Living the Good Life: September 2008

Friday, September 26, 2008

Annual biker party

We had our annual biker party a couple of weeks ago. A bunch of our Mojo Riders friends come up for KC. For the 7 years we have been having this party (ever since we moved to Boonville) we have always had pretty good weather. There was only 1 year that it rained a little bit on us. But this year was completely different. It had rained so much already and proceeded to continue raining the whole weekend. Needless to say, we didn't get any riding in. And our friends from KC didn't make it. But we

still had a few die hards and had a good time. Here's some

pics.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Switcheroo...

Well, my kids are back home but my husband has left. Right after mom & dad brought the boys back from watching them this weekend, Greg got a call from work. He had to head to St. Louis (out of power) and will probably be gone the rest of the week. It's just as empty around the house without him as it is without the boys. I've got to have "my boys" around me. ha! I love my boys! I pray that God brings him back home safely to me. He has a very dangerous job and I worry every time he leaves.

Friday, September 12, 2008

Should I be doing something??....

Well, the boys are gone for the weekend. We're having our annual biker party this weekend. Although, I don't think we will be doing much motorcycle riding because of the rain. But, nevertheless, the boys have gone to stay at my parents house. It feels so weird without them here. I keep having the feeling that I should be checking on them or getting them something to eat or tucking them in bed. I miss them already but it is nice to be able to chill out for a couple of days with some adults. But, I'll be full of hugs and kisses to give when they return on Sunday!

Sunday, September 7, 2008

It's already starting.....

Oh my gosh! The love bug has already bitten my little boy. Michael and Georgie have been attached to the hip since they met in 1st grade last year. And last week, Michael came home saying he had to get Georgie and Maylen (his other friend) something for when they met. I kind of cocked my head wondering "what is he talking about". Well, the next day Georgie gave Michael a balloon that said "I Love You" on it. It was the anniversary of when they met. Michael, of course, had to make something to take to Georgie and Maylen, too. I can't believe it's starting already. It was so cute, though.....

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Good weekend!

We had a very

nice Labor Day weekend. Besides working around the house a bit, we found time to have some fun. Greg took the boys fishing Saturday night and Michael caught a HUGE catfish. On Sunday, we took the kids to Stephens Lake in Columbia to swim. They had a great time playing in the water and digging in the sand. Afterwards, we went to mass and out to dinner at our favorite Chinese restaurant. Yesterday, while Greg worked on a fence and built a little bridge on the other side of our lake, I took the boys to ride their scooters along part of the Katy Trail. It was nice. Needless to say, the boys were tuckered out when we got home. Along with all the fun we had we also did some catsitting over the weekend for a friend. The boys had so much fun with the kittens. Hopefully, once we get this house finished, we'll have more weekends like this. More play, less work....ha

About our family

Hello! We are an average family of four (or should I say 21 if you add the chickens, horses, cats & dog) living in the heart of America, the midwest. We own our house, have 2 cars, 2 motorcycles (Harleys), 7 acres, 2 kids, some debt, and go to church. We haven't been to any exotic places or made millions of dollars. We have never suffered with major illnesses or constantly triumphed over insurmountable odds. We have had our share of good times and bad times but nothing that would make us stand out as unique or special. We have never written any best-selling books (although, I'm working on that) or had our 5 minutes of fame. We are an average American family with an average American lifestyle. I used to not be so happy about that. But now I realize that God has given us a wonderful life, full of challenges and obstacals, but nothing we can't handle. And it is the life He has chosen for us. So, we go about our average days of our average life and if something comes our way that presents a major challenge or gives us some unusual fame or fortune, we deal with it in our average American way.

How it all began...

I am a true believer in fate. If it were not for fate, and God's infinite wisdom, Greg and I would have never met. You know how sometimes you can almost feel God gently pushing you in a certain direction. Well, that's what happened to us on the night of August 24, 1996. God had his arms gently around Greg and my shoulders gently guiding us towards each other. Neither one of us would have normally been at the same event on the night of the 24th. Greg had just moved to Kansas City, Missouri and was looking for something to do on a Saturday night. I was in a lengthy conversation with a close friend involving her trying to talk me into going to the same event that Greg was on his way to at that very moment. I was tired of being the 5th wheel even though the friends I hung out with were all very close (couples or not). I had been seeing someone off and on for the past few years and was tired of being alone. My friend finally talked me into going to the Nascar races. That was where Greg and I met and it was the start of a great life together.

The start of our family.....

Greg and I got married in 1999. What a wonderful life we share. We live in Boonville, MO now and have been here ever since our 1st son was born. He was born the 2nd day we moved into our new house. Needless to say, he was not supposed to come until 10 weeks later. But he had his mind made up...ha. Greg and I were supposed to head to the innagural races at Kansas Speedway the morning of June 2, 2001. But at the last minute we decided to head east and make a run to the hospital. I had not been feeling right all night long. Well, it's a good thing we didn't go to KC because I was already dialated to 5 by the time we got to the hospital which was only 30 minutes away. Michael Lee Runnebaum was born a few hours later (10 weeks prematue) and spent the first 2 months of his precious life in the NICU.

Another addition....

Well, one wasn't enough. To be perfectly honest, I was ready to have 5 more until I had my second and then all that changed...ha! We decided two little boys running around was quite enough action. Vince was a term baby and was born January 30, 2003. We are not the typical couple although people are now starting to have kids later in their years. But I was 40 (actually 1 day shy of 41) when I had my first child. Greg is 6 years younger than I am. Our boys really keep us busy running with daily activities. There are days when I just want to drop down in a chair (most days, really...) but they really do keep us young at heart. And it makes me want to stay young and healthy so I can spend as much quality time with them as I can.