Landis Lane Living

A Fun Family Weekend

2009-09-15T14:58:00.002-04:00

Matt & I decided it would be a great weekend to get some family time is, as the next 3 we will all be different places :(!

So Saturday we headed over to Children's First Day. K seemed to enjoy it for the most part! It is a very busy place and LOTS to see! She got her first tatoo sitting on this blow up crown chair!
Not sure she knew exactly what was going on...but seemed to have a pretty good time there! Maybe next year she will be more into all they offer there!

Sunday afternoon we went to a friend's horse farm to visit and let the kids ride! What a beautiful day! I think all the kids got to ride and enjoyed it!

K didn't make it for a ride yet, but she did manage to get on and sit or a minute with her daddy.... maybe next time she'll go for a ride!

the girls... just playing on the farm! ;)

Family Visits

2009-09-10T22:31:00.003-04:00

Matt's family was able to visit us throughout the summer. It was so nice to have them come to us and cut back on our travelling! :) His Mom and Dad and youngest sister and her family made in for a weekend in July. His Oldest Brother and his family made it for a weekend in August and then his Oldest Sister and her family made it for a weekend in August as well.
I'm noticing I really need to take more pictures... i'm getting lazy about it... But, here are a few from the weekends we shared.
Tyler and K trying to figure out how to 'un-crash' the bubble car... they LOVED playing with this car together... so cute!

K and her cousin Ashley... this is about the best picture I got of the two of them, out of like taking a dozen or so! ;) Those little girls m-o-v-e around quickly!

Matt and two of his nephews sporting the Elway jerseys! Matt was soooo impressed they BOTH had Elway jerseys to wear now!

ahhhhh.... the bubble car... all to myself! :)

Nags Head Weekend

2009-09-10T22:19:00.002-04:00

Seems like just this past weekend I was in Nags Head with my Brother and Sister...but it must of been like 3 weeks ago now...
Anyways... K and I headed to the beach with my sister and her clan for the weekend. (Matt and his brother were playing in a 2 day golf tournament, so i wouldn't have seen him much anyways... it wasn't like i just abanoneded him or anything- for the record).

It was a great laid back weekend! Just lots of catching up and hanging low. My brother lives on the sound in Kill Devil Hills, back in Colington for those of you who are familiar. So the private beach back there is pretty much always empty....

My two nieces spending the afternoon on the Sound Side Beach.

The girls are totally into paddling now! They are really quite good at it too. It's a bonus that one of the kayaks is pink and one is blue... just perfect for the girls and their favorite colors!

K and her Uncle Mitch just after bath time! She really took to her Uncle Mitch! She would reach for him and want him to hold her! I was glad to see her take to him so quickly and enjoy him... and her Aunt Lyne too... they even babysat for me/ her so i could go run around a bit... what a treat! We had a great weekend visiting and catching up.

THE Tea Party

2009-08-13T11:43:00.003-04:00

My Mom and Dad threw a tea party for my nieces! They were each allowed to invite 3 friends. I tell ya, they really went all out on this thing! I'm not sure how they'll top this one.
You know... this will have to become an annual event!!! My Dad... The Butler- greeting young ladies as they arrived for the party.

Miss Emma awaiting the arrival of her guests.

Miss Hannah awaiting the arrival of her guests!

The Host and Hostess dressed for success! And a huge success it was, I tell ya!

My sister even dressed up for the occassion. She is putting the finishing touches on the decorations.

The Set up on the patio.

They all had place settings assigned by little place cards.

The Butler at work, serving his guests finger sandwiches and fruit and cookies and the like.

Now, this is where it got a bit unconvential for a Tea Party! My dad put a zip line up in the yard (woods sort of) and all the young ladies in their pretty little dresses just had to take turns on the zip line. It's just too much fun not to!

What a great afternoon! My mom gave them all ettiquette lessons prior to serving them 'tea' and finger foods. Some of them picked up pretty quickly on the napkin in the lap, no elbows on the table, please, thank you.... not sure they all got all the proper manners down... but they seemed to all enjoy themselves!

What a great idea!

Beware- POLITICAL POST--

2009-07-20T18:53:00.009-04:00

The Obenshain ReportJuly 20, 2009
Rest Area Closures:An Avoidable Blunder

They are among the most literal signs of Virginia's ongoing budget crisis, and if you've pulled off the interstate at a rest area lately, perhaps you've seen one: within the last two weeks, signs went up at eighteen rest areas across the Commonwealth announcing their imminent closure. These rest areas will officially shut down at midnight tonight – just as many motorists and truckers are looking for a place to stop for a break.

Some will see in these newly barricaded entrances a grim commentary on the Commonwealth's openness to tourism, travel, and commerce. Shuttering these rest areas makes those long stretches along our interstates less inviting to those contributing to Virginia's billion dollar tourism industry. As one op-ed columnist observed, a visitor to Virginia might soon tell friends and family that the Blue Ridge Mountains are spectacular, but, on the flip side of the ledger, Virginia closed all the restrooms.

But I have a still more pressing and immediate concern: as many as twenty percent of all highway accidents are caused by "drowsy driving," and eliminating places to pull off, stretch one's legs, or use the restrooms may sometimes be more than inconvenience. It rises, at times, to the level of a safety concern.

Virginia's budget is a mess; there's no getting around that. Cuts are unavoidable, and no department or agency is immune. Eliminating nineteen rest areas – eighteen on July 21 and another in September – to save a mere $9 million is, however, reckless and unnecessary.
As I have long pointed out, the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and the Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) are no strangers to pork-barrel and wasteful spending. Scrapping plans for a single public rail pilot project, for instance, could fund keeping these nineteen rest areas open for another three years.

Several decades ago, a new term entered the political lexicon: the Washington Monument Strategy. Year after year, Congress would call upon the National Park Service to find ways to operate more efficiently, and invariably the response would be that if they had to cut one more penny, they would have no choice but to close the Washington Monument. Something very similar seems to be taking place here: ordered to make cuts, VDOT has responded by making the most painful and public cuts they can get away with in a game of brinksmanship in which Virginia's motorists are unfortunately cast as mere pawns.

Under federal law drafted in, and more appropriate to, a much earlier era, we do not have the option of commercializing or privatizing our rest areas to make them profitable or at least less fiscally burdensome. Sadly, last week Congressman Frank Wolfe's efforts to change that federal law were rejected with speed seldom seen in the halls of Congress -speed seemingly reserved for "stimulus" bills, bailouts, and possibly now for the nationalization of our healthcare system.
We do, however, have the option of cutting elsewhere. Delegate Todd Gilbert and I have called for an outside performance audit of VDOT which could identify far better targets for elimination.

The barricades are going up tomorrow, but it didn't have to be this way: with a little prudence and an eye toward eliminating needless expenditures, we could have recouped this cost and far more.

Don't let anyone tell you that this was unavoidable: there were always other options. Funds are tight, and painful cuts will continue to be necessary across the board, but the closure of these nineteen rest areas became a foregone conclusion because those who could have charted a different course chose to do nothing.

That's not a legacy I would want.

Mark ObenshainVirginia State Senator

P.S. If you share my commitment to auditing VDOT, please join my Expose VDOT Waste website and Facebook group and, as always, feel free to forward this email to any friends or colleagues who might be interested.

Forward email
Obenshain Reports 2 South Main Street Suite 402 P.O. Box 555 Harrisonburg VA 22803

Kids Klothing Exchange August 8th

2009-07-20T08:34:00.003-04:00

Grace Covenant Church - Harrisonburg

If you attend Grace, you need to check this out!

Kids Klothing Exchange
You give – You receive

This event has been scheduled to coincide with the back to school season. Clean out those bulging closets this summer and receive some “new” cloths for your children as they head back to school.

Families are asked to drop-off gently worn children’s clothes at the church starting Sunday, August 2 – Friday, August 7th. All clothes must be dropped off at the church office by 2:00 p.m. each day.

Bring clothes sorted by sizes! All sizes and ages will be accepted.

Then on Saturday August 8th, you are invited to come swap your clothes with others from our church family. Come experience the promise of if you give, you shall receive. All remaining clothes will be donated to the Grace Covenant Clothes Closet outreach initiative targeting our larger community. For more information contact Joy Stultz at 540-421-0431.

Ks Best Friend

2009-07-16T09:04:00.003-04:00

Man's Best Friend! Kaitlyn sure has found hers this past month or so! She has really taken an interest in Buxton. He is so gentle with her, I can't say much for her however!

Watch out Buxton..... here I come!

Maybe I can ride him, let's see....

Just a little pat....(whack!)

almost on him.... i'll keep trying! Now if he would only get up and take me around! (haha)

Maybe, she will learn the word "gentle" through these experiences with Buxton! I must say it 100 times or more when she is crawling on him or over him, or pulling on his ears or chops, or petting him (pounding on him)... she just giggles and is so happy when she is playing with her dog!

Buxton is so great with her, of course it may have something to do with being almost 11 years old!

Laundry....maybe?

2009-07-14T09:24:00.002-04:00

I suppose after watching me do countless loads of laundry K has learned the process. First you empty the basket, folding things and neatly placing them in piles, so that you can then place everything back in the basket to carry it upstairs.

Step 1,2,and.... She has emptied the basket... made um piles on the floor....
and she is filling the basket back up again.... just not with the neatly folded items?!

Occassionally, K gets a ride in the laundry basket around our open floor plan when i get the basket emptied! We sit in the basket and hold on for dear life as mommy bends over and drags her through the kitchen, the living room, the dining room and back into the kitchen again.... she LOVES it!

Do you think, this could have possibly been a hint that someone wanted a ride this morning?

hmmmmm.... my piles don't look as neat as mommy's.... i'll just keep trying!

what J-O-Y! a true treasure!

I tried...

2009-07-14T09:13:00.003-04:00

So... I had these great plans to take K's 1 year photos at my Mom and Dads. They have spent the last several months really working on their back patio area- which now looks like something out of Southern Living, I might add (NICELY DONE!)- BUT.... as I'm sure all mom's are aware, when you have a toddler; without some fishing line and an invisible hand; how are you suppose to take them by yourself?! If you have discover a way to do this- please share with us newer moms!
Sitting by the pond... i know these are little 'creepy' with the "face" behind her... that is one of my dad's 'widdling' (is it?) projects!

I mean, doesn't it look like such a great outdoor setting for a photo shoot?

These are the Micky or should I say Minni Mouse ears that my Mom brought back for K from Disney World...

Another great potential location for a summer time photo shoot! What pretty flowers, wouldn't you agree?

These were taken up on the new raised patio where the hot tub is.... VERY NICE.... :)

So, as you can see in the next post- that may have been a better idea.... We'll see how it goes at 18 mos....

What a treat this little girl is! SOOO MUCH FUN!!! She keeps us on our toes, and our knees, and our feet.... you get the idea!

New Photos

2009-07-13T13:45:00.003-04:00

Sorry I've been such a slacker lately! BUT- I did want to get K's 1 year pictures posted before too much time had passed! So enjoy these for now; and hopefully I'll be back at it soon!

Vacation- Boston

2009-06-05T13:23:00.006-04:00

The second week of our vacation we met up with Matt's family in Boston, MA. We rented a house in a little town- Sherborn- and made the trek into Boston a couple of days. Here are some highlights!

This is the State House-built between 1795 and 1797 on Beacon Hill; which overlooks the Boston Common. The site was orginally pasture land owned by John Hancock.

We followed the Freedom Trail throughout Boston. You simply follow the brick path that has been laid in the sidewalk and it takes you from site to site!

This is the Old State House- this building was the center of Boston's civic life in the 18th century and the scene of some of the most dramatic chapters in the lead-up to the American Revolution. This is where Samuel Adams, James Otis, and John Hancock debated the future of the British colonies. Just outside the building, five men were among the first casualities of the battle for independence, in what would be later known as the Boston Massacre. The declaration of Independence was proclaimed from the balcony to the citizens of Bostin in 1776.

This is the Old South Meeting House. The meeting of more than 5,000 colonists on December 16, 1773 which started the Boston Tea party to meetings today, the Old South Meeting House has been an important gathering place for nearly 3 centuries. Renowned for the protest meetings held here before the American Revolution, this National Historic Landmark has long served as a platform for the free expresseion of ideas. Today, the Old South Meeting House is open as a museum and continues to provide a place for people to meet, discuss, and act on important issues of the day.

This is Faneuil Hall (Marketplace). It has been a marketplace and a meeting hall since 1742. It is the site of several speeches by Samuel Adams, James Otis, and others encouraging independence from Great Britain, and is now part of Boston National Historical Park.

This is a man dressed up for the parade they have every year on June 1st. It is a parade to honor those fallen soldiers.

Paul Revere's House -On the night of April 18, 1775, silversmith Paul Revere left his small woodend home in Boston's North End and set out on a journey that would make him into a legend! This home is the oldest building in downtown Boston and one of the few remaining from an early era in histroy of colonial America. The home was built in 1680 on the site of the former parsonage of the Second Church of Boston. Paul Revere purchased the home in 1770 from Robert Howard, a wealthy merchant. This is Old North Church - One if by Land, Two if by Sea... The Church was built in 1723 and is the oldest standing church building in Boston. On the evening of April 18, 1775, Robet Newman- the church sexton, climbed the steeple and held hight two lanterns as a signal from Paul Revere that the British were marching to Lexington and Concord by sea and not by land. This fateful evecnt ignited the American Revolution.This is The USS Constitution - She is the oldest commissioned naval vessel afloat in the world! Constitution launched in 1797. Her first duty was to provide protection for Amercian merchant shipping during the Quasi War with France. Her most famous era of naval warfare was the War of 1812 against Great Britain. Her mission today is to promote understanding of the Navy's role in war and peace through education outreach, historic demonstration, and active participation in public events.

Bunker Hill Monument- built to commemorate the Battle of Bunker Hill. The 221 foot granite obelisk was erected between 1827 and 1843 in Charlestown, MA. There are 294 steps to the top. The monument is not on Bunker Hill, but instead on Breed's Hill, where most of the fighting in the misnamed Battle of Bunker Hill actually took place. The Battle of Bunker Hill was the first major conflict between British and Patriot forces in the Revolutionary War, fought there June 17, 1775. Taken from the top of Bunker Hill monument.Boston North End at night.

Thanks for visiting! :)

Vacation Wrap Up!

2009-06-05T11:27:00.009-04:00

Well as you can see; posting daily didn't work out! As I am still not home in VA yet, it is hard to find time to post :) But this morning, while K is napping, i'm trying to catch up a bit. These pictures wrap up the first week of our vacation in New England.

We opted to drive the Mt. Washington road on our own. The road opens at 8am, and we were there at 8am! It made it really nice to not have so much traffic on such a 'skinny' road though! Mt. Washington is the highest peak in New England. We were fortunate enough to have a really clear day!

Picture of Mt. Washington from the base.

You can see it wasn't very busy at this time of year or day! Our lonely van in the parking lot overlooking some 6,000 feet down.

The Peak is 6,288 feet high. It is an 8 mile drive from the where the Auto Road begins.Kaitlyn at one of our many picnic lunches! :) This was on our way to Bar Harbor.Acadia National Park in Bar Harbor Maine. A picture of Frenchman's Bay.Picture of Frenchman's Bay from the top of Cadillac Mountain. This is another part of Acadia Park called Shoodic Pennisula. A lighthouse along the way.This is Portland Maine- and the Portland Maine Lighthouse- you've probably seen pictures of this one before!

Now this is a picture of the "Little Women" house in Concord Massachusetts
After we left Concord/Lexington MA area, we headed on down to Boston for our last 5 days! (next post)

Vacation Photos

2009-05-27T14:45:00.004-04:00

Here is a slide show of pictures I've downloaded so far... !
Also, here is the LINK to see the pictures on Picasa Web.

New England Vacation Day 2-Part 2

2009-05-26T19:45:00.008-04:00

After Franconia Notch State Park we head across the Kancamagus Highway, NH. The Kanc cuts an east-west channel through the White Mountain National Forst from Lincoln to Conway.

We stopped along the way and had a picnic lunch.

This is the view from our lunch spot.

After lunch we headed to Craword Notch State Park for a ride through the notch and hike at Arethusa Falls.

The falls are approximately 200 feet high and the round trip 3-mile hike was of moderate difficulty! Rocky, straight up (for just about 1/2 of it)...but again, worth it! But, I also wasn't carrying a 20lb Kaitlyn on my back like someone else was :) Matt would say it was challenging as well!

As we drove through Crawford Notch we caught just a glimpse of a moose!!! If you look closely, you can see the Moose running away... at least it wasn't running towards us ;)

New England Vacation Day 2-Part 1

2009-05-26T19:02:00.008-04:00

Day 2 of our vacation started in Lincoln New Hampshire. We visited Franconia Notch State Park! The park is located in the White Mountain National Forest. There is a parkway (I-93)that extends from Echo Lake at the north to the Flume Gorge at the south.
Franconia Notch was the home of the famous Old Man of the Mountain, the same "Great Stone Face" immortazilized by Nathaniel Hawthorne and Daniel Webster (according the nhstateparks.org). However, in 2003 the face fell and so sadly enough, we did not visit that particular section of the Park.

The picture above is of Echo Lake. It was such a calm, peaceful morning when we stopped here to take a look! You can see how still the water is by the reflection of the mountains in the lake. Apparently, we had just missed seeing the bears roam about on the Cannon Mountain ski slopes, which would be to the right in this picture.
The picture above is one of many covered bridges that you can find in NE. This one happens to be along the trail to the Flume Gorge.

The Flume Gorge was discovered in 1808. It is a natural gorge extending 800 feet at the base of Mount Liberty.

The notorious "Self Portrait" attempt!

Making our way further up and into the gorge. The price we paid to get in to see this "flume" was well worth it, we thought, once we saw all the hard work of the stairs laid out for us to make it to the top of the gorge.

This is Avalanche Falls- the 2 mile hike was well worth it to see this waterfall. It was a easy hike and a beautiful day for it!

New England Vacation Part I

2009-05-26T18:33:00.007-04:00

So our New England vacation officially started on Sunday, May 24th! Our first stop was Quechee Gorge in White River Junction, Vermont. We had been travelling for about 6 hours that day and were so happy for the break! Kaitlyn did so well travelling for such a long period of time; and then to go and put her right into a back pack! Luckily- she loved being in that and looking around at all the nature!

This was a relatively short hike - close to 2 miles by the time we were all done!

This is a picture of the gorge from the bridge on VT-4 165 feet above the river below ( you can see the bridge from down below in a lower picture). The Ottauquechee River flows southward and plunges into the narrow, rocky cleft of Quechee Gorge, 165 deep and over a mile in length.

Quechee Gorge is part of the 612 acre Quechee Gorge State Park

See the bridge in the background?

Although, we could not see rushing waters or waterfalls at this location, it is one of Vermon'ts longest and most famous gorges. It was a beautiful day for a hike!

Vacation Time!

2009-05-19T07:04:00.003-04:00

It is a B-U-S-Y week here at the Landis house! We are trying to prepare for our 2 week vaction to NE! We leave Friday and head to Quakertown PA where Matt will play in a golf tournament with his brother on Saturday and we'll leave from there on Sunday to head to Vermont and then on into New Hampshire!
If you're interested; these are the hotspot links for our trip!

White River Junction, Vermont - an Historic Railroad town in Hartford, VT
Franconia Notch State Park (NH)
Kancamagus Hwy (NH)
Mt. Washington (NH)
Arethusa Falls/ Crawford Notch State Park (NH)
Acadia National Park (ME)
Coastal Drive along Rt. 1 - (ME)
LL Bean (ME)
Boston (MA)

We will be doing lots of hiking and spending time in the State and National Parks; this is something we enjoy doing as a family and we are excited to try out Kaitlyn's new Kelty aluminum frame back carrier... she seems to like it OK around the house! Surely when we are hiking and she has so much to look at, she will be quite content to just 'tag' along with us :)
Of course we are also doing a lot of sight seeing as we travel along the Coast of Maine- seeing light houses and more!

We will travel a minimum of 1950 miles, but with only a couple of days of long periods of time in the car! We are looking forward to the week in VT, NH, and ME with the three of us as well as a week in Boston with Matt's family, where we've rented a house outside of Boston! The boys will be going to a Red Sox game and we will be doing parts of the Freedom Trail and enjoying lots of the historic sights in Boston!

So... off to finishing gathering needed items around the house and to seriously start pulling things to pack, as the rest of our week is filled with work and meetings :)

And a big, HUGE THANK YOU to our house/Buxton sitter while we are gone! We couldn't do it without him! Of course he will be quite spoiled with all the freezer meals I've prepared for him to have while he stays here! We may have a hard time getting him to go back home when we return :) .... right Folmar?!

Blessings,

Happy Birthday Kaitlyn!!!

2009-05-15T07:53:00.003-04:00

Kaitlyn says it's shaping up to be a great birthday! And that she'll be making some calls here, just as soon as she can get this phone picked up and can dial!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY BABY GIRL!

LOVE, DADDY & MOMMY

One Year Old!

2009-05-12T08:31:00.002-04:00

I K-N-O-W every parent says "I can't believe they are this old already"...but seriously... i just can NOT believe that K is one year old this Friday!

This year has been, well.... amazing, superb, awesome, breathtaking, more than I could have imagined, wonderful, tear jerking, joyful, giddie like (is that a term?), cheerful, a blessing... anyways- I think you get the drift here?!

K is just about walking on her own (not that I'm in any hurry for that). She plays so well by herself and finds the most um, creative, things to keep her occupied! She is beginning to learn the 'NO-NO' concept... whether or not she chooses to obey --that is still a process.

She is still a great sleeper- thank you LORD! A Praise to the Lord for that! A blessing that He gave me when I refused to 'accept/believe' the "well intentions" of other parents that would say things like "Oh, are you ready for sleepless nights?" or "Hope you do well on just hours of sleep"... you get the idea. I remember telling people that I wasn't believing for that, that raising children didn't always have to consist of sleep deprivation! Obviously, there are days- but like I've said before... We ALL have those days!

Her personality is showing through! Such a determined one, she is! She loves it when she sees approval and admiration in us for her! I love the way she lights up and giggles and reaches out to be picked up! I love the way she will lay on the floor and just laugh and play, like there is someone right there keeping her company! She has such a sweet spirit, loving, giving, wanting....

Still, everyday I grab her and squeeze her, and nibble at her neck and her ears, blow on her belly... and generally try not to just gobble her up from the love that dwells so deep within and just bubbles out and spills over... it's just something you can't put the 'right' words to! Simply...AMAZING!

OK, enuf gushing here... We had K's birthday party a week early because my family left for Disney World on Saturday. She had her own cake that she thought about getting into... you can watch the video below if you want.
Monie got her the cutest summer hats and sandles and Aunt Shell got a July 4th outfit, the girls got her an xylophone (something to beat on... she LOVES that!) and we all just enjoyed being together since Granddaddy Rog had just gotten home from a 3 week work trip out of the county! What a blessing to have family close by!

Ok, so here is a little video --- let us eat cake!

When it rains...

2009-05-05T16:04:00.003-04:00

Don't know about ya'll; but when it's rainy outside and I have a little runny nose; I just like to kick back with my warm bottle of milk and watch a little Veggie Tales!

-- Kaitlyn... my guest post entry.

Spring Time

2009-04-18T20:14:00.007-04:00

W-O-W!! What a BEAUTIFUL day we had to enjoy today!
The pictures show a blanket with toys...but do you really think she spent most of her time there?! You guessed it... NOPE! But that was ok... we managed to spend several hours out there and not eat anything or get any cuts, bumps, or bruises! So all in all... a successful day!

This was mommy trying to be cute...by spelling her name out :0)

The Family... just hanging out and basking in the sunshine!

OK... I've had enough... see ya'll later now.

Easter

2009-04-17T19:27:00.002-04:00

This year for Easter, Kaitlyn and myself went to the Outer Banks to visit my brother and his wife. I had not been there since getting married! So I was way past due for a little visit.
Matt was unable to go with us because, as he says, "Some of us don't get hundreds of hours of vacation"... so the sad part was that we were apart on Easter, but.... It really was a nice mini vacation and a great visit.
We went with my sister and her family! We got to walk on the beach in Nags Head and watch the sunset back in Colington Harbor. We got to eat dinner at Jockey's Ribs- which holds a special place for my sister and me both- as we both worked there for years; me- during my college summers. It was awesome to go back and see some of the old gang and to of course... show off my baby girl! :0)

On Easter we went to the Church of the Outer Banks (www (dot) churchobx (dot) com). They currently meet in the YMCA. What a neat congregation they have there... there would be no mistaking you are at the beach!!

We even managed to have a yummy Easter Lunch, without our mommy being there! I guess we are all grown up (when we want to act like it). A little secret... this was my FIRST time ever making potato salad... and... it turned out really good, if I may say so myself!

Here are a couple pictures of the girls in their Easter dresses!
Kaitlyn - 10 months 3 weeks old...

Emma, Kaitlyn, and Hannah. (Notice Emma's foot cocked up behind her! oh my... )

Making Progress

2009-04-17T19:16:00.010-04:00

Our favorite passtime for the last several weeks has been conquering the stairs!! She is getting much quicker at it this week! Of course, we still need to learn to come down now. Kaitlyn will just laugh and giggle as she climbs! She is so proud of herself and must feel very accomplished as she reaches the top.

Just has to look back every so often to make sure mommy or daddy is there to catch her...just in case!

OK.... are you still there... you look really far away this time...

Shew! made it... now to go find daddy in that room.....

We continue to be amazed by this little one and all she contributes to our family! She gets a million squeezes and kisses everyday... you just can't get enough!

What a blessing!

Coupon Match Ups

2009-04-06T20:33:00.004-04:00

Hey gang...

just an FYI... Kristy an I are going to TRY and keep a blog in refernce to Harrisonburg Coupon Match Ups for Martin's, Kroger, Food Lion, and Walmart.
We can't promise that we will get to all of them. But for this week we have Martins and Kroger done!
You can check us out at

Making Cents Out Of Coupons

If you'd like to help or contribute, let us know!

Kaitlyn's Dedication

2009-03-31T15:40:00.007-04:00

Now that Kaitlyn is 10 1/2 months old, we finally got around to her dedication! :) She did GREAT! Of course, it helped that "Dicks" walked her around for the introductions and Merle led us through the 'verbage' of attesting to the fact that YES, as her parents we do fully intend to raise her to believe in Jesus Christ, God's only Son, and to teach her and train her up in the ways of the Lord.... to the best of our ability. We were missing 6 people from our entire immediate family; not so bad when there are 26 of us.

Matt and I decided to do a slide show of photos for the first 10 months of Kaitlyn's life and to play a song on CD for the occassion. We chose the song "I Saw God Today" by George Strait! YES... it is a country song... but one that we both like and enjoy, and even before Kaitlyn was born we would say, if we have a girl- we should use this song at her dedication... and so- we did! I even emailed ole Georgie boy to see if he'd come and sing it for us...but it must have gotten lost in all the other emails, because we never heard back from him :) hehehe! That's ok... we were still blessed!

Here is the video that was captured on Sunday at church... (thanks Dawn for being willing to do that).

And here are a couple of pictures...(thanks Christina for being willing to do that).!

The dress you see Kaitlyn wearing is very special. Two of my bestest friends got together and dreamed this one up! Dawn, who was in our wedding, gave her bridesmaid's dress to Lourdes. Lourdes, then cut off the bottom part of the long skirt and made this little dress for Kaitlyn to wear on her dedication. You can't see them, but she also made matching bloomers to go with it! What a sweet gesture and awesome idea! I think this could be a new business! It is so special and holds more sentimental value than just a dress!

What a great weekend of family and friends! We are truly blessed.