Declaring His Faithfulness

Christmas Celebration on December 24th

2012-01-03T19:37:00.001-06:00

I got up early to get the breakfast casserole in the oven and make homemade biscuits, but everyone was up by 8:00 AM. First we checked out the stockings, then we ate our big breakfast.

Ben is interested to see what's inside

Jesse checked out his stocking, too.

Sometimes things don't work out the way we want, and it can be hard to handle. Probably James wouldn't let Jesse do something he wanted to do.

It's always good to get popcorn in your stocking!

After breakfast, we began opening gifts. Ben had the right idea, but had to be encouraged to open it all the way.

Jesse got a speedway.

Ben got a basketball goal.

What else can I find over here?

Wow, Ben! This looks pretty cool!

Look! You can put things inside here, and it makes sounds!

Both boys seemed pretty fascinated with this toy.

We can play with this together.

What did David get? It's an iPad!!

I need someone to get this out of the box.

These cars would be more fun if I could get them out.

Look at this, Jesse!

Hiking boots for James

Finally someone got this out of the box so I can try it out.

These wheels go round and round.

It's a tent, so Lisa and Steve can go camping.

New overalls

Jesse was unhappy about something.

Katie got a bread machine.

What could this be?

New chairs

Matthew and James for new fleeces from Grandmother Dorothy.

Eating our Christmas dinner at noon

Precious Ben, with his big blue eyes

Family Togetherness on "Christmas Eve" (December 23)

2012-01-02T14:11:00.000-06:00

This year our family celebrated Christmas one day early, and that meant Christmas Eve came one day early, too. So on Friday, December 23rd, I pretended that it was Christmas Eve and did the things I would normally do on Christmas Eve. The kids have established a habit of doing something special together instead of exchanging gifts. Last year, it was a day long event involving a scavenger hunt all over (and somewhat outside of) town. This year, with the babies, it would have been hard for Katie and Allison to be gone all day, so instead they met for breakfast at Cracker Barrel. We kept Ben, and Allison's parents kept Jesse, so that they could have some time together without the babies. By noon everyone was at our house, and the real fun began. We spent a lot of the afternoon just hanging out, and I prepared chicken fajitas for dinner.

David (Granddaddy) and Jesse

Jeremy, Katie, Ben, James, Jesse, and Allison

The interaction between the babies never failed to amuse us.

Enjoying our dinner and visiting around the table

Plenty of gifts around the tree

In the evening, after the babies were in bed, we played a card game called "Little Boss, Big Boss" around the dining table.

I didn't think to take a picture by the stockings before Jesse and Ben went to bed, but I got a good picture of all of my grown-up kids.

A Visit From Aunt Carol

2012-01-02T11:25:00.004-06:00

Carol showed up with gifts for both of the little boys. She had gotten them board books of the Christmas story. The boys are just learning to open their gifts, and have to be helped an encouraged to tear into them.

Around the Kitchen Table

2012-01-02T11:15:00.002-06:00

Often everyone gathers in the kitchen, both to eat and to visit. It is becoming a little crowded since our family keep expanding, but so far, we can still make room to squeeze in everyone. (Although, I think both Elizabeth and Jeremy were in the family room, and David was upstairs.) It's always a place for good conversations. I love having everyone together under one roof!

More of My Grandbabies...I Just Can't Get Enough!

2012-01-01T20:16:00.001-06:00

No captions are needed; these pictures speak for themselves.

Ben and His Granddaddy

2012-01-01T19:47:00.001-06:00

Celebrating Christmas with the Seamans

2012-01-01T19:43:00.002-06:00

Since the Seamans made the trip to Arkansas early in order to come to the wedding, they decided to leave in time to return home to Tennessee for Christmas. Their last evening with us, Wednesday, December 21, everyone came to our house to eat and celebrate Christmas with them. Susan made enchiladas for dinner, since I was still teaching school that day. After dinner, we gathered in the living room to open a few gifts with them.

Susan is surprised with the first season of Scarecrow and Mrs. King.

Lisa and Steve got a new book from Aunt Susan

Jacob, Rebecca, Nathan, and Noah

Terry, Samuel, and Caleb

Noah

Hannah

Rebecca and Noah

Ben's Latch Box

2012-01-01T19:26:00.000-06:00

Jeremy made this really cool wooden box for Ben. It has lots of doors and different kinds of latches. Both boys were very fascinated with it, in fact, I'd have to say that it kept their attention better than most any other toy. They really liked opening the doors and closing them over and over, and by the end of the holidays, Jesse was putting a block inside and taking it out over and over again. Both Ben and Jesse would play for some time, just moving the parts of the latches that they could move. Obviously, most of the latches were too difficult for them, but they had fun with it anyway. It is almost seemed like they liked it because it seemed like something they might not be allowed to mess with.

Jeremy even made holes in each door, so that you could use the hole to open with door.

The Ben and Jesse Show

2011-12-31T23:21:00.001-06:00

Monday, December 19, I had to return to school for the last three days before Christmas break. It was especially hard knowing these babies were at my house but not be able to spend time playing with them. Once I got home from school, playtime was underway.

Jesse just couldn't keep his hands off of Ben's head. He wanted to touch his head or pat (or hit) him on the head every time he got close enough. Ben didn't like it very much.

Jeremy entertained both boys by getting himself into the tunnel in an upright position, but the boys had even more fun crawling through the tunnel.

Both boys had fun playing with the Duplo blocks.

Now Jesse is trying to give Ben a kiss, a nice gesture, but Ben wasn't too sure he liked the idea.

Jesse was pretty proud of himself after giving Ben a kiss, and Ben seems happy enough about it.

It looks like Jesse is telling Ben a secret, but I think he was giving him another kiss.

Of course, James didn't help things any by continuing to tell Jesse to kiss Ben on the cheek.

Jesse has decided that he has had enough of this "kissing stuff."

The boys were playing happily on the floor and then both started crawling together across the room together.

Once again, Jesse wanted to hit Ben's head.

It was like Jesse was chasing Ben, trying to hit or touch his head.

Finally, Ben had enough of it and had to be rescued.

Katie with Ben

A ride on the horse, helped Ben forget his problems with Jesse.

This was a pretty common picture, seeing several people taking pictures at the same time, and almost always, pictures of the babies.

Holiday Happenings

2011-12-31T22:57:00.000-06:00

Sunday afternoon and evening, Dec. 18, most of the family gathered at our house for visiting and eating dinner.

Rebecca and Hannah had fun playing with Jesse.

James played on the banjo while Caleb played the guitar. They were pretty good together.

We enjoyed time around the table together.

As usual, Jesse stole the show, just being himself.

Paintball at Aunt Ann's House

2011-12-31T22:44:00.001-06:00

This year instead of buying Christmas presents for my nephews, I bought enough new paintball guns and masks to go with the ones Matthew already had, so that all five of my nephews could play paintball with their big cousin, Matthew. I knew Matthew would have fun playing with them, and that it would make for some good memories. Matthew set up some obstacles in the side yard behind which they could hide to keep from being hit, and they had hours of fun. Now we have the equipment they can use whenever they come to visit.

Nathan and Mathew

Matt, Nathan, Jacob, and Samuel

Samuel, the youngest male cousin

Caleb, Matt, and Nathan make plans with Samuel

Ben and Grandmama's Snowmen

2011-12-31T22:29:00.001-06:00

Ben saw the snowmen on the windowsill, and he was off to visit them. Look at that hair!

Look, grandmama, this one plays the piano.

Dinner with Ben

2011-12-31T22:17:00.001-06:00

I was pretty tired the evening of the wedding, but not too tired to take a few pictures of Ben at the dinner table. This boy likes to eat!

Behind the Scenes at the Reception

2011-12-31T15:53:00.001-06:00

You've seen the pictures of the reception, but what you haven't seen is how it all happened. Soon after we began planning the wedding, my dear friend, Ronda Hollingsworth, convinced me to let her do the reception food for us. It is well-known that Ronda is an excellent cook, and I had not doubt but what she could pull off a wonderful reception for us, but it was a lot to ask of anyone, even a good friend. Once our Life Group heard that Ronda was doing the food for the reception, they decided to pitch in and help, too. At least four other members of the Life Group, in addition to Ronda, helped prepare and serve the food. Several other friends helped, as well, including two friends of Ronda's, one of whom was in my 6th grade class many years ago. I feel very blessed to have so many wonderful friends who worked so hard and gave of themselves to serve us in this way!

Molly Ironside, a former student of mine, helped cook on both Friday and the day of the wedding. Molly and her mom also helped during the wedding so that Ronda could attend the ceremony.

Katherine Brill helped Ronda in the kitchen the morning of the wedding.

Here you see the many stacks of crepes that Ronda made and froze during the weeks before the wedding.

Katherine preparing pigs-in-a-blanket for baking

Molly and Ronda, hard at work

Others not pictured who helped in various ways were Stacey Canady, Annette Penny, Michele Miller, Angela Mueller, Amy Scarbrough, and Lacey Bingaman.

Wedding Reception

2011-12-30T21:17:00.006-06:00

Lisa's and Steve's wedding reception was held in Fellowship Hall at UBC following the wedding ceremony in the Chapel of the Dove. Since the wedding was at 10:30 in the morning, the reception was a brunch. We served fruit salad, bacon-wrapped chicken bites, pigs in a blanket, hash brown casserole, Texas torte, and two kinds of crepes, along with the wedding cake and groom's cake. To drink, we had coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and punch.

The wedding cake was beautiful.

The groom's cake was a Greek/English New Testament, with Phillipians 2.

Our entire family with my parents and my sisters and their families

It was a beautiful, sunny December day for their wedding!

Jesse loved getting to ring the bell as Steve and Lisa left the church.

... and I'm Goin' to Get Married

2011-12-30T20:42:00.013-06:00

Lisa and Steve were married on Saturday, December 17, 2011, in the Chapel of the Dove at University Baptist Church. This is where David and I were married in July of 1976, except at that time it was the main sanctuary. Most of their wedding pictures were taken before the ceremony. While the wedding photographer was taking pictures, my niece, Rebecca took some pictures of her own. She took all of the pictures used in this blog post.

The girls were pretty cold being outside for pictures at about 9 AM.

Lisa, with flower girls, Hannah Huneycutt, Kate Kieklak, and Mia Kieklak

Our new, expanded family

Our family with my parents and David's mom

They finished the wedding photographs of the wedding party by 9:45 AM, and we still had 45 minutes before the beginning of the wedding. The girls took advantage of the time to take some more pictures together.

Rebecca, Ellen, Lisa, and Amy

Lisa with Kristin

Cara and Lisa, both have engagement rings

My two sweet girls, Katie and Lisa

Hannah and Lisa, cousins with attitude

One of the sweetest times, was when Lisa's bridesmaids and I prayed with her right before the ceremony.

I'm Goin' to the Chapel...

2011-12-30T20:04:00.010-06:00

Lisa's wedding day began very early! I was up at 5 AM, with instructions to wake Lisa up at 5:50. It just didn't seem right when I woke Lisa up, saying, "Lisa, wake up. Today is your wedding day." Could my baby already be grown up enough to get married?

We left for the church a little after 6 AM.Lisa wanted a morning wedding, but getting to church this early didn't seem as good at 6:15 Saturday morning.

Lisa began waking up as Cara began fixing her hair.

Someone told Lisa that tea bags would help keep her eyes from looking puffy.

Here you can see some of the details of Lisa's wardrobe:

A close-up of the beading on her veil

Her "something blue"

Sparkly shoes

"Something borrowed, " my pearls and her Aunt Carol's earrings

The skirt attached seperately

Cousin, Hannah Huneycutt, getting ready to be a flower girl

Wedding Rehearsal and Dinner

2011-12-30T19:10:00.013-06:00

The rehearsal began with Lisa introducing her attendants and family members.

Carol and James

Next, Steve made his introductions.

They figured out where everyone would stand during the ceremony and worked from there to give the instructions for entering the sanctuary.

Steve's family hosted the rehearsal dinner at Magnolia Gardens in Springdale. We had barbecue catered from Buck Nekkid BBQ.

Steve, Lisa, Ann, and David

After eating, we had a time of sharing, where different friends and family members told stories and made suggestions for Steve and Lisa.

Bridesmaid's Brunch

2011-12-28T11:10:00.008-06:00

On Friday morning, December 16, the day before the wedding, Lisa's grandmother Dorothy hosted a bridesmaids' brunch at The Lodge at Butterfield Trail Village. We all had a great time visiting and eating together.

Mia and Kate Kieklak, two of the flower girls

Carol, with Hannah, who was the other flower girl

The brunch gave Lisa a good opportunity to present her attendants with small gifts.

Amy Davis, Cara Pasley, Rebecca Brack, and Kristin Faulk

Someone must had said something pretty funny! I wish I knew what it was.

Sydney and Stephanie were Lisa's guestbook attendants.

Katie, who was the maid of honor, Lisa, and her bridesmaids, Amy Davis, Cara Pasley, Rebecca Brack, Kristin Faulk, and Ellen Burns

Sharon Kieklak, Dorothy, my mother, Shirley, and I sat at one table together.

Lisa with her Grandmother Dorothy

Playtime with Jesse

2011-12-26T16:52:00.010-06:00

The week before Lisa's wedding was very busy and hectic. Even though James and Allison were visiting, I didn't get to spend as much time with them as I would have liked, but I did manage to squeeze in some playtime with Jesse. After all, who could resist playing with such a cute little boy?

Jesse enjoyed riding, with help, of course, on my old rocking horse, "wah-wee." I guess it is an antique now, since it became mine about 55 years ago. I can't wait to see the fun Jesse will have on it once he can ride it all by himself!

There's more than one kind of horse at Grandmama's house. Sometimes it is even more fun to ride the horse on grandmama's knees than to ride on a spring horse.

For lunch, Jesse tried some kiwi, and I think he liked it pretty well.

Lunch time is more fun when you can stick your fingers in your Daddy's mouth, right?

How about cramming your whole fist in his mouth?

Jesse was fascinated by the snowmen on my windowsill, especially the ones that play music and move.

Jesse also, played and sang us a few tunes on the piano.

Jesse has learned that grandmama has some drawers in the kitchen that contain fun toys, but the most fun is to take them out and put them back in, over and over and over again.

Blueberry Pancake Morning

2011-12-26T16:38:00.003-06:00

From the title of this blog post you can guess that we had blueberry pancakes for breakfast, but the big surprise is that Jesse was visiting and got to eat some of them. James, Allison, and Jesse arrived in Fayetteville on Saturday, Dec. 10, and Matthew arrived the next day. One morning the following week, James helped me cook breakfast, and we had blueberry pancakes. You can tell from these pictures that Jesse enjoyed them.

Lisa's Wedding Shower

2011-11-23T18:44:00.012-06:00

Several women from church gave Lisa a shower on Sunday afternoon, November 20. There was a good attendance, especially considering the fact that it was the beginning of Thanksgiving break for many of us, and she received many nice gifts. We are blessed to have so many wonderful friends!

The shower was hosted by Michele Miller, Ronda Hollingsworth, Carol, Huneycutt, Amy Scarbrough, and (not pictured, Diane Burns, Vickey Lloyd, and Anoland Sullivan).

Amy Davis with Lisa

Mother, Sarah Duffel, Amy, Dorothy, and Lisa

Hannah helped Lisa with the gifts.

Erika Kieklak with Lisa

Sharon (Steve's mom) and Erika Kieklak (Steve's sister) with Lisa

Lisa with me

Lisa with both grandmothers

Susan's 50th Birthday

2011-11-23T18:28:00.007-06:00

Susan and her family arrived Saturday evening, Nov. 19 to spend Thanksgiving week with us. Since it was Susan's birthday, we started the holidays by celebrating together. The youngest children dinner in the kitchen, while the teenagers and adults were in the dining room.

Rebecca and Lisa

The birthday girl

Daddy and Mother with Susan

Lighting the candles

Now it is time for the gifts!

Mother/Son (or Daughter/Grandson) Photo Shoot

2011-11-23T17:01:00.008-06:00

Katie doesn't have her picture taken often with Ben, since she takes most of the photos, so we took advantage of the time and the fall scenery to take a bunch of photos of them together.

Fall Visit with Katie and Ben

2011-11-23T16:26:00.010-06:00

It was great to get to spend a week with Katie and Ben. Ben has grown so much since we saw him in July, and he has such a fun personality.

Ben got to take his baths in my kitchen sink, since it easier than leaning over the big tub. He sure has fun in the water!

The faucets and knobs were fascinating to Ben.

A clean, happy baby!

David entertained Ben at the piano.

He really liked banging on the keys.

Goodbye to the Camry

2011-11-23T16:11:00.004-06:00

Wednesday evening, Nov. 2, we were rear-ended in Tahlequah Ok. We had gone to pick up Katie and Ben because there were having problems with their rental car on their way to Fayetteville from Houston. Katie encountered several problems on her way, the first was that she hit a deer about 2 1/2 hours north of Houston when she left home on Tuesday. This caused her to have to return to Houston and try again the next day in a rental car. The tires on the rental car were not that good for driving on wet roads, and because of heavy rain, she couldn't keep the car on the road very easily, so we went to get her and bring her the rest of the way home. After all of these incidents, we just couldn't believe it when we were hit from behind about 10:30 PM on the main road through Tahlequah. The car doesn't look that bad in these pictures, but we were hit pretty hard, causing the airbags in the car behind us to deploy, and our car was "totaled."

My Baby Girl is Getting Married!!!

2011-10-28T14:27:00.004-05:00

It's been nearly three weeks now since Steve proposed to Lisa, and most of the major wedding plans have been made. Steve and Lisa will be married on December 17 at 10:30 AM at the Chapel of the Dove at University Baptist Church. We do still have lots of loose ends to tie up and quite a few more decisions to be made, but the church has been secured for both the wedding and the reception, the wedding dress is bought, the bridesmaids dresses are on order, the flower girl dress has been bought, the photographer arranged, we met with a florist who will be sending us a quote, and have made plans for food for the brunch reception. Invitations are in progress, and we still need to make decisions on the cake and decorations for the church and reception. Just this afternoon I placed an order for printed napkins. It makes me tired just thinking of all that has been accomplished in just over two weeks time.

We are excited to welcome Steve into our family, and are excited about all that God has planned for their future!

Congratulations Lisa and Steve!

Saying Goodbye to James, Allison, and Jesse

2011-09-16T19:09:00.006-05:00

I know the title of this post is rather dated. I started it weeks ago, but being so busy with school, I've never gotten it finished. I decided to go ahead and post it anyway! It's only been four weeks since James and Allison moved to Chicago, but it seems much longer. Right before they left we had one last family get-together. It was really hard to say goodbye, but God seems to be really blessing them in their move. The move went very smoothly, their apartment is quite nice, God very quickly provided James with what sounds like a perfect part-time job, they seem to have found a good church home, and are making many new friends.

Jesse was really becoming quite a crawler before they moved away.

Everyone wanted to entertain Jesse.

Lisa with her boyfriend, Steve Kieklak

Quite a Weekend!

2011-08-22T19:14:00.011-05:00

After finishing the first week of a new school year, we spent most of the weekend attending various events for David's 4o-year FHS reunion. Yes, it has been 40 years, although that does not sound possible! I could say that there were lots of "old people" there, but I guess that would include David and I, too. David enjoyed visiting with some people he hadn't seen since high school and others that he hadn't seen since the last reunion, 10 years ago. I even knew a few of his old high school classmates, especially ones that live in Fayetteville. I talked with Matthew's 4th grade teacher, Jane Arnold, who is the wife of David's classmate, Vance Arnold. I also visited with his classmate, Nancy Ballard, who was Lisa's 4th grade teacher.

Even though the weekend was pretty well filled with just reunion activities, we managed to add more to our schedule on Sunday by having James, Allison, and Jesse over for lunch and visiting. Then, on Sunday evening, we attended a Sunday School class "movie night" party at the Gordon's house. It is a good thing that I didn't really have any schoolwork to accomplish because there would have been no place to fit it into the schedule.

Here are some pictures I took Sunday afternoon of Jesse: (No one at the reunion or Sunday School party was cute enough to warrant any pictures, but it is hard to compete with a grandbaby!)

Here you can see Jesse's two bottom teeth.

He is about to get the hang of crawling, but still has a little work to do to totally figure it out.

I love this upside down shot!

After Jesse's afternoon nap, we went swimming. He especially enjoying splashing in the little pool, but he wanted to climb all around in the pool, so we had to keep a hand on him.

James showed us how Jesse likes to "ride the horse," but his favorite way is to ride "like the cowboy rides," as seen below.

Great Sand Dunes National Park

2011-08-05T15:13:00.020-05:00

On our way home from Pagosa Springs, we drove a little bit out of the way to the north in order to visit Great Sand Dunes National Park.

As we began to see the dunes from a distance, they just looked like large sandpiles at the base of the mountains, but the closer we got, the bigger they looked.

Now we were close enough to get a better idea of the size of the dunes!

We wore shoes and socks to protect our feet from the hot sand.

We did not go all the way to the top since we were on a fairly tight time schedule. It was a long way to the top!

It was a little scary watching children and teenagers turning handsprings down the steep sides of the dunes. One girl laid very still for a couple of minutes after doing this, and all of us who was watching her were getting concerned that she was hurt. About the time people began yelling to her, she got up and walked back up the slope to do it again.

We were only at the National Park for two hours or so, and on our way out of the park we stopped to take some last looks at the dunes and the surrounding scenery.

I used my zoom lens to take some close-up shots of the distant mountains and dunes, and also to take a few pictures of nearby horses as they were grazing.

Continental Divide Trail

2011-08-03T21:03:00.022-05:00

After leaving Treasure Falls, at the base of Wolf Creek Pass, we drove on to the pass where the Continental Divide crosses the highway. From there, we drove up a gravel road to an overlook.

We talked to a man who had just ridden his bike all the way from Pagosa Springs, up the mountain, and to this overlook. He asked us to take his picture and then offered to take a picture of us.

Near the overlook was a trailhead for where the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) heads towards Silverton. Of course, we didn't hike nearly as far as Silverton, but we did hike an hour or so down the trial before we turned around.

The wildflowers were beautiful!

A couple of guys on horses passed us on the trail. Not long after that, we began hearing the distant rumble of thunder, and the sky began growing darker. We increased our pace until I had to slow down, but we hurried back to the car as quickly as we could.

Treasure Falls

2011-08-02T20:04:00.013-05:00

Saturday was our last day at Pagosa Springs, and we spent the day hiking. On the way out to hike, we stopped and took some pictures of the lake near the entrance of the Wyndham Resort where we were staying.

This is the view out the car window as we traveled out of town.

First we went back to Treasure Falls. We saw it from the parking lot a few days ago, but since it was starting to rain we didn't get to hike up to the falls. It wasn't a long hike, but due to the altitude and me being out of shape, I had to stop several times to catch my breath on the way up to the falls.

Views from the overlook that was halfway down from the falls:

Piedra Falls and Piedra River Trail

2011-07-30T20:22:00.048-05:00

We went to the Ranger Station and were given several suggestions for easy to moderate hikes in the San Juan National Forest. After buying and consulting a map (David's favorite kind of souvenir), David decided we should head out Piedra Road to the Piedra River. The road was better than David thought it might be, but it still took quite awhile to get out to the Piedra Falls Trailhead. Along the way we saw lots of beautiful scenery and flowers.

I just had to take some pictures of the beautiful yellow flowers that I kept seeing along the road.

The hike to the falls was only about 1/2 mile from the parking area, and lots of people were enjoying the views and the water.

After we got back to the car, we ate peanut butter sandwiches in the parking lot, and then headed back to hike into a canyon on the Piedra River Trail. Along the way I took a few more pictures.

Piedra River

Next we began our hike into a canyon along the Piedra River. This trail was 12 miles long, and based on the time (about 3 PM), we decided we should only hike for about an hour before turning around to start back to the trailhead.

Small Aspen trees near the trailhead

The trail began higher above the river but eventually it went down along the river.

In some places there were high bluffs or cliffs about the river, and we saw some climbers climbing here.

Later we drove above the canyon and walked out on this rock.

Here we are almost back to the trailhead.

Before leaving the area, we stopped at a turnout to view the river canyon from above.

Looking upstream from the top of the canyon

Looking downstream into the canyon

Here you can see the climbers at the bottom of the rock wall.

Rafting on the San Juan River

2011-07-30T20:02:00.010-05:00

I didn't take any photographs today, since we spent most of the day on the river or riding in a van to and from the river. We met at the Wyndham Activity Center at 10:45 AM to met the group for the rafting trip. There was only one other couple in our group, and they were from St. Louis. The trip to the put-in-spot took about 45 minutes. Once we arrived there was a professional photographer there to take our picture. He actually drove his vehicle along the road ahead of us and took more photographs once we were in the raft and on our way. Of course, these photos were very expensive, but I did buy one shot that I posted above.

Our river rafting guide was a girl named Hannah, and she was a year younger than Lisa. She was very pleasant and helpful along the way, and even though she was young, I felt that we were in good hands. Because of the time of the year, most of the river was fairly slow, but there were some Class I and II whitewater rapids. When we stopped for a break about halfway, everyone did some swimming and David jumped off of a big rock into the water. I was too chicken, plus the bottom was so muddy that I was afraid I would loose one of my Keen water shoes if I kept going, so I turned back. The mud kept trying to suck the shoes off my feet, and since I know Susan lost one of these kind of shoes in some mud, I wasn't taking any chances. In addition to the raft, we had two rubber "Duckeys," a type of inflatable kayak. (You can see one of these behind the raft in the photo above.) The other couple road in them for the first part of the trip, and David and I had them the second half. We were actually manning the kayaks during the part of the river that had the biggest rapids, and I have to admit, I was rather scared a few times. Twice I got stuck against a rock in some big rapids and was afraid that I would turn over, but fortunately I managed to keep the kayak upright. David said that he wished he had video of me in the rapids because I started paddling so fast every time we hit some rapids. I'm sure I looked ridiculous.

The trip back to town in the van took just as long or longer than the trip out, and we were pretty worn out and tired from paddling the kayaks and being baked in the sun, but fortunately we did a good job with the sunscreen, and neither of us was really sunburned.

After getting showers, we went out to eat at JJ's Riverwalk Grill. We had salmon tacos, and they were very good, but pretty hot and spicy. As a result, we had to cool our mouths down with some ice cream a little later in the evening. It was a great day, and tomorrow we plan to go to the Ranger Station in town and ask about some good hiking trails.

Pagosa Springs

2011-07-30T16:57:00.014-05:00

Our first day in Pagosa Springs we were a bit lazy. We were tired from all of the exploring we did on our way here, so we slept rather late, I cooked a big breakfast, and we didn't get out and do much until afternoon. During the afternoon we drove to Treasure Falls, but about the time we got there it began raining, so we didn't hike up to the falls.

Treasure Falls

It wasn't raining in town, so we went back into Pagosa Springs and walked along the river. People were enjoying riding tubes down the river and soaking in the hot springs. I am not sure I could enjoy the hot springs because of the stinky sulfur smell.

It is really hot and smells pretty bad!

Hot Springs were bubbling out everywhere.

You can see the stormy skies in the distance.

As we walking along the river, we came to this Community Garden. The sign said that you were welcome to take anything, but not to mess up the garden. There were lots of rocks stacked together along the edge and among the garden.

This was a pretty leisurely day, but tomorrow we have signed up for a 4-hour rafting trip on the San Juan River at 11:00 AM.

Exploring Our Way to Pagosa Springs: Day Three

2011-07-29T10:41:00.029-05:00

The trip from Santa Fe to Pagosa Springs should have taken a little less than three hours, but we managed to stretch it into a 10-hour trip! Don't worry! We didn't have any problems; we just took our time and saw lots of things on the way. We really like to get off the beaten path and explore!

First we headed to Los Alamos, thinking it would be cool to visit the "secret city" where the atom bomb was developed during WW II. On the way to Los Alamos, we took a side trip to White Rock and Bandelier National Monument. White Rock is a small a town, but they have a city park with a great view from an overlook point.

Here is the view we saw from the White Rock Overlook:

We tried to take this road into Los Alamos, but according to the sign, we could not enter this way.

Bandelier was mostly closed due to recent fires, which burned 50% of the park, but we were able to drive around in part of the park. We could have hiked, but the temperature was climbing into the 90's, so I was not really interested in hiking. We also had lots of other things to see before getting to Pagosa Springs.

After driving to Bandelier National Monument, we took a different route into Los Alamos. I didn't take any photos in Los Alamos, but took these few on the way into town.

At Los Alamos, we went to the Science Museum. It was free, and it was in this museum that they told the history of Los Alamos and the Manhattan Project. It was pretty interesting, and we viewed a short video about how the "secret city" of Los Alamos was created where there had only been a Boy's Ranch. The ranch was taken over by the government for the war effort, and more buildings were built for the many scientists and their families who moved here in the 1940's. It was all very secretive, and the people living here just had a Post Office Box number in Santa Fe. In fact, babies who were born there had the P.O. Box number on their birth certificate instead of a city. After eating lunch at a Subway, we got back on the road, headed toward Pagosa Springs, but it would still be many hours before we arrived there.

Next, we drove into the Rio Grande Gorge Recreation Area with the intention of driving to Taos, but decided we'd rather take in more scenery along the Rio Grande and skip Taos, since we didn't have time for both.

Finally we arrived at the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge.

Once we left the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, we drove on to Pagosa Springs as quickly as we could, arriving at our condo around 6:30 PM. We checked in, carried our things into the condo, ate a bite of supper, and then went to get groceries. It was a very full, but rewarding day!

Exploring Our Way to Pagosa Springs: Day Two

2011-07-27T20:29:00.014-05:00

Monday, July 26, we left Amarillo and headed west on Interstate 40 until we got to U.S. Highway 66, about 30 miles west of Santa Rosa, New Mexico. Here we chose to travel north towards Interstate 25 on a fairly deserted road. We had been seeing a strange kind of plant growing along the interstate, but once we were on U.S. 60, we stopped to get a closer look at some of this unusual melon type plant. It grew much like a cantaloupe or watermelon and had small melons on it, but the leaves were different and it obviously didn't need much water to flourish. David pulled back a leaf to take a picture of it with his iPhone, and then we got back into the car and started on down the road. Immediately, we noticed a very strong onion type smell. We were trying to figure out what it might be when I happened to think of the fact that David had touched the leaf of this plant. Sure enough, the smell was coming from his hands. David said that it smelled like someone just got in the car with a big "Whataburger" or something.

By taking this "off the beaten path" road, we were able to visit Villanueva State Park. This park is nestled between large sandstone bluffs, along the Pecos River in northeastern New Mexico.

We didn't spend a lot of time here; it was pretty hot, and we still we still had some miles to travel. We did drive around, and we got out and walked around a bit.

It was a ranger at the state park visitor center who told us the name of the strange melon type plant that we had seen along the road. He said it is called a "stinking gourd" or "buffalo melon." We looked it up online later and found this information about the the melon, which is also know by many other names.

As we left Villanueva State Park it was getting very cloudy and stormy looking and before long it was raining hard on us. We watched the car thermometer drop from the upper 90's to the upper 60's. Before arriving in Santa Fe, we had one more stop to make. We wanted to visit the Baptist conference center at Glorieta. I went there with the UBC youth choir when I was about 17 years old. Much of it still looked the same, but there had been some changes.

Chapel at Glorieta

Prayer Garden

We arrived in Sante Fe late afternoon, and that evening we ate dinner at a Mexican restaurant that was recommended by someone at our hotel. The name of the restaurant was Los Potrillos, and it was very good. It was authentic Mexican food, so we did not have the typical Mexican entrées that we would usually eat. My dish was grilled chicken in a pineapple sauce, served with rice. After dinner we went downtown, walked around the Plaza, and sat and listened to music being played in the Plaza Bandstand. They have a summer concert series there in the Plaza. I didn't take my camera with me, but I did take a few pictures with my iphone. I posted some of them on Facebook.

Exploring Our Way to Pagosa Springs: Day One

2011-07-27T19:47:00.011-05:00

David and I left home Sunday morning, July 24, headed to Pagosa Springs. Even though we could have driven there in one VERY long day or two reasonable days of driving, we decided to break it into three days so we could explore along the way. Sunday we drove as far as Amarillo, arriving there about 4:30 PM. After checking into a hotel, we went to eat dinner at The Big Texan. We knew we wouldn't even try to eat their 72 oz. steak dinner (it's free if you can finish it off), but figured based on Carol's recommendation, that we could get a good steak dinner there. We usually avoid eating much beef, but steak certainly seemed the appropriate thing to eat in the panhandle of Texas.

After dinner, we drove to Palo Duro Canyon State Park, which is southeast of Amarillo. It was still hot (upper 90's), and we endured the heat to get some views of the canyon, but it was too hot to consider hiking around.

In addition to viewing the canyon, we went to the state park to see the musical performance of "Texas." This show, which is about the settlers of the Texan panhandle in the 1800's, has been playing in the Pioneer Theatre in Palo Duro Canyon since 1966. The stage has the canyon as a backdrop. We throughly enjoyed the performance, but the heat was pretty uncomfortable, even in the shade, and even at 10:30 PM, when the performance was over.

We weren't allowed to take pictures once the show started, but I did get one shot of some cast members who sang before the play began.

Happy Fourth of July!

2011-07-04T12:34:00.015-05:00

This year we are celebrating the 4th of July in Houston with Katie, Jeremy, Ben, James, Allison, and Jesse. We had a big breakfast with Lisa and Steve before they headed back to Fayetteville, and we may just relax and enjoy the time together with the babies the rest of the day. I've already lots of shots of the boys together today, but don't worry, I'll only share a few of them here.

Jesse, five and a half months

Benjamin, four and a half months

The boys had fun "reading" their books together.

Yeah, I know they are a little young for chess, but we thought it would make a cute picture.

They are fascinated with each other, but we have to be careful that they don't grab, claw, and pinch each other.

Surfside Beach

2011-07-03T21:16:00.021-05:00

Friday, July 1st David and I drove to Houston to visit Katie, Jeremy, and Benjamin. The trip was even more fun because James, Allison, and Jesse we went us. It took about 12 hours since we had to stop several times for Jesse to eat, but he did well in the car and was happy most of the time. If he was fussy, reading him a book or singing him a song usually made him happy almost immediately. Lisa, and her boyfriend, Steve, also drove down, but in a separate car, because Lisa has to go back home sooner to start the second summer session at the University.

Saturday morning we got up early, packed a lunch, and got ready to head to the beach. We wanted to get there early so that it wouldn't be as hot, especially with the babies. We got to the beach about 10:45 and spent two to three hours there.

I think Jesse found the heat oppressive.

Benjamin

Jesse

Katie and Ben

Katie and Ben sporting their sunglasses

Jesse

James, Allison, and Jesse. Jesse was too fascinated with the waves to look at the camera.

Katie, Jeremy, and Benjamin

Jesse experiences some big waves!

Benjamin tests the water, but he doesn't seem to be happy about it.

Lisa and Steve

This thumb is a little salty!

Jesse

Benjamin

Babysitting Photo Shoot

2011-06-12T20:41:00.013-05:00

Yesterday morning I had the joy of beginning my summer vacation by babysitting for Jesse for a few hours while James and Allison attended a Parenting Conference at church. Since I was going to be with Jesse for several hours, I took my camera and had some fun getting pictures of him. He is growing so fast is turned 5 months old today.

Here are some of the best pictures I got of him:

Jesse was very good for me. He was happy, took a good nap, and stayed content waiting to eat. When James and Allison arrived back home Jesse was very happy to see them. We were sitting outside on their front porch, and he was all smiles when they appeared, so I had to take of few pictures of Jesse with his Daddy.

May Madness

2011-06-11T11:47:00.031-05:00

As usual, May was a busy month, although it was different than it was when the kids were little and we had three children's birthday parties to host. With James' birthday on May 8th, Katie's on May 13, and Matthew's on May 15, along with Mother's Day, end-of-school-year programs, and graduations, we often referred to the busy month of May as "May Madness."

This year, Susan, Terry, and their two youngest boys, Caleb and Noah came to visit in early May. While they were here we went hiking at Tanyard Creek Falls. With the huge amount of rainfall we had received, it was flowing nicely, and the kids had a great time playing in the water!

I tried to take some close-ups of Hannah putting on her shoes and socks, but she didn't want her picture taken and kept turning her back to me.

After the hike my parents joined us for dinner at my house.

Susan with Jesse

Lisa and Jesse

The Birthday Buddies (and Jesse) - one day early

This year Mother's Day was a big day for many reasons. Both Jesse and Benjamin were dedicated at church on Mother's Day. Jesse's dedication was at UBC, but unfortunately, I could not be in attendance for Benjamin's dedication, since it was at their church in Texas, Houston Northwest Church. We are very thankful that both of our grandsons are being raised in Christian homes, with a focus on glorifying God. In addition, since Mother's Day was May 8th, it was also James' 25th birthday, and my sister Carol's birthday, too. I won't mention Carol's age, but James was born on her 16th birthday. After church we ate lunch at AQ Chicken, along with David's mom, James, Allison, Jesse, and Lisa.

Pastor Mike Lumpkin with James, Allison, and Jesse

The next day, May 9th, we celebrated James' birthday with a family meal of grilled salmon and baked potatoes. Jesse really enjoyed being outdoors while we ate.

Allison, James, David, Steve, and Lisa

May ended with Memorial Day weekend celebrations. We had lunch on Sunday with David's mom. James and Allison came over in the afternoon on Memorial Day to let Jesse try out the pool. It was pretty cold, and he wasn't too sure about it.

My parents, Carol and her family, and James and Allison joined us around the pool in the late afternoon for some swimming and a cookout. The only ones who actually enjoyed being in the pool for very long were the Huneycutt children. They didn't seem to mind the cold water.

Jesse loves books, especially this book.

Easter

2011-05-02T19:11:00.006-05:00

Sorry I am a little late in posting something for Easter, but our family did have an Easter celebration! Everyone came to my house for lunch, but thankfully everyone helped cook the food, so I didn't have to do too much of it myself! It was a rather rainy day, so we didn't hide any eggs, but we had a good time together. Here are a few pictures.

Lisa and cousin Hannah

Lisa wanted a picture of her twirling in her new dress.

Samuel, Hannah, and Jacob

Jacob and Samuel had fun playing chess.

Old Friends Are The Best!

2011-04-19T18:55:00.009-05:00

Fran, Ann, and Sue

This past weekend, I was blessed by a wonderful visit with two very dear friends. Fran Buck arrived Friday evening and spent the night, and Sue McGowen came over early Saturday morning. Fran lives near Harrison, but Sue is now living in Tacoma, Washington. Many years ago when they were both living in Fayetteville, we spent many hours together, doing various crafts and enjoying time with our children together. Fran is the one who taught us to make baskets. I still have a few of these baskets, but I doubt that I could remember how to make one. We visited a few hours at my house Saturday morning, then went downtown to the Farmer's Market, where we met up with Sue's son, David Embree and his wife, Lauren. After an hour or so downtown, we headed out to visit the farm property that Sue owns in Greenland. What began as a rather cold morning turned into a beautiful sunny day, and we had a very special time together!

At the Farmer's Market

Sue with David

Sue with her "Granddog"

Sue and Fran

A very large fish in Sue's pond

Cousins: Jesse and Ben

2011-03-30T18:48:00.019-05:00

This afternoon we had a lot of fun doing a photo shoot with Jesse and Ben in their matching outfits. Both of the boys were pretty cooperative, especially considering what we were doing with them. Have fun looking at some of my best shots.

Before the Photo Shoot:

This begins the photo shoot pictures:

This was only a very small portion of the pictures that were taken, with Katie and I both snapping shots.

Hanging Out With Aunt Lisa

2011-03-30T18:48:00.011-05:00

Ben is wearing his "I like Hanging With My Aunt" shirt.

Lisa and Steve with Benjamin

Benjamin

Ben's First Trip to Arkansas

2011-03-30T18:46:00.007-05:00

At both Thanksgiving and Christmas I took pictures of Katie and Allison standing in this doorway showing off their pregnant bellies. When they were first together on Saturday, I knew we had to get another picture of them holding the boys in the doorway.

Uncle James meets Benjamin.

James with Jesse

Grandmama Ann cuddling with Ben

Aunt Lisa wants a turn

Grandmother Shirley meets Ben

Aunt Carol with her great-nephew, Ben

Grandmother Dorothy holding Ben

Hannah had fun helping to entertain Jesse.