Catching Up

So let's see...it's been about 6 months since our last entry, so needless to say, there's a bit of catching up to do.

July: Alaira played softball, Hunter played baseball, we swam, we slept in, we read, we watched movies, we hosted visitors. We traveled to Steamboat Springs, CO with some of the Voss family and had ourselves a Western style vacation. We rode horses on a dinner ride, we went to the rodeo on the Fourth of July and watched the fireworks with all the cowboys. We also enjoyed the local Fourth of July parade that morning. We enjoyed the beautiful mountains and making awesome family memories. At the end of the month we travelled with the Leafgreen side of the family to Pagosa Springs, CO. There we rented a family cabin and the kids were able to make a fort, fish, ride horses, hike to a waterfall and hide from the rain at times. Great family memories were made there as well.

August: Alaira began another round of softball, improving each game out. Hunter was glad for the break from practice and games. The kids and Robin drove to Nebraska to bring home our new puppy. Our little (and we do mean little!) Darby has worked her way into our home and our hearts. So days of potty training and doggie training began. The kids really jumped into the "real work" it takes to train a puppy, complete with helping mommy clean up her potty and poopie messes. Daddy tollerates our little furrball, but misses the big, sloppy love of a lab. A week after we brought Darby home, the kids started school, and Robin got back to watching a little baby boy she'd begun to watch in the Spring.

September: With school in full swing for all three kids (Gibb's only in Pre-K part time) the second weekend of September brought a slew of family to visit. Robin's brother Mark entered a biking/running race nearby our house, so he brought his wife and son for a little visit. When the other Vosses heard of the visit, they joined in and Tim and his family visited, as well as Robin's parents. There were bodies everywhere, but we had a great time. Alaira finished her softball. Hunter had his braces put on his teeth.

October: Alaira turned 10 and had a fun birthday party at a local tween beauty shop followed with a slumber party at home. Then she felt a desire to donate her hair. So on the 22nd she came home without about 14 inches of her beautiful blonde locks and a tear stained face. It didn't turn out like we thought it was, but we know that hair grows with time. Mommy was probably more upset for days, yet wanted to encourage and build up Alaira for her sweet generosity. So many people praised her. Our neighbor lady put some fun fuchsia streaks in the front of it to make it special for her. The tears stopped and the drama subsided and we got on with life. And she looks adorable with her short hair. The family then was plagued with a severe respiratory flu, including Toby, who contracted H1N1 during a hunting trip. After gruelling through that for several weeks, we got the news that Toby's grandmother, Nora Leafgreen, had passed away. We went to Scottsbluff, NE for the funeral and laid back trick or treating.

November: Early in the month, the family travelled to Lincoln, NE to visit Robin's parents. We ate our favorite local foods, played with cousins and went to a movie. Alaira began piano lessons and also joined a select percussion group at school. She also found out that she got a part in our church's Christmas program, so extra practices began for that. Hunter kept improving in his reading...and even began to look like he "liked" it! Gibby continued to make all sorts of friends in his preschool and began to have playdates with them. Thanksgiving brought the Hoesch's (Toby's sister's family from Dallas), his parents and his mother's parents. Bodies again were everywhere, as well as food galore. We enjoyed a smoked turkey feast, provided by Toby's new love of smoking meats, as well as an early Christmas celebration. We sang Christmas carols, the girls went to the Nutcracker, we cooked, we ate, we ate, we ATE!! We had a blast.

December: Robin's health began to deteriorate and several tests were run to figure out why she was having so much pain. It was determined that her gall bladder wasn't working properly, so eating was becoming very difficult. She's determined not to have surgery right away, so dietary changes are being made to compensate for the gall bladder. Hopefully with time, the pain and discomfort will subside. Hunter began basketball practices and both kids were busy with extra practices for their Christmas musical at our church. They both did a great job proclaiming Christ's birth in the Old West style program and Alaira's solo was a special little blessing to all of us. Toby's folks were able to come to see the program with us, along with Robin's aunt and our neighbors. Christmas plans were scrapped after Robin's parents, younger brother and his son were in a very serious car accident, as they were leaving town to come here. We are relieved that there were no life threatening injuries, but broken ribs, a sternum, cuts, bruises and stiff bodies leave a temporary inconvenient pain. The day of the crash, God had planned a HUGE ice and snow storm that paralyzed the midwest. So no one could drive to us, and we could not drive to them. But God had the timing, chaos and details all planned out, and He blessed our unconventional Christmas. Robin's two older brothers and their family's were still planning to visit, so we had our own Christmas here at the house. We had the smoked turkey, we had the ham, we went skiing, we went sledding, we had Robin's aunt's 6 desserts...we had bags, kids and coats everywhere, but we had a fun time. Then when the roads cleared a couple days later, we loaded up three cars and caravanned to Lincoln. We spent about 5 days there, caring for our injured family members and making some simple Christmas memories too. Please pray for the continued health and recovery of Robin's family, as the past few months have been a real trial and burden at times. But God is in control and we rest in that.