Oldest July Folder22nd Picture
This picture is from July 2007 and is of Aidan at the Mississippi River Museum. He was enthralled with the big fish in the big aquarium right in the middle of museum. He sat there for forever just watching them.
Showing posts with label Vacation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vacation. Show all posts
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Random Picture Challenge
Oldest July Folder
Monday, May 4, 2009
Women of Faith
I went to Women of Faith again this year - after a two year break. It was awesome!! We made a whole weekend of it and it was fantastic to get a break from our everyday chaos. Poor Dad had to deal with three sick kids, but still had a good weekend. I did not get a lot of pictures (I know, shocking) because Hannah finally discovered the camera and has decided she loves to play with it.
Friday night we enjoyed a Steven Curtis Chapman concert. Now, as a rule, I am not a huge fan of SCC. I do enjoy him, but prior to Friday night, he never would have been someone I would have paid to see. (Why does that sound so sacrilegious???) I have always loved him as a person, though. After seeing him live, I would pay to see him again and again. Loved it.
I was absolutely thrilled to see that Mandisa was coming to Iowa - I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Mandisa. I didn't get many pictures of her, just because of where she was. Here she is - the backside of her. She sang both Friday and Saturday.
Lisa Welchel!!! Yep - Blair from the Facts of Life! Her talk was wonderful. It is fascinating to hear the "other side" of what was really going on in her life at the time of Facts of Life and how her childhood was - plus her life after the show.
Katie (left) - who so graciously opened her home for us and was an awesome hostess - and Tiffany enjoying a break Saturday.
Erica and Ali - we all had so much fun!
And, yes, as much as I really don't want to post this, a picture of Tiff and me...
Hannah loved her first Women of Faith conference. She was riveted by the music and the speakers and all the lights. She was a very good little girl. 
Hannah was very tuckered out by the time we came home Sunday afternoon and slept almost the entire way home!
Friday night we enjoyed a Steven Curtis Chapman concert. Now, as a rule, I am not a huge fan of SCC. I do enjoy him, but prior to Friday night, he never would have been someone I would have paid to see. (Why does that sound so sacrilegious???) I have always loved him as a person, though. After seeing him live, I would pay to see him again and again. Loved it.
I was absolutely thrilled to see that Mandisa was coming to Iowa - I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Mandisa. I didn't get many pictures of her, just because of where she was. Here she is - the backside of her. She sang both Friday and Saturday.
Lisa Welchel!!! Yep - Blair from the Facts of Life! Her talk was wonderful. It is fascinating to hear the "other side" of what was really going on in her life at the time of Facts of Life and how her childhood was - plus her life after the show. Katie (left) - who so graciously opened her home for us and was an awesome hostess - and Tiffany enjoying a break Saturday. Erica and Ali - we all had so much fun! And, yes, as much as I really don't want to post this, a picture of Tiff and me...Hannah loved her first Women of Faith conference. She was riveted by the music and the speakers and all the lights. She was a very good little girl. Hannah was very tuckered out by the time we came home Sunday afternoon and slept almost the entire way home!
Saturday, April 25, 2009
Random Picture Challenge
2002 July or
8th folder - closest to July
25th picture
This is July, but definitely not 2002 (Aidan, Emma, and Cael would be missing!). My pictures don't go back that far, so I went back to the farthest July, which is 2007. We were at the Madison Zoo with Chris, Shawna, and their kids, and Dad and Pam. It was a great day and a lot of fun! This was taken near the end of the day, so everyone was tired.
Monday, July 7, 2008
We're Back!!!
We went to Shawna's last week and had a lot of fun....and a little fighting (the kids, not us). We spent a lot of time hanging out and went to the river museum and the pool in Dubuque.
The museum had an exibit on all things venomous, so Austin loved that. I got a ton of great pictures that I will add to the dropshots page (www.dropshots.com/5boysmom).
We got home and unpacked everyone, then re-packed Austin for camp. He left Sunday afternoon and we go back to get him Friday afternoon. I hope he's having fun!
Our drive home was an interesting one, but I will leave that for a whole other post.
Our week has been pretty relaxing, with just me and the "little boys". If I can stop napping, maybe I can start keeping up with the blog again. I am just absolutely exhausted lately! I go back in tomorrow for a check and the glucose test...yuck.
The museum had an exibit on all things venomous, so Austin loved that. I got a ton of great pictures that I will add to the dropshots page (www.dropshots.com/5boysmom).
We got home and unpacked everyone, then re-packed Austin for camp. He left Sunday afternoon and we go back to get him Friday afternoon. I hope he's having fun!
Our drive home was an interesting one, but I will leave that for a whole other post.
Our week has been pretty relaxing, with just me and the "little boys". If I can stop napping, maybe I can start keeping up with the blog again. I am just absolutely exhausted lately! I go back in tomorrow for a check and the glucose test...yuck.
Friday, June 13, 2008
Vacation!
We are back from our vacation and we had a ton of fun! We went with family and it was so nice to get time together, with no rushing and just complete relaxation. We went to Valley, NE, which is right outside Omaha. My great uncle and aunt had a house there on a private lake and when they passed away, their children kept the house. Now they let family who wants to use it. A week on a lake is a great way to spend a week when you have so many kids! Plus the bonus was that we had Omaha right near by, so if we had gotten ambitious, we could have done a ton of stuff.
Mom and Shawna and her family arrived on Saturday. We had Shane's graduation party, so we left after that and arrived Sunday around 7 or so. The kids were so excited to see Emma and Cael. Emma and Cael were excited to see our boys, also.
Monday was a nice day, no clouds, so we decided that was the best day to go to the zoo. The kids had so much fun. There was so much to see! I couldn't believe how tired I was so easily already, so I did skip some of the buildings and sat with the triplets instead. I got to see what I wanted, so I was happy as well!
The rest of the week we just relaxed by the lake. The triplets did really well with knowing their limits. We had their pool set up on the patio and they would get as far as the sand for the beach, and turn around. Noah would sit longingly right on the edge of the lawn/beach, but he didn't venture any further.
We went on several boat rides, which was nice. I would have loved to have taken the little boys out, but I really didn't trust them and it would not have been relaxing for me at all, so we usually went after they were asleep.
Steve, Austin, and Chris did a lot of fishing, both off the dock and on the boat. It was nice that Steve and Austin had time together to do "grown-up" boy things that Aidan didn't tag along for. It's so important they get that time and with five kids, three of whom are little, it rarely happens when we are at home. We both are needed to care for the little people, so we took advantage of having others who could help out watching them and helping us.
Chris and Steve also went to Bass Pro Shops one night and enjoyed their "guy's night out." They stayed away until 11! That's late for Steve. I was happy to see Steve and Chris doing stuff together, though, because Shawna and I are so close. It's good to see our hubby's get along, too! (Disclaimer: They have always gotten along, just haven't had an opportunity to do so much together alone.)
Our worst experience was the longest tornado warning of my life! It went on and on and on for four and a half hours! Ugh! Because the basement is open to the beach, we found a small closet under the stairs for ALL of us to fit in as our shelter. We didn't get time at first to get it cleaned out, so we were REALLY cramped at first. Then we did get a little break and cleared it all out, then had a smidge more room. Austin was in the way back with Emma, Cael, and Aidan, then Shawna, me, and Mom, and sometimes Steve, with the triplets stuck in between the adults. Not fun. Plus it came right in the middle of dinner time, so noone had eaten. Mom got smart during one little break and went up and got onion rings for everyone. Everybody was happy with that. Chris and Steve stayed out and "watched the weather." I told Steve to get in, and he did sometimes, but he claims now that he was ready to dive in if it "started to get really bad." I cannot be a widow with six children! Austin liked to tell Emma (who gets very nervous with storms) about all the possibilities and how the very safest spot was a tiny little area under the bottom step....where of course noone could fit. Then he would complain of BO. Ummm, hello....there are 10 people stuck in a little closed in area, 3 of whom have soggy diapers! Then Noah shoved his finger up Aidan's nose and Aidan ended up with a bloody nose. Finally, after we got out, we put everyone to bed and were watching the news. The anchor lady said "The worst thing is some quality time with family." Quality?!?!?! With cranky, sleepy 16 month old triplets, a 2 year old, a nervous 4 1/2 year old, a newly 5 year old, and an autistic 12 1/2 year old?? Seriously?!?!?! I can find better ways to get quality time! We were creating memories...
On a serious note, because of these tornadoes, there was a large one that touched down at a Boy Scout Camp not far from the Nebraska border, on the Iowa side. Four boys died in that tornado, all 13 and 14 years old. Please keep their families in your prayers...all of them. Those boys, leaders, and families lived through some horrific stuff that evening and will not likely forget it anytime soon. They will need our prayers to get them through. We may not have had the time of our lives in that shelter, but we all came out safe, healthy, and unharmed. Not everyone does.
Also please keep all the flood victims in your prayers. There has been massive flooding here in Iowa (and elsewhere) and many of those families do not have flood insurance. In other words, unlike in a tornado where you may lose "things," you can replace them. Not so in a flood. These people have lost everything....and have no financial way to get them back. FEMA is helping, but not enough to recoup everything. It is going to be a long battle for them. New Hartford, which was hit hard by the EF5 tornado has also been hit hard now by flooding, so they are really in a bad place. Everyone is....please keep them all in your prayers.
I have a ton of pictures from vacation, so I didn't have room to post them all here. They are all at www.dropshots.com/5boysmom ("our family photos" link in my link section).
Mom and Shawna and her family arrived on Saturday. We had Shane's graduation party, so we left after that and arrived Sunday around 7 or so. The kids were so excited to see Emma and Cael. Emma and Cael were excited to see our boys, also.
Monday was a nice day, no clouds, so we decided that was the best day to go to the zoo. The kids had so much fun. There was so much to see! I couldn't believe how tired I was so easily already, so I did skip some of the buildings and sat with the triplets instead. I got to see what I wanted, so I was happy as well!
The rest of the week we just relaxed by the lake. The triplets did really well with knowing their limits. We had their pool set up on the patio and they would get as far as the sand for the beach, and turn around. Noah would sit longingly right on the edge of the lawn/beach, but he didn't venture any further.
We went on several boat rides, which was nice. I would have loved to have taken the little boys out, but I really didn't trust them and it would not have been relaxing for me at all, so we usually went after they were asleep.
Steve, Austin, and Chris did a lot of fishing, both off the dock and on the boat. It was nice that Steve and Austin had time together to do "grown-up" boy things that Aidan didn't tag along for. It's so important they get that time and with five kids, three of whom are little, it rarely happens when we are at home. We both are needed to care for the little people, so we took advantage of having others who could help out watching them and helping us.
Chris and Steve also went to Bass Pro Shops one night and enjoyed their "guy's night out." They stayed away until 11! That's late for Steve. I was happy to see Steve and Chris doing stuff together, though, because Shawna and I are so close. It's good to see our hubby's get along, too! (Disclaimer: They have always gotten along, just haven't had an opportunity to do so much together alone.)
Our worst experience was the longest tornado warning of my life! It went on and on and on for four and a half hours! Ugh! Because the basement is open to the beach, we found a small closet under the stairs for ALL of us to fit in as our shelter. We didn't get time at first to get it cleaned out, so we were REALLY cramped at first. Then we did get a little break and cleared it all out, then had a smidge more room. Austin was in the way back with Emma, Cael, and Aidan, then Shawna, me, and Mom, and sometimes Steve, with the triplets stuck in between the adults. Not fun. Plus it came right in the middle of dinner time, so noone had eaten. Mom got smart during one little break and went up and got onion rings for everyone. Everybody was happy with that. Chris and Steve stayed out and "watched the weather." I told Steve to get in, and he did sometimes, but he claims now that he was ready to dive in if it "started to get really bad." I cannot be a widow with six children! Austin liked to tell Emma (who gets very nervous with storms) about all the possibilities and how the very safest spot was a tiny little area under the bottom step....where of course noone could fit. Then he would complain of BO. Ummm, hello....there are 10 people stuck in a little closed in area, 3 of whom have soggy diapers! Then Noah shoved his finger up Aidan's nose and Aidan ended up with a bloody nose. Finally, after we got out, we put everyone to bed and were watching the news. The anchor lady said "The worst thing is some quality time with family." Quality?!?!?! With cranky, sleepy 16 month old triplets, a 2 year old, a nervous 4 1/2 year old, a newly 5 year old, and an autistic 12 1/2 year old?? Seriously?!?!?! I can find better ways to get quality time! We were creating memories...
On a serious note, because of these tornadoes, there was a large one that touched down at a Boy Scout Camp not far from the Nebraska border, on the Iowa side. Four boys died in that tornado, all 13 and 14 years old. Please keep their families in your prayers...all of them. Those boys, leaders, and families lived through some horrific stuff that evening and will not likely forget it anytime soon. They will need our prayers to get them through. We may not have had the time of our lives in that shelter, but we all came out safe, healthy, and unharmed. Not everyone does.
Also please keep all the flood victims in your prayers. There has been massive flooding here in Iowa (and elsewhere) and many of those families do not have flood insurance. In other words, unlike in a tornado where you may lose "things," you can replace them. Not so in a flood. These people have lost everything....and have no financial way to get them back. FEMA is helping, but not enough to recoup everything. It is going to be a long battle for them. New Hartford, which was hit hard by the EF5 tornado has also been hit hard now by flooding, so they are really in a bad place. Everyone is....please keep them all in your prayers.
I have a ton of pictures from vacation, so I didn't have room to post them all here. They are all at www.dropshots.com/5boysmom ("our family photos" link in my link section).
Monday, July 9, 2007
Vacation Updates
Well, we are home from our trip to my sister’s. We all had a great time and are so glad we did it. We can’t wait to do it again! As always, there are pictures on www.dropshots.com/5boysmom.We arrived last Saturday afternoon. We had lunch with a friend on Saturday. It was nice to catch up and visit. We hadn’t seen each other in a while. It’s amazing how busy lives can get! Then we arrived at Shawna’s later in the day. We spent the rest of the time relaxing. Sunday we relaxed and didn’t do a whole lot either, although the kids had a lot of fun! We had mom and Granny and Grandpa Charlie over for supper and got to visit with them. Ethan bit Granny on the shoulder and she yelped and said he had a tooth. I didn’t believe it, but on closer inspection, he does! He got the first tooth!! On his left bottom. So cute! It also explained why he was so owly at bedtime the night before and wouldn't take his nap that day!Monday we went to the Mississippi River Museum in Dubuque with my mom. Our kids love going there. The kids loved all the fish, the otters, the boats they got to control, and the William M Black. It’s neat for my kids to be able to tour the Black. When I was growing up, it was only open for school tours. We went every year, but that was pretty much the only way on. Now it is open year round as part of the museum. They also all got to touch a stingray. That was fascinating. Then they felt all sorts of odd little shelled fish things. If Austin was here, he could tell me what they were, but he’s not and I can’t remember. Even Noah and Ethan got a chance. Noah stared at it and found it fascinating. Ethan looked at it, but didn’t get too close to it. Emma was hesitant at first, but then touched them. Cael also touched them. Then in the afternoon, we went to the pool in Dubuque. That was very refreshing, as it was really hot!Tuesday we went to the Madison Zoo with my dad. That was really nice. The kids had a great time. We didn’t get through the whole thing…I think it was my first time ever not getting through it all in one day!! We kept getting stopped for everyone to see the babies. I felt like we should set up a side attraction, one day only! Oh, well…I don’t really mind and people love to see them. It just forces me out of my comfort zone a tad, but Steve and I are starting to believe that was God’s ultimate plan in giving us triplets! Aidan LOVED the goats. I could not get him away! He has always loved goats and he wasn’t about to leave them before he absolutely had to. Austin, as always, was the perfect tour guide and could tell us almost anything about any animal. We then headed home to grill out and Dad was going to stay longer, but there was a thunderstorm warning and he had his Harley, so he had to get going while the going was good!Wednesday (the Fourth) we went to Steve’s sister’s for Troy and Shane’s birthday. Aidan loves to see Shane, so he was excited. They played a really neat game and had fun with that. Aidan searched for the fish and figured out how to turn off Sue’s fountain so he could see them. We were ALL happy to see Daddy that day. Then we went to my mom’s for supper and got to visit with Granny and Grandpa Charlie again, plus my brother.Thursday we had a relaxing day again, which was nice. We made necklaces and just had fun. Friday we went to get pictures done for my mom and my dad, plus our grandparents. It was quite an undertaking, with seven kids (six of whom are under the age of 4!!), but it was nice to get everyone’s picture taken together. We ended up with some cute pictures. I hope they like them! Then we went to the pool again that afternoon for a while. My mom and brother and his friend came up to visit that night also. Saturday was my step-mom’s family reunion so we went to that for a while. It was another hot, hot day, so they kids had fun in the fountain. It used to be an actual little wading pool, till there was a little e-coli scare. Now it is just a faint spray fountain. It doesn’t matter to the kids, though! Then we headed home after a long week and we were so excited to be home again and see Daddy! The babies started solid food!! They were really ready, so we did it. I started them on sweet potatoes because our grocery store was out of avacados. But, today I got some avacados, squash, and more sweet potatoes. I made two huge sweet potatoes yesterday, but they are eating way more than I realized! So I am back to making a ton of baby food. They appeared to like it! We also separated them into their own cribs. While at Shawna’s, Noah was in his own pack and play and he did awesome. We thought we would continue when we got home and try Nathanial and Ethan separate, also. I really thought I would have the most trouble with Nathanial, but that was not the case. Ethan has had the hardest time and has been crying at night for a couple of minutes when he is first put in, then he stops and all is well and he sleeps good the rest of the night. Austin headed to Boy Scout Camp yesterday after church for a week. He comes home Saturday. I hope he is having fun! I know he was really excited to go. I’m just nervous for him! We get to go to parent’s night on Wednesday, so we do get to see him a little. I’m sure he’ll be so busy and have so much fun he won’t even miss us!Tomorrow, Austin, Troy, and Shane show, so we are going to the Delaware county fair. So Steve won’t work then, either. I survived my first trip with all five boys alone and actually enjoyed myself! It was great to get away and not have to worry about what time Steve would be home. And I am sure it was nice for him to not have to feel guilty about working late. He even took off yesterday for us! He brought home work, but he was here!
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