Today was a fun day. Lily and Isabella dont go to school on Tues and Thurs so we laid low. Tuesday's are normally crazy, BUT today I decided to NOT do any therapy. I canceled them all! I needed a break...

I went out back and pulled out the pool. After scrubbing it down with bleach, the girls were dying to get in. After trying to be patient while the water filled up they were finally in!!! Here are a few pictures of them enjoying their day. We ate lunch on the back porch and when the girls got off the bus at 3:00 and realized we had been in the water, they were just about stripping their clothes off on their way in the house. Before I could get in the house from the school bus, Giovanna was already on the back porch naked.... too funny!

This clock says it all!!!! this morning I rolled over in bed, glanced at the clock and thought it said 6:37...I jumped up, ran and got Giovanna and Gabby up, took them to the bathroom, dressed them, rushed them downstairs to the table, all along thinking we will never get the bus at 7 am...

When i got them to the table and was getting their milk and cereal out I heard the clock striking on the hour...I hollar, "girls get up you will just have to eat at school this morning (something they have NEVER done before, so they thought I was nuts)"......to my great surprise I walk pass the kitchen again only to see the clock and it really said 6AM! So folks we were up and dressed ONE HOUR early this morning!!!!

I didnt hear not the first complaint tonight when it was only 6:45 and my girls were ALL tucked in and ready for bed. AHHHH its nice and quiet here tonight!

Extreme Home Makeover...

tonight is finally the night for the show to air the local family who won. It is the Jourdan family. So if your reading this at 7pm turn your TV on!

What a glorious day it was in Ft Jackson this morning! William and the twins were able to see one another this morning...attached are a few pictures of the great time together.

We are not Catholic, but we knew that there was only one Catholic mass on Ft Jackson...so all 3 decided that would be the only way they could see one another...so this morning at 8am they finally were all together in one place. William went in his uniform so he could blend in and then in walks the twins. Lyndsey is still on her crutches (I will make another post about all that) and then Michael. They werent sure if it would all pan out or not....The girls arent allowed to sit near the guys so they only had a few minutes to talk before it all started. Michael and William were sitting by one another and Lyndsey and her battle buddy were on the other side.William could see her and he said she cried through the whole service and was looking up at them. Oh I wish I was there....What a sweet moment it was for them. The twins are close and with this seperation, I think its been harder on them then what they thought. During the service lyndsey got up to go to the bathroom and michael seen her so he went as well. They were able to talk for a few minutes in the hall...After the service William snapped this picture of them together....He said that you arent suppose to hug or hold hands AT ALL in the military...BUt my sweet twins were able to get a quick hand holding in when noone was looking.....AWH I love these two!!

Here's to my sweet, brave and very close kiddos...

If you can find time, will you all please remember to pray for them both. Pray for Lyndsey's healing and for Michael's peace.

Thanks to you all!

Gabby has finally lost a tooth! Her bottom tooth was barely loose BUT the new tooth was coming in behind it... I started wiggling it for the last few nights and tonight it jumped right out of her mouth. She was scared to death. She wanted to call Daddy and tell him...she is now overly excited that the tooth fairy will be visiting her bed tonight while she is sleeping... I hope she doesnt forget.

REMEMBER TO TURN OFF THE MUSIC ON THE BLOG FIRST.

Good morning all...
I got this sent to me this morning on Facebook and had a really good laugh...thought I would share it with all of you...Im not a fan of the hip hop music but this little 5 yr old boy has got the moves...he loves to dance.

For your viewing pleasure this morning...

This was posted by Lyndsey to her facebook today...thought i would share it with all of you....

So, I did it! Believe me or not...it is official!
I joined the US Army on 1DEC08. I will leave for BCT at Ft. Jackson in South Carolina on 13JAN09!
This is a new journey in my life that I cannot wait to begin. I'm leaving many, MANY things, a family, a job, relationships, and best friends behind....but, this is no doubt going to be something that I will never regret! I'm so excited to begin this new journey in my life.
There are many people that doubt me, my abilities, my courage & strength, but I know & believe that I can and will do this. The love and support from my family and friends will help me get through BCT...oh, not to mention the day-to-day butt kicking that I will receive from my drill sgts.
People joke...."Do you think she will be able to wear her 4 inch heels, make-up, and have her hair fixed?" No, I won't...but, there's still the weekends :)
At the end of my 9 wks of BCT and my 20 wks of AIT, I will then be able to call myself a soldier. An American soldier that will defend this amazing country!

I am ARMY STRONG!

UPDATE:
-So, there was a side step in my BCT journey. I got a stress fracture in my tibia (shin bone). Basically, they gave me 30 days con leave to heal. I'm going back to BCT on 21April09, only to get approved by my doctor, if I'm healed, and take my PT test. I won't have to do the 9 weeks all over again. So, here goes nothin :)
Thanks everyone for thinking about me and praying for me!

Well the day has finally arrived....

Lyndsey is heading back to Ft Jackson to see if she can REstart her basic training. She is hoping to go to the Dr on Thursday or Fri so they can recheck her leg and see about the fracture. SHE is going to TRY to convince them to NOT make her REDO her victory forge week, since she was present for this last time. They graduated several other privates in her cycle last time even if they didnt go through this week....The only difference was they were NOT on a profile for an injury....so she is gonna BEG!

Please stand in prayer with us that she will return and go to the Dr to find out she is healed up nicely.... While home she was a very typical 19 yr old and didnt listen to everything the Dr told her to do...

WE heard from Michael today...he sounded so much better on the phone and was so so so happy to talk to us. WE told him to quickly take a photo and email it to us...so this jacket has no rank, no name tape and no US Army on it.... He said to tell everyone hello and he misses everyone...PLEASE if you havent yet, please take a minute and send him a quick note....he would really love it, even if you dont know him,...he said he loves mail call and cries almost everytime he gets mail.

He is set to graduate on May 29th. He will then stay there for another 9 weeks of schooling.


PFC Andrews William M.
1st PLT
E Co. 1-13th Inf Regt
Ft. Jackson, SC 29207

We are taking Giovanna, Gabby and Lily to see Disney on Ice tonight. I am excited! They have no clue!!! I heard it on the news last night and didnt say anything until I knew how much and things...so today I just purchased 5 tickets. The seats we got are in the upper level above the floor, but Im hoping this is good so at least we can see the whole stage. Isabella would probably like it to however I dont know what her attention span would be right now for sitting through something like this. The other girls....love love love TV and musicals...so this should be FUN! I hope they enjoy it!!!! Early birthday present for Gabby and Giovanna.
They turn the big 7 in May!!!!

This picture was taken the day he shipped out...look at that smile....

Here is Michael's address....PLEASE any mail of encouragement you all can send....the better....He is so homesick....make him smile!!! He loves the cards with music in them..


PFC Andrews William M.
1st PLT
E Co. 1-13th Inf Regt
Ft. Jackson, SC 29207

Here he is with 5 of our 6 awesome kids...this is the day Michael left for basic training.

Happy Birthday to my dear sweetheart William. He turned 39 on the 14th! His day didnt seem like any majorly special day...but I wanted him to know that he means the world to us! Just his presence's in our daily lives enriches us all. He is our rock, our hero and a very special Daddy! WE love you!!!

TURN OFF THE MUSIC ON MY BLOG...YOU HAVE GOT TO SEE THIS!!!

I pray everyone has a very Blessed EASTER day with your loved ones and friends. I feel so blessed to be a christian...my God died on a cross over 2000 years ago for me....little 'ol me...for all my sins. He forgave me for everything even before I was born....oh what a great and mighty God I serve.

This video is just a very SMALL example of the kind of love our Lord has for us...this father has devoted his life to triathlon training, because this is something HIS son wanted to do.. As you can tell from the video, his son is unable to compete in such training due to his physical abilities BUT with his father, he IS ABLE to do it...

I CAN DO ALL THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHO STRENGTHENS ME...PHILIPIANS 4:13

Tball

REMEMBER TO TURN OFF THE MUSIC ON THE SIDE BAR!!

Here is a video of pictures from the girls game. WE are now part of the Miracle League family...what a great family to be in. The girls love playing Tball and this has been a great first experience for all of us. We look forward to participating in this program for years to come. Thanks to the Miracle League, my girls can go out and have fun at the ball park...isnt that what it is all about anyway??

It is so much fun to watch these beautiful girls shine!! For them never seeing the game of baseball played before, I think they did a fantastic job! So you will be hearing more from the Andrews crew as we sing "Take me out to the ball game!"

Beach, Miracle League, Lyndsey and Michael!

Sorry for the total MIA!! It has been nuts for 2 weeks. Lyndsey is home, has been here already 2 weeks. She will be home until April 19th. At this time, William will take her back to Ft Jackson with him.He will be there for 2 weeks at a Officer school. What perfect timing. He will be there in case anything comes up...she is not too excited about total relaxation. She has done OK but could have done better. When she returns they will do another bone scan to check her fractures. WE are all praying that they are way on their way to healing...or better yet...HEALED! If they are healed the Army will put her in another class so she can hopefully just complete her last week and get done....we will see what they acutally do!

Mike is at basic training now...we got 3 letters from him this week, and he sounds terrible. He is so homesick, scared to death, and wondering what in the world he has done. I knew this would be more of a challenge for him than Lyndsey emotionally, but man, I pray it gets easier for him. PLEASE email me if you would like to send him a word of encouragment.... HE NEEDS all he can get! My email address is rlba272@hotmail.com

We went to the beach, Orange Beach/Foley for 4 days this past week. William had a work conference there and it was geared for families.....well lets just say, they put the conference at a location fun so the whole family can come along. It stormed the whole time we were there. Our resort was right on the beach, and we only got to go out for a total of 2 hours. the girls enjoyed it but were very upset they didnt get ANY pool time or beach water time in. With the strong currents in the ocean, and then lightning and tornado warnings, we did not get any water time. They liked walking on the beach and picking up shells, and getting our feet wet...

This was the first time EVER for any of the girls to see the ocean...I will add pictures later.

Today is the girls opening ceremonies for Miracle League T ball. They have played one game and LOVED it! The attached picture was from the day we went to get uniforms and have our first game. As you can see, all the girls didnt get their uniforms that day but they finally came in and will get them today! Be on the watch out for pictures of today's game.... They are bouncing off the walls with excitement!!!