Izzy's new 'do

After many months of resisting, I finally let Izzy get a haircut with bangs. I think it

totally changed her look and she is loving it. I am loving that her hair is not in her

eyes all the time....so I think it is growing on me.

Sweet chick

Izzy looking mighty glamorous....well sort of! lol.

Indoor soccer

This was the first time the boys tried indoor soccer. They really like it....very exciting to watch.

Lots of action, lots of injury timeouts.

Frozen pond

The goalie

Score!

Wipeout....bummer.

 Ethan

Ready, Aim...shoot!

Jumping...yikes.

Hunter

Izzy

Perfect pose

Dad willing to play...gotta love that.

I prefer to walk not skate...I also hate being cold. I know I am no fun. I only venture out

for the photo opportunities.



New Years 2011

Our annual New Years with friends.....as you can see it was unusually warm weather. Our plans

of playing in the snow, sledding, and ice skating didn't exactly work out. We did get out

for some fresh air on the bike trail though. Lots of fun was had by all.....staying up late playing games, watching movies and football, and just catching up. We don't get to see them very often so we

 look forward to this yearly time together.

Christmas Highlights....finally

We had a wonderful Christmas! Christmas Eve was spent at home with just our family. After a reading 

of the Christmas story, we began opening gifts. I was surprised that all the kids wanted to open

their gifts from each other first. They had each spent their own hard earned money for the gifts.

Hunter even made Isabel a cute pillow for her dolls. It was great to see them excited about

giving, not just receiving.  After gifts were opened, the day was spent playing

and enjoying our new stuff. Then in the evening we went to the candlelight Christmas Eve service

at our church. On Christmas morning the kids awoke to more excitement....

full stockings and the arrival of baby Jesus. Then we went to Grandpa and Grandma's house

 for the day. This year Christmas went on for 3 days as the next day was another Christmas

with Dad's side of the family. We had a great time. It was at a church with a gym

so we played a basketball game of  "knock out" with all the aunts, uncles, and cousins.

We also enjoyed a talent show of the kids' musical talent. Hunter and Ethan played

their guitar and Izzy sang some Christmas carols. And then there were more gifts...oh my....

Hunter and Ethan were surprised to get an acoustic guitar and Isabel was thrilled to get

some new outfits for her American girl doll. When all the celebrations were over, I

was overwhelmed with the blessings our family had received....not just the gifts but

the peace and love of our Savior and a family that loves us & enjoys being together.  

We Wish you A MeRRy ChRistMas!

We want to wish all our family and friends a Merry Christmas and Blessings throughout the coming year!

Read on to learn more about the kids and what they've been up to this year......

My sweet Isabel. This girl continues to surprise me with her sense of humor and amazing confidence.

She turned 7 years old this year and is an absolute joy to our family. We continue to homeschool and

Izzy is in 2nd grade. She is a very good reader and can often be found curled up on our couch with a good book. One of her favorite books she has read is Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes.

 She is a very social girl and loves being with her friends which is probably why another favorite for her is

going to our CoOP on Fridays where she is in the Explorers classes....art, choir, gym, and science.

She especially likes to sing in the choir....one day she was late for lunch.

Well, I found her in the choir room talking to her teacher.

 I discovered that she had been asking her teacher if there were going to be any solos and if so, she would be happy to do one. She is fearless. Speaking of being fearless, she also loves to ride horses.

She loves to ride Patsy, the miniature horse, at her Grandma's house. In the summertime, she shows

at various horse shows in the area. This year she won the Lead Line High Point Award in a very competitive weekend horse show. She won a monogrammed chair and trophy. She also tried her first Walk/Trot class(where she is not led but rides on her own) at another area horse show.

In her very first attempt, she won the class. So during that time, we focused on teaching her humility. :) 

Isabel also loves to do crafts.....now if only she would clean up after she is done. If I don't clean her desk out about every 2 months it is overflowing with papers and crafts. This is probably why one of her many nicknames is "busy Izzy".

Hunter is now 10 years old and in the 5th grade. He is becoming much

more independent with his schoolwork and his favorite thing to do draw.

He is a wonderful artist. This year he won honorable mention in an area

art contest. He is probably best at drawing caricatures. He also

loves going to our CoOp this year, where he especially enjoys his Ohio History class.

He recently built a fort for the class out of sticks from outside,

sawing and hot gluing all by himself.  In his Science class

he has also enjoyed building all different kinds of rockets.

Hunter is a great help around the house when it comes to organizing....he

once told me that he wanted his future wife to be "organized"....

I'll start praying for her patience now and Hunter's ability to "let go".

This last summer, Hunter had a lot of fun being a junior historian at Sauder Village.

This winter he has also taken up electric guitar lessons and indoor soccer and is

doing great with both activities.

Ethan is also 10 years old and in the 5th grade. He has also showed

great initiative with his schoolwork this year. He is enjoying

doing his American History with his Dad. They have been

doing this in the evenings together during the week. Also, like Hunter, he

looks forward to every Fri. and going to CoOp. His favorites classes are

also the Ohio History and Science. His next Ohio History project

is building a flat boat on his own. Ethan also really loved volunteering

at Sauder Village this last summer. He is a very caring boy and often

comes to us for a big hug throughout the day. He is also a big sports fan.

He LOVES watching football and basketball, especially OSU games. As far as

playing sports, he is really enjoying the fast pace of indoor soccer this winter.

Ethan is also taking guitar lessons with his brother. Playing guitar has come

very easily to him and he quickly memorizes his music. As for Ethan's future wife,

I pray that she is patient as well but for the opposite reason of Hunter's...Ethan is not known 

for putting his things away.  

That's the latest on the kids. 

Mostly the good stuff....the bad stuff is a given

and always there too! :) Hey we all have

our days, right? And just a note...the kids

are never this dressed up...I took these pics after

their Christmas concert.

Feel free to browse our posts and pictures on this blog 

 to see what activities, trips, etc.. we have been up to throughout the year.

We hope you enjoy a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!