Sarah Palin

About a month or so ago I told Jerome that I thought McCain should pick Sarah Palin has his VP choice. He said that that was not likely, he probably didn't even know who she was. Na na na na na, I told you so! YEA Sarah Palin is awesome!

We are very PROUD to call her our Governor in Alaska. She is as down to earth non Washington as they come. She sold the state jet, and got rid of her driver. She does actually drive herself around town. Last year at the Bear Paw festival in Eagle River she and her youngest daughter parked by us nearly a mile away from the parade. They walked like everybody else. She could have just driven right up to the police guy and gotten special parking, but no she chose to be treated like everyone else who should have gotten to the parade a tad bit earlier for better parking!

Jerome met her at the Welcome home event for his Brigade in December. She was the guest speaker and he was very impressed, not just because she is beautiful. Her son is also serving our country and she believes in the US Military.

She is Pro Life, and even just gave birth to a beautiful baby boy with Down Syndrome. She is Pro drilling and has put the natural gas pipe line in motion. Not to mention that $1200 extra per person energy relief that she just passed for AK citizens to offset the cost of high fuel prices. Sarah knows how to get things moving and shakin'. She is an excellent choice for VP! Go Sarah!

Check out http://www.johnmccain.com/ or http://www.adn.com/ for more information on Sarah Palin and her rise to Fame. Don't forget to register to vote. This is going to be an historic election no matter what side you are voting.

Alaska State Fair 2008

Jerome is off hunting Moose in Northern Alaska. We have not had a chance to go to the Fair and this is the last weekend so, I took the boys. I was gonna take Jadyn too, but the boys said I wouldn't get to ride anything with them if she went. They were probably right, so I had my friend Andrea watch her today. (Thank you SO MUCH! She had so much fun hanging out and getting spoiled by you and the boys.) It was a nice day with my little men. I enjoyed getting to spend time with them without having to watch out for sister. We had so much fun together! It was a BEAUTIFUL SUNNY DAY in Alaska. (Probably the best we've had all year.) We ate too much junk food: caramel apples, cotton candy, pizza, and corn fritters. We played games, rode rides, watched the bikers, and looked at booths. It was a nice day at the AK state fair. Man, I just remembered that we didn't go back and get their pictures made with the LARGE Alaskan sized pumpkin and cabbage. Shoot, I guess you will just have to take my word for it.

They were HUGE!

The boys used their money from Khun Ya to buy these rubber band guns, but they didn't have any money left to buy tshirts or posters for the BMX guys to sign.
So, they had them sign the guns.

The boys saw this turkey and Jared said, "Hey we got guns let's shoot it!"

Won't their Daddy be PROUD!!

Riding the Sizzler - also known as the Scrambler, or as I call it the Body Squisher!

Jared's Favorite thing was riding on the swings.

He rode them twice and he would have gone again, but we ran out of tickets.

Say Cheese!

They both loved petting the farm animals, but Justin was too fast for me to catch his picture.

Justin's Favorite part of the day was the King's BMX Bike Show.
We went to watch it two separate times.

Soccer

Justin and Jared are playing Soccer this year. We got the pictures in the mail today. Just thought I would share them with you. Click on each picture for a better view.

Goal Met!

YEA, My goal of 4 parties has been exceeded! I have 3 home shows planned, one catalog show, and one informational booth kinda thing. I can't sell anything at the last one, but I can get my name out and hopefully schedule more shows for October. I am excited! Now just pray that no one cancels and that they all turn out well. If you would like to attend any of them, just check out my website for more info.

I'm also hosting a Pampered Chef Show Friday night at 6:00 for my friend Carrie.

Everyone Welcome!

I miss Jared

Jadyn was excited for Jared to go to school, too. She got dressed and took a picture with him. When she got to his classroom she went straight to find Elmo and read a book. She was right at home. We went and had a snack with all the other kgd moms and younger siblings and then left. In the parking lot she wanted to know," Where is Jared?" When I told her he had to stay she said she was sad and that she missed him. How cute! This morning she is not too concerned though.

I think she likes the mommy time.

Jared

OK, So now it is Jared's turn. Jared is my middle child, and he wears it well! He is very active and SUPER accident prone. We have the joke at our house that if anything crazy is gonna happen it will happen to Jared. He has had three head CT's already and he is just 5 yrs old. He is a dare devil and does not let the fact that he gets hurt all the time sway his decisions. I used to think that he would act before he takes the time to think about it. But, I learned this was not really the case when he pulled the fire alarm at the chapel after PWOC one afternoon. I later learned that we were not the only ones in the chapel at the time. It was during Catholic Mass. When I asked him why he did it he said that he had never seen the thing before and wanted to know what would happen. ( I guess he finally got tall enough to see it and, I guess, reach it too.)

Jared is a literal thinker. He takes things exactly as he hears it. He loves to ask WHY about EVERYTHING! He is beginning to lean on Jesus and questions many things. When we were in Thailand in January he asked me some interesting questions. "Mom, the people here don't believe in Jesus, right?" I said well no son most people here do not believe in Jesus; they are Buddhist. "Then WHY do they have these Christmas decorations everywhere?, Christmas trees are for Jesus's birthday!"

His Favorite song is "She Thinks My Tractors Sexy" by Kenny Chesney. Except he sings "Sucksy" it is too cute!

I waited till now to write about him, because today was his First Day of School! I can't believe my little boy is finally in Kindergarten. I was excited for him to go until I actually watched him go in. He was SO grown up. I didn't cry though.

I didn't get much out of him about school right away. But, later on he did have a little to say. "We went to lunch and outside to play two times. We had to sit and hear a story and we got to color. Then we sat some more, and some more, and some more. And then this kid started crying and didn't stop till it was time to go home." That was the summary of his day. Apparently the girl crying was why he didn't want to talk about it right when school was out. He did say that he had fun and wanted to go back tomorrow.

He was so excited to go to school he got up at 6am. He jumped out of the car, but when he started to walk across the lot he told me, "I'm getting kinda nervous."

Standing in line waiting to go inside.

Jared going inside on his first day of school!

Saying the pledge with Mrs. Moses his teacher.

My desk and my new friends.

What a DAY!

Swimming!

Jared and Justin LOVE to go to the Buckner Gym and go swimming. It would be nice to have an outdoor pool like in the south, but here in Alaska we have to stick to indoor swimming. We even have our own indoor water park here. The gym pool is nice it has a diving board, high dive, and a slide. Plus, it is FREE!

Jadyn didn't go today, because she was napping during open swim time. So I took the boys and dad stayed home with her. She loves to swim too. She was a bit mad that she missed it. I will take her this week while the boys are in school - less crowded.

Jared is learning to swim, and he is doing great. He is mostly being taught by a 4Th grader who took swim lessons last year. She is an awesome teacher. I mean it IS working, LOL. Thanks to her mom, Miss Monica, the boys got to go the pool a lot this summer.

Here are a few video clips I took with my regular camera of the boys swimming and Justin "diving". He is trying to teach himself. I should have gotten a picture of his RED chest.

Justin

A while back I posted about Jadyn, so now it is Justin's turn. Justin is my oldest son. He is 8 years old and will start the third grade tomorrow. I can't believe that 8 years has passed since I held his 6lb 3oz little body in almost the palm of my hand. He has grown so much!

Justin is a thinker. He comes up with all kinds of interesting stuff. I remember when he was nearly 3 and he and a friend killed our Beta fish, they literally ripped it in half. They thought that they had just made two fish since both parts were flopping around. I had to explain to him that the fish had died. We then we flushed the fish. I must have said that he was going to live with Jesus or something, because later that evening he had the question that that I will NEVER forget. "Mommy, does Jesus live in the potty?"

That is when I learned that he spent a lot more time analyzing what we say than I could have imagined. He went on to accept Jesus at 4 years old. He asked me when he could be baptized like one of the older boys that he knew from church. My answer was when he was a little bit older and understood more about what it means. His answer was, "Mom, I already know what it means!" He went on to explain the whole gospel of Jesus to me...I guess your ready. We prayed right there in the car!

He is a true Big Brother he is responsible and helps out with only a bit of complaining, LOL. He is an Awesome Reader! He loves music and recently has started "writing " his own songs. They are really cute. He is a skate board fanatic and has a few scars to show for it. Justin is also known around our house as as the "weird sleeper". He sometimes talks and WALKS in his sleep.

The other night around 1130 Jerome and I were watching the Olympics. The kids had long been in bed, and Justin came downstairs and walked right past us to the kitchen. We both asked what's wrong, what are you doing? He went to the freezer and got out a Kids Cuisine. Jerome asked what are you doing? He said "just looking", and went to the bathroom! Jerome took the food and told him to go back to bed. After physically heading him to the stairs Justin went back to bed. Although, the next morning he wanted to know why he was on the bottom bunk when he went to sleep on the top, LOL! He had no idea what he had done. He keeps us laughing that's for sure. Jerome told him next time he is gonna take of his clothes and tell him to go outside, just kidding of course.

Hope you enjoy these pictures of my little man!

Jerome and Friends Dipnetting on the Copper River (Chitna)

Jerome and his friends Mike, Brian, and Chris recently went dipnetting at Chitina on the Copper River. There is NO BEACH - only Rock cliffs. They had a great time and caught 30 fish! Jerome said the video of the water does not do it justice. It was FAST! If anyone had fell in they were probably not coming home.

This Should be Interesting

I first read about this in the TIME article about Rick Warren the other day. This email was sent to me by my friend Carolyn. I believe it was copied from the http://www.onenewsnow.com/ site. I will certainly watch to see how it turns out.

Also in the TIME (august) issue there was an article "In Their Words. The candidates on their personal journeys of faith. It was quite interesting as well. It did seem to me that McCain gave specific incidences where his Faith in Christ influenced his personal journey. He gave examples of REAL prayers and answers and how he connected with another Christian even in a prison camp. He ended by talking about a "living Faith" that is expressed as we "live out the message of the Gospels." However, Obama wrote that he "began his Christian journey over 20 years ago," and that he has been serious about deepening my relationship with Christ but also about the way that all Americans can live together in our diverse, pluralistic society." The rest of his portion was about his policies and and beliefs about issues. I didn't see anything accept in that first small paragraph about his true spiritual growth.

OK, let me first say that I am not so ignorant to believe that all Christians are Republican or that no Democrat is a follower of Christ. To be fair neither candidate flat out stated that they had accepted Christ as a personal savior. I am not judging whether or not Obama's Commitment is true or even better than McCain's. I am only stating an observation.

I DO believe that it is of UTMOST IMPORTANCE for all Americans, Especially Christians, to be informed and VOTE for the candidate that you feel God is calling to our nation! Don't take my word for it. Check out the articles and the interviews for yourself. PRAY about who you will vote for come November.

Rick Warren hosts presidential forum Sat. night
Jim Brown - OneNewsNow - 8/15/2008 6:00:00 AM
Tomorrow night (Saturday), White House hopefuls Barack Obama and John McCain will be fielding questions from evangelical mega-church pastor Rick Warren in a presidential forum at his California church.

The "Saddleback Civil Forum on Leadership and Compassion" will feature each candidate talking with Pastor Warren separately for one hour. Warren says he plans to pose questions on issues such as poverty, HIV/AIDS, global warming, and human rights. "Both John McCain and Barack Obama, I have known for a long time, before either of them began to run for president. They are very different," Warren explains. "They have different philosophies of leadership, different philosophies of where government should be and should be headed -- and I thought, 'You know what, these guys will probably trust me to ask the questions that let them say who they really are.'" Pastor Warren says he will also have Obama and McCain discuss their religious faith. "The leader who says, 'I'm going to take my worldview and just put it on the shelf when I make decisions,' is either an idiot or they're lying, because you can't do it," the well-known Christian author adds. "All of your decisions are based on what you value, what you believe in life. And so I think it's important to find out what these guys really believe." American Family News and OneNewsNow.com will be providing in-depth coverage following the forum.

Oh... I almost Forgot

I love Rachael Ray, and I get her Everyday Magazine. She has great recipes that even my kids love! So as I was reading the new September edition, preparing to plan my meals for the next week, I spotted the Homeology cleaner in the "YUM" Section (pg20). We got "The Greenie Award". Below is what the blurb said:

Clean Sweep

The next time you feel stressed out, reach for your mop! (We know-bear with us.) Homeology's new line of all-natural floor, glass, and all-purpose cleaners ($11 each, begreencleanblue.com) contains fragrant essential oils, like peppermint and orange, that soothe you while wiping out dirt and germs. They're biodegradable, safe to breath and shipped in recycled materials - so your conscience will be as clean as your home!

I thought that was pretty cool. I have to admit, I thought it was kind of crazy when we first came out with cleaning supplies. I mean this is a CANDLE company. But I ordered them to have as a demo. I now have to order more because they are great. I love the all purpose cleaner. It smells amazing and works great. I clean my table, kitchen counter, bathroom sinks... I used the glass cleaner in my car to clean the windows the other day. I can still smell that yummy in my car!

You can go to the website mentioned in the article or you can check it out on my website. Just click on the link on the bottom right for home products, then click on the green leaf on the right to learn more!

If you want to order your own - just let me know! I know $11 is a little much for cleaner, but it last a long time, and the all natural scent that you get really does make it a joy to clean! Host your own show and you can get it for FREE!

Gold Canyon Holiday

I didn't intend to use this Blog as advertisement. But, it's about my life, and I am a Gold Canyon Candle Demonstrator. Today I ordered the new Fall/Holiday Catalogs! I am SO EXCITED! There are so many neat new holders and fragrances for the holiday seasons to include Halloween, Thanksgiving, and CHRISTMAS!!!!

The other new exciting thing in the catalog are the diffusers! They are becoming so popular, and finally Gold Canyon has them. And, They are SO CUTE! These make perfect gifts for soldiers, other people who can not burn candles at work, or for college kids living in Dorms.

We have so many cool products this season, and I want them all. The only problem is I have a limited budget to order samples. So, I have set a goal for September that will hopefully lead to an awesome fall season for my business! I am going to have at least 4 home shows next month.

As an incentive to get these booked I am offering a $15.00 credit to the first four Host to sign up. This will be added to all the other bonuses that you can earn during September. You can use your credit to purchase FREE CANDLES! Below is an overview of the September Promotions.

EMERGE™ Start Fresh™ Hand Soap is buy one, get one FREE all month! Host a Party in September and you’ll receive a FREE or discounted Heritage candle and a Host bonus with your $700 or greater Party. This is in addition to your regular Host Rewards! Continuing through September, join the Gold Canyon team FREE. See below for more details and get your business started today!

Hosts – Get a 26, 16 or 8 oz. Heritage candle FREE or deeply discounted based on your Party totals. Plus, get the exclusive 3 oz. Potted Blooms as a FREE bonus with Parties of $700 or greater.

Customers – EMERGE Start Fresh Hand Soap is buy one, get one FREE!

New Demonstrators – If you join me as a Gold Canyon Demonstrator in September, you’ll receive the Sampler Kit FREE when you achieve sales of $500 in the first 30 days. Plus, you’ll also receive the Homeology™ All Purpose Cleaner FREE when you place your first order. I'd be happy to tell you more about the Gold Canyon Demonstrator discount, free trips you can earn and special recognition jewelry! Please contact me to learn more about this great business opportunity.

Still want to order some of the awesome summer products? Don't Fear! You can order out of either catalog until August 31st. Summer products will not be available after that date, so be sure to get them now. I will be placing an order in the next week, so if you want summer stuff just let me know.

Check out the new catalog online at www.mygc.com/gingerjones

34 Foot Airborne Jump Tower

Yes, I jumped out of it! Saturday was our Battalion family day, and one of the activities was to jump from the tower that the soldiers use to train for jumps. I don't think Jerome or the kids thought I would do it. Actually, I did it twice!

Jerome told me that if I was gonna do it I had to just jump. I couldn't get up there and chicken out or make a big fuss. I guess as the First Sergeant/Jump Master's wife I had to be an example, Yea Right. I was very nervous the first time, but I had made my mind up to be brave and just do it before I left the house that morning. When it was over it was actually FUN! I thought if I could do it again with my eyes open it would be even better. It was - except that I didn't put my chin to my chest and I got a riser burn on my neck. Looks like a giant hickey, LOL!

Jerome has been telling me that I should do a jump with him from a real airplane since before we got married. This was fun, but it as close to a real "airborne" jump as I will ever get. No parachute needed.

Casting Crowns Concert

One of my favorite songs is "Lifesong" by Casting Crowns. Actually, I like a lot of their songs. So when Justin and I heard that they were coming to Anchorage Baptists Temple, we of course had to get tickets. It was an awesome concert. They opened with my favorite song! It is not just a good song, it is more like a commitment to Christ. It is a way of life that we should all strive to reach everyday. I often fail miserably at honoring God with my Lifesong, but thankfully his Grace is sufficient for even me! He takes what we offer, no matter how broken and uses it for His glory. We are His hands and feet.

Empty hands held high
Such small sacrifice

If not joined with my life

I sing in vain tonight

May the words I say

And the things I do

Make my lifesong sing

Bring a smile to You

Let my lifesong sing to You

Let my lifesong sing to You

I want to sign Your name to the end of this day

Knowing that my heart was true

Let my lifesong sing to You

Lord I give my life

A living sacrifice

To reach a world in need

To be Your hands and feet

So may the words I say

And the things I do

Make my lifesong sing

Bring a smile to You

Hallelujah

Hallelujah

Let my lifesong sing to You

The Concert was part of Alaska Fusion. This is a youth conference that is held at ABT every year. Casting Crowns and other groups came to work with our youth for several days. It was really neat to see all the kids at the concert who are seeking the Lord in their lives. I think they said that at least 50 youth had given their lives to Christ so far, and there were still two days left of the conference. One of the newest songs (or at least to me) is "Slow Fad". Mark Hall talked about how we should guard our hearts, eyes, and ears daily because we don't lose the fire over night. We go to a conference or get "on fire" for Jesus because of a retreat, revival... then slowly we lose the closeness or connection that we felt to the Holy Spirit. We make tiny compromises in our commitment, and before we know it we are no longer walking with the master. Man doesn't fall in a day. At the end of the song, his 8 year old daughter sings the kid song "be careful little eyes what you see". He said he wanted her voice on the tape, because ultimately as a father (mother, parent) we are responsible for them. They follow and do what they see us do. How true. I don't know how many times I have heard my words coming from my kids mouth. Hopefully, the words that I hear from them will be the ones that are pleasing to the Lord, and not the times that I have compromised my Lifesong. I commit my life to you Lord, I cannot "train up a child in your ways" without your help and love. Teach me how to be a better mother so that my children will learn to be on fire for You!

Dogs and Rainbows

Last night this couple came to our door looking for the owner of a dog. Of course, it was ours. I had let her out in the backyard about an hour earlier. She loves to be outside, so I didn't rush to let her back inside. However, the kids had left the back gate cracked or at least not latched, and Dakota got out. The people were very nice to try and find me. They could have just called the MP's and I would have had to pay a fee to get her back. But I was angry because this was the third time that she had run off in one day. What was I thinking getting another puppy, LOL. She really is a sweet dog, and for 7 months I guess she is pretty well behaved - except for the running off part.

I guess I can't complain too much though. If I did not have to go outside to get her, I would not have seen the beautiful sunset and DOUBLE RAINBOW! By the time I went in to get the camera (yes, I did finally get a new one) the double rainbow had merged to one, but it was still beautiful!

14 YEARS BABY!

Today is our 14th Wedding anniversary. Jerome is the love of my life. The one person that I prayed God would send me since I was a young girl. He is my best friend. He is an awesome father and leader of our family. He is an awesome soldier, and I can not be more proud of his choice to serve the LORD and to serve our nation. Jerome encourages me to be a better wife and mother. I know I do not always do my best, but he gives me strength and encouragement. We have had our ups and downs, but it has been an awesome ride! I can't wait to see what God has in store for us in the future. I love you Babe!

We didn't do anything great to celebrate today. We just grilled steaks and celebrated as a family. But as a christian family and couple it is always our desire that we can be an example of Christ to those that we meet. Sometimes we do a better job than others. But I find that if we can just be ourselves and not be ashamed of our beliefs that we can reach many. Isn't this God's ultimate plan for families?

The best part of today was getting a phone call from a young married friend that just left Ft. Richardson. She had to deal with lots of stuff while she was here on top of a 15 month deployment to Iraq. I tried to just be her friend and encourage her to get involved with other Christian women. I did not know if she had ever made the decision to follow Christ, but hoped that through a relationship with the Savior that she would be able to deal with losing her mother and her first deployment. We became close friends. I was so sad to see her leave Alaska, but am SO EXCITED about what God has planned for her future! This week she said the prayer and accepted Jesus in her heart! I can hear the excitement and new peace that she now has in her voice from so many miles away. I don't want to sound like I am responsible at all! But it is so good to know that God hears our prayers and does pull on the hearts of those people that we are praying for specifically. God Bless you and family, Cindy. You will know such joy as you begin to learn more about the savior. I will continue to pray for you and the work that God has planned for your life. I love you!

My Girly Girl

So I thought after having two boys that my Jadyn was going to be the ultimate girly girl. And I guess she is. For a two year old she has more clothes, shoes, purses, and hairbows than I ever have, I think. However she has learned quite a few tricks from her older brothers. Earlier today I looked outside and she was sitting on the rail of the back porch. She would have jumped off of it if I had not come out there and made her get down. This was just the beginning of our adventures today! She came downstairs dressed as Spider Man (mask and all) trying to scare everyone. Later she was playing with a real WORM outside! Squished it in her hands and all. I think she even kissed it, YUCK!

She is Finally Almost completely Potty Trained!!!! YEA! But, the new problem that we have is that her pants will not stay up without a diaper. In the picture on top, her pants are about half way down her butt. Later on in the day at Justin's Soccer game she was jumping off the bleachers! Talk about NO FEAR!

Thankfully, We did not have to go to the ER today, but if she keeps this up I don't know, LOL. Jadyn is a true gift from God. I so wanted a baby girl and she is such a doll - most of the time. I love you Jadyn Grace!