More Snow Fun!!!

It was another perfect day to enjoy the outside. We had another little snowfall the other day and the kids have been outside for hours every day. They have had a blast - I can't imagine what they will think when there is enough snow to actually make a track. Their good friends came over to enjoy the slide with them today. Once again - it was a great time.

Snow Princess Olivia

Andrew "catching" some air

All five kids attempting to come down as Santa Claus (the reindeer and the last one is Santa)

Caleb "flying" over the small jump

I've been baking all afternoon - more yummy Christmas treats. More about that later.

Sandy

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow

A little bit of snow fell last night - enough to scrape together and enjoy some more sledding fun off the tree fort. The neighbor kids came over too and a good time was had by all!! Even Lobo enjoyed being outside and trying to "attack" the kids as they came to the end of their slide. I heard a rumor that while Olivia and I were at ballet Gerald even went down the slide. Then I heard that there needs to be some reinforcements in place before too many adults go down. Some more snow would help too! The kids had a blast and were outside for a long time.



Needless to say, the kids are praying for more snow!

Monday Morning is Here Again

Why is it that the weekends go by so quickly? We have had a nice relaxing few days together but the weekend is over and tomorrow morning Gerald goes back to work and we go back to school. As I type this the kids and Gerald are playing a game at the counter. It is almost time for jammies for Olivia.

Friday afternoon Gerald took the kids skating. Our rink here in town has homeschooling skating twice a week. It was the first time this winter that our children have gone. They had a blast! Gerald said that by the end Olivia was skating end to end without any help. She had just started getting the hang of skating toward the end of last year while the boys have been skating for a few years already.

Saturday the boys played lots of hockey in the basement while Gerald did lots of homework. That was especially tough on the boys. Dad had spent all day Friday with them - even doing some of school with them. Then Saturday he wanted to get caught up on his school work and they didn't want to leave him alone. They all went with him to do some errands while I stayed home and cleaned Olivia's room.

All is all it has been a nice relaxing weekend. I could use a few more days of that! I am looking forward to Christmas break, but that is still a few weeks away.

Time to start getting the kids to bed - then I can go to bed too :)
Sandy

Gerald is Home

Yahoo!! Gerald arrived home around 4:30 this afternoon. We had our first supper as a family in a week. And the first meal I've really cooked all week. We all sat around and visited and LOVED being together as a family once again. Every time one of the kids come and ask me something I have been telling them, "You have a father. Go ask him!" I am going to be off duty for the rest of the evening. I will come back on duty just in time for school in the morning. I wouldn't say it has been a great week, but it was as good as it could be with Gerald gone.

Off to enjoy our evening together as a family. I love that God created it to be that way.

Sandy

Andrew's Accomplishment

We went to visit Grandma Braun today. It had been a long time :( She was in the middle of Bible Study but she didn't seem to mind that we interrupted. Caleb and Olivia kept her laughing with all of their games and silly sayings. Of course I had to tell her everything they said because they didn't speak loud enough for her to hear. She was in a very jovial mood and we enjoyed visiting her.

I made some more Christmas treats today. I only ate two pecan delights (made a few days ago), one peanut butter ball, and two chocolate covered peanuts. I say only because I sure felt like eating a lot more of them. Yep, I am missing Gerald today and I often deal with my emotions by eating. I did go for a walk today - good thing!!!

Gerald was in Picture Butte today and is heading for Bethany tomorrow to take his niece and nephew out for supper. He will be home Thursday. You can bet that we will all stay up and wait for him no matter how late it gets. Caleb has asked me several times when dad is coming home.

Andrew finished reading the New Testament this week. Caleb is still in Luke - although Andrew started long before Caleb did. Way to go Andrew! I can not say that I accomplished that at his age, or even the next ten years after that. And, well, maybe even longer than that. He has an amazing heart that is sensitive to His Jesus! I love that about him.

Sandy

Make Work Project

With the little bit of snow that has fallen the last few days the kids are itching to use the slide that Gerald built off the tree fort in the backyard. So after school today Caleb and Olivia took their shovels out there and started pushing the snow towards the end of the slide. After they got a mound at the bottom they gave it a try. Shouts of yahoo were heard in the house as then went down again and again. They think it is fun now, wait until their dad come home and ices the slide. Watch them fly then! What do you think my chances are of getting them to shovel the driveway? Do you think they will believe me when I tell them to think of all the snow they could haul to the back from the driveway and how far they could go on the sleds?

Andrew has yet to try it out as he isn't quite finished with school. He will have all afternoon to play out there. Olivia is off to a friend's house after lunch so it can be boy time.

Gerald is traveling from Calgary to Taber today - starting the road home. Now YAHOO from the wife!

Sandy

A Mom and Her Three Kids

I don't like it when Gerald is gone. Having said that, I find that there are several things that usually happen when he is on a trip. The kids are much more help around the house. They have chores to do every day but it seems as I am much more of top of making sure they get done by them and not me when Gerald is away. Secondly, I find that overall the house stays much neater. Probably cause and effect of the previous sentence. The kids eat meals without any "This isn't my favorite!" I am sure that is due to the fact that I don't cook very much when Gerald isn't home. So we eat foods that are simple to make, easy to clean up, and the kids generally like. The house makes wwwwaaaayyyy more noise when he is gone. Ok, I will admit that it is just that I hear every creak when he is gone and that makes it harder to relax around here.

We made it to early church on time this morning and had a good morning. I taught Children' s Church and Sunday School and then we came home and had left overs. The kids went out to play on the drive way in the snow that had fallen last night. They use there plastic sleds to slide down the driveway. I know that sound dangerous as the street is at the end of driveway but they are responsible children and NEVER go into the street (well, almost never). I had a chance to go for a walk - thanks Marcella for watching the kids so I could get out.

Saturday we went out to do the shopping for Operation Christmas Child. We chose a girl this year as we did a boy last time. With careful packing we even got it all into the box. Another great way to teach the kids that helping others is the way to go. They took a personal interest as they picked out the items and then at bedtime we prayed for the little girl that will receive our box.

Gerald is in Calgary today with a full day of preaching and being a part of two different services, supper with youth leaders and a talent show tonight. He was bowling with another youth group last night. Our kids wanted to know if he was going to see a Flames game. I think the boys would have put up a fuss if he had gone and they weren't with him.

Time for some hot chocolate and snuggle up under a blanket on the couch as I listen to the kids play downstairs.

Sandy

We are still here!

Yes, we are still alive! Life moves along rather quickly sometimes and I think we are in one of those times. We are all well and healthy. Andrew and I get our flu shots next week and that should help us move through the flu season without antibiotics.

We are well into the Christmas spirit here with the tree up and the house all decorated. Although the kids are wondering when there are going to be some presents under the tree. I have done some Christmas baking already and will probably do some more this weekend.

Gerald has been busy at work - doing two ministry weekends (Discover Your Ministry Potential and the Youth Leader Retreat) in the last two months. Today he left for a trip out west. He made all the rest of cry when he told us goodbye. He left rather early this morning so said goodbye to the kids last night. We don't like it when he is gone from us, but that is part of his job. He is also taking three classes at Providence Seminary this fall. One of those classes requires him to do three hours of visitation a week. Try to fit that into the schedule without sacrificing family time :(

We have five weeks of school left before Christmas break. We are looking forward to that! In the meantime, school is going well and the kids are progressing. Olivia is reading much better than she was at the start of the year. Andrew is reading an average of 363 words a minute. That is probably faster than I read! Caleb is doing very well. His biggest struggle is learning to accept that it is ok to get some wrong once in awhile. We are enjoying our home school group very much and looking forward to the gym night tonight.

Olivia is LOVING her ballet class. We are all looking forward to the observation class in December where we can go watch. She tells us that they are practicing a routine for us. It has been really good for her to have something of her own. She told me that it is really hard but fun.

Well, my pecan delights are ready to be smothered in chocolate. Makes me think of you, mom! Come share them with me!

Sandy