Mama's got a new toy....

I have been dreaming out having a SLR camera for sometime.  I basically have camera envy toward anyone who owns one.  When I spot someone sporting one around their neck I generally hollar something along the lines of...."Wow!  What kind of camera do you have?"  I then proceed to grab it by the neck strab (while still attached to its owner) and begin examination.

Well, when opportunity presented itself I jumped.  My old camera mysteriously found itself in a sink full of water, so guess who needed a new camera?....ME!  I scoured the internet for deals and found them to be a bit pricey.  My hubs is an avid fan of auction/pawn shop shows on TV, so I thought I'd check a few pawn stores in our area.  I was a little nervous because I have heard that some of the clientelle can be a bit seedy at said locations.  Was I ever wrong!  I was greeted at the front door by a sweet elderly gentleman who escorted me to their "electronics section."  It was as if the clouds opened up and the choir sang.  Right infront of my very eyes it sat.  A Canon Rebel...encased in glass.  I just about fainted in the middle of the store from excitement.  And, the price....a.m.a.z.i.n.g.....less expensive than a point and shoot at the box stores. 

Here are a few that I've managed to take so far.  I can't wait to get a new lens!

 J' jr. pulling the little girls.

 Miss M practicing barrels.

 Sweet, sweet cousins.

 Cousin Dunk.

 Beautiful A'.

Little L' bug.



Where has the time gone? So much to catch up on.

Ack!  I can't believe it has been so long since my last post, but what can I say?  I am a mom to five and the wife of a farmer who works seven days a week, so time is precious around here.  Oh, and speaking of being a mom to five.... :) ....make that six!  Yup, the McJason's are expecting our sixth child any month now (see above.)  Pretty cute, wouldn't you say?  He's 3 years old and currently residing in China.  We've been gazing at his adorable face since June '11, and now we can share it with the world.  He will be known to the blogging world as Adorable A'. 

Here's a little summary of the past few months happenings..... J', Sr. and I became great uncle and auntie again to a sweet little boy named Carter.  That makes 2 great nephews for us now!  A few of our kiddos celebrated birthdays.  Miss M' is now 13. J', jr. is now 10.   Darlin' D is now 6.  And,  Sweet L' is now 2!  We are looking forward to celebrating A' and Adorable A's birthdays in the near future. 

The rest of our crew have been bringing smiles to this momma's face daily (and, an occasional frown here and there.)  D' loved his year in kindergarten.  He made lots of friends and looks forward to moving on to full day first grade next year.  Miss A' transitioned well into special needs kindergarten this year, as well.  She has had a few bumps along the way, but made huge progress this year.  She is now fully potty trained and chewing and swallowing her food. WOOHOO!!  L' loves to be a big girl now.  She is so motherly to everyone.  In other words, she loves to boss everyone around. :)  Miss M still adores her horse.  She rode in her first gaming show a few weeks ago, and she and her pony did very well.  They have a great time together.  J', jr. cracks me up.  He is a very intense little fella, and takes a lot of pride in his grades and homework.  He just celebrated his 10th birthday by having all of the boys in his class over for a nerf war themed, high energy slumber party.  I had a momentary lapse in judgement when I ok'd the idea with him, but the boys all did very well.  I was, however ready for a nap the following morning.  I had 17 kids here at one point (ok....5 were mine, but that's still a lot of kids!)

Anywho, that's our life in a nutshell.  I will attempt to do a better job keeping my blog up. :)

 Darlin' D.

 Miss M.

 L' kissing her prince.

 Mr. J' with a Mr. J' smirk on his face.

Miss A'.

Praying for this guy....

In less than 24 hours my brother-in-law will leave to serve our country in Afghanistan for a seven month deployment with the US Marine Corp.  Please pray for his safety while he is gone and that time will pass quickly for him.   Also, please pray for his beautiful wife, Briana and his darling son, Mason as this is going to be extremely difficult for them.  It breaks my heart to know that Dan will miss his son's first Christmas, his first birthday, and possibly his first steps, and that Briana will be parenting alone.  Please lift them up in your prayers, and thank not only him, but all of the servicemen and women (and their families) who sacrifice so much for our freedom.

Happy graduation to Ben and Erik....

Congratulations to both of my nephews (Benjamin and Erik) on graduating from high school.  We weren't able to make it to Benny's party because we were gone, but here are a few pics from Erik's party. :)  Best wishes to both of you.  You both have bright futures ahead of you!....love you both very much!

G'pa and G'ma's huge "playpen"....

The best mother-in-law ever. : )

Our kids LOVE going to their grandpa and grandma's house.  G'ma has all kinds of fun toys to play with for all ages.  The older kids have a ball playing all of the video games, while the younger ones can't get enough of all of the ride on toys and outdoor "playpen" (a great big deck that neatly confines them all while they are completely oblivious to the fact).  G'ma and g'pa have this great sandbox that can keep the kids entertained for hours.

Hawaii....

The Blowhole.

Beach babies.

Dole Plantation.

Waiting for the train tour at the Dole Plantation.

Arizona Memorial.

J., Sr. w/A' at USMC beach.

Aww...I will miss this view everyday!

It's great to be an aunt again. . .

My niece w/my great nephew.

This past week, J., Sr., myself, Princess L' and Princess A all were able to go and meet our great nephew.  Lucky for us they live in Hawaii!!  He is such a cute little guy, and it was so much fun watching my niece be a mommy.  She does a great job with him.  Congrats B' and D'!