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Making Merry In May
June 1, 2012
Welcome again to our neck of the woods! William had his 3rd birthday this last month, so in his honor you are hearing his favorite song music from the latest Muppet Movie. "Play the Muppet song, dad!" It really grows on you ... really grows on you like a wart.
Anyway, lots of pictures here! Did a bunch of really random stuff last month. June should be more low-key, and then in July my wife and I are going on a solo-trip together, leaving the boys with the Thomases! More details on that next month.
Thanks for stopping by! By the way, it's physically impossible to be sad or mad or angry while listening to this song, so if you're ever having a bad day or are in an argument with your spouse just say, "Wait a second, honey," and then just blair this music and start dancing!
And here we go ...
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May, 2012 Video Blog
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My dad was well enough a few weeks ago to get out for a little Brain Typing session involving about 20 kids. We had them engage in different sports activities and then Typed them accordingly. "I think my son's an introvert ... wait where's Johnny!? Johnny get over here and stop spinning on your head!"
My wife's lovely David Austin roses. But hark ... something deadly lurks beneath the beauty.
Make you think twice next time before picking a rose.
Hey, Flip!
He's been working on his 'smolder'.
Philip was sad he didn't get the foreground.
A green snake amongst the lavender. What a beauty.
Oh ho! Is that studly Mr. Matthew Thomas? You look like something straight out of the 40s!
You guys are dressed up again? Yes. Have a problem with that? Some people think all we do is dress up ... that's probably because that is all we do.
We're in St. Louis again with the Zeses out for a World War II commemoration thingamajig! Out in the field yonder they're about to have a battle reenactment. I have to say it really, really did bring it to life.
Ooh la la. You look cute, Hannah, despite your non-giving-interview self.
Rebekah turned heads.
Mr. Zes turned feet.
The dog tags and glasses really made it.
Philip actually fell asleep during the battle. We had his ears checked and he appears to be fine.
How come she can pull off any era? The only era I can pull off is the prehistoric.
The gun shots were so loud. Just the noise of battle, let alone the violence, could be enough to drive someone mad.
Did a fantastic job.
Can just imagine our great grand kids finding these photos ... "What!? I thought Papa Jor and Mama Meliss were only alive during World War 3."
I'd personally prefer Matthew driving.
It began to POUR. They were screaming for my help but I thought it was all way too cute to pass up a picture.
Course with William standing there I look like an idiot (not going anywhere).
One last photo.
Look closely, my friends. Look closely. This night marks 20 years of waiting for me ... waiting to see my childhood Idol whose hair and mustache no man (or woman) can equal. Yes, it was an EVENING WITH YANNI!!!
Cameras were not allowed, so we took this shot with my MP3 player before going in. The boys indulged my last-minute idea and we went dressed like our piano-playing hero! Course, he then had to show up wearing WHITE pants! Grief. Anyway, the Zeses kindly watched the boys that evening and along with Meliss we had an awesome night together filled with all of Yanni's classics.
We snap a photo with our phone. The Lord really blessed ... we were at the very top of the theater, and for all we knew the guy with long hair on stage was just posing as Yanni. So, Matthew had been talking with one of the stewardesses there, who later said we could go down wherever we wanted to get better seats. So we ended up sitting in the $100 something seats instead of the cheaper ones! There was no mistaking after that ... the man on stage with long hair was definitely THE Yanni.
So we were just gonna leave afterwards when we noticed all these buses behind the theater. We stood and waited to see if we could get a glimpse of the Grecian wonder. Although we never did (he had already left), several members of his band came over and we got to talk to them! Who the nhoj is this guy? ... you ask? Oh nobody, just ...
YOEL DEL SOL!!!
... one of the best percussionists in the whole world!!!
And who is this Joe Blow Melissa's hugging? Oh nobody,
just ...
VICTOR ESPINOLA!!! ... the best harpists since like King David!!!
And who's this peppy gal? Oh nobody, just ...
MARY SIMPSON!!!
... practically the best female violinist ever!
Well who's that skinny gal with an L on her shirt? Oh nobody, just ...
LAUREN JELENCOVICH!!! ... the high vocal range phenomena!!!
Ok she doesn't look like much. Who in the world is that? Oh nobody, just ...
SARAH O'BRIEN!!!! ... the insanely talented cellist who's been touring with Yanni ever since the Acropolis!!!
All to say, it was a great night, and although Yanni ditched us before we got there, we feel like he sensed our spirit of just being there ... or something ... yeah.
Ok moving on. We now have the Thomases AGAIN at our house for the weekend. Yeah I know. Before I was married I had no idea they would move from 23 hours to 5 hours away to crash our place every month.
A lovely meal together with the neighbors over.
Looks like one of those advertisements for Little Tikes where the kids are strategically placed to make the playground look twice as big.
Catching up on life.
The feeler uncle and nephew.
Philly is never short on smooches.
I just liked this picture of me so I put it. Once you hit 30 the pictures you actually like of yourself grow thin.
Eating together outside of Jeremy's house before Bible Study with friends in our area. When it comes to weather, you just can't beat the merry month of May.
Water gun fights!!!
This is one major reason I always wanted children. Excellent shields.
"Boy that's really unsportsmanlike."
Jer and Danni got a new pool! This is the height of entertainment for us ... just standing around staring at a big piece of plastic
I love having Pa around during the warmer months to help in the yard.
Just another random shot of our two cuties.
Baker Creek! Yep, I think this is the third time I'm showcasing it on the blog. Last year was cold and rainy. This year was HOT and sunny.
The Long family performs for the singing competition (winner got like $500!).
Some good ol' country fun.
And yes, again, my wife entered the costume competition. Two years ago she won, last year she got third, and this year she got second! You can pretty much count yourself out if other cute kids are competing ... even if their costumes are made out of cardboard.
Some shots for the cameraman afterward.
The kids, like every year, were exhausted.
Some Baker Creek guys wanted our photo together, so we obliged (Meliss and I made it in their magazine this year).
I'm not sure the mop hairstyle was popular during the early 20th century.
Pa, as always, looks vintage.
Baker Creek posted this picture on their Facebook.
We were pretty zonked that evening after a long day, so wanted to
loosen up a bit.
Melissa's grace doesn't really match our stupidity.
Man that's cute!
So loverly.
lol, I really like this picture.
Just a quick shot of our garden. We sure do know how to grow spinach!
Good job, hon. You may not be able to grow much, but you sure are one mean spinach-growing machine.
We've got the kids together again for a very special time!
This was actually my first time holding Jadrian, so we snapped a photo.
Silver Dollar City! While Jer and I and a few guys went golfing in Branson for Jer's birthday, the ladies went to SDC. Kids had a blast. I mean just look at Keoni!
It's kind of a mix between joy and sheer terror.
Mommy rides the mock-Dumbo ride with Willy. Unlike Disneyland, there's no lines!
Enjoying some singing.
Daniel, Jeff, Jer and I. Hadn't golfed in a long time, so it was really fun.
Went down to Branson Landing afterwards for some dinner.
The fam.
The other fam (minus one).
The river walk. Everything was all nice and peaceful, and then ...
WHAM! Flaming balls of hurling fire! William wasn't too thrilled about it.
Ok yeah so this is another party at our house. I'll only throw in a few pictures cause it's William's 3rd birthday and he deserves a little blog coverage.
Man he loves this bike. Now he terrorizes our house every day at high speeds.
Happy birthday! The Lord mightily bless you, William Locksley Niednagel!
Oh no ... not this again. Yes! This again! It's time for blueberry picking! I think I've been showcasing this since like 2007. Our favorite family tradition continues!
Now that's a rad blueberry!
Hi Kalea.
Hi Jeremy.
Hi hon (it's getting near the end of the blog and I'm running out of caption ideas).
Afterward we stopped by Hodgson Mill to enjoy the waterfall and river.
Our 4th anniversary is next month!
And we end with this adorable deer who was just casually lying down next to our house the other day. So I got the gun and shot him and we had a great meal that night.
I'm kidding.
As always, thanks for stopping by, and please leave all Facebook comments below instead of on FB! The Lord mightily bless you!
