Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to Daddy,
Happy Birthday to you!

LMG's translation is "Happy Bir-bay....."

Our neighbor made AGG a cherry pie for his birthday today. She also brought over homemade chocolate chip cookies for the kiddos. The girls had fun getting everything ready for Daddy's little family party after dinner.


~Wee

Knock Knock

Knock knock
Who's there?
Nana (translated "banana")
Banana Who?
Nana spit (translated "banana split")

This is what LMG asked me this morning.
~Wee

Week No. 6

Under semi-cloudy skies and wrapped in my Illini blanket (I love supporting the Illini amongst this Hoosierland!), we took in the next to last game. Today's game was against the red team. The final score was 4-1, our win.

MEG played goalie one quarter, but saw little to no action. It seemed our team spent the majority of the game in their opponent's half of the field. The rest of the game, she played forward or mid-field. MEG approaches the ball at great speed and prepares to drive down the field. (She inherited her speed from her G'ma B. and her Daddy;))
Here, she kicks the ball around her opponent.

Look how wide open she is!

When GVG played defense, she, too, saw very little action. She also played as a forward and mid-fielder. On defense, GVG kicks the ball away from the goal and back up field.

I am so proud of how well GVG stays with her opponent. She doesn't back off and allow them access to the ball. She stays right there with it. (She's no. 8, approaching the ball.)

GVG approaching her opponent.

And driving the ball towards the goal. MEG is no. 5.

Since there are about six players on our team that know each other well, it has been so fun watching them play as teammates throughout this season! Our section of onlookers is definitely the loudest! It's just plain fun!!

~Wee

Under the Lights

Out of the eight games of the season, there is a Thursday night "under the lights" game. Tonight was that night. Our team faced the yellow team for the third and final time. They ended the game with a whopping 5-0 win! Out of the five goals, three of them were by different players, which really shows the well-roundedness of the team as a whole. MEG stops the ball from behind.
MEG played all four quarters, but received a rest in the final quarter when she took a ball to the stomach. She showed such compassion for the opposing team when, after the game, she told me she "felt sorry for that team since they haven't won a game yet this season."

The girls were excited about tonight's game mostly because Daddy was the "coach" (since Coach was out of town) and was able to watch an entire game!
Coach "Daddy" gives MEG her position assignment.

~Wee

Week No. 5

The soccer season is officially half over. Only three games remain. Another crisp fall day was on tap for today's early morning game against the "yellow" team. This is the team with a few "bullies" amongst them. I am proud of how the girls don't allow that to keep them from going after the ball. GVG did an awesome job in dribbling the ball around the little fellow in the pictures below, which apparently brought some remarks from him.

GVG and MEG have the ball here. The boy in yellow on the right is one of the above-mentioned bullies.

It was a hard-fought game, with (it seems) some extra unnecessary roughness. Our team won 1-0.

While playing as forwards, this is how close they came to the goal several times (MEG left; GVG center).
MEG (left) and GVG (right).

LMG and Mommy cheering our team on. It was chilly just sitting there on the sidelines, but by the end of the game, the sun was starting to warm us up.

As a mid-fielder, MEG prepares to pass up to a forward.

MEG turning the ball to head towards the opponent's goal. GVG (in blue) is on far left.

Enjoying their post-game goodies from the concession stand.

~Wee

Shout JOYFULLY...

to the Lord, all the earth,
Serve (worship) the Lord with gladness;
Come before Him with joyful singing.
Know that the Lord Himself is God;
It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves;
We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Enter His gates with thanksgiving,
And His courts with praise.
Give thanks to Him (be thankful and say so to Him); bless (and affectionately praise) His name.
For the Lord is good;
His lovingkindness (and mercy) is everlasting,
And His faithfulness (and truth) continues through all generations.

~~~Psalm 100
Today is piano lessons day. Before leaving, the girls run through their songs one last time. MEG and GVG had already finished their run-throughs. When I walked into the dining room this morning after my shower, this is where I found LMG. She was happily making music doing her "piano lesson." (I thought she was pretty clever by placing a rug under her stool so it wouldn't scratch the piano bench!)
~Wee

The Prince and His Jewel

The following is a story that MEG wrote in school this morning.

Once upon a time, a prince had a beautiful jewel. Everybody in his kingdom was not sharing and not helping other people. So the prince walked to a deep well and put a beautiful jewel in a bucket and put the bucket at the bottom of the well. Then the prince dressed himself up as a poor man and stood by the well.

Soon a man came walking down the road and stopped by the poor man. The prince said, "Will you get water for me?" The man answered, "No," and walked off.

One hour later a little girl came walking down the road and stopped and looked at the poor man. The prince said, "Will you draw me some water?" The little girl replied, "Yes!" When she lifted the bucket out of the well, she saw the beautiful jewel and a note that said, "If you find this jewel, you will be very happy." And the girl was so happy that she took it home and gave it to her brother. The End.

Lessons learned from the story: to share with and help others.

~Wee

Week No. 4

Here we are at week no. 4 already. I can't believe the season is half over. Today our team played the green team. Last time they played this team, they tied. Today, they won 4-1.
Break time under the shade on an unseasonably warm day.

MEG played forward or mid-field most of the first half. She asked for a break at halftime. Coach said, "I can't give you a break, but I can put you on defense." So that is where she went. She ended the game playing goalie. After the game, I asked if she was nervous playing goalie. She replied very calmly, "No." (I obviously was more nervous than she was.) Her defenders protected her well; she didn't have to dive for the ball even once. MEG with the ball and receiving the inbound kick from her teammate.

GVG started the game on defense. Coach commented at break, "We have to thank GVG and Evan for sacrificing their bodies in keeping the ball from going into the goal" (she took a ball to the chest). She also had some big kicks in getting the ball away from their goal. GVG spent the rest of the game playing forward, one quarter of that with MEG. It's neat to watch the girls work together as teammates. I really enjoy seeing them move into position as the ball comes towards them. This is GVG playing defense, preparing to kick it to MEG (#5), playing mid-field.

Of course, LMG was my little sidekick again today. This is how she took in the game.

~Wee

Remembering......

...back to October 10, 1993 -- 15 years ago. Weather wise, it was a day much like today. Sunny, yet cool in the morning and warming to the upper 70s or lower 80s as the day went on. It was our wedding day. That morning, pictures were scheduled to be taken at 8:00 a.m., outside. The trees displayed a full array of color; the grass still wet. It was chilly! A beautiful day indeed.

This afternoon the girls put together a treasure hunt for us, each with 15 clues (AGG was green; I was pink).
At the end of the hunt we found our cards, made by the girls themselves, on a stump. After that we all went out for ice cream. ~Wee

Bison and Windmills...

These were the subjects of our field trip today. We actually had our October and November field trips both scheduled for this week, so it made for a busy week.

Today we traveled North to visit a family-owned bison ranch. First, we learned facts about the bison, then the girls each made a Native American craft -- they drew Indian signs on a piece of wood, tied on some twine, and ended up with a necklace as a souvenir.

After that we went on an open-aired, covered-wagon ride out into the field where the buffalo roam. We were able to feed the buffalo corn pellets (some even by hand -- this particular one is a calf).

These animals are HUGE when you are that close to them! Even though these mammals appear to be big and awkward, they are actually very athletic and quick movers. I was surprised when a bull quickly raised his head to receive what I held in my hand. I dropped the pellet into his mouth, but not before I was able to feel his rough tongue. There is a lot of slobbering happening out there in the field when it's meal time!

Anyway, LMG really got into this feeding time. She kept calling out, "Here baby one....here baby one..." She wasn't intimidated by these huge creatures. She kept returning to the pellet bucket to fill up her hands after she had emptied them by throwing the food out to the buffalo. She enjoyed doing her part in supplying a small portion of their daily intake of 10-20 lbs. of food.
When we returned from the field, the girls learned and played a Native American game called, "Snake." For lunch we enjoyed buffalo burgers. They were awesome! Not as "heavy" as beef. What a tasty treat!From there we traveled to a windmill museum where 52 windmills are on display, some made of wood and others made of steel. (above) We were able to climb up inside this post windmill. Memories came flooding back from my childhood as I stood in the yard and heard, "squeeeak, squeeeak, squeeeak....." I am sure my family is smiling right now as they, too, are remembering growing up on the farm with our beloved squeaky windmill.

Dad, this one's for you. Notice the name? (wrong state, but cool nonetheless)

On the way home we stopped off at the apple orchard we visited just a few weeks ago and picked up some apple cider and another bag of apples.

It was another fun day, and the weather was absolutely perfect! This is such a beautiful time of year for traveling!

~Wee