Prayer Request

I have an update on Barry B.'s brain tumor. He had surgery Monday or Tuesday, the doctor got most of the tumor out. Unfortunately, they couldn't get all of it. Please continue to keep him and his family in your prayers. Thanks!

She's Only 4

Katie and I went trudging out into the still freezing weather, to complete her "Operation Kids Project" to Haiti. Now, try to explain to a 4 year old that buying items for a child in another country of a different origin. All you get are questions galore. "Is it for a boy or a girl? What does she look like? Where does she live? Why does she need bandaids? Is she hurt? What's an earthquake?" I didn't have a picture to show her what the children of Haiti looked like, so I think I made a mistake by describing them as having the same skin color as Katie's friends, Nia & Mia. I was trying to explain how they had dark skin. She understood. Unfortunately, she thought we were buying these things for Nia and her hispanic friend, Mia. Then she asked when we were going to Mia's house. Ugh! I tried to explain to her about the devastation of an earthquake. I don't think she could grasp all of what I was trying to tell her. She doesn't like to watch the news with her daddy and I, she says it's too boring, so she missed all the Haitian pictures and videos. I'm hoping to get online and find pictures for her. I think she would have a better understanding, if she could witness something visual.

We were suppose to fit all these items in gallon bags. I knew right away, it was going to be a challenge to get a blanket & pillow to fit inside a gallon bag. Thank goodness I found 2 gallon bags by Ziplock. I wished they sold 5 gallon bags because I think everything could have fit perfectly. I had Katie sitting right by me, helping because this was her project. She was so worried that she wouldn't be able to write her name on the card. Now that Katie can write her name well, she wants to write it on everything.

It was bugging Katie to death because she didn't know what the little girl's name was that we were helping. "What's her name? Why don't you know her name?" Doug told her that we needed to come up with a name. With a brillant idea look on her face, she said "I know what we'll call her? We'll call her Katie. I think she'll like that name. What do you think mom?" I agreed. She seemed so much more relieved now that she had a name. My Katiebug is something else.

Saturday Plans
We are planning on having mom and dad over for the day to watch the Senior Bowl, starts at 3PM. It should be pretty exciting to watch. Later tonight, Kevin, Maryann and Ryan are coming over for supper. I'm just hoping mom and dad can stay that long in order to join us. We bought a whole bunch of chicken tenders and fries. Doug's going to dip a few in wing's sauce. Normally, we dip them in "Frank's Wing Sauce." This time we're dipping them in "Budweiser Wing's Sauce."

Ryan's going back to NC, so we wanted to visit with him one more time before he left. He has been catching up on his deer hunting, day and night, the whole month he's been home. Katie loves it when Ryan comes to visit because he puts her on his shoulders and walks her around. Her head nearly hits the ceiling when he does it. Ha ha!

We're In Trouble!

Snap To It Girl Cheer
I believe Doug and myself are in trouble. I say this because my daughter, Katie, has taken my words and is turning them into a very catchy cheer. Last night, she was mumbling something and I wasn't paying too much attention. I thought her clapping in a pattern and snapping her head up and down was cute. This caught my attention, so I stood there in the bathroom as she was getting ready for her bath and listened to the cheer. "Snap To It Girl! (clap, clap, clap . . . clap, clap, clap)" as her head snapped back and forth. Where did she hear this I thought at first and then it dawned on me. I asked her, "where did you hear this cheer?" All shy now, "I don't know." (giggling) I asked her if she got it from me. She giggled some more. Now, let me back up. In the past I would give Katie some instruction and if she was off in Katieland (pretending not to hear me), I'd clap my hands and say "snap to it girl." Me saying this seemed to get her back to earth. I don't know if it's a girl thing, but she daydreams a lot. Like any child, she thinks the wind is blowing and it's not mama telling her to do something at all. What's sad is how she was able to take my words and turned them into cute cheers. As I was drying her hair, she told me to say the cheer with her. I had a hard time keeping it together because all I wanted to do was laugh, which would have been fine with her because that's all she did was laugh. Ugh! Man, are we in trouble!

Last night, I was checking in on Katie and Colton. It was precious, they were cuddled together in the corner of the room, playing. They were surrounded by blankets, pillow and toys. They were having a ball and Katie was pretending to tell Colton secrets. Apparently, he thought her secrets were hilarious because he would start chackling. The more secrets, the more laughter. It's a wonder if he's side didn't hurt from laughing so hard. One thing I enjoy is watching them play. They play so good with one another and she loves to make her brother laugh. It's just hard to get into her thick skull that there are limits because Colton is still a little baby. I have to say, she is getting some better.
I believe Colton misses he's sissy when she's not around. When he does see her, he's little eyes light up and he begins jumping up for joy. He gets mad, if he is in the Living Room and Katie goes to her bedroom, to play. He wants her with him at all times, but she's not allowed to play with her toys in the Living Room. Unfortunately, it was a mommy and daddy rule. Katie has so many toys that are really tiny and we fear Colton will get a hold of one and choke on it. So, it's best Katie's toys were not allowed in the room. However, Katie likes to play with Colton's toys too, so it works out.

Four Basic Food Groups

Katie is learning about her food groups. The other day, they covered the meat/poultry/fish group. Today, they studied about the bread group. Her homework was to try a new food and report if she liked it or not. Well, Doug and I have always made it a rule since Katie was a baby that she would have to try different foods at least once. If she didn't like it, it wouldn't be forced on her. If she did like it that would be great. It was very hard for me to come up with a new food for her to eat. There's not much she hasn't tried that I would feel alright with. I mean I would never force her to try buttermilk or sauerkraut. Yuck! Like me, she has to smell everything new before she even thinks about putting it towards her tongue. Even then, she'll stick the tip of her tongue ever so gently to taste for good judgment.

Yesterday, I dropped her off at ballet and went to Walmart to come up with an idea because I was at a lose. Finally, there it was . . . Mangoes by bushels. I've never had a mango before, so this would be a good experience for the both of us. I really didn't know how to pick a ripe one, so I went by instinct and picked one like I would a peach (soft & reddish color). As soon as we got home, I peeled, cut up and put in the fridge to get cold. I can't believe I've never had a mango before, they are so sweet. I think I might like them better than a peach. I think Katie was surprised how sweet they were as well. We both liked it very much and we will be having them more often now.

Katie's class will be taking a field trip to Ci Ci's Pizza to complete the food group study in a few days. Mrs. Katie had to get a head count as to how many students and parents will be attending. I really don't prefer Ci Ci's Pizza, not my favorite, but it's cheap. Now, I just have to send in the money and written approval for Katie to attend.

New In Electronics
The new IPad from Apple was revealed today by none other than Steve Jobs. Actually, I was surprised to see he was well enough to unveil the new computer himself. I guess his cancer treatments are going well. The pad is specifically for reading books, playing games and watching videos. Pretty cool!


Massive Toyota Vehicle Recall
Have you noticed the massive vehicle recall from Toyota? This isn't helping the economy out at all. Plus, all the people that own these cars/trucks. The halt in production are on 8 different models of Toyotas because to the accelerator and the mechanics to go along with them. It's a very serious deal from what I understand. There have been reports about the accelerator sticking. I would be scared to death, if that happened to me. The recalls include the top-seller Camry since 2007. Also included are as follows: '09-10 RAV4, Corolla & Matrix, '08-10 Sequoia, '07-10 Tundra, '05-10 Avalon, and '10 Highlander.

100th Day of School

Today marks the 100th day of school; therefore, all the students of Covenant School are encouraged to dress up like a 100 year old man or woman. Katie loved this idea until she got to school. She was up bright eyed and bushy tailed this morning waiting to dress up in grandma Jerry's stuff. As the morning went on, it got to where she said the glasses hurt her hair. She wouldn't leave the glasses alone,when I put them on her. She'd take them off and put them back on. The way she was putting them on, they would stick in her already pulled back hair. Of course, it hurt putting the glasses on this way. I'd tried to fix them and I'd see her do it again. Ugh! Children! Finally, I told her to put them in her backpack until we got to school. As soon as we got to school, I had a hard time getting her to put the glasses on because she said they hurt her hair. Whatever!



Katie and her friend, Olivia. Katie wasn't too thrilled having her picture taken at school. Blah!

Getting ready for next year's school year, Covenant School is having their annual Open House on February 7th from 2PM-3PM.

Daystar Church in Cullman has a project going on right now. They are collecting aid for Earthquake victims in Haiti. Covenant School's students are helping out. They've given the students a list of items to get for boys and girls. We are to fill up a gallon ziplock bag with gender listed on it. The deadline for Covenant students are not until February 5th, so I'm sure if you want to participate with the church, there's plenty time. If you'd like more information, send me a comment.

Great Weekend

I had a very enjoyable birthday weekend. I want to thank all of you for the warm and cheerful birthday wishes! I really do appreciate my family and friends remembering me on my special day.

I received a couple pair of beautiful shoes, Doug is too good to me. A fabulous pink purse that I picked out. I've never owned a purse that wasn't either black or brown. You talk about getting out of your comfort zone (lol), but I absolutely love it.

Some of you know, I've been using Doug's grillin' apron around the house while I bake. I've been keeping my eyes open for that perfect apron just for me. The only ones I could find were of solid color and very original. I loved Laura's apronshe received for her birthday, but I didn't want to get one exactly like hers. Well, Saturday night as we were waiting to be seated at P.F. Chang's for my birthday supper, we walked over to a new shop at Bridge Street. I don't know how long Le Gourmet Chef has been here, but I really like this little shop. It reminds me a little of a World Market. I didn't have long to shop in this store, but I found the apron that I've been looking for. It's says: "Queen of Everything." Doug giggled at me when I read it to him. Below is a picture of it.

We waited an hour and a half, close to two hours, before we were seated in P.F. Chang's. Oh, it was so worth the wait! I just love this place. We decided to get something different this time, so we ordered Mongolian Beef and Combination Lo Mein Noodles(shrimp, chicken & beef). I recommend it all! It was very good. I've never had Lo Mein Noodles before and I think I like them better than fried rice, it's not so filling. We are definitely ordering this again the next time. We also ran into some old friends of ours, while we were at Bridge Street. We all wanted to have a little catch up time, but unfortunately there was no time for that. (sniff sniff) When I worked, we all would get together at a different spot for dinner and play catch up. I enjoyed those times so much. Now, it's hard for us to get together.

Look What Colton's Doing
Peggy had her two step ladder out in the kitchen and Colton found it. The little booger climbed right up just like he knew what he was doing. He has never done this before, he acted so proud of himself. Of course, we cheered him on and I think Peggy took a picture of him trying to climb up again. He's been a little crabby and I can see a tooth coming through, so that's probably a lot of his problem. It's the top right tooth by his two front teeth. One thing I don't miss is teething. He pretty much doesn't want to do anything but for me to hold him. Poor baby.

Katie's School Update
Katie continues to improve at school. In fact, Mrs. Katie told me today how much she is impressed on Katie and how she is growing up in her school work. She's been doing a lot of work on her own now without any assistance from Mrs. Katie and bringing home a lot of smiley faces. She can count up to 40. She recognizes some of her letters, sounds and most of her numbers (up to 10).

Great Finds
I must of lost some inches in my waist, can't really see it, but I could put on a pair of pants this morning that I haven't been able to put on for some time now. Whell, I couldn't get them on unless I was laid out on the bed trying to pour myself in them. (lol) So, today we go back to the diet. I've seen advertised on TV "Jello Mousse." I noticed our Walmart had them in stock - - you talk about sheer decadence. I got the dark chocolate mousse and it is delicious! What's so wonderful about it is it fits great with my Weight Watchers plan with only 60 calories and 2.5 grams of fat (1 pt). Jello has other flavors if you're not much for dark chocolate like chocolate indulgence and caramel creme. I highly recommend them!

Of course, I saw this at our local Walmart, thought of my Texas relatives and decided to get it. Ha Ha! Love you guys!

Do you have your BCS Championship t-shirts yet? I would love to know what yours says, so please comment and let me know. I've seen so many different ones here. Soon after the game, I got Doug a shirt. I don't like it as well as mine though.

Prayer Request
I have a couple special prayer requests. I spoke to my sister, Susan last night. Jon, her son, has a knee that's swollen with infection. It's an injury he sustained a few months ago that's having a hard time healing because of his condition. He's not diabetic (not even borderline), but he's on medication to keep him from going that way. I hope this makes sense. Anyway, like any other teenager, he failed to keep the antibiotic cream on it and now it's set up with infection. The doctor, Sue took him, said if it gets worse or if it busts, he'll have to have surgery to get the infection out. Sue is all upset, especially if he'll need surgery in order to get over this. Please remember him in your prayers.

A man I know, Barry B. was just diagnosed as to having a brain tumor. It stretches out and down in his head. They don't know if it's cancerous or if it is operable. Barry is a (approximately) 45 year old husband and dad of two. I'm sure his wife is very upset because their friend and mine, Shannon P.(I've asked for prayer a while back), started out with a tumor in his brain. Unfortunately, Shannon passed away 10 months after his diagnosis. I ask you to please keep them lifted in your thoughts and prayers.

The Twilight Series
I finished reading "Eclipse" the other day. The beginning was a little slow, but quickly got very exciting. You talk about hard to put the book down for a second because something was happening every two to three pages. I'm still hopeful that Bella will reconsider the value of life and realize Jake is her soulmate. I know a lot of you feel Edward and Bella are destined for one another, but I'm partial to Jacob. Edward and Bella's love is just a fantasy in their own minds. It will never result to anything unless she's dead aka transformed. It's not a real love, in my eyes. They could never have a normal life with one another and still have ties to the true loves of her life (Charlie, Renee, Jacob and other friends). I know I would rather cuddle up to a warm body with a beating heart than a hard, stone cold nothing. The only thing she's attracted to Edward is his breath and good looks (lol). After reading the book, I've been teasing Doug a little about being my werewolf. Oh la la! I think he likes the idea somewhat. (tehe) Now on to the last book of the series, "Breaking Dawn." I've already started reading a few pages and I'm very excited to see how this tug-of-war love affair comes to an end. Until then . . . ta ta!

A Tear

The first few days at the beginning of the school year, Katie would walk to her classroom by herself, while I watched her. She seemed pretty comfortable doing it. All of the sudden, she was upset every school morning because she had to walk to her class. Eventually it came to me walking her to class every morning. Thinking positive, I thought I had better enjoy it while it lasted. I know there will be a day when she would want me to drop her off a block away from school. I hope she'll never be embarrassed with me to be that drastic. Well, this morning I didn't know whether to get emotional (cry) or jump up for joy. As soon as I put the car in park, Katie jumped out of her car seat and announced, "I can walk to class by myself mom. You don't have to come." (sniff, sniff) I made it a big deal. I praised her, "you're such a big girl to want to go to your class by yourself." She was all smiles. Being a big girl is a very BIG deal around the Mason household. All Katie wants is approval by mom and dad. If she feels that she's not getting enough approval from us, she'll flat out ask if she is acting like a big girl. Of course, I'll see the need and go in to praising and recognition on her success. As I watched Katie walking to her class this morning, she stopped half way and waved bye to me. (tears whaling up in my eyes) I'm so proud of her. Now, we've got to wait and see if Katie walking to her class by herself, with mama watching her, will last. Next year will be a big blow, if she doesn't get use to the idea of going to class on her own. I say that because I've made friends with a lady that works at the Primary School and she told me that all children are dropped off at the front door. A school worker will unload the child out of the car and walk them to class every morning. It would be better for me, but I sure hope Katie will adjust.

Happy 46th Anniversary

Happy Anniversary to Millard and Peggy!

It won't be too many years before they will be able to celebrate that "Golden Anniversary." YAY! With their anniversary landing on a week day this year, we took them out to eat last night. I haven't ate at a Longhorn Restaurant in a very long time. Mmmmmm! I had their ribeye with potato and salad. Oh, it was so good. Colton was sitting by me, so I shared my slice of bread and a few bites of potato with him. Colton just doesn't know when to stop eating. I fed him a 7 oz. bottle on our way to pick up Millard and Peggy. As soon as we got to the restaurant, I fed him a stage 2 jar of apples and summer peaches. Yum! This was a new taste for him and he really liked it. Thinking he was satisified, I cleaned him up and took his feeding bib off. Then, he saw the bread. It was a pretty big slice and he nearly ate it all. LOL!

Peggy, Katie and myself wanted to go to the mall after dinner. I was telling Peggy how much Katie has grown this past Fall. She just shot up over night. Before school started, I purchased size 4 clothes to at least last until next Spring. Who knew she would just up to a size 5 by Christmas. Doug was really getting on me because her pants looked like your basic "high waters." I had a hard time trying to find something descent for her to wear for church that morning. Ugh! I thought surely Belk would have a good sale going on right now with their Winter clothes, but you never know. It wasn't that long ago when we went to the Belk in Decatur and their racks of 5's were a little skimpy, especially dresses. I'm so glad we went to the one in Huntsville because I was able to get some great deals on her clothes. I even checked out their Easter dresses and she liked this one(white sleeveless, scalloped edges with pink and green embroidery). It was advertising as being 30% off and Peggy gave me a coupon for an additional 20% off the total price. I was so tickled to go ahead and get her an Easter dress. I wished I could have found a picture to show you. In the past, I would have Katie wearing a smocked dress for Easter, but she is getting older and not that fond of smocked dresses like she use to be. There was another dress that I really liked. It was a sleeveless ivory, with three different colored silk flowers along the waist and full skirt. Here's a picture of it.

It was very simple but elegant. Unfortunately, Katie liked the pink and white dress more.

The Children's Place is beginning to be one of my favorite children's clothing store. I got a jumper dress for Katie, so cute!

I purchased a long-sleeved pink shirt to go underneath. She has pink tights to wear underneath, so I go the lace capri tights for her wear underneath during the Spring months. I loved the patch bermuda shorts, they had for girls. I thought they would look so cute this Spring/Summer on Katie with a pink t-shirt. I showed them to Katie and she turned up her upper lip. Whell! I just turned back around and put the shorts up.

Aren't these shoes adorable? Peggy really liked these shoes the best for Colton, so she got them for him.
I liked the high top canvas shoes, but I couldn't put these football looking shoes down. I fell in love and he has so many footall outfits that these would look great with. Also, I grabbed Katie a fleece night gown for $4.99. They were originally $12.99. I should have gotten one for next year. Right now is a great time to take advantage of a lot of their Fall/Winter clothes for $4.99 each. You've got to check them out. Click here to take advantage of The Children's Place Monster Sales.

Movie's in Review
Doug brought home "All About Steve" and "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" for Katie and myself. Doug knows what a big fan I am of Sandra Bullock. I have to say, I enjoyed watching "All About Steve." Sandra does really good in comedy movies. I even heard Doug laugh a time or two over on the couch. If you would like just a silly, goofy movie night, I recommend this movie.

Last night was the tenth time Katie watched "Cloudy with a . . ." I didn't watch it, but I guess it's a slow starter. I say this because at first, Katie said she didn't like it that well. Next thing I know, she's asking us if she could watch it again.


"The DRs" Tips on Getting that Perfect Massage at Home from Your Partner
THE MASSAGE SPOT

MOST KNOTS ARE FOUND IN THE NECK, BETWEEN SHOULDER BLADES, LOWER BACK

LOWER BACK - USE THUMBS & PRESS UP (APPROX. 5 LBS) IN CIRCULAR MOTION FOR THE LOWER BACK AREA; START OFF WITH LIGHT PRESSURE & THEN ASK THE PERSON IF THEY WANT IT DEEPER.

SHOULDER BLADES – REST YOUR FOREARMS ON THE MID-BACK (NOT THE SPINE AREA) AND JUST LEAN IN

NECK – TAKE YOUR HAND AND CUP THE BACK OF THE NECK. START OUT WITH THE PALM OF HAND PUSHING DOWN THE NECK AND (INTO A LIFTING MOTION) LIFTING UP THE NECK. DO THIS OVER AND OVER. IT WILL EVENTUALLY RELEASE THOSE KNOTS.

WARNING – WATCH THE SPINE AREA & AVOID ALL MAJOR SCARS

What Shall We Do Today?
With today being Martin Luther King Day, I had planned to take Katie and Colton on a picnic. The temps are suppose to be in the mid to upper 50's, but it seems that the fog is going to hang in there. So, I might have to come up with another plan. Katie doesn't like the days I have to clean. She wants me to sit with her all day and play. I feel guilty when I have to say "no," but things have to get done. I am hoping today might be a little different. I guess it's harder for little kids on cool Winter days.

Praise Report

I've got a praise report to pass along to you. Chase, car accident victim, had a wonderful report from the Trauma doctor regarding his injuries. He shows no signs of damage to his liver and lungs from the accident. Praise God above for answering so many prayers. The doctor released Chase from his care unless he needs to see him again, if there is a problem. Chase went back to work last Monday and says that he is feeling great. Thanks again for all the prayers!

Congratulations Ryan!

Well, I guess it's official because now I can congratulate my nephew, Ryan, about his recent change in career paths. As you know, he had the opportunity to work for Duke Hospital in NC as an RN for the past few years. His dream job is coming closer to reality. He has recently been accepted at University of Alabama at Birmingham to attend graduate school in anesthesia. He won't begin classes until next Fall, but he is getting ducks in a row for the upcoming changes. We are all so happy, he is moving back home. We all miss him very much and wish him all the success.

Congratulations Ryan!

We Love You!

"The DRs" Inexpensive Ways to Have a Day at the Spa in Your Home

1. FOR NICE CONDITIONED HANDS - RUB LOTION ON HANDS & PUT ON RUBBER GLOVES BEFORE WASHING DISHES


2. REPLACE YOUR BASIC SKIN TONERS WITH WITCH HAZLE - PUT SOME ON A FEW COTTON BALLS AND DAB A LITTLE ON YOUR SKIN.


3. HEALTHY HAIR
   a. OLIVE OIL
   b. MAYONAISE
   c. AVOCADO
   d. EGGS
   MIX TOGETHER AND POUR ALL OVER YOU HAIR, WASH YOUR HAIR AS NORMAL & YOU’LL BE AMAZED AS THE RESULTS.


4. CLEANER, WHITIER LOOKING NAILS – RUB LEMONS ON THEM


5. KEEP A EYELASH CURLER, MASCARA & LIP GLOSS IN YOUR MAKEUP BAG


6. EXFOLIATE YOUR SKIN – PUT A FACIAL CLEANSER IN THE PALM OF YOUR HAND, A LITTLE BIT OF BAKING SODA, MIX TOGETHER IN YOUR HAND & RUB IN CIRCULIAR MOTION ON TO YOUR SKIN (FACE).


7. SOLUTION FOR TIRED, PUFFY EYES – TAKE FROZEN SPOONS & PLACE THEM UNDER YOUR EYES


8. PLACE USED COLD CAMIMILE TEA BAG ON YOUR EYES – FOR PUFFY, TIRED EYES


9. USE SCARFS FOR DIFFERENT LOOKS WITH YOUR OUTFITS


10. SOOTHING BATHS THAT MAKES YOUR SKIN SUPER SOFT – EPSOM SALT REDUCES BLOATING; ½ CUP OF HONEY WITH ½ MILK .

Jon's Basketball Game Pictures

Some photos from Jon's basketball game last night, I wanted to share with you.

Jon shoots!

Jon #10

Colton didn't care for all the loud cheering for our team

Katie didn't care for the noise as well.

Colton wearing Jon's cap

Jon pumps up the crowd after their first great victory

Final score

Pants on the Ground, Lookin' like a Fool

"Pants on the ground, pants on the ground. Lookin' like a fool with the pants on the ground." We have hummed and giggled this song all day. We even have Katie singing it. LOL! If you don't know the joke, the last contestant from The American Idol made this song up and sang it to the judges. The man was 62 years old. It was so funny, but you know it is so true. Here's a clip from The American Idol, if you missed.


Way To Go Jon!
We just got back from watching Jon playing basketball. He scored 16 points for Addison. They won 45-29. Yay! Jon was easy to point out during the game because he was the tallest one out there at 6' 3". I'll have to post pictures later because it's so late.

Colton's Check-up

Colton and I went to visit Dr. Lunsford for Colton's 9 month check-up. According to Dr. Lunsford, he is doing great and is a BIG boy. He weighs: 19 lbs. 1 oz. is 30 1/2" tall, which makes him 96% on the chart, and is overall 75% in his growth. It was Colton's lucky day because he didn't have to have any shots, but he did have to have his Hemoglobin checked. It checked out great at 12.8. Dr. Lunsford seemed very pleased with Colton's health and we don't have to go back until he turns a year old. Can you believe it? It won't be very long before our baby will be turning a year old. How sad is that?

Colton loves doing and learning new things. A couple of days ago, made another milestone. As you know, he received an ATV scooter for Christmas. I think I've mentioned that he likes to push this scooter all over the Living Room by walking on his knees. Well, he has been trying so hard to get his little leg up over the seat of the ATV. I have good news to announce, he successfully got up on his scooter's seat. Unfortunately, he didn't know when to stop, so he kept going over and landed on the other side of the scooter, in the floor. He stopped and looked up at Katie and myself with this big grin on his face. I'm assuming he was either happy with himself getting up on the seat or surprised falling off. Either way, Katie and I cheered him on.

Katie and Colton have a new game with one another. It's called "Who can yell the loudest?" They think it's lot of fun, screaming at the top of their lungs. They don't like it when mama tells them "that's enough." Katie will stop, but it takes Colton another scream or two before he stops.

Haiti Tragedy
I'm sure you've been watching the news about the tragic earthquake in Haiti. It just makes me sick looking at all the pictures and video. I can't imagine what those poor people must be going through. Reports are, most people are sleeping outside during the night because they don't feel safe inside their homes, due to all the after shocks. I saw on FOX news where rescuers found a two year old alive after being trapped in the rubble for two days. My heart goes out to all of these people. Please keep them in your prayers. If you feel lead to donate monies to the cause, Beth Moore's blog suggested a few great sites to donate, on her yesterday's post. You'll have to check it out.

What Can I Do To Improve?
Visiting one of my many blogger friends, one post really hit it home. One of the writers for "5 Minutes for Faith", Wendy, wrote about 2 Timothy 7 and how God spoke to her. After she read 2 Timothy 7, she stopped and noticed how she complains a lot during the day. Being a mom of two children under the age of 4 years, I can completely understand. I remember being a pretty positive person in the day, but as time marches on, I've found myself being more negative with lots of complaints to go along with it. Sure, I'm grateful for all the things God has blessed me with in my walk. I'm talking about the day to day life. My problem is complaining aloud when something doesn't work out quite the way I expected it. No matter how small or large the situation might be. Well, Wendy too noticed how she complains aloud. I understand, life isn't a bed of roses 100% of the time, but you can control the way you respond to the things that go wrong around you. Charles Swindol once said, "Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you react to it." Wendy wrote and I agree that "complaining all day is a weak or timid way to live." I too am going to try to discipline myself and rely on God's love to get me through the strains of every day life. I'm hoping to think positive once again and hold my tongue, so my children can see me as an example and not a disappointment.

"The Doctors" on Inexpensive Healthy Eating Tips
A few days ago, Doug and I flipped over to "The Doctors" and the subject was on ways to eat healthy during a recession. I took some notes, went through with their suggestions and wanted to pass along this information to you.

They suggested eating more of the following foods:

• Tuna is a great source of protein (2 servings a week), be careful to not eat too much because of the counts of Mercury.
• Whole Wheat Pasta
• Marinara sauce is great to put on the whole wheat pasta.
• Oats/Oatmeal is very good for you and is good for high cholestrol

I've never ate whole wheat pasta until the other night. It wasn't that bad. In fact, I couldn't really tell that much of a difference between regular and wheat pasta. Doug wasn't too pleased to have meatless spagetti for supper the other night. We had whole wheat pasta with Paul Newman's Marinara sauce. I added sliced mushrooms and chopped black olives to the sauce. I think that might have added some taste beings the "red meat" was missing. LOL! Poor Doug.

Bama Messed with Texas

I received an email from one of Doug's cousins from Louisiana. She attached a picture of the flag pole from her son's company, he works for in the state of Texas.

Before the BCS National Championship, a Texas Longhorn flag flew on this flag pole. Well Adam, cousin, made a bet. If Alabama wins the championship, they had to take the Texas Longhorn flag down and fly a University of Alabama flag in it's stead. She went on to say that the flags were switched out today. LOL! I find it hilarious! All I can say is "Alright Adam!" and "ROLL TIDE BABY!"

Colton's 1st Hair Cut

Colton is looking a little shaggy, so I felt it was time to give him a little trim. I hate giving trims. My hands shake the whole time, I get so nervous.

He loved having his grape sucker, while I tried to cut his hair. His hair is so fine that I had a terrible time keeping it still long enough to get the scissors close enough to cut without gapping it. Of course, Colton insisted on checking things out while I was trying to comb and cut. Ugh! Finally Doug suggested his mustache trimmers. What an excellent idea? I thought to myself. I put the guard on the trimmers and got after it. Whew! I finished about 30 minutes later. Ha! I checked out the new hairdo, making sure it looked okay. I even had Doug check it out. He seemed pretty happy with it. Now for the next several days, I'll be looking for mistakes.

He is just tolerating mama messin' with his ears. Doug laughed at me for cutting the tags of hair draped over Colton's ears, putting them in a piece of tape. He asked what I had planned to do with that. Of course, the hair was to go in his "First Hair Cut" container.

Our finished project.

Our handsome little man.

The other day, Katie drug the cricket chair into the Living Room. Colton likes this chair. We took this picture because Doug said, he saw Colton climb into the chair and sit down. He is holding on to his cow lawnmower. He pushs this lawnmower around the Living Room by holding on to the handle and walks on his knees.

Colton's getting to be a little more of a dare devil. As long as he is barely holding on to something stable, he is walking all over the place.


Katie and Colton are enjoying their suckers. On days that Katie has school, if you are green (good) all 3 hours, you get a prize from the treasure box. Katie loves suckers, so she is always bringing home suckers. This day, she just got home from school and I caught her sharing her sucker with Colton. I thought it was very sweet of Katie to share with her little brother, but was a little concerned about him biting into her very thin sucker, at that time. Colton was not a happy camper when I told his sister to stop letting him taste her sucker.

So, I gave him his very own and he was such a happy little man for several minutes. It's amazing what you can get done when you give your little one a sucker or snacks.

Happy 20th Birthday Nicholas

Nicholas turned 20 years old last Wednesday. He wanted to see all the family one more time before he had to head back to school. We don't know when the next time we'll get to see him before summer break. Even then, I think he is scheduled to shadow a doctor at the hospital in Mobile. So, I don't think we'll be seeing much of Dr. Nicholas this summer. I don't know if he has plans for spring break or not.

We gave him the ultimate gift - YOO-HOOS. He loves them! He was tickled that he had enough Yoo-hoos to last him the trip south. Ha Ha! I got a kick out it because he is on this BIG health/exercise kick. A lot of us couldn't believe how much weight he had lost, he is so thin. So, we've all tried to fatten him up a little, but he wouldn't cheat. He is more dedicated than I am. But then, I didn't get his favorite snack - chocolate donuts. I'd be really amazed if he refused them.