Mom has RETURNED!!

Well, the house is still standing, and mostly the way I left it. The girls are just as sweet and giggly as ever. BUT, the husband is in sad shape indeed. It has been a long time since I have seen such a bad case of the chickenpox. The picture only gives you some idea. Kayla and Sierra are glad I am back so they can finally rest! They did an awesome job taking care of him. I couldn't be more proud. We also had some fantastic friends who stepped in where the girls couldn't. God certainly does provide.
Kraig is healing, not as quickly as he'd like, but healing none the less. Like I said, the picture gives you the general idea, but I left the truly bad stuff for your imagination. Besides, it really would gross you out! Right now, he is up and about and tends to wear out quickly. Hopefully, going back to work next week won't kill him.
Anyway, I had an awesome time at Melanie's. She has a very nice facility and it was fun helping her make it better. My muscles were very sore from the long week of working and playing. I was afraid the airport would do a "cavity search" because I walked so funny. Fortunately for me, they passed me by. I should also note, in my desire to be politically correct...I decided to try "tree hugging". This is not recommended when skiing as I quickly learned. Thankfully, I made it home with all my limbs still attached and working as properly as they were when I left. Well, I must go now, the "spotted one" will need my help again soon.

A Week of Adventure and Excitement

Kraig--This has been an interesting week. Jennifer left last Friday for Colorado Springs to visit my sister, Melanie. Her week has been filled with shopping, eating out, being creative, watching movies, and skiing! Her biggest complaint has been that she is sore from skiing.


My week, on the other hand, has been filled with sickness. Sierra came home Tuesday after throwing up at school (and then in the car). I was diagnosed on Thursday with CHICKENPOX!!!! Yes, at the age of 35, I have chickenpox. It hasn't been too bad, except yesterday, when I had a fever (102 degrees) all day long. I tried to get Jennifer to come home early, but she was too busy eating bonbons. One good thing is that Kayla has let me borrow some really good books to read, and the girls have done an excellent job of taking care of me.

Sierra--I made a model, in school, of the stages of a butterfly. Stage One--It's a tiny, yellow egg (modeled by rice). Stage Two--A caterpillar hatches from the egg (modeled by a spiral noodle). Stage Three--The caterpillar turns into a chrysalis (modeded by a shell noodle). Stage Four--A butterfly hatches from a chrysalis (modeled by bowtie noodle). My stomache has been upset all week, especially after I threw up.

Kayla--I have a few things I want to say. I have been dealing with being the oldest girl in the house, taking care of somebody with chickenpox, and having to deal with a few arguments. I have had to make food and do things I've never done before. I have had a little fun--watching a movie with Dad and Sierra, serving Dad, and buying the food at Wendy's. We have all missed Mommy terribly.

Who'd have thunk that she is so valuable that we all fall apart without her?! Hmmmmmmm, it must be love. Of course, this all means that my physical has to be put off yet again. When I called the recruiter to tell him, he said that the place where I get my physical done (MEPS) had lost my paperwork, and I wasn't going up Monday anyway!!!!!! So, we'll try again in a week.

Lunch with the girls--03/20/2006

Being unable to have my physical done today, the girls decided I should put my time to good use, and asked me to eat lunch with them. So, here are pics of us in the lunchroom! Enjoy.

An Experiment!--March 19, 2006

What's all the Smith family news that's fit to print?

**Let's see--Sierra has lost another tooth, and is truly gappy!

**I went up for my physical at MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station) last Monday, only to be told that my recruiter had messed up, and Air Force applicants weren't being processed that day!!! Since I had awoken at 4:00 a.m., and had a lousy night's sleep on top of that, I was not a happy camper. Also, as I had taken the bus onto Ft. Meade, and left my car at the hotel, I had to wait until 9:00 a.m. to get a ride back to my car!!!! :( Aaaarrgghhh. But wait--it gets better!!!! I rescheduled for tomorrow, only to be told on Friday that the doctors who reviewed my medical prescreen want the requested medical records BEFORE I go up. Consequently, my recruiter is driving down here on Monday to pick up these three pages that I have so he can take them back up to MEPS so I can reschedule my physical. Please pray that God will straighten the path and remove obstacles so that my family and I can begin to have a life, and get out of waiting mode. Kayla says that we are very low on patience, and she's right.

**Jen is currently in Colorado Springs (actually, Falcon, CO) with Melanie. I sent her out of the state so that she can get a break. I'm wishing that I had gone instead! She left on Friday, and doesn't return until Sunday. I'm sure they'll have a great time this week.

**Kayla continues to bloom into a beautiful young lady before my very eyes.

**We put a new top on the convertible last weekend, and it looks really good. You can tell that amateurs did it, but it isn't as "ghetto" as having duct tape all over the top! The weather is finally getting warm enough to use it, which makes it all the better!!!

**Our pastor preached a very good sermon on "Community" this morning. If you are interested, check it out at www.southpoint4u.com.

Okay, can't think of much else. Hope you have a great week!

Kraig and the girls

Dad calls me "Gappy"

This week I (Sierra) lost 2 teeth! Dad keeps calling me “Gappy”. I have 2 others that are loose. Mom says she will have to feed me just applesauce and runny mashed potatoes if I lose any more this week.

We decided this week that unless the Air Force gives us dates sooner that we will be moving to Mimi’s in Oklahoma for awhile. But not until after school is out. I am excited about going there, but sad about moving away from my friends.

Tomorrow is Aunt Mel’s Birthday. We called her today so we could be first, and not forget.

Tomorrow is also Super Silly Sierra’s Soup, Sub, and Salad Shoppe! It will be our restaurant for Sunday instead of going out to eat. The VanFosson’s will be coming. They just had a new baby 2 weeks ago. I am excited to see her and her brother and sisters too. One of Dad’s friends might come too.

February 25, 2006

It's been an interesting week. The girls continue to be a joy, and to fill our lives with laughter. For instance, Kayla had a meeting with some catfish this week! Some friends of ours from Mississippi brought us back some fresh catfish last Christmas, and I asked Jennifer to fix it this week. When she did, she also fried up some chicken. The girls, not really being very observant, assumed it was ALL chicken. When we sat down to eat, Jennifer placed a piece of catfish on each of the girls' plates. Kayla was in LOVE! She was enraptured by the "chicken." She said, "Mom, this is so good that you could fix it EVERY DAY FOR A WEEK!" She begged for more and more and more!!! When we finally told her it was catfish, her face fell. She was crushed. She felt betrayed by our "treachery." However, she was informed in short order that we'd have none of this "It's okay, but I don't really want to eat anymore" stuff, and that she was expected to eat catfish WITHOUT COMPLAINT!!! Today, she informed us that it was no wonder she had confused the two--CATFISH TASTES LIKE CHICKEN!!!

Kayla also received the "Good Citizen of the Month" award for her grade. We are very proud of her, and she is leaving big shoes for her sister to fill. She attended the arraignments of several juveniles, and was greatly saddened by the plights in which they found themselves. She was very impressed at the kids in shackles. After her visit, she was required to write a letter to the Judge, thanking him for allowing them to visit and for meeting with her class and answering questions.

Sierra lost a tooth this week. The "Tooth Fairy" at our house is not very quick at compensating the children for lost teeth. Sierra was quite disappointed after day one, and no appearance had been made. She was even more worried on Day Two when she couldn't even find the cup! Apparently, the Tooth Fairy had borrowed everything so that she could put money in AND give Sierra a new headband. Sierra has yet another loose tooth, so the Tooth Fairy will have a chance to redeem herself soon.

Jennifer is continuing to teach two Communications classes at the local community college-College of Southern Maryland. The classes are going well. She is teaching interviewing skills this week, and always enjoys this part of class.

I am also teaching at CSM. I have a Remedial English course and a Freshman English course, both of which I enjoy. I enjoy the students. My problem is remembering what I taught each class! I am also teaching American History to 8th-graders at the local Christian school. It's amazing how quickly they can drain my energy. I'm hoping to do a field trip with them to one of the local Civil War battlefields soon. My really big problem is coming up with lesson plans for three classes every week.

Oh, yes! I have been asked to preach at a local church this Sunday. It will be nice to be back in the pulpit.

And, . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . one last thing. We bought Kayla a game, Phase 10, for Christmas, and played it last night. Sierra was on Jen's team, and Kayla and I each played separately. Jennifer usually has really good luck with cards, and last night was no exception. She beat us so badly that Kayla went to bed in tears last night! It was sad. Even sadder was that Jen beat us again today! Kayla and I will be giving Jennifer a "Blanket Party" tonight!!!

February 18, 2006

Hi, this is Kayla! I drew the lucky number for doing the blog this week. I have some very interesting news to tell you this week.

1. Sierra can't eat corn-on-the-cob because she has a loose front tooth! It was really funny watching her try, but Mom took pity on her, and eventually cut it off the cob.

2. It tried to snow today, but now (sniff! sniff!), it has melted. :(

3. A friend of ours had a baby this week. We're going to take them cookies today. However, because I'm sniffly and coughy, I don't get to hold the baby!!!!!! :( Sierra gets to, though. Grrrr!

4. Dad, and the other husbands, had a Valentine's Day Banquet for their wives. There was filet mignon, twice-baked potatoes, green beans (ugh), homemade rolls, and Dove chocolate and chocolate roses. We kids were stuck with pizza and sugar cookies and put in the basement.

5. When we woke up on Tuesday, we found surprises from our lovely father. Before he went to work at Staples that morning, he put out boxes of M & M's (the kind with messages on them) and cards for each of us. Mom got a box of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

6. Sierra and I both had Valentine's Day Parties at school Tuesday. We both got lots of valentines. Dad doesn't like it that some of them were from boys!!!!! I got lots of candy. Sierra asked both Mom and Dad to attend her party, but they couldn't come. They had to teach class. :(

7. Yesterday, surprisingly, I only picked up pencil one time at school!!! That's not normal for me on Fridays. Instead, I had computer lab twice, did lots of reading, and a guest speaker--Mr. Rice--shared with us about Juvenile Detention. We get to go to Kids In Court on Wednesday. I never want to go to Juvenile Detention because I think it's really bad! They tell you when you can go to the bathroom!!!!! You don't even get to bring a book!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That's all of my interesting news for this week. Dad is still waiting for medical reports from his teenager life before he can have his physical scheduled. Talk to you next week!

Kayla for the East Coast Smith Family

February 11, 2006

Hey everyone!This is Kayla.It's my week to update the blog.I'm doing better with my homework.I still hate(sorry,I meant dislike)homework though.I am sorry to say that I got a C on my report card.Sierra got all good grades on her report card(she doesn't get letter grades).Now About the Air Force, as you can imagine, we are very short on patience. In cschool, I'm learning about the St. Mary's River Project (SMRP). This project helps us understand about our watershed area. I'm having a lot of fun, and I think I'm going to like it when we move into the Air Force.

We had a date last night with Dad. We ate at CiCi's Pizza, and then played games there. WE also sent to Jacob's Well, and then watched some of the opening ceremonies of the Olympics, but they were too long for us, and we didn't even get to see the lighting of the torch! I really wanted to! Here are some pictures from our date.

Sierra's doing better on her reading. She's enjoying reading, even though she says she doesn't.

Daddy's getting medical records from various places so that he can schedule his physical. The physical will take four hours! He has to have everything checked. Basically, I think he's in the USAF.

Call me sometime!

Kayla (for the East Coast Smith Family)

Hi! This is Sierra. This weekend, I update the blog!!! I have been cleaning my house and going to school. I have been doing fun stuff like working with magnets, having recess, and reading books like After My Bath and The Three Little Pigs. Kayla is struggling to keep up with her homework.

Daddy went to the USAF recruiter. He talked with the recruiter, turned in his papers, and bummed free stuff (t-shirt, pens, stress balls) off of him! Afterwards, he and Mom bought Kayla and me each something. I got an Air Force magnet, and I'm going to put it on the car!

On Sundays, since we don't get to go out to eat as much as we used to, we have a different restaurant at our house every week! This week, our restaurant is called Betty's Spaghettis! We have invited our friends, the Kendigs and Tina Long, to join us at this restaurant.

Okay, back to Kraig. Six year olds don't have a great mind for details. Anyway, I will have to go up to Baltimore for my physical. Yeah--can't wait for the checking of my body cavities. :( After that, it will be another two weeks before the results of the physical come in, and the recruiter will then send ALL of my paperwork (security form, credit check, etc.) down to Randolf AFB in Texas. Theeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeennnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn, I have to wait (surprise!) for the next Chaplain Review Board (whenever that is). And then, . . . . . . . It's hopefully going to end soon!

So, there's our weekly blog. It's now on the schedule, so hopefully, it will stay up-to-date.

Multi-job City!

In seminary, I worked a variety of different jobs, and usually at the same time, as well as doing classwork! It was great fun, and I so longed for the day when I would have one job. Having had just one job for the last 5.9 years, I am now back in the situation of having several jobs! I'm working at Staples Tuesday-Thursday, and Saturday, from 6 a.m. until 11 a.m. I am teaching two classes at the local junior college (CSM) on Tuesday and Thursday (12-1:25 and 5:30-6:55). Jen is also teaching two classes at CSM on Tuesday and Thursday. On top of that, I am now working at a local Christian school--King's Christian Academy--as the a lunchroom monitor, a resource room person, and American History teacher! Three jobs, plus a family, working out, running, etc. It's gonna be busy for a while! On top of that, we're still waiting . . . . on the Air Force recruiter to call. If you need me, try my cellphone. If that doesn't work, try the local insane asylum!!!