Skating

When we go skating, there is always the obstacle of the dreaded electric fence. Eventually, someone steps forward and gingerly tests the wires. If all is clear, then we all climb through.

I can just feel that gnawing chill in the fingers that you have to tolerate to get skates on. * shivers* Ever try tying skates with mittened hands? - It doesn't work.


All we have is this little puddle in the meadow with weeds poking through, but it works.

Lookin' at home on the ice - which, if you know Faith, is unbelievable!

The March of the Penguins

Prehistoric Hockey (the kind the Neanderthals would have played :-)

If thy brother offends thee, knock him over the head.

The Battle of Wounded Knee

(Do you know your history? :-)

Heads, hats, and scarves.

(Rather obvious eh? Sorry, I'm just not feeling very inspired today.)

"Carmen, you are asking me to do the impossible!"

I told you that you could. :-)

Don't laugh! I was trying to get them to strike different poses for me, but I got almost zero cooperation.

Taken during the five second interval between the time Clayton squealed "Oww! They're squashing me!" and Faith wailed, "I'm freezing fast to the ice!"

Homeward Bound

Holding up the traffic, who happened to be the previous owner of our property.

Doesn't this remind you of that lesson that was drilled into all of us as children? Repeat after me: "Look both ways before you cross a road!"

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God Bless your efforts to stay warm!

~Carmen~

Hello!

I hope everyone had a wonderful New Years. We spent the day with family and had a great time! Before those pictures, though, are a few that expose the side of our life that most people don't see (or at least didn't before I started this blog). The crazy, everyday things that some of my siblings do, such as...

...Door-sitting

I'll give you a peek into her brain. She's thinking "I know I could do that too!"


She's hardheaded! - once she has an idea in her head no one can get it out.

Symmetry

Risk

Risk becomes Reality!

"That's what you get if you mess with me!"

It's obviously time for "certain people" to get to bed!

New Year's Day

My Aunt Gloria is back from Thailand with three fat albums of photos to explain. You must have been hoarse by the end of the day, Gloria.

Most people "ooh" and "aah" over a baby. However, Faith appears to be making faces at her newest cousin.

Rachel and Eric

"Faith, I want the Fishwrapper when you're done!"

Faith: "Well, Conrad already asked for it, Charity gets it when he's done...and..Oh! Candace told Charity to give it to her."

People were waiting in line to play the harp too!

The Pinata - An Annual Tradition

Aunt Trisha explains the "Buddy System," which is merely socialism in disguise. ;-) The basic principle is the same: Take from the rich (those with much candy) to give to the poor (those with little candy).

Even a little boy can do some damage!

The bigger boys do even more.

We have a helicopter crash on our hands.

Grandma and Grandpa's garage never seems as small as it does when someone is wildly swinging that bat!

Stampede

Someone who appears to have benefited from socialism.

But there is always someone else who seems to have gotten a better deal.

Moral: Socialism breeds discontent; it doesn't work! (BTW, I'm not condemning your good idea, Trisha. Sharing is certainly a Biblical principle. :-)

Equipped for a campout.

It was Gloria's idea to take the photo. Can you tell?!

In honour preferring another photographer before myself.

Finally! All looking and all smiling: Dad with all his brothers and sisters.

Why is he making such a weird face? He is impersonating the Tortoise in his famous rendition of "The Tortoise and the Hare," of course!

(If you never heard Conrad tell it, make sure you ask him to next time you see him. I promise that you will love it!)

Using different equipment (with differing qualities, I might add :-) but still doing the same thing: videoing Conrad's performance.

Captive audience

Potato Cannons and Rockets

We have rockets every year. A potato cannon is a novelty.


Those potatoes go incredibly far!

Still, Uncle Dale's rockets are more fascinating.

The story behind the barefeet is just too long...

Blast off!

Color!

Candace's Fire/Hotdog Art

A game of Rook abandoned in favor of modern technology's attractions?! They don't know what's good in life!

Gloria really likes the photo-sharing idea. I gave her permission to download any pictures that she wanted of the day. The next thing I knew, she had posted quite a few on Facebook, which was something I had not given her permission to do! (Sorry, Gloria! I have to give you a hard time about that. :-)

I know, I know - it is a lot like the last photo. But look closer! That is this blog she's looking at!

The fire's burning low,

It's time for me to go.

My mind is tired too

Without a single clue,

If the products of my lens

Made any bit of sense

Combined with all my captions

To document our actions.

You see there's so much stress

Not to post in excess,

Yet not to post too little.

So give me an acquittal

If it sounded really fake.

I plead, "A headache!" ;-)

God Bless
~Carmen~