Current Portraits

I snap a lot of personal photos, but just thinking of going to a studio to get professional photographs brings on a mini-anxiety attack. Okay - not quite. The cost can add up very quickly with 5 kids, so I decided to do it more frugally this time (Cheryl would be so proud...) and take them one at a time for the "cheap" package.

It took a little bit longer and I utilized both Sears and Walmart, but I think the finished product turned out well. At least I have current 10x13 portraits on my wall!!!

Here are close-ups of our 5 precious children!!

Allie Rebekah ~ 12 years old

Sarah Elizabeth ~ 10 years old

Lindsay Gabrielle ~ 8 years old

Timothy Phillip ~ 3 1/2 years old

Savannah Grace - 21 months

From swimming to dancing

Sarah opted out of dancing and chose to dance instead. She was invited by her instructor/studio owner to join the dance team.

For being such a tomboy, she makes a beautiful and graceful ballerina.

I know I have mentioned this previously, but Beautiful Feet Dance Studio is the best as far as we are concerned because they love and honor Jesus. It is such a joy to watch them glorify Him through praise and dance when so many other studios are worldly and provocative in their music, costumes and dancing. If you live in Casper and are interested in dancing -- check them out!

It's been awhile..........

I have lots and lots of blogging to catch up on. I could fret about how behind I am and how little time I have had to sit in front of the computer, or I can look at the positive side of my blogging absence.

My sporadic posts have been due to the fact that we are too busy making fun memories, I simply don't have time to chronicle them here.

But....before I totally forget them, I do want to get them posted without too much delay.

First up -- SWIMMING. Allie and Lindsay have joined the local swim team and are absolutely loving it! Plus they are getting in shape and coming home really tired.



Allie sporting her swim cap, goggles and official swimsuit -- I'd say she is serious about this!



Allie practicing backstroke.



Lindsay is getting her flippers on.

...and off she goes with her kick board.

The first official swim meet will be in Casper on November 6. Allie is signed up for 5 events and Lindsay for 3. Two weeks later we will travel to Laramie for another meet and spend some time with Wayne and Sandy also.

For those of you that didn't know this interesting piece of trivia -- I swam competitively through my junior year of high school.

I need a heavy duty vacuum cleaner

Shortly after coloring a homework project in the family room, Kristy (Sarah's friend) couldn't find several of her colored pencils. We looked everywhere and finally gave up and told her we'd give them to her when we found them. We figured Timothy had something to do with it but it wouldn't be until a week later that the mystery was solved.

Yep - as the title of the post suggests, the answer was found in my vacuum cleaner. As I was vacuuming the living room, I noticed that it didn't seem to be sucking up the things on the floor very well. As I looked at the hose connection, I caught a glimpse of several bright colors. Almost immediately my mind went to the mystery of the colored pencils.

I am happy to report that after 15 minutes of hitting and shaking the hose attachment, 9 -- that's NINE, colored pencils were lying on my floor. They were a little dusty and needed sharpened, but were perfectly usable. When I questioned Timothy, he smiled calmly and reported that he used the vacuum hose to suck up Kristy' pencils.......






Just another joy of motherhood!

Through the days with the wee ones

Lately I have been asked by lots of people about how homeschooling is going. My easy, general answer is, "It's going really well. Homeschooling Allie is the easy part -- figuring out what to do with the toddlers is another story."

Funny how those that ask me who are also home school moms WITH have toddlers just nod and smile. No further words are necessary! I know they understand, and I know that if there was an easy answer they would share it with me......

On most days, Timothy and Savannah like to color, create with playdoh, enjoy their toys and watch Sesame Street. On the flip side, they also like to irritate one another, fight over really silly things, and ask me 1000 questions per hour.

Allie has been a good sport about being flexible. She has also been a lifesaver on those days I am so far behind with basic housework. It is amazing how much I can get done in 15 minutes while she takes Tim and Savannah on a walk.

I haven't been great at taking pictures lately, but here are some over the past few weeks.


Sesame Street time. How sweet is it to see Tim and Savannah enjoying their juice and curled up in a blanket.



Popcorn is always a favorite snack



Savannah is getting ready for the Chicago Bears game. Her lunch is Phil's concoction - eggs, grapes and green beans.

We don't usually get the Bears game on regional coverage so we follow it on nfl.com. Hooray - the Bears shocked the Steelers a couple weeks ago and Savannah's smile speaks for the rest of the family.

Savannah likes hangin' with Elmo. I am not sure what their conversation was about, but Elmo and Savannah seem to understand each other perfectly.

HE IS

Our first lesson in my Tuesday Bible Study was on God's inspired, written Word, the Bible. We discussed revelation, canonization, and inspiration. It truly is amazing that God has left us with such a gift as the Holy Scripture. It is the sword of the Spirit!! (Eph. 6)


Another thing we discussed was the preeminence of CHRIST throughout the entire body, not only the New Testament. Here is a video that we watched that gives a short description of who Christ is in each book of the Bible. Watch it. It is powerful.

Then go read your Bible and thank God for it today!!!

Rest of the Denver Trip.....

Okay, I knew I would be busy with homeschooling and 2 toddlers and Bible Study and AWANA and kids' activities - you get the picture. But I can't believe how much time has passed since I posted Part 1 of our Denver trip.

Without further delay, the rest of the pictures chronicling our fun adventure.


We hung around until check-out time so the kids could enjoy the hotel pool. Anyone notice that there is always an abundance of chlorine in these pools?



Lindsay demonstrates the float.

Even Phil jumped in.

Next stop -- Denver Museum of Natural History. We also enjoyed an IMAX production featuring the animals of the ocean depths and a planetarium show about the solar system.

One of the museum exhibit areas was all about health and fitness.

I am racing Allie who is on the bike to my left.

Lindsay was not sure what to think of the sheep's lung. Seriously, it had been dissected just minutes before.

Timothy liked transferring the space rocks from one area to another.

The wolf exhibit.

This was a simulated bridge over water. Timothy had to bend down and touch it to make sure he wouldn't fall in as he walked across.

Raised eyebrows, a half grin AND a smirk -- Oh, the drama of little girls.

We finished off the afternoon with a late lunch at Cheesecake Factory.

Timothy licked his plate clean. Literally.

DA BEARS!!!!!!!!!

Several months ago, I bought pre-season football tickets for Phil for Father's Day. The game? Denver Broncos verses the Chicago Bears. The Bears have been Phil's favorite team for quite some time, and thankfully Timothy shares his enthusiasm! It was a long wait from May until August 30, but it was worth it!

Timothy has his very own Urlacher jersey. He enjoys a friendly rivalry with some unnamed fans of the competition--hmmm, as in Packers, Vikings and of course the Broncos.

After attending the early service at church, we loaded the Yukon XL (less Savannah who had SO much fun hanging with the Sandberg family) and took off towards Denver for the Sunday night game.



Timothy could barely contain his excitement.


The stadium is in sight.

We met up with the Baldacci family (aka Bronco fans) and spent some time tailgating.

It started to sprinkle for a very brief time, so we huddled in the Baldacci vehicle.

Like father, like son.

Timothy and Collin practiced some passes in the parking lot.

......and we're off!

The parking area was about a mile away and you can see Elitch's and Cirque de Soleil in the background.

Family shot in front of Invesco Field.

Bears huddling up after warm-ups.

Family shot inside the stadium. The excitement was building!!

Our seats were REALLY high up, but the view was amazing. Phil looked like he was going to throw up for the first 10 minutes, but eventually acclimated to the height. Poor Timothy still has finger marks on his arm because Phil was sure he was going to fall all the way to the field.......

Here he is just lightly grasping onto Tim's hood.

Another view from our seats.

Here is a video of part of the National Anthem.

Once Timothy realized he wouldn't actually get to talk to Brian Urlacher, he decided to eat peanuts instead.

Right before the game, a team of skydivers dropped onto the field.

To say that there were feelings of animosity toward Jay Cutler #6 (formerly the Broncos quarterback, now the Bears quarterback) would be an extreme understatement. However, it was quite enjoyable to hear the booing and hissing cease when he connected with his receivers.

Some more sights and sounds from the game.

DA BEARS....continued

The prayers of the Bronco fan behind Tim and I went unanswered.


Our friends, the Baldacci's and the Dick's were a few sections over. Can you spot them?



Even though it signified a Bronco score, the fireworks were really cool.


Sarah and Timothy prove that sitting on the edge of the seats does not cause one to fall off the edge.



The final score, oh the score! Bears 27, Broncos 17!!!!

We thought this was pretty neat to see -- both teams praying after the game.