In Memory of The Best Mother-In-Law Ever

May 29, 2009 will mark the one year anniversary of my mother-in-law's death. It happened very suddenly for us. I just feel the need to acknowledge it in some way. Please don't take a day for granted. Hold your loved ones a little tighter, a little longer. Tell them you love them. You never know if it may be the last time you see or talk to them. The last time I saw Pat was about a week before at my niece's graduation party. I briefly spoke to her on the phone later that week when she called to tell me she was bringing me a headboard for my bed. She was always giving things away. She would do anything she could to help someone in need. She was a wonderful Christian woman and a very special mother-in-law.

In memory of Patricia Ann Eason Rowell. We love you, and we miss you, dearly.

Whispers from Heaven

They say that life is fleeting
I know that this is true
I left this world so quickly
With no goodbye to you.

I know how much you miss me
Your tears fall ever light
The pillow where you lay your head
Is wet with them at night.

I know your heart is hurting
The words we left, unsaid
I love you’s, left unspoken
Are spinning in your head.

The strength that I have carried
That served to make you whole
Remains to make you stronger
Within your grieving soul.

For you see, while you were weeping
On the day I passed away
At the gravesite near the flowers
Where my loved ones knelt to pray.

An angel came to see me
She took me by the hand
She led me to a kingdom
In a very distant land.

As I look down from heaven
And see you standing there
Your heart so ever burdened
With more grief than it can bear.

I long to bring you comfort
I long to give you peace
I long to hold you closely
Cause all your tears to cease.

The joy I’ve found in heaven
Goes far beyond compare
The love that’s so elusive
Can be found here everywhere.

The light is softly shining
There’s no storm clouds here or rain
There’s no teardrops found in heaven
There’s no suffering, there’s no pain.

You needn’t be so troubled
Stay close to God and pray
That someday we’ll be together
One bright and glorious day.

So my love, you shouldn’t question
My dear you need not cry
I’ve gone to be with Jesus
I really didn’t die.

Author/Written By:
Marilyn Ferguson
©2004

Of Boring Summers and Good Times

I knew it was coming. I just can't believe that it has started so soon. I mean, school is not "officially" out until Thursday. Right now my boys just have to go to take their tests, and then they are free to leave. But, just a few moments ago I heard those words that I knew were inevitable. I thought it would be at least 2 weeks after school was out before I would be confronted with these words. Some of you probably have an inkling of what I'm talking about..."I'M SO BORED!" What?!! I told my husband that they had no idea what bored was!!! My response to my 17 year-old son was, "Well, go play outside." That's what I did when I was a young girl. I mean, we didn't have the Internet, the video games, the dvd's, cable tv (we had 3 channels), our own cell phone, texting, etc. I'm sure I'm missing something. We found ways to entertain ourselves. Kids nowadays don't know what it's like to be truly bored. When you are truly bored, you have NOTHING to do, and nothing to even pacify yourself! I blame it on society and all the technology that our kids have grown up with. It's kind of sad that they will never know the pleasure of a slower pace, of just going outside and walking down the street with a friend and talking FACE-TO-FACE, without their phone buzzing in the next text message. But, so is the way with life. Things change.

Come to think of it, I may have on rose colored glasses. Looking back at my childhood days, I can see that I had it pretty good, although I'm sure I didn't think so at the time. I seem to recall something about my parents telling me similar stories about their childhood and what they went through as teenagers. (I think I'm getting old!) And I was probably bored more times than I could remember. I would combat that by going over to my friend's house and hanging out with her. We would be bored together. It was more fun that way. Occasionally we would find something to do, like the time we sat empty soda cans in a line straight across the road one night. Then we hid in the bushes for the next vehicle to come down the road. Would they stop? Would they run over the cans and keep going? It was always fun...and a little bit scary to see what would happen. But, those memories will last a lifetime. When you live in the country you have to think up stuff like this to have a little fun. No harm done.

I also remember my cousin coming over and us going out to the edge of the woods to find a small limber tree. We would pull the tree down and hop on and jump up and down and see how high it would take us. Ah! Glimpses of my childhood, and these are the things I remember. I also remember my best friend, Kayla and me sitting in my bedroom, almost ready to go to sleep, and hearing an awful loud sound right outside my window! It literally scared the pee out of us! My dad laughed so hard when he came in to show us the contraption he had made to scare us. It was a tin can with a hole punched through the bottom. He had take an old nail & attached it to a piece of rope. Put the rope through the hole in the can (the nail held it in the can). Then, he soaked the rope in some kerosene. He carefully snuck up to my bedroom window, and put his hand at the top of the rope closest to the can. When he ran his hand down that rope it made an awful loud sound. Just the thing to make 2 young girls scream scared out of their wits! Good times, I'm tellin' ya.

Well, I didn't know that this post was gonna turn out this way. But, I'm certainly glad that it did. It brought back some wonderful memories that I never won't to forget. So, the next time my kids say that they are bored, I'll have a few suggestions for them!!

What are some of your favorite childhood memories? I would love to hear them!

Memorial Day 2009: We Remember...

See Cartoons by Cartoon by Joe Heller - Courtesy of Politicalcartoons.com - Email this Cartoon

See Cartoons by Cartoon by Randy Bish - Courtesy of Politicalcartoons.com - Email this Cartoon

Parenting Tip: Check Those Texts!!!

I have a warning for other moms of boys, and maybe a warning for moms of girls, as well. Watch out for these teenage girls nowadays. Boys have always gotten a bad rep for doing things they shouldn't do, but let me tell you, the girls are right in there with them these days.

"What has brought all this on?," you may ask? As most of you know, I have 3 sons. Two of them are teenagers, and the oldest one just recently found out that he is going to be a father. Well, my #2 son, who is 17, has been getting naughty texts from a girl that is a year younger than he is. "How do you know this?," you ask. Well, I occasionally take it upon myself to read his texts. This is not an invasion of privacy, it is called strategic parenting. Well, it just so happened that yesterday morning while he was asleep, I perused his texts and found the shocking things that this girl was saying that she wanted to do with him. I also looked at what my son had text her back, and his replies were your typical boys' one word responses. (Yeah, wow, okay) So then I had to decide how I wanted to handle this. Did I want to overlook it, and just keep an eye on them. Or did I want to forbid him to see her, knowing that that would never work. He was already aware that I didn't care for her, simply because of some the things I have heard about her. So, this is what I did. I used his phone and forwarded some of those texts to my phone, as leverage in case I ever needed them. Then, I used his phone and sent her this message,

ME: "This is Chase's mom. I wonder what your parents would say about the things you've been texting to boys."

A few minutes later, she text me back. She said something like,

"I'm SO sorry! Believe me when I say that I don't usually talk like that. I was just tired last night. I really don't know what to say. But, I'm sorry and it won't happen again."

ME: "You should watch what you send in texts because you never know who might read them.
Chase doesn't need someone who is going to get him into trouble. He needs a good girl. I'm gonna let it slide this time, but just don't let it happen again."

HER: "Thank you!"

ME: "Forgiven"

Then, I deleted my texts to her and her responses back. I put the phone back beside him. And I went to work. I never said anything to Chase. I handled it quietly between me & her, and then the ball was left in her court. If she said anything to Chase, do you think he would tell me?!! I doubt it, given the nature of her texts to him the night before. Hopefully, I nipped that in the bud.

So ladies, watch out for teenage girls these days. Your sons don't need one of those 1-800 numbers when they've got girls that they know who will talk to them that way for free. And to you moms out there who have teenage girls, do you know what your daughters are doing? You better check those texts!!

Major League Little League? You TELL Me!!

I find this kind of stuff interesting and entertaining. Is that redundant? Anyway, I decided to post one of the best ones on here for those of you who have not yet discovered these amazing experiments. For more neat videos you can check them out on youtube, or you can visit their website here. I would love to be a participant in one of their experiments. What is so neat is that the people around them have no idea what is going on, at first. They usually catch on after a bit.

This particular one takes place at a little league baseball game. I know that this is something these kids will never forget. Enjoy!

A Guilty Pleasure

Okay. I have been quiet about American Idol...until now. It is one of my guilty pleasures. I LOVE this show! My pick for this season is Kris. I have loved him since the beginning. I thought a month ago that the finale was going to come down to him and Adam. There was one week that I got a little worried about him, and it wasn't because he performed badly...but the judges made it SOUND like he performed badly. I think they have been trying their darnedest to get him off the show so that he wouldn't be a major competitor with Adam.

It really bugged me when they had the "duo" night. Did you notice how they placed them to perform? If I remember correctly, Allison performed her solo first. Next, Adam performed his solo. And then, they had Danny & Kris perform their duet. Right after that, Kris had to turn around and sing his solo, then Danny's solo, and the final performance was Allison & Adam's duet. HELLLLLO!!! All night Simon gave Kris negative comments and even said that Danny was better than Kris on the duet. It was totally unfair.

I know I am taking this WAY too seriously, but give me a break! AI thinks we are stupid and can't see that they have been promoting Adam to win since the beginning. And who even knows if they will be truthful with the votes? If they want Adam to win so bad, then all they have to do is say that he got the most votes, and that's it. The bad thing is I used to like Adam. But he has gotten extremely annoying in the last few weeks. He tries to be all humble, but you can tell that it's just an act. If you watch him here, you'll see what I mean. It's definitely not the Adam they have portrayed on American Idol. But apparently, that's what the judges find "entertaining".

But, after all this, Kris has fought through it and made it to the finale. At least American knows talent when they see it. So, we will know tomorrow night how it all goes down. I guess you know who I'm rooting for...

SPRING BASH 2009

Here's a slide show that I put together of Spring Bash '09. This is a big event at our local airport that is put on to raise money for Hospice. The main event is the air show, which was very impressive. Jordan also performed with the jazz band, and you will also see a picture of Barney Fife. Also, that's my son, Chase and my husband, Kevin posing in front of the gray huge fighter jet (the one with the painted-on face). I'll spare you any pics of all the rednecks that came out in full force! What can I say? It is Alabama! :)

The First Pictures are In!!

Chelsea had a doctor's appointment today, and they did an ultrasound. The doctor said that everything looked good. The due date is November 28.

I must admit, my heart sank when I got this in a text message from Justin. I had to run around and show all my office buddies at work.

Need a Laugh?

Just a Little Update...Well, Maybe Not THAT Little!

It's been a while since I've posted anything much about my life, so I thought I'd give you an update.

I work as the school bookkeeper at the local elementary school. My school has approximately 1350 kids in grades 1-4, and 73 classrooms. It can get a bit hectic. This year they started the process of dividing the school into 2 separate entities. Right now, it has been in name only...well, they did hire and do a few changes to the principals and asst. principals. But, once school is officially out for summer, the construction will begin. I am a 12 month employee, so I will be there during all the action. Right now, Alabama schools are under proration, which means State money is short. The reason they decided to split our school, besides the fact that it was so large, was so that there would be more funding. Now, how does that affect the employees/teachers? Good question. I do know that I will be doing the bookkeeping for both schools, at least until we are out from under proration. As for the other girls in the office, there has been no official word as to who is going to work for what school. We will probably know all that by the end of this month.

Now, onto personal stuff. Justin and Chelsea have set a tentative date for the wedding, June 20. As far as plans go, Chelsea & her mom have been working on that. She has not really started to "show" yet, but she did say that her clothes were beginning to not fit. Justin has been looking for a job around Jacksonville. I think he is beginning to feel the heat from her parents, as well. They haven't said anything to him, but I know that they have relayed their feelings to Chelsea. So, I'm still hoping it all works out, and he will find a job very soon. Since her mother's insurance does not pay for a dependent's pregnancy, she had to go to the health department and get on Medicaid. She also got WIC started. Justin said that she has an appointment with a "real" doctor this Friday in Jacksonville. She is taking 2 classes for the summer semester at Jacksonville.

Chase began Spring football training last week. This is his last week, and they will put on a scrimmage game, amongst themselves, next Monday night. They were going to do it this Friday night, but our girls' softball team is going to State (Woo Hoo!), and their game is Friday. Chase will be a senior next year. He plays wide receiver. Of the 4 starting receivers he is the only white one! I thought that was a little funny, since he listens to all that rap music, and his favorite singer is T.I. I just hope that he can keep his position, but he has played it for a couple of years, and I think that our new coach respects that.

Jordan had his end of the year band picnic. This is for the high school marching/concert band. He received a nice plaque for "Most Outstanding Rookie!" I am a proud momma! We also attended the show choir banquet where he got his regular "participation" award, and a funny award called, "Bassmaster, you fish professionally?" His nickname is bassmaster, for some odd reason. He does NOT fish! I thought it was because he played bass guitar; therefore it would be pronounced (base) master. But, Jordan says no. Who knows what is going on with that?!! I certainly don't! Oh well, who knows what is going on with any teenagers these days?! He will be playing with the jazz band at our Spring Bash, which will be held this weekend at the local airport. That should pretty much wrap up his "gigs" for a while.

We made it through our first Mother's Day without Kevin's mother. The family had a get-together Saturday night. We laughed and cut up. A few of us cried. But, Pat would have wanted us to just enjoy being together. She was probably looking down on us, laughing herself. Kevin was a little down over the weekend, and rightfully so. But, we hang in there and keep going. We have to be strong for his dad, who is battling bladder cancer. He has just completed a round of chemotherapy, and they are going to do a scan on him next week. They are planning on taking out his bladder. He is hoping that they decide that they don't have to take such drastic measures. The cancer was concentrated to the bladder, but they had wanted him to do chemo before they did the surgery. Ray is a tremendous man of faith, and he deserves a miracle. I hope God will provide one.

So, this has been a pretty major update. I didn't intend to write a book, but I hope you enjoyed it and learned a little more about me than you already knew.

Monday Memories: Crazy Cousins

Gayle over at Plantetmfiles is hosting Monday Memories. After you look at/read mine, please go over and visit hers. You can even participate if you feel led to do so. Happy Monday!

Taken at Buck's Pocket State Park (Probably around 2000)
Top to Bottom, Left to Right: Tisha, Justin, Chase, Riannon, Kindra, & Jordan














Taken this past weekend at a local cemetery
Tisha, Kindra, Riannon, Jordan & Justin is off in the background
Not Pictured: Chase...He had a date.















Here's a current picture of Chase taken later that night.

Mother's Day 2009

My mom & me

I Had An Epiphany

I had an epiphany this week. It didn't make me proud of myself, either. I realized that, as much as I would like to be like those that are, I am not a volunteer-y person. I have said that I need to get more involved in worthy causes. I have said that I need to volunteer in the band boosters and participate more in the football boosters, and the show choir program since my kids participate in them...but I hardly do. I admire those people who I always see at the various activities volunteering their time, doing what needs to be done. Believe me, I know these programs could not exist without those selfless people that will be there at the drop of a hat whenever they are needed. Am I just lazy? I hope not. I don't know if it is that I work full-time outside of the home. I know that some of these people do, as well. Yet, they manage to do it all. I can't even manage the little that I do do!

I do feel guilty. I think that is what has led me to this epiphany. If I just admit this to myself, that I am not this type of person, maybe it will help me not to feel like such a loser for letting my kids participate in these activities and not helping. Or, maybe if I just begin to make myself volunteer here and there then it will grow on me a little more. This is definitely an area that I need to make more of an effort in.

So, how do you manage? Are you one of these people that others can count on to be there? Or, are you like me: You would like to be able to be one of these people, but despite your best intentions, you just never get around to it? Any ideas will be much appreciated!

I Wish...

I could get my house de-cluttered.

I could get organized.

Justin would get a job.

I liked to cook.

I could manage my time more effectively.

I was debt free.

we could get our bathroom remodeled without having to do it ourselves.

I had a green thumb.

it would stop raining.

I could manage my money more efficiently.

I was better at housekeeping.

that life didn't have to be so complicated.

my mother-in-law were still here.

my father-in-law wasn't battling cancer...and without her.

we knew what happened to Marsh.

I was thin.

I had a new hair cut.

I had a new wardrobe.

Justin would get a good job.

my kids wouldn't grow up so quickly.

my husband didn't have mental problems.

my side of the family wasn't so dysfunctional.

Justin would get a good job.


What are some of your wishes? Feel free to leave them in the comments. That way, I won't feel so alone in my twisted mind! :)