Hazzard Family

9

2012-02-15T08:10:00.009-06:00

10 years ago (tomorrow),
We met.

9 and 1/2 years ago,
We were engaged.

9 years ago (today),
We were married.

It has been an adventure....
We have lived in 6 places.
Columbus
Tallahassee
Oklahoma City
Grand Island
Norfolk
and now Omaha
We have bought 3 houses
Kent has updated 2, and
is working on the 3rd.

I have had 6 different
teaching positions.
And, finished my masters.
Kent has worked for 3
different construction companies.

We have had 2 kids...
Chloe
Sophia
and have another on the way.
Baby Brother

Life has been good.
I have a feeling...
the best is yet to come.

LOVE

2012-02-14T08:11:00.003-06:00

I totally LOVE them!

OCM

2012-02-13T11:07:00.004-06:00

Due to a week of conferences, the girls and I had last Friday off. We needed some play time together so we ventured to the Omaha Children's Museum. The museum just opened a special construction exhibit. The girls had a great time painting a house (YES, with real paint!) and using tools to create a project of their own. Of course, we also visited our favorite art, face painting, and playworld exhibits.

Christmas and Happy New Year 2012

2012-01-04T12:40:00.005-06:00

We celebrated New Year's and Christmas last weekend in Columbus with my family. We planned a New Year's party for both our girls and cousins Addison and Lily. The girls all had a great time together. We watched a movie first and then rang in the New Year when the ball dropped in New York City. Our party was complete with VERY loud noise makers, head bands, and glow sticks. Our celebration ended with a slumber party on Grammy's living room floor. These four girls sure do enjoy their time together.

As usual, G planned a picture scavenger hunt for the grandkids. Mom and dad did this for us kids when we were little too. Several pictures are taken around the house and of Grammy's Christmas decorations. The girls then have to follow their trail of pictures throughout the house and it will eventually lead them to a gift. After G explained the rules, the girls were off on their adventure. This year mom bought each of the girls an American Girl doll and they couldn't have been more thrilled!

Happy 5th Birthday Sophia!

2011-12-28T08:25:00.004-06:00

Today my baby turns five! I thought I would share a baby picture of her. I know I say this all the time but, time goes so fast! Sophie has turned into such an awesome and fun-loving kid. She loves pre-school and is really excited for kindergarten next year. She is such a girly-girl too. She loves anything with sparkles and glitter. Some of her favorite activities include dancing, art projects, and playing with her American Girl doll.

We love you so much Sophia! Happy Birthday!

Coco Keys

2011-12-28T08:20:00.003-06:00

Kent tries to save several days of vacation for the holidays each year since the girls and I are home for two weeks. He has taken off the whole week between Christmas and New Year's this year. So, we planned some fun family activities for the week. Yesterday we went to Coco Keys. During the week is the best time to go! It wasn't busy at all. We must have had a good time, we spend six hours there!

Christmas 2011

2011-12-28T08:07:00.004-06:00

We had an awesome Christmas at home. Santa made his visit and we then spent most of the day watcing the Santa Clause movies. We watched all three of them!

The girls looked so nice for the Christmas Eve service at church.

All I made this year for Christma goodies were chocolate pretzels and reindeer noses so we baked some quick cookies to set out for Santa.

And, carrots for the reindeer of course!

Every Christmas Eve we read this book together before bed. Chloe helped me read it this year.

I think the girls were most excited about the Wii. We played an endless amount of bowling and just dance on Christmas day.

Hazzard Family Christmas...and a birthday.

2011-12-19T10:59:00.006-06:00

Last weekend we had a double celebration at Kent's parent's house. We celebrated both Christmas and had a Hannah Montana birthday party for Sophia. The birthday party was complete with a blond wig and glitter hat per Sophia's request.

Sophia has been asking for her own computer FOREVER and she finally got one from Grandma Shirley and Papa. She spent the rest of the day playing games, most of the way home in the car, and this morning while I was doing her hair for school. She even set it by the door so she could play it as soon as she gets home from school. I must say, it is a pretty awesome computer. It has 80 games perfect for a 5-7 year old.

Lehr Christmas

2011-12-12T14:06:00.004-06:00

On Saturday we got together with my dad's side of the family to celebrate Christmas. As always, it was great to see everyone. A few of my relatives flew in from both Dallas and Boston. Our group seems to keep growing and things have really changed in the last few years. My grandma Lehr now has ten great grandchildren...and counting.

A Visit to Santa

2011-12-12T13:25:00.003-06:00

Last weekend we ventured out and spent some time at the mall. We made a visit to Santa while we were there. I have very few pictures of Chloe with Santa. I know I have one when she was only a couple months old and one when she was probably three. She was really reluctant to sit on his lap even at three. We visit him every year but she never wants to sit on his lap or even talk to him. Until this year, at seven years old, she finally decided that maybe she would give this Santa thing a try again. Sophie on the other hand has always wanted to sit on Santa's lap and share her wish list.

I had a couple great coupons to build a bear so we made a visit there too. The girls always love that place and enjoyed creating a couple new furry friends. I think it is a lot of fun too. Kent however, has a different opinion about it. But, he suffered through it for the joy of his daughters.

SNOW!

2011-12-04T10:56:00.004-06:00

We have been enjoying our time inside during the cold weather this weekend. We kept busy and had lots of fun! We made some Christmas treats, finished decorating, made some ornaments, and watched a couple movies. After all that the girls did decide to go out and play in the snow. I thought it was cold. They however had a blast.

Thanksgiving

2011-12-04T10:46:00.003-06:00

I seem to be a little behind in my posts. Since we had our first actual snow this weekend and it doesn't seem we will be getting out of the house much, I have the time to catch up.

We spent some time for Thanksgiving with both of our families. Although, it seems I only took pictures at Kent's side. We are very thankful for each of our families. We feel so lucky to have such wonderful and supportive people in our lives. And, as usual, it was great to get together.

The kids had fun making a few ornaments. These three were made by Chloe, Sophia, and Jadyn.

Kent's aunt and cousin brought one Christmas present for each of the great-grandkids. So thoughtful of them.

Kent carved the turkey this year! Best carving I have ever seen. :)

Broken Crayons

2011-11-13T11:39:00.002-06:00

I saw this idea online and decided to give it a try since we have SOOOO many broken crayons in the bottom of our crayon box. Our crayon Christmas trees turned out great and we enjoyed making them. Even Kent helped the girls and I peel off all of those wrappings!

Halloween

2011-11-01T17:59:00.003-05:00

Here are some pics from Halloween. We had a family party to dress up for. The girls had already decided to be cowgirls so Kent and I joined in on the fun. Poor Kent and the things we make him do. He is such a good sport! Plus, we wore them while we took the girls trick or treating. So, he is a double good sport! The girls had an awesome time trick or treating. Sophie made it around the block before she wanted to head home and Chloe made it through our entire neighborhood.

The girls had a great time carving a pumpkin with Kent this last weekend. It has become a tradition that Kent carves the pumpkins with them. I really don't like it so I am glad he does. As I am typing, the girls are at the table painting some Christmas ornaments. I would gladly help with that rather than carve a pumpkin. It just isn't my thing. I prefer to do arts and crafts with them over that messy pumpkin project! However, I did season and bake the seeds. That is helping right?!

Quadruple Birthday

2011-10-17T09:12:00.005-05:00

For the second year, we again celebrated ALL the girls birthday's at once. We had one big family party. As always, it was awesome to see everyone and the girls were all totally spoiled.

Roca Scary Farm

2011-10-17T09:08:00.003-05:00

Kent and I have decided to start a new tradition. Each year in October, I have parent/teacher conferences. This leaves me with a Friday off. So, we are going to use that Friday to visit a pumpkin patch. They are far less busy on weekdays. Last year we went to Vala's. We spent something ridiculous like eight hours there and didn't see everything. So, this year we decided to try a different patch. We visited Roca Berry Farm instead. The girls had a ton of fun. Plus, Grandpa Bob (who is now known as Hillbilly Bob) and Grandma Shirley had the day off too so they joined us.

Adoption Update

2011-09-28T08:22:00.006-05:00

I have not written much about our adoption process in the last few months. So, I wanted to include a little update in my posts today.

We applied a little over a year ago, in August. The state of Nebraska requires that some of our paperwork is updated each year. So, last week we spent a day getting our health forms and background checks updated. This included another round of fingerprinting too.

Our initial paperwork, called a dossier, was completed the second week of January 2011. It was at that time that we were added to the wait list. Other than updating some of our forms last week, we have only had a couple other tasks to complete. During the last few months, we did get our passports. We have gotten about a dozen immunizations and travel vaccinations. Our very last shot is scheduled for Saturday morning. So, with our passports and shots, we are ready to travel when that time comes.

Right now, our adoption agency, Holt International, is making child referrals for families who submitted their dossier in November. So, we are getting close! I am just so anxious for that phone call! I very vividly remember my mom getting that phone call when Kait was born. It still makes me cry just thinking about it. Tears of joy of course! We were so elated with happiness. After my mom got off the phone she was jumping up and down in the kitchen shouting "it's a girl, it's a girl, we have a girl!" Tears streaming down her face. Because of this, I know it is a moment we will never forget. Details we will remember forever. This is one of those moments I have been waiting my entire life for.

In the meantime, I have been keeping myself content with waiting by getting his room ready. I often find myself standing in his doorway just staring off and daydreaming about our life once he joins us. The girls have filled two toy boxes full of toys that were theirs. They picked out toys they thought a little brother might like. I have filled a couple tubs with clothes for him. And, I have also done the first couple pages in his scrapbook! So, we are ready for that call!

SEVEN!

2011-09-28T07:50:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was the day that my oldest baby turned seven. I know I say this every year, but, I just can't believe how fast time passes. It doesn't seem like it was that long ago that Kent and I were living in Oklahoma City and she was born. However, we have lived in three other places since then, Sophia was born, and we are now waiting for baby brother to join us. So, when I think about it that way, a lot has happened in that seven years. She is really growing up to be such a sweet and kind girl. I couldn't be more proud of her. She loves first grade and works very hard at school. She is a good friend and very caring to her sister. She really is growing up to be such a wonderful person.

Chloe had a great 7th birthday. She took treats to school to share and I joined her class at the end of the day to read. I read "Happy Birthday to You" by Dr. Suess. We took her out to eat and opened presents once Kent got home from work. Of course, she was excited about all the phone calls, cards, facebook and email birthday wishes she received!

Last weekend, we had a little birthday get together with Kent's family since we were in Kearney for his cousins wedding. I am including some pictures of that as well. Of course, it was great to spend time with everyone. We really appreciate the great-grandparents for stopping by. Thanks to Grandma Shirley for planning such a marvelous lunch and get-together.

We are really looking forward to next weekend. Chloe has invited 16 classmates and friends to a tie dye party at our house. Can't wait!

Going to the Chapel

2011-09-26T13:17:00.007-05:00

This weekend we helped Kent's cousin Marci and her husband Kish celebrate their wedding day. It was awesome to see family that we don't see often enough. Congrats to Marci and Kish!

I have to mention, we were all a little surprised by Sophia and her dancing! At home, Sophia is dancing non-stop. Anytime the radio is playing or there is music on T.V., that girl is dancing. In fact, she usually changes clothes when she gets home from school and is wearing a dance outfit for the remainder of the evening. However, I have never seen Sophia show off her dance moves in front of so many people she didn't know. She danced with me, Kent, a couple of her aunts and cousins, and also with the DJ. After about a dozen songs, she was worn out and ready to head home. This girl loves to have a good time!

Grandparent's Day!

2011-09-13T08:50:00.003-05:00

Sunday was Grandparent's Day. Each year, Legacy, where my Grandma Lehr lives, has a carnival for residents and their families. The girls enjoyed pony rides, games, clowns, and lots of carnival food. It was great to spend the day with my grandma. Love her! Happy Grandparent's day to all our grandparents!

Mowing

2011-09-13T08:48:00.002-05:00

Stopped by my aunt and uncle's house this weekend after soccer. Donnie decided to teach the girls how to mow the yard!

Happy 4th Birthday Jadyn!

2011-08-28T09:54:00.007-05:00

It seems our weekends have been really crazy lately. Yesterday we had soccer pictures in the morning, two soccer games after lunch, a birthday party in the afternoon, and a wedding in the evening.

Here are some pics from cousin Jadyn's 4th birthday party. I just love the one of her blowing out the candles on her cake. The girls had a great time swimming even though we had to pull them out of the water a little earlier then they would have liked so we could quick get ready for a wedding. Happy birthday Miss Jadyn! Thanks for having us to your pool party! As Sophie will surely tell you, being four is so much fun!!

First days

2011-08-11T08:22:00.005-05:00

Chloe, Sophia, and I all survived our first day of school this week. Chloe started first grade, Sophia is in her second year of pre-school, and I began my tenth year of teaching. Although we are all a little sad to see summer end, we had an excellent first day. It really has been an awesome summer. I am so thankful for this time that I have with the girls each year.

Two Wheels

2011-08-09T15:06:00.003-05:00

I am proud to announce that we are now down from four wheeled bikes to two wheeled bikes. Both girls had their training wheels taken off their bikes this weekend. In no time at all they were both riding down the street. We have tried to teach Chloe to ride her bike without training wheels several times in the last year. But, she just wasn't ready or confident enough. I am so happy that she has this down. However, with Sophie, this was the first attempt and she did awesome. This speaks so loudly about their personalities. Chloe is cautious. Sophie is more daring. Makes sense that we would be teaching them to ride their bikes at the same time even though they are two years apart in age. Way to go girls!

Welcome to the big city

2011-07-31T23:03:00.003-05:00

Mom and I flew to Chicago to visit Kait for three days. It was awesome. We have never taken a trip like this before with just the three of us. We had so much fun and I can't believe how much we did in those three days. We spent time in the city at the Sears Tower, went on a boat tour of the Chicago River and Lake Michigan, and of course did some shopping. Kait took us to some great places to eat. My favorite was a Tapas restaurant that really brought back memories of my time in Spain. On the last night, Mom treated Kait and I to a play, Peter Pan. It was an amazing production. I feel so lucky to be able to spend this time with them. They are both so wonderful!

Picnic

2011-07-25T16:06:00.002-05:00

This last week has been incredibly HOT! Too hot to be outside. We have been trying to find lots of inside activities to stay nice and cool. So, we had a picnic lunch inside instead of out. The girls thought it was awesome!

Take me out to the ballgame!

2011-07-25T15:59:00.002-05:00

Both girls have been playing ball this summer. Sophie has been playing t-ball and Chloe has been playing baseball.

Estes Park 2011

2011-07-25T08:37:00.004-05:00

As usual, we spent a week in Estes Park with family this July. It was great to be back. Of course, the week went incredibly fast. We went to all our favorite spots to eat, did a little swimming, went on a couple hikes, and enjoyed some time shopping downtown Estes.

Happy 4th of July

2011-07-05T08:15:00.004-05:00

We had an excellent 4th of July this year. On Saturday night, we went to the Millard firework show with some good friends of ours, the Stadler family. We have come to get to know them well over the last few months. They are in the process of adopting a little girl from China. So, we have lots to talk about with comparing our adoption process.

On Sunday night we went to a Stormchaser's game here in Omaha with my wonderful parents. While the game wasn't that great, the fireworks were AWESOME! We all agreed that they may have been the best we have ever seen. Of course, laying in outfield watching them didn't hurt that idea at all. It was lots of fun.

On Monday night, we stayed home to light off our fireworks in the driveway. My uncle Don and cousin Grace joined us.

Splash Park and Zoo Trip

2011-07-05T08:10:00.006-05:00

Last week, we went to the zoo with a couple of my cousins and their kids. It was great to hangout since we don't do that often enough. The girls and I also enjoyed a splash park that we have not been to before.

Puppy Chow

2011-07-05T08:06:00.002-05:00

When I am home in the summer time, I try to think of some fun activities we can do at home rather than always going somewhere. A couple weeks ago, the girls and I came up with a fun puppy themed idea. We made a puppy chow snack, and watched a couple movies with puppies in it. Of course the girls thought they needed to bring every stuffed dog in the house down to watch the movie!

Special Visitors

2011-06-26T11:37:00.005-05:00

Last week, we had our AWESOME cousins Addi and Lily come stay and spend two nights at our house. I just love that I have the summer off and could have them come stay. They are so close in age to my girls and they have an excellent time together. We filled our time with art projects, playing outside, a picnic, movie time, and even venturing out to the grocery store and Bounce U. Yes, I took all four girls all under the age of seven to the grocery store. And to be honest, It was just fine. I told Kent that I thought this was a sign that I could handle four kids with ease. Here is a picture of the munchkins at Bounce U in front of their giant slide. Love that place. As you can see from the picture, they are completely worn out and sweaty from about two hours of playtime. This of course makes for a really easy bedtime that night!

Kansas City

2011-06-13T08:00:00.008-05:00

For the first vacation of summer break, we took a trip to Kansas City to spend some time with some wonderful friends. On the agenda was shopping at The Plaza, pool time with the Blaesing family, Worlds of Fun with the Struby family, and Oceans of Fun on Kent's 32nd Birthday. We enjoyed some Kansas City BBQ and also my favorite restaurant of all time, Joe's Crab Shack.

Shopping at the Plaza.

One and a half pounds of crab legs!

Kate, Sophie, Chloe, and Jack became fast friends and enjoyed their pool time. Thanks to the Blaesings for having us for an excellent lunch.

Chloe, Paul, and Sophia at Camp Snoopy. Chloe was tall enough for some of the bigger rides at Worlds of Fun so we snuck her away for a couple while Sophie enjoyed rides with Paul. We have come to discover that Chloe is quite the thrill seeker. She only needs to be two more inches taller and she can ride almost anything there.

This is about as crazy as Sophia gets. She may have a little bit of a fear of heights.

What a great photo of my dear college friends Annie, and Ben, and their son Paul. It was so awesome to spend a couple days with you. Thanks for having us.

We all suspect there may be a little bit of a romance going on here.

Annie and Ben kept the girls so Kent and I could ride the Mamba. While I LOVE roller coasters, Kent isn't as crazy about them. But, he always rides with me!

Do we look exhausted? This was taken after six hours of Worlds of Fun in 98 degree heat.

A 100 degree day at Oceans of Fun. Perfect!

Toothless

2011-05-31T14:12:00.002-05:00

Okay, she isn't actually toothless. However, that is what we have been calling her the last couple of days. Chloe lost her first tooth on Sunday. The tooth fairy did visit that night and left her two dollars.

90

2011-05-31T12:13:00.006-05:00

We have celebrated two 90th birthday parties this last two weekends. My grandma Lehr and Kent's grandma Wenzlick were born only a week apart. Here are a couple pictures of both grandmas with their great-granddaughters.

Here are some interesting facts I found online about the 1920's:

* Average yearly income was $1236.00
* A new Ford cost only $290.00
* A postage stamp was 2 cents
* A gallon of milk was 58 cents
* Mickey Mouse and Little Orphan Annie were popular
* The first Miss America pageant was held in Atlantic City
* Warren G. Harding was president in 1921
* The 19th amendment was passed, allowing women the right to vote
* Cheez-it crackers, Wonder Bread, Kleenex, Wrigley's gum, zippers, band-aids, and Welch's grape jelly were introduced
* Bessie Colman became the first licensed African American pilot
* Albert Einstein recieved the Nobel Peace Prize
* WWI ended

Best Friends

2011-05-31T10:50:00.005-05:00

I took this great picture of the girls having fun together this weekend. They really are best friends. I hope their friendship survives as they enter their teen years when they start stealing clothes from each other and fighting for time in front of the bathroom mirror.

I wanna be a cowgirl!

2011-05-17T10:58:00.003-05:00

Today was dress up day at Sophie's school. They were to dress up in an outfit to show what they wanted to be when they grew up. Last night she wanted to dress as an artist. So, I had a french beret and a shirt with colored pencils on it all ready to go. Well, by morning she had ditched the artist idea and decided she wanted to be a cowgirl. So, she wore her boots and pony shirt.

Click, Clack, Moo

2011-05-17T10:54:00.003-05:00

Last week Chloe's kindergarten class presented a reader's theater of Click, Clack, Moo. Chloe was the cutest duck I have ever seen! And, thanks to another teacher in my building, who took one of my classes that day, I was able to go. Here is a pic of Chloe and her teacher. She sure is going to miss her!

Soccer, Soccer, and More Soccer

2011-05-17T10:44:00.005-05:00

We spent most of our weekend at the soccer field and next weekend will be similar....A total of eight games in two weekends. The girls just love playing and scoring those goals. I love that they are active kids and would rather be outside than sitting in front of the tube. Here are some pics I took from this weekend's games. Kent even sub coached for a game of Sophie's. As it turns out, Sophie is much better at listening to her usual coach than her dad!

Dance Recital

2011-05-09T15:12:00.006-05:00

We survived a really busy Saturday. The girls had their first dance recitals. Their dance company is so big that there are two recitals. They happened to end up in the two different recitals. So we attended Sophie's in the morning and Chloe's in the afternoon. They both did a fantastic job. Dance was something I loved growing up and it is wonderful seeing the girls enjoy it too. We were very thankful for all of the family who came to watch. This made the girls feel so special.

More Easter

2011-04-25T09:29:00.006-05:00

We had Kent's parents up for the weekend to spend Easter with us. We took them to the zoo on Saturday since they had never been. This was already our second trip to the zoo this month. We are getting great use of our membership.

After church on Sunday, Brent, Laura, and Jadyn joined us for lunch, an Easter egg hunt, and some playtime outside.

Dance Pictures

2011-04-25T09:24:00.004-05:00

With recital less than two weeks away, the girls had dance pictures taken last week. They look so adorable. I am really looking forward to their first recital experience!

Look at the Monkey!

2011-04-25T09:22:00.003-05:00

Chloe is so proud of herself for finally mastering the monkey bars! She made it all the way across several times without letting go before the end. Way to go Chloe! She has been working so hard at this accomplishment.

Easter Picture

2011-04-25T09:14:00.003-05:00

On Friday after work, I took the girls to the mall to visit the Easter Bunny. This was at Sophie's request. She loves visiting Santa at the mall too. Chloe however, in the past, has refused to ever have her picture taken with Santa or the Easter Bunny at the mall. So usually I just have a picture of Sophie to share. While standing in line, Chloe looks at me and asks if I want her to be in the picture too. Of course I do!

Early Easter

2011-04-18T09:34:00.003-05:00

My sister Kait was home from Chicago this weekend so we thought it would be the perfect time to get the whole family together for Easter. It was great to have everyone together. We had an Easter egg hunt, dyed eggs, and even talked Grammy into trimming all four of her granddaughter's hair.

Minnesota

2011-04-12T10:51:00.010-05:00

Last week was Spring Break for the girls and I. We talked Kent into taking a couple days off work and took a short journey to Minnesota. Our first stop was at the Mall of America. Kent was shocked that I had not been there before. It is actually surprising considering my shopping hobby. Anyways, we stopped at the American Girl Store and Bistro and enjoyed the rides at the Nickelodeon theme park. Chloe was brave and tried her first couple roller coasters. She is finally tall enough. She absolutely LOVED them. I am excited about this because I love roller coasters too and look forward to venturing beyond the kiddie rides when we go to places like this.

For the weekend, we headed to Rochester to visit a very good friend and her family. Beth and I have been friends since we met in 4th grade. I am so happy that even though we are all grown up and live quite a ways from each other, we still keep in touch and try to see each other a couple times a year. We all enjoyed our time together, playing and visiting. Thanks again to Beth and Matt for hosting us!

Beth is also a blogger. Click here to read her blog and post about our weekend in Rochester. I love the picture she posted of the two of us.

An April Fools Birthday

2011-04-01T08:35:00.007-05:00

Happy Birthday Grandma Shirley. It was great to see you last weekend. We enjoyed meeting you for lunch. I couldn't resist posting this cute picture of you with Chloe, Jadyn and Sophie. I hope you have an excellent day. Tell Grandpa not to play too many April Fools Day jokes on you. He is supposed to be nice to you today. Love ya!

Make a difference

2011-03-29T13:48:00.012-05:00

I love this story. It could represent so many different things to so many different people. Of course, because my thoughts and prayers are mostly devoted to our adoption journey right now, I think about the nearly five million orphans in Ethiopia.

One day a man was walking along the beach when he noticed a boy picking something up and gently throwing it into the ocean. Approaching the boy, he asked, “What are you doing?” The youth replied, “Throwing starfish back into the ocean. The surf is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them back, they won't survive.” “Son,” the man said, “don’t you realize there are miles and miles of beach and hundreds of starfish? You can’t make a difference!” After listening politely, the boy bent down, picked up another starfish, and threw it back into the surf. Then, smiling at the man, he said…”I made a difference for that one.”

Stitches

2011-03-22T08:15:00.003-05:00

Poor little Sophia slipped in the shower Sunday night and split her chin wide open. We rushed her to the ER for stitches. Of course this put me in a little bit of a frenzy. This was one of those moments that I wished it was me instead. She was SO brave and I am so proud of her for that. I think she is pretty proud of those stitches too. She could not wait to tell all her friends at school about them. And yes, she is wearing lip gloss in this picture. She insisted on it before I took a photo. Such a glam girl!

I told her this is the last time she is allowed to go to the ER. It is her third trip and she is only four. Chloe has NEVER been. Her first trip, she was only three days old. She choked while nursing and stopped breathing for a very short period of time. The second trip was about a year ago. She woke up in the middle of the night and couldn't breath due to croup. This is also when we discovered she may be asthmatic. And now stitches! Sophia! You are going to give mommy a heart attack!

Shrine Circus

2011-03-21T10:02:00.002-05:00

Every year, my Gramps gets us tickets to the Shrine Circus in Lincoln. Gramps is a Shriner and loves to invite his great-grandkids to attend. My grandparents are so wonderful to my daughters. Gramps even got them each a circus souvenir. We enjoyed hot dogs, funnel cake, and face paint. Thanks Gramps! Love you!

Fundraising

2011-03-21T09:41:00.005-05:00

We had two fundraising events this weekend. On Friday night, we attended the ball for Reagan Elementary, the school Chloe attends. We all had an awesome time. There was a silent auction and dance. The girls loved getting all dressed up and dancing the night away....mostly to Justin Bieber!

On Saturday night, Kent and I attended a gala for Holt International, the adoption agency we are going through. It was awesome to meet other families that have either completed their adoption or are somewhere in the process. I have had contact with many people either through blogs, emails, or facebook and was able to meet them for the first time in person. We have so much in common with these families. I hope we can stay in touch and share in each other's adoption journey.

The Luck of the Irish

2011-03-18T10:54:00.002-05:00

Both girls really enjoyed St. Patty's day. Of course they wore green and of course we made a green themed meal. This year we decided to go with green eggs and ham. Delicious! Each of their schools did something fun for the day too. While Sophie was at recess, a leprechaun came and visited her classroom. He left her a pot of gold. While Chloe was at recess, a leprechaun came to her classroom and caused a little mischief by tipping over chairs and making a mess. Chloe even tried to make a trap out of construction paper that she put on her desk. But, he got away. They were both very excited to tell me about these events when I picked them up. However, both were disappointed that they didn't actually get to see him. What a sneaky little guy!

What Sophia Says...

2011-03-18T10:44:00.003-05:00

Two years ago I asked Chloe these same questions. Decided it was time to try this with little miss Sophie.

1. What is something mom always says to you?

You tell me no and to be polite.

2. What makes mom happy?

When I am good.

3. What makes mom sad?

Being naughty.

4. How does your mom make you laugh?

Tells jokes.

5. What was your mom like as a child?

She wore pony tails.

6. How old is your mom?

7. How tall is your mom?

Super tall.

8. What is her favorite thing to do?

Color, work and take pictures.

9. What does your mom do when you are not home?

Play with the iPad.

10. What is your mom really good at?

Making lunch and taking care of me.

11. What is your mom not good at?

Remembering to iron.

12.What does your mom do for a job?

I don't know but, you put money in the bank.

13.What is your mom's favorite food?

Cheeseburgers and chicken nuggets.

14. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?

You look like Sponge Bob!

15. What do you and your mom do together?

Play barbies.

16. How are you and your mom the same?

Because we have the same brown hair.

17. How are you and your mom different?

We don't wear the same clothes.

18. How do you know your mom loves you?

You love me tooooo much. Too many hugs and kisses.

19. What does your mom like most about your dad?

Because he loves you and he cleans up.

20. Where is your mom's favorite place to go

The zoo.

Love Notes

2011-03-14T10:49:00.004-05:00

Now that Chloe is really learning to write and decode word sounds, she has taken to writing love notes. She has been leaving little love notes for Kent and I around the house. Usually they say something about us being great parents, or talk about how much she loves our family. I found this one under my pillow the other day. I just think it is so cute. I am keeping them all. This way when she is a teenager I can remind her that she used to like us!

(Translation....Mom, guess what, do you know I love you?)

Go Mavricks!

2011-03-14T10:21:00.003-05:00

We went to the Omaha Mavrick hockey game on Saturday night. Even though they lost, we had a great time. Our seats were in the third row so we were close to the action. I think Sophie jumped the first ten times someone was slammed up against the side. But, she got used to it. Chloe of course sat pretty quietly and watched. Not Sophie though. She was copying the crowd with any cheering. This included not only a U-N-O chant but also a little yelling at the refs!

32 balloons

2011-02-28T08:40:00.011-06:00

I have to say, this may have been one of the best birthday's ever. I got to spend the weekend with lots of my favorite people. My sister flew in from Chicago to spend time with us. I definitely do not get to see her as much as I would like so this was an awesome surprise. On Saturday morning, I got a text from her wishing me a happy birthday. She also said she wished she was there to help me celebrate. Of course I texted her back telling her how much I miss her. Then, about 30 minutes later, our doorbell rings and she is standing on the front step with 32 balloons! I was in total shock, and yes I cried like a baby because I was so excited to see her. I still can't believe my parents, sister, and husband all kept this a secret from me for over a month! I can't imagine it was that easy to keep this a secret. We tell each other everything. This plan for the weekend also explains why my husband was so quick to agree to helping me finish painting the basement and hanging a new light fixture in the bathroom when I asked about it Saturday morning. I am sure he so easily agreed because he knew we would NEVER being doing that once my sis arrived. Don't worry Kent, those tasks are still in my mind for another weekend. So, we spent Saturday hanging out, going to lunch, and watching movies. Then on Sunday, my very wonderful parents took us all out to dinner at Grisanti's. Where I got to spend some time with them and my grandparents as well.

Here are a couple pics from our lunch at Jones Bros. cupcakes. I told Kent not to order a cake because I wanted to bring home a dozen cupcakes from there. To add to the surprise, my aunt Linda and uncle Don just happened to walk in at the same time as we did so we were able to have lunch with them. We couldn't have planned it better! Thanks to Linda for taking some pics and sending them to me!

And, thanks to my hubby for my new favorite toy, an ipad! Although, I think he and my daughter's are enjoying it just as much as I am. I keep reminding them that it is mine but, they seem to keep forgetting. :)

Sponsorship

2011-02-23T08:23:00.007-06:00

I have written before about the Drawn From Water organization and their amazing mission. Kent and I have decided to sponsor a child through them. I love reading their blog. It is so wonderful to see pictures of the children and hear about their success. The blog post yesterday really brought me to to tears. Seeing these orphaned children doing so well and having so much love in their lives makes me so happy. It also makes me so excited to meet our son. I have wanted him my whole life. I decided when I was eight years old that adoption would be part of my future. I am just so happy that this time has finally come and that we are in the process.

Anyway, each child needs 10 sponsors to take care of their monthly expenses. We have committed to sponsoring the ADORABLE Alma Marbo. He is 2 and a half years old. Here is the info we have about him....

Alma Marbo is a sweet, shy little boy. He was deemed mingi when his top teeth came in before his bottom teeth. Alma’s family, from the Hammer tribe, surrendered him to spare his life. In May 2010 Alma made a big trip to Addis Ababa to receive healthcare. The two-day car ride was a completely new experience for Alma. In Addis, he was treated for pneumonia, and today he is a healthy boy. He is shy and does not play much with the other children, Alma cares deeply for Champa who he has picked as his favorite nanny. Here is a pic...

Click here to go to the Drawn From Water Blog.

Click here to see the children who still need sponsors.

In the last couple days, some friends have written and asked for an update on baby brother. Right now we are just waiting for a referral. We did get word that all our paperwork has arrived in Ethiopia. Yeah! There are a lot of families on the waiting list so, we are waiting patiently for our turn. And, for those of you who know me well, waiting and patiently are not words that usually go in the same sentence for me. So, for now, I will focus on decorating the baby room, going through baby stuff that has been boxed up for several years, and getting all our dreaded travel immunization shots. I guess maybe they aren't really dreaded, give me a dozen shots, I don't care, it just means we are one step closer to meeting our little guy.

Happy Valentine's Day 2011

2011-02-14T09:15:00.003-06:00

I took a picture this morning of the girls in their Valentine shirts. They are so excited for their school parties. I can't wait to hear all about it when I get home!

February Birthday's

2011-02-14T09:10:00.004-06:00

We spent Sunday at Kyle and Shelly's house to celebrate my Mom and Grandma's Birthday. Here is a picture of the granddaughters with Grammy, Grandma Hugs, and Grandma Lehr. The girls had so much fun playing dress-up all day.

Good Friends

2011-02-14T09:06:00.003-06:00

We spent Saturday getting together with my BESTEST friends from college. It was great to spend time with Annie and Alisha and their hubbies and kiddos and catch up. We can hardly believe we have been out of college for 10 years!

Valentine Crafts

2011-02-11T17:06:00.005-06:00

We have been busy getting ready for Valentine's day on Monday. I had the day off so we spent time making cards and boxes for each of the girls to take to school. Which I have to say turned out very fancy. I spray painted them and glued on some lace hearts. They did the rest and covered their boxes with stickers and jewels. The girls also decorated the house with cardboard hearts on door knobs, and made yarn hearts that we hung from the light in the dining room. They are both so excited to attend their parties at school and see what surprises I have for them when they get home!

Drawn from Water

2011-01-19T07:35:00.010-06:00

The last few days I have been learning about the Drawn from Water organization. The work they are doing to save tribal children in Ethiopia is amazing. Please take a few minutes to watch the videos below. Saving these precious children hasn't been easy.

So you can hear the video, be sure to pause the music on my play list to the right.

This first video is about a family who moved from California to Ethiopia to dedicate their time to this cause.

This second video is from the Drawn from Water blog. http://www.drawnfromwater.org/

"It Began with Bale" from Drawn From Water on Vimeo.

Buy a t-shirt and help with this cause! http://drawnfromwaterstore.blogspot.com/

Or, sponsor a child. http://www.drawnfromwater.org/get-involved/sponsor-a-child

Immigration

2011-01-18T08:11:00.003-06:00

In November, we submitted our immigration petition to the USCIS. In December, we were invited for our fingerprinting. After a few weeks of waiting we received our needed immigration paperwork in the mail. That was the last piece of info we needed to submit the dossier. A dossier is another collection of documents that is reviewed by our agency and then sent to Ethiopia to be translated. It included items such as birth and marriage certificates, clearance from local law enforcement, recommendation letters, and lots more. Probably around 20 different documents and it took us a couple months to get it all put together. So, our dossier was sent last week. What is next? Vaccinations for travel and lots of waiting.

New Artwork

2011-01-18T08:03:00.002-06:00

I decided that my basement is looking a little bare. Kent and I plan on painting it in the next couple weeks. However, I needed a couple more things to hang on the wall. So, the girls and I got started on a couple paintings. They did all the painting. I helped with the stamping and any spill clean-up. They had a blast and were so proud to hang their paintings on the wall. It was too cold to do anything outside of the house, so we made good use of our time inside. We even decided to go back to Hobby Lobby sometime this week and buy another canvas to save for our baby brother to paint one day.

Hello 2011

2011-01-03T20:45:00.007-06:00

We spent New Year's in Columbus at my parents. We had a late Christmas with my side of the family while we were there. It was great to spend time with everyone.

We started our weekend with family dentist appointments. This was Sophia's first appointment and she did awesome!

Kait gave each of her nieces a new dance leotard from a shop she found in Chicago. The girls loved them. Sophie has worn hers for the past two days!

Kent and I had a New Year's wedding to attend so the girls enjoyed ringing in the New Year with Grammy and G and their great grandparents.

My mom gave each of the girls a gift certificate to Build A Bear. She also gave me a gift card to get a new pair of boots. So, we enjoyed our last day of Christmas break at the mall spending our gift cards! Thanks mom! We love the gift of shopping!

Kearney

2010-12-28T17:52:00.004-06:00

We headed to Kearney to celebrate Christmas with Kent's side of the family. We won't be heading to Columbus until New Year's Day. The girls had a great time at their grandparents and playing with their cousin Jadyn. They love sleeping on grandma and grandpa's floor in sleeping bags. And, Chloe also loves that she can talk Grandma into playing cards with her for a couple hours. She loves her card games. We always enjoy time spent with family.

We also celebrated Sophie's fourth birthday while we were there. We reminised about the day she was born. We won't ever forget the date of that terrible ice storm that we had just a couple days after the day she was born. Of course, I think she is growing up too fast. Today, the 28th, is her actual birthday. She loves being four!

Christmas Morning 2010

2010-12-28T17:35:00.004-06:00

Here are a few pictures of the Christmas morning surprises.... and the letter the girls wrote to Santa. Super cute!

Snow

2010-12-28T17:24:00.003-06:00

For being December in Nebraska, we haven't had much snow at all this year. We aren't complaining considering the record snowfall we had last year. However, the girls keep hoping for enough that they can go outside to play in it. We had the littlest bit a few days ago so they headed out.

Peppermint

2010-12-23T22:49:00.004-06:00

The girls have really been into peppermint candy canes this Christmas season. We even bought peppermint ice cream. So, what better idea than to make sugar cookies that look like peppermints.

Giving

2010-12-23T22:42:00.003-06:00

Each year, the school I teach at encourages each primetime to do a service project. My primetime decided to collect items needed at an orphanage in Ethiopia. Of course this is close to my heart. I am so proud of my students for their awesome participation. We collected about 115 items.

Ready for Christmas!

2010-12-17T09:16:00.006-06:00

I think we are ready. The tree is up. The nativity scene and stockings are out. Shopping is done. Presents are wrapped. And, all holiday plans are set. We are looking forward to break and having a couple weeks to spend together as a family. We are also looking forward to the traveling and all of the people we will see during the next couple weeks.

Sophia was super excited to visit Santa. And, I even got a great pic. Chloe however, wouldn't go near him. Sometimes Chloe's shyness, that we all remember from when she was little, resurfaces in situations like this. Maybe Sophia just wanted to make sure Santa was planning a stop at our house! Or maybe she was making sure she wasn't on the naughty list. She has been a little worried about that since the wrestling match she got into at pre-school a few weeks ago. Oh Sophia! I Love you.

Here is a pic of the cutest reindeer ever! Sophia had her pre-school program last week. So fun!

This pic was taken at the mall during one of our shopping excursions. The girls just love looking at all the decorated trees.

Chutes and Ladders

2010-12-13T12:31:00.005-06:00

I am pretty sure that Chutes and Ladders wasn't this multi-cultural when I was little. I like this version better. I took this picture during our family game of Chutes and Ladders on Saturday night. Usually the girls debate on who gets to be the piece that looks like Aunt Kait. Now they are debating on who gets to be the piece that looks like their soon to be baby brother. During this game, they told me I was the lucky one who gets to be the "baby brother" piece because each person in the family should get a turn. Yeah! Love it!

Christmas at Grandma's

2010-12-13T12:28:00.003-06:00

This weekend we celebrated Christmas with my dad's side of the family. This is the first of our many get togethers. I was able to spend time with some cousins that I don't see often enough. We were all astonished by how much our kids have all changed in the last year. I thought I would post this great picture my sister-in-law, Shelly, took of the girls and Great Grandma. Love you Grandma! Thanks for hosting. We had an excellent time.

Thankful

2010-12-08T08:30:00.005-06:00

Today is an important day for my family. It was on this day 23 years ago that we picked my sister Kait up at the airport in Des Moines. It was on this day that I met my sister for the first time. I remember being so filled with excitement waiting for someone to step off the plane with her in their arms. We would know which baby was her because we had given them a special blanket to wrap her in. All we had up to that point was a photo taken of her shortly after she was born. I remember Mom making about a millon copies of that photo. I had one in my room and looked at it often wondering what she would be like. Little did I know we would grow up to be so close, so alike, and such good friends.

On December 8th, we always celebrated her coming into our family. We would go out for dinner or do something special. I know this day is important to my sister, she has told me how much it means to her. Once our little guy joins our family, we will most definitely celebrate his special day every year. Thinking about this brings tears to my eyes. I am so thankful for Kait. I can't even begin to imagine us without each other. It also makes me teary because I am so excited for what is to come when our son joins our family.

As I have said before, Adoption is amazing. Love you Kaitlin Kim! Love everything about you. You are the best sister I could ever have! Here are some of my favorite pictures.

Kait and the girls downtown Chicago.
Kait and the girls on the Lake Forest Campus.
A recent picture taken of "us kids". Love them all so much!
A picture of Kyle, Kait and I with Grandma Holt. Bertha Holt founded Holt International Adoption over 50 years ago. It is partly because of her that I have my sister and will have a son also adopted using the same agency.
This could quite possibly be my favorite picture. This is at the airport. My first time holding her. It has been in a frame since dad had that roll of film developed. It was in my room growing up, taken to my college dorm room, and now sits in my living room.

Dancing Queens

2010-11-23T10:48:00.002-06:00

The girls have been taking dance lessons since August. Last week was parent watch week. We don't usually get to watch the lessons. It was awesome to see what the girls have been learning. I loved dance growing up and took lessons for 14 years. I love seeing my daughters enjoying it also. Thanks mom and dad for paying for all those lessons for me. There were times I was in several classes a week and in competitions. I can't imagine what this cost each year. Especially when I had several costumes for each recital. Right now the girls are only taking tap and ballet. They have only one costume each. Thank goodness.

Home study....check

2010-11-12T11:34:00.002-06:00

We can now check our home study off our list. Bonnie came to visit with us three separate times. I feel she really got to see who we are as a family and got to know the girls well too. The girls loved her and are still "playing Bonnie" at home. This consists of one of them knocking on the door and saying "Hi, I am Bonnie, I am here for a meeting!" Then, they proceed to have a meeting about how excited they are to have a baby brother. They also talk about all the things they are going to teach him and all of the fun times they will have together. It really is adorable.

So, now that our home study is complete and Bonnie has recommended a child be placed in our care, we will wait for our copies of it to send to the USCIS for their approval.

Yeah! We are moving right along.

On a side note. The girls imaginations have really been running wild. Not only are they "playing Bonnie", but they have been "playing high school" too. This is pretty much the same as playing kindergarten except they wear lip stick and carry a purse. Too funny!!

Ethiopia

2010-11-03T19:57:00.004-05:00

I have been wanting to write and share this news for several months! Kent and I are adding to our family. We are adopting a little boy from Ethiopia, probably around ten months old. This process started for us in August when we applied to Holt. Holt is an international adoption agency in Omaha and is the same agency my parents used when my sister was adopted from Korea 23 years ago. I have known since I was little that this was something I would do when I was older. I am so happy that this time has come! Adoption is amazing. I can’t hardly even begin to explain how important Kait is to me. We are sisters in every way and I am so incredibly lucky and blessed to have her in my life.

So, we have completed a mountain of paperwork, been cleared on all possible background and medical checks, attended adoption classes and webinars, and have almost completed our home study. We are now preparing our dossier paperwork to be sent to the Ethiopian Embassy in Washington D.C. and are waiting for our passports to come in the mail.

This process can take anywhere from 10 to 18 months. Of course we are hoping for the shorter side of this. Once we have a match, we will plan a trip to Ethiopia. There we will meet our son and go to the Ethiopian court. About 8 weeks after this, we will plan our second trip to bring our son home.

Chloe and Sophia are just as excited as Kent and I are. They even requested baby dolls that look like their baby brother. They both sleep with their new dolls every night.

Holt is making a difference in Ethiopia. We are so proud to be a part of it.

Halloween

2010-11-01T09:01:00.002-05:00

The girls had an excellent Halloween. Here are some pics from our evening. Sophia was Pinkalicious and Chloe was Fancy Nancy. These are a couple of their favorite storybook characters right now.

Zooland

2010-11-01T08:48:00.005-05:00

One of our Halloween stops was the Omaha Children's museum. The girls got to trick or treat, go through their spooky castle, and make paper jack o lanterns. However, my favorite part was zooland. The museum recently restored the zooland animals from Richmond Gordman. I was really excited to see this because I remember playing on these when I was little. In the 90's, when Richmond Gordman changed just to Gordmans, the animals were sold. The children's museum found all four animals for kids to enjoy today in their big backyard exhibit. Very cool! Also in this exhibit is a playground, tent, race track, and outdoor kitchen. We had a great time.

Here is an interesting link to the info about zooland. Click here.

Pumpkins and more

2010-10-18T08:41:00.002-05:00

Yesterday we ventured to Vala's to enjoy some October fun! Now the last time I was there was when I was a kid. I don't even recognize the place. It is like the Disneyworld of Gretna. We ended up spending about SEVEN hours there because there is so much to do. We were all a little wiped out by the end of the day. We didn't find The Great Pumpkin, but we did find about 3,000 calories. Ha!

AMAZING

2010-10-18T08:31:00.003-05:00

My sister Kait flew home this weekend for a quick visit. It was an AMAZING surprise considering that I didn't think I would see her until Christmas. I miss her so much! Also AMAZING, my mom came up to spend the day with us too. We had a girls day on Friday and took Chloe and Sophia to the AMAZING pizza machine. Since we had parent/teacher conferences this week, we all had Friday off. It is always AMAZING to have a Friday off. The AMAZING pizza machine is a place with AMAZING fun for the girls but not so AMAZING food. I can only handle it about once every six months. I guess that makes it a special treat for them. Thanks Kait and mom for spending the day with us! Sorry Kait about the pasta with warmed up ketchup as sauce. Sorry mom about the brown lettuce. Ha! They got me back for making them go. They made ME ride the wild ride with the girls as you can see in the pic.

NU vs. SDSU

2010-09-28T09:02:00.003-05:00

We had a great time at the Husker game! Thanks for the tickets mom and dad!

Happy Birthday Chloe!

2010-09-28T08:23:00.008-05:00

Yesterday was Chloe's sixth birthday. She enjoyed taking treats to school and going out to eat for supper. She is now the very proud new owner of a pink ipod. Maybe now, I will actually get to use mine!

Last year, I made a slide show of my favorite pictures of Chloe. Here it is again. I added about 10 photos from this past year.

Go Huskers

2010-09-20T09:32:00.002-05:00

We had visitors this weekend to enjoy the Husker game with us. Kent's parents joined us, as well as Brent, Laura, and Jadyn. We also enjoyed cupcakes for Chloe's upcoming 6th birthday. And of course, she enjoyed a few gifts too. It was great to spend time with the family. I know the girls had a great time playing with their cousin Jadyn.

Smores

2010-09-20T09:30:00.004-05:00

When we moved into our new house, there was a fire pit already in the back yard. Because it has been so hot the last few months, we had not used it yet. However, this weekend cooled off enough for us to try it out. We all enjoyed a few smores!

Muffins for Mom

2010-09-20T09:25:00.004-05:00

Chloe and her kindergarten class invited moms to breakfast on Friday morning. With her and my schedule being the same because I teach in the same district I always stress about making it to these events. Thankfully, her breakfast and my planning period were at the same time. I am also thankful that my principal sees the value in this kind of activity and let me venture to Chloe's school. Trying to be a great teacher and great mom at the same time is sometimes hard. I make it all work any way I can which usually leaves me about dead by the end of the week. So, I am super appreciative when something like this comes up and I didn't have to move mountains to try and be there.

Birthdays

2010-09-14T10:14:00.003-05:00

There was a BIG birthday party at our house this weekend. We celebrated birthdays for G, Kait, Chloe, Sophia, Addi, and Lily. With the exception of Sophia, they all have birthdays in August, September, or October. Because Sophia's birthday is three days after Christmas we decided to include her in the mix now.

Sunshine

2010-09-14T09:25:00.001-05:00

I just love this picture....SO happy!

Tiny Dancers

2010-09-14T08:48:00.003-05:00

The girls had their first dance lesson last week. They loved it and have been asking when they have lessons again. It seems to be hard to wait a whole week to go back. I got to watch a little of each class and I must say, they have got some moves!

Happy 3rd Birthday Jadyn

2010-09-07T09:32:00.002-05:00

The girls enjoyed Jadyn's 3rd birthday party this weekend. It was a swimming party and I think my girls were the first one's in the pool and the last one's out. They LOVE to swim. Chloe even practiced her diving. Thanks for having us Jadyn. We had a great time!

Soccer has begun

2010-09-07T09:30:00.004-05:00

Soccer season is off to a great start. Both girls are playing for the Y in Omaha. Here are some pics I took at the first couple games. They are both super excited about the goals they have scored in these first couple games. Way to go girls!

Happy 50th!

2010-09-07T09:25:00.002-05:00

My uncle turned 50 a couple weeks ago. We had a small surprise party complete with everything an old guy would need. This included, pills, vitamins, and even an "old man" hat the girls picked out for him.

I must have been a little overwhelmed this past couple weeks with the new school year and all of the adjustments because I have not posted for awhile.

Sorry to my uncle Donnie that it took me so long to post about his birthday. However, in his old age he has a hard time even remembering anyone's birthday so I don't feel so bad. Actually, he always has a hard time remembering them. At least now he can blame it on old age. Ha! Love ya!

First Days

2010-08-11T07:40:00.002-05:00

We all started school this week. Chloe started kindergarten, Sophia started pre-school, and I welcomed eighth graders to Spanish class. We have gotten this school year off to a great start.

Chloe told me that "Kindergarten Rocks" when I picked her up on Friday. I knew she would love it! My shy little Chloe sure has changed and grown up in the last couple years.

Sophia is going through a little adjustment being at daycare/pre-school. She is used to Chloe always being by her side. So, being there by herself has been a little overwhelming for her. Hopefully, in a couple weeks, she will be more excited to go. We are working on it!

So far, I really like my new position in Millard. The teachers have been very welcoming. I am getting to know my new curriculm and students. I am excited to be back in the middle school.

What a week we had! We all started a new journey.

Painting

2010-07-31T15:27:00.002-05:00

I have been super impressed with the Omaha Public Library summer reading program. They have lots of free activities and great prizes to win when you add up the books you read. We have been to story time, craft classes, a magic show, a bird class, and an ocean animal class. The girls have enjoyed every activity and have learned a lot. One of the prizes they won was a chance to paint an ornament at a pottery place in town. We also got Royals tickets, Coco Keys passes, Children's museum passes, and zoo passes. How awesome is that!? It has been an awesome summer!

Estes Park 2010

2010-07-22T20:04:00.008-05:00

We have been home from vacation for about a week, so it is probably time I get some pics posted. As usual we had an awesome time spent with family. This year we had 16 people on our trip! We were trying to figure out how many years we have been going. We go every summer and decided that it has been 19 or 20 years. I really hope it was 19 because I am going to make t-shirts for everyone to wear next year. I am sure the family will love going on a hike wearing awesome matching t-shirts. Ha!

We enjoyed the usual hiking, shopping, eating downtown, golfing, pedicures, and swimming but added in a few new activities. We went to the Estes Park rodeo and took the girls on their first horseback ride. We also went paddle boating on Lake Estes. It was fun but for some reason I didn't get any pics of it. Maybe I was too busy paddling the boat. Maybe I was too busy watching Kent paddle. Ha!

I was really proud of the girls and their excitement for hiking. They managed to tackle a 3 mile hike this year. This is a lot for those tiny little three year old legs of Sophia's. They love earning their trail patches! Also, I can't fail to mention that my dad conquered Long's Peak for the second time. This time my cousin Claire joined him. Even though she forgot her lunch and dad had to give her half of his, he was glad to have her as a hiking companion. They both came back tired....and hungry!

Playtime!

2010-07-09T14:23:00.002-05:00

Some very good friends of ours from Norfolk came to visit this week. The girls were so happy to see Lucia and Daniela. Here are some pics from the Omaha Children's museum.

Fourth of July Weekend

2010-07-07T08:00:00.006-05:00

We enjoyed the fourth with family and friends. Although the rain put a damper on our golf and swimming plans, we still had a great weekend. We spent the fourth at Donnie and Linda's with my side of the family...Inside of course!

We enjoyed fireworks at home with my cousin Grace.

The girls made flag pictures to share.

We spent Monday at the zoo with Brent, Laura, and Jadyn.

Splash Park

2010-06-28T11:44:00.002-05:00

Most of our summer has been spent exploring Omaha for fun activities for the girls and myself. We found a Splash Park, which is a playground with fountains and sprinklers. The girls had a great time cooling off and getting soaked in the water. We will have to go back soon.

Half Birthday

2010-06-28T11:27:00.005-05:00

For those of you that know me well, you know that I like to do something for the Chloe and Sophia's half-birthday. Today Sophia is three and a half. However, we pretended it was yesterday since Kent was home. We each enjoyed a slice of her cake that had been frozen from her real birthday. Yes, it was still delicious! She also got a new dance outfit because we have signed up for dance this fall. I know celebrating a half birthday might be a little overboard but it isn't anything major and the girls always love the recognition of being a half of a year older.

Quilting

2010-06-28T11:15:00.004-05:00

Mom came up all day on Friday to help me get started on two quilts I am making. Instead of keeping all of the girls baby clothes in tubs in the basement I decided to cut them up into quilting squares and make a quilt that the girls can have as a keepsake. Mom gave me a sewing machine last Christmas but I have not been able to use it much other than sewing up the waist of Sophia's pants. So, we spent most of the afternoon and evening working on these quilts. I really wanted to sew these myself so most of mom's time was spent helping me figure this whole sewing thing out.....and fixing the mistakes I made. Thanks mom! Here are some pics of the quilts so far....

Sophia's Quilt Chloe's Quilt