Hello Camera. I would just like to say a word.

The other night Ray and I watched a freaky movie called Paranormal (or something like that); it's about this girl who thinks she is being stalked by a demon so her boyfriend goes out and buys a video camera so he can get proof of her demon on tape. The whole movie is told through their camera footage. It's quite a scary movie, but this movie prompted Ray to put a camera in Hannah's room. Lately, she says she can't sleep because she hears things (like one night she swore that someone called her name). Nothing special happened during Ray's taping, but this morning, we caught Emily sneaking into Hannah's room (they know the camera is on--they think we are watching them to catch them sneaking into bed together), and when she leaves the room (crawling so the camera doesn't see her), Hannah moves to the camera and talks to it.

I couldn't stop laughing after seeing it!

Thank you.

A Year in Review

2009, for me, will be remember as the year (in no particular order)...

We had a week off from school because of all the snow and ice we got. The girls played with Maggie and Samantha non-stop. I LOVED this week because I felt at home...



We got our new t.v., wii, and my ultimate favorite--Band Hero! We have spent hours playing as a family and with our families...



Hannah, Emily, and I took Grandma Heckle to the Mother/Daughter tea at their school...I had to rush Emily straight from her soccer game to the tea; she had to change in the car, and when we got there, I realized she had her dress on backward!



Hannah made her 1st Communion in a dress I made her...



Jo Ann quit playing soccer...something I will miss dearly...



Hannah and Emily began Karate...



Ray ran his first ever Half Marathon in the Flying Pig. We followed him all over downtown and were so proud of him...



I had my 20 year high school reunion and actually felt good about the way I looked...



Mya came into the world...



We took the kids horse back riding with the Durbins...



Hannah got her ears pierced...



We went with Sue and Patrick to watch the fireworks on Labor Day. The girls were so excited to see these fireworks since we were rained out on July 4th...



We went snowtubing for the first time as a family and with family...



Ray took the girls to their father/daughter dance as a cowboy and cowgirls...



We went to the Clermont County Fair for the first time. The girls were hesitant to ride the "big" rides, but by the end of the night, thanks to Ed's coaxing, they were enjoying the heck out of those rides and they can't wait until next summer's fair...



Ray finished the basement, working like a dog all summer long...



The girls rollerbladed for the first time...



Hannah and I went to the park the day after her 1st Communion for some lunch and some tennis. What I remember, though, is being sick, very sick, and badly sunburned...



Both Hannah (especially Hannah) getting scared in the night and coming to our room to sleep on our floor...



Watching Hailey and Emma during the summer, a very wet, soggy summer, with no Grandma's pool to go to...



Making my first Craig's List purchase and finally feeling like my house is coming together...



Watching Emily play in her first ever basketball game. She amazes me with her natural athletic ability...



Going bowling for Ed's birthday (sorry for the sideways picture--too lazy to rotate it!)



Going to East Fork to ride Randy's SeaDoo. It took a lot for me to get in that lake water...



Trying out camping for the first time and getting rained out...

And Brian's first ever fight and win in the cage.

There are of course many more memories of birthdays, anniversaries, and holidays, but 2009, for me, will be remembered as a very challenging year. I struggled a lot with my health and my energy and my creativity. I struggled with being a good teacher, a good mother, a good wife, and a good friend. Being so sick and so tired most of the year (I didn't start feeling better until November) left me drained; enjoying life was difficult. Don't get me wrong, though; 2009 wasn't a bad year; it was just a difficult year. Hopefully, 2010 will find me in a better place!

Here's hoping that 2010 finds us all in better places! Happy New Year!

Got 'er done!

Okay...so I did it...I sent in 3 layouts for submission tonight to my favorite scrapbook magazine. They had a call for pages made only using paper and cardstock. So far, I've made three and might make one more tomorrow. I'm not so sure I made anything they will choose, but at least I can say I tried.

So there. I threw my knapsack over the wall (remember that post?) and have started looking for it on the other side! ;-)

Another one I like

The night we went to visit Santa, Sue, Patrick, Mya and my family went to Rincon Mecxico for dinner. While there Sue took our picture...Again, I have to thank Sue for these precious memories!

Finally...

I have some cute pictures of me WITH my family.

Yesterday, while at the bowling alley, Sue and I had a conversation about how we are the ones who ALWAYS take the pictures for our own families. Sue complained that whenMya looks back at all the pictures, she'll think that Patrick was the one who played with her and did things with her.

This is so true. It seems that once we women become mothers, we cease to exist in photos. I am still heartbroken that there isn't one picture of me playing in the ocean with Hannah and Emily while in Hilton Head. Not one. I was the one who took them into the water for the very first time and none of the adults present (there were 3--Ray, his mom, and his dad) thought to capture that moment on film for me. I captured lots of moments for them, but the thought wasn't reciprocated (yes, I'm a bit bitter...the only time I ended up in a picture was when i took a self-portrait of the 4 of us).

So, when Sue picked up my camera and told us to get together, I was overjoyed. I was even more overjoyed when I looked in the LCD screen to find these:

I especially LovE the one with me and Hannah is laughing; it's sooooo hard to get her to smile without a cheesy smile.

See how simple it is to make me happy? Just pick up my camera and take some pictures. Even if they turn out crappy, I'll have evidence that I was there and that I do indeed exist! ;-)

Bowling Fun

Today we went to Eastgate Lanes to celebrate Ed's birthday. I hate bowling, personally, but I did have fun hanging out with my family.

One of the most entertaining parts of the night was finding Aaron in a locker:

How cute is this last picture???!!

I have some awesome pictures of me and the girls to share that Sue took with my camera, but I'm tired, and I've already posted a lot of pictures, so I will save those for tomorrow!

Happy Belated Birthday Ed!

Future Karate Kids

As I have mentioned before, we recently signed Hannah and Emily up for Karate class. Emily was all gung ho, but Hannah was a bit reticent, that was, until her first class. Now she is hooked, and they are both excited about moving up in belts.

I don't usually go to Karate with them; that is Ray's one job. I take them to volleyball, basketball, doctor appointments, and pick them up from Brownies (not to mention all the other errands I have to run). But, last Tuesday, I went. With no school the next day, I had some leisure time on my hands (I'm not sure I'd call it "leisure" but I didn't feel stressed for time that night).

They stand with their backs to us facing a mirror, so it was hard for me to see what faces they were making as they practiced their moves. At one point, Hannah had moved just so, and I could get both her back and her face in the picture...

In this next picture, Emily is playing a "tag" game with this boy. I actually cropped this out of the background of a picture I took of Hannah so it's a bit blurry...

There are several instructors walking around monitoring their movements. They were great with the kids

As they master the moves (they have to demonstrate their move one-on-one with an instructor), they get a black tip on their belt. Once they have 5 black tips, they get to move to a belt with a stripe on it. Emily already had 5 black tips at this class because she has gone more than Hannah has (Hannah's physical therapy has gotten in the way). But, on this day, Hannah earned her 5th black tip, and she was so excited.

I know some people think (and have said), "Oh, you're one of those people" in reference to the different things Hannah and Emily are involved in, and I have to admit, that there are days where I feel stretched to the limit, and I can see Emily getting tired sometimes, but deep inside, I know this is good for them. I'm trying to give them opportunities to be well rounded, to be active, to have the chance to try new and different things. Right now, I have the economic capability to provide these experiences for them. It's like, I want to open the whole world up for them so they can see how much life has to offer. I'm not doing this so I can say, "My kid does..." whatever, I'm doing this so they can have a full life. I know when too much is too much. I make sure there is down time. There are days when we go nowhere. Life is about balance; right now, I feel like we are a very balanced family.