Seasonal Meltdown

I need a good laugh. I am tired and overwhelmed with Christmas and I hate that. I want to enjoy this season because it's one of my favorites, but I am working and cleaning and cooking and taking care of kids and trying to find time (and money) to buy overpriced gifts for our children. So, these pictures make me laugh and forget about being overwhelmed.

The first.........Chris's idea of what I look like. He said, "Come on guys! Let's go to the library!!" Is this his way of calling me a dork? Probably.

The second......Jordan wanted Chris to "look like her". Don't miss the detail in this picture: the headband, the feather, the violin, peace sign bracelet on his left wrist, AND the purple glasses. He is also looking over the glasses the same way Jordan ALWAYS does.

Funny ;)

Long Weekend

Since Hurricane Irene ruined Dad and Debbie's trip to see us this summer, they came to visit this past weekend. It was perfect because the kids had Thursday and Friday off, so we spent 3 days enjoying NJ and NY with grandparents!

No trip to see us is complete without a visit to one of our favorite places.....yes, Terhune Orchards! I know you have seen tons of pics from the farm, but here are some more!!!

And guess who we ran into?! Our neighbors, the Storinos!!




Everyone fed the goats!!! Dee Dee acted like she thought it was gross, but she really actually loved it!
We also squeezed in some antique shopping, a trip to HomeGoods (Debbie doesn't have one) and the Carter's store for stuff for the other grandkids.

On Friday we ate lunch with Chris at the mall, Dee Dee took Jordan to Justice to buy her a new shirt, and then we headed to Liberty State Park so we could ride the ferry to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty.

The story behind Ellis Island is really interesting. I can't imagine the crowds those people had to endure, not to mention the waiting.


Unfortunately, we arrived after 2pm so we didn't have time to get off at both stops. We did get to ride around Ellis Island, but we will just have to make sure and go next time.

Look at the skyline of Manhattan....I just love it.

When we got off to see Lady Liberty, it was REALLY chilly and windy. We walked really quickly around the island, a very nice tourist took our picture for us and then we got back on the ferry!

I think the best view of the statue is on the ferry ride back. It was dusk when we left, so her torch and crown were already lit up. It was a neat sight.....

Looky there....another fab view of Manhattan. And the Empire State building was red, white and blue for Veteran's Day.

Saturday was our NYC day. We took the train in to shop on 5th Ave for a while and then..........

we went to the Broadway Theater to see Sister Act!!!!!!!!!

The gang with Chris after the show........those are two huge Mary statues that they use during the show.

My 3 favorite people!

Standing on a Broadway stage......priceless. We had such a wonderful time. Thank you GD and DD for treating us this weekend, we really, really enjoyed every bit of it!!!!!!!!!!

Halloween 2011

Here we are!! One Spidy, one Christine Daae from the Masquerade scene in Phantom, one Hermione Granger (aka Harry Potter's best friend) and one pirate. A Motely Crue if I have ever seen one......

This is a better pic of my costume. Didn't pay a cent for it. All stuff I had here, including my TTU graduation robe. And yes, I know Gryffindor's colors are not maroon and navy but Chris didn't have a tie with maroon and gold.

Jordan was very creative with her costume. We found a black cape, mask and red gloves at Target and she put all of that with one of her dresses and my high heeled black boots. She was gorgeous :) We threw together Chris's pirate costume together in literally 10 minutes. We used a bandana and Tshirt we already had plus a skull necklace that Jordan won at her Halloween party. And Jaron was dying for Daddy to use a stuffed owl on his shoulder as a parrot. He just didn't understand that it doesn't have the same effect!

And here is........well......some kind of jack-o-lantern that would only be found in the house of the Bohannons. Split it down the center and you will be able to tell that it is Spidy on the left side and regular jack on the right with a Double T on it's cheek AND black paint under it's eye so it can play football. Seriously. You don't want to know what we had to endure to get this done. I was one fuse away from just chunking the thing out the window!!!!!!!

Good News!

After four years, $300+, countless hours studying, researching, making copies and LOTS of time sitting around WAITING, I finally received my New Jersey teacher certificate in the mail today!! I cannot explain the excitement knowing all that time and money paid off!!!!! Now all I have to do is get me a full-time job! But here's the thing.....if the Lord was able to help me pass the Praxis test I had to take, He can help me find a job :)

And the best part........NO expiration date! It's a lifetime cert!!!! I am so proud of myself, truly.


P.S. Halloween pics are coming....I just had to share this first!!

Spiderman Birthday! (Again.....)

I procrastinated badly with Jaron's Bday party. We had it a month after his actual birthday! Fortunately it didn't matter to him at all. He just wanted to have his 3 best buddies over for a sleepover. Now you know why I was putting it off!!!!!!





Look carefully in the background of this picture......see that hand-drawn Spidy on the wall? Jaron made it so we could play "Pin the spider on Spiderman". Cutest thing ever!!!
And here they are, minus one friend Matthew who came down with a fever that day. (Jaron shed some tears over it, but eventually decided he could still have fun with his other friends....whew!) So Rocco and Alp came over for a night of pizza, cupcakes, ice cream, movies and LOTS of playing. Rocco used to live in our apartment complex, we met them at the playground, now they live in Princeton. Alp is Jaron's friend from 1st grade. I am telling you, these guys are two peas in a pod. Jaron came home on the first day of school telling stories about Alp and still hasn't stopped. They have the best time together. Alp is quite a funny guy too....he says some really silly things! He and his family are from Turkey.

On to "Pin the Spider....." Jordan wanted to be in charge of helping with the games. She was so sweet, really. She can be a tiny bit bossy from time to time, but she was very proud to help her brother have a good birthday party.


We all got a kick out of Alp putting the spider on the art easel instead of Spidy!!!

And they ended the night dressing up! I love this picture!!! This party was ALL boy. And we sure do love our little boy!!!!!!

Samarian's Purse

Since we have been living in New Jersey we have been filling a shoebox each Christmas to send to a needy child somewhere in this hurting world. The kids love it, they take great joy and pride in picking out special things for children they don't even know. We try and make sure to pray for these unknown faces and we are always excited when I receive the email telling us where our packages went. They have gone to places like Cambodia, Madagascar, Honduras.

Samaritan's Purse is a nondenominational evangelical Christian organization.....people sold-out to the love of Christ, desiring to spread that love to a lost world. I get things pretty regularly in the mail from Samaritan's Purse, but the other day I got something that filled my heart with joy and I have thought about it alot since I received it. It was their Gift Catalog for Christmas 2011. Please look at the link. It is a catalog FULL of things like:

~ provide milk for a needy child for a week......$5
~feed a hungry baby for a week.....$9
~give an orphan a month of loving care.....$35
~blankets.......$6
~hot meals......$7
~Bibles.....$15
~clean water for a community......$20
~shoes and clothing.......$25
~fruit trees........$45
~baby chicks for a community........$14

Chris and I showed it to the kids tonight after supper. They loved it. I told them we were going to leave it out on the table and pray about what God wants us to purchase. I want to do it all. I want one of everything!!!! I am so thankful for this catalog that I didn't even know existed, that I didn't even know was coming. God is working to spread the love and FREEDOM of Christ across the globe, there are millions upon millions that have discovered Jesus and his goodness, and our little family is praying that it would continue to explode through the power of the Holy Spirit. God's Word will not return void!!!

We have the most precious daughter. Since she entered this world, she has brought us and many others nothing but joy. She started a new school this year....they sell school supplies on Fridays. I am not sure exactly what these sales benefit, but I am sure the money goes to the school somehow. She took $2 out of her piggy bank and came home with a pink highlighter and two bookmarks. Those of you who know Jordan best know that she is never without some kind of writing utensil. I absolutely love that about her. I hope it never changes.

One of the bookmarks she bought for her brother. It's a lion. Could it be any more perfect or any more cute in his dinosaur book?


The other bookmark was for me. She said, "because I know you like to read."


It chokes me up just thinking about the fact that she spent half of the money she took from her piggy bank on OTHER people. And no one told her to do it. She thought of it and wanted to do it all on her own, because she loves us. She said next week she is going to buy something for Daddy :)

On Friday afternoon she also had her first Girl Scouts meeting of the year. She noticed that one of her friends was not there. The leaders explained that her father had been battling cancer for quite and while and wasn't doing well. She was very concerned about it when she got home that day. I had to tell her this morning that he passed away....just in case she heard other people talking about it at school. I asked her if she would make something special for Dora if she had time. Those of you who know her best also know that she really likes to read. Alot. She has been known to read entire chapter books in just a few hours. She gave up her DEAR time (Drop Everything And Read) after lunch to make Dora a letter.

It was obvious that she put alot of thought into it. She thanked Dora for being such a good friend and invited her over to play.

I am so proud of her. Chris is proud of her. Even Jaron is proud of her :) She is thoughtful and caring, and I am so glad to see these characteristics displayed in her life. She has been the hands and feet of Christ this week, whether she realizes it or not.

We love you, Jordan Avery.

Scout's Honor

Jaron started Boy Scouts last week. He is a Wolf Cub, Pack 48. We went the day before his meeting and bought his uniform. After we got home and I started to work on attaching patches, he practiced putting on the neckerchief with the slide. He was soooo very excited to be a Boy Scout. When the meeting was over the next day, he said, "Is that it?". Such a cute boy! He is working on earning his Bobcat patch :) More to come on that!!!

I forgot about these pictures from the Liberty Science Center. I took the kids the first weekend of the month because I got free admission with my Bank of America card. I guess BofA is good for something! LSC is in Liberty State Park.....on the Jersey side of the Hudson River. It's also where we got on the ferry with Granny and the McNutts to go to the Statue of Liberty. A huge science museum, a view of the State of Liberty and NYC made for a fun, cheap afternoon!!

They wanted to do an experiment making an estuary....like the Hudson River....where fresh water and salt water meet. I learned something too!!!

It was a self-guided experiment. They did it all themselves!

First Day of School!!!

2nd grade!!! Jaron has Miss Estremera....she was Jordan's teacher in the first grade. We are so excited that Jaron gets to enjoy her this year too!

Jordan moves up to a new school this year. She is going to the 4th and 5th grade school, Village. I am so nervous, she is so excited, it will all be great!! Isn't she beautiful?

Friends!!!!!!! Ameera and Jordan have been BFFs since kindergarten and have never been in the same class! Janae is our sweet little neighbor :)

It always makes me so emotional when I watch them get on the bus the first day of a new year. I have to learn to let them go all over again. I tend to be like the mother hen....gathering her chicks under her wings for protection. I have to really remind myself of 2 things. #1 It is good for them to go and have experiences of their own and #2 Even though I can't gather them under my wings all the time, God can and does because He loves them even more than I do which is absolutely unfathomable how anyone can possibly feel for them the love I do, but He does. He knew them before they were born, He has numbered their days and counted all the hairs on their heads. Thank goodness that even though I have to send them out into this world alone sometimes, God never, ever does. He is with them every step of the way. My prayer for them this school year is similar to many people's, I'm sure. I want them to have fun, learn alot and be successful. But I also want them to experience personally the hand of God in their lives, the love of Jesus that we carry with us always. I want them to learn how to lean on Him in frustrating times and rejoice with Him in good times.

Irene Addendum

Oh, I forgot the best one.........

The morning after, Jordan walking in "Rocky" style, arms above her head exclaiming, "We're ALIVE!"

That pretty much sums it up.

Irene is Not my Friend

Yesterday we ventured out for the first time after Irene ripped through on Saturday/Sunday. We weren't really sure what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised that we maintained power throughout the entire storm, and that our parking lot was not a lake. So, we were actually able to make it into Princeton, but the Delaware/Raritan Canal was considerably higher and there was evidence it had been all the way up to the road. Also, most of the street signals were out around our little community. The big ones were working, though.
After Princeton and a celebratory dinner at Banzai Hibachi Restaurant, we went to see what the lake looked like at Mercer County Park. Well, we were pretty surprised. This gazebo is usually full of tables and chairs. It is totally flooded. The water was all the way up to the walk/bike path.
See that line of trees? And the teeny, tiny gazebo at the end? There is a long sidewalk connecting those AND it connects the big gazebo in the pictures above. All under water. Crazy.

That 1.5 mile marker is on the walk/bike path.

A deserted parking lot at the train station. That just doesn't happen on a Monday. Ever. There are always lots of cars at the train station all week long. The train lines were down all day yesterday. Chris might have to drive to work today :/
Alexander Road blocked off for flooding.

I have to say, I am so thankful we made it through this! I am an eternal pessimist.... I was a nervous wreck getting ready for this crazy hurricane this week. It didn't help that we had an earthquake scare either. I had NO idea what to do to prepare other than what they were saying on the news....water, non-perishable food, flashlights, batteries. I was preparing for the worst. I just couldn't view it any other way. For a girl who has grown up in the deserts of West Texas, rain was a luxury, not a source of destruction. So by Friday, I felt like I had done what I could, and I just tried to pray that everything would be ok. The night of the hurricane was scary....what I didn't expect was all the tornado warnings that were popping up everywhere like popcorn. There were tornadoes sighted on the ground just a few miles from here. If there is one thing I know, it's tornadoes. I had just gotten the kids calmed down and on their way to dream land when Chris came in for the first time and said we needed to take cover. Jordan was terrified, I was terrified, we prayed and it ended up ok. We had to take cover again around 1 am and by that time I was just completely frazzled. Chris stayed up all night watching the news for us while I got the kids settled AGAIN and dozed a little. We woke up the next morning to clear skies, but still some really heavy winds. Yesterday and today have been absolutely gorgeous....sun, sun, sun. We are so, so thankful for God's protection this weekend!

So in an effort to work through the emotions that surged all week long, here are some funny things that were said during the course of this:

~as I am making a place on the floor for the kids to sleep in our room on Saturday night Chris says, "They are kids, not puppies."
~as I was considering moving a piece of furniture in front of a window Chris says, "Don't wreck our apartment before the hurricane does!"
~as the kids were sitting in our bathtub, with bike helmets on for safety, half asleep Jaron says, "I wish Jordan would stop crying on my face!!"