Christmas Celebrations

Family time makes the Christmas season special! We started with the Casey Christmas on the 23rd at Paul's sister Julie's house. We had a wonderful meal provided by all and a white elephant gift exchange that was hilarious. Scroll on down to see some highlights of the day.Mark gets the fancy dusting glove that Paul and Christie found at a shop in Excelsior. I'm sure he'll use it well!
Bob stole back the froggie for his garden that lights up with changing colors. Do you even have a garden in your apartment???
Drew picked the all encompassing Snoopy boxers. I'm sure he'll wear them to gym class.
No gathering is complete without patriarch Roger and his special gal, Elaine. They are a blessing to us all.
Cousin Casey Lloyd demonstrates his cooking skills to Leslee and Roger with Mudde's string bean soup recipe handed down to his mother Ruth (Roger's sister). It was really tasty - another family tradition continues!
Drew and Dryfry entertain the troops with Christmas carols. They even recorded some so we could enjoy the music after Dryfry ran off!
Some of the cousins can get a little crazy. I'm not sure who egged them on - maybe Alison's boyfriend, Jon? He really seemed to fit right in to the mix.
Brenner found this "slippery when wet" white elephant in an antique shop. I actually opened it, but it was stolen at least 4 times before Julie ended up with the prize.
Don't count on keeping the gift you started with - too bad Christie.

The fun continues at Mark's house on New Year's Day because more cousins have arrived from Boston! Dede and Dave, plus Susan and Bob who live in St. Paul will add to the fun! Stay tuned for more eats (therefore my annual New Year's resolution continues on - lose another 20 or so. After loosing 30 this past year, and then gaining 10, I'm sure it will be a breeze - ha!)

Thanksgiving Part II

We went over to Mark and Karena's on Friday afternoon for a chili feed - with plenty of snacky things first, of course. Yum! Roger and Elaine graced the couch while we played various games. Buzzword was a new game that was a big hit at the Catlin side on Thursday - the girls won that night, but the guys ran away with the game on Friday. Drew introduced us to a fun card game called Pond Scum, and I spent most of the game in the worst seat - that of Pond Scum or Vice Pond Scum.Tessa and Anna were the only girl cousins that made it this year. Callen was at the Football State Tournament cheering on her Eden Prairie team, and the rest of the big girls are far, far away. We missed them!
Brenner can always get Drew going - watch out! Down in the "man cave" there were lots of options - football on the tube, ping pong, darts, exercise equipment ...
Get him, Anna!
Oh, did I mention golf? Mark always has a good deal on a new club.
Again, our family is a blessing that God has given us and we don't always show or share how much we appreciate each and every one. You are all loved by us!

Thanksgiving Part 1

We had a great time at Ted and Pat's on Thanksgiving Day this year. There were 22 of us - WOW - our family is growing! We have so much to be thankful for, but the best gift is our family... and, of course, the kids made the day very special. Jenna and Andy brought their Wii (?) and Katie and Griffin brought Dance Dance Revolution. The older ones had just as much fun as the youngers! Griffin and Summer playing something on the Wii - I'm not sure what, but it was a big hit.
Katie and Matthew were helping Ted and Teddy carve the turkey.
Maddox could find something to play with in the weirdest places!
Maddox and Matthew finally got a chance to get acquainted - they are almost twins - just 3 weeks apart and now one year old.
The babies were incredibly cute and both could scoot quickly out of sight if you weren't watching them constantly - even up the stairs. Bye bye! (If you want to see any pictures of the rest of the family - check out the Bracken Bunch. The rest of my pictures are just like Jane's.) We ate plenty on Thursday, and then had to get up and do it all over on Friday at the Casey's. Check it out on Part II.

Matthew's First Birthday

We got to help Matthew celebrate his first birthday on November 11. I decided I'd better get these on the blog quickly because I'll have much more to put on after this weekend's Thanksgiving festivities at the Catlin's and the Casey's. Matthew loved looking and feeling all his cards. It's a good thing Ted was there to read it for him. I'm sure next year he'll be able to read it to himself!
Opening all those presents was a chore that also needed assistance. A little rip here and there, and voila! --- another toy - oops - can't play with it now, here's another gift!
I wonder who plays with these toys the most - Matthew or mam and dad?
Oh boy - it's a hard decision.
He wasn't too sure if it was OK to make a mess. He had a little help from his friends!

Pajama Party

Last weekend I had a great time with some of the girls from church at the Revolve Tour at the Target Center. It is a Friday night all day Saturday conference for teenage girls sponsored by Women of Faith.
We met at the church at 5:30 and the girls put all their junk for the night in Paul's van and we loaded my van and headed downtown. We heard mini concerts by Natalie Grant, KJ52 and Hawk Nelson (the crowd screamed like it was the Beatles!) There were speakers on topics that really affect the girls - like BOYS, relationships, eating disorders, and how God fits into the picture for teens today. There were probably 10,000 girls and youth leaders - to hear them all singing praises to God was a fantastic experience for the girls from our little church!
We went back to our house for the night and pigged out, hit the hot tub and watched movies.

Then back to the Target Center for more of the conference. There was a drama troupe that had some very thought provoking sketches and brought you from tears to laughter.
Jenna Lucado (Max Lucado's daughter - author of 60 Christian books) was one of the speakers. All the artists shared their own struggles with following God and living in the world. There was only one speaker who was a guy. He gave the girls lots of tips on "The Truth About Boys!" and talked about the choice girls have between being a "target" or a "treasure" in the eyes of the guys at their schools.
We had a great time. If you want to learn more about the Revolve Tour, check out thier website. The tour is coming back again next fall, and groups come from all over the 5 state area. Maybe we'll have double the kids next year and have a lockin at church!

Happy "Harvest Festival"

Can you believe one year has passed and my new great nephews aren't so new any more? Can you believe Matthew (Ted and Angie's son) and Maddox (Corey and Heidi's son) both chose to be cows for Halloween????
Aren't they cute? Maddox turned one on Oct. 24 and Matthew will be one on Nov. 10. We'll have lots of fun at the holidays this year!

Paul's Fall Golf Outing

Back in September, Paul and some of his old high school/church/college buddies got together and went golfing in Wisconsin for 3 days. They have done this several times, and really look forward to getting out in the woods and chasing the ball around! This year they went to one of the guys cabin on Lake Tomahawk. What a beautiful day! Teeing off on a gorgeous fall day in September - what could be better?
Oops - did you go in the drink, Paul?
What a fun cabin - there are more pictures of inside with lots of stuffed things on the walls - but I couldn't put EVERY picture on the blog, you know.
They had a great time on the lake, having a campfire, eating out, and talking about the good old days, as well as sharing about now - joys, sorrows, good times and bad. It's great to have friends "through it all."
Last year they played up north in Minnesota, this year in Wisconsin, next year ... where in the world? Maybe we'll see them on the Senior Tour!

Paintball 2007

On Sunday, Oct. 7 we assembled the troops at Waterbrooke to head out to play paintball. It's very important to start out with prayer for protection from injury in the woods. This is Bruce, one of our youth leaders at the church before we loaded up the cars to head to Special Forces in Buffalo. Once we arrive at the paintball field, we load up in an old army truck to drive out to the woods where we get our army issue paintball guns and helmets.
Here are a couple of the girls getting ready to make their mark on the paintball field. We are given instructions, divided into teams, and sent off into the woods to play a game of "Capture the Flag" with a twist - if you get shot with a paintball, you are out for the rest of that game. Each game lasts about 15 minutes.
Here you see the bunker I was hiding in to help protect our team's red flag out by the rocket silo. Paul was in a nearby bunker. Some guys from the other team snuck up from behind and nailed me! I still have a bruise on my leg from being "shot!" And here I thought hiding in the bunker wasa safe bet.
Here we are out in the "safe zone" after getting out. They have lots of old army things sitting around. The kids have a great time. It was really hot last Sunday - 85 degrees, but I wore an extra army jacket they have there, just to be extra padded in case of paintballs hitting from close range!
You really have a new appreciation of the men and boys who are fighting for our country after a day of simple paintball. Plus, we talk to the kids about the spiritual war they are in every day.
It makes us very aware of the necessity for putting on the armor of God!

What's next for the Casey's? Stay tuned....

Golf Mania

It's official! The first annual CBCH Open Family Golf Tournament has come and gone. It really was a family affair - Corey came up with the idea, Jane and Chuck hosted the event, Joyce and Paul provided the traveling trophy - a miniature golf bag that doubles as a remote for the TV - and everyone else brought food, of course. Here's the gang at the par three course in Cannon Falls. A little rain didn't stop us! Infact, it was a blessing in disguise. Nobody else was out on the course on such a dreary day, so we could all golf together and take as much time as we wanted without holding anybody up. Good thing we played best ball or we might still be there!
Hey Jane - I got the picture of Chuck's umbrella inside out, but I was in such a hurry to click it before he fixed the problem that I forgot to zoom in on the situation. Oh well, it really was funny.
We had another problem with soggy greens and slow moving inhabitants who didn't care to move out of the way of our putts! Paul hit one drive that almost completely buried itself. If you want to see more pictures and tales of the links - check out Jane's blog at the Bracken Bunch. Of course, no family gathering is complete now without a picture of one of the little dudes. This one is Maddox, Corey and Heidi's soon to be one year old. He is definitely NOT camera shy, and loves to show off all his new skills. Go to Corey and Heidi's blog for lots of fun shots of Maddox's latest accomplishments. Jane also has a link to Katie and Phebe's blog from Florida. I haven't figured out how to add that one to my list of blogs yet, since Jenna was the one who put them all on here.
We missed Ted, Angie and Matthew as well as Tom, Kim, Katie and Griffin. Hopefully we can plan next year's extraveganza on a date when the whole bunch can tee off! We had a great time in spite of all the divots and whiffed shots. By the time we got to the 8th hole, we were actually starting to look pretty decent, if it wasn't for those darn worms!

Summer Fun with the Caseys

I know you're wondering what else we did this summer besides travel. Well ... let me fill you in! Shortly after returning from NY and parts East, we organized a youth group camp out/lock in at church and took 30 kids and adults on a canoe trip down the Cannon River. It was a beautiful day, and we didn't tip once, though a few others had an adventurous ride. We stop at an island about half way through our 12 mile journey for lunch and body surfing. This year the water level was just right so Paul didn't scrape bottom as he floated through the rapids!

In July I cleaned the garage and painted the patio to cover up the stain we spilled last fall sealing the deck. No pictures from those exciting events, but the next shot is from another youth group extraveganza. We had the kids come to church and sweep spider webs off the building and weed the landscaping before we headed to Valley Fair. Paul and I did NOT go on any rides that spin us upside down. It's not that we're chicken, but those on the ground would not appreciate what happens when I get dizzy on rides!
The first full week of August I directed Vacation Bible School. The theme was Make a Splash for Jesus and we turned our church property into a water park for a week. One of our men hooked up hoses and a pump from the lake to create water slides and the kids had a blast - teen helpers as well as the children. Nobody went home dry, even if they just got squirted with a squirtgun. The songs, stories, crafts and treats were a perfect way to fill the kid's lives with living water!
The last weekend in August before school started we spent up north at my friend Joan and Tim's cabin. It was perfect weather, and great relaxing with adults for a change! Paul and Tim put in a day of golf - 36 holes and Joan and I shopped. We had several pontoon rides to see the eagle's nest just around the bend from the cabin. I got a few small pictures, but Tim has a professional zoom and got some magnificent ones of the eagle and the loons, too.
The sunsets were amazing - a perfect way to end the day, sitting around a bonfire and watching God's handiwork.