Pregnancy: round 3 :)

I can't wait to share this with the world, but for now I must be patient....I have decided to jot down a few things every now and again about our 3rd pregnancy. So here it goes!

As many know we lost a baby the last week of September at 10 weeks, so the question we pondered was to try again or not....of course we gave it a try as soon as we could and it worked 1st time......again!

Nov 25th: I found out that we had another turkey in the oven the day before Thanksgiving and shared the "turkey" news with Brooks Thanksgiving day. We immediately said that we were not telling anyone in fear of the unknown.

Dec 7th: We went to the doctor to confirm what I already knew and we saw a baby blob aka turkey :) The doctor seemed shocked by our persistence and was impressed to see us so soon. He asked if I had been sick and I insisted NOT b/c I didn't feel the 1st thing with Bryson and I didn't plan on feeling anything with this one......wishful thinking.....

Dec 13th: Morning Sickness is NOT my friend! I have not technically gotten sick (to not be so specific), but boy have I felt like losing it MANY times! This is def. not the way I felt with Bryson and for sure not the way with the last one.....

Dec 15th: I was home from work SICK today.....I had to hide from everyone what I believe is the real reason b/c NO ONE KNOWS.....but I was in the bed all day and any movement felt like my stomach was flipping :(

Dec 18th: Still keeping our secret! We had our family Christmas with my moms side and I hid it pretty well, I think! Although we had Village Inn for lunch and I bout lost it while eating, I held my breath and prayed real hard for everything to stay down!

Dec 21st: I ate like a pig today and everyone was staring at me like I was a bottomless pit....SORRY I was hungry!

Dec 23rd: 8 weeks....and dying to tell....but waiting a little longer! We went to the doctor today and he used the word "perfect" which allows me to breathe! Brooks and the doctor saw the heartbeat....I didn't but I take their word.

Dec 23rd....cont': We had dinner tonight with my brother in law, sister in law and nephew....and I must say that I have learned my lesson with Italian food and garlic...I was up most of the night sick as could be.

Dec 24th: CHRISTMAS EVE and I am SICK! I was in bed till 1:00 when I forced myself to get up and do somethings. I was craving Bojangles fries and a Cheerwine and it actually settled my stomach from the Italian that never settled from last night!

Dec 27th: We flew to New Hampshire today and traveling has worn me out! A few know our secret at this point, but not too many!

Dec 30th: EMOTIONAL WRECK! We flew home today and today is the day that the world found out via........FACEBOOK! As we were waiting to get on the plane I glanced over and saw a solider hugging his family bye and tears started flowing! I stood in the airport crying just as much as him and his family for some man I don't even know! I wished him luck and thanked him on the plane and then the whole plane applauded his heroic efforts! Wow makes me cry again.

So here we are.....EVERYONE knows and if they don't then they don't have a facebook! We are very excited and still a little nervous I have a little comfort in knowing that being sick is supposedly a good sign. I couldn't wait anymore, I just hope I waited long enough. Bryson found out today on the plane and he is very excited again. Thank you to EVERYONE that has left a sweet comment for us and also for all of the prayers that are continually around us! I hope and pray that each and everyone of you have an EXCELLENT 2011 :)
Love and thanks from the Derting FOUR!

Exhausted doesn't cover it........

Oh my......1/2 of our Christmas is over and I am soooooo tired! But it was overall, a fun, productive weekend. Friday night started the festivities for us at my dad's side of the families annual Christmas dinner. Everything went well we had the traditional holiday meal, but I was a little sad that there wasn't any of my grandmother's country style steak. She passed away 15 years ago and her sisters make the same amazing recipe as she did, but no matter how hard I try, mine never works out! It was good to see all the family that we sadly only see once a year. Once we got home the cleaning started and the guests began to arrive.......

By 10:30 I was in the house with Brooks, Bryson....my brother Lane and his friend Caleb, my brother Walker and his friend Johnny.....and the 3 male animals, so I was a little outnumbered to say the least! All the beds including the basement beds were full, The Derting Inn had NO VACANCY! Saturday we prepared for Christmas with my moms family which includes her 3 sisters and their families, 2 brothers and their families which in all totals 30 people, minus 1 cousin and her family. Mom cooked and I cleaned all day.....we had the traditional holiday meal...turkey, ham, potatoes, casseroles galore, and some delightful yeast rolls. My brother Wesley and nephew Weston made it by mid afternoon, so that added two more guests at the Derting Inn on Saturday...which landed Bryson in a tent on our bedroom floor! We ate about 5 and presents for the kids followed! By 9 everyone had packed up and headed home and we headed to Tanglewood (my little piece of Heaven)!!! The boys seemed to enjoy the lights and  they were so cute arguing with one another about what all the light creatures were. Thankfully as soon as we pulled out of the parking lot they were both fast asleep on Gaze's shoulders. I had the bright idea to go to Kohls to pick up a last minute gift and found myself LOST and not able to find Interstate 40 for 45 minutes! We finally found our way home by 1:00 when we returned to find that all the boys nor the cleaning fairy had decided to clean up the dinner mess!!! So finally by 2 I made it to bed....only to do it all again today......

The morning brought Christmas with mom and all the boys.....we exchanged all our gifts and then headed to the Talley House (my favorite Sunday lunch). Once we ate mom and my younger brothers headed home to the beach and I headed home to do some more cooking. Weston and Bryson played all afternoon and seemed to have a fun time coloring, playing with every car Bryson owns, and hiding under Bryson's bed. I cleaned the house some more...and made the traditional turkey, ham, and this time we threw in a pot roast, potatoes, sweet potatoes, broccoli casserole, and the yummy yeast rolls again! By 4 my aunt and her family came to have Christmas with us and my dad. We ate and shared gifts and soon everyone was on their way home. Shortly after Wesley and Weston headed back to the beach as well and my boys headed to Mooresville for some playtime. So here I am ALONE, the house is in one piece, I have had ENOUGH of the traditional HOLIDAY meal till sometime next year, and I am ENJOYING a Christmas movie and some HOT chocolate! 

And so begins the week of Christmas......I have to work tomorrow and Tuesday and Bryson and I WILL SLEEP IN ONE WEDNESDAY (if I have to bribe him with an early Christmas gift), Thursday we will spend some quality time with Brooks' family and Friday will be a day of packing and baking. I got a new cookie maker for Christmas today, so I am anxious to use it :) Christmas day will bring lots of fun and excitement for a little boy who is counting down the days!!! Christmas breakfast will also be served at the Derting's for anyone interested ;) Then we will continue with a tradition we started last year....the movies: Yogi Bear!!! Sunday we will fly up to New Hampshire to spend a few days with Brooks' dad and family and that will then conclude our 2 weeks of Christmas celebration with our families!!

So in case I don't have time to write again before Christmas I hope and pray that you and your family have a very Blessed and Merry Christmas!!! Please keep those in mind that have lost loved ones this past week, including the 2 sweet boys that lost their parents! Remember the reason for the season and I hope Santa brings everything you wished for! Love You and Merry Christmas, Alysha

Memories & Traditions

I am a little sad to see my Thanksgiving break come to an end mostly because I have not sat for more than 30 minutes since I got off of work on Tuesday, but that is okay because it has all been worth the memories. I have come to the conclusion that a good life is full of lots of meaningful, cherished memories and lots of yearly, family traditions. With the holidays now in full swing the Derting's are on the right track to creating lots of both of these treasured things :)

Wednesday started out with cleaning, waiting on the delivery guys, a quick trip to Hickory, more cleaning and waiting on mom and the boys to arrive. Once mom and the boys (all of my brothers) got here mom and I began cooking for our Thanksgiving feast. However, no Thanksgiving (any occasion for that matter) would be complete without a last minute, late night run to Wal-Mart. That in itself is a tradition that never gets forgotten, we always need a couple of extra things once we start cooking, so we hop in the car and come back hours later with a trunk full. This tradition was a success once again!!! We cooked and cleaned till the wee hours in the morning and then we headed to bed for a few hours of sleep before getting up to put the turkey and ham in the oven.

Turkey day finally arrived with many things to accomplish before lunch time! Mom and I got up and of course Bryson heard us at 6 am, so he was up to for the rest of the day. Brooks and my brother, Wesley, were up as well so that they could go run the Turkey Trot 5k. So the day started smoothly and productive with the main dishes in the oven by 7 and us wondering if we should go back to bed or stay up. Mom tried to lay down for a little bit and Bryson was determined that we were staying up, so I decided to sweep and mop while everyone else was sleeping peacefully. I thought to myself....oh yeah, I am good its just 8 and I am almost finished cleaning the house and the food is all ready to be put in the oven, maybe, just maybe by the time 1:30 comes I will be waiting patiently for the guests to arrive with my hair done, make-up finished, and clothes on. Well, I should have known that will never be a tradition, my tradition is to run around like a crazy person, barking out orders of put this here and that there, and demanding that people don't step on my freshly vacuumed carpet lines. So I am ADMITTING, to what my family already knows,.....my tradition is to be CRAZY until the event starts and then (maybe) I will settle down. I should add that at 1:30 I was still drying my hair in my robe...so I wasn't ready, but that is a tradition!! Finally, everyone arrived mom and Brooks had the food nicely laid out and the turkey craved and my house was spotless, so I was smiling inside because once again we pulled it off!!! Thanksgiving was full of good conversations and some laughs along the way :) In the end many memories and traditions were made once again!

Thanksgiving night was as it has been for the past few years...we pulled out the Christmas decorations out of the attic and the madness to decorate began. Once we filled the garage with the 5+ totes, boxes and bags we decided to go to Zootastic as we did last year, so that we could make it a tradition. Mom, Brooks, Bryson and myself loaded up and headed out. We drove through the lights and stopped to feed the goats and sheep (no reindeer this year people, for those that know that memory...lol)  and we roasted marshmallows before heading to the big barn. When we got to the barn....sorry mom, I have to....mom fell off the sidewalk (in her defense it isn't that safe) and that is a tradition for her because she always has a tendency to fall when she is around me. We got her up and walking again and went to see Santa. Bryson got his picture made of course because his Gaze was with him and he gets whatever he wants when she is around (which could possibly be a bad tradition). Mom and Bryson played with the snake because reptiles don't scare my family and then we went out to see the horses, cows, llamas, and camel. On the way there Bryson fell because again the sidewalk was not the safest. Once we fed those guys and admired the 2 day old llama Bryson rode the pony and then we headed home. Memories and traditions in the making that night!

Mom and I have this crazy tradition to join the other crazy people that shop on Black Friday, so Friday morning we slept in a little bit and got up at 4:30 and headed to Hickory to catch our yearly after Thanksgiving deals. We actually did pretty good at the mall, got a few things at Old Navy and Marshalls and then headed to the Conover Wal-Mart because that is our Black Friday tradition. We were home by 10 am with a car load full of Christmas goodies!! We wanted a nap.....mom got one and I didn't. Bryson was too excited about all of the decorations being in the house, so he and I decorated his tree and the spare room tree and put a few other Christmas things out. By early afternoon mom and I were back out and shopping some more because our tradition is to go to Belk and Bath and Body in the Statesville mall on Black Friday because of course its not as crowded, so we kept with tradition and headed to the mall. When we finally got home from our shopping spree, I began work on the tree in the den and cleaning and decorating the kitchen. By Friday night the house was in shambles with Christmas decor everywhere, but we headed to bed and I planned on finishing it up on Saturday!

Saturday morning we finally slept in till 9ish and then it was time for mom and the boys to head home and Brooks and Bryson to head to some new race track in Mooresville. Everyone was out by noon and I was alone with a house to decorate and gifts to wrap, so I worked all day to accomplish these things and thankfully by the time Brooks and Bryson got home at 10 the house was pretty much finished and all presents were wrapped :) My tradition in this, is to have everything decorated the weekend after Thanksgiving, so we can sit back and enjoy it for a couple of weeks and this has now been achieved!

And so comes the last day of Thanksgiving break.....we got up early and headed North with my daddy to Shatley Springs for lunch which is also a tradition. When we arrived there was honestly more people from Statesville there than any other place. We had a good lunch and then headed to the Christmas tree farm that we always went to when I was a kid. This is a memory that I cherish with my parents and brother....and I am hoping that Bryson will one day cherish this same memory/tradition. This was our 2nd year cutting down our tree at the tree farm and he remembered last year and he even asked if we were going to do the hayride like we did last year. It took me a while to find the perfect tree because I will admit, I am a little picky. We found the one and waited for the guys to come and cut her down. While we waited my dad and Bryson played in the rows of trees trying to scare each other. Then we headed down the mountain with a detour through Boone because my dads tradition is to drive and drive to see new things. Also, he drove down the mountain like the old days.....as FAST as he could!! We made it home and unloaded our 8th and final tree! So now the house is complete and ready for Christmas, every room has a tree and all the lights outside are hung and shining in the night!

The weekend has been FULL of memories and traditions that we will look back on for years to come and although I am exhausted and I have to work tomorrow, I am very thankful to have had a PERFECT, MEANINGFUL Thanksgiving break. I am hopeful that one day Bryson will share these same memories and traditions with his family. I hope that you and your family were as blessed as my family was this Thanksgiving. So now we move onto to a new holiday and I can only hope that we will make many more memories and recreate family traditions as we have done in the past week.

Have a GREAT week....make memories and traditions as often as you can!!! Love you :) Alysha

Thanksgiving Eve....Eve

Thanksgiving is quickly approaching which means I have lots to do before Thursday. We had a good (kind of) weekend, hope you did. Brooks decided last week that we needed a new washer and dryer...which means that we needed a new laundry room and 1/2 bath. We had talked about redoing the laundry room when we redo the kitchen and just make it one big project, but for some reason Brooks got the bright idea to do it the week before Thanksgiving. I of course didn't object considering the last load of clothes I washed on Friday night took 4 hours to dry, so I agreed with him that it was definitely time to retire the old Maytag. Not sure if you know, but THANKFULLY when my husband decides to take on a project he sticks with it from start to finish in a reasonable amount of time. He promised that if he started the project Thursday night he would be done by Monday and he didn't disappoint.

Thursday night meant demolition of the 70s tile walls and the pinkish heart wallpaper. We all worked hard to gut the place so Friday would be rebuilding day. When Brooks got home from work he began hanging the new walls and laying some of the floors. He continued his ambitious work all day Saturday and into Sunday. Saturday things went smoothly, but for some reasons things didn't seem to go the right way on Sunday. Nothing bad happened....other than the fact that we made 4 trips to Lowes for odds and ends that we couldn't seem to get right the 1st trip. By Sunday night all that was left was to hang the shiny new mirror, screw somethings in on the new pedestal sink, and add some molding, so needless to say he was on the right track. By Monday night everything was in place. We still need some molding for the bathroom, but that is it. I am very proud of him as always because he was determined to make this a quick, easy, and beautiful project and he DID!! So tomorrow between the hours of  8-12 am (so I am told) the delivery of my new LG front load washer and dryer will be delivered. MERRY CHRISTMAS to ME!!!

Yesterday Bryson's school had their annual Thanksgiving musical and feast. And I have to say that for the first time in the 3 years that he has been there......HE STOOD ON STAGE, MOVED HIS LIPS, AND RANG HIS HAND BELLS.......AND MADE HIS MOM VERY PROUD!! Thank you sweet boy for coming out of your shell!!!

Tomorrow I will prepare the house and some food for the house guests that will be arriving and the 30+ people coming to share Thanksgiving at the house on Thursday. I hope that you and your families are going to share some good food and make some long lasting memories as well!!! I want to end with this because it made me sad.....At school yesterday I had my kids all share what their Thanksgiving plans were going to be and more than one said that their families didn't have money for a turkey....this broke my heart and I invited them to my house!! It made me realize how much I take for granted.....I guess I don't take the time to stop and realize that not everyone is as fortune as I am and on that note I am thankful for many things this week and I am even thankful for ol' Tom Turkey on Thursday because many out there won't have a Tom!! I wish you and your loved ones the BEST Thanksgiving yet!!! Make lots of memories and lots of pictures to remember them by :) I Love You, Alysha

~Bahamas with Mama~

WOW! The Islands in the Bahamas are breathtaking.....crystal clear, turquoise water, nice, white, sandy beaches, and ALL the fabulous food you can eat...at all hours of the day and night! I was thinking that such a short trip would be rushed and SHORT, but it wasn't at all. It was as if the island consumed us and took all the cares in the world away for 3 days that felt more like 10! I highly recommend a cruise as a vacation.....for the price it is totally worth every penny and more. 

Mom and I left NMB at 2:45 am on Friday morning and headed towards 95 for the 9 hours that the GPS told us it would be. I drove 1/2 way and mom the other 1/2. We made excellent time and made it in only 8 hours not 9. We got there by 11:00 and changed from our pj's in the car before we went to check in. We were told to be there by lunch time, but we were not sure why because the boat didn't leave till 4:00...so we were trying to get there by the suggested time, but weren't too worried about getting there early. Thankfully we did!!! We were the first group to load the boat....our rooms weren't ready yet, BUT a HUGE buffet of food was! There was food for everyone asian, southern, salads, burgers and fries, desserts, etc! Once our room was available we took a quick nap before dinner. At dinner we meet some new friends...sisters from Florida and mother and daughter from Indiana. The boat was sailing by this point and the waters were rough and although I usually don't get sick..this time I did...it was a little much for me with everything moving, in a crowded ballroom, crammed with people, and a four course meal sitting in front of me. So we went back to the room took some Tylenol and put on a sea sick patch behind our ears and went to bed. 

Saturday we got up and went down for breakfast...I thought when I got up that it was taking my eyes a while to focus, but overlooked it. After eating and still not being able to see it was becoming very weird that my eyes were not working....I tried to read small print on several things and my eyes just would not focus, everything was a blob of blur. We went back to get ready before docking at Nassau. Mom realized that a side-effect of the patch could be blurred vision. So we RIPPED the patches off and scrubbed our ears hoping it would help my vision. The boat landed (as I called it all weekend) and we got off and explored the streets of Nassau searching for good deals on anything we could find. Mom had to read EVERYTHING to me because I was partially BLIND from the stupid patch....for instance a price tag of $19 was $32 to me. We shopped most of the afternoon and made some deals with the locals before heading back to get ready for the Captain's Dinner. Once back we got all dressed up and headed out for our dinner date with the other ladies. The food again was EXCELLENT with filet mignon and coffee cake for dessert. We ended the night with some more shopping!

Sunday, thankfully, brought better vision (not perfect, but better) and the Island of Coca Cay. We got up at 7, headed for breakfast and waited for the boat to park (land) in the ocean, so we could take a ferry to the island. I really wanted to snorkel because Brooks and I snorkeled in Hawaii and it was the best thing we did while we were there. So we signed up and paid $60 to rent our snorkel gear and $18 for an underwater camera. The snorkel instructor told us that there were fake fish throughout the island that were worth prizes if we found one...so we headed out with hopes of finding a fish! We stuck our toes in the water and it was FREEZING!!!! We questioned why we spent money to get into the Arctic Ocean, but quickly saw a jelly fish that was near us, so we decided to dive in and get away from the sea creature. We swam out and met some really pretty fish, a tang or two, and some yellow tail snappers...we took a break at the lifeguard's stand and we found a GREEN #8 FAKE FISH!!! We were very excited to grab it up and swim to shore to collect our prize!!! The girl at the Snorkel Shack gave us a free ride on a jet ski....so we went to the Wave Hut to schedule our FREE prize. We obviously were not thinking that we only brought back one fish, so we only got one prize, but they quickly broke the news to us that one of us would have to pay, so we opted not to do it and they were nice enough to refund our snorkel money since we gave up our prize!!!! I should mention that EVERYONE we met was very nice, willing to help, called us by name and was willing to make our trip the best it could be! True hospitality is what we found on the Royal Caribbean Monarch of the Seas Cruise Line!!! We spent the rest of the day laying by the water in the 80 degree sunshine in disbelief that Thanksgiving is next week. Before we went back to the ship we stopped back by the Snorkel Shack and asked the girl if we could take a picture with our prize fish and she said yes and even took the pic. We told her we decided not to do the jet skies so she gave us another underwater camera!!! We totally got our money's worth that day :) That night we enjoyed our last meal with our new friends and sadly told our stateroom attendant bye. We were sad to leave the boat, but happy to get home to all of the boys. 

While us girls were gone, my boys spent some time with Brooks' dad and family. They went and played on the beach themselves Friday and had breakfast with them before they left Saturday. Brooks, Bryson, Wesley, Weston, and Walker went to the Dixie Stampede on Saturday night and enjoyed nice front row seats.....Weston and Bryson were chosen to chase the chickens in the chicken race that night and they seemed to have LOTS of fun! All the boys grilled out and played all day Sunday proving that they can survive a couple of days without the direction of us women ;) Mom and I meet Brooks and Bryson in Florence Monday afternoon and we headed north and she headed south. 

So here we are a week from Thanksgiving and I have so much to be thankful for!!! An excellent mini vacation, sweet boys that were happy to see me, a clean house to come home to, smiling faces at work on Tuesday, memories that will last a lifetime, and most of all an EXCELLENT family to be a part of!! Thanks to my mom for the trip and my husband for not killing me for snorkeling without him!!! 

I hope you have had a GREAT week as well and been able to look around and cherish the things that we all to be thankful for!! Lots of love to you, Alysha

Thankfulness, Accomplishments, & Excitement!!!!

I <3 November! This month is such a GREAT month! We have the opportunity to show thanks and be thankful and I am very EXCITED to continue to do that :) I am so THANKFUL for the fantastic weekend that we have had. Brooks and I double dated with the Deane's Friday night. We had dinner and went to see the movie Life As We Know It. The movie had some sad parts, but overall it was so cute and sweet. Bryson spent the night with Grandma Dee Dee and slept till 9:30 for them. I do not understand this because he has NEVER slept that late for us, it makes me very JEALOUS, but I am glad that he was good for them and I am THANKFUL for the time that Brooks and I got to spend together as a couple. 

Yesterday morning, I ACCOMPLISHED something that I haven't done in a while. Brooks and I participated in our 3rd Pumpkin Fest 5k. It was a little chilly and I was terrified that I wouldn't make it, but THANKFULLY I did. My 1st mile was 10:54, 2nd was 11:30, and the 3rd was about 14 minutes. I was proud of the first 2 miles, but I struggled on the last. I haven't done 3 miles since May, so although I am not happy with my time, I am THANKFUL for the fact that I beat my time from last year by a minute. My AMAZING husband took 2nd place in his age group and finished in his best time ever at 23:20. He was at the finish line and I still had 1.2 miles to go, but he has worked his tale off to get there, so I am very happy for him. 

We pondered whether or not we should take the dogs to Pumpkin Fest yesterday. They have never really been out in public, around crowds, or been on their leashes much, so we were not sure how it would go....but we gave it a try! Brooks had Diesel (St. Bernard) and I had Jaxson (Pug). Needless to say they got lots of attention and they had really good manners. We were very impressed with their behavior and everyone else seemed to be impressed by the odd brotherly pair. Many people wanted to touch "Beethoven" and others thought Jaxson was the cutest, so they got equal attention. This was a huge ACCOMPLISHMENT for us and the dogs and we are THANKFUL that they cooperated!

This morning Bryson woke up at 5:30...not really a SHOCKER since we set the clocks back. We now have him "trained", THANKFULLY, to get his cup out of the fridge, turn the TV on, and let us sleep through 2 cartoon shows. We all got up about 8 and went to church. We came home and the work began......I decided that it is time to start preparing the house for the Holidays with a little Fall Cleaning. Bryson and I worked on my closet and drawers for most of the early afternoon. All my winter clothes have made the move from side of the closet to the other and all winter shoes and boots have replaced the flip flops and sandals. During this transition I pulled out and packed for the Bahamas :) Bryson found my wedding dress in the spare closet and he wanted to see it...then he wanted me to try it on (I almost got it zipped), then we looked through our wedding album and discussed when and where Brooks and I got married....so that took a while, but I was EXCITED to share those precious memories with him and he seemed EXCITED to hear about it. 

At this point I have ACCOMPLISHED all of the upstairs closets, dusted all the furniture, cleaned the dust from the ceiling fans, and vacuumed upstairs. I still have stuff to ACCOMPLISH downstairs, but I am happy that the house is almost ready for Thanksgiving and EXCITED to think that 3 weeks from today we will have the smell of Christmas trees throughout the house!

I am VERY EXCITED to get this week started......we will be leaving for the beach on Wednesday :) My New Hampshire in-laws are already there for the week and we will get to spend some time with them on Thursday. Mom and I will leave sometime Thursday night for our mini vacation and the boys will stay back and spend some time with Brooks' Dad and family!! I am already thinking about how I will miss my boys, but I am SO EXCITED to go somewhere with warm sunshine for one last time in 2010!!!

We are all very EXCITED about the upcoming weeks and the Holiday time that we will get to spend with family and close friends. It's this time of year that we all have so much to be THANKFUL for! So the challenge for the week and weeks to come is to show how THANKFUL and GRATEFUL we are to others by helping and sharing our treasures with them. This challenge comes from church this morning....there are MANY out there that need and want for even the simplest things that we take for granted. You decide how you want to help......it could be something local or something that will reach across the world, it could be something free or a nice generous donation....think about this and think of a way that you could help someone in much greater need than you, so that they will have something to be THANKFUL for as well :)
Enjoy your week, you make it what it is, so strive for the BEST and don't settle for less!!!! Love the THANKFUL Derting's :)

A new month!

Hey! Hope you had a GREAT weekend, we sure did! The Derting threesome spent a lot of quality time together this weekend and made lots of memorable moments that won't soon be forgotten. My blonde boy transformed into a howling, hairy werewolf for 2 nights in a row! We had planned on only dressing him up Saturday night, but like always we didn't accomplish everything and every place that we had hoped to, so we did it again Sunday night too! I made his costume and Brooks did his hair and make-up so it was a family affair to create the scary wolf. We decided to go to the Statesville Mall on Saturday night and they had a Halloween Costume Contest, so of course we entered him. We were all proud that Bryson went on stage by himself and actually stayed up there without either of us and it paid off because he took 1st place out of 37 kiddos!! He was proud and excited that he got a trophy! We visited MANY friends and family both nights and took lots of pictures to treasure his 5th Halloween forever!


The past two days I have been in Greensboro attending the annual NC Exceptional Children's Conference.....I have commuted both days, which is a story in itself. Monday morning I left around 7:30 hoping to beat the traffic and make it in about an hour.......well it took me till 9:45 due to an accident in Winston that was cleaned up by the time that I finally got through. So I missed the 1st session at the Conference, but made it in time for the opening session. Each year they try and have an encouraging motivational speaker or teacher of excellence speak to kick off the event in a positive way.  For instance one year it was Clay Aiken (the year after his American Idol run) because (not sure if you know) he was a Special Ed major at UNCC and I actually worked with him on a project once. But all of that is beside the point.......yesterday they started out with a man, who is an artist and he explained that he has ADD and how it has affected his life in many ways and has inspired him to be the artist that he is. His speech was short and he looked down the whole time and I felt bad for him because he stated that public speaking was not his thing, so I was confused that he was the opening speaker and that his speech was less than 5 minutes. After he spoke June Atkinson (I think that is right), EC Director for the state, introduced a lady from NJ, which again I thought was weird because it is usually someone from NC. She introduced Sara......


Sara came on stage with a hobble and a speech impediment and began explaining that she was diagnosed with CP (cerebral palsy) at the age of 4. She was very energetic, well spoken, and fearless. It was obvious that speaking was difficult for her as well as walking, but she spoke for about 30 minutes and paced the stage the whole time. She told many stories about her life and how she has made a career out of her disability. She referred to her life as a puzzle. The pieces were held together with glue, which was her mother. Sara knew from an early age that she could do anything that she set her mind to because her mother always told her that CP could not hold her back from her dreams. There were many pieces to her puzzle and many challenges that she has faced in her life, but she has always been able to focus on the positives. In high school she was "mainstreamed" which she said was a nightmare, but it also helped her realize her dreams. She wasn't the ideal student and in the beginning refused to work and even put forth effort because "she was too busy trying to fit in". She had a teacher, that she now sees on a regular basis, that refused to give up on her and refused to let her give up on herself. The teacher was finally able to MAKE her journal one day in class and Sara LOVED it once she gave in. Sara was Puerto Rican, so dancing was part of her culture although it was very difficult for her. Her mother forced her to dance as her teacher had forced her to journal......she now refers to dancing as freedom for her body and writing as freedom for her mind!!! I love this.....swimming and running are my bodies freedom and blogging is my minds freedom!!!! You should find your FREEDOMS!!!!!!


Sara ended her amazing speech with a challenge.....she challenged everyone to recognize their dreams and reach for them, don't give up and don't give in....you are the only one that can make your dreams come true.....have expectations for you and others around you (for teachers, have and hold expectations for your students, as Sara's teacher did for her)....expect great things and work towards them, just like dreams you are the only one that can make it happen......finally, encourage independence....independent people are strong and depend on themselves not on others.....at the end of the day you are the only one that can take responsibility for your actions, you can not pawn them off on someone else!! Sara was a great speaker full of life even though it is much more difficult for her than me to do ordinary, daily activities. She has never let herself be sad because of her CP!! What an inspiration she is, I wish you could have seen and heard her speak because she was amazing and she has many more challenges daily than I have every had in my life! So I took away motivation and inspiration from her and her life!!!


So now I am home from the Conference and I got to eat out 2 days in a row like big girls do and it has been fun and rejuvenating! The rest of the week looks busy, with a conference soccer game for West, Bryson's soccer party, date night and...........the dreaded.........5k that I signed myself up for on Saturday morning! I am regretting this decision as the day draws closer....for a couple of reasons: 1) I have not trained like I should have! 2) the temperature is predicted to be 28 degrees Saturday morning, but I am hopeful that my body is definitely rested (so that may help) and that the weatherman is WRONG about the temperature! AND THEN next week is my trip with mom to the BAHAMAS!!!!! I am getting EXCITED!!!!


Hope you are having a GREAT week and I hope you exercised your right to VOTE.....I will shortly! Enjoy the cooler weather and think about Sara's challenges :) Love you!! Alysha

Oh my....I have A LOT to say!

My goodness what has happened to my week! Monday feels like ages ago and Friday still seems like a dream! Let's start with the BEST news of the week........Bryson ended his soccer season with a BANG! 2 goals in the net tonight with a total of 4 for the season!! I am sooo proud of him and all of his Blue Dog teammates. I wish the season wasn't over because he has grown so much in the last few weeks and I hope he is able to maintain his new found skills till the Spring. Also Congratulations to the Warrior Soccer Team....pretty sure they came in 2nd in the Conference tonight!!

I feel like I have only accomplished running around all week.....for instance we just walked in the door at 9:15. I know a couple of weeks ago I wanted to be busy and not sit around and boy did that dream come true. I feel like work has not been productive or successful all week with multiple meetings, field trips, testing, and the health fair. And tomorrow holds more meetings and the Fall Festival, so it will be another long one. However I have to remember to be thankful and grateful that the scary tornadoes and nasty weather this week did not have an impact on my family as it did others close by.

I am a little frustrated by actions, discussions, and certain situations that I have encountered this week. I am not sure if its me because my nerves are shot and patience are long gone or if its because everyone is stressed, me included. This is not meant for anyone in particular, so please don't be offended by my thoughts and negative feelings for the week. I am bothered because I feel that we often think that our own problems, issues, and situations are much worse than those around us. We find ourselves searching impatiently for solutions to our problems without considerations of others. I don't know what it is like to walk in your shoes or the burdens that your shoulders carry nor do you know mine, so lets stop pretending that life is suppose to be fair and everything is suppose to be equal because we both know that its not. We are all guilty of thinking that our problems are bigger than others when in all essence they probably aren't. Please mind your own business and worry about solving your problems instead of creating more for me or anyone else. Often if we would just do what is asked of us instead of finding ways around it or finding others to blame for it, we could have already accomplished the task at hand. Again this is not directed at any one person in particular, its just some things that have crossed my mind frequently this week on more than one occasion with more than one person and I feel the need to share.

Ok......enough Alysha......negativity only makes life miserable! I need to continually remind myself (especially this week) that my life could be much more difficult. As we were under the tornado warning at 10:45, Tuesday night, huddled in the hallway, praying that the supposed funnel cloud that was less than a mile from our house would steer clear of me and my family. That night I was truly living in the moment and for the present time because we didn't know what was coming next. A tornado could have easily uprooted our home and blown away everything that we have in seconds as it did for many around us this week. I got Bryson up and put him in the bed with us because I couldn't sleep knowing that although he is across the hall....in a tornadic situation that could mean we could have been ripped apart by one gust of wind. Granted we didn't get much sleep with a kicking 4 year old (awesome soccer player) and the wind that seemed to be howling outside our windows, but we were all together and that was all that mattered at the time. He was scared because he sensed my fear and he asked me if we could we pray to Jesus, pray that he would stop all the storms, keep our house safe, watch over the animals and keep all the people safe.......WOW! I love that boy!

So I end with this challenge for the weekend: lets take responsibility for ourselves, our actions, our consequences and lets stop trying to find ways to blame others, stop trying to make life equal because its not and it never will be, remember to look around because there is always going to be someone worse off than you and me. Before pointing the finger of blame in the opposite direction figure out if you could make a difference by staying out of it, if its not your business, see if you could make a difference by helping that person with their challenges instead of belittling them while they are trying! Let's all try really hard to at least recognize when we are in such situations.......

Have a FANTASTIC Friday, a SCARY Saturday (if that is when you will be trick-or-treating), and a BLESSED Sunday!!! Love you no matter what!! Alysha

What a wonderful, waiting weekend :)

What a weekend to be in the GREAT state of North Carolina! There are a few heavenly treasures buried right around us in and near Statesville! We have experienced a few of the highlights this weekend. Friday kicked off the annual Balloon Rally in Statesville (they now call it a Festival, but that is not what I grew up calling it). This is an event that is one of Statesville's finest and the weather cooperated beautifully, so that it shined even brighter when the 1st balloon arose! Bryson and I parked across the rode from the airport's runway so that we had a perfect view for the 40+ hot air balloons that were in flight. Bryson was very anxious because he couldn't remember exactly what they looked like from last year and I of course made a big deal about because I have many cherished childhood memories from this event and I hope he will too. They floated right over our heads and some onto Interstate 40! My mom met us at our look out spot to capture the floating wonders as well! Afterwards we went to the good ol' Boxcar for dinner.....because mom loves their salad bar!  Thankfully, we turned in early Friday night because we had no clue what was a head of us for Saturday.


Saturday morning we planned to travel a little north to Jefferson to eat at a little, old, historic restaurant called Shatley Springs. This little diamond, still in the rough, has been around (as a restaurant) since the early 1950's. Their main feature is the country ham, but it comes with ALL the homemade fixings.....mashed potatoes, green beans, pinto beans, corn, slaw, cooked apples, biscuits, and fried chicken! It is a true southern, home cooked meal! We usually make the trip a couple of times in the fall because they close for the winter and this is the perfect time to capture the beautiful fall leaves. We called before we left to try and make reservations, but they were booked, so we took our chances and left home at 9:45 am. We got there around 11:15 and the lady said it would be an hour and 1/2 to 2 hours. So we waited.....impatiently because our cinnamon rolls from breakfast had worn off by that point. Brooks and Bryson played by the pond behind the restaurant and mom and I rocked on the porch. Well, 1:00, 1:15, 1:30, and even 1:45 went by and we STILL had not been called to eat. Needless to say, their sense of time is still a little prehistoric! FINALLY, we sat and began eating about 2:15 and finished up around 3:00ish.

In the back of mind, while we waited and waited and waited, I knew that we had to be back in time to see the balloons (again) take off because we had promised Bryson that we go into the Rally to see them blow up and float away. So I knew that we would be pushing it by staying so long in the mountains, but we had one more stop to make. On our way up we saw a cute, little pumpkin patch that we just had to check out. Remember we got pumpkins last weekend. Brooks and Bryson decided that they wanted to make a jack-o-lantern, which Bryson has never done because I am weird and I like to keep pumpkins through Thanksgiving and I hate to mess them up (I know I am crazy)! So we stopped at the patch and got another pumpkin to create a jack-o-lantern. We made it back down the mountain quickly because Brooks passed as many cars going down as he did going up. We got to Statesville about 4:30, stopped by the house to drop Brooks off and to grab some coats. And off we headed to the Balloon Rally to hopefully, be in the gate before they took off. HA HA, what a joke! The airport is about 5 miles from our house, we left the house at 4:45 and parked in the parking lot at 7:00!!! So again we waited and waited and waited! We saw the balloons take off from the car and they looked like they weren't going too far, but there were 2 that looked to be in the direction of the house. I called Brooks and he looked, but couldn't see anything, so we continued to crawl in the long line of traffic for hours. Brooks called back a few minutes later to tell us that one had landed in the front yard :( I was soooo sad that we were not home! He took pictures and invited them back for their Sunday morning flight. We FINALLY made our way into the Rally just in time to see the beautiful moon glow with the hot air balloons. We got lots of pictures and even got to talk to the #30 balloon that landed at the house. We ended the night at a Birthday party for a sweet girl named MaKayla! HaPpY BiRtHdAy MaKaYlA, sorry we were late :)

We told Bryson to wake us up when he got up on Sunday morning, so that we could go search for the balloons to find were they were taking off from for their final morning flight. Bryson didn't let us down, he woke us up at 7:00 am! We got up, threw on some clothes, brushed our teeth, and went searching. We could tell the wind wasn't blowing from our way, so we went a little southwest and found a field with 5 balloons laid out ready to blow up and fly away. We got a front row spot for these balloons and the others that decided this was the perfect distance to make it to their destination. We saw many take off and then we went and found some landing. After a couple more hours of balloon watching we got breakfast and came home. The boys have now craved the jack-o-lantern and the plan for the rest of the day is a swim and a nap!

The week ahead looks busy.....I have a workday tomorrow! I love workdays, don't get me wrong I love my kids too and the days pass a lot faster when they are there, but I can accomplish some things tomorrow, take Bryson to school for the 1st time this year, and not be tied down to a strict schedule! Tuesday is Bryson's last soccer game and then his team is having a party afterwards! Wednesday and Thursday look LONG with LOTS of meetings scheduled! Friday is the Fall Festival at Stony Point, so come out and have some fun! And Saturday we will create our little ______________  for Halloween!! You will have to wait and see what he will be :) Have a fun, safe, great week! Remember to make someone smile and help someone out every chance you get, its more for you than them! Love the Exhausted Derting's and Gaze!

WHEW....is it really just Wednesday?!?

Oh my, I am not sure why I thought this was going to be a slow week at work because for the past 3 days I have looked at the clock and it has been 2:00 or after! Grades were due today for me, so that has been a MAJOR on the to-do list, but they are thankfully posted and off of my list! MAYBE tomorrow and Friday will be a little slower, I can only hope.

I should be cleaning the house instead of writing, but I need a minute to sit! My sweet boy played an EXCELLENT soccer game last night with a last minute goal for the Blue Dogs. He had an EXCELLENT cheering section as well. He really listened to Brooks about playing defense. I see him starting to grasp the concept of soccer more each game, which makes me very happy.....considering I am not sure if Brooks would be able to handle it, if Bryson doesn't pursue soccer. As most of you know Brooks is the JV Soccer Coach for West and LOVES the sport with great passion. I am proud of him though because he said he doesn't want to coach Bryson at this age because he doesn't want to push too hard and cause him to hate the game. Brooks will not be at his game tomorrow night because of his team's practice, but Mom and Terry will be there, so I hope that he will perform as he did last night!

Other than my craziness at work and Bryson's soccer schedule this week, I don't have much more to talk about! Amazing, huh? I have not yet had the opportunity to work on my challenge for the week, so I am hoping before Sunday I will have the chance. Hope you have had a good week thus far and that you have had the chance to make someone smile :) I better go because I hear dinner, laundry, and vacuuming calling my name VERY LOUDLY! Until next time, love you!

The middle of October.......

Another Fall, October weekend has come and is quickly going. Another weekend at home and I must say....I can't take it much more! I told Brooks this morning, when we were ALL grumpy, that I think we have had a little too much down time at home. We have not been to the beach since Labor Day and for us that is VERY unusual and I think it is starting to take its toll on my nerves. Please know that I realize how fortunate we are to have some where fun and free to go on the weekends. Although when we are at the beach we don't do much, it's still a break from home and I need a break SOON!  

The boys went to the race Friday night and Bryson slept after about lap 30, but it was still fun for him to be able to experience that type of race. I went out with a friend to the Olive Garden and we had a fun time catching up on some things. Yesterday, the boys got haircuts, we went to a party at the park, and we went to the soccer complex to see our nephew, Caleb, play soccer. And today we finally got some pumpkins. I don't know why, I am usually more on top of getting pumpkins before now, but I just haven't felt the need this year until this weekend. So we gave the cleanest and the most round pumpkins in the pumpkin patch a new home for the next few weeks. Now I have some twice baked potatoes (a Derting family recipe) in the oven and steaks will be on the grill in a couple of hours. Grandma Hilda's homemade spaghetti sauce is in the crock pot ready to simmer all day tomorrow.

The week looks a little slower at work for the most part, but there is lots to do after hours. Soccer pictures, 2 soccer games, some swimming, and mom and Terry are coming on Thursday! We will be home AGAIN next weekend, but there are lots of things that I hope we will accomplish....the Balloon Rally will be in town and I can only hope that the balloonist will pick our fields to take off in, like they did when I was a kid. Bryson would love it, but we will have to wait and see how the wind blows. We are taking our annual trip to Shatley Springs next Saturday and I am VERY excited. Although we will be home next weekend we have lots to look forward too! Then I will be on the countdown to my "feel better trip" with mom to the Bahamas!!! Countdown right now is: 26 days :)

I feel like I should mention the fact that with all this time at home, my mind goes crazy thinking about how big I would be if I were still pregnant. I also, know that the time is coming to make the decision whether or not we are going to try again and that brings even more questions......do we try right away? do we wait, so it's not a summer baby? or do we just take our chances? because I feel that the lesson that I was suppose to learn....was that I can not plan my life, as I want it to be, no matter how hard I try! Anyway that is all I will say about the matter....we are 3 weeks out now and the experience has faded a little, but I still find myself with questions. 

Here is my challenge for the week: if you see someone in need, someone that needs to talk, someone that needs help opening a door, someone who needs a penny at the store...I challenge you to help. It doesn't have to be much, it doesn't have to cost a thing, just be kind, be patient, and most importantly DON'T BE RUDE! Say please and thank you and accept criticism with an open ear because it may make you a better person if you sit up and listen! I hope you will accept my challenge because in the end it will help you more than it will help the person on the receiving end! Have a great week! Love you all!! :)

I am not sure where this may go......

There are many things running through my mind. Nothing in particular that sticks out as good, great, terrible or bad. Its been a good week thus far. Work has been steady and productive and IEPs are in full swing! The house has managed to stay straight, laundry caught up, and we have cooked every night (that's impressive for soccer season). Bryson and I went for a swim tonight and I must say, I love watching him swim underwater like a BIG boy. I still can't believe how far he has come since the middle of June and I am so proud that we set the goal to teach him how to swim and that we have been able to maintain all he has learned by swimming weekly. I just put him to bed and read him a story. It was a short Halloween book, but he was able to reread most of the book to me, which again makes me sooo happy and thankful for that blue eyed, blonde headed boy.

So this is where I think I am suppose to go with this.......Zahra Baker is heavy on my mind and heart and I can't believe that ANYONE, especially a parent could do the unspeakable! Bryson makes our lives complete. When he makes me mad, he smiles back at me, and mad turns to glad. Glad because I know that no matter what he does, I could never harm him in the way that this sweet girl was obviously harmed. I don't get it! WHY? There are so many people out there that would kill to have a child, not kill a child. There are many out there that have lost children for reasons beyond their control and someone who is just ignorant and oblivious to a child's innocence has destroyed her life. This story makes me terribly sad for this precious child and for her despicable parents!

I pray that anyone that has not taken the time to look at their surroundings, no matter how big or small, no matter if there is new stuff or old stuff, take just a moment to realize that you don't have it as bad as some. I am so thankful, grateful, and blessed to know that I have Brooks, Bryson, our families, a house with lights, water, and food, a job that I love daily, EVERYTHING, everything that I could possibly need and so does Bryson. He doesn't know what it means to do without because he to is very blessed nor does he know what real, harsh punishment is. Yes, he may go to time out a couple (sometimes a few) times a day and I may raise my voice when he has pushed me to the limit, but he will never know the pain that a 10 year old girl in Hickory, NC had to endure. We have to remember when we come across new faces, they all may not be as fortunate as we are and we must be able to open our eyes to see if someone is in need of help before something tragic happens.

So I will end with this: say a prayer for Zahra.....that where ever she is, she is in peace and if she has made her way to Heaven, at least she is pain free now. Remember to look around and be thankful for everything that our full lives have and be willing to give or share if you come across someone not as fortunate. Be grateful that your child goes to sleep at night without worries of abuse or fears of repercussions. Be thankful, grateful, and blessed everyday for we all have more than most throughout this big world! Prayers and love for all in need!!!

A weekend at the Derting's!

FINALLY! We have had a BUSY weekend and everything seems to be back NORMAL! We have been running all weekend, which is exactly the way I like it!

We got up early yesterday to go to Carowinds, to get a little more use out of our season passes. Bryson asked as soon as we got up...are we going to Bojangles for breakfast, like we always do? So yes we went for our normal breakfast trip before Carowinds. We got to the park when they opened and I walked straight onto the INTIMIDATOR and it did not disappoint! It felt GREAT riding the 3 minute 33 second ride with the brisk fall air hitting my face so hard that I had tears! I also, got to sit in the front row, one of the perks of being a single rider, I guess. Then we went to Snoopy land and rode everything there including the wooden roller coaster. I even have to say that Brooks rode the wooden coaster twice and the little yellow coaster, which is HUGE for him because he usually gets sick. Bryson and Brooks did the haunted house and I rode Top Gun (or whatever its name is now) and again I walked right on and rode with some very loud, teenage girls, but it was FUN! The boys went back to Snoopy land and I went for another ride on the Intimidator with a very spunky 12 year old, who was determined to set the record for riding the Intimidator the most in one day. When I rode with her she was on her 11th time in an hour and 45 minutes. I asked her what the record was, but she didn't know, so she is probably still riding! I finished out my roller coaster adventure on the Vortex and I must say it was much better when I was in the 3rd grade. I had the WORST headache when I got off, Brooks said its because I am getting old, but I think that its because the Vortex is getting old, not me! Bryson and I finished up by riding the scrambler with our hands up the whole time...and that is a workout in itself, my arms are still sore today. As we were leaving we stopped by Holw-O-Fest and Bryson got to pick a pumpkin in the pumpkin patch, we made it through the maze, and he played in the Foam Zone! Very cute place for the kids to play, I must say!!

Once we got home Brooks and I got ready to go to the West Iredell Ruritan Clubs steak dinner, raffle thingy. Every year my dad gives to the cause and gives us the tickets to go. So we went last night and enjoyed our salads, steaks, and baked potatoes with this adorable, older couple. They were really sweet and by the end of the night we figured out that we had a lot in common with one another. The nice little lady said she use to be a teacher in ISS and that she retired in 03. I asked what she taught and she said,"well I didn't teach regular ed I taught Exceptional Children...she followed with, do you know what that means?" Do I? Of course I do, that is what I teach. It was fun talking to them even though they won $100 and we won nothing, the conversation was worth it.

This morning we were awoken by a sweet 4 year old wanting to sleep with us about 7 am because the boy can not sleep past 7:30, which means he got this TERRIBLE habit from Brooks, not me! We got up and got ready and went to church. After church we had our weekly home cooked meal from the Talley House with the Deane's. If you have never been there, I suggest you go because they have the best home cooked food around and it beats K & W by a million to one! We talked with them for a while and then we went on to the Y to go for a swim. Bryson and I swam in the little pool because it was about 90 degrees and Brooks swam in the big pool and it was about FREEZING! We swam for about an hour and then we came home :)

Now, I have tortilla soup cooking on the stove and the boys have gone to Brooks' moms to work on a project. My house is back to normal as well....all floors mopped and vacuumed, all clothes washed and put away, bathrooms clean, and the house is dusted. For those that know me, know that this in its self makes me very HAPPY! A clean house is what I strive for and since the boys are not here I can enjoy it in peace for a couple of hours.

We are looking forward to another jam packed week of soccer and hopefully some more swimming. Mom and the boys may come next weekend to go to SCarowinds....which I am VERY AFRAID OF, but I am going to try and face my fears! Should be a good, quick week for us, we hope the same for you!!! Hope you all have had a GREAT weekend with your families......Love you!

All About the Deane's: HAPPY 5TH ANNIVERSARY

This blog is dedicated to Mr. and Mrs. Micah Deane on their 5th Wedding Anniversary!!!

Where to start? Well, let's go back about 10 years ago before Micah met Emily. Micah was mine and Brooks' boyfriend (I called him the 3rd wheel). Micah went everywhere with us......out to eat (we really liked HOPS), he went to Charlotte with us to look at car audio stuff about every weekend (you should ask Micah about some of our drives through Charlotte), we took several trips to the beach, and the boys always played with their RC cars in Stony Point on Friday nights. And then Micah meet his love at the RW! He spotted her through the big glass windows and it was love at first sight. This was sometime in April 2002 (I think)...Micah went with us to the beach for Easter that year, but couldn't wait to get home to see Emily. So our three-some turned into a four-some!!!

We share many memories with the Deane's since they started dating.......our favorite restaurant was Rock Ola (E and I are still sad that they closed). We all went to Pigeon Forge one year and we both had to get new tires on each of our cars because we both got flats, its a funny story now, not so much then! Then we went to Disney in 2004 and had LOTS of fun in that sweet little house near the Publix grocery store!! That summer Micah proposed and Emily was in a wreck the same day (that's something to remember). Emily and I spent the whole next year planning our weddings with many trips to the beach to purchase our wedding dresses and to find the perfect spot for them to say 'I do'! 2005 was a HUGE year for both of our relationships.....we all got married!!! We celebrated Micah and E's BIG day at the High Cotton in Cherry Grove on that warm October day!

Now here we all are 5 years later and our little friend family has grown with 2 sweet little boys! We continue to make memories with Deane's every week with our Sunday lunches at Talley House and our Tuesday night pizza night. So the Derting's would like to say HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO THE DEANE'S ON THEIR ANNIVERSARY DAY!!!!! Hope you have a GREAT day (Micah better do something special)!!! Love you guys!!!! :)

Hopeful.....

I am very glad that this 1st week of October is almost over, that means that we are closer to Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas. I am HOPEFUL that the next few weeks will go as smoothly as this one and maybe as quick too! The week has been good and very productive at work. Home is a little different since we have been on a soccer field, of some sort, every night, but I am HOPEFUL that my house will get back to normal this weekend when I clear the piles of clean clothes and put away the clean dishes.

I am looking forward to a FUN weekend with the boys....we decided to stay home and go to Carowinds!! I am HOPEFUL that the Intimidator will not disappoint!

We went to the doctor today, just for a final check-up and it makes me very HOPEFUL that this is pretty much over and it will soon be time to evaluate whether or not to do it again ;) The doctor seemed very positive and HOPEFUL that everything will be fine, if we try again!

My mom makes me very HOPEFUL because she has a surprise for me that HOPEFULLY I will be able to share soon!!! I am very HOPEFUL that it will make me feel much better!!!

So I will end with a challenge for you.....when you think things are bad and that they couldn't be worse, you must remind yourself to be HOPEFUL! You must not give up HOPE that things will turn out the way they need to be! Remember God gives us only what we can handle and we must be HOPEFUL while waiting for him! Love you and have a FANTASTIC Friday!

What a difference a week makes.....

What a great, fun, exciting, fantastic day!!!!! I had my 1st of the year, formal observation, this morning and my kiddos did GREAT!! We ordered lunch, as a staff, from Chick-Fil-A to support the Sherrill family!!! Almost cleared my to-do list today (it will be clear tomorrow)!!! Went to Bryson's game to find Brooks waiting for us with a new Vera Bradley pocketbook!!! Bryson scored, his proud mommy, a GOAL and I don't think I have ever been more excited!!! It's pizza night with the Deane's!!! And Teen Mom at 10!!! WOW! Look what a week can do!

I am going to make it short and sweet today.....I am so glad that we are a week beyond this sad time in our lives. I have realized with everyday that goes by, I become a little stronger. Although there are still a few times that I have caught myself questioning and wondering why, I just have to keep moving because time is the only thing that is going to make this sad time fade. Very thankful and grateful for a fantastic day and hopeful that the week will continue in the same way :) Thanks for everything and we love you lots!!!

Our 13th "dating" anniversary....

It all started 13th years ago on a Friday, mid-afternoon, standing on the 2nd floor of West Iredell High School near the (what use to be) computer labs, our junior year. Brooks was at the end of the hallway and I was at one of the classroom doors...I think that he was about to be late for class and I was about to go into my class....he said to me, "I know your phone number" and I said "yeah, what is it" and he recited my home phone number because (as hard as it is to believe) cell phones had not made their HUGE technological debut at the time. My reply to him was, why don't you use it sometime. So that night a friend and I went to the football game at Bunker Hill and on the way home I, for some reason, stopped by his house. When I left that night he hugged and kissed me goodnight...and I still can see this scene in my head, I had butterflies that night, and something told me that it was meant to be. So that night he used my phone number and called me, we talked till about 4 in the morning. The next day, I went to work at good ole' JCPenney's (please don't be jealous that I had such a COOL 1st job, ha ha) and Brooks came to visit me. He called again that night and we talked AGAIN till wee hours in the morning, this pattern continued for several nights maybe weeks. We for some reason broke up a couple of weeks later, I don't remember why, but we got back together quickly, so that we will call just a spat. The year went on and we made it to our senior year, by this year we were pretty much one of the more steadier couples and by the end of that year we "won" most likely to get married and live in Statesville....looks like we won the right superlative. Brooks was always very sweet and thoughtful and until a couple of years ago I had every letter (which were a ton) that he had written, that he had left in my car, every card, every movie stub, everything that we had done from the day we started dating. He would even drive to my house every morning to follow me to school and you might not think that is much, but he had to pass the school and go about 4 miles just to get to the house, so it was kind of a big deal for me at the time. We went to both our Junior and Senior proms together and if I knew how to work a scanner I would share those photos with you.

Once we graduated I went to Mitchell and he went to CVCC, he worked at Applebees, I worked at Zimmer Patient Care. He would come over every night, he would come in the house, walk by my daddy, say hello and come upstairs. We would watch TV, a movie, do homework, or whatever till he went home about 11 every night....this pattern continued for several years. Then he graduated from CVCC and I was commuting to UNCC 3-4 days a week. He got his job at the County and I had a great, part-time job at BB&T. This continued till 2004 when he FINALLY proposed. I had already, secretly, told myself that if he hadn't asked me to marry him by August of that year it would be time to reevaluate and decide if we were staying together or going our separate ways, but he answered that question for me in March that year!! We planned (excuse me, I planned) our wedding for the next 15 months, he wanted no part of the planning, all he wanted was to show up and that is pretty much how it went.

The summer of 2004, I got my 1st teaching job at North Iredell High School and was that a learning experience! I already told you how crazy 2005 started out, so we will skip to our beautiful wedding. Some of the guests may disagree because I picked the HOTTEST day of the year to get married outside. We got married beside of the big, white, Manor House at Tanglewood Park in the Arboretum. The day had arrived everything went pretty smoothly the morning of, I had my bridal breakfast, hair appointment, make-up appointment, and then off I would be to get ready at Tanglewood. The scene was set and I was on the horse and carriage ready to roll in at 5:00, when my dad came to me and said the preacher was not there yet! WHAT? Are you serious....I picked a kind of crazy weekend at Tanglewood because they were having their annual wine festival which brought 1000's of people and there was traffic backed up for miles on the interstate because of a wreck. So we waited about 20-25 minutes for the preacher and other guests to get into the park....so it started out crazy, but the night ended just as I had imagined...PERFECT. We were married, the wedding, from the pictures, looked beautiful and the next day we were off to the amazing island of Honolulu. We spent 10 wonderful days on the island and it was breath taking!

When we got home we lived in a little, 800 sq foot, block house that belongs to family. I made the transition to Alexander County that school year, Brooks continued to work at the County, and we were PREGNANT!! That year went by good and 2006 rolled around....Bryson came exactly a month early, but he was perfect, so that was all that mattered! I was at West Alexander Middle School that school year and I quickly realized that being 45 minutes away from my newborn was not working. So the next school year 06-07 I requested a transfer for the upcoming school year and I was able to transfer to the closest school from our house, but still in Alexander County, Stony Point Elementary. This is where I am now and have been for the past 3 years, love it, love the kids, love the closeness to home, love the people, love that Bryson will go there next year. In 2008, we bought my childhood home and my dear husband worked his tail off to gut and remodel 2 bathrooms, lay hardwood floors throughout the house, and paint every room (minus the kitchen) in less than 2 months! I am very proud of him and thankful that on that day in October 1997 something told me that he was the one! He is a great husband, an even better father, hardworker, excellent coach, good role model, and most of all he is still my Brooksie Bear :)

So here we are....13 years later and millions of memories that I could continue to share with you! We have a very blessed life and we are very grateful that you are a part of our lives! We could not have made it to this day without many you being there to support us, love us, and share many memories with us!! Lots of Love to you on this Loving Anniversary Day in October!!!

I LOVE YOU BROOKS ROBERT!!! <3, <3, <3

Where to start...

I am not sure today! It's not a bad day, but it's not the best day, maybe just a blah day.....do you ever have those days? Nothing stands out as great, but nothing as terrible either. Brooks and I had fun last night. We went to the Melting Pot and it was delicious!! If you have never been, I highly recommend!! Also, I recommend that you don't do the whole meal....the past couple of times we have gone we have only gotten a salad (which they have the BEST dressing that I have ever found), then we do the cheese fondue, and then we get the chocolate fondue. We have found that this way you are not stuffed by the time the chocolates come, but yet you are still full when you leave. This is also, $50 cheaper than getting the "Big Night Out"....I don't like meat that much anyways, so Brooks usually eats most of the meats when we do the whole meal, so it is well worth just getting 3 for us. Afterwards we went to Concord Mills and did some shopping and Brooks even tried to get me to get a new pocketbook because I am still carrying a summer one (which I even hate to admit out loud) and I said no, so you should be impressed.

I am so glad that today is the last day, that I can say to myself.....this time last week everything was ok. I kind of lost it a little bit last night when we saw the stupid Motherhood Store. I am not sure why because I dislike this store and I think its too expensive for what they have, I guess it was the simple fact that I don't have a need for that store right now and I felt myself being bitter!

So what have we accomplished this weekend.....the house is clean, the car is washed, yard work is done, we had a date, we watched Remember Me (it was sad and not what I expected), we were together as a family, and the one that sticks out the most....we are 3 more days beyond this experience. So what is the agenda for the week....well, work everyday, soccer games M-Th, then it will be the weekend again. Decisions to make about next weekend...go to the beach, maybe? Go to the corn maze, maybe? Carowinds, maybe? Either way we have fun things to look forward to next weekend, which is the way I like it. I don't like not having a plan or not being busy because then I am forced to sit here and dwell and right now I don't want that.

So today's entry, is not the best....nothing great to say, nothing cute that rhymes, just nothing. Tomorrow's entry will be much brighter and upbeat for tomorrow is our "dating" anniversary and I plan on taking a stroll down memory lane! So tune in tomorrow for something much better than today! Hope you have a great week and know that we love you!

Did you sense my negativity yesterday?

I did and I don't like it! I don't like going to bed with bad things running through my mind. I don't like thinking that 10 weeks ago everything was fine and another child was just a question. Is it bad that I want to turn back time and erase this whole thing? I think, in my thoughts, last year at this time we were happy without a care in the world, then winter, spring, and most of the summer went the same way and now this. My problem is I can't stop questioning why we did this....were we 100% sure that we wanted another baby, I can't answer yes to that because I don't know if we were. Were we trying so that Bryson would have a sibling because we thought he needed one, maybe. Did we do it because I was tired of the questions....when are you going to have another one, perhaps. Did it happen because having more than one is the norm, you tell me, is it? Was there anything wrong with the way we were before, NO! Were we happy, YES! Am I sad now that 10 weeks has drastically changed the past 4 1/2 years, YES! We always said that we would not try again until Bryson was almost in school, so that way we wouldn't have 2 in daycare, 2 that need cars (around the same time), 2 in college. This has been our plan from day one when Bryson was born and maybe that is why I was eager to try because that timeline was starting to expire and YOU know me....got to accomplish my to-do list, so that I can check it off and move onto something new. So is that why we did, I don't have an answer. Now the lingering question in my mind is: try again? And if we do try again, are we doing it for the right reasons or are we now doing because I need to prove to myself that I can do this because I don't like failure! I need help answering these questions and right now Brooks hasn't been much help with this because he has said whatever I want to do, we will do and truly I don't want that responsibility at this moment. So for now the question will continue to run through my mind, so I am going to leave this negativity in this paragraph and I am going to move onto a new one RIGHT NOW!

So this morning my 2 sweet boys let me sleep till 9:45 (because I am not a morning person, if you didn't know that), when then I was greeted with kisses and a cheese bagel from McDonald's. Aren't they sweet? And now I am sitting on the couch making myself better by writing this and looking out the sliding glass door at the beautiful fall leaves and the sunshine. The boys are outside playing with the dogs....let me tell you about our "animals" we have a pug that Brooks got me for graduating college in 2004. He is 6 (wow, he is getting old) and his name is Jaxson. Then we have Weedeater (named by Bryson) we got him when we moved into the house the summer of 2008 because we have lots of fields around us that bring lots of field mice, yuck! Then there are the billion fish and corals that Brooks raises and sometimes sells. We have 4 saltwater tanks in our house...let me try and get them right. We have a 120 gallon in the living room, Bryson has a 34 gallon nano cube in his room, we have a 180 gallon in the basement and 65 gallon frag tank also in the basement. And then there is our newest edition a nice, big, 130 lb St. Bernard given to us graciously by my brother, Wesley, this summer. His name is Diesel and he is 2 years old. He is a very sweet boy and he, Jaxson, and sometimes Weedeater have their own condo in the basement. Jaxson use to live in the house and I let Diesel try for about 4 days when I realized that sweeping a whole dog of fur everyday and cleaning slobber from the ceilings daily was NOT for me. They are very happy and content in the basement because they each have a twin bed to sleep in and the beautiful fish to conversate with (spell check is telling me that conversate is not a word, but I don't care b/c I think it sounds good).

So the plan for the day is for the boys to mow the yard, which will probably be the last time of the year, and for me to clean the house, which is what I do BEST and I like to call it my best talent. I have to share this with you, when we had Brooks' party in August I invited some of his co-workers and one of them told him later that our house was "freakishly clean and weird that it is so clean".......this is a HUGE compliment in book and I was grateful to hear this because that means that my talent shines through :) Then I think Brooks and I may go on a date....I would like to go to the Melting Pot, but I haven't suggested that yet, so we will see. For now I hope you have a GREAT Saturday, thank you for reading and please continue to read because it makes me feel good to share in the best way I know how: writing!!! Enjoy the beautiful day and know that the Derting's love you :)

Some firsts for the 1st of October.....

I experienced many firsts today on this 1st day of October. I should start by saying that I am very glad that I have turned my calendar over to a month that looks better and brighter than the last. For some reason September has never been my favorite month and right now it's falling at the bottom of the list.We are entering one of my favorite times of the year and I am very optimistic that it will bring fun times and great memories just as the last few months of the year always do.

I went to work today and I am happy that the 1st day back is over....I will never face this day again. It wasn't a bad day, many people shared their thoughts, shared their hugs, their love, their smiles and that was all ok! This morning I had my 1st breakfast of champions since finding out....I have been eating fruit loops and drinking orange juice every morning since school started, so today I had it for the 1st time (go figure it tasted the same). I wore a long sleeve shirt for the 1st time today since sometime in the Spring, which I have mixed emotions about because I like my summer wardrobe better than my winter one. Wrote my 1st IEP of the school year,  for those of you who know what that is, knows that it was so much fun. I came home today to find that Brooks had cleaned the house, for what I think is the 1st Friday ever (I am not saying he never cleans, I am saying I think it was the 1st Friday I can recall because I am usually home before him), so thanks dear :) We got pizza tonight, which we had pizza night already with the Deane's this week, so that could be a 1st, pizza twice in one week.

I am a little sad about something today....we usually spend this weekend in TN at our cabin tucked away in the hills of Pigeon Forge for our "dating" anniversary. Brooks has been picking on me for years because he thinks a "dating" anniversary is silly now that we are married, but I think without that "dating" anniversary we wouldn't be married, so we should continue to celebrate, right? We always go the 1st weekend in October because the 4th is our anniversary and we always stay in the same cabin because he proposed on the front porch of the cabin above on March 13, 2004. This is our special place, that makes me happy and I have been apprehensive to book this trip this year. I told Brooks I didn't want to go because we have been for the past 8 years and we just went in the Spring, so what is the point, been there, done that, several times. I think it was the little voice telling me that this was not a good weekend to do this, so that is why we had planned to go to the beach. So a big 1st for us is that we are not on our way to TN right now nor are we on our way to the beach.

Tonight we will spend watching Netflix just like last Friday night, but there is an obvious difference from tonight and last week. Hopefully, there will be some Friday's again that are like last Friday, but for now we will enjoy these Friday's were we are not running around with a million things to do, like we often are. Until then we will embrace this new month that we have entered and enjoy the weekend doing something as a three-some and that will not be a 1st. Love to you and yours!!

Thankful for the positives.......

WOW! What a week! I would like to dedicate this blog to ALL THE POSITIVES in our lives!! First of all, I need to say a HUGE thank you to our wonderful co-workers, close friends, facebook friends, and our families! I truly believe that this week has turned out to be an ok week because of you all. To everyone that has sent sweet notes, given thoughtful grins, been there to listen, been there to read our story and MOST of all to EVERYONE that has said a prayer for us this week! No matter if it was one prayer or many YOU are very responsible for my positive mood and attitude today and for days to come. I would also, like to thank you God for listening and answering all of the prayers that you and we have sent him! I am very humbled and appreciative for everything this week. Please know that I never doubted for once that we were not loved and cared for, but this week has shown us that we are more blessed than I ever imagined and we will never take that for granted!

So we went to the doctor today and it was confirmed that this chapter is closing quickly in our lives. However, I didn't realize this because I have been pain free throughout the entire week. I realize from many of you that have experienced this very situation that it is not usually a pain free process, so that is a HUGE POSITIVE!!

I would like to say that I am still very sad about this situation and sad that there is not a sweet baby in my belly anymore, but I feel as if I have regained myself and my body. As I said yesterday I tried so hard to do good for this baby and not do anything to harm him/her. I think maybe I tried too hard, harder than I should have had to try because again I felt the need to protect the baby from what has happened this week. However, I had a Mountain Dew today and I didnt feel guilty (honestly it wasn't that good, but I knew I could have one without worrying). I want a Starbucks, granted I have forgotten what they taste like, so that will probably be gross too, but that is beside the point! I want to RUN and the doctor said I could, which I felt before I might hurt the baby, so that will be on the agenda for the weekend! I promised Bryson that this weekend or next we would go to Carowinds and I would ride the wooden roller coaster over and over with him! I want a massage badly, so that is in the near future as well. Although these silly, petty things don't replace our sweet baby at least I feel comfort in knowing that I can do this things for a little while before we decide whether or not to try again, so these are ALL POSITIVES!!!

So I feel like I should share my day with you....I went to the workshop that I was scheduled to go to and it was a GREAT day! I had lunch out like adults do, so that was fun!! And it reminded me of my dreams....my dreams to do more than be a teacher. I have pondered going back to school for the doctorate program for a couple of years, but as days go by and I stay in the classroom those dreams fade and take a back burner, but today they were reignited. I would love to be able to be a presenter at workshops and share my knowledge and stories with other educators, become an EC Director someday, heck I want to save every kid from "being left behind" and to do that I need to do more with my career. So the workshop today and going back to work was a HUGE POSITIVE!!!

I am very grateful for this week, it was an eye opener that we desperately needed. We needed to be reminded of our blessings and POSITIVE things in our lives and you guys loving and praying for us was a BONUS! I am happy that this week I have been able to reflect on myself, my life, our lives as a family, our future, and all of the lessons that I have learned this week!! Thank you again for your continued support, prayers, love and most of ALL for being POSITIVES in our lives :) Love you!!!

So I've been thinking......

I've been thinking because that is all I have to do.......I like numbers and I like to make things make sense in number form. I don't like math, so it's odd that I have this obsession with numbers, but I do. My favorite, I guess you could call it lucky number, is 44!!! Love this number, this number has been around for me for a long time. It's in my license tag, it was my teller number at the bank, it just follows me everywhere. I am not sure why, but if I see this number somewhere I know it's going to be a good day.

So anyways enough about my number, here are some more number thingys that I find in my life to be interesting....in 1995, October to be exact I lost my grandmother, then in December (same year) I lost my grandfather and great grandfather. This was a tough year, it was my freshman year of high school and it started out really bad and my mother still continued to make me play in the stupid band, which sticks out as something terrible from that year too. So 5 years later in 2000, I really can't think of anything that sticks out as being bad or a loss or anything worth noting...so fast forward 5 more years. January 2005 was a good month, good things happening, getting married in 6 months and then came February. Brooks had been having problems with his hip, it was hurting for several months, no one could find a cause or reason...he just had pain. We were sent to Baptist and they seemed optimistic, not a big deal, do surgery, remove it, go home the same day. So being the carefree 23 year old that I once was I went with him to Baptist that day, no change of clothes, no toothbrush, nothing but papers to grade and homework to work on. He had surgery on Feb. 17th (keep this number in mind b/c you will see it again ;)). This day turned out to be HORRIBLE! Not only was surgery way longer than planned, he nor I went home that day. Turns out there was cancer in his hip, but THANKFULLY they removed it all and he didn't need any other type of treatment. He spent several days there, not one like planned, and when he got home I took care of him for at least a month b/c he couldn't. This is when I think our marriage really began although we had not said I do, yet. There was even a question as to whether he would have to walk down the aisle on June 11th with crutches. But we made it through, he is able to coach and play soccer now as if it never happened, so this is one of our MANY blessings. So we got married, went to Hawaii (which was amazing) and got pregnant while we were there! Bryson was due March 15th 2006, 9 months, 4 days after we got married. So here is another number thingy for you...I got preeclampsia and was admitted to the hospital on Valentine's of 06. Bryson came the next day and he was PERFECT, not one problem! And we brought our bundle of joy home on Feb. 17th of 06.....remember that number, the year before was a terrible day and we trusted that that day would be better and a year later it was, it was a GREAT day! So now we are in 2010...so far a good year, nothing major has happened until this week. I refuse to say the word, but our baby that was in my belly went to live with baby Jesus this week. So I feel as if God knows what our family can handle and he trusts that every 5-10 years we are ready to deal with something more difficult. I know that he knows once we have dealt with this difficult thing, he is going to give us something GREAT! So for now, we wait!!!

Can you believe that all started because of numbers, whew I need a break ;) Much love to you!

The last week of September....

I was soooo looking forward to this week....2 days of teaching and finishing up a whole unit, that we have worked so hard on for several weeks, then 2 days at a workshop, which are always fun because its something new and different and you get to go out to lunch like adults do, instead of eating in the school's cafeteria, then on Friday was a scheduled doctors appointment to hear the baby's heartbeat and then we were off to the beach for the weekend. Something told me not to post my status for FB as: "Looking forward to a fun week" because that same something told me my week was not going to go as planned and how I wanted it to on my calendar. On Monday, I started having some complications and by Tuesday I knew that there was a problem and I needed to go to the doctor now, not Friday. Well, we went to a new doctor (because mine would not see me and acted as if I was crazy for even calling, I will not mention names, but that is no longer my doctors office), I was calm and my blood pressure was good/normal, which is unusual because its always a little on the higher side, I could tell right away that something was wrong and that there was not a heartbeat. In that moment though I felt PEACE! Peace that I have not felt the whole 9 1/2 weeks because something told me AGAIN, the whole time, it was not real, it just didn't feel right. With Bryson I was carefree and didn't worry, didn't think twice about him or the pregnancy until the end when I got preeclampsia. With this one I have taken my vitamins, not held Bryson, tried to eat right, tried to swim 2-3 times a week, I have been VERY careful, but it just wasn't enough and I think I thought the more I do to do better than I did with Bryson, the better off the baby will be.

As many of you know we told about our SURPRISE at Brooks' 30th Birthday Party and I was only 3 1/2 weeks pregnant . I knew at the time that it was pushing the limit by telling so early, but I was totally caught up in the moment and it was so fun to see our friends and family react in the way that they did. I have been anxiously counting down and waiting for this week to hear the heartbeat before I could really believe that this was true. I have hinted on FB that we were pregnant and many friends, co-workers, and family members knew, but I still could not bring myself to say WE ARE PREGNANT, it just would not come out, it felt like the whole time it was not real. I figured up that I was due the week of Spring Break and how perfect is that be off a few days, have a baby, and take a long summer, again it was PERFECT, but not real! I now know that things are not meant to be perfect and that they don't go as they look on my calendar, on my time and secretly I knew this before, but I was just hoping that God wanted this to be and I realize his lesson in this.

Today is a new day and I feel good, I feel like I should be doing something productive because sitting home, watching it rain is not for me. I am hopeful that our future is brighter than yesterday, but I truly understand the lesson in yesterday and I know that if we are only suppose to have Bryson in our lives then that is PERFECT enough for me because he is PERFECT and I can spoil him and he can be a mommy's boy forever! I think the hard time will come in April when I was suppose to have a new bundle of joy and spend the last month of Bryson's preschool years with him, but I now know that was not meant to be and its ok because my perfect little boy will be going to school with me next year and I can watch every move he makes from kindergarten to 5th grade and that makes this a little easier. For now, I am going to publish this without proofreading because I have a lunch date with my husband. I will be back for more later because I think I have found my outlet: BLOGGING :) See ya in a bit!!!