No video. :(

Can't get the video to work. Looks fine on my end, but won't show up. Sorry!!

Weekend Post #2--Dance Recital!

In no particular order are some pictures from the girls dance recital yesterday. Every other year the classes all have the same costume, to save on expenses. Every other year it is professionally video-taped too, to save on expenses. Macy's tap and ballet class did the song from Lazytown, Kaylin's preschool class did Twinkle Twinkle Little Star, and Macy's tumbling class did the Limbo song. I don't really have any pictures from the actual dance; it was dark in there, and we were not allowed to use a flash. I have a few, but they didn't turn out that good. The ones I've put here are sufficient to show what they looked like. I was impressed with Macy--she improved quite a bit from last year. It was obvious she knew the routine, which last year looked questionable. Kaylin was cute--at this age, you don't expect them to do much up on stage. They both loved it,and all night talked about wanting to go on stage again. I guess we have little performers on our hands!! And here's the video. Not professionally done, so no complaints to the videographer. (Bobby) The video is 5 minutes and 52 seconds. I edited out all the other dancers, so you are only watching the girls. We taped a lot of the other classes for the girls to watch, but I figured you'd be bored by all that. :)

Weekend Post #1--Firefighters Convention

Friday afternoon we dropped the girls off with Bobby's sister, armed with water balloons and ready to have a good time (thank you Carmen and Kelly for watching them!) and then Bobby and I headed to Branson for the state firefighters convention. The chief was paying for our hotel and food, so our only expense was gas (which was bad enough!). We had a great time--we were with a fun group of people. There were over 400 firefighters and their spouses/significant others from the state of Missouri. Some of them acted like overgrown frat boys. Apparently some people never grow up.

Saturday was the annual fireman muster, or competition. I've blogged about it before. Kearney's team did okay, taking 3rd and 4th in the barrel fight, but not placing other than that. Some teams take it VERY seriously, practicing all year around. West Plains is one--Dad will be proud!! Kearney threw together a team that had never practiced before, so they did well considering.

This is the bucket brigade. The key is to get a rhythm, and they never really did, which hurt them. I have no desire to ever do a bucket brigade; your arms hurt so bad afterwards. I will not be joining a woman's team to participate.

This is the barrel fight. The two Kearney teams were just plowing over the competition, and we thought it would be them in the finals together. But then they had to switch sides, and both ended up losing and playing in the consolation bracket. They settled for 3rd and 4th. As soon as they switched sides, we knew they were in trouble. Can't mess with what was working! Bobby is the last one, holding the hose.

Here's a closer picture of him. Still hard to see his face because of the equipment.

I like this picture because you can see how close we were to Table Rock Lake.

I took a bunch of "artistic" photos, and am thinking of making some sort of collage out of them. This is his helmet and coat.

Here's the whole crew who competed. None of them had ever done this together, so it was an interesting experience.


Saturday night they had a banquet, and you could tell who had been at the competition: every last one had bright red faces! Probably 200 people with matching burnt noses and cheeks, some worse than others. I wore a v-neck t-shirt, and now have a bright red triangle on the middle of my chest.

The highlight of the evening was the keynote speaker--Yakov Smirnoff!!! I've never heard him before, and he was absolutely hilarious, mixed with the right amount of sentimental firefighter laying down their lives angle. He received an instant standing ovation. Brought along his mother and kids, which was cool. He recently received a master's in psychology, and is teaching some classes at Drury and Missouri State. It was worth the whole weekend to see him.

After the banquet a bunch of us went go-karting. One of the junior firefighters--age 14--got kicked off the track before the first lap was complete for bumping others. He will never live that down!

We left Branson at 6 to come home for the girls dance recital. I will put pictures of that up tomorrow--even with wireless high-speed, my laptop is being slow. So look for pictures tomorrow of my divas!!

Field trip again...

Whew--long day yesterday. 2 other advisers and I took 60+ students down to Columbia for our state competition. We met at 5:30 am--students armed with all sorts of coffee products from Quiktrip, Starbucks, McDonalds, and their pillows and blankets. I don't think they slept, though. My cell phone died about 30 minutes out of KC--it was strange to be without it all day. I am so used to having it! At least the kids couldn't text or call me--we had to add more text minutes on our plan because of the amount of texts they send me.

It rained the whole way to Columbia. The bus has emergency hatches in the roof, and they leaked. Every time we hit a bump, you'd hear a girl squeal as water was dumped on her. The windshield was so fogged up the bus driver had to wipe at it with his handkerchief! The front steps and dashboard were covered in water. It felt like a rain forest in there.

The day turned out well--students competed in journalism contests, got to roam the beautiful campus, and we received many awards. It was a fun day.

The bus ride home was much drier. He called back to the school while we were there, and they will send the bus back to the manufacturer--it is brand new with 4,000 miles on it. It should not be leaking like that!

Tying up some loose ends this morning, then we are off to Branson for the weekend. The big dance recital is on Sunday, and I'm sure I will have a ton of pictures to show.

Happy Earth Day!!

Think Green!!

2 is plenty...

Yesterday a good friend's husband had an emergency appendectomy, and so I ended up with her 3 kids for several hours until their grandpa could come get them. It was not a big deal; I know she would do the same for me in a heartbeat, and I was happy to help out. But I am also happy that I only have 2 kids. 5 kids under the age of 6 was a handful. I can't imagine having 4 or 5 kids. 2 is enough for me!! :)

Oh, and Bobby had a call at 2:30 am this morning--a turkey hit the windshield of a chartered bus, and almost went through the windshield. People in the front rows were treated for some glass scratches, but that was it. The bus was full. Seriously? A turkey in the windshield of a chartered bus?

Field trip!

Yesterday I went with the Advanced Biology kids down to the Bodies Revealed exhibit. They were taking 110 students, and needed a few extra chaperone's.Since I am good friends with the biology teacher, she asked me to help. A day off school, a chance to see this cool exhibit, a chance to eat a real lunch with friends? How could I turn that down?

For those of you who don't know what the exhibit is, here's what the website says:

Through a unique process called polymer preservation, along with sensitive presentation, actual human bodies are displayed accurately for your observation, without any change or deterioration of the internal systems. Examine everything that lies beneath your skin, from the bones to the muscles to the intricate nervous system. Learn more about the many complexities that make your own body into a flawless, life-giving machine

It was fascinating...looking at the muscles, the tendons, the arteries, all the organs, everything. They had individual rooms focusing on the different systems of the body. It probably took us about an hour to walk through. My favorite was the pregnant woman--I know that she has stirred up controversy over the ethical nature of her being included in the exhibit, but it was amazing to see. She was about 4 months along, and you could see the fetus inside her, all curled up like a ball. At 4 months she wouldn't really be showing yet, but the baby inside her was just like a tiny miniature doll. Amazing. Absolutely amazing.

I also liked the healthy lungs vs. the lungs with lung cancer. Anyone who smokes should see that!! The brain damaged by a stroke was interesting, as the heart that had a heart attack. The arteries, especially the aorta valve, looked so thin! Almost like paper. Amazing that a huge amount of blood goes through that small valve, and without it, we would all die. God certainly made our bodies absolutely perfect, with everything working together in absolute harmony. Makes you wonder why people don't believe in God.

The students were fabulous--no problems. Of course, they all had to giggle at the anatomical correctness of the male bodies, but after that, they were ok.

Click here to learn more about the exhibit.

Say what?

Ever the drama queen, Macy was complaining tonight that her head hurt. She said, "It feels like the side of my head has been attacked by the vacuum cleaner!"

Good report!

This morning I took Kaylin to see her orthopedic surgeon for another round of x-rays on her hip. He was pleased with the x-rays; the bad hip is almost caught up with the good one!! It looks pretty close to the same on x-rays. He was a little concerned about a few areas on the hip socket, but he said there was nothing we could do but watch to see how it played out as she gets older. He said he wasn't sure the hip is strong enough to get her 70, that she might end up with a hip replacement in her 30's or 40's, but again we'd have to see how it played out. My first inclination is to not let her play sports that would put pressure on that hip, but I don't know if that would even help or hinder. We don't go back for another year, and we'll see what has happened in this years time.

Kaylin of course wanted McDonalds for lunch, and I didn't. I wanted Chipotle, and my oh so picky daughter would not like it. So we went to Chipotle, I ate some tacos, then off to McDonalds. Kaylin thought it was funny that we ate at two different places.

Now we're just hanging out at home, trying to stay warm and wait for Macy to go home from school.

1-1

Election day yesterday brought a split in the races I was most interested in. The district I teach in was trying to pass a bond for a second high school, another (the 10th) elementary school, and technology needs. The most pressing was the second high school. We are truly busting at the seams. Our building has a capacity of 1600, and we are currently at 2100. Thankfully, the bond passed and the new high school will open in the fall of 2010. I hope to teach there, but have to go through an interview process.

A few weeks ago, the bond was a done deal. But our district is dealing with some scandals, and suddenly things weren't looking so good. Regardless, the bond passed overwhelming.

Macy's school district was also trying to pass a bond. This would be for a new elementary school up in the north part of the district, major upgrades to Macy's school (much needed ones) and various other technology and security things.

The bond failed. Well, technically it passed. It received 54% yes votes, but needed a 57% yes vote to pass. Her district is seriously falling farther and farther behind in terms of technology, teacher salaries, and just basic cosmetic work. The scools are operating bare bones as it is. With the bond failing, she will know have to go to another school. Her friends from the neigborhood will move too, but she's made many friends at the other elementary who will continue to go there. I won't even begin to explain how irriated I am with community members who think they can vote no just because they don't have a kid in school anymore.

Hey, Uncle Rod! We're in the Club!!!

The girls (mine plus Hannah) all finished their Gatorade in record time today after an exciting soccer game, and wanted to take a picture to show Uncle Rod how they were in the "club". Thanks Aunt Julie and Uncle Rod for getting the girls addicted to Gatorade!!! Macy scored a goal for the first time this season also.

Hannah spent the day with us and after the soccer game, they played outside for a long time, soaking up the sun. We're working with Macy on learning to ride a bike without training wheels. She's getting there--she can go in a straight line for a little bit. Maybe we'll work on turning tomorrow...

Funny story happened at dinner tonight--we were at Cici's Pizza, and Kaylin runs over to some guy standing in line and just grabs his hand and stands next to him. I am laughing so hard I can't even say anything to her, and the guy is laughing as well. She stands there for about 15-20 seconds, and then looks up and realizes he is not her dad. You should have seen the look on her face!! A little blond haired girl with blue eyes was holding his other hand, so it looked completly natural. We had a good laugh throughout dinner.

Quiet night at our house. Bobby is working, Macy spent the night with her friend Gillian (remember the turkey Indian who is fashionable?) and Kaylin fell asleep quickly after a busy day.

Books and Fire...our favorite things

I just finished the latest Jodi Picoult book, Change of Heart She is by far my favorite author, but I was a little disappointed in this one. The premise was good--man on death row wants to donate his heart to the daughter whose father and sister he killed. I enjoyed that side of the story. But the rest was too much like one of her others, Keeping Faith, and I felt it was too much. I will say I was happy I figured out the always-present Picoult surprise twist at the end. Or maybe she is getting worse with foreshadowing.

Bobby battled his first real fire Wednesday night. He wasn't supposed to be working, but was called in for overtime. A carpet/flooring business caught on fire and all those rolls of carpet caught fire and were very hard to put out. They were there from 11:30 pm-6 am doing what they could to knock the flames down. He was exhausted yesterday from the intense effort and adrenline wearing off. He was also excited to have his first real fire under his belt. The girls were excited to talk about it,and watch the fire on the news.

April is Organ Donation Month!

The United States recognizes April as Organ Donation Month. This is a cause I believe very strongly in, and have for years. I've made sure all my family knows how I feel about this in case something was to happen to me.

I've mentioned before how addicted I've become to Confessions of a CF Husband
in the last couple months, and pray often for Tricia, who is waiting for a new set of lungs. You can read more about organ donation on his website; he blogs frequently about the truly selfless and wonderful gift of organ donation.

You can also go to this site to learn how to become an organ donor in your particular state. In Missouri, I filled out a form that puts me on a list that medical personnel will have access to. That's not required, but a good way to make your wishes known and make it easier for people to identify your intentions.