Pics from the last post....

Here are the pics that go with my last post. If you haven't read it, just scroll down to enjoy the details that go with these pics!
Winchester Cheese Factory- Inside the large refrigerators trailers where the cheese was aging!
Our homeschool group at the entrance to Winchester Farms

Austin competing in the Bible Quiz-multiple choice questions!
Austin amongst his competitors in the Bible Quiz.
Austin and his teammate Kelly holding up their answers.
Austin proudly displaying his 1st place medal!

Vance enjoying his treat of sardines!

Cheese, toads, and the Bible....

The DeShong family experienced quite a plethora of events at the end of this glorious week! It all began Thursday when our homeschool group took a fascinating tour of the Winchester Cheese Factory. This is the only farm handcrafting cheese out of raw cow's milk the old fashioned way South of San Luis Obispo, making this a unique place indeed. We watched a video about the cheese making process, sampled several varities of Gouda (my favorite part), walked through the storage refrigeration units where the cheeses were aging (some were older than Luke and Vance), visited the cows and the milking rooms, and then bought some cheese to take home. The staff was extremely knowledgeable and kind to us, and we all had just a wonderful time.

After catching up on school, laundry, and housecleaning Friday, we enjoyed a wonderful dinner at our friends, the Nardones' beautiful home. We had some awesome sausage sandwiches with grilled peppers and onions, baked beans, and a beautiful salad. Gene built a fire in their pit outside, and we enjoyed an evening outside with coffee, dessert, and smore making for the kids.

Saturday morning, we were off to the Awana Bible Quiz at Camarillo Community Church, where Austin competed on a team against 5 other churches. This was such a great experience for Austin, and he did remarkably well. We were so proud of him, as he answered all but one question correct, helping his team to win 1st Place in his division! Go Austin!!! He was calm the whole time and we could tell he enjoyed himself thoroughly. We had a great time watching the competition alongside some of our other friends whose kids were also involved. It was one of those great and shining "parent moments" that you always used to see on TV. I am so thankful for our church's Awana program that has helped our boys memorize God's word faithfully each year. I know our boys will always remember their Wednesday night Awana classes, and I pray they will have firmly planted roots from the seeds God is planting in their hearts through this program.

We followed that up with a walk in the park as a family that same evening. It was such a beautiful and warm evening, and I truly enjoy the enormous park we have across the street from our house. It is like having my own huge and beautiful backyard. There are great walking paths that work wonderfully for walking, biking, scootering, or skateboarding. Dave and I walked the perimeter of the park while the three rode their bikes and scootered along the paths together. As Dave and I were walking up the hill in the back of the park, we noticed something move in front of our feet. It was a toad! We both knew we had to catch it to show the boys, especially our little froggy lover. So Dave put it in his pocket, which I am confident brought back some memories of sorts, and we found the boys to show them what we had found. They really wanted to bring it home, but it needed an environment which we would have to spend hundreds of dollars simulating at home. So, uh-uh. The boys really enjoyed holding him, chasing after his energetic hopping self, catching him, and so on. We decided to walk him up to where we found him, and as we were putting him back, we saw another one hopping around, so we put him with his froggy buddy. The funny thing is, not two minutes before, Austin told us that there were probably hundreds more where he came from, since frog mothers lay 2000-5000 eggs at once. We laughed at him when he said this, but he proved his intelligence as we literally saw toad after toad after toad as we continued down the path. It was like a scene out of a science fiction movie. It was like the invasion of the frog snatchers or something. The boys insisted on picking up each one we saw, and must have picked up a dozen or so! They had so much fun giggling and catching frogs, putting them down, finding others, etc. It was such a production! We then proceeded home to scrub their hands (twice) and send them to bed. It made me feel like the quintessential "boy Mom"! So here's to Gouda, the Bible, and frogs. And boys that love all three.

A little footnote: Did I mention the fact that Vance has literally been begging us to buy him a can of sardines? Who even knows why....but Dave picked up a can for him when we were doing our shopping the other night. When we got home, he gave them a try. What do you think? Yeah, or nay???? Let's just say he ate the entire container. Ewwwwww.........

Pics to come, as I totally messed up the whole thing!

Lotsa stuff coming up....

I haven't blogged in a while, and I miss it! There hasn't been much to blog about. Just the usual routine of life. School, church, life. It is, apparently, caterpillar season at the DeShong household, as the boys have found three in a matter of one day.

We are coming up on some exciting events around here. This coming weekend, Austin will be participating in the Awana Truth and Training Bible Quiz. He will compete alongside his teammates against other local area churches. He has been practicing the last few Sunday afternoons, and is gearing up for the big event!

The following weekend is the AWANA Grand Prix! Both Luke and Austin will make beautiful creations (with Dave's help) out of a block of wood and four wheels. It must weigh under 5 oz. I believe. They judge both on speed and creativity of design. Of course, we are going for speed. Of course. Austin is making his car into a stick of dynamite. Get it, TNT? (His club is called Truth and Training and is sometimes called T&T). Luke is making his into a skateboard. Quite fitting for him, I must say. Dave has already completed the cutting process. The boys are now in the sanding phase. They will then paint and embellish them, and finally weight them properly. It is such a blast for all of my boys, including Dave. Here is a pic of Luke's freshly cut block:

More to come as their creations start to take shape!

The Canadian Pig

The other night we had pizza for dinner. I had made one pizza with Canadian bacon and pineapple, Dave's favorite pizza toppings. As Austin was eating his piece, he asked "Is this pepperoni?"

"No", I replied. "It's Canadian bacon".

"From a Canadian pig", Dave said jokingly.

"Oh, like Oink, Eh???" Austin says.

We were ALL cracking up!

My "baby's" 7th Birthday

Today is Vance's 7th birthday! I have mixed emotions about Vance having birthdays. And somehow they keep happening every year. While I am so thankful to God for allowing him to grow and get older, since he is my baby, there is a little sadness mixed in. There is a small part of me that misses having a little baby boy toddling around. He is so far from that now! He is big, tall, a reader, skateboarder, kite flyer, and complete kick in the pants. He keeps our family in stitches with all the funny things he says and does. He lives life to the fullest.

We celebrated his birthday by having his favorite breakfast, orange rolls, yesterday morning. We also went to the park and played with frisbees and tennis ball shooters (my husband strikes again), along with a trip to the paintball store for a new beloved camouflage t-shirt. He outgrew his previously loved one, and really wanted a new one. That and a camo belt to match made one little boy very happy. We had dinner at China Palace, our favorite local Chinese restaurant, and then home for cake and ice cream! Today we took him to Dino's pizza for lunch, since Austin had Bible Quiz practice until 2pm at church and we needed to stay in the valley and wait for him. Yum! It's a good thing I exercised over the weekend (:



Stats on Vance at age 7:

Height: 50 1/2 inches
Weight: 70
Favorite Food: Bacon
Favorite Activity: Riding scooters
Favorite School Subject: Reading
Favorite Camping Spot: Mojave (dirt bike riding)!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MY LITTLEST BOY! WE LOVE YOU!

Luke turns 9!!!

Today is my middle son, Luke's 9th birthday! I can hardly believe it! I remember when my oldest turned 5 and I thought that was old! Happy birthday to my sweet boy. I am so thankful to God for another year with him.

Highlights of Luke's past year being 8:

Camping trips to Yosemite, Big Bear, Mojave, and more. Luke really improved his skateboard skills and rides it practically every day. Heelies! He took on to those real fast, and loves them. Awana verses come easy to him now. Math is a challenge for him, but he is pulling through. Had oral surgery performed to remove an extra adult tooth, while AWAKE! Didn't complain a bit. No dirt bike accidents. Yippee! Loves his brothers and his friends Jimmy, Hunter, and Cody. Learned about the Wonderful World of Water in Lighthouse Lessons. Luke continues to be very active and busy, but is very cautious and reserved at times. He has a very tender and teachable heart when corrected. Grew up 1 whole year.

Statistics on Luke:

Height: 53 in.
Weight: 73 lbs.
Hair: Brown and straight
Eyes: Hazel
Freckles: Yes, all over his nose and cheeks!
Favorite Movie this year: Spiderwick Chronicles
Favorite Activity: Skateboarding
Favorite Food: Orange Chicken

Today, Luke ate his requested homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast. We will celebrate dinner on our camping trip to Dove Springs this weekend. He asked for BBQ pork sandwiches, coleslaw, and baked apples. I also ordered him a skateboard cake (who would've thought?) from Sam's to enjoy on the trip as well. Happy Birthday Luke, I love you with all my heart and pray that your tender heart towards God will continue to grow in love for the Savior.

Week in Review

This has been a busy week! Phew! As many of you may know, Dave's Dad has been hospitalized several times recently due to his battle with emphysema, which just recently advanced to the next stage. He was experiencing difficulty breathing this morning, so he called and asked me to take him down to the emergency room at Olive View. I am waiting here at home to see if they will admit him, otherwise we will go pick him up later. Pray for him!

Tuesday, we took a tour of the Grace To You facilities, where the radio, tape, and DVD ministries for our pastor's radio broadcast program are run. We got to see the machines that make all the CD's and DVD's, the warehouse where all the books, Bibles, commentaries, and more are kept, the shipping facilities that handle all the phone and internet orders, and the studio where our dear pastor John MacArthur records. We even got to see him go into the studio and record. It was a great opportunity. John MacArthur is known worldwide because of his many books he has written, and his radio program broadcasts all over the world. But that day, there was one person who didn't know who he was at all. That was my dear son, Vance. John came in to speak to our homeschool group about how we was going into the studio and what he was going to record, etc. etc. Vance pipes up out of the blue, "Who are YOU????" As many of us were just in awe to see John up close and personal, and enjoying the blessing of being able to coverse with him, my boy just wanted to know what all the hype was about. After all, you can't really make out his face if you are sitting in the sanctuary of our church. It holds 3,000 people for goodness sake. He has probably never seen him up close. It was just so hilarious. That's my child....I didn't know whether to laugh, duck under a table , or like Peter in the Bible, say "I never knew him"!

Thursday we had a sweet couple from our Juniors ministry at church, the Callaways, over for dinner. We had a lot of fun! The boys kept them entertained with talent shows, magic tricks, etc. They will either want tons of kids.....or NONE! They are a very sweet couple, and we enjoyed talking with them.

Friday we went to Rich and Karen's house for Good Friday dinner (YUM!), and then we were off to the communion service at church. We spent an hour + in traffic on the way home (YUCK)!

Saturday we took a family bike ride down the wonderful bike paseos they have in this wonderful little town of ours. And can you believe it, no accidents! Vance wore his full face helmet, and I am convinced that is the reason he doesn't fall. When he wears it, he doesn't fall. When he wears his regular helmet, he does. Of course he won't ever fall with that thing on. Then he couldn't KNOCK HIS TEETH OUT. Precious boy. We had a lot of fun together, and the weather was gorgeous.

Sunday was Resurrection Sunday, which we celebrated at church. I threw a little party for my Sunday school class I teach, and we had fun eating and just hanging out. For dinner, Dave's Mom Lorrie and Step-dad Dan came up for dinner, and we enjoyed a lovely meal of pot roast, mashed potatoes, salad, rolls, and green stuff. Yes, that's right. Green stuff. If you're curious what that is, just ask me. Otherwise I'll let your minds wander and see what you can come up with.

Ice cream sandwiches

Last night I made the boys a nifty treat that they all LOVED! I wish my camera was working so I could have a picture, but I had to send it in for warrantied repair ):

I had made chocolate chip cookies the other night (thanks to my niece, Emma's delicious recipe). We also had some ice cream in the freezer, so what fun to make some yummy ice cream sandwiches. It was easy: Just scoop some ice cream onto the bottom cookie, smash it down with another cookie, and add some sprinkles around the ice cream edges and press them in a bit. VOILA! I only wish I could have eaten one, but I think I was happy to forego the 500+ calorie treat. You can even make them ahead and freeze them individually wrapped in plastic for a fun dessert all ready to serve your guests. With summer coming, I will definitely keep some of these on hand for a refreshing treat. Not exactly a healthy one, but hey, you gotta live a little sometimes!

Birthday Fun and No Surprises...

Last night, the boys went to Grandma and Papa's house for dinner and some fun, and I took Dave for a surprise evening. I had it all planned out. We would go to dinner, and then I had it all set to take him indoor Go-Kart racing. Let me preface by saying I cannot surprise my dear hubby with anything. He somehow has that "special" ability to be able to x-ray the contents of a present with his eyes, predict where we may be going, or know exactly what he is getting, regardless of whether he has seen the package or not or been given any clues whatsoever. This is not "special" to me in any way. It is a CURSE!!!! I have yet to pull off any sort of suprise for him to date, and I have tried in numerous ways to do it. It is so frustrating!!!!

Yesterday afternoon, I still thought I had him stumped. I was so proud of myself for finally doing it. After all, there was NO way he could know. I had already asked him if he knew where we were going, and right before we left I asked him again. He said to me, "Well we must be going Go-Karting." Just like that. HUH??? What in the world??? I tried to figure out what clues could have possibly led him to that conclusion.

"Did the kids tell you?", I asked.
"No."
"Did you see the bookmarked link on the computer?"
"No, I never look in the bookmark file."
"Well, how in the world did you figure it out? I have never mentioned it before, we have never had a discussion about trying out this place, I just thought you would enjoy doing it, that's why I picked it. I researched places on the computer and found this one."
"I don't know, I just guessed."

I don't know, I just guessed. You see what I'm talking about???? Needless to say, we had a great time! We went to Dino''s Pizza in Burbank for dinner, and then over to Sylmar to MB2 Raceway to have some fun. It's an indoor kart racing place (this isn't Mountasia-we're talking up to 50mph)! They have an arcade, pool table, air hockey table, and a snack/drink bar. The facility is brand new, huge, and a has a really nice crowd of people. The employees are all young people for the most part, and were very nice and helpful. They offer adult karts, and junior karts for kids 48" and over. You race around the track 14 laps, and they clock your times and put them up on the screen with your racer name. They provide helmets, neck braces, and even shoes, but you can bring your own helmets if you desire. Dave convinced me to race with him, and I'm glad he did. It was such a blast. This Mommy of 3 didn't crash once! And I saw several people smash into the guard rails and spin out. Those little karts are pretty fast, and it was so fun to slide them around the turns at full speed. I have to say, I would highly recommend this place to anyone. It was a fun thing to do for Dave's b-day, and right up his alley. We may even take each of the boys on their birthday. So despite the fact that he knew where we were going, it didn't matter. He loved it. That's all I can ask for!

Happy Birthday to My Hubby!!

Today is the day my husband catches up to my age, once again. I am exactly 2 months and 11 days his elder (well, one more day this year), and during this 2 month and 11 day period he makes that fact known to me! But today he is now as old as I am and the teasing stops!

Dear Dave:

Happy Birthday to the husband of my youth. I still like to think I am still in that "youth" category, but that's another story. It has been a blessing to celebrate 16 birthdays thus far with you, and I pray that God will grant us many more to come! You are my love, my life, and my best friend. It is such a privilege to be your wife, to serve you and take care of your home and our children. I love you with all of my heart and hope you have a wonderful birthday!

Tonight we are going out on a "date" for dinner and some fun...It's a surprise, so I can't say what it is yet in case Dave might, for some odd reason, be reading this from work.