Christmas with our "family"

We all know how special our families are...there is some sort of attachment that we have to those God has allowed us to call family. That attachment is there even when the relationship has been severed or strained. It is unexplainable!

There is another type of family that one may have as well. It is different than the family I described above. It is a family whom wants to encourage and lift up and spur one another on towards the things of the Lord. This family is one that we share with brothers and sisters in Christ. It is a wonderful blessing when one is a part of both families for sure!!!

In January of 2002 some of us started a small group wanting and desiring to know God in a deeper way. And now almost 9 years later and around 15 kids or more (including the families that have moved out of our group for different reasons) we are still on the path of wanting to know God in a deeper way.

God, thank you for these dear Saints we get to do life with. May we be a group that longs to edify you and make more of you in all that we do, say and think!!

Here are the 8 kids that are a part of our small group now

I just thought this was cute...had to post it!






The girls

Walt Disney World

Jake and Granpa Joe first row. Grandma Carrol and Addy second row.

I am not sure where to start with this blog, but here I go... I am still fascinated at the opportunity Jake was given. I suppose I will start out by introducing Grandpa Joe and Grandma Carrol. These grandparents are Cherith Karsak's parents. Cherith is the wife of Eric. Eric is the brother of Ben. Now that you have that all figured out I will continue:).

Every two years or so Grandpa Joe and Grandma Carrol take 2 to 3 grandchildren to WDW for a week. Addy, Jake's cousin was next in line to go for the 2010 trip. But she did not have anyone to go with so she invited Jake.

I have to admit at first I did not realize what a special thing this was going to be. It was such a "magical" time for Jake. Not just with the trip itself but the entire year leading up to the trip. Grandma Carrol sent on average a letter each week. These letters would range from describing the different parks to choosing what they wanted to eat for breakfast. Usually there was some sort of task to accomplish with the letters and he would earn Disney dollars for doing the task. At the 6 month mark, Carrol sent a countdown calendar. This was the very first thing Jake did each morning for 6 months...mark the day off with a star sticker and then proceed to tell me or Ben how many more days until WDW.

The day finally arrived: November 30, 2010. And it happened to be Jake's birthday. Grandma Carrol made Jake feel so special. From making birthday buttons to decorating the hotel room in 3-D decor.

We all met at the airport. Addy and Jacob were so excited, but I think Grandma Carrol was the most giddy!! It was fun to see them get more and more excited...as they got their backpacks full of goodies, their fanny packs and camera. I was amazed at all the kids had in their possession!

We did not hear from Jake but maybe every other day. We took much comfort in knowing that Jake comfortable with Addy's grandparents. I think that was much to the part of Joe and Carrol making such an effort to get to know Jake before they went. They invited Jake over to their house for a couple of parties and they even came to some of his football games.

Another reason we did not hear much from Jake is because his days were packed full.

Day#1: fly to WDW, eat, swim at hotel pool, go to bed

Day #2: Magic Kingdom 9a-8p, swim, go to bed

Day #3: Hollywood Studios 9a-8p, go to bed

Day #4: swim, Chip and Dale campfire, Disney movie, swim, go to bed

Day #5: Animal Kingdom 9a-5p, go to bed

Day #6: Epcot 9a-9:30p, swim, go to bed

Day #7: Pirate Adventure 9a-11:30p, shop at downtown Disney, swim, go to bed

Day #8: fly back to Wichita

I can only imagine that we have only heard half of the fun they all had together. Jacob is still telling me stuff about the trip. A day has not gone by without him say something about WDW...

Grandpa Joe and Grandma Carrol we are so grateful for allowing this opportunity for our son. I am sure it will be memories that he will one day share with his own children and grandchildren. Thank you for being such a blessing to him and to our family!

Jake turns 9!

Jake will forever remember turning 9...

KC Chiefs game

Shocker Basketball game

Walt Disney World

These are all things he got to do within 2 weeks of turning 9 years old. And he left to fly to Walt Disney World on his actual birthday. WOW!!! What a blessed kid!!!

When Jake got onto the airplane the stewardess noticed Jake had a birthday button on that Grandma Carol had made for him. She then announced Jake's name over the intercom and people told him Happy Birthday and gave him high fives. That was pretty cool!

We decided not to do a friend party this year. However we did have the Karsak side of the family come over and celebrate birthdays with us. Thanks guys for always making our kids feel special!

These 9 years have flown by. All the while we see that our Lord is molding you into a man who wants to honor Him! Happy Birthday! We love you more than you know!!

Shocker Basketball

On November 29th we let Jake pick a place to eat out for his birthday. His birthday is the 30th, but he was leaving to go to Walt Disney World on that day. Anyways he wanted to go to Pizza Hut. When we were walking in I told Jake to go wash his hands before he sat down at the table. While he was in the bathroom I put 4 Shocker basketball tickets under his menu. Jake sat down to see what he wanted to order...he still had not picked up the menu. I then told him maybe the kids menu was on the back. When he turned the menu over he noticed something on the table. He seemed confused and said he found some Shocker tickets. We all played dumb as he continued to read the tickets. He read the date: November 29, 2010. He said, "mom that is today". "Are we going to the basketball game tonight?" At that point we all said Happy Birthday! He said, "mom, you totally fooled me."

Kacie at her first men's Shocker game. She had a good time but was disappointed she did not get on the jumbo tron.

Korey and Deana, thanks so much for the tickets!

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving has truly become a time our family looks forward to. It has been a blast over the last few years making this time special with family from Iowa and New Mexico. Thanks for always making the trek!

This is the new addition to our family. His name is Evan. He is so AWESOME!

Aunt Pat, AJ, Uncle Craig and Uncle Steve

Grandma Betty, Grandma Jan, Grandpa Denny, Cherith, Eric and Ben

The cousins: Addy, Kacie, Logan and Jake

Aunt Rolene was with us too. She came down with flu like symptoms and slept most of the day. We were sure glad she felt better the next day so we could spend some time with her!!

Out with the Boys

Dad, Jake, Grandpa and Uncle Eric went to KC to watch the KC Chiefs play the Arizona Cardinals. They all enjoyed the day together. Jake especially had a great time it being his first real pro-football game. He had only been to a pre-season game before.

They had awesome seats. 20 rows up behind the Chiefs bench.

Kacie turns 6!

For Kacie's 6th birthday we had a "Red Carpet" party.

Her friends walked in on red carpet while I took pictures of them. Thanks Audra for letting me borrow your camera!

Jake can be quite the ham: here he is doing his "catwalk".

The girls came in their fancy dresses and Grandma Jan was our make-up artist. Thanks Grandma, the girls looked beautiful!






The girls had a blast playing "Just Dance". If you look behind Kacie you can see someone else was having fun too! Thanks Quinn for letting Kacie borrow your game!

Kacie on the Red Carpet

Our dining room turned into a party room.

Happy Birthday sweet Kacie! You are turning into a beautiful young lady!!

Derby Bears

What an exciting season for Jake and his 3rd grade team. They started out 1-3. We were thinking it was going to be a long season for the boys. However they won the last 5 of 6 games and made it to the Warrior Bowl Championship game where they took 2ND place.

Jake with his good buddy Grant.

Jake played full back and running back on offense.

On defense he played middle linebacker.

Great season Bears!!!

What a Fun Weekend!

My mom and step-dad came up to hang out for the weekend. We stayed pretty busy. On Friday we went to see the "Keeper of the Plains". Had some yummy sweet potato fries. Went to a museum. Had Ben's family over for dinner. Played hoops.

Ron and Mom, thank you for making it up to see us. We wish so often that you lived close! We love you guys!!

Grandpa and Nana Visit...

After lunch we went to the Museum of World Treasures. We easily could have stayed there a few hours. There were many interesting things to look at. If you live in or near Wichita, this would be a fun thing for you to do some afternoon!

Jake and Kacie looking at Egyptian history.

Grandpa spoiling Kacie with some snacks!

Jake was pumped that the grandparents got to come to a football game. He was glad his team won the game and that he was able to score a touchdown. Jake is the one in green with a little red sleeve sticking out.

Coco, Sadie and Matsu on a walk together

Happy Birthday!

October is always fun for our family because we get to celebrate the lives of two Godly men. Grandpa Denny and Ben. They both are just a joy to be around! We love you guys!!

Happy Birthday!

Kacie Rides Her Bike!!

Kacie kept saying she was going to ride her bike before she turned 6. Well, she beat her goal by about 2 weeks or so. You can tell by her smile how excited she is!!

Walter's Pumpkin Patch

The kids in kindergarten look forward to their first field trip...the pumpkin patch! Here is Kacie picking out her pumpkin. It looks perfect, Kacie!

Learning how a pumpkin grows from a seed.

Kacie and Elliot





The tunnel slides were a favorite!!






Kacie, Kaylee and Emily

Jake 3rd Grade Music Program

It will be interesting to see if the Lord blesses Jake with any music talent. As for now the last thing on his mind is wanting to sing for a large audience of parents...Jake is on the far top left.

We still enjoy watching him and his classmates perform!!

Rose Hill Strikers

Kacie decided to play soccer this fall. She had such a good time. I think we had even more fun watching her!! You can probably tell from the pictures what a great time she had.

Cousin Addi came to a game. Here they are posing at a restaurant after the game was over.

You gotta love "bunch ball"!

Look at that concentration...






Kacie loved the social part of the game :)

Good Job Kacie! Dad and Mom are very proud of how hard you worked and how much fun you had your first season of soccer!

Cute/funny: So Kacie gets her first trophy from playing soccer. She is so proud of it...it even has her name on it. Well, on the way home she informs me she wants to take her trophy to heaven when she dies. I tell her that we don't take our things to heaven. And she replies, "will you display it next to my headstone when I die"? I just smiled and told her that it is fun to work hard and get a reward for the effort! The kids think of the funniest things for sure!

Working Mama = Busy Mama

It is crazy to think that here it is November and the last time I blogged was about the first day of school. I hope those of you who actually check in on us can forgive me!

I started subbing this school year and let me just say kuddos to the moms out there who work full time and take care of you husband and kids too!! I often find myself giving my family left-overs of myself at the end of the day. Ben actually took a sub call for me one evening when I was not home and he pushed the number that said no and do not call back for the evening...I am so blessed to have a sweetie who wants all of me and not my left-overs!!!

I am going to try and update the blog over the next few days...Lord willing!!

~jodie

School Days!

Jake is having a great start to 3rd grade. His teacher is Mrs. Covey. He once again did not get any buddies in his class. It seems like every year he gets super disappointed after looking at his class list. However he always makes new buddies and it turns out just fine. :)

Kacie is also having a great start to the year. Her kindergarten teacher is Ms. Adams. It is exactly who she wanted since Jake had her.

I have to admit it took a couple of weeks before the realization of being at home with no children set in. It has been almost 81/2 years since I have had no responsibility besides myself at home.
I will really enjoy vacation the kids get...I miss them!

Hanging Out With Brother in TX

After we picked up our car in El Paso, the kids and me stayed for a week or so in Lubbock, TX. We wanted to hang out with our Papa, my Mom and Step-dad. We also spent some time with my Dad's side of the family. And my brother and his family flew in from Germany. We had a wonderful time...it went by fast as usual. Papa as you can imagine is still very sad from losing his precious Murr. It was good to be with him. The cousins stayed busy with one another as Nana had plans for them each day.

The kids and I went and visited Murr's grave. It was a sweet time together. We talked about many things we loved about her...

Murr's gravestone was still being made.

Kacie said, "Mom lets take our pict. with Murr." So we did.

Brother Coy, nephew Gabriel and brother Austin

Cousins on my Dad's side of the family





It is tradition to play at least one hand of Skippo.






Niece Raphaela wearing Nana's glasses...too CUTE!








Cousins checking in on their webkinz






At Uncle Greg's and Aunt Twila's enjoying the hot sun. Thanks guys for letting us come invade your pool for the afternoon. We all had a great time!

Getting ready to slide. Later Nana made pudding and they had a food fight. And then they got on the slide again to wash off. The cousins had a blast!

Some of the evenings we had a campfire and made smores.

Lots of time on the swing set...

Papa loves his "sugar"!!