Graduation Day

Today was graduation day! A wonderful day to be sure. It's late and I'm exhausted so it's just pictures tonight. My son is back home and I'm still in San Diego, but we are leaving very early so I need to get to bed.

I will write more after I get a chance to relax tomorrow night with all 4 of us under the same roof again!

Today In Pictures

Today was Family Day- the day before graduation and the day we got to spend 4 glorious hours with My Marine! It was a wonderful day!
I loved seeing how changed he was, and just watching h interact with his peers and That Other Kid was wonderful.

Today was a very emotional day for me. Pride, excitement, joy, shock are just a few of the emotions that I experienced. Unless you have watched your child grow from an infant into a United States Marine you can probably not relate. There is nothing like this feeling. No words can adequately describe it, so I won't try! People always say pictures tell a story better so I'm sharing some of the pictures from today. It was a very bright, sunny day so there is a lot of glare on these but that's ok. They all are pictures of My Marine and I'm happy to say that I am the mother of a United States Marine!

San Diego Zoo

We went to the zoo today and had a great time! Dallas and Ft. Worth both have great zoos but this zoo was amazing! We took a guided tour bus tour of the zoo shortly after we arrived. It was a double decker bus and of course we had to ride on the upper deck! The zoo was HUGE! I didn't wear a pedometer but based on how tired my legs and feet are I would guess we walked somewhere around 5 miles!

We saw Koala bears, Panda bears, Polar bears, Mongo Camel- all new to us! The Elephants have a fabulous facility that is unusual, at least to us!

We are having a great time in San Diego and the next 2 days are going to be even better! We get to see My Marine tomorrow and hang out with him on base for 5 hours! Then Friday is graduation! It is so hard to believe it is almost here!

Adah is a wonderful host...mellow, down to earth; exactly what we needed this week! And her hubby is very patient with all of That Other Kids talking!

For some reason pictures are not posting so check out Facebook and hopefully I can post them there!

Thankfulness Day 23

Today I am thankful for all my wonderful friends and family that made this Komen 3 Day thermometer full! Not only is it full but it is Overflowing! My goal was $2300 - my total was $2722.61!! Whoohooooo!

Thanks so much for all your donations, prayers and support to make this possible!

I will be signing up for next years 3 Day walk this weekend and I would love to have your support again for next year - or if you are so inclined walk with me! Hint, hint Christy!

Doing the Impossible...

This past weekend I walked the Susan G. Komen 3 Day for the Cure. I can honestly say it ranks as one of best 5 things I have ever done! This was truly an experience that made me feel like I was more than a wife and mother. It gave me a purpose other than preparing meals, doing laundry and teaching That Other Kid (all worthwhile for our family but very mundane!)

This is Glenna...the reason I decided this was the year to "put your words into action" and walk the 3 Day for the Cure that I have been wanting to do for years! My grandmother died of breast cancer more than 10 years ago and I had always thought I wanted to do something grand like the 3 Day but once Glenna got breast cancer I knew it had to happen now!! She came down to join me for lunch on Saturday - the roughest day of the weekend for me! I'm so blessed to have her in my life and I'm so glad she didn't let cancer beat her!

As a wife and mother I usually devote my attention to caring for my family. Rarely do I do something just because I want to make a difference in someone else's life, but this weekend that's what I did. Rarely do I do something purely for me. This weekend I did. Rarely do I do something that I have such a strong commitment to that I feel good about when I'm done. This weekend I did.

Like most Americans I usually don't follow through on things that I start doing. This weekend I followed through on the commitment that I made in July to walk the Komen 3 Day. Not only did I train for this event, but I raised more than $2300 to help find a cure for breast cancer. Then I followed up by walking 60 miles in 3 days!

Now that the Komen 3 Day is over for the year, I'm experiencing many emotions that I wasn't prepared for. I was so exhilarated while I was walking. I felt on top of the world; like I could do anything I set my mind (and feet to). I felt as if I couldn't be stopped.

I saw so many people this weekend with the same goal in mind - finding a cure for breast cancer. I walked with a woman on my team who was diagnosed with breast cancer last October and has gone through chemo, radiation, surgery, etc ALL while training TO WALK THE 3 DAY! She walked all 60 miles and was smiling, laughing and SERVING several other women on my team along the way!

Definitely applies here!

The lady on the far left is Yvette! She's one of my heros..the lady on my team I just mentioned!

All along the route people came out to cheer us on throughout our 60 miles. Many of these people spent the whole weekend following our route and setting up cheering stations and supporting us. Many of these people have a very personal reason for supporting us.

In case you can't tell the top of her head says thank you! This one brought me to instant tears!

Some just wanted to say thank you for making a difference.

There were times when I cried because there were so many people at a cheering station. There were times when we were walking that I was so physically and mentally exhausted I cried. There were times when I was in pain and wanted to cry, but I knew the discomfort I was in was NOTHING compared to the pain of breast cancer and all that goes with it. There were a few times I thought I could go on forever and there were times I didn't think I could take another step!

There were times when the signs I saw posted along the route kept me going - "It's kind of fun to do the impossible" really spoke to me!

I managed to walk all 60 miles and was encouraged to keep going by my wonderful friends who sent tweets, emails, letters and texts throughout the weekend.

Through this experience I have gained more than I could have ever imagined possible. I have gained lifetime friendships and a feeling of "I can do anything"! and I'm already planning to do it again next year!

The entire weekend was an experience I will never forget and I owe a huge thank you to many of my friends who donated money to help me raise the $2300 necessary to walk this event. Without your financial support and constant motivation I would not have been able to do this.

Now that the walk for this year is over I am going to apply what I have learned to my weight loss journey. If I can train in the heat of summer and get up at 4 a.m. on the weekends to do so, raise money, and walk 60 miles in 3 days I can do what most people consider the impossible - lose 40 or 50 more pounds! I have learned that I can do anything I set out to do! All I have to do is put my whole self into it! And I intend to do just that - the impossible really is possible when you want it bad enough!

Beginning Shrinkvivor 2011

This is the number I saw on the scale this morning! I'm disappointed and not happy about this number. I'm posting it boldly so that I can remember where I'm starting this challenge! I'm hoping that I will NEVER see this number again on a scale that I am on!! I've been here far too often over the past few months!

This is the beginning of Shrinkvivor 2011 at the Sisterhood of Shrinking Jeans. This was one of my favorite challenges last year and I was fortunate enough to be on the Green Tribe last year. We were very successful and won several weeks of the challenges!

This year I am on the PINK TRIBE - The PINKberry Dough Girls!

PERFECT for the month of October (being Breast Cancer Awareness Month and all!) I'm on a tribe with Roo, Heather, Virginia, Tiffany, Audrey and Shera! I know Roo pretty well and I have chatted with Heather a little on Twitter but the rest of these women I don't really know YET! But we are definitely changing that now!! I'm excited to start this new challenge...I've been struggling since My Marine left for bootcamp. I've been doing ok during the day because I have been staying busy. BUT....once night falls and That Other Kid is in bed, well let's just say things have been UGLY! So ugly in fact I probably consumed more calories after 9p.m. yesterday than I did throughout the rest of the day! NOT GOOD!

I am changing that starting today. Roo and I talked this morning and every time I want to go eat something, mindlessly I'm going to text, call or chat with her! OR...I'm going to do some sort of exercise! I can't eat if I'm talking or exercising, right???!!

The fitness challenge for the week is to log minutes of exercise...This is going to a great one for me! I've already got a good start for the week!

Hope y'all have a great week! Remember....take your photo of the scale every week so you will be eligible to win some great prizes!

I took my picture so I could see how much I can change in just 7 weeks when I apply myself! I'm hoping it will motivate me to keep going once the challenge is over!

My Baby is 21!!

How could this be? I went to bed one night and the next the day I went into the hospital and after 11 hours of grueling labor complete with pitocin, epidural, and lots of squeezing the life out of hubby's hand That Kid was born!

I blinked my eyes again and he was sitting up, crawling, running (he never walked...it was always running!) and talking!






I blinked my eyes again and I was teaching him how to read, write, tie his shoes, and master all types of "school" stuff! I homeschooled him all through high school so I was blessed enough to watch him learn and grow throughout his school years!






I blinked again and it was time for him to learn to drive!! Oh my, that was scary! It's still scary but I've gotten used to it! Yes, I taught him to drive, then we proceeded to buy him his first car and watched him drive off in it. Talk about scary! As he went from a teenager to a young man I watched him and stood in awe that this man/child was created by my hubby and me.





His first time out driving! Whooohhooo!!



First car...thanks to his grandparents for offering such a great deal and us buying it!




This was him at his 18th birthday party! We rented a boat and went out on the lake. Look at that hair!!



His first time to vote - I was quiet pleased with him for taking that opportunity although many his age don't bother!



This is my favorite picture from his Senior Pictures. It captures his personality pretty well, I think.



How is it that in 21 short years he has gone from a baby who needed EVERYTHING to a young man about to leave our home and serve our country in the USMC? Although I am having a VERY difficult time accepting that my "baby" is about to leave the nest I am immensely proud of him for making a decision that will not only better his life but our country's.

From the time I started this blog I have always called him "That Kid". It was a nickname we came up with as a baby for him, but now that he is a full-fledged adult and about to become a Marine I have decided that I'm going to call him "My Marine".

I love "My Marine" and I pray that your life is everything you hope and dream it will be over the next two decades. You have brought many years of joy to my life, even if I don't always show you!! Love ya, baby....Mom

Our Week In Pictures

I downloaded Angry Birds on my phone this week and on Monday afternoon, the 13th both boys were arguing over who was gonna play each level! Nothing like a little sibling rivalry even if they are 13 1/2 years apart in age, huh?!!


I wore this t-shirt on Tuesday, the 14th while I grocery shopped. The cashier said, "yes it is" and I wondered what he was talking about. He said, "your shirt says life is good and I just wanted to agree!" I had to agree that "Life is good" no matter how we feel...living is better than the alternative, right??!


One of his many Lego creations this week was built on Wednesday, the 15th! A 2 story house complete with stairs!


That Kid started learning cursive this week in our homeschooling lessons. He decided (on his own I might add) to practice on Thursday, the 16th! I thought he did a great job!


Friday, the 17th we went to a local Splash Park and That Kid was resting on this spinning seat that they had on their playground area!


We celebrated Father's Day on Saturday, the 18th since That Kid was supposed to work all day on Sunday. This was a picture that we took at dinner....Both boys and myself!!


I just couldn't figure out what to take a picture of today, since it was just a pretty routine day around these parts, but I thought it was funny that of all the places our white kitten, Mickey could choose to sleep he chose to sleep on That Kid's laundry that is waiting to be put away!