Lauren is 8!

A very special event took place 8 years ago today. Our firstborn Lauren entered the world and we will be forever grateful! Thanks for 8 wonderful years Lauren! I attached pictures of her family party and the party she had with her friends.
When we lived in Omaha we celebrated most special events by eating out at the Red Robin. It was our favorite place! So today I thought it would be fun to have a girls day and travel to Sioux City where they happen to have a Red Robin and have lunch. Will was hunting and Owen got to stay here with a sitter. We had a great day celebrating the day Lauren was born :)

Away in the manger

We have been looking for just the right manger scene to display outside our home for a few years now. It looks like white wood but its actually some type of industrial pvc piping material. You never know what you might find on the internet! I will let you know how it survives the holiday season.

Just call me Ma....

The word of the week for Lauren's class is "Pioneer". So, we consulted one of our favorite pioneers known as Grandma Darlene :) She borrowed us her butter churner. The girls and I decided to give it a trial run last night- 45 minutes later it made wonderful butter! Lauren is going to take it to school on Friday and demonstrate for the class. Well, the wood burning stove needs to be attended to and my wash board is awaiting me. Ma

The ADVENTure of the Christmas season

The kids and I lit our first candle of the advent season this morning. (Sunday mornings are too crazy to do it then) The first purple candle stands for HOPE. It invites us to thank God for the hope we have in Jesus. I highly recommend the book "The Adventure of Christmas" for your kids. Its a great book full of ideas about how to help children find Jesus in our holiday traditions.

Happy Thanksgiving

I am thankful for a wonderful family, extended family and friends!
We had a great Thanksgiving with my Mother and Father in law and some friends from our church. The only proof of the day I have is the decorated table. God has blessed me in so many ways and I have so much to be thankful for!

The night it all began.....

I had to post 2 blogs today as I noticed the date on the calendar and realized that Will and I had our first date 17 years ago today. I am now realizing what an accomplishment it was to snag him during the hunting season. I don't think I have seen him on a November 22nd since that first date :) I love you "babe"

I am embarrased to say I had to search a long time to find a picture of the two of us to post tonight. The picture I used is at least 3 years old. I am going to try harder to get the two of us in a few pictures from now on.

From one driveway to the next....

We had a wonderful time with our dear friends the Christo's this weekend. We are so grateful for our years together on Grand Avenue in Omaha! The kids picked up right where they left off. It was neat to see Courtney and Madelyn connect so quickly. They were only 18 months when we moved away, so they never had the chance to develop the strong friendships that the twins and Lauren and Jillian did. As always its bittersweet to spend time with them now. We miss them all so much. Thank goodness for pictures and tons of memories! I dusted off a few old pictures from Omaha and I also attached a few from this weekend.