Fall Dinner at IBS

Noel and Dafne were involved in the Fall Dinner at IBS this past week, Noel as a server and Dafne as a sophomore. Actually Mandie was there, also, as a photographer. It certainly brings back memories of Fall Dinners in the past! What great memories! The theme was a Parisian Cafe and the servers were dressed with French berets (is that spelled correctly?) and bow ties. It was really beautiful! The Student Council did a great job! Sorry, I didn't edit these pics before I downloaded them, so you'll have to lean to the left a little to see them! The first one is Dafne with some of her friends. I just thought they were all so pretty that I wanted to share the pictures. She went to the dinner with Rusty Brewer and the last picture is of her and her little brother, who is almost as tall as she is. (They back up to each other occasionally to measure and check progress!)

Gingerbread Houses in Progress

It has become a tradition for my family to go to Wichita every year on Saturday before Thanksgiving to a Gingerbread Workshop with my cousin, Sue Werle (Kimmel). It is so much fun and so relaxing to just play at making little houses. The large house you see here was not made by any of us. There were a lot of houses on display and this was one of those. We started with the ingredients you see on the left and you can see the finished products. It is a highlight of our year and a great kickoff to the holiday season. You ought to try it some time! You might think that you don't have time for things like this, but remember that the only things in life that count are faith, family and friends. Everything else will fall in to place. Thank you, Sue, for the wonderful day! We enjoyed being with you and Steve and thanks for the wonderful lunch that you provided for us!

More Gingerbread House Pics

More Gingerbread House Pics

Mandie surprised Bruce with an early Christmas present, a little black Cocker Spaniel puppy, which they named Bling.

Happy Veterans' Day!

To all of those who are veterans or have family members who are veterans, congratulations and thank you for your part in helping to defend our country and our freedom. My Grandpa and Grandma Hazelwood had ten children who grew to adulthood and out of six of their sons, five of them were in the military. My dad was in for only a short time and did not serve; he was given an honorable discharge due to health reasons. The other four served in various branches and all were in World War II and all returned home alive. There is a picture, but I don't have access to it, of all four of them in uniform. I remember my Grandma telling how different times God would impress on her heart to pray for one or another of them and then later find that they had been in danger. My oldest uncle, Harold Hazelwood, was on Midway Island during the bombing of Pearl Harbor. He was a communication technologist and kept the lines open between the island and mainland, even though he was injured. I am against war with all of my being and my feelings, but I am proud that my family was part of the great group who helped keep our country free. May God continue to smile on America for His children's sake!

My Baby Girl

Marquez Photography by Mandie is kicking off to a good start. These are some of the pictures that Mandie took of her little sister.

I actually had a "stay at home" day on Saturday and it was such a blessed relief! I can't tell you when the last time was that I was able to stay at home and work on being a housewife on a Saturday. Cleaning has just had to come in the evenings, between times, ect, with whoever had time to do it getting it done. I don't know about your family, but in our family everyone is "cross-trained", meaning there isn't any of us who can't jump in and do whatever needs doing in the house. I am so thankful for that. Okay, Noel isn't real good at ironing yet, but he's getting there and that's good. He even tried to cut his hair the other day! Yikes! Well, it really wasn't that bad, but I did think that Brother Brewer (at IBS) might think it was a strange and unusual haircut. With some triming he was fine! Anyway, my point is that I did have time to putter around the house and get some much needed things done. I could use about 3 more of those kind of days! I think I am actually ready to post some pictures of our bedrooms, now! (Ha!) Actually the kids are on the run so much that sometimes their rooms get messy, but they are trying to keep them nice and I am very proud of them. I want to post some pictures of the living room and dining room and ask for honest opinions on some decorating that I have done in there. I changed the dining room a little and while I like it a lot, I 'm not sure that it flows from the living room decor. I was talking to Bianca about it and she said that I should post pictures and ask for an opinion. Please let me know what you think. I will have to post them tomorrow because I forgot my camera today, but I welcome your opinions!