New Year....New post

Well the holidays are over and things are mostly back to normal.  I'm back on day shift at work, which I love since it allows me to spend my evenings at home with my family.  Thanks to my new SRO position, I may only have one more actual night shift rotation left before I begin the summer SRO schedule (which is park patrol) and then on to the school.  I am beyond excited to begin this new chapter in my life.

My excitement for being an SRO grew  by leaps and bounds while I attended a week long training to be "certified" or allowed by the State of Missouri to be an SRO.  I met some amazing officers that ranged from very urban and very rough to small town America.  It was a great group of people to work with for the week and I made a lot of great contacts and built some friendships while I was there.  We went through the basics like the history of the program and what we can and can't do with regards to FERPA (the school version of HIPAA.)  We also had a 2 day training mixed in dealing with identifying drug usage in a school setting.  It was a very informative training and it made some light bulbs click when we went over the signs and symptoms of a particular drug.  So many times  I have had someone that I have been dealing with either on a call or in custody and I just couldn't put my finger on what was different about this person.  This made so much more sense.  We also went over school safety and active shooter information.  I am so excited to have the opportunity to be a part of protecting the kids in our schools.  We all like to think that "it won't happen here" but I bet that's what every community that has had a school shooting has said.  No community is immune to the possibility of this happening.   We learned a lot about the new teaching of not so much locking down, but getting out if possible or even fighting back.  I have had a few tell me that it may be effective for older kids but there is no way an Elementary school aged kid would be able to fight back or know why they are doing what they are doing.  If that's your belief I think you are not giving these kids enough credit.  They are smarter than we think and I have no doubt in my mind that these kids could do this if they were taught to do it.  I know we will be teaching my children how to do this.  We were told that of the classroom of kindergartners that were murdered, 2 children survived...why...apparently they ran right past the sorry excuse for a human when he came in to the classroom.  This is why I think our kids are smarter than we give them credit for.

This was the thing I missed most while at training!

Not a whole lot has really been going on at work.  We had our yearly department Christmas party at which time I received a "life saving" award for a CPR save I had in 2014.  My squad mate also received one for a AED/CPR save he had on another call.  

I was recently asked to be a board member of the newly formed Chaplaincy group that was formed in my county/community.  Apparently they were looking for a female officer in the area and my name came up three separate times.  One of the people that brought my name up was someone that I had never met.  He knew of me through my brother who was in his Bible study group and he was very instrumental in helping my brother work through some issues that came up in his life.  The other two was a husband and wife couple who lead a local Cop ministry and who helped form this group.  I am very excited to be apart of this and look forward to where it may lead me!

I also sit back and think how blessed I am to have a very supportive group of people I work with, many of which I consider to be friends and not just co-workers.  Those are the ones that I trust, that I confide in.  The ones that I know would NEVER ask my to place my integrity on the line to lie for them when it is clear that the person talking to me already knows the answer to the question asked.  I don't know of too many other officers that would do any different.  Those that would ask me to do that are probably not friends and they can talk about me all they want behind my back.  I really don't care.  

With the new year arriving, it is now time for me to get my butt in gear and start helping our department's Explorer post raise some money so we can take them to the National Conference in Flagstaff, Arizona.  It should be a good time so hopefully we can raise enough to cover expenses so that some of the children don't have to be told that cannot go if their family cannot afford to cover the rest of the costs for their kids.  We have been very fortunate in years past that we have only asked our kids to pay  $50-$100 as a deposit so to speak so they have some financial investment in it and won't decide not to go at the last minute since the post has to pay whether they go or not.  Our kids have a really good time and we try to take them on some "adventures" in the areas we visit.  When we went to Ft. Collins, Colorado we spent a lot of time in the mountains it seemed.  On the way home we went to Pike's Peak.  I enjoyed it, but not as much as I could have since I was 12 weeks pregnant.  So anyway...we are working on some dine and donate things and a street collection so hopefully those pan out for us and we are successful.  Our kids work hard during the year being present at the downtown festivals to manage drink sales for the downtown association and they also make themselves available when someone has a community event and wants fingerprinting done for the children that attend.  They also work hard at the meetings soaking in all of the information we throw at them,  They work very well together and when it comes time for practicals, they do really well.  We are very proud of how hard they work and how well they work together.

Life on the home front has been exciting as of late.  Our biggest blessing is that we sold our first home that we had been renting out.  We were ecstatic that it was under contract about a month after listing it.  Everything went smoothly with the home inspection and the buyers and we closed on December 4!  Such a happy day.  Luckily the money we "made" helped bring us back to where were were financially before we lost over $3000 to our former tenants who have made no attempt to make good on their civil judgement despite their word that they would make payments but we really expected no less.    We also FINALLY completed a fence for our dog.  We tried so many things to contain him without putting up chain link but we finally had no choice.  For some reason the underground fence wouldn't work and he was terrified of the wireless fence.  In fact he jumped through it and ran away for a few days.  We didn't want to put the fence up at first because we didn't want to be "those" neighbors who came into the neighborhood and put a fence up when no one else near us had one.  Now we don't care, besides, our next door neighbor hates us we are pretty sure.  He glares at us and blames us for his water run off problems.  He wanted us to help him pay for a retaining wall because of the water that ran down from our yard (which also had water from the two houses above us) so instead my husband installed corrugated piping underground from the downspouts to carry the water to the street.  Wasn't good enough.  Then he was mad that the water was now running into his driveway and washing away his corner of mulch near the gutter.  He hasn't spoke 10 words to us since we moved in 2 years ago.  Oh well.  Our dog is happy as can be now that he has his fence.  He has the whole run of the backyard, but apparently spends the day staring across the street at our neighbors house looking sad.  

Speaking of our dog, we recently had a new water meter installed by the city so that they could remotely get the readings for billing.  Well I guess the city worker was also out there to see what residents hadn't "registered" their animals.  I guess they needed some way to help pay for the new water meters.  Wonder how many others got the same letter.  I hope the city doesn't spend those $2 in one place.  I am not opposed to the "fee," which is ridiculous by all accounts of local vets, but they could have gone about it differently.  Our small town is apparently the only one that does it anymore.  Seems like a waste of resources if you ask me.  That's okay, since they chose to address this in this manner, I have made it clear that no city employee (other than police on police business) is to be on our grounds (with the exception of their city right of way)  without both my husband and I being home.  


The tenth anniversary of my 21st birthday came and went.  My husband got me a pretty amazing gift...No sarcasm at all...he got me my very own Label maker.  He has no idea what kind of monster he has created.  There will be labels all over this house!  This is an OCD girl's dream.  We had a nice dinner at home with our good friends/neighbors.  And by nice dinner I mean we ordered pizza takeout from the local place in town since they were having an awesome special.  My parents came to the town I work in the next evening and took me out for dinner while I was at work.  I was blown away when our server came to me and told me that there was someone at the counter who wanted to buy a bowl of ice cream for me to thank me for what we do.  I was quite shocked. I went and thanked her and she said she would have paid for my meal had it not been paid for already (it was a pay then eat buffet style place.)  I felt honored that she did that for me.  I didn't need ice cream by any means, but I also did not want to be rude and deny it.   It felt very nice to be appreciated for what we do in this crazy world that we live in now where so many see us as a "goon" squad.  Our community has always been very supportive of our department and we didn't get a whole lot of the Ferguson effect even though we are a little over an hour away, at least not that I really noticed. 

And that brings us to Christmas.  Christmas was great.  I helped our 5 year old make Ninja Turtle Christmas ornaments for the tree we got for his room.  He had a blast and everyone we showed them to loved them.  

 We were also very blessed for the gifts our children received.  It was evident that they are truly loved and that we have so much to be thankful for.  I love the holidays just because that is the one time of the year that we are pretty much guaranteed to see everyone in the family.  We opened our home up to my mom's side of the family (which is the family I feel closest to and the cousins whom I consider to be more than cousins because I consider them some of my best friends.)  I love having everyone over.  It can be stressful but what family gathering isn't complete without a little stress.  Never in a million years would I have thought that our home could hold 30 people, mostly adults, without us all tripping over each other.  

I made some "candies" that I used to make with my mom when I was younger and I also made some cookies and made a peppermint bark that I saw on Pinterest.  It all turned out great!  I made too much and now I have cookies and "candies" all over that I won't eat since I have gone on my yearly "diet."  Speaking of diets...As of today....January 8. I am happy to say that I have lost 4 pounds just this week by cutting my calories and hitting the gym hard.  My goal is 25, so we shall see.  I am determined to get back to the weight I was at when I stopped nursing our youngest son.  I packed it on after I stopped despite cutting calories and working out.  It crept up and up to the tune of a 25 pound gain in 2 years.  I am not happy in my body and I don't want my boys to see me as their "big" mom, even though the people I am around say I don't look any different. I treated myself to a Fitbit Charge HR so I am hoping that keeps me motivated to do work.  Today I had 10,000 steps by 10:30 AM, but it probably helped that I spent an hour on the elliptical too.  

Our 5 year old got the two most important things he asked for...The Imaginext Transforming Bat Cave and a dancing/singing Snoopy from The Peanuts Movie...don't ask me...it was the random off the wall gift that he really wanted.  They also got some underwear and socks, some Transformer Rescue Bots, some Nerf guns and remote control cars, some Bubble Guppies toys, hot wheels and hot wheels tracks, clothing and pjs,the entire set of Goosebumps books (mine from when I was younger) and many others.   Our son is OBSESSED with Goosebumps, in fact it was one of the dates his daddy and I took him on.  His other date was the The Peanuts movie on Thanksgiving.  So we read 2 or 3 chapters a night from a book and he LOVES it!!!   I received a pair of beautiful diamond earrings from my husband, a Missouri State tote bag and Starbucks card from my Sister in laws, a 12 pack of essential oils and a book called Innocent Targets (a book concerning school safety with a section written by the great Lt. Col. David Grossman) from my Mother in law, an handmade wreath adorned with pink and purple ornament from my aunt and uncle (she said he made them all) and some cookbooks, and wine and other awesome goodies.  I bought my husband a new Amazon Fire tablet.  His Google Nexus finally gave out so he needed something to help him get through his long and uneventful trials at work.  

I am in love with my oils.  Just this week I bought a diffuser with a gift card I got for Christmas and we started diffusing lemon, lavender, and peppermint at night to help with the colds we had developed.  Not only did it make our room smell great, it helped us a lot.  I could tell as the day went on and I wasn't around them that my sinuses got worse.  I have now made myself a roller ball with that combination. I am so excited to get more oils so that I can have my own arsenal of oils for whatever ailment comes up.  I am also one step closer to being able to start making the lotions, soaps, and rollers that I previously talked about in an effort to make some money on the side.  

I have to put this in here, even though it does not flow at all with what I have already typed...as you have seen in other posts I participate in a site called Influenster.  I was chosen to receive their Jingle Bell Vox Box and I couldn't be happier.  It came with a coupon for a free bag of Ore Ida Potatoes, a Hallmark Itty Bitty that was Olaf from Frozen, a few packages of Biscoff biscotti biscuits, Kiss true volume fake eyelashes and the adhesive to place them, a small jar of Cetaphil lotion, NYC 24 hour eyeliner, and bottle of Blue Pure Ice nail polish.  Very cool stuff and I am happy with all of it.  I have not had a chance to use the eyelashes yet and I am not sure when I will, but I am sure they will look great when I do.  I can't really paint my nails because of work but I can paint my toes.  I was very happy with how fast it dried and how great it looked when it was on.  I also have to mention that all of those items were received at no cost to me to try and review.    If you want an invite send comment with your email address and I will send you one so you can join!!

That's all for now!!!

Catch up time!!!

So here it is...November....nearly 4 months since my last post.  I will apologize in advance for the long posting as I try to catch up and try not to miss good.

My summer started off decent I suppose.  For so many years I had been looking forward to attending the week long Regional Law Enforcement Explorer Academy in St. Louis as a level advisor.  It was all set and I was registered but then we fell upon a manpower issue at work and what I had been looking forward to was suddenly in jeopardy.  I was told that I could only go on my days off, but it seemed pointless to pack my bags for an overnight stay to have to come right back to work soon after.  Then we learned that the manpower issue was almost certainly going to be resolved because the release was almost certain to be signed by the doctor so I was told to pack for the week.  I was excited.  

I got to the academy on the evening of the start date after the kids had all checked in and were starting to wind down for the evening due to work, but that was no big deal.  I was ready for what was in store.  It was great.  One of our first morning sessions was to listen to various speakers on being prepared for the this job.  The most heart wrenching speaker we heard though was the mother of Kelli and Jessica Uhl.  These were two sisters that were killed in a horrible vehicle accident several years ago on Black Friday at the hands of an Illinois State Trooper who was driving far too fast and he was found to have been on his mobile computer and his cell phone moments before that fateful crash.  Their mother wasn't mad at police officers in general.  She told us she still respects us and in fact works with Below 100 giving presentations around the country to help officers see the consequences of bad decisions.  https://www.facebook.com/JessicaKelliUhl?_rdr=p

The activities continued.  The kids were taught defensive tactics, they were taught traffic stops, they particpated in roll plays, they ran an amazing obstacle course, and were taught some various movements by the St. Louis County SWAT team.  There was also some good ole Explorers vs Advisor kickball action too!  My week abruptly came to an end on my third night there.  I was told that the person that was supposed to get released by the doctor was not getting released and I would have to work the following night due to a manpower shortage.  I was upset but what could I do.  I packed up, turned my stuff in and left so I could prepare for my shift the following night.  Don't be fooled in to thinking it went as smoothly as that all sounds.  I was more than upset but there was nothing I could do except be upset since it wasn't going to change a thing.  On my way home I called my husband and told him what was going on.  He told me that was great (he missed me, and the boys were nuts!) buuuuuuut our dog ran away.  Crap.  Then I hit a possum on the highway.  Anything else????  

We posted on local Facebook sites that our dog was missing.  He was gone for almost 3 days I think when our amazing neighbors saw an ad on a Facebook yard sale site saying someone found this dog, which happened to be ours.  The lady wouldn't give our dog to our neighbor, which I understand, but I was sleeping and had NO clue this was even going on.  Eventually my neighbor got mad and went detecting in our tiny little town.  She sure did find the house, which was a decent ways from ours and our boy ran right to her van and jumped right in.  She kept him at her house until I woke up and told me the story.  He was physically okay.  Mentally....who knows.  That boy was nervous shedding chunks of fur all over her house.  I am almost certain she is still finding his fur in her house despite cleaning like a mad woman!!!  

August brought some fun events too!  We finally bit the bullet and bought a new truck.  We were to the point that we were sinking almost $600 a month into the other truck for electrical issues.  I finally told my husband that we needed to do something quickly before something major happens and his truck is worth NOTHING.  We started searching and the next night we found this beauty below.  We went to the dealer, test drove it, and a few hours later we were driving home in a 2013 Chevy Silverado LTZ Crew Cab truck.  We love it, and we Love Love Love the four doors.  My husband babies this thing more than I EVER saw him baby his old truck.  So yeah, we like it!

August also brought some news I had been waiting for.  I had been selected to test for the Maryland Heights PD despite the fact that I lived outside of the residency requirement.  I was excited!  I had been waiting for this for so long.  If I was selected for the open position I stood to make almost $25000 more a year!  I also would have had the opportunity for secondary employment to make a decent chunk more.  The test came and I did great!  I surprised myself with how well I did on the PT test.  I did as well as many of the kids that were still in the academy.  The afternoon I followed up with the written test, which was odd.  It was a video model.  I don't feel that test really showed what a police officer really knows about law enforcement.  It was hard because they were scenario based questions.  For a seasoned officer that is tough because one department may do things different than another department and policies on what to do also may be different.  It was hard to bring my mind down to academy level intelligence and forget what I would actually do in a situation.  I apparently did okay.  About a week later I was contacted and told I made in to the interview phase.  It was also a strange interview.  It was a group interview with me and 5 other applicants in front of a civilian police board.  We were asked questions by color.  We each got the same question and had a minute to answer.  I also was not a fan because it didn't provide me with the opportunity to show who I was because the questions were so vague and didn't really apply much to law enforcement.  I did okay. I was told I finished 9th out of over 30 applicants but they were only going to conduct a background on the first 6.  I was then contacted a few weeks later and told that they were going to begin a background investigation on me.  I never heard anything back, but that's okay, I ended up taking a better position within my current department anyway.  So I am staying put!

In August my husband and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary.  We spent a weekend in St. Louis, went to a ball game and stayed in a swanky hotel right next to the stadium.  Its hard to believe I have been married to this man for 6 years. He is a blessing in every way and the most amazing father I could ask for for our boys.  He is their hero!  Mine too!  We have had our ups and downs, mostly ups, but we are in this for the long haul!!

In late June we finally made the decision that our renters of our old house were way to behind in rent to us so we began the 30 day notice.  This eventually ended up in us taking them to civil court and winning a judgement of over $3000.00.  I hope to see the judgement someday as was promised, but I am not getting my hopes up until I see it.  I wish sometimes people could understand that we aren't some big company that can "afford" to not have rent.  We need that money to provide for our family.  I understand they have a family too, and we were willing to work with them if it was truly a financial issue but alas there was no luck.  They left the house the beginning of September and that house was listed with REmax in NO TIME.  We worked our tails off cleaning carpets, removing property left behind in the yard, planting grass, painting rooms and wall, staining the deck and just making it show ready!  We were discouraged at first because the buyers looking were not impressed with the house.  Finally we received an offer and I am so HAPPY to say we should be closing on the property in the next 2 weeks.  I am beyond excited to not have to worry about two mortgages anymore.  This has stressed me out beyond belief.  We have put more money on our credit card then I have ever done before and its not because we wanted to, its because we had to.  I will be so happy to take that money from the house pay off and pay this credit card to ZERO and be left with a mortgage and a truck payment for debt.  I can't stand debt!!!

As if I wasn't stressed enough I was at work one night and we got called to a house that we had been going to on a seemingly Regular basis for the last few weeks. It was a kid who had zero respect for any one, especially cops. We ended up detaining him for safety because of his sporadic actions and I was the one to do it. He pulled away and I regained control and detained him. When he was sitting on the ground the punk looked right at me and said that would have been easier if I was in better shape. I wanted to cry. No joke. I have struggled with my weight since middle school and I was now at a time where I was at my heaviest due to some medication changes and not nursing little dude anymore ( that part more of an accumulation.). It broke my heart. I had been trying. Was this what the other people in town thought of me. Am I just the fat girl cop?  I don't know... I am still working on it and hopefully someday I can look him in the face in a body I am comfortable with and say Ha!  

While all of this was going on I took a Mommy only trip to sunny San Diego to see one of my best friends.  I had been forward to this trip for months.  It had been planned since May!  It was great!  I rode in a taxi for the first time in my life to the airport so that was cool.    Did I miss my boys, Yes.  Did I enjoy my plane rides of peace and quiet and not having to worry about my energetic toddlers stomping on me or throwing a fit.  Oh YES!  That was ahhhhhhmazing!!  I think I even caught a nap!  I arrived in San Diego on 9-11.  It was obvious they were on high alert.  I don't know if this was normal but on this day, the San Diego PD did not look like someone to mess with.  There were officers posted in strategic locations with their patrol rifles ready to go...not slung.  They were prepared for anything.  

We got to my friends house and we all took a nice relaxing group snooze on the couch.  Just me, Elizabeth, and her two year old!  Peace and Quiet!  I woke up and she was gone.  Lol.  She came back with her teenage son and said she didn't want to wake me up.  So sweet.  I knew that was where she went, I just didn't realize it was that late.  We spent Saturday at Mission Bay Beach.  I also got to see another one of my friends and her family here.  I learned how to paddleboard as seen below.  It doesn't look difficult...but it is.  The amount of leg strength and balance needed astounded me.  I am happy to say that I didn't fall in once though.  The day at the beach ended with my friend's husband trying to throw me in to the water.  I think deep down he thought "she may be a cop, but I'm a guy...I can do this!"  He could not.  He did break my swimsuit clasp in the process though.  Oops.  I needed a new suit anyway.  The next day we chilled and watched the Chargers game.  I say we watched it.  I watched, they Yelled!!  Then it came time to leave.  I got to the airport, boarded my plane and flew to Phoenix for my connection.  Oh great...My already late arrival flight was now delayed 2 hours.  I did not into my nice comfy bed until almost 4 AM.  So much for an 11 PM arrival!  2 days later it was back to reality.

So funny work/dumb blonde moment story: What happens when you don't move your 31 "duty" bag away from the already turned patrol SUV tires?  Yep, you run over your bag.  As I was backing my SUV up to park it for the day since the shift was beyond over, I thought the wheels were straight and that I had plenty of room to back out and not run over anything. I had my bag, AED, and PBT all sitting near the passenger side.  I was basically being lazy and not wanting to carry 1000 things through the parking lot. As I back up I feel the tires go up on something and then I heard a loud POP.  CRAP!!!  I finished backing and expected the worst when  I looked.  All I could see was broken pink plastic.  Whew!  All I destroyed was my water bottle, not the important stuff.  I also blew out the side of my bag.  My coffee mug survived though, as did my ticket book...although it is a little bent up now.  I went to change then realized my tablet was in there.  I had a panic attack.  I opened it and shoot....the screen was shot.  There was no hope for it.  So long story short, we cancelled the contract on that tab and signed a new one so we could get an iPad for $50.  I like iPad's better anyway and I got to feed my 31 bags addiction with a new bag...so Win Win????

October brought us a huge blessing. We were contacted by a local police ministry who asked my husband and I if we would be willing to attend a law enforcement marriage seminar in Elkhart Indiana.  He sweetened the pot by telling us a couple at his church had graciously offered to pay for our hotel and conference registration. So we agreed. I would be lying if I said our marriage is perfect, because it isn't. This came at the most blessed time. We were in a rut and just couldn't seem to get out of it. A weekend away from the kids learning about coping with a law enforcement marriage was just what we needed. We had an amazing time. 

The conference was split between spouses and cops. It took the registration people a minute to realize that I was not just a spouse but an officer too. We sat with another local couple that was also sponsored by the church. The seminar was eye opening. The keynote speaker was Lt. Col. Dave Grossman. I don't know if you know who this man is but he is pretty much a legend and an idol in the police community. We learned about active shooter and why we shouldn't call them active shooters because shooters have skill that these mad men will never possess. We should refer to them as active murderers. Makes sense... That is what they are doing. He told us about the siege in Beslan when terrorists invaded an elementary school and killed so many innocent kids. This man was an amazing speaker and we were honored to have the opportunity to stand in his presence. We bought a few books that he autographed, each with a Bible quote of strength and determination. Then when he found out we were both in law enforcement and we were raising two small boys, he gave an autographed copy I his children's book called Sheepdogs. Grossman pioneered the sheepdog reference. The sheepdog (police/military) will always be there to protect the sheep (citizens) from the wolves (those who wish harm on the sheep) no matter what. A sheepdog is willing to risk their own life to save his sheep.  This man's words will stay with me forever. 

The following day was a fun day. A man that leads a police ministry in the Elkhart area conducted his annual law enforcement appreciation day. There was food galore, zip lines, rock walls, games for kids, spear throwing, and obstacle course, and of course some fun shooting. We both got to fire a 50 cal round which was pretty awesome!! We also got to shoot a modified 9mm that was full auto. It was so awesome. We left Indiana feeling blessed that we were able to attend this weekend with the help of friends and family. 

This is my husband and I with Lt Col Grossman. (Not a great pic of me but whatever) 

Check out these reads by Grossman. You will not be sorry. 

Below is my man shooting the 50 cal 

So I returned to work. I was training our new hire who had previous experience in southern Missouri. It was a day neither of us will soon forget. In both of our time as cops (about 8 years each) we had never received this call. 

"Respond to (address) for a chicken running at large. I thought he was going to crash the patrol car. We both looked at each other and had the same bewildered look. A chicken??  What?? Sure enough... We get in scene and there was a darn chicken running around the yard. He asked me what we should do. How should I know, I have never caught a chicken. You are the farm boy, you catch it. We decided to play detective and look for chicken coops instead and let the owners capture their own chicken. By the time we found the owner there were two chickens at large. End of story... They found their home. 

So November brought so many blessings to our family. I was told that beginning next year I would be the School Resource Officer for the middle school and take the place of the officer wanting to come back to the road. This was a blessing. This means a mostly m-f,8-4 job with a few weekends and fill ins here and there and most major holidays will be off as well. Summer's will consist of 12 hour shifts on park patrol duty which is pretty open to interpretation as we have parks all over town. In the summers I will lock bathrooms and handle any calls that originate in a local park. I go to training for a week at the end of this month!  

November also brought Veterans Day. I am astounded every day by our neighbors that we are new besties with. One day she watched the boys so I could go to an appointment and she found a canvas she had lying around so she had the boys put their handprints in a heart and then she had them give it to my husband for Veterans Day. Her oldest daughter also made him a few pictures to show her thanks. He loved it and was so touched that they thought of him in advance to do this type of craft. He also loved the pictures her daughter made. She is raising such a sweet and polite child!!

November also brings the start ooooofffff DEER HUNTING!! My hubs went out opening morning and killed this handsome fella below. The deer dropped in the water and when he got to him the only thing showing were his antlers so my hubs had to drag him by the rack out. He  was so proud. He is having the rack mounted!!  What was maybe the best of all of this... Someone reported my photo to Facebook for graphic violence. They didn't sustain it but still....really... Graphic violence. Since when does hunting to feed a family constitute graphic violence. Humans have been hunting animals since the human race began!  Hunting is a means of population control also so that the animals aren't overpopulated, diseases, and starving to death!! Besides... Deer is some darn good eatin!!! 

I will close this post out with a few little links that I have been working on.  I have recently signed up on two websites called instagc.com and mommyknowsurveys.com.  Each site allows you to take surveys or complete tasks in order to earn a buck or two here and there.  My goal is to earn enough between the two sites to give the kids a good Christmas since both can be redeemed for Amazon cards!  Here are the links:

instagc:  http://www.instagc.com/mindyschmelz

mommy knows surveys:  http://www.mommyknowssurveys.com/e/s.aspx?fid=18830359 

I was also chosen by Influenster to review the new Vicks Smart Temp thermometer for free.  I am not sure how I feel about it yet.  The only way to see the temperature is to have it bluetoothed to the app on your phone, there is no display on the unit.  If my kid is sick I don't want to deal with opening an app to see their temperature.  It does have cool features on the app though because you can create a profile for each family member and track their symptoms and temperature readings.  I guess that part is cool, I would just rather have a display on the unit as well.  It worked pretty easy once I figured it out so overall it's cool, but I don't know that I would spend $30 on it! 

Okay so I think that is about it.  Sorry for the short novel!  Hope yall enjoy.  Suggestions on things that you would like me to talk about in regards to my job are accepted.  I take what I do for granted but I know people always have questions!!!

Thankful for blessings

My apologies for the extended time between posts.  The intention was to post shortly after Christmas was over for all of our extended families, but some things came up and time ran away.

We had our first Christmas of the season the Sunday before with my husband's father's family.  It was nice.  There was food, fun, and lots of kids playing.  That's what it's all about.  I could honestly care less if I actually received anything for Christmas so long as my boys have a good time and are thankful for the things they were given.  The boys got these AMAZING chairs from Grandpa and Grandma S.  They are called "Big Joe" chairs.  They are glorified bean bag chairs, but dang comfy, in fact I am sitting in one now typing this.  We got a solid blue one and a camo one.  The boys love them.  They also received blankets and pillow pets.  Oh and this gathering brought out my famous chocolate chip cheesecake!  It was inhaled in less than 10 minutes once it was set out!

The next family Christmas we took part in was for my husband's mother's family.  It was great.  Santa and Mrs. Claus came to visit and the boys were awestruck.  They got a lot of toys.  I didn't think a toy was out there that they didn't have, but our family sure did find it.  Transformers. Rescue Bots, Dinosaurs, and trucks galore!  It was then that I made the decision that some changes were in order when we got home.  That change was an overhaul of the playroom.  

The night cumulated in a power struggle between our oldest and his parents!  He knew it was Christmas Eve and he knew Santa was going to be coming.  He was overcome with excitement.  No matter what we did, he would not sleep.  He heard footsteps above him and KNEW that those had to be Santa's.  He wanted to look but he knew better.  I guess we taught him well.   We FINALLY got him to sleep on the basement futon and we later retreated to our basement futon.  I was JUST about to sleep when I remembered Santa's plate for Cookies.  How could I have forgotten to get that out.  A mad, yet quiet, dash was made up the stairs and out of the house to the car to get the "Cookies for Santa" plate.  I made it back in and set it on the table and prayed my husband's mother would see it and set some cookies out on it!  I discovered the next morning that she remembered the plate roughly at the same time as me and walked out of her room to find the plate sitting there in all its cookie glory.  It just so happened she was having a cookie and milk craving too, so it was perfect.  We slept by the fire and waited for morning.  Our oldest pounced on us shouting "Santa Came!"  We made it upstairs to discover our youngest was also awake.  Let the glorious mess begin.  There were presents galore!  How was this even possible, where did this all come from!

Presents were opened.  Clothes, toys, color books.  You name it, they got it.  We saved the best two presents for last.  What were those gifts you may ask.  Only Batbot and a Ninja Turtle Power Wheel Jeep!  It was a warm day so we let them take a spin on it.  I have never seen a happier child! Oh and Jason got me Laser Hair Removal! WOOT WOOT!!

We made it home and made room for the new toys!  We then made preparations for my father's family Christmas.  I worked the night before (New Years Eve) and had to also work New Years Day night, but I was willing to sacrifice some sleep to spend time with family that I love.  I was looking forward to seeing my cousin who had been ill for the last month with some heart issues, but he seemed to be on the mend.  Around 11 Am I started receiving phone calls from my brother.  I was sleeping and wasn't planning on waking for another 2 hours.  He called again and then his wife text me to call him.  I wasn't sure what was wrong, but I had a gut feeling something was wrong.  He told me Christmas was cancelled and I could tell in his voice that something wasn't right.  I asked him, not truly wanting to hear the answer.  Then he said the words that stabbed me right in the gut "Michael is dead."  What?  How could this be?  He's only 27, he can't be dead.  His heart issue was supposed to be manageable with medications.  He had just been released from the hospital days prior.  We were closer than most of our family knew.  He would call, text, facebook message me at any time of the day.  We had some deep conversations concerning life and his lifestyle.  Was I okay with the lifestyle he chose, not totally and that is because of my Catholic upbringing.  Did I still love him?  You bet your life I loved him and cared about him.  I supported him and was an ear for him to talk to.  I listened to him talk about the American Idol Auditions he took part in.  After 7 or so auditions, he was told he made the second cut with his audition.  He wasn't sure what he wanted to sing, but I think he was leaning toward Lady Gaga, but I could be mistaken.  Its been 4 weeks now.  We still have no answers.  Hopefully time will heal our wounds.  People have speculated as to what they believe happen, but the truth of the matter is, we don't know.  We won't know for several weeks, and I may never know.  All I can do is think of the good times and remember those.  I can also take solace in knowing that his ashes were spread at the feet of his big brother's grave.  His brother. Chris, passed away about 15 years ago after a valiant fight with Cancer.  I know that they are hanging out with grandpa up there checking out deer or whatever else it was that they hunted.  All I know is that I will miss him and our family gatherings will not be the same without him.  

The holidays ended with my family having Christmas at our house.  At our new house.  Apparently when we bought our first house it became tradition to have Christmas in the new house.  So good luck Whit, Y'all are up next year!  My niece got lots of stuff for her play kitchen.  My son got his very own tablet.  He was given a samsund tab 3 lite.  The hope is for my cousin, who is a SPED teacher, and an amazing one at that, to help us put some apps on to assist in his therapy for his SPD.  We haven't seen her yet so the tab still sits empty.  He plays his leap pad and innotab so at least he is getting something there!  

Jason planned a surprise 30th birthday party for me.  It was fun.  I had a great time spending time with my family and Jason's friends that have become my friends, but I was saddened at the same time.  I realized what I truly meant to my "Friends."  I had one friend, that isn't a mutual marriage friend, my sister in law who is one of my best friends, and 1, yes ONE, person from my work.  It hurt that I didn't mean enough to them to come after they told my husband they were coming.  Where were they?  They "forgot."  It hurt to know that I could just be forgotten like that.  I had fun anyway, but having some of MY friends at MY birthday party would have been nice.  I am very appreciative of those that took time out of their night to come make my day special! 

So I was selected by #Influenster to test the new Reese's Peanut Butter Cup spread at no cost to me and write a review.  It was good!  It tasted just like a Reese's and wasn't overpowering.  I put it on toast and it perfectly satisfied my raging sweet tooth!  

So now I get back to planning my son's 2nd birthday.  I can't believe he is going to be two already!  Is it bad that I don't want my baby to grow up.  He still sleeps in his crib.  He is content.  He doesn't try to climb out.  I am in NO hurry to potty train him.  That means the end of having a baby and accepting I now have a toddler.  I'm just going to have to give in and let him grow.  

I hope everyone is feeling better by this weekend for the birthday party and Super Bowl Party.  I'm home taking care of a sick husband, sick 4 year old, and sick myself.  This needs to pass quickly!  If there is anything I can fault our youngest for, it's that I am almost certain this came from him.  I love how he learned to share.  I also love zofran and the new oTC version of zofran!  Its a wonder drug!  And with that I will close.  It's 3 AM and I need to try to sleep before the zoo, also known as my house starts going crazy!