the Fab 4

It's been awhile ...

2009-11-06T05:16:00.016-06:00

I'm Back! :)

WOWZA! Looking at the last date, it's been about six months since I last blogged ... hmmm ... it looks as if Facebook has dominated my life! RUDE! I will be better at my blogging starting now - why, you ask? Well, seeing as only 5 people really look at this, I'll tell you why ... I feel less guilty about not writing in my journal. HA! So there! :)

Quick re-cap on events in the past six months ... that I remember, that is ....

- Went to Wisconsin for Grandma Suprise's funeral in early May

- Went to California (just me, Melissa and Austin) to stay with Pam and the cousins

- Gabby had 4 puppies - on my birthday! (this was a tragic day as well ... she had a puppy that didn't make it and I bawled like a BABY at the vet's)

- Carla came to visit for her birthday

- Went to my high school class reunion in Wisconsin ... it was the first one I have ever attended! Most of the old "group" were there ... HA! The picture of me and the head band is priceless!

- School started (Melissa is at a different high school this year - yeah! Austin is at the middle school - woop!)

- We don't have any more foster kids in the house (HOLLA!) :D

- I went to Salt Lake City with Carla to do some genealogy for a few days

- went to a Tea Party in Grand Forks

- Melissa now is legal to drive! YIKES

- Halloween in ND wasn't too cold this year! ;)

*NOTE* - Looking at the past months seems as if we have been busy, but our lives have really slowed down since we aren't fostering anymore! (sigh of relief) I believe that Austin mentioned that he doesn't want to have any foster brothers or sisters EVER again. It was hard, but we did it!

April 10-12

2009-04-27T06:54:00.014-05:00

Easter in Minneapolis

Wow! We had a busy, fun-filled Easter weekend! In conjunction with 'spring break' - I use the term loosely because the kiddos only had Friday, Monday and Tuesday - we decided to pack everyone up and go to the Mall of America. It was our second time going, and the foster kiddos' first time. ;) A fun time was had by all! In perfect 'Tina-ness', we did saw some other sights along the way ... it really doesn't pay to go all that way and just go to the mall, right?

Friday
After getting the car out of the shop (finally!), we left home around 1:45p - this was nearly seven hours later than I would have liked, but at least we were able to go. ;) We stayed at TLF housing at the St. Paul Air Reserve Station.

Here is a pic of the cemetery and our van ...
One of the Spanish-American War grave markers ...
Saturday
After a nice sleep, we got up early ('cuz we had tons to do!), we made our way to the Ft. Snelling National Cemetery. It was a gorgeous, sunny morning and we had an opportunity to talk to the kids about our military heroes - it reminded me a lot of Normany, France. We even saw graves from people who served in the Spanish-American War! The cemetery was large - almost 437 acres and has about 180,000 people buried there. There are wives of military members and even some sons and daughters, which I thought was interesting.

Next, we went to the Basilica of St. Mary, the first basilica in America. I must admit, going there brought me back to the cathedrals and basilicas we have seen in England and Europe. I snuck a photo inside the basilica, which I feel a little guilty about because there was a mass going on - obviously not guilty enough not to take the picture. ;)

4 out of 5 of the kiddos ...

stained glass of Mary ...

An action shot of Melissa ... she's so speedy!

A statue honoring the Belgian-priest-explorer Father Louis Hennepin ...
Onward to the Minnehaha Park and Waterfall. This is where we ate lunch - we brought our own - and fooled around a little. ;) It was cool to see the waterfall with snow and ice ... I was afraid that it would be frozen over from the winter!

Melissa - laughing/eating ...
Peel a banana upside-down ...
Nate ...
Annika ...
David ...
More fooling from M ...
Austin, trying to jump from one bench to the other ...
what they loved to do - video and text ...
Bubba ...
Annika ... she forgot her jacket ...
David ...
Annika, Nate 'n David ... ;)

The all-anticipated MOA (Mall of America) visit finally happened. I wanted to make sure we got there a little later in the day because the tickets for the rides drops after 5:00p. Melissa and I went shopping whilst Jacob sat at BABW with the other kiddos. Ah, Build-a-Bear! They all really enjoyed the whole experience there, but the line was ridiculous! Here is what the kiddos got:

Melissa - moose named Audry Inca
Austin - dog named Siliva
Nathan - dog named Budey
Annika - Hello Kitty named Hello Kitty (ha!)
David - bear named David

Then there was the rides! The kids totally enjoyed this part, except for Melissa who started a bad headache and felt feverish. I took her to the rooms and stayed with her until 10:00p when the mall closed. Poor Jacob had to deal with the four other kiddos, but he didn't complain too much because they all rode the rides. :)

Don't ask ... ;) you don't want to know what happened ... ;) MUAH HA HA HA ...
A, N & A, getting their hearts ready ...

Sunday
Our last day in Minneapolis was spent going to the zoo. It's been while since we've been to a zoo, so it was a nice time. The weather wasn't too hot or too cold and, being Easter Sunday, there weren't a whole lot of people there in the morning. :) We did stay there for 5 hours, though! The komodo dragon, the dolphins, the grizzly bears and the red panda were some of the highlights!

Here is a little posin' on the giant turtle ...
Ladybug! (or Ladybird, depending on where you are from ...)
A cloned cow named 'Lantz 2' ...
M, A 'n A, enjoying ice cream ...
D 'n N, taking a break ...
sharing means caring! ...
Annika was not impressed with this goat! ...the gizzlys ...
touching the starfish ... yes, Melissa knew I was walking around like this and didn't tell me ... :(I got a sunburn ... see?
All-in-all, we had a good time. It was nice to get out and visit something new, but it's also nice to come home!

March 14-15, 2009

2009-03-27T08:56:00.003-05:00

Fargo, ND

I've been negligent on my blog lately - bad Tina! I admit I've been going on my Facebook a little too much ... my apologies! I'm hoping to post and journal things on my blog that are different from my FB ... let's see if I succeed!

So, Jacob had a speaking assignment in Jamestown (about 3 hours away) and being it was St. Paddy's Day weekend (couldn't find a room in the town of James), we decided to stay in Fargo. Woo Hoo! ;) I know ... it IS the biggest city in ND you know! (at least I think it is!) We stayed at a Holiday Inn and they had a cute pool area ... here are some pics to thrill you all with! ;)

We had a pretty good time there - I would recommend it, but the pool area was PACKED!

Ha - the limit on people in the hot tub was 6 ... yes, 6 - not 36! ;)

The 'Pirate Ship' at the hotel ... the kids really enjoyed it! (well, not Melissa) You can just make out Austin's face going down the slide! Weee!

Austin's smooth moves ...

March 20, 2009

2009-03-27T08:44:00.004-05:00

Hiking - and I use the term loosely ...

Well, it had been getting warmer out there and I decided that we would all join in on a family hike! Woo Hoo! Jacob and I were the only ones impressed with this, sad to say. We motivated the kiddos and by 10:00am, we were out, walking around the base. Here are some pics of the "hike" ...

Here is everyone on "Deer Poop Alley" ...

The older housing area ...

More deer tracks - I guess they have a bad problem with the deer here on base ...

The trail is getting a little slippery ...

Everyone had wet feet by the time we arrived home, but it was nice of Jacob to 'rescue' the kids ...

A few days later, frozen rain on my windows, more snow out my door ... *sniff sniff*

March 6, 2009

2009-03-06T10:47:00.002-06:00

Call me Ms. Edgy ...

Okay, so most have already seen my new hairs-cut. ;) Frankly speaking, I've had a very challenging week and decided to have a little pampering done.

I went to the 'beauty parlor' to get my hair done with no idea of what I wanted or what would look good. I was advised that it wasn't really a smart thing to go to a new hairdresser and say "do whatever you want", but I told Kim (my new bestie) that I wanted to be a little more stylish. She was NOT impressed with my box color dye-job (rude?) and suggested a color called 'mocha'. Hmm ... I have a naturally poop-brown boring hair color, so I was all for it. She put in some highlights, which I called 'latte' (it sounds fitting, no?) and the result was ... well, it was WOWZA!

Kim really did a good job - there was a small dog laying on the floor of the salon when it was all over ... she must have cut off 5 inches or so! :)

Anyhoo, I just wanted to share, cuz sharing means caring! :)

I kind of look like a schmuck, here ...

February 25, 2009

2009-03-04T07:58:00.004-06:00

Blue & Gold Banquet

It's that time of year again for the Blue & Gold Banquet! This year, the theme was "the ABC's of America" - the boys celebrated places in the US they have visited. Unfortunately for Austin, we've just spent 3 years overseas and the only real places he's been to visit since we've been here are Wisconsin and the Mall of America (okay, the Old Mill State Park was nice). Our printer wasn't cooperating, so that meant he didn't have anything to show. I guess I could have had him draw a picture of something, but frankly speaking, I just don't have the energy lately. Poor Austin ...

The evening went well. There were yummy hamburgers and chips to eat and the boys played a game called "Where in the US is Carmen Santiago?". The boys enjoyed answering the questions and beating the adults! ;) Ah, and the much awaited Pinewood Derby cars were given out. Austin and Nate are really REALLY excited to do them! We've already been on the internet, looking at cars and paint jobs. :)

On a side note, Austin walked into the wall and bumped his head. :( It still is very sore to touch - he has a hard time combing his hair.

Austin and Nate are getting ready for the flag ceremony to begin ...

Austin is ready to receive some achievement beads ...

After receiving his achievement beads ...

Brother Farmer, reading off the awards for the night ...

Zoom zoom! ready for the derby!

It looked worse than this ... yeowch!

February 14, 2009

2009-02-18T08:00:00.002-06:00

Hearts & Flowers

Well, Valentine's Day was a bit of a bust this year. Jacob had meetings in Fargo and because Melissa went to a Stake dance, she was down there, too. They both got back at 4:40pm, so I stole my children and rushed over to Dairy Queen (mmm ... peanut buster parfait) and enjoyed a little sweet treat. Jacob didn't forget - he knew he was going to be gone the entire day so he surprised me with flowers on the night before. He knows I love roses ... they smell so awesome! Isn't he great? :)

Please note: the pitcher the roses are in still have the auction tag from the Diss auction on it! Ah, good times ...

On a side note, Melissa went to school last Monday (Feb. 9) and the roads were a thick sheet of ice. Melissa's bus was in a bit of an accident - the driver lost control and hit a yield sign and a fire hydrant. The kids on that bus were given a free pass - no school! I had Melissa go and take some pictures, but the only one she took had a fire department vehicle in it ... the roads look wet, but it's all ice. Slip, slide and away they went!

February 11, 2009

2009-02-11T09:10:00.003-06:00

BUGGY ...

I took some pictures the other day of our arrival onto the base ... through our very buggy windscreen (ha - check out the British verbiage!). It may not be too pretty, but you can get an idea of what it looks like at the front gate. I KNOW everyone will be overjoyed and ecstatic to see these! :)

the exit off Hwy. 2 ...

Misc. planes & stuff - I am assuming that they are the remnants of glory days gone by at GFAFB ...

approaching the "Avenue of Flags" ...

Flags ... need I say more?

Flags ... again. Please, curb your enthusiasm ...

January 31, 2009

2009-02-05T17:15:00.007-06:00

Snow & Sioux
On Saturday, the weather was warming up - it said 44 degrees in our car - so we took everyone to Turtle River to go sledding. WOO HOO! When we first arrived, there was absolutely no one there. :) That didn't last long, but even at the zenith of people, it was manageable. The snowboard wasn't such a big hit as it was previously ... the snow was packed down and very slick.

Melissa, revealing her "secret weapon" signature sledding style ... she challenged me to a race and, the poor thing, lost.

Austin is skidding to a stop ...

An action shot of Austin, running into Annika ... her sled stopped in the middle of the hill and she sat there and didn't move and it was too late ... Austin had already started going ... and blam!

Our love, enjoying a trip down the hill ...

Even the dogs came ... Pirate's expressions are always ludicrous
While living here in the frozen tundra that is Grand Forks, we have found that an important part of life here is enjoying the local university's hockey teams. Seeing as I had a devilish hard time finding men's hockey tickets, I opted for the considerably cheaper and available women's hockey tickets.

A statue of Sitting Bull, one of the most famous Sioux Indians

Here are the kids, outside of the arena ... will I ever have all of them look at me at the same time?
After sledding, we rushed back home to get ready for the hockey game. When we got there, Austin really wanted a #1 fan foam finger (he has been begging for months), so I went to the Sioux store inside the arena. Did you know that everything in the store ends with 23 cents? Why? Because Ralph Englestad's number was 23. Count yourself knowledgeable in all things Ralph! ;)

Austin, enjoying his finger ...
Fooling around and picking their noses with their fingers ...

Making an "A" out of the fingers ...
What a goofball ... with the fingers! ... :)

The only decent shot of Melissa ... she's getting camera shy ...
Woo Hoo ... the kids are on the big screen!

You can make out the whole gang ... and I look like a doofus, taking a picture!

The game was really interesting ... none of us have ever been to a hockey game before. Austin said that it was "better than football" ... I think it was because we had awesome seats and really no seat is a bad seat at the Ralph! May I add that the seats are leather? Yes, nothing but the best for us Forkers! ;) muah ha ha ha ...

Ha - this lady in front of us, sporting her "modern technology" ... I haven't seen one of those in FOREVER! :)
LOOK! BC in North Dakota! more fodder for my calendar ... :)

January 23, 2009

2009-01-23T09:54:00.004-06:00

It's frozy out there!

Yesterday was the first big frosty frozy day (so far ... haha) and I just LOVE it when it's frosty outside. It's times like this that I would really love to have a super awesome Ansel Adams camera. I was tempted to go out and brave the cold, but I had visiting teaching to do so I just took a couple of shots from around our house. Enjoy!

ON A SIDE NOTE: May I just state my "pet peeve" or "niggle" regarding people who live in base housing. Okay, so I noticed the drain in one of the bathtubs wasn't draining right. (MIND YOU, we have only been here 2 months). Jacob pulled a bunch (the picture doesn't do it any justice) and I mean A BUNCH of clogged hair from the drain and that hair just isn't my shade or length, thank you very much. It looks like hair has been piling up for quite a few months upon months. CLEAN OUT YOUR DRAIN FOR CRYING OUT LOUD PEOPLE. Okay, in the defense of the people-who-lived-here-before-us, they may have not known about it but for pete's sake, the drain wasn't working! I'm betting my bottom dollar that it was just one of those "we don't have to worry about it because we're moving" kind of situations. All I'm saying is "ew, gross". Thanks for listening. I feel better. ;)

January 20, 2009

2009-01-20T08:15:00.003-06:00

Some Miscellaneous Fun ...

We've been having a pretty busy time over here lately and I just wanted to post some pics of the kids sledding, which seems to be the thing to do now that we have so much snow! ;) We are enjoying some warmer temps these past few days (in the 20s) but I understand that we are going back to the bitter cold soon.

Here is Austin, frozy but enjoying the mound of snow near our house (thank you snow plow peeps!) :)

An action shot of Melissa - it looks like she's falling (which wouldn't surprise me at all).
Also, I was brushing the dogs the other day and Pirate's hair just cracked me up! It was a fuzzy bunch of afro-like hair ... poor Gabby needs a haircut but I just can't seem to convince myself to do it - too cold outside! She already shakes and freezes when she goes outside. I know they (especially Gabby) are missing our walks, but it's just too bitter out there.

Here they are ... thing 1 and thing 2 ...
Poor Gabby can hardly see - hence the little ponytail after the brushing ...
Pirate and his funny faces! He must not like the flash at all ... :) muah ha ha ha!

January 10, 2009

2009-01-16T14:48:00.006-06:00

Monster Truck Jam-o-rama!
"When in Rome, do as the Romans" ... when in Grand Forks, do as the Forkers! (huh?) Anyhoo, there was a monster truck rally at the Alerus Center (where we watch the Fighting Sioux play football) and we could not pass on the opportunity! :) The foster kids came with us and good times were had by all!

Here are most of our party - poor Melissa was cut off - awaiting the big event to begin! The fuzziness of the picture is insane ...

Here is an "action" shot of Sheer Insanity (on the left) vs. The General ... The General (looks like the General Lee from Dukes of Hazard) was quite popular with the crowd! Please note the Canadian flag - yes, we're that close! :)

Ah, the poor General having to get towed off the field - there were quite a few tows needed that night! - it was leaning dangerously to one side ... could it have been the shocks? I don't know too much about cars to know ...

Melissa said that she now wants to be a monster truck driver, and has requested that she get her driver's license early. HA! Yes, she is hilarious! She must get all of her humor from me, not her father! Muah ha ha ha ...

This is a picture of the female monster driver and her truck, TNT

This is not the first monster truck rally that Jacob and the kiddos have been to. Jacob and the kids are veteran's at this monster truck stuff When we were in New Mexico, he took them to the races there. I believe I had a previous commitment with a calling or something - Jacob said that the one in NM was better-er. We still enjoyed ourselves! I was amazed at the number of people in the crowd - nearly sold out! I guess there's not much else to do around here in the winter ... :)

They had a "wheelie" contest - it was actually kind of scary watching them!

You will have to forgive me on the quality of the pictures ... the lighting was a little too dark to have the flash off and the flash didn't do much on ... I do believe I need a new one (hint hint Jacob). :)

There was a part of the evening called "tough trucks" - it consisted of local yocals (ha, just kidding) driving their trucks around the track. This truck was the first to "bite the dust" and actually one one of the "tough trucks" ended up not having to be towed away!

Ah, I saved the best for last. The truck, Bear Foot, is a 3-time champion (if I heard correctly). This man sitting ahead of me said that the trucks cost around $200,000 - $300,000 (yeowch) and the special fuel that it costs makes this a very expensive hobby! You'll have to forgive my video skills - it's on my camera, so it's a little choppy. Enjoy!

December 24-25, 2008

2009-01-01T02:58:00.007-06:00

Happy Christmas!
Ah, our first white Christmas! :)
We officially started Christmas on Christmas Eve - we do our traditional 'open one gift up' thing ... Austin opened up Aunt Pam and the cousin's gift ... a guitar hero guitar! Woo Hoo! Visions of battling his family was running through Austin's head; but alas, the blue button doesn't work and I have to send it back. :(
Melissa chose a gift she knew already (she's a snooper) and had the audacity to ask for another present to open because she knew what it was. :( Poor Meilssa - she only got to open the one gift. ... muah ha ha ha! ...
The day started early (Austin was up at 4:00 which was when I was going to bed) and Christmas was in danger of starting that early. Well, seeing as I was really tired, I went and rested my head and woke up around 8:00am.
We had a 'homemade Christmas' this year and I think it turned out really well!

Austin received a chess board that Jacob made for him - it really turned out groovy! Austin is thrilled with it!
Melissa received a weaving that Austin did in school - he spent a lot of time (3 classes) on it and was very excited to give it to Melissa. Oh, and Austin (with a whole lot of help from me) made Melissa a scrap book so all she has to do is put pictures in it. (my camera is funny - this pic is w/flash on) :(
Jacob was the lucky recipient of some signs that I made for him. They are with vinyl letters (we received some gifts from Jacob's brother and sister-in-law that are made with vinyl lettering on it - cool!). I will post said signs when I get them hung ... I have visions of some cute ribbon, so we'll see how that looks. (it looks super awesome in my mind's eye!) :)
I received a wonderful frame, decorated by Melissa, that surrounded a picture of her and I when she was 8 years old and in Brownies. :) haha! I also received 3 very nice and smelly candles from Austin. He was so proud of that gift! :) He bought them at the Santa Store they had at school.
Here are the gifts from Joe and Angel and you can see the 3 candles that Austin bought me in the lower right ...
The dogs were pretty good this year and Santa did not forget them. You don't want to know what their "doggie business" looked like for the following two days! yuck-a-poo ... :(
We were super duper lucky to have the missionaries in our home on Christmas day - and I put them to work right away! Ha, it was just frosting cookies ... but there were a lot of cookies! I like to put a little maple flavoring in the icing for some of them, and they always turn out to be my favorite-est!
Ah, my Christmas Spode plates ... I was going to use my Old Country Roses, but they can't go in the dishwasher and I wasn't in the mood to do dishes by hand!
The Christmas supper was stupendous! The ham, if I do say so myself, was extra super duper yummy! We had some garlic roasted asparagus that turned out super-duper as well. I'm not even an asparagus fan (my sis Pam is) but this was GOOD! Of course, there were other delectable to be eaten and eaten they were! Now I know why that man had to take a "long winter's nap" ... muah ha ha ha.

Here is Melissa, going for the black olives ... she's addicted to them.
Poor Austin - he's got such a face on him ... oh, and check out the "Happy Halloween" shirt he has on!
When the missionaries are over, it means one thing: something funny is about to happen. Well, poor Elder Carpenter and Elder Prisbrey were fortunate to try some kimchi (rotted cabbage gunk from Korea) and may I say, there was some gagging going on. I do believe that neither of the Elders will be partaking of any kimchi in the near future. :)
All-in-all, we had an awesome Christmas. I do get a little woebegone, wishing we were with family and such, but there will be opportunities to have that in the years to come. :)

October - December, 2008

2008-12-22T00:02:00.010-06:00

Pen Pals

At Austin's school, they have this really awesome program called "Pen Pals" - it's similar to "Adopt a Grandparent". First, the kids are assigned a Pen Pal - Austin's Pen Pal is Dale. :) Throughout the month, Austin writes letters and makes crafts and pictures for Dale. Then comes the day when the kids get to go and visit their Pen Pals!

October - The first month! I volunteered to go and rode the bus with Austin to Valley 4000. I must say, I am very impressed with the whole facility! They have different sections - an independent living area, an assisted living area, and a nursing home area. Dale is in the nursing home area.

*NOTE* - I am blocking out Dale's face, due to rules and regulations and the rights of the residents. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to show them, so I thought I'd be safe and just black-out their eyes.

When we first arrived, we were given a grand tour. There is a beauty salon, a workout gym/PT area, a number of dining facilities and even some birds and a few dogs!

After the tour, Austin anxiously awaited the arrival of Dale - his first meeting! It was so cute! I'm glad I was there to help prompt some questions in the beginning, but after Austin and Dale got started, they had so much to talk about! Dale is a very soft spoken man, so Austin had to listen very carefully to what he was saying.

The 3rd graders sang songs to the residents and handed out the crafts they made. Dale liked Austin's pictures and gave him a big hug! Too soon it was time to go back on the bus ... ah, the bus! Austin sat with his good friend, Cody, and they listened to Austin's MP3 player and had a good time jammin' out!

November - Austin was unable to make it to the Pen Pal visit in November. He had a fever (it was that stinking fifth's disease) and I told him that he couldn't go to school much less go to visit Dale - Austin understood that Dale would get sick if he went and I told him that we would stop by Valley 4000 after church on Sunday to visit him (barring any fever or illness).

We did stop by after church; however, Dale was sleeping and he looked so peaceful that we didn't have the heart to wake him up. He was watching golf, so we knew he'd be out for the rest of the afternoon. (muah ha ha ha) We did leave him a note, though. :)

December - This month, the residents of Valley 4000 had a program for the children! They had a choir that sang songs for the kiddos and even had their pictures taken especially for them! Austin was so proud of his picture of Dale - he had to show everyone in his class how awesome it was!

Austin decided to give Dale a Christmas present ... he ended up giving him a very soft pillow (and when I say soft, I mean soft!) He thought that he could sit in his bed with the pillow behind his back, or maybe just take a nap on it. When Dale opened it up, he was surprised and happy to see it! He commented on how soft it was (nice choice, Austin!). The other gift Austin gave Dale was a picture of the two of them I took in October - their first meeting. Good ole Dale, he got really emotional when he unwrapped it. It was rather touching, watching him look at the picture of him and Austin! (sniff sniff)

A 5th grade class was there, too, and they (along with Austin's class) sang some Christmas songs for the residents. Austin kept watching to see if Dale was watching him and ... he sure was! He even sang along! :)

After a snack of some really yummy cookies and punch, we again gave big hugs to Dale with promises to visit this week - we will make sure we don't go around nap time! :)

I just want to conclude with my two cent opinion - I think it's great that Austin's class is so involved with our community and especially the elderly in the area. I know that some of those residents don't get visitors very often, and they really look forward to the kids every month. Austin wants to continue his relationship with Dale over the summer and into next year, and it makes me so proud (but not in a prideful way) that he is so committed to Dale and the visits to Valley 4000. :)

December 4, 2008

2008-12-21T23:30:00.006-06:00

Fa-la-la-la Program

I am posting a little out of order ... so sorry! I am on a roll tonight! WOO HOO!

It's that time of year for the Christmas programs! Yeah!

The theme for Austin's big performance was "Holidays in America" and I must say that this was by far the best program either of our kids have ever been in. The children knew all of the songs really well and you can tell they were very excited to sing them.

Austin's favorite song was "The Ever-lasting Fruitcake" ... he had a speaking part and right before he was to say it, my batteries died :( and I didn't get a chance to record it. I know, bummer!

Austin is getting excited to sing his favorite song ...

Here is Austin's big moment ... right before he says his part ... I take a pic and go to record and ... *bleep bleep bleep* my camera beeps at me and demands that I change it's battery. :( poor Austin ...

This song (I forget the name) was sung to those parents who are deployed and other family members who are away from the children at Christmastime. A few parents were a little on the sniff sniff, boo hoo side - really touching stuff!

After the program, we were fooling around and taking pics ... the famous 'bunny ears' never cease to make him laugh. I see we are so awesome that the man behind us is totally videoing us! Make sure you watch the new movies coming out because you never know who you'll see! :) muah ha ha ha

Here is a snippet of the song, "The Ever-lasting Fruitcake" ... please enjoy more than you would a fruitcake, unless you like that sort of thing! :)

December 13, 2008

2008-12-21T22:51:00.003-06:00

Sled-a-roni at the Turtle

On the day before the big blizzard, we took the kids to Turtle River State Park, which is only a few miles down the road. They have some nice hills there and even though the park ranger said there wasn't enough snow to sled on, we proved them wrong! :) We were the only ones on the hill - there's a warming cabin at the base of the hill, which was locked. It was a might nippy out there and the wind was a howlin'!

Here is a pic of the scenery - the park is not very big, but this section was a little picturesque ...

The troops, trudging up the hill ... you can still see the grass poking out :)
Melissa and Austin had a try at the new "snowboard" out - I use quotes because it's totally plastic. LOL Actually, both Melissa and Austin did well with the board ... I, on the other hand, preferred to travel down on my tush!

This is the only good shot I have of Austin - the plastic-y blue toboggan sled was totally useless, fyi. Melissa is ready to try out the board for the first time!

Melissa, looking like a pro ... maybe she should make it a new career move!

Here is a video of Austin, trying to enjoy sledding, and Melissa, using her new "skills"

Here is another video of Melissa, the Champion Snowboarder representing the US in the Winter Olympics ... ;)

December 7, 2008

2008-12-15T07:20:00.005-06:00

The Night of the Nativity

This year, our family participated in 'The Night of Nativity', a live representation of the first Christmas. You may ask, "was it cold"? The answer would be a resounding "YES"! I believe my hands were frozy and my face froze, but it was worth it! :)

This is the 3rd annual one and I was a little enthusiastic about signing up for things ... not only was I in charge of getting groups of carolers together, I signed our family up to be in the live nativity. Austin was going to be a shepherd or wise man, but alas - he was too short to fit into the costumes. :( He was bummed, but what cheered him up was the animals! A petting zoo brought their livestock over - llamas, a donkey, sheep, a Shetland pony, a goat and some little 2 month old kid goats. They were so cute! They also entertained him all day. Speaking of all day, we were literally at the church all day - 10:00am church starts, 4:00pm nativity starts ... seeing as church is over at 1:00pm, no one wanted to drive the 1/2 hour home, stay at home for an hour and then drive the 1/2 hour back. We brought food and had a potluck with other families that travel a bit far to the chapel. The hot dogs I brought were a big hit, thank you very much! :)

One of the cooler things about the night was the press coverage. Our local television station came with a camera and even interviewed our Bishop! The local newspaper, the Grand Forks Herald, was there, too. I guess there was a nice representation on the tv that night, but we missed it. :( I wonder if I can go and look at the archives and view it ... hmmm ...

Austin and his llama and sheep friends ...

getting Melissa all ready for the choir ....

the choir ... at least one group of us! how do I look in a top hat?

another view of our little quartet ... my pink crocs look perfect, no?

a view of the live nativity and the carolers ...

a pic of the cameraman taking some video ...

Jacob, the wisest man of all ... :)

Ah, our little princess is wise, too ...

bearing gifts ...

ah, Elder Carpenter, me, Elder Dean and Elder Prisbrey, pretending to be singing ...

December 8, 2008

2008-12-12T17:06:00.006-06:00

First Lesson ...

Today we had our first real snow fall. It was Austin's first time shoveling - boy howdy, was he thrilled! I had to go shovel the other day and he cried because he had homework and I went out without him. :) Let's see how long that lasts! Oh, we're supposed to have a blizzard this weekend. My son's first comment on that was "blizzards taste good!". Youth ...

Here it is ... the lesson!

Austin, going solo ...

the snow here is actually light, but he makes it look heavy ...

he's concentrating so hard, he's sticking his tongue out! :)

Melissa, coming home from school ... just in time!
note the shovel isn't for snow ... it's for cow poo-poos! :)

Melissa's solo act ... note: real young women don't wear gloves or mittens!

she is "done" ...

snow angels are the best!

bbrrr ... sticky snow ...

Jacob threw some snow on Austin ... bam!

it's not winter until you have snow down the neck!

November 27, 2008

2008-12-03T11:54:00.010-06:00

A Thankful Day
... and a Thankful Black Friday

Thanksgiving is an awesome time of year! This year, we had a very relaxing day - just our family, seeing as we don't have too many friends here (yet?). :) Anyhoo, the day was spent lounging around ... Melissa took many naps and watched "One Tree Hill", Austin and Jacob played Guitar Hero - World Tour, and I watched Lost, season 2. Poor Jacob made all of the Turkey Day foodstuff, so I was in charge of Black Friday fare. :)

Here is a picture of "the men" playing Guitar Hero. Note that Jacob is giving Austin some tips ...

Here is a picture of Austin's 5th disease. Another breakout today ... when is this going to end!? It's been over 3 weeks ...

The dogs and Austin ... isn't it cute that Pirate is giving Gabby a kiss? Awww ...

Austin, trying to hug Gabby but getting mauled by Pirate ...

Moving to North Dakota has definitely made me appreciate my family and friends. I am also very thankful to be the seminary teacher - having Melissa in class is a riot! :) I can't imagine waking up any other way ...

So, Melissa and I went to beddie bye early because of "Black Friday" ... we picked up M's friend, Mackenzie, at around 2:40am (yes, that is early!). We started off the day at the BX here on base - heck, I wanted my free $20 gift card! lol

Then we picked up my OBFND (only best friend in North Dakota), Carolyn, and we headed out to Kohl's and WalMart. We were pretty much bushed after that. :) Got some good deals, but didn't really break the band, seeing as we're doing a "homemade Christmas" this year.

Once we arrived home, M and I went straight to bed to take a nap. ;) Seeing as Austin's birthday was just on Tuesday and Elder Carpenter's birthday was on Black Friday, we thought it would be fun to have a little birthday celebration. Fun, fun! ;) Actually, we had a "puking good time" ... more details to follow! muah ha ha ha!

Well, the night started out (after supper, of course) with the ceremonial 'opening of the presents'. Poor Elder Carpenter hasn't received anything from his 'friend that's a girl', so we got him a Barbie. He's naming her 'Jezebel'. (I wonder why? haha)
Well, the games then began! We played a game where you have to scoop cotton balls from one bowl to another with a wooden spoon, blindfolded. FUN! There were some sneaky pranks to be found, I tell you what!

What would a party be without musical chairs? We only played spiritual music, OF COURSE. (*cough cough*) I believe that Elder Prisbry won that one.

Now, I'm not willing to divulge the person who came up with this last game. Originally, it was supposed to be "hot potato", but then I suggested we use the Barbie and play "hot Barbie". Well, that just doesn't sound like a game you should play with four missonaries, so it ended up being "hot ______". The first round was "hot applesause". Austin was the 'winner' and had to chug a snack-sized portion of applesauce. Easy, right? He did very well.

Next, we played "hot jello". Melissa was the 'winner' and, as you can see, it was very hilarious to watch! She was laughing so hard that she spit it out, and then proceeded to slurp it up off the table. I love Elder Prisbry's face! It was that hilarious!

"Hot pudding" was for Elder Carpenter. I thought I'd go easy on him ... it was his birthday after all! :)

The next round was "hot peaches and cream". Poor Elder Christensen was the 'winner'. He had a real hard time choking down the chunks.* (*insert evil chuckle here) What we didn't know was that he has a really sensative gag reflex and that, coupled with the sounds of vomiting from his other "friends", it was only a matter of time before he started puking up the peaches and cream. muah ha ha ha! hee hee hee! I am evil, but thinking about his head in the garbage can just makes me laugh! :)
Okay, now the "hot yams" may not sound bad to you, but to Elder Dean, it was quite sickening! Please take special note of Elder Christensen, gagging and puking along with Elder Dean! :) muah ha ha ha!

The worst "hot _____" was the last one. Elder Prisbry got "hot jello with some yams and a couple of cheese curds". Yuck is all I can say on that one. Actually, he was a trooper and ate the whole thing - I believe the words of a bystander were "that's a delete-r", referring to the boringness of the video. ;)

Okay, to the grande finale of the evening. Melissa volunteered (may I say volunteered again?) to take a teaspoon full of cinnamon and eat it. Now, she had just seen the video of Elder Carpenter doing the same thing, and she knew what to expect. I guess she thought he was a pansy and decided to do it anyway. I just watched the video again and am wiping the tears away from my face at the same time. A total "must see" ...

After all of the fun and puking was over, it was time for cake. A few opted out because their tummies were a little upset over the clenching of the puking muscles, but it was all good! I thought the pink cake went well with Elder Carpenter's Barbie ... ha! All-in-all, it was a super fun, super hilarious day! A few days after the party, Austin told me that "it was a fun time - those missionaries are funny!".

The birthday boys and their cake ...

END NOTE: Who's up for some fun? When it's your birthday, we can play games! Oh, and I triple dog dare everyone to get someone to do the cinnamon test ... muah ha ha ha! :)

November 25, 2008

2008-11-27T10:16:00.003-06:00

It's great to be 9!

Here is the Birthday Boy, waiting patiently to open his gifts ...

Austin celebrated his big 9 year birthday today! WOO HOO! The poor kid had to go to school ... awww - I know we all feel so bad for him! :) He received a call before school from Grandma Jackie, which perked him right up! I made some dirt cake (his favorite) and brought it to his class ... there was much love and praise for me. It's amazing what a little crushed cookie and pudding does to a child! :)

Austin opened his gifts after supper (he loves pork, so I made him his favorite kind) and received a new Guitar Hero (for the Wii), some Guitar Hero pjs, an Aerosmith t-shirt (he was thrilled! no, really - he was!), a nerf blaster-thing, some Bakugan things (for the lack of a better word) and Lego Batman.

Austin, doing the "yes" gesture at opening his Guitar Hero game ...

Checking out the sights of the nerf-thing ...
Aunt Shelly, Nana and Aunt Pam and the cousins rounded off the evening with some well wishes via the phone.

Austin & Melissa with his gifts ... ;)

Melissa, trying to open Guitar Hero with her teeth ... she was as excited as he was!

November 14, 2008

2008-11-23T22:27:00.004-06:00

* the NEW house *

At last! We have finally moved into the new house. Finally we are done! Finally! (can you tell I am excited!?) I must say, this moving by yourself thing is overrated, if rated at all. ;|

Here is a pic of our new home ...

Another view - encompassing a bit of our neighbor's ...

The house is awesome! I must admit that I am love, love, loving the high cathedral ceilings and am totally in love, love, love with the double gargae w/garage door opener. I feel all hoity toity now. I think I'm getting a little prideful! :( I must repent. Oh, speaking of prideful ... check out the new kitchen table. We totally got it on sale for $128 dollars. Yes, you heard me correctly - an all oak table for $128. I'm so excited! There are two leaves for it and we could seat up to 10 or maybe more people! woo hoo! :0

Here is Austin in the backyard ... we were excited about the snow! We've only gotten about an inch so far and it's pretty much all gone now ...

Here is the living and dining area ... the ceilings are HIGH!

In the past, I have never been a fan of duplex living, but I must admit that we are really loving the house. I think it helps that our house is separated from our neighbors' house by the garage. I did meet our neighbor ... she is German and her hubby is deployed right now. They have a cute little girl and a dog, too. :) I totally have forgotten her name, but I must admit she is very pleasant. :)

Melissa is nearer to her bestest buddy, MacKenzie ... actually, we are on the same street. Austin hasn't really met any of the kids in our neighborhood yet, due to the colder weather. Hopefully, we will be seeing some more activity outside once we get a little more snow! :) I have big plans for forts and sledding and football in the snow ... I may be delusional, but we'll see.

Here are also a couple of pics of the kids - we took the dogs on a walk and went to a park. Austin asked if he could have Pirate go down the slide and I assumed that he meant that he would go with him ... I was wrong in my assumption and let's just say that Pirate was not impressed with the slide. If must admit, it was kind of funny to watch, though!

Melissa & Austin w/Pirate at the slide ...

Pirate, thrilled to be sliding down ... poor thing! :)

October 31, 2008

2008-11-23T19:39:00.003-06:00

FRIGHT NIGHT

The Big All-Hallowed Eve ... woo hoo! Austin and Melissa were both excited for the big event (we still have tons of candy left over)! It was really great having Halloween on a Friday this year! No worries about the kiddos staying up too late! ;)

This year, Austin wore a ninja costume, Melissa dressed as her friend, Gabby was a bee and Pirate was a pig (I had to switch the dogs costumes because the bee was running a little too small for Gabbs). As usual, I went as a stressed-out mom. I do that really well, by the way. ;)

Rumor has it that this Halloween was more awesome-er than years past - I guess it can be quite snowy and bitter cold. We were lucky this year! After we went around treating (there were no tricks to be had), we had supper with the four missionaries that are serving in our area. :) Good times!

Thankfully, Jacob came home from his TDY that afternoon, so he was able to witness the wonderful fun that is Halloween. :)

October 18, 2008

2008-10-24T10:01:00.003-05:00

The Dog Park
(Gabby & Pirate, running to Austin)

I know I'm posting a little out of chronological order (sorry Reebs & KC), but I wanted to post some pics of the dog park.

(Austin and some new friends)

While Melissa was spending some quality time at school on Saturday morning, Austin and I decided to take the dogs to the doggie park, which is downtown at Lincoln Park.
(Pirate and Austin, brrrraving the wind)

The forecast for that day was supposed to be 65 and awesome, so we just donned a sweatshirt and took the dogs to the park. Brrr! 65! Yeah, right. It was so windy and cold, we could only stand to be there for 30 minutes. We were braver than some ... the dogs did enjoy it. Gabby is doing better with the big dogs rushing up to her and Pirate was a bit more playful. It was a "dog-gone" good time! :)

(Melissa, coming from her "school commitment")

October 23, 2008

2008-10-24T09:33:00.004-05:00

Reebs & KC
(here is a pic of Kelly & Reba)

Last night, Melissa and I went to the "2 worlds, 2 voices" concert starring Reba McIntyre and Kelly Clarkson! It was Melissa's first big concert - for me, it's been awhile since I've been to one ... I think 'Air Supply' was the last concert I attended (am I dating myself too much here?!).(the Ralph Engelstad Arena ... home of the Fighting Sioux! woo hoo!)
(the stage is set for the concert)

Along with Melissa's best bud, MacKenzie and her mother, Kim, we all headed out for a night of fun and laughter at the Ralph Engelstad Areana, which is right in downtown Grand Forks. The night started off with a comedy sketch from someone named "Barbara Jean" - I guess she was on the Reba show. During her routine, Kim and I would be laughing so hard ... I would look over at Melissa and MacKenzie and they would be just sitting there, not getting the jokes ... it was hilarious!
(Melissa & MacKenzie, enjoying the show)

The concert was really good - it was interesting for me, as I don't really know any Reba songs, to hear her and Kelly sing together. I guess Reba & Kelly are really close friends outside of the concert venue. One of the songs they sang together (a Reba song) was "Cathy's Clown" ... I somewhat know this song, and it turned out that Reba, also, only somewhat knew the song. Poor thing, she blooped some of the words - it was sweet to see how a seasoned professional dealt with a little blunder on stage. Reba was great about the whole thing - laugh at yourself and the whole audience laughs with you! :)(the awesome Kelly)
(the funny Reba)

After the concert, we went to check out the t-shirts and other concert paraphernalia. The t-shirts were $30 each and I didn't have that much cash on me. Poor Melissa ... she doesn't have a t-shirt to commemorate her first big concert ... or does she? On our way to the car, a man (who I can only say resembled a 'scalper') approached us with t-shirts for $20 each. Sold! So, Melissa has her first concert t-shirt and all is right with the world (except, maybe, for the presidential election - don't get me started!) :)

October 14, 2008

2008-10-15T17:45:00.002-05:00

Boo-tiful!

The dogs + Halloween = Cuteness!

Awww ... Gabby is a pig and Pirate is a bee and, as you can tell, they are both totally thrilled with their costumes! Gabby looked so depressed, she wouldn't even look at me. All Pirate did was try to eat the bumblebee's antennae. I believe I will be switching their costumes because Gabby's came off in less than a second and the bee straps on the dog differently. You'll have to come and see them to see if I do ... :)

October 11, 2008

2008-10-11T10:14:00.003-05:00

*OUCH!*

Well, Melissa decided to show the brick wall in her room some moves. I must admit, the wall was not impressed at all. Of course, after talking with the on-call doctor on base, we decided that, just to make sure, I should take Melissa down to the hospital in town (none on base) to get it x-rayed.
Seeing as we have only been in this area for 3 months, I was a little unsure on the location of the hospital, but we found it! The term "local talent" will be coming out in my vocabulary when I describe the hospital. I gather it is a working hospital due to the UND medical program - the nurses and doctor were actually very nice, but the reception staff and intake nurse were a little on the "local talent" side. Oh, and one must not forget the convict that was shackled and handcuffed with two armed guards with him. True, convicts do need to go to the hospital from time to time, and we were so fortunate as to witness that (place sarcastic grin here).

In the end, Melissa's knuckle had a contusion on it - no break. *whew*! I believe Melissa's words to her brother were ... "Austin. Don't ever do this." What more can I say? Jacob is missing out ... :|

Oh, and one must pronounce 'karate' like this ... "care-ah-tae". Melissa = Sandy from SpongeBob ...

October 4, 2008

2008-10-04T19:17:00.010-05:00

Old Mill State Park

Autumn is one of my most favorite times of the year and I wanted to go and enjoy the fall colors today. I packed up the kiddos and we drove to Minnesota (it was hard to hold my breath the whole time) to Old Mill. Now, I am one for modern technology and all of that, but the stinking tom tom wasn't getting us where we needed to go! It took over 2 hours to get there when it should have only been an hour and ten minutes. I know! RUDE!

To pass the time away whilst driving, I did partake in some picture taking. I know! RUDE! May I not recommend this behavior?! I must repent of such things ... ;) One of the pics I took was when we were driving over the Red River - the river that separates ND from MN - so you'll have to pardon the glare.
Did you know that sunflowers don't stay all pretty and bloomed for very long? I found out the hard way and didn't get to take any coolio pics of the sunflowers here in ND. FACT: ND grows more sunflowers than any other state. FYI. Well, after driving and seeing tons of sunflower fields, we pulled over and took some pics. It was actually really interesting!
After searing and driving roads that aren't even county roads, I flagged down a fellow driver and he pointed us to the right direction. Whew! I was actually about to throw in the towel and call it quits, but we were saved by a man in a truck. :)

Believe it or not, we were the only ones at the state park! I know! RUDE! It was such a beautiful day out! We drove and parked near the Lars Larson log cabin and steam-powered flour mill. Austin thought it was "too bad" that the log cabin was locked (I agreed) but it was interesting to see the cabin and the mill. It was not fun to see the outhouse! :)
Next, we went "toe dipping" into the Middle River - it was very clear and a little on the cold-side, but Austin and I braved it! I went around the rest of the day with a double soaker, due to the fact that I didn't wear my standard footware (Crocs). What was I thinking?
Melissa opted out of the "toe dipping" because she said that she didn't feel well. :( Poor Melissa missed out of the fun but created her own by texting friends. It looks like there may be a "no cell phone" rule while we hike around! :P
A little walk on a trail brought us to a bridge to the campgrounds (which are closed for the season). It's a nice little state park but I bet it gets packed in the summer.
We saw a sign for a "beach", so we were thrilled to go and check that out! HA! It was a little man-made area that was drained for the winter. :( It looks as though they have some sledding there in the winter ... there were randomly placed stairways for no reason - until I looked at the map! :)
We had a fun time at the park (at least I did) but it was soon time for us to depart. But was it the end of my picture taking? NO! :) Of course, I saw some fun things on the side of the road - cattails! I must say, my dad also liked pulling over onto the side of the road for "weeds", but I do not consider a cattail a weed, even though I'm not entirely sure of what their purpose is (except to please me). ;)
Another fun thing I saw was ... get ready ... a drive-in theater! It has been so many years since I've seen one! They don't have them in England (that I saw) and I don't recall one in New Mexico. What a flashback! :) The screen looked like it was in good enough repair so I am hoping it is still a working drive-in. Driving through all of the little towns around that area, it wouldn't surprise me at all that it was still working. The population of the towns were in the 300's or 600's.
Yet another fun thing we saw were the sugar beet trucks and a mountain of sugar beets! Occasionally, you would find a stray beet along the way ... poor little beet! :)
Here are some last random shots that I took on the way back home. It was such a lovely day and I'm glad that we were able to get out and enjoy it (even though it was in Minnesota). HAHAHA!

September 30, 2008

2008-10-01T07:11:00.003-05:00

Happy Fall, Y'all ...
Well, autumn is here and is all over our front lawn! Along with Austin's help, I raked the leaves up into a nice big pile and then ... there were two kiddaroos jumping in them and throwing them all over!
Melissa is enjoying her "leaf bed" ...

Austin, doing the mandatory "run and slide" into the pile ...

It was getting dark, so I needed to put the flash on, but it took away from the colors. Austin didn't like the fact that he had to look up (and that pizza on his face! - doesn't his mother know better?)/

That one pile of leaves may not look big, but Austin and I shoveled the leaves into 5 lawn garbage bags! It was actually dark out when we finally finished ... I believe Austin said that he wanted to do this every year! Oh, and he wants $35 because he feels that it was a big job ... what he doesn't know is that it's part of his chores! :)

GFC Homecoming 2008

2008-09-22T18:50:00.004-05:00

Go Knights!

It's that time of year again! Actually, I recall homecoming a bit later in the season but I'm glad (as I'm sure Melissa is) that it wasn't snowing! ;)

Friday night was our Homecoming game - GFC (Grand Forks Central) vs. Wahpeton. It was a good game even though we lost by 4 - we all turned out in our GFC shirts and sweatshirts. I thought it was a bit too hot for the sweatshirt but when it got to be halftime, it was a little chilly.

Jacob and I joined the Booster club and we volunteered to work the consession stand. FUN FUN! Well, it was hot, hot anyway! Austin was with us (he was in charge of filling the bowls with chips for anyone who wanted nachos) and Melissa hung with her friends in the stands.

There were a few differences between football games here and what I recall of my time in high school. The most important bullet for me is #1 - the band. I love the band!

1 - BAND: When I was in high school, the band played throughout the 1st and 2nd quarters and at homecoming, the band did a little 'ditty' out on the field. It was something we looked forward to! Oh, and we had a little parade in the street. Here in GF, the band didn't play in a parade, didn't play at all during the 1st half and didn't have a little 'ditty' during halftime. RUDE is all I'm saying here.

2 - SPIRIT: School spirit was big when I was going to high school. At this game, there was hardly any cheering in the stands unless the team scored or something important like that.

3 - CHEERING: Okay, maybe it's because I was the co-captain of one of Melissa's cheer squads but the cheerleaders at GFC were totally NOT cheering ... they hardly said a cheer! I'm sure Jacob was sick and tired of my "why don't they do a cheer" comments throughout the night!

4 - DANCE: At my high school, the homecoming dance was after the game. Here at GFC, the game was on Friday and the dance was on Saturday. This is just weird to me.
Speaking of the dance, Jacob and I chaperoned the dance (Melissa is not to attend a dance unless it is chaperoned by one or both of us). The 'semi-formal' dress code was adhered by the girls, but most of the boys wore jeans/shorts and t-shirts. RUDE. You don't even want to know about the young lady in the go-go boots, fish net stockings and the very skimpy, tight dress (I'll call it a dress to be nice). Melissa went to the dance with her friend Amber. They got ready at our house and I took some pics of the girls before we left for the dance.

The dance was from 7:30-11:00p and, although Melissa had fun, the night dragged on and on for Jacob and I. Some of the music was acceptable (AC/DC, Joan Jett, you know - oldschool) but the other music was just that "rap-crap" I can't stand. When you play that kind of music, kids are going to get their grind on and frankly speaking, I don't need to see any of that. Most of the kids would shape up if they saw a chaperone coming but some of them ... YEOW!

Well, that was the homecoming weekend in a nutshell. Sounds like fun, no? :)

September 2, 2008

2008-09-03T17:05:00.002-05:00

BOW WOW!
I thought it was about time that I posted some pics of the doggies. Pirate is growing daily and Gabby is loving the playtime! They get along so well ... they play 'mean dogs' and chase each other around the house. It's funny to watch because most of the house is not carpeted so they slide everywhere!

Yesterday, I noticed a bunch of birdie poopie (excuse the bad language) on the side of the house and looked up and viola! there were some baby birdies in a nest! I'm so ridiculous ... I had to show each individual in my home the nest of birdies. They really are cute. I can see them out the window and think that maybe I should put some bird see out, but then I think to myself, "don't feed them or they won't fly south for the winter" ... how ridiculous am I?

August 29-31, 2008

2008-09-01T18:05:00.006-05:00

Mall of America ... here we come!
Well, Labor Day weekend = going somewhere fun, right? The original thought of going to Mt. Rushmore went out the window (we'll do that in the spring, I think) and so off to Bloomington, Minnesota for us! It's about a 5 hour drive but if you ask the kids, I think they'll say it was worth it! Austin declared that he would like to go there for his birthday! Kids ... they're so funny!

We stayed at the Fairfield right across the street from the mall - handy! We arrived around 10:30pm on Friday night and went to the room to relax, watch a little tv and just unwind.

After a nice breakfast, we decided that Saturday was going to be a shopping day - you know, get a feel of the land, so-to-speak. We eventually paired off, Austin with Jacob and Melissa with moi. The "boys" played a round of miniature golf, looked at the rides, checked out the Legos, raced a cool NASCAR in a race simulator (I hear Austin was a maniac!) and just looked around.

Melissa and I went to the clothing stores (fun fun). It is expensive to be decked out in all of the "name brands". Melissa had some birthday money that she could spend and I think most of it went to Aeropostale.

We met the boys at the Rainforest Cafe. The reason to go to the Rainforest Cafe was to enjoy the ambiance, not the excellent cuisine. What I'm trying to say is that the food was o.k.

Due to the chewing of an eyeball by Gabby, Austin got himself another snake from the Build-A-Bear at the Rainforest Cafe store. He named him "fangs"and he's a python. I have no idea why the photos from the cafe turned out weird - it must be from the low lighting.

After a busy day of shopping and fooling around, we went back to the hotel for a little pool action and a nap (at least I tried ...). It was pretty much R&R the rest of the night.

Sunday was the day we were to go on the rides so we braced ourselves and got up a little earlier. We ended up getting to the mall a tad bit earlier than the 10:00am opening so we decided to buy our wristbands from the kiosk and stand in line (if there was one) for the rides we wanted to go on. Actually, it was really nice at that time - hardly anyone around. Hardly anyone except the Fox News people!

The Republican National Convention is this week in Minneapolis and they (along with other news teams) were scoping out the mall. Of course, we saw Steve Doocy (the pic is a little blurred but his facial reaction is hilarious!) with - we assume - his son going on the rides. He smiled at Jacob and probably thought I was some stalker-person. It was fun to see someone that "famous", walking around the mall and going on rides!

Austin really enjoyed the day - he wasn't too short for any of the rides! Melissa got a little "roller-coster"-ed out after awhile. Comparing to a 'real' theme park, there really aren't that many rides but because of a malfunction at the kiosk where we bought the wristbands, we received a $14 per person discount! Yahoo!

All-in-all we had a great time. I'm not sure when our next outing to the Mall of America will be, but at least we can say that we've been there, done that! And ... don't forget ... friends don't let friends live in MINNESOTA! muah ha ha ha! :)

UND Football Game

2008-08-29T06:53:00.005-05:00

Go Fighting Sioux!

It was Military Appreciation Night at our wonderful local university. It also happens to be the university I am registered with so we decided to attend last night's game against Texas A&M.

There was face painting, balloon twisting and bouncy castles galore! Hamburgers and hot dogs for supper - Jacob really like the baked beans (go figure!).

The Alerus Center - where it was happening!

The stadium was packed! Tons of people showed up. I looked online and it appears that the stadium holds 21,000 people!

Austin & I, enjoying the game!

The family, getting seated and ready for the game to start! (or to have Jacob stop teasing - and you thought it was only me that teased them!). Melissa looks so thrilled ... :)

We all had a really great time - Melissa and I have sore throats and our hands are swollen from all of the clapping! We did leave after the half-time performance ... it was 8:45 and the kids had school the next day. Next time we go, we will stay the entire time. Austin listened to the game in bed and it turns out, the Fighting Sioux won, 40-14! Go Fighting Sioux! :)

Retreat Ceremony

2008-08-27T08:09:00.005-05:00

Grand Forks AFB

Jacob was involved with the retreat ceremony yesterday (Aug. 26) and I told him that we would love, love, LOVE to go and see him. It looks like the squad or flight is involved - I don't know the particulars. Anyhoo, I was under the impression that the retreat was at 5:00 so at 4:45, we zoomed on over, trying to look for a parking spot. Of course, at 4:45, the music starts sounding and we are totally stuck in our van, watching from a distance. Bummer! I did get a couple of shots of the group, the flag and then of Jacob .

Melissa's Big 14!

2008-08-27T07:51:00.003-05:00

Happy Happy Birthday!

Melissa turned the big 1-4 on Monday! Woo hoo! She had a good day at school - at least it wasn't her first day of school! I was unable to go to the commissary to buy her "favorite supper" request - it was fettuccine alfredo - which was okay in the end. She wanted a cell phone for her birthday SO BADLY and Jacob and I totally teased her and told her we didn't get her phone yet. Hahahaha! It was great! Sometimes, parenting is so rewarding! :)

Here is Melissa, patiently awaiting the "opening ceremonies".

Aha! She ended up getting the cell phone! :)

One MUST pose with the new phone and guitar hero! (Notice Austin totally engrossed in the game ... ha!)

Time for cake! An ice cream cake! YEAH!

In the end, she was a VERY happy young lady ... guitar hero, a new cell phone, some perfume from her brother. Ah, to be 14 again! (no thanks)

Naughty, Naughty

2008-08-16T04:47:00.003-05:00

August 16, 2008

I'm a bad poster. Bad poster! I haven't added any new anything for months. Of course, this is due to our move back to the US. We just received our household goods yesterday. Why am I writing on here and not unpacking? I have no answer to that. I need to move my photos from the laptop to update here - that will happen soon!

Miss me!

April 5-11, 2008

2008-05-09T00:49:00.032-05:00

Cornwall
It was Spring Break and we loaded up all of our stuff (along with the Smith and Takacs families) and headed on down to Cornwall (the south-western most part of England). Carla was here visiting, too (poor Carla - it's her last visit here whilst we are living here). Instead of doing the whole hotel thing, we rented a "holiday cottage" (aka trailer) for the week. It's cheaper, in the end, and we brought or bought our food so we could cook-a-roni in the "cottage". Lucky Jane - she stayed in a "chalet" (she's getting mighty hoity-toity).

We stayed near a town called Perranporth - the first night there we took a walk along the beach ... low tide, you see. It was windy and a bit on the chilly side. Melissa had Gabby in her coat because she was shaking so much! Instead of doing the play-by-play, day-by-day thing, I'll just highlight the places we went ...

Land's End - We had beautiful weather! Sunny with blue skies (except for the snow/hail storm that came a little later in the day). I'm desperate to go to John O'Groats (Scotland's end of the line).

Diptford - We stopped and looked at a really quaint church here! We must have looked like locals because we were asked directions! (ha!)

Halwell - Another cute church made from an interesting stone - the blossoms were blooming!

Dartmouth Castle - The first castle built for artillery, this castle was the inspiration for Chaucer's A Shipman's Tale. We went to the castle in shifts (due to doggy issues) and walked down to a cove and found some interesting marine life. The church next to the castle, St. Petrox Church, dates to the 13th century.

Berry Pomeroy Castle - Stinking English Heritage place ... we got there 5 min. before the close and they wouldn't let us in. :( stinkpots

St. Michael's Mount - St Michael’s Mount is truly unique; a tiny, rocky island filled with astonishing history and natural beauty, yet still a living, working community of people. This is no dusty old museum – St Michael’s Mount is full of life, a place where ancient and modern sit side by side, and where nothing is quite as it seems … An island which you can walk to when the tide is low. A medieval castle that is still home to a modern family. A tranquil, beautiful location that has played its part in many furious battles.

Chysauster Ancient Village - Gabby especially loved running around this ancient village! This Iron Age settlement was originally occupied almost 2,000 years ago. The village consisted of stone-walled homesteads known as 'courtyard houses', found only on the Land's End peninsula and the Isles of Scilly. The houses line a 'village street', and each had an open central courtyard surrounded by a number of thatched rooms. There are also the remains of an enigmatic 'fogou' underground passage.

Perranporth - This is the name of the village where we stayed in our holiday trailer. The view from our little trailer area down to the village and the ocean were quite stupendous! BUT - don't be fooled ... they told us it was a 10 min. walk down to the beach. HAHA I'm still laughing.

Tintagel Castle - Of course, home to the King Arthur legends, this is our second time visiting this wonderful ruined castle. According to one legend, the infant Arthur was thrown by the waves on the beach by Merlin's cave. King Arthur's time in history was in the 5th century. He is identified with the known history of a Celtic chieftain of the period who led his countrymen in the West in their resistance against Saxon invaders. It is always difficult to prove if Arthur did exist but certainly there was a great warrior in the West of England who had some kind of fortress where Tintagel stands today.

Melissa decided that it would be awesome if she went for a little dippity doo in the cove ... bbrrrr! Unfortunately, no one joined her :)

Arthurian Centre - A nice building and history center which houses the "round table" for King Arthur and his Knights. The Hall is very tasteful and you watch a little presentation which is interesting. The stones used for the building came from many quarries all over Cornwall and the 73 stained glass windows are absolutely breathtaking! Just hang on to your camera! :)

St. Materiana (on Glebe Cliff) - From Tintagel Castle, you can see a little church on the cliff-side ... so we (Jane, Megan and I) decided to walk there! St Materiana's is an ancient church it has Norman origins, with some Saxon additions. It was built between 1080 and 1150.

Trevellas Coombe - On the way to the Blue Hills Tin Mine, we happened upon a pretty little area called Trevellas Coombe and a cove called Trevellas Porth - the beach was peebley and I understand it is very popular with both fishermen and snorkelers.

Blue Hills Tin Mine - Tin has been produced in this valley for centuries. There are many abandoned mines you see all along the countryside so we decided to go to one that was a working tin mine. It was interesting - we didn't go down any shafts or anything like that, but it was a good time.

St. Agnes & Museum - The charming village of St. Agnes lies inland north of Truro. It's an old mining village and is famous for the row of "Stippy Stappy" sea captain's cottages. The museum looked to be an old church and when we arrived, the employee working called in for extra help - we must have caused quite a stir with 16 people in our group! ;)

St. Mawes Castle - The best preserved and most elaborately decorated of Henry VIII's coastal fortresses, St Mawes was built to counter invasion threats from France and Spain. Its counterpart is Pendennis, on the other side of the Fal estuary. The clover-leaf shaped fort fell easily to landward attack by Parliamentarian forces in 1646, and was not properly refortified until the late 19th and early 20th centuries. I enjoyed this castle better than Pendennis because their audio tour was really very interesting!

Pendennis Castle - There are wartime secrets in one of Cornwall’s greatest fortresses! Pendennis Castle was built by King Henry VIII to defend against possible attack by Spain and France. Throughout its 450-year history, Pendennis Castle has faced new enemies, right up to the Second World War. We saw a Tudor gun deck in action, and experienced the sights and sounds of battle in the interactive exhibition at the Royal Artillery Barracks. We explored the cells of the WWI guard house, and relived the drama of an enemy attack on the WWII observation post. We then descended through secret tunnels to the big guns of Half Moon Battery.

Perran Round - This was originally an Iron Age farmstead settlement, but was adopted in the Medieval period as a play area or Plen-an-gwary. It's been a most popular site for religious ceremonies since Medieval times and still brings in the various ceremonies! The site is often described and Britain's oldest theatre. Many denominations and groups have performed on this site, including Celtic, Druid, Methodist and Catholic ceremonies. It's been a popular haunt for political meetings too!

Restormel Castle - The great 13th-century circular shell-keep of Restormel still encloses the principal rooms of the castle in remarkably good condition. It stands on an earlier Norman mound surrounded by a deep dry ditch, atop a high spur beside the River Fowey. Twice visited by the Black Prince, it finally saw action during the Civil War in 1644. The man working there said that more than 23,000 people visit here every year! This was interesting, seeing as it wasn't the easiest to find!

Jamaica Inn - Built in 1750, this Inn was a coaching inn (similar to our modern day service station with accommodation). Some of the travelers were a little on the disreputable side and used the Inn to hide away from the law. Daphne du Maurier wrote a book called "Jamaica Inn".

Launceston Castle - Set on a large natural mound, Launceston Castle dominates the surrounding landscape. Begun soon after the Norman Conquest, its focus is an unusual keep consisting of a 13th-century round tower built by Richard Earl of Cornwall, inside an earlier circular shell-keep. The tower top is now reached via a dark internal staircase. The castle long remained a prison and George Fox, founder of the Quakers, suffered harsh confinement here in 1656. A display traces 1,000 years of history, with finds from site excavations.

Truro Cathedral - It was nice to see the cathedral in Truro - there is a pic of the cathedral with an old market cross in front of it. There really weren't a whole lot of tombstones at this one ... :( it's something I look forward to seeing!

Okehampton Castle - The remains of the largest castle in Devon, in an outstandingly picturesque setting on a wooded spur above the rushing River Okement. Begun soon after the Norman Conquest as a motte and bailey castle with a stone keep, it was converted into a sumptuous residence in the 14th century by Hugh Courtenay, Earl of Devon,much of whose work survives. After the last Courtenay owner fell foul of Henry VIII in 1538, it declined into an allegedly haunted ruin. Riverside picnic area and woodland walks are nearby. This was highly interesting to me and Jane - the audio guide was AMAZING!

March 17, 2008

2008-03-23T11:33:00.021-05:00

Lavenham, revisited

Ah, Lavenham. One of my most favorite-est places. Like Kebra said, "it's exactly what you picture an English village would look like." JerryLynn, Kebra, Jane, Jacob and myself browsed around the town and braved the weather - it was windy and it rained on and off - hence my getting strep throat, I'm sure. Here are some of the highlights of Lavenham...(check out the milk bottles on the front porch ... aawwww.) I'm trying to take some pictures that aren't the same from past visits.

Oh, and we had lunch at the Tickle Manor (est. 1532) where they have renamed the tea room to "Tickled Pink" ... rude. Oh, and just a suggestion, when going tinkle on the potty at the Tickle Manor, watch your head. You're welcome.

March 23, 2008

2008-03-23T10:56:00.010-05:00

Happy FROZY Easter
Easter came early this year but the snow came late! Two days after the 1st day of Spring, Mother Nature decided to bless us with some snow! On Easter! How cool is that?! We HAD to play the "hot/cold" game before going to church - which put us a bit behind but the children were willing to sacrifice ...
Well, it took an hour to get to church this morning - I was stuck behind some REALLY slow traffic ... I mean, come on! There is snow, true, but 15 mph was a little ridiculous! So, I took some pictures whilst driving - I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS.

It's a classic "do as I say, not as I do" situation. I notice that in the picture I am uploading, there is NO car ahead of me - I believe I am delusional.
I had Melissa take a picture of the Elveden War Memorial and Austin a picture of the Elveden Church. I just love snow (this year).
Anyway, after church (we only stayed an hour - we were dismissed to go home due to the snow) we drove to Diss to see Peter and give him some Easter wishes. Then on to the Pontius' we went ... we were a little early so I left Austin there and Melissa and I opted to run home and change clothes. Once we arrived home, I checked the messages (to see if Jacob had called) and there was a message from the ER for me. Hmmm ... well, it turns out the throat culture I had done on Friday was positive - happy strep throat day to me! I am a little nervous about taking the medicine - vomiting and diarrhea are common side effects. Great! Super! I better go clean toilets ... :)

Stoke-on-Trent

2008-03-11T19:49:00.012-05:00

How many times have I been to Stoke? Hmmm ... good question. I finally decided it was time to take some pictures - Burleigh and Spode were the subject of my fascination.

I love dishes made in England and I don't care who knows!

Venice, Italy

2008-02-05T12:44:00.036-06:00

Buone Feste

Whilst Carla was here, we took a trippy-dippy to Venice - we left on Wednesday, December 12 and stayed until late Friday the 14th. WOO HOO! It was AWESOME! We did TONS of walking and walking and walking ... there are no vehicles in Venice (bikes, motor scooters, cars, etc.) and the only transportation is by gondola, water boat or walking.
WEDNESDAY - after arriving in the mid-afternoon, we took a bus to Venice. We eventually found our hotel, the Hotel Abbazia, and checked in. In the picture with Melissa and Austin, our hotel is on the other side of the big church you see, which is called the Chiesa degli Scalzi). We didn't sit still for long because I wanted to go to the Piazza San Marco and see it at night. We walked over the Rialto Bridge on our way and we took a look at a lot of the shops along the way ... there was a lot of food and carnivale masks. The masks were amazingly beautiful and sometimes very expensive! We did stop for a bite to eat - Austin had pizza and Melissa had fettuccine alfredo.

We finally arrived at Piazza San Marco (or St. Mark's) and saw the Dodges Palace (the home and offices of the Dodges of Venice). It was nice and dark and you could see the lights all around. It was really beautiful! Oh, symbol for the city of Veniceis a winged lion of St. Mark.

We then walked back to the hotel so Austin and Melissa could take their bathy-poo's. Fun was ensued by Austin whose mother put in a little too much bubble bath! OOPSIE!

THURSDAY - the children were ever so thrilled to hear that we were walking back to San Marco's square (not really) so we started off early and enjoyed the local talent and shopkeepers. There was a stand with seafood ... alive and flopping around! EW! Shrimp, crabs, fish ... all flippy-floppy and breathing air, not water.

One of the places I really wanted to look at and walk through was the Jewish Ghetto. I amaze myself, sometimes ... I saw the scroll cases on the doors and said "Hey, I thinks some Jews must live there!" duh - it's the Jewish Ghetto! This is where thousands of persecuted Jews were driven before the 17th-century fall of Venice. The neglected cement and brick tenements still line the streets where 5,000 people used to live. Today, the community is almost empty - only about 650 people live in the area. We went to a pet store and bought Gabby a toy - a candy cane squeaky toy. There is a new ghetto (Ghetto Nuovo) and an old ghetto (Ghetto Vecchio), fyi.

Well, as we walked (with a purpose - we were following a walking tour I found online), we came across the statues of the three Moors on the building walls by the Campo dei Mori. Near the moors was the Casa di Tintoretto where the painter lived and had his workshop until his death in 1594. Throughout the day, we did see many paintings by Tintoretto - they were amazing!

Next stop - the Madonna dell'Orto which happens to be where Tintoretto is buried and displays many of his works. The church was erected in the mid-14th century!

Well, all of this walking made us hungry, so off to an authentic Italian restaurant ... McDonald's, of course! Oh, and check out the pic with Melissa in it ... our friends, the purse sellers, are in the background! :)

Okay, so on to San Marco! Now, the thing you must remember is that the basilica at San Marco square is free - yes FREE - to get in. Did we know that? No. Did we even ask? No. I found out two weeks ago, for crying out loud! On the way to the square, we saw shops and shops and more shops! And then we saw (and ate) gelato ... yum! The street system in Venice can be confusing - very around-and-around and through this alleyway. Again, may I state that the graffiti was ridiculous and an eyesore? Judge for yourself ...

Arrival at the square! woo hoo! It looks lovely during the day, by the way. Okay, I guess I should call it by it's Italian name ... Basiliac di San Marco a Venezia. Well, the basilica (or cathedral) is the most famous of the city's churches and one of the best known examples of Byzantine architecture. It likes on St. Mark's Square adjacent and connected to the Doge's Palace. Originally, it was the "chapel" of the Venetian rulers, and not the city's cathedral. Since 1807, it has been the seat of the Patriarch of Venice, archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Venice. (whew, that was a mouthful!)

So, as we are clicking the pictures, the pigeons decide to start landing on people. Geesh! Such vermin! Austin and Melissa freaked out (there was screaming from both) but Austin soon got into the thick of it - we couldn't get Melissa to even have one fly on here ... we'll get her next time! I'm surprised that noone was pooped on.

Much feeding of the birds ensued. After, what seemed like an hour, we decided it was time for a gondola ride. We spent some moolah (90 euro for all four of us) - we just couldn't get them lower! - but it was worth it.
We toured the Grand Canal. Bad news, though. The gondolier didn't sing and really didn't tell us much about what we were seeing (he got a lousy tip, thank you very much). Oh, under Venetian law, gondoliers must be born in Venice in order to practice this profession.

Our little gondola tour went under the Bridge of Sighs. Of course, the gondolier mentioned nothing of this - a quick fyi on the importance of it ...
- it connects the old prisons to the interrogation rooms in the Doge's Palace.
- it was built between 1600 and 1603
- it was the last view of Venice that convicts saw before their imprisonment
- Lord Byron gave the bridge it's name (due to the sighing prisoners)
- legend has it that lovers will be assured eternal love if they kiss on a gondola at sunset under the bridge

By the time the ride was over, it was getting dark and a bit on the chilly side - someone (mentioning no names) convinced the children to forgo bringing their winter coats ("It doesn't get that cold there!") so they were shivering by the time we got to the restaurant.

After supper (pizzeria), we headed very wearily to our room. Guess what!? The door wouldn't open! So, we had to cop a squat and wait for someone to unjam the jam. That was some fun and I wouldn't want to repeat that!

FRIDAY - our hotel arranged for us to take a water taxi (gratis, of course) to the island of Murano, which is famous for it's glass and was a port as early as the 7th century. (the history in this area is amazing) The glass chandeliers were amazing (so were the prices) and we watched glassblowers making beautiful challises.

I ended up buy a little blue glass gondola (we needed change to go to the loo) and within 2 minutes, it was broken. Smashed to bits. Poor me. No glassy for Krissy. :(

On our way back to Venice, we passed an island that had a brick wall all around. Turns out it is the Isola di San Michele, or Island of the Dead. It's where the people of Venice are buried. Igor Stravinsky, the famous Russian composer, is buried there. I would have loved to have gone there and looked around, but alas, more churches and famous paintings to look at!

Interesting Fact: Due to shortage of space, after a few years the dead are exhumed and stored in compact concrete ossuary boxes in another part of the cemetery.

Okay, another church to go to ... next we saw the Santa Maria dei Miracoli, also known as the marble church. Marbles, anyone? Holy moley, there was marble! Lots of different colors - green, white, black, red ... it was beautiful. Some of the churches asked for no photographs while others did. I have no idea what the difference is and so I may have snuck (sp?) in a photo or two (with the flash off) to remind us all of the beautiful paintings and sculptures. I'm so naughty! :)
One of the more memorable churches was the Basilica of Santa Maria Gloriosa dei Frari. WOW! In this basilica, we were allowed to take photos without flash so I did just that! You'll have to excuse the fuzzy photos indoors - I just purchased this camera and was still figuring out how to work it (I still am).

Oh, I forgot to mention (or did I?) about the Rialto Bridge or the Ponte di Rialto. How could I forget the most famous bridge in Venice? I'm losing it, I guess. It's the oldest bridge and spans over the Grand Canal. This picture of the bridge is one of my favorite!
The rest of the day consisted of (and not in this order) McDonald's, shopping, a protest (which we did not join), relaxing and my winning another free trip from RyanAir! I guess that's the only thing I'm lucky in ... ha! just kidding!

Anyhoo, that was our wonderful trip to Venice. Boy howdy I would love to go there again! Looking at all the pictures again brings back many fond memories! Ciao!

11 December 2007

2008-01-15T02:08:00.000-06:00

Great Yarmouth

Well, our beloved friend, Carla, came to visit again and this time we had and we went to Great Yarmouth - I thought it was about time Carla went seaside!

We checked out the Nelson Monument, which is located in a really odd spot (to me) - it's in a weird little industrial estate. Anyhoo, the monument was paid for by the citizens of Norfolk county and Great Yarmouth was the place selected. It is just a little shorter than the Nelson Monument in Trafalgar Square, London. The lovely lady on top is "Britannia", or the spirit of Britain (fyi).

The next place we went to was the Sea Life Centre and fortunately it was open! There was some speculation, being so near Christmas break and the construction taking place. The picture with Austin and his light sabre has the Sea Life Centre on the left (another fyi).

Our first trip to the centre actually was an awesome one! There were many animals and creatures to view and (for the money, especially) was a great time! The first order of the day was to eat some lunch - Carla had fish and chips (how English!), Chipper had the chicken nuggets and I had a chicken sandwich. It was good! Because it was a bit cold and windy, we partook of some hot chocolate, too. Yum yum! Seeing as there was no one there, Chipper got to play in the play area (he normally would have been too tall) and was eaten by a shark ... aaahh!

We saw some eels (slimy), some sharks (toothy), a lion fish (mane-y), some puffer fish (puffy), a humongous crab (crabby), and some sting rays (stingy) The centre was interesting because they breed sea horses. Seeing them was the favorite part of the day!

A storm was a-brewing and we hurried out to the beach to check out the water. It was getting dark (it was only 3:30pm) but that is what it's like in the winter here!
limited time to fool around. Austin was graciously taken out of school

Giving Thanks

2007-11-26T02:15:00.001-06:00

Turkey Day!

Well, Thanksgiving came to us a little sad this year because our lovie is serving in Iraq. We miss him a whole bunch! This year for Turkey Day, we were here, there and everywhere!

Our day started at 8:45am with a call from our buddies, the Pontius family. They were wondering what our plans were that day ... they were watching movies and eating popcorn and wondered if we would care to join them. OF COURSE WE WOULD!

Off to the Pontius' we went. We ended up having a "potato peeling party" - I think we must have peeled 40 pounds of potatoes (at least!). It was good fun! Annamarie found a potato almost the size of her head! Now that's a potato!

After the Pontius home, we traveled to our good friends, the Segura's, home. There we had the most wonderful Thanksgiving meal! YUMMY! The turkey was superb and everything turned out wonderful! We had a rousing game of Phase 10 (I won 'cuz I had the most points, right?! WRONG - Mr. Freddy won) and then rolled ourselves out the door to go to the chapel for another Thanksgiving meal.

We arrived a tad bit late (no surprise there) and dined on a little of the fare - our tummies were pretty much full still) but we HAD to have some of Jane's fabulous bread! :)

It was a busy day filled with good friends and good food!

Remember, Remember the 5th of November

2007-11-26T01:47:00.000-06:00

Guy Fawkes Day

"Remember, remember the fifth of November,
The gunpowder, treason and plot,
I know of no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot."

HISTORY: Guy Fawkes, as you may or may not know, was a member of a Roman Catholic revolutionary group who planned to carryout the "gunpowder plot"- in 1605. They attempted to blow up the Houses of Parliament which would displace the Protestant King James 1. Of course, they did not succeed.

Guy stood trial in Westminster Hall and him and his colleagues were found guilty and were to be hung, drawn and quartered (ouch!). Guy managed to avoid the worst of his execution by jumping from the scaffold where he was to be hanged, breaking his neck before he could be drawn and quartered. It is said his head was put on a spike as a warning for others who would dare plot against the King.

Every year on "Bonfire Night", the English have fireworks and bonfires to remember (or celebrate, depending on how you look at it) that fateful night over 400 years ago. Guy Fawkes was ranked 30th in the 2002 "100 Greatest Britons".

FESTIVITIES: We went to a local bonfire in Beck Row, right across the street from our friends, the Smith's, house - parking was free there! (muah ha ha) The festivities only lasted an hour, which was good because the kids were either too cold or too hot. We did have a choice spot right near the bonfire and a perfect view of the fireworks. There was a ton of people there and hot chocolate and goodies were sold - the queue was SO LONG that we said "so long" to that and I made Austin some hot chocolate when we arrived home - I had to soothe the wild hot chocolate beast inside him! A fun time and the last time we will be celebrating Bonfire Night in England!

How Frightening!

2007-11-05T06:52:00.000-06:00

Halloween 2007

Halloween came and went and I'm out of chronological order on my "spot", do forgive!

Anyhoo, this year for Halloween, Austin had a "Harvet Party" (I know, no Halloween stuff in his class this year).

His party was on Friday the 26th and being so close to the "big day" (Austin has been counting down for 2 weeks), I made some 'creepy crawlers' (meatballs in a biscuit). I wanted to have some kind of spooky theme going. Oh, well! He had a fun time!

Then on Monday the 29th, there was a bowling party for the spouses and families of those military members who are deployed. We strapped on those wonderful bowling shoes and bowled a game. Austin loved it! Melissa pitched in with a few frames - she wasn't too much in the bowling mood, but had a good time eating her favorite 'cheese sticks'.

Halloween came and I spent a good part of the day over at Jane's house making over 190 donuts! I was the "glazer" and she was the "cooker" ... don't you love my verbiage?

For the "big day", Melissa went as a "teenager", Austin was the grim reaper (he has this really cool scythe) and I was a Mormon gangster! I believe my "friend" Jane said the CTR stood for Corrupt the Righteous ... rude! (but not really)

We went Trunk-or-Treating up at the chapel and by the time we came home, it was shower and beddie bye time!

Guess who's 79?

2007-11-05T06:42:00.000-06:00

November 2, 2007

Well, today is Peter's 79th birthday! WOO HOO! I made him a special batch of brownies (and the pan with "bite me" on it) and some other culinary goodies to celebrate his special day! Oh, check out his new wheels! He can go up to 8mph on it! He's such a Mr. Speedy!

Seeing as he lives in Diss and it was a Friday, Jane and I went on over to the auction house, just in case there was anything noteworthy ... which there was! :) We actually had Samuel along and he is the proud owner of "his inheritance", which ended up being a table Jane bought for him for 3 pounds!

Good 'ole Peter let us store it at his house (seeing as I drove my car and not Jane's Volvo station wagon) so guess what!? We'll have to go back to the auction, I MEAN back to Peter's to pick up said "inheritance"!

I know, it's tough being me, isn't it?

Graves & Moats

2007-10-29T08:08:00.000-05:00

October 25, 2007
Ashley and I decided to do something together today. It has been awhile since we've had a day out, so seeing as we both haven't been to Grimes Graves before, it was our destination for the day! Oh, and I learned that Grimes is pronounced like "Grimms" ... you learn something new once a month! ;)

HISTORY LESSON 1: Grimes Graves is a grassy lunar landscape of over 400 shafts, pits, quarries and spoil dumps, they were first named Grim’s Graves – meaning the pagan god Grim’s quarries, or ‘the Devil’s holes’ – by the Anglo- Saxons. It was not until one of them was excavated in 1870 that they were found to be flint mines dug over 5,000 years ago, during the later Neolithic and early Bronze Ages. Flint from here was used in the Napoleonic wars and even the Revolutionary war - rude.

The day was a typical autumn English day, a bit rainy but manageable. We donned our hard hats and descended 30 feet into an abandoned shaft. We luckily went on a day when the British schools were not in session (I can only imagine how busy it would have been) so we had the shaft area to ourselves. Guess what!? I finally figured out how to use the timer on my camera (thanks to Ashley)! I was all cocky and took a picture of us down in the shaft.

On the way back home, we went to Weeting Castle, which (incidentally) was the first "castle" we went to when we were here back in '96.

HISTORY LESSON 2: Weeting Castle is not a castle but a fortified manor house. It had a large open hall and an attached two-story chamber block. There's a domed brick ice house (which I hadn't seen until this trip - rude) and the moat was added in the 14th century. The place is thought to be abandoned in 1390.

It was really nice to spend time with my friend, doing the thing I love most (looking at history)! When I arrived home, low-and-behold, I find tissue not in the tissue box. Gabby obviously was mad at me for leaving her and decided to take it out on the tissues - rude.

Hedingham Castle and Audley End

2007-10-23T03:58:00.000-05:00

October 20, 2007

Saturdays (until we move this summer) will hopefully be filled with day trips to local castles and attractions. On Saturday, we (Emmy and Chip and Emmy's friend, Kyrsten) and the Smith clan (Ross, Jane, Megan, Ben, Ammon, Samuel and Jacob) went down to Audley End.

Initially, it was to be a trip down to Rochester Castle, but due to time constraints, it was decided that we adventure to Audley End and experience their "behind the scenes" tour.

We left rather early and arrived about an hour before "the End" opened - it was a beautiful morning with some fog (or transpiration) and frost all over. Due to the early-ness, we looked on the map to see where a nearby castle was. Due to my awesomely awesome map reading skills (not), we drove to Hedingham Castle - on the map, it looked like it was just around the corner but in reality, it was 22 miles away. There must be a village named Audley End near there ... I don't know - all I know is that we drove there and to our great disbelief it was closed ... a wedding was taking place that day. Of all the luck! Of course, the gate guard was persuaded to let us look around, seeing as "we came all the way from America to see it". Now, this is not a lie, seeing as we did come here from America (2 1/2 years ago) - I just didn't tell him that part ... oops!

We took a few pics really quick and then headed back toward "the End", which was the beginning ... The tour was really neat and I was under the impression that after March's behind-the-scenes tour, they wouldn't be doing them anymore due to the "delicate state" of the rooms on the top floor. I must say I count ourselves very blessed to be able to see this part of history (twice). I hadn't gone to the memorial for the Polish soldiers who stayed here during WWII, so we traipsed out to the memorial and took a few shots.

Next, Austin wanted to walk to "the temple" where he and Papa went the last time we came here. We all did a little jumping over the ditch (a few tears and some sore ankles). Emmy wanted all of "the kids" to pose next to a pillar, so Jane and I helped them get into position ... viola!

We brought our lunch and were visited by a bunch of ducks - Austin was really cute. He was a bit frightened about feeding them at first, but after the initial feeding, he became a professional! The ducks seemed to like the spicey Doritos, fyi.

On the way home, Austin wanted to sit with his friend, Ammon, so they hunkered down in the back of the Smith's Volvo - Megan, bless her, came into our car and kept me company on the journey home.

It was a most excellent day out, even though it was a bit chilly to start with. Autumn is my most favorite-est time of year, and to spend it at one of my most favorite-est places was a privilege.

Halloween and Haircuts

2007-10-23T03:42:00.000-05:00

Gabby tried on a couple of new "outfits" I bought her from Old Navy ... she has a parka (the XS is a bit too big), a new sweater and her Halloween costume - she's a cowgirl (or bowgirl?) muah ha ha ha! She looks SO thrilled!

Speaking of being thrilled, Austin and Gabby both received new haircuts! It really was about time, too. Austin said he didn't want to "be bald" so when he came out of the barber shop, he said "I'm almost bald!" Geesh, boys are so hard to please! I mean, Gabby didn't complain - not once!

Melissa's birthday ... a bit late

2007-10-23T02:48:00.000-05:00

Poor Melissa - we moved (again) on her birthday ... sure, it was August 25, and it's now October, but doesn't the old saying "better late than never" apply here?

Austin and I blew up 13 balloons and made a sign for her and taped it to the front windows ... which, I might add, she loved!

Our good friends, the Smith family, had us over for supper and provided the ice cream cake ... although it was stinky having a birthday whilst you move, we tried making it a fun day!

South Wales

2007-10-10T08:38:00.000-05:00

October 5-8, 2007

Guess what?! Both of the kids had a four-day weekend due to Columbus day and a teacher-training-ish day, so we decided to take advantage of that and go to Bath and South Wales!

Our travels included two families we LOVE to travel with - The Smiths' and the Takacs'! We left Friday night for Bath where we stayed in 10 pound a night lodging (you can't beat that with a stick!)

Saturday was spent going to check out some sights south of Bath. We traveled to Wookey Hole (caves that have the river Avon run through it) and thought twice about going there - school groups + the cost = "let's move on". We drove to Cheddar (who doesn't love cheese?) and went to the Cheddar Gorge - no, it's not a big gorge of cheese but actually some really nice cliffs and caves! The Cheddar Gorge (more specifically, Gough's Cave) is home of the "Cheddar Man" - Britain's oldest complete skeleton - 7150 BC. It is believed that Mr. Cheddar died a violent death - possibly by cannibalism! yuck ... While in Cheddar, we had to go to the store which had the "only cheddar made in Cheddar" and sampled a few of their delectable tidbits ... yum!

After Cheddar, we drove to Weston-Super-Mare, a city not too far from Bristol. Well known for it's beaches, we arrived at low tide, and when I say low tide, I mean low tide! It was almost muddy sand (poor little Jacob had to be rescued by Ben). After fooling around on the beach, we had the famous "2 pound 50" fish and chips (well, we had chicken and chips) near the waterfront.

Sunday brought us to Southern Wales. After experiencing the most expensive toll yet (over $10) , our first stop was Tenby, a seaside town that had beautifully colored houses. We walked along the beach (and saw the biggest jellyfish ever - along with some sea anemones, barnacles, cool shells, crabs, and a dead fish) and went up toward Castle Hill. There, we saw the ancient cannon, a statue to Queen Victoria's consort, Prince Albert, and St. Catherine's Island, which, built in the 1860s to defend Tenby from possible French attack.

After Tenby, we ventured toward the Stackpoles near Bosherton. We had to drive through a military zone (the tanks weren't firing that day, lucky us) to get to the coast. The views of the cliffs were awesome! Some of our party, mentioning no names, got a little to close to the edge. Speaking of edge, I was a bit on edge when Melissa tried to get a stone out of her shoe by kicking it out ... the shoe went flying and landed 12 inches from the cliff's edge ... of course, she ran after it. There was a bit of hysteria on my part, thank you very much.

One of the sights we desperately wanted to see was St. David's, the western-most point of Britain (St. David is the patron saint of Wales). By the time we arrived, it was getting dark. We walked to St. David's cathedral, which was built upon the 6th century monastery. It was quite an impressive cathedral, even in the dark. We got a quick peek at the interior (they were closing and not too friendly) and Wes was allowed one photo. I would love to go back during the day!

IMPORTANT NOTE: please view the picture of the "magic roundabout" in Swindon - IT WAS CRAZY!

Monday brought us to the close of our trip and on to the Avebury stones we went! We passed the White Horse of Cherhill on our way. Avebury was as beautiful as ever, but were not able to go to the tour of the Avebury Manor (I left my moolah in the car and we would have had to wait for awhile before entry) - maybe next time.

It was a great trip and we are so happy we were able to see such beautiful countryside with such wonderful friends! :)

Alghero, Sardinia

2007-09-14T18:25:00.000-05:00

September 12-13, 2007

Well, here we are on another trip! Yahoo! The destination: Italy (again)! I must really really like Italy because I'm always going there ... hmmm, we are planning a trip to Pompeii later this year (I justified my point, I do believe.)

The bad news: Jacob, our darling, is in my beloved home-state of Wisconsin (love you, miss you) and was not able to attend (for obvious reasons). Gabby was also unable to attend, but thanks to our wonderful friend, Jerri Lynn (and Teah and Hannah), she was well taken care of (but greatly missed).

The good news: Melissa, Austin and I were accompanied by our good friends! The Takacs family (Jen, Wes, Thrinn, Kaden, Gideon) and The Ingram family-minus-Jerry (Maaret, Maggie, August).

The Details
Day 1: The day started as it does on these "trips" ... early to rise! The 6:10 am flight had our names on it so *woosh*, off we went. The flight lasted around 2 1/2 hours, so we partook of the very healthy airplane snacks (Melissa's favorite soup and Austin's favorite pizza).

After a little snoozing (and possible drooling), I was awakened by the announcement of the lottery winner which was (drum roll, please) ... ME! Yes, it is true. I finally won something! I won a free return trip on Ryan Air ... what is the catch, you ask? Well, I need to book a trip within the next 7 days and fly from Sept. 15 to the end of January. There is much discussion and question as to where and when we will be flying. You may cast your vote and I will take it into consideration.

After our flight landed (early, I might add), we took the city bus to our accomodations, La Mariposa. On the walk towards La Mariposa, we traversed the market (lucky we were there on market day!) and Melissa "needed" a skirt and a swimsuit (she couldn't "find" hers ... it was still "packed" in a box). Besides clothing and purses, one could find cheese, fruits, veggies and toys a-plenty! Not to mention the ugliest pair of pants I have seen.

After the market, we arrived at the family campsite. We ended up in a bungalow (I call it "hostel-type bunk bed"). We didn't have any plumbing facilities (they were outside in a communal area) but we did have access to our own mini-fridge, camp stove and a variety of cutlery and dishes. A little supermarket was on the grounds in case you forgot or needed anything.

Settling in took no time at all and then ... believe it or not, we were off to the beach! YEAH! The main reason for going! La Mariposa has a part of the beach as their own where you can rent an umbrella and two lounge chairs for 10 euros. I totally rented it, thank you very much! The sand was warm and fine and there were minimal rocks, even though I did stub my toe a time or two.

In this picture, you will see a line of rocks out in the background. I swam out there with Melissa and Wes - it was amazing! The water was "refreshing" (aka cold) but we enjoyed a bit of a jump off of the rocks ... I miscalculated the depth of the water and did scrape my foot up a bit - unfortunately, the one and only pair of "shoes" I brought were my "thongs" and they rubbed on the scrape (just a bit, but the sand was on the gritty side).

Melissa and Austin joined Jen, Wes, Maaret, Maggie, and Thrinn on a swim out to the rocks and I stayed behind with Kaden, August and Gideon. August was less than thrilled to have been left behind and due to the heat or an upset tummy, decided to delight me (and our neighbors) with a screaming serenade. Poor August! Kaden, bless his heart, slept the whole time and Gideon and I played in the sand. We made sandcastles and played "bury the baby's legs" ... very amusing!

The gang came back from the rocks with a special surprise ... 2 starfish and a sea urchin! Melissa and Austin really enjoyed seeing the sea life - it was the favorite part of the day!

After the beach, we headed to the pizzeria which was located on the campsite grounds ... yum yum! We were all quite "knackered" and hit the bunks after a warm shower.

Day 2: After eating our pre-packed PB&J sandwiches and crunching on some pringles and bruised bananas, we checked out of the bungalow and headed to the city of Alghero. Jen told us of a neato place to visit ... Grotta di Nettuno (Neptune's Grotta or Cave).

On the stroll to the ticket booth, Maaret spotted a gelateria. Melissa wanted melone and Austin wanted choco-chip, so I told the worker I wanted "one melone and one choco-chip". She assumed I meant one scoop of each ... YUCK! Melissa graciously volunteered to eat said mistake ...poor Melissa! She said the melone was excellent but the combination was to be desired!

We boarded the ferry for the trip to the grotto and had a half hour boat ride. The wind was a bit on the whipping side and Melissa's hair was everywhere! It was so funny! She didn't want me to take any pictures so I told her I would delete one. She, unfortunately, didn't realize I would be taking 8 ... muah ha ha! In the end, I did live up to my end of the bargain and even deleted 2 for her! (I'm so kind)

The ferry took us around the spectacular vertical cliffs of Capo Caccia and then around the Isola Foradada (a little island surrounded by an amazingly blue bay called of Porte Conte) before bringing us to the entrance of the grotto.

There are two ways in which to get to the entrance of the grotto - the ferry or the stairs. There are 656 steps that lead down to the grotto - that you would also have to climb back up! The steps are called the "escala del cabirol" (goat's steps). If I would have brought my inhaler, I may have been interested in the climb but the addition of the little ones and strollers prompted us to take the ferry. We would have missed out on the Porte Conte which would have been a tragedy.

A guided tour of the caves was next on the agenda. (NOTE: the pictures were taken without flash so they may be a little fuzzy - I tried propping my camera on a post and it helped a little bit) Personally, I would have preferred to explore the caves at my own pace, but we had a guided tour and there were time limits due to the arrival of other tours behind us ... if only the staff were a little more pleasant! Never mind that - the caves were awesome! The water made it even more so and were enjoyed by all of us!

After the caves, we headed off to lunch. We ended up at the Ristorante Nettuno which had amazing views of the port. Again, pizza was on the menu for the Wilcock family! Yum yum again! It was the safest thing on the menu except I paid 3 euros for a pop! Outrageous!

A stroll around the old town brought us to another gelateria and I made sure I didn't make the same mistake! It was too bad Melissa didn't like that melone better than the other, but at least it wasn't chocolate covered! ;)

We came upon the Cathedral of St. Mary and went inside. WOW! It was really awesome inside. I'm not a professional historical church aficionado; however, this cathedral was different from all of the others I've seen. The marble was a deep red, almost brown, and the combination of that with gold ith the green was simply breathtaking! Melissa and Austin each lit a candle for Grandpa Rick, which was really cute - they always remember him at each church we go to with a candle. I guess you could say it has become our family tradition!

After detour around the old fort walls (which looked similar to Rhodes, Greece), we were on our way to the airport via the city bus. May I just state that we were packed like sardines (in Sardinia)? I must say, it would have been an impossibility to put one more person on that bus. Talk about being up close and personal! And every once in a while, you would get a whiff of something very unpleasant!

The flight home ended up landing early, too. The line for passport control and entry back to the UK was non-existent (we have waited up to 1 1/2 hours on previous trips) which made the whole trip even more memorable! There is nothing worse than coming home from a exceptional trip to stand in a line forever! On a scale of 1 - 10, it was a definite 10!

TIP - if you are interested in visiting, please bring your goggles or snorkel/mask!

Papa, our Hero

2007-09-09T23:45:00.001-05:00

Our Love Is Leaving ... :(

This morning, Jacob left for his 7 month deployment (one of those months he will be in WI for training).

I woke M and A up bright and early at 5:00am and we headed off to the bus where we met our Hero. Austin was really wanting to help Papa with his bags, but they were a bit on the heavy side ...

Jacob's good friend and co-worker, AJ, is also going with him so we said farewell to him as well. His wife, Jessica, was there to offer her love and support, too.

The guys will be missed greatly and we wish them well and Godspeed on their journey! WE LOVE YOU, PAPA!