Gettin' a Handel on Life

Wish I Could Write

2010-09-04T11:31:00.001-07:00

I can't write and I'm just not good about posting on this, but I wish I was:) I'm debating with whether to continue it and take the stress off my plate or just really try to be better about posting. I get so many good blog ideas when I'm away from the computer or sitting somewhere and it's impossible to blog. I have good intentions - ha!!!

We had the ground-breaking for John's project here. It was over the top, nothing like what we do in the USA for a ground-breaking. The owners are very excited to be in Europe and Hungary is excited to be the first. We met the US Ambassador to Hungary. She attended the event and spoke, as well as, the second in command to the Prime Minister of Hungary. It was attended by people all over Europe. Lots of introductions and hand-shaking along with interpreting from Hungarian to English and vice-versa. The following pictures are from that:

We went to our first Christian music concert in Budapest last night with our dear friends. Jars of Clay were in town. They did a great set in a club alot like "Bogarts" for all our Cincy fam and friends. We missed being with our concert going buddies (Icthus and LifeLighters). They sang two new songs that they haven't sang in the US yet, so the kids thought that was great. We stood in the middle of the venue but the kids were at the front of the stage. They said they could read the playlist and touch their shoes :)HA!!!!

Here's a picture of ONE of our favorite things to eat here: PIZZA.

We like pizza no matter where we are but it's VERY different here. They have the most wonderful tomatoes and we've not had a bad one ~ they taste like a tomato should taste. We are trying to not gain weight because we are loving the Hungarian dishes. It's all much healthier than how we eat in the US so hopefully weight-gain won't happen. We do a lot of walking and that is helpful. We will miss getting the type of exercise we get here. The surroundings are amazing and so walking is always a treat. It won't be in winter but for now, we really enjoy it, even if we are walking up a steep hill and our abs burn.

We are cheering for our Reds. We spend a couple of evenings a week watching them. We want our team to go to the World Series. We have some friends here who are also big Reds fans and we enjoy chatting with them about our team.

I'm getting ready to start doing Ladies Bible Study with other women from our church. I will be leading along with two other friends. We are doing Beth Moore's Daniel Bible Study. I have done that study several times but it hasn't been done at our church here. I'm excited to do it again with ladies from around the world. Our church has 20 different nationalities represented in it.

School has begun and we are soaking up European History that lies all around us. We are very grateful for this opportunity.

Trouble with posting because of.........

2010-08-15T09:37:00.000-07:00

Well, forgive us for being away from the blog for SO LONG!!!!!! We have not been able to post because of a, well, lack of techie-knowledge on the user's part :) Not to mention every time we try to use blogger to post it is in Hungarian and we aren't fluent in that yet - ha!!!!! So, we'll get to right to what you want to see....PICTURES.

Our first birthday boy of August (but the 2nd born)
a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_QWCr-WnLNQs/TGgaTLg0LMI/AAAAAAAAAGw/ycvvOLwdcNI/s1600/austria+july+2010+025.JPG">
Touring Vienna, Austria

Friends in Budapest

Flower Ice Cream a almost daily treat :)

Opera House in Hungary

My car here :)

Our 2nd Birthday boy of August (but the first born)

Blessings

2010-06-24T01:11:00.000-07:00

We are in our new apartment/condo digs, as of Sunday night. Once again, we are going non-stop just trying to learn how to get around in this big city. We have some fun ideas for our blog but have realized that until we are settled in our house there will be no "regular" postings :) This city was not made to drive cars in but in the last few years many more people have started to. Let's just say that's it's a traffic nightmare. The boys have been attending baseball training camp this week. The area where they play is called Erd, it's approximately 20 km outside of the city. Monday morning was our first experience with "rush hour" traffic and I wish you could have seen it - oh my! Sorry there are no pictures to begin to give you a taste of what it was like. The second day it took John two hours to get back to the apartment after he dropped the boys off. We can do nothing but laugh and assume with time that we will learn how to get around better. We are currently staying on the Pest side of the Duna but our home is on the Buda side. Not having to cross the river on a daily basis will make commuting easier for us.

When we arrived on June 11th, we stayed up until it was bedtime here. We were dragging by that time but we knew it would help us get on our new time zone. We are six hours ahead of Eastern Time Zone. On Saturday, the 12th, we went to the island in the middle of the Duna. It is a fun kid area. While the kids were playing a father and son heard us speaking English and came over and said, "oh fellow ex-pats, huh?" We said yes and introduced ourselves. We invited them to church the next day and he said he had been there and they would see us there. We got to meet his wife and daughter at church. We played once with them and our other new friends last week at the park and when we got to the apartment/condo on Sunday night to move in we recognized the stroller parked in the hallway and it turns out that they are our neighbors here!!!! God is good - always going before us and pouring out His blessings making sure we know He is with us!! We are so very grateful!! They are here with the father's company for 18 mos. Their containers have not arrived yet so they are living here until they can move into their house, just like us.

Before we left the US, I received an email from a family that had been here for about 8 mos. doing a similar assignment, and they wanted to extend their greetings and let us know they learned about our family from our pastor's wife at church. They also homeschool and have four children. We conversed by email and then we had the privilege of meeting them at church that first Sunday. We became fast friends. Their boys are who our boys are playing baseball with. We have been with them almost everyday since arriving. They are ahead of us on the learning curve and so gracious to help us. They are certainly ahead of us on the Hungarian language learning curve and we are making lots of plans for school things in the fall. We've met some other families that are here as missionaries and homeschool so we are hoping to have a fun group to either co-op with or just do field-trips with when school begins. Praise you Jesus!!!! Here's a few pictures of the kids with their new friends. We can't tell you how grateful we are for all our family and friends across the world. In this new season, we are especially grateful for these Godly families that we can walk this journey/adventure with.

The First Week

2010-06-16T13:11:00.000-07:00

We will try to give you a taste of life in the big city. This is not going to be our norm but for now it is. We don't move into our home until July when our belongings arrive. Until then, we are on one BIG vacation trying to get our bearings. We are currently at a hotel and will move to a "condo" next week.

When I have to start cooking again it's going to be a sad day. The food here is AMAZING!!! They are very healthy eaters - only fresh, nothing prepackaged.

Freezers are not common here. For instance, they don't do ice in drinks and you very rarely see "fountain" drinks. We are big water drinkers. We have to order water and always have to be sure to order "still" water. The kids hate sparkling water. You have to be very careful at the market when you buy water that you have purchased "still." The breakfast at our hotel has such a healthy, tasty selection every morning. J and I are coffee drinkers and we just can't wait to get downstairs each morning and have coffee - it's amazing here. There are coffee houses on every corner. The first Starbucks opened in the city at the largest mall today. There is no need for Starbucks here though. The coffee houses here put Starbucks to shame. They don't do coffee as a drive-through thing. You go in and sit for hours and relax and chat, it's addicting :)
Our favorite restaurant is around the corner from us. It's our special family place to sit and discuss our day and how life here is different. Here's two pictures of it that the kids insisted I post-ha!

Right now our days consist of sight-seeing and trying to figure out the subway, bus and train system. This city makes NYC seem like a piece of cake to get around in, even by car. It's a good thing our kids have traveled alot and know how to use a subway system well, if they didn't, this would be even more complicated!! They have a much better sense of direction than their mama!!!

We will blog about some of the sites we've seen in a few days.

EUROPE, baby!!!

2010-06-14T03:01:00.000-07:00

Well, the Handel's are officially here!!! We thought the day would never arrive when we actually boarded the plane to move to Europe for two years but if finally did. Spending more than 3 months with family and friends made it hard to leave but we knew the day would come when we would have to say good-bye. It was bitter sweet. We had been staying with my mom the last few months and it was hard to leave without bringing her along. She put up with us and our mess, not to mention our dog, Hannah, who she agreed to keep until our time here is done.

I'm too ADHD to blog/write but I'm going to try and update regularly (ha!) Eventually, I will turn this job over to the kids. Maybe I will become a better blogger by doing it more frequently. Right now our focus is on learning the language here.

We arrived on Friday, June 11th. We have been all over the city from the moment we arrived. Here are some pictures of our weekend.

Szent Istvan Bazilika

The kids engaging in a friendly game of soccer with three Hungarian children
at one of the local parks.

All the restaurants have outdoor seating and checked tablecloths. We really like all the different foods we have been eating.
Our church. There were so many nationalaties represented on Sunday morning. Russian, African, Romanian, Hungarian, American, Israeli and British just to name a few. It's amazing to worship with people from all over the world and be singing the same songs to the One and Only Lord of all!!!
The boys first baseball game

She's Healed

2010-06-05T18:52:00.001-07:00

My aunt had her pet scan last week and there was no cancer that showed in it!!!!!!! Praise The Lord!!! We are thrilled and she has several opportunities to share about this journey to some groups this week and next week. We thank you so much for your prayers, they have been answered :)

Prayer Update

2010-03-04T18:45:00.000-08:00

My aunt's pet-scan came back yesterday and showed that the cancer is in her bones :( While we are saddened by this news, we trust that God is in control and are going to put our hope in Him and continue to ask Him to heal her. She begins chemotherapy next Tuesday. She went wig shopping today with my mom and my other aunt. If you have a prayer list at your church would you please add Mary Ann Dickerson to it, thank you so much.

Please Pray With Us

2010-02-25T05:43:00.000-08:00

Would you please add to your prayer list my aunt, Mary Ann. She has been diagnosed with lymphoma and gets her port put in today so that treatment can be started soon. She is near and dear to me. God knit me together in my mama's womb but I must say He made me much more like my aunt!!! She loves tea parties, shoes, purses, jewelry, being a girly-girl, hates to swim...just a few things that I get from her :) Most importantly, she is a Godly woman, wife and mother and grandmother. Please petition the Lord with us to heal her. Thank you so much!!

Thanks For Hanging In There

2010-02-21T04:34:00.000-08:00

Well, we posted a LONG time ago that changes were coming. You've been patient and we thank you for that. Tried to keep you in suspense the funny thing is that we've been in suspense too!!! Our next location to move to has been hanging in the balance for awhile now and we're working on the details to make it final. We will tell you this much for now: We're going to Europe!!!!!! We are beyond excited, also nervous and all the normal feelings in between. Honestly, the biggest negative feeling is homesickness for our family and friends but we know God wants us to go for two years. He just keeps opening more doors every time we ask His guidance. John and I had the privilege to go over and spend some time checking everything out. We can't say thank you enough to our friends and my mama for keeping the kids for us. It's a beautiful city that we will be going to and we will reveal more in the weeks to come.

We covet your prayers as we get ready and pray that we will be God's hands and feet while we are there to share Him with everyone we come in contact with ~ all glory to Him!!

Change is coming..............

2010-01-08T09:46:00.001-08:00

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-21T09:37:00.000-08:00

We've had a busy, crazy year but that pretty much sums up our life most of the time!!! The most significant thing that stands out in our minds is Hayden's illness last month. It actually started October 31st. We are so very thankful for his miraculous healing and restored health. The pneumonia he had was scary but God always gives such peace in the storm. We are very thankful for the doctor's who cared for him and the nurses.
Our lives are forever changed after his hospital stays, particularly his stay at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. We are thankful for the perspective it gave our family. There are so many very sick children there and so many who don't even have family sitting next to their bedside day in and day out.
We are so thankful that I can be at home and teach our children and care for them everyday. There are times I get exhausted and God reminds me of Deuteronomy 5:29;
6:5-9. We are continually trying to impress God's word and His love to our hearts and our children.
God is good and we praise Him for His gift of sending His beloved Son to this earth..a sweet baby. For His life on earth and His death and Resurrection and the promise He has made to return for those who believe in Him. We pray this is our focus and yours this Christmas season. God bless you. Merry Christmas and Happy 2010 family and friends!

"There is a Time for Everything and a Season for Every Activity Under Heaven"

2009-10-10T15:19:00.000-07:00

Forgive us for not being very good bloggers. For those of you who read this, you know I'm not Miss Computer!!!! Remembering to blog just doesn't happen to be a priority on my everyday list (surprise!) Especially when you've had a travel, fun-filled summer. So we'll pretend like it hasn't been since May that we posted last.

Welcome Fall, we're glad you're here. We love this time of year and where we live now it's absolutely beautiful. The many colors on all our trees make you stop and praise God for His amazing creation.

We just returned from a school-field trip to Washington D.C. and also attending our dear friend, Mary Jo's burial at Arlington Cemetery. She passed away earlier in the summer but the burial was October 9th. Please pray for her husband and two children. We all know she is celebrating with her Lord and Saviour in heaven and not dealing with any more pain and cancer but it's still hard for those left behind. While we work through the grieving process we rejoice in the promise the Lord has made: "But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body." Philippians 3:20

A Little R & R

2009-05-27T14:02:00.000-07:00

We love getting away and having fun together and relaxing. We praise God for the opportunity to do that as much as we get to and for His beautiful creation. Here's a few pictures of our latest time of R&R and FUN!!!!

National Day of Prayer 2009

2009-05-07T08:30:00.000-07:00

"If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord you God will set you high above all the nations on earth. All these blessings will come upon you and accompany you if you obey the Lord your God: You will be blessed in the city and blessed in the country. The fruit of your womb will be blessed, and the crops of your land and the young of your livestock~the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks. Your basket and your kneading trough will be blessed. You will be blessed when you come in and blessed when you go out. The Lord will grant that the enemies who rise up against you will be defeated before you. They will come at you from one direction but flee from you in seven."

Deuteronomy 28:1-7

One of the many reasons....

2009-04-23T11:51:00.000-07:00

We home school our children for many reasons. A lot of people think we're crazy and a lot of people support us. The first reason we home school is we feel called, by the Lord, to do so. Is it hard? You bet it is. Are there days I wish I didn't? You bet I do. But I have to confess that whenever I feel defeated and ready to throw in the towel, the Lord always brings something to mind or heart to confirm that I'm doing what He has called us to do. He never allows satan to mess with my mind too long. It's amazing and a blessing to teach my children to read and hear them read their first words and first book. It's amazing to hear them read their Bible, by themselves. It's amazing to see them grasp 2+2=4 and watch them build on their math skills. It's fun to learn along with them. It's fun to hear them TEACH me!!! I can't imagine missing out on eight hours of their lives everyday and all the conversations we get to have. And this song/video sums up one of the many reasons we home school, my first baby will be ten, where have the years gone? I've not missed anything he's ever done and they've still flown! I will be forever thankful for the time we've had them and been able to teach them. Don't know if the Lord will call us to home school them all their school-age years but why He is, I'm going to obey.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6JHXHWZL- this link is no longer up, sorry. You can go to YouTube and check out the song "It Won't Be Like This For Long" by Darius Rucker. Sorry for the confusion!!

Our baby

2009-04-21T10:31:00.000-07:00

Halena is at the stage where she doesn't like to be referred to as our baby girl. So, we try not to call her that (shhh.. even though she will always be that to her Daddy and Mama!) So our "baby" in the family is our doggy, Hannah. Hannah had the privilege of staying with Grammy for a few weeks while we got settled in. Grammy spoiled her, just like she does the kids, while she was there. Needless to say, she needs lots of exercise and a low-fat diet now! :) Here's her favorite past time and exercise plan:

Praising Jesus

2009-04-14T12:34:00.001-07:00

We are thankful to our family and friends, who read our blog, for praying for our dear friend, Mary Jo. She received a WONDERFUL report from her Dr. at Mayo Clinic today that the large tumor near her esophagus is dead - DEAD!!!!!!!!! We are praising Jesus and beyond words of thankfulness to Him. Would you please join us in thanking Him for healing her and ask Him to continue to keep her cancer-free and healthy. Thank you!! (This is us with our girl's on New Year's of this year.)

March Madness

2009-04-07T12:55:00.000-07:00

We have been watching a lot of basketball, at the Handel house, for several reasons. One, the Mama of the house loves the sport and the Daddy is pretty fond of it too. Thankfully, our kids are learning more and more to like it as they get older. I always thought about the days when they were old enough to "get into it". Well, we're there. Halena doesn't hang too long with the rest of us and so we carry on side conversations and games with her while watching. The rest of us are INTO it!!! The boys are so fun to watch the games with. We all filled out our brackets. Hayden was leading the way for quite sometime, Holten was furious!! Halena's bracket was...well, last :( Daddy ended up with the most wins. We anxiously awaited the 9 p.m. tip-off - yes, the kids got to stay up, the Championship can't be missed (even if it's not Kentucky playing for the title). There are only two UK fans in the house anyway :( The rest of them will learn one day, is what Hayden and I keep telling them. Holten knows every player as soon as he watches the first 4 minutes of every game. He memorizes their name and number, if any of us needs to know who the foul was called on or who made the basket, Holt's our man!! We've decided it's good to move right before March Madness begins - which is our plan for next year. You unpack and park it and watch basketball for a few weeks, not feeling guilty because you don't know anyone yet anyway and what could be better?!!!! Our hats are off to the UNC Tar Heels who played one beautiful game (that compliment only comes because you have one of the most class act coaches ever!!!!)

Cutey Patootey

2009-03-27T06:43:00.000-07:00

Halena and I got to babysit Jud while his mama and daddy went to see Billy Joel and Elton John in concert. We had so much fun and he has grown SO much since we saw him at Thanksgiving. We're thankful to see him more often!! He was smitten by Halena and wouldn't take his eyes off of her the whole evening. My sis and bro are doing a great job parenting. He was an angel for us.

We're Here!!!

2009-03-17T14:35:00.000-07:00

Long delay in posting, so sorry about that!! It was a crazy few weeks of packing and then making the commute and getting settled in. We've been here since last Thursday and the kids arrived on Sunday night with Grammy :) We still have some boxes to unpack and LOTS of things to get rid of but we are loving it here!!! It's like being on vacation 24/7 ~ we're looking at it as a retreat with Jesus. The weather has been beautiful and thank God the wind doesn't blow hardly ever here:) Can't wait for our dear family and friends to have a get-away from everyday life and come spend some time with us!!

Here are the kids showing off their "treasures" from the lake (no pun intended - ha!) And a view of the lake from our back deck. We are on the cove so it's small and quiet back here. We are anxious to blog a little more regularly and keep you updated!

Crossing The Delaware

2009-02-21T14:35:00.000-08:00

Our dear friends, The Henns, had the kids over one day last week so I could get some packing done. Tanya is the best teacher EVER!!! She gave the kids an assignment, but the catch was, they had to do the teaching!! They could pick any U.S. President and come up with the lesson. Here is what their five kids and our three came up with ;) Enjoy!!

It's Official.......

2009-02-09T19:23:00.001-08:00

Well, we've been waiting to share our news on our blog until we had some more time to be sure and now we are sure.......we're moving!!!!!!!! We are excited, stressed, overwhelmed, thrilled, sad - all those things. God is good. We knew we would be needing to pick a new location for John to keep things going, as his company desires. We've been praying it would either be a location that puts us right in the middle of both our families or eight hours or less to mine. I really have the need to spoil my nephew :) God has answered our prayers and we're moving to PA. We will be 6 hours from Cincinnati, 2 hours from Pittsburgh, 4 1/2 hours from Washington DC (which is very high on our field trip list!!) and 5 hours from NY. So, it's good vacation spot. We expect some visitors. We are going to dearly miss our friends and family here just like we miss our family and friends from Cincinnati, here. God is good and is pulling this all together beautifully and we know He is faithful and has always provided. We are trusting him and can't wait to see what work He has for us to do there. We are busy packing and plan to be there by the end of the month so we may be absent on the blog for awhile :)

The Winnabego

2009-02-07T18:23:00.000-08:00

Finally... a picture of the boy's car (forgive the picture quality but I think you'll get the idea). Hayden and Holten, and their good buddy, Silas decided to make a camper for their car at AWANA drive-in movie night. It was a real hit!

Happy Birthday to our Princess!

2009-02-04T17:13:00.000-08:00

Our Princess turned 6! It's hard to believe we were sitting in the hospital with her in the special care nursery six years ago!!! Time really does fly when you're having fun :) She has looked forward to her day for...well, a year :)!!! On the evening of January 31st we tucked her in and said prayers and when we came out of the boys room from doing the same with them, I peeked in to see if she was asleep already and she looked at me with this big grin (the kind she has when she has PROBABLY done something she shouldn't have) and I said, "Did you do something you shouldn't have done?" She giggled and said, "No, I'm just so excited that tomorrow is February and that means I'm almost 6!" She had a great day. I won't post all the pictures, I probably post too many. (That's all I know how to do! ha!) Anyway, here's a before and after picture of our drama queen. She wanted to get her haircut for her birthday. We couldn't have Carey do it so we had my friend here, at the salon I go to, cut it. Her name is Steph and it was her birthday, too. It was a lot of fun.

The Princess Limo

2009-01-29T16:25:00.000-08:00

The kiddos are starting to feel better and act more like themselves!! We thank Jesus for that!! We have a yearly art project around here and it is one of their AWANA events. The kids go to AWANA each week and they have a yearly event called "Drive-In Movie Night". The kids have to make cars out of cardboard and then they take them and sit in them and watch a movie. It's a big hit!! So, I decided that would become one of their major art projects of the year. Daddy and Mama can help with the car but the idea has to be theirs!!! Their creativity can really roll, no pun intended!! So, here is Halena with her dear friend, Lydia, in the "Princess Limo".

It's About Time

2009-01-27T07:16:00.001-08:00

We aren't doing very well at this blogging thing, are we?!!! Our desire to keep family and friends updated might become a monthly thing ~ ha! ha! We had a wonderful Christmas and enjoyed having all of Daddy's family here. We're almost through January and there's a little girl in this house who is ANXIOUSLY looking forward to a birthday in February :) The boys get excited about their birthdays but you've never seen anything like the Princess and her sheer delight over turning a year older and all the discussions about "the day!!" We are celebrating as a family on her day and actually having a big party mid-February because Grammy, Auntie LA and Judson are flying out to party with us. We are counting down the days for their arrival.

The two youngest have been sick. Holt has had pneumonia for more than a week now. The first antibiotics didn't work so we've started his second round. Poor little guy has felt yucky for a long time. We anticipate the Lord's healing soon. Please pray for him to be 100% quickly, we would appreciate that. He did lose a front tooth last week and it's just precious.

Daddy will be wrapping up his role running the plant he built last year. We are excited for him to get back into the building role, which means a move for us and we're eagerly waiting for the full list of possibilities and praying for the Lord's will to lead us where He wants us to go.

We have so many friends that we're praying for. We praise God for answered prayer in healing and sustaining so many. Our friend Mary Jo had a great report from Mayo last week. Please continue to pray that God heals her TOTALLY of the cancer; Tangi has not gone into labor after falling when she was 23 weeks pregnant, pray that her hospital bed-rest would go quickly and she and baby would be healthy; Carey didn't have to have her baby too early and everything looks great, baby should come in late February. We pray for all of you and love you dearly!

Happy New Year 2009!

2008-12-31T12:55:00.000-08:00

We want to thank all of our friends and family for being the BEST and we pray God's blessings over each of you for 2009!! We are ever grateful for His grace and mercies that are new everyday. We feel very blessed to have each of you in our lives. We thank Him for a healthy, safe and great 2008! One of our special blessings in 2008 was the birth of our nephew/cousin, Judson Paul!! We are crazy about him and enjoyed lots of trips back to Ohio to see him. Our love to each of you who read our blog in 2009! Hope to see you soon or that y'all can come visit us - we have plenty of room for guests :)

Almost 4 Days Left

2008-12-20T19:30:00.000-08:00

Needless to say, the kids are counting down until Christmas Day here. Not just on our Advent calendars but in every conversation and action!! It's soooo much fun to listen to them and their excitement. I'm glad Jesus is at the center of each conversation, we're blessed in that. Each day there are new questions like: "what time was he born?" ; "was He really born on the 25th of December?" Those aren't easy questions and like many answers that we have to give the one that always satisfies them and is truth is this one: "there are so many things that we don't know about His birth and God can't wait to reveal all of that to us when we get to heaven, there's so many more things we will learn and get to ask there." We're excited to get to heaven and we're also excited to celebrate Jesus' birth that happened 2000+ years ago. He's the reason we get so giddy over giving each other presents because He is the greatest one we've EVER been given!! Here's some pics of happenings around here this month, enjoy!!!

Singing Time

2008-11-18T10:30:00.000-08:00

Last night I had a music concert at the public school where I go to music classes at. I learned songs in different languages and how to sing in a round. My friend, Silas, and I sang a song and held the American Flag called, "You're A Grand 'Ole Flag". It was very fun!! Here is a picture of Silas and I during rehearsal.

9 days and counting........

2008-11-13T16:58:00.000-08:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RuUpGDfyl7Q

Learning To Roof

2008-11-03T15:08:00.000-08:00

While we were in Ohio there were some BAD winds in IA. And when we got home Holten and I went up to the woods only to find half of our "man-shed" (that's what my dad calls our shed) roof on the ground. So that night we told our dad when he got home........ two days later we got started working on repairing the roof. We went to Menards to get the supplies we needed and then we spent the day Saturday on top of the roof putting the new roof on. We learned how to use a chalk-line and how to use a wonder-bar. It was a lot of fun!!!!

Happy Fall/Halloween

2008-10-31T10:43:00.000-07:00

From our Gladiator, Daniel Boone and Miss America

HFS (Handel Funniest Sayings)

2008-10-18T06:32:00.000-07:00

Instead of AFV (America's Funniest Videos), which is a favorite show of our kids when they get a chance to watch TV, we are going to title our post HFS. So whenever it deals w/ a quote one of the kids make, that I really must put down somewhere so I don't forget, it will be called HFS. Thus the reason I should have started blogging years ago. Because when you have three, as close together as ours, the idea of finding a notebook where you journal that stuff is out of the question!!!! :) Anyway, back to the saying.

Halena and I went to the grocery store on Thursday evening to get some snacks for her K friends. Halena likes to talk A LOT but especially when she is with Mama or Daddy without her brothers along. So, it's imperative that you go ready to LISTEN!!! She told me how much she wants to go to Paris all the way to the store and that she really loves that city. Who knows? That's a whole other post in itself! On the way home she said, what year was I born? She answered on her own after speaking the question aloud. 2003. Then she said, "when was Holt born?" She also answered that one by herself. 2001. In her mind she made it work out that she was older than him really because the year she was born was higher than him (ending in 3 instead of 1) Oh, the struggle over being the baby :) Then she says, "now when was Hayden born?" She couldn't answer that one so I said, "1999". She looks at me and her mouth drops open and she says, "did they have cars then?" Guess I'm not teaching history too well!!

The Best Fall Sport

2008-10-13T15:05:00.000-07:00

I played flag football this Fall. I was on a 1st/2nd grade team with my friend, Thomas. His dad was the coach. I played defense and I was the Left Guard. We won 5 games and lost 4. We got a trophy when the season was over!

Lovin' Fall/Harvest Time

2008-10-09T17:56:00.000-07:00

We went to an amazing Pumpkin Patch outside of Omaha, NE. When our day was over, and we were driving home, we all decided we want to be pumpkin farmers :) The farm is 55 acres of just pumpkins. (The family has more acreage that someone else farms but they just do the pumpkins.) There are acres of things to do. We have been having beautiful weather here in IA for weeks. The day was perfect and what is better this time of year than caramel apples and hot cider!!! We rode a hay wagon down to the fields and each picked a pumpkin. Here are a few pictures to give you a glimpse of the day :)

Can You Believe We're Doing This?!!!!

2008-10-08T10:05:00.000-07:00

The kids and I have been talking about starting a blog for awhile now. We thought it would be a good way for our family to know how we are and what we're up to on a more daily basis or as often as we would post (don't hold your breath:) So, since I'm clueless on how to do one our friend, Jessica, told me it was easy and I could do it. We usually rely on our friend, Coates, to do this type of thing for us, but since he's in Ohio and we're in Iowa, that wasn't going to work. We regularly read blogs: BeitCarr and Blue Ink, Medium Point and got inspired by them.

So, here you have our humble attempt to start blogging and posting pics of the Handel family. We pray it makes you smile and helps you have a glimpse into our busy world of being a tight-knit family striving to grow in our faith and share it with the world.