Update

So I decided to try to go back and blog everything that I missed out on the last year in the same detail that I have been blogging would take more time than I currently have.  I went back and looked at my blog. My last normal blog was right before we found out that my Dad was sick.  My life went upside down and sideways for a while after that.  At this point however, how far behind I am is keeping me from getting caught up.  So I came up with this idea.  I am going to give some highlighted bullet points to catch up everyone and some of the bigger things I will blog in more detail for those interested in going back and reading them more fully. (If want to see greater detail go to my "blog archive" on the far right column and click on 2011 and then pick by date.  March 2011 is the earliest)
*My Dad was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer April 2011
*We adopted a dog through a Brittany Rescue April 2011
*Isabella and Kaydence turn 1 year old April/June 2011
*Dad's celebration of life party June 5
*Dad died June 8, 2011
*Nick married Kelsey on August 6, 2011
*Girls big birthday party - pirate themed September 2011
*We started homeschooling November 2011

It is hard to lump all those things together but they are the main things of the year.  I will be blogging each of them in more detail over the next week possibly with a few more things like camping trips, blueberry picking, random cute things.  My Dad's illness and then death affected everything.  It has been more difficult and life changing than I ever thought it would be.  I think of him every single day and it is hard to look back and only have memories.  We don't have a lot of pictures together and I didn't journal very many of our activities together - more just took for granted that they would be there for a long time to come.  It sounds like a cleache  but live life and enjoy, taking in everything you can and spend as much time as you can with those you love ~ journal, blog, take pics, enjoy as you never know when time and circumstances will change.

Winter Gathering - and the CORN

So instead of going to the Dells this year for our annual family winter gathering we decided to just all hang out at our house for the weekend.  Dogs, money, work schedules ....  just a lot to figure out and opted to just spend a relaxing weekend together.  It was relaxing - Andi, Jimmy, Brooke and Kaydence; Nick and Kelsey; and us.  Grandma Gretchen just happened to be visiting the week before so she ended up being with us for part of the weekend as well.  Bowling pics were the only ones we got, however, the one I wish we had gotten was of the CORN.  On Sunday afternoon we were all upstairs playing scattegories.  After a while Matt decided to get dinner going and went downstairs to get some supplies - that is when he found the corn.  Rylee and Brooke (who most often do naughty things together - its like they gain courage to do those things they know they shouldn't but really want to) were downstairs playing quietly as they had been doing all weekend long.  It seems though they had enough of tinker toys, dollhouses, and imaginex and went into the home school room to play with the corn.  ** Sidenote - We have a little swimming pool full of dry feed corn as a sensory area in our homeschool room. **  Rylee and Brooke decided to make it rain corn - literally.  They threw it up in the air by the scooperfuls.  To say there was corn everywhere was an understatement - on the bookshelves, in the closet, in Andi and Jimmy's suitcase and all over their clothes, the bed and linens, on the table, computer, play money......  To be honest to look at the room one would think there wouldn't have been any corn left in the pool.  Even later that night I wish I had gotten proof of their delinquency.  A few days later I thought about recreating the scene but then thought better of it when I remembered I didn't have all the helpers to clean it up.

Happy Monday

So I was trying to help Rylee make her family home evening dessert so it would be cool enough for her to frost after she got home from 4K today.  Typical Monday morning in that I had a ton of things to do.  Rylee was getting the pans ready so I decided to scrape the beaters off so all would be ready to get in the oven.  I lifted up the beaters and while I was reaching for the spatula Bella decided she too would help and turned on the mixer.  Chocolate cake mix flew everywhere.  At first I was like, "Oh, great I don't have time for this" but Bella was kind of scared and Rylee dumbfounded so I just grabbed the camera and tried to make the best of it.  I didn't realize until after dental appointments, drop off at 4K, music, classes ....  that some had gotten on my face.  No one bothered to tell me so I ended up with cake batter across my face all day.  I asked Elizabeth why she didn't say something and she said it just looked like a big scab - I am not really sure which was worse.  Note to self - always check the mirror before you leave - even if only the car mirror for a second!

Kalahari

School at the waterpark

Cierra at the lilypads

Elizabeth keeping herself entertained in the little section

Cierra preventing water spray on Bella

 Bella who really didn't like the water
- hard to keep entertained in a water park then huh?

Rylee got a good bump on her head
from a water slide

the smiles say it all - we did all we could every day - it was so fun 

Rylee liked to hide in the water tubes on  "shore"
at the wave pool as she didn't like the waves

We got back today from a three day trip to the Kalahari (an indoor waterpark) in Wisconsin Dells, WI.  Matt had a business trip there and well we decided to go.  We didn't have to take the girls out of school - we just brought our home school stuff with and studied each day before we went swimming.  Matt was gone most of the time to meetings and other events of his conference but we had so much fun anyway.  So exhausting but a lot of fun.  One day we spent 11 hours in the park!!!!  Yikes - I was asleep every night at the same time the kids were.  It was a super trip.