I'm really scared about our financial situation. Yeah, I know...join the club. Here I am, not working, and bills keep piling up.

We've never struggled...still aren't at this point, but it's not looking good for the future. We've lost 45% of our retirement savings. That is scary.

I pray that Richard's company stays afloat, but who knows what is going to happen. Ugh!

I think I need to wait on Jake's orthodontic treatment. I feel bad, but I can't afford it and my ex can't help me much at this point either.

I am really stressed. Very nervous.

Oh my gosh....I just got back from the orthodontist. Jake and Carly are both starting treatment. Carly got braces last week, and Jake is in the process of getting started in "phase 1" which is getting an expander put in. I will now be paying about $270 dollars a month. Ugh. I swear I should have never quit my job. I am going to have to find a way to earn some money. I will probably start subbing at Jake's school a couple of times a week, I guess.

STRESS!!!

The weekend was good. Pretty busy, as is typical for a family with six kids, but good. I won't bore you every week with our weekend details, but I figured I would write out the events of this one so you can see what we typically do every weekend.

Friday night Jake had football practice, Carly slept over at a friend's house, and Ethan had a school "social". I fed Noah and DJ dinner here and Richard and I went out for a quick bite on our own in between bringing Jake home and picking up Ethan. After we brought Ethan home, Richard and I went to a this little hole in the wall hangout that we like to go listen to music and have a few beers.

Saturday morning Richard, Noah, and DJ took Jake to his football game and I took Ethan and Carly with me to Mitzi's (our foster dog---see other blog) Pet Fair. The Pet Fair was a nightmare, so we didn't stay the whole time. About the time we finished, Richard and the other kids met us for lunch. After that, we had a couple of hours free, so I took a nap. (I love naps!!!!) It was a short nap because Jake had lacrosse practice at 4:00. Noah had a game in Highland Park, but luckily some friends took him to that since Richard is one of the coaches of Jake's team and had to run practice. When Jake's practice was over, we waited around for about an hour talking to some other parents until Noah got back. By the time we got home (almost 7:30), we were exhausted. We ordered pizza for the kids and relaxed the rest of the evening.

Sunday Jake had a lacrosse game at 1:00 and Noah had one at 4:00. We didn't have time to go home between these games, so we just had lunch and ran into Wal-Mart to get a couple of things. We got home from the games at around 5:30, fed the dogs, showered, then took the kids to Outback for dinner. After Outback, we went to Barnes and Noble. (I love going to the book store!!!) By the time we got home, it was pretty much bed time. We were ready, too! :)

I'll leave you with some of our goofiness at dinner last night. I have started carrying around my old (non-professional) camera in my purse. I figured that way I can capture things that happen more regularly. Carrying around my good camera gets a little tedious.




Ethan being a goofball! (I hate the quality of pics this camera takes)



Richard and Carly




Preview of next weekend....DOWN WITH THE LONGHORNS!!!

Have a good week everyone!

It's time to get back into the swing of blogging. I have been thoroughly enjoying reading others' blogs and I wanna try to make a habit of writing daily.

For those of you who don't know me..I'm Beth. You can read all about me in my profile I guess. Just know I am not the "Mommy" type. I'm "Mom" and always have been. I am far from perfect and our blended family has as many ups and downs as the roller coasters at Six Flags.

With six kids, our days are pretty full. My only free time is when they are at school. Unfortunately that is when I am supposed to clean my house, run errands, etc. Well...I need some down time, right? *grin* As you can imagine, my house isn't spotless.

I look forward to getting to know many of you. I admire the talent around here. I hope my blog will be half as interesting as the ones I've been reading lately.

This is the organization that we are volunteering for. I'm not asking for money...just your vote!

Simply click on the picture below and vote for NorCal Boxer Rescue. There is no cost to you, there is no further obligation, and you can choose to remain anonymous if you wish. It only takes a minute of your time, but that minute can offer a Boxer in need a lifetime that he or she might not otherwise get.


$10,000 Can Provide:

Spay-Neuter Surgery
Microchipping
Wellness Exam & Annual Vaccinations
Fecal Flotation & Dewormer
Heartworm Testing & Treatment
High Quality Food, Heartworm Preventative & Flea/Tick Control

For Approximately 30 Boxers!

Please Vote Today!

The animal shelter or rescue organization with the most individual votes by November 1, 2008 wins $10,000!

We are in LAS VEGAS!

Richard and I are here because Richard is attending a conference. For a work trip, however, there is very little work that is having to be done. A lot of socializing (aka NETWORKING) and some fun activities.....and you call that work? Oh...and we are staying at the Wynn.

Last night we went downstairs and I watched Richard play some craps. I do not fully understand that game, so I just watch. He did pretty well. Only lost about $60, I think.

Then we went to the reception where we basically walked around talking to people. I did a lot of nodding and smiling (lol) but it was nice. I was a little distracted worrying about the kids and animals who were at home with our sitter. But once I knew everyone was home from their various activities and ready for bed, I was able to relax a bit.

Dinner followed at the Country Club. It was nice. I had the Chilean Sea Bass for my entree. It was very good. We even had dessert, but even though the chocolate cake was TO DIE FOR...I had no room for more than a bite or two.

We were exhausted after dinner and decided to call it a night. Today is going to be fun as we are doing some sort of Amazing Race activity this afternoon, then we are going to see a show tonight. Should be fun.

Our pool is finished!!!! Here are some pictures.....
Here is the kitchen area. We have a built in grill and refrigerator. Richard put speakers up and so we can listen to music out there as well. It's really nice in the evening.



We are going to get lots of use out of our backyard now. It is going to be fun! :-)

Today was TIRING! I didn't stop running most of the day. I DID, however, take 5 minutes off--just for my sanity. During that 5 minutes my door only got knocked on once and my name was only called twice.

Heaven!

I played some more with my white paper tonight. I'm too tired to do much, so we were just silly.

I went to my first NILMDTS session today. It was sad, but a good experience. The baby had lived only 5 minutes in this world. How sad is that?

Kids are still up and wanting my attention. Goodnight.

Decided to play with the white seamless paper tonight, but was having a hard time with lighting. One of my bees isn't flashing for some reason (hopefully just a burned out bulb). Today's picture is Carly, who modeled for me straight out of the shower. :)

I've been so swamped that I haven't had time to come visit everyone else's blogs in a few days. I promise to catch up after I edit this session I did today. Some of you already saw one of these on the board, but for those who haven't...Here are a few from my boudoir session today. This girl was great. A total natural. It was a lot of fun.

I did a newborn session today. It was fun. I really enjoy photographing babies. Here are a couple as I have just started editing them....
I have a boudoir session tomorrow....I'll try to get a model release for that one. We'll see. :)

The kids love their Wii! Here they are playing baseball. It is fun not only to play, but to watch them playing as well,.

Today is my sweet daughter's 11th birthday. We are actually celebrating it on the 17th when we have her "Hollywood" party. :)

Tonight we just went out to dinner then came home and did homework. Here she is with Richard helping her with her math.

She is such a good girl. I'm so proud of her. She is student council president, she is a straight A student, and she is part of a district honor choir. She takes after ME, of course....hehe!

Happy Birthday Carly Marie!

Oh man, I almost didn't get my photo in today. At 10:00 pm, I was just finally sitting down after a long day of rushing around and I realized I hadn't used my camera at all today! So, I decided to go peek in on my youngest, who gets to sleep with me tonight because my hubby is out of town. Instead of taking a picture of my son---who wasn't asleep yet----I snapped a shot of Mr. Hamilton, who apparently thinks he gets to sleep with me tonight as well. :)

This is Jake. He is one of the 4 of our 6 kids who are playing lacrosse this spring. Jake couldn't resist donning his new gear to practice in the front yard today.

DJ is still sick. He still has a fever. He is coughing a lot too. The dr. says strep sometimes takes a few days to respond to the antibiotic.....but usually he gets better after the first day. I think he has more than strep quite frankly. The cough is deep in his chest and it is making him miserable.

Have a great day, challenge buddies! :)

Super Bowl Sunday.......need I say more?

Our Project Today
We got these pics framed and Richard worked very hard to meticulously measure and hang them just right. These are black and whites of each kid (except the one who refuses to be photographed). There are two pics of each kid....one with a serious expression and one with the kiddo being silly. This wall is in our entry way...we have a little rotunda area when you walk in the front door. People who come here to get portraits done will walk by these and I figured it is a nice little gallery of my work. :-)

My 14 year old has strep. He gets it once or twice a year lately. :( Poor guy. He feels horrible. The good thing about strep is that he gets put on antibiotics and usually feels better within 24 hours. I would rather strep than the flu. Hopefully the other 5 kids won't get this......

Today has been quite busy. Started the day at my daughter's Spelling Bee. She did great....one of the last 5 people. She finally got out on the word "tongue".


Then I had the second part of the 3 month session I started last week. I haven't really edited many of these yet, but here is a sample---for my photo of the day.Now my oldest is sick.....icky cough, chest hurting, and fever. No fun.

Hope you all are doing well. This challenge is fun! :)