366 Laughs- January 5th 2016

1/5/16

We had a fun surprise from my sister today!
A package!  With really cool CTR necklaces for the little girls.  (Jules is scared to get hers dirty... still can't get her to wear it.  We'll keep trying.)

And a family puzzle!

Emilie was taking pictures of me opening it.  I don't always look that thrilled at my kids holding a camera, but it's the only way anyone ever sees pictures of me.

Christopher wanted a picture, too.


Samuel has out grown his Cub Scout shirt but only has 2 weeks left before he turns 11 and moves on to Boy Scouts.  So... I sewed  his Webelos badge onto a Scout shirt and we can change it very easily in 2 weeks!


Doesn't he look grown up?  This is my first Texas baby, all grown up and ready for Boy Scouts!


Oh, and Liberty wearing her necklace.  :)  Crazy hair in braids but coming out... haha.

A special Anniversary gift

Over 20 years ago, Tom asked me to marry him.  We met in January of 1995 in the men's locker room, were great friends first, started dating in March, he met my family in April, we talked about marriage sometime in May, I met his parents over Memorial Day, and he finally asked me in August of 1995.  My grandmother provided her engagement ring from her first marriage.  Tom told me that since he got the engagement ring for free, he'd buy me a viola.  Over the years, I kind of forgot.

Fast forward 20 years to Christmas day, because Tom can't wait 4 more days until our 20th anniversary.


I cried.

Yes, I do play.  Yes, I started playing in junior high, continued in high school, stopped in college and through marriage and having many of my children, started again in the fall of 2011 when we moved here and we played in a Thanksgiving multi-denominational performance of "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" and other numbers.   To do so I borrowed my wonderful sister in law's viola.  I still have it.  It was so great to be playing again.

I was also 6 months pregnant for that performance, haha.

Fast forward to fall of 2013, when we prepared The Many Moods of Christmas cantata by Robert Bennet and Robert Shaw.  Also difficult.  It was also fantastic.  I was also 8 months pregnant with Virginia, haha.  We performed it again in 2014 and just a few weeks ago in 2015.

This poor viola, though.  It's brand new so it needs TLC as I warm it up to playing, tuning, etc.  Withing moments of opening it the D string broke (kind of important, like the A string on a violin...).  We ordered a new set of strings.  The package came on Monday.  The envelope looked like it had never been sealed, haha, so, no strings were left in the package.  They are replacing them and they should arrive today, the 30th.  Here's hoping!

365 Joys- December 29th 2015

12/29/15

Happy 20th anniversary to Tom and me!

We celebrated by repairing the tire on Tom's car, going out to eat, and doing a fun puzzle while watching Mythbusters.



 If you look closely (click on photo to see closeup, I think you can, you can see the puzzle is definitions matched to words... it was a blast!


I will post about Tom's gift to me separately.

365 Joys- December 21st 2015

12/21/2015

Happy Birthday to Mom/me!


Emilie made me a cake and finished my doll I started as a Young Woman!
The cake is a Christmas tree.


What a day.  :)



Ginny is messy!

365 Joys- November 27th 2015

11/27/15

Today we celebrated my oldest son turning 19.  We ate pie for breakfast.  We did some sightseeing with family.  My mother in law made a cake.  We had a fun day together.

Here's my husband and his father sharing a moment.  Haha.
No, really, they were having a good time.
Jules still knocked out in the hotel room.  They slept well once they fell asleep!

Jules and Benjamin next to the life size model of a GIANT CAT TRUCK.  This was a really cool visitor's center.  Worth the entrance fee, for sure.  Not expensive, either.

Samuel next to one of the Caterpillar toys.

Some of the kids trying out the older steering mechanisms.

What's better than pretending to drive giant vehicles?

Cousins wanting to drive the same one?

Not sure if this is frightening or just cool... Jules driving a huge steam roller...


Michael and a really big bulldozer.  He's been into this stuff since before he could talk.

Benjamin and cousin Toby.

Here's the touristy picture... Christopher and Uncle Alex and Michael.

Here's Michael next to the actual size replica of the CAT dump truck... soooo cool.


Benjamin doing a simulator (they have a lot!) kind of like their training simulators.


Emilie also working on one of the simulators.


Christopher was right in his element.  I love that toothless grin!


Typical day... Timothy running over Christopher with a steam roller.  Seen it.


Juliana climbing Caterpillar treads...


Nathanael on one of the simulators.


Dad, Michael and Juliana in trucks...


Liberty excited about EVERYTHING but especially all the new family friends we were there with.


Our awesome family.  Yes, I think we're awesome.  So is the big truck behind us!


My baby girl looking out at the rain in central Illinois.  Love this picture.


Aunt Ariana surrounded by little people.


"Peace on Earth, Goodwill to Men!"


Someone took a nap.  And I rested with her.  Good day!

365 Joys- November 26th 2015

11/26/15

Happy Thanksgiving!

It was a day full of family in Illinois, some we hadn't seen in a long time, and some we'd never met before!

Cousin Holly, Liberty, and Monty.

Tom and baby Susie.  He has a way with babies.  Why do you think we've had so many?
He was teaching her about the Royals.  (her family are Twins fans)


Ginny learned about dogs.  Real dogs.  They lick.  And she LOVES them.  Chomper wasn't sure what to think of her.

Timothy found a friend for his moose in Ariana and Grandma's beanie baby bin.


Emilie being gorgeous.


Tabitha holding a baby because that's what she does.  (Baby Susie again!)


The kids' table, with cousin Toby.  Beautiful place settings and great food and family and talk and laughter.  And messes and tired kids and grumpiness, but that's Thanksgiving and we loved it.


And of course pies... always one for every person, plus those who just came for pie.

We contributed the pumpkin and chocolate pumpkin.  An experiment.  Lots of deliciousness there, folks.
Emilie, at this time, was finishing up "Nanowrimo", National Novel Writers Month, wherein she writes 50,000 words in a month's time which could be a short novel.  She didn't want to skip any days and here she is writing away.

365 Joys- September 29th 2015

9/29/15

I like getting free stuff in the mail.  This book has a lot of great ideas.  I'm not sure how many I love but I do love the positive messages.



Check it out!

365 Joys- August 11th, 2015

8/11/15

Kids and their bugs.  I told them any grasshoppers need to be taken far away from our garden.



The poor things are probably so terrified they'll never come near our garden again.  Haha!




Liberty and a particularly brave grasshopper.




Oh, and later, Samuel received his Webelos award for Cub Scouts.  Yay!