Great Weekend

My family had a great weekend! On Friday I ended up taking my son to Chuck E. Cheese's for a little bit. I love it that all the games are only one token to play. I simply got $5 worth, but it lasted a quite a while! My son earned about 90 tickets from all the games he played, so he got to pick out some really cheap toys before we left.

We had a wonderful family day on Saturday! My hubby and son swam in the pool with papaw for a little bit in the morning. Then we went on a few relaxing errands to look for supplies for our beach trip in September.

My hubby was on praise team yesterday, so he was up early. But my son and I were able to sleep in and met him at church for second service. My hubby did an excellent job, as usual, and he was the best dressed one on stage!!!

Then last night he and his buddy went to a free concert while my son and I hung out at the house watching the boob-tube. It was a great, and relaxing, way to end the day!

What did you do over the weekend?

We're Off!

My son and I are on our way out the door to get an early start to our weekend! Later all!!!

No Time For The Internet

Thirteen things Trinity13 would rather be doing right now. 1. Napping 2. Eating a snack 3. Playing Sudoku 4. Watching the rain outside my window 5. Reading a really good book 6. Crocheting on my hubby's OSU blanket 7. Changing a poopy diaper...only cause it really stinks! 8. Watching a movie in "The Cave" 9. Celebrating my mom's b-day (which is today) 10. Wrapping her gifts 11. Making hotel reservations for our Michigan trip 12. Looking up things to do/see on our anniversary weekend away 13. Planning for my day with just my son tomorrow Do you have any ideas as to what the boy and I should do on our day off? Other 13ers

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What To Do....Hmmmmm....

I would love to go see my fav all time band, Third Day, when they come to Columbus (in September), but the tickets are soooo expensive. I'm a part of their fan club, so I can buy tickets for the concert today instead of waiting till Friday when they actually go on sale. I've got third row tickets on hold, but it will cost almost $100 for two tickets after fees and shipping. That is just more money than I wanted to spend. I could wait till closer to the event and get on ebay for my tickets. It could cost less, but who knows where the tickets would be seated.

However, on ebay, I found tickets for a Third Day show in Michigan that includes one of my hubby's fav bands, Jars of Clay. The concert is next month, so my hubby and I could make a weekend trip out of it to celebrate our anniversary (which is 3 days before the concert). We would have a 6 hour drive to get there, but both of us have never been to Michigan before and we could do some sight seeing once there.

I just don't know what to do. $100 is a lot to me, but it would be third row seats for a Third Day concert...heehee! It would be an anniversary gift for my hubby and I, but I'm the one who is the band's fan. The hubby really enjoys the group, but for him to do this for our anniversary would make me feel really guilty. I want to do something/buy something that we would both equally enjoy. He wants to go ahead and buy the tickets cause he knows I'm a huge Third Day fan, but I am a big time penny pincher and I don't feel right about it.

What would you do?

Ready For The Day

Ahhhh, I feel so much better today. Yesterday I just felt like poop, so I rested while the boys played right in front of me. It on those types of days I realize just how well behaved the boys are...they are the best!

I just didn't feel like doing anything yesterday. I had a really bad sore throat, a little cough, and I felt sick. I pray that it's not the start to some big nasty summer cold-I hate those!!! But like I said, I'm feeling much better today. I got a decent night's sleep for once and I think I can make it to 3pm for my afternoon nap (instead of 7:30am like yesterday).

Btw, I happened to love Lady in the Water, but then again, I knew I would. M. Night has yet to put out a movie that I don't like. My hubby actually enjoyed it as well. He really sympathized with the main character, Cleveland Heep-both are in apartment maintenance. (We laughed several times just because Heep was doing something the exact same way my hubby would-like straightening up the pool just so.)

I know that this movie, just like The Village, got terrible reviews. But that's because I think the movie critics compare all of M.'s movies to The Sixth Sense. I won't do that here. Instead I will compare Lady in the Water to Signs. :-) Just like in Signs, you have to believe in things outside our world. Plus, in both movies, there really is no twist. Both don't have a lot of major action scenes, but Lady in the Water kept my attention the entire time. I loved all the unique characters in the film and the role they played in helping out the water nymph. The film critic tenant was a nice touch as well.

This movie is like a bedtime story for adults. If you don't want to be told a story/fairy tale, simply don't see the movie-it won't be for you. However, if you are a fan of M. Night's movie, Signs, I think you would enjoy this movie. It's def not my fav of all his movies, but I loved it no the less and I plan on buying it when it comes out.

Lady In The Water

Man, I can't wait to see this movie tonight! I've been looking forward to this most recent M. Night movie now for months!!! I love all his movies, so when I heard this one was coming out, I knew I had to see it asap! But I guess he is one of those directors that you either love or hate. And most people say that his only good movie was The Sixth Sense, but I love them all...with The Village being my all time fav!

So, I've got a sitter for my son so my hubby and I can go to the theatre. And I can't believe my hubby is actually willing to go see it. He doesn't like these kinds of movies...he's a comedy kind of guy. But, he is going with me just because I'm so excited to see this movie. I'll just have to return to favor by seeing that crazy looking Talladega Nights. :-)

Do you have any special plans for this weekend?

Baby List

Thirteen things Trinity13 needs to be before the baby comes in October. 1. My hubby and I need to get the baby crib out of storage and set it up in our son's room. We do have a 3 bedroom home, but one room is a play room and I don't have the heart to make it anything but a play room...so my son is getting a roommate. 2. I need to clear a space for a pack-n-play in the playroom. It's currently in my son's room, but it needs to be moved so the crib can go in there. 3. I need to find the inserts for both my pack-n-plays. I haven't see them since we moved, but they would be great to have so that I don't have to bend over as much to lay the baby down. 4. I need to go through my son's two sets of dresser drawers and clear out some space for the new little one's things. 5. There are about 5 storage tubs of my son's old clothes that I need to go through to find all the newborn items. 6. I need to see if I will have the appropriate sizes for the season for the baby since my first one was born in March and this one will be here in October. 7. I would love to buy just a few new items for the baby since really I don't need a baby shower...I saved everything from our first baby. I'd like to get a new thermometer and a pacifier medicine dispenser. 8. I'd also like to get some "I'm the little brother" things...like a few bibs and a shirt or two. 9. I need to stock up on diapers. I haven't bought any little itty-bitty diapers in four years. 10. I would love to have some diapering stations set up throughout the house. With our first son, we had a ranch (with no basement), so all we had to do to change a diaper was to take him into the next room. But now that we have a two story, with a finished basement, I'd love to have a changing station on every floor. 11. I need to wash out the baby car seat and swing. I'm assuming they are full of dust from the lack of use for several years. 12. I need to get a new one of these. 13. And lastly, I need to prepare myself for having a tiny one in my house again...one I can't send home unlike the other boys I babysit for...one that could keep me up in the middle of the night...but one that will multiply the love in our home! Other 13ers

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Such A Big Boy!

Man, I feel so well rested today! The family spent about 90 minutes in the pool last night and it really wore me out. I should do that every night to make sure I get a good night's sleep.

My four year old has really turned into quite a little fish! He has always loved the water, but he is getting braver every time we go swimming. He can now swim with only using his arm floaties and he doesn't even have to plug his nose to go under (which is a big deal to me since both his dad and myself need to plug). When we got a face mask to finally fit his head, my son spent more time with his head underwater than above the water! It was too cute!!!

My son is just growing up too fast. This weekend we plan on getting a futon mattress for a bed that we got from my brother. The bunk bed is for my boy since he has grown out of his little toddler bed. Plus, we need the bed's mattress for the crib we will be setting up soon. I just hope my son will be able to adjust to the new mattress since he has slept on the same one since he was a newborn.

Where does the time go?

Pool Pity Party

With my husband being a resident manager, it's our responsibility to close the pool every night. Since I love the exercise and the fresh air, I like to go and take care of the pool myself. After I help my hubby put our son down for bed, I head out. The pool is supposed to be closed at 10pm, but most nights I get there about 10:30. I like getting there a little late so that, hopefully, there won't be any more residents in the pool area...it will give them just a little bit more time to gather their things and get out.

Well, the past few times I've closed the pool, I've had to kick out residents. Last week I had to throw out about 6 guys, three nights ago it was a family of three, and last night it was about a dozen residents. Most of them didn't realize the pool was closed, or that the pool even closed at all. After I told one of the guys last night that I was closing the pool, he asked me if the pool was supposed to be open 24/7. If only he looked at the big sign, posted at the pool entrance, before he came in...he would then know that the pool is open from 10am-10pm (and that alcohol is not allowed in the pool area and that you need to wear swimsuits in the pool and not street clothes).

Not only do people not understand the pool rules, but they misuse pool life saving devices. I can't tell you how many times I've had to get the ring buoy out of the pool since some kid was using it.

And the rescue hook is broken from people throwing it around.

Also, I've caught a couple of guys using the spinal board as a diving board.


These items need to be accessible in the pool area (in case of an emergency), but people are constantly taking them and misusing them. I find them in the pool and sometimes stuck in the mulch or bushes. But that's not the only things the residents mess up. Every night my hubby and I have to straighten up the chairs and tables, but it can be hard some nights since occasionally they are at the bottom of the pool. And then there are the times that we know a group of people have climbed the locked fence after the pool is closed. When you straighten up chairs before closing the pool, and they are messed up at 10am when you open, you know someone has been inside.

We have told all of this to the people in the office, but nothing has been done yet. I would love to have a flyer made up about being the proper treatment in and around the pool...but I don't know if it will do any good. I could go and check out the pool a couple of times during the day, but why should I have to? Why can't people just respect pool property? And I wish that we could possibly just close the pool when it's misused, but I don't want to punish the people who actually take care of it or who use the pool rules.

What do you think should be done?

Jammin!

Yesterday, instead of our worship band leading music, we had a special guest band (you can hear some of their songs if you click on the link) come in and play for us! They have lead worship for our church in the past, and were so well liked that they came back.

It was cool hearing their acoustic drums since my church uses an electric set. And you could hear the bass from outside the church! They really rocked yesterday! It was loud in the sanctuary, but everyone was lovin it! With arms raised and hips swaying, the congregation praised God with this fantastic rock band!!!

Tonight I get to hear another great rock band...and in my own home! My hubby's band is practicing in our basement, but I can't wait to see what God has in store for them. They were excellent at my parent's church when they performed for our prison group, so I'm looking forward to their next gig. I know they are working on something for September, but I think they are setting up a gig for next month as well. I love it that they want to perform for an audience (no matter what the size) every month to stay on top of their game.

Have a great Monday everyone!

2996 Tribute

The 2,996 Project: The idea is simple, but powerful: have a special tribute for each victim of 9/11, with each tribute being created by a different blogger. We started 2,996 Project to coordinate the creation of the tributes, and that's what this site is all about. Here you can sign up to make a tribute yourself, on your blog (we'll randomly assign a victim to you). You can also browse or search through either the victims that have already been assigned, or those that have not -- and you can get pointers to more information on all of them. (Taken from this site.)

I would encourage you all to be a part of this wonderful tribute! As of July 13, 846 bloggers have signed up. So of the 2996 victims, 28.2% have been assigned to someone. As you can see, we need more people to sign up! I would love to see everyone on my blog links to sign up for a tribute. Please think about it.

For more information, you can visit the man who started it all. Here is his tribute blog. If you would like to sign up, click here...thanks!

Trinity will remember
Lt. Michael K. Healey
World Trade Center

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

80 Things

Thirteen things on Trinity13's 80 list. We are celebrating my grandma's 80th birthday this weekend and it's my job to think of 80 of the same thing to give to her. She is getting 80 new one dollar bills from her kids, but we grandkids need 80 of something as well. Here are my ideas so far. 1. 80 roses made out of kisses 2. 80 family pictures made into a photo collage 3. 80 real flowers with each grandchild in charge of one certain color 4. 80 money flowers 5. 80 fake flowers made into a nice arrangement 6. 80 pearls 7. 80 page magazine from the year she was born 8. 80 letter pages with 80 envelopes 9. 80 pieces of assorted candy 10. 80 flower petals in a potourri jar 11. 80 special Bible verses in a small homemade journal 12. 80 seeds of different types of flowers and vegetables 13. 80 facts, about grandma's life, written in a scrapbook Do you have any ideas as well? Any help would be much appreciated!!! Other 13ers

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Our Vehicles

We should (I hope...crossing my fingers) be getting my hubby's truck back from the mechanic tonight, or at the latest, tomorrow. It's been in the shop for over a week now. We had to take it in since the engine was smoking and it wasn't running right. So $1200 and a week later, we should have our vehicle back. And it's about time too...I've missed my car! My hubby has been using it for the past few days and it's kind of driving me nuts!! It's not like I need to use the car, it's just that it's not in the garage in case I do need to use it. I'm crazy, I know. I would feel so much better knowing that my car was at my disposal for whenever I need it. But, it too needs to go into the shop. Someone hit my passenger side mirror and I need a new one. It was at the mechanics to be fixed, but when my hubby's trucks started having problems (and became undrivable), we switched out vehicles. We should be getting my car back in to the mechanic sometime soon...once we have paid off the trucks repairs and we have the money for a new mirror. So, it might be a while! :-)

Rested

I think I have finally caught up on my sleep. I got a full nap in on Sunday afternoon as well as yesterday afternoon. Having a weekend like I did def takes it out of you! It drains you physically, as well as mentally. But I would love to do it again sometime! It was awesome to be able to go into the prisons and help lead the inmates to Christ. Unfortunately, the next weekend for here in Ohio isn't until October...and I'll be a little bit busy with a newborn by then! :-)

This week I get to take it easy since I'm down one boy. The oldest red-head is staying with his grandma all week, so I just have the young red-head and my son. And it's not like we can do much anyway. Since my hubby's truck is in the shop, he has been driving around my car. So, we are stuck here at the house...but I don't mind since I'm a major homebody!

They Let Me Out!

We had a fantastic time at prison this past weekend! It was a lot of work, but it def paid off by having about 670 decisions for salvation!! There was also over 1700 decisions for rededication!!!

I started working on Thursday afternoon. There were quite a few platform guests coming in from around the US, so my sis and I got them from the airport to the hotel. We made several trips and then we loaded up our car, with people, to head to the church. We had several training sessions at the church before spiritual enrichment(a time to prepare your heart for the weekend) started. My hubby's band lead worship and my powerpoint went off without a hitch! After that, we meet with our prison coordinator to see what the prison rules were for the weekend. I went to my drivers meeting because I was scheduled to transport two platform guests (one a jazz singer/harmonica player, the other a very powerful speaker who was into drugs and prostitution before giving her heart to Christ) into at least 4 different prisons that weekend. At about 11:30, we finally called it a night and four of us (me, my mom, my sis, and PJ) shared a hotel room.

I was up bright and early on Friday since my platform guests and I had to leave the hotel by 6:15. We headed to a huge prison in Chillicothe(about an hour South of Columbus) where they have three prison yards. We were able to visit two of them and we had a wonderful response from the men inmates. About 50 raised their hands wanting to know more information about our Lord...it was so wonderful!

Then we stopped by the hotel for lunch before heading out to two prisons near downtown Columbus. One was a woman's prison and the other was a medical prison. The inmates in both prisons were so happy to see and hear my platform guests...and quite a few responded to the call to know more about Christ.

We got back to the hotel in time for me to get in a short nap before heading to church for the Friday night banquet. We had some very yummy food before seeing several of the platform guests do their thing...like juggle bowling balls! We had some awesome worship time before heading back to the hotel for a swim.

I slept much better that night (prob cause I was so tired from the day's activities), and was up by 6am to get my platforms guests to a prison in Lancaster(about 50 minutes Southeast of Columbus). Since we were there so early in the morning, not all the inmates were up to hear the musician and speaker, so we didn't get much of a response from them...about 30 showed an interest in getting more information. But even if only one person showed an interest, it would have been worth it!!!

After lunch, we headed to Marysville, Ohio (about 55 minutes North of Columbus) to another woman's prison. This prison has over 1900 inmates and they were very happy to see the entertainers I was transporting! We had a huge response from the ladies and I even got to talk to an inmate for 30 minutes...she was so happy that our prison group came in to see her!

It was a very long weekend, but like I said, it was well worth it. It was incredible seeing all the inmates wanting more information about our God!!! I never expected to see such a response from them! I def want to be a part of another prison weekend since this was def a life changing event for me!

I'm Going To Prison!

Thirteen things about Trinity13's prison weekend. 1. That's right, I'm heading to prison this weekend. 2. Several hundred of us are heading in 13 different prisons throughout central Ohio. 3. I'll be picking up several prison platform guests today from the airport. Among the guests will be a from Dallas Cowboy cheerleader, a bowling ball juggler, WWF wrestler, a magician, several retired NBA and NFL players, singers, high-wire walker, etc. 4. The platform guests/entertainers will perform in the prison yard while sharing their testimony with the inmates. 5. I'll be heading to 8 different prisons since I'm a driver for two of the platform guests. 6. Then teammates (that's what I'm called) will also share with the inmates...we have a special track that really helps the inmates understand God more. 7. This is a no pressure opportunity for the prison inmates to finally have a relationship with our Lord. 8. Two years ago, this prison ministry had 54,000 inmate decisions for Christ! 9. This weekend, with all the prisons we are going into, we will be able to share God's love with over 12,000 inmates!!! 10. The chaplains and wardens love seeing us in the prisons since it reduces the rate of repeat offenders. 11. This will be my mom's 25th prison weekend, but she plans on attending hundreds more! She loves it!!! She originally thought that she was going in to help change the lives of others, but really she found out how much this ministry has changed her life. 12. This will be my first weekend (and PJ's as well!!), and I'm very excited!!! 13. I'm outta here for most of today, and all tomorrow and Saturday...so have a great weekend everyone. I know I will!!! (Btw, thanks Lo for watching the boy for us tomorrow!) Other 13ers

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No Time To Post

We have been so busy around here! I just can't seem to find the time to post anything...and tomorrow's post will be the last one of the week. But after this week, my hubby and I will finally be able to take it easy for a little bit...until our vacations comes in September and we will be busy preparing for that!

Btw, our 4th was just okay this year (the rain kind of brought me down). I got my hair done and I colored my mom's hair, my family shopped for a little bit (and got 5 pieces of clothing for my son for a total of $10...I love those kinds of deals!), and then we crashed at home for a short time before driving around to see some fireworks. We had planed to see them at my parent's church, but the firework site was underwater, so they got moved to some time next week. So, we drove around in a neighboring city, in the rain, till we found a great spot. We got there just in time for the fireworks to start! Then my hubby got a call (he was on-call all day yesterday), so we were off to help out some apartment residents 30 minutes away from us. But it's all good since he got holiday pay and time and a half for all the calls he had...so he should have 14 extra hours of pay on his next check! Sweetness!!!

Hope you all had a great 4th!

Superman Returns Baby!!!

My hubby and I finally got to see Superman Returns this past Saturday. We decided to splurge and we upgraded to see the movie in the IMAX theatre...and boy were we happy that we did! Throughout the movie (for about 20 minutes worth), we put on our special glasses to see Superman in all his 3-D glory! Excuse my french, but it was freakin sweet!!! And I just don't see how anybody could not like this movie!

Brandon Routh did an excellent job portraying Superman. He even had some of the same facial expressions as Christopher Reeve did while playing Clark. I think Routh could have been more bumbling, but he still did a great job trying to fill someone else's shoes. (And btw, there is no way my man Tom Welling, who plays Clark on Smallville, could have played this part. He did audition for the part, but I'm so glad they gave it to a newbie.)

I think they did an incredible job on the story line...I couldn't have been happier! I love Lex Luthor's evil plot and the movie is ready to go for a sequel. I'm already looking forward to the next one, but I might just have to go see Superman Returns another time while it's in the theatre. There is just nothing like seeing the man in tights on the big screen! :-)

Here are a few cool facts that I found out about the movie:
-The last line of the fourth Superman movie (the one before "Returns") is Superman saying to Luthor, "See you in twenty." That scene was filmed in 1986. Eerily enough, twenty years later, in 2006, the next Superman movie was released.

-When Singer became interested in possibly hiring Routh, he arranged for them to meet in a coffee shop. When they met at their table, Routh stumbled and spilled hot coffee all over the table. Although he panicked, thinking he had just lost the part, Singer laughed and said it actually helped him get the part. The incident convinced Singer that Routh could pull off the clumsy, bumbling Clark Kent.