Oh so long ....

It has definitely been a while since I have posted. Feeling guilty ... but have been terribly busy as well. To recap and I'll get pictures posted soon:

Mark arrived home on R&R ... almost two days late this time.

R&R ALWAYS goes to fast ... but none-the-less we had a GREAT time!

Max and I packed up everything AGAIN and moved back to Star Valley Ranch, Wyoming with mom & dad Tippets.

Max completed his first year of pre-school.

I sold ALL of my plate inventory to a woman who decided to go in to business for herself selling decoupage plates .... this would be the second person I introduced the plates too.

Max had multiple trips to the ER this past month ... flu, double ear infections, possible broken jaw .... which happy to report was not broken.

Max and I traveled to Pocatello, ID to visit old friends from Virginia ... Curtis & Heather Sandy and had a great little getaway!

So, I am sure there are a few other things that I am forgetting ... but I will post pictures soon.

Traveling Home ... R&R Time!

Today is Thursday May 13, 2010. This morning at 6:40 am Mark landed back in the United States at Dulles Airport having traveled for days from his base to Kandahar, to Dubai and then on to the States. My heart is so happy that he was able to all of this once again safely and without any travel problems with the airlines. He will spend the next few days in Virginia visiting Justin and friends then he will travel here on Sunday morning. Max and I have been counting down the days on our calendar until it is time to pick him up! We are so excited to have the next two weeks with him. Happy day for all of us! We love when daddy comes home!

Mothers Day at Montessori Preschool

Today mom's were invited to come to school with the kids to see them work and to celebrate Mothers Day. Max and I were both excited to be together in his school. The preschool area is designed with four different rooms were there is various "work stations" set up for the children. The children are free to roam about each room and work independently as much as possible. Max is given a lesson each day with one teacher one-on-one and it will pertain to math or letter instruction with sounds, drawing out the letters, reviewing pictures, saying various words, etc. I can see so much progress with Max and his social skills. Counting, learning to wait his turn or raise his hand, being able to pour juice, water, etc. picking up various thinking strategies, etc. I can no wait for Mark to be able to go school with him when he gets home. I think Max is going to have a ball introducing his dad to his friends! Here are some photo's of today's visit:

Working on threading beads on to a string

The children sang a mothers day song & five little ducks went out to play .... video to come


Max had to take my picture too ...

Max & Logan working on colors (Logan also knows the colors in Spanish)

Max is using tongs to pick up very small fuzzy balls.

Max is working on rebuilding the house.

Play time ... which includes a huge sand box ...

we get at least a cup of sand in the car every day!

My New Life

My New Life

So I can not seem to figure out how to completely download this video, but if you take 10 minutes to click on the link above entitled, "My New Life" you will hear a short video on a woman named Stephanie who has a whole new perspective on life and motherhood. It will completely give you a new perspective on your life and the blessings that you have.

I hope you will take the time to view. Let me know what you think.

Our New Sleigh!

This past weekend we took the plunge .... I bought our family a "new to us" Ford Explorer! It is a 2009 with a third row with two seats ... or you can have lots of trunk space. Mark and I decided to trade our truck in and get a car that will hold all of us and luggage, etc. We had sold our Honda Accord last summer, used the truck to get us across country and have been using it ever since. But, after much thought and search here in St. George, we decided on this beautiful red Explorer. Runner up to the Explorer was the Pilot but in the end the numbers, mileage, color, etc. went to Ford. We plan to have this car for many many years and we are looking forward to picking Mark up in it on the 16th of this month for his next R&R trip! Can't hardly wait!

Distribution to Bibi Khala Girls School

Mark along with several women from FOB Smart were able to make a distribution of school supplies to over 500 children today! What a great day in Afghanistan!! Wish the news would cover this story tonight! To see all the pictures, click on the link here or to the left for Writing A Brighter Future. I'm so proud of Mark along with EVERYONE who has supported us in our efforts. It should also be mentioned that more boxes are going to be shipped from the Winchester, VA Stake Relief Society as they collected supplies on April 17th. I'm so excited that this service project has caught on with so many!

Also, here in Southern Utah, there is a VERY SMALL town called Circleville, Utah. This is where my mom was born and raised. We visited there recently and got to meet some of the women that mom is still friends with all these years later. The good women of Circleville, have supported our efforts all winter long by crocheting helmet liners for me to send off to Mark. While it is warm now ... I KNOW these hats will be appreciated here shortly as fall and winter approach. Thank you to so many sisters who have given of their means and talents for our project!

Kite Festival 2010 - St. George, Utah

This afternoon we drove down to the kite festival which was held down at one of the golf courses here. By the time we got down there, the amatures had taken over the kite flying but apparently there is quite a great competition that went on in the morning. (This morning I spent out at Tuacahn selling plates, etc. at Saturday Market) None-the-less, we had fun looking at all the kites and of course Max was in heaven simply because there was a ton of rides for him to go on and some free activities as well. Here are some pictures of todays events!

ATV - Max and both of his Grandpa's want one of these toys!

First Mini-Ferris Wheel Ride

Train Ride - Max was sure this car could be Diesel 10 (Thomas the Train)

Lots and lots of kites to see!

Half of the field ... lots of people & fun activities.