October

October was a fun month.

We went out to Cheney Lake where there is a gun range one Saturday afternoon and Lauren and I got to shoot for the first time. It was a small gun that shot little bullets so that was easy for us. Roger and Evan are already pros at using guns. Then, Roger had me shoot a gun that's been in our safe always loaded so in case I ever needed to shoot an intruder. He warned me ahead a time it would have a kick on it, but good golly! I wasn't ready for it. As soon as the gun shot off, I have no idea where the bullet went exactly because I just about fell backwards and my eyes were closed! I mean, I know the bullet went straight, but I just wasn't able to spot it. We decided that although this gun would definitely take care of an intruder, what good would it do me if I couldn't control it? So, we're keeping the gun with the smaller bullet clip ready to go for me in the safe, and if I ever have to use it, I'm under orders to just keep shooting until the clip is empty. Lauren did great. She's a great archer, and now shooting a gun.

We also "tried out a dog." We have some friends who had two 4 month old pups they couldn't find homes for. Evan and I struggle with animal allergies, but we wanted to give it a try overnight. Evan reacted with a scratchy throat and just knew it wasn't meant to be. He was sad, but Lauren was heartbroken. She cried for days over not being able to have that dog. I didn't react at all, which was surprising, so it almost made me wonder if I was outgrowing the allergy? She was a great dog, but it just wasn't meant to be.

Evan finally got to go do another Sheltered Reality performance after more than a year. It was at a school about 30 minutes northeast of Topeka. The kids and I drove to Topeka the afternoon before, stayed in a hotel, and then came home after the show--a 3 1/2 hour drive. It was worth it, though. Evan does so well drumming, I just wish more places in KS would invite and pay for the group to perform so we could do more. I'm hoping our Trail Life group can do it at some point.

Lauren got to do some dressing up this month. One night at church they got to come as a Disney character. We were able to put together a homemade outfit and she went as Elsa from Frozen. Then, one of her friends came to church and they dressed up as 50's girls with super powers. Then, Lauren got to wear her 50's costume again and go trick-or-treating with another friend. It was a beautiful night to do that.

Lauren also got to start singing on the church's Youth worship team. I had Evan snap this picture of her for me, so I didn't embarrass her by going into the room and taking it myself.

 We bundled up one evening and went to see Hotel Transylvania 2 and Pan at the drive-in. Roger and I sat in the middle van seats that can turn around backwards, and the kids had 4 layers of padding to lay on in the back of the van after we folded the seats down, and we all had hats, gloves, and blankets to keep warm. One of my favorite things to do.

Lauren had her CYT showcase this month. This is some of her friends hanging out as we celebrated at Spangles.

I got to enjoy watching my favorite front yard tree change colors for autumn.  We had some very windy days which stripped the leaves off sooner than I would have liked (as I type this, our tree is now bare). The last pic is of the tree across from our house on the other side of the pond. Gorgeous!

Starting Anew...Again

Yep, yep, yep...it has been over a year since I've blogged. This time, I am not going to apologize nor promise to do a better job because I honestly don't know if I can do that. But, I'm hoping that today will be a new day to do a better job.

This past year has been busy. Evan went back to soccer after taking a year off. It was fun to watch his games. He had some goals, plus some great assists and moves, but he let a lot of the teammates influence his decision making skills. If anyone even hollered his name, he felt he automatically needed to pass the ball to that person, even when he had complete control over the play and could have possibly made a goal. No matter how many times Roger and I talked to him about this, it didn't change. I guess this is a case of when a teenager's emotions/decision making is based on peer pressure vs. parental guidance. He has decided not to return to soccer this year.

Sheltered Reality has been his big interest. There are still not enough shows close by to partake in, but we did get to go to OK City for a weekend to perform for a Job's Daughters group. That was fun. It was 4 Iowans, 2 Kansans, and 1 Texan performing for a group in OKC, LOL!

Lauren' new adventure this past year was Christian Youth Theater. She joined last August and auditioned for the Sound of Music production, but didn't make the cut. That was very upsetting to her as she was so hoping to get the part of Brigita. The next week was audition for You're A Good Man Charlie Brown and she didn't want to try out at first, but finally decided to, and she got the main role of Sally! She was fantastic and literally stole the show. We had so many people approach her and us and tell her she was their favorite character. Even months later, people still remember her performance, although she is kind of over it and wants to move on to another memorable role.

There are probably more memories, but for not this is all I can remember. A new season of life is starting with schooling--Evan is a high-schooler, EEK!--, a new CYT production is coming up that Lauren will be auditioning for, and a major vacation is happening in a few weeks. Some great things to write about, and I'm going to try.

Ta-ta for now!

Busy Year

Too, too, too long since my last post! I know, I know. As much as I love to blog about our life, we have been terribly busy this year and I've been too tired. I am happy to report though that this coming year looks to be slower and I am so looking forward to it! Evan and Lauren, this post is for you--I'm still hoping one day to get my blog posts in a book format so you can look back on them when you're older and be able to relive some memories.

We are going to start with Lauren, because unfortunately one thing about being the youngest is you don't always come first. Lauren, you've had a great 2014 so far! One of the best and biggest memories from this year was your competitive dancing with The South Y Dance Company which then changed to Y Diamond Dance Company. You shined like we knew you would--God has greatly gifted you with the art of dance. You of course were not shy in front of the audiences at competitions and you always captivated people with your facial expressions. You are a natural. The last competition was extremely impressive. Grandma and Grandpa from Colorado came out to see it. Both of your dances finished in the the top 3 for your age group! What was really special about that was the fact that 2 days before this competition one of the girls was asked to leave the team, so your dances had to be redone quickly. Also, at this competition you got to receive one of the rewards for the second place dance, got a medal, and the group received a check.

Piano has been another part of this year you have grown in. At your June recital, you played two pieces by memory. You also received a summer discount rate and two movie theater tickets because you are so diligent in your work. Miss Connie has told me you make her excited and she is so impressed by how well you learn your music.

Evan, one of your biggest memories is the Lego Robotics Team at WWHM. You were on a great team this year. You figured out a design for your robot, and completely made it around the practice course early in the season. When competition day came, your team got 1000 points--a perfect score! It was thrilling when the wwhm team came in 2nd place! It was funny how we were all hoping for 3rd or 4th place, and when our names were not called, we though for sure we had not done well again this year. So, when we were called for 2nd place we were stunned, as well as elated!

Sheltered Reality drumming became part of your life this year. We were introduced to them in January when mvps brought them in as a school event. We decided to join and you have done two performances. You are getting along so well with the other people you meet at the shows, and Steve and Jordan are so impressed with how quickly you are picking up on the songs and choreography.

No pictures in this post, but there were some taken and I plan on including those in a 2014 digital scrapbook I want to make when this year's over so that each of you will have that for your later years. You both are awesome and I'm proud of the things you've accomplished, and how hard you work at things. You are both maturing in so many ways and you make me glad and proud to be your mom!