Live Love Laugh

Catching Up

2012-01-18T08:51:00.000-08:00

Our middle schooler

Homecoming Dance with lifelong friend (Michelle)

Jacob's first meet - Emporia, KS

Jacob with teammate and friend (Trenton)

Well, you might think that I fell off the face of the earth since I haven't blogged in almost a year. Life is just super busy and crazy! I had about decided to completely give up on blogging but I recently had the urge to blog again. I can't write about everything that has happened in the last year so I will just try to update everyone on what is going on these days (if anyone will even read this).

Jacob joined a competitive gymnastics team in August. It is power tumbling so he does tumbling, trampoline and a thing called double mini. He is loving it! He practices a little over 5 hours each week. It is a great outlet for his endless energy! He just went to his first meet this past weekend. He enjoyed it and did well. He got two first place medals and one second place medal. It is definitely a little easier for the boys. They don't have as many to compete against as the girls do. He is in fourth grade this year. Can't believe he only has one more year of grade school after this year. I am definitely not ready for him to be in middle school. We have entered the world of orthodontics. He had braces on four of his top teeth for a while. He just got them off and now has a retainer. He stays very busy with school, gymnastics, kid's leadership team (church) and hanging out with friends/neighbors.

Joshua is now a middle schooler. I was nervous about how he would make the transition because he doesn't really like change (he's a lot like his mother). He has done extremely well though. He has a harder time getting up in the mornings (he is almost a teenager now) and doesn't like all of the math homework but other than that he seems to like school pretty well. He is in pre-algebra which is two years ahead. He has always been freaky good at math. He likes science a lot too. They just finished building rollercoasters in his science class. He just might be our future engineer. We were very proud of him when he recently received a student of the month award. He is playing Upward basketball. It is good exercise for him and he enjoys it. I haven't gotten any pictures of him playing yet. Need to do that soon. He loves being a part of the youth group at church now. He still loves legos and video games. He also enjoys reading. He would like to learn how to play the drums. We will be checking into lessons once basketball is over.

Caleb is super busy with band again. He got to play marimba in marching band this year and enjoyed that. His band went all the way to nationals and got 6th place. That was very exciting! He is now participating in a competitive indoor percussion ensemble. They will have their first competition the end of this month. The other big news is that he is driving. He got his permit in October and will turn 16 in April. It's kind of scary but he is a good driver. He went to his first Homecoming Dance in October with a friend from church. He had a blast! He is looking forward to going to prom in April with another friend from church. We are trying to figure out his school schedule for next year. He has applied for Tulsa Tech to do a web design program there. He is very excited about that. We just have to figure out how to get in all the classes he will need to graduate. April will be a very big month for him. He will turn 16, go to his first prom and take the ACT for the first time. Time sure is flying! I know that in the blink of an eye he will be graduating and going off to college. Not ready for that!

I stay very busy just keeping up with the boys and their schedules! I often feel like a taxicab. I am still working at our church preschool as an assistant teacher. I mostly work with the one and two year olds. I love my job! Love my boss; love my coworkers; love the kids; love making some extra money! It is a true blessing in my life! I still try to scrapbook when I can but it is hard to find the time. Kenneth and I help out with the children's ministry twice a month at church. It's so nice to be around little ones since our boys are getting so big.

Kenneth is still working at occidental petroleum. Two upper-level people have retired since he has been there so he has taken on a lot of extra responsibilities. He also is traveling more than he used to. We are thankful that he has a good job with a good company but it gets pretty stressful at times. We are very thankful that he is out of public accounting and no longer has a 3 month busy season with tons of overtime. He is planning a skiing trip with some of his guy friends. He is very excited about that! He loves to ski and it has been a long time since he last went skiing. If Jacob find out he is going he will probably beg to go along. He really wants to go snowboarding!

Well, I think that is a pretty good update on our lives. Hopefully it won't be another year before I do this again.

My Boys

2011-01-26T15:37:00.001-08:00

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Snow Day

2011-01-20T12:15:00.000-08:00

My boys were very excited to have a snow day today! I didn't really share in their excitement. Caleb immediately wanted to go to a friend's house and Joshua and Jacob wanted to go sledding. Sledding is fun but it is also a lot of work. First, I had to get up in the attic and find the sleds (and go back a second time to search for Jacob's snowboard). Then, I had to get a box out of the garage to find their thermal underwear. Then the bundling process began. It seems to take forever to get all of us bundled up. We were finally ready to go. Jacob had a ball on his snowboard. He crashed several times after trying some jumps. He thinks he is ready to conquer a mountain now. I actually think he would love to go to a ski resort and learn how to really snowboard. He has good form and isn't afraid (he must get that from his Dad). Joshua got a little more daring this year. He doesn't want to try snowboarding but he was using his sled on some bumpy spots and was laying on his back some to go faster. Caleb missed out on sledding with us but I don't think he really cares. He would much rather spend time with friends.

A Tradition Lives On

2010-12-28T07:40:00.000-08:00

Every year I take pictures of the boys with Santa hats on. We started this when Caleb was three and he is now fourteen. He still puts up with me doing this even though he doesn't love it. Joshua and Jacob still enjoy it. In fact, this year they asked when we were going to do it. Usually we take the pictures in early December. This year we didn't get them taken until Christmas Eve. I think that is the latest we have ever done it. We had a good Christmas. We got to spend time with family and now the boys are getting to spend time with friends. Caleb is staying with his friend, Kyle, for a few days. Joshua got to spend the day with his best friend, Jackson, yesterday. And today and tomorrow the boys get to spend time with their mutual friend, our neighbor Jimmy. I hope you all had a wonderful time celebrating the birth of our Savior. Best wishes for a happy New Year!

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-22T10:06:00.000-07:00

Jacob and "his" goat (Jacob Jr.)
Chillin' out with the scarecrow
So Serious!
Fun at the Pumpkin Patch

I love going to the pumpkin patch every year! It's one of my favorite things to do in the fall. Kenneth didn't get to go with us this year. He is super busy at work right now. Caleb had band rehearsal. He didn't really care that he was missing it. I think he has outgrown the pumpkin patch. The boys love climbing on the pumpkins. Jacob's favorite thing is the animals. He especially loves goats! He found one goat that he really liked a lot. He wanted to buy it and take it home. I told him that we live in the city and can't have a goat for a pet. I said that when he grows up if he lives in the country he can maybe have a goat then. He said, "But I want this goat." He even named it Jacob Jr. He had to go and say goodbye to "his" goat before we left. We had to drag him away. I swear that boy is going to end up on a farm or ranch someday. He absolutely loves animals! Joshua's favorite animal there was the emu. I didn't get any pictures of them though. They aren't exactly easy to pet.

Back to School - Finally!

2010-08-25T16:31:00.000-07:00

The boys are finally back in school. Hooray! They started back a week later than they usually do but it seemed more like a month later. They were really tired of each other and fighting all the time. It's good when they aren't together so much. Unbelievably, my "baby" is in third grade this year. He gets to be downstairs with the big kids and even has a locker. He is enjoying school so far and hasn't gotten in trouble yet. His teacher's name is Mrs. Hair. Joshua is very excited about being in Mrs. Chandler's class. He gets to make an invention later in the year and is already trying to figure out what he will invent. He is most excited because his best friend, Jackson, is in his class for the first time. Can't believe this is his last year of elementary school! Even harder to believe is the fact that I am now the parent of a highschooler. How time flies! Caleb is actually glad to be back in school. He was very bored being at home all the time. He also enjoys getting to see all of his friends. He seems to like all of his teachers which is nice. The last couple of years he has had atleast one teacher that he couldn't stand. He is especially enjoying being a part of the Union high school band. He is getting ready to be super busy with band starting in September. We won't see a lot of him during marching season. He loves it though. I have started back to work and I am enjoying being with the little ones at the preschool. The first day was really rough but it's gotten better since then. I'm just glad to have a schedule again and I'm especially enjoying the cooler weather the past couple of days. Hurry up fall! It's my favorite season and never seems to last long enough.

Jacob and Mrs. Hair

Joshua and Mrs. Chandler

Our tall freshman

Jacob finally gets his wish

2010-08-11T07:52:00.000-07:00

Jacob has been begging me for a very long time to take him to a skate park. He finally got his wish on Monday. We met our friends, the Coopers, at the skate park in Owasso. We took his bike and skateboard and Joshua's scooter. We were the only ones there for a while and even then only two other boys came. It was nice to have the place to ourselves. The heat was not nice however! We went in the morning hoping it wouldn't be too bad. We were still sweating like crazy. Jacob just rode his bike for awhile and then finally tried out his skateboard. He kept falling off at first so his friend, Jesse, gave him some pointers. That helped him a lot. He did great until he tried a ramp that was a little too steep. He crashed and ended up with a big scrape and bruise. It didn't stop him from trying the smaller ramps again though. He loved it! He wanted to go back the next day but I told him we needed to wait until it's a little cooler. We also need to get him some new elbow and knee pads. We discovered that the ones he has are too small.

My little BMX rider was in heaven!

Joshua enjoyed riding his scooter on the ramps.

Cool Dudes! Posing with their friend Ben.

Right before the big crash.

The Ups and Downs of Summer

2010-06-28T17:21:00.001-07:00

Summer is always difficult for me. It's so completely different from the rest of the year. It seems like time just stops during the summer and the days are really long. I also have to adjust to having the boys home all the time - and they have to adjust to being together more (which leads to lots of fighting). We go from being super busy during school to not having much to do. This is good and bad. I am always ready for a break from the craziness. However, it's a bit too extreme opposite for me. I'm always telling Kenneth that I wish it wasn't all or nothing. Having three kids keeps us very busy during the school year and then everything just stops in the summer (all or nothing). Something in between would be nice. June has gone by pretty quickly. It helps that we have taken a couple of trips and now the boys have camp. I'm sure the last month of summer will drag by for me and I will be really ready for school to start. I am a schedule person. I like having a schedule and knowing what's going on. That's another thing that bugs me in the summer - no schedule. Kenneth likes not having a schedule. It's one way that we are different.

This week I get to have a few days just with Joshua. I'm really looking forward to that. I enjoy my boys a lot more when I get time with them by themselves. Today I even got some time to myself (which I really miss during the summer). Caleb is in Colorado at a youth conference and Jacob left this morning for camp. Joshua spent most of the day at a friend's house. Tomorrow we are going to hang out together. We are planning on going to a movie and going to the library and then he has a Scout activity tomorrow night. I'm trying to enjoy the quiet while I can. We had a noisy weekend because we had an extra boy staying with us and starting Wednesday afternoon we will have another extra boy with us for a few days. That definitely will not be quiet! We seem to always have at least one extra kid at our house - especially during the summer.

Awards and Gymnastics

2010-05-25T08:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, I did things a little differently this time - kind of by accident. I was going to blog and also post a few pictures but I wanted to put more pictures on. So, you can look at the pictures in the last blog and read about them in this blog. You might think that Caleb would feel short- changed having only two pictures of himself. Actually, he hates having his picture taken so I was doing good to get two. His pictures are from the induction ceremony for the National Junior Honor Society. He wasn't very excited about it - or about getting awards in math and science- but we were very proud of him. Can't believe that at the end of this school day he will officially be a high schooler. How is that possible? I can't really be that old, can I? He is going to be a part of the Union High School Band - in the percussion section. So, he will be living and breathing band. It's an incredible band but that's because they practice a lot - huge time commitment and huge financial commitment. We probably won't see much of him during marching season. His life will consist of school, band, homework, church and guitar lessons. I'm sure he will try to squeeze in time with friends also.
Joshua is still doing Scouts and really enjoys it. He graduated from Webelos 1 and got a walking stick. This was his first year to get grades at school. He made the Honor Roll - all A's.
He was pretty proud and so were we. He was also the 2nd best speller from his class so he got to be in the school spelling bee. He is rapidly approaching the middle school years and I'm not ready for that. Next year he will get to do some special things since he will be in 5th grade. He will help with the school news broadcast - being a writer and possibly helping with tech stuff. He might also be in the honor choir. He is still on leadership team at church and enjoys helping with tech stuff there.
Jacob is full of energy as always. I keep hoping his energy level will decrease some as he gets older but it hasn't happened yet. The pictures of him were from gymnastics. He loves it and is really good. Starting in June he will go to a new gymnastics place that has more opportunities for boys. He thinks he might want to compete at some point. I think he is good enough to compete but he will have to choose between soccer and gymnastics at that point. He is still playing soccer.
We are taking it one season at a time. It is getting more intense already - even though he is only 8. He enjoys it though and it's a great outlet for all of his energy. He likes to play defense - sometimes as goalie. It stresses me out when he plays goalie.
I'm sure you've already figured out that I keep myself very busy just driving them to all of their activities. Summer will be a nice break. Jacob will still have gymnastics once a week and possibly some soccer stuff and Caleb will have some band practices but it won't be nearly as bad as during the school year.

2010-05-25

2010-05-25T08:03:00.001-07:00

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The Boy of Many Scars

2010-05-14T17:28:00.000-07:00

I am going to start calling Joshua the boy of many scars. He has three scars from stitches and two in spots where he probably could have used a stitch or two. These are all on his face. Now he has a new one to add to the group. It's on his lower abdomen - right where his appendix used to be. Two weeks ago we had friends over for dinner. The kids were playing outside and jumping on the trampoline - Joshua included. He was fine and having a great time. When he was getting ready for bed he started complaining about his stomach hurting. We didn't think a whole lot of it since he has a sensitive stomach and complains about his stomach hurting pretty frequently. We got concerned though when we were up with him most of the night. He had a hard time getting to sleep and then didn't sleep for long before he woke up again. We debated whether we should take him to the ER. In the morning he threw up and we thought maybe it was just a stomach bug. We waited a little while but the pain didn't go away. So, I took him to urgent care. To my surprise (and Joshua's) they said we needed to take him to St. Francis hospital because it might be his appendix. Joshua was very upset at urgent care because the doctor talked about the possibility of surgery. He threw up again on the way to the hospital. They took blood and a urine sample. They put an IV in and did a CAT scan. They decided from the tests that he did need to have his appendix taken out. So, at about 6:30 on Sunday he went into surgery. Thankfully his appendix had not ruptured. He got to go home by 5:00 on Monday and was back in school by Thursday. It was all really crazy! He was a real trooper. The most difficult part was when he was in the recovery room after surgery. That was not fun! He's doing well now. He's ready to be able to play outside again and jump on the trampoline but he has to wait one more week. He also can't participate in PE at school. He wasn't very happy about missing out on PE and recess. I'm just so thankful that he hasn't had any complications and he will be all better by summer break. I'm also very thankful that we have insurance!

Still Alive

2010-03-05T14:29:00.000-08:00

Ok, I figured I should blog since it's been over two months since my last one. Life has been very busy and doesn't show signs of slowing down (it will actually probably get busier). I am enjoying my part-time job! It's only 10 hours a week. I can't imagine working more than that. It's so fun being around little ones again! I can't believe it but my "baby" will turn 8 in 3 weeks. I think that's why I enjoy being around toddlers and preschoolers again because I don't have any at home. Joshua and Jacob just finished Upward basketball. I just love that program! They both enjoyed it. Jacob tended to be a ball hog but he wasn't the only one on his team. He seems to be more aggressive with basketball than he is with soccer. Soccer has started again now. You would think that soccer and gymnastics would help Jacob get out all of his excess energy. Unfortunately, he always has too much no matter how many activities he is in. Joshua is in Cub Scouts still. He really enjoys it. He is a Webelos this year. He has a great den leader and is earning a lot of badges (they are actually pins but they are called badges). Caleb stays busy with band (percussion), guitar lessons and friends. He has always been very social but that has increased with his being a teenager now. We got him enrolled for high school next year. I can't believe I will be the mother of a highschooler. How did that happen? He is excited about being in the Union high school band next year and taking a web design class. I spend a lot of time driving them to all of their activities. I often feel like a taxi driver (except that I don't get paid).
I don't have any pictures to put on here right now. I need to transfer pictures from my camera to the computer. I will try to get that done soon so I can post some of them.

Snow Fun!

2009-12-28T15:09:00.000-08:00

The boys love to go sledding when we actually get snow!

Kenneth got to go with us this time.

Our snowboarding boy

The boys built a snowman with our neighbor, Jimmy.

The boys were so excited to have a white Christmas! The best part was that it snowed while Kenneth was home. Usually it snows during the week and I have to take the boys sledding by myself because it usually melts before the weekend. It looks like the snow will stay around for a while this time. The boys had a blast sledding! We were the only ones sledding and it actually didn't feel too terribly cold because the wind wasn't very strong. Jacob had fun snowboarding. Kenneth tried out our snowboard also. I asked Jacob if he wanted to snowboard on a mountain sometime and he said yes. He would probably love to go skiing with his Dad. I'm not much of a skier myself. The bunny slope is about all I can handle. I prefer to stay inside by a fire with some hot cocoa and a good book. The boys also had a snowball fight and built a snowman with our neighbor. Unfortunately the snowman lost his head shortly after being built.

The Teenager/Musician, the Scout and the Gymnast

2009-12-28T12:36:00.000-08:00

Joshua - our Scout
Jacob - our Gymnast
Caleb - our Teenager/Musician

I got this idea from a friend of mine who did this in her Christmas letter. She is more talented than I am and made hers rhyme. I gave up on that idea quickly.

T is for Texting in all his spare time
E is for Eating all of the time
E is for Electronics - he likes Macs the best
N is for Never enough time with friends
A is for Always Annoyed with his brothers
G is for Guitar player - acoustic and Guitar Hero
E is for Excited about web design
R is for Rhythm-maker (drummer)

Caleb is my teenager. He is very social and would spend all of his time with friends if he could. He is our musician. He plays percussion in the band, takes guitar lessons and likes to play on the drum set also (and of course he enjoys Guitar Hero - and is really good at it).

S is for Studious (he's got all A's)
C is for Chess - which he loves to play
O's for Obsessed with video games
U's for Unbelievably good at math
T is for Ten years old

Joshua is our Scout. He is a Webelos this year and really enjoys it. We even attempted to camp out in our backyard with our neighbor's tent. He is in the gifted program at school and is proud of his all A's (this is his first year to get grades).

G is for Giving his mom gray hair
Y is for Yelling all the time (no volume control)
M is for Mischievous Monkey
N is for Non-stop energy
A is for Athlete
S is for Soccer player/Skateboarder/Snowboarder wannabe
T is for Tumbling & Twisting (even the splits)

Jacob is our gymnast. He must get it from his Dad. He is really good! I love to watch him do handstands, cartwheels, splits, etc... He goes non-stop all day and then crashes at night. He is a daredevil and scares me sometimes. We went sledding and he likes to snowboard down the hills.
He thinks he would like to snowboard on a real mountain. He must get that from his Dad also.

Pumpkin Patch

2009-11-16T07:54:00.000-08:00

October was insane! Which was very sad because I love fall - especially October. I love the cooler weather, the leaves changing and the pumpkin patch. Kenneth was out of town a couple of times during the month and he was really busy at work one week. So, I felt like a single mom quite a bit. Add in some sick kids during part of the month and busy schedules with lots of activities and that's a recipe for chaos and stress. We did manage to make it to the pumpkin patch. Caleb didn't go with us because he was sick over fall break. The rest of Tulsa and Bixby seemed to be there though. It was extremely crowded! We had a good time though and brought some pumpkins home. I was going to put some pictures of the boys' painted pumpkins and costumes but they are still on my camera. I might get them on here by Christmas.

We love going to the pumpkin patch! Caleb didn't get to go with us because he was sick.

Jacob loves having his picture taken. He kept posing for me. He's such a ham!

Joshua didn't want to go through the maze so I managed to get a picture of him by himself.

Blogging Again - Finally!

2009-11-16T07:18:00.000-08:00

Ok, I'm finally getting around to blogging. It's been forever! I'm working at our church's preschool this year and it's really thrown me for a loop. It seems like the days when I am home are filled with chores, errands, etc... A lot has happened since I last blogged so I will probably write a couple of blogs today. Joshua turned 10 in September. I still can't believe he is 10 now. My boys are all growing up so fast! We had a bowling party. The boys had a lot of fun. We used the special lanes that glow in the dark and have video screens. That made it something special and out of the ordinary. Joshua won the first round so he was excited about that.
We've also been busy with soccer and gymnastics (Jacob), Scouts (Joshua) and band/guitar lessons (Caleb). The fall has been so busy that it's passed by in a blur. Soccer is over now so I'm hoping that the rest of November will be less crazy. I can't believe that Thanksgiving is a little over a week away. Joshua and Jacob will start Upward basketball in December so we will get busy again. December always seems to be super crazy!

We had a fun bowling party for Joshua's 10th birthday!

Sitting on a bowling ball doesn't seem like it would be very comfortable.

Who's that silly kid with the bow on his head?

Back to School

2009-09-06T18:35:00.000-07:00

Jacob has Ms. Forbis again - we are happy about that. Can't believe my baby is in second grade.

Joshua got Mrs. Roueche. She's very nice and has been teaching for a long time.

My tall son (taller than me now) is an 8th grader now. Unbelievable!

Jacob was excited to see his friends, Jackson and Eli. He is definitely Mr. Social!

Ok. The boys have already been in school for 3.5 weeks so I am a little late getting this blog done. The beginning of school is always crazy and it takes awhile to get back into the routine of things. Caleb is in a new school this year and likes it pretty well. The food is better than at his last school and food is very important to a 13 year old boy. He likes his math teacher better this year which is a major relief. Joshua's teacher doesn't believe in giving homework very often (unless they don't finish their work at school). Joshua is really enjoying that. I am too since Jacob has more homework this year and is now doing book reports every month. This is a big challenge since he doesn't like to read very much. This last week was pretty crazy. Joshua and Jacob were already sick and missed some school. Jacob had bronchitis and missed 3 days of school. Joshua only missed one day of school but has been feeling bad again today. It's crazy that there is so much illness going around this early in the school year. Caleb hasn't gotten sick so far. Hopefully he won't! It's harder for him to miss school. He is at the lake this weekend with one of his good friends. It's getting to where we don't see him much on the weekends because he spends time with friends as much as he can. He's definitely a teenager now. I am working part-time this year at our church's preschool. I am enjoying it but it is tiring. I didn't get to work at all this last week with the boys being sick. Hopefully, this week everyone will be back to school and back to work for me.

Another year older

2009-07-31T09:17:00.001-07:00

My kindergarten picture.
A picture of me with my brother, Chris, when I was in first grade.

Today I am another year older. I won't mention what my age is now even though most of you probably already know. I don't particularly like the number but really it's not the number that bothers me the most. The worse part is looking older and feeling older. If I could look young and more importantly feel young I wouldn't really care about my age. It doesn't help that some of my closest friends are a lot younger than me. It also doesn't help that my children are making me feel old. Partly because it is the end of the summer and they have worn me out and also because they are getting older too. I don't feel like I should be old enough to have a teenage son but I do. There are nice things about my children being older though. They are more independent now which is very nice. And it's wonderful that Caleb can watch his brothers and we don't have to pay for a babysitter. It has given us more freedom than we used to have and has allowed us to go out on dates more. I really do like this season in my life but I wish I could avoid the body changes that come with getting older. I know that's not possible so I guess I will just have to deal with it. I just need to focus on my many blessings instead of focusing on the things I don't like about being _ years old. I have a heavenly Father who loves me more than I can imagine. I have a wonderful extended family and wonderful friends. I have an amazing husband and three boys who keep me on my toes.

P.S. Please don't laugh at the old pictures of me. I know they look old (because they are) so you don't need to tell me how old they look.

A Wonderful Surprise!

2009-07-09T14:37:00.000-07:00

Well, I thought I was going to be all alone for a few days. My wonderful husband had other plans. He had planned an early birthday surprise for me. I was truly surprised - especially since he did this a month before my actual birthday. He brought in two of my best friends from out of town for a girls' weekend. We had a blast! We scrapbooked, shopped, ate out, took pictures and laughed until we cried. It was definitely a weekend I will never forget. Now I'm trying to get rested up before we go on vacation (or our family trip as I call it). Thank you, Kenneth! You are the best!

Me and my wonderful husband.

Hanging out with my wonderful friends, Jennette and Holly.

Getting some scrapbooking done.

All dressed up for a fashion shoot.

A Fun day at Big Splash

2009-07-09T09:47:00.000-07:00

We decided to go to Big Splash after Jacob's swimming lesson one day. I chose not to swim so I could get some pictures. It was great because it was late enough in the afternoon that it wasn't horribly crowded. The boys had a blast! It was really nice because they are old enough now that I don't have to swim with them (although I will most of the time just to stay cool). All three of the boys enjoy the big water slides. Jacob even went down the Silver Bullet last year. It is very high and straight down. He liked it even though it gives you a wedgie. He didn't get to go down it this day because it was closed for some reason. Hopefully Kenneth will get to go with us atleast once this summer. He will be working only half days on Fridays starting this week so we might be able to go on a Friday afternoon. Saturdays and Sundays are really crowded. Hopefully Friday afternoons aren't as bad.

The boys were very excited about our first visit to Big Splash this summer!

Floating down the Lazy River.

Attempting to climb the rock wall.

Jumping off the platform.

Swimming lessons for Jacob

2009-07-08T17:48:00.000-07:00

Jacob was the only one who took swimming lessons this year. He loved it and did great! He passed level 2 and will go on to level 3 next year. His teacher was great. She challenged him and wouldn't let him get away with stuff but she was a lot of fun too. Jacob has been a busy bee this summer. His activities have included swimming lessons, indoor soccer and gymnastics. He enjoys all of those but says that gymnastics is his favorite. He will continue gymnastics in the fall. This is the first time he's played indoor soccer. I think he might like it more than outdoor. It's very fast paced and he's gotten to play goalie a couple of times.

Swim, Jacob, Swim!

Having fun with the boys in his class.

Learning to swim on his back.

Getting a ride from his teacher.

Time with family

2009-07-08T17:34:00.000-07:00

We were so happy that my brother, Chris, and his family got to come stay with us for a few days! Chris was performing a wedding ceremony in Kansas and they came to our house on their way there. We don't get to see them enough so it was great to have some time together. The boys love spending time with their cousins - time which always includes some video gaming. They also spent time outside together and we went to see a movie together. The house was packed and we had to get creative with sleeping arrangements but it was well worth it. I just wish they lived closer so we could see them more often!

A little Guitar Hero World Tour fun.

Absorbed in the world of Nintendo DS.

Emerie wanted to get in on the action.

Andrea went out back to do some "reading".

Catching up

2009-07-08T17:22:00.000-07:00

Ok. I know it's been about two months since I have blogged. Summer always throws me for a loop. I do much better on a schedule and I do much better when I have some time to myself. So, I'm going to pull a "Kenneth" and write several in one day. I will probably have to write several more on another day to catch up. We started off the summer with Jacob going to church camp for the first time. For those going into second grade they have a day camp. I went along with the group. I can handle going when I don't have to spend the night. Jacob enjoyed it a lot - especially the swimming. They got to swim in the pool and the lake. This year they have a new trampoline out in the lake and the kids really enjoyed it. Caleb went to camp for a whole week but I don't have any pictures of his time there. He thoroughly enjoyed it! Joshua chose not to go to camp this year. Falling out of the top bunk last year didn't help make him want to go back.

Doing flips off of the diving board at camp.

Having fun on the orbit!

Jumping into the lake.

Swimming in the lake.

More pictures from Zink Ranch

2009-05-06T10:03:00.000-07:00

If you didn't read my last post you need to. It explains what these pictures are from.

Hammering away to make a note or recipe holder.

The boys did really well for their first time doing archery. I also got to do archery and bb guns.

A long, wet, muddy Saturday

2009-05-06T09:51:00.000-07:00

Just a warning. This blog will probably turn into two or three blogs because I can't narrow down the pictures. This last Saturday Joshua, Jacob and I ventured out to Zink Ranch for the Cub Scout Mom and Me campout (we didn't spend the night). We got out there around 7:30 am and didn't leave until around 9:00 pm. We were really tired by the end of the day (my legs and feet are still sore from so much walking). It rained for the first 2 1/2 hours we were there. I was afraid it was going to rain all day. It cleared up though and was just very cool and very muddy. The boys loved it though so it was worth it. Jacob finally got to do bb's and archery which he's been wanting to do all year. The both enjoyed the archery the most and Jacob also enjoyed the zipline (Joshua didn't want to try it). They also got to do a wood craft, make lanyards, make paper airplanes and learn some survival skills. It was a very full day! By the end of the day Jacob's jeans and hiking boots were covered in mud. I just threw away his boots because they were really disgusting and he would probably outgrow them before the fall anyway.

I learned my lesson from going to the zoo. I bought us all ponchos to wear.

Jacob was very excited about finally getting to shoot a bb gun. He got to shoot three different times.

Joshua enjoyed shooting the bb gun also but he liked archery more.

Jacob on the zipline - he was a little nervous but thought it was fun.

A Wet Day at the Zoo

2009-05-01T07:46:00.000-07:00

I volunteered to go with Jacob's class to the zoo yesterday. If I would have known that the weather would be nasty and that I wouldn't be feeling well I probably wouldn't have volunteered. It started raining on the drive out there and rained almost the whole time we were there. I had an umbrella so I didn't get soaked but Jacob was very wet because he didn't want to stay under the umbrella very much. We spent a lot of time inside the buildings - along with a ton of other school groups. The kids didn't seem to mind the rain and still had a good time. I think it was harder on the parents! It will definitely be a memory for them. Today I'm going to try to find some rain ponchos because tomorrow Joshua, Jacob and I will be outside all day for a Scout activity and I'm pretty sure we're going to get wet again. Hopefully we don't end up with pneumonia! I have a cold and the boys have both had coughs. The things we do for our kids! I've decided that spring definitely is not my favorite season. I'm really tired of allergy problems, wind and rain. I'm not really ready for the heat of summer yet though. A nice fall day sounds wonderful. I guess I'll have to wait a while for that.

Jacob's very wet first grade class.

Jacob and Watson wanted to pet and brush the wet sheep and goats. Gross!

The boys thought it was fun to slide on the wet floor.

Watson was Jacob's partner for the day. His full name is Brian Watson Jennings but he goes by Watson. It's really funny because one of our ministers at church is Brian Jennings.

Yikes! There' a teenager living in my house!

2009-04-20T11:28:00.000-07:00

Well, today I am officially the mother of a teenager. I don't know how this happened. My body frequently feels old but in my mind and heart I don't feel old enough to have a teenager. We had Caleb's party on Saturday. We invited 5 of Caleb's friends over for pizza and cookie cake. They were a noisy crew! After eating and presents, Kenneth and our youth minister, Lane, took the boys to play Laser Tag. They had a lot of fun! Caleb got lots of cash and gift cards which he was excited about. He had been saving up for Guitar Hero World Tour. Yesterday I went and got it and the boys tried it out. It's a lot of fun! It has a guitar, drums and a microphone. It definitely should be an interesting ride - life with a teenager. Hopefully we can afford to keep feeding him. He eats constantly!

A noisy bunch of boys!

Trying out Guitar Hero World Tour.

Caleb and Jacob enjoyed using the empty boxes. Caleb is all legs and eating (as usual).

Space Derby

2009-04-16T19:31:00.000-07:00

I felt bad that the boys didn't get to do the Pinewood Derby this year. We didn't have the right tools and I had no clue how to do it.
They decided to do a Space Derby with rockets and it sounded easier. It wasn't as easy as it sounded. Thankfully, we had some family in town for Jacob's birthday and they were a lot of help. We didn't get them very rounded because sanding them was taking a lot of time. They still worked well though. In fact, Joshua won a trophy. He won three of the four races that he participated in. He got a trophy because out of his den his rocket did the best. It was a lot of work but the boys had fun. I owe a big thank-you to the grandparents for all of their help!

Joshua's rocket is the one on the right which is winning.

Jacob was disappointed that he didn't get a trophy but he still had fun.

Joshua was very excited about his trophy!

Joshua decorated his rocket with a patriotic theme.

My WILD child!

2009-04-10T13:47:00.000-07:00

Jacob is full of life, energy and craziness!

What a cutie! I enjoy watching him try things even though it scares me sometimes.

Jacob sticks his tongue out when he concentrates. His brothers and his Dad do this too.

Jacob is definitely the most daring of my three boys. I let him try things that I never would have let Caleb do at that age. He's been bugging us for almost a year to get him a skateboard ramp. I was really afraid we would end up with some broken bones (which we still might). We got him a small beginner's ramp - complete with helmet and padding. We had told him that he had to be seven to have a ramp. The morning of his birthday when I woke him up the first words out of his mouth were "Will you buy me a ramp now?" He didn't know that we'd already gotten him one. He's still getting the hang of it with his skateboard but he loves using it with his bike. He even caught some air (his words) once after building up a lot of speed. Now he thinks he needs a grinding rail. I said no for right now. He got some rollerblades from his grandparents so he's into blading now too. I'm sure it won't be long before he wears his rollerblades and uses the ramp. It's pretty amazing that he hasn't had any stitches or broken bones yet (knock on wood). Seven years without serious injury is pretty good for this kid.

Snow for Jacob's party - Crazy!

2009-03-30T08:29:00.000-07:00

We had Jacob's party on Saturday. We also had about 7 inches of snow. It was insane! I'm used to having to consider the possibility of rain for Jacob's and Caleb's parties but I've never considered the possibility of snow. Our family members didn't get to come to the party because of the nasty weather. Jacob still got to have his friends come over though and we had a lot of fun. The party had a Knights theme so we had jousting, a Three Musketeers game, a knighting ceremony and a battle with a fierce dragon. It would have been nice to do the games outside but we made it work and the boys had a lot of fun. Jacob's soccer team was supposed to have a tournament this weekend but it got cancelled. Sunday got much warmer (60 degrees) so most of the snow is gone now. Jacob is looking forward to trying out his new skateboarding ramp today (with helmet and padding on of course). Hopefully we won't end up with any broken bones.

Seven inches of snow at the end of March - Crazy!

The king (Caleb) performed the knighting ceremony. My friend, Beth, made the robe for me.

The new knights fought the fierce dragon.

Jacob's knight party was a lot of fun!

Trip to Atlanta

2009-03-19T15:53:00.000-07:00

We had a great time in Atlanta. We hadn't seen my brother and his family since last June - way too long. They have a different Spring Break so we took our kids out of school on Friday and they took their kids out of school on Monday. Unfortunately it rained pretty much the whole time we were there and my sister-in-law wasn't feeling well. In spite of that, we still had a great time. The boys were so excited about seeing their cousins! We went swimming at an indoor swimming pool one day and we went to a couple of malls. The boys were especially excited about going to the Lego Store. They also enjoyed playing video games with their cousins. They have Guitar Hero World Tour (my brother's Christmas present). Caleb really enjoyed it since it has drums and a guitar. It also comes with a microphone and my brother talked me into doing the singing part. It was pretty fun! My brother is really good at the guitar and drums. He can even do some of the songs on the expert level. It's always sad to say goodbye to them but this time we won't have to wait as long to see them again so that made it a little easier to say goodbye.

Guitar Hero - World Tour

Almost everyone gets in on the fun.

Joshua and Micah try to figure out some optical illusions.

The kids have all grown a lot since we last lined them up and took a picture.

Channel 8 Tour

2009-02-11T11:44:00.001-08:00

Jacob loved trying on the OU football helmet. He also tried on an OSU one and a TU one.

Having fun with the green screen.

Getting an autographed picture from Frank Mitchell.

All around the official news desk.

Learning about what a meteorologist does.

Jacob's den got to take a tour of Channel 8. Frank Mitchell took the boys on a tour and then we got to watch them do the 6:00 news. I think the parents enjoyed it as much, if not more, than the kids. The boys enjoyed it but it was kind of hard for them to be quiet and sit still for 30 minutes. Those of us parents that were there were pretty nervous during the taping of the news. Amazingly, the boys were very quiet. This is quite an accomplishment for a group of 6 and 7 year old boys who are full of energy. Jacob got a couple of autographed pictures which he thought was really cool. The sports guy let the boys try on OU, OSU, and TU football helmets. They were very excited about that. The helmets looked huge on their little heads.

Royalty in our family

2009-02-07T16:44:00.001-08:00

The whole royal court

My handsome little guy

Megan & Tyler

Megan & Jacob

Jacob was tuckered out on the way home.

Last night our niece, Megan, was crowned Homecoming Queen. She is a senior at Cherryvale HS. Jacob and I left after school yesterday to go see her. First we got to watch her play basketball. She did great - scoring over 20 points. She wanted Jacob to carry her crown so he got to get dressed up and carry the crown on a pillow. It was very exciting when they announced that Megan had been chosen to be the queen. Jacob also got to see his grandparents, his uncle, his great-aunt and his other cousin, Tyler. The boys absolutely adore their cousins! Megan and Tyler make me feel really old. Tyler was our ringbearer and now he is a junior in college. Megan was only a baby when we got married. They grow up so fast! Be looking for a blog soon about how fast my boys are growing up.

Another Ice Storm

2009-01-28T15:04:00.000-08:00

My snowboarding boys

Joshua didn't want to try snowboarding.

It seems like these ice storms are becoming a yearly tradition here in Tulsa. It's a tradition that I don't really care for too much. This time we actually had one in December and now one in January also. So, the schools have used all of their snow days already. Starting tomorrow Union will have to make up the days - probably at the end of the school year. Kenneth got to be home with us part of Monday and all day yesterday. That was nice! He went back to work today. The boys are starting to get bored and they're fighting more since they're tired of each other. Needless to say, I'm ready for them to go back to school. They should be able to go back on Friday. We decided to try out some sledding today. We needed to get out of the house for a little while. I wasn't sure if it would be too icy or not. Since Joshua's sledding accident a couple of years ago, I am a little more nervous about taking them sledding - especially when Kenneth can't go with us. It was more slick than last year when we went sledding. We went pretty fast. Caleb and Jacob tried out our new snowboard but it was hard to do because it was too icy. Pure snow would have worked better. They had fun though and it was good to be outside for a little while. Amazingly, it didn't even seem too terribly cold.

Back in the Fast Lane

2009-01-11T11:13:00.000-08:00

Joshua's team is the Yellow Jackets.

Jacob's team is the Scarlet Knights.

I love how they pray before every game!

Tongue sticking out - the face of concentration.

I haven't been on here in quite a while. We had a nice Christmas. Got to spend time with family which we always enjoy. Kenneth got to be home a lot which was great. Things were really in slow gear for a couple of weeks - which is wierd for us. Caleb got to spend a week in Missouri with his friend Kyle. He loved that! I don't think they did a whole lot but he's at the age where he would rather do nothing with a friend than be home with his family. He is definitely turning into a teenager (don't know how that is possible). Things definitely picked up speed this last week. Caleb got through his week of finals. He did really well - 96 was his lowest grade. We have also been busy with basketball and scouts. Joshua and Jacob had their first basketball games yesterday. Jacob stole the ball and made a basket. Joshua got really close to making a basket twice. It's a lot of fun to watch them play! I ended up having strep throat this last week which wasn't fun but I survived. I'm thankful that we didn't all end up sick. Kenneth is really busy at work right now so we haven't seen him much the last few days. I'm ready for him to be done but I'm so thankful that he only has one week of busyness versus three months. We are so happy that he will be home more this winter/spring. His new job is such a blessing!

Twister Fun

2008-12-22T16:41:00.000-08:00

Beth and Kelli

Kenneth, Brian and Joel

The guys lasted a long time - except Lane

Great pose from the boys - Cole and our boys

Lane & Kelli dressed in Twister colors

Saturday night was so much fun. We had friends over for dinner. Great food, great conversation, lots of laughter! Our friends were inspired by one of my previous blogs and decided that we should play twister. The men went first. They lasted a long time. I was impressed. I got lots of amusing pictures. The women went next. We didn't last nearly as long. The kids wanted to get in on the fun. Caleb had a definite advantage with his long legs and long arms. We ended the night by playing Catch Phrase. It's a fun game - especially when Kelli is playing. She really gets into it and is very animated. One of the things I am most thankful for during this holiday season is our wonderful friends. Love you guys! Looking forward to many more nights of living, loving and laughing together.

December Craziness

2008-12-14T13:13:00.000-08:00

The last two weeks have been crazy busy! I love Christmas but I'm pretty much worn out already and it's only the middle of the month. We've had multiple Christmas parties, a winter band concert, a Christmas program at church, along with decorating our house, wrapping presents, etc... Thankfully, we've had most of our shopping done for a while now. I finally got around to taking pictures of the boys in their Santa hats (a yearly tradition). We usually do it the first part of December but we've been too busy. This week will be a little less busy but we've still got two basketball practices and Joshua and Jacob have their school Christmas parties on Friday.

Caleb will probably have some finals this week since it's their last week of school before Christmas break. He's excited because he gets to go spend some time in Missouri with his friend, Kyle, over the break. It's definitely a challenge to focus on the real reason for the season amidst all of the craziness but I'm sure going to try.

When are you too old for Twister?

2008-12-03T08:11:00.001-08:00

I thought everyone might get a kick out of these pictures. They were actually taken the end of October but I just received them recently. The boys were playing Twister at their grandparents house. Kenneth got the crazy idea that he and I should play. Needless to say, the boys were greatly entertained (as were Kenneth's parents and his aunt - she took the pictures). The game didn't last very long. I finally gave up because I just couldn't hold my position any longer. I don't know if there is an age limit on the box but it's definitely harder to play Twister when your body no longer bends like it used to. Oh, the joys of getting older!

Missing People

2008-11-18T07:30:00.001-08:00

No, I don't mean that people are missing and I don't know where they are. I mean that I am missing people right now. Those of you who know my husband know how important relationships are to him. Even though it's not quite the extent that it is with him, relationships are very important to me also. I HATE living far away from the people that I love! If I had it my way, everyone that I love would live within a couple of hours of me. I'm really missing my brother, sister-in-law, nephews and niece. I haven't seen them since June which is way too long. I'm missing my husband right now since he is out of town AGAIN. Hopefully this will be the last time for a while. I'm missing my good friend, Holly. It's been a year since I've seen her.

I'm also missing my mom a lot. This time of year always makes me miss her more. She loved Christmas and I have inherited that love from her. Christmas just isn't quite the same without her and without my brother and his family. I think there is a good lesson to learn in this. When I am with Holly, Chris and his family, or someone else who I don't get to see very often I treasure every minute that I'm with them because I know the time will go by quickly and it won't be long enough. Really, we should be that way with all of our relationships. We should treasure every minute that we have them because we really never know how much more time we have left. My blog is called LiveLoveLaugh because it is a good reminder for me. I need to live in the moment. I need to love with everything in me. I need to laugh more and worry/stress less. I encourage you to treasure the moments and express your love and appreciation more often. Time is precious and fleeting! There's no guarantee that we will get another chance.

Caleb - the Drummer

2008-11-16T18:48:00.000-08:00

If you're reading this blog, you need to also read the previous two blogs. I decided to blog about each of the boys individually. Now it is Caleb's turn. Caleb is in the band again this year. He really enjoys percussion. He's also learning how to play the drum set from our new youth minister, Lane. He really loves that - partly because it's the drums but mostly because he loves spending time with Lane. He pretty much thinks that Lane walks on water. We are so glad that Lane and Kelli (and Canon) are here. We are enjoying getting to know them better and I love to hold Canon any chance I get. It's always nice to make some new friends.

Joshua - the Cub Scout

2008-11-16T18:28:00.000-08:00

Joshua and his friend Joshua both got their Bobcat badges & got their faces painted.

Saluting and saying the pledge of allegiance at the pack meeting.

Joshua and Jacob had a pack meeting this last week. Joshua got to participate in the flag ceremony for the first time. He did a good job and enjoyed doing it. He got his face painted because he got his Bobcat badge. He also got to paint my nose with white paint. He really got a kick out of that. He got to do paper mache at a den meeting not too long ago. I had to help him because he didn't like how messy it was. He and Jacob have both been enjoying Scouts even though they haven't gotten to go camping yet - or do bb guns, archery, etc...

Jacob - the soccer player

2008-11-16T18:16:00.000-08:00

Ok, it's been a while since I blogged so I'm going to pull a "Kenneth" and blog several times in one day. I decided to blog about each of the boys separately. I'll start off with Jacob. He had his last soccer game yesterday. I had a wedding shower to go to so I missed the game. The weather was not pleasant for a soccer game - cold and very windy. Jacob has really enjoyed this season and has learned a lot thanks to his awesome coach. He will stay with the same team in the spring and one of his good friends from school will hopefully be joining the team also. We have a little break from sports and then Jacob and Joshua will start basketball practices in December and games will start in January.

Halloween

2008-11-02T12:54:00.000-08:00

Well, we picked Kenneth up at the airport (so glad to have him home), went home to eat supper and then got the boys ready for trick-or-treating. They decided they wanted to be video game characters this year. Jacob was Mario, Caleb was Luigi and Joshua was Wario. My mother-in-law was nice enough to make the hats for me. Joshua wanted his mustache drawn on since Wario has a zig-zag mustache. Jacob and Caleb wore stick-on mustaches (much easier to take off). We just went up and down our street. The boys had fun and got lots of candy (just what they need). We already had a bunch of candy from the parade we went to in Independence the Saturday before Halloween. So, we have enough candy to last us a whole year. Now we get the challenge of pacing the boys and limiting how much they eat each day.

Surviving

2008-10-30T15:18:00.000-07:00

Joshua wanted his hair half-black and half-red like the Union symbol. Black didn't show up too much.

Jacob - the cool dude with the red, faux-hawk.

My crazy hair boys

Mismatch Day

Well, we've almost survived the week. It's been a very, long week with Kenneth being gone and me having a cold that won't go away. I told my Sunday school class not too long ago that I know that God wants me to thrive - not just survive- but this has been one of those weeks where I feel like all I can do is survive. So far, Joshua and Jacob have managed to avoid the stomach virus that is running rampant at their school. Joshua came home early yesterday and Jacob came home early today. They both felt sick to their stomachs but I think it was just in their heads. I would rather have it be in their heads than coming out of their stomachs. Joshua and Jacob have had Red Ribbon week this week - it's a special Just Say No to drugs emphasis week. They had something special each day. I have pictures to post from two of the days - Mismatch Day and Crazy Hair day. It's really hard for me to let them leave the house with their clothes not matching. The crazy hair thing is actually easier - of course I know they aren't the only ones with crazy hair. They love doing crazy hair day and it's probably good practice for me for when Jacob is a teenager. He got to have a faux-hawk this year. He wanted one last year but we couldn't because he cut his hair and we had to buzz it. It was too short for a mohawk/faux-hawk.

A fun day

2008-10-26T17:54:00.000-07:00

Joshua & his vampire pumpkin Jacob & his pirate pumpkin

Caleb & his jack-0-lantern pumpkin

Well, we managed to have a fun day in spite of Kenneth going out of town this morning and Jacob and I not feeling very well. We went to church this morning and then Joshua had a leadership team meeting after church. So, I took Caleb and Jacob to Panera for lunch. It was Jacob's first time to eat lunch there and he loved the chicken noodle soup and bread. Caleb and I love Panera! Then we went to see High School Musical 3. We all enjoyed it. To end the day I let the boys paint their pumpkins. I decided not to carve pumpkins this year since Kenneth will be gone all week and I don't want to undertake that by myself (although Shanna usually offers to help). Anyway, the boys are all artistic and enjoy painting even though drawing is more their forte. Jacob gets to start a drawing class this week and is very excited.

Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-19T18:45:00.000-07:00

A fun day at the pumpkin patch
Feeding the goats

Well, today we went to one of my favorite places - the pumpkin patch. The boys love to climb on the pumpkins and pet the animals. It was a little disappointing this year because there weren't as many pumpkins for the boys to walk on but they still enjoyed it. The temperature was pretty much perfect (although it was pretty windy). This year they had a camel that you could ride on but we decided to pass on that. Jacob couldn't wait to go see the goats again (he loved them last year). A nice lady gave the boys some food to feed the sheep and goats. Joshua even got into it - he's sometimes unsure when it comes to animals. Jacob has said that he wants to be a farmer someday and I can totally see it. He absolutely loves animals. I'm not sure if there has ever been such a thing as a hip-hop farmer before. That kid has many diverse interests. We decided that he might live on a farm but he would need a gym (including mats for his gymnastics), a dance floor complete with disco ball (for his breakdancing), a music room to play his electric guitar in and an art room (because he loves to draw). He would probably also ride a motorcycle and have some crazy hairdo (possibly tattoos also). It should be interesting to see what he ends up doing. Right now he tells me that he wants to be a soldier so he can serve God and his country. I don't know if that's a Scout influence or what.

Jogging and Hiking

2008-10-13T10:34:00.001-07:00

Hiking at Redbud Valley with Jacob's Scout den.

Jacob was totally soaked by the end of the jog-a-thon

Joshua doesn't like to run but he worked hard and ran 17 laps.

Well, Friday was the jog-a-thon for Joshua and Jacob. It's a really big fundraiser for their school. Joshua doesn't really like to run but he did his best. He ran 17 laps. Jacob ran 12 laps. He could have run more but he kept stopping at every adult who had a water bottle.
Sometimes he took drinks but he also asked to have water poured on his head (he wasn't the only kid who did this). He was soaked by the end of the jog. And then he had to go back to class after that. When I picked him up from school (two hours later) he was still damp (even his underwear) and had to change clothes when we got home. Yesterday, Sunday, Jacob and I went hiking at Redbud Valley with his Scout den. It was a nice day for a hike. The parents got a work-out and the boys loved it. I think we will have to go back as a family since Kenneth likes to hike and Caleb and Joshua would enjoy it also.

A busy Saturday

2008-09-29T10:18:00.000-07:00

Joshua's party at Miller Swim School was a big hit. I got some great pictures.
All of the boys enjoyed the diving board.
Joshua was so excited about the secret agent legos that he got from his Papa & Mimi!
Our Saturday was very busy! We started off the day with Jacob's soccer game. The game was 20 minutes late getting started and Jacob ended up playing for the other team for a little while because they didn't have enough players. He actually scored a goal for them but didn't score one for his own team. Oh well! Atleast he made a goal. Some of our family came for the game but my parents couldn't come so we met them for lunch at CiCi's. Then we had Joshua's party from 2:00 to 4:00. The boys had a blast and Joshua loved his gifts - mostly legos and gift cards/money (which he used to by more legos and a Lego Batman game for the Wii). Kenneth's Aunt Cathy and his cousin's daughter, Makenzie, spent the night with us. It was Cathy's birthday so we fixed tortilla soup (Cathy's favorite) and tacos for supper. Then, Cathy took Caleb and Makenzie to the High School Musical on Ice show. Needless to say, at the end of the day we collapsed from exhaustion. Kenneth and I were ready for bed at 9:00 but we waited for them to get back from the show. It was a busy but fun day!

Tiger / Hawk

2008-09-21T14:26:00.000-07:00

Well, Jacob is officially a Tiger Cub now. He had his first den meeting. I think he will really enjoy it! He is most excited about bb guns, archery and camping out. I must be honest and admit that all of these have me a little concerned. The thought of Jacob with a gun or a bow and arrow is a scary thought! And camping out is definitely not my forte. Jacob doesn't mind his shirt as much as Joshua does. He wanted the hat too and is trying to talk me into a belt also. Not only is Jacob a Tiger, he is also a Hawk now. His new soccer team is the Hawks. He actually came up with the name for their team because one of Caleb's previous teams was the Hawks. Last week was his first game and he and I got poured on. I lost my cell phone in the process of running to the car during the flood. Thankfully, yesterday's game had much better weather. His team lost but the team they played against was really good. Jacob managed to score a goal and he had quite a few great blocks/saves also. He is definitely defense minded. He may end up being a goalie someday because he loves to protect the goal. I've attached a few pictures so you can see how cute he looks in both uniforms.

New activities, new opportunities, learning new things

2008-09-11T20:02:00.000-07:00

Our cute, little Scout in his monkey suit - that's what he called it.
Caleb is still a legomaniac and Joshua has turned into one too.
We were getting pennies out for a United Way drive at school & Jacob made a star man out of them. That gave Joshua the idea to make a person out of his. They are so creative!

Well, we had our first pack meeting for Cub Scouts this week. It was a bit chaotic but I think Joshua and Jacob are really going to enjoy it. I got a picture of Joshua in his uniform and he looks so cute. I might be a little biased. I will post a picture of Jacob later since I haven't gotten his uniform yet. He told me he wants one of the hats. Joshua doesn't. Jacob's new thing is wanting to know how to write all of our names in cursive. He does a pretty good job writing them for a six year old. I keep telling him that he doesn't have to know how to write in cursive in first grade. I asked him the other day if he is going to be a writer like Caleb when he gets bigger. He has nice handwriting and loves to write words. He also loves to draw so maybe he will write and illustrate his own book someday. Who knows? Speaking of writing. Caleb is also writing for a blog. This summer he got to be a part of the Young Writer's Institute that the Tulsa World put on. Now he is writing for a civics blog that is in connection with the Tulsa World. If you want to check it out the website is www.tulsaworld.com/mockelection. We are so proud of him! The website is mostly for teachers to use with their classrooms but I am spreading the word about our famous son.

Back to School Swim Party

2008-09-08T19:25:00.000-07:00

Joshua had a blast with the water sprayer. There was a water war going on at times.
Caleb loves to swim and loves to spend time with friends so today was a perfect combo.
Jacob wanted to do the splits in the air. He closed his eyes because he didn't have on goggles.
Caleb and Curtis are still such good friends after six years of knowing each other. Jacob didn't know that Anna was giving him bunny ears. They are both very ornery.

The boys were invited to a back to school swim party at the Wolf's house today. They were very excited! The Wolf's are a wonderful christian family that we've gotten to know over the years. They have four kids - two boys and two girls. Their oldest son, Curtis, has been friends with Caleb since first grade. Braden is in fourth grade and gets along well with Joshua and Jacob. Anna was in Jacob's class last year. They are a lot alike. Zoe is four and she absolutely adores Caleb. They just had a pool put in this summer. They were out of town over Labor Day weekend and invited us to come over and use their pool while they were gone. It was wonderful because the boys love to swim and it was hot.

Random acts of kindness

2008-09-04T10:52:00.000-07:00

Ok, I hadn't planned on writing again this soon but I feel like I have something to say. I've been thinking about how much the small things mean. For example, a smile, a hug, a few kind words can make someone's day. I've been feeling kind of down the last couple of days. Today, I got on facebook and was surprised to see a comment from one of our former youth. Her kind words literally made my day. I think we get so busy with our own lives that we don't take the time to do something kind. It doesn't take something big though. We don't have to do something extravagant or something time-consuming. It can be as simple as a few kind words. We never know what kind of effect they will have on the other person. So, I encourage you to show a little kindness. Send that note (or make that comment), make that call, give that hug. You might just make someone else's day.

Back to School

2008-09-03T14:40:00.000-07:00

Jacob and Mrs. Forbis
Joshua and Jacob on the 1st day of school
Caleb will be as tall as me soon Joshua and Mrs. Ennis

Well, we are getting back into the swing of things with school and various activities. Caleb is enjoying being back at the 6th & 7th grade center and it's been an easier adjustment this year than it was last year. He likes all of his teachers. He's taking three advanced classes - Advanced History (his teacher is Jacob's soccer coach from last year), Pre-Algebra (homework almost every day) and Advanced English (he will be doing lots of creative stuff in this class). He is still in the band - still playing percussion. We got him a guitar and he will hopefully start lessons atleast by October. He is also working on a civics blog with some other middle school students (through the Tulsa World). Joshua has the same teacher that Caleb had for third grade. We are very excited about that because she is Caleb's all-time favorite teacher (he still goes and visits her sometimes). He will be starting cub scouts next week and is really excited about that. He's not playing soccer this year but Jacob is. I will probably have some soccer pictures and scouting pictures to post soon. Jacob might be doing scouts also - if someone volunteers to be the den leader. That someone will definitely not be me! Jacob has the same teacher that Joshua had for first and second grade. We are excited about that also. Kenneth is loving his new job and we are loving having him home more and having him be less stressed. God is so good! I am enjoying having some time to myself again. I am trying to get back into a work-out schedule and I'm trying to catch up on some of my scrapbooking.

Joining the rank of bloggers

2008-09-02T11:14:00.000-07:00

Ok, I told Kenneth that he needed to start blogging again and now I decided that I would too. Kenneth doesn't even know that I'm doing this. I love to surprise him since it's so hard to do. We were just talking last night about how predictable I am (I said that - not him). So, I decided to try something new. Now, don't expect to read anything profound like you will read on my husband's blog (unless of course God gives me something profound to say). I mostly want to do this to update everyone on what is going on in our lives. I will post pictures too if I can figure out how to do it. Beth might have to help me with it. My next post I will try to fill you in on what's happening in our family.