'Twas the Night Before Christmas....

I don't know but something about this photo cracks me up. Is it my expression as my mom-in-law grabs my wrist or is the blank expression my nephew has on his face? We are all in Christmas colors and ready for some dinner from what I remembered.

Here is Mr. Zach opening a present from the Grandparent Nurks.


Here is the grandkids sitting on Grandma's lap. Notice that two out of three kids have beautiful teeth. The other one, well...he is out for the laugh.

Here is Katie getting that sassy dog she wanted for some time now.

All of these pictures are provided by Grandpa Ken. Christmas Day photos will be posted in time. Our day was fun and now we are getting ourselves ready for New Years.

Here is an awesome shot of the tree this year as taken by Grandpa Ken. Our Christmas was fun, festive and furious as we went through the presents and food. I will post more about the day when I get more time to write. Just wanted to get this out there so Bill could contrast and compare.

Henry's Tree Hangs Here

Thank you Henry for your adorable Tree. How did you know that Aunt Kimmy likes the color red? I just wanted to post your tree out here so you see we do think of you at Christmas time and enjoy all the artwork we get from you. Hope Santa is good to you and your sisters! Merry Christmas!

I Will Wear the Color Purple

Here I am at 3. Sitting on Santa's knee.

Love the coat and hat. Another cute shot. Thanks, Dad.

St. Nick is Listening

Ahhhhhhh. I was not screaming or frightened. I was definitely relaxed here as the big man listened to my Christmas wishes. Maybe this is what Josie will look like in two years? The year is 1971. I like this one, Dad. You guys must of put me on benedryl to be that calm on Santa at 2. Awesome.

Christmas Eve 1973

So that is what Christmas is all about. You stand in a corner of a room and face off the oldest lady while she is sitting on the couch. I understand that in some cultures it is customary to make the eldest feel most at home by serving tea or food to them first. Looks like Grace here got a strand of pearls instead. Nicely done, Holmans. Looking pretty dapper too. I think the boys should take some notes on how to grow their hair for the winter. Lambchops and moustaches are the beards of yesteryear. Or better yet....1973.

Decorating Lessons

So who do you think will be the lucky person to sit in that chair? And why do I faintly remember seeing that tinsel around Easter time every year? I also love the elf that is growing out of my back here. I remember Rob would chew on the end of that when he was cutting teeth.

More memories to be posted later!

Ghosts of Christmas Past

Here we are in Indiana. My first official Christmas here in the Hoosier State. Circa 1978. Photo courtesy of Papa Holman (a.k.a Big Guy, Dad, Billy Jr.) in Stow, Ohio. I can't decide if I like the carpeting the best or the fact that Rob lost his neck. My red socks are pretty cool too.

Stay tuned to this blog for more gems that were plucked through the Internet from Dad.

Merry Christmas!

Why I was MIA

Dog face. Nothing like a dog nose sniffing right up at you... It was a crazy week over here. Thought Megan was a good way to start off this post. It helps if you sing the "William Tell Overture" in the background as well. Break it down:


Christmas Tree Uncle Dave helped us haul our tree last weekend. The tag said 11 1/2 feet tall but when we knocked the light in our entry way getting that thing to sit straight, I am guessing in the 12 foot range comfortably. I pretty much took all week to decorate that thing and when I was standing on a tall ladder with a gripping pole to get to the top, I really questioned my sanity. It 's done and the photos will be coming soon.


MOPS Christmas Brunch I was handed the responsibility of organizing our Christmas Brunch and luckily it all worked out fine. I went in the night before on Tuesday to decorate the sanctuary. I managed to figure out the PA system so we could have some music in there as well. I am not sure anyone noticed but I found it festive. And being the true Holman, as long as I have that in my head, then that is all I need. The tree we decorated with the bracelets that Grandma Nurkiewicz help me make for the women. The food was good and the ladies liked the Christmas presents so I was able to enjoy the day. Thank God Christmas only comes once a year!


Chicago Bears Game Jeff was able to partake in the Bears Game on Thurs night up in Chicago with his office. The seats were great and Jeff was able to go with some nutty fans to really take in the moment. Luckily, he remembered it was an outdoor game and bundled up. One of his co-workers comments to me was that he was proud of Jeff for "not complaining" while they were out there. Way to go, Jeff!

Grandma Reads to Katie's Class Part II An encore performance given by Grandma in Katie's class at the "Mystery Reader" was on Friday. Grandma read the book "Mr. Christmas" by the Mr. Men series. Great little readers that have that class captivated. I like signing her up for that gig because she really is in her element. Not to mention the pride that Katie exudes when she sees Grandma walk through that door. Can't wait to see when she can read to them again.

Whew......need a break? Go get something to drink or pee and come back to read if need be. Or just log off and humor me the next time you see me that you read every dang word here. Consider this your intermission.........or your freedom ticket.

Sam's Birthday Party Whoa. This man knows how to throw a partey! This little guy just loved the kids there. We had fun watching him take in his big day and open presents with the help of his mom. There were gingerbread cookies to decorate and giant coloring pages to color. Not to mention his Dad's yummy meatballs and the neat mini pears. Much better than the goldfish crackers I served at Katie's 2nd birthday party. Just can't believe all this guy has been through and how wonderful it is to see him so happy and healthy.

Jeff's Office Christmas Party The sad thing is I did not see anyone walking around with a lampshade on their head. Nor copies being made of butts. I know...you are as disappointed as I was. However, despite the fact that this was a get-together of a bunch of bankers from very different sides of the bank, the food was good and the alcohol was flowing. We ate, drank and were very, very, merry.

Wow!!!!!!!!! (Exclamation marks are for Rob) You made it to the end. To recap things, I leave you with what is under my Christmas tree right now. No, not a dead squirrel or dog poop. We have a very big brown box that has the words from Great Grandma Bea Holman written on the top, "Don't open till Christmas. I have Santa watching you and he will tell me if you peek."

So bea good everyone. Grandma Holman has connections with the big man up north and she will use them if she deems it necessary. Have a good week!

It's Beginning to Look Alot Like Christ-mas...

You can tell Zach is into talking to Santa now. The look on his face here shows that he is confident in the Big Man's ability to provide the Mater Race Track he has seen at the Disney Store or the Shaker Car Race Track that Henry has in Ohio. Katie is another story...pink eye...seems we are getting alot of good stories about events with pink eye. A couple of years ago, we let Katie go trick or treating with the eye crud. Now this year we a spreading it to everyone as part of our Christmas Cheer. Of course Jen and I have open disclosure 24 hours in advance and it seems our standards of health are getting lower. Colds can't keep us from eating Turkey. Pink Eye does not prevent us from Santa. Pretty soon I am sure we will spending some time over at CVS together but until then, we stay with our system.

I save the best for last with Grandma and Sam. I guess Grandma was watching one too many Micheal Jackson videos and tried it out on poor Sam. But the real story is that at almost two, you have tons of ground you need to cover and he was on his way down from Grandma's lock. But as I tell everyone here, it is just fun to see all three Nurkiewicz kids in a picture with Santa. Reminds me of the time the Holman's attempted this when Katie was only 18 mos old. Ahhhhh. Good times. Picture came out just as nice. :)

Almost forgot to mention....we were at the annual Tri Kappa (what else?) Breakfast with Santa. I had to work a table and push some blankets but was able to sneak away and see the brood take some photos. Pretty early in the morning to see Santa. Plus, we were treated to some lovely snow this morning to make the occasion bright. Katie is currently out there playing in it and has been for the last two hours solid. Pink eye or no pink eye, snow is meant to be enjoyed! (Just thought I would share that as my last parting line with Ohio folk.)

merry everything!

What We are Thankful For

Here are the Nurkiewicz boys playing over at Dave and Jen's this fine Thanksgiving. I only have one shot left on my cell phone and this is what I captured. What was gratifying was to watch the laughter these two were sharing. Lots of fun to put the gears together then knock them down. Katie was great and keeping the boys in line (thanks to Maddie for the training) and even picked up Sam a time or two to keep them all herded in the Family Room. We did have some football on in the background which will make the Holman side happy.

The food was incredible! Dave and Jen are amazing cooks with all the dishes that they made. We were so lucky for such an incredible meal. The best part was the ziploc bags that Grandpa Ken helped invent so we could take home some of the leftovers. Yeah- no cooking for the next few days! Thank you!

Now the part of our thankfulness I most want to leave you with on this blog. My kids each got to share what they were thankful for at their schools this year. This is what they said on their turkey artwork that was sent home:

Katie is thankful for Mom and Dad, the Earth, God, Food, and Horses.

Zach is thankful for his sister, Katie.

I am thankful for anyone who may be reading this blog. Happy Thanksgiving!

Time For The Beast Feast

No it is not Christmas time or Thanksgiving. Katie is seen here dressed as her chosen animal...a deer...for the 1st grade Beast Feast at her school. If you live in Zville, you dress your first grader up as an animal that lives here in Indiana for a feast of sorts. The girls bring in the fruit and the boys bring in popcorn. Sounds tasty, eh? We were pretty happy with the home made costume this morning as seen here.

WE are all well and looking forward to a great meal at Aunt Jen and Uncle Dave's this year as always. Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!

Peace, Love and Happiness....

Tuesday was Mickey Mouse Day at school. Katie got to wear Zach's shirt and her mouse ears from an old Halloween costume to school. The smiles reflect the harmony I am seeing lately with these two as they sit together for more things now. Katie has been trying to read more to him and he is enjoying the playtime they have in the basement lately. The tent was the "kids club" and no adults allowed. Get this.... tell Uncle Dave/Bill that the monster in the basement bathroom has been replaced by a dragon that won't let Zach go pee. Or at least that is the excuse he gives me when I remind him to take care of this bodily function. At school he played the leper in the church play that thanked Jesus for healing him. He was the youngest one up there with the 4 and 5 yr olds. His teacher said he was very comfortable up there. Could we have another inspiring actor in the family? Only time will tell.

This week will have a different start as Katie got the infamous stomach flu that reeked havoc on her last night. Jeff is pretty good with handling that aspect of parenting. My bets at this time of posting is that she will be home with me tomorrow. I am sure Zach will not be too far behind since he is sharing tent space with Katie as I type this.

So much for the Nurkiewicz harmony I am seeing.....

Peace.

New Dos for the Holiday Season

Well us Nurkiewicz girls are chopping the hair and getting ready to look lovely this Holiday Season. Katie and I are seeing the same lady now and Jeff's comment was now we look even more alike. Sporting the shorter styles, we are looking forward to several events that are coming up for us. For starters, we will be at Dave and Jen's for Thanksgiving this year. Then the annual Santa Breakfast on Dec 6th followed by some frolicking fun at the academy for the 13th. Not to mention all the great MOPS activities Becky and I have planned for November/ December. We have our cookie exchange to go to, gift wrapping night and of course I planned a fun lunch at Patrick's.

Our Santa list is growing this year. Katie has been inspired by her recent visit to Hudson learning all the cool stuff from Maddie and placing the Ninetendo DS as her first request to the big guy. Zach is not far behind as he wants more speed racer cars and remote control cars to zoom around our floors. Should be a fun winter here!

This just in...... I have heard a rumor from the Katie and Daddy camp that they are plotting to get another giant Christmas tree this year. I can not confirm nor deny these rumors for at the time of this publishing, it is strictly hearsay. Stay tuned to this blog to find out if we can smash a 13 ft tree into a minivan.

Have a great weekend!

Katie Reads to Lilly the Dog

Here is a shot of my girl Katie reading to a working dog in the PAWS to read program at our local library. What a great way to get Katie into reading. This dog Lilly is being trained to go into retirement homes and hospitals to work with the elderly. One great way to socialize the animals is to have kids read books to them. Plus the dog enjoyed seeing me come in and out of the room. Good practice for her and for the Katester to get that reading under wraps. I was told we need to be at a level 26 reader by May so we are working at a fierce rate to keep up with the rest of the kids in Boone County.

Speaking of which, if you lived in Boone County, your president would be John McCain by 65%. We also had a record 80% voter turnout. Jeff even voted this year. I think that is the 2nd time he has done so since he was 18. Me? I pride myself in getting in there everytime since I was 18. I may not always vote for the guy my brother Rob would approve of. But this year, Rob and I are seeing eye to eye on this front. (Except our governor here. I did vote Republican.)Jeff was the only guy in the office to vote for Obama as well. So we are kinda laying low here in Zville for a little while. Shhhhhhh! Don't tell!

Were All in This Together

Just a quick post to update you on the rest of our weekend....

Saturday morning, Katie and I caught a 10 a.m. show of HSM3. Two hours of fun music and listening to Troy trying to figure out what he wants to do in life...pretty brutal. But the Katester did great and enjoyed the giant popcorn and icee. The sad thing is this is the first movie Katie and I have been to in the theater. Better late then never!

Then later that day, the family did a bike ride over to Lions Park. In case you forgot where it is located, pretty much on the other side of downtown Zville. We discoverd the end of the rail trail as it ran into Pine Street and then took this course all the way down to the park. The kids had a blast and I was impressed Katie could keep up with us adults. Especially me since I was hauling Zach behind me. I think I am going to start training or something. Then we ended the evening with a bike ride to our favorite place Patrick's Diner and Kitchen for some dinner. Finally after three years of living here, we rode our bikes to dinner. Yeah!

Sunday we skipped church and had fun at the Lake with the grandparents. I made some grinders for dinner and grandma and I worked on my craft for MOPS. Catfish Jeff caught several fish. Seven of them for eating. We had the best fried crappie dinner last night. Yum. Mercury....

So that is the latest report. Go out and vote for your best man today!

Trick or Treat!

Happy Halloween from the gang at Cobblestone Lakes! Miss Katie went as a beautiful princess and Zach thought it would be really funny to be Blue from Blue's Clues. Although, all night long people were mistaking him for Sully from Monsters Inc. But whatever you called them, they had a great time trick-or-treating with Sophie who was Sharpay and Grandma/Grandpa Nurkiewicz. We ran into one other grandpa out there who was dressed as Abe Lincoln. I asked Ken why he did not go all out and dress up and he replied is was going as an old man this year. Nicely done, Grandpa Ken.

The favorite candy treats here were the "tootsie wootsies" which I think Zach figured out if he called them that he would score way more candy from mom. Katie was really into the airheads and licorice pieces. My kind of girl. I have to admit that I picked up a Three Musketeers bar as the first thing I swiped from the kids candy. Perhaps you would like to comment on what your fav in the kids bag was this year. Special note: I did not see any grandparents sneaking candy. Or maybe they were just way to clever to get caught!

On to Turkey Day!

Grandpa Helps Carve the Pumpkins and Fall Break in Ohio

For some reason or another, this is the only photo I got to upload from my phone to the website. I blame it on the people at Applebees for cursing me but what can you do? Grandpa knows what I mean. Here is Katie and Grandpa making the face on the pumpkin. I think Zach had a different interpretation of "making a face" and that is the outcome of this photo.

Want to thank all the fine family members this past week for making Hudson/Stow a happening place to call Fall Break. We had some fine frolic and fun. The sleepovers for the kids were the best part I think. Katie is still talking about how much fun it was to eat chocolate chips at 10 at night. Otherwise, Mom would be mad. :) And how about the picture contest the girls drew of Grandpa? What great artists we have in this family and I truly mean that. Those girls drew better than any of us Holman siblings could. I think they got those artist genes from Stringers and Nurkiewicz's. :)

Zach is already making plans to go back to Henry's basement. They have shaker cars there and lots of fast cars. Sounds like alot more fun then the My Little Ponies he is used to playing with here. Maybe Santa will be kind to him and update his car collection. He also liked playing with Caroline although she "did not talk much". But who could get a word in edgewise with Zman around to tell you every inner thought he has? I am sure your homes were much quieter after we, and I mean he, left.

Thank you Rob and Erica for the fine meal. Thank you Judy and Bill for the lunch from Heinen's. Thanks to the parents for putting up with us and for Dad for cleaning out the trashcans full of tissue after we left. Next year, we will try not to bring bronchitis with us. But how can you keep us away from all your fun?

Much love.

Tooth Fairy Visits Our Home and Grandma Reads to Class

Grandma Nurkiewicz or Grandma from the Lakehouse read to Katie's classroom on Friday. Really cool to watch Grandma work the room. I don't think I have ever heard that classroom so quiet. Even the troublemakers, (my daughter) was lulled into a spell as Grandma read some books from the Mr. Men series. Little Mr. Tickle and Mr. Tall were Katie's favorites. Then she surprised the classmates and gave everyone a bracelet with their names on it. What a treat! Mrs. Frye also received one with a colts horseshoe on it. Hopefully that will help Mrs. Frye keep those marks down on the report card this period. We will go in on Thursday to see what she says. Wish us luck for we already have missed some recess due to some laughing and sticking our tongue out at a friend. That lady runs a tight ship!

Last but not least Katie lost her first tooth on Thursday night. The Tooth Fairy was generous and gave her a whole dollar bill! Wow! There are 26 teeth right gang? Hmmmmm. Maybe we should of done the math on that one. Katie was so excited though to be part of her peers on that one. She was the last one in her class not losing a tooth yet. Good Holman teeth I say. :)

You get to see Katie's new smile this Saturday for you Ohio folk. I will be touching base with the parents on the details but we will be in town till Tuesday morning.

Relaxing Weekend Rough Week

This post is brought to you by Treximet...some very fine migraine medicine that makes you not sure of what you are writing, thinking, cooking for dinner or whether you dog has peed or not. But I figure what a perfect time to talk about the crazy week and the fun weekend we had here!

Posting a little later than my standard fashion, we had a great weekend this last weekend at the West Baden Hotel in the French Lick Springs right here in southern Indiana. Could not believe how nice the accommodations and how much to do down there. Here is what it looks like in the lobby. Pretty amazing decor and lots of open space. We sat in the bar here and just stared at the ceiling changing colors all night. Of course, we were drinking a little bit and Jeff was with his usual scotch and I actually drank a bit too. Very shocking I know.

Then we head over to the casino I played some slots and lost the 1 buck I had. There were some pretty trails there. Later that day, we saw a man about a horse and went on a 90 min horseback ride. My horse's name was Speck and he was great once we had an understanding of how he did not like to walk through horse poop. Now Jeff's horse....that was something different. He had a hard time getting up the hills of the trails and I would look back and just laugh my saddle off watching Jeff's horse wish he did not have Jeff riding him. That was just too funny. "This guy looked alot skinner then you thought! Why punish me? I am only 80 lbs."

Then we sat in a hot tub for awhile and ate and drank some more. Could not help but think this place would be a great place for all six of us to meet up and have some fun. They are building an indoor water park and they have kid activities for 6 and up where you basically just leave them. Lots of fun here and I joked with Jeff that we should come here instead of Florida this year.

The kids had a blast with the grandparents this weekend. Grandma was a trooper and got a bee sting at the park. But she took one for our team and that seemed to be the clencher for the weekend. Our kiddos were spoiled and Zach took naps with Grandpa. It was great fun.

And the reality set in.....

Came home to Katie with a fever of 102. She stayed home on Monday and it looked like she would not make it to the zoo field trip on Tuesday but she rallied back and put on her best smile. I can't tell you for sure if her fever was totally gone without Motrin but whatever it took, we got her there. I was the parent volunteer that day and in charge of 4 kids. I like to call them the ADD gang. I had two boys and two girls and we saw every dang animal in that park. Plus my group got all kinds of fun trivia like...why flamingos are pink and what are favorite snacks of boas and pythons. I was cool Mrs. Nurkiewicz for a day. Mostly because before we left, I made sure all my kiddos touched a shark in the touch tank. Cool. Then I snuck them some lifesavers before we got back on the bus to go back to school. One kid asked me at the end of the day if I could show up to the next field trip. Hmmmmm. Have to table that one...

On the same day, Zach decided he had enough of Christ Church Preschool. He was a summer baby so I put him in the "young" class and it was just not a good fit. He was acting out and pretty much bored of the teachers. I think he even told one of them, "Maybe you could do it." Sound familiar? He definitely has stubborn parents so why not just play the part? Pretty harsh. So, we had a change up so to speak...I switched him to the more expensive Methodist Church right next to me ( at this time, I promised Jeff he would get a scholarship someday to make up for the extra cash it will cost). Instead of going T and Th we are going MWF. This pretty much screws up all volunteers schedules (mainly my reading groups at Katie's school) and anything I had planned for awhile. But...everyone in this family has to be happy so we have to make the change. Now I think it is a good thing for now because it makes me relook at some of the things I had lined up. Do I really need to take over Zville? The answer is no. This big change has reset some priorities. So what is perceived to be a rough week or change is actually a great chance to reset all bets.

Now pass me some more of that weed before I fall asleep.....

Night.

Fighting Blueberries End The Fall Season

Wow! What a way to finish the season! No one scored a goal the whole game but we ended the game just the same. Lots of kicks...Katie stopped quite a bit of them as she played 1/2 the game as the cool goalie and then one quarter as an unstoppable driving forward. The girls really jelled and the parents were really fun to hang out with this season. Last night after practice, we all went over to Pizza King for pizza and beer. One mom made all the girls hair ribbons, which you see them sporting in this video. One dad gave us a disc and several paper copies of photos he snapped throughout the season. It was fun to see everyone improve and have a great time together. It really showed.

I got some footage of Katie stopping a goal. Not the usual excitement but I was happy to have at least a few minutes of Katie showing what she does best....having a great time.

Happy Grandparent's Day!

Hey it's a little blurry but here is Katie and I at the big
Grandparent's Day at her school this morning. I figured a blurry picture is about how the grandparents could see us that day.(joke joke) How fitting that it was on Dad's birthday, eh? She made the grandparent's some things that I will be placing in the mail and we listened to some songs that the class put together. Then we stuffed our faces with muffins and talked to some of the other grandparents that were there. Pretty fun day.

Then, I came home and took Mr. Z for a bike ride. Here he is in his fav spot-the trailer.

Later today, we have Katie's last soccer practice and then her last game is tomorrow at 10:45 am. We have had a real fun season thus far and are looking forward to the spring when it starts back up again in March. I will try to take some footage tomorrow or tonight of our girl driving the ball and stopping it as a goalie.

Happy Birthday Dad and I hope you enjoy Maddy's delicious cake. Maybe we will get to see a shot of it on the Bill blog.

The Times They Are A Changing....

Okay. There are a couple of things I said I would never do. But as I get older, I find myself doing the craziest stuff...

One- Get a bike and ride all over God's Green Earth. I have no balance.... Well...my daughter has prompted an interest in this family. We are now the proud owners of some sweet bikes thanks to a few recommendations by Bill. I own one of those cushy tall bikes since the smaller girl bike was too small for me. The seat is just heaven. It has a spring in it that moves when you go over the bumps. Raliegh man. Got a new one for Katie too. Jeff of course went with a Specialized bike that has the thin wheels and no kick stand. He doesn't need one if you ask me. (Whacka Whacka) :0 Then there is the Zman...when given a choice of a bike ran toward the trailer that was in the corner of the store. "Mom can pull me in this one". So he gets to wear Katie's old purple star helmet and off we go. So if you are worried about the current economy, take it from the Nurks..just go out and blow a bunch of money on bikes. Of course...there are more bike stories to come. Starting with our first solo trip for Zach and I where I blow a tire. Sweet....

Two- I hate blogs. I swore to several friends and co-workers I would never do this pontification. I was too busy living life than to gripe about it or critic the latest movie or food in my life. But here I am...blogging pretty much every weekend now and all because of a sappy email from my brother. Cool. Then I realized we are pretty busy around here and having some fun.

So what next I ask you? Me voting for a democrat for President? Keep posted so I can tell you if that actually happens or not. Never say Never and Ces't La Vie.......

Katie's First Ride On Her Two Wheels

Yes....Maura, Maddy and Henry can all ride bikes without training wheels. Now just add Katie to the mix...we were just a little slow to do that here. No practice and she zooms out the garage and into our neighborhood with dear ol' Dad. Next she wants to tackle some ice skating lessons. I envy her balance! Go Katie!

Farmer Zach Rides Again and Katie's Team Wins 9-2

Well we end the day here with another soccer game under our belt. Katie's team wins against another pink team- 9 to 2. The field was wet and the girls started early this morning arriving at 8:20 a.m. for pictures and then we were off to our match at 9:30. Katie played a great game and really threw herself into the ball and people's feet a couple of times. One time she had the wind knocked out of her but she was back up and ready to play. I was really proud of her determination today and not letting the name-calling from some of her teammates get her down. She turned it around and played well. Goalie and big D were her strong areas today. Katie was also very consistent at passing the ball to open players. So she did not score any goals but I think she is really picking up on the whole idea of the game. That was really fun to see happen.

Meanwhile, Zach and I headed over to Stuckey's Orchard this past Friday to pick some Fuji apples that were in season. I also managed to score an early pumpkin from the patch. Zach had fun climbing the wood structures that were in the shape of a tractor. I had fun calling Grandma Holman from my cell and apologizing for missing her birthday. (September 17 ) But hey...at least Mo got her HSM and Webkin from me. That seemed to be my focus for the month as far as birthdays on the Holman side.

Katie joined Brownies Troop# 2056 this past week and is going on a hayride hopefully this coming October. She was thrilled to see two of her neighborhood buddies also joining. I was thrilled to see possible carpooling opportunities. :)

That is all for now. I have a full plate this week with my new gig as a literacy mom. I go in once a week to Kate's school and work with some kids in a reading group. I am also trying to organize some photo taking times for Zach's school too. Fun groups though. Gives me some creative times as well.

Peace.

Ike Brings the Rain but the Blueberries Win the Game!

The girls played a heck of a good game against the green team. We won 3-0. Katie played goalie again and stopped one kick and got the ball out of their in a hurry! She also was all steam as solid rain soaked the field and she drove the ball between two girls from the other side and made a goal attempt. Looking up in the gusty 25 mile hour winds and the rain coming in at you sideways, the ball took a nice arch and hit the top bar of the goal. Miss! But that did not keep our Katie down. She was all smiles and was enjoying playing ball with her team.

Me? Came home to change out of my underwear. Never been that soaked. Katie and I poured the water out of our shoes before getting in the car. Dedication.

Katie's team beats Panthers

Another game in the bag for the blueberries as Katie's team won 3 to 1. We played our old coach from last fall and he came over after the game and gave Katie a huge hug. She played a great game of big D as they had her hanging back and doing an awesome effort at keeping that ball away from our team's goal. Katie also had the chance to play goalie for a quarter and did a great job despite another team playing behind her yelling at a "Katie!". That distracted her a little but she stayed in the box and stopped some shots. One of the parents looked over at me and thought it was great that Katie does not stop smiling the whole time. It's cool when we are all having fun! The parents are pretty cool on our team also this year.

Tomorrow we play a very tough team at 1 pm. Hopefully Ike will not be a factor but we will see what Sunday holds for us.

Kappa Girls and our latest report

Here is a pic of me and the girls at the parade this past weekend. That is Whitney, Martha, Becky and me. (Doesn't that sound like sorority names?)We had a great time and awesome weather. Not seen here are the Santa hats we had to wear to promote our Breakfast with Santa fundraiser. In years past, it has been about 90 million degrees with humidity in comparison to Bills' sheets. So we were happy to wear them in the 70 degree morn and pass out candy to all the kids on the street. You would be surprised at the big kid adults who were begging for the airheads and tootsies we were throwing. That really cracked us up. After about an hour into the whole thing, we just got in the jeep and started hurling the stuff at the crowds. It was like Mardi Gras.

MOPS meeting went really well. I was at the church till 9 pm the night before with set-up and had a really good time with some of the steering ladies there. I learned on Sunday while I was being installed on the steering team that the coffee makers were not working. So yours truly managed to score some free donated coffee from our local buddies at Starbucks. Fun to show up with that with about 50 people looking at you like you were Santa. Ho Ho ho.... We were all so cranked up from that coffee I never heard the sanctuary sound so loud! Too funny. The speaker we had talked about taking pictures of your kids and how to store your photography so hopefully I was able to sit still and listen to enough of that to learn something. :0

This week, I will be playing parenthood solo as Mr. Jeff hikes in the Sierras with an injured rotator cuff from picking up the kids and throwing them on the boat. We are getting old here but it is still fun to think you can do crazy stuff like that.

Zach started school this week. His teacher wrote on his report that he is excellent at listening and very affectionate toward his teachers and others in the classroom. No accidents to report. I can't believe how he just decided that it was time for him to stay dry. Who said boys are harder to potty train? Hmmmmm. I think birth order has more to do with it. Correct me if I am wrong. Feel free to leave your comments on that thought.

Well I am signing off for now as I need to get our mud gear ready for soccer practice today. It has been raining all day and the fields are showing as "open" on the website. www.zysa.org if you are interested in checking it out.

Holy Cow! Katie wins the game for the team!

Katie wins the game for the team!

I am not kidding you. We sat there and watched our daughter DOMINATE the field. She kept driving the ball over and over; passing it to teammates and recovering the ball from the other team. I think the other girls on the other side were afraid of her! I sat at the game with Zach climbing all over me just stunned. This is the same girl that cried at every game last fall. This time, Coach McCooey was all over her with the high fives. I jumped up several times with that familiar Holman high pitched yell, "GO KATIE!". Jeff kept smiling the whole time and we sat there in awe of our little soccer star. Who would ever think that a track official and a musician would produce this little steam engine of power? I am not kidding you...she ruled! BUT...the best part of the whole hour long game is that she was constantly smiling. She would take a crack at the ball from the other team and give you a huge grin. Later, she would tell me that she knew she was doing well and that ball was easy for her to turn around and get. The Blue Blueberries (that is her team name) won the game 3-2. Katie scored two of those goals with solo drives from the other teams side. The field is larger this year. There are more of them out there as well...5 girls each side with a goalie. The coach even played Katie an extra quarter when asked if she wanted to sit and take her customary break. She shook her head and said she wanted to keep playing. The endurance!

More pics from the game later. I had my old camera out there because I went straight from the parade to the soccer fields. Holy Cow, guys. I am not kidding....

It's Colts Blue Day!

Here are the kids as we get ready for the day in their jerseys. Katie is complaining because her jersey is a generic one with no number on it. So it looks like we will be getting her a real one because she knows the difference. That is the fun of being 6 1/2 and too smart for her own good.

Zach is sticking his tongue out in a foreshadowing of how the day has been. After I dropped off Katie at the bus stop, a friendly neighbor left a bag of poop for me in my newspaper holder under my mailbox. Thus the day has a true reason to start!

Okay. I am off to decorate a float for the parade. More on all of that later...

Our end to the 4 day weekend

Yep, that is right. We have four days to our Labor Day Weekend here in Zville. It is back to school for Katie...work for Jeff and Zach goes for the 2nd day to Gymnastics MDO.

We started off the weekend with a babysitter on Sat night and a dinner at, the modern Katherine's, Patricks. I like it when we walk in there because the bartender fixes my glass of Sauvigion and Jeff gets his scotch fix....neat.

Then Sunday, it was a day at the lake with the Grandparents Nurkiewicz. We toured the lake two times and both kids had turns driving the boat. Zach swam with some ducks and Katie showed us her fancy moves in the water. It was just starting to get hot out but not too bad. Then of course, Zach announces to everyone that he poops for ice cream so we ran over to the local Alexander's for a scoop once Zach dropped one at the Grandparents house.

Then that night, Katie and Dad had a sleepover in the tent in our backyard. Katie slept great and Dad moved the crew inside at about 4 a.m. when he could not stand the noises of the cars. LOL. Zach and I did fine in the AC inside. That was real camping!

Today and yesterday, we kept cool by doing some shopping at Clay Terrace and Casleton Mall. Zach likes to dance to all the tunes the girl stores play at the Limited and the Children's Place. So we were all happy. And of course we ended up at DQ to get some more ice cream. I think I have gained about 3 lbs since Zach started going potty. Maybe I should of thought of a different bribe because I am expanding my the minute! Ha ha!

So it looks like I will be getting the last few things ready for the parade on Saturday and then working out a couple of times this week to give this ice cream no place to stay. I managed to squeeze in 4 classes last week so we will see how I do on this short week. We have to walk from the High School down to downtown Zville in the parade and back so I may just act like an old lady and take it easy this week! :) The family walks, btw, are up to three miles on the rail trail. Katie jogged one mile easily the other day with Jeff. Zach and I do the jogging stroller with Megan.

Hope all is well.

The Nurks Arrive on the Web

First Post and we are off!!!!



Highlights of the past two weeks:



*** WE ARE OFFICIAL*** NO MORE DIAPERS IN THIS HOUSE Zach has been potty trained now for the last week. The pressure of his buddie Evan wearing the Cars undies and the incentive of DQ ice cream has pushed Zach into the big boy category. Last night at Kohl's, he picked out some Wall -E undies too. Looks like our garbage pail will not be so stinky at the curb on Mondays.



***KATIE IS A FIRST GRADER*** Going all day now, Katie has leaped into 1st grade. Some tears were shed the first few days of school. Some pep talks were given by Daddy and now we are rockin into our third week. It is a long day for her but she seems to be doing great as she is earning the smiles for good behavior and bringing home the homework. Right now, her fav classes are gym and science. Although, last week at art class, she did do some creative cave drawings and her art teacher made her laugh. Her teacher, Mrs. Frye, was the best teacher in the school corporation two years ago. So Katie and I were thrilled to get her. She is THE teacher to get. Some stats for my brother Bill, her bus number is #60 and we have to walk down the street to Cobblestone Ct to catch the bus. We catch the bus at 8:45 in the morning and she comes home at 3:50. Her favorite shirt to wear to school right now is the "Recycle My Brother" shirt. Somehow I can relate. :)



***SOCCER SEASON HAS BEGUN*** Katie is fast. Last summer, we did some summer soccer and she outran some of the boys which made the parents angry with me. That cracked me up. I love these Zionsville Soccer parents. Our big thing right now is how to harness some of that energy...so we are doing footskills classes on Monday nights. Practice is with Coach McCooey, which scouted her at school, and we have that on Thursday nights. Sat and Sun through the first weekend in October is the fall soccer season. We will try to post some game highlights when we can.



*** WE HAVE A NEW ADDITION TO THE FAMILY*** Give a big glup to our new members of the family, Digger and Spike the fish. Digger is Zach's fish and Spike is Katie's Blue Crowntail beta. I have two of them in one tank with a plastic wall between them (so they don't eat each other) and then Zach's fish lives in a bowl about the size of a soup bowl. They join Jakie the fish that has been with us for about a year and a half. I like to think of myself as the beta whisperer. :) We did win some goldfish at the State Fair this year which died on day 3. Thus the prompt to purchase more.



***JEFF GOES HIKING IN SEPTEMBER*** Mixing business with some fun, Jeff will be hiking the Sierra Nevadas with a co-worker this Sept 14-20. Prayers are welcome if you feel so inclined.



*** KIM WILL BE SETTING UP A FLOAT AND MARCHING FOR THE FALL FESTIVAL*** September 6 th I will marching with fellow Tri Kappa gals as we try to promote some fundraisers we have coming up this Christmas and in April. Should be a comedy of errors since the job is falling mostly on the shoulders of yours truly and my buddy in crime, Becky Culp. Since we were the new pledges last spring, they like to have us organize the madness. I think it will involve a bottle of wine and an old platform on the back of a jeep. I am hoping we can make it there by 9 am in one piece. :)



*** MOPS STARTS THIS SEPT 10th*** Another thing to hit at once is my first meeting at Zach's church. So far, we have about 40 women signed up and the theme is Adventures in Mothering. I have been busy writing for the newsletter to be circulated in the community and getting table decorations organized. I am also responsible for the food and coffee which these ladies take very seriously. Last year, the gal who did this position was probably related to Martha Stewart. Everything was just gorgeous! Me? I am bringing in a fun element this year to go along with my upbringing. Lots of Fisher Price People stuff will be everywhere. I am really looking forward to helping out this year with this group. It will be my 4th year with these ladies and it is great to be in a leadership role this year.

*** JEFF AND I GO TO FRENCH LICK OCT 10TH*** We are getting away for our first long weekend and staying at the resort. Can't wait!

***WE WILL BE TRAVELING TO STOW/HUDSON OCT 23-26TH*** It is the kids fall break and we will be taking in the Buckeye State. Details to folllow.

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