All I want for Christmas is.......

........my ONE front tooth!

Christmas is in the air

We are loving Washington! The clouds are incredible! Really! One thing that I can not get enough of is Mt. Rainier. It is so majestic. The pine trees are everywhere and there are mountains in the distance. This place is just gorgeous!
It is quite chilly here tonight, in the low 20's. We had snow flurries the other night, but nothing stuck. I can't wait until it does. It will be so fun to have the kids and Chester out there.
We did our Christmas baking this last week. The house smelled so great.
We have our tree up and decorations as well.
The best part.....we have our Tony home this year!

Hello

Well, it has been a little too long I suppose. Life just got hectic and my priorities changed. But, here I am again.
Well, 0 seconds until I see my husband again. Yep, he is home!!!!! The build up and excitement was almost too much to handle. I didn't tell the kids until about 2 days before because I didn't want them to be let down at all. His trip home was uneventful. He got to stop in an unexpected place and enjoy some nasty coffee. We got a call at about 5 AM saying that they would be in EARLIER than we thought! That was an awesome phone call. I had tried to prepare myself for a later arrival, but never dreamed of an early one!
All three of us were ready and at the meeting place early. The place was full of energy....people couldn't sit still waiting. It was electric. Finally the buses pulled up and out the soldiers ran! I bawled like a baby when I saw the buses. After some speeches by some important people, the soldiers were released and TOny came over to us. The kids both jumped up in his arms at once! It was great to finally see him and hug him. We were a family once again!
The days that followed were hard. I will be real with you. The transition was not smooth. It was not like R&R. It was really hard. We just didn't flow like we always have in the past.
Tony went back to NC to see his family the next week. That was very hard too.
However, since he has been back from NC, things have been 1000X better! We are coasting along a smooth road now. I am so thankful for that. We are back to us!
This past weekend he was able to get off work on Friday and Monday. God blessed us with RAINY CLOUDY days for 4 days!!!!! It was amazing. I don't think has happened since I have lived here. I mean, it just kept raining! A town nearby got 13 inches of rain in one day!!!! We loved it. We relaxed and watched football a lot. Tony BBQ'ed. The kids did great.
We are now prepping for our move. We have dates lined up for the movers to come! We will be out of here by the first of October!!!! YIPEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE.....sorry, did you hear me yell for joy......I can't help it.
Now comes the daunting task of preparing the house for the packers. Yikes.
So, I better get off this computer and back to working.
Thanks for supporting us and loving us.
:)

Update

GO BRONCOS!!!!!

Summer Fun In Idaho

What else do you do on a 100 + degree day?

Matching dressses from Grandma and Grandpa

Just hangin out!

Chester

We got our long awaited puppy! His official name is Winchester Freki, but we call him Chester. He is an amazing blessing and such a smart dog. He will be trained as our service dog. We are so excited to see the ways that God is going to bless us with Chester and his service and skills. God is so faithful!

Denaiza's B-day

She is 5 years old now! She had a grat time. It was Princess themed and she had two cakes.....a princess cake and a princess castle cake. A geat time was had by all. (Even princess Grandpa!)Thank you for sending cards! The dollars were a BIG hit!!!!

We have WAY too much fun in this house!! I love my Mom and Dad!!!

Trying to be silly too! Yikes!

July 15, 2009
Dear Friends,
Close your eyes and imagine being in the mountains of Colorado - the fresh air, the sounds of birds and streams, the bright blue skies with puffy white clouds. It is almost paradise for some. Keep that vision and then pretend you are on a mountain bike, sucking in the high altitude air, your muscles are burning, the sweat is dripping down into your eyes, and your shins are covered in blood and mud. This is also paradise for some -specifically Brady Adams. Brady is an 18-year-old from Boise, Idaho. He loves mountain biking! Brady is going to be racing in a grueling 100-mile race called the Breckenridge 100. This incredible course climbs 13,719 feet over its 100 miles, taking 11 to 12 hours to complete. Yes, you read that right, 100 miles! This is Colorado’s premier off-road endurance race.
Although this will be an amazing and unimaginable challenge for Brady, we realize that there are things much more challenging and difficult in life. Things like starving children, abandoned orphans, mothers dying in childbirth, corruption, disease, physical pain, and people living lives centered around evil. These issues are common place, everyday occurrences in the lives of Byron and Shelley Tlucek. They are a missionary couple who live in Port au Prince, Haiti with their children. Although their jobs and responsibilities are varied and numerous, their main goal is to be an extension of God’s hands here on earth, specifically in Haiti, and to bring glory to Him.
The Tlucek family is currently serving with Heartline Minisitries. The family’s main focus is the children living in the children’s homes that Heartline Ministries supports and runs. They do various activities to prepare the children to be adopted and live successful live in the families that adopt them. One example of this is taking the children and nannies to church with the family each Sunday. This is such a key element in their ministry. Sharing the gospel with the children and nannies is the one thing that will truly make a difference in eternity! Right now they are transporting children and nannies from the children’s homes, people from the short term mission teams, along with their own family to church each Sunday in a small SUV. That is at least 32 people each week that rely on this family to transport them to a place where they can hear the word of God and learn His truth.
As mentioned above, the Tluceks also minister to mission teams from the U.S. that go down to Haiti to serve the Haitian people. The teams can range from 5 to over 30 people. When these teams are in town, which is quite often, the Tluceks provide meals, transportation, and support to these people. The teams bring with them energy, fresh ideas, and A LOT of supplies. So, not only do the teams need transportation, but there is also a need for transportation of all the luggage and supplies that are brought in.
What can we do to help the Tlucek family? Their undertakings are so huge and their responsibilities are so great! We need to do something to assist them in their mission!It is obvious, after reading about the activities that are going on with the Tlucek family, a major need for Byron and Shelley right now is a second vehicle. Their desire is to purchase a 15-passenger van in Haiti. They will also install a luggage rack on top of the vehicle. This vehicle would be so much more than a motor and four wheels. This will be a “God mobile” allowing people to share and hear the word of God. Take a glimpse of all this van would do… it would transport children to church, children to Christian school, women to the hospital to deliver their babies safely, food for the orphans, supplies from the airport and all the other things that God brings their way.The van will cost approximately $35,000US. Praise God, a total of $15,000 has already been collected for this purchase! We need to allow God to use us to collect the rest of this money.
The beginning of this letter talked about Colorado, mountain biking, and a young man named Brady. God has given Brady a heart to serve, just like He gave the Tlucek family. That is where the connection became clear. Brady is going to ride in this 100 mile race, honoring God, and raising money for the Tlucek family to purchase that new van! However, you and I can have a part in this too. We can raise money for the van by sponsoring Brady for each mile he rides.
Please pray about this opportunity for you or your family. This is an incredible way to make a difference in the lives of people in Haiti, who need the Lord desperately, without leaving your home town. You can sponsor each mile for as little or as much as God leads. Even 10 cents per mile can make a difference! Your willingness to prayerfully consider this opportunity is appreciated more than words can express.

May God Bless You!

Brittanny J. Liles

Please send your donations to:
Tlucek Family
c/o Brittanny Liles
6222 S. Snapdragon Pl.
Boise, Idaho 83716

Please make any checks out to:
Heartline Ministries with a note in the memo line that the indicates the money is for the “Tlucek Van Fund”

**Your donation is tax-deductible and you will receive a receipt to use for tax purposes.**

Seconds.....

Well, God has brought us through over 28 million seconds in this deployment. That is alot. I have around 3 to 4 million left.....I think I can make it.

This summer has been so busy! The kids had swimming lessons for 2 weeks. Dimitri had football camp for 1 week. They had 1 day of golf......long story. They also just finished 1 week of basketball. Next week is free....thankfully! The wek after that they will have soccer. I am tired just thinking about all that. They have completley enjoyed it though.

We got a puppy!!!!!!!!!!!! He is precious. His name is Winchester Freki, but we call him Chester. He is in training to be our service dog! God is so good and all-knowing. He provided the perfect dog and situation for us. We believe that Chester is going to be used by God in mighty ways to help with some of the problems we have been dealing with. To say that I am excited about this edition would be a severe understatement.

Tony came home for R&R and we had a wonderful time. We went up to Tammarack and rented a cabin for a few days. Grandpa and Grandma were saints and kept the kids. Tony and I felt like we were on a 2nd honeymoon! It was so relaxing. The area was maginificent. God did such a great and perfect job creating Idaho!

My 10 year class reunion is this weekend. The kids and I had a fun time at the BBQ tonight. They looked darling and behaved very well. I enjoyed talking to old friends. Good times......good times.....

Exciting news.....both kids can FINALLY ride their bikes (with the training wheels). I tried for months in Texas to teach them without any success. We came to Idaho and Uncle Brady had they riding like pros in days! Thanks Brady! You are great! If you are this great and teaching everything I might have you try teaching them to wipe their bottoms......cause I am a bit tired of that job! :)

That is all for now. I will try to get some pictures of all the adventures on here soon.

So much to say....so little time to type

We are in Idaho and we are having a wonderful time. Well, actually wonderful doesn't really do justice to our experience here so far. Every time I am out driving I can't help myself but thank God for all the beauty He has created around here. I just can't get enough of looking at the foothills.
The nice dry (humidity-free) weather has been so enjoyable. Not getting lost when I drive has been relaxing. The friendly smiles and kind words from strangers warm my heart.
There are so many blessings that have been given to us that I can't hardly focus my thoughts.
The kids are LOVING being here. The swim in the hot tub nearly everyday. It calms my heart to be able to say, "Go play in the backyard." I don't have to worry about crazy things happening to them. They have been so tired by the end of the day that they can hardly even disobey! Wear them out and they become perfect angels....who would have thought? (Now that I think about it, maybe that is why my mom and dad always had us kids in so many activities!)
I love being with my mom. We laugh alot, which feels so good. I enjoy looking at the clock to see how soon Dad will be home. I even enjoy hearing Brady's music float....I mean bounce....down the hallway. I love my family, and I really really missed them.
I have so many more things to tell you all about. Be back soon!

My Awesome Purse!!!!

Here are some pictures of my amazing purse that my mom made. The different patches on it are from the different units that Tony has been in over the years. We used the fabric from one of his old uniforms. So, I feel close to him when I carry it; it is almost as if his sweat still lingers and reaches out to touch my arm. Romantic huh? We used an Army belt for the strap and the zipper from his uniform top for the zipper on the purse.

The purse is just neat!

Isabelle

Many of you reading this know my good friend Shelley in Haiti. Her youngest daughter, Isabelle, is pretty sick. They think they have the problem figured out now, after a couple days of Haitian frustration. Please pray for wisdom for the doctors, for strength for Shelley and her husband, and of course for Isabelle's quick and full recovery.
Thanks!

Back to Grandma

So back I go to Grandma's visit. It was such a huge blessing to have her here. We had a blast laughing together and hanging out. Some of the highlights that I haven't mentioned yet were:

-locking my keys in the car at the fabric store

-going to my first Texas garage sale

-a trip to the the outlet mall

-Mom's first trip to IKEA

-french toast and pancakes for the kids for breaksfast

-homemade pizza pockets

Also, she made me the most awesome purse. I will tell more about that tomorrow and I will put pictures up too.

For now, here are some pictures of the kids enjoying Grandma.

R&R

Only 2.6 million seconds until I get to see my dear husband! We are 88% done!!!! Good stuff people, good stuff!

Easter Sunday

We started off the morning with the kids eating cinnamon rolls while I got ready for church. Then I got them in their outfits. We headed to church and received God's word. In the sermon I was reminded that God's hand is in everything in life, even the hard and evil things.

After church we came home and the kids took a nap. When they woke up from their nap we had a mini easter egg hunt and they got a little gift for Easter. Denaiza got a swimming Barbie and Dimitri got a "Woody" doll from the movie TOy Story. He was thrilled and played with Woody and Buzz the rest of the day!

Here are some pictures.

UNC

I will get back to the Grandma visit soon, but I just had to share these pictures with you from this weekend! Dimitri is so cute! This was from Saturday when we all dressed up for North Carolina. Daddy would have been proud.

St. Patrick's Day Pics

Spring Break Part 1

So sorry it has taken me so long to update this. I will start back a few weeks ago. The kids had their spring break and I needed some help for that week. My mom was so gracious to take time off of her work to be here with us and to help me out. She was an angel the whoel time she was here. Truly, it was such a relief to have a partner to get through the day and night with. She supported me with Denaiza and all the struggles involved there. She calmed me at night when I had nightmares, and just her presence allowed me to be able sleep much better during the nights. The kids, of course, were thrilled to have her here. When Grandma is here they get "yummy breakfast" like pancakes and french toast! Grandma is also so much fun to play with and they get to do extra fun things with her around.

One of the first things we did was go bowling. I haven't been bowling in forever, but I was still fairly confident that I would be able to beat my half-century old mother with long nails. The competition was on! Much to my surprise, she was pretty good!!!! She pulled ahead but with my last turn I came even and we TIED! It was so funny. We were giving each other such a hard time the whole game, and then we tied!!!! We decided that God desired peace in our household for the next week, and that is why we tied. (Really, I just didn't want her to feel bad.)

The kids had a blast bowling as well. Dimitri was so funny! After he would walk up and push his ball......he would wait for the five minutes that it took to roll down the lane, then he would run back and flex his muscles! We couldn't stop laughing. Denaiza enjoyed dancing to the music they were playing. (It was obvious that her Grandma didn't teach her to dance!)

Here are some pictures:

We love our Grandma!

Denaiza is SO happy to take a picture with me! (Can you tell?)

"OHHHHH"

"Why is it going SO slow?"

"Yipeeeeeee, I hit some!!!"

We also celebrated St. Patrick's Day Adams' style. We wore green and had green jello shamrocks for dinner!

Fun Stuff

We have had an amazing several days with my mom here.....so much laughing, some tears, but most of all, a lot of fun and time to love each other. It has been wonderful, except that my mom broke a nail trying to help me start the lawn mower.....life in Texas is rough!
More to come........

Ding Dong

There is a city near us that is named Ding Dong..... seriously.....can you believe that? Strange people.

Time Change again!

Can you believe that it is ALREADY time to change our clocks again? It seems like just yesterday that I was writing the post about changing the clocks back. I am so glad that time is going by so quickly.....and tonight I get to do something that I have been looking forward to for a long time....I get to "fast forward" time. heehee Wonderful! I am always saying that I wish time would go faster, tonight it happens. Yeah!
Sweet Dreams

Good Times

May 2007- Sea World

It was a fun time!

Blessings

I think this is an awesome story.....there is a lady that I have "gotten to know" over the internet on a chat group for Army wives. Well, her husband died last week in Afghanistan. She is 27, like me, and they have a 1 year old son. Here is where the blessings start to flow....her husband had just come home on R&R last month. So they were able to spend time together and she has a lot of recent pictures. Then, she just found out that she is pregnant!!!! God created that little life in her knowing all that would happen in the days to come. How amazing is that????? I couldn't help but cry. God is so awesome and so into details! What a wonderful gift this child will be to her for the rest of her life.

A good day

Today was a good day. God worked some wonderful things out in our lives. I was finally able to find a program here that might be able to help Denaiza. It has been more than rough the past few months. This program has many different things available and I think that we will be able to find something to help Denaiza's life be more enjoyable. She had her first appointment today. We were also able to get into another doctor there next week; they had originally had a month waitlist, but providentially, there was a cancellation this morning and they were able to get us in! YEAH!
Also, I was able to get in to see a doctor today. Our prayer was that she would be receptive, kind, and compassionate towards what it is going on, and she completely was! It was awesome. She decided to put me on some medicine that, according to the research, should have a really positive effect on things.
These have been two big hurdles in my life, and God took care of them both in one day! His mercy shone down on us in Texas today.

Another great piece of info is that my mom is coming to visit us!!!! I am so excited. Besides the giggling and laughing that we always do together, it will be so fun to have someone to do things with here. I will have someone to talk to while I wait to pick the kids up from school! Just little things like that will be so nice. I have several little house keeping things to do as well, but they take two people, so they have been on hold for the past 6 months.......it will be nice to get them done. I am really excited to have a girls night.....every night....after the kids go to bed!!!!!

Doing well.....

I feel so very productive! It isn't even 9am yet, and I was able to get the kids to school, do a load of laundry that is now drying, fertilize the yard, adjust all the sprinklers, weed the flower beds, kill fire ants, load the dishwasher, and sort clean laundry.......I feel like my mom!
But I don't have the bathrooms done yet....apparently (according to my mom) cleaning bathrooms is an extremely freeing activity. She does that instead of Yoga. I think I will just save them for my mom so that she can feel "free" when she comes to visit.

Hmmmmm

Should I be offended, concerned, or just impressed that after watching a Proactiv face wash commercial my 4 year old daughter asked me if I wanted to buy "some of that" for the "little owies" on my face?
Well maybe I shouldn't feel bad because she then informed me that "Grandma already uses it!"

So Hard

I am so very thankful that I am not God. It would be incredibly difficult to have to make the decision to allow North Carolina to loose....especially to a team who has a turtle for their mascott!

Choices and Decisions

I have so many things on my plate to make decisions about. I wish it were as easy as which shoes to wear. (cause we all know it would be flip flops, rain, snow, sleet, or hail) I feel like my decision-making confidence is kind of low because of all the times I have messed up. I don't want to make another bad choice.

On another note, we have reached another Friday! That means another week is behind us. We only have about 36% left to go before R&R!!!! We are also down to 15 million seconds until he will be home for good..... well at least until this deloyment will be considered a past event.

A random scrapbooking thought....have any of you sat down and looked at your pictures and realized that you have so many that you don't even know where to start? This is the obstacle I face each time I attempt to start......any ideas on how to get over that little bump in the road?

Much Better

So far, we are doing much better today. No one peed the bed last night! Denaiza only had a small temper tantrum this morning! My headache is gone! Plus, another week is almost done!
Thanks for all your kind words.

update to Wednesday

and the day goes on.....
can't sleep, head pounds and cuts, sweating, chills, throw up, more medicine, doesn't work, sleep, phone call from Dimitri's teacher, he has peed in his pants twice today and peed all over their bathroom, I need to go pick him up, get up, clean up, get clothes, arrive at school, change Dimitri, collect 2 pee soaked outfits, get Denaiza, get in car, can't see staright, head is going to burst, go home, get home, turn on cartoons, put two towels under Dimitiri so he doesn't pee on the sofa, cry......cry some more......don't think I can keep this up much longer.

Synopsis of my morning

2:30am still awake, 3:15 am still awake, finally asleep, nightmare, wake up startled, 6:45am, head pounding, another lovely headahce, great, slept through alarm, great, jump out of bed, already late, kids up, Dimitri peed in the bed, Dimitri in bath tub, Dimitri dressed, Denaiza temper tantrum, kicking the wall, Dimitri crying while I brush his teeth, Dimitri done, brush Denaiza's teeth, she spits on my sleeve, Denaiza done, walk downstairs, Dimitri shoes on, Denaiza screaming, Deaniza kicking wall, coats on, Dimitri in car, my head feels like it is being sliced by a knife, Denaiza won't get in the car, temper tantrum in garage, start car, Denaiza in car, music about repentance and forgiveness on, Denaiza kicking the seat in the car, smell pee smell in car, figure out that Denaiza peed in her bed, too late for a bath, Denaiza lies about peeing in her bed, car pulls in front of me while I am going speed limit of 55, slam on brakes, get to school, kids out of car, Denaiza refuses to cross street with me, cross parking lot with Dimitri, Denaiza yelling, get "the look" by school employees when Denaiza finally walks across crosswalk alone, enter school, sign in, kids to class, hug Dimitri, Denaiza ignores me, walk back out of school, take deep breath of humid sticky air, getting sick to my stomach, get in car, blinding sun in my eyes, driving home, pull over, throw up, back in car, arrive home, sheets from 2 beds with pee into washing machine, take medicine for head, check email in hopes of reading a kind word from my husband, junk email, head pounding.....
All this and it isn't even 8am yet. I am going to lay down to pray that this headache will go away before I have to pick up the kids. Hopefully the day will reset so that when I wake up again this will have all been a bad dream and not reality.

"morning by morning new mercies I see"

My prayer today: Lord although I do not deserve it, please show me Your mercy this morning.

Daddy vs. the NBA All-Stars..according to Dimitri

Valentine's Dinner

Growing up I remember my mom being so wonderful. She was the kind of mom that does all those things you only see in the commercials.....for example: the heart shaped sandwiches, the smiley faces on napkins, celbration dinners for special days, sewing special outfits for Christmas programs and 1st days of school. She always went all out for us, and I will always remember that.

Now, it is my turn to be a mom, and although I will never do as good of a job that she did, I try. My kids are a little different then my brothers and I were and I am a bit less energetic than my mom, but like I said, I try.

Tonight I decided to do a Valentine's dinner for the kids. Well.....actually I am not sure that it was really for the kids because I knew they would both complain about eating it (that seems to be the new, not so wonderful, trend around here.) On our menu was pink mashed potatoes, turkey, gravy, green beans, and heart shaped jello. Below are pictures of our meal. I enjoyed it.....as for the kids, Dimitri had to be force fed and Denaiza threw up her food onto the table TWICE! Oh well......I tried. I guess next year they will just get macaroni and cheese.