Happy Kids

What makes a kid happier than McDonald's!!

Family addition

The newest member of our family - Buttercup. Yes, we're back with the birds! But not as many as before.

IT'S COLD!!

It's cold today!! I'm already tired of winter and it's not even here yet!!

I even turned on the furnace today... I can't believe I actually did it, but I was freezing and couldn't handle putting on another layer of clothes just to keep warm.

It could be a LONG LONG LONG winter!!

Start of School 2006

1st grade already... WOW!! How time flies. It seems just like yesterday we were carrying him so carefully in his carseat up our front stairs for the very first time. Andrew has grown into such a giving, loving and sensitive young man.

A few of his favorite things... trains - reading - trains - soccer - trains - archery - trains - football - trains - "not too loud music" and "praising God music" :) - trains - Star Wars movies - trains - getting to lay in bed with Mommy for a little bit before Daddy comes to bed - trains - kids runs at IWU during summer - trains - playing board games - trains - helping Daddy work outside - trains (get the pattern there???)

1st grade has started out very well... Andrew is reading reading reading all the time!! It's not a surprise to walk into the family room and see him with a book in his hands. That's very exciting to see, especially for a dad who doesn't do enough reading! He's also showing a strong interest in science already. If you ask him what his favorite subject is at school, his first response will always be PE (sometimes lunch, too). But, if you ask him again, he'll say math or science.

We asked him the other day about joining the chess team at Bent, and he was very excited and interested. But... we have to find out first if it's going to interfere with the Upwards Basketball League practices at church. Andrew is also involved with choir at church and played soccer during the summer.

Savannah is attending Christ the King Episocpal Pre-school, and has started out very well. After a year of watching her big brother go off to school every day, she was VERY ready to go to school, herself. She goes Monday-Friday, 8:30-1:00 (and it includes lunch!!! YEAH!).

Savannah has fallen in love with coloring and drawing. It's not uncommon to see her sitting at the dining room table or at their school desk drawing a picture and/or coloring. Just today she drew a LOVELY family portrait.

Savannah is involved in choir at church and has been involved in gymnastics and dance. However, SHE wanted to take a little break with school starting (we're positive that God works thru her sometimes in mysterious ways). However, this week she has asked to return to dance class, so she'll begin again in October.

Some of her favorites things... Barbies - anything pink (SUCH a girl!!!) - wearing dresses - listening to her big brother read for her - coloring and drawing - making cards like Mommy - playing with her dolls (Amy Baby and Baby Jesus).

Laurie is having an... interesting start of school year :) She's on teaching overload this semester due to their department being one professor down, and is continuing work on her doctorate.

She's spending a lot of her evenings grading lesson plans. How she does it all, I have no idea... but she does.

She just returned from a weekend women's retreat with our church, where approx 120 women attended. She had the opportunity to be involved with helping to plan some of it and
seemed to really enjoy the time.

She's always happy when she has some down-time to spend with the kids to play a game, go to the park or read some books. Or, even sit and watch a Barbie movie (yes, we rent Barbie movies for Savannah).


Can you say BANANAS?!?! Seven different types of banana plants were grown around our yard this year. And no, we didn't pick any fruit from them.

Mark continued his gardening business, and in his spare time attempted to turn our small plot of land into a tropical paradise. However, most of Mark's time from April thru fall is spent caring for the gardens of five other large residential properties in and nearby Bloomington/Normal. Mark is in his fifth year of his business (1 year pt, 4 years ft).

Fall is a difficult time of year for Mark because he has to see everything begin to die back... tropical plants slow in their growth and are brought indoors... summer blooming flowers get deadheaded one last time and are replaced by mums, asters, pansies and scarecrows.

Where has our summer gone? The growing season was too short for bananas to bloom this year. Hopefully next year we'll have a warmer August and September and one of the larger bananas will send out a bloom.