Anybody Here?

I doubt I have very many followers but for those of you still out there. Tonight as I was working on some scrapbooking I turned to social media to remind me of events that my brain has forgotten.  To tell you the truth I am still working on our 2010 family album...yes you heard me 2010, ugh!
So as I was reading all my Facebook posts from 2010 I was reminded of some great times we have had as a family and little things I had posted about Noah that I probably would have never remembered ever again.  But have no fear social media to the rescue, plus on top of that I was pretty good about blogging still in 2010 - so my 2010 family album can bring together all these scattered thoughts.
So here I am to remind you that we are still here, still growing and thriving and enjoying life.  And also to challenge myself to come back her more often to journal, share and put into words the daily lives that we are living.

Videos

Just a couple videos, we have done so much this summer and have jumped right into the school year.  Posting these videos and seeing that my last post was in May....so far behind!

That's our Noah, such a ham!

So proud of Levi, I didn't know he could count all the way to 10!

Summer Bucket List

Bucket Lists are EVERYWHERE, this is not a new idea for anyone.  I have been wanting to do a list for a couple summers now but just didn't feel like the boys would get into it or really understand it at all....not that there is much to understand.  I guess what I am saying is now that they are older we can all pretty much enjoy the activities as a family.  Noah and I came up with a majority of the list but we are also open to adding to our list (we have tons of space to do so).

* Campfire S'mores
*Swimming Pool
* Park
* Invite a Friend Over
* Tulip Festival
* Walk to get Donuts
* Backyard Campout
* Sparklers
* SnoCones
* Fishing
* Go the the Library
* Zoo
* Washington Vacation
* Swimming Lessons
* Picnic
* Plant Flowers
* Family Bike Ride
* Church (I thought this was funny of Noah since we go every week, but it still needed to be on the list)
* Farmer's Market
* Make Homemade Ice Cream
* Work on Our Garden
* Go Berry Picking
* Make Treat for Our Neighbors
* Go to a Space Museum
* Go on a Moon Walk (meaning a walk at night)
* Run Through Sprinklers/Water Balloon Fight
* Make Sandcastles
* Ride a Carousel
* Make Play Dough
* Make Bird Feeder
* Scavenger Hunt
* Go on a Color Walk
* Make Suncatchers
* Write a Letter
* Make and Take Flat Stanley Places
* Have Root Beer Floats
* Donuts at Jitters

The fun thing is that we have already accomplished a few items on our list...not that we won't want to do them again this summer but check out how we have started the summer:

SPARKLERS

TULIP FESTIVAL (I will have to post more on the Tulip Festival:-)
 

PLANTING FLOWERS

So what is on your FUN list this summer?!!

Grandpa Gubser

Sunday evening I got a call from my parents letting me know that Grandpa passed away.  It is hard to believe that someone who has been around all your life isn't going to be there anymore.  Grandpa was 94 and lived a good, long life.  And as many people say, 'he really lived life.'  I am so thankful to know him and know, in my heart 100%, that he is in Heaven singing with the angels. 

Soon after Grandpa's passing my sisters, cousins and I flooded facebook with memories, some I knew and some I didn't.  Grandpa's leaky laps, and his three wheel bike he would ride everywhere.  Eventually that upgraded to a motorized scooter and let's just say you better get out of the if you saw him coming.  Grandpa was always up for getting out and going places: ball games, campouts, drives to Nebraska City for dinner or just a drive to see the fields.  He could tell you about his first car, first horse, and first tractor and every one of them after.  He was always good for stories and memories.

The following is Grandpa's Obituary:

Robert Henry Gubser, son of Claude Henry and Bertha Belle (Moore) Gubser, was born October 12, 1918 in Atchison County, Missouri (rural Hamburg, Iowa).  He died February 17, 2013 at Garden View Care Center in Shenandoah, Iowa.

Robert graduated from Sunny Slope in 1931 and Hamburg High School in 1935. Robert was united in marriage to Monna Lee Morelock on June 1, 1944 at High Creek Baptist Church of rural Watson, MO.  To this union four children were born.  They farmed in Missouri until 1951 and then moved to a farm north of Riverton, until retirement in 1988 when they moved to Hamburg.  While farming, he was a truck and school bus driver.  He hauled grain, hay, gravel, lumber, and livestock.  While living in Hamburg, he cleaned his church, mowed yards and did farm work for his nephews Marvin and Marlin Gubser.

He attended  Lone Chapel Christian Church in his early childhood. He was baptized in 1935 and a lifelong member of First Baptist Church at Hamburg, where he served on several boards, was a Sunday School teacher, and sung in the choir.

Preceding Robert in death were his parents; wife Monna Lee, daughter Celia Ruth Gubser, brother Leroy Gubser,  brothers-in-law: Robert Hahn, Sr. and Herman Joesting, sisters-in-law: Judy Gubser and Elsie Gubser.

Robert is survived by two sisters, Verna Joesting of Tarkio, Missouri and Vada Hahn of Toluca, Illinois; brother, Raymond Gubser of Virginia, Nebraska; two sons, James Claude Gubser and wife Dorothy of Hamilton, Missouri, Robert Lee Gubser and wife Ruth of Lincoln, Nebraska, and daughter, Cynthia Sue Shelton and husband Gene of Farragut, Iowa; eight grandchildren: Gina and husband Bruce Baragary of Hamilton, Missouri, Kelly and wife Amy Gubser of Lincoln, Nebraska, Amy and husband Rob Basham of Cowgill, Missouri, Troy Gubser of Lincoln, Nebraska, Kimberly and husband Matt Martin of St. Louis, Missouri, Emily Shelton of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Rebekah and husband David Elder of Sioux City, Iowa, and Carla Shelton of Stillwater, Oklahoma; sixteen great grandchildren: Ryley, Bryce, Brodyn, Bryer, and Brady Baragary; Calvin, Katie, Kerri, and Cheri Basham; Maya Martin; Skyler, Dusty, Harrison, and Tobias Gubser; Noah and Levi Elder, many nieces and nephews and other relatives.

Funeral Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, February 23, 2013 at the First Baptist Church in Hamburg, IA with Pastor Tom Beutler officiating.  Burial will follow the services at the Hamburg Cemetery in Hamburg, IA.

The family will greet friends from 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. on Friday evening (2/22) at the First Baptist Church in Hamburg.

Memorials to First Baptist Church, Hamburg.  

February: I Love...

to read and I recently finished this great read.

I am excited that we already have a trip planned to the Pacific NW this summer and I hope to see some of the historical locations mentioned in this novel.  David and I also had an interesting discussion about how growing up in our history classes we didn't learn much about the camps for Japanese Americans during WWII.  David also shared, as his 3rd year of being professor, that this was the first year that all of his students had been taught this part of our history.  (He teaches a course on war propaganda.)

Joining Kerry in her I Love series.

February: I Love....

My boys and cookies, can't get any better than that!

I am joining Kerry and others in an I Love...series.

My Heros

The boys got matching pjs for Christmas from Grandma and Bucko.  They love wearing them and whenever Noah wears his he always asks if we can put Levi in his too!  Fun times!

Noah Turns 5!

I couldn't believe it.  It has been so hard to think about Noah being 5.  It really doesn't change anything in our day to day but there are now big things to come and mostly what I think about it Kindergarten in the Fall.  It is so hard for me to think that we will have a kindergartener....yikes, but we will cross that bridge when we get there for now let's talk about THE PARTY!!

Noah requested a STAR WARS LEGO party, we pretty much all saw that coming but we have already done two Lego parties in the past and I wanted to come up with something different than what we have already done.  And thanks to Pinterest that wasn't too difficult.  What was hard was keeping it simple and not getting carried away with all those Pinterest finds.  We don't get to crazy with parties just a few friends of Noah's and family, this year only Grandparents were able to come.

FOOD:
Our big thing was the food, and Noah had fun deciding the menu:
Dagobah Dogs (pigs in a blanket)
Cheesabers (cheetos)
Endor Edibles (veggie tray)
Death Star Dip (ranch dip)
Hoth Balls (powdered sugar donut holes)
Yoda Soda (lime sherbet and sprite)
Bantha Milk (milk)

I made some simple tags for the buffet, you could get really creative with your tags.  I did simple solid colors to match the legos.

DECOR:
Simple, Noah, David and I spent the week before the movie assembling all of Noah and David's Star Wars Lego sets: Tie Fighter, Millennium Falcon, some pod racers.  We also collected and assembled all the minifigures, lightsabers and costumes we had.

GAMES:
At this age the kiddos still just want to play in the playroom.  But Noah did request a Star Wars Bingo and I set up a solid colored back drop to take pics of anyone in costume.

STAR WARS BINGO - Noah assembled his Star Wars Lego minifigures and let him and Grandma take pics of each one on a solid backdrop.  My wonderful and patient husband threw together some bingo cards which I then printed for each kiddo.  I put the minifigures in a bowl and that is what I used to draw and the kids used lego bricks as markers.  I found gummy Star Wars candy at Halloween to give as prizes.

PARTY FAVORS:  Mini Lightsabers
I purchased a tub of glow bracelets at Michael's for a $1 each (15 bracelets in each tub) and labeled them with stickers saying: "Jedi Noah May the Force Be With You" or "Jedi Aiden The Force is Strong With This One".

Here are some pics from our little family celebrating Noah on his actual birthday!

Super Hero's Halloween

A couple month have passed and a LOT has happened: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Noah's 5th Birthday and the list goes on and on....so I am starting off the new year looking back so I can hopefully move forward! :-)

 Noah of course wanted to be a superhero for Halloween, Iron Man to be specific.  I actually think we went to the store looking for Captain America and came out with Iron Man.  I planned on not buying Levi a costume hoping he could wear Noah's Spinderman from last year but it was too big and I couldn't pass up the little Hulk costume once I saw it!

 Oh! and I dressed up too for one of the party.  In case you didn't know I am Wasp from the Avengers.

  I don't feel to horrible spending the money we got lots of wear out of them: a playdate Halloween party, a family Halloween party, trick or treating in the dorms, our church's Trunk or Treat night, Halloween night of course and just everyday dress up so all in all a good investment!  And listing all that kind of makes me feel like this:

Leaves, Leaves We Have So Many Leaves!

But we are putting them to good use!

 So happy that Levi didn't decide to jump off the chair like big brother.

Happy Birthday (Great) Grandpa

We celebrated my Grandpa's 94th birthday last weekend.  Not all of us (children, grandchildren and great grandchildren) got to be there but we partied anyway.  First of all can you imagine how much a person has seen in 94 years of life?  It boggles my mind...I mean I've seen a lot change and I am just 29!

We had beautiful weather and great food and of course a few presents.  It was so much fun to hear Grandpa talk about farming and when he bought his first car and what type of tractor he used in 195(whenever) and it also makes me feel very blessed to be in a family that is so close and that I grew up knowing my 'extended' family.  Occasionally David makes fun of me for calling my cousins 'cousins', because when I say cousins I am talking my mom's first cousin's children, etc!  But I love it and I loved it growing up and I hope that our boys will feel the same way about it and appreciate family even if they may or may not be 'blood' related.

 Some of the GREAT Grandchildren helping blow out candles.

Our Levi with his Great Grandpa!

A Case of the Sniffles

Okay it has been a bit more than sniffles but that is how it all started.  After a weekend of fevers, runny noses and hacking coughs I feel like I can say that we are on the mend.  The little boys have not been feeling well so we laid low all weekend with a few movies, and just plain ol' being lazy.  A few peeks at our weekend.

 Hanging out in pjs and the laundry baskets!

 Noah passing on the art of Oreo dunking.

 This is pretty much what I want to do when I feel sick is cover up my head and go to sleep!

As you can tell they are feeling a little better and 'helped' mom organize the kitchen.

Can you name that tune?

Isn't this the soundtrack going through your head as you are hiking through the Rockies?

Love our little guy and the big brother that taught him.

Batman PJs

Signs of Summer

A few pics to share of the handsome little fellas in my life.  We are having a great summer, hope you are too!

 He is measuring how tall his corn is getting.  He is very proud of his corn.

Here is one of our garden plots, and I am very proud of how it is doing!

Noah: Tee Ball

Today was the first day of the first season of what MIGHT become many more seasons of ball.  It was a little crazy for the first day and four fields of 4&5 year olds playing ball but it was fun and I was excited to see my son involved....if I can even use the word 'involved' when talking about 4 year olds waiting for a teammate to hit, waiting for the ball to come their way or waiting to run to the next base while a crowd of parents and grandparents watch trying to yell directions.

But when all was done for this Saturday morning of tee ball I asked Noah if he had fun, he without hesitation responded, 'YES!'  So I the parent who kind of stepped in and made myself the 1st base coach didn't ruin it for him and he had fun even though he walked off the field to Grandma saying that he needed a drink and then when he got back to the field to sit down at short stop.  It was cute and it really wasn't that big of a deal to anyone (the ball never got hit that far anyway).

One Step At A Time

He is getting more and more confident every day.  Trust me I will let you know when he starts running, then we will really be in for it!

Gardening

Some of you may have seen my facebook and saw that I (we) are attempting a garden this year.  I remember my parents gardening when we were younger and my mom can bring almost any plant that has been in my home back to life and David's parents have a beautiful garden every year.  I do not have a green thumb but I am thinking/hoping/wishing there has to be some green in me somewhere because I have not given up hope yet! 

I love the idea of gardening and we love to visit the farmers market every week.  We have canned tomatoes and apples the last couple of years and try very hard to keep fresh fruits and veggies on our table.

So this summer we joined a community garden with some friends and Noah and I headed to Bomgaars to fill up our cart and came out with some:
cherry tomato plant (my must)
green pepper plant (David's request)
zucchini plant
onion plants
sweet corn seed (Noah's request)

David's mom gave us some of her leftovers:
jalapeno plant
'Better Boy' tomato plant
carrot seeds
spinach seeds

Then recruited some experienced gardeners (Grandma Carolyn and Bucko) to help plant our seeds and plants.  We had a great time gardening now we just need to keep watering and hope that something, out of all that, grows!!