Philosophy Idiot

I just want to express my frustration a little. I am taking a Philosophy class this quarter and I just have to say I want to shoot myself. I do not get this whole idea and maybe it is because I do have a very clear picture of why I am here and what I am suppose to be doing. I have never had such a struggle in any of my classes as this one. It is very frustrating and I think Greg is tired of hearing me voice my complaints about it. I guess maybe if I stop complaining it might go better, but I just don't get these people. Hopefully I pass and don't have to take it again because then I know I will have a breakdown!!

Party party

We had a lot of fun yesterday celebrating Gabe's birthday. He got to invite a couple of friends to go bowling. He invited Zack and Ben and they had a great time. We bowled and had pizza a cake and opened presents. Gabe had a great day and we love that his friends got to come and have fun with us.

Sorry, it is kind of blurry.

Double Digits

What a great day! Today is Gabe's 10th birthday.
I can't believe it. It has been so fun watching Gabe learn and
grow. He is a very bright kid and very compassionate towards others.
One of the best things about Gabe is that he is very imaginative.
He comes up with great stories. He LOVES movies and most of
all loves when his Uncle Paul takes him to see movies on Saturdays. His dad
and I are so proud of him. Gabe is involved in quite a few things. He
loves karate and enjoys sparring most of all. He really enjoys cub scouts and
recently earned his bear. He reads very well and is a great speller. Most of all
Gabe personality and the spirit he brings to our home fills my heart. Happy
Birthday Gabe. We all love you very much.

Tagged

My lovely sister in law tagged me so here I go

10 years ago I:
1. Was in labor waiting for Gabe to make an entrance
2. lived in an apartment in Lake Elsinore, California
3. Worked at Walmart
4. Had been married a little over a year
5. was 20

Things on my to do list:

1. Finish homework
2. Vacuum family room
3. Finish laundry
4. Buy Gabe's birthday present
5. Unload the dishwasher

Snacks I enjoy
1. anything chocolate with a big glass of milk
2. Oreo cookies
3. string cheese
4. Lays potato chips (plain)
5. chips and salsa

If I were a millionaire I would:
1. hire someone to do laundry
2. Travel
3. put a lot of money away for my kids
4. send my parents and in-laws on a great trip
5. hire a landscaper

Places I have been
1.Chicago
2.Las Vegas
3. Utah
4.Morrow Bay
5. Colorado

Jobs I've had
1. Cust Svc Mgr at Walmart
2. Cust Rel Mgr at Ford
3. Admin at Michael Todd
4. House Cleaner
5. After school program van driver

I tag:

Kirstie
Pam
Tori
Tonia
Ilyse

Buddies

We had Maddy and Tim over the other day to
play. Sam and Tim sure have a lot of fun
together (and cause a lot of mischief, I get worried
when it is quiet). At one point they told me that I
had to be quiet or I would wake up the lion.

My kind of Fun

Some of you know that I teach a couple of dance
classes on Thursdays. Here are a couple pictures of my
girls. They are so much fun to teach.

Seriously My Kid Rocks

So I think Gabe is one of the most awesome people I know.
Yes, he is my child. Today he had a karate tournament where
there was 31 other school competing. He has never competed in that
big of a competition before. I can't express to you how proud I am of him.
In the picture above he is doing his blue belt form. He is not very strong in
his forms but today he totally rocked. He took third place in his division
which is huge.

Everyone knows that Gabe seems to be a pretty timid kid.
It amazed me to see how different he is inside the ring. While standing
outside the ring waiting his turn he is what seems to be timid one. Once he
steps into the ring he just completely unleashes. It is like he is a different
person. Don't get me wrong has pretty good control of his movements, but
he totally amazing. He took second place in sparring in his division.

Uncle Paul is a huge support to Gabe. He comes and sikes
Gabe up before he goes into the ring each time. Both Paul
and I get really nervous for him but are for sure cheering him on.
(sometimes I think I am a little too loud)

Yes, I am a very proud mama. Let me just say though,
I don't know how people do this all the time. I am a complete
nervous wreck the whole time. I was sitting on my chair at one
point and after the match I noticed I had moved down to my knees at some point.
It is nervewracking and I think I am still shaking from it. Unfortunately Dad couldn't make
it today due to school, but Uncle Paul, his cousin Zach and Grandpa were able to
come. We did make a phone call to dad after to tell him the good news.

Way to go Gabe!!

Wall Art

Okay so I have been debating what to put
on the wall in my dining room because it was bare and
really needed something. While we were down in Shell Knob
Christy, whom is very talented, helped me
with these. It was so much fun and I love how they look on
the wall. We did it with spray paint and fake leaves and branches.
It was so much fun and I love it. Thanks Christy.

Russ and Vince

I love this picture of Russ and Vince. They are pals.

Cliff "Jumping"

Greg and I were pretty brave and decided we were
going to jump off the cliffs. Here is Greg taking checking it out and
gearing up for his jump.

And here he is taking the plunge!!

This is my plunge. You can kind of see me behind
the tree. It took me a while to jump. I wasn't
quite so sure when I was looking over. It doesn't look as
high when you are in the water.

And so I made it without injury or death.
I don't know that I would do it again.

Sammy

Sammy is not much of a boat person yet. He went
out with us the first day but was just content to sit
in the boat with his life vest on. So Sue filled up the pool
and blew up this airplane and Sam had a blast in it.

One of the great things about Sam is that he loves to help.
When they pulled the boat out of the water Sam was there to help
Russ unhook it from the truck.

He also had a lot of fun chasing everyone around
with his squirt gun.

Sierra's Fun

At Table Rock Lake Sierra had a lot of fun. She
was really excited because Adrian (Sue's grandaughter) got
to come play too. They had so much fun playing dolls and
watching movies. They also had fun riding in the tube together.
You can't really see Adrian behind Sierra, but you could
hear them both laughing as Sue pulled them around the lake.

The Adventures of Gabe

For Labor Day we went down to Shell Knob and had
lots of fun with our friends and playing in the water.
Gabe was so adventurous and had a lot of firsts. He is tubing in
this picture which isn't a first for him but he was having a blast.

This is definitely a first for Gabe. Greg and I wanted
to go jump off the cliffs so we asked Gabe if he wanted to go.
He actually said yes. Here is a picture of him jumping off one
of the cliffs. It was great. Not only did he do it once, but he
went back for seconds.

Sue was very sweet and let Gabe drive the boat.
He looks so studious to me. He was so excited he got to
drive and he did a great job.

Gabe loves riding the wave runners. He and Shawn
went and rode it around for a while. I don't have a picture
of it but Greg and I took him on with us and Greg let
him drive it (the key was still attached to Greg) Gabe managed
to dump us off the side of it. Gabe ended up falling off too, we caught up
to the wave runner and Gabe felt bad but it was all fun.
Another first for Gabe, and I am so mad for not having the camera with me,
is that he tried to wake board. Talk about a proud daddy moment. He
almost go up and then got tuckered out. He said he is definitely going to try it
again though. Greg was so excited because as you all know, that is one of Greg's favorite
hobbies. Gabe is growing so much and we are loving watching him try new things.