Family Pictures

Last weekend we took our family pictures.  We had fun...and once I figured out how to use the timer on the camera (it's new), it was even better!!

 Even though Claire isn't looking at the camera, I really like this photo.  These were taken at the kids' school.

 



If Lauren hadn't blinked, this would've been a good one as well. 

I love my kids!! 

 Another great shot!

 Claire was getting frustrated with the picture taking!

 

Spontaneous kid shot!



 

 If it wasn't for the shadows, this is a great shot!

 



This is the one I have on Facebook 

 Darn shadows!!

 I love this one!



This was totally spontaneous!!  Claire wanted a break from the pictures and sat down off to the side.  She looked so cute I had to grab the camera!

 



Since Claire got her picture taken, the other two wanted theirs done as well.

 



I really like this one.  The kids have such nice smiles!

 

 Lauren hamming it up for the camera!!

 I was still in the processess of putting Claire on my lap!  These were taken at a church down the street.  We loved the wreathes on the doors.

 Gotta have a nose picking picture!

 



 Lauren decided to do it to...and as you can see, I was in the middle of telling her to get her finger out of her nose!  We were actually thinking about putting this on our Christmas cards!!  Gotta keep it real!

 This is Kevin's favorite

 No photo shoot would be complete without a silly picture!  We also thought about putting this on our Christmas cards!

 Cheese!

This picture shows their personalities very well.



Hello, New Year!

My, oh my, where does the time go? It's been awhile since I last posted, so I guess I better update on what's been going on with us. Christmas was nice, we drove up to Kevin's parents place in Chicago to celebrate with his family. It was a long drive and the kids did very well and it was nice to see everyone again. Then, on New Year's Eve, Kevin drove down to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to help run sound for the Jeff Cook concert. It was the first time in our marriage that we didn't celebrate New Year's together, but we got through it and Kevin enjoyed the experience. Then, last month, the kids and I flew out to California to be in my best friend's wedding. It had been two years since we left Cali, so it was great to see my family again. The kids were so good on the plane ride out and the plane ride back, I couldn't be prouder of them. The day after we got back, Kevin met with the HR Director of Timkin to discuss job openings. Kevin said it was a good meeting, but there were no openings. There is a gentleman at our church that has his own physical therapy business that is very interested in hiring Kevin, so we are hoping that next week they can get together and discuss things. It would be so nice to finally have some income coming in. We are going on six-and-a-half months now of no income, but the Lord has provided for us and we are so grateful! So that has been what's been going on with us, oh I forgot, last week we signed Curtis up for tee ball. The season starts the beginning of April and he is so excited. We can't wait to watch him play. So here are some pictures from the last two months to get us all up to speed.

DECEMBER

Our Christmas tree (the kids were so happy to have a real tree)!

The little tree that the kids decorated. I think they did a great job!

The kids helped me make Christmas cookies to give to our neighbors, teachers, and crossing guards.

This is the inside of a McDonalds that we stopped at in Asheville near the Biltmore Estate. There was also a player piano in the corner playing Christmas music.

Downtown Nashville. We can't wait to go back and actually sightsee.

This is the Wingate mansion in Paducah, Kentucky. It's a rest area and the bathrooms are inside.

The kids table. The cousins had so much fun together.

The cousins: Lily, Luke, Sophie, Levi, Logan, Jeremiah, Curtis, Lauren, and Claire

Our beautiful family

Kevin's family: Todd, Kevin, Barry, Dean, Allan, June, and Shari

This is a picture from the Jeff Cook concert. You can see a little bit of Kevin (in the ballcap) next to the keyboard player.

JANUARY

My best friend Myra. I was so honored to be her Matron of Honor.

Curtis was the ring bearer, and the girls were flower girls. Claire was grouchy and didn't want her picture taken.

The cousins: Claire (she didn't want to be in this picture either), Lauren, Curtis, James, Nathan, Natty, Olivia, Daphne, and Lia

Four generations: My grandmother Helen, my mom Norma, me, and the kids

My cousins: Mollie, Tim, me, Matt, and Jon

My friend Cheryl, whom I've known since junior high.

The kids and I with my sister-in-law Michelle. My brother is currently on deployment in Africa, so we didn't get to see him.

The harbor at Port Hueneme where my brother is stationed. I sure do miss the California beaches.

Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas, we sure did. On Christmas Eve we went to my grandparents house and celebrated with family and friends. Santa even stopped by to hand out some presents (Santa was played by my best friend's dad since Curtis figured out that my grandfather was Santa). Lauren was petrified of Santa and was screaming and shaking. :( I felt so bad for her. She is still telling me, "No more, Santa." On Christmas Day, my mom and stepdad came over with their gifts and we fixed a Christmas lunch consisting of ham, mashed potatoes and gravy, peas, carrots, and rolls. In the evening, my brother Luis and his fiancee Michelle came over and had dinner with us. The kids had so much fun, Curtis even asked Michelle to put him to bed! I'm now in the process of putting the apartment back to the way it was and sorting through things to see what we can get rid of and what we are keeping, so that we can get things packed. We have a train table that we need to get rid of, so if anyone wants it or knows someone who could use it, please let me know. I can't believe that this year is coming to an end, can you? We are looking forward to 2010 and moving back to Minnesota. I hope everyone has a safe and fun new year.

I love this picture.

Curtis with Santa.

Claire with Santa. (I don't have a picture of Lauren with Santa because she was kicking and screaming, and moving around too much. My friend got a picture, so when she emails it to me I will post it).

Lauren got into my red food coloring while I was making snickerdoodles. What a mess!!

Claire's two new teeth. When she smiles, it looks like she has fangs, and we can't help but laugh. We've been singing, All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth, but it didn't happen. One of the front teeth is now starting to poke through.

It's Christmas Time!

Can you believe that Christmas is upon us? Boy it sure came up fast! I have been busy baking cookies and chasing after my children. Claire turned seven months on Monday and started crawling the same day. Now she is all over the place. She has also started saying ma ma. She is the only one to say "ma ma" first. The other two said "da da" first. She only says it when she's hungry. Curtis and Lauren decorated the tree this year, which they had a blast doing. They did a good job. We have also been teaching the kids about Christmas and what it's really about. Lauren doesn't understand, but Curtis gets it and has been asking lots of questions. I have to tell you this great story, yesterday, Lauren was holding her tummy and getting a little fussy, so Curtis was concerned that she might throw up. He came up to me and asked if we could pray over her, so that she could get better. That blew me away! He surprises me sometimes with his compassion. I am hoping to finish up my baking and wrapping today. Thankfully we don't have a lot of presents to wrap. The kids get three presents each since Jesus only got three presents from the Magi on His birth. On Christmas morning, before we open any presents, we will sing Happy Birthday to Jesus. Every morning for the last week, I have been reading a little about Jesus' birth to the kids. We want to make sure that the kids know that Christmas is about Jesus and not Santa. This led to a great question from Curtis, which was," Mommy, if Christmas is Jesus' birthday, then why don't we celebrate Christmas for my birthday?" This then led to a bigger discussion about why Jesus was born and ultimately why he died. Well, I need to get back to baking, but I hope you all have a wonderful and blessed Christmas.