Day 364

Day 358

Merry Christmas!!

Day 357

Day 356

Day 355

Day 346

Gunnar's first EVER basketball practice. He's playing with coach uncle Dan and cousins Lucas and Isaiah.

Day 343

Decorating the tree

Day 341

Space Ship

Day 338

Gunn and Luke

Day 333

Day 274

Bennett and Gunnar

As long as we persevere and endure, we can get anything we want.

~Mike Tyson

Day 256

Gunnar and I had our very own candlelight dinner.


It's better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.

~Eleanor Roosevelt

Day 245

1st Day of School

Twas the Night Before School Starts

T'was the night before school starts

And all through the place,

Not a smile was seen

On any kid's face.

Our bags were all stuffed

With our notebooks brand new,

And rulers and pencils

With erasers to chew.

Mournfully we

All crawled into bed,

Knowing too well

That the 'good life' was dead.

Then mom came in whistling

And kissed us goodnight,

With a bright cheery voice

That didn't seem right.

The night dragged on slowlyI just couldn't sleep,

For fear that my math teacher

Would be a real creep.

Or maybe a bully

Would give me a shove,

Or even more evil things

Than I could think of.

When from in the next room

There arose such a clummer,

My mom yelled, "I'm FREE!"

"I'm free 'till next summer!"

This must be a plot

By conspiring moms,

Who just want a break

To experience 'calm.'

Oh, must I go through it?!

How can I go on?

I want to escape

Run off to Saigon!

Nine months is too long

To suffer through school

The classes so rough

And teachers who're cruel.

"Come Donald! Come Conner!

Come Henry VanStation!

Come up to the board,Do your multiplication!"

"And Julie, stop talking!

And Jimmy, wake up!

And Mary, right now,Don't do your makeup!"

Teachers ever are hounding

They just never quit.

You do something wrong,

They go into a fit.

And so every year

About this same time,

I lie in bed sleepless

And just moan and whine.

Until morning comes,

And I hear my mom say,

"Good luck with your school!

And have a nice day!"

~ Ron Yorgason

Day 243

Gunnar is my 3rd child to have Mrs. Hazel as a first grade teacher.

Whose Child is This?
Whose child is this? I asked one day

Seeing a little one out to play

"Mine", said the parent with a tender smile

"Mine to keep a little while

To wash his hands and comb his hair

To tell him what he is to wear

To prepare him that he may always be good

And each day do the things he should"

"Whose child is this?"

I asked again

As the door opened and someone came in

"Mine", said the teacher with the same tender smile

"Mine, to keep just a little while

To teach him how to be gentle and kind

To train and direct his dear little mind

To help him live by every rule

And get the best he can from school."

"Whose child is this?"

I ask once more

Just as the little one entered the door

"Ours" said the parent and the teacher as they smiled

And each took a hand of the little child

"Ours to love and train together

Ours this blessed task forever."

~Author Unknown

Day 236

Happiness is an attitude. We either make ourselves miserable, or happy and strong. The amount of work is the same.

~Francesca Reigler

Day 230

Bennett and Gunn


Pirate Lingo

Ahoy! - "Yo!"
Avast! - "Check it out!"
Aye! - "Yes."
Arrr! - "That's right!" (often confused with arrrgh...)
Arrrgh! - "I'm VERY miffed."

Day 227

Mommy Tears
Mommy tears started long ago,

when your Dad proposed to me,

when I said yes they were happy tears when he knelt on bended knee.

Mommy tears came once again on the day that you were born,

these tears were mixed with Daddy's love on that unforgetful morn.

Mommy tears were shed once more when you spoke your very first word,

I thought that day would never come,

for Mama I swore I heard.

There were times when you got sick and your fever came on fast,

my tears of worry started to fall wondering how long this would last.

It wasn't long and you started school,

I kept strong as I watched you go,

but when I came into the house Mommy tears had a steady flow.

Soon, I know, there will be a time when you become a man,

for Mommy tears will slowly fall when another holds your hand.

Someday you'll understand these tears when you hold your daughter or son,

but for now I'll keep you to myself as Mommy tears are never done.

~Author Unknown

Day 226

If you spend your whole life waiting for the storm, you'll never enjoy the sunshine.

~Morris West

Day 224

Luke and Gunnar-Water balloon fight

Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody.

~Mark Twain

Day 221

Ice-cream mustashe

Life is like an ice-cream cone, you have to lick it one day at a time.

~Charles Schulz