5 Months Old

Someone is growing so fast!  Today Jackie is 5 months old!  He still loves his bath, he can almost sit up by himself, and he is telling us stories every day.  He is holding things on his own now, and recognizes his own name.  He is quite fond of being tickled, adores his big sister Kayleigh, and he loves looking at the Christmas tree and decorations. 
 

 

 

Jackie's First Thankgiving

We were so blessed with a beautiful Thanksgiving Day.  The weather was tailor-made and we enjoyed another outdoor holiday with family and friends.  Special thanks to Grandma Marie, Grandma Sue, and Aunt Mary for putting together a delicious feast.  It went by too fast!  And when we got home, our little turkey fell asleep on my shoulder before I could even get him undressed. 

 

Happy 80th Birthday, Grandpa Don!

Known as "Grandpa," "Mr. Graham,"

"Donald," "Don," and "Dad,"

You're the best at all these names

that anyone's ever had.

Friendly and always good-natured,

mannerly, thoughtful, and smart;

A man with a supersized smile,

and twice as big a heart.

From all of your years of serving,

and teaching both young and old;

Always sharing wisdom

with each story that you told.

If your life was like a schoolhouse,

containing the keys to success,

Then you're the faithful study guide

that helps one ace the test!

In Literature you're the novel,

the story that keeps inspiring;

In Computers you're the keyboard,

Without it, there's not much transpiring.

In Chemistry you're the table,

the essential building block;

In Economics, you're the money,

Earth Science--you're the rock.

In Physiology and Anatomy,

I'd say for sure you're the heart;

In Physics you're the experiment

(cause that's the enjoyable part).

In the hallway, you're the buddy

that helps one find his next class;

And when one NEEDS the restroom,

you're the teacher that says, "Make it fast."

In Spanish class, you're the Fiesta,

In Biology, you're the flower,

In Algebra, you're the equation,

In P.E., you're the shower.

In Geometry you're a right angle,

In Woodshop, you're the saw;

In Art class you're the example

of what everyone's trying to draw.

In the Band room you're the percussion,

the beat that keeps everyone going;

On the football field you're the touchdown,

In Home Ec you're thread for the sewing.

In Choir class, you're "hitting-the-high-note,"

On stage you're the standing ovation.

At lunch you're the extra potatoes,

In Philosophy, you're the quotation.

In the Guidance Office you're the counsel,
In the Nurse's Room you're the first-aid,
On the baseball field you're a no-hitter,
At Homecoming, you're the parade.

In Psychology you're the behavior,

In Statistics you're the data;

In the office, you're the break room,

In Trig--the solution to theta.

In Grammar you're the punctuation,

The thrilling exclamation mark!

In Driver's Ed, you're the instructor

who's patient with "parallel park."

At the end of the week, you're the Friday,

The no-homework sigh of relief,

And when Monday morning comes early,

You're the coffee that helps with the grief.

When graduation day rolls around,

You're the gown, the cap, and the stole,

And the summer report card that comes in the mail,

that says, "Principal's Honor Roll."

So, to get to the heart of this message,

no student body member would contest,

when it comes to the person who earns the A+

In short, you are TRULY THE BEST!

 

Dear Grandpa Don,

I wish you the happiest birthday! You are an amazing man, and I am so lucky to have you for a Grandpa. Thank you for always being so patient, wise, generous, and loving. Happy 80th birthday to the best Grandpa!

Love, Karen Lynn Rinella

November 20, 2012

How big is your bird?

Happy Week of Thanksgiving, Everyone! 

Hope everyone is looking forward to making turkeys.  I won't be making one, I'll just be taking care of one.  My little turkey is about 18 lbs of pure love and cuteness, no basting required!

Today, we are thankful for aunts!  And today happens to be the birthday of a very special Aunt Christy! 

And we are thankful for Aunt Michele and Uncle Rik, and for the beautiful high chair they gave to us!  It is awesome and we love it!

And congratulations to Aunt Katie and Uncle Aaron on the birth of their new baby, Callie.  Enjoy your first Thanksgiving all together as a family!

Adventures of Flat Stanley

This is the story of a boy who got smashed by a bulletin board.  His name is Flat Stanley and he wanted to go on a trip so Kiera folded him up and mailed him to me, here in Arizona.  She asked me to take him everywhere I go and photograph his visit. 


Hi!  Today I will tell you about my incredible journey over two thousand miles away in Mesa, Arizona.  Boy, that was a long trip in the mail, but I made it okay.  Thank goodness I finally got out of that stuffy envelope!  It was not comfortable in there! 

I could not believe how different everything looked!  It was the wide open west!  Here I am by a friendly bear who welcomed me to the desert!

 



Looking around, I could see that this was a very neat place.  It did not look like my home in Indiana though.  Instead of big trees with leaves on them, these green things were tall and some had spines on them.  This is called a cactus and, WATCH OUT!  Be careful not to get too close or you could get poked by a cactus needle!

When I arrived at the mailbox, I was greeted by my host family.  The people in this family are: Phil, Karen, Kayleigh, and Baby Jackson.  Being around a baby was pretty cool!  He is small like me, and he shared all of his things with me.  Here I am taking a ride on his swing.  Wheeeee!

After playing for awhile, I had a snack of toast with jalapeno jelly.  The people here sure like food that's a little spicy.  When I was finished, I got very sleepy.  So, I found a happy snugly little place to take a rest.  Here I am napping with Baby Jackson in his crib. 

When I woke up, I wanted to do some sight-seeing and learn more about Arizona.  I found out a lot of things.  Arizona is the 5th largest state and the 48th state to join the United States of America.  Its nickname is the Grand Canyon State.  Over 6 million people live here.  The State Flag looks like this:

Then I met Kokopelli.  His picture appears on rock walls and pottery in the American Southwest. His picture seemed to be everywhere.  But who is this fellow?  Kokopelli looks like a hump-backed, dancing flute player. He first appeared on cave and rock walls dating back several thousand years. His picture can also be found in the artifacts of Native Americans from a long time ago.  Some say he carried babies and seeds in the hump on his back! When he played his flute, Winter was banished and the Spring rains appeared to bring forth new life.

Arizona holds one of the great Wonders of the World.  The Grand Canyon.  It is over a mile deep, 277 miles long and covers 1,218,375 acres.  It is an incredible sight!  Here I am visiting the Grand Canyon. 

There is so much beauty in Arizona.  I could have gone exploring for days!

My host family took me with them to work.  They have 2 businesses to run and they are very busy.  Our first stop was at a warehouse to get supplies for the sports cards store.  It was a huge place with boxes everywhere!  I almost got lost it was so big!  Can you see me?

Here I am climbing the ladder to reach all of the supplies.  Good thing I'm not afraid of heights!

After leaving the warehouse, we drove to the stores to work and help people all day long.  Inside the sports cards store, I got to learn about the sports teams in Arizona.  The football team is the Arizona Cardinals.  Here I am next to a jersey.

The baseball team here is called the Arizona Diamondbacks.  A diamondback is a kind of rattle snake.  I am so glad not to have met any rattlesnakes during my visit!

After we left the sports card store, we went inside the other store.  This was a laundromat.  It is where a lot of people come to wash and dry their clothes.  There were lots of people and machines here.  Can you see me?  I am about to go inside the washing machine.  But thank goodness they didn't turn it on!  I would get soaking wet! 

After all that helping in the stores, I got hungry.  I took a tour of the snack machine so I could pick out something good to eat.  Can you spot me in there?

I had such a fun time in Arizona, and I hope to come back and visit again.  Thank you, Kiera for sending me here!  Next time, I hope you come with me!

 

Jacktism 2012

Sunday, November 11, Jackson celebrated the sacrament of Baptism.  We had a little party for him with his family and godparents, so the day's events became known as "Jacktism."  He even had a special visit from Phil's sister Michele all the way from Connecticut! 

The weather was beautiful, and Jackson was such an angel!  He was definitely "moved by the spirit," as he is currently the most vocal member of the congregation.  Needless to say, I am tired today and we will try to catch up on both sleep and sanity. 

Thank you to our family and Jackson's godparents for being there for our little guy on a very important and special day.

 



On the way to the church



Being "reflective"

 

"I wonder if that water they sprinkle on me will be cold..."

 

With Great Grandma Marie, and Grandparents Sue and Phil



With Aunt Michele and the family



Godparents: Aunt Mary and "Uncle" Ron



Spending time with Dylan



A couple of monkeys



Charlie, Grandma, Ally, and Aunt Mary



Blake and Dylan Chambal



Godfathers and Grandpas need their rest



Meeting of the minds