Introducing....Conservationist of the Year for 2010

I don't stop often enough to brag on my man.  Well this post is all about him.  Don't let the tie fool you, it really IS my man (in disguise).  I think he chose this interesting facial hair to try and counteract the effect of a tie and dress shoes. :)

Saturday we all drove to the Lake of the Ozarks for the annual banquet for the Conservation Federation of Missouri.  This was a first for us due our special invitation to award my man the title of Conservationist of the Year.  This was a pretty big deal as the federation is made up of many different agencies in Missouri (I have to brag a bit here).  It was wonderful to see him get noticed for all the amazing work he does day in and day out on the job.  It was even more special to see the respect he has from his peers and superiors.  Way to go Babe!

The kids had a great time and thought that the 300 person banquet in the grand ballroom was the "FANCIEST" thing they'd ever seen.  Good thing they had kid meals on hand as the "Fancy fare" would have been a disappointment to them (though quite delicious).  The best part of the night was seeing him grow in their esteem, especially Goose's.  Let me explain...

(Below is my man with Goose as they headed out to their 3rd annual Daddy Daughter Dance together the night before.))

You see, he was supposed to receive the award the previous evening but he told them he wasn't able to attend because he had a date with his daughter.  It was a sacrifice at the time but he knew this little girl (who had been planning this Daddy Daughter Dance with him for months) would be heartbroken if he cancelled.  What a gift when they told him they would move the presentation to the following night's banquet.  Goose was clueless about the decision, until....

Everyone we encountered at the banquet approached us and asked, "so who were you on the date with last night?"  After this scene repeated itself a few times, Goose asked me quietly, "How do all these people know I went on a date with Daddy last night?"   I had the pleasure of explaining to her how her Dad thought their date was more important than accepting this award and that it had been announced to all these people the previous night WHY he couldn't be there with them.  I swear she walked even taller the rest of the evening as she knew how much her Dad valued her.  I had known for a week the sacrifice he made and knew he made the right choice but I was so impressed to see and hear how much people respected him for putting his family priorities first.  Yep, that's MY Man!  Not just Conservationist of the Year but maybe Daddy of the Year as well.

Congrats Babe - I'm so proud of you!

Welcome to America

We recntly had a special day with some special friends.  We cancelled school and went to St. Louis with "just the girls" for the day and witnessed a new soul become an American.  My dear friend brought home her newest daughters around Thanksgiving and Hope now has two sisters.  Aren't they beautiful?  Due to her age, the oldest needed to come in person to swear the oath of citizenship and we got to be there to celebrate with them all.  Congratulations Yordie (& Hana)!!!

After the event, we visited the Gateway Arch and the museum underneath.  Goose and Boo were glad to come along for the day and I got to spend many hours talking and laughing with my friend during the long drive there and back.  How precious to make such memories together.

Though they didn't choose to eat lunch there, we stopped at the Ethiopian Restaurant and purchased a BUNCH of injera to bring home for the kids.  Spiderman was thrilled when I made his old favorites the next day and had the authentic injera for a change.  Just icing on the proverbial cake.

Some momentus firsts

I just wanted to congratulate some special kids around here.  Though he's been hunting with Dad many times before (and for various animals), Spiderman finally shot his first animal.  The funny thing was that this time he just took the opportunity to hunt in the backyard and it worked!  He was so proud to be added to the ranks of "the mighty hunters" and even better was that Dad used it to make a big batch of "baked bunny beans" to serve at the Super Bowl party.  Way to go!

Here is Goose after her first ever basketball game.  She's been working hard since summer learning some skills and practicing drills and it has finally culminated in "the games".  We've been blessed with an amazing coach who knows her stuff and is so encouraging to the girls.  It's a home school team of 5th-6th grade girls but they let Goose on the team even though she's a year too young for it.  I could see this really being her thing and the outlet of playing with such a good group of girls has been so fun for her.

How fun to celebrate these milestones with my kiddos.  Great job you two!!!

Blizzard of 2011

I love a good snow storm!  Growing up in Utah gave me a deep appreciation for lots of snow.  In my book, you need 8-10" to count as a "good snow".  God gave us a doozy this time (14 inches) but it was wonderful to stay in the house, have the man around during work hours, laugh together, cuddle and marvel at the turbulent world outside the window.  Of course I can romanticize the storm when I didn't HAVE to leave the house, didn't lose power, water or other "necessities".  The only unpleasant part for me was that it was followed by extreme cold the following days (down to -10 degrees).

No matter the temperature, neither the kids nor Frisbee wanted to come in the house.  Our dog is such a snow beast that she sometimes refuses to come in the house when we call her and she'll go sit next to her cable "begging" to be tied up and left outside.  She frolicks like she's a puppy again when the snow is on the ground - silly dog!  You can see she offered to help Spiderman with his tunnel just to be in the mix of things.

The kids were so excited to play in the snow that they tried it out during the worst of the storm.  It was much more fun for everyone once it had all arrived, the sun came out and they could dig tunnels in the big mounds left behind by the snow plow.  From the looks of the weather report, it won't be melting anytime soon.

The local public schools cancelled school for 4 days thanks to the storm.  Usually we don't take snow days since I'd rather take off time in the spring for some fun but this time I decided to give my kids one full "snow day" and they made good use of it.   There's just nothing as great as making some special memories together.  What a gift!

On cloud 11...

I don't know where the time went but my first baby is now ELEVEN!  Jaybird waited anxiously all week to celebrate with his buddies and he had a great time.  They had pizza, chips and frosted brownies and quite honestly, hardly ate much at all.  They were much too interested in playing to pause too long for that.  :)  We farmed out the girls to their friends so it was ALL boys, ALL the time.  I believe Legos were strewn around every room of the house and we tip-toed through the mine field.  Here is one of the new sets he assembled to play with the gang. 

Below is MOST of the buddies who made it, showing off their Lego imaginations.  Unfortunately the two Ben's (or Ben squared as we call them) had to leave early and I missed getting them in my shot.  I'm mean enough to make lights out at midnight, though they weren't tired at all, but it didn't help them to sleep in.  I long for the day they want to sleep til noon instead of 5:30 am.  All in all it was fun for the boys and now it's out of the way for me. :) 

More importantly, my little man is growing up.   I remember crying at the pediatrician's office when he was turned 2 that he was growing up too fast.  How silly, HA!  I treasure those memories of the past 11 years even while I dread him leaving home someday and calling me not nearly enough. :)  The cycle of life is not all easy but I'm proud of who he is and how he is growing.  Now he really is on the launching pad of life.  I see him maturing in some special ways (though not regarding silly "boy" humor) and he is sensitive to wanting to please God and his parents.  He already talks about being a good husband and father someday.  I know I'll always be there praying for him and cheering him on.

Happy Birthday Big Guy!

A new look at life

Notice anything different?

Yep, Goose has a new accessory on her face.  She's been wanting to get her eyes checked for a couple months now and I finally got her to the eye doctor.  Sure enough, she gets to join the ranks of the "glasses-wearing-Murphys".  Her eyes really aren't that bad (at least compared to her Mom) but she noticed a big difference as soon as we picked them up today.  Now Boo is the only one that isn't bespeckled and hopefully, good genetics just might keep her from going this route as well.

As for Goose, she tried on every pair of frames in the place and was trying to decide what to get - sensible, comfortable, etc.  We just about had it decided when I picked up this pair and said, "what about these?"  She grabbed them and put them on and immediately stated, "These are just my personality!"  No debating or agonizing, just confidence through and through.  I do love that about my daughter.  She knows what she likes and is very comfortable with who she is.  Beautiful!

Now she is desperate to cut her hair (she's been planning that anyway) to complete a new look and get a fresh start.  Stay tuned.....

** OK, the next day we just HAD to go in for a haircut and this is the happy girl results...

To top it off, she gets to donate her old hair to Locks of Love to be made into a wig for a needy child.  She is very happy about that!

Have you seen this young man?

Does this photo look familiar?  I actually took it last February but it just showed up in the current issue of Focus on the Family magazine.  We've been getting a few phone calls asking about it and Spiderman has been getting a bunch of (unwanted) attention among his friends in town.  He's embarrassed. :)

I figured I'd mention it here in case anyone else has wondered, "Is that Spiderman?"  I actually submitted a couple of photos back in the summer as part of a contest.  My kids were hoping for some free Adventures in Odyssey CD's but it did not win anything.  Then to our surprise, we were offered a small compensation if we would let them use it in future publications, at their discretion.   I was still thinking we'd be paid in product and went ahead with the arrangement.  Imagine my surprise when we received a healthy (in my perspective) financial gift right before Christmas.  We celebrated the unexpected gift with a family trip to the theater to see "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader" (not common with a family of 6) and a yummy meal at our favorite restaurant.  It was our special little blessing from God and we were tickled.

Now the kids think Spiderman is famous!