warm

The weather is warm and I am warmer...ugh.

Fevers started on Sunday afternoon- low grade. Then faded only to return yesterday afternoon. The went away before bed last night and are back again even higher today! :-(

Talked to Dr Scott today - he decided to start some antibiotics. Let's hope this does it!

Call him back on Fridat morning with an update..if not drastically improved..we will do more tests as he is concerned about that lonely ovary he left behind. YUCK

Now on to the good stuff.....

The Hamlins's are coming tomorrow. The Hamlin's are coming tomorrow. (do you see me dancing my happy dance?)

My house is a wreck and filthy....but I am going to ignore it and focus on my visitors. Gosh golly...we all know we didn't become friends because of our house or maid service. :-)

This lil princess has been my shadow since I came home. She's been posing for some great pics.

That wraps up my day so far!

"The Hamlin's are coming! The Hamlin's are coming!" :-)

Here is our garden plenty....green beans. They were so yummy last night!!

This is a little of what we have been up to.....

• Dakoda got his truck - 1999 Dakota
• He takes his final test on Sat at noon with EZ Way
• Sec of State on Monday and he is OFFICIAL
• Awesome pics from Grand Haven pier the last weekend we were up
• Koda working on painting and cleaning up his hitch for his truck- he is so grown up...I hate it on one hand and LOVE it on the other. He is an awesome kid.
• My Gerbera Daisies are awesome in full bloom!
• My new fern from my mom is gorgeous - and HUGE!
• Koda got his first check from his first job! NICE! He made his first truck payment!!
• Jake has been busy with football....Loma Brown camp last week, J High camp this week then a 2 week break!
• Steve has just plain been GROWING! He is almost as tall as Jake and not slowing down.
• Me? I am good. Survived my surgery on Wed July 8th! a nightmare to get started but all in all came out well. Struggling to slow down and relax!
• Steve? I think he is tired of being a nurse and ready to go back to work! :-)

right now

Right now....

• I am home on my lunch hour.
• I am exhausted. Training peeps to cover my many daily tasks called MY JOB!
• Jake is silly. He went to a birthday sleep over...and he has not eaten or slept since yesterday! (well he ate dinner last night) He is so sleepy he is silly
• I looking forward to the week or so after surgery- I have a couple good reads on hand and more scrappin stuff to make cards.
• I am planning pages to do for Koda's scrapbook...need to get it done before next spring!
• The sun is hiding behind a thick blanket of clouds making for a gloomy and cool afternoon.
• all in all....life is good.

I hope to start blogging more after surgery....I will have more time. lol

Outside my window: and awesome garden awaits the 'Garden Ho'.

I am thinking: that Koda really needs to get his license....the Mom Taxi has to have him at work at 7am.....HELP!
I am thankful for: Faith, family and friends
From the kitchen: I hear boys scooping icecream...and a fight has just started over flavors

I am wearing: stuffy HOT work clothes
I am creating: A MESS!

I am going: CRAZY...wanna join me?
I am reading: blogs, blogs and more blogs
I am hoping: the dr will decide to do surgery SOON

I am hearing: That 70s Show, the shower running, and Guitar Hero

Around the house: I hear TIRED boys! They may be teens but they still get HOT n cranky!

One of my favorite things: ICE TEA
Plans for the week: Heading north on Thursday to accompany my dad to a dr appt to get a referral to the U of M!
Photo to share:

Porter Street Biker Gang

The frame I made for the baby

shower last weekend=

Brylee's her name

I love fishing

Because my men folk all LOVE to fish. They headed out about 3pm this afternoon and said they would see me around 'dark thirty'! WOO HOO. Watching a chic flik, blogging, clipping coupons, and sipping an ice cold Coke. Does like get any better? :-)

Spent yesterday evening at a wedding...it was beautiful. Very unique wedding.....nothing traditional about it, really, other than the attire. Congrats to Josh and Abbi! A few snapshots from yesterday....

I am blogging....

I stumbled across some old photo albums when I was up at my dad's last time.....and have started scanning the pics to share with my siblings and 2 cousins. I am amazed


The handwriting is my Grandma's....this was her home where her father had the butter room. Grandma made note ...look at the single light bulb above the machine...that was IT!


This is an old family photo.....how cool. This was her Mom's side of the family!

This fascinated us....my brother, Bill and my Grandpa Meek were playing a video game....do you all remember that game? The console is sitting on the stool. HELLO? Look at the tiny TV!

Guess who?

Life has been crazy for me. Seems as though it's just one curve ball after another. However. I have been chanting "I will survive" and it seems to pass the day. Thinking I may need to go back to batting practice...as it seems to be wearing me out!

Had a wedding to attend today...and it sure was nice to have everyone else travel this time rather than me. The wedding was in Grass Lake. Nice. Funny too to hear them all grumble about the long drive....I know nothing about that drive....ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha !

I found a neuropathy clinic at the U of M we are trying to get my dad into. Cross your fingers. Next step find him a new place to live. Must choose....Eaton Rapids or Spring Lake.

Next weekend....I get to go spend some time with MY MOM. Miss her lots...NEED to go spend MORE time with her. Just need to figure out where to get more days in a week/ month. xxoo

do you remember...

Thank you Mom and Dad and Cassie for coming to Jake's graduation! It was such a treat to have you all present! He was surprised!!

(this pic shows those eyes up close...although it is an oldie...it's a goodie) lol

Did your school do the mock elections ? They give you a list of a bunch of things to nominate people for - you vote. (all choices were fun and positive)

Jake also received a 'Fly Under the Radar' certificate from his Algebra teacher....too TRUE!

What a fun day...and then.....

We had a great day today....the 8th graders were TONS of fun and loads of laughs. They played putt putt golf at Ella then we had the picnic. We had a DJ -complete with karaoke.

The weather was cool but NO rain!! :-)

The dancing 8th grade girls........and Team 8-1. This is the group which is 1/4 of the

class of 2013

and then Jake and Ian were playing around walking on the curb....Ian gave Jake a shove and he rolled his ankle. (please ignore my messy house)

Waiting to hear from the dr or express care tomorrow....to see if they determine a break or just a bad sprain. For now he is on crutches totally non weight bearing! My boys just are not graceful ballerinas. lol

on to high school

We are very proud.

Jake made it through middle school....HOORAY!

Jake had his graduation celebration today! He also had an honors breakfast....

which I thought was yesterday- dropped him off yesterday at 7am and he sent
me a text just minutes later..."mom breakfast is TOMORROW" luckily he caught me by McDonalds....I flew through the drive thru and back to school to feed him before he needed to go to class. One sure sign that my plate is too FULL. I need a planner.

Tomorrow is the all day picnic celebration.....which Steve and I are both attending. Pics coming soon.

Thursday...1/2 day.....having an MRI done. My back. :-(

Where did these babies go?

SPRING - we have fuzzy babies. They were just adorable waddling along.

Steve had a band concert this week at Parkside.

He had to be there an hour before it started so we dropped him off and went over to drive through Ella Sharp....we found this lil guy and a few others standing on the side of the road watching us.....too cute. We just stared at one another....I snapped many pics and he just posed. :-)

Band concerts are so tough to catch pics of 'my kid' unless the sit right at the end of a row nearest the front of the stage....so I caught him walking off. Great concert Steve. He tried trombone in 6th grade and hated it. This year he is playing the trumpet and really liking it. Infact he is considering changing his schedule for next year to include more band. My guys just love music........how cool. :-)

I have been crazy busy....4 weekends on the road. Hurt my back last weekend...now I'm struggling with pain radiating down my rt leg. Had xrays and now taking muscle relaxers and pain meds...hate taking any pills. Hate the pain.

Planning a BBQ for tomorrow at Steve's brothers'....otherwise, hoping for some rest and time at home. No boys tonight...all farmed out to friends' houses. It was nice to come home to a QUIET house, just Riley and I were here for an hour. Steve picked up dinner for he and I...surprised me with Save-Time Pizza. it was so sweet. That was my addiction and craving when I was pregnant with Dakoda....we lived too close (Meadowood Apts) which made it very accessible. Not sure it was as yummy as it used to be when I was pregnant....but the thought behind it made it G R E A T!

Have an awesome weekend.

How'd I do?

Dakoda tested his mom yest one more time....ha! as if I thought there was an end to the testing.

At 10pm last night Dakoda remembered he had the last part a project he had not done...and it was due TODAY!! Not something simple either....a tshirt to go with a paper he and another kid did for Econ! ugh.

• So, I gave a slight lecture as I was slipping into my cape and tights.....TA DA!! SUPERMOM will save the day!



• Happened to have an extra white tshirt from the last tshirt Mom made for chemisty class ... luckily had just stumbled across that one- knew exactly where it was.



• Voila! Now what does this have to have on it? 'Oh we need to create some sort of a logo and iron it on the shirt!"



• Thought I was going to choke him immediately....then I remembered buying a pkg of something like that at Joann's from the clearance bins....located that and found it not to be the kind of transfer you iron on. Nope you can do the photo transfer on to this paper...but then you have to iron or glue it on.



• NO problem....designed a cool logo on the computer....printed it. Then as it was drying I was fumbling around deciding how I was going to attach it. *I do have a sewing machine....but sewing on a tshirt for a guy sounds not so appealing....need fabric glue....



• Voila! I have craft glue that does infact mention fabric on it.....SO! I have now used 2 scrapbooking items as well as my craftiness.



• I used my sponge brush for my paint and stamps to paint the glue on the back of the logo....then stuck on the shirt....



• I was not happy with the look....had to outline with black 3D fabric paint- the one thing I made Koda do.



• Then I laid it out on the kitchen table to dry....set up a light oscillating fan to dry while I went to BED!

I think I will get an A! How about you?

YUM-O

I went to my mom's yesterday....and filled a cooler with 20# of this wonderful green weed - as some of you refer to it. I love asparagus- it may have something to with my roots? Growing up in Oceana County in Western Michigan - in a community that has a festival in honor of this awesome green yummy vegetable. 06/12/09 - 06/14/09

Infact, yesterday we took my mom out to lunch at the Stony Lake Inn - which used to be the bar/restaurant that my grandparents owned back in the 70s. We had deep fried asparagus as an appetizer. It was AWESOME! It was a lot of fun - we laughed and reminisced sharing our fondest memories of way back when. My fondest memories of when my grandparents owned it.....napping in the booth after kindergarten! :-) We missed Bill and his family though.....he was sent to Indiana for work unexpectedly on Sat morning. :-(

My mom gave me a new recipe for asparagus....planning to make it this weekend.
How was your Mother's Day weekend?

May 8, 1993

Where does time go?
16 years today we were married and joined together as the Barton family.


I found these pics and the 'program' that the preacher used during the ceremony. He offered it to me after the ceremony asking if I wanted it as a 'keepsake'. Love it. I also have a CASSETTE tape of the ceremony music tucked away too. (the organist was ill and unable to play- so we used the sound system lol)
It was ALL GOOD! :-)







I am proud to say that I am still on marriage #1 - 16 years later. We have weathered through some very rough waters...seen some days that I wondered if we could make it through another....but best off all....I have many many years of wonderful memories of a life I share with this man- who is all in all a great catch. I am a lucky girl...and he is an even luckier man...ha ha !! :-)

TRue beauty

Nothing more beutiful than a sunset over Lake MI.

dirt 'stache?

This young man is growing up waaay tooo fast....he is begging me daily to let him shave. He hates his "dirt 'stache" he says. I refuse to let him start already.

He is changing so much -

new haircut - requested a style this time (I call it the Zack Efron style)
new clothes - wearing golf shirts and khaki shorts/pants now - was jeans and tshirts only
new friends - both male and female (thinking this may be prompting some changes?)

He is a good kid. Good friends. Great choices.

I miss the BIG Lake

Oh how I miss the BIG Lake.

back to school

Koda was released back to school today. He did not want to go, claimed he his head pain was a 10 again this morning- gave him Advil, he stopped just short of a temper fit kicking and screaming on the living room floor. It was a silent ride to school. Turkey. His eyes looked much better this morning....actually normal size pupils, and the reaction was not nearly as sluggish as yesterday, etc. Yesterday afternoon and evening he was quite spunky - verbal attacks on the brothers, fiesty attitude, and laughing while watching tv too!! OH Koda, I remember the spring of my junior and senior year........ :-) Soon enough my baby you will wish that your only responsibilties were to make it to school Monday - Friday and Sept- June and a few household chores. The money stops growing on trees, the mysetery maid stops doing your laundry, cooking your meals, and so on. But until then you are allowed to think I am the meanest mom ever and I do not understand what it is like ... I LOVE YOU.

Glory and OUCH

Dakoda took 2nd place last night (04/10/09)at Lansing Eastern. Nice medal.
We just ordered his vasity jacket - he cannot wait to start attaching his medals. :-)

Today Dakoda and Jake went to a freestyle meet in Chelsea while Steve Sr, Steve II and I went to work at a martial arts tournament held at parkside- they are making a $1000 donation to the wrestling program for us hosting the event. Jake went to watch- and decide if he wants to try it. Sounds like he is planning to wrestle in Eaton Rapids next weekend. :-)

Dakoda did not do so well. He took 5th - and suffered a concussion. He was dropped on his head during a match- has one heck of a goose-egg with a cut....have to watch him closely through the night. He is really experiencing pain, tingling, a little off balance......

Happy Easter to you all. Hope we all have loads of sunshine.

Just a quick post. I am exhausted and have a wonderful headache.

Had the time of our lives last night...the Hamlin's were in town staying with their Great Grandma so we borrowed them and took them all to Ci Ci's for pizza! I laughed so much. They were all great!!

Each of them wanted to get something from a disguise machine - they were hilarious!!