Monday, March 30, 2009

Only 42 Cents!

The unborn can't speak for themselves, but we can speak for them. Please help save lives.

When:March 31st, 2009

How:Get a red envelope. You can buy them at Kinko's, or at party supply stores.

On the front, address it to

President Barack Obama

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW

Washington , D.C. 20500

MAKE SURE TO INCLUDE A RETURN ADDRESS SO THAT IT DOESN'T GET TOSSED!

On the back, write the following message:

This envelope represents one child who died because of an abortion. It is empty because the life that was taken is now unable to be a part of our world.

Mail the envelopes March 31st, 2009.

We are hoping he gets close to 50 million red envelopes, one for every child who died [in the U.S.] before having a chance to live.

If you want to read more you can go here.


It may seem that those who believe abortion is wrong are in a minority. It may seem like we have no voice and it's shameful to even bring it up. Let us show our President and the world that the voices of those of us who do not believe abortion is acceptable are not silent and must be heard. Together we can change the heart of The President and save the lives of millions of children. Thank you.

Barack Obama spoke at a Planned Parenthood Action Fund event, uttering the now infamous line, "Well, the first thing I'd do as president is, is sign the Freedom of Choice Act. [Applause.] That's the first thing that I'd do."

An empty red envelope will send a message to President Barack Obama that there is moral outrage in this country over this issue [The Freedom of Choice Act, which will essentially “undo” every law currently in place to limit abortion in the U.S. (i.e., parental consent laws, parental notification, waiting periods, prohibition of transporting a minor girl across state lines to obtain an abortion, etc.)].

It will be quiet, but clear.

(Taken from Kiki's Korner.)

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Frugal-Tea 2009

This past Saturday our church held it's 2nd women's ministry tea. The theme this year was frugality. We had so much fun! Here's a few photos from the day. Renee & Sarah
Ashley, Lynne & Kami
Brooke's table of ladies
Amy, Janet & Leala

Jen (one of our speakers) doing last minute preparations

My table (Heidi, Lisa, Adrienne, Kristen, Ashley, Ashley's MIL (I don't remember her name, I suppose I could call her Mrs. Hoober) & Alex

Jen had a fabulous idea of doing a household exchange. Each lady that wanted to participate brought one household item that they no longer used and were able to exchange it for another item.

Jenna & Kim

Charis' Self Portait

Charis got ahold of the camera again...





Park Day

Summer is coming. I can feel it. While I appreciate that 90 degrees during the day it is only making me think about what is to come...110 and 120! But in the meantime we're trying to enjoy every last bit of Spring that we have. On Sunday morning we headed out to try out a new park.
It was a little warm so Charis and Emma stopped for a little break. After awhile the slides were too hot to slide down so we decided to go for a little walk. There was some horse property behind the park and a paddock with some cows in it. As we walked along we saw a mommy cow with a calf and another cow. I assumed it was another calf so as it was peacefully munching away on the grass I walked up to it and said, "Hey! Mooo!" We soon discovered that it was not a cow or a calf but a BULL! He reared his head and charged for the fence! I screamed and ran down the path! Ben was beside himself in laughter! That's got to be a first for me...challenging a bull then having him charge me! Thank goodness there was a fence there!


After our long walk we took the girls out for a refreshing treat. They enjoyed sitting in the back of the car and eating their sugar filled goodness!

Emma's been doing really well with her animal sounds. Up until about a week ago according to Emma, everything said, "Rawr!" So this morning I was working with her on her animal noises. It went something like this:

"What does a cow say?"
"Booooooo!"
"What does a sheep say?"
"Baaaaaaa!"
"What does a cat say?"
""Maow, maow!"
"What does Chloe say?"
"Grrrrrr!"
What does Mommy say?"
"Burp!"

Thanks sweetheart!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

New Laptop


On Saturday morning our computer monitor went dead. Well, it wasn't really dead so much as blinking incessantly. I had a women's church function to attend and by the time I got home this beautiful piece of machinery was sitting on my desk! Do I have a fantastic husband or what?

Isaiah John

Please pray for our friend's little baby, Isaiah John. He was born on Sunday at 28 weeks and 3 days. He weighs 2lbs 6oz and is 14 inches long.

Monday, March 16, 2009

Emma Loves Chloe

You know how when you love something so much you just want to squeeze it? Yeah, Emma does too.

Ostrich Festival

On Saturday we went to the Ostrich Festival. It was...interesting. It was a little like a county fair but with ostriches. We went with 2 other couples friends of ours. Both are newlyweds without children. So it think we provided a lot of entertainment for them! Ben & I had an ostrich burger for dinner and it was actually pretty good. It's a red meat so it just tasted like really lean beef.
Emma with Mike & Adrienne
Charis & Alex Emma ate chips...at least I think she ate chips, she may have just rubbed them all over her face. We watched some ostrich races which were pretty cool! Then they raced emus, chickens & camels. Like I said, it was...interesting.

Then we saw this stunt show. It totally freaked me out, but the girls loved it!

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Our Newest Addition!



This morning we added a new member to our family. Her name is Chloe. The girls are loving her! (Emma a little too much, we're working on that!)

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Charis' World

During one particularly insightful formative instruction moment with Charis I proceeded to tell her that indeed the world did NOT revolve around her. To which she replied in disbelief, "It doesn't?!?!" Then she continued on in pure innocence to ask, "Well, then who does the world revolve around?"

You Know You're from Arizona When...

You notice your car overheating before you drive it.

You no longer associate bridges or rivers with water.

You can hear the weather forecast of 115 degrees without flinching.

You can be in the snow, then drive for an hour...and it will be over 100 degrees.

You discover, in July it only takes two fingers to drive your car, because your steering wheel is so hot.

You run your air conditioner in the middle of winter so you can use your fireplace.

The best parking is determined by shade.....not distance.

You realize that "Valley Fever" isn't a disco dance.

You can make sun tea instantly.

Hotter water comes from the cold water tap than the hot one.

It's noon in July, kids are on summer vacation and yet all the streets are totally empty of both cars and people.

You actually burn your hand opening the car door.

Sunscreen is sold year round and kept right at the checkout counter.

You put on fresh sunscreen just to go check the mail box.

Some fools will market mini-misters for joggers and some other fools will actually buy them. Worse.....some fools actually try to jog.

You can pronounce Saguaro, Tempe, San Xavier, Canyon de Chelly, Mogollon Rim, Cholla, Gila and Tucson.

You can understand the reason for a town named "Why"

You can fry an egg on the hood of a car in the morning.

You know hot air balloons can't rise because the air temperature is hotter than the air inside the balloon.

You see two trees fighting over a dog.

You can say "Hohokam" and people don't think you're laughing funny.

You see more irrigation water on the street than there is in the Salt River

You have to go to a fake beach for some fake waves

You hear people say "but it's a dry heat!"

You buy salsa by the gallon.

Your Christmas decorations include sand and l00 paper bags.

You think a red light is merely a suggestion.

All of your out-of-state friends start to visit after October but clear out come the end of April.

You think someone driving wearing oven mitts is clever.

Most of the restaurants in town have the first name "El" or "Los."

You think 60 tons of crushed red rock makes a beautiful yard.

Your house is made of stucco and has a red clay tile roof.

Vehicles with open windows have the right-of-way in the summer.

Most homes have more firearms than people.

Kids ask, "What's a mosquito?"

People who have black cars or black upholstery in their car are automatically assumed to be from out of-state or nuts.

You know better than to get into a car with leather seats if you're wearing shorts.

You can finish a Big Gulp in 10 minutes and go back for seconds.

You take rain dances seriously.

When a rainy day puts you in a good mood.

When you drive two miles around a parking lot looking for a shady place - even in the dead of winter.

You feed your chickens ice cubes to keep them from laying hard-boiled eggs.

You "hug" a cactus only once in your lifetime.

When you have to look up "mass transit" in the dictionary.

A hundred ten in the shade is sorta hot, but you don't have to shovel it off your driveway.

A haboob happens.

Petrified doesn't mean scared.

The temperature drops below 95, you feel a bit chilly.

You've lived in AZ your whole life and have never been to the Grand Canyon

You would give anything to be able to splash cold water on your face.

You can attend any function wearing shorts and a tank top.

You realize that asphalt has a liquid state.

You realize that snowbirds aren't really birds at all, but just really bad out of state drivers that you learn to hate

There are only two temperatures, hot and hotter

Even thinking about not having air conditioning makes you sweat

You travel out of state and any sort of humidity nearly kills you

You have no idea why 48 other states (Hawaii doesn't do it either) insist on changing their clocks twice a year for this thing called "daylight savings time"

Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Interview with Charis

  1. What is something mom always says to you?
    “Don't run away from me.” (True)
  2. What makes mom happy?
    “When I obey you.” (Very true!)
  3. What makes mom sad?
    “When I don't obey you.” (She's good!)
  4. How does your mom make you laugh?
    “When you tickle me.”
  5. What did your mom like to do when she was a child?
    “You liked playing with dolls. If they made dolls when you were a little girl” (Nice, thanks!)
  6. How old is your mom?
    “Um, I think you're 17.” (Thank you!)
  7. How tall is your mom?
    “Right about this high.” (She then used her hands to make about 15 inches.)
  8. What is her favorite thing to watch on TV?
    “The firetruck movie.” (Um...ok.)
  9. What does your mom do when you’re not around?
    “Just clean up yourself.”
  10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
    “A singer.” (Yeah, right!)
  11. What is your mom really good at?
    “I think you pour water.” (I feel so appreciated!)
  12. What is your mom not very good at?
    “I think you paint alright.”
  13. What does your mom do for her job?
    “Clean up and make beds.” (True!)
  14. What is your mom’s favorite food?
    “Salmon.” (That's what we had for dinner tonight.)
  15. What makes you proud of your mom?
    “That you clean up well.” (Again with the cleaning!)
  16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
    “A princess named Ariel.”
  17. What do you and your mom do together?
    “Playing my TAG.” (It's a computer reading game she got for Christmas.)
  18. How are you and your mom the same?
    “Ours hairs are short.”
  19. How are you and your mom different?
    “You have a higher bed than I do.”
  20. What does your mom like most about your dad?
    “Whenever you ask him to make dinner he does.” (Ha Ha!)
  21. Where is your mom’s favorite place to go?
    “Target.” (Yes, that's true!)
  22. How do you know your mom loves you?
    “Because you like what I say that's funny.”
  23. Who is your favorite person?
    “I think my favorite person is you & Daddy & Emma.” (She's so political!)
  24. Do you have a boyfriend?
    "I want my boyfriend to be Isaiah." (Aw!)
  25. Are you going to get married?
    “Yeah!”

Monday, March 02, 2009

Uh, Oh

I would have like to have titled this post "Oh! Emma!" because that would mean that I would have had some fantastically hilarious story about how Emma broke my glasses. But, alas! No such thing. It should be titled, "Oh! Melissa!". Yes, I broke them...all on my own. I wasn't even awake when it happened. I had fallen asleep and laid them next to me...when I woke up they were broken. Oh, well!
__________
You might not find this video super interesting but I do! I was singing Happy Birthday with Emma and she was singing along with me! It isn't until the end that she starts chiming in.