Miller Family - Ohio

Charlene

2011-06-19T15:35:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to give an update on Charlene...It's been almost one year since she left our home. We miss her, but are glad to be able to keep in touch with her on a regular basis!

Charlene has been going to school full-time and working full-time this term. She's working at an upscale restaurant in Seattle, bussing tables. She was able to earn enough money to pay for her classes this term! Yay, Charlene! She is doing well and has a much needed break until classes start for Summer term the 27th of June. During her short break, she will be flying to New York to visit with her cousin, who has been working there for a while. If I hear more, I will gladly update!

Shhhh....Don't tell the kids!

2011-04-11T05:58:00.003-04:00

Since we've lived in Rushsylvania, we've seen about four Barnum % Bailey Circus trains come through town. They're neat to see, and the kids think it's REALLY cool. Through work we were given the opportunity to purchase tickets to the Barnum & Bailey circus at Nationwide Arena for less than half what the tickets are going for at Ticketmaster. We decided it would be fun to get tickets. I bought them and we're not telling the kids. My parents are going with us too. May 14th we'll head to Columbus, the kids having no idea what we're doing. It's going to be a lot of fun!

Spelling vs. Pronunciation

2011-03-23T14:33:00.002-04:00

Ok, so something was buggy to me this morning. I was driving into work and I heard an ad on the radio for dishwashers and the man in the ad was pronouncing dishwasher like dishwarsher. It bugged me! There's no "r" it's dish"wash"er not dish"warsh"er!!! I "wash" my car not "warsh" my car, I do the "wash" not the "warsh", and I certainly wouldn't be on the radio selling dish"warsh"ers!!!! Sorry, had to share my bugginess. Proper English is a pet peeve of mine, in case you didn't already know.

I did it!

2011-03-21T10:38:00.003-04:00

I did it! I actually did it! I turned in my notice on Friday and it feels good! I know this is the right decision. My boss told me he was prepared to offer me more money and that he would try to talk me out of leaving, but he knows he can't compete with my desire to be at home. He was so sweet and VERY supportive of my decision!! What a great guy! So, it's official, May 20th will be my last day. Lots of work to do before then, but that huge step (leap) of faith has been taken. My fear is gone and I'm super happy and crazy excited!

Panic hit me...

2011-03-08T13:56:00.002-05:00

I wrote yesterday about finally setting a date to be done working. Today...panic set in. I'm so worried about how things will work. The security of knowing I'll be getting a bi-weekly paycheck will be no more. Whew...full-on Panic attack today! I keep telling myself this is what I've wanted (and I do, more than anything!). I am trying to remember that you cannot have Faith and Fear together. I guess it wasn't really real until there was an actual end date. Heavenly Father will provide a way, I'm sure. I just hope I can get rid of this panicy feeling. Sorry if I'm driving anyone crazy. I can't say anything to anyone at work so, this is where I'm channeling my need to talk. This is HUGE for me. I've never done anything that has required me to rely so fully on my Heavenly Father, and trust that He will take care of things. I appreciate all your support and thank you for putting up with my DRAMA!

We've decided on a date!

2011-03-07T13:36:00.002-05:00

My last day of work will be May 20, 2011. The kids get out of school the 1st or 2nd week of June depending on how many make-up calamity days they end up with; so, that gives me 2 weeks to get things in order at home. I'm going to babysit for Parker and Lexi (2 kids that currently go to our babysitters...Lexi starts school in the Fall and Parker is 3). Lexi and Sariah have been attached at the hip for a few years and Parker thinks Ammon is the coolest thing since sliced bread. I think it will be fun and it will give us a little extra income.

Jason has applied for a Supervisor position at NEX. If he gets this job it will be an answer to our prayers. We honestly have no idea how things will work out financially once I quit. We feel like this opportunity presented itself in perfect timing with our plans and we pray that as we move forward in faith that things will work out for us.

Wish us luck...and a few prayers would be nice too =0)

Tough, but not so tough...

2011-01-31T09:50:00.004-05:00

Jason and I have felt for a time now that we need to make the sacrifices and changes in our life that will allow me stay home and take care of our family. I have been thinking a lot about this lately, and I have tried to work through things in my head. I've come to a very clear realization that it doesn't need to make sense in my head, or on paper. More than anything in the whole world I want to be able to make a comfortable, peaceful, environment in our home. I want to be readily available to my children and husband. I want to be the best wife and mother I can be. For many years I have tried to make this happen without being able to give my all to my family. I have fallen short. I've done the best I can, but I have not done it "the Lord's way". I am not as happy anymore. I am stressed all the time, I'm constantly overwhelmed and I can see it effecting my family. I can see it in my actions and in the way I speak to my family. I can see it in my children's actions and in the way they speak to each other and to us. I have failed them and I have failed the Lord. I've questioned and rationalized. Why now? The economy is in the dumps, so many people are looking for jobs...shouldn't I be grateful I have one, and a good paying one at that? Both the kids are in school, why do I need to be there when they aren't? How can I give my children what they want/need if we don't have my income? What about our cars? What if we need to make home repairs? What if Jason gets sick and can't work again? These are all valid questions, but a lot of times "the Lord's way" seems counterintuative. I ask, How can things be better for us if we only have half our income? I can't answer that question; however, I know that we are promised blessings if we choose to do what the Lord asks of us. I have faith that my Heavenly Father will open the windows of Heaven and pour out blessings upon me and my family if we choose to follow His plan. Does this mean it will be easy? Absolutely not! It will take a lot of work, planning, and sacrifice, but I KNOW it WILL be worth it! I love my Heavenly Father and I am grateful that He leads and guides me in this life!

Baseball & Soccer Pictures 2010

2010-09-30T10:26:00.004-04:00

Ammon & Sariah's Baseball and Soccer Pictures 2010

Back to School

2010-09-01T10:19:00.004-04:00

School started August 24th. Ammon is in 3rd grade and is in an accelerated class. He is very enthusiastic about school this year and I think the accelerated class will be the extra push he needs to continue to excel! Sariah started Kindergarten and is loving every minute of it! No tears here, just put this kid on the bus! She's been begging to go for 3 years now and FINALLY she gets to go!!

Baseball

2010-09-01T10:14:00.004-04:00

The kids finished coach pitch baseball and t-ball the middle of July. Here are a few pictures from the season. Ammon has turned out to be quite the baseball player, and Sariah enjoys seeing her friends!

A new additions

2010-09-01T10:06:00.004-04:00

We've been adopted by a little tabby kitty. Her name is Miss Kitty and she's so much fun!

My parents have also added a new member to the family. They have a, now 5 month old, golden retriever puppy named Chester. Chester is a very good boy and he visits us when my parents are away.

Saying Good-Bye

2010-07-17T20:37:00.002-04:00

Charlene left to go back to China on June 26th. We had a great year with her! She is doing fine back in China and hopes to come back to the US in September for school.

Ammon's Baptism

2010-07-17T20:24:00.003-04:00

Ammon turned eight on June 14th, and was baptized on June 19th. Here are a few pictures from his baptism. We're so proud of him!

UPDATED Wow, it's been a while...RANDOM

2010-05-13T12:07:00.005-04:00

It's been quite some time since I've posted a new blog post. I'm so sorry. I promise I will get pictures and stories of Charlene's stay with us up soon. The reason I haven't posted is becuase I have been doing Weight Watchers and there's a blog section on their on-line tools. Most of my blogs have been weight related and I chose to put them there instead of on here. I have been doing okay, until the last few weeks. As of today's weigh-in, I've lost 40.8lbs. I feel better, but I have a LONG way to go still. I would like to lose at least another 55lbs. PHEW, that seems like it will NEVER happen, and I'm struggling.

We're very busy with baseball and T-ball right now, and graduation is in 2 weeks. Ammon's 8th birthday is one month from tomorrow, and his baptism is 1 month and 5 days away. We have family coming in for his baptism, and things are going to be crazy between now and then.

Charlene will be heading back to China on June 26th. She's both excited to go back home and wishing she didn't have to leave. She is hoping to go to College in Seattle next year. I hope she is able to reach that goal!

Jason and I will celebrate our 10th anniversary July 1st. Has it really been that long? (Read: WOW, hasn't it been longer than that...HA, HA). We're heading to Hocking Hills June 30 - July 2. We're renting a CUTE cabin ( http://www.ashridgecabins.com/cuddlebug.htm ). I can't wait! The kids are mad that they don't get to come, but hey, if we like it...it may become our new family vacation spot!

**UPDATE**
Heather wanted to see pics. As much as I HATE pics. I am happy with the improvement from one to the other on these. The bottom one is at my heaviest, just 1 year before I started WW. The top pic was taken in Kansas City on Spring Break. I chose this one so you could all see the kids too =0)

Decorating for Christmas

2010-01-01T15:18:00.002-05:00

Sariah turns 5!

2010-01-01T15:01:00.004-05:00

Sariah turned 5 on November 14th. We were lucky enough to have Uncle Greg, Aunt Carey, Eli & Wyatt with us to celebrate! Sariah got Littlest Pet Shop Stuff, a tea set, and a Barbie scooter. The weather was beautiful so we played with the scooter at the park that afternoon.

Halloween 2009

2010-01-01T14:49:00.001-05:00

We had lots of fun for Halloween. We carved pumpkins, trick-or-treated (several times), and enjoyed the beautiful fall weather!

Primary Temple Trip

2010-01-01T14:41:00.001-05:00

Our primary took a trip to the Columbus Temple. Charlene got to go along. What a neat experience for ALL!!!

Young's Dairy - August 2009

2010-01-01T14:35:00.002-05:00

The weekend after Charlene arrived here, we took her to Young's Dairy. We played mini golf, ate ice cream, did the batting cages, fed the animals, and went down the big burlap sack slide. Lots of fun!

Updates?

2009-12-15T06:04:00.001-05:00

I've been trying to post new pics and a LONG update post, but I can't! Why won't my pictures upload..I', not over the size limit or anything...THEY JUST WON"T UPLOAD!!! I'll keep trying. I really haven't forgotten.

Can you believe these BIG kids are mine?

2009-10-26T21:51:00.003-04:00

Where has the time gone? Here are the newest pictures of the kids. Ammon's school picture from this year (2nd grade/7 1/2 years) and Sariah's 5 year pictures.

Homecoming 2009

2009-10-04T21:34:00.003-04:00

I had a good time helping Charlene get ready for Homecoming. I got to do make-up and hair. She looked beautiful and had a good time!

SOCCER!!

2009-10-03T06:13:00.004-04:00

And of course...the BEST SPORT EVER!!!

This is Ammon's 3rd year (U8) and Sariah's 1st year (U6). I am the assistant coach for Sariah's team, we've had a lot of fun!

Catching Up

2009-10-03T05:41:00.006-04:00

I'm really sorry I have not posted very much since Charlene has been here. We have been VERY busy. Here are some updates:

We visited Young's Dairy the weekend after Charlene arrived.

School Started August 26th. Here are 1st day of school pictures

We've had some fun YW activities. Here are some pictures from our Road Rally Scavenger Hunt.

I made flowers for Greg and Carey's Wedding

Greg and Carey Miller

2009-09-23T05:45:00.000-04:00

Soccer

2009-08-31T05:31:00.002-04:00

Ammon and Sariah are both playing soccer this year. Sariah's team is the funny bunch ball group, just like most U6 teams are, and Ammon's team is finally to the point where the kids are starting to understand the strategy of the game! It's so much fun, but it very time consuming.

Safe Arrival in the US

2009-08-19T11:18:00.006-04:00

Charlene made it to the US safely. She had an uneventful trip from China to Chicago, but that's where things got a little crazy.

Her original flight to Dayton was cancelled 20 minutes before departure and she was told that there were no open seats on any flights until Tuesday. WHAT!?!? Are you kidding me?!?! I was so angry. She was an unaccompanied minor, from another country, who understood very little English and you're going to tell her she can't get out of Chicago until Tuesday???? I don't think so!!

After much calling around and us being VERY concerned for her and almost deciding to drive to Chicago to get her she was finally put on a flight coming into Dayton late Sunday night. Everything is good, right??

WRONG....

The 2nd flight they had her on was delayed in 10 minute incriments from around 10pm on. She finally arrived in Dayton at 2am Monday morning. All is well now, right???

Well kinda...

It seems that it's no problem getting luggage from China to Chicago, but once in Chicago, the airlines are unable to keep luggage with the correct flights and passengers. About 90% of the people on the flight Charlene came in on did not get their bags.

BUT...

After everything, Charlene made it here safely, now has her luggage, opened a bank account, and is registerd for school!

We finished Charlene's Bedroom

2009-08-10T07:46:00.003-04:00

Jorie, Megan, Josie and Bekah came over on Saturday and helped paint Charlene's bedroom and dresser. Here are some pictures of the finished room. We sent them to Charlene and she says the room is beautiful. We have enjoyed fixing up the bedroom for her.

Talented

2009-08-05T08:16:00.003-04:00

Charlene is very talented. Here are a few paintings she has done. Ammon hopes she will help him learn more about paintng. She says since she started high school she hasn't has as much time to paint, but she still enjoys it.

Pictures of Charlene

2009-07-31T10:18:00.003-04:00

Getting to know Mingzhu

2009-07-30T22:14:00.004-04:00

We received our first email from Mingzhu today. We're learning about her and that makes us so much more excited to add her to our family! Here are the things we learned today:

1. Her American name is Charlene, that is what she wishes to be called while here in the US.

2. She LOVES kids and dogs

3. She enjoys art, reading, swimming and cooking...and wants to cook Chinese food for us...YUMMMM

4. Her favorite color is blue

5. She is excited to attend church and participate in Young Women's

6. She wants to experience walking the dogs in the park...she says that will be amazing.

We are so blessed to be able to have her in our home and as a part of our family! I will post new things I learn as we continue to communicate prior to her arrival on August 16th into Dayton!

Finally

2009-07-24T13:05:00.003-04:00

It's finally FINAL...Mingzhu Ye will be joining our family August 15th!~ We emailed her for the first time last night and look forward to hearing back from her soon.

King's Island

2009-07-09T07:29:00.004-04:00

We went to King's Island for two days and we had a really good time. Somehow we managed to lose our camera; so, I can't show you all the cool pictures we took =0(

We rode lots of fun rides, saw lots of cool shows (Sariah got to go on stage for one of the kids shows called Marty's Party...she thought that was pretty cool!), and played at the water park. Ammons favorite ride was the Fairly Odd Coaster (or for those of us that remember way back when...the Beastie) and Sariah's favorite ride was Scooby Doo. Jason and I truly enjoyed watching our kids have so much fun!

We're hoping maybe someone will or has turned in our camera to the lost and found...I really don't care about the camera, but I wish we had our pictures. Keep your fingers crossed that they call us and say they found it!

Playing in the wiggly sprinkler

2009-06-23T18:21:00.002-04:00

Last year Ammon got the coolest sprinkler for his birthday and we are just now getting it out to use it. The kids have been DYING to play in the water so we decided today was warm enough. Here are some pictures of all the fun!

Ammon lost his first tooth!!

2009-06-23T17:25:00.003-04:00

Ammon has had a loose tooth for quite some time now and he REFUSED to pull it out. Today he bit into a meatball at dinner and it came out. Here he is, our toothless wonder!

CONGRATS, Ammon!

Ammon Turns Seven

2009-06-13T17:42:00.007-04:00

Ammon's 7th birthday party was a lot of fun! We went to the pool in Bellefontaine and he invited lots of friends, he even had a kid from his t-ball team who wasn't invited be a part of the party =0)

Sister Heflin made an awesome cake of Anakin Skywalker's Podracer zooming through the desert of Tatooine! Thanks so much Leah!

He got some cool gifts

And made lots of splashes!

Sariah had fun too =0)

Happy Birthday Ammon!!! We LOVE you!

Third Time's a Charm!

2009-06-11T20:42:00.003-04:00

Well, we FINALLY have our exchange student set-up. After quite the experience trying to choose one that hadn't already been placed or could not attend in our school district, we were given a profile of a girl who had already been placed, but the family had some employment changes and have to move. We are very lucky to have the opportunity to add a nice young lady from China to our family for the next school year. We are very excited to have her, we think she will be a very nice match for our family. We can't wait until we are able to communicate with her and her family! Her name is Ye and she is 17 years old. She is an only child and loves painting and swimming. She will be attending school in our school district; so, Ammon and Ye will ride the bus together. We have some things to get ready...like painting her room and dresser, but otherwise we're ready to go! She should be here around August 15th.

Disappointed and Frustrated

2009-06-08T11:32:00.003-04:00

We've been on and off with the schools around here on whether or not they will accept Camila for open enrollment, and the final word is "NO". We were so pumped and very emotionally involved with the idea of hosting Camila for the next school year and we're very disappointed and frustrated to say the least. It seems that the schools in Logan County have jointly decided not to allow open enrollment to happen at all, except for students who were previously open enrolled in a school....so, to make that clearer, they are not accepting any new open enrollments at any of the schools in the county for this next school year.

There is a little girl from Thailand that Ben Logan will accept that is available, but she is not LDS. She is willing to attend and participate in her host family's religious activities though. We're looking into hosting her since we had everything ready to host Camila and would still enjoy the experience. We'll keep you posted on this.

The Joys of Home Ownership - Hiring a Contractor

2009-06-05T12:54:00.003-04:00

I thought owning a home would be so great, and don't get me wrong....it is great....BUT...when you have an issue and you have to hire a contractor, things get interesting! Especially if you have a metal roof in need of repair. We need our roof patched and coated and a few other things replaced and fixed due to wind damage. We've gotten lots of estimates, but they're all over the board....from $500 to almost $1800. I can't find anyone to close the gap a bit! Can you say FRUSTRATION???? Anyway, thanks for reading and letting me vent! Wish us luck!

T-ball

2009-05-31T16:07:00.002-04:00

This is Ammon's 2nd year playing T-ball and he's been doing really well this season! He LOVES playing 1st base and does a great job fielding the ball. As far as batting, he doesn't need the Tee...next year, coach pitch will be a blast!

It's a Girl!

2009-05-07T08:04:00.003-04:00

Okay, so maybe not a baby girl...but, we're going to host a foreign exchange student for the 2009/2010 school year. Camila is her name and she is from Sao Paulo, Brazil. She is 15 and will be doing her Junior year here at ILHS. Camila is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She has 2 small sisters at home and enjoys being with family and friends. She wants to be a Doctor and feels having a better understanding of English is a major step toward meeting this goal. We're pretty sure that coming from Sao Paulo and it's 20+ million people to little rural Rushsylvania, Ohio will be quite the shock to her, but we hope that she will enjoy the experience. We are VERY excited to have this opportunity to share our life and home with her and we look forward to learning more about her and life in Brazil!

2009-04-22T05:32:00.002-04:00

I had the opportunity to go with Ammon's class to Clark State in Springfield to see the play - Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day yesterday and we had a really good time!

The Bus ride was crazy...bumpy, noisy and LOOOOONG. I tell you what they took the over the river and through the woods route to Springfield...YIKES! But hey we got there!

Ammon enjoyed the time with Mom and he really enjoyed the play. I had a nice group of kids with me. It was fun.

I would recommend this cute book to anyone with kids! Especially those with ACTIVE boys!

Birthday #31

2009-03-22T17:10:00.004-04:00

I ruined Michelle decorating my cubicle because I went to work early on Friday and she came in early to decorate, but I was already there =0) She decorated anyway and it was very nice! She also got me a beautiful Willow Tree Figure (If you don't already know, I collect Willow Tree). She's the angel of Spring.

I went to my car after work and Cassie had stopped by and put a cute little balloon in it! How fun!

My family spoiled me rotten! I got decorations, a cool card, cake, dinner at Texas Roadhouse (Thanks, Mom & Dad!), beautiful flowers, and Stephanie Meyer's book The Host.

I have wonderful friends and family! I had a great birthday! Thanks Guys!

Not old enough? Are you brave enough to tell her?

2009-03-15T18:35:00.003-04:00

Sariah wants to be an UPWARD Cheerleader next year. She will be old enough, but not yet in school because she's a November birthday. The UPWARD league here has decided to follow the school cut-off for eligibility. Anyone brave enough to tell her she's not old enough? I'm not! Check out Sariah at half-time of Ammon's last game. This girl is determined and she's been practicing at home ALL season!

Can it really be over?

2009-03-15T17:44:00.006-04:00

Well, we played our last basketball game of this season on Saturday, and I must say the boys played VERY well! They played a great team (You ROCK Mitch!) and I am so proud of the skills and understanding they gained this season! I had a blast and the boys all seemed to have fun too. Here are a few short videos of the last game!

Celestial Marriage

2009-03-04T20:33:00.002-05:00

I've been thinking alot about Celestial Marriage the last few weeks and I think maybe it's something I was supposed to be thinking about since I have a YM/YW Combined Activity on Temple Marriage that I planned for March 11th and last Sunday I was asked to speak this Sunday on the topic of....you guessed it! Celestial Marriage.....hmmmmm...Coincidence? I think not.

I am so grateful to have been worthy to be married in a Temple of the Lord and to be sealed to my husband, not just for this life but for all eternity, through the Sealing Power of the Priesthood. What a wonderful blessing! I now have the opportunity, should I and all the members of my family choose to live worthy to return to live with Heavenly Father again, to be with not only Jason but with Ammon and Sariah and any other children we might have along the way FOREVER!

What an awesome blessing and what a HUGE responsibility. The choices I make now will set a path for not only myself, but for my family. If I don't choose to live my life worthily I could ruin any opportunity for my family to be with me through eternity, and if I don't teach my children correct principles, I could be keeping them from living the life they need to live in order for all of us to be together. WOW!

Why is being sealed to my family so important to me? Because I love them and I want to be with them always! I want to live with them through eternity, I want to have my husband and children and grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and so forth, all together in the Celestial Kingdom! It's Heavenly Father's plan! How WONDERFUL!

Is your cheese a boy or a girl?

2009-02-25T21:18:00.006-05:00

Monday, Jason was home with Sariah and he made her a grilled cheese sandwich for lunch and she asked him if since she was having "girl cheese" was he having "boy cheese"?

I guess maybe he better enunciate better next time!

Basketball Pictures

2009-02-20T20:40:00.003-05:00

Ammon looks thrilled in our basketball pictures! Not the greatest picture, but I had to share.

Things I've done/need to do

2009-02-16T05:56:00.001-05:00

Bold the items you have done:

1. Started your own blog

2. Slept under the stars

3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than you can afford to charity

7. Been to Disneyworld

8. Climbed a mountain

9. Held a Praying Mantis

10. Sang a solo

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch

15. Adopted a child

16. Had food poisoning

17. Been to the Statue of Liberty

18. Grown your own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa at the Louvre

20. Slept on a train

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Hitch hiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill

24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Ran a Marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset

31. Hit a home run

32. Been on a cruise

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught yourself a new language

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person

39. Gone rock climbing

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David

41. Sung karaoke

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited Africa

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight

46. Cooked over a open fire

47. Had your portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing

49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling

52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Got flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check

68. Flown in a helicopter

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial

71. Eaten Caviar

72. Tied a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square

74. Toured the Everglades

75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London

77. Broken a Bone

78. Been on a speeding motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican

82. Bought a brand new car

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had your picture in the newspaper

85. Read the entire Bible

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous

92. Joined a book club

93. Lost a loved one

94. Had a baby

95. Seen the Alamo in person

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a law suit

98. Owned a cell phone

99. Been stung by a bee

100. Visited Italy

Valentine Fun

2009-02-14T07:31:00.002-05:00

We made some cute valentine mailboxes for our kitchen chairs. Here are a few pictures. They turned out great and we had a great time making them.

UPWARD Basketball

2009-01-24T18:22:00.009-05:00

Today was our first basketball game. To update anyone who doesn't know, Ammon is playing basketball through a program called Upward and I am coaching Ammon's team. Upward is a faith/spiritually based basketball program for youth Kindergarten (age 5) to 8th grade. Anyway, our friends the Colemans have a son, Mitch, who is in 2nd grade and Ammon played Mitch's team this week! They were both sooooo excited to play each other, and actually got to guard each other in the first half of the game. Here are a few short clips from the game.

Mitch guarding Ammon....way back on the court. The ball is actually right up under the basket at this point in the game =0)

Ammon chatting with Jack and then trying to make a break for it to get away from Mitch.

I am having a blast working with these kids! Thursday after practice, Ammon said "Mom, you may not be the best coach, but you're the best for me!" That made everything worth it to me! What a great kid!

Star Wars Meets Little People

2009-01-24T07:23:00.002-05:00

I walked into the kitchen the other day and found my children playing very nicely together. It looks like they were able to come to a compromise on ahat they would play. I call it Star Wars meets Little People!

New Years Eve

2009-01-24T07:19:00.003-05:00

We had a good time New Years Eve! We had pizza, played board games, had party hats and noise makers, and started a new family tradition of having ice cream sundaes and Jason and I were the only ones to make it to midnight!

Christmas with the Polmateers

2008-12-27T18:19:00.007-05:00

Last night Jason's sister and her family came to visit and have Christmas with us! The kids were sooooo excited to see their cousins!

Austin, Bolton and Ammon

Austin, Bolton, Ammon and Scotty Dog!

Caden and Sariah

Uncle Jason reading Caden's new book, "My Little Sister Ate One Hare", to him

Sariah didn't make it, she had a long hard day of playing with the boys.

We enjoy getting together with you guys and can't wait to do it again soon!

Christmas

2008-12-26T06:44:00.005-05:00

Well, Christmas was a great time! Honestly, with Honda cutting production and my job being fairly insecure at this point due to Obama's planned gun bans, this Christmas is the Christmas we've had the least money to spend in the 8 1/2 years we've been married. I think this has been the BEST CHRISTMAS so far! We've spent a lot of time focusing on Christ and doing things as a family to strengthen our testimony of Him. The kids had a nice Christmas, enjoyed reading the scriptures, sharing the Gospel and sharing treats. They also really enjoyed the gifts they received, as did Jason and I!

Thank You to Grandma & Grandpa in Ohio, Aunt Karan & Uncle Joel, Aunt Carol & Uncle Steve, and Great-Grandma & Grandpa for the wonderful gifts you brought/sent to us and for the love you show us!

Tonight my sister-in-law, Angela, and her family are coming to visit from Indiana. The kids are VERY, VERY excited to spend some time with their cousins (Austin, Bolton and Caden). We always have a nice time when we get together!

USAFM

2008-12-26T06:29:00.005-05:00

Sorry this has taken me so long to post. The Saturday after Thanksgiving we took the kids to the United States Airforce Museum and we had a good time! (This is unusual for me, I have been to this museum so many times in my life that I have NO DESIRE to go back again...growing up in the Dayton area you went every year for school and other times too!) We looked at a lot of airplanes and saw an IMAX movie called "Fighter Pilot, Operation Red Flag" (This was neat!) Here are a few pictures from our trip. I especially enjoyed the Presidential Hanger.

Thanksgiving Song

2008-11-25T04:47:00.008-05:00

Sariah has been going to Storytime at the Library and they are all geared up for Thanksgiving! She sings this song probably 20 times a day. She doesn't have all the words down, but she sure loves the part she does know! We LOVE to hear her sing.

A Turkey Hen and a Turkey Tom (tune of Polly Wolly Doodle)
Oh, a turkey mom and a turkey tom
Go gobble, gobble gobble all day,
When the moon goes down
And the sun comes around,
They gobble, gobble, gobble all the day.

Refrain: Arm in arm, on the farm,
As they strut their merry way,
Oh a turkey mom, and a turkey tom
Go gobble, gobble, gobble all the day.

Ah, they love to be with their family
And gobble, gobble, gobble all the day,
And they say hello to the folks they know
And gobble, gobble, gobble all the day.

Refrain:

Oh, they say how's tricks to the ducks and the chicks
With a gobble, gobble gobble all the day,
Oh they greet the frog on the mill pond log,
With a gobble, gobble, gobble all the day.

Refrain.

What a wonderful experience!

2008-11-13T18:38:00.010-05:00

Well, if you have been following our blog or have been emailed with the details, you are probably aware of Ammon's class project, Postcards from Around the World. Ammon has had MANY postcards sent to him at school and his teacher sends thanks to all who have sent postcards, notes and packages so far!

We had a very special thing happen at school on Veteran's Day. Ammon received a package from SSgt Mercedes Crossland of the United States Air Force. SSgt Crossland has been serving a special mission in Iraq for the last year and is now on her way home. In this package was a flag that had been flown over the Headquarters of the Multi-National Corps-Iraq in Ammon's Honor. The Certificate below was also included in the package, along with the note below from SSgt Crossland. Apparently a few weeks ago she sent Ammon a postcard from Iraq also. What an Honor and how neat to have a flag and certificate of this kind!

I emailed SSgt Crossland to thank her and to ask how she ended up with Ammon's class project information and what I found out is that my cousin Mike's wife, Heather, gave Ammon's information to her sister, Honor, who then passed the information on to SSgt Crossland. Honor, also sent a package to Ammon,from Japan. I have not seen this package yet, but look forward to it! How Awesome! Thank You, SSgt Crossland, Honor, Mike, and Heather!

SSgt Crossland shared her picture with me and I thought it would be nice to post it here so you all can see who this wonderful member of our United States Military is! I also thought I would post her email to me here for you to read. She is an amazing person!

Dear SSgt Crossland,
Thank You very much for the flag and certificate you sent our son, Ammon
Miller. What an honor! We would also like to thank you for your honorable service in our United States Military, you definately have our prayers and support!

We only have one question for you. We have given the address information out to
lots of family and friends and Ammon has gotten a TON of Postcards, letters and packages. We are trying to find out who everyone is and how they found out about Ammon's class project. Can you tell me how you got his information? We are just curious.

Ammon's teacher would also like to know how much longer you will be in Iraq.

We appreciate your generosity and willingness to participate in Ammon's class
Project.

Jason, Bethan, Ammon and Sariah Miller

Hello,

It was a pleasure to send it. I can't begin to tell you the joy that I have
sharing my world with OUR FUTURE...(children) They inspire me to do something meaningful today so that they can accomplish their goals tomorrow. I have been in Iraq for a year now. This is not something routine for an Air Force Personnel as it may be for our sister services. I volunteered for a special mission here and have been blessed to be on my way home.

I heard about the school project from a very dear friend of mine. Her name is
Honor Schulti, she received word from one of her sisters I believe. The email was forwarded to me saying that Ammon's class had a post card project. I took the opportunity to have that flag flown for him because a post card alone couldn't give him the meaning of what I'm doing over here for us.

I don't have children yet, but I take every moment that I can to share and
educate our children on how proud they should be to be...An American. Thank you for writing and keeping me in your prayers, as I begin my travel back to the United States I will continue to pray for ALL my brother and sisters that remain here to get things done.

God bless you and your family. Peace be with you. And if you'd like, please send
me an email once and awhile it would be great to hear from you.

Respectfully,
Mercedes Crossland, SSgt, USAF

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SARIAH!

2008-11-13T05:29:00.005-05:00

Yesterday, Sariah turned FOUR!! She had a great time and was soooo excited it was her birthday!

S - Sweet
A - Amazing
R - Riot
I - Independant
A - Attitude
H - Happy

Here are some picyures from her day.

Sariah brings so much joy, love and laughter to our family. We love you Sariah and are so glad to have you!

2008-11-08T08:55:00.018-05:00

*rules* search google images to match your answers
only use images from first 2 pages of your search

My Age

Place I've Been

Place I want to go

(Kenai, Alaska)

One of my favorite places

Favorite Object

Favorite Food

Favorite Animal

(German Shepherd)

Favorite Color

Birth Place

Current Place of Residence

(Rushsylvania)

Current Pet(s)

(Border Collie)

(Sheltie)

Past Love

Best Friend

Nickname

First Name

Can't find Bethan anywhere =0(

First Job

What I'm doing now

Who I tag

Chris R/Sarah T/Heather A/Debbie L

Postcards for Ammon

2008-10-21T18:28:00.006-04:00

I guess there has been some trouble getting this address out to everyone, in my family at least. Ammon's class is doing a year long project where they are trying to see how many postcards they can get. They will be learning where the places are that the postcards are sent from and a little about each culture or area of the world, or state, etc. I am asking everyone to please send Ammon a postcard, with a short note (Please note how you are related to or know Ammon) to the following Address:

Benjamin Logan Elementary
c/o Mrs. Stout (Ammon Miller)
4560 CR 26
Bellefontaine, OH 43311

Ammon will get to keep all of the postcards sent to him and he will bring them home at the end of the year! Thanks to everyone who has sent one (or more!) already! We look forward to seeing many more!

Thanks, Becky! I've never been tagged before...

2008-10-14T07:37:00.002-04:00

8 Shows I Love to Watch...
Do I watch eight different shows???
1. Iron Chef
2. SVU
3. Little Bear
4. Little House on the Praire
5. Franklin
6. Caillou
7. Super WHY
8. Clifford

8 Favorite Restaurants...in no particular order
1. China Grill
2. Macaroni Grill
3. Donatos Pizza
4. Applebees
5. Olive Garden
6. Michael Angelos Pizza (A Kenton and Rushsylvania Exclusive)
7. Bob Evans
8. Cracker Barrell

8 Things That Happened Yesterday...
1. Family Home Evening
2. Went to Aldi, JoAnns, and Great Clips
3. Went to Work
4. Did Dishes and Laundry
5. Made Dip for Veggies for Standards Night
6. Picked up the house
7. Cleaned the Litter Box
8. Took out the Trash for Trash Day (which I usually forget...being tuesday!)

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To...
1. More Vacation Time in January
2. Soccer next year
3. The Election being over!
4. Enjoying Fall
5. Boo at the Zoo
6. Halloween
7. Going to Mom's Christmas Party with her
8. the upcoming Holidays

8 Things on My Wish List...
1. Nice Clothes for work
2. An organized, Clean House
3. Money to get my roof repaired
4. A Dry Utility Room.
5. Getting out of Debt
6. More time with my kids
7. More help around the house
8. A nice family vacation, somewhere other than Missouri!

8 People I Tag...
1. Sarah Tudor
2. Chris Rolfe
3. Any of the people Becky tagged that haven't done it!
...I don't have 8 different people from Becky...LOL!

Junie B. Jones

2008-09-16T11:58:00.002-04:00

I thought I would share this because my kids just absolutely crack up over these books! The Junie B. Jones Kindergarten and First Grade Series' by Barbara Park are sure to make anyone who reads them laugh! Barbara Park gets soooo in the head of a 5-7 year old child that you can "see" everything that's going on in the stories. Junie B. Jones says some of THE MOST hilarious things and we LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to sit together as a family and read and laugh. It makes me laugh when the kids get so cracked up over some of the things in them! Here's an excerpt from one of the books we just read called Junie B. Jone and Some Sneaky Peeky Spying:

Junie B. is the bestest spier in the whole world. That's 'cause she has sneaky feet. And her nose doesn't whistle when she breathes. But guess what? Junie B. might be real sneaky. And real peeky. But when she spies on Mrs., she could get into real trouble!

Chapter 4: Cookie Mix and Other Stuff

The next day was Saturday.

Saturday is the day me and my mother go to the grocery store.

I have rules at that place.

Like no hollering the words I WANT ICE CREAM!

And no calling Mother the name of big meanie when she won't buy it.

And no eating a bag of marshmallows that doesn't belong to you.

Or else the store guy yanks it away from you. And he says, Eating is the same thing as stealing, young lady.

Then he takes you to Mother. And she has to pay for the whole entire bag. Except for I don't know why. 'Cause I only ate three of those softy guys and that's all.

The carts at the grocery store have seats in them. That's where babies sit. Only not me. 'Cause big girls get to walk all by theirselves.

And guess what else? One time Mother even let me push the whole big cart without any help.

Except for then some baked beanies got knocked off their shelf. And a grandma got her foot caught in my tire. And so now I have to wait till I'm bigger.

My favorite aisle is where the cookies are. That's 'cause sometimes there is a lady at a table there. And she gives me and Mother cookie samples. And we don't even have to pay for them.

Their name is freebies, I think.

Only too bad for me. 'Cause this time the lady wasn't there.

"Darn it," I said very disappointed. "No freebie lady."

Mother smiled. "That's okay. When we get home, we're going to bake our own cookies for Grandparents' Day, remember? Won't that be fun?" she asked.

I made my shoulders go up and down.

That's 'cause I was still mad at her for not taking me to my teacher's house, of course.

"What kind of cookie mix do you want?" asked Mother.

I did a frown at her. "I don't even want to bake cookies anymore" I said. "'Cause you still won't take me to where Mrs. lives."

Mother rumpled my hair. "Staying mad isn't going to change things, Junie B.," she said. "Now do you want to pick out the cookie mix? Or shall I?"

Then Mother picked out some cookie mix. And she gave it to me. And I throwed it in the cart very hard.

"Thank you," said Mother.

"You're not welcome," I said.

After that, Mother took me outside of the store. And me and her had a little talk.

A little talk is when Mother is mad at me. And she says who do I think I am, missy? And zactly how long so I think she's going to put up with me?

Then I have to say a 'pology to her.

A 'pology is the words I'm sorry.

Except for you don't actually have to mean it. 'Cause nobody can even tell the difference.

After the little talk, we went back into the store.

"Shall we try again?" asked Mother.

Then she gave me another box of cookie mix. And I put it in the cart very nice.

"That's better," she said. "Thank you."

You're not welcome, I said inside my head.

Then I smiled to myself. 'Cause Mother can't even hear me in there.

After that, me and her went around the corner. And I saw my most favorite thing in the whole world!

And its name is the water fountain!

"Hey! I need a drink!" I said very excited.

Then I runned right over there. And I hopped up on the little step.

"Need some help?" called Mother.
"No," I said. "'Cause I'm almost six years old, that's why. And so I already know how to work this big guy.

"And here's another thing I know," I said.

"No putting your mouth on the water spout. Or else germs will get inside you. And you will die."

I smiled very proud. "Paulie Allen Puffer told me that," I explained.

Then I bended my head over the fountain. And I drank for a very long time.

"Hurry up, Junie B.," said Mother. "I need to get the shopping done."

I wiped my mouth off with my arm.

"Yeah, only I can't hurry up. Or else I might a stomachache and spit up water. 'Cause a boy named William did that on the playground yesterday."

Mother looked at her watch. "Okay. Well, I'm going to be right here in the cereal aisle. As soon as you've finished drinking, come directly back to me."

"Okey-dokey," I said very happy.

Then I turned around and drinked and drinked and drinked.

Except for then I started feeling a little bit sickish. And so I had to sit down on the little step and rest my water.

That's when the big front doors of the grocery store opened.

And guess what?

My eyes almost popped out of my head, that's what!

'Cause I saw a big shock!

And its name was Mrs.!

My real live teacher named Mrs. was at the grocery store!

See why we love them soooo much! They're great!

Feeling Better

2008-09-16T11:56:00.003-04:00

Thanks, Cassie and Heather! I really appreciated your comments to my "funk" blog. I am feeling much better and am glad to be! I am very grateful for my WONDERFUL friends!

Funk

2008-09-14T15:11:00.002-04:00

I thought since I've been in a bit of a funk lately I should try counting my blessings (Thanks, Cassie for reminding me to smile!). I usually get really excited about Fall and like to do things outside and am motivated to get things cleaned and organized and get ready for Winter, but this year I just want to crawl under a rock for some reason. I sat at church today and felt like I was on the outside looking in, watching everyone else interact and enjoy being together, while I couldn't speak to anyone. I felt like everyone was staring at me, but couldn't really see me. I don't like feeling this way. So, here's my list of blessings. Hopefully this will help.

My Children
A roof over my head
A job
A car
My Parents
Dora & Boots
A husband that loves me
My YW Calling (Especially the three beautiful girls I get to work very closely with!)
A good friend to talk to
The ability to provide my family with their basic needs
A comfortable bed
Food to eat
Knowing my Birth Family
The Gospel
Knowing that I am a Daughter of God

Family Pictures 2008

2008-09-01T19:05:00.008-04:00

Well, we had our family picture professionally done for the first time since Sariah was 12 months old, and she'll be 4 in 2 months! It's been a while and LONG past due! Here they are.

1st Grade

2008-08-24T16:30:00.004-04:00

Ammon started 1st grade on Wednesday August 20, 2008. I can't believe it!

Ammon goes to: BLE
BL's Mascot is: The Raiders
BL's Colors are: Gold and Black
Ammon's teacher is: Mrs. Stout
Ammon's Favorite Classes are: Art and Gym
Ammon is really good at: Art and Math
Ammon rides the bus to school
Ammon has Chinese Class
Ammon doesn't like Fire Drills

I'm sure Ammon will have a GREAT year!

The Ultimate Compliment

2008-08-18T07:45:00.004-04:00

I think I got the Ultimate Compliment from a little girl at my babysitter's this morning. She looked at me and said "You smell like my mom". Now what could be better than that! I was a little surprised by her comment, but I would suppose that means I smell good!

Star Wars: Clone Wars

2008-08-15T21:19:00.002-04:00

I have to say I wasn't all that thrilled about going to see Star Wars: Clone Wars, Jason and Ammon are my Star Wars Gurus and I am semi-clueless, but I have to say the movie was VERY GOOD and the animation was "Out of This World!" If you like action and cool animation I have to say it's worth seeing in the theatre!

The best sport EVER!!!!!!

2008-07-29T18:35:00.002-04:00

Soccer, Soccer, Soccer!!!! Anyone who knows me knows I LOVE Soccer! Ammon had Soccer Camp last week at Ben Logan and this week he started soccer practice. I am going to help the coach (Coach Keeley from T-ball!!) as much as she needs me to. I actually signed up to coach and was supposed to be the coach for Ammon's team, but somehow when they were entering all of our information into the computer at Parks and Rec they transposed our phone number and no one could call me to do the coaching class or to tell us what team Ammon would be on...GRRR! Oh well. Ammon should be on the AcuSport team this year. Our CEO has been right on top of things as far as making sure he sponsored Ammon's team. We'll keep you updated as to how things are going throughout the season! Our first game is August 23!

A Good Book!

2008-07-18T14:33:00.002-04:00

It's great to read a good book every now and then and since Harry Potter, I haven't found anything that truly holds my interest. Well, I think I've found it! The Twilight Saga by Stephanie Meyer has it all! Romance, Suspense, Heart Pumping Action and nothing trashy! LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOVE IT! Two weeks ago I bought Twilight, I read it in 2 days. The very day I finished Twilight I had to go and get New Moon. I finished New Moon in 3 days. I then had to go and buy Eclipse, to which Ammon said "Dad, mom had to go buy another one of those Vampire Love Story Books!". I managed to finish Eclipse in 3 days also. Now I'm stuck! Breaking Dawn doesn't come out until August 2nd and I am on the edge of my seat waiting to run and buy it so I can read what happens next! I convinced my mom to read them and she's now reading the third book, Eclipse. On top of the suspense in waiting for Breaking Dawn, I can't wait until December 12th for the First Movie, Twilight, to be released!! So, I would recommend to anyone out there that likes to read and enjoys an author who can keep you reading and reading....YOU"VE GOT TO READ THIS SERIES!!!

Tee-Ball

2008-06-21T18:44:00.004-04:00

Well, Ammon has one more game left and I thought it might be a really good idea to take some pictures of him! So here they are. The kids have really improved over the last 2 months!

Just to explain a little, we play sports in Bellefontaine instead of Rushsylvania because in Bellefontaine all the games are the same place and in Rushsylvania they are all over the county. We also like the organization in Bellefontaine better. It's very non-competative, they don't keep score at this age, and the coaches are on the field (in both Tee-ball and Soccer) to help the kids know what they are supposed to be doing. In Rushsylvania there are pre-season tournaments, they keep score during the season, and they have tournaments after the season games are over based on your "ranking" during the season. I see no reason for this when they are 5 and 6 years old! Sports at this age should be about having fun! Anyway, sorry for the rant. Here are the pictures!

Ammon's Six!

2008-06-15T20:41:00.007-04:00

His Favorite Color is: Red

His Favorite Food is: Chinese

His Favorite Animal is: A Dog

His Favorite Sport is: Soccer

His Favorite Class is: Art

His Favorite Movie is: Star Wars

His Favorite Day of the week is: Saturday

His Favorite Video Game is: Cars

His Favorite Toy is: Star Wars Lego Sets

Ammon turned six yesterday and he had his birthday party at the Columbus Clippers game. The Columbus Clippers are the AAA Farm team for the Washington Nationals. Ammon chose to take Mitch Coleman and Clayton Snavely with him and they had a super duper time!

When we got to the park we had a birthday party on the patio just inside Gate #3. We got Hot Dogs, Popcorn, Pop, Water, Cheryl & Co. Cookies and Cake! We all also got Clippers Penants, Victory Bells, and T-shirts, and Ammon got a Special Edition Birthday Celebration Baseball!

The kids also got to meet LouSeal and Krash the Mascots for the Clippers!

Between the 2nd and 3rd innings the kids got to go out on the field with the Mascots to do the chicken dance! During this time they put the birthday kid's pictures on the Scoreboard!

It was Clifford The Big Red Dog Day at the Park and Sariah was just beside herself to be with Clifford!

We had AWESOME seats right down the Third Base Line! We saw 3 Home Runs, had several foul balls come our way and almost had a cracked bat up our way! The kids had a blast and were very well behaved!

What Fun! We had a blast and it'll be a memorable experience for all of us!

Sariah, Sariah, Sariah!!!!!!!

2008-06-06T19:56:00.007-04:00

Okay, so....I've posted about Ammon and maybe I should post about Sariah. Sariah is 3 1/2 she weighs a whole 28lbs, but eventhough she's little she's full of spunk and determination! You don't EVER tell SAriah she can't do something because she's too little. She'll prove you wrong every time! She is very energetic, loving and caring. She's my little daredevil of sorts. Well, maybe not really a daredevil, but she's WAYYYY more willing to try things than Ammon is! Sariah is doing tumbling and LOVES it! Ms. Gloria is her coach and she's VERY, VERY good with Sariah! Here

is a picture of how I found Sariah the other day...she must have been tired!

Officially a 1st Grader!

2008-06-03T20:59:00.005-04:00

Well, not that I had any doubt, but Ammon is officially a 1st Grader! WOW!! What happened to my baby? He's getting so big and is so smart! This year in kindergarten Ammon has learned to read, spell, add and subtract, and write in Denelian (for those of you who grew up the same time as me, Denelian is printing with tails on all the letters to help the kids learn to transition to cursive....in my opinion it looks silly, but that's what they want them to learn!). Ammon's favorite thing at school is Art class. He made some really cool projects this year! Ammon's favorite food at school is the Pizza they ALWAYS have on Fridays and Ammon's least favorite thing about school is nap time, but they quit doing that about half way through the year. Ammon also had the opportunity to have Chinese class every week this year. he can sing several songs in Chinese and can say a few words too!

Ammon 1st day of Kindergarten 2007-2008 School Year

Ammon on Funny Feet Day (He really has on two different socks and 2 different shoes)

Ammon after a presentation from local firefighters

Ammon saying his part at his Kindergarten Program "Kid's Rock" - He said "We rock when we let our light shine!" - Then they sang "This Little Light of Mine"

Ammon playing games at the Kindergarten End of Year Party!

Grandma Annie

2008-05-26T13:55:00.011-04:00

Here are a some pictures of Grandma Annie Archer. Some of you may not know that back in March she was diagnosed with a brain tumor. This tumor has been very, very fast growing and she has put up a great fight. Her time here will not be much longer, but she has lived a good life and has a wonderful, loving and supportive family! We love you very much Grandma!

Update: Grandma Annie passed away today around 5pm. She will surely be missed!

Just the Girls!

2008-05-09T05:53:00.003-04:00

Last Friday and Saturday Mom, Sariah and I went to a craft show in Findlay, where Mom had a booth. We set-up Friday night, then we stayed overnight in Findlay and Saturday morning we had to be back at the Hancock County Fairgrounds at 7:00am. We weathered rain, wind and horrible humidity, but ended up having a really good time. Because of the weather mom didn't sell too well, but it was fun to be together, Just the GIRLS!

My absolute favorite pastime

2008-04-27T16:20:00.007-04:00

I have been doing flowers for my friend Linda's (Iliff) wedding. Some of you know floral arranging is my absolute favorite thing in the whole wide world. I thought I'd share what's been keeping me busy the last few weeks. She wanted Iris and Lilac. I was nervous about these two flowers, but they turned out very nice! Enjoy! I had a blast doing them!

Ammon's VERY bad day!

2008-04-21T05:52:00.005-04:00

Well, I got my first "email" from Ammon's teacher. It seems there was a little altercation at recess. Ammon says he thought 2 boys, who by the way are some of Ammon's good friends - which surprised me, were talking about him while they were standing in line to come in from recess so he decided to "bang" their heads together. Who is this child? What has school done to him? Obviously this is totally unacceptable so, Ammon had to move his stick in class. The teacher says when she asked the two boys what was being talked about they told her something completely unrelated to Ammon. We spoke with Ammon and he had no good reason for what he did. He was punished accordingly! Well, then to top it all off I got a call from the school secretary asking me where Ammon was to go after school and I told her he is to ride the bus the same way he does EVERY afternoon. Ammon rides the bus home to the Coleman's and has since late January and this has NEVER been an issue before....Until Wednesday! Ammon was put on THE WRONG BUS and sent home to an empty house, and YES, he was let off the bus! Luckily the neighbor boy had a babysitter at his house and Ammon went there until we got everything figured out and knew where he was. Jason on the other hand was waiting at the Coleman's for Ammon to get off the bus! We're VERY unhappy about this "mix-up" as the transportation director at Ben Logan calls it. He has assured me this will NEVER happen again and I sure hope for his sake it doesn't!!!! I can't beleive that a bus driver, who knows this child should not be on her bus in the afternoon; would first of all, not question why he was there, but would then take him and drop him off, when apparently there is no one home! Holy Cow, he's 5!!!!!!!! Anyway, there's the recap of Ammon's Very Bad Day! Poor Kid!

A plea for help!

2008-04-15T16:04:00.001-04:00

I found this little saying and thought "WOW! That's so how I feel most days!" I had to share!

Lord, keep your arm around my shoulder and your hand over my mouth...AMEN..!!

Cuss Words...OH MY!

2008-04-14T12:59:00.003-04:00

OH MY...we were sitting at the table, Ammon and Sariah and me, after church eating lunch and out of the clear blue sky Ammon says the "B" word. I said "What did you just say?" hoping that I heard him wrong, and he said it again. I immediately asked him where he heard that word and he said he couldn't remember, but he had heard it. OH MY! I told him he was to NEVER use that word again. He asked "WHY?" so I told him that it was a cuss word and it was very bad and he was never to say it and that prompted an argument about cuss words and how he didn't beleive there was such a thing and if it was so bad, what did it mean? OH MY! I explained the meaning and that there were really bad words and that he was way too nice and good of a boy to be using such filthy language, nevermind that he would be getting to gargle vinegar if he ever said it again. I told him if he didn't want to beleive me he could ask his dad when he got home...and he did! I think Jason was shocked...and his first question to Ammon was "Did you hear that at church today?" How funny! Ahhhh...life with kids is great!

Just for Heather!

2008-04-09T19:59:00.004-04:00

Okay, Heather asked, so here are some recent pics of the kids! When I remember to bring home the SD card from my digital photo frame on my desk at work I will upload some pics of our Spring Break Trip. The top picture of Ammon is his 2007-2008 Kindergarten picture. The middle picture is the picture we took for our Christmas cards 2007, and the bottom picture is one of Sariah's 3 year pictures.

Oh, the drama!

2008-04-08T10:41:00.002-04:00

We started T-ball last night. Well, Ammon did anyway. I told Sariah she could bring a ball glove and ball and we would play while Ammon practiced. I think she heard "bring a ball glove and ball and you can practice with Ammon" Ugh! She cried and cried because she wanted to play. Sariah will get to play, but hers doesn't start until April 26th! She said she can't wait that long! Oh, the drama of being 3!

We went shopping to get Ammon ball pants and a bat after practice and guess what we found...a pink, left handed t-ball glove...Yes, left handed...this is a whole new experience for me, but I have a little girl on cloud nine because she has a pink ball glove...and a pink plastic bat to match!!! What a girl!

Spring Break

2008-04-06T09:01:00.004-04:00

We decided to use some of our tax return this year to go on Spring Break. We took a train, yes, a train to Kansas City and we had a really good time. I would take a train again anytime! Trains are much roomier than flying, allow the kids to get up and move, have a dining car and snack services, and with the price of gas the way it is are VERY wallet friendly. We left home Saturday morning March 22 and went to Lafayette, IN to Angela and Shannon's house. We had Easter with them (egg hunt, colored eggs, Easter Dinner and of course CANDY!). We stayed the night in Lafayette and boarded the train at 8:00am Sunday morning. We took a small train from Lafayette to Chicago and then took a Large Superliner from Chicago to KC. We got in to KC at 11:00pm on Sunday and Jen was there to get us. We spent the week with Charles, Jen and as Sariah says Baby Haylee (who has got to be the cutest neice I've ever had!). We did lots of cool stuff while we were in KC. We went to Kaleidoscope, the Hallmark Visitors Center, Crown Center, Crayola Cafe, The KC Zoo, Retro Bowl, The Liberty Jail, Penguin Park, and Science City. IT WAS A FULL WEEK! We also had time to go out to dinner with Charles and Jen for Jason's b-day, Visit with Aunt Vonda, Shane and Terre (and Michael and Emily), and have a birthday party for Jason and Matt & Jennifer's house! After our full week we boarded the train again on Saturday the 29th and came back to Lafayette, where we again spent the night and then drove home. I have to upload the pictures and then I will post some here =0)

New to this

2008-04-06T08:58:00.002-04:00

Well, here we go. I have never been much for blogging but LOVE to read everyone elses...LOL. I thought to be fair I'd start a blog for others to read. We'll see if I can keep it up to date! Just a warning, life is never boring around here. I hope you enjoy reading about our craziness!