The Burns Brood Blog

Anybody still out there?

2010-05-06T17:35:00.001-07:00

Guess who's baaack!

Finally

2009-02-22T23:47:00.001-08:00

Adios!

2009-01-23T05:43:00.001-08:00

I'm here, I'm stressed, but I'm here. I leave for the Dominican Republic in less than 24 hrs. and boy do I have alot to do still! I won't bore you with all the fun details of what I have to do but I will just ask that you keep me in your prayers for the next week! Pray that all my flights are smooth and that maybe "Sulley the Hero" pilot decided this week to all of a sudden fly for AA and he will be my pilot! Pray for my intestinal fortitude so that most of my time is not spent in the bathroom! Pray for my kids and Bobby so that their week without mom is ok, not too great, I still want to be needed when I get home! And lastly, pray for those that I will be taking care of. I feel so blessed to be able to use my God given talents to help those in need! I'm going into this with a open mind as well as a open heart and I can't wait to get back and to share with you my experience! Love, peace and happiness to you all!
Erica

Help a sister out!

2009-01-05T21:50:00.001-08:00

Happy New Year! Boy is this month a busy one for me! Now that the holiday's have passed and the Christmas tree has been packed away I can start focusing on my trip to the Dominican Republic! 18 days and counting! I am so excited as I begin to pack! I leave January 24th! As if I'm not busy enough and I have a hard enough time updating this blog, I'm starting another one! This one will be of my travel to the DR. I plan on journaling every day as way to reflect on my experiences and to be able to share with you and all those who have helped me achieve my dream of going on a medical mission. I know I won't be able to blog live from the DR but once I get back I will have a day by day recount!
Here is where you come in! I need a name for this new blog! Leave me your suggestions in my comment box! I would love to hear what you think! It can be a play on words, sentimental, whatever! Let's hear it!
One more thing, please keep me and my family in your prayers. I'm starting to get a little antsy about the plane ride. My kids have also been very vocal about their anxiety about me leaving for this long and Payton thinks my plane will crash! I've tried reasoning him but I can tell it upsets him. He can be a stinker sometimes but it just touches me so much that he worries like that! I just ask God for his love and protection and that my family will put their trust in him! Thanks!

Merry Christmas from the Burnsbrood!

2008-12-21T11:06:00.000-08:00

Now I know I've been a bad blogger, I have excuses though, and they are very good. I will spare you the details but I will say life has been a little less than stellar around here. Life has handed me lemonades and of course I have tried to make lemonade even though I would have preferred to be handed limes in which I would have had a shot of tequila and salt and thrown a party which would have been so much better than what I'm really dealing with. Anyways, I just remain fervent in the belief that God is good and keep truckin on!

So Christmas is here, just seems like yesterday I was dancing to some fabulous eighties music in the Larkin kitchen at Thanksgiving with the ultra crazy and beautiful Kelly clan!(Shout out to Jennifer, love ya!) Ah, the memories and you tube videos that could be made from that night! Sorry, back to the point! Like I was saying, Christmas is here and I'm not in my whole "Joy to the World" kind of mood (see above mentioned lemonade/lime debate for reference.) Don't get me wrong, I've decorated, I've shopped(very little) and I have even gotten my holiday themed scrub tops out for work! You see, I'm not totally scrooge-like! I have even taken the kiddos pictures in front of the tree.

Every year for the last 5 or 6 years we have attempted to clean the kids up, throw on some clothes that are hopefully clean and not too wrinkly and smile(forcibly at times) for the camera. We have a couple of family pics thrown in there but for the most part they are of just the kids. This year was no different. I was destined to make a beautiful memory of the night. I was going to capture what a well behaved and good looking family I have and then share with all my family and friends. And of course I would hear the "Oh how big the Burns kids have gotten" or the "What blondies those kids are!" and "They look so precious!" My rose colored lenses soon cracked and my dream and reality would soon depart, in opposite directions!

There were fights about what shirt to wear or if the socks should be off or on and of course the "please don't slouch" or "don't do that to your sister!" There were tears. It was close to bedtime and that of course is prime meltdown time! There was even a temper tantrum and they stomped away from the photo shoot! But as soon I got over it (yes, it was me) I calmly walked back into the living room and found Bobby taking the kids' pictures. Everyone was smiling, behaving and listening to directions. What gives? Well of course, it was me. In my attempt to make a picture perfect family memory I had let my unrealistic expectations get in the way.

I was gently reminded that as unbelievable as it was, my family is not perfect! We are flawed, we make mistakes, we cry and we fight. We still love each other though. Just like Jesus still loves us no matter how much we try to push him away. We are human and that means we are flawed. We sin but no matter how much, His love is still there we just need to ask for it. How soon we forget in the season of CHRISTmas what we are really celebrating. Sometimes it takes those who love us the most to remind us no matter how much it may hurt!

So to show how unperfect my family is, here are some pictures from the 2008 Burnsbrood Christmas photo shoot!

Merry Christmas,Happy New Year and love to all from our crazy house to yours!
The Burnsbrood!

Unleashing kindness and love!

2008-11-23T15:41:00.000-08:00

Proud to be apart of this church! Check out this link!

http://www.kansas.com/194/story/605978.html

NOOOOOO! NOT HIM!

2008-11-19T13:33:00.000-08:00

I was going to post a wordless Wednesday post with some dramatic or endearing photo of one of my offspring but found this instead. I had to share, too funny! Enjoy!

Oh my the drama that is being a preteen!

Thankful Thursday

2008-11-06T10:55:00.000-08:00

I know, I know! Two in one day! I'm on roll!

I wanted to take a moment to share with all of you what I'm thankful for! Yes, of course I'm thankful for a awesome family, great friends, being an American, the ability to vote and most of all the ability to worship whom ever I should choose to worship!

OK, back to the point! But today, I'm thankful for something we take for granted. Something in a 100 years you would never ever guess. What is it you ask that I'm so thankful for today? Spell check. Yes, I said spell check. Whether your on the computer and use the computer spell check or you have a friend, husband or wife who will look over your writing and point out those pesky spelling mistakes! Consider yourself lucky! I'm about to show you what happens when those kind of things are absent from your life. It's sad, a travesty if you may.

Now, if I hadn't seen this with my own eyes I wouldn't have believed it. I took this pic while sitting at a stop light near the kids school. Who knows, maybe I'm wrong and they are having a Gage sale. You know I have a nephew Gage and I'm sure his mom on more than one occasion would have liked to have a Gage sale! Though it does seem suspect they are having a Gage sale and Gage is two letters away from being garage? Hmmm..... I'm just saying!

God knows I love living on the SOUTH SIDE!

Insert witty title

2008-11-06T10:22:00.001-08:00

Thanks to all the nice comments about my last post! It's nice to know people enjoy what you are doing! And Amy, I have pics for this post so back off!! lol!

First let me say, I might not have voted for the now president elect, I do however respect him and recognize the history that was made with his victory. I can only hope that the change he promised will be beneficial for all and bring this country back together. I pray and hope that he prays and asks for God's guidance and that the Lord shall bless him and his family. That's all I've got to say about that!

Now on to more fun stuff! We have a busy last weekend like most, I'm sure! Halloween was a blast! We spent the night with friends and family at TJ and Angela's for trick and treating plus a kids party that followed. Everyone had a good time and if I heard right this party might become a tradition! How fun that would be! Absent from the pics are the boys! They decided we were not cool enough to join and would rather be with their friends! Me, not cool? Whatev!

The Motley Crew. Suprised this pic turned out since it only took ten
adults, one malfunctioned fog machine and 100 lbs of sugar! The princess, diva herself, Eliza! Don't let those big brown eyes
fool you! She makes Bobby cry!

Stealth Ninja Caden

Hayley?! Is that you? Long are the days of

princess' and cowgirls. Sigh...

Give me a S - Y- D - N - E - Y, SYDNEY! I'm so not a cheerleader

and actually cringed a bit when this costume was discovered! Oh well, it was free!

What can I say?

2008-11-03T22:25:00.000-08:00

This blogging thing is a thorn in my side! I think I have witty, great things to say and as soon as I start typing I lose my train of thought, I have multiple run on sentences and all is lost! I really do adore, fawn over and become jealous of those born with the ability to be smart, witty and elegant in their writing! I think I'm witty when it comes to one on one convo's but when it comes to typing my crazy thoughts in my head, all bets are off! I'm insecure and jealous! I admit it! I secretly want to be a great story teller and blogger, just like Pioneer Woman or Courtney over at C jane enjoy it! Their words just fall onto their computer screens as soft as the snow falling in January! See, how corney is that metaphor? Is that even a metaphor? Is metaphor even spelled right? Maybe I should have paid closer attention in English class!
I had big hopes for this blog! I not only wanted to share photos of my platinum blonde offsprings, I wanted to share the thoughts, opinions, and just crazy dreams of this mom, wife, daughter, sister, friend and most importantly, child of God, with those who even cared this blog existed.
I know I have a problem with the overuse of exclamation marks! I just want you to know I'm excited! I know that run on sentences can go on forever and never really have a point and that I should know where to stop but I just keep going and going hoping my point gets across and....wait, dang it, I did it again, another run on.......well you know, you get the point, don't you?!
So to those who still read this...thank you! I know I'm inconsistent, long, a violater of most grammatical laws but I love blogging! I just wish there was another key that expressed my excitement other than this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Good Egg

2008-10-22T10:44:00.000-07:00

My eggs are holy and remind me to rejoice in the Lord! What do your eggs do?

Busy, Busy!

2008-10-20T07:39:00.000-07:00

We've been pretty busy the last two weekends and then add work in there and that equals no new blog posts!

Saturday, Oct. 11th found Bobby, the boys and I heading up to KC for the Third Day/Switchfoot concert. The girls stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Myers and had a good time! Jars of Clay was the opening act and then the Robert Randolph band was next! Both were great! It was the boys' first concert and boy did we have wonderful seats! Only 9 rows back from front stage! Both boys got to shake hands with the lead singer of Switchfoot which just made their day! Bobby and I both being huge Third Day fans enjoyed their set of new and old songs! The weather behaved and Starlight amphitheater is just beautiful! My camera or batteries suck so I got limited pictures. I only got pictures of Third Day on my blackberry. If anyone has any suggestions on some good camera batteries I would love to hear them! I went through 4 sets of rechargeables in less than 2 hours! Granted 2 sets weren't fully charged but the other two sets were! Anyways, we still had a wonderful time!

This last Saturday we got together with our BFF's the Neice family! We spent the day watching football, carving pumpkins and cooking a yummy dinner! What was supposed to be the adults helping the kids carve the pumpkins turned into the kids leaving us to finish up the carving! It was ok, I actually enjoy carving! I not only got to carve them but I also integrated my political affiliation! I think they turned out great and I'm kind of proud of them! Enjoy!

Save Second Base!

2008-10-02T11:36:00.000-07:00

As many of you may know, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month! So ladies, start feeling your ta ta's!

Myspace Comments

As a nurse I deal with woman with breast cancer on a daily basis! I see what is does to these woman and their families. The pain and the fear of the unknown far outweighs the pain of surgery.

Myspace Comments

By clicking on this link http://www.thebreastcancersite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=2 you are giving a free mammogram to woman who would otherwise not be able to afford one! Just think, you could be saving someones life!

Myspace Comments

Do what you can to help fight this crappy, sucky disease! Remind your sisters and friends to do their monthly breast exams! Early detection is KEY!

Myspace Comments

Cancer Sucks! Let's do what we can to help our mom's, sisters, daughters, grandmothers, aunts, and friends beat this!

Myspace Comments

Dirty Little Secrets

2008-09-28T13:52:00.001-07:00

Can I just say that I started crying because I was laughing so hard after I saw this video in church this morning! Ok, I was also teary-eyed because of the message today but that's a whole other story! Anyways, this clip is in the spririt of the TV show Intervention! Enjoy!

"Dirty Little Secrets" teaser www.gracepoint.com from GracePointWichita on Vimeo.

In our thoughts and prayers

2008-09-24T10:16:00.000-07:00

Not much to share right now, actually things are pretty somber around here. I just ask that you keep my friend from Heights, Jamai, in your prayers. She just lost her husband last weekend in a car accident. Cortez was a great basketball player and Bobby had the priviledge of playing with him many a time. Jamai and Cortez have 3 kids together plus the 3 that Cortez brought to the marriage. My heart just breaks for her and her kids. The thought of losing the love of my life just makes my stomach turn and I cannot even fathom it! I know God has a master plan but it is weeks like this its hard to seem them through the storm. I know Jamai's faith is strong and in that I take comfort.

Here is some more pics!

2008-09-16T12:01:00.001-07:00

As I promised yesterday, here are some more pics from our photo shoot! Omg, I know i'm biased and all but I am in love with these photos and this sweet little girl!

Beautiful day for some pics!

2008-09-15T12:49:00.000-07:00

And who better else to be my model then the lovely Syd! She is so easy to work with and works really cheap! All it took was a grape slushie from Sonic and some playground time at the park once our shoot was over! Here is just a sample of our day! I want to mess around with some of the other pics in my photoshop and then I promise to share!

Giveaway

2008-09-11T12:45:00.000-07:00

Stumbled onto this site! Love it! She is having a giveaway but it ends tommorow so get over there fast!
http://www.ourfamilyjournal.com/2008/08/welcome-to-uptown.html

Erica

I needed a good laugh!

2008-09-11T08:17:00.000-07:00

Check out more of his stuff on You Tube! Enjoy!

Here we go again!

2008-09-08T07:02:00.000-07:00

I had every intention of just letting this blog have it with all this crazy anger I have with the current election! I wanted to state what I felt was wrong and I wanted everyone to know how I felt! I started it with the clueless anarchists who think destruction of public property is the key to furthering their cause. But again, life happened. Relentless rants of non sense on my part gave way to fear, the fear of having your child go through the same thing he did just 4 short months ago. Payton received another concussion this last Saturday.
Count em', 4 concussions in his short 10 years of life and 2 of them in the last 4 months! This time it wasn't even obvious until he started getting frustrated when he couldn't express what he felt or answer the simple question of when his birthday is. Bobby knew something was up when during basketball practice earlier that day he got caught up in a what seemed harmless pile up under the goal. It was only later that Bobby knew that pile up wasn't as harmless as first thought when he found Payton chewing on his tongue. He told Bobby he couldn't feel it. He then said he felt like half of his face was numb. By the time they got home and woke me up (I worked the night before) he was already in a full blown concussed state. I asked him to squeeze both my hands and he couldn't do it. He just looked at me with hollow eyes and started to become tearful. He would try to tell me what hurt but nonsense words just came out of his mouth. That's when I knew he wasn't all there and that is was time to get him to the hospital. A few calls later and we headed off to ol' st. franny.
My mom met us there to get the other 3 kiddos so we could focus on Payton. We knew the drill and waited in our little stark white room till we were whisked off to CT. He never did throw up this time as in the other 3 times, which I guess is good. He was finally able to tell us his head did hurt. Our ER doc finally came in and talked with Bobby, Payton and I. The doc and Payton conversed and Payton was able to tell him who is fave skater was but not the year or what season it was. I think he even told the doc it was spring. The doc didn't seem impressed at all and told us he thought he was fine. He said he would be back with the CT results. I lost it. Granted I had only 1 hour of sleep after a 12 hour shift but this doc had no idea how far Payton was from his personality baseline and that this was his 4th concussion! I thought we had shared this info but apparently the young doc didn't quite grasp it. The doc stepped back into the room with the results of the CT which were negative but I still felt I needed to further the point of how concerned we were with Payton, negative CT or not. I don't think he realized that 4 short months ago we were here with the same thing and that Payton had a small brain bleed. I also reiterated the fact that Payton was nowhere near his usual state of extroverted, stubborn yet very pleasant and funny self.
I knew deep down Payton was going to be OK, I knew the symptoms would resolve. I wasn't looking for Payton to be admitted if the CT was negative. I just needed the doc to see our concern since I felt he thought we were crazy and overprotective. I knew I could monitor him at home and what to do if he turned for the worst God forbid. The doc seemed to get mine and Bobby's point and stated he would admit him for observation. We declined knowing that I had some expertise in this area and the doc was OK with that. He told us if the main symptoms didn't resolve by 9 or 10 that night to bring him back in and he would admit him directly. I could live with that. We could live with that.
Payton is doing fine now. Other than being tired his symptoms resolved by that evening. I knew he was fine when he started arguing with his sister. All was well at that point. But that doesn't put us out the woods just yet. I have a call in to our family Dr. to discuss Payton's future. As many of you know Payton is a very active athlete. As parents we are deeply concerned with this happening again and with the accumulative effects it will have on him. So while we wait for the Dr.'s call back I'm going to look into installing a CT scanner in our back room!

Anarchy, Schmanarchy!

2008-09-05T08:05:00.000-07:00

Instead of writing a long drawn out political post I'm just going to post snippets in the next couple of days of what is really getting me worked up about the current presidential race. Don't worry, I vote, so it's okay for me to gripe! If you don't vote, I don't want to hear it and you should be ashamed of yourself and forced to wear a big scarlet letter on your clothes! Ok, that might be a little harsh but I just really have a fire burning in my belly right now about the crap that is currently going on! I know some won't agree with me and that is ok, that is what makes America great! So here it goes!

I'm not against protesting, believe me, I have actually protested a time or two but to those who are violently protesting at the RNC, give me a break! http://www.startribune.com/politics/national/conventions/27737929.html
Do you really think your furthering your cause by breaking windows, jumping on cop cars and pushing crap over? I'm sure your mom's are proud! This is why weekly spraying of prozac in neighborhoods should be legal!

Birthday's and Baptisms!

2008-08-24T20:15:00.000-07:00

What a busy weekend for the Burns Brood! Hayley celebrated her 8th birthday yesterday and Sydney turns 4 on Monday! We had a combined party(wonder how long we can get away with that one!?) at a local park that has a interactive water fountain and playground. The weather held out and we had a great time! Can't believe my baby girls are getting so big!
Then 4 out of the 6 members of the Burns brood were baptized today! Bobby, Cody, Payton and Hayley all got baptized at church and I'm just estatic! It was such a great celebration! The band was playing, we had good food and of course the fellowship was just awesome! It was very emotional for me to see so many members of my family to accept Jesus Christ into their hearts! The kids were baptized by Rochelle, our family pastor! Love her! Then Bobby was baptized by our Pastor Bryson. Bryson was so pumped and I'm pretty sure he said "awesome" about 80 times! My cousin Jeremy also suprised us with getting baptized! He didn't tell anyone and he was the last one on the list! His son Noah also was baptized! What a great day! Church rocked this morning, had a nice and lazy sunday afternoon and then top it off with the baptism bash! I just feel so blessed right now! Enjoy some pics!

Praying

2008-08-16T10:11:00.001-07:00

So with everything going on in our lives here lately praying is something that I've really focused on. It's not something I'm really comfortable with in terms of being just able to focus or just using it to further my relationship with Jesus Christ. I was surfing around on some websites and blogs I frequent and found a quote that has stuck with me lately. I got it from Beth Moore's blog. The link is on the left side of this page. I wrote it down and of course in the jungle known as my computer desk I lost it. Well I found it after deciding to clean the computer desk this morning. Here it is..

"Prayer should be as critical and functional as the steering wheel on your car. Without you, O Lord, I can go nowhere!"

What a great reminder!

Choices

2008-08-15T11:59:00.000-07:00

Forgot to post these yesterday. Sent Payton and Hayley off to 5th and 3rd grade respectively. We love who they have for teachers this year! This really should be a great year for all the kiddos!
I also wanted to explain why Cody is going to Coleman MS since it's clearly not our neighborhood school and it's been a popular question! Our neighborhood MS is Truesdell or "Truehell" as it's called around these parts of town. Truesdell didn't have the majority of their students pass the standardized testing and this has happened the last three years. This makes Truesdell a "choice" school which is confusing because when I think of "choice" it's usually a good thing and Truesdell is not somewhere where we "choose" to go! Anyways, The district then gives parents of the kids that are supposed to go to Truesdell or any of the other 12 schools that are "choice" schools a choice of two other schools that did pass their testing. Coleman and Hadley were our schools and we chose Coleman for a number of reasons. For one, we felt their programs would fit Cody the best. Secondly, one of our very good and bestests friends is a teacher there! Oh yeah, and Coleman didn't have any felonies commited on their school grounds last year unlike Truehell, I mean Truesdell had! 7 Felonies, by the way! Its like a prep school for future felons! So there you have it, the confusing yet "choice" reasons why Cody is a Coleman Cougar!

P.S. Cody's grandma is a cougar!

P.S.S. Ok, that didn't sound right, she's a alumni Coleman Cougar! Wink,wink!

Day of firsts and Murphy's law

2008-08-13T05:49:00.000-07:00

So this morning I sent Cody off on his first day of Middle school. Yep, my Code-man is a 6th grader at Coleman! It just doesn't seem possible that my first born is old enough for this or that I'm old enough for this! Before you know it we will be taking him to get his license! Ok, that just made the hair on my arms just stand at attention! I, of course was more nervous then he was! You know what he was most worried about??? That he would be the only one whose parent came with him today! We have had to tell him numerous times that it was ok for parents to come today. He still wasn't convinced but he conceded when we assured him that Bobby would behave and wouldn't embarrass him! Ha, good luck with that one kid, try being married to him!

On another note, I got back from Table Rock on Sunday and I'm thinking I should have just stayed home! Murphy's Law was definitely in effect last week! Now, don't get me wrong, I had a great time! I loved hanging out with my girls, I loved being on the lake even though it rained practically the whole time. The one day it was sunny has now caused me more pain then I have experienced in a long time. I'm so burnt and my lips are double in size with blisters the size of Rhode Island! Hence the reason Bobby is taking Cody to school and not me! I applied sunscreen and lip sun screen, just not enough! Plus I did a face plant in the boat and I'm pretty sure I broke my nose! This is just some of the reasons I should have just stayed home! Oh well, I've learned my lesson!

Mommy's and Margaritas!

2008-08-06T11:03:00.000-07:00

I'm currently packing for a much needed break! I'm on my way to Tablerock for the annual botchfest! For those who don't know what botchfest means, email me, I'll gladly share the story since its probably not something I need to share here since my mom might kill me! Anyways, Botchfest is when all the ladies on the Myers side of the family converge on Shell Knob, Mo and take a couple of days to bond, float, attempt to ski, tube (if your one of the young and brave!) eat, drink margaritas( we have a margarita machine in the house!) and just recharge our batteries! I look forward to it every year! I will update and have pics when I get back!
P.S.
To all the botches that will be M.I.A., we will miss you!
The LNSITW won't be the same without you!

Its finally feeling like summer!

2008-07-21T13:29:00.000-07:00

It was time of year again that the Kelly clan invades Emporia at our gracious hosts, Rick and Barb's for our annual family swim party this last Saturday! It was classic summer day in Kansas! HOT! A perfect day to lay around the pool, sip on cool beverages and enjoy good company and good food! While it was great to see the family it just wasn't long enough to get caught up with everyone. Rumor has it our beautiful hostess, Barb is turning 50 this week! She says 50 is the new 40 and that would make me 20 so I'm okay with that so let the rumors fly! Happy Birthday Aunt Barb!

The birthday girl

Parker

Ella

Chris and Chloe

Sherry and Sydney

Rumor has it Sherry just had her 60th birthday! The Kelly genes are unbelievable!

Sweet boy Cooper

Chloe and Riley

Spider boy Caden

Sherry, Kelly, Sheila and my mom

Tessa

And of course our resident ham, Syd!

I'm alive

2008-07-09T23:08:00.000-07:00

I know, I suck at blogging. I just haven't been in a blogging mood. But alas, I'm here.

I was reading the blog of one of my dear friends from the old Heights days and she posted something fun. She is a fellow rock star mom and took the title from me for having the most kids in our graduating class! The title was willingly and lovingly handed over to her! Hi Amy= )

Here is the fun little tag game she played! I'm not going to tag anyone but it would be fun to see some peoples answers!

10 years ago in 1998.....
I was a stay at home mom with Cody(18 months) and Payton (4 months). Bobby had just started training for the Sheriffs Dept. We had just celebrated our 1 yr wedding anniversary. That truly seems so much longer than 10 yrs ago!

5 years ago in 2003....
I was in the midst of getting my prerequisites together to be able to start nursing school in the winter semester and being a stay at home mom. We were living in Park City. Bobby was still with the Sheriffs dept. Cody was 7, Payton was 6 and Hayley was about to turn 3.

5 months ago in February 2008…
Working full time as a nurse. Bobby just made the decision to finally leave the Sheriffs dept. and go back to school. We just started attending Gracepoint. Cody was 11, Payton just turning 10, Hayley 7 and Sydney 3!

5 things on my to-do list tomorrow…
Go to computer training for work(yuck), get ingredients for dessert to take to Life group, some laundry, Hayleys softball game, go to Life Group and Larry and Gail's house.

5 bad habits of mine...
drinking too much pop, gossiping(I'm really working hard to quit this one!), buying something I have no use for even though its so super cheap(those darn red stickers at Target get me every time!) lack of patience with others, not exercising!

5 places I've lived...
Wichita
El Dorado
Park City
North Wichita
South Wichita (it really is another world!)

5 things people don't know about me...
I hate the feel of chalkboards, public pools creep me out(I'm quite aware that I have freakish phobias, these two are actually mild) I would love to live on a farm, I've never been on a airplane but that will change since I'm going on a medical mission trip to the Dominican Republic next year!

That was fun! Goodnight!

Speak up boy...a lesson learned!

2008-06-22T20:42:00.000-07:00

For those of you who read my blog regularly know that Payton's hair has been a point of contention for some time now. Last week it finally came to a head (hehe, no pun intended!) last week! His hair has gotten so long that is was always covering his pretty blue eyes. Well Bobby finally got sick of it. He took the boys to walmart after Jr. golf last week. Bobby told the lady that he didn't care what she did except he wanted the hair out of his eyes. Well that was a pretty general instruction. What she did was just horrid and Bobby knew it! But he asked Payton what he thought and Payton said he liked it. Bobby knew he didn't but he wanted Payton to be the one to speak up, it was his hair after all. I guess he was trying to teach Payton a lesson. Before they left the store Bobby gave Payton one last chance to speak up and Payton again said it was fine. As soon as they got into the car Payton finally spoke up. By then Bobby told him it was too late and that he should have said something in the store. Bobby also wanted me to see this horrid hair cut! His sick, I know! I tried my best to keep a straight face, really I did. It was bad! It was a bowl cut and mullet in one! He tried everything to make it look better. Payton wet it, moussed it, gelled it but nothing made it look better! Finally, Bobby broke down, not before a few pilgrim jokes, and finally admitted to Payton it was not a good cut and he took him to get it cut once again! The following are the progression of pics from long hair, hippy boy to pilgrim to the cutie pie, blue-eyed boy we love! The bad cut pics are actual self portraits by Payton in the car on the way home. Faux-hawk pic by dad!

Don't get me wrong, I loved his long hair, just not in his eyes!

I can't believe Bobby paid money for this!

I love this pic! His eyes are so blue!

He looks like his dad in this pic! What a handsome boy!

Happy Fathers Day Bobby!

2008-06-14T19:49:00.000-07:00

I had a little time on my hands today, ok alot of time so I put this together for one of the best dads I know! I love you honey and I hope you enjoy this!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Strep sucks!

2008-06-13T19:24:00.001-07:00

Here I am on a Fri. night sick, alone and just feeling pretty pathetic! I found out today I have strep throat! Good thing it's strep because yesterday I could have sworn it was the bubonic plague! I literally thought I was dying! Ok, so I've been accused of being sorta dramatic(thanks mom!) but I really felt like the grim reaper was knocking on my door! Strep sucks!
So Bobby and the kids are in Springfield, MO celebrating our nephews 13th birthday and my mom and dad are in KC celebrating my aunts 60th birthday, so who is here to take care of my pathetic, sick self? No one! Now don't go feeling sorry for me, I'm doing enough of that myself! I'm actually doing halfway decent on my own or else I wouldn't be on the internet updating you lovely people on my sick existence! As long as I keep myself medicated, heavily medicated I can somewhat function. Tyelnol and Ibuprofen are my friends, they make water not feel like razor blades going down my throat! Thats always a good thing! Ok, goodnight!

We've been cleared!

2008-06-11T19:15:00.000-07:00

Hooray! Payton has been cleared officially by the neurosurgeon! We went and had a CT scan and then followed up with Dr. Grundmeyer at his office. He says Payton has a residual bruise that showed up on the CT scan but no blood! Payton is now free to resume his ordinary boy stuff such as skateboarding(his fave!) and basketball! While the 6 weeks wasn't as long or as bad as I thought it would be I'm just glad he is fine. He had a smile so big when we left the office! Thanks for all the continuing prayers and concerns for Payton. Once again, God is a good God!

Green is cool

2008-06-04T08:04:00.000-07:00

Going green is the new craze and while I'm not totally opposed to it I'm somewhat weary. I see what is doing to manufacturers and consumers. They throw a "green" label on their product and all of a sudden it's more desirable. Yet the packaging hasn't changed and the chemicals are nearly the same. It just seems a little wrong to me. Anyways, like I said I'm not totally opposed to it. To honor our familys new years resolution we have done little things around here to do our part. Bobby and the kids have started to collect cans to recycle. The kids have decided to use the money earned to honor their commitment to the unleash campaign at church. Not only are they doing the enviroment a favor they are following up on a promise to honor God. Pretty cool if ya ask me!
Another thing that we are doing really just kind of happened. Our clothes dryer died on us about a week ago. Instead of running out and getting a new one we have opted to line dry, for now that is. I want to see how much it affects our electricity bill next month. If I see a big difference then I may be a changed woman. Some people might not think it will make a huge dent but we tend to do at least one or two loads a day. We have six people in our house and laundry tends to pile up if not attacked every day or at the least every other day. So I'm off to find laundry line and racks since every door way in our house has clothes hanging from them. Maybe this fall we will get the current one fixed if it's fixable or buy a new one but for now we will continue with our little house on the prarie, pioneer ways!

My new toy and a deal shared!

2008-05-08T06:12:00.001-07:00

Yep, I finally got my blackberry curve! I'm so excited! I'm such a gadget nerd and I have been eyeing and waiting for this for awhile. I convinced Bobby that he needed one too! We got a great deal on them also. I got them at radio shack for get this, 49.95! Yes, a 429.00 phone for 49.95! We had to sign another 2 year contract with att but we have been happy with them the last two years and saw no problem with doing it again! This phone is just too cool and very easy to use!

Oh, by the way, Bobby asked me the other day if I shared my other deal of the century with my blog readers! He is so funny! I bought this basketball goal like three weeks ago and he is still talking about the deal. I was walking out of Dick's Sporting Goods when I walked by this basketball goal that had a sign on it that said 49.99! I walked right back in and asked if the sign had a typo and the cashier said no and I said sold! I didn't even think twice about how I would get this huge goal home plus we have been wanting one since our last one broke during a wind storm! It was the last one and it was the display model so that is why it was marked down so much. But that is not the kicker, it was regularly priced at $499! It is a really, really nice goal too! So sturdy and it has a easy to use handle to adjust the height of the goal. You usually have to use a broom on all the other ones to adjust them. So there, I've shared!

That's what I like about Sundays.....

2008-05-04T14:52:00.000-07:00

After a wonderful worship service this morning we decided to spend some time outside with the kids at Sedwick County park. Fortunately I grabbed my camera on the way out of the door to church in the hopes of going to the zoo or park since the weather today is unbelievable! Yeah me because I got some great shots of the kids! Enjoy!

Cody's Program

2008-05-02T18:40:00.000-07:00

Cody is a fifth grader...which means this was his last musical program in grade school! Sniff...sniff...ok, get a grip mom! Anyways the 5th graders at Woodman put on a wonderful program filled with recorders, a string section and soloists. The followed up with a slide show set to music of all the 5th graders. Bobby, Sydney and I really enjoyed it! Here are some pics!

Wordless Wednesday

2008-04-30T06:40:00.000-07:00

God's Grace

2008-04-27T15:10:00.001-07:00

From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. John 1:16

Though the last few days have been nothing short of chaotic this family has been blessed. If you hadn't heard the burns brood had quite a scare last week. Payton ended up in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit in the early hours of last Thursday after receiving a very severe concussion. He was riding his sister's scooter and fell off and hit his head on the pavement. His long flowing golden locks didn't prevent a blow so severe that it caused what the doctors are now saying was a very small, minute bleed. Payton became very irritable, nauseous, lethargic and just plain goofy (more than usual, I might add!) He just didn't make sense so off we whisked him to the ER on Wednesday night. Bobby took him so I could wait for Bobby's mom to come over and stay with the other kids. Before I could get there he was throwing up, the trauma team was consulted, a ct scan was performed and the ER Dr. put him in a neck brace. All very scary even for me who is in the medical field. We were terrified and beside ourselves when the trauma Dr. wanted him in the PICU. We knew it was for the best but it didn't make it any better. We had to put all our faith in God and trust he was in the best hands possible!

Well fast forward to now and Payton is outside shooting baskets by himself on his new basketball goal. Praise the Lord! He was released from the hospital on Fri. morning. Trauma and Neuro released him since his symptoms had resolved but with the understanding no contact sports, skateboarding or any rough housing for 6 weeks. He will follow up in 6 weeks with the neurosurgeon and have a repeat ct scan to see if that small bleed has resolved.

This might possibly be the longest 6 weeks ever! This kid is the most active kid I ever met. He is constantly in motion, always playing, doing something. He just doesn't understand. We have already have had to sit him down more than once and remind him to slow down in the three short days we've been home. How do you tell a 10 yr. old whose life revolves around movement that if he continues to play contact sports, skateboards or does anything that puts him at risk of a head injury that he might not be so lucky next time? He doesn't realize his brain is so much more susceptible to greater injury in the first 6-10 weeks after the initial injury. I guess we will try are hardest to distract him with other activities such as video games, reading, watching movies, etc...or maybe I'll just wrap him in bubble wrap and make him wear a helmet during his awake hours. Think he'll go for that? It breaks my heart to see him like this but I'm just glad he is here with us, it could have been so much worse!
I want to thank all of those that prayed, visited or called during this hard time on our family. We were overwhelmed with the amount of love and concern from our family and friends. We thank God everyday for all the blessings he has bestowed upon our family!
God Bless you all!

And then there were two....

2008-04-06T12:52:00.000-07:00

I had to work last night while the big game was on and I wasn't to happy about it! That was untill every time I peaked my head into a patients room that had the game on that I would see the score! My gosh what a game! KU came with their "A" game and got the job done. Not before giving every KU fan a heart attack when North Carolina cut the lead considerably! But the boys in crimson and blue got it done and now for the final game! It will be tough though! Memphis is a run and gun team and know how to wear the other team down. But then again everyone thought KU wouldn't beat UNC so at this point I believe anything can happen! Rock Chalk Jayhawk, GO KU!

Cold weather sucks

2008-04-01T07:37:00.000-07:00

This is for two people who will remain nameless who have complained that it's been awhile since I've last blogged! So Amy, Val, this is for you! HA!

So it has been awhile but for very good reasons, one of them being lack of motivation! If it isn't there it ain't happening! Not that I didn't have anything to blog about, I've had plenty to blog about! Let's see, Keith Urban concert, Easter, my almost certainty that winter is going to last FOREVER, the newest blogs I've found that I read daily, my adventure of starting to slowly remodel the front room, dining room and our kitchen! You see, plenty of material but just lack of the urge to type it all out. I'm convinced it has to do with that before mentioned blog material of winter lasting forever! Call it what you want, lack of Vitamin D, seasonal depression, whatever but this butt is content to sit and not do a darn thing and it definitely shows! But to appease the massess I have decided to update at least weekly, just don't hold me to it!

So this last weekend was a doozey! We packed up the Burns Brood and headed up to Lawrence KS! My cousin Andy is leaving for Kuwait/Iraq soon and they were having a going away party for him. I'm personally not one to miss a party(if I can help it) that the Frye family throws so off we went! The kids were excited to see Andy, but mostly to go swimming at the hotel! You would think we never take them anywhere they way the act when they know we are staying at a hotel with a pool! Geesh! Anyways, I think they had a good time and so did Bobby, ok maybe not, he willingly stayed at the hotel with our kids plus Caden and took them all swimming so the rest of us could attend the party at the Jet Lag. We owe Bobby big time! What a guy!

The next day everyone was moving a bit slow! I really don't need to post those details, mainly to protect the drunk! But Angela, I'm pulling out the Big sister card! Hehe! So we said our goodbyes and apologies(I hope it rained for ya Val!) and headed up to KC for a afternoon of shopping!

Like I mentioned before we are remodeling and we need some new furniture! So the fools that we are headed up to the Legends Mall in KC. It has a Nebraska Furniture Mart and that was our destination! We have been to that mall plenty of times but have never ventured into the Furniture mart, mainly in fear of never finding our way out! It was a Sunday afternoon and that place was packed! So we decided, much to the kids exctiement, to stay the night in KC and try going to NFM in the morning. Plus we were dog tired, KU was playing in a few hours and the thought of not having to drive back to Wichita that night was sounding better and better! So we found a hotel(with a pool!) ordered take out and snuggled into our room and watched some hoops! Talk about a nail biter! After the exciting game we headed down to the pool. We had it all to ourselves and let the kids wear themselves out! Kids always sleep so much better after swimmimg!
The next day we headed out to NFM! No matter what people tell you, it cannot prepare you properly for the size of this place! I always thought bass pro or cabella's was big! You could fit at least three of those into this place! It was almost impossible to focus! I feel sorry for those who have ADD and walk into NFM! Anyways, I must have been able to focus for a brief second because we left with our wallet a little lighter. Our furniture will be arriving in exactly one month! That gives me enough time to paint, pull carpet and redo floors! I hope!

Here are some pics from this weekend!

Andy and the kids

Tim, Andy, Bobby, TJ and Tony

Andy and Jenny with the cake she made him

Me, Jenny, Kami and Angela

Mallory and Geoff

Amy and I

Jeremy, Andy and Kami

Andy and I

The cousins showing Rick how to do the "SHOCKER!"

Syd and Hayley

Cody and Payton

Relaxing in the hot tub

Where have I been?

2008-02-28T10:38:00.001-08:00

Geez, I'm a bad blogger! But thats ok you haven't really missed much, except maybe, well, oh yeah, after ten years with the Sedgwick County Sheriffs department, Bobby has resigned. Yep, quit, left his job, went on to greener pastures, etc. Now don't get me wrong, it was, is and will remain a bit scarey for us but for all intensive purposes, it was needed! It was a decision we didn't take lightly but we both know it is for the best! Or at least we keep telling ourselves that! Just kidding! He knew this decision was inevitable.

He was unhappy and it wasn't going to get any better no matter how much he tried. Thats what happens when you work for a government entity with elected officials. No matter how hard the little man tries and tries to be heard if they don't want to listen then they don't and really don't have to. That is why voting is so important (stepping onto my soapbox for a brief second!) We thought when we voted in our last Sheriff things would get better, ha! Things were said, promised, etc... in actuality things were taken away! Their response, "Because this is how we have always done it!" Yep, that simple! So I encourage everyone to be aware of the issues and vote!

But to tell you the truth, it has been a blessing. This decision has made Bobby face the issue of what makes him happy and what does God want him to do with his life? Anybody that knows Bobby knows that his two passions are his children and sports (I'm sure I'm in there somewhere !) He has always, since the day we started dating talked about teaching. Being a teacher/coach is something he has dreamed about for a long time. But as we started our life together it was clear this dream had to be put on the back burner. The need to provide for his family outweighed his dream of finishing college. Well when opportunity knocks, you have to answer! That is what we have done and starting this summer he will be on the road to finishing his degree! I find it only fair since he supported me through nurisng school that I support him with his dream! So in the meantime he will start a remodel of our kitchen and get a taste of what I did for 8 years, being a stay at home dad! Just call him Mr. Mom!

Oh and by the way, he can no longer get anybody out of jail or fix a ticket! So don't call! lol!

"I feel like a sewer just came out of my mouth!"

2008-02-08T14:49:00.000-08:00

I know, gross, but those were Paytons exact words the other night after he got through getting sick! We got lucky this go around of the lastest virus. Payton and I were the only ones sick leaving everyone else spared! Not bad for a family of six!

To more interesting and not so gross news! You may or may not have seen this on TV last Sun. night but our little miss Syd was on TV! Ok, so was half of my arm but she was a little bit easier to recognize! We were at the Warren Theater for the Hannah Montana concert movie and KAKE 10 was there interviewing all the hyper and HM obssessed girls! Mine included! It was ok, not usually my cup of tea but the girls enjoyed it and that's what matters!

Let's see, what else is going on, oh yeah, we love our church! What a home we have found with Gracepoint! Bobby and I both agree this is where our family fits in and I can't wait to get more involved. Here is a link if your interested in seeing what it's all about! http://www.gracepoint.com/default.aspx For those who live in the area, yes, this is the church who use the slogan, "Church Doesn't Suck!"

Bobby and I had a productive day today. We got our DL's renewed, went and found me a new watch for work and went to a rally for John McCain at the airport where he made an appearance. I have to admit, McCain wasn't Bobby and I's first choice but it's clearly becoming evident that he will obtain the Republican nomination come summer. With the KS Caucus tommorow I'm sure he'll pick up KS quite easily.

That's it for now, sorry so long in between posts but this week has been quite eventful and some big changes have been happening around here! When the time is right I will share, untill then I just ask you keep our family in your prayers!

Reba and Kelly! A fun girls night out!

2008-02-01T09:20:00.000-08:00

All I gotta say is if this concert comes anywhere near your neck of the woods you must GO! It was unbelievable! I had a blast with Kristie, Steph and Stacy. We had decent seats and made it fairly on time despite the cold, ice and horrible traffic. For all those who actually have seen the Reba show, Melissa Peterson plays Barbara Jean, Reba's ex-husbands new wife. Well she is a comedian and opens the show for them. She was a riot and had the whole place roaring with laughter!
Reba and Kelly both stayed on stage the entire time which I was pleasantly suprised! They would sing together or one would be lead and the other would be back up. They played all the ones I wanted to hear especially "Fancy!" I had goosebumps more than once!
Ok, enough already! You just have to go see it! And for the record, in regards to my last post, Payton will have a couple weeks to get it together or off with his head...I mean hair!

Too cut or not to cut?

2008-01-18T12:05:00.001-08:00

This is the question I pose to you my 2 or 3 readers out there! Should I make him cut it? Don't get me wrong, I understand it's the thing for boys today to grow their hair out. I also think he looks quite cute with it long and clean(just don't tell him I said that, that would be so not cool with him!) The thing is it gets so greasy and gross. This almost 10 yr old boy is constantly sweating with his constant schedule of basketball and soccer! His Dad and I both have told and shown him how to wash his hair properly. If we want it to actually look clean we have to wash it for him and frankly I'm tired of it. So do I put my foot down and say "if want it long, learn how to keep it clean" or should I just throw my hands up in the air and say forget it and move on to bigger and better battles?

Spazzing out!

2008-01-16T13:17:00.000-08:00

No, not me, ok, just not yet! My Computer! I have yet to figure out why I can't upload pics to blogger without my comp spazzing out on me and I doubt I'll take the time to solve the mystery any time soon. So in the meantime enjoy another slide show from the last week. We had Tessa my cousin from KC stay with us last weekend. The kids had a blast and kept us up pretty late. The other pics are from Paytons soccer game, American Idol premiere anticipation(dang writers strike!) and random pics of Syd.

I got a clue on how much I take pics of the kids yesterday when I took Sydney to the Exploration Place. She got up on a rocking horse and says "Momma, take my picture!" then she realizes the one thing I never, ever leave home without is mysteriously missing from my hands! Then she says real dramatically "Momma, you forgot your camera?" Geez, you would have thought it was a crime for me to actually enjoy playing with her instead of documenting the whole darn thing! She got over her missed photo op once I told her we were going to go eat! Three year olds!

I'm still on medical leave from work so I'm taking advantage by getting this house in order. I see progres! My mountain of laundry now resembles a mole hill and the task of sorting clothes to donate, give away or sell that I've been putting off for awhile is almost complete! Woohoo! Now I just need to get on ebay and start listing! Not something I find fun, but it must be done.

I have some more things I want to share on here but I have to get the kids to school and I have some errands to run so I guess I'll post later today.

Gallbladder be gone!

2008-01-08T07:25:00.000-08:00

Well my gallbladder is gone! Thank goodness! Even though I feel like a mac truck hit me, i'm just glad it's over! They found stones instead of polyps like originally thought. This makes so much more sense since from what research I found about gallbladder polyps indicated that they shouldn't cause pain or nausea, both of which I've been experiencing. The actually surgery and stay was relatively short. Just an outpatient procedure. Bobby and I got there at 6:30 am and we were on our way home by 11:30 am! Can't beat that! I think I over did it when I got home yesterday so I'm paying for it dearly today. The older 3 kids are at school and Sydney is with my mother in law so that means my butt in bed all day! Dinner is being cooked by my mother in law tonight which is so nice!
But before I go crawl in bed I want to leave you with some more pics. I forgot to add in my last post that one of the things Hayley is totally into is cooking! She helps me out so much in the kitchen that we got her a personlaized apron, chef hat and oven mitts for Christmas! The pics below are of her helping with Taco night! The other pics are of my two trouble makers, Sydney and Sophie! Enjoy!

See ya 2007!

2008-01-03T09:54:00.000-08:00

Can't believe we have left behind another year! So much has changed for our family this last year! Mainly for me with starting my career as a nurse. It's probably been one of the hardest years for me mentally and physically. Just trying to adjust to a full time job in addition to the kids and housework. Also trying to adjust to my 7pm to 7am work schedule has been challenging. My body has decided to rebel against me and what perfect timing with it being my 30th year of life and all! My esophagus decided to close up on me just in time to ruin my 30th birthday party. From what I heard my party was a blast! Once we got that taken care of my gallbladder has decided to grow a couple of polyps and wreak havoc! Nothing brings on pain or nausea faster than a pissed off gallbladder! But alas, I'm having it taken out this coming Monday! Wooohoo! Bring on the anesthesia, I'm in need of a good nap!

The kids have probably had just as much of a challenging year as mom has. Just dealing with me has been rough. They have been use to me being a stay at home mom for so long that it has been a bit of an adjustment to all involved. Cody is in his last year of elementary school and is facing the challenges all kids his age face. But on top of that the news from his cardiologist that his activity is restricted due to the widening of his aorta right above his valve. This along with his ASD and VSD. What did that mean to Cody, no football. This is the one sport he yearned to play this year. He was upset for awhile but has since moved on. He loves his movies and books and just took up journaling. This kid is so loving and funny that I hope 2008 is better for him!

Payton, oh Payton. What can I say about this kiddo! He is such strong and lively spirit! One minute he is the most loving and caring kid and the next he is bouncing off the walls and letting his mouth move faster than his brain! He is so ready to be a grown up. We tell him it's really not all its cracked up to be but to no avail though! He is busy with sports. Gotta keep him active to keep him outta trouble! We are either at basketball or indoor soccer these days. And from what I've been told Payton is adding football to his repoitoire. Ha! I can't wait to see how we are going to manage that! But seriously, he is a good kid with a good heart. He keeps me on my toes with his constant wonderment about life. I've got to say I've had some good conversations with this kid.

2007 was a good year for Hayley! She started softball at TRYC this last summer. The same place mommy played for so many years ago! That was fun and she loved it! Ironically her coach played for the Bombers which was my softball teams nemesis for many years! Hayley also continued her love of High School Musical by catching the stage version of it at our local theater. What a blast that was! She enjoys music so much that she hopes to have a guitar of her own soon and to begin lessons.

Sydney the princess of the burnsbrood is continuing her reign as strong as ever. Especially now that her royal heiness recieved a set of wheels for Christmas. Santa brought the princess a Disney Princess Powerwheel Car! How sickingly appropriate! She wasn't too sure about it at first but the idea grew on her once she realized that she didn't have to actually drive herself but her sister would indeed drive her. I mean really, what princess should have to drive herself, geesh!? The princess has also learned how to master the royal potty this year. Just in time to start preschool! She goes twice a week and has made friends. But she is quick to report when these friends don't share or are mean. The drama that is preschool!

Bobby, well, is still Bobby! The pillar of strength, comic relief and co-captain to this team we call the burnsbrood! What a rock he has been to what has been a crazy year! He is still with the Sheriffs Dept. and will be celebrating(not sure if that is the appropriate word if you ask him!) his 10 year anniversary there. Speaking of anniversarys we had our 10th this last year also! We celebrated it early by going to opening day of major league baseball in KC. Royals vs. Red Sox! What a blast! I think I got some major brownie points for that one! He continues his love of sports and if he's not watching sportscenter, he's watching Glen Beck or something on the History channels! Our current quest together is picking a presidential canidate together! So far so good, no major debates as of yet!

So there you have it, 2007 in a nutshell for our family, if you've actually made it this far! So everyone makes resolutions for the new year. I for one don't like to but rather I would like to make modifications! Here are some of the modifications I want to try and implement in 2008!

1. Go Green! This family really needs to get on the ball and try and reduce our waste! I've alredy started by buying those energy saving light bulbs! Hey, one step at a time people!

2. Eat better! I know, you didn't see that one coming did ya! Our whole family needs to start eating better! Which means less going out and eating at home more.

3. Get to moving more! I know, another big suprise! I really want to get back to yoga! I love it and feel so good when I'm done! Also, Payton and I have a goal this year but I'm not ready to share what it is just yet! Details coming soon!

4. Patience. Simple as that people. Patience all around!

Hope everyones Holidays were great! And I wish Health, Peace and Happiness to all in 2008! Enjoy a slideshow of pics from our last couple weeks of 2007!

Free shrimp and a christmas story!

2007-12-19T05:17:00.000-08:00

12 random things I love! Why 12, because its Christmastime and because everyone does a list of 10 and I like being different, thank you very much!

12. Christmas Music! I just love Trans Siberian Orchestra! I have one of their songs as my ringtone and whenever someone calls me I have a overwhelming urge to start dancing! Diiing Doooong, Diiing Dooooong, Hark how the bells, sweet silver bells, all seem to say throw cares away..........

11. Christmas Spirit! I love what it does to people at this time of year! For example, I went through the drive thru to get Bobby and I some Long Johns last night and the lady forgot my shrimp! After I asked about it she ended up just putting it in the bag and when I asked how much I owed she said nothing! Gosh, I just love this time of year and what it does to people! Gotta love free shrimp!

10. Teasing my children with their christmas gifts. Hayley asked me what we got her for Christmas and me being the horrible mother that I am proceeded to name a list of everything Hayley despises: Barbies, dresses, hair bows, etc. Of course she just rolled her eyes at me and walked away.

9. "Fragile..must be Italian!"

8. Maids a-milking....it's called filler, people!

7. Kick ass coupons to bath and body shop! Lotion and candles for everyone this year!

6. The fact that this year we have managed to spread out our Christmas love and don't have to be a 4 different places on Christmas day! Yaaahooo!

5. The pursuit of finding the most annoying toy on earth to give my nephew Caden! Though his mother did give me permission to give him Moonsand this year which I believe ranks right up there with some of the most rancid toys! Have you seen this stuff?

4. Christmas food...I do love it, yes I do! But cheese balls of the world, do not fear for I will be cutting back on my consumption this year. Stupid gallbladder!

3. French Hens....listing 12 was harder than I thought!

2. Did I mention christmas music...I did? Oh well, heres a little christmas music fun for ya!

1. A Partridge in a pear tree!

I hope everyone has a blessed Christmas and Happy New Year!

Love to all,
The Burns Brood

Sydney and Santa

2007-12-17T08:12:00.000-08:00

Well my attempt to update with pictures from the last month or so have failed. Everytime I go to upload them my computer freezes up. I can only get one pic at a time and I don't have time to upload pics at one at a time. So anywho, I guess I will just carry on.
Yesterday was family day! We started out with lunch at Players to eat and watch some football. Then we headed over to the Warren and caught a movie. Bobby and Cody saw I am Legend while I took Payton and the girls to see Alvin and the Chipmunks. While I would have much rather have seen I am Legend the kids really liked Alvin! Bobby thought I am Legend was ok, Cody really like it. Or as he rates movies, he gave it 4 out of 5 stars. He's such a movie buff!
We then took the kids for ice cream since we were still pretty full from our late lunch. We then headed out to see Christmas lights. At one of the places that displays lights they had Santa. Since I didn't have my camera they took a pic for us for $3. Not bad for what they actually captured even though the quality was poor. Sydney is still at the age where Santa is still some creepy guy in a red suit asking little kids to sit on his lap while us parents plead with our offspring to just get near him to capture a christmas memory on film. What follows is a classic example! I pleaded, begged and bribed with Sydney to just get close. I knew it was probably the last year we could get all 4 with a pic with Santa. After much coaxing this was a close as she got!

Happy Birthday Code-man!

2007-12-10T10:54:00.000-08:00

I will post more of what's been going on with us on a later blog since I've been a slacker! But right now I want to share a little montage I made for Cody's 11th birthday today! Yes, my oldest baby is 11 and I still can't comprehend it! Hope you enjoy it! I know I enjoyed making it and can't wait till he gets home to see it!

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Hey Good Lookin', Whatcha Got Cookin'?

2007-11-09T09:04:00.000-08:00

With winter basically here that means my cooking gene has finally awoken from it's long hibernation. I love to cook, I really do, well except for in the summer. I can't stand to heat my kitchen up in the summer and with us usually being extra busy during this time of year my desire to cook usually diminishes. Now don't get me wrong, we don't dine out all that much, we usually end up either grilling outside or having something that doesn't require firing up the oven or stove. But winter is here and I have pulled all my trusty winter recipes out and have been busily exploring many recipe sites or cooking blogs for inspiration!

One way I've gotten in the mood is by participation in a digital recipe exchange. This is really a good way to get alot of different recipes in a cool format. I follow the blog of Sherelle Christensen. She is a fellow mother of four and a out of this world artist. She scrapbooks digitally and traditionally as well as sews and other forms of craftiness. She is a featured artist for many different craft companies. Anyways, she asked for her blog readers to participate in the digi recipe exchange. She took the first 35 emailers and had us all submit two of our fave recipes to her in a digital scrapbook layout. We did it this way so if we wanted to print these out in a book like through snapfish or kodak it would look really nice. I ended up with over 70 different recipes all in scrapbook form. There are some desserts that just look deliciously sinful! All the different ladies did wonderful and I can't wait to try some of the recipes. Here is one of my recipes I submitted. My kids love this and it is so dang easy. Hayley and Sydney usually help me make this one.

Here is one of Sherelle's recipe's that she shared that I'm trying today. It looks so yummy!

Halloween fun!

2007-10-29T09:33:00.000-07:00

So this week has been a busy one! The girls, along with my sister in law and nephew went to Walters Pumkin patch in Burns, KS. This place is so cool. It's so not your typical pp at all! The had slides that started at the top of a man made hill, then you go through the hill and you come out of the bottom. They had tons of places for the kids to play on, slides, swings, you name it they had it. Paddle boats, pumpkin launchers, pedal cars, trains for the little ones, etc.....oh yeah, they had a pumkin patch or two! We had a blast and took lots of pics but of course this site is acting up still and it takes forever to even get a couple pics downloaded!

Hayley

Caden

Sydney

Here are some pics from last night. We started at my mom and dad's house and then headed over to out friends, Jason and Christy's house. We've gone trick or treating in their neighborhood for the last three years because the whole place goes all out on decorating and handing out candy. As you can see we have Hayley as a cowgirl, Sydney, the princess herself as Cinderella!Then Payton went as himself, just read the t-shirt and that should explain it all! Cody went as a scary guy but he couldn't wear the mask around Sydney. You'll see why in the pics below! Our friends children, Matt and Eliza, went as batman and batgirl! Too cute!! The night was a bit chilly but not near as bad as last year and the kids were all well behaved for the most part!

Bobby and I did our responsible parent thing when we finally got home and checked the candy! I hate doing it but I really feel that we need to protect the kids from bad candy! I can safely say the candy is free of any poison, razor blades, etc...I just hope the kids don't notice all the Reese's Butter cups gone!

99 bottles of beer on the wall, 99 bottles of.......

2007-10-24T08:01:00.000-07:00

Sing it with me! Ok, you don't have to but that was the theme for last Saturday! My brothers, sister in law and I wandered downtown to the midwest beerfest to partake in the sampling of over 400 beers! OMG! We were like little kids on christmas morning! So before we got too sloshed we headed over to the food vendors and got something on our tummies and then we were off! Here is a before picture, not to say there is really and after picture of TJ and I! Before anyone asks who drove our drunk asses home, I would like to say my lovely sil, Angela was our DD! She did this out of the kindess of her heart and because she was promised that next year she has immunity and will not have to be DD!

TJ and our DD, Angela

This was taken by Angela as she was drooling since she couldn't drink her fave beer, Newcastle! By the way she took that blue sign! lol!

Just a glance from above!

So here is our only real after picture since I refused!
Nice Tim!

Here is Angela's new golf bag she bid on and won at the silent auction! Notice it's a Newcastle bag! No if we can get our husbands to take us golfing!

So Bobby joined us afterwards at TJ and Angela's as well as Jason and Christy for more cocktails and dinner.

Because this is how he rolls!

Jason and his Flying Dog beer!

Minnie and Jason! Really, no caption needed!

We got a bit bored and instead of playing board games like we had planned we decided to get in the halloween spirit and go visit Thearosa's Bridge! http://www.legendsofamerica.com/OZ-TheorosaBridge.html I know, it's something we did in high school but we had a blast! I guess the fact that most of us were pretty intoxicated helped!
Christy, Me and Angela

TJ, Jason and Bobby

Shocker Madness

2007-10-16T21:00:00.000-07:00

So tonight was shocker madness at Wichita State. We took the kids since they all had fairly good reports from parent/teacher conferences. The girls scrimmaged followed by the boys. Then for the finale they had a slam dunk contest. Look close in the pics of the judges of the contest and you'll see Jessica Hughbanks from this seasons Big Brother.

It was fun but started to drag out for me since Syd needed to potty every two minutes and she was cranky near the end. Plus my new camera batteries went dead and I didn't get as many pics as I wanted! It was neat to see the new coach and hear his thoughts on a very much anticipated season. Though I am a KU basketball fan first I do love the shocks and hope their season is exciting and successfull! GO SHOX!

On a bad note, the Boston Red Sox lost again tonight and that makes me very angry! Just thought I'd let ya'll know that!

What a day!

2007-10-11T12:54:00.001-07:00

My day started off by waking the diva herself, Miss Sydney up at 6 am for her 1st day of preschool! She was so excited about it and got up so good this morning which is so not like her! She even had her first completely dry night in panties! WOOHOO! What a kid! I can't wait for her to get home and tell me how her day went! She did so good when I dropped her off that it made me sad in a way but it just reassures me that we are doing the right thing! You can just see the excitement in her face in the pictures below! I usually take 1st day of school pics outside but it was still dark when we left this morning!

So after dropping Syd off at school(that sounds so weird to me, I'm so use to her being home with me!) I met up with Hayley's class at the zoo at 9am. Let me say it was such a beautiful day to be at the zoo! I had a good time. Hayley picked two other kids to be in our group and of course she picked boys! She reminds me of me so much! Such a tomboy! They were fairly good and I was just glad to be able to spend some time with Hayley! She is such a good kid! So right now is down time and I'm waiting for the gang to get home. I should be sleeping since I work tonight but I can't wait to see Syd!
Below is a pic of me, I chopped my hair again and went darker! Payton says I look like a rocker! I guess I'll take that as a compliment! lol! I really like what Crystal did this time. I always like what she does with my hair but this time she took very little direction from me and still managed to create something I had totally pictured in my head! Crystal ROCKS!

What a nut!

2007-10-02T15:11:00.000-07:00

This video below cracks me up! It's about Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Islamic president of Iran. He was in the USA last week and spoke at Columbia university in New York. He was introduced as a "petty and cruel dictator" by the university's president. He is well known for his anti-Israeli statements, his disbelief in that the Holocaust ever happened and that his civilian nuclear weapons program is in all regards, very peaceful! He also believes the non-existence of homosexuals in his country! Here is a excerpt of his speech regarding homosexuals,"In Iran, we don't have homosexuals, like in your country. We don't have that in our country. In Iran, we do not have this phenomenon. I don't know who's told you that we have it." Yeah, I know, unbelievable but not unexpected. The video below is a something SNL cranked out this weekend in response to his statements made while in the US! Too funny!

Me and My Boyzz!

2007-09-25T21:12:00.000-07:00

Well the first picture really has nothing to do with this post but I couldn't resist!

Ok, now back to the original post about our night out with the boys! Not very often do Bobby and I have a chance to just hang out with Cody and Payton without the girls. But tonight the girls are with g-ma and that gave us a chance to hang with them and have a little fun! We started off at the downtown skateboard park and let the boys rip it up for awhile on the ramps and bowls. Didn't get any pics because I was just too busy trying to keep an eye on the boys because the park was so crowded. Next we headed to one of Bobby's and mine favorite mexican restaurant, Reubens. Yummy! So after we filled our tummies we headed over to the river to see the Keeper of The Plains statue with its new and improved set up. It's really nice and they have two cool bridges that lead to the statue from either side. As you can see by the pics below I was in an artsy mood and couldn't stop taking really cool pics of the bridge. After that as if our bellies weren't full enough we headed over to Cold Stone Creamery for some ice cream! OMG, I love this place and I believe Bobby is smitten with this place now. Then we headed over to Borders to check out some new books and then to Wally World for some neccessities! All in all it was a great night and I think the boys appreciated it and loved having some mom and dad time with out the lil' sis' running around!

Wichita's skyline

Keeper of The Plains

Bobby, Cody and Payton's interpretation of the Keeper of the Plains!

We put the fun in dysfunctional!

Cody and I fighting over who gets the reeses peanut butter cup in my ice cream!

A pissed dog and shreddin' it up!

2007-09-21T08:16:00.000-07:00

If you think my dog looks p.o.'d, it's because she is! I put this cute doggie shirt on her that I bought at Old Navy for .97! If you know me at all you know I can't pass deals like that up! Plus it's too cute! Well she didn't think so! Sophie moped and layed around the whole time she had it on. This is from a dog who I'm convinced is ADD and can't sit still for 2 seconds unless she is just worn the heck out! Hmmmmm......maybe I'm on to something?

Before I get britney spears inspired emails about my parenting skills regarding the following pictures let me declare that I KNOW! I realize he doesn't have a helmet on and yes he is on a very large, concussion causin' steel ramp. I was not there and Bobby and I have had a talk and Payton will be getting his noggin-savin' helmet soon! That being said, I can't believe this kid! I know I'm biased since I am his momma but he just blows my mind sometimes! This kid is all about skateboarding at 9 years old and will spend endless hours in our driveway untill he has a trick down pat! In fact yesterday a neighborhood kid who is at least 14 came over and asked Payton to show him how to do a kick flip?! I have no idea what a kick flip is but apparently it's tough to master. Anyways, these pics are from the Park City skateboard park.

Crack Spider

2007-09-20T07:44:00.000-07:00

So Bobby was on the porch the other night and ran in to tell me to come see something. It was a huge spider web with a huge, disgusting, yucky spider. I had never seen one so big and gross! Here is the picture of ours!

Bobby then found this video on YouTube last night! This is the same kind of spider on our porch! It's freaking hillarious! I personally think ours is the crack spider! Gotta love YouTube!

These are for you mom!

2007-09-14T11:02:00.001-07:00

Just some more random pics! Enjoy!

I finally got my new camera

2007-09-12T13:25:00.000-07:00

So Sydney, Sophie and I had a mini photo shoot today to try it out! I absolutely love it! Plus I played with the photos in photoshop. Enjoy!

These are a few of my favorite things....

2007-09-08T09:14:00.000-07:00

Colbie Caillat! I've been listening to her on my ipod and I'm loving her! If you like acoustic folksy with a touch here and there of pop then she is it! Her voice is so smooth and soothing. Check her out!

What else am I loving.....let's see, this time of year! I love that sweatshirt weather is just around the corner. I love everything about fall, the smells, colors, and halloween! I can't wait for the little fall festivals all around the surrounding suburbs. Oh yeah and for Bobby's sake, football! Don't get me wrong I like football, like is the key word! You see, I LOVE baseball and for some reason Bobby thinks I should LOVE football too! It's not that I don't like football but for some reason I just don't love it like I love baseball. Oh well, he should just be happy he has a wife who doesn't mind his obsession with sports, in fact I'm probably an enabler!

High School Musical 1 and 2. Yeah, that's right, I said it. I love it! Why you ask? Because it reminds me of Grease when I was little except HSM doesn't have the references to teen pregnancy and smoking! lol! It's not so much the movies but the music. We have both cd's in the car right now and I find myself listening to them even when the kids aren't in the car. I know it's cheesey but in a world where my kids are being bombarded every which way with violence and sexuality it's nice to have something like HSM!

I have pics from the Hayley and Sydney's birthday party a couple of weeks ago and when Hayley and I went and saw High School musical on stage that I need to post. We've been so busy with school, work and everyone taking their collective turn at being sick that I just haven't got to it. I promise those pics will be my next post!
Later!

Favorite day for mom's everywhere!

2007-08-15T07:48:00.001-07:00

That's right, the first day of school! The kids were so nervous yet excited! We found out last night who their teachers were. We visted their new classrooms and meet their teachers. I have to say that I'm actually happy for the first time with all my kid's teachers. I really think this is going to be a good year! Then it was back home to make sure all our supplies were labeled and lunches were packed. Then showers were took and then it was bedtime! Yeah, 9 pm was their scheduled bedtime but I think the boys were up till 1 am because they couldn't sleep, uggh!! They'll be a load of fun when they get home! This morning went off without a hitch. I walked them all to their respective classrooms and only got a hug from Hayley because the boys are too cool for that now! The only thing that made me sad about today is this will be the last year all 3 of the older kids will be in the same school until high school!!!

Goofing around

2007-08-07T14:18:00.000-07:00

So with my new adobe photoshop I can digitally scrapbook!

How cool is that! I don't have to spread all my scrap stuff all over the dining room table. These two are my first attempts and I think they are ok. They seem to be a little to simple for my taste. I like my pages to have multiple elements, depth and texture. Plus I like to journal on my pages so I think that is why they look simple to me. I guess I'll just

have to keep practicing!

So I'm just goofing around, not really doing what I should be doing like cleaning and laundry. It's so hot and even with the ac on it still gets so hot in this house that you don't feel like moving! I think the heat index is like 108 degrees right now! Yuck! Well I at least need to get the kids packed up to go to grandmas so I can go to work tonight, fun, right? Try and stay cool ya'll!

More, please! Botchfest 2007

2007-08-06T06:46:00.001-07:00

It's that time of year again where all the woman from the Myers side get together for our little gathering at Table Rock that we endearingly nicknamed 'Botchfest!' The picture to the left was taken by our overwhelmed but awesome waitress at the Big M Marina eatery called Dock n' Eat. We went to this little floating restaurant after a day of floating, diving, ok jumping off cliffs and enjoying an occasional libation! We were actually forced to go a little earlier than planned by a late afternoon rainstorm but that was ok. Some of us needed to get our land legs back even if on a floating dock plus it got really busy once we were done eating. It also gave us a chance to all be together in one place since we were pretty divided by the two houses and two boats we occupied. We also got to wear our snazzy t-shirts I designed and ordered to commemorate our botchfest 2007! All I have to say is this place has the best food after you've been on the lake all day drinking(occasionally, of course!)

This has become something I look forward too every summer. It reminds me of the days as a young girl at summer camp! Shenanigans, floating in the water without a care in the world and great company and food! It's a chance for aunts and cousins to come together as sisters. Most of us are grandmothers and mothers and we come together to bond and bitch over our common threads. To have the occasional prank pulled, to make us laugh, to relax, and to remind us that we need to make time for ourselves so we can be even better wives, girlfriends, moms, grandmas, sisters, and daughters to our families. A big botch thank you goes out to Susie an Debbie for opening their beautiful homes to us this year and every year! Without them this weekend would never happen. So to all my lady navy seals(you know who you are!) and to all my other botches, thanks for the memories! Can't wait till next year!

Later botches!

Family Fun in Emporia!

2007-07-29T15:23:00.001-07:00

Saturday was spent hanging out with our family from around Kansas at our annual swim party at my aunt's house in Emporia. The gang from Wichita and Kansas City area all converge at Rick and Barb's house each summer to enjoy each others company, catch up and eat some great food. The weather was perfect and the kids had a great time playing and swimming with their cousins!

Hayley and Sydney floating around!

Payton and Austin goofing around on the swimming board

Cody

Michelle, Riley and Sydney

All of my cousin's kids, including mine. There were actually 7 who weren't even there!

Well I'm off to work. At least I'm leaving for Table Rock in 3 days! I can't wait and boy do I need a break! Can't wait to share those pics with ya!

Erica

Let the fun begin!

2007-07-27T12:20:00.000-07:00

So I've been mulling over the idea of blogging on this site for awhile! I'm on myspace but I've become a bit bored with it. I finally got inspired to do something with this site when I got some software that lets you make blog banners and such! The above banner is my first attempt and I think it turned out ok! So don't be suprised if the look of this site changes quite frequently! For now enjoy some random pics from our summer so far! Enjoy!

These are from Cody's graduation from Boot Camp, Young Marines boot camp to be exact! Think Boy Scouts on steroids! Just kidding! It's really a great organization that promotes respect and pride for one's self, others and country, along with tons of community service. This is a great group for Cody since he just really isn't into sports but he just loves history and military stuff which is what this group is about! I'm just so proud of him and he looks absolutely grown up in his cammies!

Ta Ta for now!