The Lefto Link

2011-02-26T12:13:00.000-05:00

Handy Manny x 3 and the finished product. I only got hit with the hammer once. IKEA should also add construction education to their list of contributions to the world!

2010-09-06T20:56:00.001-04:00

My men are roughin' it tonight on the backyard. I was planning on sleeping out with them, but was informed it was "a guy thing". After my hours of sobbing... hahahaha...

I do find it interesting that the current topic of conversation is where to run the extension cord from so they can watch a Netflix movie on the computer?? I fear we're... NO, make that HE'S giving them a skewed perception of what camping really is!

Your Opinion?

2010-09-03T10:53:00.001-04:00

Yesterday Jakin got stung in the face by a hornet. This morning he woke up looking like this! So, do you think he's allergic? Do you think it's an improvement? Do you think he enjoys the attention? (I do know the answer to the last question.)

Justin

2010-08-28T18:25:00.005-04:00

...and Jakin pet a Giraffe! It was a pretty amazing afternoon to say the least!!

2010-08-28T18:25:00.003-04:00

Eli pet a Kangaroo...

2010-08-28T18:25:00.001-04:00

At the Tanganyika Wildlife Park. Asher fed a Lemur...

2010-08-24T20:09:00.001-04:00

"Pilot to Co-Pilot..." Flying to Ponca City, OK for dinner. Thanks Stuart and Juliet!!

2010-08-16T11:34:00.001-04:00

First day of school for all three boys. Eli is so excited to be starting kindergarten we couldn't keep up with him on the walk out to the bus. I went to the Boo-hoo breakfast for parents and surprisingly there was no crying. I'm excited to hear how their day was!! I'm also starting school today. I'm doing online classes to finish my Bachelors. Time to get to it!

2010-07-28T19:29:00.001-04:00

Priceless

2010-07-28T18:36:00.001-04:00

And this was his face after he got out of the water. He then proceeded to start holding his head and complaining of an ice cream headache. What a brave boy!

2010-07-28T18:30:00.001-04:00

This is what happens when you give a challenge to a 9 year old boy. Jakin asked if we'd give him money if he went into Lake Superior. We said no, but we would hold him in high regard and brag to all our friends. So here we are, bragging to all our friends.

2010-07-28T16:46:00.001-04:00

Minnesota is incredibly beautiful. God this is a masterpiece. Thank you!

2010-07-24T14:04:00.001-04:00

Harry Potter's got nothing on Asher. This was from 4th of July. Thought I'd share.

2010-07-21T10:35:00.001-04:00

Day 2 ... It's getting worse.

2010-07-20T16:10:00.001-04:00

Posted by Jakin...
I got in a fight today. My face is kinda jacked up, but you should see the hornet!

2010-07-06T20:05:00.001-04:00

Playing Disc Golf this evening with Asher and Eli. We discussed two different ways to throw the disc and Eli said, "Throwing it that way sucks." I said, "Eli, I don't appreciate it when you say that something sucks." (I'm sure someday the double standard will be thrown in my face, but he's still 5.) So, he responded with, "In my opinion, throwing like that is not the best way." Wow!! Even I didn't expect that.

2010-07-02T21:32:00.001-04:00

Jakin took Cooper out for a walk tonight. When he didn't return I went out to find this. The funny thing is Cooper seemed to enjoy it.

2010-07-02T11:17:00.001-04:00

Making them do sit-ups and push-ups on commercial breaks. Yesterday they had to run around the outside of the house. What shall tomorrow be?? I've been hearing a lot less begging for ridiculous toys too! This may be one of my most brilliant parenting ideas ever.

Eli was hungry!

2010-06-21T23:33:00.002-04:00

Carnivore or cannibal? You make the call.

I love my family.

2010-06-21T23:33:00.001-04:00

We're back!!

2010-06-21T23:15:00.001-04:00

Too much to update in my year of absence, so we'll just start from here. I'm no longer opening at the Y at 4:30 am (most of the reason I didn't blog for a year) and we are currently interim camp directors at one of the camps Justin oversees. It's fun but exhausting. This is a pic of Eli & Jakin doing Archery at camp.

Summer...

2009-08-15T21:17:00.020-04:00

Grab a cup a joe and have a seat, I'll try to get you up to speed...

Jakin played baseball this spring, and although he hadn't played before, he was a ROCKSTAR!!! Check it out...

We took a trip to Minnesota for the Graduation Open Houses of Neice Abbey and Nephew Ryan. Being the picture taking loser that I am I don't have any pictures to share with you. (And yes, I'm kicking myself now.) We also spent a little time with my family and it happened to be the going away party for Pastor Chris at the North Branch United Methodist Church where we were for nine years. It was a fast visit, but well worth the 13 hour drive by myself with the children (I think).

I got to go on a Girls Week-Beginning in Kansas City with 3 college friends. We had a great time tanning, shopping, going out to eat, I got my first pedicure... We went to The Melting Pot and had cheese and chocolate fondue... yummy!!

We went to a Twins Game against the Royals and I wasn't torn a bit as to whom to cheer for. "We're gonna win Twins..." It was great catching up with Heather, Tammy and JoAnn and I'm so glad they were willing to come all the way to Kansas!

Had a visit from some Minnesota friends over a long July weekend. Janelle and her two boys and Heather and her two boys and baby girl came to hang with us. With seven boys in the house age 9 and under, there was never a dull moment. Our only outings were to the Outdoor WaterPark at the Y. We enjoyed the water, sun and shaved ice and late night conversations and having a baby girl around.

Camp is always a fun part of summer and again this year we got to go to a week with Daddy. This was a great week for many reasons, first and foremost Jakin asked to be baptised. The evening speakers did a 'remember your baptism' thing at the pool and at the end Jakin told Justin that he wanted to be baptized. So we had a little impromptu baptism. It was AWESOME and I was crying. Jakin may you live for Jesus your whole life long!! You are a great kid and He has great plans for you! The pictures are with the camp pictures, so I don't have one yet, but there are pictures. Clearly not because I took them. :~)

Camp was also great because Asher discovered that he can put his head underwater and still live!! (see 6/22 post "Asher turns SIX") I think this has become his favorite acheivement this summer.

We've been calling it "The Summer of Challenges", but we have yet to conquer the riding bike without training wheels. This too shall come... right????

And the vacation we've been looking forward to all summer was our trip to North Carolina. Both of Justin's sisters families, and one brothers family were all in Kitty Hawk in the Outer Banks of NC. Auntie Jody always
(we did this trip 2 years ago too) brings activities for the kids, which all of them, from 4 to 17 (except the teenage boys) seem to love to do them.

Our house had a pool and the sista's house was right on the beach. So we had the best of all worlds being able to hang out right on the beach or go swim in the pool. (AGAIN I forgot the battery charger, so pictures are limited.)

The boys had so much fun having 8 of their cousins there and playing in the sand... swimming in the pool... Crabbing, day and night... meals with 19 people... Wright Brothers Museum... building a giant sand crab... our house getting struck by lightening... Ice Cream Shops...

After the fun in NC, we spent an overnight in Charlotte with my long-time friends the Balbuena's. We visited, swam had a yummy dinner and I learned to make 'sa-SA-wan' which is a delicious Filipino sauce to put over rice. It's never enough time to visit, but was still great to see them.

We also made a stop in Pigeon Forge, TN for a few days. We went tubing down the Little River. Really wish I would have gotten pictures of that!! We were worried that the boys weren't going to do well sitting in a tube floating down a river for 2.5 hours, but they did great. There were some rapids that were a little scary at times, but we all enjoyed it a lot. We also went to a cheap and cheesy Magic Show. I think the name was different than "Cheap and Cheesy" but I think it gives you a better idea of the experience. All of us but Justin went up on the stage to help with different tricks. I think I stole the show, but was surprised they didn't ask me to join their team!?!

And I was actually ready to come home. I don't usually feel that way because I LOVE vacation, but it was good to be home. And on Monday the boys start school, and I start my new opening shift at the YMCA. I'll be starting at 4:30 a.m. so I'll be sure to call you all on my way to work!!! :~)

Branson Vacation

2009-06-22T01:24:00.001-04:00

I thought I'd try something new. It may take a bit to load, but may be worth it... once.

Eli turns FOUR!!!

2009-06-22T00:24:00.006-04:00

Just before his birthday, we did Lefto boy haircuts. I cut all the guys hair to help save money and give me practice for my next carrer (ha). Eli was so tired, he fell asleep waiting for his turn getting his haircut. So we cut it while he slept. It worked better than when he's awake. I think we might start doing that for Jakin and Asher too.

May 23rd my baby turned four. It was a special treat for us that only one month and one week after our first visit, we got to return to Chuck E. Cheese for Eli's birthday. It was a fun surprise to have Chuck E. visit in the flesh... or fur.

Asher turns SIX!!

2009-06-22T00:02:00.005-04:00

April 16th was Asher's sixth birthday. Although each birthday is monumental, this one has been especially exciting for Asher. Now that he's six, he thinks he can put his head under that water when he's at swimming lessons. He's also discovered that he loves to make beds. The rest of us have also discovered that we love that he loves to make beds as he asks to make our beds too. Ch-yeah!!!

Chuck E. Cheese was Asher's restaurant of choice. Justin and I discovered that their salad bar is pretty good. Our neighbors, Braden and Jake joined us for Asher's little party and games at Chuck E.'s place.

There was a Renissance Festival in town just after Asher's birthday and we thought he would LOVE going. Unfortunately he was really sick and although he enjoyed small parts of it, he kept asking to go home and go to bed. What terrible parents are we that we made him stay (for a little while). This is a picture from the Jousters fake fighting. I had never been to a Ren Fest... it's a whole different crowd. Lots of LARPers. (LARP = Live, Action, Role, Playing)

Justin, Football and Easter...

2009-04-16T10:14:00.007-04:00

One of these things is not like the other. Ok, really they're not related at all. Although I guess a football is kind of egg shaped... I digress.

Justin had a BIG birthday on April 3rd. He turned the B I G 4-0. I have to hypenate, because otherwise it looks too old. Although I had great ideas of having a Comedy Sportz improv competition and make it all a big surprise for him... it stayed just that... great ideas. I did take him to HuHot Mongolian Grill with some friends of ours (her birthday was the 2nd) and we had a nice time... and free dessert. The boys presented Daddy with his very own Vikings Mug. Jakin said it's what Dad wanted for his birthday (pretty sure it's what Jakin wanted for Dad's birthday).

Jakin and Asher are both in Flag Football at the Y, so our evenings and Saturday's have been filled with practice and games. They're both enjoying it a lot. Asher is SO good at doing exactly what the coach says. As a matter of fact, he pretty much stood in the same spot (where the coach told him to stand) for half of a practice. The coach didn't mention to try to get the flag of the person with the ball. Just told him to stand there, and that's what he did and he did it well!! At this age they try out all positions and in the photo above Jakin is the QB. To the left Asher is in the middle.

Easter was a nice relaxing day. We had a few friends over whose families are also out of town. It was rainy all day so we had to do our egg hunt inside which turned out to be just fine. Eli told me 3 or 4 times that he thought he had enough eggs. I kept telling him there were more to be found, but he thought he had enough. Jakin and Asher on the other hand...

One of our few family photos... with Cooper too!!

Late March Fun...

2009-04-01T23:25:00.007-04:00

The fun began after we returned from Spring Break in Minnesota. We got a puppy!! I finally wore Justin down, just like when we got married. :~) We didn't tell the boys but after school Justin took them (I had to work) to a house and they left with a puppy. They stopped by the Y so I could meet him and as I walked up to the van I saw the three biggest smiles I think I've ever seen... at least all at the same time. His name is Cooper and he is a Papillon. I wanted to name him Palin, but no one else liked that name. Asher wanted to name him Skeletor... need I say more? Asher still claims his name is not Cooper, but he calls him that anyway.

He's teeny tiny and won't get too big. Probably aobut 7 pounds and 10 inches tall. Justin jokes and says that we haven't dealt with enough potty-training and disobedience in the last eight years so we had to get a dog. We almost made it all day today without any accidents too!! Yes, his ears are huge. Papillon means butterfly in French. Ooh la la.

And the other late March excitement was a huge ice/snow storm this weekend. It was like a good old Minnesota March snow storm. Perfect. The rain came first so it made everything so beautiful with the covering of ice. Of course we couldn't open our mailbox for two days, but it sure was pretty on the trees.

The boys played outside for hours building snow forts and snow men. I shoveled and they kept telling me that I should start my fort because we were going to have a snowball fight. So I just started shoveling the snow on them instead. And after my two hours of back breaking shoveling... it all melted two days later. Oh well... good exercise.

Spring Break in MN...

2009-03-21T17:24:00.006-04:00

We were fighting the crowds headed to Minnesota for Spring Break... ok, probably not a surprise that I'm joking. It was very convenient that the boys Spring Break happened to fall at the same time as a show I had to attend for my Dad's Swedish Rug business. My wonderful husband was SuperDad as he watched the boys from 9 am to 7 pm each day as I worked the show.

We did find time to have some fun. My cousin Jen is the Selections Coordinator (which is pretty much an interior decorator) for Hickory Fine Homes (http://www.hickoryfinehomes.com/ I didn't get permission to post, but I'm guessing they won't mind the plug when you all go to them for your home building needs) and she invited us to one of their model homes to watch a movie. They had a 10' projection screen with a Bluray player, electric reclining theater seats and suede wallpaper that cost $9000 in that room alone. Needless to say, no one wanted to leave.

We visited with all the Minnesota cousins and Aunts and Uncles and Grandpa's and Grandma's. The boys got to stay overnight at Auntie Beanee's one night and Auntie Beanee made green pancakes for breakfast on St. Patty's day. Jakin named them Saint Cakes, Eli called them Hulk Cakes and Asher refused to eat them because they were green. She tried explaining that it was just food coloring, but Asher responded saying "I only listen to reason." If only Mom and Dad would have remembered to take picutres... we would share them.

Today Grandma took us to the Bell Museum of Natural History were the boys got to touch snakes, salamanders, turtles, African Giant Millipedes (their feet were yucky feeling) hissing cockroaches... etc. Eli was a little hesitant at first, but when he realized the giant bear wasn't going to move and eat him he was ok.

It did snow one morning, but otherwise the weather has been nice. I would have like more snow.

White and Nerdy

2009-02-05T00:02:00.006-05:00

The boys got a lesson from their dad on how to dance. Now you see why we don't hit the clubs too often. (Pay close attention to Asher. If you know him at all this video will be even funnier for you.)

Oh, and if you want to see Asher perform even more moves, check out our second attempt at the song on YouTube. (Click here or search for "White and Nerdy - Asher")

When Daddy's Away...

2009-02-01T21:31:00.008-05:00

Justin left at 4 a.m. on Thursday for a Conference in Jacksonville, Florida. I was really trying to feel bad for him... until he sent a text saying he was eating Cinnabon. (There are no Cinnabon's in Wichita... anywhere.) My empathy was quickly replaced with jealousy.

Thursday night was a really difficult night with the boys. I won't go in to detail for fear that someone may call child services, but it was tough. I spent the evening and next day praying and processing and feeling like a failure as a mother. I came to realize that the root of the problem is me. I've been letting my responsibilites (dishes, cleaning, laundry, etc...) go, and then when the boys would step over the sweatshirt they threw on the floor instead of picking it up I would freak out and yell at them. I'm transferring my frustration with myself and my short comings on to my children when they are acting like ... well ... children. So after many explative, tears, requests for forgiveness and the like, I attempted to enjoy my children... and my messy house.

Saturday was B E A U T I F U L ... 67 degrees, not a cloud in the sky. We had a picnic in the front yard with Lennon our neighbor. Mac and Cheese isn't the best picnic food, but it was easy.

Jakin was too busy to eat because he was working on an obstacle course for his scooter...

Asher took a slightly different approach.

It was such a fun day I thought we should set up the tent downstairs and have a campout! WHAT WAS I THINKING??? It was awful. Asher kept talking in his sleep, the floor was harder than the ground, I had NO ROOM, and all I could think of was that my bed was RIGHT UPSTAIRS!! I moved to the couch at 3 a.m. and did sleep a little. Of course the boys wanted to do it again on Saturday night. I slept in the guest bedroom next door.

Today wasn't quite as fun filled, but we did put this together...

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing

Jakin Turns 8...

2009-01-29T22:44:00.005-05:00

Yesterday, my first born turned 8. Eight years ago, I suffered and cried and had NO IDEA what the future held as I held my baby boy... and he peed on me. It was wonderful. Now we practically wear the same size shoes and it won't be long before he stands taller than I do. The celebration started on Tuesday when we went to see "Paul Blart: Mall Cop" Jakin's choice. He opened gifts and choose Grilled Cheese and Tomato Soup for dinner.

Wednesday we surprised Jakin with "Vikings" cupcakes at school. This picture is Ms. Manny interviewing him about things he likes. My favorite question was "If you could have your birthday party anywhere where would you have it?" Jakin's answer was "Wet-n-Wild" (a waterpark in Florida). He's never been there but apparently driving by made a big impression.

And the highlight of the day was the Talent Show Jakin participated in at Awana. He performed a Magic Trick with the assistance of his brother Asher. Have a look...

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing

Justin and I actually got to go out with some friends last week. We went to P.F. Chang's with Joe and Kara. Kara bought a babysitting certificate at a silent auction fundraiser their church had and ever so graciously gave it to us. So we made them come out with us. It was a lot of fun, and the food was terrific. The four of us shared five entrees.

Happy 2009??

2009-01-13T21:39:00.006-05:00

For those of you who didn't get a live version of our New Year's Card (I do New Year's cuz I can't get myself together for Christmas cards) I thought I'd post a pic of the pic for you...

We got to go home to MN for the first time in three years. We were only home for a week, but it was still great. We mostly spent time with family, but were able to see a few friends too. Live every trip to Minnesota, we left feeling like no matter how much time we'd spend there we still wouldn't be able to spend time with all the people we'd like to.

Grandma Sharon surprised all the kids with tickets to see the Minneapolis Children's Theater production of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. It was good, and all six of the cousins got to sit together and amazed us at how attentive they were.

Christmas day was spent at Mom's house. Grandma made Quillo's for all the kids. A quillo is a quilt that folds up into a pillow. Eli sleeps under his every night, the other two use theirs downstairs for movies.

We also spent a day with the Lefto's just after Christmas. Eli had the Christmas crabbies (which is why he looks funny in the picture because I had to photoshop him in). The boys always love spending time with their big cousins, and there's never a dull moment with the Lefto clan!

Justin's gone in Texas this week for a Youth Leader Training Conference, so I'm ... well, excited for his return on Friday! If I make it that long.

It's The Most Wonderful...

2008-12-13T23:47:00.003-05:00

...Pie in the world!!! I love December because it means Baker's Square / The Village Inn has CANDY CANE PIE. My love surprised me with bringing a pie home from work on Friday. He had to leave work two hours early, drive to the complete other side of town (which is about 20 miles) and he did all that in the rush hour traffic... for me! No, he doesn't have to get me a Christmas gift now.

It's Beginning to Look...

2008-12-05T22:55:00.005-05:00

... a lot like... We put up our tree tonight.

Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo PrintingEli did eventually wake up and help. So glad I got a picture first!!

And a few days ago this is what we woke up to...
Photo Sharing - Video Sharing - Photo Printing
And yes, we did have the "DON'T EAT YELLOW SNOW" conversation.

It's Fun to Work at The...

2008-11-25T23:07:00.004-05:00

...Y...M...C...A... I have a job!! I actually started two weeks ago at North Branch (that's where we lived in MN) YMCA at the Membership Desk. I'm liking it very much so far. Although I'm still wearing red, it's SO much better than Target and it pays better too! I do a lot of folding towels, signing kids up for basketball, gymnastics classes, swimming lessons and my favorite part is giving tours to potential members. My first day of work a lady passed out and we had to call 911, so I got to utilize my First Aid/CPR training quickly. I'll try to keep you posted if exciting things happen.

I just downloaded this picture from a disk my Mom sent home with me months ago. It's a picture I took of the sunrise on the morning my Dad went in to the hospital before he died. He used to be a photographer and I think he would have like it!!

Trick or Scam???

2008-10-31T22:08:00.007-04:00

It may not be a surprise to many, I think I mentioned it last year in my blog, but I hate Halloween. And although this year was an enjoyable Halloween, I still think the whole idea is without purpose. Does anyone really want their kid to have all that candy? And it's not that I have a hard time limiting the amount of candy that my kids eat. I just have a hard time limiting how much of my kids candy I eat. So why do we bring this upon ourselves?

So this year, I was very excited about the costume Jakin chose. I don't know if you can tell in the picture, but he's a Lego. The blue thing he's holding is his candy box which is also supposed to be a Lego. Eli was Batman, and Asher was going to be Dr. Doom (from the Fantastic Four) but at the last minute changed his mind and decided to be Robin. (I refuse to buy costumes at full price so they just choose from the costumes we already have.) I think Asher's choice was a good one, they looked cute together.

Part of what made our evening better than most Halloween's is that we went around the neighborhood with six of our neighbor families. So there were 14 kids attacking houses together, cleaning them out of all the candy they had. This picture is part of the crew at our house.

Here's a better picture of Jakin's costume. A neighbor told me that at one point the older kids were running down the street and Jakin was holding his box up by the upper cups so he could run better... wish I would have gotten a picture of that!!!

On an entirely different note... we just got the boys school pictures back and as I was putting them in the frames I realized how long it's been since we had done pictures. It was before we left Minnesota in June of 2006, so I thought these would be fun pictures...

WSU Game...

2008-10-26T00:08:00.004-04:00

Justin and I got to go to a Wichita State University Volleyball game tonight! Our friends Joe and Kara (pronounced the opposite of my name) invited our family, but we decided to get a sitter and make it a date. The WSU team is ranked 14th in the NATION! That's right, not the conference, but the NATION. And it's just five miles from our house. I feel famous! But I was most excited when WuShock was up by our seats, so I had to get a picture. Yes, it is supposed to be a shock of wheat... it is Kansas! The Shockers won in five, but I wished I was on the court.

Trip and More...

2008-10-16T21:38:00.007-04:00

Our trip to MN was fast and beautiful. I took this picture while I was driving (probably not the best idea). We repeatedly ooohhed and aaaahhed over the beauty of the autumn leaves. It has been two years since I've "seen" fall. In Florida the leaves would fall, but there were still leaves on the trees. It's weird. And this is our first fall in Kansas, and so far, there is NO comparison to the beauty of Minnesota. I hope those of you who are fortunate enough to live there appreciate the beauty that surrounds you these few weeks!

We went to Aamodt's Apple Orchard and although we didn't get to pick the apples off the trees, we had fun. They had a petting zoo, consisting of a few goats and one donkey... we did no petting, just looking.
But the little goat that kept ramming the donkey was pretty funny! The hay bale maze was fun, but the highlight (aside from the honeycrisp apples) was the large pile of hay that the boys enjoyed running on and jumping off.

My new obesssion that has been keeping me from blogging (JoAnn!!!) is refinishing furniture. I've been looking for solid, ugly, cheap furniture on craigslist and then refinishing them. So far I've done a $20 dresser and a $10 side table. Unfortunately I didn't do before pictures, but here's the after of the side table. But now that I'm done with both of them I may have to find more time to blog?? Maybe.

Copy Cat...

2008-09-16T16:32:00.004-04:00

Since most of you probably don't know that my husband has a blog, much less that you check it, I'm totally stealing a couple of his posts to share with you. What's the sense in both of us taking time to talk about the same thing. I know what you're thinking... LAZY!! I say... BRILLIANT!! The rest is all Justin...

Talk about brave. My eldest son learned his first lesson in taking care of teeth. We recently found out that he has FIVE cavities! Some work needs to be done.

Yesterday he went to the dentist office where Kara tried to prepare him for the worst. Well, she did such a good job that he didn’t want to go in. Way to go, Mom! Eventually, he got in and did a great job. One of his teeth was so bad that they had to put a crown on it. A big, silver crown.

That’s right, my eldest son has a pirate tooth! At least that’s what we’re currently going with. And, he’s done an excellent job brushing his teeth since then.

Side note: As Jakin and I were praying last night, he thanked God for the reminder of how Jesus loved him so much that He stretched out His arms to die for him. He told God that it was this reminder that gave him the courage to walk through the dentist’s door. It was a proud moment for dear, old dad.

Still Justin...
Eli started a program last night called Short Sports. For three weeks you take your three year old on Tuesdays and Thursdays to a field to practice their fine motor skills with sports. Sound good? Well, let’s just say I’m thankful that it’s only ½ long because the attention span of a three year old is even less than a thirty-nine year old.

Here are some pictures for you to enjoy. Eli loved it and loves the fact that his dad is his coach, which brings me to my next point…

Why do I have to pay someone to get me together and coach my kids doing sports? I’m now a “coach” of sorts for all three of my boys (two in soccer and Eli in this class), AND I’M PAYING FOR THEIR EXPERIENCE FINANCIALLY!!!

Alright, enough venting. I’ll just go back to remembering that it’s for Eli.

I'm Old and Lazy...

2008-09-07T22:28:00.006-04:00

I've received several nasty emails, comments, messages and calls about my lack of updates to the blog (yes mom, they were all from you) and truth be told, I'm 33 now and I just can't keep up anymore. This is a picture from my birthday. Jakin REALLY wanted to get me Monopoly and Justin realized why when he took them to Target to get my gift. Jakin kept saying he wanted to get the Indiana Jones version of Monopoly... FOR ME (Justin didn't fall for it since it was $10 more.)

Our next thrilling adventure was when a pastor from Wichita took us sailing. It was a 27 ft. tri-maran (like the boat in WaterWorld) and at first the boys were a little leary, but by the end of the trip I was a wreck because they were running around like it was the Play Place at McDonald's.

Labor Day weekend we missed out on a visit from our dear friends the Jakubowski's due to car trouble, so instead our excitement for the weekend was a Drive-In movie. It started with Star Wars Clone Wars at about 8:45 (an hour past bed time), the second movie was Journey to the Center of the Earth (that ended at midnight and they were all still up) and the third movie was Batman: Dark Knight, which was the only one Justin and I actually wanted to see. So I laid in the van with the boys, holding their heads down so they wouldn't see it was Batman, until they fell asleep. Can't say it was a great night, but the boys enjoyed staying up late and watching movies outside laying on top of the van. Don't know if we'll do that again!

Finally, I'm sure you all know that Season 4 of The Office came out on September 2nd, and yes, we've watched ALL the episodes already. You should too!

School starts...

2008-08-14T11:43:00.005-04:00

I never thought I would like school to start in the middle of August, but I must say, I AM READY!!! But it does seem early. Jakin is starting Second Grade, and Asher is starting Kindergarten.

Asher seems very distraught about the idea of being away from Mom and Dad doesn't he??

Cousins Visit...

2008-08-11T16:12:00.005-04:00

What a great week we had!! Justin's sister Beanee and her three girls + friend came to stay with us. It was a short visit but we had a great time. This picture is from the Cow Town Museum which we didn't actually go TO, we just went to the gift shop. For those who don't know from L to R is Jakin, Eli, Peri, Ryley, Beanee, Whitney, Asher and Claire ("it's a family name" - Whitney's friend).

We adults enjoyed quiet mornings on the patio sipping coffee and tea while the kids enjoyed their morning backrub train... Ryley got the short end of the stick and Eli chose the best seat in the house. I'm pretty sure Whitney and Claire were still sleeping. We played Apples to Apples, watched Nims Island, toured Justin's office,

Whitney and Claire were roughed the boys up a little (and they loved it... the boys that is). Chef Whitney made "puppy chow" for us (pretty sure I ate 90% of it) and FROM SCRATCH Chocolate Chip Scones ("stupid british snack food"). I WANT a Whitney!!!

And finally we spent an afternoon at All Star Adventures which is a Kansas Amusement Park. They have go carts, mini-golf, arcade games and lots of carni rides. It was SUPER hot that day and of course everything is outside so it was fun, but HOT! I asked Jakin what he and Beanee were so excited about and he told me that they were excited because they were beating everyone else in the race. And Bean... Jakin and Justin chose the picture, and it's not the rollercoaster one, so you can't be mad at me!

A Snake In My... WHAT...

2008-08-03T23:18:00.003-04:00

Saturday I was awakened by Asher coming in my room yelling, "There's a snake in our house." Asher is typically the serious child, so this statement coming from him alarmed me a little more than it would have coming from one of the others. Trying to maintain my composure I inquired as to where the alleged snake was? He informed me it was downstairs. He proceded to tell me he was sitting in the chair and it came from over there and went under the coffee table. I looked under the coffee table... AND THERE IT WAS!!
It was only about 8 inches long and the boys of course wanted to keep it as a pet. HA!! No! We did catch it and bring it to the Nature Center which is about 2 miles from our house and we released it into the wild. Tears were shed (not by me) and our "pet" is in it's new home... 2 miles away.

You've probably noticed already, but I had some spare time so I changed the blog layout. Hope you like it... I do.

Camp...

2008-07-29T17:00:00.003-04:00

Last week we all got to go to camp WITH Daddy! It was great. We got to meet some really great people and I didn't have to cook or clean all week long! I played sand volleyball almost every day. The boys got to stay up late and swim. And I'm not sure how it was good for Justin but I'm sure it was. Here's Jakin's excitement for the week which shocked us all...

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Vacation Bible School...

2008-07-29T16:50:00.002-04:00

The boys had Vacation Bible School a few weeks ago. It worked out great for me since Justin was gone at camp that week, I had free babysitting for three hours a day. I got to go to the ending program on Friday and wanted to share it with you...

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Aaahh Minnesota...

2008-07-10T23:22:00.009-04:00

Not sure why it's taken me so long to blog again. Part of it has to do with the awkwardness of how to blog about my Dad's death. But I'm guessing most of you probably already know that he died, so maybe it's not that awkward after all.

The boys and I left for Minnesota on May 28th. I spent most of my time with Dad, it seemed almost daily his strength decreased. We spent the weekdays in Roseville and weekends in Mora. We had birthday parties and picnics with long time friends. June 14th we went up to Orr, MN for a family vacation along with my brother's wifes family, a trip Dad had been looking forward to for nearly a year. Dad really wasn't strong enough to go, but we didn't dare suggest that we not go. The first morning we were there we had to call the ambulance because Dad was in such pain and we couldn't seem to help. Later that day we found out he had a raging infection and the Dr. said he thought it would only be a few days. He died in the hospital on June 16th at about 8pm. I am so thankful for God allowing me to spend three weeks with my Dad before he died, and that I could be with Mom and the family for a week and a half after his death. I miss my daily talks with Dad on the phone (sometimes several times a day) and each time I see an airplane fly by, I think of him. But what peace and joy it brings to think that my Daddy is strong again and dancing with Jesus.

The boys had a lot of fun playing with their cousins. The Ostrom cousins... Julia, Karina and Joy (left to right - Sophia is too young to be playing out in the dirt.)

...and the Lefto cousins were all together since Jody, Amelia and Gaeron were here from Pennsylvania. L to R, starting in the back... Olivia, Audrey, Kelsey, Gaeron, Steven; E, Amelia, Whitney, Abbey, Ryan; A, J, Ryley and Peri. (Note how the boys kind of bookended the girls. I thought it was cute.)

The Science Mueseum of Minnesota was hosting a Star Wars... uummmm... thing. And Justin and the boys went with Grandpa Gord and Uncle Jeff and his boys. The boys absolutely loved it, Justin thought it was the lamest thing ever.

And the boys FINALLY got their hair cut. Lindsay from Justin's work used to do hair and I found out about it. It's fun to actually be able to see Asher and Jakin's eyes when I talk to them!! Eli doesn't look too happy here, but he was more excited for Miss Lindsay to cut his hair than he ever is when I do it. Be looking for pictures of their new "do's" in upcoming posts.

Eli turns THREE!!

2008-05-23T22:25:00.009-04:00

Today is Eli's birthday!! For not being big celebrators, I think we had a good day. I asked Eli who he'd want to invite to his party and he said, "all the girls". (SCARY) So we brought a cake down to Justin's office because the only other male that works there is the Bishop (who also had a birthday today) so Eli partied with about 25 girls!!! This pic is actually before bed opening his gifts in the backyard... love the face!! (Yes, it was The Incredible Hulk Underoos.)

For dinner he chose "Chuck E. Cheese" (I miss Gattitown Suz... much better!!). We joyfully ate the cheese covered cardboard and played the games... at least the ones that worked. But the best part was that Chuck E. himself came to our table and just about scared the crap (literally) out of half of us (me included). After he left Eli said, "I never knowed he was so ginormous."

Yesterday was Jakin's last day of school. And I almost cried when I picked him up and his teacher gave him a hug. Then I did cry when I read the poem she wrote to the class and the things she said she would remember about Jakin. Jakin said he almost cried too. We'll miss you Ms. Smart!! Jakin is a very smart boy and did really well in First Grade.

Viva Las Vegas... I'm sure you've all been dying for an update. Unfortunately we did not hit the jackpot. Actually the $3 that we did blow lasted us about 10 minutes as we waited for a table for dinner. We don't have a picture of the two of us together, not sure how that happened (probably because we didn't want to risk getting some sort of disease by asking someone to take our picture). Although Vegas is even grosser than I remembered (lots of soliciting if you know what I mean) we did have a nice time being together without the boys. BIG THANKS to Jodie who took care of them all weekend!!

And finally... just gotta love it!!!

Best News...

2008-05-14T23:05:00.005-04:00

Today marks the first day of the rest of our life. Justin has finished his final paper of his Master's Degree!! This has been a four-year journey that overall hasn't been horrible, but it's so exciting to think that it's finished!!! It still hasn't sunk in yet. I hope that I still like spending time with Justin, it's been a long time... and I've got a long list!!

So his graduation gift was a Nintendo Wii (yes, I realize Justin's not even in the picture, but who are we kidding... it's not really for him). Now... I've been pretty opposed to game systems because I've received my fair share of phone calls from young ladies who have recently gotten married and each one has said "All he does is play video games!!" So, like I have done with so many things that eventually happen, I vowed that my boys will not grow up to become men who play video games. Well, that was before the Wii came out and I'm a little more ok with the idea of a game system that requires some movement other than fingers. And as I've had time to hone and perfect my parenting skills (please sense the sarcasm) I do realize that it's up to us to limit their use of said game system.

Here's a little idea of what fun it is...

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And that's not even the best news. On Friday Justin and I get to go to Las Vegas... just the two of us. We're going as a Graduation Celebration and disquising it as a work trip because there is a Conference there on Saturday. (I secretly hope to hit the jackpot and payoff all the student loans!!)

Congratulations Justin I'm so proud of you!!!

Devotions...

2008-04-29T10:41:00.003-04:00

At devotions this morning one of our questions was "Who protects you from things you can't see?" Eli answered without hesitation... "Reindeers".

Minbirwedfamstuf...

2008-04-28T21:49:00.011-04:00

We've been back for almost a week, but we went to Minnesota for a week for Maggie and Nathan's wedding. It was a beautiful ceremony and probably the best wedding dance I had ever been to, and no there was not an open bar. Maggie is in the Army and Nathan is in the Marines so they had a red, white and blue theme... it was cool. Congrats Maggie and Nathan!!

But before the wedding, on April 16th, Asher turned 5!!! Abbey made him a fun chocolate cake with bugs on it. (Not real ones!) Turning 5 is a big deal in our family because that means that you are old enough to ride on the motorcycle with Daddy.
Asher unfortunately had to wait almost a week until we got back to Kansas for his first ride on the bike. Gord, you would have been proud... he's a natural. And Jakin was giving him tips on how to wave to fellow bikers.

Our time there is always too short, but we managed to spend some time with Justin's family which is always fun. All the MN family made it (except for Kelsey who is at school in Bemidji). And the boys LOVE playing and being with their big cousins!!

My Dad and brothers were all in Florida for most of our time in MN. Ironic that they all go to FL after we leave, huh?? They came back the day before we left, so we were able to spend a day with Dad but we weren't able to see my new neice Sophia. Mom gave us a scare... she was having some pressure and tightness in her chest and we brought her to the ER. They admitted her and ran some tests on her heart, thankfully everything checked out ok, but she was still feeling the pressure and the Docs weren't offering any answers, but sent her home. She figured out several days later that it was a medication she was taking... stopped taking it and the pressure was gone. Praise God!!

Oh, and I almost forgot to share one of the best things about the trip... all the time Justin and I got to spend without kids!! (Thanks Beanee, and Whitney, Ryley, Peri and Mark.) Not sure why Justin looks so repulsed by my kiss. One night we went out with our friends
(yes it's ok to say that now guys, we're not your Youth Pastor and wife anymore...) Peter, Jenni, Joe and Nicole for Jenni's 22nd birthday and we stayed up really late the night before the wedding! It was fun... thanks guys!

I'll close by sharing my favorite Asher picture using one of the birthday gifts he received from Auntie Jody and Uncle Greg in Pennsylvania.

SCZ...

2008-04-13T20:58:00.007-04:00

Is how us Wichitans refer to the Sedgewick County Zoo here in Wichita. Everyone has told us how great the zoo is so we bought our annual pass. Since Justin was gone this weekend I went to the zoo with one of Justin's co-workers Jodie, and the boys.

It is a nice zoo, but I'm a little more used to going to the Disney Parks and Sea World where if they're renovating an area they completely cover it up with pretty stuff so you don't see any of the construction mess. Not the case here at SCZ. The otters were my favorite to watch. They acted just like all the Personality Profiles we did at LEAD Camp suggested, as you can see in this picture.

For all the MN readers the zoo is much like Como (but maybe not even that pretty - and I've never been to the MN Zoo can you believe that?) but they seem to have a lot more types of animals. And the boys favorite part was the indoor Rainforest. Yes they have a huge indoor Rainforest complete with Ginormous Fruit Bats and everything. Only real downside to the zoo is that all they sell there is Pepsi!

Near Death Experience...

2008-04-07T10:45:00.006-04:00

It's SPRING!! The last couple days I've been doing some yard work. We have these four huge Wheat like plants that everyone seems to cut down in the spring... so I did too. But I didn't know what to do with all the cut stalks of wheat since the garbage company doesn't pick up brush and grass clippings. So I found a big oil barrel behind our fence and was burning it. Saturday I burned almost all of the stuff and just had a few left. So after church on Sunday I went out to finish the burning and the barrel was half full of ashes. So I took it out behind the fence, dumped the ashes and resumed my burning. About 20 minutes later I saw flames from behind the fence. I called Justin first (he was inside the house), but quickly realized this was beyond our capabilities considering the fact that we don't even have a garden hose. So I had my first (and hopefully last) experience calling 911.

It seemed like forever before the fire department came but it was probably only 3 or 4 minutes. Of course neighbors were pouring out of their houses and Jakin was more than happy to share with them that his mom did a dumb thing. The fire men were there for about a half-hour and were very nice. I told them what happened and they said it was just a brush fire, and I'm not in trouble or anything and that accidents happen. WOW!! I think by bed time my heart had finally regained it's usual rhythm.

I found it interesting that Justin will forget to take pictures when our kids are doing something good or cute, but when I start a fire and the fire department comes not only does he think to take picutres but he also takes pictures with his phone and sends it to everyone that he can. GGrrrr...

Mom and Dad...

2008-04-07T10:34:00.003-04:00

It's been over a week since they were here, so it's about time I blog-it. Mom and Dad came for a visit!! They drove down and stayed with us for five days. I did a horrible job of taking pictures during their visit as you can see by the last minute photo taken just as they were leaving.

It was probably the most eventfully uneventful visit ever. Dad decided to test the strength of his bones by taking a few spills. One that landed him in the ER for a few hours with 7 stitches and a black and blue eye. So most of the rest of their visit was spent in our basement. I think the boys enjoyed eating most of their meals down there instead of at the table. Mom helped (which really means she did) me make a duvet cover for Eli's bed (nope, no picture of that either). Justin had to work most of the weekend, so I appreciated Mom and Dad being here even more!!

Naggie...

2008-03-21T16:02:00.003-04:00

Our friends Maggie and Nathan came to stay with us this week for their and Jakin's Spring Break, and their marriage counseling. They're getting married April 19th and Justin is doing their wedding. Aside from the counseling the only other thing we did was watch "The Office". Nearly two and a half seasons worth. Ok, we also went to Carrabba's for dinner (the BEST Italian restaurant I've ever been to) but I forgot the camera so this picture is in our kitchen (see the restaurant tie) after we got back. And yes, it is a self-portrait.

It's in the 70's here and the boys are begging me to come out and play with them so this is a short one... sorry it took so long Rita and Anna!!

Blessings...

2008-03-05T21:46:00.005-05:00

We've been without a dining table and chairs since we moved here. I wish I had pictures of all of us sitting at our folding table on the patio chairs, but I don't. This week we were blessed by some generous Kansassins with a wonderful oak table and six, yes, SIX chairs. Our mealtimes haven't been the same (THANK GOD!!!).

And if that wasn't enough, the next day they stopped by and said they decided to get new living room furniture too and wondered if we wanted their couch and a chair too. Ch-YA!! Just another small (but HUGE) confirmation that this is where God wants us to be.

Sunday night we were invited to a local church for their Youth Groups 3rd Annual Barnabas Awards. They get all dressed up and walk the 'red carpet' and are awarded 'Golden Plates' of encouragement (Barnabas means 'Son of Encouragement'). It was kinda long, but GREAT peanut butter rice krispie bars afterwards!!! And of course, we got to dress up and I know it will shock you Mom, but I kinda like it! When there's a purpose of course... otherwise I'm all about the jammies!!

Afternote: Doesn't Asher look a little like Clark Kent... ready to rip off his clothes when duty calls??

Asher's Big Day...

2008-02-25T16:23:00.005-05:00

Asher made a big decision today, I'll let him tell you about it...

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I was about Asher's age when I made the same decision. And there are a lot of people who would say, "there's no way a child could understand the commitment they're making at that age." I completely agree. But I'm 32 now and I'm still learning what that commitment means, and I hope you are too. There have been a lot of points of decision in my life and I'm sure there will be in Asher's too, but I weep for JOY that at four years old, he's starting to think about what Jesus did for him and starting to make choices on what he is going to do with that.

After we prayed together I told Asher that Heaven is celebrating right now for you. So we decided we'd celebrate too. He wanted a cake... chocolate... pretty sure that's what they had in Heaven today too!

S'bout Time...

2008-02-20T12:11:00.006-05:00

Laziness is my excuse. That's all I have to say about that...

Jakin turned 7 on January 28th. He chose Chuck E. Cheese for dinner... YEAHH!! Actually the pizza was not as bad as I remembered and I did have fun playing a hunting game that Eli didn't want to finish. Oh, the boys liked it too. We brought cupcakes to his class so now everyone likes the new kid!!

We just got back from spending a week in MN. My dad was home after spending a month in hospital/rehab, so we were able to spend a lot more time with him. He's working on building up his strength doing his exercises and walking down the hallways. His appetite returned while we were there, so mom was busy running to the restaurants and stores to get the foods he was craving. I think we had chinese four times that week (not including the leftovers)!!

On Sunday we went to our North Branch Church and got to see lots of friends. It was -14 that day and Justin wasn't feeling well. We were going to Taco Bell with a bunch of friends after church and on the way there we realized that we had two, not one but TWO flat tires. One we filled, but the other was beyond hope. Thankfully we were reminded that we had AAA!!! So we waited at Taco Bell (Keith and Rita were in for the long haul... Nicole had to work...) for a couple hours for the guy to come for the 15 minute tire change. But... we didn't have to be in the cold!!! Hopefully our Wednesday trip to the Driscoll's would not bring trouble... or we'd think North Branch was not welcoming us anymore.

We also spent some time with the Lefto's and the boys enjoyed being with their cousins... of course. Eli was "teaching" 16 year old Whitney and 15 year old Steven how to play Jakin's Nintendo DS that he bought from Uncle Jeff (thanks a lot Jeff!!!) Nana and Papa's house was relaxing... Justin, Eli and I napped while Jakin and Asher played games with Nana and Papa.

Auntie Michelle (my brother Joel's wife) picked up the boys and took all six kids to an indoor play park in Ham Lake. I thought they'd be there for a few hours and then get bored and come back. They played and had fun there for seven hours!! Then came back to the condo to play some more.

We decided a week is not long enough to go "home" and spend time with all the people we want to see, but we'll take what we can get. I'll close with a great pic of me and my Daddy!!

Jakin's Wife...

2008-01-23T22:30:00.000-05:00

We are very excited to meet Jakin's future wife. Today was his first day of school in Kansas and his teacher's name is Ms. Smart. At first we just thought... how fun, his teachers name is Smart... ha ha ha... but then we realized that when I was pregnant with him my OBGYN's name was Dr. Miracle, so we're very excited to meet his future wife... Ms. Billionaire. He was a little nervous, but had a great day. When I picked him up the second thing he said to me was... "everyone liked me". I said of course they did, what's not to like. (Mom forgot the camera.)

House update... we're finally starting to move in. So far Justin and Gord have been finishing an office in the basement and I've, make that we've, been painting the boys bedrooms. We've all been assembling beds and dressers (all from IKEA of course!!).

The boys enjoyed taking part in "helping" me paint. It's interesting that they acutally think they're helping. If only we could get them to understand it would help much, much more if they didn't "help". As frustrated as I was at the time, it is fun to see the pictures now. They were very happy to see the pink wall gone!!!
Update on my dad... it's been quite some time since I've updated on my dad. He's been in the hospital for about two weeks now. The cancer in his tailbone and causing pain when sitting, standing or walking. He's also been having numerous other issues, from no appetite to fluid surrounding his lungs. So please be praying for him and mom, and all of us really. He's on some pretty good pain meds, which also means that sometimes he sees things that aren't actually happening. Yesterday when I was talking to him he asked me what I was measuring him for now?? I thought there must be a nurse in the room but then he asked me again and I said are you talking to me?? He then realized that it was the pain meds talking and we had a little laugh about that!

Ok... and to the funny picture requestor/UM theologian guy. Wow, this was a funny little exchange previously but now I'm even more interested in knowing your secret identity. Here's a recent photo for you... I'm kind of hard to see because of the camoflague I'm wearing. Jakin also cropped the photo as to not reveal all my flab, so I thanked him for that!!!

Eli's Hot Air

2008-01-16T21:03:00.001-05:00

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Kansassins...

2008-01-15T21:54:00.000-05:00

I want to start a new trend... instead of calling people from Kansas, Kansans, I'm going to start petitioning to be called Kansassins. It's way cooler, plus it sounds like assassins which is tough, and you get to say a$% and get away with it!!! Thus, my reasons why people from Kansas should be called Kansassins. We are now (almost) officially Kansassins. We loaded up the moving truck yesterday. Jakin was a HUGE helper (seriously), and Dustin (the youth pastor from our Florida church) were our helpers. We finally got the last loaded and it drove away at about 6:45 p.m. Then we finished the last cleaning of the house, said goodbye to the girls next door and headed out. We considered staying and sleeping another night because we were both exhausted, but we thought it would be good to get a few hours down the road anyway. I started driving and Justin tried to sleep. It was fun because I actually got to listen to what I wanted to listen to on my MP3 player. It was so great I drove (and jammed) until 2 a.m. I wish I could say Justin slept that whole time, but he did have his eyes closed most of the time. Justin drove the rest of the night and we arrived in Wichita at 6 p.m. this evening. I say we're "almost" Kansassins because we are scheduled to close on our house tomorrow at 1 p.m. Although we still don't know when our stuff (the truck containing our stuff) will be coming. They say between 3-8 days. I vote for three!! A couple cute stories from our trip. We stopped at 5 a.m. for a fuel fill and potty break. Asher woke up and said he needed to go potty. I took him in the wonderfully shimmering truck stop bathroom and had to half hold him up as he "went". In his delirium he said, "my pee is like a circus... it's going around and around in circles." I looked and sure enough it was! We stopped around 9ish, somewhere in Kentucky... or Illinois... they all kinda blend together... anyway I came out of the gas station a couple seconds after Justin and the boys and Eli was standing still on the sidewalk with a HUGE smile on his face. I said, "what's up Eli" and he did a big exhale and smiled again. It took me a second to realize that he was seeing his breath for the first time. It was the cutest thing ever!!! So I recorded it for you too...sorry it's sideways...

WE'RE EXPERIENCING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES... PLEASE CHECK BACK LATER... IT'LL BE WORTH IT I PROMISE!!!

The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything...

2008-01-04T22:18:00.000-05:00

It's been a week since Camilla and Fabian left and I'm finally getting around to posting our final picture together. We ARE the Pirates Who Don't Do Anything!! And, the Veggie Tales movie comes out January 11th. (I should be getting my check from Big Idea in the mail for that plug!) Although it's been a week Camilla just got her 4th and final suitcase. They all arrived late!! Travel is hard.

Justin has finished his SUPER L O N G project he had to do for the UMC Probationary Member stuff I don't understand but it was a lot of work. YEAH!! And Sunday he leaves for Dallas for a 4 day conference.

"I'm kind of tired of packing and unpacking. Town to town up and down the dial..." (bonus points to the first person who comments on what that line is from). This is our porch, and the neighbors Guest House is practically full... so the packing is going well. I'm sure the stress will start eventually but so far so good. We load the truck on the 14th... crazy to think we only have 10 more days of our life here in Florida. Thankfully it's supposed to be almost 80 the whole time!!

And the big news of the week... Jakin and Asher got glasses!! It took about 24 hours exactly for them to start saying that they want to return them. I think they look so handsome and they've done pretty well adjusting. School starts next week, their last week of school... I think with the new glasses they'll be able to skip right to the next grade!!

Merry Fishmas...

2007-12-24T22:53:00.000-05:00

For our last Christmas in Florida we thought it would be fun to go to the beach!! The high was only supposed to be 71 degrees, but it was supposed to be sunny and nice. We got there and it was cloudy and misting. We held out hope and set up our picnic lunch that we packed as we donned our jackets.
It was not the traditional Christmas Eve lunch of "Dopp i Grytan" (which is my families favorite Swedish Christmas tradition) but it could have been worse than Ham and Cheese Sandwiches and CapriSun. We could have had fish sandwiches... more on that later...

The misting went away long enough to let us have about an hour playing in the water and building "sand castles". The water wasn't terribly cold, but was a bit shocking at first... and I had just shaved my legs so the salt water really hurt!!!

The "highlight" of the day was the fish. If only we would have done a little research we would have found out that there was a red tide algae organism that has killed thousands of fish (and big fish at that) which have washed up on the shore. It didn't smell bad up by our picnic site, but once we crossed over the "fish zone" and got down by the water it was TERRIBLE!! And we found out after watching the news that the toxins in the dead fish can cause coughing and throat irritation. It was a Merry FISHmas!!

You're probably wondering why Camilla isn't in any of the pictures... she just bought a new camera, and won't let anyone else touch it. So she's not in any pictures, but she sure took a lot of them!! This is one of our favorites...

Have a wonderful Christmas Day celebrating the Birth of Jesus!!

International...

2007-12-19T21:42:00.001-05:00

Our first International guests have come to visit. I lived with Camilla back in 1995 and 1996 in St. Paul. She was here from Sweden studying to be a Veterinary Technician along with my other roommate Suzy. Camilla and Suzy became fast friends and not long after Camilla moved in with us on 94 W Larpenteur Ave... also known as "Melrose Place". Camilla and Fabian came to spend two weeks with us.

Although Fabian doesn't speak much English, the boys seem to be getting along really well. I guess boyness transcends language. Camilla and Fabian gave the boys a Christmas gift a little early because of our big day today. (You can see the gift in the picture... on them... aren't they CUTE!!)

And guess where we went... nope, not Sea World... fooled you!! We stepped it up a notch and went to Disney World!!!! We spent the morning at Animal Kingdom and the afternoon at MGM. Tomorrow we will try to do Epcot and Magic Kingdom. We'll see how the day goes and let you know...

November Update...

2007-11-20T19:40:00.000-05:00

Apparently I've been in a bit of a "blogging slump" lately, but soon there will be much more to blog about again. This is a picture of Justin on the phone accepting a position as the Associate Director of Connectional Ministies relating to Students with the Kansas-West Conference of the United Methodist Church. I know, you'd think he'd look a little happier or would have dressed a little nicer (but then again, it is Justin!!) I wish we could have called each of you to let you know the news, but, but there's just too many of you. As a matter of fact, Justin is all dressed up right now and ready to type some information about our future.

Hey everyone. Well, the land of Wyatt Earp here we come! (I thought I'd use a couple of Kansas references to help all of you to know what we're getting into.) As Kara mentioned, I'm starting a position for the Kansas West conference where I will be assisting and training youth workers and teenagers for 387 churches, as well as supporting the camping ministries of the conference, and overseeing conference-wide events. My life will be a whirlwind (reference #2), but during our vacations we should be up in MN more often. There's no place like home (reference #3). I know what you're thinking... "But I thought they were coming home after he was finished with school," but the reality is that all we are is dust in the wind (reference #4) and we must do what God is calling us to do. We're very excited about the future and all the upcoming changes. Now, don't be all disappointed for we will continue to carry on like wayward sons until the peace when we are done (reference #5). Don't you cry no more, okay?!? Please be praying for us through this transition that we would continue to do God's will. Now, back to Kara. Oh wait... GO JAYHAWKS!!! (reference #6)

And THAT's why I don't let him blog too often! Other exciting things that have happened this month is that I've been painting the house... yes, all month!! It's not that it's a big house, it's just hard to sneak away when the boys don't know where I am or what I'm doing because you KNOW they would want to "help", which we all know would end up making more work for me. Here's a half-way through the project pic...

Jakin was named the "Terrific Kid" of the month in his class. We got to go to an Awards Ceremony where he received a Certificate, and some coupons for a free kid's meal at Chik-fil-a and Buffalo's (and yes we have used them both already... you think I have time to cook when I'm figuring out a disappearing act to go and paint?) Jakin is getting all A's in school and amazes us daily in his reading and math skills. I think it may be the long hair, so we're not cutting it just in case he might lose all his abilities... it could happen!

And last week my cousin Krista and her husband Adam came to visit. Adam had a conference for his work in Orlando so they came up for dinner one night. We had a great visit catching up with them and their kids. We used to live on the same block when we were in North Branch and we would do kid swaps. It was great and we tried convincing them to move to Wichita, but so far it's not working.

And for the rest of the month, we're looking forward to a visit from my parents. They fly in on Thanksgiving day... just in time to watch the kids so Justin and I can do our "Black Friday" shopping. (We'll miss you Jeff, Jocelyn, Bean and Mark.) We have a lot planned for Mom and Dad's visit (including a house hunting trip without the kids) but it will be great to have them here!! I hope Dad will be ok because the citrus isn't ready yet.

Light Night...

2007-11-01T21:55:00.000-04:00

I think Halloween should officially be name changed to Light Night. I like that better. Never have I been a fan of Halloween, but now that I work at Target... I HATE Halloween. For weeks I've been picking up costumes that have been torn apart, worn thru the store and just tucked in the shelves by the toasters, only to be brought to Guest Service and then back to the right location for me to put away again for someone else to do the same thing all over again. I HATE Halloween!!

But for some reason kids think it's the greatest thing ever. This year Asher gave up his Superman costume for the
Super Cool Zorro costume. Eli wanted to be a pirate, but in his baseball shirt and jeans shorts. And Jakin... taped Smarties candies to his jeans and went as a Smartie Pants.

I got to go to work and help the frantic last minute shoppers who were seemingly irritated at me for their lack of planning and inability to find the perfect costume a half hour before they plan on going out. We aren't allowed to wear costumes at work, but for my costume I wore a name tag that read... Xiomara and said Hablo Espanol. But, NO Hablo Espanol. No one said a thing so I had to start pointing it out to people... wasn't as funny that way.

Now, since I hate Halloween I don't think we've ever actually taken the boys out trick or treating, but since mom was at work, Fun Daddy took the boys to a sub-division and let them knock on doors of complete strangers and beg for candy. He said it took them a few houses to catch on to the fact that they can get free candy, but once they did, they were pretty excited. Justin said they were very respectful and thankful and everyone thought they were so cute. Of course!!

So now I have to creatively start disposing of candy because there is no way small children should eat that much candy... EVER!!!!

Talk About Bored...

2007-10-27T10:59:00.000-04:00

Our friends Maggie and Nathan take the cake on being bored...

This is their idea of a horriffic, terrifing Jack-o-lantern... or as I like to say Jug-o-lantern!

Let me take a few moments to respond to the comments on the previous post... to Mom... I think Justin maybe should take a turn now and then... he's funny!

Suzy... we don't always communicate electronically when we're both home (although it has happened), Justin happened to be at school that day.

JoAnn... ummm... pickles and OJ would be a nice addition, but the OJ won't be ready for a couple more months.

Rita... Halo 3 is the sweetest video game ever... based in the year 2552 and humanity has long been at war with the terrifying alien civilization that collectively calls itself The Covenent. It's really a great spiritual game because The Covenant sees humanity as a heresy against their religion - a faith based in the single-minded belief that a Great Journey awaits its faithful. If you ever have the chance...

Jenni... my previous ramblings about Halo 3 were all for you. I have never played the game, never care to, just read about it so I could sound somewhat convincing for you!! Sorry you have to live with a family of gamers!!

to the funny person about the swimsuit pictures... here's a special one for you... although it's not from High School, I was 5 months pregnant with our third child... hope you like it!! :~)

and Anna... with your creative talents, you will far exceed my snack creating abilities when you're a mom!!

Bored...

2007-10-18T10:50:00.000-04:00

I'm bored!! Sure there are a bunch of dirty dishes waiting to be washed, the futon is full of clothes waiting to be folded and the bathrooms are so gross I'd almost rather go outside, but this is how I choose to spend my time... this is Eli's morning snack...

P.S. In the four minutes I've been sitting here blogging, Eli has thanked me for the cheese, and now for the crackers. I guess that makes me not feel so bad about my priority choices!

P.S.S. Justin informed me this morning that he's considering firing me from the blogging duties, so this is my lame attempt to keep my position as "Blog Queen". Do you want the position now Justin???

Sad Realization...

2007-10-01T23:01:00.000-04:00

I came to a sad realization this weekend. This weekend we got a new refrigerator. And I was ecstatic about it. How sad is that?? I used to get excited about going to a concert, or SonShine, or even going to a movie. I was truly more thrilled to get this refrigerator than if Justin would have said he would take me to a movie and I got to choose which one we went to. Is this what having kids does to you or is it simply life? Am I getting old?

In my defense, I have to show you how great it really is. It's a freezer on the bottom which I know looks a little funny, but it totally makes sense. I mean, I go into the fridge four times as much as the freezer (and yes, I have kept track and it does vary slightly based on what type of ice cream is in the freezer). And it was only $370. I KNOW!!!
Now we feel like we don't have any food because the fridge is so big compared to our other one. And its so clean and shiny it just glows!!

Eli and I went down to Lake Apopka which is about a mile and a half from our house and saw about 6 alligators swimming in the water. I tried to get a picture, but you can't really see much. I think that is the first alligator I've seen in their natural habitat.

And the Cute Picture of the week (or since the last post on September 11th, has it been that long?)... Eli was very quiet today while Jakin and Asher were at school and my heart started racing as I realized I hadn't seen or heard him in a while and usually when you don't hear them their up to something REALLY naughty... this is what we found...

What a relief!!

Excuses, excuses...

2007-09-11T09:44:00.000-04:00

Although I've been working at Target for almost a year now I've probably only averaged working 18 hours per week. The last few weeks I've worked 5 nights, and about 35 hours per week. I know other people work 5 days a week and they still survive, but it's exhausting for me. Thankfully school has started and both Jakin and Asher are gone in the morning so at least I don't have to be "Julie McCoy - Cruise Director" for three kids at home all day and then go be "Target Team Member that knows every item AND it's exact location in the store" at night. So all that to say... that's my excuse for not updating the blog lately. Sorry... Mom and Rita!

Jakin started First Grade this year and I forgot to bring the camera for the first day of school, so this is a picture at the end of the first day of school. Maybe that will be our tradition from now on. It's a lot less pressure. Although he didn't want to go to school at first, (new things are scary) he's fine with it now. He actually started riding the bus too which I don't think he loves as much as he thought he would. But I like it!

Asher started Pre-school, or as they call it down here... Pre-K. Florida has a voluntary pre-k program which is free, so I really like it too. Asher loves being a school boy. We had some issues the first week... he hit a girl on the first day and on the fourth day he peed in his pants. Since then we haven't had any issues... THANKFULLY!!

Justin took a VERY short trip home to MN to pick up a car. The car my parents had down here died and thankfully they had another up in MN. So Justin flew up on a Tuesday and then left early Wednesday morning with his dad driving back down. The boys loved seeing Grandpa Gord (maybe even more than seeing Daddy??)
It was a short visit, and I had to work every night, so I'm not sure what they did other than set up the pool we got at Target on Clearance. Poor Gord, we make him work whenever he comes down. This time the work wasn't too hard though... I hope.

And my favorite 'around-the-house' photo of the week was when Eli wanted to wear underwear and he and Asher did their Captain Underpants show for us. There's nothing cuter than boys in underwear.

It's My Birthday...

2007-08-18T21:34:00.000-04:00

Twice a day when the clock reads 8:17, you'll often hear me say... "It's my birthday, it's my birthday..." Unfortunately (or fortunately for some) the calendar only reads 8/17 once a year. Yesterday was that day.

In honor of my birthday an inflatible water slide was brought in. We played all afternoon in the pool, going down the slide, eating, playing games... It was a GREAT day.

And the best part was that the neighbors paid for it all!! Mackenzie (across the street) turned 6 yesterday. We're birthday buddies and I love to pretend that her birthday parties are mine too!! Sure she gets to keep all the presents, but it's not like Barbie would survive in my house anyway.

Rest of the Trip...

2007-08-15T21:52:00.000-04:00

The vacation ended well and it was sad to leave. Our last few days were spent visiting the Roanoke Island Festival Park where the early English settlers... settled. Played a round of Mini Golf at a Pirate Golf Course. Ate some Mahi and Blacktip Shark as well as some Blue Crabs that the guys caught. I'll spare you the uncooked and cooked pictures... they're gross with their beady eyes...
We also did some fun beach stuff and drinking a bunch of salt water of course! One night we sat out on the deck for what seemed like hours watching a storm brew, and then the bottlenose dolphins did a show for us. Here's a picture I got from the storm.

From Nags Head we drove to Charlotte, NC to spend the night with the Balbuena family. Lori babysat for me when I was little, and I got to babysit for her kids too when I was in college. Lori and Fredy's kids are practically all grown up now and that really makes me feel old. Our boys had a lot of fun swimming and playing with Josiah, Jedd, Katie and Karissa. Time was too short, but still it was great to see them again!!

Then a two hour drive to Greenville, SC to see my friend Suzy. Suzy and I have been friends for a long time. We worked together at Baker's Square back in 1993 and lived together in St. Paul in a house that became referred to as Melrose Place. Lots of great memories with Suzy!! Her husband, whose name also happens to be Justin, works as a consultant and travels quite a bit, so we didn't get to hang out with him. Justin and Suzy have two boys, Elijah and Noah. (I Photoshopped the Justin's in to the picture.. hee, hee)
For dinner we went to Gattitown which is a MUCH nicer type of Chuck E. Cheese's and ate and played. In the morning we were heading out to Atlanta to the World of Coca-Cola but alas, our van did not start. Thinking it must be the battery we tried to jump it, but that didn't work either. Suzy brought me to Wal-Mart and I got a new battery... thankfully that did the trick. I hope you didn't get fired Suzy!!!

WARNING: The rest of this Blog is ALL about ME, so forgive any self-centeredness issues you may encounter...
We arrived in Atlanta about three hours later than we had hoped, but still had time to see the World of Coca-Cola. I had been to the World of Coca-Cola about 16 years ago, but they just opened this new mueseum in May of this year. I don't remember too much from the old one, but this one was fun. They had some movie theaters where you'd watch old commercials and historical Coca-Cola stuff, we got to see the acutal bottling machines.
There was a 4D show of the Search for the Secret Ingredient which lamely turns out to be "YOU". But we got some cool 3D glasses out of the deal. Lots of old memorabilia that I had some slight coveting issues with. Obviously the Coca-Cola Bear was there in person. That was Eli's favorite. He kept asking to see the Coca-Cola cola bear.
A fun favorite for all is the Tasting Room where there are over 60 different beverage from around the world that Coca-Cola produces that you can sample. Yes, Justin and I did try every last one of them. I think he wasn't going to, but then I called him a sissy and he did. We were all sick to our stomach after that. There is one from Italy called Beverly that... well, is TERRIBLE... But this is my one request for anyone that travels to a foreign country (especially one where the writing is different like China or India) I want some old Coke stuff from those countries... if you think of it! :~)
Oh, and my other request... Justin said he'd buy me whatever I would want from the store. One thing I wanted they didn't have in my size and the other thing (this purse made out of pop tabs from cans) was $95. But... I found some DIY (Mom, that means do-it-yourself) instructions online... So... if you think of it, save your pop tabs for me because I'll need about 1600 of them to do my purse. Our address is 17707 Gladys Street, Montverde, FL 34756. If you want the instructions let me know and I'll email them to you.

I'll leave you with my Then and Now pictures because I think it's fun.

The 16 Year Old Kara.

The 16 x 2 Year Old Kara.

Nags Head...

2007-08-10T10:14:00.000-04:00

We're in Nags Head, NC which is in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. It's kinda dirty and grungy, but it's on the ocean and you can't beat that!!!

Greg and Jody's (Justin's sister) house is ON the beach. It's beautiful and that's where we try to spend as much time as possible, but with small kids it's hard. We've seen lots of fun things like crabs that come out of the sand at night. One morning Greg caught a Manta Ray. It actually didn't get caught, but he had in on the line for quite a while. Jakin really enjoys spending time fishing with Greg and so far Greg hasn't used Jakin for bait, so that's good. And one day there were Bottlenose Dolphins jumping and playing right outside.

The house that we're in with Jeff and Jocelyn (Justin's brother) is not on the beach, but we're only a mile from Greg and Jody's. Our boys have loved spending time with their cousins. They've been playing pool with Ryan and Steven, and Audrey has introduced Jakin to Webkinz (which is the new internet based Beanie Babies).

THE highlight of the trip so far for the boys has been finding buried treasure. Greg and Jody made a treasure box and set up a whole treasure hunt with clues and all. It took F O R E V E R for the boys to find and uncover it, but it was certainly worth the effort to see their faces. We were amazed at the work they put into a fun time for our boys. That treasure WILL last forever!!

Jakin has lost two teeth so far on our trip and he pulled them both out by himself (which is a first)!!

Nags Head is the home of the largest Sand Dunes in North America (or something like that). So we went there one morning before the sand reached 130 degrees. It was a lot of sand. Thankfully Grandpa Gord was willing to stay back and watch Eli and Asher. I couldn't imagine climbing thru that much sand while holding another person.

And no vacation is complete without some Pipin' Hot Shmo's!!! Notice the waves in the background. Can you almost hear them??

One last thing. With our rental house we have free membership to the YMCA which is two blocks away. One afternoon Jakin, Asher and I went there to cool off in the outdoor pool. There was some loud rockin' music in the background, but I just had to share Asher's entertainment...
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Next Vacation...

2007-08-05T07:58:00.000-04:00

We've been back in FL for a couple weeks, and yesterday we started our next vacation. That's the HUGE blessing of not having a 'real' job. We can vacation practically anytime. Of course the down side to that is the finances, but...so far that's all worked out too.

So now we're headed to Nags Head, NC to spend a week with some of Justin's family. His sister Jody's family is coming down from Pennslyvania (did I spell that right?), his brother Jeff's family is coming from MN and his dad Gord rode his motorcycle down from MN. We left yesterday to make it a 2 day trip. I thought instead of bombarding you with an entire month of blogs I'd TRY to update more often.

We stopped for lunch in Brunswick, GA which you'd think would be the bowling capital of the world, but turns out its a Port City. A nice man at McDonald's (we really live it up on vacation...) told us that the Coast Guard brought in a 3 mast, 300 foot ship and were giving free tours. I scoffed and thought... "Justin wouldn't do a detour like that!!" He's a 'let's just get there' kinda guy, I was surprised he actually let us sit and eat at McDonald's instead of eating in the car.
But he did!!! IIt didn't take too long to tour the ship and it was cool, but we didn't get to see the areas below deck where they sleep and stuff. That's what I wanted to see. But it was a 22 sail ship and all of the sails had to be adjusted by hand, which I guess is a big deal. I thought it was cool that there were three steering wheels (or maybe helm is the technical term??) so the boys didn't have to fight over it.

Of course Asher thought it was a Pirate Ship. I tried to explain that it wasn't but he didn't really let go until I said, "Maybe they see pirate ships when they're out sailing." That seemed to be ok for him. But when we saw a sailor he wanted to ask if they see Pirate Ships... here's the answer...

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We were going to stay overnight with some friends in Columbia, SC, but they are out of town, so we decided to find the cheapest hotel we could that still looked decent. Well... everything looks decent in picutres, but the actual product is often quite different. So our $50 hotel (which is pretty good for a Saturday night) is fine, it was clean and smelled of INDUSTRIAL air freshener. The beds are pretty comfortable and there is a free breakfast and a pool, so it's not bad for $50. They had a sign in the lobby for free cribs and since we didn't bring ours we called to get one. It only took about 5 minutes for them to bring it. I started opening it up and I found a used pacifier. Eli was of course VERY EXCITED!!! (Don't know if you've noticed all the NUKy's in the picutres, but it's usually in his mouth.) When I told him we were going to throw it away he FREAKED out. I continued to open the crib and found a push pin for a cork board. For me this was the peak of the $50 hotel. I did a full inspection of the crib and loaded it with sheets and had a good laugh, but had to get a picture of Eli with the NUK and pin before we threw them away. He did ok throwing it away after I explained it wasn't HIS Nuky.

More vacation stuff to come... keep checking back!!

A Whole Month...

2007-07-22T15:17:00.000-04:00

Sorry to those of you "out-of-staters" who may have been checking the blog while we were in MN for a month. We were incredibly busy and I didn't make time to blog... so, now you'll be overloaded with pictures.

The flight went well, Eli slept, no one screamed uncontrollably, so that constitutes a good flight in my book. One of our first few days we visited our friends the Jakubowski's. Greg and Janelle have four boys (she's my inspiration for surviving three) in the picture are three of them. Sam, their 17 year old was out. But pictured from top to bottom are John-Michael, Evan and Joseppi. Evan is 7 (that rhymes) and Joseppi is 5 so we had 7, 6, 5, 4 and 2 year olds. Janelle was the Worship Minister at our church in North Branch. Check out her web site at www.janellesings.com.

We spent a little time with my Grandparents, and I especially loved this picture of Eli and Great-Grandpa. One morning we went to their house for breakfast and Grandpa made Swedish pancakes for us. I love Swedish Pancakes, and Grandma knows how to dress up even a breakfast meal!!

Our neice Kelsey graduated from High School this year, and we were glad to be able to be home for her open house. Justin's sister Jody who lives in PA also came for the open house with her son Gaeron. Some of the cousins (there are 14 in all) got to swim and have a fun afternoon together. From left to right, front to back is Gaeron, Jakin, Audrey, Ryley, Peri, Asher, Whitney and Eli.
I suppose technically it would be Eli, Whitney following the front to back rule, but it's just too weird to type Eli Whitney. And Nana got to hold wet Eli... yes she did have a wet spot on her pants.
And I didn't realize it when I took the picture, but all of Justin's sibling were in the same room together. From left to right is Beanee, Jeff, Joe, Jody and Justin's right foot, and Beanee's husband Mark.

One of Jakin's favorite parts of the trip was going to the Saint Paul Saints baseball game. It happened to be "Super-Hero Night". We didn't take the other boys because they wouldn't have sat for that long.
Most of Justin's family came to the game with us and as we were waiting for them to arrive Jakin spotted what he thought was a slide. As we got closer we realized it was a Velcro Wall. He wanted to do it, so the guy hoisted him up there sideways and there he hung for a minute or two.
He also got to pose with The Joker as we entered the gates. He did make it very clear to me that he understood that the guy was not the "REAL" Joker. I didn't dare try to explain that there isn't a "REAL" Joker.
Jolene was wearing her pink Saints shirt and adorned it with a lovely pink robe (which is always called a cape in my house), and she even had a windmill scepter and guess what... she was up on the BIG SCREEN. Along with Joe, Beanee, Mark, Ryan, Ryley, Peri and Audrey. If that dumb vendor guy wasn't in the way I might have made it too!!
I probably don't need to waste space with this picture, but I thought it was funny. Not that I would consider Nacho Libre a super hero, but it was one highlight of my night until we were leaving and Beanee and I got a little too close to him. YUCK!! Men should not wear tights!!!
But the best part of the night was when Jakin started trying to eat Peanuts in the shell. Justin saw him trying to figure it out and said, "You have to crack it open and there's peanuts inside." So Jakin takes one and starts banging it on the bleachers to crack it open as if it were an egg. Cousins from right to left... Audrey, Jakin, Peri, Ryley, Steven, Whitney, Olivia, Kelsey and Ryan in the back. (Asher and Eli were in bed, Amelia and Gaeron were in PA and Abbey was in France, that makes 14!)

We did a couples retreat with the North Branch church down near Red Wing, MN. It's beautiful down there and Gord let us borrow one of his motorcylces to ride down. Five couples rode their bikes down and went for a Saturday afternoon 100 mile ride. Notice how Justin put the bike out further than the others to show it off a little more??

We spent the Fourth (or Independence Day for my friend Stacy) at my parent's house with my brothers and families. The kids had a great time playing in the empty hot tub and going on four-wheeler rides, Julia on the four-wheeler and Joy and Karina, Jakin and Asher in the trailer. Eli wasn't too excited about the noise. We didn't do any fireworks though. The kids went to bed instead.

We did a lot of picnicing. First was at the Holm's home with the Atkins'. Jakin fell off the Golf Cart, we ate and did some visiting. Girls on the porch, boys inside. Driscoll's had a dinner where everyone was invited. And Carchedi's had a grill out that we went to. I had forgotten about using the camera by this point.

I got to enjoy three different times with just the girls. I don't get to do girl time very often, so I was very thankful that my parents took the boys so I could do that. First night was with Jenni, Nicole and Maggie three very special women who were girls in our youth group years ago. We went out to eat and then enjoyed a relaxing evening just visiting.
I have five very good friends from High School that I still try to get together with when it works out. (L to R - Jenny, Bells Palsy Kara, Christy, Becky, Lori and Lara.) The six of us went to Chicago together the summer after we graduated from High School and we had a Garage Sale to raise gas money for our trip. Great memories with these girls and even though we only see each other once a year it's always a joy. We went to dinner at Solera in downtown Minneapolis and then we stayed at the the Marquette Hotel which is a Hilton hotel. Although I don't know that it really mattered since we were up until after 2 a.m. we probably would have slept well anywhere.
And finally my friends from Northwestern College. (L to R - Tammy, JoAnn, Heather and BP Me) Although I've seen JoAnn and Heather within the last six months (because they came down to FL) we hadn't seen each other for years prior to that. We hung out at Heather's house with the kids. They played really well together and swam and jumped on the trampoline.

And Justin's favorite part of the trip was all the SCUBA diving. Early on in our trip he went to Square Lake in the White Bear area. Then we went on a overnight trip to Lake Wazee in WI with our friends Joe and Cathy. We dove a few different spots. One called "Sherwood Forest" where we dove thru petrified trees. One called "The Wall" where we got in the water swam a few feet and then the bottom drops like a wall. We went down to 54 feet and the water was 48 degrees so we didn't stay down there too long. It rained overnight and into the morning, so I wasn't crazy about putting on a wet wetsuit. So Justin and Joe went diving the next day for two more dives. They went down to 67 feet where it was 39 degrees. Burrrr!!

Although I don't have pictures (breathe your sigh of relief) we also had a great time seeing the play "Grease" at the Pantages Theater in Minneapolis, went to my cousin Angie's wedding. We visited our friend Rita in the hospital, went to see Pirates 3, Harry Potter 5. Justin got to have lunch with two of his friends and went to see Transformers with his third friend (yep, that's all he has). I got to have my annual exam with my favorite Midwife. And Justin got to do a lot of homework in a short amount of time (and he still got A's).

Well, that's the abbreviated version of our trip (although it may not seem abbreviated). I'll try to keep them shorter and sooner in the future.

MN Trip...

2007-07-19T09:29:00.000-04:00

We had a great time in MN, but it was really nice to sleep in OUR bed last night!!

Who Knew...

2007-06-13T21:32:00.000-04:00

Who knew we would see people from MN a week before we leave to come home?? Tonight we had dinner with Cary Johnson and Ralph Holbrook. (Forgot the camera AGAIN, so the pic of Cary is actually him on our roof when he was down here last August, the picture of Ralph, although it is actually A Ralph Holbrook, it is not THE Ralph Holbrook. I just did a search on the internet and found this picture of A Ralph Holbrook from the 1940's. It does kinda look like him though.) They're in town for a Stephen's Ministries Conference and had the night off, so we met up with them and went to the Golden Corral. Sounds good huh??

Yesterday, I stumbled into the kitchen at about 8 am and Justin was on my phone with Shelly Dammann, a friend from North Branch. She and three of her five daughters, a niece and granddaughter were flying in for the day (Shelly and her daughter Laura work for Sun Country, so yes, it was just for the day.) We met them at their hotel and the 11 of us piled in our van and went to Downtown Disney. This is one of the more serious pictures (left to right is Katelyn, Jeni, Taylor, Jakin, Laura, Ashley, Shelly and of course Asher. Eli was sleeping... Justin chose to not join in the fun of dressing up.)Eli and Taylor are only three months apart, so they had fun together and will probably be best buds when we're up in MN. Who knows... maybe one day... All the boys love their WHOLE family, and so do Justin and I!!

But the craziest of the last three days was on Monday. A friend from Target also works at Disney and got us free passes for a day. We started the day at Magic Kingdom, went on the improved Pirates of the Carribean ride which has very life-like additions of Jack Sparrow. We saw Mickey's PhilharMagic 3-D show and did a couple other rides before heading to MGM Studios Park.

At MGM the boys played in the "Honey I Shrunk The Audience" playground which is set up to make you feel like you're tiny. Asher really wanted to ride the Ant. I felt like this was a total waste of the free tickets we received because they can play on slides and climbing things anywhere!!!
We got to meet Frozone from The Incredibles, but Asher and Eli didn't want to get in the picture. I guess we didn't prepare them for the lifesized characters, and NO, we didn't wait in line for Mickey... too much to do!!
Jakin said his favorite part of the day was the Narnia Show, which was really just a set with an overview of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe movie and then a promo of the new one coming in 2008. That certainly wasn't MY favorite... glad he liked it! Then it was off to Epcot.

My favorite was the Cooling Station. It was just a store with about five different Coca-Cola products from around the world that you could taste test. Of course you had to BUY the Coke, but the gross tasting stuff from Italy was free. It's NASTY!!

We started the day knowing that our stroller wasn't in the best of shape, but by this point... it was REALLY UGLY!! Although the wheel did stay on, it may possibly have been easier to physically carry all three boys than it was to push the stroller, but it made it through and new wheels are in the mail!!

Ok, maybe this was my favorite... if you're still reading?? This was the Norway Pavilion. By this time it was starting to rain a little and it was 8:30, so the boys were an hour past bed time. But it's funny how if you show them swords, even fake foam ones, somehow they're magically happy again... until you tell them you're not buying them, just taking a picture.

I wanted to stay for the IllumiNation's which is a Light, Lazer, Fireworks show that Epcot does at Park Closing time which was 9 pm. We walked toward the Exit for a quick escape at the end of the show and by now the rain was coming down pretty hard. We decided to stop under a tree by the Exit and watch the show. As we walked under the tree I hear a woman's voice say, "Justin?" It was Michelle Zak (whom Justin graduated from High School with) and her family. They also went to our church in North Branch. So we hung out and watched half of the show with Trent, Michelle, Sierra and Eden. Crazy that in all the thousands of people at Disney that day we end up running into them, not even knowing they're in Florida.

Asher and Eli fell asleep and Jakin asked to leave half way through the show, so I kinda felt like we didn't get all of our free tickets worth out of the day, but it was a nice quite ride home!!!

The Launch...

2007-06-09T21:35:00.000-04:00

First a story...

The other night I was in the boys room for the third time after I had put them to bed when as I walked towards the door Asher says, "I love you mom." I sent my glare of love back to him and with out a word continued walking towards the door. As I passed under the frame I heard a loud, "HEY"... "when a boy says I love you, you don't just walk away." I had to return to kiss him and tell him I loved him too. How quickly they are willing to point out my faults!!

Yesterday we witnessed a moment in history. We went to watch the Shuttle Launch of the 21st Mission to the International Space Station. We started our journey at 2 p.m. heading towards Titusville which is about an hour and 15 minutes to our East. About 10 miles from home I realized we forgot the diaper bag. No big deal, we'll just stop somewhere and buy some diapers... we've got time, the launch isn't until 7:38 p.m. About 45 minutes later I start thinking about the taking pictures of the launch and quickly realize that the camera was IN THE DIAPER BAG!!! I was freaking out and Jakin told me, "It's ok mom. We'll still get to SEE the launch." Thanks for the reminder Jakin, it's not that big of a deal. But, YES IT IS!!! So, we stopped at Wal-Mart, bought diapers and a Digital Camera. Yes, I fully intend to return the camera, made sure to ask what the return policy was. You've got to understand, we were going to be about 11 miles away, and a simple disposable camera clearly would not do. I needed something with a little zoom on it. Sorry to all of you that think I'm a horrible person, but my kids are young, how are they going to remember this if I don't have the pictures to prove to them that they were there???

Ok, so I've got a camera, we find a place to park the van, and it's even at a park so the boys can play. We spend the next 3+ hours playing and waiting (and Justin was doing homework, there was even an internet signal for awhile). Finally, it's close to launch time. The crowds are starting to gather, but we've got our place firmly staked with a nice sized open area in front of us so the boys can see too. We're within the one minute countdown and a group of rather large people come and stand in our open spot!!! The nerve... can't they see we have small children??
"Ok Justin, let's go stand in front of them. Asher sit up here on my shoulders... 10, 9, 8, ...3, 2, 1... Ok, now I can see it. Asher see the space shuttle, the bright light in the sky." The crowd is clapping and cheering and I have goose bumps all over. And I did remember to take some pictures.

It seems like minutes had passed (it was probably 30 - 45 seconds) when we finally started hearing and feeling the roar which was truly awe-some. We stood there for another 2 minutes or so and watched it go up, watched the fuel cells release and fall way, and when we could no longer see the speck of light in the sky we headed for the car.
Jakin says, "That was it??" In disbelief I respond, "We just watched seven people go into outer space. You don't think that's a big deal??" As we talked a little more about it, and about going to Kennedy Space Center, he finally started realizing it was pretty cool.

So then tonight I was doing a little searching on the web and realized how dumb I am. Here a few pictures I found...

Good thing I got that camera...

Really Big Day...

2007-05-23T21:08:00.000-04:00

So it's been three weeks since something exciting has happened, thus the blog silence. But today was a day that's blogable. Not only is it Eli's Second Birthday, Jakin Graduated from Kindergarten today. He chose his outfit... wish I could have explained that to everyone else at the school. Despite both Justin and I telling him separately that long sleeves don't really go with shorts, and that he could at least roll his sleeves up... I decided it wasn't worth the fight.

He also earned a Reading Achievement award (which really means Justin and I earned a Reading Achievement award). I think he's really going to miss his friends from school, and I think I'm really going to miss him going to school too. We left school after graduation and went home for lunch, nap and cake and gifts.

I was very pleased that Eli chose to purchase a Cheesecake Factory Godiva Double Chocolate Cheesecake instead of a Target marble cake with Winnie the Pooh or something childish like that on it. Alright, so Eli didn't choose that cake, but he didn't complain either. As you can tell by the lack of use of a fork, and the closed eyes he very much enjoyed his cake.

The gift opening was fast, but Shamu was waiting. And we didn't buy batteries for all the gifts, so it's not like he could have played with them anyway. My favorite gift that he opened was the Playmobil Pirates that Jakin and Asher got for themselves... I mean for Eli. I'll show you why...

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This was one of my favorite things of the day... Jakin was peeing outside (that's where they pee most of the time) and Jakin helped Eli take off his diaper and try to pee out there too. When they came in Jakin put a new diaper on Eli as Asher supervised. Then it was off to Sea World.

I know, you're probably thinking... seriously... Sea World again??? It's kinda like we get to go there for free now. And although I've seen the shows dozens of times, I still marvel at them. And the boys do so well there. Jakin complains every time we talk about going there, he says, "Not Sea World again, can't we go to Disney World?" I'm so glad our kids are thankful for all that we do for them!!! But he loves it there just as much as I do once we're there. And Disney is REALLY expensive... One day he may understand??

This probably won't bring you right there, but watching the Shamu show I was overwhelmed with the magnificence (pretend it's a word) of these GINORMOUS creatures and decided to do a little clip to share with you.

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Most of ya'll (I don't really say that... yet...) probably know already that we're coming home (to MN) June 20 thru July 18th, but just in case... now you know. And we're all very excited about that for a variety of different reasons. The boys are so excited to spend some time with all their cousins, and seeing their friends again. Justin and I are excited to see family and friends, but I think we're most excited for our family and friends to spend some time with our boys, and without us. The last few weeks have been pretty hard for us in the really needing to get away from our kids kind of way. Probably because we know we're only a few weeks away from having some babysitters again. Sorry, enough of my complaining.

JoAnimal...

2007-05-02T14:01:00.000-04:00

I've been friends with JoAnn since we were in 6th Grade and her Mom told her she shouldn't hang out with me because I swore too much. I guess 6th Grade was when I went through my rebellious stage. And maybe JoAnn did too, despite her mom's warnings she didn't stop hanging out with me. In High School we played volleyball together and one year we ordered sweatshirts and on the back of hers it read JOANIMAL... she was a great middle hitter. Mine was supposed to read DIG IT, because my 5'4 frame served much better as a back row specialist... BUT... the way it printed on the shirt looked more like DIGIT. So everyone was like... what does DIGIT mean? GGGGRRRR!!

Anyway... JoAnn was down in Fort Lauderdale for some school related thing (she teaches Jr. High PhyEd and Health) and when that was all done, she flew up here to Orlando to spend a couple days with us. All the boys took an immediate liking to her, but Asher especially made himself known.

Saturday night Justin stayed with the boys while JoAnn and I went out on the town. We went to the Rainforest Cafe for dinner and instead of waiting the two hours for a table, we decided we'd just sit at the bar. Then we walked around Downtown Disney, which is just a bunch of Disney stores in a little 'town like' setting, and headed to The Cheesecake Factory for dessert. It was a great night for me... I don't remember the last time I was out that late with a friend.

Then on Sunday after church we headed for Clearwater Beach. Unbeknownst to us, there were two Beach Volleyball Tournaments going on there (which JoAnn and I would have loved to watch, but with the boys... not so much) and traffic was CRAZY and no place to park, so we ended up driving to a Public Beach which was kinda nasty compared to what Clearwater would have been, but... we were in the sun and sand and I guess that's what's important.

It was sad to say goodbye Monday afternoon, but I'll always look back on our time together this weekend and remember this...

Field Day...

2007-05-02T13:57:00.000-04:00

Jakin had a Field Day at school last week and the whole family went to watch. He participated in the Three-legged race (in which his team took first place), the Sponge Relay (his team took second place), and the Cup and Bottle Relay (his team took first place).

We had taken videos of the cup and bottle relay (one boy holds a 2 liter pop bottle on his head while another tries to pour water from a cup into the bottle) to post, but I accidentally deleted them from the camera not remembering that video clips needed extra attention when downloading. GGGGRRRRRR!! I hate it when I do things like that. Jakin had a fun day. He got really wet and was very proud of his two blues and one red!!

Birthday Boy - Take 2...

2007-04-17T13:39:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was Asher's 4th Birthday!! We tried to make it a fun day although we didn't do much of anything. I took Asher and Eli grocery shopping and Asher picked out a cake and wanted Lunchables for lunch, so that was easy. Then we went home and he "watched" a movie. This is what he looked like when he was "watching"...

We had a mini-party with Mackenzie and Jordyn (the neighbor girls) and Asher opened a gift every hour (or so).

He also got lots of calls from family and friends wishing him a Happy Birthday. It got to the point where when I called him to the phone he said, "For me... again??" But deep down you could tell he secretly loved it!!

And we ended the day watching "The Shaggy Dog" movie which he picked out from the Movie Store that we got for free because our neighbor is the Manager and we told her it was Asher's birthday.

We're extending the birthday celebration tomorrow by going to SeaWorld. Asher wants to jump on the "Jumping Thing", that he's really too little to do, but we'll see what happens.

Crazy Rita...

2007-04-04T23:39:00.000-04:00

Even if you don't know her, you've read her comments and now I want to let you in on a little secret... She was given a grapefruit from our house from the Krech family that were here in March. Most people would have eaten the grapefruit and enjoyed the juicy sweetness of a Florida Grapefruit. Not Rita!

She, and her husband Keith have personified (did I use that right Suzy?) the grapefruit. It is now known as "Justin the Grapefruit" (I guess that was Keith's addition to the craziness). Initially the pictures were of 'Justin' in the fridge.

Then it was watching the Final Four basketball game, in which Florida won. (Which is unfortunate because I would have beat four men if Ohio State would have won.)

Then after the April snowfall, 'Justin' aquired a scarf. Not just any scarf, a flannel scarf which is oh so totally Justin (the man).

And most recently, 'Justin' has aquired a face and been out visiting. First he visited the secretary's at the church, Jeanne and Ann. Ann I hope that wasn't how you treated him in the office every day???

The Wednesday after-school group posed with 'Justin'. And I love the mocking finger licking!!! You may recognize some people from previous blogs... Joe and Nathan. The red head in the middle is my friend Stacy who posts comments. "Hi Stacy!! You look great, love Danny's hair and McLain's cute smile!" And "Hi's" to Mary Me-la-me, Sam, Mariah, Rylee, John-Michael, Jack and the two people I don't know.

After church they went to Denny's and brought 'Justin' with. I wonder who paid for his meal? Thanks for putting up with him Kenny, Jessie, Emily and two girls I don't know. There were a couple other pictures of 'Justin' and Kenny that were too inappropriate to post...Kenny!!

And finally, they put 'Justin' to work. 'He' helped Keith and Joe put the dock in at Keith and Rita's. My big question is... WILL HE FLOAT???

As you can tell by all the pictures, Rita is ok with taking the pictures, but doesn't really want to spend too much time with 'Justin'. Thanks for all the laughs Rita!!!

Birthday Boy...

2007-04-03T20:33:00.000-04:00

Justin is 38 today!! Although we didn't have a big bash or anything like that, I think we had an ok day. He used his birthday money to buy a basketball hoop which he pretends is for Jakin, but I hope he'll get some good use out of it too. It was 90 today, so that's what will probably keep him from using it much... the heat.

And we ended the day by going to ColdStone Creamery. He told me he didn't want a cake, just ColdStone. I thought it was interesting that he ordered the Birthday Cake Ice Cream??? But the cutest part of the day was in the van right after we left ColdStone, Eli said, "Tantu Daddy ... iceam." Which translated means... thank you Daddy for the Ice Cream. No one else was saying thanks, so it was very sweet!!

The Real Visit...

2007-04-01T20:25:00.000-04:00

Mom and Dad left last Thursday. We had a nice and busy time, which is why not a lot of blogging was happenin'. Aside from the days of jelly making, we also had to go to a couple of flea markets, of course. But one of the highlights of their visit was our day at SeaWorld. Unfortunately, our camera battery was nearly dead when we got there so we didn't get a lot of pictures. Jakin was chosen to 'star' in the pirate show so thankfully SeaWorld was kind enough to take some pictures for us. Of course they charge an arm and two legs to actually purchase them, but when your kid's the star in a show and your camera battery is dead (and your dad's is too)... you buy the stinkin' picture.

I don't know if you can see, but Clyde the Sea Lion is between Jakin and the "Marooned Pirate" Robin Plunder. This was Jakin's starring role, Robin called Jakin up in front of everyone and asked if he's seen a Pirate Ship, he pointed to the ship right in front of them and then Clyde stood up and looked where Jakin had pointed and made some Sea Lion sounds. Robin grabbed and handful of dead fish and fed them to Clyde and then immediately thanked Jakin and shook his hand. As the crowed moaned at the grossness of the fish slimed-stinky-handshake, Robin said, "What, he'll be ok" and rubbed his head. The funniest part was after the show I asked Jakin to come with me and wash his hands and head when, in all sincerity, he asked me why he was so stinky.

Grandpa and Grandma got to join in on Asher's Potty Party, and they were not Potty Poopers, just look at those party hats on their heads!! Asher's been doing... better with the potty thing. About half of the time Asher's telling us when he needs to go potty, half of the time we're making him go because the rest of the time he has accidents. (Don't do the math because it adds up to more than the whole of the time.)
We let Asher pick out his cake (I thought it was strange he picked the flowers, but then Justin pointed out that there were a lot of green leaves on it.) And although we forgot the salty crunchy things called chips, Asher seemed to like his party.

We also went to "Old Town" one day. It's pretty much just a little "old town" of shops and restaruants and then they added some rides so that people would actually go there. Grandma went on the Ferris Wheel with Jakin and Eli and for some reason Asher had the feeling that he and I shouldn't go on it. He didn't seem to mind Grandma, Jakin and Eli going though???

My favorite part of the day was at the General Store. The boys wanted to pose in front of the Pepsi sign and pretend we're puking... so I said, ok... since you really want to. I must admit, I did drink 10 ounces of Pepsi, but let it be known, I didn't enjoy it... but it was only 49 cents.
By the time we made it into the store and to all the Coke stuff, Jakin had caught on to my dastardly plan and would have no part of it. I tried to Photoshop his thumbs to put them up, but it looked too goofy to post. But again, the best part was when we got home and I was showing Justin the pictures... Jakin started crying and apologized to Justin for making the puking face and told him that he didn't really know why we were doing it, he just thought we were making funny faces. He can be a sweet boy!!

Update on my dad. His PSA doubled again in a month and he starts chemo on April 10th. All his scans and tests came back fine, except for his bone scan which showed some 'increased activity'. Not exactly sure what that means, but it's not real good. Thanks for your prayers!!

What Ya Really Want...

2007-03-25T20:32:00.000-04:00

I know you just look at the pictures anyway, so I'm not typing much tonight. Mom and Dad are here and we've been busy.

Dad had the 'brilliant' idea to make Loquat jelly. Our neighbor Irene has a Loquat (fruit that is unlike anything I've ever had) tree. Although neither of us had made jelly before, we picked and seeded and boiled and blended ... and then Mom came to save us... thankfully.

We ended up with about 30 jelly jars full, and it's actually really good.

Eli pretending to be BamBam from "The Flintstones".

The boys playing at the World's Largest McDonald's in Orlando. Grandpa and Grandma know what they like!!

Mini-Vacation...

2007-03-14T21:16:00.000-04:00

It feels weird being in Florida and saying that we're going on vacation. Isn't that what Florida is?? Vacation?? Kinda, but not always...

We took Jakin out of school on Friday and drove down to North Reddington Beach which is near Saint Petersburg, to visit a friend and her family. Heather and her husband Josh (who was not with) went to Northwestern College with me. They have three kids, Megan is 9, Bennett is 5 and Camryn is 2 (sorry if I spelled them wrong Heather).
It's so cool that you can not talk to someone for five years and just kinda pick up where you left off (minus the rollerblades and freedom we had before children). The kids had a fun time swimming and playing but Megan left for a baseball game before I thought to get a picture.

From there we drove down the coast to Longboat Key to visit Justin's Mom and her husband. They were gracious enough to not only let us stay overnight with them, but they also watched the boys while Justin and I went SCUBA Diving.
It was our first dive in the ocean since we got certified. We're too cheap to pay to go out on a dive boat where they bring you out to the good dive spots and make sure you're safe and stuff, so we just went out from the shore because we were told there was a wreck out about 65 yards. As we were suiting up a guy walking by said it was about 100 yards out and that it was just a little fishing boat... it's really hard to find.
Well, we didn't find it. We did find a bunch of Sand Dollars both dead and alive. The alive ones are really dark and fuzzy and well, covered with sand. We saw some fish and I saw a stingray, and I tried to scream to get Justin's attention, but he didn't hear... shocker. Joe and Cathy, do you have tank bangers? Do they work? The pic of the stingray didn't really turn out though. We had a fun time with Marc and Judy. The boys played tag with Nana out in the tennis court and we found out that to Asher "no backs" means that you can't tag someone on the back.

From there we drove 7.5 hours North to Destin, FL where Drew and Heather Krech are staying with Heather's mom and dad, Jim and Cindy Mohrland. One of Heather's sisters and family was supposed to be there, but were stricken with Influenza B and quarenteened for 7 days. I feel a little funny that we got to enjoy their vacation while they were trapped in their home.
The Krech's and Mohrland's welcomed us as part of the family and we had a wonderful time playing on the beach. We tried SCUBA Diving again, but the current was really strong so it didn't go so well. We also went to the Eglin Air Force Museum and saw a ton of planes and jets and the boys even got to sit in a real live cockpit.

It's so great to see friends and family again and to get away for a few days to just let our hair down and unwind a little. Jakin got a little carried away with the unwinding...

The Inn...

2007-03-05T20:29:00.000-05:00

A lot of stuff to catch up on... let me start with an update on Eli's finger. I brought him to the Doctor on the 23rd, and the Dr. prescribed an antibiotic and sent us for an x-ray without even touching Eli's finger. I was irritated that I had to go do the x-ray and started on my whole, "Dr's just want you to do tests and rechecks for the insurance money they get..." about an hour after we got home the Doctor called me and said that his finger is broken and that I should bring him into the ER so that they can take a look at the x-ray and treat him. After my shock, disbelief and guilt (in that order) we went out for pizza with Joe, Abbey and my Dad and then I took him to the ER. I figured, if it's been broken for a few days and it hasn't bothered him what's a few more hours?? At the ER, we sat... and watched cartoons, and ate popsicles, and they did ABSOLUTLY NOTHING for his finger. I know he wouldn't have tolerated a "Buddy" tape (taping two fingers together) anyway, so at least we got popsicles.

February 24th...Joe and Abbey came for breakfast the next morning before they went to Epcot for the day. Justin made pancakes and we had grapefruit and fresh squeezed orange juice. In spite of the big snow storm in MN that night, Joe and Abbey did make it home without too much delay.

February 27th...My dad was down for three weeks, he left Wednesday the 28th. We were busy with Flea Markets and citrus juicing. He got some lemons from the neighbor and we made some Fresh Lemonade. Eli was again the "Quality Control". He would lick them and despite the sour face, he'd still give it the thumbs up. Dad had lots of doctors appointments when he got home and we just found out today that his PSA has more than doubled over the month. So despite his plans to come back this Wednesday, he will have to stay home for more test and discussions of Chemo. Please pray for him and his health, his spirits, the doctors and my mom too. Hopefully they'll both be able to come down when Mom was planning to on the 19th.

March 2nd... Justin's mom, Judy and her husband Marc have been down in Florida for a little over a month. On Friday we had her over for a birthday lunch since her birthday was on the 1st. It was a short visit, but we had a great time. Jakin was at school, so we waited to do cake until he got home and maybe we shouldn't have.
He had his nose down by the cake smelling it when Nana pushed his face down into it. He thought it was pretty funny until he tried to inhale through his nose and snorted some frosting. Then I thought it was pretty funny!! Marc and Judy are in Sarasota now and we're hoping to go visit them on Friday this week.

March 4th... Yesterday some friends from North Branch came to stay for a night. They have two boys, Titus is about 1 month younger than Asher and Simeon is exactly 1 month younger than Eli. I had to work the night they came, so I didn't get home until 10 pm. It was so great to see Drew and Heather and even better to be able to sit and talk with them until 12:30 am. Just to sit as two couples and visit was ... priceless. We haven't had that since Joe and Nicloe were here. It was very sad to see them leave tonight.

The boys played well together. Of course there were a few issues here and there, but five boys playing together is a pretty incredible sight. Jakin was at school today, so we took the other boys to the park and played and had a little picnic together. Heather and I even got to go for a little walk together (with no kids!).

And with all the testosterone in the house, there was no shortage of Super Heroes.

A Few of my Favorite Things...

2007-02-22T20:09:00.000-05:00

Our niece Abbey Lefto is here visiting. Actually Justin's brother Joe is in town too, but we wouldn't let him stay with us. Just kidding. He's here on business (which I think means he's golfing with some other Wells Fargo big wigs). It was so cute when Jakin came home from school and saw Abbey was here... it was very obvious that he was trying to play it cool and pretend like it wasn't a big deal... but his mom could tell he was VERY excited.

Although our time is short, we've had fun with Abbey so far. We went out and picked oranges off the trees in the backyard, then we (meaning the kids and my dad, I just clean up) juiced them. Abbey taught the boys how to make funny orange smiles, they thought that was great. They played outside and inside, apparently they have a "club" with a secret password. All the while, I got to make dinner withOUT interruption and it was AMAZING!!! I wanna keep her. Can I Jolene??

Continuing on with the fruit theme... we have a bunch of bunches of bananas ripening in our front porch. One of our neighbors grows a lot of things. He has the wild pigs that get shot and the slaughtered across the street, he has a huge vegetable garden and banana trees. When I first tasted the bananas I didn't really like them. They've got kind of a wild taste to them. Like how wild strawberries taste a little more wild than grocery store strawberries. It's kinda hard to explain, but I LOVE them now, can't wait for them to ripen.

This is NOT one of my favorite things, but I need to tell you all what a neglectful parent I am. I set a patio block on the small end to hold the door open for some air, and ... it fell... on Eli's finger. I feel so TERRIBLE. He cried and cried and then when he was done crying I polled the neighborhood to see if I should bring him in to the doctor. Kevin (our neighbor across the street) was looking at it and squeezing it pretty hard and Eli didn't make a peep. So, I haven't brought him in yet, but every morning I think... Ok, I'm going to bring him in today. So, I'm planning on bringing him in tomorrow.

I had one of the greatest honors of my life since the giving of life to my children. Jakin asked me to pull out his tooth on Tuesday night. With the first pull, my fingers slipped right off and Jakin let out a little squeak. The second I wrapped my finger nails around the top of the tooth and yanked hard and he started to cry until he realized the tooth was no longer in his mouth and then he started laughing. He was SO EXCITED, and so was I. Of course this happened right at bed time and he wasn't about to go to sleep right after that... so we did a photo shoot and emailed pictures to Daddy at school.

And that's our week so far...

The Honeymooners...

2007-02-18T20:06:00.000-05:00

Kara's not feeling creative this evening, so she's going to do my homework and I finally get a chance to blog to all of you. The amount of comments we receive will determine whether or not I get to blog again. It's now in your hands!

Our good friends, Joe and Nicole Nyquist were down here on their honeymoon last week and we made them spend some time with us. They didn't watch our kids so Kara and I could go out (which is an "unwritten" rule we have for any of you who come to visit), but we did get to spend some time with them. Kara, Asher, and Eli joined our guests one day at New Smyrna beach. The water was a bit cool, but look at all the white sand (and the white Minnesota bodies that will now be irritated that I posted them on the blog). I know the boys had a great time and, based on the amount of sand that was brought home in the van, the beach may be closed for a while.

A couple days later we all went to Sea World together and had a great time. I mean, think about it: Shamu, $5.00 sodas (that's pop for you northerners), pirate shows acted out by sea lions (and pirate mimes), sharks, and a monster flume (water) ride that Jakin begged me to go on with him at the end of the day. We even saw my mom while we were there. It was a blast!! Below is a picture of our day. Well, it may not look like much, but a squirrel took a liking to Nicole and, after she turned him down, he crawled on our stroller (we assume) looking for a "handout." We did not oblige. Sorry, PETA.

But, I've got to tell you, my highlight of the week came on Friday when Kara's dad watched the boys and Kara and I joined the Nyquist's for a night on the town. We're talking one of Kara's favorite places to eat (Red Lobster) and one of my favorite things to do. No not that, you sick people, we went to an improv show. We laughed very hard and enjoyed it so much that we stayed for a second show. I think Joe was strangely attracted to the girl in the middle, but he got over it.

The final picture is of us and the Nyquist's. There were a handful of pictures to choose from, but this one gets the nod. I chose it because the level of smiles decreases from left to right, a reminder of the joy others receive vacationing in Florida (despite spending some time with the Lefto's) and the sadness we have because we miss all of you. (The sappiness was for people like you, Rita.)

Take care everyone...

Really REAL...

2007-02-08T08:34:00.000-05:00

Growing up in 'the Church', I knew most of the "right" answers. When I say knew I mean, I knew what I was supposed to say, although I'm still learning how those things really apply to my life.

For instance... "How do you determine God's will (or what God wants for your life)?" The answers I knew... 1. Pray 2. Talk to other wise Chrisitans 3. Read the Bible and see what is says 4. Listen to God. Those would have been (and still would be) my answers if you'd given me a test, but whenever I'd give answer #3 (I'll get to #4 in a minute), 'Read the Bible and see what it says' I'd think, "...if you know where to look." The Bible has always been a confusing thing to me. I believe that it's truly God's Inspired Word and completely applicable to me, today, but I have had a hard time really understanding what it means... to me... today. So often I've determined to start reading daily... read for several weeks... stopped reading... not read for several months... decided to start reading daily... read for several weeks... stopped reading... you get the idea.

I'm starting to realize that God's will is not just reaveled in the words that are written, but also in how God speaks to me as I read it. Which brings me to #4 Listening. I never understood how God spoke. People would say, "God told me..." and I'd be like...HOW?? Skywriting, big booming voice, lightening bolt??? But over the years I think I have often taken credit for God's voice. It appears in my head, seemingly a thought that I had, but if I really think about it, a thought clearly way beyond my wisdom and therefore... God speaking to me.

So let me get to my point in blogging all this. Lately we've been doing a lot of thinking and praying about the future. We have NO IDEA what it holds, and that's really hard. But as I've been doing my daily devotions (all year so far!!) I see how God is speaking to me through the Bible. Not just in the Words, but in the ideas and wisdom that He puts into my head. Here's one example... I was reading in Hebrews 6:13-20... it talks mostly about God's promises bring Hope (this is where "I swear to God" comes from... didn't know that was Biblical). But there's one verse that says, "Abraham waited patiently, and he received what God had promised." Which was God's promise to bless Abraham richly and multiply his decendants into the countless millions. (This was amazing because Abraham was already old and had NO children.) But, Abraham waited 25 YEARS after God's promise before his son Isaac was born.

So here's the real point... Although I don't feel like God's given me a specific promise, He said to those who put their faith in Him, "For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29:11 So, that's how God spoke to me today. He's given me a promise... He has a plan... and it is GOOD. And Abraham waited 25 years to even see the beginning of the promise God made to him, BUT GOD KEEPS HIS PROMISES!!!

And for you faithful readers who endured to the end... here's a picture...

Feburary Fun...

2007-02-01T20:01:00.000-05:00

First, let me start with the last day of January. Poor Gord. He comes to Florida on vacation, and the first four days he's here are cold (by cold, I mean lows in the 40's and 30's, and highs in the 60's... cold is all relative nowadays) and all we've done is drag him to Theme Parks and make him work. Yesterday they finished a bench in our "Master Suite". It's GREAT!!! I think we'll put all (or some) of our linens and things. :~)

Now that they built it, I have to, oh, I mean GET to paint it. I really don't mind painting, and I'm VERY excited to get it done, and used. At Target I bought a chaise lounge pad that I'm hoping to use as a pad for it. (Sorry... TMI.) And to top off Gord's great vacation... he's sick!!

Today we drove a LONG way to Lake Denton to Scuba Dive. We recently purchased our equipment and wanted to try it out. And the question of the day was... how many people does it take to hook up a tank?? Justin bought some more 'technical' dive gear and it took F-O-R-E-V-E-R for him to figure it out.

Amidst all the waiting, Asher and Eli found something to do... Not exactly sure the mission they were on, but they did really well, Asher even said he had to go potty and went in the Port-a-Potty. I think he left his diaper in there... oh well. Jakin was in school, so he missed out on the action, and that's OK!!

FINALLY we were ready to go. It was about 80 degrees outside today, but the water was 64 degrees. With the wetsuits, it wasn't so bad, but was pretty cold on the hands and head. Wish we had an underwater camera so we could have taken pictures of the turtles (one was about a foot in diameter) and all the fish.

These fish have obviously been hand fed by divers before because they followed us around the lake, and when we'd stop, they'd come right up and swim up by our faces. I reached out my hand and they swarmed and even nipped at my fingers. It was a little freaky, but pretty cool. Excited to go again soon. Hopefully be warmer waters next time.

Trial...

2007-01-29T20:27:00.000-05:00

Too tired to blog much tonight, but I'm excited I figured out how to link videos on to the blog...

Good day... long day... feet throbbing!!

Photo Sharing - Upload Video - Video Sharing - Share Photos

Photo Sharing - Upload Video - Video Sharing - Share Photos

Video Clip...

2007-01-28T22:18:00.001-05:00

Check out this video clip from Jakin's Birthday...

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Six Years...

2007-01-28T20:03:00.000-05:00

Today is Jakin's sixth birthday!!! But let me first rewind to yesterday... we went to visit Nana and Papa who are down in Florida for about six weeks. Jakin got to choose where he wanted to eat... McDonalds. yippee. Most McD's down here DO NOT have PlayPlaces. It's so WRONG... because every parent knows that the PlayPlace IS the only good part about McDonalds. But this McD's had an outdoor PlayPlace, and it was a beautiful day. Nana has a real knack for making birthday cakes special. This year, Jakin's cake was laden with Power Rangers. We had a short, but very nice visit. We're hoping to see them a few more times during their time here!! And Justin's dad, Gord(y), flew in yesterday as well.

Jakin came in to our room at 6:45 this morning saying, "Mom, Dad, my tooth came out." He's had a tooth dangling by a thread for about 5 days now, Nana told him yesterday that if he just pushes it backwards in his mouth it will pop right out. I wish I could have seen Jakin psyching himself up for it!! I was more amazed that even after walking past the pile of gifts he was still talking about his tooth!!

We started the day with him opening gifts... or really Asher opening Jakin's gifts (Jakin used up all his kindness cells in the morning). Then after breakfast we headed to Universal Studios. (Our friends the Thom's that were here last week let us use the rest of their tickets.) Jakin liked all of the rides that we went on, but told me on the Twister ride, "I'm a little afraid mom, but I know it's just pretend."

The day got long, and Eli fell asleep in the Earthquake ride, but then woke up as soon as I tried to put him in the stroller. Asher was tired, but we just gave him some juice and he was fine! Jakin, on the other hand, gets a little silly when he's tired!! We're going to Islands of Adventure tomorrow, not sure if we're CRAZY, or STUPID... I'll let you know tomorrow night...

I think Jakin had a pretty good birthday. Of course he always wants more, and when it's time to go, it's never enough, but it didn't take long for him to look like this on the way home.

One last thing to share with you. When we got home, this is what our neighbors were doing... I had to take pictures.

Yes, that is a PIG that they're skinning (or skinnin') IN the yard. They shot and cooked up a pig a week or two ago, but this time, I got to see 'em skin it!! Never seen that before!

CityWalk...

2007-01-23T22:02:00.000-05:00

Tonight we went to Universal Studios CityWalk for dinner with our friends Jim and Nancy Thom and their kids Bekah and Max. Jim was my boss at SMSI where I work for nearly 11 years (in some capacity or another, the latter years were VERY part-time and mostly because Jim is a great guy and was very kind to us.) They're staying in Orlando for a week "Parking". Not in the Joanie and Chachi sort of way, but in the Orlando Theme Park sort of way.

We ate at the NBA Restaurant (don't know if you can see the GIANT shoe we're standing in front of on the first picture) and then we wandered around. CityWalk is kind of a city of restaurants and night clubs, so there's music playing and flashy lights and giant TV's, so the kids were dancing in the streets (dancin' in the streets, in New York City...) and having a great time that we didn't realize it was 9 p.m. And YES, it IS a school night!!!

Although it was short, it was great to see them again. We're at kind of a lonely point in life down here where it's hard to try to make friends not knowing how long we'll be here... so it was nice to hang out with people we know and love for even a short time! And when we got in the van, Asher kept saying... "But I want to see my friends Max and Bekah."

The Florida Snow...

2007-01-16T19:45:00.000-05:00

First let me start off with a BIG THANK YOU to all the posers, oops, I mean posters from the last blog. It is so fun for us to hear from you, even if it's just about Justin being cool. Keep it up!!! And Suzy, you offer a very fair deal, I'll try to hold up my end of the bargain, but I simply cannot post daily. I'm not that creative, nor do I take that many pictures.

I heard from my mom, Stacy and Nicole that it's pretty stinkin' cold up there. (So cold that Stacy was coloring her hair in her long johns, now that's cold!) Here's a picture of the closest thing I could find to snow. You caught me... it's not snow, it's ocean foam.
Saturday we took a trip to Pompano Beach (3 hours South) because Justin wanted to buy some SCUBA gear there. We decided to make a day of it, and looking back on it, it truly was one of the more enjoyable days I've had down here. (Of course in the midst of the day I was questioning the saying, "It's a day at the beach" clearly understanding that the author of that line was NOT at the beach with three small children.)

When we got to the beach there were WARNING signs about the Strong Rip Currents and the presence of Portuguese Man O' War (which are jellyfish like creatures that sting and can cause death, but only if you're Steve Irwin.) (Oh, that was bad!) The boys were a little hesitant to get in the water, but once they did, they loved it (except Eli who hadn't had a nap and didn't like the salt water in his eyes).

A little different than the Snow Angels they were making last year, but it's tradition... in the winter you make angels. We do the best we can with what we have. Side note... today I was mowing the lawn and dying of heat and I thought... would I rather be shoveling snow?? I decided I would, only because grass doesn't really grow all that well down here and half of the time mowing is spent in a cloud of dust. And I looked like it when I was done too.

This picture was from last week, but I thought it fit. It was during Christmas break when Christina (our neighbor) and I were in need of something for the kids to do. "Go ahead kids, take the sprinkler out in the street... have a great time!!" I don't know... seemed like a good idea at the time.

And the final picture is for Anna!! I finally got one too!!!!

True Confessions...

2007-01-12T20:08:00.000-05:00

Alright. This has been on my mind for quite some time now, and I feel like it's time to tell you all the truth. We've been doing this 'blog' thing for a little over five months, and we may have led you all to believe that we do it for you. To keep you up to date on what's going on in our lives and to see pictures of the boys and how they're growing. The truth of the matter... are you sitting down?? The truth of the matter is, we really do it for us, so that we can see your comments to our blogs and keep in touch with YOU. Seriously, Justin and I each check the comments at least three or four times per day. EACH. That's six to eight times a day we're looking on there to see if someone has posted... if someone's read it... if someone loves us!

We've been doing some brainstorming of reasons why you don't comment. And this is the list we've come up with...

1. You don't know how. Understandable, but no longer an acceptable excuse. Follow these simple insturctions... At the end of any given post there is a line and then words that look like this posted by The Lefto's | 8:56 PM | 'x' comments . To leave a comment you click on the 'x' comments (By the way 'x' represents the number of comments already posted.) This brings you to another window where on the left you'll see all the comments currently posted, and on the right is a box for you to enter your comment. Type your comment or hello or whatever you'd like in the box and then you have to option to set up your own blogger display name, choose Other or Anonymous. It's easiest just to choose Anonymous, but don't forget to sign your comment in the box somehow so we know it's from you and we don't come beating down your door (that's the next step.)

2. You don't have time. Puh Lease!!

3. You don't want everyone else to see your comments. Ok, I get that, but then email. We like email too.

Now, we're not questioning your love or devotion. We've heard from LOTS of people who have never commented that you're reading the blog, and we're very glad to hear that! Please don't let this stop you. And we're not asking that you comment on EVERY SINGLE BLOG. Then we'd have to check it 25 times a day and that's a little pathetic (like 3 or 4 times a day isn't?).

And if you're like me, you're not going to comment on this blog just because we're asking you to, and that's ok too. We just felt like this had to come out. We're pathetic and we know it, and now you know it too.

So, on to the fun stuff to maybe spark a comment. Jakin has learned to blow bubbles. He's doing great and is so proud of himself. Of course, just to knock him down when he's feeling so big Justin had to show him that he can blow double bubbles. Jakin thought it was cool, but didn't seem to care too much.

Our Mommy & Me group went to the Fire Station a few weeks ago and Eli got to squirt the hose. Actually he got to touch it as the firefighter squirted it because the pressure would have knocked Eli over. I think he really wanted to go down the fire pole, but they didn't offer that to the toddlers and pre-schoolers.

And if neither of those pictures helped spark a comment in your mind, here's a picture of the boogers I pulled out of Asher's nose. (It's hard for me to even type this...) You probably can't tell in the picture, but they were GINORMOUS!! I had to take a picture. The poor kid could hardly breathe. I didn't really plan on sharing it with you all, but as I looked thru pictures, I thought this was ... interesting??

Ok, a couple more just because they're so gosh darn cute. Here's Eli with his Dracula teeth sitting so properly on his Little People storage drawer. You can't hear it, but he was growling like he's a monster.

And this is what Jakin and Asher do when we let them play unattended in our room. They told just Asher is the daddy and Jakin is the mommy. That's one of those moments you're not sure if you should take the picture and encourage the behavior, or just let it go. I'm all about the pictures!!

New Year, New World...

2007-01-04T20:56:00.000-05:00

Sea World has a "Buy One Day Get the Rest of the Year Free" special this month. So we went today, and my feet are screaming all about it!! It was a fun day and the boys did great. You'd think knowing that we could come back anytime for ... well... essentially free we wouldn't feel like we had to see EVERYTHING today, but I think we may have seen everything. Except Shamu, which arguably is the best thing there. The above picture is of the boys favorite show because as you can see, it's a Pirate Show featuring Sea Lions and Otters. It was fun. Even Eli was laughing and clapping.

The dolphins were also a big hit. Jakin really wanted to touch one, so we spent a LONG time at the surface waiting for one to come and it didn't. So we did the ole wise parent, "we'll come back next time and try to touch one." So glad that still works!! Then we went below and got to see them WAY BETTER.

The animals there are obviously pretty tame and used to having people around all the time, but I never imagined they were this tame. Eli liked the Duck, and the Duck liked Eli (or at least the fact that Eli had just eaten a PB&J). It actually tried to eat one of his fingers. A good mom probably would have been more concerned about the wild animal near her baby than getting a great picture, but obviously that's not me. So after I got the great shot, and Eli looked stunned because his finger was just in a ducks bill I said, "he gave you a kiss." That held back the floodgate of tears just waiting to erupt.

As you may or may not know, Sea World is owned by Anheuser-Busch and thusly (like that's a word) they have free beer. Since I'm not much of a beer drinker and I'm cheap, (I mean frugal) I took advantage of the free beer. Not over-advantage... I had one cup of Amber Bock and I drank the whole thing. That's the first time I've ever actually drank a whole cup of beer. I know you're rolling your eyes Mom, but it was momentus to me.

And while the boys and I were doing all that, we left Justin home to work on our Patio that's been pending for three or four months now. He doesn't like crowds, so we thought this way, we're both happy.

Just kidding, Justin came with, I just realized I didn't have any pictures of him at Sea World so I had to include him in some way. We actually started the patio on New Year's Day and finished about 2/3rds of it. Maybe next year we'll finish the rest!! (Ha, Ha... get it, because people never finish their New Year's resolutions.)

Here's another photo of what we did on New Year's Day just for a comparison for all our northern readers... If you double click on the pic, you'll get a little better idea. The boys stripped down and Justin sprayed them with the hose. A good time was had by all... except for Mom because she had to clean them all off when they wanted to come inside.

Rainy Days and Mondays...

2006-12-26T20:27:00.000-05:00

Christmas did bring much precipitation down here... just not the type we're used to on Christmas. It was a thunderstormy day, yet we tried to make the most of it. We were planning on swimming in the neighbors pool, because none of us have ever swam outside on Christmas day. But with the storms, we decided a nap in our nice warm beds would be better.

The boys only woke up about 20 minutes early. Or I should say, they woke us up about 20 minutes early. Jakin came into the bedroom, with the shimmer of the Christmas tree lights haloing behind him, announcing that there were 31 gifts under the tree. Trying to buy a few more winks, I told him he was wrong and he should go count again. Justin and I dragged our butts out of bed and the boys opened their stocking gifts. We made them wait until after breakfast to open the rest. Their stockings were full of Police/Spy gear, so the as we made waffles, we were under surveillance, which was much better than continual begging to open the rest.

The gift opening went well. I was surprised that they actually wanted to open the toy and play with it a little before moving on to the next gift. Eli didn't really get into the gift opening until I opened it enough for him to see there was something colorful inside. Then he'd rip the paper off. Jakin and Asher seemed to enjoy all their gifts, but Eli clearly loved the T-ball set he got. He spent a few hours hitting the ball, chasing after it and then putting it back on the Tee and hitting it again.

My favorite part of Christmas... Candy Cane Pie!!! Have you had it?? If not, go to Baker's Square or the Village Inn right now. They only have it in December, so go now!!! We had to drive 40 minutes to get it, and let me tell you... I'm ready to go again!

Beginning to look a NOT like Christmas...

2006-12-20T21:35:00.000-05:00

I know you all up in Minnesota don't have a lot of snow (or any for that matter), but 75 and sunny is a whole different kind of Christmas to me. I find myself laughing as I drive around and see Christmas decorations, and one day I happened to have my camera with me, so I decided I'd take some picture of "a few of my favorite (Florida Christmas) things."

#1 - The fresh Christmas tree tents. Yes, TENTS!! They have to set up tents to put over the trees so the hot sun won't wilt/dry/kill them before they are sold. And you know how in Minnesota, every other block has Christmas trees for sale. It's the same way down here, so there's lots of tents. The first time I saw one I thought there was a circus coming because they're pretty big tents.

#2 - The inflatable snowman. Ok, there are a lot of 'transplants' in Florida who have seen and lived in snow. But the crazy thing is that the majority of them CHOSE to leave that place of cold and snow because they didn't like it, but now they put up an inflatable monument of what they chose to leave? I don't get it. And the poor children? Do they think this is what making a snowman is all about??

And finally #3, which happens to be right across the street at our neighbors house, is a one-of-a-kind Santa on the cycle. I think it's powered by reindeer droppings...

Now I don't want to give you the idea that I'm a scrooge or that my family is suffering because of my lack of Christmas Spirit, so I share with you what adorns our abode. Yes, it's the same as it was last year. Outside is a simple manger with a bright light inside shining up, which I hope people will see as brilliant glory of the face of Jesus, my Savior. A single string of clear lights on the ground gently lights the outside of the manger. I would like to also have a hay bale, but the cost $10, so we'll just have to do without since we don't have any animals to feed.

Inside is our tree. The tree I've had since 1994, on Larpenteur Ave, remember it Suz?? And the cute little angel on top holding lights as if they're candles. I still love it. Pre-strung lights that last 12 years??? Can't be that!! Ok, so the fact of the matter is that Justin and I are kind of scrooges. If it weren't for the boys, we would probably wait until the very last minute to put up the tree and then quesiton why we're even doing it in the first place. But, we do have kids, so last year we decided we'd just let them put the ornaments up. It was fun this year to see that there were ornaments a little higher on the tree than last year. The boys love it and Justin and I don't have to do most of the work. "That's what we in sales call a 'win - win scenario'."

Update on my dad. He had a PET scan (which is apparently the most high-tech scan they have) this week and it didn't show any cancer anywhere! Also, last month his PSA was 18.x, and this month it was down to 7!! Praise God!! Thanks for your prayers.

May the love of Jesus surround you and your family this Christmas season. He IS the reason we celebrate and give because of all He's given to and for us!!