- IT CAN'T BE... CAN IT?? -

can it really be that our baby boy's, really 22??? - yep, guess it's true (so they tell me) - well, here's to you dustin!! - thanks for a wonderful evening of letting us celebrate you & your life up to this point - here's some pictures of this evening - thanks for allowing me to snap away (you know how much i enjoyed it!!) - before i go, let me leave you with this:

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HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR DUSTIN

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!!

we love you bub :)

- LOUDNIE -

my goodness, how cute's this little face! - she's such a sweet little thing too - she's 'bout the most sniggliest child i've ever seen as she loves getting up in your lap & lounging (then going to sleep) & i loved it when i was there in may & got to meet her - sharel, get your recliner ready as that's where you'll want her for awhile & she'll love every minute of it!!

- MARBLES -

I was at the corner grocery store buying some early potatoes. I noticed a small boy, delicate of bone & feature, ragged but clean, hungrily appraising a basket of freshly picked green peas. I paid for my potatoes, but was also drawn to the display of fresh green peas. I'm a pushover for creamed peas & new potatoes. Pondering the peas, I couldn't help overhearing the conversation between Mr. Miller (the store owner) & the ragged boy next to me. "Hello Barry, how are you today?" "H'lo, Mr. Miller. Fine, thank ya. Jus' admirin' them peas. They sure look good." "They are good, Barry. How's your Ma?" "Fine. Gittin' stronger alla' time." "Good. Anything I can help you with?" "No, Sir. Jus' admirin' them peas." "Would you like to take some home?" asked Mr. Miller. "No, Sir. Got nuthin' to pay for 'em with." "Well, what have you to trade me for some of those peas?" "All I got's my prize marble here." "Is that right? Let me see it" said Miller. "Here 'tis. She's a dandy." "I can see that. Hmmmmm, only thing's this one's blue & I sort of go for red. Do you have a red one like this at home?" the store owner asked. "Not zackley but almost." "Tell you what. Take this sack of peas home with you & next trip this way let me look at that red marble". Mr. Miller told the boy. "Sure will. Thanks Mr. Miller." Mrs. Miller, who'd been standing nearby, came over to help me. With a smile she said, "There are two other boys like him in our community, all three are in very poor circumstances. Jim just loves to bargain with them for peas, apples, tomatoes, or whatever. When they come back with their red marbles & they always do, he decides he doesn't like red after all & he sends them home with a bag of produce for a green marble or an orange one, when they come on their next trip to the store" I left the store smiling to myself, impressed with this man. A short time later I moved to Colorado, but I never forgot the story of this man, the boys & their bartering for marbles. Several years went by, each more rapid than the previous one. Just recently I'd occasion to visit some old friends in that Idaho community & while I was there learned that Mr. Miller had died. They were having his visitation that evening & knowing my friends wanted to go, I agreed to accompany them. Upon arrival at the mortuary we fell into line to meet the relatives of the deceased & to offer what ever words of comfort we could. Ahead of us in line were three young men. One was in an army uniform & the other two wore nice haircuts, dark suits & white shirts all very professional looking. They approached Mrs. Miller, standing composed & smiling by her husband's casket. Each of the young men hugged her, kissed her on the cheek, spoke briefly with her & moved onto the casket. Her misty light blue eyes followed them as, one by one, each young man stopped briefly & placed his own warm hand over the cold pale hand in the casket. Each left the mortuary awkwardly, wiping his eyes. Our turn came to meet Mrs. Miller. I told her who I was & reminded her of the story from those many years ago & what she'd told me about her husband's bartering for marbles. With her eyes glistening, she took my hand & led me to the casket. "Those three young men who just left were the boys I told you about. They just told me how they appreciated the things Jim "traded" them. Now, at last, when Jim could not change his mind about color or size, they came to pay their debt." "We've never had a great deal of the wealth of this world," she confided, "but right now, Jim would consider himself the richest man in Idaho. With loving gentleness she lifted the lifeless fingers of her deceased husband & resting underneath were three exquisitely shiny red marbles.
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The Moral: We'll not be remembered by our words, but by our kind deeds. Life's not measured by the breaths we take, but rather by the number of moments that take our breath away. It's not what you gather, but what you scatter in life that matters.

- $'s RISING! -

look at the thermometer, it's going up, up & UP some more! - 2 more families gave dad/mom more money for their adoption (praise the lord) - it'll be completely paid off before we know it - i'm so excited - things in haiti right now are moving & heading in the right direction & that's a HUGE praise the lord - let's just all continue to be praying that the haitian process stays this way & even gets quicker - we'll keep you posted on where we are in the process & keep checking the fundraiser meter as we're hoping to reach $6000 soon & very soon!

- MOM... GUESS WHAT????? -

just found out something you might like to hear - i just talked to barbara & she said that, "passport applications were deposited today for madisyn, loundie & rosemene & just to continue praying that those working on the adoption paperwork are in a christmas spirit & that the rest goes FAST!!! - just thought maybe you'd read my blog before reading the yahoo groups we're on, thus the reason for me blogging about it!!

- CASH ADVANCE 1500.COM -

well, if you need some extra cash, i think here is the place to go - this is a place where you can go when it is several more days or weeks until payday - it is also where you can go for not only cash advances, but also you can obtain unsecured loans when you need money fast - this emergency cash comes safely and securely right into your checking account and can also be completed with just using the internet - there are many sites that you can go check out that can help you with your money problems - here are some of them, listed in no particular order:
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women's pay day advance - this is for women who need money for just about anything from going out shopping, purchasing clothing, paying bills or whatever you need it for
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additional earnings - this site is a place to go when you need some 'in-between' funding for various things - when you have a paycheck coming in, but it doesn't meet ALL your needs, this is the place to go
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maximum wages cash advance - this site not only lends you cash, but if you meet all the requirements, they will load you up to $1500
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silent cash loan cash advance - this site is more of a hush, hush thing for those that choose to use it - you and you alone are the only person that will ever know anything about you obtaining anything unless you share it with them yourself
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urgent cash relief cash advance - this is for anything that you need money for whether you need it to fix something in your home, take a child or yourself to the doctor or hospital, how about taking an animal to the vet - you be the judge of what you need it for
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check cash central cash advance - this site is for making sure you are taken care of - they want to ensure for you, the amount of money needed and to also make sure it is from a lender who you trust
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instant pay enrollment pay day - this site should almost be entitled HURRY HURRY as they are very quick in that they get you the funds you need all in the same day

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payday loans

payday loans

- KIARA'S ANTICS -

i don't know what's getting into kiara, but today i went to pick her up from kindergarten & her teacher came to the car & said, "well, today when we were practicing our cutting skills, kiara cut her pants" - "WHAT???", i said - yep, kiara was to be practicing her cutting on paper & decided to cut a hole in her pants at her knee - it's bad enough she did it, but she'd never wore that outfit before!!! - GRRRRRRRRRR - i was so upset with her - the teachers says she's finding kiara does pretty well in school when it's 'structured days', but when it's not structured like she's used to (ie: starting to practice for the upcoming christmas program, having a surprise day today where they made gingerbread houses, etc.) she doesn't do well AT ALL - it's almost more than she can handle & she gets all discombobulated (i think you know what i mean), stressed & out of sorts - i explained that here at home, it's pretty structured so i knew that's what she's used to, but i hate it that she's almost not able to function without structure - we talked to kiara this afternoon & we're hoping to see/hear better behavior in the upcoming days/weeks... for her teachers sake if no one else!!

- SHOPPING'S ALMOST FINISHED! -

spike & i went out this evening after dinner & purchased most of the last of our christmas gifts that we still had to buy - we now have spike & mine (we just bought this fabulous camera for each other!!!), both our parents, 2 of our nieces on my side of the family (megan & katie), brittan, the 3 bear cubs, MOST of dustins, all the kids' bus drivers, all the kids' teachers & MOST of barbara's done!!

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we'd been looking for a digital camera that does all this camera does, but hadn't had the time to start pricing them - we were at sharels the other day & we were talking about cameras & i mentioned we were wanting to get us a new one with more 'stuff' on it - she said they'd just gotten one that they really liked & brought it out to show us & it was this one - spike said after we got home that he thought their daughter mandy & her hubby shane have the same camera too & probably liked it so much that it just made sense for sharel & her hubby ralph, to get one like it (easier to learn to use that way!) - we went & started our search & found it & got it very reasonable at the electronic place where our son works (praise the lord) - now i need to get with shane & have him show me how to work it!! (shane, i'm gonna be calling you!!)

we also finished sanite, noah, maddie too - i think we've just got to pick up a couple more things for dustin, barbara, kyle, angela & whatever gifts we need to take over to spike's side of the family on christmas day & we're done! (sometimes we do name exchanges, sometimes we do more of a 'white elephant exchange', sometimes we just have the children exchange with each other, etc., but i've not heard what it's going to be for this year... sharel, mandy, patty wanna share what the plan is??) - it's good to be this far along, i can tell ya!

- A 'BUTTERFINGER' MORNING -

karleigh & i left this morning & met mom at target - she took karleigh shopping & i went & picked up what i needed - we happened to see each other later on in the store & guess what karleigh had been given?? (see below)yes, here it was 9:30am & she's feeding karleigh a butterfinger candy bar - if eating a candy bar that early in the morning's not bad enough, nana went on & bought her a regular BIG one! (she said that they didn't have 'mini' ones... hmmmmmmm) - boy, karleigh was in heaven as that's her favorite candy bar in all the world - that nana's in BIG trouble now!

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NOTE: while this post was being written, sounds from a very 'hyper active' little 3 year old was coming from her bedroom - a room where she was to be sleeping (resting would've even been good!), but instead she's doing flips, flops, singing (loudly), talking (hmmm, who is she talking to?), laughing (at herself i guess), etc. & all because of what??? (see below)

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'NANA & her goodies!'

- THINGS ARE GOING GOOD 'ROUND HERE -

just wanted to let everyone know that even though i've not blogged in the past few days, things around here are going very well... busy, but well - with having the funeral showing (spike's aunt) last wednesday, the girls all getting up sick with strep on thursday (they're fine now & were about 6 hours after being the medicine that only cost $12!!), thanksgiving on thursday, the funeral on friday (spike's aunt), heading to terre haute with spikes sister vickie & her husband on saturday, we played hookie from church yesterday & did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! - we slept in, got up & fed the kids the remaining 3 pieces of pumpkin pie (it had eggs in it!!) - watched movies all day & dozed (ahhh, felt great!) - this morning it's back to the routines that we all love so much (hehe) - i've already gotten 3 off to school (ruby 6:30, brittan 6:50 & kiara 8) & so now karleigh & i are going to finish getting ready & we're heading to target to pick up a few things - i'll post later i'm sure

- OUR THANKSGIVING DAY -

well, boy oh boy, did it start out rough - last night kiara woke up complaining that she'd a sore throat & her chest hurt when she'd breathe - they all 3 got up this morning & i went ahead & took them into the ER as nothing else was open & had them checked out since they're together all the time - they said kiara had strep & so he gave them all 3 antibiotics (ruby & karleigh just as a precaution)
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i then had mom to call my brother aaron/sharon & their family (megan 5 & katie 3), then i called 'papa' kyle/angela & their family (sanite 8, noah 5 & maddie 3) as they were all coming for thanksgiving - angela said they still wanted to come since strep was going around everywhere, they more than likely had already been exposed by someone else & had been looking so forward to getting together with all of us for weeks - aaron said they didn't know what to do as he does taxidermy & this' his busy season & he couldn't afford to get sick - he knew that with megan being in kindergarten, it's a good possibility that she's already been exposed as well, but we didn't want to take the chance - no one really wanted to make the decision, so i finally called aaron & suggested that his family go ahead & go to dad/mom's house at noon (when we were all supposed to be there) & have thanksgiving with them - then, whenever they left, we'd all (us & caswells) would head over & spend the rest of the day with them - he apparently thought that sounded good as that's what we did - i hated not being able to spend the day with them as we'd all looked so forward to it, but we didn't want him to get strep & then 'wonder' if he got it from kiara (that would not have been good at all!) - dad/mom said 'round 1' was great as was 'round 2' when we got there so all in all i think everyone enjoyed themselves - dad was thrilled at the way we did it as he got to eat 2 full thanksgiving meals!!! - here's some pictures from the day (at least during 'round 2')

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kiara

noah & his crown

(so noah, does this make you a darling or a fella?)

princess kiara
princess madisyn's christmas stocking
princess ruby
maddie
maddie & sanite (beautiful sisters!!)
is that a big enough bite there, karleigh?
no girls, stand back, this guy's MINE!!
sanite, you're looking so grown up
... now STOP IT!!
smilin' rubynoah... that handsome 'fella'
(i think i got it right, buddy!)

angela (ya'll pray for her as she's 'slippin' a bit, don't ya think?)dustin... our oldest
another of dustin as when i'm taking pics,
i've gotta get all i can as he hates me to take them
sweet little karleigh
karleigh (aka 'witchy poo')

- ANGELS WATCHIN' OVER ME -

yep, i sure had our angels working overtime tonight - today's been so rushed in just getting everything done/ready for thanksgiving - spike & brittan already had hair appointments set weeks ago for tonight of all nights at 4:30 - spike's aunt passed away the other day so we'd her funeral showing tonight from 4-8 & spike & brittan wasn't even getting out of the hair salon until about 6:30, so we'd to drive 2 cars, thus the reason for a VERY BUSY NIGHT! - the girls & i left the showing before spike did so we could head to dad/mom's to drop off all the food for tomorrow & also drop brittan off as she's spending the night there tonight - well, the bear cubs were misbehaving at the showing, so they were told they could not go into dad/mom's, but instead had to stay in the car & then it was home for bedtime - i ran in (leaving the van running) & dad stood at the van talking to them as i dropped my things off - i came back out, jumped in the van, buckled up & off we went! - we're about 30 minutes from my parents on a VERY busy traveled road (2 lanes) - here it is pouring buckets outside, very busy traffic as everyone's heading to grandmas house & we're out on the roads at 9pm - it wasn't until i got home (after i'd driven for 30 minutes) that i noticed when i'd gotten back in the van at dad/mom's house, i buckled up, but..... FORGOT TO TURN MY LIGHTS BACK ON!!!!!!!!!!! - i can just see our angels bouncing cars out of the way, from in front of us - god truly was watching out for us & i soooooo thank him for it - wow, just thinking of the possible outcome, churns my stomach (it could be the pumpkin pie i just stole a piece from & ate, but i don't think so) - everyone have a great thanksgiving & with this situation behind us & the possible scenario that could've been extremely different for our family this thanksgiving, we say enjoy the holidays & stay safe!

- IT'S FAST APPROACHING -

got the girls all off to school today, only to get a call from karleigh's school saying she wasn't feeling well, only wanted to lay down & was complaining of a sore throat (great!) - she's acted fine since she's gotten home, so we'll see what happens tomorrow - we straightened up the house tonight really well & then tomorrow morning we'll be baking (pumpkin pies, cherry nut crunch & i don't know what else at this point) - we then have to all be ready for a funeral showing tomorrow by 4, when ruby gets off the bus (i'll get her ready as the rest of the family's loading in the van) - we'll then drive to get spike & brittan's hair cut/colored, then it's off to the funeral home, then it's back to dad/mom's as brittan's staying all night with them to be able to help mom out - we'll then be arriving at dad/mom's house on thursday around noonish for the rest of the day - we can't wait as my brothers family will be there (he's got megan 5 & katie 3), the 'papa' kyle & angela will be coming (they've got sanite 8, noah 5 & maddie 3) & our crew (we've got kiara 5, ruby 4 & karleigh 3) - poor noah, out-numbered again!! - well, i'm off to bed as i fell asleep in the chair today & i never do that - guess my body's trying to tell me something! - nite all!!

- ONLINE CASINOS -

well, i am not a gambler by any means, but i do like to play games - so far the only game i play online is euchre and i really like it (although i do not get much time to do so) - a good site to go to if you are interested, is online games or casinos - some of the games they feature are:

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casino bellini, vegas towers, casino royal vegas, casino del rio, vegas palm, vegas slot casino, shots plue, vegas country, las vegas casino, platinum play, aztec riches casino, cameo casino, vegas red casino, bingo creative, club dice, fortune room, millionaire casino, music hall casino, sun palace casino & vegas 7 (and that is just page one of four pages full of games) - as i said earlier, i do not gamble at all, but if you do and would like to check these games out, go to the link provided (above) - when you go to this site, you can click at the bottom of the page and go to other pages that have tons of other games to see and view - they have detailed directions as to how to play them all and what is required - you can literally spend hours and hours of fun (if you like that sort of thing) looking over this site and playing their games - by playing these games at home, it will be like a stationary cruise ship right in your own home as some cruise ships these days have those floating casinos right on board - you can do all this and not have to pay the money for a trip, either - on the site it also will tell you about the max bonus you will receive, about certificates, editor ratings, player ratings and a full review for each and every game you are thinking of playing, before you even get started!

casino online

- ARTIFICIAL ROCKS -

wow, I wish i would have known about this company a long time ago - these are a great thing for your yard, garden or landscape - they have about 20 different shapes and sizes of boulders that are hollow and are about one inch thick and are open at the bottom - you can have your address or welcome sign put right on the front of the boulder where all emergency personal can find you at a moments notice in an emergency - they can also be a very nice addition to your home and landscaping - you do not have to put these address plaques on the rocks, but instead they may be added to the mailbox or other structure, but adding them to the boulders would certainly be my choice! - they are made to look like boulders 800-1000 pounds, but are less than 60 pounds... how cool is that! - the company that makes these large fake rocks are Artificial Rock Factory and they're very well made if i do say so myself - they are made from construction grade cast stone and are very well built - they are rustproof and hold up to five 3" numbers or capital letters in gold on a black background - you also have a choice of three different colors to chose from and they will ship right to your door and since you get them within 7-10 business days, you still have time to order them for Christmas gifts, but hurry as the cut off date for getting them by Christmas of this year (2007) is November 29 and that is fast approaching so do not delay! - if you want it to just say 'welcome', you have until December 13 to order so keep that in mind - these boulders are reasonably priced at $299 each, but are on sale now for just $199 with $50 shipping - Artificial Rocks Factory

- PRAYER FOR PATTY -

i'm asking prayer right now for my niece patty - she's a wife & mother of 2 boys (elijah & gideon) - her mom sharel (spike's sister) just phoned me & said that the other day, patty was saying she wasn't seeing all that well - she said that everything seemed to be as if she were looking through a thick fog - they took her to the hospital, they ran a ct scan & didn't see anything - they sent her home, but said it might be due to having a bad reaction to some medication that she's been taking - well, they're now on the way to the hospital again as she's getting worse every day & now has a temperature of over 103 degrees - please pray for her that she's totally healed - i'll post as soon as i hear something more - thank you all!

-MY 'un' MOTIVATED MONDAY -

i couldn't movin' this morning until 10:30 - i was up at 6, got ruby onto the bus, then was up again at 7:30, got kiara onto the bus, but then after that i was a waste - i finally got things running around here, got karleigh ready & myself, went to get kiara, went to walmart (whenever you finally get moving, you MUST buzz by walmart, right?) - i then took those precious angels of mine (yep, you heard me right, they were wonderful!) to taco bell for lunch & kiara read her first word to me (HOT... on a pack of taco sauce - that's my girl as her mommy LOVES HOT FOOD!) - she's very into wanting to read, but she's really struggling with it - she knows all her letters with ease, knows all the sounds with ease, but when it's time to run them together to form a word, she's lost UGH - i know she'll get it, but i hate to see my kids struggle - we came home, went down for nap time & that's where they are now - i'm getting ready to head to meijer as i need to grab me a purse as mine ripped over the weekend - anyhow, i'll post later (surprised, aren't ya?)

- BACK HOME -

well, we're back home from a quick trip ohio - we went to a new haitian camp at the home of david & becky britt (thanks guys, we'd a fabulous time!!), got to spend a lot of time with deric & mary ellen cox's family as well (great seeing you all again, man was it fun!) & of course the one & only BAR-BAR-AH!! - we're hoping to see you all again very soon - the kids had a blast (we did too) & they talked about all their 'friends' the entire trip home (yes, like 4+ hours worth of hearing about their friends!) - i hear from my mother that a friend of ours was a bit concerned as neither mom or myself either one had blogged - she noticed mom's first & emailed her to find out if everything was alright - she then apparently checked mine & then emailed mom saying something about, "alright, you're worrying me as lori blogs all the time & she hasn't, what's going on??" - thanks lynn for being concerned, but with us being out of town, trying to remember to not forget my children when they go somewhere, trying to sell our home, etc., i'm back home now & eager to blog!! - here's a neat post i ran across tonight & thought i'd share - i may just adopt this new saying & it's very meaningful - enjoy!

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Recently I overheard a mother & daughter in their last moments together at the airport. They'd announced the departure. Standing near the security gate, they hugged & the mother said, "I love you & I wish you enough". The daughter replied, "Mom, our life together's been more than enough, your love's all I ever needed & I wish you enough, too, Mom". They kissed & the daughter left. The mother walked over to the window where I was seated. Standing there I could see she wanted & needed to cry. I tried not to intrude on her privacy, but she welcomed me in by asking, "Did you ever say good-bye to someone knowing it'd be forever?". "Yes, I have", I replied. "Forgive me for asking, but why's this a forever good-bye?" "I'm old & she lives so far away. I've challenges ahead & the reality is, the next trip back will be for my funeral", she said. "When you were saying good-bye, I heard you say, 'I wish you enough', may I ask what that means?" She began to smile, "That's a wish that's been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone". She paused a moment & looked up as if trying to remember it in detail & she smiled even more. "When we said , 'I wish you enough', we were wanting the other person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them". Then turning toward me, she shared the following as if she were reciting it from memory.

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I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright no matter how gray the day may appear.

I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun even more.

I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive & everlasting.

I wish you enough pain so that even the smallest joys in life appear bigger.

I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.

I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.

I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye.

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She then began to cry & walked away. They say it takes a minute to find a special person, an hour to appreciate them, a day to love them, but then an entire life to forget them.

- WHEW! -

mr. mom made it just fine & i'm bushed! - i'd my alarm set for 5:45am as i'd to leave the house at 6:30 for ruby's mapping & i'd to get both her & i ready - well, apparently i'd a dream about the hospital calling me & changing my appointment time to 8am (this did NOT happen) - the alarm went off at 5:45 as planned, i got up, changed the alarm to 6:30 (yes, that's when i needed to leave!), told brittan that the hospital had phoned & changed my appointment - she didn't care & said ok - i went back to bed until 6:30 & the second it started beeping i instantly knew i'd screwed up big time!! - i flew out of bed (yes, fat women are known to fly & fly i did!), shut my alarm off & the race was on UGH! - i hate starting off like that! - brittan was ready (thank god) & began lotioning ruby & slamming her clothing on her (yep, besides flying there was definite slamming going on!) - we were out the door by 7:07 & at the hospital at 8:15 so i was only 15 minutes late & they were fine with that - WHEW!

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as for mr. mom, he did great! - i'd gotten kiara ready so he'd to get her fed, show 'n tell in backpack & out the door at 8 (he did!) - then get karleigh up, dressed, hair done & fed (he did!) - then he'd to get her backpack & lunch box loaded (he did!) - then he'd to get her to school by 9 (WELL HE DID ALL THE OTHER THINGS!!) - nope, 9am didn't happen, but 9;10 did & so he walked her in (she loved that!) & it seems others were running late today too so he wasn't the only 'mom' that was

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i slid in (yep, now there's flying, slamming & sliding WHEEEE), long enough to drop ruby off with spike & it was off to get karleigh & we made it - i think i'm getting off here tonight & will resume tomorrow... same time... same channel - nite!!