Traveling for Christmas

We braved the winter ice and snow to travel to Michigan to spend time with my family. It took 7 1/2 hours to make a "normal" 4 hour trip. It was all worth it to be together with family. I just wanted to post some of our pictures with some of them...

Benjamin with Grandma

Lynnea poses with my niece Samantha. Lynnea really enjoys doing "big girl" things with Sam!

Me with my sister in law, Betsy. Isn't she cute?

This is the guy I roped into driving me through the messy weather just so I wouldn't miss out with family.

Samuel loves his new big toy!

Of course, we can't leave out Anna. It was so great to have her home from Peru to spend Christmas with us!

Jason and my brother Dave sport their new Farm all shirts from Betsy.

When did Nick grow up? I made him pose like that with the new shirt we got him.

My sister Juli poses with the girls.

Life As We Know It (or are trying to know it)

I don't have any pictures to post...just wanted to give an update on our crazy life. Jason started his new sales position November 15th. This means that he is working weekends now. He gets Wednesday/Thursday off, but has found those days to do some side jobs. I am so thankful for the way God is providing for us during this economy AND the fact that housing is not the best line of work to be in right now. His change has made for a change in my work load. Jason does so much to help me out with the kids and the house when he is home. I have missed his help.

We have also had our share of colds and sickness. Poor baby Isaac was diagnosed with pneumonia over the weekend. Thankfully, it wasn't bad enough to be in the hospital, but we have had some sleepless nights. He is doing much better.

It's just amazing how this time gets so busy. We are really looking forward to Thanksgiving and spending some time with Jason's family. It's been too long since we have spent time with Will and Lauren. The kids are really excited. We have much to be thankful for as well. I am so thankful for how rich we are in this life...our family, church, neighborhood and mostly the faithfulness of God.

Okay, I will just include this one picture so you can see how kitty is doing too. Poor Harley!

Baby's 1st Haircut

Well, we took Isaac on Thursday for the last 1st haircut our family gets to enjoy. It's really silly how long we let it get. It fell over his shoulders nicely. On Wednesday, 2 people in the grocery told me how precious our baby girl was. It's one thing when your child has no hair, it's another when you can actually do something about it. He looks so handsome now. Needless to say from the pictures, he did not enjoy his trip one bit.

Before

During

After

The People You Meet Along the Way...

Today I went out to Zionsville to see the house that Jason is finishing. While there I met a man that lives next door to the homeowner named Larry Houser. Larry invited us over to meet him and show the boys his dogs. Larry's friendship with Jason has been very rewarding. You see, Larry was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Jason had an opportunity to talk with Larry about eternity and his relationship with the Lord. Through this conversation, Jason discovered that Larry was already a brother in Christ! Larry has an amazing testimony as he endures chemotherapy, weariness and his future. If you would like to read more about the conversation Jason had with Larry, you can read it at www.caringbridge.org/visit/larryhouser. Jason's excerpt is written on October 20th (the person who writes the blog called him Justin). It's really great. Here are some pictures of our day at Larry's.

Playing with the dogs.

Isaac and Noah begin a conversation

Joseph poses with Mr. Larry and Nevada

Of course, Samuel wants to be held.

Isaac loves wandering in the grass

The Reigner House in its almost finished state.

Welcome to the Neighborhood!

The kids had a great night out tonight visiting our neighboring steets. Lynnea went as herself/princess/just wanted to wear her favorite dress. Benjamin/Peyton Manning told the neighbors "he would play better this weekend". Joseph is our star b-ball player. Noah and Samuel just switched the costumes they wore last year. Little Isaac is our resident zoo animal giraffe. And as we go to bed...we thank the kids for allowing us to indulge in all the candy (just don't tell them).




Thanks Grandpa & Grandma Legg for our Halloween bags...the apple entertained Isaac for at least 45 minutes!

Like Father...Like Son

When sorting out some of Grandma Charlotte's things, Jason told his dad that he wanted the family tractor willed to him. Papa Joe is still in good health. However, for Jason's birthday, he brought over the little red tractor to Tipton, Indiana. Jason took all the kids for rides. As I took pictures, I realized how things had changed. We used to take pictures of the kids with Papa Joe on the tractor. Now we take pictures of Daddy on the tractor. There is a good bit of humor having a tractor in town at 237 N Independence Street. It doesn't quite fit the "farm" look. Who knows, maybe it will fit in a parade or something!

Joseph is really excited!

Isaac, Daddy, Papa Joe and Samuel take a ride together.

Who says we need a minivan? We can fit everyone. We just have to be creative.

Can I Really Have An 8 Year Old???

Tomorrow (Sunday) Lynnea, will turn 8 years old. The reality really set in this morning for me. Can this really be true? Last night, we hosted our very first sleepover with 3 girls. We started out the evening going to the premier of "High School Musical 3". This was a huge event for many reasons. 1)This was Lynnea's first visit to a big theatre (outside of the Tipton Diana Theatre). 2)I had banned most of the older kid Disney shows to my children for the past couple of months. Although most are very cute, they are just too big for my kids. Lynnea was thrilled to get to see her "friends" from Disney again. We had a great time.
We went home to begin the slumber which of course took some time. The girls woke up to French Toast. Then they got ready for the big event, A DRESS UP TEA PARTY!

Again lots of fun. It was funny to watch Benjamin and Joseph try to get involved. They put on collared shirts (of course Joseph added the Superman cape). But...they all drank from tea cups and ate their crumpets (vanilla wafers) very politely.

Benjamin did a good job being a good sport, but it could only last so long...
Sunday, we will have our family birthday with Lynnea. Papa Joe, Mama T and Grandma Legg with come over for apple pie (Lynnea's choice)! A very full birthday week!

Harley Humrichous

As if we don't have enough babies...
We found Harley at Cherished Life an animal rescue near Indianapolis. Lynnea has wanted a kitten for some time. Her favorite "stuffed" kittens at home are white (4 to be exact). We began searching because white kittens are somewhat hard to find. We wanted to get her one for her 8th birthday. We had almost given up hope until Harley's picture came up online. He was the only one to survive from his litter. He is a mix of two different kinds of Himalayan kittens. The kids are enjoying him so much. He is really a great fit. He is very calm, yet playful....and we have had no accidents. Happy Birthday Lynnea!

Mums and Other Things...

As you know, we finished remodeling our home last December. It was nominated to win "Tipton Beautification Project". We lost our nomination when the tree fell on our house. Well, the repairs are finished. We have won for the month of September. Our picture and home were put in the paper, we are on the local TV station and we were given a sign to put in our front yard and a framed picture of our house for inside.

With a questionable future regarding our finances, Jason's job and the economy, Jason and I have had to be very conservative in our spending. Many times, I have passed this garden store (pictured above) and wished I could purchase some of their beautiful mums. Realizing that this is not a need at this time, I have prayed several times that God would provide mums. Silly, kind of, but I know that God cares about those little things. Before leaving the presentation, Tim Horton (owner of the garden store) handed us a $25 gift certificate to his store and told us to take home six mums of our choice! I am reminded of how much God cares about the simple. Thank you Lord for taking such good care of us...and for mums.

The Best of Show

At the end of last year, Jason's company asked him to supervise the building of a home that they would enter in this year's home show. It's been a HUGE project consuming much of Jason's time in the past few months. Last night was the premier party for the show which included 5 homes. Jason's company, Heartwood Custom Homes, won several awards including the best of show. It was really great to see some hard work pay off. The house sells for 1.9 million and is absolutely beautiful. You can check out the show at http://www.lifestylehomearama.com/.

Last Saturday, I took Jason dinner while he was working some late hours. I toured the house and watched the designers at work. They are amazing and so very creative. I spent some time with the photographer who has staged some of her work throughout the house. It's amazing. I found myself reflecting quite a bit while I drove home. This home is exquisite. So much time and money has been spent on this project. What does God think of all this? Does He celebrate the beauty and amazement with me? Does He understand my desire to get in there with the designers and create a beautiful space. A quick response from a friend reminded me that oneday it would all be gone. Although true, I didn't want to take a cynical attitude. I didn't arrive at some huge discovery or revelation, just a brief reminder. God loves beauty as evidenced in so many "projects of building" in the Old Testament. He created us to be able to design, build and create. It might be as simple as my 4 year old's sketches of rainbows on a paper or as big as the temple built in Jerusalem. In the end, He will use it all to bring glory to Himself. And who knows...maybe someday I might just get my chance...

Look Out Sarah Palin!

Lynnea's name was selected to participate in Tipton's festival princess pageant this year. She loved it and had so much fun. The day started with getting out of school early. She had an interview with 3 judges. Then she went on to ride with the girls in the evening parade. The pageant was the big follow up. Other than the rain, the event was a success!

When asked if she had any pets, she replied, "yes, my brother Joseph!". Of course, the MC loved that she had FIVE brothers. It was a lot of fun for the girls in our house to mix up the countless soccer games with a little flair!

Blowing kisses and waving in the parade. The little girl next to Lynnea is Benjamin's "favorite girl in the whole world!", Paige Golden.

The MC interviews Lynnea on stage

Mommy takes pictures at the park

I love this picture!



Of course, twirling in her dress was a highlight too!

Potty Training Twins? Yeah Right.

Since I couldn't decide whether putting the actual pictures of the twins training was appropriate on the web, I decided that Isaac would have to pull it off for them. He is very interested in this chair.


I have quarantined the twins to a room with the TV and hardwood floors. We are on day 3 and are doing pretty good. Samuel was dry last night and they are both running to the potty to try to go. They can get easily distracted so I have to remind them frequently.

When I potty trained Joseph, my sister in law introduced me to this book on the internet. He potty trained in one day! I definitely recommend it to anyone! The twins are on their way to success and it's the beginning of day 3. Check it out at http://www.3daypottytraining.com . Please make sure to follow the acceptable use policy.

Over the River and Through the Woods...

Tomorrow we will go to be a part of celebrating Grandma Charlotte's life. We will spend Monday night and Tuesday in Georgetown (Danville area), IL. We remember Grandma Charlotte tonight and think about the things she loved. She made great lemonade. She loved doing crafts. We think about the odd little treasures you could find in her house and in the barns. She would recount stories of making meals for the hired hands that worked on the farm. Her house is filled with antiques. She could remember where each one came from and the story about it.

Jason began telling me tonight about how Grandma's farm seemed to be such a place of strength when he was a child. There were new tractors and big well-cared for barns. Reflecting on how through the years things would begin to deteriorate, the tractors were sold and now the loss of Grandma, we are reminded of the brevity of life. If our lives don't count for Jesus Christ and His Kingdom, our time on this earth is empty and our strivings are in vain. This challenges me to continually be placing my time, my family and my choices before my Father God for his guidance and his approval.

One last story...when I told Lynnea about Grandma Charlotte, she asked me, "so Mommy, will this weekend just be a sad weekend?" I told her that if she felt sad or if Daddy did, we could talk about it, but not everything had to be sad. She responded, "but Mommy can we have a party or celebration or something?" When I asked what she meant, she said, "Grandma is in heaven now! We should celebrate that!"

Back to School

Well, they are off and running. Both Lynnea and Benjamin had their outfits picked out way in advance. It was very important to Lynnea that her outfit match her new shoes. She is sporting her new Hannah Montana purple backpack. Of course, inside, are 2 folders. One, Sharpay from High School Musical and the other, you guessed it, Hannah Montana.

I told Benjamin that he should choose a nicer shirt on his first day of school. This was a great disappointment to him since his favorite tacky neon-green dinosaur shirt would be much more appropriate to him. Can you tell his favorite color is green?!?! He is very excited about wearing new shoes and being in the same class as Paige Golden (I have to type it that way because that's the way he says is). Life couldn't get any better!

Lord Jesus, I lift up my children to you as they begin another year. I pray that you would protect their hearts. Keep them pure. Allow them to be used of you even at such a young age. Help them to choose friends who pursue you with all their hearts. May this year be a time when we look back and are able to testify "that the Lord is SO good". Amen.