Really, this song is excellent. A must listen to, especially in my opinion, if you have a teenage daughter. :)
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Leah's gone......
Aw nuts, Leah's gone again. However, she is in a very cool place, downtown Cincinnati. She is on a mission's trip of sort working with the people of that area and learning more about the heart of Jesus. She went with a group of middle school and high school students from our church. Some of the kids, our buddy Olivia and I took Leah to Columbus yesterday to see her off. I really am pretty pathetic when my kids are gone. I miss them so much. I need to get over that. I think this will be a great learning experience for Leah though and I am excited to hear all about her week when she gets back.
Our summer seems to be into full swing. Logan got his 4H beef feeder last night and we spent all morning trying to run around and get all the things for it that we didn't have. Right now it is in a make shift pen in our barn. Our barn still has a very wet and muddy floor, something which we hope to remedy in the next week. We are planning a couple short trips this summer, camping and maybe a weekend trip to Kings Island or Cedar Point. This summer is Ryan and I's 15 year anniversary, so it would be nice to do something special for that. We had thought we would do something big for our 10 yr anniversary, but Maddie was just a little squirt. We did go to Cedar Point for a weekend which was really fun, but the kids went with us, which certainly changes things. Next week Logan has soccer camp for 3 days at Leah's school and then they are both going to attend Vineyard's camp the secong week of August. I have no doubt this summer will fly by. I have come to love summer even more because it means ALL the kids are home all day. I treasure that more now than I ever have before.
Ok, for some various little kid updates......
Maddie: Still as fiesty as ever. I can see her maturing though and that is nice. A very cool thing that has happened with Maddie lately is that she asked Jesus into her heart a couple months back. I had forgotten how cool it felt to know your child is mature enough to see the need for Jesus. Madeline is still very focused on spiritual things and talk a LOT about the bible, the verse she learned in class, etc. etc. It is very cool. She is starting to get "in" to the sports she likes, which is soccer and gymnastics right now. Madeline is still a little high maintenance, but she is also a big help. I know she is purposely trying to share better and be more helpful. She is the first one to offer to help me with something and she has good stamina. She usually will say something like "Jesus wants us to help people." Probably Madeline's biggest downfall right now is her temper. It gets the better of her sometimes, but overall, Madeline is becoming such a little lady.
Anna: Anna is really a unique kid. I love her personality. She is so loving and soooo tenderhearted. Anna is much different than Gideon and Madeline. She enjoys very different things. Anna plays soccer and does gymnastics, but her passions at this age seem to be dancing and animals. Typical sports don't seem to motivate her much. Anna is by far the most perceptive child I have ever seen. She has like a 6th sense. She notices thing way before anyone else and she remembers stuff I can't believe she remembers. We tell Anna all the time that she has eagle eyes. Anna has a really fun personality, especially when she feels comfortable with you. She can be a little shy, but once she is over that, she can be goofy. Just ask her to do her "Little Big Planet" impersonation!
Gideon: Gideon is just all boy. He like to run and play and goof off. But similar to Anna, he can be really shy. Gideon hates to have attention drawn to him in a public setting. Especially if it is negative attention. He loses it. So we have to be careful with him sometimes. Much like Anna, Gideon is also tenderhearted. He loves big and he hurts big. Gideon though has such a sweet, sweet heart. Yesterday Asher got in trouble for something and we crying. I walked in to the room to Gideon wrapping his arms around Asher and patting his back. Asher was just holding tight to Gee. It was very sweet, but that is just Gee, he is a little sweetie. He is also very ornry though also. Right now he is going through a phase of just playing rough. Even though he is the smallest of the 3 little ones, one of the girls seem to always running to me and telling that Gee hit or knocked them. He mostly doesn't mean to, he "just playing." (Which by the way is a phase I am coming to hate)
Asher: Is getting so BIG. Oh my, it is crazy how my baby is not a baby anymore. Right now Asher is our little tornado. He just goes through the house tearing out everything in his way. He particularly loves my drawer with bowls and lids. He could spend hours trying to put lids on bowls. I tend to have to tell Asher "no" a ton right now, but overall he listens well (although he cries almost every time). Like, we took the gate off the stairs and it took him maybe a day to learn that he isn't allowed past the first step. It is a rare occasion that he ever tries to climb the stairs at all. He is good about putting things back when I tell him also, he just needs to learn not to get them out in the first place. He loves the wii and Playstation remotes. They turn up missing a lot. Asher is a little lover also, but for some reason he seems pretty practically minded, if a 2 year old can be practical. Asher is talking all the time. I only understand about 1/2 of what he says and I have to listen hard sometimes to get that. He will jibber jabber like crazy to people (some total strangers) and they will not catch a single thing he says. It is quite funny. He does however say "outside" a lot. He would rather be outside than anywhere. He also says "dink" (drink), "Weah naughty" ("Leah Naughty" one of my personal favorite because Leah torments the poor kid), "Gee," "Nn-A," "Go-gie," "Byce," "Goggie," and a number of other words. He is also putting two words together frequently.
Ok, so there's an update on life in these parts. As soon as I get my memory card emptied, I will get some farm pics and post them. I haven't done that in a while.
Julie
Our summer seems to be into full swing. Logan got his 4H beef feeder last night and we spent all morning trying to run around and get all the things for it that we didn't have. Right now it is in a make shift pen in our barn. Our barn still has a very wet and muddy floor, something which we hope to remedy in the next week. We are planning a couple short trips this summer, camping and maybe a weekend trip to Kings Island or Cedar Point. This summer is Ryan and I's 15 year anniversary, so it would be nice to do something special for that. We had thought we would do something big for our 10 yr anniversary, but Maddie was just a little squirt. We did go to Cedar Point for a weekend which was really fun, but the kids went with us, which certainly changes things. Next week Logan has soccer camp for 3 days at Leah's school and then they are both going to attend Vineyard's camp the secong week of August. I have no doubt this summer will fly by. I have come to love summer even more because it means ALL the kids are home all day. I treasure that more now than I ever have before.
Ok, for some various little kid updates......
Maddie: Still as fiesty as ever. I can see her maturing though and that is nice. A very cool thing that has happened with Maddie lately is that she asked Jesus into her heart a couple months back. I had forgotten how cool it felt to know your child is mature enough to see the need for Jesus. Madeline is still very focused on spiritual things and talk a LOT about the bible, the verse she learned in class, etc. etc. It is very cool. She is starting to get "in" to the sports she likes, which is soccer and gymnastics right now. Madeline is still a little high maintenance, but she is also a big help. I know she is purposely trying to share better and be more helpful. She is the first one to offer to help me with something and she has good stamina. She usually will say something like "Jesus wants us to help people." Probably Madeline's biggest downfall right now is her temper. It gets the better of her sometimes, but overall, Madeline is becoming such a little lady.
Anna: Anna is really a unique kid. I love her personality. She is so loving and soooo tenderhearted. Anna is much different than Gideon and Madeline. She enjoys very different things. Anna plays soccer and does gymnastics, but her passions at this age seem to be dancing and animals. Typical sports don't seem to motivate her much. Anna is by far the most perceptive child I have ever seen. She has like a 6th sense. She notices thing way before anyone else and she remembers stuff I can't believe she remembers. We tell Anna all the time that she has eagle eyes. Anna has a really fun personality, especially when she feels comfortable with you. She can be a little shy, but once she is over that, she can be goofy. Just ask her to do her "Little Big Planet" impersonation!
Gideon: Gideon is just all boy. He like to run and play and goof off. But similar to Anna, he can be really shy. Gideon hates to have attention drawn to him in a public setting. Especially if it is negative attention. He loses it. So we have to be careful with him sometimes. Much like Anna, Gideon is also tenderhearted. He loves big and he hurts big. Gideon though has such a sweet, sweet heart. Yesterday Asher got in trouble for something and we crying. I walked in to the room to Gideon wrapping his arms around Asher and patting his back. Asher was just holding tight to Gee. It was very sweet, but that is just Gee, he is a little sweetie. He is also very ornry though also. Right now he is going through a phase of just playing rough. Even though he is the smallest of the 3 little ones, one of the girls seem to always running to me and telling that Gee hit or knocked them. He mostly doesn't mean to, he "just playing." (Which by the way is a phase I am coming to hate)
Asher: Is getting so BIG. Oh my, it is crazy how my baby is not a baby anymore. Right now Asher is our little tornado. He just goes through the house tearing out everything in his way. He particularly loves my drawer with bowls and lids. He could spend hours trying to put lids on bowls. I tend to have to tell Asher "no" a ton right now, but overall he listens well (although he cries almost every time). Like, we took the gate off the stairs and it took him maybe a day to learn that he isn't allowed past the first step. It is a rare occasion that he ever tries to climb the stairs at all. He is good about putting things back when I tell him also, he just needs to learn not to get them out in the first place. He loves the wii and Playstation remotes. They turn up missing a lot. Asher is a little lover also, but for some reason he seems pretty practically minded, if a 2 year old can be practical. Asher is talking all the time. I only understand about 1/2 of what he says and I have to listen hard sometimes to get that. He will jibber jabber like crazy to people (some total strangers) and they will not catch a single thing he says. It is quite funny. He does however say "outside" a lot. He would rather be outside than anywhere. He also says "dink" (drink), "Weah naughty" ("Leah Naughty" one of my personal favorite because Leah torments the poor kid), "Gee," "Nn-A," "Go-gie," "Byce," "Goggie," and a number of other words. He is also putting two words together frequently.
Ok, so there's an update on life in these parts. As soon as I get my memory card emptied, I will get some farm pics and post them. I haven't done that in a while.
Julie
Friday, June 17, 2011
Family from up north.
Much of my dad's family lives in Michigan. Well, my Aunt Sandy, Uncle Steve and cousin Misty were here visiting some this evening. They came to the house for a bit and then we met the rest of the fam for dinner. I love spending time with then. They are just fun, down to earth people. Plus, Uncle Steve is the closest thing I think I have to seeing my dad in bodily form. From what I hear their personalities were somewhat different, but I think they looked alike, especially in stature. We had a great visit but for some reason I left a little sad. Unfortunately I have no memories of my dad, but there have been a few times in my life where I have really missed him. Tonight was one of those nights. How you really miss someone you never really knew, well I have no clue, but it just seemed like he should have been there, with his brother, with us.
Julie
Julie
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Finally, an update..
First off, sorry for such a long delay. We have been more busy than I can say. Lots of hard work. Not to mention a vacation to Canada in there.
First off, an Anna funny. We were coming out of a store this afternoon and I commented how Anna would make a great mommy some day. Anna's reply was "yes, I will be a really good mommy and I won't spank." I said, "oh, ok, well, if you don't discipline your kids how will they grow up to be nice adults (not that I think spanking is the only way to discipline)?" Anna's reply was "well, I WILL spank them when they get big." Ummm, good luck with that.
Oh and I love how mashed potatoes are "smashed" potatoes in this family. I don't want to forget stuff like that.
So, this pic is of Asher's little family birthday party. We went to the park and really it was lots of fun.
Presents......
Just a "swingin."
The fam at the park (minus Anna - off playing and Leah - at school).
For Memorial Day we went to the cemetary where my dad, two grandpa's, a great aunt and a great grandma is buried. It was good to visit and remember these lives.
My Grandpa Wren's grave. Leah and Logan did get to know him some.
Our annual fishing trip was fun, but man we had to work hard to catch fish. It was crazy.
Ok, see the snake is this picture? Super big and creepy and under our dock! We heard it was a fox snake? I still say it was a rattler.
Maddie driving the boat. Scary.
The boys swimming. This picture reminds me of how different Gee and Asher are. Gideon (while I was really proud of him for getting in, Anna wouldn't even consider it) clung to Ryan and freaked if he couldn't cling properly. Asher was just ready to dive over the side. I even have a picture of him just bawling that he couldn't get in at first.
Two very large mouths.
Log had a rough couple first days, but he picked up a few later in the week. Good job Log!
What do three 4 and 5 yr olds do on a boat for 8 hours? Why, they play itouches.
Me and my very nice Walleye.
First off, an Anna funny. We were coming out of a store this afternoon and I commented how Anna would make a great mommy some day. Anna's reply was "yes, I will be a really good mommy and I won't spank." I said, "oh, ok, well, if you don't discipline your kids how will they grow up to be nice adults (not that I think spanking is the only way to discipline)?" Anna's reply was "well, I WILL spank them when they get big." Ummm, good luck with that.
Oh and I love how mashed potatoes are "smashed" potatoes in this family. I don't want to forget stuff like that.
So, this pic is of Asher's little family birthday party. We went to the park and really it was lots of fun.
Presents......
Just a "swingin."
The fam at the park (minus Anna - off playing and Leah - at school).
For Memorial Day we went to the cemetary where my dad, two grandpa's, a great aunt and a great grandma is buried. It was good to visit and remember these lives.
My dad's grave. It's a shame he never really got to see his kids grow up and to see his amazing grandkids. God has a way of filling empty spaces though.......
My Grandpa Wren's grave. Leah and Logan did get to know him some.
Our annual fishing trip was fun, but man we had to work hard to catch fish. It was crazy.
Ryan and a nice bass. I think it was a smallmouth.
Ok, see the snake is this picture? Super big and creepy and under our dock! We heard it was a fox snake? I still say it was a rattler.
Maddie driving the boat. Scary.
The boys swimming. This picture reminds me of how different Gee and Asher are. Gideon (while I was really proud of him for getting in, Anna wouldn't even consider it) clung to Ryan and freaked if he couldn't cling properly. Asher was just ready to dive over the side. I even have a picture of him just bawling that he couldn't get in at first.
Two very large mouths.
Log had a rough couple first days, but he picked up a few later in the week. Good job Log!
What do three 4 and 5 yr olds do on a boat for 8 hours? Why, they play itouches.
Me and my very nice Walleye.
To come is pictures of life around here. You must see our little twinlet calves and Logan's 4H calf is coming this weekend. Plus, our barn is built and our pasture is almost fenced in. Told ya we've been busy!
Julie
Thursday, June 2, 2011
End of the school year!
Today was Leah's last day of school. Yeah for all of us. I am going to love having my girl home all summer. They handed out awards today for the middle school and Leah got salutatorian for her grade. I am sooooo proud of her! The boy that got valedictorian is a friend of hers and they have a little battle going. I guess though they only counted the last 3 quarters of grades, not the 4th quarter. Leah got one A- her second quarter (in Algebra, she got a little behind because we were in Florida 2 weeks), well the #1 dude got an A- this current quarter (the 4th), but since they didn't count the 4th quarter, he beat her out. It's all good, he seems like a good kid that works hard like Leah.
So, off we go into summer. We will be leaving soon for our annual fishing vacation which is always a lot of fun. The kids have a couple camps to go to and 4H will consume some of our time, but it should be a great summer!
Julie
So, off we go into summer. We will be leaving soon for our annual fishing vacation which is always a lot of fun. The kids have a couple camps to go to and 4H will consume some of our time, but it should be a great summer!
Julie
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)