Hallelujah! They're gone!

At least we think they are. The yellow jackets have now all found a new home. Okay, well, home wouldn't be exactly where I would say they are, but the very nice exterminator man (I keep wanting to call him the terminator.) assures us the stuff he used would get them whether he could find the nest or not. He didn't see the nest per se, but he was pretty sure where it was and he took care of it accordingly.

And, we didn't have to leave home for him to take care of "the problem". Yay!

Back home, but may evacuate again

Yes, we are back home, and I have plans to update with pictures and such before we leave again next week for our vacation/Bruce's conference, but we may be evacuating the premises again soon.

Seems a family/clan/tribe of yellow jackets has decided to take up residence in the ceiling of one of our bathrooms. Dear, dear, sweet Bruce has tried his best to get rid of the things, but they seem to be alluding capture and poison. One problem was he wasn't spraying where they actually are because we couldn't find the spot. He found it this afternoon. He has sprayed it, and was stung a couple of times in the process. That's why I married him, for his bug killing and mouse slaying abilities.

I think we need to call in professionals. Let me correct that. We will call professionals in the morning. I want them gone no matter what they have to do to get rid of them. And, yes, all you card-carrying members of the Sierra Club, if that means they have to die to be gone, than so be it. I am cruel that way, but my children's safety and comfort comes before these nuisances.

So, warn my mother-in-law, we may be back her way soon.

On a side note, when I told the children that Daddy had been stung, Cara said with a sad face but not too upset, "Oh, I'm going to miss him. Did he die?" Made Bruce feel so good. Yeah, real tender-hearted that Cara.

Too short of time at home

Okay, I didn't get done today what I had hoped, but I am getting closer. Sorry, no pictures from this week. Hopefully, I can update next weekend with pictures.

By the way, Steven Curtis Chapman returned to the stage last night with his sons in his band. Less than two months after losing his daughter and their sister. And, he performed "Cinderella". His manager has been giving wonderful information on his blog here: http://www.chapmanchannel.typepad.com/jim. You might want to check it out. And, don't forget to keep praying for the Chapman family, the Smith family (Todd from Selah) and the Sponbergs. So many hurting, and so many more.

Still around, more details later

Four out of five of us have been away from the house since my last post. For two weeks during the summer, we are spending time at "Camp Nanny's" so the girls can take swimming lessons. (The joys of living in a rural area.)

We did this last summer, and it worked out pretty well. From Nanny's, we don't have to drive as far for the lessons, and the cost is very reasonable (okay, cheap). The place also has a splash pool in which Jonah loves to play.

The only problem with Camp Nanny's is no Internet access. Yep, one person left in the world without it.

We came home for the weekend, and will head back tomorrow.

I will try to post pictures later to show what we have been up to while away.

Happy Birthday, Baby Girl! (a little early)

This Saturday, July 5, our precious first born will turn seven years old. Hard to believe. I will spare all the details of the week leading up to her birth, because most of you have probably heard them by now.

I will share that we are very grateful to have her and her sister and brother in our lives. I can't imagine life without them.

Here is my favorite picture of when she was in the NICU:


And, here she is today:

And more pictures

The mall near where we stayed for the weekend at the beach has a nice soft sculptured play area for children. We decided to take the children there for a while to let them burn off some energy.

This did help wear them out. Jonah went to sleep very quickly that night. Cara didn't struggle too much either, but Adriana fought sleep because she wanted to stay up like the big kids. I heard, "It's not fair" several times that night.

I didn't get much sleep that night because Adriana ended up sleepwalking and Cara started coughing like her acid reflux was about to kick in. All the girls/women were in the same sleeping quarters, so I was running back and forth trying to keep them from waking others.

Bruce said he didn't sleep too well either because he was worried about Jonah. He slept in the bed with Bruce, but he was also right near an electrical outlet.

On the way home, I took a nice nap. We arrived home at our usual time, sometime after 7:30. Actually, the time was more like 8:30. Our running joke is that we cannot go on any trip and get home before 7:30 in spite of our best efforts.

A few pics from our recent beach trip

The beach trip with the youth went well except the rain came and went all weekend. We had to drive for a couple of hours in the pouring down rain. During that torrential downpour, our windshield received a good crack from a passing vehicle that threw a rock.

The rain would come when we had plans to be on the beach or at the pool, but would subside when we had other plans like Bible Study or going to the mall. If we had been there for more days, that would not have been a problem, but we were only there for the weekend.

Oh, well. We did get a few pictures of the children on the beach.

A Caraism

Recently, when we were at church, Cara handed me lesson sheet with a picture from her Sunday School lesson. I often ask them what they learned to make sure they understood and retained something during their lesson.

The picture was one of Jesus with some children. I asked her who was in the picture, and she said, "God."

I replied, "Well, actually it is Jesus."

Cara's reply, "Well, Jesus is God." (And she said it like I should have known better.)

A four-year-old gets what many adults can't comprehend.