Friday, January 29, 2010

snow day












the kids enjoyed their first snow day in three years today...that is, once the snow quit falling! they each did the happy dance as i awakened them to say that school had been cancelled. due to the frigid temps, they lasted all of about 20 minutes, enjoying sledding down the small hills and the slide. dodger enjoyed every bit of the snow too, however, as you will notice, would not stop to pose for a pic! coleman filled cups with snow, which they later enjoyed with cherry syrup on top! fun day all around...i must say, even as a mom, i love snow days just as much!

Monday, January 18, 2010

stellar speller



we were happy to cheer on coleman, along with three additional third graders who made it into the 3rd-5th grade spelling bee this year! out of the sixteen 3rd-5th grade students, coleman amazed us as the words became more and more difficult, and more cuts were made. with each word, i hesitated to even take a breath, apparently being much more nervous than him. that could have been because coleman chose to spell the words aloud, without first writing them down. he made it through round 9, and was one of the final four (two third graders and two fifth graders). the killer word, "oblige" is now a word of despise. "but mom, i could spell rutabaga!" his classmate went on to win, which drew an ocean of tears from coleman. defeat...no matter the reason, is difficult for coleman's competitive spirit. i have no doubt we will enjoy the bee again next year! congratulations coleman! we were proud after word one!

Saturday, January 2, 2010

one candle for dodger doodle








we celebrated the first birthday of our sweet dodger doodle today! what a treat! he feasted upon doggie "frosty paws" ice cream, and the kids shared a sundae with him! hampton dressed up in her party dress and heels for the occasion, and austin and coleman were on hand to help feed dodger his treat, and blow out his one, sparkly candle. oh yes, and hampton helped with that, too! what joy he has brought to our lives! we brought him home nearly three months after his birth...a small pup, and he has grown, and grown, and grown to be quite a large pup, weighing in at a mere 80 pounds-ish! and yes, it is my fault, that i trusted the breeder, who said he would be around 50-55 pounds. all in all, we love him just as he is, all 80 pounds of fluff! he is honestly the perfect dog...he smells good, he doesn't shed, and he LOVES to be around people...which means he is ALWAYS right in the wrong place (in a good way, of course!) happy birthday, dodger doodle!

Friday, January 1, 2010

hApPy NeW yEaR








to all! we have been anticipating the big drop of the ball for a mere three hours now. hampton kept asking,
"when can we have the party?" of course, she was proudly donning her favorite ballet gear for the duration of the night! fInAlLy, we were able to celebrate as a fam (for the first time in a LONG time). we toasted the new year with champagne and cherry 7-up...what a treat! then we danced the night away...that is, because hampton thought the party had just begun! cheers to a terrific 2010!

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

numana



since my dad cannot sit still long enough to plan his retirement, we willingly accepted the challenge of assisting in the new venture he has embarked upon. numana. it is simply an organization born in the small town of el dorado, kansas, with a mission to accomplish great things. our family was fortunate enough to assist in one of the first food packaging events, with the benefits of our labor sent to starving children in haiti. together with the salvation army, numana is helping to provide at least one healthy meal to each child who attends school...this, with the hopes that their parents will send them (if for that reason alone). wOw...what a blessing the evening was! after coleman poured a carefully measured cup of rice into the bag (which was filled with soy, vegetables, and a vitamin tablet by me ma, evan and jessica), austin and alexis carefully measured the weight of the bags, before passing them to me or jessica for sealing. following the sealing process, hampton and evie carefully patted the bags down flat for easier packaging. garry, then placed the bags of food in a numana box before sealing them for delivery! our family alone packaged 2,000 meals in about two hours. while we were there, over 30,000 meals were packaged. in the two day event, nearly 300,000 meals were packaged! what a great feeling to do something so simple, yet so wonderful, to benefit children who are literally fighting for life daily. the kids had an absolute blast (hampton repeatedly said, "this is so fun, mom!") i must also admit that there have been a few tears shed as well. at bedtime, they remember what we did and why we did it. coleman, through tears, said, "i just feel so bad that they don't have food and water!" a humbling, yet magnificent opportunity to do something good! coleman even asked to take a bag of food home, to see if it tasted ok! so thankful to have been a part of something of this nature! thanks, dad! you do many great things!

Friday, December 25, 2009

christmas morning 2009













wOw! santa was extra nice this year, delivering just as each child wished! austin happily found tons of jordan gear, new lebron nike shoes, xbox and games. coleman was happy to spot the scooter he had requested, along with two new pairs of shoes, clothes and new wii games. hampton was happy to pull on her new uggs, before playing with her new barbie house, airplane, and bike! what a fun morning! oh...and he ate ALL of the cookies, and drank ALL of the milk! the reindeer enjoyed the carrots! merry christmas all!

Thursday, December 24, 2009

christmas eve








we celebrated a quiet christmas eve (just as we planned) with the christmas eve candlelight service at church and a special fancy dinner at chester's chophouse. we realized at the beginning of dinner the very reason we enjoy date night at chester's so much! the chef was nice enough to make hampton cheesy mac and cheese and the boys shrimp and fries, per their request! what a treat! once again, santa made a debut appearance, and hampton was enamored...following his every move! for dessert, the kids enjoyed the "bag of doughnuts," a special treat we often bring home for the kids...homemade doughnuts with chocolate dip! after dinner, we ventured out to look at the lights of wichita in the blizzard. the last pic is one of our drive home. it was nearly impossible to see the road, due to the blowing snow, but we made the most of it! hampton didn't go to bed until late, and coleman was unable to fall asleep because his tummy hurt (from the excitement, i think). made for a very long night! i think we made it to bed around 2 am. hmmm...i get it now! (the very reason our parents made us "hang out" in their room in the morning for a while)! a merry christmas to all and to all a GoOd NiGhT!