All I want for Christmas...

There are so many times when we all get caught up in the hustle and bustle, and commercialism of the holiday season that we forget what's important. We as a family know that the true reason for the season is Christ, and the gift we were given when he came to redeem us.

That being said, it is our tradition to have the children write out a list of what material things that they wanted for Christmas. Each child gave us a list of 4 or 5 things they wanted, nothing too ostentatious. We have been struggling financially because right now we only have one income. So Les went to the kids individually, and explained That we may not be able to get them everything on their lists, starting with the youngest. Nate looked Les in the eyes and said "That's ok. Just get me one gift.". Their responses were all the same.

We were both so moved because all we really wanted was for them to have a good Christmas. And, since Les really knows how to stretch a dollar, not only did they have way more than they expected, we also had a Christmas feast that we still have some leftovers from.

Bottom line, we got to spend a joyous, loving, sharing holiday at home enjoying family. By the way, this was Leslie's first attempt at baking a ham, and she knocked it out of the park! That's the only thing that isn't left over. We'll post some pictures later.

Good Morning!

Good morning, everyone!
Philly is having a good time here, she's loving the rubs and all the love she's getting. She's having a ball going outside with the kids, and she's warmed up to Charlie quite well. Can't say the same for Charlie, though. He's scared of the big bark!

Today we're going to take Bri driving again. We drove around the development on Saturday, to help her with her turns. Today we're gonna try some parking techniques. I can't park well myself, so Lawrence is gonna show her that.

The kids and I decided what we're going to make for Christmas dinner. Something small, but special for Lawrence, because he has to work all this week.

If you have little kids, KB Toys is going out of business, and they still have some good stuff. At least the one around here does. I did find something for the family, but all the stuff they had was for little kids. Lots of dolls, and I don't have any that play with dolls anymore. Man, I remember the days when they did.... memories.

Well, I'm going to go. I'll blog later!
Thanks, and God Bless!
Leslie

A house full of canines

For some reason, we have 4 dogs in our house right now. One of the dogs is just visiting with his master, the other is Nicole's dog that we're watching until Saturday, and Charlie. Then there's this other dog, a yorkie that we found. He followed Nicole's dog, and he is very friendly.

We put up "found" signs in the neighborhood, and we're just waiting for the phone to ring. He's well groomed, and he gets along with the other dogs. We'll see who claims him.

We had a good time yesterday. The kids made us breakfast and dinner. We had pancakes and eggs in the morning, and steak, mashed potatoes, veggies, and rolls for dinner. Very good food. They gave us dinner by candlelight, and turned om jazz while we ate. So cute!

Anyway, I'm gonna look on craigslist and see if anyone listed their dog.

Thanks, and God Bless!

Leslie

Do you know what today is?

It's our anniversary!

Today we celebrate our 11 years of wedded bliss. (Pausing for the laughter of all married couples worldwide) Like anything worth doing, marriage is alot of work. The notion that "all we need is love" goes out the window when true adversity arises. It takes no small share of trust and communication to make a marriage succeed. And don't forget, if you leave out the author of marriage, the tale can't possibly be written properly.

I love Les in a way that I have loved no other. The chords of love that bind us are strong. But without working on all the other aspects, our marriage would wither away. So like a tender vine, we must care for it daily in order for it to thrive. This unfortunately was not always my attitude. Along the way we've encountered many setbacks and stumbling blocks. Our marriage has been tested on every front. Some battles were lost, but we've kept fighting none the less, and our marriage is stronger for it.

We thank all of those who have loved, supported and prayed for us through the years. We couldn't have made it without you. So, DON'T QUIT NOW! And hopefully 11 years from now, we'll still be thanking you.

10 years and 364 days ago...

Lawrence and I were married.

We're not doing anything special, we don't have any money!! But we're happy, and that's all that really matters.

Anything else going on? Well we wrapped presents today. We're going to have Nicole's dog for the week while they go to Philly. The dog's name is Philly. Yes, I know. She's a cutie, and she loves me.

Lawrence is cooking tonight. He's making catfish. The kids are being crazy in the living room - Nicole's youngest son is here, and he and Deven are VERY talkative. I think they just like the sound of their own voices. Charlie stole one of his Christmas presents. It's a fuzzy squeek toy, with a tug rope going through it. He loves it, so the $2.99 toy was a great buy!

Anyway, I'm done for the night. Going to go eat soon, and then go to sleep!

Thanks, and God Bless!!

Leslie

Just more pictures from Friday and Saturday...

Oh, Christmas Tree...

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!!

We have our tree, and it's finally decorated! We did it last night. The pictures don't really do it justice. It's really nice. We do still have to add our truffles; we put them on the tree instead of candy canes. Here are some pictures:

Renee and Lawrence decided to decorate themselves:

Today, we decorated the front of the house. We didn't go crazy, just some ribbon, a couple of bows, and some lights:

So, what else - we took pictures for our Christmas card, and we'll send those our this week. I hope I have your address - if not, email it to me!

I had went to a couple of interviews and two open houses, but I was rejected on 2 of the jobs, and IKEA didn't call me. I'm still waiting on a couple more. I haven't given up yet.

The kids got their progress reports, and as expected, they did drop their grades a little, but not like they did in Philly. I'm still satisfied.

The girls wanted to put an end to the bunk beds, so we took them down today. They're now decorating "their side" of the room. Nicole suggested that we get different bed frames, instead of having the bulky wooden ones in the room, so they can have more space. We'll get some after Christmas. Probably after I get a job...

Anyway, I don't think there's much more to post, so I'll talk later!

Thanks, and God Bless!!

Leslie

I've applied to everything under the sun...

... and no one has called me yet. I'm tired of looking for a job, and I'm tired of waiting for the phone to ring. But enough about my depression, let's talk about the kids:

Nate has basketball practice today, and he's really excited about it. Lawrence takes him at 7pm, and he practices for 1hr. I think Lawrence is more excited than Nate sometimes! Nate's doing a good job. Last week he went for the first time. They ran different basketball drills and played a couple of games. We have to get him sports goggles, but without his glasses, he played pretty good.

Renee is so into "Twilight". She just got finished reading the second book. We also took the kids to the movies to see it. Bri, Renee, Nate, and one of Renee's friends went, and they loved it. Well, not Bri - she thought it was a pretty stupid movie. While they were in the theater, Lawrence and I walked around the mall. I was not wasting $5.00 to see that movie! She wants the third book now. I was able to get the second one on a great sale ($8.00!), but I think I can find the third at a good price.

Bri is having boy trouble. I'll leave it at that, don't want to embarrass her. I don't miss these teenage years!

We're probably going to get our Christmas tree tonight. There are a couple of markets that have trees for $30, so we're going to check there. We pulled out the decorations and started planning what we're going to do. I'll try to post pictures later.

Well, that's about it. Please pray that I find a job soon.

Thanks, and God Bless!
Leslie

So today's my birthday...

... and as much as I like to celebrate everyone's birthday, I don't like to celebrate mine. I try to get in the spirit, like we're going to breakfast today. Normally though, it's hard. Because it's right after Thanksgiving and at the start of Christmas shopping, I never have a good time. I had 2 parties when I was a kid, and only one birthday that was actually fun (28th birthday bash). My husband tries his hardest every year, but it seems to come up short. Like the time when he tried to have a surprise party at my favorite resturaunt. It was a bad idea, because it was black Friday, so everyone is spending money on Christmas. Also, everyone is still into their leftovers, so who wants to spend money on food? 5 people showed, and he had reserved space for 20. It was a little embarrasing, they had to allow others to sit at the table after waiting for about an hour.

So anyway, I tend to dread the day. I don't like getting older. Don't get me wrong, I'm grateful that God has given me another day to celebrate. I guess that's how I need to leave it.

Well, we had a good time at dinner this Thanksgiving. We went to Nicole's friend's house. She has lots of space, and everyone was able to enjoy something. The teen girls (3 of them) were in their room or with the adult women. The men and younger boys were playing video games in different rooms, so they were happy. I'm going to post pics later.

I think we're ready to go eat now. The kid who sleeps all day is now dressed, so we're going to head out.

Thanks and God Bless!
Leslie

The holidays

This seems like it's going to be a nice holiday season. Yes, we don't have much money, and I don't have a job, but God has given us peace, good friends and a very helpful family. He is taking care of us, and that's more than enough to be thankful for.
My kids, who were never into big Christmas lists, gave me a list of what they want. Without us even saying anything, they all decided to only choose 3 or 4 things.
Bri's list:
A pair of cute heels
A new digital camera
One of the new Guitar Hero games

Renee's list:
Ice skates (unlikely!!)
Some type of MP3 player
Demi Lavato's 'Don't Forget' cd (or Jonas Bros., Twilight soundtrack etc.)
Sim City Creator (a game)

Nate's list (it keeps changing):
Spore Creatures (a game)
Star Wars: The Force Unleashed (a game)
Alvin and the Chipmunks Undeniable (unlikely!!)

I'm praying that I can get a job before the holiday so I can at least get a couple of these things.

My interview for IKEA is tomorrow. There was alot of people interviewing today, and they're going to be interviewing for the next few days. I hope I get the job - I really like IKEA. About 75% of my bedroom is IKEA stuff.

Bri is in Philly for Thanksgiving, and her dad is going to take her to visit other family. I hope she has a good time.

Well, pray for me tomorrow.

Thanks, and God Bless!
Leslie

Why Type

Hi I have'nt blogged until now because I don't really like typing. Everyone else obviously likes to type but, don't blame me typing is just too boring for me. I don't understand why people type so much. Is it even a hobby? Someone needs to tell me because I'm clueless. Anyway you'll at least hear a little more from me from now on.

Well, I finally did it.

After over 7 years, I finally got a relaxer. I needed to do something to my hair. I'm doing alot of job hunting, and I want to be able to just run out the door if I get a good lead. With my locs, I had to make sure I touched them up, meaning washing and twisting them. After my locs, I had to straighten my hair with the comb, then use the flat iron, and it was still poufy. Nothing worked. So, here it is:

Nicole is a great hairdresser. She does Bri's hair as well, and it comes out very nice. It feels very different. I wonder how I'm going to get to sleep...

Anyhow, have you guys looked at facebook yet? It's a great spot to 'reconnect' with people. Lawrence and I have been on there alot in the past couple of weeks.

On to the kids: Nothing much is going on, Bri is definitely going to Philly, thanks to her father. He paid for her flight, and she's leaving Friday. She's excited. Renee's upset, but if she goes, I don't think she'll come back! She likes it down here, but she misses her Philly friends.

Well, I hope I have another interview before Sunday. I feel like I'm applying for EVERYTHING, but not getting called for much. I'm still praying and looking.

Renee wants to make a different dessert, when she does, I'll post it with pictures.

That's all for today. Thanks, and God Bless!

Leslie.

Job hunting sucks!

Especially in this economy. I had an interview today (I was given the appt. yesterday), but I was rejected. I wasn't there long, and they did the "we'll call you" routine. I'll find something.

Anyway, just wanted to vent a little. Will blog later.

Thanks, and God Bless,
Leslie

So I'm healthy and looking

I need a job badly. As I know many of you know, money is tight. Well for us, money is like a size zero jeans that I'm trying to jump around the room and pull up over my fat thighs. Nate poured himself some cereal, then realized we didn't have any milk. He wasn't happy.
Anyway, I do have an interview, but it's not until 11/23. Yes, a Sunday. It's a retail job. In the meantime, I'm looking hard and praying harder. Please pray too.

I've been getting health questions. Sorry I haven't updated anything. I had several tests come back, and all but one are normal. The only one that's not normal was one that says I have inflammation. Well, of course I have inflammation, that's what was wrong with my eye in the first place! So we're back to square one. Crazy. I'll go to the psychologist soon, I have a number.

So, I started a facebook profile after hearing 'Sign up on my facebook' about a BILLION times. It's kinda fun, so I think I'll keep it up for a while.

Nate and Bri started blogging more. Did you read it? Renee said she doesn't like typing, so unless I move her hands or type for her, you won't see anything from her.

I'm done. Don't have much else to talk about. Please pray for our physical and financial health.

Thanks, and God Bless!
Leslie

AMAZING! That's all I can say!

I'll blog more tomorrow.

comunity service

Community service good and bad. Community service can be good when you have friends to talk to or friends to make. Also, it can be good when you actually have things to do . It starts getting bad when you and your new friend talked about everything you could possibly think about and then you don't have anything to do and on top of that everyone is tired because they've been up since 4:00 in the morning. Also, when you are supposed to be getting food and it comes two hours late and its cold when it gets to you.

Today for ROTC I helped out at a Kids Voting station. That's when the kids get their voices heard in the election. The votes don't count towards the actual votes it's just to see what the future of America thinks. So many children came in today. Students from k-12 came to vote. The kindergartners were so cute. This one little boy came in and wrote his school code numbers backward so it look like E4p(349). Then we asked another kindergartner what grade he was in and he said Obama it was so cute.

This weekend, Saturday and Sunday, I am going to volunteer at a Renaissance fair. I have to direct cars of where to park. I did this one time and it was fun until people didn't want to listen or even just look at where the flag is being pointed.Sometimes people can be mean, but the important thing is to just pray for them and keep going on about your business and don't let them spoil your day.
Well I have to do dishes and get ready for school goodbye, i'll blog later.

I VOTED!

I hope you did! If you didn't, don't complain when the person you want to win doesn't. I'm not going to tell you who to vote for, but I did vote, and hopefully my vote was for change.

Renee and Nate had report card conferences today. Nate got 4 B's and 3 A's. His teacher's only complaint is that he missed 2 or 3 homework assignments. Otherwise, everything is great. He's quieter, and he likes being part of the newscast. Renee got 3 B's and one C. Her teachers had the same complaint - she needs to get her notebook organized, and she missed a couple of homework assignments as well. We're going to work on both of those. The great news, and what almost had me crying in the classroom, is all of Renee's teachers beamed about her! They all said how she is a delight, she does exactly what she's told, she participates, works with groups, and one teacher even said she's the most trustworthy person in the class!! If you know the challenges I've had with Renee since she was born, you know that I am extremely proud of her now! I told her as much when we were in the classroom, to which she asked, "So can we move back to Philadelphia now?"

Bri wants to go to the DMV soon, but I want her to study the book more before she takes her permit test. Maybe next week, we'll see.

Well, I'm going to be glued to the tv tonight - like everyone else, I guess.

Thanks, and God Bless AMERICA!
Leslie

Movin' on now

Ya know the hard thing about living a new life in a different place? What you can do to take advantage of the new chance you earn. I still have yet to find out what I may do with it, but I will soon. Life just gets so wild living in a new land, like the pilgrims, do you think they knew what to do when they came to America? I had no idea what to do, what to say, or where to go. I just thought "I'm a new kid in town, and I don't want to say anything stupid to ruin my chance to be accepted into the community." Although I have friends anyway, I miss my friends back in Philadelphia; Josh ( who has been my best friend from fourth grade),Travis ( who has been my best friend from kindergarten), Emmitt & Leo (twins who have been my best friends from first grade),and Trixi & Qudsiyyah (who have been my best friends from second grade). Those were my school, I also have church but that's a subject I'll get to later. I'll still be going strong throughout years.

School

Hi its Bri I haven't blogged in about two months. School is fine. I have a lot of friends now and I am doing good in all of my class. I have all "B's". Midterms were last week and I got my grade back for 2/4 of my classes. English I got a 85 which is a ''b', and in Spanish, my worst class, I got a 90 which is a high b, not an 'a'. I still have to get my grade for Civics and Economics and my grade for ROTC.

I just got done behind the wheel in drivers education. My teacher was nice. My partner was better than me, but I could parallel park better than him and control my speed better than him. When I go back to school My mom or dad has to get a paper from my guidance counselor and then I can go t the DMV to get my permit, yay.

My friends Amber, Brianna, Kyre, start their behind the wheel next week. I am happy for them. a lot of my friends are in ROTC also, but a lot of us don't have the same class.

I chose health

I was fired last Thursday. The day after posting about the struggle of work and my eye issue, I went to work. By 12:30, I couldn't read anymore. I had to leave. There was nothing else I could do. So I let them know, and they kindly advised me that they were going to end my assignment. I went to the opthamologist, and he gave me a prescription for drops to put in my eye every hour, as well as use my other drops 3 times a day, instead of 2. He asked me to get tested for lupus. I'm doing that today.
Yesterday, I went back to him and he is weaning me off of the every hour drops (they're steroid drops), and told me I don't have to take the other drops anymore. Yay! Keep praying for us.

Bri had her first 2 driving lessons, and she's doing pretty good! Lawrence and I were at the school to pick her up on Monday when we saw her drive in, make a turn, and park at the corner. It was very good for her first time ever making a real car move! Yesterday she said she went on the main road and did very well. Monday, she wasn't making the best left turns, but yesterday she said she did great. I tried to take a picture, but it's hard when you can't see. She has today and tomorrow to do more, then she can take her permit test. Then, she's going to want to get in our car to practice. Please pray for us!

I may be travelling to Philly next month. My mother is having ankle surgery, so I want to be there to help a little. Don't know if I'll have the funds, because I'm not working now. We'll see.

Nate was asked to participate in this 'Math Superstars' program, so he'll be getting more math homework every week. Not sure how he'll like it, but I signed him up. He needs the extra work.

School pictures: Renee has school pictures back, Bri took some, but they're not back yet, Nate forgot, so he didn't get any pics. I'll let you guys know.

Well, I'm off. Lawrence has an appt. today.

Thanks, and God Bless!
Leslie