Monday, February 09, 2009

Sea World- - - -October 2008


So, I was looking through pictures the other night and I realized that I totally meant to post a blog about when we went to Sea World, in San Antonio, and I never did. Here I am now....4 months later posting about it, ROFL! Here is a picture of what my family and I call slug bugs, and it was painted like water, and had a whale dorsal fin and tail on it. I thought it was so cute and I couldn't help but take a picture of it! I don't know that I'd like to drive around town in something like that, but it sure is cute!

Taking the kids to Sea World was so WONDERFUL! I love that we were able to do that for them, and that they were able to have a good time. That was always on my list of places to take my boys, so I mark it off for now, and hope that another day, we can go back. They had so much fun, and it was a great learning experience as well. So many magnificent animals out there that the Lord has given to us, and it was amazing to see just a few of those amazing creatures. My boys are fascinated with sea life, and we have some books that they like to read and look at, and it was so neat to show them some of the animals, that we probably wouldn't ever get to see out in the ocean.

The first show that we went to, was the dolphin and beluga whale show! I love beluga whales, and I think that they are so cool looking. The boys were so amazed with them, and all that they would do. I loved to just sit back and watch my boys take it all in, and just watch them with such awe and amazement on their faces. To hear them say: "Mom...Did you see that?!" "Did you see them jump?" "Mom look at that splash!" Oh what joy filled my heart to hear my boys enjoying it so much!!

The next show that we went too was....Yep, you guessed it: SHAMU!! I could go to Sea World, just to see Shamu, and the killer whales! They absolutely amaze me!!

Now, the one thing that happened that really disappointed the boys with seeing Shamu was....They did NOT get wet, and that was a MAJOR disappointment to them. We thought where we were sitting that we'd get wet, well...at least the boys would, but...no such luck. We really thought that they'd be able to get wet where we were at, but it just didn't happen. Now, I have to be honest and say, I did NOT want to get wet, AT ALL! So I was doing all I could to not get wet, but I think that in turn made it to where the boys didn't get wet either. Although, in my defense, I didn't control where the whale landed, and splashed. The boys kept saying though...Mom, Dad, if we were just a little bit closer, we would have gotten wet. (Secretly....I'm really glad we didn't get wet. LOL!!)

I thought this picture was so cool, how the whale just glides up on this platform, and lays there, this huge magnificent animal! I told my boys that while they were that big in captivity, they are even bigger out in the wild, out in the ocean. They had a hard time believing that. I have always said that the ocean amazes me. If you stop and think about it, we have multiple types of sea creatures out there, whales, sharks, fish, eels, dolphins, seals, sea lions, jellyfish, etc. ALL these animals in the ocean, and yet, you could go out on a boat, and never see a whale, or a shark (thank goodness) or something big like that. I mean really think about it. You have these 2-3 ton pound animals out in the ocean, and there is still plenty of water, out there. There isn't an over population of ocean animals. Does that surprise anyone else? LOL!!

The last thing that we went to go and see was....Another one of my favorite....The dolphins! We tried so hard to pet them, but we just couldn't reach them. They'd get close enough so you could see them, and get a good picture of them, but they definitely didn't come to you, unless....You had fish, and we did not have any fish. The boys tried, and tried to touch them, and to feel them, but they just couldn't. (Call me greedy or stingy, but I wasn't paying $7 for some little bit of fish, LOL) The boys still enjoyed seeing the dolphins, and it was so neat to see them swimming around and around. So social, yet somewhat apprehensive. I could have sat there for hours just watching them. It was so great!!


Here is a picture of my guys! The smile on all of their faces (although mainly my boys...sorry honey) made it ALL worth while! Knowing that they had a good time, and that we got to do something as a family was so special. We love doing things as a family, and this has to be at the top of one of my FAVORITE things we've done as a family. I'll always remember the smiles, the laughter, the looks on their faces when the whales jump out of the water and make a huge splash! I realize daily that they won't be around forever. My boy's are growing up so fast, and I really want to cherish every minute I have with them. The laughter, the smiles, the happy times, I cherish them....Absolutely cherish them =)

WOO HOO!!!!

OK....For some of y'all out there, you'll think I'm crazy, but....I am so HAPPY! I finally figured out how to change my layout here on blogger. I swear I've been trying for forever to try and figure it out, and now I finally did! Oh the joys....It's the simple things in life, right? LOL!!!!

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Being In Love

Chris and I celebrated our 11 year Anniversary Saturday. When I look back at the past 11 years, WOW is what comes to mind.

I have to say that I feel TREMENDOUSLY blessed to have found a man, who loves m
e for me, and who doesn't try to mold me into someone he wants me to be. He loves me, my quirks, my randomness, and even my noodling (ha ha--I'll tell y'all what that means another time....No, it's nothing bad!) I'm so blessed to have found a good Godly man, who leads me and our children in the way of the Lord.

I have to say that when we first got married, it was a rough start. We got married, then a year later (year and a half actually) we moved 1,400 miles away from our family, and everything that I had ever known. We moved, and then...It was just he and I, nobody else. There was nobody around to run to when things got bad, or when we had a fight (yes, we had those, LOL) It was just Chris and I and we learned to depend on each other. The first year living here was I have to say one of the hardest years of not only our marriage, but of my life. Times were tough...Chris worked long hours, and I was home all the time. I always tell Chris th
at I call that time in our marriage, my single married Mom phase. That's how it all felt. We went through some major things, but....BUT....God brought us through it!!

We learned that first year that we HAD to have God as the center of our marriage if it was ever going to work. We vowed to one another that one night that we would both focus on our marriage, and that we'd see it through God's eyes, and what a difference. If one thing I've learned in 11 years, is that without God in the middle of it all, nothing works. If we stray from putting God in the middle of our marriage, things are very rocky.

I love my husband so deeply and so passionately, that I want that for everyone else. I desire for people to have the same kind of relationship's with their spouses. I'm blessed beyond measure with my wonderful husband, and I try not to take him for granted. I praise the Lord for him daily, because I just love him so much!



I always tell him that I cannot imagine my life without him, and there is so much truth to that. I cannot imagine living life without the Love of my life. I tell him that I am sad that in Heaven we will no longer be married (then he tells me that I'm silly and I shouldn't feel like that, LOL) I just always want to be by him, and love him and care for him. I remember the day when I told him that I loved him Always & Forever, and I said I meant it, because it's true. I love him always now, and I'll love him forever, into eternity =)

I never realized growing up that I would find someone who would love me the way that Chris loves me. I grew up in a broken home, and my parents divorced when I was 3 weeks old. My thoughts for marriage were always broken. I think I viewed marriage as something that you could easily get out of if you just got tired of being in it, or if you just wanted to give up. I went into my marriage with a lot of baggage, and with a lot of uncertainty. I'm proud to say though, that I've learned to love, I've let go of the baggage, and I am married to the most wonderful man alive!! Somebody gave us a plaque when we got married and here is what it says (it couldn't be more fitting):

Marriage Takes Three

Marriage takes three to be complete;
it's not enough for two to meet.
They must be united in love
by love's Creator,
God above.
A marriage that follows God's plan
takes more than a woman and a man.
It needs a oneness
that can be
Only from Christ-
Marriage Takes Three