YOU'VE COME A LONG WAY BABY!!!

How could you NOT love her? She's gorgeous, inside and out. She's smart, helpful, kind, considerate, and I'm blessed to call her my NIEICE.

Happy Birthday Baby!

Who lives in New Mexico, Asia, and Georgia???

So I but I blog tracker on here so I could see who's reading my blog. Some of these places I just don't know who it is?? I know Kansas is family, Texas is the lifesavers, Pa is Jason's mom, whoever is in NY is also Jason's family. NC is Deanna. I'm pretty sure FL is Selena, TN is of course Ms. Tyne. I think OKC is someone who swears not to like me, so I wonder why she reads my blog....IL/Mo is of course Tara-mesue:) Germany is Sarah.

New Mexico, Georgia and Asia are kicking my butt though. Who are you and how'd you end up on my blog. I don't mind, I'm just curious....

I took a nap

It was like a blessing and a curse. I was so tired on Sunday afternoon I could hardly keep my eyes open, so I napped. Since I did, the laundry didn't get done, the Sunday house cleaning didn't get done. I of course feel guilty about this. I feel like my house is a pit. I have not done a very good job of teaching my children to clean. It's my fault. I'm a freak. I'd rather do it myself and have it done my way, then be patient and let them do it. So they haven't done it, and now when I try to get them to, they do a sucky job at it. So I try to do it all myself. I felt like a loser last week,. I only worked 50 hours but still couldn't get my sh*t together. I'm sinking, I'm tired of everything and everyone. I want a break. Amanda has court tomorrow. I pray she gets her kids back. I love them, I truly do. My "good deed" is over running my life though. It's keeping Misty from moving on to bigger and better things for her and her girls, b/c she's home caring for A and C. No one in this house can move forward until they go back to their mom. I'm not going to be able to quit my job anytime soon. Jason isn't happy at work again. We all know what happened last time he wasn't happy. I don't want a replay. We are working on a plan for him to go back to school. He almost has an AA, so he'd only to need to go back for 2ish years. He wants to coach football. He's thinking of getting a physical ed teaching degree and going from there. I just want him to be happy. I'm so sick of him being unhappy. I don't understand how people are not happy and are not thankful. I go through my spurts of "unhappy" (like right now!), but they are short lived. I don't stay in a funk for more than a few hours. It's not me. I don't know how I got like this. Everyone get funky and stay funky for days, weeks, and sometimes even months. Not me. I'm a freak(again!) . I'm a positive person that always see the upside and doesn't dwell on the crappy. I have a very hard time understanding those who dwell on the crappy and don't try to change, or at least live with it and make the best of it. Lead or get out of the way. That's my motto. No one is going to change your life but you. So start living, or start dying, but either way stop your complaining!

Jonathan got a hair cut!

Before:

After:

He's now the coolest 7 year old at HSA. He rocks!

If you don't like it

I don't care,

don't leave a comment on it though.

I don't need more negitivity in my life.

I'm the luckiest girl in the world

Today while getting out of the shower I realized I'm the luckiest girl in the world. What makes me so lucky you ask? Wealth? Health? Diamonds? Pearls? Nope.

I can be nekked(that's naked to non-Hallock/Duke's) anywhere in my house. I don't have to worry about the wrong people seeing me. Or double check that my booti-ous maximous isn't hanging out of my towel. If a child leaves the bathroom door open while I shower and I don't realize, OH WELL! I don't have to take all my clothes into the bathroom with me and get dressed in there. It's great. What is my secret you ask? Well let me tell you ....

I'm related to everyone I live with! Woo-hoo! It doesn't matter if any of the them see me nekked. I'm married to Jason, Misty is my sister, I gave birth to Jonathan and Savannah. Elize, Ashyra, Anthony, and Carolyn could care less. Misty and Jason do not have this freedom, they must always be aware of their surroundings. Not me!

Now don't get me wrong. I do not walk around the house nekked. This glorious freedom only comes into play on days(like today) when we were all getting ready at one time. I was in the shower, Misty was doing her hair and Jason was in the bedroom. I was able to get out of the shower, dry off, go to my bedroom, put on my "unmentionables" and walk back through the bathroom and into my closet to pick out clothes with out having to worry about who saw me.

And that my friends is why I'm so stinkin' lucky!

TGIF

I'm so ready for Friday, for the weekend. I wish I had more of a weekend. I don't think I ever will. I'd have to make $17 an hour 40 hours a week, to make what I make now. I don't see that happening. All week I've had allergy issues. My eyes hurt like crazy, my nose is red and raw. It's not pretty. I have so much to do. Tomorrow is of course work, then I'm going to Jonathan's school to watch him give a presentation on the timeline of his life. On Saturday we have a game(with pictures at 8!), Savannah was invited to watch her "boyfriend"(MOM! He's not my boyfriend!) in a fashion show at Dillard's, then off to Starbucks to have a secret santa meeting with the lifesavers. After that Jason leaves to go help with the haunted house, and I will work on Oli's book some more. Sunday is church, then sunday school(I teach this week), more scrappin while house cleaning, then Awannas. Notice there's no sleep scheduled in there? Ya, that's my life.

Jason and I found the place we are going for our anniversary! It's a cabin in the woods, located in Glen Rose Texas. Get this, it's called The Linderhoff. Yup, just like the castle in Germany. We are both getting off at 3 on the 13th to hit the road. We should be back Sunday evening. It's going to be great. We have never been away from the kids for more than a few hours. It's going to be scary in that aspect. We deserve it though. We sailed through the first 8 years of our marriage. the last 2 years have been tough though. Not bad tough, just trying tough. I feel like we've been in a marriage test. In 2005 I couldn't wait for '06. 2006, wasn't much better. I pray that 2007 be our best year yet.

Feeling Accomplished

I have every single piece of laundry done! The last load is in the dryer. Oh what a sweet feeling. I also scrapbooked this weekend. I did 7 pages in Oli's book. He came over today after to church to look at it, and loved it. That made me feel great. Did anyone see the HL ad? Almost everything SB is 50% off! Paper, stamps, stickers, rub-ons, it's insane. I'm going to have to hold myself back. BG for 50% off...I'm not going to think about that now.

The answer in NO! I know you are thinking it, I will tomorrow I promise.

Check out this site:
www.memory-works.com
it's a home based SB biz(like CM), but it has Basic Grey, American Crafts, Fancy Pants, and lots of other cool companies. I'm thinking about signing up. Let me know what ya'll think.

and since it's been awhile........
ANGEL............................OUT!

Lookie What I Got!

One of my customers came in today and was talking about how she had hoped to make more $$ at her yard sale and how she didn't even get rid of her "big" items. I asked what "big" items she had, and she said this:


I asked her how much she wanted for it, and we struck a deal! For the same about as 1 months dues at the Y I can have a treadmill at home! It's not the newest model, but it was cheap and it works! It's in the living room, so hopefully it will get used....

Jason and I have narrowed our search. I think we are going to get this:

Acording to my grampy "dont pay extra for 10mp becasue unless you are shooting posters for Sorts Ill." But dang, 10 MP? How awesome would that be?? Jason hasn't ever spent this kind of money on me and I'm going to enjoy it. I mean really it's taken me 10 years to get this!

JONATHAN MADE A TOUCHDOWN TODAY!
His first ever! He kicked butt, I screamed SO loud! I'm so proud of him:) HE hasn't even cared that his team lost the last 3 weeks. He's just all about the game!!!

23 minutes...

UNTIL GA STARTS!!!! WHOO-HOO!

AGH!

I've started this post 3 times. Everything sounds dumb. Not a lot to say, yet so much to say. Nothing important idle chit-chat for the most part. I have busy month ahead. I'm going to be working on Oli's SB for his wife. Then is the concert, my birthday, and we are going out of town that weekend for our anniversary. Then the girl's huge b-day party. I'm tired just thinking about it. I need a day off. A whole day with nothing to do but clean my house. It's sad when I want to stay home and clean my house. When I LONG to stay home and clean my house. I have not given up on my goal to stay home again.

My favorites are in bold......

I believe -
. . that just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other. And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do.

I believe -
. . . that we don't have to change friends if we understand that friends change.

I believe -
. . . that no matter how good a friend is, they're going to hurt you every once in a while and you must forgive them for that.

I believe -
. . . that true friendship continues to grow, even over the longest distance. Same goes for true love.

I believe -
. . . that you can do something in an instant that will give you heartache for life.

I believe -
. . that it's taking me a long time to become the person I want to be.

I believe -
. . . that you should always leave loved ones with loving words. It may be the last time you see them.

I believe -
. . . that you can keep going long after you think you can't.

I believe -
. . . that we are responsible for what we do, no matter how we feel.

I believe -
. . . that either you control your attitude or it controls you.

I believe -
. . . That heroes are the people who do what has to be done when it needs to be done, regardless of the consequences.

I believe -
. . . that money is a lousy way of keeping score.

I believe -
. . . that my best friend and I can do anything or nothing and have the best time.

I believe -
. . . that sometimes the people you expect to kick you when you're down, will be the ones to help you get back up.

I believe -
. . that sometimes when I'm angry I have the right to be angry, but that doesn't give me the right to be cruel.

I believe -
. . . that maturity has more to do with what types of experiences you've had and what you've learned from them and less to do with how many birthdays you've celebrated.

I believe -
. . . that it isn't always enough to be forgiven by others. Sometimes you have to learn to forgive yourself.

I believe -
. . . that no matter how bad your heart is broken the world doesn't stop for your grief.

I believe -
. . . that our background and circumstances may have influenced who we are, but we are responsible for who we become.

I believe -
. . . that you shouldn't be so eager to find out a secret. It could change your life forever.

I believe -
. . . two people can look at the exact same thing and see something totally different.

I believe -
. . . that your life can be changed in a matter of hours by people who don't even know you.

I believe -
. . . that even when you think you have no more to give, when a friend cries out to you - you will find the strength to help.

I believe -
. . . that credentials on the wall do not make you a decent human being.

I believe -
. . . that the people you care about most in life are taken from you too soon.

My Future NCAA Cheerleader!

My future NCAA Quarterback

Busy is my middle name

Wheew! So yesterday at work we had a woman from a fraud ring come in. After many phone calls and faxes between my DM and I, I called the police. Enter, Officer McDreamy.... The woman tried to claim that it wasn't her account, then it was she just opened it yesterday, but she had a statement for over a month's worth of transactions. Basically it's fraud ring, we already had one of them come to our store, that's what sent up the red flag. They have also tried to get loans from other stores in our region. So the officer tried to find something to take her in on, but b/c she hadn't actually gotten the loan yet, so it wasn't actually fraud yet. Apparently attempted fraud isn't a crime. Anyway, this is where it gets interesting...... I asked the officer three times before he left, if he needed any of my info. He said he'd take my business card and that would be enough. ok, fine. Well at about 10 last night he calls me on my cell phone! He was totally flirting with me. It was so weird. Finally I get off the phone with him, and he calls again today! Now I'm getting freaked out. I didn't answer it when he called today. He left a message saying he had a few more questions. LOL! He is handsome, but um, hello, I'm married. I told him that 3 times! It's nice to know I've still got it though:)

Today was the kiddos second game. I took video this time. As soon as I find it on the puter I'll upload it so ya'll can see it. Also, sister got a super cool hip new do today. I'll let her post pics, but she looks awesome! Tonight, I'm scrappin'. I don't care what deeds go undone. It's all about me and some BG paper!

$84.47

That's how much I will save each month if I cancel Netflix and our YMCA membership. It's a tough choice. Although I'm not sure why. I never go workout or watch movies. I keep thinking, but what if I want to later? Will later ever come? Probably not while we have 6 kids and I work 53 hours a week. So I think I'm going to do it. I want to be a SAHM again by June, if that's going to happen I need to do this now.

Oh, Misty....Katina....(said in a high sing songy voice)

Oh girls! Check these out! I admit, I'm drooling. It makes me hate my white one. I'm just glad there is not an orange one, so the temptation is not that great.

3140

That's how many posts I have! I have had 32 hits today. 70% of them new people. So I ask, who reads this? I know the lifesavers do, Tara, and Tyne too. But who else? I know ya'll can't come here 30 times a day! Sometimes I forget who reads, or who knows about my blog. Sometimes I want to post more in depth stuff, or be just plain raunchy. I don't. Cause I don't know who's reading. I don't want to offend, or cause trouble. It'd be nice to have have a place where no one judged me though, maybe then poor lou would get a break from listening to my woes. HOC LOC WE LOCK, here I come. Thanks for listening babe:)

Great Weekend:)

Although the weekends are never long enough, this one was still great! Friday, Misty took C and A to spend the weekend with their momma. So we only had 3 kids! WOW! Talk about a breeze. Saturday was the kids first game which went awesome(see pics below). Then, I was able to get off work by 3 to hang out with the family. We went to Target where I found this:

It was on sale for only 18.99 that's right all of season 1 for 19 bucks! I'm so stoked. I've never liked a show enough to buy the whole season before. This is a first, a show of true love! I can't wait to watch it(again!). I want season 2 for my b-day. Hint, hint, hint! Then we went to Hobby Lobby cause my 40% off coupon was burning a whole in my pocket~! Guess what I found there?

This:

No, you're not seeing things, It's the brand spanking new BG paper collection called Gypsy! This stuff was just released so I never imagined I'd find it at HL! Plus, I got to use a 40% off coupon. I walked outta there with it for only 11 bucks. That's right folks.

11 bucks!

Well, all this excitement got me in the SBing mood, so I decided to tackle this:

Yup, that's the H%#l hole formally known as my scrapbook area! It looks like I let a bomb go off there. So I spent hours cleaning this place, putting embellies back where they go, scraps of paper away, and general sb organizing.

So, now it looks like this:

Too bad, I'm to tired to scrap now! Oh well, at least it's clean so hopefully I can just sit down and create this week. Wheew! I'm pooped. I'm off to watch hubby #2 beat his brother at football!

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?????

That's right, today was our first game. It went better than I expected. I was a little concerned, but everyone seemed to do fine. Jonathan's team even lost, and he was ok with it. FYI- Jonathan is a VERY sore loser! The girls cheered their little buns off. They were very timid at first, by the end of the game they were louder. By season's I think they will be blowing us out! I love the Upward philosophy of sports. The kids have a devotional during practice, and the game. It's meant to be fun, but not a the world revolves around the ball(or pom-poms).

Coach Misty, Coach Jason, Elize, Savannah, and Jonathan

Deep thoughts by Jonathan Hallock.....

Go red, go gold, let's win today!

TD! We wanna touchdown!

Life goes on.....

My old Bible study group leader called and wants me to make an SB for his wife for their anniversary. How cool is that? They spent a couple weeks in Jerusalem this summer! I'm so going to love scrapping those photos! I will actually get to see where Jesus walked. See it, in pictures, with my own eyes. I can't wait to get my hands on those photos......

Amanda is taking the kids this weekend, YES! It'll be a nice little break:) Let's pray she doesn't mess it up!

This weekend is Jonathan's first flag football game, and Elize and Savannah's first game to cheer at. The scrapbooker in me is SO excited, the mom is me is worried. Can Jonathan run the plays? Will Savannah remember her chants? Only time will tell.....

Jason got another signed agreement today! Yipee!

I had a crappy day at work. My CS messed up on something, that sent a customer into a tizzy, cussing and screaming. Of course I always have to take care of the messes, that's the crappy part about being a manager:(

MISTY: Pick Lalo! Choose him, Pick him, Date him! He's the one I've been rooting for, give an Argentinian a chance!!!

Last but definatly not least:

You know who you are: I love you, it sucks, they are in the wrong, but it'll be okay. I promise, and if it isn't, I'll beat them up for you:)