this is us . . . .

2010-01-12T18:51:00.000-08:00

WHERE I'M FROM . . .

I am from laundry basket forts , from jello and bananas.

I am from the 4th house on the right, the blue 2 story.

I am from the black-eyed susans,and the cat tail fights

I am from pizza on sundays and hazel eyes from duane and sydney and harold and freddy and yvonne and charles.

I am from the lovers and fighters.

From grow up and be happy and make your bed.

I am a daughter of my Heavenly Father.

I'm from holidays at maw's house, beef tips and rice and cold two day old pizza.

From the get pulled over with about 150 rolls of toilet paper and lie about destination, the kind of chick that hates white socks and the kind the keeps everything.

I am from framed pictures on the wall, organized maddness and loving without boundries.

I'm from TEXAS !

a whole week off

2009-01-13T17:15:00.000-08:00

that right i have a whole week off from school.... too bad i have to work.

hurricane IKE made the fall semester longer, so instead of having almost a month to catch my breath i get 8 whole days. (yeah me) i got an A in the other 2 internet classes i took. internet classes are way different than actually going and listening to a lecture. i learned i lot about myself and what kind of student i can be. if only i had found out at the beginning of my college career. LOL

anyway, i think i will take this week to rest, master golf on the wii and maybe even plan an activity for our ward at church. ( thats my new calling BTW )

Jess :-P

i know i know

2009-01-09T19:42:00.001-08:00

is been long enough i know. things have been crazy around here ( holidays, school, and finals )

here is a quick post of pictures that will give you an idea of what been going on at the ruggles' house.
thanksgiving, a girls weekend of shopping, christmas parties, christmas, new year's tin foil dinners and fireworks.

i promise to try and do a better this semester. i will only have 1 internet class and the other 3 will be on campus.

jess :-p

Good 'ole pumpkin carving

2008-10-30T17:22:00.000-07:00

today i got a wild hair and decided to let the kids carve pumkins for halloween.
they have asked every year and i always come up with some excuse not to. so this year i thought it would be nice to try it. they each pick out their own pumkin at the store. then they decided on the design.

i think they had fun. it was messy and alot of work on my end but all in all we'll prolly do it again next year. i must say they turned out pretty good too.

jess :-P

All Grown Up

2008-10-25T15:01:00.000-07:00

today caleb and art went deer hunting. caleb had gone to sit in the stand with art a few time in the past but this was the first year ti go and use his own gun. ( thats right, he has his own riffle )

so this morning around 8 i got a text message from art. caleb SHOT is first deer.

Caleb was so excited. Baileigh went on and on about how we were gunna have deer meat. i'm so proud of my little deer hunter that he got a deer on his first real trip out.

jess :-P

girls just want to have fun . . . .

2008-10-20T20:21:00.000-07:00

Saturday night our ward had a Halloween Party. I never dress up and Baileigh begged me to. So this is what I came up with. I had alot of fun getting ready. It's funny how I can remember wearing this stuff the first time around and now its back and i found this stuff in stores now.

jess :-P

oh here's a pic of Baileigh and Hailey.

must post GOOD news . . .

2008-10-08T20:42:00.000-07:00

i guess the whole point of a blog is to post updates, news (good), and just plain venting.

so with that said i must do some of those very things.

UPDATE - the kids are back at school and very excited about the latest fund raiser for school. so if anyone out there wants some very yummy cookie dough (hint hint).

NEWS - today i was off from work and spent most of the day studying. yep i did just that and it did help me to take a quiz in the much dreaded pathophysiology class. (i got a 86) it made me smile, especially that i was freaking out and the class average was 67.

VENTING - well, since my last post was about how much i disliked my Internet class i think i will say something nice. I GOT A 86 !!! now this is just a quiz but a step in the right direction for me.

thanks for the words of encouragement from my honey, friends, and fellow bloggers. it means a lot.

pathophysiology STINKS

2008-10-06T20:12:00.000-07:00

ok . . so i'm taking 3 classes on the Internet. i must admit that i thought they would be a cake walk. (so not) i have never read a chapter in a school book EVER.

in high school i did what i had to do to graduate. i did take some honors classes but i still just listened in class and took notes. i knew going into this that i would have to do it on my own. i guess i thought that the teachers would post notes each week and then we would take a test . . . LOL

i guess i was dreaming. i do like 2 of my classes. i'm learning how to use the computer more effectively, and nurse assessment so interesting to me. but the other just STINKS. i can't really think of one nice thing to say about it right now. i have know idea why lamar thought this class would be a good Internet class. there is a lot material and no real guidance. i can't wait till dec 19th to take the final and be done.

ok there.
jess

it's a milestone . . . .

2008-08-23T10:43:00.000-07:00

here i am about two years since i started this blog and i finally made it to 50. its hard to believe that i really got here . . lol

anyway there is a real reason for this blog. yesterday was my first day at Lamar. though it was not a real class day it was orientation for my Internet classes. the first started at nine. because i didn't want to be late i left early. i got there about an hour early and had to wait by the door. it's been 8 years since the last time i was in school. it really makes me nervous. i want to do good and finish my RN. this is a BIG step for me. i'm jumping right into it and taking 12 hours. i only have to drive to campus two nights a week. the Internet classes i'm taking are going to be alot of work. i think my study skills need improvement and i hope that i can hang in there. wish me luck .

jess :-P

it's here again . . .

2008-08-18T18:05:00.001-07:00

yep . . .summer is coming to an end and we will soon be sending the kids back to school.
i promised myself that i would avoid the malls on tax free weekend but something (maybe a wild hair) got me there. in fact i even braved a school shopping trip and two kids and no husband.
art's sister, allison had her baby on friday. so i decided that we would make the most of our beaumont trip and try and get some shopping done before the crowds.
i think it payed off or something like that LOL. i was able to make a pretty good dent in school clothes. we hit JC Penney, Maci's, Academy, and Target. i can offically say that the only thing lacking are those darn red colored pencils.
our kids are starting to get excited about school . . i think. baileigh is going to be in the first grade this year and caleb the 4th. i can't believe that they are getting so big. . . . now i'm really starting to feel my age.

jess :-P

vacation at last . . . . .

2008-08-01T19:23:00.000-07:00

so we went on vacation this week... we had a great time. this year annette and jamie colemen and their kids came with us. cassity and anna are about the same ages as caleb and baileigh so we thought it would be nice to invite them to go with us to schlitterbahn.
we met early monday morning and headed out. we got to schlitterbahn about 11:30. we checked in to the hotel and had a bite to eat. the kids had a good time and after about 6 hours at the park we called a day and got cleaned up. we all went to eat at a place called Clear Springs Restaurant. it was good and had pretty darn good onion rings. after we stuffed ourselves we went back to the hotel. i must let you know that we did stay at one of the resorts at schlitterbahn so we were able to use the swimming pools late. we took advantage and the kids had fun.
tuesday morning we started early. we got to the gate before they opened and rode the dragons revenge first thing. our kid had been looking forward to it ever since we told them we were going to schlitterbahn. Tuesday we stayed at the park until around 7:30. after a quick meal at whataburger we drove into san antonio. the gordons were nice enough to let us crash at their pad for a couple of nights. thanks angie and greg !!
wednesday was my birthday. my 30th birthday. we kept it low key and spent the day at seaworld. afterwards we went to chris madrids for my favorite san antonio burger. they are the best. though i didn't get a cake for my birthday i did get some cake batter ice cream from coldstone.
thursday was our last day at sea world. we went to the water park and saw the shows we had missed the day before. we ate pizza at the gordons and stayed up late.
this morning we ended our vacation and headed back before lunch. we stopped at the usual places and had lunch/dinner at red robin in houston. we even braved IKEA and houston 5:00 traffic.
i am so grateful that we were able take the kids on a small vacation and spend time with friends and family. thanks annette, jamie, cassity, anna, angie, greg, mackenzi, maci, maryn, and meg

jess :-P

husband tag

2008-07-27T07:28:00.001-07:00

1. What is his name? Arthur Ray Ruggles Jr or ART for short

2. Who eats more? Art

3. Who said I love you first? this has been an on going thing for 11 years now. i say it ws me but if you ask him he'll tell you it was him.

4. Who is taller? Art

5. Who is smarter?
i think i could get in trouble if i answer this so . . . i'll go with we both have are strengths

6. Who is more sensitive? me

7. Who does the laundry? me most of the time. art does help out

8. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Art

9. Who pays the bills? me

10. Who cooks more? i do but art pulls his own

11. Who is more stubborn? its 50/50

12. Who is the first to admit they are wrong? gosh . . .once again i'll say 50/50

13. Who has more siblings? me

14. Who wears the pants in the family? weeach fit in one leg of those pants

15. What do you like to do together? in the past 11 years i think that has changed. prolly just sspending time together

16. Who eats more sweets? i think we both have are days

17. Guilty pleasures? maple nut goodies

18. How did you meet? at the singles branch at church

19. Who proposed? Art

20. What is his best feature? his beautiful blue eyes

21. What is his best quality? he is thoughtful and a great dad

i love you art. thanks for 11 great years

jess :-P

trying out a new toy . .

2008-07-23T16:09:00.001-07:00

ok so here is the big anouncement you have all been waiting for. . . . .
drum roll please

i got a NEW laptop. thats right i got a new laptop.
i'm going back to school this fall and sunce iam taking 3 internet classes i decided that we needed to do something about our computer. while out in beaumont one weekend we were at best buy and the sales guy told me about a few and what he would get. i thought about it couple says and then went and bought it all by myself. i love it so far. though the only real thing i have done is get in the internet and pay a few bills, i can tell it will be of good use for school. (not to mention that i put a blogger bubby right on my desk top so it is always looking at me reminding me i need to blog something.

so there you go, my big announcement. stay tuned you never know when big news may come.
jess :-P

a picnic at the park . . . .

2008-07-19T18:16:00.000-07:00

today we went on a picnic . . . .
ok,ok. so it wasn't at an outdoor park, but we did go to FORD park.

today was exxonmobil's annual family fun day. we headed out about 12, after art got a few ( and i mean few) hours of sleep. they sure know how to have a good time. they rent the whole thing. they check you in and give you a wrist band then its a free for all. they provide lunch and there are a few vendor booths. of course we got about 5 free bags and the ever popular paddle ball set.
inside ford arena they have carnival type games and just about every inflatable slide and climbing thing you can imagine.

this year caleb tried the rock climbing wall. i must say that my 9 year old won't be going on any mountain climbing trips for a while. he did try his hardest.

this year they added a electric bull. caleb and baileigh rode and it looked like a good time. baileigh beat caleb though and stayed on for more than 8 seconds.

the kiddos had a good time and they are looking forward to next year.

jess :-P

stay tuned . . .

2008-07-15T18:41:00.000-07:00

i have BIG news.

you'll never know when i'll share it.

i'll keep you wondering till you can't take it any more then i'll lay it all out.

you won't want to miss this.
:-P

jess

an additon to the family . . .

2008-07-12T15:33:00.000-07:00

back in june we traveled to san antonio to vist the gordons. when we got there we found that maci was watching her class pet (a gerbil) for a few weeks.
baileigh of course loved the animal. (she loves all animals.) angie said that she was going to get caleb and baileigh one. i thought she was kidding so i did not protest.
a week later when angie and the girls were down, angie surprised us all with gift cards for both kids and told them it was to buy a hamster or gerbil. i guess since i never said no i guess i got what i had coming to me.
a few days later art took the kids to pets smart to pick out a new friend.

as far as hamsters go it is kinds cute. kinda looks like cookies and cream.

jess :-P

ode to swimming . . .

2008-07-11T14:14:00.000-07:00

the kiddos again are doing swimming lessons this year. they really have come along way. to think that last year baileigh didn't really want to put her face in the water.

as they end their first week i thought i would share a couple pics. they are quite the swimmers and baileigh even jumped into the deep end and swam all the way to the swallow. caleb is also quite the swimmer. he would be even better if we could just get him to open his eyes.

jess:-P

two days in a row . . . .

2008-07-10T18:35:00.001-07:00

ok so its day two on my blogging streak. don't hold your breath everyone this maybe a once in a lifetime thing . . .LOL

i am working this weekend and i worked last weekend so some how i ended up with 2 days off in a row. how that happened i'm not sure. anyway, yesterday i shampooed my carpet and i was grossed out by the amount of dirt and trash that came up. i can't believe that we have been walking around on that stuff. NASTY. it makes me want to vacuum a few times a day.

so today, i was off again and this time i took it easy. i watched movies with the kiddos and let the piano man tune the piano. he must have known i would pay him what ever he charged cause he sure makes a lot of money for one hour of work. but the piano does sound better and caleb was glad. art and i are thinking about putting it up for sale. it is pretty old and will not keep a tune.

i am working on a slide show of pictures from the past year. i spent about an hour down loading pictures and then our wonderful computer kicked me off. so, i really don't have time tonight to do it all again. i promise to try again soon.

i did come across a cute pic of me and art. this june we had our 11 year anniversary. i can't believe it has been 11 years. time has gone by so fast. i love you, art.
thanks for all you do for me and our family. you are my best friend and i could not be who i am today without you. you mean so much to me. remember who said it first (ME). love you !!

jess :-P

a blog on blogging

2008-07-09T18:43:00.000-07:00

ok ok ok i know it has been way too long since i last blogged. i could name about a million reasons why but it really come down to the fact that i''m too lazy to take the time to sit down and do it.

when i do sit at the computer these days its to pay bills, check emails and the occasional late night chat.

our computer is not the best in the world, so half the time it is so slow you really just want to do what has to be done and move along. so pictures are a no no right now cause cause there is just not enough time to sit and wait and wait and wait. hopefully with the start of a new school year we be able to get something new.

so here is a small recap of what has been going in the past year or so since my last blog. humm . . . .

last summer we went on a VERY big family vacation. the whole ruggles family (15 of us) went on a disney cruise. we had a blast and the kiddos still talk about it.
after the vacation of a lifetime caleb and baileigh started school. baileigh started kindergarten and caleb 3rd grade. the both enjoyed the year and i could not believe that our little girl is going up.

caleb started piano lessons and after a few fights to get him to practice he turned into quite the player. he played baseball in the spring and will be moving up to kid pitch next year.

baileigh loved her kindergarten teacher mrs.lapray. she was so lucky to have so many good kids in her class. i hope she continues to. baileigh took ballet, tap and tumbling again this year. she really loves to perform in front of everyone.

at the beginning of the year art and i decided to make an addition to our family. that's right after much talk and tears we decided to try for another baby. we did set a time frame though. who knew that it would only take one month. we were both scared about started over with a new baby. we told the kids about it when i was 6 weeks. they were very excited and talked about it all the time. one week after we told the kids i found out that i had miscarried. it was very hard to tell the kids that there would be no baby in oct. a few days after the miscarriage i found out that i have a herniation and ruptured disc in my neck that makes my arm and hand hurt. after 2 epidural steroid injections i am feeling much better. i know that i will always have to be careful. as for the baby thing . . . it is within our preset deadline so will just have to see what happens.

art has been up to the same old same old. he continues to watch what he eats and tries to maintain his weight. he has done a great job. i think he is starting to get nervous about turning the big 40 next year. i will have to plan something really nice for him.

so here we are. it summertime again. the kids are getting excited about our small vacation this year. at the end of the month we are planning to go to schiltterbahn and sea world. i must say i am excited to get away for awhile before i start school again in the fall. yep . . . starting aug. i will be taking classes towards my RN degree. i will be returning after 8 years off. wish me luck.

ok so there you go a BLOG. maybe the next one won't be a year from now.

jess :-P

HaPpY BiRtHdAy CaLeB

2007-05-15T19:27:00.000-07:00

its hard to believe that it has been 8 years since we welcomed our little boy to his world. what a blessing it has been to have him in our home. HAPPY BIRHTDAY, CALEB !!!

a few things about my little boy :

on one side of the family he is the only grandson, on the other he is one of 4

he has "pretty" eyes for a boy. they are hazel nad seem to change often.

he just recently realized he liked wearing his glasses. he is going on 2 years now.

he is a goofball like his sister.

he always has lots of energy

he is a thoughtful kid, he actually gets worried if some one is upset.

he is very smart.

he is in the GT class at Pine Forest Elementary.

this year there are 3 boyes in his class and 17 girls.

he really likes to read. once he gets started its hard to get him away.

he has good hand writing for a boy and he likes to take his time.

he is very creative and always has ideas about his school projects.

he speaks softly and one has to really pay attention when he talks.

he likes roller coasters, and was excited last year to be able to ride most rides at fiesta texas.

at his last doctors appointment he was perfectly square, 47 pounds and 47 inches tall.

he likes 'zebra cakes'

he would eat pancakes for breakfast everyday.

like his grammy he likes to eat potato chips.

did ya'll really think a birthday would be complete without one?

HaPpY BiRtHdAy BAILEIGH !!!

2007-04-10T06:00:00.000-07:00

happy, happy birthday baileigh dear.
happy days will come to you all year.
if i had one wish then it would be . . .
a happy, happy birthday to you from me.

ok ok ... i've been in primary too long. i know baileigh loves that song.

so my little girl is turning "5" today, and really wants to start kendergarten tomorrow... LOL

baileigh is a hoot. she cracks me up.
she comes up with the darnest things to say.
she has a sweet southern accent and likes it when people point it out.
she never meets a stranger and is eager to meet new friends.
when she cleans out her toys box she always picks toys to bring to others.
she likes picking out her own clothes and she would wear long pants and long sleeves year round if you let her.
she likes to help around the house. especially if you are washing your car or cooking.
she loves her brother most of the time. he is her best friend usually.
she likes to watch movies and can tell you anything about it after watching it once.
she is a lover of all animals. she want to a "one of those doctors, ya know the ones that take care of dogs"

we love our little 'raileigh buggles'. we are trully blessed to have her in our lives.

happy 5th birthday baileigh!!!

HaPpY BeLaTeD BiRtHdAy

2007-04-01T15:21:00.000-07:00

so . . .happy belated birthday to that wonderful husband of mine.
this year he turned the BIG 38 so here are 38 wonderful things about my guy.

1. born: Arthur Ray Ruggles, Jr. but most people just call him ART

2. he is the oldest in his family with 2 younger sisters, angie and allison

3. he has the most beautiful blue eyes i have ever seen. some days they are so bright.
4. art has never acted his age, in fact when i met him i was really surprised that he was 9 years older than me. . . lol
5. art and i got married on june 19, 1997 in the dallas texas temple

6. art is a thoughtful guy
7. a great father, a trait i know he got from his dad

8. excellent traffic driver, i hate traffic and would rather drive myself. but if i had to pick someone to get me there it would be art.
9. he likes rollercoasters, he once stumped his big toe roding the ratteler with mackenzi at fiesta texas
10. he likes crawfish boils
11. likes hambugers at chris madrid's almost as much as me
12. he likes to sleep late on sunday mornings
13. passes along funny jokes
14. loves play with the kiddos
15. loves to wash his new truck in the front yard.
16. he's a giver
17. somehow, for whatever reason babies and small children love him.
18. it cracks me up to think that when he was in high school he wore a white tux to prom.
19. he served a mission for our church
20. while on his mission members often tried to feed him tunafish and macaroni and cheese (mixed together)
21. if you need directions . . .he's the one you call
22. he is an EMT- T
23. he is always polite to his grandmother
24. he likes to take rode trips
25. he often works two jobs to help the family
26. he likes helping his dad around the house
27. he doesn't usally like to borrow things, he has bad luck with other peoples stuff
28. not long after we got married and went to his 10 year high school reunion, last october we went to mine
29. when art was younger his hair was straight and very blonde, now it is curly and brown.
30. he recently lost over 70 pounds on the south beach diet

31. baileigh loves him because he loves her
32. caleb says he is very nice to them
33. he is the priesthood holder in our home.
34. we will be married for 10 years this june
35. he wants to do what is right for our family
36. he's like a big old teddy bear, you just want to hug him
37. he always tries to get to all of the school activities.
38. he lets me take time out for myself.

thank you art for all you do for us, i love you very much and i hope you had a very happy birthday !

jess :-P

some stuff you may not want to know. . .

2007-03-08T20:21:00.000-08:00

ok . . so i got a survey on myspace awhile back and since its been so time . . . here you go.

55 things about ME

1. my full name is : jessica lynn (peck) ruggles
2. i have 2 sisters. janell and jaclyn
3. one brother : jason
4. i have 3 nephews and 5 neices
5. i have been married for almost 10 years. (june 19, 1997)
6. my birthday is july 30, 1978
7. i am the oldest child in my family.
8. i married the oldest child in the family.
9. i graduated from vidor high school.
10. i was the first girl tuba player at vidor high school.
11. i played the flute, baritone and tuba.
12. i can read music.
13. i have a piano in my living room that is a catch all.
14. i would love to have someone come to my house and organize it.
15. i have a hard time finishing projects before i start another one.
16. i have good intentions, but find it hard to follow through.
17. when i was a freshmen in high school i had a crush on a senior.
18. when i was a senior in high school a freshmen had a crush on me.
19. i went on my first date when i was 16 with david ochoa. we watched the pelicon brief, ate big macs and toilet papered a house. good times!!
20. i didn't kiss a boy until my senior year.
21. i took my best friend, jessika, to prom our junior year.
22. i went to homecoming once with a guy. it was my dad sophmore year.
23. i was a band nerd and had some of my greatest high school memories on band trips.
24. it was in high school that i stopped wearing white socks and to this day i only wear colored ones.
25. i have always liked my hair.
26. i like to watch chick flicks over and over.
27. i have recently been turned on to reading.
28. i never read a book from cover to cover in school. ( cliff notes)
29. i have always been called a goofball.
30. i like to have fun with friends.
31. i love my job.
32. i love the people i work with.
33. i love being a mommy.
34. i love my husband, art.
35 i rarely use capital letters when typing.
36. i took walking for fitness for my PE credit at lamar.
37. i would love to go back to school one day and get my RN.
38. i try to get to target at least once a week, usually more. i can spend a hour in there and not buy a thing.
39. i have a favorite color, GREEN. yes, i am obsessed with it. i find myself buying things in all shades and usually mix them when dressing. i have gone so far a to get GREEN cell phone.
40. i love to chat in the internet .. . .lol i got bored one night and found a web sight that had a chat room and i went in. so now going on 2 years i have been talking to the same person. we even called each other while we were evacuated from hurricane rita.... HEY MARSHA
41. i love watching reruns of 'the nanny'.
42. i have a myspace account.
43. i have my ears pierce three times in each ear. (i only wear one pair now.)
44. i got my gallbladder taken out in 2003 and now my belly button looks like a question mark.
45. i'm not the most gracefull person. i once tried to step overthe hose at the gas station and fell.
46. i broke my foot my sophmore year jumping on a bed.
47. i wore braces for 3 1/2 years and stopped wearing my retainer. now i could use them again.
48. i'm left-handed and have a big bump on my middle finger which makes my finger nail goofy.
49. i've been to london, england.
50. would love a trip to new york.
51. i've worn glasses since the 3rd grade.
52. i would like to have plastic surgery one day, just to put stuff back where it used to be.
53. i never took home eco. in school so i haad to teah myself to use the sewing machine and i like it.
54. i like to cook, especially deserts.
55. i would love to build a house one day just the way i want it.

ok there are a few things. .

jess :-P

GoOd MaIL

2007-02-02T20:05:00.000-08:00

yesterday i got something in the mail that was quite pleasant. my sister-in-law thought of me and sent me a little package in the mail.

she may never know how special it made me feel. it wasn't my birthday or any other holiday. it was just because. it was nice to get someting other than a bill or junk mail. thank you so much angie for thinking of me. it really means alot.
jess :-P

mine's BiGgEr than yours . . . .

2007-01-01T18:30:00.000-08:00

ok . . its true i have fallen behind. i seem to get sidetracked and won't sit down long enough at the computer to BLOG. to say that i have been busy, sick or just plain lazy would just about sum up why i have posted in a while.
so where do you begin when it has been so long. i guess i should go back to that chickie weekend...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
the date: Dec. 8 - 10
the place: frisco, tx
the peeps: 2 blondes, 1 redhead and a grammy
the crime: shopping til we drop

this year was the first anuall chickie weekend. art's mom decided that the girls of the family were in titled to a girls weekend. so as are first place, we decided on frisco, tx. there are nice malls, at least 4 targets and 2 walmarts in the area. not to mention a HUGH IKEA.
we all decided to fly there. we had to get up very early but by 10:00 am we were all there and ready fo some serious shopping. when we did get there we got a big surprise. the weather was a bit cooler that we had planned. the temp in the rental car said 29 but it sure felt colder than that. the wind was bitter and we had to bundle up each time we got out of the car. it was quite different from the weather that usually at home.
we did manage to hit a few stores before our 3:00 check-in time at the hotel. i think on that first day we were finished shoppind by 4:30 and planning our dinner. we opted for a small lunch so we were getting pretty hungry. a friend from work suggested we try a mexican chain, uncle juleos. after making the block we found it and were pleased with the food. we all left very full.
early saturday morning we started out, making it to ikea shortly after they opened. now we didn't have to go far for that cause it was nearly in the parking lot of our hotel . . . .LOL it is much bigger than the one in houston. we walked through and spent nearly 2 hours, but there was just too much to look at. after we left we had to pick another place. i'm not really sure where we actually went next but i do think it is funny that we traveled so far to make a few stops at the local targets and walmarts. i guess it is true what they say about, sticking to what you know.
after a shop til you drop day we stuffed ourselves again on mexican food (again) and made a few mad dashes to target and walmart again.
i had a good time ladies. i'm looking forward to our next trip.

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Dec 13 BYU vs LAMAR

thats right... byu came to beaumont to play lamar. we toook the kids and joined the other byu fans and packed the house with navy blue. . . . .ok so it wasn't a packed house. but there sure were a lot of us 'mormons' there. ther was even a local celebrity there, tracy bird . . .lol

byu did give lamar a run for their money and there was even overtime, although lamar won in the end. the kids had a fun time.

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dec. 15 - williamson 3rd ward christmas party aka: LDS airlines

this year the activities commity went all out. i must say
it was quite the production.
it had a christmas around the world feel.

when we arrived at the church we waited in a 'lobby' and then had to check in and get 'passports'. we were given seat numbers and had to walk through security. then we boarded our 'plane'. ( it was actually the hall way with poster board on the walls, primary chairs, and rope lights.) the flight attendants took us to ours seats and then we were giving out safety guidelines and introduces to the pilot. the flight attendants passed out pretzels and the 'flight' was so smooth we were there in no time at all....lol. after exiting the plane we made our way around the church building stopping at different countries collecting stamps for our passports.

it was interesting learning about different christmas tradions. after making our way around the world, we returned to the usa. we shared a potluck dinner and enjoyed some good 'ol entertainment. we had a good time.

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dec. 21 - caleb's christmas party at school

this day art anda i were both off and able to enjoy caleb's christmas party. the room moms picked the theme - an ol' english christmas. therefore the treats were somewhat tradtional. there served the kids scones and 'hot tea' (which was actually waszel).

caleb's teacher made little ' crackers ' for the kids. inside was a treat and toy and a hat for them to wear. the kids traded gifts. they were 'secret santa' gift and if was fun to find out who had who. caleb's gift was from his friend garrison. they have really bonded since they were the only 2 boys in class last year.
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dec. 24 ~ 25

of course these couple of days are a complete blurr. mostly mixed together. we did the christmas thing at my parents house on christmas eve around 3 in the afternoon. we exchanged gifts and talked while snacking.

then it was off to the o'quinn's. we have been married for almost 10 years and have not missed a christmas eve yet. there is always lots of goodies to make you sick and good food. sheila cooks most of it and then begs us to take some home. we share stories from the year and exchange a few more gifts. once we have stuffed ourselves we head home. get the kiddos in bed and try to get to bed ourseves so santa can come.

christmas morning is always fun. santa has yet to dissapoint our kids. they always seem to get what they ask for. we really enjoyed it.

after gifts and breakfast we're off again. we eat at my and art's parent's houses and by the time we get home the we can't eat anymore and the house and car are trashed. . . LOL
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dec. 29 just a little operation

at about 12:30 on this day, art called me on my cell phone. i was getting to my car to leave work early to head over to grammy and poppy's. he told me not to leave he was one his way with caleb. caleb had been playing with a 'jewel' nad put it in his mouth. forgeting it was there he then took a drink. of course he swollowed it and art was gring him in. i just happend to be working with dr. hicks that day so i called back in to see if he was still there, and he was. he sadi he would take a look at caleb and decide what needed to be done.
i met caleb and art in the ER and brought caleb up to surgery to dr. hicks. he decided it would be best if we went down to radiology and have an XRAY to see if it was still there. poor caleb was in alot of pain. we spitting in a cup and white knuckling the chairs in admitting. after sitting in admitting for over 2 hours i finally had to say something. "we are checking your insurance ma'am" "i WORK here". i was pissed. then of course they were nice and got us over to xray. there we found out it was still there . the radiologist called dr. hicks who was still waiting and then it was up to surgery. dr. hicks put a scope down and pulled it out. caleb did great. wasn't scared at all and as soon as we returned he wanted to know if he could still go to grammy's house for presents.

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dec. 31 NEW YEARS EVE

this year was quite uneventful. i had to work. i only work one holiday a year and this was mine and 3 days at that. we stayed home and art took the kids outside for a few fireworks. we enjoyed chips and dip, pigs in a blanket, and cookies. bed time was before 10:00. . . pretty sad huh.
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so prtty much i have fallen behind and hope to get better with the new year . . .LOL
well see what i can do.

jess :-P

oops . . .he did it again

2006-11-30T19:42:00.000-08:00

i can't believe it. caleb actually lost that second top tooth today. he was kinda upset about it though.
he was playing around with his pepaw today after school and pepaw actually knocked it out . . .LOL then it went missing. it was never found it was realy lost. i had caleb write the tooth fairy a note. hopefully she'll get and make a little boy happy.

i think he just got a little more cute. . .

jess :-P

it finally happened . . .

2006-11-29T17:54:00.000-08:00

yep . . .
thats right, after much waiting and wiggling it happened this morning.

caleb, fin ally lost that top tooth. he has been wiggling that thing for a little over 2 months. while eating toast this morning before school it happened. he bit down just right and it actually just fell out. i guess it will be while for the other to fall out too... we'll just have to wait and see if it will be a 'all i want for christmas is my two front teeth' or not.

isn't he just so cute . . . .

jess :-P

what we did on our thanksgiving vacation.

2006-11-26T16:22:00.000-08:00

it has becomee a ruggles' family tradtion to go camping during thanksgiving break. sometimes it works out that we are able to join art's parents and go out in the wilderness. ok . . . it really isn't that bad. there is a camper involved and the kiddos sleep with grammy and poppy.

caleb and baileigh love being outside. last year caleb mastered the big boy bike with no training wheels and this year baleigh ditched the tricycle. they prolly put a thousand miles on them in the few days we were there.

this year the whole family was together. on thanksgiving we actually had dinner outside in lawn chairs. you might be a redneck if . . . it was sort of a potluck dinner with several families getting together for the holiday.

after dinner, it was down to business. we brought out the newspapers and went to work planning our shopping trip for the next day. we made lists and checked them twice. after all sales ads had been studied and studied again we decided on who would go where and what time. i decided on 'best buy' , angie 'circut city' and allison 'target'. once the kids were somewhat settled and the sun went down angie, allison and i headed out so get some real rest for our busy day.

at 2:39AM my alarm went off and i hoped in the shower hopeing to get to best buy at 4:00. i was leaving vidor after fueling the van at 3:40 AM. when i got there the line was around the back side of the building. i wasn't really surprised. some of the people had been in line since 1:30 on thursday. the doors opened at 5:00 and by 5:10 i was stand ing in another line inside waiting on cameras. at 6:05 i walked away with a video camera, digital camera& mp3 player. then it was off to target to meet up with angie and allison. it was pretty busy there but shopable. we all ended up with a few things then it was off to the next place. 7:30 am we were at the mall having breakfast at chick fil a. after refueling and planning for our next stops we were at it again. by 11:00 we had shopped til we dropped and decided to call it a day. but first we needed more fuel. hummm . . . . crazy jose!!!! we ate like we skipped breakfast.

after all is said and done i think we did pretty good. we at least put a dent in the holiday shopping for 2006. thank you angie and allison for a great day. i'm looking forward to our girls weekend for more shoping til we drop.

jess :-P

something we have never done . . .

2006-11-23T05:46:00.000-08:00

this year i decided to do something that has never been done at our house. usually the i will wait til tha firsts weekend of december to put up the christmas tree but this yeari decided to change.
i'm going back to work next week and of course the first weekend i'm back at work i'm on call. (figures right.)

so art only worked on night this week and while he was gone the kids and i put up the tree. i put the lights on it and told the kids we would wait for daddy to decorate. wednesday night could not get here fast enough. baileigh kept asking me if it was tomorrow night yet. so at 6:30 wednesday we began 'trimming' our tree.
of course we had to start with the 8 year old KIX cereal that i strung before caleb was even born. of course the dog loved the stale cereal and after everything was done i cought him nibbling from the tree . . LOL
the kids had fun finding the ornaments that had their names on them and caleb started asking where the ones from this year were. each year i let the kids pick out a new ornament for the tree and i write their name on it. that way when thhey leave and they will have oraments to put on their tree.
it didn't take long for us to get finished and soon it was time to put the star on. baileigh did it last year so it was caleb's turn.
so there you have it, one day before thanksgiving and our christmas tree is up.

jess :-P

it finally over . . .

2006-11-12T19:42:00.000-08:00

much to our dismay . . .flag football has come to a close. really we aren't really that broken up about it. i'm really kinda glad to seee the season end. caleb and baileigh may have had a good time but i was rather grossed out by the lack or organization on our team.

well . . .i guess it all started at the first of the season when caleb missed the first 2 practices because the coach and team mom didn't call us. when the coach and team mom come from the same house you would think that they would talk to one another about when practices were going to start and maybe we should call EVERYONE and let them know. we do have an answering machine and caller ID. i thought that if was made known at the first practice that i was available to help out that i might get used. it didn't take long to realize that the team mom really didn't care and did NOTHING for the team. we asked several times if there was going to be a homecoming float and if they needed help geting things together. most of the time the team mom didn't even show up to games and practices. so the night before the homecoming parade we were called and told to meet for the parade.

so there was a little about the team mom . . . now cheermom. well first of all there were 5 cheerleaders for the team. we spent a small fortune for baileigh to do this and support her brother. not only were the practices a joke but the cheermom only made it to 4 games. at the other 4 games baileigh was the only cheerleader that even came. i must say i am very upset with VIDOR FLAG and TACKLE. i feel that there is no supervision of the team's coaches, team mothers and cheermoms. it really is a shame.

saturday was the team party . . . we have become pretty familiar with the local skating rink. my kiddos love it. they recieved trophies and hats. there once again was confusion on when, where and how much we needed to pitch in for trophies. no one seemed to have a clue not even the team mom. each kid had an assigned item to bring to the party. we brought plastic forks and 2 pizzas. of course reaminders would have been nice 'cause there were only 4 pizzas to feed 12 kids and about 10 adults. go figure. personally i hope caleb decided to play fall baseball next year and will make it a goal to look for the handbook on being a team mom to pass along.

so i know i've really been dogin' team mom. has anyone else ever been in my situation?

jess :-p

i got my ears lowered . . .

2006-11-09T18:00:00.000-08:00

yep . . its true i decided to get a haircut. i've let my hair grow for about 2 years now and enough's enough. i thought it would be nice to go to my class reunion with hair the same length as it was in high school. now that that is over i tied it in a not one last time and went to visit my sister. it's nice to have members of the family that do hair. i have never had to pay for 'hair care'. i'm not sure what i would do if i did have to reallt pay. i'm sure it would grow down to my 'ha ha'. in high school i had to close my eyes to let mom cut it. then i got a 'wild' hair after graduation adn cut 13 inches off. it has never really been the same.

this afternnon at 3:00 i did the deed and got a grown-up hair cut.
we forgot to measure but as you can see . . about 6 inches.

let me know what ya'll think..
jess :-P

oooops..... how could i forget halloween

2006-11-02T15:28:00.000-08:00

well . . . heck. i thought i was doing good. did some catching up and forgot about halloween.

of course, the ward had its ward party on halloween night. therefore my afternoon was very busy. baileigh had dance till 5:00 and then i got them ready. of course i had not planned on a costume and baileigh was very disapointed about that. so, while she was at dance i had to come with something. of course i had to make ham and cheese sandwiches and find something to put them and find the pink paint and gliter for baileigh. before i knew it it was time to get here and time was running out. that party started at 6:00 and we still were suposed to run by my moms house so that she could take a pic of the grandkids together.
caleb got himself ready. all he had to do was change. this year he was a clone trooper from star wars. art and i tried to change his mind because the costume came with a mask and he would not be able to wear it at the church. i offered to paint his face but he was not going for it.

baileigh this year wanted to be a 'pink' princess. she has been talking about for about 2 months now. she wanted wings and the whole nine yards. i painted her face to look like a mask and she was turning people into frogs with her wand.
they had a great time at the party and didn't want to leave. caleb has already put in a request for next year, yoda. i think i see a tread forming.

jess :-P ps: i did come up with a costume . . . . a mormon housewife

ok . . i can finally sit . . .

2006-11-02T04:57:00.000-08:00

alright . . i know i have fallen behind. i need to do some catching up don't i. lets se e what has been going on at the ruggles' house? i guess i should start with . . .

VIDOR HOMECOMING --- Friday, October 20
if you have never been to a vidor homcoming then let just recount the events for you. firday is the game and parade. the kids get out of school early that day and then its off to the parade at 2:00. this year caleb and baileigh were in it so i had to get them to the float at 1:00. there were 109 floats in the parade and guess which ones my kids were one. if you guessed 20, 35, or even 50 you are wrong. the 'jets' were float number 109. those kids had a blast and all excited about riding in a trailer with a bunch of hay.
so i drop them off and decide to make a mad dash to the other side of town where art parked the truck the night before. ( peeps are crazy in vidor. you have to pick your parade watching site the night before or else there will be no where to sit. i tell you, if you need any new lawn furniture this year would have been the year to get it. people actually dropped off thier chairs and blckets the night before. i was cracking up as i drove through town.) we had our usual spot.
so as i'm trying to get make to the truck i can't help but be reminded of the evacuation of last year . . . . it took me about 45 minutes to get about 3 miles.
so once i finally get there and find ia parking spot for my second car in town i climb in the back of art's pick up truck and wait . . and wait . . .. and wait. the parade did start at 2:00 but didn't get to where we were sitting until around 2:20. ya know i did forget to look and see what time caleb and baileigh actually made it our way . . . .lol
so after the parader was finally over and i picked up the kids from the float we haeded home to get things together for the game. i have a game bag that i bring with me everyweek. it has drinks, snacks and a few extra footballs just in case we don't catch one. for the homecoming game i have to add a few other items. for those that havn't seen the half time at a vidor homecoming i'll explain. at half time the band members tape flashlight to their legs and the twirlers twirl with fire. after the homecoming court is anounced then the lights are turned off. thats right, the band, drill team and twirlers do their stuff in the dark. they shoot fireworks and sell glowsticks. ( i just can't see buying a $.87 glow stick from the football game for $4, so i just stock up before and pass them out later) caleb and baileigh have a blast at this game.

homecoming weekend this year was my 10 year reunion. so of course i need to tell ya'll about that. hummm . . . i was a band nerd art makes fun of me just about every football game when i get chills during half time. band was such a part of my life during high school. yep i was a geek. most of my friends were in band and so we did just about everything together. i was also the first and only girl tuba player at vidor high school... see i told ya.
so reunion stuff started at the game. and vidor homecoming games are crazy. we have season tickets and go to every home game, so seats are not a problem for us. once art made it to the game after work i went and sat with 'the class of 1996'. the usual peeps were there. i watch most of the game with them then it was back to my seat during the 3 quarter.
saturday, inspite of the rain there was a family pinic at claibourne park. art had to work, so caleb , baileigh and i braved the weather and headed out there. the kiddos had a blast. i made them wear their rubber boots and older pants. they loved playing in the mud. there was a pretty good turn out concidering the weather. it was funny see our kids playing together.
staurday night was the adults only get together at madison's. madison's is a newer place in beaumont that haspretty decent food, but it really isn't very big. there were alot of people there. it was funny to see the changes in some people and not in others. everyone seemed to hang out with the same people...lol this is my friend jessika. we did everything together in high school. went to a prom together and even a homecoming. we were pretty crazy and nothing has really changed. it was nice to see people that i haven't seen in 10 years. we hung with the crowd for awhile, hugged necks, share stories, laughed (a bunch), exchanged phone numbers and went home. art and i were cracking up at the fact that the year we got married he had his 10 year reunion nad next year will be his 20.

so that was the weekend of vidor's homecoming and my 10 year class reunion.

MONDAY, October 23
this is the day that i picked to get a problem fixed. for those of you that around me you know that since the kiddos i have a hard time doing some things. i can't laugh, sneeze, cough, blow my nose, jump up and down or run with out having a problem. yall know what it is. i have to sit or cross my legs to do those things. i got tired of it and decided to do something about it. i went to dr and they did a few test. so monday morning i headed in to a bladder suspention. so far it seems to be working. although i really don't want to test it too much. after a week and a half i can sit at the computer a little at a time. i'm gunna take it easy and enjoy the time off. (of course that is easier said than done when i see projects that could be done around the house).

so ther is what has been happening here. i hope to get a little better at this and keep everyone more up to date.

jess :-P

a blog about bloggin'

2006-10-15T21:50:00.000-07:00

ok . . its only been a few days and already i have not maade the goal of 3 post a week.
i'm so bad . . .but i do have an excuse. want to hear it? its work.

this was my weekend to work in-house. i'm lucky that i work in the surgery deptment. i only work every 12the weekend 'in-house' but i do take call every 6 weeks. its nice to have most weekend soff and only one holiday a year.
so this weekend i worked and worked. 3 - 11 kicks my butt. we were REALLY busy and now i'm so bouncy i can't sleep. so here i am blogging about not blogging.

we're sorry macy that we didn't get to make it to your birthday party. my class reunion is next weekend. that weekend was 'my' weekend to work so in order to get to goto the reunion i had to switch for this weekend. so now you'll have to watch the mail box for a very special surprize.

ok . . .so this week i'll try to do better.

jess

ok . . .i'll catch ya'll up

2006-10-10T16:51:00.000-07:00

alright . . . alright
so, i'm behind on my bloggin' . . . .
now i need to do a little catching up, dont' i. lets see what has been going on at the ruggles' house?

well . . . . there is football. caleb and baileigh seem to be having a good time. caleb is catching on to the game. they finally won a game and got that trip to DQ. baileigh is quite the cheerleader. she loves it!!! she really tries her best.

school for caleb is getting better. the first few weeks have been different. he is in the GT class and the teacher is tough. he did however do great on his first report. he made a 100 and he did it all himself. he was very proud.

baileigh is having a blast with ballet and tap. just tonight i caught her doing some moves in front of the frig. while looking for a snack . . . LOL she is just too cutie.

and then there is the DOG. buster is doing good too. he still has a few accidents every now and then. now if we can just get him to stop tearing up paper then we'll be fine. if he survives baileigh then we just might have a chance.

ok . . .i'm going to make a goal. i typing it for others to read so that i might be able to stick to it. so . . . here goes. i will try to blog at least a little soemthing 3 times a week. there i did it!!!

i new addition to the family . . .

2006-09-11T19:50:00.000-07:00

well . . .we've thought about it.

baileigh has been begging.
caleb wants to be a big brother.
art's getting on up there in age.
and i'll be 30 in 2 years so it was time.

now or never . . .

we finally did it.

we decided to take that BIG step and add to our family.

i'd like to introduce . . .

our newest pride and joy . . . .

BUSTER . . . .

'belly buster ruggles' was added to our family on saturday, sept. 8th
he was born on july 27th and has one brother and one sister (caleb & baileigh)
he is a 'toy' rat terrier and will not get any more than 8 or 9 pounds.
so far he likes to sleep and chew on shoes and news paper.
the kiddos love him and can't wait till he is a little bigger so they can take turns sleeping with him . . .LOL
wish us luck on the potty training . . .
we must be CrAzY.

I what we did all summer !!!

2006-09-08T15:47:00.000-07:00

i'm still alive . . .

2006-09-08T14:56:00.000-07:00

yes, i'm still alive. i haven't fallin' off the blogging band wagon just yet. . . LOL

i have been busy though and i promise i HAVE been fighting just about everynight with pictures to make a slide show. so now here i am at 4:55 in the afternoon on a friday to let ya'll know i'm still here.

lets see . . . what i have i been up to? well first of all i changed my schedule at work. i now work mon-fri. this a is a real change, because for 6 years now i have worked only 3 days a week. but the good thing is that i get off at 3 and get to spend more time with the kiddos. spending more time with the kids means that i'm here for afterschool activities and HOMEWORK!!!

lets see: monday- new spelling words for caleb and an AR reading book
tuesday- AR reading and football practice (6-7:15) for caleb
for baileigh ballet and tap (3:50-5:00) then cheerleading (6-7:15)
wednesday- AR reading, math, and spelling words for caleb
thursday- study for spelling test and AR reading; football and cheerleading (6-7:15)
friday- high school football games
saturday- flag football

i think that i need a "S" for my shirt somedays. the good thing is that with the kiddos being so active in the afternoons bedtime is a breeze. :-)

~jess~

he can see the leaves . . .

2006-08-17T19:14:00.000-07:00

today my little 2nd grader went ot he eye doctor.

caleb wasn't really excited about it and with the new school year starting it was time. he's been complaining for a while that he sees better without his glasses. today we found out that is perscription had gotten a little worse and that he's right eye is stronger than his left. he uses his right eye to see and the left eye is getting worse. so . . . that means that he needs to wear those glasses.

i let him pick out new frames and after tring on about 50 pairs he decided on the ever popular "sponge bob". . LOL (i was kinda jealous considering that as a kiddo myself i got to just change the lens. what ever happend to brown plastic and brown tinted lens?) ~jess~

the old
the new

First Day of 2nd Grade!!!

2006-08-14T18:43:00.000-07:00

yeah . . . it's finally here. thats right school started today for us !!!

caleb is now in the 2nd grade at pine forest elementary. his teacher for this year is mrs. goodman (and from what i hear she is tough). caleb is in the gifted and talented class (don't ask where he got this, we're still tring to figure it out).

this year there are 4 boys and 17 girls. i think this will be a nice change from the 2 to 17 ratio of last year... LOL caleb has gotten really close to garison and they are real good buddies. they watch out for each other. it brought a tear to my eye when they were reunited this morning (a big hug then a high five). it was so cute. i just hope they don't get into any trouble.

i think this year is going to be fun and hopefully not too hard for caleb.

after school tradition of a sonic drink . . . lol

~jess~

he did it again . . . .

2006-08-03T21:18:00.000-07:00

yes that right . .. caleb pulled another tooth.

this time it was at daycare and it came home an envelope.
so now he just needs to start on the tops ones.

yep . . . she's a girl

2006-08-03T16:41:00.000-07:00

baileigh is such a girl . . . lol

she likes to come in the bathroom and watch me put on my makeup. here lately she wants to put some on. of course i put a little powder on her nose just for fun. she thinks she is so big.

monday evening art and i were talking in the kitchen when baileigh came to give me a kiss. as soon she kissed me i knew she had been into something. (its funny how makeup powder has a smell) when i looked at her she had a nearly perfect circle of powder on her face. all i could so was laugh and take a picture of course.

~jess~

a little summer vacation . . .

2006-07-31T20:39:00.000-07:00

so it's about 2 weeks before summer is over. WOW time sure flies by.

we decided that we better take the kiddos somewhere . . . .so that what we did. we booked a hotel on priceline and headed for dallas. we have six flags season passes and since astroworld in houston is a thing of the past we needed to get our moneys worth so we took the kis to six flags over texas.

friday we left around 12:30. so soon as we got there and checked in we were off to sixflags. we were very shocked by the parking prices. we couldn'e beleave that they actually wanted $30 for vallet. . . LOL and $15 to park a mile away. so . . .. with that said we ate across the street and walked in. sure wewere tired when we got there and the kids were worn out but we saved $15.

it as been a long time since we have been to this park and its funny how some of the ame thing are still there. who could forget the 'texas chute out' (the parachute ride) and the 'judge roy scream'. of course there are new ones and the crowds sure haven't changed.

on friday we put in about 4 hours at the park. so saturday we headed in early (10am). BOY was it HOTT!!!!! i've never sweated so much. art and i agreed that it counte as our work out for the weekend. by lunch we were tired and we decided to head to the hotel for a break. then after dinner we went back. (we must be crazy) caleb and baileigh had a great time. caleb said " this is the best vacation ever" baileigh just wanted to know when we were going swimming.

sunday (my birthday) we all slept in . . . ok 8:00. hey with two kiddos in the same hotel room that was pretty good. i was greeted with birthday wishes and "mommy i'm hungry".... lol gotta love it!!

we packed and headed out after a lunch with art's sister (angie) and brother in law (greg). all in all we had a great weekend. as we wind down the summer i'm greatful that i was able to get away for a couple of days and relax and be with the people i love most in the world.

~jess~
( pictures coming soon . . . )

one down. how many to go?

2006-07-25T19:20:00.000-07:00

he did it !!!!

caleb finally lost his first tooth. for about 2 weeks now caleb has been wiggling two teeth on the bottom. tonight he finally pulled one of them all by himself.

at seven i was beginnig to wonder if was ever gunna lose a tooth. i'm not really sure when i started losing them but now that it has started i'm sure he'll look real cute for school pics this year. now he can't wait to lose the next one and he even has one lose on the top.

it's been so long, since i've had a talk with the toothfairy. i wasn't really sure how much she would leave him. (ya know with inflation and stuff) i wasn't really sure if caleb would be impressed with 5 dimes. luckly 2 dollor bills did the trick. i'm still not sure if she left enough. how much are baby teeth worth these days anyway? . . . LOL

~jess~

A late 4th of July . . .

2006-07-25T18:29:00.000-07:00

ok . . .so i'm a little late with this post.

our 4th of july activities have become a family tradition. for about 28 years now my dad has been shooting fireworks shows. he started shooting the local show at gateway in beaumont. for about 15 years now he has been doing a show in mont belview. (which is about 1 hour away) art has been helping for 10 years and one day may have his own show.

our 4th of july are exciting. the chickies start out early with some sale shopping. the guys however start their day out with dashing around trying to get together everything for the big show. my dad always waits till the last minute and usually he calls mom a few times to get her to bring the forgotten items. i can't even count the number of last minute flash lights that are bought and lost each year.

usually the fireworks are lit by hand. the guys have to dig holes for the pipes to fit in. each shell is loaded one at a time and lit with a flare. i never watch the show cause i'm always afraid something will happen. sometimes there are no problems but there have been a few mishaps like burnt hair or eyebrows... LOL

this year was a little different. dad finally got his 'electric' show. i think he was excited until he started wiring it. the pipes came on a trailer and each shell had to loaded into the pipes. then wires from each shell had to be attached to the 'mother' board then connected to a battery. dad and my brother spent about 5 hours loading the shells. once everything was wired then the trailer was moved to the location of the show. about 20 extention cords were used to connect the trailer to the 'mother' board.
dad said it was easier to shoot but the getting ready was harder.

all in all we had a good time and the show was a success.

~jess~

a weekend away from home . .

2006-07-04T11:59:00.000-07:00

so couldn't get the pics to upload so i made a slide show of the weekend instead.
btw . . . the website is www.slide.com it's easy to use but it can take long time and sometimes you have to change the size of the file. good luck

~jess~

a weekend spent away . . .

2006-07-03T18:04:00.000-07:00

ok . . . so art and i are off together every weekend (unless i'm on call). which means we usually have to find something to do so the kiddos are not completely bored. sometimes we goto town (beaumont) and waste time or just hang around the house.

well this weekend was just like all the others accept . . . we decided (very last minute) to head to houston. we had no plans, just a hotel room that art found cheap on the internet. so about 10:30 am we were on the road. the weather wasn't the greatest, the forecast said it was gunna rain. (and it did)

the kids didn't care what we were planning to do as long as it included a dip in the hotel pool. so not long after our arrival we headed to the pool. after a short dip we went bowling and then grabbed a bite to eat at caleb's choice (chili's).

after a saturday night in the hotel, we headed out on the town. we headed to one of my favorite stores IKEA. the kids had a blast in the play area. art and i spent a few dollars on things that i could not live without . . .LOL

then we pretended like we were rich folk and decided to take the kids for an educational experience. we headed to the museum district downtown. caleb notices everthing and his eyes lit up when he noticed were we where. the houston museum of natural science was our stop. (the only stop) i was truly surprised at how much an educational experience cost. . . lol caleb and baileigh loved the dinosaur bones and the most of the interactive things they got to play with. i thought they would enjoy the IMAX movie. after the show i was dreading the questions that might follow, since the show was about the human body, to my surprise caleb was more into the exhibits. (it must be a boy thing)

we had a fun little vacation away from home and headed back to ready ourselves for a short work week.

~jess~

so i got a little bored . . .

2006-06-25T17:47:00.000-07:00

GaToR CoUnTrY . . .

2006-06-22T19:50:00.000-07:00

ok . . .so this summer the kiddos are going to day care two days a week and they just happen to be on the days that they take them on 'field trips'. so . . i get to pay less for daycare per week, but i also get to pay and make lunches for the field trips . . . LOL.

anyway, caleb and baileigh got to goto gatoe country. for those of ya'll that don't live around here, gator country is in hampshire-fannett. this place has been open off and on for about 15 years. they have a wide range of alligators for you to see. art was able to go with the kids on this trip and take some pics.

although it was raining the kids had fun. they got to see the babies and the daddy of them all "big al". . . lol ( i don;t think he is really the daddy but it sounded good.) they got to pet and even hold them. baileigh came home talking about feeding them "weenies" and caleb said they were soft and cold.

i'm sure that they will want to go again someday and feed them "weenies". perhaps on ypur next trip to southeast texas you can stop by gator country for a "snack" . . . LOL

~jess~

note to reader: no gators were harmed in the posting of this blog.

shetland astros 2006

2006-06-22T19:07:00.000-07:00

ok . . . our t-ball season is over. YEAH !!! caleb and the vidor astros came in a very respectable 2nd place, with a record of 17-3-1.

.
those boys sure played their hearts out and i'm sure they were sad to see the season end. :-( however . . . i think some of the parents were just fine with it.

caleb didn't make all-stars this year but he sure did his best all year. he has mastered the right field and will be movin' up to the next age group next year. so this was our last year of t-ball.

we have really been blessed to have grat couches. caleb has been on the same team 2 years in a row and he got to know the couches. i sure hope when we move up to coach pitch next year that we get a great coaching staff. it has been nice to have church members on the team as well as in the class room.

after a great season the coaches and parents gave the kiddos a party and the "lapray" pool. hotdogs were had by all, followed the tradtional cookie cake. the boys got special awards from the coaches. caleb got the best sport coaches award. coach hal gave all the kids a 'real' silver dollar.

we are lookin' forward to the off season to practice for the new season.

~jess~

$$$$$ our latest buy $$$$$

2006-06-04T18:20:00.000-07:00

ok . . we have been married almost 9 years and art has not had a new truck since 1996. it was time.

he started a new job in january and he waited his "120days" and it was time to make that buy.
friday he was off work and he headed down to talk to someone. lol .. they, of course, sent him home with one (to try) that was a little more than we wanted to spend. so that evenin' he bought a newspaper to see if there were any better deals. (of course there were.) so bright and early he headed back down there to see if they would match the prices in the paper. after a little bit of tough talk art got his way and ended up in a little different truck that was about $7,000.00 dollars less. this made us both feel better.

so in between our bowling party and picnic we went on down to silsbee and we got us one... LOL
art is on cloud 9. he is very happy with his new Ford F-150 supercrew cab.

~jess~

the first weekend of our summer vacation . . .

2006-06-04T17:38:00.000-07:00

ok . . .summer is finally here and we partied like no tomorrow on saturday.

first thing saturday morning the kiddos had a birthday party. one of the many cousins, rylee, had a bowling party. baileigh was excited about gettin' to wear "bowl" shoes. caleb didn't want to use the "sissy" ramp. they both finished with respectable scores, caleb 97 and baileigh 61. they had a blast.

after the indoor fun we headed outside. it was off to the beaumont yacht club for some BBQ and swimmin' in the beautiful neches river. the surgery department at st. elizabeth rented the club and we had our annual picnic. there are a few docs that got together and started a garage band. so "3CG" (3 car garage) played. they are pretty good for a neuro surgeon, ortho surgeon, general surgeon, and 2 scrub nurses. we all had a good time and crashed as soon as we got home.

the kiddos are lookin' forward to a summer of swimmin' and (their new love) bowling.
i hope everyone has a great summer. :-)

~jess ~

a nice LONG weekend

2006-05-30T21:16:00.000-07:00

ok . . a holiday weekend . . . humm

usually monday holidays don't benefit me at all, my work schedule has me off on monday. this year with art's new job he is off on fridays so . . i took off from work we loaded up the mini-van and headed to san antonio.

art's sister, angie, lives there and we are lucky enough to get to visit. we love goin' to san antonio and spendin' time with angie, greg and the girls. of course after eatin' at our favorite places we always come home a bit heavier . . LOL

we took the kiddos to fiesta texas on saturday. they had a blast. caleb is into the roller coaster this year, though he still lacks an inch to get on everything. baileigh rode her first water slide solo. she was all smiles 'til she hit the water at the bottom, she decided to try something else. we had a good day followed by a chris madrid's hamburger.

we headed back to southeast texas on monday morning. traffic wasn't too bad. it was nice to get home and get ready for another week of work and the last 3 days of school.
thank you angie and greg for lettin' us chash at ya'lls house. it nice to spend time with your family. we love ya'll.

jess :-P

ASTROS WIN !!!!!

2006-05-22T19:26:00.000-07:00

ok . . so it's the not the houston astros but we cheer our hearts out for them just the same.

caleb is in his 3rd year of professional baseball training. caleb has had his ups and his downs but he never spots smilin'. he is glad to be returning to the astros this year. he loves his coach. we are lucky to have great management.

this year caleb has spent a lot of time in right field. he has really come along way and he backs up 1st base on most throws. tonight he got an out at 2nd. it was the 3rd out of the inning and caleb was grinning from ear to ear.

we are almost at the end of the season and those boys have put up a good fight. i believe the stands are 12 wins, 3 loses and 1 tie. we are proud of our little astros.

GO ASTROS !!

~jess~

its gettin' hot in here . . .

2006-05-21T20:27:00.000-07:00

LOL . . . i tell ya when it rains it pours at our house. it's funny how when you get a little ahead something always happens.

some of ya'll may know that we bought a house a few years ago that is prolly older than me. . . ok older than my youngest sibling. anyway, we have noticed over the past few weeks that the air conditioner just is not gettin' the house as chilly as one in south east texas might like.

i myself really don't have a problem with it 'cause i could wear pants year round and ask just about anyone about the blankets that watch tv with. art, on the other hand does have a problem with it. poor guy sweats nearly all night anyway and i have to have my socks . . . LOL.

so, today was a beautiful day outside. the sky was clear, the humidity was high and air conditioner was on all mornin'. it wasn't a real surprise to come home from church to the air on. the only difference was that it was set on about 72 (thanks to art) and the temp read 80. i tell ya it's bad when it's hotter in the house than outside.

so, now instead of a really nice holiday weekend we may have to settle for a holiday at home :-(
we're sure hoping that its something minor and that it won't cost us that arm and leg that we don't have.

~jess~

Birthday fun !!!!

2006-05-20T18:40:00.000-07:00

alright, another year of birthdays done. (yeah for me !)

this year we decided to have both caleb and baileigh's party outside of the house. that's right we paid to have it somewhere else. let me tell you it was the best money ever spent. we show up, we party hardy and we leave. all we had to do was up our trash in the cans and walk away.

i'm sure i can speak for a lot of moms out there when i say that i can't really enjoy my child birthday party. if the party is at my house i go into OCD mode and get a little freaky. i can't get the house clean enough and can't really get in to havin' peeps there 'cause i want to make sure that the house is perfect. usually i don't get cake and i never eat at the party.

so this year . . . we went for the change up. caleb and baileigh both had their parties at the local skating rink. ha...ha... baileigh who turned 4 in april had never even skated. the kiddos had a blast. cousins from near and far had a great time.

this year at school caleb is one of only 2 boys in his class . . . so i knew that it might be a long shot to have kids from his class at the party. i was a nervous wreck wonderin' and wishin' that a few of the 'girls' would show up. caleb was so happy (and so was i) to see 5 chickies from his class.
those girls sure gave him a run for his money. he was smilin' all afternoon.

thanks to all the birthday wishes this year!
~jess~

the kiddos

2006-05-20T08:27:00.000-07:00

ok... so these are my kiddos. caleb just turned 7 and baileigh is close behind at the ripe old age of 4. i couldn't ask for a better brother and sister team. caleb loves his sister so much and they get along (most of the time).

caleb is in the 1st grade and has brough home some rather interesting spelling words. i'm tellin' ya if his math and spelling get much harder we may have to hire help.

baileigh will be in a pre-k program next year. she is our little DRAMA QUEEN and know it all. i fear she knows more than me. we could call her our little elephant . . . 'cause she never forgets a thing. if you promise her something then you better follow through (she'll remind you if you forget).