From Us to You

Family Reunion October 2008

2008-11-06T17:03:00.002-06:00

Fall

2008-11-05T23:09:00.002-06:00

Dectectives in the House!

2008-08-05T12:44:00.020-05:00

Agent M. Cole (aka:party host)

You did a rockin' job directing all those little detectives, baby!

Happy Birthday Alexis! We love You!

Agent L. Cole

Well, we celebrated Alexis 9th birthday July 26th. I can't believe it! We had a detective theme party that was quite a success. We asked the kids to come dressed as detectives. There were about 15 kids which we divided into 3 groups. Each one received an Agent Badge (sticker w/their group # on it.) Michael made up the clues and did a fabulous job I must say. The final clue let the kids to turn on the TV where Michael had made a slide show which told them where to find the missing cake.

Here's part of the crew looking for the microwave clue. I had to help them. (including Michael) They looked everywhere for the clue I'd hidden so well on the bottom of the microwave door. I couldn't make it too obvious could I?

Here's the littlest group---w/Uncle Mark's assistance they found all their clues too!

Here we are putting all our clues together to find out what to do next. Oh the fun we had!

Our 5 suspects!

Keilah, LaVeda, Denise, Aunt Chelle, Aunt Margaret. Thank you to all of you.

We all had a great time. I have to say it will be tough to beat this party. We most certainly have set a high standard now. What were we thinking.

At the Ranch

2008-07-20T21:57:00.004-05:00

July 4th, we went to Brownwood to our friends ranch. We had a great time riding 4-wheelers, watching fireworks at the lake, rock skipping, and just being outdoors. We also had the opportunity to ride some horses. I decided to take my horse on a little trot and got a little too close to a tree. I now have some awesome scars on my right arm to show for it.
Joshua had fun, at first we weren't sure if he was
laughin' or cryin'.

Throwing rocks in the water has never

been so fun. Lexi learned to rock skip and

was pretty good at it.

Gone to Camp Brookhaven

2008-06-29T21:06:00.002-05:00

We sent Lexi off to camp for the first time. We'll let you know how she did. Michael is trying to not be to concerned about her. I'm confident she's having a wonderful time. We'll post some of her pictures when she returns. She'll be gone till July 2nd.

Fredericksburg

2008-06-29T20:57:00.003-05:00

Well, we've returned from our yearly trip to Fredericksburg/San Antonio vacation. We started off swimming at the pool at LBJ and Lady Bird parks. We visited Enchanted Rock for the first time. I think it will be a while before we return there, the 3 hr. hike was a little much for my kiddos, but I'm proud to say we made it up the huge rock and all the way around. I think we'll pack more than 5 bottles of water if we ever do it again. The last 20 min. we prayed for God to send us a cloud, and He did. What a difference a little shade makes. Our last few days were spent at Six Flags Fiesta Texas in San Antonio. We were reminded that Fiesta ROCKS compared to Six Flags in Arlington. Hardly a comparison. Now, back to some sort of routine with gym trips and LOW carb diets.

Father's Day

2008-06-15T22:23:00.004-05:00

Well, today was a fun day. We spent the afternoon in Aledo with my sisters, Mom, and Dad. We had such a good time. The kids enjoyed playing with their cousins. The boys made a mud mess of the pool and enjoyed making mud soup. Weeda has all the mud pics...I'll post them when I get 'em. Around 5:00 p.m., we headed home so we'd be ready for our Herrold friends to arrive. The kids planned a special meal for their dads. They served them with aprons on, taking orders from menus they'd created. It was so sweet.

Our latest

2008-06-06T23:28:00.004-05:00

Well, I can't believe it's been almost a month since my last post. Nothing really exciting to blog about. Joshua had swimming lessons this week and is doing quite well. He dove for his goggles in 5' deep water. Yeah! He's also learned free-style strokes. I'm so proud of my little guy. This evening we went to the Southlake Town square and walked around a bit. The kids got some choc. covered marshmellows with sprinkles on it to share. I can't believe we paid $2.68 for three marshmellows. I guess you could say we splurged. Amanda has and end-of-season softball swimming party tomorrow. Her dad will be taking her as I'll be at a baby shower. I think the other kiddos will be going to Michael's parents.

Our friends are coming home from the cruise from Spain tomorrow. With Michelle just returning from a Royal Carribean Cruise and now our friends too, we're thinking we'll need to check out the whole cruise thing for ourselves. We've applied for passports so we'll be ready when "some great deal" comes up. Probably during hurricane season--Sept.-Nov. We think we'll take the kids too. We'd like them to see some other places besides the Metroplex. We just studied countries this past year. I hope were able to take them to a few places we learned about.

Until then, we'll be having fun in the sun at the gym and down the street at our neighbors. We got invited to swim at their house whenever we want as of yesterday. Yippee!

Pig Tails & More

2008-05-13T15:31:00.004-05:00

The girls are constantly asked if they are twins. Today, they decided to dress exactly alike. They were so cute holding hands and skipping through the gym. I'm not a pro pig tailer, but they didn't care.

Joshua had his last end-of-year pre-school party today. He came home with lots of treasures. His last day is Thursday. He'll have a beach party if the weather cooperates.

Tonight, we'll head out to our weekly Chick-Fil-A Family night and Amanda will have her final softball practice.

Our dishwasher decided it's tired and would like some tender loving care. So far, Michael's been unable to rectify it. Looks like we may be getting a new one. Bummer, hugh. Mmm, what color should I get. Currently we have a white fridge, black oven, and almond dishwasher with almond counter tops. We'll see...

We've been made aware of a couple of kids this week who've died. Just cherish the moments with those babies. Remember, they're only on loan to you.

Mother's Day!

2008-05-11T22:13:00.031-05:00

We had a great day out at Nina & Papaws. We had Papaw's Johnny Cakes and biscuits along with burrito wraps. Yum! Yum! We enjoyed being outside in the beautiful weather. Nina & Papaws neighbors have a horse that the kids enjoyed petting.

When Joshua gets tired, all he wants is his "bebe". Someday he'll give it up or I'll take it away!

Lawson (LaVeda's middle son) 3 yrs. old

Joshua is so proud of his nursery rhyme book from Circle of Friends. I think this was the third time we went through it today! He sounds so cute reciting them all.

Ft. Worth Water Gardens

2008-05-10T22:19:00.011-05:00

Today we didn't really have anything planned. I went and took a core class at the gym and hung out awhile by the poolside for some "just me time to chill out". Then we headed to Pizza Garden for lunch. (Michael and I scrapped pizza tops!) Joshua can really pack those alfredo pizzas away. I think he ate 6. HELLO, I think we're in trouble. After finishing lunch, we headed to downtown for our Water Garden's excursion. The kids had so much fun and we do too.

Joshua couldn't wait to scoop water in his crocs and try to splash everyone.

Amanda and Joshua thought it would be fun to drench themselves. Oh to be a kid again!

I love you Baby! You're the Best. You take me as I am.

We Have a Graduate in the house!

2008-05-09T18:01:00.025-05:00

Our Little Joshua has offically graduated Pre-School at Circle of Friends. I can't believe my last litte baby is headed for Kindergarten in the fall. I've started reading lessons with him this week and hope by mid-summer he'll be reading like a pro. We're so proud of our son. He has such an imagination.

Adventure World

2008-05-05T21:35:00.038-05:00

Mommy with each one of her little blessings from God. I love them so much

April 25th, we went to a park called Adventure World. It's only about 5 min. from the house. Our neices and nephew and the kids grandparents were all there. We had so much fun. There's a little nature trail we thought we'd check out and see how many critters we could find, but we weren't gone 10 min. and it started sprinkling on us so we headed back and upon our return, of course, the rain had stopped. Probably for the best as I was taking this adventure alone with six kiddos.

Amanda & Britt

Joshua and Amanda (Josh majorly needing a haircut, I finally gave him one last weekend)

Amanda, Joshua, Lexi, Trent, Kenzie, & Brittany
We are family!

Mimi and Papaw with all their grandkids! Everyone of them is spoiled ROTTEN!

My sweet little Paigers. Oh how she was so enjoying her bicycle riding!

School's Officially Out!

2008-05-05T16:05:00.002-05:00

Well, last Friday was our last day to finish our core studies. We are so excited and ready for a break. I'm not sure who's more ready, me or the kids. We'll still do some math, spelling, and general reading a few time a week, but for the bulk we're done. YEAH! We plan on spending time at the gym pool, park days before it's too hot, camping possibly at Turner Falls in Davis, OK, and a Fredericksburg/San Antonio Fiesta Texas trip in June. CAN'T WAIT. Today, we went to the gym and a couple of parks. We're off to the gym again so I can take a step class and then off to the softball fields. Gotta tone up these legs....

Softball 2008

2008-05-04T22:14:00.004-05:00

The girls are both playing softball. This is their second year and they are both doing quite well. I believe Lexi is wanting to tryout soccer again in the fall. It's been several years since she's played so I guess it's time to check it out again. I keep telling her she could get a great scholarship for college if she can figure out what she likes best and really work at it. Joshua doesn't care to sit and watch the games too much. He'd rather wander around and eat popcorn! He says he wants to play soccer in the fall too. He played a year ago and it proved to be unsuccessful. He's a bit older now though so maybe he'll actually show some interest and run after the ball.

Been a Few Months

2008-04-22T21:56:00.001-05:00

Maybe I'll surprise you soon and have some updates on our family. I guess you've realized by now that I'm not a frequent blogger.

Hard to Fit

2007-12-28T22:12:00.000-06:00

The girls seem to have as much trouble finding clothes to wear as I do. We managed to find some today at Justice. Yipee! Thanks to Aunt Weeda saying they might have some on clearance. We didn't find any regular denim but did find some sparkly pink pants, black, brown, and cream. 4 pants and $60 dollars later...not too bad. We just might have to go back for more tomorrow so the girls can match.

As for the rest of our day, we went to the gym this morning for a couple of hours and this evening, the girls had basketball practice. It's been a pretty packed day. So, I'm off to bed again. Seems like bedtime is the only chance I get to work on this blog, and by then, I'm BEAT!

Maybe next time

2007-12-26T23:15:00.000-06:00

I'm so frustrated! I've been trying to add more pictures to the previous post. It's just not working for me. Urgg! I'm off to bed, maybe some more pictures will be added and can be viewed later this week when the "user" is with it! Good Night to All.

The Day After

2007-12-26T22:47:00.000-06:00

I just read my email for the first time since Sat. I usually check it at least once daily. Anyway, I found out that a lady who is part of our Home School co-op died unexpectly from an aneurysm in the brain on Dec. 23. She has a son who is in Jr. High (I think)and another son who is a bit older and was home for the Christmas break. Her husband had gone out of town to visit a friend who was about to have surgery. My heart is so heavy for this family. Please keep them in your prayers.

Well, here we are, Dec. 26, 2007. What a week it's been! On Christmas Eve, we had Michael's family over around noon. We enjoyed a sweet time together~~We don't get together enough! We went out to my parents around noon on Christmas Day. Mom and Dad cooked up a wonderful brisket. Both places this year we had deserts in excess. Just too much to take it all in. I'm considering a different kind of Christmas next year. I think it would be wonderful if we gave more to others who truely don't have their needs met instead of trying to figure out what we could possibly buy for those who have more than they need. God has blessed us so richly.

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! Here's a few of our pictures...

2007-12-17T16:02:00.000-06:00

Make a free ecard - it's easy!

Another Day

2007-11-17T20:39:00.000-06:00

Well, our calendar today was empty. It's amazing! That rarely happens around our house. We went to the gym and took a core class -I'm sure we'll be feeling it tomorrow. We head off to three different places to eat, everyone got their eating desires today. (not something we make a habit of) We then went to two different Pets Marts. They had pet adoptions today and the kids really enjoyed seeing the animals. Oh, how they want one to call their own. The question is are the parents up for that yet. More mouths to feed, something to entertain, find a keeper when we're out of town, shots, spaying, and the list goes on. Not sure we're are ready, but boy our kiddos are! We finally made it back home around 6 p.m. after leaving at 10 a.m. We had prepared chicken enchilada's before leaving this morning so all we had to do was pop them in the oven. Michael and I thought it was great, the kids however weren't as impressed. All three of them chose to go to bed w/o dinner. Josh went to sleep fast, asleep by 8 pm. Lexi is still hanging on...I think I'm ready to tuck my self in as well. Good night!

The Good God Team & Fall Carnival

2007-11-01T17:37:00.000-05:00

Don't you just love your kids. Amanda and her friend made up a team they call "The Good God Team." Today, she spent time outside and wrote "the rules" for her team. I ask her permission to share them with you. I'll write as she did and translate in ( ). She usually does well with spelling--free writing, well...it's about the thoughts, right?

THE GOOD GOD TEAM RULES

Obay (obey) the rules.

We love you God.

We obay the camandments. (commandments)

We will obay they's (these)rules.

Do wate (what) Jesus wode (would) do.

We spent last night at our former neighbors church's fall carnival. The kids thoroughly enjoyed themselves--we did too. We started out with a pony ride.

After pony rides, we had our hair painted. Joshua would only do it if Mommy would. We then headed off to have a caricature of the kids. Quite funny. Having Joshua sit still was a challenge. We played bingo, plinko, bean bag toss, golf, ring toss, the list goes on and on. We came home with more candy that anybody should get in a lifetime. Speaking of lifetime, It's time for a trip to the gym. Michael and I have to be at a weight trainging class at 7:15 p.m. Till next time...

This is crazy

2007-10-30T23:01:00.000-05:00

This is so crazy! I've been working perfecting this blog that I started last night...I think I've spent 5 hours on it today alone. I have to say, it's not as easy for me as it is for others...Ummm...Chantel. I'm not very literate when it comes to making pictures fit and adding links and stuff so bear with me...it's a work in progress, I HOPE! Off to bed for now.

Two Little Monkeys and a Cleaner

2007-10-30T21:56:00.000-05:00

Well, the weather has been so nice, it's been hard to stay focused on our school work. Today, the girls decided to try doing their math while being monkeys in our tree. Alexis was successful. Amanda, on the other hand, will have to finish her math in the morning. We thank God we have been blessed to school our kiddos at home.

While the girls monkey'd around, Joshua
thought he'd be helpful and clean up the
slides and table. Aren't they shiney!

Walt Disney World 2007

2007-10-30T21:38:00.000-05:00

It's been a little over a month since our return from Disney World. We had so much fun! We were there for 12 days...almost sun up to sun down everyday. What little troupers I have. We stayed at Disney's Port Orleans Riverside...it was the cheapest place that Disney would allow all five of us in one room. There were two full beds and a trundle, which I got to sleep on a few nights. Let me just say there's nothing like your own bed. We used the dining plan and ate like Prince/Princess'. We really enjoyed our time at the Typhoon Lagoon Water Park. We spent three of our days there. We tried to incorporate school while at Disney. At Epcot's World Showcase, we were able to visit some of the countries we're studying. We had Disney workers stamp our "passport" and write something in the language of that country and then translate into English. We also video taped them speaking the language. The fireworks were great too! There's so much to see and do. If you've never been, we highly recommend it. We took over 1,000 pictures. We've finally gotten back into some sort of routine at home. Sure has been a challenge though.