York

So I was trying to be clever with the title of this post but I got nothin'. This short word has been in my vocabulary a lot recently. I am claiming it the word for this fall (for me).

First off, there was our New YORK trip in October.

Secondly, there's been much talk of YORK-ies in our home. No, we are not getting a dog. Lydia has to do an IRP (independent research project) in her KARE class and the topic she chose was YORKshire terriors. She saw one for the first time in Jack's pets and fell in love with this breed of dog. Hmm, Lydia...could it do anything with the fact that they usually have a bow in their long hair? Just saying...

Lastly, right now I am typing this blog in YORK, PA! My mom and dad were planning on visiting my brother and his family in December. I haven't been back in this area since summer of 2007, so I asked if I could tag along. It took some figuring out having places for the kids to stay since Dan was out of town this week, but we successfully left Thursday around 4pm and arrived here a little after 1am. One fun memory from the trip was singing to my dad at midnight on the 16th (his birthday). Only I initiated it, not knowing the clock in my mom's car was a little fast. We had fun celebrating two birthday's (my brother's is on the 24th) and an early Christmas with John, Amy, Jonathon, and Matthew. We leave tomorrow after church. Not looking forward to the long drive home leaving YORK, but at least we will have more daylight hours on the way home.

Anyone want to buy me a York Peppermint Patty before the 22nd (the first day of winter)?

A Little Thursday Randomness

Here are pictures taken earlier this fall that I never got around to sharing until now (imagine that)? The kids had fun carving pumpkins. Jake even carved his entire pumpkin by himself this year! Did you notice that tongue that comes with intense concentration sticking out? The last picture is of the finished pumpkins next to Kevin, our scarecrow man and his new friend, Kelsey. Speaking of, I just got done washing their clothes to store away for next year.

And now, on to much more exciting news! I'm going to be an uncle! Woohoo!
Sarah Beth and Matthew had the family over last month for a reveal party. On the day of their ultrasound, I was given instructions NOT to call...since keeping a surprise is hard for both of them. I would find out that evening at their house. Evening came and sitting on their dining room table was this cake. Of course, we had to wait until after supper was over. We were all anxious to get into that cake. You see, the middle layer of icing would be either pink or blue, revealing the gender of baby Rickert #2. My guesses were for a boy...although I thought Anna was a boy, too. Finally, supper was over and my mom had the honors of cutting the cake. Blue icing it was!!! How exciting! Ironically, the night before on Cake Boss, I'd watched Buddy make a gender reveal cake for a couple...only chose to be surprised with their guests and the color of the cake under the icing was the reveal. What a fun way to share! Anyhow, I am super excited to be meeting my nephew in March...due 8 days after his big sis. Only, maybe he'll follow Anna's lead and come a month early and have a February birthday...we shall see.

And now, I must get the kids fed and Lydia ready for gymnastics. Grandpa Kanost is taking her tonight so that I don't have to drag Jake and Claire there. Thanks, Grandpa!

Repundle, Repundle...Let Down Your Golden Hair

FINALLY, here are some pictures of Claire's 5th birthday party, which was a big hit! *Explanation of my blog title: Claire's has a best-est little buddy from school, Morgan. Apparently, Claire had told Morgan that she had "Repundle hair," so Morgan went home and told her mom she wanted Repundle hair, too!*

Wish I'd gotten better pictures of the decorations. We hung paper lanterns and had a tower complete with Rapunzel and her long hair.

This tower cake was fun to do. We had a mishap in the middle of Claire's party with it falling over. I'm definitely learning cake decorating as I go. I didn't put a slab of icing at the base of the cake to kind of cement it in. Thankfully, it stayed upright for Claire and the guests to see it. The last picture makes me think Flynn Rider is calling for Rapunzel to "jump and I'll catch ya!"

First thing we did was have the kids sit down and do a craft. Again, wish I'd taken a picture of the final result. They made Pascal (the chameleon) party blowers, with the blower being his tongue. Very cute idea I saw from online.

Next, we played a game called, Pin The Nose On Flynn Rider (in the movie, he doesn't like how they drew his nose in the Wanted posters). This has been somewhat of a tradition in our household for the 5th birthday party. At Jake's, we played pin the tale on the dinosaur; Lydia's was pin the lips on the frog (prince). It seems to be a big hit for this age.

And of course, even if you are 10 and 8, there is fun to be had. This picture shows Lydia tricking Jake by standing in place of the poster.

Time to eat!!! Frying pans were used as serving bowls for the chips since a frying pan was Rapunzel's choice for a weapon in the movie, Tangled. And off to the left, you can sort of see Lydia's Pascal party blower.

Something funny being shared by Travis and Lydia.

Mrs. Chrisman, Claire's pre-k teacher got to come to her party. Her 1st daughter, Ellie is around Claire's age and even though they aren't in the same class, they enjoy each other's company before and after school.

Blowing out the candle!

Opening presents!

An attempt at a group photo (minus Morgan, who had to leave early).

Claire, Kelsey (we made Keven a friend this year), and "the boys." Claire LOVES the three T's! (Tine, Travis, and Titus)

Baby Girl's Five!

Claire has been 5 years old for exactly one month...just about my pace for updating this here blog. I will post her birthday party pictures next time. Just wanted to wish my C-R-A-Z-Y, fun-loving, lastborn a very belated birthday wish on here. Just last night, Dan and I were watching some old videos from when Claire was 14 months old and also our beach trip in 08. Lots of fun to watch those, but also a visual reminder that our kiddos are growing up so very fast. I have not had any maternal "itches" in a long time. Even with my sweet little baby niece, Anna. But seeing my "baby" as a baby stirred something up. Guess we better not watch anymore. =) Oh, and in the above picture you can see where Claire decided to cut her hair (she still has long hair...it is braided in the picture, but take a look at those bangs).

So, back to Claire. She has recently said a couple of funnies that I don't want to forget. Thought I would jot them down on here for my memory's sake.

*We read books every day before naptime. Yesterday, when Claire was picking out her books, I heard her proclaim with excitement, "Green Hams and Green!" Can you guess what one of her favorite books is?

*This morning before school, Claire got out her play doctor's kit (score at the thrift store...69 cents). She gave me a shot (pretty standard treatment from Dr. Claire), listened to my heart, and checked my ears last (probably because she absolutely HATES that part of her visits and has a panic attack the second the inside-the-ear-looker thing approaches her). She looked into my right ear and then my left one and point blank told me I had "greasy ears."

Minute To Win It

So, here are the pictures I promised of Jake's Minute To Win It party...finally. He had a such a fun 10th birthday party, thanks to Daddy! (The first picture is of our cutest onlooker)!

We divided the boys into 3 teams and the birthday boy got to partner up with his best friend from school, Mitchell. What good buddies these two are.

Seth trying to get the tennis ball in a metal trash can with only one bounce.

Mitchell attempting the pencil game.

Jake aligning that ping pong ball to make it into the cup.

Malcolm getting ready to trade off to Seth during one of the games.

Perhaps this was one of the silliest games. Trying to balance an M&M on the face and moving it down to your mouth without touching it. Next to impossible! But hilarious to see everyone try!

The three teams had one minute to try and get all six chapsticks balanced using chopsticks...much harder than it appears.

How fast can you pound the nail in the wood (this one proved to be a little too easy for these macho young guys)?

Jake's birthday coffee cakes! He is not a big fan of regular cake, but enjoys coffee cake. Mommy's couldn't come close to the deliciousness of Grandma Ernst's coffee cake, but they got eaten!

Rejoice in the Lord always!

Philippians 4:4-8
"Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things."

Just being real here...the last few days have been rough. Dan's been out of town for going on two weeks. I want my husband back and the kids need their daddy back. Whenever I express that, either out loud, written down, or in my head, I always feel guilty. It's been two weeks. My "kid" brother, Brian, has been serving in Afghanistan. His wife and son are missing him for months. And then I think of all the single parents out there...when Dan is gone, my respect for them deepens. And perspective gives me a good kick in the rear. All that being said...the last few days have been rough.

Last night, I told my kids I might be adding a class to their day once they get home. It would be called, "How To Treat My Family." This morning, I woke up and realized I need to hire a teacher and become one of the students. The "whatevers" from Phil. 4:8 flooded my mind. I looked it up and was given another kick in my rear reading verse 4. I have to admit I am not a great rejoicer when I am tired, overwhelmed, irritable. I briefly talked with mom Ernst yesterday and vented to her a little bit. She told me she would take it to the Lord in prayer. She is doing what I should have...clearly stated in verse 6. God cares! He cares about the squabbles. He cares about the amount of energy I have! He cares about me trying to teach my "anti-social" child when she is being rude. He cares about the stubbornness in another child. He cares about the attitude in the third. And He cares about the mistakes I've made and the feeling of failure at times. And how quickly I forget He cares and not surrender my burden to Him. He promises peace which will "guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus!" Amen! Many times, I feel I am losing my mind. I don't know a mom out there who wouldn't want to claim that promise.

So, today I am going to pray for wisdom, energy, patience, kindness for myself and for my kids. And I am going to choose to rejoice and not be negative!

Thank you, Lord, for being patient and loving this child.

Double Digits!

Jake turned 10 years old on Friday, October 14th! T-E-N...how can that be? His first "present" was the fact that he had no school on his birthday! Despite the fact that he could have slept in, he chose to still go out to breakfast with Daddy, a birthday tradition. His next gift came with a little smoothness on his part. After playing First In Math on the computer for a while, I reminded him of his dishes (a daily chore) that still needed to be done. He looked up at me and said, "Since it's my birthday, will you do them for me?"

We left for the library late morning and checked out a bunch of books. Then, we made our way over to Ms. Beth's house. Except for when I had to drag him in for some lunch, Jake played outside the entire time. There is always lots of tree climbing, mud sloppin', good old fashioned outdoor fun when we go over to the Riddell's who have lots of wooded area surrounding their property.

We left there around 5pm. We met Grandma and Grandpa K., Uncle Matt, Aunt Sarah Beth, and Anna at McDonald's around 6:30 for dinner (Jake's choice for a quick restaurant so that everyone could come over to our house afterward and hang out....thought that was sweet considering he had his choice of where to go).

Yesterday, we had his Minute To Win It party with 5 of his friends outside at the church. He seemed to have a great time and so did his friends. So fun to watch boys interact with each other. We left the memory card to the camera at home, but thankfully, my mom took a bunch of pictures with her phone for us. Will post those soon.

Just wanted to give a belated birthday wish to Jakers! We love you, son!

A Big Thank You and some other stuff

I realized today that I never even mentioned a huge part of our trip...the wonderful grandparents who helped to make it happen by taking care of our kids! Thank you so very much, Mom and Dad E! What a blessing it was for us to be able to go and know our kids were in the hands of grandparents who love them much and were willing and wanting to spend almost an entire week with them! I know the kids made many memories with you and that makes my heart happy! Thanks the big special moments...like picnics at the park and fishing and for the quiet, but just as big special moments...like singing "Summertime" at bedtime and lots of journal writing! I love it! And we love you both so much!

Today was a day to recover from our vacation. Sounds funny...but it truly was an exciting, yet tiring, visit. Let's just say Dan or I had no problems falling asleep each night. I thought I would try to keep up with all the walking we'd done in NYC by pulling Claire in the wagon to school this morning. She loves it when "we" walk to school. Got a few spits of rain and was hoping we wouldn't get dumped on...or at least that the dumping would wait until my solo walk home. Thankfully, I arrived home dry.

Got a bunch of laundry done, had an easy supper plan (leftover porcupine meatballs...thanks again, Mom E), and read some Holes to Jake and Lydia and Rattlebang to Claire before bed. A pretty layed back day...glad to be home. One funny before I log out...at least to me. Claire sometimes gets mixed up with her words. Lately, she has been asking me, "Are you my baby?" Then comes the explanation that she is my baby and I am Grandma Kanost's baby. Tonight at bedtime, she commanded me to kiss Dan, "because you're his husband!" Silly girl!

Finally, just for a walk down memory lane. I was looking for a picture of Grandma and Grandpa Ernst to put on here. I have many but went looking for the ones of when we went to PNG in 02' and they got to meet Jakers for the first time! Talk about a memory...these pictures make me well up a bit. Guess it doesn't help that my sweet baby boy is turning 10 on Friday. Enjoy the pictures...I sure do!

Our Last Day Here

This was taken earlier in the week, but I had to include a picture of us on the subway!

So call me a dork, but there was one particular place I was hoping to visit in New Jersey, since we were close. This next picture was taken on our way to the train. I thought Christopher St. looked like a nice street to live on. We arrived in Hobokin, New Jersey - your 1st clue. The next picture is your 2nd clue (and answer if you are a fellow Cake Boss fan).

So, Cake Boss is one of my favorite shows to watch. The cakes they make are pretty unbelievable! I new I would be one of many wanting to go to Carlos Bakery (as you can see from the line in the picture below). It was a 1-2 hour wait in the line. And while I am sure whatever we ordered would have been delish (and my sweet hubby was willing to accommodate), I decided a peek through the window and a picture would suffice). While we were eating outside at the pizza place next door, I saw Grace, Buddy's sister. She was taking pictures with with people, so after we ate, we went over and grabbed a quick picture. I had said I wanted to see a celebrity and in my book, Grace is a celebrity!

Our next stop was the Empire State building! Jake and Lydia...you inspired Daddy for this picture. Remember the gorilla statue at the zoo. Well, Daddy got to pick King Kong's nose! Another shot of the George Washington Bridge for the kids!

Looked like a Lego city from so high up!

The new tower being built with Statue of Liberty in background.

The very top...where King Kong went a little berserk.

Look, Jake, Lydia, and Claire...we found Gelato on the streets of New York City! But I didn't see Pistachio.

Had to stop in Macy's just to see. So many peeps!

Who can tell me what's wrong with this picture? And of course...the obvious answer (to the debate) is Jordan and Pippen!

It's interesting when you are on a trip without your kids what makes you think of them. There are LOTS of pigeons here and I think of Bert's pet pigeon from Sesame Street every time I see one, which makes me think of my kids! Plus, I think they would be enamored with the quantity of them.

Our last stop today was Coney Island. It was nice to smell the ocean air and take a walk along the beach (albeit with shoes on...it was a dirty beach). And God gave us a beautiful sunset! A great way to end a great time!