School Is DONE! Summer BEGINS!

We had our last day of school and the ISP commencement night on Thursday. It was an evening filled with year book signings, farewells, grades, food, and fun. The kids are now working on what they want to do this summer. So far it is filled with having over friends, days at the beach or park, a camping trip, hikes, ballet and swimming. That is just what they came up within 20 minutes....and it has been added to since. If all of it occurs I will be surprised. But hey, never a dull moment right?.....I think I may want a few of them though. The kids are signed up for Vacation Bible School at a local church, Harrison will be attending summer camp again this year. He will possibly go to basketball camp too pending the cost.

We kicked off the summer with Family Fun Night. Relay races and of course the expected injuries were a part of the evening fun. Dodge ball was a highlight. And of course our TEAM won!

Camping and Keeping busy

Memorial day weekend was spent apart...
Tom & the kids went 'camping' in the Sacramento area with a group of friends. I had a wedding to help with, so stayed here.
The gang had a blast. Good food and fun. Visited an old cemetary, swam in a stream, cooked over a BBQ, made cookies, hung out in a spa, and visited a historic mining town. You'll have to ask why there was a spa, among other things on a 'camping' trip. Harrison caught a fish. Chandler played with friends, Tom found a flake of gold.
I salvaged the wedding flowers that had become rotten before the ceremony began, spring cleaned the living room, dining room and kitchen (I know, you're all just clamoring to do that too.), finished a couple of gifts for people (no, sadly, they probably aren't for you), and got a lot of reading done. Since I was home alone I freaked myself out after watching a murder mystery Saturday night[Agatha Christie is a favorite] and stayed awake till 5 am. Fell asleep and didn't wake up till 11:30 am. Needless to say I missed church.
I know, I'm pathetic.
School is SOOOO close to being done. Two more big party flings and then summer begins. The kids are basicly done with all their books. Math will be the only subject that remains thru the summer. Something I was planning on anyway so that we don't loose our knowledge of math facts.

Races, Weddings & Year End stuff

Well life continues on. Sometimes just flying by without us...other times we are indeed on the band wagon. Harrison participated in the car races for AWANA. He and Tom made the car look like a green shark. It is quite impressive. The car did very well, placing 14th. They have plans for next years games already in the works.

The end of the school year is upon us. I am so ready to be done. I have more of a 'spring itch' than the kids do. I don't know why...I just do. The writing class is going smoothly. At least I think it is. None of the moms really give me feed back. I'll just have to wait and see. As one of the aids for the class says, "I'm so intimidating to talk to. Especially when I wear the bow in my hair." Next week I have to give a little 'talk' to the moms about what we will be teaching next year. I hope to give them some guidelines for next year too. That way if there is a concern, etc. they may actually come talk with me. I think I have also come up with next year's theme: The King's Court. Keep it centered around a medieval theme.
This last weekend I coordinated a wedding in Riverside. It was quite fun and turned out beautifully. It was an exhausting but very rewarding weekend. I was quite proud of the programs I designed. The only 'hiccup' was when 20 of them got wet, bled, and had to be reprinted the morning of. Kinko's didn't charge us for them since the paper I provided didn't get cut properly and had to be reprinted again. God protected the 3 days of work putting them all together. We were all so thankful that only 20 were ruined, not the whole 140 of them.

A Mini Vacation

We had a wonderful time in SanDiego. The weather was perfect and the places we visted were memorable.

We spent Tuesday at Sea World. The kids had never been. They enjoyed all the animals we got to see. The park has added two water rides. We survived the trip to Atlantis....although Chandler wasn't keen on the water drops. The second is a rapids ride. Harrison got 90% soaked - and loved it! The gals were quite happy to remain on dry land. The dolphin and Shamu shows haven't changed much. Some new tricks, but the same old sappy 'hug a whale - become one with them' stuff they have always had. We enjoyed the shows none the less. Harrison was thrilled to pet the 'rays' that were in a huge tank. That was his favorite. Another enjoyable part was the walrus that liked to play 'peek-a-boo' with the camera. A real ham!

Wednesday we spent at Balboa park's Air & Space Museum and The Science Center. All the docents for the Air museum were WWII vets. They had fun talking with the kids. The planes that were on display to show the history of aviation were really neat. There were many hands on areas too. The docents let Harrison try the flight simulator for free. He had a blast! Chandler enjoyed the 'pretty planes'.

The Science Center had many cool hands on exhibits. There was also an area devoted to 'Grossology', where you could find out why your nose runs, what skin blemishes look like when magnified to the size of a dinner plate, how you throw up, why you burp, among other topics not suitable for discussion at the dinner table.

Thursday's focus was Legoland. A fun place devoted to those little plastic building blocks. It was amazing to see what they have built out of all those little things. The rides were creative and fun for the kids ...and parents too. We ended the weekend with a visit to Grandma Marilee's house for dinner. Delicious food and a joy to see her again.

It is somewhat official - And an answer to prayer

Tom has been hired by Countrywide. He will be working in Westlake Village as a Sr. QC underwriter. We have come full circle. We only pray that this time the work environment is less stressful. We'll just wait and see. Since he doesn't start the position until April 30th we are taking a short vacation down to San Diego. We'll visit Sea World (the kids have never been), Legoland (Tom has never been), and possibly The San Diego Zoo (none of us have been).We are excited to get away for a short while.

What's New Here

We have survived the SAT testing! yipee. The kids seem to have done well and enjoyed coloring bubbles.
Tom is in the process of seeking further employment. The company he was working for ran out of money and closed its doors. Don't worry...we are doing just fine. The two weeks prior we were in the process of sending out his resume, etc. since we could see the proverbial axe about to drop. The foolish, emotionaly driven decisions being made and the dream world the CEO was living in was not going to keep the company afloat for long. There have been several interviews and now just have to wait on God's timing and the job He has instore for the next chapter in the Brown saga. We are looking at it as a 'forced' vacation time, which we are taking advantage of.
On to other news, we bought more chickens...yep, 4 months from now the fridge will be overflowing with eggs once more. I'll let you know when we will start to beg people to take them...that or sneak them into your bags when you come over. We have yet to name most of them. Our goal of naming them after literary characters has hit a wall for the moment. There are not many female characters that we all have a fancy for. Chandler did name the blonde one 'Lucy' from the Narnia books, another may be dubbed Mrs. Bennet if she turns out to be as nervous and flighty as the character from the book. The other 3, well please feel free to offer suggestions.

Since Tom has been home we have gotten several things done around the house that needed to be taken care of (a layoff blessing). He and Harrison worked at splitting logs. Several of Harrison's friends were over and they all had a go at it. Amusing to watch young boys try to use a sledge hammer that is almost as heavy as they are.
We have been helping the ISP take pictures for the yearbook. (Another fun reason to get a good camera) We had to collect pictures of the moms with their kids. The one of me and the kids didn't turn out, so we retook the shot at home. 50 shots later we had one where both kids were smiling and looking (for the most part) at the camera lense.

The kids have savored having Dad home for a time. They all went fishing , enjoy running around doing errands, going to fly kites, work on model airplanes, dig up more of the monsterous stump in the back yard, and other such fun 'Dad things'.

Field Trip

We had the opportunity to visit the California Science Center. Wow was it interesting. So many things to see and learn about. The area dedicated to the human body was amazing. All I can say is WOW the LORD has done some incredible things. It is true that you are 'blind' to not see God's hand in His creation. One room showed the growth steps of the human fetus (all of whom had died of natural causes). It is amazing to see the growth up close. Even as early as 4 weeks the toes and fingers were so evident, not to mention the skull and the little brain growing inside. How can anyone say it isn't really human?! It was neat to walk thru but also still kept in mind that these babies had died, and most likely had caused someone grief in loosing this precious life. The comfort was knowing that each one is with their creator even now. He is so aquainted with all our ways!

The IMAX theatre had a movie on the ocean...in 3-D. It was great. The kids were a hoot to watch because they kept trying to touch the things they saw on the screen. An amusing thing was the sound effects they added to the animals' movements. ie. Clams fleeing from a sun star sounded like those little chattering teeth you wind up.

After the movie we went up to the assortment of Star Wars props and models. It was fun to see everything up close. A must for any fan. The kids had a ball.

Someone has learned to read!

Yeah! after months of working on the alphabet and tricks, songs, and countless review Chandler has read her first book! 'The Apple'

We are so excited. Unlocking the mysteries of learning are beginning to occur. She may join her brother in his love of books - but we will have to wait and see.
The LORD knew it was the teacher that needed to learn patience and humility vs. the student learning her skills.

Look who is 6

Yes, we have a 6 year old in our midst.
The day began with breakfast at IHOP. Smiley face pancakes are a must for kids! We then proceeded home and finished our school day like good little children should. Upon completion we went to Toys R Us to visit Geoffrey's Birthday Club and purchase Chandler's gifts. The birthday club gave her a crown, a balloon, and was supposed to announce her name and age over the loud speaker (but that never happened). We then had her cover her eyes with her crown. Harrison & I then picked out the gifts. Upon making our purchases we stopped at Maggie Moos to pick up an ice cream cake. Chandler picked it...pink icing and all.
Dinner consisted of Thai food (one of her favorites). Opening family gifts was next on the agenda. She received her first jewlery from Daddy. Cake followed. Did I mention that SHE picked it out.
Following the typical festivities we watched an episode of Hogan's Heros (another of her favorites - her father's daughter), and played with the new gifts. Strawberry land was introduced to some new items and drama. Since there is a short supply of men in SL daddy needed a man to play with. A StarWars character was introduced, given a purple pony with yellow hair (they are all the rage these days), and a hairbrush (don't leave home without it). They then proceeded to fend off the advancing hoard of evil robotic somethings led by Captain Harrison. Mom watched the story unfold with great interest.
Stawberry Land was saved and preparations for bed quickly became the focus. Their beds were then occupied and 1st John was put on for their listening pleasure before dream state took over.
All in All a wonderful day.

Legos & Park days

Harrison (with a little help from dad) completed the Lego Super Star Destroyer. Yeah! [cheering can be heard in the background] Now it is on display in the entertainment room...tours held daily...

Yesterday evening we got out of the house and enjoyed the winter weather of 92. yep, it is such a bummer to live in LA. The kids rode their scooters around and then played on the playground

equipment. I had fun playing with the new camera. Since going digital it has been fun to play with the rapid shot option. 168 shots in a period of 5 minutes...14 actually saved.

Harrison honed his skill of jumping off swings. Chandler enjoyed leaping into the sand. Since the creek that runs thru the park has water in it the frogs were out and about croaking and lifting their voices to their creator. Tom & Harrison want to come back and catch a few one night. It should be fun.