Autumn Photos in Marksville

Even though we took these a few weeks ago I thought my readers might want to see the pictures we took. My husband is not present as he couldn't walk as far as we had for the pictures. Also missing are my sons Buke, Bryan, and my daughter Samantha. With a busy family it is rare we can get everyone together for photos so these will just have to do.

Dennise, Deanna, Dorothy, and my grand daughter Lilly.

My grand daughterLilly

Dorothy, Deanna, Lilly, and Dennise

Deanna

Dorothy, Deanna, and Lilly skipping.

Dorothy, Lilly, and Deanna running.

Dorothy just hanging around.

Dennise taking some time for a self portrait.

Lilly and Mama (Me)

Dorothy and Lilly

As you can see not all pictures come out great but look at these faces. 

At least in this one they were all looking in the same direction just not the cameras.

Deanna and Dorothy

Dorothy pretending to be a Turkey

Dennise and I

Our first time using the timing feature but here we all are. 

I think this came out really well.

Dennise said hey mom and I looked back at her.

Hope you enjoyed our Autumn Pictures.

Back on my feet again.

Almost a month has gone by and there has been so much that has happened. I guess I will start with first and foremost, then work from there.

I have been battling severe pain under my ribs on the right side in on my back for over 4 weeks. I tried heat, resting, and working through it. Nothing worked and it was getting worse so yesterday I broke down and went to the Dr.

Thankfully it is not my kidneys which already have damage from when I was younger, but I do have a big knot near my spine in the back that will not loosen and has been causing all of the pain. My Dr. ordered muscle relaxers and said if after a week I am not showing improvement then I will start physical therapy. So as I am writing this I have a heating pad on my back and trying to take it easy.

I took the muscle relaxers yesterday afternoon and they made me really drowsy, then another before I went to bed. I know I made it into bed but other then that I must have been out really fast because the next thing I know the kids were getting ready for school and arguing about something to do with shoes. I fell back to sleep and the next time I looked up it was 9:41 and 10:10 before I was up and out of bed.

So here I am trying to catch up on everything with my blogs that I was doing minimal work on for the last month, and we won't even go into how backed up my email is. I am just thankful that I am still alive and well, being able to be here for my family. God is good.

23rd & 24th Anniversary

So here we are 23 years into marriage and 24 years dating. Together Dennis Marks Jr. and I have 6 children Buke (Dennis Marks III), Samantha Marks, Bryan Graham, Dennise Alana Marks, Deanna Marks, and Dorothy Marks. We thank God each day for everyone of them, and the time God has allotted us together. Over the years we have climbed over many mountains while overcoming many obstacles along the way.

Shortly after this year started I was diagnosed with Fibromylagia, and then Dennis had an accident at work which has kept him out of work. Dennis is used to being in charge and for the first time he had to depend on everyone around him. How quickly we learn just who cares. He is slowly healing, just not as fast as he would have hoped. Through it all God has moved in our lives and has provided for us the whole time.

We are blessed to have our grand daughter Lillyann who we love with all of our hearts as well as her sister Alaina Faith who is due in February. We also welcome in our Daughter-in-law to be Taylor Simmons who will be married to our son in the spring of 2014. Our dreams have come true through our children.

When we first thought about our lives together we envisioned 6 children, grand children, and even great grand children, filled with many years of laughter and love along the way. Of course we have had days of sorrow, loss, anger and even days when we were ready to throw in the towel, but the Taurus in both of us wouldn't let it happen.

Yes 24 years later and he still tries to lick my face.

People have asked us how we do it. First of all we have always taken time for date night. Over the years the kids have realized that these days are important not only for us but also for the family. We have had date nights were we didn't have any money to times where we could splurge and everyone of them is just as important as any other. We are able to take time for each other and also talk about things we would like to do or see happen in the future.

Second we try to keep things light. When most people would be worried about things, we laugh over them, or find something to laugh about during the situation. See Dennis is very Pessimistic while I on the other hand am very optimistic. Like I said we are both Taurus's so we tend to butt heads a lot but when all is said and done we usually end up somewhere in the middle, on common ground if you will.

About half way into our marriage my prayers to God finally worked out and Dennis my husband was saved. It took the passing of my father and many years in between of going to church on and off for God to work all things out, but it did happen. I do caution though to be careful for what you pray for, and try to talk to your spouse about what they might be praying for.

About 6 years ago I was praying for patience and Dennis happened to be too, we did not know until everything was over with, but we ended up being homeless. We moved from our trailer to a house so our kids would have more room and soon after I became ill and had to stop working my better paying job. Actually I only kept the other job because we needed the money to make rent, and the Dr. agreed as long as I had something to sit on he would allow me to work. Shortly after this we are told we had to vacate the house, that the landlords had not payed their mortgage, that they were not suppose to be renting the house out, and that they couldn't be found. We learned patience really well over the next 3 months. Being pregnant, working full time, and trying to care for 5 kids with no place to stay was not fun at all. Dennis slept on the cement landing outside of his job while I slept in the car with the kids. We did the best we could till we ended up where we are now. Patience is something we both now have.

The beginning of this year I started to pray for my husband and again unknown to me he was also praying for himself. Shortly after he had the accident at work which has like I said caused him to not be able to work. Even though we didn't want to go through either of the above things in our lives we have learned so much along the way. It doesn't make us perfect, but through it all we have gained more then lost, which has strengthened our marriage that much more.

Each day we learn about each other, and yes even 24 years later we are still learning about each other. We have cried together, laughed together, gotten angry together, and yes even made mistakes together, but the one thing we have always had is each other, and of course God's every lasting patience and guidance through it all. We have more yet to learn and are a little excited to see what the years ahead have to to offer.

Dennis is not only my husband he is my best friend, over the years we have confided the depths of our hearts to each other, and even when we haven't agreed with each other, we have always found that in the end it always strengthens our tie to each other. Marriage takes a lot of love, faith, hope, patience, compromising, and holding on when all others would love to see you fail.  I am very blessed with my husband and my children. I love them all.

In closing I will say what my parents said to me. "Choose right the first time"

First week of school here in Marksville

Here are my last three girls ready for school. Dennise who is in 11th, Deanna who is in 5th and Dorothy who is in 1st this year. as you can see they were up and ready with bells on this year. Last year they missed the bus because the alarm clocks were not set, and we never got the first day of school pictures.

Dorothy needed a bigger book bag so we splurged and bought her one from Pottery Barn that she liked and had our last name printed on it. We would have had Marksville but they only go up to 9 characters. As you can see she is more then ready to get out the door and on the bus.

Of course I have to take the funny face pictures so here they all are again.

 Deanna is ready to go as well. She was all about the cowboy boots this year. She too got a new book bag, but only because it wasn't the right size for Dennise, but she loved it so we kept it. Hers too says our last name on the back. 

Now the picture I took of Dennise by herself on the first didn't come out well and the bus was outside so she snapped a picture of herself the second day before going out to the bus. The most exciting thing that happened on her first day was a massive nose bleed caused by our blood disorder. She freaked some of the teachers out, while scaring other half to death, and the high school nurse was overwhelmed with the nose bleed so she called the elementary nurse to come and take care of it. Luckily the elementary nurse worked in another school system where this sort of blood disease is well known, so after a call home to make sure they were doing everything they needed for her, everything was fine. I am just a bit upset that the high school nurse was unable or unwilling to be able to take care of a nose bleed, what will she do if it something worse comes along? Anyways Dennise made it through the rest of the day just fine and we were all thankful her cousin Teasha helped her out a bit when it started.

Here it is the night before the first full week of school, and I am just getting this up. The kids started last Thursday with High school pictures being on Friday. Friday I took Dennis to pick up the new machine for his leg, an even though his company pays for it they put the receipt in the box. Just under $1,400. I can't say this enough but I am so thankful to God my husband did this damage to his leg at work because I have no idea how someone who doesn't have insurance for this kind of accident could ever afford to keep there bills paid on top of being able to afford the care they need to heal correctly. 

Yesterday Samantha and Lilly moved back home officially. Things might still work out between David and Samantha but not under his parents roof right now, they need time away from each other. Samantha is going to save up to move out into her own place again but as for now she is home again.  

Today was the start of Soccer for both Deanna and Dorothy. I didn't take pictures this week but rest assured next week you are in for a treat. Both girls kept the same coaches they had last year which is awesome. Next week Daisies start up again for Dorothy and until Dennise joins anything at school that is about it for us, which will keep us busy enough for a while. 

As you can tell there is always something going on in Marksville, so you never know what tomorrow will bring.

Prayers for my cousin Mary and her husband Maurice

I realized after my last post I didn't tell you about my visit with my cousin Mary and her husband Maurice when they came to visit from Canada. I am just glad they were able to make another trip down this close to their last trip since I missed out that time. We talked for hours and had a good time, she was even able to meet one of my brothers for the first time.

I would like to ask for prayers for Mary as she is having a bit of a bleeding problem which she was telling me about while she was visiting. Her Dr. had said it was normal and then after she was home for a few days she ended up in the hospital and they confirmed that it was not normal they did some tests, and are going in to take a biopsy, then depending on what they can get out or find they may have to go back in for more surgery. Also a prayer for her husband as he also has surgery planned this month, which means a lot on both of their plates since our family is here in the US, and Maurice just lost his mother a few months back.

From left to right you have Maurice, Mary, me, Dennis and Deanna in the front. Dorothy was busy playing with the neighbors and Dennise took the picture for us. This also happened to be my mother's birthday which was August 25th, so having family near made it that much more special.

School Shopping is done

We went and officially finished school shopping the other day. Just a few years ago we only had about 50.00 to spend on each of our 6 children, and I have to give God all of the glory of being able to afford for the last few years clothing and supplies for my children. Yes I still look for the deals, but we were able to splurge on a few items for the kids, which made them really super excited about returning to school this year.

My couponing, rebating, and online work are really starting to pay off, and to think I am still small fries to other sites out there, but everyday we see growth and that is all that matters. I will ride this out as long as the good Lord sees fit. He has blessed us so much this year.

We also had time to stop in see Bryan dropping off bedding, posters, and socks that he needed. He is now in a private home with other boys. He can stay there until he is 18-21 or until he can get an apartment of his own, or decide to still come home. He will now be going to a public school and is quite excited to see how that goes.

Right now Bryan has a cast on his leg do to an injury he had shortly after moving to the private school, and for some reason the bone fused the wrong way which makes him walk with is foot sideways,so they are trying a cast first to re-position the foot before they decide to operate by re-breaking the bone and resetting it. They might even have to put in some hardware so that his foot will pivot the right way. They tried to say his foot was that way always but he had no problem walking and then after the fall on the basketball court at his school he never walked right again. So unless that injury caused the problem to surface they are full of it. Either way he is walking around on it so God willing it will heal without surgery.

It was nice to be outside for a change. the kids playing basketball, chase, and just had a all around good time. Leaving is always hard for me, but I know he is only a phone call away, and the next visit is only around the corner.

I try to make sure I always take my camera up when we visit so I can capture a picture, since I can't just take pictures anytime I would like. We took this picture as the sun was coming out and minutes later we were all sweating pretty bad from the heat. Thanks to the sweet lady who took our picture for us. Missing are Buke, Taylor, Samantha, and David.

Oh that is right Samantha and David worked things out and she is staying at the house with his family. That got us jump started on finishing Bryan's old room to make into a guest room for that just in case, and also for when Lilly spends the night.

I am proud to say that so far his room has gone from a hoarders dream to being totally cleaned out.It was OK when Lilly used it as a room while living here, but it was never totally emptied out until now. The kids were just throwing everything they didn't want into there they didn't know what to do with including, dirty clothes, papers, toys, and boxes. We did find a few things we had been looking for like scissors, towels, and some of my shirts, which were borrowed by my older two girls but never were returned.

Tonight I will be sweeping and mopping the room, and then Dennis is going to try and paint as long as his leg can take it. The room is one of the smallest and he can always sit down in between if he gets tired. We just want it done and usable. We have worked on so many things around the house this summer but it always seems like when you fix something you find something else that needs working on.

As for our landlord fixing things he stopped with his men leaving a big mess in our yard and our basement. Dennis and he had words and he knows now that he will not be paid rent until he gets everything done that he said he would. Some things go back 6 years while some things like the raining in our closet is new. It is time he spends more then a few days fixing our home up, then leaving before they are done, fixing things right, while making us happy renters.

MarksvilleandMe hopes everyone else who has children or who has to go to school is ready and that you too have something to look forward too.

Oh what a day.

First thing this morning I took Dennise for her check up, which went well, although he did send us for blood work up just in case, then we stopped and did a quick run through of walmart, I found two new shirts for myself, an outfit for Dorothy, some jewlery and shirt for Dennise, then stopped to get gas.

We stopped to get a burger and when we were about to leave I got a call from Samantha, she was crying, I asked her where she was, she told me, and I told her we were nearby so she met us in the Burger King parking lot. Remember me saying she had her own apartment, then moved out to live with her boyfriend's family? Well she is home again. thousands of dollars shorter on money because she helped his parent pay for security, first, and last months rent to be able to get in there.

I feel really bad for her as she has to start all over again, but thankful we have the room for her to return home again. On top of that a broken heart. Please pray for her as well, because the other day she had a bit of bleeding and discharge, they did check on the baby and the heart beat was fine and she sees the Dr. again this week to check on the baby again.

She didn't have stress when she was pregnant for Lilly and so far between moving, working, and relationship problems she has had nothing but, don't get me wrong he is a nice guy but I think going from his mother doing everything for him to being in a relationship with a girl with a small child already and then jumping into having one of their own was just too much for him, then after moving back in with his mother he went back to her doing things for him again. Samantha is just a bit more mature and wants to do it herself, if she wanted a mother's help she would have stayed home living here.

I just hope she stays home long enough this time to get fully back on her feet. She had planned to take 6 months off when she had the baby in February, and then return to work, while going for her RN, but now she isn't sure if she will be able to take that much time off or not. Time will tell how things go, but all I want for my children is for them to be Happy, and happy she isn't.

We took Lilly when we left Burger King, so she could go to work. I have been sending her messages all night to help her through. Since Lilly has been born she has had a schedule and ever since Samantha had someone closer to where she was living watching Lilly she went from going to sleep on her own, potty training, and eating on her own which she has been doing since before she was a year old, to having someone have to feed her, not going potty, and staying up to all hours of the night.

Since I still had to do my job today we stopped home to get my paperwork, then Dennise and Lilly went with me. I was able to get both jobs done pretty quickly then we stopped at Kmart and picked up a dress for Dorothy for school, and a pair of hot pink shoes for Deanna.

At home we had steak, squash, salad, and baked potato for dinner. A call came in for me and thankfully I took it because they pulled my name from the same place I got my other two jobs and I have yet another job to do which I can do anytime it fits into my schedule, which is sweet if I can keep my jobs coming this way. Dennis also told me I got a call earlier about another job, which I will call back tomorrow, as by the time we got home, had dinner, and settled it was too late to call back. So my fingers are crossed I can pick up this job as well.

As I said before God is good, and even though things don't always go the way we think they should, he always knows what is best. Thankful for my family and the love of Christ in my life.