Snow!!!

Our first snow storm!!!  We were hit with about 8 inches of snow last night into the morning much to the children's delight!!  They have been in and out all day, sledding, shoveling and making snow balls.  It is very windy and cold, so the outings have been limited.  Hopefully it will stick around until Christmas.

Merry Christmas from us to you!!!!

It is 12/12/12 and I sit down to write a Christmas Greeting to all my readers (okay, my 1 reader..Hi, Mom!).  2012 has come and go and we have seen many challenges and blessings along the way.  In November, we hit the 1 year mark of living in our new (to us) country home.  We have enjoyed having llamas and chickens and hope to add some ducks and maybe a goat next year.  We had fun family trips to Indiana and The Black Hills and enjoyed a graduation trip to Orlando with Carlina. Here is a little synopsis of our life in 2012:

Jesse-continued working at the Bean Plant.  He has been there 4 years now.  He still hopes to work his way back into farming (part-time) and we are looking at that goal in the future.

Robin-homeschooler and house keeper extraordinaire.  I continue to try to contain the wonderful chaos on a daily basis.

Colton (20)-finished his first year at CBC and continued on to his second.  Is still working on an Advanced Biblical Studies degree and doing well.  He worked at the local discount store all summer.

Carlina (19)-graduated from High School in May.  She continues to wash dishes at a local eaterie 4 nights a week and just finished her first college class online.  Writing is her passion and she is really good at it.

Julia (17)-went from Sophomore to Junior and is working hard at the discount store.  She loves driving her little PT around and spending time with her friends.

Alicia (15)-Entered High School this Fall.  She loves to write, draw, dance and sing.

Kati (11)-my chicken keeper and nature girl.  Is really working on her drawing and especially loves to draw foxes.  She entered the 6th grade in the Fall.

Garrett (9)-Can't believe he turns 9 in December.  He lives for when he can go to Aunt Debi's and play Mario on her WII.  Also a budding artist who loves to draw scenes from the Mario game.

Thomas (6)-keeper of all the costumes and wearer of them, too.  He is a creative costume designer as well, using only paper and glue.  He is working hard on his reading.

Anna (4)-My spitfire girly-girl.  Never without her purse, makeup and phone (pretend)).  She is still keeping Momma and Daddy on our toes every single day.

David (17 mo)-My lovey-dovey cuddly boy who is a joy to all of us.  He is a smart little dude who is trying his best to keep up with all of his big siblings.

May Jesus get all the glory for the wonderful blessings of our life.  He is the reason for everything we do and our sustainer who provides every breath.  We are so thankful that He came to earth and provided a way for us to live with Him forever by dying on the cross for our sins.  We are so very grateful for all He does for us each and every day.

Merry Christmas to all our family and friends.  May 2013 be a blessed year.

November is upon us!!  One of the wacky things about Iowa (which I still find hard to get used to--even after living here for 18 years) is the quick changes in weather.  Today was 75 degrees!!  It was amazing and we had a great time playing outside.  Tomorrow is supposed to be 33 degrees with strong winds.   This kind of thing never happened in Texas or Florida..at least not to that extreme.

Colton is home for a quick visit.  All is good with him, classes are going well.  He brought 2 friends home with him and we've been cooking up a storm.  Colton enjoys being back in the kitchen again.

Looking forward to Thanksgiving and a visit from my sister (and family--hubby & 4 kids) and my mom & stepdad.  We haven't all been together since Thanksgiving 2009!!!

15 months..

My little guy is keeping his 43 year old mother on her toes!!!!  He is so curious and active and wants to do exactly what his older siblings are doing.  He is not happy to be playing on the floor when they are doing school...he wants to be at the table scribbling on a page of work.  He is not happy with a blank page..he wants his page to look exactly like theirs....

October update!!!

October has been a gorgeous month with temperate weather and pretty, colorful leaves.  We seem to have had a hard time shaking various illnesses this month..mainly colds and sore throats.  We have also celebrated 2 birthdays this month.  Anna turned 4 and Julia turned 17!  School, Awana and Church activities have kept us very busy.  Now, all the leaves have gone and the weather is getting ready to make a change.  We are looking toward November and the excitement of family coming to visit.
My 2 birthday girls:

      

Happy 15th Alicia!!

I can't believe it's been 15 years since I brought my baby girl home.  Alicia has always been so upbeat, happy and just an all around pleasant person to be around.  She loves music, dancing and theater and is also an artist and writer.  Can I say Creative with a capital "C"!!!!

Carlina's Graduation Trip

Can you guess where we went?