Hello from the Shooks in Wichita:

We too are wondering how it can be the end of September already.  Not too much new to share but we thought of a few things:)

Samuel's band has played 3 times now.  Tim and I went to the first one, could not go to the second one and went to the wrong place for the third one:(  Since they are usually the opening act it is a short concert - about 20 minutes so if you are in the wrong place - you miss it!
Electronic organs - Yesterday Bernice and I went to Salina to Redeemer Lutheran, to the Catholic cathedral and to Solomsburg(?) a country church that looked like the old Holyrood church on the inside.  We were checking out pipe organs that have added electronic sounds.  Neither one of us was excited about doing it to ours at Ascension but I think we are sold now.  They do not take away the pipes but add sounds that the pipes do not have like we have no oboe.  The gentleman showing them to us was Dave Rankin which some of you know from Lawrence.
Pretty mums are blooming Tim purchased them with his birthday and Christmas Johhnson's gift cards.  Thank you all:)
Tim was gone to Cincinatti for MTNA meetings and he will travel again 2 times in November.
Every year we all get sniffles in the fall.  They come and go depending on what is going to seed.
Me went to an American Guild of Organists meeting a couple of weeks ago.  They receive music from people who have  quit playing and then sell it to help fund scholarships.  So I found some new music for $.50 and $1.00 per piece!
Beans are done for this year.  Also the cucumbers and peppers.  There are a few green tomatoes left.
Ember and the cats are doing fine.
Remember we will have a reception for Andrew and Katie the Friday after Thanksgiving.
Enjoy your last day of September tomorrow.

Vicki, Tim, and Samuel

Rivers Ripple

It's that time again!  Time for an update from the Rivers family...

Time with Grandma!

We have had a busy summer (I am amazed at how quickly a summer can pass these days!) and are now enjoying settling into a fall/winter routine.
Our house has been on the market since beginning of July with lots of lookers, but no takers yet.  Sarah now has a new cleaning schedule/routine (neatly posted in her kitchen cabinet for those curious), which will transfer to other homes in the future.  We've managed to keep the house "show ready" most days.
No summer vacation--we visited Mary and Kurtis in March instead.  We are hoping to take a weekday/weekend trip down to the OK area to return some lights to one of Dan's friends.
Sarah worked extra at ViaChristi this summer, found time to sit down some days, and explored several new recipes related to dairy-soy-egg free.  The favorites are: Simple Beef Casserole and some delicious Vegan Oatmeal Raisin Cookies.  Two and Three year old Sunday School is back in the swing of things--today was God Made Water.  Yes, we played with water and also made some water paintings (blue paint in baggies--a BIG hit!).  Tomorrow evening starts a new adventure...a Mom's Meet Up group at church (just mom's, no kids).

Listening to Dan

Dan has continued to run over his lunch hour and any evening he can escape for a bit.  Work has gone very well for Dan the past few months with several recognitions.  He down-graded his phone for a bit this summer and got his new iphone 5S Friday morning.  He continues to illustrate Brisco's comic.

Digging in the dirt-a current fav.

Olivia has matured again over the past few weeks and grown a lot this summer.  She is a busy, active toddler who loves to have you play with her.  Recently we've flown on an airplane, gone to the pool, played a version of house, played with her rabbit house, and built oodles of towers and trains all in our house.  She enjoys singing, messy painting, and watching Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood.

Kinley playing in the dog dish.

Kinley is now 9 months old.  She is busy exploring the world by crawling.  She is content to play on her own, but enjoys playing with you and having you look at texture books with her.  We've got her gaining weight (finally)--after multiple visits to the gastroenterologist, expensive formula, and a reflux med. She's enjoying solid foods twice a day.

Brisco is battling seasonal allergies, sneaking snacks when he can, and trying to be non- chalant about the whole house thing(it's stressing him out). 

Apologies for a tardy post...things came up that had to be completed this past week. I had started this Sunday! 

Check in with us when you can: theriverscurrent.blogspot.com

The butter sculpture at the fair--a fav.  She's probably dreaming of eating it ALL!

Where did the summer go?

Hello from Chicago!

Sorry once again for missing our last posting period!  I could try to claim lack of time but that wouldn't be entirely accurate.  That's not to say our summers haven't been extremely busy!

As I'm sure everyone wants to know, wedding planning is going well.  We just met with our pastor to go over the ceremony and the day is becoming much clearer!  But we'll leave the details for later.  If you can't make it to the wedding I think Mom has passed around by now that we'll be having a reception for Katie and I on the Friday following Thanksgiving, so mark that on your calendars!

Anyway, on to the quick recap of our summers!

I finished classes in the first week of May and headed back to Kansas in time for Samuel's graduation and Mother's Day.  I was shocked to learn this was my first time in Kansas for a year!  As much as I thought moving back to the states would bring an end to the long gaps, it hasn't so far, unfortunately.

Around this time Katie started her summer hours which gives her every other Friday off in exchange for a slightly extended work day the other 9-days of the two-week period.  Meanwhile, I started working an internship for the Active Transportation Alliance, which is a non-profit advocacy organization in Chicago that works for improvements to pedestrian, bicycle, and transit infrastructure and policy.  They have a planning department that consults on projects that further their mission and I was brought on to help with a particular project over the summer that helped site bike racks and safety signs in smaller rural Illinois communities.  I also took an evening class, History of Planning, to get it out of the way before my second year.

So with that running as our day-to-day background, here was the rest of the summer in condensed form

At the end of May, we had some friends from Lincoln visit for Memorial Day weekend

In June, we each traveled for work: Me to downstate Illinois and Katie to Oklahoma.  We also saw Book of Mormon and house-sat for Katie's family friends for 3 weeks while they traveled to India.

In July, Hannah and James visited for the 4th of July and we did an express tour of Chicago.  (CityPass is a wonderful thing if you have 3 days or so to see everything).  Their visit also coincided with a bridal shower for Katie and all 4 bridesmaids were able to attend despite only 1 of them living in Chicago!  We hosted more friends and also made our first trip to Minnesota where it was about 55 and rainy the entire time!

August brought another trip to Minnesota, this one with perfect weather!  Upon returning, Katie had another bridal shower at work.  Hosted yet another friend!  Katie likes to marvel at the difference in number of visits between Lincoln and Chicago, it's like there's more to do in one!  Near the end of the month, the number of wedding related events ticked up significantly.  Meeting with the photographer a second time, doing tastings for reception dinner and cake, dress fittings etc.

And now we're here in September.  School has started again for me.  Katie just had her final summer hours Friday last week.  We're a month from the wedding and as busy as I thought summer was, I'm finding it never really lets up!  I'll leave you with some pictures, from the highlights of summer.

Katie and her bridesmaids

Fourth of July

Downtown Chicago from our Architecture Tour boat

Our neighborhood at sunset from the beach

The spoils of  Minnesota blueberry-picking

End of Summer

Dave gets to start off this post first. 

As usual, he has been busy with work. He worked an early shift this last week and that meant he was off by 4pm everyday. That made all of us happy.

Very happy. We were able to spend Friday at the pool since he worked 6-3 that day. We had two worn out girls!

It all started last weekend when we took our turns being sick and that meant he had off Monday. He took off the Monday the week before to spend time as a family and has Labor Day off. Three (possibly four) 4-day weeks in a row? Not bad! Basketball is still going on, so when he doesn’t have to be at church, he’s at basketball on Wednesdays. He has finished figuring out, ordering and setting up a new video system for the church. Plus building 2-3 (can’t remember how many) computers for the church in addition to all of that. So that is over! However, since our usual sound guy has pancreatic cancer,

Dave has been taking the bulk of that job. I’ve missed sitting with him in church for the last 3 months, but I’m proud of him for serving in that way with a joyful heart.

(Pretty sure he does not know this picture exists, for obvious reasons.)

Photo by Adelynn.

We went on a walk and I pushed Ava in the stroller and Dave pulled the wagon… just for fun  

 

Cake Batter Bars are on my list to make soon! I have leftover funfetti cake mix to use up from the cheesecakes I made for Ava’s dedication.

Accessory Swap is what I had for Women’s Ministry last week. We had so much fun making it girly and blinged up. We all brought old purses, jewelry, scarves, etc and left with new stuff!

Small group is starting up again very soon and we are looking forward to that – Adelynn especially :)

Starbucks will soon have their Pumpkin Spice back and I am dying for a Pumpkin Spice Frappuccino with extra pumpkin!

I’m keeping busy with my girls as always. I love the Summer but I am glad for the structure that Fall brings. We will have regular play groups again, library story times, dance, etc.

(I’m kind of glad my name doesn’t have an E on the end! I’m out of stuff to say. Are you now noticing my format?)

Adelynn is really enjoying the kittens right now. She asks about them multiple times each day and wants to go downstairs to pet them first thing in the morning.

Dance starts tomorrow! This year Adelynn starts with Tap and moves to Ballet. It’s hard to believe she is really big enough to tap dance!! Her recital will be May 16-17, I am not sure which day she will dance on yet. So add that date to your calendar if you think of it!

wE are at a new place called Poetry In Motion. I met the owner this summer (She does Parents As Teachers) and she hosted a class for us. I was so impressed with her and the way she handled the kids. Since we weren’t real enthused with the owner of The Pointe or their organization/communication skills, the move was a good choice.

Library Story Times will start in the next couple weeks. It’s hard to believe that Adelynn is old enough to sit through the story times by herself!

Yes, Adelynn helped me when I decorated for Fall last week. I’m trying to raise her right! She did an excellent job placing the leaves on the piano.

Not only that, but she admired the wreaths I put up. That made me feel good. She also traded out the chevron pillows on each couch because she “likes them better that way”.

Naps are becoming a thing of the past. So a few times each week we have a dance party in the living room in the afternoons after quiet time. Ava sometimes bounces in her bouncer or lets me hold her to dance to the 80s music! (Adelynn’s choice)

They love to sit in the chair or lay in the crib together to read (and chew).

Little diva even took her purse to the zoo.

We braved Dillons Marketplace on opening morning. We got so many comments while she pushed the cart that is just her size! She only ran over one of my toes and only hit me in the leg once. Not bad for her first time driving a cart!
Every day she wants me to put her hair in “one hair braid”. On this day she also wanted a picture.

Ava is such a chill baby. She is enjoying tummy time more and usually rolls right over to her stomach when she is laid down on the floor. She starts to sleep on her back, but she’s usually on her tummy before too long.

Very often she is relaxed just hanging out in her car seat. No one ever wants to leave her in there, but she is usually content there. When we went to Dillons, she just watched everything from her seat. Now, I wish I had worn her, but that’s just because her seat took up so much room in the cart. She will be sitting up before we know it though!

Adelynn is really her favorite source of entertainment. I’m trying to savor the moments when Ava and Adelynn give each other the giggles and it’s contagious. The car ride to church on Sunday was just constant giggling. It made Dave and me laugh too.

She fell asleep waiting on Mom to get ready to go.

Squishy face!

 

(Getting 3 kittens to hold still it nearly impossible! Let alone to all look at you all at the same time!) The one on the left with the spot on his nose is the sweetest little guy, if I could keep one, it would be him. The one on the top is the more rambunctious little boy. He’s ornery in the best way. The one on the bottom is our chubby little girl who is spoken for by my friend’s Mom. She has the prettiest face and we are pretty sure she is going to have long fur.

Our big cats are up to the same old things! (I don’t have one of Betty, she’s usually with her kittens in the basement.)

Bella on Dave’s dresser. (This is 5 feet tall. This picture is basically taken at eye level.) The good news is that I rarely have to dust it! Have you seen her tail?! It’s really just a giant duster.

Bella giving baths. (the torture was mutual, Ava pulled out a clump of fur, ouch!)

There was something really interesting about this roll of burlap… it was all rolled up when I left it on the floor.

You can always catch up with us on my blog. If you don’t want to check in often to see if there’s anything new, you can subscribe. All you have to do is go here and go part way down the left sidebar and enter your email. Then you will get the posts in your email once I publish them. There’s sometimes recipes or thoughts on parenting or life, but let’s be honest… it’s mostly just pictures of our girls and my favorites of Adelynn’s quotes!