Major Van Hook

Major Matt Van Hook at attention...isn't he cute!
Taking the Oath
Matt's Dad and I got to pin on his new rank
The boys got to put the new rank on his sholders
The new Major Family
Kris and Shawn Van Hook, Matt, me and the boys

Monday afternoon Matt was promoted to the rank of Major in the Air Force! We are so proud of him and all that God is doing through him. We are excited to see where the Lord will lead us next. 

Kaden is 5!!!

Kaden and his Kung Fu Panda birthday cake! It was supposed to be red on top and yellow on the sides but I gave up and just splattered it! :)
All Kaden has wanted this year is a birthday party at Chuck E. Cheese
Caleb was a bit overwhelmed by Chuck E. Cheese, he just had a blank expression on his face most of the time and watched the mechanical dancing/singing mouse!
Kaden on the other hand enjoyed every moment! He LOVED it and that made 3 hours of screaming children and mass chaos worth it!
We couldn't get Caleb close to the mouse so here's most of the party and Papa Van and Grandma Shawn who get awards for enduring Chuck E. Cheese with us!
We tried in vain for a group photo and then just as we were getting ready to leave they all spontaneously formed a group!

  Sunday we had Kaden's 5th birthday party! He's actually five today and loving every minute of it. We celebrated Sunday and then today he took cupcakes to school (yes, I forgot the camera) and tonight we're taking cookies to AWANA. I think he feels well celebrated. He had a blast and it's so fun to watch his face glow and eyes light up. Hard to believe we've had this gift for 5 years! Thank you Lord. 

  

Happy Thanksgiving

Just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving...yes, I am aware that Thanksgiving was yeterday, but every day is a day to give Thanks!  We had a really blessed day being able to share it with Oma and Chris. What a gift family is. On top of that the Turkey turned out great thanks to Oma and she saved us at the last minute with gravy which I had completly forgotten! Live and learn! We also started a great new family tradition of making family pirate movies...more on that later.

  Sadly, Oma left for home today and Chris and I head to the airport at 3:30 in the morning! That's the really sad part! Starbucks isn't even open that early! On the up side, Dad and Shawn are coming tomorrow afternoon! 

  Hope everyone has a good weekend and finds themselves wrapped in God's grace. 

He's coming...

Chris and I
Sorry I didn't mean to get the picture of Matt with his eyes closed but I can't figure out how to delete it. Anyways, they're trying to make sad faces cause one of our friends was leaving.
My brother Chris is coming tomorrow! I'm super excited and just thought I'd share the joy! 

Noticing a trend...

I've come to realize I'm becoming more and more like my parents...my dad especially today. Oma's been here not even 24 hrs and already we've taken her to Lover's Point, Carmel, and yep, you guessed it next on the list is the Aquarium and Fisherman's Warf. Not that it's bad to take everyone to these places, cause they are really great places to go to and so fun to visit...but when we lived out here EVERY time someone came to visit my dad had this list of places we took everyone too, and we knew the order and where we would park and what we would do each time we went there...and now I'm doing the same thing! :) I love how that works!  Good thing that my Dad is such a good example to follow!

  And I'd post pictures...but you've already seen these places just refer to earlier blogs! :)

Out on the Town

  As promised here is a picture of our night out on the 18th. We had such a great time. Matt found a great little restaurant in Carmel that served Italian, Mediterranean and Greek food. So yummy. And you know it's good when it's crowded and there's people waiting outside! After dinner, we headed down to Cannery Row and made a bee line to the Nestle Toll House Cafe! Just right for desert...and then we headed home with very full tummys and hearts! It was just a sweet time together. Oh, and Matt and I are trying hard to do the traditional anniversary gifts for each other each year. This year was rubber. Do you know how hard it was to think of something rubber that we actually wanted! So Matt ended up with a rubber ipod cover (yes, he was excited) and some itunes money, and Matt got me some rubber soled running sandels (yes, I was very excited)! 

  This weekend and next week is going to get very busy. Matt's mom (Oma) is coming on Saturday and staying until Friday. My brother Chris is coming Tuesday and staying until next Saturday...and then Matt's Dad and Shawn are coming Saturday afternoon and staying a couple days for Matt's pinning on ceremony (he's making major)  and then it's Kaden's 5th birthday! :) I'm excited about everyone coming and all the celebrations, and I've promised myself that I'm not even going to stress about the house not being clean! :) We'll be busy, but I'll be checking in and posting pictures when I can. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

PS. Matt and I are getting another date tomorrow! We have a friend who volunteered to watch the boys so we could knock out birthday and Christmas shopping! Two dates in one week! woohoo!

8 Years and Counting

Eight years ago today, right about now,  I was at my reception wondering when it would be over so Matt and I could finally get away and be alone! :) Today is our 8th wedding anniversary! Amazing now looking back to see how God has led us on the paths-mountains and valleys-we've walked. I can't help but look forward to the future and wonder what the next 8 will hold...but it doesn't matter since we know Who holds the future. For today I'm content to rest in this moment and Praise the Lord for a husband who loves me and seeks to provide and care for me as Christ does His church.  Thank you, Matt.

  We have a babysitter for the boys and we're going to have a date alone for the first time since...June I think! Very exciting. I'm not sure what to wear but that's a minor detail, just knowing that I won't have to ask Caleb to stop hitting people in the head that are sitting in the booth behind us and Kaden to please not use his fingers in his mashed potatoes will be Heaven! :) I'm sure we'll get a picture to post as we're trying to take one each anniversary so that by the time we reach 50 we'll have a whole album of pictures that will show how gracefully or not we've aged and changed! :) 

  Hope you all are having a Fabulous November 18th. Jesus loves you

Bumps in the dark

Well, I'm cautiously celebrating what I'm 99% sure are the baby's first moves and bumps! I'm starting to feel little nudges and pressure on one side like the baby's found a comfortable spot and is laying on one side. I'm so blessed and excited, but nervous as well. Please keep praying for a healthy pregnancy and baby! 

  Today is a BEAUTIFUL California day. It's in the 80's with a light breeze and the beach was calling my name. Caleb and I had an impromptu picnic at Lover's Point. While it would have been much more relaxing just to sit and gaze out over the water splashing up against the rocks, bask in the sun, and smell the ocean water...we spent the time trying to keep sand out of Caleb's food (hard to do when he kept brushing his hands clean right on top of it), Keep the food from falling into the sand, make sure the sun wasn't in his eyes, and keep him from throwing all of his food to the seagulls who are not afraid at all to grab the food out of your hand as you're about to put it into your mouth! I was afraid the gulls were going to attack us! :) However, it was still an enjoyable moment in time. Hope you all have a good weekend. Jesus loves you

Political Discussion

Last night at dinner, Matt was discussing Thanksgiving with the boys: why we celebrate it, what it stands for, who the pilgrims/Indians were, what they ate, etc. The discussion on what they ate (Turkey) led to a discussion on which bird Benjamin Franklin wanted to be the national bird (also the Turkey).  Can you tell I'm married to a Political Science major? So Matt asked the boys which bird is our national bird, and here are their answers... 

  Kaden: "It's an ostrich!"

  Caleb: "No! It's Big Bird!" 

  And thus ended our discussion on Thanksgiving and politics! :)  

 

First Day

Caleb checking out the starfish
Kaden and the jelly fish...they are amazing!
Little oysters
Big oysters
Kaden's sea life puppet show
Inside the wave at the aquarium
Starbucks on Canary Row
Noel in the candy store! 
On the beach in Monterey
Heather getting close to the Sea Lions
Noel at Lover's Point at sun set...I just love her smile!
All the kids at Lover's Point

  The girls first day in Monterey we spent on Canary Row, at the aquarium (which they loved), and meeting the Sea Lions. It was a great way to spend their first day here. Once Matt got home from work we headed down to Lover's Point to catch the sunset...which we missed but still it was fun to climb around on the rocks for a while. I would write more but I have a squirmy little boy on my lap waiting to play Elmo and laundry that needs to be folded! :) Guess the weekend fun is over! :)

Second Day

Noel at Marina state beach...and I think that's me in the background but I have no idea what I'm doing! :)
Walking down the dunes after a very long hike up! You can see the whole city of Marina and the Salinas valley in the distance from the top of the dunes!
Caleb chilling in the car
That bump is a Hump Back Whale!
Going out to sea
Kaden and Daddy on the boat...Kaden loved it!
I just love this picture of Matt...He's just so cute!
Eating at In and Out the best fast food restaurant in the West!

  Friday was a beautiful day on the bay. We hit Starbucks in the morning and headed for the beach. I made the girls hike it up the dunes but it was well worth it for the almost private beach (there was two surfers on the water and a fisherman far away) and the chance to just take in the beauty of the Pacific. God went above and beyond our expectations and blessed us with an amazing site of FOUR surfing dolphins. They were amazing and so beautiful to watch as they did flips in the water. So much cooler then Sea World when they are doing it on they're own out in the wild! After that exciting display we had to hike it back up the dunes and go pick up Kaden.

  We ate lunch on the warf (they have the BEST clam chowder in a sour dough bread bowl) and last minute decided to send Matt, Kaden and the girls on a whale watching boat tour. No pregnant women allowed, so Caleb and I went home for a nap. They got to see several whales from the boat...and I'm sure were much more impressive in person then in the pictures! :) 

  Caleb and I picked everyone up and headed for Salinas to pick up Caleb's pictures and walk the mall. We found some great deals at GAP...still a thrill after living in Del Rio. We took the girls to In and Out for dinner...it's a very California thing and good food. 

Last Day

Kaden kissing Noel on the coast of Big Sur

Kaden kissing Heather on the coast of Big  Sur...I can't wait to show him these pictures when he's 16!
Matt and Noel checking out the cliffs on the coast
The "Secret Garden" Door in Carmel
The Tiffany's in Carmel!
Heather and Noel on the white sand beach 
Ready for our girl's night out!
What the boys do when the girls are out!

 Saturday was our last day with the girls and God just worked out so many neat details for us. We were able to take a drive up the coast just before the fog came in and spend a great afternoon in Carmel and left just as it started to POUR rain! Very nice! The girls were breath taken with the view of the ocean and the cliffs, it' still takes my breath away. Carmel is a neat little town...very, very expensive...with quaint little shops that range from personal art galleries, handmade soaps, Coach, Tiffanys, to fudge! So much fun, and best of all when you're done shopping you walk down the hill to the beach! 

  Matt also let me take the girls out for a night on Canary Row. We ate at Bubba Gumps and finished up dinner by getting cookies at the Nestle Toll House cafe! :) It was a bitter sweet night as our time grew to a close but we were just so thankful for the time we had together. 

  Our hearts ache to see all our kiddos and please know that the invitation to come is there. We would love to get to have each of you to ourselves for a while and just love on you all. We love you and are keeping each of you close in our hearts and in our prayers. Jesus loves you.

They're coming!

  Matt is on his way back from the airport with two of our teens from our youth group in Texas! We are so excited to get to spend a few days with Heather and Noel, show off California, and just be together. It really was like leaving our kids behind when we moved so this will be a good reunion. To the rest of our kids that we are still missing...come soon! 

  Hope that everyone has a good weekend. 

  

P.S. Pictures to follow after this weekend 

Hiking

Ready to lead the hike!
Kaden was so excited to see so many trees...remember we're coming from Del Rio where there weren't many, so trees are very exciting.
More...trees

Ummm...trees
A beautiful view of Carmel Valley
Another beautiful view of the valley..no they aren't the same!
Kaden's picture of mommy on the trail...yes, I'm strating to look pregnant! :)
My fearless leader
The only  "wild life" we saw...a banana slug! 
View of the ocean from the side of Jack's Peak

  While Matt was studying and Caleb napping, Kaden and I decided we would go hike around Jack's Peak.  Poor kid's been wanting to go hiking for a long time and it was a sunny, cool day so off we went. It's a really neat "little" mountain with great trails and views. There was a mountain lion warning, but much to Kaden's dissapointment we didn't see any. :) We did however, see a banana slug which is exciting in it's own way...and we affectionatly call it a "poopy slug" since it looks more like that...and this has been making Kaden giggle all day! :) Not only was Kaden the trail blazer on our expedition but the photographer as well! He took most of the view pictures himself! 

  Hope everyone had a good weekend and please make sure to get out and vote this Tuesday! 

   Jesus loves you!