Fall Camping

This weekend was our annual camping trip to Lake Rudolph. We have approximately five families that go and always have a good time. This year was no different EXCEPT I had laryngitis the whole weekend. Those of you that know me, know I like to talk. If I had one dollar for everytime someone said "What?" this weekend, I could probably redo my bathroom. I woke up Saturday morning and could not talk. Actually, I could talk but it sounded much more like a squeek. Saturday night I thought for sure I would wake up with a voice Sunday morning but no such luck. Actually Sunday I still didn't have a voice and was starting to not feel so great. So today has been a lazy day on the couch in between loads of laundry.
Saturday John and I were in the golf cart preparing to go up to the carnival. John had already dropped off one group but there wasn't enough room so I told him to come back for me. We had just crawled in the golf cart and were in reverse when I heard this terrible CRUNCH. I looked to the side and saw a small ride on toy that had been in the street but it was still in one piece. I didn't know what we had hit. We hadn't hit anything....the large tree with the orange X on it that is to be cut down this week had cracked and fallen on top of our golf cart. This limb that had fallen was enough firewood to last most of Saturday evening. It was pretty scary but I was thankful that no one got hurt and that the kids weren't around.

The Good with the Bad

With my new job, I get the opportunity to travel. I will travel approximately four times a year for 2-3 days at a time. Not Bad! I get to stay in fancy hotels fit for a king AKA: doctor, they feed us nice meals and it doesn't cost me a penny. Well two weeks ago they told me that I would be going on my first trip to Philadelphia. I leave on Sept. 27th, my 38th birthday. I wasn't overly concerned about that because I would get to sleep in a bed like the one

above, ALONE!!! But then I realized it is also the weekend of our women's retreat. Unfortunately I won't return home until late Saturday so long as I don't get delayed in Detroit.

I hate that I am going to miss the retreat but since this is a new job I didn't really feel I could tell them no. So Girls, Have Great Fun, Great Fellowship and eat lots of food for me.

What Gender is your Brain?

***My Brain is 73% Female, 27% Male***
My brain leans female,I think with my heart, not my head.Sweet and considerate, I am a giver, But I'm tough enough not to let anyone take advantage of me! That is what the quiz says and I like it.
What Gender Is Your Brain?
http://www.blogthings.com/whatgenderisyourbrainquiz/

Finally found it!

What was I looking for? The perfect job that would allow me to work full time, be at home in the evening for my family and have additional free time for church and other activities. Thank You God! I had written about finding a new job which was Monday through Friday. Well the insurance was not what I was told during the interview. I had been told $200 a month for the family, it was actually $565.00. Big difference!!!! Well it just so happened that Welborn Clinic had called to see if I was interested in a part time job. I explained that I had to have full time and was curious if they had filled the Research Coordinator Position yet. They had not but have now!!
I can't fully explain it on this web page but I get to spend TONS of time with my patients. Alot of times they will have something very rare and we will be working with them closely to get their condition under control. We also do studies on very common things like allergic rhinitis-seasonal allergies. The people who are in the studies get paid for their time and receive EXCELLENT medical care. Since these drugs may not be FDA approved yet we are watching closely for any signs of problems. We do blood work, EKG's and anything else we might need to be sure the patients are healthy before they start and remain healthy during the study. We have a lot of paper work but that is OK. I have meet the primary physician I will be working with and he seems to be very pleasant! I have only heard good things about him. All of the girls I work with are great, very welcomng and very helpful. I will be in orientation for 3 months...think about this. I only received 6 weeks at the hospital and then had 6-11 ill patients on my own sometimes in very serious medical condition.
I will have my own office and phone line. Plus some other perks. I am totally excited and feel like I have truly found where I belong! This is the first time since graduating from Nursing school that I have felt like this.

My handsome son

Cj is sixteen now and quite the handsome young man. He is working at Holiday World this summer for his first job. A couple of weeks ago he received the Rookie of the Week award and I was quite proud of him....Last night he received his first speeding ticket...not so proud. Hopefully he will be eligible for the deferral program. He is responsible for his insurance, gas and truck repairs so it all falls on his shoulders. He was so upset that it hurt me. I told him that I was glad no one got hurt and I hoped he learned his lesson....Of course his story was shared with all the guys at church and Eric had to tell him he got three tickets in one year when he was seventeen. My only response was that he must not have been paying his own insurance.

I need a vacation from my vacation

We returned Friday afternoon from our trip to Disney! To answer the main question everyone has been asking... Ty loved flying. He was a little nervous at first but luckily we had a very smooth flight. On the second leg of the flight he actually fell asleep waiting for take off. On the ride home we hit some turbulance and this was a little scary ( for myself as well) but didn't last long and the remainder of the flight was smooth. Ty was looking out the window and was able to pick out "Alcola" and the race track-Ellis Park.
It was a very nice trip and Disney definately goes out of their way to make it enjoyable for everyone but it is still very taxing on a parent. I had both boys and my mother. It was go,go,go for five days.
At just about the time that my nerves were shot because he wasn't listening and kept running off I walked near a mother whose daughter had CP. The little girl was strapped in her wheelchair. She will never run off from her mother, she will never be able to wrap her arms around her mothers neck and she will never say "MOM" fifty times until her mother finally answers just to hear "I LOVE YOU." It makes you count your blessings a thousand times over. Don't get me wrong because I am sure without a doubt that this little girl gives her mom ton's of lovin' and is a precious child but it put me in my place so to speak. I stopped and thanked God that I had a healthy, energetic little boy who was having the time of his life and just wanted to make sure he saw everything. I spoke to both the mother and the little girl and looked for them later in the trip but never found them. I had a princess pin I wanted to give the little girl, instead I will just put in somewhere to remind me of that beautiful child and to remind me to be thankful for everything I have. Thank You God!!!

Wasting time

I have tried to post pictures on several occasions without success. Hopefully this will work. These are old but some of my favorites.
http://s203.photobucket.com/albums/aa19/jact412/?action=view&current=d056386f.pbw

Preparing for take off.......

Ty and I visited Dress Regional Airport today. We checked out the luggage area, games, and watched one plane take off. We discussed where they were headed and approximately how long it would take them to arrive. He decided that he is going to be sick when the plane takes off....He doesn't know it but I did get a new gameboy (his died several months ago) to help keep him distracted while waiting.
On a different note- This morning he spilled his milk on the kitchen floor and replied "It is a shame the kitten is lactose intolerant." and walks on. You have to wonder where they come up with this stuff.

Flight suggestions

Does anyone have suggestions for first time flyers? We are going to Walt Disney World in three weeks and Ty (6 years old) is scared. He has made numerous comments about just staying home with Dad. John is dreadfully afraid of flying and it has rubbed off on his son. I want him to enjoy the flight but am scared of the scene once we arrive at the airport.

Come on Perri I know you can come up with something original :)

Weekend at the ball park

Every year on Father's day weekend (which is also Ty's birthday weekend usually) John plays softball in the Plumbers and Pipefitters national Tournament in Cincinnati. It is always a good time and we all look forward to the weekend away. We had cake out by the pool for his birthday and will have the family over this coming Saturday to celebrate.

But back to the tournament, different locals from around the United States and Canada come and bring small metal pins for the kids to trade. Ty has more than 30 pins now and placed them all on John's straw hat.

We had excellent times for the games. The first game was at 6pm on Friday which they won. They then played at 10am on Saturday morning and won that game as well. We didn't have to play again until 7:30 Saturday night so they were able to avoid most of the heat. John's cell phone rang at 8:50 this morning and it was one of the players wondering where we were. We thought the game started at 9:30 but it was actually at 9. Needless to say we had to speed to get there in time. John ran up to the field with his sandals on, cleats in hand and no socks! One of the wife's had a spare pair of socks but he only had time to put one on. So his first at bat he had one sock on and one sock off- He hit a home run. His next at bat he hit a Grand Slam which was awesome. His third at bat they intentionally walked him. I felt like I was married to Mark McGwire. They were scared to pitch to him :). We lost the game but he played well. It was a great time for everyone.

The tale of two kittens

On Saturday we decided to get a kitten. It was a little 8 week old black and white male. They said it weighed 2.4 lbs but it was TINY. Ty chose to name him Charlie. The kitten wouldn't eat so I called the adoption center and they said to take her to the vet. After hanging up with them, she began to eat. YEAH!!! Well on Tuesday night she had the worst diarrhea I had ever seen for a kitten IN OUR BED! Yes we were in it. Gross I know. So Weds morning off to the vet we go.
John checked on him Weds afternoon and the vet said he wanted to keep him a couple of days. When I hadn't heard anything by Thursday I called the vet. Well they had been so busy they hadn't had time to call to tell me that he had died.
As you all know, Ty is pretty sharp but he is only five. So I call my friend with the rescue agency to fill her in on what has happened. They have another kitten from a different litter at Petsmart if I want to check her out. I do, I bring her home and Charlie is now a she.
Ty says "Charlie is missing a spot." I responded "I don't remember a spot being there." Ty states "Where did the white go, down here? (pointing to his belly). I don't answer because I am about to start laughing hysterically. I then walk in the other room so he doesn't see me. I return a few minutes later and Ty says "Charlie's voice sounds different." To which I replied, "He is better now so his voice is stronger." I think at this point he had caught on but decided not to explore further because he was just happy to have a kitten back in the house.
Children are much smarter than we give them credit for :)

Tagged by Perri

1. What is your first and middle name? Amy Sue
2.How did you get your name? Named after my Grandmother's best friend, Francis!! They called her Amy thank goodness.
3.What are your kid's names? How did you decide on your their names? Clayton James- My maiden name and his dad's first name but we call him C.J. when he isn't in trouble. Johnathon Ty-Dad's name is John William Tygre . The Tygre was from a dream that his dad was having when he was awakened and told Gayle was in labor. So we came up with Johnathon Ty.
4.Do you like your name? Could be better, Could be worse. It has worked for 37 years so I guess it is OK.
5.What was the most popular name (according to Social Security) the year you were born? Lisa was #1, Amy was #6.

Living a "normal" life

As many of you are aware, for the past sixteen years I have not had a "normal" life. I know there are not many people that do but I have have always worked a job where it required working some weekend hours. John and I have been married for 7 plus years. During our first year of marriage, I worked full time and was recovering from brain surgery. During our second year of marriage I worked full time and was pregnant with Ty. During our third, fourth, fifth and sixth year of marriage I worked full time and attended school to become a nurse. I am now a nurse and just recently landed a Monday - Friday 9-5 job. This was such a blessing that after I was offered the job, I hung up the phone, thanked God, and cried. I had been working night shift five nights a week and it was NOT working for me or my family.
This was my first week of working straight days with the weekends off. IT HAS BEEN WONDERFUL. Saturday we had a kickball tournament with our church, saturday evening was spent at my in-laws for a picnic. Today we went to church and hung out at home and tomorrow we are going to a pool party/graduation party for a friend's daughter. Life is Good!!

One stop shopping

Many of you reading my post already know that Perri is a tastefully simple consultant. Well as I was heading home from a day at the amusement park I remembered I was to bring an appetizer to a party I was supposed to be at in 3 hours. I stopped by Perri's house to hopefully pick up the mix for a key lime cheese ball. Well I was in luck. She had an extra box so all I had to do was to stop by Walmart for cream cheese and graham cracker sticks and I was ready. It gets better...Perri just happened to have a box of cream cheese and a bag of coconut bars (kind of like graham cracker sticks). My total grocery bill was $10.50 and I didn't have to stand in line. It doesn't get much better than that....The cheese ball was a hit and a breeze to make. I definately need to stock up!

One wish

If there was one thing I would love to do in this lifetime it would be to own a pumpkin patch. My favorite season is fall and my fondest memories with both boys are of going to the pumpkin patch. There was a pumpkin patch near where I used to live. It was run by an elderly man and his wife. He would have all of the pumpkins set up on the hill and I could spend hours picking out the perfect pumpkin. Unfortunately he became ill and was unable to keep up with the patch. I have not found one yet that is as close to home. We do own some land in the country. I wonder if my husband would plant me a pumpkin patch near his deer camp?

Just Starting

This is my first post. I love reading all of the posts from the ladies at church and decided this would be a good way for me to remember all of the funny things my boys say. For example, today Ty was asking me about my first car that I destroyed. I didn't understand what he was talking about and asked him to explain. He went on to talk about how my first car was totaled(I have never had a major car wreck)He went into this very long story and then said "You know, the one that left the tire tracks on your stomach." He was referring to my stretch marks.....You gotta love them.