a few NZ pictures & from thanksgiving etc.

These are just a taste of Jett's trip to New Zealand...


At Waitakere Ranges National Park
Uhm...not entirely sure where this one was taken...anyone?

View of Auckland, NZAnd again, well part of I suppose!

These are all out of order sorry!

Here your seeing some of the Bay of Plenty on the right

On the way to Gisborne.

Jett has a whole lot more, but there are just too many to post up here, so I'm just giving a few scenic photos for now. :)

I again did not take very many photos at the Thanksgiving dinner, :( but I did use somebody elses camera which is 100 times better than mine... here the owner sits with 5 of his neices/nephews...L-R Owen, Jenna, Calvin, Amelia and Aaron.

Miss Photogenic J, Sam and Miss Oh-so-not-photogenic A.

Off to heat up leftovers for dinner!

Finally an update...

After 5 busy weeks of visiting family and friends in Canada, and then rushed over to Texas to visit more people, and finally "settle" for a bit...I get an awful flu bug that has left me tired and weak...but, I'm recovering and am thankful for that! But we are here, and together as a family again. It is wonderful having Jett back! I went up with Mom (and Amelia came too) to pick him up. I was excited, and yes I did let out a squeal before fast walking towards Jett...anyways, the kids love having Daddy back with them and I do too!

Daddy brought back lots of gifts from friends in NZ...so many gifts...the kids and myself were spoiled!Isn't this apron lovely?

You can't really tell what this is, but it is Amelia's new and favourite kiwi bird backpack...she loves it!

Oh and the cute kiwi's...Aaron is toddling around with his all the time...very cute.

And there was a whole lot more that people kindly gave, we thank you very much!

We spent a week at James and Hayley's before going to Joe and Care's for a week, here the kids are enjoying a picnic in the beautiful Texan weather at Care's. Care's kids are photogenic...and mine are quite the opposite. :(
Cute eh?

The lizard on the kitchen window (in our "settled" home).

Our current place of abode.

Father and son (Owen).

Thanksgiving is coming up, so hopefully there will be photos to put up from that occasion. But I had best be off and making dinner now. :)

...

update to come soon... and no, this is not going to be our "family pic" we decided we didn't like it enough...lol, we'll try some family pics at the beach sometime soon but our photographer (Sam) is off to Colorado right now!! Hope to update about life in general as soon as I can. :)

Long time no speak, er, write...

...I know! It has been a very busy three weeks here, all enjoyable but extremely tiring too. And on my last day we are still visiting! I hope to go with my mom to Oma Vermeer's to visit her, and then Jackie will be at mom's tonight. I look forward to seeing them.

Tomorrow is the big day to leave once again and hopefully fly to Texas. I can't tell you how nervous I am! Maybe you think I'm a bit weird to feel nervous about the border but I can't help it, oh, I'm nervous about flying too, such a worry wart I am. :(

We've had nasty colds (mainly the kids) so I suppose we are tired from that too. The kids should be used to going here and there a bit by now, maybe, but I really look forward to settling down for a bit, if possible.

I should post pictures, but I haven't a camera, and I keep forgetting to borrow my mother's...soo, we'll just have to wait till Texas for Jett's cam. I am so excited about seeing him next week, all the Lord willing! Can you believe I haven't seen him for the entire month of October?! Almost a whole 5 weeks without him, and I am so glad it is nearly over. :)

Hopefully I'll catch up with blogging but we'll have to see, life has taken quite the high speed right now!

For Jett (aka Daddy, Dedaa, and Gaddy)

Just for laughs... :D

Mommy & Aaron

A little too much of me grinning...but cute of Owen :)

Amelia with her lovely box of "treasures" that she got from Aunt Jackie.

Owen playing my piano

Goodbye Scotland...

...and hello Canada (all being well tomorrow). I've been running around the house, packing this and that, weighing bags and then packing the rest of the little bits into boxes. Busy yes, I guess. I think by tonight I will wonder, "what do I do now?" :) But I will be glad to get that far.

I have nothing to announce really. Jett's safely in Singapore, and tomorrow he goes to Auckland via Sydney D.V. Lots of traveling about for this family! Lets hope Jett takes a lot of pictures.... :)

I'm nervous about flying again, I don't like flying. Please remember us tomorrow.

And off we go!

An Tairbeart & Owen's first haircut *sniff*

We are back home (we have been for a couple of days) from Tarbert, and it was a lovely time there. I enjoyed it especially because Flora C took care of the kids many times so I could go to church without them, what a difference it makes!!

Owen had his first haircut after we got back...more on that later...

This is in Uig, Skye while we waited for the ferry to come in.

The Ferry

Owen getting a cuddle from Daddy

After 5 or more hours of driving the kids were *very* ready to play!

Amelia loved being at Hannah's house...and playing with all of her toys!


Already going home! I tried getting some photos of the ladies but Ruth protested and I never ended up getting any! Here is our 3 in the back seat...lol no room for any extra passengers!

Tarbert Harbour

I never thought I would be so sad about Owen's first haircut (I'm just being silly right?) but I was...I think it just marked a bittersweet moment that my baby is more boy now than I realized. Here he is dawning his lovely locks...

How could I cut them?!

But I did...







Ahh!!



Back view. :'(

Next week I have to say goodbye to Jett for 5 weeks! I am not looking forward to that at all. I'm also getting nervous about flying over to Canada, but I hope and pray that things will go well.

an update of sorts

I've been neglecting our blog this week. The only reason I can come up with is that I feel I have nothing interesting to post about or I just don't feel up to posting. I think it is both. :)


We have been doing things though. We always are you know, laundry, washing dishes, cleaning etc. I did accomplish a few extra things... one is Amelia's scrapbook is done! I need an album to put all the pages in but that is easily found in the States! I did from her birth to Feb 2008 and no more. Anything else will be put in a photo album. Whether I do any of the boys is doubtful, they are boys you know and boys tend to like boyish things so perhaps a photobook is more boyish.

So we've been doing a lot of "craft" time, not that the kids really made anything, but they had fun cutting up paper, and gluing it to paper.

This is Amy colouring. The kids do this everyday.


Aaron will colour for a long time, run off to play with cars and then come back and colour again. (Amelia decided to sit next to me and read that above sentence word for word, yes she can read)Owen was putting laundry in that plastic box, he was actually quite successful!

Sleeping babies...aww, I love them!

Last Saturday we went to Glasgow for Amelia's MRI (which didn't go through because she was terrified), we had lunch at the Macleod's which was so lovely! Need I remind everyone that we stayed in their house for a week while Amy had her seizures/hospital stay? That is quite something for any family to do, and we endeavour to be thankful for these mercies.

Mrs. Macleod gave us some educational books for the children which they are enjoying (I enjoy them too!)

Ah, Banana bread and some muffins to the left. Want the recipe? Likely most of us have a good recipe for this loaf. :)


This Sabbath we hope to be in Glasgow, Lord willing. And Wed we go off to Tarbert, Harris (5 hours driving, 1 3/4 hrs ferry) for the communion, I look forward to being there again!

Until next time D.V. :)

schedule. the busy schedule.

Where is the time going? I find it is hard to realize that September starts tomorrow, and I have a month to pack for Canada/Tx. Yes, that is sufficient time to pack for the trip, but it is difficult to know whether or not to pack things in the house, and whether or not I'll need certain things while in Canada/Tx. Oh well.

Yes, time is zooming. July is gone, now August. I get to be with Jett for the next two Sabbaths at least, and perhaps the third if I am brave enough to go to the Tarbert communion. Oh, and then Jett is in Larne I think for the last Sabbath, and then N.Tolsta and New Zealand. I hope I'll manage okay for 5 weeks without J. I know I will be mostly in Canada so that should help, but it does leave one uncomfortable knowing your spouse is far away from you...and this would be the furthest he's been. But, I hope it will be a good experience for him as I'm sure it will be.

In other news this photo makes Jett and I laugh...

Owen likes looking at pictures of real people so his favourite book is this one on the children of the world.

5 days without Daddy means lots and lots of fun when he gets home.
Aaron might just take off with these...

Amy hopefully will sleep well tonight! :)

Aww, and I like baby hands (ok 15months isn't quite "baby" but close enough).

I was really wondering what Owen would do when he saw Daddy once he got back (would he be whiny and cling to him like last time?), little did I know it was going to be in the middle of the night... Thats right, little Owen decided to wake up wanting a bottle so he got to see his Daddy and he was very happy. :) Sooo happy that he had to be with Daddy...thankfully he was still tired and went back to sleep, that is after a bit of cuddling and laughing and being silly. :)