More Yard Sale photos...

I think I reached my max for photos in the last blog so here are some more....Cole, Foofoo, and I waiting for customers...actually we are doing a book of crossword puzzles....I so rocked the 80's one!


Daddy, Cole, Foofoo, and I celebrate Fathers Day!





In the end we put a sign on everything and lugged it to the end of the driveway.....nobody took anything and we had to lug it back up the driveway!



Stay tuned for.....

* 65 year old Dad bungee jumping with daughters...

* Six Flags.....or not!

* VBS pictures and updates.

Vacation Part 1 The Yard Sale

Ok...I am suppose to be doing homework, but as I finish the last couple of classes I a have a badddd attitude concerning school. So here I am to give you part one of my vacation....it will take several parts...because all the insanity in one blog would be too much for regular people!

My grandfather passed away in February,shortly before my hysterectomy and Rick's departure on pac, so I was unable to attend the funeral. My brother in all his wisdom decided that a yard sale was in order to rid my parents of all of grandpa's "stuff". My parents have been on this kick to make sure there is as little work for us to do after they pass as possible, so they wanted to get rid of some of their "stuff" also.

So my sisters and I dragged our feet until late Thursday afternoon until we came to the crucial point of having to make the commitment to having this darn yard sale....which by the way my brother was not present for because he couldn't get away from work...convenient wouldn't you say. So we decided that yes we have to do this since there are piles of junk all over the basement which make my poor father twitch every time he goes down there.

My sister...lets call her foofoo (she knows) is adamant that we make the signs and hang them Friday morning because she claims these people are adamant about their garage saling..yes that is what she called it. So we made signs at the dining room table acting much like we did when were younger...arguing and bickering the whole time.


That night we drag boxes upon boxes up the basement stairs....thinking not nice thoughts about my brother...who really was dealing with issues at work.


So the next morning we get up and drive 20 minutes to a Dunkn' Donuts drive thru to get coffee (we drove there about 15 times total in the week were there). Then we drove all the way back to the country to hand all the signs. Mission accomplished...now time to get ready for Six Flags (That will be another post...too much to add to this one) After spending the day at six flags we are sent on a mission to the package store and the pizzeria that has to die for fish fries.


As we drive down the street arguing about who is going to go into the package store we notice that it has gotten very dark and windy outside. By the time we came out of the pizzeria the skies had opened up....





This is a picture of the sky...it is suppose to be daylight. I was trying to take a picture of lightening...just so you know...it's hard to do. By the time we got back to the house there was no electricity, there were trees down, and flooding had begun in some areas. ALL of the signs my sister insisted we put up had been washed away by hail...so we had to start all over....with no electricity!


The next morning we get up to sunny skies...yeah! So my sisters jump in the car to go to Dunkn' Donuts (my parents cannot understand why we have to drink froufrou coffee as they call it...instead of their reliable Maxwell House) and to hang the rest of the signs.

While they are gone I am saying not nice things about my siblings under my breath...I am tired from not sleeping because of the storm and lack of electricity...which meant lack of fans and circulation. As I am carrying all the stuff out of the garage I notice it is getting VERY dark...I call the Dunkn' Donut twins to inform them it is not looking good...of course they are now awake and functioning because they have had their coffee..and they are not moved by the rain.


So, just as my dad and I pull the last box of stuff out onto the driveway it starts to pour. So we cover everything with tarps and pull the furniture back into the garage....THEN my sisters pull up with the coffee!




So we spent most of the day in the garage....we made about $30 that day. We were wet, we were tired...but we had a blast!





At one point we sent Zman out to solicit customers.....but it was raining out so we made him put this blow-up Buffalo Bills helmet on his head....





We closed shop on Saturday wet and frustrated....if it would have been a nice day we would have gotten rid of everything...this is where me and my sister Cole were...but foofoo was holding out to make some cash...cole and I just wanted to get rid of all the stuff so we wouldn't have to put it away. We decided that we would get up the next day and try again.

This meant we had to go back and change all of our signs....and you do realize this also required another 40 minute round trip to Dunkn Dounts....so off we went.

The next day we got up and made my dad breakfast...because it was Fathers Day after all....and we sent my sister out to sell. My sisters are both managers for Men's Wearhouse so they can both sell...me not so much...so they were in charge of talking the customers up.

We made about $40 more dollars that day....but we made memories....

Request From Ms. Hope

Well, as I sat and ate my Asian Chicken Salad I popped over to Ms. Hope's blog for relaxing and humorous reading and found that I had been tagged to share. I was relieved you see, because I was getting ready to blog and ask the questions that perplex mothers across the globe...Why did my child leave part of the dressing packet in my salad? Why do I have to make my Diva 2 come and separate her laundry in front of me so that I can be sure she gets it all.

I would much rather do what Ms. Hope has asked of me than deal with the answers to those questions....

Here's the deal. Think back on the last 15 years of your life.What would you tell someone that you hadn't seen or talked to for 15 years? How would you sum up your life? You get 10 bullet points. A list of 10 things to summarize about you. At the end of your list, tag 5 more people and send on the love.

1. In 1993 I only had one child...I can't even remember what it was like. However, almost a year to today we started trying for number 2...NFLman. The grossest thing is that I think he was conceived while we were on leave...at my aunts cottage...in her bed...gross...but true. I was contently doing home daycare...completely unaware of the plans that God had for me.

2. In 1994 we had NFLman...he was such a sweet baby.....so much so that I lost my mind and got pregnant with Diva 2 before his first birthday. Actually, my good friend had just PCS'd and my husband was "comforting" me...thus Diva 2 arrived. Now let me tell you Diva 2 had colic...imagine 2 babies in diapers and one who screamed for 5 hours every night....for 5 months! About two months into it I was praying and I told God that I REALLY wanted to do HIS will concerning the number of children we were to have...but if He didn't speak soon I was having my tubes tied. Three days later we were at a wedding and my Pastor was holding the younger three and he looked at me and said, "God said one more boy, Jill." My reply was along the lines of...you have got to be kidding me!

3. Once Diva 2 was done with her colic I went back to doing home daycare. I can tell you that I loved being home with my own kids and I loved teaching and caring for other people's kids. I began working towards my CDA.

4. At a marriage conference in 1998 Zman was conceived (hey, at least it wasn't my aunts bed). I carried him until I was 43 weeks pregnant....even at that they had to go in and get him ( I really can't blame him for not wanting to come out.....) God allowed him to be born at 10 pounds...he was going to need the extra weight to deal with this brood.

5. When Zman was just about 2 I gave into God's calling in my life and began teaching at the school where my kids attended. The school and the staff became such an amazing part of my life...I know beyond a shadow of doubt that God sent me that family to sustain me through the next couple of years.

6. In 2000 DH made chief......had no idea what I was getting into...absolutely no idea. We were completely shocked it was his first time up...who makes it their first time up? Anyway that's another blog. When he made chief he was advised that in order to make senior chief he should stay at sea....so we gave up those shore duty orders and headed to another boat....one that ended with us doing a 9 and a half month deployment...and DH being on one of the boats from Pearl that launched tomahawks during shock and awe. It was the longest 9 months of my life...I didn't sleep or eat.... However, those who told him that he would make senior chief if he stayed at sea were right. Just three years after being pinned he put another star on his anchor...at this point I am blown away by the fact that God blessed him to make it so quickly. This ended an eight and a half year sea tour.....thank God!

7. DH came home with the determination that we would accomplish some things on his shore duty: buy a house, pay off all our debt, he would buy his dream car ( a jag), and I would get at least one degree. God is so faithful that all of those blessings were given to us. However, our shore duty went too quickly and before we knew it we were doing a geo-bach tour between Hawaii and Washington.

8. In the fall of 2007 during a normal womanly exam there were growths found in my uterus. Over the next couple of months I went through numerous biopsies and procedures trying to get around having a hysterectomy. Only in the end I had to have one any way....and it is probably one of the best things I have ever done.

9. In 2004 my friend Kelle and I received a word of prophecy about opening a preschool. We toiled and went on an amazing journey with God and in April 2008 we opened Blessings From Heaven Preschool ( http://www.blessingsfromheavenewa.com/)

10. As I look back over the last 15 years I can see where God has brought me from. I am amazed that the toil and turmoil in my marriage was preparing us to be marriage counselor's and to minister at marriage conferences. That my education and teaching was preparing my to be the Director of the Children's Ministry at our church. That my husbands military training and education was to prepare him to become an ordained Deacon and also, how his ordination was an asset to his leadership skills. I am amazed that all my trials and shortcomings as a wife, mother, woman, sister and daughter can and are being used as I minister to women at woman's conferences at the church.

I cannot take any credit for any of it because if the truth be told I fought God all the way...why do I have to go through this...why me? Recently, I was accused of having the spirit of pride in my life....but I don't take credit for anything that God has done and to be amazed I am quite shocked that God would use me...and that is why I share what He has done for me...not because I have done it...but because He used a broken vessel like me to do it in.

I remember shortly after Rick made chief and was ordained, and I had just been appointed the Director of Children's Ministry....I looked at Rick and asked....Do you think God knows what He is doing with us....giving us so much responsibility? His reply...I sure hope so!

So...that's the last 15 years of my life in a nutshell..Thanks Hope for taking my focus off of the amazing lingering lack of common sense of the teenagers in my home and putting it on our great God who has done so much for me....

So here is the deal........I am new to this blog world so I don't have many people to tag.
I will tag....
Mellie....she can share in her diary. She's pretty awesome.....me and God think so:)
Ms. Em...we can double team her...so she has to do it!
Shari....you know who you are....I know we can glean from your last 15 years of a christian submariners wife.
So that leaves me two wildcards....any takers?

Know It All's

I am so tired of people who know it all....or let me rephrase that...who think they know it all.

They are everywhere....the most obvious would be my children...man, they know EVERYTHING...NOT. Then there are people who think they know everything about the military life and they have no clue as to what they are speaking of.

I have started just letting them think that they know what they are talking about...then when they fall flat on their faces and then I pray about helping them up and scrapping the mudd off their face.

Anyway....had to get that off my chest....its been bothering me for a couple of days. I will be back later to post some about my "vonderful" vacation.

Sad Goodbye

Have you ever had something in your life that you know God brought to you, but after a while you knew its season in your life was over? That it was no longer affective or functioning as it was meant to and that God wanted you out before it was too late?

I have had two such experiences in my life. The first being Grace Christian Academy. God knew it was time for the madness to stop there and before He allowed them to close be made a way for my family and blessed me with a job where I was making twice as much an hour....I got the final word that I was hired on the exact day Grace closed its doors. On that day I was so thankful that God had made a way for me.....even though I didn't want to leave. I loved working there....but things were not right....and I knew I had to get out.

Recently, I had to make the decision to leave a forum that was a blessing to me. We saw each other through surgeries, biopsies, death, deployment, parenting, and a host of other situations and emotions submarine wives find themselves in.

But unfortunately, it turned into a place of power for some, a place to pick fights and arguments for others. Some used it to gather information and use that information in other forums or for their own personal use. There were divisions and strife that some members were content to feed and allow to continue. Others wanted to listen to what others had to say, offer their advice....but never share anything REAL about themselves. Some didn't have anything to say for the almost the whole year I was there...until there were arguments...then they wanted to be in the thick of it.

Now....let me say there were also some stellar ladies there....ladies of true faith, who love the Lord, and have the ability to be real. This is the reason I did not want to leave...these ladies added something invaluable to my life...and I did not want to release that. But in the fashion that is all Him...God made a way for these wonderful ladies to be in my life.

I struggled for a long time.....I didn't want to leave. I struggled before the big blow out that was there....because I didn't agree with how things were done. I believe in order and doing things decently and in order...I don't do well with chaos...that's just me. But I had hoped things would get better...they never did. EVEN after everyone was "supposedly" honest about what was going on....so I deleted my membership.

It was sad and when I log onto the site I automatically scroll to where the link from that forum is supposed to be....but its gone...*sigh* I am sad but I know it was for my own good because it was no longer a healthy thing in my life.

It's Friday

Well it's Friday of VBS week and I am so tired that as I sit here my eyes are leaking. I am not crying my eyes are watering from exhaustion. But my friends it is worth it....because 35 children gave their lives to Christ last night......35 out of the 74 in attendance, and a good number of the reamining 74 have already made a commitment to Christ. It is an amazing thing that God has done this week.

The children were soooo excited and enjoyed each and every activity. The teens and adult volunteers are having a ball.....several of them asked if we could do it for two weeks next year......I am going to have to pray about that! The fellowship has been amazing for all ages!

I am so thankful and now maybe there are tears running down my face!

God Blessed Me Today!!!

God blessed me today with an hour and a half of extra sleep.....translation....I overslept! I rolled over wondering why I was waking up before the alarm clock, opened one eye and saw that it was light outside, jumped up and looked at the clock....it read 5:30am. I was suppose to have been at work for a half an hour already!

So I jumped out of bed threw on some clothes (at first I thought I had put Britt's pants on....but when I weighed myself later I found that they were indeed mine and that I had grew!), bushed my teeth, and pulled my hair up. I made it to work by 5:55am, to find a parent had just pulled up about five minutes before that!

So I waited for Shalei to come in then I ran home for a shower and some pants that fit!!!!!

Now, I am at my desk typing furiously to keep all of you updated....and too look busy!

VBS makes me want to cry...actually I did cry a little last night. Because you see VBS is not only for the kids...its for the adults and teens also. I saw adults that I would have never gotten to volunteer in Children's Ministry working with the kids and loving every moment of it(I see some future children's ministry teachers.....look out I am on the prowl!) I saw the adults who work the stations, dinner, and registration talking and chatting...complete with ministering going on.

Our station leaders really are the bombdiggity this year. They are on the ball and have brought more to the table than ever before. There were kids walking around with things and sayings that we had never heard....after more research we found that he station leaders had gone all out with their props and preparation. I am confident that next year they will be completely ready in May....shhh don't tell them but I already know what the theme will be next year! They put so much of themselves into what they are doing I know they will be abundantly blessed.

Our parents have come out and seen a completely different side of what children's ministry has to offer...I know we rocked their socks off!

The teens are really having a great time! This is where I cried last night....imagine 67 kids and 54 adults/teens shouting out to the Lord. Imagine the teens praising and worshipping along side the younger kids....it is an amazing thing. Anyone who thinks ..."It's just Vacation Bible School" has never experienced VBS. I had my first VBS experience three years ago as an adult.....and it was amazing!

So....tonight is day three and we get ice cream floats.......God gives us the power to be helpful.....AHA!