3 Girls, 1 Guy and a Zoo!

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Fire Hall Field trip

This is our third go at this and we have had an awesome turn out each time. Doug does such a great job with the kids! Here was our group...

Zoe even joined us.

She will be joining the group next year and came to get a sneak peek!

All suited up...I love him!

Doug set the kids free to climb in the trucks, try on the suit, etc.

Zoe wasn't sure about sitting in the truck, but she did and loved it!

For the past two years, Doug always puts the kid that asks/answers the most questions on the back board and tips them upside down. This year was no different. Madalyn thought it looked like fun so after everyone but Zoe was gone, she asked if she could get strapped down.

And then Zoe wanted a turn ;) Marissa was dead set against this!

So while Doug and I were busy with the kids on boards, Katie was on camera duty, and Marissa was on baby duty...

And I don't think she was complaining :)

LOL Zoe looks unsure, but she was loving it! I love this picture of them!

Zoe wanted to be stood up against the wall and then asked for Madalyn to stand next to her.

How about upside down?

Uncle Doug is showing her what happens if she has to puke...

I love this picture...I don't know what she is trying to look at but she can't turn her head! LOL

In the ambulance...

She would have stayed on that board all day if we let her! LOL She loved it!

As always we had a great day and can't wait till next year!

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Thank You!

To each and every one of you who have served or are currently serving THANK YOU! All gave some, some gave all and some are still giving...for me, and for you. I don't think any of us will ever really understand the degree of that. I know I don't. Thank you doesn't seem enough, but I don't know what else so to every one of you....I'm thinking of you today and want you to know that I'm thankful for you, your families, and all that you gave up for me!

Monday, November 10, 2014

Happy Birthday!

I love this man...

He is an amazing dad who loves his girls more than anything and would do anything for them.

He is also an amazing husband! I feel so blessed to call him MINE! We met in 2003, became very best friends, and neither of us had a clue that we liked the other! God is soo good to me!

So thankful for the amazing, Godly, hard working, thoughtful, compassionate, easy-going, fun, adventurous, smart, love of my life! Happy Birthday! I love you more than you will ever know!

Friday, November 7, 2014

It's Friday!

And Doug has off! He is heading up our homeschool field trip at the fire hall today. This will be our third year doing it and every year the kids have a blast. We always have a full house! I'm not counting on this year being any different. I'm excited and I'm bringing my camera so I'll have lot of pictures next week!

Tonight we have friends coming over to use our oven to make a cake for a birthday party tomorrow. It's going to be a 3D Olaf cake. Hopefully we can pull it off!

Should be a good day! I got so much done yesterday... it seems like no matter how much you do in a day, the next day is just as full. I guess you can't get bored that way! ;)

Have a great weekend!!!

P.S. Molly has grown again...she got a new collar last night. Even though she is really tall, she is really slender, so she just moved from medium to large. I *think* that will be her last size. Time will tell.

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Molly, the girls and the scary balloon :)

The girls were having some fun with Molly last week. We have worked really hard working on Molly's fears and its awesome to see her not run and hide when a balloon shows up. Although I'm sure there were a few moments that the girls wish she still would!

For those of you who wanted to see how sick Madalyn was...this was taken about 8 hours after her "incident". Other than a funny voice, she is Madalyn!

P.S. Don't mind the ring tone at the end of the second video...it was just a friend calling to check on Madalyn :)

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

October 31st

This is one of those "holidays" where people have a lot of opinions. Things we should and should not do. I'm one of those that believes you need to do what is best for your family. It's not mine to judge and make decisions for anyone else! For us, we have two girls who are very jumpy and scared this time of year. We choose to stay in and spend some time as a family. Since it landed on a Friday this year, Doug was home. I made up sugar cookies earlier in the day so we set to work on decorating them first.

We had 4 pumpkins given to us so the girls carved two of them. This was Madalyn's first year of carving and Marissa's first year of really doing it by herself. Someone gave us little tools that worked really well and the girls could maneuver them by themselves once Daddy got the tops cut off for them.

The finished product....This is Marissa's

And this is Madalyn's...

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Back tracking...

I'm kind of back tracking a little today....this is what happens when you have been up since 2:30 and made a trip in an ambulance....you sleep while reading!

Monday, November 3, 2014

Awesome weekend and upcoming week ;)

Youth group went amazing! The teens really enjoyed it and we were told two different times on Sunday that they wish we could do it every other week. So that has to be a good sign that it was successful right? :) Praise the Lord. Thank you all for your prayers! Doug is sleeping much better now. On to next months planning!

I'm so excited about this week! Doug is working local and will be home every night and not leaving at 5am. It has been well over 2 months since we have had this opportunity and I feel like its Christmas! Cooking dinner for my husband is a real treat here and I can't wait till tonight!

I'm off to fold laundry and write the 1st quarterly reports for the school district today.

I hope you all have a great day!

If you were to ask me where I would see myself in 10 years, I never would have guessed that I would be here. However, I couldn't be happier! I'm very happily married to the love of my life and have two girls. We have begun our journey towards adoption and I'm excited to see what the Lord has in store for us over the next couple of years. I'm a stay at home mom who home-schools. I enjoy researching and finding things out for myself. This blog allows me to share with others my passions and keep in touch with family that I wouldn't normally be able to keep in such close touch with.

Daddy is such a blessing to me. We met in college and became best friends. About one and a half years after we met we were dating. The rest is history. Together we have grown in the Lord and learned many lessons even in our few years together. Things haven't always been smooth, but together and with the Lord's help we can accomplish anything. He is the love of my life and my true soul mate. He is 100% committed to his family and the Lord. He is currently working for Dairy One in Ithaca. He loves to ski, ride dirt bikes, tinker on things, mow the lawn :) and spend time with his girls.

Marissa is our oldest. She was born in May 2005. She is 100% Daddy's girl. She is a home body and usually isn't away from home for long and she is asking to go back to our house. She always claims a job and sticks with it till its done. She is very quick and catches on fast. You have to be careful what you show her, because before you know it she is going to be attempting it herself. Madalyn is her best friend. She loves church and loves learning and singing about Jesus. Marissa is now is school and she is doing great. She loves to read and do projects. She LOVES animals and has decided that she wants to be a Veterinarian when she grows up!

Madalyn is our youngest. She is 100% Mommy's girl (nice of them that they split us up so that one isn't quite so overwhelmed isn't it?). Madalyn knows what she wants and goes for it. She has no fear and is usually the leader of my two even though she is younger. She does love to shadow her older sister though. She is my girly girl, but also my one that is always getting messy. She loves her hair done, to get dressed up, and shoes! We are in trouble with this one! She loves school and is super smart. She has decided she wants to be a "snow plow driver" when she grows up. She is also going to build a house RIGHT next to us and live there so she can still see us every day ;)

Case was actually our "oldest child". Sadly we said goodbye to him on October 29th, 2013. He was a black lab/ red-tick coonhound. He loved to roam the fields, swim, play ball, catch frisbees, go hiking and spend time at the barn. He also very much enjoyed those black and white cats that roam in the dark and have stripes down their backs...or he must have because he kept getting sprayed! He hated to be abandoned by his family and preferred us to all be in the house by 9pm or he started pacing. His biggest dislike was winter. He hated the cold and would rather hold his potty all day long than to go out and pee. Even when he did go out he barely makes it out the door and he was starting to go! Haha He was our "little boy in a doggie suit" as my aunt says. We love him and miss him like crazy.

Cali is our first cat together as a married couple. Sadly we said goodbye to her on October 8th, 2014. We got her from the barn shortly after we moved. She had to be one of the softest cats you had ever felt and of course one of the best looking calicos. LOL She was a great mouser and spent alot of her time in the basement hunting. She had a funny quirk. When she got ready to settle down and sleep, she parted the hair on her tail so only a few hairs were sticking up and then she proceeded to suck on those hairs.

Beaker is a litter mate to Cali. She is a great mouser. She loves to sneak outside when she gets the chance but if you say her name she quickly darts back in. She is VERY attached to Doug and is always coming up to him purring just as loud as can be begging to be picked up. Beaker of course never does this to me. She doesn't like change and isn't fond of strange dogs, although she has gotten much better with the dogs. She will still swat at Molly but it's not angry, it's almost like she is playing.

Sid was our Marshall Ferret. We said goodbye to him in 2012. He was amazing! Great with kids and other animals, but a total goofball. He definitely lived up to the typical ferret personality and a total thief! Sid's favorite thing to steal was pacifiers. He would take them right out of a baby's mouth if given the opportunity and then take off running! He always hid everything in the same place, so at least we knew where to find them, but of course they were always ruined. Anything rubber was in danger of ending up in the said spot. We definitely miss having him around.

Chloe is Cairn Terrier. She is a blast to have around and I'm definitely sold on the terrier family! She is great with the kids and loves spending time outside. She is a great woodchuck hunter and will sit at an occupied hole all day till she catches one. Even in the winter time she will spend forever out there and come back looking like a snowman. She loves to swim and will swim in any temperature water. She loves to mother other animals. Whether it be kittens from the barn, Case, or her own litter of puppies, she is a great mother! We have since fixed her. Although I'm sad there won't be another litter, it's for the best with the probability of us moving and having to find a new vet.

Meet Molly, our newest dog addition :) After taking some time to heal after losing Case, we decided that our household wasn't the same without a big dog around and we were missing something. So we took the plunge and went full out this time. Molly is a purebred, mis-marked mantle, Great Dane :) She has grown into one good looking pup! I'm still in love with this old picture though, so I'm not changing it! She stands about 31 inches at the shoulder and weighs over 100lbs (although honestly I'm not sure how much over because I can't lift her anymore!) She is great with the kids and loves to cuddle. She shares our bed and is the biggest baby ever. She is very protective and does not like when anyone is pinned down. She is right there to break up the "fight" LOL We love her to pieces!

When Doug's sister and her husband started breeding rabbits, I had a feeling deep down that it was only a matter of time....Here she is! Peterette started out as "Peter". When Madalyn realized "he" was actually a "she", she settled with Peterette. :) Peterette is a flemish giant, which according to what I have read is the Great Dane breed in the bunny world! Figures right? She is super sweet, very laid back and loves to be cuddled and pet. She'll stick her nose out of her cage when you enter the room just so you will scratch it!