Family Home Evening

 Lubbock has blessed us with great friends that we now consider family.  One set came over for Family Home Evening this Monday.  After a lesson on letting our light shine, we played a game.  This one is from Sarah's repertoire. 

First you take a plate and a packed measuring cup (1 cup) of flour.  Place the plate on top of the measuring cup and CAREFULLY turn the whole thing over so that the measuring cup is now on top.  Also CAREFULLY remove the cup so what you get is a stack of packed flour in the shape of the measuring cup.  Finally, take a penny and CAREFULLY place it so that it stands up in the middle of the pile of flour without making it collapse (are you tired of being careful yet?).

Now, using a butter knife, you take slices through the mound of flour, scooting what you have sliced away from the main body of the flour.  Much like Jenga, the object is to NOT be the one to have the tower collapse.  Whoever collapses the tower with their cut, must retrieve the penny... using their mouth and nothing else.

 Jacob was the first to make the tower fall.  I think, when he gets older and has kids of his own, he will make a GREAT Santa Claus.  Just look at that white mustache and beard...

 Nicole was next, and while she didn't get a white face for her troubles, her teeth would make a dentist proud.  Who knew actual flour was a teeth whitener?

 Not to be outdone by her brother, Meagan wanted to powder her nose with her collapse.

And last, but not least, Cheyenne got a demure dab of flour on her chin.  Just to be like mommy and her friends.  As far as I'm concerned, it all adds to the cuteness.

- Josh         

Jacob's garden

Good times....

Since living in a house, we have been having a lot of fun adventures.  Jacob loves to explore and asked if he could have the old fence post that we had to replace (because our dog would have escaped if we hadn't). I asked what he wanted it for, and he said he just wanted to experiment with it. 

I let him loose and thoroughly enjoyed watching him have fun.  He started by taking the hammer to it and pounding it over and over.  He said he was trying to break it. I told him that it wasn't working, and to try and think of another way he might accomplish his goal.  He stopped and thought about it, and I could see the "light bulb" go off in his head.  He then asked if he could use the brick in the garage. I told him of course, unsure of where this was heading. He then proceeded to put the fence post over the top of the brick and stood on top of it. Nothing happened, he then ran over to the side of the yard and ran as fast as he could and jumped on top of each side of the fence with the brick in the middle....eureka!!! It broke and he again repeated the process till he had the post into three pieces. 

I asked what he planned on doing now that he had demolished it. 

"I know exactly what I want to do with it.  Can I please have some nails and paint?" Intrigued, I said yes. He asked if he could go into the garage and "work" on his own.  A little nervous and curious, I agreed.

 After a while he came back in with a huge grin and showed me what he had created.

He has always wanted to grow peas just like grandpa does and now, that is a goal I can help him accomplish. We started these peas about 3 weeks ago and they are growing madly.

It has been such a blessing being able to watch him grow and blossom in ways that he couldn't do before moving into a house. I wish I had video taped this whole adventure, because it was very entertaining to watch. He has such passion and flare in things he loves. The next project he wants to do is to build his own telescope. So we are in the process of learning how to build one.

-Sarah                

Our New Home

There's no Place Like Home...

We did it, we are finally in a home!! After 14 years of marriage, we decided that living in an apartment really sucks!! I couldn't stand the noise and smoking in the halls anymore and everything just laid out perfectly.  We were able to break our lease without penalty, and find a home that was the same amount of rent as our apartment within a few days.  The Lord was really watching out for us and everything just went perfectly with no bumps or delays.

 I have a few plans on how I am going to decorate the front yard, it is to plain for my taste.

This is one view of the living room and yes I know we have a ton of movies!

I really like the ceiling and how there is some character to it.

The other view of the living room...

Our dining room.  I can also start using my family home evening chart I made those many years ago.  Just never had the room to hang it up.  I do now!!!

 

The kitchen photo is darker than I had hoped but you get the idea of how it looks. We also have a bigger fridge/freezer than we have had in the past and I loooove it. Also, look at all that room, we can now cook as a family and not have to take turns of who can be in the kitchen. We all fit!!

Meagan's room. She decorated it very well and yes she does have a lot of stuff.

 

Jacob's room. On the other hand he does not have much "stuff" (and yes dad I know women always have more "stuff" than men :) ).

 

Master bedroom. Our bedroom got significantly larger and I am just fine with that. We needed more space in our room. Now I can finally have my drawing desk in the house. Also Josh now has space to play his ASL (Advanced Squad Leader) board game.

And we have room for all of our books!!! Which the kids are happy with since they used to be in their rooms.

I did not get a picture of the backyard, but I am just happy we have one now.  I am hoping to build some grow boxes and start to garden. We are just so happy to have our own space and a place to run around outside.  It has also been so nice going outside into the garage and get into the car on a normal day in Texas (90-100 degrees) and not burn ourselves on the steering wheel cause it's no longer in the sun.

I am very grateful to the Lord for helping us get here. Also, I am grateful to family and friends who helped.  I did go a little OCD on unpacking and had the house all in order in about a week and a half.  I hate living out of boxes and having things unorganized.  Thank you Josh, for putting up with me and having to deal with my stubbornness.  It really feels like we are finally home!!!

-Sarah

Girls Camp

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

2014

This was the first year Meagan had the opportunity to go to Young Women's camp. I will let Meagan tell you all about her adventures....

Girls camp was soooooooo fun, my favorite thing was the zip line. Our cabin was crazy the best day was the last when we had testimony meeting. The spirit was so strong and I know that I was supposed to go to girls camp to help those to feel the spirit and I can't wait til next year!

The crazy thing was they had to drive 4 and a half hours to get to girls camp!! That and they had cabins with electricity and bathrooms with showers (I remember having to jump into a freezing cold river to "take a shower"). All in all, I think she had a blast and many came up to me afterwards and comment on how impressed they were with Meagan and excited to get to know here better (our new bishop said he was so impressed with how she would give all the girls who bore their testimony and cried a hug, even if she didn't know them). We actually moved to our new home two days before camp, so she went with our old ward but got to meet some girls from our new ward and really liked them. 

 Before...

After...

Strep throat did go around and a few even went home early because of it. Meagan wasn't feeling good so I took her in the next day and sure enough she had strep. I asked her if this would prevent her from wanting to go next year and she said, "Heck no!" 

 I have such fond memories of girls camp and I was praying all week that Meagan would have a good experience and also that I would survive without her (it was my first time being away from her for more than one night in a row). Well I did survive and so did she. She even said she missed her brother and that she wanted to be a better sister to him (The Lord really does work miracles). :P

-Sarah                

Tennis Camp

Calling all tennis players...

 Before pulling Meagan out of public school she was taking tennis for P.E. and let's just say she loved it. When we started our adventures in homeschooling, she really wanted to make sure she could continue learning how to play tennis. I have been progressively getting to know and become involved in groups with other homeschooling families, and learned through the grapevine about a tennis camp beginning in June. I jumped at the opportunity and snagged a spot for Meagan, then surprised her with the info the night before. She was ecstatic.

I asked her after the first day how she thought she did and she said, "I am really rusty but it is slowly coming back to me."

The camp was everyday from 9 am til 11:30, and in Texas it gets hot early and I was dying just sitting there and watching her. She had to be dying, but she said she loved it and can't wait to try out for the team in the fall (yes, Lubbock has a really great program for home-schooled kids to do sports, they even play all the public schools).

By the end of the week, she really started to improve and her coach even commented on how well she was playing. She also said that when Aunt Elizabeth comes to visit she so wants to get her game on!!

-Sarah                     

Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day Mom!!

So I wanted to do something special for mom this mother's day, and I have always wanted to learn how to paint. As luck would have it, I have a really good friend who is an amazing artist and she was willing to teach me how to paint. I knew my mother really loves flowers, and I remember she would plant daffodils in the yard so I decided on that flower.

 The first stage of my painting. 

Let me tell you after each session I was discouraged cause it looked nothing like I had hoped. But Nicole said you can't judge a cake before it is baked. So I soldiered on....

 The Second Stage 

I am starting to see the potential. I was determined to do it right and I wouldn't give up til I did!!

 And as they say, Voila!! After many, many, many tears and hours I finished just in time to photograph it and show mom online the product she will be getting in the mail after I frame it. I really had a blast and learned so much. I was, even towards the end, seeing my mistakes and things that needed to be fixed before Nicole could show me what needed to be worked on. 

Mom I love you so much, and am eternally grateful for all you have done for me and for always being there for me. It means everything to me!

I can't wait to tackle my next painting. Thanks Nicole for your help and tutelage!

-Sarah            

...Wherein the in-laws venture South...

There are many stories told to couples in the midst of courtship about the dreaded "in-laws".  They talk about how EVIL they are and how much they dislike you for "stealing" their beloved son/daughter away and chaining them to you in the bonds of matrimony.

If these stories are actually true, then I may just be the luckiest guy on the whole planet.  Like, won the lottery without buying a ticket, lucky, because I have AWESOME in-laws.  And they took time and flew down to visit us after having returned home from their mission to South Africa, late last year.

For one of our adventures while we were here, we took them to the Lubbock Ranching Heritage Museum.  Dad tends to dig on history a bit and there's a fair bit about how ranchers and frontiersmen used to live to be learned there.  Old cars, old wagons, old houses, roughing it...  What's not to like, right?

Here's Jacob on one of the old freight cars that they used to transfer cattle and feed from location to location once they finally got track laid down.

Another day, we went to see a museum that I've wanted to see for quite a while, but whose hours are almost always when I am at work or otherwise occupied.  It was the Silent Wings museum.  Apparently, during WWII, Lubbock was the largest training ground for American glider regiments in the country.   I knew that glider-borne infantry was used quite a bit in landing troops behind enemy lines during initial campaign assaults (such as capturing Pegasus Bridge on the Caen canal at Benouville on D-Day).  What I didn't know was that such training began in America, having thought that it started during the preparation for the invasion of Europe in England.

The museum had all kinds of glider parts and even a few actual gliders one could look in.  Below, you can see the kids in front of an engine built around that time.  What kind of engine, you ask?  Why, Jacobs Radial Engine of course... :) 

Below, Dad and the kids are standing in front of a Douglas C-47 Skytrain located out in front of the museum. The propellers of the engine on either wing are bigger than both of the kids.

 Additionally, they were here over Easter Sunday, for which there is apparently a requirement that there are eggs decorated.  Naturally, with Mom & Dad here, the kids wanted them to participate.

Mom, however, is just too cool to do eggs, unless it involves the greatest potato salad in the world.  THEN she'll do eggs.  Come to think of it, I should have had her make some.  :(  Next time, I guess.  But for now, she's chillin' in the dining room while Grandpa does the hard work of posing for egg photos with the kids.

It was great to see them again.  We look forward to doing so in the future as well.  We love having them around and wish they were closer, but the distance makes it all the more special when we do see them.

- Josh