Finally we can all ride together, YES!

Craig and I have been married for three years now. We had two minivans when we joined our families. When your vehicle only seats seven and your family has 8 people, you end up taking two cars everywhere. This got old very quickly. When our first minivan died, we bought a little car. Still we had to drive two cars. In October, our second minivan died. We borrowed a truck from a friend while we decided what to do. Looking for cars is not fun. So Craig and I decided on what we wanted in a vehicle and what we were willing to spend. After a month of looking and test driving, we found our new vehicle. We bought a 2004 red (as if you can't tell from the pictures) Ford Expedition. The truck seats 8 and has cruise control, those were the two musts. The bonus is that it also has a hitch so we can pull our trailer. The kids are all excited about the truck and I love it. The best part is that we can all ride together, in one vehicle. Finally!!!

December 6, 2008

The first Saturday in December each year, Punta Gorda hosts a Christmas Parade. Usually it is hot, however this year it was pleasant for those that weren't marching. Samantha marched with her band. She did very well and was pleased with her performance. Samantha even traded instruments halfway through (bass drum for the first half, than cymbals.)

Raeleigh and I got to ride on a float. Raeleigh and her fellow girl scouts spent about three meetings making decorations for the float. They did an awesome job. We sang carols and waved the crowd and we rode by. I like this picture of Raeleigh smiling and waving (in the corner of the trailer).

Way to go Stuart!

For the Positive Behavior System (PBS) at Stuart and Raeleigh's school, there is a monthly awards ceremony. The whole school studies a new vocabulary word each week. Each word is to help the students build their character! The award ceremony is to celebrate the children who exemplify the words for the month. This month Stuart received the award for CONFIDENCE. A fitting award for our "little guy".

It is wrestling season!

One evening as I was looking at the pictures on the camera. I came across the above pictures. Not sure who took them or when was my first thought. Second thought was, "Does weightlifting your brother and sister make your legs stronger for wrestling?!" The top picture is Jordan and Patrick, bottom is Raeleigh and Patrick.

As soon as football season is over, Patrick heads over to the wrestling room. He enjoys the sport and comes home exhausted after practice. The two pictures here are the match between Patrick and his rival high school oponet. Patrick is in blue.

Our Clarinet Player and Drummer

Okay, so the drummers are in the back and it is difficult to get their picture. So I had the drummers pose after the Jazz band concert. Of course I didn't make it back stage before all the drums were put away, so no drums are in the picture. Here are Samantha and her fellow drummers.

Jordan's first middle school band concert. He is so handsome. Jordan played very well and was pleased with his performance. His parents were also.

Samantha and Mackenzie

Samantha and her friend Mackenzie did the the science fair together. They put in a lot of thought and hours. I can't explain what all they did. However I do know that several people came in exhaled into a bottle of distilled water, ran two laps then exhaled into another bottle of distilled water. Test strips of some sort were put into each bottle of water and then were compared to see if there was difference. Then of course there was the display board which took more thought and time! Both of the girls dressed for the day of judging and were a little nervous to share their project. I thought they did wonderful.

When I picked Samantha up from school after the judging, she told me she didn't make it. I tried to console her, saying all those motherly things. Later on, she told me that I needed to be at school the next Monday. She did not want to tell me why. Finally she told me that she was getting an award. It took me a few minutes, but she finally admitted the award was for Science Fair. Samanth and Mackenzie took first place in the group division. So they will take their project to Fort Meyers to be judged in the Regional Compitetion. Way to Go!!! The pictures are of the girls at their school awards ceremony.

Decorating for Christmas

I love this willow tree nativity. Craig has been giving me pieces for while. I get excited to add a new piece each year. The picture to the left is a close up of the Holy Family. Below is the whole nativity scene.

Patrick set up the willow tree nativity. He was also the designated photographer for the evening.

Samantha made hot chocolate for everyone. Yummy, thanks!!

Morgan set up the Bethlehem Village. She pays attention to detail so it had to be perfect.

Below Stuart is putting the orgami star on top of the tree. Jordan mad the star.

Jordan put garland and lights on the banister. This is where we put some of Craig's 12 days of Christmas decorations.


Raeleigh is holding up the wall hanging Santa. We had this up for a few days and then noticed it had become subject to the humidity (mold). So our wall hanging had to go to the trash:(

I love to have the Christmas decorations out. I like to do this the day after Thanksgiving, but this doesn't always happen. This year it was three days after Thanksgiving, on Sunday that we decorated. Craig had a long bishopric meeting, so it was just the kids and I that decorated. I gave each of the kids a project to work on.

Thanksgiving

I love Thanksgiving. I like to think about all the blessings I have. So things I am thankful for (in no particular order) : the ability to read, hugs from the students at the elementary school, friends, the scriptures, an amazing husband, Morgan's desire to help others smile, Patrick's sense of humor, Samantha's love for adventure, Jordan's ability to draw, Stuart's inventiveness, Raeleigh's wanting me around, a house to live in, my testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ, my family of orgin, both my in-law families, memories of Searls, photographs, need for volunteers, serving in the church, and many more.

Thanksgiving day Craig's family came over. Craig did most of the cooking. The kids all helped with the dishes and watched the parade. Patrick played ball at the church. It was a nice day.

I must also admit that this was a difficult day for me. My Mom started of tradition of "Pie Day" years and years ago. This happens the day before Thanksgiving, all the daughters and kids go to Mom's and bake pies all day. There are usually 20+ pies made. Of course the kids all make their own mini pies. Living out of state means I haven't been to Pie Day in 10 years. I missed my sisters and mom all day on Wednesday - and wondered throughout the day what kinds of pies they were making. By Thanksgiving I was an emotional wreck. I was so homesick for my family. I took two naps that day and lots of deep breaths. I think/hope I put on a happy face while my in-laws were here. Then at bed time Craig held me and let me cry. I am greatful that he will listen to me share memories of my family that is so far away. Thanks Craig for helping me to make it through a hard day.

Stuart's Thanksgiving Feast

For a day and a half, Stuart's school class along with another class, cooked. They made a turkey and all the fixings! For about a week they made decorations and invitations. Stories about Thanksgiving were also written. Of course there were also rehersals for the performance and songs.

Tuesday morning the students decorated the classroom. There were pinecone turkeys, turkey napkin rings, woven placemats and name cards on the table. The walls had the pilgrims and ships the students colored, along with their stories. Also there were turkeys all over the wall. The room looked great.

Guests were seated as they arrived. When we were all there, the student came in in their costumes, singing. They lined up front of the classroom. Each of them read a part of the story about Thanksgiving four hundred years ago and today. It was awesome and all the parents/grandparents were thrilled. After the program, we all ate. The students were excited to try the food they had made. It was an awesome day.



This is Grandpap, Stuart and his cousin Austin.



Good job Stuart and classmates.

The students waiting in their costumes to go in and perform. They are so CUTE!

Our principal carved the turkey for everyone. I love that Mr Gifford gets involved in the classrooms. He knows each of the students names and who their parents are. Mr Gifford is a terrific principal.

How do you spell COW?

"C Zero W" is how my nephew spells cow. That is one of the cutest things I've heard in a long time. Austin is four years old. He is a happy boy who makes me laugh. I love to see him.

Last night Austin spent the night. He loves the boys trains. So after everyone was asleep, Austin got out of bed and played with the trains. Until I came to check on him. The he helped me change the laundry and then came to my bedroom to sleep.

This morning when Austin woke up,he said "Christina, it's play time". After going potty he came right downstairs to play with the trains. He is fun to have around!

This was taken on Thanksgiving Day. Stuart and Austin with one of Austin's favorite things, trains. Austin was in the corner of the room - so hard to get a picture of him when you can't get into the room because it is filled with train tracks.

Veterans Day

I know that I am week late for Veterans Day. However it has been on my mind. On Vetereans Day I went to Samantha's school. Each year the eighth grade social studies department puts on a program. It is wonderful. The band plays, so I got to see/hear Samantha play in the percussion section. Also veterans are invited to speak and students read excerpts of letters from Soldiers that have been in wars. Each war is noted. My favorite part of the program is when the band plays the hymns of the services. I love to hear them and being able to honor those who serve our country.

My Dad served in Veitnam. Both of my grandpas served in WWII. My brother-in-law Richard served in Iraq, and Andrew (another brother-in-law) served in Afghanistan. We have other family members who have also served in the services. Thanks to all of you who serve our country. I appreciate your service and efforts to keep our freedoms.

Congratulations!! Samantha

On Thursady, Nov 6, 2008, Samantha was awarded "Do the Right Thing". The Punta Gorda police department runs the program. Anyone can nominate a student, for doing the right thing. Each month five students recieve the award. So November is Samantha's month.

At the beginning of the school year, Samantha found some lost keys. She found out who the keys belonged to and returned them. The owner of the keys nominated Samantha for the "Do the Right Thing" award. The owner of the keys said that he was greatful to have the keys back, and glad to have the peace of mind that the keys were not in a strangers hands. Good Job Samantha. The coolest part of the story is that Samantha doesn't remember doing this. Like her Grandma Crane said, this means that Samantha does the right things for the right reason.

There is also a funny part to the story. Craig and I had been notified of the award and had decided to let Samantha be suprized. So we had invited the Smith's and told Patrick and Morgan. We thought every thing was under our hat. On the morning of the award Ceremony, Samantha was called into the principals office to be congratulated. She didn't know what Mr Revelas was talking about, so he had his secretary call the police department, to be sure they had the right kid. In that phone call, they realized that they had blown the suprized. So the principal called me to apolgize for ruining the suprize! Oh well.

Of course I took lots of pictures. The top picture is when Samantha recieved the award, she is flanked by two detectives. The second picture is Samantha with the Punta Gorda Police Chief. And the third picture is Samantha with her parents. The roses in the pictures came from Grandma and Grandpap Smith. I'm glad they and Aunt Joy were able to come and celebrate with us.

Congratulations Samantha, we love you!!

Happy Birthday Stuart!

Stuart had a great birthday. Grandma and Grandpap Smith and Aunt Joy and Austin came over to celebrate with us. As you can see Austin blew out the candles with Stuart!



Stuart loves to build stuff. When I asked him what he wanted for his birthday, he said "Wood, some 2x4's." So that is what he got. One of the pictures is of Craig carrying in the 2x4's for Stuart. The Smith's also gave Stuart some wood and an awesome tool set in a Home Depot bag. He was most excited about all the screws and nails to hold stuff together. After opening everything, Stuart said that the first thing he is going to build will be for Austin. I love Stuart and that he enjoys doing for others. He is wonderful.

Stuart also got new bedding. He looks so cozy. Stuart is not so sure about having a sheet and a blanket on his bed. So we pushed the blanket up against the wall. Stuart hasn't liked bedding in the past, so we'll see how this goes!

Halloween Day and Night

Sturat and Raeleigh's elementary school had a variation on Halloween. Each classroom was assigned a country. Then there was time spent during the last month learning about the country assigned to your class. For the parade on Halloween, the students were asked to dress up as something from their country. As soon as Stuart found out the country assigned to his class was China, he had a costume in mind. He wanted to be a chineese dragon. His teacher and I looked all over for a costume. Finally we decided to go with a cardboard dragon head and a piece of material for the body. Stuart loved painting the dragon head. Two of his classmates were the body. They had a great time and looked so awesome in the parade.

Raeleigh's class studied South Africa. They learned about the animals there. So the week of Halloween, each student got to pick an animal they want to be and make a mask. Raeleigh was happy with her choice as a monkey. She loved making her mask. On Halloween day, she wore her brown pants and shirt inside out so that the pictures would not show and ruin her monkey costume!

Halloween night we still had sick kids. Morgan and Jordan stayed home. Samantha babysat for a family and then went to a party.

Patrick took money for parking at the football game and they watched the game. So Craig, Stuart, Raeleigh and I went to dinner with the Smiths. Afterward we went to the mall for trick-or-treating. For trick-or-treating Stuart was spiderman, Raeleigh was a monkey princess (she also wore her vampire teeth). They were both happy to trick-or-treat with their cousin, Austin. It was a fun day/evening!

120% equals a model Airplane

Stuart has been going to Dr. K. for helping with his reading skills. Stuart refers to Dr K as his question doctor. This is because the first time they met Dr K asked Stuart questions for about an hour!Stuart has improved his reading and spelling skills with Dr K's help.

Two weeks ago Stuart passed his spelling test. Not only passed but earned a 120%. He came home so pleased with himself. I praised him a ton. (I shed a few HAPPY tears too.) Stuart called and left a message for Dr. K. to tell him also.

So during Stuart's regular appointment last Monday, Dr K told him he had earned a reward. A reward for hard work! They scheduled time on Saturday for Stuart to go to Dr K's office. While there they read instructions and build a model airplane.

Stuart had been talking to Dr K for weeks about building the airplane. It was like a dream come true for Stuart to be able to finally build. He truly earned this plane.

The pictures are of Stuart glueing the balsa wood onto the paper, cutting
the plane out, reading the next set of directions, putting the plane outside to dry and finally flying the plane. In the last picture you can see the plane right between Stuart and the red car up in the air.

Girl Scouts Halloween Party

Samantha's Girl Scout Troop put on a Halloween Party for Raeleigh's troop. The older girls taught the younger ones saftey rules and then the fun began.

There was face painting as you can see from the picture above. Samantha put a pumpkin on Raeleigh's face. They girls got to decorate cookies (Samantha's troop made the cookies from scratch!) There was also a game station. Of course afterward, we ate cookies and had punch. I love the picture to the left of two of my beautiful girls .

Patrick on Spirit Day

Patrick diffently showed his school spirit in the school colors, BLUE AND GOLD. Funny thing is that when he went to the parade, he ran into a friend that was dressed just like Patrick - even down to the same number of beads!

The Great Raingutter Rigatta

Last night was Stuart's first Raingutter Rigitta. He made the boat by himself, except the first layer of paint. Stuart is very pleased of how the boat looks. Stuart's boat was raced four times. He won, lost, won and lost the last race.

As you can see the cubs had two options for wind power, blowing through a straw or just blowing directly into the sail. During practice races, Stuart tried both styles of power. He decided that he preferred to blow directly into the sail. I think all the boys had tired cheeks after the races were over!

One of my favorite things about Stuart is that he cheers others on. Last night he was very intense in cheering his fellow cubs on. We could hear his voice over anyone else in the small crowd.

Stuart had a great time!