Tina...and our Lovefest!

Talk about a sweetie…my girlfriend Tina’s husband Carlyle wanted to treat his wife well for her birthday so he put a plan in action and made a call to me to be one of his ‘secret agents’. Carlyle arranged for Tina to be surprised with a weekend girls’ slumber party away locally, which included A Grand New Day/Woman of Faith conference on Friday and Saturday. What a guy! Much to Tina’s amazement, he called many of her close friends and even flew one out from Oregon, just so we could all have a “Tina lovefest.” And boy howdy, Tina is definitely one who you could dote on with love cause, well…she’s just that loveable (seriously). We had a wonderful time together, growing in the Lord during the conference as well as honoring our friend and sister in Christ, Tina Naylor.

Look Who's Coming to Breakfast 2009

The calendar has been marked in pen for 2/17/09, the debut of High School Musical 3 on dvd. All three of our kids LOVE this movie. So without them knowing, I planned a fun filled morning for today, inviting some of their friends over for breakfast in pjs with the intent of watching the movie during a carpet picnic all before school begins! Baylee, Nathan, and Owen were happily shocked as they walked down the stairs to see friends trickle in the home, one by one. It was priceless.
Someone not on the “guest list” arrived, thanks to the Talley family…Troy (a.k.a. Zac Efron, the main character of this toe tapping flick). He eventually became a dance partner for the girls. What a fun, fun, fun morning this was!
Thank you Andrew, Amanda, Kaydon, Sabrina, Colton, and Maggie for making this special surprise such a memorable one for our Kempiak Party of Five! You are great friends to us.


"The boys are back" (breakdancing)
"Can I have this dance?" (waltz)

A Thanksgiving Surprise!

Thanksgiving is my “dad’s holiday". It has been for 18 years or more that we’ve been with him and Pat. And for ten of those years, it’s been spent in Greer (even before my dad and Pat’s cabin, Mountain Spirit, was built), a truly beautiful place to be, especially for the holiday.

Usually we spend it with Pat’s kids too, but this year neither set could come. I was going to miss their absence.

My dad and Pat had other plans, sneaky ones! Without telling us, they talked to one of our dearest friends, the Keller family, and invited them to join our traditional long weekend and feast. As our van pulled into the lot, another van was before us, unveiling the surprise, and on the front deck, my dad, Pat, Tim, Lisa, Daniel, Benji, Ethan, and little Noah were all waving as the Kellers pulled in just 20 minutes prior. You should have seen my family’s faces in the van. I wish I had it in photo form! I don’t know how they pulled it off!
(The cabin was so warm and welcoming. This is the view from walking in.)

(Where we hang out, the family room)
(This is Barney the Bear, our mascot you can say...carved from a tree by the deck. He dresses for all occasions!)

We had a wonderful time altogether. We went Geo Caching, hiking, played frisbee golf, lots of games,

great conversation, cookouts by the fire, playing in the snow,




animal watching, go carting,






baking,
tree decorating,

and much more. The best part was… we were together and ever so thankful for kindred hearts.

This was another, never forgetting Thanksgiving celebration and I thank Dad and Pat from the bottom of my heart for their hospitality and love. I also thank the Keller's for leaving behind their family in the valley to warm our hearts. We were truly honored! It wouldn’t have been the same without you!





(I had to add this in here. It's "the guys" in the kitchen, doing dishes!)

Ahoy There Me Hearty!

What a fun-packed weekend! This late afternoon, Jon had the honor of playing Long Jon Silver Kempiak, the pirate, at Daniel and Benjamin Keller’s birthday party. The kids loved searching for treasures, sword fighting with Captain Keller (Tim), deck swabbing, the peg leg races, and much more! The Kellers always know how to throw a fantastically fun party!

What a Great Day- Fall Break Day 8

Our fun began early today at the park to meet up with a kindergarten friend of Baylee’s, Nik and his sweet mom. What a treat we had when they shared their Dunkin’ Donuts. Yum!

The kids played baseball mostly and then had fun pretending to be on different Disneyland rides, coming down the slide altogether with legs interlocked.




Our time went too fast.



When we arrived home, our cousins were waiting for us for playdate #2. Nathan was ecstatic to see Kaydon and I was to see Laura. Again, more baseball was played, then inside to cool off, superhero style.

They shared their pumpkin chocolate chip cookies with us, a super delicious fall treat…a must have!

What a great day this was!

We’re off to fun adventures tomorrow too. Yippee!

Terrific Talley Time- Fall Break Day 7

The playdates are not slowing down a bit this week either and I wouldn’t want it any other way. God has blessed us with so many precious friends. We actually don’t have enough days (nor hours) to see everyone we want to but are sure trying.

Today we hosted the Talley’s over; April, Sabrina, and Colton. Between dress up, dancing, playing superheroes, computer time, lunch, playing with the train table and more, we also crafted stage one of two…tie dye shirts for fall.

I saw the idea in October’s issue of Family Fun.

Step 1: using rubber bands, tie up “circles” all around the t-shirts.


Step 2: After wetting them down, put them in the “Rit” dye mixture, bringing it to a simmer and stirring often!

Step 3: Let solution sit for an hour or so.



Step 4: Take rubber bands off and wash in a long cycle in your “soon to be stained” washing machine. (The color cleans up well though).

Step 5: Time to decorate (photos another day), transforming the white circles on the shirts into groovy jack-o’-lanterns. We're gonna do this on a different day...a great excuse to get together again.

An Overdue Playdate- Fall Break Day 6

We began the week with a playdate at the park with our friends the Hanna's. It was nice catching up to hear all about what they are up to. It was an "overdue playdate" we all would say.

Flashback Friday-My First

I’ve seen it done before on other blogs and have been intrigued so I thought I’d give it a try. No plans for doing this weekly, I don’t think, but just another opportunity to keep a written journal of my life as a parent, wife, mom, and friend and the journey those 'titles' take me. So today, I begin “Flashback Friday”. Anyone want to join? It only takes one photo and just a little writing.

When Baylee was little, I still worked as a teacher. Lara, my dearest friend from childhood, worked too as a teacher, both of us doing a “job share”…just not with each other. Lara worked mornings and I worked afternoons so daily we’d flip flop babysitting services for one another, giving our kids 5 days of play dates.



The kids loved playing together (and still do). They especially loved being pushed around whether it be in a laundry basket or in a play car.



Baylee walked before Alyssa, but that didn't stop them from getting around together. Alyssa would just belly crawl to wherever Baylee was (whether Baylee would like it or not...territorial toddler at times). They had their own 'language' spoken too.

Justin was fascinated with Baylee’s thumb sucking and would cuddle with her and give it a try. His thumb tasted “different” and not as “yummy” he’d tell us.


Baylee was born a ‘natural mommy’, we’ve always said that. Here’s an example. Baylee didn’t like dirty diapers and apparently Alyssa had one. Since Ms. Fink was “busy” Baylee took it in her own hands, getting the wipes, changing pad, and a new diaper. Alyssa didn’t mind who was taking care of her. So cute!

I hope you've enjoyed some of the adorable photos of Alyssa, Justin, and Baylee I've pulled out of my archives. It’s been fun strolling down memory lane.

They’ll be forever friends, just like us mommy’s who have known each other for 20 years!