FOOZBALL

We're in the middle of "Foozball" season, Mama Boucher!!

 This is the extent of my sports photography.  Every year I try and fail.  Nice picture AFTER the touchdown!   I guess it just means, you should have been there.  Maybe next time!

 It was chilly last Saturday, but mostly sunny and perfect football weather.  Badger Park in Shullburg is a beautiful place to play.  (Especially when you're winning the game!!)

 I look through the lens and try to follow the ball.  Try is the operative word.

I like to take pictures of our defense, too.  Defense wins games, isn't that the saying?

It's always great when your reserves can play a lot of ball.  Go JV!!

 As my husband says, we just concentrate on going 1 and 0 each week.  So far it's been working out for us this year.

Next up: Homecoming.  Here's hoping Hurricane Charmin blows over quickly!!

Beautiful Baby, Baptism, and Birthday!

A few weeks ago we drove over to Doug and Paula's house to help them celebrate the baptism of their baby girl Payton.  As you can see, the baptism took place in their back yard due to an unplanned trip to the emergency room that day!  (Those of you with kids will relate.)

Paula and Doug have three beautiful little girls.  It's a busy household...

and do you notice the hospital band on Mady's ankle?  She dislocated her elbow earlier that afternoon, so there was a bit of a delay in the proceedings.  The blessing was that our family (who was going to be late, due to Cy's football game) was now able to witness the ceremony!  

 Payton is just gorgeous, as you can tell.  Mady (4) and Lauren (2) are very proud to be big sisters!

Next up, Mady's 4th birthday party!!!

 My mother-in-law with all of her children - wish I would have been able to take an aerial shot ;)

(oops, Joey where are you? playing football with Cy probably)

Paula always has fun things for the kids to do.

I can't believe we were celebrating her baptism FOUR years ago already.  What a funny, sweet girl you are Madyson!  Hugs and kisses!!

It was a beautiful day and so much fun to relax with family.

Hear, my son, your father's instruction, and forsake not your mother's teaching, for they are a graceful garland for your head and pendants for your neck.--Proverbs 1:8-9

Back to School ... and HOW

My poor blog.  I have been so obnoxiously, insanely busy that it has been the victim of much neglect.  Here I sit on a Friday night (we don't play football until tomorrow afternoon this week), and I should be snuggling with my kids (for ONCE) and yet I thought, "If I don't check in on my blog, the memories will be gone forever."

First Day of School - 8th grader, 6th grader, 4th graders, and a 1st grader!  Dang, they're getting big!

I don't have time to get into it now, but let me just sum up what's been going on the past 8 weeks:
1.  Offered a job (2 retirements = 1 job for me!) teaching and being the "librarian" (I put that in quotes because I have no training in library whatsoever) end of July.
2.  Scrambled to find, apply, and get into a grad school program for the library licensure early August.
3.  Painted the high school library, tried to become oriented to the card catalog system, AR reading program, checking in new books, procedures, budget etc. for 3 short weeks in August.
4.  Introduced to the new curriculum guide for 8th grade English Language Arts and began planning to meet the Common Core Standards last week of August.
5.  Started teaching first week of September.
6.  Started grad class first week of September.
7.  Had my first nervous breakdown (crying jag) first weekend of September upon realization of the extreme workload of the grad class.
8.  Three weeks of teaching, running between 2 libraries, planning for grades 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 library skills and 8th grade (English/Reading).
9.  After-activities, sports, piano, practice, games, Mark's season, football fundraising, sorting, distribution, late-night reading and posting for my class.
10.  Sleep? what is that?

I am very grateful for the door that God opened for me.  Someone else turned down the position, and I am thankful that our administrator thought I would be a good fit for the job.  It is an honor and a joy to teach where we live, as I really am proud of our school and community.  Plus I get to teach Ally every day and try not to embarrass her:)  However, I am truly overwhelmed with the 24-7 stress and workload of the wheel which I stepped off of to stay home with the kids over a decade ago.  I miss the days of helping my husband, being there for my kids, and having a few moments in the middle of the day to think, create, and cuddle my kids.  It truly went by too quickly.

There is so much more going on in our world and in our extended family's world.  Prayers for peace, sleep, and not snapping at each other.  Prayers for a clean house...somehow, someday.  Prayers of healing for grandpa & his new knees, for the kids' aunt battling ovarian cancer, for their cousin flying out of Texas next week for a year in Afghanistan.  So so much.  May God carry and squeeze us all into recognition and slowing down and not having to be busy all of the time! (and getting rid of this guilt I keep feeling that I'm not doing something to get caught up for my grad class right this very minute)! Oh please Ms. Instructor, please remember when you were raising a family and how hard it was to do this full-time job and night-time school thing.    Life is too short not to enjoy it!

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.--Philippians 4:6

Big Birthday Weekend

For my mom's birthday, many of us brothers and sisters gathered at the farm to empty out the attic.  It was an emotional, good day.  

Mom had the unenviable job of making the decision:  keep, sell, junk, or burn.  Probably not much fun to do on your birthday!

 That night, many of us "grown-ups" relaxed and enjoyed a meal together at the Potosi Brewery.

 It was a very fun night!  I only wish that Dad could have been there to celebrate with Mom.  But then again, he was.  He's never far away in our hearts and memories!

Brad & Sonja, Megan, Mark & me, Mom, Deb, Paul & Marla, Ken, Julie

On Sunday afternoon we gathered again so the nieces and nephews/cousins could sing "Happy Birthday" to Grandma...

 ...and eat, play street hockey, and watch football at Brian & Mary Kay's house!

Mom wore the Packer jersey that Marla had given Dad on his 80th birthday two years ago.  It was funny because Mom wore it to support the Packers...not realizing that Donald Driver's number is also the number of birthdays she's celebrated!

Happy Birthday, Mom / Grandma!  We love you and cherish you.

The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace.

Numbers 6:24-26

Blessings for Brock

Three weeks ago we traveled to Greg and Marin's for our nephew/cousin Brock's baptism.  Look at our bookends listening to music together.  Wynne is a teen-wannabe!

The boys gravitate toward each other.  Tage is 2 and on the move!

And yet, he sat still long enough to play a little Hungry Hungry Hippo with the twins...

 before stopping to show us his baby brother Brock!

 Brock is the most content baby I have ever met.  This is what he looks like most of the time!  Even when he cries, it is brief and he returns to this look in a few seconds.

 The night before the baptism, more cousins, aunts, uncles and grandma arrived!

 Rolling down the hill...takes me back to my childhood and the Belmont football field :)  Their grass "out east" is a LOT greener than ours....ah, the effects of summer rain!

 Rub-a-dub-dub, 5 kids in the tub!

Wynne (6), Tage (2), Mady (3.5), Lauren (2), and Kierta (4)

 Here's Brock getting baptized.  Again with the wide-eyed, patient and content look.  Marin and Greg make parenting look easy!

 The beautiful young family.

 And another beautiful young family (with kids that look more like ours did/do!)...Doug & Paula and their three lovely ladies!

Mady, Payton, & Lauren

 The cousins in our impossible quest to take a decent picture of them.

Families are forever!

...and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ...~ 1 Peter 3:21