Horsin’ Around and Ringing in the New Year

Happy Chinese New Year!

Mom’s favorite two reasons to celebrate the year of the horse…

We are also SO lucky to know local families who also like to ring in the Chinese New Year!

The kids were super engaged when they learned about Chinese New Year traditions, Chinese New Year food and to count to ten in Mandarin via Skype from a twenty year old young lady who too was adopted from China when she was a little girl.

After the lesson, the kids horsed around while the adults got dinner organized.

The dinner was delicious…orange chicken, long noodles (for a long life), dumplings (for wealth), wontons, and fruit (namely oranges for good luck)!

After dinner the kids horsed around while the adults cleaned up and organized an after dinner craft…

Decorating lucky yellow t-shirts!

   A super fun night…lucky are we to ring in the Chinese New Year, and lucky are we to share a common bond with such special local families!

A Meal Fit for a King

Two very special helpers whipped up Bumpa’s birthday meal today…

Meat Loaf, Baked Potatoes, Salad and Brownies!

The results were enjoyed by all princesses, princes, kings and queens!
Happy Birthday Bumpa!

A Successful Year?

How do you define a successful year of coaching 5th grade boys basketball?

Answer:  Caleb saying I could be his coach again next year!

Go Spartans, Go Coach Mom and Go #25 (mom’s favorite player, wink)

Gotcha~Posing since Day One!

    

Two years ago today, six became seven!

What would we do without our spitfire Jayne?

We laugh every time we think of how Jayne was described as shy, obedient and an introvert!  Since day one we knew none of these words truly described our Jayne! 

Jayne loved her Gotcha day.  She loved reliving the fact that she surprised us on the 8th because we thought by our paperwork that Gotcha day was supposed to be the 9th.  She loved reliving our time in China where she called mom and dad “mama” and “baba”.  And she loved reliving that Caleb and Papa picked her up at the airport and Caleb gave her a high five.

Jayne’s Gotcha Day was complete with streamers on the bedroom doors, donuts for breakfast, noodles for supper and a new outfit that sparkled.

Jayne, we are so lucky that we get to enjoy your sparkle every day.  You are high energy, high excitement, loud volume and you prefer to dance instead of walk…you sparkle in all that you do and all that you say!

 

~SPARKLE~

A Third for the Herd!

 

 

Three-peat, A Third for the Herd, National Champs…Again.  However you want to say it…Bison Win, Bison Win! and Dad, Caleb, Luke, Bumpa, Gamma, Jesse and Zach were there (with 20,000 other crazy fans)!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not surprisingly, the kids were amongst the 6000 fans that rushed the field after the game!

Fun that will never be forgotten, for sure!

Could you save 7 yellow cowboy hats?

Yep, the gal at Party City in Sioux City Iowa was a little perplexed when Dad called earlier this week to see if they could “save” seven yellow cowboy hats for him.  Her response was, “We have plenty.”  Dad’s response, “Could you save them anyways?”

Look out Frisco…here comes some rowdy Bison cowboys!

The hats have been well worth the save…

~At the hotel check in~

And clearly at the pep-fest with 10,000 other crazy Bison Fans!

These three are hoping for a Bison 3-peat!

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Bison!