Today was Emily's first day of school! She is in 1st grade now and growing up entirely too fast. She was so cute this morning. Daddy helped her make her lunch which she packed all by herself. She was sleepy this morning because she woke up last night over a bad dream. I think we all woke up at some point last night. I had to give Brett a breathing treatment because he woke up and couldn't get back to sleep. Every time him or Logan gets a cough their asthma gets pretty bad. So after I got Brett back to sleep Emily came in our room saying she had a bad dream, then along came Logan. I wasn't about to try to sleep with five people in my bed so I just turned the bathroom light on for the kids so they wouldn't be scared. I took pictures of Emily this morning on her way to school and then a few of her at school. She even got her picture taken with her teacher. She had a really good day.

I took some pictures of the kids playing around yesterday. They were posing for the camera while eating hot dog buns LOL. Yea I have some crazy kids but they sure are cute :)

Brett fell asleep in the middle of the floor today. He was probably tuckered out from getting a hair cut today. Him and Logan both got hair cuts today :) The next picture is one of Brett with his new hair cut. He's all sweaty cause he was riding around in the truck while we were working on the paintball field.

On to a whole different subject... For anyone who doesn't know my husband Chris and I teach a Bible Study class at our church for the teen kids on Wednesday nights. This was kind of something we got roped into doing and we aren't really qualified to teach. We do however enjoy the kids and we have developed great relationships with most of the kids in our class. I really do enjoy learning more about the Bible but I've only been a born again Christian for 6 years so I have so much to learn.

Well we just finished our summer vacation Bible school and are back to regular Bible study on Wednesday nights. Chris had to miss this week so I was basically on my own. I wanted to start something new so I could find out what the kids wanted to learn from the Bible and I really wanted us to focus on reading the Bible instead of just "doing" a lesson I copied off the internet. So I had all the kids write a subject on a piece of paper and pass them all to me this way no one else would know who chose what. Well the subject for this week was "The Cross." I was totally at a loss of what to read and one of the things I am trying to learn and pass along to the kids is how to study the Bible. So we looked in the back of our Bibles and picked the first listing for Cross in the glossary.

We ended up reading Matthew 16:22-28

22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.

23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.

24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.

26 For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

27 For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works.

28 Verily I say unto you, There be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the Son of man coming in his Kingdom.

This was such a test for me because we read these scriptures and here I was expected to shed some light on what they meant and teach the kids something. I just prayed for God to please help me and this is what we gathered together from the scriptures we read.

Jesus had just told his closest disciples what would happen to him in the near future vs 21 and then in vs 22 Peter basically tries to deny that Jesus is going to die. I think Jesus knew exactly what was going to happen to him and that he was going to suffer terribly and when Peter started denying it Jesus could easily have been comforted with that thought and thought to himself "surely there could be another way." But he didn't, he told Peter in vs 23 "Get thee behind me Satan" I think he said this because he didn't want to be tempted to think there could be another way.

Then Jesus began to tell his disciples more of what was to come. To follow Jesus is to sacrifice our own desires and wants in life, not everything but God might not always give us everything we want and life will probably not be as we always desire. But to follow Jesus and deny ourselves we are taking up our cross to follow him. As a Christian I find myself sometimes unable to share the gospel with people I know who don't believe in Christ. I am usually afraid of being ridiculed or I am afraid that the person will no longer wish to be my friend. Therefore a lot of times I find myself trying to hide the cross. Jesus was crucified on a hill on a cross for all to see. It wasn't done in a hidden dungeon it was out in the open and Jesus bore that cross for my sins. When we were talking about this in class I realized that I have been hiding my cross and not letting it be out in the open for everyone to see. Some of the kids in class realized this also and we talked about how we can make sure that we as Christians make visible the cross we bare for Christ.

I know I want to trust in Christ and not be ashamed of the cross I bare to serve him. His cross was so much more to bare and for me to be embarrassed is just so horrible. Vs 25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it. Vs 26 For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world and lose his own soul? It shouldn't matter to me if I lose a friend, or if I am ridiculed and made fun of, or persecuted in any way for standing for Christ. He bore the burden of my sins! The least I can do is bare the burden of my cross and let it show in my life!

Just wanted to post these pics really fast before we head off to church. I've been slacking off on my blog lately but I'll try harder to post more often. These are some pictures of the kids after a day at the paintball field. They are too young to play paintball right now but as you can see there's plenty of dirt to play with LOL.

Yes here are more pictures of the Big Brother Will look alike... But again sweaty and playing paintball... It might be easier to get Will to be sweaty and play paintball than it would to get my look a like to clean up and not play paintball ;) I swear they act alike too! It really cracks me up.

Does anyone else watch Big Brother besides me??? I love that show!!! This year they are doing Big Brother All-Stars, where they bring back a bunch of previous season players. My favorite player of all time is Will... He is the best!!! Not because he's a liar or anything like that he's just entertaining to watch. Anyway this year I've been watching Big Brother and it really cracks me up but we play paintball with a guy who looks EXACTLY like Will. Please judge for yourself and vote for me whether you think they look alike. I think they're like TWINS...

This is Will from Big Brother



















Will from Big Brother on the Left
















Now this is the friend we play paintball with... Yea he's a little sweatier but give the guy a break he's been playing paintball all day! Oh yea he's the one on the left...















Ok so now you be the judge... Do you think they look alike or is it just me??? I'll be getting more pictures just to prove my point but this was the only one I had without a mask on ;)

Tonight I watched a news documentary on ABC about Andrea Yates. For anyone who doesn't know who she is here is some information on this woman.


Education and Achievements: Andrea (Kennedy) Yates was born on July 2, 1964 in Houston, Tex. She graduated from Milby High School in Houston in 1982. She was the class valedictorian, captain of the swim team and an officer in the National Honor Society. She completed a two-year pre-nursing program at the University of Houston and then graduated in 1986 from the University of Texas School of Nursing in Houston. She worked as a registered nurse at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center from 1986 until 1994.

Andrea Meets Rusty Yates: Andrea and Rusty Yates, both 25, met at their apartment complex in Houston. Andrea, who was usually reserved, initiated the conversation. Andrea had never dated anyone until she turned 23 and prior to meeting Rusty she was healing from a broken relationship. They eventually moved in together and spent much of their time involved in religious study and prayer. They were married on April 17, 1993. They shared with their guests that they planned on having as many children as nature provided.

Andrea Called Herself "Fertile Myrtle": In their eight years of marriage, the Yates had five children; four boys and one girl. Andrea stopped jogging and swimming when she became pregnant with her second child. Friends say that she became reclusive. The decision to home-school the children seemed to feed her isolation.

The Yates Children:Feb. 26, 1994 – Noah Yates, Dec. 12, 1995 - John Yates, Sept. 13, 1997 - Paul Yates, Feb. 15, 1999 - Luke Yates, and on Nov. 30, 2000 - Mary Yates was the last child to be born.

Their Living Conditions: Rusty accepted work in Florida in 1996 and the family moved into a 38-foot travel trailer in Seminole, FL While in Florida, Andrea got pregnant, but miscarried. In 1997 they returned to Houston and lived in their trailer because Rusty wanted to "live light." The next year. Rusty decided to purchase a 350-square-foot, renovated bus which became their permanent home. Luke was born bringing the number of children to four. Living conditions were cramped and Andrea's insanity began to surface.

Michael Woroniecki: Michael Woroniecki was a traveling minister from whom Rusty purchased their bus and whose religious views had influenced both Rusty and Andrea. Rusty only agreed with some of Woroniecki's ideas but Andrea embraced the extremist sermons. He preached, "the role of women is derived from the sin of Eve and that bad mothers who are going to hell create bad children who will go to hell." Andrea was so totally captivated by Woroniecki that Rusty and Andrea's family grew concerned.

Andrea’s First Suicide Attempt : On June 16 1999, Andrea called Rusty and begged him to come home. He found her shaking involuntarily and chewing on her fingers. The next day, she was hospitalized after she tried to commit suicide by taking an overdose of pills. She was transferred to the Methodist Hospital psychiatric unit and diagnosed with a major depressive disorder. The medical staff described Andrea as evasive in discussing her problems. However, on June 24 she was prescribed an antidepressant and released.

Spiraling Downward: Once home, Andrea did not take the medication and as a result she began to self mutilate and refused to feed her children because she felt they were eating too much. She thought there were video cameras in the ceilings and said that the characters on television were talking to her and the children. She told Rusty about the hallucinations, yet neither of them informed Andrea's psychiatrist, Dr. Starbranch. On July 20, Andrea put a knife to her neck and begged her husband to let her die.

Warned About the Risks of Having More Babies : Andrea was again hospitalized and stayed in a catatonic state for 10 days. After being treated with an injection of different drugs that included Haldol, an anti-psychotic drug, her condition immediately improved. Rusty was optimistic about the drug therapy because Andrea appeared more like the person he first met. Dr. Starbranch warned the Yates that having another baby might bring on more episodes of psychotic behavior. Andrea was placed on out-patient care and prescribed Haldol.

New Hopes for the Future : Andrea's family urged Rusty to buy a home instead of returning Andrea to the cramped space of the bus. He purchased a nice home in a peaceful neighborhood. Once in her new home, Andrea's condition improved to the point that she returned to past activities like swimming, cooking and some socializing. She was also interacting well with her children. She expressed to Rusty that she had strong hopes for the future but still viewed her life on the bus as her failure.

The Tragic End: In March of 2000, Andrea, on Rusty's urging, became pregnant and stopped taking the Haldol. On November 30, 2000, Mary was born. Andrea was coping but on March 12, her father died and immediately her mental state digressed. She stopped talking, refused liquids, mutilated herself, and would not feed Mary. She also frantically read the Bible. By the end of March Andrea returned to a different hospital. Her psychiatrist, Dr. Mohammed Saeed, treated her briefly with Haldol but discontinued it, saying that she did not did not seem psychotic. Andrea was released only to return again in May. She was released in 10 days and in her last follow-up visit with Saeed, she was told to think positive thoughts and to see a psychologist. Two days later, Rusty left for work and before his mother arrived to help, Andrea began to put into action the thoughts that had consumed her for two years. Andrea filled the tub with water and beginning with Paul, she systematically drowned the three youngest boys, then placed them on her bed and covered them. Mary was left floating in the tub. The last child alive was the first born, seven-year-old Noah. He asked his mother what was wrong with Mary, then turned and ran away. Andrea caught up with him and as he screamed, she dragged him and forced him into the tub next to Mary's floating body. He fought desperately, coming up for air twice, but Andrea held him down until he was dead. Leaving Noah in the tub, she brought Mary to the bed and laid her in the arms of her brothers.
During Andrea's confession she explained her actions by saying that she wasn't a good mother and that the children were "not developing correctly" and she needed to be punished.
Her controversial trial lasted three weeks. The jury found Andrea guilty of capital murder, but rather then recommending the death penalty, they voted for life in prison. At the age of 77, in the year 2041, Andrea will be eligible for parole.
Information gathered from http://crime.about.com/od/current/p/andreayates.htm


When I first heard of this tragic story I was shocked and couldn't believe someone could do something so horrible. Now the story is back in the news because Andrea received a new trial and was found Not Guilty and sentenced to a mental institution. I always felt sorry for Andrea because in a way I can relate to what she did. The reason she gives for what she did is that she didn't want her childrend to go to hell and she felt that she was a bad mother and they were going to go to hell because of her. I'm not at all saying I would ever consider killing my children so please don't misunderstand what I am trying to say. I pray for my kids everyday that I will be able to teach them right and I know this can be taken wrong but I would rather God take my children as children rather than see them grow up and reject him. However I am well aware that this is Gods decision to make not my own. He chooses who he chooses and I would never think of trying to make that decision that is Gods alone.

This is the only way I can relate as a mother to what Andrea did to her children. I really don't believe that she as some people say was overwhelmed and just wanted to be free of her children. In her interviews that I have seen I don't see that in her at all. I do think she was mentally ill and the love she had for her children combined with her low self esteem of her mothering skills and her fear of them going to hell all influenced her actions.

It really breaks my heart seeing Andrea's interviews. She is sick and as she gets better through medications she is is only going to come to a realization of what she's done and live a life of pain and regret. I pray we can all learn something from this tragedy. We should pay attention to the people around us. Andrea needed help and those closest to her seemed to ignore that fact. We need to pay attention and recognize the needs of others. I would hope that if I was ever in such a situation as Andrea's my loved ones would be there to help me and not ignore the signs and then abandon me in the end. Poor Andrea seems to have been abandoned by all those who were closest to her. She did a horrible thing yes. She should not be beyond forgiveness though. She needs our prayers.

Today was Emily's friend Lauren's birthday so we went to the pool for her birthday. I can't believe how many parents just drop their kids off at the pool unsupervised. I know there are lifeguards but they're not babysitters and they sure as heck aren't responsible enough to be babysitters.

When we first got there the cops showed up because someone's cell phone was stolen. So the kids got to watch that whole mess. Logan and Emily were doing ok swimming with Lauren and Gabby in the big pool but Brett had to be in the kiddy section and it was so annoying.... All the big kids were in the kiddy pool and Brett couldn't swim cause they kept knocking him down.

Then to top everything off Lauren got hit in the head with someone's swimming goggles and cut her head bad enough to need stitches. I couldn't believe it! And when we left the life guards were still ignoring all the kids throwing their goggles across the pool... I won't be visiting the public pool again anytime soon.

Yay!!! Look what came out of my garden! I am so proud :D I made salsa yesterday with the veggie's that came from my garden. It's been so hot this last week or so and the weeds are getting crazy out there so I still have some work to do but I'm just so proud I actually grew stuff!!!

Chris got home from work early today so we took the kids to the park. Our town doesn't have a good park so we drove over to another town where they have such a nice park. The kids got to feed the ducks and swans. It was really cool, at one point we were surrounded by critters wanting our crackers. Logan is so lucky he didn't get bit, he likes to try to catch the birds. We walked all the way around the pond and then stopped for a bit of swinging. It was a great afternoon as you can see from the pictures.

Some of my family is visiting from Utah. Crystal (Uncle Aarons wife), me and Toni (Uncle Abraham's Fiance') all went to Grandma Teerlink's house to visit. It was pretty cool to see Aunt Von and Rose. Uncle Lane was camera shy and wouldn't let me take his picture!!! I got a few sneaky side shots though :p They are all gonna come down Saturday and play paintball. I can't wait! It should be a lotta fun. Here's some of the pictures I took while I was there.

Grandma Ruby

Brett made a friend

Brett chillin' after a long day of playing :p

I love this picture of Grandpa.

The kids were all playing with Balloons this one was about as big as Brett.

From the left is Aunt Ruth, Tony, Crystal and Tiara

Lane and Rose surprised Teela with a piano for her new house :)

What a relief!!! We hosted a paintball tournament at our paintball field and it was a success!!! It was a five man tournament and we had eight teams show up to play. My husband Chris and I have been totally stressed out lately trying to get things all ready and we needed five teams to guarantee prizes so we were stressing out about that as well. You never know with these things what kind of turn out you're gonna get. We were very pleased with how things went and the event ran very smoothly. There wasn't much drama and no fights yay!!! I finished the DVD preview already and you can watch it below.



Click to see Video

HAPPY JULY 4TH

I took some pictures of the fireworks tonight. It was so cool the way they showed up on my camera. It was dark outside so I couldn't figure out how to change the setting to take action shots so I got the blurry effect. It is really cool though I like them that way. Watching fireworks with the family was a great time but I couldn't help feeling guilty. So many people died and are still dying for our freedom. God Bless America and our fighting men and women.

This is so cute. We went to Sonic for lunch yesterday. For anyone who doesn't know Sonic is a fast food place where the carhops bring the food out to your car. Anyway we went to Sonic to eat and were sitting there in the van waiting for them to bring out our food and I noticed this display in their window.

Sonic donated food for the elementary kids on their last day of summer school and the kids made thank you cards and pictures for them. It was pretty cute and I was just staring at them all while waiting for our food and then I realized...

This is Emily's picture! I made a really big deal about it and pointed it out to her and she was so proud! It was really cute. She was telling us all about Sonic donating the food and that the kids made cards to say thank you. She said there is a picture of a hamburger on the other side of her card. She was very proud that Sonic chose her card to display in their window and I had my camera with me so I snapped a few shots so she will always remember :)