How much dog & cat can you stuff into one bed?

THIS MUCH!!

Klister & Goldie

Hi Mr. Squirrel!!

Mommy, I was just talking to God...

and I told him, 'Thank you, God, for the sun and the earth and the moon.'

Noah's power lines

You can do anything with a shoelace and tinker toys!

Dot, dot, dot is too hot!

We got a new infrared heater to go with our solar and get us off of natural gas. I have been running it for the last 2 months, experimenting to see just how much of our house it will heat (it's only supposed to heat 1,000 sq. ft.). It has a thermostat that you set to your desired temperature. The heating element is either off or on, depending on the thermostat. It also goes into a "screen saver" mode where the numbers disappear and there are only 5 small dots showing.

Noah loves to get warm right in front of the heater and, sometimes, he'll sit down in front of it to play even if he's not cold. Last night, it was pretty toasty in the house and Noah was sitting right in front of the heater. He looked at me with a concerned face and said, "Mommy! Dot, dot, dot is TOO HOT!" :o)

Exercise is good for kids AND dogs!!!

We spent 2 1/2 hours at the dog park this afternoon. It was a mild and wonderful 66 degrees. Noah was on his bicycle, Goldie and I were hoofin' it. I walked so much that I got 2 blisters on my feet, but they were SO worth it! We walked from the parking lot at Chatfield State Park, under the C470 bridge, and back. Dogs have to be leashed on the bike path under C470 and there are signs telling you so. On the way back, we were reading the signs and one said that dogs could now be off their leash, but still had to be "under control" at all times. Noah said, "I don't think Goldie knows she's a dog."

Noah also got to watch a backhoe work on replacing a hydrant. We saw them starting on the way in and then we watched for 20 minutes on the way out. The 2 men decided that Noah should get to check out the backhoe, so they let him climb inside and sit in the seat. One of the men explained how all the controls work. It was so much fun and I think Noah would have been more outwardly excited if he hadn't been absolutely worn out from riding his bike for 2 1/2 hours straight!!!

Tonight at home, Noah and Goldie were both on their best behavior! Even when Ruby the cat was meowing and walking around teasing Goldie, she still just laid on her bed. Any other day, she would have chased Ruby as far as she possibly could!

Exercise is just good for everyone! I don't know how I forget sometimes! :o)

Midwest CEO

Midwest CEO is doing a story on Jason, so they had a photographer meet him in Vail for a quick photo shoot a couple of weeks ago. They're some good looking pictures! http://www.scottcramerphotography.com/midwest_ceo/

Jason sure will be a different looking CEO than the rest of the suits in this publication!! :o)

Ski Beech, Beech Mountain, North Carolina

We'll be going here on the day after Christmas, then heading back to Colorado. They have a cool picture of one of the new guns they bought from us on their homepage. The guns just arrived a few days ago and they say it's making *tons* of snow!!!

http://www.skibeech.com/

Merry Christmas Everybody!

Noah wanted to make a card that said, "Merry Christmas Everybody", but this will have to do!

Thanks God, for sending Jesus!

Love, The Sawins

Kayaking in Gatlinburg, Tennessee

These guys were CRAZY! It was about 10 degrees!

The Polar Express

We went to Bryson City, North Carolina to ride the Polar Express today. They had hot chocolate, dancing and Santa on the train. Noah fell asleep on the train but, when he was awake, he had a great time with Savannah & Stone! There was a great train museum where we spent a lot of time playing with the model trains and a gift store that had lots of fun books and toys. Thanks Grandmama!

I want to live in a country with government healthcare.......NOT!

The Belgian government’s authority over the health and education of its children is deemed by many as a mark of progress toward a “better society” where children’s rights are properly recognized and protected. Those that satisfy the government’s standards live in peace. For the rest, there is no peace, and sometimes, they are not even allowed to live.Since 2002, Belgium has allowed doctors to terminate the lives of infants under the age of 12 months if they feel the baby is somehow disabled or deficient, and is likely to suffer in life as a result.14 More than half of the Belgian babies who die before they are a year old are killed by deliberate medical intervention.15 In 16% of cases, parental consent was not even considered.16 To put these numbers in perspective, the CIA World Fact Book estimates that roughly 106,000 babies are born in Belgium each year.17 Even using conservative estimates of Belgium’s rate of assisted-suicide in infants, one can estimate that some 470 children will die before they celebrate their first birthday. Of these 470, more than 200 will die not from natural causes, but from direct medical intervention. Forty (40) of them will die regardless of their parents’ wishes, objections, or pleadings. Such a program might produce a “better society,” but one is left in horror at the ultimate sacrifice of innocent babies.
Unfortunately, the program has been deemed so “successful” in Belgium that in March 2008, the government began considering legislation that would also make assisted-suicide available to teenagers and younger children who are terminally-ill.

http://www.parentalrights.org/blog/courts-the-law/un3?utm_source=ParentalRights.org+Newsletter&utm_campaign=80463ea401-UNSurvey_002_Dec_2008&utm_medium=email#more-105

We're off!

Going to Tennessee! See ya next year! :o).

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

The Mom song...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMhuAtyFCrw

Mommy, how did God make Jesus?

I don't know, Noah, but maybe you can ask him someday.

Is God Jesus's dad?

Yes.

Do they live in heaven?

Yes, and Jesus can live in your heart too. Is Jesus in your heart?

Yes.

Do you want to make sure?

Yes..............

and Noah and I prayed the sinner's prayer together, just like I did with my mother when I was right around his same age. It's hard to write this through tears of joy. All I hope and pray is that Noah will always have this love for Jesus and not be torn away by the world.

Homeschool Snowmaking Coop

Jason just had to pick the warmest day in a month to do our snowmaking coop, but it all worked out just fine. We had lots of natural snow the day before, so we were able to build a sledding hill off Noah's playground. All the kids had fun and learned a lot. I think Jason had just as much fun teaching the class!

First *real* snow!

Yes, we've had a flake or two already, but it doesn't mean much to us unless we get 6" or more! I think we got 10" in 2 days. :o)

Brian Head Ski Area, Utah

Mt. Baldy Ski Area, California

There are only 2 ways to the top of this mountain. 1st - the chairlift. 2nd - an old, dirt fire road that is no wider than our truck and trailer, that drops off one side so far you can't even see the bottom, what my Momma would call a "leaf ledge", where you know the ground will crumble underneath you at any second, a real nail biter! That's the reason I have NO picutres of the beautiful view on the way up or down. Just the top, where it's safe and there are no cliffs to tumble down!

Choi Cousins

Bennett, Dylann, Noah, Taegan & Zeke
Newport Beach, California