Happy Easter everyone,
I hope you all had a nice Easter day. We didn't do much. The kids still don't believe there should be an age limit on finding eggs and baskets. The good thing is teenagers don't wake up early!
I'm only scheduled for 20 hours this week at THD, so I thought I would catch up on my blog. As you guessed by the title, it is raining outside. It has been off and on all week. My flowers are starting to bloom. Especially my roses. I picked a few this morning and put them in a vase. Our grass is so thick and green. I think we have had more rain these past few weeks than we got all last year. Everyone in Kansas is very happy about the rain. Hopefully this year the farmers crops will survive.
Crazy week for Keegan. I know what you are thinking...what's new, right? Most kids are happy that school is almost out for the year. Instead Keegan gets this sick look of anxiety on her face. I can tell she is thinking about how much school work, projects and IB tests that are scheduled yet. Each night she has been getting very little sleep because of homework due each day.
The Spring play that she is in starts this weekend. It is called "Marvin's Room". Rehearsal has been late every night this week. Last night at dress rehearsal, I had to learn how to put an acrylic bald head on Keegan. It was not fun to apply and less fun for her to wear. During the play she has to wear 3 different wigs. I don't know much about the play, but I do know her character has leukemia. Keegan won't tell me if she dies or not. Regardless I'm taking a bunch of tissues. Keegan has expressed how sad she will be to perform her last play in high school. Personally I will be glad when this weekend is over. Needless to say when she doesn't get much sleep she starts to feel sick. She's been fighting a cold and a froggy voice all week.
I know you are all wondering if she has made her college choice yet. I think so, but you never know what could happen in the next 2 weeks. Her favorite place at this point is Washington University in St Louis. They have presented the best financial package so far. It won't be long and the final decision has to be made by May 1st.
Dawson has been out of sports the past few weeks. He fell hard on his tailbone! The 1st night he came home from practice after hurting it, he was in excruciating pain. We were going to take him to the emergency room but then we started reading about it online. According to what I've read, the tailbone usually has to heal on its own. It takes a long time, but it will heal. He is moving around rather slowly, but at the same time he is doing much better than when he first got hurt. His lacrosse team has not been doing so good lately. They seem to be on a loosing streak. I don't think it is because Dawson is out, but I'm sure it doesn't help his team either. This week he was supposed to play lacrosse in Arkansas. He's pretty bummed out that he can't make the trip with his team.
Dawson is really looking forward to the end of the school year. He is counting down the days and saying he is almost 1/4 of the way through high school. I'm not sure what he will be doing this summer. He wants to get a job. Although there aren't many places that hire 15 year old kids. He has also mentioned playing on a summer lacrosse team and possibly going out for the high school soccer team again.
One thing new with Dawson that I almost forgot to mention, he just got braces put on his teeth. The 1st week was hard for him. Not so much because of the pain, but because his food was limited!! He is now back to normal and eating enough for 3 people. He is sad because he can't have his daily apple and almonds in his lunch bag anymore. You can hardly see his braces. On his top teeth his braces are clear. On the bottom teeth they are silver, but you don't notice them when he smiles.
I will attach a few new pictures along the side bar. Hopefully I will get more pictures during Keegan's play this weekend to send at a later time.
I will continue to keep you all in my prayers and please do the same for us. I know that I say this often, but I just can't say it enough. So many times a day I turn to God for help. It seems like lately not just day to day, but even moment to moment I have to stop and ask for help to not be feeling so much pressure and full of anxiety. God brings so much peace into my heart and mind. Thank you for your prayers.
I'm not sure where our travels will be taking us this summer. I think it will all depend on when and where we will be moving Keegan into college. If we do any visiting this summer we will probably be mooching off of everyone "AGAIN"!!
I love and miss all of you,
Marjie
Salt Lake City, Utah
Picture taken on Thanksgiving weekend 2013.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Monday, March 12, 2012
Happy Spring?
Hello,
Where has the time gone? My last blog was "Happy New Year"! It seems like our winter flew by so fast. I think we had 3 or 4 dusting's of snow this year. The kids didn't have any snow days. Now our trees are starting to bloom. It's hard to believe that Spring is just around the corner. We have had some nice rain showers these past few days. I just hope the summer isn't as dry and hot as last year.
We are busy as usual and trying to keep up with the kids. I have a few days off, so maybe I can catch you up on what's new with the Hughes family. Sorry that it is old news for some of you.
Dawson has been in his glory. He is in the middle of his Lacrosse season and loving it. He was playing 7 days a week. Monday-Friday practice, Saturday games, and Sunday night, indoor Lacrosse games. His indoor team finished in 1st place. They were undefeated! I went to a few games and it was definitely exciting to watch. The ball stays live most of the time because they play off of the walls. The game is very fast paced, so it's hard to always see who has the ball. Plus the indoor ball is a lot lighter weight. Almost turf ball weight. It's so light the guys would continue to run thinking the ball was still in their net, meanwhile the other team has picked up the ball and running the other direction. Kind of comical to watch. David was able to attend all of the games and was even their score keeper once in awhile. I think he wishes he could play Lacrosse too.
Dawson is the only freshman on the varsity team and he is a starter. He was pretty excited about that. His practicing has paid off. He spends a ton of time at the YMCA in an indoor racket/hand ball court. They let him take in his lacrosse stick and ball and hit off the wall. Because it's not a real common sport, it is not unusual for Dawson to have an audience watching him since the entire court has clear walls.
As you all know I hate how rough the sport is. Already Dawson has sprained his ankle, possibly broken a finger and has been knocked down silly a couple of times. Like the Energizer Bunny...he keeps on going! I was finally able to watch him play in 2 games this weekend. After one play, there was a huge pile up of guys, after each of them got up, I saw Dawson stand up from the bottom of the "pile" and walk away. YIKES!! Did that make any sense at all?
David can keep taking Dawson to the games. I will watch occasionally. It is a traveling team, so when they aren't playing at home, they are at another state. Last weekend they traveled to Oklahoma. The two of them have a good time together. Plus Dawson has been getting in some driving time. :b
Keegan has been buried with everything you could possible imagine. Maybe the worst yet as far as having too much on her plate. Since my last blog instead of semi-finalist for National Merit Scholar, she is now a finalist. She has also been nominated as a Presidential Scholar, which is quite an honor. We won't know the final status of each award until the end of April. We are proud of her no matter what happens.
The first weekend of March, Keegan preformed with her high school musical group. Kind of like a glee or swing choir group where they sing and dance to popular songs. She was so glad when it was over and she has decided, that it is the last musical she will ever be in. (I really doubt it!) She has always preferred plays over anything musical. Speaking of which, she just found out last week that she got the lead part to the upcoming Spring play. She was so thrilled. She has gotten a lot of big parts but this will be the largest part yet. It will be a nice ending to her senior year.
Okay, back to Keegan's busy month of March. This past weekend she was invited to attend St. Olaf College in Minnesota. She had such a fun time. She met so many people and was able to do a lot while she was there. I don't know if that will be the college she selects, but it was a great experience. She said it was fun getting a taste of the college life. I was so happy that she kept texting and calling me to keep me informed of what she was up to. They even had a web-cam in one of their main buildings. So one day we were talking on the phone together, meanwhile I was also on the computer, then she walks up to this web-cam and I watched her talking and waving to me!! The web-cam is called "Hi Mom". How cool is that? It was so nice to have her safe at home on Sunday.
This week Keegan and her Drama Club are taking off for New York City and Chicago. It will be a 10 day trip. They will see 9 Broadway shows and a bunch of famous sites during their trip. Coming back from NYC they will stay in Chicago to see a few more shows. Before she travels back to Wichita, she will be flying out of Chicago to St. Louis, Missouri alone. Before the weekend is over Washington University in St Louis has invited her to attend their Scholars weekend. She will have another opportunity to check out a different University before making her final decision.
Keegan has until May 1st to make her decision. We were kind of hoping that she would get to feel the cold temp while she was in MinneSNOWta, but it was pretty nice there during her stay. It won't matter anyway, I would be shocked if that becomes the reason she decides not to go there. It will all come down to who gives her the best scholarship.
She is getting blasted with homework. She will be loaded down from now until the end of her senior year. It is very hard for her to fit in all of these trips on top of everything else, but we keep telling her this is her future now. High school is pretty much over. Do well, but don't miss out on any important opportunities.
I know I always carry on how well Keegan does academically and I don't say much about Dawson. It is not because Dawson doesn't do well in school, he is doing an excellent job. We couldn't ask him to do any better. It's just that sports is his life. Just this week the boys and girls basketball teams from his high school "both" won the state championship, naturally Dawson was a huge fan.
It seems like the older the kids get the less pictures I take. I have my camera in my purse at all times, but finding the right moments is half the battle. Although I was able to get several pics of Dawson playing indoor and outdoor lacrosse. Only a few pics of Keegan. I will try to better. :(
Nothing new to report about David and me. We still are thankful to be employed. We are loving being entertained by our children.
Take care and may God bless you. Thank you to those of you who have been praying for Keegan's safety during all of these trips she is doing on her own. I will never understand why people do not turn to our loving God for help. I have had to turn to Him so much lately and handing everything over to Him so I am not so anxious about Keegan stretching away from our comfy nest and Dawson playing his rough sport.
Love to you all and miss you so much.
Marjie
P.S. Update on Keegan since I started writing this blog. She is in NYC and having a great time. She has seen 3 musicals on Broadway and getting ready to see 2 more today. They get back to their hotel each night around midnight and they get up around 6 AM to have breakfast at their hotel, then off to the Big Apple to have fun. Keep Praying.
Where has the time gone? My last blog was "Happy New Year"! It seems like our winter flew by so fast. I think we had 3 or 4 dusting's of snow this year. The kids didn't have any snow days. Now our trees are starting to bloom. It's hard to believe that Spring is just around the corner. We have had some nice rain showers these past few days. I just hope the summer isn't as dry and hot as last year.
We are busy as usual and trying to keep up with the kids. I have a few days off, so maybe I can catch you up on what's new with the Hughes family. Sorry that it is old news for some of you.
Dawson has been in his glory. He is in the middle of his Lacrosse season and loving it. He was playing 7 days a week. Monday-Friday practice, Saturday games, and Sunday night, indoor Lacrosse games. His indoor team finished in 1st place. They were undefeated! I went to a few games and it was definitely exciting to watch. The ball stays live most of the time because they play off of the walls. The game is very fast paced, so it's hard to always see who has the ball. Plus the indoor ball is a lot lighter weight. Almost turf ball weight. It's so light the guys would continue to run thinking the ball was still in their net, meanwhile the other team has picked up the ball and running the other direction. Kind of comical to watch. David was able to attend all of the games and was even their score keeper once in awhile. I think he wishes he could play Lacrosse too.
Dawson is the only freshman on the varsity team and he is a starter. He was pretty excited about that. His practicing has paid off. He spends a ton of time at the YMCA in an indoor racket/hand ball court. They let him take in his lacrosse stick and ball and hit off the wall. Because it's not a real common sport, it is not unusual for Dawson to have an audience watching him since the entire court has clear walls.
As you all know I hate how rough the sport is. Already Dawson has sprained his ankle, possibly broken a finger and has been knocked down silly a couple of times. Like the Energizer Bunny...he keeps on going! I was finally able to watch him play in 2 games this weekend. After one play, there was a huge pile up of guys, after each of them got up, I saw Dawson stand up from the bottom of the "pile" and walk away. YIKES!! Did that make any sense at all?
David can keep taking Dawson to the games. I will watch occasionally. It is a traveling team, so when they aren't playing at home, they are at another state. Last weekend they traveled to Oklahoma. The two of them have a good time together. Plus Dawson has been getting in some driving time. :b
Keegan has been buried with everything you could possible imagine. Maybe the worst yet as far as having too much on her plate. Since my last blog instead of semi-finalist for National Merit Scholar, she is now a finalist. She has also been nominated as a Presidential Scholar, which is quite an honor. We won't know the final status of each award until the end of April. We are proud of her no matter what happens.
The first weekend of March, Keegan preformed with her high school musical group. Kind of like a glee or swing choir group where they sing and dance to popular songs. She was so glad when it was over and she has decided, that it is the last musical she will ever be in. (I really doubt it!) She has always preferred plays over anything musical. Speaking of which, she just found out last week that she got the lead part to the upcoming Spring play. She was so thrilled. She has gotten a lot of big parts but this will be the largest part yet. It will be a nice ending to her senior year.
Okay, back to Keegan's busy month of March. This past weekend she was invited to attend St. Olaf College in Minnesota. She had such a fun time. She met so many people and was able to do a lot while she was there. I don't know if that will be the college she selects, but it was a great experience. She said it was fun getting a taste of the college life. I was so happy that she kept texting and calling me to keep me informed of what she was up to. They even had a web-cam in one of their main buildings. So one day we were talking on the phone together, meanwhile I was also on the computer, then she walks up to this web-cam and I watched her talking and waving to me!! The web-cam is called "Hi Mom". How cool is that? It was so nice to have her safe at home on Sunday.
This week Keegan and her Drama Club are taking off for New York City and Chicago. It will be a 10 day trip. They will see 9 Broadway shows and a bunch of famous sites during their trip. Coming back from NYC they will stay in Chicago to see a few more shows. Before she travels back to Wichita, she will be flying out of Chicago to St. Louis, Missouri alone. Before the weekend is over Washington University in St Louis has invited her to attend their Scholars weekend. She will have another opportunity to check out a different University before making her final decision.
Keegan has until May 1st to make her decision. We were kind of hoping that she would get to feel the cold temp while she was in MinneSNOWta, but it was pretty nice there during her stay. It won't matter anyway, I would be shocked if that becomes the reason she decides not to go there. It will all come down to who gives her the best scholarship.
She is getting blasted with homework. She will be loaded down from now until the end of her senior year. It is very hard for her to fit in all of these trips on top of everything else, but we keep telling her this is her future now. High school is pretty much over. Do well, but don't miss out on any important opportunities.
I know I always carry on how well Keegan does academically and I don't say much about Dawson. It is not because Dawson doesn't do well in school, he is doing an excellent job. We couldn't ask him to do any better. It's just that sports is his life. Just this week the boys and girls basketball teams from his high school "both" won the state championship, naturally Dawson was a huge fan.
It seems like the older the kids get the less pictures I take. I have my camera in my purse at all times, but finding the right moments is half the battle. Although I was able to get several pics of Dawson playing indoor and outdoor lacrosse. Only a few pics of Keegan. I will try to better. :(
Nothing new to report about David and me. We still are thankful to be employed. We are loving being entertained by our children.
Take care and may God bless you. Thank you to those of you who have been praying for Keegan's safety during all of these trips she is doing on her own. I will never understand why people do not turn to our loving God for help. I have had to turn to Him so much lately and handing everything over to Him so I am not so anxious about Keegan stretching away from our comfy nest and Dawson playing his rough sport.
Love to you all and miss you so much.
Marjie
P.S. Update on Keegan since I started writing this blog. She is in NYC and having a great time. She has seen 3 musicals on Broadway and getting ready to see 2 more today. They get back to their hotel each night around midnight and they get up around 6 AM to have breakfast at their hotel, then off to the Big Apple to have fun. Keep Praying.
Friday, January 6, 2012
Happy New Year
Hello again,
I hope you all enjoyed your Christmas season and brought in the New Year doing something special.
I wish we had. I know that sounds terrible, but it's true. I still feel kinda bummed out. Our family was very lazy and didn't do or go anywhere for New Year's Eve. David and I were watching TV. The kids were off somewhere in the house doing their own thing. A few minutes before the stroke of midnight we all rounded up together, did the count down, said "HAPPY NEW YEAR!" hugged and kissed, then went back to doing what we were doing before our gathering. What does that mean? I think we were all just content and didn't feel like we had to make any big deal out of the occasion. I have to say it is very unusual for us, but that's what we did. At the time it seemed perfectly ok. Now I'm putting too much thought into it and wishing we had celebrated a little bit more. Last year the kids both had their friends over. Maybe that's the only difference. This year the kids chose to have a quiet evening at home.
Or...maybe we were feeling a little melancholy because our company had just left that morning. They headed back to Wisconsin and Illinois before the sun came up. We had such a fun time with my sister Linda and her youngest son, Daniel. Also my brother Steve and his wife Nancy. They all came out together to visit us. It was Steve and Nancy's first time here.
The first day they were here we gave them the grand tour of Wichita. After that each day we just hung around the house and played board games. We also had some good quality visiting time. Plus my sister and I stayed up late each night for hours catching up on everything.
I loved having everyone here. It just seemed like such a short visit. Although I must say our home is not very accommodating for many people. Oh well, it didn't matter, we made it work and had a great time. Except... I am so frustrated with myself. I usually take so many pictures that I annoy people. Nope not this time, I didn't take 1 stinking picture of anyone during their visit. What the heck was I thinking. I just completely forgot about taking pictures until 6 am the morning they were ready to leave. I was too afraid to line everyone up and say "SMILE"! I am still kicking myself over this. So there you have it, no pictures of our company. WHAAA!!! :'(
The kids only had 3 days of school this week. They were thrilled about that. They both immediately started their busy after school schedules. Keegan's rehearsals for an upcoming music program and Dawson started Lacrosse practice. Needless to say the vacation is officially over! It's now Friday afternoon and both kids are off doing whatever with their friends. I will probably do something fun tonight, like go grocery shopping! David is working tonight, so it is me, myself and I hanging out together.
That's all. At a later time I will post some pictures, but for now this is it. But not any pictures of my company...WHAAA :'(
My thoughts and prayers are with each of you. May God bless your new year and show you His unconditional love every day.
Love,
Marjie
I hope you all enjoyed your Christmas season and brought in the New Year doing something special.
I wish we had. I know that sounds terrible, but it's true. I still feel kinda bummed out. Our family was very lazy and didn't do or go anywhere for New Year's Eve. David and I were watching TV. The kids were off somewhere in the house doing their own thing. A few minutes before the stroke of midnight we all rounded up together, did the count down, said "HAPPY NEW YEAR!" hugged and kissed, then went back to doing what we were doing before our gathering. What does that mean? I think we were all just content and didn't feel like we had to make any big deal out of the occasion. I have to say it is very unusual for us, but that's what we did. At the time it seemed perfectly ok. Now I'm putting too much thought into it and wishing we had celebrated a little bit more. Last year the kids both had their friends over. Maybe that's the only difference. This year the kids chose to have a quiet evening at home.
Or...maybe we were feeling a little melancholy because our company had just left that morning. They headed back to Wisconsin and Illinois before the sun came up. We had such a fun time with my sister Linda and her youngest son, Daniel. Also my brother Steve and his wife Nancy. They all came out together to visit us. It was Steve and Nancy's first time here.
The first day they were here we gave them the grand tour of Wichita. After that each day we just hung around the house and played board games. We also had some good quality visiting time. Plus my sister and I stayed up late each night for hours catching up on everything.
I loved having everyone here. It just seemed like such a short visit. Although I must say our home is not very accommodating for many people. Oh well, it didn't matter, we made it work and had a great time. Except... I am so frustrated with myself. I usually take so many pictures that I annoy people. Nope not this time, I didn't take 1 stinking picture of anyone during their visit. What the heck was I thinking. I just completely forgot about taking pictures until 6 am the morning they were ready to leave. I was too afraid to line everyone up and say "SMILE"! I am still kicking myself over this. So there you have it, no pictures of our company. WHAAA!!! :'(
The kids only had 3 days of school this week. They were thrilled about that. They both immediately started their busy after school schedules. Keegan's rehearsals for an upcoming music program and Dawson started Lacrosse practice. Needless to say the vacation is officially over! It's now Friday afternoon and both kids are off doing whatever with their friends. I will probably do something fun tonight, like go grocery shopping! David is working tonight, so it is me, myself and I hanging out together.
That's all. At a later time I will post some pictures, but for now this is it. But not any pictures of my company...WHAAA :'(
My thoughts and prayers are with each of you. May God bless your new year and show you His unconditional love every day.
Love,
Marjie
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Merry Christmas
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.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
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
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
Monday, October 31, 2011
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
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
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
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
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