Saturday night was when we got back from Fine Arts and I immediately went from taking care of 19 teenagers to 4 kids... I can honestly tell you they're about the same amount of work!
So two weeks ago I got a call from a guy at church. He and his wife had won a cruise to the Bahamas (rough life right there for ya!) but they needed someone to watch their 4 kids (ages 5 to 13) for a week. I told them I work during the day, but I can definitely do evenings and spend the night if needed. They were very happy with that because as it turns out, the husband's sister could watch them during the day but not nights!
Last Tuesday I went over to their house for the "grand tour" and rules and any questions I may have to be answered. The two things they really stressed where: 1. they LOVE to tattle on each other and 2. they will try everything and anything in their power to get the password for the dish for "restricted" shows.
Since starting Saturday I have found out 3 things: 1. they LOVE to tattle on each other, 2. they will try everything and anything in their power to get the password for the dish "restricted" shows, and 3. they each have such unique personalities it CRACKS ME UP!
Crystal is 13 and a HUGE help with the other kids! She gets to stay up later than the other kids so we'll usually spend that last hour or so of the day hanging out and watching movies and talking. She's probably the biggest threat to the password on the dish tho. She's tried "don't you trust me?" of course my response is "I do. I just need to respect your parents' wishes and do what they asked: not give any of you kids the password." Well, she was able to get the password changed to numbers she knew because her aunt gave in! (I changed it to a whole new password this morning before heading to work tho which upset her a little...).
David is in the 4th grade. He is the immaculate little angel! He's not usually up by the time I leave, but he was this morning! He had his bed made and clothes on and pj's put away! He also LOVES to tell the truth...even about things that really aren't relevant to what you're talking about!
Daniel is in his own little world at the age of 7. He is so funny cause he mumbles so I can't understand him, but it's more he likes to hear his own voice. He's really low maintenance and just loves his transformers and tv shows! This morning he made me really uncomfortable tho...in a funny way! I was fully dressed and doing my makeup and hair in the bathroom when he comes in, obviously just woken up. Here's our conversation:
Me: Good morning Daniel! Do you need something? (usually he just goes into the family room and turns on the tv till breakfast)
Dan: Nope *(he goes to the toilet)* I just have to go to the bathroom.
Me: Well, I'll be done soon but otherwise you can use the other bathroom...
Dan:*(by the time the words leave my lips, he's pulled down his pants and sat on the toilet) That's ok, I'm almost done.
Me: *(a little embarrassed and looking the other way) Well, I'll just step out for a sec...
LOL! I'm glad I can laugh about that now cause that was awkward!!!
The youngest of the 4 is Violette, but everyone calls her "V" She's adorable! She's 5 years old and VERY opinionated. She has this gorgeous long CURLY hair and is constantly following me around asking what I'm doing and telling me little stories. She is also the biggest tattle of them all. If Dan's foot happens to brush against her stuffed kitty, I will know within seconds! I calmly tell her he wasn't trying to hurt kitty at all, and it was an accident.
So there you have it. My "kids" for the week! It's been fun and I've gotten to know them all lots better. I'm just looking forward to a nice afternoon after work where we can do something instead of being cooped up cause it's rainy!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
FiNe ArTs BaBy!
Friday at 2:00 I headed out from work on what would be a long, tiresome, but oh-so-worth it weekend!
Fine Arts was here at last!!!
From work, Angie and I ran quick to my place (of all things to forget, a hair brush is definitely needed!), to her parents' place (drop of the munchkins), then to drop $127 on groceries to feed 24 people!
3:15 we made it to the church, grabbed our cd player (wisest decision..read on!) and costumes and met the kids. We rearranged the food in the 3 coolers and loaded up the cars. We got into a big circle and prayed all at once (my favorite prayer time!) for safety driving and for the focus to stay on God even while we were at competition.
3:45 we loaded up the vans and prayed each vehicle's safety in getting to the cities.
4:00 we were on our way!!! We stopped once for switching Denise and Angie for drivers then continued on. We hit the edge of the cities about 6pm (Our head van was a speeder!!!) and along with that came a little rush hour traffic we had to weed through.
Let me take this moment to say some of our kids' parents let us use their van because we were one short. I happened to be driving this van. I'm pretty good about keeping my eye on the gas and the speedometer and other gauges to make sure everything's in tip top shape. Well, we started to get into start-stop traffic with rush hour stuff and before I knew it, the van's gauge was telling us the van was about to overheat...fast! So we took the next exit and pulled over on a residental street and called the other vans to let them know we had to stop.
On a side note, the kids whose van this was had named it Bo-Jankady! Because it is a little bit on the older side and that was the sound it would make every-so-often when you first started it up...
I called my friend Lundon who was the youth pastor at the church we would be spending the night, and he came within 20 minutes with the big 15 seater church van! We shifted all our stuff and continued on our way.
Sadly tho, we had to leave Bo-Jankady there because the coolant had run completely dry! AND I had the great privilage of calling the parents and owners of Bo-Jankady and letting them know. This would prove to be a continuous adventure for the rest of the weekend...
We met back up with all our peoples for grabbing a quick bite to eat, then we headed over to the church to practice, watch movies and hang out. I also went with 2 other leaders to buy coolant and get the van back to the church which proved to be easy but showed us how bad Bo-Jankady had gotten and attention it would need...Bed time was 11pm because we needed to get up EARLY! I was up first at 5:50 and got everyone else up at the time they requested all the while getting myself ready and packing everything and everyone up! 24 people. THREE vans and one station wagon. 3 coolers of food. 24 people's stuff and costumes...we were on the road by 7:30! I was so proud!
We got to North Central University, found decent parking, registered, and had time to find a quieter place to run through one of the dramas before the day fully began!
9:30 and we started! We were good about running to and from the different locations for the different time slots and the day was going very smoothly until #13 on the roster. We had 2 groups at the same time! So we split up and went to the different locations. Maeve was doing a solo human video for the one I went to and when it was her turn to perform, we put her cd in and pressed play..."no disc" showed up! The cd player was an older one and couldn't read the cd!!! So I thought quick and asked the judges if they minded letting us move down one slot to give me enough time to run and get the cd player we had so wisely packed...they were totally ok with that so I took out my heavy earings and RAN!!!! It was only 2 blocks away, but with everyone else crowding the halls and entry ways, I was slowed down quite a bit...BUT! I made it back in time, heaving chest as I tried to catch my breath. I put my earings back and and we set up Maeve to do her HV. SHE DID AWESOME! She got the highest score from one of the judges out of anyone in our group! (a 38 out of 40 possible).
After a quick lunch, Katy (Bo-Jankady's owner) and I headed over to meet the tow truck man at the van to varify that Katy had AAA to cover the cost of towing the van. Then within an hour we were back and ready to hear how everyone had done.
We were super excited to hear Ashley's name announced when her worship dance routine was awarded a superior with invitation rating. But the moment of truth came when we held hands tightly and awaited the announcement on the top human videos...THE GLEAVES WON!!! Well, they scored high enough (superior with invitation) to get invited to compete on the NATIONAL level in ORLANDO, FL!!!!
The ironic thing is they just worked on their hv not even for 2 weeks before competing!
On our way home, we stopped at Fuddruckers so the kids could play some games if they wanted and eat plenty of food before piling back in the carivan of min-vans and the station wagon. We also pulled out the score cards for all the dramas we did and read off the comments and scores...guess what!? EVERY GROUP GOT A SUPERIOR RATING! And the were only a point or two from getting superior with invitation! Not bad for a drama group that just started and had their first time (us leaders' first time too) at fine arts!
I'm so proud of my kids!
Fine Arts was here at last!!!
From work, Angie and I ran quick to my place (of all things to forget, a hair brush is definitely needed!), to her parents' place (drop of the munchkins), then to drop $127 on groceries to feed 24 people!
3:15 we made it to the church, grabbed our cd player (wisest decision..read on!) and costumes and met the kids. We rearranged the food in the 3 coolers and loaded up the cars. We got into a big circle and prayed all at once (my favorite prayer time!) for safety driving and for the focus to stay on God even while we were at competition.
3:45 we loaded up the vans and prayed each vehicle's safety in getting to the cities.
4:00 we were on our way!!! We stopped once for switching Denise and Angie for drivers then continued on. We hit the edge of the cities about 6pm (Our head van was a speeder!!!) and along with that came a little rush hour traffic we had to weed through.
Let me take this moment to say some of our kids' parents let us use their van because we were one short. I happened to be driving this van. I'm pretty good about keeping my eye on the gas and the speedometer and other gauges to make sure everything's in tip top shape. Well, we started to get into start-stop traffic with rush hour stuff and before I knew it, the van's gauge was telling us the van was about to overheat...fast! So we took the next exit and pulled over on a residental street and called the other vans to let them know we had to stop.
On a side note, the kids whose van this was had named it Bo-Jankady! Because it is a little bit on the older side and that was the sound it would make every-so-often when you first started it up...
I called my friend Lundon who was the youth pastor at the church we would be spending the night, and he came within 20 minutes with the big 15 seater church van! We shifted all our stuff and continued on our way.
Sadly tho, we had to leave Bo-Jankady there because the coolant had run completely dry! AND I had the great privilage of calling the parents and owners of Bo-Jankady and letting them know. This would prove to be a continuous adventure for the rest of the weekend...
We met back up with all our peoples for grabbing a quick bite to eat, then we headed over to the church to practice, watch movies and hang out. I also went with 2 other leaders to buy coolant and get the van back to the church which proved to be easy but showed us how bad Bo-Jankady had gotten and attention it would need...Bed time was 11pm because we needed to get up EARLY! I was up first at 5:50 and got everyone else up at the time they requested all the while getting myself ready and packing everything and everyone up! 24 people. THREE vans and one station wagon. 3 coolers of food. 24 people's stuff and costumes...we were on the road by 7:30! I was so proud!
We got to North Central University, found decent parking, registered, and had time to find a quieter place to run through one of the dramas before the day fully began!
9:30 and we started! We were good about running to and from the different locations for the different time slots and the day was going very smoothly until #13 on the roster. We had 2 groups at the same time! So we split up and went to the different locations. Maeve was doing a solo human video for the one I went to and when it was her turn to perform, we put her cd in and pressed play..."no disc" showed up! The cd player was an older one and couldn't read the cd!!! So I thought quick and asked the judges if they minded letting us move down one slot to give me enough time to run and get the cd player we had so wisely packed...they were totally ok with that so I took out my heavy earings and RAN!!!! It was only 2 blocks away, but with everyone else crowding the halls and entry ways, I was slowed down quite a bit...BUT! I made it back in time, heaving chest as I tried to catch my breath. I put my earings back and and we set up Maeve to do her HV. SHE DID AWESOME! She got the highest score from one of the judges out of anyone in our group! (a 38 out of 40 possible).
After a quick lunch, Katy (Bo-Jankady's owner) and I headed over to meet the tow truck man at the van to varify that Katy had AAA to cover the cost of towing the van. Then within an hour we were back and ready to hear how everyone had done.
We were super excited to hear Ashley's name announced when her worship dance routine was awarded a superior with invitation rating. But the moment of truth came when we held hands tightly and awaited the announcement on the top human videos...THE GLEAVES WON!!! Well, they scored high enough (superior with invitation) to get invited to compete on the NATIONAL level in ORLANDO, FL!!!!
The ironic thing is they just worked on their hv not even for 2 weeks before competing!
On our way home, we stopped at Fuddruckers so the kids could play some games if they wanted and eat plenty of food before piling back in the carivan of min-vans and the station wagon. We also pulled out the score cards for all the dramas we did and read off the comments and scores...guess what!? EVERY GROUP GOT A SUPERIOR RATING! And the were only a point or two from getting superior with invitation! Not bad for a drama group that just started and had their first time (us leaders' first time too) at fine arts!
I'm so proud of my kids!
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Gas-X
When I was in the 5th grade, my dad sold our tv.
He felt like God was telling him that it was a waste of time and that our priorities as a family should be reordered instead of aimlessly staring at a tv screen. It turned out to be good that my dad obeyed God, he was given a raise and promotion soon after! But for us kids, it was the end of the world!
Fast forward ten years now (wow, it's really been that long since the days of N'Sync and Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears' innocence?) and you'll find a family that really gets into their shows.
I mean REALLY.
LOST and Heroes. Both of which I got my family hooked on (I'll take the credit - they really are good shows)! They have become a family gathering and common ground. I know my parents don't mind so much now because A: it's pretty difficult to get two teenage girls and one teenage boy to not only look forward to spending time with their parents but also beg them to do so! And B: you can rent the shows on DVD or order them from Netflix and avoid the nuisance that which is commercials.
I want to take this opportunity and state that I am not a television junky by any means. I don't have time. Instead, I'll stick to my texting and netflix.
But lately, my roommate and I have been able to watch Scrubs (HILARIOUS show by the way, but that's not the path of which this blog is going...where is it going?) late at night and chit chat our way through it on the nights where we both are home at a decent hour and awake enough to do so.
Last night was one such night.
And like I said before, I'm not a tv junky so I don't get the chance to really sit down and enjoy those commercials.
Last night, I saw one that most people probably have seen many times over already. But it seriously made my night and I laughed again when I re-ran it through my head.
This guy is in an interview and he's gassy. Everything that the lady is saying is reminding him of how bad it is "I see here you are flatulant in three languages." That stunned me.
What really got my roommate and me laughing was when the male assistant comes in and taps the interviewing lady on the shoulder and says, complete with hand gestures, "your son Rip is on line toot."
Oh commercial, how you tickle my funny bone!
He felt like God was telling him that it was a waste of time and that our priorities as a family should be reordered instead of aimlessly staring at a tv screen. It turned out to be good that my dad obeyed God, he was given a raise and promotion soon after! But for us kids, it was the end of the world!
Fast forward ten years now (wow, it's really been that long since the days of N'Sync and Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears' innocence?) and you'll find a family that really gets into their shows.
I mean REALLY.
LOST and Heroes. Both of which I got my family hooked on (I'll take the credit - they really are good shows)! They have become a family gathering and common ground. I know my parents don't mind so much now because A: it's pretty difficult to get two teenage girls and one teenage boy to not only look forward to spending time with their parents but also beg them to do so! And B: you can rent the shows on DVD or order them from Netflix and avoid the nuisance that which is commercials.
I want to take this opportunity and state that I am not a television junky by any means. I don't have time. Instead, I'll stick to my texting and netflix.
But lately, my roommate and I have been able to watch Scrubs (HILARIOUS show by the way, but that's not the path of which this blog is going...where is it going?) late at night and chit chat our way through it on the nights where we both are home at a decent hour and awake enough to do so.
Last night was one such night.
And like I said before, I'm not a tv junky so I don't get the chance to really sit down and enjoy those commercials.
Last night, I saw one that most people probably have seen many times over already. But it seriously made my night and I laughed again when I re-ran it through my head.
This guy is in an interview and he's gassy. Everything that the lady is saying is reminding him of how bad it is "I see here you are flatulant in three languages." That stunned me.
What really got my roommate and me laughing was when the male assistant comes in and taps the interviewing lady on the shoulder and says, complete with hand gestures, "your son Rip is on line toot."
Oh commercial, how you tickle my funny bone!
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Panda Garden - What did I ever do to you?
Sunday evening at about 6:30 I received a call. The number blinking said "Daddy." This always makes my heart smile because I am truly a daddy's girl and a Becca-bug (because I snuggle like a bug in a rug).
Much to my dismay it was my sister.
Just kidding!
It really was my sister, but I wasn't dismayed.
Any-who.
She asked if Trevor and I wanted to go to Panda Garden to eat with them. I asked Trevor and he seemed up for it so we headed over there.
My mom and dad had to eat quick and run because my little brother had an On Call concert that evening at 7:00pm. So it was just me, Trevor and my two little sisters Brittany and Liz.
It was so much fun! I ate more than my stomach could fit and we laughed and told funny stories and all that good stuff.
Then, on the drive to bring the girls home, we pumped up the base to none other but Trevor's cd of N'Sync!
We had people laughing at us at red lights. No lie.
We got home and Brittany pulled out her iPod and we hooked it up to the speakers on the computer and jammed out to everything from Carrie Underwood to Michael Jackson's Thriller! Trevor sat back and just watched us make total and complete fools of ourselves, but it was sooo much fun!
My parents made it home a little after 9 and sent the girls to be shortly after so Trevor and I decided it would be ideal to head out.
Fast forward about, oh I don't know, 4 hours and Trevor was then bowing to the porcelain king! After work yesterday all I wanted to do was head over to his place and take care of him! I brought 3 or 4 different kinds of meds, some tea, and wheat thins in case he felt like he could handle them. Then while he rested, I watched tv quietly and just stroked his back and made sure he had plenty of water and everything...
Stupid food poisoning...but then again, in as much as this may be awful to say because I really don't like seeing my man in such pain, I truly enjoyed taking care of him and helping him feel better.
I can definitely see myself taking care of him for years and years to come if ever needed!
Friday, April 17, 2009
Wedding Plans and An Ode to the Brave
So it's no complete secret that Trevor and I have been talking marriage. In fact, he has tried to propose, but I keep telling him that he needs to ask my dad first and have a ring. (I'm SOO high maintenance I know!)
Bridesmaid dresses:
But even without a fancy little stone on my lift finger, we've been talking dates and I've been flooding my spare Internet time looking for cute things online (by the way, theknot.com is GREAT for anyone planning a wedding!)
When I told my mom we were planning on getting married, her response, surprisingly, was "oh! A December wedding would be so beautiful!"
My initial reaction was WHAT?! Heh Heh...not quite what we were thinking!
But as my mind started whirring in that direction, I started to like the idea more and more! The colors I would like, the decorations, the time of year, the fact that my church has the night sky up (they decorate the whole big walls of our sanctuary with Christmas lights all over covered in black cloth so it looks like a sky at night...it's really stunning!)...all these things were crossing my mind as, hey, December could work!
So of course, like the great soon-to-be-fiance that I am, I told Trevor about my mom's idea and let his mind wrap around it for a second before I bombarded him with the 6 month jump from the first date we had picked.
Then the dreaded thought crossed my mind when his face wasn't lit up as much as I had hoped: his best friend is headed to Iraq this month...
So, again, like the wonderful fiance-to-be that I am, I was quick to put my hopes of a December wedding away. I mean, if my best friend couldn't make it and I knew before the date was picked, I might reconsider. It wouldn't dictate the first day of my new life with my better half, but I would look at other dates.
Trevor looked at me and laughed. "The day is not about Eric, it's our day." So I gave my mom the thumbs up and off she went!
Yesterday she read in the paper about a garage sale that had wedding things so she insisted that I meet her there as soon as possible.
Don't get me wrong, I don't want to be the stuck up bridezilla that NEEDS EVERYTHING HER WAY ON HER DAY!!!! But the thought of a garage sale being the place I find my wedding stuff...that kinda rubbed me wrong at first. But to please my mom, I made it there for a short trip away from work as an early lunch of sorts. To my surprise, the flower type I had wanted (but knew they were uber expensive) were there in silk bouquets! Now I'm gonna tweak them a little, but they were awesome and totally cheaper then I could have ever imagined! They also had other silk flowers of the same kind that I could cut from the 'vine' and use to decorate pretty much anything! So almost all of the flowers were taken care of for less than $80! Who can really say that?!
Here are a few ideas I have in mind for our big day:
Centerpieces:
Bridesmaid dresses:Wedding cake:
Invites:
Now I know what you're looking for next...my dress perhaps?!?! Well, I definitely have ideas on what I want, but I'll keep that under wraps because Trevor knows this URL, and he doesn't get to see it till our wedding day as my dad is walking me down the isle!
For dinner yesterday, I had Trevor over and I made Minnesota Wild Rice Soup.
He wanted to show up in a jersey and goalie mask with his hockey stick to join the celebration. I had to gently shatter his hopes of it being a soup to celebrate the great hockey team the Minnesota Wild! Afterwards we joined his friend Eric, Eric's girlfriend Jackie, his son and a few other friends for a farewell meal (if Trevor would have told me they wanted to have dinner, we could have done that before I made the soup, but we were still able to join them while they ate and we had pop and water).
After we left and said goodbye and good luck to Eric, I could tell Trevor had something on his mind that was bothering him. So I asked.
He said that Eric leaving hadn't really sunk in until tonight and it would mean a lot for him to wait till Eric can be there.
OF COURSE!!!! Sure the whole winter wedding was a great idea, but the day is about us and having loved ones around us to celebrate with us and create memories of the greatest day we can have together (for starters anyway).
So our wedding date is being pushed back and I have no hard feelings whatsoever!
In fact, it has made me really think about how amazing the men and women who fight for our country are. To be able to see Eric and his 7 year old son last night interact and see how proud the little guy was of his army dad...it was really touching!
So if the least I can do is push back my wedding date another 6 months, I am for sure and for certain able to do that. I might have moments of lapsed memory and be a little sad and impatient, but Eric and the guys and gals over there fighting for the red, white, and blue deserve at least my patience and respect and so much more!
So for now, all I can do is pray and respectfully honor the brave of the US Armed Forces.
Thank you, for all you do here on the home front and overseas for my freedom as an American citizen. I pray God will keep you safe and comforted as well as your family here at home!
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
They say don't shop while you're hungry...
So the great words of wisdom have been said and now I will add to them.
Ladies: don't go grocery shopping while you're hungry AND during your monthly cycle....
I know this sort of tells you what I am dealing with at the moment, but frankly I don't care! Because this news NEEDS to be shared with all woman alike!
I just went to the local grocery store for my lunch break and only spent 10 minutes in there. Wanna know what I came out with?
-one bag of fun sized babe ruth candy bars
-one bag of snack sized almond joys
-one bag of fun sized butterfingers
-one hungry man's frozen dinners (for lunch another day)
-one BBQ chicken brick oven frozen pizza single dinner (for lunch another day)
-one twix bar
-one snickers bar
-one almond joy bar
-one take 5 bar
- 0.55 lbs of pasta salad (for lunch today)
-12 pack of kemps ice cream sandwiches
-one BIG bottle of ibuprofen caplets
Yeah, 'nuf said.
In all fairness tho, the bags of candy are to help refill the office candy jar that I indulged myself with yesterday... but still!
Last night, Trevor and I went to Applebee's for a late dinner at about 8:30. I had the boneless BBQ wing appetizer for my main meal and he had a big ol' burger and fries combo....usually he INHALES his food. No lie. But by the time the waitress came back around to see how everything was tasting, I had finished my basket sans one delicious wing (I wanted to save room for desert!) We ordered the TRIPLE CHOCOLATE MELTDOWN! Guess how many bites Trevor got of this delicious dessert?
2
He should've known to eat faster when my Aunt Rose comes for a visit. . .
He should consider this his one and only warning. (jk) :D
Ladies: don't go grocery shopping while you're hungry AND during your monthly cycle....
I know this sort of tells you what I am dealing with at the moment, but frankly I don't care! Because this news NEEDS to be shared with all woman alike!
I just went to the local grocery store for my lunch break and only spent 10 minutes in there. Wanna know what I came out with?
-one bag of fun sized babe ruth candy bars
-one bag of snack sized almond joys
-one bag of fun sized butterfingers
-one hungry man's frozen dinners (for lunch another day)
-one BBQ chicken brick oven frozen pizza single dinner (for lunch another day)
-one twix bar
-one snickers bar
-one almond joy bar
-one take 5 bar
- 0.55 lbs of pasta salad (for lunch today)
-12 pack of kemps ice cream sandwiches
-one BIG bottle of ibuprofen caplets
Yeah, 'nuf said.
In all fairness tho, the bags of candy are to help refill the office candy jar that I indulged myself with yesterday... but still!
Last night, Trevor and I went to Applebee's for a late dinner at about 8:30. I had the boneless BBQ wing appetizer for my main meal and he had a big ol' burger and fries combo....usually he INHALES his food. No lie. But by the time the waitress came back around to see how everything was tasting, I had finished my basket sans one delicious wing (I wanted to save room for desert!) We ordered the TRIPLE CHOCOLATE MELTDOWN! Guess how many bites Trevor got of this delicious dessert?
2
He should've known to eat faster when my Aunt Rose comes for a visit. . .
He should consider this his one and only warning. (jk) :D
Seriously tho? He's such a great guy! We were watching Smallville and my foot fell asleep the way I was sitting so I start to move around and reposition myself to let the blood flow a little better and he asked what was wrong. I said nothing, just my foot falling asleep. Guess what he did? He started rubbing my feet! (one, two, three, awwww!) :D I'm a lucky gal despite my monthly mood swings and grocery trips!
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