Lights Out

On Thursday night we had some pretty strong storms come through our neck of the woods. We had cooked on the grill and we were eating our dinner out on the back porch. When the rain and wind started coming in the kids took their plates and skedaddled to the inside table. Tom and I actually lingered on the porch for a bit because the change in temperature felt sooo good! It has been hot here the past several days! Tom finally headed inside with the kids mainly because they took all of the food with them. ;) I stayed on the porch just soaking in the cool breeze. Within a matter of seconds though my little man Jacob was out on the porch grabbing my plate and my glass saying, "Mom, you have to come inside now because I am too worried with you out here by yourself in this weather!" :) What a little sweetheart worrying about his Mama! We were still finishing up our dinner inside when the power went out. We have been in our house 10 years now and this is only the second time that we have ever lost our power. So, this was a whole new experience for the kids. Boy, do we depend on our electricity or what? Every now and then we'll get into conversations about "what do you think is the greatest invention ever"....Tom always says electricity and I think he's right! Pretty much everything comes to a halt. No dishes..shucks! ;), no baths, limited flushing of the toilet, gather up all of the flashlights, candles. etc., no phone, how will Tom wake for work in the morning, be careful how many times you open and shut the fridge, etc. etc. etc. and the biggie on Thursday evening NO fans! You know the routine. We are preparing for a garage sale this weekend and I had actually talked about getting rid of my kerosene lamp on Thursday because we never use it. Well, Thursday night the kerosene lamp was put to good use and the kids thought it was just the coolest thing!! So, the kerosene lamp will stay in our family for a while longer. :) Tom and I were a bit concerned with how Gracie and Isaac would do with bedtimes without the electricity. We usually keep a light on in the hall between the two bedrooms and both rooms have ceiling fans which help greatly in this hot sticky weather! Isaac also is used to the sounds of crickets chirping(from his little sound maker) in his room every night as he goes to sleep. No hall light, no fans and no chirping crickets, but sleep came easily and soundly for our four sleeping beauties.

Tom awoke the next morning to the alarm on the cell phone. He stumbled around getting ready and was off to work in the dark as our power was still unrestored. At 5 am on Friday morning in an instant our house was lit up like a Christmas tree. I ran through the house as quickly and quietly as possible turning everything off. I was able to do this while all of the kids remained asleep in their beds. What a relief! I now had to replan my day in my head to NOT include coolers, ice and flushing the toilet with the water from the swimming pool. ;) Another good lesson in appreciation!! Thank you Lord for the many luxuries that electricity provides!!

God Bless,
Wendy

Update on the Zipa-Dee-Do-Da Four

Heidi has been a regular bookworm this summer! She is involved with the summer reading program at our local library and has read about 25 books since the middle of June. She still finds plenty of time to swim and ride her bike. This is the first year we have allowed her to ride her bike on the road alone without us for short distances. She will ride over to a friends house who lives about a mile or so from us. She has also ridden down to our little grocery store a few times. She's definitely growing up on us! One of Heidi's friends from church, Dakoda, was baptized on Wednesday, which was very exciting for Heidi. Heidi is a very sweet girl and we are so very proud of her!

I had to make a quick trip to the store the other night for milk. Jacob really wanted to come along. I made sure he understood before leaving that there would be no snacks this trip. I figuerd the only reason he would be begging to go shopping would be for a treat! ;) He then asked if he could use his own money for a treat.....I agreed. After I had made my purchase, Jacob proudly plopped his skittle gum on the counter with a big grin. He gets SO much pleasure from paying the cashier himself! The cashier told Jacob, "that will be 60 cents". Jacob opened up his camoflagued billfold turned it upside-down and out came tumbling a BUNCH of pennies! I had no clue his money was all in pennies. The pennies went flying everywhere! Jacob and I were hurriedly trying to catch and gather them all. When we finally had them all gathered we slowly counted out 60 pennies with a line of people waiting behind us. It was worth every penny for the joy it gave my sweet Jacob!

Tonight while I was finishing up the supper dishes Jacob, Gracie and Isaac were all playing together (while Heidi was reading..;) ) Jacob ran into the kitchen and proudly announced to me, "Mom, Isaac had a bloody nose, but I have it under control" I laughed so hard when I saw my boy!! LOL!!

Heidi absolutely hung the moon in Gracie's book!! There is another Heidi in Heidi's class at school. So, at school Heidi is known as Heidi Jo. Since all of Heidi's friends call her Heidi Jo, Gracie does too. "Mama when I grow up I will have long hair just like Heidi Jo" "If I drink my milk I will grow big just like Heidi Jo" etc. etc. She absolutely adores her big sis! The kids were all swimming this afternoon and Gracie had to come in for a potty break. Heidi's clothes were in the bathroom. As Gracie sat on the throne with feet dangling she looked down at Heidi's clothes and picked up her bra and said, "Mama when I get big I will have dis just like Heidi Jo" ;)

I bought some fresh peaches today. Gracie took one bite and her eyes lit up. "HMMMMMMM Gracie like a dis Mama!! HMMMMM" I'll tell ya, the girl is as sweet as a peach! When I tuck her in at night I have to eat some sugar from her neck. She just giggles and giggles. Tonight she told me "Mama, no more of Gracie's sugar....you be sick if you eat too much sugar" :)

As I helped Isaac dress the other morning he loudly announced, "Shut Di Door! Nobody not see my underwear!" :-O That was a first. Of course, he had no problem stripping to put on his bathing suit on the back porch later that day! I guess he doesn't mind people seeing him nakey, but he definitely does care about his underwear being seen! Ha! I went for a swim with the kids today. When I came out in my bathing suit Isaac said, "Oh Mama, you are soooooo beautiful!!" Gosh, I love that boy!! ;) Isaac is such a thoughtful little guy! Even though he is our youngest child, he is usually the first to think to thank us for things. He almost always thanks us for dinner without any prompting from us. I have to share a picture of Isaac brushing his teeth tonight. Today was all about cowboys! It took some encouraging to get the cowboy to take his boots off at bedtime. I finally told him that many times cowboys have cow poo on their boots and if he didn't want to get cow poo in his bed he better take his boots off. That did the trick! Although, the boots are sitting on a chair right beside his bed anxiously awaiting the excitement that tomorrow will surely bring. :)

God Bless,

Wendy

Isaac's Shoes

Ok, my little man Isaac has some issues with his shoes. On certain days the issues he has with his shoes are huge. The problem isn't what the shoes look like, but what the shoes feel like on his feet. He's fine not wearing any shoes at all....as he says, "bare footy", but if he has shoes on his feet they must feel perfect! His socks must be perfect......it would be absolutely devastating to have a sock on inside out!!! And, it's a tragedy if the sock is not perfectly on his foot. A sock just a tad off center is call for SERIOUS alarm. You know those socks with grey on the bottom and white on the top....they must be perfectly aligned! The toe and heel must be in perfect position. A sock a tad too big or too small will just not do! Now, once we get the sock perfect it's time to make a go with the shoe. As you put on the shoe you have to be very careful to make sure that the little piece of material on the back of the shoe is pulled out as it absolutely MUST be. The laces or straps must be adjusted not too tight and not too loose. Of course, many times when it is time to put shoes on we are in a hurry to get out the door. It can make for some frustrating times for all involved because on a "huge shoe issue day" if any of the things just mentioned are "out of wack" it's call for a serious three year old meltdown!

Today just happened to be one of those "huge shoe issue" days. Luckily today we were on a very relaxed schedule so we had time to deal with this. ;) We went from sandles, to tennis shoes and back to sandles before we got it just right this morning. Then we went outside in the wet grass and well....wet sandles are a BIG problem on days like today! LOL!! You can see the stress in the curling of his toes in the picture above.

The funny part about this is that Isaac's shoes and socks are the only things that Isaac has concerns like this about. Just last week as we walked out of the library I noticed that his shorts were on backwards. No problem with that, but I'll betcha that his shoes and socks were perfect! :)

Maybe tomorrow will be a "non-issue shoe day" at our house. ;)

God Bless,
Wendy

Remembering Pa

Our hearts are a bit heavy at our house today. It was a year ago today that we lost Tom's Dad to cancer. What a terrible disease. Please remember Tom's Granny and Cindy (his Dad's wife) in your prayers today. I'm sure it will be a difficult day for them. We miss you Pa!

Wendy

Appreciation

...always giving thanks to God the Father for EVERYTHING, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 5:20

Goodness! Have you every had those times in your life when everything seems to break?! Things like appliances, vehicles, gadgets and gizmos. We are in the midst of one of those times right now. Here is a list of things that have broken in our home over the past five months:

*refrigerator-replaced
*stove-replaced
*hot water heater-replaced
*printer-mind of it's own...not working today
*air conditioner/heater blower in van-currently awaiting repair
*direct tv no local channels-repair man due on Thursday
*wheel bearing on car-currently awaiting repair
*telephone frequent outages over several years..dinosaur line-in process of getting updated line
*air conditioner in house-currently awaiting repair
*riding lawn mower..added today-currently awaiting repair

Whew! Losing the convenience of things that we have become accustomed to can be frustrating. We have definitely had our share of frustrating times over the past few months! I am also aware that most, if not all, of the things on this list are luxuries and not necessities! When we were in China last year picking up Gracie this fact really hit home for us. We most definitely live in a land of plenty! We have so much more than we really and truly need.

Over the past few months, Tom and I have had several conversations about how things are continually breaking. We've been wondering what God is trying to teach us right now? We have made some major decisions for our family over the past few months and have been thinking that God is trying to teach us something that has to do with these decisions or our finances...but what? Hmmm? I know there is always something to learn.

Today it hit me like a ton of bricks. God wants us to appreciate and be thankful for EVERYTHING that he has given us.....EVERYTHING.....this includes our hot water, our ice cubes, the cool air on a hot summer day, etc. etc. Losing these few modern conveniences for a short time has made us more thankful. I have heard prayers uttered by my children that would not have been said if these break downs had not happened. "Thank you God for lots of ice" "Thank you our phone works" etc. We have all learned to be more appreciative. After this hit me today I thought back to a recent email that I received from my aunt Mary Lynn. I went back to look at it again. In the email she said, " I am convinced that thankfulness is the key to a happy life." I couldn't agree more. So, even though all of these break downs have been frustrating the lesson to be learned is to appreciate all of the many blessings that we so often take for granted everyday!

God Bless,

Wendy

Home Again, Home Again Jiggedy Jig!

Heidi and Jacob made it home safe and sound after a week away from home at Christian youth camp. I am so very thankful that we have such an awesome camp available to the kids so close to home. They had a great week! :) There were 88 campers in this camp session, which makes for very full cabins. Cabins full of many new friends, some old ones, lots of fun, laughter, and hopefully lots of good memories to hold onto for years to come! Most importantly while all of this fun is happening the kids are learning to walk closer to to our Lord and Savior.

This was Jacob's first year at camp. He did awesome as a first time camper.......probably much better than this Mama did as the Mama to a first time camper. ;) Jacob was in the chipmunk cabin. His favorite part about camp was canoeing and canteen...where he gets to pick a treat everyday. :) Jacob won the "sharing" award on the last day of camp because "he would give you the shirt off his back."

Miss Heidi is an old pro at camp as this is her 4th year. She was in the robins cabin this year. Her favorite part about camp was shaving cream day. What fun!! On the last day of camp Heidi received the "Candy" award because "she is SO sweet". :)
It was very obvious when we picked up the kids that a good time was had by all. :) Unfortunately we arrived home from camp with one less suitcase than we went with. We are assuming that someone picked up Jacob's suitcase mistakenly and took it home. We are hoping that it will show up soon!

I had a first time ever mini Mama vacation this weekend.....just because. :) Terrie, my sister, and I had a sister week-end getaway in Indy. We had an awesome time together!! It's the first time Gracie and I have been apart since her arrival home last Aug. , but we both did just fine. I was definitely very happy to see my four little stinkers when I got home though......and my big stinker too. ;) I now feel refreshed and ready to gear up for our back porch sale on the 28th.

When we are out and about and we arrive home I always say, "Home again, Home again Jiggedy Jig". Gracie has been just a little sponge since she arrived home from China learning English. She thinks that our home is called "Home again, Home again" lol! So, as Gracie would say, we are all now "Home again, Home again"!! ;)

God Bless,
Wendy

Lightening Bugs and Tadpoles

Yikes!! Our tadpoles have turned into little itty bitty frogs and are making a hop for it! We started out with 18 tadpoles and they have gradually disappeared over the past week or so and we are down to just one. Two of them have died, but that still leaves 15 little itty bitty frogs unaccounted for. There is no stopping them because they are the type with those suction cups on their feet and they can climb up anything.....even glass. I'm hoping the lone itty bitty frog is still around come morning. Jacob left me in charge while he is at camp this week. Yikes! He will be so disappointed if he comes home to none at all. The very interesting part is that we have been keeping them on our screened in back porch. Hmmmm? 16 itty bitty frogs will eventually turn into 16 big frogs....that could be interesting on my back porch huh? lol! I'm sure they are so tiny that they are off to explore the big wide world by now. They could squeeze through the tiniest crack. They have changed so much in the week Jacob has been gone! I don't know who has enjoyed them more....Jacob or me?! ;) I've loved tadpoles since I was a kid and always thought it would be so neat to actually raise some. The transformation is just amazing isn't it? I mean a tadpole becomes a frog! Simply amazing how God has planned out every little detail of life on this earth! In the spring Jacob brought home a bunch of caterpillars and they actually spun cocoons and hatched as moths. Cool!! I tried and tried that one with no luck as a kid too. Jacob just has a knack with critters that I never did I guess. Now, I could do without the snakes that he is constantly trying to drag in here though! Eeek!

After supper tonight Isaac found a lightening bug in the laundry room. He was extremely proud of his discovery. He was able to gently get him in his hand and I grabbed a jar, but before we could get him in there he flew away. He's still somewhere in the laundry room. Isaac was disappointed. :( We had eaten our supper on the back porch and a bit later Isaac went out there to get his cup off the table and he hollered, "Mama, Mama, Mama Come Quick!!" On his cup was a lightening bug. This was no where near dark time yet. We didn't let that one get away. We got him in the jar! :) Of course, when it finally got dark and the lights started blinking we had to make a go of getting more bugs in the jar. Gracie and Isaac were running around in their jammers. Isaac proudly captured a few all by himself, "Mama, I do it!" Gracie was happily telling me where all of the bugs were, but then waited for me to run in for the catch.

The bugs are blinking away in Isaac's room right now as I type. There is probably one lone bug flickering somewhere in the laundry room amongst the heaping Mt. NeverRest. And, who knows how many little itty bitty friends we have hopping around on our back porch. :)

I'd say today was a Zipa-Dee-Do-Da Day!! I'm one blessed Mama!

Wendy

Some Summer Happenings

Jacob had a friend over and they went frog hunting in our frog pond. They came back with a bunch of tadpoles. We got on the internet and read up on how to take care of them. We filled a winter sled with water and they are living on our back porch. I boiled up some lettuce and have it in the freezer. I give them a pinch of it very few days. Most of them now have 4 legs. Wow!!
Here they are coming back with their catch. ;)

We all went strawberry picking at a nearby fruit farm. The kids had a blast!! As the worker took us to the row where she wanted us to pick I asked her if she wanted to weigh Gracie and Isaac now and then again after we were done picking. They charge by the pound and I knew those two would be eating on the job. LOL! Gracie did pretty well and only ate a couple I think. Isaac did well in the beginning, but as time went on he began chowing down. :-O When we were done picking and I was busy weighing the berries and tranferring our berries to our own containers Isaac was actually snatching berries from someone else's basket. Little stinker!

Jacob's last game of baseball was this past Friday. The league he is on this year has the boys actually doing their own pitching. This is the first year for that and it has made for some extremely long games. ;) Jacob has played several positions this year, but his favorite is catcher because he gets to keep his hand on the ball constantly! Jacob is a real go getter. If he misses the ball you can guarantee that he will get it back to the pitcher asap....which is a very good thing in this league too!

Heidi and Jacob are off at church camp this week. This is Jacob's first year. We went down there for midweek Bible study......just wanted to check on my boy! ;) They are both having SO much fun!! Heidi's friend, Sherese, from school went too. Isaac cried when we left because he wanted to stay.

Hope you all are enjoying your summer!

God Bless,

Wendy

Salute to Tom

Well, the time has finally come for Tom to retire from the United States Air Force. He actually does not officially retire until Aug. 16, but his last day at the base was in June. We all went to the base on his last day and they had a real nice send off for him. It is a very bittersweet time for us. We are extremely excited about his new job and future! The sadness comes with change......an end to something that has been a part of our lives since before we were even married 21 years ago.

Here is our family on Tom's last day at the base.

Tom is now working as the production manager for a company that builds high quality custom furniture and cabinets. He really enjoys the atmosphere of his new job. We are looking forward to the future and the exciting things that God has in store for our next 20 years. :) Congratulations sweetie!! I'm so extremely proud of you. Job well done! It's been an honor and thrill to stand by your side over the past 22 years.

I want to share one more picture before I wrap this up. Actually, it is a photo collage that we gave to Tom for Father's Day. I am so extremely happy with how it turned out! Sometimes pictures speak louder than words.

Tom, thank you for your strong work ethic. You have had an amazing military career and I am so very proud of you. It's been a wonderful ride. Thank you for being an excellent husband. Thank you for being a fun and hands on Daddy. Thank you for being the solid rock of our family. Thank you MOST of all for being you.....a good man !

I love you!

Wendy

Preserving our memories

Hello! I've created this blog in an attempt to be able to keep memories not only in my head, but in writing. So many times the memories in my mind are very unreliable. How soon I forget all of the details of our lives that I thought I would never forget. I'm hoping that by keeping this journal my children and I (Tom too;)) will be able to look back years from now and remember our lives as they are today. By keeping my journal here I am able to also share all of the happenings at our house with our friends and family too.

I wanted to come up with a unique name for this blog. I'm not an overly creative person, but this song popped in my head. I've always loved this song...

Zipadeedoda, zipadeeae
My oh My, what a wonderful day
Plenty of sunshine, headed my way
Zipadeedoda, zipadeeae...

We have many zipadeedoda days at our house and many days that aren't so zippy. Isn't that life. My goal as a mother to my four beautiful children is for them to look back on their childhoods and feel that it was overwhelmingly full of mostly zippadeedoda days with plenty of sunshine. I also hope that I can equip them for the times of our lives and the days that aren't so zippy.Hope you are having a zipadeedoda day today!

God Bless,
Wendy