Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Madison, IN
A couple of weekends ago we drove our friend down to Southern Indiana for a reunion of the group that she went to Haiti with back in May. We love her and would do just about anything for her- she is on our cell phone plan if that tells you anything, we just love her like she is our own!
Anyway, back to our trip. This was a one day trip so it was a long one, 5 hours each way. Our children were troopers! They didn't complain once, of course I think that has to do with the fact that there is a DVD player in our van! We had decent weather for our trip. It rained a little on the way down and stormed on the way home, but we did have some sun when we arrived at our destination.
Madison, IN is on the Ohio River. We drove through town first to see what was on Main St. to eat at, as we were all hungry for lunch by the time we arrived in this little town. It seemed like we had gone back in time just a little. There were little shops and cafes lining the street.
We ate a little burger place called, Hinkles Sandwich Shop. The burgers were good and so were the fries, although the burgers could have been bigger. They have been around since 1933, so they must know what they are doing! Here is their web site if you want to check out a little more about them http://www.hinkleburger.com/
It rained while we ate lunch, so we thought that we might just have to get wet a little, of course we got wet a little anyhow since it was so humid! After lunch we headed up the street to look around and see what kind of shops were there and decide who we might want to go back and look at. But, first we had to go back and get the camera and the stroller!
We decided that we were going to head down to the river and check it out! I never had been along the Ohio River before, over it yes, but not walking along it. It is really quite wide. We were there at a really neat time because they had some old fire engines on display. They were even shooting water out over the river from the fire trucks! My dad would have really loved it. I am already thinking of a Christmas Present for him!
There were also some racing boats there too, all three of the girls got posters signed by the drivers of the boats on display!
I know that we missed a lot of the historic landmarks of the city since we really only stayed on Main St and the river. When we were about to leave we started to find on the side streets, historic homes. I do hope that we get to go back there someday so that we can hit other places. We only spent a few hours there and there was more to be seen, just like in any other town. There is Cliffty State Park located in Madison, so we hope to go camping and finish exploring the town some day.
I will post pictures in the next blog!
Anyway, back to our trip. This was a one day trip so it was a long one, 5 hours each way. Our children were troopers! They didn't complain once, of course I think that has to do with the fact that there is a DVD player in our van! We had decent weather for our trip. It rained a little on the way down and stormed on the way home, but we did have some sun when we arrived at our destination.
Madison, IN is on the Ohio River. We drove through town first to see what was on Main St. to eat at, as we were all hungry for lunch by the time we arrived in this little town. It seemed like we had gone back in time just a little. There were little shops and cafes lining the street.
We ate a little burger place called, Hinkles Sandwich Shop. The burgers were good and so were the fries, although the burgers could have been bigger. They have been around since 1933, so they must know what they are doing! Here is their web site if you want to check out a little more about them http://www.hinkleburger.com/
It rained while we ate lunch, so we thought that we might just have to get wet a little, of course we got wet a little anyhow since it was so humid! After lunch we headed up the street to look around and see what kind of shops were there and decide who we might want to go back and look at. But, first we had to go back and get the camera and the stroller!
We decided that we were going to head down to the river and check it out! I never had been along the Ohio River before, over it yes, but not walking along it. It is really quite wide. We were there at a really neat time because they had some old fire engines on display. They were even shooting water out over the river from the fire trucks! My dad would have really loved it. I am already thinking of a Christmas Present for him!
There were also some racing boats there too, all three of the girls got posters signed by the drivers of the boats on display!
I know that we missed a lot of the historic landmarks of the city since we really only stayed on Main St and the river. When we were about to leave we started to find on the side streets, historic homes. I do hope that we get to go back there someday so that we can hit other places. We only spent a few hours there and there was more to be seen, just like in any other town. There is Cliffty State Park located in Madison, so we hope to go camping and finish exploring the town some day.
I will post pictures in the next blog!
Summer Evening Reflection
Finally some quiet! I am sitting outside ALONE! Tate is inside watching who knows what- he told Virginia that he just spent 5 days outside and wanted to be inside. This is true....he went to Ely, MN on a canoeing trip with Bashor Children's Home, so I understand. But, it would be nice if he would sit out here with me, oh well....more quiet time for me!
We are attempting to start a new little program with the girls so that we can stop yelling the same things at them all the time. Today I bought them each a dry erase board. We are going to use it as silent communication. The rule is that only Tate and I can write on it or erase something from it, and we will write what we need them to do. I saw this in one of the magazines I was reading a while back, now it is time. I am tired of yelling and being frustrated all the time. We are going to add a color code to what we put on the board. RED-needs to be done yesterday, GREEN- needs to be done now, and BLUE- needs to be done sometime today. We will see if this works and I will let you know!
This weekend was very busy for us. Friday was Ellyn's Birthday. She turned 3! Wow, I still can't believe that she is 3! We took the grandparents out for pizza at Starlite. My mom and dad had never been there before, and they really liked it! It reminded my mom of when we used to go out for Friday Night Pizza growing up. I think about those days a lot and hope that one day we can get into a habit of doing that too. Here is why it would have to be a habit, we eat out too much as a family. We have tried to scale back and I think that we have done a good job at doing that. What made it special growing up was that was really the only time we ate out. That will be another goal for the list to work on!
Then Sunday was Tate and My anniversary, 12 years. Tate has been a great husband. We have had our ups and downs. We have been through job losses, lay-offs, depressions (both of us, although only one of us needed medication) and having 3 beautiful girls that we are raising together. Tate and I have been together since High School, so in total we have actually been together 18 years! WOW!
Our anniversary started with finishing up the cleaning for Ellyn's party, which went very well. We got to spend a great afternoon with family and friends. We even had friends that were in from TX stop by to visit, it was great to see David and Cynthia, for even just a little bit. Then, we headed to dinner. We went to the Indian Garden for Indian food. Not too bad, but next time I will insist on Red Lobster (don't tell Tate, I gave in to the Indian since he had been gone for 6 days. Yes, honey I know that you are reading this). Then we were off for a nice walk along the St Joseph River in Mishawaka. It was still a little muggy but is was a nice walk. Then we hit the Hacienda for drinks, a mug for me and a beer for him. And then headed home. Nothing too exciting, we are just getting too old for that.
This week has been a normal week so far. If there is anything normal about having a bunch of kiddos that I love running about my house 24 hours 7 days a week!
I hope that everyone has a chance to open up your windows tonight.....it is wonderful!
We are attempting to start a new little program with the girls so that we can stop yelling the same things at them all the time. Today I bought them each a dry erase board. We are going to use it as silent communication. The rule is that only Tate and I can write on it or erase something from it, and we will write what we need them to do. I saw this in one of the magazines I was reading a while back, now it is time. I am tired of yelling and being frustrated all the time. We are going to add a color code to what we put on the board. RED-needs to be done yesterday, GREEN- needs to be done now, and BLUE- needs to be done sometime today. We will see if this works and I will let you know!
This weekend was very busy for us. Friday was Ellyn's Birthday. She turned 3! Wow, I still can't believe that she is 3! We took the grandparents out for pizza at Starlite. My mom and dad had never been there before, and they really liked it! It reminded my mom of when we used to go out for Friday Night Pizza growing up. I think about those days a lot and hope that one day we can get into a habit of doing that too. Here is why it would have to be a habit, we eat out too much as a family. We have tried to scale back and I think that we have done a good job at doing that. What made it special growing up was that was really the only time we ate out. That will be another goal for the list to work on!
Then Sunday was Tate and My anniversary, 12 years. Tate has been a great husband. We have had our ups and downs. We have been through job losses, lay-offs, depressions (both of us, although only one of us needed medication) and having 3 beautiful girls that we are raising together. Tate and I have been together since High School, so in total we have actually been together 18 years! WOW!
Our anniversary started with finishing up the cleaning for Ellyn's party, which went very well. We got to spend a great afternoon with family and friends. We even had friends that were in from TX stop by to visit, it was great to see David and Cynthia, for even just a little bit. Then, we headed to dinner. We went to the Indian Garden for Indian food. Not too bad, but next time I will insist on Red Lobster (don't tell Tate, I gave in to the Indian since he had been gone for 6 days. Yes, honey I know that you are reading this). Then we were off for a nice walk along the St Joseph River in Mishawaka. It was still a little muggy but is was a nice walk. Then we hit the Hacienda for drinks, a mug for me and a beer for him. And then headed home. Nothing too exciting, we are just getting too old for that.
This week has been a normal week so far. If there is anything normal about having a bunch of kiddos that I love running about my house 24 hours 7 days a week!
I hope that everyone has a chance to open up your windows tonight.....it is wonderful!
Friday, June 25, 2010
Happy Birthday Miss Ellyn
Today she is 3! I can;t believe that she is that old. I have been blessed to be able to raise her as a stay at home mommy. I missed so much with Virginia and Rebekah.
Her personality is coming out in many ways. She is very sweet and gives the best hugs and kisses, but at the same time she has a bit of a temper. I would love to chalk this up to that she is 3, but I think not. She is a good listener and does pretty much what she is told. She is graceful most of the time, I think that she is still trying to get used to her legs! She likes to dance, run and play. Music is one of her favorite things, she dances when ever she hears it.
At 3 we are working on potty training, she is getting the hang of it. This is one of the privileges I get this time around. I am finding it frustrating and fun at the same time.
So, Happy Birthday my sweet Elly Rose!
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Lonely
Okay, so I thought that Tate being gone for a week would be a good thing......not in reality. I am lonely. Not in the sense that no one is around. That is definitely not the case, as I have a house full of kids every day.
Last Summer Tate took a week and went out to Los Angeles to visit his brother and it was not too bad. Of course on that trip we talked every night. This summer I have sent him on a trip with a group from Bashor Children's Home. Tate used to work for Bashor so it was no big deal. They are up in Minnesota at Boundary Waters, canoeing and camping. What is driving me nuts is that I don't get to talk to him!
I am truly okay with this, until I want to talk to him. He will get back sometime on Saturday, not sure exactly when, it could very well be very early in the morning. And then the weekend will be busy with getting ready for Ellyn's party on Sunday, which is also our anniversary. We will be married for 12 years.
The plan is that after everyone leaves he and I are going to go out for our dinner.....Red Lobster! We only go there a couple of times a year, my birthday and our anniversary.
Please be praying for Tate's continued safety on the the trip and his safe return to ME (and the girls of course!).
Last Summer Tate took a week and went out to Los Angeles to visit his brother and it was not too bad. Of course on that trip we talked every night. This summer I have sent him on a trip with a group from Bashor Children's Home. Tate used to work for Bashor so it was no big deal. They are up in Minnesota at Boundary Waters, canoeing and camping. What is driving me nuts is that I don't get to talk to him!
I am truly okay with this, until I want to talk to him. He will get back sometime on Saturday, not sure exactly when, it could very well be very early in the morning. And then the weekend will be busy with getting ready for Ellyn's party on Sunday, which is also our anniversary. We will be married for 12 years.
The plan is that after everyone leaves he and I are going to go out for our dinner.....Red Lobster! We only go there a couple of times a year, my birthday and our anniversary.
Please be praying for Tate's continued safety on the the trip and his safe return to ME (and the girls of course!).
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
School's Out!
School's out! Well, maybe not. This Summer I have decided that there will only going to be 2 weeks that we are just going to do nothing but play, and it is this week and the week before school starts.
Virginia, Rebekah and I have all discussed it, we are going to pick one topic every week and research it. One day we will research on the computer at home, we will go to the Library to get books and then we will write about what we have learned in a journal. And of course we will be keeping up on our reading and math skills too. We are going to do 2 different reading programs this summer, one through the Library and the other with Borders. With Borders when they have read 10 books they get to take their tracking sheet in and get a free book! What a wonderful incentive to read....I love FREE books! Now if they would only have a program like that for adults!
We do plan on having fun this summer too. We are going to attempt to find a weekend that we can go camping, and this year I am looking forward to it. Just not sure how it will all work with the crazy schedule that we all seem to have....wait, that is my schedule! Tastefully Simple has been going great for me this year. I am very excited, my weekends seem to be filled with Tastings! I think that there are a couple of weekends in July that we don't have anything planned, I might just keep it that way, would anyone like to have a Tasting during the week?!?!?
We do have some panic relief, Tate is still employed for next year with South Bend Community School Corporation. We are feeling very blessed, as we know that there were a lot of teachers that were given notices, even some friends. I know that God has a plan and that he will keep them all safe.
We are celebrating 2 birthdays and 1 anniversary this summer. Ellyn will turn 3 on June 25th and Virginia will be 10 on August 12! And on June 27th Tate and I will celebrate 12 years of marriage!
I hope that everyone has a safe start to the Summer! I will write about our Gerndt Family Adventures as they happen!
Virginia, Rebekah and I have all discussed it, we are going to pick one topic every week and research it. One day we will research on the computer at home, we will go to the Library to get books and then we will write about what we have learned in a journal. And of course we will be keeping up on our reading and math skills too. We are going to do 2 different reading programs this summer, one through the Library and the other with Borders. With Borders when they have read 10 books they get to take their tracking sheet in and get a free book! What a wonderful incentive to read....I love FREE books! Now if they would only have a program like that for adults!
We do plan on having fun this summer too. We are going to attempt to find a weekend that we can go camping, and this year I am looking forward to it. Just not sure how it will all work with the crazy schedule that we all seem to have....wait, that is my schedule! Tastefully Simple has been going great for me this year. I am very excited, my weekends seem to be filled with Tastings! I think that there are a couple of weekends in July that we don't have anything planned, I might just keep it that way, would anyone like to have a Tasting during the week?!?!?
We do have some panic relief, Tate is still employed for next year with South Bend Community School Corporation. We are feeling very blessed, as we know that there were a lot of teachers that were given notices, even some friends. I know that God has a plan and that he will keep them all safe.
We are celebrating 2 birthdays and 1 anniversary this summer. Ellyn will turn 3 on June 25th and Virginia will be 10 on August 12! And on June 27th Tate and I will celebrate 12 years of marriage!
I hope that everyone has a safe start to the Summer! I will write about our Gerndt Family Adventures as they happen!
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