Memorial Day Rendezvous 2009

We went to Rendezvous again this year for our Memorial Day weekend. First off I want to recap how the weather was. Friday night: rain. Saturday night: more rain. Sunday night: even more rain. Surprisingly it was dry throughout the daytime. We are lucky to have a leak proof tent that is more like a big room (both Dusty and I can stand up in it and still have room to spare). Usually it rained right after dinner so we would head to the tent and turn on a DVD for the kids (I know, watching movies is not really camping. But hey, we've got it and it keeps the kids quiet while stuck in a tent).

Dusty wore "Mountain-Man" attire all weekend. All of what he is wearing was made by he and I. He did all of the leather work; pants, moccasins, impossibles bag, gun holster and I sewed the shirt (with the help of a friend in the ward).

The kids had a great time playing with friends and exploring. They played on the rope swing and in the creek. They did sack races, three-legged races, mini mountain man runs, hawk throwing and bobbed for apples. Dusty and I had a great time shooting and throwing hawks. It was so nice to get away for a long weekend and spend time together as a family.

In the end, Dusty placed 1st in the tomahawk throw and 3rd in the pistol shoot. I placed 1st in the women's knife throw and 3rd in the women's tomahawk throw.

I always leave rendezvous motivated to go home and sew more clothing. I still don't have any "period clothing" and I have all of these ideas for the girls and Jacob. Below are some pictures of the kids.

We were glad to get away from life and camp out on the beautiful Nebraska land that God has provided for us. Happy Memorial Day!!

Dance Recital

The girls had their dance recital a couple weeks ago on Mother's Day. They looked beautiful and were super excited to be allowed to wear mascara, blush and lipstick.

This year Alexis did both ballet and tap. This was her first year dancing tap and she was able to pick up quickly along with the other girls who already had one year under their belts. The theme of the recital was "A Salute to The Beatles". Her ballet dance was titled "Blackbird". The costume was a beautiful black ensemble with gold accents. She wore black tights and ballet shoes and had a black and gold hair accessory.

"Eight Days a Week" was the title of her tap performance. This costume was my personal favorite. It was a cute black and white polka dot leotard with black pants accented with polka dot fabric near the outside of the ankles. Her outfit had pink as an accent and they had black feathers in their hair buns. The girls were told to start the dance with attitude and Dusty and I just chuckled to see our 8 year old strutting her stuff as she tapped her little heart out. And she did it all ONE HANDED.

Below is Alexis in her tap costume. Can you see the attitude she has going on with her leg to the side? Oh, and her arm brace? She wasn't too thrilled that the arm brace covered up her costumes. To0 big I tell you. Way too big!!

This was Emma's first year in ballet. She cried every week that I took her. Miss Margaret, the girls' teacher, told me that as soon as the door was shut and Emma couldn't see or hear me she was fine. It was just an act. Imagine that!! So I was thoroughly excited when we arrived at ballet class a couple weeks before the recital to find that her costume had come in and she was happy when I left her there. Her costume was a lavender leotard with a white tutu. The costume also consisted of a little teddy bear that was dressed up in the same cute ballet outfit. She got to try on the costume and practice with her bear. It made the whole year of crying worth it. The first year of ballet for little ones like Emma is rough. Our teacher is very structured and the girls have to adjust. I am proud to say that Emma did not get on the stage and cry. She did the dance very well and looked like a beautiful princess. I am confident that next year she won't cry when I take her because now she knows that she gets a costume out of it. And we all know how she loves to dress up!!

My girls gave me a GREAT Mother's Day gift this year!!!

Emma

I have been messing around with Picasa and created this collage of Emma. Just thought I would share.

Easter

I know, I know. Easter was about a month ago and I am just barely posting pics of the kids. To be quite honest, it didn't really feel like Easter this year. It really snuck up on us and we were rushing to color eggs Saturday night at 8:30. I guess I should have been more prepared for it, but we were just busy I guess. The kids had a great Easter despite my lack of preparation and they looked adorable in their Easter clothes.

I couldn't help snapping this picture of Dusty and the girls leaving church. They really do love him a lot!!

Update on Alexis

We went to the Orthopedic Surgeon and he said that Alexis won't need to have surgery. We can't cast her arm, so she has to wear this waste cinching brace for 6 weeks. We have to be extremely careful as the Doc said that if she were to bump it, fall, trip, etc. we may have to do surgery. So, now I am even more paranoid that I was before I had an injured child. She is being a trooper about it. At first both Dusty and I had to get her dressed, but now I am able to do it without her screaming in pain. This incident has sparked some great conversations about our Savior and the pain that he endured for us. We have been talking about pain and the fact that there must be good and bad as a result of Adam and Eve. So here are a couple pics of Lex sporting her "new look".


Broken Arm Day #1







Broken Arm Day #3

Broken Arm

Today around 10 AM I received a phone call from the school nurse saying that Alexis had fallen from some playground equipment and landed on her right side. Her arm was in serious pain. So I rushed her over to the doctor and they immediately did x-rays on her. I could tell by the look on the technician's face that it was broken. Sure enough when we got back to the doc's office she confirmed what I suspected. Alexis broke her humerus bone about 2 inches below her shoulder. The bone is also partially dislocated. So tomorrow we are going to see an orthopedic surgeon that comes to Sidney weekly for a consult. Alexis is in a lot of pain and is very scared that she might have to have surgery. I will post pics of her soon. Please pray for her and for us.

SOCCER

Soccer ends next week and I have yet to post pictures of Lex and Jake playing. They have been doing great and are really enjoying it.



This is Alexis' team. Dusty is their coach.



This is Jacob after scoring a goal. Good job Jake!

Next is baseball, coach-pitch, for Jake.