Crafty Fun & Football

When I woke up this morning I was in such a funk because we didn't have anything planned and mostly, because I was homesick.  I am missing my animals, my friends and especially my husband.   But my attitude improved tremendously when Kari Shea called and asked Spencer and I to come over (Cole spent the night with Logan last night) so Spencer could watch football and she and I could paint!  Oh my, I have missed my arts & crafts.  We had so much fun!

Kari is so incredibly talented!  I love all of her artwork.  She painted two of these to hang in their family room and now, she is taking orders to custom paint pictures but she is donating 100% of the proceeds to Andrew's choir group at school.  You've got to love smart and talented.

I painted my "usual" pictures and Spencer told me it was time to start using brighter colors and different images.  Guess I'll be making a change.

We spent all afternoon over there and it did my heart good.  Don't you just love good friends.

Cole came home with us, showered, packed a change of clothes and headed back over to the Shea's.  Logan was having friends over tonight and Kari graciously offered for Cole to spend the night again.

Cole received his first paycheck today from his music video he filmed a couple of weeks ago!  

After taxes, the manager's fee, the 15% in his savings account and his tithes, he had $80 left!  He was so proud and we are so proud for him.

Spencer and Freya spent some time this afternoon going over Algebra.  Freya is GREAT at math and she has been an absolute Godsend for Spencer, not only as a friend but as a great tutor.

We are really going to miss Freya and Coppelia when they head home to Australia next Tuesday.

Spencer and I are watching the Rangers & Tigers play baseball.  I'm ready for bed but, of course, it's only 7:47 p.m.  I hope I make it to 9:00.

I'm looking forward to church tomorrow and maybe something exciting and fun...you just never know what may be in store.

Hope you all had a great day.

"Now may the God of peace -- who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood -- may He equip you will all you need for doing His will."

~Hebrews 13:20-21

Disappointing News but it's TGIF

We received news today that Cole did not get the role he auditioned for in the new Disney pilot.  He was very disappointed but he said God must have other, bigger plans for him.  We are so incredibly proud of you, Cole.

On a brighter note, it's FRIDAY!  I did laundry and graded papers while the boys finished school work and tests.  Spencer worked out with his trainer for an hour and then had to recuperate.  Have I mentioned that he is driven?!

We had a quiet afternoon and then met the Shea's at the Burbank movie theater.  The girls (Kari, Allie, Olivia and me) went to see Dolphin Tale and the boys (Darrin, Spencer, Logan & Cole) went to see Real Steel.  Everyone enjoyed their movie (Dolphin Tale was fabulous!) and Cole ended up spending the night with Logan.  It will be really quiet at the Ewing house tonight. ;)


Love this picture...

love these boys.


"And the most important piece of clothing you must wear is love.  Love is what binds us all together in perfect harmony."
~Colossians 4:14

Fashion District Fun

It was another hot day in Cali so I got up early to get in my bike ride.  I saw the cutest dogs today...I'm thinking seriously about that handlebar camera.  Just think of all the cute pics I would have to post!

Kari Shea came over so we could head downtown to do some shopping in the "Fashion District".  Before we went, she got a picture of a monkey we have living here at the apartment...

Crazy boy.


Our neighbor Michelle, and her two cute kiddos followed us downtown.  My, oh my, what an interesting place.

It's 100 blocks of shops...we made it down three!


Kari & Michelle thought I should get this for Halloween but I don't want the City of Burbank to cancel Halloween when I show up in this getup...

Uh huh, I know what you're thinking.


Lots of different people, different smells and a totally different lifestyle.  We had a great time but after four hours, we were done.  Brooke & Brayden were awesome...

two sweeties.


When I got home from shopping, I could tell the boys needed to get out of the apartment so we headed downtown Burbank to visit the Halloween store and walk around.  It was such a nice night.


Once we got home, Cole and I walked a block to Ribs U.S.A., his favorite restaurant.  This boy can put away some food...

We had a great dinner but it makes me so incredibly sad that Spencer is never able to join us.  I just keep praying and thinking, "one of these days, he will be able to eat with us."  God knows what's on our hearts and I need to remember to trust His timing.


Studying is done, showers are done and now I'm ready to hit the hay.  Hope you have all had a great day.


The Lord says, "I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.   I will advise you and watch over you."
~Psalm 32:8

So Cal is Soooo Hot

We were so surprised today when the temperature reached 95, and they are forecasting 100 for tomorrow.  Just a little reminder that we are still in the desert in Southern California.

I took a few days off from running & biking while Brad was here so I took a long ride on my bike this morning.  I have decided that I need to install a camera on my handlebars so I can take pictures of cute kitties & puppies without having to stop, get my camera app on my phone and take the picture.  I'm sure I won't look weird at all with a camera mounted to the front of my bike!

It was another quiet day today.  Spencer had his workout, the boys had school, we studied for tests, I made chicken & dumplings in the crockpot (it was yummy) and now I'm ready for bed at 7:47 p.m.  I woke at up 1:30 a.m. this morning and went back to sleep at 5:30.  To ensure that does not happen tonight, I have already taken a Simply Sleep.  I'm ready.

Hope you have all had a great day.

"Instead, you must worship Christ as Lord of your life.  And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it."

~I Peter 3:15

Lazy Day & New Project

It was quiet today, way too quiet to suit Spencer and I.  I guess we are so used to being busy that by 2:45 p.m. today, I was ready to pull my hair out because we had nothing going on.

Fortunately, Coppelia showed up at 3:00 and said, "Let's go to Chinatown."  Woohoo!  You know I'm always up for an adventure so off we went with me driving and her giving me directions.  I guess I must have taken to driving like a true Californian because when we pulled into the parking garage, Coppelia was gripping the handle above the door like it was her lifeline and telling me that she will now be making a hair appointment to cover all the gray I just put in her hair.  Oopsie.  Guess I need to curtail my LA driving before I return to Little Rock.

We found some interesting items...

Sassy girl.

Cute as a button.

We didn't find anything we couldn't live without but we had a great time and did lots of laughing.  Perfect afternoon.

The boys and I studied for tests tomorrow and now everyone has gone their separate ways.  We have done great in this small apartment but I think we will all be so excited to have our own rooms when we get home.

One thing I have noticed in LA is how many people are standing on the street corner with a sign saying they are homeless or just lost their job.  When I was growing up, we had circumstances that if it had not been for my grandparents, I think we would have been in the same place as these people.  I just want to do something but instead of just handing them a dollar or two, I really wanted to do something more.  So the boys and I went to the 99 cent store and got supplies....

For less than $25, I bought enough supplies to fill 10 bags with a water bottle, a comb, a bar of soap, small pkg of Kleenex, granola bar, lemon drops, chapstick, comb, pen & paper.  I stapled the bag shut and then on the outside I attached a McDonald's gift certificate and a little note letting them know someone was praying for them.

It's always nice to know someone is thinking of you.

Then I put them in a box and put them in my backseat of my car and when I come upon someone, I will have something substantial to give them....

It's not a lot but hopefully, it will make a difference.  I am definitely going to continue to do this when I get home.

Our four day break from school was just what we all needed and it seems to make this week more manageable.  I can't believe we only have three weeks left!

Hope you have had a great day.

"The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever."

~Psalm 121:8

Brad's back in Little Rock and I'm cranky

Of course, our weekend was great since Brad was in town.  Yesterday, we went to the movies to see Moneyball starring Brad Pitt.  It was about Billy Beane, a baseball player in the 90's, and it was fabulous!  I highly recommend it.


We all gathered outside last night while Brad grilled vegetables and steak.  The kiddos all crowded into our kitchen to play a game on Cole's laptop while they were waiting for dinner.

Meanwhile, I was outside stalking a new member of our apartment complex...

Cole said I look evil and the puppy looks scared to death!


This morning's drive to LAX came too soon as we dropped Brad off to head home.  The next time he flies in town will be the last weekend in October when we will be packing and getting ready to head back to Little Rock.  I can't believe the time has passed so quickly.


I went with Nichita today to look at another apartment.  She and her husband, Jeddup, will be in Burbank until at least the end of January and they want to get an apartment closer to Warner Brothers, where Jeddup is doing contract work, since Nichita is four months pregnant.  We met the agent for the leasing company and right off the bat, I was thinking of clawing his eyeballs out.  You could tell by his demeanor that he didn't mind dealing with me but when Nichita would try to ask him a question (she doesn't speak very clear English) he would cut her off or talk over her.  My hackles were raised before we even made it into the apartment.  Once we were inside, Nichita had questions about the utilities, deposit, etc....the "normal" questions you ask when you are renting.  This man was so rude that I stepped in and told him that if he was not going to be polite, we would go look somewhere else.  After he was rude to her again (he told her, "Lady, when you're in America you play by our rules."), I pulled Nichita to the side and told her we should go.  He must have realized that I was ready to jump him and snatch him bald because he immediately backed down and even offered to show us a different apartment that was in a quieter part of the complex.  When we left, I told him that if he spoke to Jeddup the way he spoke to Nichita, I would report him to the BBB.  I cannot remember when I have been  that mad.  I honestly could have punched him and I would not have felt bad at all.  Now, I'm all riled up again just thinking about it!


Deep breath.


The rest of the evening has been quiet.  I am working on school schedules for the rest of this week and the boys are enjoying watching Monday night football.


I hope you all had a great weekend and are looking toward a great week.


"Turn away from evil and do good.  Search for peace, and work to maintain it."
~Psalm 34:14

Relaxing Saturday

We had such a relaxing and fun day today.  Cole, Brad and I headed out to the Farmer's Market this morning, leaving Spencer behind to yell at the tv during the OU vs. Texas game.  Needless to say, Spencer was extremely happy with the OU win.

It's amazing all the good food they have at the FM...everything is organic and very reasonably priced.  We loaded up on lots of veggies and honey for me and steaks for the boys.  We will be grilling out tomorrow night with our neighbors.

After the FM, we walked around downtown Burbank to see some of the shops.  I love this part of town.

This is the bike rack....of course, "goofy" just had to show off.

We saw a Halloween costume shop and we stopped in to check out the goods.

Hello, Thor!

After our sight-seeing, we headed home, grabbed Spencer and the neighbors and headed to the park across the street to play a little two-hand-touch football.  I was so glad to spend time with everyone but way too preoccupied to really play the game.  I mean, there was some serious people watching to be done (after all, we are in LA).  I'm like the little kid in the outfield on the t-ball team; I'm doing everything except paying attention to the game.  I don't know who won but I think everyone had a great time.

We headed over to the Shea's house at 4:00 to watch the Razorback game.  I just love them!  They always welcome us with open arms even when they have things going on.  Today was Andrew's 18th birthday and Olivia had an audition at 7:15 p.m. but they still made time for us to come over.  I haven't seen Kari for two weeks (she was out of town last weekend) so it was like not seeing my sister and having to play catch-up.  I love that God has blessed us with awesome friends in this city.

A happy piggie!

We're back at the apartment and just hanging out.  It is so nice to all be together.

"Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!  His faithful love endures forever."

~Psalm 136:1