Obama vs. McCain

This is worth watching! If you are like me I want the best candidate to be my president. Rep. or Dem. doesn't matter to me as much as the man/ woman's morals and views on important issues our country is facing. I have had the pleasure of hearing Rick Warren speak. I have attended Saddleback Church many times and have enjoyed each visit. Please watch this if you are interested in hearing our future president speak about the REAL important issues!!!! (It takes about 1 hr or so but it is well worth it and it has helped me make a decision on who I am going to be voting for in Nov.)

Meet Ella Grace Gates!!!!

She is finally here!! Ella Grace Gates was born yesterday afternoon. We did not know whether she was going to be a boy or a girl. I cannot wait to meet her. She is so beautiful. Welcome to the family Ella we love you!!!!

Weekend with the Atkinson's

What a relaxing weekend we just had. Saturday we worked around the house I finished laundry and cleaned the house while Brian worked in the yard. The kids helped me a little but decided it was more fun helping daddy in the backyard. Then around noon I went to the gym by myself (I had a great workout) then went to Walmart and got some grocery shopping done(without kids). Our good friends the Palmer's came over for dinner and we all watched a little bit of the Olympics. Sunday we went to church and I felt like the speaker(the pastors brother) was speaking to Brian and I and we were the only people in the room. After church the kids told us what they had learned; Tyler learned that Jesus loves him and he got to be the shepherd while the other kids were his sheep and they all followed him around. After church we went to lunch and to check out a few of the classic cars since yesterday was the end of Hot August Nights, then had lunch at a new restaurant Manhattan deli. The food was alright and the service was awful I was really sad when I left because our server completely forgot about us. I was so upset when we left however I was not angry as one would have thought. I was sad, it is not very often that we go out to eat anymore (with rising food prices) so when I pay $65 for lunch I want good service or even OK service. It would have been nice to have katsup and drink refills or some extra napkins. The server did come and apologize so I can imagine how difficult that was for him. Everyone makes mistakes. Then when the manager came over to apologize he did not do anything to make things right. Just said sorry here is your $65 bill even though you only had 1 drink you are still going to pay $3 each for it. I have worked in many restaurants and I am the last person to complain but this was REALLY awful, I think they need to train their managers on customer service a little better. Next time I want a really good sandwich I am going to go to the Spicy Pickle. Well now that I got that out I feel alittle better. I just wish I still had my $65! However I was determined not to let that ruin my afternoon so we came home sat in the backyard and watched all 3 kids play in the yard while Brian and I played a game of Gin Rummy where I kicked his booty......AGAIN!!! Then we ate a light dinner and put the kids in bed. When they were finally all asleep I cuddled up with my hunny and we watched I am Legend; it was pretty good. I am thankful for our peaceful weekend because I think this might be the last one of the summer that we do not have plans for. So hopefully we will be able to squeeze in 1 more camping trip,but that will probably have to wait until after school starts. I will be taking 3 classes which is a lot when you have as many commitments as I do. Wish me luck!

MNO

Mom's night out was a blast! We went to BJ's and had dinner and then decided to go see Mamma Mia. What a GREAT movie. I am so glad I have incredible girl friends to go see movies like that with. We laughed the whole time and had so much fun! I am definitely going to buy that movie on DVD. I had SO MUCH FUN!!!

In God We Trust!!!!!

So I am angry because so many people are offended by God. So many people would like to take god out of schools, post offices, our government......... People believe god should stay in church so others do not have to be reminded of his presence. Do you think maybe this helps non believers by not reminding them that by not believing they have a good chance of going to hell? I wonder about this because so many non believers get offended by the sight of a family praying at a restaurant or by seeing a What would Jesus do sticker on a car. Or god forbid a teacher mentioning the word Christmas. I am angry because I sit back and see so many things that offend me daily that I am not signing a petition to get rid of and maybe I should. Because I am offended. Here is a list of things I have seen that offends me. All I am saying is that there are so many things people should be petitioning. Leave my lord alone! He did nothing but love you, give you life, and forgive you for your sins. So back off!!!! Start arguing the really bad things that are truly offensive in this world.

* Kids holding up a sign that says WE LOVE PENIS (in front of a elementary school.....yes I did say something and I reported those young ladies)
* Stick figures having intercourse on somebody's T shirt (who buys that stuff)
* Men and women who hold guns up in front of anybody (especially children) just so they can rob a liquor store for a few hundred dollars.....Get a JOB!
* License plates that say sexual phrases......If your gonna ride my A$$ pull my hair, yes the car is usually driven by a young lady probably still in high school.
* I am offended by anyone who wants to get rid of Jesus.
* I am offended by anyone who does not respect my religion just because I don't believe the same as them.... I respect their religions.
* It offends me when I have to walk over a used condom so I can walk into church (yes this happened to me last Sunday......Gross)
* I am offended by anyone who complains that they do not have enough money for drugs when there are people starving all over the world.
* People using drugs and then burning their houses down (Which almost took mine down too)
* I also get really uncomfortable when a song comes on that my daughter starts dancing to; that talks about having sex in da club.
There are so many worse things in this world so people lets start protesting the really important stuff!!!!! If you are interested in pushing back and taking a stand for God. Please sign Citizen’s Petition to Congress in Support of the Religious Freedom Amendment

To secure the people’s right to acknowledge God:

Section 1. The right to pray or to acknowledge religious belief, heritage, or tradition on public property shall not be infringed.

Section 2. Neither the United States nor any State shall compel joining in prayer or shall initiate or compose prayers.

Section 3. Nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to discriminate against, or deny a benefit to, any person or group on account of religion.

Section 4. The exercise, by the people, of any freedoms under the First Amendment or under this Amendment shall not constitute an establishment of religion.
http://www.ingodwetrustusa.org/amendment.html

Inspired

So today we went to a new church! I have been struggling with this since we moved 2 years ago. I have visited a few churches; however nothing really moved me. I have missed my church back in Orange County. TODAY I WAS MOVED! When we were leaving for church Kayla said something that made me really think about my actions she said Old Fart and snickered to herself. I know she said this because last week while I was stuck behind a man on the freeway (I held in what I really wanted to call him)and as I passed him on the right and said move it Old Fart. Kayla giggled and thought that was funny. Then today she said it again trying to be funny and I felt like I was 2 in tall. Today we read John 5. It is about a man who had been ill for 38 yrs and Jesus tells him to get up, pick up his mat and walk away and he did. Jesus then told the man to stop sinning or worse things will happen. This reminded me of my life and how I have been doing a good job at living day by day and taking care of my family and volunteering. However I need to be a better christian and set a better example for my kids. So I guess what I am telling you is that today I was inspired to change a few things in my life! And best of all we will be attending this church again on a regular basis!

Update

Hello fellow bloggers! Hope all is well. As I mentioned yesterday we have been busy this summer. It has been really nice. When you have three kids you need to stay busy or things start breaking. We started our summer in California. We stayed with my mom for 10 days. Brian had to work so I took the kids by myself; OK not really Anna came with us. She was a great help. We went to the beach, Knot's Berry Farm, and the Wild Animal Park in San Diego. Plus I got to have some yummy sushi with my sister and a few friends. We had a blast. My dad took the boat out. I didn't ski because my dad ran me over with the boat and hurt my other knee. Just kidding I was getting on the boat from the dock and he put the boat in rev. and I bumped my knee and fell in the water.....Everyone laughed except Kayla ( Who obviously loves her mommy) who got tears in her eyes because she thought I was really hurt! For those who don't know.... my dad hurt my other knee over the winter when we were getting off the ski lift and he ran me over! That's okay I am doing better I can finally run again without a knee brace! Speaking of running Kayla is going to be joining a youth Cross Country Team and we are going to be running together in the next few weeks or so. The team is resting they just got back from Nationals. She is going to be great! I hope I can keep up!

Kayla and I got to go to Discovery Kingdom and sleep with Sharks! It was so neat! Her and I took a charter bus to Vallejo Ca and went to the coolest amusement park of all times! I could not believe how great it was. We went on roller coasters, saw whales, dolphins, sharks, tigers, and other Wild Animals. I love that place! Best part was everything was free even food! It gave Kayla and I some mommy and me time which we both needed so badly! We had a BLAST! She even got to dissect a squid!

The little ones are doing so great they both have learned so much from preschool. We get to go for free and I get paid to play with kids all day. Plus I am able to observe and write about my experiences which I will get credit for this coming up semester. I am entering into the teaching program at my school, this will save me a ton of money when it comes time to transfer to the university! But that is a topic I do not want to think about for the next 3 weeks! Audrey is a little firecracker and spends a great deal of time on the grumpy stump. She is talking a lot and has a really fun personality. Tyler is speaking so well he will sit and play with his toys, rocks or anything he can get his hands on. I love watching him play he has such a great imagination!

Brian is good he took a week off work and we went to Grover Hot Springs our kids did so great on our Minny 3 mile hike! I think that is the most they can do. They love to hike and we will be doing a ton of hikes near our home. They all did a little boulder hopping and we went to see a beautiful waterfall. Then we got to play in the water and hang out before we hiked back to our camp site. It was a fun week!

Me I finally got my big break!! Yes folks I made it to the big screen.......Okay that is if you have a big screen TV in your home and you are into comedy or magic shows! As many of you know I have been working with a Casting director who sends me to auditions and gets me extra work. I got to work as an excited audience member for a very neat magic show. Basically I got to watch a magic show that was being filmed for DVD and they filmed my reaction. Then they fed me an incredible lunch, after that I got to watch a comedy show and they filmed me again. It was so much fun.......great news they liked me so much they have asked me to do another one! So next time you are in the mood for a little "Magic" buy a DVD and look for me:)


Well I will wrap this up by saying I am proud to announce that today the Nevada school board posted the school's testing scores and even though the state of NV's school are testing lower than last year. Kayla's school has tested above adequate. So again I am reminded that even though I am paying for her school with tuition and having to pay more for gas; therefore it is going to all pay off with my child getting a wonderful education!