Shoot & Clean

My Knight and I went shooting today. No we didn't skip church. Sunday School was great! I'm always learning something new. My Knight is an awesome teacher. Big Church (as our children always called it) was awesome too!

After church we all went home to have lunch. Everyone had something different. Sunday's are relaxing days. We try not to cook big meals or anything like that. Once we were done with lunch, my Knight and I went target shooting at the indoor range. Our children stayed in our Castello. They wanted to start decorating for Christmas.




Ok, this was with Soaring Amongst The Clouds' pistol, Giovanni. Yep, she named her pistol, Giovanni. What's funny is that, that is my favorite Italian name. That's a name I would of picked if I had a pistol. LOL! It's also the name I wanted to name one of our sons, but my Knight wasn't to thrilled with it.

I was having a little trouble figuring out how to line up the dots in the scope thingy. But towards the end, I finally got the hang of it. :o) Notice the bullseye? :o)



For this target, I used my Knight's pistol. Which I LOVED!!! The barrel is longer, so it didn't have too much of a kickback. It was LOTS of FUN!!!



This was the target my Knight used. He reallllllly ROCKS!!! All the holes in the middle were from 21 feet away. He shot at each order from a further distance. I can't remember what it was though. Notice all the holes smack dab in the middle?! He's AWESOME!!!



Cleaning a gun is not something new to our Fair Maidens. So here, Soaring Amongst The Clouds got busy cleaning her pistol. Thank you sweetie for letting me use Giovanni. :o)



Father and Daughter, side by side. I LOVE this picture! You should of heard them talking and laughing. They were so cute!


Oh, by the time we got home, our Castello was already decorated. Well, all except the tree. Turns out some of our lights are no longer working. So I need to get some more. Traditionally we have homemade pizza for dinner on the day we put up our decorations. So that's what we had. Boy was it DELISH!!! Once again, our FAir Maidens outdid themselves! Thank you Baby Girls!

Cast Off!

YEAH!!! The Warrior got his cast taken of on Friday.



It so happens that The Coach was The Warrior's football coach back in 2004. He's great with children and the children love him. So it was great that he was the one that put the cast on and took it off.



Did I mention that he was also the one that assisted the orthopedic surgeon years ago when The Warrior had surgery on his elbow? Well he was. He had fractured his elbow and needed two pins put in due to the severity of the fracture. Praise the Lord this time around surgery wasn't needed.



He said his hand felt very heavy and stiff. The area around the fracture was still a little swollen, but nothing compared to how it was before. The x-ray showed it healed nicely. We were told to buddy tape it for the next 3 weeks if he's going to be doing any kind of activities and when he goes to sleep.



This is the machine they used to cut the cast off. Looks like a circular saw thingy. It's and old model. Their new one broke. We hope we don't have to see these kind of tools again!



This is what the inside of his cast looked like. The Coach asked us if we wanted to keep the cast, we declined. LOL! No reason to keep that around. Four weeks of it was enough!!!



You can see where they cut through the cast. I don't know if I could of sat still while someone used that machine to "cut" my cast off. But The Warrior was calm and collected. He amazes me!

All in all he's doing great. His wrist is tender and sore, but it's because he's been unable to move it while it was in the cast. He's not complaining, but I can see him favoring it. He's such a tough little guy. He goes back for a check up in 4 weeks.

Today...

... Soaring Amongst The Clouds, my Knight and I attended the concealed weapons class. It was awesome and very informative.

The class was 4 hours long. There were 20 people in the class. The instructor was funny and made the class very interesting. At the end of the class, we got to shoot a target. It was awesome!

I would of taken pictures, except, I broke my camera. :o( Yesterday, I was taking a picture of a rug I liked and I accidentally dropped my camera. Needless to say, I'm disappointed with myself and heartsick. I love taking pictures of my family, of our every day happenings and just stuff in general. I don't know if it's something work fixing or if I'm going to need to get a new one. :o(

Date Night!

YEAH BABY!!! My Knight and I went out on a date. It was a last minute date. But even so, we had a great time.

Turns out he had a Little League Board meeting. So we decided to go out after the meeting. He's the secretary. He thought it was going to be a short meeting. So I thought, no problem, I'll wait in the car. Then I figured, why not visit the outlet store and see if I can find some clothing for The Warrior. He's growing like a weed!!! I found three pairs of jeans, shirts for him and the girls. I hit the jackpot! Then I noticed that I had been gone for almost 1 hour. So I hurried back. Well, they still weren't done. So I waited in t he car. The meeting took 1 1/2 hours!

I have to tell the truth, spending time with my Knight is well worth the wait. We went to Outback (my favorite) and didn't have to wait for a table. We talked and talked and talked some more. We talked about our children and what's been going on with who. We shared our thoughts and concerns.

It was good to reconnect. We really haven't had much alone time lately. We know it's important to make the time for each other. Now I'm not saying we haven't talked or anything like that. But making time like we did tonight, is very important. Yes, even after 26 years a couple needs date nights. :o)

It's good to know that we are on the same page. It's comforting to know that no matter what, we are there for one another. It's a blessing to know that we are till very much in love and are committed to each other and our family.

When we got home JC and our children were all on the couch watching Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. JC hadn't seen it yet. G.I. Joe wasn't home yet. He had a basketball game and it was an "away" game. JC hung out with us for a while. G.I. Joe got home around 11p and he shared a little about his game. He had a great time and the won. He even scored three times. YEAH BABY!!! I look forward to his next game. :o)

I know I've said it a million, gazillion times and I'll say it again... I LOVE MY FAMILY!!! I love hearing about their day. I love spending time with them. I love seeing their smiles. I love hearing their voices and laughter. Being a wife and a mom is all I ever wanted. Thank you Lord for blessing me above and beyond what I dreamt possible. My cup runneth over...

All-Star Soccer Tournament

G.I. Joe was asked to play in a soccer tournament. Turns out that all the schools they played picked three players from each school to participate in the tournament. Even though G.I. Joe is not an enrolled student at the school he played for, he was chosen to play. What an AWESOME honor!

Did I mention that the other two students chosen from the school he played for and G.I. Joe were the only freshmen asked to play?! Well, they were. ALL the players on both teams were seniors. WOW!

I can't begin to share just how proud I am of my Squire, G.I. Joe. He plays with heart and soul. I pray that he will always have such passion in all he does. That he continue to walk the straight and narrow path God has chosen for him.

Allow me to share some pictures of the day...



G.I. Joe warming up. They were told they could wear their team shorts and would be given a white shirt. All the players on the team he played in, wore white shirts like his.



I know this looks odd, but I think it looks KEWEL! LOL! Pretty freaky looking!



The three players from the school he's playing for. They get along really well. G.I. Joe wore #9. Moon wore #6 and Man wore #16. Moon and Man have been playing soccer since they were wee ones. They are great players. G.I. Joe felt honored to be playing in the All Star team along with his friends.



You guessed it, another "hand" shot. My Knight didn't allow me the pleasure of taking his picture. :o( Don't know why, he's so awesomely handsome! His baby blues still make my heart skip a beat.



The evening was quite cold. Good thing we brought blankets and had thick towels. The quilt they are folding is one of my favorites. I wish it were bigger, but it's just a lap quilt. I love our colors... red, white and blue.



Can't believe I got this shot....



... or this one! I love to see their smiling faces.



Here we have the coaches and the players. From left to right... Coach Gerry, his son- Moon, G.I. Joe, Coach 24, and Man. Everyone had a great time.



Well what do you know, I did manage to get a picture of my Knight. :o) Too bad you can't see his baby blues. But that's alright, cause I get to see them. Be still my heart...



I love shots of people walking. Everyone's walking back to the car. Boy was it chilly! The wind was blowing too, which of course made it feel colder.



I took this inside the car. JC came along too. Did I mention that JC plays soccer? Well, he does and he's really good too! It was fun to "hear" him during the game. We all enjoy his company. Specially Soaring Amongst The Clouds.

We all went out to eat at a outdoor burger stand. I have to admit, the burgers were really good. After burgers, we went to Carvel. I LOVE their ice cream. Even though it was cold, I wanted to eat ice cream. Mainly cause we hardly visit that town and there isn't a Carvel in our town. I was freezing, but boy was my ice cream good.

Daughter of the King wasn't able to go with us because she had lots of homework. So she stayed home and got it done. I'm so proud of her for prioritizing. Way to go Baby Girl!

The Warrior spent the day with his best friend Bro. They went to see the movie Madagascar 2. It was Bro's sister's birthday and she had some friends over. So The Warrior was asked to go over and have some fun with Bro. He had a great day. Thank God for good friends.

All in all, we all had a great time. I hope JC did too. There is nothing like spending time with family and friends.

End Of The Fall Ball Season

Thursday night was the last baseball game of the season. The Dodgers played AWESOME! They ten run ruled the Indians. Which is awesome considering they have been in a slump for 3 weeks. But they played their hearts out and showed what an awesome team they are. I was so proud of them.

Last night was our team end of the season party. We had a FANTABULOUS time! We decided to have a parents against the children baseball game. There was a purpose for this. You see we had a couple of parents who were... ah... a little critical (to put it mildly) about their children. This is the perfect time to say, that some of those parents learned their lesson. It's easier said than done. It's easier when you are "coaching" from the stands. The children OWNED their parents tonight and they (the children) were glowing!

I took some pictures of the games, but it was in the evening and none of them turned out well. :o(

Gun Toting Mama

Today my Knight and I went to the gun range. :o) We signed up to take the class required to carry a concealed weapon. I'm sooooo excited!

I called yesterday to get some information. They told me the next class available isn't until the second week in December. We would have to pre-pay and pre-book for the class. So we went went to get that done today. Well, the class they told me about yesterday was already booked up. They had a class for the following week and it was halfway full already! Looks like lots of people are trying to get their permit before they take that right away.

We also signed Soaring Amongst The Clouds up to take the class. In order to get the permit for a concealed weapon, you have to be 21. So our other Fair Maidens aren't able to get their permits yet. But they will as soon as they turn 21. That's if the law doesn't change and we pray it doesn't.

In the mean time, we are checking around for suitable guns. Today I got to try a Glock 26. I enjoyed shooting, but I really didn't care for that particular gun. I like our 357 and our 38 special. So the search continues. I'm going to enjoy our search. :o)

A Memorable Baptism

I felt led to share this because I don't ever remember being moved at a baptism as I was today. JC was baptized today. It was done at his home, in his pool. He was surrounded by his beloved family and friends. It was a beautiful, spiritual moment and I was blessed to have witnessed it.



Before he stepped into the pool, the pastor read Matthew 3:13-17. Needless to say, my tears started flowing...



I have been to baptisms before. But I've never been to one like this one. I was moved beyond words.



Before he was baptized, the pastor asked JC to share how he came to accept Jesus Christ. JC shared his testimony and it was from his heart. I'm pretty sure I was not the only one that was touched by his words.



When he arose from the water I couldn't help but shed tears. As he walked by us, to stand by the door, all I wanted to do was to hug him. I wanted let him know how we (his family & friends), the angels and God were rejoicing because he had accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. I wanted to tell him, how his profession of faith and following it up with baptism was being celebrated in the heavens. There were others around and I held back. Maybe one day, I'll be able to share with him, just how blessed I was to be present at his baptism.

Swing Dancing!

Yep, you read that correctly. Swing Dancing has hit the Castello. Alumni University offers free dancing lessons. Immediately following the lessons, they have a dance. To stay for the dance, they only charge $5. Not bad for a night of dancing!




Well, Soaring Amongst The Clouds, JC (more on him later), Daughter of the King and Steps went dancing tonight. From what my Fair Maiden's have shared, they had a great time. This was JC's first time. My Fair Maidens and Steps have attended on and off for the past 3 months. They are really enjoying it.

JC is a young man that started attending the college/career Sunday School class we teach at our church. He's a nice young man. We are really enjoying getting to know him. This time around, I didn't pick his pseudo name. G.I. Joe did. But it's well picked. He's a young man that's walking the path God's laid before him. I've been wanting to hear his tetimony, but I haven't asked him. I'd hate to come across as judmental or nosy. I'll just wait until he feesl led to share. I just love hearing people share their testimony. God's good... ALL the time.

Soaring Amongst The Clouds Is Now... 21!

The other night I was in bed trying to go to sleep. But my mind was whirling with thoughts. When all of sudden, I realized that I had not written an entry about Soaring Amongst The Clouds 21 st birthday! What kind of mother am I!?!?

This is a belated honoring post about my first born... Soaring Amongst The Clouds...




Allow me to share 21 things about her...

* Her heart's desire is to be a wife and mother.

* Is a dreamer.

* Ireland fascinates her. She hopes to one day travel there.

* She loves watching romantic movies. If she doesn't like the ending, she'll make up her own. BUT she also loves to watch action/war movies.

* Her favorite movie is The Last of the Mohican.

* Enjoys listening to country music, but loves love songs of any genre.

* Reading is her passion...

* But so is traveling.

* She's a thrill seeker who enjoys adventures. She has gone: sky diving, kayaking, white water rafting, horseback riding, backpacking, hiking, snow skiing and indoor rock climbing. Hopes to do more of the same and others that I haven't mentioned.

* Has incredible athletic ability. Enjoys playing just about any sport.

* Loves children and children love her too.

* Is BEAUTIFUL inside and out, but doesn't see herself so, which makes her even more beautiful.

* Italian cuisine is her favorite.

* Loves going on mission trips.

* Would rather go on mission trips where she has to minister with physical labor than evangelize.

* When she was a little girl, she was quite the tomboy. Loved to dress in camouflage t-shirts and military green shorts and cowboy boots.

* Her favorite program is Man vs Wild.

* She's scared of spiders, bugs, scary movies (which she won't watch) and Fabio. Which I don't know why cause in The Last of the Mohicans, the main character, Nathaniel, has long hair.

* I know this is hard to believe (specially in this day in age) but, she's never been kissed. She's saving her first kiss for the man she will marry. She wants him to be her last, first kiss.

* She has a way of making up her own words and phrases. Around our Castello, they are known as"insert her real name here ism's". If you click on the link, you'll get a taste of her isms. :o)

* When she's around, there is never a dull moment.



Dearest Soaring Amongst The Clouds,

You have a way of brightening up my day. I love your isms, your facial expressions and your gestures. You are funny without even trying and I love it. I love seeing things through your eyes. God has gifted you in a mighty way. He's got and awesome plan for you. Continue to stay the course...

I love you...
Mom~