Happy New Year

I had hoped to give our Christmas Greetings to all our friends and family via my blog, as I did last year, but well...that just didn't happen.  So let me take a moment to say, I hope you all had a wonderful season, celebrating our Savior's birth.

And now, on this, the first day of 2011, I have decided to take a look back at the past year with pictures from each month.  Since I don't scrap book and don't even print our digital pictures anymore, I figure this is the one place I can maybe successfully document a snapshot of our life.

2010 A Year In Pictures

January

January found us going to basketball tournaments almost every weekend for our 3rd grade son.  It also found Cal and I trying to figure out how to take an "action" photo with our new camera...a task we are yet to master.  Carter's team did really well. 

Carter especially likes trophies!

February

February found us sitting at volleyball tournaments almost every Saturday for our 6th grade daughter. Paige has proclaimed that she would just die if she couldn't play volleyball.  Certainly a love of hers.  Again -- we had so much fun watching her.  I must admit I have discovered my own inner crazy woman when I sit and watch my kids play sports -- I am not sure exactly what possesses me to yell so excitedly from the stands over an elementary school game.

March

Taryn turns 6 with a Barbie/Nail Party!

Goofy Girls!

Hey!  Look at that -- Hannah Montanna got an American Girl Doll for her birthday!



April

Paige turns 12 and we were actually still able to surprise her with a gift...

She got an I-pod Touch which I overheard her tell a friend the day before that her parents would never buy her that... ha!

A few good friends helped Paige celebrate with a sleepover and a picnic in the backyard on an unseasonably warm  April 1st. (Not sure it was warm enough for tank tops -- but whatever!)

May



Middle School Marching Band at the Tulip Fesitval in Orange City.

June

Summer brings more games to watch (and many other things worth photographing)

Softball for Paige...

Baseball for Carter...

What do you suppose they are planning?

Good old-fashioned summer fun for Taryn

Poor Taryn had to sit and watch a LOT of games -- but we allowed her to have some of her own fun with cousin Corrie!

A family shower at The Fruited Plain for Mia, my sister-in-law to be.

Canada Fishing trip.  After a day on the boat -- Carter kept right on fishing.

Not bad Cal.

The rest of the men.

Father's Day -- lucky man, lucky kids!

Nothing says summer like the neighborhood Lemonade stand!

They were ambitious kids...grossing over $20.00 for 4 hours work.  Their angle was to charge .$50 a cup and then when the customer handed them a dollar, they would look at them with all their kid cuteness and ask if they wanted their change.  Those poor customers -- what could they say?

July

Celebrating the 4th at Okoboji!

Uncle Brent giving Paige a taste of her own medicine.

Later in July we had a college friend reunion of sorts -- meeting up with 8 families in the Twin Cities.

They ate only half of the $8 bag of cotton candy!  I think we spent more on food than tickets.

It wasn't a homerun that got her so excited...it was the fact that a boy in our group got on the jumbo screen playing his air guitar ...too cute!

We then headed to a lake cabin for the remainder of the weekend. 

Paige -- the scream heard around the lake!

July also included a week with Grandpa & Grandma in Sioux Center where all three also attended theatre camp.

Paige - Playing the part of Rose in Sleeping Beauty

Carter -- a henchman (rather fitting)

Taryn -- a sweet sheep.



August

A trip to the zoo with G'pa and G'ma and Corrie.

The baby camel got the sippy cup!

Carter takes such good care of his cousin.

This bear just makes me laugh -- so I thought I'd include it.

A camping trip to Lewis & Clark State Park in Yankton, SD

Fishing again.

The good old Palamino!

September

School Starts!

Starting First Grade.

(I make my kids hold up the number of fingers of the grade they are in -- or I will never keep it all straight.)

Starting 4th Grade.

Starting 7th Grade.

A trip to the Apple Orchard with friends.

I'm not sure they are supposed to climb the trees.

Or eat the apples in the field -- but I like to live dangerously.

The kitty was the highlight for Taryn.

Fall also brought football games.

Soaked but happy after winning the championship in a downpour.

And 7th Grade School Volleyball...



October

The highlight of this month was my brother's wedding -- I have so many pictures of this special event (200 to be exact), but I narrowed it down to 18 that I wanted to include here, but I fear I am running out of space.  So I am putting out 5 here and to see more click here.

And I would be remiss if I didn't include a picture of the highlight of Carter's year...

That would be a 15 pound Salmon that Carter caught by himself in the Missouri River. 

It was such a big fish in it's species that he was awarded the Trophy Fish Award from the State.  (Dad's a little jealous!)

More of the Wedding Weekend...

The morning of the Wedding Rehearsal we gathered in the hotel lobby to go out for coffee with the soon to be married couple.

We are getting married!!!

 Rehearsal at the church:

It was a little surreal to see your 12-year-old daughter walk down an aisle -- lookign more like 18.

My men.

 My sis and her babe.

At the rehearsal dinner:

My sibs.

My dad and his dear sister.

 The morning of the big day.

My girls.

What an attractive couple!

 

Becca and Laremy look pretty good too!

However, Carter and Taryn win the cutest pair contest!

 Looking daper!

O.K. now for a bit of fun...as I was admiring how good my parents look in the picture above -- young, stylish, unassuming glasses...I remembered my own wedding album from almost 20 years ago.  I just had to scan these pictures to share.. They make me smile.

Why did we think it was a good idea to have glasses cover half our face?

And the geometric shaped hair...check this out...

A beautiful group...but the height and the triangles of our hair!  I could never get that height thing going myself -- but I managed the mushroom top pretty well. (Look at sweet little Becca -- she was the age Paige was for Luke's wedding.) And I must admit even with all the changing styles - I do still love my dress :).

And now to conclude this little trip down memory lane -- a picture of Cal and I.  We just celebrated 19 years of marriage on December 21.  Happy anniversary honey!  (Look at us -- we were just babies!)

A Day in the Car...

I was going to entitle this...A Day in the Life, but then I realized it would be more aptly titled A Day in the Car because that is essentially where I spend my life somedays.

Take Wednesday for example...a relatively ridiculous day of driving in circles -- most of the trips were absolutely necessary -- and one I'll chalk up to dizziness (from driving in circles, not my state of mind -- although Cal might choose to differ :) )

After sending my kids off in the morning with our carpool driver (one trip to school I didn't have to make) -- my day went as follows...

Drive to the gym for an excercise class -- drive home.
Home for 45 minutes.
Drive to a meeting.  After the meeting, drive to Cal's office to sign and notarize refinancing papers.  Drive home to pick up said papers from the dining room table where I left them. (Not cool!)  Drive back to Cal's office.  Sign papers. Drive home.
Home for 45 minutes.
Drive to school to help paint paper mache' animals for Carter's zoo day.  After painting, drive to another meeting.  Drive home.
Home for 45 minutes.
Drive to school to pick up kids.
Home for an hour.
Drive to school to pick up Paige & friend after basketball practice.
Drop Paige off at home for piano lesson where the teacher is waiting.
Drive the friend to her home.  Drive to my home.
Home for 30 minutes.
Drive to church for girl's club - drive home.
Home for an hour.
Drive back to church to retrieve Paige.
Home for the night!!

Days like this drive me crazy -- too much time between appointments to sit around a waste, not enough to really make the trip home worthwhile, but where else do you go?

So can you blame me for being a little dizzy ?!?

Love Abounds

I haven’t posted a blog for so long it’s almost hard to start up again. But tonight I am sitting in a hotel room for the fourth night in a row – bored and alone…I’ve watched more TV in the last 3 nights than I have for a month, my book isn’t grabbing me, and work has consumed me all day and I don’t feel like working anymore.

My husband is handling the whirlwind of 3 kids graciously on his own this week. The reports from home have been good. He’s leaving work early every day to manage the after school carpool, run Taryn to dance, Paige to basketball & Carter to basketball. My co-workers have said – “Oh he will appreciate you so much more after this week.” That might be true, but right now, I appreciate him so much! Thanks honey!

So what to write about after so much time away from my blog…I have many thoughts racing through my head, but the thought that I have been overwhelmed with lately is the steadfast faithfulness of God.

Two weeks ago my brother got married.  It was a grand event in every sense of the word – stunning bride, beautiful location, lush flowers, unbelievable food...but most importantly it was grand because of the love they share.  My new sister, Mia, was all choked up while she was reciting her vows which, of course, caused the rest of us to tear up as well. But I realized how much she really loves my brother.  What more could I ask for?

The best parts of the event for me was spending time with the people who surrounded the happy couple with their show of love and support.  At the age of 37, my brother, Luke, is the last of our generation on either side of my relatives to get married. And almost everyone showed up for this long awaited event....aunts, uncles, cousins, long-time family friends. We were surrounded by those people in our lives who helped shape us as kids.   People I see far too seldom at this point in my life because we are spread across many miles and many states and at this stage of life are busy with our own families.

But these are people I love dearly and who love me back. Our love for each other, in many ways, is based simply on the fact that we belong to one another. My history with most of them begins at my birth. Aside from my younger cousins, they were around before I was born…supporting my parents…welcoming me.

My eldest aunt who lives in Chicago just turned 70. (She paints a whole new picture in my mind of how young 70 is.) She pulled me aside at the reception and said – “I’m just going to call you sometime, out of the blue, to keep in touch.” I would love that. I hope she does.

It was a great time to reconnect – even if it was just out on the dance floor getting’ down to Foot Loose or a exchanging a simple “You look great! Your kids are so big!” Our presence together that day affirmed that no matter the miles or years that pass, we are still there for each other….showing our support in the momentous occasions of our lives.

And I was struck afresh with what having these people in my life has meant to me.  And I wondered, do they know how weeks of fishing at The Little Norway Resort or weekends camping at Hoffmaster State Park or celebrating Christmas on the farm or working at the Leader Café made me who I am today? Do they know that the laughter shared over silly pranks and old family stories filled me with happiness? Do they know that the times we worshipped together at each others’ churches and our grandparents’ church rooted me even deeper in my faith? Do they know how proud I am to call them my family?

As I looked over this group of loved ones, I was even more deeply moved by God’s faithfulness to us all. Not that we haven’t had hardships amongst us – during the weekend I also shed tears with my youngest aunt from Tuscon while we talked about her daughter who is bravely fighting cancer and my other aunt who is recovering from a stroke. Yet through every challenge we have faced over the years, God has been faithful. He has been our rock and our fortress. There is not a cousin, aunt or uncle amongst us who does not place their hope in the Lord. How awesome is that?

Missing from this celebration were our grandparents. They have all gone on to heaven. I can’t imagine the praises they must sing to God when they look down on the legacy they have left behind -- a family that loves the Lord! I can’t help but sing praises from Psalm 100 myself, “For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.”

So thank you Luke, for getting married. It was a day filled with love...yours & Mia's...and so much more.