Merry Christmas

Hello again,

It's 6 am Christmas morning, not a creature is stirring except me and my cat! It used to be by this time I had 2 sets of eyes starring at me wanting to march downstairs to open presents. The last thing I said to everyone before I went to bed last night was..."let's sleep in tomorrow". I guess I meant everyone except me. I woke up at 5 am to start our traditional homemade cinnamon rolls. I'm hoping by the time my family wakes up the rolls will be ready to pop in the oven. Yummy :b 

A long time ago (before kids) Ben gave me one of the neatest gifts ever for Christmas, a bread machine. I use it all the time and not just to make bread. I use it for pizza dough, cinnamon rolls, bread sticks and dinner rolls. I have even found a recipe to make pretzels that I want to try. Now I think about Ben more than ever when I use my machine. I would definitely go out and buy a new one if something happened to this one.

You know what I really love about living in Wichita? I'm sure you are all curious about the answer to that question. I love that we have only lived here for 2 years and my brother Dick and his wife Cindy have been here to visit, my sister Linda and her boys Brian and Daniel have been here. My Aunt Gretchen and Uncle Orville have been here 3 times to visit. Now this week my sister and her son Daniel are coming out to visit again, along with my older brother Steve and his wife Nancy. That is exactly why we moved to Wichita instead of our other choice in Salt Lake City. I know Dad and Mom would visit if they could, but that's okay, because for Christmas they received an iPad and can communicate with us like they were here visiting. I know they are going to have so much fun with their new toy. I really want to thank my brothers for thinking of such a neat gift for them. I think I will benefit more than anyone in our family.

Today will be very quiet for our family. Our plans are to open presents, eat cinnamon rolls for breakfast, watch football then have our traditional Christmas dinner...steak and lobster. Then watch more football! I know some of you are thinking you wish your Christmas could be that quiet. I really miss my relatives and get somewhat homesick during the holidays. If I could I would travel every year to be with our families. The holidays are the worst time for David to get off of work. That is usually when the Postal Service needs him the most. Oh well, Keegan and Dawson will always remember our simple little family traditions.

You might also guess what I am thinking about, what next Christmas will be like. We will be bringing Keegan home from wherever she will be going to college. I know I will be so excited to have her home for the holidays. I know, I know, she will be off hanging out with her old high school friends, but that's okay it will still be nice to have her home.

Not much is new with our family. Both Keegan and Dawson are on their winter break. They were so ready for it. Because of their perfect attendance in school neither one of them had to take their final exams. So their last day was the 19th. I'm sure they will enjoy having a nice long break and well deserved. As soon as the break is over it will be back to chaos again. Dawson will start with indoor Lacrosse and Keegan will start rehearsals with a music program called "Nights of Broadway".

Thankfully David has been able to work over time. Even my hours have been okay this winter. Although I'm sure it will change. January is usually very slow for The Home Depot. I am so happy to also take a little vacation time between Christmas and New Years day. It will be nice to see our company in a couple of days. Hopefully the weather will allow them to travel to Wichita.

That's all for now. I hope you have all experienced and have felt the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ. Last night when we went to church, right in the middle of an old Christmas song I felt  the Holy Spirit rush through my soul. I love that He is always with us wherever we are at in our lives. May God Bless all of you and fill your hearts with His unconditional love.

Until next time, have a very Merry Christmas. {{{hugs}}} and ***kisses*** to you.

Love and miss you,
Marjie

P.S. My cinnamon rolls are ready to pop in the oven. So everyone can wake up anytime!!
P.P.S. The kids just got up it's time to go. (8:10 am)

It's now 10:15 am, I decided to finish off my blog by writing a little bit more after we opened presents and ate our breakfast. We have had a wonderful Christmas so far. We all received gifts we've been hoping for, plus a few more things. The cinnamon rolls were superb. Now we are down in the basement hanging out watching Keegan play her new Zelda game.

Hope you can read this blog Mom and Dad on your new iPad.

Again have a Merry Christmas.

Happy Thanksgiving

Good Morning,

I couldn't sleep this morning. I had "Twas The Night Before Christmas " song in my brain over and over and over! It was The Home Depot's version!! What? Yep, for the last 2 days starting on Black Friday, @THD they have been playing Christmas music. Blah.....Now don't get me wrong, I love Christmas music, but not so soon and not the same songs all day long. The really funny part is that the part of this song that is stuck in my mind is " While visions of sugar plums danced in their wee little heads... and ma in her kerchief and I in my cap... had just settled down for a long winters nap." How ironic huh? I've tried so hard to sing something different, but it keeps returning :(

Moving on to more important things. We had a very nice Thanksgiving weekend. Uncle Orville and Aunt Gretchen joined us for the holiday. This is the 2nd year in a row. I told them it is now a tradition and they need to continue this every year. They are snow birds leaving Wisconsin headed for Arizona, but their rest stop is in Wichita, Kansas. I'm so glad they have a nice RV park here and it is very close to our home. We had fun playing domino's and ate lots of food. They arrived here on Wednesday evening and I think they are hoping to head out today (Sunday) for Arizona. Yesterday it was so windy, that they were afraid if they left the wind would damage their motor home. Today isn't supposed to be as bad.

Not much has happened since the last time I blogged. Keegan's musical performance was last week. As usual it was outstanding. All of the kids are so talented. I was able to go behind the scenes each day and help some of the girls with their hairdos. They all had to have their hair swept up into a Gibson bun. The last day Keegan came down with something. She was so sick, but had to go on. I felt terrible for her. I think she said she had 6 or 7 costume changes. The musical was called "Ragtime". It was not your typical cheerful musical. It was during a time period when black people and immigrants were treated so poorly in our country. It was a sad story. Thank goodness she had this long weekend to get better and recuperate.

David and Dawson drove to Topeka yesterday to watch Dawson's high school (undefeated) football team play for the state championship. They lost in the last 3 minutes. They were winning throughout the game, so they thought they were going to win. Dawson was so crushed. Sometimes it doesn't pay to be undefeated...Yes,  now I'm talking about the Packers. Can they be undefeated AND win the Superbowl? What are the chances? I'm really cheering for them. I know that everyone else is too that is reading this blog, except for you Linda :#  Our family wants to know where WE went wrong...how can a Wisconsinite come out not liking the Packers?? Were you adopted?? (LOL) I'm just joking!!!!! Only Linda knows that I used to tease her when we were little and I was a mean sister and told her often that she was adopted. I know I'm bad :(

Only one more day of work until my day off. I plan to put up our Christmas decorations. I'm excited because I bought a new tree @ THD last year after Christmas. I hope we like it because I dought they will let me return it! Our old tree is as old as Keegan.

I guess I need to start getting ready for work. Every Sunday for the month of November I teach a tile class in the flooring department. I kind of fell into it one Sunday when nobody else in that dept knew anything about installing tile except me. Not good huh? I had never done it before, I had only told people how to do it.  I was so nervous the first time, because you have to demonstrate how to adhere the tile then grout it. I now really enjoy teaching the class. I have many people stop by to watch. Sometimes they even get involved and get their hands dirty with me. Although they never offer to help me clean up, which is of course the hardest part wiping the grout off of the tile and the tools.

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

As you are preparing for the Christmas season remember to turn to God and invite him into your heart so you may experience the true meaning of Christmas.

During this time with the way the economy is hurting, most everyone is ok without materiel things for gifts. I challenge you to be creative this year. Think of what you can give that doesn't cost money or very little. You don't have to make something if you are not crafty, but you can do something like express your feelings toward your loved one in a letter or do a task for that person. I loved the coupon books my kids used to make for me in school. (ex: I will wash your car for you or I will do your dishes for a week). Just a thought. Have fun with it.

Remember God loves you more than you will ever be able to comprehend.

I love and miss you {{{hugs}}}
Marjie

Autumn Is Here

Hi Everyone,

I love the fall in Wichita. I still can't believe how much I missed the seasons when I lived in AZ. After such an unusually hot summer here, I promised myself I would not complain about the cold weather. Not sure how long it will last, but for now I love how cool the mornings and the evenings are.

The kids have still been busy, but it has slowed down some since the last time I blogged.

Dawson did a great job his 1st year on the high school soccer team. As usual his position was their goalie. I loved watching him play. Every time they had an away game, I would drive a van full of players since the school would not furnish a bus (budget cuts). I enjoyed being involved and cheering for the team. Unfortunately Dawson started using his head inappropriately (as my brother Dick put it)! Within 2 weeks he broke his nose and hit his head hard enough to get a concussion. The Dr decided he probably had 2 concussions by the symptoms he experienced. Needless to say he was out for the rest of the season. They were a little more than half way through the season. He was not happy, but he took the news well. He agreed he did not want to jeopardize another head injury. Although he was really disappointed it also meant he was out of PE, Lacrosse, working out at the gym and all other physical activities. He was a little bored with life. Gosh, I think his recovery time was for almost 1 1/2 months. He was able to play Lacrosse 2 times before that season was over. Now all of his sports are done. Hip Hip Hooray!! Now he wants to get on the indoor Lacrosse team in January. BOO!! He loves to go to all of the varsity football games. He's hoping like last year they will be state champs. So far they are undefeated. Otherwise Dawson is doing excellent in school and has a ton of friends. I think high school is going pretty well for him.

Keegan is still busy, busy, busy. She finished many of the projects that I had mentioned the last time, but still has new things on her plate. The play that she was in "You Can't Take It With You", was so hilarious. Keegan's character was the funniest. She was a ballet dancer that thought she was good, but was a terrible dancer. Through the entire performance she was dancing around the stage in her tu-tu. Making everyone laugh. Now she is in a musical called "Ragtime". I think they had 1 day to rest between the two shows. Knock on wood...so far her classes have been fairly easy and the teachers are not giving as much homework compared to last year. Maybe because they know how much work they have to do applying for college? Speaking of college...you don't want to mention the word around Keegan. She is so tired of constantly being reminded of everything she needs to do to apply for college. From her counsellor, teachers, and here at home, we are all asking her if she has this or that done before certain deadlines. I want to leave her alone, but it's only natural to want to make sure she is on top of some very important due dates. Everything is all scholarship related. Otherwise it wouldn't be so crucial.

Okay I am about to brag big time. I'm sorry if it is overboard.

Most of you know this already, but we are very excited about Keegan's achievement of becoming a semi-finalist for the National Merit Scholarship Award. The last time I wrote we knew she was a candidate, but since then she has advanced on. They started with 1.5 million students. Now she is in a group of 16,000 students. We are praying this Spring she will be selected amoungst 8400 winners. This award could have a huge impact on her future college opportunity.

Just a quick second to tell you about David and I, we are doing well, still happy to have employment and starting to already feel like empty nesters at times! The kids are off doing their own thing. Many times we find we are alone comenting on how this will feel one day just the two of us again. David talks about retiring, I think about getting 2 jobs to keep me busy!! Maybe I will adopt a baby...
I AM JOKING!!  (LOL)

Please keep in touch. Hope you are all doing well. It's hard to believe the holiday's are just around the corner.

As always, know that God loves you and wants the best for you. I will keep you in my prayers.
Love and miss you,

Marjie

College Search

Hi there,

I knew once school started it would be hard to find time to blog. I'm pushing myself to make the time to write today.

In less than 1 year, my daughter (one of my closest friends) will be off on her own to college. I have to start making myself do things for me instead of filling all of my time taking care of the kids none stop. Yes, even Dawson is so busy that it seems like my only time with him is literally being his "Soccer Mom"! I drive him and some of his team mates to the away games and sometimes his friends need a ride home. I must say, Dawson and I have had some pretty neat conversations while we are driving. I actually look forward to our time in the car together! Do you think he feels the same way?! I'm probably fooling myself by saying yes, huh?

I do have some new goals for myself that I'm excited about. Like finally starting to scrapbook my kids, baby/childhood pictures! I have been wanting to work on a project that I have planned for a long time to help military families in need. I will tell you more about my project after I begin. I also have a new "anonymous" blog idea! Are you all curious? ;o Plus now that it is nice outside and hopefully no longer over 100 degrees record breaking summer, I am back outside taking care of my poor flowers. Many died this summer because of the heat. My knock-out roses were the hardiest. They are about 4x larger than last year when I planted them. OK enough about me, now back to the kids.

Where did I leave off on my last blog from the last time I wrote?

This summer was the year to travel to different colleges to help Keegan find one that would be best for her. She is hoping not to attend anywhere in Kansas. They have good Universities here, but she has it in her mind to attend an out of state college. I think she is still rebelling against our move to this state. She knows we can not afford much, but we have also told her if she can find a college that will give her a nice scholarship than she can go wherever she wants. Most of you already know about our summer adventures, so I won't go into a whole lot of detail. We traveled to Colorado, Missouri, Oklahoma, and Minnesota. She did fall in love with a few colleges. The trip was also good for Dawson, he was able to decide on a few he was interested in and a few not to bother checking out again. I had no idea what a big deal the college search would be. I do hope Keegan will be at least within 1 days driving distance from us.

During our travels we were able to visit my family in Wisconsin and Illinois. As usual we spent a restful vacation on my brothers farm. The hospitality, food and weather were perfect. It was so nice visiting with everyone. I wish our stay was longer, but I was thankful for what little time we had together. It had been a long time since David was able to go to Wisconsin with us. I know he enjoyed himself, especially eating the yummy curd!

Besides traveling we didn't do a whole lot this summer. The kids hung out with their friends. Dawson had soccer practice in the mornings, preparing for the high school team. Keegan enjoyed reading and writing. Oh, I almost forgot, they both got their "learners" driving permits the same day. It was a happy day for the 2 of them!

Dawson is now a Freshman and really enjoying high school. So far he likes his classes. He said none of them are very hard, but it is still early in the year. In high school they are required to have an "art/music" class for 1 year. For the heck of it he selected Stagecraft. Where they build sets for the Theatre Dept. (Keegan was so proud of him.) He is actually having fun with it. He is also happy his school has a winning football team. Last year they won the state championship, so he's hoping this year will be the same. I think he loves watching sports as much as playing. Everyday after school he practices with the soccer team. He is their Goalie. I am a nervous wreck watching him. I wish he would play in-field, so he wouldn't have to be responsible when the other team makes a goal! The parents are brutal on the bench when he misses the block. I think I will sit on the other side, at least THEY will be cheering for him!! (LOL) So far they have won 1 game (against Keegan's high school) and lost 1 game. Don't get me wrong, Dawson is good and I love being able to attend his games. On Sunday's he's back to playing Lacrosse, his favorite sport of all. I will have to work most of the time, so David will get the pleasure of driving him across town. That's okay, they don't get much time together. Dawson has recently become our "health nut". He is always reading labels and only eating what is good for him, plus he exercises regularly. I only wish I had a portion of his motivation. He is my inspiration. What a smart kid to already have figured out how to treat his body. Don't think for a second he doesn't eat much. He burns so many calories, he is constantly eating! Now I just have to get him to fix his own meals.

Keegan is already going bonkers with her schedule. I have mixed emotions on what I am about to say. On one hand I will be so glad when this IB Program is over, but at the same time I can't wish time to go faster because then she will be leaving us soon. Already this month she has way too much going on. Last week she had to write a rough draft on an Extended Essay for the IB Program (4000 words). She has to turn in her college folder this week and a National Merit Scholarship folder next week, both requiring a lot of work. Plus she is in a play the last weekend of Sept, so she still has to memorize her script. The first week of Oct her Extended Essay/final draft is due. I know you are probably thinking that she doesn't have time to be adding extracurricular activities. Seriously, without her Theatre she would go crazy. She has so much fun with the cast and tech crew. It really is her outlet/release of all the chaos in her life right now. Senior year is supposed to be fun. I hope Keegan will look back one day and remember it being a great year. I have to make myself back off and leave her alone. I can hardly peak at her calendar, I go crazy looking at her schedule. Although I have a feeling Keegan's life may always be like this, huh? During the next few months she will be applying to several colleges. She will be so busy writing essay's to each place. She won't hear back from any of them until next Spring whether she has been excepted or not. I understand the waiting period can be the toughest part, but honestly I am looking forward to the application process being over with. A lull would be welcome right now :) Luckily her classes are not too difficult yet and she does have her New York City trip to look forward to next year during Spring break with her Theatre group. Which just reminded me, that Dawson informed me that his Spanish class is going to Spain next year!! ("Phew") David should have been a Lawyer, so we can afford everything. You didn't really think I was going to say "I should have married a Lawyer did you?" tee hee :b

David and I are still thankful for our jobs. We both are doing well. At The Depot my hours are up and down. Mostly up, so I'm happy about that. I have finally come to realize unless I were to get laid off, I'm probably a Home Depot life'er! There is not many opportunities around here that pay well enough to start over again with another company. I like the people I work with, they have become good friends.

I still like it here in Wichita after 2 years! I guess it feels like home, but at the same time I don't think any of us feel an attachment here. As hot as it got this summer and breaking all heat records, I don't miss Phoenix. :Q Ask me this winter how I feel!

I have new pictures along the side, so check them out.

I think I have told you everything up to date. We miss all of you. We are busy, but never too busy for guest. We just might make you drive the kids around while David and I relax!!

Huh! This second Keegan just called me and wanted me to pick her and her friends up at 5:30. I told her I had to pick up Dawson between 5:30 and 6:00, so they would have to hang out until I could get to her school around 6:30! (Normal everyday stuff!)

I will continue to pray for you and please keep us in your prayers.

God loves you all so much.

I love you too,

Marjie

Happy 4th of July

Hello everyone,


Oh my goodness, I had no idea it had been so long since I last blogged. You have probably given up on me by now. So much has happened since the new year. I'm afraid it will take too long to catch you up, so I will break it up into several blogs.


Before I go any further. Most of you know my dog Luna died a couple of weeks ago. She was getting old and I think her heart just couldn't take another storm. For almost a week after she died we continued to have storms every night. I will miss her like crazy. She was my little furry blessing from God. Luckily we still have our cat "Nike".


The kids had a great school year, but both are so happy for their summer break. Before I go into what we have been doing this summer, I need to brag a bit about their accomplishments during the school year.


Dawson was in 3 sports at 1 time!! (I know I was glutton for punishment.) He started with a new Lacrosse team this year, it was a high school team. They traveled as far as Oklahoma. He and David would make the trips in 1 day. I think they always had good quality time together. I was only able to watch 1 game. That's ok, I have a hard time watching Lacrosse. I think it is too rough :# It's very similar to ice hockey without the ice & skates and the ball is in the air. Dawson did very good and had a great time. Plus he made a lot of friends. At the same time he was able to fit in soccer (he is still the goalie) and track & field for the 1st time. I was able to make all of his track meets and loved it. He told me he was the fastest white kid on the team!! I was shocked at how fast he could run. Dawson has grown so much and has become quite the athlete. He was able to maintain excellent grades along with all of his sports. We are very proud of him.


Keegan really flourished in theatre. She got some exciting parts in the school plays and musicals. Towards the end of the school year they had an award banquet. She was nominated for 7 categories. She won 4 awards. Wow, we were so happy for her. I know I'm her mom and all, but really, she is so good. You would not believe how well she acts unless you saw it for yourself. I wish the profession wasn't so hard to get into. She could definitely have a career at it. Besides theatre she didn't have much of a social life. Maybe once a week she would get together with her friends on a weekend night. Otherwise the poor thing really was bogged down with homework and test, test and more test. BUT, she made it through her Jr year with outstanding grades. In the IB program it is known as the hardest year. Next year will be more crazy, but hopefully her classes will be a little easier. On top of taking her IB test this year she also had to take her SAT & ACT test. At one point she became very sick. She refused to miss any school. We were so worried about her. I guess her body was exhausted. Now she is back to normal and having a fun, yet busy summer.


David and my jobs are still going well. We are both thankful to be employed. Mostly we have been driving our teenagers around. Trying to enjoy them before they are off on their own.


My Brother Dick and Cindy came out to visit us in April. One day it rained and was so cold, the next day was sunny and beautiful. We gave them the grand tour of Wichita. Their time here was short, but we really enjoyed them.


I will continue later with what we've been doing this summer. Be sure to check out all 18 new pictures down the side bar.


Love to all of you. Miss you a bunch. Please come visit us. We are never too busy for company.


God bless you every day,


Marjie


P.S. Give your furry friends a big hug. Their love for you is so unconditional. We need to all take lessons from them.