Pumpkin Patch Fun

The kids have never been to a pumpkin patch so after watching High School Musical 3...we headed out to Hall's Pumpkin Farm in Grapevine. It is kind of funny to me because it is smack down in the middle of suburbia....but I guess it's still a farm. We had fun going through the corn maze and picking out a special pumpkin for each of us to bring home. I love this time of year because it means a lot of time with family. With Gene and I both being coaches, there is not a lot of down time so whatever we get, we cherish!

Logan's Stone Soup Supper

PEP, the preschool my kids have been a part of for almost 10 years had their annual Stone Soup Supper last night. The teachers do a great job of teaching the kids songs and getting them ready for their big performance! It's hard to believe that this could be the last year for us at PEP.(Logan has got to get in to All Saints' first :) It has been a huge blessing for our children. They go to chapel every morning and learn about building a relationship with the Lord. They are taught music, Spanish, sign language on top of the usual academic stuff. My daughters were definitely more prepared for private school thanks to PEP. Below is a video of Logan singing his heart out last night. These programs are always so cute...and predictable. There is always at least one child that the teacher has to hold cause they are crying their eyes out....one child is always yelling out "Hey Dad" and usually there is someone that thinks singing is screaming the song at the top of their lungs. Last night there was a new one....a little girl stopped in the middle of a song and said "I have got to go to the bathroom" she left the stage and returned shortly pulling on the uncomfortable outfit her mom made her wear. Oh yeah..there is always the kid that puts his finger in his nose at least once....that would be Logan this time! (Make sure you pause my playlist down below before you play the video)

Homecoming 2008...Saints beat the Owls!

VB team with mums and the Rowdy Crowd

Kansas and Trinity enjoying the fun with their friends

Me, Lauren Hollis, Garrett and Rosie

Last night was the All Saints' Homecoming. Our football team beat the Oakridge Owls 49-14!!! It was so good to see a lot of my former athletes that are now enjoying their college life. I saw Lauren Byrnes (didn't get a picture) and Lauren Hollis who both played volleyball for me and Garrett Isom who was one of my tennis players. Even though it makes me feel old :) it was so good to see them "all grown up" and doing great. They all looked so happy. Coaching is not always easy but when you see your kids come back and give you a big hug..it's makes all the bad seem irrelevant. Before the game, we had an all-school Pep-Rally....man the gym can get really loud with all those lower school kids! I snapped a couple of pics of Kansas and Trinity enjoying the festivities with their classmates. Our half-time show at the game was the TCU Drumline...they were awesome!!

Family Fun

Papa and Logan

Logan checked the target...coors light can
My lefty, Kansas taking a try
Trinity and Papa
More bars? They make us want to go to one

We haven't been to see our family in Houston since Hurrican Ike. The kids and I traveled down on Saturday so we could see everyone. Gene had to stay back since his lessons have started back up on the weekends. Our first stop was the farm in Huntsville. Papa was already there and we hung out with him for awhile and the kids fished and Papa taught them how to shoot the 22. Logan kept asking him to go hunting but it's not hunting season yet so he had to settle for shooting a beer can. It was so cute...every time he shot the gun, he would run over and check to see if he hit the beer can. Let's just say...he has a lot of work to do. The girls took their turns as did I. We then headed to Houston and we met Nana, Mill and JR. at the house. We got to go see Mill's new house. They were putting the brick on as we drove up. It is in Katy, Texas and it is such a cute house. I am very excited for them. Check out the pictures on their blog which is located in my blog list. On Sunday, we headed over to Jess and Tim's to grill and of course shop at the new outlet mall outside of their neighborhood. The girls and Logan made out with some cute clothes. They wear uniforms to school but don't have anything for the cooler weather. It was nice to hang out with everyone. There were a lot of trees and fences down and a ton of tarps on roofs but Houston is getting up and running again. My sisters and Mom are going to head up this way for a trip to Canton in November. Can't wait!!

Life is Good

I work in an environment where I am around people that have a lot more money than we do. My kids hang out with children who live in very nice estates and spend the summer in their vacation homes. They are very good people and never make us feel like they are better than us because of their income. I believe strongly it is because they are Godly people and they know that money doesn't matter to the Lord. It is very easy to look at what they have, the cars they drive and think...hmm...that would be nice. However, I look at my home, all 2400 square feet of it and see my kids running around healthy, attending one of the best colleg-prep schools in the state and I think, I am BLESSED!
Thank you Lord for blessing me and please forgive me when I take things for granted and feel as though I need more. Amen
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Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Contentment's Enemy
"Do not covet your neighbor's house. Do not covet your neighbor's wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else your neighbor owns."

— Exodus 20:17

The tenth commandment, which deals with coveting, speaks to our deepest attitudes. Of course, the word, "covet," means to be dissatisfied with what we have and to desire more, regardless of what it may cost us or someone else.

One Christmas when I was a young boy, I received everything that I had wanted. I was so happy. I thought, "This is the greatest Christmas I've ever had!" Then I went over to my friend's house and saw his gifts. Suddenly, I was miserable, because he had been given something that I sort of wanted, but I had forgotten about it.

All of a sudden, all that I had (as wonderful as it was) was no longer acceptable, because my friend had something that I wanted more. That is what coveting is.

As adults, we can do this as well. Everything is fine in our lives, but then we see what our neighbor has. We see what somebody else has. Then we begin to covet that. We want that—and sadly, some will even go out and take whatever it is they are coveting. We might even covet another person's spouse.

It can ruin our lives. We are not to covet.

Jesus said that the first and greatest commandment is, " 'You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind' " (Matthew 22:37) and that a second and equally important command is to " 'Love your neighbor as yourself' " (verse 39).

All the other commandments are based on these two. So, if you can get these down, then everything else will come naturally.

The Blogger Bug...

The blogger bug has hit the girls and this weekend I helped them create their own. They are getting older and want to express their very different personalities. They know that mom has to approve each post but they are having fun. Check them out....Kansas' is http://diamondpranch.blogspot.com and Trinity's is http://trinityblake.blogspot.com

Tough Weekend for the Saints

The Saints volleyball team traveled to Oklahoma this weekend to play our counter matches against Holland Hall of Tulsa and Casady of Oklahoma City. We didn't play well against Holland Hall, a team we definitely should have beaten. Saturday's match was much better but we still lost to Casady as well. Oh...the joys of coaching!! My 3 kiddos had a blast with daddy while I was gone. Gene had an "Indian Princess" gathering with the other 1st grade Dads and Daughters from All Saints'. The dads think of something fun to do and they take their daughters along. It is really cute. This time they went to the TCU Football game. Since I was out of town, Logan got to tag along. Kansas went to a birthday party and then to play at her good friend Lauris' house. I don't think they missed me one bit! Well off to do the wonderful chores of motherhood....I hope I will have a better report about my team next time. :)