a slippery slope

This is a blog that I didn’t want to write. It’s not a terrible thing, but not a fun day. I’m here in the hospital when I really should be knee deep in laundry, dinner, and kids.

As you know I had lap band surgery in March but don’t make a practice of blogging about it. As you know I’ve struggled with it quite a lot. As you know I’m also an incurable optimist!

I have had problems with my lap band since June and now I finally know why. After months and months of throwing up, so much pain and way too much frustration to explain we have an answer. Folks, we have band slippage! I’ve known something was wrong for months and to save your eyes from all the reading, I will spare you the whole story and just tell you that I’m about to get a lot better because I am going into surgery tomorrow to have it fixed. So here I am at the hospital waiting to get my band fixed tomorrow. And I might just mention that I am on pain medication so please forgive me for not making sense, I have to think REALLY hard to get these thoughts out of my head.

It’s weird to be in the hospital away from my kids. It’s weird to have a quiet room and my very own T.V. It’s weird to not hear the pitter patter of little and big feet getting ready for bed. My Mom said I should look at it like a mini vacation, I laughed because it’s true.

I’ve been on the phone with the kids working on dinner for tomorrow night, lunches while I’m in the hospital and I don’t even want to think about breakfast for the kids, it looks like cereal for a few days at our house!

This is what’s going through my head-
-lunches were made Saturday, all that has to be added are the cold things (CHECK)
-I put dinner in the oven before I left for the hospital this morning so dinner tonight (CHECK)
-hot dogs in the fridge so dinner for tomorrow (CHECK)
-grocery shopping done over the weekend (CHECK)
-bathrooms cleaned yesterday (CHECK)
-vacuuming done yesterday (CHECK)
-house in order when I left (CHECK)
-house in order when I get home (QUESTIONABLE)

Bat Girl is staying home with the kids (I’m having surgery in Atlanta). Mr. B. is going to be my faithful and trusty sidekick till I break outta here Thursday. The Big Kids are holding down the fort so to speak by helping out, each one has a mission while I’m gone. Kid1 is in charge of keeping things picked up and the kitchen. Kid2 is in charge of meals and Kid4, Kid3 is in charge of bathrooms and trash and Kid4 is in charge of making all the messes! Me, I’m in charge of resting, being cut open and then resting again. Mr. B. is in charge of pacing while I’m in surgery and making all the phone calls. Bat Girls in charge of running everyone around- dance, work, school and “we’re out of milk”- you know how it goes!

Anyway please say a little prayer for me tomorrow if you don’t mind. I’m sure I’ll be back to blogging soon my friends.

Thanks, I *HEART* my blogging buddies!’

butterflies

a butterfly picture from my little goose made me smile today!

Aren't kid drawings the best?

I buy manila paper, crayons and markers in bulk!

You know how I love to frame kid drawn pictures!

This one is going straight into a frame!

Have a happy day full of butterflies my friends!

fall decorating

Fall is my favorite time of year. I love the reds, oranges and yellows that pop out of the trees and lay on the ground. Fall is a time of calm for me. By the time the leaves start falling my kids are usually settled into school and we’re in a better routine. We’re not as crazed as we were when school started. We are much more settled into our days and things run smoothly now. As the days end sooner and the nights are cooler I love to be cuddled up with Mr. B. watching the premier of our favorite shows while fall scented candles burn and fill the house with divine smells. Fall is about cooking, family and calm days for us.

you know you have kids when ...

Your tools have puppy dog stickers on them!

I asked Mr. B. for wire cutters the other day and this is what he found. We smiled and laughed because it's the most wonderful thing to know that she was thinking of him while sticking stickers all over his tools!

pure kindness

Remember when I blogged about meeting Lacy from Razor family farms? Remember how I said how nice she was and how we instantly connected?

I’m not even sure how to tell a story about such a sincere gesture, I’m not sure I can put into words the kindness that Lacy showed me while she was in Hawaii on HER vacation. There is just no way to express what she did for me and how I love and appreciate her for it.

When I visited Lacy a few weeks ago we talked about a million things and she shared with me how she was going to Hawaii to visited her sweet husband Josh and I shared with her how I grew up there and how my nephew had died there and how we missed him more than we could say.

She emailed me before she left and wondered if I would like her to take a note to his road side memorial. I have never been able to go back and I have always wanted to stand there and think about him while the warm wind blew over my face, the salt air filled my nose and the sound of waves comforted me. I have wanted to stand there in front of the place where he took his last breath and think of that little local boy, remembering how I cuddled him as an infant and watched him build sand castles as a preschooler. I want to be there, I want to witness it for myself.

I took her up on her offer and wrote him a letter and emailed it to her with strict instructions that if she could not find it (after all it’s nanakuli) to just let it go in the wind near a beach because he was a local boy, he would get my message, I just knew it. I couldn’t imagine that she would have time.

She found the time, she delivered my note and there will never be enough words to thank her. In this world there are a few people like Lacy Razor and I am forever thankful to her for her kindness.

hoping to skip that ol' achy breaky heart

My itty bitty teeny tiny 15 year old Kid2 has a boyfriend! We went through the boyfriend thing once before and it was a total nightmare- I’m holding out hope that it will be better this time around… please tell me I’m right! Please lie to me if I’m wrong. This will go perfectly smooth…. Right? RIGHT?!

I’m in a bit of a panic… broken hearts and 15 year old girls … well YOU know? Right? Don’t you remember being 15 and being in total love with a boy and having your heart broken? Don’t you remember the absolute horror of it all? I do! My first real love was Mike- he was a doll.

This “boyfriend” as were calling him as of today brought her flowers at work! It was a very sweet thought and she was thrilled of course! So she’s in “boyfriend heaven” right now. Flying high on “boyfriend” cloud 9… oh my, oh my!

So that’s where we are today. “Boyfriend”. Cloud nine. Flowers. Giant smile.

For her sake, let’s hope he doesn’t break her heart! She’s such a sweet girl and I just hate to think of her devastated…

Sisters

"A Sister is a forever friend" ~Author unknown

"In the cookies of life, Sisters are the chocolate chips" ~Author unknown

"Sisters are different flowers from the same garden" ~Author unknown

"Whats the good news, if you haven't a sister to share it with?" ~Jenny DeVries

"A Sister is a little piece of childhood that can never be lost" ~Marion C. Garretty

These pics were taken several years ago when the kids and I spent a summer at the beach basking in the San diego sun, enjoying the zoo and loving on each other.

girls, girls, girls!

Girls are darling, really they are! I often say that my girls are the most challenging and it’s true, my girls are far more challenging than my boys. My girls are much more hard headed and strong willed than my boys are but the pay offs to those challenges are totally worth it.

When we had our first girl, I was determined to encourage her independence, make sure she had her own ideas and help her along with her strong will. I wanted a girl who could stand on her own, and be confident in all her choices.

I have to tell you that with confidence and strong will there are also challenges. It’s hard to know where to draw the line sometimes, what is strong will and what is defiance. I sometimes struggled with her as a preschooler trying to help her wade through the waters of being confident with a side of strong will, hold the belligerent.

The preschool years were honestly the hardest with my daughter (Kid2). She had a strong will and didn’t give up. The elementary years were not as challenging but held their own new hardships. Here’s an example: Kid2 would not get dressed for Kindergarten, she would not accept my help getting dressed and refused to change from her Ariel nightgown. I said many times, “We are leaving in ____ minutes, if you are not dressed; you ARE wearing your nightgown to school”. I waited until the very last minute, I warmed up the car and buckled Kid1 and Kid3 into the car and prayed and hoped that as I came back into the house that she would be dressed. I was holding my breath as I entered her room and there she sat nightgown on, arms crossed and an ugly face. I put shoes on her feet and told her that she was going to school in her nightgown and how sad I was that she didn’t listen, but that Mommy made the rules and I said it was time to go. She was visibly mortified but marched to the car. I think she didn’t believe me, I hardly believed myself! I felt sick because the follow through is the hardest thing about parenting. Off we went to mortify her teacher. We arrived at school, dropped Kid1 off, I had chubby little Kid3 in my arms and we walked together to Kindergarten. She was embarrassed but also stubborn enough to hold her head high. I walked to her teacher and said “Mrs. Gauna, Kid2 decided not to get dressed today, so she is wearing her nightgown, hopefully tomorrow she will get dressed when I ask her”. I was sick as I said it, hoping it was the right thing to do! I went home and felt sad all day about her strong will and having to be the kind of parent who does what she threatens. The next day when I woke her up for school she promptly got dressed and we never had that problem again. I was relieved. I had done the right thing. Following through is such a hard thing to do.

I think the key is chosing your battles. Getting dressed might not be the battle you choose, you may choose a clean room, wearing certain shoes or having good table manners. Whatever you choose, I think they key is to stick to it. Halfway through you may feel like you have chosen the wrong thing to stick to- stick to it, you chose it!

Kid2 has always been confident and strong, I depend on her for so many things, and she IS dependable. I know that she’ll watch Kid4 closely; I know that she’ll bathe and put her to bed correctly. She makes dinner if I need her too, she has an after school job that she found all on her own. That confidence and strong have served her well.

Kid2 is right smack dab in the middle of her teenage years and can I just say “YUK”? Although she is such a good kid, teenage years are just a real bummer! Yes, it’s wonderful to see them bloom and grow, it’s also terrifying to watch them fall and blunder and struggle to make their own decisions. Babies are a breeze compared to teenagers.

The good news is that she is wonderful and makes the right decisions most of the time. She is learning to listen to us and take our advice, as we have been there before her. She is growing up to have so much confidence and is an amazing teenage girl. I’m proud to be her Mom.

The moral of this story? Follow through with your toddlers and young kids and you too can have a nice teenager who doesn’t hate you and who is (mostly) pleasant to be around!

This evening
Kid4- Guys do you know anything special about Ricky Rectangle?
Us- no, do you?
Kid4- His sides ARE NOT the same size! He has two long sides and one short side!
Us- Oh, thats neat
****************************************
This morning-
lets set the scene. I am driving Kid4 to school and putting on my makeup at the same time.
Kid4- are you putting on your make-up?
me- yes
Kid4- AND driving?
me- yes, do you have a problem with that?
Kid4- well I would rather that you looked at the street instead
me- uuuuuh... ummmmm.... okay.

Lets be honest, she's right. So I dropped her off at school with no make-up!
*****************************************
she wants to write a story about 3 little ants so this morning I was telling her how to spell the words and she said "We can't start without Once upon a time".
What was I thinking?!

fall leaves and a little heart!

I'm starting my fall decorating... a little late Im embarassed to say.

Here's a little preview... don't judge me though, I am SO very FAR from being finished...

and have SO much more to do to the mantle... so many leaves and so little time.

I'll be working my little fall heart out this weekend and am hoping to finish by Sunday.

I'll post pictures of course!

Have a good Wednesday friends

(Bat Girl and I are going to Atlanta, we're sure to have a GREAT time)

P.S. please ignore the valentine flowers on the mantle- I forgot about them.... :o(

Kid4 had her very first school program last week and were beaming with pride.

She is really shy so we were unsure about how she would react to a crowd.

She marched her little self out there with her class and sang and checked out the little girl in front of her very closely with a paper towel tube/candle.

She laughed and twisted and turned and even SANG! We were thrilled.

5 is such a great age, most of the time.

I have to admitt that she is a super 5 year old nag right now so today I wasn't as thrilled with 5 as I was the day of the program... but isn't that just how parenting goes?

Thrilled one day

Horrified the next...

It's a day to day thing.

Country Bob has Hart!

My sweet friend is hosting a little giveaway on her blog.

This is no ordinary giveaway either!

It's a Country Bob's giveaway folks!

My sweet friend Christy and her husband are grillin' fools and they KNOW BBQ sauce!

Head on over to her blog and enter the giveaway!

What do you have to lose? (nothing)

What do you have to gain? (2 bottles of Country Bob's all purpose sauce)

Good luck- and if you win, will you share with me?

I love me some Country Bob's BBQ!

9/11, my story

So many have blogged about 9/11 and I wasn't going to because I wasn't sure I could write it, but I can summarize it and it IS important to "never forget".

8 years ago we lived in Colorado Springs and it seemed as if our lives were falling apart right before our very eyes. We tried desperatly to hold onto things near and dear to us and they were slipping away, right through our fingers, right before our very eyes and there was little we could do about it.

We shared a very small house with Mormon missionaries, they had their own little part of the house- and no, we're not Mormon. It was just one of those "different" kind of living arrangements. We ended up loving the "boys" as we called them. We never converted but we we're so close to many of the "boys".

Tuesday, September 11th was not a normal day at our house, I was home sick and had just delivered the kids to school. I went home and turned on the ol' boob tube and was shocked to say the least. It was smoke and fire and pure chaos- you remember I just know you do. It took me a minute to process that this was happening in OUR country, MY America. I quickly called Mr. B. who was commuting to Denver at the time. When I reached him in his office, I told him. I told him about the horror, and do you want to know what he said to me? "Honey you must be watching a movie, or mistaken." I was a little perturbed to say the least. I said to him "Why don't you turn on a T.V. and call me back"

While I waited for him to call me back, I went to get the missionaries. I can remember just what I said "Bowman, I know your not allowed to watch TV during your mission but you HAVE to see this, you HAVE to know whats going on" We sat and watched the Television together, cried and waited for Mr. B. to call.

He called back horrified, I was crying, he was in shock. A co-workers daughter was in New York at the time touring and he was terrified for her. I told Mr. B. that I just wanted to go get the kids and lock us all in the house all day long, maybe forever. Just then they were evacuating all the tall buildings in Denver. The last thing he said to me was "GO! get them- bring them home, Im on my way".

I rushed to school where I checked my babies out in a line of silent parents, standing there with tear stained faces, in shock, not knowing what tomorrow held, only knowing we wanted our children and we wanted to be home. I was terrifed and numb.

There were days and days and days of numb terror, I didn't want to leave the house, I didn't ever want to take my kids to school, I didnt ever want to do anything but sit on my couch and sob for my country, for those who lost their lives and those who fought for freedom- I was petrified. It was hard for me to go out after that. It took some time for me to go out after that day, time for me to go to Denver near tall buildings, time for me to feel comfortable dropping my kids off at school again.

Time helps you to be able to get back to your life, but it never heals all wounds- it can't. Time isn't meant to erase, to forget, it's meants to give peace, to HELP heal.

9/11- Don't EVER forget, but do allow peace to creep into your heart.

Bat Girl and I found some interesting signs on our way to visit Lacy last week, this was one of them! It was a liqour store, we couldn't figure out if it was a liquor store that was still open or closed but either way not a real friendly place....! Definitely not planning an up and coming game of hide and go seek with this guy!

We laughed at this sign because of course I only read the first line and then I realized that they spelled vegetable wrong. I just love small town signs, they are so funny and often spelled wrong.

Theres a particular town that I LOVE in Oklahoma and there are often mis-spelled words there too. It's part of small town life because who would care if it was spelled right... right?

a stained apology

Kid4 spilled her tomato soup on the floor yesterday evening and felt so bad because it made a stain and I was visibly frustrated. This is the note she gave me with a big hug!

Can she stay 5 forever? PAH-lease?!

a labeling lass

My Kid4 is so halarious... or Im just smitten by her... who knows? This morning she drew this picture and labeled each thing. See how she labeled each flower with an "F", the person with a "p", the clouds with a "C", you get the idea right?

I love that she labeled everything, it cracked me up. Right now she is way into drawing things in "sets" or "partners" and naming everything... halarious!

By the way the flowers are named "Julie", "McMcerson" and "Ron" - HA!

What a delight a 5 year old is!

delightful dancing diva

My sweet Kid2 teaches dance at a local dance studio and loves it. She has been teaching and taking dance for years. She started in the 3rd grade at the Dance company in Mt. Perfect. Kid2 loves dance, she loved taking it, teaching it and everything about it.

Kid2 was so excited to pass her love of dance down to her baby sister. Kid4 has been taking dance for a few weeks now and she is really loving it! Here are her newest moves and a whole lot of SASS!

basic math

PLUS

PLUS

EQUALS full bellies!

Labor day menu

*still cooking*

We ate GAH-REAT today!

I made the Pioneer womans ribs (not her ACTUAL ribs but you know what I mean) with my own twist and Mr. B. is smoking them on the big green egg... um! YUM! We're also having her baked beans with my own twist of course, I don't really like green bell peppers but I really trust PW's opinion so I used them. I also added some parsley and a few other things that I love, I'm sure she'd aprove. I'm also making her bacon cheddar biscuits.... I'm using the real recipe no changes. I can't wait to try them. I love her recipes, she is a cook after my own heart! And who doesn't want to get cooking in that great kitchen of hers?

For dessert Im trying to imitate my favorite banana pudding from downtown Macon. Bat Girl and I are getting real tired of driving 45 minutes for dessert! We're also having individual peach and bluberry cobblers leftovers from yesterday.

It's been a YUMMERIFIC day!

a lovely Laboring day

What do you do on Labor Day? We usually hang out together, do something special or do nothing at all. It’s nice to do nothing. Most days are filled with school, dance, football, working, cooking, cleaning and just general everyday chores but THIS day, this day I hope will be full of nothingness….. Of course I’m cooking, doing a little cleaning and the girls DO have dance but let’s pretend it’s nothing okay!

Today I’m making ribs, baked beans, buttermilk biscuits, banana pudding and individual cobblers for dinner. Today Mr. B. and I took Kid4 to Wal-Mart and I sprayed her directly in the eye with silly string. Today we rushed her to the bathroom to flush out her eye. Today she chose a little toy and paid for it with her own money from a little pink wallet while I felt like a D-O-G for spraying her in the eye with silly string. Today Mr. B. and Kid4 washed my truck and had a great time doing it. Today we had to go BACK to the store for onions and charcoal. Today we took the girls to tumbling AND dance.Today we prepared for the coming week ahead.

Today my friends, we labored but we loved it, because we were laboring together. Would that be considered a “labor of love”…?

Pictures to follow…

Happy Easter....ERRRRRR...... egg day?

It was little like Easter Sunday around here today minus the bunny and all baskets.

Kid4 had a big idea this morning when she woke up. She said after church that she wanted to color eggs and I must confess I really didn’t want too. I don’t know why, it’s not a big deal- boil some eggs, add some color, bada- bing, bada-boom. Done deal, colored eggs.

So this afternoon after putting it off and being lazy all afternoon she reminded me about our mock Easter plans and off to the kitchen we went. We had a great time coloring eggs, experimenting with color combinations and laughing over the smell of boiled eggs and vinegar.

We had a wonderful time, made a great snack and enjoyed a bunny-less “Easter”.

P.S. When this egg came out of the colored water she said "Well look here at this little brown beauty" I laughed, I just love what 5 year olds say!

I miss you

I've not been blogging like usual lately and my friends, I'm sorry.

I love to blog and I've missed writing to you.

Mr. B. and I did some work on the basement yesterday.

We hung an old plantation shutter down there over the old garage window...

are you nervous?

You shouldn't be!

It's beautiful.

I will post a picture tomorrow when the light is better.

In the meantime, enjoy the wreath on my front door.

I promise to catch up soon.

making your own heaven

Do you have your own slice of paradise that you have created for yourself (using what God gave you of course)?

Do you enjoy gardening, the love of animals and filling your body with things you have grown, nurtured and prepared with your own two hands?

Yesterday Bat Girl and I spent a most wonderful day at Lacy and Josh Razor's farm and enjoyed a little simple living with my friend Lacy from Razor Family Farms.

I knew Lacy was sweet by her love of animals and children. Her kind soft words are always welcoming in my ear but meeting her in person and spending a day with her was beyond a wonderful experience. Lacy has created her own safe haven, a place for animals, children and a breath of fresh air.

Bat girl and I, mostly me because Bat Girl is not a chicken cuddler or a goat milker, milked Lacy’s gorgeous goat, cuddled her dazzling chickens, danced with the Marilynn Monroe of Golden Retrievers and nuzzled her purrrrfect little kitten. We had a day of rest, laughing and pampering all in one.

Lacy cooked the most amazing lunch for us and spoiled us all afternoon. She made homemade mozzarella with fresh from the garden tomatos and basil- we ate it all and almost licked the plate clean. She made us homemade cheesecake from goat’s milk and it was divine. We had a lovely time and spent the whole day impressed by her hard work and amazed by her small farming ideas and how she has put them all to use.

Lacy is amazingly sweet, her heart and soul are golden and if you get a minute or two in West Georgia you should stop by Razor family farms and be amazed by her ingenuity! If you’re not in West Georgia just visit her site and buy some goats milk soap- it’s glorious- I used it last night!

A visit to Razor family farms

** These pictures are taken off of the Razor Family Farms blog. Lacy is an amazing photographer, cook, decorater and home maker. GO NOW and check her out!**

Guess what I’m doing today? You’ll never guess…
Let me give you a hint… Goats, homemade cheese, the best bread in Georgia…

Bat Girl and I are packing up and heading out to west Georgia to spend a day at Razor family farms with my friend Lacy. Lacy and I have only “e-met” (patent pending) but we are making it official tomorrow. I’m excited to actually meet her for real, see the goats, and get a good look at her gorgeous family farm.

Don’t worry, I will take lots of pictures, well let me rephrase that, Bat Girl will take lots of pictures, remember she doesn’t like to be in pictures. I’ll write a whole post on why she doesn’t like to be in pictures one day but for now let’s just leave it at she doesn’t like how she looks in pictures. I on the other hand don’t mind a good ol’ picture.

Pictures, stories and fun to follow.

Happy happy birthday Grandma (105)

**REPOST**

Happy birthday Grandma- I love you so much. You're 105 today. I have loved and cherished every moment with you.

My dear Great Grandma was born in 1904 and is still living today.

She was born while Theodore Roosevelt was president. She was born when there were only 144 miles of paved roads and 8,000 cars. Can you imagine living when only 1 in 10 Americans could read and write, only 14 percent of the population had bathtubs and the American flag only had 45 stars? I can’t begin to wrap my mind around there only being 30 people in Las Vegas, Nevada- now there are 30 people per elevator! Can you imagine that in 1904 there had only been 230 reported murders in America so far? It’s not something I can even fathom.

My Great Grandma life started with Theodore Roosevelt and life will likely end for her while Obama is in office- now that’s change! My Great Grandma has seen change in her life, she knows about change. My Great Grandma to this day can talk about politics, family, remember birthdays and have a normal and relevant conversation while you sit at her side. She is amazing.

Her eyes have quit looking- she is blind now. Can you imagine what she might have seen in 104 years with those eyes? When I visit her I stand there in quiet awe of her before I speak. I always just look at her pure beauty and wonder what she thinks about and if her mind ever wanders back to the years when she was young. When we speak I look at those eyes and I marvel at the fact that those eyes looked at this world for over one hundred years until they retired. Have you ever looked into your baby’s eyes and known that those eyes will see you first and then so many other things-possibly one hundred years of change?

I have sat and talked with my Great Grandma about change and the state of the world and the change she has seen and I always walk away in utter amazement! The things she has seen, done, heard are comparable to nothing! I love to look at pictures of her when she was younger, her and great grandpa, her and I and now her and my own babies. If we could transfer all her knowledge- the knowledge of 104 years what would that do to our minds?

My Great Grandmothers 104 years could not have all been easy. She lost children of her own, brothers and sister, nieces and nephews, grandchildren and great children. The loss of her husband of more than 75 years was a hard loss and so it was so hard to see her grieving for him. I know she must ask herself why she is still here today, why she has suffered so much and lived so long. I have asked her before why she thought she was still on this earth and she simply said “God isn’t ready for me to come home yet”.

I believe that My Great Grandma lives still today because she has great faith in God. I don’t think she filled her mind with unnecessary worries, sin and things that plague us today. I believe that my Great Grandma kept her eyes on the Lord, prayed fervently when necessary and looked to God for help. Her faith has sustained her and still is today.

I know that she has seen great changes in this world we share and so many of them must have broken her heart or made her feel weary and weak in the knees. If I asked my Grandma today this minute what she thought about this presidential election I think she would tell me to pray for him as we would any president. God can do anything he sees fit and he can prick our President Elect’s heart.

Grandma you’re amazing! There are just hardly words to describe your strength and faith. When I feel weak and weary I think of you and how much change you have endured and it gives me hope. You’re an example of strength, faith and pure wonderfulness to many. I respect and adore you more than I can say.

*presidents during my Grandma’s life*

Theodore Roosevelt (1901-1909)

William Howard Taft (1909-1913)

Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921)

Warren G. Harding (1921-1923)

Calvin Coolidge (1923-1929)

Herbert Hoover (1929-1933)

Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933-1945)

Harry S. Truman (1945-1953)

Dwight D. Eisenhower (1953-1961)

John F. Kennedy (1961-1963)

Lyndon B. Johnson (1963-1969)

Richard Nixon (1969-1974)

Gerald Ford (1974-1977)

Jimmy Carter (1977-1981)

Ronald Reagan (1981-1989)

George Bush (1989-1993)

Bill Clinton (1993-2001)

George W. Bush (2001- present)

Obama (2008 president Elect)

NOW THAT'S CHANGE!