So I just returned from Massachusetts 2 weeks ago and now we are headed off to Colorado!!! The trip is nearly the same distance, Colorado a bit closer. We will be attempting a stop at one of "Guy's" (from Food Network) Diner's, Drive-in's, and Dives! So excited! Definitely a highlight on the drive out.
Our last trip went so well. I think this one will be great too. I just love all the funny stories we are collecting this summer from our trips!
Rocky Mountains here we come!!!!
Friday, July 24, 2009
Friday, July 17, 2009
A Broken Heart
And a mom who was not fully listening to her sons request gone wrong. Poor Taatjes:(
Taatjes fell in love with Tike while we were out visiting Grandma and Heehaws house. One day while we were all in the kitchen Taatjes asked if we could "take Tike home with us". I in my half tuned in state of mind heard; "can we take home a kite". I quickly responded with a yes (now be on your way attitude) answer for him. He seemed extremely pleased. Nice, that was easy enough. Uh not so. My mom quickly chimed in, thank goodness; "did you hear what he just asked you?" Um yes he said something about a kite. My mom, "No he asked if he could take home Tike!" Oh my goodness no of course we can not take home Tike, Taatjes we will never be taking Tike home! Crack...went the small heart inside his small chest and out came the whales of disappointment. I felt terrible! Real nice move! He just loved Tike always giving him treats and unfortunately for Tike cuddling him to death. Classic listening blunder. Sorry Taatjes is was at the expensive of your hearts fondest wish.
Side note: As I am writing this Trey passed by and saw the pictures. Let me quote him. "Look Taatjes and Tike the buddies!"
I think I like these fake teeth the most...
...and yes, I have worn them out myself!
This time accompanied by little christmas butter knives the boys found in Grandmas drawers. Just like the "real Peter Pan" has!
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Andrew and Becca We Love You! (Chris and Jen too of course)
We miss you all so much already! The boys are now pretending you are still around and playing with you! Kinda sad though:(
Thanks for letting the boys swim at the pool everyday and keeping them entertained! They have asked me to bring them to your house for swimming and Sardines...wish I could!
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Our new Neice Greer!
She is just adorable! We are all in love with her! She already has so much spunk for a little girl. She is a mover, I can see now how much abuse she was giving her poor mama:) The boys just had to have a picture of her with the monkey they picked out for her with Grandma and HeeHaw. We will miss her and can't wait to see her again soon!
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
This is what Grandpas are good for...
...a pair of fake teeth! All 3 boys got a pair from Grandpa. For some reason the other 2 love wearing them but will not let me take a picture of it. As you can see this is not true for Trey, he is loving them.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Father's Day Fort!!!
What better to do on Father's Day than a real "Dad" project! Well, maybe not exactly what Justin had in mind but boy did his sons think he was the greatest Dad in the world for it!!! A home made fort with places for guns to stick out, a roof to climb on, and under a big pine tree for "forest like" realness:) This is just the beginning of a fort that we in vision being added on to for many years to come. Already the boys are asking for us to paint "Danger Keep Out" on it. Not so much Teague as the other 2:) A pirate flag was another request. We will have to see how we end the summer with it.
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
1st Day of Summer!
This is only the beginning to a great summer!
Bike rides, picnic with school friends, and the pool. Off to a fun start:)
Buzzed for the Summer
So, Taatjes gave me a great idea for summer hair cuts. When I found him in the bathroom with a whole cut in his hair, scissors in hand, small pile of hair between his legs, my first thought was how do we fix this. Buzz it off!!! Summer hair cuts time! Even better outdoor hair cuts...ghetto fabulous!
Taatjes loved his buzz. Trey was a little upset at first, actually, he huffed off a bit upset when it was finished. We thought just give him a little space. He always takes a while to adjust to change. After some "space" I went over to ask him what he thought of his hair cut and find out how upset he was. He informed me that he did not like it! He wanted to have no hair! Bald!!! I started laughing! Oh that we can deal with...
I was able to talk him out of premature baldness thank goodness:)
T+L Anniversary Party
Lots of friends, a dance floor, Timmy, throw in a DJ, and you got yourself one rock'n party! Thanks for the party Tim and Lisa! Happy 10th! Let's do this again for year 11!!!!!!
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Injuries...just add it to the list.
Instant Goose Egg.
Poor Teague:( This is the result of chasing a balloon, looking up, tripping, falling, face meeting the edge of the book self. Crazy! Bad injury, lots of screaming involved! I know all the signs now of broken vs not and concussion vs no concussion.
Keep awake - check
Pupils not dilated - check
No blood coming out of nose - check
Ask questions for him to answer every 10 mins - check
Call pediatrician (have them tell me just ice it because there is nothing they can do to that part of the nose anyways) - check
Frozen Peas application every 20 mins - check
Saved myself a very long ER visit - big check!
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
So exciting...
A few big milestones have been accomplished by our "wild card" Taatjes!
He has completed his first year of school! We took him out last night for ice cream to celebrate. Best part of the outing was Dad going on and on about how proud he is of him and dishing out the compliments and Taatjes just gives him a blank look and slowly turns his head to look for anything of interest out the window. It made us laugh thinking of what was running through his mind...ok, ok dad, so serious, I know I know hum look at that over there...I'm out:) One of those moments as a parent when you just laugh and realize short and sweet is best with a 4 year old.
On an exciting note! Taatjes now rides his bike without training wheels!!! Oh Yeah! He was awesome. He did not cry once when he fell down and he had a number of rough falls. Each time he fell he would give you a bit of a sad look, hop back on his bike, and take off again more determined than the last ride. One night was all it took for him. He can start himself and stop without falling over. I have to say he rocked it out! We were doubtful on the walk over to the church parking lot that he would be able to pull this feat off, but, he did it! We looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders, and gladly admitted our wrong assumptions while cheering on our new bike rider:) Only problem now; you have to practically yank him off his bike at the end of the day. He has been going non-stop since Friday night!
Personality insight (I can not get enough of these as you know).
Trey - when Trey learned to ride his bike he shouted it from the roof tops. He told every neighbor and any person who walked by the house; "hey look at me I know how to ride without training wheels"! When Trey feels confident he let's you know it.
Taatjes - I asked him when he came home from school yesterday if he told his teacher he knows how to ride his bike without training wheels. He said; "No, I didn't tell her." Believe me he is just as proud of this feat as Trey was. He just handles it differently. Taatjes has a quite confidence that you have to proactively pull out of him.
They are so different! I love it! Can't wait to see Teague do all this too!
(No pictures:( Still need to replace my camera. Phone video clip to come soon!)
He has completed his first year of school! We took him out last night for ice cream to celebrate. Best part of the outing was Dad going on and on about how proud he is of him and dishing out the compliments and Taatjes just gives him a blank look and slowly turns his head to look for anything of interest out the window. It made us laugh thinking of what was running through his mind...ok, ok dad, so serious, I know I know hum look at that over there...I'm out:) One of those moments as a parent when you just laugh and realize short and sweet is best with a 4 year old.
On an exciting note! Taatjes now rides his bike without training wheels!!! Oh Yeah! He was awesome. He did not cry once when he fell down and he had a number of rough falls. Each time he fell he would give you a bit of a sad look, hop back on his bike, and take off again more determined than the last ride. One night was all it took for him. He can start himself and stop without falling over. I have to say he rocked it out! We were doubtful on the walk over to the church parking lot that he would be able to pull this feat off, but, he did it! We looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders, and gladly admitted our wrong assumptions while cheering on our new bike rider:) Only problem now; you have to practically yank him off his bike at the end of the day. He has been going non-stop since Friday night!
Personality insight (I can not get enough of these as you know).
Trey - when Trey learned to ride his bike he shouted it from the roof tops. He told every neighbor and any person who walked by the house; "hey look at me I know how to ride without training wheels"! When Trey feels confident he let's you know it.
Taatjes - I asked him when he came home from school yesterday if he told his teacher he knows how to ride his bike without training wheels. He said; "No, I didn't tell her." Believe me he is just as proud of this feat as Trey was. He just handles it differently. Taatjes has a quite confidence that you have to proactively pull out of him.
They are so different! I love it! Can't wait to see Teague do all this too!
(No pictures:( Still need to replace my camera. Phone video clip to come soon!)
Monday, May 11, 2009
Trey's Concert
I love these kids concerts! Trey had been singing a few of the songs he was learning at dinner each night but a few he saved as a secret! They had 11 songs they sang for us! My favorite was this Mumble Grumble Song. It was about your mom/dad/grandparents all telling you what to do! The best line - Mumble Grumble this is no fun you don't have to like it but its gotta get done! Trey was so funny! Any time he was not singing he stood there with his arms crossed and a very serious look on his face. His favorite song - Hi My Name is Joe! Lots of fun and good memories made:)
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
A Few From Taatjes Family Night
Taatjes loves to sing!!! This is him at Family Night for Preschool. He loved singing and we loved watching him of course:) We also got to all make him this "Diego" rescue Jeep! They had a box car/plane/train parade.
We had a Diego rescue Jeep at home and this is what he requested we make for his car. When it was all finished he held the car up next to our replica to inspect. Well apparently we did not have the right color for the tires and we were missing a few animals. Good but not exact! Picky, picky, picky! Eventually he said it was good enough:) Justin and I just looked at each other and laughed...um that only took us a couple hours to tape and paint and fix all the wheels to make sure they spin and everything! So thanks for the critiques and the well I guess that is good enough response when all is said and done. The standards around here, my goodness!
We all had fun watching all the kids in the parade. The Jeep became a nice play toy too. That is until Taatjes decided to cut it up into pieces like a chop shop.
This is only the beginning of all the school projects, lovely.
Special thanks to my Dad for helping me with all my science fair projects!!!
Love ya!!!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Teague a rare 2 year old
Having 2 older brothers can make for some very interesting things coming out of our 2year olds mouth. He cracks me up!
A few of my favorites...
"No one talk to me!"
"I am never going to die, I drink water!"
"I am never, never going to be your friend!"
"I neeeeed candy!"
He says a lot of cute things too; but, so did his brothers. These are a few choice statements that his brothers did not say at age 2! They say them now! Two of those are classic Trey statements and two are classic Taatjes statements. Can you guess which ones?
A few of my favorites...
"No one talk to me!"
"I am never going to die, I drink water!"
"I am never, never going to be your friend!"
"I neeeeed candy!"
He says a lot of cute things too; but, so did his brothers. These are a few choice statements that his brothers did not say at age 2! They say them now! Two of those are classic Trey statements and two are classic Taatjes statements. Can you guess which ones?
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
Wow that's a lot!
The other day Trey asked Justin and I a wonderful and, apparently to him, funny question. I love when they ask things like this.
Trey - Dad how many times have you kissed mommy? 100 times?
Dad - Oh way more than 100. We have been kissing for over 10 years!
Trey - (eyes enlarged as he rolls numbers through his head) Like more than a million? You think more than a billion? How about infinity?
Dad - Maybe I have kissed her infinity times!
Trey - bursts into laughter! Oh you guys...hahahaha!
Dad - kisses mom again
Trey - Infinity and one!
Trey - Dad how many times have you kissed mommy? 100 times?
Dad - Oh way more than 100. We have been kissing for over 10 years!
Trey - (eyes enlarged as he rolls numbers through his head) Like more than a million? You think more than a billion? How about infinity?
Dad - Maybe I have kissed her infinity times!
Trey - bursts into laughter! Oh you guys...hahahaha!
Dad - kisses mom again
Trey - Infinity and one!
Monday, April 20, 2009
A Broken Beauty...
The Republic of South Africa is one of the most beautiful places I have been to. Mountains, vineyards, fields that stretch on and on, ocean, and stars. It had been too long since I had the chance to see an entire galaxy of stars in the sky!!!! Not to mention wild horses, ZEBRAS running across the open fields, and Wildebeest stare down...which I have to admit sent me running in the opposite direction of their line formation that instantly formed when we approached closer than they liked! If you have seen the Lion King you would do the same thing! Or if you live in a house of boys and you have seen wildebeest vs. lion vs. crocodile on u-tube! South Africa filled my eyes with delight at its natural beauty!
But I did not go to sight see. I went to connect with the people of South Africa. To learn more about the struggle for jobs, education, families, and children. To work side by side with people who have given their lives to see injustice be righted. To pray for women, mostly mothers like myself, who have been hospitalized and long to take care of their families. I was given a chance to open my life to people miles and miles away from me and begin a connection that will never leave my thoughts and prayers! What a gift! What a joy! To push aside things of little importance in my life and make room for people I now care deeply for!
There are so many amazing stories I walked away with and amazing people I interacted with. When Justin and the boys picked me up from the airport he asked me how I felt about South Africa, all I could say was "I feel so encouraged"! For many years when I thought of Africa my heart sank into my stomach. The only things that raced through my mind were AIDS, unclean drinking water, dirty children, orphans, drought, and down right sadness. Now, in one trip, to one piece of that Nation, new and wonderful things have begun to become a part of those thoughts! It is not that those things are not a large part of Africa, but rather, they are only a part of the story over there. I have seen incredibly gifted people working to right the wrongs of South Africa. I have taught children of that country and seen their insatiable appetite to learn and grow and be leaders in the future. I am blessed to now be a small part of the hope and light in South Africa! And let me tell you God is huge in that country! The adults praise Him, the children praise Him, even the mountains stand in His glory!
Now down to the nitty gritty...
This is the Preschool class that I taught for the week. The town that these children live in is Kayumundi the school/orphanage is called Kayusu "light on the hill". The town of Kayumundi is called the fatherless town by the locals. They have 80% unemployment rates which leads to large amounts of disease, alcholism, and unrest. Kayusu does so many things for that community. It feeds the children, provides free schooling, offers training on automobiles and building works, and has an amazing performing arts program. For me I got the chance to work with and teach the 2 to 5 year olds of that community. WOA!!! It was a gift and a frustration. First the frustrations. So many children and not enough resources for them to all partake in coloring and writing thus affecting their ability to grow in their learning and knowledge for continuing on in school. So many children that one teacher can not possibly control. And the personal side for me was the communication factor. They speak Xkosa of which I was equipped with four words - no, sit down, what is your name, and go! If they are bad, which I saw was throwing rocks at one another, wrestling, or hitting, I was informed to tell them to go. Which happened more than I wanted it to:( But onto the gift side. Children are children no matter where they live. If you touch a child and take the time to look into their eyes you will reach their heart!!! What a gift! To walk around the classroom as they colored, touch their shoulder, look into their eyes and tell them how beautiful their picture is...awesome! The smiles that escaped from their faces in turn touched my heart! Their eagerness to repeat any English word that came from my mouth that I used to describe their picture blew my mind away! To anyone who works with children and has children you can picture exactly what I am writing about. The immense warmth that can fill you and you walk away knowing that you have been touched by joy. I will forever think of the children who's names I could not pronounce, and giggled at me each time I tried, for the rest of my life. They have a place in my prayers just as my "biological" children do. The gift for me is that my heart has enlarged and was filled by children who laughed and called me teacher for a few days! It far outweighed the frustrations. Although I am now aware of the very tangible ways to help these children. Our high school students are now sending them coloring books, crayons, paper, textbooks, and best of all shoes! Things that will make a huge difference in the future of the Kayumundi children!
I have been changed and now, it is time to bring it!
Bubbles for the children at the end of class. A highlight:)
A few of the "teacher helpers" for me to communicate to the children. They were just wonderful! They loved taking our sunglasses to wear and posing for pictures. They also wanted to talk about Rhianna and Chris Brown...hilarious!
Again I'm well versed in the abilities for this lion to destroy me thanks to animal planet:) This was a very thin electric fence between me and Mr. Massive Lion here! I had to ask the man working at this lion rescue if the electric part was strong enough to kill him if he attempted to lunge through it at the humans just staring at him! He assured me yes!
The prison cell that Nelson Mandela spent his years during Apartide. Another highlight for me. We were able to go our last day of the trip. I had read a biography on Nelson Mandela before the trip and was eagerly anticipating being able to walk through this historic prison. To see first hand a place of great injustice and be reminded that remarkable change took place there and evil things had been brought to an end! Our tour guide for the prison was a former prisoner during Apartide...amazing man! Beautiful life story that he was willing to share with us!
Thank You for all of you who prayed for me and helped to support me in this journey! Beacuse of you I have this experience and these stories to share!
I have been greatly encouraged to work with wonderful organizations doing BIG things for the people who need a voice in that country. Please join me now in praying for the children they impact and their future in our world!
But I did not go to sight see. I went to connect with the people of South Africa. To learn more about the struggle for jobs, education, families, and children. To work side by side with people who have given their lives to see injustice be righted. To pray for women, mostly mothers like myself, who have been hospitalized and long to take care of their families. I was given a chance to open my life to people miles and miles away from me and begin a connection that will never leave my thoughts and prayers! What a gift! What a joy! To push aside things of little importance in my life and make room for people I now care deeply for!
There are so many amazing stories I walked away with and amazing people I interacted with. When Justin and the boys picked me up from the airport he asked me how I felt about South Africa, all I could say was "I feel so encouraged"! For many years when I thought of Africa my heart sank into my stomach. The only things that raced through my mind were AIDS, unclean drinking water, dirty children, orphans, drought, and down right sadness. Now, in one trip, to one piece of that Nation, new and wonderful things have begun to become a part of those thoughts! It is not that those things are not a large part of Africa, but rather, they are only a part of the story over there. I have seen incredibly gifted people working to right the wrongs of South Africa. I have taught children of that country and seen their insatiable appetite to learn and grow and be leaders in the future. I am blessed to now be a small part of the hope and light in South Africa! And let me tell you God is huge in that country! The adults praise Him, the children praise Him, even the mountains stand in His glory!
Now down to the nitty gritty...
This is the Preschool class that I taught for the week. The town that these children live in is Kayumundi the school/orphanage is called Kayusu "light on the hill". The town of Kayumundi is called the fatherless town by the locals. They have 80% unemployment rates which leads to large amounts of disease, alcholism, and unrest. Kayusu does so many things for that community. It feeds the children, provides free schooling, offers training on automobiles and building works, and has an amazing performing arts program. For me I got the chance to work with and teach the 2 to 5 year olds of that community. WOA!!! It was a gift and a frustration. First the frustrations. So many children and not enough resources for them to all partake in coloring and writing thus affecting their ability to grow in their learning and knowledge for continuing on in school. So many children that one teacher can not possibly control. And the personal side for me was the communication factor. They speak Xkosa of which I was equipped with four words - no, sit down, what is your name, and go! If they are bad, which I saw was throwing rocks at one another, wrestling, or hitting, I was informed to tell them to go. Which happened more than I wanted it to:( But onto the gift side. Children are children no matter where they live. If you touch a child and take the time to look into their eyes you will reach their heart!!! What a gift! To walk around the classroom as they colored, touch their shoulder, look into their eyes and tell them how beautiful their picture is...awesome! The smiles that escaped from their faces in turn touched my heart! Their eagerness to repeat any English word that came from my mouth that I used to describe their picture blew my mind away! To anyone who works with children and has children you can picture exactly what I am writing about. The immense warmth that can fill you and you walk away knowing that you have been touched by joy. I will forever think of the children who's names I could not pronounce, and giggled at me each time I tried, for the rest of my life. They have a place in my prayers just as my "biological" children do. The gift for me is that my heart has enlarged and was filled by children who laughed and called me teacher for a few days! It far outweighed the frustrations. Although I am now aware of the very tangible ways to help these children. Our high school students are now sending them coloring books, crayons, paper, textbooks, and best of all shoes! Things that will make a huge difference in the future of the Kayumundi children!
I have been changed and now, it is time to bring it!
Bubbles for the children at the end of class. A highlight:)
A few of the "teacher helpers" for me to communicate to the children. They were just wonderful! They loved taking our sunglasses to wear and posing for pictures. They also wanted to talk about Rhianna and Chris Brown...hilarious!
Again I'm well versed in the abilities for this lion to destroy me thanks to animal planet:) This was a very thin electric fence between me and Mr. Massive Lion here! I had to ask the man working at this lion rescue if the electric part was strong enough to kill him if he attempted to lunge through it at the humans just staring at him! He assured me yes!
The prison cell that Nelson Mandela spent his years during Apartide. Another highlight for me. We were able to go our last day of the trip. I had read a biography on Nelson Mandela before the trip and was eagerly anticipating being able to walk through this historic prison. To see first hand a place of great injustice and be reminded that remarkable change took place there and evil things had been brought to an end! Our tour guide for the prison was a former prisoner during Apartide...amazing man! Beautiful life story that he was willing to share with us!
Thank You for all of you who prayed for me and helped to support me in this journey! Beacuse of you I have this experience and these stories to share!
I have been greatly encouraged to work with wonderful organizations doing BIG things for the people who need a voice in that country. Please join me now in praying for the children they impact and their future in our world!
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