Happy 4th of July!!

Wikipedia says that Independence day is...An Independence Day is an annual celebration commemorating the anniversary of a nation's assumption of independent statehood, usually after ceasing to be a colony or part of another state, more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Most countries honour their respective independence day as a national holiday and some countries or nations' independence-date honours are contested. Declaration of independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1776.
The 4th of July has always had mixed feelings in my own mind. As kids growing up we never bought fireworks except for sparklers. My dad had something against it; maybe it was cause he was in the army, for our safety, too expensive, etc. Not really sure. But man when we were kids it sure did suck and we did get made fun of alot, but thankfully are friends just let us light their fireworks (this did include bottle rocket wars). Also growing up we always watched fireworks in Gladstone while sitting in the back of my dads truck in the parking lot of my high school. They had awesome fireworks, it still is the best fireworks that I have seen in my 30 years.
As an adult I have spent almost every 4th of July at my friend Cameron's dad's house in Excelsior Springs, MO (a.k.a. E-town). In this environment we eat several times, play bocce ball, play golf ball toss, watch the kiddos swims or play on the slip in slide. We also part take in a fireworks display put on my Cam's dad David and his brother Brad. At times there are some things blown up such as watermelons and pumpkins. This use to be way cool - however I now think that there are too many kids around that it could be a tad on the dangerous side. I do not have much say though cause I am a guest with no kids! I have only missed this event 2 times, 1 time I made an unexpected trip to St. Louis and the year after that I did nothing.
I think that the 4th is kind of silly - we blow things up to celebrate our independence. However it is probably on the list of holidays I enjoy - why? - cause it is a holiday where you just show up and eat!! No gifts are needed.
Well enjoy your day of independence wherever you are and however you celebrate. Just be smart if you are lighting firecrackers.

Drum playing update

Well I figured it was time for a drum update since I have been playing, maybe I should say learning to play for a little over 2 months now. I will say that I am to the point where it actually feels like I am playing something and keeping a beat. Am I ready for an audience - no prolly not quite yet. For the last two months I have been working on the three way coordination - which my teacher says is in many songs in some way. I just take his word for it. The three way coordination involves the snare, the bass drum, and the high hat. So I think that I have finally got those down at least at a slow speed with out making numerous mistakes. Then today at my drum lesson I learned how to involve the other three drums. So now I know a pattern that involves the snare, the bass drum, the high hat, the 2 toms, and the floor tom. It is a pretty awesome feeling I must admit. And next time I have a lesson (which is not for a month due to weddings, and the Jamaica trip) I get to bring my iPOD and play along with a song that I enjoy. So if anyone has any suggestions send them my way. I am hoping some of my favorite bands do something simple that maybe this chick drummer can handle. I truly am excited that I have found something fun to do and who knows maybe someday I will play a song in front of people and they will enjoy it!

3 weeks from today!

Okay so at this time in 3 weeks from today I will be in sunny, warm Jamaica with some very fun friends (DJ, Dawg, and Yoh) celebrating our 30th birthdays. It is really hard to believe that it is finally almost here. We have been planning this for along time and it is really going to happen.

I still have lots to do before we leave. Such as continue to work on my base tan - don't want to burn when I get there, that would be somewhat of a downer, get a few shirts, a dress - my friends have decided that we should get "dressed up" one night, oh yeah and get abs of steal - it could happen - but doubtful, I have done 200 crunches in the last too days! I have always wanted abs of steal or a six pack (that you don't drink) so what better time than right before I go to Jamaica to celebrate being 30.

You might wonder what four girls are going to be doing in Jamaica for 6 days? Well we will be staying at an all inclusive resort so we will be taking advantage of all those amenities (4 pools, 4 whirlpools, snorkeling, windsurfing, sail boating, kayaks, hydro bikes, and hobiecats). This place also has chairs to layout in while you are in the ocean -SWEET! The resort also has many restaurants with good food, so of course that will be in the daily plan as well. Most of the days will consist of soaking up the sun as much as possible, partaking in the water activities and eating some good food.

Finished for now!

Okay so I will start by saying that I have been getting some flack for not posting for a month, or only posting when it has to do with Pat Yoh! So I will post now about some information that has changed and most of you might already know - if that is you then you can just stop reading or click on the comment section and say hello!! :)

About a month ago the high school basketball coach that I work under at BVNW decided that it was best for him to quit now and to go in another direction. This was very hard to hear because he was helping change the program in the right direction - however there were many people who do not agree with that statement mostly parents and the administration. So he felt that there was too much politics and felt that he was only going to be able to stay for one year and then the likelihood of him getting fired after that was highly possible. So then after he quit all the assistants then had to make our own decisions. I thought about it, talked about it, and prayed about it. And after about two weeks I decided that the best choice for myself and for the girls involved in the program was to quit coaching at the high school program. I am sad however I feel a huge peace over the decision and the choice that I made.

I am going to try to coach 8th grade girls at the middle school level if there is enough girls that go out. It is a shorter season and less of a time commitment. And you teach lots more fundamental things about the sport - which is really my favorite part, also the most important part! So with that being said I plan on filling up that time with church things, taking pictures, playing my drums, and of course hanging out with my friends.

This Past Weekend

Some Kingdom Living supporters with the newest nurse in Merriam
The famous Pat Yoh and her graduate
Showing my unicycling skills to the Yoh family
Yoh and her friend Jay
After the big day of events we took the family to T-Rex for dinner

So this past weekend was filled with Graduation madness and other fun things. We showed Pat and Jen Yoh the city highlights and did our best to entertain them. I went to 2 graduations, 3 graduation parties for my b-ballers, dinner at my moms for the Yoh's, hanging out in Lawerence one of my favorite cities, rode the unicylce for Jen and Pat Yoh, and dinner at the T-Rex! As you can see the weekend was pretty packed but it was so worth it to celebrate my great friend Yoh's big graduation and the next step in her life.

Time with Pat Yoh

Okay so I had a quick trip to West Unity (WU town) and got to take some pictures of the horses and of course the Gabby girl! We went to see the new neice Brynn - however I did not take any pics of her. One of the things that we do while we are at Pat Yoh's house is to do the chores with her at 5:00 p.m. Which is when Pat Yoh goes outside to feed the horses, the million cats and kittens, and the dog Cooper (a.k.a. Poops). As the guest you usually just tag along and pet the animals, occasionally you can feed the horses an apple or two.

I have posted a few pictures below.

MARCH MADNESS

The Kansas Jayhawks on their way to the BIG game!
Candice Parker dunking! She will the first round pick for the WNBA in the near future!
The LADY VOLS going to the BIG game yet again!

Oh what a fantastic month March is. Spring is here and the warm sunshine is upon us. Plus it is the great month of college hoops tournaments. This year both of my favorite teams are in the final game - also known as "the ship!" My boys the Kansas Jayhawks and the Tennessee Lady Vols!! The next two nights are going to be great times of watching some great basketball games.