Rice 'n AM~Erica

So anyway...



As promised, I am posting the pic of the kids with Chris Rice on Sept. 22nd. (the one that turned out OK)

So, here it is:

Yep, there's Liz, Ethan & Chris Rice...making fun of me. What a great pic anyway!



Also, need to send out a b-day shout out to my mom -

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM!



OK, more great stories about the kids coming your way soon, plus more job possiblities (man this is killing me).

Also, make sure to check out my new video blog - AM~Erica Vid~EO (http://ericavid.blogspot.com).



Stay tuned!



God Bless, AM~Erica

"Broken" Camera 'n AM~Erica

So anyway...

Chris Rice came to our church last night, and was really good. He was even pretty goofy - which made me happy!

Very soon, I will get the pic I got of Mr. Rice & the kids (Liz & Ethan). It is really a good pic!

For those in KC planning to see him @ The SPOT tonite in Independence, let him know that the chic with the "broken' camera" says "hey"!

OK...I guess this takes some explination, eh? Well, I had my two older kids with me in line after the concert to meet him. We got up to the table to have him sign some stuff & get a pic, right? So, my two lean in on one side of the tabe, Chris on the other, and the camera starts taking crazy pictures - like time-lapse exposure. This means my littlest one has gotten a hold of it & found some crazy settings. I am trying to fix the prob since there is still a long line to go, and I think I get it; I push the button again, and it won't do ANYTHING! I start to move it when Chris & the kids start yelling at me to not move it - a timer had been set. Geez! So, I hold it & get a great pic.

In the meantime, on the other side of the camera, Mr. Rice is apparently having a conversation with my kids. "Welp, looks like she broke the camera." Then, my son fibs & tells him I do it all of the time. SO NOT TRUE!! He purposely mixed me up with my mom (sorry, Mom) to make the scene bigger & me a bigger dork. Liz? She let's it happen. So then they hear him say, "Ooo...the night the cameras take over the world!" Geez!

The concert was great, meeting him...a little embarrassing. But I'm still here, and you all can enjoy hearing him tonite!

Have fun & stay tuned for the pic...

God Bless, AM~Erica

Another AM~Erica Blog?

So anyway...

I am taking a survey this time around. Please leave a comment as to your opinion. It really is important I hear from you!

The question is:

If you were going to keep up on a blog, what would the content of the blog be?

It is an open-ended question, but I would like to hear from you! Just click the the link that says "<#> Comments", then leave your thoughts for me. If you are a Google account-holder, such as myself, you can use your username/identity; if you are not in the Google community, you can always go "Anonymous" to leave your comment, that's fine; if you are not in the Google community, and want to leave your name, just click on "Other", you can then put in your name for the post.

Oh, and just as a hint, you can e-mail this post to others by clicking on the envelope icon, next to the comment post link. I would love to get all the feedback I can.

Thanx in advance for your help.

Stay tuned...

God Bless, AM~Erica

AM~Erica @ Random

So anyway...

* The countdown has begun to see Chris Rice! (notice the new countdown timer?) Yep! Saturday nite, 9/22, he will be at our church...performing...LIVE! Have I already mentioned that? Oh, and just a head's up for those in KC, I just read he is doing an "Under the Radar" tour, and the first one is Sunday nite, 9/23, at The SPOT, behind Fuddrucker's in Independece, MO. It will small, quaint & accoustic...and FREE. And the day after he performs for us! Geez! We had to pay a bit for our tix...even for the 2-year-old. Well, if you go (hope you do), make sure to tell him "Hi" for me...I'm sure we'll be buddies by then. (ha ha ha ...) Check it all out @ www.chrisrice.com.

* Get ready for International TLAP Day tomorrow, 9/19 Every 9/19 is International Talk Like A Pirate Day! Wear a Jolly Roger T-shirt, a bandana on your head, &/or just go all out with an eye-patch. Have fun with it, and make sure to check out www.talklikeapirate.com for more fun.

* OK, y'all have figured out that I love shopping & saving @ the same time, right? And, I also love Rachael Ray! Well, today she had a segment about saving at the warehouse stores (i.e., Costco, Sam's & BJ's). Watch this for GREAT ideas: http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/show/segments/view/secrets-warehouse-shopping/

* Also, Friday night, Lizzie sings the national anthem with her choir @ the Card's game, so we will be there to watch! If you get to watch the game on TV, look for us! Should be great fun! Around here, you're supposed to be a Card's fan anyway...so...GO CHIEFS!! OOPS...old habits die hard... Hey, it's still red!

OK, the Pirate Fest may have to wait until next weekend; after the game & the concert, we will be tuckered out!! Plus, we'll see how $$ is.

Oh...and have I mentioned that Chris Rice is coming to my church & we are really excited? OK, just checking!

Stay tuned for more...

God Bless, AM~Erica

Prepping AM~Erica

So anyway...

WOW! My hubby & I got to go see one of our very fave musicals last night. "Crazy for You" is a fun & elaborate comedy that we got the privelege to see a few years ago @ the Music Hall in KC. We were blown away! Well, one of the members of our current church, Ben Nordstrom, is an actor, and a very busy one at that. We found out he was getting ready to do "Crazy for You", and we went nuts! We begged him for tickets if possible, and he was a good boy! He hooked us up with a couple of comp tix to see the show. (Thanx, Ben, for giving us a date night!) He was hysterical, and the show was phenomonal! However, it didn't start until 8:00 PM (yes, on a school night), and didn't end until nearly 11:00 PM...we didn't remember the show being that long. Luckily we got a sitter from church (who happens to be the cousin of a couple of school mates/activity chums in Lee's Summit - small world) who was very understanding, and her parents, too. WHEW! Exhausted, but gotta keep truckin'...

We are getting ready to head out of town - back to good ol' KC! But...only for a quick in-and-out stop. We are leaving Friday afternoon so we can spend time with Chris' side that night, then breakfast in the AM with my side so we can see them, too. Then?? Off to a wedding. My hubby is officiating this one. Then back home to StL. We have to get a lot in for such a short stay, so the schedule is tight!

Then...there are some things going on around here, in StL, that we are getting rev'd up for:

1. Back in KC there is the annual Ren Fest. I haven't been to it in years, but I sure had fun when I went. Well, there is a Ren Faire in StL that is getting ready to start...but...only after their spin-off St. Louis Pirate Festival (www.stlpiratefest.com). It starts this weekend, but we won't be in town, but maybe next weekend before our next big event (see below). I know our kids will enjoy it, and it sounds like fun! And, if you know me well, and you've read my motto (see blog header), you will see that I will make sure the family is ready to go! We all have pirate shirts to work with, so no one will be left out. I may take it a bit further & completely embarrass my hubby, and possibly my children, but it's about the fun! Arrrr.

2. If you saw a previous post of mine, you would know that the very well-known contemporary Christian artist, Chris Rice, is coming to our church to perform a concert next weekend (9/22). My family & I are SOOOOOOO excited!! My hubby & I have been fans of his for the last 5 or 6 years, so this is a treat for us. We are so glad our congreation, and others coming in, will be introduced & treated to his music. He has done songs like, "Smellin' Coffee", "Thirsty" (this one is beautiful, and Ben, listed earlier, sang it this past Sunday @ church), "The Cartoon Song" (a personal fave), and more recently "Pardon My Dust". He is completely off-beat & goofy, and I can't wait to see him perform live! Check him out at www.chrisrice.com, and check out his video blog to see how goofy he really is. It's ab fab!

As for everything else, still looking for a job & still looking for "affordable" daycare. The search continues onward...

Oh! And Liz's middle school is getting ready to do the play "Once Upon a Mattress". She is so hoping to get the part of Winefred. She's perfect, but in 6th grade, so we don't know how that will work out with other 6th, 7th & 8th graders trying for it, too. We shall see & pray for her!

Stay tuned!

God Bless, AM~Erica

AM~Erica Presents: More Christian Adventures

So anyway...
I've lived in the KCMO area all of my life. It's all I've known. Then...it happened...
My hubby was appointed to a new church in the St. Louis area! WHAT?? So, we had to pack up everything, and move further away than "just across town"; it was across the state! We had all kinds of things going through our minds. We hoped the kids would be OK in the new surroundings, for sure.
Well, at the end of June, the moving trucks came to the driveway of our townhome, loaded them up, and we were off to a new life in a new city.
We had to stay at a hotel our first night in StL. We had to keep our chain up on the hotel door, too, so our little guy wouldn't leave the room at will.
Then...move-in day arrived! The trucks showed up with our stuff, and chaos reigned supreme. We were trying to keep the kids busy with, oh, ANYTHING - as long as it was out of the way of the movers. We tried our fenced in backyard, but little one figured out how to climb the fence within about 10-minutes. Figures.
We asked for someone from the new church to help with child-care while this was happening. Please keep in mind that the church offered it...we weren't demanding newbys. Finally, the chairman of our Pastor Parish committee showed up, helped move a few things around, and just tried to lend a helping hand to make sure we got in OK. Then...we realized we hadn't heard from little one for a while in the chaos...the search is on!
We looked in the new backyard, in all of the new bedrooms & bathrooms, closets, cabinets...GULP! No avail! My hubby stepped outside to see a neighbor walking the little booger up the street. Yep! He escaped in the madness; and what a way to meet new neighbors. How embarrassing!
So, Day 1, moved in, kid escaped. I'd call it a full day!
Stay tuned for more...trust me - there's more...
God Bless, AM~Erica

Fingerpainting for AM~Erica

So anyway...

Back to the little stinker, himself...

At the daycare he was attending (and where I was working, if you hadn't figured it out by previous posts), the kids in his class were watching a movie in their room, when the teachers noticed my son fingerpainting the table. This was odd because there were no paints in the room. Then they saw it was brown, and they wondered how he got into the potty-treasure box (prizes, like Hershey Kisses, for going in the big potty) to get some of the chocolate - they didn't see anyone climbing up the shelves! Ornery booger! So they went to clean him up, as well as the table, and realized they weren't cleaning up chocolate...

Yep, my son wrote the book "Fingerpainting the Table", and uses the pen name Hoo-Flug Poo. Oh, and he needed a change of clothes, too.
See? Creativity can come from ANYWHERE! He was in the mood to paint, couldn't reach, so he created his own.
That's my kid!

Stay tuned for more...

God Bless, AM~Erica

Hectic AM~Erica

So anyway...

I see it's been a week since my last post. YIKES!

Things have been CRAZY! I had some more interviews, and had company over the holiday weekend.

The last interview I had was with an insurance company...wanting me to sell insurance, of course. Oh...and having to pay to get a license to do so. Plus, it would be nice if they said it would take about 2 hours for the presentation & interview when they first called. GRRR! Then I got so lost coming home. I would get lost in KC (where I lived all my life), but to come to a new area & try to get home from there? Insane, I must say.

Anyway, still looking for jobs & daycare. There is a daycare in the area looking for teachers & a receptionist. Maybe this one? I am also looking into a couple of different things that can be done from home.

Yes, it is so much work to find work! I'm exhausted, but not beaten. I will perceiver...some way...somehow...

In the meantime - went to 6 Flags with company (hated the Batman ride), and we went to see Big Foot - the world's tallest monster truck. (yipee on the latter - can you sense the excitement & enthusiasm)

Well, I'm off to figure out about these other job prospects.

Stay tuned...

God Bless, AM~Erica