Luke is better, thanks for asking.

O.K. All of you crack me up! No one leaves comments in the "comments" section, except Heather. But a ton of you have emailed me asking if Luke is better.
So, officially the rash disappeared about as fast as it appeared. I didn't take him to the doctor because it was so much better.
I'm still keeping an eye on him but he seems fine. So, thank you for asking and for keeping up with our family.
And, you can leave a comment. It isn't hard. You just click on "comment" and write what you think. Then the fact that you care will be saved forever.
Love you all. Deborah (Debbie to my sisters)

What's a mother to do?

Luke got in the car on Tuesday morning with a rash on his left hand. He said "Hey, Mom, what do you think this is?" Of course, we are in the car at 6:50 in the morning! I have to admit that this was the first time I had actually looked at the child that day. We just kind of fly through the morning. Anyway, I realized that this rash was all over his neck as well. I gave him a Claritin, because I had that in my purse. I dropped him at school and said that if it seemed to get worse he should call me.
School starts at 7:30 a.m. Luke called me at 7:33! I wasn't even to downtown Franklin yet. His first period teacher said he should call me.
I really thought he might be allergic to some new shorts that he had on. We bought them on Sunday afternoon and I didn't wash them first. He is extremely sensitive. I use dye free, perfume free everything.
So, I picked him up from school, brought him home and told him to shower (with Dove soap) and change into clothes that I have washed and he has worn before. I gave him Benadryl in addition to the Clairitin. It's a wonder he didn't fall asleep.
I think we both decided that he was better. Until...... he showed me the inside of his arms this afternoon. Both arms are covered and now his body is too.
I am calling the doctor in the morning but I sort of think the dog may have to go. He told me that he would take allergy shots instead of getting rid of the dog. (he's a nice kid).
I dread this one.
However, pray that it is only an allergic reaction and not some funky sickness.

Behind the birthday!

Everybody has one of those uncles that you just aren't sure about. You love him, and it's not that his elevator doesn't go to the top floor, Uncle Billy's elevator shoots right out of the top of the building. Kind of like the crazy Charlie and the Chocolate factory guy. We love him but he's just not right.



Luke tries to get by Uncle Billy without looking or touching!




Alex gave Amelia roses to soften the trauma of all of Uncle Billy's Hoola dancing! Moderation is the key Billy.


Charlotte tries to hold in the laughter as Billy adjusts his coconuts. Thank goodness Sonya made him keep on his shirt!


Snacks make everything better.

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Birthday's galore!

Within one week we have 3 birthdays in our family. Sonya's is August 17, Amelia's is August 20 and Charlotte's is August 24. So, yesterday we celebrated birthday's. It was really Amelia's day, the big girls understand. It was a Luau party! Bert and I don't usually wear our bathing suits to parties but it was the theme. Isn't that a great picture showing off, uh, his muscles?!

Our day with Hannah!

I was so busy with getting to the beach and then getting school started and then getting a dog that I didn't realize I had not shared our day with Hannah. You know it's rough when you've been playing all summer and then your Mom has to go back to work. So, we tried to make it a fun day.
Hannah realized that not only do we have magnets on our refridgerator, we also have them on the washing machine. She first found Sponge Bob and said "Oh, you have to come in here," and she ran him to the fridge. Jacqulin has magnet 'paper dolls' that have all kinds of outfits, including shirts, pants, skirts, shoes and purses. She told one of the magnet girls "good job, she's wearing big girl panties." She found a pumpkin magnet that she put over a girls face so she would smile bigger. We laughed so hard at her running back and forth.
It reminded me of Jacqulin at this age. I have her on video lining the magnets up on the washing machine and teaching them like they were a class of children. Too funny.
I knew that we had had a successful Hannah day when she started crying when Heather drove up to get her. I thought she had smashed her finger or something. She just wanted to stay with her Aunt Debbie. She was so good and we enjoyed her so much.
Hannah, we will do this again real soon and you can play with the puppy.

WHAT WAS I THINKING?!?

What was I thinking? I don't know, I probably wasn't. Everyone knows I'm not an animal person. I think they are great and I think every child should have one. We had dogs when I was a kid. Bert had dogs when he was a kid. We had dogs when we got married. When Luke was little we had a chihuahua named Elvis, who had a ton of energy. When Luke was two he would say "Don't bover me Elvis." So, we found a good home for Elvis and have been focusing on kids rather than animals.
So, the neighbors just had a baby and this puppy was just a bit too much for them. I guess it has come full circle. Bert has developed a special relationship with the dog when she would be in the neighbors back yard. She loves him.
So, we have a dog!! Even one of Jacqulin's friends said she couldn't believe her mom let her get a dog. Well, Bailey, I did.
Her name is Abby, she is a Yorkiepoo. The kids have been getting up at 5:30 a.m. to walk her before school. As long as they keep that up, I can't complain. Plus, she is sweet.

First Day of School 2008

Today was our first full day of school. Who ever thought school would start this early? The kids were excited but a little anxious, they are both starting new schools. Jacqulin is going to Freedom Intermediate and is in 5th grade which starts at 7:20 a.m. Luke is going to Freedom Middle and is in 7th grade which in just down the street from the Intermediate school and starts at 7:30 a.m. Jacqulin was fine until she realized I really wasn't going into the building with her. She shed a few tears. When she got out of the car Luke said "Mom, I don't want my little sister to be scared, that upset me." He said she looked so little walking into school by herself. I had to choke back a few tears myself. This is the school Luke went to for the last two years, so it's no big deal to him.
Luke did some deep breathing exercises between Jacqulin's school and his. He was acting all tough while she was in the car but then let me know he was a little rattled.
We prayed and reminded God that He said not to be anxious about anything, but through prayer with thanksgiving let Him know our request. Our request today was just to not let the nerves rattle us.
I know they are going to have a great year.

Aunt Frankensonya!

Aunt Sonya got into a fight with a gardening tool. I'm pretty sure she won, so the other guy must look really bad! Jacqulin was very impressed because Sonya said she didn't cry when she got stitches. I was impressed that she took a knot on the noggin and still drove herself to the doctors office. You are a big girl Aunt Sonya. Love you but don't expect any help with the yard work. Ha!

A Huntsville Happy Birthday!

On the way home from the beach, we were able to stop and eat dinner with our Huntsville relatives. We were able to celebrate Luke's birthday once again. It was only a couple of hours but it was nice to visit with everyone.

Vacation, vacation, vacation...

We pack everything we can into a few days away. What is amazing is that these pictures don't even cover everything we did. I didn't get any pictures of our bike riding, miniature golf, the pool with the waterfall, the beach (except for Luke) or a lot of other things. But this is a quick recap of some of the things we did while in Sandestin, FL. We had a great time.

Luke, the surfer dude!

Luke would be the first to tell you that this is "skim boarding" but I like "boogie board" but whatever it is he's pretty good, and he does look like a surfer! His Aunt Bev had sent an email saying that she would like to see a picture of him doing his thing on the board, so here you are Aunt B. She also wanted to see Bert doing this... Luke said "Mom, we should take a picture of dad standing on this in the middle of our room, that is as close to riding this your going to see." We couldn't even get that picture.
In some of these pictures I think Luke looks like he could be on "Baywatch," the funny thing about that is he always pretends he's on Baywatch by running in slow motion. These pictures weren't in slow motion though.

Happy Birthday to you, Luke!!!!

Crab legs are quite a treat for us. You know we do the "birthday week" thing that incudes choosing where you want to eat on the actual day. The Crab Trap is our favorite restaurant at the beach. We started coming here when the kids were little because there is always a playground at the restaurant and they have great food. So, we waited for an hour and 10 minutes but Luke got crab legs. Happy birthday.

YOU ONLY TURN 13 ONCE....

We wanted Luke to have a spectacular birthday, so Bert and I dropped about $100 grand on a little fireworks show over the Gulf of Mexico (at least that's what we keep telling Luke). It was spectacular.
The kids had a great time. too.

We can run, but we can't hide.

Technology is a great thing; it allows us to go but Bert can still touch base. He actually has a boat client that we are "researching" ideas for. He only spends about 30 minutes on the computer the entire time we are gone. Works for me we are still at the beach. I decided to load pictures on the blog while he was checking email. Thank goodness for Panera Bread and their free Wi-fi.

WHAT IT'S ALL ABOUT.

I LOVE the beach, I love vacation. Bert accuses me of finding reasons to go on vacation. Yep, I do and these are the reasons, the three most important people in my life. We get a chance to pose for pictures, watch movies in the car, eat meals together, walk together, pray together, laugh together. We grow closer as a family, the kids grow closer to each other, and we actually grow closer to God. Some people call it bonding. I call it taking a much needed break. We have made great memories that will last a lifetime and not just in pictures.