Wow! Its been quite a while since I have been on here!  A lot has happened... David got laid off. I got 2 jobs. David got a job. I quit one job. Neither job is/was in photography...odd. Jake barely passed 7th grade. I almost killed him. I decided to hunt for my birth father. I found him. Not far from where we left him. He's amazing! We are alike in many ways. We have been to see him twice since I found him in November. Its been life changing! Next year Kaylee will be going to kinder!! (And then maybe I will get her blog updated more often!) How can that be?? There's my time away in a nutshell. Hopefully I will be back more often!

Halloween 3peat

Every year our neighborhood has a costume contest right before trick-or-treating on Halloween night. 

Our first year in the neighborhood, David and I were Mr. and Mrs. Potatoe Head, we won. Jake was a ninja, he won. Kaylee was a black cat, no win for her.

Last year, I was determined that we would all win. I set out early to make us M&M costumes. We won best family!

This year, I was uninspired until Kaylee modeled some costumes for a friend of mine. The pirate costume was adorable! So, I called a friend of mine at a local theatre and we borrowed lots of pirate garb. We dressed and headed out to the contest. First winner they announced was 'Best Girl...Kaylee' Hooray!! I figured that was the end of our winning. But...the very last price they announced was 'Best Family...The Bowrens' Excellent!!

We have a 3 year winning streak now!

I already have next years costumes in mind...

What Happened to Honesty and Integrity?

I know that we are 'convicted' for different things. I know that God speaks to each of us differently and about different things. I also know, however, that sins are sins...no matter how big or small they are or how much we try to justify them. I also know that we ALL sin. Hopefully, we try not to, though.

That being said, I have been slapped in the face recently with 'white lies' that my friends have said/done in order to get something for their children. Now, let it be known that I do not think there is such a thing as a white lie. Someone lies and they know they lie...lies are not big or small, they just are. So, these friends have done things like put a fake date on their child's profile so they could have a Facebook page (because it doesn't really matter), let their 12 year old child drive their car (you know, because I was right there with them).

Now, I know these aren't huge matters. I know that the world will not end because a 12 year old has a Facebook page. Here is what I do know. I know that my children watch EVERYTHING I do. I know that they know if I am being an honest person. I know that they know what a lie is and that I expect them to always tell the truth.

What happened to being role models for our children and leading by example? What happened to teaching our children that certain rules are in place for their protection? What happened to telling our children that some things we just have to wait for? What happened to being a parent to our children and not worrying about being their best friend?

Whats the difference between a fake birth date on a profile or on an ID? Just a little white lie, right? What's the difference between bending the rules for driving or drinking. Just a small thing, right?

I just don't understand how parents can justify one thing but not the other.

So, tell me...am I over reacting? Is this a big deal? Do these things matter? Would love to hear your thoughts.

Love My Nook

I know, I know, I told some of you that I didn't understand why you would have an ereader. Let me just say that I am ok eating those words.

Let me explain how my view changed...

I love to read. I read in the tub, I read in the evenings when there is nothing on TV, I read on a Saturday morning when everyone else is asleep. I love to read.

That said, I hate going to the library. The branch closest to us is housed in the high school. That's a great idea, but doesn't work very well. The public can only go on from 4-9pm. These are not very convienient hours for me. This is homework time, dinner time, prep for the next day time...not library time. If, by chance, I can make it during these hours, the selection is very limited. It is a high school library, after all. So, browsing is not very fun. Yes, I can get online at home, choose my book, have it transferred, yadda yadda, but that's not very fun either.

I love a bookstore. I love to go to Barnes and Noble and look at all the tables. I love to see what's new. I love to.read the jackets of books to see it that book interests me. This tends to cost me a lot of money. When I find a book worth reading I want to buy it right then. I don't have the patience to wait for the paperback version. So, I tend to have a lot of money invested in hardbacks that I only read one time.

Then enter ereaders. I tell people that I don't understand the point...just read a real book. Until I do a bit of research. I decide to research the 2 leading ereaders, Nook and Kindle. I find out that Kindle is supported by Amazon, which I rarely use, and Nook is supported by Barnes and Noble, which I love! I do a bit more research and discover the Nook is compatible with our local library! This means that I can log on to the library at home and download a book to my Nook and read for free! Then, the book will disappear after 3 weeks...just like checking out a physical book from the library. I also discover that ebooks are anywhere from $10 to $15. This is considerably less than the $30 I have been paying for books.

So, I asked for my Nook for Mothers Day and have been loving it ever since. To this point, I have been buying ebooks (which I usually get for free using my Swagbucks, but that is a different post altogether). Today, however, I sat at the computer long enough to figure out how to download from the public library. I just started reading Somewhere Inside, downloaded this morning.

So, all that to say, I changed my view because of the money I can save using an ereader. I chose the Nook because it is compatible with my public library...and I love B&N!

Well, back to my Nook. Have to finish the book before it disappears and heads back to the public library!

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Love a Bargain!

About a month ago, we had an air conditioner mishap. I discovered that the drain was clogged and drain pan was overflowing when I opened my daughter's closet to get her clothes for the day. There the water was...pouring from the closet light. Ugh! So, after MANY attempts and two a/c companies later (Aramendia in San Antonio rocks, btw...but that's another post all together), we figured out what the problem was and had it fixed. Needless to say, the light was ruined. So, we took the ruined light out and let things air out. A month later, time to put a new light in. I head over to the chain home improvement store (*ahem* Lowes *cough*) to purchase one. Well, the bargain hunter that I am finds out that I can get 1 light for $20 or 6 for $40. Doesn't take a rocket scientist...I go for the 6! Now, I have the closet light fixed and the 2 outdated lights in the hall updated too! So excited!

Hall Light Before:

Hall Light After:

Technology is Amazing

Here I sit, with my fairly new Droid x, posting to my blog for the world to read. It is amazing to me that 5 years ago I had barely heard of a blog and now I don't even have to be sitting at my computer to make a post. I'm sure this means I will be posting much more often...not sure if that's good or bad for those of you that drop by every so often. ;-)