A Sad Day

This was truly a sad day at the Trout house. Greg and I decided to plant a garden this year and in order to do that, the fort needed to come down. It's not like anyone plays on it anymore and it was rotting so it wasn't safe, but it was a very special play place. There will be no more secret meetings, no more eating popsicles with the neighbors under the canopy, no more playing in the sand, no more hooking up the hose to the slide, and no more pictures of our beloved fort. Of course, I had to take pictures of the process, but I must admit that I teared up as I watched Greg do the dreaded task. (I'm actually crying now as I write this:) Those of you with little ones, take lots of pictures and enjoy the simple things. Before you know it they will be married and no one will want to be pushed on the swing anymore!

Micah was sooo excited when we bought this house because of the fort. His only question about our new house was, "Do we get to keep the fort?" He could hardly wait to get moved so he could play in it and being the youngest, I think he played in it the most. Of course, we got his permission before we began the demolition.
Greg did get to use power tools which made him feel manly even though I saw tears in his eyes too!
It's going..........
It's going.........
It's gone!

Nathaniel and Kim Tie the Knot

The happy couple - this is one of my favorite pictures. We have tons more to come but I wanted to post a few pics for now. Thanks to everyone who traveled to come to the wedding. We really appreciate your encouragement and support. We had a great time and we realize how much we miss getting together as a family. We really need to plan a family reunion soon. It meant a lot to us that you were there and we love you all. Enjoy these pictures and watch for more to come.

Ohio's Newest Police Officer

Nathaniel had his final interview this morning with the Lebanon Police Department (a town about 40 minutes from Beavercreek) and he got the phone call about 3 hours later that he got the job! He has been in the interview process with them since December. It is a BIG answer to prayer. They hired 3 out of about 150 applicants. Now he can support his soon to be wife, Kim.

He actually let me take line up photos of him! Thank goodness he will be on the other side of the mirror and when we visit him at the jail, he will be the one putting criminals behind bars!

Congratulations, Nathaniel. We are very proud of you! Kiera, I guess we can call him a Copper like the policemen we saw in Florida!

Check out the bottom two pictures. (If you click on the picture, it will zoom in and you can see it better) Nathaniel lived in his police helmet. He had a battery operated radio that he hooked on to his big wheel and he wore his police helmet and his boots. Who would have known that 18 years later he would trade those in for the real uniform.

Happy Birthday, Marlene

Happy birthday, Marlene. I pulled this picture from Kiera's wedding. Maybe we can
get a better one of Allen at Nathaniel's wedding - ha! Thanks for being a good example
of what a grandmother does. Your blog is always full of what they are
doing and I appreciate that. Have a great day. See you soon.
P.S. I'll post Greg's birthday pictures later.
He had a very uneventful day.

Easter 2008

We had great Easter celebrations at church today with maximum crowds and a lot of participation. Greg and I are thankful that each of our kids and their significant others are all believers and active in our church and we could truly celebrate our Savior's resurrection today. Yes, I even made Greg wear purple. I think he looks mighty handsome.

We had a table full at Easter. I must say that the food was great and the company was enjoyable. We had roast with all the trimmings including asparagus (almost everybody's favorite). Kim made a great dessert with berries and angel food cake. We ate all day and then went and bowled and ate pizza!

Being unattached does have advantages. Micah didn't have to share his basket!

Yes, Nathaniel and Kim even got their own basket. Nathaniel doesn't like regular chocolate - can you believe that - but I did find a dark chocolate bunny. He can't be for real because he doesn't really like sweets.

Dan had Easter dinner with us and spent the rest of the day playing games, watching a movie, and going bowling. He even got an Easter basket. No matter how old they get, they still want candy!

Micah was feeling a little left out since everyone was paired off so Lauren's doll kept him company! Just kidding - it was a great photo op!

This is how Nathaniel enjoyed his afternoon while we played wii and watched a movie.

After dinner entertainment - my napkin rings have more than one function. It seems like every time I use them, this is what happens!

A New Post - Finally!

If you've read Lauren's facebook, you know that she has a new interest. His name is Dan. They have become an item. Of course, Greg did his Dad responsibility and had his talk with Dan before they could go out alone. We have known Dan and his family for quite awhile. Hordes of his family go to our church so we know the family well. He graduated with Nathaniel and has been to our house numerous times. Who would have ever thought he would be coming to get Lauren?!

We had a great time at our monthly growth group in February. The Deal's hosted a murder mystery party that was set in the 1880's. We all dressed up for our parts and had great food, fellowship, and fun. This picture highlights all the pastors at FairCreek except for the Bieri's who were on vacation. What a great pastoral team!! (And yes, we can have fun and even pretend to be less than respectable people. I must say that we all played our parts well - I guess from experience!)

Becky - an author and the official murderer which we found out at the end of the game. In real life, Becky would be the absolute last suspect because she is a wonderful mother of three and a great wife and support to Rob.

Mike - a newspaper reporter (aka our Worship Pastor)

JoAnn - the School Teacher (aka a real teacher and wife to Mike)

Me - a Sharpshooter (aka Greg's wife and best supporter)

Sharon - the town doctor (aka Jim's wife and terrific helper)

Greg - the Mayor (aka our Senior Pastor and wonderful husband to me!)

Rob - the Village Blacksmith (aka our Pastor of Children and Families and Missions)

Jennifer - the Saloon Keeper (aka wife to Aaron and mother of 4)

Aaron - the banker (aka our Pastor of Administration and Connections) He was a great host.

Jim - the Indian Chief (aka our Pastor of Seniors) He was very good in his role!

Kim had her wedding shower two weeks ago. Lauren, Jacqui, and I went to Jenera, Ohio, to Kim's church. We only got lost twice and were 20 minutes late - not good for the mother of the groom. We had a good time and the food was great. Kim has a lot of relatives!

Kim likes to open presents and she sure had a lot to open at her wedding shower. I think they have enough to get them started. Nathaniel got his coffee maker and coffee grinder. It doesn't take a lot to make him happy!

The Blizzard of '08 - we are NOT happy.

For people who don't like snow, winter, or cold weather, we are living in the wrong place! We are pretending that this isn't really happening. It has been snowing since 8am yesterday. We have been under a blizzard warning since yesterday afternoon. It is supposed to stop today around 4pm. We already have about 14 inches. Enough already!