October Activities

Micah's acting resume is getting pretty lengthy. He is Lieutenant Wright in the Fall Musical "The Secret Garden." They have done 6 performances. He also got chosen out of students from all over the Miami Valley to be in The Muse Machine production of "Peter Pan". He is John - the oldest boy in the family. They will be performing at the Victoria Theater in downtown Dayton, January 9-13. This is an incredible production and he is excited. We can get discounted tickets this weekend for friends and family if you want to come. I think they will be around $20 but I'm not sure. I'll send details via email. He even gets to fly!

Aaron doesn't have the monopoly on cute outfits anymore! Uncle Greg has the coolest costume ever. He had to dress up for our Harvest Party at church and he really got into his character - not that we didn't already know he was a clown. He thinks this is his new calling. We had over 700 people for the party. It was a great outreach event. By the way, I made the costume. The pattern said it would take 2 hours - 7 hours later I finished it just in time!!

This is Nathaniel's pride and joy - besides Kim! We're pretty sure he loves Kim more than his truck but he really does love his truck. I guess you could say that we all paid for it with our taxes because he laid down cash from his earnings in Iraq. There were a few advantages to living there for a year. Since there was no place to shop, eat out, movies to see, or anywhere to spend money, Nathaniel saved his and this is his reward. It's a black Ford Ranger with a lot of bells and whistles. He even let me drive it once even though it's a stick shift.

Last but not least, here is Lauren getting in her car - the oil has just been changed! How cool is that! She is so busy with college and work that we see her briefly when she's home. She has adjusted to Wright State and has been promoted to Team Leader at Chick-fil-A. She hates her picture taken so this was a surprise.

Columbus Marathon

I'll have more official pictures soon but I couldn't wait to show you my latest accomplishment. This picture was taken today at 6am right before Sandy and I walked the Columbus 1/2 Marathon in record time for us. We have been training since August. I finally have an athletic medal just like the rest of my family! We decided that we wanted to lose weight and be healthier so we started walking. Sandy is definitely the motivator. She and her family are members at our church, but we've known them for many years. We walked 13.1 miles and we're very proud of ourselves. That's not bad for two forty something West Virginia girls!! Of course, we didn't take a camera with us or I would have better pictures, but they took pictures along the race route. When I get those I will have official proof that we really walked! We got official shirts, bib numbers, and we even got to drink Gatorade and water and throw our cups on the road just like in the Olympics!! How's that for cool?!

This is my good friend, Sandy Sheers. She and I have been friends for a long time. Sandy pushed us to train and get ready. What a farm girl!

We finished and had a personal best time! We still can't believe we did it - although our knees tell us we did. This is our medal we received at the finish line.

PK Outing

Since we don't live close to our great nieces and nephews, we decided to borrow the pk's for an outing. I guess we had forgotten how much energy it takes to chase after kids for an afternoon! I needed an excuse to go to a pumpkin farm and my kids weren't excited to do that - can you believe it?! Our whole family went and we had a great time. We went to Young's Dairy, John Bryan State Park, and Burger King. We had a ten year old, a six year old, a five year old, a four year old, two three year olds, and a one year old (and a partridge in a pear tree!!) Were we nuts or what?! They were all well behaved and full of energy. You guys are doing a great job as parents. We love you and we're glad you're on our team!

"I tired." Greg was ready to empathize!

"We're going to wait awhile for kids!"

We're pretty sure Lauren was over the height limit for the play area at Burger King!

Jessica was following Eli and doing everything he did. It was too cute.

Faster, Mr. Greg!

Robby and Micah went in the corn maze while the little ones rode the barrel train. They got a little lost but they made it through!

Abbi liked the orange cupcakes even though "lellow" is her favorite color.

For future reference, markers will draw on pumpkins, but will also rub off on little hands and won't come off even if the package says they are washable! Next time we'll use paint!

Mr. Micah got into the fun of the day.

Okay, this was the most challenging picture I took all day. Do you know how hard it is to get 7 kids to look at the camera at the same time and hold their pumpkins? Bribes were even used!!

I think Robby thought I wouldn't take his picture, but I made him pose just like everyone else. He doesn't know how serious I am with a camera!

Two farm girls - Jessica and Kim - checking out the goats.

Lauren and Eli were checking out the baby pigs.

Jenna was intrigued with the baby cow even though the barn stunk!

Greg and Kenzie checking out the milking cows.

Jessica liked the animals. She definitely has farming in her genes!

The girls are getting food for the goats. Alanna wanted to pet them. They immediately wanted to wash their hands.

This is Eli and Nathaniel feeding a goat. Eli was born on Greg's birthday and Greg tried to convince him that they were the same age because they share a birthday. Three year olds will believe anything!

Back from Iraq

The house was ready for his return!

We're finally all home! I love the song "On my Front Porch Looking In" because the view I love the most is that of our family together again and at home!

At the local Sunoco station, they will post anything you want on the sign outside the store. We wanted everyone in town to know Nathaniel was home. I had to beg to get this picture!

A future soldier - this boy definitely wanted to follow in his daddy's footsteps.

I loved his shirt! His Daddy is the chaplain that was with the troops for the whole year.

Picture with a dignitary! This is U.S. Senator Brown from Ohio who welcomed the troops home and made a speech at the ceremony.

Travis went with us to get his buddy, Nate. Travis and Nathaniel were security guards at the mall together, but I think they goofed off more than they patrolled. Travis is now a policeman and you will also see him at the wedding. Nathaniel and Kim's wedding will be one of the safest events you will attend. Between soldiers, cops, and security guards, everything will be covered!

Big brother is back to take his official place in the lineup. Lauren and Micah missed Nathaniel a lot and we all prayed for him daily. Our shirts say it all. He is our hero!

The happy couple finally reunited.

This is Ben - Nathaniel's roommate for 16 months. They got along great. He is a real family man and a great friend. You will see him at the wedding!

Prayer is still alive in America - especially among soldiers. The Commander led everyone in prayer thanking God for safety and for the dedication of the troops.

The place erupted when the troops entered. Nathaniel is fifth from the left. He looks the same but definitely has returned a man. At this point, we were all crying - happy tears!

This little girl had no idea of the importance of the day, but she waved her flag and waited for her Daddy. There were quite a few kids who gave up their mom or dad for a year - including Nathaniel's roommate who has only seen his son one time.

The band played patriotic music that added to the atmosphere of the day.

Here we are waiting - the last hour was the hardest! We went to Columbus to the Army Reserve Center where the families waited for their soldiers. The atmosphere was incredible. Everyone had t-shirts on with pictures or names of their soldiers, an Army band played patriotic music, we ate lunch, and the room was filled with anticipation, balloons, signs, banners, and excitement. Across from us, an older gentleman sat in his chair and sobbed as the band played - way before the troops showed up. He was probably a veteran waiting for a grandchild to come home. It was really sweet. We were very proud to be Americans.