Star Wars Party

Kylen's ninth birthday party was a blast! Pun intended! This year he decided on a Star Wars theme. Greg had already been working on a program to simulate words moving through space like at the beginning of the movies. He spent about a week on the invitations, which were DVDs. By far the most involved invitations we've ever done, but people loved them! We even printed DVD face and case covers. The movie was 17 minutes long. It started and ended with a video clip of Kylen at two years of age talking about Star Wars LEGOs. VERY CUTE!!! Then, Greg used his program to do a little sequence with a story about Episode 9: Return of the Birthday. This was followed by several scenes from the movies with our own voice-overs talking about the party. For example, the scene where Yoda was cooking, we had Luke asking about the food at the party. It turned out pretty funny!

Decorating was a breeze. We already have black and white decor which I use during May/June in honor of Greg's birthday/Father's Day/graduation month. We filled the shelves with Star Wars LEGO models and had mostly Star Wars pictures on the walls. The only decorations we needed to buy were a birthday banner, black tablecloth, and confetti stars to scatter. We used balloons and crepe paper left-over from previous years. We also wore costumes. Greg was Han Solo, I was Princess Leia, and Kylen was a Jedi Knight.

Food included Dog Sabers (hot dogs), Cheese Sabers (string cheese on sticks), light and dark chips, Light Sauce (guacamole), Dark Sauce (salsa), and Sith Salad (pasta salad), Yoda Soda (blue punch), and Darth Mault (red punch).

We kicked off with an R2-D2 Demo, which was our gift to Kylen. The first thing Greg did was to ask if he remembers Darth Vader, which we finally figured out puts him in a VERY disagreeable mood. Once you do that, he refuses to obey commands. However, he still garnered lots of laughs with his stubborness and head shaking. Very popular with the girls. After the party, they whisked him off to another room for additional "training." Kylen took this picture:

Next, the children were ushered downstairs for a couple of games. The first was called Droid Debris. We wrapped several small prizes (glow-in-the-dark balls and stars, fake gems, a few dollars) in wads of aluminum foil and scattered over the floor. The kids were divided into two teams: Empire and Republic. Each end had six circles, half in one color and half in the other. Smaller children were placed at the end closer to the aluminum balls. On the signal, they were to gather as many balls as possible and place in their own circles. Then, all the balls were counted. The final score was actually extremely close, something like 70 to 66! Of course, they got to keep their treasures. Plus, we gave them each a stretchy flashing ring.

We had the kids form two lines and shoot Corellian Space Monkeys (Screaming Monkeys) into a target with holes. You pull the arms back on two fingers and sling-shot them through the air. It took us a couple of runs to realize the target was a tad too far away. Only a couple of kids made it in the holes. Prizes were large polished rocks.

We all came back upstairs and played Name that Sound. Greg had recorded lots of clips from the movies such as blaster fire, Jabba the Hut talking, etc. and threw in a few extras for fun: snoring, cow mooing, the Road Runner. Prizes were water yo-yos. Greg gave all the rewards neat-sounding names and background stories, such as what planet he found them on, etc.

Thankfully, we got the cake made the previous day. It was a rushed decorating job late at night, but it turned out OK. Kylen wanted something with two light sabers crossing. Frosted half red with orange highlights to resemble fire (representing the dark side of the force) and the other half a smooth blue. I made the two light sabers out of fondant. At least it tasted good, since we made the cake and frosting from scratch. We always make an extra 9x13 (not decorated, just simply frosted) since a 9" round isn't big enough for 25-30 people. Not much was left!

Suddenly, the lights dimmed, The Imperial March started playing, and Darth Vader (Greg) came out to dual Kylen. We borrowed the costume from my brother, and it's quite realistic. A couple kids were scared, but I think it went pretty well. They even used the force to push eachother back at times. Once defeated, Vader said, "I am your father!" which got lots of laughs. Wish we could take the credit for that idea, but it came from the net, along with many other things!

Finally is was time to open gifts. One of his favorites was a Star Wars cookbook. He loves to prepare food!

At the end, I gave all the kids Galactic Putty and a glow stick. They also got a sheet of scratch stickers. I know, I know. Excessive. It's only once a year, and I like to spoil them. It's so wonderful seeing everyone have a good time!

Farewell President Bush

I frequently get my news from liberal CNN (from whence came this picture), not because I like their views, but because I like the layout of their site. After becoming accustomed to the hate speech consistently spewed forth there, especially in the comments of political articles . . . In fact, the final picture they showed in their photo piece titled "The Bush Presidency" was a shot of him dodging the shoe. Nice. Very respectful, CNN. Capital bit of journaling, as usual. I hope you can detect sarcasm.

It was refreshing to browse the opinion section of the more conservative Washington Times. Commenters actually have civil discussions there. Astounding.

Anyway, I wanted to say farewell to President Bush and decided to do so by reading a bit about him, reminiscing on events from the past eight years. I'm rather sad. If our lives were made up of many books, one for each area of interest, this would be the end of a chapter. The 2000 elections jump-started an awakening in me; it was the first time I voted. Thus, my political interests have been closely tied to the Bush era. I will never forget researching and debating my views, watching the numbers breathlessly with the rest of the country late into the night not once but thrice . . . after many months and then years of investing time and effort into being informed . . . and the great relief I felt both times Bush won.

Nor will I forget the sorrow I felt as he was cruelly, mercilessly attacked. Did I think he was perfect? No. But that doesn't justify the treatment he received, as Bush-haters prominently showed how low society has spiraled over the past 200 years. Basic decency and manners have been traded for rudeness and disrespect for authority.

The government, it seemed, consisted of a single man. There was no congress, no system of checks and balances, no advisors. This one individual was responsible for everything that went wrong in our country and oftentimes the world. Every serviceman who died . . . It was Bush's fault. The devastation from Hurricane Katrina, Bush's fault. No WMDs? Bush's fault.

The good he did was often downplayed, spun, or largely ignored by the media. This is because "good" is often seen by liberals as evil. In their twisted minds, right and wrong are reversed. His support for abstinence and the unborn, for example. In a liberal's mind, the distribution of condoms and unrestricted access to infanticide is infinitely more effective in preventing STDs and teen pregnancy than avoiding sex altogether. That might be the case in a Bizarro world, but not the real world.

One might wonder, just how is it that paradise on earth is obtained by government? I will tell you: it is not. Just as our government is not made up of one man, it is also not able to fix everything wrong in our lives or in the world. We must look to God for our salvation, peace, comfort, hope, guidance, direction, and future; not government. I am not proposing anarchy or theocracy. I am urging people to take responsibility for themselves and their souls. People have souls, and when they are neglected and starved bad things happen.

I came across a poll asking how history will remember the Bush administration. One gentleman left a comment, which I thought was nicely written. It is the way I would like to remember Bush, so I will share it here:

Thank you, President Bush, for your 8 years of service to this great nation. You restored dignity to the Office of the President. You kept the country safe after we experienced the attack that awakened us to WWIII. You were a friend to the common man as well as the unborn child. You ushered in prosperity with wise tax cuts, and challenged us to again aim for the moon and beyond. You demanded accountability to investors in the Board Rooms of Wall Street. You embodied freedom to a world dominated by oppression. You supported liberty in school choice at home and in freedom from radical Islamic tyranny in the Middle East. You brought hope to millions of AIDS sufferers in Africa. You showed the nation and the world what it is to be a leader with moral clarity and a heart that is full.

Mr. President, you are a man of uncommon decency, and although the demise of journalistic integrity failed you, history will chronicle your Presidency with the utmost regard and respect and gratitude. May God richly bless you and your family, and may God bless America.

I won't forget. Farewell, Mr. President, and may the Lord richly bless you and your family for taking on the toughest job in the nation.

New Year News

When I don’t blog for a couple of weeks, you know we’ve been busy! Here’s a little update on our lives since December 30th:

Our Favorite Christmas Gifts
Kylen graduated from college, became a computer programmer (just like his dad!), married, had three kids (including one set of twins), and bought a small cape house, all within the first week of the new year! He experienced debt, career changes, taxes, even retirement! Can you guess how? One of his favorite gifts was the board game Life. I highly recommend it! He thought it was so cool getting to be an adult!

One of my personal favorites was a set of 600 thread count sheets. They are amazing. Almost sheer but they do a better job keeping me warm than a blanket and are very soft. Thanks, Mom!
Ball of Whacks. Sounds awful, doesn’t it? But it’s a really neat toy made up of magnetic blocks that can be built into all sorts of things. You can even stick them to the fridge!

Other highlights: a couple of new CDs and four way chess for Greg, three mini handmade scrapbooks by a local crafter (whose work I love), and lots of LEGO stuff! Lots and lots of LEGO stuff!!

Homeschooling in Earnest
We are back at it! Co-op has resumed, and Greg is again teaching two sections of a programming class. He comes up with the material himself, so it requires a good chunk of his time on weekends.

Much of my time is spent on basic housekeeping and helping Kylen with cursive, math, English, history, and science. He has resumed basketball with one practice and one game a week.

Greg’s Job Status
Some of you have heard about layoffs at Greg’s company. Only around 30 out of 130 people are expected to remain at this site. Some will be gone by the end of this month, and others will stay till October. We just found out Greg will indeed be layed off but not until October. We are thankful his job is secure for the next nine months, and we are excited to see what the Lord has planned for the future. Greg has begun job searching and applied for a couple of permanent positions at his current company that are open.

Annual Birthday Bash
We throw one very large party every year for our son’s birthday. Besides allowing me an outlet for my favorite hobby, it is an opportunity to invite lots of people over for a great time. Kylen, being an only, looks forward to having the house full, and we all enjoy the planning and preparations. So many hours this past week have been spent putting away Christmas stuff and working on the party.

That's our life lately. Now, I need to catch up on blog reading!

10 Years of Wedded Bliss

For our fifth anniversary we had a fancy dinner at a fancy hotel, stayed one night in their fancy room, and enjoyed a fancy breakfast the next morning in bed. We had grand plans of doing something extra special for our tenth anniversary, maybe a short trip somewhere exotic. Our busy Christmas trumped that, but we're so happy it doesn't really matter where we are. Praise the Lord for the perfect spouse!

Read more about us here and how we met here!

Christmas 2008 in Pictures

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas! We had a very nice, VERY white Christmas! A colossal snowstorm turned our city into a winter wonderland on the 17th, and it has continued snowing off and on ever since!

Drifts on our front porch that first morning. Notice the smattering on our window to the right.

Shovels are made for throwing snow at people, right?

After the plow came through two days later, I shouted, "Let's go shopping!" We were able to buy the last of our gifts, but by evening we suspected I had the flu. Praise God, it was mild, but I still spent much of the following two days resting. I had just enough time to recover before Sunday, when we made more candy, delivered it to our neighbors, and hastily packed for a mini vacation. My uncle had arranged for everyone to spend four nights at The Western Pleasure Guest Ranch. There were nearly 30 of us even though many didn't make it this year. For those who did come, flying in was an adventure with all the delayed and cancelled flights!

We drove to the ranch in a line of four vehicles Sunday night. Three more joined later in the week.

There were several cabins, but most of us stayed in the main lodge. Upstairs were four rooms with lofts.

Our room was one of two downstairs. It wasn't fancy but we were pleased to find it clean and quite comfortable.

Our hosts provided two dinners and three delicious breakfasts. This was our meal the first morning: cinnamon French toast, scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, bacon, and fruit.

The inside of the lodge was decorated with mounted animals. I COULDN'T believe the size of this albino moose head! You don't realize how gigantic those creatures are until you see one up close.

The guys spent countless hours playing pool. We also played lots of board and card games including two full games of World Domination Risk. I lost both times. :-(

Two of my cousins at the piano.

Kylen and another cousin with a jumbo search and find book. The large tree behind was wound with rope instead of ribbon! Just to the right is a large fireplace with comfy furniture where we spent lots of time reflecting, chatting and reading.

My brother and cousin returning from sledding. It snowed every single day!

One of the highlights was a real sleigh ride! It was everything you can imagine. Large flakes gently falling, perfect weather, breathtakingly beautiful woods. We sang carols. It was unforgetable!


A bunch of us on the way to the sleighs with the lodge in the background.

Grandma somehow ended up in the sleigh with most of the young, unmarried cousins. Lol!


Our sleigh's driver.


View ahead from my seat.


Greg, Kylen, and me!


The evening of the 23rd we gathered upstairs to exchange gifts and sing carols. The kids got stockings.


Family pictures were taken in an old-fashioned sleigh.

We dimmed the lights, lit candles, and sang two different evenings. It was a lovely experience, especially with all the gifted vocalists in my family.

Three of my talented cousins. They are siblings and grew up performing together in front of audiences. Ben usually sings bass, Holly sings lead and alto, Travis does lead and tenor.

Group pic taken the 24th.

On Christmas morning we scrambled to pack and check out by noon, drove two hours on snowy roads home. By the time it was dark, we were back on the highway headed for Greg's parents. The roads were treacherous. Greg has lived in this area 20 years and doesn't remember ever seeing so much snow in the cities. We ended up in a snow bank and had to wait for a tow truck to pull us out. But we eventually made it for dinner/gifts and survived the trip back. Praise God for His protection!


Yesterday we opened gifts at home, just the three of us. It was a wonderful, relaxing day.



The only thing Kylen really asked for was a Bob t-shirt. I decided to get a Larry shirt for Greg as well.

Our Christmas will officially end New Year's Eve when we will open gifts with my parents and siblings. Perhaps a couple more pics then. :-)

Thursday Thirteen: Christmas

This seems like a good time for a Thursday Thirteen!

13 Things We Do During the Christmas Holiday
1. Decorate inside and out
2. Shop for and wrap presents
3. Prepare an advent calendar for our son
4. Watch Christmas movies and listen to Christmas music
5. Make and send cards
6. Purchase gifts for several charities *
7. Make our annual candy
8. Give goodies and sing We Wish You a Merry Christmas to the neighbors on our cul-de-sac
9. Usually add a new holiday themed children’s book to my collection
10. Sometimes see The Nutcracker ballet live (pic below)
11. Celebrate with family and friends
12. Hear the story of Jesus’ birth read from the bible
13. Marvel at the love and mercy of our wonderful God!


This was Kylen's first year to attend a real ballet. He was definitely too young! Bored out of his mind! (I had a great time!) But we ALL enjoyed eating at an upscale Chinese restaurant beforehand. Don't worry! He had help with dessert!

*See previous post for ideas. :-)

Christmas Charity Ideas

Each year we participate in several Christmas charities. I thought it might be an interesting post to highlight some of our favorites. If you are like I was and desire to give but are not sure where to begin, I suggest starting out small. Take that first step; perhaps pick out a gift for a child from the giving tree at a store. As finances allow, add something else. God will bless you for sharing with others!

We sponsor two children through Compassion International, and at this time of year we send extra money for gifts. Christmas funds are pooled and divided up to buy presents for all the kids, even those still waiting for sponsors. One time donations are welcome!

A couple of years ago we stuffed ten stockings for a local men's homeless shelter through a homeschool organization. It was lots of fun! We bought most of the items in bulk, which brought down the cost. Wal-mart and Costco were great for personal hygiene items, candy and hat/scarf sets. We included small bibles, wooden puzzles, and Christmas cards with a hand-written note and gospel tract. Everything was wrapped in festive tissue paper, which I purchased in a jumbo pack. We filled the stockings assembly line style with all of us helping, even our son who was around five. This is a good project for the entire family!

Last year we started a new tradition of picking gifts from Partners International, a ministry begun in 1943 that works "alongside national believers to bring Christ's love and compassion to the least Christian regions of the world." They have a nice, full-color catalog with things like: Well for a Village, Cambodia; Training for a Church Planter, China; Milk and Cereal for a Child, Senegal; Small Business Training, Mali. Each item includes a photograph and description. We agreed ahead of time on the amount and enjoyed sitting down together "shopping." There is a wide range of gifts to fit any budget from $5 for medicine all the way up to $6,000 for a village grinding mill. We plan to do this on Sunday.

Greg's company has sponsored 2-4 families for Christmas the past few years. They have fund-raisers such as a silent auction and a pancake/spam feed. There is a Tree of Sharing with the names of family members, or employees can donate money directly. The funds are used to purchase any gifts for any names left on the tree, groceries, and as a monetary gift for the family.

I think this was the most fun charitable thing I've ever done. Greg brought home two tags for a nine-year-old girl. Our son is nearly nine, so I have a good feel for that age. Plus, I always wondered what it would be like to have a daughter (even though I adore our son!). One tag said, "Age appropriate game." I visited a game store and picked out a 550 piece family puzzle and a game called "Apples to Apples Jr." for ages nine and up. We have enjoyed the adult version (offensive cards removed, of course!), but Kylen had trouble joining in due to some complex words and concepts, which we were constantly needing to define. So I think this would be a great family game! In fact, it's going on our own wish list!

The other tag said, "Dress and tights." First, I looked at Wal-mart where we get most of our clothes. They did not have ANY dresses or skirts other than a few VERY ugly ones. So Greg dropped me off at JC Penney, and I eventually found a pretty black dress with ruffles, matching jacket, and black tights. That's when the fun REALLY began!

I had lots of extra time to kill, so I decided to hunt for accessories. Just a few stores down was Claire's. What an awesomely fun, FUN store!! Chock full of inexpensive hair doo-dads, fancy lip gloss containers with delicious names, jewelry (great place for a cheap tiara if you ever need one!), and lots of marvelous stocking stuffers for any girl. I found a cute black purse with glittering silver stars, chocolate chip cookie lip gloss, a small black/pink stuffed animal, black hair decorations, and tiny silver stickers that could be worn on a cheek or fingernail. OK, and I spent WAY too much! But it was totally worth it! And next year I hope to do it again, Lord willing and if finances permit!