Trunk or Treat

Last Sunday, our AWANA club held their annual "Trunk or Treat." Very talented and resourceful families in our church decorated their trunks with scenes of Bible stories. Here are a few of the trunks:








Here is the Tower of Babel that Luke made. It's pretty good if I do say so myself.

And a little closer:
And a little closer:
The kids dressed up as bible characters and can you believe I didn't get a picture of our little Queen Esther?!?!?!

WFMW-The Best Store in the World

I love IKEA. For this week's WFMW, I thought I'd show some of my favorite Ikea products. But then life got in the way, so I only displayed one :)

Even though the closest IKEA is 232 miles away, I probably go there at least 4 times a year. (My parents live by two!)


Here is Kara demonstrating one of our favorite Ikea purchases. The other side is a chalk board so when a friend comes over, she has a place to show off her artwork, too.

We also have this and this and this and I love all of it! Of course, every time I go to ANY store, I bring one of these. They are the best and I use only 2 for my twice a month Walmart trips!

For other tips, see Rocks in My Dryer.

Who's the mom?

Today, while I was in the shower, Kara was knocking on the door and shouting something. I couldn't make out what she was saying so when I got out I asked Luke what she said.

She said, "It would be nice if you picked your clothes off the floor, Mom."

Cultural Experience

Kara and I had a wonderful time attending GC's Homecoming concert last Friday. The keyboard ensemble, strings and worship ensembles did a great job. But we both especially loved the choir. If you listen really carefully, you can hear Kara try to sing along!


Here is another more upbeat song they did. (Kara was trying to move her head to the music. She also danced while we watched this video :) The whole evening was very enjoyable! Kara and I plan to take advantage of cultural experiences provided by GC.

Cool Puzzle

Luke cut these pieces out on his laser engraver and put it together with Kara. To learn more about Luke's laser engraving business, visit his website.

Big Slide!

Today we went to Homecoming at GC. They had a bouncy house and big slide for the kiddos. I asked the operator how old the kids had to be (I was hoping he would say 4) but of course, he shrugged and said "3?" I was so surprised Kara actually went down the slide. But here's proof she did:





Doesn't she look like she's having fun? She begged me to go down 4 times (I was reluctant since she took 1/2 hour to get up it) and cried when we left.

Silly Kara

I'm not sure if I can set up this video...You are just going to have to watch. You can tell from some remains on her face that she was eating some kind of chocolate, plus it was late so that equals what you are about to see!!! The cute noises that you hear in the background come from Robbie:)

Robbie, We Miss You!!

Out of the blue yesterday, Kara asked me if Robbie (her 6 month old cousin) was crying for her because he missed her. (I think he was...wouldn't you?)

Here is a short "ode to Robbie" via pictures because WE miss him (and the rest of the family. But now you know how it feels to me when you call me and say how much you miss Kara...j/k!)

Isn't he adorable???

WFMW-Toddler chores

Last Christmas, Kara received this sweeper (among other gifts) from her grandma.


She loves using it (works for me) and it picks up pretty well. When this picture was taken, Kara was 2! You can't argue with the smile on her face!


For more tips, head over to Rocks in My Dryer.

Kara's Moves part 2

What do you get when you take the world's worst camera operator(me) and combine it with the world's cutest 3 year old?

Press play to find out (and then someone PLEASE tell me how to edit videos and then post them!!!)

Kara's New Skill

Now she takes pictures of herself (and everything else:)

Good Job, Honey!!

For our 6th wedding anniversary, my awesome husband chartered a sailboat. It was a gorgeous (slightly cold) day. Here are some pictures of that great day!

Please excuse the layout...I'm still learning:)

What's Wrong with this Picture?

Though I like the above store, I've long been under the impression that as much as I should "look out for falling prices," prices rise just as often.

Now I have proof!

MOPS fundraiser

My local MOPS group is having a Pampered Chef fundraiser. I'm excited because I love Pampered Chef products but don't indulge in buying them very often.

If you would like to order something to help out some mothers of young children (or just because you want too), that would be great. Just let me know. You can peruse the items at their website, but you have to order from me or another MOPS mom for our group to get the money.

Think Christmas presents. Pampered Chef has a lot of quality items. The deadline for ordering is November 7th and I'll get the items on November 21st. No shipping costs!!!

Now for something entirely different

While at the conference this past weekend, I was reminded of the work of a GREAT relief organization called, International Justice Mission. Currently, I'm reading the founder's book. Basically IJM, rescues people oppressed in all kinds of ways using lawyers and law enforcement officials. It's true biblical justice.

They have a really neat Holiday Gift Catalog in which you can give a day of aftercare or a day of investigative work.

For the person in your life this Christmas who has it all, consider giving a gift to IJM in their name.

She's got the moves

This is a video from back in August. It shows a typical day here! There's always lots of music and dancing.

Those of you not related to Kara might not make it through the whole video to some of the best moves (that's okay!) I did cut "filming" short because I was afraid that she would choke herself.

The music is none other than the awesome Ayiesha Woods. Her new release is amazing!

Look, Mom!

"Look, Mom. I look like Mary."

Where does she come up with these?

WFMW-Stonecroft Ministries

I just returned from Impact '08 and I'm totally a blowtorch for God (another way of saying on fire). I love the tools, resources, and teaching from Stonecroft Ministries which has been working its Mission Statement for 70 years.

If you are looking for great bible studies, a place to lead or somewhere to get connected, Stonecroft is for you (if you are a woman!). You can go to their website and plug in your zip code for a group near you!

I know in the picture two of us are not looking but it was the best I got. Hopefully the other ladies got better ones. I'm also mourning a little today because that picture was the last I saw of my favorite sunglasses:(
For more WFMW tips, see Shannon.

Getting started

Here I am. For a long time, I've contemplated starting a blog. After returning from a conference this weekend, the recurring theme for me was "What am I waiting for?"

I have good intentions to do things in my life i.e. scrapbook, meet the neighbors, have people over for play groups, invite friends to church etc. Why don't I just get moving?

So, here it is. The first blog entry. It's not much. But at least I'm not waiting to get started!!!!

More about the conference, the title of my blog and me to come!!!