Thankful

We have stayed busy lately, thus the lack of posts. I am just thankful today for my sweet family and the laughter that they bring. We visited an apple orchard today (a yearly tradition on a nice September day). We picked up only a few goodies like delectable fudge, pumpkin butter, and apple sippers for the girls. The day was gorgeous.
I am thankful for our new kitty, Chaney. He is really sweet. We still miss Tufsey a lot, but Chaney is bringing us much laughter. He is a little fellow and full of cuteness.
I'm happy and thankful for beautiful evenings to enjoy on the porch with crickets chirping and pleasant conversation with my soulmate!
What of life makes you thankful?

Tufsey

We had a full weekend from start to finish, and I'm TIRED!

Tufsey had an up and down road since his first sickness back in August. He seemingly recovered from the first one and came back with tons of energy. We enjoyed loving on him. He was well for a few days when he caught an upper respiratory infection. That one wasn't as bad and he fought through it. Again, he was happy and full of life and we made sure to enjoy playing with him. He then started to get lethargic again. He was breathing quite heavily at one point and we didn't think he would make it, but sure enough he was back again. He didn't make a complete recovery from that one, but was semi-recovered for a few days. He then began a relapse back. Tufsey's body was so weak because he hadn't gained back enough weight to fight this one.

We didn't figure he would even make it past Labor Day, but somehow he did. We came home from the festival to check on him and he was under the chair--gone. It was hard for all of us. Keirah doesn't quite understand. Yesterday morning, she looked out the back door and asked us where Tufsey was--I told her that he was gone now.

We buried him under the honeysuckle vine with his collar and favorite toy. Aliyah drew some artwork on the patio blocks that cover the spot.

Why was Tufsey such a special cat to us?

Seemingly, God dropped him right out of Heaven to a little girl who wanted a pet. We never figured out where he came from. He turned us into kitty lovers. Since he was an outdoor cat, we allowed him to roam as he wanted. We would come home in the evenings and he would be waiting for us in the drive-way. We loved it when he would fall over to the ground as we were petting him. He absolutely loved to be loved. Nothing really bothered Tufsey. He would watch as robins would eat his food, lay in the yard while we mowed, and loved to drink from birdbaths. He came running when we called him (if he was within earshot). His spots and markings were adorable causing the girls to call him Tufsey, Tufsey, Furball, Cow . We loved the ever-changing meows (changed to garner pity and attention). We were charmed by him! He would come inside when we got home and look at the cabinet under the sink. Sometimes he would even paw at it. That just meant he was waiting for a treat. Keirah loved to give him his treats. He fought long and hard to stay with us and made several come-backs. We in turn took care of him and gave hime lots of love--we felt loved in return.

I'll miss the little Tufster, it was hard to say goodbye.

Remembering

The year was 2001. A fresh school year had begun. I was teaching kindergarten. The day was a perfect September morning, much like the one we are experiencing today. The sun was bright and all was gorgeous. Children began coming in to the classroom. I remember a little boy named Jeremiah telling me that planes had just crashed into buildings in New York. Figuring it had to be an accidental thing, I wasn't overly alarmed. A mother of a student mentioned something as well. Of course, details were so new and I hadn't even seen a tv screen to have any clue.
What I do know is that that day forever changed so many things.
Througout the day, a high school teacher would come in and update us on what was happening. As the day wore on, the news got worse and WORSe.
I remember being fearful. The air felt different after that. It was like a heavy cloud of sadness enveloped everyone.
Parents were late picking their children up from school. Many of them because they were trying to buy gas. Gas had risen to over $4.00 per gallon at the pump that day and people were panicked. The lines were long. $4.00 gas at that time was unheard of. We had hovered near the $2 mark, but had NEVER gone over.
I remember leaving school that day and coming home to watch some coverage. It was heartwrenching. It was odd to not see any airplanes in the sky. Everything was pretty quiet.
We lived in an apartment behind an ice cream shop. Josh and I decided to take a walk to process everything. It was then that we looked up and saw the one and only plane that could be flying that day fly over. It was Air Force One carrying our President.
News anchors were choking up which is far from typical. Sheer panic began to ensue even througout the country. I remember being glad that we live in a smaller city, and glad that we hadn't planned that trip to NYC that we had talked about. BTW, we never have made that trip. As stories began rolling in, the new reality began to set in that the United States of America was clearly a target of an act the likes of which had not been seen before on this scale.
There were the what-ifs, there was sadness, but there was also hope and thankfulness.
Hope of finding survivors, hope of vindication, and hope for patriotism and freedom was among us. Thankfulness for the simplest yet most important things in life, thankfulness for a leader who vowed to take them on.
The thing that I remember so vividly from that day is this: after what these people have gone through, how can I sit and complain of a bad day? I've tried to change my perspective in that way, and be much more thankful.
Programming continued for weeks. There were specials and documentaries as the story still unfolded all those weeks following. With Josh being at work many evenings, I watched them. I remember sobbing through them with such a deep sadness that reached right into my innermost. The one show I remember most was the story about the plane carrying the brave men like Todd Beamer, Mark Bingham and others. What they did that day was so heroic. The medical personnel, the victims, the leaders, the soldiers, the families--let us not forget. I'm thankful for the privilege of living in a country that values freedom and will protect.
Today is a reminder for me to remember, be thankful, and pray. I hope it will be the same for you.

Homeschooling

With various issues facing our children these days, I have found myself saying many times that I'm glad my children do not have to (fill in the blank). Most recently that would be listen to the latest speech that our President has construed to help shape & form the youngsters of America.
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for patriotism and respect, however this has me really wondering. Honestly, I was surprised to know that Aliyah knew who the President was before he took office. I am guessing as a result of various children's programming and such.
This morning, I was searching around and looking for various restrictions regarding homeschooling. I know a few states have banned it. I had looked before for the state of Illinois and had not found really many requirements. During my research today, I found that Illinois is the most free homeschooling state. I am very thankful!
Of course, there is the option of private schooling which I wholeheartedly endorse as well.
There are many great teachers and public schools out there, don't get me wrong. It's just at this point in our girl's lives, we feel that we should be one of the most influencing factors in their lives--not government.
While homeschooling requires time from both Josh and myself as parents, it also offers great freedoms. They can be kids--plain and simple. Think about it, children put in the equivalent of an adult work day at school. That is fine for older ones, but a lot to ask of a younger child!!

Happy 3rd Birthday, Keirah!!

It's hard to believe our baby is turning 3!!! I always remember wondering if I would go into labor on Labor Day weekend. Well, it turns out, I made it a couple of days past the Labor Day weekend that year.

Happy Birthday to Kiki, the girl who loves anything a little or big girl loves--purses, shoes, lip gloss, hair-dos, hairbows, flowers, babies, clothes. Kiki is a happy riser in the morning, and she doesn't miss a trick. She knows all kinds of details. She is a name person. By that, I mean she remembers people's names. Josh and Aliyah are not name people--they don't remember.

Keirah has several characteristics of me, however one thing that she most certainly gets from Josh is her appetite. She also has that "wilting flower" issue like he does when she gets really hungry.

Those big, beautiful blue eyes that stare into your soul...that is Kiki!! As Aliyah has said, "this is my sister Keirah, isn't she a beauty"?

Happy Birthday to my favorite little 3 year old girl!!! Time has flown by so quickly. We love you, Kiki!!!

Curb Appeal

I received an email today that our house is one of the finalists in a curb appeal contest. If you go to this link http://216.247.167.209/curbappeal/curbappeal.asp and vote for house #4--the house that is tan with cranberry shutters, we would greatly appreciate it!! If you do not wish to receive promos or info, be sure to unclick the two boxes at the bottom.

The voting ends on September 10!!!

Thanks in advance!!!!!

Lovin' This

Josh has been on vacation the past few days. I am loving this!! It gives us a chance to spend every evening together which only happens on vacations. With the mild weather, we have enjoyed some evenings on our porch. Every time we are out there, at least one of us comments that we are so glad that we re-did the porch this year. Tufsey enjoys our presence out there and usually gets some extra attention.
In between just doing daily life at a more relaxed pace this week, Josh is tiling our kitchen floor. I absolutely cannot wait for the finished results!!
What else have we enjoyed lately, we had a very nice weekend of fun this past weekend. Lots of laughter, a bit of shopping, and just plain fun.
Keirah is looking forward to her birthday. I will be glad that she will not have to ask for the Dora bike anymore. I can't believe our baby will be 3!! She is doing well with the pre-school thing!!
We have removed the training wheels from Aliyah's bicycle in order to help her learn how to ride her bike. She definitely wasn't too keen on the idea at first. Granted, she is 7 so it is high time she learned. By the same token, most people think she is 4--no lie. This isn't because of how she acts, but judging by size only. The other day when the girls played in the sprinkler, Aliyah wore Keirah's swimsuit.
School is going well for Aliyah as well. She is on lesson 23!! Cursive is going better--yay!

I'm glad to hear that the weather is supposed to be more normal (at least during the day) for the next several days. I'm not ready for summer to end so quickly.

Well, bye for now.