My Crazy Beautiful Life

Cinderella . . .

2012-01-21T07:42:00.000-08:00

Gloria was invited to a ball by her friend, Tsegerda. She had a wonderful time! There was a limo ride through town and a fancy masquerade ball at the Boise Train Depot. Oh how I wish I could have been a fly on the wall! Instead, I managed to take a couple of pictures on my phone when they stepped out of the limo and I peeked inside the door and snapped a few more blurry pictures. Just ONE of the pictures turned out and I think it's just beautiful. . .

I have to include a few of the others even though they are blurry because they still capture the moment!!

She had a lovely evening. . .

An Update?

2012-01-17T07:06:00.000-08:00

I just can't keep up anymore. I don't know if it's just me aging or if my life has somehow gotten even busier or if maybe, just maybe, I take too many dang pictures. Granted, December was busy. Not in a financially profitable way but in a run-around-like-a-chicken-with-my-head-cut-off way. I try to hold it together but I've fallen apart a few times in spite of my best efforts.

All that to say, things are getting even busier and I'm going to have a lot to say. Except that I will probably take so many pictures that I won't catch up until June and we all know how June is around here. And I'll write long, heartfelt blog posts but only in my head and by the time I get around to putting the pictures up on the blog, my words will be all used up and I'll half-heartedly post the pictures only.

Today marks the first day of three weeks that just might do me in. (Sounds like a dramatic Facebook update). I'm hoping to let you know how it goes. . .

How's that for a cheery update??

New Year's Eve. . .

2012-01-15T20:19:00.000-08:00

I spent New Year's Eve with a few of my favorite people, playing games and laughing it up. . .

CHEERS!!!

Happy New Year. . .

Colleen's Birthday. . .

2012-01-14T20:28:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday, Colleen!!!

Birthday in Paradise. . .

2012-01-13T19:38:00.000-08:00

Since Roaring Springs is closed on Gloria's birthday, we usually try to find some other water entertainment that is more seasonally appropriate. Last year we rented a room at the Holiday Inn with a room that walked right out into the pool area. Not that I need to top that but this year we decided to take a few of her friends up to the cabin where they could play in the snow and swim at the nearby hot springs. A couple of friends turned into 5 before I knew what hit me!! It was all good, though, and everyone had a good time. We didn't have much snow to play in, but everything else was perfect. Well, as close as you can get to perfect with 6 girls and a dog in an enclosed space for 3 days. . .

Day One. . .

Day Two. . .

Day Three . . .

December Retroactive. . .

2012-01-09T21:04:00.000-08:00

I'm well aware that it is the 9th of January and I still haven't finished posting my Christmas pictures! My obsessive nature won't allow me to blog in real time, I'm afraid, but it can't keep me from posting retroactively!! I'll post the links here as I put the pictures up so that those who would like to see lots of cute, sweet family Christmas pictures can find them easily and those who grow weary of my 50 bazillion photos can wait for another day. . .

The Family Photos . . .
Christmas Eve With The Hiners. . .
Christmas Morning. . .
Christmas Morning, Max and McKenna. . .
Christmas Day, The Presents. . .
Christmas Tramp: The Boys. . .
Christmas Tramp: The Girls. . .
More Max . . .
And that's a wrap. . .

Christmas Vacation. . .

2012-01-02T22:53:00.000-08:00

So, obviously a lot has happened in the last week. So much that I haven't had time to say a single thing about it! This is a quick reminder post to myself about bits and pieces that happened over Christmas break so that I'll remember to go into more detail when I have time!! Of course, with 1082 pictures to sort through, it might take me awhile. . .

Christmas Eve at my parents house:

Christmas Eve at home. . .

Christmas morning at home. . .

Christmas day with the Bakers. . .

Three days at the cabin with 6 girls and very little snow. . .

New Year's Eve at the church. . .

That's really just the tip of the iceberg of our whirlwind Christmas break!! It went by so fast and yet so very slowly. School starts in the morning and, as much as I enjoyed all the good company I had over the break, I have to say that it's not a moment too soon. Whew. . .

More Max. . .

2011-12-25T23:55:00.000-08:00

Christmas Tramp. . . The Girls. . .

2011-12-25T23:51:00.000-08:00

Christmas Tramp. . . The Boys. . .

2011-12-25T22:05:00.000-08:00

Christmas Day. . .

2011-12-25T20:59:00.000-08:00

Posers. . .

2011-12-25T19:36:00.000-08:00

I meant it when I said I had a bazillion pictures of Max. I have almost as many of McKenna. They deserve a post all to themselves. Well, plus a few of the people that love them. . .

All of these sweet photos were taken before the gift opening even began on Christmas morning at Grandma's house. . .

Christmas Morning. . .

2011-12-25T18:00:00.000-08:00

When I was a kid, I was always the first one up on Christmas morning! I could never sleep in when there were presents to be opened. As a mom I've had to beg my kids to get up on Christmas morning. I turn on lights, play music, whatever it takes to get them as excited as I used to be. This year was different. I don't think Gloria slept AT ALL and by 7:00 a.m. she was begging us to get up and open presents!

For some reason she thought there was something very special for her under the tree. . .

Zach is difficult to impress so he probably could have slept for a few more hours. Just look how excited he is about the airplane that was in his stocking. . .

Gloria opened the less exciting gifts first. . .

But eventually found the one she was hoping for. . .

She was pretty happy about finding an Ipod under the tree. . .

I did manage to find a gift that even Zach could get excited about. Rechargeable speakers for his Ipod! I know, right? They're very fancy and just what he wanted. . .

Those gifts were ok, I suppose, but nothing can top the gift I found under the tree:

Yep. Nothing says Christmas like Lord of the Rings Pez Dispensers!!

We spent the rest of the day with Rob's side of the family and I have about a bazillion pictures to post. Of Max. Of course. . .

Merry Christmas . . .

2011-12-24T22:29:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve . . .

2011-12-24T21:29:00.000-08:00

We traditionally spend Christmas eve with my side of the family at my parent's house. . .

It's very low key and comfortable. . .

I had a hard time finding my Christmas spirit this year so it really wasn't until we walked in the door of my parent's house that I began to feel that old familiar anticipation that only Christmas can stir. . .

It isn't about the gifts or the tree or flashy holiday lights. . .

It shouldn't be about how much stuff we get or how far in debt we can go. . .

But sometimes it feels like that's what it's all about. . .

Right up until I walked into my parent's house, I found myself humming along with Cindy Loo Who, "Where are you Christmas, why can't I find you. . . "

But as we sat around and laughed and played games, my Christmas spirit kicked in and I sat back and enjoyed myself!!

I've been blessed with a family that's easy to be with. My sister is my best friend and Dave has always fit perfectly into our lives. . .

My nephews are both good kids that are fun to be around. . .

Ethan was a good sport during the White Elephant gift exchange. . .

He kept his eye on the biggest package and was thrilled when he finally got to open it. . .

Except he wasn't so thrilled when the prize turned out to be an oversized, yellow, stuffed bunny!!!

Spencer seemed to be fine with it though. . .

It gave us all a good laugh, anyway!!

The gift exchange is simple and meaningful. . .

It's so nice to have my parent's living nearby. I realize that I'm very fortunate to have such a good relationship with them both. . .

My mom made me an album of family pictures from 2011. I rarely print out pictures for myself since I put them all up here on the blog so it was very special to have photos in front of me without having to click or scroll!!

We topped off the evening with a card game. I honestly never get tired of playing cards. We played a lot of games growing up and I'm pretty sure that helped keep me out of trouble as well as giving me a closer relationship with my mom and dad that I wouldn't trade for anything. . .

By the time we got home, I felt much better about the meaning of Christmas. . .

My gifts were wrapped, my house was clean and festive and I was very much looking forward to spending more time with family on Christmas Day. . .

Proud Mama. . . (Brag Alert!). . .

2011-12-20T23:59:00.000-08:00

I don't know that I ever felt 100% confident that teaching Zach at home was the right thing. I second guessed myself on occasion but I also knew that it felt right. It certainly wasn't perfect and there are things I wish I would have done differently but, all in all, I can say that I'm thankful we chose to take that path. I'm sure he probably would have done well academically in whatever path we had chosen but I like to believe that the opportunities that he had at home gave him at least a few advantages when it came to college.

His first semester at BSU has been an adventure and I've been so proud of him all along the way. He has taken total responsibility for every single class. The best part is that he enjoyed it! He has always loved learning and books and discussions so this was a perfect next step for him.

All of that to say, he pulled off a 4.0 this semester. Five classes, five A's. He had over a 96% in two of the classes. One of them was Logic!

He was definitely ready for a break after finals but I think he's already looking forward to next semester. I couldn't be more proud of this kid. . .

Caroling and Partying. . .

2011-12-19T22:34:00.000-08:00

On Wednesday night, we took the crew Christmas caroling!

We had a pretty big group of kids this year- it took 5 cars just to get them all where we needed to go!

It was well worth the trouble, though. . .

Much cheer and joy was spread throughout the town. Or at least in a couple of retirement homes. . .

Our first stop was for Lena Rice. She holds a special place in my heart because I knew her when I was just a kid. Her granddaughter, Kim, and I were very good friends. Kim lived in Glens Ferry, I lived in Mtn. Home and Grandma Rice lived in Hill City. We would visit the Rice's large home every once in awhile and it was always an adventure. I lost touch with Kim when we moved to Boise my sophomore year. Some 10 years later when we started going to Boise Friends (1994-ish), there was Lena Rice looking just the same as she always had. We made the connection from our past and always had conversations about Kim's family. I hadn't seen Lena in a couple of years so it was so great to bring a group of kids in to bring a smile to her face. OK, she always has a smile on her face, but maybe it shone a bit brighter!!

The kids all seemed to enjoy themselves, too. . .

After visiting Ruth Louge and bringing her some Christmas cheer, we all went back to the church for cookies and a White Elephant gift exchange. . .

We lined the kids up from oldest to youngest. . .

The oldest got to choose a gift first and open it up. . .

Everyone else watched closely because when their turn came around, they could either "steal" a present that was already open, or choose one of their own. . .

There was much laughter. . .

Merry (almost) Christmas!

Pro Photo Op. . .

2011-12-18T22:03:00.000-08:00

For the first time EVER, the kids and I sang a special at church on the Sunday before Christmas. . .

Knowing that it could be the first AND last time (Zach's 19, after all), I wanted to be sure there were pictures to mark the occasion. . .

When I realized that there was a pro photographer in the house, I convinced Melanie to do justice to the occasion and she was happy to take over the camera. (I'm pretty sure it's because she's seen my attempts at photography and she took pity on me). She even stuck around after church so we could take advantage of her skills. I'm so thankful that she was there!! I think the photos turned out fabulous!!

Although I can never repay her for her kindness, I did manage to take this one shot of her offspring. Not the best quality photo but definitely beautiful subject matter!!!

Thanks Mel!!

The Holiday Tour. . .

2011-12-18T21:24:00.000-08:00

Can you call it a tour when there is only one venue??

Gearing up for the Northwest Spring Tour. . .

Baker Sock Parties. . .

2011-12-18T16:33:00.000-08:00

Every year we celebrate Christmas Eve early with Rob's side of the family with a gift exchange called "The Sock Party". I detail the tradition on the blog every year so I thought it would be fun to look back through the years and post the links here:

2007
2008
2009
2010
It's fun to look back and see how much has changed and yet how much has stayed the same!! (This year also marks 5 full years of blogging!!)

And here's 2011:

As I was looking back over the past years, I found this funny picture from a couple of years ago that perfectly explains the two pictures that follow!! Scroll down and you'll see what I mean. . .

Rob doesn't have to share his Funyuns anymore!! McKenna received her very own bag this year!! Jeanie thinks of everything!!

Merry (almost) Christmas!!

Beautiful Faces . . .

2011-12-17T16:43:00.000-08:00

As I looked through the pictures (again. . . ) I found myself smiling at the familiar faces that make me smile and remind me why I'm involved with quizzing . . .

Fun and Games??

2011-12-17T16:35:00.000-08:00

So, I have to tell this story. Some may want to forget it happened, but, looking back, there is a little humor to be found in it. . .

It all happened very quickly. We were all hanging out in the sunshine after lunch before the afternoon rounds began. . .

I was doing my thing- snapping pictures of everyone and everything. . .

It really started when Cade decided to sit on this stair rail in front of the chapel. . .

This overprotective mother didn't see any cause for alarm as he sat there and talked with the others. . .

I think it was Zach that had the brilliant idea that others should join Cade on his perch. . .

It was only a matter of minutes before they started lining up. First Cade, then Zach, Morgan next, followed by Ian and Gloria. . .

I was waiting with my camera poised for a great Kodak moment when. . .

IF ONLY I had a picture of what happened next. . .

But I don't because it all happened so fast and it all looked so dramatic that I instinctively reached out to help instead of mindlessly taking pictures as it unfolded. It was the right thing of course, because if I had a picture of it then it meant I just stood there snapping away as one by one. . . well, anyway. . .

Here's what happened in words since there are no pictures. The kids were lining up next to each other on the hand rail, finding just the right balance when Bridgier walked up and playfully grabbed Cade from behind to startle him. This set off a perfect chain reaction as Cade threw his arms out to balance himself and knocked into Zach who knocked into Morgan who fell backward off of the rail, pulling Ian with her who must have grabbed onto Gloria and down they all went. Bridgier, having only two hands was able to "save" Cade and soften Morgans fall, Zach managed to stay upright but Ian and Gloria hit the cement steps below. Gloria's arm was behind Ian as they fell and she ended up with a good scrape and a bump on her head. In all of the chaos, I found myself feeling sorry for Bridgier most of all. Of course, he didn't mean for the fall to happen. He did what every dad has probably done at some point and startled a kid. He felt awful!

In the end, no real harm was done and no one held it against Bridgier in the end. Most of us even had a good laugh when things settled down!

As the quiz meet drew to an end, the adults sat at one table and laughed over a card game as the kids sat at another. Everyone was laughing and having a good time. At one point, Bridgier got up and pulled all of the hoods over the heads of the younger crowd as they sat and played. They left them that way for a long time as we all sat comfortably in the warm room at the end of a memorable day. . .

According To. . .

2011-12-17T16:09:00.000-08:00

For all intents and purposes, we travel to these quiz meets to compete against other teams on our vast knowledge of the scripture. Although, on a top 10 list, I don't think this reason would make even the top five for most of the kids that attend. Friendships, adventure, fun, excitement, travel and the activity just might come before the actual quiz rounds for many of the attenders. That's not a bad thing, necessarily, but it's definitely my favorite part. . .

This is our middle school team with Zach as the coach:

My high school team:

These pictures take us through a typical day of quizzing. Sometimes intense, sometimes funny, and always interesting. . .

All things considered, both teams did well with everyone answering at least one question. Ian even placed 6th out of all of the middle schoolers and it was his very first meet!!

Nice job teams!!

The Beach. . .

2011-12-17T09:07:00.000-08:00

Every single time, without fail, when I visit Twin Rocks, it's raining. Pouring, even. Sheets of rain and low lying fog have defined every visit I've ever had to Twin Rocks. Except this one. . .

We couldn't have asked for more perfect weather on the Oregon Coast in December. . .

I don't imagine that I will ever live at the beach, but if the opportunity presented itself, I would have to seriously consider it. . .

Twin Rocks Road Trip. . . Finally. . .

2011-12-13T08:22:00.000-08:00

Last weekend (Dec 2-4), we hit the road again for another quiz trip. Here are 6 of the 13 people that made the long, long, long (long) journey to Twin Rocks, OR:

I realize it isn't that long of a journey, say in comparison to driving back east, but I wasn't looking forward to a trip of any distance, much less one that would take 10-12 hours in one day with a packed vehicle. Especially after what happened the last time we traveled this road. . .

The weather was perfect for this trip, however, with clear roads, sunny skies and just a trace of snow as we went over the Blue Mountains. . .

After we safely passed through the pass, I relaxed and enjoyed the rest of the drive. It didn't even bother me (much) when we took a little detour through downtown Portland in 5:00 traffic. . .

Steph had been counting down the days for a couple of weeks due to the fact that she was very anxious to see someone at Twin Rocks that she had been missing terribly. She wasn't very happy when we stopped for dinner at Denny's just 20 minutes away from our destination. . .

We were all a little tired by that time. . .

We still made it to Twin Rocks before 8 p.m. and Steph JUMPED FROM MY MOVING VEHICLE for this:

And I'm pretty sure it was worth it. . . Samantha was a VERY welcome sight after such a very long drive!!

To be continued. . . (ooh, the suspense. Not.)

Happy 13th Birthday, Gloria!

2011-12-10T23:37:00.000-08:00

Instead of going on and on about how old it makes me feel to know that my youngest child has become a teenager, I want to say how very, very proud I am of who she has been, who she is, and who she is becoming. This girl has always been able to make me smile. . .

Happy birthday, Baby. . . I love you!!

Still Waiting. . .

2011-12-08T16:17:00.000-08:00

More of my favorites. . .

Happy Birthday Elsie!!

2011-12-06T20:43:00.000-08:00

Beautiful little girls. . .

Becoming beautiful young women. . .

So glad I get to be a part of it. . .

In The Meantime. . .

2011-12-06T13:59:00.000-08:00

Still working on the Quiz Meet post so here are a couple of my favorites until then. . .

Happy Birthday!

2011-12-05T16:50:00.000-08:00

Happy birthday to my daddy (December 3rd) and Me (Today). . .

This is one of my favorite pictures ever. . .

Home. . .

2011-12-04T21:10:00.000-08:00

It was a very long weekend and I have 394 pictures to edit and sort but I'm very tired and tomorrow is a BIG DAY so this will have to do for now:

Road Trip. . .

2011-12-02T07:39:00.000-08:00

This is where I'll be for the weekend. Well, actually, I'll be there for about 30 hours. I'll spend 10-12 hours getting there and 10-12 hours getting back. . .

Honestly, I've had a hard time getting excited about this trip. There are people I can't wait to see again, so that will make it all worth it but the last time I traveled this road I came back with a visual I can't seem to forget. I guess I'll look at this trip as "getting back on the horse", so to speak.

See you on the flip side. . .

Jake. . .

2011-11-30T22:28:00.000-08:00

Jake is similar only in looks to dogs we've had in the past. He used to remind me of Lucy but he has proven to be unique in his own (strange) way. . .

He has some gross habits that I chalk up to the fact that he's a HE but for the most part he's smart, sweet and affectionate. . .

I've tried not to get attached after everything we went through with Lucy and Emma but somehow I just can't help myself. . .

He's sneaking his way right into my heart. Whether I like it or not. . .

I Have Issues. AKA December Birthdays. . .

2011-11-28T22:38:00.000-08:00

So. . . I'm a little weird. I guess if you've known me for any length of time you probably know that. But I'm going to tell a little story that will make my weirdness very clear. . .

When I was in (I think) first grade, we took a long road trip. My memory isn't very clear on the details but I'm pretty sure we were moving from Boise to Twin Falls and my dad had gone on ahead in a moving truck so my mom had to make the long, long journey with just me and my sister. I do realize that it isn't that great of a distance between Boise and Twin Falls but I remember feeling like it was just endless. To help the time pass more quickly, my mom invented a game that included special, little wrapped up presents. I think my sister and I had a list of items with things like cows, road signs and billboards on it and whoever found the item first got to open a present. Well, this is where my weirdness comes into play. I knew that one of the gifts was a roll of toilet paper just by the look and feel of the package. I remember being determined to find the first item so that I could be the winner of my very own roll of TP. I really didn't need to worry because I'm pretty sure I was the only one competing for that particular gift. Along with winning the roll of toilet paper, I'm pretty sure I won a bar of soap as well. I don't think I shared my treasures with anyone.

I cannot explain this behavior. I only know that, 39 years-ish later, I still have TP issues.

I'm cheap but still (a little) classy so I buy the cheapest of the expensive toilet paper. But for some reason I usually only buy a 12-pack. And then, of course, we run out. ALL the time. I will put off buying more TP right up until it's almost crucial that we re-stock. Without fail. It's like the episode of Seinfeld where Kramer drives the car as long as he possibly can and finally runs out of gas just as he pulls back into the car lot where he originated. I'm that way with TP. I can't explain it but I'm pretty sure it has something to do with that single roll of toilet paper that I kept to myself for as long as possible when I was six.

Believe it or not, there is a point to this story. . .

When my mother-in-law recently asked me what I wanted for my birthday, guess what I asked for??

I know, weird, right??

Anyway. . .

Sunday evening we had a double birthday celebration for me and Gloria. Jeanie, as usual, fixed us exactly what we each wanted for dinner:

Homemade noodles for me. . .

. . . with berry pie for dessert. . .

And french toast for Gloria. . .

. . . with angel food cake for dessert.

In honor of Gloria's last days as a "child", we all made play dough creations. . .

Matt made this lovely table and chair (I heard he had a little help. . . ). . .

Jeanie made jewelry. . .

McKenna worked very hard . . .

. . . and created this beautiful elephant. . .

Dick made a delicious carrot. . .

Marreen made Marreen. . .

Someone gave Tony brown Playdough. Not sure if that was a good idea. . .

Zach spent quite a bit of time. . .

. . . and created these. . . (?). . . I'm pretty sure it has something to do with stabbing and/or zombies. . .

And, last but not least, my pig. . .

We opened the gifts. . .

And blew out the candles. . .

And spent a very enjoyable evening celebrating with family. . .

Even though my actual birthday isn't for another week, this was a pretty good way to start the count down. And I think I'll be set on the TP front for quite awhile. . .

Hiner Thanksgiving. . .

2011-11-24T21:39:00.000-08:00

Every Thanksgiving for the last several years we have spent the Sunday before Thanksgiving with the Bakers (Rob's side of the family) and Thanksgiving Day with the Hiners (my side of the family). We usually have the more traditional turkey dinner with all the fixins' at the Bakers and then an early brunch with all day snacks and games at the Hiners. Both days are enjoyable and relaxing. I'm thankful for the family I was born into and the family I married into!!

My mom and I both had our cameras today so I'll just let the pictures tell the story. . .

The kids and I stayed until almost 10 p.m. playing games and laughing. . .

It was just what I needed. . .

November Events. . .

2011-11-23T08:32:00.000-08:00

Obviously the business slows WAY down in the winter months. There isn't a lot of demand for outdoor concerts when it gets cold. So all things considered, November wasn't too bad of a month as far as events go. We had 4 "big" events (as in bigger than a speaker rental) in 4 different venues. I was kind of lazy about taking pictures of the first two so the only visuals I have are from my Blackberry. . . .
The first set of pictures is from the Mark Masri concert at Boise High School. You can read more about him by clicking this link. He was easy to work with and the sound check went well. . .

We had a little bit of time between the sound check and the show so Rob and Kurt did a little bit of tweaking on the school's sound system in hopes that it could sound a little bit better. Rob and I went upstairs where the amps were and Kurt stayed down below to listen to the speakers as they were adjusted. . .

My job was to relay information by leaning over the balcony and listening to what each of them said and repeating it to the other one. It was a little bit creepy up there and, I'm sure you had to be there, but this "old man" caught my eye and made me jump at least once. I know. Whatever. . .

I didn't end up staying for the entire concert but I heard he was really good. . .

This is obviously not the Boise High concert but it will have to do. . .

The second concert was at The Egyptian. . .
This is the promotional video that was taken last year:

This was our second year on this second annual event. It was a busy day- we couldn't start setting up until 10 a.m. and then sound checks for the four (big) groups started at 2:00 and went right up until the doors opened at 6:00. We had 5 minutes between bands while a magician entertained the crowd and then the next group would be up and playing for the next 25 minutes before it was time to get them off the stage and prepare for the next one. Even if I would have remembered to bring the camera, I wouldn't have had much time to take pictures. This is pretty much the only one I have:

Good thing there's Youtube. . .

Chad Marvin. . .

Reckless Abandon. . .

Scott Riggan

Our next big show was less than a week later and was much, much different. . .

We had a late night set up due to the fact that the first concert with the Doo Wah Riders was a school show at 10:00 in the morning. We showed up around 7:30 a.m. after setting everything the night before and when the band showed up around 8, we were more than ready. They were a little surprised at how prepared we were as though it doesn't happen very often. . .

The school show went well and we had the afternoon to set lights and get ready for the evening concert. The Doo Wah Riders were probably one of the easiest groups we've ever worked with. They were talented, too. It was a great concert. . .

The fiddle player was amazing (although I think he preferred the term violinist since he was classically trained). He played his instrument behind his back! It was amazing. . .

Kurt took this video from back stage:

And last but certainly not least was the concert out in Kuna. There is so much I could say but so much that I won't. It was a nice show. How's that?

The first performer. . .

Jaime Theitten:

The second performer. . .

Jeff Bates. . .

The Emcees. . .

Dee Sarton and Cory Mikhals

The third performer. . .

Bryan White. . .

And, finally, the Star of the show. . .

M. Hunter. . .

Needless to say, we worked with some talented musicians this month.

And that's all I have to say about that . .

It's A Wall !!!!!

2011-11-22T08:59:00.000-08:00

Remember this?

Probably not, it was awhile ago.

Last fall we took sledge hammers to the new-to-us building and then life and the business took over and the destruction/construction stalled. . .

But now it has new life!! And my office has a new wall!! I haven't even seen it yet except through this picture text from Rob:

I'm sure I'll have MUCH more to say about this later. . .

Baker Thanksgiving, November 20, 2011. . .

2011-11-21T20:29:00.000-08:00

So much to be thankful for. . .

Ice. . .

2011-11-21T12:05:00.000-08:00

I woke up on Sunday morning to this:

This is what happens when your sprinklers turn on in the middle of November.

Guess we should have blown out our lines and avoided the whole breakage of the valve thing. . .

More Desserts. . .

2011-11-20T19:04:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday was our annual dessert auction fund raiser for the quiz team. We ended up raising over $800! We had over 50 donated desserts which was pretty close to the number of people who attended so I'd say we did pretty good! I've posted pictures of many of the delicious donations although I don't remember who made each one. This first one is the BFC cake by Zach:

BSU cake by Gloria:

Fondant cake and cupcakes by Steph:

Every quizzer but one showed up to help. I think they all had fun and I know they all worked really hard!

I'm pretty sure the question mark cupcakes as well as the BFC Quizzer cupcakes were by Jordan:

Cade made the Badger cake and there is a story behind it but I haven't tried to figure it out yet. . .

We also served baked potatoes with chili and other toppings so people would have some sustenance while they browsed the dessert auction. All the kids helped serve and clean up. . .

Andrew put finishing touches on his cake before the bidding began. . .

Our next quiz meet is December 3rd at Twin Rocks!! I think we're ready. . .

Just Desserts. . .

2011-11-13T20:34:00.000-08:00

We had our annual quizzing fund raiser dessert auction after church today! I'm too tired to say everything I'd like to say (is anyone else besides me tired of hearing me say that??) so here are photos of Zach's and Gloria's cakes and, hopefully, I'll have the energy to say more tomorrow. . .

Gloria:

Zach:

As much as I would like to, I can't take any credit for the ingenuity and skill that went into making these creations! The kids spent the entire day with Grandma who let them take over her kitchen and her energy with their ideas! I've probably said it before but I'm pretty sure I have the best in-laws. EVER.

A Good Read. . .

2011-11-08T10:15:00.000-08:00

small-town-life-and-death

Once again I'm sharing a link on the Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda website. I wish I could write like this. . .
She always manages to speak to something that I'm thinking about or experiencing or avoiding. This is another good read. . .

Aunt June. . .

2011-11-07T20:51:00.000-08:00

I went to a funeral today for my Great Aunt June. She was 94! I didn't know her as well as I would have liked and I'm sure my facts aren't completely right but I'll do what I can to honor her memory. . .

Aunt June was married to my Great Uncle Roy who was the brother of my daddy's dad, Chet. Roy and Chet were just two brothers of 10 siblings, only one of which was a girl- my Great Aunt Lil. (Chet is 4th from the left and Roy is 5th):

Chet married Violet (my grandma) and Roy married June. (There are some great stories about all of the Hiners and, thankfully, my mom has been very diligent about collecting them and writing them all down over the years.) Chet and Violet had three boys- my dad was the oldest, then a year later, my Uncle Lloyd and, less than a year later, my Uncle Nelson. (Violet and Chet with my daddy):

Stan (my daddy), Nelson and Lloyd:

Chet was killed in a logging accident near Idaho City before Nelson was born and my grandma lived the rest of her life as a widow. I have often wished over the years that I could have known my Grandpa Chet. All of the pictures of him reveal a face full of humor and probably a bit of mischievousness. (Chet and Violet):

I believe Roy and Chet were pretty close in age and Roy and June had three sons that all grew up hanging out with my dad. Every time we would visit with Roy and June when I was growing up, it felt like I got to have a little piece of my Grandpa Chet. June was very sweet and gentle and was always attentive when we would visit. Of course, I regret that I didn't visit her more often or take the time to ask her questions when I had the chance. I know Roy loved to tell stories about my grandpa and I think there is a letter somewhere that he sent to my sister and I with stories of Chet.

June's son, Ken, officiated at the service and told some very touching stories about June's life. He talked about how much Roy and June loved each other and were rarely ever apart. Roy died in 2007 so she has spent the past few years without him. They were married for just over 70 years!! Ken's eulogy assured us that June led a full and happy life and was surrounded by people who loved her. I believe he takes comfort in knowing that Roy and June are together once again. . .

These are pictures and the obituary from the Idaho Statesman:

June Kennaly Hiner 1917 ~ 2011 June Kennaly Hiner, 94, of Boise, Idaho, passed away on November 2, 2011 at a local hospital. A visitation will be held 5pm-7pm on Sunday, November 6, 2011 at Cloverdale Funeral Home, 1200 N. Cloverdale Road, Boise, Idaho. Graveside services will be held Monday, November 7, 2011 at Terrace Lawn Memorial Gardens, 4225 E. Fairview Ave., Meridian, Idaho on November 7, 2011 at 1:00 pm. June was born July 31, 1917 on her grandparent's ranch in Tygh Valley, Oregon, to John R. Kennaly and Lulu Miller Kennaly of Idaho City, Idaho. She was of early pioneer ancestry, with several ancestors settling in Idaho City, Ola and Sweet, Idaho from 1865 to 1879. She married Roy H. Hiner, September 30th 1936. They celebrated their 70th anniversary before Roy's death in 2007. June enjoyed being a housewife and mother cooking and caring for her family. She was a very good cook, cooking everything from scratch. She did volunteer work and was one of the first door to door volunteers for the March of Dimes. She worked for the old St. Alphonsus Hospital in the Central Supply Department, and a few years at Chases Health Food Store. June and Roy traveled by car through many states doing genealogy research and business and pleasure trips. June was very kind, gentle spirited person. She had a curious mind throughout her life. Always interested in the activities of her extended family and visiting with her children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. She never liked to be fussed over, but deserved all the loving attention you could give her. Her family will truly miss her. June is survived by her three sons, Roy (Ken) and Joann of Boise, Dyon and Sharon of La Center, Washington and Jon and Earlene of Boise, nine Grandchildren, eighteen great grandchildren and eight great great grandchildren. She was preceded in death by three sisters, Kathleen Ash, Patricia Wonacott and Louise Carlock, her parents, one great-great granddaughter Kinsley Benedict Schick and her husband Roy. They are together again. To share memories with the family please visit June's memorial web page online at www.cloverdalefuneralhome.com

(Thanks to my sister who sent me the old photos of Chet, Violet and the boys as I was writing this post!)

WWJD

2011-11-06T07:51:00.000-08:00

Yesterday turned out to be the first day of the rest of my life. Well, at least the first day of the last 30 days before the birthday that I am dreading. I have 30 days to whip myself into shape so that I can face my 45th birthday. Vain? Absolutely. Twisted? Totally. Honest? Yep.

When I lost a bunch of weight back in 2008 (50 pounds, give or take) I didn't say much about it on the blog or in real life. That place I visit often (denial) told me that if I didn't acknowledge that I needed to lose weight then it wasn't an issue in the first place. The situation that started that ball rolling can be attributed to a belly dancer at the Cherry Festival in June of 2008. She was easily over 50 but she looked amazing. She was tall and lean and strong and obviously in better health than I was. I made a conscious decision to look that good when I was her age. Not that I can grow 6 inches in height but I knew I could take much better care of myself. I made the decision, I changed the way I did things and 7 months later I was 50 pounds lighter. And I felt stronger and better than I had in years! I've kept that weight off (give or take a few pounds) for the last three years.

All that to say that as I near my 45th birthday, I have to take a new look at the image in my head of a strong, lean 50 year old because I'm not feeling so strong these days. This summer totally kicked my butt. And maybe it's part vanity but it's mostly because I want to still be living when I'm 80. I don't mean just living as in ALIVE but if I'm still around, I want to be able to get around and enjoy life and not be dependant on someone else to meet my needs. It's about my 45 year old self taking care of my 80 year old self.

In an effort to feel noticeably better by my birthday in 30 days, I have taken drastic measures. . .

I've hired Gloria to be my personal trainer. . .

Gloria takes pretty good care of herself. In a positive way. She pays attention to what she eats and tries to make healthy choices. She's very active and tries to fit in some kind of exercise everyday. We've had some really good conversations about the importance of being healthy without going over the top and being obsessive about it. I think she's good at finding that balance. So, I asked her to help keep me motivated over the next 30 days so that I can feel stronger and leaner on my birthday. Her reward will be a shopping trip where we both get a new pair of jeans!

So yesterday she had me running through parking lots, she took a cookie right out of my hand and we started day 1 of the 30 Day Shred. At one point she looked at me and said, "WWJD, Mom, you know, What Would Jillian Do?"

I hope I don't regret this. . .

Early Morning Conversation. . .

2011-11-05T09:45:00.000-07:00

Yesterday while racing through the morning routine in order to get out of the house on time, this conversation took place in the kitchen:

Gloria: "Mom, will you trade me sweat shirts?" (we were both wearing hoodies that belonged to Gloria)

Me: (very seriously) "No, that would mess up my hair!"

Gloria: (very understandingly) "Oh, OK."

Zach: (dryly, from the living room): "Now that's a conversation that Dad and I would never have."

Maybe you had to be there but I'm still laughing about that one. . .

Real Time. . .

2011-11-04T17:11:00.000-07:00

So now that I'm blogging in real time, I have a lot to say.

Except that I don't.

I keep thinking that I should switch things up a little bit. You know, be funny like The Pioneer Woman or poignant like Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda or spiritual like Tresa or irreverent like the Redneck Mommy or deep like Brad or real like Samantha- all of my favorite daily blogs, by the way.

But somehow I always come back to the day to day blah blah blah that sometimes brings me joy and sometimes makes me weep that this is my life. I remind myself that while, on the one hand, my blog may bore some people to tears, it's ultimately a journal of my life. And it's for me. I write in a way that I can read between the lines when I come back for a review. I know myself better because I blog. Because I write. And so, more than likely, this 1,543rd post will continue to reflect the same old, same old. Except it will be different because time continues to change the people around me and I continue to change and learn and move ahead and lag behind.

One month from tomorrow I will be 45. I have a feeling that as I write this fall and winter in real time, that could be a common theme. I told my kids today that I have one month to live. They know me well enough to recognize my sarcasm and they laughed and encouraged me but I can admit that 45 sounds old. Like the beginning of the end somehow. So maybe I'll write about that or maybe I'll just let denial reign as I blah blah blah through the next few months or years. Only time will tell. . .

Blackberry October. . .

2011-11-03T18:45:00.000-07:00

This idea of taking a picture everyday has been ingrained in me and has become a habit that I don't really even think about anymore (that's why it's called a habit, right??). So I find it interesting to look back in time through the pictures that I take on my phone. I don't download them everyday and even when I manage to download them I don't always look through them or edit them until a later date. And then it's fun to see the month-at-a-glance during those times that have been especially busy. In looking back, October didn't seem to be as busy as some of my months have been but for some reason I felt like I couldn't ever catch up!! The following photos all came off of my Blackberry (except for one) and I tried to link to posts that I actually took the time during the month to write about! I only missed taking a picture a couple of times all month! It's a fun little trip down Blackberry Lane. . .

October 1, 2011 Intense BSU vs Nevada game at the in-laws. . .

Watching the game at Jeanie's is almost as good as being there. . .

October 2, 2011 Youth Sunday (click on the link to see the details)

October 3, 2011 Monday.
This picture will make more sense later in this post! Zach asked me to text it to him so he could continue working on something during a break at school. . .

(October 4th is forever lost to me. . . )

October 5, 2011 Youth Group

October 6, 2011 Zach's Artwork (See Oct 3rd above!!)

October 7, 2011 Friday- Road trip to McCall for Samuel School at Quaker Hill

October 8, 2011 Andrew at Art in the Bar

October 9, 2011 Boy's Birthdays (Click on the link to see the explanation for the picture below!)

The Resistance of Catan
(You can read more about it here.)

October 11, 2011
A little walk on the canal with Jake and Gloria. . .

October 12th???

October 13, 2011 The Project (See the finished product right HERE)

October 14, 2011 Road Trip to Newberg for Quiz Meet #1

October 15, 2011 Quiz Meet #1 of the 2011-2012 Season

October 16, 2011 Road Trip back to Boise

October 19, 2011 Cases
Rob has had a backlog of cases that piled up on him over the summer and this is one of the few pictures that I have. At some point I'll have to track the delivered cases down and take a few good detailed pictures but for now, this will have to do!

October 21, 2011 Antsy and the Troubs at the Civic Center

October 23, 2011 (Cheating- this was not taken with my Blackberry!)
Matt's Party!

October 24, 2011 Halloween Prep
Getting out the costumes. . .

October 25, 2011 Jake the hugger

October 26-27, 2011 Quite Possibly The Longest Day Ever

OK, this requires a bit of explanation. We agreed to work on a show in Twin Falls without realizing the amount of time involved. OK, maybe I'm the only one who didn't realize it but in order to be in Twin Falls to set everything up first thing in the morning, I had to get up at 4:30 a.m. I left Meridian around 5:30 a.m. and headed for Twin. Rob had driven the Uhaul over the evening before so he could be at the church we needed to set up in by 8 a.m. for a walk through. Early mornings don't bother me when early is 7 a.m. but driving at 5:30 a.m. was pretty miserable. I remember thinking, if the sun would just hurry and come out, this won't be so bad. I waited and waited but kept driving anyway . . .

In spite of missing the Twin Falls exit (what, I thought there were 2 exits to Twin!!) I was still there shortly after 8 a.m. and Rob and Kurt had already unloaded half of the truck. We had to set up in two different places- we had our Genie towers with our line array along with a bunch of subs and amp racks in the church sanctuary (called "stacks and racks"). This tour traveled with everything else they would need so we had to set up as quickly as we could so they could unload their semi truck full of stuff around us. . .

I'm not a big fan of the pressure that is part of the deal when working with national artists even though this was probably more mild than I imagined it to be but at some point early in the day, my head started to hurt. Maybe it was the (perceived) stressful show or a lack of sleep or my blood pressure or just my life in general but this head ache was there to stay. Even with a few sweetly offered and much appreciated remedies, the pain just wouldn't go away.

After setting up in the sanctuary, we headed over to the gym (in another building that might as well have been a mile away!) so we could set up the rest of the stuff we brought. It wasn't much in comparison to some of our other shows, but we had to set up a small sound system as well as about 120' of pipe and drape, a big screen with a projector and lots of lights and truss. It seemed like a lot at the time. When everything was set up and had a stamp of approval, Kurt headed back to Boise for important obligations and Rob and I went to the local mall so I could get a pair of jeans. Much needed jeans. The mall is next to this canyon which was the general area of a car accident I was in when I was in about third grade. I guess I'll have to save that story for another day. . .

After the dinner we all headed over to the sanctuary for the Steven Curtis Chapman concert. . .

We sat on stools next to the front of house engineer. The lights and the fog were cool and the loud music sounded great but none of it helped my head. When the digital mixer out front went out after the third song and flashed it's lights ominously before it came back on (lots of silence when this happens) I decided to head over to the gym and start taking everything down so it wouldn't be an all-nighter.

One foot in front of the other, breathe in and out. . . By the time the concert was over, I was mostly packed up at the gym with everything by the back door to be loaded out to the truck. We had to tear down and load up everything in the sanctuary first and try to stay out of the touring company's way while we were at it. I got to meet Curtis Chapman during the load out and he shook my hand and thanked me. He was very genuine and kind. I don't know why I stress over these things! He gave us this signed picture for our artist wall (that doesn't exist yet!):

When we were done loading the speakers and amps that had been in the sanctuary, we pulled the truck to the back door of the gym to load everything there. After about 10 minutes, we realized we would have to move the truck so that the semi and tour bus could get by. We backed the Uhaul up to the front of the gym and decided to load out there while the artist convoy pulled out. The tour bus didn't seem to be in a big hurry to leave so we ended up loading everything out by the front door. Even though I had placed everything by the back door. It was a long load out. Thankfully my friend, Jamie, was there to help or it would have been even worse! We finally left Twin Falls around 1 a.m. It was a painfully long trip. I was tempted to find a place in Twin Falls to stay the night but I had to take the kids to school first thing in the morning so we just kept moving. Rob was in the Uhaul in front of me so we didn't go much over 55 mph all the way home. We had to stop often to get some fresh air. The Stage Stop half-way between Mtn. Home and Boise was a welcome refuge in the middle of the night. Looking at the pictures now, I still feel a little queasy. . .

I actually even found a little humor in the situation. . .

We pulled into the driveway at home at 4 a.m. Almost 24 hours from when I left it. I was asleep before I got into bed and then overslept a bit in the morning, making Gloria an hour late for school. Whatever. . .

Moving on. . .
October 27, 2011 More Halloween Prep
The shopping. . .

October 28, 2011 More Halloween Prep
Pumpkin Picking. . .

Pumpkin carving. . .

October 29, 2011 More Halloween Prep
The Construction of the Maze and The Party. . .
I have to insert a little blurb about Zach and Halloween right here. Zach enjoys Halloween. REALLY enjoys Halloween. He even has a large stash of Halloween items and they are all categorized by item on a list on his Ipod. The only reason I agreed to the maze this year is because it will probably be his last year at home on Halloween. My boy is growing up, you know, so this was kind of his last hurrah. He spent a lot of time prepping this year. A LOT. This is the Lego interpretation of the maze:

These are the pipes and couplers that form the maze. The day they were laying everything out, Zach ran in and asked for my camera to take a picture and all I had was my phone. I didn't realize until I uploaded this picture to the blog that he was taking pictures from the roof!!

I stayed out of the way while Rob and Zach (with help from Gloria) put up the maze and covered it with the black Visqueen. Zach strung cobwebs and dug some graves under the pear tree. Rob hung lights and speakers. And swore a little bit. And then we had the youth group over for a party. Gary dropped off their fire pit and Rob put in a movie about Zombies so I think everyone had a good time!

October 30, 2011 Sunday
I didn't take too many pictures of the maze. I'm not sure why. I don't have a video or anything. This is one I must have taken when I got home from church. Hmmm. . .

October 31, 2011 Halloween

We spent a couple of hours after school putting finishing touches on the maze. There was more swearing but it eventually worked out. We had a few Zombies over to help us out and I, of course, had to dress for success. I have a NEED to watch over every person who goes through the maze so that no one can possibly get hurt. I don't want any Zombies or Trick-or-Treaters getting lost or hurt on my watch. In my yard. The liability is just too great!!!

I took a few pictures before the crowds started coming. . .

I talked Steph into being my door keeper again this year. I couldn't have managed without her. Isn't she pretty??

We had a good rush right as it got dark and then just a trickle through the rest of the evening. The whole thing ended by 9:00. It's hard to measure the success of the maze since some kids thought it was amazingly frightening and other (older) kids kind of scoffed at it but there were two people that made it all worth it for me. One sweet little kid by the name of Carter came by on Sunday afternoon with his dad. I saw them peeking into the maze so I offered to give them a little tour. Carter is probably about 4 years old and was VERY articulate. He had good questions and was very curious about what the maze would be like. After the tour on Sunday he promised me he would be back. Sure enough, on Monday evening at dusk, sweet Carter returned. He was in a costume and was with his mom this time so I didn't recognize him at first. I over heard him telling someone in line about the inside of the maze and was describing it in quite a bit of detail. It didn't take me long to figure out who it was. His mom said that the maze was all he could talk about since he saw us putting it up on Friday. He clung to his mom as I led them through the maze and screamed at all the right places. I was a little worried that he might be too scared but as soon as he emerged at the end, he said, "Cool! Can I go again?" He ended up going two more times before the evening was over. I was still smiling about it when I went to bed that night.

The other person (?) that made it all worth it was this Zombie. . . Yeah, the memories will be worth every bit of effort it took to make this evening possible. Even though most of the effort was his:

So that marks the end of October but I have to include one more picture:

November 1, 2011 Post Halloween
What goes up must come down. Yes, it absolutely MUST. . .

THE END.

Happy Birthday Matt!!

2011-11-02T09:03:00.000-07:00

This isn't really a belated birthday wish because I really DID wish Matt a happy birthday on his ACTUAL birthday, both in real life AND on Facebook but I've resigned myself to the fact that my blog may never be in order or in real time. Sooo. . . here are the pictures from Matt's party on October 23rd. . .

Halloween. . .

2011-10-31T22:24:00.000-07:00

Too tired after a very long day to say very much but I can't go to sleep without saying SOMETHING about our Zombie Apocalypse. The maze was a success even though we didn't have nearly as many people in the neighborhood as we did last year. We had a great Zombie support system that helped make the evening a sucess. I will have more to say but here's just a taste of what the evening was like. . .

Happy Halloween. . .

Quiz Trip, Part 4. . .

2011-10-30T21:15:00.000-07:00

Good-byes . . .

It was hard to leave this home on Sunday morning. We were all dragging our feet and putting it off as long as possible. . .

We finally hit the road and made a planned stop at Multnomah Falls. The only people who will understand the following picture are Corri and Ashley Breshears. Something to do with a long-ago quiz meet and a bus breaking down right here and eating candy on the bus in the dark and seeking warmth in this bathroom. I'm a little sketchy on the details because I wasn't there. We had to take this picture and text it to the girls for old times sake. . .

This first set of pictures came from Joyce's camera:

Several of the people in our group made the climb to the bridge. . .

I've made the climb plenty of times already so I rested at the bottom and took more pictures. . .

I have no idea who all of the people in the middle are, but Joyce and Gary are off to the left side!!

The last leg of the trip. . .

If you have followed the blog for a few years, you might remember that Steph has a tradition that she sticks to religiously on every quiz trip. She buys Hostess Cupcakes on the way home and eats them whole. Like, seriously, a whole cupcake in her mouth at one time. . .

Here's the proof:

Nice!!

We made it home without a single mishap and Steph is already counting down the days to the next meet in December at Twin Rocks!

The End. . .

Quiz Trip, Part 3. . .

2011-10-30T14:26:00.000-07:00

There are many, many reasons that I love to stay at the McConaughey's home. It's just so darn comfortable, for one. I love the way we all just pick up where we left off. So much history in these sweet friendships. I envy Katrina her easy hostessing ability. Not sure if that's even the right word, but she is very gifted at allowing people to just feel at home in her home. Maybe it's just me, but I don't think so. . .

(Most pictures courtesy of Joyce!)

After the quiz meet we made an appearance at the quizzing sponsored activity before we all decided to go back and hang out at the house. . .

I don't remember the name of the game but it was really fun. . .

We played girls against boys and each team had to guess a word that one of the team members could give clues for but not actually say. . .

It moved very quickly. . .

We laughed. A lot. . .

As we were getting ready for bed, Katrina called me into Elsie's room to see this sweet sight:

These three were reminiscing about the past and looking through a photo album of one of the many birthday's they celebrated together. . .

They've been celebrating together since Gloria and Megan were 1 and Elsie was 2. I really need to dig out some of those early, early pictures but for now, these sweet photos from the past always make me smile . . .

The weekend went by way too quickly and early Sunday morning we had to say good-bye. . .

To be continued. . .

Quiz Trip, Part 2. . .

2011-10-29T08:48:00.000-07:00

The first meet of the year was in Sherwood, OR. BFC has 2 quiz teams this year with a total of 9 quizzers! Three of the quizzers couldn't make it to the first meet so the two high school kids that were able to make it had to be farmed out to other teams. Andrew quizzed with Jered on the Newberg team and Steph quizzed with the Meridian team. I spent most of my time with the middle school team even though Zach is the "official" coach since I won't be able to watch them quiz for the rest of the season due to the fact that I'll be coaching my high school team!

All in all it was a good day. I think everyone had a good time and answered questions. Gloria came in at number 12 out of 47 middle school quizzers so that was fun for her! I was impressed with how well Jordan did as a first year quizzer- he didn't seem to be the least bit nervous. Zach did a great job as coach and we both felt more relaxed at this meet than we have in years! The pressure was off. Although, if the first meet was any indication, Gloria could give Zach a run for his money and take this thing as seriously as he always did!!

So. . . here's the day in pictures. . .

This is Jordan. It was his very first meet. He was excited!

This is Steph. This was her 28th meet (ish). It may not look like it but I'm sure she was excited, too!

Ditto for Andrew. . .

Cade quizzed last year and decided to come back for a second year. I had to convince him that Bible Quizzing is as competitive as the soccer that he loves so much in order to get him to put his heart and soul into the game. I don't think I ever quite convinced him. . .

Zach as middle school coach instead of "Smart Kid Quizzer". . .

Gloria is a little tired of being referred to as the "Smart Kid's Sister". . .

This is Megan. She looks all serious but don't let her fool you . . .

Everyone was a little tense the first couple of rounds . . .

Eventually everyone relaxed and had a great time. . .

(The Super Hero Mascot):

Gloria memorized a bunch of verses so she decided to try the Verse Off after lunch. . .

She didn't "survive" but she was OK with that. . .

After lunch I hung out with the high school teams a little bit. I think the Meridian team was happy to have Steph along. . .

She did good. . .

I think Andrew enjoyed quizzing with Jered again. . .

I mean, really, what's not to like here. . . .

At the end of the day Andrew came in 10th out of 74 high school quizzers! Nice job, Andrew!!

The Newberg team came in third place over all so that was nice!! Good job Newberg team!!

Back to the middle schoolers. In this blurry picture, just about everyone knew the answer but Cade was up first. . .

He celebrated just a little. . . Maybe my soccer analogy worked . . .

In this shot, Gloria and Jordan jumped at the exact same time- both of their lights went on. The judges weren't sure of what to do so they gave it to the girl!!

Gloria is taking quizzing pretty seriously this year. She studied hard and memorized quite a few verses. I was very proud of her for taking responsibility. . .

I tried to step back and just let Zach coach. He did a fine job and I only intervened a few times. One of the things I encouraged him to do was to offer some kind of a reward for answering questions and quizzing out. The only thing he had on him was one of his senior pictures in his wallet. It was pretty funny the way Cade and Jordan started to really compete for that picture! Zach even offered to autograph it!!!

I love this picture. . .

I think he's dreaming about winning the picture. . .

The last round of the day was against Elsie's team. The high schoolers were already finished with their rounds so a bunch of them came over to watch these two teams quiz against each other. It was a little tense. And smelly. It was a small room at the end of the day with a LOT of people in it. That's pretty much all I remember about that round. . .

I had fun at the meet but pretty much the best part of the weekend for me was getting to hang out with Katrina. . .

After dinner the boys began to pose for the camera. . .

It was pretty funny. . .

(Jordan ended up with the prize and he couldn't have been more proud of his reward. . . )

Two of my favorite girls:

And three of my favorite boys. . .

After the awards were handed out, everyone went to the local YMCA to hang out. We stayed for awhile and then decided to go back to McConaughey's to play games.

To be continued. . . . . . .

Quiz Trip, Part 1. . .

2011-10-28T13:52:00.000-07:00

I have so many pictures to edit and post (my camera, my phone, Joyce's camera!) from the quiz trip that I could put it off indefinitely and never blog in real time again so I'll just post the highlights and the pics and move on! It was a great experience in spite of coming up on the fatal accident on the way over (I removed the post so if you missed it, sorry. . . ).

ROAD TRIP TO NEWBERG:

(taken with Joyce's camera. . . )

(Another nice picture, thanks to Joyce!):

I didn't remember seeing all of these wind turbines on previous trips to Portland- Not a bad picture considering it was taken with my phone while moving at 65 mph. . .

We made a very quick stop at Multnomah Falls so that we could all caravan into Portland together. We didn't even make it out of the parking lot but I still managed to get in a few Kodak moments. . .

We eventually made it to Newberg and to the McConaughey's warm, welcoming home where we all proceeded to the hamburger place down the street for big, juicy burgers!! I love these moments. . .

To be continued. . .

October 9th: Boy's Birthdays. . .

2011-10-25T11:43:00.000-07:00

Backing up here to the 2nd week of October when we celebrated the three summer birthdays on my side of the family. Ethan turned 10 in June, Spence turned 15 in July and Zach turned 19 in August. And we celebrated all three of them at my parent's house in October!! My mom has now been passed in height by 3 out of 4 of her grandchildren. . .

We always hunt for Easter eggs in the spring in my parent's back yard so my mom planned another hunt for the fall season. This time, the kids hid wrapped up gifts and the adults had to find them!!

The Hunt. . .

It's kind of fun to get gifts after your birthday!!

The Presents. . .

We all like to "shop" in my parent's garage because they buy and sell stuff that they pick up at estate sales and auctions, so there are always fun treasures to be found. . . Guns for everyone!! (toys, of course!)

The Battle. . .

The treasures in the garage can keep the kids entertained for hours. . .

The Toys. . .

Another fun family party!!