I'm back!

Back to my blog that is! We went through some big changes this year with Kenny graduating from his Basic and Advanced Training. When he arrived at his first official post at Fort Riley in Kansas he realized that we would need to join him soon to keep enjoying the housing benefits. Well, we have been incredibly blessed to rent our house out and get safely moved and settled here in Kansas. I keep meaning to take pictures of the area and now I will have more incentive to do so as I would love to give all of you a taste of Kansas! For now I have some pictures of this past weekend. Friday was Patriot Day and schools all over celebrated in one way or another. Fulton (5th) and Bethany(3rd) participated in a freedom walk around the neighborhood. Meagan and I watched from in front of our house and then joined them as they passed by to go the rest of the way down to the school where they sang some patriotic songs and made a huge american flag out of children holding balloons. It ended when they let them all fly away into the sky. I hope I wasn't the only mom with tears in my eyes as they sang some of those songs. It was very touching to think of how blessed we are to live in one of the few countries in this world who enjoy such great freedoms.
Bethany and her friend Araya at the Freedom Walk.

On Saturday Bethany had her first day of orchestra. She was excited to get first chair! It is easier than the orchestra we were involved with last year but I think it will still be a good experience. Fortunately it is in the same building at Kansas State as the boys orchestra. I'm happy to not be driving to multiple places on Saturday morning! Kenny, Adam, Fulton & Bethany are preparing to play in church next Sunday. From the looks of things I think they'll get all the opportunities that they can handle. At noon we went to the free carnival put on by Picerne Housing. They manage all the housing on post. Some good friends from the ward, Lewis, Carmalee and their kids Adalene, Ashley and Alex joined us there for fun and food.

Bethany and Adalene are the same age and have a lot of fun together. They like to get together and dress up their Webkinz in doll clothes. They end up looking so cute!

We ended the day with the water launch. I helped Meagan battle my friend Carmalee and her daughter Ashley. Bethany and her friend Adalene soaked each other.

Here are Kenny and Fulton taking on Lewis and Alex. It was so fun shooting those balloons at each other! Next weekend we will be off to the Apple Festival. It seems that there is always a lot happening on post. Well, I'm excited to actually be back on my blog. Check back for more pictures of Kansas coming soon!

Virginia and then where?

Okay, here comes long-awaited post #2! I wouldn't know where to begin to catch up on all that has gone on since post #1 but here are the most important things I can think of. Kenny graduated from Basic Training and is now at Fort Lee in Virginia. Thanks to his awesome family I was able to fly out to the graduation and enjoyed almost a whole week in beautiful Georgia. I stayed with Kenny's brother Andy, wife Amy and their two cute kids! Kenny's mom and her new husband Dale came also. We had a great time and caught the tail end of the gorgeous fall colors!



Kenny and Andy on Graduation Day

Once I got back it was a rush to get ready for Christmas and before we knew it Kenny was flying in to spend almost two weeks with us. We had such a great time together. One of the highlights was going skiing! We stayed 2 nights in Pinetop and learned what it was like to be truly cold again as well as how to ski, sled and walk on icy sidewalks!
Poor Kenny had to take a major cold back with him to Fort Lee at the end of the trip but we had great memories to warm us also! Kenny graduates from Fort Lee on February 20th. It seemed so far away but now it is practically upon us. I can't wait to find out where he will be stationed next. Kenny heard speculation that he may have to spend 6 more weeks in training in Missouri learning how to drive all the big army vehicles. After that he would receive his first official post. Wherever he goes, I'm sure this year holds a lot of change for our family. For now I'll be busy at home so we'll just see what happens. Well, this is a poor excuse for a summary of all that has been happening lately but I'll get better as I go!

Here We Go!

Wow! I never thought I'd be doing this but we too are jumping on the bandwagon. For those of you who we see rarely I'm including an update on our family.
We currently live in Florence AZ. This could change within the next year as Kenny enlisted with the National Guard and reports for Basic Training on September 4th. Basic Training is in Georgia for 9 weeks and then he will be off to Virginia for job training. In February he will receive his first official post. We have no idea where that will be and I'm curious as to how that will change our lives. For now, the rest of our family will stay put in Florence and cheer Kenny through his training. When we find out where his first post is then we'll have to decide about our house, moving or staying and another myriad of questions I'm sure. Anyway, please keep Kenny in your prayers as he embarks on this new adventure!