The BIG one!

Yup. I'm older than I was at my last post. December 10th, I turned the big 3-0! Not too eventful, not even that traumatic. I don't like the sound of it, but what the heck. I definitely wouldn't want to be 20 again, though. We went to church, went to my parents' for dinner and then Ryan's parents brought pizza to our house for supper. Ryan and I went shopping and out to eat the night before. Just can't believe I'm not in my 20s anymore. Looking back, my 20's were rough on me...which may explain my new found wrinkles next to my lips. They are (for sure!) from smiling and laughing...that's what I'm telling my self anyway...Better to be happy and smiling than crabby and down in the dumps! My early 20s were probably when I felt the 'oldest.' I went through things a lot of people have to experience, but usually not at such a young age...maybe this example explains the 3 WHITE hairs I made Ryan pluck from my head a few months ago!!! Face it...I'm old....but not as old as RYAN!!!! :)

I can't remember a lot of the last week. Don't know why. For some reason, Ryan and I both thought it was a loooonng week. I'll be glad for March to be here! We have our Christmas shopping done, the house is all decorated, the kids are getting terribly excited...oh, that's one thing we did...or did I tell you about that already, we went to see Santa. He was at the Eldora Welcome Center...(dumb spot to have it but oh well.) Drue was all psyched up to see him, assured us she would, blah...blah... well, Ryan puts the truck in park, we unbuckle and Drue says..."I'm not getting OUT!" Like, I thought we maybe could do this from the car...Well, we went in, she held on to me like a monkey and wouldn't let go. She cried and screamed when we tried to let Lane sit on his lap. DD said, "Digga doesn't want to sit on Santa's lap!" So, we didn't make anybody do it. Luckily, she still got her Santa Bag and we walked out. I have the funniest picture of her outside the building, smiling her biggest, proudest smile...right after she said, "That was FUN guys!!" Seriously.

I had TTT last night, we had hundreds of cookies to give to our camp girls. A few friends and I went out for an hour afterwards. It was nice to have some adult talk...even though all we talked about were our kids. The big discussion was preschool and Junior Kindergarten. Ughh... Can't believe it's that time already! I can't bear to think about it. Breaks my little mommy heart!

We're looking forward to a pretty boring weekend. Nothing on the calendar. Probably wrap some more presents and we may try to get together with some friends and let the kids play. We also will be doing some light cleaning/ laundry folding, etc... because we show the house again on Monday night.

I suppose I better go... My afternoon plans changed...I was supposed to go to IA Falls and pick up a 1/2 of a hog (for you city girls...it's frozen pork) as part of Ryan's Christmas bonus. He told me to be at the office between 9 and 3 today. I get there, tell them who I am, explain why I'm there, etc...The lady looks at me like she doesn't have a clue and then I find out it's TOMORROW... So, I call my lovely husband and tell him and we got a good laugh. Unfortunately, Mom took the afternoon off so I could run some errands without kids, put the 3 big boxes of meat away without kids falling down the basement steps, etc... So, they took a wagon ride to Deer Park and I'm putting clothes away and doing my 'chores.' :) like feeding Cash...our dog, and the cats, Thomas, Turtle, Pickles and Baby Pickles. :)

Have a safe weekend! ~kbl

My love for Kenny

You know it's officially "Christmas" season around this house because I have dug out the Kenny Rogers Christmas CDs....Oh, I love that man! Not the "new" plastic face Kenny, but that cute, old, chubby Kenny...ughhh, I thought he was so handsome in the good ol' days. :) I get so much energy listening to Christmas songs. I can clean in no time...in fact, I remember Mom listening to seasonal stuff out of season to get a quick buzz. :)

Since it's been almost a month since I've posted, I'll fill you in on some Drue and Lane happenings....

We enjoyed a nice meal at our friends', Todd and Pam. I travelled up to Ryan's work headquarters in MN with him the Wed. before Thanksgiving. We played a compelling game of "Name that Tune & Singer" on the way home while Ryan was scanning the radio stations. Hard to believe he won...Well, I think he won, I was starting to get suspicious when every rock song we didn't know he'd shout out "Corn!" or some other strange group that I didn't even know he knew existed! I couldn't prove him wrong so he got the point. Bummer.

We spent Thanksgiving Day at my parents' with both sets of grandparents and my aunt Cindy, Randy, Jamie, her boyfriend, Brian and Scott. 16 people total, I think. Yummy! I ate too much as usual, but there's nothing better than turkey and mashed potatoes!

Oh, I forgot a story about what happened with DD the day Ry and I were in MN. She was having a "gonna do it myself" day. She got dressed herself, went potty herself, several things, including painting her nails by herself. This isn't usually a new thing, she actually paints her nails often, the only thing is that someone opens the bottle for her and supervises the activity. She went in my Mom and Dad's room and did it all her self, this time! We know this because her Little Tykes vanity is covered....COVERED in bright pink polish, so was the roll of toilet paper she grabbed to quickly clean it off her hands! When we got home that evening, she proudly showed us her hands, her nails were not polished anymore, more like wiped off and the only trace of paint was around every nook and cranny of her hand. It was like someone sat down and painted an outline of her hand...very cute though. I won't be able to ever take that polish off her vanity for sentimental reasons. There are perfect little finger marks on it where she tried to wipe it off. Mom is so patient with her and Drue never thought for a minute that she was in trouble or doing something wrong. She was just doing one more thing by herself that day! :)

Lane has a new shirt that says "I do all my own stunts" on it. I thought this was appropriate after his fall from my folks' open stairs...for those of you who don't know, he fell off the sides of the steps, not down the steps. This was over a month ago, he's fine, never even had a bruise, but gave his mom a scare! Dig is also getting very excited about going potty in the Big Girl (soon to be Big Boy) chair. If I say, do you need to go potty, he'll run in and hit the toilet lid, I even sit him on it and he acts like he's going, grabs for toilet paper, sticks it between his legs then gets off and he flushes it. He'll also grab a diaper if I say, "are you poopy?" and he is. He'll be 15 months old on Dec. 15th so it will be about 3 more months before we actually start potty training, but so far, he's enjoying exploring the bathroom!

We put our tree up the Fri. after Thanksgiving, which my friend, Amber has officially dubbed, "Christmas Tree Day." Ryan and DD put the tree up, the kids and I decorated it. Looks very cute. It always seems so cozy with the tree up. I always feel like there is such a void when we take it down. Of course, we listened to Kenny, and other Christmas tunes, had cocoa, nibbled some candy canes and watched Lampoon's Christmas vacation, as we do every year. We also watched the kids' Nativity story movie before bed. That weekend we wrote letters to Santa. Drue told me what to write...something to the extent of..."Dear Santa, Happy Ha-Ho! (??) DD was a Parrot for Halloween. For presents I would like, a Deigo Rescue Center, a Princess camera and a pink sled. I'll make you cookies. DD is nice to Dig. I'll have carrots and apple for the deer. The magic key will be hanging on our door knob. I love you." When it comes down to it, I know she won't sit on his lap or anything. She does call the local telephone company's Santa hotline though.

One night I was in the bathroom and here comes DD with a section of the ribbon from our tree...on the other end...her brother. They were giggling, running, laughing, screaming, and yes...don't forget the occasional cry. I think someone was a horse...because while I was fixing supper, I saw Ryan crawling like a horse with a little cowgirl on him. Then I had to put a little water in an Easter basket bucket and I saw Ryan had a piece of the 'straw' from DD's play broom in his mouth. Dad was a horse. He soon had the tree ribbon tied to him so he wouldn't escape and when I went in the living room to let everyone know dinner was ready, I was quickly corrected. I said, "DD can your horse come in to eat?" "no, he's tied up right here, not get out." "Can't he come have some spaghetti and garlic bread so he's not hungry?" "Actually, Mom...Horses eat hay!" I stand corrected. Although, he did have to wait to be untied, the poor horse eventually got his supper.

Friday, December 1, The kids and I drove to Corydon to see my friend Heather and her girls. Drue was so excited to see Sarah and little Suzie sure loves Lane. We went to a photographer and had the kids' picture taken in front of the gingerbread house. It was quite entertaining watching Myra chase after 5 kids! The kids loved it...ok, not Lane. He cried the entire time so the pics. will be very entertaining. I was hoping for a candid shot, like the kids looking at the house, candy, etc...but Myra tried to get them all smiling, looking, etc...a little more drama than anticipated, but the pics are sure to be a hit with such a cute group! I'll be sure to scan the pic on when I get it. Myra has such cute little scenes every season, I'm sure we'll be back several times.

Ryan hunted today (Sat...I guess technically, it's Sunday now) He shot at a deer but missed. I don't know if he'll go out tomorrow or not. My Mom and DD and Grandma Mary and I are going on the Eldora Tour of Homes, all the houses will be decorated for Christmas and the money goes to the new aquatic center. I'm looking forward to it, but it's supposed to be freezing cold. We'll stop at the Lodge at Pine Lake for cocoa, appel cider and cookies before returning home. My Dad is going to play baby/grandpa-sitter and watch both Lane and Grandpa Harold. Unless Ryan doesn't hunt.

We showed the house Saturday morning and have another showing Monday morning. I'm so proud of our realtor. She's shown the house at least once a week the entire month it's been on the market. Good incentive to always have the house clean and something yummy baking in the oven...although, she's known to eat a muffin or two before she leaves! :)

Ryan and I have a lot of shopping yet to do... Always seems to creep up on me. Well, since I probably will hear a little boy crying for me in the next hour, I better go back to bed.

Happy Anniversary to US!!

We've been busy since my last post. Doing what, I'm not exactly sure, but we've been going...going...going. The kids and I enjoyed what now looks to be the last few nice days of Fall. We went on 2 walks one day and ended up, guess where...surprise...Deer Park. We forgot the kids' baggie of quarters so the (too) fat little goats went with out their snacks from the Luikens. Oh, well. I don't think they'll starve! I can't tell if they're very pregnant or miserably overweight. I'm sure, since sooner or later we would have seen a little baby goat, they are all just too chubby for their own good. The kids sure get a kick out of them though.

Ryan and I celebrated our 5th anniversary on Friday. I can't believe it's been that long. Somedays it seems like a lot less than that...others, a lot more! ;) I remember the day we were married, it was about 70 degrees out. Not this year! I woke up to the sound of sleet hitting the windows and as the morning progressed, it started snowing...lots! Two of my friends and I were planning on going to a Hearts-At-Home conference in Rochester, MN for the weekend, so the weather was not welcomed! We had planned on leaving about 12:30, after meeting in Wellsburg and getting updates from friends and our "weather-men" husbands, we decided to cancel our hotel room and postpone leaving until Saturday morning, when hopefully, the roads would have cleared, etc... At 1:00 pm MN had 7-10 inches of snow and parts of the road we would be taking was closed due to accidents. Luckily, at 3:00 the snow had stopped and roads were clear enough for us to decide we'd leave at 4:30. We all were really bummed that we were not going to make the conference, so imagine our little girl giddiness when we were actually on the road out of town! Once we got into MN we checked out our hotel room, the conference site and the 'market' place. Around 10 we decided we should eat something and found a cute little place. When we walked in it smelled very 'fishy.' Then menu was very interesting, my Mom would love to try anything and everything on it, I think. I could have found something to try, but Pam and Cam didn't think they could stomach any of it so we opted for drinks instead. We all 3 had our first martinis. We all got different flavors so we could experiment. Yie, Yie, Yie! Oooo Baby!!!! I chose the Funky Monkey, because I love anything banana flavored, but it took a good 4 sips before I got past the "fingernail polish remover" taste! Not bad, now I won't be afraid to try a new flavored one. After that we headed across from our hotel to the Red Lobster for a little supper. We were back and in bed about midnight. The conference was absolutely inspiring!
Check out http://www.hearts-at-home.org It is a Christian organization that encourages and educates Mothers at home. My great friend from high-school, Erin first told me about the conference and got me so excited that I wanted to go and got my coffee girls on board too. We had such a wonderful time listening to different speakers and their experiences as mothers and how God has influenced their job as mother. My favorite speaker was Lysa TerKeurst...You HAVE to check our her testimony in this months O Magazine , absolutely amazing woman! I was so touched by what she had to share and I was fortuante to hear her speak twice. She was the keynote speaker and I attended her "I Hereby Resign from the Mommy Stress Club" seminar. I also chose to attend "She's Gonna Blow," Every Child Needs a Praying Mom," and "A Woman of Great Influence." (All by different speakers) The whole weekend was wonderful. I felt so refreshed and rejuvenated as a mother. I also was reminded that God writes our motherhood stories, we just get to enjoy the journey! I so missed Drue and Lane and Ryan by the end of the day. I laughed, cried...every emotion in one little Saturday. I can't wait to put what we learned to use and watch how God works in me and my position as Mommy.

After a late night driving and meeting Ryan and the kids, I was hoping to sleep in a little. (I know...after a Christian retreat weekend, you'd have thought I could have at least gone to church!! I was too zonked from driving) Well, Ryan believes 8:00 is LATE, so often, he'll come up and bug us if we aren't up by then. This morning, Drue had crawled in bed with me, sometime after Ryan was already up (5:00!...why?!!) and at 8, I hear Ryan talking to Dig, they both came in and woke us girls up. I made eggs, sausage and oatmeal and then we just did our normal, 'lazy' day things. Played with toys, watched CBS's Sunday Morning, ( I love that funny curly haired guy!) At 12:35 we got a call from our realtor saying she'd be showing our house again at 4. That turned things around a little! We quickly got busy getting dishes done, laundry done...ok, I admit, I just threw the clean stuff from the basket back into the dryer... :) cleaned the bathroom, vacuumed, and made beds. Then we drove to Eldora and let the kids nap.

Drue watched a Diego movie...for you fellow 'animal rescue fans' you know who I'm talking about...for you who are sooooo out of the cartoon loop...he's Dora's cousin. Well...DD is IN LOVE with him! I'm not talking, thinks he's great, likes to watch his show, etc...I am talking full blown, in LOVE! The other night she cried to me, "Mommy, I want to see Diego!!" I said, well isn't his movie on? "Not on TV!" She wanted to go to him, "Does he live far, far away?" "I just want to jump in the TV and hug him and kiss him!!!" All this while SOBBING like her first boyfriend just dumped her. It was so sad because it was real and raw feelings, not a tantrum. I felt so sad for her. Well, she had her Diego fix for today because her Daddy just let her watch the hour and a half, 4 episode movie 1 and a 1/2 times before going to bed. She and Lane each picked out 4 big afghans and had them spread out all across the living room floor and watched Diego. My 'Little Man' sure does like to do ANYTHING his big sister is doing. They both are the cutest little people in the entire world and bring their Dad and I such overwhelming joy!

With this weekend being so cram-packed busy, we're already looking forward to next weekend. Hopefully, a little time to just be together as a family and take it slow. Mondays are not too fun around here lately, but they always seem to come right after Sundays whether we're ready or not! ;)

And the WINNERS Are...

Here's a cutie-patooty picture of Lane the Pirate with his Parrot, Drue. It was so funny because Lane actually liked wearing his hat. He was the shortest little guy walking across the gym floor for the parade. He was also the only one walking with a plug in his mouth! :)

We have another couple coming to look at the house tonight, and kids are asleep, I better get some stuff done!

Where did October go??

OK...Obviously, I've really slacked off when it comes to blogging...As you know our routines have been a bit different this past month and will continue to be so for a while so...I apologize in advance for the lack of posts. I always got on the computer when everyone else was asleep in bed...for now there just isn't time. I'll quickly get you up to beat with the kids...Since I didn't post the entire month of October, I will, no doubt, forget something cute and funny, but I promise to let you know sooner or later...

Dig is now saying Mommy, Daddy, DD (doubles for Dora-Dora) he says what a cow, (mmmmm) says, what a dog says and what a duck says...if in doubt he answers "quack, quack" to most every question! So silly! :) He also signs "more" and "milk"

I had an eyebrow masacre...the young girl in Wellsburg dripped wax on my brow and took a hunk...I mean HUNK of my eyebrow out, this was the week before we took our family pictures at Pine Lake. Thank goodness for eyeliner! It's still a HOLE!

Ryan and I managed to go to a Iowa Hawkeye game. They won and the weather was beautiful. We had sunburns on the left sides of our faces. It was a classic "Ryan" moment when the Hawks came out of their locker rooms...I looked at him, he was smiling ear to ear and had the goosebumps all over his arms...He loves his Hawks!

We made it to the pumpkin patch, took a bunch of cute pictures and the kids had a blast, even with a gazillion lady bugs flying in the air.

Both DD and Dig were sick with colds, runny noses, stuffy etc...not fun sleeping conditions. This lasted a good 2 weeks.

Lane is now running...well, I'm not so sure if he's running or just trying really hard to keep his balance. He definitely tries to keep up with his sister. They get to running and laughing so hard...such a sight!

Pa turned 51 on Oct. 29th. We went to the New Providence Roundhouse Halloween party on the 28th. Drue dressed up like a parrot, Lane a pirate. They won first place in their age division. Such cuties we have! Ryan and I both knew in our guts they'd win when we saw the "competition" :) They had a great time at the carnival following. Kids really go all out at that party...we'll have to really brainstorm for ideas next year. Drue also thought it was really fun that she did the cake walk and won a sprinkle cake to share.

October 28th also was the day that our acreage was officially "FOR SALE!" We have decided that we want to move to town. We love the country, but with Ryan's job schedule, he wants to be with us when he's home instead of mowing our big yard or messing with cows or the driveway. He says..."if I want to mess with cows, I'll go play with your dads." That whole Lee Pieters cow deal really ticked him off. We have already showed the house to 2 different couples in the first week it was for sale. We're in no hurry to sell since we don't have to move. We're going to be pretty picky about what we get for it and if not we'll stay and try to sell later. We'd be moving to Eldora. Nothing is really for sale there at the time anyway. Our next home would be our "middle" home. The one where we would enjoy and make our home while the kids are still little and then when they are in school I will do some substitute teaching and contribute a little bit financially. Then, ideally, Ryan and I would like to build a house on the edge of town. Who knows...maybe God thinks we should stay at this house...We'll see. Winter isn't a very good time to sell a house, so if it is going to, it probably won't be until spring. In the mean time, we've been doing little fix-its to the house and making sure it's always "show" ready. If you know anyone who wants a cute little acreage...send 'em our way! :)

This weekend we went to Deer Park Sat. and Sun.!! Drue fed the deer about $18 (not really) of feed from the vending machine. She HAD to go back to today. Dad can't tell his kids no. We also went out for pizza in IA Falls.

I hear giggles from downstairs, better go get supper...Ryan and I are having Greek Shrimp Pasta from "Everyone's a Chef" and the kids are having leftover enchiladas or pizza. I'll leave you with a picture of the monkeys...Love to all and thanks for reading! I'll try not to wait a month until the next post! Blessings~kabl

Don't Humpty Dumpty!

Happy October! The leaves are really starting to turn colors here. It is so beautiful...definitely my favorite time of year!

I'll try to start where I left off...Friday we were supposed to be at Travis' wedding rehearsal...however, Friday morning Drue woke up complaining of a stomach ache. I thought it was probably because she was hungry, she didn't eat much for supper before looking for geese the night before. Well, we tried breakfast, tried sitting with a warm rice sack on her tum, watching a movie, lying on the couch...but she came and found me and said, "DD tummy still hurt really bad." As she was saying that she coughed/gagged...ick. I asked if she needed to throw up and she nodded, we ran to the bathroom and...yup. So, Drue didn't have a very fun Friday. She was sick 4 times. Couldn't keep anything down, really drowsy, achy, the whole works. Fortunately, by about 3:00 that afternoon, she was able to eat some applesauce. Once I knew that was staying down, I offered her some jello I had made while she was napping and then she asked if she could have some Dora the Explorer chicken noodle soup...so I was hoping we were in the clear, and we were. Since she wasn't feeling well, I chose to stay home with her instead of going to Travis' rehearsal dinner. Drue just went to bed early and was feeling much better Saturday morning.

Lane never threw up, but did have a few really messy diapers Saturday, and was a little fussy, so I assume he had a tummy ache as well. I drove Ryan and a friend to pictures, then drove in to Mom and Dad's to get ready, figured it would save me some time getting kids in and out of the car and I would also have someone watching them while I got ready...made it a lot easier! :) Travis and Jill's wedding was very pretty...decorated in all sorts of Fall things and colors. It honestly was one of the prettiest weddings I've been to. Ryan was injured during his duty of groomsman, though. He was trying to fix a broken candle lighter...like the kinds the acolytes use at my church, when something broke and his hand slipped and he got a very deep cut in that space between your thumb and pointer finger...ouch! It bled the entire wedding, he had a kleenex on it the whole time and ended up going through 4 band-aids...or as he says..."ban-Daids..."we kid about that alot. =) It eventually stopped bleeding so he could enjoy his evening. The wedding party traveled in an Excursion limo, he said it was fun and I'm sure they enjoyed a few...(or more!) beverages on the way to reception. As usual, we cut it up on the dance floor. =) We love to dance! Certain songs are a MUST for us, we country swing to Travis Tritt's "T-R-O-U-B-L-E," never miss, "Jesse's Girl," a Kid Rock song...on and on....Unfortunately, for Ryan, the Hawks were playing during the reception. He was stuck to the TV until the game was over. He actually looked sick because of how bad it got. I finally had to drag him away to get his mind of his stinkin' Hawkeyes... We had so much fun visiting with friends, and just getting dressed up, that sort of thing...feels good once in a while to do that. Ryan looked hot, as usual...I think I should buy him a tux so he can wear it for me every once and awhile! =) We, like MANY, MANY other weddings, stayed until the music stopped. Sunday morning we went to Mom and Dad's to get the kids and had Pizza Ranch deliver lunch. The kids stayed up late at Nan's...yes, Drue has dropped the "ny" part of Nanny...maybe it's because we call her 'D' sometimes or maybe she's just figuring out she can change our names and we still answer...All day today she's been calling Ryan and I, 'Dadda and Momma,' not in a baby way, but it's got a little 'jive' in it! Everyone is feeling much better today, no flu symptoms at least...just 4 very sleepy Luikens.

It was gorgeous today, and should be right around 90 on Monday....that's actually too hot for me. We played outside this afternoon because it was windy enough to keep the invading nosiums, ladybugs and stinky boxelder bugs from hovering at every moment.

The title of this blog refers to Humpty Dumpty...here's the story...
If Drue catches me being a 'dare devil,' like when I was standing on the end of our bed, reaching way over to dust the top of the armoir, or standing on a chair to clean the top of the refrigerator, she'll yell, "Mom, don't Humpty Dumpty!" Meaning...don't fall and crack your head! What a girl! She and Lane make us laugh SO much!

God's blessings for a wonderful week... ~kbl

What we've been up to

SOOOOO.....Long time, no blog, huh? I really do check my computer everyday, since no one comments on me not blogging, people have either stopped reading, or never started...?? I honestly get on the computer everyday, I check my friends' sites, email, and a few regular blogs written by complete strangers, but...since it's been something like 13 days since I've last taken the time to post,I feel it's time! But, I'm going to cheat a little...See, I keep an ongoing list of things I want to remember to blog about...instead of going in to great detail, like I usually would, (you're thinkin, "thank goodness!") I'm going to share what my list looks like, (kind of) and get people up to speed with the gang here at the Luiken home... Ready?

Starting WAAAYYYY back on Saturday the 16th..

*Dig's party was fun. It was nice out so the guys got to be on the deck, and us girls visited indoors. Dig got so many nice gifts, clothes, money, building blocks, balls, diapers, and Uncle Shawn made him a measuring board, well, a thing for us to stand Lane up to every so often and measure him on, in the shape and painted like a farm silo...to go with his farm scene my Mom and Dad had painted on his wall as a "welcome to the world" present last Oct. after he was born. He and Kelly painted it and it is so neat. Ryan grilled hamburgers, I made a potatoe salad and a grape salad...We had Ryan's cousin and my friend, Caryn make the cake, it was adorable, had a football, soccer, basketball and baseball on it and in big red letters said, 'Happy Birthday Digga!" Drue told me what to have put on it. ONE THING though...I FORGOT to offer everyone ice-cream! I had it in the freezer and completely spaced it off...sorry to those of you who were here!

*Saturday the 23rd,(this past Sat.) Ryan and I went shopping in Waterloo for his friend Travis, he's getting married this weekend. We didn't find what we wanted but Ry did find a new outfit. We ended up ordering Trav a Terry Redlin print from Cabelas. (don't worry, he's not computer literate!) Ry and I went to Carlos O'Kelly's and ate like there was no tomorrow. Yum!

*Sunday 24th, we went to church, then to my parents' for roast and potatoes and all the fixin's, then Ryan and I took the kids on a nature walk around Pine Lake. It was a beautiful afternoon. DD didn't ride in the stroller at all. She was busy picking up pretty leaves and acorns and playing in the sand. We had a really nice time. The kids were very good and the weather was perfect.

*Monday 25th Dig had his one year pictures taken...he is usually a very smiley boy, but not this day! He was freaked out by the lady taking the pictures, and quite honestly, so was I. She wasn't very good at all and only took 7 pictures. Oh well, He's a cutie anyway. He wore a Hawkeye football jersey onesie. We pick them up on Oct. 10th. Monday, was a long day. We left home at 9:30 and got home about 5:30. Mom was on vacation this week and went shopping with us. Drue had ice-cream after Dig's pics. and again before leaving W'loo. First, rainbow in the mall, the second time, watermelon sorbet at Cold Stone...they didn't have my oatmeal cookie that day...bummer! So I had the Lite Cake batter...yikes! Too sweet! Tastes just like cake batter though...Drue loved it! I found an outfit to wear to T's wedding and the kids each got some things. AND...Dig slept through the night that night! Shopping isn't for boys!

*Tues. 26th We went to Kim's for coffee. We're all sad because she will be moving to Indiana shortly. She is such a neat girl. We'll miss her a lot. After coffee, we went to my folks' for lunch. Mom brought down the old suitcases full of my old dance recital outfits and old jewelry for DD to play with. We decided that since it was nice, we'd walk to Eldora and get an iced coffee at the coffee house. Get this...Drue wore my pink and green tutu, a hot pink, sequin headband, her sunglasses and a red bead necklace...all the way uptown! It was hilarious. She even had my Mom wear a blue sequin headband...she did...all the way! She said I'd understand when I'm a grandma! =)

* Wed. the 20th...(this is out of order) It was cool out, but sunny and very 'autumn like,' so the kids and I put on our sweatshirts and went on a wagon ride down our long drive to get the mail. We played outside and had a wonderful afternoon. Ryan and I love Fall. That afternoon really got me in the mood for pumpkin bars and hot cocoa!

* I forgot to mention in previous posts, (I think) that Lane started saying "ball" on Sept. 11. It's so stinkin' cute...he'll wake up and the first thing I hear over the monitor is "ba...ba...ba..." when I go up to get him, he's standing in his crib reaching for a baseball my Uncle Jim and Aunt Antoinette gave him when he was born.

*At that week's coffee group, Drue was bit on the finger (pretty badly) by her best friend, Campbell. After she left I asked Drue what she did to Campbell, either to make her bite her or after she bit her, Drue told me quite frankly, "DD pinched her real hard!" At least she didn't lie to me! =) That night I made a yummy Amish hamburger soup and apple crisp. Grandma Mary gave us a bunch of apples...more on that later!

*The next night I made Grandma Margaret's All at Once spaghetti and Beer bread. Drue was so excited to help...she kept asking, "are we making beer pie yet?"

*Friday the 22nd, Dig had his one year Dr. appt. He weighed 21 lbs 13 oz. and is 30 inches tall.

Ok...I just realize that some how, I started typing in the wrong space and now this post is no longer in chronological order...sorry, try to figure it out... ;)

Try this again...I tried to cut & paste but it didn't let me...sorry.
Yesterday, Wed the 27th...We went to Grandma Mary's at 10:00 am and started our APPLE PIE BAKING! Grandma has a gazillion apples and we cut, cored, peeled, sliced tons of them. My feet are so sore today! Mom came too and we learned how to make grandma's crust. We made 10 regular sized pies and 2 'pot -pie' sized for Drue and Lane. Then we sliced/prepared 12 quart bags of apples so they are ready to use when we want to make something. My Dad and brother were at grandma's working on a water line, Kelly stopped by to give grandma a little gift for letting her put her big swimming pool on grandma's tennis court and Ryan stopped by on his way through for a pop and just in time to carry the big bucket full of scraps out to Shawn's calves! It was special learning from grandma and we talked alot about her growing up, I will post more on that another day. We left 1 pie for grandma (that's all she wanted) 2 with my Mom, one for a friend who had a recent surgery and the remaing 6 are in our deep freeze along with all the bags of sliced apples. Kind of fun stocking up for winter...makes me feel a little more Amish! =)

Today, Thurs. the 28th, we went in to my parents' then,we ran to grandma's to pick up our pies, we had let them freeze over night at her house so they'd be easier to transport, then to the store, then home to wait for Todd and Pam and the girls to come for supper. Pam made a spaghetti pie, I had the garlic bread and lettuce salads...and of course...apple pie. After we ate, Todd, Ryan and the 3 older girls took our car to look for geese. DD had been looking forward to it for a week now! She was so excited. We packed a juice and puffed popcorn for everyone and they were off! Pam and I enjoyed some quiet time with eachother and Lane and Madeline. 2 hours later, I hear crying as the door opens, DD had cried for the last 20 mins. because she didn't have her blanket. (Campbell did have hers.) They had a good time but were tired. The girls didn't see the geese but they did see some deer. It may be a while before Drue wants to do that again.

*BIG NEWS...Dig is sleeping through the night! He did it Mon, Tues and Wed...hope we keep it up! But, I'm sleeping so hard now, that my neck is killing me.

Well, now I think you're up to date...although, your head may be spinning because I screwed up the order...Anyway, we're here...we're all healthy, we're happy and busy! We have a wedding this weekend, the Iowa game the next and want to get to the pumpkin patch that weekend,too. Would love to hear from some of you! God's blessings to you all! ~kabl

LANE IS ONE!!

Happy 1st Birthday to my "Little Man!" Can't believe he is already a year old. What amazing things he's learned in the last 12 months! He is such a joy...tonight, I had to work at the chicken and biscuit dinner, but when I went to get the kids from Mom and Dad's he was in such a FUNNY mood! It could have been the bright, blue Gatorade someone was giving him! Anyway, I guess he, Drue, Nanny and Pa were all crawling around on the floor, listening to "Three Blind Mice" on the CD player, pretending to be mice...Dad said he crawled for a good half hour...full throttle! His little knees are probably sore. When I got there he showed me how he "danced" to the music and then did a funny face thing...wrinkled up his entire face, closed his eyes and sniffed in and out through his little nose...we'd laugh, he'd do it more... What a kid! He has no idea what's in store for him tomorrow! Party time...

Drue came to 'help' Nanny get the carry our chick/biscuits...as they were walking in, Ryan's family was walking out...I watched and Drue and Cade both kind of ignored eachother...they were out of place...couldn't figure out why eachother was there, but Drue sure did talk about him when I got to Mom's...Hopefully, the rain holds off and the two of them can play outside for a little bit.

Well, I am off to bed...I'm tired. Last night I slept so hard that I had NO idea that DD had jumped in bed with us sometime in the night. I woke up and she was there...Ryan even brought Lane in because I didn't hear him...ok, I did...I was going to wait and see if fell back asleep, then remembered it was his birthday and didn't want him to cry on his big day! =) I am getting up to make potatoe salad and a grape salad...maybe that's too much 'salad.?' Oh well, that's all I have the 'stuff' for, so that's what we'll have...with grilled burgers, cake and ice-cream. We're excited to have everyone here... I think I counted and there will be 20 people here...we'll be missing Uncle Steve and his girlfriend, Lisa and my Grandpa Harold, I don't think he'll come. It is a lot of work for Grandma and Grandpa gets nervous about having an accident or being in the way.

One year ago tonight, God blessed Ryan and I and Drue with a healthy, beautiful baby boy...We couldn't imagine our life without him...such a perfect little family! Praise God!

Ty...Move That Bus!!!

So... have you heard??? The Extreme Home Makeover show is building a house just outside Grundy Center/ Gladbrook?! Mom and Dad stopped by the build site last night after shopping in Waterloo...Dad told me about it this morning and I asked Mom to take me there this afternoon. I love that show! However, I usually try NOT to watch the beginning, the part when they tell the family's story on why they deserve the new house. I USED to watch that part but got way too emotional...plus it was when I was pregnant with Lane, adding to my hormonal mess! I was very impressed by the organization. We parked a good "country section" away from the actual site. Then walked on a path cut through a bean field. We ended up just across the road from the house. It's beautiful. Looks kind of like a plantation home. I guess Tuesday they had dug a hole and demolished what remained of the original home and when Mom and the kids and I visited about 6:00 Thurs. night, the house was up, sided, roofed, a pole barn built, some windows installed, I could see through the windows that were unfinished, that the inside was sheet rocked, possibly painted...can you believe how fast they work!? I'd love to go Sunday afternoon and tell Ty to "move that bus," but they don't know an exact time the family will return for the reveal. I guess it's a family of 6. Both parents disabled, and around Christmas of last year, their home was lost to fire. When the Home Makeover Team arrived to surprise them on Sunday, the family was living in a fifth wheel camper and two tents. A pastor recommended them for the project. We took some pictures and are anxiously awaiting the show sometime in November.

The kids had a wonderful day. Our friend, Pam, brought Dig his first birthday gifts...he received 3 new balls, all of different sizes. He was so excited! Can't believe he'll be 1 tomorrow! I was to go in for a routine checkup, when my midwife checked me she said, "I don't feel comfortable sending you all the way home, unless your husband is willing to come in for a crash course in delivering babies!" So, I went to Target and shopped for a while then went back to the hospital that afternoon and had my water broke...Little Lane Ryan was born about 5 hrs. later...at 7:23 or was it 7:34...yikes...well, it's one of the two...Drue was born at 4:24 so Lane must have been born at 7:34...yup, that's my story and I'm stickin' to it! :) What an exciting day for us! He came over 3 weeks early, but healthy and gorgeous!

Drue has a new 'thing.' A few days ago I asked her to "please babysit Dig while I run upstairs to get him a pair of socks." I promised her that if she did I'd give her a piece of her parade candy... Ok...it was a trick, I just wanted her to stay down stairs so I could run up, run down...make it a quick trip, not lolly-gaggling around like we do sometimes...Wellllll....now when she wants a piece of candy she'll ask, "Mommy, want me to babysit Digga?" What a girl! Today she wore a sleevless Cinderella scort/ dress-up outfit all day...she says she's gonna' wear it to her brother's birthday party, too...we'll have to see what the weather's like. On the other hand, she and Dig received some new long sleeve shirts from my folks today and she was so excited that she tried on a new outfit and wore it to bed, stretch pants and all!

Well, I've already been up once with Lane, last night was good...he woke up about 4:30 then again at 7:15... I can live with that! (for a while!)

Better get to bed, I have another busy day ahead, I have to make a dessert for the TTT chicken and biscuit meal, go to the grocery store, pick up some birthday balloons and be at the school to work my shift at the meal...oh, and pick up a birthday cake!

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY DIGGA DEAN!!

I love you kids so much, you are my world and I thank God everyday for choosing me to be your Mommy!!

Black and Blue

Ahhhh....time to sit. I am proud with what I have accomplished today. Not alot to some, but major for me. We made it to our coffee/ play group at Pam's this morning. This afternoon, I dusted the computer room and our room, I cleaned all the floors upstairs. After supper, I scrubbed the kitchen, laundry and bathroom floors. Mind you...there are four little feet and four little hands grabbing, chasing, reaching, climbing, pulling, dripping, running, poking, digging, balancing, etc... all the while...

While I was in the kitchen, I heard sobbing. You see, Lane has a new favorite thing to do. He crawls really fast and climbs into Drue's little pink, overstuffed rocking chair. Some times I catch him sitting in it with his little arms stretched out on the arms of the chair with his fingers tapping. Other times I catch him standing up, bouncing, being silly...EVERY time he sees me look at him, he starts to giggle, like.."I'm such a stud muffin! I am getting to be such a big kid! Mom, isn't this cool?!" Well, one time tonight, it wasn't so 'cool.' Evidentally, I say this because only DD saw exactly what happened, he stood up and fell off the side of the chair and hit who knows what. There were toys everywhere and Dad was in the living room...don't ask. Anyway, he has a bump and is black and blue between his eyes, right at the top of his nose. He was pretty upset...for a while, then he was right back at his chair trick!

Lane is continuing to practice walking. He'll be walking before we know it, can't believe my baby is growing up so quickly! I can't believe it has already been a year since we brought that tiny little boy home...

Drue had a wonderful time at play group. I caught her and Campbell pushing eachother...I heard DD say, "Don't push, Campa!" (Campbell) AS she was pushing Campbell back! =) We're going to have to watch those two... I foresee many challenges in that relationship, I can bet there will be times when Ryan and I will have to ask Drue, "are you friends with Campbell this week or not?" one of those types, especially being only 6 weeks apart and having parents that are such good friends...and being GIRLS! Drue watched Charolette's Web today...She also helped me scrub the floors for a while. We put a little scarf on her head, like Cinderella wore. She looked so cute scrubbing in her scarf...then she slipped and fell, that ended the fun. So she went to watch Cinderella in the toy room. She's way into the Princesses right now...better start saving for that trip to Disney before the magic is gone!

Ryan continues to love his job and the responsibilities that come with it. He works a little longer than he used to, about like a farmer now. Gone at dark, home around dark. I'm so thankful he enjoys it...now we both LOVE our JOBS!! =) His and Shawn's lease is about up for the cattle operation. THANK GOD! That was a big joke. The guy they leased them from really ripped them off. He didn't stay out of the decision making, as promised, he demanded they use certain medications, charged things to their vet account, sprayed pastures unneccesarily, made the guys move or work cows/calves, when he wanted, charged them for preg checking, on and on and on...It was definitely a learning experience, thankfully, it's over on Sept. 30th...Shawn and Kelly, Ryan and I are planning on celebrating at Travis's wedding, which is that same day...Phew!!!

Well...everyone is in bed...their own, I might add! Better go give my kisses to the kids and get my covers from the 'hog!' :)

Just like her Daddy

So... I forgot a funny story from a week or so ago...

Drue and Ryan were on the couch watching the "Deer movie," aka..."Bambi." DD wanted her Dad to watch it with her, well, they both fell asleep. I was in the kitchen doing dishes, Lane was already in bed. I heard a thud and turned and say Ryan leaning towards the ground, still in a stupor. Drue had fallen off the couch...don't really know how since Ryan had his arm around her...but she woke up for only a few seconds, then fell back asleep. When we quizzed her about it the next day, she said, "that was at Coke's house." So, I don't know if she remembers it or not.

Yesterday, obviously bored...Drue came running into the kitchen and asked, "Mommy, want to go around looking for geese?" We had gone driving, looking for potential hunting spots Fri. night and Drue must have thought it was fun...although, she fell asleep about 15 minutes into the ride. I thought it was so funny that she initiated the trip this time. I couldn't wait to tell Ryan and when he got home, I had Drue tell her Daddy what she wanted to do earlier in the day. He was SOO excited that he may have a fellow hunter in the family. Drue was determined to go "NOW." It was rainy and already too dark to search last night, but Ryan promised they'd go the night before opening geese...which, I just remembered, is his best friends wedding rehearsal night...ok, they'll have to drive around on the 28th instead of 29th, anyway...Drue wants so badly to have Todd, Campbell, Ryan and herself...to drive around. She loves being in the back seat with Campbell...Ryan was so serious about making sure Drue knew they WOULD do it, that they wrote it on the calendar.

Lane took about 8 or 9 steps to his sister today. He takes a gasping breath as if to say..."Ready, I'm gonna' do it...!" I'm not sure he breathes the entire time he's attempting to walk...He even will try and walk without being asked, he'll pull himself up to something and then turn, gasp, lift up a foot, place it down, think about it, lift up the other foot, put it down, think about it...He's so determined. Oh my...so cute, too! He's going to have the girls chasing him! Drue will have her fair share of boys knocking, too! Such beautiful, healthy children we have! Praise God!

Drue was pretty wound up today...could be the parade candy she had for breakfast! =) She didn't take her usual afternoon nap. After she was done with supper, she asked to sit in Lane's high chair, we let her while we finished. All of a sudden we noticed it was very quiet...she had fallen asleep! I took her to her room and she has been sleeping since 7pm! Lane is in his bed, in too small of pajamas! They are the footie ones, it's chilly upstairs, but he's probably thinking they are too tight in the feet...we need to do some major shopping, he has no pants or long sleeve shirts that fit him and Fall has all of a sudden appeared, with little transition time. Drue is in the same boat for shirts...we need to make a "back to school" shopping trip some weekend after Dig's party.

I didn't sleep too well last night, Drue was wiggly...she's in her own room...so far...so I better go stake my ground incase she comes in later! =) Lane has been waking up a few times a night still, but I've noticed he sleeps pretty well when it's so cool up here.

Can't wait to see alot of you for Dig's party! Hope it's nice...at least not raining!

Blessings to you all!

Remember me???

Well...a lot has changed since the last time I've posted...including the MONTH!! Wow... I haven't written since Aug. 29th...There's a lot to catch up on...I'll randomly get you back up to speed with what's going on with the Luikens...I don't promise this will be in chronological order...bear with!

We watched Campbell and Aubrey the Friday before Labor Day...Their Mommy had to run some errands and we had fun destroying our home! Saturday we went into Steamboat Rock for Rainsbarger Days. We watched the parade and got a TON of candy. Afterwards, we let DD play in the sand and the duck pond...she got several prizes, her favorite, a purple squishy ball, yo-yo thing...was also a favorite of Cash's...he took a snap at it and popped it...DD said, "DD loved that purple thing, so bad!" Drue also saw clowns...we had to go back to the Expedition for my checkbook and we walked right by the clowns...Drue was petrified. She jumped right in the truck and said she'd stay in there while I went back to make my purchase, of course, I didn't let her, but we made sure we took the LONNNNG way around the clowns. As I type this, Drue is reminding me, "DD like clowns..." as she shakes her head no! Saturday night we went to Jim and Jane Kramer's for dinner. We've done this every Labor Day weekend since we've been married, (I think?) it's fun getting all the families together. Sunday we went to Ryan's grandma Margaret's for snacks in the afteroon. Monday, we went to my grandma and pa Larson's. My uncle Mike and aunt Aimee, their daughter Lindsay, her friend Ally and my uncle Jim were home. We went to the parade for yet more candy, then home for dinner. We made it out to the rodeo just as it started to rain, that didn't keep Drue from getting out though! She was pumped, rain or not! My folks had promised her a cowgirl hat... I was expecting one of those cheap, spray painted one, but she came back with a 'real' hat! She looked so stinking cute! It's pink, of course. The rain stopped and Drue got to enjoy all the rides, had some cotton candy, a corn dog and pop.

Hmmm... What else...Oh, Dig is sleeping in his own room. He actually likes his crib, I think. He still wakes up 2 or 3 times a night. Two times, though, he's slept from 9:30 to 2:30, one night he slept until 5:30am!! I felt terrible one night, I told DD to be quiet so we wouldn't wake him, I put him in his crib and he woke up, cried and stood up, I kind of got after Drue and then she started to cry, "DD was quiet, not loud!" She was right, Dig woke up because of changing positions, not because she was loud, I felt like such a bad mom. I kissed her and squeezed her an apologized for being grumpy.

One night the last week, Drue talked her Dad into putting on one of his cowboy hats, while she wore hers and they each rode the singing stick horses around the house...both in their underwear! =) What a sight! That same night Drue was in our bed and saw the moon, it was especially beautiful and we just snuggled while I sang the, "I see the moon, the moon sees me, God bless the moon and God bless me song." It was neat. We love our kids so much!

Dig had a fever Labor Day weekend. Often, when he has a fever, the next day, he'll get tiny pin pricked spots all over his little body. I thought he was getting a new tooth, ends up it was probably a virus, because DD had the spots one day, too.

I just asked Drue "what else has been going on this week?" She replied, "remember, we had coffee at Coke's has that day." ?? I should add...she's sticking her finger in the chapstick and rubbing it on her cheeks...????

Ryan's been working a lot...He works very hard. Luckily, he loves his job. I've been trying to get the house cleaned and preparing for Lane's birthday party. We can't believe that he'll be ONE on Friday!! Our baby isn't a baby anymore! We're having family over on Saturday....no...the Iowa/ISU game will be over by then....=) I have a busy week, Tues. is coffee..ok, that's not busy, that's fun... Wed. I have a TTT meeting, Friday night I work at the TTT Chicken and Biscuit dinner, then Ryan and the kids and I may go to the football game, haven't decided yet. Saturday it's PARTY TIME! Drue is excited, too...Her cousin Cade will be here!! Hopefully, the weather is nice and the two of them will be able to play in the kids' play yard.

BIG NEWS>>>> Dig is taking steps! He's taken about 4 or 5 at a time. He gets so proud of himself and even attempts to walk when no one is asking him to! Won't be long now!

This weekend, was nice...absolutely nothing going on. Friday night we drove around looking for geese, didn't see anything, so Ryan didn't even go hunting. Saturday afternoon, we met the James' at McDonalds so the kids could play. DD didn't want to go down the big slide, but Ryan thought he'd try it out. He asked Drue if she'd go with him, she said, "DD just watch." And she did...he went down it by himself...such a big boy! =) We all made a quick run to Wal-Mart. We put Campbell's car seat in our car and she rode home with us. The girls get the biggest kick out of being in the way back seat, they pretend their alone? Drue's been watching alot of the "princess" movies...She loves Cinderella and Snow White, especially!

Well...you're kind of up to date with us...I'm sure I left stuff out, I'll try and be better about blogging...I love doing it, but some nights I have to make the decision...BLOG or BED? Blog or bed? We just watched a special on 9/11. Brings back a lot of emotions...and we're hundreds of miles away, makes you really want to keep your family close and cherish every little moment. It's weird thinking our kids will never know what the world was like before Sept. 11, 2001.

Well, gotta take DD potty...Blessings to all...kl

TORNADO!!

I think one hit our house! Oh my! Not only are the usual toys all strung (is that a word?) all over the house, but we've added more. See, every...yes...EVERY time we see my grandma and grandpa Larson, they send BUNCHES of toys with the kids! I'm talking big Rubbermaid tubs...full! This visit it was a 2 ft. tall talking Barney, a play guitar, 3 different types of doll houses, a (I swear) life size fire truck...complete with siren and "this is engine 99, we're in pursuit." Hmmm, what else...oh, a container full of match box cars, a Cookie Monster game...maybe that's it...?? PLUS...I don't know if I mentioned this in previous posts, but, we brought home my tub full of Cabbage Patch kids and all of the clothes grandma Ilene made for them, from Mom and Dad's house. SO...we've added 16...yes, 16 Cabbage Patch kids to our family...Things are getting crazy around here. I know I was spoiled, I had all sorts of toys, too many, I'm sure... but these little children of mine...???Heaven's to Betsy!!!! They sure love imagining and playing in their toy room, though.

We had coffee this morning at Caryn's in Grundy. We had a good time, Drue's friends Campbell and Aubrey didn't make it, so she was kind of bored with the boys. Libby and her did eventually get out the babies and had fun being 'mommies.'

After coffee, we ran to Fareway. Then home for a late lunch. We had just enough time to put groceries away, feed the kids, change a diaper, go potty before getting back on the road to Wellsburg. I got my haircut. The kids were angels. Drue sat in the dryer chair, read a book and played with a My Little Pony. Dig was asleep in his stroller. After my cut, DD picked out a sucker and we headed to my parents'. Ryan and Shawn had to move cows, so we stayed at Mom's and the boys met us for supper. My uncle Jim came over today and is spending the night. He loves helping Dad with farm stuff when he's here. I think Jim was 10 or 11 when Mom and Dad started dating, so Dad is like a big brother to him...ok, he says Dad's like a "Dad" to him...don't tell my Dad that though! He'd feel really old! It was so nice and cool here today that we ate outside under the Christmas lights. Then we had a little fire in the chiminea. So beautiful out! SO....that's why the house looks like a tornado hit...we weren't even here today and it looks like we had a ton of friends over! But looking around makes me realize how much we have to be thankful for...at least we have a home to GET dirty! =) At least my kids have toys to leave all over the house, at least we have laundry to wash, at least we have groceries to put away...etc...

Tonight, I'm trying Dig in the crib in his own room. I was up 6 or 7 times last night...from 12:07 to 12:41, I was up 3 times! We'll try this...I don't know what to do. Any hints...leave me a comment...I'm not ready to stop breastfeeding, yet. But come on already! He is going to be one in a couple of weeks and he's still not sleeping through the night. We'll see if being in a room alone helps or makes it worse. I have feeling he'll wake up petrified, not knowing where he is and will be harder to get back to sleep...any of you Mom's out there...help me out!? I'm open to suggestions! =)

Have a beautiful...tomorrow...I guess I don't know what day tomorrow is...??? I lose track of my days being home. I know that our 'regular' PBS shows were on, so it's not a weekend, that's about as good as it gets from me! (Ok, tomorrow will be Wed...smarty pants!)

Is it Monday, already??

Wow!! I'm a slacker, huh? Where do the weekends go? Time really does fly when you're having fun, I guess.

Friday night we called up our friends, the James' and met them in Grundy Center for ice-cream. Oh my! Drue, Campbell and Aubrey all ordered blue flavor burst ice cream. What a mess! Actually, Drue is a very neat eater...can't say the same for Aubrey, though! By the end of our excursion, she was only in a diaper and sandals! The two older girls enjoyed running around and yelling. Campbell would run, DD followed...on and on and on...We were the only ones in the place, we planned it that way...we went a half hour before closing. The restaurant workers got a kick out of our kids. I can see us being on a first name basis with them very shortly!

Saturday we went to Waterloo to get a few things for Ryan's work, make some exchanges and go to Wal-Mart for the necessities. The kids were so good, as always...

Sunday, we went with my parents and Shawn and Kelly to my Grandma & Grandpa Larson's house for dinner. My Uncle Jim is home from NY for a week or so, so we went to see him...and EAT! There is always TOO much to eat at Grandma's and Grandpa ALWAYS offers TOO much pop! You always leave their house on the verge of being sick. But you miss that food the next day, so you have to stuff yourself when you're there! We're headed back there Labor Day for the parade, rodeo and carnival rides. DD is SO excited. She wants Pa to ride on the Dumbo elephants with her...He doesn't know it yet, though. My Uncle Mike, Aunt Aimee and cousin Lindsay will also be home then. We're looking forward to that, too! Oh...and the FOOD! I know we're having Italian sausage, peppers and tomatoes! Better wear my 'fat pants!!' =)

Today was nice. I had a hard time getting started, though. It was cloudy and rained off and on. The kids were very good. No major catastrophes. Ryan was even able to come home for lunch, so that was a treat for the kids. Both of them go straight to him when he gets home, they both want up, and he always gives them big hugs and kisses. I did some cleaning and laundry, addressed Dig's birthday invites and paid some bills...that's about it for today. We have coffee tomorrow. I have a haircut at 2:30. I finally just made Ryan decide...do you want it shorter or longer...he did the usual, "I don't care" thing...ughggh. I made him say which he liked better and he said shorter...good, I don't like long hair, at least not on me, I guess. Too hard to control these curls! @=)

So, if you've read previous posts you know that Drue calls macaroni, "monkey-roni." Well, I was defrosting meat a few days ago and she asked, "Mommy, what's in the MONKEY-WAVE?" (Microwave!) =) She also says "Monkers" for monsters...but, we try not to talk about them very often! She must think we have a 'thing' for monkeys around here! ;)

I'm starting to get in the mood to get our fall decorations out. I know this time last year, I had a list a mile long of things I wanted to get done before 'the baby' was due. (supposed to be Oct.7) Luckily, I had most of them done when our "L-Train" arrived, (His Daddy calls him that sometimes) on Sept. 15th! One thing, I did have the fall stuff out...better do that before the birthday party.

Drue fell asleep while Ryan read her "The Berenstain Bears Go to the Doctor." Uncle Steve gave it to her for Christmas, and she reads it all the time. She loves the page when Sister Bear gets a shot. I read it to her twice, Ryan read it to her once and the second time through for him, she fell asleep.

I suppose I have bored most of you to tears, better get to bed before Lane wakes me up. It's been about a year since I've slept through the night...grrr....Drue is alseep in her own bed, we'll see how long she stays there. I love hearing her little feet run across the hard wood floors. This afternoon, while she was napping on the couch, I was cleaning upstairs and heard her whimper, "Where's Mommy? Where'd Mommy go?" I ran as fast as I could to meet her so she didn't think I had left her in a dark, quiet house. I remember in Jefferson, I was probably 4 or 5...I woke up from a nap and couldn't find Mom. I was probably in a daze, too. I remember going to my Mom and Dad's room and calling the operator to ask if she knew where my Mom was. That was in the day when you actually talked to a PERSON! The lady was very nice, told me she didn't know where she was but since it was a nice day out, that maybe I should check the garden or the yard...she had me check as she stayed on the line. Sure enough, Mom was in our fenced in backyard.

OK...NOW I'm going to bed! Love to all of you! ~Kristy

Will I Dance for You Jesus?

No, I haven't forgot about blogging and no, the computer didn't poop out on us again...Just not much to write about, actually.

Today, is another story, though...Saturday night, while Ryan was at the bachelor party, his friends Todd and Vaughn mysteriously disappeared. No one really knew where they went, but no one was too worried. Ended up that a tragic thing happened. Vaughn's 18 yr. old nephew was at a house party in Cedar Falls or Waterloo and got into a fight...we don't know if he was involved in the fight or if he was breaking it up...either way, he was stabbed and killed. He graduated from Ackley in May and was going to start college this week. Vaughn is a close friend of Ryan's and was in our wedding. Today was Treye's funeral. I didn't know him but knew his Dad, Dustin and Uncle Vaughn. It was an extremely hard funeral to attend. Even though Treye never knew me, he has touched me in a way I wasn't expecting a stranger could. You MUST hug your spouse, family, children every day and tell them how much they mean to you, let them know you love them. Treye's family knew this. The guys weren't afraid to say it. I can't imagine how his family is feeling. I ached watching his dad during the funeral and covered my face hearing Vaughn speak and cried watching a video of Treye's greatest memories...memories I didn't know existed or even thought about until today. Treye just graduated high school, there won't be a college graduation, not even a first day of college, there won't be a wedding, grandbabies, vacations, new house, retirement...none of it. No one expects things like this to happen, no one can prepare for it. My thoughts are so random at this point, I can't even organize them in my head enough to type them. It honestly makes me sick to my stomach. I feel so bad for his family. The things they have endured this past weekend and will in the months ahead. It all seems like a dream to me, I can't imagine what it's like for them.

When I was explaining to Drue where Ryan and I were going, I said that a boy got hurt and died, now he's in Heaven with Jesus. She's 2, I didn't know how much or how little to tell her...Since she continued asking questions, I was honest with her. I told him that he got an owey because some other boys were being naughty and he got hurt with a knife. She was bent on going to the funeral. Cried even. She wanted to "see boy's owey." I explained that the boy wasn't really going to be there, (Didn't think it the time to explain the casket, burial etc...)that he was in Heaven. She said, "oh, like Grandma's blue fish? So, is he kind of like a ghost now?" I have never said ghost in the same sentence as Jesus. Somehow, she has that when you die, you are no longer visible here on earth... Pretty good, for her age.

Since I don't know where to go with this, and my thoughts are scrambled, I ask that you take a minute to say a prayer for our friends. Pray for their strength and for peace knowing Treye is not hurting...as Vaughn ended his speach he said..." I am confident...SO confident, that Treye is in Heaven," that is what will get them through this horrible time. If you were in Treye's place, do you know where you'd be? Would you dance for Jesus? Is He who you'd turn to? He carries our burdens...no matter how great (or small!)

In conclusion...I want to share the words to one of MY favorite songs, and one played at Treye's funeral, "I Can Only Imagine" by MercyMe

I can only imagine what it will be like
When I walk by your side
I can only imagine what my eyes will see
When your face is before me
I can only imagine
I can only imagine

Surrounded by your glory
What will my heart feel?
Will I dance for you Jesus,
Or in awe of you be still?
Will I stand in your presence,
or to my knees will I fall?
Will I singe Halleluja,
Will I be able to sing at all?
I can only imagine
I can only imagine

I can only imagine when that day comes
and I find myself standing in the Son
I can only imagine, when all I do
Is forever, forever worship you.
I can only imagine
I can only imagine...........................

Maybe, I'll be more prophetic tomorrow. We're looking forward to our coffee/play group tomorrow morning. It's at our house. I'm getting up early to make apple enchiladas. Haven't tried them before, but it's apple time here in IOWA!!

The LOOONNNGGG Weekend

We're all exhausted. We don't have much to show for being tired, but all 4 of us are. Saturday morning the kids and I took off with Mom and Dad for the State Fair. Oh my, was there traffic!! We were waiting on the highway for about 30 minutes, trying to get into the parking gates, once we got there, we heard on the radio that all the parking lots were full, it was about 11:00 a.m. Drue was very excited to go see Clifford the Big Red Dog in the Varied Industries bldg. at the IPTV booth. She giggled when she saw him from a distance, then as the line to hug him got shorter, she ran back to the stroller and jumped in saying, "DD no see Clifford, DD like him on TV." I asked if she'd like me to hold her and she agreed that sounded better, so I took her and Lane in my arms and went to meet Clifford, ok...she first 'met' him last year, sort of...I held her but as we got close she cried and made me turn around...similar situation this year!...As we got closer to him, Drue's legs and arms started squeezing my body harder and harder. She started to fuss but made it past him back to her stroller. She thought it was pretty cool AFTER she was done. We were quite the fair goers and ate away most of the money Dad brought with him. Of course, we had a few corndogs, lemonades, margaritas, nachos, a gyro, Italian sausage, a blooming onion, cotton candy, Indian fry bread, a fry bread taco, and Dip & Dots ice cream...the little quick frozen dots, ("the ice-cream of the future" stands that are in airports, etc)...Drue LOVES them...She asked Pa to buy her one more cup of them before leaving the fair, she prefers the 'rainbow sherbert' dots...and Pa and Nanny never say no to the kids. =)So she got more of the Dots. Drue rode a horse at the petting zoo, his name was Mikey. She played the 'go fish' game and caught 2 fish. She picked out a prize...a little red, stuffed animal fish. She got tatooed at several booths in the VI bldg, she's kind of on the fence as to which state football team to support...she has a HAWKEYE tatoo on her hand and a CYCLONE one on her leg...At least we can cover the ISU one up with pants!! :) The kids were both so good. Never whiny or fussy. They are such ANGELS! The weather was perfect, cool and overcast. We even had sweatshirts on the kids in the evening. We had such a fun time. We weren't rushed by schedules, just leisurely walked to the 'must see' sites, places we go every year, the butter cow, the VI bldg, the buckskinners (for the fry bread,) the big boar, the big bull, the draft horses, the agriculture bldg, the art bldg, etc... Such fun memories are made at the fair. Drue loves going to the 'Tate Fair!' I'm sure Lane will love it even more next year! We stayed late, about 10:30...got back to Eldora right around 12:30.

Since Ryan was at his friend's bachelor party and wouldn't be home until late, the kids and I stayed at my parents'. Dad woke me up a little before 6 so I could go home and get ready for our golf tournament. That hurt! I was so tired. We teed off around 7:30. We played 4 man best shot. Our team consisted of Ryan and me, and Nick and Traci. The team we played with was a lady that was my aid when I student taught and did my long term sub job, Cindy Pekarek and her husband, and their son and his girlfriend. Her son is an especially good golfer, and fun to watch. What a riot that Cindy is! We had such a good time catching up. Us girls could have technically sat in the carts and chit-chatted while the guys played, but they needed us! :) We had a few good shots, but after the first round we were slacking a bit. We played 18 holes, which is more than I've played at one time in a very long time! We were out on the course about 6 hours! That's longer than most night's sleep for me! But hey, it was a blast! It was a beautiful morning, cool, clear, sunny, but wet. Our Buseman/Luiken team came in 6th of 18 morning teams and we won our entry money back at least, so that was an added bonus to a fun day.

While on the course, we learned that Ryan's sister and her family had came 'home' from Decorah for the day. So, after golfing, Ry and I ran home, switched vehicles and went to Mom & Dad's to get the kids. Then we went to see Cousin Cade. Drue is always SO excited to see her "Baby Cade!" (He's only 10 mos. younger than her, so not really a baby any more)We visited for a couple hours and then came home around 5. Both Lane and Drue fell asleep on the short ride home, so Ryan took a nap on the floor and I held Dig in the chair. The kids and I took relatively short naps, Ryan is STILL sleeping. However, he has moved up to the bed now. He was awake for about 20 minutes to grab a piece of pizza and let the dog out of his kennel. Ryan can NOT function with little sleep. I've read that somewhere...women can do better than men with fewer hours of sleep...(duhh!?!) I mean...Ryan is OUT. He didn't get home much later than we did, but the alcohol hurts, I guess. Not fair though, him getting to 'check out' for the evening...just because he chose to party...I don't feel sorry for him, that's for sure.

Luckily, we have a pretty boring, ok, really boring week ahead of us. We don't have one single thing on the calendar for the entire week! =) Hopefully, tomorrow will be a good nap day...I may even try and sneak one in if the kids nap at the same time, (like that will happen!)

oh...For those of you wondering...Yes. Coke did come with us to the fair. Well, I guess he was in the the Expedition on the way down. I didn't hear anything about him while we were at the fair. If he was there, he too, was a very good boy! DD said she was going to pick him up later, so I don't know what became of him. Today she told me that she had to carry Coke's sister around all day yesterday at the fair! I asked her what his sister's name was and she paused, "ummm...don't know." I told her she better ask her, she said she'd ask Coke...paused again and said shaking her head 'no' ... "Coke talk berry well" Meaning...I couldn't understand him...also meaning....I can't think of a name for his sister. What an imagination! She cracks us up! I wonder if Coke "freaked out" when he saw Clifford?!? =0

Have a wonderful Monday! ~Blessings, kabl

wait a minute...

I titled the last post... 'you're not listening' then forgot to tell that story...

While Drue was having her hissy about the gum...I decided to ignore her because it was too annoying and I didn't have any gum to quiet her down anyway. When she noticed I wasn't paying attention she stopped, looked at me and said, "Mom, you're not listening to DD." Wonder where she's heard that phrase before!?

You're NOT LISTENING!!

This morning started alot earlier than usual...ok, those of you who have jobs outside the home will probably moan and groan at me when you hear this but...the kids and I don't usually get up before 8 or 8:30...I know, I know, that's LATE to most of you! Anyway, Drue was in our bed and I heard her say, "Wake up Mom, time to go downstairs, Digga's awake." I had taken a Benedryl before going to bed and was sleeping hard...except for the fact that Lane woke up about 4 times, (I didn't keep track, I couldn't get my eyes to focus on the clock, I was so out of it) I heard Lane standing up in his play pen just cooing at his big sister. (After his birthday party, we'll move him in to his crib...or maybe move his crib into our room..that sounds more like ME doesn't it?) So we GOT UP! It was 7:15. Ughhhg. I don't get up that early, except on Sunday mornings to get everyone, yes, everyone...Drue, Lane, Me and Ryan ready for church, usually ironing and packing a bag. You get a lot done when you start your day that early, I suppose...We dusted DD's room, vacuumed her window boxes, rugs, changed her sheets, changed our sheets, went through some clothes a friend gave us for Lane, did some laundry and dishes...all this BEFORE lunch! Not impressive to some...but give me a break! I have two babies under foot, too!

Yesterday, we were at Mom's for lunch...we go there at least once a week for lunch, just gives us something to get out of the house and do. Most of the time we go after our coffee/ play group date. Uncle Shawn got a new cell phone and wanted to take D's pictures with it. She looked so cute, eating a juicy strawberry, she was on the floor almost posing when Shawn said, "look at me so I can take your picture," DD replied, "I'm too busy." PLEEEASE! She cracks me up sometimes...ok, all times! This morning, she was sleepy and just in her undies (yee-yees) ?? on the couch, Lane crawled over to her and pulled himself up to the couch intending to pick on her...She looked at me and said softly, "DD's too tired to play with Digga, Mom." Like...Get him out of my hair, I'm not in the mood yet. I tell you, that girl is something else!

Drue had talked to my Mom about getting some 'red hot gum.' She loves gum and gets it whenever she can. Mom told her on the phone that she got some and Drue would get some Saturday...that wasn't good enough. Drue called Mom at lunch and said, "where's Nanny's purse?" She knows that's where the gum is...Mom told her it was in her Blazer and some how (yeah right) Drue talked Mom into bringing her a piece of gum...So before Mom went back to lunch, she brought rotten little DD a piece of red hot gum...and we wonder why she's a little bossy! :)

Dig had a rough day yesterday. He fell on a side table Uncle Steve made in highschool. He hit it hard and has a little cut and a bruise under his left eye. Then, 3 minutes later, he skimmed his forehead on the coffee table, no markings, but hurt feelings, for sure. He looks like a little boxer. Uncle Steve has a picture with a black eye that won him the "Colorful Cutie" contest in Jefferson...Dig looks a lot like that! It's his first real 'injury,' but, being the brave boy he is, definitely, not his last!

Ryan and I went golfing tonight with his sister, Traci and our brother-in-law, Nick. So fun! Nick's good...Ryan WANTS to be and Traci and I are learning. We got rained out last time, so were excited to get a round in tonight. It was very humid but perfect playing conditions. Hopefully, Ryan and I can play more next season. I love it, and Ryan is soon to be addicted, I can tell. He doesn't like anything he isn't good at, but with practice, I know he'll be good...he's just one of those 'all around athlete' type of people, that once he gets the hang of it, he'll be awesome, and probably, no fun for me to play with! =) I USED to be good, my brothers and I all played varsity golf in highschool, (ok, I know, I'm grasping at straws...starting to sound like my own 'highlight tape' or something!) With practice, hopefully, I can get at least that good again. It will be fun when the kids can come with us too, (and when my Dad gets me my golfcart!...right, Dad?love you!!) I tease him because the boys had expensive 'toys' growing up like horses, four-wheelers...ok, maybe I'm making some of it up because I can't remember other big toys, but I'm sure there was more!

Tomorrow morning, Ryan has a bachelor party for Travis, they are going golfing...that's at 9:00am...so there is plenty of time for drinking in the afternoon, I suppose...can't wait to hear about that?!? (not really) The kids and I are headed to the Iowa State Fair with my Mom and Dad and hopefully, Shawn. Can't wait for a corn dog and fresh lemonade...I may even try a "Fried Snickers on a Stick!" I'll let you know if I do! There is EVERY kind of food on a stick at the fair...things like Twinkies, pickles, porkchops, fried oreos...everything! Speaking of porkchops...

Today, Drue was jumping on the couch and stopped suddenly..."Mom, do you pell (smell) something like porkburgers?...not HAMburgers, porkburgers??" Don't know where that came from, but last week we did have porkburgers and I did explain the difference between them and hamburgers, but I didn't smell anything? OH... a few days ago, I had a vanilla candle burning in the kitchen and Drue said, "I pell RoooooT beer!" When I thought about it, she was right, it did smell a lot like a root beer....such fun things come out of her mouth...what a cutie!

Well, my allergy medicine is kicking in and I'm getting very sleepy...better hit the hay! ZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...............

Monkey-roni

Sorry for no posting Mon. & Tues....ok, no one probably reads this or notices that I didn't post...but incase someone does...sorry. Nothing really to post I gues... Monday we did meet our friends for coffee/ play group. We met at Cam's and played outdoors. It was a beautiful morning. Tuesday was gorgeous as well. We opened all the windows, it was wonderful sleeping weather.

Last night, Drue and I decided that this morning, after breakfast, we'd go on a walk at Pine Lake. It's so pretty there. We take it for granted, that's for sure. We drive through it every day, sometimes several times a day...and forget to even notice how beautiful it really is. I have to remind myself that some people consider Pine Lake a "vacation" spot. There are families that get all excited to pack up the camping stuff, get out the boat or just hike around it. We parked by the cabins and Drue walked across the little bridge that goes by the river. She hopped in the stroller with her baby doll, so we could cross the highway and we probably got 2 minutes into our walk when she said, "DD all done now. Go DD's house now." I asked her why and she said, "Maybe cars are coming." I think she thought the paved path was a road. Plus, she could hear the cars on the highway above us. I reassured her no cars were allowed on the path and we made our way to the beach so she could play in the sand and dip her feet in the (very green) She played for quite awhile, Lane was busy watching a few kids in the water. Drue decided that she had had enough so we started back on the path to the parking lot. When...to my surprise, and I'm sure Drue's...the DNR truck came driving down the path. Drue's eyes got big and she turned around and looked at me like..."do you see that, Mom?!" So much for me telling her the 'truth,' "no cars allowed."

When we got home, Lane was asleep, so I parked in the shade, opened all the windows and let him take a little nap. DD and I planted some mums in the planter Dad made me and watered some other flowers by the little shed in our yard. She had a blast playing with the hose and nozzle. She knows now to take ALL her clothes off before she even starts...she's bound to get WET!! She also enjoyed spraying our dog, Cash. She was "nakey" the entire rest of the day! :)

After playing outside, we all came in for lunch. I warmed up some leftover macaroni, but it was too hot, so I left it on the stove while I prepared the rest of her and Dig's lunch. In between bites of yogurt she said, "Mom, can I have my MONKEYRONI now?" =) I thought it was SOOO CUTE!!! I had to have her tell her Daddy what she had for lunch, too! What laughs!!

Dig does a funny thing lately, too...My Mom and the kids sing from a "Kid's Bible Song" book and he REALLY gets into the song, "I've got the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart" song. He'll bounce his upper body and really nod his head. Sometimes, he'll just do it on his own and I'll know he wants me to sing the song...then he just LAUGHS! Such a cute boy we have!!

So... now you're caught up...since I have time I need to check out how to renew my inital teaching license, I'm sure all they want is $$$...it expires in December of this year...can't believe it's been 2 years since I graduated from UNI!

The Weekend...

Not a very exciting weekend, but I'll fill you in anyway...

Friday was rough. Lane was up MANY times Thurs. night, I'm not sure if it was really the cough, though. Probably a mix between the cold, the thunder and needing snuggles from Mom. I got about 2 1/2 hours of sleep. I don't know how I function, sometimes. Thankfully, I don't have to be up at a certain time in the mornings and I don't have to wake my babies up to get dressed, eat and go to the sitters. That would not be fun. I hated having to wake Drue up to take her to daycare (we called it 'school' so it didn't sound so bad) when I was student teaching and subbing. I felt so bad making her get out of her cozy jammies, hurry and eat, then get in a car, rain or snow and get dropped off at some place where she wouldn't get the attention/ love we gave her here. Ryan and I both hated it but it was worse for me because I did the actual "dropping off." Ick....Anyway...where was I going with that...no where probably!
Friday morning we did get up and around to make it to our coffee/ play group's little 'shower' for Pam and baby Madi. Caryn made a wonderful cake and Kim provided the fruit and coffee. I'm so blessed to have made such wonderful, caring friends. We have such a good time when we get together. There are 5 Moms and 14 kids!!! But...we're excited that there will be 15 kids late in March! Caryn and Clint are expecting their 3rd child then! It gets crazy when we're all together! School starts in a couple of weeks so we will be 'losing' a few for coffe time.

Saturday, Ryan was home all day which is odd and great! He used to have to do hog chores everyday of the week, but he doesn't manage a site anymore. =) But, he still works very hard and long hours, so having him home for the entire weekend is so fun for all of us. We all love his new job! The kids and I miss him alot though. He makes it home for supper most nights, but other nights it's closer to bath time. The kids both get giddy when Dad gets home! Sat. morning we just sat around and all picked up the house. We made a quick Wal-Mart run...DD purchased a (cheapy!) plastic set of golf clubs. She's very particular on her grip...figures...she's her Daddy's girl! :) When we got home, Todd, Pam and the girls came over to bring us some goodies from their garden. Pam and I left the boys alone with the kids while we ran to pick up pizzas. We took our sweet time getting there and when we arrived home, the door was locked because kids tried escaping. I think they did a pretty good job, no one was hurt or crying when we got back, so that's good! We had a good time visiting and playing, the house is still a disaster from it though! Wow! Can we make a mess when friends are over! Lane was up a lot again Sat. night...I counted that I was up... count em' >>> SIX times before 3 am... and we didn't go to bed until 10! I'm hurtin' today! Of course, Dig's fine. :)

Sunday morning we went to church. Mom and Dad weren't there and on the way home, Drue said, "where are we going now?" I told her we were going home, she said, "no! Go Nanny's house." Ryan and I said, "we'll drop you off," She was ok with that! =) We ended up all staying and getting subs for lunch. (Shawn and Kelly were at the State Fair) Then Ryan and I left and met his sister, Traci and husband, Nick in Wellsburg to go golfing. Sounded like a good idea and we need the practice since we're in a tournament in 2 weeks! Ryan is a great athlete, I should say "was" I don't know what would happen now...he's old! (31!!) =) But, he doesn't like playing if he can't win or be the best. He's not a golfer, I'm actually better than him most days! He doesn't like that idea. I got him some clubs this summer and I have a feeling, we'll be playing alot next summer...I have to keep up though! Anyway...we only got to play 4 holes because it started to rain. Darn! We went to Traci and Nick's for a little bit then Ryan met Travis and I went in to Eldora for the kids.

Here we are...11:12 pm. Everyone's in bed and ready to do it all over again this week. Such blessings we have to be thankful for in our 'boring everydays'... Kids are healthy and safe, snug in bed (ok, maybe only for an hour or so, but still...) we have a nice house to call our own, food in the fridge, great friends, loving families, couldn't ask for much more...life may be boring...but it's wonderful that way!

Have a wonderful week! ~kabl