Our Wish For Christmas

Wishing You
the MOST BEAUTIFUL and SIMPLE GIFTS
of Christmas

A street light glows in the winter air,
Smiles on faces everywhere,
The love in a child’s whispered prayer,
The simple gifts of Christmas.

Moonlight soft upon the snow,
Caroler’s’ voices, sweet and low,
Friends and family, hearts aglow,
The simple gifts of Christmas.

The holy night so long ago,
When starlight shone on all below,
Making sure we’d always know
The simple gifts of Christmas.

May your Christmas be simply wonderful.

10 days to Christmas

I don't know about you, but every year Christmas seems to get here way too soon!! I just put up the tree Wednesday evening...I've been buying gifts off and on since June...I'm always doing that and by the time Christmas is here I've done MOST of the shopping. So, God willing, I'm close to being done with that part. Now I just have to wrap everything!!! Christmas Cards are in the works and last night I took Alex and Hunter to Sears to get pictures taken. I have the CD, so I can show you all just how cute these two are!

Hunter dislikes getting his pictures taken, unless it's by me...then he poses all funny and stuff, so I was really happy to get these terrific pictures. Hunter's school pictures turnesd out badly the first time around and then when we got the retakes, he looked drugged!!! I called Life Touch and demanded my money back. Now we have some good ones to share with everyone!!

Well, I hope you have found your Christmas Spirit and enjoy the time with family and friends.

Stay safe and warm...Merry Christmas!!

Ice Storm December 2007

Well, as warm as it was in the beginning of November, from Thanksgiving on has truly been Winter weather. Very cold temps and some snow & ice. But December 11th gave us a whole new definition of winter.

The Ice Storm...It began about 10 PM Monday night, with a light rain falling. By Tuesday morning there was a definite layer of ice on everything. I stayed home from work, the boys stayed home from school. About 9:30 or so, the power went out. Power...it makes you realize just how much we depend on it. We are luckier than a lot of folks... we have a gas stove and while the oven works off the electricial controls the burners work and I boiled water the whole time to put humidity in the air and we burned candles in the evening. I can tell you, doing anything by candlelight is tough. I did manage to read the boys a story...let's just say they were bored enough to listen. No TV, we did find a battery operated radio and listened to that for awhile.

The rain in the mean time just kept coming until about 10 or 11 AM and an inch or so of ice covered everything. We could step out the back door and hear the trees in the timber crack and break... sometimes you could watch out the window and see them break and fall. Very sad. Then the rain turned to sleet mixed with the rain.

Eventually the sleet was the only thing that was falling and then... it stopped. Later that afternoon we got some snow, nothing to really worry about and it was over before we could even think about worrying about it.

Mike got a call from work...can you believe it, they wanted him to go in...he did, of course. He drove the truck in 4-wheel drive. He said the worst part of his journey was our gravel road and our 2-lane paved county road, S23. Other than that, our DOT Crews did a wonderful job of keeping the roads clear and driveable. Makes me proud to work for the DOT, even if I'm not the one out there cleaning the roads! So Wednesday I went to work... I went slow and took it easy. No problems! The boys had no school again. I wasn't really that surprised... But now it's Thursday and the boys are still not back to school. Not sure what that's about. Maybe tomorrow...

We hope you all faired as well, if not better, than we did. I'm glad it's mostly over...we still have to be careful driving, but that's what an Iowa winter is all about!! Be Safe!!

Back from the South

Well, one would think going to Louisiana would be a wonderful escape from the cold weather here in Iowa...let me just share that about the only thing we missed out on was the 4" of snow Iowa experienced while we were gone. Other than that it was in the 40's and 50's most of the time. Really put a damper on a lot of our plans.

We did not make it to the Gulf like we wanted. Alex didn't get to go fishing. And we were advised to stay away from the French Quarter. I guess the level of crime down there has escalated to a dangerous level and one doesn't feel safe there. This info came from my cousin, Kevin, who is a Deputy Sheriff in Slidell. Things are not as safe there as they once were. It's really a shame. There is so much to see and experience but not at the risk of getting into a bad situation.

Kevin
I have to say it was great to see Kevin, even if he didn't say what I wanted to hear. Don't think I had laid eyes on him since his wedding!! We had a great time visiting with other family and friends. My Uncle Bill's now fiance', Denise, is a lovely lady and was so nice to talk to. It was a real pleasure to meet her and her son, Rob.

I did get to spend some quality time with my Uncle Bill's son, Brian, who just got back from a tour of duty in Iraq. He was very open about the conditions over there and shared some of his experiences on missions with 'his guys'. He's a Naval Medic assigned to a Marine unit. Currently they are here in the states in North Carolina. He signed on for a 4 year...two years active and two years reserve... stint in the Navy. So pretty soon he will be going back to Ohio to continue his college education. He says he's not sure what he's going to go for, but he knows it will be in the medical field. I'm hoping Doctor/Physicians Assistant...but whatever it is he will be awesome at it. He's just got that type of personality.

Aunt Carol & Brian

My Uncle Bill works at a fitness club there in Slidell called Cross Gate. I'm not much for going to a fitness club, but I'm telling you, if I lived there I could get into this one. Everything was top notch. Not just clean but the facility was a lot more than just a weight room and a pool. The women's area had a hot tub, a dry sauna and a steam room. Believe me the hot tub was the best!!! The lockers(if you want to call them that) were wood and everything was in warm rich tones and ceramic tiles. Very Nice!!! The club had a coffee shop and cafe where you could get hamburgers and other stuff, an area where you could just sit and visit or be on the Internet & a gift shop. The pool was outside & heated. The boys had sooo much fun swimming! They really hated to leave!

My Aunt Carol looked good and it was great to visit with her too. She works for the Prosecuting Attorney's Office. Sounds like she's a paralegal or a legal Secretary. Heavy work load too from what she tells me. Kevin, the Deputy Sheriff, is her son. Law Enforcement must be in the blood!

Aunt Carol, Dad, Kevin, Joanne & Bill

My dad is/was a chef in his younger days and quite accomplished at his craft! I think we all came home about five lbs. heavier!!! Mike and Alex signed on to be Dad's Kitchen Help! It was great! I think Alex may just go back down this summer and learn some more about cooking and maybe able to get that fishing in that he missed this time around.

Joanne is a wonderful lady and quite the quilter. Oh, to be that good ...WOW! I can only wish!!
And her and Dad make quite the couple. You should see THEM in the kitchen! I guess being together and working together for 30 years makes you able to anticipate each others next move!

All in all I believe a great time was had by all and it ended toooo soon! We are already planning to go back next 4th of July! It will definitely be warmer!!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!!

We are off to Louisiana to see my Dad and Step-Mom, Jo. It sounds like my Uncle Bill and his Lady friend, my cousin, Brian, (who recently returned from Iraq) and my Aunt Carol will all be there for Thanksgiving dinner along with some other family friends. I'm sure we will have a wonderful time reconnecting.

I'm planning to go to the Gulf of Mexico and at least put a toe in the water, the boys like doing that too!! Hunter doesn't care what the temp is, he just wants to get in the water...so I guess I'd best pack his swim suit!! We have a hotel room at the Best Western in Slidell all lined up... with a pool and everything! Maybe Hunter will get enough of water there! I would also like to make a journey down to the French Quarter. I never feel like it's been a complete trip to Louisiana if I don't make it down there for at least a couple of hours!

Alex has put in his request to go fishing...hopefully he will get a chance to do that. When Zac stayed down there a couple of summers ago he was able to go fishing and caught a 5 foot Alligator Gar. A really big UGLY fish!! He was so excited!!

Zac won't be going with us, but he will be spending the day with his Geat-Grandma Newsom and his older brother, Wesley and his foster family. He's pretty excited about doing that. And I'm glad he will be with family too.

I hope you all have a Wonderful Thanksgiving Day, full of family, friends and lots of yummy food!

Shannon's Nursing School Success

Don't know if anyone is aware, but Shannon (my oldest) has been going through the DMACC Nursing Program and has been doing pretty well. She's been able to maintain A's and B's and last semester she made the Dean's List and the President's List. She was also put on the National Dean's List Registry. She also has been nominated to be a delegate for the International Scholar Laureate Program (ISLP), in the Nursing field. The program sends hand picked students from America to South Africa for 11-14 days, to learn more about the health care crisis in South Africa and the Aids epidemic. Here is a link to the program's site.
http://www.scholarlaureate.org/nursing/index.cfm

I'm very proud of her! She has two children she's raising (with Nick's help of course.) while she's maintaining stellar grades. I know how hard that is having gone back to school when I was 29. But I also know there is a shortage of nurses out there and Shannon has the personality and ability to be a good one. I hope she continues to be able to succeed in school and achieves her dream of becoming a Physicians Assistant. How awesome would that be!!??

Shannon is currently looking for any help with or ideas for fund raising for that trip to South Africa. She's not looking for personal financial help. She's going to be contacting businesses and local hospitals and writing to some influential people to find sponsors for this trip. She has until December to come up with half of the money. So if any of you know anyone to contact or think that their employer might be willing to think about being a sponsor, please let me know. If you don't want to be connected with the sponsorship, she says she can just write a letter without any mention of your name. She is going to apply for the scholarship. According to her instructor (who is the trauma coordinator for Iowa Health Systems) it is a HUGE honor just to be nominated. This will look really great on her resume' and portfolios, as well as help with school.

Any ideas for fund raising would be most welcome!! I came up with the bright idea to put a cookbook together and sell it. Any good recipes are most welcome. The way this works (in case you don't know) when the books are published, the person who donated the recipe gets a by-line and the recipes are printed in the books and sorted and all that by the company you recruit to publish it. We did one of these at work and they sold so well we about had to re-order! I think this would be a great way for her to get some funds for her trip.

Either way, your prayers and well wishes for her would be most appreciated too!

Exciting October Family Events

The month of October has been filled with weddings and birthdays galore! Thankfully, the weather, for the most part, has been wonderful! This Fall has really been great!

My good friend, Carmen, got married on the 6th, at the age of 40, to a wonderful man, Terry. They seem very well suited to each other and we wish them many happy years together.

Mike's niece, Alicia was married on the 13th to a really great guy, Matt Warner. She made such a beautiful Bride!! Matt's been around for a while and he and Mike get along well...they are so funny together! I'd explain, but you really don't want to know!!
On Monday, the 15th, Rhonda came to where I work with a wonderful announcement... She and Jeff are expecting a new little bundle of joy in June. I'm personally hoping and praying for a sweet little girl, but I know Heavenly Father will decide that, not me! So everyone help me, THINK PINK!!
On Thursday, the 18th, Lisa's son, Zachary turned 8 years old. He's such a cutie!! Zachary likes all things John Deere. I'm thinking he'll be a farmer one of these days!

On Friday, October 19, 2007, at 11 AM, my 71 year old mother and her consort of 5 years, Ralph, tied the knot! It just goes to show...you're never too old to find true happiness! I'm so happy for her and Ralph. Rhonda and Jeff stood up with them in a small ceremony at the Little Brown Church in the Vale in Nashua, Iowa.
My granddaughter Rissa took most of the pictures. I think she did a great job!!








Also that day, Brighton turned 2 years old... yes...already!! Mommy and Daddy took him to Chucky Cheese in Waterloo to celebrate!

And if that's not enough, On Saturday, October 20th, Hunter turned 9 years old and we all went to TOKEN'S Family Fun in West Des Moines, to celebrate. We had great tasting pizza and cheesy bread sticks. YUM!! All the kids played Laser Tag...including Jeff. Rhonda, Jeff and Rissa found this game that caught their attention. It's like Guitar Hero, but you dance instead of play the guitar! They had sooo much fun! And Brighton found a little mechanical horse to ride. He almost wore out Papa Mike with keeping it running for him.
Hunter's best friend, Sammy, came to join in the fun and then spent the night at our house. Josie and Josh were there, having spent the night with Grandma Sue for the first time! The boys' oldest brother, Wesley brought their Great-Grandma Newsom. Hunter had a wonderful fun filled birthday. Way too much excitement!
Of course, after Hunter's party, we all went to Ames to Happy Joe's for a birthday party for Brighton! His Grandma and Grandpa Glaspie and Jeff's brother's family came to Ames from Waterloo to help celebrate. A great time was had by all! By the end of this day we had had our fill of pizza, I think! And we all were glad to get back home for a little R & R!
Let's just say I'm kind of glad October is over. November may not be so crazy!! One can hope!
I'll add some more pictures later...they are still on the camera!

Zac

Without getting into too many details, Zac is currently staying with an acquaintance of mine from work, who just happens to be a licensed foster parent. After a lot of problems with Zac at Rhonda and Jeff's and few bad choices that Zac has made over the past few months, we(we being our family and Zac's Therapists)have come to the conclusion that he needs more intensive therapy than he has had in the past 5 years. From the life that he was forced to live prior to living in our home, he has a lot of emotional scars and it's going to take more than what our family can do to help him become a successful functioning adult. We only want what is best for Zac and we are doing everything we can to make that happen.

Hunter and Alex miss him, but they also know that Zac has made some really bad choices and he needs help to improve his life. He is still going to Ames High School and will continue there as long as possible. And as long as he does what is expected of him, he will be able to stay with my friend, Carol, until arrangements can be made to place Zac in a good situation for his needs. I will keep you updated on Zac as soon as we know what's going on.

This has been a really hard thing for our family to endure. Mostly for me...I've really had to do a lot of things to even find a good place for Zac, even temporarily. The other two boys have had to go to Day Care after school(which they do not like!) while I've done the things necessary to get Zac settled. All the time I've spent making phone calls, 'knocking' on doors, 'tap dancing' on the right desks to get people to do what is necessary as quickly as possible. Bureaucracy can be a real PAIN to deal with sometimes! That's not to say it's been all bad...most of the folks I've had to deal with have been kind and considerate to work with. It's just all the red tape takes time to sort out and believe it or not, I'm not always the most patient person...imagine that!! :-)

Long story short, my entries in this blog have been like, non-existent. I will try to do a much better job of keeping you all updated in the future.

Quick Football Update

Well, Flag Football is officially over. We've had our picnic/get-together. I don't have a clue which team won or how each child did, but a great time was had by all. The kids don't really care about the final results, it seems and I guess the parents will just have to wonder. We can hardly wait for next year! 4TH grade is when they start Youth Tackle Football and that group is much more organized...of course they have been doing this for a while and this was the first season ever for the flag football teams. Hunter is really into this...he's taken to tossing the football every chance he gets! It's been a very positive experience for him.

Alex didn't get to play in Corydon...Thunder, Lighting, rain and wind all made that quite impossible and the other team forfeited rather than hang around and wait for the weather to clear. There was no game last week and today it looks like another rain out...but the day is young! We are supposed to play I-35 at our home field. We shall see...

Alex's Game

Not a good night for the Warhawks. They played the Pleasantville Trojans. Unfortunately It was 18-0. Not their most shining moment...I must add though, the boys handled the loss REALLY well. I'm very proud of them. They never truly gave up and they kept at it until the final buzzer sounded.

Next week the game is in Corydon. Long drive!! Wish us...a better game!

Hunter's 1st Flag Football Game

Hunter really is happy....he just refused to smile, the little stinker!!

Hunter had his 1st two Flag Football games today! He also received his number today and his number is 34 the same number Alex had when he was a Chief!! Also his first time playing football!! Strange!

The kids involved in this 'little' league are from 1st grade to 3rd grade. The Coaches took all the kids that went out for football and divided them up into 4 teams, Red, Blue, Yellow and Black. Hunter is on the Yellow Team with his good friend Sammy. Sammy is the quarterback and Hunter is a wide receiver. They tried a pass today...the receiver ALMOST caught the ball! But they did have fun! It was so fun to watch them out there. The coaches stay on the field with the kids to help them and guide them. It's a great way for the kids to get used to playing the game and have some fun doing it.

The first game was against the Red Team...they tied 14-14! The Second game was against the Blue Team...Hunter's other good friend Wyatt's team...The Blue team tied 18-18!

All in all it was a great time! Win or lose, the kids had fun and that's what it's all about!!

A Gathering of Boys!

Today we had the pleasure of having breakfast with Wesley and his foster parents, Gary and Judy Gear. Very nice people!! Grandma Newsom, the boys' Great-Grandma was able to join us. We haven't seen much of Wes the past 3 years or so. That made today's visit quite a treat for the boys.

In the way of an update on Wesley...He is in his senior year at Valley High School in West Des Moines. He has a job and drives a car and looks and acts so grown-up. He seems to be a very nice young man. He plans on going to college...for what...I'm not sure he knows just yet. Some of us don't figure that out until we've got a year or two under our belts. He has time to sort that out.

I was able to take a couple of pictures of the boys and it's amazing how much they have all changed and grown in the past five years! I've attached today's pictures.

Handsome bunch, aren't they??









Now look at them 5 years ago...Weren't they cute!!!
























Hunter still has a baby face!!

This one of all four of them was taken almost 1 year after they came to our house. Memorial Day Weekend. Incredible!!

Alex's 1st Game

Alex is #1 as you can see from this picture!


The First Game of the season was against Eddyville.

The 7th Grade won 16-14. Yeah!!

Alex was switched on the field...

Go Alex!!

and off the field...

Good Job Alex!!

every other play!

But we have a very happy Warhawk team!

GO WARHAWKS!!

And right now I'm going to go tuck-in one very tired Warhawk...Good-night!

The Cain Boys' Football Schedules

Just thought you'd Like to know when the Boys' games were in case you care to come watch a game or two!! Hope to see you there! Sorry about the quality of the list. I'm new at this and I just can't seem to make the spacing stay in the posting. If you have any questions feel free to call me! Sue

Zac’s Football Schedule

The Little Cyclones

Date Day Opponent Place Time
September 6 Thursday DSM North North 6:00 PM
September 13 Thursday SE Polk SE Polk 4:30 PM
September 22 Saturday Newton Ames 10:00 AM
September 27 Thursday Valley Ames 5:00 PM
October 4 Thursday Mason City Mason City 5:00 PM
October 8 Monday Roland Story (B) Ames 6:00 PM
October 11 Thursday Marshalltown Ames 5:00 PM
October 18 Thursday Waukee Ames 5:00 PM
October 25 Thursday Ft. Dodge Ft. Dodge 5:00 PM

Alex’s Football Schedule

The Warhawks

Date Day Opponent Place Time
September 6 Thursday Eddyville Lacona 4:15 PM
September 11 Tuesday Pleasantville Pleasantville 4:15 PM
September 18 Tuesday Wayne Corydon 4:00 PM
October 3 Tuesday Interstate 35 Lacona 4:00 PM
October 9 Tuesday Central Decatur Lacona 4:00 PM

Hunter’s Football Schedule

The Little Warhawks

Date Day Place Time
September 9 Sunday Lacona 12:30 PM
September 16 Sunday Lacona 12:30 PM
September 23 Sunday Lacona 12:30 PM

My First Blog

I saw how easily Rhonda was able to do a blog for her family so I thought I'd give it a try! This should make it easier for you, our friends and family, to keep track of us. For now, here's a quick update of our lives.

I changed my hours when the boys went back to school. So now, I'm working Monday thru Friday 6:30 AM to 3 PM. Yep, I'm on 8 hours 5 days a week! No more Fridays off! Bummer! This way I can be home when the boys get off the bus and I'll be able to go to all Alex's Football games. Mike and I won't see much of each other now because he's working 5 PM to 2 AM. And there will be no more stopping by to see him when I get off work! Another Bummer! He gets home about the time I'm getting up!! Talk about ships in the night!!

In August, Zac moved in with Rhonda's Family in Ames and he has been enrolled in Ames High. He is in the 9th grade there and he's playing 9th grade football. He's made a few friends and things seem to be going well. It sounds like he's a pretty busy young man!

Alex is in 7th grade (yes, that's Jr. High!!) and Hunter is in 3rd grade. They have both gone out for football. Hunter had an opportunity to join a flag football team and is loving it! They will be playing for 3 Sundays in a row starting September 9th in Lacona. Alex's games are most Tuesday nights in September and October! We will be busy!!!!

Well, that's it for the moment. I'll write as the mood strikes...hopefully that will be at least weekly. I can keep you posted on Alex's game results!