he's 18....and yes...he's shaved before...



well, not really SHAVED shaved.....

he has a pair of clipper that he's used for a long time but they are more like beginners clippers or something you would use on a dog...

no...this is a little different...





this was with shaving cream and *gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaassssssssp* a razor.....

be still my poor beating mama heart....

everyday is a day to be thankful....

i am so blessed to have two teenage son's that are NOT ashamed to take pictures with their momma :-)

Okoye's 18th birthday was on saturday the 11th.... Yes we got him a Power Ranger cake...and yes...he loved it! Where has the time gone....

We had a pretty quiet weekend...I like that. My oldest stayed busy with work and hanging out with friends a couple times. My youngest and I kinda just did whatever we felt like doing. we hung out in my bedroom, downstairs, at stores/mall and then we got this desire to go for a nature walk (which really means, I want to take pictures) so we did just that...

With everything going on with my oldest...sadly a lot of people's minds have been on him instead of the fact that my youngest graduates from middle school on Tuesday. Yes, folks he will be a high-schooler...urgh...my stomach just knotted up....okay whewwwwwwwwww woo-sa..back on topic...anyway...we went for a walk and he stayed with me at first but after several times of him running ahead then coming back to me I finally told him 'Go sweetie...just stay on the trail and come back to me. You'll be fine...' and he was.

Whew...sorta like life...



yes folks...he has his pj's on...remember I said we just decided to go for a walk..we'll we really did JUST DECIDED to go for a walk. hopped in the car and we were gone.


there was a bunch of logs chopped off and a couple stumps so he decided to jump on them...i'm telling you...boys!

i love his personality... i so do.

ya'll know i cant do this without my blossom photo's...c'mon now...

i think at this point we both heard something in the woods and his steps started getting slower ...mine got a little quicker until we were near each other.... yes...we are both scaredy-cats, LOL

i think i want a water display somewhere in my yard...but with a cat and dog...I dont know how clean I would be able to keep it. besides the OBVIOUS of them using it for a place to use the bathroom, I'm sure they would drink out of it and that doggy/cat slobber cant be good for water fountains...

i so want to do a Naturescape. Just using plants and flowers native to Missouri...with them being native one would think that they have a better survival rate, right? And then I want something to attract nature...well...as long as the 'nature' wasnt snakes, mice, raccoons or frogs...

and this was the end of our trail. kinda cool...

*my oldest is doing a little better. he has the usual...lost appetite, little boy/young male bravado, trouble sleeping and every once in awhile the emotional outburst. we've gotten wind of some information (I"m sure everyone can figure out what it is) that is heartbreaking for him but i told him nothing good comes out of being vengeful...and trust me, I keep saying that to myself. Terminator Momma is buried under my skin and she's rearing to come out but me fighting his battles is NOT going to do him any good.

if i say that enough times...I WILL LIVE IT AND BELIEVE IT

:-)

*Okoye got a job! I had my doubts at first because at first, when I asked him what was said at the interview, the words ‘you’re hired!’ was never said. I tried to keep his hopes but also tried to make him understand that it might not happen but it did! So he works at a steak/grill restaurant, making salads, at least for now. Like he said ‘at least it’s a job!’ and with that attitude I can’t complain. His first day was Saturday and he was worn out! he also had to work on Mother’s Day and I tried my best to not show how disappointed I was but secretly deep down…I had a panic attack that this was the first time I had EVER not been with my baby on Mother’s Day…whew…my chest tightens even now.

*My Mother’s Day started with a hospital visit. My niece had to rush my great niece, Ava Rae, to the emergency room Saturday night for drinking 4oz of Benadryl so early Sunday morning I brought my niece a Mother’s Day breakfast of pancakes from McDonalds. Ave Rae is back home but she looked so tiny in the hospital bed! Of course…ya’ll know I got pictures. She was so tired. I got there about 8am and she finally went to sleep about 6 that morning so she was SO knocked out….

*I finally picked the photo’s I wanted to use for my AWinTL project. This was NOT easy. Since I used my timer in a lot of situations I had tons of photo’s. I could have deleted most of them ( I mean c’mon 10 pictures of me fluffing my pillow to get it exactly right IS excessive) but I didn’t want to miss any small detail. I finally settled on the ones I wanted to use and uploaded them and ordered them. I very seldom use my printer at home, at least for photo’s. the boys will use it for their own purposes ( you should see their rooms…every available space has photos SCOTCHED taped to it….) if they want a picture right then but I’d rather send out for them. I’m trying to remember its not about the embellishments or stickers (which I am big on) but more of the journaling…the words telling what could be going on in any given day or week in our lives so its hard but not hard for me. I don’t want to rush through this but to think about and savor what the photos mean so I can express it.

*Oh! Now that Mothers Day has passed I can tell you what my dad did for my mom, LOL Their anniversary was March 31st so what does he do…March 25th he asks me to call around and see about ordering my mom a mother’s ring. You know the one’s with her stone and then the birth stones. Called around and found several places that do it BUT they have a little twist too them…you can have names engraved on the rings. How cool is that! Very cool but….it takes 4-5 weeks for completion. Hmmm not going to work for their anniversary so he decided it would be for Mother’s Day. About a week ago it was complete…GOrgeousssssssssssss….he out did himself with this one! And she loveddddddddd it. Loved it! I love their love for each other and it so VERY special…

*I’ma lil bit upset at my pharmacy and my insurance company. I have been put on a new medication (well I guess I cant say that I’ve been put on it since I have yet to actually TAKE it) that I have been waiting a week to get filled but my pharmacy cant fill it because my insurance company is talking to my doctor on rather I really need it. I guess if I need it..they will pay for it or at least a portion of it…. A week people. A week. Good thing it’s not a life or death situation…

*It is Love Thursday over there at Chookooloonks and so I am posting these photos here….

Now these are not the best photo by any means but I love them. I smile every time they come up on my screen saver because there is love in these two blurry out of focus shots…


It was taken at a wedding last year and in the photo is my mom in the middle of my two sons and they are doing the Electric Slide (or the Bus Stop depending on who you are or where you are from). Can you see their smiles? It took a minute for my two to catch onto the steps but once they did they were having a blast…they laughed….cracked jokes on each other….even got a little booty wiggle here and there.....

Can you see the stiffness in Jalil, my youngest son on the left? He does not dance. Not in public in any case. He pretty much does not like crowds or loud noise but for this, he had a blast albeit..stiffly, LOL. Can you see the ease and confidence of my oldest son on the right? Line dance’s are not his thing but boy….he was having all blast. Two boys , who for most occasions will not dance in public, got up in a room of strangers and DID dance all because their Nana asked them too….

All of this was brought on by the love they all share between them and I am so very blessed because of it…

Snow Dayz

Last night, Okoye’s high school was having what they called a College 101. It was to last for an hour and then they had the gym set up with several colleges in Missouri and a couple out of state colleges. He’s a sophomore but we’ve mapped his classes out for the next 4 years, since Freshman year, for going to college. So, I wanted to know what we could do NOW in regards to money, grades, ACT and SAT’s. I had already marked it on my calendar to go but Okoye surprised me Friday when he said he wanted to go with me. I’m glad he did.

He’s toured a college before so he’s seen the whole college atmosphere and I’m sure thought ‘hellyeah…this is what I want to do’ but has not grasped the whole idea of cost… tuition… boarding, etc.

Why is that when old mom and dad tell them something we have NO idea what we are talking about. But let a complete stranger tells my sweet sweet child the same thing…oh hell, it IS gospel!

My ex husbands wife is a professor at an out of state college. The past year or so me and their father have been talking about the kids going to school where she teaches for a BETTER (cheaper) tuition. Okoye, my son of course wants to go where most of his friends are going (Mizzou) and didn’t understand the big deal. NOW he understand the big deal. Now he understand how much college tuition is. He doesn’t like it but he see’s the light. My job is done here….

I love it that instead of hanging with a bunch of their friends they wanted to go eat lunch with us old folks. I love it that they have so much fun just being kids. I love it that they probably spent about 20 bucks paying for these little pieces of fake mustache/sideburns ( look closely...you can see them) but it was better than any $70 xbox 360 game. I love that, for now, at least they are happy being silly and being kids. And I also love it that they are mine....

The boys have been back in school for a week now and so far things are good. We are getting into a schedule and routine without any bumps and hiccups in the road and I LOVE THAT.

The boys both had to have sports physical’s again so yesterday and today I was late coming into work to get them done. Luckily our family doctor opens at 7 for appointments so I could get them done without them having to get out of school. I was late for work but that I can deal with that. This year, Okoye opted to not have me in the room for the testicular exam. I don’t know rather to be sad about it or not. Up until the second she said ‘okay, now comes the part of the Testicular exam and you can have your mom stay or have one of the nurses come in…’ he had said he wanted me there but then, when she asked, he said ‘I’d rather have a nurse….’. I sat open mouthed for a second but hopped up and waited outside.

SIDEBAR… I find it hilarious that doctors try to make pap smears and testicular exams sound like a helluva party when in truth…its not so much…

Because of diabetes being prevalent in my history they always get blood work along with ketone checks and the ketone check checked out, now we are just waiting on the blood labs. Jalil has a slight curvature of his spine that we have to have looked at (already have the appointment set up), Okoye has gained 10 pounds and a ½ inch in height while Jalil has lost 2 pounds but grew 1 ½ inches. Other than that, everything is checking out. A no one drank out of the urine cup! I’ll have to tell that story one day…

GOOSEBUMPS…why does the song Butterfly Kisses (Bob Carlisle) still gives me goosebumps???? Especially the one with all the voice overs…Good Lord, I feel the tears coming

HUNG-OVER…have you ever felt so tired you feel like you have serious hangover??? Man… Okoye’s girlfriend had a party for her 16th birthday and my boys went for that. Then Jalil had a bbq for his birthday so I feel like I am in hormone overload from all the teenagers that I was around this weekend. All the high pitched giggling from the teenage girls trying to get the attention of the boys, all the boys trying to be manily men for the teenage girls, the food, the music…urgh…this is WORSE than a hangover



Lacey's Birthday Party....filled with that stringy crap that you squirt out of a can...




that would be Okoye in the middle of the circle.....getting ready to dance.......or really dancing...that boy loves to dance


*sigh*....Mama.....she is Beyonce and my dad is Jay Z....and you wonder where I get my craziness....

my baby's birthday cake...the cake that when i went to get it...they couldnt find it...the one that we had to wait for about 45 minutes for them to find and when they did, they only charged us for a quarter sheet cake instead of half a sheet cake.

CREEPS…I can admit that I am a paranoid ninny at times but do you ever get freaked out when you get a FRIEND request on FACEBOOK from a complete stranger? None of her ‘NETWORKING’ groups come even close to me. The only thing I can think of is a friend posted one of my photo’s on her wall and maybe its from that but I gotta say…it’s freaking me out

DELICIOUS…a coworker made breakfast quiche for the office and it was sooooooo good! Nothing like spinach and eggs to start a day

SOUNDTRACK…does anyone remember the show Ally McBeal? It was the show about about the unisex rest-room......well, okay that was not what it was all about but that was one of the things I remember most about the show. The other thing I remember was the episode about having a soundtrack for your life. Everyone should have one. Well, lately what wax I imagine to be rotating as I work my way through life is ‘I Gotta Feeling’ by the Black Eyed Peas…. Now THAT song makes me finger snapping head bobbing happy.

This week we had a previous governor pass. In honor of him, there was a 'lie in state' visitation/memorial at the Capitol (across the street from where I work) and following that,his funeral. These soldiers were part of the Artiliary Squad ( I hope I got that right) and it was their duty to fire the canons after the service. Before the services this group was lounging around the the Capitol but all went to this monument and stood for the longest time and it gave me goosebumps because they were reading the Ten Commandments..... Can we really have a division of Church and State
Does anyone remember the movie BeBe's Kids????? It was the late Robin Harris' movie, animated? The rapper Tone Loc (Letzzzzzzz do it) was the voice for the chunky baby boy that walked around in a diaper??? This little pile of cuteness reminds me of that character so freakin' much!!! He talks in this gargle baby chatter and its always random. Our first meeting I got onto him because he walked up to me and tried to grab a bottle of water out of my hands and after that...he steered pretty clear of me. Two weeks later (the day of this picture) I took him and his brother to the park to play and they had such a blast. So much that when I took this picture, he was walking to me to give me a random big hug...no smiles...just a hug. I guess that was his way of saying 'you alright with me....'

That's Jalil in the front, Okoye is on the right side, chasing the little boy that's on the left side of the picture. Nothing special accept I do believe this is the first picture I've taken of my new car. Say hello to the folks BB (Burgundy Berry). And yes, I name my cars...sue me

*sigh*...first day of school shots...and they are growing up so fast....i dont care if its the last year of college, I WILL get a first day of school shot every YEAR....bite me

This was their first day at being at a public daycare...tomorrow is the first day of school....sigh....it goes by entirely too fast

I’m sure booster clubs have a purpose…but is it wrong of me to consider the time I spend shuttling this kid and that kid, talking to the kid on a one on one basis, trying to mentor to them, taking photo’s (and NOT just of my kid) for games to submit to school websites and cheering on any and every kid at games…shouldn’t this take away any idea that my name should be brought up to work a concession stand??? Not only should my name not come up but should the president or whomever is in charge contact a family friend to get in contact with me to see ‘whats up?’ with working the concession stands???
*
We had tournaments this weekend. Came out of the gym Saturday and we had a very pretty blizzard going on…LOL…okay NOT a blizzard but tons of snow coming down…not really sticking but big pretty flakes. I remember thinking ‘wtf?’ because ummmmmm helllllllllllllooooo its supposed to be spring! Yeah I know we still have a few weeks but my internal clock is ticking in regards to it being spring. My oldest son bbqued for the first time…and as you see…he had a blast….No comments on the bbqueing during winter…LOL.

*

Today’s sunshine is brought to you by God and good Lord is it not GOOD???

*

What’s peoples thoughts on putting birthing/labor pictures in scrapbooks or photo albums?

* I feel sick today. My stomach has been rolling for a couple days. More and more I think its nerves. For some reason I just have been on edge lately. Bad weather is suppossed to hit tonight into tomorrow and I dont do bad weather very well. About 3 years ago I had a bad accident (during lunch, left work to go visit my niece in the hospital, it was raining, hydroplaned ran smack into the stone median between the highways, spun out a 360 to the other side, skidded along the guard rail and when I finally stopped spinning, a 18 wheeler was headed for me.) so me and weather and driving...dont mix.

* Okoye's tournament is over...all week, everyday except Tuesday, was a game. They had open gym today, nothing tomorrow and then a game on Tuesday. Jalil also had 2 games yesterday. After the first game, his coach pulled him to the side and was talking to him. He hadn't made any BAD mistakes during the game so I was on edge as to why he was being singled out like he was. He slapped him on the back and they started walking over to a group of high school coaches. When I seen the coach stop in front of them and Jalil shake hands with one, Kerry and I both stood up and started walking over to them.

*Jalil's schedule calls for a Speech class at the end of the year. When I called his counselor and expressed my concerns, thatI didnt want him to be taken out of the class...I know its going to do him a lot of good. But with Jalil, the more preparation he has, the better he does. So she took that and ran. PE is a requirement at school but since his 'folder' requires a little adaptation to it, they took him out of PE and 'developed' a class for him. Its main focus is language and its uses but its also about interactions. If Jalil knows you, he talks TOO DANG MUCH. If he doesnt, its like pulling teeth to hold a conversation with him. It has worked WONDERS. A couple teachers even called last week to remark on how he is participating more, asking questions, asking for help. Things he really needs to do to understand what is going on. It shows up even in his games.

*Did anyone see the moon on Friday? It was huge. Gorgeous. This was what I got riding down the street....No where near what I got on Friday morning. They other shots where before I walked into work...and yes....I was late.

Jay Homecoming 2008 in a quick nutshell.....

Right when I get choked up that he is growing up.......




This girl is gorgeous....

A few of his friends...

My favorite shot...

He thinks he's Usher sometimes....

Dinner...dont worry...its Sparkling Grape Juice.