We were working in our yard the other day. Joey took the picture of Petey, the yellow cat. I think they were having fun! John is on the mower in the other picture. I guess the last time he mowed, he gave the cows a treat.....the freshly mowed grass, dumping the bags over the electric fence. They are pretty smart cows because they were lined up for more!

Thanksgiving Decorations

A wall hanging quilted by my good friend, Stevie.

Flowers to decorate the cabinet

Our Thanksgiving centerpiece

We had a lunch at our house with John's brother and his wife and Eleanor. Great food!!!

A gig at Eli's

Arcade Across the Room (a band Andy is in) performed at Eli's Coffee Shop last Sunday. They set up on the porch and had a good size crowd come by and listen to them.


John and Grandma enjoyed the show!

John's Trip to Idaho

John recently traveled to Idaho to visit a Lutheran School there. The school was cited in a book John read for his Masters class so he and Pastor Jeff decided to go check it out and see what they could learn from them.

While they were there, they had planned to see the World's Largest Potato Chip. However, the display was closed! So instead, they saw the World's Largest Styrofoam Potato.

He came home with lots of ideas and refreshed.

Morton High School Homecoming 2008

The Homecoming Parade was Thursday of Homecoming Week. The Jr. High Band marched in with the High School Band. Here is Joey with the Bass Line. He said it was very loud!

Andy was nomitated for Homecoming Court so he got to ride in this parade. He did not get chosen for Court, but I think he had fun with it all.

Andy and Abby

The whole group

Andy and Abby (sorry it is sideways. I'm not sure how to fix it!)

Fun with Family

The Pumpkin Festival was fun! Even though there was rain, we went to the parade. It was a lot of politicians and bands with percussion and kazoo's instead of woodwinds (fear of getting those woodwinds wet), but there was candy! We sat in front of Eli's and had great seats.

The best part was having my family together, well mostly. We were missing Michele and Todd. We talked and hung out when braving the rain wore us out.

This week I have had more fun with my immediate family. Band practices, cross country practices, Praise Team practice, and the gym kept me running this week.

Speaking of running, Joey completed his first "real" cross country meet. It was out at Detwiller Park. He ran a 2 mile course. I am proud of him that he is getting out there and doing it, although not entirely by choice.

On another kind or running, this week is homecoming at Morton High School. Andy was nominated for the Homecoming Court. I have never really gotten into that whole thing, but I think Andy will have fun with it. So this week will be a fun kind of crazy for Andy. Andy and Joey will be playing in both the Homecoming Parade and the Homecoming Game. They both play the same instrument and in the same position, so at the game they will be standing together on the field when they play.

John is traveling this week. He is off to a place that claims to have the World's Largest Potato Chip. Can you guess where he is going?

Love to all!!!

Rain, Rain, Go Away!!!

Rain is predicted to be in our area ALL weekend. If you are headed our way, bring your rain gear. I think all activities are "on" no matter what the weather. The only exception is the band show. I don't know what they will do there.

Getting through adversity together is a great bonding experience right?

Love to all!

First Day of School 2008

Andy was the first to leave. Because of heat schedule, he had to be at school by 7:15.




Andy got his license last December. We got an additional car for our family in August. This year Andy is driving to school!



John got away without getting his picture taken. Then Joey was ready. He had Andy take him to school earlier in the week to load his locker. He had already taken his supplies and backpack to school.




Of course, the kittens had to get in on the action!



Another start to another year. Here we go again!

The Grand Canyon Adventure - part 8

The family decided to watch the sunset at Yakapi Point at the canyon. They had heard a bus driver say that it would be a good spot to see it. So they got their jeans on and grabbed their jackets and headed to the Point.

When they arrived, there was a little commotion. When they got closer, they saw that there was a big horn sheep in the middle of a group of people. It was a small one that did not seem to be bothered by all the people around. People were petting it. We took a few pictures.

Unfortunately, that is not how a wild animal should act. There was a park ranger showed up. He was told that someone was feeding the sheep. That will train the sheep to come to people in the future. Because the sheep is a wild animal, it is not safe for it to be around people, especaially when it gets bigger. So the ranger was trying to make sure that no one fed the animal and that everyone stayed away and stayed safe. They said that if you see an animal, you can get your pictures and then get away. This was information that they would need later in their trip.

While the boys' dad talked to the ranger, the sun was setting over the canyon. The setting sun made the canyon looked beautiful.

After the colorful show of the sunset, the family went to participate in a Moonlight Tour. The moon was full that night and a park ranger was giving a tour around the canyon by moonlight. The moon was so bright that you didn't really need a flashlight once your eyes got used to the dark. The family followed the tour and listened to a few stories about what people believed about the moon and the canyon. For example, the Indians believed that if a woman went down into the canyon, her spirit would stay there, so they never go down into the canyon. After a while, Andy started getting a headache and the rest of the famiy was tired, so they decided to head back to there room and get some sleep.

The next morning, the family slept in. The beds were comfortable and there was a mix up in the reservations, so the family had two rooms and each person had a bed to themselves. It felt good to the boys to sleep!

After a good nights sleep, and breakfast, the family went hiking down into canyon. All over the canyon there are signs saying to be careful if you hike down into the canyon. Going down is much easier that coming back up. I guess there have been ambitious pe people who have tried going all the way to the bottom and back up in one day. The heat and the effort can dehydrate people and that is bad. It can be very bad.

The boys mom and dad wanted to hike down into the canyon, and they had gotten some advice from the ranger about what trail to try. The Bright Trail is a well groomed trail that a lot of people use to go down. So that is where they headed.

It was a good hike and it was a unique view. The magnatude of the canyon is amazing, no matter which way you look at it.

There were some people coming up from having spent the night down in the canyon. At the bottom of Bright Trail there is a campground people can stay at.

After lunch, the family hiked some more. They were getting tired, but wanted to make the most of their time at the Canyon. They were trying to get back to the rim of the canyon and went wrong way. Along the wayk, Joey looked up and saw an elk. He gasped. Then his mom, wondering what he was gasping at looked up and saw the elk. He was eating the leaves off a tree. She gasped. His dad, wondering what they were gasping at said, "WHAT." He looked around and then he the elk. It was big! Because of what they learned from the park ranger, they knew what to do. Their mom took a picture and stayed far away. They continued on our way, letting the elk continue to eat leaves.

They saw another elk along the way, took a picture of him and kept hiking.

The family found their way to the rim. They kept looking at the Canyon. There were a few gift shops along the way and many people. All of them enjoying time at the Canyon.

The Grand Canyon Adventure - part 7

The next morning, the boys got up early. They had to hurry up and eat breakfast so they could catch the train to take them to the Grand Canyon!

They got to board the train.

They found their seats and got ready for their trip. There was a little boy who had been very sick sitting near them. He was getting a wish granted from the "Make A Wish" Foundation. The balloons in the background are his.

During the trip, they got to have snacks and drinks. There was also a singer that came by their car for a little while and sang some songs for them.

After a couple of hours, they arrived at the Grand Canyon. They got off the train and got onto a bus. They bus ride took them to the rim of the Grand Canyon and they got their first look at an amazing sight! It was something so different from anything they had ever seen. They kept looking at it just to see everything.



The bus took them to 3 different places along the rim of the Grand Canyon so they could look down into the deep canyon. Each place was beautiful and different. They could look way down at the bottom and see the Colorado River running through the canyon. It looked very small. They could also see trails that were very long going all the way to the bottom.

After their bus ride was over, they got to walk and look around on there own. There were more beautiful views to look at.

They decided to check into their hotel and rest up a little. One thing their parents wanted to do was to see the sun set on the Canyon. They took another bus ride to a look out point they had heard would be a good one to watch the sunset from.

When they arrived, they saw something unusual. It was something that was interesting, and something they learned from.

To be continued.............................

The Grand Canyon Adventure - part 6

The next morning, Andy and Joey's dad decided to have take their car in for repairs. While he was gone, Andy and Joey got to swim some more. When their dad got back, he had a different car with him. It turns out that he had gotten a rental car to drive while their car was getting fixed. The rental car was a nice car AND it had air conditioning. So once again, they were on the road. This time they where headed to Williams, Arizona.

They drove and drove and drove some more. They arrived in Williams and checked into their room at the Grand Canyon Railway Hotel. They ate supper and got ready for the next day. They were finally going to see the Grand Canyon!

The Grand Canyon Adventure - part 5

The next day, the boys and their parents got started on their day of traveling. It was going to be a long day. Their parents said that they would be in the car for 9 hours.

They drove and drove and drove. They went from Oklahoma to Texas. The temperature went up and up. It was hot in Oklahoma, but it was hotter in Texas. It got up to 103!

Along the way someone had to go to the bathroom, so the family started to look for a place to stop. They realized that when you are in Texas, there are not always a lot of choices when it comes to bathroom or gas stations. They did find and exit with a Gander Mountain in the middle of nowhere. Thank goodness!

They drove and drove and drove some more. Everything was brown. Not much grows in northern Texas.

The boys' parents noticed some warning lights come on in their car. After looking up what was wrong in the book that tells about your car, they decided that they were OK, but they would need to have their car checked out when they got home.

The family decided that they wanted some ice cream. They had seen a Dairy Queen sign and wanted to stop. When they got out of the car, they saw a sign on the door that they were out of ice cream. Can you imagine a DQ without ice cream?!

The boys' mom decided to help out with the driving. After a while the air conditioning stopped working. The boys had to roll down the windows. It was pretty windy, but the temperature had dropped to about 98 so it wasn't so bad.

The family arrive at their hotel in Albuquerque, New Mexico where the were going to spend the night. They found a Papa Johns pizza place and ordered pizza delivered to their hotel. They swam until the pizza got there. Then they watched a movie in their room until it was bed time.

The Grand Canyon Adventure - part 4

The next day, Andy, Joey and their parents left Springfield and traveled to Oklahoma City, OK. It was another long ride in the car! It was HOT in this city.

After checking to their hotel (another one with a pool, but it was outside) they went to the National Cowboy Museum. This place had a lot of information on cowboys. It had art, like statues of cowboys and Indians. It talked about real cowboys and cowgirls and the influence they had on America. It had a rodeo exhibit.

It had exhibits about cowboys that were in the movies and on TV. Andy and Joey's dad told them that he would give a quarter to the first one to find out about Clayton Moore. The boys looked all over the exhibit. They read information and looked at pictures. Their mom was playing a computer game where the computer played a theme song from a cowboy show on TV. Then she had to choose the name of the show. Andy came over to watch. The computer played a song and their mom recognized it as the theme song for the Lone Ranger. (Kids, you will have to have your mom or dad hum it for you. They will know it for sure!) So she click on the picture of the Lone Ranger. and do you know what name popped up? Clayton Moore! Andy saw it right away. He got his dad to show him. He also got the quarter!

After looking at most things at the National Cowboy Museum, including the gift shop. The boys and their parents went back to the hotel. Joey and his dad went for a walk around the hotel. Andy and his mom stayed back in the room to relax a little. Andy got a call on his phone. It was his dad asking if he wanted to play miniature golf. Joey and his dad had found a fun place called Celebration Station right next to their hotel. So the family met up and played golf. It was a fun course!

It was time to head back to their room. Just outside their room was the pool. They decided to go for a swim. The water was a little chilly so the boys swam and the grown ups waited until they could all go in the hot tub.

When they got back to their room, their mom told them it was time for them to go to bed. The boys got ready, but they were also wrestling and goofing around with each other. Their mom has always said that the boys were like kittens, always pawing, pouncing and rolling around together. But the boys were tired and the beds were comfortable, and the boys soon fell fast asleep.

The Grand Canyon Adventure - part 3

Have you ever walked into a hotel and smelled the smell of chlorine from the pool. When Joey was a little boy, he would walk into any hotel that had a pool and say, "Ahhhh, the sweet smell of a hotel." What he was really smelling, of course was the pool. One of Andy and Joey's favorite things to do is swim. So when they stopped to spend the night at a hotel in Springfield, MO that had a small pool, they put on their suits to test the water.

Joey's dad also likes to swim, if you can call it that. They did not really swim. Joey's dad picked him up out of the water and threw him back in. They did this alot. There was water splashing everywhere. At this pool, there was a little boy standing outside the pool area behind a glass door. At first, he was trying to open the door. The door was locked. He tried and tried, but it would not open, so he decided he would just stand and watch what was going on. Joey and his dad decided to put on a show for him. Joey's dad would pick him up and then Joey would wave at the little boy. Then Joey's dad would throw him in the water. The boy would smile really big. He was probably thinking that he would love to come play!

The Grand Canyon Adventure - part 2

The first day of travel was about 6 hours in the car. The brothers had brought a lot of entertainment along with them, so each of them had lots to do. They brought books to read, video games to play, movies to watch. Joey also entertained himself by playing "Bingo". Everytime he would see a yellow car, he would yell "Bingo" and hit. Now, this game did not go over so well with Andy. He tired and wanted to be left alone. Joey found that Dad was more fun to play with. However, Dad did complain a little that Joey saw yellow cars that Dad didn't see. I wonder about that.



The boys were getting hungry, so the family decided to stop in Rolla, MO. Joey had read a billboard that advertised the Waffle House so they wanted to stop there. Guess what they had to eat........WAFFLES. Everyone had one. They were great.



Finally, they reached their first overnight stop.



To be continued.........

The Grand Canyon Adventure - part 1

Once upon a time there were two brothers. Andy, 16, and Joey, 13, were both very handsome and very charming. And they loved each other very much, most of the time.

Their family decided to go on a trip. This time the trip was a long one....all the way to the Grand Canyon. Their feelings about the trip were mixed. Andy was excited but wondered how the family was going to get along being in the car for so long together. Joey wondered why go to all this effort just to see a big ditch in the ground. But their parents were determined to show them more of the United States than the Midwest and Disney World. So they packed their car, filled it up with gas (ouch!) and headed WEST!

To be continued........

You Can Dress Them Up......

and actually, they look pretty good!

We visited Chicago for the confirmation of our Goddaughter. It was good to spend time with them.

Kennel Lake

One of my favorite places is Kennel Lake. The kids swim and play on the beach. The moms chat or read. Sometimes we grill....we have even ordered a pizza to be delivered to the beach!

The first afternoon of summer, we headed out to the lake. It was a bit chilly, but they swam anyway.

Kitten Update

Pictures taken April 14, 2008. They are getting very CUTE!

The striped one is Baby Einstein and the light colored one is Petey.

America's Kids

Joey had his School Musical tonight. He did a great job on his lines (he quoted Martin Luther King Jr.) and playing the drums.

Grandma Jacob dressed for the occation.

My Brother Is Hilarious!

I have always know this, of course. I enjoy it very much now that we are grown. I'm sure I rolled my eyes a few times when we were kids. Mark, I read your newest jokes. I want to check out your new link when I am at home.

Sassy looks pretty tough on his chicken. He should be tough to beat!

Spring is Here.....Hopefull to stay!

We are gearing up for the Spring Garage Sale. It won't be as big as some have been in the past, but we will get rid of some stuff....I am sure.

The weather is B....E....A....utiful today. It does wonders for one's mood.

Mark- Love the pics on your blog. You have an eye for watch photography! I look forward to whatever you do on your page.

Have a great day everyone. Love to you all.

Kim

Trip to Chicago and Turnabout Picture

We went to Chicago over Spring Break and saw Blue Man Group.
Andy and Abby before Turnabout.

Joey and Pepper

Pepper and her kittens. They are so fun to watch. Joey goes and checks on them frequently.

Tonight, John and I went to the first annual Bethel Dinner Dance. I was a pretty good time. John and I got to do some swing dancing.

Tomorrow....Garage Sale set up.

Pepper had kittens! We didn't know where she had them at first. Then we began to hear noises from the attic. She had gotten into an old bassinet that was in the attic above our garage. We had seen Pepper going up there on occasion. Joey and I went up there after school today and found Pepper in the bassinet with her kittens. There are 2 dark grey ones, a black and grey striped one, and a white one.
It is fun to watch her with her babies. Joey has taken a lot of pictures so I will post more tomorrow.

My first blog

Learning new things keeps your mind active, right? Well, I am going to try to figure this out. Look for new pictures.