My Mother's Day

 I had a wonderful Mother's Day.  Darren and some of the kids were down in South Dakota for part of the weekend.  They hurried home to be with me in the afternoon.  I was quite spoiled (as always)!

 I received three Doctor Who shirts, a gift certificate for an hour long massage, 

some flip flops, and a gun safe for my handgun. 

Here are all three Doctor Who shirts.  Love them!

 One of the reasons Darren headed down to SD was to pick up my other Mother's Day present.

A handsome German short hair puppy.

 His name is Jimmer.

Ain't he adorable!?

A Memory for My Mom

This is a modified version of a picture taken in 2008.  It was the last picture of our family with Mark before he died.  It is a special picture in so many ways.  This goofy version is just as special to me.  Some of my siblings and I had a great time creating this and the story to go with it.  Enjoy.

Back row - Mark, Mauri, John, Luke, Paul, Dirk, Karen

Middle row - Kaylene, Andrew, Juliana, Adam

Seated - Dad holding Loman, Mom

Mom and Dad's family is the talk of the county.  The family consists of the oldest girl (Karen) who is trying out for the local McDonald's Hamburgler character.  The oldest son (Dirk) is attempting a career in show business as a clown in the circus.  His backup plan is to pull Santa's sleigh during the off season. The third child (Paul) is the lead singer in The Color Freaks band.  They specialize in polka.

The family continues with the quiet son (Luke) who is making his place in the world as an Amish model for the local furniture store.  He makes good money when the tourists come to town.  They pay him $15 to pose for pictures with them.  The next son (John) has a split personality and thinks he is the Emperor of China.  He really loves his mother and wears it with pride.

The most beautiful sister (Mauri) has a great gig as the model for a local beer company.  They brew beer with a special twist of llama drool. It's all the rage.  The next son (Mark) is famous for his stove top hat and his purple flower that was given to him by a secret admirer.  He wears it in hopes of finding her and refuses to shave his sideburns until she shows herself.

That son (Adam) that keeps the family laughing trains monkeys for the circus that his brother is part of.  He has unique talent of being able to imitate the monkeys with the best of them.  His motto is "I'm a Big Boy Now."  The next sister (Juliana) is probably the most talked about of all the family members.  She had a terrible accident that involved a trampoline and a dirt bike.  Don't ask - 'cause we ain't sharing how it happened.  After 27 surgeries and many medication changes her neck is beginning to take shape, but her arms aren't long enough to shave the hair in her ears and nose.

The calm and collected child (Andrew) spends his free time sailing with a raft and a robin.  It is said that the robin got mad one day and pulled out this son's eye after he wouldn't share his lunch of saltine crackers.  It's strictly rumor as we have it on good authority that he wears it just to get the girls.  The next daughter (Kaylene) was on the back of the dirt bike when it hit the trampoline.  She lost her right leg just below the knee as a result.  Don't underestimate her though, she is the best dancer in the family.  You should see her do the chicken dance!!

The last son (Loman) is the mascot of the local polo team.  He also doubles as their water boy and half time entertainment.  He spends his free time cleaning up the manure left by the horses.  He sells it to the little old ladies in town for a hefty profit.

Mom and Dad are proud of each and every one of their children.  They maintain that family is the most important part of life.

The end.

I hope you enjoyed this memory, Mom.  I laughed when I read it.  Then I cried.  Happy Mother's Day from all of us characters!

Mother's Day Greetings

Happy Mother's Day

to our mothers and fathers. 

Without fathers we would have no mothers, without mothers we would have no fathers.

This day is for all of you in my opinion.

(Boy, we were really, really young when we got married!)

Thanks Mom for everything.

Happy Mother's Day to the grandparents.  Happy Mother's Day to our aunts, sisters, friends, and Godmothers.  We have prayed for all of you today.  God's most wonderful blessings to all of you this special day.

When the Camera Goes Missing Again

I found these cute pictures on my camera today.  I think someone loves his sisters.

 Blase and Kiara

Blase was suppose to be babysitting for me while I cleaned the garage. 

 His version of babysitting must involve a fight for the wet wipes.

 Brigid in dots and Kiara in diamonds.

 I sure love those bald heads!!

And the winner is.........KIARA!! 

 May I just spend all day kissing those cheeks?

Or these cheeks??

When Supper Goes Bad

When supper goes bad what do you do?  Throw it out?  Sigh and start all over?

I was in the middle of cutting buns for supper when I noticed two somethings growing on one of the buns.  Yes, that nasty supper ruining mold was present on almost all of the buns.  Did I throw them out? Yes, but first I pinched off a chunk of the bread and got out the microscope.  Yah, I'm that kind of homeschooling mom.  Not only did I get out the microscope while I was making supper, but I also took pictures of what I was looking at.  I have to say it was well worth the effort as I had never looked at mold closely before.  It was amazing!  I can't wait to inspect other things!

This is the close picture of the white mold.

 This is the black mold. 

And this is the close up of it.

Carnivorous and Desert Plants

Last year Stephen received a carnivorous plants kit.  I was in no mood to deal with it.  I finally brought it out and we got it set up.

 Some of his seeds had to sit in the refrigerator for 6 weeks.  This has been a good lesson on seeds and what conditions it takes for some of them to grow.

He had a great time preparing the soil.  They looked like brown marshmallows after they had absorbed the water.

 He designed his garden with certain seeds here and others there with blue rock dividing the sections.

 

 All done.  Now the waiting game begins.  It said it would take anywhere from 1 to 3 months for the seeds to sprout.  I guess we could have started these in winter and not worried about the lack of sunshine.

 Rex received a desert biodome last year as well.

 He's super excited about this project because he really, really likes Grandma Gebes' cactus plants from Uncle George.  He is hoping some of his grow to be as big as her cactus plants.

His plants will start to grow a lot sooner.  His also requires direct sunlight so we found a cozy spot by the front window.  Both Rex and Stephen's plants are suppose to last for years.  Let's hope we don't mess it up or a helpful little sister decides she knows what to do.

I have started some herbs in the house.  I'm hoping for some basil and thyme for sure!  Here's to a successful growing season for all of us!

Family Day at CAT Reman

On Saturday morning Darren took the boys to Family Day at his work.  They had a great time eating pancakes, eggs, sausage or bacon, and milk or orange juice.  A much, much better breakfast than I was going to fix for them (cold cereal). They had a blast in the bouncy house obstacle course.  The girls and I stayed home for all of that excitement.  We did meet them at the plant and went with them on a tour of the new building.  We weren't able to go to Family Day last year, so this was our first chance to see the new building completed.  It is massive.  

Stephen won TWICE on the cake walk. Stephen won this amazing cake and a plate of brownies.  Blase won a round cake.  I told him we were going to put it in the freezer for his birthday.  He wasn't impressed with that idea.  They ended up having it for dessert last night.