Family Time

We are with family and lovin' every second.

Here are some photos of the kids with their cousins:

We've Been Good

Merry Christmas from the Owen Kids

Question of the Day

Question of the Day:

"Do you ever have privacy with Daddy?"

David (age 7)

Question of the Day

Question of the Day:

"Why is it okay to say, 'head butt' but not okay to call someone a 'butt head'?"

Thomas, age 5

November Student of the Month

Thomas was chosen as the November student of the month for his class.


His award was for "his eagerness to learn. He is respectful and responsible."

Here is Thomas getting his picture taken after receiving his award:


It was extra special to receive the award when Gran and Daddo were in town.

Elisabeth is Three

On November 17th, Elisabeth turned 3.

I took a ton of pictures. I want Seth you to see them all. So, instead of posting just a few pictures, I am sharing a slide show of 26 pictures (yes, there were quite a few more photos). Below the slideshow is a few of my very favorite pictures.

Owen Trick Or Treaters

School Favorites

I asked the boys to tell me their favorite part of school, excluding recess and PE. I asked them to tell me a favorite learning (academic) activity.

Jonathan: Math Group

David: Center Time

Thomas: Fire drills and Earthquake drills
What?
Yes, I like it because sometimes my shoes get wet when we walk through the grass.

Soccer Saturday

Today's 1st game was at 10:30 in Albany.



Today's second game was at 1:30 in Lebanon.




The 3rd game was at 4:00 in Lebanon.



Little sister was at every game.

Crazy Hair

The boys are participating in an Awana program at a local church. The past few years Jonathan has been a part of cub scouts. He loved cub scouts but this year we couldn't make the cub scout schedule work for us. All three boys can go to Awana's and they are having a blast! This past Wednesday was Crazy Hair or Hat Night.

Aren't they cool?


A couple of pictures of David and Thomas playing games:



What does little sister do after Crazy Hair night at Awana's?

She wears a wig when we drop her brothers off at school. Then, she insists on wearing the wig to Safeway.



She was adorable -even if one amused clerk said she looked like a chia pet.

September Student of the Month

David was chosen as a Student of the Month for his class for the month of September. He was chosen for "being a super thinker, a great example to others, and super Listening."

He received his award at a school assembly yesterday. Here's a video of him accepting the award:


Here's our September Student of the Month. We are super proud of him.

His First School Fight

I jokingly asked Thomas if he got in trouble today. And, he said, "I almost did."

Surprised, I asked him to tell me more.

He said that he was fighting with another boy and then his teacher told him to stop.

I asked, "Were you play fighting or were you fighting because you were mad."

He said, "I wasn't playing. I was fighting."

Apparently, the other boy hit Thomas first. So, Thomas elbowed him back. Then, the boy hit him. So, naturally, Thomas hit him again. And, then Thomas poked the kid in the back of the neck. The kicker is, I am not sure if the poking happened before or after his teacher told him to stop.


A couple of side notes: I feel sort of guilty for saying, "His first school fight," as if I am expecting more. I also think I should feel guilty for joking about him getting in trouble. Although, if I hadn't, I wouldn't have had the opportunity to talk to him about hitting at school.

Lastly, this boy has my heart. He is the toughest, tender-hearted kid I know.

Oh, and that other boy told on him. Can you believe it?

Treasuring Every Minute

Elisabeth is slowly adjusting to her brothers all being in school. It is the cutest thing ever.

She brought her lunch box with her when we went to pick up her brother from the first day of Kindergarten. She's brought it with her most days. Sometimes I put a small snack in it, which really makes her smile.

On the second morning, she insisted on bringing "my backpack" and she really wanted to go to the lineup time before school. She really, really wanted to line up next to her brother.

When the kids went in to the school, she said, "I go to class! I'm a big girl."

The lunch box and backpack have joined us in the car for dropoff and pickup each day. This morning she wanted her lunch box. I told her I didn't have a lunch ready for her so she happily put her blanket and stuffed dog ("Baba" and "Doggie) in her backpack.



Thank goodness MOPS (Mother's of Preschoolers) starts this morning. Although, she's pulling on me right now saying "It's time to go!!" and we have 30 more minutes until it starts.

I'm treasuring every minute of this sweet girl.

Thomas's First Day of School

Today was Thomas's First Day of Kindergarten.

He was very excited to go to school with his brothers.

Here are the boys before school. Can you tell how excited Thomas was?


Here's a group picture of the kids before school:



An excited Kindergartener:


This picture shows just how ready for school he was:

You see, he did not want to wait for Momma. He did not want to go to his classroom before lineup time outside. He wanted to go with his brothers. In fact, I snapped this picture after David yelled, "Momma, he's still coming with me." At that moment- or right before I took the picture- I decided to let him go. Better to be happy starting Kindergarten than sad! I met up with him on the playground and we got his stuff settled in his room after the lineup time outside.

Thomas's First Day Thoughts:

What did you do today?

"Momma, I'll tell you what I did. I made a raccoon and now it's hanging up."

"We looked around the school for hands with hearts. Some were on walls. Some people had them on their hands."

"We listened to the kissing hand story and 2 raccoon books."

What was your favorite part of the day?

"My favorite part of my day was... when she (his teacher) had paper animals that made letters and animal puppets."

Was there anything you didn't like?

"Ya, there was one girl that was grumpy. She had a grumpy face the whole entire time."

Tell me something you learned:

"Don't eat the blue stuff on the walls. It looks like gum but isn't gum."

(That's right, he's talking about blue sticky tack. I'm so glad he learned it isn't gum!)

Some Random Thomas comments:

"Did you know we have 9 girls and only 7 boys? There are a lot of girls."

"Two people fell at recess- only 1 was crying really hard. Well, I fell but I only got dirty."

"If you disobey the school rules, they don't do anything. The teachers just tell you to stop. I didn't do it. I just saw someone else."

(Oh boy...)

Jonathan and David's First Day of School

Today was the first day of school for Jonathan and David. In honor of that, here's a quote I saw today that I really like:

"The average pencil is seven inches long, with just a half-inch eraser - in case you thought optimism was dead." ~Robert Brault

The REAL quote of the day was what Jonathan said when he got in the car after school:
"These people are crazy and this school is crazy!"

He could not believe he had tests on the first day of school. The tests were aptitude tests. Jonathan talked the whole way home from school. That was surprising. David is usually the talker. Jonathan is super excited that his teacher is reading Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief to the class during their DEAL (Drop Everything And Listen) time.

Here's Jonathan before school.



David had a great first day of 1st grade. He is worn out. He has been fairly quiet, which is unusual. I had the opportunity to visit his class today. I read "Allie the Allergic Elephant" to the class. He seemed to be having a good time. He said one of his favorite things is the "book bunk" in his classroom. It is a loft for reading books. Today, they got to play under it.

Here is David before the first day of 1st Grade:


Here are both boys before school:


Here are all of the kids before school. (Thomas starts Kindergarten next week. He was excited about wearing his backpack around today.)

Don't Make Me Do It

Just now, Thomas came inside to throw away a popsicle stick. As he's walking through the house, he says,

"Momma, don't make me drop this grasshopper."

I helped him throw away his trash.

Excuse Me

"Excuse Me, Mr. Know Everything About Trucks, how is that going to stay on?" Thomas (age 5)

Big Changes for the Family

This is Seth's last week at Target. He is starting a new job with Amazon.

Due to numerous reasons, Seth is going to move initially without the family. His new location is supposed to be "short term". We aren't sure how short term, yet. Due to that, school starting, and us owning a house in Oregon, we are going to wait to move the whole family.

We are very excited about the new job and opportunity. It will be challenging to be apart, though. We'd love your prayers. If you want more info, send us an email or message on Facebook.

Cub Scout Camp

In July, Jonathan went to Cub Scout Day Camp. He loved it. He enjoyed everything, especially archery and shooting BB guns.

Here's a picture of him holding a snake. I wish I could say he hated it. Look a that smile!


Jonathan was part of the color guard during the closing ceremonies. He did a fantastic job.






Here's a picture of Jonathan and his buddy, Tyler, watching the closing ceremony. They had fun together all week.