im.a.cootie

Meaning of life...

2010-04-23T22:19:00.000-07:00

So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they're busy doing things they think are important. This is because they're chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.

Morrie Schwartz, in "Tuesdays with Morrie" by Mitch Albom

Spring soccer!

2010-04-05T21:20:00.001-07:00

Oh the weather outside is lovely....NOT. Soccer players are tough, not like those sissy baseball players that cancel at the hint of rain. No, soccer players stick it out through the wind, rain, and sleet, they are superstars! Now, the real sympathy should be given to the supportive families that have to sit through the hour game in that same wind, rain and sleet. Brrrrr. Sometimes I wish soccer players weren't so "tough". haha! So we started the season with a chilly rainy day and lots of mud. It was fun though!

eeeek! Tomorrow is the big day!

2010-03-04T18:02:00.000-08:00

What big day you ask? Home-study day! Yes, our home-study is tomorrow!! We are so excited, feels like we are finally moving along the road to our sweet baby boy. We are really doing this! So from what I understand he won't be inspecting my linen closet or my many junk drawers. Phew. Because those are a mess. The house still really needs a good cleaning though. I know he won't be doing the white glove test tomorrow, but I still can't help feeling like I need to DEEP clean. *take a breath* So stay tuned, i'll update tomorrow night!

He's a teenager!!

2010-02-17T17:05:00.001-08:00

I can't believe it! We've got a teen in the house now! My little 9lbs 13oz chunky monkey is now a big, strong, handsome 13 year old. Where has time gone? I'm not ready to let him grow.

Seems like yesterday he was running around the house with a binkie and blankie permanently attached. I'm not ready to let him grow.

He is almost as tall as me now. He wears a size 10 men's shoe. His smile still warms my heart just like it was his first. He is kind and has such a gentle spirit. He is thoughtful and is such a deep thinker. He has a great sense of humor and loves to make people laugh. His laugh is contagious. I'm not ready to let him grow.

He still doesn't love to try new things and has yet to outgrow the picky eater stereo-type that our pediatrician assured us he'd outgrow. Although cheese and bread aren't the only food groups he'll eat now, so it has improved. He likes tradition. He is artistic. He loves computers. He is a writer and writes amazing poetry. I'm not ready to let him grow.

He is a protector of his sisters and while he tries to hide it, we know in the little things he does that he loves them greatly. He is a reader. He will choose a book over TV and get lost in a book for hours. He is an athlete and really enjoys playing basketball. He doesn't hate playing football. He loves PlayStation 3. He loves music. I'm not ready to let him grow.

Life is simple. Life is complicated. He's thirteen and I'm not ready to let him grow. But he is growing up. We are so very blessed to watch him grow and love who he is becoming!!

Baby Steps toward God's perfect plan

2010-01-22T08:17:00.000-08:00

We finally mailed off our giant packet of paperwork for our home-study today! YEAH!! I've been feeling a bit discouraged because this whole adoption process is taking so much longer than I wanted. I see other families just breeze through the process and wonder why the heck it is taking us so long?? This morning in my inbox on the very day we mailed off our packet to get the home-study under way this is my positive daily devotion (see below). God is so timely in His messages to us, I really needed this reminder today. Enjoy! And now we are one step closer towards our goal to bring home a sweet baby boy from Ethiopia...in 2010 (I pray!).

“Put things in order.” 2 Corinthians 13:11

A plan becomes a reality only after the first action step is taken. If you doubt your own ability to carry out a task, you might hesitate or you might never begin it at all.

Each time you begin a project, picture yourself mentally taking one step at a time to complete it with God going ahead of you, making your way successful.

Say this prayer aloud: "I put things in God's order. All is in Divine order as I take my first step. I am continually guided by God."
You are empowered, then, to take another step, this time with a greater feeling of security and self-confidence.

As you continue taking steps, with each progressive move, you are gaining momentum and your confidence builds to new heights. Knowing that God is in charge, you take each step as a leap of faith, in which you meet the challenge and accomplish whatever needs to be done by you.

In Luke 1:78-79, our Bible states: "By the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to give light to those to sit in darkness,… to guide our feet into the way of peace."

When you ask God for guidance, you are not looking for an easy answer or for a way out of having to make your own decisions. You are a soul, living this life to learn to make decisions, and you are asking God to guide the decisions you do make, so that they bring about what is best for you and everyone concerned.

Cheer!

2010-01-20T20:20:00.001-08:00

Cheer competition season is in full swing and we are having a blast watching Bryn in her element. She's still loving it...and talks about how she never wants to quit. So we'll see. The older she gets though the more crazy stunts and wild tumbling she'll be doing...and already I get so nervous for her. Yikes. God give me strength....and a bigger bank account. LOL.

The Shadow

2010-01-09T20:57:00.000-08:00

By Garret R.

I dance along the wall,

wishing to be set free,

as a shadow should be,

but I can't you see,

bound to a human being.

I want a chance to dance on more than just the wall,

feel the rain on my skin,

build a snowman in the snow,

snuggle up by a warm fire,

taste the warm, steaming cup of hot cocoa.

I want to smell the flowers,

while taking a stroll through a meadow.

But it will only be a dream,

so far away from me,

but that doesn't mean I still can't believe.

How did this happen....she's 11!

2009-12-26T20:21:00.000-08:00

Seriously don't blink...because if you do you will one day wake up and your beautiful baby girl will be a beautiful "pre-teen" 11 year old! I'm going to stop blinking. It feels like just yesterday we brought her home on a snowy Christmas Eve bundled up in a large red stocking. To say "they grow so fast" just doesn't do this justice. Kaelyn is such a delight and brightens the world around her. She loves singing and playing her flute. She wants to be an actress or a professional soccer player. She is always surprising us with her giving nature and kind, gentle spirit. She thinks of the little things, where others might not. She likes to keep the peace between her siblings. She is quick to make sacrifices so others will be happy. She is a good friend and a good listener. She is always willing to try new things...new food, scary rides, she's always ready to give it a go. She is a joy and we are so very thankful to God for allowing us to be her parents!

I ♥ faces photo challenge: "pets only"

2009-12-15T16:00:00.000-08:00

I've never entered a photo contest before, but my awesome sister encouraged me to submit this picture! This is our kitty Titan we had no clue he was a mouser until the little gifts from him started appearing at our door. Here I caught him in the act!

To see other great entries at I Heart Faces go here!

Moving forward!

2009-12-05T21:34:00.000-08:00

Guess what came in the mail today?? We got our background check approval letters! Yeah! So now we are ready to move forward with the homestudy. Awesome! So Monday morning i'll be making that phone call to get it scheduled! Yipee! So very exciting!

Want some coffee???

2009-11-10T06:39:00.000-08:00

We have started a great fundraiser...everyone drinks coffee right? We have found a fabulous program that helps families raise funds for their adoption! Head over to Just Love Coffee if you are interested in purchasing some great coffee! I'd love to get some feedback from those that order some coffee, let me know what "flavor" you ordered and how you liked it! Feel free to share this link and spread the word!

We are waiting for our fingerprints to come back from the state and then we will move forward with the 2 home-study visits. Yeah!! After we have our home-study approval things could move quickly if we get our remaining funds raised. Thank you again for your prayers and support we are so blessed to have great family and friends who love and support us!

Football fun!

2009-10-06T07:07:00.000-07:00

Garret is the #78 this year. #78 has a great deal of tradition in the Ramsay family, it was worn at one time or another by all the Ramsay men (I think). So it was fun that this year Garret got to be #78. Garret has so many mannerisms that are exactly like his father, especially when it comes to football. It was so funny, 2 weeks ago Grandma Ramsay came to a game and she kept seeing the #78 and the likeness between Garret and Kyle made her keep yelling, "go Kyle!" Garret is trying to find his own way as far as football goes, which is great. He thinks he might really enjoy playing center and is learning that new position. It will certainly be fun to watch Garret come into his own and take on the world. We know he can do anything he puts his mind to. Right now he wants to work for NASA as a scientist and is thinking he might want to continue playing football as a means to get a college scholarship. We love the way his mind works, he is amazing!

Soccer, Soccer...have to wait for football.

2009-09-25T09:09:00.000-07:00

Soccer, soccer and football seasons are going great! The kids are having a lot of fun playing. Because of schedule conflicts i've yet to make it to a whole game of Garret's, i've just seen the last quarter of his first game. This weekend we have no conflicts, we will be able to go from game to game without any overlap! So this weekend I will have football pictures! Yeah! So here are a few pictures from the girls last game...notice how both girls use their tongue to help them run? haha! They must of gotten that trait from their Dad, because I don't run. LOL!

Back to school...7th, 5th, 3rd grade!

2009-09-13T13:24:00.000-07:00

Sorry I've been MIA...

2009-09-13T10:56:00.001-07:00

Yes, I'm still here...just haven't been active in the blog world, I blame it on the time-sucking facebook. But I do want to continue to document our life, our adoption journey, and all the craziness that comes along with our 3 great kids! So I will try and do better.

First the much anticipated adoption update...we got our home-study packet in the mail yesterday! Yeah!!! After our successful garage sale and a few amazing donations to our cause we were able to have enough money to start the home-study or be under contract...not quite enough money to do both. So we've chosen to move ahead with the home-study. After a completed home-study we will be able to apply for grants and assistance to keep moving forward. We are truly blessed with great family and friends who keep us going. It seems, financially speaking, that we just get one roadblock after another...such is life. But we still absolutely know that we are on the path God has placed us and we will forge ahead. Just moving at more of a stroll on this path rather than the sprint we'd like to be. haha! Eventually we WILL be bringing home another Ramsay!

Kids all went back to school last week. Garret started a new school for 7th grade. Unfortunately, along with our financial roadblocks came the cut of his Christian private school. He has been great about it, handling it with so much maturity and grace. He misses his school, but totally understands. So he started at the public middle school, that is a block from our house, last week. He has so many friends there, so that has helped with the transition. He likes all his teachers and is excited about a few of his classes. So far, so good. Kaelyn and Brynlee both got the teachers they were hoping for and have many friends in their class with them, so they are thrilled!

Soccer, Soccer, Cheerleading and football are in full swing now too. So we are busy and still trying to figure out the new routine. We'll get into a grove soon though and all will be well. haha!

I'll post few pics from first day of school and sports this past weekend in my next post, its easier to upload pics that way!

Cricut Cartridge Giveaway!

2009-09-12T09:55:00.000-07:00

Cricut Cartridge Giveaway!

Check out the Cricut forum on the Winter Woodland Giveaway, it's 100th cartridge. To celebrate the milestone, Cricut is giving away 20 a week for 5 weeks. The community at Cricut.com is awesome, I frequent the forums for great ideas!

Here's the link to the cartridge page: http://www.cricut.com/shopping/ProductDetails.aspx?id=361&s=1&sc=2

Good luck!

I'm melting!

2009-07-28T19:25:00.001-07:00

Ok, not really. But it is H.O.T outside! We are all camping out in our bedroom right now, because we have a small air conditioning unit in the window. It's 107 outside right now and the little air conditioning unit is having a hard time keeping up I think. But my bedroom is 78 degrees, better than the 86 degrees it is in the kitchen right now. haha! I do mostly enjoy the heat, so I won't complain much. We have a place to retreat from it...if I didn't have the window air conditioners though I might be singing a different song.

2009-07-12T09:51:00.001-07:00

So we are going to have our adoption fundraiser sale on July 24th and 25th...wish us luck! We have to raise some money in a short period of time and we are hoping this will do it! If you want to donate anything to the sale, please send me a quick email! All proceeds from this sale will go directly to Dove Adoptions. Thank you for your support and prayers! We are blessed.

5th of July

2009-07-06T16:59:00.000-07:00

Some after the 4th fireworks fun in the front yard! According to Bryn it was her first time ever doing sparklers. They had a "blast"! Kyle even let Garret do much of the lighting, made me nervous, but he did awesome! The neighbors joined us with some of the stuff they had purchased and we sat outside for quite awhile having our own show.

Where can I find one of these?

2009-06-22T14:50:00.000-07:00

Man, I wish money tree's really existed! haha! Sure would help us move along quickly with the adoption. If we could just gather up enough to start the home study then we'd be well on our way! I know there are so many grants and loans out there, but we can't apply for a single one without the approved home study. Can't get started on the home study without raising approximately $4000. So we are stuck here until we can get find some funds, a lot of funds. What we do know is we are not giving up! God has a plan for our family, and we know without a doubt it is to bring home a sweet baby boy to join our family from Ethiopia. We just thought this would come together easier and faster. We are hoping to plan a rummage type sale in July, so if you have anything you'd like to donate we'd be thrilled to add it to the sale. We just have to get creative with this raising money, so if anyone has some suggestions I'd love to hear them!

Camping!

2009-06-11T16:37:00.000-07:00

So every year we say that we plan on camping "a lot" during the summer...and every year without fail we are lucky to go ONCE. It is sort of a running joke with our friends. haha! So now that we've done our one trip for the summer, we actually do hope we have several others this summer. We had a great time Memorial Day weekend camping at Detroit Lake! It was very fun! I didn't bring my camera out as much as I should have...but Bree had her camera and she got some great shots of the kids fishing with Grandpa. Bryn and Garret caught their first fish I think. Kaelyn couldn't handle the fishing and came back and sat with Grandma and I. She is very sensitive and was so concerned for the fish. I can assure you no fish were harmed, they were all tossed back. haha. Here are just a few pics from the weekend.

Pool Party

2009-05-31T12:18:00.000-07:00

After Kaelyn's game we headed to the pool for an end of the season celebration. The weather was PERFECT for swimming! It took forever for us to get the girls out of the pool.

More Spring Soccer

2009-05-31T12:12:00.000-07:00

Kaelyn sure has some great footwork and speed. She is really coming along in the soccer world. It is so much fun to watch her out there on the field.

Spring Soccer!

2009-05-31T12:09:00.000-07:00

Spring Soccer officially ended yesterday. Kaelyn does have one more game next weekend, but it isn't an official league game. We really enjoyed soccer this season and are sad its over.

Bryn got a chance to play up for this last game. So she played with a U9 team and had a blast. The field is bigger, and there are a few more girls on the field. Bryn fit right in and even had a few attempts at the goal. I think she'll do just fine next season. Kyle has already committed to coaching again. haha.

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T16:09:00.000-07:00

My husband is a poet. Who knew? I woke up this morning to a stellar breakfast with a card Kyle had made. Inside the card was a poem he had written (I got his permission to share):

To my beautiful wife

With whom I share the most wonderful life.

Who showers my family love,

The purest kind granted by God from above.

Tis you who binds our family together

No matter the storm, I know we will weather.

For richer, for poorer, in sickness and health,

We've done them all, now lets try for wealth.

God has blessed me beyond measure

At such a young age He gave me such a treasure.

The woman of my dreams to marry

And the children she would carry.

My life is filled with such joy,

When I see you, two girls and a (soon 2) boy.

I see that there has been a richer man never,

That you complete me now more than ever.

I must stop now, before my eyes become wet,

You have waited to long for a new bedding set.

Love always and forever,

Kyle

Making time for RnR...

2009-05-07T21:27:00.000-07:00

Why is it time for some RnR you ask? Well i'm recovering from a surgery that went extremely well and I'm so glad I had it done. Its been a long time coming and I am going to be even better than before once i'm all recovered. I'm actually excited for that. I didn't realize the recovery would be so hard...doc said i'd be tired, but I was planning on being the exception to that "rule". Uh, nope. I tire soooo easily, its nuts. Not being able to drive and get out of the house is hard. I'm going a little stir crazy. I did find this poem that made me laugh, so I thought i'd share...

You did your job

Through puberty

Through childbirth

And recovery

You held my babies

Safe and sound

And stretched yourself

All big and round

But now my friend

Your job is through

I find myself not

Needing you

Don’t need the pain

The aching back

The periods that are

Out of whack

And so my friend

Its time you know

You and your fibroids

Have to go

The doctor is going to

Put me to sleep

And you’re one of the parts

I just can’t keep

Goodbye, old friend

You served me well

Before you started to

Ache and swell

I’ll remember you

On the anniversary

Of the day I had

My hysterectomy

I’ll brush a tear

From my cheek

As I remember the days

When you didn’t leak

And as I live a

Pain-free life

I’ll toast the doctor

And his knife!

by JudeD

Road blocks...

2009-04-25T14:20:00.000-07:00

Why does it seem like just when things are moving, and you feel certain you are following after God's heart a road block comes your way. One after another. I'd be lying if I haven't stopped and wondered if I am truly doing God's will. Because in my mind if I am, then this should be much easier. Right?

I was sooooo certain, and mostly I still am, that God has called us to adopt a baby from Ethiopia. We knew that coming up with the money would be our biggest challenge. It has proven to be a struggle. We don't have extra income. I took a part-time job so that we would have enough income. And still even then we struggle. I don't know where we thought the money would appear...maybe that money tree in the backyard would finally bear fruit? All I know is God is bigger than my issues with money and if it is His will, it would be on His bill. Like that? haha. Just didn't think it would take this long...guess I have to remember it is also on God's timetable, not mine.

Disney World!

2009-04-19T20:31:00.000-07:00

So the opportunity came up for me to fly to Disney World and meet up with Kyle who was in Orlando for work. Well of course I couldn't pass that up! We used Kyle's airline miles he's saved up with Alaska, so my ticket cost a whopping $10! We were sooooo thankful for the chance for this mini-vacation! It was AWESOME! Thanks to my parents for watching the kids for us, the kids have raved about all the fun they had with Grandma and Grandpa and they can't wait to do it again!

Kyle and I went to Epcot and Disney Hollywood Studios on Thursday, then went to Animal Kingdom and Magic Kingdom on Friday and home on Saturday! Like I said, quick trip but oooooh so refreshing! We loved Disney! Animal Kingdom was my favorite of the 4 parks, its like a zoo on steroids! They have new rollercoaster there called Everest that was really fun! Not having the kids with us did make us a little sad, we missed them and saw so much that they would have LOVED to see! So someday we'd like to take them! It was also nice to not feel like we had to get it all in, we just went at our own pace and saw what we wanted. We didn't wait in any long lines, fast passed the rides we really wanted to get on, and just walked around taking it all in. Soooo fun! It was great to just spend some time with Kyle, we get so busy with the day to day we don't always have time to connect. So getting away and having some time to ourselves was just the thing!

Happy Easter!

2009-04-12T14:24:00.000-07:00

Easter blessings!

2009-04-12T07:37:00.000-07:00

The tomb is empty, our hearts are full! Celebrating His resurrection and wishing everyone a blessed Easter. He is not here; He has risen, Just as He said. Matthew 28:6

Easter bunnies...

2009-04-12T07:36:00.000-07:00

The kids got a little furry Easter surprise a day early. After Brynlee's soccer game we went out to Grandma and Grandpa R's for lunch. They had a surprise waiting for the kids. Oh my! Were they surprised! 3 adorable 9 week old bunnies were waiting for them. The kids went nuts! Jumping, screaming (freaking poor bunnies out) and tears. I don't know if I've seen Kaelyn like that before, she couldn't form words she was so happy and her eyes welled up with tears of joy. She looked at me and said, "I'm crying because I'm happy." haha! Well I didn't think she was sad. Silly girl.

Brynlee quickly said, "I'm naming mine Waffle!" She had the name all picked out. Well because truthfully the girls have been talking about getting a bunny for awhile now and maybe I've looked around on craigslist a time or two to see what was out there. And we might have come across a funny looking bunny named Waffle that Brynlee saw a picture of and loved the name. haha! Just maybe that is why. So Garret announced his was going to be called Fable as we were walking to the back yard with the cage so the kids could get them out and hold them. Kaelyn wasn't sure what to name her bunny and I said she didn't have to pick a name so fast and she could think about it. Just then she decided if Bryn's was named Waffle maybe she'd call her bunny Pancake. We really don't know how to take care of bunnies, so we are learning quickly. Kyle is going to build them a hutch when we get back from Florida. We are nuts...I know. So meet Waffle, Pancake and Fable.

Waffle, Fable, Pancake...

2009-04-12T07:35:00.000-07:00

What does God say...

2009-04-08T17:45:00.000-07:00

As we continue with our adoption, the following verses have helped and will continue to help. I came across these verses sometime ago and have saved them. I think I thought we'd be much further in the process by now. We are still working on raising the funds to start our home-study. Hopefully soon. We know that all good things happen in God's time to those who trust in Him.

"Pray without ceasing…" 1Thessalonians 5:17.

On Adoption and Corporal Acts of Mercy

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27

"And whoever welcomes a little child like this in my name welcomes me." Mathew 18:5

"…learn to do right! Seek justice, encourage the oppressed. Defend the cause of fatherless, plead the case for the widow." Isaiah 1:17

"A Father to the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy dwelling. God sets the lonely in families…" Psalm 68:5-6a

"Vindicate the weak and the fatherless; do justice to the afflicted and destitute." Psalm 82:3

"I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was homeless and you gave me a room, I was shivering and you gave me clothes, I was sick and you stopped to visit, I was in prison and you came to me…Then the King will say, 'I'm telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me---you did it to me.'" Mathew 25: 35-36, 40 (MSG)

"For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father." Romans 8:15

On Taking Action

"Be doers of the word, and not hearers only…" James 1:22

"A man makes a plan in his heart, but God directs his path." Proverbs 16:9

"Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when it is in your power to do it." Proverbs 3:27

"There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear." 1 John 4:18

On God's Plan for Your Family

"'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.'" Jeremiah 29:11

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6

"Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power at work in us, to Him be the glory." Ephesians 3:20

"Do not be afraid, for I am with you; I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west." Isaiah 43:5

"Orphans get parents, the homeless get homes. The reign of terror is over; the rule of the gang lords is ended." Psalm 10:18 (MSG)

Happy St. Patty's Day!

2009-03-17T12:13:00.001-07:00

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Truly love one another...

2009-03-16T19:39:00.000-07:00

I came across this video today. I will warn you, it is very hard to watch. I was a wreck after. But I am also thankful for seeing it, I will not forget. This seems so far removed from our daily lives, but its very real and its happening every day. It is horrible. What can we do?

National Champs!!

2009-03-15T21:18:00.000-07:00

Yeah!! Bryn's team took first place at the Pac West Spirit Group Nationals this weekend! It was such a wonderful time! Her team did fantastic, we are so proud! She's all done for the year, this was her last competition...until we start all over in the fall. =) She really loves it and we love to watch her having fun. She asked Kyle tonight, "Dad were you ever a National Champion?" haha! Nope, he wasn't...Pac 10 Champion, but not National. Kyle told her she's the first in the family to be a national champion, and she thought that was pretty awesome.

Sugar rush...

2009-03-11T07:33:00.000-07:00

So I'm checking in on my status of observing Lent for 40 days...Yeah, I didn't make the 40 days of no sugar. (I don't think I even made it one full day!) It was seriously way to hard for me. I do love sugary snacks and treats. However even if avoiding those I quickly found sugar is in just about everything! I think next time I need to be more specific. haha! It was hard to avoid. High fructose corn syrup is a main ingredient in most foods in our cupboard, I think I will work on changing that. So I have been prayer journaling, and while i'll admit to missing a day or two...I have really enjoyed adding this to my daily routine. I think it will be great to read back over my prayers in time and see how God worked through each one. So I am sticking to this and plan on it being something I continue beyond the 40 days.

Spirit Cheer Nationals

2009-03-01T22:06:00.000-08:00

Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday...what does it mean?

2009-02-22T10:25:00.000-08:00

What is Lent and why don't we as Baptists celebrate it? Well from my internet research it seems some Baptists have begun to recognize Lent more and more. And from my limited understanding of Lent and what it means, I think I can benefit from this recognition of Lent. 40 days. Jesus was in the wilderness for 40 days before he bore our sin so that we might one day live with Him. I think that obviously me giving up something for 40 days is small and insignificant compared to the sacrifice Jesus made for us. However, if it helps me to daily remember that I am a sinner and that I didn't deserve what Jesus did for me...then that can only help me become stronger in my faith. It can only help my relationship with Christ grow. I like that. So this year I've decided to give up something that at times I feel I can't live without. Sugar. I am going to avoid all things sugar. I think I am also going to add to my 40 days with daily prayer journaling. Lent is not a fad. Lent is not the "in" thing. Lent seems to me to be a very personal journey. A walk that will deepen my relationship and strengthen my faith. 40 days to reflect and repent before our celebration of His resurrection Easter Sunday. I would love to hear others opinions regarding Lent, so please share!

2009-02-16T21:11:00.000-08:00

Garret celebrated his 12th Birthday on the 13th! Wow, I can't believe he's 12. Our last year before the dreaded "teen" years. haha! Although we are not anticipating them to be that bad. Garret is a such a great kid! We are so blessed to have him as our son. He's a funny, caring, genuine boy. Life is very black and white for Garret. Its wrong or right and he doesn't like gray areas much. He is not a rule breaker and he does not like others breaking the rules. He has a strong faith in God and it is very evident in his life. He is not afraid to tell others about Jesus. After much prayer we moved him to Salem Academy for 6th grade and he is thriving there. He enjoys school I think as much as a 6th grade boy can. He is a smart boy and sometimes can just get by with his smarts, if he would push himself a bit he'll for sure be a straight A student. He'll get there, he's just figuring things out still. He really enjoys basketball and watching him on the court warms my heart. He didn't play football this year, rested his ankle from a bad sprain during spring soccer. So maybe we'll see him on the football field in the fall. He is still my same baby boy that loves all things cheese and bread. I sometimes think he forgets there are other food groups. We've still got to work on expanding his food interests. Our Pediatrician told us when he was little not to stress over the fact that he was so picky because he would grow out of it...well we are still waiting. haha! He enjoys playing computer games and listening to music. But more than anything he has this love for reading that Kyle and I are just in awe of. He devours books. He loves fantasy type books most. Someday he says he would like to write a book. I think he will. Above all he is our wonderful son and we are so proud of him. We love you Garret! Happy birthday!

Kaelyn's day...

2009-02-16T20:45:00.000-08:00

So Kaelyn is feeling pretty good today! She got a new haircut. She actually told Tonya she wanted it just to the top of her shoulders, but I motioned to Tonya to go a little lower. haha. It is adorable on her. She got about 6 inches cut-off! I think it makes her look a bit older, which she LOVES. She can't stop running her hands through it right now. And I'm hoping with it being a little shorter it won't get into the nasty tangles in the back. We'll see. And also today Kaelyn's cell phone came fedex. She's been bugging for one for awhile and we've put it off. But lately there has been a few times that a cell phone would have been nice for her to have. So we decided that she might be ready for the responsibility. She's been on cloud 9 all day! Pretty fun.

A moment hidden in my heart...

2009-01-31T07:23:00.000-08:00

Let us be silent that we may hear
the whisper of God. -Emerson

Why adoption you might ask? Seriously, our kids are older (12, 10, 7) so we are out of the "baby" stage. We have zero for a baby, I've given it all away. Why start all over? Sleepless nights, diapers, bottles, less freedom, car seats, child proofing, diaper bags, baby food and various other things that I'm probably forgetting that are needed for a happy baby. All of which make me giddy. Tired, but giddy. Love it. Love the idea. Can't wait! Sure I could be nuts. That's okay if you think so, it doesn't hurt my feelings. Honest. I have my moments where I too think I might be nuts. ha ha!

I really do believe that this is God inspired. I believe at one particular moment in time God whispered in my ear and hid this desire in my heart. I know because, I know the moment it happened. Kyle and I have gone twice on a short-term mission trip to Sao Paulo, Brazil to work with an amazing group of people, Restoration Ministries. We left a piece of our hearts in Brazil each time with the families and children we met there. We love our Brazilian Brothers and Sisters and try to keep in contact with them. We hope to return again in the near future.

There was this one day in particular while we were working at the day center doing a vacation Bible school. I met the most beautiful brown-eyed little girl. She was shy. She would peek at me, but wasn't interested in coming to close. I would smile and wave and she'd look away. I was busy working, but was so drawn to this little girl I'd stop and try to get her smile every time I'd walk by. I was determined to get her to smile. Finally she warmed up to me and came and sat in my lap, we played and laughed. After awhile I hugged her and took her back to her Mother. When I did, I casually said to her Mom that I loved her daughter and I could just take her home with me. That was translated and the Mother said something back in Portuguese and handed her daughter back to me. Puzzled I looked for the translation and was told she says, "Please, please take her". It was like I had been punched in the stomach, I was speechless. I didn't know what to say. I know a nervous laugh came out of my mouth and I acted as if the Mother was just joking around with me. All the while fully knowing she was serious. If there had been a legal way to do so, she would have.

I have never seen that despair and anguish close up. The pain of a Mother who can not provide the life she wants for her child. A Mother who is uncertain where the next meal is coming from or how much longer they will have a roof over their head. I cried that night when we got back to our hotel. I cried not just for the beautiful brown eyed little girl I fell in love with, but for every child I met that day and the hardships their families face daily. I could not do one thing to better their life here on this earth. I felt helpless. I couldn't change their horrible living conditions, I couldn't provide nourishment to their hungry belly's on a daily basis, and I couldn't stay and daily show them the love they missed and desperately needed. I was only in the country for 10 days. I could do so little.

However, I do believe at that very moment God whispered to me there would be one I could help. One I would love and call my own. To wait for God's timing, but there would be one. Shortly after we returned from Brazil we thought it was going to be a 16 year old girl we met named Nina. I thought that was who God was calling us to bring to our home. We were ready to be Nina's parents. We were ready to bring her to live with us. However, it wasn't God's will. The Brazilian government would not let it happen. We were so sad. We thought we were doing God's will. Again God said to wait there would be one.

God opened my eyes to the poverty and despair in Brazil so that my heart would softened to it everywhere. So that when the time came I'd listen to God's gentle nudging. So that I'd keep the dialog open with Kyle about the topic so that one day he too would again feel the pull of God's calling. He did. God said there would be one, and we believe there is. When we read of the heart breaking need for adoptive parents in Ethiopia, our hearts jumped knowing this was what God was meaning for us. And here we are today. We are ready to bring home a baby boy from Ethiopia. We can't wait!

Garret Bball tonight!

2009-01-30T20:35:00.000-08:00

What a fantastic game tonight! Not only did Garret score some points but he owned the court tonight. He normally doesn't play full court so he did need his inhaler tonight. haha. He looked great out there tonight. It was so fun to watch him play. Oh yeah and they won too. Wahoo!

Bryn's Cheer Competition today...

2009-01-24T17:18:00.000-08:00

So we owe Brynlee five-bucks! I told her before they performed that if she made some silly faces i'd give her $5. We've noticed at all these competitions that the girls make these fun faces while they cheer and Brynlee practices them all the time in the mirror. But when it comes time to perform she's concentrating so hard on her routine she hardly remembers to smile. So today she actually made a few faces, 3 to be exact according to her! haha! She did great! We are so proud of her. Last night she prayed that God would let her team win first place and that she wouldn't mess up. Aren't children prayers sweet?

So watch this video that Kaelyn took with her camera and see if you can spot her "3-silly faces".

Garret's Basketball game

2009-01-24T16:35:00.000-08:00

I forgot my camera but thankfully Kaelyn had her camera, so here are some shots she took. Garret's team had a rocky start to the first half, letting the other team get a pretty big lead. But they held them the 2nd half to only a few baskets. So that's good, right?

A few pics to share...

2009-01-23T07:43:00.000-08:00

We had sooo many great shots to choose from after the photo shoot with my sister! We are still trying to pick out our favorites. Here are a few I wanted to share real fast!

Photo Shoot!

2009-01-18T21:31:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to shout out to my sister, Bree, a big giant THANK YOU for taking our family pics today! The kids were less than cooperative, but Bree's a pro. Check out her site... Bree Hughes Photography she takes amazing pictures!

I got a little emotional today when I thought about how this picture will be the first picture our new baby will see of us. So exciting!

I'll post a pic soon!

Ask. Seek. Knock.

2009-01-10T14:56:00.000-08:00

Ask and it will be given to you;
seek and you will find;
knock and the door will be opened to you.
For everyone who asks receives;
he who seeks finds;
and to him who knocks,
the door will be opened.
Matthew 7:7-8

So our adoption contract finally made it to us today. Yeah! We now have 30 days to read the contract, have it notarized, and return it with the first large sum of money. Yikes. And now the weight of it all it sets in. Remember my TRUST post...I'm still trusting. I'm still waiting. I know that God wants us to adopt this baby. This beautiful baby He has already chosen to be apart of our family. I can't wait to meet this special baby. Our baby is already loved, even though we have yet to see his/her face. We knew going into this that God was going to have to work in HUGE ways to make this adoption even possible, financially speaking. And we trust that He will. So we are anxiously awaiting Gods instructions to what comes next. We will ask. We will seek. We will knock.

Garret's history project

2009-01-08T20:16:00.001-08:00

Well its official, Garret knows more about computers than I do. Well, I think he has for awhile now. He had to do a report for History, his chosen topic was World War 1 and why the US entered the war. Part of this report required creating a visual piece to go with the speech. I figured we'd get out the cardboard, mod podge, various scrapbook supplies and whip up some sort of submarine. Garret was not allowed to have any parental help with this project, so he opted to teach himself how to use Flash and create a video as his visual. So here is his first official Flash project...next thing you know he'll be making full on cartoons. Pixar, Dreamworks, and Disney better keep their eye on this guy! haha!

Brynlee finally loses some teeth!

2009-01-08T19:44:00.000-08:00

She's waited soooo long to finally lose a tooth. For some reason her two bottom baby teeth just wouldn't come out on their own! Her two adult teeth have already come in behind them. So the dentist pulled out the baby teeth today. She was a trooper, and she's super excited to finally have teeth to put under her pillow! Tooth fairy better not forget. haha!

Happy 10th Birthday Kaelyn!

2008-12-31T12:48:00.000-08:00

I really wanted to get this posted earlier, but better late than never! Kaelyn celebrated her 10th Birthday on December 23rd. Yikes! 10! We had a friend party for her early in December so friends who travel for the holidays can come. She had 17 girls come to her party and we made scarfs first and then got our hot chocolate travel cups and went caroling. I made each girl a song book and we walked the Keizer lights route singing. Most of the girls had never gone caroling before and everyone really enjoyed it...first we were knocking on the doors of each house and asking if we can sing for them. But as we kept walking it became easier to just sing and see if anyone came out of the house to see us. It was cold, but not raining until we were halfway through...so once the freezing rain started we decided to head (run) home. I was lame and didn't bring my camera outside with us, and I actually didn't take a group picture either (ugh) but here are a few pictures from that party anyway....So then we had a family party for Kaelyn on her actual birthday! Here are a few pics from that night...
It is so hard to believe that my middle child is 10..double digits. My sweet baby that came home Christmas eve 10 years ago...in the snow! She is such an easy girl, which surprises some since she was kind of a difficult baby. But Kaelyn is a pleaser, always making sure everyone around her is happy. She is a giver, would gladly give all her possessions to others if we'd let her. She loves Jesus with all her heart and is so mindful of God's presence in her life. She loves all animals and hurts for animals in need. She is sensitive. Not only can her feelings be easily hurt, but she truly cares about the feelings of those around. Discipline is very simple with her because she is so much harder on herself than we could be on her. She has Kyle wrapped around her finger...her big beautiful blue eyes well up with tears and Kyle is done. She is blonde. haha! Kaelyn can be a little spacey, some will laugh when I say "a little". She will set something down and 5 minutes later be wandering around looking for it. She prefers her room to be unorganized, to her its perfect when everything is laying on the floor. I think she prefers the chaos and clutter. She is goofy and likes to giggle. Her laugh is infectous. She is motherly and likes to look after her younger cousins...but remember the spacey thing, we are close by to monitor. haha! She is athletic. She is a soccer star and is always working to become better. It is such a joy to watch her play soccer, she can run and run and we aren't sure yet if she gets tired. Above all she is Kaelyn, she is wonderfully made by our Creator and we adore every second with her. We love you Kaelyn! Love, Mom & Dad

Happy Birthday Kyle!

2008-12-29T10:56:00.000-08:00

Thank you for being such a wonderful husband and father! I am very blessed to be able to share your birthday with you. We are all better because you are in our lives. You daily demonstrate to our son what honor is, and that is showing faithfulness in the difficult and hard times as well as the joyous times. You are daily showing our girls that true love and great men are out there by being one yourself. They have such a great example in you. You are so loved and I hope we continually show you just how much! Happy Birthday! All our love...

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T10:27:00.000-08:00

Today in the town of David a Savior
has been born to you;
He is Christ the Lord.
Luke 2:11

Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace
to men on whom his favor rests.
Luke 2:14

Did Santa leave anything for me?

2008-12-10T19:34:00.000-08:00

I can't keep the cat away from the tree. He knows the very second I fix the tree skirt and he's back under there in a flash messing it up. Now he's taking to napping under there. But I guess I can't complain, the tree is after all still standing and no ornaments have been harmed in his playful antics. Yet.

Brynlee's first competition!

2008-12-06T16:50:00.000-08:00

What a fun day today was! (Aside from 'SC stomping those lame Bruins! Wahoo!) Brynlee had her first cheer competition today. We had to get up super early, "before the sun came up" as Kaelyn noted, and head to McMinnville. We were worried about being late and thought we gave ourselves enough time, but we under-estimated just how far McMinnville is...go figure. But we got there, and we weren't last. So in my book that is just as good as on time. Bryn was a little nervous, but she shook it pretty fast once she was with her team. There were 3 other teams in her bracket competing. They performed pretty early and did awesome! After she came and sat with us and watched the rest of the teams compete. She was on such a rush when she got over to us, she was so excited. There were some amazing stunts and powerful tumbling going on in the older teams. Gosh, I don't remember doing half of what they can do now. It was very cool. Awards ceremony was at the end and her team got a FIRST place trophy! Oh my, she was over the top excited. We celebrated with a lunch at Burger King after. haha. So this was a great first competition to get their feet wet...from what i'm hearing this next one is WAY bigger.

Glory days!

2008-12-05T21:45:00.000-08:00

So Kyle played a little flag football the night before Thanksgiving and we went out to watch the fun. It was fun to watch the "68" on the field again! Brought back many wonderful memories. I figured since tomorrow is a big game (*U. C. L. A. Sucks!*) i'd go ahead and post some pics of the awesome #68 in action...hmmm, maybe I should find some college pics to post and compare! I'll look around. Kyle did survive the game, his knee is still, however, swollen! But don't ask him if he's in pain, he'll never fess up!

Watch this!

2008-12-04T08:38:00.000-08:00

2008-11-24T11:54:00.000-08:00

Every good and perfect gift is from above,
coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights,
who does not change like shifting shadows.
James 1:17

So I have no news in our adoption journey just yet. We believe all our letters of reference have been turned in and so we are waiting to conduct an interview (I think by phone). Then we will move on to lots of paperwork gathering for our homestudy. We have to attend a intro class in December. We'll have to get multiple official copies of all our birth certificates, we'll need to be fingerprinted and that sent to the FBI for clearance. There is an online class we'll have to take as well. So there will be lots to get done, but we have to first have this interview and be officially accepted.

I've been praying a great deal lately for our baby's birth mother. God has really placed this on my heart in the last week or so. It is possible that circumstances that lead this mother to give up her baby are unfolding. Maybe she has recently conceived our baby, or maybe she is already pregnant, or its possible our baby has been born. I don't know. But God does. For whatever reasons she must give up her baby I pray for her healing and peace and that she can feel God's loving arms around her. I can't even begin to imagine the circumstances that lead up to this and how hard that must be for her. So I will continue to pray.

Bryn's Cheer

2008-11-22T21:27:00.000-08:00

From BrynCheer

Tonight Champion Cheer had a fun night for the teams to show off their routines before they start competitions in December. It was a great chance for the girls to practice in front of an audience and for all the parents to see their routines they've been working hard on at practices. Brynlee did great!! It was so fun to watch her, she's is loving it! They performed twice tonight. The second time they got to wear silly socks and have their hair crazy. They all thought that was pretty fun! And they looked adorable.

From BrynCheer

Human or Humid?

2008-11-17T16:05:00.001-08:00

So Kaelyn just got home from school and I said to her, "wow your hair is really curly today!" And she says, "I think because its a wee bit human out today." So I said, "humAN or humID?" And she says, "yeah."

Nice huh?

You know you're a Twilight freak when...

2008-11-11T13:20:00.000-08:00

1. You have a twilight tee shirt. (check)

2. You jump up and scream when you catch sight of a shiny silver Volvo.

3. You want to find a meadow in the middle of the woods and just lay there forever.

4. If someone is very warm, you assume that they're a werewolf.

5. If someone trips (falls, slides down a flight of stairs, etc.) you use the term "Pulling a Bella".

6. You beg your friends that haven't read it to read it.....daily.

7. You have trouble grasping the fact that Edward Cullen IS a fictional character.

8. You compare the characters to your friends.

9. When you hear thunder, you think of the Cullens playing baseball.

10. The majority of your Bumper Stickers and Flair on Facebook have something to do with Twilight and/or Edward Cullen.

11. You dump glitter on your boyfriend/husband so you can at least pretend he's Edward. (Thats a great idea)

12. You really do think you can hear Edward in your head.

13. You are constantly saying "You wouldn't get it--it's a Twilight thing" to the non-readers.

14. Your friends always ask you "Is that a good book?" and you drop the book and stare at them like they just said it wasn't.

15. You are planning on moving to Forks, WA someday.

16. Every time you hear the name "Edward" you think of Edward Cullen.

17. Your heart nearly stopped when you found out the movies coming out 11.21.08 instead of 12.12.08

18. You finished each book in less than 4 hours and didn’t put the book down once.

19. Whenever someone says, “Hey, you wanna go shopping?” you automatically think of Alice.

20. The name Victoria sends chills down your body.

21. Twilight is your favorite time of the day.

22. You look at your doctor and think, “Carlisle’s better.”

23. You think Dracula is a phony.

24. You have imagined yourself as one of the Cullens and or Bella.

25. You have recently wondered what your blood might smell like.

26. You go into Victoria’s Secret and half expect to see a certain red headed vampire standing there.

27. Your favorite color is blue.

28. You think your friend is delusional. Because you know that Edward is YOURS.

29. When rainy weather makes you think of Forks and it makes you happy.

30. You have proposed locking the kids in a closet so you can go see the Twilight movie.

31. Nov-21, Twilight, or Mom's birthday? I SAY TWILIGHT!

32. You wanna cut and style your best friends hair, so she can be like ALICE!

33. You re-read twilight throughout the day because its more interesting than real life.

34. When you're stressed you threaten to curl into a ball and wait for your Edward.

35. You're reading these and sighing because you know you do all of them.

Fall leaves!

2008-11-10T12:58:00.001-08:00

I got the kids to go out and do some raking of the leaves today. I think they goofed around more than actually raked. Once Garret turned the leaf blower onto the girls, pretty much all work came to a halt. But since all the leaves are not out of the trees and the yard will likely look much the same in the morning, I am not going to be to worried about missed leaves. Kyle will be thrilled to see the big pile in the middle of the grass for him to pick up. *note sarcasm*. As the kids started getting hungry they started begging to be done and I said when the side walk was clear they could come in for lunch. So I hear Brynlee saying "lets just push the leaves in the street." Then Garret says, "I don't want neighbors to think we are lazy Bryn!" To which Bryn comes running into the house whining/tattling, "Moooooommm Garret says I'm laaaazzzy!" Why are they out of school today?

At least the sidewalk is clear-ish.

Spooktacular Halloween!

2008-11-03T13:12:00.000-08:00

Make a Smilebox scrap pages

Big news!

2008-10-23T11:00:00.000-07:00

So today we choose to live our faith out loud. Today we choose to trust God. Today we sent in our adoption application. We have felt the gentle nudge of God for sometime now and today we are obedient to His calling. God has placed it on our hearts to adopt a baby from Ethiopia.

So starting today my blog will have a purpose, a direction, a new focus if you will. I hope you will follow along this faith walk with us. Trust will come into play a great deal I am sure. Feel free to remind me of this post in the months to come.

I trust that God has a plan. I trust that God will provide all that we need for His will to be done. God will provide. I am not going to let myself get stuck on the details of how and when, but rather I am going to watch in great awe of God and His mighty power.

Yours-Steven Curtis Chapman

2008-10-18T18:27:00.000-07:00

Have you heard the new verse in this song yet? Wow. Really powerful.

The Story of the Starfish

2008-10-18T07:38:00.000-07:00

Two friends were walking along the beach shortly after the tide had receded. The beach was littered with thousands of starfish that were drying in the afternoon sun. As the two strolled along, one of them bent down and picked up a starfish and carefully tossed it back into the ocean. He did this continuously as the two conversed.
The stretch of beach was long. They could hardly walk without the man bending down, every other step, and rescuing a poor starfish.
As they continued, the one observing this finally asked “Why are you throwing these starfish back into the water? You can’t really hope to save them all?” The other friend smiled and bent down to gather another starfish into his hand. He looked at his close friend and held up the little starfish and replied (as he tossed it back into the ocean)………..“It matters to this one.”

Need a good laugh today.

2008-10-17T12:52:00.000-07:00

This caught my attention and so I had share....
Next season of Dancing with the Stars.

Picture Day....ugh!

2008-10-07T12:04:00.000-07:00

Picture Day is one of my least favorite days of the school year. As far back as I can remember its been a horrible day. I've got school pictures to prove it. Lets just say there are some real winners from my school days...some I don't hope see the light of day again. haha! But seriously even movie stars and famous people have horrible or funny school pictures. So I shouldn't really put so much pressure on myself to make sure my girls look just right. Everyone should have at least one school picture they just are mortified by. Right?

So knowing that today was the dreadful day we started our planning last night, mind you its only dreadful to me the girls love picture day.

Kaelyn thought it was only fair that she have something new to wear for picture day since I had picked up a little top for Bryn last weekend and commented that it would be cute for pictures. So I stopped at Old Navy on my way home from Target. hehe! Like that? I did find Kaelyn a cute sweater dress, actually I found two and couldn't decide. So I purchased both with the intent on returning one today. Yeah, yeah, yeah... her big blue eyes and her best british accent (thats another story) pleading with Daddy to let her just keep them both, shot my plan to heck.

After clothes were laid out for pictures the girls decided they'd really like their hair curly and wanted me to put their hair in rollers. Well the last time I attempted rollers it didn't go so well. So after talking with Bree about "rag curls" I tasked Kyle to cut up one of his old shirts into strips of fabric for me. And we went to town on the "rag curls". Not sure I did those quite right either, the you-tube instructional video just wasn't that informative. The other thing about picture day is it reminds me of my own inadequencies as a Mom. I'm not a good hair Mom. I don't enjoy "playing" with hair, its to much pressure. Girls went to bed last night with their hair all tied up in Kyle's old shirt and thought it was soooo funny.

So this morning I wasn't surprised to un-tie the curls and find them all to be kinky frizzy messes. Kaelyn had a few curls that came out in a perfect ringlet. But her hair in the front just doesn't hold curls and by the time we returned home from dropping off Garret at school those ringlets were straight. Bryn's hair was a giant poof ball and there was no way she was going to be able to wear it down like she wanted. She was so mad at me for putting her hair half up with a bow, and then the kicker was when i tried to curl her bangs under a bit and "fluff" them. Oh she hated that and threw a huge tantrum. "It's my hair!" She cried as she stormed off to her bedroom. Gotta love that.

I used the curling iron on the front of Kaelyn's hair hoping to match the curls in the back. We'll see if it lasts...both girls don't even get to take pictures today until after lunch and recess, so no telling what they will look like by then!

Wow such a fun morning...not! Girls were both tardy so I took them in to excuse the tardy.

I thought of going back home and getting in bed after the morning I had. That sounded like the best plan. I have Bible Study on Tuesday's so I too was trying to get ready during all this craziness because I had somewhere to be. Many times this morning I thought to myself "oh no big deal, I can miss Bible Study". But over and over again God kept prompting me to go. I seriously didn't think i'd make it, I was running so late. So I told myself thats fine I'll just grab next week's lesson and then go home and get back in bed. hehe. But sure enough, when I walked in the door everyone was just being dismissed to discussion time. So God knew i'd make it in plenty of time and it was a really good discussion today...God wanted me there to take part of that.

Another Saturday, 2 more soccer games.

2008-09-28T20:09:00.000-07:00

What a great soccer weekend! The weather was awesome! I'll take soccer in the warm sunshine any day over what I know is coming...soccer in the wet, gray, cold weather. Bryn was up first and she was a trooper, she ran hard and did her best despite having a sore throat. Kaelyn's game was alot of fun. The girls all played so great together. Kaelyn scored her first goal of the season and was sooooo excited! It was pretty sweet!

It was extra exciting for the girls because we had a very special guest with us for their games. Paulo from Brazil was in town to visit supporting Churches and we got to bring him along to the games and visit with him for the whole day! Kaelyn and Brynlee both soooo wanted to score a goal while Paulo was watching. haha! I'm so sad I didn't get any pictures of Paulo to share, I don't know what I was thinking. haha! Paulo is a missionary in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Kyle and I have each been on 2 short term mission teams with our Church to Brazil to work with Paulo and Restoration Ministries. We love Paulo and his wife Ireni and the whole staff of Restoration Ministries. They all hold a special place in our hearts and God willing we hope to go back to Brazil with another mission team soon.

It's going to be a long day!

2008-09-26T07:23:00.001-07:00

more animals

Go 'SC! Beat the Beavers!

2008-09-25T07:41:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I'm going to interrupt regular blog posts for a quick little apology to all my OSU Beaver fan friends. I'm pretty sure tonight's game will be a tough one for you folks. Don't get me wrong, I like the Beavers...just not when they are playing USC. Tonight will be such a great football night. Nothing better than a night game in the fall! Love the cool weather, the Trojan Marching Band, and a yummy pretzel with no salt!

Kyle will be there down on the field to do some fireworks. Lucky guy!

Fight on!

Wow...They CAN dance! 4 REAL!

2008-09-22T08:34:00.000-07:00

So You Think You Can Dance Tour was last night! My sister and her hubby got me a ticket back in Aug, for my birthday and I've been so excited for the day to finally come! So last night the 4 of us headed up to Portland after a quick stop at Burgerville for a blackberry shake and sweet potato fries! YUM!

We have been big fans of the show since season 1. I've always wished we could go see them dance live on their tour, but for some reason or another we've never done it.

This season we especially enjoyed some of the amazing things Twitch, Joshua and Gev can do. Kyle isn't a fan of contemporary dance, but he will watch the popping and breaking. So last night we got to see some of the favorite performances of the season. It was pretty cool to see these dances live! I kept waiting for my favorite, Joshua and Katee dancing to No Air. And phew, it was the last performance before the finale. haha! Love that dance!

Joshua and Katee did the Bollywood dance too which was super cool!

Twitch and Katee did the awesome routine with the door to Mercy. It is a really fun dance to watch, its amazing what you can do with a prop.

They had some fun with Gev during the show, with some running jokes about his "love" for Courtney and he looked pretty good in a dress too. hehe! Chelsea and Mark did the dance to Bleeding Love, with the briefcase. I got chills from this dance.

All of them took a turn doing a solo too. Kat wasn't there, darn. Nigel got the show started but not in person, they used a big screen. haha. And Kyle was a bit worried that Mary and her "tamale train" would be there, but was super thankful she was not. haha! A drunk and some over-zealous Grandma's in front of us provided much entertainment as well. LOL!

Overall it was a lot of fun and I'm so happy we went! It was a fantastic night! Thanks a ton for the tickets Bree & Kyle!! Glad we all went!

Out of the woods?

2008-09-19T17:52:00.001-07:00

Is it safe? I hope so...I think we might of dodged the flu for the rest of the family. Garret was feeling better Tuesday, kept him home to be safe. But he was back at school Wednesday and feeling good...except for some minor cold symptoms. So far though no more barf in sight...just a few runny noses. Bryn has complained everyday of a stomach ache. But I think thats just part of her regular morning routine. Oh the joy. No fever, no barf, off to school you go!

Garret has the flu...

2008-09-16T07:32:00.000-07:00

I think he's on the mend...but kept him home from school one more day to be sure. He just got up and hasn't braved food yet this morning so we shall see. He is saying he's hungry, so thats a good sign. Yesterday though he was hungry and ate some saltines and they re-appeared about 20 minutes later.

I lysoled the house yesterday hoping to keep anyone else in the house from catching this bug. Good times.

Soccer begins!

2008-09-13T13:14:00.000-07:00

Soccer season officially kicked off today with Bryn's 8:30am game, followed by Kaelyn's 9:50 game.
The weather was great! Couldn't ask for more perfect soccer weather, and we'll enjoy it while we can because typically its wet, cold, and gray. Brynlee played with a new intensity. She actually ran, and never asked to come out of the game. And guess what? Wait for it... she scored! Seriously. Wahoo! She did awesome. They didn't win today, but I think with a little more direction they will be a great team.

Kaelyn's team actually was up against a U11 team, we didn't know that until after the game. Even though they lost, they played hard. Kaelyn loves soccer, and she's learning so much this year. Her footwork skills are improving greatly, can't wait to see where she is at the end of the season. She still has another game today, and 2 more tomorrow. So she'll have lots of time this season on the field to perfect her skills.

More Soccer pics!

We Remember.

2008-09-11T10:15:00.001-07:00

"The worst day in America's history saw some of the bravest acts in America's history." President Bush

Future Olympic Diver? I hope not.

2008-09-07T20:29:00.001-07:00

Kaelyn really got into the Olympics, actually we all enjoyed watching it together. But Kaelyn has decided she wants to try diving now, that and beach volleyball. (Like I have a clue where she would go to learn how to dive!) haha! But I thought for sure she'd see the high dive and say never mind. Wrong, she watched some video of it online with me and she says, "oh that is soooo cool, I want to do that!" Crazy girl. That plan back-fired on me. So we watched quite a bit of the diving during the Olympics.

So when we had the cousin's visiting from CA we all went to the river. And guess what Kyle let Kaelyn do?!?! Here's the pic...I wish I had braved the raging rapids (I might be exaggerating a smidge, but it adds to the drama) to get a closer shot...NOT! I was freaked out enough from where I was at. Kyle assured me it was perfectly safe. Kaelyn had no fear at all, she'd climb up to the top of that rock and without any second thoughts she'd jump right off. So now she's wondering when her diving lessons will start. Uh??

Here are a few other shots from the day at the river...Bryn and her "no pictures please" attitude. She must be practicing for the paparazzi harassment. I think this was the only picture I got of her that day where she was looking at the camera, the rest she'd quickly turn her head. Booger. Garret enjoyed just floating down the river, oops I mean raging rapids. But still so relaxing!

Look out world, Kaelyn's a 4th grader!

2008-09-03T13:18:00.000-07:00

Oh my goodness, where did time go? I can still remember the first day of kindergarten for Kaelyn like it was yesterday. And here we are today dropping her off in the 4th grade. Yikes! She's growing up to fast. It's like i've blinked and she's no longer my little girl, she's pre-teenish now! We tortured her today with the camera. She pleaded with us to not take her picture and in protest she'd turn her head every time I tried. I got a few good pics of her simply by telling her if she'd just let me take a few good ones i'd stop.

From Backtoschool 9/3/08 10:38 AM

I'm sure she's going to tell me all about how embarrassing we were taking pictures of her in class, but hey we weren't the only parents doing it! She is super excited to have her teacher this year! He is the same teacher Garret had last year, and he's great. She wasn't so thrilled with where she was sitting this morning, I guess the person next to her is a well known nose picker. So she is hoping they don't have to stay in those seats long. Just a few short hours left in the day and then i'll go get them from school. Can't wait to hear how the day went for them all!

From Backtoschool 9/3/08 10:38 AM

Bryn's a 2nd grader!

2008-09-03T12:56:00.003-07:00

I think she was more nervous to start school than she was willing to admit. She had a tummy ache last night and again this morning, but I think it was "butterflies". She was up and ready to go this morning though! Dressed and backpack in hand a little to early even. She did have some issues with me fixing her hair, but quickly got over it. She had hoped I'd put the camera away when we got to school, but I didn't. Neither did Kyle, he was snapping pics of her too. We walked her to class and Kyle helped her get her supplies unloaded while I took Kaelyn to her class. After we said goodbye to Kaelyn, Kyle just wanted one more peek at Boo. She caught him peeking though and blew him a kiss. So sweet. I'm pretty sure that made his day.

From Backtoschool 9/3/08 10:38 AM

Middle School here we come!

2008-09-03T08:11:00.001-07:00

Garret started 6th grade today! Crazy. I know! He was pretty excited. Yesterday he had a half day orientation and was happy to find a few people he knows in his classes. He really likes his home room teacher, Miss Long. He has Spanish 1st period, and is thinking this will be a really fun class. He wasn't super excited about having PE first semester, but I think he'll find its not a big deal. He was very patient with me this morning while I snapped a few pictures. I think by now he knows the drill. haha! I can't wait to hear how his full day went!

From Backtoschool 9/3/08 10:38 AM

Vote for Bree!

2008-08-21T20:46:00.000-07:00

Ok, if you haven't already done this, its not to late!

My sister Bree has a photo in the contest at 5minutesformom.com. PLEASE go and vote for her photo-- vote for Bree!--it is #8 Buhtafly Wings and its the cutest picture of my niece and nephew in goggles! Thank you!!! Now, go vote! Hurry! And feel free to spread the word, we really want her to win! She needs a new camera!

Pig Bowl!

2008-08-21T17:39:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to post this cute pic...Bryn and Marley before they cheered at the Pig Bowl (Sheriff's dept. football game & fundraiser for youth programs). They got to participate in the half-time performance with their Champion Cheer team. It was super fun, and they did a great job for their first performance! Bryn LOVES all things cheerleading right now. Kyle and I watch her and think she's definitely in her element. I'll try to post a few more pics and maybe even some video! haha!

Warning! Be careful who you tag!

2008-08-19T11:59:00.000-07:00

Well I learned a lesson this morning...when tagging be more specific about what "tagging" means! Apparently the message I left in the comment sections at .Lovebug. and His.Beloved letting them know they'd been tagged took on a new meaning at 12:11am!

Check it out... .Lovebug.

Now I need some creative ideas to "tag" them back...anyone?

2008-08-18T23:56:00.000-07:00

My friend Charlotte tagged me! Thanks for that! haha! I actually think i've done this once before, but thought maybe I could try and come up with some new material.

Rules Once Tagged:

1) Link to the person who tagged you.

2) Post the rules on your blog (copy and paste 1-6).

3) Write 6 random things about yourself (see below).

4) Tag 6 people at the end of your post.

5. Let them know they are tagged and leave a comment on their blog.

6) Let the tagger (who tagged you) know when your post is up.

Randomness about me:

1. I love Mint 'N Chip ice cream...but only the green kind, if its not green its no good!

2. I HATE ants! I think I did actually use this one before, but it just needs to be said again! They really creep me out.

3. I like my closet to be unorganized and messy. Its easier for me to keep track of my stuff this way, and it bugs Kyle.

4. I don't like to go to bed at night with a sink full of dishes. FlyLady taught me to shine my sink and I think there was some other stuff too but that is all I remember.

5. Kyle makes the best coffee in the world, and I purposely make it bad so that I don't have to.

6. I can spend hours online reading random blogs, but finish a book that isn't Twilight related is out of the question.

Okay! I tag: Mom, Melissa, Marci, Kendra, Heidi, and Kimmy!

Where will you be 11-21-08?

2008-08-15T22:39:00.000-07:00

I know where i'll be! Twilight (the movie) will now be released 3 weeks earlier! Yeah!! I'm so excited, it will be here before we know it!

We miss Mars & Kelly!

2008-08-13T09:03:00.000-07:00

Our students left on Friday the 8th. There were many tears from all of us. It was so sad to say goodbye. Kaelyn kept asking Kelly, as she was quietly sobbing in the car, if she wanted to stay. She just kept shaking her head yes. So when we get to the Church where the bus was meeting them Kaelyn says while crying, "Ok Kelly you stay here with us, Mars can go home to China". haha.

I was surprised for the tears. Kelly was always so quiet, and not confident enough in her English to try speaking to us much. So I was never really sure if she was doing alright and enjoying her time with us. I'd ask her, and she would just smile and nod. But I didn't think she fully understood what I was asking most of the time. haha. She and the girls did bond pretty quickly and wherever they were Kelly was for the most part. And now the girls really miss her.

Mars was quite a loud character. He was certainly full of life and worked hard at it enjoying it to the fullest. He loved food even more than Garret, and we never thought that possible. His feet would hit the floor in the morning and he was not only "starving" but he was very concerned about what was for lunch and dinner that day. Aside from hotdogs, I don't think I ever made a meal he "loved". His response while eating dinner was always the same, "I do not like".....and we'd tell him to not eat it then and he'd reply, "I do not like...but I eat". Sometimes even eating seconds! haha!

I know Mars did enjoy his time with us! He has this deep belly laugh that was infectious. He would attempt to wrestle with Kyle and get laughing and then we'd all be laughing. And even though we had some challenging moments with Mars he was a blessing to our home for 3 short weeks.

Our house was so quiet when we returned home from dropping them off. Titan was out to greet us, he spent the past 3 weeks hiding from Mars. Mars chased him around the house wanting to "hit him" whenever he'd come out of hiding. We had the remind the kids that yelling wasn't necessary in the house, since the noise decibel was so loud around here for 3 weeks they just got used to being loud.

We had so much fun with them, visiting the capitol, hiking at silver creek falls, floating down the creek at the farm, picking berries, art festival, walking around downtown Portland, olympic games in the park, visiting the fire station, photo scavenger hunt, swimming at the pool, and lots of shopping! Our 3 weeks were jammed packed full of fun outings and adventures and we are so thankful for our time together!

Bryn picked up some Chinese and now is ready to learn the language! Joyce, one of the teachers with the students, told me that her accent is very good and she spoke very well. When I'd attempt to speak Chinese it was usually followed by many giggles from the students. So i'm pretty sure I wasn't saying it even close!

Not really knowing much about the Chinese culture or its people, this really opened our eyes to an area of the world we may not of otherwise been interested in. But now Kyle and I are ready to plan a trip to China! Although my reason would be to learn more about the history, people and bring home a baby! haha! Not sure if Kyle is on board with that plan though! hehe! He'll come around!

Happy Birthday Bryn!

2008-08-12T12:01:00.001-07:00

So Bryn's birthday was just one of the many crazy things we've been kept busy with the last few weeks. But I didn't want it to go unmentioned! It was a great day, we had her party at the park with lots of little people in attendance. She wanted a mad scientist theme party, that was a hard one to work with but I think we pulled it off. She requested a cake that looked like a brain, I did my best. haha. We had a few games that were science related...one was build a tower using toothpicks, tootsie rolls, and gummy bears and Bryn judged 1st, 2nd, and 3rd places. And we made Brynee Boo Goo for all the kids to take home. Grandpa and Dad did the mento in diet soda experiment for all the kids to enjoy, that was wild! It shot up high in the sky! And then we ended the night with the giant slide and some baby shampoo for soapy slippery fun! Bonus the kids all smelled good after the slide! It was chilly though so the slide didn't last long before the kids were to cold. She was very excited to get her first American Girl doll, Mia! Grandma and Grandpa got her the matching jammies for her and Mia and she's worn them just about every night since! Grandma Ramsay made her a bed set to go on the bed that Kyle made for her and she loves it! Mia sleeps in her own bed right next to Bryn. So here is a slideshow of the party, enjoy! I just can't believe that my little baby is 7. Its nuts. They just grow to darn fast. She's still the "baby" of the family but she certainly isn't a baby. She's 7 going on 17. Have to be careful with this one...she loves all things "teen" and we definitely aren't ready to go there!

So much to post! So little time!

2008-08-08T10:31:00.000-07:00

Ok, so i'm so far behind...we've been doing so much lately! I want to post it all, but that will have to wait until this weekend when things slow down a bit. Our Chinese students leave today, there will be many tears. We've had such a great time getting to know and love them all. I'll post much more about our experiences, fun, and Brynee boo's birthday! But there was one small exchange yesterday in the car between Bryn and I that I just have to document!!

It was just her and I...Garret was with a friend for the afternoon and same with Kaelyn. We were driving home and she was quite upset about not being off somewhere with a friend too, you know life isn't fair! She protested, "I hate being a single child!" Translation, I want to be off at a friends house playing, not stuck home alone. Anyway, as funny as that was it wasn't that part that was the best. She was quiet in the backseat for half the ride home then out of nowhere:

Bryn: "Mom I don't want to get married."
Me: "why not?"
Bryn: "Do I have to get married?"
Me: "No, but you have to be married to have kids."
Bryn: "I don't want to have any kids either then."
Me: "Why not?"
Bryn: "I want to have a job instead. I want to work when I grow up."
Me: "Really, what job do you want?"
Bryn: "I want to work at Petco!"
Me: "Well you can do that while you are in high school, or even college"
Bryn: "No Mom I want to work there for a very long time!"

Good to have goals I guess. Petco? haha!

Welcome China!

2008-07-21T21:06:00.000-07:00

Mars and Kelly arrived on Wednesday! They are our new Chinese daughter and son for 3 weeks. Garret, Kaelyn, and Brynlee have been so excited to have them come...they've been counting the days! Garret is sharing his room with Mars and Kelly has Bryn's room...Bryn is in with Kaelyn. Mars and Kelly are very fun and we are enjoying getting to know them. Mars is quite a character, he certainly isn't shy and he isn't afraid to try new things. Kelly is sweet and quiet, she loves being with the girls. I think. haha. They get along super anyways. Kelly is 14 and Mars is 12. Teenagers! haha! So far this has been a great experience! We are learning a little Chinese, and hopefully helping them learn some English. Communication is our only struggle, but we are figuring out how despite the language barrier.
During the weekday they are with the other Chinese Students studying English for 3 hours in the morning and then after a lunch break each day they get to take a tour or do something fun. Last week they toured a downtown fire station and walked to River Front park. We went along on that trip, it was fun. Then Friday they got to go to the Oregon Coast and outlets for the day. The weekend is our time to entertain them...so Saturday they wanted to go pick berries, so a group of us went to Olson Farms and picked raspberries, blueberries and cherries. Yum! And Sunday a bunch of us walked around the Salem Art Festival. I think they really enjoyed seeing all the different art booths. A few of them bought some small prints to take home. So we have lots more fun planned during the next 2.5 weeks. I'll try and keep updating!

This is awesome!

2008-07-09T09:25:00.001-07:00

If you have a few minutes watch this video, its pretty awesome! I didn't have the sound working for some reason when Kelli showed it to me, but even with no sound it is powerful. But turn up the volume and watch this video!

Friday Re-cap

2008-07-05T12:22:00.000-07:00

Well I was wrong about last night, there wasn't any fighting, arguing or complaining! Never once did I hear "i'm bored". haha! The kids had a great time! They fed some geese that were down by the river, they liked ritz crackers and vanilla wafers. Then when they'd given them all that, the kids gave them left over pizza crust. Garret took some good pictures of the babies, i'll have to get those shots from him to share. Garret finished another book he was reading at the parade, so he brought a new book with him to Springfield and read like 100 pages or something crazy like that. I'm so glad he enjoys reading! The girls just entertained themselves, playing catch, musical chairs, and general goofing around. The fireworks started right around 10pm and then we went over and helped with clean-up while the kids watched Ratatouille in the car. We made pretty good time with clean-up and were on our way to Denny's before midnight! A new record maybe? Everyone looks forward to the Denny's tradition, even Bryn who fell asleep on the way didn't mind being woken up to have a yummy midnight snack or was it an early breakfast? haha! Speaking of Bryn...we think maybe this year was the first year she didn't fall asleep during the fireworks! Marley and her were sharing a chair and chatting the whole time, so Bryn got to see a show from start to finish! It was a great show! Lots of oooohs and ahhhs from the crowd!
We went to the Monmouth/Independence parade earlier in the day and the kids enjoyed scrambling for all the candy that was thrown their way! I enjoyed the Dutch Bros coffee that we sat in front of! Yum! Bree took some pics of the parade, so i'll have to get those from her to share! Last year it was super hot, so we made sure and came prepared for the heat with extra water bottles, sunscreen, etc. But this year it was much cooler, and we should of brought sweatshirts! brrrr! haha!

Happy 4th of July!

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

Hope you and your families are out enjoying the summer sun, and planning on watching an amazing fireworks display somewhere. We'll be at a parade in the morning with the kids, and then we'll be working up a sweat getting the show ready in Springfield, Or. Of course I won't be working as hard as the rest of the crew who will have been at it since 8am. haha! The kids will entertain themselves near the parked cars for a bit; think Ipod, DS, PSP, books..but more likely it will be fighting, arguing, complaining! LOL! I'll have pics to post Saturday! Stay safe, be cool! If you want to come see a fantastic fireworks show head our way!

Cape Perpetua

2008-06-29T21:49:00.000-07:00

So we packed up and headed out of town this weekend. We sort of decided last minute that camping would be fun and Kyle was able to get Friday off so we left out Thursday. Reserve America said there was not one reservable site in the state of Oregon for the weekend. But we decided to take our chances. We went with some good friends of ours and they left out early afternoon Thursday and were planning on hitting all the first come first serve sites on their list from Lincoln City to almost Florence. They called that afternoon and had found two spots at Cape Perpetua, about 23 miles south of Newport. It was listed in Kyle's top 100 tent camping sites book. So we figured it had to be a good spot! And it was! There was so much to do! The weather was beautiful, sunny during the day and just a bit chilly at night. We hiked trails around the campground, we took a lighthouse tour, explored some tide pools, fed a blue jay named "Jay" (I think every site had their own personal blue jay), and of course made smores! Camp hosts came by our 2nd night to let us know we may not want the kids to wander off to far because one of the other campers came across a Mountain Lion. We were also told at the visitors center that the day before one of the forest rangers spotted 3 black bears! Fun! Well of course the mention of Mountain Lions sent the kids into a bit of a frenzy and it was the talk of the camp the rest of our trip.
We only had one injury and thankfully it came as we were packing up to go home. Bryn ate it on the scooter and took out a big chunk of skin on her knee..its pretty gross! Thank goodness she was wearing a helmet! So the only negative about Cape Perpetua was the lack of showers! So when we got home we had several days worth of dirt and grime to soak off. haha! Ewe! But we can't wait to go again! Hopefully we'll get to camp a few more times this summer. Here are a few more pics of the weekend!

Hey's its Wednesday!

2008-06-25T21:42:00.000-07:00

I see these "wordless wednesday" blog posts all over in bloggy-land. So thought i'd post a pic today! I know technically i'm not supposed to post any text but oh well. You won't want to miss this show, Titan opens for Hannah Montana!

Premiere party!

2008-06-22T17:44:00.000-07:00

So the girls were so excited to see the Camp Rock movie on Disney, we decided to let them have a party with all their friends! It was fun. We got some pizza, snacks, and ice cream sundaes, and watched the movie with 11 screaming girls and 1 boy! (Garret and his friends Jackson and Carlin were also there but had no desire to watch the movie so instead they played on the Wii). haha! The girls got up and danced with the music and screamed just about every time Joe Jonas opened his mouth or Nick Jonas came on the screen. LOL! Easton even screamed, but i'm pretty sure he had no clue what the girls were screaming about. Kaelyn "hearts" Joe Jonas, but the majority of the girls had a crush on Nick. haha.

5-day club turned water fight

2008-06-21T17:44:00.000-07:00

We had a 5-day club at the park again this year, it was super fun. I think we averaged 17 kids a day! The last day of the 5-day club the kids always come dressed to get wet. Usually they have a water balloon toss which turns into a water balloon fight. This year we had water balloons but we also brought out the giant inflatable water slide. So the kids had a blast playing on that. Here are a few more pics...

It wasn't THAT windy!

2008-06-16T21:44:00.000-07:00

Kaelyn went in her room to get in her jammies tonight and came running out, "the tree, the tree, something is wrong with the tree!" Uh, yeah I'd say something is wrong! Half of it is in the street and cars can't get down the road. Kyle sawed it off when he got home from the movies with Garret (they went and saw The Hulk). Kyle thinks its going to have to come down, looks like it might be dead inside...giant BUMMER! I love that tree! We are thankful that nobody was standing under it, or climbing on it when it broke...also glad that there wasn't a car parked there this evening! Guess we'll get some firewood out of it.

Happy Father's Day!

2008-06-15T17:08:00.001-07:00

fa•ther•s day (fa'ther's day) n. 1. a day where children show appreciation to their daddies for all that he has sacrificed & done for the love he has for his children. 2. a celebration for a great man also know as daddy. 3. a Father is someone you look up to no matter how tall you grow.

Tentatively Titan

2008-06-11T21:01:00.001-07:00

It's a boy! I've been wanting to get a kitten for sometime now...driving Kyle NUTS, stalking craigslist looking for the perfect kitten. No luck. To be fair, i've been super picky...and really more passively looking than anything. Don't tell Kyle that. haha. So when a friend called to tell me there were a few long-haired kittens waiting to be adopted of course I had to just go have a "look". Kyle knew I wouldn't just be "looking" but I wasn't really expecting it would be a kitten i've been looking for. To be honest, aside from the longer hair, he wasn't what I had been looking for at all. But there was just something about the little guy that caught my eye. The kids jumping up and down begging to take him home didn't help. haha. So we left and I went back alone to have another "look". Yep, confirmed...I wanted him. haha. He's fitting in nicely so far and providing us with tons of entertainment!

Goodbye 5th Grade!

2008-06-10T19:18:00.000-07:00

So its official, Garret is no longer in elementary school. Next year he moves on to middle school. Crazy! I can't believe how fast the time goes. I can still so vividly remember his first day of kindergarten...like it was yesterday! He clung to Kyle, hiding his head in Kyle's chest, begging us to not leave.
Garret makes us so proud. He is a smart and funny boy. He loves to read, geesh he can read a book faster than anyone I know! He says his favorite subject in school is science. He'd like to be an author someday and with his creative imagination I know he'd be successful! He loves penguins. He loves cheese. He enjoys playing football and basketball. It's such an amazing journey watching him grow and change and become the person God means for him to be.
A group of us 5th grade Mom's have been fundraising most of the year to raise money for the 5th grade celebration. We wanted to do it at Bullwinkles Family Fun Center, rather than in the school gym like years past. We reached our goal in May and so the celebration was on! We had it Monday, and the 5th graders had a BLAST! It was really fun...bumper boats, mini golf, batting cages, go carts, video games, laser tag, oh my! Left at 9am and got back to the school at 2;45pm. The teachers had just as much fun with the kids. I got to take a ton of pictures and then on the drive home put together a video slide show for all the parents to see.The school doesn't do a "graduation" but we had parents meet in the gym and called up kids to receive a certificate of achievement, watched the video I put together and then had some cake. We also had some t-shirts done up for all the 5th graders to wear and so the kids finished signing shirts with sharpies too. Garret had a great time, it was really fun for Kyle and I to go with them to Bullwinkles and see Garret enjoying himself with friends.