Thursday, November 29, 2012
Whitefish fishing
Matt and a friend took Brandon Whitefish fishing a two weeks ago. I waited to post so I could give a picture! They are fairly large fish that live in Lake Michigan and spawn in the rivers. They run through the channels in schools late at night. This beauty was caught around 9 PM. I wasn't there but I will give you the information to the best of my knowledge. They run in large schools and are attracted to shiny spinners. No bait is necessary but you are only allowed to keep the fish if it actually takes the hook. You cannot snag a fin, or a tail or something like that. From what I understand, there were 10 fish caught that night, but only one was allowed to be kept (Brandon's). All the others were snags. There are so many fish that they literally get their fins stuck in the hook. Isn't that crazy! And I guess, if you catch a fin or a tail, they can put up quite the fight while being reeled in. Nice work buddy!
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Funny family time
I had to write these down somewhere so I would remember them. I'm sure in years to come, my kids will kill me for this, but right now, its too cute to pass up.
Anika told me on the way home from school yesterday that she was the second runner up in the geography bee for her class. The first thought that ran through my head was 'how can any child of mine even be in the top ten?' but I let that pass. I am fairly geographically challenged as far as the world is concerned. I am great with directions and maps, just don't ask me where are any countries in Africa or South America!
So, she goes on to explain at supper that they had taken a geography test to see who would be in the school geography bee. There were six students who all got the same score - she was one of them. So they had their own little geography bee in their classroom with those six students. At the end of six rounds, places 1, 2, 5, and 6 had been determined, but Anika and another classmate were still in the running for 3rd or 4th. The teacher was tired of spending most of the morning on geography, so those places were determined by a coin flip. Anika chose tails 'because it never fails'.... well, it failed. So, she is officially 4th place in the 6th grade class and the second runner up. On the day of the geography bee, if both the first and second place students fail to show up, Anika is on. I'm not holding my breath, and neither is she, but it was a funny story!
Jessica also came home with a sheet of paper in which she had to write about what she would do with $100. She had to give it away to a person or to a charity. Her first choice was her best friend back in MN, but I persuaded her otherwise. I first had to explain what a charity was, and then I gave her about ten examples: Operation Christmas Child, Feed my starving Children, Kids Against Hunger, American Cancer Society, Susan G. Komen, etc. She first decided she wanted to do Susan G. Komen and talk about our friend that had breast cancer and squirting people walking on the 3 - day walk. So I was having her tell me what she was going to write and she stopped and looked up with her big eyes as only she can and said 'wait, I want to give the money to the parsonage.' My first thought was, little xxxx, wants to somehow keep the money herself. Thankfully I didn't say that out loud, but asked some questions. I tried to figure out if she meant where we lived in Grand Haven, or to the pastors that live in the house, or to the church. We had explained to the kids when we lived in the parsonage in Grand Haven that they kept that house for people who didn't have a place to stay, like us... pastors, missionaries, etc. So, I was grasping that maybe she had remembered that and wanted to give it to someone like that. 'No mom, to the kids that don't have dads or moms.' OHHHHHHH big smile, hidden chuckle. 'You mean orphanage' (me) 'Yes, how do you spell that anyway?' (her) So we got the paper written. At the end, she has to say what she wants them to do with the money. I suggested food, clothes, toys, books....... but she came up with the best one: LOVE. She said she wants them to use the money to hire more people so the kids have someone to love them. Then she decided she wanted to go and work in an orphanage some day so she could love all the kids that lived there. How sweet is that.
Anika told me on the way home from school yesterday that she was the second runner up in the geography bee for her class. The first thought that ran through my head was 'how can any child of mine even be in the top ten?' but I let that pass. I am fairly geographically challenged as far as the world is concerned. I am great with directions and maps, just don't ask me where are any countries in Africa or South America!
So, she goes on to explain at supper that they had taken a geography test to see who would be in the school geography bee. There were six students who all got the same score - she was one of them. So they had their own little geography bee in their classroom with those six students. At the end of six rounds, places 1, 2, 5, and 6 had been determined, but Anika and another classmate were still in the running for 3rd or 4th. The teacher was tired of spending most of the morning on geography, so those places were determined by a coin flip. Anika chose tails 'because it never fails'.... well, it failed. So, she is officially 4th place in the 6th grade class and the second runner up. On the day of the geography bee, if both the first and second place students fail to show up, Anika is on. I'm not holding my breath, and neither is she, but it was a funny story!
Jessica also came home with a sheet of paper in which she had to write about what she would do with $100. She had to give it away to a person or to a charity. Her first choice was her best friend back in MN, but I persuaded her otherwise. I first had to explain what a charity was, and then I gave her about ten examples: Operation Christmas Child, Feed my starving Children, Kids Against Hunger, American Cancer Society, Susan G. Komen, etc. She first decided she wanted to do Susan G. Komen and talk about our friend that had breast cancer and squirting people walking on the 3 - day walk. So I was having her tell me what she was going to write and she stopped and looked up with her big eyes as only she can and said 'wait, I want to give the money to the parsonage.' My first thought was, little xxxx, wants to somehow keep the money herself. Thankfully I didn't say that out loud, but asked some questions. I tried to figure out if she meant where we lived in Grand Haven, or to the pastors that live in the house, or to the church. We had explained to the kids when we lived in the parsonage in Grand Haven that they kept that house for people who didn't have a place to stay, like us... pastors, missionaries, etc. So, I was grasping that maybe she had remembered that and wanted to give it to someone like that. 'No mom, to the kids that don't have dads or moms.' OHHHHHHH big smile, hidden chuckle. 'You mean orphanage' (me) 'Yes, how do you spell that anyway?' (her) So we got the paper written. At the end, she has to say what she wants them to do with the money. I suggested food, clothes, toys, books....... but she came up with the best one: LOVE. She said she wants them to use the money to hire more people so the kids have someone to love them. Then she decided she wanted to go and work in an orphanage some day so she could love all the kids that lived there. How sweet is that.
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Symphony
We were gifted with two tickets to the West Michigan Symphony on November 11. It was a wonderful concert. Great music and several of the pieces had ballet accompanying it from the Joffrey Ballet. We were in the balcony at the Frauenthal and had great seats. Sadly, from working so much those weeks, we were exhausted and fought sleep through the darkness, warmth and soothing music. But, it was very enjoyable and good to get some culture!
Saturday, November 24, 2012
A weekend to give thanks
I was given the message that I have used my quota for pictures on my blog - this was a scary message - but best I can tell, I have a certain quota for one year and then it renews. Hopefully that is true - then, in a few days, I will add our Thanksgiving feast picture to the end of this post. One year.
Which brings around what I was doing one year ago today. As I am writing this, we were driving here, to Michigan, for the last time, or first time, depending on how you look at it. We left one home to make a new one. One year ago today, I was driving, through rain and tears, we arrived safely at our destination. This blog is proof of all the heartaches and joys that one family experiences in one years time. I am often asked 'How are you doing?' or 'Does it feel like home yet?'. I never really know how to answer. We are fine, we are blessed. We have clothes, food and a warm beautiful home. Home feels like home. Its nice to have your own bed and a place to walk in and dump your stuff until tomorrow. A place to hang Christmas lights and make memories. So, yes, those things are happening and make this more like home.
We went back to MN for Thanksgiving. We have been celebrating Thanksgiving in the same way with the same people for 4 or 5 years. It was funny listening to the kids tell us what we were going to do on Thursday because we had to, it was tradition. Cue Fiddler on the Roof. We did all those things and then some, and laughed and smiled and cried and laughed some more. I love that I can drop my kids off in several different homes/situations and they just take off as though they never missed a day. I love to see the hugs my kids give the adults that they miss in their lives. I hate the heartache in their voices when they ask to move back. I was asked several times to move back, by both my children and by the people they visited. Its hard to be back there, to see life go on, to miss it. Its hard to come back here, to see life go on, to wonder. But yet, its all so good. No I did not mean also good. I meant ALL so good. We love MN and our family/friends there. We love visiting them. We love it when they visit us. We are asked what are favorite things here are and sometime its hard to have an answer, but we do always have the beach, and the beach day with friends. We have jobs, and a school, and much to be thankful for. A video we saw on Thanksgiving morning reminded us to be thankful where we are.... for sight, for hearing, for feet to walk, and if you don't have those things - which many people don't - be thankful for the right here right now. There was an open microphone in the church that morning. Jessica asked if she could go forward and talk. I told her to go for it. You have to understand, this girl loves the stage and the opportunity to hold a microphone. She got up there and said 'I am thankful I am back in MN again.' Much of the church got a kick out of that one! I can look back to where we were a year ago, and see all that we have learned and found and hold on to and be ever so thankful I have another day to count my blessings.
Which brings around what I was doing one year ago today. As I am writing this, we were driving here, to Michigan, for the last time, or first time, depending on how you look at it. We left one home to make a new one. One year ago today, I was driving, through rain and tears, we arrived safely at our destination. This blog is proof of all the heartaches and joys that one family experiences in one years time. I am often asked 'How are you doing?' or 'Does it feel like home yet?'. I never really know how to answer. We are fine, we are blessed. We have clothes, food and a warm beautiful home. Home feels like home. Its nice to have your own bed and a place to walk in and dump your stuff until tomorrow. A place to hang Christmas lights and make memories. So, yes, those things are happening and make this more like home.
We went back to MN for Thanksgiving. We have been celebrating Thanksgiving in the same way with the same people for 4 or 5 years. It was funny listening to the kids tell us what we were going to do on Thursday because we had to, it was tradition. Cue Fiddler on the Roof. We did all those things and then some, and laughed and smiled and cried and laughed some more. I love that I can drop my kids off in several different homes/situations and they just take off as though they never missed a day. I love to see the hugs my kids give the adults that they miss in their lives. I hate the heartache in their voices when they ask to move back. I was asked several times to move back, by both my children and by the people they visited. Its hard to be back there, to see life go on, to miss it. Its hard to come back here, to see life go on, to wonder. But yet, its all so good. No I did not mean also good. I meant ALL so good. We love MN and our family/friends there. We love visiting them. We love it when they visit us. We are asked what are favorite things here are and sometime its hard to have an answer, but we do always have the beach, and the beach day with friends. We have jobs, and a school, and much to be thankful for. A video we saw on Thanksgiving morning reminded us to be thankful where we are.... for sight, for hearing, for feet to walk, and if you don't have those things - which many people don't - be thankful for the right here right now. There was an open microphone in the church that morning. Jessica asked if she could go forward and talk. I told her to go for it. You have to understand, this girl loves the stage and the opportunity to hold a microphone. She got up there and said 'I am thankful I am back in MN again.' Much of the church got a kick out of that one! I can look back to where we were a year ago, and see all that we have learned and found and hold on to and be ever so thankful I have another day to count my blessings.
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| kids eat first |
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| bowling, part of the tradition |
SkyZone
A few weeks ago we had a planned family fun night. Friends from MN were coming to Grand Rapids to celebrate the opening of a new SkyZone! Its a trampoline park and oh so very much fun. It is owned by someone that attended Faith CRC as a child and is now all grown up and lives in GR. His two sisters and nephew and niece came out for the Grand Opening and invited us to come along. It ended up that I had to work, but they let me leave early and we had two hours of jumping and eating and a whole lot of fun!
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| the foam pit |
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| The big jump area |
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| one of the dodgeball courts |
Friday, November 16, 2012
Family pictures and fun in the leaves
I have been looking for someone to take our family pictures in earnest for around 3 months - longer just casually. I have been on facebook, craigslist, email, you name it, its been on my mind and I have been hunting: sending out inquiries and waiting for responses. Don't get me wrong, there are lots of talented people willing to take our pictures, but for a small fortune, and I wasn't ready to pay that much for the memory. I sat down at facebook one night and noticed someone's picture of a sunset. I thought I'd ask if she took pictures for fun, or if she would be willing. Turns out she does take pictures as a side job, had openings in her schedule, was very reasonably priced, and would give me a CD with all the pics and the copyright to print them as I wished. The kicker? She is Matt's secretary at church. Talk about searching for something right under my nose. Maybe next time I should mention to Matt what I am doing. He knew she did this a long time ago. CRAZY!
Anyway, I knew which park I wanted to go to and I had an idea of a few pictures I wanted taken. We made a plan of when to go and she took her daughter Jessica along with as well. My children adore Jessica and she had some great ideas of shots to take and she helped carry all our coats! It was a fun but very crazy time. We went to a park down the road that was COVERED in leaves and fallen trees with a path out to the beach. The kids were running up and down the dunes, finding places they wanted their picture taken and poor Holly just had to run all over after them to shoot! All in all, we were gone about 1 1/2 hours and it was pretty successful. Thanks Quantum Red Photography!
We went back the next day just so the kids could run and play and be crazy. They miss playing in the leaves so this was a perfect time to run, jump, slide, throw and pretend to be Tarzan. They had been begging to rake leaves for anyone! They would seriously point out homes that needed their leaves raked as we drove around town asking me to stop so they could rake and then play. The park offered a wonderful place to slide down hills in leaves, jump in leaves, throw leaves.... you name it!
Anyway, I knew which park I wanted to go to and I had an idea of a few pictures I wanted taken. We made a plan of when to go and she took her daughter Jessica along with as well. My children adore Jessica and she had some great ideas of shots to take and she helped carry all our coats! It was a fun but very crazy time. We went to a park down the road that was COVERED in leaves and fallen trees with a path out to the beach. The kids were running up and down the dunes, finding places they wanted their picture taken and poor Holly just had to run all over after them to shoot! All in all, we were gone about 1 1/2 hours and it was pretty successful. Thanks Quantum Red Photography!
We went back the next day just so the kids could run and play and be crazy. They miss playing in the leaves so this was a perfect time to run, jump, slide, throw and pretend to be Tarzan. They had been begging to rake leaves for anyone! They would seriously point out homes that needed their leaves raked as we drove around town asking me to stop so they could rake and then play. The park offered a wonderful place to slide down hills in leaves, jump in leaves, throw leaves.... you name it!
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| the tarzan rope |
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| beautiful park |
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
the shed
Matt spent many nights the months of September and October reffing high school soccer games in the area. We cashed each check and saved it up until it could be turned into wood and nails! The project of the shed began the last week of October. It started with Matt's dad coming to town with the truck making it possible to get all the stuff from Menard's to our home. The first day they got the floor built. Day 2 brought lots of rain. Did I mention that for the last 3 weeks we have had only two or three 24 hour periods that it HASN'T rained. I never was ready to build an ark because there is so much sand here is just disappears, but there is still LOTS of rain!
Anyway, since it was raining, Matt and his dad worked in the basement framing in the bedroom down there.
Wednesday dawned a bit sunnier and warmer. My parents showed up to help also, so the three men spent the day building and got quite far. The week got colder but they kept working.
By Saturday evening, it was a full shed with a roof, but the shingles didn't quite get finished - they ran out of nails. Monday morning they finished up the shingles and the shelves inside and then my parents left, also. Now it just needs some siding, but we've already got stuff inside and the garage looks beautiful without all the stuff in it! Nice job guys!
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| completed - but not finished |
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