while in north carolina we..........

.......were blessed to see so many friends..........we stopped in columbia to see the ribbes.....we have no pictures however b/c we forgot our camera at home....... it was a great visit and we can't wait for them to come back home to wisconsin!!!! ( the following pics are thanks to my mother-in-law debbie)

here dell is with his homeboy jeremiah.......it was just like old times with all the laughing and carrying on we had at our fav restraunt in charlotte........dirty mexican !!!!!! yummmmm!!!!!!
man, how i miss this girl!!!! we were crying like babies saying bye!!!! i miss you courtney!!!!

.....dell being funny as usual......it was great catching up with erin and jeremiah too!!!

haley and meghan~ bff 4 evr!!!!!

haley with her girls~ emma meghan and sydnie.....

....hung out with the welsh's!!!! hooray!!!!! we miss our honeyrock family that moved back south!!!!!

..........shopped with family!!!!! wow!!!! did i really say i went shopping????? i think i almost forgot how.....that's how long it's been.........

........froze at wrightsville beach...... it was so fun but very cold.......it was the day after a huge storm and the waves were enormous.......crazy surfers were out too......

........found a bunch of conch shells.......the kids had so many that we couldn't bring them all home with us!

.......loved hanging with all our amazing friends and family!!!! we love you guys and miss you!!!!

My Little Elf

Despite the look on his face, Jacob LOVES this costume Grandma Debbie got for him!!! We have laughed so much but have tried to refrain from using the word "cute" when he's wearing it......he'll never step into it again if we do...........
....again, his look in no way resembles his feelings for this costume.......it's so hilarious!!!!!!

....end of photo shoot for Jacob!!!!! He continued to wear the suit for the rest of the evening......I sure do love this cute little elf of mine!!!!

1st stop on our grand, end of summer adventure.....Mt. Rushmore, Rapid City, SD

pictures don't do justice for the amazing grandure of mt.rushmore. it's not just how awesome it looks, but the immensely interesting history of the entire thing and process. if you appreciate history, it's truly amazing.
all 4 of the kids were very excited about being there and they learned a ton. they participated in the mt. rushmore junior ranger program and haley and jackson especially learned alot. some of the questions were pretty hard and dell and i even had a hard time answering a few. it was quite hilarious hearing jacob, 3, exclaiming over "jor washington," the entire time we were there and for the remainder of the vacation.

we walked the different paths around the park for different views.....each of them equally breathtaking. haley, at one point while the boys were gone taking a bathroom break, let out a huge sigh and exclaimed, and I quote," this could never get old looking at this! it is amazing the talent of the artist that sculpted this! and they really all look exactly as their pictures look like in books!!" haley is very artistic and this was inspiring so much to her and jackson as well. so much so that every evening back at the campsite, they were chiseling away at rock they had found, attempting to make a "mini mt. rushmore" of their own that they could take home. it was so rewarding to see them learning about history and loving it and being inspired..... i really wish it were possible to take a year and just travel around America and educate them in this fashion. it would be so cool!

another view from a cave, especially enjoyed by the boys. every angle is beautiful and detailed. it is truly amazing. gutzon borglum, the designer and sculptor of rushmore, has a quote that i have hung in the schoolroom. (the kids loved learning about him as well.) " don't say, " i can't."-on this work- the "i can'ts" are unknown in the world's work and unremembered in history."

there are so many ways this can be applied in life and seen throughout history....we read about the struggle of the wright brothers as well, while we were gone, and even after they had succeeded in flight were still ridiculed and not believed about their amazing and successful invention for quite a while. starting when they were very young children, they kept trying, at times they failed, at times they succeeded....one thing they didn't do was give up. the Bible is full of accounts of saints who didn't give up as well. one of my favorites is the study of queen esther. even facing the possibility of death by approaching her own husband, the king, uninvited, she chose her words and actions wisely, and found favor in each instance and in the end, was instrumental in saving her people. (sorry for that random run on thought :)

here they are pretending to be chased by a stampede of buffalo. we all had a great day at mt. rushmore. we went back our last evening in rapid city for the nightime ceremony, but i'll save that excitement for another post.

where we've been all summer.

hi everyone! we've been busy all summer here at honeyrock. a great kind of busy. full of excitement, fun, friendship and community. i sadly, cannot blog in the summer. there is so much to share about, and i think about it constantly, but with the internet naturally being slow anyways way out here, starting in may, the entire summer staff is here and using the same internet connection, making it nearly impossible to upload pics in a decent amount of time. and time is precious here in the summer months. not only because there are such great people and things to be doing with your time( asside from playing on the computer,) but also because it is so short. my garden hasn't produced well at all because of the low temperatures here this summer. i've gotten a ton of zucchini and a small amount of broccoli. my tomato plants are huge and have fruit, but i think they think it's really june, instead of the beginning of sept. i've only picked a handful of ripe cherry tomatoes. i hope to get some ripen before it frosts. there is, however, no hope for my poor sweet red peppers. even now, they only have blossoms. sad.

this year, haley was able to attend 2 week residential camp and jackson attended the 1 week session. they both received extreme room makeover's while they were gone. it was so fun, but very tiresome as well considering the sessions were back to back with literally one day in between. they were thrilled.( i will load pics at a later date.) in 2 week res camp, you are able to pick activities you want to work on beginner, intermediate or master achievement levels. haley initially said she was going to choose rock climbing and swimming to earn her basics. she decided after she was at camp, to switch to canoeing and wilderness skills. so she did just that. in canoeing she even had to swamp her canoe! i was pretty impressed with her achievements. she used her skills learned in wilderness skills to teach us a few things on our recent camping expedition. jackson is looking forward to next year when he can work on riflery and biking.

jordan and jacob were little fish down at the waterfront whenever it was warm enough to swim. they're both nearly swimming and it has been entirely self-taught. jacob loves to "dead mans float" and had me on my toes all summer. our time at the waterfront was always fun and eventful, and not really relaxing at all.

we had a great summer getting to know so many new friends that will, no doubt, be back again next year. but we also had to prepare ourselves for the goodbyes. some to people that had been here since we moved here almost 2 years ago. i think that's got to be the hardest part of this life....meeting and investing in new friendships, and then having to let them go. we still wouldn't change it for anything though, and will continue to invest our time, energy, love and life into all that cross our path and come into our lives here at honeyrock .

we also had a huge tragedy happen here, the day after the last camp session ended. alex heidengren,one of the res camp counselors, drowned the morning of the honeyrock summer '09 celebration day. it was a huge blow to the community here. it was extremely hard for haley and jackson the first few weeks especially and even still are dealing with it now. we knew alex and he had been a part of the kids lives this summer on a regular basis. they had dreams a few times and jackson was concerned about" if it hurt alex to drown." yesterday, he was wearing a bandana on his head "like alex" and this morning before school, he prayed for alex's family. it's been their 1st experience with death, but they have been ministered to by alexs' brother, jonathan. he has showed them joy,even in sorrow, true faith and rest in trying times, and peace that passes all understanding. jackson still talks about seeing jonathan smiling and singing "it is well with my soul" while crying. he didn't understand how that was possible at first but i think he understands, the best way that he can, now.
we've claimed psalm 62 many times. "my soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from Him. He alone is my Rock and my Salvation; He is my Fortress, i will never be shaken." "trust in Him at all times,o people;pour out your hearts to Him, for God is our Refuge." psalm 62: 1-2, 8

we finished up the summer aug. 21 and we left for a sweet roadtrip out west, aug.27th and just returned home early morning sept.7th. there are many stories of adventure and learning that i will share about soon in some later posts.

thanks for checking in on the ledbetter 6 !!!!

Bond Falls

This was a great day trip.....
.........these are the lower falls.....

.......upper falls...... it was a great day to get away.......

Hello Again!!!

We have been so... busy!!!!! It's hard to believe it's been almost 2 months since I have posted......crazy!!!! So.....here's the low-down on what we've been up to....

• Jordan turned 5 on April 5th.


• I made my first batch of authentic bannock over the campfire for supper one night......the kids LOVED it and have continually asked for it over and over again....I have made it again for the counselors here at camp to teach the campers.....it was a really fun night.


• We took a day trip to Bond Falls in Michigan. Beautiful!!! (pics will be posted soon...)


• We took care of 10 yellow lab puppies for several weeks ....lots of fun.


• Jordan had another Dr's appt. in Milwaukee. We will be eliminating more things from his diet for a food study in the next month or so......it's going to be very difficult but thankfully, they've set me up with a clinical dietician to help with meal plans and ideas.


• We tagged along with Dell to a food show in Duluth. We played in the pool, went to a fabric store, out to eat and to the aquarium. It was a fun, but short trip.


• On the above mentioned trip, we had to stop at least 20 times for Jacob to pee or poop. Literally. It was funny, but time consuming. Ah....the adventure that is my life!!


• After a complete melt and thaw, it snowed 14 inches in mid April!!! It was ridiculous!!!


• The kids surprised Charlie(their history and geography tutor) with a surprise birthday party.


• Haley sang and danced in the Three Lakes school talent show. It was cute and, not to our surprise, was a big hit......it was a High School Musical number.....hopefully, the obsession with HSM will subside soon.


• We were able to hang out with Namaw and Grandpa for a few days before Grandpa headed to Alaska for a few weeks. It was beautiful weather and we were outside alot. We hula-hooped... Mom and Dad included......I am NOT talented in the sport of hula hooping......Mom is though!!! Who would've thought???


• While out exploring while Mom and Dad were here, we got caught out in a thunder and lightning storm......kids screaming and crying.....I was laughing at it all.....Haley was running down the trail chanting," What time I am afraid I will trust in Thee. Psalm 56:3." Over and over again she chanted this as we ran home in the thunderstorm!!


• My nephew Timmy received the American Red Cross Youth Hero of the Year Award, for his part in saving his brother Benaiah's life 2 years ago.


• We witnessed the biggest,brightest and most beautiful rainbow. It was breathtaking.


• In honor of the kids' studying of Ancient Greece with Charlie, he planned an "improvised-authentic" Olympic Games for them. The cousins came over and participated. We had a"bike race" instead of horse racing, we had a"bookbag full of encyclopedias" running race instead of full body armor, and we had a wrestling match. They were awarded homemade laurel's and we had olives in celebration.....it was hilarious and so much fun!!


• Jackson was bitten by a deer tick and got very ill. He's currently being treated for Lyme's Disease exposure. We'll know for sure if it really was Lyme's next week when test results come back.
  
• I've made my first batch of strawberry-rhubarb jam of the season. Can't wait to have it on toast tomorrow morning.
• Camp is in full swing. All the counselors and summer staff are here and training has started......Haley has already been rock climbing and Jackson and I've already been at the riflery range.
• I'll be planting my garden this weekend....hopefully....I'm so looking forward to fresh veggies!!!
• We finally found a farm that was willing to sell us "raw" milk. Jordy hasn't been itchy at all from drinking it.
• I'm trying to plan a girl camping trip for Haley and I. We will be having a few "growing up" conversations. It's going to be a good time.....just the girls.
• The boys started baseball and they're really enjoying it.
• Haley's taking regular riding lessons at the HR ranch. She LOVES every minute of it and is currently making a latch hook rug for Becky, her instructor. She's pretty excited about it.
• I'm making the boys rag quilts. It's hard finding the time, but I hope to have them done by the end of June. "Hope" is the key word here :)
• I know I've forgotten a ton, but I'll remember as I start to post pics......we've been so busy!!

Extreme Makeover- School Room Edition

This room used to have a dark grey,almost black paneling on the walls. It was like a dungeon in there. Well not anymore. Now it's really light and bright and we actually like spending time in there, not to mention, everything is now totally organized.(in that room anyways.)
These cubby shelves, Dell made out of scrap wood that just sits around over at the HR operations woodshop. It's all mismatched wood and one day I might white wash it, but for now we're loving how it's gotten us organized.

We love the new makeover!!!!

Extreme Makeover- Little Cowboy Room Edition

Finished....kinda.... I still need to touch-up paint. Dell and I picked the ranch red color but Jordan just had to have the wagon wheel brown color. So, we compromised and painted one wall his brown. It really looks good, I just need to touch up the corners. These aren't the best pics as my camera battery was low, but you can get the general idea. I still have yet to sew together the furs that are on the valance rod (they're just draping over right now) and make curtains from their denim crib sheets and then make their quilts., but it's coming along. I found the pattern for the quilts that I want to make, although some of it I'm changing,and I plan on buying the fabric when we go to Chicago at the end of the month.(there is nowhere to buy fabric here....literally.)
They LOVE their room and it totally suits them.

Yes, their is no curtain on their window and the blinds are all the way up. Let me explain. First, we live in the middle of the woods and aren't worried about any boogey men getting us, second, if I lower the blinds, they sleep in way too late. Yes, I actually said that. I want them getting up earlier than later as I don't get up until they do, and if they sleep late, which in turn, allows me to sleep late, we have very unproductive days. So, the only time I lower blinds is if I really want them to sleep in. Just call me crazy!!!

We've Been Busy.....

.......playing in mud.....
.....tasting mud.......ugh....

.......winning second in bracket at final wrestling tournament.....

......winning 3rd in bracket at the same tourney......

......and digging "the Nile River." The kids are learning about ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt and Jackson was set on digging his version of "The Nile" right here at HoneyRock. He had to later go back and fill in "The Nile" as it flowed down in front of our garage and then in front of Mr. and Mrs. Long's garage as well.(they also live here at HR camp.) I couldn't be more pleased that their learning"flows" over into their play. It just goes to show(in a small way) that learning and putting into practice what is learned, cannot be confined to a classroom, a day,a time or an age.....it's every day, every moment.

Puppies

Our friend's yellow lab, Sadie, had 10 puppies a few weeks ago. We have been to visit them many times and can't wait for them to fully open their eyes in a few days. Can you tell Haley's saying,"Awwww....their so.......cute!" in this picture?
Here's Sadie with her puppies. We dog-sat her alot last summer. She is the best dog in the world.....so calm and obedient. We LOVE Sadie.

I don't know who's cuter in this pic...... Jordy or the puppy......

Jacob loved holding the puppies but kept wanting to trade it for a "new" one.

These puppies are well loved by the Ledbetter kids.....

Momma's Boys

I was uploading pics to the computer the other day before we headed to wrestling and the boys all decided they wanted their pictures taken with me. So here they are. Jackson took the pics he wasn't in.

What a sweet little face!!!!

And the bruise still lingers from a fall at the ice caves.

My little loverboy.....this guy is VERY sweet on his Momma and always is hugging and kissing and cuddling me. I just LOVE every minute of it!!!!

Boy,oh boy, do ever love all these boys!!!

These Days.....

.... we're trudging around in slush.....
......taking guitar lessons from grad students.....

.....making very dramatic fashion statements.....

....eating very random,yet healthy, lunches....

.........LOVING LIFE..........