Our Family

2012-01-30T18:08:00.000-08:00

I haven't published a single thing in so long that I about forgot I even had a blog. Hope all are doing well and had a great start to their New Year. It is as busy as ever here. We started doing foster care about 2 years ago and it has been quite the ride. Come to think of it, that may have something to do with no posts:)!
The kids went to school last year and did well but all elected to come back home this year. Emily and Travis are doing school on their own and Lindsay is doing Classical Conversations at a a co-op not far from our house. She loves it and has learned so much. We will see what happens next year. I am planning on her doing it again.
We have a 2 year old right now. She came to us 4 months ago. She is a lot of work but a lot of fun, too. We are enjoying fostering children, atleast most of the time.:)
Emily has a part-time job and gets her full license at the end of this month. She is very happy about that.
Other than that, I have been working at a coffee shop 1 day a week and house cleaning a couple of houses, plus homeschooling and dealing with a 2 year old, but hey, who wants to be bored??:0
Well, I am headed off to bed, but wishing you all a good night. May even try and post some pictures...we'll see...Trisha

2010-03-17T08:33:00.000-07:00

Raegin with my dog in the background. I watch her and her sister and couple of days each week. She is adorable and growing so fast.

Here is some of the fun we have had this year in co-op. We have been very busy and it has challenged me quiet a bit to learn!!--and make it fun. We are now on navigation, sailing and explorers. I am learning more about the stars and navigation then I ever really wanted to:) Ah well, it has been fun.

Here is Emily's new bedroom. She is so happy not to be sharing with LIndsay right now and loves her own space!!

Here is my favorite part of the basement remodel job!! My office behind closed doors! What a genius my husband is!! I have dreamed of this for so long and now I Finally have it and it is wonderful!!It holds my school stuff, my computer, my bills, my kids finished crafts and art stuff, my stuff for our co-op and lots of other stuff:) It is AWSOME!!

Other than that, we have had a great spring minus the week the flu visited our house and we washed mounds of clothes, blankets and sheets...ugh!!

It is starting to warm up here finally and we are excited for tulips popping out of the ground, hostas peeking green and shrubs and grass turning green. I am horrible at taking pictures, but will try to get it done soon.

Trisha

Co-op fun

2009-10-30T12:32:00.000-07:00

We have been having a lot of fun in our co-op. We have been learning things about the USA divided into states and regions. We are trying to experience some of our coutry's history and culture.
In some of these pics, we are making tin can decorations, in others, we are making amish dishes and desserts... we have done all kinds of things and half of the time, I forget my camera...sigh...
Oh well, here is a small taste in the life of our family!

Growing up

2009-10-10T18:20:00.000-07:00

LIndsay and Alissa having cousin time

Linsay and Alissa have such a good time together

Lindsay had a good time at fair and enjoyed wearing her sister's 4-H shirt:)

Emily, at the mutton busting contest:)

Lindsay

The kids are really growing up! Life is so different than when they were small. So take heart those who think they will never get sleep again, you will:) --atleast most nights:) It takes a lot more energy to keep up with them at these ages than when they were small. They are always busy now!! Life is good and we are enjoying watching the kids grow.

Our school room is getting close to being done and we are very happy about that. We have been working on it pretty steadily for the last 2 weeks and it is very close!! It is so exciting to think of having a school room and a place for all the papers in my life:)

Trust you are all having a good fall. Will catch up to you later.)

2009-09-29T19:03:00.000-07:00

Here is our chrysalis just before it emerged into a butterfly

Here is the beautiful butterfly. He crawled all over our hands and flexed his wings many times before he decided he could fly farther than the back porch:)

Here he is on the back porch. We really did have a lot of fun with this whole experiment!!

We are also having a lot of fun at our co-op so I'll have to post pics of that soon. When I'm there, I forget to take pictures because I am so busy:) I'll try harder.:) Trust you are all having a wonderful fall.

2009-09-29T13:31:00.000-07:00

Here is one of our butterflies emerging from his chrysalis. It was so exciting I had a hard time taking pictures since I wanted to just watch. It was amazing! His wings were so tiny and fragile when he slid out and only half the size of his body. But within twenty minutes his wings were full size and he sat and dried out for about 2 hours and then started flexing his wings and flew off. WOW talk about fearfully and wonderfully made!!

I will post more of him, but ran out of space on my uploader.

Lindsay at our 4-H bake sale. It was fun and we sold all the pies we made. 72 pies sold by the slice. Yum! The 2 older enjoyed serving and selling them.

Here is Lindsay with a basket that was handmade, and a bunch of corn from the grist mill. That was amazing to watch. Lindsay ground all her corn into fine powder and loved every minute

Here are Jeff and Travis learning to work together in the logging industry:) It was a fun day of 4-H and Heritage Days!! We had a blast and learned a lot.

2009-09-14T13:07:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures from our last field trip on things in the Midwest. We did it with our co-op group in Muscatine. The egg factory was amazing! It was mostly Amish people that were operating it. It was very neat and informative.

This is the Dairy creamery we went to and toured. It was crazy how many people regulate milk!!

Here is our little group posing. :)

2009-09-14T13:05:00.000-07:00

We have been having a lot of fun and getting back into the swing of school. I have finally found my phone and will be post ing more pics soon. Hope you all had a wonderful summer. :)

4-H fun

2009-07-17T17:20:00.000-07:00

The kids have finally made it to their first 4-H fair. They are having a blast! They watched the judging of all the dogs. One of Emily's friends got first place and won the trophy. There have been speeches, calf judging, dog shows, agility for dogs, mutton busting, and so many fun things. Tomorrow, we head back to the fair and Emily and Sarah have a working exhibit to do. I'll have to post pictures about that later. We have been having so much fun! Emily's friend, Sarah, showing her Pug. She was one of the later groups and had been there for 4hours and was tired.

Emily's friend, Sarah B., showing her dog.

Emily's friend, Anna, showing her dog. This is a horrible pic. I thought I put the better one on here. It was very interesting the way that the judges did their choosing.

Emily, talking to the judge about the paintings she did and her write-ups about them.

Travis, talking to the judge about his woodworking exhibit and his write-up.

Creation Science Museum

2009-06-11T10:58:00.000-07:00

We took the kids to the Creation Science Museum. It was very interesting and fun. IT takes forever to load pics sometimes, or I would put more on here. This is Lindsay and Nathan right inside the door. I'll have to upload more later.

A Day at the Zoo

2009-05-20T13:27:00.000-07:00

Carrying the picnic basket. Comrades in arms. How cute!

Lindsay in the petting zoo

Feeding the birds at the zoo. The birds were hilarious. Travis said he never needed to feed another bird! He has had his fill!!! The birds must have been starving, because as soon as we walked in, they jumped all over us! It was a little unnerving, to say the least!!

The Macaws drinking nectar

Emily and Kara feeding them! They had about six on them at one time, but I was busy trying to get rid of one off my shoulder and so missed the shot...sigh...!:)

Sorry, I ran out of memory on my camera and these are all the pictures I got of the kids. They had a blast and even got to pet toroises. It was a lot of fun. Then, we went to the swing area and had a picnic lunch. It was a great morning!

Trust you are all having a wonderful day! Trisha

Keeping Busy!

2009-05-14T11:11:00.000-07:00

Here is the latest update on the patio. It is finally getting done and looks great! It is so exciting to start seeing it come together at long last! I am enjoying it so much!

Here are Lindsay and Sophia planting flowers and enjoying Spring!

Here is the lady that we do our co-op with each week! When we went to the community college for the kids' chemistry experiments, we all had to wear these goggles. We looked pretty funny!

Here are the kids with their teacher. It was a lot of fun and they enjoyed it!

Here is Emily with a friend doing some of the experiments.

It has been a busy month for us. It has been nice to get into May and find life slowing down atleast for a short time. Hope you all are having a little break before the summer business starts and then fall school.....it just goes on and on! :)

Braces!

2009-05-08T11:29:00.000-07:00

Emily has finally gotten braces! It has been somewhat of an ordeal! She had to have 4 permanent teeth pulled and believe me, she did not enjoy it!! She was ready to forget having beautiful teeth! She has been excited with the braces though. I'll post pictures as soon as I can of the "new look". Travis has decided he wants braces, too. I told him that I HOPED he didn't have to have them. Goodness! Kids are funny like that!

Other than that, we have pretty much come to a halt with school, except for a little bit of Math left. We are READY to be done! Spring has sprung and we don't want to miss any of it!

The kids have had a blast this year and I have been so grateful! After the last year, I was ready to call it quits, until I found a lady who did unit studies, and we started doing classes together on Thursdays. The kids have loved it so much! It has breathed new life in to us! Next year, we are going with that curriculum and already have our year mapped out! We are very excited about it!
Have a great Friday and a wonderful weekend! Trisha

Chemistry and 4-H

2009-04-29T19:59:00.000-07:00

The kids got to go to a Community College and do some experiments in the chemistry lab. They had a blast and learned a lot. It was a lot of fun. Don't they look great in their goggles? They did not love that part!

Emily had to do a presentation for 4-H. She was very nervous, but did a great job! She talked about the different mediums of art. She loves paints, pastels, water colors, chalk, colored pencils and so many others.

We have a very busy life and are enjoying every minute--well, relatively speaking. :) We have lots to keep minds and hands busy and are learning so much.

Lindsay's class that she has been doing these last few weeks separate from Emily has been on insects. Well, last week she learned about bees and has been terribly impressed with them. She talked half the way home on how bees carried pollen, how they did a little dance to tell the other bees where honey was and all sorts of other facts. She is growing so fast and it's hard to believe my baby is almost a first grader! Not sure I'm ready for that!!!

Well, I'll post more later. How much later, I don't know.....:) Trisha

2009-04-18T14:30:00.000-07:00

We have just returned from going to IHC in Ohio. We had a wonderful time. The Lord really helped some of the speakers and we were able to renew many friendships. My Grandma and Great Aunt were also there and played a large part in our decision to go. It was great to get to visit with them.
Oh Thursday, we went to the Creation Science Museum and had a blast with my brother and sis-on-law. It was very crowded and busy there, but there was so much to see. It is a fascinating place with beautiful wax figures and the full story of the Biblical account of Creation, the flood and other things. We hope to get to go back one of these days.
We got home Thursday Night and were glad to be back in our own beds! Sorry I am such a horrible blogger! Life is just too exciting sometimes to stop and come down to update it.:)
Trust all are doing well! Until next time, Trisha

Fun Week

2009-04-03T14:04:00.000-07:00

We ended up leaving on Monday and went and spent the week in Michigan with my sister-in-law and mom. We had a blast and did a little running around. Mostly we just chilled and had some time to just do nothing. Of course, with 5 kids running around, nothing IS a relative word as there are so many things to do just to keep life operational.:)

As most of you know, our pastor has resigned and is moving to Alabama. We are in the process of finding a new one. That is NOT an easy task. We are going to miss the Jones' terribly! The kids were fast friends and cousins, and as homeschooling moms, Penny and I did sooo much together! It will be a big adjustment!

Let's see, other than that, we will be in school for atleast 4 more weeks, though most of the kids' work will be done by the first of May, a little of it will go into the second week of May. Then we will be done!!! I am soo looking forward to that!! It has been a good year, though! One of the best years I have ever had. Partly because we found a co-op that is doing the KONOS curriculum and the kids fell in love with it, consequently Mom did too!!! THey are so excited for what we will be doing next year that they have been poring over the book trying to get a head's up! They are so funny and I am so glad!

That is all I can think of. Hope you are all having a wonderful start to your weekends! Trisha

Co-op

2009-03-21T19:10:00.000-07:00

Here is Lindsay dressed as a locust getting ready to molt!

Here are the kids as caterpillars in cocoons. Getting ready to change to butterflies.

Here they are after they have come out of their cocoons. They were so funny and cute. The lady who is teaching them is a kindergarten teacher. She does a great job! The kids love it!

Here they are butterflies and trying to fly around. They look pretty funny and cute!

Saturday

2009-03-21T19:04:00.000-07:00

Today has been a busy day! The kids had a Dodgeball tournament today and we left the house at 7:50Am on a Saturday. We should get a medal for that:) Went to Muscatine High School where they played. Had a great time and then went to the extension office to work on record books for 4-H.
This afternoon, we headed to some friend's house and helped shuck corn for 8 new baby calves and their 1 yr old calves. It was fun and relaxing, but I came away with two medals from it--blisters on both of my thumbs.:) Pretty funny! Didn't know I used my thumbs so much!! Goodness! I feel all thumbs tonight.
Well, we are getting the kids to bed and hope to get their ourselves soon. Maybe I'll find time to load more pics soon! It can take awhile! Bye for now...Trisha

2009-03-14T19:47:00.000-07:00

It has been a busy day. Travis and Jeff went to a gun show and had a great time. Jeff went to work on a plumbing job and the kids and I hung out at Boardman's and had fun. I got most of my house cleaned today and was very proud of myself.
Friday night was 4-H and the kids enjoyed that. One of the presentations was on Great Pyrenese dogs and this girl brought her puppy for demonstration on puppy shots and worming. He was HUGE and only 10 weeks. Very cute and cuddly! Can't believe how big those dogs get. She said up to 160lbs! I like lapdogs personally!
Trust all are doing well.

Quad City Symphony Dress Rehearsal

2009-03-11T13:47:00.000-07:00

The kids got to attend the Quad City Symphony dress rehearsal last Friday Night. We went with some other homeschool friends who are in our 4-H group. It was a lot of fun. The conductor was amazing! Did you know that when you conduct a symphony, you have to be one beat ahead of the music with your hands than where the orchestra is?? IT is crazy to watch! They served hot dogs, chips and pop before the concert started. When it was over there was a question and answer session for all the kids. It was very informative.Here is the featured Cellist. He played amazingly! He is only 25 and was homeschooled almost all of his life. He had pretty funny hair, but he said he started playing the cello when he was 2. The suzuki method. He said his dad encouraged the cello over the violin because it was more mellow and not so squeaky!:)

Here is the whole group. I am a bad picture taker! Sorry!

The kids are learning the table of elements at the co-op we do in Muscatine. They are really learning fast. I;m always amazed at how fast they can absorb information!

The little ones learned about the life cycle of the butterfly. They all rolled up in cocoons(sleeping bags) and then popped out with material as butterflies with wings!! Then they came to the table to make a chart about butterflies and then over to read about them. It was so cute. I didn';t have a good one of Lindsay so Alissa is in this picture.

Trust you all are having a good week. We are off to Muscatine tomorrow. Let's see if I can remember my camera....

Dog Stories!!:)

2009-02-26T17:28:00.000-08:00

Here is the lady who showed us all the dog training in agility. It was very interesting.

Here is the picture of a seeing eye dog in training. That was an amazing lecture! It is incredible how much goes into these dogs! I have a new respect for these dedicated people and dogs. It is truly inspiring work!

Here are the kids at the humane society. That was fun, too. We are packing our days with lots of things!!

Here are Lindsay and Alissa doing a presentation on a dog of their choice. Very cute!

Emily and Melissa are growing up and really having a great time together!

That is our last month at a glance! Holler later!!

Muscatine Fun

2009-02-24T20:03:00.000-08:00

We are neck deep in discovering dogs. We went to the Obedience and Agility training school in Muscatine this past Thursday. It is amazing what all can be taught to a dog. It really inspired Emily and she is dying for a puppy. The last few weeks we have been studying pets and pet care. We have had a seeing eye dog, a search and rescue dog and their trainers speak to us. This is a picture of the agility trainer and her dog.

The kids had to find a recipe and make dog bisuits for several dogs to taste test. Ours was a liver cornbread concoction and smelled very livery!!! It won first place with the dogs though.:) You knew it would of course. The worse it smells the better the chance!!:)

Here is the finished project of our liver biscuits! Enjoy!

The kids got to go ice skating together with the whole QC homeschool group. It was alot of fun and they had a blast! They are growing so fast. This semester has been so much fun./ Will update again....

Happy Valentines Day!

2009-02-14T14:30:00.001-08:00

OK, so I have been not so faithful once again....It is very crazy at our house sometimes.:) We are doing well and have been doing lots of fun things with the kids up in Muscatine. This week we are headed to a humane society and them to watch the obedience training. Last week we had a man come in and give us a talk on search and rescue dogs. He was training the cutest puppy. Then we had a lady who trains service dogs. She brought a very large golden retriever with her. He is planning on being a seeing eye dog. It is fascinating to hear all the requirements to pass the tests for that!!
Needless to say, we have been very busy and have really enjoyed ourselves. However, it has been hard to keep you updated... so hopefully I will download and post some pics for you soon:) Maybe even later, if I get really inspired!

2009-01-26T08:09:00.000-08:00

Lindsay looking at her maize book--dressed like a pioneer

dipping candles

Making biscuits

making rag dolls and covered wagons

Well, things have been very busy here. We have joined a co-op that we do once a week. The kids are having such fun. THey have been doing frontier life and have made rag dolls, covered wagons, maize books, embroidery, making a pattern, candles, butter, biscuits, and an old fashion meal to top it all off. It has been so much fun.

Our new theme is pets and pet care. We will be having a lecture from a lady that trains seeing eye dogs, she will bring atleast one dog. We are taking a trip to the humane society, doing a collage on pets, breeds and classes of dogs. We are making dog biscuits and trying to find which one the dogs like best... Oh, it will be fun... I think I am having as much fun as the kids. :)

I hope this January everyone is staying warm. We have had nothing but cold, cold weather!!! I am very tired of the cold. It seems to never cease this winter.

Anyway, you have been duly caught up on our lives and hope you feel very informed:)

4-H Fun

2009-01-13T08:05:00.001-08:00

The kids had a volley ball tournament in Muscatine this past Saturday. 4-H does that on occasion. It was lots of fun! Emily was in the older group, Travis in the younger group. It was exciting.

2009-01-09T20:16:00.000-08:00

Jeff made this beautiful oak hope chest for Emily for Christmas. She was so excited. They picked out the style together and talked about it for a long time. He was worse than her and was up before anyone else on Christmas morning so he could get it under the tree. It was so sweet!

Here is another picture of the kids at our Christmas program. The little ones came on the stage next. They said parts and did a great job, too. I don't think I have any pics of it. I am a horrible picture taker.:)

This pic is blurry, but it's Travis having the coveted part of "Joseph" of which he was very proud.:)

The kids are doing all sorts of things in 4-H and are loving it! One of them is volleyball. They are having a tournament against another 4-H homeschool group tomorrow. I'll have to take some pics and post them.

We also joined a co-op that does unit studies and the kids are having a blast making all kinds of stuff. We are studying frontier life and resourcefulness right now. It is interesting and informative. Well, I'll write later.

Happy New Year!

2009-01-08T20:15:00.000-08:00

Just thought I'd get this updated and let everyone know all that has been happening in our lives.
We had Christmas with Jeff's family in November, and our own Christmas at home on Christmas morning. Then we went to my parents and had Christmas with my brothers, sis-in-law and kids, and my parents. It was busy and fun.

Lindsay had a birthday and turned 6 just before Christmas. Who has birthdays just before Christmas????sigh...:)

Here is the picture I promised of the snow. We had tons of it. It is mostly gone now due to a warm snap that didn't last.:) More ice and snow due tomorrow....

We also had a Christmas program and it turned out really nice. I'll post more of that later.....

Here is Lindsay who was an angel. She memorized parts and did really well.

Well, it has been a busy month and a new year has begun. Hope everyone is well and having a great start to there year!

November snowstorm

2008-12-17T08:36:00.000-08:00

This was our first snow this winter. It happened early this year.

I am going out to take pictures of our snowfall from last night. We got 6 inches on top of sleet and rotten ice. It is beautiful and messy! It is up to 11* degrees this morning and it feels better than -1*. However, 25* after this cold, feels wonderful! You feel like it isn't too necessary to have a coat. Funny how you're blood thickens. Anyway, better run outside for those pictures or you won't be seeing them for awhile....:)

Thanksgiving Vacation!

2008-12-03T19:26:00.000-08:00

We went to Uncle Kenny's house while in Louisiana and had a great time. Here are my cousin-in-law with my cousin's daughter and Emily.

We had a Thanksgiving feast for our family and Jeff's parents. It was nice, peaceful and very enjoyable!

Jeff and his mom at the park where we went crabbing.

Another picture of our Thanksgiving dinner!

We had a blast on our Vacation! We went crabbing, rode the 4-wheeler(well, some of us did):), played games and just sat around and visited or read books. It was very relaxing. Beautiful weather, too! 80* some days. I loved that part! We are glad to be back in our own little house, but it was so nice to have a fun trip!

Our Life

2008-11-15T12:04:00.000-08:00

The kids had their first official night of 4-H last night. They had a blast! The kids are all so nice and down to earth and the parents are, too! It was great!

Here is a girl giving a presentation on puppies and litters. She breeds Pugs and they were sooo cute! Big hit with the kids.

This is a playhouse the Robert and Jeff built. They were so excited and it turned out adorable! It will be at the Festival of Trees so we want to go in and see it all decorated up for Christmas. They had a blast building it.

Here is another view of it. I tried to get several but I didn't post them all.

Hope everyone is having a great fall!

Mystery Dinner

2008-11-10T17:15:00.001-08:00

The kids had a Hawaiian mystery dinner. They had a blast and really enjoyed acting. It was at my parents' house and it was decorated very cute. The thatched roof was so cute. It added a lot of ambience. They also played nature CD's and Hawaiian music. They were so excited! What fun. Don't you miss being a kid?

2008-10-27T16:44:00.001-07:00

2008-10-27T16:39:00.000-07:00

Just seeing if my computer is behaving yet.:)

Boys will be boys!!

2008-10-25T18:50:00.000-07:00

I don't know what I did, but my images are all of a sudden way too big. I think I am going to have to figure this out. Oh boy... this could be scary! If I have only half pictures next time, you'll know why!:)

Hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend and ready for the Lord's Day tomorrow!

Horse Sense!

2008-10-24T08:07:00.000-07:00

When we were at Country Corner, a man showed the kids how to drive the horses. He let each of them drive and spent about 45 minutes with them. They had a blast and got to feel how the reins felt and got quite a lesson in horses!

Lindsay Reading!!

2008-10-21T13:07:00.000-07:00

Here is a video of Lindsay reading "Fox in Socks". She only knew how to read the first part, but she just found it on the shelf and started reading. It was so cute. She has reading books she does every week, but I was so excited when she found a book and tried to read it on her own!! Success!!!

Fall Days

2008-10-21T12:59:00.000-07:00

When we went to Ellen's we helped hand out flyers for her work. The kids got paid for every card they handed out. They enjoy adding up the money as they go from neighborhood to neighborhood. Lindsay even got excited about it! She handed out tons of them! She was so proud of herself when she got her money. The other two were, too!! Hard work pays off.
A play-doh creation. --Lindsay has been learning some fun things in school. Her teacher showed her how fun it was to use play-doh and all the neat things you can make. It inspired her and even Emily to try some fun ideas.

Here is Lindsay and Sophia with their little pizzas. They were so funny trying to make them all on their own.

The kids also made little cakes and decorated them yesterday. I'll have to upload those pictures. They turned out cute.

Hope everyone's week is going well!!! Enough for now!

A Day at Country Corner

2008-10-20T11:14:00.000-07:00

Riding the cow train.
Currying thehorses
Lindsay with pumpkins
Hayrack ride to the pumkin patch
Lindsay and Nathan at Cubbies.

We went to Ellen's to visit while Greg was gone.

Funny Pictures

2008-10-16T12:34:00.000-07:00

Remain calm, even when it seems hopeless.

Take an occasional risk Work together as a team

These are some funny pictures that were emailed to me. I thought I would share them with the captions they came with. They are hilarious.

Oh, and about the Michigan pictures, I haven't gotten them uploaded yet. Hopefully I will get that done soon.:)

Off we Go

2008-10-06T19:46:00.000-07:00

I am heading to Michigan for a quick trip. I have been running around all day trying to get ready for it.

I also canned some apple butter, froze some apples for apple pie, made gumbo and potato salad and got things ready for Jeff while I'm gone. I have been so industrious! Especially considering that I had a regular school day with the kids and watched two little girls!--one a baby!! Oh my I am really amazing today. What is wrong with me>!!! HeeHee

I'll try to get some pictures posted as soon as I get back. See you then. Trisha

Welcome to My World

2008-10-05T14:28:00.000-07:00

Here is Travis doing his work
Lindsay working with the DVD player. She is pretty enthusiastic for school
Emily watching Mrs Vick teaching English.

This is what I do most of my days. It consumes a lot of my time. One great thing though; we got our patio pretty well done and it looks beautiful! I will enjoy looking out and just staring at it. We put in a flagstone path up to the deck and it is so warm and cozy. Kind of a little like a cottage. I love it. I will try to get new pictures of it and post them. You know how good I am about that:) Anyway, we finished yesterday.

Hello Again!

2008-09-19T17:55:00.001-07:00

Here are the kids with their cousins on the Celebration Belle. They have so much fun doing that every year. They get free tickets for being in the summer reading program at the library.
Here is a picture of our church since it has been remodeled. It is really starting to look nice. I am so glad. Lots of hours over there!!! Oh--and don't you just love the scaffolding?? sorry!
This is Penny's classroom. She decided to do a lighthouse scene on the wall and we have had fun with that. Not quite done yet. She is in my old kindergarten classroom.
Here is the boys' new bathroom not completed, but getting there! I'll be so glad when all this is done!

Anyway, another school year is definitely upon us and even the most reluctant school kids are back in school:) Hope all your school days are going good. We are doing alright and life is good.

Good Afternoon

2008-08-27T13:35:00.000-07:00

The kids at Cabela's-- growing up so fast.
Another school year started. Lindsay is so excited!
Here is one of her teachers.

Pictures

2008-08-16T18:32:00.001-07:00

Here are the rest of the pictures. We are taking a ride in an old Amish buggy.
Here we are at Cabela's on the way home. What fun..
Family is so great. I am so glad to be close to our family. Wish we could live closer to the rest of them. Hope everyone had a great summer and are ready for school to start. --or you may be the one to get your school started sigh... :) Until next time...tata Trisha

Mini-vacation

2008-08-16T18:09:00.000-07:00

Greg with Emily and Travis at Lake Michigan
Emily and Austin
4 little cousins

Nathan, Lindsay, Travis, Austin and Emily Greg, Ellen, Jeff and I all went to stay in a little Amish town and view the sights and scents:0. It was very fun, interesting, enlightening and educational.:) We stayed overnight in an old fashioned Dawdi(grandparent) house remodeled with awsome oak furniture. It was beautiful. it was so wierd to walk up and down the streets and see lots of cars, but just as many horses and buggies. I really enjoyed it, though I can't say I would want to do that myself. I personally like things like cars, running water, and deodorant:) We had a blast to say the least. Hope you enjoy our little tour. Trisha

Patio Pictures!!

2008-08-04T11:01:00.000-07:00

Here they are working on the patio near the end. What a Job!!!
Here we are spreading sand. As you know, sand is really rock crumbled up and so it is very helpful to use when you don't want rocks to move. It's like packing it with very small rocks. It shall not be moved.:)
Here is the stage we are at now.
Almost completed patio.
Here are the promised pictures of our patio. IT is coming along nicely. We are not quite done but we are sooo happy with its progress.

Hi Everyone!

2008-08-03T20:12:00.000-07:00

Just thought I'd let you know that we got most of the patio put in this last weekend. it is looking great! It was dark when we got done, so I don't have good pictures, but I'll try to get some tomorrow. It is wonder ful to finally have that done!!! We are so excited! Will try to post pictures tomorrow. Tonight it's off to bed. Trisha

Just a quick note

2008-07-26T12:50:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd tell you that my sister-in-law consoled me by saying that most people never get struck by lightning so I should have that kind of thing out of the way--odds being what they are.") Oh, and my brother said you have more chance to win the lottery than be hit with lightning so he thought if I would go buy a lottery ticket we could split the profits. HA Family is so great!!!:D I guess I will keep my money and earn it slow and steady. No need for the chance to lose --of course:) Trisha

What a week!

2008-07-25T20:38:00.000-07:00

Lindsay, Travis and Emily with our neighbors across our street working. Can you see the power line under the big tree behind Lindsay?
This picture it is a little easier to see the power line down on the right. The tree fell right on it.
Here is our back yard minus two trees. It really changed the looks of it.
Here is our pool that now has no water and part of our patio. Oh it also flooded muddy water in our basement in the torrent of rain that followed. What a mess! I haven't gotten all of it cleaned up yet. But I;m working on it.

Wow! This has been some kind of week! Saturday night, I got the charge from the ground that happens just before lightning strikes you and was in bed all day Sunday. Monday morning around 6 AM, I awoke to the tornado sirens going off and wind whipping everywhere. I woke Jeff and ran to get the kids. They were already running out of their rooms and together we took off for the basement. It is a pretty helpless feeling to know the wind is strong enough to do what it wants and there is absolutely nothing you can do about it. We have windows in our basement and could see trees wildly blowing in the wind, and then they were just gone. We had a little 10 ft pool for the kids and the water was swirling around and around and then all of a sudden, there was no water. It was completely gone. 10,000 gallons! Wow! Where did it go?

Anyway, when the storm died down, I was exhausted from the lightning the night before and went back to bed. It seemed to have taken all of my energy and I had none. We lost our electricity, too. I didn't care. just went to sleep. The phone kept ringing and I answered when I could reach it. The only one working was the cord phone.--and no answering machine or caller ID. Talk about the hard times>>:)

I slept most of the day and then when it got dark we went to the Jones" for the night and it was so nice. I do not like to sleep in pitch dark!!! On Tuesday, Dan and Melissa brought me dinner as I was still not doing well. Emily said, "Mom, we have lots of friends!" Thank the Lord for good friends and family. It means so much.

I am doing better though still tire easily. I am posting some pictures of our neighborhood. I didn't take these so we have none of our truck which it looks like may be totaled because I huge tree branch fell on it. sigh... What is the Lord trying to teach us? :) Well, hope you all stay well and safe and I'll talk to you soon.:D

Happy Summer!

2008-07-22T20:34:00.000-07:00

Sorry it has been so long!!! We have been very busy. First, we went to Youth Camp and came home and unpacked and in less than 2 weeks were at our church Camp. Then, we got home and had to unpack again. I was trying to get BJU's home satelite system to work on my computer. I worked on it off and on for 3 weeks and when I finally got it all to work together, they sent out an email saying they were closing the satelite option and doing only DVD's. Needless to say, I was a little bummed. So, we undid all the satelite stuff and I now have it in my van ready to return to them. I think we will go the DVD option again, though I haven't altogether made up my mind. Decisions.. decisions.. decisions...

So, it has been a long and interesting summer. Hope you all are having a good summer and hope to catch up on what everyone has been doing. :) Will post picures later. Trisha

Youth Camp

2008-06-27T20:17:00.000-07:00

Emily with some of the crazy hair-do's for "bad hair day". Aren't they frightful?
My lovely sister-in-law, Anna with her beautiful "do". :) Good job, Anna!
Emily and Jill picking strawberries after Youth camp.
Some of the kids and staff at Youth Camp.
Emily and Jill made homemade jam with our freshly picked strawberries. What fun!!

The kids had so much fun at Youth Camp. Emily was in Youth Camp and Travis and Lindsay went to a VBS. They all really enjoyed themselves. Here are a few pictures of our trip and of bringing Emily's friend, Jill, home and all the fun they had.

Jeff's brother and family

2008-06-08T20:26:00.000-07:00

Just thought I'd send you a picture of Jeff's brother, Chucky and wife, Anna. They don't live nearby. THey used to live a lot closer and we had a blast going to visit them and staying up to talk till all hours of the night and morning. Ahhh... the things of youth! Don't do that much anymore. Too tired:)

On the right hand side is a picture of Chip, and beside him is Trent. Both Chucky's boys. They are growing like weeds and will be grown before you know it! Time flies... Trisha

Pictures!

2008-06-07T18:56:00.000-07:00

Jeff was going to mow this afternoon. We were inside when all of a sudden a loud clap of thunder came crashing down around us. Jeff ran outside and decided to mow anyway. It was supposed to rain all evening off and on so he decided to get it out of the way. I got so tickled watching him while the rain poured down that I took a couple of pictures. He was soaked!! Oh, and this evening we have had no rain. In fact, he went outside and finished teaching Lindsay how to ride her bike!! Sigh! Life sure is funny sometimes>:)

She has finally gotten the hang of it. She is sooo proud and excited! She can now ride like her best friend and cousin, Alissa!
Learning

Birthday Pictures

2008-06-07T18:45:00.000-07:00

Birthday celebrations
Emily and Kara
Emily getting ready to blow out candles
Bethany, Melissa, Jillayne, Lindsay, Emily and Kara!

They had a lot of fun and Emily is now a member of that -Oh so elusive_ teenage group! Oh my! What are we in for>:) It'll be fun, no doubt about it. Happy Birthday, Emily!!!

Some fun pictures from all our building projects

2008-06-04T19:52:00.000-07:00

Jeff, working on the kids playhouse
Lindsay and Alissa(her cousin) riding a 4-wheeler. (not alone):)
Emily and Brandon riding while Jeff tries to smooth the dirt out for sod.
Robert(Jeff's cousin) driving the bobcat--with Lindsay's "help".

I started looking at all our old pictures. My, what a busy year we have had! It ought to have atleast aged us by two years!HA! LIfe has actually slowed down some from these days!! Thank the Lord! Trisha

2008-06-04T19:29:00.000-07:00

This picture is of my Dad's side of the family. The lady on the end on the far left was my Great Grandmother Freeman. She died about 3 years ago, over 100 years old. She had been in this good way all her life. I have a rich heritage in my family. So many of my ancestors served the Lord. Even farther back than this. I believe my Dad said, her mother was a shouting Methodist. I never really knew my great, great grandmother, but I did know my Great Grandma Freeman. My grandmother is also a wonderful saint. Sometimes she really keeps me encouraged. The Lord has been so good to me. Sometimes it's amazing when you look back at the tapestry of your life and the lives of those gone on before you. I guess we truly are "encompassed with so great a cloud of witnesses" . I think of men like Bro. Jack Hoof, Bro. Glenn Patterson, Jeff's great grandfather Elbert Dodd, and I wonder if they are over there cheering us on. We can make it! Let us run with patience the race set before us! Trisha

AHH.. Summer Vacation!

2008-05-29T20:07:00.000-07:00

We are really enjoying our summer vacation. It has been sooo nice not to have a rigid schedule. We have just relaxed and have been taking it easy. I have been working on getting my basement clean and organized. It is a project in itself!! I am not an organizational whiz. In face, you might think I am organizationally challenged!:) I do try, though.

I finally got the kids DVD's sent back to Bob Jones Univerisity Press, today. That felt wonderful!!! It is so nice to get things crossed off the list.

It is getting late here, hope you all have a great evening a sleep well.:) Trisha

The Beginning of Our Patio

2008-05-27T17:37:00.000-07:00

Austin stayed with me this weekend while Greg and Ellen went away. It was different having a baby for the night and I really enjoyed it. Though I am definitely out of the sleepless night routine!") Mom kept Nathan and they came over some, too. IT was a fun weekend and they are all home now.

Darrell started working on our patio this weekend. It is starting to come together. It is a LOT of work!!! Lots of digging and dirt work. Lots of moving 80 pound blocks. Oh My! THere is hard work and then there is landscaping! WOW! We will be so glad when it is over. Talk to you later. Trisha

2008-05-25T14:29:00.000-07:00

Jeff's cousin, Dorae, married my cousin, Jeffrey. How is that for fun? I guess we are destined to have relatives from the same families!") These pictures were sent to me from my cousin, Rachel. We couldn't go to the wedding because it was a looong ways away. I was so glad to get pictures, though. Hope you enjoy them.
Kayla, Janelle, DeAnna, Dorae, Shanda and ? The little girl is DeAnna's

Jeff's Uncle Paul and Dorae(daughter)
Wedding party

Lindsay learning to ride a bike

2008-05-17T20:57:00.000-07:00

Lindsay is trying to learn how to ride a bike. It is a very scary proposition for unadventurous little girls.:)
Emily had to disect and learn all about hearts. We ordered her a sheep's heart to use for studying and disection. What fun! Maybe.
Two of the little children I watch sometimes. Aren't they adorable? They keep me hopping. I guess, trying to stay young.:)

As you can see, we are very busy and very much alive. All is well and we are only a few days from being completely done with school. Travis is really close. Emily has only a little, too. I am sooo ready to be out of school!

It's getting late here so I better run. Hopefully, I'll post better and faster next time.:) Trisha

Program Song

2008-04-24T14:05:00.000-07:00

The Kids sang this song in their program. Our theme was " Great Places in America". It turned out really cute and the kids did a great job. We were all tired and glad when it was done though. Emily and Kara dressed like pioneers since they were doing there report on Sutter's Mill and the California Gold Rush. They made those dresses themselves and were very proud of them. Lindsay is standing next to Emily acting nervous though she loves to sing. Kids do wierd things in front of an audience sometimes.:) I may post some more on this, but it takes forever to upload videos so we will see how dedicated I am.

School is done for the day and I am getting ready to make supper for the troops. I didn't have my 2 babies and have gotten a lot of laundry caught up today. That is always a blessing! Jeff has worked a lot of hours this week, but will be coming homing early or atleast ontime tonight. So that will be nice!

Will talk later. Trisha

Homeschool Program

2008-04-24T06:11:00.000-07:00

Here is a picture of some of the kids singing at the Program the other night
My kids getting their awards from Bro. Taylor

Here Goes...

2008-04-19T08:06:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged by Amanda so I guess I'll try to do this. ")

What was I doing 10 years ago?

I was living in Milan, had Emily and was 6 weeks from having Travis. We were getting ready to move to the church Campground in Sherrard to be the caretakers of the grounds there. We were living in our first little house and were very proud of it.

Things on my to-do list today.

I am getting ready to transport myself and 3 boys( Travis had 2 friends spend the night last night. YOu can imagine when they went to sleep:)) to the church where we have a work day in progress. We are putting in new bathrooms. Our church is 100 years old and I'm not sure the baths have been done since they put them in. We are totally remodeling them. Now, I am not good at sheet rock, studs and toilets, but I can sure clean, so that is what I'm doing.
Other than that, I am going to clean this house and get groceries for Sunday and all the fun stuff that has to be done every week. Try to get ready for the tornado that always happens by Monday morning!:)

Snacks I enjoy:
5. Doritos
4. Cheese and crackers
3. Granola bars
2. Kitkats
1. York peppermint patties! My favorite!

If I were a billionaire, I'd

1. Move to the country
2. Have a pond and creeks
3. Spend lots of time doing creative and Inspired learning in our classroom, spending Lots of money on fun experiments and making whole rooms into the jungle when we are studying South America, transforming our basement into a miniature lab for Science projects, having a good telescope and watching the stars. I am very passionate about this subject. You can tell:).
4. Travel around the world and stop at every place the kids are studying about. It we are talking about Israel, just hop on a plane and go visit! Oh what fun!
5. Having Jeff work only part time. Have him around for all our spontaneous picnics etc. :)He'd go crazy not working at all, I think. Either that or he'd reorganize my house all the time. That would be interesting.:)
6. Give my kids lessons in every instrument they wanted and me too!:)
7. Pay for extra things at our church.
8. Pay off all my bills. YEAH!

My worst habits

Procrastinating on things
Jumping to conclusions to easily
Speaking to quickly
Not listening as well as I should when people are talking and really need me. ( I am trying to work on this a lot)

Jobs I've Held

Housecleaning
Child care
Kindergarten teacher
Teacher/ Mom

People I would like to tag:

Ellen

Wheww! That's a lot! It takes a lot of thinking to do that. HOpe you all have a good day and I will post later and maybe show you pictures of my kids' homeschool program last night! TRisha

Here are the long-awaited pictures!

2008-04-10T19:24:00.000-07:00

Some of my Sunday School Class
Travis working on the Washington Monument in paper mache! He is doing this for an end of the year program next Friday!
Here is a picture on our 15 th anniversary the end of March. We are getting older but still glad to be happily married. We went to Galena and it was very nice. My mom kept the kids and they seemed to have lots of fun.
Emily--working on her visual aid for her project. She built Sutter's fort and did a great job. We had lots of fun and she is ready for the program!
The kids pose at our church on Easter Sunday Morning:)

Good Evening!

2008-03-22T18:32:00.001-07:00

Well, tomorrow is Easter and it has been another busy week. I can't believe how fast week's go sometimes. Greg and Ellen came down for Easter weekend and we have been enjoying them and the boys very much. It is nice to have some family that lives close enough that they can come down for holidays. Well, I will post pictures of Easter tomorrow or Monday. The kids are excited about Easter baskets and and had fun coloring Easter eggs. Most of all, I hope we get across to them how special Easter is for us because of Jesus and His Dying on the cross. That is Easter is all about new life. Jesus said He was come that we might have new life and have it ABUNDANTLY! So Spring and Easter go hand in hand and I hope the significance is not lost as we look at flowers pushing up out of the ground, brown grass begin to turn green and new leaves to form.--and think, "Once my life waslike a dreary wilderness, with the shadows all around me day by day, then I sought the Lord for help in my distress, Jesus spoke in love and shadows fled away. Jesus made my life in to a garden fair, and He dwells within my heart and gives me peace..." Jesus takes dead dry gardens all the time and turns them into things of beauty and richness. Yes, God is soooo good. He's so good to me. Trust you all are ready for Spring. Hope you all have a wonderful night and a great Easter morning. Trisha

Let the Sun Shine!!

2008-03-14T13:28:00.000-07:00

Emily has taken up painting. She really enjoys it. She is doing really good at it.
Here is Lindsay enjoying the fresh air and sunshine. It's the beginning of Spring!
Emily painting a picture

The weather is finally starting to warm up and I am soooo enjoying it. We have had 50's and low 60's and it has been WONDERFUL. We are now dying for Spring and have spring fever like crazy! It has been a long winter. Trust everyone is enjoying the wonderful spring weather. And if you live in the South, I guess it feels like spring most of the time--atleast until summer:)--so you can't fully appreciate the feeling of ice dripping off the roofs and snow running in little rivulets down the driveway and seeing that you have a yard again under all that snow! It's an amazing time! The air is alive with birds singing, everything is starting to perk up and take notice. Spring is in the air!!!

Still Winter Here!

2008-02-29T19:42:00.000-08:00

Lindsay's school books have arrived! How fun and exciting!!!
Lindsay's first day of kindergarten!
Some of the girls in our homeschool group at our Valentines Party.
Lindsay and Mariah. 3 wks apart

Good Evening everyone! It will be March 1 tomorrow but you wouldn't really know it here. The snow and ice are still on the ground, the temperature is going down to 16* tonight and we had snow again twice this week. It has been pretty crazy but funny. I don't really mind but I am ready for Spring. Tomorrow it is supposed to be in the mid to upper 30;s and Sunday up to 49*! It will be amazing! But on Monday, it is supposed to get cold again. Our weather is unpredictable, but I can feel spring is coming. THe promise of spring is here, even if Spring, itself, is not.

Lindsay started school this week. She is so excited. I'll post a picture of her. SHe is growing so fast and looks so cute. She is doing very well and wants to do more than I do. I am enjoying it, though.

Nathan and Lindsay singing at Christmas

2008-02-18T12:55:00.000-08:00

More snow!!

2008-02-17T15:02:00.000-08:00

Hello again! Just had to drop you a note to tell you it is snowing again! Will it ever end? Of course it will, but maybe not until May.:) It is prettier than cold with out snow so I won't complain.

We took the kids ice skating yesterday and they had a blast. We stayed out for 3 hours and they were exhausted when we left. No one complained when we went to bed early. I thought I would be sore since it has been about 10 years since I iceskated, but it wasn't too bad. Yesterday I felt horrible but by the time I got up this morning , I was feeling great/ I must not be as old as my kids think:)!!!

Well, it's time to get ready for church so I better run. TRISHA

Good Night!

2008-02-09T20:44:00.000-08:00

We have been having fairly good weather and decently warm for February. It has snowed lots and we are enjoying it. It has been in the 30's and low 40's. But this afternoon, the wind kicked up and the temp started dropping. It didn't stop until we reached 0*. It is supposed to go all the way down to -5*. With wind chill, it will feel like-27* tonight. And not much better tomorrow. It will be Only 5*. With it still feeling like -20*. I don't know where all that global warming went but it sure isn't helping us much. :) What a traitor. Letting a girl down when she needs it most, In February, of course!!:) AHHH Such is life. :) Well it is late and I really need to head to the bed. See you later. TRISHA

Attention Nicki!

2008-02-09T20:34:00.000-08:00

Hi Nicki! I do not know how to get ahold of you. You can email me from my email address when you post comments. It shows my email, I think. Other wise you can get it from Karen Bork. I would love to chat with you and see how you all are doing. TRISHA

Ice Skating

2008-02-06T12:29:00.000-08:00

The kids went ice skating with their friends and had a blast. They love ice skating and would do it every day if their mom had the energy.:)
The ice skating crew
Here is our house during our latest snow storm. We have had a lot this year. The kids love it and, really, we do too. It is more interesting than cold with no snow.
Our very own winter wonder land. This is our back yard--or atleast part of it.

Travis is finally feeling better after being sick for a week and this morning Lindsay woke up sick. Hopefully hers will not last near as long. We are doing well in school and getting a lot done. I have been so happy with Bob Jones this year. I am so glad I decided to do it. It is not easy choosing a curriculum, but this one has been worth it!!!
Well, trust you all are doing well. We are staying in and drinking our coffee(with lots of cream) on this snowy day. Will write later. TRISHA

Greetings from the Foggy North

2008-02-04T14:00:00.000-08:00

We have been busy bees lately. I have started giving all my kids piano lessons. Emily has taken lessons before and was not excited about it, but Travis really wanted to do it and my sister-in-law, Ellen, gave Lindsay a piano book like Nathan's and so she loves it. Anyway, believe it or not, the one who complained has actually taken piano back up like a duck to water! She got some new books and has been practicing away and is having the time of her life! She loves it! It is so funny.

Travis and Lindsay are doing good and are enjoying it but Emily is just amazing me. I love it when it happens that way, don't you? Kids are so unpredictable. Sometimes for the better!:)

We have been having lots of cold, lots of snow and now fog. It is interesting. THe kids went ice skating last week and really enjoyed it. I'll have to post pictures of that. I don't have really good ones, but not too bad.

Other than that, we are still doing school and doing our best. I am still cleaning houses and babysitting and various and sundry things but it is a good life and I am not complaining because I really do enjoy doing all of it.

Trust this afternoon is full of fun or productivity for you all out there. I think I will go to Curves and be good!:) Exercise is good for the soul--and all that:) Write more later. TRISHA

Greetings!

2008-01-28T13:19:00.002-08:00

Hello on this beautiful day in January! The sun has been shining here and the weather is very warm. I think it is supposed to be 54* today and it feels great!!
I have been doing a little babysitting on the side. Along with some housecleaning jobs, homeschooling and all the regular duties of a wife and mother, it would seem my plate is rather full:) I don't mind though. I enjoy little children and, as most of you know, had lots of practice growing up taking care of kids.:) It is kindof second nature for me.
Today, the girls( Lindsay and 2 other little ones) had a tea party. Lindsay decided I needed to play the piano while they ate their food. It was so cute watching them. They are so funny sometimes.
Travis just got back from the doctor and he has a double ear infection. He is miserable and sleeping. I hate it when kids get sick.:(
Emily is still plugging away and trying to get done with school. She has been doing very well and is very diligent most of the time.
Well, this has already been a full day and it is only half over.:) Hope all of your days were a little less eventful. I will post more later. TRISHA

Travis at the ZOO

2008-01-28T13:19:00.001-08:00

The Australian outback it pretty fun. It has wallabies all over the place and Emu's too.

Good Afternoon

2008-01-18T13:52:00.000-08:00

Our family did a 550 piece puzzle over the New Year holiday. It was pretty fun and they were real proud of themselves. It was a cute picture, which made it much easier.
Lindsay and Jeff going on a date. Lindsay was so excited! She had never got to do that by herself before. She felt very big and important! She is at such a fun age.
Mariah Conaway had her 5th birthday yesterday and she had a party at a children's museum. The kids had a lot of fun. I took my kids and Brandon, Alissa and Jillayne. It was great. Mariah won't forget her birthday soon.:)

Well, hope you all have a good afternoon. We are getting ready to go to Preacher's Meeting. Hopefully more people will be able to go this time. THat would be nice. Talk to you later. TRISHA

Frosty the Snowman

2008-01-14T17:49:00.001-08:00

Frosty the snowman came to our house for a little while, and the kids were just thrilled. They had a ball and built several snowmen with the neighbors and this one by theirselves. The snow has melted and we have actually had some warm days and that has been really nice!!! I am already for Spring, but don't say anything you Southerners!!! I know I live in the North but it is fun sometimes too:) I know it has it's limitations, especially this time of year so you can send me pictures of how beautiful it is there or on your blogs:) No really, this is the one time of year I could live in the South and be happy, though I would miss the good snows.

Trust you all are doing well. Sorry I have been so slow to post but life is hectic sometimes! I'll try to do better.:) TRISHA

Happy New Year!

2008-01-02T17:19:00.000-08:00

I am really not ready for school to start. It is almost time and I feel like I need another break. That is not a good prospect!:) Really, it has been so nice to have some time off and get some things done that never seem to get done on school days. There is just too much to do then. By the time we are out of school, it is time to be thinking of supper!

Well, trust you are all having a good start to your New Year. Ours started with a bang. My parents house was vandalized and we went over and helped clean up the damage. It was a mess!! Then, we left and our tire on the van went flat and we had to take it back up to my parents house and use their car. Everything was closed by then so we got it fixed after Jeff got off work today. We hope this is not an Indication of the New Year!!!!:)

Anyway, time is going swiftly so I better run! TRISHA

Christmas pictures

2007-12-29T17:47:00.001-08:00

Lindsay and Emily got special blankets that their Great- Grandma made them. They were so happy. They snuggle up with them all the time and sleep with them at night. Emily knows how to crochet a little and understood how much work goes into this and was very impressed.
Travis also got a blanket and loves it. He keeps it at the end of his bed when he's not curled up with it.
Here is a picture of my nephew, Austin. We were opening gifts with Greg and Ellen and my folks and he was so cute I had to take his picture.
Lindsay and Nathan love each other to death. They were so excited for Christmas to finally be here!

All our family eating in the dining room at my mom's house. Ellen and I are missing since we were taking pictures. We had a feast/ It was fun!

Hope everyone else had a great Christmas. We really enjoyed ours and it even snowed so we had a white Christmas. We also got 7 inches yesterday so the kids had a blast shoveling and then making a snowman. I'll send pictures of that later. TRISHA

The rest of the birthday pictures

2007-12-22T19:34:00.000-08:00

The kids had a blast making their little houses. I think they ate almost as much as they put on the houses but we don't want to know for sure!:) There was white frosting everywhere and candy by the bag!! Here are Lindsay and Alissa's houses. I was trying to get Nathan's, too but you can't see it. They really did a good job and it was very noble of me, wasn't it?:)

Til' next time--Bye for now. TRISHA

Lindsay's 5th Birthday

2007-12-22T19:07:00.000-08:00

We found this recipe from a friend who had a Taste of Home magazine and she brought it so we could get inspired. We had a lot of fun making it. I am creatively challenged but it didn't take a genius to do this one. I just mostly copied out of the book. Also, Emily and Jeff helped it. They having more creativity than I. We were pretty proud of Lindsay's birthday cake by the time we were done!
Singing "Happy birthday" to Lindsay. She had Emily, Travis, her cousin Alissa, and her cousin Nathan there besides the adults.
The kids all made ginger bread houses out of graham crackers and I don't know how much candy!!! They had a lot of fun and a lot of mess! This is Jeff and Emily's ginger bread house--actually the second one or so. They collapsed easily with soft frosting. They decided to silicone the next one they did!
Emily and Jeff--the finished product!

2007-12-21T21:15:00.000-08:00

This is a video of Lindsay singing "Away in a Manger"

when she was not quite 3. It is so cute I just had to put

it on here for fun. She turns 5 tomorrow and still loves to sing.

She has been practicing to sing a song in church( all voluntary, of course)

and I haven't taken her up on it. She is so funny.

Our Christmas Program Pictures

2007-12-19T14:14:00.000-08:00

Travis(a shepherd)clowning around trying to corral the cows
During the program--the shepherds and wisemen kneeling at the manger
Juniper and Lindsay
All the kids posing in a crazy fashion after the program
My husband and children

A Quiet Midwest Evening

2007-12-17T19:33:00.000-08:00

Hello again to everyone!! It has been a busy day. Luann and the kids came over and her and I scrapbooked for the afternoon. We got quite a bit done for our homeschool annual for last year. :( We wish we were working on this year's but we got behind so we are frantically trying to get it done before Thursday, which is our homschool Christmas Party.

Tonight has been pretty quiet. After the busy day of playing with their friends; sledding down the hill, drawing, listening to stories etc. they are doing quiet things. Emily has been reading and talking to her friend, Jill. Travis is listening to an Odyssey tape, and Lindsay is listening with him. Though I think she pesters more than she does anything else. :) She is having fun anyway. Jeff was reading a book and I am writing to you!! THe family is all accounted for!!

Our Christmas Program was last night. It turned out really cute. It was too dark in there to get good pictures though. We got some good ones after the service. I'll try to post them tomorrow. THe kids did a really good job. Christmas programs are a lot of work but so much fun. And of course the kids love the treat bags at the end, too!

Well, I better run! Hope you all are doing well and have almost finished shopping for Christmas!!
TRISHA

Ice Day

2007-12-11T17:45:00.000-08:00

There was no school today. All schools were cancelled. We had a ice storm last night. It is beautiful. The ice hangs on the trees thick and beautiful. It is fun to look at. We drove around tonight to look at Christmas lights and the trees. It was neat to see the snow glistening like a lake. It rained all day on top of the snow and kept freezing so it looked really like a shining path.
Jeff didn't work til afternoon and not for long. It was nice to have him home for a change. We started a fire in the fireplace and just sat upstairs and took the day off school just to celebrate. It was pretty fun and relaxing.
Thursday I'm going to start the Christmas candy and Friday my Mom and I are going to do lots more. That should be fun. We always enjoy making candy and chocolate things:).
Hope everyone out there it having a good evening and we'll see you later. TRISHA

Sledding

2007-12-09T14:26:00.000-08:00

Lindsay and Daddy getting ready to slide down the hill.
Emily after coming up the long hill.
Travis--all tired out!!
Here's the gang of sledders--minus Mom-- What fun!!and definitely good exercise

Christmas time and early winter are so much fun. You decorate, wrap gifts, play in the snow and drink hot chocolate.
The kids had a blast going to Camden Park and sledding. The hill there is huge and it is a long way down. But, if you think it is a long way down, you should wait until it's time to come up!! It is really a loooong way up. It definitely gives your heart a good workout. Jeff told the kids "Let's go down there again and this time let's stay awhile and have a party while we get the energy to come back up:)". THey are so funny.
Anyway, they conned me into going down, too. THe first time, I fell off the sled and so I tried again and managed to go all the way down. As I was flying down at breakneck speed I tried to figure out how I was going to end up all in one piece and then I remembered I could put out my boots to slow down so I did and well let's just say, all's well that ends well. Once down was enough!!
Well, you can't say we aren't trying to make memories with our kids but hopefully we still have our necks when it's said and done:).
Better run for now. Lots to do! TRISHA

Let It Snow!!

2007-12-06T15:04:00.000-08:00

Lindsay was cold and decided to toast her feet in front of the fire. She thought that was the perfect solution!
Emily standing by out tree as we were decorating.
Emily and Jeff playing a serious game of Chess while they bask in the warmth of the fireplace.

One of Jeff's favorite things has always been a love for fireplaces. When we built this house he was insistent on getting a "real" fireplace because he wanted to watch it crackel and poke at it ( and clean up all those ashes, of course:)! He absolutely loves it and is so glad we have winters so he can enjoy it.

There really is something to relaxing and reading a good book in front of the fire that seems like the lap of luxury. The kids really love it too. They love to curl up and listen to me read to them. THat's what we do a lot of in the winter. Especially when it's winter and the snow is coming down--as it it tonight. We are supposed to get 3-4 inches. Not a lot but definitely fun. We love winter here but we do get tired of it come March. It seems we can't have out cake and eat it too.

We are almost done with the first stage of our church remodel project. I'll take pictures the next time I;m over there and post some. Our church is really going to look different!

Trust you all are doing well. I better run for now. TRISHA

2007-12-01T20:06:00.000-08:00

I thought I'd post a picture of when we went to Greg and Ellen's to spend the week. We went to a pumpkin and apple farm and had a blast. The kids really had a good time.

As for today, we worked at the church all day while it snowed and iced outside. Ice was coated on everything. The world looks like a winter wonderland. Anyway, we got all of the sanctuary and the foyer and entryway all painted in readiness for carpet next Friday. We are so excited and ready to be done with this project. I'll post some pictures of it when I get them ready. Well, we are tired tonight but it's a good kind of tired.

Wish all of you could be here to see our winterwonderland but trust you are having one where you are. WEll, better sign off for now. TRISHA

Brain Power

2007-11-29T10:58:00.000-08:00

This has been a busy day!! I have the Jones kids for school on Thursdays and so we have been doing school since 9am. I have been helping the kids with everything including dictionary work, encyclopedia work, the kingdoms of protista and monera and adding 4+4. It has been an interesting day. If you want to stay brushed up on French Revolutions, American history, and how to make apple pie, just homeschool your kids--and maybe someone else's so you get lots of review!!:) Well, I'll post more pictures later. TRISHA

Everybody Ought to go to Sunday School

2007-11-26T12:43:00.000-08:00

This is most of our children 3-11 years of age. They sing up front every Sundy morning.
Here is our little group minus 5 who were absent. This is all of our children and young people. We have quite a group and are very glad to have such a large number of them. They keep our church on its toes. They are a lively little bunch. I had them get together this Sunday to get a picture. They have been practicing for the Christmas program. It is sounding very good. My class is the 3-6 year olds. They are a lot of fun. They grow so fast. I enjoy teaching this age because a lot of the kids are hearing some of the stories of the Bible for the first time and it is so sweet to see the wonder in their eyes . When I told them the story of Namaan and how he had leprosy, one of the girls just piped up and said "God can get rid of that!" They have such faith! Anyway, hope you all are doing good today. Talk to you later.

Trisha

2007-11-24T17:45:00.000-08:00

The girls at the zoo

Our trip to the remodeled Niabi Zoo

2007-11-24T17:35:00.000-08:00

WE took a trip to the zoo about three weeks ago. It was so nice and relaxing. The kids were really happy because Daddy got to go. He is very busy sometimes, especially in the fall when the work is really heavy so they were thrilled. They have been adding a lot to our little zoo and it's fun to watch all the things they are doing. The latest thing is the giraffe exhibit. It is really neat!

Emily, Kara and Jillayne on a field trip

2007-11-24T17:24:00.000-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving!

2007-11-24T17:11:00.000-08:00

We have had a great Thanksgiving. Jeff's folks came up to visit us and we have just relaxed and had a great time. We decided to have our own Thanksgiving dinner here at our house. We have never done that before. We are usually at my parents or his. So the kids were very excited to get to do this. It was a lot of fun and went really well. We made tons of food and didn't eat half of it, but we did justice to it by having lots of leftovers:) I'll try to post some pictures of our Thanksgiving if I can figure out how to do it. Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and are ready for the holidays to hit like a cyclone!! Trisha

A Girly Sunday Morning

2007-11-24T13:25:00.000-08:00

Emily and Lindsay sitting by our fireplace

Our Family

2007-11-24T13:06:00.001-08:00

Lindsay, Trisha, Emily, Jeff and Travis

2007-11-24T12:51:00.000-08:00

Lindsay, Emily and Travis

2007-11-23T17:03:00.000-08:00

Lindsay, Alissa and Mariah at a field trip with our homeschool group.