MERRY Christmas from KANSAS

Merry Christmas from our family!! Hope it was a wonderful day for you!

Whitey aka Rusty

This is Jim's new toy... I'm only adding photos since my dad's requested them a few times!
I'm definitely outnumbered as ALL four of the boys (for some odd reason) LOVE 'ole Whitey. I prefer to call him Rusty. Caden especially hangs out there any chance he gets to. It was Pa's truck, so Jim's planning to keep it forever.

Justin's Sweet 16!

Oh, our sweet boy is 16 years old today! Usually, it's exciting to turn 16 to be able to drive... not so for him since he's had his restricted license since the summer and still isn't too thrilled with driving. We celebrated his birthday yesterday with an afternoon movie & a nice steak/shrimp dinner.

They're playing BASKETBALL

All four boys are playing basketball now. Coleman and Caden have their clinic on Saturday mornings (8am- seriously, did they have to make it that early?), Ty is on the freshman team, and Justin's playing on JV. Good thing this mama LOVES the game- never get tired of it! Notice our calm Coleman 2nd in line, then our crazy child at the end... such a bundle of energy!!? Oh... he wears me out...

Power of IMAGINATION

You know, Caden has to do everything just like his brothers. That includes going to school every day. He drives Coleman crazy since Coleman knows that Caden really doesn't go to school. But, in his mind... he does. He gets dressed, puts his backpack on, has a teacher, does homework... all of the above! He even waits for his ride while Coleman waits! What a funny little guy!

the CHRISTMAS tree FARM

What a great tradition... I just LOVE picking out our Christmas tree from a real Christmas Tree farm. This year, the boys had their own fun playing hide-and-go-seek while Jim and I enjoyed walking around while we searched for the perfect tree. All had fun... wonderful memories in the making!

** Clicking on the photos will enlarge them... I know, I took a few!

TOO much PIE!!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend filled with fun and family in Illinois. We set out last Wednesday for the long weekend and made some new, wonderful memories. It's the first trip to Granny's that Caden can remember making it SOOO exciting for our little guy. He couldn't believe Granny had so many beds in the basement and he got to pick his own. Dawn, Jassen & Dakota drove up for the day which was great, too!

Of course, the food was fabulous... Granny and Aunt Patti made at least 10 different pies. Of course, I had to try them all! Pumpkin, cherry, blackberry, chocolate meringue, lemon meringue, cherry custard, coconut cream, coconut cream meringue, plain custard... so yummy and beautiful!! I think the Thanksgiving table was set for 32... quite the crowd!

I really enjoyed catching up with my best friend from 2nd grade who lives just 30 or so minutes away. It was a short, but nice visit!

We all got to experience a little farming- getting up and riding on a combine in the corn fields. What a cool thing... really, I LOVED it... could have been a farmer's wife for sure.

The big boys got to go hunting with dad and Grandpa and even killed a few quails. No, I'm not cooking them. Jim brought them home, says they taste like chicken... I'm not so sure I'll try it.

Somehow, Jim got out of Marissa buying Pa's old truck from Granny. I think this truck will be the 4th or 5th with his license plate- LAST ONE. It's an old Grandpa truck- the boys all LOVE it... especially Caden. He was so excited to clean it out. Pa called him Whitey, I think I might refer to him as Rusty.

Saturday, we drove down to Grandpa and Grandma Behl's house to pick up Grandma Shellene. Grandma made the best lunch... meatloaf, scalloped potatoes... yes, I'm sure I put on some weight. Can't beat Granny/Grandma cooking- love it!

All in all... wonderful weekend. The boys will be doing extra conditioning (probably for a month) for basketball since family trips are unexcused absences.... can't say I agree with that. Oh well!

Happy December!!!

Justin v. Caden

Oh, my sweet Caden Luke. A fight broke out at our house this last weekend- it was Justin v. Caden. With the big boys home, we assigned jobs to chip in and help around the house. Justin "chose" to vacuum, and jumped right in to get it done. As soon as the vacuum turned on, Caden went running to see what was up. You know- he thinks it really is his vacuum. He picks up the rugs and actually does a pretty good job. I finally got Justin to distract him by getting him to clean the bathroom- his 2nd favorite job.

Weekdays are a little easier for Caden, he doesn't have his brothers in the way... today, it was vacuuming and windows. Last week, he brought the garbage can in after the trashman came, then decided that he needed to take it to the street EVERY day... because we had trash... neighbors probably think we're crazy!!

The child LOVES to clean and work... it's a great quality... now, if only he would quit making messes... I'd maybe get on top of things!

Happy Halloween

I'm so happy to have Halloween over... but, I did take a few photos!

My sweet neighbor girls showed up just in time to finish the slimy work carving out our pumpkins! For some reason, my boys don't do pumpkins so well, and I always end up doing them!

Coleman was Optimus Prime & Caden was a little Bumblebee... love Transformers in this house!

Pumpkin Patch

It was a chilly fall day... but, I can now say I've been to a pumpkin patch! Coleman's class had a field trip, so we went along as well. Fun activities, tractor rides, and pumpkins... I just wish it would have been a little warmer!

Caden LOVES clothes

After expecting to spend just a quick night in the hospital last week, I ended up spending what felt like forever- 4 days, 3 nights. Thankfully, I'm home and my energy is increasing daily! I'm so excited to be back to full speed... don't do too well taking it easy... but, I've HAD to chill... not a fun surgery!

Providing a little entertainment around our place... Jim pulled a Rubbermaid tote of winter clothing out this evening filled with Caden's size. He's been in HEAVEN. I've never seen little guy who LOVES clothes as much as our Caden. He's tried most of them on, and even took a run around to the house (outside) to make sure they kept him warm. I think I'm leaving it out tomorrow just to provide him entertainment... don't really care that they'll be all over the room at this point... it's all about him being happy!!

Grandma mowing

Grandma mowing... there's plenty of work around to go around!!

No More Babies

I used to think that women who had hysterectomies were so old. My thinking has definitely changed- especially since I am going in for the surgery tomorrow. I don't feel old at all, but I'm having a hysterectomy. After Caden was born, we knew our family was complete- no more pregnancies for this body! So, I had a tubal. That was almost three years ago... now, I'm at the point that I don't even want my uterus in there at all. It's served its purpose and I'm so done with it- and the girly problems that come with it!!

I don't do well slowing down... but, know this will knock me off my feet for a while. I should only be in the hospital one night. My doctor is using robotics- pretty high tech. Ty said, "Better hope it doesn't grow a brain, mom... it might start fighting with the doctor..." So much humor in our house!

Too many GREENS

I've known all along that Jim really hates painting. This weekend, I learned a how deep his hate really goes. He let me know that he'd rather clean out hog stalls (with his hands) than paint. That's pretty bad. So, I consider myself a lucky girl that he agreed to paint our living room/kitchen this last weekend. As if that wasn't bad enough for him... we painted ALL day Saturday only to wake up Sunday and learn that I really didn't like the color at all. So, we bought more paint and painted again all day Sunday enlisting Justin's help and height. Not a fun weekend... but, I love the new color! Good thing, since I wasn't getting another chance! I think it will take me the rest of the week to finish it up!