July 7, 2008

This past July 7th, my dad would've turned 70 years old. So in his honor/memory, here are some lessons Daddy taught me in the 33 years that I knew him.

10. Enjoy life~ Dad always whistled. No matter what he was doing... he whistled~ Kind of like Snow White's "Whistle While You Work" He enjoyed life.

9. Work hard~ Dad did it all. From salesman to entrepreneurship.... And if it wasn't successful... he'd just try something else.

8. Dream big~ "If you don't enter the Publisher's ClearingHouse Sweepstakes.... you won't win."

7. Know how to change a flat tire, check the oil, and jump a car battery~ I had to pass the driveway test and prove that I could do all 3 when I turned 16. I can still jump a car and check the oil. God created cell phones and husbands for the flat tires...

6. Meet your neighbors~ We've lived in our house over 5 years, and I know a few by name. I'm not so great at this. My dad knew every neighbor he ever lived around and 5 facts about each of them.

5. Volunteer/work at church~ Dad did it all including....driving a bus, greeting, ushering, deaconing, and working with the kids in AWANAS. We are a little thankful he didn't try the choir. (see post #4)

4. Be joyful~ Dad was very musically challenged... maybe the absolute worst musically challenged person I've ever known.... but he didn't care~ At church, he'd sing just as loud the choir director. He was joyful~ or maybe just wanted to irritate us??

3. Never eat a roast without onions, or cottage cheese without pepper. Those of you who know me well might say I'm a little picky about my food and food service. As I'm typing this post, I realize where I got that~ Thanks Dad!

2. Laugh at yourself or preferably at others~ I definitely got my practical joking and sense of humor from Dad. He always was kidding or pestering somebody.

1. Love God, your family, and friends. Don't just tell them.. .show them too~

Thanks Dad~ Lessons learned (some better than others...)

Computer Savvy

Madison is turning out to be quite the computer techy gal. My niece, Danielle, came to stay with us this week. She and Makenzie get along very well, and they have had a blast. Madison made this video for Danielle to remember her week. I was pretty impressed with her~

Fun Summer Days

A lot of you know that when I was in the 7th grade, my family hosted a foreign exchange student. She was from Spain, and her name was Maria Pia Ramilo Rodriguez de Robles. We called her Titi for short. (Not sure where Titi came from, but EVERYONE in Rogers knew her as Titi) She called my parents Mom and Dad, and my brother and I her siblings. After her year stay, she went back to Spain for her college education years. We kept in touch over the years... I went to Spain for a summer, she returned for summers here, etc. She actually moved back to Rogers and taught ESL classes at a junior high for a while. During her stay that time, she met a Rogers native and married him. It's worked out pretty well, because now they have children of their own who have grandparents that live in Rogers. So, every summer and every other Christmas we get to spend time with this branch of our family. Titi was my sister back in the early 1980's and 28 years later is still is considered family. Our children think they are truly cousins..... I don't see the need to tell them otherwise. The first picture is one that we had taken last summer for Mom. They are stairstepped in age. I am listing their current ages...

Madison (11), Maguiña (10), Makenzie (9), Carolina (8), Ana (5), Mason (4)




We spent some time with them during this summer trip. This is the day before they left for Spain.
Poor Mason~ This is truly an estrogen ocean.


True personalities coming through~



Maguiña




Carolina


Ana

The Simpsons in Branson~ Take Two

**A list of things I discovered or rediscovered on this second trip to Branson....

1. Big Cedar Lodge is a relaxing place to stay in Branson.

2. Stan thinks so too.

3. My family really enjoys amusement parks together.

4. If you ride this particular ride first, you will walk around the amusement park with wet underwear for the rest of the day!
5. Mason still enjoys these rides that go around and around in circles. 6. Mason ISN'T tall enough to ride this ride.
7. The line for the go-karts was longer than the line for the above roller coaster. And not nearly as much fun.
8. Taking a video camera on a roller coaster doesn't work very well.

9. I sound like a drunk moron on a roller coaster.

10. Madison loves to dance!~

11. False eyelashes are difficult to glue on.....

12. Mason loves the Tutt girls.

13. Catie Beth and Emily are so sweet to Madison.

14. Mason's taken modeling lessons somewhere????

15. Makenzie could be an actual model.

16. Mason is a ham for the camera!

17. My niece Danielle looks a lot like my kids.
18. Mason wants to be just like his daddy.19. Vacation wears you out.

Stay Tuned for Take 3~

The Unbirthday Party

The last post was a preface to this post.....

Yesterday, July 8th, Makenzie finally got to have a friend birthday party. Now before you start judging my abilities as a mom, let's get something straight. The child DID have a birthday party, and we did do something as a family in February. But as far as a friend party, we waited until something really special came along (like a break from school so Mom had time to plan it :-))

Makenzie's first and only American Girl doll is Kit Kittredge. She chose Kit, because they are very similar in looks with the blonde hair, blue eyes, and freckles. Thankfully, Hollywood decided to create a G-Rated movie about Kit and it came out just in time to have a great "Un"Birthday party for Makenzie.

Her guests were two friends from school~ Emma and Eden; three cousins~ Maguina, Caroline,and Ana; two "Best Friends" Middle Schoolers Catie Beth and Allison; and of course, her two darling siblings; Madison and Mason.

Emma, Makenzie, and Eden

Makenzie and Cousin Caroline



Catie Beth and Allison are sweet to still come to a 3rd grader's birthday party.... :-)

Stan and Cousin Ana

We met at Chili's for lunch...... and then went to see the Kit movie. By the way... it is an excellent, clean movie that I highly recommend seeing~

One last picture after the movie.

Stan was relieved that Mason was the only one without an American Girl doll~~

I had to include this to remind myself that they do NOT fight 100% of the time. Only 99.8%....

Only 7 more months until PARTY TIME again. My new slogan is "In time for '09"!!!!!

I will not be late, so get off my back~~~ :-)

Locks of Love

Makenzie wanted to get her haircut like Kit's (the American Girl doll... more on that next)


So on Monday, I took her. I told the lady that we wanted a short bob. As she was getting ready to cut, she said to me, "If we take off another half inch, she'll have enough for Locks of Love." When we explained to Makenzie what that meant, she was so excited and said she wanted to do it so that her hair could be a wig for a patient with cancer. So what was going to be a normal haircut turned into much more than that for us. I had to choke back tears as she got her hair cut. Makenzie has such a tender sweet heart. And in the end... she got a pretty cute haircut out of the deal~

TOO CUTE~ Without the headband... she looks just like an American Girl named Kit!

The Simpsons in Branson~ Take One

Hello my Blogger Friends and Family....

I am sorry I have neglected you for so long. No excuse except absolutely not taking the time to sit and blog... Sorry, I'll try and catch you up.

At the end of June, we went with Stan's mom, sisters, brother-in-laws, and their kiddos to Branson for a 4 day stay. Yep, all 20 of us (Brett, the oldest grandchild, thought making money at his summer job was more important than us....Just kidding Brett.. we missed you!!!)

We stayed at the Grand Country Inn, and the kids enjoyed playing in the indoor waterpark.

Danielle, Makenzie, and Madison stop for a diva pose

Madison holding on to her swimsuit while 10,000 gallons of water poured out of a large bucket.

Tammy and Brooke enjoying the Lazy River. Makenzie in the Lazy River

Mason "Joe Cool" Simpson HATED the indoor waterpark. He wore these sunglasses all weekend, but lost them before we came home.

However Joe Cool DID enjoy the outdoor pool and would jump to anyone who would catch him.
About half of us spent a day and a half at Silver Dollar City waiting in lines, riding rides, and screaming, and laughing our heads off!

Donnita, Makenzie, and Danielle on the tram ready for the day!

Stan and his twin sister Leanda.... Just kidding on the twin stuff, but they do look a lot alike!Madison and I waiting to get blasted on Powder Keg. Riding a roller coaster as a mom is a lot different than as a child. I never remember reaching my hand out to hold the person next to me in their seat until my kids started riding with me. Like that arm across her lap is REALLY gonna hold her in!!!!

Madison and I again, but this time with Stan and Mason behind us. Mason is hidden behind the trashcan... but he was there. And he hated every minute of it. When the ride pulled into the loading area he said, "YES....it's over!" He is not my Evil Kenevil by any stretch of the imagination! The next picture is the way he looked the entire time waiting in line for the LOG FLUME!!! I guess he thought if he looked mad enough, we wouldn't make him ride???

He did enjoy the rides that make most adults sick though. Thanks Aunt Donnita for enduring this one!!! Look at his left arm all propped up on the side. So cute~I draw the line here.... Absolutely no teacups for me. Good thing Mason was tall enough to ride with Makenzie and Danielle!

Mason is in the cup with the girls. He didn't move at all. Just sat there quietly and let them spin him. UGH~

Mason and Stan showing off their guns while waiting to begin this "ride". Not much of a ride for the adult in the seat......

After our days at SDC, we would meet up for dinner somewhere together.

The Boy's Table

The Kid Girl table

And that's it... no pictures of the adult sistas or the little guys. (If you look at the guys' picture above, you can see a glimpse of the little boy's table. Austin is visible anyway....) I was still nauseous from the roller coasters to take many pictures. We had a great time together as always!

The Simpsons in Branson~ Take Two will be premiering on July 14th (approximately). Madison has her dance competition the weekend of 11th.