#4

Uncle Al, Kyler, Moriah, Lyndsay and Joshua (?)

Getting the good food!

Porch is done!

In line for food!

Thanksgiving #3

Carving the big bird!

Here it is, all cooked and ready to serve!

The garage this morning, set up for fun!

Getting it ready!

Amber's home!!!

Thanksgiving #2 pictures

Dad and Teresa and the grandkids...

The grandkids waiting for Grandma and pa to come for a picture.

The story behind this... Isaac got a kit to paint a night light race car thingymabob. I was trying to get the paint to come out of this little tube and pop, paint flew out and hit the ceiling and there was a big blue blob! No, it didn't come out all the way, so my ceiling has more character than everyone else's!!

Lyndsay loves her grandpa - sorry for the open mouth picture, dad but you are both adorable!

See, I said adorable, didn't I???!!! She loves her grandpa!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dad opening his Christmas presents!

Lynday likes Curt's present - she wasn't afraid of it, she would chase it around!

I love my gift - right from the heart of Teresa who has worked on this quilt for our bed for over a year?! It is wonderful, beautiful and very very warm! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Chelsea and Phil, waiting patiently!

Isaac and his gift!

We got together last weekend for our Christmas with my Dad and Teresa because they are soon leaving for Floriday and this is the last weekend all of the kids would be home (except Amber) to do it. We had pizza, salad and lots of fun and laughs! Teresa made us a beautiful quilt and Lyndsay as well (all of the other kids got one 2 years ago and love them still). It was a great night!

Well, the day is almost done. Our house seems eerily quiet and empty after having 43 people here earlier for dinner! It was great, only not enough time to visit each person for very long, of course! Everything went smoothly! We weren't sure on how long to cook a 40 lb turkey, but Jeremy's mom researched a little and thought about 10 hours so last night I stayed up til 1:30am cleaning, etc. and we had said we'd put the turkey in at 1am. So, at 1am, I took a quick shower, then woke up Jeremy and told him we had to put the turkey in the oven. He rolled over, looked at me and said "it is in the oven" and rolled back over! No, no, no, get up, we have to put it in the oven! So, he finally got up and we got him into the oven (not Jeremy, the turkey!). We thought the turkey would be done around 10:30am. Wrong, Jeremy stuck the digital thermometer in at 8am and it was done at 8:30am!! So, we made some calls and people started arriving around noon. By the time we got everything else ready, we still didn't eat until 2pm! But it was delicious! All of the food everyone brought from the green bean casserole, sweet potato casserole, the 20lbs of potatoes that Mom and Aunt Karen peeled and cut and mashed!, the whipped cream dish Grandma Reid makes, the rolls, the bean dish from Teresa, the stuffing, wow, I think I'm hungry again:) And we won't even talk about the desserts! Thank you everyone for all of your help in cooking dishes and cleaning up! My house looks almost as if no one had ever been here believe it or not! Mostly, thank you for the sweet fellowship - we always have a great time and don't get together often enough! I thank God for such a great family - I couldn't ask for a better family to have married into either!

So, the front porch is complete but I didn't take a finished picture - I'll see if I can get one in the dark to post tonight. The only thing left to tackle yet this winter is cutting firewood and redoing the front bathroom. We are going to have 3 weeks off at Christmas (2 holiday and 1 layoff) and one week at the end of January so we'll have plenty of time to get that project done! I am enjoying all of the other things we've accomplished - it all looks so nice! We really enjoyed the extra room in the garage which is bright and cheerful and warm! We borrowed tables from the church and set up 5 of them. After everyone was done eating and some had left, we took 4 down and the boys played out there with guns, swords and we also set up a TV and video game system for them out there! We bought some indoor/outdoor carpet and rolled it out on the floor out there - Lyndsay enjoyed that, although she got held a lot today (it was too dangerous for her to be on the floor!) She was a very good girl all day!

Erin was so tired and emotional by 7:30pm she asked if she could watch Dora in my room, so I turned it on for her and 15 minutes later she was sleeping - out cold! Isaac played with his cousins all day and is tired now as well. I have to admit I am a bit tired as well and look forward to collapsing into bed in a few minutes!

Amber got home Tuesday night about 8pm and is having a great time visiting everyone! Brooke and Curt had to go to their dad's for the rest of the week:( But, they get to visit some relatives from out of town over there as well. Everyone missed them today, though!

A little funny - Isaac - my constant worrier had been complaining about a belly ache every night at bedtime! I was sending him to bed with a rice sock, a snack and telling him it was because he wasn't finishing his dinner and was probably hungry, he needed to eat or he would starve to death (you know, typical mom lecture, there are kids starving in Africa...). A few nights later, probably also thanks to older brother Curt torturing him, he came running out of his room, crying - mom I'm going to die. No, you're not, what's wrong? How many days to you have to go without eating before you die? I said, weeks probably, don't worry and go to bed! He also cried yesterday after I threw away one of many sticks I've found in my house while cleaning that boys had been playing with outside and didn't want to take the chance of losing...

Well, I could say more, but I will try and post some pictures and be off to bed. Have a great rest of the weekend and enjoy those leftovers! Christine

Friday post #2

Did I ever say blackmail picture or paybacks before? Oh, that was for Brooke, this is for Curt! I love you man! Like the blond wig!

the M&M game...

Curt won - yeah!

Hi there!

Not a whole lot of room or choices!

fingers?

or toes - could there be some more teeth ready to pop out?????

Well, it's Friday and we had the day off for veterans day which I know was Tuesday, but they do it this way to accomodate the deer hunters... I'll take any day off I can! We had a lot of fun this week and were pretty productive. Last weekend, we started the drain tile project (300 feet). Jeremy perfected the hole and used the laser to get the angle just right while I filled in behind him. I raked and shoveled away a few pounds this week as well as a pulled muscle under my armpit! Brooke helped one night. We finished that on Tuesday night and got all of the landscaping done around the side of the house to the back corner! How nice looking! Then, started on the back deck. The deck came from Jeremy's trailer after we got married (he had just built it). So, he polished it up, added skirting and new stairs and it looks better than new! Then, he moved the gas line that has always ran outside the front of the house through the crawl space instead, getting ready to do the front porch. The boys and I moved rocks out of the way and shoveled up old mulch to make room for new last night. Today, Jeremy and I and the girls went to Lowe's after doing a little TLC on the inside of the house and laundry and got the materials for the front deck! Then, my husband went to Millington to get ready for opening day. He is spending the night out there alone as it was raining and is supposed to rain tomorrow. The kids and I went to Maggie's birthday party tonight and are going to town to get some shopping done tomorrow! This morning, while waiting to go to town, I tackled the girls' room and decided to change it around.... Oh boy, 9X10 rooms with 3 pieces of furniture are NOT fun to rearrange! After much muscling and moving inch by inch, I did it and don't care to ever do it again until we move! Check out the picture and you'll see why! That's why my house plans for the new house have very large bedrooms (14x18 or something like that)! I've lived here for 15 years and am tired of small! Tonight, we worked on the boys' room a bit. I'm afraid Curt is a bit of a teenage not so care about clean boy that I wish he was. I made him clean out behind the bunk bed on the floor. He loves to sneak food into bed, eat and throw the wrappers apparently:( Gross, I say! So, all the bedding has been washed, I am going to disinfect the door knobs and light switches and hope that this little "bug" goes away for good! I told my husband when we're all done with this home improvement stuff, I'm going for a manicure and pedicure and then to the doctor to see if I have a sinus infection!

At Maggie's party tonight, Heather had the kids play a cute game. She put M&M's on a plate, then covered them with whipped cream, making the kids eat through the whipped cream and eat the candy as well. Curt won! But, when she put the candy on Erin's plate, then covered them up with the cream, Erin was devasted she covered them up and she apparently doesn't like whipped cream, poor girl! So, she didn't play!

Lyndsay reminds me of a little bear. She crawls around, trying to catch me and will stop, stand up and look at me exasperated, then get back down and crawl some more! What a sweetheart! She'll be walking in no time! I feel bad because we've been working hard at night outside and the kids have been watching her inside cuz it's too cold to take her out, and I can't do the stuff we've been doing with her in the backpack... I miss the time with her! But, we'll soon be done and can relax again (I hope:)

Well, the front deck and the bathroom and painting the living room to go. I am sore and feel rough all over, but feel as if I'm getting back into shape and only have 2lbs to go til my next goal, I've lost the 40+ from my pregnancy and hope to lose 15 more...

Amber is doing great, she's so busy she's only been calling home every few days now. She'll be home in 2 weeks for Thanksgiving and has one week off for that... I was going to buy her a bus ticket home, can't get off work the days she can leave and has to be back but her Dad is going to get her and her Grandparents will be taking her back the following week - thank you!

So, off to bed for me, but I'll post some pictures first - have a a great weekend!

Chris

Post #4

Once happy kid!

And, oh yeah, I am only 3 more lbs from my next goal in weight loss! YIPPEE!

Post #3

Posing by the cornfield - almost ready to harvest!

My princesses!

The 40 pounder turkey! Jeremy and Brooke cut this one up - we'll cook the other for thanksgiving dinner!

It barely fits in the oven! The rack was bending under the weight:)

Three princesses again except Amber instead of Brooke!

Post #2

Grandpa Bohn came down to visit Amber and was holding a tired baby!

Aren't they precious?!

Amber's home!!!

The school choir singing a special Sunday night!

Going for one last ride before loading up to go home!

Pictures!

having fun in the camper!

watching a movie in the camper...

Curt and Jeremy Wilson on the go cart!

Hi there - been busy as usual - we had a great week and weekend - the weather was beautiful and we spent the weekend at the property, but came home for a bit each day and did some painting. I hate painting! Once we start doing it, it's not so bad, but just the idea of getting started. I am not a great decorator, either - but there is nothing like a fresh coat of paint to spruce things up a bit! We got to the property Friday night and Jeremy hunted then came in to a camp fire and then a movie and bed! We left the generator running all night to run the furnace in the camper! Saturday Isaac, Erin and I had a dentist appt. at noon, but after we went out for breakfast, they called to tell us they had a cancellation, so we headed back into town at 11am. Erin was supposed to have her "first" tooth check up, but Isaac ended up shutting her finger in one of the doors at the office (her finger was in the hinge side of the door - even worse!). Just when I thought about taking her to medexpress, she finally calmed down (about 2 hours later) and started bending it and using it - was very bruised on the tip though! We went home to do some more painting in the garage before going back out to the property. Brooke had a birthday party Friday and Saturday and ended up staying there that night as well and going to church Sunday with Jean... Jeremy W. Came out to Millington with us. He and Curt rode the go cart and Isaac rode his all night til dark. Jeremy went hunting at his dad's. I went for a walk with Isaac and Erin before dark - that was nice! Jeremy and I took the go cart for a "test drive" when we first got there and saw 2 doe and 4 fawns way out back! Sunday we finished up the garage (YAY) and my husband had everything put back in it's place that night for the most part! All ready for Thanksgiving! We had today off for election day - so I took the kids to school, then took Erin to her 3 year old check up and she got her flu shot which devastated her! Went to Home Depot for door paint, then to Kohl's for shoes, then home to start painting 4 exterior doors! Two coats on each door (thank goodness Lyndsay took a nap and was very cooperative even after she woke up!). Then, did the interior and I also painted the pantry door, the boys' closet door and one side of our bedroom door which will probably make my mother very happy:) Like I said, it's not so bad once you get going! I really should be in bed, but I haven't posted in awhile.

Last Monday, Len picked up our turkeys to take them to the butcher and unfortunately hit a deer on the way here:( Jeremy and I picked them up on the way home and the two males dressed out at 40 lbs and 38 lbs! The females were about 20lbs a piece. My freezer is full again! So, Tuesday night, we were busy bagging up turkeys and putting them in the freezer!

Well, Lyndsay is loving standing up on her own without holding onto anything and even took a step last night towards me, so we are in trouble! She is a busy baby and is into everything and starting to try and taste everything so she has to be watched carefully!

Well, I'm off to bed, so I'll post some pictures - have a great rest of the week!

Chris