Dancing Fools

Here are a couple of my crazy kids dancing to the beat:

Rachel - in her dance class

Marshel - anytime the rhythm hits him

Howl-O-Scream

Here are the pics from Howl-O-Scream at SeaWorld. We went two nights in a row: the first night with Rachel and Nate and then we went back the next night with Rachel, Marshel and Kellee. We forgot the camera the first night, but the second night pics were great. We had a lot of fun.

We went to the Haunted Forest both nights - somehow the daytime part wasn't quite as scary. Okay, there was nothing scary about it. But, it was good for Kellee. There were a lot of creepy characters walking around scaring people as they stood in line. She had a death grip on me every time the werewolf or dead people would get near her. She didn't like the clowns either. Can't say that I blame her there. I'm not much into clowns. There was one that was constantly criticizing people. He was pretty funny. There were a few chasing girls down. It was definitely entertaining. The Shamu show was awesome as usual. Rachel, dad and Marshel went on Atlantis, since there was virtually no line. They got extremely wet and loved it. Kellee and Marshel liked the Shamu roller coaster.

There was also a great show at the end of the night, with Pumpkin Jack and his Minions. They danced and sang and we all had a great time watching that. So, here are the pictures and video:

Michael

Michael is down to his last week at Boot Camp. He called to talk to me and we talked for almost a half hour. It was so nice. He wanted me to know he had just finished Battle Stations. This is the final test to see if he has learned everything he needs to know. They are awoken in the middle of the night and taken to a mock battleship that was built by Universal Studios there at the base. They are taken through a series of obstacles where they have to prove themselves in areas such as firefighting, swimming, etc. I don't know everything because they aren't allowed to talk about it over the phone. I did tell him to write down his experiences so he would have those for later.

Anyway, after 36 hours of this, they are judged to see if they have completed everything correctly. If so, they pass. If not, they have to go back and re-learn and do Battle Stations over.

When Mike arrived at Boot Camp, he was given a ball cap that said Recruit on it. He said he didn't think anything of it, other than it was a hat. He said he learned the true meaning of that hat when after not sleeping for 3 days and running themselves ragged, these boys (and girls) are brought out onto the landing of this battleship. Mike said, the chief came up to each one of them individually, shook their hand and handed them a new hat, which said Navy! Mike said he was crying so hard he couldn't say Thank You Chief. Then they played "I'm proud to be an American". There wasn't a dry eye in the room. This is what it was all about.

So, he did it! He now has a week of relaxation ahead of him. He will still be marching and working, but he has proven himself. He said he was very proud of himself and proud of his choice to join the US Navy.

We will be leaving Thursday to Chicago to see him graduate. Then he's off to Florida for A school. More on this later!

What do you get when...

...you mix pouring rain, 2 kids and a trampoline?
Answer: A ton of fun!
Marshel and Kellee had a blast jumping and slipping all over the trampoline during the huge rainstorm we had today. For all of you who worry, we had no lightning and no one fell off and broke their neck. They had a great time playing together. They were outside for about a half hour, before they came to the back door, literally dripping. Being the great mom I am, I made them strip down butt nekkid on the back porch before I'd let them in. It was definitely a great adventure for them.

From Michael

Only 2 more weeks to go for Mike. He will be graduating from Recruit Training (Boot Camp) on October 24th. We were able to speak to him on the phone on Saturday. We could hardly hear him as he had lost his voice. He had been given a nasal spray flu vaccine, which had given him the flu. Even though he was over the symptoms of chills and fever, sore throat, etc, he still hadn't regained his voice. He also told us that A school won't start until January, so after he gets to Pensacola on October 24th, he'll have 49 days to wait to start school. He said they will give him jobs to do on base to pass the time. Hey, he's getting paid, that's all that matters, right?

In one of Michael's letters, he said that there are still some of the kids in his group that haven't learned to listen and shut up. Because of their constant chatter, the entire group has been getting punished. Mike says he just listens, does what he's told and when he's told. Unfortunately, the whole group suffers from the disrespect of others. That's very frustrating for him, but he is looking forward to the end of Boot Camp, when he will be away from those kids. The bad thing is there are kids like that everywhere, so he'll probably still run into this problem.

Regardless of the hard times, he says he's really enjoying the Navy so far and can't wait to get into his actual job and start learning for that. We can't wait to see him in 11 more days.

The new baby of the house

We knew we wanted to get a new puppy, but weren't sure when the right time would be. When we saw the sign Puppies for Sale, we had to stop. There were 2 different types of puppies there. First we looked at the Rat Terriers, because we had talked about getting a small dog. But, we couldn't tear the kids (that includes Martin - the biggest kid) away from the others. I couldn't believe that I agreed to a Pit Bull/Hound mix. She's so cute, though and very cuddly. Always wants to be held and snuggles up to whoever she's next to.

Chewie stays as far away as possible right now - doesn't want to be bothered by a kid. So, here we are in the midst of potty training and chewing. But, it's a lot of fun and the kids are in love with the new baby.

Trying to get 4 kids to agree on a name was almost impossible. We went through Elvis, Presley, Toffee, Caramel, Tigerlily, Bobcat (BOB for short), and others I can't remember, before we settled on Snickers. So, here she is...the new Jackson family member:

My Birthday Gift

So, as if getting older wasn't bad enough, this year my birthday brought the gift of wearing glasses. To quote the optometrist when I mentioned that I was squinting to see further away, "Well, you're getting older". "THANKS!"
So, here's the new me. The family still looks at me strangely, and when I happen to see myself in the mirror, it shocks me that they are there. Next year this time, I'm sure I won't even think about it anymore, but for now, it feels weird. I keep wanting to take them off when I go indoors, as if they were sunglasses.

Rachel's Gingerbread House

At Young Women's last week, the girls made gingerbread houses. While they weren't edible, they were really pretty. We kept Rachel's house around for awhile, but eventually had to say goodbye. Kellee kept trying to eat it, but it was made with inedible glue, so we had to watch her. Rachel had a great time making it though.

Working at The Car Wash

I should preface this by explaining that we had

a butterfly infestation in San Antonio for the past month or so. Some people say it was the Hurricane; others say it was the drought, so the bugs that normally eat the butterfly larva weren't around. Who knows? Who cares? What we care about is how many have committed suicide on the front of our vehicles...lets say in the thousands. Really gross!

Martin decided to wash his work van, so Marshel and Kellee decided to wash the Saturn. They had a great time climbing all over the car and getting wet from the hose. Let's just say, we now have less butterfly guts on the car, but we need a car wash to see out the windows. It's all about fun, though, right?

Marshel's 2nd tooth

He did it again...lost another tooth. He was so proud to show off the gaping hole. He was a little stressed that it was bleeding. He must have forgotten that it did that last time. And then there's Kellee who wants to do everything Marshel does, so she is always telling me she has a loose tooth. I just say OK, and laugh. She forgets that she has a lost tooth, that won't be showing up again for another 3 or 4 years.

The Latest from Mike

We received a letter yesterday from Mike, which we loved. He sounded like he was doing really well. He was actually writing the letter from church, his one real place of calm and peace in his life right now. He told us that when he graduates he'll be wearing his dress blues since it will be winter. He likes them better than the whites, so he seemed excited for that.

He was also excited because the next day he was going out for the live-fire with the 9mm pistol and the M600 shotgun. He explained, "If I get 148 points, I get a ribbon for marksmanship. If I get 210, I get a ribbon with an 'S' on it for sharpshooter. If I get 240 which is a perfect score, I get a ribbon with an 'E' on it for Expert Shooter." He really wants the ribbon and would love lettering in it. We'll have to see how he does.

He is counting the days. Sunday would be 27 days left of Boot Camp. He told us he misses us and can't wait to see us. He said, "I'm a new man, and I'm growing up and getting stronger." I could tell just from the way he writes.