End of June already?!

This month flew by! I got some things accomplished from my To Do List, but others didn't quite get finished as I'd hoped. I guess it's time for my July list to be compiled. Here's what'll be important to me so far:

July bdays posted on my Family blog, send bday and anniversary cards to family and friends, rest on the 4th, play drums more than once a week, swim more, eat better, reach the next level in our business (made it through the first 3 already! Yeah!),
attend a seminar, finish Phase I of my Genesis project, donate another bag of my clothes that are too big or too small, have tea with my daughter for her birthday at our favorite tea parlour with 2 of her friends she otherwise doesn't see for months at a time, drop 10 more pounds, go to my son's 8th grade graduation, and enjoy a 2 week break from my 2 youngest as they visit their grandparents up in the mountains.

And if I'm lucky, maybe I can get away for 2 days at the end of July to the mountains too.

More Memories Gone

This morning I read online that the China Tea House in the town I grew up in, burned down. This was a favorite hangout for me and my friend Michelle. It seems like we must've eaten there almost every week for years once I got my driver's license. We spent hours there laughing and sharing. They used to have Chinese lanterns over each table and although I'm not proud of it today, it used to be a challenge to take a tassel off the lamp and leave with it, without getting caught. By the time we'd spent a year or two going there, most table lanterns were missing quite a few. I don't even know what I did with all of them. We also took a napkin and a coconut shaped drink cup...yeah, we were young and stupid, and not yet Christians.

You know, we also lost our wedding location a few years ago when the property was sold and knocked down for something else. It just goes to show, you need to get pictures of meaningful places and things - not just people - because nothing lasts forever, and later on, that photo will be all you have to remember it, and share it with your loved ones in stories of fond memories.

Summer Plans

What a great summer this is going to be. Although I won't get to do everything I'd like to do, like attending my sister's wedding and visiting family/Boston, or getting to San Diego, it's still going to be great.

My oldest and youngest will be spending 3 weeks at their grandparents' house both visiting and earning money doing odd jobs. That'll give me some time to spend with my "middle child" to try to calm his angry spirit. He's been so quick to lose his temper for so long, I hope some one-on-one time will help calm him down. He gets a lot of attention, but if his siblings do too, it's like his didn't count.

After that, he'll get to spend 2 weeks up there where he loves it so much. I don't know yet if the other 2 will come home at that time, or if one will come home, or if all 3 will be there - and I may be child-less for 2 weeks - wouldn't that be amazing?!

In any case, I'll get to relax, spend time by the pool, sleep til 8 or 9, read stuff "for me" for a change, and who knows what else! It's just what I need before we start up our new curriculum in August.

Although I love to travel, with gas being over $4/gallon soon, and maybe even up to $5/gallon before summer's over, I'm glad our major business convention is right here in the city. Last year we had to go all the way to Utah, but this year, we'll save money, don't need to stay in a hotel or eat out that weekend, so we can spend less than usual.

I'm really looking forward to this summer.

School's over (sort of)

Well, we did it. We finished this year's assignments, but we'll have to carry Spanish through the summer. Adam needs it for a high school credit next year. We missed a few weeks of school during the year:

2 Wks. of Drama Dress Rehearsals and performances
1 Wk. of Adam's Teen Pact government experience
2 Wks. when public schools were out so the kids could play w/their friends
2 Wks. we take off around Christmas & New Year's

So now we've made up almost all of it, except Spanish.

I also instituted a reading contest for the kids. If they read 5 books in the next 8 weeks, they'll go to a pizza/arcade place and can bring a friend. Jordan already read the first Narnia book, The Magician's Nephew and she's half-way through the book Sounder (about a dog). Logan's reading a fiction book about Silas, a scribe hired to write things Jesus said. His dilemma is that he's trying to decide if he believes Jesus was the true Messiah sent to save the world - or just a nice guy who seems wise. Adam has told me he's not interested in participating. Last summer he read 5 books or more with no contest or reward. I may do something nice for him anyway.

I'm excited about teaching next year. I've got the new curriculum I'm using, got all the schedules figured out, the kids' notebooks are all set up, I've got the library books I'll need for the first month already in my "wishlist" cart online with the local library, I've ordered all the school supplies I'll need, and I'm now ready to take the summer off.

If things go well, I'll go to lunch and a movie for my anniversary, take a trip to a lake with the kids (we have quite a few to pick from), get 2 days with adults at a Summer Convention for our business - no travelling this year - it's right in Phoenix - how cool is that?! I'll try to get with friends for lunch once in a while, spend the 4th of July with friends, go to Adam's 8th grade Arizona state graduation in July after the Homeschool Convention in Phoenix. I'll read, swim, sleep in (that means til 8:30), get caught up on writing, studying and scrapbooking, and with a little hard work, raise our Monavie business income from an extra $100/week to an extra 2 or 3 hundred a week. We've got over 90 people in our business now and I'm making more than I would if I went out and got a job for 20 hours a week.

Yes, I think it's going to be a nice, relaxing summer.

Summer's almost here!

School's finally wrapping up for the year. I think the only class that'll have to run through the summer is Spanish I. We need to finish it all so Adam will do well in Spanish II, and it'll set the grammar solidly for Logan even though he wants to take French I and II in high school.

I picture a summer with lots of time to swim, sleep in, rest and read. Adam may be working at Chick-Fil-A in the mornings/afternoons, Logan & Jordan want to spend most of the summer at their grandparents' house up north. I think they'll go for 3 weeks from the end of June til the middle of July, but that's about it. During those 3 weeks, I can focus on throwing/storing away stuff from their rooms, getting the house really clean, going to lunch with my friends, reading all the non-school books I've been waiting to read, and relaxing by the pool and swimming.

I'm hoping to do a trip for a few days around the end of July. With gas and money being such a problem lately, we may only get to go to a lake nearby, but at least it'll be something to do together. I also want to try to make some of the fun stuff in our Backyard Ballistics book - especially the potato canons, match rockets, and the fire kite.

For Jordan's birthday, we'll probably skip the loud party and choose another day at Abbey Gardens Tea House for her and just her closest friends (and their Moms). Last year was great, just 6 of us. This time, maybe we'll choose Tina & Britani and Stephanie & Jessica...it's up to her, we'll see.

Maybe someday we'll get to San Diego for a vacation!

Tea Party for Grammie Cross

After years of not being able to leave the house, I decided that since Grammie was doing better and moving around now, I'd bring her a tea party to her. We enjoyed tea treats in the patio room with 4 generations. Yeah, I know the generation for me should be Tim, but Mom didn't have any girls! We even have 4 teacups we used marked "Grandmother, Mother, Daughter, and Granddaughter". I hope to see them passed on long after Jordan's using the Grandmother cup. By storing and keeping them together, hopefully it'll be a reminder to the future generations to make time to be together, even if it's just for an occassional cup of tea.

The Music Man

Well, we made it through 5 performances of The Music Man, the kids all did great. It was one of the hardest scores to learn (just my opinion) with all those tongue twisters and rhymes! I was so proud of my boys.

After the performance, we took a few days off to go up north and relax. We did everything from Tea Parties to riding 4-wheelers. Now it's time to buckle down and get our school year finished up.

A good scrapbooking convention!

This weekend I had fun at the Creating Keepsake's yearly Mesa Scrapbook Convention. I'm so fortunate that I only live about 5 minutes away. I took 8 classes, all in a 24 hr. period from Thurs. night to Friday night. I have a table full of my projects, not to mention I brought home extras, goodie bags, prizes and others stuff worth more than I spent to go - so it was a good time.

I also met a new friend named Serena. She lives just a few minutes from me and now I have someone I can scrapbook with. She's not married, has no kids, but she's older than me by a few years. She's a lot of fun and we have so much in common. I homeschool and she's working at a local community college while earning her degree to become a teacher. We even jumped out of our seats at the same time to teach others around us how to do a difficult project in one of our classes.

So here's what I made:
An accordion album, covered front & back with great paper and lots of the new velvet paper. A rolodex-type system scrapbook, 3 photo clip stands (made from binder clips), 3 solid, heavy, wood photo blocks I'll cover with photos, 5 great layout pages with photo matte cutouts, and even 2 with moving parts!, a travel tag mini book, a see-through acrylic mini album, a FRIENDS shaped album, and some other stuff I'm probably forgetting.

I only do this once a year, and the homeschool convention once a year. Those are my 2 to 4 days a year I take for me. The other 361+ are for others.

Monthly and Weekly Goals

How many of us have set yearly goals only to forget what they even were by the time March rolls around? I usually find forgotten lists around August and then scramble to see what I still have time to complete. I'm learning to break it into smaller pieces to get more done that's truly important.

I now set monthly goals in several areas: my work (can be your job, home business, even stuff to get done regarding housework if that's your daily job), my health, my mind (what I'm going to read to get better), my friends, my family, (who I'll connect with that month), my finances, my faith, my recreation, and my renewal (what I'll do for me).

After you figure out some things you'd like to get done, then break it into weekly goals - week 1, week 2, etc.

If you need to, you could even break it into daily bites, like to read 10 minutes, or 1 chapter every day.

Here's an imaginary list to get you started:

May:

1. Reach the next level in our company.
2. Order next year's Math curriculum.
3. Donate all outgrown and unwanted clothes to the Goodwill bins.
4. Drop 5 pounds by walking 3 times a week and eating healthier, smaller portions.
5. Read The Eighth Habit by Stephen Covey.
6. Call Elaine in CA.
7. Talk to Lynn on the phone again.
8. Take kids to a movie.
9. Date night with spouse.
10. Get started on Sharon's gift.
11. Stick to $100/week grocery budget.
12. Read Psalms 1 - 20.
13. Enjoy going to Scrapbooking Convention just for me.
14. Take a trip to a nearby lake.
15. Write the next chapter in my book.

Now 15 things may seem like a lot to work on in just 30 or 31 days, but if you break it down to Weeks 1 - 4, it's not so bad:

Wk 1: Find 2 new businesses, go through drawers for unwanted clothing, walk MWF, read first 1/4 of book, email Elaine to set up time to call her on the weekend, check out movie lists, plan date with spouse, buy items for gift-making, read psalms 1-5, attend convention, pick a lake to visit, write 5 pages this week in my book.

See, now it's manageable, not to hard, just break it down and get more done. Even if you don't get it all done, you'll get more done than if you hadn't planned, right?

Beginning Soccer season

This week is Jordan's first time trying soccer. She's been a dancer 5 years. She can do ballet, tap, jazz, and now she has to learn to be more aggressive, and play as a teammate. Yes, she can do all the stretches, and she's got strong legs, but the whole concept is so different.

When she was in dance, it was a lesson in personal responsibility. The challenge with soccer will be if she accept her mistakes, own up to them, and not blame her faults on her teammates. I suspect the first time she takes a soccer ball to the face she'll ask to quit, but she'll need to learn the term "recovery time". You know, how long it takes to get over doing something wrong or embarrassing and to get back to playing your best again.

She's got the best coach in the league (in my opinion). He loves the kids, he's more concerned about their fun than fierce competition, and is careful they don't sustain any serious injuries this young. He'll push her further than she thinks she can go, but she'll learn that mistakes are part of learning.

I'm looking forward to it, and when the season's done, I'll look back and tell her how proud I am of her.

Before I turn 40...

After recent commercials for The Bucket List movie, I've decided to come up with a

Before I Turn 40 List

Here's what I have so far:

1. Build a successful Monavie business to the level of Diamond (or above). This will allow for the other things on the list.

2. Pay off all credit card debt, the minivan, and get Tim a new bike.

3. Donate money to the Africa Hope Center, the M.O.R.E. Foundation, e3 Ministries through donating to our friends the Berrymans and their children, the Brooks'.

4. Take the kids to the Grand Canyon.

5. Visit my Grandmother in Boston.

6. Drop 30 pounds.

7. Go on a family cruise at Christmas.

8. Move into our new house.

9. Plant a garden.

10. Help 6 people in one year to become self-funding, financially free. We've already hand-picked 4, have an idea for the 5th, and the 6th, I don't think we've even met yet.

So, the clock starts ticking today - one year to make all this happen.

My Birthday, already?!

My birthday is Sunday the 30th but I got to celebrate early. Tim's parents gave me a few more pieces the the bathroom set they gave me for Christmas. It's for the new house and will match the 50's decor very well. I also got a card, cash and a purple shirt/pants set.

Last week, I was taken to lunch by 2 of the drama mama's (our kids are in plays together). We went to Abbey Gardens, my favorite tea house/restaurant.

Today, my friends from Bible study took me to Mimi's Cafe in Scottsdale. I spent time with Cathy, Pam, Stephanie, Elaine and her kids (visiting from CA), Tracy, and Sallie. They blessed me with their company, words, cards and gifts. I'm so blessed. I hope they know how special they are.

My best friend EVER, Michelle, also remembered my birthday and wrote me a sweet card that said all the things I feel for her too. I treasure it.

Tuesday I got another little gift from my friend Virginia, and the other ladies at bible study signed a card for me. I look forward to it the most every year. It reminds me why I do what I do when it's hard.

My mother sent me a card with a dollar for every year that I am - very cute, like a little kid - but I'd guess she had to really scrimp and save for it, so it's also greatly appreciated.

I got another card from my Aunt Brenda. She and I were close through my teens/early 20s. It means a lot that she remembered.

As for the rest of the family - they always let me know I'm loved, so I miss them, but don't expect anything from them - they've all given me something I needed - to belong.

I'm so happy.

Spring Break's here (sort of)

The next 2 weeks will be a little more fun than usual. I purposely scheduled the kids to have less work and a few less classes for the next 2 weeks. This week is spring break out here and since some of their friends are in the public schools, I wanted them to have time to play with them. Next week, the kids all go back to school and our favorite places won't be so crowded - so we'll have a 2nd week of lighter classes so we can fit in a trip to the zoo, the science center, and maybe a place we haven't been yet - like to a lake, or a new museum, or a play or something.

The weather is in a state of change here. We hit 83 a few days, it was only 60 yesterday, cloudy and very windy, and today should be in the low 70s but sunny. I'm thankful for every cool day we have before it gets into the 90s, and then the 100s. We usually hit 100 around Mother's Day, and it stays over 100 until September/October. It's still okay til about 107, then your eyes hurt going to the mailbox. (hard to explain)

Anyway, for those of you in a cold climate, you'll be seeing grass and flowers before you know it...just hang in there...winter can't last forever.

Our new adventure!

On March 1st our family joined up with the Monavie company at www.monavie.com.
We've been around MLM's for 20 years, but OMG is this different! In the very first week, we're making hundreds of dollars, it's easy, and we haven't sold a single bottle. It's just $39 to join, and you drink healthy juice made from a blend of 19 fruits, leading the way with the acai berry - the number 1 free-radical warrior, the most powerful antioxidant food source known to man.

We get healthy, the company lets us join in for next to nothing, and no one recommends we go to lots of meetings or sell stuff. Making money was never this easy or this much fun.

Anyone that knows us, especially Tim, knows that we make every decision with logic, not emotional hype. If you know us, you also know we don't waste money and always look for the best deal. Trust me when I say, you can do this too.

They pay weekly, their only a binary (2 legged) system, so everyone grows fast, and everyone gets to benefit from not only their own work, but that of others as well.

A big plus is that the company runs the M.O.R.E. Foundation, which is a non-profit foundation to build orphanages in the slums of Brazil. They currently feed, clothe and educate 800 kids daily in a land filled with daily murders and streets run by drug lords.

Check out their site, watch their videos on the acai berry product and the compensation plan. It just may be the answer you were looking for in an unexpected source.

Our latest venture...

This week Tim & I signed up with the company Monavie. With so many people fighting health issues and especially cancer from free-radical, abnormal cells, their product makes sense. It's from the acai berry, preserved by a procedure that retains 99% of the berry's nutrients. (Most store-bought acai berry drinks aren't as healthy, since the berry loses all but 12% of it's nutritional value in the first 24 hrs. of being picked). Their flash freeze process done on-site in Brazil makes all the difference.
You just drink the Monavie juice, just 2 oz. twice a day, and it's a blend of 19 fruits from the 4 corners of the world, and has the anti-oxident and nutritional value of 7 - 9 servings of fruit. It's not a cure, not medicine, but it's a superfood, which means it can sustain life on its own. How cool is that in a society where we never eat enough fruits and vegetables, and those we do aren't natural anymore unless you buy organic?

The best part is the money. We've been involved in other systems before, but they never had this kind of money, especially this quickly. I had the opportunity to meet people making thousands of dollars a WEEK and they aren't superstars, or the unusually successful type, and they've only been in a year or less! The cool part is, we can start for just $39, not hundreds and hundreds.

Finally, there's light at the end of the financial tunnel and it isn't a train!
It's good to have hope again.

What did the world do before video games?

I've spent most of the day watching my son and my husband playing video games. I enjoy using the wii as much as the next person. It's fun to play tennis, bowling, golf, baseball, shooting, billiards, and more - and the mii people/characters are so cute! I love creating them and downloading cute ones like Chicken Little, Yakko Warner and Snoopy. But the system's been on at least 8 hours today. First Adam plays online against people in Guitar Hero III, then in Medal of Honor 2. It's very different from playing against a computer, or someone in your house. But now even my husband's addicted to playing the online WWII game! It's kind of funny when Tim says, "You know, Adam, you've been playing for over an hour..." Then he proceeds to play for the next hour and a half himself!

Meanwhile, I sit here in our tiny living room wishing we had the new house already. I'd be in my room away from all the noise, or relaxing in the swimming pool, or enjoying the clear, warm, night sky, or making something in my beautiful new kitchen.
But here I sit, wondering, "What did the world do before video games?"

I remember growing up, my parents would put me on the back porch, threaten me if I left the yard, then locked the door for the next 3 or 4 hours. I spent so many hours on our postage-stamp sized yard in the city with nothing to do but draw, read, and occassionally exchange a few words if a neighbor came out.

My kids used to always play outside riding bikes, climbing trees, playing on their swingset, digging in the mud, you know, outdoor stuff. Here we don't have a yard, so they can sometimes play a sport in the grassy common area, or ride their bikes, but I can't wait til we're in a neighborhood where they can walk around, explore, meet the new neighbors, and play at friends' houses.

Anything but waste hours on end playing games and staring at the TV. The part that really gets me is that the war game that they spend hours playing doesn't involve activity like other wii games - it's just like all the rest - great for building couch potatoes.

I hope we get the house soon!

I can't wait til late March/early April !!!

My friend Michelle and her husband Elio are moving here from MA in August (or sooner, if possible). Her Mom, Ginny and her husband Steve are moving out here too! I've had so much fun this past week taking pictures around town to send them to keep them motivated during those long, gray, cold, winter days back east. I can't wait til they get here and see how pretty and colorful and sunny it is here. They're going to just love it, I know it. Their cost of living will go way down so they'll have tons more opportunities once they're here. I'm so excited their coming, but I'm also very excited FOR them and all they great things that they in store in the near future.

To be reunited with Michelle like this is a long-time dream come true.

Adam's cool weekend:

This weekend will be pretty cool for Adam. Friday night is a sleepover with a bunch of friends for a birthday party. They're going to stay up most of the night playing video games. They'll be leaving for their own homes mid-Saturday.

Sunday, Adam will be at church, as usual.

Sunday night, the church where Adam attends his Bible Study (and played sports) is hosting an all-niter at Amazing Jakes from 11pm to 6am. (Yes, there's church chaperones and his friends are all going and the doors get locked so no strangers get in. Only church-invited people can attend.) They get video games, a pizza buffet, go-kart racing, laser tag, bowling, rock climbing wall, karaoke, bumper cars and snacks! Oh, to be 14 with so little responsibilities again!

But to do the right thing, Adam did both Friday's and Monday's schoolwork early so that he can sleep in Monday and not get behind on his classes. A motto in our house is "We do what we HAVE to do before we do what we WANT to do."

The Adam Fan Club

How funny is this? Jordan and her friends started an Adam Fan Club and so Jordan set up a blog where his members can keep up with what's going on in his life, see pictures of him, and learn more about him.

Maybe it'll be a good experience for him to learn to model good behavior, and be a good example because people are watching his every move. It could be an important lesson if he's going into law or politics.

The website is www.adamtowerfanclub.blogspot.com

Logan & Adam's Birthday songs

Make a free ecard - it's easy!

Logan turned 12 on Friday the 8th. Adam turns 14 on Sunday the 10th.