Sharing Swimming

Today I wanted to share a few more photos from the girls swim meet December 11th & 12th.

Oh and on a side note, it is snowing like crazy! I would say we have received about 4-6 inches of snow and it's still falling. The wind is blowing in every direction, so it's hard to tell how much new snow is really out there. I have snow on my windows from the wind blowing! Burrrr!

Here is Melina ready for her 50y backstroke!

Here's Melina going hard on her 100y Breast stroke!

One of the swim moms took this photo of Olline during her race! I was at the other end of the pool to help Olline. I believe this is her 25y breast stroke. There were many people and moms cheering Olline on! She was so happy to see people cheering she couldn't help but smile! She was so proud of herself after this race...only because people were cheering for her! Thank you SWAC team!

Melina is getting ready to dive for her 100y IM! GO MELINA!!!!!

Here is our Sandpoint Daily Bee newspaper article with the SWAC (Sandpoint West Athletic Club) Team! They did so good. Can you see Olline and Melina?

Hope you are all well and having a great day! I will try and post more photos tomorrow!

God Bless!

Merry Christmas Late

What a busy month! I hope and pray that all of you have found your holidays wonderful and filled with love. We sure have had a lot of love filled in this home. We didn't have company or anyone over, but we could feel our families thoughts and prayers during this Christmas season.

We want to say a BIG THANK YOU to all of you for making our Christmas one of the best. It was filled with so much thoughtfulness and we are so grateful! SUPER appreciative and we LOVE you ALL!

Here are my Santa photos I took at Schweitzer Mountain. Some of you may have seen them on Facebook, but I am finally putting them on my blog. I will try and be more active on here. We've just been so busy, as most of you are as well. So keep checking back and I hope to have a few more swim and Christmas photos up!

For God so loved the world, He gave His one and only Son, that who so ever believes in Him, shall not perish, but have ETERNAL life! John 3:16

This is a very popular verse, but it is to me what Christmas means! He gave us His son! And that is the greatest gift of all!

Santa and Olline. Olline looking like she really wants that gift and Santa looks like he is pondering if he should give it to her!

This is Olline's first look at Santa!


Melina waited all evening to see Santa. They weren't sure if they had enough gifts for all the kids, so she and her friend decided to let everyone else go first. (I'm talking about 50-80 kids before her) She waited with a happy heart and finally she got to see him!

Dad and Melina got to sit on Santa! This would have been a perfect photo, but Melina's antlers are shading Jade's face funny.

Merry Christmas Late and soon to be a Happy New Year!

God Bless!

Jingle Bell Splash Swim Meet

I am finally getting a few photos posted. I have hundreds of photos, but haven't found time to get on this computer. Plus, our computer has been dealing with "virus" issues. I think it is fixed now, but it is running slow. I hope that these photos will post today.

We had a GREAT meet. All the kids had a wonderful time. We were also in the local newpaper on Tuesday, so I will try and get a photo scanned to share.

I have more photos to sort out and I will have more of Melina. Thought I would just post these and when I have another moment I will get more up.

Going to a Schweitzer Christmas Party tonight to see Santa. We look forward to it. Have a Blessed Day!

12-11-10 Olline in her 50y breast stroke!!! So cute. Can you see Melina back there cheering her on?

12-11-10 Olline before her races

12-11-10 Melina in her 100y Free. I believe she came in first, in her heat.

12-11-10 Crazy swim team girls! (Kate, Kinzie, Olline and Chandler all about the same age!)

GOD BLESS!

Swim Meet Weekend

Hope everyone is finding their day a good one. Ours has started off well. Girls are extremely excited for their first swim meet this weekend. I believe their last meet was last April. So, they are pretty happy they finally get to go to one. It will be a great meet too, because most of the swim team will be there! I am not sure, but maybe 15 or more kids. That is pretty huge for us at a meet. Can't wait.

Though I am NOT looking forwards to getting up at 4:30 to prepare the family to be at the meet by 7am! Both mornings, Saturday and Sunday. Eeewwww. We will be TIRED!

Here are a few crafty items. I re-covered our bean bags we like to heat up every night for our cold feet. My mother-n-love (law) made them for us in the years past and they have finally worn holes. So I double lined them and they are ready for the microwave! Toasty warm. Mmmmmmm!

Here are my two new sandwich bags I made the other day. They are lined with that "table cloth" type material. I haven't given them the sandwich test, but they are big and roomy for all kinds of snacks! (Thank you Sarah for the material)

Thought I would share this photo again. This was December of 2009! One year ago to almost the day! At the Jingle Bell Splash meet in Moscow, ID. Can't wait to get a new photo to share. We will be at the Jingle Bell Splash meet in Coeur d'Alene this time. I think Olline doesn't have her front teeth in this one! Where does the time go?

God Bless you all! Have a great weekend. I will try to post this weekend. But if I don't, keep checking, because I will post swim meet photos probably on Monday!

Trying to Keep Up

Thought I would try to sneak in a quick blog. Time is ticking and I just can't seem to get on here as much as I would like. Why does December do that? Why does it have to be so busy? Is it only because it is getting dark out at 4pm? Do we feel after that we are unable to accomplish things? Are we so excited about Christmas coming that we just run around thinking that we are busier? I just don't understand. I want it to slow down a bit. I am feeling a bit like I am drowning!

However, with school, house chores, swimming lessons, and just trying to take care of myself and the family it is very normal to be feeling this way. I am ok with it. I will not let it get me down. God lifts me up and I have complete trust in Him.

Okay, here is our garage cat, Cortes (Cesar, Beast, Big Man, Monster, Wild Thing, etc...)

In this photo he us up on top of our storage. It is attached to the ceiling and somehow if figured out how to get up there. He is a monkey! We are enjoying him so much. He is a very loving cat!

Got to go, my computer is acting super strange! Not sure what it is doing! Hope this posts.

GOD BLESS!

Just a Note

Can you believe it is December? I can't. Did November come? What is happening?

We have been getting lots of snow. Must be over a foot now. Last night and today it has warmed up a bit and the snow is heavy and wet. Still LOTS there, just wet. I think Jade said it is going to freeze tonight.

Girls are okay. Melina ended up sick again!!! I hate to say it, but she did. Not sure what is happening. We even use Germ X all the time. HELP! Maybe the girls had two separate viruses the first round. So far Olline is well. We are trying to keep it that way for our swim meet coming up on the 11th.

School is just going. Trying to keep up after all the sickness. We are enjoying it though.

Oh, if you haven't seen the Christmas Carol (on DVD) that Jim Carrey did, please try to! If you love that story, I highly suggest it! It was fantastic and the animation was unbelieveable!!!

God Bless

Today has been another enjoyable day off! Off of school, work, cleaning, everything...well, not really, but it sort of feels that way. It is nice to have a break from school. I have slowed down on my cleaning and I have been trying real hard to relax and enjoy every moment. I know that on Monday things will be back to normal and our lives will be filled with business.

The snowfall has been coming so fast. I am not sure our total amount of snow, but it looks to be about a foot! It was so beautiful today! I love the snow on all the trees!

The girls have been playing a lot in the snow. Olline built a mini snow man in the backyard and both girls made big snowmen in the front yard. So cute.

Also, it is so nice to have such great neighbors. Our neighbor Ray came over and plowed our snow for us in the driveway! He just did it...didn't ask, just did! I love that. So Olline and Melina took over a piece of apple and pumpkin pie for him to enjoy! He said he ate it right away and it was good!

God Bless you all!

The Day After Thanksgiving

I am hoping that all of you had a fantastic Thanksgiving. Did you eat and eat till your guts couldn't take it anymore? I hate to admit it, but I did! When you spend the last two days making the food, you just can't sit back and not eat it all! So, today I find myself overly full and salty!

The food was fantastic...turkey, potatoes, stuffing, gravy, cranberries, homemade rolls and our Pumpkin and Apple pie! Couldn't get any better. We had a very enjoyable day with just us four. God has truly blessed us and we are very thankful for all He has given us.

Here are a few pictures from the last few days. We have been getting snow and the temperature has been warmer. From 6 degrees (and below) to now a nice toasty 31! It feels great. It's amazing how your body gets used to the changing temperatures and when it warms up you really feel it.

We have also been taking care of the neighborhood roaming cat. He has been living quite comfortably in our garage. Not sure when we will let him out, but I am sure he does not want to go. He loves it in there. He is a very sweet cat and LOVES us. I hope I am not getting attached. I know the girls are. Yesterday, Jade was snow blowing and such...the girls asked where Cortes (the cat) was. I had no idea, I thought he was outside and that was that, but NO...I caught him in the house frisking on our sweet Kiwi's catnip toys!!! He is not fixed nor does he have his shots, so he is not allowed in the house! I picked him up and put him back in the garage. He was purring and so happy, so I made him a catnip sock! He went crazy and purred the whole time he frisked on that sock. It was super funny. Anyway, Cortes kitty is happy and we are not sure what his future will be...

11-26-10 Olline was back at it this morning, playing in the new snow!

11-25-10 Here is Cortes (or I like to call him Cesar...that is what Jade keeps calling him). He is grooving on his catnip sock.

11-25-10 Girls having fun in the new snow yesterday.

11-25-10 Swinging in the snow

11-25-10 Melina making a deck snow angel

11-25-10 Olline super happy and thankful

11-24-10 Melina helping me make the apple pie!!!!

11-24-10 Ooooo, that looks yummy!

11-24-10 Okay, I really wanted a piece of this apple pie, but I had to wait till Thanksgiving Day!!!! The smells are soooo very tempting!

11-24-10 I do believe it was 13 degrees (or was it 8?) when I took this photo! Burrrrr!


The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart. He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy. I burst out in songs of thanksgiving. Psalm 28:7

God Bless!

Crocheting is Fun

Today I thought I would share a couple crochet projects I had been working on over the month. This first one I just finished today! It is a Tic Tac Toe board game. I found the pattern on Lion Brand.com and made a few adjustments. Instead of X's I did all O's. Blue and green O's. They were just easier to crochet and finish off. I thought it was going to be easier that I thought. It ended up being quite the project. I finished though and I am very proud of it!!! My girls think it is pretty cool also.

Before I got into the Tic Tac Toe project I made a weighted crocheted cat. I made her white to match my real cat Kiwi. It was a very easy and fun crochet project and I found that one on Lion Brand.com also. My mom is making one as well and I can't wait to see hers finished.

I love crocheting. Very therapeutic.

So today, I actually did a little weighted workout and got ready so my dear husband could take me out for lunch! Where did we go? We went to my FAVORITE PLACE...Joel's!!! Yeah to Joel's. They have the most yummy Mexican food. It is fresh and oh so tasty! The best part are their Jalapeno Poppers! Those poppers are the best EVER!!!! The sauce they are in...well, it's like HEAVEN! So I was a happy girl today! Thanks to my man!

Then Jade left for a day hunting trip. He and his hunting partner got ready to hunt in this super freezing weather! It was like 27 degrees with major winds. I am so glad I wasn't out there. I haven't heard from them yet, so I am praying that they are safe. They were hunting for deer and if they got one we will turn it into smokies!

Here are my crocheted goodies:

Here's the backside. I sewed on buttons so the pieces would not get lost.

I sewed a liner to make it nice and smooth inside. The liner also covered all my yarn ends nicely.

Here is my weighted cat. Isn't she funny? I need to stitch a real mouth and whiskers on her. I decided to Photoshop a mouth and whiskers to make her look good for this photo. Hee

11-18-10 Melina is so excited for the snow to be here. It still hasn't been sticking down here and the news said that we are going to get to about 5 (or less) degrees at night soon! OUCH!

But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. For the Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. So all of us who have had that veil removed can see and reflect the glory of the Lord. II Corinthians 3:16-18

God Bless!

Week of Sickness

It has finally started. Our first snow fall (at our home that is) happened the night before last and we woke up to this (pictured below)! It is just a dusting, but it is there. It was beautiful and exciting as our kids can't wait to ski. The snow melted and we are now back to all green, but the clouds have been trying to spit out some snow today as well. Schweitzer Mt. is getting prepared. They say it will be a good year for snow at the mountain. We will see, for I know that God is in control of that.

We have been dealing with sickness at our home. Both the girls came down with a horrible cold and cough last Tuesday! It was downhill from there. We tried and tried to do school, but it was no use. The girls just couldn't focus and I do not blame them. In my mind I was freaking out about getting behind school, but I understand that life just doesn't go smooth sometimes. Olline's cold ended up in her eyes and we had to take her in the doctor for eye drops for her pink eye!!! Yuck. Not good. We have kept the girls in a bubble and yesterday was Melina's first day back to swim. Olline will start back up swimming next week. We are trying to catch up in school, it is hard after having so many days off. I am just so thankful to our Lord for healing the girls. Yeah!

So here are just a few pictures. I haven't taken very many. I have only been taking care of the girls.

First snow fall!!!

Snow, snow, snow. Wonder how much we will get this year!

Last weekend I gave the Kiwi a bath! She was very upset during it, but in this photo she was happy and content. I think she likes being clean!

Kiwi is tempted to grab the string....heeee!

God bless you all. Hope your days are filled with His love!

Mountains and Hoya

So, thought today would be a better day for school. However our girls are still sick. I think they are a bit better. Melina was able to shower and sometimes that helps. I will probably get Olline in the bath also and see if that boosts her energy. This week has been a slow depressing kind of week. I just don't like our girls being sick. I know it will end and we will all be feeling fantastic in no time. I suspect next week will be full force "busy" into schooling and swimming!

Our weather is beautiful. Gorgeous clouds have been rolling by over the mountains. It is a cold 40 degrees and I hear it will get colder. I love cold days with the sun shinning! Makes me feel good.

God Bless your day!

I will lift up the cup of salvation and praise the Lord's name for saving me.

I will keep my promises to the Lord in the presence of all his people. Psalm 116:13-14

I took this today to show that there is a small amount of snow on this low mountain! Skiing and snowboarding here we come!!!

I like this picture just wish there weren't so many wires hanging in it! Dars snow in dem hills!



This is my Hoya plant. I am so excited about it because my mom-n-law gave my mom a start from her old and beautiful Hoya. My mom's slowly but surely grew into a big and healthy Hoya! I really wanted one and so during a trip out here, my mom gave me a start from her Hoya. Well, it lasted for a while, but ended up almost dieing. I pulled out the very small shoot I had and stuck it in a jar of water. Well, after maybe a year, I am getting my first bloom! Months ago I had a bloom starting, but it broke off. So sad! I have been babying this little start and have been enjoying it's beauty. It blooms about 8 flowers on one stem and in the center you can see it has purple/pinkish jewels! They hang down and if you had a bigger plant like both of my mom's, you would have a bunch of these to enjoy at once! Lovely!

I love my Hoya!