Jacksen's School Play

Those of you who know Jacksen know he doesn't need to be in the spot light like his little sister. He had his 1st grade play last Thursday night and wasn't very excited about it. He knew one set of his Grandparents were coming to see the play and told us as we were leaving that he would rather just go home with them instead of be in the play. He knew every song and every hand movement but you could tell he had better things to do. After the play Jon said how much he reminded him of himself.

The play was "A Froggy Day in Lindentown" there was one little boy who was the main character that Jennah informed us during one of his solo performances "he doesn't sing very well". I just know she is going to love this type of thing.

We had a busy week celebrating Jon's 29th birthday. For some reason around our house we have birthday weeks instead of the traditional birthday. Jon got to eat out with someone everyday last week. I also did something special for him each day of the week. He always has projects around the house he can't get to because his back is hurting or he is just too worn out. We are never home on the weekends to get things in order so that is what I did for him. Cleaned the garage, had the oil changed on his car, etc. he is all about the love language "acts of service". Then Saturday night Grandma Janet kept the kids and we got to go out. We went to Los Cabos and loved it then we got free tickets from Jon's work to see Sam Harris in concert. I wasn't looking forward to the Sam Harris thing but it was much better than the last time we saw him. Thanks Grandma Janet and Papa Joe!

Last Traveling Holiday!

This Easter marked the last traveling on holidays we will have to do for hopefully a long long time. Sure we will still have to make the thirty minute drive to Bristow but that is nothing! We had a great Easter holiday the kids had their school parties on Friday and Joel and I were able to go to both of them. It was way too cold for an egg hunt but we braved the weather just for enough time for each kid to find twelve eggs each (not long). Then we had a rabbit donut in Jennah's class and an ice cream sundae in Jacksen's class. Joel participated in both parties and went home a happy baby. Nobody could resist Joel and his begging.

Saturday we went to visit Grandma Kelley at the nursing home and Grandpa at his house. I curled Grandma's hair so she would look nice for Easter. We went to Shogun's for an untraditional Easter dinner with William and Rachel and Sean and Madison. Mom and Dad ended up getting back from their trip to California early so they joined us. We had a really good time. Then Sunday we went to Grandma Janet's house for a turkey dinner. Everything was wonderful and the kids finally got to have an Easter egg hunt with their cousins.

It was a great weekend but we are really looking forward to not having to drive so much on the holidays.

Gravy and Stickers

Joel's two favorite things stickers and Gravy, and of course they are better together. He had a little help with the application of the stickers. Jennah gladly helped out.

Azalea Festival

We stayed around the house this weekend. It was really nice. Saturday we went to the Azalea Festival at Honor Heights Park. It was a little early in the season for the azaleas but they were still pretty. The kids enjoyed walking on the paths and of course playing at the playground. The ice storm this winter really damaged the park. They had over a hundred huge trees labeled to be cut down. It really looked like a tornado had gone through. The kids weren't in picture mode I never got a good picture of all of them. They were acting so silly.

Only seven and a half weeks of school left then hopefully we can make the big move. We can't wait. The next couple of weeks are going to be very busy so hopefully they will go by quickly. This waiting to move is about to drive us crazy. Every other move we have made we decided to move and no longer than two weeks later we were in the new location. This time it looks like it is going to be a couple of months still.

Other news my little brother William is getting married! I am so excited for him. They are such a perfect match. They are planning a July wedding that will be outside. The wedding will be at Rachel's Grandparents house in Texas. Hopefully it won't be too hot; okay I'm dreaming it is going to be sooo hot. Oh well!

It's Official!

As of 11:40 tonight we have a contract on our house! Why 11:40 you ask? We are going to be out of town for the rest of the week and the buyers work evenings and don't get off until 10:45 so this was the only time that worked for both us and them. This couple made an offer on the house when we had only a sign in the yard for a week.

We are so excited about moving. The house we are getting is four miles from Jonathan's work! We love the new house and can't wait to move in. Jacksen and Jennah are so excited to have their rooms upstairs. I find myself not able to sleep at night thinking of how I will arrange the furniture there.

Spring Break started out with a bang. All three of the kids stayed at my parents house two nights! It was really nice because we had a yard sale planned for Saturday. Then we got to get up and go to Church by ourselves. We were there fifteen minutes early! Sunday evening we all went fishing at Aunt Julie and Uncle Tommy's pond. Jacksen, Jennah, and Jonathan all caught catfish. All three of them weighed over two pounds! We all had a great time! Tomorrow we are going to the aquarium with our young families class. Hopefully I will get some good pictures tomorrow.

Thanks to all who have prayed for us in selling our house and finding a new one. It is always so amazing to see God working in our lives. We are blessed and excited to start a new chapter, and God willing be settled for many, many years.

Hard at Work

This past week and this weekend have been packed with home improvement projects. We found the perfect house last weekend and made an offer on it. We wanted a contract contingent on our house selling. The sellers of the house didn't want a contingency so we have to get a contract on our house before we can get a contract on our prospective house. So this past week we have started fixing up our house so God willing it will sell in time to get the house we want.

It is ten minutes from Jonathan's work and two blocks from Grandma Janet and Papa Joe and about a mile from Nana Ila and Papa David! The kids love the house we are looking at. The backyard is right across the street from the school the kids would attend. Jacksen has already said he will walk to and from school every day and every Friday he will walk to Grandma Janet and Papa Joe's house instead of home.

So far in the past seven days we have removed the ugly striped wallpaper from our living room wall, painted the big living room, removed wallpaper from our bathroom (again ugly), removed much clutter, and just organized. It doesn't sound like much but when you throw in our already hectic schedule it really is. We still have to paint our bathroom and replace the carpet throughout the house.

Everyone we have talked to says at our price and location it will sell fast. Hopefully fast enough to get the house we want. Keep us in your prayers. We know God will put us where he wants us, but it is hard to know where and when that might happen.

Last Minute Vacation

Most families plan out a vacation months in advance, but not the Antrikin Family. We were thinking of going on a ski trip on Spring Break, but not everyone could make it then. Most families would just push the date back. Our family takes a different approach let's just go now. So we all checked our calendars and decided Tuesday night we would be leaving Thursday to go on a family ski trip. I really like to just pick up and go like this. Jonathan on the other hand is a planner so he really stresses out when we go on trips with my family. I must admit he is getting better.

We went to Pagosa Springs, CO. It was beautiful. The drive was really long. We broke it up into two days and stayed the night half way there. Joel was sick the entire time. He started running a fever the day we left and was still running a fever when we returned. He had a virus and got a double ear infection from it. He is starting to feel better now. Jacksen and Jennah both went to ski school and did very well. They only went the first day and the second day they both went with us. It was so much fun! Jennah would try to talk all the way down the mountain. Her constant talking would distract her and she would get to going to fast and we would have to tell her to slow it down.

The weather was beautiful. The sun was shining so it wasn't too cold. Then the last day it snowed. The kids are not used to Colorado snow. The flakes were huge Joel had a blast watching it fall.

I will post more pictures when I have them developed.

Valentine's Project

Jennah had a family Valentine's project this week. Her teacher made this basket out of a paper sack and as a family we had to decorate it. I don't know if all kids enjoy this as much as mine but they had a blast. Mrs. Lindsay only had a few rules it had to have her picture on it and her name, and everything else was up to Jennah. With Jennah being the middle child she seldom gets to call the shots. She completely enjoyed it. Jacksen could barely stand it. This is what we ended up with, and it is so Jennah!

Jacksen is having a Jump Rope for Heart jumpathon at school and is very excited about the very cheap prizes. He is quite the little salesman. As soon as he gets home from school every day this week he wants to call someone else to donate to him. We kept thinking we would have to tell him what to say, but he would just rattle it all off like he was a professional telemarketer. He is so big!

This was going to be the first week since Christmas break that both kids went to school all week, but it didn't happen. The first week back Jennah was sick for two days and Jacksen was sick one day with a stomach bug. The next week they were out all week with the ice storm. The next week was last week when Jennah and Joel were both sick. Jennah was home three days and Jacksen one (the day after we took Joel to the ER in the middle of the night). Then another snow day the same week. This week looked pretty promising until this morning Jacksen woke up with a fever so here we are another week with at least one kid not on a regular schedule. I guess that's what happens with little ones. I just hope this is what Jennah and Joel had last week and not something new!

Joel is feeling better he still follows me around everywhere. He is starting to try to talk more. He has now added Jon, drink, yes, and Dora to his vocabulary. It is so funny to hear him say words for the first time. Sometimes I think I am imagining it but yesterday Dora came on and he yelled "Dora!" I thought to myself did he just say Dora, and then Jennah yelled "Mom he said Dora!" so it wasn't just my imagination.

Little Joel

Well about two hours after my last post we went through one of the scariest moments as a parent we have ever experienced. Joel was sick with a bad cold and his fever was going up very quickly. He was very sick acting and just fell asleep on my chest when he jumped and woke himself up. I checked his temperature and it was 102.5 which really isn't that bad. Jennah has run a fever of almost 105 before so I really wasn't that worried until about five minutes later he jumped again really big and then his eyes started rolling in the back of his head and he started seizuring. It lasted about two minutes but seemed like an hour! I was so scared and didn't know what to do. He was blue all around his mouth and eyes. Jonathan and I have never seen or known of anyone who has had a seizure. I called 911 and they sent an abulance to our home and took him to the hospital. The next day we took him back to his regular Dr. and he had a double ear infection. The Dr. said now that he has had a seizure he will be more likely to have more and from now until he is five or six when he gets a fever to give him tylenol and motrin at the same time every four hours and if the fever is not gone in twenty four hours he needs to be seen. He is doing much better now. He is still attached to my hip, but much better.

I just want to thank all of you who called, brought us dinner, kept Jennah and Jacksen while we were at the hospital, and took Jacksen to school. It is so good to have good friends we can depend on when we need to. We love and appriciate each of you. 

Sickness and a New Blog

Jennah, Joel, and I have been sick with a bad cold the past few days. Jennah has had a fever of 103 since Friday. Joel is running about two days behind her so he has felt the worst today. I also have the cold and would probably be over it by now but with the kids being sick I can't get enough rest to kick it.

Jacksen has his own blog now. Today after school he was typing his spelling words on the computer as he does every day and he got finished and asked me if he could write a story. I thought that would be fun for him after writing it he asked me if I would put it on my blog. I got to thinking about it and thought it would be good spelling practice for him to start his own blog. He is really excited about it. Please post a comment and let him know what you think. The site is http://www.jacksensstory.blogspot.com

Ice Ice Baby!

Okay as you can tell from the title I'm kinda getting cabin fever and going a little stir crazy. But really this area of the state got hit pretty hard with the ice. This picture is right off our street. The kids were playing in the front yard yesterday and I noticed much more traffic on our street than normal. Jonathan went up the street to find the road closed. He thought a tree was down. I ventured out a little later and found it wasn't a tree but a power line! As you can see in these pictures the trees are just so weighed down they are splitting in two. When I was out taking these pictures a huge branch came crashing down right across the street with no warning.

We are enjoying having to stay home though. We have had a constant fire in the fireplace, and are trying some new recipes. A friend of mine let me borrow a yeast cookbook. So far we have made homemade pizza dough and pecan sticky buns. YUM! (thanks Crystal!) I was so proud of us I never knew cooking could be so rewarding. I have always been to scared to cook with yeast but this cookbook made it so simple.





Another power line down! Just a couple of miles away in Muskogee they have 18,000 without power. Luckily we still have power but the weather man said the wind is going to pick up today so we are keeping our fingers crossed.

Rowdy Crowd

Jacksen had his first sleep over Friday night. He had four little boys from Bible class over for the night. I was quite nervous upon the arrival of all the boys to find out this was the first time any of them had ever stayed with a friend. We have all of them in Bible Hour every Sunday night so they knew us pretty well. They all had a good time. I made homemade pizza dough and let them each make their own pizza, that took up an entire fifteen minutes!! They did all the typical boy things: wrestled, ran, fought, didn't include Jennah in anything, played games (game favorite was Operation, thanks Jenny!), and watched SuperMan. Over all I think it was a success. 

My First Diaper Cake

I made this for a friend's baby shower a few weeks ago. I thought it turned out really cute. It was a perfect center piece and was not very expensive. Next time I think I will just hot glue one flower in the middle of the ribbon to make it look more modern. I don't think you can tell from the picture but it has a little pair of pink shoes on the top. 

Our Anniversary

I can't believe we have been married now for eight years and together for ten and a half years. I would say we have accomplished much in the past eight years. We have grown in every sense of the word. We have grown up, grown spiritually, grown closer, and grown in numbers. God has blessed us and taught us more than we ever expected.

In these eight years Jonathan has changed professions several times, from banking to an airplane buffer, to a full time student, to a youth minister, and now to a commercial loan officer (hopefully this one will stick for a while). Wow, all in eight years you say? Not only this but he has finished his bachelors degree and his masters degree. He is quite an ambitious man!

Along with all these professional changes came many moves. We have moved eight times and now hopefully number nine this spring or summer. We are wanting to move closer to Jonathan's work which is an hour commute one way right now. We are thinking the less driving he has to do will be better on his back.

Last, but most important our three little ones we've had in the past eight years. What beautiful, sweet, funny kids we have. Jacksen who turned seven yesterday is such a sweet spirit. He always tries his hardest to make us happy, always plays by the rules, and has a deep side. Jennah. What can I say about Jennah? She came out screaming and hasn't stopped yet. She is definitely going to be a strong woman. She loves to sing and is always ready to put on a show. Number three little Joel, I finally have a child that looks like me (or my family at least). He is his mommy's baby.

So as anyone can see we have completely grown in the past eight years. I am so glad we met so long ago at Rock Creek Church Camp and I pray we have many years together. We are so blessed.

Busy Christmas Break

We made it through Christmas and now on to New Years, Jacksen's 7th birthday party, our 8th anniversary, and then Jennah's birthday. Most families slow down after Christmas, not us Christmas is just the beginning of a month long party. Hopefully adrenalin will carry us through.

My youngest brother and his girlfriend were in a bad car wreck Tuesday before Christmas. They both walked away with minor injuries and a concussion. Sean wasn't wearing his seat belt and really should have been hurt much worse than he was. The car was completely demolished. Christmas was very meaningful this year. It really scared all of us and made me realize how blessed we are and that we need to live every day like it is our last.

So for the New Year I resolve to live every day like it is my last because as we all know it could be. What's yours?

Jonathan's Christmas Party

We went to Jonathan's work Christmas party Saturday night, and we had a great time. Grandma Janet kept all three kids over night and took them all to church on Sunday. That was the first time Joel had stayed the night away from me and Janet said he did fine. Yeah! That means we can start leaving him some and not worry about him. Jonathan's name was drawn and he got to play Deal or No Deal. He won $250!! I was so proud of him we never win anything, and that was the biggest prize of the night! It was so much fun having a date night. After the party Jon took me to Steven Howards KoKoa and bought me some of my favorite chocolates yum! 

 

Joel's Breakdown

 

Christmas Cards

Last weekend after the beautiful snow I thought we would go ahead and try to get our Christmas card photo in the snow. We headed to Honor Heights Park only to find it closed because of the weather. So we improvised and took pictures right out side of the park. Only two of the twelve we took turned out well enough for the card this isn't the one we chose. The pictures didn't turn out because we had been shopping for two hours, the cold, and we had to wake Joel up upon arrival at the park. I am going to post another picture that you can see Joel has had enough. It was fun though.