PreK Graduation

I still cannot belive that it is already half way through summer and that Chandler and Gracie will be starting Kindergarten in the fall. We have already started shopping for all the cute stuff! But before we move on, I must post a few pictures of PreK graduation. We are so proud of them!

OU legend Billy Sims Slow Cooked BBQ Pork

I found this recipe in Distinctly Oklahoma magazine and love it!

1 -3 lb. Shoulder Pork Roast or Pork Loin Roast
1-18 oz. bottle of Billy Sims BBQ Sauce
1-12 oz. can of Coke

Place pork roast in crock pot. Pour BBQ sauce and coke over roast. Cover and cook on high for 8 hours, or until meat is tender and shreds easily.

Remove meat gfrom Crock Pot and shred with two forks. Serve with sandwich rolls and bbq sauce. Yum!

Catching up!

I have gotten behind on my blogging but I suppose that's what happens when you are busy enjoying life! Gracie had her ballet recital in May. She is always so graceful and does such a pretty job. This job Patti's daughter Abbey, as also in the recital. She is in the Hip Hop class.

Grandpa's surgery

Paul's Dad, and my absolute favorite Father in Law, David, had a triple heart bypass surgery in February. Technology is great because we were able to visit with him right in the hospital room via webcam between my laptop and Paul's laptop that he took to MN. (Of course the kiddies were thrilled that they could give Daddy a night night kiss.) He is doing good and already driving back and forth from the doctors office in the Twin Cities. Paul and I both have been worried sick about him and are thrilled that he is doing better. Grandpa should be back to better than ever really soon! This is a photo of David and Chandler this past Thanksgiving in Iowa.

A Valentine's Day Wedding!

On Valentine's Day, my cousin Mickie's son, Chris was married. It was a sweet intimate wedding and Gracie was asked to be the flower girl. The other guys just kind of hung out and of course Chandler was right with either me or Paul - his favorite place to be. I was lucky enough to get to take quite a few photos. Here are just a few...

Daddy Daughter Dance

I am so far behind on my posting. I am going to an all day crop tomorrow with Rikki and so tonight I starting browsing through my most recent photos. I've missed several events on my blog lately. We have been so busy enjoying life that...well I forgot to brag a little.

Paul and Gracie went to the Daddy Daughter Dance last month and had a great time. They went with my brother and niece. Gracie thought she was going to the Prom! Every time we drive by the Embassy Suites, she says "there's my Daddy Daughter Dance place!" The boys and hung out and we met them at Logan's Steakhouse for a later dinner. What a magical evening!

15 days and counting....

Many of you know that I am starting to panic about my oldest leaving the nest. Tonight I was writing his birthday on my calendar and it dawned on me..15 more days and he is a man. Good, bad, whatever...my official job is to hand it over to him and become an advisor. As I was driving him home from work we talked about registering to vote, which political party he felt he identified with, registering for selective service, staying away from credit cards...and all of a sudden I started to cry. All of the nights that I wanted to pull my hair out worrying about him being late, all of the homework battles, the day he painted our brand new carpet green at our new house, all of the messes in the kitchen, the day I first laid eyes on him...it all came flashing back. No wonder mid life is so hard. It is all so cruel for Moms, we have to hold on tight and then they wrestle for us to loosen the grip. Raising kids and letting them go..it's all so hard..but I wouldn't have missed it for anything in the world. He just thinks his Mom is being sentimental and goofy and dreaming of what his life is going to be like. I love you, little Logars! As the story goes....I'll like you for always, I'll love you forever, as long as I'm living my baby you'll be.

Ok in Oklahoma

We are all still here and ok. Happy Tuesday didn't end up that way. What a day! It started out rather nicely, another no coat morning. But all of that changed in a blink of an eye. A few of our parents called the center telling us that the tornado sirens were going off in South OKC, just a few miles to the North of us.

This is what I did for the rest of the day. Warnings on TV, sirens blaring, TV reports of damage everywhere. Where was Paul, right on the fringe of the storm...eeekkk!

I was at my Dad's dropping Austin off for a visit. When I told him that there were tornados all over the metro, he said "seriously?" and then we turned on the tv set.

We got away with only marble size hail and heavy rain. The North OKC Target, Hobby Lobby and Chuckie Cheese were hit hard. Areas of Edmond were hit rather hard and many homes and businesses damaged in the Oak Tree area.

Then later after dark a huge tornado hit down south of us and so far 15 people were killed. Being a native of Oklahoma, you expect and plan for storms. It's just that we don't expect them in February. Anyway, we are well and accounted for and ready for the next time a big storm blows in. Please keep the many families that have lost loved ones, homes and businesses to the horrible storm.

Christmas at the Maus House

Christmas at our house was busy, fun and many memories were made. We had a great deal to celebrate and rejoice. The first being the birthday of our Savior's birth. My sister in law Angie is a survivor and her being with us this year is a miracle. She is recovering from an aneurysm that left her in the hospital for more than 80 days. She is home now and working through physical therapy. Our next miracle is that my brother and his kids were reunited this year in October. Having April, J.D. and Beau back in our family has been one of the biggest highlights of our year. Since I am the only "girl" in our family and absent Mom, we have started a new tradition of Family Dinner at our house on Sunday evenings. The kids look forward to it...almost as much as Paul and I! We are finally getting the last of the wrapping paper and decorations put away. Every time I think it is all boxed up, I find something else!

Where Have All The Leaders Gone?

My Dad sent the following text in an email. It was impressing and thought provoking. Thought I would share it...

'Remember Lee Iacocca, the man who rescued Chrysler Corporation from its death throes? He's now 82 years old and has a new book, 'Where Have All The Leaders Gone?'.
Lee Iacocca Says:
Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder! We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car.
But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, 'Stay the course.'
Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America , not the damned 'Titanic'.
I'll give you a sound bite: 'Throw all the bums out!'
You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country anymore.
The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in handcuffs.
While we're fiddling in Iraq , the Middle East is burning and nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving 'pom-poms' instead of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of the ' America ' my parents and yours traveled across the ocean for. I've had enough. How about you?
I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have. The Biggest 'C' is Crisis!
(Iacocca elaborates on nine C's of leadership, with crisis being the first.)
Leaders are made, not born. Leadership is forged in times of crisis. It's easy to sit there with your feet up on the desk and talk theory. Or send someone else's kids off to war when you've never seen a battlefield yourself. It's another thing to lead when your world comes tumbling down.
On September 11, 2001, we needed a strong leader more than any other time in our history. We needed a steady hand to guide us out of the ashes. A hell of a mess, so here's where we stand.
We're immersed in a bloody war with no plan for winning and no plan for leaving.
We're running the biggest deficit in the history of the country.
We're losing the manufacturing edge to Asia, while our once-great companies are getting slaughtered by health care costs.
Gas prices are skyrocketing, and nobody in power has a coherent energy policy.
Our schools are in trouble.
Our borders are like sieves.
The middle class is being squeezed every which way.
These are times that cry out for leadership.
But when you look around, you've got to ask: 'Where have all the leaders gone?' Where are the curious, creative communicators? Where are the people of character, courage, conviction, omnipotence, and common sense? I may be a sucker for alliteration, but I think you get the point.
Name me a leader who has a better idea for homeland security than making us take off our shoes in airports and throwing away our shampoo?
We've spent billions of dollars building a huge new bureaucracy, and all we know how to do is react to things that have already happened.
Name me one leader who emerged from the crisis of Hurricane Katrina. Congress has yet to spend a single day evaluating the response to the hurricane or demanding accountability for the decisions that were made in the crucial hours after the storm.
Everyone's hunkering down, fingers crossed, hoping it doesn't happen again. Now, that's just crazy. Storms happen. Deal with it. Make a plan. Figure out what you're going to do the next time.
Name me an industry leader who is thinking creatively about how we can restore our competitive edge in manufacturing. Who would have believed that there could ever be a time when 'The Big Three' referred to Japanese car companies? How did this happen, and more important, what are we going to do about it?
Name me a government leader who can articulate a plan for paying down the debt, or solving the energy crisis, or managing the health care problem. The silence is deafening. But these are the crises that are eating away at our country and milking the middle class dry.
I have news for the gang in Congress. We didn't elect you to sit on your asses and do nothing and remain silent while our democracy is being hijacked and our greatness is being replaced with mediocrity. What is everybody so afraid of? - that some bonehead on Fox News will call them a name? Give me a break. Why don't you guys show some spine for a change?
Had Enough? Hey, I'm not trying to be the voice of gloom and doom here. I'm trying to light a fire. I'm speaking out because I have hope - I believe in America . In my lifetime, I've had the privilege of living through some of America 's greatest moments. I've also experienced some of our worst crises: The 'Great Depression,' 'World Wars I and II,' the 'Korean War,' the 'Kennedy Assassination,'the 'Vietnam War,' the 1970's oil crisis, and the struggles of recent years culminating with 9/11.
If I've learned one thing, it's this: 'You don't get anywhere by standing on the sidelines waiting for somebody else to take action. Whether it's building a better car or building a better future for our children, we all have a role to play. That's the challenge I'm raising in this book. It's a "Call to Action" for people who, like me, believe in America '. It's not too late, but it's getting pretty close. So let's shake off the crap and go to work. Let's tell 'em all we've had 'enough.'
Make your own contribution by sending this to everyone you know and care about. It's our country, folks, and it's our future. Our future is at stake!!