2009 Wrap Up

What a year!
January 2009 - Eric found a jawbreaker in the ductwork in the van...Now where would that have come from? Will's JRA flared.
February 2009 - Will shoots & scores as he LOVES YMCA basketball.
March 2009 - We adopted our Compassion son from India - Vijaya Pandi. Soccer started with snow still on the ground.
April 2009 - Several trips to DM as we said goodbye to a dear friend and were blessed by his last days. Morgan turned 2!
May 2009 - My mom retired. We had a great visit to Des Moines with my family including my grandparents.
June 2009 - Will finished Kindergarten and started Summer School. Mommy worked lots of hours rolling standards. We celebrated our country's birthday with the Freedom Festival Parade.
July 2009 - We had a wonderful time at the lake with my sister & fam and my mom but missed Eric terribly. Will surfboarded!
August 2009 - Will turned 7! We took our ill-advised trip to Chicago but the CUBS WIN! Will started 1st grade, soccer and flag football.
September 2009 - Morgan rode in an ambulance. Thankfully it turned into a happy ending. Eric got a new job!!
October 2009 - I'm engaged to marry the man of my dreams. Thank you for loving me my sweet. We had a clown and a fighter pilot for a chilly Halloween.
November 2009 - Our 1st Thanksgiving together in DM at my mom's. Lots of good food and fun! oh, and shopping :)
December 2009 - Our 1st Christmas together engaged! My first Christmas without the kids. Grateful for so many blessings and looking forward to 2010.

We praise God for the blessings and challenges that he has given us and brought us through this year. We're grateful for the hope and promise of the year to come.

Merry CHRISTmas!

Praise God for His precious Son!

And the time just flies by...

It's been a busy couple of weeks! It seems like with last minute shopping, lots of time with the kids and snow, snow, snow the time has flown. December 8th & 9th we had a BIG blizzard with 12 inches of snow and very high winds. Rockwell hasn't closed in my time here (~10 years) but was closed on the 9th. We stayed inside, watched movies, baked cookies and fudge, and had lots of fun time together! Then came the sickness. First Morgan had a brief (Thankfully!!) bout with the stomach flu. She was sick once and then all was well! If only my time with it had been as simple. I had it for the next two days and didn't venture outside the house during that time. I finally started to rebound on Saturday only to have Will come down with strep throat. Finally, I think we are all well in time for the holidays. Yesterday, we wrapped packages and got things set up under the Christmas tree. The kids are spending Christmas Eve & Christmas Day with their dad, so I'm hoping that these couple of days are relaxing and restful for Eric & me, even if we will miss the kiddos. We're planning to have our Christmas together on Saturday when they get home and then will head to Des Moines to visit my family on the 28th. We saw John & Karen last weekend for dinner and hope to celebrate the holidays with them over New Year's weekend after they return from Vail. Eric & I are so blessed to have the Dec 24th - Jan 1 off from work. Yep, we're SPOILED!

SNOW DAY!

Today is a snow day and to hear the weathermen, the world might be ending as well. :) We are home in our jammies watching movies while Mommy's working some. I'm glad we don't have to be out in the yuck today! A few pictures from our weekend...

If you're gonna be a bear...

BE A GRIZZLY! GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Making pumpkin bars...

I think Eric's not sure :)

Our outside decoration "Frosty" who became a sun porch decoration after he couldn't stand up in the wind.

Hanging out with Eric Loving movies in their fort on the floor in Mom's room

Dancing to the Wiggles

The thing about faith...

The thing about faith is it’s not about what you want. It’s a confidence that God won’t give you any challenge you can’t handle….you just don’t know what that limit is.

Thankful - Am I Really?

Around this time of year, the word thankful seems to be on the tip of everyone's tongue. It's wonderful to have a day set aside to give thanks. But should we NEED a day set aside to give thanks? I know I shouldn't. I have so much. Materially, relationally. I am so incredibly blessed and I don't know why I fail to be thankful. Instead, I want newer or better things (clothes, phones, cars, whatever). I want more things. I want Morgan to stop screaming when she doesn't get her way, when I should be grateful that she's not screaming from hunger. I want Will to listen to me the first time (or the fourth!!) when I should be grateful that he has hearing (even if he chooses not to use it). I have the love of an incredible man, yet I get snippy when he doesn't do something exactly the way I would.

Lord, please heal my selfishness. Please help me to look at each person as YOU look at them. Please help me see situations as opportunities to learn and to be grateful. Please help me be thankful...today and every day.

So Uncreative...but updates on us!

I wish I was better at keeping track of our life with witty stories and funny quotes. However, I'm not, so here's the rundown on the last few weeks.

Morgan was sick again. We were convinced it was her ears, but it turned out to be "something bacterial", likely strep throat. FINALLY, now that she's on day 4 of Zithromicin, she's getting back to her normal, sassy, funny, stubborn self. I'd like to put her in a bubble so she wouldn't get sick again! She's developed an obsession with the Wiggles, overtaking Mickey Mouse and causing Eric & I to decide to sell the tickets to Playhouse Disney Live that we purchased last summer. I think we made a good decision as life for Miss M is all about Greg, Anthony, Jeff & Murray these days, not Mickey & Minnie. To spare our sanity we went to the library on Saturday in hopes of finding some additional Wiggles dvds. Thankfully there were some, so we were saved from another day of Toot, Toot or Top of the Tots over and over and over and....

Eric has a new toy! We LOVE it. A little over a year ago, he traded in his nice big truck (a Sequoia) for a 2009 Maxima. It was totally redesigned and very cool but proved to be more of a sports car than a "family truckster". So we went to our dealership (Jim Miller Nissan - I cannot say enough GOOD things about them) just to see what we might be able to work out without much change to our budget. We walked away with a one owner 2005 Pathfinder that was fully loaded. We are thrilled! Eric & I love it and the kids now much prefer the "truck" to mom's van. We're glad to have 4x4 for these Iowa winters as well. He's gotten lots of use out of it lately as he's been running the kids back and forth to school while I tackle the closing week that won't end :). He's also started his new job and it's going slowly through that phase where you are meeting people and learning but at least it's not A350, right hon?! :)

Will is doing well in school and loving reading. He's reading at a second grade level and can frequently be found with a Junie B Jones or Star Wars book. We had a great time at his school carnival a few weeks back - winning all kinds of "fun" stuff - rubber balls, tattoos, tootsie rolls and bottles of PowerAde and Pepsi at the ring toss. Will has avoided the sickness so far at home and school but his eyes and knees are giving him fits again. The methotrexate really never worked for him so the next step is for him to go on an injected medication (yes, that means I have to give him a shot) called Humira. It's a class of drugs called TNF inhibitors that has shown great promise in treating JRA patients. We're praying and doing research as we discuss the pros and cons of this medication for him. The choice if we do nothing or continue on the current path is certain joint damage...some of which is already beginning. When we compare this to other situations that we know of - children having surgery, facing cancer, or other situations, we feel blessed. But this isn't a decision we take lightly. His eyes are also involved again, so he's back on eye drops 4 times a day. I was also grateful that he got his H1N1 shot at UIHC yesterday!

As for me, I just try to keep up with the munchkins, meet deadlines at work, spend time with my sweetie, and cook a somewhat healthy meal once in a while. I did get a cool new phone and have had fun being a geek with it ;). Eric & I are both looking forward to a few days off at Thanksgiving (we'll be in Des Moines with my family), a long weekend in Chicago in mid-December and a week and a half off over Christmas.

Trick or Treat

Thankfully, we had all recovered enough for Trick or Treating on Saturday night. The weather was cool but clear and the kids had a great time!

Karen did such a great job on the costume!! We LOVED it!

Will loved his fighter pilot suit and was insisting we call him "Maverick"!

Empty bowl....time to go in!

Oink, Oink Round 2

75% of us were hit. I got it Wednesday and Eric had it Wednesday night/Thursday. Morgan still wasn't feeling the best so Eric, Morgan, & I were home Wednesday and Thursday. FINALLY, Morgan turned the corner on Thursday/Friday and when Will was home because of a day off of school on Friday we were able to have some fun, going to Target, dancing to the Wiggles and taking Eric lunch. I think we're all done with this round and hoping there isn't any more YUCK going around!!

Oink Oink

Morgan's got the "dreaded" swine flu. She's actually doing ok today after several doses of Tamiflu, lots of Motrin and lots of Wiggles. I had a great time cuddling her this weekend! Her fever was very high - at one point almost 105. Thankfully the doctor we saw was willing to perscribe Tamiflu for Will as a preventative dose in addition to Morgan's. She's spending the day today with Karen and we're just going to take the rest of the week as it comes.

Pumpkin Patch

Last weekend the kids and I headed to Des Moines to go to Howell Tree Farm & Pumpkin Patch with Laura & her kids. We had a great time. It was one of the first warm nice days we've had in October so it was packed!

So, it's October 12th and I haven't updated in over 2 weeks!

Well, I'm not quite sure where the last two weeks went. After Morgan's little adventure, we had a QUIET Sunday trying to catch up on sleep. Then it was off to the races for Mommy, who woke up Monday morning with a fever of 102, spent the day in bed on Monday and then proceeded to work 50 hours in 4 days Tuesday - Friday and then all weekend the first weekend in October. I LOVE fiscal year end in Accounting! :). As the first day of closing the year approached, I got a call from Will's school. "Will has a fever". So Mr. Will and I headed home Monday afternoon for what turned out to be 3 1/2 days of movies and rest for him, while Eric and Karen stayed home with him. (a HUGE thank you to Karen and my sweetie, I would NOT have made it through closing in one piece if I hadn't had you guys!!). I'm still not sure what was wrong, but a course of Zithromician that the doctor finally called in on Wednesday seems to have done the trick. I was still sick with a sinus infection so we had lots of "bugs" in the house! Eric is the lucky recipient this week and he's on Zithromax too! Thankfully, so far Morgan's ER adventure is her only sickness to date (yeah, I'm knocking on wood). Otherwise, we're doing well. We saw our first snow this past weekend (10-10-09) and it didn't last long. That did prompt me to make sure everyone has snowsuits/pants and boots that fit for this year. The temps have been in the low-mid 40s this week leading to discussions of the "coldest October on record". Let's hope this isn't a sign of things to come this winter.
So, here's hoping that this is the last post about sickness this winter! Anyone want to bet me? :)

Morgan's Adventure

Morgan is feisty and temperamental sometimes. But she's generally a happy kid. That's why we knew something wasn't quite right when she woke me up at 6am on Saturday morning screaming "my tummy hurts". Honestly? I kept waiting for her to throw up. These little pain episodes continued throughout the day - but very intermittently. But when they did come, she would double over in pain and tears. Finally after a nap disrupted by the pain Saturday afternoon, I called the on-call doctor and he suggested I take her in. He said with small children, it's hard to tell what it might be...from constipation to appendicitis. So off Morgan & I went to Mercy's ER. We got in fairly quickly and the fun began. First a rectal temp, then a catheter to check for a urinary tract infection. Slight fever and no UTI. Then it was off to X-ray for shots of her belly. While we were at Mercy, the spasms of pain had become much more frequent and were lasting longer. After the x-rays were finally read, it was discovered that her bowel was distended to the point that the ER doctor moved us to a "regular" ER room (we were in the fast track before), and I was told that we would be transferred to UIHC about 30 minutes down the road in Iowa City, for a surgical consult....um, WHAT??? They couldn't tell from the x-rays if she had a bowel obstruction or an intussussception but it didn't really matter because both would require surgery and Mercy can't do Peds intestinal surgery. So with my poor sweetie screaming in pain, I called Eric and asked him to come down so he took Will to his parents' house and joined me in the ER. I also called Morgan's dad and he came down as well. The nurses got an IV started and gave her some nausea medication as well as morphine...and oh my was Morgan on morphine FUNNY! Shortly after that, they loaded Morgan into an ambulance, I climbed in front and we were off with lights & sirens racing towards Iowa City. Eric and Scott were behind us, but we left them in the dust after the first stoplight. We arrived at UIHC and got checked in. By this time the morphine was in full force and Morgan was fairly comfortable. Mind you, it was 11 at night and the child was still WIDE AWAKE! We saw the resident first and she felt like it was likely just very bad constipation but wanted to wait for the ER Pediatrician to see her. When he came in, after one look at the x-ray, he was able to tell us, that after all that, guess what? Morgan was CONSTIPATED! I tell you, I've talked more about poop in the last 5 days than I have in the last 10 years. So after an enema which worked wonders (I'll leave it at that :)), we were discharged about 1am. Morgan was asleep by the time we hit 380 north and Eric & I would have been too, if we hadn't been so keyed up. We are SO grateful that this turned out the way it did - it could have been so much worse. However, we are all a little frustrated as well. Now, if you know me at all, you know I'm all for being cautious, especially when it comes to my childrens' health. But there is a difference between being cautious and scaring me half to death!! Lights & sirens for constipation?? Anyway, now all that's left is waiting for the bills (ouch!!). Praise God for our healthy sweetie!

Because she just cracks us up....

1st Day of Fall

It just feels like this year has flown by! Already we're making plans for October, Thanksgiving, and thinking about Christmas. With fall comes Homecoming and Prairie's was last Friday. Will had a BIG day as his school received their reward for their great fundraising efforts with the Walk-A-Thon with an "inflatable party". There were huge jumping houses, slides and ball pits for the kids to play with. He loved "the slide you could do somesaults down". That, in addition to everyone dressing in black & orange, with face tatoos, buttons, etc. and the Homecoming parade that afternoon made for a pretty crazy school day. After school was the game with fireworks, a flaming "P" and a win by the Prairie Hawks. Oh, and my orange haired boy. He loves his school! :)

We had a nice weekend, when Mom, Laura, Max, Charlie, & Zoe came over to visit. Mom hadn't seen my house or met Eric, so I'm glad she had the chance to come over! The kids had a great time playing. They also got to watch Will practice his flag football in anticipation of his first game this coming week. I also worked off and on all weekend...year end is rapidly approaching! More soccer, football, homework, screaming (although somewhat less!!), and fun hectic times are sure to follow this week. OH! and Rough & Fumble is LEADING our league. All those boys, getting beat by a girl :). They don't have to know that Eric is the brains behind the operation do they?

What have we been up to?

Soccer (why do 1st graders need double headers?)
Football (Flag, thank heavens)
Walk-a-thon
Homework (yes, 1st graders get homework)
Screaming (2 year olds like to scream)
Temper tantrums (oh, Lord, please help us move through this phase quickly!!)
Hugs - never enough hugs!
Cavities (Mr. Will :( )
WOOOO Pig Sooie - see prior post ;)
Fantasy Football - Go Rough & Fumble! We won our first game - gotta love Drew Brees and 6 touchdowns!
New jobs - Way to Go Sweetie! I'm proud of you!
Backaches - PT tomorrow!
Flu shots - hoping they work!
Halloween Costumes - an Air Force pilot and a clown
Top Chef - Finally back on!
Love - mmmmmmmm, it's sweet

WOOOOOOO Pig Sooie

Eric's going to make them Razorback fans yet! All weekend, we heard "wooooo pig sooie", "mooooo pig sooie" and "you pig sooie" out of little miss. Not to be outdone, her brother is chiming in as well. With the "hog call", the razorback coloring pages (a BIG hit), razorback flags in the basement and razorback tee shirts on order for the munchkins, I'm thinking that the transformation may be well on it's way!

Best.Meal.Ever.

YUM!!!!!! Great job on the grill as always, sweets!

Morgan's Funnies

This is just for Mommy's record so I don't forget!

1.....2.....3 We're HOOOOMMMMMEEE! (Said as we come down over the little hill and turn onto our street)

I do awesome

Mommy, helpy me?

I have stinky feety

It's way hot....

I play my Mickey Mouse. Play me Mommy?

My crockies (Crocs) - I wuv my crockies

I bounce and bounce and bounce (on the trampoline)

I take a bafffff

Yes? (not yeah, uh-huh, yep but YES)

Mommy Joy

Will John Sipper

Ewic Wynn

Morgan CARE

Hello and Goodbye Kelli's Room (her preschool classroom)

She LOVES Emmy, Chels, Kelli and JoJo - her preschool teachers. Usually on the weekends, she asks "Where Emmy go?, Where Chels go? Where my JoJo?", etc

Compassion

Last April, Angie Smith was a guest blogger on a trip with Compassion Ministries to India. As I read her updates about these children, the poverty they live in and the desperate need for sponsors, I was incredibly moved. Eric & I prayed about it for a few days and felt like God was really calling us to sponsor a child from India. We are so blessed & proud to introduce you to Vijaya.

This precious boy lives with his parents and 4 siblings in India. We look at his beautiful face and feel blessed to be able to pray for him, help support him, and to support Compassion and the amazing work they do "Releasing children from poverty in Jesus' name". There has been nothing sweeter than hearing Will remind me at night..."Mom, we need to pray for Vijaya" and last night when Will prayed for fresh drinking water, clothing and food for Vijaya I had tears in my eyes. I'm so grateful we have this opportunity to pray for and help support this sweet boy.

Just Hanging Around

We had a fun week off when the kids daycare was closed....lots of time outside enjoying the weather. We were all coming down with something towards the end of the week as we headed out to Chicago, but we got in some swimming and just goofing off before the virus hit!

Me and my little BIG guy

Little Miss Princess didn't like the water too well...

Hanging out in Mom's bed watching movies...

JRA Update

I think my van can drive the route to UIHC from our house by heart...I don't even need to steer anymore :). We've visited UIHC 6 times this summer as we're trying to manage Will's JRA. A little background...As I understand it, the first line of defense medication is Hydroxychloroquine. Will was on this from when he was diagnosed until March 2008. In combination with the Corticosteriod injections he received, Plaquenil worked very well to control the inflammation in his knees. He was weaned from that drug in March 2008 and was asymptomatic from then until January 2009. His swollen knee (this time only the right) returned so we tried another injection in March 2009. It didn't work and as Dr. Ferguson (Will's rheumetologist) was weighing the options, a routine eye exam showed trouble with Will's left eye. JRA can cause eye inflammation, that left untreated, can cause blindness. I'm so thankful that Dr. Ferguson advised me from the first time she saw him to have his eyes checked in the Pediatric Opthalmalogy dept at UIHC. They are experts and they KNOW what they're looking for. So we added steriod eye drops every two hours to our medication list along with Methotrexate and Folic Acid (aids in the how the body metabolizes Methotrexate). Fast forward to Tuesday Aug 18th. NO MORE EYE DROPS! There was no evidence of inflammation in Will's eye! We'll continue to see Dr. Longmuir 4 times a year for continued monitoring. Another positive is that his vision in great...just shy of 20/20. On the other hand, it's been 13 weeks on the Methotrexate/Folic combination with no reduction in swelling or inflammation in the right knee or either ankles (both are now involved). At our most recent visit with Dr. Ferguson (also the 18th...talk about a long day!), she upped his Methotrexate dose and has added Hydroxychloroquine back to his regime. Thankfully, he's doing wonderfully taking pills, so we no longer have to compound it, so no more ICKY taste! His labs have also been great, showing he's tolerating the Methotrexate well. It's a chemo drug - obviously given in much lower doses to JRA patients, but there are still some scary side effects that we need to monitor with labs every 2 weeks. We go back in early November and we're praying that the Methotrexate/Hydroxy.../Folic combination works. Our next step in Will's treatment isn't one I'm quite ready for. The next step is biologic agents - namely Enbrel - a TNF protein blocker. It's approved by the FDA for use in adults and children, but just received a "black box" warning for children. Dr. Ferguson is doing more research and we will discuss more at Will's November appointment, if this is the treatment she suggests.

I'm so grateful for Will's doctors. They don't talk down to me. They treat me as an equal in the care of my son. They are caring and kind and Will enjoys them too. We are blessed to be so near a world class facility. I have to keep reminding myself of this as I struggle with decisions to be made.

1st Day!

Will's 1st day of 1st grade was last Thursday. He was so excited to start school (I hope that continues!!). We went Tuesday night to Meet the Teacher Night and found his classroom, locker & desk and dropped off all of his supplies with Mrs. Bennett. He was also excited to see all of his friends and eat ice cream as they talked about their summers. Thursday morning he was with Dad, so when I picked him up on Thursday afternoon, I got the full rundown. ;)

How was school? Great!!!

What did you do? We had pizza for lunch, we had art, um, I don't remember what else

Did you have fun? Yeah, hey Mom, what's for dinner?

So that's how his first day went. I was surprised I got that much info out of him - usually he can't remember what he had for lunch. :) He was excited to go back on Friday...not so much this morning when I roused him at 630. One of his favorite things is his new Cubs backpack (a birthday gift from Nana).

Off we go into another year...I can't quite believe my big guy's in 1st grade!

Chicago - Not the best decision we've ever made!

We headed out for Chicago on Thursday morning...all of us with some sort of ailment. I think we were all fighting a virus but it was causing different symptoms in each of us. Eric was fighting an upset stomach, I had a headache, Morgan was just grumpy, and Will had a cough that just kept getting worse. Turn around! Turn around! (Both E&I thought that but we had promised Will and pre-paid for the hotel so we thought we'd make the best of it). Well, it turns out that the I-80 bridge was closed over the Mississippi leading us on a detour of southeast Iowa/southwest Illinois. *Good job honey, I was obviously NOT the best choice for navigator that day!!* The kids did remarkably well during the longer than expected trip but more fun awaited us at the hotel. Eric was keeping track of the munchkins as I went to check in and "Oh, I'm sorry Ms. Schipper, we didn't charge your room ahead of time." UMMMM, WHAT??? I have a confirmation number from March 2009 stating that I would get this incredible rate right on Michigan Avenue ONLY if I prepaid the room. Well, no, they messed up - didn't charge the room and gave us a 2 double bed room instead of the King with a rollaway that I had requested. Yay. This was not a good start to what would be a good, but frustrating and exhausting weekend. We made do with the room, Eric on one bed, me and Will on the other and Morgan on a comforter on the floor. Oh, and have I mentioned that Will turns into an Octopus when he sleeps (I swear he grows arms or legs and then he rolls around all night!!). Anyway, after we settled in a bit we ventured out onto Michigan Ave and had fun wandering the streets. We LOVED the Lego store!Friday was the big game and MAN was it a game. Except Eric & Morgan didn't get to enjoy it with us. Morgan was exhausted, needed a nap, and Eric was still fighting his bug. So off Will and I went to Wrigley. We watched as the Cubs took out their frustrations on the Pirates with a 17-2 win (including an incredible 10 run second inning). It wasn't nearly as fun without our other 1/2 but we did enjoy the game and found our brick. Friday night was collapsing after more wandering Michigan in search of Garrett's popcorn (please tell me why they don't have a store anymore on Michigan??). We headed home Saturday morning a little poorer, much more tired, but SO thankful for our beautiful home and our beds.
**Note to self - Check credit card next time to make sure pre-paid reservation was actually paid.**

HAPPY BIRTHDAY WILL!

It's my big guy's 7th birthday! It sounds cliche to say, but time moves so quickly! Some days it feels as if it was just yesterday that I cuddled and rocked him to sleep and today he's almost too big for my lap! We're celebrating with chinese (Will's choice), cake & presents tonight, then with his buddies at a Cedar Rapids Kernals game on Sunday. We're off to a great weekend.

Fast Forward

Ok, where did the summer go? Will starts school *2* weeks from Thursday for Pete's sake! Time goes quickly but my heavens I don't know where this summer has gone. We have the craziest two weeks ahead of us until school starts...it feels like someone hit the fast forward button. This week Will has swimming, a trip to Adventureland with dad, a birthday party, HIS OWN 7th birthday, and then his birthday party with our local baseball team on Sunday. Next week, Eric & I are both taking vacation as the kids' daycare is closed and we're looking forward to swimming, mini golfing, maybe a movie and then on Thursday - CHICAGO! We can't wait for the Shedd Aquarium, water taxi rides, a visit to the top of the Sears tower, breakfasts at our favorite Corner Bakery Cafe, and of course, rooting on our Cubbies! Let's hope they can get back to 1st place! The week right before school includes 4, yes 4, doctor's appointments for Mr. Will. His JRA is flaring again and the methotrexate doesn't seem to be working at the current dosage so we're hoping that we can get some answers prior to the start of school. Then the big day, August 20th! Will told me this morning "Mom, I can't WAIT to go back to school"! I'm thrilled he has that attitude. :) Well, I'm off to start the race...it's going to be an awesome couple of weeks! What are you up to before the kiddos head back to school??

OH! I had to post this adorable picture of Morgan and Nana...just because it's so adorable! :)

Cubs in First!

I can't quite believe it after the way they started the season! Keep it up Cubbies, we'll be there in 2 weeks!!!

http://chicago.cubs.mlb.com/index.jsp?c_id=chc

35 Blessings for Year 35

Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

I am truly blessed as I look back at 35 years, and look forward to many, many more!
1. A cup of tea
2. A good book
3. Bedtime prayers
4. Buck
5. Charlie
6. Chicago Cubs
7. Daddy
8. Eric
9. Granddaddy
10. Grandmommy
11. Jesus Christ
12. John
13. John
14. Julie
15. Karen
16. Kari
17. Kelsey
18. Laura
19. Leslie
20. Lorissa
21. Love
22. Marci
23. Max
24. Mom
25. Morgan Claire
26. My COMFY bed
27. My iPod
28. Pepsi
29. Shannon
30. Starbucks Chai
31. Tate
32. The Bible
33. William John
34. Woman Lake
35. Zoe

What a great time....

We had a wonderful time in Northern Minnesota this past week with my grandparents, my mom, and my sister and her family. I've been going there since I was an infant but it never ceases to amaze me how beautiful the lake is.

We arrived in the late afternoon on Saturday after a VERY good trip north. I was so amazed at how well the kids did in the van. It's a good 8 hour drive under the best circumstances and it went wonderfully well. We were thrilled to get there and the kids had their swimsuits on within about 20 minutes and were headed out to the water. The water was pretty chilly when we were there but that didn't seem to bother Will, Max, or Uncle Buck. The rest of us were a little more timid!

We spent much of our time the first few days on the water...either tubing, skiing, surfboarding or fishing. We had an incredible fish fry on Thursday night thanks to Uncle Buck and the boys. They caught a total of 6 good sized Northerns as well as a few Blue Gill. We also caught our share of Perch when we all went out. Morgan loved the fish (not to mention her Minnie Mouse fishing pole) and cried "No Mommy, my fishy no go bye-bye" when I tossed her fish back into the water. Will was a superstar and rode the surfboard for the first time. He wasn't quite sure about skiing so this was a great first step. He started on his knees and then got up on his feet while we were out on the lake. I was and am SO proud of him!

Our last couple of days were unseasonably cool and rainy but we were still able to fish, head into town for a movie, go to Frosty's for ice cream and have yummy pizza at Lucette's. We also had campfires complete with smores almost every night. The kids ran and played all over and wore themselves out each night!We spent every morning up at the Lodge where we enjoyed fresh donuts and all the fun games.

The kids were so well behaved this trip...it was such a delight to spend such good time with them. We had fun, we had cuddles, we had laughs, we had a few owies (mostly misquito bites!!) and only a few tears that dried quickly. We LOVE the lake and can't wait for our time again there next year!!