Runway to Nowhere

A few weeks ago Bobby found out a guy that had been building a 13Foot flying wing was finished. He was planning on having its maiden voyage and Bobby wanted to be there. Bobby has built several planes from scratch. I am talking print the plans out from the Internet, gather the materials, build them, take care in the details of how they look. It is quite impressive! So, we decided to have a family road trip to see the ginormous wing fly.

After being in the car for about an hour and a half we finally made it to the strip where the guy was supposed to be. This little airstrip does not have a tower, there is zero cell phone reception and is in unincorporated McKinnon, TN.

The four of us unloaded from the car and checked out the field. We got there about 15 minutes after the guy said he was going to be there. Poor Munchkin needed to go potty and her only option was a tree. She is quite modest so she was not happy to have everything out in the open. We found a secluded spot and she did her thing. As we walked back I told her that when you go camping that is what you had to do. "You have to pee on a tree like a dog?" She sounded kind of disgusted.



While we waited Bobby got out a couple of planes and flew them around the field a bit.

While he was flying we were taking a couple of pictures. Munchkin took this one of me and Little Man. You can see her in my sunglasses.


The area was beautiful! The kids found "bubble flowers" and made some wishes.
All of a sudden a little twin engine plane came in for a landing. We ran to the car to move it out of the was in case they were going to taxi. They pretty much did a touch and go and left without a word.



We finally decided that we should try and get some cell service and call the guy since he hadn't shown up yet. We drove out about 10 minutes until we could finally get some patchy reception and found out that about half way there the guy had decided to go to another field. He gave us directions and off we went. I went as fast as legally acceptable on those back windy roads. It was so beautiful back in there. We did think it was funny though when Bobby told me to turn right and this is what we saw:

Yep, you had to take the ferry if you wanted to get where we needed to go. The kids thought that was fun and we thought it was pretty funny even though we were pretty certain we were not going to make it to see the plane fly. This was the view from the ferry:Bobby called the guy again to let him know where we were, which was about 10 minutes away, and was told that it wasn't going to happen. Apparently, there was a base MP watching him test all of the logistical stuff out when his radio went off. The MP fired up his car and took off. Sometimes radios mess up the frequencies on the Radio Controllers and that is what happened. When the radio in the car went off the wing zipped off the end of the runway and broke the landing gear off. So, he was not able to fly it that day. Bummer.

Bobby was not too happy about that but, we had a really nice family trip, got to see some beautiful countryside that you don't see from the freeway and we ended the day at Old Chicago Pizza in Clarksville. If you ever want a drive in the country McKinnon is the place to go!

Pollys

Girls today play with Polly Pockets like we played with Barbies....how many years ago. I suppose there are still little girls that play with barbies but Munchkin has never been interested. She loves her Polly's though. I am babysitting 3 of the 6 band kids. I can't count my own since they are mine but with them there are 5 kids at my house. They are all being really, really good. Munchkin, drummergirljr and bassgirljr are playing Polly's in one corner while Little Man and drummerboyjr are playingwith Little People in another. We are just waiting for Shrek the Halls to come on and hopefully everyone will go to sleep. Munchkin has school tomorrow so she has to be in bed early. Ok, Shrek the Halls is on, now if we can get the Polly's picked up we will be in business.

And the winner is....

Festive Fusion Cookies!
With 2 votes the Cady family will be getting a dozen cookies in the near future! :)

ergh..

Have you ever woken up just mad at the world. There really isn't a reason, you are just grumpy and know you have a lot on your plate for the day? Yeah, that was me this morning. I knew I should have taken a few minutes to talk to God but didn't want to. I took a shower hoping that would help. Nope.
The kids wouldn't get their clothes on, that made me grumpier. I raised my voice but I wasn't screaming (thank goodness). After the kids got in the car I reflected on the way to school what a jerk I was being. So when Munchkin got in the front seat to pray with me before school I asked in my prayer for forgiveness for being a crankypants. She thought that was kind of funny.

I was supposed to go to Moms in Touch but once again was resisting the idea of spending an hour in prayer with other women. I was still cranky, didn't really feel good, my house is a wreck, and I needed to run errands. I called one of the ladies and told her all of that on the message. I know it is probably one of those days that I needed to spend an hour in prayer with other Godly women and I just couldn't do it today. Later 2 of the ladies from the prayer group came up and said after hearing the message that they knew exactly how I felt...they had all been there at some point.

I went to Walmart for some shopping therapy...OK not really, I needed to buy a mat for under the treadmill, and a cable. Once that was done I was starting to feel a little better. Little Man was so good through all of this. We picked up lunch at McDonald's and went to lunch with Munchkin.
Something that made me smile today: Someone accidentally turned off the lights in the cafeteria. It takes a long time for them to come back on. Apparently the lights coming on in the cafeteria is almost as exciting as fireworks. 75 kindergartners all going "ooh" "there is another one!" "Look!" was pretty funny.
I am feeling better this afternoon. I think I am getting past the point of being paralyzed by the condition of my house and might actually be able to face it. I have had some quiet time with the Lord and I am feeling better. Here is to a better day tomorrow.

Vote for Cookies

Ok, I have got to get this recipe to the MOPS Cookie Swap Coordinator so I need a name!
Please vote for one of the following in the comments between now and Tuesday. Whoevers submitted name that wins will be sent a dozen cookies.

Festive Fusion Cookies

Tennessee Tinsel Cookies

Americana Christmas Cookies

Christmas in July Cookies

Fruity-Tooty Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Happy Thanksgiving!

We are in the great state of Tx right now and it is snowing. Yeah, it was 80 degrees 2 days ago!
We are celebrating this day of Thankfulness with Bobbys brother Jon, sister-in-law Teri, their 6 adorable children, and his Mom and Dad. We are only missing Joe and Rox (we miss you guys!)
Each person wrote some of the things they are thankful for on a sheet of 12 x 12 paper and I hope to put it together in a scrapbook (yeah, I know, shocker!).
Bobby's Mom said there are so many things to be thankful for it is hard to narrow it down to one piece of paper.

Some of the things I am thankful for this year:

A forgiving God who has saved me by grace through his son Jesus Christ

My wonderful husband who loves me even when I am off my rocker or way too opinionated

My sweet daughter who loves school and Jesus and has a sweet spirit (for the most part)

My amazing little boy who is surpassing so many obstacles. For the diagnosis we got so that we could keep working on getting him services

My mom who has shown me what it is to be a strong woman and showed me what it means to be a Christian even when times are hard

My dad who loves me and my sisters unconditionally

My in laws that I love and respect and have such a solid spiritual foundation

My sisters and sister in laws, and brother in laws

My sweet nieces and nephews

Friends that challenge me and have a sound spiritual footing

Bobbys brother and sister in law that open their home to us for Thanksgiving

Fudge pie, cheese, ice cream dessert and diet coke


What are you thankful for this year?

MOPS Cookie Exchange

My MOPS cookie exchange is in a couple of weeks. I need to send in my recipe so that it can be put with the other cookie recipes. But, I have a problem. I don't know what to call them. I took them last year and heard one snide comment about how we weren't supposed to bring chocolate chip cookies. These however are not you everyday, run of the mill, chocolate chip cookies. These have cranberries, blueberries, white and chocolate chips in them. I think I called them red white and blue cookies last year. Unfortunately that draws to mind 4th of July. I have 2 names for them right now and I would like to take a few suggestions. If I get at least 5 suggestions in the comments of this blog I will have a vote in the comments of the next blog. If you are the winner I will send you a dozen.

So far I have:
Tennessee Tinsel Christmas Cookies
Americana Christmas Cookies

Please be creative and give me a few suggestions!

Parenting Moment Hall of Shame

Little Man and The Big Kahuna had a make up My Gym class yesterday so Angela and I decided to take them to Zaxbys for lunch afterward. We should know better by now but I think we are both Chick-Fil-A'd out at the moment.

We put the boys in the booth and told them to stay there. We could see them from the counter so figured they would be ok for 10 seconds while we ordered our food. I turned my back just long enough to order and when I turned back Little Man had a salt shaker in his hand, The Big Kahuna had a pepper shaker in his hand, the people in the booth right behind the boys were starting to move and Little Man did a nice big cough right on the ladies head. Both boys were also shaking every last grain of salt and pepper on the table, the window sill, their booth and the one behind them. They were also laughing hysterically. It was one of those moments where I would probably be thinking "Where are their parents!" Can you say mortified?

I went over to the couple and apologized profusely. Thankfully they were laughing too. They apparently just didn't want salt and pepper hair before their time.
Next time he will have to stay right with me. Grr.

Church #5

Church #5:
Distance from our house: 20 minutes

Membership: maybe 200ish? Meets in a Middle School auditorium

Friendliness of members: really, really friendly. With a small church they obviously knew we were visitors and made every effort to help us find everything.

Ease of finding classrooms: Someone took us to find Munchkins room and showed us where everything was. They showed us where Little Man would go too. He stayed with us that day though due to a snotty nose.

Sermon: Kind of strange. It was good but we were at the end of a sermon series and it wasn't a typical sermon. The pastor would make a point, leave the stage, the band would play a song and he would get back up to make another point. They did make sure to tell us that it wasn't normally like that. We are planning to listen to some of the other sermons online.

Music: All over the map. Part of what they were doing that Sunday was showcasing some of the different styles they use in their services and there were several professional musicians brought in. A girl that sings with Mandisa sang Shackles, they did a bluegrass rendition of I'll Fly Away, a rock version of How Great Thou Art and a country song. Plus there was one traditional in there as well. We LOVED it. Bobby felt like he would want to play there sometimes.

Followup: Munchkin has received a post card and more information in their childrens program already. So far we haven't heard anything but there is a big focus on the kids there. One of the really cool things for us was that they have Life Groups. Ours would meet on Sunday and the kids can come. That is a big deal to us because we can't pay a babysitter every time we have a church thing and have no family here to watch the kids for us. When we talked to a guy about the life groups we told him we had moved here from CA 6 years ago. He asked where and we told him Glendora and both of us went to Azusa Pacific. He said "No, way! My wife and I lived in Glendora and she went to Azusa Pacific!" It was one of those moments where we felt like we could be connected and could serve and be part of something great all at the same time. I think we will be visiting again in the near future!

Thankful

Today was MOPS for me and for Little Man Moppets. I am so thrilled with all the kids are learning this year. Every year has been wonderful but Little Man is just taking off with all the activities this go around. Today the kids were focused on prayer and things they are thankful for. Our wonderful coordinator had a thankful poem that the teachers helped the kids fill out. Apparently Little Man is thankful for corndogs...I didn't realize he liked them that much. Near the bottom, the paper said he was thankful for kitty cats, puppy dogs, and a word that I wasn't sure of. They said that they kind of gave a few suggestions and when they said do you like kitty cats he said "yeah, and puppy dogs". Then he kept repeating a word over and over and got quite frustrated that they couldn't figure out what he was saying. When they showed the letter to me I asked if he was pronouncing the word a certain way and I got to tell them that he was saying Munchkins name. How sweet is that? My Little Man is thankful for his big sister. That was such a sweet moment in my day. He is also thankful for pizza. So there ya go. The things 3 year olds are thankful for. :)

My Gym

I was bummed when Little Man aged out of all of his PT, OT, and TIPS services. We had great therapists and we miss them. Plus, he was making such great progress with all of his motor skills. Some of the parents at Easter Seals would talk about My Gym and how wonderful it was. Well, one opened in Hendersonville recently and that was easier to get to than the ones down in Williamson county. Little Man loves it....for the most part. There are things he really doesn't like to do but we still try to have him do it anyway. It helps to get him doing things that work his motor skills. Each time he does something new I am always amazed and grateful for the people that work with him. He climbed up this slide then slid down but he has tried climbing some of the ladders too.





He LOVED standing on his head.
The first time he did the trapeze he was so excited! He loved this part with his legs over one bar and holding onto the other bar. I also love that you can see The Big Kahuna in the background doing a headstand.


He wasn't so sure about letting go but when he got down he was so proud of himself that he actually let go!
My Gym is expensive but it has been to good for Little Man. It is definitely worth it. Hmm...maybe we can write it off as therapy on our taxes.

New Jammies

I saw these adorable jammies at Target and had to get them for the kids. We usually buy a new pair and let them open them Christmas eve but I couldn't wait. It has been so cold that we let them have them the other night.

I LOVE the sock monkeys on them!

Our New Toy

The other day Bobby came home and said "I think we should buy a treadmill!"

Since I have wanted one for several years I wasn't about to let the opportunity pass me by.

I checked Craigslist and found this Proform Treadmill for $75. After calling the lady about it Bobby was able to work out transport and got it home the night of Bunco. We brought it in, plugged it in and have both logged at least 30 minutes a day since we got it. Yeah! I am so excited to have this to walk on everyday! It will not be moving anytime soon though because it is a beast! It makes a really nice living roon centerpiece....

Halloween

This Halloween was a lot of fun for us. It was the first year we didn't take a stroller and both kids really had fun knocking on peoples doors to fill their buckets. Little Man is still having kind of a hard time with steps so it took him a little longer to get up and down them but that was OK. Every once in awhile Munchkin would get ahead of us and he would say "Where my sissy?"

This first picture was at our neighbors house. They had the kids come up on the porch and get candy out of the pumpkin. Munchkin was so sweet to Little Man and helped him every step of the way.

Normally we have pictures from carving our pumpkins but we just didn't get to it this year. Target had these great kits though and we were able to dress our pumpkin up even though we didn't get to carve it.
It has been our tradition the last few years to trick o treak in our neighborhood and then head up to church for the fall festival. Bobby and I would trade off handing out candy and taking the kids out. This year we all went together along with our friend from across the street. We did about 3 streets and that was about enough trick or treating. Little Man would still be coming down from a porch and Munchkin would be laying in a yard"resting her legs".

The best part of the evening came in handing candy out to other kids. Both Munchkin and Little Man would yell "We've got candy! Come over here!" Because we had been out trick or treating we had a ton of candy so they would put huge handfuls into kids bags. The joy of seeing them give was so much fun. Now If I could get them to give away some of their toys we would be in business!

Fall Party

Munchkins class had a fall party on Halloween. I took Litle Man and went a little early because I was in charge of putting goody cups together. 3 other moms came too and we get everything done really quickly. Munchkin was excited because they got to go on the big kids playground while we were there!

Little Man was so sweet. he got up and went and put his arm around Munchkin for this picture. They were so cute together!

The cool treat cups

After the party I was able to get Munchkin and go ahead and leave. We made it out of the parking lot just before we would have had to wait another 20 minutes. It was a woo hoo moment for us!

Bunco

Last week you got to hear how much of a strain cleaning my house was. Well, it was all for these ladies. They all came over to play Bunco on Tuesday. We had such a fun evening of chatter and dice. If you haven't played Bunco you should get the game and play. The next evening Munchkin wanted to play so she, Little Man and I played for awhile. She was so excited because she even won a couple of the rounds!

Thanks ladies for a fun evening!

Dog update

So last night I let Kelsey in the house. She immediately ran at the kids, knocked Munchkin over and smacked Little Man in the face with her tail. This was all followed by screaming and crying until things were settled down again. Kelsey was hyper and wanted to play ball. I was done. I was tired of the screaming and crying and posted a bulletin on Myspace that said I needed to get rid of the dog before Thanksgiving. Someone forwarded it to someone and I have received 4 emails from different people telling me what a horrible person I am for wanting to "get rid of my dog". I suppose had I written "want to get her into a loving home" that it would have been a bit of a different response.

I already wrote what Kelsey's life is like with us. She has it pretty good here. But, she doesn't get walked, I am stressed out when she barks (when she is not wearing her bark collar), I am stressed out when I have to find someone to watch her when we travel, and I worry way too much about what our next door neighbor thinks of us and out pet owner skills. Am I doing the right thing in trying to find her a new home? I am so busy running Munchkin back and forth to school, taking Little Man to My Gym, going to church events, going to school events, and trying to spend a little time with my husband that she doesn't get the attention she needs.

I am sick to my stomach tonight thinking about how judgemental and rude the emails have been that I got. I am not a horrible person that just throws animals away. We have a 9 year old cat that moved across the country with us. We have not had any other pets besides Bean and Kelsey..well and the goldfish that Munchkin killed by overfeeding her. I know there is the thought that she will settle down soon but I don't know that that is the case. If she didn't jump on us, didn't get our hands in her mouth, didn't bark, and basically acted like a cat I think I would be OK.

Who knows. We may end up giving her up but if we don't find her a new home by Thanksgiving we may consider keeping her. I don't want to take her to a shelter and I obviously don't want her in a place where she will be abused. I want her to be with people that will love her, exercise her, feed her well and train her better than she is.

Sorry, this is just a vent post over a very touchy subject in our house right now.

Oh the Joy

of cleaning house.
I'll admit it. I am a horrible housekeeper. I am not sure where I get it. Mom, maybe you can give me some insight...
I am pretty good at keeping my kitchen clean. There are days when the dishes will sit but I feel like if my kitchen is clean at least we are not going to get sick.
My problem really is the clutter. If I could get out from under the clutter it would be much easier to clean everything.
We live in a very old house (90 years old next year) and it is drafty. We have a large dog that drags in dirt. We also have a cat that sheds. Plus two kiddos that think it is fun to pick up any pine cone or acorn they can find and bring home for a "craft".
I just pulled the couch out from the wall to sweep out from under it. I found, in no particular order, a 2 Polly pockets, a Polly pocket boot, 2 Polly pocket hangers, the flyswatter I have been searching high and low for, the red magnadoodle, about $1.50 in change, a couple of dog treats that were apparently being saved, 3 miniature airplanes, and a lot of dog hair. Gross.
OK, enough stalling I need to get back in and finish rearranging and cleaning my living room and dining room.
Did I mention I bought a new vacuum? Yeah, I was totally disgusted when I vacuumed my area rug in the living room. But glad that I bought the new vacuum!

I Don't Get It...

Do any of your girls out there in cyberworld have an American Girl Doll? They must have come out after I was out of doll phase. Do you have to order them online? Where do you buy them? I have only seen a few of them but they seem very expensive. Why are they so special? I just don't get why they are so special... Maybe I will go look them up online and see what I can find.

Launguage Pet Peeve of the day

Oh, there are so many I could list but this is the one that has jumped out at me today.*
When you have something to sell you say "I need to sell this item" not "I need to sale this item"
A sale is something you go to or have. But you sell your goods.


*I am by no means the language police, I am sure I say things or write things that bug other people. This just happens to be something that bugs me.

Halloween

Wednesday was a crazy day. lots o'fun was had by all. Munchkin was the most wholesome cutest cheerleader ever. Little Man was the rootinist tootinist cowboy. Bobby was once again "The Burger King" and I was an angel for the 3rd year in a row. I think Bobby and are going to start working on our costumes in June next year. He really wants to be Master Chief from Halo. Yeah, that won't be expensive. :0) I thought about stealing my sisters idea and being a soda shop carhop or a 50's girl...who knows.

Tuesday we went to another fall festival. The prizes were actually really good. each of the kids got a kite, a little bag to carry stuff in, a magnetic werewolf game, a jump rope and a bunch of other stuff. It was nice not to just get candy. I was a fairy that night. Munchkin wanted to go as the big blue m&m that she went as 2 years ago so I pulled it out along with her blue wig. The wig was itchy so she didn't want to wear it. So, I wore the wig and my angel wings. My halo was broken so that worked out nicely.

I have not pulled the pics off my camera yet but I will post pictures when I do.

I am watching The Next Great American Band right now. I am really hoping to see Denver and the Mile High Orchestra preform. I have been quite sad that a few of these bands have made it through. If you get a chance watch and vote!!!