Not so sure whether it's a good thing or not ...

I think I've mentioned before how my husband is definitely not a fan of games. It's very rare that he actually gets in the mood to play a game, so when he does I jump at the chance. And, generally, I'm nearly always in the mood to play a game. Well, last night he actually played TWO GAMES with me!!!!! I was so excited. We played Rummicube first and he won and then we set up the ol' chess board. I pulverized him!!! Hahahahahahahah!!!!!!!!!!! I was so excited that I won ... until the realization hit me that he might not want to play with me again for a really long time with me beating him so badly. I mean, it didn't take long and there was really no competition any more. I'd taken nearly all of his pawns and several of his other guys and he only three of my pawns and a knight. ;-) It was great. But then again, he might be out for revenge and challenge me again really soon. I hope it means the latter. I might even go easier on him next time if so. ..... ...... ........ Nah. It'd be against my nature. ;-)

I know it's been a while since I posted. I'm teaching two weeks of summer school and have one more to go. It's actually not as bad as I envisioned. You know, at the high school level, summer school is for kids to make up credit where they've failed, so it's not like I've exactly got the cream of the crop. But they've actually been pretty good kids, so maybe I'll survive the last week.

At the end of May we went to Georgia and visited Anthony's folks. They're all doing pretty well and we had a good visit. Jackson had fun playing with his Aunt Charity. (Sounds funny, huh? Anthony has a 8-year-old sister, for those of you who didn't know that.) Those two are so funny together. She tries to be big Aunt Charity and help Jackson with everything and Jackson's just at that age where he doesn't even want help from his mommy any more, and Charity doesn't understand that, so it's quite a riot watching them. They both tend to get into trouble whenever they're together--Jackson for pushing her and Charity for pestering. His grandparents sure did enjoy getting to see him, though.

We went to church at Rossville and enjoyed seeing everyone there. It was a little like coming home. (It's where we pastored when we were first married.) After church we went out to eat with the Munozes and enjoyed seeing them. The next day we made a brief visit to Cleveland to see Terry and Shaye Ammons and then we headed down to Alabama.

Down there we stayed a couple of days with the Deitzes in the Fort Payne area. We had a good time with them as well. Jackson found a pal in their 12-year-old daughter Megan. She was great with him. She made an awesome obstacle course in their living room for Jackson, complete with a cardboard box-turned slide, a playhouse tunnel to crawl through, and a tiny Nerf basketball goal at the end. They had also bought a 4-foot deep pool for their backyard. We got Jackson out in it one day and he hung on to me for dear life. He was so scared. We'll have to keep working on not being scared of the "great big bathtub". It may be a feat that'll take another year to conquer. He was pretty scared.

We also all took a trip to Nakalula Falls park. It was really neat. There was a small petting zoo and a little train that took a ride around the park with great vantage points to see the falls although they were a little weak due to a little bit of a drought they'd been going through. Jackson LOVED the train. There was also a neat little pioneer-era village you could walk through with a post office, a mercantile, a meetinghouse (church/school), and other interesting buildings. I always enjoy looking at such things and thinking about how they lived back in those days.

After all our good time fun and fellowship we came home and just relaxed a couple of days before returning to work. Even though we didn't get to go somewhere extravagant or luxurious, it was still a nice little vacation that gave us some relaxation. What's best is that we're always thankful to have fellowship with church members.

Well, from the way things are sounding in there, I think I must be on my way. Apparently Jackson has somehow gotten a hold of my rolling pin and he's in the living room where my curio cabinet is. I foresee a great many spankings in this child's future. *taking a deep breath*

Take care.

WELL, I NEVER!!!!

I guess I am to assume not many people liked my scrapbooks. LOL!!!! Just kidding.

I had an interesting weekend. We agreed to babysit my sister's three little ones while she and her husband embarked on a fabulous anniversary weekend getaway. They stayed in a swanky hotel and enjoyed a dinner cruise in the Ozarks. Jerks. http://www.keetercenter.edu/lodging.asp?page=2 Here you can check it out; they did the Showboatin' package. She called me Saturday morning to check on the kids ... aka, brag.

"We were running late for our dinner cruise," says she, "so Matt called the hotel to see if we could just go to the boat and check in after they got back from the cruise." They were running late for a couple hundred dollar a night hotel room and dinner cruise!!!! Because they were shopping at the mall!!!!! No commentary needed there. Anyway, the hotel said that they'd have to come to the hotel to get their voucher for the cruise. When they pulled up there was an employee standing outside with the voucher in hand. And if that's not enough, when they arrived at the boat, they had an employee saving their seat!!!! The kid wouldn't let the boat leave until they got there!!!! Like I said, swanky. Jerks.

On her way back from the trip, she called and said, "Now you know we'll babysit Jackson while you and Anthony go away one weekend. Just let us know." Hmmmm, not so sure that's quite an even swap--their three to our one. I just laughed and said, "Yeah, if we ever save up the money to do something." Anyway, I enjoyed having my niece and nephews here with us. We don't get to see them too often, but three in diapers. Ugh. It was still good to have them. The only problem was Jackson. He's not used to sharing Mommy and Daddy and, well, let's just say he got his share of spankings this weekend. Broke my heart, but you gotta' do it, you know? We've GOT to have another kid before he turns into a monster. I think we realized that this weekend.

Anyway, there was lots of excitement around here for three days.

I'm requesting prayer for Anthony. He's been having some pretty bad back problems and is seeing a chiropractor, but we're a little worried. From what the doctors have said, they think he hurt it pretty bad when he worked on the moving truck for so long before we got married. We're praying it doesn't come to surgery for him. Please help us pray.

I went to our school's graduation yesterday. It was very nice. The kids were all so excited and nervous and scared to death at the same time. Brought back memories. They pulled a pretty funny little prank that wasn't at all bad. See, this year at our school, we have a new principal and she issued ID badges for all students and staff that we were required to wear at all times. The kids complained about them just because it was something different and something to complain about. Typical. Well, at graduation, as each one shook hands with our principal, they had their ID badges in hand and placed it around her neck. They were "giving the things back", those awful symbols of some kind of propriety AND SAFETY she's trying to establish for our school. It was funny but sad at the same time because they showed they still didn't get the picture. But it was funny because maybe they really did get it but wanted to pretend they didn't in order to "save face". Whatever the reason, at least the prank wasn't mean or vengeful. They were ladies and gentlemen at graduation and I was proud of them.

One more thing before I go. Tomorrow's the last day of school for our underclassmen. We had finals today and will finish them tomorrow but the kids I had today was the last time for them to be in MY class. Well, there's one student in particular that I have had some trouble with this year. I didn't think I had been getting through to her and in some ways I'm sure I hadn't been, but today I got a whole new perspective. Julia, as she left my room, gave me a hug and slipped a note on my desk. When all the students had cleared out, I was shocked at what I read on that piece of paper: "Mrs. Dyer, thank you for being a good teacher this year. You've taught me a lot about life and I'll never forget you. Love always, Julia." I still get a little teary thinking about it. Just Friday I was frustrated thinking that I hadn't made a difference, but today it was as if God reminded me that what I'm doing is indeed worthwhile. I thank Him for that boost that I really needed.

Love ya'll.

I'm sure you've already figured this out, but the plaid background if the inside of the front and back covers of his book.

Jackson's Book

I decided to put some up that are my favorites. There's only one page that was done using Close to My Heart products because I was just recently introduced to them. It's the one that says "Summer at Nan's".

I know they're not the best but I haven't been able to buy the expensive doo-dads that make the prettier accents and such (I have to kind of make them myself). I'm going to try to start getting one new something per holiday so maybe soon I'll have some stuff to make my pages prettier. But for now, these'll do.

It's just so neat to know that when Jackson grows up and marries, I can send these home with his wife and he'll always have them for his children and on down. Well, that is until we're raptured outta' here anyway.

Scrappin'

Yesterday morning I left my two sleepy-headed guys here at the house at around 8 and drove about 30 minutes East to my cousin Shawna's church where we met some other ladies for a morning of cropping, die-cuts, stamps, and stickers. It was their monthly scrapbook fellowship and it was loads o' fun. I got some more finished on Jackson's scrapbook that I very rarely get to work on and it felt really good to feel a little less behind than I am. I'm ready to work on fall 2006 pictures now, which is a big improvement; I had only progressed to winter 2005 before that, so I'm doing much better now. *big smile* And, I hate to say it, but it did feel pretty good to get away from the house by myself for a few hours. It's a huge rarity for me (except for work, of course) and it's pretty nice to get some time for girly stuff. That almost NEVER happens for me, so it was a big blessing. They do it first Saturday of every month, so I'm going to try to go at least every other month or so (maybe every month; we'll have to see) just so I can keep on top of my scrapbook.

I'll post some pics of what I did soon.

Does anyone know what Close to My Heart scrapbook products are? They are really beautiful and not terribly expensive (well, as far as scrapbook products go *nervous giggle) Anyway, I'm thinking of becoming a part-time consultant and was wondering if it's something that'd be of interest. It'd be fun to a do party if, say, we were out doing a revival in another part of the country. I don't know. Just a thought. I'd love to hear your ideas on that.

BTW, no one commented on my music. Is it playing when you get on my page? I was just wondering because I can hear it on my computer but I had one friend say it only plays a small portion of a song and then stops when she gets on my blog. I have around 10 songs loaded to it.

The Entertainer

We went to my dad's 50th birthday party last Saturday at my aunt's house and Jackson had a good time entertaining everyone. They had the black decorations because Dad had turned 50. The plastic top hat that Jackson's wearing was on my dad's head until Jackson took over. He put this hat on, ran into the middle of the yard, and, with his arms held up high, yelled out, "Hickles, pickles!! Hokey Pokey!!" and some other such nonsense. He was definitely a hit. A friend of the family ran over to take his picture; she squatted to get down to his level and he mimicked her, so this is the picture that she was able to get of him. Ha! It was cute.

A couple more pictures:

Turn it up!!!!

I am so excited that I've figured out how to put some music on my blog.

You ought to check it out: projectplaylist.com.

There are several songs loaded if you want to listen for a while. I would have more bluegrass gospel on here but they don't have a large selection of that on this website. Oh, well. I like these songs too.

Enjoy!!!!!

Funny Face

Here are some more pictures of our little man.

Doesn't he have such a sweet little face???

And not such a sweet little face. (ha ha)

He does this for a few seconds and then just LAUGHS!!!!

Here he is being a silly boy ...




And the best one yet ...

"Honey ..."

Another funny little story about Jackson.

We went to visit my grandma after service this morning and were having a good time. She loves loves loves to sing and is really good, so we got her a karaoke system for Christmas this year (all of her grandchildren and children combined--it was a little pricey). Anyway, so she really enjoys it and so does Jackson. I really think this kid's going to inherit my grandma's talent for singing. It was something I prayed for when I was pregnant with him, anyway. So we spent time letting him sing with Nan and he was so cute just "singing" away.

Anyway, so later on he tells me he has to go potty. I get him in the bathroom and up on the potty and I yell at Anthony, "Honey, Jackson's on the potty. Can you bring me a pull-up?"

Jackson sees Anthony going to get his diaper bag and yells, "Honeeeeey, I on a pottyeeeee."

I don't think my grandma has stopped laughing yet. It was hilarious.

Sorry this post is so short, but I've got to get to bed. I've got to go to work tomorrow.

G'night y'all.

Just Barely Two ... And Counting

What to do ... what to do??? I am certified to teach gifted children and have taught them for a few years now, so I've really learned who they are and what they're about. It's been an interesting journey. Gifted children are often socially challenged and are overly concerned and sensitive about issues that are way beyond their years, or where they should be in their current stage of maturation. It can sometimes lead to psychological problems or just difficulties in handling the way the world is. They're sometimes idealistic and have a hard time grasping the concept that some people can be mean. To put it short, they're complex creatures with a lot on their minds. I don't see how nonChristian parents of highly gifted children cope from day to day. I don't see how nonChristian parents of ANY children cope, but especially parents of these kids.

Well, Anthony and I have been closely observing Jackson lately and thinking back to his baby months (can't really say baby years, can ya???) and we've picked up on a lot of things that we're just wondering about. For instance, Jackson is quite crafty when it comes to getting things done that he wants to do (like pushing a chair to the counter so he can stand on top and open the cabinet for his favorite cup, etc.) His vocabulary seems advanced to me for just turning two and he's extremely observant and is sensitive when he thinks someone's been hurt. Most surprising is that he can already count to ten on his own and he is learning his colors. I don't think he's highly gifted, but I think he may be to some degree gifted. The problem is that he's our first child and I don't have anything to really compare him to. I have only taught gifted middle school and high school students, so I don't really know the proper age for the milestones two-year old kids should be crossing. Sometimes I think I'm totally off-base and while he may be a little bright, surely he's not really gifted. On the other hand, there are times when I become a little concerned that if my suspicions are right, what of those typical gifted-child problems I mentioned above will our son deal with as he becomes older?

Anyway, it's just been on my mind and I wanted to see if anyone out there has any input on the topic.

A funny story before I go. Anyone who knows my husband knows how he has a definite ruddy complexion most of the time. We were sitting at IHOP one morning for breakfast and Anthony pointed to the Sweet 'n Low packet and asked Jackson what color it was. He said, "Pink." And then he pointed to Anthony's cheeks and said, "Pink." Ha ha ha. It was hilarious. I couldn't stop laughing.

Take care, y'all. God bless.

"Woah, Horsey."

We had some ride time tonight before bed. This picture's so cute. Looks like he's telling horsey to slow down. tee hee!!

Anyway, I tried my best to get him to wear his Amish hat for the picture, but he just refused--he wanted Horsey to wear it.

So I had Anthony hold it on his head. ha!!! Mamas will find a way to win. (OK, I didn't really win this one, but I got the picture, didn't I?) Better than nothing, I guess.

THERE ARE MORE PICTURES IF YOU JUST SCROLL DOWN .......

The Tandy Tane Sucker

and look how happy he is to have it. *rolling eyes* *speaking to Anthony* "TWERP"

And this is a trip to the zoo we took last summer. We're looking at the elephants, which is, I believe, his favorite animal. He was just astounded by them. Maybe it's the trunk. And, yes, I know he needs a haircut badly in this picure. This was in the midst of our packing to move time. It got done shortly after this trip.

By the way, immediately after the tandy tane sucker, he got a bath and clean jammies. I know that Nemo shirt looks horrid--it's cough medicine spilled down the front.

KEEP SCROLLING FOR ONE MORE POST WITH PICTURES.

Also, some of you might not have read the post about Anthony's grandpa's funeral. If you have time, it sure would be a blessing to ya. :-)

OK, so I've been a slacker with posting pictures ...

I'm just not really great at getting pictures from the camera to the computer. I think it's the evil little man in the CPU who doesn't like me, but Anthony keeps insisting it's the operator. I just cannot believe that. Anyway, I'm going to attempt this . . . but I'm not making any promises.

While I'm waiting for these pictures to upload (is that the right term?), I'll share a story.

Tonight we were sitting in the living room and Anthony came in with a Tootsie Roll sucker in front of Jackson (twerp), and, of course, Jackson had to have some. But one lick wasn't enough. He wanted to hold the sucker himself. Houston, we have hit the terrible twos. Anyway, so we reluctantly decided to let him have it. Let me insert here that he very rarely gets candy and sweets and stuff. It's limited to very occasional treats. Anyway, so he takes his first lick of the sucker and says, "Mama, tandy tane." Yes, the sucker tastes like a tandy tane, but we can't ever remember letting him have any tandy tanes, so we're wondering who's feeding him candy behind our backs. He is so very rarely out of our sight that it's got to be either one of our parents or the daycare. The daycare, I don't think, is allowed to give the kids any candy, so I'm on the lookout for the culprit . . . I'm sure it's between my mom, Anthony's mom, or Anthony's dad. I don't think my dad or my grandma would've done it. THEY KNOW WE DON'T ALLOW CANDY. Anybody else have parents who sneak things in on ya' when it comes to the kids? Anyway, the sucker doesn't LOOK like a tandy tane--it just tastes like one, so how did he know what . . . You get the picture. Argh

OK, the pictures have uploaded. *deep breath*

Here we go . . .

Here's our little cutie at his second birthday party. The kid LOVES Mickey Mouse. He picked out his own cake. Well, sort of. :-)

And here he is opening gifts. Apparently, this is serious business.

Tee Hee Hee

Lawrence Munoz asked me to proofread something for him for his state Church paper. Here's what I put on his "billing statement". Had to share.

Billing Statement for Lawrence Munoz
Charge for Labor at $32/hour (30 minutes) $16
Charge for Proofreading at $1 per word changed $47
Charge for Putting up with you (discount applied) $125
Charge for Processing and Handling $8

Total Due $196

Due Date February 5

We accept cash, money orders, or JC Penney gift cards. Please forward payment promptly to allow time for processing and handling. If payment is not received by due date, account will be forwarded to our collections department and we will call you 25 times a day for the rest of your life or until bill is satisfactorily paid. Dyer Proofreading, Inc., reports to all major credit bureaus.

Thank you for using our services.

LET'S GET HER!!!!

Angie Munoz hasn't posted on her blog since October. I say let's all go over to her blog and demand a post.

www.angieshouse.blogspot.com

I Broke Down and Made a Quiz, Too!!!!

Here's the link:

http://www.quizyourfriends.com/quizpage.php?quizname=070120015634-631790&

What a Time in Jesus

We got back about 11:00 last night. We had to make an unplanned trip to Georgia. Pa-paw passed away Sunday night. We were so very sorry that we hadn't got to see him one more time, but the Lord knows.

I was just amazed by the funeral. I knew Pa-paw loved the Lord very much. Every time we went to see him, it was all he wanted to talk about--the Lord and how good He is, the several different churches around his home, (he used to visit them--he'd go to revivals at churches that weren't his home church just to show support and bask in the spirit of God--I'm going to remember that next time I sigh or get tired just thinking about another night of revival service), and the recent things the Lord had shown him in Scripture was another of his favorite topics for discussion. He was truly a man in love with Jesus.

He had five ministers preach at his funeral. It was apparently one of his last requests. Each one was very enjoyable, but my husband ... I was so proud of him. He was so eloquent and his words were so comforting and touching. Tears flowed from many in the congregation when he spoke, and many, many people told him as such after the service. I'm pretty sure his dad was touched. He needs salvation so very badly. He's such a good man but he just needs Jesus in his life. He said some things after the funeral that let us know he's pondering things in his heart probably even more than he ever has. Pray for him.

One of the ministers reminded us of how much Pa-paw loved to sing. He told of him joining the choir and singing specials wherever he went and was always so very anointed. His favorite song was "I Have Somebody With Me". The young minister that told about that tried to sing the song, but he couldn't keep from crying to finish it so some people in the congregation started singing to help him. Before long, most of the people there were singing together the song that Pa-paw loved so much. It was beautiful. I never have seen such a sweet spirit at a funeral than what was there that day.

Another minister with such a meek and sweet spirit spoke on the story of Jesus speaking peace to the stormy seas and how Jesus had finally spoken peace to the stormy sea that Pa-paw had faced for so long at the end of his life. He did suffer greatly--almost completely blind, difficult time breathing because of fluid build-up on his lungs, constantly in pain, loss of a couple of fingers from the diabetes. It was rough for him, but he still had a joyful disposition and would tell everyone who came to see him how good his Lord was and he'd just cry when he'd tell them how much Jesus loved each one. But Jesus stopped his storm last Sunday and he was now probably singing with the choir just as he always loved to do. It was such a beautiful sermon.

He's gone, but I pray that each one who knew him will follow the example he left so that they will see him again some day.

ALRIGHT, YOU WEIRDOS THAT HAVE MADE COMMENTS TO ME IN PERSON ........

IT IS A SHADOW!!!!!!!!!

And that's all I'm going to say about that!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Prayers Requested

Jackson's still a little sick but getting better. Also, Anthony's grandpa is not doing well. They're saying this may be it. We really need to figure out a way to get down there, but Anthony's having staffing issues at the hotel right now and can't leave the hotel at this moment. Please pray that God will work it out at just the right time. We'd really like to actually see Pa-Paw one more time before he goes home to be with the Lord.

Thanks so much.

OK, so I've been out of pocket

It has been super busy around here for the past few weeks. Anthony's parents came for a few days' visit at Christmas, which was really nice. I had to finish my grades before school started back up ON THE SECOND. Ugh. Well, I had to start school back on the second; the kids came on the third. There's a lot to do when one's getting back into the swing of things, ya know?

Jackson had a super "spoil-a-little-man" Christmas. Let me see ... my mom got him puzzles and a little papasan chair for his room. He got several new outfits from my sister and Anthony's parents. Anthony's parents also got him a tricycle. My dad got him a cool dump truck that starts up when you shake it, a Disney movie, and a few other toys AND he sent money for a new carseat, which we'll get when we next make it to Springfield (the town two hours away to where we have to travel for anything besides a Super Wal-Mart, a rinky-dink JC Penney, a tiny Sears, and a brand new Goody's we just got in November). We desparately need the new carseat because Jackson likes to pull a Houdini act in the one he has now. The kid can get out of the thing lickety-split. Oh, it scares me half silly when I'm driving down the road and all of a sudden, I see my little boy crawling around in the back seat. Consistent spankings have been administered, but to no avail. Any suggestions out there? Anthony and I got him a Radio Flyer spring-loaded horse (my idea) and a Superman doll (Anthony's idea). He's a real Super Cowboy now when he and Superman are going for a ride. It's so cute. We've been trying to think of a name for the horse, but Anthony and I can't agree on one (don't ask how we settled on Jackson :-), so we just call him Horsey, which is what Jackson calls him.

Actually, I'm home today because he woke up a little croupy-sounding. I told Anthony I was going to keep him home and doctor him before it turned into something worse. Prayers would be greatly appreciated.

I'll post some pictures of Jackson on Horsey before long. Happy belated New Year, everybody.

By the way, whaddaya'll think about the new look?