Christmas 2011

We were blessed to have Grandma Carolyn and Grandpa Dennis here two weeks before Christmas. It may have been the first holiday visit here in Ohio since I have been a Zappe. To be fair, we have only been to North Carolina once at the holidays. It is time to be together if possible though 450 miles makes it tough to take off for a quick visit!


We were also able to spend a couple hours at Janets' dads' house on Christmas morning.


This is Quincy and his last location before Santa took him home. We went to the 7:30 Christmas Eve service and Quinten fell hard asleep! I literally carried him down from the balcony and thre large crowds without him waking up! Until we got home of course!!


Santa and Quincy brought a nerf gun! Quinten said Santa must have known waht was on his brain since he did not ask for one but really wanted it.


This was taken just before Lauren's Christmas concert. She looked so lovely and the choir sounded wonderful. Carolyn and Dennis were able to attend which made it more special,

Christmas 2011 was marked by amazing emotional swings. The first Christmas without my mom was sad in so many ways. Yet, I was repeatedly reminded of the peace that comes with being in heaven. Having an image of mom laughing, happy and no worries made me being thankful that she was a christian and is at peace right now.

Quinten on the other spectrum was a complete joy. His excitement and anticipation was a joy! He continued being a happy boy with the ability to be happy with life no matter the circumstances. His elf-Quincy- was pure magic. Every morning he woke up and finding the new location was his first action. Quincy brought a nutcracker back from the North Pole and that solidified his belief system.

Lauren was with us this year for the day. She left the day after to go with her mother to visit her mom's family. Lauren lost her maternal grandmother in addition to losing my mom so it has been a rough year. Lauren and Quinten enjoyed teasing each other though Mark does not like the noise level when they are together! She received several large gifts this year including her class ring and her varsity jacket. We only give a few gifts already so to to have even fewer and not complain shows her maturity. She did say she received quality over quantity though more than once she commented on Quinten's gifts.

Pirates!

Pirate Quinten


Watch out matey!


Aboard the pirate ship for Quinten's birthday!

Pirate mania has come to the Zappe house! It started with the pirate theme birthday party last summer and has continued into the holidays. Quinten's elf on a shelf-Quincy-brought him a pirate nutcracker. This holiday he also received a pirate outfit and pirate bath toys (37 pieces!). Quinten has a wonderful imagination and I love to see him use it.

Gettysburg

What more could Quinten ask for than to see cannons!


Mark's favorite stop!


Despite rain and chill, we had to park in the third parking lot. The inspiring museum could be a full day visit.


Lauren was trying to help Carsen with his ball.


Quinten climbed up Chamberlin's rock to call for the charge!

Mark and I traveled to Pennsylvania for the primary purpose of visiting his brothers and their families. Chris and Jeannie bought a spectacular home in Mechanicsburg. It is very large, bright and beautifully decorated. Mark and I had to share a room with Quinten which worked best for the guys. Mark would fall asleep easily and start snoring. Quinten sang himself to sleep. It was actually adorable listening to his concert. It had all the right notes and always ended strong.

We spent an afternoon at Gettysburg. While the weather initially seemed to not cooperate, it cleared up allowing a battlefield tour second to none! Chris arranged for a tour lead by a Gettysburg College US history professor. Pete obviously loves what he does and truly brought the battle to life. Our worst encounter-cow poop! Some field are loaned out to farmers and the cows had been where we were standing! Mark and I loved all of the history.

The last day we went to Steve and Sarah's house where we watched the OSU vs. Illinois game. As you can imagine that is quite the match up in our house! Ethan Zappe celebrated his third birthday surrounded by Zappe cousins, uncles and aunts. He loves garbage trucks and needed to go no farther than the first gift! The cousins play well together and this always impresses me.

Memory of Mom

A few weeks back Quinten was quite excited to show me his artwork from school. We went out of his room and he gave me this picture. It is my mom and me before she died. He said that he thought that I might want a picture of us together. We are wearing our Eastern Star clothes. The black square is mom's oxygen tank complete with the water to help it run. The line is the tubing from the oxygen compressor to her. When she was alive, she could have the long tubing every where for freedom around the house. What a memory! Quinten is so sweet to me and so very thoughtful. He drew this picture knowing that I miss her and wanted to bring me some comfort.

I still miss my mom a lot. I miss having her unconditional love; her unwavering support; her interest in my life and my family. I have many OK days and some good days remembering her. Yet, I still have days of sadness and pain missing our relationship. No one loves you like your mother and that was certainly true in my case. I am working hard to live in this life and be happy that she is free and living a life without boundaries or poor health. Still, at times like today, I miss her so much I hurt.

Lauren's HS choir concert today made me think of mom. She loved music and would have loved to see the show. The chorale sang "What A Wonderful World" which mom loved. I always think of her when I hear that song. Today the tears ran down my cheek missing her.

Soccer!

Eyeing the goal!


Quinten likes to get in the mix and is not afraid!

Look at him dribble and the concentration on his face.

He also likes to hang back and play defense!

Quinten is playing soccer this year for the Gahanna Football Club. He is on the U-5 team but is actually one of the older kids on his team. They are known as the Backyardigans and play Saturdays with a few Mondays thrown in for fun. The season has had quite a bit of rain so we will play a little later than played. Soccer fields are cold in the early am where no wind is blocked. Janet is not so sure about cheering him on in that weather! Quinten loves to play and loves to study the ball. According to his dad, he is a natural. In his first game he scored 6 goals. All the other parents kept saying they could not believe that he had never played before. Quinten is enjoying the soccer and I am trying to keep that perspective. He wanted to play goalie like his dad but scoring goals was pretty fun also. We are working on being a good sport and sharing the ball with team mates. He is so quick and aggressive and I had not anticipated this at all! Of course, this is U-5 soccer I must remember!

Carolyn's 70th Birthday!

Carolyn's delicious birthday cake!


Jack trying to catch a ball while jumping off the board! Jack is two years older than Quinten and what he can do blows me away!


Quinten's first jump off a diving board!


For some reason, I love this picture!


Lauren and Quinten beat their cousins Matt and Jack in the chicken fight!

This past Labor Day Carolyn (Mark's mother) turned 70. To celebrate she wanted her family together for the long weekend. Janet changed her 15 year annual girls Labor Day trip so that she could join the Maloy's and Zappe brother's for the celebration. Carolyn choose a wonderful home outside of Charlottesville, Virginia to rent for the entire family. This beautiful farm house was very large and had cattle, goats and chickens on the grounds. The pool provided much of the day time activities for the family. The last night Mark wrote a short play and the grand children were the actors. I will try and upload it for your viewing pleasure! Traveling over eight hours is not easy but once again the kids proved to be adept travelers! Returning home the rain was consistent and Mark did all the driving!

Pirate Party!

Quinten drew and I frosted. This a treasure map with an X in the upper corner, a key, a treasure chest and a skull face.


Jumping in the water fountains!


Ahoy Mateys!


Working together to pull a rope.


Quinten is listening so intently. I love how he crossed his legs.

Quinten's 5th birthday was filled with pirates, Star Wars and trains. We went through the Santa Maria which is a replica of the ship Christopher Columbus sailed to the new world. To four and five year old boys, this was a pirate ship. Rather than give gift bags, I found pirate hats and eye patches for them to wear. At one point a teenager from another group said "I am so glad those boys were here. It made the trip so much more interesting"! They were so stinking cute with their enthusiasm. We also ventured down to the new Columbus Commons and played in the water. Later that day we celebrated with family and cake. Uncle Steve and Aunt Alicia gave him a Darth Vader light saber which has sent him over the moon. I will try to upload the video which is hilarious!

Minnesota Pictures

We attempted to ride a surrey bike around Lake Koronis. Unfortunately, they needed 2 business days to confirm the rental. The rental was done all on line so there was not a live person to tak with to make this happen.


The bathing beauties-Lauren, Megan and Sarah!


The Gorman's just outside the cabin-Janet, Quinten, Claire, Suzanne, Patti (notice the sling!), Megan, Dad, Sarah, Mary, Lauren and Audrey.


Quinten swam and swam in the lake. He had swim lessons the day we returned and for the first time he actually went a distance swimming all by himself!

Minnesota Adventures!

Mall of America. Audrey and Quinten go speeding by the race track.


Uncle Bill let Quinten drive his boat!


Lauren swam with my cousin, Dian, 1.8 miles across the lake for her first open water experience.


The kids, and me, took time jumping off the dock bouncing off an octopus. We took turns jumping onto a tentacle and holding on until all eight arms were taken!


The Nehring granddaughters! Janet, Dian, Mary, Jodi, Lori and Suzanne. Patti was there but managed to break her wrist while demonstrating how to jump rope. She ended up having surgery back in Columbus.

Over the 4th of July weekend, Janet took the kids to a Gorman/Nehring party in Paynesville, Minnesota. My mom's family has had a small cabin situated on a deep lot on Lake Koronis. The cabin goes back several generations and has not been updated. Dad decided he wanted to take one last vacation up there and invited all who wanted to go to join him. Growing up, we went twice per five year interval. We always had a wonderful time up there with all the Nehring relatives. The cabin was a special place for mom and she loved having her family use it. There is no tv, air conditioning, electronics, dish washer or much of a shower but none of those items really mattered. We doubled up with sleeping and the kids were on air mattresses and Lauren preferred a couch for her bed. Fun, fun, fun! The kids entertained themselves and everyone got along playing and cooperating. Dad drove ~850 miles with four granddaughters in later June. The adults along with the Zappe kids arrived at the very end of June. We did go to the Mall of America which was a great deal of fun for everyone. The amusement rides were quite fun and the lines were not that long. With three teenagers present, the mall stood no chance!

Lauren's 15th Birthday

Our 15 year old!


Lauren loves her little brother no matter what she says to us!


A tri-color cake. Lauren has always liked color and this yer she chose three colors for her frosting. Since her birthday fell over Mother's Day weekend, we celebrated shortly after her actual birthday. It was a low keyed affair with dinner, dessert and presents.

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Father's Day

Back from the camping trip-all smiles!


Father and son getting the sandcastle tools together!


Sunday afternoon back on our porch.


Isn't this how Father's Day should be spent?

Father's Day found us at Alum Creek State Park. This was the 2nd straight year for camping over the weekend. Friday it rained so hard that you could not see the road while driving. Luckily, Mark and Quinten drove up earlier to set up the camp site. We were also pleased to note that the camper did not have a single leak! Lauren joined us Saturday afternoon while it was still raining. Late afternoon and evening brought sunshine and comfortable temperatures. We have been slacking with the camping as this was the only time the camper has been out this year.

Easter!

Our family before Easter dinner.


Outside our house after finding Quinten's basket.


Part of the Easter Egg hunt group!


We did not plan the color scheme but isn't nice they match?!


My dad with some of his grandchildren.

Easter was very bittersweet this year for me. In my heart I know that my mom is with God and loving her new life. My grief continues deep for the earthly loss of my mother. Easter is about our Lord's Resurrection and His gift to us who believe. Quinten continues to pray for his grandma in heaven and asks God to keep her alive in his heart.

In a much lighter note, we hosted an egg hunt at our house for 14 children! I had not planned for that many children but everyone accepted my invitation. Given Quinten's peanut and tree allergies we decided to have a hunt where we knew the treats were all safe for him. The rain made us change plans and the kids hunted early for the eggs. They played inside and put together a few craft activities. In addition to 14 children, we had 14 adults so the noise level and activity level was high! Mark says we are holding this at a park next year!