Blogging in the Back

Birdie's got a new pet...a dead cicada named "Scooby". We told her that she needs to take good care of it so it won't die. :) She's been taking it everywhere and "feeding" it raisins. We've been enjoying our time at home before we leave again next Monday. We had a great time in Arlington, TX with our preteens doing missions. I went as a cook. I enjoyed it but it was really physically demanding. All of the plumbing and cooking equipment was on the first floor. I was climbing about 15 flights a day with ice chests, grocery bags, crock pots, etc. I made up for it though and ate my weight in Little Debbie's!!! For a few quiet hours everyday, I was left alone with the bevy of Little Debbie's the other cook would buy. It was like a buffet from hell! It's absolutely my weakness so I don't know if being left in a cabin to sneak eat is my calling; I don't have enough self-control to just play cards or something normal. We've ruined my parents from ever taking Suzy's children to Six Flags. They brought ours down to join us on our Six Flags day so they could hitch a ride back to AR on the church bus. My parents said that they would be happy to bring the girls to us again next year but they WILL NEVER go to Six Flags again! Poor guys! Sorry! I'm placing my last few orders for Beatle's curriculum. I got further confirmation just today that I'm making the right decision for Beatle. I'll spare you the story but I just have a peace about it. At the present time, I'm sitting in the back of children's church listening to this goofy dinosaur/creation video Brent is having the kids watch. I feel guilty that these kids have to suffer through this and I'm blogging by the glow of the iPad so I guess I'll join them. TaTa

Noodlin' and Doodlin' (in my drawers!)

The Roberts family is sitting all clumped up toether, pillow pets, car seats and giant yo gabba gabba plush toys take over the First Baptist bus seats early this morning. Once again, we are doing one of our from Ok to Ar by way of Tx trips. We have spent the last three weeks running around like crazy! Three weeks ago, we had two foster boys--4 years and almost 2. We really fell in love with them! We were just a stop between a grandfather sending them back into care and a therapeutic foster home. As you can imagine, with 4 kids in the house there was no time for blogging. All four of them got along so well though. It was a simply wonderful week. That weekend, we realized that if we ever wanted to get the boys back on a semi-permanent basis and more presently, just to survive long road trips with two fuss buckets in the backseat, we needed a bigger vehicle. We traded in the Matrix (which we SO loved!) for a Honda Odyessy--same year, same miles. We really like the room and the entertainment package in the back. It's a really smart and well designed car. It was a lovely trip to Ok on the week of the 4th, thanks to our "new to us" car. Brent and I have joked for years that we'd like one of those privacy windows that roll up in limos to separate the back from the front, and the Odyssey is the closest thing we've found to it. When we got to ok, time flew. We relaxed when we could. I got a stomach bug and was down for most of the 4th. We were all scheduled to go noodling with my uncle that morning in a dirty, old ok river. I knew that if I called it off citing tummy troubles they'd think I was chicken and I can't have that. So, I toughed it out, knowing full well that if I did poop my pants in the river, it was already so yucky, no one would be the wiser. Most of the catfish had finished nesting and were headed out to the lakes but with my uncle Joe's help, we hemmed up a 5 lb flathead and he let me pull it out. Brent held the camera bag. :) at one point later in the day, brent admitted looking at me with my feet and body shoved up under a rock and pond scum floating around my face, he thought to himself, "I love that hillbilly woman." I'm a lucky girl to have someone who can look at me with hearts in their eyes at a time when I have the runs and am doing something as goofy as noodling. After our catch, we went to t-town and ate breakfast to celebrate. I ate dry toast and shivered with the chills till I begged my dad to take me home. Once there, I crashed all day. Got up, with the sweaty chills, put on a brave face and made t-shirts with the kids. I was no help to my poor mom that day! To be continued at a later time, we're fixing to make a rest stop.