I'm a Ford Man!

We got Lincoln his very first Power Wheels Ford F-150 yesterday. Ben assembled it last night, while I put on all the decals. Lincoln loved sitting in it last night, so this morning we automatically assumed he would like driving it himself. Boy, was that the ultimate wrong assumption. This morning after church, we went to the abandoned parking lot across from our apartment complex & put him in the truck. Here's the first picture where he did not realize that he was pushing on the pedal. He was pretty calm, collected, & clueless:

Then when he finally realized that he was the one making it move, he panicked & tried to jump out of the truck. From then on, it was screaming, crying, & basically an all-around fit that wanted nothing to do with the truck. Yippy skippy. So we had to use a lure. Here's Lure #1, Lincoln's "night-night" (stuffed animal elephant) driving:

That didn't work very well because Lincoln just looked at the elephant & said, "Elephant go fast." It was like he was cheering the elephant on, but still not wanting to go near the truck.
Here's Lure #2. Get a kick outta this one:

Yeah...I think the weight limit for the truck is 65 pounds. Ha. It was like trying to squeeze into a pair of size 2T jeans. So we were left with nothing else to do besides force it. We knew he would enjoy it if he just tried it out again, so we sat him in there & ran around the parking lot with him clapping & hollering. He finally started to laugh!
Here's him stopping for a break to pick his nose:

And we even got a smile out of him in this one:

All in all, he enjoyed his first day with the Ford. Maybe tomorrow will be even better.

big brother lincoln...

Take a look at these photos. If you are in a grumpy mood & need a lift, check out Lincoln who is smiling from ear to ear. These were taken this past weekend while Ben took Lincoln to Six Flags in St. Louis. He had a ball, as evidenced by his grins. He looks like such a big boy...and big boy indeed. He will become a big brother in February! I am nearly 3 months pregnant! We are thrilled of course, & are looking so forward to meeting the new Baby Cissell. I heard the heartbeat this morning at the doctor's office, & it was swift, consistent & the rate was 170. Please join us in praying for the baby's health & wellness during this pregnancy. We would really appreciate it.

We are happy that by the time the baby arrives, we will be all moved into our house & settled. And speaking of the house, we will be moving in on August 16. Yea! We are more than ready to move on from this chapter of our lives living in this apartment...it has been humorous, challenging & claustrophobic all at the same time. What could be better!?!

I hope you, friends, have a peaceful & joyful week.
We'll chat more later.

My new favorite song comes from this guy?!

Let me give you guys a brief summary of what several of my evenings have been like for the past few months. MONTHS, I tell you. As many of you may not know, one of my favorite TV shows is "Friday Night Lights". Sure, go ahead, gab all you want about cheesy melodramas filled with teen angst, boyfriend jealousy, & football games (hello, I'm a Texas girl whose high school won the Football State Championship, wait, I digress), but I am the Queen of these shows. I'll take the pride over the bashing. Back to my story: I heard a song in one of the episodes that I adored, but could not find who the artist was or what the song was called. Hours I sat (okay, maybe not hours) with my laptop open, watching the same 3 minutes of the episode, headphones in, trying to hear a lyric, just one comprehensible phrase of a verse, of this song that was barely considered "background music." I mean, this song was so faint & quiet it was nearly impossible to decipher anything the singer was saying. Two nights ago, I wake up Ben at midnight. Did I say wake up? What I really mean is shove him & say, "Hey, put these headphones on & see if you can hear what this guy is saying in this song..." This was not the first time I had done this to poor Ben. Poor Ben indeed. So my tired, grumpy, just-being-woken-up-husband put on the headphones & what does he say?!? Wait for it, wait for it...he says, "I'll tell you sir...Rhondi, he's saying I'll tell you sir." Those four little words. I'LL TELL YOU SIR. Those were the only understandable lyrics "we" could identify.

About 10 minutes later, victory was mine. Willis Alan Ramsey. He only recorded one album in 1972 which had my song on there, "Angel Eyes". I nearly cried when I saw it. Only because this meant that I could call off the search & finally let it die. I had a vision of what the singer would look like...really sexy, scruffy, maybe some remnants of a beard, clearly a catch. But I was not prepared for this guy. Why would I be? I was not even a blip on the world's radar in 1972.

Here are 2 lessons to be learned from this little sweetheart of a story of mine:

1. Marry someone with really good hearing.
2. Don't judge an album by its cover.

We'll talk to ya.

It's just like, it's just like, a Mini-Mall!

My sis forwarded me this video & I almost peed my pants. All I have to say is this: this dude is black & owns a flea market. You would think he could rap a little bit better than what is displayed here. And on a further note, my brother-in-law, Todd, AKA "T-MO", who is a white suburbanite salesman, can blow this guy out of the water with his rapping skillz. True dat.

Remember, it's just like--a MINI-MALL!!

White Trash Anyone?

Um, I'm not quite sure how to sum up this photo, except to point out 3 distinct things:
1) Yes, that is indeed a scooter parked in our "living room" in our apartment;
2) Yes, that is our son in nothing but skivvies standing on the scooter; and
3) Yes, I think he's doing some sort of pose that kinda looks like a dance move, while grinning mischieviously at the camera.

I'm not exactly certain of how we got to this point, but I think it has something to do with us trying to sell items on ebay, while living in the world's smallest pea-pod.

Here are some more pictures of us at the pool the other day. Lincoln thinks it's hilarious to jump into my arms when I'm completely not ready. Yeah....that is hilarious.


Here's one from the back of our house. They finished the deck a few days ago...we love it. Whaddya think?


OK talk to y'all soon. Toodles.

Let's give them something to talk about...

Well, a call from my sister & my mom confirmed it, folks. They are both die-hard fans of "So You Think You Can Dance", as is BFF Courtney Goolsby, & they informed me tonight that during each rose-ceremony-get-outta-here-you've-been-voted-off-the-island elimination time, the show's goodbye song is actually Audio Adrenaline's "Goodbye" song off their last album, "Adios". Pretty cool! Does this mean that I have to start watching this ridiculous show? I think these were the same exact words I spoke regarding American Idol, & now look at me. Seriously. I don't think Ben can take it.

Whoa, it's been a long time...

Hi y'all! It's been a pretty long time since I've updated this...I guess I've been pretty busy. Going to the pool every single day can really take it out of a girl.

Well, we have a huge praise to let you in on. Bobby & Saxon's parents took a 30-day drug test 4 days ago & they are both 100% clean! Praise be to God for He is faithful. Bobby & Saxon cannot immediately go back with their parents this week, however; they will go live with another family for another 30 days to ensure their parents are serious & committed about their recovery efforts. This new family that the boys will be living with is wonderful & their son is Saxon's best friend at Sixth Avenue. The parents are recovering addicts themselves (been sober for 12 years) & they feel the calling from the Lord to speak into the boys' lives about what they're going through, possibly shedding a new light on the situation...one in which Ben & I could not have done.
So our last day with Bobby & Saxon will be this Wednesday. Of course we will continue to see them, as they are at Rocketown every single day. It has been a fruitful month...definitely filled with challenges & difficulty...but certainly fruitful nevertheless. God has taught us some really cool things during all of this. One of them being that if we are called to do a mission of some sort (whether it be on foreign soil or right here at Royal Oaks Apartments), it doesn't mean that we have to enjoy it all of the time. I found peace during the days when I was frustrated with everything going on, simply because I knew we were being obedient to the will of God. I do believe obedience births peace.

On another note, Lincoln is almost fully potty-trained! We stayed homebound for practically 7 days straight (no, that was not a typo...I nearly went postal & jumped off my balcony) in order to teach him about the potty. He's got #1 down; #2 is a different story. But hey, I'm taking it day by day, & I'm just thankful that he can tell me when he needs to go. Whopee! And on an entirely different level, I'm gonna give a shout-out to God & thank Him for NO MORE DIAPER EXPENSES. Sheesh, I will definitely not miss buying Pampers. It's practically a whole new world.

The house has been at a standstill for a couple weeks...we're waiting on some inspections to go through with the City. When that happens, we'll be on a roll. Words cannot describe how eager I am to get out of E-4.

Happy Summer and Get Tan Everybody...bring sexyback.

It's Coming Along...

Here's the house progress! They just sided our house yesterday & they are planning on painting the siding in the coming days. The dry wall should go up in the next 2 weeks or so. It's exciting to see our house taking shape. We walk through it just about every day with the boys. They like running through it & telling us where good skateboarding places are in the basement. I'll post more pictures as more changes are made.
Until next time.

Settling in with Boobie & Saxon...

We are 10 days into having Bobby & Saxon live with us here at our apartment. Here's a little humor for ya: Lincoln calls Bobby "Boobie". Because Lincoln has no understanding of volume control yet, he screams for Boobie loudly while in public places. This causes Bobby to laugh out loud & then his face turns beet red. It's a hoot overe here with 4 boys and me. I'm a little outnumbered!
They are settling in quite nicely, enjoying home-cooked meals & daily showers. They are at Rocketown every day with Ben, & hopefully by the end of the 30-day mark, they will be allowed to return home. Please continue praying that this will be the case.

Thank you to everyone who has given so freely in the ways that they have for our situation right now. Every gift card, piece of clothing, & check has been greatly appreciated & it is so special to us that you are all willing to help us. I do believe that God is performing a miracle to achieve a purpose so much greater than we can see with our own eyes. To Him be the glory.

xoxo

boo. hiss. growl.

Well friends, the season of American Idol has finally come to a close, thank God. I've been robbed. I still harbor serious resentment about Melinda being kicked off. I think it's a consensus by all that we are all furious at our DVR/Tivo machines today. It cut off the entire drum-rolling, tears-flowing, sobs-shaking, voice-trembling, awful "This is my Now" moment by Miss Seventeen. YouTube to the Rescue! Whew.

So many things to talk about. Let's get down to it. First thing on my list is Randy's jacket. What the?!? I have nothing to say about that except "it was kinda pitchy for me, dawg..." And when I say pitchy, I mean so ugly that it never should have existed. And oh dear Paula, what will we do with you? A broken nose caused by a crazy fall with your Chihuaha "Tulip", WAY-TOO long extensions, and not to mention the swaying & walrus-clapping. This summer just simply won't be the same without you in my living room every week. And I'm fairly certain that I caught Simon sleeping once or twice throughout the show. Poor Brit was so bored.

I don't have much else to say about Idol, simply because I got sucked into Lost last night. Way to go Hurley! I was sad to see Charlie die, but ratings come first. I was a little slow in realizing that we were not experiencing a flash-back, but a flash-forward. Ben caught onto that point way faster than I did. I was still reeling from Jack having a full-grown beard & being drunk all the time...I'm not sure what to think about the finale except good, good, and more good. Does this mean next year will be nothing but episodes filled with flash-forwards, while everyone returns to their normal life? Or does it mean that they're never getting off that god-forsaken island? We shall see in 7 months.

More coming soon.