Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!!!

IT SNOWED, IT SNOWED, IT SNOWED!!!! WOOHOOO!!!

This morning, I awoke to see a light dusting of snow on my front porch (see picture above). I was so excited and so ready to play hooky from work. The winter weather began about 8 hours after the weathermen said it would begin, so that meant I had to go to work. Bummer. I kept my fingers crossed all day that the snow would come in a big way so I could leave work early. Joshua and the kids drove me to work. The roads weren't bad at all this morning, but who knew what they would look like at the end of the day. Joshua took the kids outside to play in the snow. I felt quite envious. This is the first snow of 2009 and the first significant snowfall in about 4 years (we've had flurries here and there but nothing like this), meaning the first time the kids could truly experience a "winter wonderland."

The plant manager finally announced at 1pm that we were shutting down for 2nd and 3rd shift, so I called Joshua up and asked him to pick me up at 3pm. With the snow & ice on the roads, he arrived at 3:25pm. It was so enchanting driving home and seeing the snow fall and the blanket of snow covering everything. As soon as we got home, we put on our heavy coats, tobogans and mittens and headed outside. I had to take a picture of the snow that had gently settled on some 3-year-old pine trees near our house. Awesome!

I love the way the snow settled on the trees and the landscape. Here is a shot of Daniel and the trees in the woods behind our house.

Daniel and I really tried to make a snowman. The snow just was not going to cooperate since it wasn't wet enough. It was so powdery and light, unlike any we've had here since we moved to North Carolina in 2002. So say hello to Mr. Snowblob. He was about a foot tall and oh so cute. :) Soon after taking a picture of Mr. Snowblob, our dog Copper proceeded to walk up to him and mark his territory, knocking off Mr. Snowblob's lip in the process. Watch out for that yellow snow!

On the way home from work, Daniel asked me if I would make a snow angel with him. So we made sure to make one side-by-side. Yes, that's me, the headless mommy in the blue coat up above! :)

We had so much fun out in the snow and spent an hour and a half having a good time before finally heading into the house. Copper enjoyed chewing on and playing with the sticks all throughout the yard. Raelee and Daniel even took some time to relax on the swingset. I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to make memories with my children. The temperature is supposed to be about 40 degrees tomorrow, so all the snow will begin to melt away. Thank goodness for pictures!

Angel Food Ministries

Have you ever watched the CNBC show Mad Money? For some reason, nearly every person that calls into the show has to say "Booyah." Well, I have to give out a big shout and BOOYAH! to Angel Food Ministries.

The kids and I picked up our monthly AFM order yesterday. Daniel and Raelee love going with me to pick up our order, and the AFM volunteers are extremely friendly and helpful.

They have been a life saver and an incredible blessing for our family since we started using the ministry this past September. A regular box from Angel Food Ministries has enough food to feed a family of four for about a week for only $30. Our monthly grocery bill has been significantly reduced since we started buying 1 regular box and one special fruit/vegetable box each month. It's not welfare, so we're not accepting a "handout." Instead, it's a way to still be self-reliant without having to spend an arm and a leg on groceries (a regular box is only $30 and retails for $42-$78). And because our regular monthly grocery bill has been reduced, I've been able to focus more on stocking up our 72-hour kits and food storage (you can't beat that!!).

The amount of food in the regular box (above left picture) seems so modest when first opened. However, I have found that it actually lasts LONGER than a week for our family because I combine it with food I already have or with the fruits/vegetables that come in one of the special boxes we buy (above right picture).

The kids enjoyed playing with the boxes that the food came in as well!

Angel Food Ministries is a nation-wide organization. So please check out their website to look up a host facility near you and take advantage of the savings and the blessing. Not only is it important for us to serve, it is also important for us to let others serve us, and the volunteers at AFM receive such a huge spiritual boost. Our family feels humble and an intense amount of gratitude for the blessings this ministry has been for our family. I've included some information about Angel Food Ministries below as well as a sample menu.

What is Angel Food Ministries?
With a heart to help others and a generous spirit, Joe and Linda Wingo founded Angel Food Ministries in 1994 to provide food for friends and neighbors who were struggling financially. Today, they are still doing the same thing. The Angel Food program now is helping provide food relief to more than 500,000 families each month. Angel Food Ministries is a non-profit, non-denominational organization dedicated to providing grocery relief and financial support to communities throughout the United States. The program began in 1994 with 34 families in Monroe, Georgia (between Atlanta and Athens), and has grown to serve hundreds of thousands of families every month across 35 states. Angel Food Ministries crosses denominational lines and has spread the good news of the gospel of Christ through salvation tracts that are placed in each food order.

Everyone qualifies

There are no qualifications, minimums, income restrictions, or applications.
Everyone is encouraged to participate. Some churches even encourage participants to apply the money they saved to help someone else in need.

Blessings by the box
Angel Food is available in a quantity that can fit into a medium-sized box at $30 per unit. Each month's menu is different than the previous month and consists of both fresh and frozen items with an average retail value of approximately $60. Comparison shopping has been done across the country in various communities using a wide range of retail grocery stores and has resulted in the same food items costing from between $42 and $78.

Generally, one unit of food assists in feeding a family of four for about one week or a single senior citizen for almost a month. The food is all the same high quality one could purchase at a grocery store. There are no second-hand items, no damaged or out-dated goods, no dented cans without labels, no day-old breads and no produce that is almost too ripe.

Also offered are specialty boxes such as steaks, chicken and pork. Many participants in this bonus program appreciate the expanded choices. Additionally, there is no limit to the number of units or bonus foods an individual can receive, and there are no applications to complete or qualifications to which participants must adhere. Angel Food Ministries also participates in the U.S. Food Stamp program, using the Off-Line Food Stamp Voucher system.
It's both a Bargain and a Blessing!

How it works

Orders and distribution are handled by church host sites. Orders are collected by the host sites during the first part of each month. These orders are then turned in to the Angel Food main office in Monroe, Georgia, on a predetermined date. Several days later, in the same month, the host site either picks up the food from Angel Food's 160,000 square feet warehouse to fill the orders on Distribution Day or, because this ministry is growing nationwide, food is delivered to the host site by a pre-arranged delivery mode. In most cases, as long as there is a truck headed in the direction of a community who wants this program and sees its ministry influence, there are no extra transportation costs.

Sample Menu (this month's menu can be viewed here)
4 lb. IQF Leg Quarters
4 oz. Beef Back Ribs
1 lb. 80/20 Lean Ground Beef
2 lb. Breaded Chicken Tenders
1.5 lb. Bone in Pork Chops (4 x 6oz.)
1 lb. Ground Turkey
18 oz. Stuffed Manicotti (Cheese)
12 oz. Smoked Sausage
Betty Crocker Seasoned Potatoes
7 oz. Cheeseburger Dinner
16 oz. Green Beans
16 oz. Baby Carrots
2 lb. Onions
1 lb. Pinto Beans
1 lb. Rice
7 oz. Blueberry Muffin Mix
10 ct. Homestyle Waffles
Dessert Item

Little Miss Sunshine

I couldn't help but share some of our recent pictures of Raelee. She's growing up right before our eyes, literally. Last night, as I was cooking supper, Daniel asked me if he could have a piece of candy. I figured, "why not?" and told him yes. It isn't very often that I allow the kids to have candy, and I don't think I've ever allowed them to have a treat before supper, so I thought I'd spoil them this once. I assumed that Daniel would grab a Tootsie Roll or maybe a Hershey Kiss. Little did I know, he grabbed a lollipop for him & for Raelee. Raelee thoroughly enjoyed her lollipop, licking it & wearing it, as you can see above!

Raelee is quite the helper. In this picture, Raelee had grabbed her vacuum cleaner and was "vacuuming" every knook and cranny. Joshua had washed the bathroom rug for me. I took it out of the dryer, and as soon as I put it on the floor, Raelee was quick to come up behind me and clean it some more. Her toy vacuum sings music as it cleans, and says "Clean and go, clean and go!"

We got Raelee an apron, chef hat, and pot holders for Christmas. She likes to help me with supper in the evening and wears her apron so she doesn't get her clothes dirty. On this particular day, Raelee wanted me to read her some Scooby Doo books. She has become quite attached to the Scooby Doo books I bought for Joshua several years ago (Joshua was going through a Scooby Doo phase). Raelee knows several of the characters and can point them out in the pictures--Velma, Shaggy, and of course Scooby Doo. So here is Raelee with her apron and reaching back in her chair to grab another Scooby Doo book for me to read.

We love our little girl. She brings a lot of joy and happiness to our lives, and we are certainly grateful that Heavenly Father blessed us with such a ray of sunshine!

Where There's Smoke, There's...?

Sorry that there isn't a picture to go with this post. I got to come home from work early today. No, I didn't get laid off, although that's what Joshua feared when he came home with the kids and saw my car in the driveway. At 9:30am, as I was minding my own business, making some labels for the new Family Medical Leave forms that the Department of Labor created, the power went out. I immediately looked behind me out the window to see what the weather was like. Although the sky was overcast, there wasn't any wind or rain. So I was quite puzzled to know what may have caused the power outage.

I went into Christine's office (my boss) and she had a troubled expression. We grabbed our radios (managers and some of the first responders have two-way radios) and listened in to the maintenance staff. I heard one of them say something about smoke in the front of the factory. Christine grabbed our plant manager and told him to quit talking about the VEC line because there was smoke in the factory. They headed out into the factory, and I grabbed my purse and jacket in case we had to evacuate. It was pretty dark in the office area, but some light was filtering into my office through the window, so I was able to finish making labels with the label-maker.

After awhile, I got up and walked out into the factory. There was a lot of activity toward the right where the QA Lab was. And then I saw it. A whole lot of smoke coming out of the QA Lab where the main breaker is. So it appeared that there was an electrical fire and that is what caused the power outage. Managers and maintenance staff were walking around with flashlights and radios, but I couldn't hear exactly what caused the electrical fire. So back to my office I went. A little later, the Warehouse Supervisor came up to the front. She said that they had power in the Warehouse and in the Injection Molding room, but those were the only areas that had power since they are not actually tied to the main breaker. (In other words, they still had a working heater!!)

After an hour and a half of working in my office without a computer and just a tiny little flashlight, I started to feel a little restless. Who knew that you couldn't get anything accomplished without a computer?! Christine finally gave up what she was doing and left to go to our sister plant in LaGrange. She is the HR Manager there as well, so at least she had an office with lights, a working computer, and heat! I finally gave up a few minutes later when Mitchell said it appeared as though the power would be out the rest of the day and people were free to leave.

It's been two hours since I left work. I called to see what the status is, and power is still out. Didn't actually get to talk to a person, though, to find out what caused the electrical fire and subsequent power outage. When the power is out, the automated system doesn't work on the telephone line. It just rings and rings. You can't actually dial in to someone's extension.

Maybe I'll be able to go back to work tomorrow, maybe not. It sure is nice to be home today and spend some extra time with Joshua and the kids. And thank goodness the electrical fire didn't spread beyond the main breaker. I have a lot to be thankful for!

Give a Dog a Bone

In our little family, we have two dogs--Dallas and Copper. Joshua has decided to make Copper an inside dog instead of an outside dog, so we've been bringing him in more often than we used to and letting him stay in the house during the night. We'd love to bring Dallas in, too, and we've tried it a few times, but she is just not compatible as an indoor dog. She spends half of her time chasing the cats, and the other half trying to lay all over someone to get petted. If she could just settle down a little, or at least not chase the cats...! Alas, we must keep her outside.

As for Copper, he is part German Shepherd, part Treer Walker Hound, and I bought him as an early Christmas present for Joshua after his dog Houston died. (Houston escaped the dog pen one time too many times and got hit by a car.) Since we first let Copper in a few days ago, he has done really well. The first day, he tried to mark his "territory" but after Joshua scolded him, he hasn't tried to do it since. He's very calm now, a big difference from when we got him a couple years ago. Our cats Ginger & Britnee tolerate Copper very well, too. Ginger has actually bonded with Copper and likes to rub against him like she might rub against our leg for attention.

The kids have also bonded with Copper. Raelee was very afraid of Copper the first day and wouldn't go near him. However, by the time she went to bed, Copper was her best friend and she was giving him hugs and kisses--what a difference! Daniel has informed us that Copper is "his" doggie. He decided to give Copper a dog treat but it took him a few tries to get the concept of having Copper "shake" first then give him the treat. Daniel kept giving him the treat first, so Copper wouldn't shake, which frustrated and upset Daniel. I finally got Daniel to hold the treat in his left hand close to his body and shake Copper's paw with his right hand. Copper was very willing to oblige, especially since he could see that dog treat in Daniel's other hand!

I grew up with only small dogs in the house, so it's taken me awhile to get used to allowing any of our dogs into the house, especially since our dogs weight about 70 pounds and our house is very tiny! We had to keep the dogs outside after the kids were born since they were so small and the dogs were so large. Unfortunately, it's not easy to give the dogs the attention and love that they need with them being outside all the time. So bringing Copper in was a good idea. We plan on buying him a doggie pillow to sleep on. I'm so glad that he has calmed down considerably since his puppy days. When we first got him, he loved to lay on blankets. Problem is, he chewed and peed on his blankets! He's now well beyond the chewing phase, thank goodness; otherwise, he wouldn't have made it through his first night sleeping in our bedroom, haha!

More Holiday Happenings

So as promised, here are more pictures from our 2008 Christmas holiday celebration!

Each year on Christmas Eve, we head to Joshua's parents' house for their Christmas celebration. One of the traditions we always do is take family pictures in front of the Christmas tree. Joshua's grandparents, Bob & Marge Boren, came down from Minnesota to visit, so of course all the grandchildren & great grandchildren had to take a picture. Raelee was the one child who didn't want to cooperate--of course, it would be my child and I couldn't help but laugh!

Daniel treated everyone to some music from his preschool Christmas program. Here he is singing "Welcome to our story, set a long time ago...".

It wouldn't be Christmas if Santa didn't make an appearance!! Santa brought presents for all the kids. Our 7-year-old niece Meagan was convinced that this was the true Santa because he brought her some Hannah Montana make-up. Pop-Pop (Joshua's dad) even had a present and had to sit on Santa's lap.

Daniel and Raelee both received plenty of presents. Daniel's attached to anything with wheels--trains, cars, airplanes, tractors, you name it. He is really fascinated with Speed Racer lately, so here he shows off some Speed Racer Hot Wheels cars. Raelee is a girlie girl. One of her presents was a My Little Pony. Knowing that we'll be spoiled with presents on Christmas Eve, we take only one present for each other to Joshua's parents house to open in addition to all the presents we'll get from his family. That way, we can save the rest of our presents to each other for Christmas Day.

Spreading out the special reindeer food outside...cookies & milk for Santa. We can't forget our Christmas Eve guests!

Raelee received a tea set from Santa Claus. She really got into the whole concept of Christmas presents. It was so tickling to see her enthusiasm.

On Christmas Day, we found presents from Santa under the tree! Daniel had been asking for a police car from Santa for a few months. Actually, he said he wanted "everything." I got him to narrow it down to a police car.

Raelee and Daniel got matching Christmas pajamas from their grandparents, as you can see in this picture. They both just had to help sort through all the pictures. Before we knew it, they were both underneath the Christmas tree trying to locate presents!

My Grandma Heinrich, who visited from Michigan, crocheted hats & scarves for the kids. Daniel put on his hat & scarf immediately after opening his present. It was too cute to pass up for a picture opportunity.

We made photo books for the great grandparents. Daniel and Raelee helped their Great Grandma Heinrich open her photo book and they also helped her look at each page. This was a present she truly treasured.

My Aunt Sandy (my mother's sister) made photo collages for Christmas this year. She sent us one of her collages. It was such a surprise to receive this gift, and I was so touched that I cried. Our collage included pictures from my grandparents' wedding, my parents' wedding, my mom as a baby, and many other pictures that I had never seen before. What a wonderful treasure for our family!

Later in the day, we went back to Joshua's parents' house to spend Christmas Day with them. In years' past, we tried to put the focus on the Savior by reading out of Luke II; however, we just couldn't drum up enough interest and participation. Whenever we tried, people would have their own conversations or not pay attention, and it just didn't work out. So last year, we began the tradition of having the grandkids re-enact the Nativity out of Luke II. This really captivates everyone's attention. Joshua's Aunt Bette and Uncle Bill, along with their daughter Celeste, drive up from Newport, NC for Christmas day. Celeste reads from Luke II of the Bible. Daniel dresses as Joseph, Meagan (our 7-year-old niece) as Mary, Raelee (her first year to be able to participate) as an angel, and Ashley (our 4-year-old niece) as a shepherd. I love seeing the kids dress up and re-enact the story of Christ's birth. They take their roles so seriously and do such a fantastic job.

Joshua's Uncle Bill is a whiz with the piano. In fact, pianos are his livelihood. He tunes pianos and plays at weddings, etc. Bill entertained us by playing several Christmas songs and hymns--I couldn't believe he was able to tickle the keys without the use of sheet music. It was so relaxing and so spiritual hearing the piano music and everyone singing along.

A couple days after Christmas, we took the kids and Grandma Heinrich to the coast for a couple activities. We first went to the NC State Aquarium at Pine Knoll Shores on Bogue Banks. This is a view of Bogue Sound, which is the water that runs between Bogue Banks and the North Carolina coast. You can't actually see Bogue Sound in this picture because it is blanketed in fog. The Aquarium has done a really good job of maintaining the natural marshes along this part of Bogue Banks. There are all types of animal life in the marsh--fiddler crabs, terrapin (a type of turtle), cranes, birds & fish.

There's a snake house at the Aquarium. This was one of Daniel's favorite places. He remembered the snake house from when we last visited the aquarium a year and a half ago, hard to believe since he was 3-years-old the last time we went!

The Aquarium had several statues inside the building, including this alligator. There are probably a hundred swamps in North Carolina, including the county we live in, which was very surprising for me to learn. Fortunately, we live on top of a ridge, so the swamps aren't close to our house. There are alligators in some of the swamps, but I've never seen any. Then again, I haven't spent much time in any swamps...I just drive by them along the road!

The Aquarium has a lot of hands- on activities, including a skate & stingray tank as well as a horseshoe crab & coneshell snail tank. The skates will swim along the side of the tank, and you can reach your hands in and "pet" their backs. I was the only one brave enough to pet the skates, and I was able to do it 3 times! The horseshoe crabs were really fascinating for Daniel. He didn't want to touch them, but he sure didn't want to leave their tank either.

We listened in on a class about sea stars, urchins, and sea cucumbers at the Aquarium. This worker demonstrated how a sea star will spit out its stomach in order to digest its prey. It was kind of grotesque but very fascinating at the same time.

One last picture at the Aquarium...Raelee didn't want anything to do with this hermit crab, but Daniel sure didn't mind getting his picture taken.

After the Aquarium, we drove to the far end of Bogue Banks to tour Fort Macon. The fort was built from 1826-1834 and was garrisoned several times over the next 100+ years. It was last used during World War II and then turned into a state park. The fort is actually pentagon-shaped and has a moat around it. Daniel had a blast going through the tunnels and chambers. He seemed determined to give me a heart attack by climbing up and down every set of stairs, no matter how high or how low the stairs went. He definitely has no fear of heights and didn't hesitate to go to the edge of any drop-off, like in this picture above.

This is a picture of Joshua's Aunt Cindy and Uncle Tom, more family who visited from Minnesota (both we and my in-laws had some full households for Christmas!). Cindy & Tom, along with Joshua's parents, his sister Angela, and our niece Ashley, met us at Fort Macon. This picture was taken at the top of the fort where one of the cannons used to sit, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean. The top of the fort, on top of the roof, was grass. The cannons sat up there, but only a few remain now.

A view of the Atlantic Ocean from the top of Fort Macon.

My Grandma Heinrich finally stands next to the Atlantic Ocean for the first time! It was a little too chilly to dip her toes in the ocean water, though.

We got to the beach at Fort Macon just as the sun was setting. What a beautiful site!! It was really neat because in one direction the sun was setting on the Atlanitc...in the opposite direction, the fog was rolling in. Very magical and a nice way to end the activities of the day.