Light house

Oh dear--it's been a LONG time!

2011-07-10T21:22:00.006-05:00

My handsome little cowboy on his way to the square dance.

The beautiful chalk cliffs at Deer Valley Ranch, Buena Vista Colorado

So it's been nearly 6 months since I've blogged. There's no way I can catch up! So here's what's going on right now.

I'm working as the props mistress at OAT this summer! It's been fun---I'm still "involved" in the process, but I work on my own schedule. Two shows down, one more to go.

I'm taking Jenna to Harding for summer orientation on Thursday. I'm so excited for her to get her classes scheduled and all that jazz. I have this feeling that I'll be envious of all the fun stuff she has ahead of her! I'm not going to talk about how I feel about her leaving me in about 6 weeks...... :-(

On Sunday, I'm taking Clarissa to Harding for Summer Honor Choir. Then going back again on Friday to pick her up. Yes, that's THREE trips in 8 days. I have this feeling that I better get used to it.

Summer activities: We cut our school year short and went to Joplin, MO to do tornado recovery work. On May 22 an EF5 tornado tore through about 1/3 of that city. We drove down on Wed., May 25. I worked 2 days, while the girls worked for 5 days, sorting food, and other donations, distributing these donations to those who had lost their homes, and sorting through homes, helping to recover what could be saved and cleaning up what couldn't. There really are no words to explain any further. It was overwhelming. Kenny worked one day, then we needed to come home to care for Meredith and Matthew. We didn't want to leave---there is so much work still left to be done.

In June, we traveled to Deer Valley Ranch in Buena Vista CO with my parents, and my niece, Nickie. My brother and his family met us there. We had a week full of hiking, horseback riding, swimming, square dancing, eating, and making new friends.

We stopped in Colorado Springs on the way to DVR. We had the famouse chuckwagon dinner at the Flying W Ranch---a place my parents took me when I was about 5. We visited the Olympic training Center (a very cool FREE place to visit!) and we drove to the top of Pikes Peak. (If you ever go, you have to buy the donuts at the top! They're yummy!) We stopped in CS again on the way home, visiting the Focus on the Family visitors Center. The girls recorded their own episode of Adventures in Odyssey! It was a cheesy script--but they had fun, and we got a CD of their show.

OK--that's all for now! Maybe I'll stop in again sometime soon!

Birthdays!

2011-01-27T14:46:00.003-06:00

It's been birthday week here at the Lighthouse. As of Monday, Jenna is 17, and Meredith turned 6 on Wednesday.

Kenny and I took Jenna to Sybils for dinner on Saturday night. It's an "adult" restaurant. (meaning there is NOT a kids menu!) We had such a nice time, spending a couple of hours just visiting and sharing. Jenna really is an "adult" now! I already find myself feeling sad that she'll be heading to college in just a few short months. A sweet friend reminded me not to ruin her excitement by being too sad. I think I already knew this, but I was so glad that she said it--so I could really think about it. I really AM excited for Jenna to go to Harding. (our campus visit in Dec. was great!) I'm excited about what the future holds for her. BUT---She will be SO missed around here! She is such a help to me and she is my friend. I will miss her companionship. (and I miss her taxi services!)

Meredith wanted a pony for her birthday. She didn't get one. But she was happy with her Rapunzel/Tangled doll, and Princess Color Wonder coloring posters. She especially liked her can of silly string. It doesn't take much to thrill a 6 year old!

Kindergarten

2011-01-25T10:53:00.002-06:00

Meredith whines about doing her school work. Today, Clarissa and Rebecca challenged her to a race, to see who could finish their work first. Boy, did Meredith get moving!

Later, she was (again) whining saying, "It's too much work!" Clarissa sat down in the floor with her and patiently helped her, encouraged her, teased her, and made it lots of fun. Clarissa is going to be a great teacher some day. And I confess.....she's made me lazy. :-)

I just heard, "I'm done! I'm done! I'm done!"

the running report

2011-01-17T21:15:00.002-06:00

With the passing of my grandmother, I failed to write about the results of my 5K!

On Dec. 3, 2010, I ran the Reindeer Run 5K in Republic MO. I finished with a time of 34:25. This placed me 9th in my age group out of 20 runners. I placed 133rd overall of 236 runners.

My goal was to finish in under 35 mins, so I was pleased!

Sad, but mixed with Joy

2010-12-20T13:26:00.004-06:00

My Grandmother died last week. As mentioned in my previous post, we knew she would leave us soon. We had planned a family Christmas celebration at the nursing home where she resided for Sat. Dec. 11, so several of my extended family members were all there. At 3:00 am that day, my mother awoke me, saying that hospice had called and Grandma wasn't doing well. We headed to the nursing home, arriving about 4 am. We spent the day together, watching her slowly decline. While sad, it was also such a sweet time of togetherness with my family. To see my uncle play hymns (recorded on his iphone) next to Grandma's ear, and then a time of us singing together, through the tears; to see my cousins from Texas that I hadn't seen in about 5 years, to see the faith of my family, in action. Grandma died about 30 minutes after we left to return home. Mom said it got quiet, so she thought Grandma must have thought the party was over and it was time to go home. Home--home to her heavenly Father, safe in the arms of Jesus.

The funeral was a sweet time of reunion also, getting the chance to visit with other relatives I'd not seen in a while, and meeting some that I'd never even met! It's strange how sadness can be mixed with joy.

My Grandmother

2010-11-23T07:48:00.003-06:00

I went to visit my dear grandmother in Kansas City yesterday. She's 91 and isn't expected to live very much longer. She's lost circulation in one of her feet and fluid is accumulating around her heart. As she was lying in her bed, with her beautiful white hair, and a baby blue fleece blanket snuggled around her face, she had a peaceful smile on her face as she listened to my conversation with my mother. I pray that when she goes, she will look like that; so peaceful and happy.

As I hugged her good-bye, kissed her soft cheek, and told her that I loved her, her scratchy voice said, "I love you too, baby" and I wondered if would be the last time I would hear her voice. I know Mom was thinking the same thing. The tears were flowing as we left.

I haven't died yet....

2010-11-23T07:42:00.002-06:00

Thought I just blog, just so you would know that the training hasn't killed me yet! :-)

I have less than 2 weeks to race day. I don't like running yet. I thought I would by now. It IS getting better though. Originally, I thought my goal would be to run the whole 5K without walking. I've concluded that it's not going to happen. I'm happy with the fact that I can run over a mile without walking. It's a great achievement for me! :-)

an Announcement!

2010-10-11T23:00:00.003-05:00

It's official! I'm training, with my friend Allison, to run a 5K. I AM NOT a runner! I've never been a runner, BUT hopefully I can become one now. My dad is a runner. He's run 15 marathons. He ran one last December at the age of 74! But I did not get the running genes. I've always said that I have small lungs, which makes it hard for me to run. We measured lung capacity in physiology class in college. I had the smallest lungs in the class. But I'm ready to "expand" them.

I did my first training run yesterday. I am SO sore today! But tomorrow, I will do another training run. I have a schedule to follow and I will follow it---even if it kills me!

Allison is a runner. She probably wouldn't say that she's a runner, but I think she is. Kenny said she has good running form. (He didn't say that about me! LOL!) She'll push me. She inspires me! I'll keep you updated on my progress. If I don't, you'll know that it killed me!

New Dishes!

2010-10-06T11:17:00.003-05:00

There are certain things in life that I think should "match;" towels, sheets and dishes. While I'm certainly not judgemental about someone else's home! (Don't worry--I don't even NOTICE these things at other peoples houses!) for me, I like to have these things match the other decor. In the past, when I've moved into a new home, I've purchased towels and dishes to match, EXCEPT for when we moved into our current home two years ago. I didn't have time to shop and I did have any extra cash at the time. SO--for two years we've been using the old dishes; the dishes that are really looking BAD due to their age, (they have a design on them that has mostly worn off) and that are green and peach. My kitchen is painted gold and I have lovely red canisters!

Last week, I received in the mail, my Kohl's discount coupon and sale ad. Fiestaware was on a great sale AND I got a 30% off coupon!!!! How exciting! So on Saturday, I went to Springfield with the sole purpose of buying new dishes. I love my new scarlett and sunflower Fiesta dishes! They make me smile! My kids love them too. Isn't it silly that "dishes" can bring such joy? But they do!

Puppies! What a surprise!

2010-09-27T12:25:00.003-05:00

Saturday morning, we had a surprise at our house! Leia, Clarissa's border collie, had puppies! We didn't even know she was expecting! So we now have 7 little black and white puppies! (She gave birth to 8, but unfortunately, the tiny little Snoopy died in the night last night)

Now we're waiting for Sally to have her puppies. As a short little beagle, her dragging belly is unmistakably full of babies! :-)

A Birthday Celebration

2010-09-24T13:42:00.002-05:00

Yesterday, we celebrated Clarissa's 13th birthday. She was 13 on July 24, 2009. Yes, that was a year and 2 months ago, but we never celebrated.....until yesterday!

When Jenna turned 13, she invited 5 friends to go to St. Louis with her. We went to the art museum, lunch at Olive Garden and ice skating at the mall. So when Clarissa was 13 last year, we kept trying to figure out a good plan for her celebration. But it never worked out, until now!

Yesterday, we went to St. Louis, taking her friend Joy Nisbett, and her mother, Kim. We started out by stopping at Mobil on the Run for quarter drinks,(thanks Cardinals!) went to Olive Garden for lunch and then on to the Fabulous Fox Theatre to see "Shrek the Musical." It was AWESOME! I never really cared for the movie, in fact, I've never sat through the whole thing. It never "grabbed" my attention. But the live version..... I loved it! The music was wonderful, the costumes and puppets, and set were all beautiful. The singing was superb! And the story is really pretty sweet too!

After a run through Sam's, we ended the day by stopping for Hot and Ready Krispy Kreme donuts! Yum! I've never had one fresh off the conveyor belt! It's really a good thing we have to drive to St. Louis to get fresh Krispy Kremes!

And in case you're wondering, yes, I really like celebrating my kids' birthdays. This was such a good tradition to start! ;-)

Celebrating 50 years!

2010-09-02T20:56:00.002-05:00

Photos by Parrett Photography/ Angie Parrett

The cake was a near replica of their wedding cake 50 years ago. (see photo below)

Anniversary Weekend!

2010-09-02T20:42:00.003-05:00

50 years together--still walking hand in hand

Our whole family--Mom and Dad, my brother and his family, my sister and her family, and our family

My parents and our family

Meredith--looking beautiful!

Matthew playing croquet.

My Parents have been married for FIFTY years!

2010-08-26T13:10:00.004-05:00

I love my parents! They are wonderful people. They are my friends and they love my children. What more could a girl ask for??

Tomorrow is the 50th Anniversary of their wedding, August 27, 1960. They had only met 2 months earlier, on June 27th. It was the summer after Mom had finished her freshman year of college. Her boyfriend had left town for the summer, to sell Bibles, door to door. She just wanted to go water skiing..... Dad had a boat! The rest is history! I've always loved their story.

Now, as a mother of 4 girls, this story has become somewhat disturbing! How will I feel if MY daughters decide to do something like this when they are only 18? In light of the fact that Mom and Dad have been married for 50 years?..... Hmmmm..... I'll have to think on that for a while! Or maybe I won't have to!

Our family will all be together this weekend to celebrate. I'll post pictures of them "now" next week.

New School Year!

2010-08-19T20:59:00.002-05:00

We started school this week. It's gone ok so far. I'm still working this week, so that has made it more challenging. Last Spring when I started working, it worked out well, but NOW we have a kindergartener! Meredith is SOOOO excited about school! She's mad when we are busy and "skip" the day. But K is so easy for her that we do 2 or more lessons in one day--so we can afford to skip a day here and there. Jenna is loving British Literature (Sonlight 530). I'm doing American History with Clarissa and Rebecca (Sonlight 100). I think it's supposed to be self study, but I LIKE to do it with them--so I'm reading the history aloud to them.

Tomorrow is my last regular day of work. I'm staying on as "irregular part time" so that I can sub for the courier sometimes. They've already asked me to work 2 days in Sept.

Jury Duty

2010-08-10T18:47:00.003-05:00

I've had jury duty since May 1, but yesterday was the first time I had to report. May, June and July were so busy that all the days I was called, I had an excused absence. So I arrive yesterday and am assigned #4. For some reason, I felt like I would be chosen for the jury---and I was! So I spent all day today listening to testimony. I will do the same tomorrow and the next too. I must say, besides the incredible cold temperature of the courtroom, I am enjoying the experience. And the timing couldn't have been better. Our calender is completely clear this week. I had planned to start school on Thursday, but it won't hurt to wait until Monday. We homeschool so we can be flexible, right?

Wow--twice in one week!

2010-08-06T12:42:00.002-05:00

Times are changing again! Kenny has accepted a new position at Ft. Leonard Wood. He starts Aug. 16. I've turned in my resignation at work. Although I love my job, I'm very thankful that I'll be able to be home full time again. I feel blessed that God provided a job for me when it was needed, and blessed that it wasn't needed for very long.

summarized summer

2010-08-02T09:05:00.003-05:00

It's August! Where did the summer go? We start school in 10 days!

For me, June was filled with fun at the theatre. I played the role of Miss Casewell in Agatha Christie's "The Mousetrap." It was challenging and very fun! Rehearsals started June 1, we opened on the 17th and ran through the 27th. Fast and furious! During that time, Jenna went to Washington D.C. for a week, as a part of the Rural Electric Youth Tour. She won an essay contest sponsored by Intercounty Electric. I won this same contest 26 years ago--so it was pretty special for me too! In addition to Jenna being gone, Clarissa was gone for 10 days. She went to Deer Valley Guest Ranch in Colorado with my parents, and had a blast!

While I was finishing my Mousetrap run, the girls started rehearsals for "Annie." They opened July 8, running through July 18. Jenna was in the adult chorus, being the apple seller, Annette (one of Warbucks' maids) and one of the Boylan sisters. Rebecca and Clarissa were orphans.

After the closing Sunday matinee, Jenna made her first solo road trip! She went to Searcy AR, to go to Harding's Summer Honor Choir program. It was a somewhat uneventful trip, but this Momma was a little nervous! She thought she was lost at one point, but she actually wasn't. I was very thankful for the phone call at 10:30 pm saying that she had arrived safely. Her return home on Saturday--during the day--was much less stressful for us all! I'm thankful for cell phones. How did my parents survive my first solo road trip??????

This week, Jenna is being a counselor at Little Prairie Bible Camp. Clarissa and Rebecca are there also, as campers. I'm prepping for school.

Jenna is a senior this year. She'll be doing Sonlight's British Lit program, finishing up some of her electives and studying for the ACT. I've been thinking way too much about the fact that this is our last year with her home! There seems to be so much that I still want to tell her, teach her, experience with her! But I am confident that she'll be fine--and even better than fine--even if we don't accomplish all that I would like.

I'll be doing Sonlight 100, American History, with Rebecca and Clarissa. When Jenna did it, she was "on her own" so I'm excited about being a participant this time. Our big school "change" is that Meredith is starting Kindergarten! Oh my, I have to go from being a "consultant" to being a teacher again! And Matthew is going to go to Day School! He's actually 24 days too young, but because the girls work there, (and because he is FINALLY potty trained! Hallulujah!) they're letting him come early. Praying for a blessed year!

Last year, I had hoped for a "normal" year--no moving, births or other interruptions. For the most part, it was normal. Somehow holiday theatre productions seem to interrupt more than I would like, but we made it through in a somewhat "normal" manner. So this year, I'm praying for a blessed, extraordinary, normal year!

And maybe I'll blog more...... Don't count on it!

2010-04-30T08:36:00.002-05:00

Jenna said that I am a bad blogger (no great revelation there!). So I'm updating today, simply so I can tell her that I blogged THREE times in April! :-)

Jenna has decided that she would like to learn to play the cello (she said it is a NEED, not a WANT). So she needs a cello to play. Anyone have a cello they would like to sell, cheap? :-)

We will be celebrating Mother's Day a week early this year. Mother's Day weekend is a great time to go camping, so I'm cooking dinner for my mother THIS Sunday, instead of on the nationally recognized day. Who says we should honor them only on a certain day? We should honor them ALL the time! Jenna asked me if she can use my debit card to get part of my mothers day gift.... hmmm....I'm not sure how I feel about that! :-) She's never written a check to anyone except for me. I give her cash, she writes me a check. I need to get her a debit card that debits HER account!

Snoopy!

2010-04-23T23:53:00.002-05:00

Tonight I finally got the chance to see the WHOLE show--"Snoopy! the Musical." Meredith was a Woodstock and a pumpkin. She was the wigglyish pumpkin and it was my first time to see a pumpkin wave! (she had a friend sitting on the front row!) The Woodstock dance was so cute! Clarissa was one of the Lucys. She was loud, obnoxious and cute--just as Lucy should be! Rebecca was one of the Peppermint Pattys. So cute! I was so proud of each and every one of them! Kenny and I will be going tomorrow night, which will be their last performance.

Kenny killed a turkey this morning. Matthew was running around the house saying, "Daddy shot a gobbler!" Adorable! Our friend John is here to hunt in the morning. It's supposed to storm all weekend. Hope they don't mind being wet......

time for a new update?

2010-04-14T07:46:00.002-05:00

so once again I will say it, I'm not a very good blogger! :-)

We've had lots of changes since I last wrote! The biggest one being my new part time job. I didn't even know that I was wanting a part time job, but God have provided the most perfect job for me! I'm working for the hospital outreach lab as a courier. I work 1:30-7 pm on Mon, Tues., Thurs. and Fri. I drive to 4 different clinics, picking up specimens and test orders. When I return to the lab, I process them into the lab for testing. Here's why it's perfect: no late nights, no weekends, quiet time in the car to pray, sing, be silent, think, memorize lines for the upcoming play that I'm in, listen to encouraging messages such a sermons and homeschool conference speakers. In addition to all this, I like that I'm pretty much "on my own" to get my work finished. When I'm finished, I can go home. I'm very much an independent kind of person, so I like this part a lot! I feel so blessed!

One of the other advantages to this arrangement is that I am forced to be more organized with my time. In order to feed my family, I HAVE to have menus planned and a good grocery list. Jenna has been fabulous about getting dinner ready. (If you have never seen the "Saving Dinner" cookbook--you should check it out. 8 weeks of menus for each of the 4 seasons, complete with side dishes, although sometimes they are strange choices!--we're flexible with it. We've used it long enough to know which things we prefer to skip). I've also had to be more organized with our schooling--which is never a bad thing!

and on that note--it's time to get school started! I'll not promise to write more later--but I will try! :-)

a short update

2009-11-30T07:23:00.003-06:00

Wow, I'm not a very good blogger! It's been a while since I've been on here!

The major project that has kept me from blogging was "Scrooge, the Musical." The 3 oldest girls and I were in this show at Ozark Actors Theatre. I was the Ghost of Christmas Past, and the wine merchant (kind of a funny role for me since I don't really know much about wine. Just goes to show you what a great actress I am! LOL!). Clarissa was Martha Cratchit, Jenna was Miss Dilber and Mary, and Rebecca was an urchin. We started rehearsals back in October, and had 10 performances, Nov. 12-22. It was great fun, but basically took up our entire lives during a 3 1/2 week time period, so I'm glad that life is getting back to "normal"--whatever that is!

Jenna, Clarissa and I went to Harding for homecoming in Oct. It was my 20 year reunion. Guess what the homecoming musical was this year! "Scrooge, the Musical." It was rather strange watching it, as we had already started rehearsing. It was great to see so many friends from my college days, HUF, Chorus (chorus reunion is always a favorite activity! so fun to sing those songs from long ago!) and friends from Kansas City too. It was a fast and furious trip so as to only miss one day of rehearsal back here in Rolla.

Thanksgiving was fun. We went to Kansas City to see my 90 yo. Grandmother, Aunts, Uncles, and a few cousins. Did a little black Friday shopping--but I DID NOT get up at 4 am! We left the house about 9:30, and guess what! the stores were not sold out of all the good stuff!

enough of an update for now.

12 Angry Men

2009-10-01T09:23:00.003-05:00

Fine Linen Drama presents "12 Angry Men" at the Cedar Street Playhouse, Oct 2, 3, 9, 10.

Our final dress rehearsal was last night, so on to opening night on Friday! I am the costumer for this show. It's been fun and interesting. I now know where several new thrift shops are located! I've measured the inseams of more slacks than I care to mention and across the shoulders, and down the sleeves of WAY too many jackets, and shirts! Although there are a few things that aren't as I had hoped, I'm pleased, overall, with how everyone looks.

Pictures to be posted sometime..... :-)

12 Men

2009-09-18T12:23:00.002-05:00

I'm currently working on costuming "12 Angry Men" for Fine Linen Drama. It's my first experience in costuming, and I think it's going pretty well. Thankfully, it's not a job for which I have to be a seamstress. I've even called in help for the alterations that need to be done. The show opens Oct. 2, and runs through Oct. 10 at The Cedar Street Center/Playhouse. Come out and see the show!

school days 2009

2009-09-09T14:25:00.003-05:00

We've now settled in to a good routine for school. Jenna is a junior this year, doing Sonlight 400 ( I think--it's the American Government core), Algebra 2, finishing up Chemistry, and doing lots of music and art. She loving all the great literature that she gets to read this year! She's had a slight interruption this week as she had her wisdom teeth out last Fridayand is still a little sore and swollen.

Clarissa is in 8th grade. We're re-doing Core 5 as we didn't do very well on the Eastern Hemisphere Explorer the last time, 3 years ago, (and Rebecca was too young and needs to do it). She's finishing up General Science, and will move into physical science in a few weeks. For math, she's doing Algebra 1.

Rebecca is in 6th grade. She opted to use Abeka's math this year and is somewhat regretting that decision. She thought a workbook would be easier than Saxon. She's doing Apologia Astronomy and is loving it. Her balloon model solar system in the basement is great. As she was blowing up the balloons she thought it was pretty funny to say that she "blew up the sun."

Meredith is going to preschool at our church. My dad is her teacher, which is way cool! I love that my dad went from being "Dr. Gillett "as a university prof. to being "Mr. Bill "the preschool teacher. He's made the trasition well!

Matthew? He's just a wild and crazy interuption to our whole morning--and he's my absolute joy! He's constantly making me laugh! He turned two a couple of weeks ago.

I'm hoping for a "normal" school year. Just what is normal? No babies being born, no moving, no health problem, no major interuptions. It's been a while since we had a normal year...

the start of school

2009-08-17T14:01:00.001-05:00

Today is supposed to be our first day of school. The kids are all excited and doing all their work. I'm not feeling well, and am lying in bed. Hmmm... glad they can get along without me! :-)

Luba's week with us

2009-07-15T15:38:00.004-05:00

( This picture is out of order) Here is Luba with her "birthday" presents at our annual cousin's camp. Because my brother lives so far away (and because it's hard to remember everyone's birthdays) we do all our gift exchanging at cousin's camp. Luba was thrilled with her watercolor tubes and other art supplies. Doesn't she have a beautiful smile?

Meeting Luba at the airport. Their plane was scheduled to arrive at 10:50 pm but actually arrived 30 mins. EARLY! (who ever heard of an early plane???)

Because of the late hour of arrival, only Clarissa traveled to St. Louis with us to pick her up.

Meredith and Luba at Maramec Springs, our Sunday afternoon activity with the other children from Russia.

Luba is visiting.

2009-07-04T13:03:00.002-05:00

Last night we drove to the St. Louis airport to pick up Luba. She is from Russia and will be staying with us until July 13. She is with a program called the Lighthouse Project. They bring older orphans to the USA in hopes that they will find a family to adopt them. She will be going to a VBS done in Russian for 3 days this week, so she can learn about Jesus.

Luba is 13 and is oh so sweet! Although she speaks no English and we don't speak Russian, we've had fun communicating! She's already picking up some English words and we're finding out that despite what Russian words look like, many of them sound the same as in English.

One of the funny things that happened--Rebecca was showing her pictures in her science book, saying the names of the animals in English, then Luba would say it's name in Russian. (this is when we figured out how similar the languages sound). When Rebecca pointed to a mouse, Luba said what sounded like "clarissa!" So we typed it into imtranslator.com (a great tool!) and found out that it is actually the word for "rat" that sounds like Clarissa! We've had fun giving Clarissa a hard time about it! And, thankfully, Clarissa is a good sport about it!

A Week without "helpers"

2009-06-19T07:55:00.002-05:00

I've been home this week with only Meredith and Matthew. Jenna is in Colorado with Mom and Dad, and my brother and his family, enjoying Deer Valley Ranch. (www.deervalleyranch.com ) Clarissa and Rebeeca are at Little Prairie Bible Camp. (http://littleprairie.org) I've gotten a lot more accomplished than I thought I would, but it has been a tiring week.

11 years ago, Jenna was Meredith's age, Clarissa was two months older than what Matthew is now, and I had just given birth to Rebecca. But I am now 11 years older, and this is HARDER! :-) We have had a lot of fun though. Yesterday, Kenny went with us to The St. Louis Zoo. It was HOT but we had a lot of fun. Matthew LOVED the elephants and the giraffes--among other things. I would post some pictures, but they are on my phone and I don't know how to upload them. I'm hoping Jenna can teach me how when she gets home! :-)

I thought I might mention that the post below concerning our trip to Hawaii could be somewhat misleading due to the title. We DID NOT take the 5 kids! :-) The "equation" in the title simply means that after 20 years of marriage and having five children, Kenny and I took a vacation together. I intend to post more pictures, but I just haven't yet. Maybe tomorrow......

20 Years of Marriage + 5 kids= trip to Maui!

2009-06-04T23:45:00.004-05:00

Picking pineapples! Very cool tour of the pineapple plantation! They were incredibly sweet! We got to eat our fill in the field. I think I ate a whole one, just myself! Yum!

On our final day in Hawaii, we visited the USS Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor.

Hanauma Bay, a nature preserve where we went snorkling. We saw some incredible fish, coral, urchins, etc... Abosolutely beautiful!

The view from our hotel in Maui on our final morning there

Sunset on Maui. This was our final night in Maui and the best sunset. It was pretty hazy most of the week as the tradewinds were blocked by a storm and the volcanic mist from the Big Island was settled over all the other islands. (We heard this over and over from the locals--however we thought it was beautiful even with the haze!)

At the Old Lahaina Luau

Dance recital pictures

2009-05-18T15:32:00.002-05:00

Jenna didn't want anyone to see her in this lovely blue dress--but Mom's like to post these things! :-) She is in the back row, 2nd from the right. Rebecca is in the middle row, 3rd from the left.

The Annual Spring Camping Trip

2009-05-18T15:09:00.002-05:00

Each May, we camp at Sam A. Baker State Park in Southeast Missouri. We have a "core" group of 4 families that go and usually several others. This spring it was just those 4 families plus Allison's parents--a small but close knit group! (small compared to the trip last fall where we numbered 52!)

Sam A. Baker has a nice level bike path that takes you to the nature center, creek and camp store, and there's a nice hiking trail to the shut-ins. There was quite a storm Friday morning as we were enroute, so the river was up several feet and there were some trees down. BUT--while we were there the weather was GREAT! We got a little drizzly rain Sunday night (it wouldn't be camping without some rain sometime along the way!) but we had sunshine Monday morning so everything was dried out for packing up.

One of the fun things we did was shooting off a "bottle launcher." The Gaines saw it on "Ask This Old House." It was a PVC pipe that they attached a 2 lt. bottle to, used a tire pump to add the pressure, then they pulled and string to launch the bottle about 80 ft into the air. To add to the fun, there was water in the bottle, so whoever did the pulling of the string, got a shower. We ended up losing three bottles in the tops of the pine trees, but were able to shoot down one with a sling shot. We were working on one of the others when we realized that it was sitting about 5 feet from a hawk's nest. We noticed it when the momma hawk flew in to feed the babies! Needless to say we quit shooting the tennis ball at the pop bottle! The third was way too high in the tree to be able to get it down. I'd love to hear the stories people make up, trying to figure out how a pop bottle got to the tops of the pine trees! LOL!

Camping at Sam A. Baker State Park

2009-05-18T14:27:00.003-05:00

Bike riding is a major activity while camping. Here's Matthew learning how. Once when he was climbing on, he said, "HAT!" so I guess he's already learned the rules about always wearing a helmet! (no, he can't actually ride, but he did enjoy being pushed around. He loves riding in the cart behind Kenny! (no pictures of that though) :-(

Hiking with Daddy.

Sitting on the waterfall en route to the shut-ins. A beautiful hike!

Throwing rocks at the shut-ins. Matthew definitely is right handed with writing/coloring, but he's a "switch-hitter" with his rock throwing. As you can see in this picture, he's demonstrating his left handed skills.

Because of the wet conditions, every rock Matthew picked up had mud on it's bottom side. He's smudged it on his face here.

2009-05-18T14:02:00.002-05:00

Our whole camping crew--front: Allison Bruno, Peggy Austin, Beth Branson, Laura, Adelia Gaines, Row two: Stan Austin, Anna Mae Bruno, Drew Branson, Katie Bruno, Meredith, Will Gaines, Rebecca, Kenny, Back row: Charlie Bruno, Emily Bruno, Andy Gaines, Megan Bruno, Rachel Gaines, Jenna, Clarissa, Mary Kate Gaines, Melivin Branson

We traditionally stop with the Bransons for lunch at Elephant Rocks State Park on the way home. Here are Kenny, Meredith, Rebecca and Drew Branson way up on the rocks.

and zoomed in, so you can see their smiling faces!

Meredith is the flower girl--again!

2009-05-18T13:48:00.002-05:00

This past weekend, Meredith had the opportunity to be a flower girl again, this time for Cassie Leach and Andrew Smith's wedding. (Cassie is a young lady that we attend church with). She wore the same dress that she wore in Tim's and Katie's wedding last Sept. , removing the black sash and replacing it with a lovely cornflower blue sash and bow. The wedding was held at Little Prairie Bible Camp, where Cassie's parents are the care takers.

Here she is with Premier, the ring bearer. Aren't they cute? :-)

Bingley picture

2009-04-29T14:49:00.002-05:00

I just realized that I never posted a picture of Bingley, Rebecca's puppy--so here he is!

2009-04-29T14:35:00.003-05:00

This was our post-show celebration at Steak and Shake. The girls were "attempting" to do the "Got Milk?" look, but I think Jeni and Hillary were the only ones that were successful!

This is Leia, Clarissa's new puppy.

My three dear daughters in their costumes for "Pirates of Penzance."

The Stanley Sisters, a "Bevy of beautiful maidens," being scandalous by showing their bare feet!

Catching up! Again!

2009-04-29T14:24:00.002-05:00

Well, once more my life has been way too busy to blog! But we've had such fun! We now have ANOTHER new puppy! Leia is Clarissa's border collie. She is so fluffy and adorable. She is somewhat shy, but that means when you actually can pick her up, she's a good snuggler! So once again, this non-dog person is enjoying a puppy!

We've just finished a 6 show run of "Pirates of Penzance." I wasn't IN the show--I helped my dear friend Kim, the director, with note taking during rehearsals and I was also the "ticketmaster." We sold out all 6 shows, even selling tickets for as many folding chairs that we could fit in comfortably for 3 or 4 shows. It was somewhat stressful--but FUN! The show was INCREDIBLE! Jenna played the role of "Edith." I described her as the "spunky gal in purple." It was a fun role for her! Clarissa was one of the Maj. Gen.'s daughters in the 2nd act. Rebecca was in the intermission show, "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything." We all had such fun! I'll attempt to upload some pictures.

Bingley

2009-04-08T17:37:00.003-05:00

We have a new puppy! He is so adorable! That should tell you a lot, seeing as how I'm really NOT a dog person! Bingley is a Rat Terrier and is about 8 inches long and 6 inches tall. I've not uploaded pictures yet, but I will soon. He officially belongs to Rebecca but Kenny is pretty enamored of him. Matthew likes him a lot too, as long as he's not jumping on him. As little as Bingley is, his jumping can still be pretty overwhelming to Matthew!

Matthew's adventures

2009-03-25T16:51:00.003-05:00

Matthew loves to COLOR! Today I discovered crayon on the walls. Yesterday I caught him coloring on the window of my office. Luckily, it came right off--not so the walls! He also loves markers. This morning he got into a pink marker--it's not the washable kind!

He really needs a haircut! We've already cut it once, but it's growing like crazy! His curls are awfully cute, but I think he's looking a little "girly."

ACDA National Honor Choir

2009-03-04T22:51:00.002-06:00

I'm in Oklahoma City with Jenna for the American Choral Directors Assoc.'s National Honor Choir. Jenna is in the Middle School/Jr. High Choir--placed by age(15) instead of grade(10th). 287 singers, 6th- 9th graders, that are pretty incredible! Most of the basses are in 9th grade, and they are very good! I had planned to do some shopping today, but couldn't tear myself away from the rehearsal. It was such fun! Tomorrow--I hope to get some shopping done! :-)

Happiness!

2009-02-23T14:30:00.004-06:00

Today, I spent a few minutes in the storage room, searching, searching.... I've been looking for my green Bible, the one that Kenny gave me for Christmas in 1992. It is an "old friend." The Bible that has a worn out cover, pages that turn easily because they are wearing thin, and lots of love in it! I hadn't seen it since we moved 3 months ago, despite numerous hours in the storage room, looking. With it would be our school prayer journal. Each morning as the girls and I pray together, we record our prayer requests in this journal. We've been using the same one for over three years, so I have been distressed to have this "history" missing!

But today--I FOUND THEM!!! They were buried under some "junk," the kind of stuff I didn't think needed to be rummaged through. It's been a Happy Day! My one sorrow is that now, our prayer journal is missing 3 months of prayer requests and answers. We've started a new journal during these 3 months, but it's not the same. I love going through the old one, seeing the prayers answered and remembering the issues we've prayed about. A precious possession!

Valentines Weekend

2009-02-16T11:33:00.003-06:00

Kenny and I attended the American Cancer Society's Cancer Gala on Saturday night. We had such a good time! It's been a LONG time since we dressed up--in fact, we talked about is and realized that this is the first time Kenny has been in a tux since our wedding almost 20 years ago! He was looking fine!

This is the first time we have attended this event. Elgin was a sponsor, and with the sponsorship came two tickets. I think I like this "business ownership" thing-- Dressing up was fun! :-)

Jenna and Clarissa also "dressed up" for Valentines day. They, with the youth group at church, were hosting a "Sweetheart" dinner at church. They had a 50's Diner Theme, so they were dressed up 50's style. I haven't seen any pictures yet......

Unpacking

2009-02-09T18:05:00.003-06:00

I spent some time this afternoon in the basement storage room, trying to get some boxes unpacked. I found my college scrapbook! Oh the "big hair" of the '80's! For some strange reason, I have pictures of Vert Morph lab--that's that lab where we dissected cats. Hmmm...I don't have pictures of ANY other class that I took in college! I guess this happened to be the most entertaining of all my classes! It actually was one of my favorites and the one I remember the most from.

I also found pictures from "Music Man," the homecoming musical my freshman year, (my last theatrical endeavor until OAT in 2006.) and Spring Sing, and chorus tours and club banquets and Christmas parties. And then of course my all time favorites--pledge week. I wore a camo hat, jacket, and pants, complete with paint on my face. I had antlers attached to the hat--which gave me a headache all day, and I had to wear a sign, "I'm a DEAR hunter." I really think that it should have been considered "hazing" but none of us even thought of that back then. We all had fun and enjoyed it!

Snow and other random stuff

2009-01-28T14:31:00.000-06:00

This is Meredith in her new Princess nightgown that she got for her birthday! She LOVES it and has worn it nearly non-stop the last two days. She HAS taken it off to put on warm clothes so she could go outside to play in the snow.

This morning we awoke to a beautiful landscape of SNOW! REALLY! We haven't had a good snow for several years, so we are all quite excited around here. The girls have been out sledding and enjoying the sunshine. (Sun and Snow--no better combination, well, except for sun and sand maybe!)

We went to Mississippi this past weekend to see our friends and to go to the youth rally at their church. The youth rally is really just the excuse to go see them! :-) We celebrated Jenna's 15th birthday while we were there and Meredith's 4th birthday was the day after we got back. We haven't actually had birthday cake yet--that's coming on Sunday when all the grandparents come over to celebrate. Hard to believe Jenna is 15! Time goes way to fast!

2009-01-13T19:13:00.000-06:00

I've decided that I'm not a very good blogger! Once a month isn't working very well. I feel like I should "catch you up" on my life, but there's really too much to say to do that--so then I don't write at all! :-)

I went to the ENT Doc today and was diagnosed with LPR Reflux. This is a type of acid reflux that effects the throat and voice box/vocal chords. I've had a scratchy throat and voice since I lost my voice completely back in Oct. And I have a granuloma on my vocal chords. Treatment--acid reducers, and from what I'm reading online, possibly vocal rest. The Doc didn't say I HAD to have vocal rest, but it keeps coming up in my research, so I"m thinking that it would probably be a good thing for me to do, but I'm also thinking that vocal rest will be pretty hard for me! How can Matthew understand that Mommy won't talk to him???? And singing--Singing is such a big part of my life! It's what I do when I am happy, when I am sad, when I'm lonely, when I'm excited, when I'm filled with thanksgiving--All the time! So much of the time, it's my communication with God! This could prove to be rather difficult.

Until next time--whenever that might be.....

Settling In....

2008-12-08T16:44:00.000-06:00

We are starting to settle in to our new house. We moved on Nov. 21. In an effort to force myself to unpack, I offered to host the "It's a Wonderful Life" cast party on Dec. 6. It was a great plan! Today is the first weekday that has been somewhat normal since we moved. The party, which was SO much fun, is over and everything that HAS to be put away, is. Now I can leisurely go through the storage room, (where everything was shoved a hour before the party!) and try to get the remaining things in their places.

I love my new home. I feel so thankful to God for blessing us with it! The view is absolutely beautiful! I'm enjoying an incredible sunset at this moment. Our previous house was surrounded by trees, which was nice since we were in town, but we NEVER could see a sunset, OR a sunrise. Now we have both! Thanks be to God!

It's A Wonderful Life--finally!

2008-11-17T21:52:00.000-06:00

I've been sick for a month now. I'm mostly well now--as long as I keep taking my meds! It started with my voice leaving me, then I was coughing and got a sinus infection. Then the allergic reaction to my medication happened! My eyes were swollen shut. After two trips to the ER, I still had double vision and dizziness for 5 or 6 more days. Keep in mind that this was all going on during rehearsals for "It's A Wonderful Life" and trying to pack to move! What a month it has been!

We're on a 2 day break from the theatre, having already finished the first weekend of performances. It finally started to be fun on our Tuesday dress rehearsal. (since I was finally functioning close to normal.) Thankfully, I'm feeling pretty good again. Good thing, since we're moving in 4 days and I still have LOTS of packing to do.

Moving

2008-10-31T20:16:00.001-05:00

The house has sold and we are moving in 3 weeks. I'm neck deep in play rehearsals and teaching school, so it will be interesting to see how this will all come together. Our closing date is the same day as a matinee and evening performance of the play, so by 1 in the afternoon--I'll be done moving. Kenny will have to do the rest. I'm good as long as I have a bed to fall into that night! :-)

Kenny and I went furniture shopping tonight. We need a new kitchen table and a few other things. Our current table only seats 6--and we have 7 in our family now. As long as Matthew is in the high chair, we're ok, but it won't be long until he's out of it. We thought moving would be a good time to get something bigger.

It's been a HUGE deal trying to decide who's getting what bedroom furniture. Jenna has definite ideas about what she wants her room to look like. I'm not sure why I've been letting her have first choice. I guess it's because she is the oldest. She's changed her mind about 10 times, so poor Clarissa (who is getting 2nd choice) has had things change for her 10 times. When I was a kid, we didn't even THINK about the furniture we had--we didn't think there was an option for anything else. And we were thankful to have a bed and dresser! I had a white bed with pink flowers decaled on the headboard until I got married! (Well--Mom may have painted over the decals when I was in high school.) :-) Thankfully, we don't have to buy anything new for the bedrooms. (but that means Jenna's choices were limited!)

My inheritance

2008-10-08T17:22:00.000-05:00

Because of Grandpa Charlie's death, Grandma has been moved to a nursing home. And because of this, their household goods have been divided amongst the family. Although I was not present at the "great divide," all apparently were in agreement that my family should have Grandma's Hammond organ. We are all thrilled! Jenna especially, can hardly wait for it to be delivered! It should have arrived on Tuesday, but it was raining, so we thought it was coming today. The guys that we've hired to unload it were too busy today,(due to catching up on all the things they didn't get finished because of the rain on Tuesday), so they are SUPPOSED to be here at 9 am tomorrow! I wonder how much schoolwork will get accomplished tomorrow??????

The other exciting item that I am receiving is Grandma's refrigerator. I know that doesn't sound all that exciting, but I've REALLY been wanting an extra one so I won't have to buy milk twice each week for this big family of mine.

The girls and I went to Mom's last night to "pick and choose" from an assortment of "stuff." It's funny and cute what the kids were so excited to get! An apple peeler, corer, slicer (one of which I have somewhere, but can't find), an ice cream scoop that looks like a cow and moos when you push the button. (I wish I had a video of Meredith when she saw it--talk about a "happy dance!") Then there were glasses, silverware, vases, scarves, towels, pillows, etc.... which weren't quite as exciting, but nice to get.

I've enjoyed doing this now, more than I would if we were doing this same thing, and Grandma was already gone. I visited with Grandma on Saturday and she was so excited about us getting the organ. It was fun to talk to her about it! (and I was glad to catch her on a "good day," as they're not all good for her these days.)

Grandpa Charlie has gone on to heaven

2008-09-19T16:32:00.001-05:00

Grandpa Charlie died today. He was 93. He went out on his tractor and didn't come back. Grandma called my aunt and uncle and they went out and found him, with the tractor still running. What a great way for an old farmer to go--on his tractor in his field. My heart is so very sad. Charlie married my grandma 26 years ago and what a blessing he has been to her and to all of our family. He's taken such good care of her as her health has failed her. Last year Mom and her siblings were looking for an assisted living home for them to move to, but Charlie said no. He said that when he married Grandma, he had promised to take care of her, and he wasn't ready to give up that responsibility to someone else yet. So they lived together at home and put off those decisions until now. I pray that Mom and her brothers and sister can make wise decisions together now. It's going to be a hard week, or month.

One of the things I appreciated most about Charlie is that he never let anything bother him much. I never saw him angry. If Grandma wasn't cooperating, he would just laugh and make her cooperate. And because of her love and respect for him, she let him! He was always so calm with her, while taking care of her every want and need. Theirs was a sweet relationship. Most importantly, Charlie loved the Lord and served him all the days of his life. He was a good man and I loved him!

Matthew is ONE!

2008-08-26T17:19:00.000-05:00

Here's Matthew on his new John Deere ATV. ( I can't figure out how this formatting works. All the pictures are added to the top and I can't figure out how to move them. Anyone want to give me lessons on this?)

Here's Matthew eating his cake. I didn't really think about how the red frosting would stain! Thankfully, he cleaned up pretty well

This last year has been the fastest of my life! I can't believe Matthew is already a year old! We had his party at Lion's club park. As you can see it had a St. Louis Cardinals theme. (I don't think his sisters will be happy unless he plays baseball!)

School days

2008-08-18T13:50:00.000-05:00

We are two weeks into school and so far so good. Jenna is still finishing up Biology from last year, but she should be ready to start Chemisty by the first of September. We're doing American History this year, with Jenna doing sonlight 100 and Clarissa and Rebecca doing 3+4. I love our "together" time at the beginning of the day. We tend to get way off schedule due to our lively conversations--but I figure that is why we homeschool, good family discussion on important issues!

Matthew will be one next Sunday. He is walking more than crawling now--and climbing a lot too!! He's climbing up the step stool as I type, but he knows how to get down too. Not true for the stairs. He LOVES climbing to the top, but he doesn't know how to come down. Therefore we try to keep the gate closed---but we do forget quite often! He's learning to wave bye bye--and can almost say it. His favorite word is "gish"--it means "fish." The fish are part of why he likes to climb the stairs--they reside in Rebecca's room.

Mini Vacation

2008-08-08T14:14:00.001-05:00

Our "Mini Vacation" to St. Louis on July 22 and 23, 2008

Our trip started with a tour of the Fabulous Fox Theatre with a group of about 40 homeschoolers. The coolest thing was the backstage/dressing area. Each show that's been there has painted it's logo on the wall somewhere and everyone involved in the show has signed the wall. Jenna even got to sing on stage--well, with the rest of the group, and they just sang, "happy birthday." We got the hear the theatre organ man play. He asked for requests, and Phantom of the Opera was the song! We found out later that he loves Phantom, but it's not requested very often and he was thrilled to get to play it for us! After the Fox and some lunch, we toured the St. Louis Basilica which is decorated totally with mosaics--very cool!

That night, we went to a Cardinals game. It was a sad game--after a great start, they lost in the last two innings to the Brewers. Matthew loves baseball! He had been crying in the car and while walking to the stadium, but as soon as we got to our seats, he looked around the stadium and started laughing! This was his fourth game to attend.
On Wednesday, July 23rd, after spending the night in St.Louis, we met my sister and her daughter at Six Flags. Matthew didn't get to ride too many things, but he did learn where the handicapped entrance is for every ride. We did lots of "baby swapping" so that I could ride too.

a Break in the Action

2008-07-14T11:24:00.000-05:00

I'm happy to have a few days off from the theatre. I love being there, but I was getting so tired! Our appoximate schedule, from last Tuesday through Saturday was noon (or 1 pm) until 11 pm with an hour and a half off for dinner. Sunday was easier with just a matinee. I actually was able to attend worship twice yesterday! :-)

Today is filled with house cleaning. Not only does it desparately need to be cleaned, but we're on the real estate agents' caravan tomorrow. This is an open house of sorts for the agents to come by and check things out so they can be aware of what's on the market. We had everything in such good order two weeks ago for our Sunday open house. But seeing as how I've been at the theatre nearly every moment since........

Music Man

2008-07-12T00:37:00.000-05:00

Well, the play is well underway. We have 3 performances under our belt with 9 to go. It has been SOOO fun! I've made some great new friends and become better friends with some others. There's just something about being at the theatre that gives me energy! Of course that also means that it takes me some time to wind down when I get home at night, so here I am typing at 11:40 pm. I really need to remember to take my camera so I can get some pictures.

Jenna has been making cookies for the cast since she's been feeling a little left out. She went and hung out in the basement tonight. She leaves for Harding's Summer Honor Choir program on Sunday.

Dad's home

2008-07-01T10:56:00.000-05:00

Dad arrived home yesterday after being on a 6 week cycling trip. He and 3 other guys, started in Hartford Ill, and basically travelled the Lewis and Clark Trail. The trip was cut short as the riding conditions in Montana were a little scary. They had some close calls with drivers that didn't move over. The shoulder was narrow and they were being sucked onto the highway by the wind currents of the traffic. They had a great time and I believe it has satisfied Dad's drive for adventure for a while. We had a surprise welcome home party for him last night. About 40 people from church came. My kids were especially glad to see him.

Our real estate agent held an open house on Sunday. We had 9 groups come through. Our agent said it's not unusual to only have 2 groups! We are hopeful that at least one of them is truly interested. So we pray for God's will, and wait.

stressers and joys

2008-06-25T09:05:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm finally back after almost a week. Matthew didn't actually cry that long. :-)

I started rehearsing for Music Man last night and it was such fun. I'm still a little concerned about how I'm going to juggle everything. I haven't yet figured out how to get Jenna to Harding for the honor choir program, and I had to call and reschedule 2 appointments for today, now that we have the rehearsal schedule.

We listed our house for sale on Sunday. We've already had one looker, in addition to two families that looked, even before we had it listed. It's a little unnerving to have strangers walk through your house. I'm just praying that it will sell quickly so I'm not living like this for too long, although I like having a reason for the kids to keep everything picked up. Maybe it's not a bad thing to have it on the market for long time..... :-)

We picked cherries at mom's this week. Yum! The trees were loaded (thank you, Lord!) so Mom was more than willing to share. The girls had fun climbing the ladder, but they weren't a lot of help when it was time to pit.

We've also had a bounty of green beans in our garden. I LOVE fresh green beans! Steamed then stir fried in a little olive oil, garlic and Emril's seasoning. Mmmmm.... I could eat them all day!

Starting Out

2008-06-19T20:58:00.000-05:00

Thought I would start a blog. But my boy is crying--so it will have to wait until later.