Ok- I know I hardly ever post on here, but there is something that is bothering me.

Why is it now that the "King of Pop" is dead, does everyone all of a sudden like him? What a bunch oh hypocrites. Do these people not remember him holding his own toddler child out of a second story window of a hotel? Or, even though he was aquitted, he was charged of molesting teenage boys?
I mean no disrespect to the dead, but why is it that now that he is gone everyone all of a sudden thinks that he was so cool? And, are paying tribute to his Star on the Hollywood walk of fame?
I don't know, call me crazy, but I don't even know anyone who has been to one of his concerts. If I remember right he hasn't had a concert here in the US in years. He is in Europe and London. And, did I really just see a Joker impersonator say that his inspiration is gone? Why, he can't be serious? And, an Elvis impersonator really incline that his other King is gone? Now there is a thought, two Kings, Elvis and Michael Jackson. Together Forever. Hmm.
Where does God fit into this? Doesn't He know what He is doing? I think so. I am not trying to say God called down judgement or anything, that is not my job or area to judge. I just know that my God knows what He is doing, and I know that all things are in His hands. I just have a problem with all these people all of a sudden being Michael Jacksons biggest fans. Like I said before, hypocrites.
Why is there more hoopla over Michael Jackson, than Farrah Fawcett? Oh, I know, crap sells.
Whatever, I didn't like him before, and I sure as heck don't like him now. Glad I got that off my chest.

Good Bye, Grandma

Grandma Ruby has gone home. Not, to heaven, which is where she really wants to go, but back to her little trailer, where she continues to live on her own. Her doctors have given her the green light, and so have her physical therapists. She goes to church several times a week, and we still are attending the Saturday night services with her.
My kids miss her, and thankfully we still see her often. She asked me to reserve her spot here, because she said, "There will come a time when I will be back."
So, until then..............

Welcome, Grandma Ruby!

Shane's great Grandma has come to stay with us. She is a young spring chicken at 96! She has been living on her own until a few weeks ago. She spent a week in the hospital with pnuemonia, and since then stayed a week with one of her grandaughters in Bremerton. She has been with us for a few weeks now, and she is such a joy to our family. I really don't want her to ever go home. She says that when she is strong enough that is where she is going though.
I have to just tell you that this woman is amazing. First of all, she has been at deaths door more than once, and about 6 yrs ago was actually quite mad at God for not taking her home! God just raises her up again. Before she got sick, she went to 5church services. She went to Saturday morning prayer, Saturday night service, and then 3 services on Sunday. That's only 4 services, but get this, she went to youth on Wednesday evenings! She just cracks me up. She admits that she might just have to give up youth group now. And, does this woman ever pray. She sits in a cozy little chair that we have moved into the kitchen (because she wants to be where the action is) and the kids all know that if Grandmas eyes are closed and her lips are moving, she's praying. She prays for hours! It is so beautiful to watch her intercede. She goes to war for many people. She gets her hours of Bible reading in while we do school, and she is thankful for the little bit of quiet time. But, she loves the hustle and bustle of our family. And, when it gets too loud, she just turns off her hearing aid. That is such a blessing, because it's not easy keeping 5 quiet. Nor, would I want to. Kids are made to be loud. But, if they get too loud I just send them upstairs. I am so glad that she loves my kids. Jordan watches everything she does. And Charlee crawls on her lap for Grandma to read her a book. Charlee loves to put lotion on her hands and just enjoys talking to her. Grandma is amazed at her vocabulary. I tell her it's because she never stops talking so she has to come up with new words so she doesn't bore herself!
This last week the kids and I were trying to memorize Romans 12:1-2. We practiced it in school that morning, and at dinner we were trying to practice it again. Well, none of us could get it. So I said Gram, " Do you know what Romans 12:1-2 is?" Well she just spout it out, and then she told us her life verse and quoted several more. Our mouths I am sure were hanging open, because she is like a walking Bible. I am not kidding. There has been a few times where I have asked her if she remembered the exact wording of this or that verse, and yep, she does. Tyler said that if she can do it then we have no excuse. And, he is right. We have definitley amped up our scripture memorization.
We have been taking Grandma to her church, because her heart was so grieved to not be able to go when she was up north. She chose to come to our house because we had a downstairs bedroom, and were the closest to her church. And, here I thought it was because of my great culinary skills and magnificent company! But truly, Grandma has been a blessing to our family, and Shane and I were humbled and honored that Grandma would choose to come here. And, I meant what I said when I said that I hope she never goes home. She is just to precious.

How do you know you brush well?

Here is a true conversation I had with one of my boys today:
Mom- "Son, did you brush your teeth?"
Son- "Yep."
Mom- "Did you brush them well?"
Son- "Yep, I even used toothpaste."
Gross. So sad and so true. Needless to say, tonight I will have a little better eye on the teeth brushing with my children.

Scaredy Cat

A few weeks ago, I took the kids to the circus with two of my sisters. I wish that I took more pictures, but the truth is that I was just so darned amazed, that I didn't even think to grab my camera. But, Korie's boyfriend, Larry, had my back on this one. The cute little boys are my nephew, Roberto, and my son, Zack. Now, some of you might be falling off your chairs laughing at me. I don't care. I am a big sissy, a big chicken, I freely admit it. If God himself commands something to crawl on it's belly, you know it's got to be bad. But, let me just tell you that I at least am in the picture. Where is my sister, Jennifer? She was right next to me. Where did she go? Oh ya. She RAN. I didn't even know she ran until I seen the picture and didn't see her! So, who's the chicken? And, this HUGE snake was gross. I mean really, really, gross. Slimy, scaly, thick, and just typing that gave me the shivers. So, I guess I wasn't a chicken. I was brave.


Ok, so I have mastered one fear. The next one I am going to tackle is heights. Shane took me to Seattle for my birthday the other night, and we had dinner at the Space Needle. I have really got to get over this fear. I got dizzy in the elevator. Do you know that Spin City, as the restuarant is called, is 520 feet up? And, that the elevator travels at a flying 10 mph? I got dizzy with the whole rotating restuarnt thing. It ONLY goes around once every 47 minutes, so why was I having such a hard time? Oh ya, we were 520 feet off the ground!! Thankfully, I didn't embarrass myself and lose my lovely Seafood Trio.


Now, I just have one more thing to say, or ask, rather. Is this my cat, or a dog?





Ok- I lied. I have something else to say. This is what I look like when I am arguing politics. I might just run in the 2012 election. Would you vote for me? And, please don't pay attention to my red eye. I didn't have time to edit:) I will once I am on the ballot. Because then, you know every picture will be on the web, and someone will hack into my email account.



Ryan took this picture. He is addicted to the camera. If I do not know where my camera is, Ryan does. In his back back, in his room, in some special hiding spot so his brothers and sisters can"t take the camera from him. It's his, all his.

PS- Can you guess what my favorite color is? Free comment to whoever gets it right!

6 Random things, huh?

Well, my dear friend, Alecia thinks that just because she can blog all day and night, that I can too. I think that it has been too long since we have hung out. Seriously- almost 2 years. September will be 2 years. I am not kidding. I'm a little hung up on that. Anyways, she forgets what I really like to do in my spare time. Like paint my toenails. Or curl my daughters hair. Clean toilets, and try not to get attacked my our new kitten. I honestly think that she came strait from the jungle. Her primal instincts have cornered more than one of my children and had them screaming for mommy. Side note: Shane who is a cat hater, is now a kitten lover. "Does anyone know where Jazz is?" Mmm hmm. The Aguilars are probably shell shocked.
Ok- Since I have been "tagged" to let everyone know 6 random things about me, here goes.
1. I have had the same toe rings on since before I was pregnant with Zack. He's now 8. I don't know why they don't break and fall off, or why I don't take them off. They are just a part of me. They slide up and down so I can wash between my toes, but they have just not left my person for over 8 years.
2. I have had the same weight on my driver's license since I got my permit 15 years ago. Don't laugh. You probably do too. I don't lie. They just ask me if everything is the same and when I avoid their question by suddenly taking care of one of my children or glare them down and ask,"Just what do you mean by that?", they just move on.
3. I am seriously scared of heights. I had to help Shane paint our house and hold the paint sprayer up on the roof of the garage so he could reach the second story, and I had to pray in tongues to get down. Once, and only once, Shane got me to go on a roller coaster at the fair. I was young and in love. I thought I was going to throw up. And, I swear I can still feel my stomach rolling. That was over 12 years ago. I'll take on the tea cups, the Gravitron, the ride that the floor drops out from under you, but if it's up high, forget about it. So, I tried to conquer my fear last Sunday. We had a rock climbing wall at church for the kids, and my friend Jaime and I thought we would be all bad and go up. Ya. I was still shaking on the way home. Although, I will say this for myself, I made it up about ten feet. It's a good thing I am only 5'6". I would probably get sick just standing.
4. I am extremely loyal. Once your on the inside, you'll probably stay there. Case in point-The New Kids On The Block are coming to Tacoma in November and guess who's going? Ya. I really am. With a couple of friends who are/were NKOTB fans. And I totally plan on decking out. Stirrup pants, 3 different colored pairs of socks, I'm gonna rat my bangs up high with aqua net, and try to get my short, thirty something hair in a side pony tail. And this free little tid bit: Joey McCintyre was my first kiss. I would wake up every morning, he would gaze at me with his bright blue eyes, and I swear he would say, "Good morning, Shannon". Ya, I had delusions.
5.My favorite types of books are thrillers. Vince Flynn and James Patterson are 2 of my favorite authors. They have great plots of the bad guy trying to kill the good guy, and I quite enjoy the chase. Sick, I know. Although, I love the emotions of Nicholas Sparks' characters. And, the movies are nothing compared to the books.
6. Something else that I am a chicken about? Mice. There is a night that sticks out as one of the scariest nights of my life. You need a little background about my eyesight to fully appreciate the humor of this story. You see I am just a smidgen from being legally blind. At least that's what my family tells me. If I am not wearing my contacts or glasses, there is a good chance that I won't even see the wall in front of me. Or, if Shane is on the lap top in bed and tries to show me this tractor that he really needs to buy off craigslist, I literally have to get about 2-3 inches from the screen before the image starts to clear. So one night, I go to the bathroom without my glasses on come out and scream like I just saw Freddy Kruger on my door step. Waiting for me on the other side of the bathroom door was a mouse. It just sat there glaring at me. My knight in shining armor comes to rescue me, and just about needs resuscitation from laughing so hard. I have already jumped up onto the sink, that is after I let my self down from hanging by my nails on the ceiling, and I do not think that a mouse keeping me hostage in my own bathroom is very funny. Well, Shane picks up the "mouse" by the tail and lo and behold, it is just the pump from a pump spray bottle. Ha Ha. And I admit that I was a total coward just last week. Ryan and Charlee were taking naps, Tyler and Zack were outside, and Jordan and I were hanging out in the kitchen. She yells, "Mouse!", to which I immediately jump up on the counter and to my shame leave my poor defenseless daughter to her own demise. There really was a mouse, and no we still have not caught it. So, I cook and do the dishes all with my feet at least 2 feet from the counters and lean over. My back is sure to be causing me problems soon. And by the way, Jordan forgave me.

Ok now I have a problem. I honestly do not have 6 friends to now tag. Most of my friends are not virtual. And my virtual friends have all been tagged. So, you can just enjoy knowing 6 things about Shannon that you did not know before. And, Alecia? I owe ya one, babe. See ya soon.

Oh, My Dearest Blog,
Can you ever forgive me for waiting so long to come back to you? I know that I haven't been here since April, but I thought of you all the time. I knew that I should have at least called or visited my own personal space on the web, but other things have caught my eye. Like the sun, for instance. It is just so beautiful. It's warmth and sunshine just call to me. I like to sit out on my front porch and read to my children, or visit one of my sisters. And, twice it burned me so I learned my lesson. Don't leave your blog abandoned to play with fire.
But, other things have called to me. For instance, my home. It's just so ...new. And, so much more fun than you. It lets me roam. And, I can come and go as I please. It doesn't make me feel like I am being unfaithful. It just fills my heart in ways that you don't.
Then there is my family. You know the ones. The ones that actually return my love. I can cuddle and snuggle and talk to them. But, you just sit there. They give me reason for living. You just take, take, and take. You say give me more. You are nothing but empty space waiting to be filled. But, my family and I fill each other. I talk, they talk. I laugh, they laugh. If I laugh with you, you just sit there. You never get my jokes. You don't even act like you like my singing. My kids at least laugh and make up new lyrics with me.
My friends all tell me that I should return to you. But, what do they know? If they knew me at all they would know why there aren't any pictures. They only want one thing, and if you know anything about me, you know what that is. If they were good, true, real friends, they would call, write, email, or text. And say, "Hey! Can I/we come over?" To which I would reply, "Of course! I would love for you to come over! Come stay the night. I even have a spare room for you out of towners." Then they would come over and it would be great. Oh, but wait, Blog! What if their waiting for an invitation? Well, just in case they are, I will invite them right now! So, if you are reading this, Call me, email, write, ot text, and let's get together! You are hereby officially invited to come over. I will supply everything. Drinks, food, dessert, and my children are great entertainment. They have me rolling all the time. Some of you could bring your new baby. I haven't even met her. Or him. I wouldn't know since I have yet to lay eyes on him/her in the flesh.
Well Blog, I should go. No, I can't stay. Other things are calling me. But, I will be back. I don't know when. But, look for me. I will return.