This may be my last post until after Nutcracker. This week should be rough. The girls have practice for 3-4 hours every day this week leading up to dress rehearsal on Thursday night and performances on Sat and Sunday. What a magical time it is though. Abby has a liturgical Ballet recital last Friday as well. It was one of the most beautiful things I have seen them do to date. I was able to sneek a few pics of Morgans regular ballet class this week as well. She is full of natural grace that amazes me every time I have a chance to watch her. I had to include a picture of Parker. He is such a trooper this time of year. He helps me shop, goes to dance practices, and helps me clean the house. The life of the youngest boy!

The purity of snow and children gives this season a magic all its own. The air was cold, but the kids couldn't think of anything except playing outside in the sparkling white. We received the "gift" of 7 inches of snow last night. The kids had a snow day...remember those? With all of the plans for Nutcracker and school productions and the holidays, it was fun to just play in the snow, drink hot chocolate, and feel the bite of winter on our noses. Pink cheeks on little girls...what more can I say!

I suppose I should get an entry in before the end of the month! November could very well be the craziest month EVER! In the last month we moved, hosted Thanksgiving, and had performances of Mother Goose! Along with Nutcracker rehearsals, church, and school of course! We are really entering a new phase of our lives as a family. With Parker almost out of toddlerhood, we leave the baby days behind. I'm amazed every time I have a conversation about fashion, or dance, or life in general with my 8 (almost 9 year old). It doesn't seem like so long ago she was our first little baby. How time flies! This holiday season will be filled with Nutcracker performances instead of pacifiers, school parties instead of carseats and diaper bags, and gameboys instead of rattles...and I wouldn't have it any other way. God bless the little (but getting bigger) ones in my life!

Happy Halloween everyone! Will worked last night so the kids and went solo. We went to our new neighborhood to trick or treat and I couldn't believe how many kids live over there! How neat. This pick is at our friends the Holmans house. What cute girls they have. We sold our house last week so the efforts of packing have bneen kicked into high gear. We move on the 18th of November and decided to hire movers for the first time. That should take some of the stress off. I hope you all had a great Halloween. The other picture is from Mark Hood who took several family pictures last weekend. He is SO talented!

Last Sunday our family at St. Davids had a wonderful picnic. We had Sunday School at the Topeka Zoo followed by a service at the park and a potluck picnic. We have been blessed with a church that has a ton of kids the same age as ours. These are a few girls from Abby and Morgan's Sunday School class. What a group!

Mark Hood graced us with this (and a few other) picture of Parker last week. He came by to take pictures of our house to go with the listing. I know there are more pictures of Parker this time of year, but there will more of the girls soon. Nutcracker and Mother Goose are coming up. I can't even express the joy I have staying home with my little man. What an amazing season of my life. I thank God every day for the gifts he has given me in the forms of Abby, Morgan, and Parker. Nothing shows the beauty of God like the face of a child.

Well, here it is! Will and I bought this house and signed the contract today. We are moving on November 13 (anyone interested in helping?). We are so excited about a new neighborhood with a lot of young families. Here are a few more pictures of the new home of the Wise 5. Keep us in your prayers for the sale of our current house!

Kitchen Hearth Room

Entry From Upstairs

Parker is 3 now! He is being a pirate in this picture if you couln't tell! We have been very busy lately. Abby and Morgan received their cast lists for Nutcracker last week. Abby will be a Polichenette (a little girl who emerges from the skirt of a giant mother) and Morgan will be a Cherub (angel who acompanies Clara to her dream world). Practices are every sat. this month and go to 2 days a week in November and every day after Thanksgiving. Morgan is also involved in Mother Goose with the Kansas Symphony. They will be performing at Washburn on November 1 and at Emporia State at the end of the month. She has rehearsals for that as well. They are dancing fools this time of year. Just in case we weren't busy enough, we are listing our house for sale this week. Its just time for us to find something with a little more space. We'll keep you all updated as we go!

This was the extent of Hurricane Rita in Dallas. We had alot of clouds and alot of wind. Otherwise she went by largely un noticed. You all will have to forgive the three blogs, I'm experimenting with a new way to post the pics. The kids came out fine...even though I have 25 loads of laundry to do! I may have missed them far more than they missed me!

What an amazing weekend. I had the opportuity to attend the Mothers of Preschoolers convention in Dallas. 5000 mothers in the same room is pretty amazing the picture above is of a group called Go Fish. They are a group out of Minneapolis that sing kids music "that doesn't drive the parents bonkers". They were awesome!

This was before the Glitzy Gals party on Friday night. Look at all of the tiaras and PINK!

Here's another blast from the past. The last time we all vacationed together was August of 2000. I love these pictures and I loved that trip. Ben and Kerry and I don't spend anywhere near as much time together as we would like. So much has changed since this trip. Ben and Janielle were engaged on this trip. Clark and Kerry would marry a year and half later. Parker would join our family as would David. Grandpa Jim would leave our family to be with our Creator. Grandma would sell the house where so many of our childhood memories took place. So many things have remained the same. We are a family that is close. We love each other and share a love for the church and Christ. Ben still plays his guitar at family events. Kerry still antaginizes my kids for fun (became more fun with Parker...better reaction). And I still love just seeing us together. I have been so blest with my family. Not everyone can count their siblings among their best friends. Thanks guys!

I decided this week my project would be scanning pictures of the kids as babies into .jpg files. It's taking a little longer than I thought. I have most of Abby's first year done. It just serves to remind me how grown up she is. She will be 9 in Jnauary. Where did the time go? It is amazing what changes we have gone through in the past nine years. Our family has expanded, my siblings have married and startd families of their own, and I have gotten to know these special people God has given to me as children. There is nothing like knowing someone since the very instant they entered the world. What amazing people they are (little people)! My goal is to get all three kids, our wedding, and pictures of Will and I as children in digital form. Ambitious goal...may take awhile. I like the idea of being able to access my family history from a CD. It somehow seems safer to me. Hope you all enjoy the blast from the past!

Talk about a busy week! The first part of the week was dedicated to the evacuees we thought were coming to Kansas. Come to find out, we were not getting any of our neighbors to the south. The compassion and dedication I saw in Topeka this week was stunning. It is amazing to see a community come together like that. The Red Cross is truly an amazing agency that I was honored to work with this week. Another upbeat part of the week was attending a meeting for the religious community of Topeka. More than 200 people were there...Baptists, Lutherans, Catholics, and the Jewish community. What an amazing site. Dad spoke at the meeting, and boy was I proud of him! He was terrific!
Will and I attended the 50th Anneversary Party for Liz and Junior Utech on Saturday night. What an amazing couple. 50 years is a real monument to their commitment and love. We also got the priviledge of spending time with Mike and Alejandro (I know I didn't spell that right) from Seattle! What a special and fun weekend we had. Spending time with friends and family is my favorite kind of weekend.

We have had a busy week already! My brother Ben (left, with Kerry and the girls in Lindsborg) and his family have now created their own blog as well! The family that blogs together...well, at least we all stay close! I will be volunteering tomorrow for the Red Cross here in Topeka. We will be receiving 1800 refugees at the Expocenter. We will have to give them a good welcome to Kansas! I hope all is well with the rest of you! God's Peace!

Will is off this week, so Parker has had two parents to dote on his every whim. He will be attached to daddy all week! I met with my MOPS hospitality committee this morning - what an amazing group of women! We planned the games and festivities for all of our meetings this fall. Talk about grown women getting pretty silly. What a true enjoyment. I turned down an offer too work part time for the Episcopal Diocese of Kansas today. I only get the chance to be Abby, Morgan, and Parker's mom once. I don't want to miss a minute! What a blessing they are!

My sister tagged me to list 5 idiosyncrasies. That was about a week ago. It took a lot more thought than I was ready for. I think we tend to push our idiosyncrasies under the rug and its about time to embrace them. Here goes nothing!

1. I bounce when I sing or talk in public. Whenever I sing at church, read the lessons, or have to talk at my MOPS group, I bounce and rock back and forth. I also rest my right foot on the back of my left ankle. I thought I was weird until I noticed my dad doing the same thing one Sunday. Of all the things to inherit!

2. I give Parker a bath just to smell his head. Whether he needs a bathor not...he usually does however. There is nothing like the smell of baby shampoo on a young child's head. Plus the other alternative is cold sweat, which I don't enjoy nearly as much.

3. I am ridiculously punctual. Ask anyone who has to go somewhere with me. If I am late I go into panic attacks. If I'm not there 10 minutes early, I'm late.

4. I won't start a cleaning project unless I know I can finish it. This doesn't go for basic housekeeping, but on big projects I won't touch it until I know I can finish it. Unfortunately, that means I have storage areas that go untouched for a VERY long time!

5. I buy crayons compulsively. This has come on more since I have had children. I buy crayons every time they go on sale. I buy 10 boxes every time they go on sale. 10 boxes at 99 cents are better than one box at $3.99, right? I have about 25 boxes of crayons right now...unopened. Anyone need a red crayon?

There it is. My dad is new at this blogging thing, but I suppose I should tag him to do it next. http://pastordavesjourney.blogspot.com

Today we officially start our fall schedule of events. Nutcracker auditions. Nutcracker auditions, rehearsals, and performances are all a huge part of our autumn identity. It doesn't quite feel like fall until we have all of our wheels running at the same time. My dad, Dave Fulton, has added his own blog to cyberspace now. http://pastordavesjourney.blogspot.com His site should be interesting and no doubt full of insight. As we enter into a new phase of the year, may we remember the central parts of our lives: our family, our friends, and Christ our Lord.

Well, the teeth are out and I can safely say everything went ok. Not much swelling, but I feel like I was just in a prize fight! I am so lucky to have good friends. A few ladies from my MOPS group brought my family dinner last night and lunch today. Laurie Jackson is bringing us dinner tonight. I am so lucky to have such amazing women in my life. Thank you girls!!!

This will be the last post for a few days to be sure. I am going to have 5 wisdom teeth removed tomorrow! I have a feeling I will be out of commission for a few days. Please keep me (and my family) in your prayers. Will is going to be taking over housekeeping for a few days - God help us all!

The storms sure were brewing yesterday. We got more than 4 inches of rain in Topeka last night. This picture was taken on our way back from Lawrence. The shelf cloud was only about 150 feet off the ground. I don't get freaked by much when it comes to Kansas weather, but driving under that did it. This picture was taken at about 5 in the afternoon by the way. A little dark. Our main roadways were flooded on the way home from getting the girls. Wanamaker, a major stretch in Topeka, was flooded and without the benefit of streetlights. The power, strength and majesty of Christ is evident in these storms. I love living in Kansas! Hope you all have a little more uneventful weather this weekend.

Today was registration day for MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers). The kids are reconnecting with their friends from school, so its time to reconnect for mom too. You can't underestimate the importance of friends when you become a mother. The people who won't laugh even if you come with baby spit on your shirt or cracker crumbs in your hair. The girls are enjoying school this week. They have been in bed and asleep by 8 every night (yeah)! I hope all of your weeks have been as fun and event filled as ours!

Today is the first day of school. The girls were up VERY early. I think they would have been showered and ready to go at 3am if possible. I love that they still get excited about the first day of school. As you can see, Parker needed his backpack to drop off the girls as well.

Abby Marie is in third grade. She can't wait to learn cursive handwriting, multiplication, and division. She hasn't seen some of her friends all summer. I imagine she'll spend most of the day trying to catch up!

Morgan Beth is in the first grade this year. I think she already has her teacher charmed. She only went through 4 outfits this morning before we left the house. She had to perfectly match a new pair of shoes!

We are definitely entering a new year. Things change every minute. I only hope I can save these precious memories of excitement forever. God keep my children safe in your loving arms on their first day of school.

Last day before school starts...what a bittersweet time. I think Parker is ready to have his mom back to himself and the girls are really chomping at the bit. I suppose I am the only one not ready to see them go. It seems like just yesterday Abby was crawling around the house. They are all getting so grown up. Look for pictures of the first day of school tomorrow and know that mom is crying a little behind the camera.

It's early and its raining...what a beautiful day! A few quick housekeeping things. The first day of school is Tuesday. The girls can't wait! My wisdom teeth are being removed on Aug. 23, any help with the kids would be appreciated (wink, wink). We also have enrollment for ballet and Nutcracker auditions the same week. It should be crazy, but I wouldn't have it any other way! The rain is really coming down, and new life will follow. God is great!

My sister Kerry has been visiting Kansas this week from her new home in Columbia, Missouri. I had the opportunity to eat lunch with both of my siblings. This is a task not often achieved! As we have gotten older and have children of our own it is nice to reflect on those who have shaped my life from the very beginning. I owe much of who I am to my immediate family. To my parents who have always loved and supported me, to my brother who annoyed the heck out of me, and to my sister who was always there. I am truly blessed by these amazing people. Sitting around the table, having lunch with my siblings, I realize how important and amazing these people really are. Thanks guys!

Well, here it goes. This is my first attempt at blogging. I suppose its time to enter the 21st century. The summer is coming to an end. Things are winding down. We spent the summer at dance camps, theatre camps, swimming lessons, and on vacation. I don't know if we were busier during the school year or on summer vacation! The kids and I had a lot of fun and were able to spend some quality time together. The picture is from our trip to Colorado in July.