....and more moving delays...

....(continued)....


Friday, July 16th, we are an hour from our new home with the expectation that the moving truck will be there the very next day we get the phone call from the moving truck driver, Bill. He now had to go, against his wishes, to Missouri to take a load back to Illinois before he could bring our stuff to Kansas. He'd give us a call later to let us know when he'd be there.


In the meantime we roamed our town and kept ourself busy.

Montezuma, Kansas. Population; just under 1000. One grocery store, one restaurant, one hardware store, one pharmacy, one tiny library, a post office, a town pool, about five churchs, two grain elevators and a large Mennonite community!!

Yip and Yap have spent most of their time in the tree in our front yard! Great for climbing!!

The town pool is small but only a block from our house. With the temps hitting 100+ degrees, we were there three times the first week. We just missed signing up for swimming lessons but the boys have made tons of progress learning to swim on their own just in the past two days! They may be jumping off the diving board before school starts!!

We didn't pack too many toys in the car and the ones the kids did play with were small and they were already bored with them. A wonderful older couple from the church we are attending invited us over to borrow some cooking utensils, pots, pans and toys. They even let Yip and Yap borrow this OLD pair of roller skates. What a great couple!!

After being stuck in Hutchinson, KS with truck trouble our driver finally arrived on Thursday, July 22nd. Well, it's been a week and everything is unpacked and organized...well, except for the garage!

\

So far I'm really enjoying our new town and home. Everyone here has been so welcoming and friendly. Montezuma is such a small town I feel comfortable letting the boys ride their bikes to the playground on their own. I don't mind walking a block to the grocery store while the baby takes a nap. This town reminds me of Andy Griffith's Mayberry; small, clean and friendly!

Who can teach me how to do dishes?

It has been three years since I had a dishwasher.

I need help.

The first time I ran it we still didn't have our stuff and I didn't have dishwashing soap but I had dry laundry detergent. Didn't I read somewhere you could use laundry soap in a pinch??

Obviously not!!

Are we there yet?

Yes!! We made it to Kansas. All in one piece and no children were lost along the way! There were some bumps along the way and some change of plans but we are finally settled. All the boxes are unpacked and we are starting to live "normal" as Yap puts it :)

Here's a quick rundown of the last few weeks for those of you who are interested in hearing about our little adventures.

The movers had us all packed and loaded on Tues., July 12th. They gave us a window between the 17th and the 22nd of when they would arrive in Kansas. Since they weren't in a hurry, we weren't either. We were planning on arriving late the evening of Sunday the 18th.

So 10:30 pm on the 12th we rolled in to St. Louis and crashed. After a big breakfast the next morning, the 13th, we took off for the Arch! The boys were quite impressed and loved being able to see all the "ant" people below. At the Museum of Westward Expansion I kept teasing the boys that this would be our new home...

...a sod house. They weren't impressed.

After the Arch we headed to the Grant National Historic Site just down the road. If you enjoy history this is a great place to go. I learned lots about Ulysses S. Grant I never expected. Did you know grant never wanted to be in teh military? He wanted to be a horse farmer.

After leaving St. Louis we drove to Stanton, MO and Thursday, the 14th, morning we visited the Meramac Caverns. I had visited these caverns when I was five years old with my grandparents and wanted Yip and Yap to see them too. They weren't nearly as big as I remember them being, but still pretty impressive. Yip was afraid there were werewolves inside!

Thursday afternoon the truck driver hauling all our stuff and told us he thought he'd make it to Kansas by Sat., 17th, at noon. Could we be there?

You bet!! I was excited we'd be able to get settled sooner than expected. We decided to speed up the trip and get to Kansas Thursday night. We stopped at Ft. Scott about 4 pm, an hour before they closed to take a look around and a well needed break from being in the car! Ft. Scott was SO interesting! I really want to check it out again someday because there wasn't nearly enough time to see all I wanted to see.

Friday morning, July 16th, we left Eastern Kansas and drove to the Wichita Zoo. Neat animals, very hot (100 degrees) and a good stopping point after a long morning drive.

After leaving Wichita we still had a 3 hour drive until we made it to our new home. With only an hour to go before we arrived at our final destination, we received another call from the driver......plans had changed....

....to be continued.....

Photo of the Day - The Camera Lover and the Camera Hater

Yip always looks away but Yap is always ready to pose.

Call me crazy but sometimes

I really like taking pictures when they aren't smiling!

Photo of the Day - Is it Hot Today?

Is it hot where you are today?

Don't complain...remember,

this is what is was like six months ago.

 Enjoy the sunshine!

Photo of the Day - My Very Favorite Photo

My husband took this photo exactly one year ago on my 33rd birthday while we were walking around University of Illinois campus in Champaign. 

A friend commented on this photo, "Exactly what motherhood is, the ability to give love and attention to three children at the same time." I couldn't agree more.

Photo of the Day - Time Marches On

Taken in Indianapolis in, what I believe, was the State Archives Building.

Feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

These are hanging from the ceiling of a two story building. If I had to guess, I'd say that each watch is five feet wide...I'm probably wrong about that. Interesting factoid, each watch's time represents an important moment in Indiana history.

Photo of the Day - Yahoo loves it outside.

Photo of the Day - Wallaby

Wallaby at the zoo....furry little critter isn't it?

What a life. All this little guy has to do is sit around, look cute and watch crazy people all day. Ever wonder what she's thinking about the strollers? I mean, here come these SUV strollers down the path, at every zoo, packed with baby and essentials.

I bet she's thinking, "Dude, where's your pouch? Glad I'm not a human"

Photo of the Day - Yip and his Stick

Yip in his element...outdoors. I really love this photo but I can't put my finger on just what it is that I love so much. Texture? The hat? The stick?

Photo of the Day - Scenes from a Farm.

I sure am going to miss Farmer Dan and his truck!

How do you spell "quantsant"?

I'm guessing here. Spell check didn't even recognize my spelling.

Couple of months old but I just love the pile of stuff along the side. Every farm/shed/barn has a pile doesn't it?

Again, not sure what I think about the green vignette. What about you?

Photo of the Day - My Cowgirl

I'm ready for Kansas too Mama!

Photo of the Day - God is Shining on Us!

The kids and I were driving home one afternoon when Yip pointed to these clouds and said, "Look Mommy, God is shining on us!" in a voice of amazement only a child has. So we stopped and took a picture of God. Thanks for the reminder God that you are always watching over us.

Photo of the Day - Little Boy and his Truck

My little boy Yap loves trucks and cars and tractors...if it moves, he'll play with it!

Photo of the Day - Seed Pod

The kids and I found this seed pod on a walk one day. Anyone know what kind of plant this is? Weed is not an acceptable answer. :)

Photo of the Day - Halfway to Winter :)

Missing winter? With these 90 degree days I sure am!!

Don't worry, we are halfway there...

 

...and pretty soon you'll be wishing for these hot, hot days again!

What's your favorite season? I love autumn myself.

Photo of the Day - Tree Roots

I took this photo back at Mother's Day on the river bank at Salamonie Reservoir in Indiana.

Photo of the Day - Swing on Yip

Photo of the Day - Just one Drop

Sometimes it's the smallest, simplest things in life that I find the most wonderous...like a single drop of dew.

Photo of the Day - The Same Name

A few weeks ago the kids and I went back to Indiana for a family reunion. As we arrived this elderly relative was just getting out of the car. I remember seeing her at family gatherings when I was younger but honestly didn't know her name or how we were related. When she saw Yahoo her eyes lit up!

"Is that the baby who has the same name as me?" she asked.

They have the same first name and I never knew it! We had named Yahoo after my great grandmother on my mother's side of the family, the only person I knew of with Yahoo's name and here I had a second relative with the same name on dad's side of the family!

It was so much fun watching this older woman watch Yahoo. I think this little toddler just made her day!

Boxes, boxes everywhere!!

Moving Day #1 down and only two more to go! (The curse of the car struck over the weekend but I'll get back to that in  a future post.)

After a bit of a late start the moving guys attacked our house with gusto. Everything is now packed and ready to be put on the truck tomorrow.

But my husband really suprised me by actually washing out the kitchen cabinets. Grant it was man clean, but it still goes to show he is a pretty darn good husband! My fridge is almost empty too. The only thing left is milk (with nothing to drink out of), eggs (nothing to cook them in) and green beans (no forks to eat them with). Hmm...guess breakfast will be at McDonald's tomorrow.

While the packers were working and DR was cleaning, the kids and I went swimming, played at the park and ate ice cream. When we returned home in the late afternoon Yahoo was exhausted and went to bed right away but Yip and Yap were still full of energy and needed to play. Okay...what to do? All the toys, movies, everything is packed up!! 

Okay....umm...oh look a marker!! Then a bit more searching I found a bunch of markers in a box that hadn't been taped up yet. So up until bedtime the boys did this.....

....they drew funny pictures all over the moving boxes!! Pretty creative I thought. Plus, it's always nice when they can entertain themselves.

One day down, two more to go. Tomorrow the movers will throw everything on the truck and we'll be on our way. Sometime next week, hopefully, our stuff will be at our new house. Wish us luck!

Photo of the Day - Dandelion Seeds

I just absolutely love the texture in this shot. I'm not loving the green vignette though. I lean toward black myself.

What do you think? Should I change it?

Photo of the Day - Before and After

I love Picnik, now my favorite editing tool. Before and after. Yahoo was so washed out in the before shot. This was one of those times when I wished I had a manual camera with all the settings so I could play with f-stops, apertures, etc. We were in the shade on a really sunny day and I am pretty sure my camera wasn't reading the light the way I wanted it to.

Photo of the Day - Evergreen

....another version....

I like this one!

I Won Myself An Award Folks!

Thanks Morgan at Becoming Homegrown for nominating me as a versatile blogger. What an award! What an honor! What a catapault into the world of celebrity, fame and fortune!! (okay maybe not that last one)

ver·sa·tile
Pronunciation: \ˈvər-sə-təl, adjective

1 : changing or fluctuating readily : variable      Yep, that's me I change diapers and move 800 miles at the drop of a hat.
2 : embracing a variety of subjects, fields, or skills; also : turning with ease from one thing to another Let's see my job description reads; mom, cook, teacher, referree, gardener, toy maker, barber...I think that makes me versatile.
3: capable of turning forward or backward : reversible : capable of moving laterally and up and down b of an anther : having the filaments attached at or near the middle so as to swing freely Well, i have this double jointed elbow....just kidding, no versatile body parts...I think...

Now it is my turn to pass it on and play the blogger award game...

1. Thank the person who gave you the award

2. Share seven things about you

3. Nominate 15 newly discovered blogs

4. Let your nominees know about the award

 

Seven things about me...

• 
  
  I've hiked the Grand Canyon.
• 
  
  Chocolate can not survive in my presence.
• 
  
  If I didn't have to feed my family I'd be a vegetarian.
• 
  
  I own a shirt that says, "I feel a SIN coming on..." hee hee, and so does my mom!
• 
  
  My husband proposed to me after dating for only two months.
• 
  
  Some day I am going to run a marathon.
• 
  
  If I could never teach art again I would open a bakery.

Okey Dokey, now to nominate some new blogs. Sorry I don't have 15 but here's some of my fave versatile blogs.

Ranch Momma (she lives in Saskatchewan)
They Lend Me Their Hearts (she's going to be in the community play, Sound of Music)
ecoMILF (from Australia and is the middle of winter now, how I envy her)
Mrs. Art Teacher great art projects!!

Photo of the Day - My Grandparents

Yap with my Grandma M.

I love to watch her with my kids; she enjoys them so much! She taught preschool and she is wonderful with little kids.

Yahoo with my Grandpa A. I lived with this set of grandparents during college. I don't know how they ever put up with me! Maybe they thought of it as an investment so I would just bring cute great grandkids back years later.