More teeth for the Piglet

Max got 2 more teeth in the night sometime. "The Pig" as he is often called, due to his squirmy nature Scott often says holding him is like wrestling a pig, and of course his love of nursing and snuggling with Momma all night I call him the piglet. So he is earning his little nickname...all in love of course.

Well, the Pig was up often the last few nights, more than usual and screaming more than the normal whimper. Oh and biting some while nursing in the night YEEEOOOWWW! And low and behold this morning I looked in his mouth and guess what 2 more teeth on top. So we are at a grand total of 6 teeth now.

News

Love this picture of Gailen after they won their last tournament this past spring...Drew so excited too

Our friend Gailen did get the official word this afternoon, the biopsy of his liver did show it is cancer. More tests on Thursday this week and then meeting with Dr's on Friday.

Please pray for him. Pray that somehow this cancer is only near the liver and that it is treatable. Pray for this to be a miracle of healing.

Pray especially for his family, wife and 3 kids. Pray for comfort and peace for them. Pray that we can support them as friends in whatever ways we can. Pray for our Drew too, he seems to be taking this kind of hard. He was very sad tonight when I told him this news. "Mr. Veurink" was his basketball coach last year and is one of his favorite "Dad's" of his friends...he has spent a lot of time shooting baskets for fun in the backyard with him. I think Drew also is now a bit fearful of his own Dad and losing him. Scott is out of town this week, so I think that is making it hard for Drew as well.

God is still God and He is still in control. None of this is a surprise to Him, He has known since the beginning of time. We rest in that.

Fourth of July in September

I got a call this morning from an editor of the Patchwork and Quilting Magazine, another Better Homes and Gardens magazine based at Meredith in Des moines. They asked if they could use our porch tomorrow to shoot pictures of the 4th of July, they are a little last minute she said. So the mums and pumpkins will take a back seat tomorrow as the front of our house is transformed to the 4th of July. I dug out the flags for the pots as well.

It should be fun to see how they do this outside and just how it will be transformed. I am grateful the inside of the house doesn't need to be spotless this time around. :)

Tomorrow morning this place will be looking very patriotic and the next summer you can look for it on newsstands near you.

Praying for a miracle

Gailen with Max at an ICubs game this summer

It amazes me how one minute life can be moving along and the next minute you feel like you were just hit by a truck. We got word this morning in Sunday School that one of our good friends has innumerable tumors near his liver. Gailen Veurink. He went into the Dr on Friday morning as his stomach had not been feeling well. They are doing some biopsies and trying to figure out what is going on.

Gailen is a good friend of Scott's, and he and I always love to joke around. His son Grant is a good friend of Drew's as well, Tommy's too. He is a 6th grader. Drew played on Gailen's basketball team last year too. The news has hit HARD.

Please pray for a miracle. Pray for his wife Stephanie, for their 3 kids Erika, Grant and Sarah. Pray for God's will and plan and for PEACE above all else.

The Apple Store

This is how the conversation went this morning...

Tommy talking to Grandma on the phone (my Mom): Hi Grandma how are you?

Gma: Great Tommy, what are you up to?

Tommy: My Mom and I are just leaving the Apple Store.

Gma: Oh great, did you pick up some apple crisp?

Tommy: Silent and confused

Gma: Or did you get some apples? What kind?

Tommy: Oh no Grandma, you know Ipods and computers. That Apple store

Gma: Laughing, oh please don't tell your mom I just said that.

Tommy: She already heard.

Oh Mom, couldn't love you more. One in a MILLION you are...

XOXO

Worth the wait

The sign Jack made by himself, photo of Yennenesh at the bottom center in Yellow

This August, Jack decided he wanted to organize a lemonade stand. He wanted to raise money for Yennenesh's school and friends. Yennenesh is the girl we sponsor through Compassion International. Jack's goal was to raise money to send to her, that they could use to help her friends out. He thought maybe they could buy more books for school, a new computer or crayons.

Getting ready for our first customer

Jack worked diligently mainly on his own planning this, he did have Drew help him some too. They decided to also sell homemade chocolate chip cookies at their stand. The day was set and we were all organized. It was over 100 degrees this day so Daddy decided to set up a tent for them to sell under. I sent an email our to some of our friends and neighbors asking if they would stop by. The boys made flyers explaining what Compassion International is and handed those out as well.

Our friends the Duricks came over and the Durick kids

used their OWN money for their donation

(Miss Emily was over helping out too)

The boys work was rewarded greatly. They raised much more money then they ever expected. They ended up with over $160- to donate. They were so proud. We were MOST proud of their hearts that day.

Proud sister in law

Thursday morning we packed up the boys and their gadgets and headed north to Minnesota to attend the Memorial service for our sister in law Cara's Mom, Jean Larson. If you remember she passed away in early August from the ugly disease called ALS. She had been diagnosed last November, it was fast and furious and an awful disease.

We landed in Edina around 2:00, Charlie and Alice were at Grandma's already so we got to hang out with them for a little bit before the service started. The boys L-O-V-E being with their little cousins, so it was fun. Alice was napping for most of our time there but when she woke up she was excited to see MAX, and to tell me UNCLE SCOTT'S PUNCHING BUTTONS NOO-NOO. (Translation, working on his computer Aunt Susan, she calls me Noo Noo which is the sweetest thing esp since she can say Susan now, but she still goes back to noonoo) And everything Alice says is LOUD hence the capital letters. She is a riot. Charlie and Jack watched a DVD and had some quiet time together.

The service for Jean was beautiful, simple and sweet. Full or laughter, bright flowers and smiles. Just as Jean would have wanted it to be. Cara's brother spoke, my brother Mike spoke and then Cara spoke. let me preface this with the reminder of how very close Cara and her Mom were, talk to your Mom daily, several times a day close. Talk about your meals, your kids, your clothes...the little stuff close. So this has been VERY hard on Cara especially, and all of them. But I want to share with you how PROUD I was of Cara, she stood up there and honored her Mom in the MOST beautiful way. She talked about her, listed off some of her Mom's rules, she told stories, she laughed and her mannerisms have never reminded me as much of her Mom as they did last night. Mike and Cort, her brother, spoke beautifully as well but there was something about Cara's sparkle that just stole the show for me. It was almost as if I could see her begin to heal with every word she spoke. I could see the passion Cara had for keeping her Mom's memory alive, and for honoring her spirit in such a beautiful way. Yes the Pastor spoke after Cara and he was great too, reminded us of the importance of our faith in Jesus and in heaven, a VERY important message to be told. But I was SO very proud of Cara, I could just see her Mom in heaven, jumping up and down and cheering her on. I don't think it's a moment I will soon forget.

We will ALL do our best to keep Grandma Jean's memory alive, for Charlie and Alice especially.

We drove home after the service and landed back on Woodcrest Drive around 12:30 am. A trip we wouldn't have missed.

Lights,Camera...ACTION

Today Jack was in a commercial for the Iowa Public Health Department. Okay let me back up quickly, 2 years ago our photographer from Johnston suggested Jack to a talent/model agency in town because of his outgoing personality and his handsome look :). Well we met with them once downtown and never heard from him again. We knew they had his photos on file, but assumed we would never hear from them again. Well they emailed last week and asked if Jack could come and be in this commercial this week. Sounded fun, Jack was game so we met at a local elementary school in Norwalk, IA this morning at 9:00.

We found out when we got there that it was a commercial about the flu. It will air during flu season around Iowa. It was interesting to see the other kids, there were 9 total. It was interesting to see the dynamics of all of the different kids and parents there. Our first experience with it all.

Basically 2 of the boys had tee shirts that read "I HAVE THE FLU" on them, one boys said it on the front, and one was written on the back of the tee. The other kids were all staged to be walking in or out of the school. And then there was the MAIN boy who was walking out of the school to get in the car with his Mom. He walked right by the "flu"tee shirt kids. Jack, of course, thought the flu kids looked like Hawkeye shirts. So I was glad that he was too big to wear the shirts...he would have surely commented on their Gold and black colors.

cool light and trucks and equipment getting set up

Basically all he had to do was walk with this other little boy, well they had him do it in 3 places until they settled on who was where but the final 20 takes he was walking with this little boy who is 8, Harrison, and they had to be talking while walking. Those of you who know Jack, KNOW that is never a problem. They chatted and chatted and chatted. I was surprised that by the end, Jack hadn't invited him over.

Jack in one of the first spots, note the "I have the flu" tee walking in

This was where he was most of the time, walking with Harrison

Chatting away with his new friend

Just a shot of the crew filming, the car is the Mom's car one of the kids ran to get into

It was a fun experience for him. He had several questions for the camera crew too. He is one curious kid!

Meant to be...

When we first started at DMC Jack was in Kindergarten (2008) with a girl named Eva, I got to know her Mom, Amy, at the first football game we ever went to. I found out she was an artist at the game, went home and looked at her website. I fell in love with this one painting she had done...wanted to buy it. I loved it so much I used it as the front cover page of the yearbook that year that I was designing. Here is the painting....

It was not the right time to buy it and so I used a photo of it as my screensaver for the next few months and loved it that way.

Fast forward to early Summer of 2010, we went to Amy's house to get together, the boys and I. There was the painting STILL hanging on her wall, she hadn't sold it yet at any of her art shows or off the website, it's a BIG painting so it would take a big space to hang it. I said casually as we walked by..."Someday that painting will hang in our home boys"...I still LOVED it and maybe even MORE in person. Amy and I spoke a few weeks later and she suggested I take it home and just try it, on approval and then I would KNOW if it was perfect or not. So I did, I brought it home. Hung it up and LOVED the bible verse portion. Scott came home and looked at it and said to me "Those aren't even colors you like. Those are colors you always tell me you can't stand. Bright greens and bright blues, you hate those". He was right, I was trying to make it work in our house and it didn't. I cried, yep I cried, when I drove it back to her house. I dropped it off and Amy said the following to me, IF I don't sell it this summer at my art shows, then I will repaint it for you in the colors that you want. And YOU can have it....well I said thanks, knowing it would sell this summer and feeling it just wasn't meant to be.

Summer ended and school resumed...and Amy whisepered to me, "Guess what, the painting never sold. Do you want me to repaint it for YOU" and so today....

yes

today

in

our

family

room

hangs

the

following....

and the

icing on the top

is the following detail...

Can you see it in there...the MOST beautiful part of the painting to me.

Our boys names, forever painted onto this canvas. And with one of my all time favorite bible verses.

"For the Lord is Good and His Love Endures Forever,

His Faithfulness Continues Through all Generations."

Psalm 100:5

Another baby!

Miss Emily and Ross came over today to share some very exciting news, which I may or may not have heard from them earlier this week. :) They are having a baby! Due in late April.

The boys are excited! They had a LOT of questions for Emily and Ross all about it. Good thing they were staying for lunch, we needed all the time we could get with them.

Love their reactions

Tommy had a beautiful prayer at lunch, thanking God for giving them this baby and praying that everyone stays healthy. Babies are such a gift from God.

Congratulations! We can't wait for Max to have a little buddy boy or girl, to hang out with!

Camping, Shisler style

The family eating dinner, Max MOST excited that he gets an entire

graham cracker since Mom forgot his baby food.(thanks Jen for the fun family photo)

Last night was the annual Camp Dontwannamissit at Des Moines Golf. You ride out to the driving range (on golf carts) and camp out there. (I told you it was camping, Shisler style, not really roughing it) We got there around 6:30 last night to set up camp. The tent took a little bit of time to remember how to set it up. We set up camp by our friends the Duricks and also the Mars. We knew storms were a possibility in the night but we thought we'd give it a try anyway. (Max, Drew and I were not planning on staying...Max and I, well we aren't much for camping and Drew's allergies have been so BAD the past 2 weeks we didn't think sleeping outside was a great idea for him either) We stayed and set it all up, had the BBQ dinner buffet and some yummy smores. With the first mosquito bite on my face after dinner, I decided it was time for Max and I to exit. We happily came home to the ac and comfy beds. Scott brought Drew home about an hour later.

Scott and Steve figuring out the tent set up

Jack LOVES the tent

Drew showing Max the tent

The boys

Tommy, umm well hanging out I guess

Around 4:10 am I heard people coming in the house, and simultaneously heard thunder and saw the lighting and I knew my campers were home. They had woken up around 3:45 to Steve Durick telling them hail and 70 mph winds were heading our way. They abandoned the tent and drove the 1 mile home.

7:30 this morning they headed back for the campers pancake breakfast and to take the tent down and pack it back up. (Tommy didn't make it back he slept til 9:00 in his bed instead) I think one of Drew's highlights was driving the golf cart loaded up this morning by himself, well following Mr. Durick.

The boys had a great time despite the crazy sleep stuff. They played kick-the-can and flashlight games, and hide n seek and football with our friends. Loved the giggling and laughing as they ran around. Maybe someday, then again maybe not, but maybe someday I will spend the night with them there. They loved it.

Our Buckeye Baby

Seriously how cute is Max in this tee?

Go Buckeyes!

Growing up and Book Covers

Tommy is growing up. They had a football game on Thursday in Earlham. The football team wears their jerseys to school on game days. Tommy seemed about 17 to me that morning as he left for school in his jersey. We sure love you #12.

The other funny side note to Thursday morning was this...we have purchased book covers for all of his classes as the school supply list noted. But his homework last night for language was to come back with a paper, homemade book cover on his book. Because the book is odd sized and the teacher feels they are more durable in paper ones. So Tommy was telling me this on the way home from school, and he said "Mom our teacher said we can look it up on You Tube how to make a homemade book cover out of a grocery bag." oh my I felt O-L-D I told him, "Tommy those were the only book covers we ever had. I know how to cover a book without watching a YouTube tutorial." Seriously? YouTube. I was quite proud to show him my book cover skills, and I will say he was SO impressed. Above note the final product in the laundry room, ready to go to school.

Before and After

BEFORE

AFTER

Thanks to my Love for bringing these home from the Wayne County Fair last week.

catching up...

I did get some photos to upload today, so be sure to scroll down to catch UP. ::

I am in LOVE...

I am in love with these photos from our trip to Texas last week! Mariah, you did a beautiful job, I couldn't have asked for MORE! You captured those sweet moments of a Mommy's LOVE for her baby...I will cherish these photos FOREVER (click on the image to make it larger)

for the slideshow, grab a tissue and click here

Jack's Buckeye Weekend 2010

Jack had his Buckeye Trip with Daddy this past weekend. They had a great time. They left early on Friday morning and drove to Columbus. Stayed in their favorite hotel, swam at the pool, ate Wendy's for dinner and made chocolate chip cookies in their hotel room. ALL traditions that Jack and Daddy do EVERY year.

swimming at the hotel

making cookies with Daddy

Saturday they were up bright and early and ate breakfast at our favorite Bob Evans Restaurant and were parked in the lot by 8:30 am. They did some "tailgatin'" as Jack calls it, and just hung out doing Dad and son stuff in the lot. They had fun at the game, Jack was excited the Buckeyes won the game. Saturday after the game they stopped to visit our friends the Townsleys in Columbus before they headed to the farm.

Tailgatin' talking to Momma

Buckman and Tressel look alike

I promise you, Scott cries every time the band comes in the stadium, and I guarantee you he's crying now looking at the picture

Sweet sweet Buckeye boys

Would you believe it if I told you that John Townsley, left, was in our wedding :)

...and so was his little sister Jackie

Sunday morning was bright and early. They checked out Grandpa's farm equipment before church...then after church they had lunch at the hot spot known as the "Dalton Dariette" with Aunt Kathy too. Then they headed to the Wayne County Fair. This is the fair that Scott grew up going to, showing animals and corn at as well. He has never missed the fair. Of course MY personal favorite part of the fair at the donuts. LERCH'S DONUTS...mmm we all love them.

at the fair supporting Genuity

Grandpa's Farm Equipment

Charlie Harden, Scott's HS friend, is a State Patrol Officer in Wayne County

Aunt Kathy at the fair, her hair is growing back

Jack was THRILLED to get to do the trampoline,

we didn't get it done at the Iowa State Fair this year

He is FAR braver than his Mom

Monday morning they packed it up from the farm, picked a few pumpkins to take home, thank you grandpa Shisler...and headed out. They swung by the fair to pick up a couple of boxes of Lerch's Donuts to bring home for the rest of us. 12 hours later...they were home. Safe and Sound.

Picking pumpkins to bring home with Grandpa Shisler

One last swing through the fair to bring Lerch's Donuts home to the rest of us

What a great trip they had, a weekend that Jack will remember for a very long time, memories that are priceless for both Daddy and Son. We missed them here but KNOW how special these times are for the boys...and for their Dad.

Drew's First Game

Drew is #84 Gold Ravens

Now that looks like an excellent stance to me, on the end closest to me

Drew had his first tackle football game on Saturday morning. It was at Valley Stadium so I was a little bit farther away then at Tommy's game. The lens didn't get quite as close. I will need to request a sideline photographers pass for the next game. Oh and I also had a baby boy on my lap or in his sling for most of the game. Multi tasking yes.

Drew had a great time. He played tight end and defensive end. (okay I will admit, I just had to ask Scott to remind me of Drew's positions....I will learn more about football. I have never had a reason to know positions and their purpose before this year)

He had fun and is looking forward to getting back on the field again this Saturday...