Did you know?

Did you know that if you are in an auto accident and it involves one of the vehicles making a U-turn from a stopped or parked position, that the vehicle which gets hit is the one responsible for the accident? Ouch! My poor, newly purchased minivan (Chrysler Town & Country) is in the repair shop at the dealer where we originally purchased it. I got into a car accident this past Monday morning just after dropping off the youngest two kids to school. I posted two pics showing most of the damage. I couldn't open up my driver's side front door at all! The vehicle itself was drivable, thank heavens. But, my front driver's door and driver's side sliding door panel will both have to be replaced. :( The accident was deemed my fault because I apparently pulled out into the path of the other vehicle. I did look before moving out from the shoulder of the road before making the U-turn at the front of my neighborhood, but apparently there must have been another car heading my way. She plowed into me...smack! No one was hurt thankfully. I had just finished dropping off Sierra at our neighborhood bus stop when this happened. I was making a U-turn to go back home and had been parked on the side of the road just before the incident. I was truly surprised that the other driver wasn't at least somehow deemed partially responsible, as I thought she must not have been paying attention and could have avoided the impact. But, Florida law doesn't apparently agree, nor does my auto insurance carrier...that was a shock to me! I miss my car, but fortunately our car insurance covers a rental vehicle for us while the repairs are being made and they replaced my car with a 2010 Dodge Grand Caravan, which is almost identical to the Chrysler Town & Country minivan. Although the rental car has an upgraded feature...automatic sliding doors! That is definitely a nice feature that I wish we could have had in our van, but we were trying to get the best vehicle for the lowest price and pretty much had to choose the option we did, just to keep our car payments within the range we wanted to be in. Anyway, just figured I'd post a new blurb on here since I haven't written on this blog in many months.

From bad to worse...when things suddenly seem to conspire against you!

Just decided to blog about what a crazy, frustrating chain of events we had happen the other day...it was almost comical, if it weren't for the fact that it involved $460 in car repairs!

Last Friday my minivan started to make a horribly loud sound whenever I would turn left or right and whenever I would accelerate the car. I knew it would need to have some sort of repair done on it ASAP. We made it through the weekend. But, by Monday morning, as I was backing out of the driveway while getting ready to take Sierra to summer day camp, the steering wheel became very hard to turn. I almost thought I wouldn't be able to drive it. I hurriedly dropped Sierra off and immediately found an auto parts store to buy some power steering fluid and some oil. I figured that the power steering system was going bad, but I was also hoping that it could be something as simple as needing to replenish the power steering fluid. I was all proud of myself for being able to look up the diagram in the vehicle owner's manual of the power steering fluid reservoir and how to check the level. After I came out of the auto parts store, I popped the hood (again secretly proud of the fact that I was doing this all by myself, but also a little nervous about semi-trucks and other various men in trucks passing by and possibly offering their assistance) and checked the steering fluid level...it was quite a bit below the minimum level. I was hopeful that replenishing the reservoir might really help. The oil level was completely bone dry. My vehicle typically burns through oil very quickly and has been doing so for the past 18-24 months. Since I had put two quarts of oil in it about 4 weeks ago, I was not thrilled about the fact that I had to put 4 quarts in it once again. Anyway, proud of my attempts to know what I'm doing and to try and diagnose and "treat" this newest of car troubles, I left the parking lot and drove straight home. I emailed Scott at work to let him know how dire it was now that we have the car evaluated and repaired for whatever might be causing the terrible rattling sound in the engine area (near the right side of vehicle) and the disconcerting loud whines whenever you turn the vehicle. He mentioned to me that when he left the house for work earlier in the morning (after I had already left to take Sierra to her summer camp), he noticed a large fluid leak stain in the driveway from my car, which was not oil. I went outside right away to see where this leak might be coming from. I got down onto the driveway concrete (feeling a little like a redneck just about to slide under an old clunker) and saw the fresh leak stains. I touched it and it felt like water. Hmm...then I looked up underneath the car directly above the stains to see where it might be leaking from. I saw a drip of something hanging off the edge of one area. I touched it and it looked and felt exactly like the new steering level fluid I had just put into the car just a little while before. Sure enough, when I popped the hood again to take a look, everything I had put into the power steering fluid reservoir was already gone!

Fast forward to Tuesday morning. I did not end up driving my car the rest of the evening on Monday while driving to and from work, I took Scott's instead. We dropped off the van first thing in the morning on Tuesday while I went on my way to work using Scott's car. Luckily, he was already planning on working from home this day due to the kids being out of school for the summer. I went to work and later found out from Scott that indeed, the shop called and said we'd need a new power steering pump, as well as two new serpentine belts since the leaking steering fluid had weakened the older ones. Also, we asked them to repair a hole in one of my tires that had caused me to have a flat tire a couple of weeks ago due to a nail in it. I've been driving with the full-size spare on the van ever since. Apparently, as our luck would have it, the nail is not what caused the flat after all. The steel belt inside the tire had shifted and pulled away, causing a separation from the tread. I needed a new tire, to the tune of $90 (however, they said they'd give me an extra 10% off the tire). Just one more thing to fix on this van...ugh! I finished my shift at work and was happy to know that by the end of my work day, I could go home and we'd then go pick up my repaired minivan. Well, I walked outside my office building and got into Scott's Ford Explorer, turned the key to crank the engine and...nothing! Absolutely nothing. The car didn't even make a sound to even seem like it was attempting to start up. I tried several times again, stunned in disbelief that for whatever reason, our only working vehicle seemed to be "deader than a doornail". I called Scott on my cell and asked if there was some special trick I should know to start his car, since I know that sometimes some of his electrical systems and wiring can be a little faulty...it's a 12-year old vehicle. He explained that I need to try and see if one of the battery cables had become knocked loose. I propped open his car hood (having to hold it up by myself since there's apparently no more metal rod for holding the hood up itself in the vehicle) and saw the cable that he was talking about that sometimes comes loose from the connection to the battery due to corrosion. I tried with all my might to fit it snugly back onto the battery and heard the car CD player start playing music. Success...or so I thought. I tried to crank up the engine thinking it would be smooth sailing from here, but nope! It didn't quite have enough umph to crank up. As I fiddled with this cable for the next 10 minutes or so, I could hear it trying to get some juice, but sounding like it just could not get the right fitting that it needed to work properly. I didn't think the battery was actually dead or anything. So, after many unsuccessful attempts, I resorted to calling Scott back on the phone and explaining that either he would need to come get me or I'd need to have his car towed...ugh! Of course, since my van was still at the repair shop, that meant someone from the shop would have to come and pick Scott up at our house in order to pick up the van, pay for the repair work and then have him come and get me. Just after I hung up the phone with him, I tried one more time to crank the engine, fully expecting that it would still be dead as it had been all along. Much to my surprise and amazement, it suddenly cranked up without any hesitation whatsoever! I couldn't believe it...there was really no reason to explain why all of a sudden it was working now. But, thank God for small miracles! I called Scott back and told him that it looked like he would not need to come and get me after all. I then went around to the hood and tried to shut it, but it would not latch. I retried and slammed it, retried and shut it ever-so-gently and then tried again using medium pressure. Nothing would make that thing latch! For the record, according to Scott, he never has any difficulties in getting the hood to latch shut. Even Scott attempted to shut it when I returned home and was unsuccessful. It seems that I have "tainted hands" or something of the sort.

Well, after coming home all greasy looking with black hands and of course sweaty since it's 95 degrees outside, Scott & I then went up to the repair shop to pick up my minivan. Finally, we were going to have our working cars back...albeit $460 later. After Scott paid the bill, we stepped outside and Scott was going to drop me off at the van...it was parked in an adjacent lot across the street. Of course, for him, his car's engine started magnificently with no problems. He was also able to magically get his hood to latch shut the proper way once I was gone and not standing nearby him. It seems that I was the only one with the "hands of death" when it comes to cars I guess. After I took off on my way home, feeling impressed by the sudden smoothness and quietness of the engine, now that the entire power steering system had been replaced with brand new parts, I stopped at the nearest traffic light in front of UCF, waiting to turn left. All of a sudden, I hear a strange sound in the near distance, almost like the warning signal of an approaching fire engine in an emergency. I looked around in my rear-view mirror and to my left and saw that Scott was in his car to the left of mine and he was shouting my name, trying to get my attention. I let the automatic driver's side window down to see what he wanted and he shouted, "Your smokin' all over the place in the back, honey!". I look and sure enough, there's a huge white cloud of smoke coming from the back of the car. WTH? I asked him, "Are you serious?". He told me to take the car immediately back to the repair shop and see why all of a sudden this new problem had occurred just after driving it off their lot. I could not believe the bad luck of it all! I mean, here I was thinking we'd FINALLY gotten everything taken care of once and for all and was holding out a bit of hope that maybe we'd still have more time and miles on this van before having to look at buying a newer car. I took the van back up there and they had the mechanic which had just done all of my power steering repairs come out to investigate it with me. He explained all the repair work they had done and showed me where this and that was located, etc. I asked him why he thought there had been the sudden white smoke coming out of the tailpipe and at first glance, he wasn't too sure. He explained how sometimes the steering fluid and even the degreasers they apply to the engine following such a repair can burn off in the engine and create a little bit of smoke. When I explained that the white cloud of smoke had been coming from the tailpipe, he appeared baffled and said that anything burning off the engine like that would not be seen coming out of the tailpipe. He then got into the van and proceeded to rev the gas pedal and told me to let him know if I saw the white smoke again. He was trying to recreate what I was explaining to him had just happened at the traffic light. Sure enough, another large amount of white smoke came out of the tailpipe! The look on his face said it all...I asked him what would cause that, since this was a new problem that we had never seen in the van happen before. He said that it can only be caused by the rings inside the pistons which are located inside the engine...that it's normally due to wear-and-tear on the engine. I'm thinking, ok, some O-rings or something...I can have those replaced if need be, right? Oh no! Apparently, these rings are not replaceable and basically this means that I would need to have either a new engine installed or perhaps, obtain an older one that is still good from a junk yard. He said this would certainly explain why my van has been literally burning through oil for the past 18 months or so at a rate probably similar to that of the most recent BP oil rig disaster! I probed him with all kinds of questions, wondering how much this type of thing might cost. He explained that at the very least, perhaps we could locate a used engine for approx. $1200 and maybe the installation might cost around $800. Of course, these were just ballpark figures and who knows how much in the end this kind of thing would end up really costing me. I could tell that he was trying to be reasonable and not overestimate what he was telling me. I think he was still trying to give me a bit of hope, in case I was planning on keeping the vehicle. Suffice it to say that after this assessment and newfound knowledge, I knew right away that this meant that it is definitely going to be time to retire the minivan once and for all. I can not justify putting another $2000 into this vehicle which has 145k miles on it and had a transmission completely rebuilt just 15 months ago for a total of $2300! Considering the fact that we just spent $440 about 2.5 months ago on a new starter for it, another $330 just one month ago for yet another starter and valve cover (since the seal around the oil valve had been leaking for over a year and was the newly determined culprit as to why my starters were getting saturated and basically shorting out), on top of today's repairs totaling $460, I think it is safe to say that this baby is on its official last legs and is more than just a sinking ship at this point. What's really disappointing is that I actually had left the repair shop earlier that afternoon with a smidge of hope that we might have some more time left in the vehicle. But, after this sudden, unexpected smoking tailpipe incident, the tides had just turned 180 degrees again and it looks like we are going to have to soon say goodbye to the Kia Sedona once and for all. I've been driving it for just shy of 9 years now and Lord knows I have put some serious miles on it to and fro since purchasing it brand new in 2001 when Chandler was just an infant and Sierra was only 2 years old. What's also a bit upsetting is that it's been such an astoundingly much more quiet ride since bringing it home Tuesday. The clanking and sputtering-type noises I've been hearing for the past few years coming from the right side of the engine compartment have now miracly disappeared! Apparently, all this time my power steering pump must have been slowly but surely wearing out and was causing the belts and pulley to wobble a bit and make an odd, loud noise. I swear it sounds like the car is almost back to brand new, it's so quiet inside now! I have not seen any more smoke coming from the tailpipe since showing it to the mechanic on Tuesday after we picked up the van. But, who knows how much time is left? It's a crapshoot I guess. What a day!

Chandler's Final Soccer Game in his First Season!

Chandler has had a wonderful time playing soccer for his first time ever recently through a local YMCA! My good friend and co-worker, Su Sheridan, has a son the same age as Chandler, Noah. She's been asking me for the past few years to sign up Chandler for soccer so that he could join Noah and they could play on the same team. Funds were usually the main reason I wasn't able to sign him up in previous seasons, but this year I made it a specific point to make it happen for Chandler, since he's 9 years old now and has never played any sports on a team before and he has way too much physical talent in his little body. His coach said many times throughout the season that she could not believe that he has not played before because he's a "natural". I thought I would post some pics from his last game, which was on Saturday, May 15th, 2010...

GO CHAD!!!

One of my favorite moments after each game...seeing the teammates shake hands with the opposing teammembers as they say, "Good Game!!" It's heart-warming to see them all learn at such a young age to express good sportsmanship and respect towards others.

Looking at all the trophies set up on display for all the soccer teams!
All the boys can't wait for the trophy ceremony!
Chandler steps up to receive his trophy for playing a great spring soccer season!
Chandler and Noah...friends forever!

MY SON'S BIKE WAS STOLEN!!

Just wanted to post this blog entry as an alert to those who may happen to stop by our blog. Chandler's bike was stolen today apparently from right out of our garage in broad daylight, between 5pm-7pm! We had saved up the money to buy him this special bike a couple of months ago and I am sickened that someone would actually take it from right out of our garage while Scott and the kids were home. I was running errands during the time it went missing. I had actually placed the bike on our front lawn to move it out of the driveway before leaving to run errands. At some point after that, Chandler and his friend put the bike back into the garage while they were playing with some other friends. Between the time he put it back in the garage and the time I came home, the bike was apparently stolen. It is a 20" Blue Mongoose 'Crush' model bike. We questioned the boys Chandler had been playing with earlier in the day and even spoke to their parents, who also looked in their garages to see if the bike somehow ended up there, but no luck so far. At least they know to be on the lookout for his bike. I am having difficulty believing that some random person just happened to come around and decide to walk right up to our garage and steal the bike in broad daylight while the kids were in and out throughout the day playing with their friends. However, in this day and age, I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. If you happen to run across this bike or learn of someone acquiring a bike like this soon, please let us know. I am just sick over the principle of the whole thing, most of all! The fact that someone would stoop so low as to take a child's bike right out of their garage during the day on a Sunday afternoon just makes me sick!!

Midnight Mammograms!

OK, now I think I have truly heard of just about everything! I had to visit my female doctor the other day and since I am 36 this year, I was the lucky recipient of a prescription for my first baseline mammogram...yippee!! Ha! Well, since I have known that one of these years soon I would have to have one for the first time, I wasn't at all surprised that my doctor went ahead and recommended it's time for me to start. Let's hope all goes well though!

Anyway, just when I thought I had heard of just about everything, I noticed some fancy ads on the walls at my doctor's office that said "Midnight Mammograms" in a fun cartoon-style. I looked a little bit closer, thinking maybe it was an ad for a play or something. It looked like one of those spoof-type broadway, musical-style plays. But, no, this was actually a program that has been set up at one of the nearby Radiology clinics and the ad says that you can sign up a group of 6 or more women for a "fun-filled and enjoyable evening of mammograms, food, and more"! What? Since when were mammograms considered fun? Well, anyway, the idea is that you get a group of your friends together and literally schedule a mammogram party late at night at their facility. You can bring food, dress for fun, have some entertainment and basically enjoy an evening of comaraderie with your female friends while you all get your annual mammograms. Hmmm...I wonder if this gimmick will work? The ad says that they are doing whatever it takes to get women to take part in their annual mammograms and if it takes making a party out of it, then do it! So, is there anyone out there 35 and older that wants to join me for a Midnight Mammogram? Haha!

Summertime Fun Activities...

I thought it was time to at least write something on my blog since it's been a while. I figured I would write a list of some fun and fairly inexpensive or FREE activities to do with your kids this summer while you are trying to keep them busy...


1) Did you know that Boardwalk Bowling has a special summer promotion going on every summer where your kids can bowl one game for free each day between the hours of 9am-5pm, Monday-Friday? We've been doing this the past couple of years and it is still one of their favorite summer time activities! Usually, at the end of the school year, their school sends home fliers that you bring to the bowling alley to enroll in the program. But, if you go there early in the summer, you can also ask for some at the bowling check-in desk. They sometimes carry extras. You have to bring the fliers with you each time you want to bowl because someone has to initial it on the date your child has bowled. Anyway, it's a great way to beat the summer heat and of course, if you have any money to spend, you can make an afternoon of it by eating at their cafe and/or playing in their arcade. They've just updated their games in the arcade and have gone to a swipe card system (like Firken & Kegler's) where you simply add money to your card to play the games.

2) Downey Park on the corner of Dean Rd. and SR50 has their fun water splash park which costs $1 per person to enter, including adults. They run it for two sessions each day...10am-2pm and 3pm-7pm. They shut down the water park between 2pm-3pm every day, but you can also play on the playground nearby or visit the lake, too.

3) Regal Cinemas always has free kids movies during the summer on certain days of the week early in the morning...usually around 10:00am. This summer, I believe I heard someone say the free movies are on Tuesdays. Check your listings for the location, times, dates and movie titles playing!

Ten Thousand Villages...

Just wanted to post something about one of my new favorite places...it's a little store called, "Ten Thousand Villages".

I first visited one while on Spring Break recently in Black Mountain, North Carolina. The location there is technically in Montreat, a very tiny town complete with its own college, too. There is also a location for "Ten Thousand Villages" here in Winter Park, Florida, located on Park Avenue. I visited that one, as well, recently after returning from Spring Break!

What I love about the store is the unique and one-of-a-kind gifts and hand-made treasures you find from literally all over the world. The concept behind the store is that they hire people from countries and villages all over to create their hand-made specialty items and price them at a very affordable price for the consumer. It gives the workers a fair wage for their hard work and creates some kind of income for those who may live in less fortunate areas of the world. The employees of the local stores are actually volunteers and do not get paid, as far as I know. It's simply a pleasure I suppose, knowing that you are helping out others who are less fortunate for their own livelihoods. Their items are just lovely and I feel almost as if I am visiting a marketplace while on vacation in some exotic destination or something when I look through all the unique finds. Many of the smaller items are reasonably priced so that you can own some very unique treasures without paying through the roof. I am including some pictures of some of my favorite items that I have purchased there so far and the prices I paid. When you have the time, check out their website and take a look at a broader sample of what they offer. I like the idea that I am helping others around the world who need income by purchasing their diligently crafted treasures!

www.tenthousandvillages.com

This little bracelet set is just darling for a gift for a little girl. It is only about $8 and contains brightly sparkling little bangle bracelets inside of a precious organza drawstring pouch. It was made in India.
This stretch bracelet is one of my personal favorites. I bought one for about $9 and it fits perfectly...not too tight or too loose on my wrist. It was made in India.
This lovely wooden bowl is technically listed as a salad bowl. But, it is quite small and would make a lovely centerpiece filled with your favorite decorative stones, potpourri or anything festive really. It is beautifully lacquered and only cost me $7! It was made in Nicaragua.
This little coin purse is my favorite! I don't know why, maybe it's because I love the color pink and brown, which this has on it. It is primarily made with sequins and small beadwork. It was only $8 and was made in India. It has a silk backside and really fits well in any size purse you have. It's good for keeping receipts or money, lipstick, etc.
This crocheted purse is my FAVORITE! It was made in Peru and cost $58. I treated myself to this as a present with some recent bonus $ I received at work. It has a drawstring closure and is lined on the inside. It also has brown suede along the outer edge, as well as a suede shoulder strap. What a unique little purse. I love the buckle strap, which allows me to adjust the length of the purse while on my shoulder.
This lovely fabric picture frame was made in Vietnam and cost $20. I love the brown color! They also have several other versions that are similar in style. In fact, one version has three cranberry-colored fabric frames lined up one above the other and connected by ribbon between each frame to give it that triptic, stylish look.
This chip and dip bowl priced at $54 and was made in Vietnam. I have not bought this yet, but I thought I would show it here just as a sample of some of the creative and beautiful pieces you can find to add to your home decor and for hosting future gatherings.
This date palm basket/tray was made in Bangladesh and I got it on clearance sale for only $12. I thought it made a lovely carrying tray for virtually anything, such as my card-making craft supplies. But, you could also use it decoratively on a table with candles displayed inside or a pretty handkerchief. It's very soft and flexible, which I personally love.
This last basket makes a wonderful decorative basket which could be used for any purpose. It has navy blue colored palm leaves mixed in with the natural look and has pretty ceramic handles. This one is currently on sale on their website for $8 and was made in Vietnam, too.

Spring Break in North Carolina...

Sierra posing on a large boulder in Chimney Rock (Lake Lure, NC)...
Chandler posing too...
Amanda posing...
Amanda and I on the little creek at Chimney Rock...
Grandpa Randy, myself and the three kids at Chimney Rock...


Sierra showing off her Amethyst geode from Broad River Gems in Lake Lure, NC...

Romans 12:18...Peace

I finally have something positive and worthwhile to blog about! It just came to me tonight! Let me fill you in a little bit about something that's been troubling me for the past few weeks. We have an Australian Shepherd named, Sydney, which we adopted last September from a family. He is just over one year old now. Sydney is a very loving dog and has been a fun, yet challenging at times, addition to our Williams Zoo Crew! One problem we have noticed with Sydney, however, is that he has developed a fear of most other dogs. It all started one day when we took him to a local dog park when he was 6 months old. He was friendly to all the other dogs in the dog park at first. But, within the first 20 minutes or so, a group of larger dogs started asserting their dominance over Sydney and were circling him and forced him under a picnic table out of his fear. Since then, he now barks aggressively and quite loudly whenever he sees any other dog, large or small. It's a defensive and protective mechanism he has developed. I can't say that I blame him. The old saying, "his bark is worse than his bite" holds true for Sydney...he actually doesn't even bite. But, the way he barks loudly and forcefully whenever he feels threatened sure would make someone who doesn't know him feel wary.

We have a next-door neighbor who recently brought a Yorkshire Terrier into their own home. They are very small dogs, but they sure do make up for it in their aggressive barking, as well! Anytime Sydney and the neighbor's dog happen to be out in their own backyards at the same time, inevitably one of them starts barking and gets the other one going, too! It drives Sydney crazy and he literally will push against our wood fence to try and get through into the neighbor's yard. Since our fence is 8 years old, it's very weather-worn and now some of the boards start breaking off loose when he rams the fence in one of his crazed episodes. He will poke his head through the opening if a board is knocked loose. This, of course, scares the neighbor if she happens to be out in her backyard when it happens. She's afraid he's gonna break through the whole fence and come attacking someday. I don't blame her for feeling a little scared, perhaps. But, we have told her that Sydney is not vicious and is not an attack-dog, by any means. He simply feels that he can ward off any potential bullies by barking loudly. She's met him before and she knows that he is not an attack-type of dog. We have 3 kids and would never own a dog like that anyway. He's actually a big baby. Scott is also sure to promptly nail back any loose boards whenever it has happened (it's only been about 3 times). Well, a few weeks ago, we got home late at night from LIFE group and after picking up the kids from my mother's house from babysitting and Scott let Sydney out back to go potty before bedtime. Unbeknownst to us, the neighbor must have let her little dog out in her backyard around the same time. Sure enough, Sydney starting going nuts when their dog started yipping. He pushed through one of the loose boards on the fence and it scared the neighbor as she was back there trying to get her dog to come back in the house. I heard her scream while I was coming out of the bathroom in our house. I didn't even know Scott had let Sydney out back at the time. I then heard our neighbor yell something like, "This is getting ridiculous! If you don't do something about that dog, I'm gonna call animal control!" Scott brought Sydney in right away and decided not to yell anything back over the fence since it was already after 11:00pm on a weeknight. He figured he'd let her "cool off" and try to smooth things over in the morning when he would go over and fix the loose board on the fence. Well, not 5 minutes later, the neighbor came over and rang our doorbell. I let him answer the door because it was late at night, I was already getting ready for bed and was not in the mood for any kind of confrontation so late at night. Things did not go well when Scott answered the door. Heated words were thrown around and in a matter of minutes, things went from sour to even worse! We had always tried to be friendly with our neighbor and had never gotten into an argument with her before. Apparently, she didn't like the fact that Scott was not letting her yell at him on our front doorstep late at night. She stomped off and ended up calling the police! Never before has a neighbor called the cops on us for any reason whatsoever! I was so steamed about the whole thing! Why would she overreact like that and call the police over a simple matter that could have simply been handled like two mature adults with some compromise and mutually respecting discussion? It was so unnecessary for her to call the police. After all, we hadn't even done anything wrong anyway. The police even acted like it was ridiculous that she called them out at 11:30pm at night for something as little as this...a dog that broke through part of our own fence and scared her. After they questioned both parties for their sides of the story, it was clear that no crime had been committed and that there was no really good reason for them to have been involved. It was also apparent to them that she had provoked the entire situation by yelling over the fence and then coming to our doorstep yelling late at night, escalating things way beyond what was necessary. They simply told Scott that next time she comes onto our doorstep late at night like that and starts yelling at him, we have the right to ask her to leave our property. That was it!

After that night, I was so steamed about the fact that she felt it was necessary to involve the police over almost nothing. I was also mad that she apparently had no qualms about turning our neighborly relationship sour so quickly, even to the point that our kids and her kids would no longer be able to play with each other as they have before, simply because of some silly argument that would now exist between us as neighbors. Truly, it seemed to me that she had gone way overboard and was not expressing any humility over the situation at all. Now, I must add that 99% of the time in matters where I find myself involved in some sort of conflict, I am usually the first to try and keep the peace. I can't stand conflict. It makes me really uncomfortable and through the years, I have noticed that I am much less inclined to hold grudges over things as I used to do when I was younger. Life is simply too short and you really spend so much energy trying to hold onto negative feelings towards others, that it is quite draining. I can name several instances in recent years where I have taken the high road and always been the one to initiate peace whenever a disagreement or conflict of some kind has reared its ugly head. But, for some reason, this particular incident just irked me to the point where I felt for the first time in a LONG time that I just didn't want to be the pursuer of peace anymore. This matter simply crossed the line to me. I had reached my limit of bending over backwards for someone else simply to keep the peace, even when I felt I had done nothing wrong. Since that night a few weeks ago, we had pretty much decided that we would not be speaking to our neighbor unless she happened to approach us first. We were hurt and angry over the situation and just felt that we didn't want to have to take the first step in order to reconcile our friendship. Yes, I know that pretty much goes against much of what Christ teaches us to do when it comes to others. We asked our LIFE group to pray about it last week, as it was something that still didn't sit well in our hearts.

Well, this morning several cars in our neighborhood, including both of ours, were broken into in the middle of the night while parked in our driveway. Luckily, for us, nothing was actually stolen (we don't keep things valuable & worth stealing in our vehicles) and no windows were broken. It was simply our faults for not locking our doors when we parked our vehicles last night. As God would have it, our neighbor came knocking on our door this evening to discuss the rash of car break-ins that took place overnight on our street. We hadn't spoken to her since the dog incident. Scott took the first step in seizing the opportunity to bring up the previous situation and apologized for anything he had done to make the situation worse. He also apologized that the dog scared her by breaking the loose board (which he has since fixed). Fortunately, it seemed that God has been working on her heart, as well, to humble her attitude towards the situation and she apologized, as well, for her part in overreacting over the whole scenario that evening. They briefly talked things through and I am actually sitting here tonight a bit amazed at how God has allowed a negative incident such as our cars getting broken into, to act as a catalyst for making peace with our neighbor. I am also thankful that, of course, we actually didn't have anything stolen from our cars or any broken windows and such. But, I am more thankful that indeed, God seemed to hear our prayers over the situation and for once, someone else initiated the first steps in pursuing peace. I'm sure the car break-in situation was the perfect excuse for our neighbor to come over and begin taking steps to make amends with us. I just wanted to share this story with my readers because I think it is an everyday example of how God can work good from a bad situation and at the same time, peace can be restored between people. There may still be some hope left yet in this crazy, fallen world!

Romans 12:18..."If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."

1Peter 3:11..."He must run from evil and do good; he must seek peace and pursue it."

Notice the word 'pursue' in reference to peace in 1Peter 3:11...the act of pursuing something means the act of almost chasing it down. It involves action and is not really a passive thing. So, to pursue peace means that we need to actively be looking for ways to seek it when the time and place calls for it...even when we don't want to...lol!!!

Author's side note: When Scott went over to repair the broken board after the last incident, he did make sure to put in very thick screws/nails across every single board on that side of the fence (tops and bottoms included). He also put in several 2x4's across the bottom to make the fence virtually indestructible. So now we have "Fort Knox" on that side of the fence, which should eliminate any chance of Sydney knocking loose any more boards. We're also trying to be more vigilent about when we let him outside now and if the neighbor's dog is out as well, we monitor Sydney to make sure he doesn't get all worked up and go crazy. We figure this will also help maintain peace and some sort of order. :o)

Pagers, cell phones, texting, etc...more signs of the times?

Just a little blurb about my thoughts on how times sure have changed rapidly in recent years. I was watching TV the other night and noticed how many commercials were all about cell phone plans, texting plans, and pretty much all things technologically advanced. I thought, gosh, just 10-15 years ago, who cared so much about how many rollover minutes you have or is your phone the latest, fanciest gadget new on the market? I mean, seriously, why is the ability to twitter, blog, text, and communicate in a thousand different ways and forums so much of a top priority these days? I understand how convenient having a cell phone can be while you're out and about...I use one occasionally myself. But, as for texting, I have no desire at all to do that. I can just write an email or make a quick phone call if I want someone to know something or if I have a question. Do you ever notice how when you are out in public, many people seem to have their heads down paying close attention to their PDA's or their fingers busy playing or typing on their little phones and gadgets or are busy talking to what at first appears to be themselves with some silly headpiece out in the middle of public while you are walking by? Then you realize that they are actually conversing with someone else via a tiny cell phone earpiece and you are privy to half of the entire conversation. So weird to me! It's too much, quite frankly, in my opinion. I mean, I know we are creatures who were designed to be in close community with one another and with God, of course. But all this technology in nearly every function of our daily lives makes my head swim!

Here's an example of what prompted me to write this post...I went to Panera yesterday morning to grab a quick delicious breakfast sandwich, since I rarely go to Panera anymore. The one I go to has recently been remodeled and looks all nice and elegant. After ordering my breakfast sandwich "To Go", they hand me one of those large square pagers that you see when you are waiting at a restaurant for dinner where they call you when your table is ready. Then, the cashier asked me for my first name. She said that now I wouldn't have to wait in line at the pick-up area for my sandwich...that I could just sit down at a table and wait till my buzzer lights up. So, I did this. And about 5 minutes later, my hot, delicious breakfast sandwich was ready! They even called my name over the loudspeaker just to announce it was done. The buzzer went off loudly and lights were flashing urgently. I went up to the pick-up counter and got my breakfast and noticed that the receipt I had even had my name boldly printed on the top, which is obviously how they knew my name. I dropped the buzzing, light-flashing pager into the handy basket they have waiting for these at the pick-up counter. As I was walking out the door with my little carryout bag in hand, I just chuckled to myself at the idea of a silly little breakfast sandwich order requiring all this high-tech stuff and such a process just to get it made and delivered to me. It wasn't even crowded in the building at the time. There were no lines waiting for food orders. I just kept thinking, this is too much and really not that necessary! Is this another sign of the times?

Is this not the cutest thing you've seen in a while?

Just get a look at these adorable photos! Are they not some of the cutest things you've seen? A high school friend of mine sent me these via email! They were taken in Australia. Apparently there has been a recent heat wave there and this little Koala Bear was seeking some rest from the heat and went onto someone's back porch. They put out some water for him and just look what he did! So cute!!! They were taken just a few days ago. Thanks, Kevin, for sending these!

Happy 10th Birthday, Sierra!

Sierra ready to start the day on her monorail ride into the Magic Kingdom for her birthday! She got to sit in the cockpit with the engineer for the ride!

Sierra and mommy at one of our first Mommy & Me playgroups with friends...June 1999 (she was 6 months old). UPC members might also recognize the late Jan Ayson sitting next to me and her son, Travis, is the little one in green with his back towards the camera. At the time I knew her, Scott & I weren't members of UPC, so I had no idea we would one day share the same church home...small world!



Mommy & Sierra on Thanksgiving 2008! I can't believe it was a decade ago that I had her! Today we are celebrating her birthday at Disney World because anyone can go to any Disney theme park in 2009 for FREE on your birthday! No kidding!

My Junior High & High School Montage...

I created this montage last night as a way to include lots of special pictures of memories from junior high and high school with my friends and fellow classmates that I have found on facebook. It is 9 minutes long, so when you have the time, sit down and take a look for fun!


Glenridge & WPHS Montage(1986-1991)

Friends...

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately about the true meaning of friends. It's a subject that has been on my mind and heart for a while now. Life hands us lots of ups and downs and it seems that people will come and go out of your life at various seasons or stages in your life. Reuniting online through Facebook lately with old acquaintances and friends from junior high school and high school has been such fun in recent months for me! It's as if 17 or more years having passed has seemingly erased a lot of the old grudges, feelings, intentions, and drama from those good ole' days...well, at least the negative feelings anyway! I love being able to reconnect to see where everybody has ended up so far and to be honest, there have been many pleasant surprises! God has certainly been working mightily in many of my old classmates' lives through the years and it is a true delight for me to catch a glimpse of who they are now, albeit online only.

This blog entry is just a way for me to express some of my thoughts about friends and friendships. There have been some situations lately with other people who I know and who I guess I had classified as friends. But, when I go through my mental checklist of what demonstrates true friendship to me, it seems that perhaps, some of these people aren't truly a friend to me. It has been hurtful for me to realize that although I may have considered some of them my friends, they apparently have not felt the same way about me. Or, at least their actions, or lack thereof, have conveyed that message to me. Life presents us all with many challenges, for sure. And I will be one of the first to admit that I am not the best at expressing my gratitude and love I have for the friends in my life on a frequent basis. When the world is made up of so many people with so many different types of personalities and coming from so many kinds of backgrounds and experiences in their own lives, it's easy to see why miscommunication and friendship styles can result in conflicts. But, I truly wish that it was easier for some people to be willing to give of themselves in friendships to others and to not be too afraid of being vulnerable by just being yourself to another person. It's risky, I know, to express your true feelings and thoughts to someone else. It also takes effort and work to create and maintain a friendship that goes beyond the typical, "Hello. How are you doing?" courtesy exchanges.

My LIFE group at church has been working on a study recently about Authentic Relationships. I think it is a great idea for people to discuss and think about creating more authentic relationships in their own lives. The key element I think is the fact that it really is something you have to do yourself. You can't expect a friendship to grow or flourish when only one party is making most, if not all, of the efforts. After all, think about the fact that God is the one who initially seeks us out in order to draw us into a relationship with Him! He initiates the act of establishing an authentic relationship, or a friendship with us. Can you imagine if God never took that first step in any of our lives? Where would we all be? Some of us may very well have ended up stumbling upon Him at some point, just out of curiosity. But, isn't it comforting to know that God is the one who took the first steps to begin a lifelong journey with us? We didn't have to do anything at first. In order for our walk with the Lord to even progress at all from that beginning, we had to step out in faith and make the effort to be vulnerable to Him...isn't that true? Fortunately, even when we seem to lose interest in keeping the lines of communication and relationship open with God, He still waits patiently for us. In fact, He will NEVER leave us! And thank Heaven He doesn't hold grudges, too! But, human friendships aren't quite so foolproof. When one party seemingly ceases to make any effort to keep the friendship going, the relationship can practically wither away and die. It's a sad truth that probably happens more often than we realize. So, I challenge you, my silent blogreaders (LOL), to examine your friendships in your own life currently. If you are feeling like some of your relationships aren't quite all that they could be or if you are wishing that you had more authentic, trusting and faithful relationships, why not step out in faith with a vulnerable heart and take that first step to creating and maintaining a true friendship? I think it's safe to assume that you won't be sorry! It's a win-win situation for everyone! The old saying, "To have a friend, you have to be a friend", comes to mind.

I voted...

Did you?

Logan Henderson ("Sky Angel Cowboy")...wise beyond his years!

My mom sent me this link in an email and after watching it, I thought it was worth sharing for anyone who happens to stop by my blog. It's a precious story of a 12-year-old boy named, Logan, who lives on a ranch in Nebraska. What a profound message he has! It's sweet to hear the story...

**Don't forget to scroll down to the bottom of my page and press pause on the music playlist first!

Need a good laugh today?

OK, I am a big supporter of Sarah Palin and I will be voting Republican this election. But, someone I went to high school with sent out this link the other day and I think it's hilarious! Go to the website (sorry, I don't know how to make links work when I post a new blog entry)...www.PalinasPresident.com

It has all these funny things that happen whenever you click on the various items surrounding her in the "Oval Office". I couldn't stop laughing. Be sure to have your sound volume turned on, too. I am not posting this to be disrespectful in any way, so please don't be offended. I am not trying to mock any political agendas or candidates either. I just thought the website is pretty clever and cute and definitely funny!! I guess I just needed a good laugh late last night after our somewhat stressful day. All is good though.

I caved...

Well, I caved today while shopping for a few things at Publix. I did not want to push around a large grocery cart since I only needed a few things. I made the mistake of thinking that I could actually just carry a few things I needed by hand up to the checkout counter. As usual whenever I make that silly decision, I ended up needing something to carry my stuff in, but had neglected to grab a carry-all basket near the store entrance upon arriving. So, what did I do? Well, I caved and decided to buy a few of those 99cent Publix fabric bags that are non-disposable. I have told myself for years now that I would NEVER spend money on one of those type of things if I had to spend more than $1 for one. After all, for some reason it always bugged me to spend money on a carryout bag. I am not typically a "green" person who is always making sound choices based on saving the environment. In fact, I guess I am what you might call a true American "consumer", in just about every sense of that word.

Anyway, the Publix fabric reusable shopping bags used to be priced at $1.99 a piece for a while. I was not going to spend $10 on five bags. But, today, I relented and decided to spend $4 on 4 bags at 99cents each (actually, that comes out to $3.96 total...LOL). So, I guess I am now one of those "green" people concerned about saving some trees and helping the environment in some small way. I actually bought some in different colors (tan, black and green). We'll see if I end up loving my choice in the future. For now, though, it is just one more thing I will have to keep stored conveniently in my overstuffed minivan. Since I am the type who never remembers to bring along store coupons after taking the time to cut them out, I am also likely to forget to bring these Publix reusable carryout bags to the grocery store, too. The only way this will work out to be a benefit to me is if I keep them constantly stored in the car. Thanks to Cathy Martin (www.cathy.likeafire.net) for the inspiration, by the way (she wrote a blog post about this weeks ago)! It helps knowing that you're not the only one making decisions to go "green"..LOL!

For the record, I am still voting Republican, by the way!! So, don't think I've changed my mind for presidential candidate this coming election...LOL!! And another thing...when are they gonna' add a cents key on the computer keyboards anyway? They have one for the $ symbol.

Things that make me uncomfortable (or in some cases, annoy me)...

Just a random blog entry about things that make me uncomfortable in life...

1) ...sitting inside my car at the Jiffy Lube Express while getting the oil changed in my minivan. I always feel like a "sitting duck" as the men snoop around my engine and come up to my car window to tell me the list of things that should be replaced or repaired on my vehicle. I JUST WANT THE OIL CHANGED!! Please don't try to sell me on other things when all I can afford right now is the oil change. How do I know you're not just taking advantage of me because I'm a female and don't know a lot about cars?


2) ...when you're checking out in the grocery or other store checkout line and the person waiting in line behind you can't seem to stay in their own "body space", but rather they invade your "space" by creeping up right next to you, clearly within eyeshot of your PIN code while using your debit card. I don't like being made to feel like I must hurry up because you are a bit impatient and want to push me through the line in a hurry. There is a reason why the grocery store checkout lines have those separating little plastic bars you use on the conveyor belt. Don't start putting your stuff down on the conveyor when I have barely just begun putting my own items on there. If I have a grocery cart full of stuff, don't put your stuff down before I do. That's being too pushy.


3) ...realizing that 95% of your friends and former classmates on Facebook do not share the same support for presidential candidate as you do. Sometimes, I wish there was a better mix, rather than it seeming like I am the only one who will vote for my candidate this year.


4) ...people who circle the parking lot waiting for an open space and since there are none, instead decide to follow you in their car as you walk to yours when leaving the store. It feels like a stalker when you creep behind me at 1mph while I can hear your engine running right behind me.


5) ...people who don't return the favor, whatever it may be. When you've tried to be a good friend to them in the past in numerous ways, but they can't even reciprocate the kindness to you later on. Why is it so hard for us all to put others before ourselves?


OK, well I got some of those off my chest, so I guess I feel better for now...LOL!

Possessions...

I was up late last night after getting off from work and had some thoughts running through my mind that I had thought about recently, but didn't focus much on before. For some reason, since they popped up in my mind again last night, I thought it might make a good post.

I'm writing about the topic of possessions...ya' know, those things we all hold dear and love to think about, purchase, hold onto, and even plan for in the future? A few weeks ago, my family and I was over at my late grandmother's condo trying to sort through her many belongings and decide which family member would inherit various items that had belonged to my grandmother. I remember saying to my mom that old adage, "When you die, you sure can't take these things with you". There were so many collectibles and items that my grandmother had accumulated over her 83 years of living on this earth! I actually didn't realize until a few weeks ago exactly how much my grandmother had an obvious passion for collecting interesting pieces of glass, crystal and china, among other collectibles. My cousins and I were all fortunate enough to have been able to inherit some wonderful pieces of antique furniture and jewelry from my grandmother, after my mom and aunt sorted through their respective inherited items. Since Scott & I clearly have not been able to purchase a larger home as we had hoped a few years ago, we've been trying to make room for some of these newly inherited items at our current home. My grandmother's condo was officially sold and the deal was closed just yesterday.

"Out with the old, in with the new", is a phrase that comes to mind. We've managed to make room for the new furniture and I am happy to see the positive changes that some rearranging and creativity have brought to our home since adding Nanny's furniture. I was going through a mental list in my mind the other day of some of the items that we ended up with and how, coincidentally...or maybe NOT so coincidentally, we've managed to inherit the very items we've had on our wish list for quite some time now. We've been needing a new toaster oven, since ours has been with us since the first year we were married (12 years ago) and was on the fritz...voila! We inherited Nanny's excellent toaster oven which was only a couple of years old since it was purchased brand new for her after having her condo remodeled due to damage from Hurricane Charley in 2004. I've been wanting a nice smooth-top oven range for several years since the one we bought with our house has the older style burners on it...voila! My mom gave us her smooth-top range that's in great shape since she recently purchased some new appliances for herself and no longer needed this particular oven. We've been wanting for quite some time to turn our living room into a cozier setting with some pieces of furniture and a coffee table that would create a more inviting atmosphere...voila! We inherited Nanny's beautiful Italian marble & wood coffee table, along with a great wingback chair that has a lazy-boy recliner in it! We also inherited a very comfortable brown, microfiber/suede-type fabric loveseat that was also a recent purchase of Nanny's to replace some damaged furniture in her condo after the hurricanes in 2004. The list goes on and on of the various items that I've been wanting for a while but have not had the money to justify making any new purchases of them. It is interesting to me that God has provided a way for us to acquire some of these items through my grandmother's passing away.

But, these are just things...possessions. I have always been the type of person who would rather have brand new items than something that's been passed down, mainly because I don't always share the same style or taste that someone else may have. Plus, I just love brand new and unused stuff. Since inherting some of these treasures, it has reminded me that these are all just things. They will not be traveling with me to Heaven in my final home with God. In fact, they can easily be destroyed by disasters and the elements down here on earth. Just think of the latest Hurricane Ike victims in Texas, parts of Louisiana, Ohio and Kentucky. I took a claim over the phone just last night from someone in Texas who literally lost everything in his home due to flooding. Sure, I love to shop for the newest trends and I have no problem spending money...after all, I am a female...LOL!! But, my point is that as humans, we spend so much of our time, thoughts, desires, and resources in pursuit of possessions! While they may seem temporarily gratifying to look at or to have, in the end, they really don't matter at all. I know that is something we already know in our minds. Things don't matter, but people and relationships matter. But, if you take an honest look at yourself, can you identify ways in which many of your everyday stresses, issues, goals and desires for your future revolve around possessions? It takes a lifetime to accumulate all the various, unique items and possessions one can leave to their loved ones once they have passed away. But, when the end of your life arrives and all is said and done, how much is too much? Will my life really be more fulfilled if I make that next bid and purchase on eBay or Craigslist? Sometimes, it is literally just stuff that fills up your house. Don't get me wrong, I love to look at pretty things and I am actually starting to enjoy the idea of acquiring my own collection of antique and vintage items that I find lovely and interesting. But, my heart is truly not at rest or satisfied unless I am pursuing the most precious possession of all...and that is a loving, trusting, peaceful relationship with the One who created me in the first place...my dear Lord, God! It seems that it takes many people an entire lifetime to realize that things don't ultimately satisfy. I admit that pursuing my relationship with God is not always the first priority on my list. But, I am continuing to strive to make it my top priority these days. Only in that will I find real peace and comfort in this ever-changing, unsecure world we live in right now.