Christmas Warning #1: Beware of the Doghouse

Curt found this video and got scared since he bought me a camera for Christmas this year... Not to worry honey, it's what I asked for!



Enough said...

Good luck this Christmas, girls!!

Cowboys and Indians

So much to blog, so little time! I thought I would combine a couple of posts here... they seem to go together... randomly!

First, the Cowboys. As you can see, we are OSU fans! Go PoKeS!!

O - S - U !


Like the mullet? I know, I know, this look is more for a Sooner fan rather than a O-State fan.

Second, the Indians. It was Lauragale's 2nd grade Thanksgiving play and she was an Indian. She was also "Speaker #2". (I thought it would be funny to call her #2 the whole day, but I figured she wouldn't get it.)

Hope you all have a blessed Thanksgiving!!
Gobble, gobble!!

Happy Birthday, Baby J!

Today is our foster child, "Sweet baby J's", 1st Birthday! What a milestone for us to be a part of!

Other milestones we have been blessed to experience with J:
- Saying: "Mama", "Dada", "Baba" (bottle), "Bye-bye"
- Clapping, Waving, Peek-a-Boo, Pat-a-Cake
- Sippy cups, solid food, table food
- WALKING!

Happy First Birthday J! We are so blessed to have you in our family for this time. You are such a joy and we have all come to love you so much these past few months. Our fervent prayer for you is that our Lord's Will be done in your life. We pray that the small blessings we are able to pour into your life in this season will be seeds that will create a harvest for you to reap when you are older. More than anything, we pray that you will come to know and love the Lord early and walk in the shadow of His wings and feel the grip of His hand.

Thank you Lord, for not only entrusting our beautiful children to us, but also for this precious foster child to care for.

Happy Anniversary, Dear!

Today, Curtis and I are celebrating our 13th Anniversary! Can you believe I have put up with him this long??

I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to copy Baloney's (and many others) post and include the "Who's Who and What's What" information!

What is your husband's name?Curtis Denton Ralston aka: "Curt", "Durgis" (I can explain later), "Daddy", "Hey You". Curtis was named after his Dad's best friend in college (Curtis) and some dead relative (Denton).

How long have we been married?
As mentioned earlier, 13 years today!

How old is he?
36, 37 is January!

Who is taller?
Uhhhh, that's easy! He is 6'3", I am 5'6"!!

Who sings better?
Uhhhh, that's easy too! Me... but I have to say he has gotten better with age. He did take voice at OSU and did nicely as a bass... or maybe he is a baritone, not sure. He's is good when he tries! (I love to hear him sing his favorite song, "I'll Go to my Grave Loving You".)

Who is smarter?
Uhhhh, that there is easy too!! HE IS!! In college, we took Psyc. together and the professor asked for us to think about the smartest person we know. When Curt was called on for his answer, he said, "Me" in all seriousness!! Love the humbleness of the man.

Who does the laundry?
Me, but he will if I let him and don't attempt to micromanage the process.

Who pays the bills?
He does, I am in charge of spending the money.

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed?
Who cares? If you do and you are looking at the bed, I do.

Who mows the lawn?
A great man named Simon! Curt's allergies are too bad and I just flat out refuse to. You rock Simon!

Who cooks dinner?
I do, but Curt likes to cook too and usually takes over on Saturday mornings Sunday dinner!

Who is the first to admit they are wrong?
Oh, definitely him! I am so stubborn, my dad used to say that I would argue with a fence-post!

Who kissed who first?
He kissed me. It was not romantic either. More like him just cramming his tongue down my throat. Sorry if that was too much information...

Who wears the pants?
Well, the good, spiritual answer would be that Curt is the head of our household... but then I have heard a wise pastor say that many of the women who say that are usually the neck!! "You are the head of our household, RIGHT HONEY??" haha No, in any case, he is our fearless leader, but he is sweet enough to share the pants many times!!
I love you Curt and I couldn't imagine the last 17 years without you in them. You have loved me through some of the most ugly of circumstances and been the most awesome sidekick through the good times. I will love you forever and I have no doubt that you will "Go to your grave loving me".

XOXOXOXO

Get Well Soon

A few weeks ago I was pretty sick for about 3 days. Of course, my sweet family came to my aid with no questions asked! Above all, my precious Curtis went beyond what any hubby should and cared for me and the kids better than I could have asked! He even took off work on Monday to care for the boys so I could rest and recover.

My sweet kiddos couldn't have been any sweeter either! As you can see from the pictures, Lg took it upon herself to serve me dinner complete with a menu.

Can you guess what I chose?? GRITS of course!!

My sweet girl!

Noah was my comforter... giving hugs and loves on an hourly basis!

I love my family!!

Bad Blogger! Bad, Bad Blogger!!

This is embarrassing! It has been soooo long since my last post, I am a BAD blogger. I do have a list of excuses which include such hits as:

- being sick 3 times.
- trying to get used to raising three kids instead of two... after 6 weeks, I am still no better at it!
- being behind on lots of other stuff that has to get done first.
- out-of-town.
- 3 sick kids and sick hubby.
- horse show.
- majorly hurting back that refuses to get better.

I have an even longer list of posts that I am going to start on today. As much as I would like everything to be in sequential order, it won't be happening now. And many of the posts will have long lost there value in numerous ways because I have waited so long to post them, but, oh well. I refuse to let that stop me from catching up!!

Love to all,
B

America's Funniest Home Video

I took this video of Noah playing Mario Cart the other day, at Lauragale's urging. She is pretty sure it will make it onto "AFV" if we send it in.

Well, I sent it in online today. It is probably not going to be in the running for the $100,000, but it is supposed to be featured on the ABC website in any case. That will be good enough for Noah!!

Enjoy "Booty Shakin' Video Playin'"... note the Star Wars Obi Wan briefs... standard Wii attire in our household... for NOAH, that is!

Sweet Baby J

As many of you know already, our family has welcomed our second foster child into our home and hearts. We refer to him as "Sweet Baby J". With big brown eyes, curly eyelashes and hair, he can sure draw a crowd!

J is a sweet and beautiful 10 month old baby boy who has transitioned into our family so seamlessly! It has been some adjustment on our parts, getting used to a baby in the house. Nap times and hand feedings are things that have been long-since forgotten around here.

I so wish I could post some sweet pictures of our little guy, but since I decided to go public again with the blog, that is a big no-no. So if you have yet to have the pleasure of meeting "Sweet Baby J" you will just have to use your imagination... or have me e-mail you some privately!!

Please join us in praying for this sweet boy, he deserves God's best and a beautiful life!

No Spills!

Well, I just had to write and let everyone know that I made it through my second riding lesson with NO FALLS!!!

HALLELUJAH!!

I came, I trotted, I stayed on.

It might not have been professional looking but I didn't eat dirt. I actually had a great time, gained a lot of confidence back and didn't get worn out during the one hour lesson... I was worn out by the time we got home, though!

Maybe in a few weeks I will have Lg video me and I MIGHT post it. Depends on how I look!!!

This should be me in a few weeks... okay, not really!!

Playing Catch-Up

Hello out there! It's me, I am surfacing!! Things have been so crazy around here the past few weeks, I am behind in a LOT of things, one of those being blogging!

Not much to post tonight, I just decided while things were quiet and I was up by myself that I would drop a few lines to update everyone.

First of all, the reason I am up alone tonight is because Curt is sick with some nasty stomach thingy. So pray that the rest of us stay healthy!!

Second, one the reasons my life has been so crazy the past couple of weeks is because we welcomed our second foster child about a week and a half ago! Jordan is a sweet 10 month old who has a great disposition and sleeps well!! The sleeping well part means a lot to us... we love our sleep! More about Jordan to come, I am just too tired to post pictures and such tonight.

Third, Noah started Pre-K and is really liking it. He goes to school at my parents church here in town and has since he was two. We love his teachers and I like having one more year with my baby boy before kindergarten! He is having issues with the fact that the teachers will not let them play "swords/light sabers" whenever they want. BTW, Noah calls light sabers "life-savers", I love it!!

Fourth, Lauragale seems to be doing well in school but has developed some unexplained separation and performance anxiety. It makes me sooooo sad!! She used to ADORE school but things are different this year. She did have to change schools this year because of re-districting, so that, along with the new foster kids, are probably a lot for a 7 year old to handle.

Fifth, Tomorrow is our first riding lesson since my "Unscheduled Dismount" two weeks ago. Last week Lg was sick, which worked out well for me because I was STILL painin' like crazy and walking like John Wayne!! I am still a little nervous about getting back on the horse, my body can't take another fall like that! I STILL have bruises on my bum!

OK, there is probably lots of other random stuff I could bore you with, but I will stop with those exciting highlights. More to come soon, I promise!!

Love and blessings to all!

Unscheduled Dismount

Yes, literally, I have a sore booty...

TMI?? Maybe, butt I have no idea why I feel like this story needs to precede all the other posts and I been telling myself I need to write. Posts like:

1) Dry River Fun with Grandma and Grandpa
2) Lauragale's Horse Show Appearance
3) Aaaahhhh, That Used Car Smell!

and most excitingly...

4) Our New Foster Child, "???".

Yes, out of all those enticing options, I have chosen to write a few lines about my sore rear!

"How did it happen?", you ask... Well, that is what you get when you hop on a horse for the first time in 22 years and think you can just ride that boy like you're 13 again!!

The long story is that I decided that it would be uber-cool to join my daughter in English riding lessons. Yes, it has been FOREVER since I was on a horse, but hey, you've gotta chase those lions!

Tuesday was my first lesson and I was not doing too darn bad if I do say so myself! I had good form, was keeping my heels down like a pro, hugging the horse with my legs and keeping good control of lazy Durango.

Since I was preforming like a pro, my trainer thought we just needed to go ahead and move on to a trot... I agreed! Well, my body did not!

I got overly confident, asked Durango to trot, leaned too far forward, lost my balance fairly quickly and began to take a header. Durango could feel me falling, so the sweet dear he is, he tried to help by stopping. That sent my whole body, head first, over his neck, into a FULL SOMERSAULT and onto the ground flat on my back.

I banged my head pretty good, butt I was wearing my pretty purple helmet. Therefore, my buttocks was the area that was throbbing the most. I swear I have MORE than enough padding to take a tumble from a full-grown Morgan, butt my black-n-blue flesh says differently.

Well, countless Advil, 5 ice packs and 1 trip to the chiropractor, and I am feeling a bit better. I think the worst part was having my 7 year old daughter witness the graceless accident, not to mention having to put up with the repetitive chuckles from my oh-so-coordinated, NOT, husband. He is joking to anyone who will listen that it would be safer and more affordable for me to move on to Sit and be Fit lessons and leave Durango and Lauragale in the dust.



I left them in the dust alright... the dust that was thrown up when my booty hit the ground Tuesday. Butt like they say you should, I did get back on the horse! Only to fall off again during my graceful dismount at the end of the lesson.

Did I mention that I DID look cute in my outfit with coordinating lilac saddle pad? Well, I did.

I am Cougar, Hear me Roar!

Ever since I turned 35 back in May, Curt has been reminding me that I am the official "Cougar" age now. Not familiar with what a "Cougar" is? Go here to find out...

So, we are at the dinner table tonight... enjoying our cheap pizza... and out of the blue, my kids start chanting "You're a old lady! You're a old lady!" Ummm, PARDON ME???? I am about to lose my patience with the little tricksters just as my "knight in shining armor" comes to my rescue... (can you feel the dripping sarcasm yet?)

Curt raises his voice and with a stern look says, "HEY! KIDS!"

They two shutter, scurry to their seats and shut their yappers...

Curt continues with raised voice and stern look... "It's "You're AN old lady! You're AN old lady!"... use correct grammar!"

NIIIICCCEEEE!!!!!!!!

Now, mind you, I am still scratching my head here, because Curt is a year and 4 months OLDER than I am... so what does that make him??

Cast your votes in the comments section!

GGGGRRRRRRR...

Hello Love!

I am so behind in sharing what all has been going on... and my weird obsession with trying to stay in chronological order is going to have to be disrupted. So, even though I have other fun posts that happened weeks ago, I am choosing to post about this first. Bare with me folks!!

Well, a SUPER AWESOME and TOTALLY PRECIOUS friend of mine (KaTiE) signed me up on a local radio's website for free tickets to a CHRIS TOMLIN boutique concert this past Thursday night. Obviously, from the photo's... I WON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It was so cool! The guy from the radio station called me a couple of weeks ago to let me know I won and I seriously thought it was a gag until I finally figured out who signed me up!

Anyway, when I figure out that Katie signed me up, I invited her to go with me. Sadly, she was unable to so my mom was my date for the evening! It was a blast!

There were only 300 guests and Chris only brought 2 other members of his band. It was very intimate and we had the opportunity to hear the stories behind many of his songs and the privilege of hearing many songs from his new album "Hello Love" that comes out in early September. On top of that, we were each given a copy of the new CD which Chris later signed when I was able to meet him at the end of the concert! EXHIBIT A:

I have to say that Chris is easily one of my favorite Christian artists and writers. He is so talented and such a blessing to use his talents to help others. This concert was a fund raiser for the local homeless mission, John 3:16. ALL of the proceeds from the concert were donated to John 3:16 by Chris. They raised over $8,000!!

What a once-in-a-lifetime experience!! THANK YOU, KATIE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WORD!!!!

*A few of you might recognize this song... we sang it at church in the sanctuary last week!! LOVE IT!!*

Goodbye, Zachary...

On Friday, we received a call that a friend of Zachary's family was approved to care for him until his mom is able to bring him home.

It is a bittersweet time. We knew this would happen at some point, I guess we just thought Zachary would be with us longer than 3 weeks. In any case, this is our ministry. We are here to impact a child's life in a positive way whether it is for a week or a year.

We couldn't have asked for a sweeter first foster child. Zachary was an angel. Yes, we had to work on some things... and sleeping was not his favorite activity, but what a great first experience for us all. I hope he feels the same way.

We should find out on Tuesday who our next placement will be. As always, I will keep you all updated...

Because I have made this blog private, I feel comfortable sharing a couple of photos including Zachary. Most of you have met him at church, so you already are familiar with him...

Love you Zachary...

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

James 1:27

Your Invitation...

Well, if you are reading this then you have discovered that I am taking steps to make my blog more private. Now that we have a foster child in care and safety concerns and considerations, I just wanted to be more careful.

I hope this extra measure of security will not keep any of you from checking in regularly to see what is going on in our crazy little lives!

I will be posting soon on our fun trips to the farm and to Grand Lake.

Also, you might have noticed that my post on "Zachary's New Home" has been taken down. In a panic, I removed it. If you were not able to read it and the neat God-incidence we encountered, please let me know in the comments and I will see if I can re-post it or paraphrase it for you!

Blessings to you all and thank you again for all your love and support!
B

Gatesway Balloon Festival

A couple of weeks ago we had the opportunity to attend the Gatesway Balloon Festival in Claremore again. Curt is on the board of Gatesway so we scored the VIP pass which was priceless because it gave us access to AIR CONDITIONING!!!!!! And on those two days, air conditioning was a MUST!

Holding a VIP pass not only gets you the sweet accouterments such as AC and grub, but you're also expected to help out a bit... mostly that means volunteering to be balloon crew. Not that big of a deal, we find it super fun and most balloonists are super-nice and like kids... bonus!

We all woke up before dawn to drive to Claremore Saturday and Sunday mornings to help crew. The kids loved it and Curt and I are big enough dorks that we are already talking of someday buying a balloon and trailer! Seriously folks...

We were fortunate enough to crew for a sweet couple from Kansas. They had a beautiful 3 passenger balloon named "Prairie Sunset". You can see why...

There are many fun things to do at balloon festivals as a balloon pilot. There are competitions each day such as target competitions where each balloonist takes off from a chosen location and flies over a target where they have to fly close enough to the ground to drop a small sandbag as close to the bulls eye as possible. Another competition is the "Hare and Hound" where a chosen balloon is launched and flies an unknown course while all the other balloons have to follow and the one who chases and finds the "hare" balloon first, wins.

There were lots of other activities to take part in at the festival... There was a killer car show, (I *heart* cars!) arts and crafts and believe it or not, a Mr. and Mrs. Balloonfest pageant.

I wish I could tell you that we were able to avoid that pageant like the plague... not so much. Not my daughter, but my *SON* ASKED to be in the pageant when they were on stage calling for contestants. Oh my, that was interesting!

He got 1st Runner-Up, he did! ~*Proud parents we were!!*~

You like how he is all decked out in his t-shirt and athletic shorts... yeah, we were not thinking "Pageant Contestant" when we were dressing to help with the balloon at 5 in the morning!!

They even gave Lg the 2nd Runner-Up gift because only 2 girls entered the contest!!

Ahhh, my two beauty contestants...

Finally, I will leave you with some pic's Curt took while on his balloon ride. Can't wait for Curt to get his pilots license so we can do this whenever we want!!!!

Who wants a ride???

Home Study 3 of 3

Well, not much to add to the Home Study story. Our worker D came by the house once more to talk to Noah and ask him a few questions about how he felt about the whole foster care thing. He gave great, honest answers including the one when D asked him how he would feel if a child was in the home and wanted to be with me all the time and call me "Mommy".

He calmly said, "Well, they could just go be with their mommy."

D then went on... "Well, they won't be able to be with their mommy, they will need to be with you and your mommy." To which Noah replied, "Well, that should be okay!"

After that, Curt and I were given a copy of the "REPORT" which we proof-read and returned signed. It was interesting to see your whole life summed up in 14 pages!

As of right now, everything we are supposed to do has been done. Our fingerprints have gotten back to our DHS worker from the OSBI and we are clean! haha Now, we are just waiting for our report to be received and approved by DHS. After that, we will receive our placement referral!

It could be hours, it could be weeks. I will keep updating as events require!

Fun at the Lake

After we picked up Lg from kamp, we all stayed for a long weekend at a super-cute cottage in Blue Eye, MO. While we were there, we spent a couple of days at Tablerock Lake. We had a great time on our rented "Party Barge" and wave runner.

Here are Lauragale, Noah and their cousin Adia in front of our cabin. Notice the matching outfits I found for the 3... ALL for under $20! (I HAVE to mention that!!)

Here are some more pics of the super-cute cottage. It was right on the lake and very secluded! It was just built last summer and it has a beautiful deck with hot-tub, a great kitchen and two bedrooms plus a loft!

Ok, enough about the cute cottage. I know your dyin to see some lake pictures now!

What fun!!! We HAVE to do the lake thing more often!