Jay's family birthday dinner

 This will be my last birthday post, I promise.  We had such a nice birthday dinner for Jay last Sunday night.  The weather was cold, but it cooperated so my mom, sister and aunt and uncle could make it out to celebrate.  I just love this picture of my mom and Jay.  Jay towers over my mom now.

 My sister is so creative.  She wrapped 16 golden boxes for Jay's golden birthday.  My favorite thing about this picture is Luke's face.  Too funny.

                          Jay's sweet smile, surrounded by his 16 golden boxes.

 I was so glad my Aunt Karen and Uncle Kerry made the trip from Springfield to join us.  We sure have a lot of laughs together.

 I had to include this picture because it makes me smile.  Craig reading his book, with his pen (he always has a pen) with Copper on his lap.

 Faith works at a bakery these days and brought these cookies for Jay.

 I love this picture.  I snapped it really quick just last night.  As usual these two were joking around with one another.

 Here's me reading my letter I wrote to Jay.  I did get some laughs out of him and a hug at the end.

We have a driver

Jay drove Nick to school on Jan. 17.  I couldn't believe it.  I was in my office, working, at 7:45 a.m.  Every morning at 7:45 for years I was always en route to or from school.  I was happily sipping my coffee when I get the text from above from Nick.  He forgot his lunch, could I bring it to him later?  Seriously!  My first day of not having to drive to school, really!  I give my boys one "free pass" per school year and I knew Nick's routine was thrown off that morning I so did deliver his lunch to him.  I just had to laugh about it.  It's so typical.  

 And here's the driver on his birthday.  Jay wanted to go to Roanoke to get his license.  He insisted it would be faster than driving into Bloomington.  He may have been right, but all I knew was it took 40 minutes one way to get to Roanoke driving on snowy, country roads.  And the state workers in Roanoke were just as cranky as the state workers in Bloomington.  However, the mission did get accomplished.

I didn't include a picture of Jay's truck cake in my other post.  I was really pleased with how it turned out.  It took me all of 2 seconds to get use to Jay driving.  Of course I have worry, but technology has helped some of that worry with apps that track your children.  Hee, Hee.  And the rest of my worry I'm giving to God.

Happy 16th Birthday, Jay

On Sunday we celebrated Jay's birthday with family.  Today is filled with getting his driver's license and playing a basketball game out of town tonight.  We did all of our celebrating on Sunday and getting his license on his actual birthday is celebration enough for Jay.  I wrote this for Jay and read it out loud to him and our family on Sunday night.

In honor of your 16th Birthday

Jay, just in case your dad and I don't mention it enough, you were a challenging baby and toddler.  You were colicky and cried a lot.  Aunt Mimi can remember nights that she would come over to give dad and I a break and by the time we got home she was sweating profusely from bouncing you on the bed.  Thankfully God blessed you with being adorable so we were able to look past the crying.  We really didn't know any different.  You were the first grandchild and Nana would say you were a whole lot like your momma in that regard.  She would also say of all her grandchildren you were the busiest.  She remembers literally running through the "Wheels of Time" museum when you were 6.  That's what you did, you ran.  Fast forward into toddlerhood.  Every line I drew, you crossed it.  Your dad always said you were angry until you learned how to open the refrigerator door and demand juice.  

Since you are my firstborn, there are a few things I've learned from you.  I've learned how to be more patient,  I've learned more about selflessness, and I've learned that I can try to do my best with you but I still have epic failures, like your first day of detassling, "Is it hot out there, Jay?"  And who can forget my rootbeer chicken fiasco.  I won't even go into all my cooking failures.  I hope that as you grow up you'll look past many of my short comings, after all the two of us really are "good enough" people.  I hope one day you'll say, "Mom really tried, she loved God, she loved me and Nick, and she loved dad.  Good enough."  I've also been exposed to some different vocabulary from you.  I've learned that anything cool is a badger.  Who knew?  I've learned that using the words of Jesus himself is quite clever, especially when one is trying to get out of doing something.  When I've asked you to set the table I've been met with, "Woman tis not my hour."  And I've learned that many of our Siebert family stories get placed in your "cool story jar."  I've learned that I finally have someone in this house who understands just how abnormal dad really is and yet we still love him.  I mean who else can figure the physics of time like dad?  "No that's not a short cut, Nick, and here's why."  As a family we're then taken into a  lesson of physics and time, at which point you once again pull out your cool story jar.  I've learned that you and your brother are more similar than what either of you care to recognize or acknowledge.  I like to think the 2 of you will be able to build a bridge in your relationship as you grow into adulthood, but that is something I've put in God's hands, which leads me into my prayer for you. 

Jay, my prayer for you on your 16th birthday is for God's protection of you.  I pray God gives you the confidence to know who you are and what you stand for.  I pray that your identity is in Christ and I pray He places godly friends in your life as He has so graciously done for your dad and I.  I pray one day you find a spouse who loves Jesus and adores you like I have adored your dad - even during his physics lessons.  So have fun and enjoy this new adventure, just be careful, please.  

Love you, Jay.  Mom

Busy 101

 I am thankful I am healthy.  I am thankful for my job, and I am thankful for the health of my family and the work Mike has been given.  That being said, I am tired and a wee bit overwhelmed.  Perhaps if I look over my blog posts from previous years I might find I feel this way around this time of year, or maybe it's just because I'm getting older and I know that very soon I will have some relief since Jay will be turning 16 and will be able to take over some of the driving.  Who knows.  I just know that lately I'm felt worn out.  I'm fairly faithful in my blogging but notice I haven't blogged since December.  That is proof of how busy we've been.  But enough complaining.  I thought I'd post some pictures of what we've been up to lately.  Nick desperately wanted to have some friends over during break.  I might have picked the coldest day over break to have boys over.  Perhaps not my best move.  To top it off I took them out for ice cream on that very cold day.  The boys came back to our house to play ping pong.  Again, I was tired and wasn't in the best frame of mind to have kids over, but I was able to fulfill my promise to Nick and he was happy so mission accomplished.

 This was the day I was doing a happy dance.  It was the first day back to school after Christmas break.  Hallejah!

 This picture is really disgraceful of Jay and I (notice Nick's smile in the back, however), but I had to post it.  Jay was less than thrilled about the picture, as you can see, but I didn't care.  I had to document the moment.  I drove the boys to school on Friday for what would be the official last day of me driving them to school.  While I know there will still be days here and there that I will drive them to school, it was really the last day before Jay gets his license.  Monday is MLK day and Tuesday is his birthday.  Notice my smile?  I was feeling guilty about being so excited about Jay getting his license because in no way does my excitement mean I am not worried about him driving.  I'm praying for God's protection over Jay daily and will continue to do so.  Whether I was depressed or excited about him driving, the worry would still be there.

 This picture really speaks to what Mike and I and the boys have lived and breathed lately - basketball.  Nick had a tournament this weekend which was horrific.  They lost both games by 30 points. Jay had a game on Friday night.  Jay is not getting the playing time this year and it's frustrating to him, but we keep encouraging him to stay with it.  I got to thinking the other day that next January may look entirely different from any other January we've seen in 6 years as both of my boys may decide not to play bball next year.  All I've known in January is basketball.

 For the first time in a very long time we went out for dinner together as a family.  As usual we decided to go last minute.  Thankfully Nick's dinner time appetite never disappoints.  He ate an entire 16 oz prime rib.  I'm not even appalled anymore, but our waitress was.  Mike, Jay and I had finished our meal and waited another 20 minutes so Nick could finish every last morsel on his plate.  It's ridiculous, but somewhat amusing.

After dinner we made a quick stop at Ausili's. As I go into this week I am excited for Jay turning 16.  He's beyond ready as he's the last of his core group of friends to turn 16.  I'll post later this week about Jay's bday festivities.

2017 Joys and Challenges

As I was looking back through my blog from this past year I am reminded of what a blessed year it was.  We were healthy and happy.  What more can one ask for?  My first joy this year is my mom's health.  She is truly living her best life.  In January I picked her up from the airport.  She had just gotten back from a trip with her grade school friends and as we walked to the baggage terminal she told me she had had it, she was going to lose the weight.  By November, she had reached her goal.  Another joy I had was being able to spend time with my sister this past summer.  We traveled to Myrtle Beach and Alabama.  Our car rides revolved around a lot of laughter, except the last leg of Myrtle when we were ready to strangle Nick - which leads me to another joy.  I loved my vacation in Myrtle with my youngest, and it's a vacation I know Nick will never forget.  It's been a joy to witness Jay as he approaches age 16.  He worked hard this summer, purchased a vehicle in October, and got a B average this semester.  Watching Jay gain more independence and come into his own keeps me inspired to keep moving forward with him, even during the times when he's acting like an unreasonable teenager.  Spending time with Ausili's has been another joy, even though we didn't make it to TN this year.  Every year that goes by I'm so aware our kids are aging.  My heart is always full every time we get together with them.  Mike's business is another joy.  There wasn't one time this past year when I questioned or wondered whether Mike running his own business was the right thing to do.  The work was beyond consistent.  At times it bordered on insanity (see my April blog posts), but I am very thankful for the work that has been provided for Mike, and not just for financial reasons but I truly believe this work is nourishing to his soul.  The beauty of following God's plan is not stressing over things.  I have no idea what His plan is for Mike.  For all I know Mike may be working for someone else next year or maybe he will have hired another person or maybe, just maybe, we will have that building Mike has needed to further his business.  Who knows.  I don't worry about it much.  It will all work out just fine.  One challenge I've had this entire year is time and aging.  Together, they don't mix very well.  I've decided as I age I have got to think things through as to what I'm doing and how I'm doing it and all of that takes time, which I don't have.  I'm a work in progress.  My biggest challenge, however, has been my dad.  My dad's entire situation is just heart breaking and there is nothing anyone can do about it.  He's had a consistent decline this year and when I visit him I never know exactly how I'll find him.  If he's up in his wheelchair he's a little better but most of the time when I visit him he's sound asleep in his bed.  He has no interest in seeing his grands.  He has no interest in me reading to him (because I've tried).  He has no interest in anything, other than sleeping.  I'm comforted knowing my dad knows Jesus.  I know that one he'll be able to laugh, walk and talk but it won't be this side of heaven.  Clearly I have way more joys than I do challenges.  I'm ready for 2018.  Jay will get his license and truly I am excited about that, even though it does come with extra worry.  I am taking a trip with my mom to TX in April.  I am going back to Myrtle in June, although the verdict is still out as to who in my family is joining me.  Faith graduates from high school in May.  I'm never inclined to make resolutions.  My only goals this year is to work, parent, move and pray.

Merry Christmas

 This Christmas was wonderful.  As my boys have aged I have truly enjoyed every year with them more and more.  I'm so aware that one day all this will be gone.  They won't be waking up at our house on Christmas morning.  I am trying to be so intentional and living in the moment.

 The dogs got Christmas sweaters.  Cole decided to wear his off the shoulder.  Ha.  Cole cuddled up next to Jay during present time.

 Jay wrapped Nick's present from him in duct tape.  It took Nick a painstaking and frustrating long time to get the present open.

 My mom, John and Linda and the Ausili's came out for Christmas day.  It was such a nice day with good food and good company.  This is Mike's motto (and mine too).  He wants a home where good food and good company is what people think of when they visit our home.

 These two.  What can I say about them?  Faith is a senior, a senior I tell you!  What in the world!  There just aren't words for this craziness!  Again I go back to being intentional.  I know my home and our times together will be staple for Faith as she gets ready to spread her wings and fly.

 Are you noticing a trend with Cole?  He's always in the thick of things.  He thinks he's a lap dog and has no concept of personal space.

 Jay made this centerpiece in his Ag class.  I thought it was beautiful and because it's real, it has a lovely smell.  Jay joked that he kept it in his locker for a day and his locker smelled like a forest.

 We got a ping pong table for the boys this year, but as with most things with my family, it wasn't as easy purchase.  I bought an inexpensive table from a sporting good store.  As Mike was putting it together it literally fell apart which did not bode well considering our boys and their friends would be using it.  We ended up getting a nice, well made table at another store in town.  By the time we take back the table that fell apart Mike will have made 3 trips for our boys' entertainment!  Never a dull moment in our house.  On a side note, the table is a huge hit.  My boys love it.  Curtis loved it and my mom even got to school the boys in it.

 These boys.  Curt spent the night on Christmas.  This is how I found them this morning, curled up on the chair (probably looking at tires on the internet) with yep, you guessed it, Cole.  Imagine that.

I was so happy Ausili's were able to join us this year.  In looking back I think it had been 2 years since they were last with us.  It was a real blessing to have them with us this Christmas.

                                                          Me and my momma!

 Mike baked a 12 lbs prime rib and it was delicious.  He made what is clearly becoming his specialty, his twice baked potatoes.

All eight of us.  I wanted to freeze this night, knowing how things change and having all eight of us together is a rare gift and one that won't last forever, but while it lasts I will sure soak up every second of it.

Christmas Eve

 We had another wonderful Christmas Eve.  Our one hiccup was Craig got sick after church.  This year was a little different because Christmas Eve fell on a Sunday.  Our plan this year was genius.  We met at mom's church for a 10:00 service, headed to Kim's for lunch and then after Kim's we went to mom's for gift opening.  Poor Craig came home from church and went straight to bed.  In Craig's absence Mike was in charge of grilling.  The picture below was Mike and Kim searching her drawers for a meat thermometer.  She didn't have one but Mike jokingly kidded Kim she had plenty of wine openers.

 The hunt for a meat thermometer failed miserably.  Needless to say I know what I'm buying Kim and Craig next year for Christmas.

 Our entire family by the tree at mom's church.  We loved going to church in the morning on Christmas Eve.  We wish we could do that every Christmas Eve.

 The four kiddos!  Jay is 15 (almost 16).  Nick is 11.  Lauren is 10 and Luke is 6.  We are incredibly blessed.

Nana and her four grands!  Nana spoiled us of us this year.  What a difference a year makes, however.  My mom has had an incredible year.  She's lost half her body weight, she's traveled the country, spent time with her brothers and settled my grandparents affairs.  She is involved in two book clubs, swims or exercises in some capacity daily, and she and I are involved in Bible Study Fellowship for women once a week.  She continues to be very actively involved in all four of her grandchildren's lives.  2016 was such a difficult year.  2017 has been very kind to all of us and we are very grateful.  God is good, all the time!