My little Lindsay girl

Lindsay Marie (3 1/2) mixing up cookie dough. I know I am probably biased, but when I look at her I see the most beautiful little girl God ever created. :)
She is so smart too. She can count up to 20 or so. She knows all her colors and shapes and is recognizing numbers and letters and is writing alot of letters. She is funny and loves to dance and sing.

Class Ring time?

Well, so it begins! Jacob's freshman class is ordering class rings already!
And are they expensive!!!
He is so excited, though.

My album class went well! Everyone had a great time and each album was totally
unique and their own! It was chaotic but so fun.
I would repeat this class if at least 6 were interested.

Had a chance to post some stuff on EBAY today.
I am excited about my mini album class tomorrow night!
I hope everyone has a good time.
Not much to write tonight, I am pooped.

Two mini albums and one card that I made recently. The album on the right I got at Convention and was my inspiration for the one on the left. More pictures below. :)

This is a cross over card that I made the other night. I am thinking of doing a class on this and other advanced cards.

Here is a pic of the mini album we are making at my class on Monday. It is full, but I will repeat it if there is enough interest! :)

Ian had a great day at school. His daily report had 11 smiley faces on it!!
He is doing better each day. Thank you, Lord!
Lindsay and I went shopping today. It took almost 2 hours to get through
Meijer, but we got some good deals.
Tomorrow we are staying home! And relaxing. (?)
Next week I am starting a huge project. Redecorating our downstairs bedroom
so that Doug and I can move in there and give Lindsay our room.

Monday, Monday......

Feels like FALL today! Lindsay went to "school" at Aunt Debbie's today and I got a lot of cleaning done! I still have tons of toys to sort and hopefully give some to Goodwill and even throw out some that are broken , etc.
I try to do a good "toy dung out" before Christmas gets here.

Well, we got all dressed for church yesterday and headed to Rothbury to visit Rothbury Community Church. We pulled in the parking lot and there was not a car in sight! I thought "someone must have told them we were coming.". But there was a sign on the door saying that services were being held at Camp A-O-Ah- Kayah that day! We would pick that Sunday to visit there!

Tomorrow is our first MOPS meeting. I am looking forward to seeing my friend Angela who I have not seen ALL summer!!!! :(
Lindsay loves to go to MOPS too.
I am so hungry for Apple Crisp! Might have to run up to the Farm Market tomorrow and get some apples.
My Apple Crisp Recipe:
Peel and slice as many apples as it takes to fill a 13 x 9 pan to heaping.
Sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon (I don't measure but it's roughly 1/2 to 3/4
cup of sugar and then enough cinnamon to cover the apples pretty well.
Cut 2/3 c. margarine into 1 c. brown sugar and 1 1/2 c. flour until crumbly.
Sprinkle all this mixture over apples. I usually add about 3/4 c. chopped walnuts over that. But if you don't like nuts or just don't have any, it is delicious without it too!
Bake in 350 oven for 1/2 hour, poke a couple slices with a sharp knife to check for doneness, continue to bake until apples are fully cooked, probably another 15 to 30 minutes if you really heaped it.
This is my mom's recipe that I kind of adapted to our taste. It is extra yummy served warm with vanilla ice cream!!

Saturday, 8 Sept. 2007

Wow, it's been a rough week. The kids started school on Tuesday. Jacob loves it and so does Dylan but Ian is having a really hard time getting used to it and getting into a routine. He has been tantruming a lot and is not happy. I am sure it will take time and then he will love school. The teacher and his assistant are total strangers so it will take awhile for him to be comfortable around them. Jennifer Russell went in on Friday and spent the whole morning in the classroom to observe Ian and to help. He loves J. Russell as he calls her but he was even snarky at her.
Wednesday my cousin, Roberta "Bert" Wenk died from ALS (Lou Gehrig's disease). She was 49 years old and full of life, a real spitfire. She was so nice to me when I was just her pesky little kid cousin (she is 5 years older than me). I will never forget her and the memories of her from when we were kids.
Jacob is doing well at school. Praise the Lord.
We are going to try a new church tomorrow, Rothbury Community Church. I am so nervous about it. And then we are going to Roberta's memorial service at 2 pm. I am sure it is going to be packed. She had a small family, but a lot of friends.
I need to get working on supplies for the album class I am doing here on the 17th. I have lots of paper to cut!!

Roberta's Obituary

Roberta "Bert" Wenk
Date: 2007-09-05

Roberta E. "Bert" Wenk, age 49, of Shelby, passed away Wednesday, September 5, 2007 at the Hackley VNS Hospice Home in Muskegon. She was born May 18, 1958 in Shelby to Raymond and Margaret "Peggy" (Hansen) Mitchell. Bert was a 1976 graduate of Shelby High School and a life resident of Oceana County. She worked at Howmet Corporation for many years and had also been employed at The Captain's Table Restaurant, Shelby Bakery and the Brown Bear. She is survived by her children, Tim (Tressa) Wenk and Shaina Hasty; her parents, Raymond and Peggy Mitchell; her sister, Kathleen (Roger) Fessenden; nieces, Theresa (Kurt) Westrate, Lisa (Joe) Ernst and Erin Knoth; great-nieces and great-nephews; and many friends. A memorial service will be held Sunday, September 9, 2 p.m. at Shelby United Methodist Church with Rev. Earnest Cummings officiating. To find the church, from US 31, take the Shelby Exit and go east one mile to the stop sign. Turn left or north onto State Street (Oceana Drive) and go two blocks. The church is adjacent to Monument Park on the left side of State Street. Memorials to the A.L.S. Association - Michigan Chapter, 678 Front Street, Suite 159, Grand Rapids, MI 49504 are appreciated.

Ian off to Kindergarten and not wanting his picture taken!!!!

Dylan off to Kindergarten!!!

Jacob off to 9th grade!

Labor Day 2007

Well, my oldest son is in mourning.......tomorrow school starts.
He is going to have a fabulous year, though! I can just feel it.
Ninth grade, how can that be? He is tall and handsome and has the most beautiful smile. He is my greatest encourager and my joy. He is a huge help to me. Oh, no....he is not perfect. He is also a major scheister and knows how to play me. He is also a slob!! :)

My twinnies start Kindergarten tomorrow. I have been counting the days, but now that it is here I am kind of sad that their baby days are really truly over and they will be in school all day everyday from now on. They are beautiful boys. They are alot of work and are both very demanding. Dylan is the peace keeper and likes everyone to get along and be happy. Ian is more self centered due to the autism spectrum disorder but is also very sweet natured and surprises me alot with his caring for others. They are both excited about school. The only thing spoiling it for me is that they will not be at New Era Elementary where they belong. I am trying not to think about it, but it stinks.I am keeping positive as not to influence them. Their teacher seems nice.
My boys are all handsome, smart and good hearted. Thank you, Lord for my boys.

And as for Miss Lindsay...I am looking forward to having some one on one time with her and turning her back into a little lady!!
Hanging around with boys all the time is not good for a girl!
I plan to teach her some crafting, baking and do lots of reading.
I am also going to get her a preschool workbook and see what we can accomplish with that. She already knows all her shapes, colors, lots of letters and can count to 15, sometimes 20.
Well, tomorrow I will post some pics of my boys off to school.