Spring?

Well, we are on the last official day of Spring Break. I told the kids that they would have to do a little work this week, mostly math, but they didn't. Their teacher needed a break way more then they did. :)
Plus, Sam was home this week, and it is always harder to stay on a schedule when he is here. He also gave me some much needed time off and I spent one day in Boise and then on another had a lunch date and a dinner date on my birth date. :) Carabas, YUM!!!!!!!!!!
I left my normally overly realistic personality flaw today and packed up the winter stuff! Took down all the Rubbermaid's in the garage and filled them back up with all the ski stuff and hats and helmets and goggles and scarves and boots and "glubs" and everything else winter. It didn't help that the kids came running in this afternoon begging for all their winter stuff because it is SO cold and windy out. I did leave them each one winter jacket, but the rest of it, GONE! Not to be unpacked until it gets really cold again,........... in September. :(

I had a really great birthday. Sam surprised me with a big upgrade to what I drive. I can now be seen in a Baltic Blue Honda instead of the tan Toyota. It is just so much bigger on the inside with way more storage space and a trunk that is twice the size of what I had. With these kids only getting bigger, it is so much nicer! For our cross country drive this summer, it will be wonderful!

38 now. That just sounds weird. I don't feel any different then I did 15 years ago, but that number sounds like it should mean a lot. What does feel weird is that I graduated from high school TWENTY years ago. When I was watching IDOL the other night, and all the contestants had to sing songs from the year they were born and it was all my favorite songs from high school!! That made me feel old. When I put an age on other things, that is when I feel like I have been around for awhile. I guess I am just happy to be here, happy to be who I am with the family and friends God has blessed me with. Happy that I am still 'relatively" young and looking forward to a whole lot more adventures in life.

I just want to be warm! :)

Spring Break in Idaho....

means snow
:( :( :( :( :(

I AM SO READY FOR SPRING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Senior Portraits

Here are a few of my favorite shots from todays session.
I love doing senior portraits.

We are going to wait a month, and hope that by the end of April it will be warm enough and GREEN enough to do the outside session.
Thank you Julie!

Driveway Hockey

Well, it was a chilly 18 degrees wind chill when we left for church this morning. So cold. But by the late afternoon, it is warmed up into the 40's, and if you are active and dressed correctly, it is ALMOST nice out.

So, the next door neighbors yard becomes the hockey place. It was supposed to be a roller hockey game, but we are short on the roller blades here. The ones I got the big kids when we got here are to small for them. They are to big for Christopher, but he taught himself how to use them anyway. The other 2 are sharing the one adult size pair we have, and Kaitlynn happened to have them, so Collin had to play without.

(I am going to Boise on Tuesday and plan on going to the second hand sports store to see if I can find some in their size).

This was also the only hockey game in the state that was constantly interrupted by

a pink big wheel. :)

(I was directed to this new way to blog by another great site. It is through Windows Live Writer. I like the options it gives, more font options and colors, and the fact that you can put pictures ANYWHERE you want them to be, without having to upload in the opposite order you want them like Blogger. But the pictures show up a LOT smaller once on the blog. You can click on each picture and it will open up a little bigger. So, for writing options, I give Live Writer an A+. For photography options, a big thumbs down.)

HAPPY EASTER!

Practice Pictures

I mentioned earlier about the upcoming photography jobs. I got three more this week! Maybe I am finally putting out the "I am so ready to take your picture" vibes again. :)
One of the jobs is tomorrow afternoon. His mom wants a head shot to match his brother's senior picture. That meant getting out the lights and the backdrops and remembering how to set them up and work the light meter with the new camera.
The lights still had moving tape all over them as they haven't been opened in almost three years.
(Kind of makes me sad thinking about that.)
Anyway, before I do a paid job with equipment I haven't touched in years, I needed some major practice time.
With never a shortage of kids in my own house, and a bunch of beautiful neighbors too, this evening was spent trying to feel normal with the studio again.
Here are 4 of the best ones from the Smith family.

They open really big when you click on them.

I am not "thrilled " with them. But I am ready to start working again.

Odds and Ends Update

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Kaebrie's Quip of the Week:

We were reviewing her memory verse before she went to AWANA Sunday night.

Jesus came to the world to save sinners.

She knew it, so I started talking about it. I told her that she was a sinner, and Mommy was a sinner, and Daddy was a sinner, and before I could make it through the rest of her family, she stood up, and loudly announced,

"Mommy, I am NOT a sinner. I am a PRINCESS!!!!"

Our D.C. trip is next month! Collin is so excited, but I am getting a bit nervous. We did some plan changing though. We had planned to stay all 3 nights with our friends on Bolling AFB. But after getting the schedule, it really would have been difficult. We have to be there by 7am in the mornings, which would mean leaving the base really early because of the bad traffic, and also so early that Ben could get back to base on time. Not to mention the 2 hour time change. Leaving their home at 5:45 in the morning to allow enough time for Ben to get back to the base would have felt like the middle of the night to us. Then we are not done until 9pm. On one of the days, we have a 2 hour break from 5 -7 pm, to change, freshen up, (crash), and I just didn't know how to work it out. We don't know anybody else who is going, so I don't have anybody to ask to keep some stuff in their room. Sam said to just dress nice all day and stay in the same clothes. As clutsy as I am, just knowing that I couldn't change, would increase the likelihood of a major spill by 476%. So, we are going to stay the first night with our friends, then the remaining 2 nights at the conference center. The ADA (American Diabetes Association) will pay for one nights stay, and we will pay for the other. I didn't want to spend that money, but I think it will make it easier and less stressful.

Collin found out he didn't have to wear a tie. The meetings and meals at the conference are "business casual." For speaking on Capitol Hill on Thursday, they are going to provide all the advocates with matching red shirts. Red. Is that symbolic of the red blood we see so many times a day when he checks his number?

So with only a few days to pack for, I think I can do it well and not check any luggage. If we each have a carry on and a backpack, I think we can fit it all. And with only a 47 minutes layover in Salt Lake City, I won't have to worry about lost luggage. Because I sure wouldn't know where the closest Target was to replace everything! We can check it all for the return trip.

Sam received word this week that he will be going on a 3 week TDY in May with one of his fighter squadrons. I had to find a map to see where it was! He will be roughing it! Living in a tent. I won't envy this trip.
Now, that is neither our cat nor our horse. The point of the picture is that I will never be able to GET a picture of our cat with a horse. Apparently, Aubie is scared to death of them. So scared, she had a CAT-atonic breakdown last night. (heehee, sorry, couldn't resist).


Let me explain. Kaitlynn used some of her own money to buy a horse at a garage sale. A PLASTIC horse. Well, a rather large plastic horse. Kaebrie can sit on it. "Seabiscuit" is all black, with a real hair mane and tail. Even has a saddle. The horse is slightly bigger then the cats.
Aubie comes walking out of the garage, sees this plastic horse in the middle of the den, with KB and KK brushing out its tail, and freaks. Have you ever seen a cat freak.
POOF!!!!
In a millisecond, all the hair just explodes. They look twice as large as they really are. Her ears about disappeared they touched her head so closely, and she leaned forward and put her chin on the carpet. She froze for a few seconds, the ran off. And that was 24 hours ago. She is still hiding in closets and slinking around. Still all poofy. Kaebrie asked, "Why is Aubie's hair so crazy?" I guess only time will tell if permanent damage has been done. If you are a horse-phobic, you won't last long in this house. :)

Still enjoying the camera. Getting more and more comfortable with it. I have a few jobs coming up and I am really excited. A one year old girls birthday portraits, and 3 sets of senior portraits. I am excited about trying some new things. I can make some money to pay for the hotel room. :)
And lastly, WELCOME HOME HANS! After being deployed for 6 months, our neighbors are finally back together again. About 50 friends, neighbors and co-workers gathered on their front lawn as he drove up waving flags and clapping.

I don't think a return will ever NOT be emotional. For everyone.

And Carolyn, not just the smile on your face, but the genuine smile in your eyes, brings tears to mine.

I feel like Ty Pennington, but I just have to say it.

"WELCOME HOME Ritschard Family. WELCOME HOME."

If I Die Before You Wake........................

A good friend sent me this great link afternoon.

http://www.axpdf.com/wake/index.htm


We are so thankful that everyone from here has come home safely from their deployments.
A great friend and neighbor, Hans R., will be landing in Boise on Friday at 12:31 pm! He has been gone from his wife and six children for 6 months. They are so excited they can hardly stand it. She asked me this morning to come join them in the front yard as he drives up Friday afternoon. I can't wait!!!!! Thankfully I can put the new camera on auto focus, because my eyes will be to teary to see clearly.

April 13, 2099
Reunited Press

After much heated debate on the house floor, legislation was passed today to allow a growing number of families to cook meals for their families in their homes. The children must have annual physical examinations to assure proper growth and weight gain. Attempts to require weekly meal plans and monthly kitchen inspections were voted down.

A spokesperson from the National Association of Nutritionists (NANs)condemns this decision. "These children are being denied the rich socialization and diversity that is an essential part of the eating process. Without the proper nutritional background, it is impossible for the average person to feed their own children. We, as child advocates, see this as a step backwards and speak out for the sake of the children who cannot speak for themselves."

Home cooking parents say the benefits of eating at home include increased family unity and the ability to tailor a diet to a particular need. Elizabeth Crocker, a home cook, states, "We started cooking and eating at home when we realized that my son had a severe allergy to eggs. The public kitchens required him to take numerous medications that had serious side effects in order to counteract his allergy. We found that eliminating eggs was a simpler method and our son has thrived since we began doing so."After this experience, the Crockers decided to home cook for all of their children, and converted their media room into a kitchen. Elizabeth says, "We have experienced so much closeness as we have explored recipes and spent time cooking together and eating together. We have a dining circle with other families where we sometimes share ideas and meals together."The Crocker children have done well physically under their mother's care,weighing in at optimum weights for their ages and having health records far above average. It should be noted that Mrs. Crocker, while not a professional nutritionist, has a family history rich with nutritionists and home economists.

"Surely the success of the Crocker children is due to the background of their mother," responded the spokesman from NANs. "The results they have achieved should not be viewed as normative." Mrs. Crocker counters that her background was actually a hindrance to the nutritional principles she follows. "Our paternal great-grandmother was a home economist, but she prepared most meal from pre-made mixes. In our homecooking we try not to duplicate public-kitchen meals, but to tailor our meals to the needs and preferences of our children."

In a related issue, legislation is in committee that would provide oversight for the emerging homecooking movement. Says the Home Eating Legal Defense Association (HELDA): "We want to provide umbrella kitchens to aid parents in the complicated tasks of feeding their children. Many families lack the expertise of the Crocker family, yet desire to eat at home. As we have seen, the umbrella kitchens meet the needs of all concerned. We are happy to provide this service."

Attack on Parental Freedom in California‏

Dear Friends,

The state of California is in the process of immediately trying to make homeschooling illegal. This could affect families as early as next school year.

Even if you are not a homeschooling parent, I ask for your support for home school freedom, parental rights and the direction of our courts.

We have several family friends in California and several other friends moving there this summer that are very concerned, with reason, about this.

"California courts have held that ... parents do not have a constitutional right to home school their children," Justice H. Walter Croskey said in the 3-0 ruling issued on Feb. 28. "Parents have a legal duty to see to their children's schooling under the provisions of these laws."
Parents can be criminally prosecuted for failing to comply, Croskey said.

I would appreciate it, and so would other families, if you would sign the following petition through the HSLDA (Home school Legal Defense Association) and help protect our rights as parents.

You can help stop this threat to homeschooling by signing this online petition to depublish the Court of Appeal opinion at

http://hslda.org/elink.asp?ID=4831

Thank you for your support!

Birthday Party (finally)

After handing out all the invitations, only to have to reschedule the party due to other circumstances, I did not make out new invitations, everyone just got a phone call with the date changed. So the party was NOT on the 16th, but on March 1st.

This base has a great indoor heated swimming pool. I guess that is the only way to have a pool in Idaho, if it were outdoors, it could only be used about 63 days a year. :)

It almost had to be rescheduled again, but I just didn't want to do that. So we kept the date, minus ALL the daddies but ours. They all ended up having to work unexpectedly this weekend. Sam was only able to stay for 45 minutes. :(
So much for a family night for everyone.

Anyway, on to the party! Here is the amazing cake a good friend made. That is Collin and Kaitlynn lounging by the pool.

Aren't they adorable?
Miss Kaebrie in her new suit. Today was a day of milestones for her. First time in pig-tails. First day to nap with OUT a pull-up on, first time in the pool with no swim diaper and first goggles.

It was really nice, for two hours we got to hear laughing and squealing and splashing.

She doesn't remember being in a pool before. SO she really didn't want to come off the of stairs. Daddy pried her hands off the bars and after 3-4 GOOD screams, she fell in love with it and had a great time.
The obstacle coarse ( goodness, I know that word isn't spelled right, but I just can not think of the correct form. I am just so tired. Tomorrow I will look at it and see if I can remember the correct way to spell it)
on the water was really neat and a lot of fun. Here goes Collin through it!

Christopher LOVES to swim.
Daddy with his first ever eleven year old.
And with the Tiff.

The birthday kids!

Tiffer wanted to try, so Collin took him through.

He slowly lowered himself into the water.
Not Collin, he jumped in.

She did have a death grip on his neck for the first few minutes.

Tiff found a noodle and was very content to be by himself after Daddy left.
He must be concentrating on something! :)
Here is our babysitter, Kelsey. I asked her to come babysit Kaebrie at the pool tonight. I am SO glad she agreed. I did not have to worry about her one bit. I knew she was safe and every time I looked at her she was all smiles and laughs.
Time to eat!

The party group! Lets see, I am way to tired to name them all in order. So here are the families that came!

Smith, Ritschard, Conrow, McFarland, Austin, Anderson, Johnson, Holtorf, Sapp, Barfield, Klawitter and Cates. 32 kids in all.


What a great night! We will have to go back soon. They do Family Float Night most Friday nights. Now that I know all the kids can get in and have fun, we might just have to start going.