Halloween 2012

Hannah was so excited to transform her pumpkin for school into a pumpkin pie with some help from Grandma Snow!

 Chris was excited to use his new "pumpkin gutter" this year!

 Hannah liked getting the guts out of the pumpkin and was really the only one who liked getting the seeds out...those were super yummy roasted!

 Finished product

My not-so-scary-trio wishing you a Happy Halloween!

Hannah & Pop Culture

Today, Chris and I were curious as to what Hannah knew about pop culture.  Actually, if she knew who a couple of people were.  Chris first started out easy like....do you know who Santa is?  do you know who Ronald McDonald is?  She passed those.  Then, Chris asked her if she knew who Hannah Montana is?  Without even missing a beat, she instantly said, "Me!"  Just for the record, we don't call her that.  Her response is still making me laugh!  We were really trying to find out if she knew who Justin Bieber was.  She didn't....thankfully! I want her to stay my precious baby girl for as long as possible.  I know that will change one day, but I will take it while I can get it!

Busy School Day

 Friday was a special and busy day at school for Luke and Hannah.  I always enjoy heading over to their little school to see what's going on, see them interact with other kids and just observe. 

Hannah's assignment was to take her outfit/prop from her favorite story.  Then, they got to parade those through the school for other students and teachers.  Let's just say there was a lot of excitement in the air Friday morning in the kindergarten hallway!

Later in the afternoon, we got to go back to the school to see Luke recognized in a good grades assembly.  I was so proud of all his hard work for the first nine weeks.  He has really settled in well to school and is just thriving under his teacher, Mrs. Abernathy, this year.  Way to go, Luke!

Another Milestone...

Milestones don't come as quickly as they used to, but we just had another one met by Andrew.  Yes, he can write his own name now.  He really hasn't worked on it long.  He worked on writing his name while the other two did their homework.  I know I'm a bit partial, but he has the hardest name of the trio since he had six letters to learn to write so I think he's doing a pretty good job.  And while I'm boasting about him....I think he can also do a really job coloring considering he's not even 4 1/2 yet.  By the way, it's not finished because this was a Sunday School paper and I'm sure he didn't have time to finish it.

Glitter...Friend or Foe?

Ah, glitter.... If I had to pick my least favorite craft item, it would definitely be glitter.  I know I'm bad.  My trio is now 4, 5 and 7 years old and I just bought glitter for the first time.  Here's the thing - it does make a nice star, but oh the clean-up, clean-up, clean-up...ugh!  I clean it up, but it's still everywhere no matter how well I clean it up.  I wonder how long it takes for glitter to completely leave a home once it's been used on a project?!

I succumbed to buying some when Hannah brought home a project assignment for school.  This week, she needs to bring a prop or a costume depicting something in her favorite story.  Then, they will parade these throughout the school.  This was a challenge for my lack of creativity.  However, we decided on one of our Christmas story books.  Hannah's favorite Bible story is the one of baby Jesus.  The prop had to be homemade so that ruled out taking her baby doll that I didn't really want her to take to school anyway.  I also wanted simple...keep in mind my lack of artistic ability as well.  So, we settled on a star.  Stars require glitter and we now have lovely gold glitter in our kitchen, carpet and a few other places I've yet to find it :)

What Will I Do....

...when my entertainment goes to school next year?!

Music courtesy of Go Fish 

I Love to Tell the Story/Sweet Song of Salvation

Rainy but Fun!

 This past weekend, we got to go to Applejacks Pumpkin Patch.  We missed going to any pumpkin patch last year so this was quite the treat for us.  The only bummer was the rain, but that didn't hurt our time there too much.  We made good memories and came home with soaked shoes, pants and even underwear (kids only!)  It was also great because the place was not crowded.  We even got a private tractor ride down to the pumpkin patch...can't beat that!

 Excited about the giant slide.  Due to the rain, it wasn't at all fast, but they really enjoyed it!

 Fun times on the zip line

 Waiting for the downpour to stop...still fun, though.  The kids played in a corn box (sandbox with corn) complete with dump trucks.  Not a bad way to wait. 

 It really wasn't raining here, but it had been.  Headed on our ride to the pumpkin patch.

 We take a picture of the kids by this sign each time we visit.  They are getting big!

 The trio really enjoyed the tricycle course especially when it got the big puddle to ride through!

We finished on the pillow trampoline.  This is probably where we got the wettest.  It was so fun, though.  Who do you think was having more fun here?

Wichita Weekend

This past weekend, we were very blessed to be able to spend it in a couple of our old stomping grounds.  Our first stop, was back to Enid, Oklahoma and Vance Air Force Base where Chris did his initial pilot training.  Over the years, we've been blessed to stay in touch with dear friends there that love on our family as if we were their own.  It was really good to see them and spend just a bit of time with them to start out our weekend.

Then, we were off to where we were last stationed - Wichita, Kansas at McConnell Air Force Base.  We didn't actually go to the base, but we did drive by our house there.  The kids were excited to see that.  Then, we headed off to the pumpkin patch.  Where we currently live doesn't have any nearby pumpkin patches so we were delighted to be able to go back to one of our favorite places in the fall.  Unfortunately, it did rain, but we got to do quite a bit.  Plus we made a good memory and probably won't forget the "muddy" trip to the pumpkin patch.  Afterwards, I fit in a bit of shopping before spending a delightful evening with friends that are still stationed there.

Finally, we got to go back to probably my very favorite place in Wichita, West Evangelical Free Church.  It's always a delight to get to go back there and experience genuine and authentic worship and preaching/teaching.  So thankful for our time there under their leadership.  It was really good to see welcoming faces, chat and get just one more hug from those that loved our family so well over the several months that we were there.

Before we headed home, we hit Freddy's Frozen Custard for lunch. 

Thanks, Wichita, for a delightful weekend!

The Old Testament Books by Andrew

Old Testament Books of the Bible by Andrew (age 4)

We have been working on the books of the Bible this year.  I'm reading through the Bible with our ladies' Bible study and she has been using the Walk Thru the Bible resources to help us remember the books and one big idea for that book.  In turn, I've been using it with the kids.  I think Andrew might have it.  Luke and Hannah do too, but they were at school.  Now, on to working on the New Testament...

Off to a Good Start...

I think I've already mentioned on here that the kindergarten curriculum this year is rather intense.  However, Hannah is doing fine with it.  It certainly helps that this girl has wanted to read and write now for probably a couple of years.  It was probably still a bit early, but I brought a Dick and Jane book the other night and this is how she is doing.  Enjoy!

Just as a side note, she decided to fashion her own hair when she got home from school.  To her credit, it's not in her face anymore!  Also, please excuse the leftover lunch on her face....

AWANA Nights

 

The Trio is once again doing AWANA this year.  It's always the eagerly anticipated extra curricular activities (ok, their only one most of the year!).  This is Andrew's last year as a Cubbie (3-4 yr olds) and Luke and Hannah are now both Sparks (K-2).  Andrew is currently learning verses that pertain to the birth of Jesus.  Hannah is learning the standard AWANA verses that are reviewed often and Luke is working on Psalm 23.  Not only are they doing a good job of learning their verses, but it's always a fun time for them to see their friends...the same ones at school and at the squadron....and play some fun games as well.  

In Case You Need a Smile...

 A few Andrew poses!