24/7 Mom

Snow Day???

2012-02-12T20:21:00.000-08:00

The kids are anticipating the chance of a snow day tomorrow. We have had maybe two snows this winter one only lasted 30 minutes and didn't stick at all and the other was just a few flurries one night. Last year they were out of school for snow probably 7 or 8 days. I can't remember how long it actually was, but I do remember we started doing home school every day because I was afraid they would forget all they knew. It would be nice to have a day with everything canceled. Between all of our school homework, soccer, basketball, LTC practices and coaching, teaching classes, and so on we never really get to stop for a full day. Here's to hoping for a snow day!!!

Didn't Get the Chirstmas Cards Out

2012-01-20T11:41:00.000-08:00

I didn't get all the Christmas cards out this year, and I didn't keep up with the blog like I need to! So here's my Christmas letter and some photos.

2011 was a great year for the Hendricks 6. We started the year by putting our house in Tulsa back on the market to sell and get moved to Sand Springs. Finally, after many months of cleaning and figuring out what to do while the house was showing, it sold and we are happily settled in Sand Springs.

Our first day here in Sand Springs Jonathan accepted an offer from SpiritBank (the bank he was at for 6 years before) as the Senior Vice President and Location Leader for the Sapulpa
branches. He is very happy in his new role at the bank.

I stay busy running the older kids around while trying to keep up with Jillian. I’m really enjoying the kids being able to walk to and from school and also the feel of a small town again. Jonathan and I will celebrate our 13th anniversary together January 2 and are excited to take a
break from the kids for a few days and reflect on the past 15 years of our
lives together and plan for the year ahead. I love this picture of us, I love that we can laugh together and just be silly.

Jacksen will turn 12 on January 1st and is growing so much in confidence and independence! He is in middle school now and plays the trumpet for the middle school band. He
has also found a love for soccer and it seems to be his favorite sport. He is currently playing basketball until spring soccer starts, and trying to keep from getting his cell phone taken away:)

Jennah, our little drama queen, is proving to be just that! She performed one of the major roles in our church’s annual summer musical and just finished up performing in the Sand Springs Community Theater’s Christmas program. She also takes guitar lessons and enjoys that. She will turn 10 January 13th and is in the 4th grade.

Joel is 6 and is in Kindergarten this year. He is taller than anyone in his class. Jonathan asked
him after the 1st day of school if he made any friends and he told him that everyone wants to be friends with the tallest kid in class:) He is quite competitive and loves playing soccer. He is currently playing indoor soccer by request of one of the coaches from another team of fall soccer.

Jillian is 18 months old now and is a little wild one! I think we have another Jennah on our hands. She loves her brothers and sister and thinks she’s as big as they are. One of her favorite things to do is play dress up with Jennah and dance.

Our lives are full and every day is exciting and holds something new for us to learn or experience. We are trying our best to enjoy every moment and treasure this time because we know it won’t be long before the kids are all grown up. God has blessed us beyond what we could have imagined for our family and our goal is to raise these children to be soul winners for His Kingdom, because after all they are His.

Catching Up...

2011-06-08T09:19:00.000-07:00

Little Jillie Bean turned one year old May 21st! It was a beautiful day filled with celebrating with so many family members how far she's come this year. It was a bitter sweet day for me because it brought back so many memories of what all we went through with her one short year ago. Also, the fact that she is our last baby to turn one. No more first birthday parties at the Hendricks house. My sweet husband knew how hard the day was going to be on me and bought me a dozen roses to cheer me up. It was the perfect gift that reminded me when all the kids grow up and I have no more babies at home I will still have him. We were able to have her party at our new house even though we were still camping out there. Some of the things I don't want to forget that Jillian does right now: are how she talks all the time and really carries on a conversation with you pointing and nodding included. I also love how she tries to put on every article of clothing she comes across. We have many little names for her including Jillie Bean, Tater Tot, Little Princess (we don't dare call her Princess, that's Jennah's name and she corrects us every time we call her Princess), Bean, Baby Girl. She isn't sleeping through the night yet with exception of maybe a few nights. She loves her big brothers and sister and thinks she is just as big as they are. She dances all the time and loves music. She isn't walking yet, but just this week she has stood up twice by herself. I'm thinking it won't be long. She loves books and her new favorite thing is a baby doll she got for her birthday. She carries it around under her arm and tries to crawl, pats it, rocks it, and gives it tons of kisses. It's the cutest thing! She is the best eater I've had. She will eat just about anything I put in front of her. Some of her favorites right now include avocados, cucumbers, taco meat, roast beef, and all veggies. She is up to 18lb 3oz. I love to see what a big girl she's becoming and can't wait to see what the next year brings.

Sweet Baby Girl

2011-02-14T09:35:00.000-08:00

Having some fun with the new tutu and camera. Jillian is almost 9 months old now and she is getting everywhere. She isn't crawling, but she scoots and rolls anywhere she wants to go.

Snow Days!

2011-01-21T11:30:00.000-08:00

The kids had their first snow day of the season yesterday and they ended up getting out today too! Jennah invited Jillian up to her room for the first time to play. She introduced her to barbies and played with her for about 30 minutes. It was so nice; I was able to get the kitchen completely clean while they were playing together. Jack and Joel were enjoying some air hockey while the girls were playing.

100th Day of School...Almost

2011-01-21T11:07:00.000-08:00

Have I mentioned before how much harder it is with four kids? I just can't keep everything straight. Between basketball practices, games, homework, school projects, birthdays, church, Jonathan's community events, laundry, getting the house ready to sell, laundry and more laundry, I get somethings confused. Joel's 100th Day of School celebration was one that I failed on. We spent several hours Tuesday evening trying to decide what he wanted to make as a project for the 100th day. He decided a shirt with 100 spiders might be fun. So after hours of painting and counting we finally had it finished along with the 100 M&M's he would also take with him. When he got home from school I asked if everyone loved his shirt and he frowned really big and told me, "No, some boys said it only had 95 spiders instead of 100 because it was only the 95th day of school not 100" I went searching for his note the teacher had sent home the week before to make sure I had the right day and it turns out those mean boys were right! The 100th day wasn't until NEXT Wednesday not this Wednesday. Oh well, we'll try again next week!

Jennah's 9!

2011-01-21T10:51:00.000-08:00

Jennah turned 9 this year! I can't believe I have an 11 and 9 year old! She is so funny and I never know what to expect from her. The night before her big day we were kissing her goodnight and told her we were going to get one last kiss from our 8 year old and that she would never be 8 again. Jennah just started crying uncontrollably. We asked her what was wrong and she told us she didn't want to turn 9! She said she thought she would be too old to sit on my lap and let me rock her. I reassured her that she would never be too old for me to rock her and she was fine after that. She was so excited about her birthday she knew just what she wanted to wear down to how she wanted her hair and what bow to wear in it. She wanted me to have lunch with her at school, but instead I took her out at noon and we had lunch and went and saw Tangled, then Jonathan brought her flowers (always the highlight of her birthday).

Jack's 11

2011-01-21T10:39:00.000-08:00

Jack is getting so big. He told us he thought he was too old this year to have a friend party and just wanted a family party. It caught me off guard and made me a little sad. I'm so proud of the young man he has become and can't wait to see what he does with the next 11 years of his life!

Jillian's 8 Months Old!

2011-01-21T09:27:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my tiny little Jillie Bean is already 8 months old! It has gone by so fast. The other day Jennah and I were talking about her turning 8 months and Jennah said only 4 more months until she's one! I hadn't thought of it that way and started tearing up. It has definitely gone by so much faster than the other three's first years. Jillian got her first tooth January 8th. She has been rolling for quite a while now, but just in the past week she has realized that she can get around now by rolling. Yesterday she started waving on demand and clapping. We've been working on both of these for a long time now and she finally has them down! She's been shaking her head no no for a long time now and it never gets old watching her tell us no. She loves all her veggies, but doesn't care at all for fruits. She weighs 14lb 7oz. She can sit up now with no support at all and seems so much happier now that she is a little more independent.

New Years Eve

2011-01-21T09:01:00.000-08:00

We had our annual New Years Eve "fancy" dinner, but this year was a little different. The kids are getting older and as you can tell from the picture Jack thought he was a little too old for the fancy dinner. He was a great sport about it though and helped do the decorations and surprised Jennah with them. Jillian and I had a cold and really didn't feel very well so we weren't in the best of moods, but I refused to not have our annual dinner. We had snow crab legs, stuffed mushrooms, sweet potatoes, broccoli, and mac and cheese (for Joel who doesn't like crab yet). This is the first year that Jennah has fixed her own makeup and hair for our dinner. She had lots of makeup to work with after Christmas and really enjoyed it. We all shared our resolutions and had a great time ringing in the New Year with homemade confetti. Every year I know we are one step closer to not having everyone with us for our dinner, but I'm going to enjoy it while I can. Happy New Year!

Christmas 2010

2011-01-21T08:51:00.000-08:00

Christmas 2010 did not disappoint, we had six family parties starting on the 18th and ending on the 25th. I always feel so blessed at Christmas time knowing how many family members we have that love us. The kids had such a great time with all their cousins. I only remembered my camera for a few of the parties so I'm missing some of the cousins.

Player of the Year

2010-07-26T19:03:00.000-07:00

Jacksen played basketball with the Salvation Army this past winter and loved it. He never took a shot and never had a foul all season. He was however named player of the year and awarded this sweet Nike basketball because of his willingness to do everything his coaches said, attending almost every game and practice, and playing his best all season. He was a very proud boy and we are very proud of him. His team's name is "Money Makers" and he was asked to be on the same team for the summer league. With his award he has a new confidence and in the first game this summer he took three shots and made two fouls! He didn't make any of the shots but just shooting them is an accomplishment, and we can't wait to see what the rest of the season brings!

2 months old!

2010-07-26T18:48:00.000-07:00

A few pictures of Jillian at 2 months old. She weighed in at 8lb 10 oz. last week at the doctor and I think she has gained at least a half a pound since then. She has started smiling and talking. She loves her big brothers and sister and gives them the biggest smiles of all. Jillian still has all of her hair and it just keeps getting longer and longer. She is finally out growing all the newborn clothes and is into 0-3 months!

Jillian Arrives

2010-07-13T11:31:00.000-07:00

Jillian arrived 5 weeks and a day early. Her due date was June 26th and she came May 21st. I had been put on bed rest 5 and 1/2 weeks before that for what they called pre-preeclampsia. She weighed 3lb 14oz and was 16 inches long. She didn't have to be on any oxygen or a ventilator which is amazing considering how early she was. I will post later about what all we went through to get her here, but I had to start somewhere. These are the only pictures I was able to look at after she was born until the next day when I was able to go and see her. They whisked her away so fast I only got a glimpse of her before she went to the NICU. I think that was the hardest part of all of it. Even then I didn't get to hold her, it was another 24 hours before I was able to do that. She spent 9 days in the NICU and we would go and visit her everyday. I really struggled with whether or not to stay with her at the hospital, but with three other kids at home and the tough delivery I went through we decided it would be best for me to go home and get rest and spend all day there. This worked out well, but it was so hard to leave her at the end of the day. That is all for now next I think I'll post the bed rest days and what all we went through to get Jillian here. It feels so good to be back to blogging!

Wow!

2010-07-12T19:31:00.000-07:00

What a rough couple of months! I'm afraid if I don't blog about it soon I will forget all the details of everything that's happened. This is one of my goals for this week; to get back into blogging. It was one of my goals last week too and it didn't happen. I had high hopes to print off this picture of the kids and have it sent out with all the thank you cards I have yet to write to so many friends and family that have been there for us through it all. It didn't happen so I'll share it on here. That is another goal I had last week that has become this weeks goal. Four kids has really slowed me down. I can't seem to get caught up on anything. I feel like I'm running in circles most of the time.

2010-05-16T08:03:00.001-07:00

Miss Louise

2010-02-20T13:30:00.000-08:00

This is an old picture from fall, but I can't put a story on here without sharing a picture. Aren't all the colors pretty in the trees behind the kids! I know the kids will love goofy pictures of themselves like this one some day. This is a typical fall Saturday afternoon at our house we rake and rake for hours then spend about ten minutes jumping in the leaves before cleaning it all up.

Here's the story I want to share today...I am now 22 weeks along and the kids are now able to feel the baby kick. They think it is so cool and really enjoy getting to feel their baby sister kicking them. It has become an evening routine for them to feel her kicking right before they all head off to bed. One day this week while they were feeling her kick, I told them that she is now old enough to hear us talk. They all wanted to start talking to my stomach so the baby would recognize their voices when she comes out. Then Jennah said all of a sudden, "mom you need to start calling me Miss Louise". (This is her middle name and when she forces Joel to play school with her this is what she makes him call her.) She went on to tell me that Miss Louise is what she wants her baby sister to call her when she gets here. Typical Jennah story that just cracks me up and I wanted to share. I hope this baby girl is going to be laid back, because she's going to need to be with all the stuff she's going to have to put up with from her big sister Jennah.

I'm Back!

2010-02-08T18:51:00.000-08:00

Wow! So a lot has changed since my last post. I found out a week after returning home from my trip to Honduras that we are expecting our #4! We were completely surprised because we had stopped trying four months before and were happy with our family of 5. It was quite a shock for Jonathan as well. I told him I had some weird news and he jokingly said "what you're pregnant" I said "yep!". He sat quietly for a few seconds and said, "you're going to have to give me some time to think about it". All evening long he just kept looking at me and saying "really, really". We wanted to wait as long as we could to tell everyone because of the past trouble we'd had. We were able to wait until I was eight weeks along, which is good for us.

I am now 20 and 1/2 weeks along and we found out last week we are having a baby girl! We're so excited. We thought for sure it was a boy because I've been so sick. After dealing with the morning sickness for so long I finally broke down and asked for some medicine to help with the nausea and wow has it helped. I can't believe I didn't ask for it with Jacksen and Joel. I thought it would be easier having older children and being pregnant, but it doesn't seem to be it to has it's challenges. I can't just lay on the couch and let the kids play around me, I now have to go to ball games, ball practices, get them up and off to school and so on.

I am finally getting use to the idea of having another little one. When we decided we weren't having anymore we were set on it so it's really taken me a while to get use to the fact. Also, I can't believe how far apart the kids will be Jack will be 10 and 1/2, Jennah will be 8 and 1/2, and Joel will be two months from being 5!

We definitely feel blessed and are so excited to welcome a new little Hendricks into the world around June 26th!

Honduras Trip Part 1

2009-11-04T11:09:00.001-08:00

The first thing we did when we landed in Honduras was go to the mall to get the 63 pairs of shoes for the boys at Jovenes. Thanks to the Bristow Church of Christ for their donation of the shoes. The sizing of the shoes was a little difficult as the house parents just traced around each kids footprint and then cut it out for us to find the correct size. I think it took about three hours for all the sizes to be found. One of my goals before Christmas is to find one of the metal shoe sizers to send to them so next time they will have it. I think that will make things so much easier.

One of the pictures is Rachel with all the shoes at Jovenes. The other one is one of my favorites. I don't know if you can tell by the picture, but this is one of the boys trying on the new shoes with his old pair sitting right beside him with the front completely tore off of it.

Here's a little story of our trip to Jovenes I'd like to share. It brings tears to my eyes just thinking about it. First of all, the kids hadn't been told we were going to be bringing shoes to them. The directors of Jovenes wanted it to be a surprise for them, and so as we arrived we wanted to walk around and see where everything was, as we were walking some kids met us and Will and Rachel started talking to them a little bit asking how they were and everything. As they walked off Rachel told us they said "you all have such nice shoes" it left me speechless. These little kids probably six or seven years old noticed how nice our shoes were. To us our shoes were ones that were pretty old and worn, but to these boys they were really nice. Precious kids!

One of the other things we got to do was take seven laptops for the boys. This last picture is the old computer lab at Jovenes. They now have seven laptops that we were able to deliver to them from Dudley. I think they will get great use out of them and I'm so glad we were able to be a part of getting them down there.

Where to Start

2009-11-04T10:53:00.001-08:00

I've got a lot of updating to do so I'm going to go in the order I remember everything. The middle of September Jack broke his little finger in Bible class. They had finished up the lesson and were playing a game and a kid went to block Jack's throw and broke his finger. Jack was a little excited at first about having a cool cast, but that soon wore off. It was a water proof cast so that really helped with bathing. He was able to continue playing flag football. The orthopedic center we went to fitted him for a foam hand to wear around his cast so he could play without hurting anyone. He wore the cast for three weeks and the doctor said it didn't look so good when the cast was removed so we went back two weeks later to see if he needed to have surgery and he said it had straightened up like it should so no surgery! Yeah! When I was in Honduras was when he was suppose to have the cast removed so Jonathan took him. Jack was so ready to get it off and had been pretty cranky with it on. Since Jon changed jobs we had new insurance and he forgot the new insurance card and they wouldn't take it off without paying cash for it $300, so they had to reschedule for the next day. Poor Jack, from what I hear he was pretty upset with Dad. I flew in that night and was able to take him the next day to get it removed, so he didn't have to wait too much longer.

Joel First Day of PreK

2009-09-09T11:06:00.000-07:00

Joel started PreK at our church a week ago and he is loving it. It has been really hard on me. I'm feeling much better about it now though. I can't believe my baby is old enough for school. I didn't think this time would come yet. After I dropped him off I went to Target for some retail therapy and found myself crying in the aisles. I'm sure everyone thought I was crazy. There was a mom with little kids in her basket that weren't acting right and I could tell the mom was getting frustrated. I wanted so badly to tell her to relax and enjoy this time with your kiddos because it won't be long at all until you're alone like me. I know it's just three days a week, but this is all I've done for the past almost ten years now. It's just going to take me sometime to get use to. The last picture of Joel and me was taken before I really broke down. I did okay for me until I was walking out of the building and someone asked me if I was okay and I said yes. She said you don't look okay. That's when I broke down! She felt so bad for me. Her husband kept telling me you'll be able to pick him up in a few hours. I felt so bad for them. They didn't know what to do with me. I doubt if they ever ask me how I'm feeling again.

Joel's 4!

2009-09-09T11:00:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my baby is four. We had a great party for him on his birthday at a new park in town. He was so happy and had such a great time. Thank you to all the family that came to help us celebrate.

Flag Football

2009-09-09T10:50:00.000-07:00

Jack has had two football games so far this year. The first game they lost pretty badly, but the second game they won! In the second game Jack made the game winning play! At the end of the game the other team was going for a touchdown that would put them ahead and win and Jack dove for the flag and got it! He scraped up his arm, but said it was definitely worth it. They have Bible verses they have to remember and say each week as well as a devo. I love this picture of both teams saying a prayer before the game. It's just precious.

Jack and Jennah's First Day of School

2009-09-09T10:45:00.001-07:00

Jack and Jennah's first day of school was a few weeks ago. Jack is in the 4th grade and Jennah is in the 2nd grade! I can't believe it! They were both so excited. Jack gets up about every morning by himself and is getting so big. Jennah still has to be woke up every morning which I don't see changing any time soon. That girl loves to sleep in! That is one thing she got from me. I'm so proud of my big 4th and 2nd graders.

2009-08-07T09:51:00.000-07:00

Now this is the shot I was hoping for! Not perfect but much better than the first one.

Family Beach Picture

2009-08-05T09:27:00.000-07:00

I can't stop laughing about this picture I had to post it. This is the one attempt to get a family beach photo. Right after this my camera fell in the sand and the lense got stuck open, and I gave up. Anyway I thought it was funny enough to blog.

Best Vacation Ever

2009-08-04T10:01:00.000-07:00

We made it to Destin! It's beautiful here. The resort is the best one we've ever stayed in and we got it for about the same price as a cheap hotel. Can't beat that!

I can't believe how clear the water is here. I told Jon I think it's a little too clear! I don't think I like to see all the fish swimming around me. We found a jellyfish washed up on the beach. It was about the size of a guys fist! Scary! While the kids were playing in the sand Jon went across the street and got a Domino's pizza for us to eat on the beach. Picnics at the beach are the best.

We've eaten out two nights now and one place was okay. I actually tried tuna tartare for the first time by accident. I thought it would be at least seared but nope it was raw! It was actually pretty good, but I couldn't get over the fact that it was raw. The second meal out was to The Back Porch. It was on the beach and our table had a beautiful view of the ocean. The food at The Back Porch was delicious! I don't know if we will be able to top it, but we'll sure try.

Will and Rachel's Visit

2009-07-31T08:00:00.001-07:00

Will and Rachel had to come back to the U.S. for a few weeks because of all the political problems in Honduras. They were able to stay with us a few nights. We loved having a chance to visit with them and hear of all the work they are doing there. They are heading back Saturday. Things seem to be calm there now. Please pray it stays that way so they can continue their work there.

First Bubbles

2009-07-31T07:52:00.000-07:00

Joel is getting so big. He started blowing bubbles a few nights ago and is quite good at it. I can't believe he will be four in a couple of weeks! He's getting so big.

Latest Diaper Cakes

2009-07-31T07:44:00.000-07:00

Something about going on vacation and diaper cakes seem to go hand in hand for me. This is the second year I've had to make a rushed diaper cakes before leaving for vacation. This year I had two to make. I think the pink one is one of my favorites. The turtle cake isn't quite finished I still need to give the turtle a little blanket to hold to complete it, but I won't have a chance to take another picture of it. I sure enjoy making these. I know at some point they will be out of style, or are they already? Oh well, I think they're cute!

Jennah's Musical and Football Update

2009-07-29T08:28:00.000-07:00

Last week Jennah had Music Camp at church. She had already auditioned for a solo several weeks before so she knew she had one but didn't find out until Wednesday which one she had. She was also a ribbon dancer. I don't know if I'll ever be able to watch her sing without crying. She just has the sweetest little voice. Her little friend Zoe came with us. She is one of our neighbors that comes down to play with Jennah. Her family had asked a week or so ago about our church and said they would like to visit with us sometime. We invited Zoe to come with us to see the musical and she got to meet our children's minister and told him she wanted to come next year with Jennah. You never know what an influence you have on people. We have never talked to them about church, but they knew we went because they see us leaving for church all the time. This last picture is Jennah signing autographs after the performance. On the back of the programs they have a page for all the kids to sign autographs for everyone. The kids love this and I think it is a really fun idea. Also, thanks to everyone that came to see Jennah. I know she loved having you all there.

Football update: Jack is no longer playing tackle football. We were able to find a used helmet and shoulder pads on craigslist (thanks for the suggestion Annie). So we ended up paying about $100 instead of $225 on equipment. That is on top of the other $350 we've already paid (that we thought included everything) silly us! We thought we were well on our way until the coach called at 10:00 Sunday night and informed us this was NOT a recreational league it was a competitive league. This team had been together for the past five years and Jack was already an outsider. They had practices four days a week and Jack would be missing the first four because of our vacation, and we would miss the parents meeting. The coach was not happy about this and let me know that by reinforcing that this was a competitive league. This has been the biggest nightmare! Jack wants to play so bad, but we were really afraid all it would do is discourage him and be a huge let down. After several hours of panic and stress over what would be the best thing for Jack, I decided at 12:30 a.m. to see if there were any flag football leagues in Tulsa. I came across Upward. It is a faith based league I had heard about their basketball league before, but I didn't know they had football! I think this is the answer we've been looking for. So we went yesterday and signed him up!

Also, my baby Joel will start Park Plaza Pre-K in September. It makes my heart hurt to think about! I'll post on that later.

First Year of Camp!

2009-07-08T06:29:00.000-07:00

My goodness I can't believe two of the three of my children are old enough for church camp. Some of my favorite memories growing up is all the time I spent at camp. Not to mention that's where Jonathan and I met. Being the over protective mother I am, I decided they needed me to go with them to camp. I know Jack could have managed by himself, but Jennah I think would have come home with just the clothes on her back. She may like to clean and look just like her Grandma Janet but she has some me in her too.

Jack seemed to have a great time with all his old friends from Ft. Gibson. It made us really miss our church family there. He didn't hang around me at all and really took to the independence. One thing I found funny and reminded me of Jonathan is every day at every meal Jack would sit in the same spot. I guess he likes routine like his dad. Jack had just returned from football camp the day before we left for camp so he was still a little tired from that, but was so proud of the dog tag Uncle Brian had made for him. Apparently he told everyone at camp he was going to be in the army because the award he got at the end of camp was the "Rambo Award".

I was in the cabin with Jennah and we had some good bonding time together. I hope someday when she's a teen she will still want me around to share in these fun camp times with her. I know that's probably not going to happen but I can dream can't I. I love to watch her socialize. She is friends with everyone. Her camp award was "Best All Around Camper" One thing I thought reaffirmed me going with Jennah to camp was when we were eating lunch she got a brownie for dessert and asked me if she could eat it before her hamburger. I asked her if I hadn't come with her to camp what would she do. She got a big grin on her face and said I would eat the brownie first. So funny and just like Jennah!

I was so proud of both Jack and Jennah. It brings tears to my eyes thinking about how much camp can influence their Christian walk, if they let it. For now it's just lots of fun and making new friends!

These two girls are from Ft. Gibson and are Jack's age. Can you believe that? They look so much older than him. I secretly hope Jack marries one of them some day. Is that bad?

All Things Football

2009-07-08T06:12:00.001-07:00

Jack has an overnight obsession with football. He has been talking about playing football for the past year. I thought it would just fade away and he wouldn't really want to do it, but I don't know why I would think this from the child who doesn't forget ANYTHING. So the time finally comes around for sign ups and he is still pumped about playing. It's tackle football and they are pretty serious about it here in Jenks. They even have a draft for teams. Adding to his already obsessive behavior he got to go to Adrian Peterson's Football Camp (thanks to Uncle Brian, Aunt Jenny, and the Army) He came back from camp with an even greater love for the game. We will see if it lasts. I have a feeling the first time he gets hit in a game he might change his mind. I am happy for him though. I think it's every little boys dream at some point to play football. He starts practice in mid August so we will see how it goes. If nothing else he is making memories that will last a lifetime.

Family Reunion Through Jennah's Eyes

2009-06-13T18:35:00.000-07:00

We had Jonathan's annual family reunion this weekend. It's always fun to see everyone and I learned what a small world it is. One of the elderly women Ila introduced me to knew my family from Home Gardens Church of Christ. Jennah had a hard time at the reunion. One of the boy cousins was not being nice to her and she came whining to me about it so I sent her to the car to get my camera and capture some of the reunion on film. She LOVES taking pictures and it was hilarious to see the shots she got. So here it is! Enjoy!

Looks like these ladies were really excited about Jennah taking their photo. She even got a close up of them.

Locks of Love

2009-06-01T17:46:00.000-07:00

Jennah has been planning on donating her hair to Locks of Love for about the past six months. We've always said as soon as school is out it would be long enough. About once a week for the past six months we have measured it to see if it was long enough. Finally, today was the first day of summer for us and we did it. I didn't want to deal with a bad cut and having to cut it again myself like the last time we took her somewhere so we went to Ihloff Salon where I knew she would get a good cut and they do all the paperwork and send the hair off there so it was a pleasant experience and she is happy with the cut. They straightened it for her and she LOVED it!

Jennah's Turn

2009-05-29T06:51:00.000-07:00

We have been waiting very patiently for Jennah's first school musical. Every time Jack has one I think oh Jennah is just going to LOVE doing the school musical. She did and it was so much fun to watch her in her element. Thank you to Grandma Janet, Nana Tamara, Papa David, and Nana Ila for coming and making it an extra special day for her. She loves being the center of attention and this was perfect for her. That afternoon I worked and my mom got the kids off the bus and I was on the phone with my mom when they got off and I heard Jennah tell my mom thank you for coming to my musical. So I know it meant a lot to her. I tried to control my tears but they just kept coming. I don't know why these things make me cry like a baby. I know other parents think I'm crazy I just can't help it. I'm just so proud!

Update

2009-05-10T19:55:00.001-07:00

I know it's been too long since my last blog entree so I'm going to update a little. I started a new job last week. I love it so far! I'm a manicurist and pedicurist for The Woodhouse Day Spa in Brookside. I have been thinking about trying the working thing out for a while now. I knew I didn't want to be in retail again after the seasonal work I did at Bath and Body Works at Christmas. On a whim, Friday before last I sent my resume to Woodhouse and Ihloff just to see what would happen and I got calls back from them that same day to set up interviews. I really loved the atmosphere at Woodhouse and it seemed to fit me better than Ihloff so I canceled my second interview with Ihloff and started at Woodhouse last Monday. Having a brother that lives in Honduras and the other one in Florida I figured I needed to do something to help us get to go and visit them both.

The kids have two weeks of school left and are so excited about summer break. We are already starting to fill up our summer calendar with camp, vbs, reunions, camp outs, music camp, and so on. It should be a fun summer break.

Jennah has her school musical tomorrow. I can't wait to see her perform!

Jonathan has MONO! He has been fighting other health issues for the past few months and we thought it was a combination of those things causing his fatigue and weight loss but had tests ran to be sure and it turned out to be mono as well as all his other issues. Poor guy! Anyway we are just glad it wasn't something more serious. We are thanking God!

Sweet Love of God

2009-04-21T17:56:00.000-07:00

As a mom one of my favorite things is when the kids surprise me and come up with something together without me telling them to do it or even teaching them anything. Yesterday in the car on the way home from Wal-Mart Jack and Jennah started singing this song. I guess they've been singing it in Bible class on Wednesday nights. It was the sweetest thing I've heard them do in a while. They both knew their parts exactly. It made me cry it was so cute and sweet. They taught it to Joel and then performed it on our "stage" in the back yard. I don't know what Lita intended for the little deck in our back yard but the kids think it was definitely designed for a stage. Enjoy!

2009-04-15T07:37:00.000-07:00

We had a really nice Easter this year. Saturday we went to Aunt Amy and Uncle John's new house for lunch and an Easter egg hunt. The kids had a great time with all their cousins and the egg hunt was the highlight of the weekend. The weather was perfect and the company was great.

Sunday we went to Bristow for a yummy Easter dinner of roast. It was a small group of us and although this wasn't our first holiday without Will and Rachel we sure all missed them. The weather wasn't great, it stormed all day long! It was a laid back day that was much needed and enjoyed.

These are some of my favorite pictures of the egg hunt on Saturday. I have no idea where Jack was in all these pictures I didn't get a single shot of him.

Field Trip

2009-04-15T07:36:00.000-07:00

Jennah's first grade field trip was to the zoo last week. She was so excited to go and was very happy that I was going with her. She pointed out several times that siblings were not invited. At first I didn't know if she was just not wanting Joel to go or if her teacher had really told them no siblings. Finally a note was sent home with her saying that in fact siblings were not allowed for security reasons. I don't really understand this rule, but I thought it was a great opportunity to spend some one on one time with Jennah. It turned out to be a wonderful day. Jennah seemed most impressed by the blue and yellow frogs in the rain forest.

2009-03-28T18:01:00.000-07:00

This week was the annual Tulsa Workshop. I look forward to it every year. It's always a great way to see old friends and get a recharge. This year I was very excited to get to volunteer at Workshop Central, and I thought it would be a great chance to see if some of the other young moms in our Bible class wanted to volunteer with me and we would have a chance to get to know each other better and maybe have lunch together or something. Well, no one signed up with me and Thursday morning I was feeling sorry for myself and missing some of my old friends in Ft. Gibson that would go with me anywhere any time I asked them to. Side note: I went to the doctor the day before and I have a sinus infection so I wasn't really feeling great to begin with.

I decided to suck it up and enjoy the days ahead with or without friends along side me. It turned out to be better than I ever expected it to. Both days that I volunteered I got to visit with some older Christians that I attend church with but have never had the chance to meet or talk with. It made me miss my Grandma Kelley and all the wisdom and quiet faith she had, and how after every visit with her I had such a peaceful feeling. Visiting with these older Christians left me feeling refreshed and new and made me see things from a different perspective.

Jonathan and I were talking about my experiences over the past few days and we got to talking about how much we, as young Christians, need the guidance and wisdom of older generations. Maybe even just the quiet and peacefulness they seem to have. We talked about the way classes are set up these days everyone grouped together by ages we miss out on so much that the older Christians could and should be teaching us. I wonder how we can correct this? I understand the importance of meeting together with others our own age, but I need the guidance from those older and wiser than me. Maybe it's just me, but I feel I would be a much better Christian if I had that.

Our Weekend

2009-03-16T12:56:00.000-07:00

This weekend was one of the busiest weekends we've had in quite some time. I had signed up to fix a meal for Celebrate Recovery at our church with my cousin Jenny Friday night, we had a wedding to attend in OKC. Saturday night, our involvement minister at church signed our Bible class up to prepare and serve a meal for Contact Church for 125 people, oh and a birthday party Sunday afternoon at 2:30(normally we would have just skipped a party but this was a special one)! I knew not many in our class had the time or the experience of cooking for such a large group so I decided to head it up. I feel like God has blessed us with so many church experiences in the past and cooking for a large group of people is one of them. I really enjoy the excitement and hospitality involved in it and I think it is something not everyone can do. This weekend was exceptionally hard because I usually really depend on Jonathan for a lot of help when we are involved in so much like this. I knew with how busy and stressed he has been at work I couldn't depend on him much at all. He even had to work all day Saturday! So, organized I had to become. I had a schedule of events down to five minute increments for the weekend. I had every detail taken care of. I felt like my sil Jenny:) Everything went so well and we had no surprises. We really enjoyed the wedding thanks to cousin Annie and Chris who kept Jennah and Joel for us while we attended, and also Aunt Amy and Uncle John for keeping the kids Sunday morning for us while we prepared the meal for Contact. We have such a great family!

Joel has the Snaps

2009-03-16T12:46:00.000-07:00

Joel's newest trick is snapping. He said Mr. Will (our children's minister) taught him how. That was last Wednesday night after church and he hasn't stopped since. It's so cute and reminds me of my youngest brother when we were little.

Time with Dad

2009-03-04T14:39:00.000-08:00

Since I had Muffins with Mom this morning Jonathan took Joel to work with him. He wasn't real excited about it. He seems to be like his mom with mornings. The only way we enjoy mornings is if we get to sleep through them! Anyway after we finally got him up and around I think he was a little excited. Jonathan had taken his picture the night before and told him he would have it on his computer in the morning so Joel was looking forward to that and of course the sucker that he always gets when we visit Dad at work. He was also very happy to get this clown nose from Jonathan's office. Speaking of the clown nose I need to ask Jonathan where that came from kind of strange thing to have in a bank office. They were so cute together so I snapped a few pictures to share. This second picture is Joel sitting at Jonathan's table playing while Jonathan was trying to get some work done.

Muffins with Mom

2009-03-04T14:23:00.000-08:00

This morning we had Muffins with Mom at Jack and Jennah's school. It is during the book fair so they try to get parents up to the school so we can all purchase some books to benefit the school. I guess this is the first time I've been to this event since we moved from Ft. Gibson. I don't know where I was last year for it. It was so much different than our small town Ft. Gibson Muffins with Mom. About a hundred crazy moms were packed in this little room with books everywhere. The muffins were on this tiny little table that looked like a dog had been up on it with muffin pieces strung everywhere, and only four muffins left. Huge contrast to the laid back quiet Muffins with Mom in Ft. Gibson where each kid serves his mother a muffin and does an interview with her while they enjoy a peaceful breakfast snack together. Needless to say I was disappointed and it really made me miss our little peaceful town of Ft. Gibson.

First Signs of Spring!

2009-02-25T11:16:00.000-08:00

We had our first blooming flowers of the year yesterday. How refreshing it is to look out the window at all the brown and all of a sudden notice these beautiful and vibrant yellow flowers. God knows just what I need and I needed to see these bright blooms yesterday. I know Spring isn't here yet, but this will hold me over until then.

Jack's Africa Play

2009-02-25T08:55:00.000-08:00

Jack had his annual class musical today. It is always so much fun to see Jack in his plays. He is so serious about it, no smiles from him. He had Jonathan, Joel, me, Grandma Janet, Papa David and Nana Ila all attend his musical. We all enjoyed it and I held it together pretty well, just a few tears. Anyway here's a video for all of you to enjoy.

Before and After

2009-02-24T07:45:00.000-08:00

Jack has been growing his hair out for quite some time now. It has gotten very long and looks pretty cute but it drives me crazy! I can't stand for his hair to be in his eyes all the time. I have bit my tongue because I know it is just part of him getting bigger and wanting to do his own thing. Finally Saturday he agreed to have it cut. It looks so much better and I had forgotten how pretty and big his blue eyes are.

He is also ready to get braces. He is growing up too fast. He has been asking about braces and I told him he has to take really good care of his teeth to get them and so he has started flossing everyday along with brushing morning and night and mouth rinse. He does these things on his own I don't even have to tell him anymore. It will be a while before he can get braces but I think it's great he is wanting to take care of himself so well.

Cuddles the Kitten

2009-02-24T07:18:00.000-08:00

As I've said before Jennah and Joel have become great friends over the past few months. They imagine all sorts of crazy things together. They really remind me of the cute little books and cartoon Max and Ruby. She bosses him around, but in the end he only really does what he wants to do. Saturday they were off in there own little world playing something that involved a kitten. Well then they decided they wanted a real kitten and both thought they could talk us into it. Jennah cracked us up with her plan to get a kitten. First she tells us this year she wants to get rid of Gravy. She has a friend at school that she wants to give him to for her birthday. Then she said for her birthday next year she wants to get a kitten. She promised to feed, water, and walk the new kitten. Jonathan explained that kittens don't have to be walked and that blew her mind and kind of distracted her for a few minutes while she processed the fact that they didn't have to be walked. Finally she was back with us and told us she would name the kitten Cuddles and that's where Joel came in and they started begging and then instead of asking for a kitten they started asking when we were going to get the new kitten. They knew all along we weren't going to get a kitten but I guess they knew it wouldn't hurt to try. Haven't heard anything about Cuddles since, so I guess they decided they didn't want a kitten after all. So funny!

Will and Rachel's Visit

2009-02-18T14:18:00.001-08:00

This past week Will and Rachel were able to come home for a brief visit from Honduras. It was so good to see them and spend some quality time with them. The kids were so excited to see them and had been asking for two weeks when they were coming. Every plane Joel would see in the air he would say Will and Rachel were on. We got to spend several evenings with them. This picture is of all of us at Will and Rachel's favorite restaurant in Glenpool called Speedy's. The picture is a little dark but you can see we enjoyed ourselves. We also played Balderdash for hours and cried our eyes out with laughter. One evening they cooked a typical Honduran meal for all of us. The last evening they were with us we had a family and friends potluck dinner so everyone could see them and visit with them without them having to make a trip to every one's homes. Having them here and visiting about all their work there really made Jonathan and me want to go back again and visit and the kids can't wait to go to Honduras now. I consider Will and Rachel to be our best friends and it was so refreshing to visit with them and hear of all the things they are doing there.

Quality Cousin Time

2009-02-18T13:43:00.000-08:00

The month of January has been filled with lots of time with the family. It's been a really busy month starting with little Ben staying with Joel and me on Tuesdays and some Thursdays while Aunt Amy is in school. Then the last week we had Ben I also had Abram for the week while his family took a trip to Disney World. Then this past weekend we had Cooper and Wyatt stay the night with us. It has been a great month and the kids have really been able to get some great cousin bonding time together. It has also been great for me to get to know and talk with Amy and Jenny more. I grew up close to my cousins and I am so glad my kids get to also.

Where to Start

2009-02-18T13:19:00.000-08:00

It has been so long since I last posted that I have to think about what I have missed blogging about over the past two months. I do know I never posted about our ten year anniversary so I'll start there. On January 2nd Jonathan and I celebrated ten years of marriage together. That means we've actually been together for twelve and a half years! Crazy! I have always teased Jonathan about ten years being the big one and that I should get a huge diamond ring or a trip to Hawaii for making this long. Well I didn't get that huge ring or the trip to Hawaii, but what I did get I treasure and it means more to me than the other material gifts I wanted. I am always asking Jonathan what he's thinking and most of the time he replies nothing then we go through the old Seinfeld scene with Elaine where she argues with her boyfriend about him not thinking anything. You have to be thinking something, I always say to him. Anyway, for our anniversary Jonathan made me a book of our journey over the last twelve and a half years in his words and his favorite pictures and memories. I don't know why but for some reason just like when I ask him what he's thinking and he actually replies by telling me what's on his mind it meant so much to hear him tell our story. It was the best gift he could have gotten me and it brought back all those butterflies that I had when we were first dating. One of the best parts is how hard he worked to get it put together. He couldn't get our scanner to work then the computer crashed the last week he had to work on it before it needed to be delivered for the big day. Isn't he the best!

Snow Day!

2009-01-27T15:31:00.000-08:00

The kids were out of school today along with about every other kid in this area. It really hasn't snowed but that didn't stop us from playing in the ice/sleet. The kids are really at fun ages right now and I think I enjoyed playing with them as much as they did. After playing we came in and had hot cocoa and a snack while I read to them chapter out of the book we are reading together. What a fun day!

Jennah's 7

2009-01-20T14:50:00.001-08:00

Jennah turned 7 years old on the 13th. I didn't do this on her birthday so I thought I would add a few of my favorite pics. of her through the past 7 years. Jennah is a girly girl. She says she doesn't like pink anymore but everything she picks out ends up being pink. She is a singer and a performer. Whether it be on a stage or in the bathroom she's always putting on a show (I'm sure she will appreciate me telling that in the future!) I have always said she came out screaming and hasn't stopped since. She keeps life here in the Hendricks' house loud and exciting. We love our Jennah and can't imagine life without her. She definitely makes me enjoy life more than I normally would. She is always smiling and has a sweet heart. I pray Jennah grows up to be a strong Christian example to many; because I know she definitely has the leadership qualities for the job!

1 Down 1 To Go!

2009-01-20T10:42:00.000-08:00

Jack had his birthday sleepover Friday night. He just had three boys stay and we thought we would just hang out here at home until I got a call from the organizer from the Ronald McDonald House (I volunteer there a few evenings a month) and she had some tickets to Rob Lake Magic Show and wanted to know if we could use them. That was perfect for Jack's sleepover. The boys had a great time. We were sixth row from the stage and it kept their attention the entire time. They were so funny because they would think they had the tricks figured out and he would do something different and they were left with their mouths wide open wondering how he did it.

Now we are planning on having Jennah's sleepover this weekend so hopefully it will go as smooth as Jack's. Wish us luck!

New Years Eve Fancy Dinner

2009-01-01T19:54:00.000-08:00

Sometimes in the Hendricks' family we like to add a little excitement to meal time. A few times a year sometimes on special occasions (Valentines, New Years, Birthdays) and sometimes just for fun we have what we call a fancy dinner. I will fix something new or a traditional family favorite and we get all dressed up for a candle lit meal. We started doing this when we lived in Ft. Gibson and have continued the tradition here. Of course, Jennah lives for this kind of stuff and surprisingly Jack seems to enjoy it as well. The picture in the header is all us getting ready to enjoy the cornish game hens I prepared for us. It turned out great and seems to be a wonderful family tradition. As we were finishing up I told Jonathan I didn't know how many more years we had with the kids being so excited about our fancy dinners but I'm going to cherish every time we do until then. Then the kids made confetti and played until we all counted down to the new year. It was a great night!

2009-01-01T19:32:00.000-08:00

We also celebrated Jennah's birthday today with all our family. I thought last year was going to be the last year we could get away with one party between the two of them but they graciously agreed to a joined family party as well as a joined sleepover around Jennah's birthday on the 13th. I know it will be a crazy night with seven year old girls and nine year old boys but I would rather get it all over with at one time. I have a plan to keep the boys in the small living room and the girls upstairs. It should be interesting.

We decided to have the family party at our church building gym. It worked out very well. Lots of room for the kids to run around and a fenced in playground outside for them to play without us worrying about them wandering off. We have a wonderful family that almost all came to the party. It warms my heart to see so many people that love and support our kids. I told them when we got in the car to go home you guys have a lot of people that love you. They both said very seriously "I know". I think is very important especially the older they get to know they are supported and loved by so many. So, thank you to all that came and even if you couldn't make it today we still appreciate your love and support of our sweet kids.

Party TIme!

2009-01-01T19:13:00.000-08:00

Today is Jack's 9th birthday! I can't believe my little millennium new year's baby is 9 years old! My blue eyed boy is becoming quite the young man. Everything from his looks to his interests are changing. Before the past six months or so Jack and Joel were the best of friends and it seems like over night Jack has started liking older things (PSP, chess, and other older games). Joel and Jennah seem to play together much more now which is a scary thing. They tend to really cause a lot of trouble together. I'm so proud of Jack and can't wait to see the young man he will become over the next ten years. I pray God blesses him with a long, happy, and servant life for Him. Happy Birthday Jack!

Finally!

2008-12-29T17:14:00.000-08:00

My computer is fixed and the cox guy fixed my internet connection so I'm back and finally ready to share my 8's.

8 Shows I watch

Iron Chef

The Office

The Hills

CSI Miami

Scrubs

Without a Trace

My House is Worth What

House Hunters

8 Favorite Restaurants

Famous Dave's BBQ

Ted's

Outback Steakhouse

Pei Wei

Bill and Ruth's

Popeye's Chicken

Chick-Fil-A

Speedy's

8 Things that happened today

The kids let me sleep in late.

Planned our anniversary trip to Padre.

Canceled the trip to Padre and decided on Hot Springs Ark.

Jonathan came home for lunch.

Canceled the trip to Hot Springs and decided on Taos New Mexico.

The cox guy fixed my internet and phone.

Decided ten hours of driving for a day and a half of skiing wasn't worth it, back to not having a plan.

I fixed Outback's Mac a roo and cheese and the kids said it was better than Outback!

8 Things I look forward to

Watching the kids grow up.

Our anniversary weekend together (whatever we decide to do).

Taking the kids to Honduras with us next year.

Remodeling our bathroom (hopefully sooner than later).

William and Rachel coming home to visit in February.

Spring time

Family pictures

Summer break for the kids

8 Things I wish for

A long and healthy life for my family

Christian spouses for my kids

An extra half bath off our small living room

No more laundry

Just one more baby

Longer summers

Shorter winters

A great 2009

Christmas Musical

2008-12-15T08:20:00.000-08:00

Jack and Jennah had their Christmas musical last night. It was great. Jack really seemed to enjoy it and Jennah loved every minute of it. Jack agreed to be in it only if he didn't have to have a solo or speaking part. I was very proud of him for taking on this challenge. I love

watching the kids perform it is a memory of them I will cherish forever. Their innocence is priceless and hearing them sing songs about our God just makes my heart so happy and I can't control my tears. With me working some Jonathan has taken them to most of their practices and in the process Jennah some how lost the solo she was suppose to have that she has been practiced for over a month for. I told her if she wanted me to I would talk to them about it but she didn't mind she had a cheer leading part that she loved so that made up for it. Thank you to Grandma Janet, Papa Joe, and Nana for coming and sharing this event with the kids. I know it meant so much to them to share their hard work with you guys.

Rechargeable Batteries

2008-12-09T07:14:00.000-08:00

I have to confess, I am not an organized person. If it weren't for Jonathan's organizational skills and our busy schedules I wouldn't ever plan things out. With three kids and our busy lives I have to be somewhat organized. One thing I still really fail at is keeping new batteries around all the time. About half of our kids toys go unused because of the lack of batteries. About four times a year though I am super mom. I find all our rechargeable batteries and get them all charged up and let the kids loose with them. I did this about a week ago and boy have they had a great week. It's like their birthdays all over again. Jack pretty much keeps a screw driver with him finding old toys and replacing the batteries. He has trained Jennah and she is a pro now too. Joel is still in the training stage but in no time I'm sure he'll be replacing batteries also. Good times!

Holiday Stresses

2008-12-09T06:41:00.000-08:00

I promised myself this holiday season I was going to enjoy every minute and not stress about the small things. For the most part I thought I was doing well with the holiday stresses until Lita decided to share a story on her blog about how stressed she is during this season. I wanted to make her feel better so I commented to let her know she wasn't alone. In the process of writing I found myself sharing two stories on her blog and thinking to myself another one I could share. That's when I realized I'm not doing such a great job at not getting stressed out.

Let me share all three dingy things I did in a span of 24 hours. Sunday evening I had to work and Jonathan was taking the kids to church; we said our goodbyes and got in separate cars and left, but instead of going to work I followed Jonathan and the kids all the way to the church. I don't know what I was thinking. I guess I wasn't. I was just driving. Then yesterday morning I thought I had volunteered to stay with Jack's class while his teacher had a meeting, I do this about twice a month and Grandma Janet keeps Joel for me. I called and left her a message to remind her of our plans for the afternoon only to check my calendar a minute later and find the date I am helping is next Monday. So I quickly called and left another message telling her I am crazy and I would see her next Monday. This last one is the scary one, yesterday evening Jennah had a birthday party to go to and Jonathan had plans to visit his Grandpa in the hospital. He was planning on taking Jack and Joel with him and I would take Jennah. Joel cried to go to the birthday party so I let him go with me. On the way we had some music on and I remembered I had left my flat iron on in the bathroom. I called Jonathan quickly to ask him to unplug it so Joel wouldn't get burned. He quickly said, "okay but do I have Joel?" It wasn't until he said that that I remembered he was in the back seat with me! I can't believe I did this! It is worrying me.

I know we have been extra busy lately (double booked four out of five evenings this week with things to do) and I'm sure that is why I'm doing these crazy things. I just thought it was funny that I was trying to make Lita feel better and am now worried about myself. So today I'm going to take it easy and try to regain my sanity. Happy Tuesday!

1st Attempt

2008-12-02T16:50:00.000-08:00

So our first attempt at getting a Christmas card photo failed. I am too cheap to have them professionally taken. Although at this point I am seriously considering it. We'll try again later.

We finally got the piano on Friday. Jennah, Joel, and Jonathan have been enjoying it so far. We had the music to the solo Jennah has and Jonathan played it while Jennah sang. She thought that was pretty neat.

It's Been A While

2008-11-24T10:20:00.000-08:00

We have been busy lately and I haven't taken time to post on here like I like to. I started working last week at Bath and Body Works in the mall through the holiday season. I am really enjoying it so far. It is just in the evenings and weekends so Jonathan is home with the kids while I am working. I was just wanting to do something and thought that would be a fun change. I think it is good for me to get out of the house a little. It seems to be helping me organize my time better when I am at home and I don't seem to want to run around as much during the day.

Jennah did get a solo and a duet in the Christmas musical she is also in a little scene as a cheerleader. Jack is in the musical also. It is not really his thing but I wanted him to give it a try. He said he would as long as he didn't have to speak or sing by himself. The performance is on Sunday the 14th of December. Everyone is invited to come. We are also in the process of getting Grandma Janet's piano that she and Jonathan grew up using. Jennah and Jonathan are very excited. I can already see us all sitting around it while Jonathan plays Christmas songs. Okay maybe that's dreaming but it's a nice thought.

I am trying decide on a perfect background for our annual Christmas card photo. As you all know that can be a huge task. We got our first card in the mail today so I need to get on that. I am half way finished with my shopping already and I hope to be finished before Thanksgiving day.

We did our own family Thanksgiving dinner Saturday night and put up our Christmas tree. It was really good. I think we are going to make it an annual thing the weekend before Thanksgiving. The kids made turkey pictures and colored them. That is one of my favorite memories as a child was coloring turkeys for Thanksgiving. Then they made pilgrim hats. I was able to remember my Grandma Kelley's stuffing recipe that she taught me how to make probably ten years ago. It tasted just like Grandma's and it brought back so many happy memories of her and our times together. I cried.

I am challenging myself this year not to get stressed and fully enjoy the holidays. I don't want to worry about anything but enjoy my family and friends. One of the things we have decided to do between now and Christmas is watch a classic Christmas movie every Friday night. Last Friday we got Home Alone. The kids loved it and can't wait until next Friday night. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Fashion Police

2008-11-17T08:01:00.001-08:00

Jennah is my little fashion expert. She keeps me looking my best even when I don't think it's important. The other night I had to run to Target for the third time that day and it was right before close so I just threw on some old jeans. These jeans don't look so great and Jonathan affectionately refers to them as my "mom jeans". I really didn't care and was ready to walk out the door when the fashion police caught me. She looked me up and down and said, "Mom! What are you wearing?!" I asked her what she was talking about. I was just wearing jeans and a sweat shirt. She said, "That is not your style!!" She is so funny. Jonathan and I were cracking up. So beware all you frumpy dressers if you are around Jennah she will let you know exactly what she thinks about your attire.

Nothing Big

2008-11-10T09:53:00.000-08:00

We had a great Halloween this year. The past few years we have done the week long celebration and it was a little crazy. This year we decided to only do one night of craziness, until I got a random call from someone I have never met before. She told me her name and said she was a friend of one of my friends from Ft. Gibson. She had called in to channel 6 and won four passes to Discovery Land's Cute and Spooky Carnival. She didn't have children or grandchildren and called my friend Janet to see if she knew anyone that could use them. Janet thought of us and told her to call me. The only thing was she called at 4:30 and the tickets had to be picked up by 5:30 and they were only good that night. I called Jonathan and to my surprise he was willing to go. He usually doesn't go for spur of the moment things like this. Anyway we all had a great time and it was a great alternative the the traditional trick or treating.

Last week Jennah and Joel had their first sickness of the season. They started off with an allergy cough and both developed a sinus infection and Joel also got a double ear infection from that. Joel ears didn't clear up with the medicine the doctor prescribed and we started a new one on Friday. Hopefully this one will clear them up or it will be back to the chiropractor for him.

Jack is really enjoying chess club and I think Jonathan is enjoying it just as much. He will also start basketball in a few weeks. Jennah has auditions for our churches Christmas musical Wednesday night. I'm very excited for her and she is too. Joel also gets in on the singing. I'm crossing my fingers that he gets his daddy's singing voice like Jennah did.

The kids and Jonathan played in the leaves this week. I've never seen kids enjoy a pile of leaves like my three. They would come home from school have a quick snack and head straight out until dark playing in the leaves. Jonathan's grass has finally sprouted and he is very proud of his bright green grass. I never knew he had such an obsession with grass.

We are all doing well and are excited about the change of season and the holidays to come. Have a great week everyone.

Pumpkin Carving

2008-10-28T14:24:00.000-07:00

Last night we carved our pumpkin. Jack and Jennah really enjoyed helping carve the pumpkin. Joel did not enjoy the gut cleaning part. He couldn't keep from gagging every time he looked at the pumpkin or our hands. The pumpkin and the pumpkin seeds turned out great. Jennah was in charge of pictures and this one of the pumpkin turned out the best.

Lake Murray '08

2008-10-28T09:55:00.000-07:00

We had Jonathan's family reunion at Lake Murray this weekend. The weather was nice during the day and cool enough at night that we all enjoyed the fire. It was a great time of the year to go on a road trip seeing all the fall colors this time of year. Not all the leaves have changed but just enough to get me excited about the beautiful weeks to come. The kids had a great time playing with all their cousins. Jennah even cried when Emily left.

Kids of Mogote

2008-10-16T12:54:00.001-07:00

This is the day Will and Jon built a bench for the church building they had an audience all day. This little church is overflowing with people, a great problem to have! They packed about 150 people in the tiny building on Sunday. Amber teaches the kids class about ages one and a half to twelve years in a room about 20x12 this Sunday she had 69 kids in that small class room and until four weeks ago it was just her in there. Now she has Rachel to help. She is quite a woman! These kids just melted my heart. While Will and Jon built the bench Rachel and I walked around and handed out goodies to the kids and played with them. As we walked Rachel told me some of their home life stories that made me break down and cry, but they are so strong. I wish I could bring them all home with me! This little girl with Rachel is Marla she is the youngest of twelve. She loves to be held and just craves affection. After playing with the kids for several hours I did some manicures on some women.

Mogote

2008-10-16T12:32:00.000-07:00

This day Amber had to be in town and we were going to work in Mogote so she dropped us off at the edge of town and we had lunch at Pollolandia (Chicken Land) it was really good. One of my greatest fears going to Honduras was getting food poisoning and I knew William had already been sick two different times since he had been there only four weeks. My theory was to eat as much yogurt as I could stand. My thinking was that the good bacteria would counter act all the bad. I don't know if that is what kept Jon and me from getting sick or not but we never got sick.

These are some of the pictures of the "road" we walked up this day to get to the church building. This town only has two toilets one at the church we worked with and one at the Life church. The living conditions there were pretty rough. As I'm sure you can see from the pictures. The picture with the little boy was taken from the church building looking across the street.

Views from the Jesus Statue

2008-10-16T12:17:00.000-07:00

The days seemed so long and since we have arrived back home they are all starting to run together. So one of the days we went to do some sight seeing. Amber's sons took us to the Jesus statue as I said earlier it poured down raining on us the entire trip there and back. It was definitely worth the rain drenched ride though. It was so beautiful up there. We had about five minutes that it stopped raining so we could take a few pictures.

2008-10-16T09:55:00.000-07:00

I don't know where to start. We had a wonderful eye opening trip to Honduras. As soon as we exited the plane we saw guards armed with what Jonathan called an AK47? (big scary gun) Will and Rachel had warned us this was the norm in Honduras but you really have to see it to believe it. Not only were there armed guards at the airport but also outside all restaurants and stores. Every building and home had barbwire all the way around it to keep thieves out and if they got past the barbwire there were bars on all the windows and doors to keep them out. The house we looked at with Will and Rachel that they are going to rent not only has the barbwire but also a high voltage electric fence all the way around the house.

Like I said in previous posts we spent a lot of time in the bed of a Ford Ranger truck so most of the pictures I took are from the moving truck. Honduras is such a beautiful country with lush mountains in every direction. I kept saying there is nothing like this in Oklahoma.

Where to Start

2008-10-11T17:44:00.000-07:00

We are having a great time visiting. I have tried to post pictures now three seperate times with no success so that will have to wait until we return. Thursday started out with a scary back of the truck ride to Mogote. We then hiked up the mountain to the church where Jon and Will made a bench while babysitting about ten kids and Rachel and I played with kids and handed out all the goodies our great church group sent with us and then I was able to do some manicures for some of the ladies in town. The best was a 89 year old lady who had never had polish on her nails. We told her she didn´t have to have one if she didn´t want to but she said she would so she would have a memory of me. So sweet.

Yesterday we visited the Jesus statue and almost got struck by lightning! Jesus protected us both figuratively and literally. It was up on the top of a mountain and we could see for ever. It was pouring down rain the entire time including the 40 minute ride to and from in the back of a truck.

Today we went to the a river. I mentioned before it was raining all day yesterday and the river was very high and rapid. It was a little scary at first but I wanted to experience as much as possible so I jumped off a huge cliff GO ME! It was pretty fun. Jon didn´t join me in this experience. I can´t wait to share the pictures.

We haven´t gotten sick on the food yet at all. The no flush thing isn´t as bad as I expected it to be. My biggest fear here now is the dreaded truck rides. Friday night I cried three different times out of fear on the trip up to Mogote for church. The people here drive crazy. They drive on the wrong sides of the road on one way streets including the car we were in! I won´t miss the driving here at all.

Jacksen, Jennah, and Joel we love you and miss you guys! See you Monday night.

First Full Day

2008-10-08T10:24:00.000-07:00

We slept very well last night. We were going on three hours of sleep in the past 48 so I think we would have slept well anywhere. Yesterday we got to go with Will and Rachel to look at a house they had not had much luck the week before finding suitable houses. We were their good luck charms and they are signing a contract today for the one we got to look at. It is a very nice house and I can´t wait to visit them in their new house. This afternoon we are going to Mogote to help Will build pews and play with the kids. The days here seem SO long. It is 1130 here and it feels like 4 or 5 in the afternoon.

We´re Here

2008-10-07T13:45:00.000-07:00

We made it to Honduras with no trouble at the airports. We ate at Church´s Chicken for lunch and rode in the back of a truck to Amber´s house. I saw my life flash before my eyes several times in that short five minute drive. Will told me to get used to it because that is how we will be getting around all week! These people drive like crazy people! Lord protect us.

This and That

2008-09-29T13:15:00.001-07:00

Jack's new favorite thing is chess. Jonathan is so excited for him to be old enough to play with him. They play at least one game every evening. Jonathan said he is getting pretty good. He came home last week with a paper to join the school chess club. One of the things it said they would do was learn to beat your dad. Jack is so excited about it. He also got to go this weekend with Grandma Janet and Papa Joe to Elk City for the weekend. He had a great time!

Last Thursday night Jonathan got free tickets for the soft opening of the new SpiritBank center. The finalists from Nashville Star performed. We watched a little of the show and Coffey was our favorite. He was definitely the best performer. The kids were so excited about going to their first concert. They didn't last too long after the first performer they were so tired from a long day that Joel fell asleep and Jennah and Jack were laying across their seats. We decided from now on they should only go to concerts on Saturday nights so they have a good nights sleep and get to sleep in that day.

Jennah had her first sleepover this weekend. It was a friend from church. These people went all out! It was crazy. First of all the girls were to come in princess attire and it was at the Hampton Inn. They went way overboard with everything. There was a chocolate fountain, a punch fountain, crazy cake (that the mom made herself), jupiter jump, and much more. Jennah LOVED it! I had to explain to her that we would not be having a party for her like that!

The Rest of the Story

2008-09-24T10:59:00.000-07:00

So, my last post was on how big Jennah is getting and how she lost her first tooth. Well I guess that two dollars left under her pillow was a little addictive for little Jennah. I must stress when telling this story that she was NOT under our supervision when she came up with this brilliant idea.

Jonathan and I had our last Spanish class last night and my parents so graciously offered at the last minute to keep the kids for us. It had been a very hectic weekend and a busy Monday as well and we had forgotten all about getting a sitter for the kids during our class. My parents had Joel they were bringing home and decided they could keep the kids so I could go to Spanish class with Jonathan. I decided Jonathan needed the practice much worse than I did. He was still throwing in a little french with his Spanish. We called it "Franish". Turns out that night we found out Jonathan wasn't the only one speaking "Franish" as Lita in her final conversation with the instructor threw in a little "Franish" as well. Anyway that's beside the point. So, I called home to let them know we were on our way and my mom told me Jennah had a little problem. She went on to tell me she and Jack went to get some dinner and Papa, Jennah, and Joel stayed there. While she was gone Jennah decided she wanted to pull another tooth. Even though there were no loose teeth in her mouth. Sneaky Jennah took some dental floss up to her bathroom tied it around her tooth and then tied it to the bathroom door and slammed the door. The next thing my dad knew she was coming down the stairs just bawling. First of all the slamming door didn't remove the tooth but it did make her tooth hurt and now the dental floss was wedged into her gums and she couldn't get it out. My mom quickly returned to help my father remove the floss with no success. So for an hour Jennah sat in the living room with a foot of floss hanging out of her mouth and whining. When we finally returned I was able to remove the floss in about five minutes. She was so glad to get that floss out of her mouth and I don't think she will attempt this again loose tooth or not!

Don't let that sweet face fool you, she is my mess. This doesn't surprise me at all. She is always coming up with something. I am sure she even waited until Jack was gone to do this because she knew Jack would tattle on her. She always has us laughing and it's never boring with her around. Fun times!

Little Jennah

2008-09-21T22:23:00.001-07:00

Little Jennah is getting so big. She lost her first tooth Friday night. She was so excited. She has been having me check every few days for about the past year to see if any are loose yet. Finally about a month ago Aunt Amy and Uncle John were keeping the kids for us while we were at Spanish class and when we returned Jennah proudly announced she had a loose tooth. Amy and John told us Jennah told them if the tooth was really clean she would get $20 for it! I don't know where she came up with that one.

Jennah is such a girly girl. She walks around the house humming "Here Comes the Bride" all the time. I keep telling Jonathan that we better start saving for that wedding now because she is already planning it. Jonathan officiated a wedding Saturday night and Jennah loved it. On the way home she told us her wedding was going to be outside and inside. Jonathan asked her if she wanted him to perform the ceremony for her wedding. She quickly answered back "No Dad you'll be to old!" She always has us laughing.

Dry Gulch '08

2008-09-17T11:56:00.000-07:00

This is our second year to attend Park Plaza's family retreat to Dry Gulch, USA. Again it was such a neat place and the fellowship and family time was a much needed break from the last two crazy months. We stayed in an apartment again this year. I felt kind of bad getting one. They are reserved for families with young children and the elderly. Everyone else stays in dorms girls in one boys in the other. Joel really isn't small enough that we needed one but we all wanted to stay together and it is much easier to pack only one bag instead of splitting up all our things. This will definitely be the last year I feel like we can stay in the apartments unless we have another baby. We did tell them we didn't want to take an apartment away from someone that needed it so if there wasn't room we would stay in the dorms, but we lucked out and got one. We got to ride the train this year. The kids loved it. We came back refreshed and ready for the next couple of months.

My Little Brother

2008-09-06T20:22:00.000-07:00

Monday morning at 6:00 am my little brother William and sister-in-law Rachel will be leaving for a two year mission trip to Honduras. I am so proud of them. They have definitely inspired us. Jonathan and I have always been interested in missions but the path God led us on seemed to keep us here. They have reminded us of our passion to do something like this. We may not be able to do this type of work now but we can support, encourage, and pray for them. We know this is the roll God wants us to play in mission work right now. We are going to go and visit them in October and have started a conversational Spanish class to prepare us. I am excited for the work God will be doing through them. Please pray for Will and Rachel. Will had a heart surgery when he was young and still has to return yearly to a specialist but is doing fine; however the insurance they have applied for (and have been waiting on to leave) has denied him coverage. They have some other options but this was definitely the best option for them. Saying their goodbyes and hearing of this news has been an emotional roller coaster. Please pray Will can get the coverage he needs to protect him in this foreign land and that they will be successful in their work.

Mr. and Mrs. Antrikin

2008-08-26T13:06:00.000-07:00

Sean and Madison got married this weekend we started out with a great rehearsal and dinner from Famous Dave's BBQ (one of my favorites). Jonathan officiated the wedding and Jennah was the flower girl and Joel and one of Madison's nephews who is a week younger than Joel were the ring bears. Jennah is an old pro at being a flower girl and she took control of the younger boys, it was so cute. This was Jack's first wedding to be an usher. He did a great job. Everything went very smooth and it was a beautiful wedding.

I also celebrated my 28th birthday on Wednesday.

Joel's 3!

2008-08-26T12:54:00.000-07:00

I'm a little behind on posting. We have had so much going on the last few weeks. After getting the kids off to school starting on the 14th that Saturday was my mother's family reunion and Joel's birthday. So we had a very busy day and the next weekend was my youngest brother's wedding. Joel's birthday party went well and the weather was just perfect. He had a great time and thanks to everyone that came. I can't believe my baby Joel is a big three year old.

Back to School

2008-08-14T07:27:00.000-07:00

Today started Jack and Jennah's 3rd and 1st grade years. Jennah was very excited, but Jack not so much. This is always a hard time for me. I have trouble letting them go. Jack made it harder on me by deciding at the last minute he wanted to ride the bus to school today! I wasn't prepared for that and really didn't want him to but Jonathan said he thought it would be good for his self esteem. Jennah has no trouble in area of self confidence, but Jack on the other hand is a little like his mom and dad. So reluctantly I agreed to let him ride the bus. I did okay until the bus drove off. No tears just a teary eyes and the realization that he is really growing up so fast and the responsibilities of the kids getting older runs through my mind and heart. All the things we need to be teaching them as they are getting older and how to be Christians set apart from the world but still living in it and how to deal with that daily. How to influence others with the kindness they show. I pray for these beautiful gifts God has given us and I pray He gives us the wisdom and knowledge to raise them to be soul winners for His kingdom. Having babies is such a special time in life and I never thought there could be anything sweeter than holding a newborn baby, but this feels just as sweet. I am able to send my children out into the world and know that they will be just fine because I have taught them what they need to know to be successful. We still have a long way to go, I know. I am sure these next ten to fifteen years will be hard at times but the things they will accomplish and learn will be so sweet. I'm excited for this new chapter in their lives and what new things they will learn and new friends they will make. So here we go!

My Little Beat Boxer

2008-08-09T17:56:00.000-07:00

Joel learned this from big brother Jack. Every time Jennah starts singing Joel starts beat boxing. It is so funny. Enjoy!

Beware!!

2008-08-01T13:52:00.000-07:00

I just want to share this with everyone so if this happens to you at least you'll have a plan. Yesterday afternoon about 12:30 our house almost got broken into. With me and the three kids there! It caught me so off guard I didn't know what to do. I didn't want to share this but I think I needed to warn others to be on guard.

I was fixing lunch and the kids were very loudly playing in the living room and the doorbell rang. I never go to the front door when it rings I always go to Joel's room and see who it is and if it is a labeled car they are driving. This guy was wearing a "wife beater" and his boxers were hanging out of his pants about six inches. I thought, I will just let him ring the door bell until he just leaves. I gathered the kids up and took them to my room and told them to sit quietly. The guy just kept knocking and ringing the doorbell for maybe 3 minutes and then the car that was parked across the street and two houses down moved in front of my driveway and two more guys got out and came to the door. They all began ringing the bell, beating on the door, and jiggling the door handle. I yelled at them "I'm not going to open the door!" I don't know what I thought that would help. I didn't know at that time I could call 911 for that type of situation. I know now that is perfectly fine. I also could have set off our house alarm but it is in the small living room directly off the entry and we didn't have blinds over that window. For some reason I didn't want them to see me. After what seemed to be an hour but was actually about three or four minutes they kicked the door really hard and then ran off. We didn't realize then but later when the police arrived to take a report he noticed when they kicked the door it busted the door frame if the dead bolt had not been set they would have been in my house at that time. Even with the dead bolt the police man said it would have only taken one or two more kicks. I felt so helpless to think ten more seconds and they would have been in MY home with me and my three kids. What would I have done.

I am writing this not to scare anyone or make you lose sleep for fear, but to empower you to be prepared should anything like this happen. Please have a plan!

I Bribed Them

2008-07-30T13:22:00.000-07:00

I confess, on occasion I have been known to bribe my kids. I did it today. I promised them if they acted on their best behavior I would let them go to QT and pick out some candy. It worked and they were angels. The hair stylist even commented on how well behaved they were. I didn't have the heart to tell her they had been bribed. Normally I take my kids everywhere with me but the people in Utica Square kind of intimidate me. Which is why I worried so much about taking them there. I really don't like to bribe them I think they should act well whether they get something for it or not. Surely every once in a while is okay though isn't it?

Good Luck To Me

2008-07-30T11:00:00.000-07:00

Wish me luck everyone. In thirty minutes I am taking all three kids with me to the Ihloff Salon and Day Spa in Utica Square to get my hair cut. Most of the time my mother and I make our appointments together and she stays with the kids while I get my hair cut. My parents got a call yesterday to go to Minnesota so I am on my own. Normally I would just reschedule but I already had to reschedule once due to our vacation. With my hair being as short as it is it really needs to be cut at least every eight weeks. It has been I think eleven weeks and counting. I am curious does everyone else take their kids with them or what do you do with your kids while you have your hair did?

Busy Weekend

2008-07-28T11:52:00.000-07:00

We started off the weekend by having Blake and Shelly and their kids and Amy and Benjamin over for dinner Friday night. We cooked kabobs and it turned out to be a little stressful trying to get everything finished at the same time. Next time we have you all over we will do something easier (sorry). Then Saturday morning Jennah and I went to see Shelby's ballet performance. Jennah loved it and as soon as we left she wanted to know when she could take ballet. After that we went with Jonathan to work for a little while. Then Jennah had to be at the church building to get ready for her musical. I was really nervous for her but I don't think she was at all. She forgot to stand up which threw her off a little in the beginning of the song but quickly caught up and did a wonderful job. Especially this being her first solo and not knowing about it until Wednesday! Sorry for the shaking camera I was crying and laughing at the same time. I'm sure everyone there thought I was crazy. I cried through the entire program. After it was over Jennah got to go around and give people her autograph. She loved that! To top the day off we ate at Ted's with my family and then all five of us watched Hannah Montana 3-D! Sunday, Quentin and a friend came to church with us. The kids love uncle Quentin. Then a good Sunday afternoon nap and off to church again. After services we had a children's ministry meeting to inform all the parents about how the new format will be when we go to three services. Everyone had so many questions and concerns. It is amazing how terrified people are of change, but that's a story for another time.

Also, thank you to everyone that came to see Jennah perform. I know it meant so much to her to have so many family members there to support her. It meant a lot to Jonathan and me too.

Music Camp

2008-07-21T19:35:00.001-07:00

Jennah started Music Camp this week. It is perfect for her! She cried today when it was time for me to pick her up. She loves it. They sent a cd with all the songs to the musical home with her. I thought with it being from 9-5:00 she would be tired of it by the time she got home, but not Jennah. She has been practicing the songs and the motions all evening. She even throws in a little attitude with some head movement. They had auditions that we missed for the solo and speaking parts. I think she really would have enjoyed that. They are performing the musical Saturday evening and I can't wait!

Home Sweet Home

2008-07-12T23:10:00.000-07:00

We made it back about half an hour ago. We had a wonderful trip but all of us are glad to be home. These are a couple of the best pictures we took.

Dolphin Cruise

2008-07-10T15:39:00.000-07:00

We went on a dolphin cruise Tuesday that guarantied the dolphins would jump, roll, and surf or our money back. We had been on a dolphin cruise several years ago when we came down here and we only saw a few dolphins only for a second, and definitely no jumping, rolling, or surfing. We were pleasantly surprised to see all of this on this cruise. The kids had a blast and could see them up close. The difference was this cruise had two big boats that would run next to each other and create a nice wave the dolphins enjoyed playing on. Jacksen and Jennah did well on the boat like they had done it a hundred times. Joel had to warm up to it but by the end of the cruise he was okay.

Water Tricks

2008-07-07T10:30:00.000-07:00

Joel decided yesterday with no help from us that it was time for him to learn how to go underwater and swim. Just out of the blue in the kiddie pool he started putting his head in the water over and over and over. It was so funny to us because we hadn't asked him to or showed him how. We knew when we went on our vacation when Joel was almost one and he decided on his own it was time to start walking how much determination he had even as a almost one year old. We had not seen him be so determined to do something since then. He almost gets obsessed with it. This video was this morning in the pool and shortly after this he got in the big pool and swam underwater from Jonathan to me and back and forth for about thirty minutes. He also likes to jump into the pool without us catching him so he can go under and then we can pick him up out of the water.

Jennah is learning how to float on her back although it doesn't look like she is actually floating she can keep her head above water. Kind of like when she swims it doesn't look like she is actually swimming but she can get anywhere she wants. Last year on vacation Jennnah was "saved" three times in the pool. She wasn't actually drowning she just looks like it when she swims. The three people just kind of look at us funny and grab her out of the water and brought her to us.

Jacksen's favorite thing these days is diving for things at the bottom of the pool. In this video he is diving for a penny. He also really enjoys having Joel swim to him in the pool. He feels pretty big.

I love that we can share our vacation with all our family and friends. Also, you will have to mute the music at the bottom of my blog to hear the kids.

2008-07-06T11:05:00.000-07:00

We missed the sun setting by a few minutes, but got a few good pictures right after it set on the bay side.

Vacation!

2008-07-05T16:17:00.000-07:00

We're here finally! It seems like the longest trip we have ever made. I know it isn't because the trip to CO last spring break took about sixteen hours but this seemed longer. The kids were great. It is actually my fault the trip seemed so long. When I called to make our reservations for the condo they informed me I could save $200 if I waited until the day after the 4th of July. Of course I wanted to save the money! Then after proudly telling Jonathan of the great deal I had made I found out there would be fireworks on the beach. On the beach, we can't miss that! So being the cheap girl I am instead of calling and just reserving the room for an additional night the 4th I call every other place in Gulf Shores to find a room. The cheapest place I could find was $240 for one night! So after searching and searching I finally decided to call the original place we are staying all week to decline the $200 off and stay the extra day on the 4th. By the time I call back someone else had reserved the condo for the week before us and the last night being the 4th! So we stayed in Mobile, AL last night and drove down to the beach for the fireworks. After making a 12 hour drive, we took a quick swim and had dinner, then loaded back up in the car to drive down to the beach. It was neat but the traffic was really bad and we didn't get to the beach until the fireworks were over. We left Mobile 8:00 pm for the fireworks and didn't get back to the hotel until 12:00 am! This was after spending 12 hours in the car for the trip down here. Finally we arrived around 4:00 this afternoon. The condo is great! The first picture is off the living room balcony of the ocean. The second is from our bedroom of the bay.

2008-07-02T10:03:00.000-07:00

Thanks for your prayers for my newest nephew Fischer. He gets to go home today! He got to stay in the room with Madison and Sean last night and is arriving home this afternoon.

Fischer Evan

2008-06-26T19:56:00.000-07:00

My youngest brother and Madison had their baby yesterday. Fischer Evan was two weeks and six days early. He weighed in at 8lb 7oz and was 21 inches long! He has what is called wimpy white boy syndrome his lungs were not completely developed and he has pneumonia. He had to be on oxygen for the past day. They took him straight from the delivery room to the NICU. Madison was not able to hold him until after 9:00 pm and she had him around 11:00 am. She still hasn't got to feed him and they can only visit a few times a day. She will go home from the hospital tomorrow and Fischer will have to stay there. They thought he would only be there for a day or two but now they are telling them next Wednesday. They got a little discouraged with that news. Please keep them in your prayers. Fischer will be fine but I know it must be tough for them to have to leave without him.

Weekend Away!

2008-06-18T09:05:00.000-07:00

I get to go on a Girls Weekend Away this weekend. I'm going to OKC with four other girls from our Bible study group at church. I just found out about it this morning. One of the girls that were planning on going had to back out because of illness. I don't really know these girls very well but I guess that's why I need to go. I worry about leaving Jonathan with all three kids. When I get back on Sunday we have our small group at our house so that's kind of stressful. Jonathan promises to have the house looking like it looks when I leave. I don't think I have ever left my family for two nights. I'm kind of nervous.

2008-06-17T10:41:00.000-07:00

We had a family reunion on Saturday. I thought this was a good picture except for the most photogenic person in our family (Jennah) looks a little out of it. Most of the time Jacksen has a really bad fake smile or Jonathan is trying to be funny and staring off somewhere. This time they looked good and Jennah was the goofy one. Oh well!

Latest Baby Shower

2008-06-17T10:30:00.000-07:00

I have hosted so many baby showers in the past few years I have become very good at it. I

can throw a shower together in no time. Each shower is unique and very fun to do and I enjoy it very much. This last shower was for my little brother Sean and Madison they are having a baby boy named Fischer. This shower was fun because they are doing a cowboy theme. I have friend from Ft. Gibson that makes the best cookies I have ever had and she always decorates them so cute. I think these are my favorite so far.

I'm Back

2008-06-12T08:03:00.000-07:00

I feel good. I think I am back to my normal self. Finally! As most of you that read my blog know the past seven months have been rough on us. Last October we finally decided to try for our last baby and got pregnant first try only to find out a couple of weeks later that I was miscarrying. It was really hard on me. I felt bad about feeling bad because we have three happy, healthy kids and some people don't get any. How could I be upset about that? I finally let myself grieve the lost and we decided to try again. This time took longer which was very frustrating. I can't imagine going through this for years trying to have a baby. I definitely have a new ache in my heart for women that have trouble having babies (that sounds odd but I have no other words that describe how I feel). Then finally I was nine days late. I took several test that came back negative but after some blood work we found I was pregnant but something wasn't right the numbers were abnormally low. Before I could get back in to the Dr. to do more testing I started to miscarry. This time I thought I was going to handle it better. I did for a week or two and then I broke down. I am better now. I thought this month would be really hard because this is when we would have delivered the first one, but I am handling it. I know it is because of prayers. So thank you to everyone who has been praying for us and thank you for all your kind words. I'm sure it wasn't the easiest thing to talk about. My Dr. is confident we will still be able to have a healthy pregnancy. Next time she wants to do some extra testing to make sure everything is right. That is if we decide we want to try again. It is a very scary thing to think about. So we still need prayers for that. I am so glad I feel better. So no more tears (hopefully). I am going to enjoy the life God has blessed me with and look forward to what ever God has planned for us now.