The Parvin Family

P.S.

2011-02-17T17:59:00.002-06:00

The snow has all melted away. It seems strange to think that this time last week we were on our second snow storm that was almost as bad as the first one. The pictures below are of our first snow storm at the end of January. It was an actual blizzard. The second storm wasn't as bad but still..it was a lot of snow. Almost 1 week after our first storm. Seems crazy to think that we had a ton of snow on the ground this time last week. Today...it was suppose to reach 80 and I had my flip flops on!! LOL

Snow crazy.....

2011-02-17T17:45:00.003-06:00

Haha...So these are some pictures of our last storm... This is NOT NORMAL for Oklahoma. It was insane. We were literally stuck in our homes for a couple days. Then when you made it out the grocery stores where insane. And not only were they packed with people ... but the food was gone. It was kinda scary to be honest. Kinda felt like the end of the world. Haha.. This is Gene shoveling the snow away from our back doors because the wind drifts brought the snow above the doors. It was pretty crazy to watch the snow grow higher and higher by the hours. The picture to the right is our neighbors house right across the street. We watched as Judy's car was COVERED with snow. Haha..and it sat there for days. Look at the snow drifts in the front of the house right by the door. It was crazy weather.

Hahaha...look at this picture of Sammy. I think this was literally while we were still under a blizzard warning but we were soo sick of being cooped up in the house. She is sitting in a chair and you can't really tell because it's covered to the top with snow. That is how deep it got. Haha.. We have never seen snow like this. It was kinda crazy. It was hard because we don't really have all the things we needed for a storm like this. A snow blower would have been nice. haha.. Anyway..so the pictures are getting jumbled as I am writing but you all are smart..you'll figure it out..!! Hope you enjoy the pics.

2011 The New Year

2011-01-13T16:56:00.003-06:00

Happy Birthday Grandma. We hope you had a wonderful time with Family that came to Arizona and surprised you. We truly wish all of us could have been there as well. This is an old picture. Haha...let me think...I think Sammy was 3 and Matt was probably around 5. Haha...Now...Matt will be 9 in a month and a half, Sammy turned 6 in November and you are celebrating 80!! WE love you so much and are so thankful and we are so blessed as a family to have you in our lives. We miss you and hope to get to see you soon.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GRANDMA!!

Wow...sorry it has been sooo long..

2010-08-05T13:44:00.000-05:00

Wow....I guess I need to UPDATE huh!! LOL...

Halloween 2009

2009-11-14T08:35:00.000-06:00

Sammy and Halle as Kitty's

Matt and Zach as Jenga Fett

This was fun. We go over to our friends The Baird's and go trick or treating in their neighborhood. We live in an older neighborhood and there really aren't any kids around here. Kinda sad...I guess we didn't really think about that when we moved here. Haha...next one though.

Flag Football 09

2009-08-31T10:10:00.001-05:00

Here are some pictures of Matt and his "Jets" teammates. This was his first game.

I just wanted to add some pictures of Matt here because the video below is really hard to make out ANY faces but it is really cute anyway...Like Little Rascals style!! I love it. I am going to get some better up close video of Matt at his games. I also want to make a special SHOUT OUT to Gene's Mom for sending us the Flip Camera the video below is my first time using the camera at a game. I am having a blast with it...and now we can share our fun with everyone. Enjoy!

A little Flag Football...Broncos vs. Jets

2009-08-31T09:41:00.000-05:00

Made a mixture of Matt's Game on Saturday. The originals are hard to see anyway...kinda blurry...soo this was the next best thing. I will try to do better and get more close-ups of Matt. The best one is of his friend Zach. They played against each other on Saturday. It was a fun game. Enjoy the video. I think it's pretty cute! Matt's team has on the lighter colored jersey this time. They were the visiting team. Matt is number 10...not that you can really see it but?? You can try!

Wow...sorry it has been sooo long..

2009-05-28T12:48:00.001-05:00

Here are some updated pictures....Matt at his field day...what a fun day. There was about 150 first graders in one gym..it was sooo loud..haha. They even had a class against class tug-of-war...it was soo hard because Matt's class seemed to be the smaller class of the day and they didn't win. There were almost some tears. They tried soooo hard. I felt so bad for them. But they did their best and we just tried to remind them of that. All in all a fun day at Matt's school.

This picture of Sam was just fun in the backyard on a rainy day with her umbrella. She loves her umbrella. But she looked soo darn cute that day that a picture was necessary.

This picture of Gene and I is our most current picture together...although I now have way shorter hair. haha..I know..so time for a new post already. Doesn't this picture look all sweet and cute...when in fact..if you can see the expression on Gene's face...his lips are kinda pierced...hmm that is kinda a weird pose...well....Gene is in fact giving a little squeeze to MY rear end....I know...whatever...when i showed him this picture I pointed out..look you can totally tell you are squeezing my cheeks...haha...well..maybe those of you reading this wouldn't see that but it sooo obvious to me...and maybe the only other person that would notice that would be Jay, Gene's older brother. haha....do not tell Gene I told you all.....hehehe!!

Well today is the last day of school for Matt so summer begins at 3:30. I thought it was a bit strange that they don't even have a half day or anything. Actually the whole year they never had a half day...hmm..that is strange now that I think about it. Seemed like every third Wednesday at Matt's old school was a half day. The last day of school was nothing as well...just a little celebration and then they all went home. Strange..I guess maybe they are getting older....or actually I think different state...different views??? So there will be more posts of summer fun to follow soon so keep checking back.

SNOW....IN MARCH!!!

2009-03-28T14:11:00.000-05:00

Who would have thought??? We got some snow!! Some actual snowman making snow. INCHES....not just a little powder on top of some ice like we have been getting...BUT actual SNOW!

The kids and I went outside to make our first snowman. Haha...it was kinda harder than I thought. Plus the snow was blowing everywhere. So it wasn't very enjoyable being outside. As you can imagine it was nothing for the kids though. They would stay out there all day if I let them. Haha...it was soo cold. By the time I was done with the snowman my hands were numb. It was ALL worth it anyway. I know....he's missing his mouth but hey...if anyone wants to come and put one on him..you are more than welcome. hahaha..the scarf and gloves and beanie was just about all Mommy could handle...oh yeah...and at least he has eyes. HEY....it's our first one!! We have a fire going in the fireplace...good thing because our clothes were drenched, our gloves, beanies and jackets...all soaked from the snow. The kids really LOVED it...we eventually came inside after Winston kept barking at us from the window inside.....YOU THINK he wanted to come out and play with us...haha...SILLY dog!!

Hope you all enjoy. Wish you could be here with us. !!! All of you!! It feels like Christmas in March.

Moments to BRAG..

2009-02-07T19:00:00.000-06:00

Okay...I am going to take just a moment to brag about my little girl. Here is Sammy, we are at her friend Halle's birthday party. It was at a place called My Little Dollhouse. IT was the cutest place ever...every little (and big) girls dream. Inside in the back was a small room with curtains and you walk through and it's one big closet with all these dress up clothes hanging beautifully in the closet. It was too cute. Sammy wouldn't leave my side though. She is pretty shy when it comes to being around people she doesn't know. She doesn't talk much and she doesn't want to do anything either. So I went in the closet with her and this was the second outfit she tried on. This one was a winner. Most of the other girls got out the Snow White outfits or Bell, and Little Mermaid, and they were changing all the time. This was perfect for Sammy. She has never really been into all the Disney Princess's. I mean she likes them but she doesn't have a favorite. She just likes being a girl and dressing up. So then the girls that work there started doing all the little girls hair and make-up and painting their nails. Sammy did NOT want to do it. I have no idea why. You know what is funny is she talks about it before she gets there and then clams up. So I went ahead and just sat her in the little chair..it looked like a little salon. It was cute and just let the girls that work there talk to her and she did just fine she got to pick all the colors she wanted and she did a great job. I was sucha proud Mommy because even though she was pretty quiet..she still looked beautiful. Her hair was the only one still looking good at the end of the party because she wasn't running around with all the other girls...I felt kinda bad and didn't really know what to do but just let her do her own thing. I was glad to be her bestest friend there. : O) She is still talking about it and will probably remember that for a long time. Such a fun day with my Daughter....
p.s. this was the only smile we got out of her..haha...and it took a lot to get it!!

Silly Sammy..

2009-02-05T18:50:00.000-06:00

Just playin around in the front room. Sammy picked out this skirt today at this new store I found. It is called 1/2 of 1/2 name brand clothing and it is super cheap. So anyway this skirt Sammy just had to have...it's a size 6. heheeh!! But it was too cute that she was actually picking out a skirt and I just couldn't refuse. It's a silky feeling and she has been running arond the house in it since we got home. Oh...and look she even added a necklace

Winter Frost

2008-12-18T13:47:00.000-06:00

This is what we woke up to on Monday morning. The kids got soo excited. Kinda the feeling of Christmas outside. It was wonderful. Matt even more stoked because the news had a list of all the schools that where closed and his school was on there. We have never been through something like this before. So it was fun for us. This lasted three days. So Matt had no school for three days. haha...not fun for Mommy. It looks like snow but when you walk on it, it wasn't soft at all....it was all frozen...so we couldn't make a snow man or do snow angels of any kind. The kids did get all bundled up and go outside...only for 20 minutes though because it was 19 degrees outside. At one point the wind chill was -1. That is the coldest we have seen so far. We are enjoying it though. We keep the fireplace going, I am loving that...and I have even experienced driving in it. I was a little scared but Gene told me what to do and I listened to everything he said and I did just fine. Not something that you want to be out in but we did need a couple things from the store. Let me tell you...the stores where empty. That was a rare site for this time of year. School is back in today although it still looks gloomy outside...we have a low fog (many of you Californians know what I mean) and it's says it's 41 degrees outside right now and it's 2 o'clock in the afternoon. We are suppose to get a thunderstorm in later today and the weekend it going to be pretty cold starting Saturday night. They are already calling for snow around Christmas Eve....Oh....how wonderful THAT would be!!

Merry Christmas Everyone

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

2008-12-09T16:06:00.000-06:00

It's officially FREEZING here....Our first Icicles..haha...I know they are small but hey it's only December 9th and we are sooo not use to this stuff. Nothing compared to Breanne's winter wonderland snow photos but hey...it's still freezing here...hehe. Calling for snow today so...we are just waiting to see it fall. For the first time on my computer weather channel it says winter weather advisory...haha..only for a few counties that I really have no idea where they are at...but I know that the snow is headed our way...so it will be here soon. I saw one or two drops of snow on my windshield just as I was pulling in the garage after picking Matt up from school. You could barely see it though. Matt thinks we are going to get to go outside and make a snow angel when it starts snowing...hehe...the news said it's not going to stick for too long but we should be able to at least see it fall.

I hope everyone is doing great. Staying healthy. Samantha is getting stuffy again...so we are trying to stay warm and keep indoors. Hopefully we can stay healthy for the holidays.

Happy Number 4 Samantha

2008-11-21T12:01:00.001-06:00

Sammy had a wonderful 4th Birthday. Lot's of little pet shop stuff. My little pony's and even the new Tinker Bell movie. She loves it all. Grandma and Grandpa Roud Thank You for sending all the wonderful gifts just in time. She loves all them her favorite so far was the towel and washcloth set. She couldn't wait to take a bath to get use them. Thank You Great Grandma McCourt for the earring stickers. She has used them all and they are now all over the floor. hehe...She had a BLAST with them and thank you for the money...we will be saving some of it. Thank You Uncle Jay and Marie and Ashton for the the card and gift card to Target. She can't wait to use it. Thank You Great Grandma Rodgers for the doll. She is perfect! Thank You Grandma and Papa for everything. : ) Everyone played a special part in this birthday especially since we are so far away now. It turned out perfectly!

The Leaves just keep Falling!!!

2008-11-21T11:26:00.000-06:00

I took this picture and a few more when Sammy and I went on a walk a few weeks ago. Gene thinks I should send it to a magazine. heheh...sure is pretty around here in the fall though. Lot's of great photo opportunities around here. Just old country stuff that I love and the pretty changing leaves just add to it! I have a couple that I would like to blow up and frame. Maybe someday. : ) I just want everyone to we are truly blessed to be renting the house we are in right now. It feels like home to us. Not sure what will happen in the future with the owners but maybe you all can just send up some prayers that maybe they might offer for us to buy it? Just a thought.

Daddy got out the big rake and made a big pile of leaves for Matt and Sammy to jump in. They had soo much fun. It's getting cold outside. I think the high is suppose to be 46 today. If there is any wind then that makes it feel even more cold....BURRRR!!! This was Wednesday night and it was beautiful outside. Probably the last night that it will be like that for a while.

The kids sure enjoyed all the leaves. We have a huge yard with big trees. The tree's still have some leaves on them. We have figured out that our tree's are late. All the other trees in the neighborhood are leave less, or pretty close to it. I think Gene enjoyed throwing leaves all over the kids. Matt was buried at one point. But the he just became The Hulk and jumped out of it! haha.

Happy Thanksgiving to everyone if I don't have another chance to post anything before the Holiday week. Enjoy your families.

Long Time

2008-11-18T18:53:00.000-06:00

It's been a while since I have written. How sad is that? I am not very busy. I guess just thought no one really read this thing. I do know that it does get read. By chance maybe sometimes?? Still when it does it is for a reason. hehehe
What have we been up to? Samantha just turned 4. I can not believe it. We still have a couple years till kindergarten though. Well...next year she can go in the 4 year old program at Matt's school. So that will be fun for her. She is so ready to go to school. Gene will be 30 tomorrow. This year has flown by so fast. We are still enjoying Oklahoma so much. It is getting cold outside. Something new for the whole family. We are so use to the Arizona weather. But totally looking forward to the cooler weather they have here. We have already used the wood burning fireplace a number of times. I am loving that.
Well....Halloween was a blast for us. We went to a small church that I have been going to a womens bible study at. The kids got to play some games and then we went to a friends house and went trick-or-treating. It was a blast. They got plenty of candy. We still have our pumpkins. We never carved them. Daddy was just too busy with work this year. That is okay. They look pretty sitting on the front porch.
We are looking forward to Christmas. My favorite holiday. The kids can't write their wish lists enough. Santa will bring what he brings. That is all I can say. He for sure can not bring everything on the list. hehehe!
Just wanted to update everyone and let you know we are still doing well.

A Day at the Parks

2008-08-04T13:54:00.000-05:00

We started our morning at a small park around the corner from our house. It's Haikey Park. They have been doing some construction and added this playground. So the kids have been waiting for it to say we could go play on it. The black rope kinda looks like a web and for the spiderman fans in our family, it was an eye stopper. hehehe. It was a fun time but not long after we where there a van full of some kids pulled up and then Sammy and Matt didn't really want to do anything else. So it was a short time at that park. Later around lunch time or neighbor from across the street came over with her two grand-daughters and invited us to this park that had a water park in it. Of course we couldn't pass it up. THAT was the highlight of our day. Even though it was hot and we did go right at lunch time it was fun. Then the kids and I got hungry after a little while, I would say we where there for at least 1 hour and half. It took a while for Sammy and Matt to warm up to a bunch of other kids being there. At first I thought it was weird. But I would rather them be cautious than not. Finally they jumped right in. It was a fun day for them. I don't know if you can really tell from these pictures but there was a lot of kids. Then after I finally convinced the kids it was time to go...a whole other bus pulls up filled with more kids. So I think we got out of there just in time. We had a good time though. I hear we should get back soon though because summer is coming to end and within the next two weeks it is going to start cooling down. I can't even imagine. A FALL!! WOW....everyone I have talked to tells me pumpkins are big around here and I am excited. Carmichael's is huge here and it is not far from us at all. They have a big pumpkin patch and you can go run and pick your own. That is what I am use to. Growing up in California that use to be my favorite time too. Going to Bates Nut Farm and getting our pumpkins!! I can't WAIT!!

So other than us just trying to keep cool like everyone else right now. We haven't been up to much. We did do some traveling this past weekend and went to Enid Oklahoma(I am now thankful we live in the Tulsa area). It was about 1hr45min. It wasn't bad. We went to watch the races. Jason Noll came to race for the big race. It was $10,000.00 to win. We didn't stay for the big race, it was just too hot. It was going to be a day race that started at 2. NO way. We went Saturday night and it was horrible. The kids where miserable, Gene and I where miserable. It is hard watching and not being involved, then on top of the kids wanting things all the time because it's just too hot to just sit....made it kinda hard. So instead of staying the night like we planned we just drove home. It was the right thing to do for all of us. It was nice though to see some familiar faces. I will say that. It is not easy going week after week and really seeing no one that we know. Good thing we have Nick. Cause I think we would be really bored if we didn't have him over all the time. I have a feeling things will start changing though here soon. Matt starts school and he will be meeting friends and then I'll meet the Moms. Then I will have at least some kind of friendships. I miss the Moms' from AZ already. I hope everyone is doing great. I know we are trying to survive here. It's been hot. We washed the car last night and turned it into a fun time with the hose. hehehe.. that was FUN! Matt got to get Daddy with the wet soapy sponge. He thought that was the best night ever. hahaha..you should have seen Gene running for the woods. hahaa...Matt was just running right behind him with the sponge waiting for the right moment!!

hehehe

Sammy finish your dinner...

2008-07-17T21:04:00.001-05:00

So this was Samantha a few nights ago. The kids were eating at the little bar we have and Gene and I ate on the couch. Sammy just wasn't into eating that night. Very rare for Sammy..she is a good eater and we usually never have a problem. She was just soo whiny. I kept having to tell her she just needed to finish her dinner. So a couple minutes go by and she is super quiet. I turn around to see what she is doing and this is what I see. I asked her what she was doing? No response!! So I got up and sure enough she was passed out. I mean tell me this just LOOKS uncomfortable RIGHT!! So I quickly grabbed the camera and then woke her up. OUCH...she had marks but it didn't seem to bother her. She was ready to go on a walk around the block. hahaha.. I still look at this picture and can't believe she actually fell asleep like this.

Just thought I'd change it up a bit!

2008-07-02T17:08:00.000-05:00

So what do you think of the new Face lift? I thought the blog needed it. I love red but it was getting to me. Hey...soo much is going on in so many lives these days. I am happy to announce...not that the people that read my blog ALREADY know this...BUT...my cousin Breanne is going to have a baby. I am guess it's okay that I share this on here since she has written it on her blog. Please keep her and the baby in your prayers. I have another friend that is going to have a baby too . This is recent news to me I just found out but I am not sure if it is okay to say anything so I shall wait until her approval. This makes it ....hhmmm.....how many women in my life right now are currently pregnant..let's see.....4....I guess I thought there was more than that but still...that is a lot. NO...to anyone who is thinking that I might be. Although...Gene did say the other day to a friend...we will have one more. NEWS TO ME!! Hhahahaha!!
Just wanted to say a quick Hi to everyone and let everyone know the Parvin Family is doing well. The kids are great and adventurous in the backyard...I learned from a new neighbor that she found two snakes in her garage. Two big black snakes....that does not freak me out at all!!! YEAH....snakes...just what I want in my garage. I would scream and no one would hear me. So now I have had to really educate the kids and let them know that there are snakes around. Don't pick anything up, don't go in any bushes. YIKES!!

Hi Yall

2008-06-06T09:59:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone....I know that you are all anxious to hear how things are going. Sorry it has taken me a while to get back online. We had a day the other day just trying to get online. A long story that I do not want to bore you with.
Well..last night was our first encounter with the tornado weather. We where on a tornado watch all day yesterday...I really had no idea....and then a warning around 11:30 last night and when there is a warning the sirens go off for you to have time to get to shelter....!! We had no idea what to do. I had never even heard the sirens before....they are not that loud...I actually had to wake to Gene up. Our neighbors right across the street have a shelter...I mean I can see it from my front yard. It is literally steps away...so us not know what to do I looked outside and saw them heading into their shelter. When I went outside the guy came over and talked to me. Super nice people. He said welcome to Oklahoma and then I told him we didn't know what to do. Then he said it looks like the worst of the storm is headed our way you are welcome to come in our shelter. I then explained to him that we have two children and a dog. HAHA...he said that it was fine they loved dogs. So I ran in and told Gene. We grabbed the kids and they helped us out getting in. This thing is pretty small. They had a little cot and and two of those plastic chairs. So we all fit in just perfectly. Winston did really good. Matt slept the whole time and Sammers just sat there and didn't say a word. She was scared. So was I just because we didn't know what to do. Anyway....we stayed in there for about 30 min. I would think and they taught us some things about what to expect. They also said that it is never usually like this...that this year has just been really bad. So that was a little bit of a relief. Everything came out just fine. I could hear everything like they tell you about tornados. First it was really windy...then it started raining and then the hail came. Then it was weird it just stopped for a little bit. Gave us time to get out and get back in our house. Then it rained for a little while afterwards. The lady, Judy, she was born in Arizona and has lived here since she was 2. She said she hears about the Monsoons and that freaks her out along with the wind and dust and stuff. So I guess every state has their thing we just need to get familiar with the tornado's. It was freaky only because I didn't know what to expect. They welcomed us to their shelter anytime and even if they are not home to go in they do not lock it. So that was really nice.
When we buy our house I am certain we will do whatever it takes to invest in a shelter. There are other things you can do, I mean you don't need a shelter in the ground but....it would just keep my mind at ease.
Besides this adventure we had last night everything is going great. The house is older but we like it. The yard is beautiful with lots of grass and pretty flowers everywhere. I don't even think I have to water the grass....it just rains enough to keep it growing. : )
Enjoy your day...

The Packing has almost come to an END..

2008-05-28T10:51:00.000-05:00

Today is my last day online until Tuesday June 3rd. Just wanted to let everyone know that we will be heading out Saturday morning early morning I am sure. We are going to try and make it to Amarillo Texas. That would be most of the trip. That way we can get into Oklahoma hopefully at a good time?? Keeping our fingers crossed that the trip goes smooth. Please keep us in your prayers all weekend long. I am sure I will have a great story to share as soon as we are all up and running again online. This will definitely be an interesting trip. I have the Dramamine just in case the kids need a little help RELAXING....in the car. The packing is almost done. Friday we pick up the Budget truck and start the loading process. I have the bulk of our stuff already in the garage and ready to be put in the truck. I am trying to make it as easy as possible on the loaders. Not really sure who we can expect to help get things loaded but it will get done that is for sure. I will probably have everything finished by tomorrow that way there really will be no need to even come in the house. Yeah...we'll see how that goes. hahaha...! We are excited. This is going to be great! Thanks again everyone for your encouragement.

The Parvins

KinDerGarTEn GRadUAtioN

2008-05-23T17:03:00.000-05:00

May 22nd was Matt's Kindergarten graduation! SOO cute. Matt said he wants to be a mailman when he grows up!! hahaha....or a COP!!!

This picture is of Matt and his buddies. Alex and Brayden. Aren't they soo adorable. Other than this picture all my other ones did not turn out very well. They are too dark and the one with is adorable kindergarten teacher turned out really blurry. I am sad. It was all kinda a big crazy mess. hahah...I am glad for this picture though. YEAH MATT!!!! GREAT JOB!!!!

OUR NEW HOUSE in OKLAHOMA

2008-05-09T10:10:00.000-05:00

11525 South 89th East Avenue, Bixby OK 74008!!
LOOK at ALL THAT GRASS!! Sorry...as many of you know we do not have grass anywhere on our current yard. We are so blessed to get this beautiful home. It is older but the whole inside has been remodeled with wood flooring and tile and carpet. I can't wait to see what I haven't seen already. This house sits on 2/3rds of an acre with a pecan tree in the back as one of our shade trees. Not that we are pecan lovers but I am thinking maybe I can learn how to make a pecan pie during the holidays. Matt and Sammy are excited...not just because of all this grass but also because there is a wood burning fireplace and what does that mean....SANTA has a chimney to go through! : 0 So cute. I will be able to hang up stockings above the fireplace! I can't wait. Getting Winston there is going to be tough. Once we get there though I know he is going to enjoy all that yard just as much as the kids. I can't wait for him to see it. Thank You to everyone who has sent us your encouraging words. It means a lot to us to know that there are so many people out there that are behind us in our new adventure. Change is not easy that is for sure...but we know this is something that has been on our hearts for a while now. Gene is being so awesome in all of this. He has truly stepped up as the man of the house and is taking on ALL the stressful things needed to get done to get us on the road. First he asked me to take down everything off the walls so that he could make any repairs needed. He has set up everything already for the moving truck, he did his homework and found the best truck to fit our budget. He has a laundry list of things to get done around the house that we need to do to give back this house in the best state possible. I am just in awe of what he has stepped up to do. I can tell that he is very excited for our new adventure. It will be hard to leave but we both know God has something great in store for us.

WHAT??? The PARVIN'S are MOVING!!!

2008-05-06T12:43:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone......
Just wanted to let everyone know since it is a DONE deal and we have decided to take an offer Gene simply can not refuse and we are moving to Oklahoma. Many of you know it was kinda in the works last year but it didn't work then, the timing just wasn't right. Gene got a call on Friday May 2nd and was given an offer and told to think the weekend but that they needed to know by Sunday. In shock Gene calls me...."you will NOT believe the phone call I just got.." ! So after thinking a lot we have decided to take them up on their offer. WE are leaving actually kinda quick since Gene will need to get there and get trained ASAP...because they are in super need of a Supervisor. Someone they can trust to get the job done. So our projected moving date is May 31. It will take us 2 days to get there with two kids and a dog...IT officially takes 18 hours from here and all of you with children know that is NOT going to be a fun drive. So we plan on staying the night somewhere so we can rest and the kids and the Winston can stretch their legs. : ) Kindergarten Graduation is May 22nd and this move couldn't have come at a better time for us. Please keep us in your prayers as we get through this crazy month. It will be a whirlwind I am sure. Gotta get organizing and packing....I love you all and thanks for your prayers.

California Girl turned...

2008-04-22T10:49:00.000-05:00

Just GOT back from a GREAT trip to California. My first stop was at The Litteral Household. What a wonderful visit Erin. Thank You for dinner. The enchiladas where wonderful. I will have to get that recipe from you. It was super easy and quick. : ) Got to see Hayden and Ava and the Neighbors perform a wonderful dance. hahaha...it was very cute. Lit...great times....great times. Sad but it was too short of a visit with you guys.
Next it was off to find Jessica and Ricks house. hahah..I found it. It wasn't soo hard. Jess and Rick Thank You so much for your hospitality I truly felt welcome. You made it easy to be a guest. I still can't get over that first night. I woke up in the morning and hadn't moved a bit. It was the best nights sleep I had had in a really long time. Thanks for taking me to Carlsbad Outlets. That was awesome. I got some new flippies and some quality shopping in with you both. Even though we did freeze out booties off. : )
Got to get a pedicure with Christina. haha...we actually sat there and read magazines!! : ) I guess the both of us are not use to having time to ourselves. Then we jetted to my Aunt Martha's to see Bree and Silas....yeah....I got to see him. I am so happy. That was the one thing I really wanted to MAKE happen. Who knows when I will have another opportunity to do so. Had a great visit with Aunt Martha and Uncle Willis, Breanne, Christina and little Silas who eventually got irritated with us for being so loud and laughing so much at other stories....All he was trying to do was get our attention with his little talks and rollin around....Bree....he IS adorable! Then it was a quick get together with Karen and Christina...making fun of me for not having Starbucks in as long as I can remember. haha.... it's just that I am happy with my Folgers and my Carmel Vanilla creamer. : ) Oh...and my wonderful coffee maker that Valerie and Heather got me for my 30th Birthday! I love it. After sitting there the three of us....not use to just being us and no kids..we then realized it was time to get goin...we had dinner reservations. : )
So We all rushed to our houses ( I went to Jess's) and got ready in like 20 minutes...then we met at Christina's. After we all showed up we loaded up in Heathers Tahoe...good thing she had it!! It was great to drive together. We had that extra time together. Had a wonderful time at Elephant Bar where we chatted..some of us cried...we all laughed...and some of us spilled stuff on us, if not on each other. It was GREAT!!! We must have had three different servers. It was a little weird. I think that just meant we where there for a really long time. haha...until finally this really awful smell kicked us out. Poor Jess. She is pregnant and when you are pregnant your senses go to extreme and this awful smell lasted for some time...and she just dealt with it. It was a really bad smell...like sewer smell. hhahah... After dinner we went to Christina's and talked for a little bit. I have learned that we all need to pray for each other all the time. There are so many things going on in everyone's life that it seemed there needs to be something new going on. A prayer list! : ) Anyway...after it turned about midnight Jess and I headed back to her place where I needed some sleep for the long drive home. : ) Thank you for everyone who prayed for my safe trip. It was great. No problems at all. Thank You Jesus for keeping me close to you in my travels alone. I needed it. Thank You Gene for everything. Without your understanding none of this would have happened. You knew I needed this trip and thanks for helping MAKE it happen. I love you with all my heart!
I miss you all.. I can't wait for you all to come visit me now!

ATTENTION ALL PRAYER WARRIORS..

2008-04-15T11:12:00.000-05:00

I chose this picture because so many of us try to find a quiet place alone to be with God...and even though it's hard sometimes I can look at this picture and truely see myself finding a rock and just spending time with him.

I am choosing NOT to go in too deep on this prayer request but I am sending this out for a DEAR friend of mine and her family. God knows who they are and that is all we need to know. Certain events have brought on some serious hardship on this little family. They are soo strong in knowing that God is there with them holding them up and at this time NOT leaving their side. Please pray that the storm will calm for them sooner than later. There are certain events that could take place that could cause this storm to continue for who knows how long, but that is why I need you ALL...there is no way that this needs to go on for as long as it already has. So please send out prayers daily as you can remember...I will send word out when I know we have WON as a prayer chain of "WARRIORS" for this family. ~ Please Lord...you know who I am talking about. Only you know their true pain and know they are keeping their faith in you. All of it. You are the only one that can change this whole situation around for them. Please continue to keep them close as we all continue to pray for them for as long as it takes. We thank you soo much for what you have done and continue to do for us. In your precious name~ AMEN!!

HUGE NASCAR crash..click here..

2008-04-09T11:55:00.000-05:00

This is Mike McDowell...Rookie Driver for Nascar. He was in the wedding, one of the groomsmen, I was in in December. Had a chance to meet him and his wife...very sweet couple. He is the cousin of the Groom. Crazy how the safety in these cars has come soo far. FYI...he will be on the Ellen show today. I know it's on at 3pm here so tune in whenever it is on in your area. Him and his wife will be on...

RANDOM NOTES...

2008-04-09T10:12:00.001-05:00

Notes Here....

OH HOW TIME PASSES.......

2008-04-07T16:59:00.000-05:00

It amazes me to see these three. It also saddens me. It's hard being away from the ones you care about most. It's hard to except it but I have to. I hope you all know that even though I am here in Arizona there is still so much of me in California. I miss everyone there that I knew and loved soo much of everyday of my life. It's hard. It's hard to think about the fact that I can't really just call one of my close girlfriends up and we can just meet for some coffee or whatever. Not that we don't all have such different lives and we are all busy but sometimes I really think...man...SLOW DOWN...or it is all just going to pass you by...just like how fast our children are growing...

(These are Brad and Christina Hughes's Children . (Gavin, Abigail, Emily) )

Baby News CONTINUES!!

2008-04-03T20:42:00.000-05:00

My Cousin Brandon and his Wife Sandy are having a baby too....! They already know and IT'S A BOY!!!! YIPEE!!! So please send out your prayers and thoughts for them.

BABY NEWS!!!!

2008-03-19T11:06:00.001-05:00

My Friend Jessica and her husband Rick are now going to have their FIRST baby!! She is already three months and everything is going great!!! Please pray for a healthy pregnancy for her and the baby from here on out. Congratulations Jessica and Rick!!

Your Prayers Please...

2008-03-14T10:22:00.000-05:00

As most of you know my cousin Breanne and her family have been stuggling with the sale of thier house in Escondido, California. They have been scheduled to move to Michigan for some time now. The buyer has backout pretending like he couldn't get a loan but was just trying to get a better deal with the housing market the way it is. They buyers came back and agreed on the origional price the Manata's were asking and they are now in the escrow process again. To make a long story short this has just been a super frustrating time for my cousin and her family...just trying to close on escrow in california so they can buy their house in Michigan and move. Please pray for her and her family to keep faith in God....but also to speed things up so they will finally close and not have that burden on them anymore. http://manatafamilyscrapbook.blogspot.com/ For continued coverage on thier saga.

Hi Family

2008-03-11T11:59:00.000-05:00

It seems strange when you sit back and think about what is actually happening in your life. Things that you try to accomplish without God. Gene and I have been wanting to buy a home of our own for some time now. We even took most of our tax return to pay off all Gene's debt to get his credit report cleaned up. That was a big step for us and it feels so good. The market out here to buy a house is INCREDIBLE....it seems to be the perfect time to buy. We went and looked at some new builds yesterday. There are a couple that I really liked. SO did Gene. That is an accomplishment all in itself. That we agree on the same house. : ) Anyway....I am the one that is really excited and maybe even too excited. These particular houses we looked at are beautiful...new and we would be building our own. This one particular home we really liked. The salesman even got it down to a $500 dollar deposit. Then he even threw in washer/dryer and a refridgerator!!! OH THE TEMPTATION!!! This is everything we needed!! The one problem....as I drove home and experianced the drive from there to where we live now! It was at least 45 minutes. The thing is....NOW...we live about 10 minutes from the race track. I know it sounds silly but when Gene works as much as he does out there it just didn't seem right. We go out there all the time. ALL of us and the kids love it. So when I got home...I explained to Gene my thoughts...that for us to move out there would be silly with the way our lives are right now. Even though it was a deal we will probably wish we would have taken...in 5 years...for now...it's not right. This house was 3 bed 2 bath and it was 1769 of sqft...the selling standard price was $174,500.00 . They also had a $10k incentive and $5k towards closings. So pretty much we could have been in the house with only a $500 deposit. Seems insane. I'd rather not take the kids and myself anymore away from their Daddy than they already are right now. Soo....as of now we decided to just wait some more. Maybe we can stay here for a while??? Our Lease is up in May here and we don't really know what the owners want to do. We don't know if they are willing to wait until we can afford to buy this house we are already in or if they want to sell as soon as possibly. So please send a prayer out that God will help in all his ways on this one. Gene would need a new job for us to afford even $180,000.00!! The houses in this area go for a little more than that!!

THANK YOU!!

2008-03-11T11:48:00.001-05:00

Thanks to my Cousin Breanne I have accomplished the "PLAYLIST"!! I am addicted!!