the ledbetter 6

haleys horse show

2010-11-02T20:16:00.005-05:00

on june 20th, haley was in her first horse show! she has been taking english riding lessons from the ranch manager , becky webber, off and on since we moved to camp almost 3 years ago. what an opportunity and fun blessing for her! she has really enjoyed it and is actually pretty good.

she competed in 4 classes and out of 12 and 14 other riders, haley received 2, 4th place ribbons and 1, 6th place ribbon! not too shabby for a first time show horse and rider!!! we were very proud of her and it was all so fun!

it happened to be one of the hottest days of the summer and poor ginger(the horse) and haley were so hot! but nothing could bring her down......

ginger, haley and becky......first time honeyrock horse, rider and trainer champions! woot woot!

so back in the spring we......

2010-11-02T18:48:00.005-05:00

hung out on lake superior.....

went to "the edge" in duluth with grandma debbie......

haley was riding ginger a whole lot to get ready for her horse show...

jordy turned 6 and had a really fun party with his friends....

jordy with his blanket from lauren...he loves it.....

happy camping......

carving away....

jacob planning his attempt at skateboarding on gravel....

lots of playing in the mud....

went to our friend melissa's wedding in milwaukee....

honeyrock ladies......

that's a little glimpse into our spring which quickly turned into a very busy and fun summer.....more to come on that soon!

why hello again......

2010-10-18T22:35:00.004-05:00

well...here i am again after many months of not posting a single thing....

i have a few good reasons, however. first,our computer was broken and it wasn't a priority to get it fixed at the time. second, even if it had been working, i may have had the same result anyways. it was a beautiful spring, summer and fall, full to the brim of excitement, activity, friends, family and countless hours spent out of doors so there most likely wouldn't have been enough time to post anything anyways. which brings me to my third and final reason for not sharing our lives with you more regularily.....the internet at camp is still just as slow as ever and the frustration it stirs within me as i sit waiting for pics to upload just in time for the wind to blow the internet away at that exact second: it infuriates me!!!!

above is one of my favorite pics of late.... i love the bridge that leads to cathedral pines.( the place where we have worship services in the summer.) it's a great place to sit and have a quiet time....

in the next few weeks i will try to catch you up on our past few months...loads of stories and pics to share....

~New Life~

2010-03-04T12:01:00.004-06:00

My friend Cheryl had her 4th child on Tuesday. His name is Blake Gabriel Pulver.

I went to visit them in the hospital and took pictures of these precious, sweet moments.

Here are a few of my favorite shots.

party time!

2010-03-04T11:05:00.010-06:00

Talia and Jacob have turned 4 years old and as cliche as it sounds, it seems like just yesterday they were born........time has surely flown by. (Haley made the above banner for them.)

As well as being cousins, they are such good friends. (Talia said she's marrying Jacob!!! LOL)
They discussed what they wanted to eat for their birthday dinner.....here's what they came up with........ macaroni and cheese, salad, strawberries, quacamole and chips, sunbutter and jelly sandwhiches and chocolate cake with strawberries.

Talia is 2 days older than Jacob, born on Feb.25, 2006.

Jacob was born Feb.27,2006

We celebrated their birthday on the 26th. It was alot of fun.

This boy is a wild, crazy, adventurous, funny, loving, smart and happy little guy.

This little beauty is so sweet, helpful, funny, kind, full of drama and she has such a loving spirit.

They were so happy Charlie came to their birthday party.

Here are some pics of them opening gifts.

Such power it takes!

...Happy Birthday Talia and Jacob......

......Happy Birthday to you!

We had a tray of cupcakes as well as the cake I made.......we had all the HoneyRockers over for the cake and ice cream and my little cake wouldn't have gone very far.....

Ezra slept through the whole thing!!! I was able to hold him for a few minutes right before the Crisco clan left......He's so cute and getting so big!!!!

Charlie came over on Jacob's actual birthday before he left and gave him this Minnesota Twins shirt. Jacob has worn it every day. I finally took it away to wash it a few days ago. He loves Charlie.

He's a big boy.....but he'll always be my baby.

We've been.......

2010-02-26T11:18:00.016-06:00

....taking riding lessons at the HoneyRock barn getting all ready for the horse show on June 20th....Haley's doing so well and has learned so much and actually is a good helper down at the barn for Becky. They enjoy each other so much!

Becky and Haley

Jacob watching his big sister.

.........helping mommy cook......

.......wrestling at the Three Lakes school on Tue. nights.

Jacob took down this little guy who's way bigger than him.......boy was everyone laughing and cheering at the 3 year old hanging with the actual wrestlers!

.........watching the Olympics. Jackson wasn't feeling to great opening ceremony night but....

.........was ready to cheer as the USA team entered the arena.....such a little patriot!

..........enjoying the beautiful mild winter days we've been having.

So gorgeuos!

I'm so thankful for eyesight to be able to see and behold God's awesome display of love to us through His creation.......I'll never stop being amazed!!!

........hanging out in the dining hall with friends singing and learning new songs on the piano.

........I'm not sure why their laughing at me.......probably my playing!!!!!

.....LUIS!!!!! More pictures?????? ( he was behind the lense at this point)

.......judging a rib cook-off contest with some other HoneyRockers.....YUM!!!!!!

........Haley's looking at baby pictures of herself.......for days.....

.......more Olympics watching.......

........skating on the rink.........so CUTE! Poor little guy's wearing girl skates!

......hockey.......Jackson's pretty good too!

.......getting lots of hugs from friends.......This is Christie......a counselor from last summer.....we became very close this past summer and over this school year. She is an amazing young woman that loves the Lord and He appointed and has blessed this friendship that we have. It's been awesome to see such beautiful fruit in her life and how God is using her. I love you Christie!

..........tubing........this is at ski hill and Jackson is helping get the tubes ready for the group we had in. He loves to help the graduate students work. We are blessed with so many Godly role models in our kids lives.

So much FUN!!!!!

This picture of Jordy makes me laugh........he's having so much fun!

.........silly......as usual, Jacob has many faces!!!

........polar plunging.......

.......well, no Ledbetter's actually plunged, but we helped get ready for the students traditional polar plunge........what a perfect plunging hole Scott Eppler created!

......lit up at night......

........now those are big ice cubes!!!!!!

........Christie at the bonfire after the plunge.

.......warming by the fire........

......playing outside.......Jordy's so happy all the time....

.......more tubing.......Jacob loves going by himself......he's always trying stunts and it scares me....he's so brave and not scared at all....

.......learning in a totally unconventional way.....

......this is so fun!!!!

.......Jackson takes the suggested experiment and goes a step further.....jumping off the playset!

......visiting with friends......Jonathan drove up from Wheaton for the annual broomball tournament against 2 other local camps..... he came over to hang out for awhile.....

......on the fresh ice all ready for the big game.....

......Charlie drove up from Minneapolis for the big game, to volunteer and come to Jacob's birthday....... these kids sure love Charlie!

.......here's Haley with some other camp kid friends......thay have a blast whenever thay get to hang out together.....

....Jacob cheering on the big game.....

HoneyRock and Camp Luther........ HoneyRock remains undefeated......woot woot!!!!

I know this has been a long post, but there have been alot of happenings going on.....so now you know what's been going on......stay tuned for Jacobs birthday post coming soon........he turns 4 tomorrow!!!! My baby is growing up!!!!!

these days........

2010-02-23T15:04:00.002-06:00

recently it was the annual honeyrock ski day up at big powderhorn mountain.....i didn't take very many pictures as haley and jackson had me skiing all over the mountain down intermediate runs and i was a little too nervous to take my new camera out there .......next time i'll remember to take my small camera.......we had so much fun and were so exhausted after a long day of hard FUN!!!

here are some honeyrockers planning their next set of runs over lunch in the lodge.

mary-elise, a new honeyrock gpa, is from tennessee and has a very welcome thick southern accent. i find myself reverting back to saying ya'll alot more often now that she's here......i love it!!! this was her first time skiing ever and she did an amazing job......as did dell......it was his first time too.....we had a blast!!!!

steve.......never skied before but is an awesome snowboarder........jackson is begging to learn to snowboard......we'll have to see what we can do, but these kind of sports get rather expensive for large families......

haley working away at her schoolwork.........

.......deep in thought.......

......and jackson, having a rare moment of serious thought....had to capture it cause he's constantly out of his seat and squirming and goofing off......gotta love the guy.......definitely makes school interesting at our house.......

february 10th~ i'm 30!!!!!!

2010-02-23T14:44:00.005-06:00

dell bought me a camera!!!!! canon 50D!!! i love it and am learning alot and have loads more to learn.......i'm sure you will see the quality of photos improve over time, so bear with me.....
we had a dual birthday celebration at tim and teresas.....we bought haley what she asked for....."warm smartwool socks" and "extra warm mittens." i also found this sthethescope-sp?
at the thrift store.......she loves listening to everyones heart and lungs.....

awwww.....

kylee's getting so big!!!!!

we had wrestlemania as usual when the crisco's and ledbetter's get together...

i've never had an apron in my adult life and thats what mom got me for my birthday......thanks mom...... i love it and i use it all the time!!!!

february 9th~ we're in double digits!!!!

2010-02-23T14:21:00.004-06:00

my baby has turned 10!!!!

she was so excited when she woke up and was beaming as she announced,"i'm in double digits!!!"

within the 1st few minutes of being up, we had karen, andrew and abbey stop by to wish her happy birthday, bringing gifts and hugs.....she ate breakfast and then headed to the barn....her home away from home.....haley's been taking english riding lessons for the past year and is doing so well....she will be in a local horse show june 20th where she and her honeyrock horse, ginger, will be judged on form and technique. she is so excited!!!

before heading to the barn, she received a birthday phone call from namaw and grandpa

haley with becky, the honeyrock ranch coordinator who happens to be her riding instructor and good friend......we LOVE becky!!!

another gift from another great friend robyn....... a felted wool hat that matches the mittens robyn made her for Christmas.

we love our honeyrock family!!!

forever a classic sequence

2010-02-06T16:38:00.003-06:00

one of the grad students this year at honeyrock, luis, took some family pics of us while dells mom, brother and sister-in-law were in town at Christmas. it was so fun and this was my favorite sequence he took.....the expressions he captured are so funny! anyways, i enjoyed it so much and wanted to share.

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

2009-12-27T21:03:00.002-06:00

.......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

2009-12-27T20:52:00.002-06:00

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

2009-09-28T09:36:00.004-05:00

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.

2009-09-09T15:19:00.002-05:00

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

2009-06-09T23:13:00.001-05:00

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

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

Hello Again!!!

2009-05-11T23:04:00.005-05:00

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

2009-04-01T14:47:00.003-05:00

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

2009-04-01T14:25:00.003-05:00

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.....

2009-04-01T14:04:00.002-05:00

.......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

2009-03-20T11:06:00.002-05:00

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

2009-03-19T22:57:00.002-05:00

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.....

2009-03-19T22:42:00.002-05:00

.... 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..........

Are You Ready To R-U-M-B-L-E........

2009-03-17T10:28:00.003-05:00

We signed Jackson and Jordan up for the Three Lakes district wrestling team. They've been practicing twice a week for about 8 weeks. Here they are doing some of their warmup exercises. Jordan had been pitching a fit about doing one of them. He was just being lazy we thought. But after a conversation with Mommy followed up with another one with Daddy.......
..... Jordy now completes all assigned warmups.... happily and proudly! This crab crawl was what had him. He just didn't want to do it because it was so hard for him and everyone else would finish before him. After our talk, he realized that it didn't matter how fast he finished it, as long as he did his best and finished what he started. He really has gotten really good at it and has fun while doing it. He was intimidated as he is one of the smaller boys in the class, but he now realizes it dosn't matter how big or small he is.... he can do whatever he really sets his mind to do. He needed some encouragement and direction and is now one of the best in his group and even finishes this particular exercise even before some of the big boys!!!

Jacob, watching the matches. He gets out there and wrestles sometimes too...... and when he does, it is really funny to see. He gets really serious!!

Jackson taking down one of his teammates. They all have so much fun. So much fun that Haley could no longer just watch the wrestling. She has been participating the past few weeks........

........ and boy, can she hold her own!!!! Here she is slamming Jackson. I couldn't believe she picked him up like that!!!! It was so funny to watch and although I definately don't want my little girl to become a wrestler, she definately had fun these past few weeks and I'm glad she's learned a few things so she dosn't just have to just "take it" from Jackson anymore!!!!

Jackson and Jordan are in a tournament this coming Saturday morning, so stay tuned......

Skiing at Big Powderhorn Mtn.

2009-03-17T10:05:00.003-05:00

We went with a large group from HoneyRock to Big Powderhorn Mtn. to go downhill skiing. Dell and the kids had never been skiing before and it had been years and years for me.

Even Jacob went. These were the smallest skis I've ever seen!!! You can't really tell, but they came up to Jacob's chin. It was so cute. I didn't get alot of pics of our time here because I was teaching 4 kids how to ski. Jacob and Jordan went down with me between my skis. Dell wasn't feeling well and only went down once. It also was his first time skiing of any sort. So funny. Haley and Jackson picked it right up. Jacob just got to enjoy the slope without any work of any kind, and Jordan was doing well and went down ahead of me by the end of the day. I can't wait to take them again!!
Jordan and I on what felt like our millionth trip up the chairlift. Working with him took alot of patience. We had to take several breaks as I was getting quite frustrated. I took the kids in for lunch and I skipped out and went on a few runs on my own on the Mtn. Needless to say, I kept getting disoriented and it took me awhile to find my way back to the lodge. I wound up having to go down some harder routes.... I was actually concerned on my way down some of them... but it was fun and I laughed at the sight of myself a whole lot. By the time I got back, I was ready for some more work with Jordy and this time, was able to stay unfrustrated.

This actually dosn't look like a slope at all but it was. Haley and Jackson progressed quickly off the "Big Bird" slope and moved on to this green(easy) slope. They loved that they were skiing on a "grownup" hill.

It really does look totally flat but it really wasn't...... they can't wait to go back!!!

Dell was sick and Jacob was just pooped from skiing.....the poor dudes!!!!

We all had a great day, with great fun and great friends!

Where Is My Baby???

2009-03-17T09:20:00.004-05:00

So a few weeks ago, just as winter started coming to an end, Jacob decided he was going to go tubing. All winter he has always just stood at the top of the hill and watched us tube and he would also push the empty tubes down the hills and I'd have to drag them back up. On occasion, I would just grab him and hop on a tube and go down and he always laughed and had fun, but he never voluntarily went down. On this particular day, I had asked if he wanted to go with me, and to my surprise, he said, "No, I wanna go by myself." Not knowing if he was bluffing or not, I pulled out the camera just in case. Sure enough, he wasn't bluffing and I caught it on video. (A very rare occurance to ever be able to catch anything the first time it happens.)

I just love how he continues giggling and laughing just sitting at the bottom of the hill. And from that moment on, there was no turning back. That boy tubed and tubed! He even went down the big tubing hill on the other side of camp alone!! He refused for anyone to ride with him. Since then, the past few weeks he's grown even more independant. He wants no help with anything..... getting dressed, putting on boots, putting on his coat, getting in and out of the truck..... he wants to do it all.........

So gone are the days of my baby. He is a big boy now, and so every morning he comes down the stairs and just wants to sit on my lap and cuddle, I just drop everything and anything to savor these precious moments with him so I can soak them up. The other morning, he cuddled on my lap, looking out the living room window for 30 min..... perfectly quiet and still...we just cuddled..... and then just like that, he was Mr. Big Boy the rest of the day with not even a glimpse of the cuddlebug of the morning.......... Sigh............ these days are flying by and my kids are growing up!!!

Apostle Islands Ice Caves~ Awesome Experience!!!

2009-03-12T12:44:00.004-05:00

I would recommend going if you're ever in the area in the months of January through early March. It's a really beautiful and fun experience. We'll definately be making a day trip of it again next year, so feel free to come join us!!!!

Just A Few More....

2009-03-12T12:31:00.002-05:00

Just around the corner......
.....were several of these enormous waterfall looking ice walls. Truly amazing to look at.

Back view of 1 of the frozen waterfalls.

Breathtakingly beautiful.....

More Apostle Island Ice Caves

2009-03-12T09:31:00.002-05:00

Definately one of my favorite pics. The ice here froze so clear, it actually looked like running water. It was, yet again, just beautiful.

Climbing into a cave that held a special treat for us to see......

........the most tiny and intricate icicles. They were everywhere inside this cave.

It was so hard( even for us adults) not to touch them. They were just begging to be touched but we decided we were going to leave "no trace" that we were there so that others could enjoy these tiny little wonders. They were so small, they appeared that they would just crumble if you touched them. I had to zoom in quite alot to get even this amount of detail. I was wishing I had a better camera, but these pics are nice too.

More again.......

2009-03-12T09:10:00.004-05:00

We loved looking at the rock. There's so many layers and it looks beautiful. This pic dosn't do it justice at all. It offered a great opportunity to teach and converse with the kids about the different kinds of rock and stone.

Haley kept climbing up this very slippery piece of ice to hold on to the rock and then she would try to move her way off of it, just holding on to the rock and trying to get in a spiderman pose with her hands and feet. I guess she was practicing for this summer's many rockclimbing ventures. She was so funny and kept saying,"I sure do wish we had ropes and a harness. We could totally climb this and Case!!! You could belay me back down!!!"

I can't believe how beautiful ice can be!!! We stayed a safer distance away from some of these ones though as there was evidence that some of these enormous chunks had fallen. You wouldn't want to be under one of them if it did fall.....

And Even More ....

2009-03-11T23:26:00.002-05:00

I loved this specific area at the caves. This hole in the rock is so perfectly round and smooth and it was fun for everyone to climb through. We ate lunch on the other side of it. I think it's safe to say, we were definately the only people picnicing out there and on turkey wraps with blue corn chips and salsa, grapes and sliced oranges to boot!!!!
This place was just incredible.....

Jacob, taking a well deserved break. He did really well. Towards the 3 hour mark, he had a little meltdown, but soon fell asleep in the backpack on the trek back to the truck.

The caving crew. Dell has been working a whole lot lately and wouldn't have been able to go with us before the ice wasn't safe anymore , so 3 of the guys from HoneyRock, Case, John and Charlie, all went with us. I must say, I can't imagine having less than 1 adult per kid when climbing and exploring the caves. We all had a great time and look forward to planning a trip again next year with Dad.

More Ice Caves.......

2009-03-11T23:10:00.003-05:00

More exploring.....

Inside a cave with the flash off.....

......same cave, flash on.

The kids exiting a cave.

More Ice Caves

2009-03-11T22:58:00.002-05:00

Crawling out of one of the caves....
Boys crawling around in a cave and Haley inspecting the ice layers....

"This place is so awesome Mom!!!!"

Creatures of the Caves........

The Four Explorers.....

Apostle Islands Ice Caves

2009-03-11T22:29:00.002-05:00

This was an amazing adventure. (There will most likely be several posts as Blogger won't allow me to upload more than 5 pics per post......so irritating!)

Anyways, these caves were vast and beautiful and were so much fun to explore. They are located on Lake Superior near Bayfield, WI. It is a very popular place to kayak in the summer, but we were able to really experience the caves by walking on the ice along the shore. (about a mile to the first ones) It was a beautiful day with hardly any wind at all. It was the perfect day and everyone had fun climbing and exploring.
Haley standing beside a huge wall of ice. I couldn't stop saying how awesome it all was. I can't wait to go again next year!!!

Inside one of the caves.

We all climbed up into that crack and went back as far as we could. Again, very exciting for the kids especially. The rock is just beautiful.

So beautiful!!!

NHL - Cousin Style

2009-03-09T23:26:00.003-05:00

The families were together the night before mom had to go home from watching the kids while we were on the cruise. We all got out on the rink to play and try out all the new hockey sticks Namaw and Grandpa gave them all for their birthdays. Thanks Mom and Dad!! Huge hits!!!

So.......... Meet the teams...... Cousins vs. Dads
My niece Talia. She's so pretty!!!

My other niece, Kylee, the drama queen!

Nephew Timmy in goal. Not too many got past this little goalie!!!

Namaw pulling all the little ones around the rink. They were loving it and they all had a great time. Too bad we couldn't do it all more often.

Jacob's 3rd Birthday

2009-03-09T15:25:00.005-05:00

Yes!!! You read it right!!!! My baby's cake really says that!!!!

You've gotta understand something though...... I really tried to get him to pick a theme for his birthday as all the other kids usually do. Like Jackson's 7th birthday was a Cowboy Waterski Party..... but somehow I managed to pull that one off. Anyways, I found a bunch of really cool cake ideas online. A gator, a tractor, a tiger, a cowboy boot....all the things he's really into right now and he didn't want a single one of them. So I said..."Fine. I'm just going to make you a bad bad boy cake."(pronounced buoy - that's what his cousin Talia calls him....bad bad buoy :) He was so thrilled and he just laughed and said..."Yeah!!! I want a bad bad buoy cake!!" So this is all I could come up with, seeing that a motorcycle has somewhat of a bad boy image and he likes them anyways. He loved it and it was a delicious, big hit at the party.... we had cousins, a few friends and 15+ college grads. It was a fun time. The cake was a Hershey chocolate layer cake, (made with my flax seed egg substitute so Jordy could eat it too) with chocolate pudding as the middle layer and cool whip cream cheese icing. It was very very yummy!

Happy Birthday To You....... Jordan was singing in Chinese!!!! Such a goof!!! We've been learning a little bit here and there as we will soon have Aunt Amber(from Taiwan) marry Uncle Bryan. I taught the kids to sing Happy Birthday so we could call him on his birthday. He's going to school over there to learn Chinese and is having a bit of difficulty, so for Christmas, we sent him the program we have..... no word on if it's helping yet!

This boy ALWAYS has his hands in his pockets!!! What you can't see, is that his pants are backwards as usual.

Some of the guys were having fun and putting cake all over his face......

........ and he was having so much fun! Happy Birthday my big little "Bad Bad Buoy!!!"

Busy, Busy

2009-03-04T14:47:00.002-06:00

We have been so busy since coming back home from the cruise. There has been a full day, every day since we've been back.

There has been wrestling, guitar lessons,quilting class, learning to knit, Jacob's 3rd birthday party, leading a kid's program out here at camp, more tubing, new concepts being learned in school, downhill skiing, getting caught up for Bible study class,and there's a ton more things I'm forgetting.

But we are slowing down now with the exception of a few ongoing activities. Days have been full, but so very good. We are so very blessed. Blessed with health and energy, with family and friends, with amazing opportunities that teach us and shape us, with the freedom to teach and learn with our kids at home, blessed with the freedom of living a life, loving and worshipping our merciful God. Life is good.

I found this quote and it made me smile. It's so true. I'm thinking about embroidering it and sharing it with friends.

Thank God for dirty dishes, They have a tale to tell.

While other folks go hungry,We're eating very well.

With health and home and happiness, We shouldn't want to fuss.

For by the stack of evidence, God's very good to us.

Count your blessings, name them one by one.

Ocho Rios, Jamaica

2009-02-28T11:17:00.003-06:00

Once again, the water was magnificent. I loved looking at the water and seeing all the different colors. There were so many shades of blue and green and I really wanted to go snorkeling or diving and really experience it.

Jamaica was very dirty. It was so sad to see all the trash and litter everywhere in what could be, an amazingly beautiful place. I couldn't believe how bad it really was in some places along our drive to the falls. It was sickening and maddening. There is no reason whatsoever for it and I really was quite aggravated. Thankfully, we arrived at the falls before I could get more perturbed. Dunn's River Falls was awesome. It is a 600 ft. waterfall that flows into the ocean. We walked down to the beach where we started our ascent. We had so much fun climbing the falls. We had a really fun guide and we were able to climb the more challenging side of it. The falls were just absolutely gorgeous. The water, the greenery, the vines, the exotic flowers all hanging above and around us while we climbed. They told everyone you had to purchase or rent watershoes to climb. Dell had appropriate shoes but I had flipflops. I decided I could do it barefoot and so I did. They tried to talk me out of it, but I had a feeling it was all just another scam to make more money anyway and it was. The rocks were very smooth and super easy to climb on. The whole experience was great and definately our favorite thing we did on the cruise. I'm so sad though because we had a waterproof camera and took tons of pics, but the cruise ship messed up the film while developing. So sad. I guess that's what we get for being impatient......
After the falls we went to Bamboo Beach Club and yes, I let them talk me into getting braids. They didn't have to do much talking though 'cause I always wanted to get my hair braided. So I did it and now I can check that off my list :) This beach wasn't great like in Grand Cayman and we were a little disappointed. We really couldn't even walk down the beach comfortably. We were told before we left the ship that there would be people asking us to buy drugs(among other things) and sure enough, they were ready and waiting for you if you ever walked away from the "club" and wanted to just walk down the beach. It was really ridiculous.

Here's a pic of the huts we would've had to walk past if we wanted to walk down the beach. There were so many people just waiting for you to walk past the sign onto "their turf." If we could've just walked a ways down past them, it looked like there were pristine, beautiful and vacant beaches down there. But,we decided we'd just not experience the unpopulated beaches of Jamaica and stay in our designated section of beach and lay in the lounger which may have been lame, but safe.

If you venture out on your own in these type places and don't make it back in time, the ship will leave you but if for some reason your on a cruiseship approved excursion, they have to wait. Anyways, we didn't want the hastle of the hagglers. They are very pushy.

So I liked and disliked Jamaica. I liked and appreciated the beautiful places we saw and experienced. But I couldn't help but to be saddened by the sight of so much litter and trash everywhere and the beauty of the place fading away from neglect and waste and that mentality of living being passed on to future generations. It's also so sad to see that the people that live there, either know no other way to live, or they just choose to live like that and if they choose, why do they choose that? Jamaica definately had beautiful places, but there was just so much needless abuse of nature that took away from the experience. I just wonder how many people really notice it. Was I the only person on the bus upset by it? I saw a few parts of a beautiful Jamaica, but I also saw more parts that were repulsive. You definately wouldn't have seen that on the Go Jamaica commercials or the Sandals resort brochure. I guess all I can say is, I definately saw the stain of sin from fallen man on display. The total disregard for creation and its Creator was evident in more places than not....... or maybe it was the area we were in....I don't know. Visiting Jamaica was bittersweet. It was sweet climbing a 600 ft. waterfall overlooking the ocean but it made me bitter when we got to the top and there was trash on the banks of the little river. So sad. So wasteful.....

Grand Cayman

2009-02-28T10:45:00.002-06:00

The water was gorgeous in Grand Cayman.... We walked around town for a little while and then took a cab over to 7 mile beach. What's funny is we only paid $16.00 for a ride there and back and the people who booked 7 mile as their "excursion" through the ship paid $34.00 per person. We were happy about our good deal !!!!
The beach wasn't crowded which was a huge plus for us. We were able to really enjoy our time.

The beach and sand were beautiful and the water was warm. Dell even got in and went swimming which is really saying something. I of course swam and swam and floated for a really long time. It was beautiful and I loved every moment of it!

We really didn't do anything. Just layed on the beach and soaked up the sun. We'd read awhile, watch people awhile and then get sleepy and take a nap. I love napping in the sun. There's nothing quite like it. We loved our lazy, peaceful and relaxing day in Grand Cayman and it was definately one of the highlights of our trip.

Key West

2009-02-27T23:10:00.002-06:00

So we weren't very thrilled that Key West was one of our stops. We had just gone camping there a couple years ago and didn't find it all that thrilling then. But, we walked around for about 1 1/2- 2 hours ( where we took this silly, typical tourist photo) and then we spent the rest of the day on the boat. It was nice because the majority of the people were out in town and so we just layed around and enjoyed the beautiful day and fresh air. We layed on the deck of the ship most of the cruise. I loved it !!!
Rick's final "business" call of the trip.

Enough with the paparrazi already!!!

Docked in Key West.

Setting Sail

2009-02-27T22:50:00.002-06:00

1st picture taken aboard the Carnival Freedom. We didn't know how much fun and relaxation we were in for. I never thought I'd like cruising as much as I did. That was true relaxation.
Our great friends and sailing companions for the week.... Rick and Annette. We really had so much fun with them. One of our favorite pastimes was peoplewatching. We laughed so much!!! We also layed in our lounge chairs a whole bunch as well as eating plenty of frozen yogurt. Good times!!!

So the entire ship had to do a lifeboat drill. We talked and laughed and decided that if our ship were to start to go down, that we were in a great escape location.

Leaving port in Ft. Launderdale.

This is looking back at the port. Off we sailed into the night......

Are You Wearing My Sweaters?

2009-02-02T21:01:00.002-06:00

So today, I put my personal preferences aside and let my kids wear my sweaters. I turn around in the kitchen and there they were. Both of my favorite sweaters were on Haley and Jackson. So I asked,"Why are you wearing my sweaters? You guys have a ton of your own clothes." They went on to explain that they were living in the Arctic and needed the sweaters to keep them warm while they hunted for their food. I asked what they were hunting and they said,"Anything. Our children are hungry." (Jordan and Jacob were their children although Jacob was a dog too pulling the "sled.") So I proceeded to give them the go ahead and I laughed and laughed as I listened to their conversations and play. By the way, this was not long after we had watched the Arctic video from the Planet Earth series they got for Christmas. They were inspired!
Sweater #1~ my favorite thrift store find...

Sweater#2~ My favorite Kohl's clearance buy

The masterminds behind the days storyline.

Maybe they could earn us some extra cash in modeling???? LOL....

Their 1st Time Cross Country

2009-02-02T20:26:00.002-06:00

It was a beautiful, yet very cold day for their first time on the trails. It was 8 degrees and once again a negative wind chill. We had alot of fun and they did so well. I used to love cross country skiing as a kid and so glad my kids love it too. (they have been 2 more times in the past week.)
They only fell a couple times each and that was at the bottom of a few hills where the trail curved. I was very impressed with how easy it came to them.

We are so blessed to have access to the equipment here at camp. It would be very expensive to outfit a family of 6 with ski's and snowshoes!

The sun was starting to set on our way back to camp and it was beautiful. I love being outside and breathing in clean, crisp air and spending time with my kids, actively enjoying all that God created us to enjoy!

I'm so glad Haley and Jackson convinced me to take them out to ski when I thought I was "too busy." I know how much I enjoy being out on the trails and seeing the joy on their faces when I chose them over monotony was priceless.

Tubing at Ski Hill

2009-02-02T20:15:00.003-06:00

So this is what you call the "man run" on the tubing hill... the last run of the day, the shirts come off and down they go! These guys were nuts 'cause this day it was 5 degrees with wind chill of about -20. Crazy loons!!!
Jackson getting ready to head up on the tow line.

Jordy's next....

....and then there's Jacob who just wanted to eat snow. It was yet another, fun day on the hills!

school day snapshots

2009-01-27T15:12:00.002-06:00

Haley sitting at her desk. She keeps hers pretty tidy. Jackson on the other hand....well... sometimes it looks like a bomb went off on it.

We have a Canadian,U.S. and world map that cover one wall in our "school room." We use them multiple times per day. My favorite is the nice Canadian map....... because we got it at the dump in Canada!! I love the dump in Pickle Lake. You can get some pretty awesome stuff there....

This is Jackson.... all day.... every day. He's silly, he's funny and I love his personality.

(remind me of that tomorrow when I want him to sit still while we work on multiplication.)

I love this picture....he's thinking so hard and sitting so still! He's so smart too... but when only in his third month of kindergarten, they were trying to tell me he had problems with direction and paying attention. Whatever! He just didn't fit their "normal kid" mold that they wanted him to fit into. So go ahead, check out my"problem student" 2nd grader now.... he's almost finished with 3rd grade math!!! Man... I think I gotta go pinch and kiss those sweet cheeks of his now!!!

Friends a plenty.....

2009-01-27T13:32:00.004-06:00

Some of the guys came over the other night to play a game with the kids. This was the longest game of Trouble ever!! It must have lasted at least an hour. They all teamed up with one of the kids. I can't recall who won, but great fun was had....
My kids are very blessed to be continually surrounded by positive role models that really enjoy spending time with them. They love gaming with them and Haley has even learned how to knit from some of the girls. I am so excited about this and can't wait to be taught myself!

Jordan and John were a team and just sent some others back home.... as you can tell, Jordy's pretty happy about it. What a great time they had that night! It was a late one!

Jonathan, who worked here this past summer was up a few days ago and my boys were so happy to see him. They really connected with him this past summer and here, Jordy was welcoming him back with a huge hug. Jonathan wrestled and played with them for awhile. I actually was able to go upstairs and clean the bathroom without Jacob trying to get in on the toilet scrubbing!! It was great and they're so excited cause he'll be back this summer too. That means alot more ultimate frisbee play for Jackson!

Sleepover

2009-01-24T21:20:00.002-06:00

We had guests the other night. Grace and Eli spent the night with Haley and Jackson. They played out in the frigid temps and had great fun. From what I've heard, they stayed up until 1:30am. I wouldn't know firsthand..... I was asleep.....
Sharing a later than usual breakfast with friends.

Jacob LOVES the new recipe apparently.

Mmmmmmm...

Egg Free Spiced Pancakes

1 c. unbleached or whole wheat flour
2 tbsp.brown sugar
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. of pumkin or apple pie spice
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. fat free milk
2 tbsp. canola oil

Mix dry ingredients. In another bowl, combine milk and oil and then stir into dry ingredients until just moistened. Pour desired amount on hot griddle and turn when bubbly.

Enjoy...... these are very yummy pancakes! By the way, this makes a tiny batch . I had to quadruple the recipe to feed my clan.....

I Talked With The Doc

2009-01-21T15:44:00.002-06:00

I talked with Jordy's doctor today and I was, yet again, encouraged by all he had to say and the great help he's been already. He is so kind and wants to help Jordy so much.
All of Jordans white and red blood cell counts were perfect as well as 3 very important antibodies...IGG, IGM, and IGA. The IgE is high however. Normal is somewhere around 50 and Jordy's is elevated at 780. This is the protein that causes allergies. His blood test came back with positive reactions for things he's currently eating as well as the severe ones we have known about and that we've avoided for years. With this result, the doctor feels sure we should do a strict illimination diet and then one by one, reintroduce the foods at the clinic to find out which ones he truly is allergic to and at what level he can or cannot tolerate them. We are going to wait until spring as this is going to require a good deal of work and time, and alot of traveling to Milwaukee. The first appt. will probably be in April, just after his 5th birthday.

I am encouraged by the doctors eagerness to help although a little nervous about how hard it's going to be to feed Jordy during those months and that the accurateness of his testing will be determined by our adhering to the diet.

I found this interesting story. Once again, my reminder that we have it easy compared to some people. I couldn't believe some of the huge similarities to the allergies that Jordy and this boy share and how that hospital was able to lower the boys IgE levels. His are now lower than Jordy's. Take a look if you've got time........ Mom, you gotta read this!!!

http://brainerddispatch.com/ystories/122408/new_20081224039.shtml

My Little Allergic Fella

2009-01-17T22:19:00.005-06:00

So, on the 12th, I took Jordy to Children's Hospital of Wisconsin in Milwaukee. It was a long day, but it's always great spending 1/1 time with each of my kids. Even though this one included a trip to the doctor with sticking, and not too fun at all for Jordy, we still enjoyed each other and laughed and shared a day one on one, which is very rare.
We left at 4:50 a.m. and I really thought Jordy would go right back to sleep, but I guess the frigid -10 temperature outside gave him a good wake up! We rode and talked and laughed and ate an apple and orange each. We were talking about the stars and moon and how we would get to see the sun wake up. We kept watching the very bottom of the horizon brighten little by little. After a little span of not hearing Jordy talk,(we were listening to the radio and he was looking out the window) I looked over to tell him to keep a look out for animals in search of their breakfast, and whadda you know... he was fast asleep. A little disappointed that he didn't get to see the sky change before his eyes, and night turn to day, I smiled at his beautiful little face resting in peaceful sleep.(although he looked quite uncomfortable in his car seat with head cocked off to the side.) So oblivious to the beauty of beholding the sun rise.(after all, he is only 4!) But he really did miss out! It was glorious! It was hard to focus on driving because all I really wanted to do was stop and sit on one of those rolling hills and watch it ease its way up into the sky. So many shades of purple and pink, then turning to a blazing red and then so brightly orange it hurt my eyes even with sunglasses! I thoroughly enjoyed the drive down.

We were early to the appointment and even though I parked in the wrong parking deck and we had to walk about 1 mile in the hospitals tunnels, to the clinics, we were early enough for me to swing by the cafe and get another cup of java. We then headed over to the clinics and watched the construction crew as they braved the freezing temp and wind and started another day of building a new wing to children's hospital. Jordan loved it and we were so close he could see the controls in the crane. It was pretty cool and I enjoyed watching them, thinking of how complex and detailed the process was.

We met with the allergist and had a long conversation, talking of Jordy's history and him reviewing his records. I am so encouraged and excited with the attitude of his Dr. Having a doctor say,"This isn't acceptable and we will find a way to help him and make him better and more comfortable. We will." I've never heard that. So I was very encouraged..... until after his initial tests. They don't think he will ever outgrow these allergies to foods.(usually, they outgrow between 3 and 4... Jordy's almost 5) I'll know more after the bloodwork comes back next week, but he's pretty sure he won't from the reaction he still presents with the skin test. He has given us a few things to help with the environmental allergies and they're already helping greatly. I am eager to hear the results and have our phone consult as well. His allergist and dermatologist actually agreed on a few things. Thats not happened before. Anyways, the derm. appt. was next and Jordy was very happy to leave the allergists office after all the poking and prodding and sticking that he had to endure. I always feel so bad for him. So off we went to grab a quick lunch and head over to the next clinic. What a huge amount of information I was given.... alot of which I will think about and research on my own, some helpful and some, well.... weird. So the one thing both Dr's agreed on was that Jordan's missing a molecule in his skin that produces oil and that his immune system is hypersensitive which means he's allergic to his own staph (that everyone has on their body) and because his system is hypersensitive, he frequently gets skin infections on areas of broken skin. It is an ongoing cycle. I asked questions gallore...... Why does he scream when I moisturize his skin and sometimes even just getting washed in the bath? Because he's missing his top layer of skin due to scratching and his skin dying and sluffing off because of the ongoing inflammation that's caused by the staph infections and the lack of protection from his body not producing oil. Why does his skin(especially hands and feet) feel rough, calloused, tough and thick no matter how much they're moisturized? The underlayer of his skin , that is now exposed(it's supposed to be protected by his now missing top layer of skin) is thickening and overcompensating in order to protect his body. Hence the thick skin and the ultra sensivity to lotions and soaps and even foods. He's missing his protective barrier basically. So what can we do? "You're going to think I'm crazy but...." Did I lose her there and or was it in the next 5 seconds when she said....."he needs to have a bleach bath once a week." BLEACH? So he's missing his protective layer of skin and his skin already burns in regular baths and with lotions and you want me to put bleach in his bath???? I wonder if she knew what I was thinking..... well she went on to tell me why....."we need to break this cycle. We need to kill the staph on his body once a week......." I think I tuned out again.....Of course bleach would kill the staph... it's toxic.. it's BLEACH lady!.... it does make sense that it kills the staph. Do I think it will help him? Not sure. Gonna try it? Nope.... probably not. I know its a diluted amout- 1/2 cup to a bath, but its still much stronger than chlorinated pool water and to make things better, after the doc left the room, her nurse said..."Just use 1/4 cup." That's reassuring having the nurse give a different opinion on, what seemed to me, to be a controversial treatment, hence the strong instructions to supervise the bath 100% of the time to insure none is ingested, to rinse him thoroughly with clean water and to moisturize within 3 min. of getting out of the bath.
She did give me good instructions for when to do this or use that on his skin in much better detail than any previous derm. we've had in the past and for that I am thankful. I was ready to leave that appointment however and get the bloodwork overwith so we could head home. It had been a long day for both of us. Jordy, once again, was very brave. They took so.... much blood I couldn't believe it all. I thought I'd have to carry him out but we sat for a minute and he was fine. He was very cooperative which made both the nurse and I very happy.
So we finally left the hospital and headed to get Jordy's treats... a happy meal and a stop at Cabela's...a hunters paradise full of fish aquariums and many, previously alive, stuffed animals. We both had a fun time. Finally in the truck and on the road again, Jordy didn't last long before he was out. So tuckered out. I knew it was going to be a long trip home for me. The weather was terrible with heavy snow and wind that made the roads very hard to drive on and I was already very tired from the trip down and the mental energy it took to absorb all that new info and trying to process it fast enough so I could ask questions. As I white knuckled my way up the highway, I was thinking about the day, all the information we had received, all the things to look into and discuss. After a few minutes of feeling overwhelmed by it all, a feeling of thankfulness washed over me. Thankful that I have really healthy children. Thankful for this little guy asleep beside me that a few years ago even reacted to eating things like chicken, bananas, milk and wheat. Thankful of how much easier his allergies are to manage and thankful that in the scheme of health issues, we have a cake walk. I thought of all the familes we met and saw that day. Seeing so many extremely sick children and their parents at that hospital really humbled me and made me so incredibly grateful. I hurt and felt sick for them and I couldn't stop looking at Jordy play, so healthy and happy. I hugged him so many times, thanking God while I held him and praying for those parents and children in that eye clinic, and the people a few doors down from our room where the little guy was receiving some sort of infusion and was really sick, and the little girl who's dad was carrying her down the hall with what looked to be 10 or more IVs in her little tiny body. I felt so grateful to be there for only allergy testing. Thankful..... so thankful for my childrens' health. I always come away from these appts with a renewed perspective and I know its from seeing all of those hurting families and the harsh reality of issues thay are facing in comparison to ours. It's a reminder to me of how precious our health is and how often I take it for granted, how each day needs to be cherished and how thankful and blessed I am to hold each of my 4, truly healthy children every day.

Winter Wonderland

2009-01-17T14:15:00.002-06:00

The waterfront.
This is the kids favorite tree..... just gorgeous.

" I will declare the beauty of the Lord,

Nothing compares to the beauty of the Lord,
Jesus, Your love, it takes my breath away,
and now I'm living every day,
for the beauty of the Lord."
~lyrics from a favorite song~

I love winter and I love winter at HoneyRock. I feel so blessed to live in this community rich with Godly friendships and gloriously rich with the beauty of our Creators creation. I find myself stunned by it and humbled by the complexity of all creation and how small I am in comparison and in the scheme of things.

Psalm 9:1
" I will praise You, O Lord, with all my heart,
I will tell of all Your wonders."

ran/dom -adj- having no specific pattern,purpose or objective.

2009-01-17T11:34:00.002-06:00

Random is a good word to describe the goings on in our life and household..... well if we left off purpose and objective it would..... we have much purpose and we have great objectives..... they will just happen and be reached in a variety of "patterns." (and timeframes)
Here, poor Mr. Bill is trying to fix our camp extension phone line. The boys are full of questions, "helpful" suggestions, and very eager to assist. This man is going to be an amazing Grandpa one day. He managed to replace the wiring with these 2 little boys sitting on him. Literally, one on each leg! He kept reassuring me it was fine, although I am always wondering if people who walk through our doors, go into sensory overload. My kids LOVE visitors! No. They love people. It dosn't matter who you are, they want to talk to you, ask questions(all at once usually) and sit on your lap all while they hold your hand or touch your hair, hat or shirt while at least 2 others will be attempting the same thing at the same time.

"Is that Charlie,Barbara, Alex or Fred Mommy?"
Yes, my kids named the squirrels. Well, some of them. And I don't know who is who this year. They all look very similar. Last year, Charlie was the smallest and cutest and Alex was a little larger than Charlie, but he was ugly. And Barbara is very fat.... but there's a few more and I can't tell them apart. This day, (I think this may be Charlie) he was standing up against the window and scratching, as if trying to come in. The kids LOVE watching and feeding our squirrels.

A Few Quotes from Winston Churchill

2009-01-17T11:29:00.002-06:00

“Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference.”

“I am always ready to learn although I do not always like being taught.”

“The price of greatness is responsibility.”

“You have enemies? Good. That means you’ve stood up for something, sometime in your life.”

“It’s not enough that we do our best; sometimes we have to do what’s required.”

“I’m just preparing my impromptu remarks.”

“Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm.”

“We are all worms. But I believe that I am a glow-worm.”

Hangin' On The Hills

2009-01-14T12:54:00.002-06:00

Tubing is one of our favorite things to do. Its great because we have these small, but fun and fast hills right across from our house. I love that I can let the kids just go by themselves if I want. (but usually, I decide to go too 'cause really, I'm just a big kid myself and I want to go play outside too!) Here, Haley and Jackson are de-icing "the engine"(our favorite tube... its faster than tall the others) so they have an extra fast run.
Jordan skinned his chin a few weeks ago tubing and the proof is still there. His poor little skin always takes so long to heal. He's so tough!

I always try to carry Jacob for a faster ascent, but he always insists upon walking. That's pretty good though because most kids his age would protest a walk that challenging for their size. What can I say? This boy is so independant and head strong. He is definately my most challenging child.....

Tubing with Sam, Case and Charlie was quite enjoyable for my kids. They were being very spoiled not having to carry up the tubes. They loved it! I had fun too, but it was so funny to me how the kids always want to ride down with me, and this day, not one of them would! They actually refused when I asked! But as soon as the guys had to leave, they all wanted to ride with me again. I went down twice by myself just so I could hear them beg and plead and it was so funny and quite enjoyable to hear all the little pleadings they came up with. I love my kids!

The chain gang getting ready to head down..... we go so fast chained together.... even going down these little hills, it is so fun!

Late Night Hockey Game

2009-01-10T21:25:00.002-06:00

Jackson with his game face on...
Haley had to get in on all the fun....

Charlie helping Jackson with his skating....

Charlie, Haley, John, Jackson and Sam... Sam was the boat driver this summer and we got to know him well. He came up for a visit and the kids enjoyed hanging out with him again.

Good times were had.

After the Fire....

2009-01-10T21:12:00.004-06:00

Time was spent waiting on the New Year in many different ways....

.... Charlie and Jackson playing video games.....
....Haley and Jessica dancing. They were quite entertaining!......

......Robyn and Haley taking a break and just chillin..... such good friendsthese two.....

......Charlie and Jordy played Wii......

....Jessica and Jackson playing Connect 4. The kids LOVE all the time they spend with the GPA's and this night was fully loaded with tons of play..... to be continued....

New Years Eve Festivities

2009-01-10T20:40:00.002-06:00

We burned our christmas tree..... oh what fun!
We had a good size fire going.

Charlie and Jacob in deep conversation I'm sure.Charlie comes M-W-F on his lunch break

to teach Haley and Jackson world history& geography. He's a super big hit with all my kids.

Jordy, Charlie, Jacob and Greg

The community we have here is awesome. Even though people come and go every year, by investing in these friendships and sharing our life with them for the few months they are here, we are better people for knowing and growing with them and will cherish their friendships always. I still have to get used to the saying goodbye part, because I'm not too good with that.

I feel so incredibly blessed to live here, at HoneyRock Camp, sharing life with amazing people that love God and go beyond themselves to make an eternal difference for others.
What better way than to be surrounded by them to start a New Year?

Christmas Day Activities 08

2009-01-10T12:56:00.002-06:00

Lots of eating of yummy food.... this caramel apple pie being just one of them.
The other delish foods were....
Prime Rib Roast, Smashed Potatoes,Green Bean-Califlower Salad, Steamed Asparagus with Lemon Parmesan Dressing, Stuffed Mushrooms, Whole Wheat Stuffing, Deviled Eggs, Fruit Salad, Beer Bread and Pumpkin Dump Cake.... Whew!! I really wish I'd taken a pic of the spread but I was a little busy and didn't think about it until it was too late.( Dell's mom took this pic because she loved this pie.) It was alot of food, but we had plenty of mouths to eat it all. Our family and Dell's mom, our friends, Scott and Anne Eppler joined us with their kids and Annes mom and then we all ate the leftovers again the next day. It was all really good and the company just made it even better. We love sharing our table with others.

We walked around camp. This is inside the heritage center. It's so fun and interesting to look and read about the camps 50 year old history.

Snowball fights. Here Jackson and Matt are throwing huge chunks of snow at each other. Matt and Emma are GPA's that are here until the end of Aug. They just got married the end of Oct. and decided to just stay at camp and spend their first Christmas together, away from family. We spent a ton of time with them Christmas week and we had a blast getting to know them and forming a friendship with them.

Emma, building a small snow thing, ( it by no means resembled a snowman) with Haley, Jordan and Sam Eppler. They had tons of fun even though the snow was not working with them.

The HR Christmas broomball team! We had so much fun playing with the kids and getting out of the house. We might just have to make this a tradition!

Christmas Morning 08

2009-01-10T12:41:00.002-06:00

Jordan LOVES anything cowboy these days. So, he received chaps and spurs for Christmas.
Haley and Jackson opening a math game.

Jacob is following in Jordy's footsteps... junior cowboy!

Wii games and Anne of Green Gables movie from Namaw and Grandpa... big hits!!

"This is Sheriff Jordy! Come out with your hands up or else!"

Christmas Eve

2009-01-10T12:18:00.002-06:00

We played outside much of the day. It was beautiful and not too cold. Perfect!
The sun going down at the small tubing hill.

The kids and I after our last time down Ski Hill. (the big tubing hill)
We made a tube chain and went super fast, which consequently, made snow spray all over us at the bottom... very fun!!

I found this card from Haley to Dell and I on our tree and I had to capture the memory! What precious moments my children create for us on a daily basis!

Opening their indoor hockey set before bed..... it was crazy fun and thankfully, no one had to go to the penalty box !!!

So my blog's a little bland.... I know...

2009-01-10T12:14:00.002-06:00

....waiting for my wallpaper company to get their website back up and running. I just got sick of looking at "Happy Holidays." Hopefully we''ll have a new fresh look soon!!

The Beginning of the Mudroom Makeover

2009-01-09T22:50:00.002-06:00

So the mudroom has been my nemesis up until now since there was no way to organize everything, and believe me there's alot to organize! But hopefully, this is the beginning of a much nicer entrance for our guests since we prefer for everyone to come in through the mudroom.(This has been posted for the benefit of the 2 Grandma's. They can both appreciate it.) Dell went to the woodshop and used scrap wood to make theses cubbies for the kids stuff. I'm so excited about it! He did a really great job!!!
WOW! All I have to do now is paint... one day when it becomes more important to me!

It's More Fun Together...

2009-01-03T22:38:00.002-06:00

Jordan coming up for air.
These boys always make me laugh. The faces, the sounds, the imaginations.

Jacob with his shark.

Jacob attacking the current diver with the shark.

Why Tim?

2009-01-01T14:52:00.002-06:00

So here's a picture of Jordan.....before my brother ,Tim, cut his hair behind my back and against my will while Jordan was at his house. We were going to let it grow all winter and cut it at the beginning of the summer. He's still as cute as ever but I loved how his hair felt and looked. He had beautiful curly hair and I loved to touch it. Poor Jordy's hair. He likes the cut and actually wanted it , but only after Uncle Tim convinced him that long, curly hair was for girls! Just terrible Tim. He was perfect just the way he was. Yes, he's super cute with his squared away haircut, but I'm so sad that I don't get to see the end result of letting it grow. For shame on you!

I'm Being Ambushed!!!

2009-01-01T14:42:00.002-06:00

Having a little taste of your own medicine Jackson ?

What's The Deal?

2009-01-01T14:17:00.004-06:00

What is it with my kids' fascination and abounding joy they get from eating snow? I remember eating snow as a kid but not in mass quantities like these children do. I have found that lately, I've stopped telling them to stop eating it. I think this would be a never ending battle if I chose to pick it as one. But I choose not to. My kids are very healthy, rarely sick,(has there really ever been any documented case proving snow can actually make you physically ill? ) and so happy shoving there faces full of the white stuff every day!

Note to self...... Google the effects eating snow can have on small children eaten in large quantities on a daily basis....
Ggggggrrrrrrroooooossssss.......

Its always great fun for me to watch these guys shovel. It inevitably turns into a race of some kind, a weapon of war or some western cowboy's horse. So many different scenarios that churn around and are played out with Haley and Jackson. Jordan and Jacob are on a completely different level, but they too play out entire, day long productions. (mainly of a western theme) These guys have amazing imaginations and create some pretty awesome stuff. I love being witness to all of their creative stories brought to life on a daily basis. Please, no calls or offers from any Hollywood screen writers....

When The Chef's Away....

2008-12-28T13:09:00.002-06:00

....the substitutes play....
....and take pictures and chat....

......and "overcook" all the pizzas.... good times with good friends.....Robyn Walsh and Courtney Fenton. I cooked the 2 days Dell was gone from camp and the last day, Robyn and Courtney came and actually did most of the work. We really had too much fun as you can see from the pizzas.....it was good anyway... we were told many times that they preferred the crunchy pizza....yah for cool HoneyRock people who go with the flow!

Christmas Play

2008-12-09T12:54:00.003-06:00

The kids were in a Christmas play on Sunday. A very interesting storyline I might say but funny and cute. Here Haley hugs her friend Grace Ribbe. They sang a small duet together. If you can't tell by the pic, they are 50's poodle skirt wearing sheep.
Jackson is a cool sheep..... yes, I know.... not your traditional Christmas story...( which in itself, is full of imagined details that aren't actually factual.... but that's a whole other story.)

So cute.....I laughed so much at them!

Don't let them fool you.... they're no angels!!!!

Don't you just love the face?

Just Another Day

2008-12-09T12:42:00.002-06:00

Jacob, trying to stay awake waiting for Grandma to get here.
Tired, but holding out til Grandma arrives.

Trying to get their work done so they can go outside and enjoy the snow. They opted for the living room as their location for working in their workbooks today.

"Take a picture of me!" is what I'm always hearing when they see the camera.

Why not wear your PJ's til you absolutely HAVE to get dressed when we go outside?

Christmas Tree 2008

2008-12-09T12:32:00.002-06:00

We always have tons of fun chopping down our Christmas tree. This is by far my favorite yet.
Jordan, happy its his turn next to saw the tree.

This is right up Jacksons alley...

Its so big we put it in the kitchen/dining area in front of the sliding glass doors.

We liked it just the way it was. Except for chopping a little off the top to fit it in, we didn't trim it at all. Just chopped it down and put it up..... Not perfectly shaped, just the way I like it!

Welcome The Newest Resident at HoneyRock

2008-12-09T12:17:00.002-06:00

Yah!!! Cohen arrived about 4 weeks early but healthy 0n 11/20. So perfect and small at 4lb 9 oz.
Me, Cohen, Mommy Lauren and Robyn at the hospital about 5 hours after he was born. We were so excited to finally meet him.

What precious, beautiful miracles babies are!!!

Haley holding Cohen for the 1st time on Thanksgiving.

Cohen and Jackson

Oops !! I Posted These Backwards.....

2008-12-09T11:52:00.003-06:00

As most of you know, October and November were quite eventful in our family. From Dell's moms 2 brain surgerys in NC to Haley's bonfire burn accident, we are finally ready for only fun excitement! I apologize for posting these backwards. I posted these from most recent to oldest by accident and I don't know how to undo... sorry...

This is Haley about 2 weeks out. She's even better now. The last dead skin has fallen off and there's only a slight discoloration now which, over time and with proper moisturizing and protection from the sun, we have been assured will fade.
About 1 1/2 weeks out. Her hands were severely burned although its hard to tell in the pics. They caused her the most pain and actually she couldn't comfortably hold her pencil to do her schoolwork for 2 weeks so we just did alot of reading. Her hands are quite sensitive to the cold.

About a week out.

The night of before going to the hospital. She was in alot of pain and they were told(I was still in NC) she had 2nd degree burns. We are so thankful it wasn't worse than what it was. The Lord is good and we are reminded of His love and faithfulness through these times.

MLB Here I Come...

2008-12-09T11:42:00.002-06:00

Jackson LOVES baseball.... well.... all sports .... and he's pretty good too. Here are some pics of him in action mode.

Well... actually, I think Dell got him to pose for these.... this was the first day I was gone to NC and he took them to the field.

At The Ball Park in Three Lakes

2008-12-09T11:35:00.002-06:00

Team Ledbetter from left - Haley, Jordan, Jackson and Jacob

Welcome To Today Heather

2008-12-08T08:48:00.002-06:00

So today I was awakened with a smile. The soft giggle and voice of Jacob whispering,"Morning Mommy," just automatically made me grin. Although I really didn't want to pull back the covers and be greeted with cold, I had to.... I have to start today...now.... go on....get up!! But before I could convince my body to follow the instructions from my brain, Jacob's soft voice was quickly changing tones.. from soft, cute and quiet to louder, squeaky and questioning tones..."Mommy..... will you make me breakfast???" "Mommy, Mommy, where's Charlie?" (for those of you who don't know, Charlie lives here at camp and is literally, Jacob's favorite person ever.) "Mommy, why you have your jacket on?" as he's unzipping and zipping my hoodie up and down, bouncing up and down on me and throwing his "Bearie" in the air which keeps landing on my head. So, I answer all the questions and am still smiling, when Jordan comes and tackles Jacob, whose head slams down on my lip. Yeah! Now, I hop out of bed really quick to practice the self control I'm always talking to the kids about. "Just "walk it off" as Jackson says," I told myself. I really didn't want to have a bad attitude within the first 10 min of starting today.
As I head to the kitchen, I see the beautiful snowcover that we were getting as I was headed to bed last night. Its so beautiful. I won't ever stop loving seeing the snow clinging to the trees, to see the beautiful, still untouched snow covering the frozen ground and I really wanted to jump the making breakfast ship and go out and wander around in it.
I smile again. Thinking about the fresh fallen snow, its still undefiled beauty and the happy little boy, full of questions and fun. They are both one and the same. Purely beautiful and mine to enjoy!

October 2008

2008-12-07T22:08:00.002-06:00

The kids had tons of fun when they went out on Halloween with some of the HoneyRockers. Haley decided she wanted to use some fur from the craft shop to make a bunny tail and put some on her ear muffs. Pretty cute! I'm glad they were able to go out and have fun while I was in NC with Dells mom after the 2nd surgery.
Jacob = "Biderman"

Jordy = one fierce Batman

Jackson = Rambo

Follow the yellow brick road in front of our house. I love fall!

Laughter, Hugs, Kisses and Cuddles~ The Best Medicine

2008-12-07T19:03:00.002-06:00

Grandma - Day 5 in recovery..... she came through it all with flying colors... literally. There was alot of bruising and swelling which started to manifest this day. Haley was a little nurses assistant and a jester to boost morale. Even through all the stress, we managed to have a relatively fun time...
They watched MANY episodes of Little House On The Prairie which is Grandma's favorite show

What's The Silver Lining In Brain Surgery?

2008-12-05T20:07:00.005-06:00

Being reminded that life is just a vapor and is a gift from God each and every day and that our only hope lies in Him alone.
Hugs.... lots and lots of hugs!

Knowing that friends and family will love and support you through ANYTHING no matter what.

Having confidence, trust and faith in the One who has numbered our days, knows all the plans for our lives and works all things together for our good if we only believe in Him.

Blood is not ALWAYS thicker than water..... I Love you Momma!!!

Things We Had To Do In NC Before Grandmas 1st Brain Surgery

2008-12-05T19:50:00.003-06:00

... Take many amazingly fun baths in the whirlpool tub.....
... put poor BeBe down.... what a sad, sad day.....

....drive past the old home....man I miss those old oak trees...

...make Dr's appointments at Duke fun by taking friends with...

....watch an amazing NC sunset....

We Like To Swim In October...

2008-12-05T19:38:00.003-06:00

The water was....mmm... refreshing and exhilerating....
.... there were many demands for towels....

....although some tried to "man up" without one....

... and others relaxed in the swing taking it all in...

... and being irresistibly cute....

Just Me and My Mom

2008-12-05T19:04:00.002-06:00

During the HoneyRock Partners weekend, Jackson and I were able to try out the new sea kayaks. We had alot of fun together. It's not every day I get to spend one on one time with my kids and this was a great thing for Jackson and I to do together and something we both had wanted to do all summer.

Jackson had been trying to "beat" all the others the whole time and stay in front and towards the end, (during this picture) he was commenting about where they all were.

I had an awesome time with my little man and I'm looking forward to more 1/1 fun!

Fort William ~ Thunder Bay, Ontario

2008-12-05T18:47:00.002-06:00

Jackson posing with one of the canons... he always gravitates towards anything destructive...
Haley trying to carry a 90lb fur pack

We all loved the furs... some more than others.... Jacob and Jordan were laying on them!!

Haley inside on of the tepees. She stayed in there a really long time taking notes in her journal. She did a really great job. Both Haley and Jackson outlined our visit to the Fort and we discussed, compared notes and finally, they wrote a paper detailing the visit. It really turned out well. I'll try to scan them on soon.

Jackson wearing a wolf fur... his favorite.

More Canada 08

2008-12-05T16:57:00.002-06:00

Haley, Grandpa and Jordy... hangin out in their pj's.
Grandpa and Jackson cutting the church grass.

Jacob picking blueberries...they were big and they were plentiful !!!

Canada Fall 08

2008-12-05T16:45:00.002-06:00

Haley and I after a day cutting wood in the woods and picking blueberries.
Jacob's stitches.

Jacob before stitches after falling off the dock out on Capkeechy Lake.

Jacob carrying a bucket of water to the cabin.

Pics from this fall

2008-12-05T16:30:00.002-06:00

Jacob playing in the freezing water at Presque Isle
It was very windy and the waves were enormous. I questioned my quality of parenting after crossing the sound over to the isle with the kids.... we were nearly knocked over many times. It was a fun day to end an awesome summer with the HoneyRock '08 staff. Good times...

Jordan soaking up the beauty that is Capkeechy Lake in Northern Ontario. Having a big stick to "fish" with is enjoyable too...

Good Friends
From Left~ Melody Lake, Robyn Walsh, Jacqui Sharpe, Haley Ledbetter and Grace Ribbe

"Can we go to the ranch?"part 2

2008-07-18T15:07:00.003-05:00

Jacob exploring one of the barns.
Becky, the ranch coordinator, teaching the kids about different wounds that horses get. We love Becky and how willing she is for us to come over and chat, ask questions, get rides and patron the HR ranch.
I did not pose these children! That's why I love this pic so much. It just was. I was talking to Becky and I turn around, and there they were, watching Mia and some of the other horses. This is why I always take my camera.
Jordan's gift to me while at the ranch. I love his little hands. So many times they're so dry and cracked and broken out they hurt me just to look at them. But this day in this pic, they're just beautiful.
Waiting to ride, they're always excited just like it was their first time ever. This day, Jordan was going first and Jackson was excited for him, put his arm around him and said,"You're going first buddy!" I love moments like these and that I get to remember them forever.

"Can we go to the ranch?"

2008-07-18T14:35:00.003-05:00

The kids are always wanting to go the ranch. And I always take my camera...
Jacob, being curious.
The cool cowboy pose must just come natural to some.
I love this pic of Haley. How sanitary it really is for her to have that in her mouth I don't know, but it's definately not the 1st time and won't be the last and she has yet to get sick here in WI.
I don't know what Jordan's doing. Just being cute as usual.

One of our favorite things~

2008-07-18T14:13:00.002-05:00

We love to be on the lake. Haley and Jackson help paddle and Jordan has lately been wanting to try his hand at it as well.( Recovering the paddle from the lake is just a part of a 4 year old learning to paddle I guess. ) Jacob, my not-afraid-of-anything-dangerous-kid, just likes to lean over the side of the canoe and feel the water as we glide over it. I like watching him. Most of the time he just sits there quietly, feeling the water and looking around like he's just taking it all in and sometimes it looks as though he's thinking. I wish I knew what it was considering he's 2.

Mia~ The HoneyRock Philly

2008-07-18T13:52:00.003-05:00

Mia, less than 24 hours old
Mia and momma, Ginger.
Mia, 4 weeks old
It's so cute the way she runs around and kicks her legs. We've really enjoyed watching her as she changes. Jacob loves her the most. He's always wanting to see, "baby hoss."
Haley with Mia. She loves to feel her mane. It's so soft. We're having to be alittle more careful these days though. Mias been nipping.

My Little Cowboy's

2008-07-14T21:22:00.002-05:00

All three of my boys LOVE cowboys right now.. here Jordan and Jacob are "holding up" their dinner cook... literally... it always takes a little longer to do everything these days.....it's all good... I like it....
"Stick 'em up!"
Can you say "cowboy from south of the border" ?

Going Way Back.... to April...

2008-07-14T07:53:00.003-05:00

Jordan's birthday breakfast... french toast with strawberries and whip cream...yum
I always have to make his before the rest of the families b/c of his allergies, so I just plated it all up for him. It looks like alot b/c it is!!! He usually does eat 4; just not with strawberries and whip cream.
We couldn't understand where it all was going!!!

What a piggy!!!
Oh well... it was his birthday!!!!

What happened to your blog?

2008-05-31T15:04:00.003-05:00

A question I've been hearing alot lately. I apologize for my slackness in blogging everyone. My main problem after uploading pics onto the computer is transferring all of them over into a file that I can access on the web. Anyways, I take full responsibility and will be working overtime to see there are updates soon........ I can't wait to share all the pics.
There are so many of kids playing, climbing, riding horses,playing with cousins and my favorite and yet most sad catagory, my little and last baby, getting his first haircut and transforming right before my eyes into a little boy!!!! A sad day for mommy seeing that it wasn't just a haircut, it was a buzz cut!!! I knew the day would come and now I have realized, I no longer have little babies. What a sad thought but a very real one. Don't we all wish they could just stay little forever ?!?! But, after all, he is only 2 so I have many more of these "lasts" with him thank the Lord. None I look forward to..... except one...... the last diaper!!!!!!!!

I am so thankful for my healthy children and I am savoring these young years. I do admit there are days I feel like screeming, but only into a pillow, in my room, with the door closed. They are so fun and funny and I try to remember every little thing lest one day I should forget.
Thanks for checking in on us. We Love You !!!!

The Little Chapel

2008-03-18T10:34:00.003-05:00

This is the little Edman Memorial Chapel in the HoneyRock village. It really is beautiful and these pictures don't do it justice. It was really neat walking in there. Last years burdens and commitments were still nailed to the cross, and I can imagine the special times that have happened in there throughout the years.

HoneyRock pics

2008-03-18T10:15:00.002-05:00

The sign at the entrance of the camp road.The lodge where we eat and fellowship.
The fireplace in the lodge. Rather messy with loads of stuff the students left there while they ate
A few of the HoneyRock staff. Most pictured here will move on in the fall. That's whats so cool. These guys invest in the camp and get to know the staff and make friendships and grow in Christ and then leave to go start the ministry God's calling them too. At the right is Brandon and Jackie. they will leave in the fall to go to another camp out in Colorodo. They have been called to serve there. One girl has just left to go to England to work in a mission there. A couple will be returning to Columbia , South America and yet others over in Czech and Africa. Its awesome to know they're so many willing to still go and share the Gospel of Christ in foreign lands and love the whole world as Jesus did.

Snowmen!

2008-03-18T09:58:00.002-05:00

The snow was perfect the other day to build snowmen.

They were outside a long time rolling them and then waited for Daddy to get home to stack them. They had so much fun and I liked watching them as I passed the sliding glass door. They've helped me to remember the fun times I had as a kid playing for hours outdoors in the winter wonderland. It was so fun!!
Haley's snowman w/ Jackson playing football in the background.
Jackson's snowman

The snow had melted quite a bit when these were taken last week but has since returned and is falling very heavily right now.

Words for the Day

2008-03-13T15:05:00.002-05:00

I'm reading a book right now called, How I Know God Answers Prayer, by Rosalind Goforth ,1921. It is their family's memoirs of answered prayer in their lives. They were missionaries in China and these are some of the times God showed Himself to be all-powerful, all-knowing and full of grace. This is a poem from the book .

"He answered prayer: so sweetly that I stand,

Amid the blessing of His wondrous hand,

And marvel at the miracles I see,

The favours that His love hath wrought upon me.

Pray on for the impossible and dare,

Upon thy banner, this brave motto bare,

'My Father answers prayer.'"

It's not the most poetic,fluid and beautiful poem in the world, but after reading the ways God worked miracles in their life, I tried to understand from their perspective, after all those times and trails, how these words came from her heart and how humble and inspiring she was.

He has worked miracles in all of our lives and how many more He wants to give if we would just be ready to receive them from ready, obedient and faithful hearts,lives and attitudes.

Exploring camp

2008-03-11T12:47:00.002-05:00

We've been outside everyday since we've been here. It's a beautiful time of year. Not too cold and its the time before it all melts and makes a muddy mess. We've had alot of fun exploring the different and interesting places here at camp. We were walking on the lake yesterday evening and saw either bobcat,lynx or mountain lion tracks along with a multitude of other ones. The kids and I haven't looked up the track online yet but it's been interesting to see all the different animal tracks there are in our yard and around camp and try to guess what they are.
The sun reflects so brightly off the snow and its just beautiful. I love being in the midst of such beautiful creation.

Our Home at Honeyrock

2008-03-11T12:24:00.002-05:00

Here is a couple pics of our house here at camp. We are in the middle of camp and the kids are loving it so far. The broomball court, rink, rockclimbing and one of the tubing hills are right out our door.

Dell walks up the this path to go to work and we have been enjoying the closeness to him. He even talked me into coming to make french bread for him in the lodge kitchen a few days ago while the little kids napped and the big ones watched a movie.( We have walkie talkies and can talk back and forth. ) It worked out well and it helped him out alot.

You might be a redneck if.............

2008-03-11T12:11:00.002-05:00

.....your youngest(and last)
childs 2nd birthday consists
of a ham sandwhich and coffee crisp
chocolate bar at 8:30 at night :)

We had just arrived at Honeyrock after 2 days of traveling in terrible weather: it was -3 and we were all so.. tired but you gotta do what you gotta do. Needless to say we had a really good laugh about it all and will make for a good story to tell about him.

I really don't know why we didn't celebrate his birthday over breakfast at Cracker Barrel when he had a pancake with whip cream on it! I guess the thought didn't cross my mind in all the chaos.

We're here!

2008-02-29T15:14:00.004-06:00

We are here at Honeyrock in Three Lakes, WI. The Lord has truly blessed us with a smooth transition so far. We were amazed to have over 25 people unload our 2 trucks in less than an hour! Everyone has been so great to us already and its nice to already begin to feel at home here and so welcomed.
Last night was family night where the entire staff and their family's eat together. We met alot of people and ate some great food in the beautiful lodge here. We pulled the kids over in the sled and they thought that was so great.
Today was a mild day although it has snowed all day. I put the kids in the sled and pulled them around camp. We saw the horses and are eager to get a chance to ride them. Jackson has already become friends w/ alot of the college students here and they have included him in several games of broomball. He's loving it!
We also went iceskating this afternoon on the rink up the path from our house. I even got out there and did pretty well for not having skated in 15+ years :)
We had alot of fun!!!

My Father's Wisdom

2008-02-24T16:44:00.002-06:00

I was getting ready to post a final few thoughts before our family begins our transition to WI. I reached for my Dad's Bible to look up a verse and I read a few of my Dad's notes in His Bible. I hope he won't mind me doing that. What I read reached the very core of my soul. As long as I can remember, my Dad has walked so closely with the Lord. I have so many times taken it so much for granted , but never again. I pray that one day, I will have half the wisdom and passion for the Lord as my Dad does.

" God is a perfect All; the creature a poor nothing, and I return to that which I've recognized as the best and productive of the greatest peace of mind~ that is, forgetting myself as much as I can and continuing to live simply in the grace of God. O Lord, confirm us in this resignation of ourselves, and that all that is within us may sing with thine handmaid Hannah,"There is none holy but the Lord, for besides Him there is none else." 1 Sam.2:2 Amen"

"If the life of a man or woman on earth is to bear the fragrance of heaven, the winds of God must blow on that life,winds that are not always balmy from the south, but fierce winds that chill the very marrow."

These notes my Dad penned from his heart and I long to have that obedient and submissive spirit and heart toward the Lord and His will.

He is worthy and O that we could let go of our perspective and get His. I want to be able to say,"Lord, bring the fierce wind if its your will for You are my All and there is none else."

Orienteering

2008-02-16T10:28:00.003-06:00

Haley has our map, her best friend Meghan has the compass. Lead the way guys!
Haley w/ her walking stick. She always finds the best one like her Grandpa.
We stopped for lunch along the way and even w/7 kids,1 dog and 5 adults we came in 2nd !
(we weren't trying to be good, we just are naturally :)

We let Jordan find the last marker of the day. He was so proud !!!