The Pritchett Bunch

Fish Sticks

2008-08-06T20:48:00.001-07:00

So we all went to the splash pad today while daddy headed off for his late shift. We went early this afternoon and the kids had a great time as always!! Even Katie decided to partake of the festivities.....for some reason the last year she has started to shy away from sprinklers but will dive in a pool head first. We were leaving the park to go to Grammies and passed by a man fishing in the pond just down the hill as we were driving towards the exit. Deanna said "Oh look. He's fishing." I acknowledged this and she then said "he's using his fishing stick." I said "Yes, his fishing pole." To this she replied "yes, fish stick. That's what I said!" I couldn't chuckle out loud because Deanna gets very upset if she thinks you are laughing AT her. Of course, I was just laughing because it made a whole lot of sense! Deanna, you make me smile!!!

Surprise Carribbean Vacation

2008-07-09T18:32:00.000-07:00

So I planned a surprise anniversary trip for Dwayne and I in the Carribbean to celebrate our 10th anniversary....it was fantastic. Here are a few pics. I can't wait until we go back!

Everything really is THAT blue!!!

White sandy beaches, crystal blue waters~What's not to love?

Legacy of Love

2008-04-15T19:47:00.001-07:00

Today our family is saddened by the loss of my grandfather. He was a wonderful man who was not only a great man of faith but a man of great faith. He lived his faith each and every day and prayed for each one of us on a daily basis. He had a profound influence on my life. This song talks about the kind of man my grandfather was.

LEGACY OF LOVE

He was the kind of man that good men talk about

The way he showed his faith was how he lived it out

His hands were rough and calloused and his shoes were old and torn

and the lines that framed his smile were lines so well and deep and worn

So what will be remembered of what he left behind. What will stand the test of time...

How to love your neighbour, how to love your wife

wrap your arms around your children and pray with him each night

Thank God for all the good times cuz the good times are enough

The ties that bind will leave behind a legacy of love

He worked a second job to make the ends all meat

and somehow managed to always be there for me

He taught me how to listen, how to stand for what is right and he showed me all the things that really matter in this life.

How to love your neighbour, how to love your wife
wrap your arms around your children and pray with him each night
Thank God for all the good times cuz the good times are enough
The ties that bind will leave behind a legacy of love

As I look into the eyes of my daughters and my son

I hope I stood for something that they'll want to carry on

Life is far too short not to finally realize, it's long enough to make a difference in someone else's life

So I'm gonna love my neighbour and I'm gonna love my wife

Wrap my arms around my children and pray with them each night

Thank God for all the good things, cuz the good things are enough

The ties that bind will leave behind a LEGACY OF LOVE

The Stripping Gorilla?

2008-03-10T20:33:00.000-07:00

So Friday was Dwayne's birthday and I thought a little surprise would be in order. I decided to send him a singing telegram but no, not just any singing telegram. It was a two person extravaganza. The first lady came in to the dealership in a top hat with balloons and card and begins her bit. It was quite funny to see all the ladies gathered at the customer counter and all the guys gathered at the mechanics counter. When she was done, she told everyone she brought a very special guest. After queueing up some "stripper" type music, the Dancing Gorilla entered dressed as a French Maid. Now that was a sight. The gorilla(which was a "he" by the way) got right into stripping off the french maid outfit and dressing dwayne in the garments. I have never seen Dwayne so red for so long since I have known him~it was great. The guys were snapping pics with their phones. When he was done the routine, the gorilla only had red underwear left (skimpy at best) that said Happy Birthday on the backside. It was a riot!
Since Dwayne would not be impressed if I posted some of those photos, I will post the one of the two wonderful performers who made this so much fun and made Dwayne the talk of the dealership all day! Happy Birthday Honey! Hope you had a great day and I'm already planning for next year......just you wait!

Bedtime Prayers...but long enough to be a sermon

2008-02-25T17:11:00.000-08:00

So last night Katie says: "Mommy, we forgot pwayers" and so I said okay. I traditionally start and then give Deanna the first opportunity to say what she is thankful for. Anyone who knows Deanna also knows that it's not getting her to talk that's a problem...it's getting her to stop that's the trick. She started with her usual list of things...
"Thank you for Mommy, Daddy, I love the whole world and Katie & Andrew and thank you for getting to see Grammie & Buddy and Uncle Greg & Auntie Sue, C.J. & Kai, and...I love my hair color....and my friends and oh yeah.....I really love my hair color and mommy's hair and all of nature. Amen"
I think I got everything. Needless to say, prayers are never quite short and sweet. Katie of course gets her special items in but I think she just gets tired waiting for her turn. I think Katie should start going first!

Our 2nd visit of the day

2008-01-19T19:08:00.000-08:00

We stopped by to see Great Papa & Grammie on the way back from seeing Grandpa in Hamilton. Grandpa has not been well at all and we wanted to take the opportunity to pop in and get to visit for a while. We didn't want to stay too long and wear Great Papa out but he sat there listening to the kids play and even showed them a little trick~the kids loved it Grandpa! Katie was too shy after waking from a nap to get in this photo but we got her with Grammie. The kids sang a couple of songs and had lots of hugs and kisses for both Great Grandma & Grandpa. It was time for Grandpa to lay down and rest and us to be on our way home. We love you Grandma & Grandpa and pray for you!!! Thanks for the opportunity to spend some time with you~it was a treat!

2 Special Visits

2008-01-19T18:24:00.000-08:00

After a great warm-up from our house to Grammie & Papa's house, the kids enjoyed entertaining us with all of their songs. We just bring the CD's and they provide the entertainment. If you ask them, they will tell you they saw a beautiful sunrise and a wonderful sunset. They can't make that happen...but GOD can!! That's one of the songs they sang us.

Andrew helped Papa wheel Great Papa down from his room. We took a couple of pictures, visited and then went back upstairs. Just before lunch, I had opportunity to play some of Grandpa's favorites on the piano and he sang along. For the first time that I can ever remember, Grandpa kept saying he wished he could see us. That's the first time in 33 years!

There were some dogs visiting while we were there and this was the second one we ran into~ a beautiful white lab named Fudd!

What a great visit! We left just as Great Grandpa was being served his lunch. He was in great spirits and enjoyed the visit as much as we did. Now he's got some updated photos of all of his grandkids in his memory box for his visitors to see.

Hammin' it up!

2008-01-17T19:00:00.000-08:00

This is Andrew pretending to sleep snuggled under his new NHL fleece sheets. Go Calgary! Go Leafs! (that's for Daddy and Papa in that order)
Deanna & Andrew struck a pose while dancing on the bed.

Katie & Andrew playing their trumpets at church. So they used to be Christmas decorations...I would think Martha Stewart would be proud they were turned into instruments for use by child prodigy's.

Sunday Smiles

2008-01-17T18:53:00.000-08:00

I can hardly believe how big you are all getting.....Mommy & Daddy love each of you so very much and we are proud of you. You are great little people and we know you will grow up to be wonderful men & women. We already see how loving and caring you are with your friends and family. SMILE....because you certainly make sure we do!

Bedtime Stories & Bedtime Prayers

2008-01-08T19:32:00.000-08:00

Tonight, Andrew read us most of the bedtime story which was titled Jonah & the Big Fish. He did a really great job. We then said prayers together and it was off to brush teeth and go to bed. When I went to tuck in the girls, Deanna said she had more prayers to say and it went a little something like this......
Deanna: "Dear Jesus, thank you that we are going to see Nana in 4 sleeps, thank you for going to Grammie & Buddies house yesteryear and thank you God for fixing my night light. Amen."

Katie: "Wait...I didn't get to finish my prayer. Dear Jesus, thank you for having Nana coming to visit us (talking about boxing day) and for her bringing her muver (mother~Nan) and thank you for Grammie & Papa...and oh yeah, we love you so berry much. Amen."

What Dolls!

2008-01-02T20:54:00.000-08:00

Here are Katie & Deanna in their new dresses with their new dolls with matching dresses. We have to now find a suit for little bear because Andrew felt he needed to go to church.

Ballerina Deanna and Andrew measures up against the presents

Deanna & Katie before heading out to the mall today to give Daddy a little rest. I am so proud of my kids and I just hope they don't grow up too fast!

New Year's Eve

2008-01-01T20:49:00.000-08:00

This was taken by Deanna

Cheers! Happy New Year everyone!

We had a great night with family and friends and played some great games, ate too much food (mmm...fondue) and stayed up to see the ball drop. We weren't sure if we would make it to midnight since we probably all could've gone to sleep right after the kids. Here's wishing you all the best in 2008!

Boxing Day

2007-12-26T18:14:00.000-08:00

We had a great visit with Nana and Great Nana who is visiting from Newfoundland. The kids really enjoyed spending time with them and the presents were also a big hit.

Christmas Day

2007-12-25T17:33:00.000-08:00

Creative use of holiday napkins~super girl!

Sharing a holiday kiss and a new kitty named Wally

This is my favorite holiday shot~saying grace at dinner

The turkey before and after~mmmmm......

We opened some presents.....Andrew was up at 6:20 a.m. although they waited until 7:15 to open presents. This is a good time to tell mom & dad I'm sorry for all of the years we did that growing up. It didn't seem so early then. After opening some gifts, mom & dad arrived with more gifts. Needless to say, the kids were even more excited than they were at 7:15. Santa came and now it's Grammie and Papa! Happy Holidays everyone from our family to yours! The turkey dinner was delicious as were all the trimmings and I only wish I could've eaten more. That's what leftovers are for!

Pictures with Santa

2007-12-24T18:16:00.000-08:00

Okay, so Mom & I went to the mall with Deanna last week and she has been waiting and waiting to see Santa. He even pointed to her on the second floor overlooking him and gave a jovial "ho, ho, ho" which totally made her night. We went back today to have the kids get their picture with Santa. While this Santa was nice and a pretty good Santa in terms of appearance, the Santa that was at the mall the other night was extremely jovial. Today, I think Santa was tired and was extremely mellow! It didn't matter to the kids, they told him what they wanted and even asked if Dwayne & I were on the nice list. When Santa said we were, he asked Andrew why that would be and Andrew answered "because my Daddy & Mommy take time to play and have fun with me." Maybe we are doing some things right! I will try and get the Santa photo posted.

Christmas Eve traditions....

2007-12-24T17:56:00.000-08:00

We open new jammies which I have already posted pics for but we also listen to 'Twas the night before Christmas' as read by our trusty little bear purchased last year for the kids. Next, we opened the Christmas jammies. This of course all came after the Christmas Eve bath. We then went to track Santa on the web to see where he was before bedtime. Dwayne read the Christmas story~the real one and then, the whole Pritchett family congregated on our bed and we just had some good family fun. The kids played some games they invented and laughed and giggled until it was time for Santa to come. They said they heard Jingle Bells and all jumped off the bed and ran to get into their own in record time. Santa should come every night! On second thought, he probably shouldn't. Santa is a very busy guy and it tires me out just thinking of all the things he would have to do each day if that were the case. We sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and sang some Christmas carols. It was almost as good as when we did this last year except we had Great Papa & Grammie with us at mom & dad's house which made it extra special and Great Papa told the Christmas Story. We love you Great Papa & Grammie. Enjoy the pics!

Christmas Jammies

2007-12-24T16:59:00.000-08:00

We always open new Christmas jammies on Christmas Eve and the kids were quite excited to see this years lucky winners. Here are a couple of shots of the jammies wrapped up and just after opening. Below are a couple of the after shots. This year for the first time, Dwayne was not in this particular shot and got his jammies on Christmas Day. Next year, the whole Prichett Bunch in their new jammies. Only 366 more days......

Mary & an angel...but where's Joseph

2007-12-23T16:40:00.000-08:00

Deanna was thrilled to play the part of Mary in the Christmas play (although she kept saying she was playing baby Jesus). She's clear on it now but it took a little convincing. Katie also enjoyed playing an angel (good thing she's a good actress because it's a bit of a stretch~just kidding)
There was however a little more room in the inn as Joseph was missing. Joseph (aka Andrew) was quite fevered and unable to make that historical journey to the stable in Bethlehem. The other kids all did a great job I hear over and over again and it's evident in the video Auntie Sue took.

Christmas with the Pritchetts~take 1

2007-12-21T17:14:00.000-08:00

Tonight we celebrated Christmas with my brother and his family at my mom and dad's house. It is very hard to capture all 5 granchildren in one photo. I think the most I got was 4 (not a bad average I suppose). Everyone got great presents but more importantly got to spend time together as a family with great food as well! Talk about great minds thinking alike, Dwayne and I gave a gift to Sue & Greg which they also gave us. Here are a few pics.....

The weather outside was frightful and shovelling snow was not delightful

2007-12-18T18:33:00.000-08:00

The poor Precious Moments boy is about 2 feet high and for this picture, I dug around his poor little face so his eyes would show. (and I was worried it may blow over~not gonna happen now) The other pictures show a small portion of the amount of snow we got with that last storm in just over 24 hours. I can't say that shovelling is my favorite thing to do and if we had put the kids out to play, we may have lost them altogether. It looks like we may just have a white Christmas. All I've got to say is this is not exactly what I asked for as my birthday gift this year. It was pretty to look at but more like pretty heavy to shovel. Hats off to all of you shovellers out there!

Katie's Unexpected Christmas Makeover...

2007-12-18T18:22:00.000-08:00

Okay....so prices aren't the only thing that are slashed this holiday season. Today, Katie had a rather unfortunate incident (which could of been even worse~ although right now, it is not giving me much comfort or joy.)

She was gashed with a piece of metal at daycare but luckily the caregiver happened to be someone with nursing experience. Now we sit and wait to see how this may heal or if it doesn't we will be taking a festive trip to Children's Hospital. I can guarantee she did not have this smile on her face when it happened. Please be warned that the following may contain scenes not suitable for some viewers and we ask that you refrain from audible gasps.......

The 3rd Sunday of Advent~love

2007-12-16T18:47:00.001-08:00

Today was the 3rd Sunday of Advent and our family was asked to do the reading at church this morning. Andrew did a really great job with his reading and even spoke through the words "indescribable gift". It made me quite proud. He got an extra surprise when he was asked to come up near the end of the service to help with a gift illustration. He was thrilled! The girls enjoyed cozying up to Christopher before the service so all the kids got together for some pics in front of the Christmas Tree before the service. You can see for yourself how much they enjoyed that!

The Weather outside is frightful but my cake is so delightful...

2007-12-16T18:26:00.000-08:00

It was a Happy Birthday to me with wonderful birthday wishes and time with my family...one thing I did not order was a few feet of snow!! Dwayne & I took turns shovelling the hood high snow. I'm not sure if this makes a difference at the end of the day when you cannot get down our street because of the sheer volume of unplowed snow. It was a great afternoon to snuggle up with some hot chocolate and sit back while Dwayne & the kids baked my birthday cake. As you will see, it was decked with all 30+ candles. All in all, a great day to spend together~after all, isn't that what the season is all about?!

A visit to Grandma & Grandpa

2007-12-15T18:12:00.000-08:00

We got all bundled up and headed off to see Great Papa & Grammie. We had fun getting a chance to visit and Deanna thoroughly enjoyed a hard boiled egg sandwich compliments of Great Grammie! The kids sang some of their school and church songs to entertain. We headed out just as the snow started to come in and got home safe and sound. Thanks Grandma & Grandpa for a great visit~LOVE YOU!!!

More Party Photos

2007-12-13T20:19:00.001-08:00

Here are a few photos from the party. There are many, many more photos which can be seen on facebook. It was a really great night to get all glammed up and dance the night away. I just know I was soooo close to winning that plasma and surround sound grand prize. Kudos to those that organized the event~this year there were over 80 prizes. If you ever go anywhere, take my friend Melynda. She enjoys a golden horseshoe!!!

Deanna in concert

2007-12-13T20:10:00.001-08:00

Deanna was quite excited to participate in her first school Christmas concert. She proudly showed Katie her classroom and definitely knew Daddy & Katie were watching! If you ask her to sing you the songs, she will sing them all continuously~no interruptions, no commercials. Start with the Goldilocks song if you decide to ask her because this is the longest and you will want to hear it first......you'll find yourself not being able to get it out of your head and will walk around humming it. 'When Goldilocks went to the house of the bears, oh what did her blue eyes see?'.........

Christmas Party Time

2007-12-10T18:56:00.001-08:00

There will be lots more fun photos of my work Christmas party this past Friday but here is a quick snap of Dwayne and I all dressed up with someplace to go!

American Thanksgiving, No Weddings & 1 funeral

2007-12-10T18:44:00.000-08:00

Well, I haven't been on blogging for a while so this week I'll be doing some catching up. I'll be on regularly after that again uploading all of those holiday photos....school & church concerts, family christmas gatherings, snowfalls, parties and ..........so many events in such a short time!
So my mom, Ginny, Sue-Ann (my sister-in-law) and myself went to Saginaw over the American Thanksgiving weekend. I think we set a record getting across the border in about 10 minutes flat!!! We shopped, we ate, we shopped some more and had lots of fun! I still saw a strange woman in the pool~the same one in fact. There were a lot of people from work their that weekend and we seemed to meet up in the pool~it was fun going outdoors while it was cold outside.(don't think some of the guests were too happy that we were yelling up to mom & Ginny in their room). We ate the best rolls I've ever had at Lonestar by the hotel~mmmmmmmmmm!

We hit Bronner's(where Sue once again found Jesus) and ate at Zehnders(way too much food which we ate way too fast) We covered Birch Run, 2 Wal-mart's, Target, Meijer's, Joanna's, Toys R Us, Hobby Lobby, Tony Baloneys(that one I made up) and Cracker Barrel...just as a start. We will have to go back soon to hit Burlington Coat Factory, J.C. Penny's and a few others.....it's so fun to shop past 1 am in the morning. There are definitely no parking issues or pushy lines!
The funeral~while we weren't there for a wedding this time, we once again got behind a pick up with another dead deer(oh dear). What is it with me and deer?

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow....

2007-12-04T20:25:00.000-08:00

Well after 3 solid days of snow, we are now enjoying shovelling snow up to the bumper of our van! Andrew enjoyed going out to help Daddy shovel and I took the girls for the first tobaggan ride of the season. It was a perfect night for tobaganning~not too cold, a thin layer of ice under some freshly fallen snow. I hardly had to pull the sleigh as it just glided along the surface. The kids were all bundled up and had a great time. I have a feeling(based on what they say about this winter) that there will be many more opportunities to do this because it is supposed to snow, snow, snow. It was kind of funny after being out for a few minutes to notice that more fathers and sons were shovelling together and several other families were going up and down the street in their sleighs......I must have set precedent for family activities for the night!

Quick fixes for everyday problems by Andrew

2007-11-07T15:48:00.000-08:00

So Andrew was asking me what I was doing the other morning. It told him I just needed a little privacy then I would come see what he was up to. He had noticed Katie was with me and I told him Katie did not want to give mommy privacy. Here's how the conversation went:
Me: I was trying to get Katie to give mommy some privacy for a minute
Andrew: Oh. Okay. Katie, would you like to come with your favorite big brother and play?
Katie: Sure Adrew. Let's play.
Andrew: Wasn't that simple? Now you have privacy mom! I'll take care of everything.

Okay, my work here is done.

My Beanie, My Princess & My Sweet Cheeks

2007-11-07T15:32:00.000-08:00

My princess & sweet cheeks!

How can you resist Beanie?

Pride & Joy x3

I cannot imagine life without Andrew, Deanna & Katie. They keep me humble, teach me important lessons and help me see the world from a fresh perspective that can only be seen through the eyes of a child. I often think they teach me far more than I could ever teach them and for that, I am grateful. Thanks kids for helping make me a better mom & a better person! Love you,

Mommy

The Wiggely tooth is gone!!!!

2007-11-01T18:49:00.000-07:00

Did you guess the right one??

Andrew holding his tooth and then it went into the pocket of the tooth fairy bear. He was so excited because as he said..."I'm going to get a nickel." Thanks grammie for setting him straight and starting the bid at $1.00.

Halloween~the real thing!

2007-10-31T18:10:00.000-07:00

Princess Alina(Deanna) flying through the night!

Along our route, we came along these scary spider dogs!

Watch out Alina~it's Batman!!

Who is that? Is it Dora? No, it's Katie!

I went out as a zombie~not really but it looked like it compliments of my pink eye. Great news~I have 2 pink eyes now!! One thing about having 3 kids is 3X the candy!!

Dress Rehearsal for Halloween

2007-10-28T18:04:00.000-07:00

So here is something you won't see everyday. Batman keeping company with Dora and Alina the sparkle fairy from Fairytopia. Maybe if he wants to learn spanish and how to fly in case of no Bat-mobile???
They asked if they could stay in their costumes until Halloween-not so much! Thanks Uncle Bill & Aunt Ginny for the special little surprises. The kids loved them.

Hockey Night in Canada~well OHL anyway!

2007-10-26T17:50:00.000-07:00

What's better than watching a zamboni magically make the ice shiny and new? Watching 2 zambonis!! Below is Andrew & Deanna enjoying the food and drinks~and so did I but did not need to include a photo of that.

Someone else had trouble finding parking so they found a convenient spot right in the middle of the ice. Okay....it was the car being played for later in the evening. Just me & the kids at their very first live hockey game! Just wait until you get to see the Leafs guys.

Here is a snapshot of what the little guys on the right will look like when they get older. It is so cute to see them trying so hard to stay upright with all the equipment let alone look for a puck and maneuver the stick. You gotta start somewhere right?

Did someone say Field Trip?

2007-10-24T17:19:00.000-07:00

Deanna & I took a picture of the lovely fall foliage on the hiking trail.
We started out on both days (one with Deanna's class then with Andrew's) feeding the ducks and then going inside for some more up close encounters with a toad and a snake. The kids then went for a nature hike with tree rubbing, insect finding and all sorts of great nature related activities.

Deanna & Andrew feeding the ducks. The Canadian Geese even made an appearance on day two with Andrew's class

These were the coolest binoculars because they made the sound of the actual bird while they were birdwatching~how fun!

Family & Fall Foliage

2007-10-24T10:41:00.000-07:00

There's nothing quite as fun as jumping in a great big pile of leaves...unless you're the one raking it up. Andrew & Deanna happily helped Papa rake the leaves but of course wanted to jump in them before they went in the green bin.

Someone has to do the raking when the others slack off and get buried in the leaves. Thanks Papa!!

My first wiggely tooth....

2007-10-23T17:11:00.000-07:00

So Andrew came home the other night and proudly announced.."I have my first wiggely tooth."(that's the way he likes to say wiggly) Can you guess which one it is? Stay tuned and see if you're right!

Sunset....

2007-10-17T17:57:00.000-07:00

The kids and I had a picnic in the park tonight and when we arrived home, we were just in time to see this from our house. A beautiful sunset which captured the attention of 3 children and an adult who was reminded that we should always see the world through the eyes of a child. The kids said goodbye to the sun, wished the sun a good rest and hello to the moon.

Uncle Bill & Aunt Ginny's Enchanted Kingdom

2007-10-15T17:56:00.000-07:00

Once upon a time there was an enchanted kingdom in Canada that was being guarded by Queen Ginny & King Bill. They protected the fortress and the prince & princesses of the castle while Prince Daddy & Princess Mommy went to a Royal Wedding in Christmasland. When they returned, they were happy to see that King Bill & Queen Ginny had reigned supreme and the young prince and the two princesses were royally captivated by them. They hardly even noticed we had returned to the kingdom. They were however pleased to show us the enchanted scrapbooks they had made with the Queen. She is the queen of Scrapbookland and we were lucky she was able to have tea with us. King Bill played sports with the prince much of the weekend and they all live happily ever after....(a little tired but happy!)

The END

Deanna & Katie were dressed up as princesses when we got home and wanted us to take their picture because as Deanna said "they were so beautiful." She was using her magic wand to turn everyone into different objects. Bill was almost permanently made a frog. They got out of their royal garb long enough to try on their new t-shirts we got them from Frankenmuth which aptly states.....Just a little naughty in Frankenmuth.

How Magical!

1 Frankenmuth Wedding & 2 funerals??!

2007-10-15T17:55:00.000-07:00

Here is the happy couple. This is my cousin Tim and his new wife Noelle. It was the first time the cousins have ever been together~all five of us!

I wish them all the best in their new life together and who knows...maybe it won't take 25+years for all of us to meet up again. It was certainly great to get reaquainted with Christie and Elyssa. We also had the opportunity of meeting Christie's family~husband Justin & daughter Callie. I know our kids would love Callie. They would also enjoy little Ethan who is only a couple months old. Cheers to Tim, Christie & Elyssa. I will be sure to leave a blank spot for pictures of Elyssa's wedding....someday.....many years from now.....maybe.....??!!!

Oh yeah....the funeral part.(and more wedding pics)

2007-10-15T17:35:00.000-07:00

So it was off to the reception where fun was had by all. I have a great snapshot which I may post later of my mom joining Greg and Sue in their "Fonzie" dance!

So the funeral part of this story happened on the way home. We were driving along the I-69 and getting closer to the Canadian border when I noticed a motorcycle on the side of the road. With another look, Dwayne noticed the biker laying beside the shoulder of the road where his bike was in the grass not moving. He assumed he was asleep but I think he must have been dead. Who sleeps that close to the Interstate when he could have pulled further over in the grass or to a service center for a nap???!! Just as we were contemplating all this(and noone believed my dead guy theory), I heard someone in the car gasp. While staring out the right side of the van to see the "dead guy", we did not see an approaching minivan with a deer strapped to the top. Good day for the hunters but not the deer. His eyes were open and his tongue was hanging out the side of his mouth. So much for our beloved BAMBI!

Uncle Bill & Aunt Ginny

2007-10-10T18:05:00.000-07:00

We had a great visit with Uncle Bill & Aunt Ginny tonight. The kids were so excited to see them and Andrew was very proud that he beat Uncle Bill at hockey and baseball. You better practice up Uncle Bill.
The girls were happy to show Aunt Ginny their room and ran back and forth in the living/dining room to deplete their energy~loads and loads of it.
The kids are so excited that they are coming back on Saturday and asked after they left how many sleeps until the weekend when they come back. Deanna looked at me as we came back into the house from waving goodbye to them and said "I love Uncle Bill and Aunt Ginny~can Aunt Ginny sleep in my bed?" I have a feeling Aunt Ginny will prefer to sleep in her own bed. Let the crafts begin! 3 more sleeps.

More Thanksgiving Fun.....

2007-10-09T18:26:00.000-07:00

I got some candid shots of Mary,Gwen, Paige, Zach, Kai, Deanna, Katie, Andrew and the kids with Great Grandpa & Grandma~

I enjoyed snapping a few pics of beautiful fall foliage and a magnificent sunlit cloudscape. Thanksgiving should take place each and every day because as David Phelps has sung so many times..."Life is a Church."

We Gather Together....

2007-10-09T18:07:00.000-07:00

Sunday we had a warm up Thanksgiving dinner at our house. I cooked some spiral sliced honey ham(mmmmm) with the fixin's and finished off with pumpkin pie. This was the first time the kids have been exposed to whip cream in a can....the pictures speak for themselves. (thanks Grammie!)

Poor Andrew~everyone was having fun at his expense by not showing him how to properly use the spray can. He was squeezing with all his might and nothing was coming out no matter how hard he tried. Mommy to the rescue....after 10 minutes of this, I had to show him how to REALLY do it. Needless to say, the can was emptied out in less than a minute.

Monday was a day to travel and take in the 30+ degree weather. I was busy taking pictures of the fall foliage and once we arrived at Auntie Gayle's it was time to eat yet again! All 12 great grandchildren were there and it made for our own little Thanksgiving Daycare!

Handful of Weeds

2007-10-09T18:01:00.000-07:00

Four years old with dirt on my face, I'd been out in the yard pickin' dandelions all day
I burst through the front door when I'd gathered enough, to give to my mom to show her my love
Then she held out her hand and looked down at me, she said "I've never seen flowers as beautiful as these"

She's the one who told me about Jesus
She's the one who taught me to sing
She deserves an arm full of roses
But she's satisfied with a handful of weeds.

(Jeff & Sherri Easter)

Deanna picked these leaves and greenery for me and had to take me outside to surprise me. She was so proud of them and wanted me to quickly put them in water so they would grow nice and tall. It's definitely the thought that counts and she is so proud to see them displayed in their very own vase for all to see. Deanna, Mommy's more than satisfied with a handful of weeds!

When Daddy's away...the kids will play

2007-09-30T17:52:00.000-07:00

Since Daddy was away at Men's Camp this weekend, we had some fun going to the park. Andrew caught his very first frisbee(from a very long distance I might add) After a couple more throws and a very strong wind, it was inevitable I suppose that one veered back at him as he was trying to catch and got him right in the mouth. He was bleeding and rinsed his mouth out before running right back out to resume his game. We had fun playing in the sand and sharing with some new friends the kids met at the park. They always have a tonne of fun and meet new kids when they go. These pictures were taken right before church today because the kids wanted Daddy to see how grown up they looked since he was away. Let's face it....even if Daddy wasn't away, we take hundreds of pictures. This one's for you Dad!

AppleLand

2007-09-27T20:26:00.000-07:00

Today was a perfect day to go to AppleLand. It was cool, no bees and the apples had a nice little rain sprinkle to make them taste extra juicy! The kids learned that they are grown from root stock(not seeds as that takes longer) and the role that bees play in this. We also learned it very important when picking to remember: Eye to the sky! They had a great time riding the train around the orchard, visiting the animals, picking apples of course(Deanna ate 4 of her 5 before we even got on the bus to go back to the school) and we bought an apple pie. I was really excited to be able to go on their first field trip together. It worked out that I was off and they were both scheduled for the same day-what a great treat. Apples, apples and more apples. I will be apple picking tomorrow too! I better get baking!

Deanna's 1st day of school

2007-09-13T17:18:00.000-07:00

Well Deanna has now got her 1st day of school under her belt. She has gone from Rookie to Pro all in one day. She had to have her practice hairdo last night to show me how she wanted it done. She picked her clothes, her pretty and her snack. I guess my work here is done. She took a few extra minutes to go to sleep because she was so excited. She loves her new teacher and wants to buy her a little gift. She was happy to pose for as many pictures as I could take. You can see from the pictures that she enjoyed being a big JK girl today and getting in line for the first but definitely not the last time. Katie was so excited to see Andrew and Deanna when they got home from school that she ran as quickly as she could from the kitchen to give them a big hug. She then continued on to tell daddy all about her day (which started when I picked her up and continued on for 45 minutes). There will be no trouble finding out what she's been up to each day-she will be an open book. Two down and one to go! Katie in the meantime enjoyed some one on one time with mommy and daddy. She came in the house and said "hey, it's empty. There's nobody here. Echo, echo, echo."

Beanie is Back To School

2007-09-06T19:35:00.000-07:00

Well my Beanie is back to school and is now officially in SK. Deanna starts next week in JK. I can hardly believe that it will be 3 years before all of the kids are in school full time. I'm not sure what the school board thinks parents do to be able to run around for the half days but we manage to do it along with many others. It certainly turns out to be worth it at the end of the day when Andrew shares something new he has learned at school.
He likes his new teacher and new school and asked if he could go back tomorrow.
He will be going back every day for the next 12 or 13 years so the answer to that question was a resounding yes! He has already met some new friends and told me that one boy was sad today because he was nervous. He said he told him that it would be okay and he was happy for the rest of the morning. I guess I can relax because he seems to have the human truths down pat. Here's to another successful year at school!

I celebrated this exciting day by making the kids each their own ice cream sundae. Mmmmmmm......now that's hands on learning!

Fire Muster Days

2007-09-01T18:17:00.000-07:00

So we packed up our folding beach chairs, water guns and gear and headed to the big city of St. Thomas on the weekend to take in the fire muster parade. We went on to Pinafore Park to see the trucks up close and see the old cars as well. Just like last year, there were rides, competitions, face painting, a dog show and entertainment-not to mention the best ice cream ever(yes..even better than dairy queen). The kids had a great time. The parade was especially loud this year as it was such a beautiful day and all the spectators wanted to hear some noise. Andrew didn't particularly appreciate this much noise and Katie hid behind one of the chairs on occasion with her hands over her ears. At least we know their hearing is good. Deanna LOVED it! She did her usual hand clasp, gitty excited pose with a grin from ear to ear. It was a great weekend to see some of our favorite emergency service workers. Let's just say they are pretty handy with guns too! Greg even managed to throw a bucket of water at them and they had a few surprises of their own. We started firing off the water guns thinking there were only two or three on some trucks with their own-SURPRISE. In one case, 3 or 4 more people popped up and fired water at us with a full fledged hose! Just wait for next year because we will have the hose ready with the pressure valve to release when needed-Watch out firefighters....we're gonna soak ya! It was a great treat to have C.J. and Kai with Aunt Shawna(who was ecstatic as you can see). Kai did not enjoy getting wet at the expense of his daddy. We better keep him back a little next year because it will get quite wet!

His Eyes are broken

2007-09-01T14:44:00.000-07:00

We went to visit Great Grandpa today in Hamilton. I have explained to the kids before that Grandpa is blind but as they get a little older, they need certain things explained again as they have more questions and may forget the conversations from before they were "big".

We took Grandpa outside as it was a beautiful day. The kids were playing around outside and Deanna found a seagull feather. She kept holding it up and saying "here birdie, birdie" hoping it would come back and get it. She then held it in front of Grandpa and said "look what I found Grandpa-see? see?" I pulled it away from in front of his face and took her aside with the other kids. I told them to close their eyes. I explained that this was what Grandpa saw all the time as he is blind. Deanna said "his eyes are broken". I told her that for a time he was able to see but then his eyes stopped working. I explained that he used his memories to remember what things looked like just like they use their imagination and that now he can hear better than most people can because of this. She said "Jesus can make him see right?" She then said he could see Jesus and now he can hear him even better. Even though many of us can see we often don't see those things that are right in front of us-Lesson Learned!

My Girl(s)

2007-08-22T20:17:00.000-07:00

I've got sunshine...on a cloudy day
When it's cold outside, I've got the month of May
I guess you'd say...what can make me feel this way?
My Girl(s) Talkin' bout My Girl(s)

Celebrate August Birthdays

2007-08-18T18:23:00.000-07:00

So, we had a little get together to celebrate some August birthdays in our family-there are many! Somehow even with Sue Ann and myself at the house, we didn't take any photos. Greg had his birthday Aug 13th, Katie was Aug 3rd and Sue Ann is on Aug 23rd. We had a little BBQ here at the house and had a great time taking all the kids to the park. Okay, the women did. Kai had a good time strolling around the park "area" while the rest played on the slides, swings and in the field. Kai did a great job for not feeling very well. Let's face it-the real star of the afternoon for the kids was.....yup, you guessed it....ANOTHER CAKE. I think they all had two pieces.
Since we missed some very important photos, I am creating another opportunity in the next week or so for a pool party. Here's to a hundred photos of kids splashing in water!!!! Happy August Birthday to Grandpa, Becky, Paige, Joshua and anyone else who was born this month! Sorry, but there's no cake left!

Katie is 3...not 21

2007-08-04T18:29:00.000-07:00

Katie is now 3. When you asked her up until Friday, she would tell you that she was 21. Well...that will come soon enough. 3 is plenty for now and she is not looking much like a baby anymore. She was quite excited to see the cake because afterall, isn't that what the birthday is really for. Happy 3rd birthday Katie.

Questions.....

2007-08-02T18:57:00.000-07:00

I thought we would take a little drive last night for a quick run through the sprinkler at Grammie and Buddy's house so we could have a little visit. On the way down, the kids were listening to Sunday School songs which started some interesting questions from Andrew.
He asked about babies and when I explained that God created everything and that mommies and daddies take care of this precious gift, he asked "did you and daddy lay some babies then?" (he has been watching the movie Dinosaurs) I told him that mommy carries the baby in her tummy. He said.."I wish I was a girl so I could carry a baby in my tummy...no..wait...I'm glad I'm a boy. My buddy is a boy, daddy, Uncle Greg and we are big and strong. We can help the mommies though." He then said "Mom, sometimes I don't always hear God...." I explained how you can't see wind but you can see how it moves the trees and even though we can't always see God, we can look around and see his wonderful creations. I told him that if we listen close enough...God can talk to us and speak to our hearts. He then said..."I just follow my heart then and God will take care of the rest won't he Mom?" I think he is ready to give the sermon this week at church because it certainly made me stop and pay attention. I love my Andrew!

Picnic in the park

2007-07-26T20:32:00.000-07:00

Today was a beautiful day and since Daddy was working, it was the kids and I. We had a walk to the park (and yes Katie fell once as usual). We rolled along a picnic cooler, had the backpack with hats, sunglasses and fun stuff and the wagon (which none of the kids rode in) equipped with pails and shovels to dig in the sand. The kids were told they had to sit on the picnic blanket and eat before they could play. They ate every last bit and the playing was underway. It was a great coulple of hours and the kids even got a little worn out from all the running around-I think!

On the way home, some neighbors even got a good chuckle because with all of our rolling gear for our special picnic, they said it looked like we were going on a long trip. It was just long enough!

Like "Him"

2007-07-22T13:54:00.000-07:00

Today we went to church as usual but something happened that made me smile and I'll admit get a little teary. My brother was leading the service today since the pastors were away. We were singing the chorus.."To be like Jesus, this hope possesses me.." and Andrew looked up at me with a bright glimmer in his eye and smile on his face and said "To be like Jesus.....To be like Jesus. That's it! That's what I want to be."

It goes to show that kids can teach us a thing or two. We make everything so complicated which is why they often seem to get it better than we do. Keep your ears open because you just may learn something........

Katie's Kapers

2007-07-14T18:48:00.000-07:00

Okay...so Katie was rocking her babies to sleep in their bassinet today and being very good (good new story in itself) and not aggravating her brother and sister. I went to get the laundry basket and when I came by the room, I saw a rocking bassinet but no Katie.
What's that in the bassinet? Oh....it's Katie trying to have a sleep with her babies because she was tired. I took a few pictures because it was too cute. That doesn't mean I didn't then tell her she was too big to lay in it and if she was tired to lay in her big girl bed. She even closed her eyes to pretend she was sleeping.
Kids do the funniest things-it made good sense to her anyway!

Moved In and Tired Out

2007-07-06T06:50:00.001-07:00

So after multiple issues with the moving company (whom we will not use again) and many hours of packing with the help of mom, we are all moved in officially. Thank goodness we took 8 truck loads ourselves our we would have been unloading the truck at midnight I'm sure. (but that's another story for another time).
During the day yesterday, the kids did not eat until 9 pm and fell quickly asleep at 10 when they went to bed. Someone backed into our van at the gas station as well which was a perfect addition to the already crazy day.
We also found out that our neighbours on both sides are finding mushrooms in the sod that was just laid-what a nice housewarming gift. So far so good with ours but it may just be a matter of time. I guess after going strawberry picking, we can send the kids out back to pick mushrooms. I will have to add some pictures of the kids helping the movers. It was quite the event! Thanks Jennifer for staying a little later to help us with this whole mess!

We've Got Grass

2007-06-28T17:53:00.000-07:00

How exciting! We now have grass at the new house. The deck is now finished and we will be able to sit out and look over grass instead of dirt. It is amazing the things we sometimes take for granted. I have never wished for rain more than I did last night and boy did we get rain....and hail and flooding. Let's hope the grass faired better than we did on our way back to mom and dad's. There were trees down and we were searching for high ground because the water was just gushing down the roads. Snake hill had trees down and a small river running through it.

Grass is great! I can see lots of playing and running and wrestling taking place on that grass. Lots of memories-all to be made in the grass (and of course, there will always be dirt to make it truly fun)

Pumpkin Pals

2007-06-25T17:28:00.000-07:00

Tonight, Dad and Andrew got to have a few stolen 'pumpkin moments' together. Mom and I had to run a quick errand and when we returned, Andrew was still awake. It seemed he was a little over tired.

He has an inherited love for pumpkin pie just like his dad and his papa. It seems all of our kids seem to really like pumpkin pie-even without the cool whip. Who knew? Here is the before and after picture. The first picture I took showed both of them lifting a tasty bite of pie to their mouths at exactly the same time. The after looks a little like most people after they finish a big turkey dinner-they just want to hit the couch and have a little nap. Here's to many more 'pumpkin moments' between these pals!

L'il Dolly's

2007-06-24T18:34:00.000-07:00

We had a surprise visit from Nana today. She came from Toronto today to surprise the kids at church. Deanna and Katie were quite happy to show Nana their L'il Dolly dresses (which happens to be the name of the company that makes them). Another special thanks to Aunt Ginny! It was a great day for a great visit!

Beautiful Day for an Air Show

2007-06-24T18:26:00.001-07:00

Dwayne and Andrew had special time together today and chose to go to the air show. We have been hearing the jets flying overhead the last few days in preparation. Andrew really enjoyed spending time with Dwayne and loved the quieter planes. After some time watching the louder jets, he decided it was time to come home. He told Grammie to remind dad to let the big planes know not to start up when he is looking at them. Let's just say he not only enjoyed the planes at the airshow but the chippies as well (gotta like those homemade fries.) As you can clearly see, alot of other people had the same idea and I'm sure had almost as good of a time as Andrew had with his daddy!

The Chariots of Fire moment and Dad is nuts..OR I'm nuts about Dad?!

2007-06-24T18:10:00.000-07:00

A funny thing happened on the way to church last Sunday for Father's Day. Andrew went a little earlier with Grammie and Papa as he often does so he could help Uncle Bill greet people at the door. When we pulled into the parking lot a few minutes later, Katie said..."there's Andrew, my best friend." I got Katie out of the car and after checking for other cars coming into the parking lot, told her she could go see Andrew. Well, it turned into a Chariots of Fire moment. Katie gave Andrew a big hug as though they hadn't seen each other in 20 years (more like 20 minutes) Katie took Andrew's hand, he walked her to the door but not before stopping at the curb to lift her up so she would not have to do it herself. Now that's service.

Since we're all nuts, it seemed the picture should be too!

It happened to be Father's day and the kids gave Dwayne a card with stickers they could each wear-it was cute. Andrew also made a bag of peanuts which said so aptly on the outside....I'm nuts about my DAD. Happy Father's Day Daddy!

Happy Graduation Uncle Greg

2007-06-24T17:59:00.000-07:00

On June 13th, we all went to Hooks to celebrate Uncle Greg's graduation. We want to say how proud we all are of him because we know he worked so hard. He worked while going to school and during that time, they became a family of four with the addition of C.J. and Kai. I know that the people he will work with will be the luckiest people in the world. I know this because that's the way I feel to have him as a brother and I know the way Andrew, Deanna and Katelyn feel to have him as an uncle. Happy Graduation Uncle Greg from the Pritchett Five!!! We LOVE YOU!

Pretty in Pink, The Greeters, Gramma Mickey & Papa Glen

2007-06-23T19:28:00.001-07:00

Pretty in pink at Grammies house before church. Every Sunday if you ask Katie who she is going to see at church she will sing out "Gramma Mickey...Papa Gennnn" to a tune that is quite catchy that she herself coined. It is quite funny to note that almost every Sunday this month, we have arrived at church to find that Katie and Gramma Mickey match as you can see in the photo. Once we arrive at church, Andrew proudly helps Uncle Bill greet Sunday churchgoers at the door. Truth be told, he also loves the button which "magically" opens the door to all of those who come through it.

Sunday Sisters

2007-06-23T19:17:00.000-07:00

Here's church day on May27th. Deanna was happy to be escorted from the van to the front door by her little friend Jacob.(who happens to be the son of my friend Laura). We took some photos before church in Papa and Grammies backyard by the pretty flowers.

I Feel Pretty...

2007-06-23T19:01:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we got all dressed up in our Sunday best. As you can see the girls are quite taken with their 'dolly' dresses. Thanks to Uncle Bill & Aunt Ginny, the girls will always have a perfect outfit for church or anywhere else for that matter. Deanna is our little DIVA PRINCESS. Once she is dressed up, heaven help you if you touch her pretties or mess up her hair. She will look at you with 'that look' and make sure you notice her lovely dress. When she is all ready and dressed up, Katie will look at her and say..."Danna, you look buuttifulll"to which she looks out of the corner of her eye and flashes a beautiful coye little smile. Once Katelyn is dressed up if you ask her how she looks, she will simply respond by singing..."I feel pitty oh so pitty(pretty) I feel pitty and pitty and white (bright). All I can do is laugh! Since I could not get the right picture to post without it being sideways, please enjoy this lovely photo which highlights the two distinct personalities of my pretty little girls.

A Splashin' GOOD TIME

2007-06-13T05:37:00.000-07:00

What better way to cool down on a hot summer (okay..almost summer) night. After picking the kids up from daycare, we took a dip in the little blue pool. I decided to get in as well-WOW that was interesting. Andrew had filled the pool to the top the night before and when I got in, let's just say the amount of water displacement took me back to high school days. Is that really why you learn to measure diplacement? So you know how much you have gained since your days in high school? Let's just say I chose not to do any calculations. We simply enjoyed the little blue pool with the slide. Our big pool sprang a leak last year and since we will be moving soon we have not yet replaced it. Uncle Greg and Auntie Sue to the rescue-they gave us this fun little blue pool with the slide to enjoy in the meantime. Each of the kids took their turns standing at the top proudly introducing themselves in true circus fashion. "Introducing the great Katie (or Andrew or Deanna) in the whole wide world." SPLASH. They all sat together after each took many turns jumping in (after the introduction of course) and splashed until there was practically no water left in the pool-what a splashin' GOOD TIME!

Bubble Boppin'

2007-06-08T05:57:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday night while packing for the big move, my mom thought of a great idea. She asked if she could give each of the kids a big sheet of bubble wrap to entertain them while we were trying to sneak downstairs to pack away. Thus, bubble boppin' was born. (patent pending) They started dancing and stomping on that bubble wrap so hard that it sounded like elephants from the basement. They giggled and laughed and giggled some more. Katie danced and sang and they all just kept stompin'......wonder how big the largest piece of bubble wrap is? I think I feel an invention coming on-something that looks like bubble wrap and makes the popping sound but doesn't actually pop. If you don't have to keep replacing the popped sheet then they could have hours of fun. Perhaps it would be a good idea to sell it with some tylenol. It sure is fun for the kids but it does get a little loud when you have the sheets with the BIG BUBBLES!
I'll try and post some pics tonight. Great way to get them to exercise without them even realizing they are. Parents can be tricky too!

Me & my girls

2007-06-02T21:16:00.000-07:00

My 5 year old Andrew is very protective and concerned for his sisters (except when he is aggravating them himself). It is so cute to hear him talk about his sisters. We are packing to move to a new house and my mom brought some little boxes home so he could 'help' pack. He took a box into the toy room, packed his teenage mutant ninja turtles and preceeded to top it up with a couple of toys for "his girls". He then brought the box out to the kitchen, asked my mom for the tape gun and taped it up himself. He finished off by printing his name proudly on the box. He was so happy with himself that he had helped us pack and that his toys will make it safely to the new house. After seeing the big smile on his face you have to ask yourself-what's not to love?