The Jackson Juniors Journeys

Dinner Diva

2012-01-27T09:02:00.001-05:00

Mackenzie L.O.V.E.S. being in the kitchen. She has her own skillet, small egg pan, and small flat griddle pan, which come in handy when she makes her own breakfast or fixes a midday or even a late night snack. She makes great pancakes and egg sandwiches.:) When she wants something sweet . . . she will bake too – brownies are her specialty.

I am amazed at her eagerness to cook for herself and others. As long as I can remember she has always enjoyed helping Grandma Karen bake. Then over the last year, she has become very independent in making her own breakfast and lunch.

She is the only one of the kids that liked the idea of helping at least once a month to help cook dinner. She has been flipping through the various cookbooks to find recipes to try.

So, she found some noodle Italian dish for a dinner last week. We actually didn’t have to start from scratch with the recipe because we already had homemade sauce to use. :) She is looking forward to her spring cooking class she will be taking at one of our co-ops.

I love being in the kitchen with her! But I marvel at what she can do in the kitchen at her young age! :)

Where do you nap??

2012-01-21T23:59:00.000-05:00

The kids love using Chloe as a pillow and she obviously doesn’t mind.

When no one is around to snuggle with her, she finds a corner to cozy up to.

That really doesn’t look comfortable.

COOOOOOKIES

2012-01-18T21:21:00.001-05:00

Can you believe it is Girl Scout cookie time????

The sale kicked off this past weekend and Mackenzie wasn’t missing it!! She made sure Jay had her out and about on the first day. She loves going out door to door and asking, “How many boxes would you like?”

That was the best advice we ever got when Kassi was a Girl Scout selling cookies! Never ask ‘if they would like to buy any,’ but ask ‘how many boxes they would like to buy.’ We have even had people tell us if she would have asked ‘if’ and not ‘how many’ then they would of just said “no.” Mackenzie is awesome too, she even asks how many they would like to donate to the Gift of Caring program. :)

She will be selling until sometime in March, but she is off to a great start. She set her initial goal at 500 and will go up from there when she surpasses it. She has already made it halfway to her initial goal. :)

Nice job, Mackenzie!! Keep up the awesome selling!!

The Changing theme

2012-01-04T12:57:00.001-05:00

I don’t think we have ever taken down our Christmas decorations so early. I am sure we have waited till at least the second week of January. But this year the changing of the guard came much earlier – December 28th.

I know. That is really early! :( I love how our house looked with all the holiday decorations. Jay always does such a nice job. The kids and I help with the ornaments on the trees, but then Jay does the rest of the house, transforming it from its everyday wares to a holiday wonderland.

I have to say, this year when we removed the ornaments from the trees, there was a new method to the storing of them. Thanks to a friend and her share on her blog, she inspired me to make tree decorating easier.

In the years past, we have had an angel tree, a Disney tree, a Hallmark tree, and a team sport tree. Well, this year we had the Disney tree, an angel tree, and a miscellaneous/catch all tree. This year the Hallmark ornaments weren’t on display. The kids receive ornaments each year from us and their grandparents, and usually we mark the boxes and then put them all together.

Well, thanks to a friend’s share, I got each of them their own container. As we removed the ornaments from the trees, they were placed in each individual’s container along with their stocking & Christmas doggie.

Kassi – Zack – Kenzie . . .

they each have a nice collection of ornaments. So, when they move out, they will get to take with them their ornaments. But until then, the can decide which ornaments they would like to display on the “Family Tree” each year.

All the boxes and containers are marked and stored nicely away for next Christmas.

In the meantime, we – I mean Jay - transformed the house to a winter wonderland.

Jay did another nice job! But we need way more snowman stuff.

A Talented Eye

2012-01-01T21:39:00.001-05:00

As many of you know, Kassi enjoys taking photos, and she is really good at it. She has been wanting a new camera because her old point and shoot just needed some repairs. It still takes nice photos, but it has more than gotten its use.

So, her big gift was something we thought she would really enjoy and definitely get a lot of use out of. She got a new camera. It was another awesome deal at Target – it was on sale AND we got a $75 gift card kicked back to use on other gifts. Forget ‘Black Friday’ deals, we got awesome deals on other days!

Kassi hasn’t wasted any time . . .

See what I mean about being good at it!?

The Way to Gift

2012-01-01T19:51:00.001-05:00

The kids made their wish lists in November. I remember a time they would go through the Toys R Us Big Book. They were encouraged to circle two things per two page spread and each item had to be less than $50. These would give us and family some gift ideas.

As I have mentioned (previous post), now that they are older the ‘toys’ that interest them are way pricier. So in years past, when they wanted a big ticket item they just asked family for gift cards or cash.

The girls made their lists – with the cost in mind, not putting anything on it that was way out of budget. Mackenzie had put a sewing machine on her list, but shortly before Christmas she scratched it off. I felt bad because it was the ONE gift I made sure to have for her. I later found out she scratched it off because she felt it was too expensive.

Jay & I shopped wisely – stretching our dollar as far as we could. Between Kroger’s holiday bonus bucks and Target kicking back gift cards with purchases of some items we were able to get hundreds of dollars of things without using our actual money. We even watched certain items, i.e. the sewing machine, on-line till we thought it hit its lowest price at 55% off.

I am SOOO glad, we were able to get the sewing machine. I think she is happy about it too!! She started sewing on Christmas day. She even made a couple last minute gifts.

A couple days later, while I took a much needed nap, Mackenzie made a pillow case. She has a craft drawer full of scrap pieces of fabric. I think she is set for a while.

Christmas Morning

2011-12-28T08:28:00.001-05:00

Having had a late night between church and wrapping duty, we had instructed the kids not to wake us before 6:00 a.m. – especially since Dad had a church service to lead. Jay & I didn’t get to bed until a little after 2:00 a.m., but believe it or not the kids didn’t get up till 7:00 a.m.

Now that they’re older some of the excitement has worn off. Which is some what sad, but then again we do enjoy our sleep. They know Santa is coming, but they also know now that they’re older, Santa doesn’t leave as much. When they were little it was amazing how much Santa could bring them, but now their requests are a little pricier.

Each year the kids pick out their Santa paper – so when he arrives he can wrap all their gifts in their individually selected paper. We’ve accumulated quite the paper stash over the years, but we try to recycle it by wrapping their gifts from Mom & Dad and their siblings.

Once we all made it downstairs, their presents were distributed. This year Mackenzie picked out some really cute owl paper and her other gifts were wrapped in last years Frosty paper. Zack picked out a really cool black and white snowflake print for Santa’s gifts and we recycled Star Wars for his other gifts. Well, Kassi she picked out yet another Tinker Bell print on a turquoise paper and we used the red Tinker Bell from last year.

Kassi’s

Kassi saw this pillow pet and WANTED it! So Mackenzie and Zack wanted to get it for her. After much searching I was able to locate it, and she was very excited when she opened it.

As I mentioned earlier, now that the kids are older their requests are pricier. Luckily Santa was able to get Kassi this really cool camera. Kassi loves taking pictures and she she would like to explore the field of digital photography. Her point and shoot camera takes some neat pictures, but it is old and a DSLR would be much better. However, those DSLR’s are extremely pricey. So, Santa found a really cool hybrid.

I hope her Christmas was a pleasant surprise with her new boots, pillow pet, sing-a-ma-jig, and her new camera.

Zack’s

What do you get a kid that really only likes to game and whose birthday is in December? Zack is at that age where he isn’t afraid to ask for money for his birthday so he can save up to get what he wants. That’s exactly what he did. He’s been sitting on a stash of money/gift cards for a while anxiously wanting to buy what he had saved up for. Luckily we have a rule – no buying anything from October till after Christmas. That way we don’t have to say ‘No, what if Santa brings it?’ or ‘What if someone else gets that for you for Christmas?’ It’s worked out great and no one ever tries to convince us otherwise.

I know. I know. It’s a toy gun. I’ll be honest, I am not a fan of toy guns. It’s too bad that over the years guns and gun play just aren’t the same as when we were little. We have never encouraged nor bought any form of a toy gun. However, the girls – with Dad’s selection – gave Zack two Nerf guns, and by the way, he and Mackenzie have been having a great time shooting each other. UGH!

If Santa would have wrapped Zack’s gift as is, there is no doubt he would have guessed what it was before even ripping the paper. So, Santa decided to play a game or trick on the boy.

This box was inside that big box.

Oh wait . . . there’s another box inside that one.

Oh yes, another box.

Oh, there it is. The thingy he’s been saving for and Santa beat him to it. He was so sure he wouldn’t get it for Christmas and so wanted to bend our rule.

Mackenzie’s

She was so excited about her monkey pillow pet. YAY! Way to go Kassi and Zack.

Mackenzie is the artsy kiddo. She loves crafts. But what do you get that kid that has a closet and bins full of felt, buttons, foam, pipe cleaners, glue, and glue sticks? Well, Santa brought the perfect thing . . . a big fancy sewing machine.

I am pretty sure Santa did good! The kids have been very busy with their new ‘toys’. Kassi has been busy taking pictures. Zack has figured out how to use Facebook on his Nintendo 3DS. Mackenzie has been busy sewing.

Christmas Eve services

2011-12-28T07:31:00.001-05:00

This was our first Christmas with our new family at Saint Paul Lutheran Church. Jay was beyond excited – he LOVES this season, for more than one reason!

We were excited too as our family joined us for the evening. Jay’s parents and his brother’s family joined us for dinner before service and then attended church with us. It’s been a long time since we’ve been able to attend Christmas service with family.

We weren’t sure what to expect since Saint Paul has two Christmas Eve services – one at 7:00 p.m. and the other at 11:00 p.m. We attended the first service and the Church was full – 140 joined in the celebration. It was a very nice service and Jay loved the candlelight part. He said we need to see it from his point of view – from the alter.

After church, we talked a while with members and then home for our Christmas Eve tradition – opening gifts from afar. Since we were still recovering from illness, we didn’t all go over for the second service. Mackenzie wanted to go and she did.

We had heard that attendance for the later service is small enough to have the service on the alter and the members sit in the choir loft. So, Kassi and I sneaked over and caught a glimpse.

The church looked really nice at night. I tried to catch it, but this photo just doesn’t do it justice.

Kassi and I tried to be as quiet as could be so no one would notice us taking pictures from the coat room. It was really neat to see them all gathered in the choir loft. Knowing there would be a few from the earlier service, Jay had another sermon prepared. There were 28 at this service – some who had and some who had not been to the earlier service.

We are thinking about starting a new tradition next year. Since there are two services, we are thinking about having an open house between services. We’ll see what next year brings.

Eve tradition

2011-12-27T19:38:00.001-05:00

Several years ago we started a simple tradition on Christmas Eve. My family is out of state and they ship the kids’ their gifts. So on Christmas Eve, after attending church they open their gifts.

This year they opened all their gifts from afar – from the Schmitts and the Mitchells.

They were excited about their new things and the gift cards! Thank you for thinking of them on this holiday.

Passing our Time

2011-12-27T19:31:00.001-05:00

Believe it or not there has been illness in our home – and it WON’T go away!!

It all started the first week of December with just your basic common winter cold. CRUD! But by mid Dec. it morphed into something that just keeps hanging on.

We were suppose to host an open house in our home for our congregation on Dec. 18th, but as the date approached individuals were displaying a variety of symptoms. So, on the 17th I took Kassi & Zack to the urgent care and Jay went to the ER. Their symptoms had ranged from an unbearable sore throat to fever to body aches to head aches to chills – a whole gamut of things. I was starting to get a sore throat and had some other cold symptoms.

All their strep tests came back negative. The pediatric doctor went ahead and put Kassi & Zack on antibiotics in case they had secondary sinus infections. But the doc Jay saw said it was viral and would have to run its course.

A decision was made to cancel, at least to postpone to a later date, our open house. Which was good because by the eve before I was running a fever and by Monday I had a major ear ache – to the doc for me to find out I had an ear infection with a bulging eardrum. I spent the week with the whole list of symptoms.

While Jay & I were laid out recovering & once the kids started feeling better this is what they did . . .

Glad they get along so great!!

And I am glad we were all sick together. Now, hopefully we’ll be good for the rest of winter. A couple of us are still fighting the cold symptoms, but hey that’s all part of this crazy winter cool then warm weather.

I believe we are on the upside of this. I think all the kids have rebounded, but Jay & I are still suffering from the common cold crud.

Holiday Celtic Ball

2011-12-05T09:08:00.001-05:00

It is so hard to believe that Kassi is a junior in high school this year. Where does the time go??? I remember high school and the dances! There was prom, homecoming, and many others.

Yes, she is a junior, but wait she is a homeschool junior. Do homeschool high schoolers get to do the same things kids who go to school get to do?! YES!! Just because she is homeschooled doesn’t mean she misses out on other activities.

Last year was Kassi’s first opportunity to attend a couple different formals. Each of the co-ops we attend had formals last year. They were both very different from one another, but it was an opportunity for the kids to dress up & have an evening of clean fun.

Well, we have heard about this really big formal – the Celtic ball from other homeschoolers, and Kassi wanted to go. So, she talked with a friend and got the registration info & we signed her up for the second annual holiday ball.

The best part . . . we didn’t have to go look for a dress!! While we were traveling in October, we visited a store and they had all their formal gowns clearance. After last year’s experience with finding gowns for the two formals and knowing she would be attending at least one if not three or four within the next year, I decided it best served to not wait to find a gown. So, she saw a couple of different gowns & after trying them on she picked one. The best part was the cost. The gown originally cost $130.00 and it was marked down to . . . $15.00. Yes, you saw that correctly 1-5, fifteen dollars. YAY!! even better.

Here she is all dressed up.

Go figure . . . would she go anywhere without her Chucks? In her defense they did recommend wearing comfy shoes.

When Kassi received her registration confirmation she was #144. Wow! there were at least 144 attending the ball. She went in the afternoon for three hours of dance lessons, and when she came home she said there was over 180 registered for the dance.

She spent the evening dancing line dances, box dances, and other dances with friends – old and new. She had a great time and is already looking forward to the Celtic ball in the spring, which she was told there are 50-100 more that attend the spring ball.

I am so thankful for the families that put together these wonderful activities and events for our homeschoolers!

Our First Church Christmas concert . . .

2011-12-05T07:31:00.001-05:00

It is only the first weekend of December and the busyness has begun. The weekend started off with a holiday formal for Kassi (that post is to come) and ended with a holiday concert.

Last night was our church’s 10th annual Christmas concert. Being our first holiday here, we didn’t know what to expect – only what we had been told. At church yesterday morning – which Kassi & I were unable to attend because of our weekend delivery, our second load of papers weren’t dropped until almost 9:00 p.m. on Fri. night which set us WAY behind for the weekend delivery. Anyway, they announced to arrive early to get a seat.

They weren’t kidding!!! People started arriving around 6:00 p.m. & the concert didn’t start until 7:00 p.m. By 6:40 p.m. there were NO seats. UGH!! We were still expecting the arrival of some friends, and we couldn’t save seats for them any longer. :(

The concert featured our church’s choirs – adult, teen, & children’s; several performers, and Logan Elm Advanced Choir.

Our church choirs started the evening with their performance. It was a pleasure to see three siblings – not our kiddos – share their musical talent as they played their instruments together. There was a family that performed and I believe I heard this is their tenth year.

Of course, I had to have Mackenzie play. So she performed a piece with her violin teacher, who also happens to be the retired pastor from our church . . .

I know, we can’t see her face. I was doing good to get her up there. She loves to play the violin, BUT she doesn’t like to perform in front of people. All we can do is to continue to encourage her – oh yeah, and make arrangements for her to play. :)

She wasn’t the only one from our family to get up, apprehensively, and share with the audience . . .

Kassi and her friend, Emily, both take lessons from the same vocal teacher and attend co-op together. They do a wonderful job together. It’s funny because Kassi too doesn’t like to sing in front of people, but put her in a play and it isn’t a big deal. So I asked her one day why she gets nervous when she sings and not when she’s acting. Her response, “When I’m in a play I am not me. I am the character I am playing to be. But when I am singing – it is ALL me.”

Regardless of the girls’ nerves, they did a wonderful job in front of a packed house. :) The whole concert was lovely. It was very nice for all the performers from near & far to share their gifts with our community, and it was awesome to see the church that full of people!! Now that we know what to expect, I can’t wait until next year’s concert.

A Day of Thanks & decorating

2011-11-27T19:04:00.001-05:00

This Thanksgiving marked a new beginning for us. It’s amazing how a new surrounding and the feel of home makes one ready for the holidays.

I really haven’t gotten into the decorating mood the last several Christmas seasons for various reasons – last year we were living in two different states, ‘09 we were far away from home in a new place, and in ‘04-‘08 we were cohabitating with family. There is just something about being in a place you can call home. Don’t get me wrong, living with family is homey, but when you live in someone else’s home you just can’t decorate extensively.

We – let me rephrase that, Jay – loves to decorate for the holidays, and I love how the house looks decorated! Over the years we’ve accumulated many holiday decorations. To be honest, I did not realize how much Christmas stuff we had until we broke out the boxes and totes and boxes and totes (nope-not a typo) of stuff.

The house has been transformed. There are eight trees in five rooms, village pieces displayed, and tons of holiday decorations throughout.

The living/family room where we spend most of our time has the most decor. Our main tree this year is decked out in all Disney ornaments. The kids have been given so many ornaments over the years, which is great for when they move out on their own they’ll each have their own ornaments, but those ornaments take up a tree themselves. In years past, we have had the Disney tree and the Hallmark tree – the kids’ ornaments, but this year we went with only one main tree.

Several years ago, my mom and dad started gifting us village pieces. So between those and the few we’ve acquired over the years, we have a nice collection to display. This year some are located in the living/family room and the others are in the dining room atop the piano.

I collect angels, and one year I had a little tree with a few angel ornaments. Well, now I have a 6 ft. tree full of angel ornaments. Some of the ornaments have been gifts while others I have collected over the years – some really neat thrift store finds, too.

This little tree the kids & I acquired last year. I felt it was very symbolic of our upside down holiday as we were in two different states. It now has a permanent place in our holiday decor.

Years ago, this little tree was originally my angel tree, but now it has a home of its own with a catch all theme.

These two trees are in the girls’ room. I’ll be honest, we found that purple one on someone’s trash pile one year – perfect for any little girl!

Zack was excited when this little tree went unclaimed. He claimed it as his and it will adorn sports ornaments shortly.

As you can see, we spent a good part of our Thanksgiving day decorating our home. Thanksgiving was calm – we didn’t have to rush around to prepare a meal or be some where for a meal. We took our time and worked together decorating. Then in the late afternoon we started dinner preparations. By the time Odie & his dad arrived for dinner the house was decorated & dinner was in the final stages.

It was one of the best Thanksgivings. We were together as a family in a place that we are all excited to call home!

Jammie Day

2011-11-27T15:08:00.001-05:00

This will be our second week off from one of our homeschool co-op’s. It’s hard to believe that the 10-week session is over. The last day of each session there is a pizza party. A few sessions ago, a few of the older girls thought it would be fun to have a “Pajama Day.” It was kind of a spur of the moment deal so they made a few phone calls, sent some texts, and FB so others could join the fun.

This session it made the official calendar – which made the older girls very excited because it was now an official end of the session event along with the pizza party.

I heard Meredith was so excited because she didn’t have to do anything but roll out of bed & go to class. lol

Mackenzie, Jenna, Kassi & Alyssa.

These girls were a few of the many sporting their jammies. There were even mom & dads alike chillin’ in their jams!! AWESOME fun!

A Handmade gift

2011-11-08T14:42:00.001-05:00

A gift from the heart. As many of you know, Mackenzie is the crafty kid and she loves making things for others. She has a creative giving heart, and I love that about her!!

She wanted to give her aunt a special wedding gift – something she could make. We visited the library and checked out many crafty books. She knew when she came across this idea – an apron made out of ties – she had found the perfect gift! Her aunt loves collecting old aprons so what would be better than an uniquely made apron from her niece.

The night was still young, but Mackenzie asked when they would be opening the gifts. I explained to her that the gift opening would not happen that evening. So she asked if she could ask Aunt Tiffany to open her gift while she was around. Sure enough, my sis was delighted to open Mackenzie’s gift.

Mackenzie was excited to see her aunt wearing the homemade apron.

My Sister’s Wedding

2011-11-08T12:36:00.001-05:00

A few weeks ago, we traveled to witness a most wondrous occasion. As far back as I can remember, my sister always talked about getting married. You know there are those little girls that daydream and plan for their once in a lifetime big day – and I can honestly say that was her.

My sister made a beautiful bride!! She was absolutely glowing!

My sister is the baby of the family. So I’m sure there were many emotions for my mom & dad as they officially gave their youngin’ away.

My sister has a little flair about herself and I would not expect anything other from her. It was not your traditional ceremony, - it was simply, meaningful, unique, elegant, and heartfelt. It had my sister’s stamp all over it!

I have to say I am filled with joy as I have acquired a new brother. Chad is such a laid back guy and I truly enjoy his company. He reminds me a lot of my hubby. It’s funny how they say girls marry someone like their father, because my sis’s hubby and my hubby share a lot of similarities, which would lead me to believe they must be a lot like our dad.

Congratulations!!

Mr. & Mrs. Chad Nation

Est. October 15, 2011

Trick or Treat Fun

2011-11-08T07:49:00.001-05:00

How old is too old? - That is, to trick or treat. Well, who says there has to be an age limit to have some good old fashion fun. The kids love dressing up and what opportune time to be rewarded for their creativity with candy.

It is getting harder each year to come up with a fun and appropriate costume. We encourage the kids to stay away from the traditional ghouls, goblins, monsters, vampires, and devils while encouraging them to be creative and have fun with their costumes, keeping in mind their costumes have to be appropriate for church parties too.

The kids have trick or treated for as long as I can remember – there was only one year, 2009 in North Dakota, that they didn’t go out. Kassi went for her first Halloween and we’ve gone ever since. In the beginning I made their costumes, and as they got older we ventured through the thrift stores to find that perfect one.

This year Kassi and her friends decided to dress up like nerds. We took to the thrift stores and they found the perfect suspenders, ties, dress shirts, and belts to pair with their jeans. They taped up their glasses and we found them matching lunch boxes. We even picked up pocket protectors at the office supply store.

Zack took a mix of things given to him from his uncle and paired them with thrift store finds and a homemade knife to put his LAST minute costume together. What is it with boys thinking they are too old to dress up & trick or treat. Come on!!

Mackenzie wanted to go dressed up as a mad scientist, but she couldn’t agree on a wig with the parentals. She wanted a fun green or pink wig which had nothing to do with a mad scientist. So, no crazy wild mad scientist hair, just some rubber gloves, test tubes, goggles, and a lab coat.

Last year we joined some friends for a night of fun – well, we got to hang with them again this year. It was a great night!! Kassi was joined by Jenna & Alyssa, who had never been trick or treating before. So, the girls went one way with Jay, I walked around with the younger kiddos while chatting with friends, and the boys went another way with the order to meet back at the house at 8:00 p.m. The boys were back when instructed – very nice!! Jay & the girls went to the house & then back out for a second round before it was time to wrap it up.

As far as trick or treating, in years past the kids were content with just visiting a handful of houses and then making an appearance at the relatives’ houses. We’d drive from one side of Columbus to the other so they could see family. This was the second year they stayed out for the whole time slotted for trick or treating.

Jay likes to dress up, too!! He donned two costumes this eve – first round he was Juan Val Dez and he even passed out coffee beans to those he encountered. After a break he changed into ‘Zero’, you know Zoro’s brother.

If you notice in the pick above, Jay is wearing an adorable little red hat. Well, it belonged to this little cowgirl.

Really. Why not just keep your porch light off and door shut. There were several houses in this neighborhood with similar signs. Maybe they were out trick or treating with their family.

When we lived in Colorado (‘02), instead of finding homes with this message, we found front porches with bowls of candy and notes requesting you to only take one or two. Such a trusting community.

Once we got home, the kids got ready for bed and then they started sorting and trading. I think their evening was very successful! (You don’t see Kassi because she was watching ‘The Sing-off.’)

The kids weighed their candy:

Kassi had 4.2 #’s

Alyssa had 4.8 #’s

Jenna had 5.4 #’s

and

Mackenzie had 6.2 #’s

Zack didn’t bother weighing his because he just wanted to start sorting and eating. Yes, Mackenzie collected the most, but she is the only one that is limited to what she can eat thanks to that wonderful palette expander.

It was a great evening. The costumes, the friends, the conversations, and the food! Thank you Miller family for letting us invite ourselves to partake in an evening of great fun & fellowship.

Talent Show duet . . .

2011-10-19T09:55:00.001-04:00

Kassi has been taking voice lessons off and on for some time now. When we moved back to Ohio, one of the things Kassi really wanted to start again was private voice lessons. In conversation one day with another homeschool mom, we were lead to Mrs. Emerson.

Kassi & a friend from co-op (another student of Mrs. Emerson) sang together at our co-op’s talent show last week. Kassi loves to sign, but gets nervous about being in front of an audience. Ironically, she can do a play without being nervous, but singing is a whole other experience for her. She says she isn’t nervous when she’s in a play because she is someone else – the character she is portraying, but singing she is vulnerable because it is her not someone else she’s portraying.

The girls did a very nice job!! And I think Kassi was a little more comfortable in front of the audience.

The Beginnings of a New Smile

2011-09-02T07:01:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was the start of a new adventure for Mackenzie. Actually, she started this adventure – if you will – back in November, but finally got the green light.

We’ve known or suspected for years that Mackenzie would probably have to have braces. It was recommended way back to go for a consult. Well, we felt she was just too young plus the financial commitment. Of course, over the last couple of years we have continued to hear the recommendation, with the dentist explaining the reasoning -unfortunately, Mackenzie’s mouth is too small for her adult teeth. In addition to that she is missing a tooth, not sure who to blame for that one, Jay & I both have all our teeth.

Anyway, a friend recommended Dr. Carmen as her children love him and his office staff. This friend knows Mackenzie very well and can relate to a child that is squeamish of certain things, so I greatly appreciated her recommendation. I love the fact that Dr. Carmen would evaluate Mackenzie’s status periodically because I feel that gave her a relationship with him, a positive one before the actual work begins. Maybe that was his plan all along. :)

A few weeks ago, at her third evaluation since November, we were told it was time, time to discuss a treatment plan at her next visit. Oh yeah, and the payment plan. UGH!!

So yesterday we (Dad too for the first time) went – she got all new photos and films taken for her diagnostics file, we discussed the cost – there goes our Disney vacay Honey, then Mackenzie got molds of her teeth made, Dr. C reevaluated, recommended a plan, which we’ll call Plan A – because remember she is missing a tooth and hopefully the other plan which entails pulling three of her adult teeth to make her mouth symmetrical doesn’t have to happen, and we scheduled her next three appointments.

While in the office, they placed spacers in her back molars to help ease the pain/discomfort for when one of the appliances is installed in October. Actually, they only placed one because when they started wiggling the first one into place Mackenzie’s baby tooth decided to fall out.

Can I just say the cost to fix one’s mouth is ridiculous. Seriously. Thank goodness we have orthodontic coverage, but not just any orthodontic coverage. Apparently REALLY good orthodontic coverage. We were told ours covers almost three times of what the average coverage covers. Which is great for us, but still the overall cost is outlandish!

The nice thing is our down payment can be spread over a period feasible to us – now that of course means her expander (crab as they call it) & full set of braces being installed won’t happen tomorrow, but by Nov. 1st after three separate appointments, Mackenzie’s braces will be completely installed and pretty much financed with just a monthly payment remaining for almost two years. UGH!!!

Thank goodness we have only one that will need braces! Yeah, Kassi could have had them but as the dentist said it would be more for appearance versus need, which given the option she said she is satisfied with her smile. :) I truly feel for those families where more than one child needs them.

Oh yeah, I guess if Jay or I ever decide we want braces, our orthodontic coverage has adult coverage up to the age of 99. Which we were told is very rare, too.

A fun new look

2011-08-21T07:41:00.001-04:00

Well, Kassi has been itching to color her hair again. While living with Jay’s parents we opted not to color her hair because of the high iron in the well water. There was one stipulation – she had to get her room unpacked, organized, and cleaned. I thought that would be the motivator we needed; however, it took several weeks – well over seven before that room was ever done.

Matter of fact, the hair coloring wasn’t the final motivator. She came home the other day after I had spent several hours with Mackenzie finalizing her share of the room and I told her she had to get the room done. After three hours of piddling around & not seeing much progress, it was a simple threat and I meant business, “You have till tonight to get your room done & anything not unpacked and put away is being donated. Because apparently if you have gone this long without it and you don’t miss it, well then you don’t need it.”

Believe it or not she succeeded and in plenty of time to go get the hair color so she could take care of it immediately. Well, while we were there Mackenzie came across a color she wanted to put in her hair.

Okay – at first I was NO. But the longer Kassi looked for her color, the more I thought about it the more I thought ‘what’s the big deal?’ I mean hey it is her favorite color. Well, we only left with color for Kassi.

After discussing it and weighing the pros and cons – which for us there was not a huge list for comparison, I mean Kassi started coloring her hair at 11 and well Mackenzie is 11. Unlike the color that Kassi uses which is permanent, this funky purple at best would only last 6-8 weeks.

I explained to Mackenzie she could do it, but if she didn’t like it there was nothing we could do and she would just have to let it grow out. To get that vibrant lavender color the kit comes with a bleaching step, but I explained to her there would be NO bleaching. She was cool with that so we went back and bought the color.

Here is a very excited little lady before . . .

during the process . . .

rinsing . . .

the final look. It was a nice subtle almost magenta color, kind of cute on the spunky one. (check out Kassi’s new color)

Unfortunately, since we didn’t bleach her hair the color has lost a lot of its spunk. It looks like some purple highlights in her hair. We have decided once our summer is officially over – no more swimming – we’ll be a little more adventurous but not too drastic!

Zoombezi fun

2011-08-19T21:31:00.001-04:00

It’s hard to believe our summer is almost over. Kassi clocked over 120 volunteer hours (she’ll find out the exact number at the end of the season banquet) at the zoo. Which meant we got to spend some time at Zoombezi.

Since she spends at least one day a week at the zoo, we splurge and get summer passes for the water park. With the price of gas & the distance we drive to the zoo, why make two round trips. So, the game plan was for us to go to the water park the days she was scheduled to work. It didn’t always work out that way. But we did have a fun summer and we visited the bay several times and even hung out with some friends.

Today, though, we took our favorite little guy. . .

Odie.

We were all so excited about spending a few hours with him in a very fun place, but the catch we later found out from his daddy – he doesn’t like to get his head wet.

So, we set-up camp in the baby area figuring one of us big people – Aunt Angie or Uncle J – could hang with him periodically when we all weren’t in the lazy river or wave pool.

It was a great little area and he was willing to go down this crazy whale slide . . . well, when he reached the bottom, his head got wet. At first he wasn’t very happy about it, but . . .

Zack to the rescue.

So, we headed over to the bay and Uncle J took him down a bigger slide – making sure his head stayed above the water. It wasn’t he didn’t like his head to get wet – he didn’t like any part of his body above his waist to get wet.

It reminded me so much of our youngest, who to this day has never had swimming lessons because when we tried to at the Y when she was little – she was NOT having it. She wouldn’t even get into the water. Of course, you’d never know that today because she loves to swim and play in the water.

Odie didn’t even want to walk in the water that was at his ankles. So, Uncle J climbed into a raft with him (life jacket included) on his lap & we all took a stroll around the river to the wave pool. The little guy was fine sitting on someone’s lap/leg in the shallow water, but he didn’t want to venture around nor splash anyone.

When the waves came, Uncle J held him tight & up high. He wasn’t sure about the tiniest little splash on his face. So, we kept showing him how to wipe his eyes & face and eventually he was giggling at Zack & Mackenzie playing in the waves.

After a while he started to have a some fun and even started walking around in the water - we even got him to splash Uncle J.

Of course, by the time he started to warm up to the idea of being in the water, a storm ruined our fun. The ironic thing – as we walked out to the car in the down pouring rain that was pelting all of us and running down his head & face, he never complained once. Next summer he’ll be a year older so maybe that big intimidating place won’t be so scary and we can take him and he’ll have a really good time! ;-)

Date Night - ‘fail’

2011-07-30T20:16:00.001-04:00

Well, last night was the first night in years we were without any kiddos. We had planned to take advantage of it and have a well deserved ‘date night.’ The kids were all excited about their camping trip with the youth group and Jay & I were excited about dinner and a movie (Potter, finally!!)

We got the kids off and we headed into Pickerington. In the distance we could see some rain, a potential summer storm. We even caught a glimpse of a full rainbow. While we sat enjoying our dinner, the torrential down pours came with the severe lightning followed by instantaneous thunder. The sky was dark and it was scary.

I was trying to locate the storm to were the kids were camping. Of course, Jay tried to explain to me that the storm we were in was no where near the kids, who were approximately 45 miles southwest of where we were. But my only thought was – we were 20 – 25 minutes from our home and the kids were still another 30-35 minutes southwest of that. What if we were in the movie and someone wanted to come home or they all needed to come home. It would take us a long time to get where we needed to be.

Jay obviously could tell I was uneasy about going to the movie so, he used the excuse that we needed to go home and be with our other child, who is more afraid of the storms than the human children. So, we drove back home and the lightning was so intense I was getting more nervous and anxious about the kids being outdoors in tents. But as we got closer to our house, still in the thick of the storm, Jay pointed off to the west of us where the kids were camping and sure enough the sun was shining. He assured me they were safe. When we arrived home we were greeted by Chloe who was panting and pacing because of the storm.

Kassi & I were keeping tabs on each other. Finally a little before midnight, I received a text that they were having fun, but they were finally going to bed. Today they were suppose to go boating & skiing, and then tonight they are having a camp fire – Jay is there, doing his pastor thing.

I am so glad they are having a great time and really getting to know the youth of the church! I guess we will all catch Potter later – the kids will be happy we didn’t get to see it before them.

Meshing very well . . .

2011-07-26T07:54:00.000-04:00

What a wonderful transition. We are loving our new home - and what a great church family. It has been awesome!!

Our second week here the kids & Jay went to King’s Island with the youth. It was a great way for the kids to meet some of the teens, and it was an awesome way for the teens to get to know the new pastor.

The youth here have been wonderful! They have been very accepting of our kids, and at times it seems like they’ve all known each other forever. It has been a true blessing!! The kids (and Mom, too) are excited about having so many youth – especially sooooo many their ages!

This past week was another great week, in our transition, for the kids to get to know their peers at the church. It was VBS week – PANDAMANIA!!!

Isn’t that back drop GREAT!?! All the decorating took place the Sunday before VBS week – for us, that concept was crazy, especially for me the organizing, planning, need to have an abundance of time to allow for mishaps to be figured out. But oh my gosh, the decorations, the people – the whole thing fell together in about six hours. Yes, in 6 hours, that back drop was painted by one very talented individual and the church was transformed and ready for a week of PANDAMANIACS!!!

It was also another week for the younger members to get to know their new pastor. Jay is absolutely wonderful with people of ALL ages. There is just something about him – he can relate to the young and the old, oh and everyone in between.

Another awesome thing . . . they had a class for 6th-12th. There were thirteen of them through out the whole week. I don’t think there was a night that they were all there, but they came when they could and participated.

It is so hard to put into words how well this new call fits. Not just for Jay’s ministry, but for the kids. There seems to be so much going on here for the youth and I am so thankful for that because during Jay’s seminary years we were so disconnected.

Fortunately, his internship site had several youth Kassi’s age so she was tied into some things, but the kids missed out on a lot the last 6+ years. And now it looks like they will be a part of a very active youth group!! Matter of fact, they are going camping – yes, outdoor in tents – this weekend with the youth. How crazy is that? I mean especially since we are not the outdoorzy type of people, but hey they feel so comfortable with the youth and the parents they have met that they are all looking forward to a fun-filled weekend. Even Kassi is looking forward to it, but only because there is a bath house!

I just have to say we have meshed very well so far with our new church family and this feels very right. We have the luxury of the country life and yet we are close enough to the big city to do some of the things we enjoy doing. We are also close enough for me to maintain my mid-week & weekend paper delivering to help supplement the household income as this is only a three-quarter time call for Jay.

I guess I did put it into some words. It is just a great feeling!!

Old dogs learn new tricks

2011-07-13T06:54:00.000-04:00

The other day we ran out to run an errand, and to see how far Chillicothe is and what they have there. Of course while we were out a storm brewed. Not thinking anything of it until upon our return home, but we wondered what or more like where Chloe hid during the storm.

She is like most dogs and gets very anxious during storms. Lots of pacing, panting, and whining. She typically will find the smallest spot – now remember she is a St. Bernard – and curl up there. We have been amazed at how she gets into places.

Well, the other day when we arrived home, of course, we went looking for her first. Thinking she would be somewhere on the main level of the house, we went room to room and couldn’t find her! All the sudden Zack spotted her at the TOP of the stairs!

What?! She went up the steps. She is over six years old. She is a BIG dog. She doesn’t go up and down steps. Matter of fact, the first few nights in the new house, Zack sleep on the couch in the living room with her to help her adjust. Then the next few nights she sat at the bottom of the steps and whined like a puppy because we were all upstairs and she was down.

Now was the hard part. Getting her down the steps. Some of us were very nervous/anxious and feared the worst. If she were to fall down the steps and hurt herself what would we do? With a little coaxing & opening the front door so she could jump out the door, she made it safely down. So, the last couple of nights she has made her way up to sleep with Zack and she is getting better & quicker at coming down the steps.

She is so big and just looks awkward coming down head first. The kids are excited she goes up now because she can sleep with them at night and not be alone downstairs.

Slowly but surely . . .

2011-07-12T12:23:00.001-04:00

It’s getting there. We’ve been in the house for two weeks now and it is looking pretty good. Thanks to my hubby. It’s amazing how time flies. Even though we have moved our normal daily events/jobs haven’t stopped.

The trucks were unloaded on a Saturday – which I was present to help decide where things would go. Once the trucks were unloaded then Kassi & I went and delivered for 5+ hours. That’s why we didn’t stay in the house the first night – because we were tired and didn’t feel like unpacking. Plus, you couldn’t really walk through any of the rooms.

Without a garage or a useable basement, each box went to its designated room leaving very minimal space to move around. It was very overwhelming!! I knew – thought – we had to get it all unpacked by that Tuesday because Wed. thru Sat. we would be consumed with papers.

Needless to say it didn’t get all unpacked by that Tues. nor this past one either. However, while the kids & I worked for hours stacking and bagging, Jay worked at unpacking and decorating the main level of the house. So at least the main areas and the bathroom are unpacked, uncluttered, and decorated.

The living room . . .

There’s that $5 chair.

The kitchen . . .

The downstairs half bath & laundry area . . .

We installed a rod to hang the panels from to divide the laundry area from the bathroom. So visually the laundry area is out of sight when company or guests come over – even though we all know you will look behind the curtain when you use the bathroom.

The dining room . . .

The gateway to the dungeon – I mean the basement . . .

I don’t like going into the basement. It’s C.R.E.E.P.Y.!! What do you expect of a house built in 1856. The steps are narrow and steep. What you can’t see at the bottom of the steps is the basement floor to the right is brick. Must have been laid directly on/in the dirt when built so it is always wet. Can’t store anything in that area. Plus you can’t even stand up straight in that area.

Okay.

I can’t give a creepy enough description to the basement. So, with my husband’s presence I ventured down to the basement to get some photos. You can decide for yourself if it’s creepy or not.

Okay, this door leads to the outside cellar doors, and anytime it rains water comes in to the basement area.

The basement definitely gives the house character. You won’t see me go down there very often.

Well, Jay did a wonderful job displaying our many knick knacks, trinkets, photos, and personal belongings. The main level actually looks like we’ve been here for quite some time.

Now, the upstairs still has some work. Especially the girls’ room. Kassi is slowly going through her boxes and deciding if she really needs it all. Hopefully, everything will have a home shortly because we still have to collect a few remaining things at the in-laws’ house. But most of that is school stuff, scrapbook stuff, craft stuff, and seasonal stuff. We still have some clothes and a few other things to collect also.

I am looking forward to when it is all here and put away.