touch more
Tara-Just get a blog!
Justyne-Congrats on your interview! They are opening a new VA hospital here in FTW......I have been trying to moment on your blog for days Windows Live Hates ME!!!
Deanna-UPDATE! UPDATE!
Melibelle- CALLME! TEXTME! EMAILME!! I NEED TO KNOW YOUR OK!

A funny

A distinguished young woman on a flight from Ireland asked the priest beside her,
"Father, may I ask a favor?"
"Of course. What may I do for you?"
"Well, I bought an expensive woman's electronic hair dryer for my mother's birthday that is unopened and well over the Customs limit, and I'm afraid they' ll confiscate it. Is there any way you could carry it through Customs for me? Under your robes perhaps?"
"I would love to help you, dear, but I must warn you: I will not lie."
"With your honest face, Father, no one will question you."
When they got to Customs, she let the priest go ahead of her.
The official asked,
"Father, do you have anything to declare?"
"From the top of my head down to my waist, I have nothing to declare."
The official thought this answer strange, so he asked,
"And what do you have to declare from your waist to the floor?"
"I have a marvelous instrument designed to be used on a woman, but which is, to date, unused."
Roaring with laughter, the official said, "Go ahead, Father. Next!"

I'm not perfect...

Are you back on your chair? I know you fell off...

This week I have come to the realization I'm not perfect. I am not symmetrical. First, it was my boots. I have these "tall" boots that the left leg always kinda slouched. The right boot would hug my calf nicely and always stay in place. That left boot..... slouch, slouch, slouch. Have you read the Ramona books? I had elephant ankle. Instead of pantyhose, it was a boot!

Anyway, so I thought it was a freak thing. Maybe one boot was bigger than the other, perhaps even defective. Than I bought a new pair of ballet-ish slip on shoes(black sparkly-very cute). I wore them to work, and guess what? By the end of the day my left foot had a blister on the heal. While my right foot was just fine! My left foot is slightly smaller! AGH! Maybe my left calf is also smaller that's why the boot didn't fit well. What next?

Well, I'll tell you!

My ear!

My left ear is also smaller. I've been working with my ipod on during the day. I will of course have to take the ear buds out to talk to to people. Well let me tell you. After a few in and outs my ear was killing me!! Didn't bother my right ear. JUST THE LEFT! My left ear is smaller!

Can you believe all this? What is the world coming to????

Deep Thoughts by Angel .......

I admit it. I'm a customer service queen. I provide excellent customer service. Even I when I don't want to. On my worst day, my customer service is good. I don't know if it's the businesses or the people or both, but CS in the world to today sucks. For example:

Just awhile ago at Wal-mart I was checking out. Did the cashier say hello? no. How are you? no. NOTHING. Oh, but she did proceed to pull out her cell phone and start TEXTING while I was swiping my CC to pay! Wal-mart has the new thing on the scanner screen that says, "did your cashier greet you? Yes or No". Sad thing is I have yet to use the magic pen to touch yes. They are all awful! To make matters worse, when I'm leaving I say "thank you, have a great day". Does she she get a clue that she is supposed to say that to me??? NOPE. She says "your welcome" What the hell is wrong with her?

So I'm pondering this. I'm thinking, she must not really care(duh) b/c it's not her business. Surely if you own your own business you would put customer service on the top of your list, b/c they would be he meat and potatoes of what you do. You'd think right. Well, as I'm driving stewing over how mad I am. I get cut-off. Not by just anyone though. I get cut off by Jack. Who is Jack you say? He is the owner of Jack's Roofing. I know this because he not only has it plastered in the back window of his truck, it's all down the side. Hmmmm, does he realize that when he puts himself out there like that he is literally a driving advertisement for his business. Now no matter what I will NEVER call Jack's Roofing. I don't care how many other people may say he's wonderful. He provided me with bad customer service and lost a potenial customer without ever even knowing.

Everyday in our life we provide customer service. We may not actually serve customers, but we are all putting ourselves out there and representing something. How you treat people while you are representing will make a world of difference to someone else who is noticing your behavior, even if you are not. It all comes back to one basic life principal.

Treat others how you want to be treated.

ALL I WANT IS 3 PAIRS OF PANTS!!

At my new job I can't wear capris or gauchos :( At my old job I could. So, being as I live in Texas that was 1/2 my work wardrobe. My work clothes have literally been cut in half. I have like 5-6 pairs of pants. So I have been on the hunt for new ones:) An UNsuccessful hunt..grr.... I have been to Target, Lane Bryant, Kohl's, Cato(2 different ones!) and nothing! It's spring in Texas and every is selling Capris. The few pairs of pants that I have found are way to pricey!!! I mean what's a girl gotta do to get some reasonably priced clothing?????