Favorite Quotes

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  • "I'm so busy.... I don't know if I found a rope... or lost my donkey! - Unknown"
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Saturday, May 30, 2009

Carlie's Kindergarten Trip





Carlie's class got a chance to go visit a farm for a field trip. I wasn't able to go, so Granny took her. They had a good time. Just wanted to share some pictures of Carlie. I'm glad Granny got to go with her.

Friday, May 29, 2009

United, We Stand.....



I've had a hard time finding time to post the last two weeks. I spent Monday through Thursday of last week in various parts of Texas for work.

While I was there, I had a fender bender in the company rental car which cause reams of paperwork and required urine drug test because it was an accident while on company time.

And I had to make the previously mentioned emergency run to Walmart for clean underwear.

Also while I was there, my old cat got sick. He's almost 15 years old. He's the one we dried in the drier accidentally that time.

He got sick, and Bob was afraid to take him to the vet because he thought they might put him to sleep. (Had a hard time following THAT logic.) He had Libby call Granny and ask what to do. Granny said to take him to the vet. It was just in the nick of time. He had a blocked ureter and his bladder was the size of a grape fruit. So Bob left a message on my phone while I was in the air on the way to Austin. I walked through the Houston Airport sniffling. Shadow's back home now, but he's still very weak and I don't think he's eating.

We left for Oklahoma on Friday the 22nd, which is Pepaw's birthday and also Granny and Papaw's anniversary. We worked on their yard while we were there. Then we came back home and worked on our house with some painting and drywall work.

Frank and Libby stayed with Memaw and Pepaw at the lake. And Granny came and picked up Madi and Carlie.

The week I was gone, was the last week of school for my kids and for Bob. Granny was able to step in and go to watch their Play Day since neither Bob nor I could do so.

With the fifteen million (er....four) kids we have, I don't know how we'd get everything done without such great family support and team work. United we stand. When I look at pictures like the one above of my kids.....I feel so incredibly blessed to have them in my crazy, busy life.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

The Cemetery Party



We had nice cool weather for The Redden Reunion this year (aka The Cemetery Party). Granny came up with the idea to have shirts made for our family and they were a big hit. Plus it made it alot easier to spot my wild children in the crowd of Pool kin running around.




Thursday, May 21, 2009

Traveling Lightly

I'm in Texas most of this week traveling for work. I absolutely DID NOT pack everything except for underwear. I'd never do anything that dumb. So I did NOT have to make an emergency trip to the local Walmart in Austin,TX so that I would have clean underwear to wear on Monday. DIDN'T happen. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!!!

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

If You Like It So Much, Then YOU Wear It!!!!

Granny made Carlie and Madi the cutest little summer dresses. She was watching Carlie for me for a couple of days while Kindergarten was out. The rest of the kids had class.

They were in Walmart, and Granny found these cute little straw hats that she thought would look so cute with the dresses she'd made. Carlie wouldn't have anything of it. Granny tried and tried to get her to try on a hat. Carlie finally got exasperated with her and told her. "Granny, if you like that straw hat so much, then why don't YOU try it on." LOL. Don't know WHERE she get's that stubborn streak from!!!

Monday, May 18, 2009

You Have To Be Specific With Kids

Having four kids we have a huge assortment of bikes, scooters, skates, skateboards, etc. I've been working really hard with the kids on getting them to put this stuff away when they are done with it instead of leaving it laying all around the yard and drive way.

This weekend, Frank left the new, orange (the imporance of the color will become apparent later) bike sitting out in our driveway all night. The next morning I told him that he was grounded from his bike for a week because he left it out.

Later that afternoon, I noticed that I hadn't seen him in a while. Libby informed me that he was out in the neighborhood riding his bike. That made me furious!!! I sent Bob to go look for him. When Frank came home I told him "WHAT were you doing riding your BIKE. I just GROUNDED you from riding your bike." He looks at me all innocent like and says "But, MOM. You grounded me from my ORANGE bike that I left out. I was riding my old YELLOW bike from LAST year."

Uggggh!!!!

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Most Fun Mother's Day Ever


After we finished the River Run, we went to spend the night at Granny and Pawpaw's house since we still didn't have electricity. I slept upstairs in my old bedroom with Carlie. I LOVE to sleep in on weekend mornings. And remember before that I am blind as a bat without my contacts in.

I wake up, and there are three dogs on my bed jumping around and licking me in the face. I look up and I can see Libby's head peeking above the edge of the bed and she is laughing. Now I am NOT a morning person.

I snapped at her "What are you DOING!?!?!?! Get these dogs off of here. That's NOT FUNNY!!!!" And Granny and the rest of the kids popped up and yelled "HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!"

They had brought me breakfast in bed, a donut and a flower. I was so surprised. they fussed over me about five minutes, then they all just disappeared leaving me with my breakfast. LOL.

It reminded me of when Carlie was born. The room was full of nurses and doctors, my Mom and my husband. They could not get Carlie to cry right away. They whisked her out of the room and everyone went with her. And here I am, having just given birth and sitting in a room all by myself.

The kids blew in like a whirlwind, brought me breakfast and then took off leaving me to enjoy it by myself. LOL.

Thank you, Granny and kids!!!


Tuesday, May 12, 2009

River Run - A Family Thang


We have made the River Run, which is a part of Wichita's annual River Fest and family event. Everyone in my family ran in an event. Bob, Frank and I ran in the 10K (6.2 miles). Frank finished in 58 minutes and came in 5th for his age group. Libby ran in the two mile. And Madi and Carlie participated in the Tot Trot.

My company sponsored a team, and we had a really good time. Lena went with us to watch the kids while Bob and I were running. We went to watch the children's theater after the races. It was Little Red Hen this year. And then we had some good River Fest food afterwards. We rounded the day out with rides and inflatables at the kids corner.

Carlie was SO determined that she was going to win her race. In reality she came in last in her heat. But she was so proud to get her medal that she didn't know the difference. When they got ready to start her race, she got down in a three point stance on the starting line. She was serious. LOL.

Madi tied with another little girl for first place in her heat. It didn't even look like she was trying very hard.

I was so proud of my family for all running this year








Monday, May 11, 2009

The Storm



We've been without electricity for several days. We had a horrible storm blow through Towanda early Friday morning. We lost our electricity, and didn't get it back until late on Sunday.

Straight winds up to 86 miles an hour blew through our town. We woke up around 5am when the electricity went off. Bob went downstairs to see if our sump was filling up since the electric pump couldn't pump the water out. When he walked by the front door, there was water standing on the tile floor. The wind was blowing so hard that it blew rain in around the frame of our door and flooded the floor.

We had to stay up and bail water out of the sump so that it wouldn't flood the basement. They closed both Bob's school and the kids' school because of the storm damage and power outage. I got dressed in the dark and went to work.

I drove through Towanda on my way. Many, many trees were split or uprooted. Many of the windows in downtown Towanda had been blown out and roofs were damaged. There were downed electrical lines everywhere.

And on the edge of Towanda, there has always stood an old red barn and a silo. The silo has the name Towanda painted on it, and the W is crooked. It's kind of an icon that represents our little town. When we first moved to town, the kids told me that the W was crooked because the man painting the words on it had fallen to his death and when he fell the paint was smeared. They left the W crooked in his honor. I told them that was probably not true...it sounded like an urban legend to me. But the kids went down to our local museum one day and found out that it WAS true.

When I drove through town, the barn and the silo were completely gone. The whole lot there was wiped clean and pieces of the barn were all over Towanda. I was really sad to see it gone.

The only picture I could find of it was a drawing by a local. I included the drawing and a link to her blog.

http://vickylw.livejournal.com/24859.html

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

I Swear To Tell The Truth....

The Whole Truth, and Nothing But The True, So Help Me God. I experienced a first today. I testified in court as a witness at a Jury trial. Two women broke into my car a year ago January. It is just now coming to trial. One of the women had already been sent to Federal prision for 5 years on a parole violation. This afternoon we'll find out of they find the other one to be guilty or not.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

April Quotes

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Live with no excuses and love with no regrets.-Montel
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“Today I begin to understand what love must be, if it exists… When we are parted, we each feel the lack of the other half of ourselves. We are incomplete like a book in two volumes of which the first has been lost. That is what I imagine love to be: incompleteness in absence.” -Goncourt-
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God doesn't mind you having nice things. He minds them having YOU. - Craig Groeschel
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Saturday, May 2, 2009

1st Grade Field Trip





Madi and I got to go to the Tanganyika Wildlife Park for her first grade field trip. I got to do this with Libby when she was in first grade as well.

This park breeds and sells rare and endangered animals. They have recently opened to the public as well. While not nearly as big as a zoo, the big difference here is that you can interact with many of the animals.

Madi and I got to pet a kangaroo and feed the Lemurs. Unfortunately, my camera batteries died shortly into the trip, so I didn't get alot of pictures. But here are a few.

Friday, May 1, 2009

OKC Trip - Okapi



As we were riding the tram around, we saw this animal. The tram operator explained that it has the head of a giraffe, the legs of a zebra and the body of a gazelle. Carlie is listening to all that, and she goes "That's one MIXED UP animal!!"

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