I think it's safe to say my husband and I do not know how to behave in public!
Saturday, December 29, 2007
Kevin and Mine's Christmas Gifts
Wow, I'm a blogging fool today! I am so happy, for Christmas Kevin and I bought each other coin holders. We got a really good deal on matching ones. We finally got them today so we had to show them off.
Just to give a little history on the Challenge Coin
HISTORY OF THE CHALLENGE COIN
During World War I, American volunteers from all parts of the country filled the newly formed flying squadrons. Some were wealthy scions attending colleges such as Yale and Harvard who quit in midterm to join the war. In one squadron, a wealthy lieutenant ordered medallions struck in solid bronze carrying the squadron emblem for every member of his squadron. He himself carried his medallion in a small leather sack around his neck.
Shortly after acquiring the medallions, this pilot's aircraft was severely damaged by ground fire. He was forced to land behind enemy lines and was immediately captured by a German Patrol. In order to discourage his escape, the Germans took all of his personal identification except for the small leather pouch around his neck. In the meantime, he was taken to a small French town near the front. Taking advantage of a bombardment that night he donned civilian clothes and escaped. However, he was without personal identification.
He succeeded in avoiding German patrols and reached the front lines. With great difficulty, he crossed no-man's land. Eventually, he stumbled into a French outpost. Unfortunately, the French in this sector of the front had been plagued by saboteurs. They sometimes masqueraded as civilians and wore civilian clothiers. Not recognizing the young pilot's American accent, the French thought him to be a saboteur and made ready to execute him. Just in time, he remembered his leather pouch containing the medallion. He showed the medallion to his would-be executioners. His French captors recognized the squadron insignia on the medallion and delayed long enough for him to confirm his identity. Instead of shooting him, they gave him a bottle of wine.
Back with his squadron, it became a tradition to ensure that all members carried their medallion or coin at all times. This was accomplished through a challenge in the following manner, a challenger would ask to see the coin, if he challenger could not produce his coin, he was required to purchase a drink of choice for he member who had challenged him. If the challenged member produced his coin, then the challenging member was required to pay for the drink. This tradition continued throughout the war and for many years after while surviving members of the squadron were still alive. Now, coining is a military tradition, they aren't handed out all the time and they are given out as a concept of recognition for various reasons. Generally coins are not handed out liberally.
So throughout our time in the military we have both received different coins and are proud to finally be able to display them!
Just to give a little history on the Challenge Coin
HISTORY OF THE CHALLENGE COIN
During World War I, American volunteers from all parts of the country filled the newly formed flying squadrons. Some were wealthy scions attending colleges such as Yale and Harvard who quit in midterm to join the war. In one squadron, a wealthy lieutenant ordered medallions struck in solid bronze carrying the squadron emblem for every member of his squadron. He himself carried his medallion in a small leather sack around his neck.
Shortly after acquiring the medallions, this pilot's aircraft was severely damaged by ground fire. He was forced to land behind enemy lines and was immediately captured by a German Patrol. In order to discourage his escape, the Germans took all of his personal identification except for the small leather pouch around his neck. In the meantime, he was taken to a small French town near the front. Taking advantage of a bombardment that night he donned civilian clothes and escaped. However, he was without personal identification.
He succeeded in avoiding German patrols and reached the front lines. With great difficulty, he crossed no-man's land. Eventually, he stumbled into a French outpost. Unfortunately, the French in this sector of the front had been plagued by saboteurs. They sometimes masqueraded as civilians and wore civilian clothiers. Not recognizing the young pilot's American accent, the French thought him to be a saboteur and made ready to execute him. Just in time, he remembered his leather pouch containing the medallion. He showed the medallion to his would-be executioners. His French captors recognized the squadron insignia on the medallion and delayed long enough for him to confirm his identity. Instead of shooting him, they gave him a bottle of wine.
Back with his squadron, it became a tradition to ensure that all members carried their medallion or coin at all times. This was accomplished through a challenge in the following manner, a challenger would ask to see the coin, if he challenger could not produce his coin, he was required to purchase a drink of choice for he member who had challenged him. If the challenged member produced his coin, then the challenging member was required to pay for the drink. This tradition continued throughout the war and for many years after while surviving members of the squadron were still alive. Now, coining is a military tradition, they aren't handed out all the time and they are given out as a concept of recognition for various reasons. Generally coins are not handed out liberally.
So throughout our time in the military we have both received different coins and are proud to finally be able to display them!
Both of our coin holders together...Nadine's on the left, Kevin's on the right
Nadine's
Kevin's
Mayborn Museum
While my parents were visiting, we finally made it to the Mayborn Museum out in Waco. Sometimes I hear people around here complaining there is nothing to do. Yeah, you have to drive a bit but it's so worth the drive, we ALL had so much fun. I put together a small slideshow (yes this small considering I took over 120 pics, lol) of our fun day. If you are going to make the visit out there, make sure you stop at Souper Salad first and fill up to have enough energy to make it through the museum, it was so YUMMY!
The Mayborn Museum has so many cool exhibits and the kids part is full of interactive fun! Check it out if you're in the area!
The Mayborn Museum has so many cool exhibits and the kids part is full of interactive fun! Check it out if you're in the area!
And some more pics..lol
Everyone humored me and let me get pics at the duck pond at the college, it was a bit cold, LOL
My mommy and daddy
Kevin and the boys feeding ducks
Grandma and Grandpa with the boys
Dad, Me, Mom
Me and my mom (we were freezing!)
Kevin and I, we were looking at two different cameras, lol
Some Thoughts and Pics about Our Christmas
Well Christmas is over and we had a great holiday! Santa brought in my parents around 4 in the morning. The boys were a bit timid at first. It has been a while since we've seen my parents...6 yrs since my mom came to visit us in Kentucky and 8 years since I'd seen my dad. This would be the first time that my dad met Daniel. Daniel latched on to him very quickly.
The boys were very excited to open their Christmas gifts...
Michael and his MP3 player
Neil and his Lego Mars Vehicle
Daniel and his Power Ranger Mission helmet
Those were the big hits of the year. Sadly, I think some of their gifts require more work on our part with having to download stuff for them but I guess that's what we get with technology.
We really did have a great Christmas, we have so much to be grateful for, I am so glad to be able to say that I did not let the impending deployment loom over our heads. I was able to be grateful for what we had this year and not really focus on what is to be next. It was so nice to have my parents here and to see them interact with the boys and to also have my mommy feed me (she makes the best everything!)
You know what's funny is I know that I get older but I never expect my parents too so I was kind of shocked to see that my parents have aged. In my mind I picture them to be the way they were when I left home 13 years ago.
They headed back to Idaho this morning and we were sad to see them go. Poor Daniel was quite attached to Grandpa and cried himself to sleep. It hurts my heart but at the same time I'm glad to see him love so deeply. We won't wait so long to see them this time, life is too short to wait too long to see those you love!
My dad, Michael and Kevin checking out the map of Texas
Grandpa and the boys at the 4th ID museum
Grandma and the boys at the 4th ID museum
All of us outside the 4th ID museum
Sunday, December 23, 2007
The Gift Card
A couple weeks ago we had our stake conference. I have to admit that often during stake conference, I am tempted to stay in bed and consider it a free week. That's a terrible way to think, I know, but nonetheless the thought did cross my mind. Well, I climbed out of bed and we did attend stake conference. How grateful am I that we did! We had some marvelous speakers. Each speaker kept my attention and I felt the spirit testify to me the truths of what each and every one of them were speaking.
One gentleman spoke of Gift Cards. He talked about how often gift cards are given during this holiday season. He then went on to read a letter from his father about his journey to the gospel. It was an inspiring letter.
Since that day I have often contemplated about his reference to a gift card. In my mind I think of a gift card, given to me by my Redeemer, my Savior, my Christ. When I close my eyes and envision the pretty green card with a red bow (yes, this is MY vision), I think of it signed to me and signed with love from Jesus.
The thing about this gift card is that we all have been given one and it truly has been signed by Jesus Himself. He has already paid for it and it is up to us when and how we redeem it. He gave it to us to redeem for Eternal Life. It's like any other gift card that we may receive, it is up to us on how we should "spend" it.
The most wonderful thing about this particular gift card is that it has no expiration date.
As we go through this holiday season and deal with the hustle and bustle, let us remember the Gift Card given to each and every one of us, and may we redeem it with love and desire for the greatest gift of all...Eternal Life.
Thursday, December 20, 2007
The Old Days
Without going into too much detail, I miss the days where men would hold doors open and would help you move a table or carry some chairs. I miss the days where adults let children eat first and then men moved out of the way for women so they too could eat ahead of them.
Sadly those days are gone...
I was disappointed today in humanity.
Sadly those days are gone...
I was disappointed today in humanity.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
An Evening of the Arts
This evening was pretty busy. The two younger boys had an Art Show at their school. It was pretty neat and the kids did a really good job on their art. Below are pics of them with their art projects on display.
Neil and his mask
Daniel and his fish
Daniel and his fish
Tonight was also Michael's first band concert. I was so proud of him. It took me back to my first band concert in 5th grade. Our band director was a bit more strict with us then his is with her students. A lot of things that I saw tonight would not have happened but it was still a great concert. Michael did really well and I have to say I was pretty impressed with how good they sounded. I've posted some video of a couple of the songs they played. One video is a bit unsteady, not sure what Kevin was doing but the song sounds good. Enjoy!Michael getting ready to play in his first concert.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Oh.....and a funny note to our day
I truly love my oldest son, some of the things that come out of mouth amaze me, lol.
So we are sitting at the dinner table and we have this conversation...
him...Sometimes after the alarm goes off in the morning, I hear words
me...oh? what words would those be?
him... Michael, wake up..
me... uhm, that would be me waking you up for school
him...oh
LOL...might be one of those, you had to be there moments, but I'm still cracking up here, LOL
So we are sitting at the dinner table and we have this conversation...
him...Sometimes after the alarm goes off in the morning, I hear words
me...oh? what words would those be?
him... Michael, wake up..
me... uhm, that would be me waking you up for school
him...oh
LOL...might be one of those, you had to be there moments, but I'm still cracking up here, LOL
A Long, Frustrating Day
This is my disclaimer...this is OUR blog, to write what WE want, to express OUR opinions, thoughts and whatever else we darn well please.
That said, today was a pretty eventful day for our community. The elementary school our kids attend was evacuated due to a carbon monoxide leak. Apparently it was identified around 8:30 in the morning and we did not find out until 11. I found out simply because my husband actually had a few minutes to check his email account which is not checked regularly. He called me and I called other parents, some who lived right by the school who did not know.
When I called the district I was told that I could have found out by turning on channel 17 or looking on the KISD website...well guess what I don't get channel 17 on dish and when I went to the KISD website, there was nothing about the incident.
I am well aware that notifying over 800 student's parents can be trying but there HAS TO BE a system in place. The way things were ran today was a bunch of crap. They sure do not have a problem calling on their cell phones to talk about misbehaving children.
My son watched his teacher faint and hit her head on a desk. He said it was crazy (his words). Parents of children who were taken to the hospital were not notified either.
This is upsetting to me and I've been told to be calm, to not be upset to do other things with my energy. Well, I just have to say that when you don't know what is going on with YOUR children, there's a million thoughts going through your mind and baking or shopping is not my priority. When your children are in harm's way please let me know how easy it for you to bake a cake!
Anyway, that is my vent...yes I'm still pissed about how things were ran and I expect answers. First thing tomorrow I would like a tour of all the carbon monoxide detectors in my kid's school.
Oh and apparently if you would like to know if there are any emergencies going on within the KISD area, stay glued to the TV or the internet..never leave your house and expect the worst...at least that is what I was told by the superintendents office.
That said, today was a pretty eventful day for our community. The elementary school our kids attend was evacuated due to a carbon monoxide leak. Apparently it was identified around 8:30 in the morning and we did not find out until 11. I found out simply because my husband actually had a few minutes to check his email account which is not checked regularly. He called me and I called other parents, some who lived right by the school who did not know.
When I called the district I was told that I could have found out by turning on channel 17 or looking on the KISD website...well guess what I don't get channel 17 on dish and when I went to the KISD website, there was nothing about the incident.
I am well aware that notifying over 800 student's parents can be trying but there HAS TO BE a system in place. The way things were ran today was a bunch of crap. They sure do not have a problem calling on their cell phones to talk about misbehaving children.
My son watched his teacher faint and hit her head on a desk. He said it was crazy (his words). Parents of children who were taken to the hospital were not notified either.
This is upsetting to me and I've been told to be calm, to not be upset to do other things with my energy. Well, I just have to say that when you don't know what is going on with YOUR children, there's a million thoughts going through your mind and baking or shopping is not my priority. When your children are in harm's way please let me know how easy it for you to bake a cake!
Anyway, that is my vent...yes I'm still pissed about how things were ran and I expect answers. First thing tomorrow I would like a tour of all the carbon monoxide detectors in my kid's school.
Oh and apparently if you would like to know if there are any emergencies going on within the KISD area, stay glued to the TV or the internet..never leave your house and expect the worst...at least that is what I was told by the superintendents office.
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Brotherly Love
Lately, the two younger boys don't seem to like each other much. They seem to be annoyed to even share the same oxygen. Neither one can do anything that pleases the other. It makes for a lot of noise, tears and yelling in our home. It has gotten worse over the past month. Nothing we say really helps, no punishment, nothing.
Today I tried the old, you will hold hands and look at your brother until you love him trick. I'm not sure it did anything but make them more annoyed with one another but they seriously looked so traumatized by it I had to take pics (I know, bad mom, lol)
Don't they look absolutely miserable?
Today I tried the old, you will hold hands and look at your brother until you love him trick. I'm not sure it did anything but make them more annoyed with one another but they seriously looked so traumatized by it I had to take pics (I know, bad mom, lol)
Don't they look absolutely miserable?
They were much nicer to each other for the rest of the day!
On a funny note..we went to see my friend in the evening and on our way home, all three boys were looking at the nice toy catalog Walmart was kind enough to send out this year to make our shopping easier. The boys were telling us what they wanted for the 30th time. When it got to Daniel's turn, he says...tell dad what I want mom...so I say...the Power Ranger Mission Helmet...he says yes but don't forget what else I want (I thought to myself, what could that be?!?!) and he says...love and comfort for everyone in the world! Awwwww...it almost made up for how rotten he was being with his brother earlier...almost.
Friday, December 14, 2007
Kissing Santa and being Silly
I love my husband, he has such a great spirit and is so fun loving. I love how he doesn't mind being silly with me and doing things for others. This year he has been asked to be Santa for our church Christmas Party. He was trying on the Santa suit and I was laughing so hard, goodness, I could hardly breathe! But......there is nothing better then kissing that Jolly Ol' Fella!!!
Yesterday we went shopping just him and I and we found these awesome hats so we had to try them on...I'm just sad that the lights didn't show up....yes, I'm on the phone...lol I was talking to Nita when I took this pic, LOL
Be sure to check out the video below for a sneak peak at the Jolly Man himself!
Saturday, December 08, 2007
Happy Birthday Sweet Sapper!
Today our beloved Sapper is 1 years old. She is such an important part of our family..we all love her so much. Just over a year ago as we were preparing for Kevin to return from Iraq our sweet Gizmo was killed. We were devastated. I didn't think there was any way I could let another dog into our home. However, our home just didn't feel the same, we felt like a huge hole had been left. Our great and wonderful friend offered to buy us a new puppy for Christmas...at first we said no but as the boys continued to grieve for Gizmo we felt that a new puppy would be a good thing.
We found out that the same place where Foxie Jean was born had brand new Chihuaha puppies for sale, we headed out to see...we saw Sapper and her sister and decided that she would make a good addition to our family. We fell in love with her immediately...we didn't know how we would handle waiting over a month to bring her home. She was only 6 days old in this picture. (she's the dark puppy on top!) Thank you Nita for bringing her to our family!
We found out that the same place where Foxie Jean was born had brand new Chihuaha puppies for sale, we headed out to see...we saw Sapper and her sister and decided that she would make a good addition to our family. We fell in love with her immediately...we didn't know how we would handle waiting over a month to bring her home. She was only 6 days old in this picture. (she's the dark puppy on top!) Thank you Nita for bringing her to our family!
Finally after over a month of waiting, we were able to go and pick up our precious little baby girl. We all immediately fell in love with her! She had a lot of spunk.
How did we come up with her name? Well her full name is Sapper Princess Albrecht. Gizmo was such a Diva, I really wanted Sapper to be as well. So I figured we'd be naming her some divaesque type name. But nothing we thought up seemed to fit her. LaNita kept advising us to let her tell us her name. So finally that's what we did. Kevin and I were talking about Bryant and mentioned the word Sapper (a Sapper is a Combat Engineer in the Army, which Bryant was for many years). She immediately looked at us...we said the word again and she seemed to respond and thus her name was Sapper...Princess came from me still wanting her to be a Diva. Well she's not a diva, lol. She's got a lot of spunk and a lot of personality and I love it! We all love her so much. She might be a tad spoiled!
We will never forget our precious Gizmo...we love and miss you!
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