Friday, November 26, 2010

Thanksgiving 2010

The girls gave Dixie to PawPaw and Nana a week before Thanksgiving. When we got there Crazy, I mean Dixie, greeted us with a big Hello.
Samantha, AKA little helper, always likes to help Nana in the kitchen.
The girls always want to be with cousin Hanna. Now they especially look forward to the holidays because Hanna doesn't slow down enough for us to see her at other times of the year. I knew it was a bad idea for Dewayne and Linda to give her that blasted car! 
 All is well in Jessica's world because Hanna is in the room.
 Uncle Dewayne stealing a kiss from Samantha.
Time for dessert! Happy Thanksgiving!

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Drew's Graduation from Boot Camp

Drew graduated from Boot Camp in Fort Sill, OK, on November 19th. Linda, Dewayne, Hanna, Mom, Mandy and Caden all went to see him graduate. I wasn't there so I don't have the story behind each picture but I hear the trip was eventful. The most interesting part of the trip was Dewayne's decision NOT to take the GPS. I hear that decision came back to bite him. They were all really proud to see Drew in his dress blues.
  He is really happy being in the Army and he actually liked Boot Camp. They call him 'Bootmaker' in stead of Shoemaker there because they told him, "we don't wear shoes in the Army."
Below is a picture of Mom and Drew.

Here's Drew with his very proud sister Hanna.
The proud dad, my brother, Dewayne...
and last but not least doting mom, Linda.
Below are pictures of the ceremony. I wish Jes and Sam could've seen their cousin graduate! We are so proud of him.


I'm sure there wasn't a soldier there with a happier,
 prouder family than the Shoemakers!

Monday, November 1, 2010

Trunk or Treat!

I'll explain the video at the end of this post!


It was time again for Bethel's Trunk or Treat. The girls decided to wear costumes this year! I know, unbelievable, BUT they insisted on picking their own costumes from clothes in their closet. That's okay, they wanted to be creative. Jessica was a rock star (how original!) and Samantha wore her 50's poodle skirt from last years 50's party at school (again original right :)
I can't tell what Galyne is?
 I'm sure somehow it involves being a rock star.
 I made Mom pose in front of my bulletin board. I came up with a space theme for trunk or treat this year. Poor mom, she loves all the scary Halloween stuff and we always trunk or treat at the church so it's just dress up cutsie, nothing scarey! Mom always made my costumes. I was a witch for years and then I changed to a vampire, complete with white face and blood (face paint) dripping from my mouth! One year Mom dressed as a vampire and chased me through the house. I was sure she was a vampire and nearly had a heart attack. Then she went to our unsuspecting, very superstitious neighbor, Mrs. Regina, and knocked on her door. When Mrs. Regina opened the door I think she REALLY did have a heart attack!
 Back in the day we could dress up scarey and no one thought we were devil worshipers, or at least no one ever called me that! Here's me, Dewayne and Chris Hand. I'm the adorable witch and that's 'Dewayne the little Devil' on his knees in the middle. How appropriate that his birthday is on Halloween!

Samantha and Galyne in front of my trunk. Yes, Galyne was a rock star. I'm sure she and Jessica planned that ahead of time.
 That's Hayden as a hippie and Emmaline, turned around getting candy, is a genie. They looked so cute.
I bet they let their mom's help with their costumes.
Jess and Sam would NEVER do anything CRAZY like that!
 Below is Samantha with Bryson. When Sam had visited all the other trunks she came back to ours so she could be in charge of the candy distribution. We gave out Reese's Pieces (get it), Milky Way bars (yep, I know you got that one), and well Tootsie Pop's because the kids just love them, they didn't go with the space them.  
 As you can see, Samantha took her job VERY seriously. She kept a close eye on the candy for me! That's MaKenna as a clown.
It was so much fun and we always end the night with a hay ride. This year they had a special treat, someone jumped out of the bushes and scared the hebejeebees out of everyone!
Here's my bulletin board with the scripture theme, My kingdom is not of this world from John 18:36.
And artwork my kids did during children's worship .
Below is a picture of my trunk. It was based on E.T. and I had a video playing of the movie on the computer in the middle. Everyone just kinda looked at me funny wondering what E.T. had to do with Jesus. I had the last laugh. A few days after Halloween I found a post on the parallel of E.T. to Jesus Christ. 
 Here's the excerpt below:

In his chapter “Christians in Our Culture” in The Doctrine of the Christian Life, Frame writes, Steven Spielberg’s character 
E. T. is, I think, a genuine Christ figure:
 recall the themes of preexistence, growth, teaching, miracle, healing, death, resurrection, and ascension. 
Spielberg denied this parallel, but in my view it is objectively there, even if Spielberg was unconscious of it. The reason is that the human mind has a need for a gospel like that of the New Testament. Those who don’t accept that gospel often instinctively give to their idolatrous inventions powers parallel to those of Christ. (Page 902, footnote 7, emphasis added)