We are all sick now!!!

So, I thought that it was just Maggie but guess what we all have the bug...well I should clarify that Marlee is the only one so far that isn't feeling yucky. I have been throwing up and had the diarrhea(AKA dihicaputas.....as my daddy would say;) junk for the past 24 hours. And now Tyler and Keely are feeling bad....Eric is out of town, so THANK GOD for Nana!!! She has been nursing us all back to health. I just feel zapped and the kids are the same way although VBS is tonight and Keely is now saying that she wants to really try to go this evening. Nothing is worse than the stomach bug. I hope you all stay well and I'll write more in a few days.

Maggie is doing fine.....YEAH!!!

Thank goodness Maggie is feeling better....it must have been just a sour stomach or something, because she woke up this morning just fine. Marlee on the other hand climbed out of the pack and play, then climbed onto Keely's bed and then over to the baby bed to be able to get to Maggie. She was standing there looking at Maggie like "help get me in there so I can play with you". Those two are so funny together.

We had a great day at church and my mom was on the cover of the Amarillo Uptown magazine, so that was just too cool in itself. She is such an awesome person who is always so giving of her time and energy. Whether it be family, church or work....she gives 110%. We are all so proud of all of her accomplishments. Growing up my mom was a working mom, but we never knew that we were "missing" anything by her working all of the time because she did a great job of juggling everything that we had going on in our lives. I am in aah of her!!! I could never do what she does and be able to do any of it worth a darn. We all love you so much Mom!!

And then to top off the day with a exciting WOW...I got to talk to an old friend of mine, Jolee, today. We lived across the street from one another when I was 12 yrs old and instantly became friends. There has been many times in our lives that we drifted apart, but somehow God always brings us back together. I have always loved her so much and cherished our friendship. We all have people in our lives that you can let time go by and just talk to once and it is as though you have been talking everyday for the past 20 years. I also have that same kind of friendship with Jennifer who I met when I was 16 yrs old. She has been there for the birth of all of my kids and truly is like a sister to me. We have laughed so many times that it has turned in to tears...she is always that constant person in my life that I can always just be myself around. Well, of course I have a lot of other friends that are very dear to me now as an adult that I thank God for daily. Jen & Jolee are just 2 people that I have been friends with the longest and that I have the most history with...good and bad history, so lets only remember the good....no stories ladies. Anyway what a wonderful way to end this weekend. I pray that God allows me to be as good of a friend to all of the people I care about as I have received from all of you. Thank you to all of my sweet friends for showing me time and time again love, kindness and compassion. I can't imagine my life without each and every one of you.....whether new or old you are all treasured!!!

Throw Up....YUCK!!!!

Okay, a few weeks ago I thought that I knew for sure what was going to be the death of me, but I was sadly mistaken.......I now know for sure that THROW UP will be what officially does me in. Maggie thru up earlier and I just thought that it was from eating too much at lunch, but no it happened again, so now I'm thinking that it might be some type of little bug. So, when you have twins that share the same bed you have to come up with another plan....I decided to put Maggie in the baby bed and Marlee in the pack-n-play so that way if (let's pray a big IF) Maggie throws up in the middle of the night I don't have to give both of the babies a bath. Anyway I know that everyone has to clean it up and take care of sick kids, but seriously it is truly the most disgusting thing EVER!!! If I could literally pour bleach all over my body it would make me feel somewhat cleaner than I do now after cleaning everything, bathing everyone including myself and spraying a whole can of Lysol in my house. That sounds so inviting....anyone want to come over to the nice smell of "crisp linen" in my home?

I am a true germaphobe(sp?), but I really can't help it....I don't think all of the medicine in the world could make me get to the point of not caring. So, please pray that Maggie May gets better and that the rest of the family doesn't end up with the bug. ~;-)

Don't ya just hate waiting????

I went to get my nails done this afternoon and low and behold I put my name on the list and found myself waiting for what seemed like an eternity (actually an hour)before the oriental man said come on back. I have nothing against people from different countries...I could honestly care less where people come from, but when they are sitting right in front of you talking back and forth with someone else in a foreign language it can't help but make you think they are talking about you. I was sitting there looking at myself in the mirror; checking to see if I might have a big 'ol booger hanging out my nose or something.....but there was nothing, so clearly that drove me even more crazy because they kept talking. They were probably talking about (me) the paranoid chick sitting there checking herself out every 10 seconds. ;-)

Then once again I needed cat food and walked out of Walmart with a complete cart full of things that I "needed". It is truly never ending....I am sure that you all probably feel the same way.

That is really the only exciting thing from today.....

The Boy Has Come Home!!!!

He has arrived!!! He made it home safe and sound. As soon as I drove up he came up to me and just put his sweet arms around me and told me how much he had missed us. Of course I asked about all of the details and believe you me he has told me everything that he did. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful son who loves the Lord and doesn't mind sharing with us all about Him and what he has learned.

So, tonight Amanda and I played Bunko with my mom & sister's group and had a blast. We didn't win, but ate some great food and had fun visiting with everyone. I always have to relearn everything each time I play. I'm kinda slow. ;-) The whole game is just rolling dice and trying to get 3-6's, but ya know you have to keep score and that just completely throws me off.

Well it is late so that is all I have for today......Have a great weekend!!!

He is coming home tomorrow...

YEAH!!!!! :-)Tyler is coming home tomorrow!! I am so excited to see him, but know that normally when he comes home he is so grumpy that I am wishing that he would go back and get some sleep. Anyway I can't wait to hear every detail and luckily he is his Momma's son who can give me the "blow by blow ." It has been really quite around here the past few days.....Grace and Keely have been able to spend a lot of time together, so that was nice & I was able to take care of Mason and Cannon today while Sis took the girls to the pool. We took an incredible nap....I just love that Mason---he is such a cuddle bug.

Okay, I went to Walmart this evening and got rabbit food. We were out, but I thought that they might could hold off until the morning....no such luck!!! I was out there with a flash light getting all of the waters filled and food done and if you know me but at all you know that I DON'T do the DARK!!! Anyway I survived to tell about it, but can't wait for Tyler to get back to help us with the chores. We pay him to feed and water all of the animals....he thinks that it is cool to get the money and it really helps us out a lot!!

So, seriously everyone knows how much I love Larry King Live and I haven't even written anything about his show lately.....He has had on Daniel Baldwin(great interview!!), Tammy Faye(sad interview :( literally brought me to tears) & the two Coreys-Corey Haim & Corey Fieldman(that one made me feel super old because they are now 36 yrs old, besides the fact that I love Goonies and Lucas---great '80's flicks). Anyway if you don't watch his show you really need too....he has some great interviews and good gossip stuff. I tend to power watch shows a lot of the time---ya know fast forward thru all of the crap until I hear something good. Just admit it if you don't do it now I have made you think that hhhmmmm "I might just have to try that".

Well guys that is all for tonight I hope you all have a great day tomorrow. ~;-)

Vanda

We got this dog when I was 16 years old and honestly I would have given her the boot with in the week that we got her.....She was a terror on shoes and underwear!! But of course my family fell in love with her and so she instantly became apart of our crew. Thru the years she served her purpose in life by always being there for my parents when Keri and I left home and then later on she became so close to my Grandpa May that Mom decided to give her to my grandparents. They spoiled her rotten.....she became a true lap dog. Then my Grandpa passed away and Grandma May went to live in an assisted living place where she could take Vanda, which once again she served her purpose of getting my Grandma thru all of the grief of loosing her beloved husband. But then Grandma's Alzheimer's worsened so much so that she had to be put in a nursing home, so Mom & Dad ended up with Vanda. And now she has passed on as well. She was loved by so many and will be missed. It sounds silly I'm sure to many that a family could be attached to a dog, but even though she would annoy the heck out of me I love that dog for being there for my family.

I MISS TYLER!!!

Tyler ready for Camp

"Seriously, Mom how many pictures do you have to take?? "

Tyler has gone away for the past 3 years to camp, but for some reason this year it is so hard for me!!! Yesterday I kept thinking that it was Tuesday instead of Monday....I guess that was me trying hard to make the time go by faster. I always miss him, but this year he is in a whole different state, so that is probably the bigger factor here. Anyway, Eric, Keely, the girls and I have been making the days go by pretty well. Keely was so excited today because her friend Hunter came to play with her...she hasn't seen her a lot this summer, so she was thrilled to get to spend some time with her today. They took a little swim in the pool, played mud pies or should I say cupcakes, went exploring and of course played in the make-up.



Now Gracie is here spending the night and then Keely is going to her house tomorrow to spend the night with her. YEAH!!!! I can't wait to be able to tackle Tyler's room without anyone here to tell what I throw away. I am sure there will be lots, but you never want the little sister to tell big brother that "mom thru all your stuff away"....this way we can just play the guessing game about where things might be. Like: "you might check under bed.....have you looked in your closet??" You get the idea....us moms have to be kinda sneaky at times. ;-)



I just found out that Eric is going to be out of town all next week....I have become so used to him being at home that when I hear those awful words come out of his mouth I just cringe!! Hopefully it will just be a week and that is it!



I should have taken a picture of the mini blinds the girls demolished in their bedroom....if I didn't know better I would have thought a bear came in and attacked the stinkin' blinds. I am not sure what I am going to do now to cover the window, but it will definitely have to be "TWIN GIRL PROOF!"

~More Later~

The Girlies Eating Some Corn on the Cob

So the other night we were eating corn on the cob and thought it would be funny to see the girls try it....they were so funny:

Marlee & Maggie

Maggie

Maggie

Marlee

Marlee

They had such a fun time trying to see if the whole thing would fit in their mouth.

On another note: I have the cutest picture ever that I took while holding my nephew, so here is the proof that I can be a pretty good photographer when holding a baby and a camera at the same time. He is so adorable and lovey all of the time-you just want to squeeze him all over.

Now here is our cutie pie nephew Mason:

Wonderful Day!!!

What a wonderful day we had!!! We got up this morning and went to church and were so blessed by a great sermon and also my cousin and his wife came with us. We were so excited to see them and get to share God's word with them. It is so much more to me.....I just see that this change that we made was truly what God wanted for our family. Eric woke up at 7:00 this morning ready to go to church and to worship our King!! Eric is such a great husband & father and now to see him so on fire about worshiping at our church is so much more than I could put into words. It is funny to me how when we pray for God to do just something in our life that He knows better for us than we do and can make it even more than we could ever imagine!!

My prayer is: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!! You are so awesome and so great that you can do all things in a blink of an eye. Thank you for what you have done and will continue to do in our lives....today, tomorrow & forever. Thank you for showing us the love of our sweet and dear family! We love you and give you all of the glory all of the days of our lives. In your son's holy name.....AMEN!

So, now on to the other part of our day.....we went to watch my brother-in-law play softball. He is so good that he should have been on some professional team somewhere. I know that I am family and love him like a brother, but ya know when you see some great talent and you don't. It doesn't take a genius to figure that out. My sister posted all about the car show yesterday, so you need to go to her site to check out the awesome car that they entered. :-)

Tyler leaves in the morning for camp......He is so excited that he is getting to go with his friends to NM and for a whole week!!! I keep asking him if he is going to miss me and he just keeps saying that "yes, but I will probably miss Boppy more." ;-) The bond that Tyler has with my dad is so neat. He has been such a constant positive male role-model for him that I thank God for daily. Of course, he loves all of us, but Boppy is the man with a plan who always has something for them to "work on". I know that by the time Tyler doesn't think it is cool to hang out with Boppy.....Dad will get to do all of the wonderful things that he has experienced with Tyler with Cannon & Mason. Thank goodness for my sister and I spreading our kids out so Nana & Boppy get to have special memories with each kiddo.

That is all for now, but have a lot of other things that I want to talk about, so maybe tomorrow there will be more time.

Sally Carmen

So, my Marlee is obsessed with Gracie's(my niece) stuffed bunny rabbit. Gracie has a stuffed bunny rabbit that is named Sally Carmen. It is an adorable stuffed animal and my sister knows how much Marlee loves it that she has since found a bunny that was very much like Sally Carmen and given it to Marlee. But it is not the same. Marlee's purple bunny doesn't have the same history that Sally Carmen has. Anyway, tonight Gracie was so cute because of course Marlee is telling her "MINE, MINE, MINE!!!" in regards to Sally Carmen and Gracie just responds "okay you can play with it, but I want to take it when I leave." Gracie knows that if she dared forgot Sally at my house that Marlee for sure would take it over.

Marlee with Sally Carmen....Laughing it up!!
Marlee giving Sally Carmen a big hug.
When I tried to take her away.....the look on her face says it all!

Marlee is so in love with this bunny that all I did was sit down in front of her while she was playing with it and she began to do all of these funny things.

I hope you all have a wonderful restful weekend!! We have a lot on tap for the weekend just like I am sure the rest of you do. It is crazy how many things one can cram into 2 days.

Pictures of the day...

Gracie came out to play with Keely today. Then Eric and Tyler moved the rabbits to a different spot where there is more shade for them. So, here are some pics of the animals and kiddos:

Gracie & Keely
Tyler

The bunnies are growing so much.....this one is my favorite:

This rabbit looks like a buffalo....he is real furry around his head, neck & paws and smooth on rest of his body.

This one is a twin to the one above...You just have to see them!!

A close up of his face.....

Of course, Tyler & Prissy:

This is Tyler and Duke(another one of Nana's animals that she had to rescue :)) a rat terrior. He is turning out to be a really good little OUTSIDE dog for Tyler.: Another day in our crazy life!!!

Marlee, Maggie, Penny & Kenzy

Penny & Kenzy's 1st appearance on the blog.....please hold all of your applause...there will be more pics coming soon!

Marlee, Maggie, Penny & Kenzy

Kenzy & Penny: "we aren't going to hurt you with our kisses..."
Maggie: "are you done yet??"

Marlee: "give me a kiss!"

Maggie finally gives in :"Okay, if you make me I will give them some lovin'."
Kenzy: "enough let's play"

We just love the new additions to our family!!!

Our First Hair Cut....

I gave the girls a quick trim this morning.....Check us out...We got our very first hair cut...We got rid of our "DUCK TAILS"!!!

Maggie

Marlee

Daddy, Marlee & Maggie(Maggie loves to drink the water from the spray bottle) Now we are ready to pose!!!

They loved getting to pose with Daddy and saying "CHEESE!".

Prayers for Jacob

I would like to ask everyone for prayers for Eric's cousin Jacob....They recently found out that he has Alpha One. Alpha One is a disease that effects the liver or lungs or even both. It is a inherited disease that his mother Michelle has personally had experience in seeing someone that she loved dearly die with, her mother Betty. This family will have to endure a lot thru the next few weeks, months & years with making sure that they are doing everything possible to give Jacob the best care imaginable. Their insurance is already giving them problems, so please pray that they are able to work this out or that God can provide the money for the additional testing that is needed. And we all know that God is bigger and better than all of this! He can heal Jacob! So, we can all be in agreement with that and pray that the healing arms of God wrap around little Jacob and his family to heal him. My heart goes out to all of them during this time of uncertainty.

I will keep you all updated with everything that is happening.

God, Kiddos & Camp

Okay, so everyone that knows me knows what a worrier I am, but I have to give GOD a big shout out for totally taking control in my life lately and just making all of my anxiety and worry go away. I was so worried about telling all of our friends that we had decided to change churches that I have just made myself sick about it. Anyway, yesterday I talked to most everyone by e-mail or by phone and honestly everyone was absolutely so kind that it blessed me so much more to know that we have such a great group of friends.


Marlee was sitting at the table the other day and started to play cough....it was so funny because she immediately looks to see who is watching her...anyway she then begins to reach up behind her to start patting herself on the back. She is always doing something to make us laugh. And then of course Maggie doesn't want to be out done, so she starts smiling really big until you say to her "ooohh I see your pretty teeth!" (you have to say it with lots of excitement)

So, the count down begins for Tyler to go to CAMP....he is so excited, but still I am a little nervous. Keely has finally come to the realization that maybe it isn't the best idea for her to go to camp this year. Okay, I should say that this was the consensus last night before bed.


more later~

I know now what is going to KILL me!!!

I have figured it out....this is big news......I finally know with out a shadow of a doubt what is going to be the death of me. LAUNDRY!!!! With 6 people in this house and everyone EXCEPT me (only because I have to do the laundry) thinks that they need to change clothes at least 2 to 3 times a day....it is taking over the house. I think that I have it all done, but then we live a few minutes and guess what there is more and more and more.
Anyway, I know that everyone hates doing laundry and it is just a part of life, but I needed to just vent for a little while.

On to bigger and better news........Eric and I have recently decided to change churches. We have been praying about this for a while and really feel God leading us to attend where the rest of our family goes. (Plum Creek Fellowship) We are so excited and the kids are just thrilled!!! The kids have been begging us to make this switch for a year now. We are going to miss all of our friends that we have a Southwest, but know that we will still be able to keep in contact with them.

So, I guess that is a all that is new with us......I hope that you all have a blessed day and I am sure that something new will happen in the next few days that I'll have to write about. ~;-)

Good Morning

Good Morning Fellow Bloggers,

I woke up this morning at 5:00 AM, yes I just said 5:00. I am sure that you are thinking that I am sick(I am, but beside the point) and honestly it will probably kick in about 8:30 when all of my kids want to get up, but here I am. Lots of coffee will help with that issue. There is not anything new going on in our life right now. All of the animals are doing great.(I know that you all have been worrying about that.) And the kids are healthy. Eric is wonderful. And then of course there is me.... I once again am battling some stomach issues which I am sure is brought on by stress. It is truly the story of my life. I am a worrier and stress freak.(I am now recognizing my problem....isn't that the first step??) Even though I try not to allow all of the stresses of life upset me....they do! I worry constantly if I am doing the right thing. Thank goodness for wonderful family & friends who just accept it and help me when they can. I do appreciate you all. I pray that God can help me be the kind of person who doesn't allow life to worry me so much.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the pictures of the culprits from the latest disaster at our house. Those girls are always keeping us running. (the key word is us...I couldn't do any of this alone...Tyler and Keely are such a great help!) THANK GOODNESS for baby gates to contain them somewhat.

Well, I guess that is all for today..... hope that you all have a blessed day.

The Baggie MESS....

Okay...Keely is freaking out that the girls got into the baggies and all I could do is laugh while running to get the camera.

Here is the evidence:

Evidence (1)
Marlee & Maggie actually being caught red handed.
Now lets play Sis!
OOOOOHHHH......I feel like I am skating.
Who me???




Yes, there really quite tasty!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This was too cute not to share. Does anyone want any baggies????....The outside is the only thing dirty. I promise. :-)

A few days ago Keri walked in the house to find the girls had discovered foil and lots of it. I am sure this is some of the first of many crazy things these girls will do. I will be waiting with the camera in hand to capture them all.

2 Boys & 2 Girls

We had Gracie & Cannon last night for a little while and we honestly had a ball playing with them.....Here are some pictures of the evening:

Tyler pulling Cannon in the wagon.

Cannon holding on for the ride.

Gracie & Keely playing sandcastle in the dirt. ;)

Spaghetti & Soaking up the Sun

So, here's the thing....I NEVER let my girls eat by themselves. I hate having the horrible mess, but today I decided to give it a try. Marlee & Maggie had a ball eating spaghetti like the big kids. Needless to say they had it everywhere. Here are a couple of pictures:

Marlee

Maggie
Marlee & Maggie

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Keely & Tyler soaking up some sun in the girls swimming pool. Do you think that they are a little too big for it???

Just think all of this fun before 1:30 in the afternoon. ;-)

My first big thing to happen with the new Rabbits

Okay, so here we are with 5 rabbits and 4 bunnies and I start to hear thunder....so you can imagine Eric's look on his face when I said "they can't get all wet". I had the bright idea to move all of the cages inside and just line them up down the hallway. Great thinking HUH?? NOT so much!!! I had the biggest mess to clean up yesterday morning. Stuff was every where. Did I mention they were in a cage....because to look at my hallway you would have thought I just let them run free. ;-) Anyway we have now decided that if a storm comes they can hang out with the chickens in the chicken coup. That is pretty much the only drama in the house right now.

Tyler has big news......He is getting to go to church camp in New Mexico. He is so excited, but I on the other hand am thinking that it is a little too far. I like to have my kiddos close by. Keely will not be going to camp this year. She is on too much medicine and not doing to well these days, so Eric and I decided that she didn't need to be a way from us. When Tyler is gone we are going to take her and do some special things with just her so maybe it will take her mind off of not getting to go with her friends to camp.

More later~

Rabbits and Bunnies

So, now thanks to Nana we have 5 adult rabbits and 4 bunnies. They are adorable. I used to have bunnies(collectibles..not live, but after playing with these I think I could potty train a couple ;)) all over my house, so I am sure that is why I love these little boogers. Some of them are long haired and of course I have a favorite or 2. The kids love playing with the bunnies!

We are beginning to be a zoo out here with a goat, chickens, dogs, cats & now rabbits.....and of course when you count the kids we could have 4 monkeys.

Marlee & Maggie have figured out how to climb on everything. Thank goodness they haven't climbed out of the bed yet!! They will climb up on the couch and just laugh until I say sit down. Marlee then will start with the "SIT DOWN", "SIT DOWN" and "GET UP"! She is such a character. Maggie will walk around with whatever toy in hand telling us all "MINE". We have had the most fun just sitting watching them talk with one another.

Tyler is ready for school to start back, so he can see all of his friends and play football. Keely on the other hand is in "La La land" most of the time...this new medicine seems to make her out of it a lot. But I am sure with time it will start to really kick in and help her.

Penny & Kenzy

We needed something else here that I would need to clean up after, so we decided to get the most adorable little dogs. Yes, I said dogs...there are 2 of them! (mother & daughter) Their names are Penny & Kenzy. They are apricot poodles and have the sweetest disposition. They were raised around a baby, so they are used to the girls pulling and what not. I have always wanted a poodle. I just love every thing about them. Oh, and the rest of the family has fallen in love with them as well.

That is all for now, but tune in for more exciting things with the Giles' family....ha ha!!!

Grandpa May

It has been 4 years since my Grandpa May passed away. I miss him so much. I know that he is in Heaven and that gives me a peace beyond compare. I just wish that he could have gotten to know all of his great-grand kids and great-great grand kids. He would have loved getting down in the floor to play with them all. He was such a kind hearted man who not only loved the Lord, but loved his beautiful wife and family. He had so many accomplishments....he served in the Navy, he worked at a cotton gin and honestly if he couldn't fix it IT couldn't be fixed. I remember one summer Keri and I had gone to Howardwick for our annual summer vacation and he taught us how to ride our bikes without training wheels, but all of the cars were "driving to fast" down the road, so Keri and I had the bright idea to make a speed bump across the road with some of Grandpa's gravel that he had in the drive way. Anyway, needless to say he wasn't happy with us, but never yelled....he just said don't do that again and started sweeping it all up. I also remember him taking us fishing at the ponds....we would only catch little perch that anyone else would have thrown back, but he would let us clean them up and fry them. He would pick Keri and I up everyday from school and if we ever needed anything we could always count on him. I know that it is the little things that he did with us that were such a huge impact on our lives. We just loved him!! I know that someday I will see him again and we will be dancing with Jesus, as well as "riding on rain drops".

The Pool & 15 Month Old Well-Child Check

Tyler, Keely, Marlee, Maggie & I head off to the pool yesterday with my sister, her friend Amy, our cousin Lisa and our Aunt Donna.....between us all we had 10 kids there. We had so much fun and all of my kids just loved getting to play in the water. Even Maggie warmed up to the water! We then came home and took the most wonderful long nap....it was great.

So, yesterday morning I took the girls to their 15 month old well-child check up. They both did really well...Dr. Scott was just amazed that Marlee could talk so well and that Maggie could understand so many things that you told her. Here is the stats.....Marlee weighs 23.2 lbs & 31 1/4 in. tall------Maggie weighs 22.4 lbs & 31 3/4 in. tall. Even though Marlee weighs a little more than Maggie; Maggie definitely eats more.

That's all for now.......~;-)

4th of July pics

Me & Eric.....No the sun is not in our eyes. We just like to squint!

Marlee, Tyler, Keely & Maggie (Take 1)

(Take 2)
(Take 3)
Look we all fit in the wagon.....Cannon looks a little nervous.
This is where they put us to watch the fireworks.....It kinda looks like jail..huh?

Sis & Mason

Our 4th was so much fun!!! I hope you all have a wonderful week!!