Happy 18th birthday to my fabulous firstborn!!!

For her gifts we got her a ticket on the Girls Just Wanna Have Fun Cruise, and also some pearl earrings and a purse. Michael brought her a huge thing of roses and a diamond heart necklace. We got to take her to lunch and shopping, now Michael has taken her for the evening.   For the rest of us, it's pizza and game 7 of the World Series..

Ladies!

Grab a girlfriend and get away next March for a long weekend trip to Mexico. You can go for around $500 per person. Where else can you get that kind of price for a vacation?? Only a few days left to put down your deposit and secure your cabin. Final payment not due until January. Email me(shileen at 3dcruiseandtravel.com), call me, something!! I will be on this boat! That's incentive enough! (j/k, j/k) Seriously, come join us, it will be a ton of fun..

I met a sweet old man while working the travel booth today. I asked him if he wanted to go on vacation and he said he'd love to but he won't  leave  his wifes side, and she is in a nursing home.  As if that wasn't enough to make me tear up, we then got into a conversation about him being a Vietnam vet. Near the end of our conversation I thanked him for his service, and then he turned back to me and said, "thank you, but when I came home from the war, they spit on us and threw trash on us, treated us like dirt." I was horrified to say the least, and not knowing quite what to say, I apologized and said that wouldn't have happened on my watch. He smiled and thanked me again, then left. I can't even imagine the pain they went through, to come back home to that response. It sickens me. I LOVE our fighting men and women. I honor them for their courage, and for laying it all on the line to protect us. How could anyone not honor them? I don't care how you felt about the war, they are  US soldiers who defended our right to live free. They should be the most honored among us.
Sorry for the rant, but that man will stick with me for a long time, he totally broke my heart.

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Ok, senior year is really expensive. I guess it's to prepare us for the even greater expense of college. All the college application fees, dorm deposit, camp, graduation fee, cap, gown, etc, senior pics, prom, dress for prom, senior trip, good grief it's out of control.   I need another job.
Michaels meeting with his parents went really well. He's actually going to apply to law schools in Houston. His mom insists he chase her down there so he can marry her eventually. Apparently she LOVES Jordan and doesn't want him to lose her. She has good taste, I like her already :) So she'll only be alone down there for a little over a year. That makes me feel a little bit better about the whole thing, but not really.

Had a great time in downtown Austin today with Josh, Michael and the girls. City wide garage sale, lunch, Texas book fair at the capitol, Amy's pumpkin ice cream, and then Music Makers, where we purchased Hannah's first guitar. It's a month early, but when you find the 'right' one, you buy it or it will be gone .


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Hannah's first guitar. Early 15th bday present, she's very happy :)

One of the proudest moments of a homeschool parents career. The day your first child gets their first college ACCEPTANCE LETTER!!!!!!!!!!! This one is for A&M Galveston. (marine biology)
So proud of my girl Jordan, she has worked so hard for this. Oh happy day! :)

Ok, since I'm so bad at remembering to blog, I'm gonna give you declutter friends the whole weeks list.
spice cupboard, refrigerator, office desk/drawers, and nighstand drawers.


My daughter is sick, I have to go

For those following the declutter plan - today is your bedroom dresser drawers, and this includes all the stuff on TOP of your dresser :)


So this weekend the sweet young couple got into their first "disagreement". He has been harassing her about A&M, calling it a lousy school, etc.., basically trying to convince her she doesn't want to go there. (because it's too far away from him in Waco) Well she finally had enough of it and let him have it. She said this is where I want to go, where I need to go for her major, and he needs to be supportive. After a kind of rough weekend, he went back to Waco in a foul mood. He called later and apologized, saying he was just scared of losing her. So he's decided to follow her down there. He's going to check into getting his MBA at Rice or another Houston area college. That way he can be less than an hour from her in Galveston.  But his dad will not be happy, and he's the one writing the checks. However, his mom adores Jordan and will hopefully convince his dad to support the move.
Pretty heavy stuff they're having to deal with so early in their relationship. They have to make huge decisions about their future together. I think it really finally hit him that if he wants to be with her he will be living on the beach somewhere most of his life. His previous plan was to take over the family business in Georgetown, which he doesn't want to and can't do anymore if he wants to be with her.
I don't envy him right now, but I think Jordan's worth it. Apparently he does too.

Ok, sorry guys about the week long absence. This garage sale business really messed with my progress. I am so glad it's over. I promise to start up on the second half of our declutter party Monday morning. We need to finish getting our house in shape for the holidays. Tomorrow I'm on camera 1 most of the day, then we have to try and find a way to get this bird out of our house. It flew in friday night and has been stuck ever since. We can't ever find it long enough to try and catch it...

Jor and Michael took some cute self portraits this weekend

Well our sale got rained out. We'll try again next Saturday, and in the meantime enjoy the rain!
Texas Fight!!

Garage sale in the morning 8:30 -1 , Shadow Valley cv, Cedar park. All proceeds go to fund Jordans senior trip to Thailand.

Another legend has passed. He changed the world of technology forever.

“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules… You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things… they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.” Steve Jobs

I am starting to get addicted to this decluttering thing. There is something freeing about purging unnecessary things from your home. And I'm not sure why this is, but I haven't been shopping since this started.
Today I worked, so I wasn't going to do a bag today, but tonight while Josh and Hannah were at practice I couldn't resist and cleaned out the 2 pots and pans cabinets which were on tomorrows list. So there's your assignment, while I work on organizing garage sale stuff.

I just finished reading To Kill A Mockingbird. Great book. Now starting The Great Gatsby.  Jordan is hooked on reading the classics; she has inherited my mothers love of books, and talks frequently about her desire to have a big beautiful library in her own home someday. Her enthusiasm has spread and now I'm reading them. I'm sure I've read a lot of these, but I just don't remember them.  Her most recent accomplishment was getting through Moby Dick. I don't think I'm gonna follow her on that one..

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If you or anyone you know homeschools, this is going to be the garage sale for you to come to. Lots of stunning, beautiful DK books, and lots of comprehensive childrens encyclopedia type books, as well as teachers manuals for popular curriculum, and some basic texts as well. Basically an entire large bookshelf full of resources. Plus some educational board games, etc..
Oh, I might even sell our beloved talking smart globe that we have loved so much. Maybe..
Saturday morning, 1005 shadow valley cove in CP. I might do a friday morning too, I'll let you know, or you guys can let me know if a private hs showing would be helpful.  I have collected sooo many books over the last 15 years, and most of them are in near perfect condition. So many hs resources, and I want to sell them to other hs families, not just garage salers looking for a bargain..

On a completely different note.. I was reading this today and it made my heart happy, so I thought I would share..
Isaiah 57:15,16 "... I live in a high and holy place, but also with those who are contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the heart of the contrite. I will not accuse them forever, nor will I always be angry, for then they would faint away because of me - the very people I created.
18 - I have seen their ways, but I will heal them; I will guide them and restore comfort to them creating praise on the lips of the mourners in Israel."

Such a beautiful picture of our God, the father.

Today - clean out the closet under the stairs. Another scary place.. If you don't have one, then pick another scary closet..

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