Tea Parties Are Fun!

Katie and I were invited to a tea party yesterday. While the grown up ladies enjoyed tea and scones, the little girls had tea and treats at their own table. I couldn't resist turning around and taking pictures of the little girls ~ they looked so cute in their dresses, having "grown up" conversation over tea. :-)


Katie and Gabrielle discuss important issues over cups of tea. :-)


Anne, Ellie, Kate and Gabrielle ~ full of tea!

Bridge Collapse

Many have heard by now of the terrible tragedy that happened last night in Minneapolis. It was rush hour. People were in their cars, backed up bumper to bumper, as they headed home from work. The interstate took them over the Mississippi River on a huge bridge. I have been over that bridge. You hardly notice that you are actually on a bridge because it is such a wide interstate highway. Last night at 6:05 pm that bridge collapsed. It is unthinkable that something like this could happen. There was a school bus full of children that had just crossed the bridge before the bridge fell into the river. All of the children got out safely, but oh how scary it must have been for them. We are praying for the families touched by this tragedy.

The Rock Shop

Did you know that taking your kids to the rock shop is about the same as taking them to a candy store? I could not believe the squeals of delight that came from my children as they ran from pile of rocks to pile of rocks outside the rock shop we visited in Estes Park, CO. And then, once inside, they ran about giddy as can be, scooping up handfuls of little polished rocks and oohing and aahing at each new color, shape and shimmer of rocks they found. I let them pick out a few rocks of their own to buy. Oh, my, what a decision each chosen rock was! They were still ecstatic when we drove away with each of them clutching a little bag full of ...rocks. :-)


Look at all of these big, colorful rocks! (And colored glass.)



Grant found Fool's Gold!



So many rocks, so little time...

Mt. Rushmore

We finally are home again! On our way back, we went to Mt. Rushmore. It was the first time the kids have been there. Dave and I hadn't been there for about ten years or so and, oh boy, has it changed. It is rather like a carnival now, with flags, music, shops and a parking structure. Much different than the last time we we there!

The kids got little booklets with questions to answer to earn Junior Ranger badges. They really got in to it! It was a fun way to learn about the monument and explore the area. They were so excited when they got their badges! :-)

It is nice to be home again and to sleep in our own beds! :-)

Kate & Grant are Junior Rangers!

County Fair

Every other summer our staff conference begins with a fun night for families after a short meeting to welcome everyone. Carnival rides, games and food are set up on a parking lot and thousands of people pour into the roped-off area for a great night at the "County Fair." Grant and Kate look forward to this night with great excitement. Here are a few pictures of this year's "fair."

Estes Park

The kids and I took another trip into Estes Park the other day. We happened to choose a cool and rainy day, but we had a good time anyway. We enjoyed looking at the shops and walking along the creek. The kids were excited to try caramel apples for the first time. The drive back was just gorgeous! I love the mountains! It's times like these that I wonder why we ever left Colorado. But really, I know it is because God brought us to where we live and minister now. And even Colorado is not better than where ever God has called us to be. :-)

Kate by the creek


Grant on rocks by the creek


Caramel apples ~ Yum!

YMCA of the Rockies

This is one of my favorite views!
(Click on the picture to get a better idea of how beautiful the view is!)
It is what you see from the big porch of the administration building at the YMCA of the Rockies Camp near Estes Park, Colorado. In our ministry with high school students, my husband and I have spent a week at the Y~camp for many summers as we have helped put on our summer conferences. The camp has great activities for younger kids as well, like day camps, that Grant and Katie have really enjoyed.

Yesterday we drove to Estes Park and, of course, found our way to the Y~Camp. We sat on the huge porch in front of the ad. building and took in the view. The camp recently celebrated their 100 year anniversary and had a sculpture put on the grounds to commemorate the occasion. The kids enjoyed playing on it. :-)
















Isn't that a fun sculpture for a YMCA camp? :-)



Besides being a place that we love, the Y~Camp also plays a role in our family history. When Dave's father was a boy, his family spent many summers in a cabin at the camp. His father was a teacher, so he had the summers off and he spent them with his boys, fishing and hiking near Estes Park. The family always stayed in the same cabin and the two boys even built a tree house in a tree by their cabin.

Yesterday we decided to go find the actual cabin that Dave's dad stayed in all those summers. When we found it, we wondered, "Where did the boys build their treehouse?" We saw a big tree right next to the little cabin. Could it have been in that one? Guess what we saw up in that tree?














Can you believe it?! Those boards were put there by two little boys over 60 years ago!

It was exciting for our family to see the remnant of the treehouse still up there in that tree! It was fun to imagine what their summers were like and all the fun they had exploring and playing in the area. Dave grew up hearing stories of those summers. Now we tell our children stories about Granddad and his summers at the Y~Camp.

Birthday Parties Are Fun

Kate & Anna are ready to party!


The bubble-catching game was a hit! :-)


Birthday girl, Emma, Anna, Kate and Caeley wait their turn during a game.

Fourth Of July Fun

There is a tradition here for the kids in this apartment complex to decorate their bikes and scooters and ride them in their own little parade on the 4th of July. Grant and Katie were thrilled to be a part of it and set to work decking out their bikes in red, white and blue. At the appointed time everyone met together and a dad on a motorcycle led the parade of kids around the parking lots a couple of times, while moms and dads ran along to get pictures. It was actually quite fun and the kids were so proud to be in a parade! :-)

Visitors!

We've had some visitors! Our friend, Arthur, and his four kids stayed with us for a few days on their way to visit the kids' grandparents who live a few hours away. We had lots of fun with them! Grant and Katie last saw Arthur's kids three years ago when they visited us, but they picked up right where they left off last time and had a blast together. There were some tears when they left yesterday. We sure hope we will see them before another three years go by!

Dave and the kids hit the pool.


The boys were really focused on a video game ~ serious business! :-)

YUM! :-)

What do you do on a hot summer day?

Caeley, Emma, Anna and Kate enjoy freezy pops

Grant and Erik dry off by the pool

On the Road Again

A few days ago we packed up the ol' minivan and headed west. We are now mostly settled in an apartment in Colorado and this will be our home away from home for the next six weeks! The kids are thrilled because our apartment faces the swimming pool and because there are a lot of kids around here to get to know! :-) My husband is taking classes at the university in town for the next four weeks and then we will both be attending a training conference for the following two weeks. There will be a lot of information to stuff into our brains, but we are excited to be here and looking forward to what God will teach us this summer.

P.S. Thank you, Megan, for house-sitting for us while we are gone!!!

Katie and Grant were excited to FINALLY hit the pool that is right outside our front door! :-)

Katie made a new friend, Anna, who just happens to be the daughter of a friend of mine! How fun is that? :-) Katie and Anna are like two peas in a pod and their moms are delighted that God has brought them together!

School's Out!

Do you see those happy faces? Grant and Kate finished their school work for the year last week and they are officially off for the summer! Now they have time to play at the park and spend time with friends. That is their friend, Krystal, in the photos above, whose cat recently had kittens. :-)

Oh, Happy Day!

Today is Grant's "Gotcha Day." It is hard to believe that NINE years have passed since that day that God brought our son to us. Wow. We were so excited and nervous. Grant was placed in our arms and suddenly we were parents. All of the sorrow and pain and aching melted when we looked into his face. Oh, we still remember the journey, but the sweetness of having Grant in our lives has softened it and given purpose to the pain and the long wait.

Hope deferred makes the heart sick,
but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.
~Proverbs 13:12

Grant is full of energy, always bouncing and running about, rather like Tigger. :-) He loves to ask questions and express himself and he will talk your ear off if you let him. He has a great imagination and is lots of fun to be with. Grant loves people and makes friends easily. He is smart and capable and has compassion for people in need. It is such a joy to be his mom!

Grant's Gotcha Day is also Dave's birthday! What better birthday present could he have ever gotten than the gift of a child and the privilege of being a father? :-) We are so thankful!

Slip - N - Slide

Whenever the temperature reaches the 70's, my kids start begging to play in water. We have a small hill in our yard and my husband put down a long piece of plastic to slide down on. We turn on the hose and, voila!- instant slip-n-slide! :-) Soon neighbor kids joined the fun and we had a slip-n-sliding party going on...and it's not even summer yet! :-)

Homeschool Class at the Zoo

Last week the kids took part in a class for homeschoolers at the local zoo about animals in the African Savannah. I was impressed with what a great job the people from the zoo did at presenting the information in an interesting way and letting the kids have fun as they learned. Part of the time was spent in a classroom and the rest was spent outside looking at the animals.

After class, we explored the zoo a little longer and the kids got to ride a carousel in the park, before we started for home.

Baby giraffe up close and personal. :-)


Fun on the carousel.

Mother's Day 2007

I am a mother because of God's gift of these two precious ones.


This is what Grant wrote on the card he gave me. I love it! :-)

Neighborhood Garage Sale

When Dave and I first moved to this area, long before we had kids, we saw some signs advertising for an upcoming neighborhood garage sale ~ involving 200+ families! Now, I love garage sales, but I had never heard of so many sales in one place at the same time and I couldn't wait to check it out. That Saturday, we drove to the neighborhood where we had seen the signs, and the closer we got, the worse the traffic got. We finally parked in a grassy field by some other cars and set off to see the sales.

Oh my goodness. It was unbelievable. Throngs of people filled the streets. There were garage sales at several houses on each street. There were people selling hotdogs, hamburgers, pop, coffee, bottled water, cotton candy, cookies, chips, doughnuts and candy. There were even port-a-potties! It was like a carnival. We stood there with our mouths open for a minute and then my husband said, "I have never seen anything like this in all my live-long days!" That was about 12 years ago and we have gone to this neighborhood sale almost every year since. Even my kids save their allowance and look forward to this particular day of garage sales.

Well, today was the day. Grant and Katie brought their money and looked for kid-sized bargains at each sale. I brought the old baby stroller along to hold our purchases. We shopped. We bought snacks. We saw friends. And, we even visited the port-a-potties. (At least Grant did. :-))

Many years ago, Dave saw the money-making potential at this event and now uses it to help high school students earn money to attend our ministry's summer conference. So, the kids and I shopped like crazy and Dave grilled 350 hotdogs and 175 hamburgers and we are all exhausted. :-) But, it was a great day. Now we can start saving for next year...

Grant waits in one of the port-a-potty lines. :-)

The "grill master" and students raising money. :-)

Katie and Grant at the end of a day at the sales.

Mother’s Day Giveaway

5 Minutes For Mom is having a Mother's Day Giveaway! Check out the link below for great prizes you can win!