September 2014

Lilly - 1st grade; Micah - 5th grade

With so much going on in August, it was a no-brainer that we would start school this year after Labor Day.  Labor Day weekend we got another camping trip in (our 4th this summer - awesome!).  Our homeschool co-op decided to do Memorial Day AND Labor Day this year, and we did BOTH.  It was another great weekend at Dogtown Lake.
We went with our co-op to the Dolphin Tale 2 movie.
The kids and I decided to participate in the Ice Den Homeschool Open Skate.  We have the opportunity to do this 2x/month throughout the entire school year.
Micah & Jodie were challenged to do the Ice Bucket Challenge - we accepted on a 115 degree day.  :)
Lilly was thrilled to find out that she was growing cotton!  She has two plants near the firepit.
The kids are greatly enjoying Beanie Boo stuffed animals.  They call them "Big Eyes".

August 2014

We started the month of August with a week in Flagstaff with Uncle Charlie & Aunt Alice.  Matt joined us for the weekend and came up again on Wednesday to celebrate Micah's birthday with him. 
For our annual birthday camping trip, with the Gravel family, we camped at Dogtown Lake.  Then we hosted Micah's 11th birthday party with an overnight "Camp Out" in the backyard.
Micah's flag football season started.  This year he was invited to be quarterback for an existing team, coached by his baseball coach and with players he knew from baseball.  He is very excited about this opportunity.
Micah's piano lessons began again this month, after having the summer months off.  This is the beginning of his 4th year with Mrs. Amy Cline.
Lilly spent the entire month of August as the only student in Coach Kristine's Tuesday morning class.  Wow!  They were able to do A LOT.  Both of them loved this time together.
Matt's brother, Andy, had an overnight business trip in Scottsdale.  He was able to spend a couple of evenings with us, which we enjoyed.
Lilly lost her first tooth this month.  We were at the DBacks game when it happened.

July 2014

While in TN we had some time to vacation and then visit Great Granny Rich and the other TN relatives.  We celebrated the 4th of July with them.  We spent one morning picking a gallon of blackberries, went to the new water park in town, visited Granddad's grave, and toured the battleground of Shiloh.
Back home ... we went a couple of times to the McDowell Ranch Aquatic Center.  So much fun!!  They have a high dive, fountain area, swimming area, water slide, and lazy river.  (We may get a pass to here for next summer.)
Matt treated us to a DBacks game (level 2) vs. the Cubs.  GO DBACKS!

June 2014





It's summer!!  Our break from school has begun.  Lilly completed kindergarten, so we had an Open House Party and a Graduation Ceremony for her.  She looked beautiful, and all grown up, in the same red cap & gown that I wore for my kindergarten graduation.  It was very fun!

Four families from our Strong Families Sunday School class got together for a camping weekend at Woods Canyon.  It was a beautiful & fun weekend.

Lilly made her dad a "Father's Day vest" for Father's Day.  We enjoyed celebrating his special day with him.

Lilly loves horses!  So, we planned a special surprise for she and her brother.  We took them to our friends' home - the Visser family and they got to ride horses around the block.  They both enjoyed it, but Lilly was super duper happy!

Summer activities begin:

• Family summer movie - How To Train Your Dragon 2
• LAFitness - Jodie and her friend Jennifer; the kids rotated home and going to the Kids Club
• AMF Summer Fun Bowling
• Ice Den - Ice Skating

This summer we are hosting our neighbor girls, Millie & Ollie, 3 days a week.  They will be able to join us for many of these special days.





 

TIME FOR OUR SPECIAL EVENT:  BEV & JOE NEIHARDT'S 50th WEDDING ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION

For a year, we've been planning a trip to Gatlinburg, Tennessee to celebrate mom & dad's wedding anniversary.  Mom & Dad and all three girls (Rhonda, Jodie & Tonya) will be getting together, with families, for a week.  The cabin we stayed in was amazing, roomy, and sitting on top of a hill where we could see the town of Gatlinburg.  It was a terrific time together!  CONGRATULATIONS MOM & DAD!

May 2014

This month we began to take our "fueling system" more seriously.  After praying, talking with friends, and researching we purchased a juicer and began using Young Living Essential Oils.
We spent Mother's Day at Cracker Jax.  It was such a fun day of go-karts, bumper boats, and miniature golf.
Micah had his piano recital (a beautiful baby grand piano) and baseball play-offs this month.  (His pitching caught some eyes, but they didn't win.)
We spent Memorial Day weekend with our EE camping crew in Woods Canyon.  Just before our arrival, a wildfire on the north side of the lake was contained and put out.  It ended up being an amazing weekend.

April 2014

Another great anniversary celebration - 14 years!  Matt completely surprised me with an evening at As You Wish Pottery, taking a 'Glass Class'.  The project was designing a cross.
We celebrated Easter at the chapel where we were married.  Such great memories during a very special weekend.  We hosted our annual Seder with friends, and served at Neighborhood Ministries with our Home Fellowship.
Micah's baseball season is well underway.  He's on the Black DBacks team.  Coach Scott has him primarily in pitching position.
Lilly graduated to the 'Petite Elite' class and participated in the NVG Devo Showcase.  The girls looked great in their matching leotards.  Lilly's scored well in all her areas.
We participated in the Strike Out Child Abuse Hope & A Future 5k Walk.  We walked just behind Jan Brewer - our AZ Governor.  The walk ended at Chase Field and we enjoyed a great game as a large group.
We pulled out the telescope, stayed up late, and watched the first of four 'blood moons' that will occur over the next months.

 

March 2014

 Time for the DBacks season to get started - we went to Opening Game with our Home Fellowship.  Soon after, the kids and Jodie went with Eastside to Chase Field and got to sit in the DBacks dugout.
We went with Dave, Max and Aracely to an annual Polish Festival.  It was our first time to go.  It was good food and good entertainment.
Jodie & the kids were invited to Aunt Alice's Delta Kappa Gamma meeting.  We were the presentation/ Q&A for the topic of 'homeschooling'.
We all had a chance to meet, Nancy Olsen, this month.  She's a wonderful lady from Chicago, who's here to participate in the Cancer Treatment Program at Mayo Clinic.  While staying in their facilities she needed a 'roommate', so Jodie was able to volunteer for a few nights one week.  One of those evenings we hosted Nancy in our home for dinner.
At the end of the month we all participated in our 2nd annual SportsKidzAZ 5k.