Here are some snapshots from Pioneer Days at Liberty Church. All of the third graders in the district get to have this remarkable day of learning and having fun. They were all dressed in their pioneer best and you could tell they were loving all of the stations. They did candle dipping, rope making, braiding, chores, butter and biscuit making, square dancing, games , cemetery history, stenciling and quilt making. It was a long day but we had so much fun and the kids learned a lot and they were a joy to watch. I was surprised to see how many of the kids, boys included enjoyed sewing the little 4 inch squares of fabric together in the quilt making station that I was working at. I heard so many of them say "when I get home I'm gonna ask my mom for more fabric so I can keep on sewing". That was really cool to hear....we were really afraid that the boys would be bored but they had a fun time. Some of the kids even said it was their favorite thing of the day. I also heard quite a few compliments about Paige's costume and about her square dancing abilities. It was her first time square dancing but she loved it...must be from all her ballet and tap dance classes. She is not afraid to dance...thank goodness!

Scroll down for all the fun pictures!Paige showing off her quilt squares. She came home and went to show Linda all the things she made at Pioneer day. Then she came home from Linda's house with some scraps of fabric to cut into squares. She's on her way to being a quilter...one 4 inch square at a time!
Paige looking like Laura Ingles Wilder her idol.
Ma (Brandi) and Paige (Laura) on the prairie.
This little boy in the blue plaid shirt is Jacob. He is one of Paige's classmates. I really admire him he is a hardworking little boy who has had to face some serious challenges in his young life. When he was just a baby he had a heart transplant and he has also had a stroke. His hands don't work the greatest but he does his best and he's got a great sense of humor. He reminds me a little bit of Cody.

Third graders having fun doing chores....don't tell their parents!
Our neighbor boy Harry at the quilting station.
Paige's class learning about cemetery history. These graves date back to the early 1800's.
I love this photo of the girls walking along in the cemetery...it looks timeless.
Paige enjoying homemade butter on homemade buttermilk biscuits. Life is good!
The kids made the butter by putting heavy whipping cream in a small baby food jar with a marble in in and shaking it like crazy. It was real tasty, we even made some at home later that day and had it on cornbread....YUM-O!!!!

Paige making her candle.

One last game of "Whonu" before bedtime. The next day Pop-pop and Mimi had an early flight back home and Paige had school. We really enjoyed our time with my parents. Just hanging out and sharing our home and making good memories...it was a perfect week except as usual it took forever to get here and then it flew by too fast. We have a lot of nice photo's and if all works out they will be back next May to see both of the girls dance in the "Big Show".

Paige and Megan water coloring at the pool with Mimi.On the last day of Dad and Carole's visit we took them to the pool after lunch so they could see the kids swim. At first it was cloudy and cool in the morning and we didn't think it would be swimming weather but the sun came out and it was perfect. Mimi was smart and brought along the water colors. It was the perfect activity for the 10 minute rest periods at the end of each hour.
Pop-pop and his bathing beauties!
Megan getting soaked under the mushroom sprinkler!
Paige getting a piggyback from Mike!

Paige is our Sugar Plum Fairy!

Here is Paige all ready for her dress rehearsal. I am sorry to say but these are the only photos I have of her all dolled up before the dance. We were in such a rush on the day of the show that I did not get any pictures of her with Mimi & Pop-pop. Then after the show when she was in her Jail house rock costume for tap we didn't get any pictures because as we were exiting the theater it was starting to rain. Oh well at least I have these and we have a portrait taken at the studio that I need to stop and pick up too.

I hate putting make up on my kids because it makes her look 19 instead of 9! But if you don't then the stage lights wash out their faces. I was afraid that her make up wasn't that good but she was picked to come up front when they needed an example of what the girls stage make up should look like. So that was reassuring. I guess I shouldn't worry considering I have done their make up now for 4 years. I have all the make up I use on them for the dance recital in one bag and it gets used on them twice a year for rehearsal and again for the dance show.

Paige had a fun time in the show and when we asked her if she enjoyed it she said "it went by too fast...I want to do it all again". I'm glad she had fun she has worked hard in her classes this year.

Here are some photos from our dinner at Der Dutchman. Dad requested that we go there for the sweet potato fries but their pies are really really really good too. We all had their famous broasted chicken it's like fried chicken except they cook it in a pressure cooker. It's juicy on the inside and crunchy on the outside and no grease....YUM-O. I had peach pie with vanilla ice cream. Mike got the peanut butter chocolate pie...taste like a giant Reese's. Paige discovered that she loves that pie...she was begging for him to share...she had just gotten a scoop of ice cream. Next time she'll get the pie.

Paige and Megan were excited to meet Skipper the horse that pulls the Amish buggy that they give free...yes FREE rides on.

Here are some photos from our trip to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium with Pop-pop and Mimi on May 25, 2007. We had a fun time showing them around the zoo. We only did about a quarter of it because we didn't want to do my dad's knee in. We showed them the new areas and Mimi went on the boat ride with us around the "Islands of Asia" while dad held court in a big red rocker at the carasol.Mimi (Carole), Paige, Megan, Pop-pop (Wes) and Brandi
The Sun Visor Girls....Paige, Mimi and Megan know how to stay cool and look cool!
Meet Fluffy the world's longest snake on exhibit she is 25 feet long and 300 pounds.


Flying Foxes
Sun Bear
Pheasants
Megan, Pop-pop and Paige relax in the pheasant enclosure.
More Pheasants!

Lion's and TIGERS and Megan's Oh My!

Grrrrrrrrr! The last time Mike was at the zoo with us he had on his big red coat (it was April and it was cold out...snowing!) and the tiger's were staring at him. He even stepped behind a post and the tiger would stretch his neck to get a view of him. I told Mike maybe the guy that comes to feed him wears a red coat. Anyways it was kinda funny but creepy too.
Paige and her pony.
Hey Megan look over here!
Paige and Mimi enjoying the boat ride around the Islands of Asia.

Me (Brandi) and Megan mugging for the camera.
Mimi, Pop-pop, Megan and Paige ready to head home from the zoo. They were all troopers especially my dad. Thanks for making memories with us and letting us share our zoo with you.

Enjoy the little things in life. You may just find that they are the big things.Paige and Mimi sharing a quiet moment at the kitchen table. Paige was showing Mimi the little scrapbook album that she made last summer.