Happy Birthday Abby! I can't believe I have a child who is 9 years old! How fast the time sprints by! It seems like yesterday we were brining that tiny pink thing home in the snow. This weekend was the birthday party for my baby who has turned into an amazing little girl (I'm being too often reminded that she will not be a little girl much longer). We journeyed to Kansas City to visit Libby Lu's. Abby, her sister, and two of her friends had a little girl's dream makeover. Hair, makeup, wild clothes, nails - the works! They really had a wonderful time. I have a feeling the success of these parties is highly dependent on the person working at the time. We were blessed with a gal who had as much fun as the girls and really put a lot of effort into the whole process. Parker was not as thrilled by the whole process. As if this wasn't enough, we then ventured to the

A day in the life...I'm telling you what! Sorry no pics of Abby, she has been obsessed with her Nintendog (virtual puppy) this weekend and has not been seen much. She's not allowed to play with it longer than about 15 minutes a day during the week. The younger two kept me on my toes. Morgan lost her second tooth at school on Friday and got a visit from the tooth fairy. Her and Parker were playing soooooooo hard yesterday afternoon they just passed out together (see pic). The top picture is Parkers idea of helping me with the dishes. I'm not sure if its possible to get more water on my floor. Getting ready for the upcoming week. Sunday afternnon is our regrouping time. Its one of the few event free times we have together. Everyone can hang loose, finish homework, play whatever they want, and just reconnect. I have a feeling these times ar4e going to become more and more precious when the kids really start getting busy with sports, ballet, and so forth. They are growing up so fast (sniff, sniff).

I know you all are about sick of the slide pics, but I can't get enough of them! This, of course, is Parker in Grandmas washer and me at about the same age in the dryer. I love these pictures. Children in major appliances. Whose idea was that anyway? Ben's idea for Parker by the way. I simply felt the need to take a picture. We have had a great week. We spent Monday at home having a fun and then went to KCMO Tuesday and Wednesday for a mini vacation. We stayed at Great Wolf Lodge and swam for two days straight. The water slides were great. We also went to the kids favorite resturant, Cheeseburger in Paradise. I am grateful everyday to have kids I like so much. Not just love. They have turned into such cool little people. There is no one else in the world I would rather spend time with.

I can't tell you how many times over the years my parent pulled out the old slide projector and screen. When we were kids or even teens it was kinda fun to look back at our baby pictures and the adventures we had in Alaska and Washington and Western Kansas and even the farm in Iowa. Over Christmas this year we pulled out the slides again for the first time in years. So much had changed since the last time we watched these slides. We were all married now and Ben and I have kids. Suddenly, we were the age of our parents in these pictures. Nostalgia and a unique form of gratefulness washed over me. My parents raised us without help from in-laws and parents. They raised far from everything they knew. We grew up knowing how to depend on each other...and never once doubted how much we were loved. These were some of my favorite pictures from those slies (thanks for digitalizing them Dad). The pic of me and Dad "clowning" around was taken in Goodland, Kansas in the early 80s. The pic of me and Ben would have been in Washington or Alaska(?). I love the pictures of me and my parents when I was a baby. They seemed so young and ready for whatever the world could throw at them. I don't remember not having siblings. These pictures were of a time when my folks were embarking on all things new. Their family, dad's ministry, and great new challenges. Thanks for doing sucha good job Mom and Dad. Its been a great ride!

Welcome to 2006! Who knows the adventures that await us! I hub-bub of Christmas and Nutcracker is now over. Maybe some amount of normalcy (whatever that is) will return to the Wise house. The girls enjoyed the experience of Nutcracker as always. We were blessed to spend Christmas with family this year. What an amazing time it was. Seeing ALL of our family this year was amazing. A time we will not long forget. We thank God everyday for the blessings he bestows. Our friends and our family.