GO ILLINI!

We had the great opportunity to see the Illini play against Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennessee last Tuesday evening. Since Nashville is only 2 hours away we jumped on the chance. Decked out in our orange and blue, ready to cheer for our team we left bound for Vandy. We were running about 20 mins behind what we had planned, so yeah we were feeling a little rushed. Unexpectedly we missed the whole first half. Apparently there had been quite an accident ahead of us and so the traffic was backed up down I-65 N. We saw the emergency helicopter leave and even saw the crunched up vehicle being taken away. You know, I always say God places you where you are supposed to be, when you are suppose to be there. Had we been running on time or a little ahead that accident could have involved us. As much as we hated to miss the first half and then try to find parking that late in the game, we were and are thankful we avoided what could have been. We ended up having a great evening with Illinois winning 69-63. The boys and I were really excited to see it spitting snow as we left the Gym.

A shot of the Vanderbilt mascot, dance team and cheer squad.

I was really excited to get this action shot. I love basketball. It moves so much faster and is more exciting than football.

Illinois coach, Bruce Weber, going over the game plan during one of the timeouts. He is the silver haired man in the middle of the group.

I had taken a photo of the guys and a super nice girl offered to take our photo together. Awesome! I love the chance to get all of us in a shot.

OSAKA

Tonight we all went to the Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar in Florence. I know what goes on there, but I have never been to one. Joe, on the other hand, has been to several. Many of which were in Japan on one of his trips with NAL. So, we thought the boys would enjoy the experience. The food was great and the boys really had a good time. Jackson even said this is where he wants to come for his birthday dinner in March. It was a great way to spend a chilly, rainy Friday evening.

HONORING OUR VETERANS

I wanted to share a photo of my Grandpa Raymond Boose. He is a WWII veteran. Soldiers are proud people that do not want to be singled out for their acts of bravery, but would rather "do their job" and go on. My grandpa is no different. He has seen, smelled, heard, tasted and felt experience that I could never imagine. When I was a young girl I would listen to his stories and once in a blue moon he would tell us about the war. He was honest and told us with hesitation. I'm sure he didn't want us to know the horrors of war or what he went through. What I do know is that he is an amazing man who went to war to make sure his children, grandchildren and even those to follow could live in safety and security. He often tells Bayley that he "went to war, so Bay wouldn't have to". He received many honors including the bronze star and a purple heart. Grandpa would never tell you that, but it's true. At 97 years old he is a proud, independent, wonderful man still living in the home he shared with his wife, Loma and in which they raised their family. You can still find him listening to a baseball game on the radio and watching another on the TV. If you can't tell, I love him very much and am immensely proud of him. I honor all veterans and those serving our country, but I always say an extra prayer of thanksgiving for my grandpa.

Each year the Muscle Shoals fourth grade presents a patriotic program honoring our veterans the week of Veteran's Day. The kids did a wonderful job singing all of the songs and behaved very well while on stage. Bay and Jackson have talked all week about how Great Grandpa Boose is a WWII veteran and a true American hero. I'm so grateful that my boys have had the chance to know my grandpa and begin to understand what he did for our country.

Bay in the hallway at the high school immediately after the program. He was such a well-dressed a young man and is starting to look a little grown-up. As long as I have taught him style, my work here is done.

This is the full fourth grade on stage at the Muscle Shoals High School Auditorium. There are 8 classes and over 250 students in Bayley's grade.

Bay is in the middle looking at the audience. This is where I was waving and he was trying not to smile too much. You know he has to be cool collected when onstage.

MAYA'S 1 YEAR PHOTOS

We recently received an email with access to these beautiful photos of Maya at her 1 year photo session. I'm so glad Wes and Katie send us photos and keep us in "the Loop" as to what is going on in Clay County. Maya is such a doll!

GOLFING AT SPRING PARK

We have been having some beautiful weather and we are trying to take advantage of it. Last Sunday we spent part of the afternoon at the golf course near Spring Park in Tuscumbia. There are only 9 holes so it is great for the boys. Kind of makes me want to borrow my aunt's clubs and give it a try...we shall see....

Bay was quick to inform me that I was not allowed to drive this golf cart "crazy" like I do the one at the farm. He said "mom there are rules" and I couldn't just "drive all over the place". Sure, take all of the fun out of it!

Joe is helping Jackson aim for the hole and read the green.

Bay getting ready to tee off.

Our own little Tiger Woods...Jackson working on his form.

FLAG FOOTBALL- JETS

Last evening was the very last game for flag football...that is until next year. Anyway, Bay played really well this year. This being his second year, you can see his improvement from just 6 weeks ago. He is taking a strong interest in sports and beginning to understand how to not get frustrated, but to play harder and that is how you get results.

Bay with Coach Isbel after the last game. He was a wonderful coach! Watching him work with the kids and teach them not only how to play, but how to be a good sportsman made us very thankful we had such a well-rounded person for our coach.

Bay receiving his participation trophy from Coach Isbel.

The lighting is poor since this was at night in a wide open area, but I wanted to show this to everyone. Bay is usually a running back or receiver, however in this play at the beginning of the game he was quarterback. He threw a pass to Hogan who took it all of the way to the end zone. Coach even mentioned the touchdown pass in the awards presentation after the game.

Good Job Bay!

THE STORM-SOCCER

I really enjoy the fall sports so I hate to see it end. Personally, I think Jax looks adorable in his soccer uniform. He was one of the youngest on the team this year so he had a lot of learning to do being in the next age bracket. He did really well and improved not only his skills, but is understanding how to work as a team to win. Muscle Shoals has a great sports program!

Jackson was running after the ball in an effort to take to the goal.

Jackson with his coaches for the Storm Soccer team.

Happy Halloween Everyone!

We had a really enjoyable Halloween! It started with Pumpkin Day activities, then when the boys got home we carved pumpkins. Next thing we knew it was time to set the candy by the door and get ready to Trick or Treat. The boys had as much fun passing out candy as they did getting their own. When Joe got home he walked the boys around the neighborhood so they could do some Trick or Treating. Jax said I would slow them down because I talk to everyone along the way. After the candy haul we had a wonderful end to our evening at the Armstrong's. David and Sandy invited us for pizza, soup and smores while the kids all played. We had such a good time visiting and laughing. I didn't realize it was almost 11:30pm until I checked my watch and saw the time. We gathered the boys and walked home. Thanks to David, Sandy, Sam and Jake for a fun filled evening!

Yep, that's right Riley got in on the fun this year. It's not the first time she has dressed up, but it has been a while. The boys and I saw this dog costume at Wal-Mart and thought she would look adorable. Riley is such a good sport. She wore the costume from 5:30pm until about 11:30pm. She looked so cute...red has always been her color.

I guess the boys went with a movie theme when picking their costumes this year. Jackson was Prince Caspian from the new Chronicles of Narnia movie and Bay was Indiana Jones...no explanation needed. As you can see in the photo Indy just returned from a mission where he got dirty from the explosions. They both loved their costumes and Jackson only took his off at bedtime because I made him.

Prince Caspian aka Jackson

Yeah, we even had a whip to complete Indy's outfit. I posted this one because Bay really wanted me to get an "action shot" since that is what Indiana Jones is all about...ACTION!

Pumpkin Carving Time

Thanks to Grandpa Rinehart we had a couple of free and really cool shaped pumpkins to carve for Halloween. Bay chose the tall, slender pumpkin while Jax set his sights on the short round one. We think they turned out great and got lots of compliments from our trick or treaters.

Bay wanted a face for his pumpkin. He called it a "modern" jack-o-lantern since it's face is different from a traditional j-o-l.

Jackson chose the pumpkin horseman for his creation. It turned out really cool!

This is the first year the boys were able to clean their own pumpkins. YEAH!!! They complained that it was slimy, but Bay insisted on finishing his "first" pumpkin all on his own. They did a really good job. Bay even drew some of the face and cut out the eyebrows.

Highland Park Fall Festival and Pumpkin Day

Not only is October busy with family stuff, but the school is full of activity too. We had the Highland Park Elementary Fall Festival Fundraiser on the 23rd and then Pumpkin Day on the 31st. At Pumpkin Day the classrooms rotate participating in games, snacks and of course, making a jack-o-lantern.

I helped at the Pumpkin Day activities in Ms.Orr's classroom. As you can see we did Pin The Nose On The Pumpkin. That is 3 years in a row I have helped Jackson's class and we did the same activity each time. I am now a Pin the Nose Professional. You can see in the photo Jax got really close on his turn.

Jackson with his buddy Aaron at the Highland Park Fall Festival Fundraising event. If you look close you will see Jackson has in vampire teeth. He thought they were very cool.

Maya Grace Ann Turns One Year Old

It was only one year ago we were visiting our families for the Fall Festival Weekend, celebrating the birth of Maya Grace Ann and praying for a successful ear surgery for my Dad. Well, here we are back at the Fall Festival, Maya is precious and my Dad is healthy...what more could we ask for?!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MAYA!

Maya and Aunt Julie

Katie always has Maya dressed so cute. This was her darling birthday party outfit.

Maya really got into the smash cake and was even trying to share with her Daddy. It was so cute. She would take a couple of bites and then offer her Dad some. So Sweet!!

So messy and so much fun!

Louisville Fall Harvest Festival 2008

The boys and I traveled up to Illinois for the annual Louisville Fall Harvest Festival and Flora Halloween Parade. We were really lucky to have awesome weather for the weekend. Saturday started off with soup and pie at the Cammon farm then we headed in town to watch the parade with the Rineharts, Daughertys and Bridgemans. We then had more pie at Joe's grandparents, Jack and Dorothy. I ate more pie in one weekend than I have the whole year! Anyway the boys went to Peggy and Larry's to play with Reagan for a while. It was certainly a day full of activities and food.

Jackson, Reagan and Bayley waiting for the parade to start. She sure is stylin' in her white shades.

Ok, not my alma mater, but this is such a cool parade photo. Had to share it with you.

Our current Clay County Fair Queen rode through on my Mom's corvette.

We can't believe he is 10

I know, I know you always hear people say "they grow so fast" or "It goes by so quickly" so I won't say that, but I can say that I agree with them. I think I can speak for both Joe and I when I say "WOW". The last ten years have been filled with joy, pride, thankfulness, and lots of learning. I'm not going to talk about what the next ten years will bring...that will just make me cry. We are just going to continue to enjoy each day with our children watching them grow into amazing people and thanking God for giving them to us. We are so blessed!

Bayley at 3 weeks old and ready for his first Halloween dressed as a jack-o-lantern.

He was sooo cute!

Now here is my big ten year old boy. Still as cute as ever and even more amazing.

Bayley's 10th Birthday!

October is a month full of birthdays, festivals and of course, Halloween. Bay's birthday is 4 days after mine so we usually have a birthday week...or two. Hey, it only comes once a year, I say ENJOY!

Bay blowing out the candles on his 3rd birthday cake. Yes, count'em, we had 3 cakes to celebrate the big 1-0. We had his official cake on his birthday, the cupcakes we sent to school and then the cake for the party. This year Bay went with an Indiana Jones theme party that was really cool. I just love Birthday Express!

Here are the guys at the end of silly string tag. Lookin' cool dude!

Bay wanted to take a few friends to Forest Jumps and then a sleepover at our house to celebrate his turning 10 years old. In the photo left to right: Joe R, Tate M, Bay, Evan I and Jackson. Forest Jumps has large inflatable obstacle courses, slides and just about anything else you could imagine. It is the perfect place to let the boys run off energy.

Bay wanted to decorate his official birthday cake with Halloween themed candies and icing. So we had fun making the cake, decorating it and then of course, eating it.