A Very Merry Christmas, Indeed!

Hello to all our friends, near and far! We are loving it here in NM, even though the temp has finally dropped at night...28 degrees last night. Brrr! To all who helped make our Christmas so happy, a deep and heartfelt thank you is for you! Dan is still working, much to our delight, and just finished up his foreman project. We spent out Christmas Break just lazing around, spending time as a family and hosting a small party. The boys are thrilled to take time off from school, hang out with Tyler when he is home and just be bums. Dan is glad to have time to kick back and sleep in a little bit. I'm just glad to have everyone together at the end of this "interesting" year...LOL! We opened gifts and ate my Mom's famous caramel rolls and made a huge breakfast/lunch mess for Tyler. Later, we had neighbors over for dinner and a opinionated discussion of religion was had by some. We were given some money by a friend and we used it to take the kids to a movie, which is something that we don't get to do very often. Dan and I spent more time laughing at Derek than the movie, because he was so amazed at the entire thing. I will admit to shedding a few tears at not being with my dear friends and beloved family this year, but it was a growing experiance for all of us as a family. One that was possibly long overdue, but before I find myself getting melancoly...moving on! Pray for Dolli and the baby. Her placenta is right on the cervix and is causing some problems. She also has found out that she has two uterusses? uteri? However you say the plural of uterus...and that makes her a high risk pregnancy also. Karen is wanting her to just come home, but that remains to be seen. Pray also for Jodi, her heart keeps racing up to twice to normal amount for no findable reason. She and Aaron are also moving in a few weeks and that is always stressful. We are looking forward to the new year as never before since we are truly working on becoming a FAMILY unit this year. I cracked up yesterday when Dan suggested that I get back to homeschooling since it would help Pat get back on track... who ever thought that would happen?? It was great! Anywho, as this is getting long...man, I talk too much...I will sign off for now. If I've missed anything important, let me know in a comment and I will address it in the next post. Below are a few pics from Chrsitmas Eve...my camera has quit speaking to the computer, so I can't get any actual Christmas photos loaded...when I do, they will be put up...I have some really cute ones. Lost Boys, Mama K loves you! Everyone else, we all miss you and love you!!


Blessings,
Kristy and the Man Crew



David opens his gift from Aunt Jodi...games!


Patrick's present from Aunt Jodi...PJs!

That's a lot of people on one couch!

Auntie Karen helps Derek read his new book.

Guess What?!

It's not THAT kind of guess what, Mom, you can relax now. I know I just posted yesterday, but something great happended last night...it SNOWED!! Can you believe it? Go to the end of the post for proof. And because I don't get to go see everyone's tree this year, I'm posting mine your your viewing enjoyment. Plus, I'm still playing with the digital camera...I love new toys!


We miss you all and wish we could be with you this year. Enjoy the holidays and the rest they provide. God Bless!!!
Kristy and the Man Crew

Look...you can almost see the snow if you look really hard!! That's about all it ever snows here!

Our beautiful Christmas tree. We have the same angel as Karen!

Christmas Time in Las Cruces

Dear Friends and Family,
Hello once again from sunny New Mexico. It is December 21st and the weather is great by almost anyone's standards...sunny and 62. As most of you know, yesterday was my 34th birthday. It was great, so many people called or left me messages, that I barely had a chance to feel homesick at all. Karen brought me a huge poinsettia, just like my dad used to every year and Dan and the boys bought me a digital camera so that I could send pictures better and faster. We had a Christmas Dessert Party last night and we all ate WAY too much, and I made Russian Tea, which I hadn't had in way too long. We ended up having a good turnout despite several people being sick or out of town and fun was had by all. However, we have so many leftovers...does anyone want to come eat some???
As for actual Christmas preparation, we are all but ready, with the tree up with gifts wrapped and under it, and we are looking forward to going and seeing some of the nativity scenes and light decorations this weekend. The boys have a Christmas Countdown on their school chalkboard and are crossing off the days with anticipation! I love having a two year old at Christmas...they get so excited about everything! Derek is just beside himself trying to resist the urge to dig into the presents...LOL! His two favorite new words are cookie and candy and he REALLY enjoyed baking day this week. He even helped us lose one beater to my brand new mixer that I had used ONE time!!! So, Karen and I are trying to bake copious amounts of cookies with a mixer with one beater...ridiculous! It was eventually found, but not until all the cookies were done, of course. We had a good laugh about that, for sure.
Church is going really well. The boys are enjoying their Sunday School classes and meeting a few people and have even requested to start back to AWANAs come January, now that they know a few kids. Dan and I had a chance to visit with the pastor for a few minutes this past week before church and he seems great. I'm looking forward to the Christmas eve service, but it won't be the same as being there with all of you. BUT, it is better than not going at all.
Dan is almost finished with his temporary foreman job and I think he is glad. At this point, he is just supervising the other trades to make sure that they do their jobs right and so he is bored stiff. The one guy he still has under him is bringing a portable DVD player everyday and they are watching movies all day long. He comes home and is ready for a project becasue he hasn't done anything all day. And that has worked out well here, we have unpacked every box that needs unpacking until Karen moves out. We've been throught almost every box and sorted what needs to come out and what needs to stay packed. Dan reorganized the garage and now we have space for Dan's weight bench and even room for the dart board, which we all are enjoying. David and Patrick are actually quite good at it.
Oy! I just realized how long this is getting! I want to add a few pictures and then I'll sign off!
We miss you all so much and wish that we could be there with you, especially as the holidays grow closer and closer. Lost Boys, Mama K Loves you!! We love you all!
In His Blessings,
Kristy and the Man Crew

Look at all those handsome boys! They are growing so fast! David~10, Dan~32, Derek~2, Patrick~almost 9, and Tyler~14
Who is this goofy guy? This picture was already on my camera when I opened it. Sheesh! You'd think people would delete these things!
Look at this gorgeous poinsettia that Karen gave me...it's practically a tree it's so huge...and dusted with gold...it is lovely!

He's Back

Dan has arrived safely home and the truck has been unpacked! As for the huge piles of boxes, not so much. Each day or two, we tackle a new room. So far the living room has been set up and we are now working on David and Pat's room. The trampoline went up today, much to every one's delight and now the boys can burn off some energy without destroying the house. Derek has enjoyed having more than 4 books to look at over and over, and the boys spent one entire day in their room playing with LEGOs without a single fight!
On another subject, Dan is doing great on the foreman job...in fact, he is making so much progress so fast that they took away almost his whole crew because he was way ahead of schedule...LOL. He is really enjoying it, too. Plus, as of Monday, we have health insurance again! Hurray...anyone with kids can appreciate that one.
School is going more smoothly with the boys, as we are slowly getting into a better routine. I am becoming more comfortable teaching and relaxing a bit which always helps, especially with Patrick. I am enjoying it more, too, thanks to some new friends on the cafemom website that are encouraging me and offering great advice about new ways to try things.
We are starting to think about Christmas and how weird it will be to not have snow, or even cold weather. Call me crazy, but I love a cold winter night...a.great reason to snuggle down under the covers and watch a great movie with a fire going. Ah, well, I'll have to learn new ways to get into the holiday spirit this year. I am looking forward to finding my snowman collection and staring an indoor blizzard ;)
We are thinking of all you very often and wishing that we could see each other. I am praying for you by turns and hoping that you continue to do the same for us. All in all, the Lord is blessing us big time and we are enjoying that blessing. We love you and MISS you all like crazy. Lost boys, Mama K loves you!
Blessings,
Kristy and the Man Crew

It All Fits!

IT ALL FITS!!! To those of you who have seen my parent's garage in the last few months, you know what a miracle that is!! Dan got the truck all loaded in just a few short hours with the help of several friends. Thanks to all of you who helped...this time or last time! Several people have dropped by to say hi and he is having a ball now that the work is done. Please pray as he comes home over the next two days. We love you and miss you all so very much. Lost Boys, Mama K loves you especially.
Blessings,
Kristy and the Man Crew

A Relaxing Holiday...Who Knew?

Don't ya just love those self-taken pictures??
Here is Dan on his first day as Foreman in front of the company truck....so proud!!

Dear Friends and Family,

I am here to report that relaxing holidays do exist! I was quite surprised myself, since I've never had one. This was my first Thanksgiving away from home ever, Honest!! No snickering. Yes, I am 33 and even though I've been away from my parents home for a holiday now and then, or they were out of town for a holiday, we've always celebrated together at some time around the holiday. Not so this year, but I enjoyed myself quite a bit at Mama Lou's house. She is a bit of a character...I ran into her at Wal-Mart not long after I got here and she was wearing a bikini top and cut off short shorts. Big Deal, right? Except that she's 81 years old! So, on Thanksgiving, she shoves right past Karen and I to waltz up to Dan and say, "So who is this you brought with you, Karen?" What a hoot!! Anyway, as the wierdo factor is right up our ally, we had a good time. We spent the rest of the weekend just laying around and relaxing. It was great! I started back to school this week with a refreshed mind and renewed patience, which I have been needing, LOL! All of this to say, that even though I am missing everyone sooooo much, the Lord is blessing us here, also. He is providing us a chance to renew our relationships with each other without all the hubbub of our "former" life. I wish I was up there sometimes, but I cherishing the lack of demands on my time as well. I have time to do things that I have nearly forgotten how to do, like read a whole book in under 6 months, or paint my toenails, or take a nap on a sleepy Sunday afternoon. I appreciate all the prayers that so many of you have been praying on our behalf. Keep praying...it's working! Dan is trying so hard to make the right choices and we are rebuilding our life one brick at a time. Speaking of Dan, he is coming to your town as of Thursday evening, and will be in town until Saturday morning. If you want to stop by and see him, I'm sure he would love that. He will be loading the moving truck all day Friday and then driving back on Sat and Sun. Sounds fun, right? Anywho~ I need to scoot, Derek is getting into something by now, I'm sure!! We miss you all so much! To the Lost boys, Mama K loves you! Love to all!

Blessings,

Kristy and the Man Crew

Some New Pictures

Hey everyone! Yes, I realize that I just posted last night, but I got some pictures developed this morning...yes, Candy and I are the still using 35mm, but we love it, darn it! Anywho...I have pictures of the house and Dolli's visit with us, so hang on, we're going for a ride down memory lane.

Karen and her Dolli-Gator share a snuggle before she heads for the Azores.
Dan and David show off our new home
Another view of our home with Dan, David and Patrick

Patrick and Derek are still the best of buds and love to play together!
Here we are in front of our home, in all of our radiant glory...thanks Patrick!

Thanks for going on a ride with us! See you soon! Love from the Man Crew

Happy Friday, Everyone!

Happy Friday, WooHoo! I hope everyone is feeling as good as me today. Do you ever have those days were you just feel like everything is as it should be for a brief moment in time? That's the way I feel today. The boys are finishing up their best week EVER in school, I reserved the rental truck for Dans trip to IL last night, I know a few happy secrets (which is always fun...it IS getting to be the holiday season) and...Dan got offered the FOREMAN position at work on the next job!! Ain't God Great?!! I just feel like skipping around and singing a happy song. I am looking forward to being a family this weekend and enjoying one another's company. Anyway, gotta go, those two year olds don't watch themselves!! Lost Boys, Mama K loves you! We miss everyone and hope to see you all soon. LOVE to all,

Kristy and the Man Crew

A Visit with Dolligator

This past two weeks has been a wonderful, long visit with Dolli and her husband John. We had never met John before and found him to be a delight...not to mention he makes a mean Chicken Alfredo with Broccoli! Hurray for a night off from the kitchen. School was cancelled the second week, much to the boys delight. We simply weren't making any progress anyway, so I quit driving myself crazy. Anyway, I digress...on Thursday before she left we all got to share in the joy when Dolli found out that she was pregnant after a year of trying! It reminded me of you, Candy ;) finding out at "home" with your parents. So, we spent the day calling everyone and then celebrated at the Red Lobster...hurray for endless shrimp!! Anyway, I digress again...I will say that after two weeks of late nights, no planning whatsoever and our schedule going right out the window, I am looking forward to a relaxing weekend, before heading into a new week of life and school. SO, if you have called me and I haven't returned your call, I haven't died, I'm just taking a day off to recuperate before Monday rolls around. If I have returned your call and sounded retarded, try again in a few days...maybe I'll be making sense by then. Not likely, but worth a try...lol! Other than that, life has been good. We are still enjoying the new church we are attending and are considering joining and putting the boys in their AWANA program. Pray for us as we pray about that important issue. Pray for Patrick as this last two weeks of unscheduled-ness has thrown him into a tailspin that's making the rest of us nuts!! Pray for a better school attitude from David, the complaining seems endless at this point and I'm pulling my hair out on some days. Derek is well, still cutting those molars, but almost done with that and ready for the next adventure...potty training. He seems pretty willing to sit, but so far, nothing is happening. Oh, well, that one definitely takes time...lol. As an important development, Dan is planning on flying into Chicago on Thursday, Nov.29 to rent the truck and drive it to us down here...anyone want to pick him up? Just Kidding. He will be loading the truck on Friday and then leaving early on Saturday. Anyone want to help me move again??? Not quite kidding ;) I will not be joining him this time because I am waiting for the graduation season to begin in May. I really am signing off this time...really! LOVE you all soooooo much. Lost Boys, Mama K loves you!!
Blessings,
Kristy and the Man Crew

Here are the City of Rocks Photos

Here we are climbing up in between two huge rock...Derek climbed up here, too!
As we started, we decided to snap a picture in case we got too excited and forgot later.

How cool is this hollowed out spot...perfect for a little break for the sun.
This tree in the middle of all this barren land was a nice little bit of refreshment.
Derek loved sitting under this rock tunnel that only he could get into...victory for Derek!
Dan and Patrick seem to be on top of the world...it was SOOOO high...yikes!
My mind cannot imagine the how or the why that goes along with this type of landscape.

I know, it's a bunch of pictures, but theyare so interesting that I edited out as many as I could without losing the feeling of the day...sorry if this is too much at once. We love you all and miss you greatly. To my lost boys, Mama K loves you, too!

Kristy and the Man Crew

City of Rocks Escapade

The Man Crew has had it 2nd successful adventure without catastophe! I know, I couldn't believe it either at first. We drove about 1 and 1/2 hours to a place called the City of Rocks State Park. It looks a bit like StoneHenge. It is just a buch of HUGE rocks that looks like they just fell out of the sky into random piles. Jacob would love this place!! We spent the afternoon climbing and tunneling through these huge rock formations. Luckily, the worst pest we had to endure were a few black beetles. Dan and the boys just went nuts and ran around yelling, "look at this...no no no look at this one...come up here...no first come and look at this I found!!!" Derek was a bit frustrated that he couldn't quite keep up. Dan carried up to all but the most difficult ones to climb...it was then that I started feeling a bit panicky, but we escaped without harm. I'll post the pictures when I get them uploaded to the puter, but rest assured that it was great. As for regular life, we are enjoying it here VERY much. The boys are finally settling in to a better school routine, Dolli's visit has been great and due to an oversight on her husband's part, she gets to stay an extra week (HA!), we have been invited to numerous fall/ halloween parties, some of which have already been attended, Derek is cutting his two year molars and is very drooly and a bit cranky, Dan may be starting a side job with his foreman and I am keeping busy enough with school, chores and family stuff that I'm starting to wonder how I ever managed back in IL with all that I tried to do. Anyway, Ill add the pics soon and I miss you all very much and wish that you were here with us.
Blessings,
Kristy and the Man Crew
PS. For those of you who know my parents, I have humorous news...My MOM joined myspace.....Isn't that a hoot? Flood her with friend requests, I beg of you!!!

Mesilla Maize Maze

Hello, from sunny New Mexico! The most amazing thing happened this weekend....the Meyer Crew went for a little family outing and we had FUN! We decided to take the boys to the local pumpkin patch, called Mesilla Maize Maze. It has a nine acre corn maze which I thought was pretty cool. There were games to play and slides to go down and small craft activities, hay rides and of course, a pumpkin patch that you got to pick your own pumpkin right off the vine. Dan and the boys raced on the pedal go carts, Dan and I strolled down the Mystic Grove, the boys got to go Mining for gems, make a rope, race on the trike track, slide themselves silly on a few slick slides with burlap sacks and climb a orange tire mountain. We had a ball, just being there as a family and goofing off together. We didn't have any of our normal issues, like whining, psychotic meltdowns or crying to go home/stay longer....oh, and the kids were good too. Ha Ha! The only problem that we had was that we figured we'd only be there for an hour or so, but since we stayed 5, we all came home burnt to a crisp. OUCHIE!! Anyway, fun was had by all and we intend to have another family outing soon since this one went so well. By the way, all you up there, what is the normal temp for a trip to the pumpkin patch in IL, something around 55 or 60? I wish! It was 96 degrees while we were there...yuk. Not to mention very bizarre to me. I suppose I'll get used to it, but the very thought of Christmas where it never snow is surreal. Oh, duh, David's birthday went great...he got several things that he had really been wanting, Grandma's box arrived right on time and several people called to wish him a happy 10th birthday. Thanks for those who called, it made his day! All in all, a very blessed week and we thank God for it.
Kristy and the Man Crew
PS. I didn't bring my camera along so just imagine all of us sitting on an orange tire pile, looking sweaty, sunburnt and holding a pumpkin on our laps. Dusty, too, there is no grass here to hold the ground down where it belongs.

Birthday Surprise!

Hey, everyone! I just wanted to quickly mention that Wednesday is David's 10th bithday. If any of you could call and surprise him, that would be great! Thanks a bunch! It would mean a lot to him as we haven't made new friends yet. Even if you get this message late, he would still appreciate a call....it's the amazing week of David's Never-ending Birthday! Thank you!

OOPS...I forgot!

In an earlier blog, I promised new pics of Pat as he spent half of the summer in New Mexico and I didn't have new pics of him. Here are a few of him and his brothers on our trip to AZ. Well, I don't know how to turn this pics the right way so just twist your neck real hard and then go see Rachel later, Ha ha!! Love you all, Kristy

Our New Home...the Land of Enchantment

Our new land of enchantment is a beautiful place! We are enjoying our time together here as a family. We are slowly starting to get things in order here as we continue to settle. Karen and tyler are great house buddies and are continually patient with the hubbub that IS the Meyer Crew! God is surely looking out for us in this place. Several of Dan's new work buds and his favorite foreman are Believers...isn't That a little coincidence?! Thank you Lord!! It has cooled considerably since we arrived much to my delight. David and Pat have finished their second full week of school and things are settling there also, althought still not as smooth as we would like.. HA HA! Derek is chattering up a storm of new words and learning new things everyday it seems. We took a little jaunt into the wild blue yonder to AZ to visit Dan's Mom a few weeks ago and finally the pictures are developed and ready to view. So here they are in no particular order.

Here we are a a roadside stop to marvel at the enormity of God's Creation...how huge is that rock??

Here are the Meyer Men in front the Organ Mountains. I love pictures like this...it ought to be a postcard.

Aren't the organ Mountains gorgeous? Watching the sun go down or the moon come up behind them is simply astounding. I shall try to get a picture of that for the next blog.

We miss you all GREATLY and love you!! Write, call, e-mail or blog us. To my Lost boys, Mama K loves you!
Blessings to ALL,
Kristy and the Man Crew

Sweet September Sunshine

My Biggie Boys: Ricky, Shua and Tony

David wakes up with a Sweet Smile

Derek turns 2....CHEESE!!!

Here we are, all the way to September already, in fact, halfway through it ! How did that happen?! I have been here now for a month and we are doing well. Dan is loving his job still and he really enjoys the people that he works for and with. We are adjusting to having him around all the time and it's great. I forget sometimes that he is a lot of fun. HA! The boys started school last week and it is going pretty well after a rough day or so. We took a small trip to Arizona to visit Dan's Mom who was in Phoenix for the week and despite 38 small disasters, we had fun. The next weekend Karen rented us a jacuzzi suite to celebrate our 11th anniversary. We acted like real grownups and everything! The 10 o'clock movie, chocolate covered strawberries with champagne (yuk) and sleeping in until 10 am....Heaven! It was a sweet time for us and a much needed respite after the wacko summer we've had. We sure do appreciate Karen, she's great! I'm still working on getting the film developed so you all can see how beautiful it is here and some of the things we did while in AZ. I will put up some newer pictures when I get them, but until then, these will suffice. We love you all!! Come see us sometime!

Kristy and the Man Crew

PS. The reason that Idon't have any of Patrick is that these were taken while he was in New Mexico with Dan.

Here We Are... Safe and Sound

Here we are... we have finally arrived in new Mexico and the Meyer Invasion is complete. In a few days, I'm sure that Karen will be hiding from us! We are trying to settle in without taking over, but it is a delicate balance. We are so glad to be a family again...and I am desperately trying to re-institute a schedule so that life will have some sense of normalcy for the boys. Mom left this morning amid many tears...saying goodbye is so hard!! We miss you all so much that it takes my breath away just thinking about it. Call, write, e-mail, text or visit us here on the web...any type of communication is acceptable. Please come visit us here, it is beautiful and we would love to see you. We will cherish all our memories of you all and we hope to visit back in May or June for graduations. Karen and Tyler say hello and send their love, too. To those who may be wondering, Dan is doing well and I see a great change in him already, but please keep praying for him as change is difficult under the best of times and these recent months have not been the best of times. Ha! But the Lord has given us a new start in a new land and we trust that he will preserve us here. God Bless you all and to all my lost boys...Mama K sends a big kiss!

We're Moving!

Hey, everyone... this is my first try so if it stinks...sorry. We are moving on tuesday to New Mexico. We are sad to go but it is time to move on from Lake County.