It's been awhile...sorry.

Wow as i logged on i noticed its been several months that i have posted anything! Life around here has been sooo busy.
Alan is working alot of hours which is good since i am off for the summer now. His job is going good. He has been praying alot about if this is where God wants him or not. He has put his app in at another company which would be better financially for us, but we have not heard back from the guy that he interviewed with. Which is a little discourging but if this is where God wants him then its ok. Aaron(Laniee's boyfriend) is now working with Alan and that is going real good. It is a huge blessing for them. Laniee is currently working at Kum & Go in Ankeny and will probably be going to school in the fall for her CNA. So i have Jayden this summer, that has already been an adventure! I now know why God had me not have anymore after Gary! He is all over the place, so busy! But it has been wonderful! He is starting to talk now and is learning alot! He is growing so fast, maybe a little too fast! Zack got a call last week that he needed to go up to MN to meet with the Batallion Leader for an interview for the waiver. So he went up there last thursday and it went very very well. The Batallion Leader approved the waiver and now it goes to the General and USEREC. Which is the top of the Army Dept. If they approve it then he will be good to go for getting in the Army. The 1st SGT. that i spoke to said they will more than likely approve it, cant gurantee it but they should. We should be hearing about it anyday now. Depending on how busy they are. Alison and Gary are just enjoying their summer. Not alot going with them expect Ali made Marching Band and Wind Ensemble as a freshman for next year, which is super good i guess. So very proud of her! Gary is growing like an uncontrolable weed!!!! He likes to brag lately that he only has an inch left til he is as tall as me, which isnt much but for an 11yr old it is! He went through 3 pairs of shoes this school year, not because they were wore out but because they were too small! As my family is growing up and becoming adults and going through different stages i cant but help think of where the time has gone. Alan once told me awhile back when i was gettin real stressed with their sillyness and fighting he told me "you are going to miss this some day" i thought ya i would like to miss it right now! But ya know i miss it! I have so emotional lately with my little ones growing to adulthood. I have learned a valueable lesson...enjoy them!  Even the fights and the little stuff. And dont sweat the small stuff like spills and broken "pretties". Time with them is much more valuable. God has blessed me with 4 wonderful children and he GAVE them to me to raise them for him and his glory, how can i not be grateful!  Our newest memeber Samson is getting HUGE! He just turned 6 mos old and is 61 lbs. He has a wonderful personality...when we sit there and watch him and play with him he reminds us alot like Harley. Which is bittersweet. But he fits in with us very well. Kind of goofy and clumsy but its been fun. We have never went through the early puppy stage so it was very trying for us but he is now potty trained even at night! He of course still chews like crazy but is pretty good about gettin a toy when he wants to chew! That was probably the worst of anything...i went through 5 pairs of flip flops already this summer...no matter where i "hid" them he found them and they were toast! I will try not to wait so long next time to post. I am trying to get alot of the things in my life that are unorganized turned around and be more organized! This is 1 of them.

Love to all!!!

The latest

Well we have been super busy with trying to get our family room remodled. It's coming along, slowly i might add. But its looking good. Alan just needs to finish putting up the trim, which he hasnt really had much time for that since he went back to work this week, which is great for pocket book but not for my house! And we are waiting VERY patiently for our new couch. We bought 2 one for the front room and a sectional for the family room. The sectional hasnt come in yet. But when we get it all done i will post some pics.
Well God may have different plans for Zack and the army. A few years ago he got into some trouble, some of you may know what i am talking about with the works bomb deal. It was a silly little project for school and got blown WAY out of proportion! Anyway they tried to send a waiver in for it, which is basiclly an apology, well the "main" dept of the army denied it. So now we have to wait until the 2yr anniversary of the incident which is in May. And they will try to send it in again. If it goes through this time then he can enlist, if it doesnt then he prob cant get in at all! We are just asking for prayers for God's will. He knows its in God's hands and there is nothing more we can really do. Zack is a good kid and he is a truly a Godly, American man who wants to serve his country. He doesnt want to do this for schooling which he will do some anyway, he doesnt want to do it for the money, he just wants to SERVE his country. He has wanted to to this since he was 3yrs old!! He is looking into other options for his future, he is truly being very mature about all of this.
Laniee and Aaron are doing good. Laniee is going to school in May or June for her CNA, i am so very proud of her. She is really excited about it. Aaron is still working at the car wash in Ankeny but he got a job working with Alan at TK. He probably wont start with them until the weather stays warm for sure. They are hoping to have their own place by summer.
Alison went for more blood work on the 1st of March with no change, which is a bummer but like with Zack its God's timing not ours. She wont go back for more until May now, which is good it gives her a couple of months without blood being drawn. Just pray for her symptoms as they of course are not any better, some are getting worse.
Gary is doing about the same too, just being an 11yr old. We are on spring break right now so its nice to be home and spending time with all the kids. I have a few things planned for us and so very thankful the weather is going to be nice.
Our new puppy, Samson is doing good, having some issues with potty training but its going ok. He is a puppy that should put it all in a nutshell!
Well i am going to finish here we are going to be gettin ready to go to the campus in Altoona to swim for a bit then probably the park. Love to all!!!

Becoming real

Well Zack's Army physical went good, he stayed the night in a hotel and they got him up and 4am the next morning, which he loved(ha ha). He spent that day getting his work up done. They do a very intense physical from head to toe. When it came to the eye part he was'nt "eligible" because he has an astigmatism. So they had to send a waiver in the headquarters to see if they would waive it or go for a consult for his eyes to make sure it is corrected by glasses. Well he ended having to get a consult, so tonight he is staying in a hotel again and goes tomorrow for the consult and will probably be sworn in on Friday. Now its really becoming real that my baby isnt such a baby anymore, well he hasnt been for a long, long time but wow!! I am SO very proud of him. I know alot of people are not thrilled with him leaving but you know he has wanted this since he was little and when he approached me about it he was so very honest and told me that he knows this is where God has lead him and he cant see himself doing anything but this. I find it kind of neat that he will be sworn in with in the week of my grandpa Cox's birthday. Being that Grandpa Cox is Zack's hero and he never got to meet him. Kind of bitterswet.

On another note...Alison goes back next week for more bloodwork and we are really hoping that she shows which way her body is going to go this time, but we are not getting our hopes up for it, just dont want to be let down again. She is in band at school and they got a huge honor this week i am coping and pasting it, they explain it better                                                                                                                                                      SEP 8th GRADE BAND SELECTED TO PERFORM AT THE 2011 IOWA   BANDMASTERS ASSOCIATION CONFERENCEThe SEP 8th Grade Band was recently selected to perform at the 2011 Iowa Bandmasters Conference! This is the first such honor for the 8th grade band. The High School Wind Ensemble was selected for this honor in 2008. The 8th grade band was selected via a state-wide audition process. Schools were invited to submit a recording to a central panel of experts who selected the bands using a blind process, and one school from each Iowa classification and one junior high band is selected each year. The band will perform during the IBA Conference at 3:00pm on May 13 at the Des Moines Marriott.

We also added to our family a couple of weeks ago...his name is Samson, he is about 8lbs and is so much fun and loving. Almost like having another baby around, up late wanting to play, eats, sleeps and goes potty...in that order! He is a purebred rottweiler. Yes i know he will be big but we dont mind at all! I am going to try and post a pic on here. Well thats all for now have a great week!!

Mixed feelings

Well Zack goes Monday afternoon to take his test for the Army and Tuesday he will be getting his physical done. It is really becoming a reality now. I am so very sad inside because i am going to miss my son so very much, but yet i am so very proud of him for the young man he is becoming and excited for his future! I dont really like these mixed feelings of sadness and happiness. But he is growing up and unfortunatly kids do grow up and we cant have them be little forever, wouldnt that be nice. I know he is excited and nervous also but i personally think he is more excited, probably because he wont have to do dishes around here anymore!! Well i think thats it for today. I will keep you updated how next week goes!