schrag clan

2009-10-19T19:21:00.000-07:00

Noah lost his first tooth today! Actually, Steve pulled it, but it was time. At his last dental appt. a few weeks ago, we were told that he already had 2 1/2 6 year molars and 2 nights ago I noticed that his right front tooth was loose and the new one was poking through. He was a trooper and even helped wiggle the tooth back and forth. As soon as it was out he felt so much better and proud of himself.

Football Highlights

2009-08-23T12:45:00.000-07:00

Jakob and Noah played their first Upward football games Saturday. They did awesome! Jakob threw for a TD and intercepted a pass. Noah ran through the defense for an awesome TD (but I didn't get it on video). It was fun and the weather was perfect!

Clip from Noah's latest game

2009-05-26T02:53:00.001-07:00

Gooooooal

2009-05-20T12:54:00.000-07:00

Noah scored a goal last night!!! He was so happy. You have to watch the high-fiving and celebration all the way down the field. We're so proud of him. He had 4 or 5 shots on goal before the score and he finally made it! Ice cream was called for after all that.

Gotta love it!

Finally...

2009-05-19T11:10:00.001-07:00

Finally, this planter box is fixed and planted! After the dogs and the kids dug in the dirt and spilled a lot of it all over the porch, Steve fixed the bottom of the planter and I got it filled back up. I bought plants at the Amish Nursery and got it put back together. I might still go back and get a few more small things, but it's pretty much done. I need to put more dirt in some of the other planters along with some smaller plants. The tall plants are 'Moonbeams" and they will have yellow flowers, the 2 medium plants have green and burgundy leaves and should have purple flowers, and the 4 small ones will have white and apricot flowers.

Keely and Bocce have decide to try and dig their way to China - or at least find the snakes and rabbits that are along the way. They have been digging all over the yard and getting very dirty in the process. Keely was tired after I interrupted her latest attempt. I started their frontline yesterday, so they should be safe from the ticks.

Bocce thinks she owns the place. I guess the chairs are more comfy that the grass, but hey, at least she not on the table... this time.
Steve set up the croquet set Sunday. He even mowed the grass low.
Noah and Ben were taking a break from playing.
We've been spending some more time outside in the evenings because of the nice weather and even eating on the porch when it's warm enough. The boys like it and it's a nice change of scenery.
The boys have even kind of enjoyed doing their chores around the house. It's not too much for them to handle so they are getting used to pitching in around the house. They really don't complain about setting the table and feeding the dogs as much as they do when they have to clean their toys up. Noah and Ben have been helping make dinner, and made veggie kabobs the other night. And Jakob has been checking the garden for strawberries every night. I bought some watermellon plants today for Jakob to plant so hopefully in about 2 months he'll get to start checking for them too.

Buggy

2009-05-09T16:50:00.001-07:00

After soccer and the Mutt Strut today, we went to the Amish Nursery for free home made ice cream! The boys really wanted to have a buggy ride, and when it was their turn the still wanted to go on it! (Which is a big step for all of them!) The nursery has tons of flowers and trees and vegetable plants to choose from. We didn't get anything this time, but I will definitely go back and next year I'll try to get most of my plants there.

For the Mutt Strut, I took Bocce to the park and they had some little contests, biggest paws, cutest costume, most mixed breeds, most like owner, and so on, none of which she won. It was a fundraiser for the Humane Society. One little girl won the prize for highest donation with $500! And then there was a quick walk around the downtown area to promote the cause. It was fun, but I again got sunburned... oops! And Bocce was so tired when we got back that she couldn't muster up the energy to jump into the chair with me before she zonked out.

Upward Soccer

2009-05-09T16:37:00.000-07:00

Noah has played 3 outdoor soccer games. He enjoys it as long as it isn't muddy or wet on the field. Last week it was very wet - the rain stopped just in time for the games to start. Noah didn't like to get wet and muddy so he avoided the puddles to the best of his ability. We told him not to worry about the mud but it takes a while for him to change his ways and he tried to stay clean. Today, it was wet on the field, even though they pumped a lot of water off and put down straw. He did a little better and his shoes were pretty muddy when he was done. He did a great job and really kicked the ball hard.

So Cathy was bored...

2009-05-08T09:31:00.000-07:00

Cathy was bored one day after I sent out these pictures a while ago and made this cute comic strip out of them. I thought it was neat and finally decided to put it on the blog.

Yough Extreme Adventure Race

2009-05-01T15:06:00.000-07:00

A rare post by Steve.
Last weekend Court and headed to Ohiopyle State Park (SW Pennsylvania) for an adventure race. The Yough Extreme Adventure Race consists of trail running, mountain biking, kayaking, rappelling and (very little) orienteering. It was a long, hilly race (took us almost 10.5 hours) and exhausting! Overall, we traveled about 40 miles. We ended up placing 8th for our division. I'll let you guess how many (few) teams there were in our division :) Here are some pics of the area.

Garden time again

2009-04-24T11:05:00.000-07:00

The weather has gotten a lot warmer and it's time to start gardening again. WooHoo! My beans and peas aren't doing so well since I probably planted them too early. Only 2 plants (I think the beans) have sprouted and one has almost been completely taken care of by the deer.
My lettuce is doing a whole lot better but it's slow going. I started more lettuce seeds in planters on the porch and in the house so hopefully they will go into the garden soon.
I also started eggplant and bell peppers in the house and should be able to plant them in the garden in a couple weeks.
Noah and Ben and I planted 9 broccoli plants today and can't wait for them to start producing, but we'll have to. And Ben planted a dirt clump and is calling it broccoli, we'll keep our fingers crossed for that one to grow.
I noticed that the strawberries are blooming so I decided to weed the row today. I found many new plants growing off to the sides thanks to the rabbits. And I found what I think are carrots (thanks again, rabbits?) but they are not anywhere near where I planted carrot seeds last year (which didn't grow either) so maybe they are not carrots but I left them alone for now.
Coming soon, tomatoes and anything else I can find that should taste good and has a chance of growing in my garden.
If my garden doesn't produce any thing again this year, I might just try a container garden on the porch next year. That seemed to work in KC when I tried it.
The boys got trees from school today, for Arbor Day, and we'll try to find a good place to plant them tomorrow.

Upward Awards ceremony

2009-03-31T12:05:00.000-07:00

As awards ceremonies for children's sports leagues go, they are generally pretty boring. The 2 we have been to this year were actually pretty good. The football ceremony had a former professional player from the area. He spoke and took pictures with all the kids and signed autographs.

If that wasn't good enough... the basketball awards ceremony was a special treat for us (being from KC and all). KC Wolf, the mascot of the Kansas City Chiefs was the entertainment and speaker for the evening. He came out and interacted with the crowd before the ceremony began and then showed a highlight reel and then took off his costume and spoke to the kids about being an Christian and what it's like being a professional goof-ball. He even let one of the kids put on his stinky costume. Jakob didn't raise his hand for that. It was pretty cool. Every couple of days Ben says that he wants KC Wolf and his friends to come to our house... Sorry, don't think that's gonna happen, kiddo.

St. Patty's Parade '09

2009-03-15T18:13:00.000-07:00

We took our 2nd annual trip to Dublin, OH, Saturday for the parade. The boys had fun, the dogs not so much. Keely barked at every other dog she saw, and even jumped over Noah to get at one. Bocce was afraid of the drums - which are kind of my favorite part.

After the parade we headed to the Brazenhead Pub again. The entertainment was dancers from the Dublin School of Irish Dance who were trying to earn money for a trip to Ireland. Those girls had some fast feet!

We dined on garlic fries and fish and chips. And Jakob ate most of a cheeseburger that was as big as his head! It was a great time.

BocceThe boys waving at a fire truckKeely and SteveNoah in a moodHead-sized cheeseburgerSteve and Noahpooped pooches on the way home

spring fever

2009-03-10T16:09:00.000-07:00

The weather has been so nice lately, that I have been trying to get the flower beds and boxes. Ben was a big help yesterday picking up the dead branches in the flower garden. Bocce was wondering what was going on because her chew toys were disappearing, but she got over it. Today, I took on the boxes on the back porch. I cleared out all the dead plants and moved one plant to a different box. Then, I decided to do what I have wanted and needed to do since we moved in. Apparently, the bottom had fallen out of the large box so the dirt was falling out. I took all the dirt out and it filled 5 planters, boxes and tubs. Steve will figure out how to fix it and get it all done so I can finally get flowers back in it and beautify the porch. And I demolished the broken trellis and pulled up the dead ivy.

This is the planter box from the top with the falling bottom still in it

This is the rotten particle board bottom

I also planted some seeds in peet pots a few weeks ago but now I'm afraid I did it too soon and they will die before I can get the garden ready to plant. I guess I should start tilling soon.
I hope my thumb of death starts turning a little greener soon!
Noah and Ben also played outside a lot while I was working. They played with the tire swing in the woods and also sat the giant log at the edge of the woods and turned it into a motorcycle. It was fun. They played with the dogs and rode their scooters. I hope the weather holds so we can play outside more.

So I closed the back of the car...

2009-03-09T11:59:00.001-07:00

...and the glass shattered! I never realized I was so strong! I took the recycling to the drop off and put the bins back in the car. I closed the door and got the scare of my life. The glass shattered all over the back of the car and the ground. It was a good thing that no one was sitting in the back seat or they would have been littered with glass. I cleaned up all the glass and it's getting fixed tomorrow. Hopefully the rain will hold off!

Beautiful Saturday afternoon

2009-03-07T12:55:00.000-08:00

Jakob played his last basketball game today. He did really well. He doesn't remember how many baskets he scored, but that's ok. He was a good team player today. Everyone worked well together and they did a great job today.

Pre-game huddle and prayer Going back in after some coaching from Dad

Patiently waiting for a rebound

Noah and Ben got to eat PushPops

which made them very, very sticky

After the game, we decided to take advantage of the beautiful, 80 degree weather and go to the park. We had a little picnic and the kids got to play. There were a lot of people enjoying the day. We took the dogs and they had a nice time too. Keely was pretty mellow and took it all in. Bocce enjoyed all the petting from the kids and did not like it when people would walk away from her, even if they hadn't been with her in the first place. She did a lot of barking and whining, but it tired her out sufficiently.
It's been a pretty good day.

Soccer

2009-03-06T12:51:00.000-08:00

Noah had his first soccer game of the season last night. He was so excited and was even mad when he had practice because it wasn't a real game. He did great and his team won 2-1! He played 2 quarters and seemed a little timid during the first but he almost scored a goal. During the 2nd quarter he played he got to kick the ball off to start. He did a lot of tripping over the lines and falling on the floor. We went out to eat pizza after and he ate a whole 6 inch cheese pizza that he was supposed to share with Ben. Last week we went and got them the same thing - Ben ate 3 pieces, plus 2 pieces of Steve's pizza and Noah would only eat 1 piece. The video we have of the game isn't very good so I'm not going to post it right now. We may do a highlight reel at the end of the season (in 3 weeks).

Poor Noah

2009-02-19T06:19:00.000-08:00

Noah and Ben had their well checks at the doctor yesterday afternoon. Noah ended up with mild ear infections and and had to get 2 shots in each leg :( Poor guy. They could hear him crying in the waiting room. Fortunately, he was asleep withing 15 minutes of leaving the doctor's office. And he got a cool alligator finger puppet for his trouble.

He seems much better today and doesn't seem to have any pain in his legs.

Noah's Birthday

2009-02-17T17:57:00.000-08:00

Today is Noah's 5th birthday! He had a pretty good day. He got to bring cupcakes to school. The weather was decent so he played outside for a little while. We had homemade Chinese food - pot stickers, moo shu noodles, and cashew chicken - for dinner. And a giant soccer ball cake for dessert. He enjoyed Skyping with Oma and Opa, and he actually let me hold the phone to his ear long enough to let Nana say Happy Birthday to him.
He opened presents which included a soccer ball, blanket, Madagascar 2 dvd, a puzzle, and a Cars toy.
Now he is in bed singing and banging on the wall trying to keep himself awake.
It's been a long day, but totally worth it!

She fights like a girl

2009-02-13T10:51:00.000-08:00

Bocce and Keely were taking advantage of the nice weather today.

Keely found a stick and Bocce tried to steal it.

They were playing around pretty roughly and Bocce got a little carried away.
She really got some air under her.
They had a little stretch. And a snuggle.

Then they were tired.

And now they are passed out.

Lake Katherine After the Ice

2009-02-11T15:49:00.000-08:00

Steve, Noah, and Ben decided to go for a hike Sunday afternoon because the weather was beautiful and, as we all know, Steve gets stir crazy when he's cooped up. They caught the end of the icicles from the ice storm. Noah and Ben said they had a good time.
Good Brother Time

Storm Clouds

2009-02-11T15:19:00.001-08:00

This evening a storm rolled in with wind gust forecast to be 60 to 75 miles per hour. This forecast prompted Wellston (where Steve's plant is) City Schools to call for school to be dismissed 2 hours early today. I didn't know why until the 5 O'clock news said that the buildings had suffered some damage in the last storms that lead to the discovery that the buildings (only about 5 years old) were built with not enough steel supports. It's really no wonder with the lack of building codes in this area that such an oversight could be made. Unfortunately, it had to be in school buildings where children spend a majority of their time.

The news also pointed out that the high winds could lead to more power outages due to the weekend tree limbs.
I did manage to see some beautiful pictures of the clouds as they rolled through.

Introducing Bocce

2009-02-05T10:08:00.000-08:00

This is Bocce (after Andrea Boccelli). She's a cute little Boxer puppy. Her mom was a 3-legged Boxer named Maggie! It was so meant to be.
Keely has been very tolerant and they even snuggled a little on the way home from picking her up.

She played with Noah and Ben so much that she already had to take a nap - she snores! She loves her new bed. She is so sweet and cute.

Ben likes to carry her around and he's making sure she doesn't try to go up the stairs. Noah was curling up on the couch and whining just like Bocce.
I can tell the boys are going to have a lot of fun with her and Keely.

Let there be power!

2009-02-03T18:06:00.000-08:00

We finally got electricity back this afternoon. We couldn't be happier - except there was a lot of cleaning to do. I got the fridge and freezer cleaned out and a lot of laundry done. Jakob had a hard night on Monday when he was going to sleep. It is hard to sleep 4 different places in 6 nights and it caught up with him. He just wanted to go home and sleep in his own bed. Everybody is OK tonight though. And we are all glad to be home.

Big Ben is the Big 3!

2009-01-27T06:11:00.000-08:00

Ben's 3rd birthday was a good day. This was his tractor cake. I couldn't make the right color green so this had to do. Since it was his peanut butter birthday we had peanut butter pancakes for lunch and I put Reece's Pieces around the cake.

Ben got some fun gifts including 'Brown Bear, Polar Bear What Do You See?' game...And Gator Golf, and a new train and tracks for the Geo Trax system.

Everybody enjoyed the cake, ice cream and Reece's.

Ben was very tired by the end of the day. He talked on the phone with Nana, and Skyped on the computer with Oma and Opa, and Kevin, Sandi, and Emma. He loves watching himself on the Skype camera.

Keely's friend Pumpkin

2009-01-27T06:05:00.000-08:00

This is Keely's new friend Pumpkin. She's Catherine and Court's dog. They are moving here to work for GenMills. They stayed with us for a week while in transition. The dogs had fun together but had a hard time deciding who the boss was. Then Pumpkin realized it was me! Every time she came inside, for Keely, it was like she was a new dog and they had to start all over. Pumpkin would put up with the growling and sniffing and then make her way to me and sit down and, of course, Keely would try and block her every move. After they left, Keely would wonder around the house looking for her. I think they'll be good friends. Keely wasn't as bad as I thought she would be with the new being in her midst.

snow day

2009-01-27T05:59:00.000-08:00

Finally snow!! The boys aren't excited yet. It's still coming down. Ben is still sleeping at 9:00 because he is not feeling well. He had a temp of 101.5 yesterday and 102.8 at 4 this am. Sleep is good for him.

Upward B-Ball

2009-01-10T15:31:00.000-08:00

Jakob started Upward Basketball games today. It seems to be 4 on 4, 6 quarters with Devotions at 1/2 time, and very lax on the rules. The refs were not really calling double dribble or traveling today, hopefully because it was only the first game. It seemed to go pretty fast. Jakob got his team's Hustle Star because he would get back to the baseline faster than anyone else when the other team got the ball and he generally knew where to go. He's a smart kid and when it comes to sports he really pays attention to what is going on. And he scored a basket!

Jakob and Steve at half-time devotions

Asst. Coach Steve trying to remind the kids where they need to be

kiddie karoke

2009-01-08T11:34:00.000-08:00

Over Christmas break there was a lot of singing and piano playing. Jakob learned Away In A Manger on the piano at the Schrag's and the boys all had a great time performing at the Bowen's with the fireplace as a stage.
Ben learned at least part of Mama Mia this summer from the commercials for the movie, so I put on the song for him in the car so he could learn more. He did learn a little more but not much.
Jakob and Noah couldn't stand all the attention Ben was getting, so they had to get into the act too. And Max the dog makes a few appearances.
This is one of his many performances (just ignore the first part):

What he is saying over and over is, "Mama mia, how can I resist ya? Let you Go."
They also sang Lifesong, Oh No You Never Let Go, and Sweet Caroline and a few O.A.R. songs.
Singing is something the boys often do, but we don't get often get it on tape because they start to ham it up when the camera goes on.
All we need to do is get some instruments in their hands and we'll have the next Jonas Bros! Look out ladies! Here come the Schrag boys!
This is Jakob playing Away in a Manger at the Anne and Milo Schrag Christmas in Moundridge.

Our boys are so talented!

Mas Mexico

2008-12-18T15:58:00.000-08:00

Today, we got up really early and took a bus to an ancient Mayan ruin called Tulum. It was really cool.

After Tulum, we drove to Akumal for a cenote - a fresh water area great for snorkeling. We had a great time and got a lot of sun.

Video of a little kayaking and lots of fish under the water.

This is the beach at Tulum. There was a steep staircase to get down to the water which backs up to a cliff - which Steve tried to climb of course!
The bad thing about all this sun and sand - The Boys aren't here! We miss you guys and love you. Behave, and Noah, we wish you luck in your Christmas program tonight. We hate to miss it! :{

!Hola from Mexico!

2008-12-16T10:43:00.000-08:00

!Hola! We are having a wonderful time in Mexico. We have been swimming, played volleyball on the beach and we even went kayaking this morning. It's a wonderfully relaxing time in the sun.

Yikes!

2008-12-10T10:26:00.001-08:00

This is Noah's back this afternoon. He's very itchy but it seems to come and go. He's getting through it. I think it's worse for me than it is for him. And I'm probably pretty annoying about it. His hand was all bumpy after school today and when I took this picture his arms were getting spotty. Poor guy.

Jakob's Christmas Program

2008-12-09T09:32:00.000-08:00

Jakob's 2nd grade Christmas program was last night. His class sang 3 songs. Very cute. The video is about 4 minutes, but it's really adorable.

Hives...

2008-12-09T09:24:00.000-08:00

...And no, I don't mean the bee kind. Noah got double ear infections before Thanksgiving and was given Amoxycillan. He finished his course of it and on Saturday afternoon he developed red rashy areas that had what looked like bee stings or mosquito bites in them. They've been coming and going since then, but each time they come back they are worse than the time before. Benedryl seems to help, but it's just sad that he has to go through this again. They are definitely not as bad as when he was 11 months old, but it still sucks! I called the doctor yesterday, and the nurse said that she said it's not from the amox since he stopped taking it before the hives showed up. But what does she know?! I don't know what else it could be. Hopefully, they won't last 3 weeks like before.

Christmas Tree

2008-12-09T09:18:00.001-08:00

We got into the Holiday Spirit last week and put up the tree and started to decorate. The boys have advent calendars with chocolate behind each door (thanks, Mom!) We had a bit of a deadline because we were going to have visitors coming for the weekend. But we got it done in time.

Turkey Trot

2008-11-27T16:11:00.000-08:00

Steve ran a Turkey Trot 5 miler today in Columbus. It was pretty cold for the boys so we spent most of the time in Starbucks. That is until the sugar from their hot chocolate and cinnamon swirl coffee cake kicked in and they started fogging up the windows and drawing in it. We spent the rest of the time waiting in the car. Steve finished in 42 minutes and won a pumpkin pie.

Since we were in Columbus for the race we decided to stay a few nights - or maybe the other way around. We had an early dinner at McCormick and Schmick's which is a deliciously decadent restaurant. The boys were actually pretty good once we were seated. They got to have ice cream after dinner and Steve and I had pumpkin cheesecake - yum! We got a little silly after dinner and Ben tried to eat a gingerbread boy on a hot chocolate kiosk.

They are currently playing their daily game of football in the hotel room.

Needless to say, I will be making Thanksgiving dinner on Saturday after we get home.

Happy Thanksgiving to all!

boredom sets in

2008-11-26T08:39:00.000-08:00

The boys are out of school today but it was Ben who got bored and a crazy idea. He, for some reason, likes to have his toenails polished but then likes it taken off right away. He got the idea to do it himself with markers.

Here is the result:

Chef Noah

2008-11-23T12:05:00.000-08:00

Noah has been super helpful around dinner time lately. He likes to help (or watch) me make dinner and set the table. And he does a great job. Last night he made the salad for dinner. He cut the lettuce with a special plastic knife and put on the onions and tomatoes. He was very proud of himself. It was delicious and everybody loved it!

November snow

2008-11-23T12:00:00.000-08:00

Last Monday was very strange weather-wise. It tried to snow all day. It would go for about 30 minutes with 5 or 6 different types of snow and then stop and start again later. Then about 9pm it snowed enough for this:

Of course it was all gone the next day, but it's a pretty early snow for this area. It snowed again Thursday night and the boys prayed for there to be enough to close school Friday, but I guess the answer was no - but the bus was 20 minutes late so I ended up driving Jakob to school after I took Noah.

food drive barrels

2008-11-20T18:38:00.000-08:00

So, tonight, we were talking about what J was going to wear to school in the morning because it's Spirit Day and the kids are supposed to wear Ohio State or Michigan colors because of the big game on Saturday. We were also talking about the food drive barrels they have set up in the cafeteria for the kids to put canned goods in their favorite school's barrel and then it will all go to the food bank. I guess they count the cans at the end (or maybe do a visual assessment) to see who wins. So J started getting really upset about it and said that he saw kids taking cans out of the Michigan barrel and putting them in the Ohio State barrel and now there is so much in there that they need 2 for Ohio State! Oh my gosh, he was so passionate about the injustice! It's all going to the same place, so it doesn't really matter but I guess it's the principle of the thing. I am so glad that he's a good kid. He follows the rules and gets really upset when other people don't. It's sad that he'll have to realize one day that not everyone has the same morals that he does. :(

J's hand

2008-11-20T08:48:00.000-08:00

Jakob went to the doctor today and had new x-rays taken. The doctor said he can tell that the bones are healing but two of them are a little dented in still. His fingers remained swollen until he took the ace bandages off today. He did not get a removable splint, but he got the same hard cast-like piece back and a new ace bandage and instructions that he could take it off at home under strict supervision.
With any luck, he'll heal fast and be better than new for that football/baseball career he's dreaming of.

update

2008-11-10T10:53:00.000-08:00

We just came from the orthopedist and he said that they will leave the splint on Jakob's hand for 10 more days. Then he'll get more x-rays and see how it is healing. He said it will basically heal on it's own and he'll have a removable cast so he can move his fingers around while he is supervised at home.
The fingers are broken right above the knuckle closest to the hand and they are not completely broken but more like a crimp or crunch. And he said it looks like the were rammed into something with the same force so they are pretty even. And we looked at Jakob's wrist were he broke it when he was 20 months old and you can't even tell it had been broken. He said this, too, would be just a memory. So, I guess he'll be able to have that football career he's been looking forward to!

My baby is broken :{

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

Last night, Jakob had to take a trip to the ER (and not the good one with John Stamos and Goran Visnjic). He was sliding in the basement (a normal activity for the boys after they get jammies on), and he slammed his hand down on the floor and his fingers bent backwards. OUCH! When the x-ray tech asked where we thought it was broken while Jakob still had the ice pack covering himself, I said he'd be able to tell where is was - it what that out of place! He was not able to make an OK sign for one of the x-rays, but still they determined that he had broken 3 fingers on his right hand. We have to wait until at least Monday to see the orthopedist and have it cast. The splint made him feel a whole lot better right away. He was able to sleep through the night and is currently outside kicking a football. Last night he was a little sad that he'll have to sit out at recess because he won't be able to play 2 hand touch football, but, I think he'll be OK.

And the Immunity Idol goes to ...

2008-11-08T10:01:00.000-08:00

I was cleaning out a tub of old clothes for Good Will and found these crazy dudes that we bought in SoCal. Being the Survivor lovers that they are, the boys immediately began making up races and eventually wrestling to determine the winner. The winner won the immunity idols. The next day, while Jakob and Noah were at school, Ben got them out and was playing with them and gave them names and silly voices! Oh the imaginations on these boys!

Happy Halloween

2008-10-31T16:28:00.000-07:00

We carved a pumpkin and the boys painted the last one today. It was pretty cold this week but today seemed nice. Steve and the boys played football in the back yard after work. It was a good, relatively candy free Halloween. Pretty boring, huh?

New Scarf

2008-10-29T12:07:00.000-07:00

I finally started using my sewing machine and I made Keely a fall scarf. I saw some 2 sided dog scarves at a craft show and decided that they looked really simple to make. So I did it! It's orange polka dots on one side and turkeys on the other. I went with orange because hunting season is coming up and she just happens to be deer colored! I don't think she'll be hanging out outside once she starts hearing gunshots - since she's now scared of loud noises - but it's better to be safe than sorry!

Look what the dog dragged in

2008-10-28T11:49:00.001-07:00

OMG! Keely has been going into the woods lately. I don't know what she does when she's there or where exactly she goes, but the other day, she brought back part of a leg bone (or maybe an arm). Today, I just found this:

Halloween comes early

2008-10-28T11:27:00.000-07:00

Halloween comes early in these parts. All the different towns schedule trick-or-treating on different days. We get Sunday. It seems strange not to trick and treat on Halloween, but this year anyway, it's was a good thing due to the weather forecast which says it will be really cold on Friday. Sunday's weather was really nice - a little chilly when the wind blew and the boys needed their gloves before we were finished, but it was a pretty nice evening for a walk. There were so many kids that it was difficult to walk on the side walk at some points.

Steve had the scariest costume of all - Dick Cheney in hunting gear! Noah was certainly freaked out by it and wouldn't even look at the mask. Ben liked the mask and even wanted to wear it.

Jakob and Ben got in a fire engine but Noah would only hang onto a handle on the side.

Steve and Batman, I mean Noah.

Ben's ear

2008-10-27T06:13:00.001-07:00

So, last night before bed Ben slid down the front of my chair and started whining that his ear hurt and he wanted an ice pack. I thought he had just rubbed his ear on the fabric and maybe pulled it the wrong way. This morning I was just looking at him and I thought he had smeared something on the back of his ear while he was sleeping, but at closer inspection, this is what I saw:

My poor baby. He rubbed the skin off the back side of his ear! :{
We went Trick 0r Treating last night - could this be our annual Halloween mishap?

Soooo Tired

2008-10-24T06:59:00.000-07:00

This is Ben Wednesday night. At dinner, he kept asking for more noodles and then he finally said in a very sad voice, "I don't want to eat." Then he put his head down and after a couple of minutes. . .

Lake Katherine Hike

2008-10-22T10:27:00.000-07:00

Monday was a beautiful day, so we decided to take the boys on a little hike before it got dark. We went to Lake Katherine, where Steve likes to run and did a lot of training for the trail run he did in September. I think we did the 1 mile loop. It was fun, no one got lost, and everybody slept well that night after a dinner of pancakes at Bob Evan's restaurant. We were about a week late for the most beautiful leaves but it was still kinda pretty.

This is the top of the waterfall that was raging last spring, but now
it is barely dribbling over the edge.
We came over a little hill and Ben started saying, "a guy, a guy." I thought he saw a man in the woods or on the trail. Apparently, he saw a face in this rock. You can kind of see it in the picture. There is a hole that goes all the way thru for the eyes and a nose, mouth and chin. He's so smart and creative!Racing up the hill.

Pumpkin Festival

2008-10-18T16:28:00.001-07:00

Unlike the Apple Festival, the Circleville Pumpkin Festival actually celebrates and exhibits the produce for which the fest is named! We went to the pumpkin festival today just to see what it was all about. There were thousands of people and literally tons and tons of pumpkins. There is, of course, poundage competition - 1325.5 lb took first prize. There were too many people posing with the gourd for me to get a good picture, but I got some others. It was pretty interesting, and there were some cute kids with some adorable pumpkin hats.

Fall Fun

2008-10-17T13:07:00.001-07:00

The Bob Evan's farm festival was fun. The kids had fun playing games and going thru the straw bale maze. And the pumpkins sold so well - they surpassed the sales of last year.

Today, Noah's class had Farmer's Day. They all got to dress up like farmers or cowboys and we had a little party and made a crafty spider.

Saving the World...

2008-10-09T11:33:00.000-07:00

...one appliance at a time. We finally got a new washer and dryer! The old ones stopped working well and were wasting a ton of energy and time so we decided to get new ones.

Love it!

Field Trip

2008-10-09T09:26:00.000-07:00

Noah's class got to go on their first field trip today, so of course we had to go along! We went to Weber Farms and the kids got to do a Goblin Egg Hunt. They found some different shaped and colored pumpkins in the grass and some of the kids found some bigger ones in the field still on the vines! Then we took a hay ride and all the kids got their own small pumpkin.
The boys were so exhausted after all that that they both fell asleep on the way home.Noah, Tatum, and Ben

Noah on the pumpkins

Ben with his pumpkin

PUMPKINS!!!

2008-10-08T13:18:00.000-07:00

It's pumpkin time in the country!!
My Ladies' club each year paints pumpkins to sell at the Bob Evan's Farm Festival in Rio Grand (pronounced rye-o grand). As it was my first year in the group, I had no idea what I would paint on my pumpkins, so out of the list of possibilities I chose to do Batman. I didn't really think that Batman would be that popular, and I couldn't find a good picture of 'The Dark Knight' that I could copy easily, so I had to find something else too. Much of my free time over the last 3 weeks has been spent finding pictures, tracing, painting, and spraying. I am finally finished painting and ready to help set up the booth tomorrow. And I am looking forward to manning the booth over the weekend! The painted pumpkin booth is very popular and it is even advertised in the Bob Evans kid's menu.

Here are some of the pictures. And we're keeping the Power Cat at the top!

Scarecrow for Hire
A few of my 35 minis

Snoopy and Woodstock

This one was just cute

One of my Batman pumpkins

Cornucopia

Boo!

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown
embellished with nylon leaves hot glued
on to add dimension and to
cover up my ugly painted leaves

Jakob's last game

2008-10-05T16:16:00.000-07:00

We had our last football game on Saturday.

On Sunday, we had the awards ceremony. The guest speaker was an ex-NFL long snapper and TE (played for KC, Philly, NE) named Mike Bartrum. He played in super bowls for the Eagles and the Pats (but not KC?!). We had fun talking to him about Kansas City.

Jakob ends the season with a score!

Between plays on defense

Jakob with Mike Bartrum, former NFL player.

Backpacking with Jakob and Noah

2008-09-29T17:21:00.000-07:00

I took Jakob and Noah on their first backpacking trip this weekend. We headed out on Saturday afternoon and spent one night out under the stars. The weather couldn't have been better! The kids were great sports too, and made good time. We all had a good time and they can't wait to go again.

Three Cups of Tea

2008-09-28T07:21:00.000-07:00

So, as many of you know, I usually don't read books. It's just not something I'm into, although I should be. Steve does most of the reading in our house - enough for both of us actually! However, in the last year I have managed to read about 5 books. And I am glad I did. The most recent book, which I just finished last night, is called Three Cups of Tea.

It chronicles the work of a man (Greg Mortenson) who was a mountain climber and after his failed attempt to climb K2 in Pakistan in the early 90's to honor his sister's memory, literally stumbled into building schools in the poorest areas of Pakistan and eventually Afganistan.
There is frank talk about his observations about the War Against Terror, and the lack of funding this country gave to Afganistan after beginning the attacks and how reconstruction in the area, although promised, has basically been ignored. There is great insight about how the 'bad guys' have planned ahead (under the guise of education in the form of madrassas) for a long fight, one that will not be won lightning fast like our current administration thought it would.
It illustrates the beauty and compassion of a misunderstood people and culture. The friends and allies that Mortenson made in the region have vowed to protect him with their lives. The fathers and village elders have promised to protect and promote his cause in the face of war, violence, and fatwas proclaimed against him, because they understand the importance of education in the fight against terror and the betterment of people. If only everyone could understand that the fight is not only going to be won by force, but by education and understanding.
I recommend this book to everyone. I think it is a cause worth supporting and I just wanted to share the book with everyone. There is so much more in the book that I cannot express here, everyone should just buy a copy, or check it out at the library, and read for themselves about 'one man's mission to promote peace, one school at a time.'

Parade video

2008-09-23T05:55:00.000-07:00

At the Apple Festival parade on Saturday night Jakob got to ride the Southview Elementary 'party boat' float. He had fun. The school had 2 floats entered in the parade, the other was a pig roast float. The pig roast took first place and the party boat took second in the contest. I don't think I've ever been to a nighttime parade, but this was neat. I guess it's usually sweltering heat here during the festival so they do the parades at night but this week was actually nice weather.

Noah really liked the high school bands. He started playing the gatorade trumpet when all the bands passed by. All in all, it was a really great parade as far as small town parades go.

Friday night was concert night. The Contemporary Christian band from our church performed for 2 hours Friday night. Then, the headliner Lady Antebellum performed on the main stage for 2 hours. It was pretty cool. Apparently, they are able to get really good bands for the Festival when they are on the brink of fame and then they hit it big and we have somewhat famous bands in this really small town.

Party down in Apple Town

2008-09-18T07:00:00.001-07:00

Noah, Grace, & Tatum on the float

It's Apple Festival time in grand ol' Jackson. It's a nearly week long carnival, fund raiser and 3 parades. It's such a big deal that the kids all get Wednesday off from school. The first of 3 parades was Wednesday afternoon, then Weds. Evening and finally Saturday evening. Noah was able to ride on the Christian Life Acadamy (his preschool) float. He got to ride with some of his friends so he was very happy. And it was only about a 20 minute ride so he didn't get worn out.

Then, it was kid's day at the carnival, so they got to ride all the rides for 1 low price. Noah really liked this scrambler and a helicopter ride too.

Jakob on the Helicopter ride

Jakob and Noah after the Wednesday paradeNoah, Grace &Tatum on a bug-go-round

All I want for Christmas...

2008-09-18T07:00:00.000-07:00

Jakob couldn't sleep last night, so he finally asked Steve to pull his tooth. He's lost 4 now. You can see all the way to his uvula now!

family pix after the party

2008-09-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

The Bowen girls with Nana

Fiona, Mom, Me,
Nana, Christine
Cathy

Ben and Uncle Will, who, at this age, I think Ben looks most like

The boys with Uncle Will

Tired Noah with Aunt Rachel

The boys with cousins Andrew and Fiona, from Seattle.

Aunt Sue and Mom
Steve in Nana's olive tree
Noah came running back in the house and yelling "Dad's stuck in the tree"
But he really wasn't!

China Town

2008-09-17T13:21:00.001-07:00

On Sunday, we took the boys (and my sisters) to China Town. We took BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) into the city and walked almost a mile to eat lunch. Then we went shopping for a little while on our way back to the BART station. The boys were so good. Noah and Ben ate a lot of "Dirty Chicken" and pot stickers. Jakob had one chow mien noodle and some plain rice - he just doesn't know what he is missing. Noah calls it 'dirty' because of the brown sauce that is on much of the Chinese food he eats. I think it's cute! The boys loved riding the train - they got a few jolts when it took off and they weren't holding on - and Jakob enjoyed following our stops on the map and counting down to the final stop.
We also took a train to and from the airport to get the rental car and they loved that. The airport train filled up more and more at each stop so they kept asking if they should get off at the stops and it was entertaining to all the commuters.

The boys at the China Town gate

Ben on BART after China Town

Moon Festival Flags over a street in China Town
All week they had been celebrating, and Sunday was actually Moon Festival Day

Mt. Tam 18K

2008-09-17T07:42:00.000-07:00

Steve's trail race on the mountain was pretty fun, for us anyway. The race started at Mountain Theatre, which is an outdoor theater, where they put on plays, most recently The Wizard of OZ. The group ran up the steps and around on the trails and roads.
Driving up to the starting area, we were a little worried that it would be really cold and foggy, but the start was above the fog. The runners had to run through the fog though. Steve did a great job, and ran it faster than he though he would.

The boys had a grand time playing on the stone seats at Mountain Theatre, having mini rock climbing adventures on the stone structures and climbing the trees.

Finishing the race

Stinson Beach

2008-09-17T07:27:00.001-07:00

On Friday morning, we went to Stinson Beach, CA. It was so cold with the cloud cover and the wind, but the boys trooped it out and had some fun playing with the waves and watching the birds. Ben was scared of the waves and didn't want to get wet, so Steve picked him up and brought him closer to the waves but happily for him he stayed dry. We didn't stay very long due to the cold, but it was fun.

dirty feet after about 30 minutes at the beach

Wiped Out

2008-09-12T19:39:00.001-07:00

The boys have had such long nights due to the 3 hour time difference that they are just wiped out when they finally crash at night. They have been sleeping so well at night and sleeping in ever since the first morning when Ben woke up at 4 am and Noah at 5:45. They don't even seem to mind each other's stinky feet in their faces while they sleep!!Our hotel near Stinson Beach tonight has a nice view of the bay. Tomorrow is Steve's race and then Nana's party. Can't wait! So it's early to bed and early to rise.

Sunny CA

2008-09-11T10:42:00.000-07:00

We are in sunny NorCal - Lodi, to be exact. We arrived in San Francisco on Tuesday afternoon. The boys were so awesome in the airports and the especially the planes. Ben had a little cry but that was only because he was tired and he soon fell asleep - for 2 hours! It was a good thing the plane wasn't full because he took up 2 seats!
The picture above is the boys in the olive tree in front of Nana's house. The weather was great.
We're in Lodi now for a couple days to see friends. And we're going back to SF for the weekend. Steve is running an 18K trail race on Saturday am and then it's back to Nana's for her 90th birthday party.
I am off now to get my hands and feet rubbed and prettied up! WooHoo!
More later!

Noah is learning so much

2008-09-05T14:51:00.000-07:00

Noah is learning so much at school. His teacher told me yesterday how she can tell that he is listening to her when she talks and he follows directions - at least he does for someone! He sings a new song almost everyday in the car. They learned about dragonflies today and he came home and made one with his legos. It was really neat. He brought home some pages where they trace and copy a letter and color pictures of words with that sound. Mrs. Lloyd said his coloring has really improved since the first week, too. He has been complaining about school taking too long, but he's always happy when I pick him up.

He was a little embarrassed when he was doing this for the camera because he didn't remember all the words.

Labor Day Park-time

2008-09-01T07:23:00.000-07:00

We had some errands to run up in Chillicothe Sunday, so Steve dropped us at the park while he went to Lowes. The weather was great, in the shade, and the boys had tons of fun on the playgrounds.

Jakob wanted everybody to slide together

Ben didn't seem to mind when Noah would climb up an slide down into him... at first!
Ben has had a cold for a little while and his face is not very happy with all of the wiping he does. He cried and pouted for about the last 20 minutes that we were there, which is always fun.
Steve finally came back to get us and, you know him, he had to get in on the action!
ULTIMATE TEETER-TOTTER

"and he could....go....all....the.....way..."

2008-08-24T05:32:00.000-07:00

And he does!

school daze

2008-08-20T07:11:00.000-07:00

So Noah has had a good first few days at school. His first day, he already had a girl doing his work for him!! His friend Grace helped him color his stop light picture and he was so proud of it. He's had a lot of fun on the playground with the other kids, but he said there was one kid being mean yesterday. Yesterday, I decided that everyone needed a nap after Jakob got home, so they went up to their rooms and Noah said he was "not tired!!" so he locked the door and laid on his bed and 4 1/2 hours later, he woke up thinking it was morning and crying because Ben got to eat a pop ice for breakfast! What a goose!!
Jakob had a good first day yesterday too. He said he got to school 30 minutes late because the bus stopped just after our house. He didn't know why because nobody got on. It was weird.
Ben has been enjoying his time to himself while the others are at school. He gets to play legos, he makes tracks on his blanket for his cars, and give his Yellow Babies a bath in the lego box. We have fun playing together.

Preschool!!!

2008-08-18T05:31:00.000-07:00

Finally, it is time for Noah to go to preschool! He was so excited. We went to bed early last night so it would be easier to get up early this morning. With a delicious, hearty breakfast of nutritious Lucky Charms is his tummy, we all piled in the car.

Ben was sad and wanted his picture taken too, and as we were walking out the door, he decide he needed his backpack, but he settled for taking it when we pick Noah up. After we dropped Noah off, Ben was very sad because he wanted to stay at school. He's doing well now. But we'll see how he is tomorrow when Jakob and Noah are both gone.

Jakob is being a good big brother and playing with Ben so he won't be sad. Jakob starts school tomorrow - the girls started today and the boys start tomorrow.

Don't you hate it when...

2008-08-14T07:15:00.001-07:00

...you get all ready for your day and you get all the kids dressed and they finally have their shoes on and they get in their car seats and you buckle them in, and you get the trash in the back of the car and the mail is ready to go down to the box, and you are finally able to get yourself in the car and you sit down, buckle up, and turn the key and it won't start?! I hate that! I got the bright idea to jump start it with the lawn mower, so I got that pulled up next to the car and hooked up the cables - which was obviously wrong - but now it won't start again either. This day is turning out to be so lovely! At least it was just groceries that I was going for today, although, tonight Steve has a going away party for the interns and we also have an open house at Noah's school, so he'll have to come home between events. UGH! The guys at Wally-World said we needed a new battery a couple weeks ago when they changed the oil, I guess they were right. Or, I guess we'll find out if one of the cherubs (Nana's term of endearment) turned on a light in the back the last time they were in the car which is very likely.

I love Opa's Tractor

2008-08-11T10:45:00.000-07:00

Apparently, this is the tractor that Ben was talking about a couple of months ago when he was saying, "I love Opa's tractor." I have to admit it is pretty cool. He even makes tractor sounds when he rides it!

It's that time again!

2008-08-11T09:50:00.000-07:00

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Well, for the boys anyway. Football season. Jakob is excited to finally be playing football. He was bummed last year because we moved here at the end of the season so he missed it. He's waited all year and it's finally here. He did a really great job. He had to wait until defense to play, but he did a great job. He got to play offense and even QB! He took a snap to the face and was a little stunned but he got over it and got back out there and played his little heart out. I think he ended up playing about every position at some point. It's really a pretty cool set up they have. There's an inflatable helmet with smoke that all the cheerleaders and players run thru before the games, they all have their names announced - Jakob Skrag is what they said. Steve is the assistant coach for the team. As a whole, the team did great, they need to work on catching, but it was only the first game. They can only get better. At least this sport has practice each week, unlike the other ones. They have a website for pictures and info - www.firstbaptistflagfootball.org - currently there are only last year's pics, but new ones should be posted soon. Can't wait for next weekend!

Jakob and Ben sing songs

2008-08-07T08:17:00.000-07:00

These are the songs they performed at the reunion. Noah didn't want to sing anything.

This is funny

2008-08-06T15:10:00.001-07:00

We had a great time in KS over the weekend. We spent some time with Grandma Anne's family. There was a lot of fun and singing. These are a couple of pics, the videos will come later.

Keely had fun on the farm chasing off the animals that actually live there. She pretty much had the run of the place. Noah and Ben made some cute faces, Jakob has been camera shy lately, but we have a good video of him singing.

Poor Grandma Anne

2008-08-06T14:57:00.000-07:00

Steve's Grandma Anne had an unfortunate accident last Thursday. She was in the pasture picking apples and fell off the ladder. She took a tumble and ended up breaking her arm and pelvis in 2 places! She is currently in the hospital and has a pretty long road of recovery ahead of her. We wish her a speedy recovery. We love you!!

100K

2008-08-06T14:46:00.000-07:00

So, on our drive to 'Dridge, for our long weekend trip to central KS, the van turned 100K miles! This is Steve at the odometer rolled over.

The boys were super excited too.

diving

2008-07-25T11:19:00.000-07:00

Jakob did a great job at swimming lessons today. He went off the diving board! Scary!! He seemed a little nervous at first but he said it was fun. Noah and Ben did not have such a good time at lessons today. Noah tripped on the sidewalk on the way in and scraped up his knee and hip so he didn't want to go in the pool because the band-aids would come off. And I think there was just too much going on for Ben to be comfortable. There were tons of kids that he wasn't used to.

Deep End!

2008-07-22T09:10:00.000-07:00

Jakob swam in the deep end today at swimming lessons!!!
He was so excited after he did it.
The lifeguard was in the water and had him jump in and swim to her.
Of course, at first she stayed put, then she started moving back and he ended up
going about 3/4 of the way across the pool!
He was so happy with himself.
Noah still won't swim without the lifeguard holding him, but at least he gets in! :}
Ben is getting in and having fun. He hangs on the side and kicks and he put his face in the water today.
There is only one more day of lessons, and Jakob might jump off the diving board!

Ben likes it!!

2008-07-15T06:59:00.000-07:00

Ben got in the little pool yesterday!! He really liked it. As you can see, he got in with his clothes on! He had fun so it was ok. After that I put his suit back on and he played until dinner. They are already all in the pool this morning. Jakob is trying to skip rocks in the pool right now. It's not working very well. But they are having fun, so it great.
OOOOO. TMI alert. Ben went potty all by himself!!! What a big boy!

pool time fun

2008-07-14T09:46:00.001-07:00

The boys have been taking swimming lessons at the city pool and their confidence has grown a lot after only 2 lessons.
Ben is doing well, just sitting on the edge. He let one of the life guards take him in the pool but he cried when she did.
Noah is being bribed with a scuba set if he gets in the pool without me having to force him and he has to learn how to swim at least a little by the end. He did great today. He got in the water with a kick board and kicked around with the life guard holding him.
Jakob stayed in the pool the whole time. There were a few boys that were a little older than him last week and they sort of took over the lesson so there was some chaos that he didn't like. Today was a lot better because those older boys weren't there so he got more attention. He learned how to do a frog kick and he's getting more confidence in going under the water.
I decided to help Ben get a little more confidence with the water and bought a small pool for them to play in. He's playing in the water, but he hasn't gotten in yet!

More Freak Outs

2008-07-10T10:03:00.000-07:00

When we got home last night from Vacation Bible School, I pushed the garage door button and Keely walked under the door, so it stopped going down and the warning light started to flash. Ben was paralyzed with fear to even get out of his car seat. He said that the lightning is scary. I don't know how to get him over this. It's almost nap time, so we'll see how that goes.

PTSD

2008-07-09T10:56:00.000-07:00

I think Ben has post traumatic stress disorder after the storms yesterday. There was a big storm yesterday that seemed to come out of nowhere right at his nap time. And it went away as quickly as it came on.
Then, about 9:00 another storm came up and this one was worse. The sky was so ominous. It looked like tornado weather. The clouds were dark and just kept on moving around. Ben was so scared of the thunder. He wanted to sleep in Daddy's lap. All the boys got to camp out in the basement and liked it for the most part.
Even now, Ben is crying his eyes out about the thunder and he is terrified to got to sleep and there is no thunder. I almost think he just willed it to start raining again, because it just started.

Favorite game

2008-07-08T05:59:00.000-07:00

So, the boys' favorite game now is Star Wars. They run around with Hot Wheels tracks for light sabers and announce which episode they are in and what character they are playing.
This morning, Ben was sitting on the chair with a bunch of pillows and Noah, donning a black spider man mask and a black hot wheels track (the 'bad guys' light saber) started hitting the pillows and knocked one off the chair. Ben kept saying, "don't break my doll house." But Noah did anyway. Ben responded to that with, "I hate you Woah." Noah lifted up his mask and in a grizzly, bad guy voice said, "I'm not Noah, I'm Darth Vader." And Ben, without skipping a beat said, "well, I hate you Darth Vader!"
They are such good pretenders!
Now, Jakob and Noah are playing Tradewinds, a computer game about pirates and ships, but they are using legos and building tons of boats all over the floor.

Updated picture

2008-07-06T08:25:00.000-07:00

This is now the most recent picture of the 'rents!! They took an anniversary trip to Sedona, AZ and finally used that time-share they've been paying for!

Bugs

2008-07-06T07:20:00.001-07:00

Yesterday, we found the biggest butterfly I have ever seen in our breezeway. This morning, we found this giant camo colored bug (Steve says it's a tobacco bug) Noah and Ben are calling it the 'army bug'. The butterfly was on the floor of the breezeway this morning and Keely decided to step on it and bite it. I don't know if she killed it, but it's gone now.
Noah also spotted a tiny frog in the grass Friday so we put it in the garden. Hopefully, it will eat the little bugs in the garden.

5K Run/Walk

2008-07-05T15:59:00.000-07:00

Apparently, for the last 12 years J-town has held a 4th of July race. We had heard that every year was unbearably hot and humid but people still ran it. This year, it was definitely humid, but not exactly hot due to the rain.
So the run was a 5k and the walk was supposed to be only 1 mile. We were never told where the walkers were supposed to turn off the course so we made our own course after going too far out of the way.
Anyway, it was pretty fun even though we had to carry Ben and Noah most of the way. We're pretty sure we went more than a mile, but it was a still good time. Jakob's new friend Drake came with us and tried to keep up with Jakob, but that's almost impossible at any speed running or walking!

4th of July

2008-07-04T19:11:00.000-07:00

Rain Rain go away, Fireworks can't go off when it's raining!!!
We had a very rainy holiday today. It cleared up enough for one round of croquet and 3 boxes of snap-its - which Keely did not appreciate. It was a pretty good day, however. We had some friends over and had a good time.

front door

2008-07-02T09:29:00.000-07:00

Here is our new front door. Well, it's the same front door just enhanced with decorative lettering from Uppercase Living. I love this stuff! The possibilities are endless. If any one needs info about Uppercase Living, email me or comment here, and I'll get back to you!

Basketball

2008-07-02T04:51:00.001-07:00

Steve won the 3 on 3 tourney on Sunday at the company picnic. This is a great picture! His prize is a NBA jersey. He chose Miami Heat's Beasley, of course! Good thing they had the draft already!

Company Carnival

2008-06-30T17:33:00.001-07:00

We went to the Gen Mills company picnic/carnival the weekend. It was pretty fun. The weather was pretty good too. It wasn't too hot and there was a nice breeze which brought a little rain, but nothing we couldn't handle. Ben was playing at the playground when the rain hit and all the big kids started yelling, "get in the tunnels." Ben started running around outside the playground and yelling, "det ee da tunnel dies" translation "get it the tunnel guys!" It was so funny because he was getting rained on while he was trying to save the other kids.
The boys all started out riding the small ferris wheel. Noah and Jakob had fun even though they hit their heads and stuff. Ben, on the other hand, had a good time until about two rounds from the end and he started crying, so the guy let him out. There were tons of fun activities. Jakob was so responsible and kept an eye on Noah the whole time and made sure he was getting through the tunnels and slides and everything.
Noah had fun too because he could run around and do everything that the bigger kids were doing.
All the boys ate a huge dinner of pancakes, bacon and biscuits at Bob Evans after the picnic and of course, slept so soundly.
Oh, and Steve won a door prize - a croquet set.
Oh and I almost forgot! Steve and his team won the 3 on 3 Basketball tournament as well.

Happy Anniversary!

2008-06-29T17:57:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to say Happy Anniversary to my parents. 40 years ago today, they got married and have been together ever since! They met in 8th grade, and could still stand each other when they got married years later at 24!
They are a shining example, not only of 2 individuals, but of how 2 people can grow with each other over the years and still like each other - let alone love each other. In this day and age, that seems to be increasingly more difficult to find.
One of my fondest memories from growing up is of the 2 of them dancing in the kitchen to only the music in their hearts. I have hope that those are the kinds of memories our kids will have of me and Steve when we are celebrating our 40th!!
Anyway, Happy Anniversary! We love you!

By the way, these are the best, most recent pics I could find! They are 2 1/2 years old! And there aren't any pics of them together!

Captain Underpants

2008-06-25T10:28:00.000-07:00

Ben has been doing a great job with potty training. We went to a friend's house to go swimming yesterday and he went in their potty. He's been able to go on the potty almost every time we put him there! I have figured out some of his ques and get him there in time most of the time. I hope that I have purchased my last package of diapers for him. Yay, Ben!!! He also loves wearing 'unweer' instead of diapers and being a big boy.

Zoo day

2008-06-23T05:39:00.000-07:00

Jakob, Noah, Ben, and Aaron at the Columbus Zoo.
Aaron and Jakob were so excited to see each other when we picked Aaron up that I could tell that they wanted to hug each other or something, but they did 'boy hugs' and hit each other a little. Noah was really excited too.

All the boys had to touch a farm animal at the petting zoo so we could go on the train. This sheep had the craziest under bite! The boys were great they even brushed and combed some of the animals. We created a monster in Ben - he kept wanting to touch everything. He touched starfish in the touch pool, a ferret, and even a snake!

Jakob, Aaron, and a manatee. These were so cool and huge, too. This exhibit had manatees, rays, and tons of fish. For some reason Ben kept covering his ears when the manatees would get close. He did it by the elephants too, but I figured he thought they might be loud. I don't know why he did it at the manatees. I told him they don't make noise but he covered anyway!

This is Jakob's favorite animal. It's called an Okapi (oh - copy). He says it's half giraffe, half zebra, and half horse. Ummm.... It was pretty neat. It seemed to have the head of a giraffe, the legs of a zebra, and the body was a mix of the two. There was another one that had a longer neck than this one. According to the Zoo website, it's the size of a horse but more closely related to a giraffe.

Happy Birthday!!!

2008-06-22T04:49:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday, to you!
Happy birthday, to you!
Happy birthday, dear Jakob!!!
Happy birthday, to you!

Jakob is 7 today!!! I can't believe that it has already been 7 years since he came into the world in sunny Southern California. It was the best day of my life.
It is amazing to watch him grow and learn - and of course, he is the smartest 7 year old alive!!
We love Jakob so much.
He also finished the baseball season in 2nd place yesterday. His team lost to the Subway team 26-9! :{ Everybody was intimidated by them, so it was no wonder. And one of the Subway boys caught an unfortunate bounce from a really hard hit ball with his eye. It puffed up right away but he stayed around for pictures and trophies.
Still, we are extremely proud of Jakob and all his accomplishments.
Big day ahead, more later!

New project

2008-06-17T10:51:00.000-07:00

Well, I have begun a new project in my life. I have become an Uppercase Living Demonstrator! It is fun and exciting home decorating expressions that can be put almost anywhere in your home and on nearly every surface. Anybody who knows me knows that I cannot paint to save my life, except maybe a flat wall (and let's face it who has the time to hand paint?), but these help put a little personality all over the place. They just stick up on walls, tiles, glass, and a whole lot of other stuff. I am excited to start this new endeavor and hope that everyone who reads this checks out uppercaseliving.com to find the expressions for your life.
I just finished my first project in the powder room and I love it. I can't wait for people to see it.

Something's missing!

2008-06-16T10:27:00.000-07:00

Jakob finally lost tooth #3. Steve pulled Jakob's first top tooth Sunday. We've been working on it for about a month. Jakob was a little sad after school got out because he was the only one who didn't get his name on the lost tooth board. Which means that he's the only kid in his class that didn't lose a tooth at school. I guess his dental health is in pretty good shape!

Cincinnati

2008-06-14T18:17:00.000-07:00

We took a quick trip to Cincinnati Thursday for Steve to do a workshop at the plant there, and have a mini vacation. The boys and I went for a swim in the hotel pool before dinner. Jakob remembered how much he loved the water from California, and would go under water, except he wouldn't really go any farther out than the third step. Noah went in to about his waist and didn't even like it when I tried to carry him around.
Ben didn't like to get in past his knees but he kept going between the pool and the hot tub to dip in his toes and run back to the pool. He slipped on the tile 4 or 5 times until he finally bumped his head on the floor and I made him sit out for a little. Then he agreed to just sit on the side of the pool and not go back and forth. We decided to go over to the hot tub and he was sitting on the side again. He kept putting his hand in the water and would pretend to drink it and then laugh. He got brave again and went back over to the pool and did the same thing with his hand and wouldn't you know it, he lost his balance and fell in. As he was flailing around trying to get himself out, I ran across and jumped in to get him out of the water while some crazy woman said 'oh, he'll be alright' like I shouldn't really be concerned - but her largely prego daughter was sitting in the hot tub with her, so what does she know?! I got Ben out of the water and he was just fine, he was pretty scared and crying, but he didn't swallow any water or anything, so we left the pool. The whole thing probably lasted only 10 seconds, but it seemed like a lot longer, and I am really glad I didn't have to do CPR because a lot has changed since I was 11 and took the course for baby sitting! Jakob thought it was pretty cool that Ben swam but he didn't understand that that wasn't real swimming.
I also got to go to the new Ikea store in Cincinnati. It was great. Jakob and Noah got to play in Smaland for an hour, and Ben has new motivation to become potty trained. He'll get to play the next time we're there if he's out of diapers. He was very sad that he couldn't play yesterday, so he tried sitting on the potty a couple of times today.
After Ikea, we picked up Steve and went to a really cool grocery store. 'Really cool grocery store?' you ask. It's called Jungle Jims." It has really cool international food and fresh fish and produce and you can watch the fish coming in to the tanks, and they have cooking classes, and so much more that we probably didn't even see. It would have been better if we weren't so tired and the boys actually liked shopping.