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Saturday, May 30, 2009

Memorial Day

We had a nice (windy) service at the cemetery on Memorial Day.  Our AmVets Post always does such a nice job with that event.

Rachel played in the band, and they did a great job once again.

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Grandpa and Grandma were here for the occasion, too!

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Our Amvet'st post arranged for a fly-by, by the Iowa National Guard.  That was SOOO cool!

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Then, while we attended the service here, where Rachel was playing, the 2 older boys were playing with the HS band.  I took pictures of my friend Christy's daughter and sent them to her, and she took pics of my boys and sent them to me :) 

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Thanks, Christy for the great pics!

Graduation Party FOOD!

Oh, was the food yummy!  We had...ummm...MORE than enough, and I certainly couldn't have pulled this event off without the wonderful help of my mother-in-law, Mary, my sister-in-law, Martha, and my sister, Sue Ann. 

The only thing I didn't get a picture of was the cowboy beans, and that wonderful recipe is from my friend, Kelly.  She made them for Ethan when he stayed with them when Ron and I were in Africa when Ethan was just 3 or 4.  She called them "cowboy beans" and he just loved them (and still does!)

Here is the recipe for "Cowboy Beans"

  • 1/2 lb cubed bacon, cooked
  • 1 cup onion, sauteed

Drain and put in a casserole.  Add:

  • 1/2 c ketchup
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 2 T. vinegar

Add:

  • 1 can kidney beans, drained
  • 1 can pork and beans, drained
  • 1 can lima or butter beans, drained

Bake at 350* for 40-60 minutes. 

This time, for graduation, we multiplied the recipe by 10, and stirred it all up in a roaster and just cooked it in that.  Delicious!

And now...the pictures...

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Yummy and lovely cake from the grocery in New Hampton!

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Brother in law, Bill and Caleb's Sunday School teacher and family friend, Jerry cooked the brats on the grill.

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mmmm..does this just NOT make your mouth water?  Those two did an AWESOME job cooking these babies up. 

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2 kinds of chips, Italian Pasta Salad *YUMMY*, and veggie tray.  The beans?  They are in the roaster in the top left corner of the picture.  I can't believe I forgot to take a picture of them!

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Cameron made the punch...at least...the first time he did.  After that, he took off and let Grandma and the Aunts handle it!  1 box sherbet (any flavor, but Caleb wanted orange) and a 2 liter bottle of gingerale and a 2 liter bottle of 7-up)

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The cake (topper from Great-Aunt Melba in Ohio!  Thanks!) Mints (THE world's best...made by Vivan W. They were DELICIOUS as always...Thanks!)  Cheesecake from Sam's Club (wow, did THOSE babies fly off the table!)  And punch...yum.

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FAMILY

Families are like fudge - mostly sweet with a few nuts.  ~Author Unknown

You don't choose your family.  They are God's gift to you, as you are to them.  ~Desmond Tutu

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The whole entire clan!

Family Photos

Every special occasion (and you must admit, graduation is a SPECIAL day!) involves (much to Ron's dismay :-) family pictures.  Here are some from Caleb's big day.

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Awww...just look at them!  Don't they look great?

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Look how we all matched!  We didn't even plan it that way!

(And when did I get so short?)

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Grandpa and Grandma K.

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Grandpa and Grandma M.

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Caleb, Cameron and Nathan

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Uncle Bill and Aunt Sue Ann

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Cameron, Caleb, Madi, Rachel, Jordan and Ethan

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Caleb and Aunt Martha.  Now I don't feel QUITE so short :)

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Friday, May 29, 2009

Graduation Day!

Twenty-five years after our OWN high school graduation days, Ron and I attended the graduation of our first born.  Those 25 years have passed so amazingly quickly! I just can't believe it!

Caleb is an amazing young man, and we are tremendously proud of his accomplishments these past 13 years of school.  His grades are wonderful, and he's graduating from high school with between 18-20 college credits (something like that...I don't know for sure, LOL) He has great friends that we enjoy and trust.  Caleb has a steady and strong faith that is evident in his life.  We thank God for what He has allowed Caleb to accomplish, and we can't WAIT to see what God has planned for him next!

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Caleb received recognition for being on the High honor roll.

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Caleb gives Grandpa M a hug.

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The turning of the tassle

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Caleb and Sam as they leave the ceremony.

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Congrats, Caleb!

Monday, May 25, 2009

Middle School Fine Arts Night

Caleb isn't the only kid we're proud of, of course.  We are proud of all of them.  They are all friendly, nice, talented and smart children! 

We attended Rachel's Fine Arts night at the Middle School.  She received the President's Award for Academic Excellence, an award for reaching over 500 points in Reading Counts this year, and some music awards!  Way to Go, Rachel!  We're proud of you!

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We got to hear a ROCKIN' jazz band performance,

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some lovely vocal selections,

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and the combined 7th and 8th grade band.  They sounded awesome!

YAY, Rachel!

SF-HS Senior Awards Night

(yeah...much of the month of May focused on Caleb...we do still have 3 other kids who will also be featured at times on this blog...but this month...yeah...it's mostly all about Caleb :-)

Caleb received the President's Award for Academic Excellence, was recognized for his KIMT Academic All-Star selection, and received 2 scholarships.  We were thrilled to discover that he was the student in our home school district with the highest GPA!  WOW!!  We couldn't be prouder!

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KIMT Scholastic ALL-STAR!

Wow...we are so proud of Caleb!  He was chosen as one of two KIMT Scholastic All-Stars from our school this year!  We got to travel to Mason City for a luncheon and awards program!  Way to Go, Caleb (and Tessa!)

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Caleb and Tessa before the awards luncheon.  The lighting in the room was pretty bad and my pictures of the actual receiving of the award didn't turn out well...so you'll just have to settle for pics from BEFORE the program ;)

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When did I grow so short?

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Catching up

It's been almost a MONTH again since I've spent any time updating this blog!  Wow..time flies.  It has (obviously!) been a BUSY month, with all the end of the year "stuff", track meets, AND graduation stuff we had going on.  It may take me a few days, but I'll get you ALL caught up on what has been going on in our neck of the woods! 

First, I got (with the GREAT help of a couple of online friends!!) a majority of Caleb's scrapbook done.  Here are a couple of my favorite pages.  The kit I used for this was from Aprilmouse

Caleb 69 Dandelion

Caleb 56 Brothers laughing

one of my very favorite pictures of those two boys EVER!  Template by Lisa Minor.

Caleb 70 Fishing with dad

And this is one of my favorite photos of "my boys".  This template was created for DIP by Lisa Minor, but was designed by my online friend Terri. 

Caleb 64 Waverly family

another template by Lisa Minor.

Caleb 84 First Kiss

awww...how CUTE!  (I'm sorry...I can't find any terms of use for this quickpage.  I'll update this blog if anyone can point me to the TOU's!)

Caleb 52 Halloween 93

That grin just cracks me UP!

Carla (Meus Scraps)--Cherry Halloween kit

Caleb 72 peeking

another quick page, (again...I can't find the TOU's)...this photo..isn't it a HOOT?

Caleb 200 the end 1

see how he grew???