the one with some pix of Finn

Yah, we are totally in love with this dog! Finn is just another one of us! He has for sure made himself at home with our family and I know he is supposed to be our puppy. He is serioulsy the BEST DOG EVER!!!!!!

These pictures are just over a month ago, before his haircut. he loves his brother!!!




These pictures are after his haircut.

the one about the reader of the month

Yah. Quayd is awesome! He was the top reader in the 2nd grade at his school for December. All during the month of February, the PTA had some of Quayd's things on display. They asked for a framed picture of him and 3 of his favorite toys or anything that would discribe him. He sent a Lego toy, a Nintendo Wii and DS game and a book. He was having a hard time parting with one of his books for a whole month, but he finally decided on "Hop on Pop" by Dr. Seuss.

Isn't he awesome??? We love him so much and we are so proud him!!!

the latest on my purse drama

Thanks to one of my blog readers... my purse has been FOUND!

I got a phone call this morning at work. (I may be a bit off on the details. I was so excited about the news, I kinda lost track!) I was told that yesterday afternoon/evening, a woman came into a dance studio near Wells Fargo and asked if anyone was missing a purse. Nobody was, so she said she was going to take it into the bank because she didn't know what else to do with it. This kind blog fan of mine read my entry this morning and started to put 2 and 2 together. She was able to track me down at work and said she wasn't sure if it was my purse, but that I might call Wells Fargo and see. AMAZING!!!!

I did just that and you know what??? They have it!!! They told me that a woman brought it in and said that it had been shoved up into the wheel well of her vehicle and she thought it was very strange. It would have been one thing to find it on the ground, but to see it there, she knew it was put there on purpose. The bank told me to come and get it, but I didn't feel comfortable touching it without one of the cops giving me the ok. I called the officer who has been working with me and told him the great news. He said he is going to try to get some fingerprints so he might not get it back to me right away. He was also going to check to see if anyone in that area has security cameras that might have caught the little punks in the act of either stealing, or ditching. (Hopefully they won't find video of me and my foul mouth running through the parking lot!)

Anyway, this is great news!!!!

However, there was some disturbing news to the whole thing too. This afternoon, about closing time, a truck was driving behind my work VERY SLOWLY! It caught my attention, and I noticed someone was really looking at the building and my car. It was a young kid wearing the same hat as one of the kids. I am pretty sure it was the one who actually had my purse in his hands. He was pointing at my car and seemed to be laughing. It really freaked me out and I am nervous about what they are going to try to do to me, my family or the Country Bear. I don't really know how long they keep kids in jouvie and he may be there still so it is possibly NOT him. But I am PRETTY SURE it was. Freaking stupid kids.

Anyway, lets not dwell on the bad. MY PURSE WAS FOUND!

the one about SENDING someone to jail

How ironic that my last post was about spending the night in jail, and after the events of today, I think I am responsible for SENDING someone there. Maybe not jail, but detention anyway. And I guess I am not really responsible since I didn't commit the crime, but.. well... How about I just get to the story?

It was 5:00 and I was just getting ready to close the store where I work. Danette was there helping me close and Brayden, Quayd and Amelia were there because we were getting ready to go to the Rec. Center for a St. Patty's day activity. I had my back to the back door and Danette was facing me so she could see out the back window. All of a sudden she yells, "Those boys just got something out of your car!" Right then I heard my car door slam and I turned around and saw two teenage boys walking away from my car, and they had something with them. I ran right out the back door and started chasing them.

(If you aren't familiar with where I live, I am sorry for the names of businesses and all of the confusion. For those of you who are familiar, this part will help you visualize it all.)

I spotted them behind Curves and I could see they had something.... I couldn't see very well until they turned around when they thought they were being followed. I knew exactly what it was.... MY PURSE!!! I started screaming at them to drop my purse!! (I added a few extra words in there though that I will not repeat... your welcome Grandma Galley!) I was running after them and they crossed Vernal Avenue to the parking lot behind Gale's Office Supply. I made it to Wells Fargo and knew I would never catch them. I didn't have my phone with me so I turned around and ran back to work to get my car, my phone, or something!!! I didn't really know what I was going to do. Before I turned around though, they were getting to that weird little alley way behind Mr.S and The Sage Motel. I got back to the shop and Danette was just getting in her car and yelled for me to get it. We took off towards them, and I called dispatch. We figured they were gonna come out somewhere by the Catholic Church, so we headed that way. Sure enough, we ran right into them. I was on the phone with a very nice man and I was able to tell him a very good description and exact location of me and the kids. He got an officer on the way and we didn't let the two kids out of our sight. We didn't want them to think we were following them though, or we knew they would run. I couldn't see my purse anymore, so I am guessing they ditched it somewhere. Anyway, we followed them to the North Office building of the hospital and they walked into the north entrance. I was still on the phone with dispatch and he advised me to stay outside and wait for an officer. Danette hopped out of the car and ran in after them. They were way fast, and they went up the stairs. When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she heard the door shut upstairs. She was worried that they would walk through to the hospital and get away and we would never see them again. So she came back out, got in her car and drove around to the other entrance/exits of the hospital to watch for them. By then, 3 officers had shown up. They asked me for a description and they all took off into the building. I had called Brett and he showed up so he headed in the building too. Danette came back around and said that she had not seen them come out yet and pretty quick, here came the 2 kids in handcuffs!! Yay! They sat them down outside the building and started asking everyone questions. The kids were so mouthy, disrespectful and RUDE! I feel so sorry for them! How sad that they are starting a life of crime at ages 15 and 17. They were saying awful things to Danette and I and calling us liars. Of course, the cops totally believed us but it was still kind of hard to sit through. They searched them and they had nothing of mine. I had $60 cash in my purse, a $25 Maurice's gift card, a debit card (yes, I cancelled it already!) and just other typical odds and ends that we all carry in our purses. I don't know if I will ever get it back. Really, it all could have been much worse. Pretty much everything in my purse is replaceable. It was a new purse, and I loved it!!!! But it was just a purse.

The kids were taken away and will probably get nothing but a slap on the hand. I hope they can learn from it all. I am really not all that mad at the boys, I just feel kind of violated. I can't begin to express my gratitude for my Sister-In-law and her quick thinking, for my husband and Cory who were ready to fight the little punks! And for my brother and Brayden and Quayd who spent ALL NIGHT searching the dark alley ways, bushes, trash cans, dumpsters and everywhere else we could think of to look for my purse. Also to the officers who responded so quickly and who could have NOT done a better job!!! And of course to John at dispatch who helped keep me calm and who got everything set up to find the little punks.

It all could have been SO much worse!!! Tonight, I am home safe with my husband, my beautiful son and our pets. Really, that is all that matters. Nobody is hurt, just a little shaken up.

Crazy.

the one about going to JAIL!

I spent last night in jail.

So did Brett, my brother and Brayden.

We got there around 9:00 pm and got home around 8:00 am. It was MISERABLE, loud, uncomfortable, hot and the food was not only cold, but disgusting. I can't believe I really spent a night in the CLINK!

But at least we got these sweet T-shirts as a souvineer!

Ha Ha Ha!! Did I freak you out??? Our county just built a new jail and it will be opening up in the next few weeks. They held an open house yesterday for people to come and tour the facility and learn how it works. You could also pay $10 for the chance to spend the night. Brett, Brandon and Brayden signed up weeks ago to stay all night. I didn't really think I wanted to stay until after I toured it yesterday with Danette and the kids. I thought it was very interesting and I knew they were gonna have games and stuff, so I changed my mind. I decided to show up at check in time and see if they had room for me. They let me right in and it was really pretty cool! We took lots of games and snacks and we stayed up really late! We were able to wander the jail and get a more detailed look at how things operate. It was super fun, however, the actual SLEEPING was not pleasant at all! The lights never go off and they never turned down the heat! I HATE being hot at night! It was a pretty miserable night as far as rest goes, but other than that, it was pretty fun! Brett and I shared a cell. We grabbed an extra mattress and made a nice big bed on the floor.

Here are a few pictures from the tour we had taken earlier in the evening with Danette and the little boys.

Brandon and Brett taught Brayden and I how to play poker.

The sheriff came around from block to block and we played BINGO! and we finished off the trip with breakfast. It was a great experience. One I won't soon forget, and one I hope NEVER to live again!!!!

the one about Dr. Seuss

So once again, it was Dr. Seuss week at Quayd's school. They started the week with crazy sock day. Tuesday was bring a "pet" (stuffed animal) to school, then WaCkY WeDnEsDaY! Thursday was PJ day and Friday was Dress up like your favorite Dr. Seuss character. We always try to get creative with our character and the planning usually takes DAYS! We had a few things in mind this year, but finally decided on "Go Dog Go!" Brayden helped the boys start their cars and I made the dog ears. There was some huge catastrophe with the snow, spray paint and wet/painted cardboard boxes on Danette's carpet, so brayden "resigned" from the job and Danette and I finished it up. The cars turned out pretty cute, considering how wet they had been and how much paint ended up in Danette's entry way. Yikes! Anyway, here is the finished product....

This is Quayd with the Grinch. (Aka. Mrs. Murray)

I was pleased with the finished product, and I know the boys were too. They even won a prize! Since yesterday, The cars have been involved in many races, car wrecks and countless demoliton derbys! The boys have had a BLAST with their costume. And they looked Pretty cute, huh?!?

the one about New Years Eve.... seriously? in March??

Sick. I can't believe I have not posted these pictures yet. Heck, it's been so long ago now, I can hardly remember what we did for New Years Eve! But I have been feeling so guilty for not blogging in so long that I thought something was better than nothing. It seems like we ate some food, played some games, and had a great time. Cool. Good enough. HaPpY NeW YeAr!!!