Feeling Fallish

So, the weather is cooling off here in Texas! It takes us a little longer than some, but I am savoring it. I love fall! The leaves are changing, the air smells clean, there is a little chill in the air and there are pumpkins everywhere!

Last night we went to Walmart and picked up some. We carved one, but it didn't turn out too good, one just to sit, and one has some mums in it! That one is my favorite!

Tonight, my little man and all of the other 3rd graders are putting on a singing performance, so we will eat dinner early, leftovers. But I wanted to make something fun for the family and I came across a cake. It was easy and they LOVED it! Tell me what you think!

Doctor Visit

So. I had a doctor's appointment today. You ask, "why?" Well, I'm not one to air my laundry, dirty or otherwise, but since I only have a few followers, what the heck! My readers have probably already heard this.....more than once, but I will call this therapy.

April: Living in Korea. Ship van and hope that the pirates don't sink it. Begin to start sorting.
May: Continue sorting. Shop, shop, shop! Break out the suitcases.
June: Shop some more and squeeze it in. Pack the suitcases. Separate house into "first shipment" and "last shipment". Say good-bye to dear friends. Board plane with 2 kids, 3 cats and no husband for 14 hours. Almost faint upon landing. Live with parents for about 6 weeks.
July: Buy first house, alone, in three days. Pick up husband from airport.
August: Move into new house and wait for household goods. Paint, paint, paint. Deside where everything will go. Kids start school. Trying to meet people.
September: Still wait for household goods (they were a month late). Household good finally arrive and WHERE is it all going? Develop heel spur.
October: Husband has hip replacement surgery; home for 30 days. First visitor in 2 weeks. The holidays are just around the corner! What am I going to get?

Do you see where I'm going with this? Well, about 2 months ago I started having difficulty catching my breath and feeling VERY overwhelmed. I would walk into a room of boxes, open one and have to leave the room. That is NOT me at all. I embrace moving. Usually, I have our house unpacked, pictures and curtains up in a week!

So, the doctor walks in and asks me why I was there. I explained the breathing issue and said that I have a lot on my plate right now.......my eyes became faucets! It was ugly. And with a perfect stranger! I am not the crier! Ask my Ya-Yas! Not me! I was trying to speak and make sense and he was steady writing everything down! I was expecting the medical tech to walk in with a straight jacket at any moment! I asked the doctor, "do you think I might have a tumor in my lung that is causing me to have difficulty breathing?" Guess what the smart-ass doctor said, "the tumor is in your head!" He told me that I have to let some things go and don't put so much pressure on myself. My problems are all stress and anxiety related. So, I left with some happy pills.

So, I will let you know how it goes!

IS IT POSSIBLE???

Okay, you tell me. Can a person have too much stuff? Keep in mind the items below are office supplies, sewing, crafts AND scrapbook stuff. Also keep in mind that most of the boxes are not unpacked and things are wrapped in paper, so it probably looks like a lot more than it really is....hehehhe!!!!

Before and After

Okay, so you've been reading about The Great Move of 2008 and all of crazy chaos that it has brought to my life. We just have too much stuff! (well, the family does, not me.) They just don't know how to get rid of stuff. Things are about to change! So, I am an organizing freak; I like things in their place and I try to make it easy for the family to put their things in their place, but it seems that "organizing gene" skips a generation! I am going to force them to get organized.

Below are a few of the before pictures! This is my little man's room. His room was pretty organized, but some of his toys are too big for those tubs that we have.

THIS...............is my precious daughter's room. WOW, right! She hates to get rid of anything. We did get rid of a lot before we left Korea, but there is still too much stuff. I am going to play "Clean House" and come in like a tornado!

Now, this will be my Inner Sanctum, as my husband calls it. Basically, my scrapbook/sewing/craft area. My peaceful place! Now, I know that it looks like a lot of stuff, but when things get packed, they do use a lot of paper! HA!

Yes, this is all of the glorious fabric that I purchased in Korea.........sigh..........doesn't it just make you happy?

This is Patches, supervising, of course. She is sitting on all of the storage solutions for our rooms. You are curious now, aren't you?!


YES! It is Ikea! Keep checking back for the after pictures! (be patient, it might take a while!)

Post-Op

Well, just talked to the doc. The Major came through just fine. Now we are in the recovery process. I spoke with the doc around 12:40 and he told me that The Major would be in recovery for about an hour. I went a grabbed some lunch and then went back to the hospital to wait some more! About 2:00 PM he was wheeled back to his room, where he was much more awake than I expected. At 2:20 PM physical therapy came to visit him! OMG! Yes, they wanted him to stand up. Thankfully I had to leave to go pick the kids up from school. I did not want to see that. It didn't go well, by the way.

So tomorrow is another day and physical therapy will return again. The epidural drugs will also go away tomorrow, but he will still have the Demoral! Slow and steady. I wonder if they will give me some Demoral? I should ask.

It has been a day people.........I am done..........I am finished............I am tired.........I will have a glass of wine now. Later!

A Family Wedding

So, this summer was busy for my family. We traveled a lot and saw many people. One of the big events was my cousin's wedding. My cousin's hubby is in the Air Force. The kids both had parts in the event. They were both very excited and did a great job. Here are some pics of the fantastic event!



Here is my little man and my niece looking extra special cute!

Handsome men of my family! My brother, my hubby and my little man!

My beautiful cousin and the ring bearer, AKA, my little man.

My great kids, looking so grown up! The dress is by Reanna Lily Designs, check out her site via my home page!

Here we are, all dressed up! My dress was almost made by Jen (Reanna Lily Designs).

My brother and my sister-in-law!

This is my grandfather with his great grandchildren!

Two beautiful girls, my all grown up daughter and my niece! LOVE THEM!

My sweet daughter and her favorite uncle!

A mother/daughter moment.

My grandfather and his grandkids (aka my brother far left and my cousins).

The beautiful bride and my girl!

Me and the bride!

The groom and his new father-in-law, my uncle.

My girl, my mom and my sis-in-law!

I love this picture! This is my niece and she has two favorite girlie things, candy and flowers! And she has both!

Surgery........Part 2

So, I just asked the nurse for an update and she called down to the OR and they said that they were almost finished! I say almost.........it has been 4 hours!

Why are hospitals always cold?! I am freezing!

Surgery

The Major is having surgery as we speak. I am hunkered in the waiting room................just waiting. This problem has been going on for a year and he has been in a lot of pain. We discovered, after many doctors, that The Major has a childhood disorder that was never discovered. In short, his hip socket isn't deep enough for the top of his femur and it is causing arthritis pain.........a lot of pain. So today, he is getting a total hip replacement! WOW! right? But after this surgery, a lot of physical therapy, his hip will be better than before. It will have a titanium and diamond head. Bionic-like!

He was nervous this morning, as anyone would be. But he said, "I'm much more comfortable being on the other side taking care of people, not being taken care of." I said, "Suck it up! Just let us take care of you!"

More to follow.............................

Texas Rangers!!

During the Great Move of 2008 we did a variety of things. Took some little trips, hung out with family, went to a family wedding, shopped, etc. One of the things that we did that was fun was to attend a Texas Rangers game in Arlington, TX. The stadium is awesome. We sat at 3rd base, but could still see pretty well. It was a little drizzily here and there, but for the most part a nice evening. Here is the field with the players.


My little man has declared himself a Number 1 fan of the Texas Rangers! It was his first game and he loved it.

My aunt, who lives close by, went all out with the Rangers stuff. She bought the kids these temporary tattoos, she had cups and napkins. She is great! Because she is close by, she offered her house for us to stay the night.

Here is me and the Texas Ranger's biggest fans! It was a little humid too. But a great time!

If you haven't been to the Ballpark in Arlington, I highly recommend it. It is very beautiful!

So, earlier I said it was a little drizzily. Well, what does that look like to you?! If you recall from an earlier post during the Great Move of 2008, we travelled to Kansas and spotted a tornado. Just what I wanted to see........another funnel cloud!



Just another shot from the inside of the park.

First Day of School

Okay, okay, I know school has already started and the first 9 weeks are almost over. It has been alittle crazy and busy at the Chez Roper! But I wanted to post this anyway. Here is my oldest and my little man. Of course, Daisy was excited too. They are on our new deck too!


Here is my not so little man. He is growing up so fast and beginning to try me now and again. He thinks that he has me wrapped around his cute little fingers! Ha! (okay maybe a little!)
Okay, this is my first born, now a tween. AUGH! She is really beginning to care about what she is wearing and if it looks okay. Boy! She is a great kid. Where does the time go?

Everybody Loves a Surprise!!!

It is difficult to surprise someone, especially when it is their birthday! Well, my cousins and aunt decided to pull a fast one on my uncle. The surprise party was AFTER his actual birthday! He was genuinely shocked! My other cousin and my cousin's husbands were in charge of taking him golfing and keeping him away while the house was getting set up, food delivered and guests arriving. Here he is walking in the door!

GOTCHA! It was great and I was happy to be there to help in the surprise. My uncle was turning 50. Doesn't he look great for 50!!

This picture is fabulous! From left to right: cousin, cousin, aunt and aunt! I love family!