Off to the Bee . . . the Spelling Bee that is!

January 2008 ACSI Spelling Bee

January 2007 ACSI Spelling Bee

January 2006 ACSI Spelling Bee

January 2005 ACSI Spelling Bee


Well, Friday is the ACSI District Spelling Bee ( Association of Christian Schools International)once again. This will be Savannah's 6th year, Emma's 2nd and Landon's first year. This is quite an honor, but let me tell you, it is a lot of work too! We have been studying our brains out over here at the Moran household. Goodness gracious, have you ever heard of some of these words: vicissitude, sommelier, blitzkrieg???? And trust me, there are plenty more like it on Savannah's 6th grade list. There are going to be 20 plus kids per grade from all over the district; the best spellers from their respective schools. Can you say stress? I usually sit and smile at my kids, praying that they do well. Meanwhile, my palms are sweating and my stomach is in giant knots. So if you happen to be thinking of us this Friday, please wish us well and say a little prayer! I'll update you on the outcome.

Michelle

"Your Word" Necklace Winner!

Greta's word is "Family". She is the winner of the "Your Word" necklace! Greta, email me to let me know this is the word you want, and let me know if you would prefer a 16" or 18" chain. Thank you all for contributing! I loved the words you chose.

I am getting back into the swing of things today. I left Friday for a weekend of delicious food and scrapbooking. We had a lot of fun but the time went by so fast! I worked on Emma's album this weekend and used the Cricut to make the cutest little pigs. (Emma adores pigs!)

I hope you all had a restful, refreshing weekend like the one that I had!

xox,

Michelle

"Man" Day

Kevin and Landon had the opportunity to build something this past Sunday. We have three cribs that grandpa made, and quite a few different bins for holding things like holiday decorations. Kevin decided that he was going to build some sort of shelf to sit above Savannah's large crib, with the drawers. It was going to hold all of the bins full of stuff. That would give us a relatively clutter-free garage.

The boys got up Sunday morning (and didn't even shower, mind you.) They went to Home Depot for "man" stuff. You know, things like lumber and tools. Landon came home with his very own tool belt (which just so happened to be a cell phone belt), because all of the tool belts fell off of him immediately. Landon didn't know the difference, and either did I until Kevin pointed it out to me. Plus, it held Landon's hammer, tape measure, a couple of screws, safety goggles, and whatever else one would need to build a shelf.

All ready to work!

Tool belt!

I was in the office, and pretty soon I heard Landon's little feet running back and forth as fast as he could, carrying things out of the garage. The garage had to be cleaned out first of course! Out came everything . . . bins, and more bins, bicycles, toys, items to go to the thrift store, and whatever else ended up in there. About this time, Emma and I left for Target and a bite to eat. Our only instructions were to bring back food!

Lunch break!

McDonald's

All day long they worked in that garage, sawing, hammering, and using the drill. Even Landon got to use the drill. Kevin said he only almost lost a finger once or twice. (Landon was a little too excited about pulling the "trigger", and Kevin's hands were in very close proximity to the drill bit.) By the time it was all done, and things were put back into the garage, it was dark! Landon was a trooper, staying out there for hours on end, doing "man" things. And I must say, although I was a bit apprehensive at first, the shelf came out quite nice.

Kevin at work.

Getting the job done.

It's always better with two.

We had a tired boy that night. Landon hit the hay hard. Even the next morning he was still out like a light. I went into his room about 8:00 and there was Landon, head back, mouth open, snoring like a chainsaw. Poor little guy! It's hard to be a man!

A job well done!

Word . . .

Word . . . what word is yours? Mine is "trust". I have chosen trust for a lot of reasons although there are a lot of words that could apply to my life. I chose trust because I need to daily rely on my Heavenly Father to see me through the good and the bad. If I can trust Him, then I no longer have to worry to the same degree that I would otherwise. I'm not saying that I never worry because my human nature still comes through, but I worry less and rely on God more. Rely, hmmmmm . . . maybe that would be another good word for me. How about you? What is the word that fits you?

Leave me a comment and I will draw a winner Monday, January 26th. The winner will receive a "Your Word" necklace, personalized with your own special word. Tell me your "word", and why!

Happy Birthday Ladybug!

Ladybug (11 weeks old)

Yep it's true. Ladybug turned three today. In case you were wondering about her, she is part Greyhound/Saluki/Whippet. She was born at All Breed Rescue after her mother had been rescued. Her mom was a long haired brindle. You can read a little about her in their Dog Tales, just scroll down to see her. She was such an adorable puppy and we fell in love right away. Because I did most of her care taking, I became her "person". When I am at home, she is always close by.

She was a crazy, nervous, "chew everything in sight" kind of puppy, but since then, she has settled into a wonderful and loving dog, who rarely chews anything anymore.

Ladybug has had a full day already. This is what she did:

She got to sleep under the covers this morning, just like she likes to do (when we let her!) . . .

We took the kids to school . . .

You can't tell me dogs don't smile . . .

We went to Petco (because that's where all the good toys are) . . .

Look at all the toys . . .

She pondered which toy to choose . . .

She got her nails trimmed (that was NOT her favorite part) . . .

She ran in the park . . .

And then she ran some more . . .

All-in-all, it was a pretty good morning . . .

One final note, mixed breeds rule and I believe that everyone should have at least one!

Butterscotch Update

Sweet Butterscotch - almost 9 months old

Run Butterscotch, run!

Running like the wind!

Butterscotch after a bath!

Being outside is one of his favorite things!
Laying in the grass, the weather is beautiful!

Sniffing, something he does best! He especially loves flowers!

A dog's life.

The "play" stance.

It has been some time since I have had an update on Butterscotch. Most of you know that we adopted him from the local animal shelter in June when he was about 2-1/2 months old. Needless to say he was not a well puppy and we found out that he was suffering from Distemper. In July he ended up staying at the vet for 8 days, where he almost died from the symptoms of Distemper, one being Pneumonia. Amazingly, he pulled through. When we brought him home on July 1oth, he was weak, could barely walk, and now "twitched", which was just another complication. Distemper in it's worst state, can cause many neurological disorders. I was saddened and wondered if he would make it and what his quality of life would be. He didn't play, but just wanted to sleep and cuddle. He was unable to do the things that normal puppies do. He was a sad little guy. In August, I was lucky enough to find Dr. Young, a Homeopathic vet that resides in Florida. All of our consultations have been over the phone and through email. Dr. Young has been a vet for many, many years and within two weeks, the changes taking place in Butterscotch were amazing. Butterscotch currently takes Homeopathic remedies, most of which can be found at our local health food store. He continues to improve and thrive. He still twitches, has some seizures at night when he is sleeping, and his teeth have suffered the effects of Distemper. Recently his tongue started hanging out of his mouth; another Neurological disorder, but all in all, he is doing well and is a very happy little 9 month old puppy. He eats like a champ, loves treats, plays with all of his toys, runs, barks, wags his tail, licks, scratches, bugs Ladybug (our other dog) relentlessly, climbs stairs, and is an all-around wonderfully sweet alpha male dog with a lot of spunk.

I took these pictures of him today. He was feeling quite frisky after his bath so we went outside to work off some energy.

If any of you have a failing pet, get in contact with Dr. Young. I now know that there is always hope for those precious pets that we love so much, even when we might be told otherwise!

Now go give your pet a hug,

Michelle

Who, me?

Into the New Year . . . 2009

December 27, 2008

Our Family

Here we are, 7 whole days into a brand new year. I like the beginning of a new year because it always brings about a fresh beginning. (I do however hate the paperwork part of it such as getting tax information together, and making new files for the new year.) I am just not a paperwork type of gal. I do enjoy writing, but that is not the same thing, is it?

Christmas was nice, we had some family here on Christmas Eve, and Christmas Day was just us 5! This was the first year in our lives that we have never had to be somewhere on Christmas Day. Needless to say, we took the day at a lazy pace. After breakfast and opening presents, we went to see a couple of movies. I highly recommend seeing "Marley & Me" but it was quite a tear jerker so bring your Kleenex. We also saw "Bedtime Stories". This movie was cute, the kids will like it. One thing I did not know is that more people than you would think decide to see movies on Christmas Day. And, you might want to eat while you're there because good luck finding anything that is open afterwards!

The Saturday after Christmas, we drove to Escondido to spend time with Kevin's side of the family, which included his sister Michelle, her family, aunt's, uncle's and cousins. It was a lot of fun and a lot of good food! Fortunately for us, Michelle was kind enough to load us up with a bunch of her special cookies. Needless to say, Kevin ate his way through them in no time flat. I didn't dare stick my hand into the cookie container if he was anywhere near for fear of pulling my arm back with missing fingers, perhaps even the whole hand! (Maybe I should bake a little more?)

2008 was a hard year for a lot of people. I pray that 2009 will be much better. We have felt the lull of the economy too but amazingly, Kevin has stayed fairly consistent with the home inspections. That has been a blessing, which has allowed us to stay afloat. The business is still fairly "new" and a new business definitely does take some time to grow roots. Fortunately I have a husband who is willing to do whatever it takes to get those roots to grow! (Even if he has to force them into the ground!)

Emmie-Lou Designs, my jewelry business is still doing well also. I have some new ideas swimming around in my brain for the new year. I am hoping to spend more time with the hand-stamping. I love the stamped jewelry because the jewelry can be so personalized. I will have to see what I come up with this year.

December 2008

JCA Spelling Bee Winner's

The kids are doing great. They are enjoying school and all three of them are going to the ACSI District Spelling Bee this year! This will be Savannah's 6th year, Emma's 2nd, and Landon's 1st! Needless to say, there is a lot of preparation and hard work that goes into learning the many lists of spelling words. It is a team effort in which the parents and children must be highly motivated. This year the Bee is Friday, January 30th, so wish us luck! We are currently in hard-core study mode.

December 2008 - Soccer!

Emma and Landon just finished up their regular soccer season. Kevin coached Landon's team this year and it went fairly well. (If only the parents were as committed as Kevin was!) Landon just enjoyed his first year of soccer and having his daddy as the coach. This was Em's second year and her team is currently in the playoffs. They have a game this Friday night so we will see what happens from there. If they lose, this will be the final game of the season, but if they win, there will be more games to come!

November 2008

Relay for Life Ballet Performance

Savannah is still dancing ballet and loving it. This is her 9th year. She danced with her dance mates at the "Relay for Life" in November, and of course they will begin to prepare for their recital in June very soon!

I don't know how many of you blog but I was talking to a couple of friends this morning and we all enjoy scrap booking but it is so hard to keep current with. The idea of copying an ongoing blog onto nice card stock and placing it an album was discussed. I thought this was a great idea! It is now a new goal to attain this year! (Along with my regular and far too infrequent scrap booking of course.) I didn't make any real "resolutions" this year, but I did decide to have some attainable goals. One would be too make sure I feed my family healthy food. I have always tried, but during the holidays I got a little lax, just because of all of the craziness. This is something that I am really going to work on this year.

So what are your dreams, hopes and aspirations for the new year? Whatever they are, I hope that they are all attained. Have a very blessed 2009!

Love,

Michelle (and family)