Winter Masquerade ~ 2015

This is the second year my teens have attended a local dance for homeschoolers and their friends.  Held at a beautifully restored historic hotel, it was a wonderful night of dancing, meeting new people, and memory making!

 Becca purchased her dress from a local thrift store for $1!  She loves shopping for finds like this dress.  Her closet is stocked with many beautiful gowns that she has snatched up for no more then a $1 each.  She told me this weekend she was thinking of starting a business with used prom dresses.  I think she might be on to something here!  :)

 After dropping them off at the dance Morgan and I went and grabbed dinner at the ever so elegant Dairy Queen.  We didn't know our way around the town the dance was being held in, so stopping at DQ was quick and easy.  We ran into a friend whose daughters were at the dance also.  Two hours flew by catching up on life.  I always go back for the last hour so I can get pictures of the kids having fun.  I walked in to find them dancing to Chainsaw by Family Force 5.  A favorite of theirs!

These are a bunch of really great kids having a total blast!  The DJ did a great job choosing the music.  Trust me...as my kids tell me...this is a very big deal.

Max looked rather sharp for the dance!  I loved the purple he choose.  It is one of my top 5 favorite colors!  I didn't realize it until I was editing my pictures that this year was the year of the bow-ties.  Every boy at the dance had one on.  Including my two guys!

Johnston barely stopped dancing, but when he did it was to show some love to his sister and friends!  :o)

 Morgan was able to to spend some time with her friend Bethany during the dance breaks!  Love these two girls.

Max, Becca and Johnston had a wonderful time with this gang of friends.

 

They are crazy fun!

 Everyone would count themselves beyond blessed if they had a friendship as amazing as Becca and Miriam's.  They have become more then friends....they are sisters in heart.  

The dance was amazing.  They all had a wonderful time.  Countdown to 2016 is on!

Wordless Wednesday

Today was.....

....that kind of day.  Perfection.  Truly.  You know what that kind of day looks like right?  Everything just goes....perfectly.

From the moment everyone wakes up until everyone goes to bed.  Beautifully perfect.  It just simply was one of those days.
 

Jensen played a new song he learned today for me.  He's really enjoying guitar and he's getting so good!  He loves dancing, singing, and playing any instrument he can get his hands on.  :)

He was pretty excited to have a jam session with Morgan who taught him some new stuff on the guitar.  :)  I have a feeling he will doing this daily with her until she heads back to Uganda.

Morgan even had time to pick on....um...snuggle Aurora!

One of the kids favorite things to do every day is make popcorn to munch on while we listen to our current audiobook.  We bought a 50 pound bag of kernels at Sam's awhile back and with air poppers it's an easy snack for them to make on their own.  They've created some interesting flavors.  Today they did olive oil and Parmesan cheese.  One of their overall favorites!  I would have to say the grossest most interesting flavor I've seen so far is pickle juice. :/  

We broke out a new puzzle I bought a couple weeks back.  This is actually our first puzzle we've done.  Well, except for those 24, 48 or 100 piece little kids ones...this was our first big puzzle.  I figured I would start with a 300 piece one since we've never done one this size.  While it was challenging having 8 people crowded around it....we did work well together...no frustration towards each other....and we finished it in about 2 hours.  It was fun!  I will be getting another one for sure, but the kids said they don't mind if I don't hurry...lol...puzzles might not be our thing.

So many things done today and I enjoyed every bit of it with this crazy crew!

Sunday's Child....and her book!

Holland & Kit:American Girl

Buy a shirt....Provide a bed!

(Double click this logo to see Morgan's blog.  Take a minute and read about her amazing story!)

Morgan is hosting a Facebook event for her ministry in Jinja, Uganda!  What a great opportunity to be a part of providing a bed for an orphan!  Love it!!!!

 

Order a Forever Hope t-shirt today and be a part of providing a bed for a child in the Forever Hope family! For the next two weeks you have an opportunity to share this event page and help Forever Hope make a difference in Uganda!

15 shirts sold will provide one bed: (Need 6 5 left)

Bunk Bed: $30 (This is one bed on a handmade triple bunk bed)
Sleeping Pad: $40
Sheets (2 pair): $40
Blanket: $30
Pillow: $5
Total: $135

20 shirts sold will provide one crib: (Need 2)
Crib: $50 (This is one crib on a handmade double bunk crib)
Sleeping Mat: $40
Sheets (4 crib sheets): $40
Blankets (4+ per bed): $50
Total: $180 *Due to washing laundry by hand and line drying, Forever Hope will need extra blankets and sheets to make sure bedding is available at all times for the babies/toddlers.

30 shirts sold will provide a bed: (Need 1)
Queen Bed: $115
Sleeping pad: $40
Sheets (2 pair): $60
Blanket: $30
Pillows: $10
Total: $255
Please share this information with all your family/friends and help us spread the word!

Thank you so much ~ Morgan & the Forever Hope Family!

T-shirt prices are:
$20: Children small – Adult xl ~ grey short sleeve t-shirt
$25: Adult 2xl – Adult 4xl ~ grey short sleeve t-shirt
$30: Children small – Adult xl ~ grey long sleeve t-shirt
$35: Adult 2xl – Adult 4xl ~ grey long sleeve t-shirt

+$5 Shipping for any non-local orders (may vary upon size of order)

You can contact me via Forever Hope Ministries on Facebook or email me at foreverhopeministries@gmail.com!  Thank you again!

Throwback Thursday

(JB as Captain Jack Sparrow/Pirates of the Carribean & 
Becca as Lara Croft/Tomb Raider)

Throwback Thursday is such a fun concept.  I enjoyed looking through old pictures to find one for today.  Sigh....my kiddos...how they are growing.  Johnston is now teetering on the 6 foot mark!

In looking through my pictures I am amazed to see how much my kids have loved to dress up over the years.....and honestly....they still do. Even the teens.  I am so glad we have allowed their imaginations to grow as they will like wild flowers.  Free and beautiful! 

 “Logic will get you from A to Z; imagination will get you everywhere.”
― Albert Einstein

Wonderful Wednesday

Holland & Hannah

Sunday's Child....or Children

Johnston, Jameson, & Jensen

Valentine's Day 2015

 

It's hard to believe, but I am in the picture.  After three years with this amazing camera I have finally learned how to use the timer.  The kids have all complained that I'm never in the pictures so I have determined to be in them more often.  Starting...today!

Morgan, Becca & Johnston stayed up into the early morning to help me create a Valentine surprise for the youngest of the Jeffries Clan!  What fun we had!

They were surprised, elated, giddy with excitement! Helium balloons floating around the ceiling, crystal plates that are only for special events, little presents at each of the settings!  Who wouldn't be excited?!?!

Love was in the air!  ;)

  Miss Holland loved all her Disney Princess surprises!

Jensen seemed very happy about his snack bag! Since Morgan was making her famous buttermilk waffles with fresh strawberries and homemade whip cream, we decided to make snack bags for everyone that they could enjoy during the day.  This allowed us to only have two meals.  A special breakfast and a special dinner.

 Mister Jameson hamming it up!  :)

Davidson had a good laugh when he saw all his presents.  He went with me shopping when I was picking these items up.  He actually picked out his own gift all the while thinking it was for some little boy.  He told me later that he choose things that he liked because he figured if he liked them then another little boy would like them.  Good thinking Davidson!

Johnston and Max were very excited that their dad got them new Magic the Gathering packs.  I somehow missed getting a picture of Max with his.  He tore into them pretty quickly!

We decided to have the kids all draw names for a secret Valentine gifting.  This went over very well.  The kids were all extremely excited to go shopping for their Valentine.  They were anxiously waiting to find out who their "Secret Valentine" was.

 I loved how each sibling really thought about the person they were buying for.  Each person received exactly what they not only enjoy, but things they had been saving up to buy for themselves.

Max was probably one of the happiest people at the table.  The Walking Dead lego-ish set can do that for you!

Johnston was excited to get the last set to his Star Trek set!  Holly was his Secret Valentine and one of the sweetest Valentine's in the entire planet to have!

It was such an amazing day!  At our family time before bed every single one of us decided that this now must become our Valentine's Day tradition.  It was beyond what I had imagined and dreamed the day would be.  It was even better because we had Morgan here to enjoy our celebration.  I'm so happy that everyone walked away with such good memories that will last a lifetime.