Half Moon

This is our horse Half Moon! I went up to check on her yesterday and she was resting. When Brandon's mom moved from their farm in Fulton, MO we got a horse! (Long story but basically in a nutshell... Marty & Stan had 3 horses. Steel, Half Moon and Hondo. Hondo died of old age. Steel was Half Moon's mom and someone shot her on their 200+ acres and they were afraid they would come back to shoot Half Moon. So we loaded her up and brought her to Midway!) We have had her since 2000 and best we can figure she is about 30 years old and she has arthritis in her knees really bad. We don't ride her and we just let her do whatever she wants to do. We had 2 other horses we bought just to keep her company but recently sold them because we have moved her to our 25 acres and there is 4 other horses with her. She is so calm and mellow and really laid back. I messed with her for about 30 minutes and got some really good pictures of her (can you tell I love my new camera!)

A drawing from my brother-in-law!

You know in life we all make mistakes and many of us are able to learn from those mistakes and create a better life. There are some that need harsh circumstances to change them. Brandon's half brother, Mike, liked to drink and received 5 DWI's in a short amount of time. He is serving his time in Moberly Correctional Facility and will get out in September 2012. He really is a great person and now that he is 41 years old he has had some time to think about life. He always remains very positive and upbeat about life and works in the commissary. Brandon and Mike share the same mother and he calls 3-4 times a week to check in with us on how things are going and to check on his mom. (Their real mom, Marty, is not well and is getting ready for a knee replacement) Mike can do anything he sets his mind to and he is always learning something new. During is down time he has taught himself how to draw. He has done a great job on several drawings he has sent us and this is one of my favorite ones! (Yes I love Harley Davidson's!) I think he did a great job from the 4 x 6 picture he had and created this 8 x 10. He said that he will draw for 15 or 20 minutes and then have to set it down and walk away because he gets in a big hurry and then messes something up. I am sending him several pictures to work on a John Wayne picture/scene for Brandon and some country picture for me. Everyone deserves a fresh start at life and although he made some (OK, 5) bad decisions he is paying the price. Good job Mike.... I'm proud of you buddy!

I know you are all loving the platinum blonde hair.... I laugh every time I see this picture! :)

Random Michele Craziness!

Well many of you know that I love doing random silly things to people and I have really out done myself this time! I have decided that I would send fun text messages to my friends! Since I don't have everyone's phone number and many don't have free texting I thought I could share with you some of the silly things I do from time to time! (oh and I will add text so you see the "story" I sent to everyone) Made me laugh! :)

"Hey Sugars!"

No worries... I haven't been drinking too much egg nog....

 

 

 

or been smoking.

That will just give you a headache!

Bet your thinkin' "Wonder what she'll be up to next?"

Who knows! :)

Just don't forget to put on that pretty smile of yours! 

 This went on for a good 4-5 days of my randomness and some days I would have tears rolling down my face from laughing so hard..... I know I need to get to work and stop all this non-sense but I love hearing laughter and making others smile..... You think these are something... you should see the 50 other ones and not to mention the ones I would get back from others. So next time you are having a bad day or in a bad mood.... give this a try.... I bet you'll be smiling! (Please note.... if you don't want random silly-ness such as this or being sang to on the phone then don't give me your number! You've been warned! LOL!)

Just remember to enjoy life, laugh a lot and love a lot more!

A tiny miracle.... Ryleigh Elizabeth Gelnar

Kelley is a friend of mine that I met while working at Columbia Ortho Group back in 2004. Kelley & Dwaine have a 2 year old son, Ethan, and Kelley was pregnant with a second child. Right around the time they were finding out the sex of this baby Kelley's water broke. She would be confined to her home and have multiple doctors visits and at one point there was not much hope. Kelley & Dwaine remained positive and let the man upstairs be in charge. They had many friends and family that have helped with meals, cleaning house and just trying to encourage them as much as possible. It was a up and down roller coaster ride and then on December 31, 2010 Ryleigh Elizabeth Glenar came into this world. Born at 26 weeks and weighing 2 lbs it was touch and go. She had to have chest tubes placed due to two small tears in her lungs and was placed on a ventilator turned up as far as it would go. Things were really scary. Several of us put a post out asking for everyone to pray for this little girl. The hospital bent the rules and let Kelley hold her in fear that she might not make it. After Kelley held her everything started doing great! I guess baby Ryleigh knew her mom wouldn't leave her side and that she had to be super strong. On Sunday January 2, 2011 I called and talked to Kelley to ask how she was and how Ryleigh was doing. The power of prayer is amazing! She had both chest tubes removed and was on the ventilator still but only on room air! On January 3, 2011 she was off the ventilator all together! Kelley got to hold her for 30 minutes yesterday and this just reminded them both that they need each other to get through this. This little girl is a fighter.... has been from the beginning and always will be. Each day is a new story of hope and thank you all for continuing to pray for her. Miracles do happen.

My New Camera!

January 3, 2011 - Well on December 31st I ended up getting a new Cannon 60D SLR camera from Columbia Photo! I had done my little bit of research and, for me, the Cannon was the best choice. I spent a little more than I orginally wanted to but the bundled kit came with an extra battery ($100), lens visor ($50), HDMI cable ($50), camera body and the lens that is attached to the camera. I was pretty excited  but I don't know the first thing about these "fancy" cameras! A friend of mine suggested that I get a 50mm lens for some great photos so Brandon and I headed down there on Saturday and they were closed! So I played around with it over the weekend.... (the picture above is with an old camera... notice the clarity)

This is Bailey ....

 

This is Mattie Mae....

and this is Maxer Doodle! I love the camera so far and can't wait to get some outdoor pictures when the Spring gets here. I also purchased  Photoshop Elements 9 & Adobe Premier Elements 9 to play around with. I have a really fun project I am working on and will share with you all once I am done..... It includes old antique stuff, outdoor things and pictures.

So the best part of today was this... I went to Columbia Photo this morning to take a look at this 50mm lens (which I did purchase) and ask a few questions about my camera overall (I don't have time for lessons). I walk in the door and who else but Carl Edwards is standing right there! We made eye contact and I shook hands and he asked what I was doing down there.... told him I bought a new camera and then he asked what I got. We made small talk for a few minutes and then he was gone. I keep kicking myself in the butt of why didn't I carry on a conversation about racing, family and all that good stuff but I guess I was shocked to see him. He is a super nice guy and I really respect him and his family for being so down to earth and supporting our local shops. I love the fact that he calls Columbia, MO his home. Good luck Carl on this years race season!

I'll leave you with one more cute picture of my babies.... doing what they do best.... sleeping! :)

Baby Adams Photo Shoot

January 2, 2011 - A good friend of mine, Heather Stewart, went with me to my sister's house for a photo shoot. I wanted to be a part of this day making sure Ashley was comfortable and that the pictures would look the best they could be. It was a lot of fun and Heather was laughing at how silly Ashley and Greg were being!

For example..... they wanted to do belly-to-belly shots and Greg was making the craziest faces while he had his belly pushed out as far as he could. They are silly! It really was a good day and we wanted to have some pictures for her upcoming baby shower. (She wanted to get them done because she is starting to swell and retain fluids since she is in the OR all day on her feet). I can't believe that she only has about 7 weeks to go and my nephew will be here! Time flies when you're having fun!  :)

Happy New Year!

January 1, 2011 - It's always great when you can look back on the past year and figure out how to move forward for the new year. I am thankful that I was able to experience all the things that 2010 had to offer and use those experiences to become a better person. I went through a program called Leadership Columbia which I am so glad I was one of the 30 people picked to be in this program. This was through the Chamber of Commerce and started on January 5, 2010 and we graduated in June. As a Chamber of Commerce Ambassador I reached 606 points (which I am working very hard to get my 1,000 points) in 4 years or less. Our partnership with Midway Heights Elementary School is going great and we just finished up 2010 with a Winter Card Contest. My sister is pregnant with her first child (first grandchild on both sides of their families) and doing good. Brandon and I celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary on September 13th. We took a couple of vacations this past year.... Mexico and Colorado which was a lot of fun. It's always nice to get away from day to day things (special thanks to our employees).
My New Years resoluations are as follows:
1. Smile/laugh everyday.... the world needs more laugher!
2. Be patient.... I have trouble with this but trying to work on it!
3. Be thankful/grateful.... I often take things for granted and need to be thankful/grateful more.
4. Compliment others..... I need to do this more often. A nice compliment can brighten someone's day!
5. Have fun.... well I might have this one mastered so I will carry it into 2011!
6. Do random acts of kindness .... Although I do this I need to do it more.
7. Forgive and forget.... As we get older you must forgive and forget
8. Get rid of the drama.... If someone's got drama that can't be fixed in a few hours or even a day walk away!
9. Call my momma often.... We all know what happened when I didn't .... don't make that mistake again!
10. Enjoy Life.... Stop and smell the flowers more....

Well these are just a few to get me started..... Hope you all have a wonderful start to 2011!