The Christmas Tree

Of course we went to our usual site for Christmas tree hunting this year and of course we brought home the biggest tree ever. We can't imagine going anywhere else for the tree that will grace our home from December to February (seriously. We leave it up that long). But their selection of appropriately sized trees gets smaller each year. When we picked this one out we knew it was big. That's why Robby left so much in the ground when he cut it down. He still had to cut more off after we got it home to get it to fit in the house though!

The traditional picture in front of the tree we selected. Kristina, Lindsay, Cynthia, Ryan and Garrett (who had just gotten in trouble for playing on the semi-frozen lake and getting his shoes and pants all wet!)

Happy Halloween

McCain and Obama enjoyed watching the Cards beat USF last Saturday

Halloween came early for this cheerleader too. . . . . She gives new meaning to making your eyes look bigger with makeup!

Lindsay was Gabriella from High School Musical, Garrett was Brock Bollen and Cynthia was Brian Brohm (we finally got her in the right colors!!!!!!). Kimberly is way too cool to dress up-she went to a party instead.

Garrett's First UofL Football Game

Robby gave Garrett his ticket to the UofL football game against Middle Tennessee State for his birthday. Garrett wasn't sure it was a real ticket at first and Robby wasn't real excited about giving up his seat, but in the end everyone had a smile on their face. When I asked them to pose for this pic I wasn't sure Robby wasn't going to snatch the ticket and run!

Me and Garrett just being goofy









This hand-off made it all the way to the end zone for a touchdown. Garrett was cheering extra loud for Brock Bollen since he was wearing his number on the jersey he got for his birthday.


Garrett was excited about staying after the game to high-five the players. He couldn't believe they all actually walked around the whole field to greet fans and accept congratulations.




This was a day Garrett won't soon forget. I think he might have actually forgot about the electric guitar he asked for and didn't get for his birthday!

Birthday Boys

My how time flies. My cute little boy who loves to cuddle is growing up. Garrett is turning 11 on Monday.

Garrett and Eric celebrated their birthdays together yesterday.

Brian was a good sport entertaining Lindsay while the boys did boy stuff.


The boys stayed up late to watch Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. After Lindsay finished decorating Brian she made it clear that she wasn't interested in watching the movie by falling asleep on the couch. Kimberly tried to stay up, but she gave up about halfway through and found a comfy spot in the middle of the floor.

Happy Birthday to two wonderful young men!

Pumpkin Pickin'

Lindsay and I spent the day at Huber's with her second grade class.

It didn't take Lindsay long to find her perfect pumpkin.

Lindsay shivered in the storage cooler, but I thought it was a nice break from the heat in this unusual fall weather we have been having.

I absolutely LOVE fall. I can't think of anything I would have rather done with my day than to spend it with my favorite second grader soaking up the outdoors.

R U READY for some Football ?????

G O C A R D S ! ! !

Future Cardinal ? ? ? ? ?

(Almost) Music to My Ears

Today was Garrett's first day with his (rented) trombone. He has been itching to play in the band at school even though he has no experience. In fact, the only music training he has had so far is "Brian's basics" at church music camp and following a Youtube video to memorize 2 songs on the keyboard. --You've gotta start somewhere right! He has a true love for music and I can't wait to see him grow in his abilities. For now, pray for our ears. Practice will be long and loud for awhile I'm sure!~

The Mommy Bouquet

Lindsay picked me this awesome bouquet of gorgeous flowers from the yard. She knows I love fresh-cut flowers even though I don't often buy them and even at her young age she often thinks more of others than herself. She loves to make people smile and frequently brings home random gifts for different members of the family. She always has a way of brightening my day, but I am especially fond of her personally designed bouquets. There is nothing in this world that compares to the beauty of a fist-full of love, hand-picked especially for you.

God's Front Yard Makeover

While it took Robby several days of hard work to complete his recent makeover of our front porch, God's front yard makeover was completed in a matter of seconds.

Even on it's side, our tree is taller than average.

We were surprised at the root system that supported this massive tree.

The view from our front door. It still shocks me every time I see it.

The kids have always wanted to be able to climb this tree.

The first mound of leaves in the road is our neighbors Bradford Pear tree that split into 3 pieces a few minutes before our tree went down.

We were lucky enough to have our electricity restored the next day. The kids have enjoyed being out of school (although I have still had school EVERY DAY!), and the tree was a source of entertainment for all the neighborhood kids for a few days. The city came at 2:30 this morning with chainsaws in hand. They cleared the road by cutting the tree into sections and pushing it to either side of the road. I think it will be awhile before we get it all cleaned up.

Before It Fell

Sunday afternoon we were going about our business, busily preparing the much anticipated dinner of Robby's famous Swiss Steak. This is one of my most favorite meals even though it is time consuming and messy to prepare. I was excited about the food, but even more so about the company. Brian and Shannon where FINALLY going to experience the meal that I talked about the entire trip home from Cambodia a few years ago. This picture was taken at 1:28pm (while we still had electricity).

About 10 minutes later we were standing in our kitchen hoping the the power outage would be short, and trying to decide what options we had for cooking this huge amount of prepared meat. I walked out onto the back porch and looked down the power line (not sure what I expected to see. . . ). Our neighbors had a big limb that had fallen and was blocking the street and had possibly taken the power line down with it. Until then I hadn't realized how hard the wind was actually blowing. I stood there and watched as the siding was ripped off the carport of the house behind ours, but the excitement didn't really start until I went out front.

Our neighborhood is full of trees. Some are small and only a few years old, but many are huge towering beauties that have been around for several generations. Standing on the front porch I could hear nothing but the wind rushing through the trees. Even the sirens from the fire station down the street couldn't compete with the roar of the wind as it's gusts cleared it's own path through the neighborhood.

When I first saw the trunk of our tree swaying in the wind I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. I watched as each gust pushed the entire tree from side to side. But when I saw the grass raise up I knew it was only a matter of time until our tree would succumb to the power of the winds. I went back inside and with a matter-of-fact attitude I announced to Robby "We are going to lose our tree today." As I tried to explain to him what I saw, he rolled his eyes and looked at me as if I was crazy. When he decided to check it out for himself he was shocked. We realized that this tree had the potential to take out several houses depending on how it fell in this gusty, shifting wind, so Robby went around and told all the neighbors while I tried to get the kids into the basement-just in case. I shot this video from the front porch at 2:01pm. Watch as the roots lift the grass and landscape blocks towards the right of the tree. . .

*NOTE* I removed the sound from this video in an attempt to avoid the embarrassment of my incoherent ramblings.

The video of the tree as it fell (see previous post) was shot at 2:03pm. Amazingly, no one was injured and no property was damaged by this huge tree. Any shift in the angle that it fell would have had a different outcome.

150 Years Falls Flat

We are still without power and have been told it could take days. The kids are excited about being out of school tomorrow, but I am wondering how much food we will lose (including the half-cooked Swiss steak we were working on for our special guests!) We ended up at Qdoba for dinner and I am taking advantage of their wireless internet. I'll have to give you the WHOLE story later, but for now here is the video of the tree as it fell. Although we are sad to have lost "our tree" we are grateful that no one was hurt. In fact, the tree managed to fall at the perfect angle and miss everything.

Robby's Porch Makeover

BEFORE

The project was originally supposed to be limited to the floor (which obviously was in desperate need), but it turned into much more.





After

KY State Fair

The kids always ask me to go on their field trips. I usually enjoy them, but I know I will be really busy this semester so most field trips are probably out for me. Since I haven't started classes yet Garrett convinced me to chaperon his first field trip of the year to the Kentucky State Fair. The school tours are pretty limited, but there was still plenty to see and lots of room for the 8 boys I was responsible for to keep me on my toes.

What little boy doesn't dream of being a policeman?

Garrett enjoyed the "drunk goggles" at the Louisville Metro Police booth. He THINKS he is walking ON the line during this mock sobriety test. . . .

We waited about 45 minutes for a 2 minute experience in the NASCAR racing simulator. Sounds ridiculous, but the boys were more than willing to wait and I was glad to have them sitting still and all in one place! They competed against each other (two at a time) and the spectators watched the race on a TV screen outside the simulator. It was neat to see the kids cheer each other on and even the "losers" came out with a huge smile on their face.


At the end of the day everyone was tired and ready to head home (ESPECIALLY ME). Once again I was reminded that it takes a special person to be a teacher and I am grateful for those who give of themselves to educate my children.